Chapter 21: A Grasp at Truth
“That’s everything I know, Sir Siegfried.” Atma finished retelling the events of his pilgrimage, downing the last of the healing tonic Siegfried had given him. Shade bandaged his chest, wincing at the touch as he massaged salve to his burns, and drank his own tonic. Though painful, considering their wounds, they had made the last few steps to the outpost, resting at the inn for travelers, though the locals were certainly concerned, given their injuries, and the previous sounds of battle. Hesitant, perhaps, but they weren’t about to turn down Siegfried’s generous offering of coins.
“I understand.” Siegfried had removed his helmet, revealing a face fairly similar in structure to Shade’s, though scarred with battle, wearing an eyepatch, with dusty blonde hair, and bright blue eyes. He leaned back, and held his pipe to his lips, a moment later, blowing a ring of smoke into the air. “The situation is worse than my initial prediction. If anything, interfering may have just made things worse still.”
“I don’t think I understand?”
Siegfried nodded. “What I said before was not in jest. I am a Knight-Errant, set to wander the world, to see and understand it from outside the walls of Castle Deponess, from our home as a whole. To watch our home from a distance.”
“Then you really have been on assignment from my father?”
“Yes. He informed me months ago that he planned on sending you on your pilgrimage. Though you were, of course, to travel on your own, I was to be your shadow, ensuring your safety as one last line of defense, should something be beyond your capabilities.”
“I thought it was weird you didn’t have some old veteran keeping an eye on you,” Sienna piped in. “This one’s certainly not the old man I was expecting, but he saved our asses well enough.”
“I’m only 41, I’ll have you know.” Siegfried sighed. “Not the point, the point is, from the outside, you see the politics of Deponess very differently, and you find most people tend to see Deponesians not unlike you saw Agravain tonight. Obviously, to say we were all like him would be wrong, but it does adjust what you see.”
“And what do you see?”
“I see Deponess is split in terms of those who would see Atma on the throne, and those who would support Escalus. Your selection for the throne is, without a doubt, extremely controversial. I would say a majority of the nobility would prefer to see Escalus on the throne, given his stance on maintaining militarization.” He pulled a map from his bags, detailing the nation of Deponess, from edge to edge. It was surprisingly detailed for how much territory it had to cover, Deponess was considered a world superpower for a reason, it dominated the continent, the Land of Kings was solely occupied by the Kingdom of Deponess, and the Ranzian Empire, who held the north and south, respectively, the main separators between the two being a mountain range, and a vast desert just south of it. Though, this map noted an annexation of the desert territory, alongside a stretch of jungle on the western coast.
“I can’t say I don’t understand the sentiment,” Sienna cut in. “The war wasn’t all that long ago, and everyone in power is old enough to remember just how brutal it got.” She fingered her headband, looking off to the side. “Even the ones just now entering the military, even if they don’t remember the initial battles… They’re old enough to have seen the country in wartime, it’s their normal.”
“I would say it was worse than you describe it as. There were extended periods of occupation during the war. Duke Kaian’s territory, Hessia in particular, was where the brunt of the fighting took place.”
Atma nodded. “House Kaian has long been some of our nation’s most ardent defenders. When the war broke out, they were attacked simultaneously with Linia. Linia was a brutal battle, but with all that happened in Hessia, some would say it paled in comparison.”
Siegfried nodded, and pointed to the Hessia region of the map, taking up the southern quadrant of Deponess, which held Port Fortuna, southwestern Deponess’ version of Port Royale, similarly impressive in both size, and economic weight, as well as standing right on the Deponesian border. “The area is notoriously difficult to seize, on either side, the mountains hold off advance, save for two entrances through canyons perfect for choking an army into a single point, with the mountains so high that most airships can’t cross without taking the same route, or entering through Port Fortuna.The mountains ease on the Deponesian side to the east, closer to Linia, and House Stein’s barony It was here that King, then Prince, Gilliam made a name for himself. Of his many brothers and sisters, he wasn’t even considered as an heir to the throne for how late in the line he was. But, his cunning, combined with a touch of fratricide, paved the way for him to claim his throne. In the initial battle, he commissioned a team of miners to dig through the mountains, not so far as to try and get entirely through them, but just so he could sneak his special forces into the southern fort guarding the entrance to Hessia. He’d done it so quietly, we hadn’t even realized we’d been invaded. It sent soldiers into a panic when his troops marched on House Kaian’s estate, thinking he’d brute forced his way past. Once he’d taken the Kaian estate, Gilliam had near free reign to seize anywhere in the territory.”
