GATE
Medieval Mercenaries in Another World
Chapter 7: O ye weary souls, Come speak to us, If no one interdicts it
To the people beyond the foreign gate,
I, Vicar Jan Rokycana, can finally affirm that a Crusade is coming. Our great father, the Pope, has confirmed our struggle in the world beyond that can only be hell, or some twisted vision of it, and has sent forth a man of great skill and experience to join our efforts. This man is known by thou of lesser status as Henry the Bastard but let this title not color your understanding of him. For those who lived through the many decades of struggle in our Kingdom of Bohemia, you may know him as a great warrior and leader of the people. Whilst during the time of our Hussite interests he acted in violence towards our less moderate brothers he had the best interest for not only our Kingdom but all of the Holy Roman Empire and its citizens.
Whilst I understand that Sir Kaiser has become an important pillar within the community of the other side the complaints from our church has still increased. It is felt that their people are ignored or put aside, their voice silenced in the favor of a man previously charged with heresy. Whilst Sir Yurochka Kaiser has stated that this man from Constantinople and his knowledge of that beyond god and his creations is a necessity in our holy mission, the church feels that his voice can not and shall not be the only voice. Yurochka Kaiser is hereby ordered and expected to include properly raised men of the lord, monks and priests alike, in his circle.
As well, he shall treat Sir Henry as a man of not only higher status but a man worthy of respect. He shall be my voice as much as the voice of Bohemia and Rome. There shall be times when his voice will have to be raised over Sir Kaiser's, and I expect him to heed its command…
The makeshift camp around the soldiers Kaiser had sent to accompany the villagers to the castle of King Duran had returned. Those few villagers left, those without family or relatives outside of Koda, were getting ready to follow to Fort Alnus.
Of course, this had not been an easy decision. It had been made very clear early on that if they were to come, they may have to get accustomed to strange new rules and the looming presence of a very foreign religion. They still whispered about it with each other at times, the oddity of a faith with only a single god. Still, though it had been a lengthy discussion and debate with Salvator that had decided it, Sir Yurochka Kaiser had promised that they would be in no obligation to convert to Christianity during their stay in Alnus and had even gone out of the length to have ordered a contract to be written and overseen by Salvator and Lelei before finally signing it.
There was also the element of Rory Mercury, the oh-so-controversial figure. She had asserted that she absolutely had to accompany the refugees to Alnus and be able to remain present to assure their safety and rights as people which in turn had led to another long and lengthy debate about what rules to set and how much they would allow her to roam free.
They ultimately decided that she was free to explore the refugee camp that would be set up outside the fort, as well as oversee how it would slowly be built up into a proper community but would be strictly forbidden from entering the fort under any circumstances without explicit permission from Captain Kaiser himself. At Xal's request, they would even allow a small place of prayer for the faith of Emroy that could also be used as an embassy for the religion and the culture of the Empire.
After a few things remained. Salvator wished to speak to Lelei concerning her and her master's stay at Alnus and what things to be wary of but before that had agreed to accompany the captain to speak to someone they hadn't had time to face during the events of the dragon.
Tuka Luna Marceau, the former resident of the elven settlement of Kowan in the forest of Koan.
"Elfu?" Salvator said as he turned away from the blonde long-eared girl toward Lelei. She had chosen to accompany the two men, having agreed to help the alchemist with the local language from thereon.
"That's the word for her species, correct? An elf?"
The young magician nodded before Tuka herself began to speak, moving a bit of hair back to allow her to put one of her ears in focus. "Our ears are what distinguishes us from humans…" She was a bit shy and tired. She seemed constantly aware of her surroundings ever since she had awoken in the underground safe room during the dragon attack, glancing around or away and squirming as her nervousness would go up and down.
"An elf…" Salvator repeated, scribbling something down on a page of parchment in his notebook. "Fascinating."
"Wish to clue me in?" The captain said a bit dryly though when Salvator looked up to meet his gaze he was met with a bit of a smirk. "What is an elf exactly?"
"Well besides what Tuka here has explained about her own species, in our world the terminology refers to a creature common in Norse and Germanic folktales and mythology."
Smiling he turned his eyes back down to the book and dipped his quill ink to continue on his notes.
