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Fantasy What's worth fighting for

It felt like months until they reached the training grounds, but it was in fact only about three days in total. This was including stops to rest at night and stops for the horses to rest. However, they all finally pulled up to the training camp where there were many tents set up for the recruits to rest in.

King Leonard hopped off his horse and sighed as he looked at them for a moment. “Alright, men and woman, the orcs and centaurs will be joining us within the next few days. For now this training ground is ours alone. However, sleeping arrangements have been set up for all of you. Your horses will be staying in the care of the stable hands.” He said as he pet his horse carefully and smiled to everyone.

“Feel free to start training as soon as possible, but don’t forget to take moments to rest as well. The mages have special training grounds, I recommend being careful while they are training.” He said as it wasn’t that ordinary people weren’t allowed to train with the mages, but mages could prove quiet destructive at times and he didn’t want any of the trainees being intimidated by the mages. “Please feel free to train with them on their grounds as well, it will give you a good idea of how to counter a magic users as a whole.” He instructed and then looked to the tents.

“I will inform you that noble families are to stick together, so find your brothers and fathers and please choose a tent near them.” He said as that rule was so that if a quick meeting needed to be called Leonard could call the noble families into his own tent. “Now, I dismiss you all to do as you so please. Cooks, please start cooking and preparing for meal time.” He said before he mounted his horse once more and trotted towards the stables.

Once everyone’s horses were settled in training started almost immediately. Aliarna was no exception as she unfortunately got dragged into the training grounds by the girl Tina that she had been becoming quite acquainted with during their travels. They had agreed to tent together, as it wasn’t discouraged for men and woman to share tents, but nothing scandalous was supposed to happen. Not that her father had to worry about that since Aliarna herself was actually a girl and was just here for Daquan.

“Alright Al! TAKE THIS!” Tina yelled throwing a fireball at Aliarna who quickly used her own defensive magic to deflect the fireball, but still it singed part of her beard. Hell she wouldn’t care if it burnt the entire thing off, atleast then she would look close to what she was trying to get!

Aliarna laughed as she looked at Tina, “your quite strong if I do say so myself! I am still kind of training.” She admitted and Tina laughed as she watched Aliarna. “Alard, your going to be just fine, just relax!” She said as she then got into a defensive stance. “Show me what you got!” She tempted and Aliarna tried to think of what to do.

Electricity... it’s the best way to start something out to prove that while you might be training you are still strong. Use lightning bolt, you have mastered that. The water said and Aliarna subconsciously nodded her head without actually doing it.

After some focusing she threw her hands up towards the sky and a small bead of energy flicked up and outwards into the clouds, which darkened almost immediately. In a flash the lightning bolt crashed through the clouds, the smell of o-zone filling the air as Tina readied her defense.

Tina immediately used a spell that Aliarna had never seen before had she did a little dance around and took the lightning bolt and redirected it towards the grounds outside the training grounds. Unfortunately though she didn’t think about how far the spell would go and she hit another soldier. “OH SHIT!” Tina yelled, “Alard, you know any healing spells?!” She asked as she didn’t want to unintentionally kill a fellow soldier.

Aliarna looked at Tina, “what the hell?! Aim it at the ground infront of you, not at the grounds outside!” She yelled as she knew how dangerous the spell could be and on the inside she was beating herself up. Meanwhile, the water was laughing hysterically. The spell is heightened by your ability to control me dear. Unfortunately it is your own fault. Lesson number one, try to learn to control. It thought as Aliarna and Tina went to make sure that the person who got hit was okay.

Oh, f*ck off! You told me to use the spell without telling me it would be that strong! She yelled back at the water and then shook her head. “Tina, do you know any healing spells? I’m still training and my master hadn’t gone over many.” She admitted and Tina nodded her head, “yes I can heal them. Let’s assess the damage first.” She said as they left the training grounds to check on the soldier.

Morris Morris
 
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Finally, they made it. The Reddish Plains were tactically ideal for a mustering ground and an encampment site; far enough from the border to not have to worry about unexpected attacks, but close enough that the forces could be redeployed fast in the event of a preemptive strike from Maelkith.

The region got its name from the unusual feature of its flora; every blade of grass, the tip of every leaf, every stalk, every flower petal were tinted in a peculiar shade of red, not unlike the colour of blood. Why was it this way? Nobody knew or remembered, but everyone had their myths and stories. The most widespread folk legends of Krustivan regarded this place with a sad reverence, believing it to be a spot where a battle of such savegery was waged, that no soldier on either side survived; only the camp followers - their widowed wives and their orphaned children - lived through the hell, and when they each came looking at the aftermath, they buried the dead together, weeping until their eyes were dry, washing the blood on the fields down into the earth, down to the roots of the plants, which immortalised their grief in a display of sympathy.

As history's sense of irony would have it, the plains have not been the site of battle in the past few centuries. Some cited superstitions, others that it was just strategically unappealing from a would-be conqueror's perspective, because there were more profitable routes available. Which is what made it perfect for Krustivan to use in preparation for the coming conflict.

The Vuldaraks were quick to establish their tents and campfires; they tried to pick a spot adjecent to the Trustvars, but that was not sufficient, so they settled further away, beside Balthasar de Osrick's troops, whose discipline was higher than their disdain for 'lowly huntsmen'. Even so, Daquan and his adoptive family couldn't help but overhear some sentiments...

"Can you believe it? They brought like, several hundred of those oversized furballs. What are we going to do with them? Shear them in the winter for fur cloaks? And who will clean up after them?" - one of the soldiers rambled.

"They brought their women with them, too." - another pointed out. - "Pfft. Are they so dependant on them they can't march to fight without their cooking or what? Why are they even bearing arms, for that matter? It must be a sad excuse of a knightly house, to have girls with more balls than their menfolk."

"Clearly, none of these folks have been huntsmen." - Uldred shrugged, talking to Daquan. - "Otherwise they would be keeping their mouths shut and be glad we're here."

Daquan nodded in agreement. - "They are in the right about us lacking manpower, though. I assume his majesty will want us at the forefront as scouts. We can't be relied on as much else."

"That's how things have always been." - Joel confirmed. - "An undignified, unrewarding, but crucial job that goes without recognition, but is greeted with much bitching and moaning from the rest of the nobles if we mess it up. But for now, just let's set up a training plan. So long as nobody is trying to bother us unnecessarily-"

"FOUND YOU, VILE SKIRTCHASER!" - a harsh exclamation echoed through the air, with a voice that Daquan found to be somewhat familiar. Turning around, the face and the drawn fencing rapier were both undisputably memorable: - "It is I, earl-in-waiting Egon le Deuche, continuing my challenge from whence we left off!"

The Vuldaraks exchanged inquisitive glances with Daquan. The overzealously jealous jerkass was one of those details which was confided to Joel and nobody else. The squire put his hands on his hip, protesting the daring act: - "Your persistance in hounding me is admirable, your excellency, but I have no business with you, and such refuse to duel you. Goodbye."

"Quaking in your boots, are you, squirmling?!" - he cackled annoyingly, drawing all the more attention. - "To think such a lowly, cowardly peon would think himself fit for the princess!"

"You waltzed with the princess?!" - Myrtill blurted out in excited disbelief, joined by Uldred and Thomas Vuldarak alike. Murmurs started spreading among the soldiers, about the rumours of the squire who tried wooing her majesty Aliarna on Merrymaker's day...

Daquan rolled his eyes and raised his voice in frustration: - "Oh for crying out loud, people, it was just a damn dance! I've done nothing indecent with princess Aliarna! If I'm lying, may the gods of the sky strike me down this damn instant!"

Then a lightning bolt struck out of nowhere.

Next thing the squire would wake to were Uldred slapping him awake, and Joel shouting at a pair of young-looking mages beside him, about fixing him up this instant or he'll chop them both up and feed them to his hounds.

"Uggh..." - he groaned in pain, his back sizzling with scorching pain. The stray magical attack hit him from behind, and while fortunately the magic of the werewolf skin cloak dampened the effect, there was still a fist-sized hole in the pelt now, and the backside of his armor plates was schorched dark, with the skin underneath burning. A couple of armsmen were hurriedly disassembling his armor so the wound could be inspected.

What a wonderful first day at camp...

Lilbutterfli94 Lilbutterfli94
 
Aliarna sighed as she hated that she had cast such a strong spell and she didn’t even know complete control. She could kill someone if she wasn’t careful. So, her first thought was that she would have to learn healing and Tina would probably be the best person to learn from if she was being honest.

Of course the thoughts were short lived as she realized just who they hit and she would have cried, but she looked at Joel who was yelling at her.

Tina looked at Joel, “my lord, please go easy on Alard here. He is just learning and I misdirected the spell.” She said trying to shift the blame from Aliarna to herself as she knew what it was like to be learning and constantly be yelled at when you made one tiny mistake. It hurt and sometimes it left a lasting impact.

