Chapter 28 - Ripple

Kalin leaned back in his chair and let out a sigh. Would it have been better if he'd kept Emeria informed? What would Sar'tara have done? She'd have handled the situation a lot better, that’s for certain. Both Rask and Elizia stared out the open doorway. The burning logs within the hearth continued to crackle as they slowly withered to dust.

Was this it? Was this how everything would end? An entire forest had burned down while he was the duke. And now, Xenaria was slowly crumbling as well. Kalin gazed into the glowing hearth. A log piece broke and fell off the side of another. It was like staring at the burning Papillion all over again, observing from the outside with little strength to change anything. The fires were beyond control. The attackers numbered too many. The situation was lost before there'd been a chance to prevent it.

How long am I going to play second fiddle to someone else's designs? He pulled his eyes away from the fire, disgusted at his own memory of failure. His hands slowly curled into a fist. How weak. A small hearth was enough to put him on edge. And Sar'tara had once been surrounded by burning trees. Surrounded by fire with nowhere left to go. She was so much stronger than him. Smarter too at times. She'd somehow always known what he needed and when. Always known what others needed too. Would Xenaria be as it was if she were still awake?

Awake. Flames knew he needed her at that moment. What he'd give to see her smile again or hear her speak if just but a word. But did he even want her to wake up now? Did he even want her to see the sorry state of her home? Would that he dared subject her to the same pain she'd endured some eighteen years ago? Kalin banged his fist on the table, flag markers on the map shaking and shifting out of position. "Burn it," he muttered, breaking the silence within the room. Elizia and Rask turned to him. He covered his face in shame, hiding the pain within his eyes. He was Duke Serene, the bastion of Xenaria. Xenaria's Shining General. If he broke down now, what would become of the kingdom? If he didn't step up, then who would?

Elizia started towards the door. "I'll go after—"

"Yes, you'll go," Kalin said, cutting her off.

"What?"

He ran a hand through his hair. A hundred thousand blades at my command. About a quarter of that is cavalry. And Elizia commanded a fifth of that quarter. "The vast majority of our cavalry will hunt down these insurrectionist forces. Your unit is most suited for this. Thus, I'll be sending you out as well."

"But what about the Empire? Without horses, they'll start encroaching in no time," Elizia protested. "Rask, help me out here."

The Wolf of Metsiphon shook his head. "I cannot, my lady. I agree with your father. If not handled appropriately, this can escalate into a civil war. Men like Lord Galadin and Caranel are only as loyal so long as limiters exist to keep them in check. They're likely privy to at least some of what information we have and they most certainly are seeking to make the most of it. At best, they'll protect their own cities and no further. And there is still the matter of the Trillians. We have no grasp on the amount of fighting men that they've managed to place within Xenaria. This matter needs to be handled swiftly. Leave Tarmia to Lord Serene and I."

Elizia looked down at her feet. She squeezed her eyes shut for a second before opening them again, hands placed at her back and standing up straight. "I understand. Where am I to go?"

Just like you, Tara. A model soldier. Kalin rose to his feet and pointed at the map. "Head west. Send scouts to survey Exaltyron's surroundings. Make sure the capital is not under immediate threat. As you can see here," Kalin said, nudging a trio of markers further west of the capital, "This particular group seems to be moving towards Exaltyron. It'll take you the better part of a month to reach them if not more, but they're on foot so far as we are aware. They've moved through multiple villages, either razing or recruiting along the way. Intercept them. See if anyone has any information. Otherwise, kill them. From there, you're on your own, Elizia. It will be up to you to send scouts out far and stay as informed as possible about the state of Xenaria and locations of other enemies. I cannot maintain a steady supply line either. You will have to ration your food and request aid from elsewhere if you run low. Any questions?"

Elizia examined the map. Then she shook her head. "May I bid Emeria farewell before I go?"

Kalin nodded. "Yes of course. Comfort her if you can. I'll do my best to watch over her." His daughter pressed a fist to her chest and gave a terse bow before turning to leave. "Elizia," Kalin called just as she was about to leave the room. He strode up to her. "Are you really up to this?"

She frowned. "You're asking me this now, father? I've already slain people. Already participated in a battle. I'm more than—"

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"That isn't what I'm asking. You weren't fond of killing, as you shouldn't be. This won't be the same. From what we know, the vast majority of these rebel forces seem nothing more than ordinary peasants. This won't be like killing soldiers. There isn't an 'us' or 'them' here. This is 'us' and 'us' only. You'll be killing citizens of Xenaria. The nation's lifeblood. Its farmers and smiths and innkeepers and woodworkers."

"I… I understand," she answered.

"Don't lose sight of yourself and what you're fighting for, Elizia. You cannot let emotions weigh down your boots. Nor can you let them consume your heart and turn you into a beast. And most importantly," he hugged her, "stay safe. Your life is what matters most. So long as you're alive, you can still fight. And so can we. I'm already breaking without your mother. I can't lose you too."

