Chapter 120: Call to Arms
Alex frowned, and as though in response to his plainly displayed unhappiness, Kolorn Besh, the guild-leader of the Lords of Justice and the man whom Alex now served, gave him a fatherly pat on the back. At the moment, the two of them were standing side by side atop a hill only minimally too short to be called a mountain, which overlooked the narrow Valley of Olandrin located fifty miles northeast of Whispery Woods. As it were, the border line that divided Whispery Woods and southwest Spider’s Eye Oasis happened to run directly through the center of the riverbed several-hundred feet below.
“What do you think, Lord Oren?”
It was strange hearing himself referred to by "lord" or "sir," yet it was custom and protocol, and the last thing Alex wanted to do was disrespect the traditions of the guild he had now sworn to serve unto death. Straightening his back, he hesitated a moment before speaking, choosing instead to cup his forehead to filter out some of the sun as he gazed into the distance. It was about five hours past noon in North Bastia, and if they were going to make it to Shadowfall Coast by dark, they’d need to choose fairly soon whether or not to commit to an attack.
Abandoned, he thought as he observed what had, until an hour ago, been a fully fortified blockade complete with mechanized infantry, leveled defenders, and several officers of the Guild of Gentlemen.
“Something doesn’t feel right about this, Lord Besh,” he said. “You’re positive they’re not waiting in ambush for us somewhere?”
Lord Besh nodded. “Every one of our scouting parties has delivered the same report: the Guild of Gentlemen have eased their blockades on all nine paths. There’s nothing preventing the 3rd Battalion from marching straight to Shadowfall Coast and reinforcing our allies.”
“That’s what worries me,” Alex said. “It makes no sense. If we’re able to break through to Rose Battalion, the city is as good as ours. They must know this, so why would they make our job easier and let us through?”
Based on the latest reports, Rose Battalion had been pushed all the way back to 2nd avenue and were near to being driven out of the city. This would be disastrous, because if their forces lost their foothold into the city, it would only result in prolonged fighting and an even greater number of civilian casualties. This needed to be done with quickly. It was a nightmare that needed to end: like the dragon had been.
But am I really fit to be ending it? he wondered, frowning yet again.
Alex was conflicted: very much so. He was beginning to question his decision to join the Lords of Justice. At the time, he’d been certain his decision was the correct one. But already, he was having regrets. And how could he not? It was his first day as the third-in-command of the Lords of Justice, and yet, before he’d even been anointed and sworn in, he was already taking part in a brutally violent war—one that, in what may have been a record time, had already amassed thousands of innocent civilian casualties as a result of Vim Alazar’s indiscriminate bombing campaign, which was clearly driven more by revenge than tactical necessity.
His thoughts grew steadily more troubled as a breeze rolled through the hilltop and caused a few dried leaves to make a rustling sound as they slid across the grass-covered slope. Another moment of silence lingered, and then Lord Besh scratched the reddish-brown hair of his neatly trimmed beard and shrugged.
“I’ve got no idea what they’re up to, Lord Oren, and I’m also perturbed by their withdrawal, as it has all the makings of a trap. Yet, if it is indeed a trap, it must be very cleverly hidden, as our scouts cannot find any way they might spring it upon us.”
Shaking his head somewhat, Alex tried to rid himself of the uneasiness coursing through him. Something wasn’t right here. Sir Alistair Morrison may have been a thoroughly evil, manipulative, and literal backstabbing pile of filth, but the man was clearly not stupid. There was a reason he was doing this. It was almost as though he wanted them to attack. But why?
“Lord Besh?”
“Yes?”
“Have you considered the trap might be a diplomatic one more than a literal one?”
He scrunched his lips together as though finding the suggestion ridiculous. “With regards to what? That makes little sense.”
Having learned an extraordinary amount of patience during his time as an adventurer—which was needed when dealing with so many bellicose, drunken idiots—Alex did not find it slightly frustrating to be questioned or asked to elaborate on something said in good faith. He was more than happy to oblige.
“With regards to the weapon he claims to have,” Alex said. “This might have something to do with it. Maybe he’s looking for justification to fire it.”
