image [https://i.imgur.com/yFu9mOD.png]

XXI

Forging the Plan

Something had happened to Levi.

‘Are you alright?’ I asked, sitting in his tent.

‘Yes, yes…I’m fine.’

That’s what he said. But rumours were quick.

‘You were seen running out.’

‘I needed a breath of fresh air.’

My face was impassive. ‘Did you also “need” to bury your arms in the snow?’

He sighed and closed his eyes for a moment. ‘You were right, Seph.’

A frown grew on my forehead.

‘I have overworked myself,’ he said. ‘The mana channels in my arms were burning.’ He looked up at me. ‘I need a break.’

His words were what I already believed and knew to be right. And that’s why I mistrusted them so.

‘A break,’ I repeated. ‘You want to head towards Winterforge after all?’

‘Yes.’

‘What about the refugees?’ I asked and studied his face intently.

‘I don’t know the details of your plan, but securing aid will do them better in the long run. Leah’s safety is also paramount. We’ll need her to push back the orcs.’

My gaze did not stray from him. He’s trembling. Oscillating, may be a better term. Like some force was keeping him moving despite his wants.

‘Let me see your arms,’ I said.

His breathing hitched, and when I reached out, he jerked back. My arm remained outstretched as I glared him down. He offered his arm.

My first thought as our skin touched was that his description of burning was on point. The second was that I was imagining the sensation. Though his arm was hot, it was within believable boundaries. Even when I raked my fingers across his forearm and sensed underneath his skin, I discovered nothing unusual.

‘I’m already feeling much better,’ Levi said.

And I was forced to chew and swallow his lie. I wish I could choke the truth out of him. But that was a bad habit. He was allowed his secrets.

‘Leah will take a look,’ I said.

‘That’s fine.’

I searched my racing mind for a reprimand and painstakingly nodded when I found nothing. ‘Let’s head to the castle.’

image [https://i.imgur.com/z6G5s0x.png]

Levi had to let his patients know of his absence so he would join later. In the meantime, Leah and I entered my office. A few others were already inside.

Indo Moreton, Diego, Theodore, and Martin rose from their chair.

I stopped in the doorway and held up my hand. ‘That’s alright.’ My gaze roved over the town reeve and his son. ‘I only summoned two of the members in this room.’

‘We let ourselves in, Warden,’ Theodore said, bowing his head. ‘Please forgive our intrusion, but the matter is quite urgent.’

‘Does it involve our merchants?’ I said.

‘No…’ Theodore said. ‘Perhaps,’ he added.

A snarky woman behind me cleared her throat.

I stepped aside to let her pass and closed the door. ‘So, it’s about your village. You are requesting a relief effort.’

The reeve’s lips curled in surprise. ‘Ah, yes…that’s exactly what we wanted to ask.’

Still standing near the entrance, I nodded and turned towards Leah. I waited until she sat down and relaxed in her chair to speak up. ‘Leah, if you would be so kind as to fetch my guard captain? He would benefit from being in the room.’

The girl glared daggers at me but didn’t speak out. ‘Yes…Warden.’

‘You have my gratitude.’

‘Screw you,’ she whispered as she exited.

A great joy suffused me as I took a seat behind the desk. ‘Let us wait until we’re all here.’

In our downtime, the Moreton patriarch spoke of his visits to the corners of our domain. He spoke of the Frozen Wastes to our south, which was a land of unbroken ice where nearly nothing lived.

‘Have you ever been there, Your Excellency?’

‘I have not.’

He shook his head. ‘Just as well. I would advise against it.’

‘It’s dangerous?’

‘No, but it is cursed.’

I hummed. A curse. Another term like “demon.” Easy to use, hard to decipher.

Moreton grasped his pointed beard. ‘I’m no religious man, Your Excellency. That place, however…it is better left alone. It’s part of the reason the north has almost never been invaded from the south.’

He was quick to leave the topic behind him, turning his attention on brighter prospects. Namely, Frostholm to the far east. It was considered the holy city of the Duchy, for its temple was the most luxurious one in the North.

I haven’t heard Levi speak about it once, I thought. If that’s true however, the temple would have a significant presence in the city. Something to research for later.

There was a knock and Malakai entered the room with Leah. I motioned towards Theodore and Martin, who stood and explained their situation.

