Breanne stood at the tree-line, watching the ‘elite’ hunters head back to Dorchester as a group. The very idea of calling them elites after only having been in training for a week was laughable. Yet, elites weren’t elites because of their skills, they were elites because their duty was their entire life. They did nothing but train and fight, and their growth rates were as massive as their casualty rates. It would be good for Dorchester to have them once again defending their walls.
Pushing those thoughts aside, she closed her eyes and focused on her mission.
Leaning against the trunk of a tree with her arms crossed, she reviewed what she’d learned about the young Lord Walker and his companions.
Lord Salvator-Verena was exactly who she expected him to be, a typical scholar more suited Center-Research than for politics, let alone the wilds.
In Breanne’s opinion, the Averett woman was the young lord’s only real supporter, and definitely not one to be underestimated. It was clear that northern warrior preferred the role of a silent guardian, constantly watching from a distance. Even when Cathleen wasn’t looking, Breanne could still feel the woman’s eyes on her.
Sergeant Wesker seemed much colder than she thought he’d be. Apparently, the rumors of Lord Walker’s close relationship with the military were just that… rumors. Based on what she’d seen, the military was only keeping Lord Walker close because they didn’t know what to do with him. If they truly valued the young lord, they wouldn’t assign someone like Wesker as his primary contact.
Which led to Rose Vikander, who was a delightful surprise. There was very little known about how she came to be part of Lord Walker’s team, but evidence of the general’s personal involvement did exist. Considering how closely the young woman was watching Lord Walker, her role as a spy for the military was basically confirmed. What was surprising was how good Rose seemed to be. She was a natural, and easily dismissed due to her level.
She felt her second in command, Nela, approach her from behind. Not turning around, she heard Nela’s soft voice ask, “Mission’s accomplished, should we finish our cover assignments, or make an excuse to the rest of the party and head back to Dorchester? We can use the kobald situation as a cover, everyone will be eager to check in with their families.”
Breanne was nothing if not pragmatic. Only she and Nela knew about their primary mission, and there was no reason to cast doubt on their motives by altering the plan. It would be too out of character for her to alter their plans. After all, they weren’t in a hurry.
Shrugging herself off the tree, she looked up at the canopy to judge how much of the day’s light remained. Turning around, she saw the rest of her team standing around, idly discussing what the kobald invasion meant for Dorchester, and for them.
Keeping her voice low, she replied, “We’ll continue with the assignments we took. After seeing how Brian fawned over the young lord, let’s not give anyone a reason to doubt that our encounter was anything but chance. Let’s camp here, we’ve only got around an hour left before nightfall. I’ll be along shortly.”
Offering a small nod to Breanne, Nela headed off to rest of the party. Almost immediately, they broke up to go about their various duties. They’d all been together for years, and Breanne had made sure they all knew what they were doing.
Turning away from the team, she walked off into the wilds to get some distance. When she felt that the area was clear, she reached into a side pouch on her rucksack and pulled out a communication orb. She imbued some essence into it, sending out a connection request. A few seconds later, she felt a response.
A calm, but firm voice came through. “Hub 3. Report.”
Familiar with the protocols, Breanne replied, “Hunter 106 reporting primary mission success.”
A few seconds of silence passed, and Breanne waited for whoever was monitoring Hub 3 to look up the relevant mission information. She tapped her fingers on her sword hilt, trying to remain patient, but secretly hoping they would hurry up.
The voice on the other end of the communication orb suddenly replied, “Very good Hunter 106! You’re the first to complete the request. In fact, we weren’t expecting anyone to attempt it at all due to recent events. When will you present your findings?”
Breanne did some mental math in her head, estimating how long it would take for her team to finish with the Hunter’s Hall assignments they’d accepted.
Giving herself some breathing room, she replied, “Tell Vic… I mean Lord Blackwood, that I’ll be back in Dorchester in 4 days, 5 at the latest.”
Although it was weird to no longer be able to call her friend by her name, it was good to see she was finally getting what she deserved. After all, years of planning had paid off exactly as she’d hoped they would.
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Once again, Nero’s understanding of the wilds was challenged. He’d seen what it was like to travel with a small, unpracticed group. Then he’d seen what a larger group of skilled hunters could do. And now he was seeing what it looked like when a small army was bulldozing through the forest.
He did his best to take it all in. Trying to estimate their numbers, he saw that there were probably over 100 people heading back to Dorchester from the encampment. ‘The extra people must have come later. Maybe support staff, or other teams using their base to rest?’ he wondered.
Deciding that it wasn’t important, Nero focused on how they fought. The amount of noise the large group made caused them to be constantly assaulted by monsters from all sides. Apparently, they didn’t need scouts due to their sensing abilities, so everyone stayed in one giant formation.
If there was one word to describe what he was seeing, it was ‘humbling’.
Nick had told him that the elites had been pulled from monster-hunting teams from all over Dorchester, their levels ranging from probably 20 all the way up to 40. The idea being that elites were meant to dedicate their entire life to the cause, and in return they’d get the full support of the city. They weren’t meant to be the best NOW, but that WAS their entire purpose. It was hard to estimate ages, but Nero could tell by how they fought who was a veteran and who was still learning.