"I'll do what I can, Lord Commander."

"Elizia…"

"I'll stay safe daddy," she whispered, returning his embrace. "I promise."

"Try not to drink much, hear? It's not a good habit."

"Mhm."

"I mean it," he said sternly. He rustled her hair before letting her go, staring out the doorway as her shadow slipped away and the sound of her footsteps faded down the corners of the corridor.

"Farmers and villagers," Rask said. Kalin turned to find The Wolf staring out the window. "What will become of this nation when this is all over?"

Kalin had been wondering that himself. He scratched at his beard. So many peasants caught up in this affair, and all of them starting an uprising at about the same time. This was organized, and whoever was orchestrating it had an information network as strong as Kalin's own to be commanding organized movements all throughout the nation.

And even if we quell this rebellion quickly, Xenaria could very well be crippled with this many of its peasant class culled… Kalin clenched his fists. Pressed from all sides with no way out.

***

Kazir sat cross legged on a smooth and hard surface, hair unraveled, darkness abound. He imagined himself sitting beneath a tree in a courtyard of stone, moonlight touching its top and shadows hiding him beneath. Somewhere, a fair distance away, a drop of water rolled down the leaf of a plant, hung at its vertex, and then fell to a puddle. Plop!

A single drop sent ripples to all sides of the puddle.

And then all was still. Whether changed for the worse or better, only time would tell. Kazir breathed in the cold night air. It was always night after all. So it had been for the better part of two decades. Frost touched his lungs. He exhaled, a shallow warmth. He heard the silent footsteps of an approaching assassin long before they could possibly have seen him. He could smell the faintest odor of the body and road worn clothes from over a hundred meters away even if the wind blew true.

The silent footsteps grew nearer and louder. The odor grew stronger. "Master Kazir," the assassin said, stopping a mere few feet behind. "Xenaria burns."

"The nation of Flame Bearers is set ablaze. Who'd have seen this coming," Kazir said wryly. "Explain further, Iskra."

"There is large scale insurrection. Lord Serene has sent most of his cavalry to contain the matter, one group heading west while the rest move north and northwest."

"Mm." Kazir stood, wrapping his black hair around his neck. He flexed his scarred fingers. The loss of ships and siege weapons during the last skirmish was an expensive blunder. Siege weapons Kazir had been prepared to lose. He'd amassed many more at Fort Cayra. The ships should have been an ideal retreat mechanism in the event of a defeat, and yet, no organized retreat had come because every field officer had been slain from a distance. "What of this Huntress? Has Kalin truly found a cure for the Decade's Curse?"

"No, master. The Huntress we have heard of is his daughter, Elizia Serene."

Kazir flexed his fingers. The girl took after her parents, but to think a man like the duke would send his daughter to fight when his wife had fallen on the field. You've changed. You were my equal. My better, even. But familial attachments has made you human. Given you weakness. Kazir rubbed his eyes. They ached still when recalling that night. But not nearly as much as the pain blindness had brought. They'd driven him, an assassin, to fear darkness, to desire light and warmth.

But Kazir was Wickar. And Wickar adapt. "How many soldiers do we have here at Cayra?" he questioned.

"With the eastern warfronts quiet, we've had mercenary bands and career soldiers joining us in the hundreds. About sixty thousand militia recruited within the last half year. And about half more of that number that have at least a year of training under them. As for disciplined and trained warriors, we have at least forty."

Kazir looked up at the dark sky, as if actually expecting to see the stars and moons. Was it even night? About a hundred and thirty thousand pieces of flesh waiting to be skewered by either spear or arrow. Some two dozen siege engines. Resource stores in good number, for if there was one thing the Empire did well, it was keeping its citizens fed and keeping resources stocked. But was a winter siege attempt wise?

It had to be. Kazir hadn't paid Kalin back nearly enough. And this inner strife within Xenaria was an opportunity he couldn't miss. A chance to at last obtain the land he'd spent half his life coveting. He stared the other Wickar assassin in the eye, or at least imagined that he did. He had sense enough to know he faced the right direction at least. "Have the officers prepare for a campaign. Send Samlan to go hunt down Elizia Serene. I want her dead. And I want Kalin to know it when we attack. I want him to be dead inside. I want him broken, and incapable, as I once was. Arcaeus Peak stands atop an incline with a lake next to the less steep side. Sieging it is foolish, but with a broken Lord Commander, the army's spirits will be decimated."

"As the master wills."

Kazir sensed the assassin bowing before he walked away, his footsteps heard for a long while yet. He sat back down again after a while. He closed his eyelids, though not needing to, and once more listened to the sounds of a distant droplet of water slipping down a leaf, falling into a puddle, ripples following. Ripples that would soon turn to waves. Waves that would soon turn to a towering tide that would consume all once it fell.

Or not.

Maybe, the wave would just remain a wave until it reached the shore and did little but wet its surface. Maybe Kazir would just be adding another battle to his list of defeats to Kalin Serene. Only time would tell.