Iselin was waking again, she tried to move away from him and he held her tight. She giggled, "I need to go to the bathroom. Is that OK with you?"
Legon stopped thinking about the world and smiled. "You do huh?" he said poking a spot on her side.
She jumped, her face turned up to his eyes wide. "You better not!"
He tickled her again. "Better not what?"
She laughed. "No, that’s not funny, I really have to go!"
He felt in her mind, she wasn't lying. He grinned wickedly at her.
* * * * *
Sasha made her way on deck, heading towards the side where the Lux was. Emma was next to her and looked happy to be heading back home to Seeon. Sasha felt the same, she didn't care for violence and she was looking forward to getting away from it for a time and also to hone her knew abilities.
Emma gave her a side long glance, "Are you looking forward to seeing Edling?"
Yes, she was also excited about that too, she couldn't help but smile. "Maybe," she said and added, "Legon and I are planning on spending most of our time in the Golden City, Edling's family has a house there."
Emma laughed. "Whose family doesn't have a house or apartment in every major city in the Pawdin Empire?" she said.
That was true so Sasha didn't comment. Legon and Iselin were making their way on deck, Iselin keeping her distance from her smirking husband.
"Did my brother do something rude?" Sasha asked Iselin.
"Yes he did," she said giving Legon a stern look that cracked into an unwilling smile.
Sasha really didn't want to know what had happened. She'd been in constant mental contact with Legon since he was dressed and as far as she was concerned anything that happened between them prior to the 'ready for their day' phase was not only none of her concern, but did not actually exist. It was like the world right before dawn when she was asleep, it just wasn't real.
Sasha made her way to her cabin on the Lux. Emma would join her soon once she'd put her own belongings away, which gave Sasha time alone. The Lux was already pulling away from the Kovos. She leaned against the wall looking out of the back windows of the ship. She heard her door thump shut and turned to Emma who was looking more and more relaxed. Sasha wondered if she should keep Emma from coming with her in the future, but decided that it wasn't really her call to make.
* * * * *
Tom sat in the costume shop in Salez trying to wrap his mind around the consequences of the news he’d just received. Arkin is dead and once she is back on her feet, Stacy is in charge he told himself in his mind again and again. Arkin was the mastermind of all things bringing down the Cona Empire from the inside, it was Arkin who made the plans and executed them, Arkin who had the vision. Tom didn’t know what to think about Stacy being in charge, she was good at what she did and was Arkin’s right hand after all, but a leader? Tom wasn’t sure. Seth came in the back room of the shop.
“What’s going on?” Seth asked as Brian walked in behind him.
Tom felt a moment of pause; this was the team now until Stacy came back. “Arkin is dead...Stacy is pretty tore up...I don’t know too much about how it all went down, but Stacy is going to be in charge...” he just let it hang in the silence.
Seth and Brian both stood stock-still; then Brian who was running his hand through his mousy brown hair as his head bounced slightly up and down on his hulking form.
It was Brian that spoke first. “OK, so Stacy is in command, what are our orders?” he asked.
“Do we have a problem? Are we compromised?” Seth asked taking up the thread.
Tom understood, the bond with Arkin’s unit was tight, but there was always an understanding that people may get killed. There was always the understanding that if someone did die, the others were to keep functioning.
“We don’t have anything new as of yet, I am to take care of things until Stacy is back. The message I got also said that once Stacy is back, she will be busy just like Arkin. He used her to run Salez, now it will be me running that part of this cell. Seth, I don’t think we’ve been made but there is always that chance. From what I know Arkin and Stacy were trapped, this trap looks to be an assassination attempt on the Heads of House Evindass, who are both now Ascended.” Tom held up his hand, stopping any questions, “Now, I don’t know how this all played out, Stacy’s contact was either followed or was a bad one, I really don’t know and I don’t think we will know anytime soon.
“Seth, poke around and see what you can find out, see if it looks like we have been found out. I don’t think you will find anything, but it’s worth a look. Brian, we may have to leave Salez or change fronts, see what you can do for setting up some supplies if we have to leave.”
The two men didn’t wait around and went to their respective tasks. Tom sat alone again in the back of the shop, wondering how something like this could have happened. Years of being on the fringe of society and dealing with some of the most unpleasant and untrustworthy people in the country had given Tom good instincts, and his gut told him that there was something was off about Arkin’s death, but he couldn’t place what it was.
* * * * *
Barnin had mixed feelings about how he thought his day was going to go. On the one hand he was happy that his unit’s mounts had arrived from Manton. On the other hand they had come with his unit’s replacements. He was aware that some of the men that he would be getting would be seasoned vets and he wasn't unhappy to be getting them, it was all of the new kids that would be the problem. He didn't think about Josher, he didn't think back to when the kid joined Barnin's unit. Sadly Barnin had lost enough men over the years that he'd learned to deal with it.
Ankle was at the docks already, along with most of his men, waiting to get their horses. Along with the none too pleased animals came a group of men who were really just kids.
"I thought we were getting some seasoned guys too," Barnin said to no one in particular.
