“We have to be ready for when they retaliate as well,” Jasper said.
“No one in the Ten Realms goes down without a fight,” Blaze rubbed his face.
“They don’t and they make a lot of enemies along the way. Elan has been talking with some of the other sects and groups that are enemies of them or would take advantage of the Willful Institute if they fell on hard times.”
Blaze saw the pitying look in Jasper’s eyes.
“We are creating a noose and a cage for them, and they’ve stepped right into the middle of it. With time the trap will only become more complicated and refined.”
The two men stood there.
“They thought that they were going up against just a group of mercenaries, but they ran into the Alvans attacking them from every possible angle,” Blaze said.
“Erik and Rugrat call it asymmetric warfare,” Jasper said. “Talking of warfare, how is the recruiting in the Fourth Realm progressing?”
“It's going well, we have around 2,000 applicants. They need to go through training and be vetted. Moving up some groups from the Third Realm to take over some of the jobs we’ve taken on. Most of them are simple protection details from Vuzgal to other places. The Fourth Realm isn’t a nice place to live, going to send some of our Core members that have trained in Alva. Bolster their strength a bit. At the same time with the fighting, it should get ready to fight. How is training going with the other realms? Been out of the loop a bit.”
“As you know we have people joining from the First Realm to the fourth now. We are building a new Adventurer’s Guild location in King’s Hill Outpost, the different leaders in the First Realm don’t like us being in their capitals but with our heavy recruiting and training our numbers are swelling with First Realmers, with training we can easily pull them up to be level Twenty. With monster cores, we can boost them to Thirty and get them into the Fourth Realm. We have fighting in the first and Second Realm to temper our people but the Fourth Realm will give them an opportunity to fight and train. We don’t just need people that are strong, we need people that are loyal, willing to put the guild first and veterans of combat. I have a new proposal,” Jasper pulled out a stack of paper and gave it to Blaze.
“This is a guild management system, recruiting standards that we will hold, rewards people will get for completing different things people will get Guild credits for completing different tasks that they can use to buy equipment at lower market prices. People’s contributions, the restrictive contracts that they are bound to, will weigh more than their overall skill level. We can train people to be stronger, but we need people that are loyal first,” Jasper said.
“It is something that has weighed a lot on my mind,” Blaze said. “Alright, see that it’s implemented right away, Move slowly on the Willful Institute, keep the physical confrontations to a minimum. Focus on training up our people, when the time comes we’ll have the support of Alva, but we need to show our own ability,” Blaze said.
“Understood, we have plenty of people from the lower realms that are willing to do anything to get to the higher realms.”
“They’re just like us, if you have nothing, you appreciate every little thing you’re able to get,” Blaze said.
***
“Elder Ahgren, please let me fill your glass,” Elder Gulo said to the dignified woman sitting next to him in the spectator box.
“Please I would be most honored, soon I will be calling you brother Gulo!” They laughed together lightly. In contrast to the young skinny man that was struck by a spear and sent flying out of the stage in the middle of the arena.
He hit the ground, his body covered in cuts and his eyes swelling shut.
“Seems that your granddaughter has many suitors! With her talent and looks anyone would be blind to not try their chances. Marrying into the grand Ahgren family is an honor!”
“Ah, well ti is a good thing that you grandson Trito has trained for so long. Truly he is a great warrior. With our two families united then it will bring about a change that could be felt throughout the Institute!” Elder Ahgren laughed and smiled, her eyes filled with hidden meaning.
“Indeed!” The two elders drank from their glasses and looked at the other elders that were holding their tongues, looking grim. Others around the two elders were pleased. Feeder families and allies. With such an alliance then they would be able to drive out others that had plagued them for years.
The Institute was anything but a peaceful place, inside it was its own kind of battleifleld.
The fighting continued as the different fighters of the Ahgren, Gulo and allied families removed the competition. With their positions they had poured their resources and the Institutes that they could get into their younger generation.
When they met on the stages, the weaker members would bow out, allowing them to push ahead safely. It created a wall within the competition.
“Are you sure of this?” Elder Dayal asked the trader beside her.
“I am a man of my word Elder Dayal. The best weapons and armor. I even brought you training aids that would be hard to find in the sixth realm. While the Fifth realm has plenty, your boy has the best chance of winning,” The trader said.
“Very well, if it is as you say then we can break up the alliance between the Gulo and Ahgren family. Tying my Dayal family to the Ahgren boat. With our boy sure to make it into the sixth realm academies while it will not give them their alliance, it will save us from any backlash and we can grow strong enough to carve out a position.”
“Yes, you said that the Gulo family have some left over problems with you.”
“They claim that we tried to force out their Elder four hundred years ago. If we did or didn’t it is so long past, why does it matter I ask?” Elder Dayal snorted.
“You don’t forget about the terms of our deal?” The trader asked.