Aliarna looked at Joel for a moment, “no I am partially to blame. I used a spell without thinking how strong it was.” She said kind of quietly as she knew how strong it was, but she had used it as the water instructed and threw a little too much power into it.

Tina took a deep breath, “if you don’t mind I can heal the young squire and maybe teach Alard here how to control the strength.” She said as she grabbed Alards hand carefully and pulled him away without even waiting.

It was their mess to fix and she was certainly going to fix it.

Aliarna looked at Daquan for a moment, “come on Alard. I’ll teach you a simple healing spell.” Tina said and Aliarna nodded her head as she knelt down next to Tina and watched her use three different healing spells.

“The first one is cure light wounds. He needs three rounds because of how bad his back got hurt.” Tina explained. “The second is cute moderate wounds and the last is another cure light wounds.” She said as she sighed a bit. “Cure light wounds is best for you though.” She stated as she watched Alard to make sure he was following.

Aliarna nodded her head as she watched Tina closely trying to learn. “My teacher never taught me this.” She admitted as she sat there and sighed a bit as she shook her head.

Tina sighed, “what a shitty master. Sending their mags to war and not teaching them healing spells.” She said shaking her head as she hated that Alard got treated in such a way, if only she knew the truth.

Morris Morris
 
Lord Joel Vuldarak was very visibly furious at the two novice magicians. - "Well guess what, Alard and whoever your partner is, you could have killed my squire, you incompetent spark-slingers! There are nobles out here who would flay your hides bare with whips for this! I'll be filing a report to your superior for sure, better hope you have spare coins to pay for the armor's damages!"

"Father, please..." - Uldred sighed and patted his dad on the back. - "Daquan is breathing just fine. Let them get to work, see if they can patch him up."

Daquan was gritting his teeth in pain as the armsmen rolled him around to detach the lamellar armor and free him of his clothing, exposing his muscular abs. Thomas Vuldarak cast an accusative glance at Myrtill, who seemed to inspect the sight with keen interest before turning away blushing. Both their faces contorted to grimaces, however, when the back was exposed, revealing a sizable second-grade burn wound just below the squire's left scapula, barely missing the spine. His muscles were still sore from the electric shock. He tried to speak up, to get his mind off of the pain: - "W... what happened with that Douche fellow, anyhow?"

"He... sort of lost consciousness from fright when the lightning hit you." - Uldred explained. - "Had to be carried off. Along with half a dozen bystanding soldiers who got seizures from laughing too hard. Suppose that make you the winner in regards to pain tolerance, eh?" - he smirked uneasily.

"Yeah... to be struck like that, right after-" - Myrtill spoke up, but Joel hushed her.

"Enough about that! Not another word. Now you two, get to work." - he ordered 'Al Alard' and 'his' fellow mage, Tina, to cure Daquan's wound.

Daquan positioned his head carefully, trying to catch glimpses of his accidental assaulters. - "If it matters ought, it hurts like hell... just need to work on that aim..."

Lilbutterfli94 Lilbutterfli94
 
Tina looked at Daquan, “in all honesty it was my own neglect to focus my aiming to the grounds inside the the training station.” She said as she sighed a bit, “now don’t speak.” She said as she sat there and looked to Alard. “You however need to work on strength Alard. The strength in that was amazing, but dangerous at the same time.” She said as she was a good multi-tasker.

Aliarna nodded her head carefully, “I’m sorry... I guess from my inexperience I didn’t think to control the strength.” She said as that was pretty true if she was being honest. However, she left out the part about how she had this voice in her head telling her what to do.

Tina sighed, “what the hell did your crack pot of a teacher teach you exactly?” She asked as she was more worried for Alard than for anything else. After all he shouldn’t be at war if he couldn’t control how tough he was and how he slung spells.

Aliarna cleared her throat a bit, “it is a really old man.” She admitted and Tina paused a bit as she looked at Alard for a moment.

“Ahh, well that explains it.” She lied as she knew there was only one really old mage left and that was Princess Aliarna’s teacher. He was her teacher because he was one of the most experienced. However, in his old age he was slacking a bit.

Aliarna nodded her head as she assisted in fixing Daquan. “Maybe you can help me a bit... I mean, I’m going to have to learn fast if I want to keep up with the rest of the mages under His Royal Highness.” She said as she looked at Tina.

Tina nodded her head and smiled softly, “of course... now can you check on the patient please?” She asked as she kept focusing on what she was doing.

Aliarna looked at Daquan and sighed as she had to pretend not to know him. “My name is Alard.” She said not really certain what else she should say. After all, it wasn’t like she knew what she was doing at all. “What’s your name?” She asked as she figured that was a place to start. “Sorry for hurting you... on accident.” She continued as she did feel bad. She came here to protect Daquan and to be with him, not to hurt him!

Morris Morris
 
Daquan obediently laid on the ground on his stomach, waiting for the fledgeling magicians to finally get to work. He waited until he felt the spells were working out their effects on his body, and his pain began to subside. - "Daquan. To friends, simply Daq." - the squire confided in his unwitting attacker. - "All is forgiven, so long as you learn from this..." - he grimaced from the wound's soreness still, and subtly condemning the young wizard for his inattentiveness. He didn't want to come across rude, but Joel was correct - a spell like this could very much kill him. He wasn't afraid of the edges and tips of blades, but few armors warrant protection from elemental demolition.

He was called Alard, appearently. Sounded foreign to his ears, southern maybe? Eventually, he could afford to turn on his side and finally see the guy face-to-face. He furrowed his eyebrows at the apprentice. At first, he wanted to ask whether 'he' is a boy or a girl, because at first sight Alard seemed quite androgynous, were it not for that flimsy little beard on his chin. His scrawny build suggested a lifestyle deeply lacking in athletic endeavours. - "Alard, far be it from me, after this demonstration, to belittle you, but... are you being fed alright at the academy? You are thin as a twig." - he remarked.

"Aye, most army mages don't look after themselves." - Uldred sighed. - "A shame, really, because that means they've got to be pampered above the rank-and-file, else they aren't worth much."

This was a sentiment shared across the majority of the army. While mages were undeniably powerful, many were jealous of their overall much better living conditions, even while on the march, and enjoyed certain privileges that others - including gentry - didn't. If it had been a plain drafted serf that Alard had struck down, he'd have gotten away scot-free, save for a donation from the academy to the perished man's family. Additionally, soldiers were often required to fight even when exhausted, wounded, starved; mages weren't, supposedly because it interfered with their casting prowess, making accidents more likely to happen. The troops in general wrote this off as rubbish, and just the mage academies looking after their protegees, unwilling to take risks and sacrifices while others were bleeding to protect their sorry hides.

Daquan wasn't all that aware of this, and his time with Aliarna made him more keenly interested on the topic of the arcane than to simply be afraid of it, beside taking note of the person who accidentally fried his back. - "Well then, Alard. And your ladyship, whose name I have yet to learn" - he glanced at Tina - "I won't hold a grudge, so long as you both be more mindful in the future."

Lilbutterfli94 Lilbutterfli94
 
Aliarna looked at Daquan for a moment and rubbed her head carefully. She certainly had made this form pretty dainty. That she wasn’t going to deny, but that was because she herself was relatively small. After all, her mother said that she could only alter her appearance, her weight and height had to roughly remain the same. Sure, she could make herself a bit taller and fatter, but it exerted too much power and thus would drain the young girl’s energy dry, making it harder to maintain the appearance she had worked so hard to achieve, even if she did hate the damn beard that was starting to itch.

“Well, I have certainly learned something today.” She admitted as she looked down and played with her hands a bit before shaking her head. “I guess I didn’t think of the strength and for that I am sorry.” She said as she sighed a bit and shook her head. “Magic hasn’t exactly been easy for me.” She admitted as that was mostly true, for Aliarna was still quite the novice right now, and as a result magic was a bit difficult for her at times.

Tina took a gander at Alard once more and took in a deep breath as this was oddly suspicious of who Alard was. After all, he sounded oddly like the Princess. How would she have come across all of this though? How would she have snuck into the ranks of the the army? Why would she even do such a thing? It didn’t matter though because the fact of the matter was that she was here and there was no turning back now.

Soon though Daquan was healed, but they were interrupted by King Leonard who came rushing towards them. “Joel, I need you in the royal tent now please.” He said as he had just got a message from his wife, from Queen Andrea. Their daughter was no where to be found as of right now. However, he wasn’t going to say anything infront of Daquan or infront of the others.

Once they got to the tent he sat down and sighed, “Aliarna has gone missing. My wife has been looking for her for the last few days and can’t find her... we need to search the army, and you know why.” He said as he looked at his friend hoping he was picking up what he was saying, because it should be fairly obvious why he would suspect his daughter to sneak into the army, even if it was dangerous.