"Change of plans, I read the orders sheet. I guess they decided to put all the vets in new units, so we get the newbies. Should be fun," Ankle said.
Barnin cursed. "We are supposed to head up to help take Bonta. How are we supposed to get these kids ready?"
A tall lanky kid, man, whatever, walked up to Barnin obviously terrified. "Sir, reporting for duty," he said, his voice cracking with nerve.
"DID YOUR VOICE JUST CRACK?" Barnin roared. "For the love of... have any of you even started puberty yet?" he asked the group. Some of the new guys looked at each other uncomfortably and Barnin went on, "Ya know, start growing hair in places and thinking about girls?"
"Um, Sir, this may not be productive," Ankle said. "Maybe you could see if we have orders at H.Q?" he tried.
Barnin thought Ankle might be on to something, so he walked off noticing that some of his men were taunting the new guys, taking Barnin's lead. Great he thought I bet I get a lecture for hazing.
Barnin was calmed down by the time he talked to his men. If he was being honest with himself, he wasn't all that worried about the new guys, long gone were the days when his unit was alone behind enemy lines.
"Feeling better Sir?" Ankle asked.
"Yeah I am," Barnin said.
"Good to hear Sir, hang in there," Ankle said.
Barnin gave him a look. "Are we gonna hug now?" he asked sarcastic. Without waiting for a reply he addressed the room full of men. "We are going to be heading out to help take the city of Bonta, like Noris it's not huge, but also like Noris it’s not going to be an easy take." Barnin walked up to a map on the wall of the area, he motioned along the Kayloose river past Noris to Bonta.
"Bonta is just one more step up the Kayloose, the end goal is Salez, but before we can get there we have to cover a lot of ground. We aren't going to have the Pawdin Navy to win this one for us. They will be doing what they can from the river, but most of Bonta is out of range for their ships and landing parties won’t work, so that means a good old fashion knock down some stone walls siege.
"We need to gat
her supplies and be ready to move out by morning. You will want to find any extra pairs of clothes you can, House Floren says they are expecting rain. We won’t have proper shelter for some time unless Bonta falls easily. Any questions?"
One of the new guys, the one Barnin had accosted that day raised his hand, "Sir, is there going to be any Pawdin Ascended helping out?"
His balls may not have dropped yet but there's hope Barnin thought. "That will be one of the things that will decide this battle. If the Iumenta can't hold the air space above the town then we are in for an easier victory, but don't let that make you think we don't have our work cut out for us. The Elves are going to be focusing on Iumenta forces which are heavy in this area. Even if the Elves take the air above Bonta they will not be able to clear out threats like they did for us in Noris. Any other questions?"
Another man asked how well the city was supplied and if routes were being cut off. "They are well supplied; being a port town they have considerable stores of goods." That was the end of questions.
Barnin was packed and ready to go, all of his men were, everyone had been living out of their packs since landing at Noris. As for the new guys...well Barnin figured they never got a chance to unpack from landing that day.
Barnin made his way to where Sara and Keither were staying. It was one of the houses near the docks that had been commandeered. It was large, the home of a naval officer, he knocked on the heavy wooden door. A portly man answered asking who he was looking for.
"Keither and Sara?" Barnin said.
The man nodded opening the door, "Down the hall and to the left."
Barnin walked down a hall with maroon carpet and wondered what Keither had done to earn such nice accommodations. He turned, almost walking into Sara.
"Whoa sorry about that, how are ya Sara? Nice place by the way," Barnin said steadying her.
"Oh thank you, it’s not all ours we share it with a few other people. This house is dedicated to relief staff, well those of us organizing the staff," her eyes shifted around. "I think they put us all on top of each other in this place so we wouldn't stop working," she confided.
Barnin laughed. "Yeah, if you two are working with the Cona Republic now you’re going to be kept in just enough discomfort to make you work for a better tomorrow." Sara chuckled. "You guys too busy to talk?" he asked.
She smiled. "Oh no, no, please come in, we are just over here," she said leading him to a doorway.
They walked into a room that was medium size with enough room for a bed and desk. Keither was at the desk hunched over some papers. "Evening Barnin, one moment," he said not looking up.
"You think to him that I was coming?" Barnin accused Sara.
She scowled and shook her head. "You really need to get over that, honestly it's not that weird."
Keither turned to look at him. "She’s got a point, I mean it's not like you haven't been around mental networking for, umm, I don't know, what four or five years now?"
Barnin wasn't going to have this conversation, instead he made sure his mind was protected and changed the subject. "We are leaving to go to Bonta tomorrow morning, are you lot doing anything for that battle?" he asked.
Sara looked down, and Barnin didn't need to network with her to know what she was thinking. A few years ago he would have told her not to worry, that he would be fine and so would everyone in his unit that they knew...but that was a few years ago and Barnin knew that he couldn't make those promises, not anymore.
Keither answered. "No, we are dealing with things here. I suspect that we will spend most of our time in Noris unless they decide to move us closer to the front to handle coordination there."
"That's good, Noris is a good town and the further into the war we get the safer Noris will be," Barnin said feeling comforted that at least some of his friends may not be in harm’s way.
