There was only one word running though my mind.

Why?

I ran between Hern and his horse to cut him off. "My apologies if I'm speaking out of bounds here but, are you crazy!? Mylord!?"

Hern didn't even flinch, staring me down with his cool, unwavering expression.“Call it madness if you like, but I got what I came for. Why are you so troubled? The information I sought is now ours.”

"What information!?" I asked, still trying to catch my breath.

"The mercenaries. Hern replied. "They're meddling in the kingdom's affairs again. Likely still in pursuit of their sacred... trinkets. That blind hothead? He's a captain of the Stormguard - a Vannder mercenary company, several thousand strong. I've read the reports but I needed to see it with my own eyes. Which I have now done."

"So now what?" I asked.

"Now we withdraw." Hern said without hesitation.

“Withdraw? And just leave the castle occupied? I thought there were people in there we needed to, I don’t know… liberate?”

“Liberate to your heart's content." Hern said, his tone calm but firm. "With their reinforcements on the way, it would be foolish to press the attack now. We’ll regroup with the forces at the Xeshmunite border, and then - when the time is right - we’ll take the castle by force.”

"The Xesh- and how long will that take?"

"About a week's ride. Perhaps two." He said, already turning toward his horse.

After that I paused to think for a moment, watching Hern mount up. My mind raced. There had to be a better solution than this. Sure, I’m not against running with my tail between my legs, but not like that. Not when everything was here! The siege was well underway.

Two damn days of travel just to get to this camp, and now we’re leaving?

It felt... wrong. Unbelievable, even. Hern was supposed to be this brilliant tactician, the great master of planning. And yet he came here just to look at this fiery mole and then walk away?

What was the point of us coming here? For fun?

No.

Absolutely not.

“No.” I said, just as Hern was settling into his saddle. He paused, raising an eyebrow at me, clearly not expecting that.

"I have a better idea." I said, standing my ground. I must have looked like a dog barking up to its master.

Hern gave me a look, his expression unreadable at first. Then, I could swear I saw a faint smirk curling at the corner of his mouth. Just long enough for me to see it for a splitsecond. His expression returned to default after that.

"Then let's do it.” He said, with the barest hint of amusement I'd ever heard in a voice. Without another word, he whipped the reins to nudge his horse forward, turning back toward camp. As if my suggestion was all part of the plan.

I watched him gallop off. Already feeling the weight of whatever came next settle in.

After the short negotiation-standoff with Korrik and his merry band of would-be defenders, we made our way back to the camp. The sun had dipped below the horizon by the time we arrived, casting everything in a cold twilight that made the whole place feel just a little more somber. Fires flickered in the distance as soldiers went about their nightly routines - drinking, eating, trying to stay warm. The usual.

Hern walked into the command tent, and I followed close behind. A couple of lanterns flickered, casting long shadows across the canvas walls. Rheka slipped in behind us without saying anything. She gave me a thumbs-up once she realized I was looking at her.

One by one, the Silverplates came in. You could feel the unease in the room. Everyone knew the situation was tense - storming the castle was one thing, but with reinforcements on the way? That was another level of trouble.

I found a spot near the table, curling my tail around my feet and folding my wings in tight. I wasn’t about to let Hern run the show without pitching in. Not when I had an idea that just might save all our hides.

Once everyone settled in, Hern started talking strategy. You know, the usual: regroup, rethink, maybe retreat. I let him get it out. No need to jump in too early - timing is everything, after all. Build up the suspense. That’s how you get people to listen.

When he finished, I cleared my throat and hopped onto the table. All eyes turned to me. Rheka clapped her hands together, while Hern gave me that look - Okay, let’s see what you’ve got.

I stretched out my wings just a little, getting comfortable before I started pacing. “Alright, listen up. We all know we’ve got a bit of a problem here.” I began, keeping my voice casual but confident. “The mercenaries are holding the castle tight, and now they got backup on the way. Not great.”

Time to pause for a moment. Let it sink in before you continue. “But here’s the thing - we don’t have to beat them head-on. Not yet, anyway. What we need to do is make them believe they’ve already lost.”

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I could see Fulur and Bameball exchanging glances, but Hern was focused on me. I had his attention now.

“We make them think we got reinforcements first.” I explained, my grin growing by the second. “Set up more tents, light a ton of fires, make some noise - make it look like we’ve got a massive army ready to storm the castle. From a distance, they won’t know what hit them.”

One of the Silverplate officers scoffed. “You think they’ll just believe that?”

I gave him the cockiest grin I could muster, showing just a bit of fang. “People believe what they see. And if what they see is a force that looks twice as big as it actually is, they’ll start doubting themselves. They’ll wonder if maybe holding that castle isn’t such a good idea after all.”

Bameball leaned forward, arms crossed. “And what if they call our bluff?”

“Then we still buy ourselves time.” I said, shrugging mentally. “Time to regroup, time to plan something stronger. Roll out the Iron Titan, perhaps. Everything's better than charging headfirst into a siege with their reinforcements breathing down our necks.”

The Silverplate officers looed at each other in silence. It didn't matter though, they weren't the ones I was selling to here.

Hern watched me for a moment, then a slow smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth. "You have a way of seeing opportunity where others might not, Argius. That could be exactly what we need."

With Hern’s nod of approval, the wheels were set in motion. He rallied the troops and got to work. After a bit Tents began to pop up faster than you could say "siege". Fires crackled with the enthusiasm of a bonfire party, and the noise level was cranked up to eleven. It was a full-blown production.

