Harlond Keep, the capital's castle, often had its windows thrown wide so the breeze could drift through its passages taking away any unsavory smells that might linger from those the dwelled within its mighty edifice.

Within those breezy halls, General Rowan walked casually beside the odd group that Cedrick had brought him. The King of the Thousand Islands; the leader of Hyshtel's followers; Ellen Swamp, the greatest adventurer; and two monsters.

Neither of the monsters cut an imposing figure, but Gi, the Monster King, did have a well restrained aura. It sang of old temples and a path only tread by gods. That aura alone would have made the General want to trust him, but he wasn't a fool.

There were enough high level priests that wielded divine Aether that he could recognize its source if not what path led this aura to feel as it did. Even with stories of rebirth and that aura of divinity, there was no proof that Gi was anything other than a monster.

But he didn't need any proof.

Gi had come in and offered everything that he'd wanted at the cost of what? Lip service?

If he actually was on a mission from the gods, he'd disappear as he said. If he wasn't, Veridia had no reason to actually listen to him. Still, it wasn't Gi that he was worried about. His gut told him that he wasn't lying and he trusted that.

What worried him more was how his problems were getting resolved one by one. The demons refocused their forces to siege their capital, but Gi broke the blockade and stopped a guerilla contingent from damaging their farms.

Now, he offered to simply go handle the last problem that would have kept him from just waiting out the war?

Nothing was ever that easy. Some god or fate or coincidence would never let that happen. So the question was, what manner would the incoming disaster take? How could he prevent it?

General Rowan blinked as he realized that he'd stopped directly at the Throne Room door. One of the guards went in to announce those in their party, but the man paused after announcing the humans as he tried to figure out what to say about the monsters.

Probably for the best.

Rowan strode into the throne room, tapped the confused guard on the shoulder to dismiss him, and then stood at ease facing his emperor. Confusion warped Veritas's face for a moment as though he was trying to reconcile the bald old man in front of him with the auburn haired youth that Rowan had been in his prime.

Then the Emperor smiled and Rowan smiled back.

It saddened him to see the Emperor in this state. His Skills had been used for more than war and it was almost directly from them that Veridia boasted its current providence - army at their gates besides.

"Emperor Veritas, I present our allies that we recently spoke of." Rowan bowed stiffly gesturing to those that came in. Unfortunately, Gi had moved to the front of the crowd and he watched the Emperor's eyes widen in a sudden rage.

"MONSTER IN THE THRONE ROOM!" Shards of rock appeared at the Emperor's fingertips, exploding out in a line as the Aether constructs cut through the space between Veritas and Gi.

Gi showed his own Skills as a strange light that seemed to drip from his fur surrounded him. He gently swam through the air as if it was only water, spinning to avoid the incoming projectiles as if he was truly only an otter playing in a river.

The other party members weren't slouches either as they'd all managed to get out of the way of the Emperor's sudden attack. They didn't look to be counter attacking, but Rowan couldn't expect that good grace to continue and he didn't want to pit himself against some of the strongest cultivators in the world.

"Emperor Veritas!," he yelled, rushing forward. His attendants who flanked the throne had ducked down and covered their heads. "The monster is our ally!"

His shout didn't stop the continued blasting of rock shards at Gi as the monster calmly dodged through the air. Shrapnel rocketed everywhere as the Aether constructed rock hit the castle walls and Rowan had to draw his rapier to stop a piece from striking the attendant nearest him.

"VERITAS! THEY ARE WITH THE THOUSAND ISLANDS!"

General Rowan grabbed the Emperor's sleeve and only then did he seem to recognize that he was even there. Rowan repeated his statement at a more normal volume.

"The monstrous otters are with the Thousand Island Kingdom. They are our allies."

Emperor Veritas blinked and then, like a flip had been switched, roared with laughter, all aggression forgotten. While that laughter was characteristic of Rowan, it wasn't of the Emperor which only made him all the more concerned for the Emperor's mental health.

"Why didn't you say they were pets!" The Emperor laughed again. "I almost blasted the ferrets right out the window! Oh well, no harm, no concern!"

The Emperor's laughter fell onto a silent throne room. One of the guards had been struck by the Emperor's shrapnel, but thankfully, his level of cultivation was enough that he was only wounded. The other otter- Friend? Pal? something like that- had moved over to heal his wound.

There were mixed reactions in their allies. The King seemed composed, but his stance was loose in a way that spoke of instant readiness to commit violence. Ellen was annoyed while Elder Altman looked furious. He suspected the Elder of Hyshtel would have summoned his blades and fought if the unprovoked attack was from anyone lesser.

Gi, for his part, simply floated down from the ceiling. Unlike the others, he seemed truly calm which surprised Rowan. Even with the Emperor holding back, he had to still be stronger than Gi.

Surely?

"Greetings, Emperor Veritas," Gi said. "I've heard great things of your leadership here in Veridia. It is an honor to meet someone so committed to the prosperity of their people."

"Ha! It talks!" The Emperor said, seeming like he was going to laugh again, but then his head quirked and confusion painted across his features again. His eyes glanced to the other humans in the room before landing on Rowan.

His eyes seemed alarmed. This was the part that Rowan hated the most. There were times when the Emperor could tell there was something wrong. Some situation that he should know about, but didn't.

