Chapter 31: The Foxy Rebel Leader: Decepition from Within
Ladius came into the war room where four men greeted him and gave him a report on the situation so far.
"And that concludes my report. Do you have any questions?" Hailzen, a noble and commander of Grungund asked Ladius.
"No." Ladius responded his only word.
"Then I must ask you to assume your post immediately." Hailzen ordered.
Gilliam, a 60 year old man and a noble of House Maurice stated "My land has fallen into disarray. I should be the one to lead the punitive forces, but my borders are in chaos."
Ladius nodded and responded with "I understand. To deal with a ragtag band of rebels such as this is beneath a man of your stature."
Gilliam smirked and told Ladius "Your words are reassuring. I leave it to you then."
"If you will excuse me." Ladius did his family's salute as he left the war room.
Hykezatt, another noble and good friend of House Busser turned to Hailzen and Gilliam with a questionable look and demanded "Why would you have Ladifour lead the punitive forces at a time like this? I never approved such a thing."
Hailzen calmly placed his hands in a familiar impression and told Hykezatt "That may be, but the fact remains that the border forces are immobile."
Hykezatt was skeptic of this and retorted with "Surely you could have sent someone else."
Hailzen smirked darkly and countered with "This matter had already been decided. What do you seek to accomplish with this pointless argument? Besides, Ladifour himself has agreed to and accepted the decision. I fail to see the problem." Hykezatt remained silent. "If we are done here, we must be getting back to our current affairs." Hailzen finished.
Back with Ladius, Renee was waiting for him outside, she greeted him with "How did it go?"
Ladius smiled softly at her which made her blush a little and told her "I have accepted to deal with the rebels. Gather the troops and we'll leave at noon." Ladius then decided to ask Renee some questions. "Renee... Did you regain bits of your memories during your time here?"
Renee shook her head and answered with "Just a little. It's just like Dyshana said when I was traveling with your father, as me and some others who have lost their memories travel with your and your descendants, our memories will return. I recently regain some memories of me being a Mew Mew in a Earth that is not the Earth with Summerill's accursed Outbreak. The others are still a blur, but I'm getting there." She smiled slightly.
"I see..." Ladius nodded and continued with "I owe both you and Ellis for raising me properly and helping me in fulfilling my destiny. Once we accomplished what needs to be done in this continent, we will find a way to remove the trinkets of Summerill off you and the others."
"I shall hold on to your word, Ladius." Renee smiled as she did the Ragian family's salute (AKA The Attack on Titan salute)
It was then, a woman of 24 years of age, has reddish pink hair that reminded Renee of someone she knew, wore a violet breastplate that shows bits of her cleavage, white skirt violet gloves, a black headband and a black ribbon tied in a ponytail ran up to Ladius and Renee. Her name is Valeria.
"Ladius, I heard the news. Why have you agreed to lead the punitive force against the rebels?" Valeria asked in distress.
Ladius sighed and responded with "It is not my place to refuse a direct order from the king himself."
"Do you really understand the situation?" Valeria argued.
Ladius nodded and told her "Of course, which is exactly the reason why I could not refuse."
Valeria remained silent as she was doubtful about this. She finally spoke after 4 seconds with "Ladius, please do not be hasty."
Ladius smiled softly at Valeria which made her blush a hint of red and reassured her "The rebel forces are few in number. I will return before you notice I am gone. Valeria, our country has been split in two. You must see to it that the situation does not worsen."
"You do not need to tell me that." Valeria did her own salute with a soft smile.
Ladius smiled and replied with "My apologizes." His smile faded as he got serious and said "It is time I began my journey..."
"Yes, of course." Valeria nodded as Ladius and Renee left, Valeria looked down despondently as she watched her childhood friend go.
In Grungund's shops, Renee and Ellis were getting some supplies for the journey and to leave this kingdom because of what may happen if they returned.
Renee turned to Ellis with a soft smile and commented with "You have grown, Ellis. You're now a adult and still look youthful despite being a high elf."
Ellis closed her eyes and smiled and said to Renee "Thanks, I have you and Leo to thank, Renee. But Renee, you still look the same ever since you have become immortal with Summerill's trinket. And you're still beautiful and young."
Before Renee can comment on that, the two foster mothers of Ladius heard a commotion, they exited the shop to see a man of 17 years old, has red long hair, wore white noble like clothes with a picture of a bull like demon on the back, a woman of 16 years old, brown long hair, wore brown clothes and has a staff were running away from someone. Renee and Ellis also noticed that they have bracelets similar to Renee and some otherworlders, but only with red and brown.
"Halt! Who are you two?" A Grungund soldier shouted as he and two more soldiers were running towards them.
The red haired man snarled and shouted "Damn it! They don't give up! That's it! I'm gonna destroy 'em."
"They have us outnumbered. If they put up wanted posters, we could have the entire kingdom hunting for us." The brown haired woman said calmly, a bit chilly.
"So, you have any brilliant ideas?!" The red haired man snapped at the brown haired woman. The woman noticed a alleyway with some puddles, probably from rain or dropped water.