The gist of it, was that the bandits were running rampant in their homes, abusing their villages and the people who had to stay behind. Most of the refugees were planning to rush home themselves in order to safe their kin, but there were many who were too weak to survive another exodus-like journey. It would split the population. And strength in numbers was one thing every village sorely needed.

At the end, all heads turned to me—as they always did. But it was time for me to step down where I wasn’t necessary.

I regarded Malakai. ‘Your force is the one most fit for the situation. The call and subsequent strategic decision-making are in your hands.’

The surprise in his eyes was brief. ‘Warden!’ he saluted.

‘Feel free to discuss further in our other office,’ I said, glad that he was less hesitant than before. ‘Inform me of the results.’

That left Leah, myself and the merchants after they left. Before the door fell closed behind them, though, Levi announced his presence.

‘Your timing is perfect, little brother.’ I leaned back in my chair and glanced at Moreton and Diego. ‘Have you considered my request?’

It wasn’t a request at all, but framing it as such softened the blow.

‘We have, Your Excellency.’ Moreton gave the floor to his fellow merchant.

Diego placed his hand over his heart. ‘Though I’m still inexperienced, I believe I can be of great service to you, Warden.’

My hands linked underneath my chin. I had requested a merchant for two reasons: one, it would make our party’s westward movement less suspicious to any possible scouts. Two—and the most significant one—I didn’t actually trust Levi to barter for anything if his life depended on it. He was a priest, not an economic genius.

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However, the fact that the Merchant Company decided to hand me Diego was both a boon and slap in the face. It was a boon, because I personally judged Diego to be of a certain character—one hungry for improvement. It was a slap, because the merchants didn’t know this. In their eyes, they had just handed me one of their most disposable assets.

‘More are coming with us?’ Levi asked.

‘Our company has agreements to settle in Winterforge, Sir,’ Diego said. ‘I’ll act as your humble adviser and guide as I take care of them.’

‘The Ebonfrost have a particular way of dealing,’ Moreton added. ‘Presentation and attitude are important. Have one be deficient, and you’ll be turned away at the gate.’

Though he didn’t glance my way, the old man didn’t fool me. Nothing stayed a secret here for long, it seemed. Not even frostguard issues…especially frostguard issues.

But I reconsidered. Diego couldn’t be that disposable if the company trusted him to handle their business in Winterforge.

Moreton waited until he caught my attention. ‘If we may be so preposterous, Your Excellency—we had a request of our own.’

‘I will hear it.’

He thanked me then said: ‘We would like guards for our convoy.’

I frowned. ‘You already have them.’

He shook his head. ‘They wouldn’t dare bet their lives in combat against an orc, Your Excellency. Nor would any of our company dare place our lives in their hands against such an alien threat. Many have already appealed to me to call off our journey east.’

‘That’s ridiculous,’ Levi said. ‘If you don’t travel—’

‘The Duchy starves,’ he finished. ‘I am aware, Milord.’ Here the older man paused and sighed so his wrinkles grew more pronounced. ‘But we merchants are not soldiers—we’re humans. And humans are selfish before they are saints.’

Was his countenance a ploy? Perhaps. Yet what did it matter? He was correct.

‘How many guards would put the members of your company at ease?’ I said.

‘From what I gathered during the conversation,’ he said, ‘the force your captain is building would be agreeable.’

Which was my fear. I had no such other force available and taking them from the frostguards wasn’t advised. Not since they would be gone for a long time.

So how to handle this?

Moreton mistook my quiet thoughts for hesitation. ‘We’re willing to pay handsomely, should the captain’s time be too wanted.’

Meaning he was prepared to buy them out so they abandoned the villages and helped them instead. I huffed. Sly fox.

‘Pay me you will,’ I said. It would go a long way to filling the coffers whose capacity (or lack thereof) I wasn’t even aware of. ‘But Malakai’s time is better spent elsewhere. I’ll gather the required force myself. How long can you wait?’

‘About a week,’ he said, ‘Any later and we risk arriving too late at the border of the Duchy to offer relief.’

Thus the question became: How could I raise a significant force of dead within a week? The answer came to me within the same breath that I pronounced it. I stole a glance in Levi’s direction. His tired mind was only half in the room, and he didn’t notice my gaze until I looked away. I’ll act after he’s gone.

‘Consider your request granted, Moreton,’ I said. ‘We’ll hash out the specifics later.’

