A/N Thank you very much to everyone that read and a special thanks to Exum and Grayjack72. It looks like I'm covering two chapters of Path of Radiance with each written chapter, though I'm not sure if it will continue this way.
Disclaimer: If I owned the series, we'll it would have taken later to come out, let's leave it at that.
Ike had been right about the Apostle having another mission for them, this time it was dealing with bandits in the Grann desert. He had been advised by Sigrun that those on horseback would find it difficult to travel. What had surprised him was that Soren hadn't already told him this information. He seemed to have been distracted about something, as he spent most of his time in the library, according to Mist. What he did not understand was why Soren would not talk to him.
The mercenaries found the 'bandits' who claimed that they were dogs of the senate and were trying to hide the truth. This made Ike suspicious of the actual orders and ordered everyone to leave the bandits alive once defeated if possible. Jill had been the only one to complain, but he noticed that after her initial grumbling that she did not go against orders. Of course, the fact that Marcia stayed with her probably helped.
Ike had decided to keep the group mostly together, except for the two thieves who were finding treasure. Lethe also broke off, following after the two fliers while Mordokai volunteered to protect Mist, much to the commander's relief.
As they closed in on the boss, two hawk and tiger laguz attack them. They were heavily injured by Soren's and Ilyana's fire magic, as Boyd and Nephenee struck to remove them from the fight. Ike had then taken down the enemy leader, using the laguz-slayer Volke had pilfered from a Daein commander in Toha. He may have been able to stand up against the enemy without it, but he wanted to end the fight quickly. It took four passes and a heavily bleeding leg, but Muarim had lost.
The rest of the bandits surrendered and Tormod, a beorc mage, placed himself in defense of the tiger. This led to an illuminating discussion explaining that the group was rescuing laguz slaves that the nobles were still keeping against the law.
Ike then delivered the boy to meet Sanaki and there learned that there was another person willing to insult the Apostle. After confirming the truth about Sanaki using them for a good cause, he had Soren and Titania prepare the supplies while grabbing those that he felt were needed to investigate one of the senators, who the Apostle had suspicion was part of the slave keeping. Oscar had to stay since Kieran had decided to injury himself and it was not worth the effort in convincing the man he was not being passed over for his rival. Jill and Marcia stayed back, mostly due to the fact their mounts needed rest. Tormod demanded loudly to him that he should come, to prove that he could help. Muarim also offered to help as he wanted to free any captured slaves.
The next person he met in the group's area was a swordsman named Stefan, who had joined last mission, after greeting him, he helped Ike with his swordsmanship, which gave Ike enough of a reason to trust him, even if he hadn't asked Ike directly to group going was now formed of two mages, one healer, Titania, one myrmidon, as Zihark didn't feel up to his best and Mia was unable to be found, surprising Ike, one knight, as Brom wanted to talk to Zihark, Nephenee, Boyd, Sothe, he didn't want to spend anymore time looking for Volke, and he probably would shadow the group anyways, Muarim, and lastly himself.
Soren suggested that he explain to Makalov his position in the mercenaries, that way he would not go off and gamble money he did not have. As Ike moved through the area given to the mercenaries, he found the man talking to himself and had been able to surprise him with the news. It was fortunate at he had planned to start to pretend to have problems, which left the leader deciding to find someone else. Marcia will hopefully kick him into gear for the next mission he was needed for.
As he walked past the archery range the mercenaries were given to use, he saw Astrid working on her bow and one of the targets had five arrows sticking out of it near the bulls-eye.
"Hey, Astrid, how goes the practice? More comfortable with your bow now?" She looked up and smiled at the blue-haired mercenary.
"While at the practice range yes, but since my horse would be unable to move swiftly enough to come with you to the desert, I am unsure about actual battle." She explained as she finished her maintenance on the bow. Mentally counting over the number of people coming, Ike made a snap decision.
"I guess it is a good thing that you're coming then, I would like you to come when we investigate Oliver. Unless you believe that you are not up for it." He walked over to pull the arrows out, he had seen Shinon practice enough to know what to do. Of course, he wasn't sure if it didn't matter how someone pulled them out, but he didn't want to take the chance.
"I would be honored to come, Commander." She replied as she stood and replaced the arrows he handed back to her into her quiver. "I never thanked you for letting me help with the dinner lessons, especially since I was not needed after the second one. It was pleasant talking to you and your sister."
"No need to thank me, at least you had some enjoyment out of it. While the help was greatly appreciated, I doubt I will have to deal with any social outings." Ike explained as he made a final check of the weapons he was carrying.
"Well you never know, you may have to go to something in Crimea after stopping Ashnard." She paused and looked down at her bow, before continuing, "the offer to stay with the company is still valid after you head for Daein, correct Commander?"