Through his senses, he watched a wiry man bounce through the tree branches, launching arrows of fire into monsters while he flew through the air. It was stunning, and incredibly intimidating.
All around him, he saw breathtaking displays of destruction. There was a woman wielding a two handed sword that was taller than he was, and it was glowing orange! On the other side there was a lanky man summoning rolling balls of thorn-whips that latched on to monsters and ripped them apart like a chainsaw cutting through a tree-trunk. With his senses seeing the essence all around him, he saw abilities going off like flash-bangs all over the place.
The entire army kept moving at a jog, the combat not slowing them down in the slightest. He could see the edges of the formation rotating to bring in fresh warriors, while the back of the formation refilled with those who’d stayed back to collect the essence crystals. It was like a massive dance, which he was only allowed to appreciate due to his essence field giving him a view of the entire formation.
They weren’t sprinting, but the jog was a little faster than he was comfortable with. He had to constantly watch his step in order to make sure he didn’t roll an ankle. Considering he was a foot shorter than everyone around him, it almost made him claustrophobic.
For the first time in a long time, Nero felt completely ignored. He had grown so used to being the center of attention that it was a little surprising how uncomfortable it felt to be relegated to a non-combatant. Even worse, he was surrounded by the weaker fighters, and support staff that he recognized from the training camp. It seemed he wasn’t powerful enough to be given any real responsibility, which both humiliated him, and made him sigh in relief.
After all, it WAS nice to not have to worry about people judging him, reading into everything he did or said. Everyone was focused on the upcoming war, and the conversations going on around him were filled with information that broadened his knowledge base. Even at a jog, soldiers gossiped.
From what he heard, the entire city was preparing for the upcoming war. Gate 22, which apparently housed the ‘mountain gate’ was being evacuated. The civilians were voluntarily giving up their homes and businesses so that the military could be closer to the action. There was also an undercurrent of excitement concerning the rewards they could earn during the coming battles. Nero assumed it was something like the noble war where there was a grading system. Although, he still had no idea how that was tracked, or who was in charge of it. Populators, maybe?
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‘Why don’t they just have a few high level champions from the populators come by and wipe the mountain clean of kobalds?’ he wondered. There had to be a reason, right?
The subject being discussed to his left caused him to whip his head around in surprise. Nero focused on what they were saying, doing his best to tune out all the insanity going on around him. ‘Did they just mention artillery?!?’
A young man with oddly colored salt and pepper hair said, “If that’s true, then the engineering corps is going to be involved. It’s too bad they’ll be pulled off the walls. We’ll be needing the cannons up and running when the beast waves finally hit.”
The woman on his right replied, “I saw the status update myself while I was in the communications tower. They listed requests for all essence crystals we collected to be turned over immediately. The numbers they were requisitioning could only mean they were activating the artillery teams, mechanized divisions, and shield generators. Hopefully all of that old equipment is still working. I doubt its seen any use since the last beast wave, maybe even the old Dorchen rebellion.”
The man replied immediately, “No doubt they’ve already been seen to. It was probably one of the first things command looked into when they heard about the density shift.”
She nodded, and replied, “I hope you’re right. But you should keep in mind that they thought they had plenty of time before the beast waves hit.”
Nero listened closely, reading into whatever they said. ‘This is going to be a war? Like, a real war? I thought this was supposed to be a fantasy world? Why in the hell are they talking about mechanized divisions?’ he wondered.
His thoughts racing, Nero tried to get a hold of himself. It was difficult, considering the people around him were comfortably chatting about the upcoming war. Meanwhile, the sounds of combat were coming from the edges of the formation. And the entire time everyone was jogging through the forest, almost at a run. The situation was absurdly surreal, and it was making him a little lightheaded. Retracting his senses helped a lot. The pressure bearing down on him from his surroundings eased up and he felt like he could breathe again.
He looked over to see Nick chatting away with the soldier jogging next to him. The old man was grinning like a fool while pumping his arms as he ran. Nero smiled at the sight, the presence of his friend acting like an emotional anchor he didn’t know he needed.
A little more centered, he returned to his internal review of the situation.
Despite the differences, this world had a lot in common with his old one. Very little was in his control, and a majority of his decisions would have to be in response to external factors. He hadn’t planned on fighting a war. He joined the elites so that he could fulfill one of the noble trial requirements. Well, killing kobalds probably counted just as much as killing monsters.
‘I’m just going to have to accept that the world shifted gears and I’m not going to be the main character for a while,’ he thought to himself.
As he jogged, he thought about what he might be doing, and what part he might play in the coming war. He’d promised himself that he was going to actively take part in the world around him, but he couldn’t see how he would be able to make much difference in a war that included tens of thousands of troops, possibly even a hundred thousand or more. It wasn’t feeling like a fantasy world at the moment, it felt more like one of the historical war-movies that focused on some nobody that learned life was incredibly precious and earned someone an Oscar.
He always hated those. Reality sucked, and there was no way to argue with a landmine. Kobalds liked traps, and the last he wanted was to end up dying courtesy of a magic IED. His hard work and can-do attitude won’t do shit in front of an artillery shell.