"Let's hide here." She suggested.
"Like hell! These are my favorite shoes! I'm not gonna ruin them."
The brown haired woman sighed before shaking her head and muttered "Do as you please. Just don't expect me to rescue you when they arrest you." The woman then walked into the hiding place.
"Gah, what's your problem? Fine, you want me to hide, I'll hide! Jeez!" The red haired man growled as he followed the woman.
The soldiers looked for the two. "Where did they go?!" A first soldier shouted.
"They couldn't have gone far! Search the city!" A second soldier ordered as the three soldiers scattered off to find the two.
Renee and Ellis ran up to the two fugitives in hiding.
"Looks like we lost them." The woman sighed in relief before noticing Renee and Ellis. "Oh hello there." She greeted the two.
"Um... Hello." Ellis looked away shyly.
"C'mon, let's go." The man said gruffly as he and the woman ran off.
"What was that about?" Ellis asked, eyebrows raised and confused on what happened.
"Dunno. But the Grungund soldiers were in a fuss on capturing on those two. But did you see those bracelets that are like mine and the others?" Renee pointed out as she held her arm up where her bracelet is glowing purple, indicating that those two must be bearing Summerill's trinkets.
"Yes. By the way your bracelet is glowing, those two must be wearing some of Summerill's trinkets, meaning they're cursed." Ellis nodded. "That woman who was running was the one I liked. The red haired man... He reminded me of Tokai."
"Let's chat with them next time we see them, okay? Right now, we need to prepare to crush the rebels. But I feel bad crushing them... They must have a reason for starting a rebellion." Renee looked up to the sky.
"Yeah... Let's meet up with Ladius and the others." Ellis nodded as the two of them head towards the meeting place where Ladius and the rest of Ragian's Army is waiting.
While walking down Laruen Rook Way, South, they came across some menacing enemies, well, one menacing looking dragon and some blue slimes that have dog snouts.
"Dogoos and a Ancient Dragon!" Noire gawked, just the thought of those Dogoos make her shudder.
"And some boney enemies from this world to boot!" Neptune added.
"Enemies from Neptune's world, I presume?" Ladius frowned as he unsheathed his family's sword.
"Shall we take care of them?" Winfield suggested as he loaded his gun.
It was then Vashtor stepped forward.
(Reluctant Heroes from Attack on Titan plays)
"No..." Vashtor began coldly as he unsheathed his sword, a dark blade of unknown origin. "Allow me to take care of these weak beasts..." He walked towards the Gamindustri monsters in cold fashion.
"Are you sure we should let this Vashtor take on these beasts by himself?" Barnette asked skeptically.
"We have seen his power when Ladius was a child." Kirito reassured her as he and Asuna looked at Vashtor ready for battle.
"There's something I don't like about Vashtor..." Tokai muttered as he folded his arms and glared at Vashtor.
"Is it because he beaten you in sword combat?" Paiway smirked tauntingly.
"Shut up!" Tokai snapped.
With Vashtor, the dogoos were ready to pounce on the mysterious warrior while the skeletal warriors were about to strike him down.
"You beasts will not get blood on my sword in a instant..." Vashtor mused coldly as he slashed through the dogoos and skeletons in a speed of light.
"He's fast!" Lloyd gawked in shock and amazement.
The Ancient Dragon growled as it swipes its claws at Vashtor, but the mysterious warrior leaped up and slams his sword down onto the dragon's neck, causing the Ancient Dragon to fall down and die.
Vashtor got his sword out of the dragon's neck and frowned as he sees blood on the blade. "Tch... How disappointing..."
"Good work, Vashtor." Ladius smiled as he gave him a thumbs up. "Let us move on."
After clearing the road of rebels, they stopped at the Kishuna Road Fork where a event will take place.
A rebel soldier spotted Ragian's Army coming up the fork. "Is that...? Damn, the punitive force is here already!" He noticed the flag of House Busser. "Is that no the flag of House Busser? Orders! We need orders! We cannot fight House Busser here, retreat!" The rebel soldiers escaped for their lives.
Winfield whistled and commented "More than just a ragtag band of rebels it seems."
Vira-Lorr sighed and added "If this display of force has not frightened them into submission, that could be a problem."
Winfield turned to Ladius and asked "What next, oh lord and commander? From here, we must proceed on foot."
Ladius thought about it for about 20 seconds and answered with "If they insist on fighting, then we have no choice. I have been sent to take care of the rebel forces."
Vashtor stepped forward and said "We shall catch them off guard. Make sure all the soldiers know." He began walking in cold fashion again.
"Vashtor is too diligent, but perhaps too serious." Kat commented as she crossed her arms. 'He reminds me of Raven when we first met in my world...'
"You have a point there, Kat." Ellis nodded. "The young man is quite diligent."
"Almost revoltingly so." Winfield added.
"They say he has lost his memory like some of us otherworlders, and has no place to go. I suppose we owe our lives to that." Renee stated.