"Of course, unless you want to leave?" She shook her head as he smiled. "That's good, then perhaps if I need a refresher later, you'll help." She looked up and nodded. With that, the two met up with the rest of those going, as Mist walked over and talked with Astrid, something about learning how to ride was all Ike could hear. Normally Soren would be explaining everything he needed to know, but he was still distracted by something. At least this time he did not have time to hide in the library, after this he needed to talk to him about what was wrong. Since he doubted anyone else would be able to get him to open up.
Ike and Soren had been the only two to stay with Oliver as the senator showed them around. The others separated into pairs, as Sothe used Tormod as cover for searching while the two pretended to be bored children, Astrid ended up being escorted by Gatrie, much to Titania's and Ike's amusement, since they realized that Astrid had no clue that the blue-armored knight was crushing on her. Boyd went with Nephenee as he seemed a bit miffed that Mist was going with Titania, and lastly Stefan went with Muarim, who seemed to be annoyed at himself for some reason.
Oliver screamed suspicious with how he hard he protested his innocence. It was confirmed when Mist and Titania saw a laguz trying to escape in an upstairs room. Oliver chose his punishment by ordering the guards to kill the messengers. Ike wasn't surprised by the stupid senator, being willing to throw his subordinates' lives away to protect his position. However, the group was at a disadvantage as the others were in different parts of the mansion.
"We need to find Tormod and Sothe especially, they are the most in danger." While Sothe could dodge, a knife rarely worked well for blocking a lance or axe. Tormod was untested in the group, though Muarim had vouched for the child mage. The group rounded a corner and found Astrid riding away from an axmen as Gatrie was taking a blow from one of the other two bandits.
"Commander." Astrid slowed her horse as Titania intercepted the axman, after blocking his initial swing, she crashed her own ax onto the enemy's skull. The man stumbled back, bleeding from the blow and found himself being dropped as Ike rammed him in the abdomen. Jerking the sword out of the body, he moved to protect Soren as the mage blasted one of Gatrie's attackers. However, it was unnecessary as they had ignored them before being struck down.
"Are you two alright?" Ike asked as Mist ran over to Gatrie, who had a few visible cuts where his armor had not been enough protection.
"Of course, I would not allow a lady of such caliber as Astrid to be injured." Gatrie explained while gesturing to Mist to help Astrid.
"Um… thank you, Gatrie." Astrid bit her lip as Ike rolled his eyes while moving towards the center of the mansion.
"The rest of the group might be in trouble, we need to hurry up." With that the group continued on, with Titania taking the lead for the group while Gatrie trudged along at the rear. Around the next couple of corners, the group found Boyd standing there with Nephenee, whose shield showed signs of magic damage.
"We took care of two mages here, haven't seen anyone else yet, Ike." Boyd explained as the two fell into position behind Titania, with Mist checking over Nephenee's injuries. "Also, one of the room sounded like there was fighting but by the time we got there, two of the Duke's men were dead and the treasure was taken."
"Probably Volke's work, he's more skilled than he let's on." Soren commented as Titania slowed her horse down as the sounds of clanking armor signaled the enemies approach from the next area. Boyd took the front as he prepared to make a wall with Titania protecting the back-lines as Astrid took aim while giving room for Soren to pass ahead, muttering as he prepared a spell.
Both sides reached the corner at the same time, as Titania had to slam her axe into the enemy's lance to block, which caused a small break in the metal, ending it's usefulness. Boyd was able to dodge the attack against him, which he responded to by charging in and slashing into the armor, which penetrated the enemy's defenses and wounded him. The attack was followed up by a blast of wind that sundered into the armor as the man stumbled back and fell.
Titania grabbed the large hammer attached to the saddle and swung into her enemy, whose lance glanced off of her armor, her blow collided as the man visible shook, forcing him to pull the lance back to defend himself. His defense was short lived as an arrow slammed into his neck between two armor plates. With that, he joined his companion on the floor, dead. The group stopped as they heard sounds of yells from the rear.
"Reinforcements must have seen out handy work. Gatrie, Titania, cover the rear while the rest of us move on ahead." Ike ordered as the clanking of armor started to wane as the group found themselves in the main room where another knight, three archers, one of which a had seasoned look to how he held his bow, three mages, and lastly a healer were baring down on the group.
Nephenee moved forward with Ike to cover the group as Boyd grabbed a hand axe while Astrid took position behind Ike as Soren and Mist waited for the initial clash before reacting. The knight took aim with his lance and connected with Ike's shoulder as his hissed in pain, the blow knocked his aim off as his swing went wild. Nephenee was having similar problems as two arrows struck her, grazing an arm and a leg on her left side, the last arrow embedded itself in her shield.