At this, Kolorn Besh released a low grunt that came across as slightly dismissive. “That’s very unlikely, seeing as there is no ‘it’ for him to fire.”
“Do we really know that for certain?”
“Of course we do. Gods, it’s such an obvious bluff. Had the man threatened us with something at least plausible, it might have worked, but his threat was so childish it was comical. He actually told Sir Alazar that he had a button he was going to push that would destroy an entire city if we do not yield to him. Absurd! The Guild of Gentlemen have no such weapon. And since I can tell by the look on your face you remain skeptical, I’ve already done my due diligence and consulted with the best experts we have in munitions and explosives. There is simply no way of producing a munition capable of delivering that kind of payload.”
Alex pursed his lips. Despite the two of them being alone, he nevertheless lowered his voice. “Conventionally, perhaps.”
“Hm?”
“I’ve asked some of my own experts. Though he doesn’t look the part, my former guild-mate, Maric, is a theoretical physicist.”
Kolorn chuckled. “That has little to do with warfare.”
“Maybe. But have you ever considered the possibility that a bomb could utilize a non-conventional source of energy?” Alex’s question prompted only a sidelong glance, and so he elaborated further. “The splitting of an atom,” he continued. “It could unleash enough energy to destroy a city.”
“Ridiculous,” the leader of the Lords of Justice said. “I’m no scientist, but I know that that’s purely theoretical. Theoretically, time travel is possible. Theoretically, a weapon could exist that opens up a black hole capable of swallowing the entire solar system. There are many things that can be real in theory and perhaps in reality someday too, but we are living in the here and now.”
Alex fixed him with a serious look that he hoped would cause his new guild-leader to be a little bit less dismissive. “This is far from theoretical,” Alex said. “The technology in our lives that we use every single day is already far more advanced than what would be required to make that sort of weapon. The fission energy that powers our DEHV hovercraft is a perfect example of that. We use the energy created from the splitting of atoms to power our vehicles, charge our phones, and live our everyday life.”
“True,” he said, “but weaponizing it in the form of a bomb isn’t possible. You don’t think people have had that idea before? The humans of old spent thousands of years trying to figure out how to weaponize atomic energy, and we were unable to do it—or so the records in the guild-only archives would indicate. That, of course, is a secret not to be shared with the public.”
“One of many,” Alex muttered.
“Hm?”
He forced a smile onto his face. “It’s nothing.” Breathing out a sigh, he again scanned the valley below them, then turned his head to face his guild-leader. “Do you remember how I told you about Earth?”
The slight twitch in his shoulders indicated that Kolorn was still not over the shock of learning that adventurers regularly traveled to Earth. From what Alex had learned, the political guild leaders—and the highest-ranking members in the guilds—knew of the existence of Earth, and they knew that humans were not originally from Galterra. It was a closely guarded secret, one they feared would cause the world to revolt against humanity if it was ever discovered their species was “alien” to Galterra. But upon learning that Alex had personally been there, Kolorn had seemed genuinely fascinated.
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
“What of it?” he asked, his interest clearly piqued.
In response, Alex squatted down, grabbed a fist-sized rock, and then held it up to him. Lord Besh squinted at it as though confused. “Earth rocks,” Alex began, “are very, very similar to rocks on Galterra save for one very important difference. On Earth, there is an abundance of an isotope called Uranium-235 found in many rocks, and it is an isotope that is incredibly rare here on Galterra: to the extent that it may not even be present at all. What we do have is an element called thorium, which is perfectly suitable for the nuclear fission reaction that makes our energy, but not at all for the production of a weapon.”
“And this Uranium-235 is capable of being weaponized?”
Alex nodded, and as he did so, he felt a chill run down his back. “It could be. It wasn’t something I ever considered until today, but yes, it could certainly be. You see, to weaponize the splitting of an atom, what you need are atoms that will split when struck by fast-moving neutrons. There’s nothing suitable for that purpose on Galterra. But on Earth? There are two naturally occurring isotopes that I am aware of: Uranium-235 and Plutonium-239. And both could be easily fashioned into a…I suppose you could call it a ‘nuclear bomb’. Furthermore, by knowing the properties of these isotopes, it would be possible to artificially synthesize them here on Galterra.”