Morris Morris
 
As Alard brought up the difficulties in controlling magic, Daquan thought back on his time in Aliarna's water bubble and the unrepressed hazard area that resulted as a side effect. - "Oh, I can most definitely believe that." - he smirked uneasily at Alard. - "Let's just say I know someone who likewise is still under tutelage."

The gradually improving mood of the scene was abruptly spoiled by king Leonard's hasty arrival. He looked positively spooked as he urged Joel to his tent. The patriach of house Vuldarak nodded in silence, turning to his peers next: - "No worries, it's just the usual scouting reports I bet." - he dismissed their questioning looks, even though it was a very barebones lie he told.

...

Once settling down in private with Leonard, Joel likewise adapted a worrysome face. - "Do you think she could have gotten kidnapped, or..." - then Leonard brought up searching the ranks looking for her. - "Oh. Oh. You suspect she's coming after my squire in disguise. That's more plausible I suppose. And a tad bit better than the other alternative." - he sighed in relief. He didn't want to belittle his sovereign's plight, but finding a princess gone rogue looking for her beloved was ought to be a simpler task than mounting a full-scale rescue operation.

Nevertheless, he buried his face into his palms soon after. This was a most tenuous situation, which had to be handled with the utmost discretion. - "Do you by any chance have something with Aliarna's scent? My dogs could find her easily then. But if not... that's ought to make things a lot more difficult." - it was quite an understatement, really; they already had a little over five thousand people running about, and at least twice as many to arrive soon after, and that wasn't even half the number they were hoping to amass by the end of the month.

"Let's try thinking this through... she could be doing one of two things. Either she just dyed her hair and put on some cheap rags, and is hiding among other women, like the camp followers, or... she could have gone with a full-on illusion. Maybe she'd join up with the magicians and..." - he paused briefly. - "Nah. Not bloody likely. It would be just so damn obvious, no way she'd do THAT of all things. I'm placing my bet on some non-combat unit. We should start with them, first and foremost. Ask your conjurers for whatever trinket works against illusions and we'll start screening. I'll leave Uldred in charge of the training 'till this blows over."

...

In the meantime, Uldred and Thomas politely, but sternly, requested the magicians to shoo off. They have caused quite enough ruckus with their mistake as is.

"A couple of uppity spark-flingers." - Thomas frowned after they were out of hearing distance. - "We haven't been here one day, woosh, we could have lost you, Daq!"

"I'll survive." - the squire reassured him. - "If anything, we both must learn from this. Maybe we could ask them to help train with us."

"Surely you jest?" - Myrtill looked to him in disbelief. - "Or did that thunderhead sizzle your brainbox a bit?"

"Look, if there's something we are unprepared for, as we all just witnessed, it's enemy magicians." - Uldred supported Daquan's idea. - "We have no other contingencies in place for them other than 'kill on sight'. Might as well get those two novices to pay us a favour, teach us what dampens or strengthens them."

Daquan nodded. That was more or less the point he wanted to get across.

And so, in the coming days, in the absence of Lord Joel, who spent his time mostly by his king's side, an unlikely training regimen was set up beside the regular drills: Tina and Alard would be invited over in their spare time, to give brief lectures on how magic worked and could be negated (hopefully), asked to demonstrate some common forms of attack, treat any injuries they caused by accidents, and were paid for it in tea, biscuits and dog petting.

Lilbutterfli94 Lilbutterfli94
 
Leonard sighed a he sat down in his chair and rubbed his eyes. “My daughter is reckless at the best of times. I am hoping that she was dumb enough to come after your squire. No offense, but there was definitely something between the two of them during your stay at the castle.” He said as he sighed a bit, “but this battlefield is far to dangerous for her. I don’t want her to get hurt or anything and if she does it’s going to be my head.” He said as Andrea would get upset if he failed to detect his daughter in the ranks and she ended up coming home hurt.

“Andrea was going over a spell with her before our departure... it was so that when she was out in public people wouldn’t know who she was. She called it something like Disguise Self.” He said as he wasn’t that good with the magic lingo. He let his wife talk to him about it, and he did listen, but he otherwise knew nothing about his wife and daughters abilities other than what his wife told him.

“There’s got to be a way that the mages can detect her if the dogs can’t.” He said as he got up and went looking through his belongings. He found a few things, but nothing that he could use for the dogs to sniff and thus catch the scent of his daughter. “Unfortunately, I think we’re going to have to try and have the mages do it.” He said as he looked at Joel and sat down once more.

“We’ll have them use a spell or two to see if they can find her... heck, we have a few with special abilities. Maybe if they can talk to their elementals, they can find hers.” He said as he leaned back, “I just hope that she is somewhere safe... can you send word to your wife and ask her to keep an eye on your lands? Maybe Aliarna went there hoping to catch Daquan before we left. In the meantime we will search the troops until it is otherwise proven that she is not among us.” He said as he sighed a bit and shook his head. This was a stressful situation to say the least.

———

So, after their chat Leonard got to work talking to the mages about finding his daughter among them. It would be easier to assume she would disguse herself among them since she had no fighting skills and only her magic. Of course they were all very loyal and agreed to the terms, that if she was found they would bring her back to her father who would thusly send her home.

About a week had passed since then, and still the mages hadn’t found Aliarna among their ranks. However, that was thanks to Tina working some magic in order to disguse Aliarna better, after of course she found out that Alard was the Princess herself. She was taking a big risk with all this though because she would definitely be killed if anyone found out she was lying for the princess and making her virtually undetectable.

In the meantime, she had been helping teach the young princess a bit more magic, making sure that she paid attention as she had to learn some what fast in order to be able to remain undetected.

Tina sighed as she sat with Aliarna, “your highness, you sure you want me to hit you with this spell?’ She asked as she was nervous to hurt the young girl, even if she was disguised as a boy.]

Aliarna nodded her head as she looked at Tina and smiled softly, “it’s just a little water. I need to learn to control my water better and I’m hoping by having someone attack me with my own element I can learn more.” She said as they were in a loud spot where no one could hear them unless they were listening really hard, but half of them were drunk and the other half were discussing their love interests back home. “Besides, I told you not to call me that... if my father finds out he’ll have your head and then mine soon after.” She warned as she looked around.

Tina chuckled and shook her head, “alright alright.” She said as she threw some water in the young girls face and laughed at Aliarna’s reaction. “Tina, not here.” She said laughing as she wiped her face and Tina laughed hysterically. “You know, your either desperately in love with this man or just bat shit crazy and out to get yourself killed.” She said laughing and Aliarna chuckled, “I already told you Tina, I just want to make sure he is safe... I don’t want him to get hurt.” She said as she played with the beards that still plagued her face.

Tina shook her head, “well he is cute... even though you burnt him to a crisp last week.” She said chuckling as she stuck her tongue out and Aliarna laughed before blasting Tina in the face with water. “Back off he’s mine,” she said laughing and Tina laughed hysterically. “Sorry, but he is good looking.” She said as she wiped her face and smiled softly. “I hope you get your happy ending Al... I really do.” She said as she called her Al because it wouldn’t be misplaced, Al could be short for Alard.

Morris Morris
 
Joel plainly bit his lip at Leonard noting there was something going on between the youngsters. It would appear he was a lot more observant on the matter than his liege. It was a textbook case of love at first sight if he ever saw one. Frankly, he was about halfway certain they already got to first base, and the only reason he could think of to convince himself that things probably didn't escalate further was that he knew both Aliarna and Daquan were shy and reserved. Then again, the thought of potentially losing Daq so soon might have made the poor princess recklessly inconsiderate...

"Rest assured, I'll devote whatever time I have to spare to find her. I'll dispatch a messenger pidgeon homewards immediately. I will not rest until Aliarna has been upturned and returned to your care, Leonard." - he promised him. - "But, if I may be so bold... whenever this whole war blows over, please talk with Andrea over these lessons of hers. I know she had the best intentions, but she clearly hasn't thought this over..."

---

A week has passed since the accidental frying of Daquan's back. Although he was advised to relax for a few days just to be sure his wound wouldn't act up, the squire was both too starved for action and too aware of the coming challenges ahead to remain complacent any longer than necessary. Indeed, he was positively restless; not that there was nothing to occupy himself with - beside drilling against magical attacks with the two novice mages, Daquan found himself hounded by multiple challengers on a daily basis, in no small part thanks to the theatrical antics of Egon le Deuche drawing attention to him last week.

He took this particular hardship in stride. If nothing else, this was a fair enough mean of getting practice against a wide variety of opponents, and getting a few laughs at the expense of people who actually deserved it. It was almost degrading how easily he beat the majority of his challengers - pudgy, untrained, stuck-up, pampered offspring of barons, marquisses and other entitled individuals. A lot of observers made bets, and some got quite rich from it, but the hype died down as it became evident the match-ups were quite one-sided... in Daquan's favour.