"I've read about them a few times personally when scouring the Icelandic Sagas and writings of Snorri Sturluson, and the terminology the Norse would use was alfr which would eventually become the English term of ælf."
"Elfu, elf, alfer and aelf." Kaiser said before letting out a tsk. "And do the stories of our world fit the elves of this one? I remember when we first found her you mentioned that whilst there are many creatures in myth with long ears there are none like her."
"Indeed." Salvator closed his book. "Blonde-haired human-like creatures, with only their long ears as an obvious difference. It's completely foreign as a concept for us and is not at all how elves are described."
Tuka suddenly made a movement with her hand, hoping to catch his attention. "Is something wrong?"
"Oh no, not at all." Smiling, he held a hand up to assure her. "I was simply explaining to my friend that in the stories of our home elves don't look like your kind at all."
The girl blinked. "Then… what do they look like?"
"Well, that's sort of the thing… They're a bit unspecified. Sometimes they're vague, other times they're basically dwarves."
"Haa? Elves that are dwarves? I-" She giggled a bit. "I don't think I could ever imagine such a thing."
Salvator turned back to his captain and translated what he had said before continuing, once more, in German. He noticed as he spoke that Lelei kept looking at him and at times at his lips. She was quite a curious girl and seemed determined to learn German or any language of the people beyond the gate even though he had recommended she should prioritize Latin. In the end, it was an admirable quality of hers, that curiosity.
"There are the Irish stories of the fae, and their fair looks similar to Tuka here but still without the long ears. They also tended to be much more tricky beings, rather than this rather sweet girl."
"I.. have a question." The two men turned to the girl in question who now bore an expression of light worry. "Ever since you found me I… I haven't seen my father."
Her eyes darted around the tent. "Is he.. in one of the other tents? Maybe you had him go hunting? He's an excellent archer, I owe everything I know to him."
The air felt a bit awkward. "She's… asking if we've seen her father." The captain frowned as Salvator explained.
"Her father? There was nobody else alive after that dragon destroyed her forest."
"That's the thing captain, I don't think she knows her father is dead."
Salvator leaned forward and gently placed his hand on Tuka's arm. She jumped a bit in surprise but quickly calmed down.
"Tuka." Gently he tried to speak, hand still on her arm. "What is the last thing you remember?"
She glanced away and then seemed a bit puzzled before shaking her head. "Father was… helping me escape. The people were fighting but… Father said we had to leave. He brought me to the well you found me in and- That is all. He must have hidden somewhere else, knowing he'd find me later."
Salvator grimaced. Damn. Okay. How does he say this to her?
"Tuka. I want you to understand that I am being honest with you."
"Of course."
"And that I don't want to upset you."
She smiled awkwardly. "Why would you?"
"Can you promise me you'll remain calm?"
Her arm began to slide off his hand. "You're starting to worry me."
"Please." He spoke very gently now. Softly, almost like a whisper. Whilst she did hesitate she did soon relax and let his hand remain on her arm.
"O-okay."
"We've searched the entire forest." He began.
"I want you to know that we even went through the ruins and looked through caves and ditches. We have been very thorough and even sent a few parties back there to be sure. But, and I want you to please remain calm with this…"
His lungs expanded as he breathed in. He wanted to be sure he said this as carefully as possible.
"We did not… find your father."
The eyes of the elf stared long and while at the dark-haired Greek, the alchemist from afar.
She didn't blink for quite some time and once she did it was as if her expression fell off her face.
"...you mean you haven't found him yet."
Shaking his head, Salvator held a sigh back before continuing. "No. I mean we have found no evidence that he is alive."
"You must have missed something. I mean, it's possible, isn't it? This is not your world, it's not your fault if you haven't found him."
Salvator leaned back and turned his eyes towards his Captain, who shrugged at him, before eyeing Lelei who quietly stared back.
"Okay, Tuka." Her eyes glanced away as he turned his attention back to her. "I understand that this isn't something you want to discuss but-" He paused. "Perhaps, maybe, it is something you should consider. Maybe he's gone."
"...that doesn't mean he can't come back."