Not liking the way this thoughts were going, he decided to call an audible. Reaching out, he sent Nick a connection request. He saw the old man look over his shoulder and accept the request with a curious, yet annoyed, look on his face.
“What’s wrong now?” Nick asked.
Frowning at the old man’s uninterested reply, Nero could tell the man was in the middle of a conversation that he seemed to be enjoying. Based on Nick’s mental presence, Nero could sense that the old man was unhappy to have Nero bothering him with questions he felt would be answered if he were just willing to be patient and listen.
Surprised at how much sub-text he was able to gleen through the connection, Nero said, “Sorry to bother you, but I just wanted to know why the populators aren’t being called in to deal with the kobalds.”
Nick didn’t bother to pause his conversation with the person next to him, but still answered Nero’s question over the private connection. “Populators are rarely sent out to support military efforts. Their purpose is to clear out new areas for expansion, and to maintain order. Standing armies and local forces are responsible for taking care of local problems. While Oglivarch as a whole is one kingdom, in many ways it is made up of individual cities and areas working independently. You don’t have to worry, if it gets bad enough, I’m sure external aid will be called in. But, let’s hope it doesn’t come to that,” he said.
Nero asked quickly, “Why not? Is there some kind of penalty or something?”
Nick’s mental projection felt a little indecisive, as if he weren’t exactly sure how to answer. After a few seconds, he eventually replied, “It’s not exactly a penalty. Typically once cities are declared self sufficient, all outside influences are mitigated by law. However, if aid is requested, it opens Dorchester up to have nobles from other cities join without starting from the bottom. It’s not exactly bad, but it does tend to cause some stability issues in the upper echelons of power. While not immediately a problem, in a hundred years we might look back and regret ever having called for aid.”
Nero took a moment to digest that interesting nugget of information. He had always wondered why Vera came from a noble family, but wasn’t a noble. It also explained why the Averetts sent out people to cities across Oglivarch to build up their presence by fighting and doing community service. They couldn’t just come in and take over.
Nick let Nero think it through for a bit before continuing. “The current noble houses are almost all descended from when Dorchester was initially founded. However, the Cosgraves were NOT here, so what does that tell you? Getting back to my point, in many ways the cities of Oglivarch are on their own. The kingdom itself is really just an agreement to abide by common practices which are enforced by the royal family and the ruling council, overseen by the local Tower of Law. That isn’t to say there aren’t kingdom forces that might arrive before the beast waves come. Those soldiers are almost like mercenaries, paid for by the crown, that can temporarily bolster the defenses of a city without consequences. However, I doubt they’ll arrive any time soon, so I wouldn’t count on seeing them.”
Nero nodded, the picture of how Oglivarch worked becoming a little clearer. Of course, there were plenty of things he still didn’t understand. Like, if outside nobles couldn’t come here, then how did that Cranston asshole have enough influence to almost have him killed. But, almost as if he were answering his own question, the solution came to him. It was a mage tower thing. They are probably like guilds in games that stretch across city borders. The members don’t hold local power, but they still hold some influence.
Suddenly, the metaphor in his head started taking shape. Oglivarch was like the federal government, the cities were like states, and the different towers were like outsourced governmental services overseen by private monopolies masquerading as clubs. That answered so many annoying questions he had. Even though he was positive that the comparison was probably incredibly flimsy, it really helped him wrap his head around the ridiculousness of how they seemed to govern themselves.
“You alright, Nero? Your emotions are all over the place,” Nick asked, looking over his shoulder to check on Nero.
Nero replied, “Yeah, I think I’m just starting to put your government in terms I can kinda understand. Don’t worry, I’m not going to assume that I’ve figured anything out, but I’ll probably no longer get a headache when you say something so stupid that it makes me question how you all haven’t killed yourselves yet.”
Nick didn’t know what to say to that, so he just replied, “Um… alright. If there’s nothing else, I’m going to focus on my conversation now. Did you know that Gate 12 has an animal sanctuary that is currently studying monsterization and targeted elemental evolution? This young lady’s brother works for Gate 12’s Center-Research center and has had success breeding fire breathing goats. How incredibly interesting, am I right?” Immediately after dropping that illogical bombshell, he closed the connection.
Nero stumbled a little as he tried to process what he had just heard. ‘The moment I begin to get a handle on this crap, something else pops up that reminds me that nothing here makes any damn sense,’ he mentally complained.
Putting the matter aside, he chose to focus his attention on something which he could actually control. So, while he and the army made their way through the monster infested wilds, he dedicated himself to training his essence shield and perfecting his mental control over his essence field.
At this pace, in a day or two, he could possibly be on the front lines of a human army fighting against kobalds for control of an abandoned city. A city which was located under a freaking mountain, all the while praying to whatever upper-planes club president passed for a god around here that he wouldn’t get blown up by magical artillery… or eaten. Definitely didn’t want to be eaten.
At that thought, Nero felt himself fill up with happiness at how much he was enjoying the craziness he was constantly living through. With a grin on his face, he went back to what he did best, learning magic.