In all honesty, an altogether average girl from the Vuldaraks' villages could have beaten these scrubs to a pulp. It was almost refreshing whenever someone hailing from a bloodline with martial traditions picked a bone with him. Even so, he had quite a winning streak piling up. Sadly, on that note, Balthasar de Osrick's sons (all seven of them) considered him beneath notice. No challanges, nor friendly sparring proposals came on their part; a sour detail, considering how prestigious it would be.

It was a lovely afternoon today, all things considered. The weather had been fair, and the sky clear, with a gentle, unintrusive breeze blowing to cool the Sun's heat. Daquan was looking on at the ongoing scenes amidst the tents with Uldred, spotting Alard and Tina playing their private antics.

"I'm still surprised you don't hold anything against them." - Uldred noted. - "Joel could have easily had them suspended and resigned to crap-shovel duty, and nobody would had objected."

"It's difficult to stay mad at them." - Daquan remarked. - "They are toying with powers which can easily end a life. But just look at them; in the end, they are kids themselves. They have been confined amidst those dusty college walls for gods know how long, I can't blame them for wanting to stretch their legs and flaunt what they got."

"If you ask me, that's precisely what's worrysome. Mages aren't like squires. They don't learn discipline from a young age. They aren't taught respect towards life and death like we are. They fancy that they know more about the esoteric side of life, ergo whatever they do can be justified and excused, no matter how skewed it is from our perspective. With a mindset like that, how is one to trust them?" - he explained his point.

"Oh, come on. You exaggerate. Even you must realise this." - Daquan answered. - "If anything, this camp will set that straight. They socialise with commoners, that's ought to help set their heads straight."

"I sure hope so." - he kept silent for a bit. - "Do you suppose there's something between those two? Alard and Tina? They've been together quite a bit."

Daquan smirked at the notion as he beheld the two magicians mutually splatter one another over whatever matter they were talking over in the distance. - "Not sure, but I hope so. Skinny types like Alard are always at a disadvantage with girls, even I know that. But Tina seems fond of him."

Uldred shrugged, when suddenly he was tapped on the shoulder. It was one of his retainers, asking for his presence in some meeting, so he had to excuse himself. Daquan just nodded; he'd linger about a little longer.

As the commotion died down a little bit around him, he would seek out a relatively quiet spot and take out a small book. He has taken to keeping a diary on Joel's advice, detailing his days at the camp. It made keeping his duelist victories much more convenient. He jotted down a few brief sentences, when eventually, his thoughts drifted from the present, to somewhere else... or rather, towards someone specific.

He held his pencil above the newly turned, blank page with uncertainty. People could see him... but he was kind of a spectacle these past days anyhow, and eventually, like all good sources of gossip, his encounter with the princess would no longer be a priority whenever Maelkith's thuggish armies would appear on the horizon. Ultimately, he reaffirmed his hold on the small tool, and got to sketching - to see if he could draw Aliarna from memory.

It was going easier than he anticipated.

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Aliarna sighed as she sat down and looked up at Tina, "is there anything you can do about this beard?" She asked as she hated the thing, it was itchy and it made her sneeze a lot. It smelt funny too... god, there were so many things she hadn't realized about this spell that made these things hard to understand. She sighed as she ran her fingers through her hair for a moment and looked up to Tina. "Tina, do you have anyone back home?" She asked curiously while she watched her.

Tina finished cleaning the water off her face and smiled softly, "we can shave it... that way it looks a bit more natural." She said as she sat down next to Aliarna and then soon laid down and listened to her as she asked about whether or not she had anyone back home. She seemed to think for quite some time before she smiled a bit. "There is... I am actually to be married back home." She admitted and Aliarna looked at her baffled. "Oh please Princess, I came because he advised me to. My husband to be told me that he rather see me fight a good fight rather than sit around worrying about when this army would get through our lines and take everything away." She said and paused, "not to say King Leonard will lose. No, I think he has quite a passion when it comes to defending you and Queen Andrea." She said as she smiled softly. "So, was there anything else that made you do this?" She asked curiously.

Aliarna looked at Tina and chuckled, "well I guess my father did... I mean. He is getting old and he has always been there for me." She whispered and looked down, "when I was just a child, he would take me outside the castle walls once a month and we would kind of camp under the stars, just the two of us." She said as she took in a deep breath. "I think it was to distract me though." She said as she had a vague memory.

Tina raised an eyebrow, "distract you from what?" She asked confused as she wondered what Aliarna was talking about.

Aliarna looked to Tina for a moment, "my mother had trouble carrying any children after me... my parents tried for another baby and were constantly plagued with the child dying at birth or sometime during the pregnancy." She said as she looked down, "one time he took me out only hours after one of my mothers losses." She said as she thought that time it was a bit more cruel than anything.

Tina sighed a bit, "I remember hearing about all those... your mother tried about five times after you to have children. They tried to have mages assist in sustaining the pregnancy, my mother was one of them. After every loss I think she lost a part of herself every time... she was always so sad." She said as she sighed, "how has your mother been since?" She asked as she leaned up a bit.

Aliarna smiled a bit, "my mother always tried to hide her pain from me, but I always knew... my father dealt with it quite differently though. I think sometimes it upset her, but she loves my dad and she loves me." She said with a shrug of her shoulders.

Tina smiled softly, "well, that's good... anyway, I better go eat." She said as she got up. "Sorry for bringing up such a dark time." She said as she stretched and Aliarna shook her head. "No, it's okay... I had honestly been thinking about it lately, about whether or not one of my brothers would have come with my father... then again there wouldn't have been any fighting if he had a son." She said as she looked down and Tina shook her head, "don't say that. You don't know what could have happened if you had siblings." She said smiling softly, "anyway we'll catch up later." She said before waving and walking away.

Aliarna chuckled and watched Tina walk away before getting up herself. She needed a bit of a walk, and the camp was a sizable place in order to take that walk. So, she slowly started making her way through the camp, thinking about everything from her childhood.

She had been walking for a bit before she finally stumbled upon Daquan and blinked as she looked at him. She decided to go talk to him as a friend. So, she went and tapped his shoulder, "what are you doing?" She asked as she raised an eyebrow curiously.

Morris Morris
 
Daquan got really immersed in his little personal project, slipping out of touch with his surroundings. The hand-wrought drawing turned out rather nicely, and, since he went undisturbed for a while, even added some truly unnecessary embellishments by adding 'sparkles' to Aliarna's portrait in key locations. Then, for lacking the presence of mind to be self-aware of the risks involved, he started using up the next empty page: this time, he tried to draw the dance in the gallery. He wasn't even half-finished, though, when all of sudden a gentle tap tore him away from his sweet memories and back to the present.

"Nothing!" - the squire hastily exclaimed, attempting to close the diary, but in his confused, erratic try he managed to hit one of his thumbs in between the now hard-pressed pages, with him gritting his teeth in pain, trying to twist it (all too ineffectually) into an innocous smile as he turned around to see who interrupted him, realizing it was Alard. He let out a little sigh. He was worried it might be some random stranger wanting to peek on his handywork, and then he wouldn't see the end of it.

"Oh, it's just you, Alard. Sorry, you just startled me a bit." - he chuckled uneasily. - "I was just, well... being a squire is not just about martial prowess all day, every day. Strange as though that may be, I have hobbies beside striving for knighthood. Such as drawing. I don't like putting it on display, though. I'm not a good artist by a longshot." - he admitted, whilst trying to avoid raising Alard's curiosity. As much as he found the young wizard a kindly fellow, he wasn't sure he was alright letting him in on this particular fascination of his.

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Aliarna looked at Daquan and offered a bit of a smile as she watched him fumble over what he was doing and had to hold in a laugh when he tried to close the book only to injure himself. That atleast made her cringe a bit as she went and sat down next to Daquan and waited patiently for him to finish his fumbling about. After all, she had seen the picture, even if just for a second. She had seen his drawing of her and that warmed her heart, because it meant he was still thinking of her, even though he told her to forget about him... haha, if only he knew he was talking to her right now.

She let him regain composure before she decided to start quizzing him just on what he was drawing. “No offense, but I saw your drawing.” She said as she looked at him, a serious look on her expressions. “I always thought the noble house of Vuldarak had stuffy squires with almost no interest in anything else.” She lied, but it would line up with how most people felt. She just hoped that later they could laugh about this. She actually admired the Vuldarak family and their freedom from most things.

“So, who were you drawing? She looks pretty, she someone your fighting for who’s back home?’ She asked as she leaned on her elbows, which were on her knees. She had learned some male mannerisms, but there was still and air of femininity to all of the things she did, even though she looked like a guy. “Well, it doesn’t matter... I certainly hope you get to go home to her.” She said as she had to pretend to not realize he was drawing her, even though she found it absolutely adorable.