That awareness of the slow decline in who he was. Like sinking into a tar pit at an abysmally slow pace with only the vaguest sense that you were doomed.

I could go out there now. End myself on the battlefield like a true warrior instead of dying slowly in my bed as I lose all sense of self.

General Rowan pushed those selfish thoughts away and he smiled, giving the Emperor the encouragement that he wanted. It was a promise that said, "this situation is normal. Everything is okay."

The Emperor turned back to the party and his eyes flicked nervously to the monsters present in the room. He addressed the humans instead.

"Tell me. Who has the honor of appearing before me?"

Gi stepped forward. "My name is Gi. These are my friends and allies - King Rellington of the Thousand Islands, Elder Altm-"

The Emperor stabbed a finger towards Gi. "LIES! You seek to trick me, demon? Siege my city and infiltrate my throne room? King Rellington has seen the passing of more seasons than this!"

His accusation faltered as Veritas could tell the room wasn't reacting how he expected. Confusion swept across his face again and Rowan hastened to lean close to him.

"Sir, these are our allies that have come to see you. They're going to help us with the demons."

Veritas nodded. "The demons. Yes. They are a problem, but..." His eyes flicked across the room. "Why are there monsters in my throne room?"

"They are... pets, sir, of the Thousand Islands." Lying to Veritas made him feel like he was betraying his old friend, but he also hadn't expected his reaction to be this bad. He tended to understand eventually. "Now that you've met them. I can show them out."

"Yes, yes. Of course..." His eyes watched Gi uneasily. Rowan straightened and then spoke loud so everyone could hear.

"Emperor Veritas greets his allies and appreciates your assistance with the matter in the Midnight Grove. He also offers his apologies, but the day has grown long for his excellency and he requires his rest."

Daylight still streamed into the throne room from the opened windows, letting in the breeze that floated over the city. No one argued with him. General Rowan then bowed in front of the Emperor.

"At your leave, my Emperor."

He gave a shooing motion that Rowan took as a dismissal, but the Emperor's eyes didn't leave Gi. His mind clearly warring on whether the monster was a threat or not.

General Rowan spread his arms wide and practically herded the visiting party out. Elder Altman had the good sense to wait until they were out of earshot of any guards before turning on him.

"His memory's not quite there. That's what you said. The Emperor is out of his One-cursed mind!"

"Peace, Elder," The King said, but Rowan could only sigh.

"He's not normally that intense. I don't know if we caught him on a particularly bad day or if it was the strange situation that made things worse." He ran his calloused hands over his head. "I don't know."

"It's okay," Gi said. "It's not your fault. Your Emperor is clearly struggling with his health and you've done your best to hold everything together. That's to be admired and you have my apologies that we troubled him."

"Yeah," Rowan said eloquently. There was no way that this monster was older than even the King, but he spoke with a lived experience as though he'd seen the ravages of time and grown sympathetic.

Normally, Rowan would scoff about these upstart kids, but... Gi seemed genuine.

Maybe it was that damn aura.

"Unfortunate circumstances aside," King Rellington said, "This does provide some... logistical hurdles to our alliance."

Rowan snorted. "Logistical hurdles. Sure. Listen, I'll be blunt. I suppose it's obvious now that we're not in the best way. We need help. If the Midnight Grove can be stabilized, theoretically, we can hold out indefinitely against the siege, but I have no idea what their next move might be."

Gi flared his aura a bit. The vaguest hint of music drifted in that aura, reminding him of the old lullabies that his mom used to sing to him back when he was nothing but a village brat. It was an obvious attempt to calm Rowan down and he'd have been more irritated if he didn't need it.

Seeing the Emperor like that had rattled him. It was like watching a man rot in a cage.

"Either way," Gi said, "The Midnight Grove situation needs to be resolved. We can do that."

"Why?"

That damned otter practically radiated an assuredness in his aura and Rowan could see now why the sensible Cedrick had been so won over. "General Rowan, I'm not in this world to help myself. I'm here to help you and all the other people that I can. The Grove is the next step for that."

"Bullshit," Rowan said, trying to break Gi's convincing aura. Something about it just seemed to radiate truth even if he ignored the words, but it wasn't like an attack. It just... was. "You said you need to reach the peak of cultivation and step into godhood."

"And how is that not helping you?"

The corruption. Rowan had forgotten. That made his heart quicken for the barest of moments as he worried that his mind was going next, but no, he was just frazzled. That seemed like a small concern below bigger priorities.

"You said you were committed to diplomacy. What if diplomacy is impossible? What if the Emperor can't remember your arguments or your good deeds? What then?"

Gi gave him a soft smile. "I don't know the future, but I'm confident that as long as we work together and trust each other, we can find a way forward."

General Rowan sighed. Nothing changed really. He didn't see the path towards the dream that Gi had, but... he wanted to believe. If nothing else so that Veritas might have some peace knowing his empire was safe.

He nodded and showed them to the steps where he found Luke waiting. He directed the young man to show them out, but the General was distracted with too many competing thoughts.

Battle is supposed to be simple. Stab them before they stab you. He turned back into the castle and then headed down towards the kitchens. Maybe they have a spare barrel of whiskey.