Hello Scrolls and Nazarins, bringing another chapter of my fanfic The One Who Came Back.
Alliances are forged and gifts offered.
With you
The One Who Came Back
Chapter 73: Allies
The southern army advanced across the northern lands' border. It was not yet a major invasion; they were waiting for the rest of their forces to arrive so that everything could truly begin. It had only been a few days since the message was delivered, so they still had time to finish organizing.
The patrol checking the camp's security was bored.
"Shit!"
"What are you going to complain about now? The cold, the food, the company, or the job?"
"All of that and then some."
"No news there."
"But you know what bothers me the most?"
"No, and I don't want to know."
"It bothers me that there's no one here, every village is empty, even the cities have no people, no one on the roads."
"Good for us."
"But they can't have fled from us so quickly!"
"It wasn't from us; it was from the Demi-humans and that demon. Everything was abandoned a while ago."
"You don't really believe that, do you? 'Help, a demon invaded the north, let's raise taxes! The queen is dead, Gaspond is now king! Our crops died, we need more grain!' - said the soldier in the most childish, whiny voice he could muster - you don't believe that crap."
"My cousin fled from the north, he said the Demi-humans invaded everything last year. He didn't see any demon, but others say they did."
"That they were invaded might be true, they are all cowards, but demons? Pure lies. Caspond must have killed his sister and taken the throne."
"And the Sorcerer King?"
"Nonsense, a wizard paid by Caspond. He did his tricks in the capital to fool people, some illusion of giant monsters, that's all."
"Maybe."
"You're an idiot to believe those northerner stories."
"Go to hell!"
"You go to hell."
While the patrol debated the circulating news and rumors, the group leader remained silent, observing the desolate landscape.
"Can't you two stop arguing for a moment?" the leader interrupted. "We're here to ensure the perimeter is secure, not to talk crap."
"But, sergeant, don't you find it strange?" one of the soldiers questioned.
"The only strange thing here is that you're wasting time with meaningless conversations. Leave those stories to the bards and tavern gossips."
As the sergeant scolded his subordinates, a distant sound caught their attention. A muffled rumble echoed, followed by a slight tremor in the ground.
"What was that?" one of the soldiers asked, his face tense.
"I don't know, let's head back to the camp."
The soldiers were so distracted by the sound that they only noticed the group when they almost bumped into the five hooded figures.
"STOP! WHO GOES THERE!" shouted one of the soldiers.
"We should be asking that, after all, you are southerners in northern lands."
"We... are on patrol, reinforcements for the north," the sergeant lied, trying to recall the orders they received in case they encountered any enemy forces. The declaration of war had just been delivered, and discretion was still the best option; it would take weeks for anyone to get there.
"Well, gentlemen reinforcements, we would like to speak to your leader."
"Leader? You want to go to the city of Kork?"
"No, just to the camp at the foot of the mountain a few miles from here, the one you wish no one knew about."
The men on horseback reacted immediately, but when they tried to flee, something fell among them. Two of the horses ran, but both soldiers were suspended in the air by powerful hands.
"W-what do you want?" asked the sergeant, the only one still mounted.
"Just preventing you from running. Put them down."
The enormous figure wrapped in a giant cloak simply released the two soldiers, who fell on their backsides.
"Now, as I was saying, take us to the camp, we want to talk to your leader."
The frightened men guided the strangers to the camp. It was obvious they already knew where it was; they just didn't want to cause a commotion by appearing without an escort. Even so, the camp was put on alert, and the group was surrounded.
"STOP! DROP YOUR WEAPONS! SHOW YOUR FACES!" shouted an officer.
"No," said the man in front, holding a spear strapped to his back.
The officer stepped forward, and when he signaled to remove the hood, he was simply sent flying out of the camp.
The man who struck him still had his arm raised when he spoke.
"Does anyone else want to try something, or will you take us to your leader?"
Another officer emerged; this one seemed more experienced.
"We were expecting you, gentlemen. Please, follow me."