“My father always said that a man with something or someone to fight for has more purpose in a war than those who had no reason.” She admitted as that was something her father said. After all, Aliarna asked her father what would keep him going in a war and his response to her was that her and her mother would keep him fighting, because they were people worth protecting. She worried about her father though, and maybe her father was the other reason she made this choice.

Daquan was the main reason, but her father definitely came a close second reason to why she would act so brashly. She noticed she got lost in thought though and shook her head before offering a smile. “I guess my father would consider me a dumb one though.” She said as she had to keep up the appearance that she had nothing really to fight for. “Also, who am I to take my fathers word... he hasn’t talked to me since I left to go to the mages academy.” She lied as she was just talking about random things now, hoping to learn a bit more about Daquan in the process.

Morris Morris
 
Daquan looked at Alard with mild perplexion, before chuckling slightly. - "It must be a commonplace misconception in your academy, that the lesser one's standing, the more blunt the mind must be." - he remarked at his comment regarding his and his predecessors' so-called stuffyness. He most likely meant it as teasing rather than a subtle jab at their lowly birth.

His rather girlish mannerisms, however, remained as confounding as ever. Daquan wondered where he was getting that from; too much time with a pampering mom, or too many female classmates' influence rubbing off on him? There were some bad rumours circulating about Alard at camp, calling his... orientation into question. Others went a step further, saying he may have been a girl, but used magic to alter himself in order to conduct... a personal social experimentation of a sort. While Daquan wouldn't have been all that judgemental (beside finding the latter option weird), he was caught in between wanting to set the matter straight and avoiding offending the otherwise kindly and helpful young man.

For the time being, following a moment of pondering, he settled on the third option, and obliged Alard's curiosity. - "Heh. Very well. I suppose there isn't much point in concealing it." - shifting his position a bit as he sat, he turned his journal towards Alard and opened it up, showing him the drawings. - "You must have heard the gossiping about me in the camp, haven't you? About how I danced with her majesty, princess Aliarna, on Merrymaker's Day. It was my first ever visit to the Trustvar castle, and just about everyone did their best to ignore me. Then, out of the blue, she approached me and invited me to a waltz. Imagine my surprise." - he elaborated in a hushed tone. - "Don't get me wrong, Alard. I know it is childish fancy to vie for her hand, when all those dukes and earls circle her like vultures. But a man's got to dream, nay?" - he put a sour smile forth. He didn't feel like elaborating on his feelings further. - "If nothing else, I know whom I'm fighting for, and she's worth it."

He listened to Alard in silent contemplation, over how having someone dear grants one more purpose in war. This reminded him of something Joel lectured him on a few times, about Orean's armies. - "I'm... I'm not entirely sure, Alard. I'm relying on my mentor's words in this counter-arguement, but he's seen more conflict than either of us. He told me about how the tyrant of Maelkith assembles his hosts. Many are mercenaries, fighting for a living. The regulars are drafted as children, taken away from their families as part of a military tax, never to return home. And his personal elite are orphans and bastards, or even unwanted babes, with no family at all, to be raised into merciless, obedient butchers. Lord Joel says that's what makes them dangerous. They have nothing to return to, so they march ever forward. They have nothing to lose, but everything to gain. So they take what they please, and leave nothing but misery in their wake. That's why everyone fears them."

The squire fell silent, realizing he must be sounding like a defeatist. He didn't believe the campaign was doomed, not at all - rather, Joel taught him never to underestimate an enemy, for that way lies bitter defeat. So he cleared his throat, trying to turn around his arguement: - "Well, it was high time someone spoiled their reputation, huh?" - he tried putting on a smile, only to frown a bit as Alard mentioned his father and his appearent indifference of him.

"Well, Alard, far be it from me to presume to know your family... but honestly, your father sounds like a bit of a jerk." - he said. He imagined that Alard's dad wasn't very thrilled from having a magically gifted offspring; if Aliarna's experiences were anything to go by, a young mage could easily cause accidents of great proportion, leading to alienation. That was something the academy couldn't protect them from - even if they achieved mastery of their craft, such incidents were not easily forgotten. Nevertheless... Daquan glanced aside, muttering a sentiment to himself. - "Still... I suppose it's better to know your father for who he is, rather than not have one at all."

No matter how far he has gotten ahead in life, the identity and deeds of his unknown parent were questions which bothered him to this day. Indirectly, that person was responsible for everything bad he had to suffer through in his youth, until Joel came along. Had the Vuldaraks not adopted him, he feared to consider what would had happened had he grown up without their love and support.

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Aliarna listened as Daquan opened up the journal and showed the image on the page to her. She had to hold back a blush for obvious reasons, but smiled a bit as she reached and touched the picture ever so gently, all the while listen to him describe to her how he felt and how he thought that while she would move on she was a good cause to fight for. She looked at him and pulled her hand away from the picture carefully and took in a deep breath. It certainly was something worth while to fight for.

“Well even if her hand is impossible to achieve, but I think she is a good cause to fight for indeed.” She started and then smiled a bit, “yes though I did hear the stories about your dance with the princess. Even mages enjoy their gossip. You do have a few rooting for you though. I won’t lie I am one of them... those dukes and earls, they don’t know anything. It’s no secret to any of the mages though that the princess has abilities like many of us.” She stated as the mages all knew about Princess Aliarna and her abilities.

“Did you know at one point the King and Queen considered sending her to the academy for a little while? It was before they got her a teacher for private’s lessons.” She admitted as she thought about it and then pulled herself away from her past and into the past she created for Alard, the young peasant boy who was tormented by his family and everything.

“My father hated me because I’m the first in my family to have magical abilities.” She said as she thought about the story she had created for Alard. It was like playing a different person, someone who wasn’t her and it was proving difficult. “I guess it’s a case of grass is always greener on the other side. We envy things we don’t have... I’m sorry to hear that your father abandoned you though.” She said as she looked at him. “Did you ever get to know him, or was he gone long before then?” She asked curiously as she felt bad for him. It seemed so awful that a kid would grow up without their parent. “Though I imagine Lord Joel Vuldarak is like a father to you, is he not? Even if he’s not, he’s cared for you, something that is father like.” She said as now she felt like she was rambling.

She then thought about what he said about Maelkith's army and she had heard some tales from her father, but otherwise was oblivious to how these soldiers came to be. So, she looked down in silent contemplation and sighed. "I had heard rumors about such things, but I thought them little more than tales if I'm being honest. However, you are right... even I know that house Vuldarak has experienced more war than either of us." She said as she narrowed her eyes a bit in contemplation.

"I have to get home though... I have to win this war, or atleast help in winning this war. Maybe if I do such a thing my father won't see me as a weakling anymore." She said as there was some truth in that. She thought her father saw her as a weakling, which was why he was so eager to get her to marry. "I guess... I guess I want to be proud of myself and maybe somewhere deep down I seek the approval of my father for all his faults. He is by no means a perfect man, but I think a part of me still wants such things." She said as she leaned her arms one more and stared at the fire infront of them. Part of her wished she could reveal herself to her father without him sending her home. She did want to make him proud, and sometimes it seemed ever so impossible. She knew he loved her no matter what, that this story she made up for Alard wasn't anywhere near the truth in some cases, but she still wanted to be able to do something her father would be proud of... something other than sitting around producing heirs, because she was well aware that was also something he didn't want for her.

"Daquan..." she started as she turned her head for a moment and then closed her eyes and sighed a bit. "Never mind," she whispered as she had considered revealing herself to him too, but she knew that at this point he would probably tell her father and while she trusted him, she didn't want to let him in on the secret just yet, but she did at the same time. She wanted to tell him everything, but she also knew he would be upset with her if he found out she came out here just to protect him and her father. "I'm rooting for you Daquan... I hope that you make it out of this horrid war and you get home to Princess Aliarna. I hope that you get to see her smile once more." She said as she sighed a bit, "and most importantly I hope you get your happy ending... if there can be such a thing." She said as she finally opened her eyes and looked at him.

Morris Morris
 
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Daquan observed Alard's feminine antics with pretended neutrality. He was not used to the sight of a grown man caressing a drawing, blushing and sighing while doing so. Still, he listened attentively, and eventually he brought up how Aliarna was meant to have been signed up for the academy as well. Ah, that explains it. - he thought - Alard might have a crush on her, too. This didn't seem far-fetched, considering the circumstances. - "Well, if you ask me, her majesty would had been better off attending classes. Being afraid of her own powers and being surrounded constantly by would-be suitors have made her life a lonesome one, as far as I could tell. Please, don't share this with anyone, though." - he added.

Eventually they returned to the topic of parentage. - "Sorry to hear that, Alard... I guess among us ordinary people, fascination or dread are the most commonplace reactions to magic. Sometimes I wish I could try it... but I got to know from the princess herself, it's not that simple. It comes with challenges and responsibilities I can't comprehend. Rest assured, Alard, I know for a fact it takes a strength of character on its own to master it."