“Many of the smaller noble houses in the territory died, or had been devastated. Our current duke Kaian only survived in a miraculous escape, having personally dueled Gilliam, and having been one of the few to survive such a duel. As I remember, it wasn’t until the battles of Marquis Stein’s territory that we were able to push back against Gilliam’s onslaught.”
“Correct. This would be around the time the Stein you know as a member of the Knights’ council first started making a name for himself. I, meanwhile, defended the northern gate of Hessia, leading into western Deponess. It was a difficult series of battles, morale low that Gilliam would wash over us like he had at the southern fort. It was there that I first fought Gilliam, and a few Ranz’ Paladins. Their equivalent to the Knights council.” He answered Sienna before she could ask, a look of confusion growing on her face, as he tugged at his eyepatch. “All you need to know is that while Leonidas fought in the east, I led the charge in the west. More than anything though, Hessia marks our greatest shames during the war. We lost count of how many lives we took, how many we failed to save, but more than that, Hessia is when the world stopped seeing us as noble knights, when, I think, we stopped being them.”
Sienna grimaced. “This part I know. It’s why you’ll find people don’t care for you, er, us, out here. It wasn’t just trained soldiers, or mages that fought in that war, was it?”
Atma nor Siegfried could meet her gaze, the Knight speaking in his prince’s stead. “No, no it was not. We were only able to take back our territory with help from behind enemy lines, civilians Ranz had swept over, taken prisoner, forced into labor, or far worse. They fought and died making Ranz fight on every front, giving us the opportunity to push back. Their teams suffered the highest casualty rates in the war, they were among the most brave, ruthless, and impactful pieces of the war, and…” He visibly struggled to force the next part out. “They were, in no small part, children.” Siegfried sighed. “I felt I could fight past any injuries, or any foe that Ranz threw at me, but what I saw on those battlefields… I would rather have surrendered the entire Hessian region than to feel a child take their last breath in my arms.”
“That’s why you became an objector?” Atma reached out and gripped Siegfried’s hand.
Siegfried nodded. “There were some who wanted my head for what I said, others who said it spat in the face of all the lives sacrificed, but I couldn’t continue fighting like that. His majesty, your father, and my mentor, Leonidas, gave me a proposition, to continue as our Knight Errant, to watch over and mentor his daughter, to watch over Deponess from beyond, to see threats from beyond our borders.”
Shade raised his hand. “That’s when he came back out here to the Mist Alliance, and Zanch. My uncle came here with Raine to visit his sister, my mother, in his birthplace. A story for another time, though. Uncle, I believe you came to a similar conclusion as I did?”
“That I did, Siegmund.”
“Shade.” The Dark Knight cut in briefly.
“I’m using the name your mother gave you, and there’s no arguing that.” Siegfried turned back to Atma. “In any case, let me start by reminding you that everyone, from the Mist Alliance, to Diamante, to Arcana and Arcadia is watching and waiting to see who takes the throne. You’re the preferable choice for them, given Escalus would be less open to trade and negotiation in favor of maintaining our strong military presence, if not expanding it to leverage power over foreign powers. For all the years since liberation, Deponess’ army has continued to grow, its people in constant fear of attack. Certainly, Ranz’s King Gilliam has proven himself more than capable of justifying this in the past. What I see though, is a Ranz still far too occupied with licking their own wounds. They lost so many soldiers in the final stages of the war, it would take at the very least another 10 years for them to muster up enough forces to attempt an invasion, one that would likely fail, mind you. In other words, we are completely and utterly terrified of an enemy who would not be able to survive another war with us. Should we battle again, Ranz would crumble under the economic burden and death toll. I would hazard a guess that Gilliam rose to power when he did, because if the war continued any further, Ranz would be past the point of recovery.”
Stolen story; please report.
“So what you’re saying is that Ranz is likely not responsible for my father’s death?”