Salvator grimaced but held back the words in his mind. She was experiencing shock, delirium. The loss of family was too much for her mind to comprehend, nothing he hadn't seen before but the consistency of how she denied the truth proved that pushing it wouldn't help. Not now, at the very least.
"I've said what I said, Tuka. I'm sorry you don't believe me."
The girl looked away. "...I don't think I want to talk to you anymore."
Salvator grimaced but closed his journal. The girl stood her ground and he would accept that.
"Captain, I recommend you oversee the final preparations for our journey. I'll go over the situation with Lelei and her teacher."
"And the girl?"
Salvator shrugged. "She'll come with us for now, she doesn't have much else to do."
"Very well, I'll allow it. Her ears might be an odd sight but not the oddest of sights, I'll see you by the horses."
With him leaving that left Salvator and Lelei to do as had been said, moving towards the cart and horses of the great wizard.
"...Alchemist Salvator." Lelei suddenly said on the path. "Beyond the gate stands your world, correct?"
He nodded. "Of course." Blue eyes turned to his. "But not your home?"
They moved a few steps forward as he made to consider his next answer. "No, not exactly. My home is the Greek Empire of the New Rome known as Constantinople."
She looked confused for a moment. "...so you are Greek, like your language?" He nodded.
"Then how far is your home from the land beyond the gate? This… Greater Germany?"
"My land is further down the mediterranean sea southeast of Bohemia and the Holy Roman Empire as a whole, past another great collection of nations of the Italian peninsula where Old Rome lies."
"And Old Rome is where your religious leader lives, yes?"
He grimaced. "Yes and no. I am Christian, just like the Captain, but I am of another sect of the religion which doesn't necessarily owe loyalty to the Pope and his great followers."
"I don't understand." She frowned. "You believe in the same god, don't you?"
"We do."
"And you even believe in his son, the prophet Jesus Christ?"
"That we also do." Lelei turned her head down, clearly processing the information in her head.
"But you are not the same?" Salvator had to chuckle at that.
"Lelei, besides the fact that the East is very different from the West, there's something you must know about the people on our side of the gate."
"And what is that?"
"We like putting ourselves in groups."
Of course, it was much more complicated than that and Salvator was willing to explain it.
Basically, the differences between the Western and Eastern churches were something that developed over time as the last remnants of the old Roman Empire died in the West and left the Eastern half isolated and independent. This would in turn lead to the Great Schism of 1054 where the disagreements and differences lead to an official separation of the two churches.
Then what were the cultural differences between the Western and Eastern churches that led to so much turmoil? Salvator felt the sweat on his brow after hearing that question from Lelei and decided that for now, that was too much to explain so soon. She disagreed, curious as she was, but accepted that he would explain further later on.
After all, they had to speak with her master, the wizard Cato El Altestan.
Athelstan, he mulled. The name reminded him of the old king of the Anglo-Saxons. He chuckled, how would such a Christian figure feel about a Pagan carrying his name?
"Master." Lelei looked upon the wizard as he was preparing his cart.
"We must speak."
Cato sighed.
"Yes, I suppose we do."
"So he's not coming with?" Captain Yurochka Kaiser asked, seated upon his steed. The alchemist shook his head.
"He is unwilling to live under the restrictions of our encampment."
"Restrictions." Kaiser scoffed. "No, I suppose not. I assume with how casual magic is to their lives being told not to use it at all is inconceivable. But the girl?"
Salvator glanced towards a carriage covered by cloth to shield from the sun. "She wishes to learn about us. She's promised to not use magic without your strict approval."
"I don't understand that. I get that she is curious but she's willing to restrict her magic use?"
A shrug. "Honestly sir, I don't think it matters. She has picked up on our German and Slavic rather quickly, she could make for an excellent interpreter."
"We have you."
"I am but one man."
Kaiser patted the neck of his horse. "Very well. Board the carriage with her, the elf, and the… priestess. We'll most likely get back to camp by nightfall."
Following orders he did just that, entering the carriage from the back. With his journal in hand, he hoped to talk to Lelei and Rory further about the local history and culture.
However, he was quite surprised to see the current would-be leader of the handgonners, the redheaded Laureline.