He sunk into his thoughts as Alard called his own father's identity to question. - "I never knew my actual father. From what I could gather, my mother ran away from him, and nobody in the village ever spoke of him. Must had been a vile, horrid man. And yet it was my mother and I who were shunned and punished in his stead." - he paused briefly, thinking of his lord. - "Yes, I suppose Joel Vuldarak is the closest person I've had to a father, and I don't think I could have asked for a better one. It's just that... it just stings that I can't find that bastard who ruined my mother's life and smear his face into the soil." - he clenched the journal tightly, his fingers ever so slightly trembling in anger. It was one of those affronts from life he just couldn't get over, though he tried covering it up normally. He sheepishly turned his head aside, ashamed he put this issue of his out in the open.

Why am I opening up to this guy? - he pondered - Normally I'd only talk about this stuff with the Vuldarak family. Or Aliarna.

"Well, for what it's worth..." - he spoke up anew after a while - "I can relate to desiring recognition. I hope to make Lord Joel and my adoptive family proud, and I hope your father will come around and see you for your worth. But the foremost person whose expectations you must live up to is none but yourself." - he patted him on the back, as he voiced his support for him. - "Thanks for the encouragement, Alard. I hope we'll be close in battle. I'll look out for you, so we can become heroes together. Alright?" - he smirked.

Not all that far away, a band of sell-swords playing with cards cast some odd glances in their direction.

"Ugh, look at those two. That mage is totally gay for the squire." - one grimaced and spat on the ground.

"George, you've slept with Dimitri and Trevis multiple times. I don't think you have the right to badmouth him." - his officer chided him.

"At least I'm open and manly about it!" - he declared, pounding on the table.

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Aliarna looked at Daquan and chuckled a bit as she thought about attending classes. He was right about that. She should have been made to attend classes. It would have atleast socialized her a bit and given her others to talk about her abilities with. Hell, maybe she would have met Tina sooner. They seemed to hit it off pretty well, which was a good thing in her mind. Though there were many reasons why they hit it off, one reason being that Tina knew her secret, and she was guarding it and putting her life on the line. “I think she would have been much better off going to classes.” She said without thinking, because how would someone have such an opinion having not been through it themselves?

“Well, Magic is both a gift and a curse. One wrong move, one loss of control and I could take down anyone and anything. Learning control is the most important thing for a mage to learn. Many struggle with it their entire lives, some master it relatively quickly... I guess I’m one of the ones to be a little slow.” She admitted as she was thinking as Aliarna right now, not Alard. “Well I think your father is an asshole for doing such a thing and the villagers who treated you as such are no better. Punishing a young boy for the actions of their father is by far wrong in every sense of the word. We can’t control who our parents are, but we can control our lives.” She said as she smiled a bit.

“As for Lord Joel, it sounds like he’s been kind to you.” She said as she knew Lord Joel enough to know that while he could have a temper, he tended to try and control it as best he could. “Though sometimes he seems a bit hot headed. I won’t lie he scared me last week when he yelled at me.” She stated as he had, she had talked to Tina about it. “Though I understand his concern... Tina and I did almost kill you.” She admitted as she though about everything that happened and had to chuckle a bit at the memories she had already made.

When Daquan said that she had to seek the recognition of herself first and foremost she kind of had to look down for a moment. He wasn’t wrong because while she wanted to recognition of her father she too had to stop doubting herself. She had to stop saying that she couldn’t do this or could do that and simply just do it. She had to take the reigns on her life and forge her own path. “Your correct... I might want his recognition and approval, but I need my own as well. Not that I don’t realize my self-worth or anything, but sometimes I guess I think my father is right.” She said as she tried to resume Alard’s story, the life she had created for him.

Princess, those men are talking. Came the water in her head and she sighed internally. Let them speak, they know nothing and if they want to make assumptions let them. She thought as she looked up towards the men.

She then stretched as the voice left her, “well I fear I have used up much of your time... we should probably go eat.” She said as she got up carefully from her seat next to Daquan. “Truth he told I forgot I was hungry.” She said letting out a bit of a laugh. “Of course you don’t have to join me if you wish to return to your drawings and such.” She said as she didn’t want Daquan to think he had to come with her to meal time.

Morris Morris
 
Daquan was understanding of Alard's issues, having seen firsthand on how difficult magic can be to rein in from Aliarna. But that was not something he could help either her, or Alard with; those were challenges they had to learn to cope with of their own, given time and experience. All he could do was cheer them on when they felt down. It was also comforting to hear Alard voice that he was in the right about his childhood injustices. Not that the Vuldaraks didn't validate him in that matter, but it was good to know someone outside his adoptive family sympathised with him.

Eventually, Alard brought up that he hasn't had a meal just yet. The squire squinted his eyes incredulously; how does one forget they are hungry? After a brief moment of contemplation, he decided to put his journal away and got up himself. - "I may not have to, but you know what? I'll come along anyway. No offense, Alard, but you are so scrawny, I feel I ought to teach you what you need in a diet to be healthy and strong. I know mages don't need to stay in shape that much, but still, people will appreciate you better if you are fit, and you'll endure the campaign better. And... you know what?" - he laid his arm across Alard's shoulders - "You're my guest for a drink. I bet you've been deprived of it in the academy for years..."

---

Meanwhile, away from the camp, a conspiracy was brewing against the forces of Krustivan. Orean Cynbel, elbowing on the armrest of his throne, held council with his agents via a grand crystal orb that was rolled into his throneroom on a wheeled pedestal. He was in the company of Robert Dietrich, as well as a hired magician, whose talents have been of particular use to him in past errands, and now, he would provide the upper hand anew in his next undertaking.

Said magician was a dwarf. Now, when people generally thought of dwarves, they thought of a race of sturdy, stalwart miners and craftsmen, who lived by rigid codes of honourable conduct. But this was only a half-truth. They were not any less inclined towards evil than men or others. While they held themselves to their laws at all times, with a near-religious reverence, said rules did not prohibit enslavement. They did not forbid the construction and merchandising of instruments designed to kill and destroy. They did not prevent them from selling out their talents to the scum of society, so long as their services did not run contrary to dwarvish laws.

This dwarf had almost chalk-like skin tone, contrasted by obsidian black beard - but nary a piece of hair on top of his bald head - and accompanied by amber eyes, glittering like gold. He was holding a most peculiar prize between his fat, gloved fingertips: princess Aliarna's bracelet, stolen by a certain changeling not that long ago, and recently delivered to Orean's court. He was less than impressed. - "This frail little trinket couldn't stop my youngest grandson from farting a fireball if its maker's life depended on it!" - he winced in disgust at the elegant accessory. - "No wonder the Trustvars needed to water-proof everything. Whoever made this should have gone to the gaoler's chopping block."

"Yeah, yeah, you've been rambling for the past five minutes over this." - came an exseperated sigh from the crystal orb, courtesy of Lusynndael. - "How about you finally get to what use we have for it?"

"I'm curious myself." - Robert Dietrich admitted - "Just how would this... piece of jewelry benefit us?"

"Let me educate you, silk-boy. Magically constraining artefacts are often embedded with hints of the wearer's aura, if worn for very long." - the dwarf retorted grumpily, slowly walking over to a strategic map stretched across a marble table. - "And someone fetch me a stool!" - as soon as the guards found one, he promptly used it to cimb atop the map, stomping all over it, knocking figurines over, while drawing forth a tiny, needle-like piece of lead hanging from a thin string of fabric. He rubbed the lead needle all over the bracelet, whist muttering strange incantations to himself.

Robert exchanged some glances with Orean. So, they would be able to determine the princess' location with this? Simple, yet so meticulous. They wouldn't need to fight a war lasting for months or years, if they could still take Aliarna hostage whenever her guard would be lowered. He didn't want to consider how many assassinations Orean carried out this way. He looked back to the dwarf, whose needle seemed to come to a life of its own, pulling towards a very specific point on the map. The would-be claimant blinked. - "This thing must be malfunctioning. The Reddish Fields? The Krustivani army's gathering grounds?"

"This 'thing' has never been wrong once in 139 years of continuous use, thank you very much." - the dwarf answered. - "I don't know nor care why that pampered pompous piece of royal tits is there, but she is."

Orean scratched his beard in contemplation. - "Hmm. Indeed, why in the middle of the army's camp... the most logical assumption is that she's used as an incentive to bolster the troops' morale. She's the reason they would be sent to die, after all. Leonard reducing his daughter to motivational eye candy so quickly..." - he chukled. - "Like taking a page out of my book, really. But that's fine. Children should support their parents. And, more than that... she is conveniently close to our grasp, if we make best use of this opportunity."

"So what are we to do?" - Lusynndael folded her arms impatiently.

