by Jez Cajiao
“The Himnel camp looks like a kicked anthill. It seems they had more soldiers than we thought; they’d been keeping them underground, but now they’re stripping the camp and loading their single ship with everything of value, including their slaves and what looks to be items they’ve looted from the city.”
“Motherfuckers!” I growled, my anger rising. “What about the other camp?”
“Much the same. Fewer soldiers, but the ship is being made ready, and it looks like the entire camp is mobilizing.”
“So, that was bollocks about us meeting in a few days, then. I thought it would be, but I wanted them gone badly enough that I didn’t care,” I said flatly, thinking that I’d made a mistake.
“Judging from the way the scouts reported it, they’re splitting their forces. One lot is readying the ship…”
“And the other?” I asked grimly.
“They look to be preparing to head into the city,” he admitted simply.
“So, it’s a race, then?” I muttered. “What the hell do they think is down there?”
“No idea, but the fact that you’re after something suggests that something valuable is still buried within, so they want it first,” he explained.
“And the first group; are they boarding the ship?” I asked.
“Not all of them, or at least, I doubt it. I went to that camp myself, Jax. There’s no way that everyone there will be able to fit on that single small ship. Most likely, it was the Lord’s private ship, and if his brother is there, he’s going to use it to escape with anything he wants to keep, then send the guards down into the city to find whatever you’re after.”
“…While he runs back to Himnel and gets reinforcements,” I finished for him, and he inclined his head slightly.
“That’s probably his intention, yes.”
“Well, looks like my nap can wait,” I said, shaking my head. “Time to go see the armorers and get everyone suited and booted. Restun, can you lead the way, please?” I gestured to the door, and he saluted crisply.
We moved out into the corridor, and the Legionnaires seamlessly formed up to escort me. I recognized one of them in the lead, and reached out, putting one hand on his shoulder.
“Do me a favor, and ask Romanus to meet us at the armorers, and have the rest of my squad, Yen, Tang, and Grizz meet us there as well, please.”
“Of course, my lord,” he said, saluting and rushing off down a side corridor.
Restun lead us down to the main hold, then further down the ship to a small gangway that led to a section that was missing most of the outer structure.
As we walked around the makeshift space, I began to hear the clanging of hammers and steel, insults and good-natured swearing. We went around the final corner and found the area the armorers and weaponsmiths had claimed as their own.
The area was perhaps ten meters deep by twenty long and had a wall on either side in place already, but no floor, outer wall, or, for two floors, any decking overhead. That meant that they had somewhere that was partially sheltered from the weather, while actually being open enough to feel as if they felt like they were working outside, yet without any of the accompanying stress.
Three scruffily dressed men scurried about, helping the Legionnaires by working the bellows and assisting in setting workspaces up and moving materials around.
As soon as Thorn saw me, she grinned, standing tall and proud, with the three men falling to their knees and bowing their heads.
“That’s enough of that crap,” I said, striding forward and pulling first one, then the other two men to their feet. “I don’t expect you to kneel, lads; not for me, not ever.” My voice was firm as their astonished gazes met mine. “I’m your lord, or I will be, as soon as you take the Oath… crap. We need to sort that out, Oracle, before we leave today. Restun, I’m going to need mana potions,” I requested, mentally bracing myself for what was to come. “Anyway, I’m your lord, but I’m still just a man, so no need to kneel. I take it you were slaves?” I asked the first man, then looked to the other two, receiving mute nods of confirmation from all three.
“Well, I’m glad we managed to free you,” I said, smiling. “I’ll let you get back to whatever you were doing…” I trailed off, seeing the look of stunned adoration on their faces and feeling extremely uncomfortable.
“Weems, Tim, Joh, back to those jobs, please,” Thorn prompted, and the men jumped, running to return to their work.
“Thanks,” I muttered quietly to her and she grinned, her tusks making her smile seem strange, but it was definitely heartfelt, and for that, I was grateful. “Some new volunteers, then?” I asked, nodding toward them, and she fairly beamed.