His eyes widened minutely—perhaps he had expected more pushback—but his surprise vanished within moments. He stood and bowed. ‘Thank you, Your Excellency.’

I nodded. ‘If that’s settled, I’ll no longer impede your time. Levi will fill Diego in on the particulars as they travel.’

They took the order to exit as it was, leaving solely myself, Leah and Levi.

‘So,’ Levi said. ‘What—’

‘Leah’s looking at your arm,’ I cut through.

Her brow raised. ‘What happened to it?’

I purposefully let him explain the situation to catch any discrepancies from when he first explained it, but I had no such luck.

A hue of blue green light suffused Leah’s fingers as she inspected him. ‘You’ve indeed channelled too much mana. I would recommend not casting anything for the next two days.’

‘That’s what I expected,’ Levi said. ‘Thanks.’

My lips pursed. ‘So it’s just over usage?’

‘Nothing too worrying,’ Leah confirmed.

I clicked my tongue. Lucky bastard. I leaned back in my chair and exhaled my frustrations. ‘The plan is for you to leave tomorrow morning.’

‘As I thought,’ Leah said, returning to her chair.

I eyed her.

She shrugged. ‘I saw you practising so I had my suspicions.’

That was true. The guards were one thing, fooling her another.

‘Practising what?’ Levi said.

‘You’ll see,’ I said. ‘What matters for now is your destination, the members that are coming with you, and what I expect you to accomplish.’ I sat up straight. ‘First, Jaeger and some of his men are joining you.’

We needed to keep the team small, but too small would put them at risk.

‘Good,’ Leah said. ‘They’ll make for decent meatshields.’

Levi’s jaw disconnected.

Leah glanced to the side and chuckled. ‘I’m joking. I take it your precious captain is coming, too? The undead one.’

‘Him and a few other orc soldiers,’ I said. ‘That should round out your party.’

Their group had too many melee combatants for my liking, but then so did my undead. It was high time I diversified my roster.

‘Right,’ Leah said. ‘So what is you want me to do? Find the orcs and report back?’

‘Find them,’ I said, ‘and figure out what they’re doing. There has to be a reason they chose to return to the mountains.’

‘I can cast a scrying spell after we locate them,’ Leah said. ‘But it could blow our cover.’

‘Our Master Magus,’ I said.

I still hadn’t figured out how we were going to take care of them. Our best bet was for them not to be there at all.

‘We’ll think of a method once we get there,’ I said.

The room grew quiet as there wasn’t more to say on the subject, so I took the opportunity and changed topic. ‘Levi, do you have a copy of our family’s account register?’

‘Jonathan did. I didn’t find it between his possessions.’

Unfortunate. That meant I’d need to send someone to Snowspire—the manor had to have one.

After I quickly explained to him what I was planning for the city, our conversation turned towards minutiae: the gear and supplies they should bring with them, if Levi needed a seal of the Vrost clan to prove his legitimacy or not, and other things.

Before we knew it, evening was approaching, and with it Malakai’s time to depart.

image [https://i.imgur.com/z6G5s0x.png]

Horses gathered near the back entrance of the castle and armed men heaved themselves on top. They wore the colours of the frostguards with the grace of experience. Except for one.

Theodore watched his son clunkily ascend his horse. ‘Martin, are you certain—’

‘I’m certain, Father.’

Martin’s helm blocked his face, but Malakai heard the conviction in his voice. He chuckled. There was no convincing a man out for either heroism or revenge.

His mirth drew attention, and Theodore shot Malakai the lost, pleading look any father gave the universe that was about to take away his son. He put a hand on Malakai’s shoulder. ‘Please, keep him safe.’

Hearing him beg stung. Malakai respected the reeve, for he was a good leader and cared about his people. That, and the old man reminded Malakai of someone.

He took the man’s hand in his own. ‘As long as I live, so will he.’

They paused and held each other’s gaze. Theodore nodded and let his hand drop.

‘Well said, Young Wolf!’

Malakai nearly jumped at the shout that wasn’t really one.

Gregory led his horse forwards. ‘Worry not, Theodore of Frosthollow. I, Gregory White, also swear to protect Martin’s life with my own—’

‘Yeah, yeah, we get it,’ Ian cried. ‘Now stop yelling. We’re leaving at night for a reason.’

Gregory coughed in his palm, murmured his apologies and went quiet.