Orean rose from his throne, gesturing to the dwarf to hop off from his expensive map. After a servant hurriedly cleaned off the dusty footprints, and another put the figurines back into place accordingly to a pre-made backup sketch, he leaned over it with a wicked smile.

"I've already had some of our forces deployed for combat readyness along the borderlands. We will launch a pre-emptive offensive with three battalions. This will take but a few days at best. Two groups will besiege the border keep of Ruthlan's Hill. But that's only a distraction, to force the Krustivan troops on the move. Odds are, they will divide their reserves, send a relief force to the fort, while the rest - most likely the inexperienced fresh meat - will stay behind. The third battalion shall move in between the Irate Peaks to get behind enemy lines and ambush them. I don't expect them to win. They can die in droves for all I care, so long as they grab the princess. A task in which you, Lusynndael, will be instrumental to, as my forward spotter."

"And how am I supposed to accomplish that?!" - she complained. - "Now that they know me, I bet at least some officers will have silver amulets. They distort my innate abilities to make little illusions. Don't get me wrong, I'm up to fixing my mess-up, but I'm going to need something real solid to ensure success." - the changeling explained her woes.

"I'll see if I can get you an invisibility cloak." - the tyrant shrugged. - "Or, failing that, we can make up a convincing story for your visit. You can always claim I was deeply dissatisfied with you, so to escape from me, you want to switch sides. We can make some forged documents about fake army orders, to mislead Leonard, which you'll hand over in exchange for amnesty. The Trustvars were always soft-hearted simpletons, easily falling for sob-stories. Your history with the Vuldaraks is also an advantage to exploit, while we're at it..."

Lusynndael, alias Lucy, gave a stern look. She didn't appreciate anyone bringing up that part of her life, but it would seem she'd have to confront it again.

"...not to mention," - Orean added - "I happen to have another agent on the inside."

He would approach a different table, with a set of chess, all pieces on the board, carved from ivory with glass heads. He moved a pawn forward, then knocked on its head gently with his royal shepherd axe's shaft thrice. The faint image of a person became visible to him. He glared down on the pawn gleefully. - "My sweet, brooding child of darkness. It is I, your sovereign, who demands your attention..."

---

The stars were shining bright against the backdrop of nightly darkness. The Moon itself was half-full, half-empty, and Daquan was tipsy, shambling in an uncertain manner on the fringe of the war camp, with Alard supporting him, albeit his own soberness was likewise in question. Daquan had just a bit too much wine, after being challenged to a drinking contest, saying he must be weak-stomached, hanging out with mages like he did. He proved his detractors wrong, alright... not that it was the wisest of decisions. He needed to get away from the noise, to get some fresh air.

"Alard... buddy..." - he spoke up hazily. - "You *hic* are totally a girl w- with a moustache... all gentle and graceful like... *hic*, but screw that! You are cool in my book, pal... just need to learn boyhood an- and stuff..." - he stumbled until he could settle down on a tree trunk. He looked towards the nearby trees, where strange ghostly lights circulated, slightly illuminating a feminine figure. The squire blinked. - "Umm... wh- what's that...?"

Lilbutterfli94 Lilbutterfli94
 
Aliarna was hesitant to go with Daquan at the offer of drinks, but she had to go with him as she was here to protect him. “I cannot drink too much... mage is quite difficult to control the more drunk I get. It’s why many mages actually do not drink.” She admitted as it was why her mother told her not to let too many sips of wine pass her lips on her birthday. She had gotten buzzed, but she had great self control in that regard.

“As for my weight, it has something to do with magical abilities. We appear weak physically, but some of us are actually quite strong physically. Take Tina for example, she looks pretty weak physically, but she could knock me out I think.” She said soon and laughed before she took in a deep breath. “Actually Princess Aliarna is a fine example too.” She said as she had made many public appearances. “Though her I’m sure is a little weaker physically than most mages.” She said as she chuckled a bit as she thought about her physical strength. Mentally she was great, emotionally she was a little out of wack, and physically she could not hold her own in a fight.

———

Tyrania was sitting on a tree trunk waiting patiently as she tapped her fingers against something next to her. Tyrania was a witch, not a mage. They were useful for various things, especially one who wasn’t considered a necromancer. They were used to help grieving loved ones more often than not.

Soon she looked up to her orb and blinked, “I am here m’lord.” She said as she leaned back a bit and looked to her familiar. “They’ve accepted me into their army and everything seems to be going smoothly.” She said as she looked at him and then turned around for a moment. “I cannot speak long, unless you want me to get found out.” She said before she looked around once more.

“I must go now,” she said before abruptly cutting the connection as she heard voices not too far behind her and she didn’t want to get caught.

———

Aliarna had about one and half drinks, keeping in mind her mother’s advice to not get drunk. She knew it was dumb, but it gave her time to learn more about Daquan, like that he was quite the drinker it seemed. It was amusing though as she held onto him and carefully made their way back toward the Vuldarak’s tents where he could rest and sober up. “Don’t forget to drink water tonight please.” She said and smiled softly, “and thank you.” She said as she hadn’t had this much fun her entire life.

Soon though her attention was brought to what Daquan saw and she squinted for a moment. “Ahh, that’s Tyrania, she’s a witch that has joined the army recently. I think she came with the centaurs.” She said as she had heard her father discussing it one day while she was walking with Tina around the camp grounds. They had been doing some investigating in order to keep Aliarna hidden, and that included spying on private meetings from outside the tents.

Morris Morris
 
Orean smirked ever so faintly upon the pawn's glass headpart as Tyrania looked back at him. - "You may rest easy, so long as you remember you need only answer in thought. When holding to your own piece, only you may hear me." - he reminded her. - "I will be brief. Continue your subterfuge, but with one addendum. We determined that princess Aliarna is in the camp. You must confirm it. Also... if you happen by Joel Vuldarak's newest squire, make sure to warm up to him. Use your charms to sway him-"

Rather abruptly, an unexpected third voice interrupted the conversation before Tyrania could switch off the communication trinket: - "HOOOY, witch lady! You look lonely! Don't want to come over?" - As the transmission ceased, the conspirators exchanged some questioning looks.

"Wasn't that the Vuldarak squire's voice?" - Robert wondered.

"Yea, it was." - the changeling girl confirmed. - "Sounded kind of drunk."

"Well... that was quick." - Orean nodded, somewhat surprised. He was not used to his plans unfolding before he even finished giving orders for them. Ultimately, he shrugged. - "Oh well. I'm certain Tyrania will manage."

---

Daquan sort of acted on impulse more than any rational thought when he yelled out to the witch whom he has not even remembered seeing before, much less ever adressed. Heck, he couldn't even make her figure out correctly with his confused eyesight at this distance, though the low light environment compounded that. The squire's alcohol-addled mind steered on a string of fringe logic. He heard tales of witches, not all of them nice by any stretch. But if she's with the army, she must be a nice witch. But if she's out here alone, she must have been prejudiced against. If that was the case, she might not even have a tent to lie down in, and nobody to watch for her safety when she slept. That made him sad. He felt pity, and wished to help her.

And thus he yelled out an entirely innocent, but easily misinterpreted offer, which seems to have gotten her attention.

Only after the fact has it occured to him that he should have talked this over with Alard first, and now he made the situation look awkward. What will others think of him, jumbling from the company of one woman to the next? What would Aliarna think if she was here? Doubtless she would chide him, and he'd derserve it.

"Um-mum... Alard... *hic*, apologies... I acted before I *burp* thank... thought. I guessed she was, you know... aggrevated- no, segregated or such. Maybe she needs a spot to tuck herself in. Or... *hic*, you think she wanted to be alone? Huh... if so, I must apologise..." - mumbling semi-coherently, Daquan tried to steady himself by leaning on Alard, but the difference in their body frames was by no means small; Alard wasn't even two-thirds of Daquan's weight, so he almost pulled him down rather than stand up with his help. Under his vodka-smelling breath, he promised he wouldn't drink so much again in the near future.

Lilbutterfli94 Lilbutterfli94
 
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Tyrania looked at them for a moment and sighed as she got up. So this was her goal, to make this drunk of a man like him. She got up carefully and patted her dress down carefully as she approached. “Hello, no I just sit around on my own from time to time to get a clear head.” She said as she waved her hand a bit.

Aliarna didn’t know what about Tyrania made her uneasy, but something about her did such a thing. However, she didn’t want anything to be obvious so she smiled to the girl. “I heard you came with the centaurs, is that true?” She asked curiously as she watched her.

Tyrania almost floated over to them, something a witch could do at will if they so wished. “Yes, I did come with the centaurs... they were kind company.” She said as she looked at them, sensing something weird about Alard as well. However, she was unsure of what it was. Soon she turned her attention to the squire and raised an eyebrow. “I do not know what you take me for, but umm no I’m not going to someone’s tent.” She said as she shook her head. “No offense but you could be a pervert or something.” She said as she looked st him knowing she had to get close to him, but she didn’t want to get that close to him.