“They’re the obvious suspects, of course, but having fought the man before, I know that Gilliam is not an idiot who would provoke an enemy he could not at least match. And while he is certainly not above faking an injury to draw an enemy into a trap…” He tapped the side of his head where he had the eyepatch. “Even he cannot raise an army of corpses. I agree with Raine’s assessment that the threat came from within the Kingdom, but I disagree on where it came from. I would say the culprit doesn’t want you on the throne, but even if they can’t have you dead, they would at least want to be able to blame Ranz.”
Atma didn’t like where he was going with this. “Agravain, he seemed to understand that something was going on, that Escalus would be made King, relished the idea that we would fight again. He’s clearly not the only one with the same mindset. Someone who would prefer Escalus sit upon the throne, one who has a strong reason to hate Ranz, so much as to be fine with blaming them with something that could easily start a war…” He closed his eyes and held his chin. “Then I suppose the last piece would be, who else would my father have told about my ascension beforehand, with all of this happening so close together? He didn’t tell Escalus and I, Father always hated the idea of putting one of us over the other, but ascension stands directly opposite to that. He had to choose one of us, when it would have hurt him to do so, knowing him, he’d think it would hurt us to choose. But he would have had to tell someone aside from you, Siegfried, in case something happened. And who better to tell than his most trusted advisors, who have served him and Deponess faithfully for years? His four Dukes, but I believe most importantly… Duke Kaian.”
“And that would be the answer I came to. The move is bold for Kaian, but Kaian, I believe, is less loyal to the King, so much as he is to Deponess, and what he sees as the future for Deponess.”
“So what, you guys run back home and call him out on it?” Sienna raised an eyebrow, not sure where exactly they could go from here.
“No, the prince cannot go home as is. While my word carries some weight, I doubt it will be enough,” Siegfried started. “With the prince framed for murder, we don’t have the influence to simply make an accusation without direct proof. He will need allies to support his ascension, we will need to uncover proof of Kaian’s dealings.”
“What about the assassin in Zanch? He seemed to know something. Said something about how he had to leave Atma alone.”
“All the more concerning. And why we need more information. The past series of events shows that Kaian’s influence wouldn’t mind Atma being dead, but the assassin suggests Atma must live. I would suggest that perhaps Kaian isn’t the only force at work here, to what end, I do not know, but I believe our next steps are the most important.”
“Then what’s the plan?” Atma leaned forward, listening intently.
“We go to Falcidia, as you planned before. Whether you like them or not, they are without a doubt, the biggest force in the region. Between the show of force here and in Port Calima, they will no doubt be on guard against the forces against you. They are a strong foundational ally that you will need if you are to build support for yourself. From there, the rest of the Mist Alliance is likely to back you, in opposition to Deponess’ current actions. From there, it is best we expand our list of foreign allies. You will have yours back home in the Demilitarization faction, and Linia, but I fear that may not be enough.”
“They’ve always been ardent supporters of both myself and my father, I would hope they wouldn’t give up on me.”
“Then we have the basis of our plan going forward,” Shade said, clear relief in his voice. “But if we are going to do this, and we are, you two are going to need to be a lot stronger. You barely survived the assassin in Zanch, and you came even closer to death with Agravain.”
“Didn’t you lose to your girlfriend back there?” Sienna jabbed, with an obvious bit of venom to her tone.
“I’d like to see you even survive that hit, see how you like it.”
“Enough!” Atma sighed. “He’s right though, we keep losing, and we keep pushing our luck. If we’re going to survive any of this, we can’t keep relying on luck, or even Shade and Siegfried to carry us through.”
Sienna didn’t snap back, instead sighing and leaning forward. “When do we start?”
***
The scout ship landed on the outskirts of Zanch, soldiers and medics carrying a bandaged Agravain on board, the berserker long since passed out, but still clinging to life, as if he were too angry to let go of it. Dante stood alongside a more heavily armored knight by the name of Captain Moore, a staunchly loyal follower of house Helion, Raine and her late father especially. “Agravain is stable, but he’ll need to be shipped back to Deponess for more intensive care.” Dante patted his stomach where he’d seen a particularly gorey wound on Agravain. “Goddess above, Commander, who the hell did that to him?”
The silence was so thick you could have cut it with a knife.