* * * * *
Iselin leaned over the back rail of the Lux looking out at the empty horizon. The sun was just a sliver, casting the sky in deep oranges and blues. Her eyes swept the black water looking east to where the moon rose higher in the heavens. Noris and the coast were long out of sight even for her powerful eyes. So much in the world had changed in just a few short weeks. Emma came up next to her.
"Hey Em, how are you?" Iselin asked.
"No Ise, how are you? I've been that person staring out at the waves before, what's on your mind?"
Iselin breathed out heavy. "I don't know, it’s a lot to take in. I mean, life feels so out of control on the one hand, but on the other when my parents were my age when the War of Generations started. Also, my husband is a class eight. I’ve always believed him to be the Everser Vald, but part of me... most of me wished I was wrong, ya know? I'm sorry, that sounds selfish," Iselin confessed.
Emma nodded sagely. "You think it's selfish to want a peaceful life for you and your husband? You want to not have to deal with the burden of him being the Everser Vald will bring?"
"See, selfish right, I'm honored really..."
"Look Ise I know you, you are like a sister to me. You’re not being selfish; in fact, if you weren't worried about all these things I would think you were mad." She laughed, "I mean, come on Iselin, who in their right mind wants to be the wife of the person who is supposed to rid the land of the Iumenta? It's like when I was a little girl and thought that having twelve kids would be fun and easy."
Iselin smiled, "You mean it wouldn't be fun and easy?"
Emma grinned, "Well I use to watch some of the kids in town when their parents were out to harvest and it was fun, but easy? Look, all you can do is your best today and that's it."
Oddly this made Iselin feel better, she breathed out another sigh imagining all of her stress leave her. "Thank you Emma, you are like a sister to me too," she said smiling.
Chapter Six
Bonta
"How can we see the good while living the horrors around us? Is it really possible that the suffering of today will mean peace for tomorrow? And is that peace worth the cost? These are the questions every leader must ask themselves. Yet these are also the questions that only time will answer, leaving us only with the faith of today."
-Conversations in the Garden
Umbra glided on a thermal, silent and unseen. The only light in the cloudy night was that from Bonta. It lay to her right like a lake of gold, a thousand little points of candle, fire and torch light; as the night wore on those lights dimmed in the city. Outside the city to the west the fields also glowed with many camp and watch fires of the Cona Republic forces there to take Bonta. She banked away from the city as color flashed in the sky. Since the invasion both the Iumenta and Elves were fighting smart, like they did in the War of Generations; if an Ascended was getting to hurt they would retreat and rest. This meant that even though the battle for Bonta had been raging on both land and air for over a week, there were no Ascended fatalities on either side. At some point the turmoil inside the Cona Empire would brim into rioting and panic, in that day the war would turn fully in the favor of the resistance. Umbra knew this, every Elf did and so did the Iumenta she suspected, they weren't stupid and she figured it was for that reason that both sides were fighting smart. For the Elves it was wasteful to lose lives now when progress would be slow, and for the Iumenta it was unwise to diminish their numbers before things became difficult. Tonight her mission was twofold. She pushed her mind far out using magic to gently influence all of those in the area. It was something all Ascended were doing, they were trying to undo years of influence by the Iumenta Ascended and also to increase the moral of resistance forces.
She soared over the landscape looking for anything she could to help out Elf and human efforts. Her eye caught the glint of something in the distance. She narrowed her focus on where she saw the glint and found a convoy of carts and men. They appeared to be bringing supplies to Bonta. Her mind reached out to the human command, asking if they had anyone in the area she was in. They did not. Good something to do she thought.
Umbr
a hugged the hilly landscape making her way to the convoy. She glided almost right above them without notice. A nudge from her mind was all it took to see that there was no magic protecting her prey. She came around, coming at the group on the ground from behind. Still she made no sound. Tree tops were all but tickling her belly as she passed. When she was all but on top of the line or carts, she breathed out a long steady stream of fire as she flew up its length. The trail lit with the glow of flames as screams of pain and terror rang out.
She circled back around. There were ten carts, all burning. She noticed bodies on the ground, a few still running on fire. A burst of magic killed her suffering victims. She passed over the scene again, being able to see perfectly in the fire light. From what she could tell there were no survivors. Umbra flapped her wings a few times, returning to her previous altitude and original course.
* * * * *
Sasha did her best not to grin. She took in the rose in front of her as it grew. She'd all but mastered making plants grow. It was easy for her, much to Legon's frustration; it had taken him months to make it as far as she did.
"Ha. Look at that, how long did that take you Legon? A month?" Sasha taunted.
Legon smiled good-naturedly, "OK Sash, now concentrate and see if you can turn the blossoms from red to white."
From red to white, she could do this. Sasha focused on the plant in front of her. The feeling for making plants grow wasn't like using magic, it felt as though she was extending herself and her mind’s eye to the plant. It would grow to her will if she understood what she was doing. The ruby petals of the flower seemed to wilt folding in on themselves. She corrected what she was telling the plant to do and the flower popped back up to life, the petals a bright vibrant…
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