Rheka was practically bouncing with excitement as she helped string up the silver-golden banners and light up a row of torches. “This is going to be awesome! Do you think they’ll fall for it?” She asked. I could see her eyes shining with anticipation.

“I’m hoping they’re not too sharp.” I said, shaking my head. “If we pull this off, it’ll be like magic - only, you know, without the actual magic part.”

It was true. I hadn't even considered magic. Though I suppose we didn't exactly have that many spellcasters to spare, anyways. A few of the Silverplates knew a spell or two. About Hern I didn't know, I hadn't really seen him fight so far. Rheka was certainly an option, though she'd probably have to think about her roster very soon. I needn't remind anyone that there was a limit to how many spells one could carry. That limit being four. As far as I knew, Rheka right now had: Ember, Luminance, Splash and... Detect? I think? The old man did make her use it once on some artifacts of his, so. There was that.

Once the camp was transformed into a fortress of illusion, I took a moment to admire our handiwork. The flickering lights, the bustling activity, and the general air of controlled chaos. If I didn’t know better, I’d be convinced we had an army of reinforcements hidden in here.

“Alright.” Hern said, giving the setup a thorough inspection. “I have to admit, it looks convincing. But how do we ensure they buy it?”

“That’s where the fun comes in.” I said, rubbing my claws in the dirt. “We’ll send out a few scouts to drop hints that we’ve got a massive force ready to charge. Remember that soldier in leather? I believe that he might be the garrison commander. Not the most confident guy if you ask me. If we play it right, he will be second-guessing everything.”

Hern nodded, clearly impressed. “Let’s see if your gamble pays off.”

With that, we set our plan in motion and settled in to watch our little ruse unfold. If everything went as planned, we might just get a surrender out of them.

Rheka gave me a pat on the head. I could feel her hand vibrate from excitement. "I bet they’ll be super confused when they see all this!”

I chuckled. “It’s all smoke and mirrors. We’re playing the long game here.”

As the night deepened and shadows stretched long over the camp, I couldn’t help but feel a bit smug. My old tricks and my history knowledge were coming in handy, and maybe - just maybe - we were about to turn the tide without even lifting a sword.

Hern gave me another nod of approval, before we settled back for the night, ready to see how our little charade would play out. That night, I had all the soldiers ordered to drink twice the booze and have double the fun.

***

As dawn cracked, the camp was buzzing with activity. It was a far cry from the chaotic mess of the night before, but the soldiers were definitely still pumped. I managed to snag a bit of sleep in for once. Despite the commotion. Just as the first light of day started creeping in, I stumbled into the command tent.

Hern was already at the table, flipping through reports with a serious look. “Morning.” I greeted, giving him a nudge with my tail. “Any word from Fort Felsvar?”

He looked up from his papers, looking a bit worn out. “No news from the fort yet. But our scouts say the enemy's reinforcements are just a day’s march away.”

"That's... not the word I hoped to hear. Looks like we've got to up the ante on our little game.”

Hern gave a nod, then pointed to a set of plans. “I’ve instructed the men to construct emergency palisades around the camp. It will create a formidable defensive perimeter.”

“Alright” I said. “Let’s go even bigger then. More tents, more fires. And we should get that Iron titan up. It doesn’t need to work - just needs to look like it does.”

Hern raised an eyebrow but nodded. “Very well. Additional tents and fires it is. As for the iron titan?"

I grinned. “Tell Fulur it’s all about the show. Even if it’s just a pile of scrap, it’ll look like we’ve got something serious up our sleeves.”

As the camp ramped up again, the scene was starting to look even more like a fortress. The extra tents and fires, plus the looming Iron titan, were making our setup look pretty darn intimidating.

Without a doubt, the Iron Titan was the star of the show.

It was a massive, incomplete structure, more of a skeleton than a finished machine. But from the front, it looked impressive enough. Standing several stories high, it had a rough frame on giant iron-bound wheels and a metal roof that made it look like a giant’s hat. Inside, it was a mix of partially assembled battlements and scaffolding, with a few catapults and makeshift platforms for archers and spellcasters. The ram wasn’t fully attached, and the beams were more decorative than functional. But from a distance, it gave off the aura of a formidable siege engine ready to roll right up to their walls. How they'd managed to fix this up in a day and a half was a mystery to me. Fulur was certainly a madman. An impressive one, but a madman, nonetheless.

By mid-afternoon, after getting everything almost in place, a messenger finally arrived with a new message from the castle.

They wanted another parley.

Hern gave me a satisfied nod. “It appears they’ve taken the bait.”

I stretched my forelimbs and let out a satisfied sigh. “Perfect. Time to see if our little trick really works.”

Rheka looked down at me, her eyes sparkling with excitement. “They'll really give up after seeing all this?”

“If everything goes as planned, they’ll be ready to give up without a fight.”

"But I wanted a fight!" She said, poking my head.

"I'm sure you did."

As we put the final touches on our little ruse, I couldn’t help but feel a surge of optimism. The setup was as convincing as we could make it, with tents, bonfires, and the intimidating silhouette of the Iron Titan giving off just the right vibe. If our little charade worked, we’d be looking at a surrender before nightfall. With everything in place and the first signs of a response on the horizon, I felt a cautious optimism.

This might just be the turning point we needed.