A path through the camp opened in the crowd. No one wanted to get close to the strangers; if that man was that strong, imagine the strength of his companion, who was almost three times his height?
They entered the main tent; it was so large that it even had separate rooms inside.
"Welcome, gentlemen. I am Count Randalse; we were expecting you."
"It's a pleasure, Count, but we would like to speak with your leader."
"I'm sorry, I don't understand. I am the commander of this army."
"Please, stop wasting our time. I want to speak with Remedios Custodio."
The room fell silent.
"General!" said a voice from the other room. The curtain opened, and a knight appeared, "General Remedios Custodio for you, sir Captain of the Black Scriptures."
The man with the spear finally removed his hood, revealing a young person with long hair.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, General," he said, bowing, but no one followed the gesture.
"My existence should have been a secret, but apparently, the count's security still leaves something to be desired."
"I wouldn't blame them; our people were already here before you even arrived."
"Hmph! And who are your companions?"
The Captain of the Black Scriptures pondered; Remedios Custodio was strong, probably a distant Godkin, and by reports, a tempestuous woman. Caution was needed when dealing with her. Denying information she probably already had was dangerous.
"These are the Second Seat, Temporal Turbulence," the person removed the hood, revealing someone very young with a disdainful look.
"The Fifth Seat, Quaiesse Hanzeia Quintia," this time, it was an older person with short-cropped blonde hair and bangs.
"The Seventh Seat, the Astrologer of a Thousand Miles," a scared young woman showed herself; it seemed she would jump at her own shadow.
"The Eighth Seat, Cedran," a burly man revealed his face; he was holding a heavy shield.
"And who is your large friend?" Remedios asked.
"This is an adventurer we found. He helped us escape the Theocracy. His name is RED."
The enormous adventurer did not reveal himself.
"Well, I imagined there would be more of you."
"There are more. They are scattered across the realms."
"What happened? If we're going to have this conversation, I need you to be frank. Not everything should come from our spies."
The tension in the air indicated that despite apparently being on the same side, distrust remained. The future of the northern lands was uncertain, with secrets and dark revelations. The beginning of a fragile alliance between the Theocracy exiles and the southern forces was not a certainty.
"Hmm! Frankness. I understand. We have certain contingencies in case of the capital's fall. Our orders, in the event of a cataclysmic event, were to abandon the kingdom, blend with the people, seek out remaining Theocracy cells, and not contact each other, preserving our concealment. Each group would organize for a future reclamation, even if it took years. Therefore, only small groups were formed. But, if you think there were few survivors, you are mistaken. Almost all the scriptures departed."
"So you expected to lose the war against the elves?!"
"Only a fool does not prepare for the impossible. The elf king might have had something unknown or acquired some magic that needed a long time to prepare, something like the Sorcerer King's spell cast in Katze, the one that destroyed the Re-Estize army."
"So you didn't fight."
"There was no fight to be had. Hundreds of Death Knights and a gigantic golem. Maybe if all our forces had been there, but most were on missions outside the Theocracy."
"A giant golem! That damned sorcerer could have sent such a creature to fight against Jaldabaoth. Instead, he came here personally to poison people's minds."
"Apparently, the Sorcerer King was saving his best weapons. We thank the gods he needs years of waiting to cast that damned spell again."
"So the Scriptures? They were no match for the undead army."
"Paladins would be better?"
"If they had divine equipment like the scriptures, we could have put up a great fight. Maybe you have something to offer for your stay."
"Hmm, I thought it would be enough to know we fought against a common enemy, the Sorcerer King."
"Maybe it is, but a sign of good faith would be better."
"Hmm! The treasures were taken by our people; little remained, and what was left must have been looted by the enemy, but... there is something we found recently. It was in the possession of someone we believe was from Zuranon, an ancient map of the Holy Kingdom's lands. It seems to be the location of one of the Swords of Light."
'ACCEPT!' - shouted Kelard Custodio's voice inside Remedios' head.