Aliarna watched her closely for a moment and smiled softly as she tried to remain calm. “I’m glad to hear they were good company.” She said as she just kept and eye on her and then looked to Daquan.

Tyrania smiled a bit as she looked at them for a moment, “I’ve been hearing rumors that the princess has been hiding among the troops.” She said and that immediately raised alarms to Aliarna who knew her father hadn’t revealed any information about such a thing.

Aliarna smiled a bit, “I doubt it... what reason would she have to hide among the troops? She’d be in much danger.” She said and Tyrania narrowed her eyes for a moment and shrugged her shoulders, “I’m sure it’s not true. She’d be a dumbass to do such a thing and her father would most likely send her home.” She said and Tyrania kept watching Alard.

“She would be very dumb, and seeming as I don’t see her here I can only assume she isn’t here... then again magic is her ability.” Tyrania said as she kept watching Alard. “However, I imagine if she were to come it would be for the famed squire everyone has been speaking of.” She said as she looked at Daquan and smiled as she knew she made a dumb move because she knew the camp knew nothing of Leonard’s search among the troops other than Lord Vuldarak and whoever was looking for her. However, she could be one of the people who knew because she was aiding, but that wasn’t the case. However, no one else would know that.

Morris Morris
 
Daquan struggled to keep himself standing straight, rocking back and forth on his feet ever so slightly even as he used Alard as a leaning post. He muttered a half-aloud, half-hushed apology to Tyrania about disturbing her meditations, which sounded more like 'medicashunns'. He took a moment to try and steady himself, measuring up the woman standing before him.

Her attire was black. Or was that the shadow of some tree? Or body paint? ...no, it was the clothing, and it was all black. Why so much black. Was she in the middle of burying someone? Not to mention it was open in so many places, exposing so much skin. Could she not afford so much as a needle and thread to sew up her own clothes? Poor woman. Also, she had horns like... no, on second glance, she wasn't a changeling. She just had an ivory headdress, with goat horns adorning it. Interestingly macabre as far as accessories go, then again he didn't know much about witch ladies' fashion. The last thing that caught his attention was her hair. Black like her dress, and extremely long, reaching even below her waist. She had so much hair. Daquan wondered how would Aliarna look like with such hair.

His thought process was interrupted when he was accused of being a pervert. - "I m- must protest t- that... notion, lady." - he raised one hand with palm open, as if deflecting the slander. - "I just t- thought maybe, y'know, witches are sometimes this liked, no, disliked... that maybe you were denied a tent and blankets..." - he tried to keep eye contact, but found himself distracted by her many-slitted dress. As a future knigth, he couldn't allow her poor conditions to persist. - "Y- you could catch a cold, with so many holes in your clothes... p- please, take this, it should *hic* warm you." - with a few uncertain moves, he detached his wolf skin cloak (the werewolf hide was put away outside of practice fights following the lightning strike incident) and held it out as a peace offering to her.

He mostly refrained from opening his mouth further, letting the two magicians get acquainted whilst he was trying to sort out his thoughts and listened with half an ear open. When Aliarna was brought up, he eventually interjected: - "S- stupid gossip, I'll say. Not sure who's spreading, but the princess stayed h- *hic* home. Heck, I kissed her goodbye in the garden-" - all too abruptly, he fell silent and covered up his mouth. He leaned closer to Alard, whispering: "Please don't tell no-one, Al." - he turned back to Tyrania afterwards: - "Rest assured, the princess ain't ar- around. And that's good, 'cause she's safe back home... though I do miss her." - he confessed, slightly blushing. - "A- anyhow, my offer stands, lady... you are welcome at the Vuldarak *hic* tents and campfire."

Lilbutterfli94 Lilbutterfli94
 
Tyrania looked at her dress for a moment and narrowed her eyes, “my good sir this is how the dress is designed.” She said pushing the fur pelt back over to him. “Besides your drunk ass is more likely to die from the cold than me.” She said as she crossed her arms over her chest. She had to admit he did have a certain charm to him. No wonder the princess would risk leaving home for him. Not only was he physically good looking, but his manners were of a kind hearted nature. His heart was in the right place and she just felt bad that she would probably have to kill him eventually. It was either that or she would have to bury him with the other troops that would pass. It was better to not get close to anyone at this moment in time.

“Anyhow, I have my own tent and blankets. The centaurs have been more than welcoming to me.” She said as she shrugged her shoulders a bit and then chuckled as she shook her head. My was he pretty open when he was drunk, maybe she could get information out of him if she got him drunk enough. Heck, maybe he was just sober enough to not reveal the princess was here. After all, what reason did she have to disbelieve her master as he said Aliarna was here.

Aliarna looked to Daquan as he admitted they shared a kiss and to keep the story going she gasped. “Daquan, don’t share those things so publicly! You know what rumors like this could do to the princess?” She asked as that would be anyone’s concern considering such rumors would bring not question the princesses acts. There would certainly be questions as to if she had a more promiscuous side to her. So, as such these things couldn’t be discussed.

Tyrania looked at Alard for a moment and blinked before shrugged her shoulders. “The secret is safe with me... I’m pretty good at keeping secrets unless I’m being tortured.” She said before laughing a bit. “Sorry, awful awful joke there.” She said as she tried to calm her laughs. “However, no the secret is safe between the three of us I’m sure.” She said before looking to Alard once more becoming suspicious of him and how he acted. After all, for someone who was a man she had to say he seemed pretty concerned about the princess. It was almost like he was a bit too concerned about someone he didn't know.

Morris Morris
 
Even intoxicated, Daquan's mind fleetingly recognised the amount of embarrassment he was getting himself into. He probably offended Tyrania a bit, regarding her outfit (which was admittedly not made with shifting weather conditions in mind) and her status, not to mention blurting out a private detail about his affairs. At this point, his brain was beating the retreat alarm with full force. - "Sorry, Alard, you're *hic* right, pal... the nobles w- want a piece of me as is, and would bother her even mores- *hic* moreso." - he looked to Tyrania with pleading puppy eyes. - "I'm sorry if I ha- had offended your ladyship... but I plead you keep this secret." - he asked her. - "I'll... I'll *hic* find a way to repay your kindness.

He looked back to Alard, gently nudging him to commence tactical withdrawal from the scene. - "I'd say we s- should tuck ourselves in. Been a pleasure an' all that, Tyrania." - he told the witch half-aloud - "But we really ought to be *hic* going."

---

Meanwhile, a certain female changeling was getting a plan together with her employer. She was hiding a day's walk away from the Krustivani camp, and she had no intention of going any closer until she had something up her sleeve to keep her safe. She was just about to receive it: she made a makeshift altar out of four different woods' bark, and twenty pieces of twenty kinds of different leaves, pouring some pre-made spell components on top of the pile and setting it aflame.

Seconds later, the whole thing spontaneously combusted, covering her in dirt and soot from head to toe. Coughing, spitting, crying and swearing, she cursed a specific diminutive bastard for the unpleasant surprise. Said person's face was manifesting in the lingering flames, above a small metal scroll case that conveniently materialised among the ashes. - "You have only yourself to blame, little hellion. Mixing ground lead with powdered glass in a vial of distilled snake oil is a poor man's substitue of displacer liquid."

"Bleh, screw you too, basalt-breath! I'm going to bathe for days to clean this filth off..." - she retorted while reaching for the container, as soon as the fire subsided. - "I just hope this is worth it." - opening the small, undecorative casing, she looked at the falsified letters and parchments. She began reviewing them. It didn't matter all that much to her what they were about, so much as if they looked and felt authentic. She nodded affirmatively, mostly satisfied. - "Well then. Looks like I'm going to pay those two another visit..."

Lilbutterfli94 Lilbutterfli94
 
Aliarna looked at Daquan and shook her head ever so slightly. Maybe she should have stopped him after the third drink. After all, it wasn’t like she was a stranger to alcohol. She had drank before, but she preferred not to because of her abilities. It was better to not have water flinging everywhere. So, it was a good thing she had only had one drink which she drank slowly, something Daquan seemed to have either not noticed or not commented on effectively ignoring it.

Tyrania looked at Daquan, yes the secret is safe with me.” She said as she crossed her arms over her chest. She then looked to Alard. “Best you get him back to his lord. I’m sure he’ll be able to sleep this off by the morning.” She said as she looked to the moon. “Enjoy your night men.” She said before she retreated back to her branch and sat down once more.

Aliarna watched Tyrania and then carefully took Daquan and started heading back towards the tents. “You had one too many Daq... you really might want to watch that if you wish to make it back to the princess.” She said laughing a bit, “I’m sure you would like to get back to her, yes?” She asked as she walked slowly, knowing that if she moved him too quickly he might get ill.

Morris Morris
 
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