“Right, well, I stand by what I said before. You don’t even have to take my word for it, the people here will tell you the same. Siegfried, of all people, showed up and stood by him, and iif that doesn’t say something, I don’t know what will. Atma isn’t a criminal, and I-”
“I will toss you and your overgrown lizard into a damned cage, if you don’t stop talking.”
Dante took her seriously, and went quiet, though his face made it clear he wasn’t happy about it.
“My lady, what is our next move?”
Raine scowled, and held out the scroll Siegfried had handed her. “I will return to the Pleiades in the morning, and see this is presented to the council. They will decide our moves beyond that. For now, we still need to detain Prince Atma. Captain Moore, you’re in charge. Use whatever means you deem necessary, Tellian, you are to follow his orders in my absence.”
“Oh, that’s real reasonable, just take them on when Siegfried, and whoever mulched Agravain is right there. And the chain of command says I take the lead here.”
“Then force Atma to surrender himself. You know him well enough on how to do that, am I wrong? But then, that’s exactly why Moore is in charge. You’re too emotionally compromised to lead this mission.”
“Bullshit, if anyone’s compromised, it’s you. You come back here, and you start going full warmonger.”
Raine placed a hand upon her blade. “Try me.”
Dante reached for his back, a pair of spears just about in reach. He wouldn’t be able to beat her, but he was more than willing to stand his ground. “You’d make Minerva roll over in her grave if she saw you now.” He half expected her to lash out as soon as he said it in the heat of the moment.
Raine let go of her blade, and turned. “Make your preparations once our forces rally again. I’m leaving the forces of the Silverbolt and the Mirage in your hands. Don’t face me again unless you complete the mission.”
“Might I ask why you insist on waiting until morning to depart, my lady?” Moore, loyal as he was, was all too familiar with his lady’s temperament, and how atypical her behavior was.
“See what supplies you can spare.” Raine gazed over the dim lighting of Zanch, eventually setting her eyes upon a small house on a hill on the outskirts. “These people have suffered enough.” She set into the town, donning her helmet once more, not wanting to show her face to the townspeople, gaunt, and terrified, but faces she recognized all the same. It had been closer to nine years since she had last visited, not counting her brief venture into town in the morning. It was near midnight now, the town just about dead, save for a few restless children, or watchmen posted across the city.
It was disorienting, seeing how much people had changed, seeing the children who had yet to be born when she had left, running around, their mother chasing them down to bring them back in for the night. It was just as concerning to find others totally absent, lost to time, or to the recent occupation. As she recalled, the Crossbow should have been clearing out its night drinkers about now, but even now, was still just as empty as it had been in the morning. Her final stop was the house upon the hill. Locked tight, just about abandoned, but overall, seeming untouched by time. She didn’t have to bother searching for a key, having had her own copy on her person for years. She shut the door behind her, and breathed a sigh of relief, leaning against the door, and sliding to the floor, her armor clanking to the ground. The place consisted of three rooms, a kitchen area that shared space with a living area, and two bedrooms adjacent. The place was marvelously well taken care of, even if no one had lived there for years. She suspected the townsfolk would occasionally stop by and take care of the place, in memory of the ailing woman who had once lived there.
The one thing she was certain of, was that Shade had paid a visit to ‘the old girl,’ as they referred to the old piano sitting in the living room. It was by far the most well kept thing in the entire house, a book of music still sitting at the ready. When she pressed her finger to a key, it was pleasantly still in tune. She removed her gauntlets, and plate mail, piece by pieces, though not so haphazardly as to let them hit the old wooden floors. She sat at the piano, opening the book without so much care as to what song she opened to, so much as just wanting to reminisce. Naturally, it opened to the most opened section, a short little song she’d heard and played enough times to lose count. “Shining Stars, huh?” She glanced over the notes, familiar to her, even as she refrained from just quite touching the keyboard. Her eyes traced over them, right up until she came to a little note in red, from handwriting she hadn’t seen in years.
‘I just wish I could hear you two play for me again, my shining stars.’ Raine slammed the book shut, and guiltily looked to one of the empty bedrooms.
“Sorry.” She trudged over to the other room and let herself drop into the bed. It was completely clean, as though someone had taken care to prepare it specifically for her. He had. Now though, the bed felt too large, the house too empty, like she didn’t belong. “Goodnight, Sieg.”