“I won’t, for your participation we will happily admit your sons to the Willful Instittue and help them into the sixth realm if we can. Also don’t forget how you will join our Dayal family. With us working together we can surely change my Dayal family’s fate.”
A man wearing all black armor with gold etchings on it walked out onto the stage. At his hip he had a sword of blue and white.
“Rahul I didn’t think that you would show up here. I heard tha tyouw ere in hding, not wanting to get caught up in all of this. There might be a clearing of tll the pepoet hat were using threousurces of tne instututies without opur express permission,” The boy opposite said. He was wearing casters robes as he looked at the other boy.
“Begin the match,” Rahul said in a deep voice.
The trader and Elder Dayal watched the match intently.
“Begin!” Rahul shot across the stage, before the other boy could do anything he was struck by a fist and sent off of the stage.
The caster rolled to a stop, his ribsbroken as he was coughing up blood, people rushed over to him with medical supplies.
“Trash like you should know when to step down,” One could here the sneer in his voice.
Elder Dayal nodded in appreciation.
“His speed is much higher than it was before, his strength is higher as well. He didn’t even need to draw his weapon to deal with Kitaros’ grand nephew. Though nothing is sure if he will make it all the way to the end,” Dayal said.
“Well I hope for our sakes that he does,” The trader said.
Slowly but surely Dayal made his way through matches. He didn’t have to draw his sword in the first fifteen.
On his sixteenth, just two matches away from the end, he finally pulled it out against a spear user.
He turned just enough, the spear scraped past him. He chopped out at the spear wielder’s arms. They flinched to the side.
Dayal used a movement technique and shot forward, his blade cut across the boys chest and up his shoulder. Ony his quic reaction was able to stop Dayal from cutting his neck open.
“Hmm, worthy,” Dayal said as if he saw the world from a
nother standing.
Are all of these kids that are raised int eh fifth relam as arrogant? Ajeti thought to himself as he sat next to Dayal.
I’m looking forward to getting the hell out of here, back to Alva. I can’t believe that we wasted so many resources on this arrogant little shit. Born and raised in the fifth realm he was a little coward, noew he has some power he’s lashing out at everyone, expecting his family to give him everything under the sun. If he reaches the seventh realm he’ll be even worse. At least the people that had to climb up here, while they’re cutthroat, you know 3you can’t trust them. Unlike these mouses that are little fuckers underneath it all.
Rahul Dayal got to his last match.
“Looks like it is Trito at the very end,” Ajeti said.
“It will be best if we can cripple him, better if we can kill him. Then it will cause the Gulo family to rush to bring up another champion quickly while our Rahul can increase his fighting ability.”
“I thought that ekilling wasn’t allowed in these matches?”
“Ah, but weapons are blind in the heat of battle, no? How can they be at fault?” Elder Dayal raised an eye brow with a sly smile. “Don’t worry, your boys won’t have to be a part of this, as long as they grow strong and they work on their crafts they can succeed and get the eye of the teachers in the sixth realm. It matters more what one brings to the table, than talent don’t you think? What is a talent worth if he has a talentless family?”
Ajeti forced out a laugh speaking conspiratorially. “I couldn’t agree more Elder!”
Rahul pulled out his sword from the beginning.
Trito had his spear pointed at the ground.
The two of them stared at one another from across the stage.
“Begin!” Rahul dashed forward, he needed to get inside Trito’s reach. His movements blurred as he used a movement technique.
Trito used a spear technique, his spear met Rahul’s sword, creating sparks. Sparks turned to flames around his body.
Trito’s spear thrusts created air blades. His movements were infused with the air, making him slip across the stage.
Rahul’s weakneeses were clear as he was lashing out with his blade, using strength to compete with technique.
The flames grew around him, fanned by Trito’s wind.
Rahul dodged backwards, it gave him space away from Trito. Power surged around him, the flames that covered his body congealed and flowed up his arms. Instead of flames they looked like red mercury.
Rahul stabbed out with his spear, a twisting wind cureld around his shoulder. It spun across and down his arm, around his sword. It drew the flamed behind it. The flames burned hotter, shooting forward along the path of his sword and twisting air lance.
Trito’s eyes widened as the spear of air and burning flames pierced through his armor and stabbed into his stomach.
He screamed out as he fell to the ground. The crowd was quiet for a moment before people started to clap. The pale faces from before gained some color as their gloating eyes looked over at the
Gulos Elders.
Ajeti watched Elder Ahgren out of the corner of his eye. She had paused with a drink right before her lips. Now she looked over to the Dayal family and raised her cup in salute.
Elder Dayal graciously held her glass up in salute as well. The two old seasoned elders drank their cups watching one another.
The Ahgren and Dayal family will get along well, and they could grow into a great power. The Dayal family control a lot of Institute locations while the Gulo had a lot of trade connections. With the Ahgren trade connections the Dayal family can breathe again and grow in power. Now I just need to make it look like the Ahgren’s killed me. Sow distrust between them. The Gulo’s will think the Ahgren’s plotted out their fall and the death of their champion. The Ahgren won’t trust the Dayal. The Dayal won’t trust the Ahgren, thinking they attacked their backer. Then the other four powerful families will be sucked into the power squabbles and issues.