Kolorn Besh gasped, a reaction that Alex did not anticipate. Did this mean he was finally taking what Alex was saying seriously? It appeared so. Though, sadly, not at all for the reason that Alex had hoped. Now, he, too, lowered his voice as he spoke.
“Lord Oren, do you still have the ability to travel between worlds?”
“No,” he said, shaking his head. “As I’ve told you, that…that ‘power’ is from a buff that is lost upon joining a political guild.”
“Yet you have many friends who can, yes?”
“Of course. But why do you ask?” Alex regarded him skeptically.
“If you’re right about this, we should look into the production of these weapons—for purely defensive purposes, of course. Certainly, I can’t imagine that Sir Morrison has been working privately with the adventurers, nor do I believe him capable of knowing any of what you’ve just told me. Having said that, I’m going to ask you not to ever repeat what you’ve just told me to the other guilds. This is now officially a highly classified secret of the Lords of Justice.”
Alex fought for all he was worth to contain his discontent and avoid letting it spill onto his face. Lord Besh truly was a cut above the other guild leaders, but not nearly as much as Alex had hoped him to be. Under no circumstance would Alex help him introduce such a weapon into this world, even if he didn’t dare say so aloud.
“I will not speak a word of this,” Alex said—and meant it, too. It would be an easy promise to keep, since undoubtably, the reaction of the other guild leaders would be the same as Kolorn’s had been. Hopefully, the man wouldn’t press him too hard over this when the war was over. For now, though, Alex just hoped that Lord Besh was correct regarding his assessment of the Guild of Gentlemen’s capabilities. In all likelihood, the threat of city-wide annihilation was just a bluff, and it could very well be that the withdrawal of the blockade was intended only to bolster that bluff. Yet even still, Alex wasn’t entirely certain, and that worried him.
As his phone buzzed in his pocket, he was reminded that the veracity of this “weapon” wasn’t the only thing currently causing him some degree of upset. Without even bothering to remove the device from his pocket, he already knew who was contacting him—and he had thus far refused to answer.
“Your phone’s going off again,” Kolorn said with a grunt. “Vim?”
“Probably.”
“About Zach?”
“I assume so.” Alex lowered his hand down to his pocket then paused. “Actually, since it’s been brought up, I could really use your help with this issue, Lord Besh. Maybe you could speak to him.”
He sighed. “I can’t. It’s out of my hands. The boy is not a member of my guild, and were he so, I can’t truthfully say I would be acting any differently than Sir Alazar.”
“You must know he’s not really a member of the Royal Roses. That’s…for show.”
Kolorn shrugged. “Lord Alazar accepts him as one of his own. Apparently, the two bonded during the battle with the dragon.”
“True, but that doesn’t mean—”
“—and also,” he continued, holding up his hand, “you cannot deny that we may need his aid if we’re to end this quickly.”
Alex’s mouth fell open in shock and disbelief. “He’s a seventeen-year-old boy, Lord Besh.”
“Yes, he is. And he’s one who has shown himself highly proficient in dealing with these thugs. How many of the enemy did he kill singlehandedly? I was in awe watching him cut through the Gentlemen. He’s a true warrior.”
Trying to control his disgust, Alex said, “He might appear that way, but he’s also just a boy, and what he went through last night is going to take a toll on him. He needs to rest and reset, and he’s only just gotten to the Island of Elendroth after traveling for hours. In fact, it should be around noon there right now local time. He’s probably exhausted and emotionally drained. Do you think he’s going to respond well to being told to come back to North Bastia to fight in a war? If Vim had such an issue with him leaving, he should have said something before Zach left. He knew where Zach was heading and for how long.”
“I don’t believe Vim’s intentions were bad,” Lord Besh replied. “When the war began, the Royal Roses and the People of Virtue had the upper hand, and it looked like the battle would last only a few hours. Now, it’s been just about one full day and Vim has already lost thousands of troops as well as dozens of leveled guild members, and unless we hurry, our forces will be driven completely out of the city.” He sighed. “Even with the combined might of North Bastia’s guilds united as one, we aren’t likely to strike a decisive blow tonight. Most likely, we’ll be caught up in street-by-street combat. It could be weeks before we reach—and arrest—Sir Morrison.”