“I picked them out of the pool. They’re certainly determined; it’s good to see, in all honesty. Admittedly, they know nothing yet, but the way they all focus on each task? They’ll be smiths to be proud of in a year or two.”
“The pool?” I asked.
“The volunteer pool,” Thorn confirmed, then smiled. “Come, let’s get you into your armor and make any last-minute adjustments, and I can tell you while I fit you.” She guided me around to a waiting pile of gear, picking out three bundles, setting one before me and patting the other two.
“First of all, these,” she said, unwrapping the first bundle. “Three sets of clothing. This one is for under your new armor; it’s specially designed, padded, and strong, helps to hold the armor in place, and helps to spread the weight more evenly, thanks to the small hooks and design.” She pointed out each feature as she described them. “There’s a full set, from underclothes up, including coverings for your feet, while those two there,” she said, gesturing to the other two, “are a set of standard workout clothes and a set for relaxing in. The tailor said he and his people will come to see you as soon as you’re free to design your normal working uniform, and so on.”
“Sounds good,” I said, grateful for the fresh clothing.
“Now, once you’re dressed in that, we can get the armor on. This is our standard equipment, so I made very few changes to it, but it’s a step up from the gear you’ve been wearing. What we talked about earlier, though… are you sure about me making the best armor I can for you?” she asked slowly, and I nodded firmly.
“Definitely.”
“Then we need to make some serious plans, because we’ve talked here about what we could do… there’s not a crafter in the Legion that hasn’t dreamed of making something new, something unique and glorious, so last night, I got them together, and we planned as we worked.” she explained, almost sheepishly. “The design that we came up with, it incorporates dreams of more than half the crafters we have. I’ve personally been fantasizing about it for years; it’d be a hell of an upgrade to our standard gear, but…”
“But it’s not the traditional armor, so some Legionnaires will freak out, and it’s expensive. Got that earlier, totally fine with it, just make it as best you can.”
“We can make a prototype, as a demonstration, but we’d need to create a specialist forge for the final product. The metal I want to use won’t melt for the likes of a piddly little forge like this. We need Arcanium, and that requires a magma forge…” she said cautiously, hope clear in her voice.
“Okay, I don’t know what that is, but I’ll see what I can do…” I said, shrugging. Her shoulder slumped, and I stopped admiring the new armor and looked at her properly.
“Thornapple,” I said, and she looked at me, her expression a respectful mask. “I came to this realm a month or so ago. I’ve done so many things since then that I’m told are impossible that I’m not even going to mention them. You tell me you need a magma forge? Fine. I’ll get you one,” I promised earnestly. “I just raided my enemy’s city, stole most of his most powerful weapons of war, and almost all of his most valuable stored resources. I’ve picked fights with the Drow on their own ground, slaughtered my way across the Arena and killed the Skyking, tore a SporeMother apart, and captured the Great Tower. Believe me, if you need a magma forge, I’ll get you
one. Right now, I don’t know what it is, but I will sort it out, okay? Now, about my armor?” She stood a little straighter and grinned at me, nodding to the set that stood in pride of place in her little section, gleaming dully on a stand.
“You’ll need to get changed…” She said indicating the clean clothes, and I was all too happy to comply, starting to pull my battered equipment off and stabbing the base of my naginata into the soil. “I can leave, if you wish…” she offered quickly, but I indicated that her comfort level was the deciding factor, stripping down unabashedly to my undercrackers. One touch of the Legion standard ones left me shaking my head in refusal. No way was something that rough cradling my nether regions.
In a blink, I was covered again, wasting no time in pulling the new clothes on. “You said the new gear would be the work of a lot of the crafters of the Legion; I take it you don’t just mean the armorers, then?” I asked.