That’s why her footsteps were clearly audible.

Malakai turned at the familiar crunch of snow beneath tremendous weight.

‘Warden!’ He began to salute…and froze.

In the week or so that he’d travelled with his liege, Malakai thought he’d gotten used to her undead. Sparring Durak had only heightened that feeling. Whatever she pulled out, he wouldn’t think it crazy or hide from it like a mouse.

Until now.

A cloaked figure shadowed the Warden. The light outside was low, yet its face, or at least the eyes, should’ve been visible. But the centre of the hood was a mask of impenetrable blackness that could not be natural.

Malakai’s Adam's apple went down his throat. Each of the undead’s footfalls made him envision the approach of Death, and Malakai stepped back without meaning to.

Behind him, none uttered a sound.

The Warden stopped some distance away. ‘Any further and I’ll scare the horses. Come, Malakai.’

A moment passed before Malakai’s brain processed the command. Many more went by before he could get his feet to work, but he eventually made it to within arm’s reach of the Warden.

‘…Warden…’

Next to the undead, the sight of his liege may as well have been that of an angel. She held her arm out in front of the undead. The cloak and shadows swirled like a vortex. Somehow, Malakai got the sense the creature was watching him even as it vanished.

The Warden opened her palm, revealing the gleaming crystal in the moonlight. ‘This is an undead of significant power. He’s yours to call upon.’

She conjured another set of crystals, four in total. ‘Orc soldiers. Also yours.’

They joined the core already in his hand. Malakai looked up, lost for words. ‘That’s…a lot.’

She patted his shoulder. ‘I trust you will use them well.’ Then she leaned in close and whispered. ‘All you have to do is hold them in your palm and chant: Summon or Retract.’ She pulled away. ‘Understood?’

‘Ma’am,’ he said, still in shock.

Her attention turned to the others. ‘All of you have answered the call of my captain, whose voice is like my own. For that, you have my thanks.’

Gregory straightened from his slump. ‘It’s—it’s only expected, Warden!’

‘Your sense of duty is commendable,’ she said. ‘I await great news upon your return.’

And at this, everyone found it in themselves to salute.

Theodore embraced his son a final time, and then their group was through the gate, leaving Castle Frostmouth behind them.

image [https://i.imgur.com/z6G5s0x.png]

I saw Theodore out through the front exit.

‘Your son is safe amongst my men,’ I said after he inquired about my expectations of their successful return for the tenth time. ‘Worst case scenario, my undead are prepared to sacrifice themselves for his safety.’

‘Yes…alright…’ he said.

Well, I huffed, nothing I said would convince a fearful parent.

I motioned to the downwards slope in front. ‘I wish you a goodnight, Theodore of Frosthollow.’

And the old man crawled down the hill. He passed two figures on horseback on his way, making me raise an eyebrow. We didn’t have any patrols scheduled for tonight, and certainly not one that small.

I caught the eye of a guard manning the wall, who readied his bow, and drew a crystal into my palm. But when the pair neared, a familiar (and not so familiar) voice reached me.

‘Milady! There you are!’

My gaze remained trained as they dismounted their horses and shuttered their lanterns. A girl and an older man. Both donned a cloak which had the emblem of House Vrost on the breast. I recognised them, though I had only ever spoken to one.

The maid I’d seen on my first day here, and the head butler of my mansion knelt before me.

‘Milady, we’ve come to serve you,’ the older butler said.

I glanced behind them. ‘You journeyed here from Snowspire all by yourself?’

‘The weather was fortunate,’ he answered.

That still didn’t explain how the duo had been left alone by bandits and wildlife. Then again—I peered—a whiff of miasma leaked from the butler. Perhaps they hadn’t been.

I motioned for them to rise. ‘You’re welcome in the castle. Though I will hear on the morrow about your journey.’

‘Of course—‘ the butler began.

‘And,’ I cut through. ‘You’ll explain to me why you decided to leave our manor despite no orders to do so.’

He lowered his head. ‘Of course, Milady.’

I signalled one of the guards. ‘Help them store their horses.’

As I watched the pair unsaddle their bags, I remembered something and said: ‘Do you happen to have our account register in those sacks?’

‘A copy, Milady,’ the butler said. ‘We took it with us when we found your register in your office.’

‘Good,’ I said.

I suppose I’d be less harsh on them tomorrow.