"Are you here as a guard?" Salvator asked, glancing at a weapon she carried on her side.
"Something like that." The woman shrugged and glanced at Tuka, the elf, who blushed and looked away from her. "In reality, I wanted to speak to you."
He blinked. She was speaking in French now. Lelei was clearly picking up a few words here and there but seemed confused by it, after all, it was a much further developed language than their local Old Frankish variant.
"Why are we speaking in French?" He felt like asking. She smiled and shrugged. "I want this to be kept between you and me, I don't mind if the girls pick up the basics but the rider isn't someone I want to listen in."
"...so this is about your disagreement with my Captain?"
"Something like that. It is no secret that I disapproved of the situation due to the loss of my men and our late leader but I must ask what he thinks so far. As much as I'd want for us to simply return to Bohemia, and perhaps move on to France, we are low on men and need to hire and train new soldiers to take their place. So we must work and find new hires and till then we are stuck here."
"So you wish to know if our Captain will still hire you?" She nodded at his question.
"Oui. We can't leave as things are right now, we don't have enough people. Even if we get paid properly we simply do not have the resources. The moment we get to Bohemia we will need to sell and buy and find somewhere with work and men. Staying here saves us the trip. That and I know you people will need our cannons and gonnes."
"Well," Salvator hummed. "I am sure he won't mind keeping you hired still. He understands how you felt during the dragon attack. I will speak with him."
Her smile was bright and sweet, like that of a lady. He found it an interesting contrast to her more rough features. The messy and uncovered hair, the maille haubergeon clearly not made for her and the firelance she held like a staff that carried clear signs of long use.
His eyes moved towards Tuka who most definitely had no interest in meeting his gaze still. He was disappointed, of course, but understood that with the loss of her father being so recent she was still lost within the delirium of her mind. However he did note that at times she glanced towards Laureline who eventually tapped the girl on the shoulder. The elf blushed and the woman laughed, Salvator raising an eyebrow at the display.
"She likes women." Lelei explained casually, to which the alchemist almost coughed his heart out.
Once the Princess and her entourage made their appearance at the fortress and city of Italica it appeared that the local commune was simply too busy to offer the typical royal greeting expected of a noble lady such as her.
Instead the city was almost that of a refugee camp. Many buildings and houses were being expanded to have new rooms and sections, towers were extended and where possible tents and yurts had been raised.
"What… is this?" She asked.
"My Lady!" One of her many female knights, Hamilton, returned to her Princess after having quickly spoken with a local guardsman. "It appears that all of these people are refugees from the village of Koda."
"So many?" The Princess glanced around, clearly confused. "I thought most of them arrived at the walls of King Duran."
"Indeed my liege, but it appears as if that was not the only village hurt. As the dragon fled towards the depths of the forests, the winds of its wings and flames of its breath caused minor casualties in neighboring communities. The majority here are still from Koda, but with friends and relatives from the other villages as well."
"So even heroic actions have consequences." The Princess huffed as she motioned for her knights to follow her towards the keep of the castle. They had only made it through a few buildings before a small band of armed warriors passed them laughing and speaking in words she'd never heard before."
"Hamilton… Is that the mercenaries from beyond the Gate?"
The young knight turned back, frowning at the men and their strange armor. "Indeed my liege. Shall we apprehend them?"
Pina waved a hand in dismissal. "No, not at this time. For now they seem to only be here to deliver the refugees. I wish first to speak with the Countess and her court and hear what their perspective on this is. Any words on the surrounding area?"
Hamilton hummed with a hand on her chin. "From what I've learned it appears there are rumors of bandits attacking the refugees coming here. For the most part the Mercenaries from beyond the Gate have fought valiantly, but limited losses can't be stopped."
"No force is perfect.." Pina said quietly to herself.
When the refugee transport finally neared the makeshift fortifications of Fort Alnus a merc rode up to meet with Sir Kaiser. The young man was clearly stressed, with wide eyes and sweat on his brow. Yurochka Kaiser slowed down his own horse and patted its neck as the merc hopped off his horse and approached on foot. Yurochka signaled for the rest of the convoy to cease movement and got off his own horse to speak with the merc.