“Well, no, Jax. In order to make what I’d like, but pair it with cheap underclothes, or a crappy set of leathers to attach to it, would be sacrilege, I’ve reached out to the others, and…” Thornapple started, gesturing happily as she began to describe her plans.
“Honestly, that’s fine,” I chuckled, cutting her off with a wave. “I just wanted to make sure you had involved them; that’s all. I felt the same way about it!” As I finished settling my new clothing in place, Romanus arrived, followed by the rest of my group, who were quickly guided to their respective armorers to begin their own fittings, much as I was with Thorn.
“Lord Jax,” Romanus greeted me, smiling as he walked over, and Restun, who’d taken up station out of the way to watch the proceedings, seemed to flow up to join us.
“Romanus!” I returned, smiling at him. “Good timing, my friend. I need to make some decisions, and I need your advice.”
“Then I’m honored to help; where do we begin?” he asked simply, sitting on a crate of parts when I gestured to him to relax. “Honestly, I know you young bucks can stand all day, but when you get to be my age, a good seat now and then is appreciated…” he admitted, patting the crate.
“The enemy camps,” I said, watching closely as I let Thorn help me to cinch tight the straps on my new tunic. It wasn’t as soft or as damn sexy looking as the Drow silk shirt had been, nowhere near, but it was comfortable, after a fashion, and it gave me a reassuring feeling of solidity. Romanus blinked, looked at Restun and frowned slightly as Restun nodded to him.
“I see. I know Restun reported to you first; I take it they’re not making ready to hand over any slaves and play nice, then?”
No,” I said shortly. “And I trust Restun and our scouts enough that I don’t need to hear any more than I already have. The Himnel camp is loading their Airship with everything they view as valuable, including their slaves, and seem intent on fleeing while leaving their soldiers behind, who appear to be gearing up for a fight. Restun assumes their plan to be a fast, hard hit to loot as much as they can, but it could also be to fight us. As to the Narkolt contingent, they appear to be doing much the same, but they’ve asked me to wait a few days for a visit… while they desperately prepare their ship and dive into the ruins ahead of us. It’s basically becoming a race, and it’s not one we can afford to lose. What’s your feeling on this?”
“I suspect you’re right. The Sunken City was long ago looted for anything that could be easily taken; with entire sections blocked off or flooded, it became a game for the nobility to come out here and look it over, it seems. They probably brag about ‘roughing it’ when they get back, but with the nigh-on unlimited specters‒which you’ve helpfully freed the city of now,” Romanus added with a grin, “it was a case of nobody getting too far in. They clearly guess that there’s something of value down there that you need, and they’re desperate to get it. I recommend we hammer the Himnel camp flat; we are at war with them, after all. As to Narkolt, they’re probably planning the same. We’re not at war with them, though, so I suggest more of a ‘velvet glove’ approach. We send a large detachment to ‘visit’ and order them to stand down as the site has been claimed in your name. If they refuse, we take them. If they try to run, the ships above earn their keep, and if they actually want to talk to you, we smile and bring them back for dinner.”
“All sounds good, except we can’t wait while they search the city,” I said firmly. “We keep half the Legion for the ‘peacekeeping’ force up here. The other half is going down the tunnels after these assholes. I’ll go in with my team as well, and we’ll basically search and map this place as best we can for the next twenty-four hours. After that time, everyone is to return to the surface and gather together, re-evaluate, and either keep going or prepare to move on.” I grunted as Thorn tugged the breastplate over my head and attached it onto the hooks on the underclothes, as well as onto the leg armor. “What’s down there?” I asked. “I know you said monsters and undead?”
“I don’t know, exactly. A Legion team was sent in when it was first discovered… several, in fact. Only one Legionnaire made it back. He warned of roaming undead, spirits that attacked everything and were the main threat, and several huge monsters. I’m guessing since you freed those spirits, you’ve probably opened up entire areas that had been inaccessible earlier…” Romanus said, rubbing his chin. “You said you want me to send in half the Legion…” He started to say, and I nodded, cutting him off.
