INTERLUDE 1
"The eastern front of the war has been completely lost," stated General Aurelia Le Guin. Standing next to her was Brigadier General Bardias.
Before them was Rufus Albarea, Chief of Staff of the Noble Alliance, sitting at his desk, with the same serene expression he was always known for as if the deadliest pair in all of Erebonia had not just walked into his office in Heimdallr. Specifically, the office of the late Chancellor Osborne at Valflame Palace.
More than once, Wallace had remarked to Aurelia that it took serious guts to take the office of the man they had just killed the previous month without any ceremony.
"The eastern front, which was under my purview, you mean," he replied to the Golden Rakshasa's steely gaze.
"Indeed."
"Ha! You really are one to never measure words, General. But yes, I do agree that my recent handling of the eastern side of the war has been less than successful, which in turn puts more pressure on the west. For that, I apologize."
"Apologies are unnecessary, Lord Rufus. The blocades established by your men in the eastern side of the capital and Trista are still remarkable ones, and, unlike us, you had to contend with the Ashen Knight. This war is still far from over, Nortia's shift into neutrality could always be abandoned and we still have our own Azure Chevalier."
Both knew that they were dancing around one another. There wasn't a single speck of dust worthy of trust between Aurelia Le Guin and Rufus Albarea.
"But that isn't the only reason we are here," said Wallace Bardias. "That gigantic tree that sprouted in Crossbell, so massive it can be seen selges away from the border. The photos of it alone are something that begs belief and make the Azure Knight seem nothing more than a toy."
"From what I hear, panic is rapidly spreading in the east-most towns," Aurelia continued. "Some are fearing a repeat of the Orbal Shutdown Phenomenon from Liberl except in a much grander scale."
"Yes, that is quite troublesome. The panic, that is, Duke Cayenne has assured that the tree is quite harmless to the people of Erebonia and Crossbell. So there is nothing to fear, Marquis Rogner and my brother can handle the citizens' concerns."
And just like that, Rufus had let them know how much he knew about the true nature of the tree and they didn't. How bothersome these games were, why couldn't she simply challenge him to a duel and cut the man down where he stood?
"Could it be related to the recent reports on cryptids and magic knights suddenly disappearing? Or maybe that society Duke Cayenne has aligned himself to?"
"Now, now, General," Aurelia said to her companion, her thoughts perfectly disguised under her controlled demeanor. "What happens behind the scenes is of no concern to us. As warriors, our place is on the battlefield. I believe the next step would be to strengthen Heimdallr's western side, correct? The current situation has the makings of a final clash between our forces at the capital after all."
"Indeed, it does, General Le Guin. I'd suggest you prepare yourselves but… There is no need to hurry either. We must be careful after all, at the stage that we are one misstep could prove to be fatal."
"Yes, none of us can afford mistakes right now."
Credit where it was due, Rufus Albarea didn't much as flinch as Aurelia bore her gaze onto him. If anything he was challenging her. "Find out my true intentions if you are capable," he silently goaded her.
After a few more exchanges, the generals left Rufus' office and silently walked through the corridors of Valflame Palace. Naturally, one would assume they would head to an office that had been assigned for General Le Guin's use but it was surely compromised, so it was never used to discuss sensitive information.
Both left the premises of the Imperial Palace, crossed Dreichels Plaza and entered an orbal car that awaited them. The vehicle was of Aurelia's private property and maintained by people that held her utmost trust, and it was only once they were inside behind the darkened windows and the driver began their course through Heimdallr's streets, that the two spoke.
"He's onto us," said Bardias with a sigh.
"Unsurprisingly. Rufus Albarea is not a fool, a snake who deliberately threw his own father to the wolves for certain, but not a fool. What vexes me is that so far he has made no moves against us. He needs our strength to end the war but I would have expected at least some form of preparatory actions before we sprung our own attack on him."
"It's related to Crossbell's tree and that society he and Duke Cayenne allied themselves to. Before this is over, they'll cause something that makes dealing with us an afterthought."
"Certainly related to the Azure Chevalier as well, absent as he might have been these past few weeks, but Albarea wouldn't put it all on him," Aurelia's strategic mind poured over everything she knew about war, combat and subterfuge. The machinations behind Duke Cayenne's plans were simple and, at first glance, so were Rufus'. But the society and their magic were wildcards she had precious little information on, adding a layer of uncertainty despite all players in the game making themselves known that stopped her from acting on her own plans.
What were their true goals? Where did Crossbell's tree and the Divine Knights fit into it?
And there was also Rufus' warning. "There is no need to hurry," he had said. But the Vander brothers and Craig the Red were practically at their doorstep, so why was the Chief of Staff so calm?
What am I missing?
Author's notes: This was the first interlude chapter out of three that I have planned. These will be all (hopefully) smaller chapters that take focus away from Rean, Laura and Class VII. And we start it off with Aurelia, who has a little more going on than just fighting in the war for the sake of combat. But what is she planning you might be thinking? We'll see what it is uhhh eventually.
Who will the next interlude focus on? Well, one might be obvious, the other not such much.
Also, we are approaching the endgame of events here, there is only one more thing that needs to happen before taking back Trista then Heimdallr, and it's very important, and as such updates might slow down a little. Things are about to get complicated and I don't want to mess it up, last thing I want is to not stick the landing because I wanted to rush it out.