Should make for quite a mess in the fifth realm training centers.
Ajeti didn’t have to fake his smile as he drank with Elder Dayal.
Chapter: Operations
Roska and her team moved through the forest. They reached a rise getting low and lying down, they pulled formation-covered sheets over themselves that would render most sensing spells useless.
They used their different scopes to look at Aberdeen.
The City had been heavily damaged, the city-wide barrier had failed long ago.
“When we passed through here last it was only the start of the fighting between the Sanem family and an alliance of the Marceola and Halberd Sect. What happened since then?” Roska asked, wanting to know how much they had retained from her briefing.
“The Sanem family controlled Aberdeen and several other cities to the north, with the mountains and deep valleys it was easy to defend, hard to attack. It wasalso hard for the Sanem family to attack so they were focused in one area, hunting and clearing the forests when they found a useful dungeon,” one said, she stopped them with a tap.
“Who are the players, their motivations?” She asked, and looked at another trainee.
“The Marceola Sect was to the South and they had wanted to expand to the North, they were surrounded on all sides. The Halberd Sect to the West is a powerful force, they have several different cities all over the Fourth Realm, this is just one outpost for them, a beachhead for them to expand.”
“Good,” her eyes moved to her next victim. “What was their fight up to this point and the significance of Aberdeen?
“The Alliance took two cities and reached Aberdeen, it covers a key pass. The Alliance paid a heavy price and five months to take Aberdeen and push forward, behind the city there are growing areas for different stamina ingredients.”
“And why is that important?” Roska looked at the last member of their four-person team, not including herself.
“There aren’t many areas to grow items in the north, without the ability to grow ingredients then the sects will need to rely on purchasing the ingredients or concoctions. If they have the option then they can get these items from groups that they are allied in the lower realms.”
“Very good, supplies are a weakness in any war. In the Ten Realms, people can move supplies through realms and they can use auction interfaces to buy and sell items if they control a city. If a city is under attack then the auction house is still functional, but the ten realm price to get it teleported to the buy increases. The totems are unable to be used as well,” she pointed to one of the team.
“With teleportation arrays and formations people can still move, right?”
“That is correct, which is why the Halberd Sect is winning this war,” Roska looked out at the city. “Never underestimate your enemies or your allies in the Ten Realms. I want to know the force in Aberdeen: their weapons, armor, morale, civilian population, defensive and offensive capabilities.”
She moved back from the group, leaving them to it.
This was their mission now.
She got comfortable underneath a tree.
“Vuzgal, this is West Eagle One,” one of the team used the comms channel she was tapped into.
“West Eagle One this is Eagle's Nest, go ahead.” The communications channel was permanently manned in Vuzgal, part of the communication network built up by the Alvans that connected them across the realms.
To send messages across the realms one needed to pass through the totems. Alvan traders across the different realms carried special communication devices that would collect messages and spit them out once the traders passed through the totems.
Elan’s Intelligence Department had people who would run from realm to realm, passing sensitive information. The military, civilians and Intelligence department’s different communication lines operated separately but there was overlap, making sure there were multiple communication routes.
The command center had several communication devices that would allow t
hem to instantly know the situation outside of their walls. Everyone was vetted as they had access to information on all military movements in the area, like the four Special team trainee groups that were scouting out to the West. The Two teams that were dungeon hunting in the chaotic lands and remaining three groups that were across the Fourth Realm, observing the Willful Institute’s city.
There was also running commentary and information that came through Elan’s people detailing military movements through the eyes of intelligence agents that were also members of the Adventurer’s Guild and the Trading guild that were seeded across the Fourth Realm.
“Eagle's Nest, we are in position at location one, will update if the situation changes. Confirm.”
“West Eagle One, understood, you are at location one, will update as needed.”
“Eagle's Nest that is correct, West Eagle One out.” The Special team trainees went silent using their scopes and communication devices to gather and share information with one another. A group of two broke off and moved to another position that they had spotted.
Roska shifted her weight finding a better spot against the roots of the tree she had found and got ready for a long and boring scouting mission.
***
Domonos checked on the reports coming in from the surrounding area.
“Feels good to have some more eyes out there,” He said to the newly-minted Captain Choi.
“I heard that you got the artillery Platoon working on a ranging exercise,” Choi said.
“I thought it was about time that we updated the ranges for our mortars, having clear arcs can never hurt,” Domonos said.
“And cleared out more of the forest an extra three hundred meters with the rifle platoons, while having the support platoon laying down trap formations,” Captain Choi said.
“Wanted to expand the view a bit and woodworkers would love those materials,” Domonos smiled in a way that wasn’t a smile.
“You think that they’re going to attack us?” Choi asked.
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