“I want half the Legion up here to flatten both camps and protect the ships; I think that’ll be more than enough, right?” I asked and he nodded, so I continued. “Good. Okay, then the other half is to be split up into smaller groups and sent into the various entrances. Someone mentioned earlier that there were dozens of ways in?”
“There are, but is it not better to send down a strong force, one that can hold against whatever is sent at it? Rather than splitting our forces?” he asked dubiously.
“Normally, yes, but some asshole…me, I mean… has removed the main defenses of the city, so now it’s a race, and we can’t afford to do this the slow, safe way. Tell the groups that if they encounter something they believe will result in casualties, they are to fall back and join another group to take it on, doubling up their strength until they can kick its ass easily, then split up again.” I said firmly, bracing myself as Thorn cinched sections tight and made adjustments, straightening my arm out, then sliding on and twisting my vambraces until there was an audible click, and I felt the vambraces being attached to the upper arm segment.
“Damn, that feels smooth…” I muttered, curling my arm up and down.
“The Legion has the best armorers anywhere,” Restun said with a rare smile. “Every part is designed to be able to lock together, reinforcing the others, and spreading the weight out. You can wear just sections if you need to, and then the weight will be what the uninitiated expect from armor like this, but when it’s all in place, fitted and working correctly? A fully armored Legionnaire will beat a standard soldier in far more expensive armor over and over again.”
“From fighting monsters, to chasing a girl, the Legionnaires leave them in a whirl…” Thorn muttered, smiling as she worked, gripping my new boots and pulling upwards as I stomped down. Then she twisted a ring-shaped connector on the top of the boot, and it locked into place, and I felt the weight settle even more comfortably.
“It’s true, though,” Romanus agreed. “The way that the Legion armor is built, each section supports the next, much like in a shieldwall. Because the armor is linked together, it offsets the weight, plus there are a few little tricks our armorers have learned over the centuries. Add to that, sections that are built to bend and give slightly, and others have additional padding, and you’ll find nothing to compare with it.”
“Nothing?” I asked, lifting my right hand as Thorn tugged the gauntlet on for me, twisting the wrist connector and locking it into place with a smooth click.
“Nothing that you can find anywhere,” Romanus insisted proudly. “Sure, back in the glory days of the Empire, there were armo
rers that made equipment that put ours to shame, but almost none of it survived, and that which did… well, we don’t get to examine it for lost secrets.”
“And even if we could, there’s no changing the Legion armor…” Thorn grumbled under her breath.
“Now, now, Legionnaire,” Romanus chuckled. “Until now, we’ve had tradition as our only shield… it’ll be hard accepting the changes Lord Jax brings, but we must change, if we are to survive.”
“Yes, Prefect,” Thorn said, bowing her head. “I apologize for my words if they seemed disrespectful…”
“No, there’s no need for that, Thorn.” Romanus smiled gently. “We’re all Legionnaires, and we all yearn for the glory of our dreams, be they in battle or in creation. We all serve the Empire.”
“Thank you, sir,” Thorn said, smiling and twisting my last gauntlet until it clicked into place. A shiver passed over me, and I felt as much as saw the notifications spring to life.
Congratulations!
You have equipped a full set of ‘Legionnaire Scout Armor.’
For equipping eight out of eight set pieces, you have an increase of 23% to all physical damage resistances, 0% increase to Stamina, and +5 to physical damage.
Beware!
You have equipped a full set of ‘Legionnaire Scout Armor,’ but you are inexperienced and weaker than is recommended to wear such armor. As such, you receive a penalty of +16% increase to Stamina drain to all tasks.
Cuirass of Faithful Service
Further Description Yes/No
Details:
This chest armor includes Pauldrons and is made of horizontal strips of Highsteel attached to a blackened leather undergarment. It gives a bonus of +5 to resisting physical damage.
Rarity
Magical
Durability
Charge:
Rare
No