"You have a message of some sort." Yurochka said quite frankly, having been able to understand the situation from the boy's behavior alone.
"Speak, please."
"S-sir. You have been given orders from the Vicar himself, and the Emperor." The boy clumsily held out a parchment, seal broken and the parchment wrinkled.
Kaiser was clearly uncomfortable with the thought that someone had already read orders meant for him but with the haste of its delivery it meant the orders were extremely important, to the point that perhaps someone felt it was a necessity to read it without his presence. He opened it up and felt his own eyes widen, his own sweat fall down his cheeks, and realized that the situation at hand was more than serious.
"Sir Henry, he's here?" The boy nodded at the question. "It is why the letter was opened, Sir Kaiser, it had arrived before he did. He was furious that we weren't aware of his then upcoming arrival.
Of course, Yurochka had not been present to read such a letter or given anyone command to read such letters for him. Scheiße! If it had not been for the dragon they would have already been back at the fort but now with Sir Henry, one of the greatest soldiers of their time, present and with orders from the Church and Monarchy, his explanations and justifications sounded as nothing but excuses! Damn! Why didn't he leave someone in command to read any further orders?
He felt the parchment in his hands crumble, as it most likely had from whoever had read it before him. Joachim had been by his side and so had Kolya, but now the Hussite boy had been sent off to oversee the refugees sent to Italica along with Müller when perhaps in fact he should have sent at least one of them back to base in case of further orders.
"Please inform Salvator Foxglove of this." He told the mercenary. "And inform the caravan they are to stop outside the walls of Alnus until I arrive with an update."
"Y-yes sir!"
Yurochka was of course quick to return up on his horse and hurry into the fort, hitch his steed and move towards the tent of operations. He did not have time to remove his armor and thus sadly wasn't quite as presentable as he could be but at this time he felt that perhaps did not matter.
Sir Henry, 'the Bastard', was an older but clearly experienced man with armor specially fitted and customized for him and him alone. It did not have much in decoration but was still clearly a well kept and perfectly made suit of armor. His face was not overly grizzled nor his jaw strong and sharp but his growing facial hair and well combed hair acted as a sign of his experience and age.
He was not a man to be trifled with and he made that abundantly clear with his first statement.
"I am now in command, Sir Kaiser."
Shite, he had thought and shite indeed. This knight, this lord of his own making, the bastard son of a politician from the early decades of the century, may once have been a heartful and kind man but was now a warrior and master of art and land that you could not deny. He made it perfectly clear that from this point onward, Yurochka would be his second in command and he would instead be the one controlling and deciding the operations in the lands beyond the gate. He said it would suit the young man well, since he had already taken things in his own hands and acted as a footsoldier when he would have done best to stay at camp and oversee things from there. He was right of course but it still stung in Kaiser's heart.
The monk Albert, the eyes and ears of the church and its priests and priors, would now be at the mercenary knight's side at all times and could not be left at base without first discussing it with Henry first. The alleged heretic, the Orthodox alchemist from Constantinople, named Salvator Foxglove could remain in his party as long as his word was not favored over Albert's.
And then came the contract that Kaiser had made with the priestess of Emroy. It had been a very painfully long silence after he had explained to Sir Henry who she was and what she claimed to be, alongside the power she held, and it was clear that the knight commander felt that the contract should be made null or at the very least redone. Kaiser did try to make it clear that the contract had been made when he was in full command and thus should be kept to the letter and thankfully Sir Henry eventually listened, though not without finding some ways to bend the contract.
First of all, a secondary wall would be built to protect the new refugee camp, that way they would be protected but still not within the inner wall which was in the process of having its wooden construction replaced with stone. The pagan priestess, the disgusting demi-god she claimed to be, would still be allowed to wander in the refugee camp but would be watched at all times and followed. If she did not accept, she could leave.
Finally whilst conversion would not be enforced the agents of the clergy would mingle and live alongside the refugees and offer their services and invite the natives to Christian gatherings every other day.
In the end Yurochka saw no chance at discussing this further as found himself mostly agreeing with the new terms. Indeed, should he feel any guilt at all? Perhaps he had kept Salvator by his side for too long, as the Vicar seemed to fear…