One of the mages started to chant a spell, but before finishing, Boyd's axe had connected, leave the man crippled from the waist down as Astrid's arrow finished the job. The other two were able to finish as a blast of lightning flew from above Ike, which he barely dodged, unfortunately, the other mage scorched him with fire magic. He grimaced and shifted to prepare an attack on the knight again. This time he was able to parry the lance swing as a blast of wind slammed in the knight, which gave him the opportunity to stab with his sword into one of the weak points in the armor. He noticed that Boyd and Astrid had dropped another mage while Nephenee had closed the distance with the sniper and with two quick stabs, dropped the bow-wielder.
Another blast of magic caught him, as his injuries prevented him from making the usually successful dodge. The knight again tried to hit Ike, who ducked down and swung up, his sword catching the knight in the joint at the knee, drawing more blood. Soren finished him off with another blast of wind, which sent the knight flying back a foot, as Ike felt his injuries starting to vanish, the bright blue light from Mist's staff glowing behind him. Looking over the enemy, he noticed the priest laying down his staff with his hands up. The injuries vanished as the sound of people running drew the mercenaries' attention. The last members of the group ran up with someone new, with a few cuts on Muarim's and Sothe's arms, the other three avoided taking any damage.
"Ike, this is Devdan, he was being held by Oliver as a slave, I figured it would be okay if he joined us, right?" Ike nodded before turning to the last enemy that was still willing to fight, a general carrying multiple spears.
Boyd pointed at himself and then Soren, before pointing at the general, Ike waved him forward as he grabbed Nephenee's attention, to prepare to cover them. Devdan handed Nephenee a spear designed to injure armored units before she joined Ike in covering them. It became unnecessary as Boyd successfully was able to provoke the enemy leader into making a poor throw which was swiftly followed by a magical blast that disabled the man before Boyd finished him of with a swing. Stefan and Muarim covered the rear from where Ike and company had arrived while Ike walked inside.
He hadn't been expecting to find the heron to be as abrasive as he was, and what genocide was he talking about? As he walked out, he found Titania and Gatrie back, neither sporting any injuries.
"Ike, where is the heron?" Titania wondered as she gave the commander a look over.
"He took off, mentioning something about a genocide, we need to see the Apostle, immediately." With that the mercenaries left the grounds, while Oliver had escaped, they had proof of Oliver's transgressions. As the group left the grounds, Ike found Astrid and asked,
"Do you know what genocide the heron was talking about?" Since the only other person he knew of from the group that might know was tending to her pegasus right now.
"Well, I heard that the Serenes forest was burnt down about 20 years ago. However, I do not know anything else about the event." She explained while fiddling with her hands. Soren walked over and added,
"If there is a lack of information, it points to Begnion having involvement and that they believe their action was incorrect. That fits with how they have handled other situations, if my reading of Begnion history is correct." Ike nodded as he concentrated on staying calm, as it wouldn't do to explode on the Apostle, though he had a feeling it wouldn't affect anything right now.
He ended up being right, as even though he interrupted the Apostle without announcing himself, they still learned the truth of the massacre. The former Apostle had been killed and the death was blamed on the herons. The stupidity of the masses came from the fact that the herons were physically unable to fight.
However, Ike soften a bit, as it was obvious from Sanaki's expressions that she was truly saddened by her people's actions, even if she had nothing to do with them. The group had spent the night working on gather supplies for the next day, the senator would not be able to rally his men fast enough to find the heron tonight. Titania was put in charge of making sure that all the mercenaries were prepared, not out trying to gamble or drink. Soren, bless his heart, willing volunteered to buy the supplies and armaments the group needed, preventing Aimee from attempting to convince Ike of going on a date with her.
Ike listened to Titania and relaxed in his room, after chasing his sister out who was bugging him about getting a new shirt, since his normal one had a hole. He was surprised to find a note, which gave him a chuckle, Volke had charged him 150 gold for opening the door and two chests. It seems he was still uncomfortable with being around others. His quiet was interrupted by a knock, he grumbled as he stood up and went to the door. As he opened the door, he was surprised to find one of the servants of a senator here. The man bowed before speaking,
"Excuse me, Ike, my master wishes to speak to you, are you free this evening?" Ike looked around before deciding that perhaps seeing if the man knew about Oliver's attempt at enslaving a heron might be worth a shot. Agreeing to the meeting, Ike paced to his sister's room and knocked. She opened the door and her eyes widened but stayed quiet.