"His memory loss seems to be genuine. He would make a frightening enemy, but make a reassuring ally." Zerva commented.
"Until his memory returns, we need to trust him for now." Jak advised.
"Yeah, but there's something about Vashtor that I don't like... I don't know what it is, but I still don't trust him..." Houki frowned as she folded her arms.
After this conversation was done with, the gang entered the rebels' stronghold on the Tannus Mountains.
Vashtor surveyed their positions. He smirked and commented "Retreating into the mountains may have given us the advantage, but our forces are spread too thin."
Ladius stepped forward and called out "I beg you, surrender! Once you have done so, we will listen to your grievances. Even if we are in the wrong, bringing your weapons to bear us will only serve to condemn you."
A rebel solider growled and snarled "You have the nerve to say such a thing after all you've done to us?! Then I ask you: Why have you let such a evil ruler run free!? You say you would listen, but can you not see that our actions here represents the words of the people? Take care of that villain, and then we shall talk!"
"You sunava-" Tokai growled, just as he was about to unsheathed his Vanguard Sword, Ladius raised his hand to stop him.
He told the rebel soldier "What you say may be true. But I ask you-will vengeance solve your problems? Or merely assuage your wounded egos?"
That only got the rebel soldiers angry. "Pretty words from a foolish noble! You are not with us; you are with them! You will die like the dog you are!"
Just as a brawl was about to commence, a calm but husky voice said "Hold." It was then, a 23 year old woman with blond hair, wearing a revealing purple dress with her belly button, black long gloves with white fluffs, a belt around her right leg with a knife, high heeled boots, but what made her stand out is her yellow fox ears and tail that reminded Ellis and some of Leo's allies of Renee's Mew Mew form. Jean and Daxter whistled pervertedly at this fox woman's chest.
This fox woman smirked and said calmly "Soldiers of House Busser. Do you truly think you can defeat us?" She winked at Ladius which made Ellis and Renee mad a bit. "And you. You call yourself a commander?"
"I am Ladifour von Busser, but my real name is Ladius Ragian. Why is a woman like you with the rebel forces?" Ladius demanded.
"Oh, are you concerned for me?" The fox woman asked, eyebrows raised, but giggled playfully and corrected him "I am flattered, but let me assure you your concern is unnecessary." The fox woman then introduced herself with a slight bow. "I am Sherufanir. You can call me their advisor."
Ladius frowned and replied with "Then let them know that if they desire a fight, we will not refuse them."
Sherufanir sighed and responded with "I thought as much. Please consider, however, their reason to fight." Sherufanir let out a playful smirk and added "Have you not heard? Taxes have risen from 50 percent to 70 percent because of the civil war." That caught most of the gang off guard.
"What?! Taxes should not exceed 50 percent during a crisis! And even then, only for a fixed period of time!" Ladius gritted his teeth in surprise.
"According to the king's orders, yes. However, many landowners do not receive the scrutiny they should." Sherufanir stated coolly.
"But landowners are required to make reports. Making false claims is a capital crime. No one would risk that." Ladius argued.
"They would and they do. The king is a fool, and allows all affairs of the state to be handled by noblemen.' Sherufanir smirked as she added "I ask you, what kind of man places the fox in charge of the henhouse?"
"Well, I suppose... However..." Ladius was conflicted by this, making Ellis and Renee worry.
"I knew you would understand. So, will you let us go this time, yes?" Sherufanir blew a kiss at him.
"I cannot. These are different issues!" Ladius protested as he gripped on his sword. "If we allow this rebellion to continue, more will follow. If this leads to war, innocent people will suffer. We cannot allow that to happen." Ladius then added "Let me handle this. I shall prepare a location to talk. Please, lay your weapons down." He reasoned.
"You may be right, but it is difficult to put one's hand down once it has been raised." Sherufanir smirked coolly.
"You meant to fight, no matter what." Noire frowned as she, Neptune and Vert transformed.
"We both wish to avoid pointless bloodshed, so I purpose that we settle this one-on-one." Sherufanir offered.
"This seems familiar..." Ed sighed as he shook his head.
"Very well. I will fight you one-on-one. If I win, you will order the rebels to lay down their weapons." Ladius explained the rules.
"And if I win... Ah, I got it! If I win, you and your army will join our rebellion."
"Ladius!" Ellis protested. Ladius held his hand up to stop her.
"It will be fine, Ellis. In return, we will insure that they keep to their word." Ladius reassured the grown high elf.
"Likewise." Sherufanir nodded with a cool smirk.
"Of course. I give my word, in the name of House Busser, and in the names of my father and mother, Leonhardt and Fyuria!" Ladius unsheathed his sword and got ready.
"Ladius!" Ellis protested, but Renee stopped her.
"Let it go, Ellis. He knows what he's doing. It may be rash, but Ladius is no pushover. Remember, he has inherited his father's strength along with Dyshana's." Renee reassured her, Ellis nodded slowly.
To be continued...
Next chapter: Accused of Treason: The Exile Warrior