Alex rubbed his face, suddenly feeling weary. “It’s just that this isn’t what…”
He let the thought go unfinished, but Lord Besh finished it for him. “This isn’t what I promised you it’d be. Is that what you were going to say? Be honest.”
“It…it is what I was thinking.”
“Well, know this, Lord Oren. I did not lie to you. When I asked you to join the Lords of Justice, I meant every word of what I said to you: and my intentions are still to have you serve as the chief diplomat of humanity. I never intended to have you or my guild be caught up in this awfulness. But how was I to know that any of this would happen? The Guild of Gentlemen were at war with the Royal Roses and the People of Virtue: not the Lords of Justice. Attacking us the way they did—it was unthinkable. It was a treachery beyond imagine.”
As upsetting as all this was, Alex could not actually disagree with it. The fact that Sir Morrison would attack the other three large guilds that ruled humanity and drag them into the war was a decision that made absolutely no sense and that hardly seemed real. It only reinforced Alex’s fear that the man must have something up his sleeve to be so audacious, as he did not strike Alex as stupid or insane.
“Seeing as how you haven’t even been sworn in yet, if you would like to abandon your oath, I’ll allow it. But I must know now. If you want no part in this, I swear on the soul of my father I will not bear you any ill will, and you are free to leave.”
“No,” Alex said firmly. “I agreed to defend the guild and the people when I joined, and as much as I absolutely loathe violence, I won’t shy away from it when necessary. Sir Allistair Morrison is an abhorrent, evil stain on humanity, and he must be stopped. And if I’m there, maybe I can help minimize civilian casualties in the process.”
Alex grimaced as he reflected on the current estimate—likely on the lower side—of the number of innocent people who’d been caught in the crossfire. “I am likely speaking out of turn here, but I’m really not happy with Sir Alazar’s conduct—if I may be so bold as to say so.”
“None of us are,” Lord Besh agreed with a nod. “Those fighter jets of his…they are an abomination. Peter I rid the world of those death machines for a reason. That’s why the other guilds—and ours included, of course—fully expect Lord Alazar to destroy them after the war, and rest assured, there will be diplomatic consequences if he refuses. But more to the point”—Lord Besh grabbed his wrist and squeezed it reassuringly—“you are a good man, and I’m glad to have you among our ranks.”
Abruptly, Lord Besh’s tone became apologetic. “As far as the Zachys Calador issue is concerned, I truly wish I could do more, but I’m afraid I simply cannot.”
This is going to be a nightmare, Alex thought as his phone vibrated in his pocket yet again. Once more, he did not answer it, as he still did not know what to say.
As things were, the sharp-tongued guild-leader of the Royal Roses had been hounding him nonstop for the past few hours. He wanted Alex to get into contact with Zach and deliver his “summons” to return for battle, as he appeared to think he himself would be unable to convince him: which he definitely wouldn’t be able to. He seemed to think Alex, on the other hand, could. And he was probably right. If Alex spoke with Zach, he probably could indeed convince him to return. Yet there was no way that was happening. Not only was Zach not old enough to be fighting in a war in the first place, but what he needed most right now was to improve his state of mind, not damage it further.
Given the urgency of the situation, Alex had not been able to speak with Zach after the events of last night, and now, as he reflected on the boy’s condition during their panicked trip northward to Whispery Woods, he shuddered as he recalled the shape Zach had been in. The boy had been cackling, whispering to himself, and blurting things out. An ache of sorrow and compassion ignited in his chest as he realized he really should have spoken to him before he’d departed.
There’s no way I can allow Zach to participate in this. It’s not happening!
Given the high possibility that the 3rd Battalion would be joining the gruesome battle to retake Shadowfall Coast tonight, Alex was short on time. Even still, this was important, and he needed to deal with it. It was time for him to have a word with Vim Alazar, the leader of the Royal Roses. Zach could not be roped into this any more than he already had. Not just for his own sake, but for the sake of the world.