"Mist, could you make some tea? One of the senators wishes to speak to me and I wish to show I'm not as ignorant as he thinks." Ike asked as he made a quick scan of the room, nope no one else was there, he wasn't interrupting anything.
"Sure, bring it to your room?" He nodded and muttered his thanks as he rushed back. Once he reached his room, he placed his swords next to his chair and moved his dirty shirt under the bed. At least the man couldn't complain about the state of the room and woe be him if he complained about the tea. Since it was the one thing Mist was better at than Oscar.
He sat still, which was becoming difficult with each minute passing by, after five minutes, fortunately for him, he heard a knock and went to open it. The older man with blonde hair and mustache let himself in as he glanced around the room, hmming to himself at the state of the not so perfectly made bed and the swords stacked behind the chair.
"Ah, yes, you are the leader of Elincia's mercenaries, Ike, correct? I am Senator Lekain, I do not believe we have been formally introduced."
"No we have not senator, it is an honor to meet you. I have sent for tea, it should be here shortly." Lekain looked surprised at the mercenary leader who was controlling his emotions. The last line came from a suggestion to Astrid during one of the dinners since if he needs to meet senators then at least he would have a decent opening line. Which for most of them would all he really needed to say.
Lekain's response was interrupted as Mist knocked and Ike opened it as she placed the cups down and poured. Ike mouthed thank you when Lekain could not notice as she excused herself. He started to tense as he drank some of the tea to cover his reaction.
"This tea is quite exquisite for a mercenary band, did you hire her just for cooking?" Lekain questioned as his eyes had watched her go, Ike had to control the urge to clench his fist, it wouldn't do to break the fancy cups that Astrid gave the mercenary camp so that Gatrie would not need to pay for her trip.
"No, she is my sister, and actually another of the mercenaries does the cooking and she learned from him." He responded while staring at the tea in fascination.
"I see, it seems that your band of mercenaries has grown in numbers, have you by chance recruited anyone interesting while in Begnion?" Lekain asked, his eyes locking on the other person's in the room.
"A sword knight that now owes us the money he used to owe his debtors and a swordsman of great strength, other than that, nothing else besides perhaps some weaponry received at fair value." He replied, not wanting to give away either the new freed man, Devdan, or Astrid, whose family might have the resources to attempt to force her back.
"Would I perchance know this swordsman?" Ike shook his head. "I see, would it be possible for me or one of my men to meet with your little band? I have heard a great many things about them and was wondering if they are interested in perhaps a less dangerous, but more lucrative lifestyle?" Lekain threw out as his grin became predatory.
"We will be busy, as the Apostle has asked us for a mission, though I will let my men know if they are interested to go inquire at your office I assume?" Ike added as kept his face neutral.
"I see, so what type of missions have you been going on for our Sacred Apostle?" Lekain pondered as he kept his gaze on the mercenary.
"She wished to see if Elincia's declaration of our skill was correct." He replied, his nerves started to run wild inside his mind. It also didn't help he was speaking much more formally than he preferred.
"I see, and your Princess gains favor from her in the process. Very well, I have wasted both our times long enough. I will see myself out." Lekain commented as he left the teacup and walked to the door. "One last question, where did you receive the tea set from?"
"One of my men wanted to repay me for allowing a favor and thus offered up the cup that was received as payment for a personal mission." Ike explained, Astrid had received it for a birthday gift, but her parents probably had others like them. The answer seemed to be acceptable to the senator who opened the door and left. Grabbing the cups, Ike left his room and returned them to the kitchen area.
Along the way, he ran into Soren, who was coming from the supply area.
"Ike, I just saw one of the senators leave. What did he want with us?" Soren followed him into the kitchen area as he found a place for the cups.
"He came by and asked if we had recruited anyone interesting, also, he wanted to talk to the rest of the group. Something seems off." He replied as they left.
"I do know that all of Makalov's debts have been paid off and it would be pointless for a senator to come when an advisor would be sufficient." Soren frowned before continuing, "While we are confirming the nobility of breaking the laws about laguz slaving, coming here himself when a subordinate would have been enough. Perhaps he expected that you would have appreciated the personally meeting. Though I think he was looking for someone, perhaps he owes the Damiell family a personal favor. I would suggest checking with Astrid about it, while the Apostle offered full support for Elincia's effort once we capture Oliver, it might be helpful not to become involved in a family dispute. He could delay supplies or extra troops we might need, if they must deliberate about it in the senate." Soren offered before walking back to his room.
Ike stewed on the words while preparing for bed. Either way, he should watch out for anyone spying on the mercenaries. He also would have to find time to talk to both Soren and Astrid, since either topic would not be good to mention in front of others.
There's chapter two, I hope you enjoyed it and if you feel called, please review.