Leaving the castle, Rani took a moment to consider their next move - and to marvel at how easy this had been. The guards were keeping a watchful eye, true, but it was practically an open house compared to what they were used to. Of course, it was what else they were going to take care of today that might be tricky.
“Alright,” they’d said to Constance after lunch. “You’ve covered equipment, but now I’ll need information. From the way you spoke before, it sounds like there are some powerful people taking part in this event.”
Constance nodded. “There are a good amount of nobles who’ve come from across Levenia, but for most of them that only means a fancy title and some private land. Two of them, though, have real influence, and most of the riders participating are working for one or the other.”
Rani waited patiently, and Constance went on. “The first is Oxwald the Third, from the Walton family. They’ve been around since before the country was founded, and own a significant township nearby. It has an academy for teaching Runic Knight riders, so many of the knights in the castle came from there.” She smiled. “This will be the Third’s first time participating, and I’m sure he doesn’t want to let his family down.”
“That’s unfortunate,” Rani offered. “And the other?”
“Another heir, Clive Cliffton,” Constance said, mouth twitching slightly at the name. “His family don’t have much of a legacy, but they do have money: a bit of shrewd surveying and land purchases by his father and father’s father have made them the country’s main source of the kind of metal suitable for Runic Knights. That’s not all that goes into one, of course,” she added, “but if you care about having a decent suit of armor around your Rune Gem, you have to go through them or cross the border."
She didn’t really need to explain why someone like that had followers. “So it’s a two-man race, essentially,” Rani had murmured. Then they’d tilted their head. “Do they like each-other?”
Constance’s smile was a sight to behold. “As dearly as a house on fire.”
And that was all the information Rani needed.
---
Asking around for a bit told Rani their next location easily enough. No-one seemed to want to withhold information from a competitor, which made sense. There was probably no telling who might become a VIP later.
A wagon service was leaving Leonhold for their destination. The horses didn’t go particularly fast, but it was still quicker than walking. The wagon was mostly empty, but no-one seemed to want to bother Rani, giving them more time to reflect on how quiet this country was. Runic Knights were apparently restricted for ordinary transportation within Levenia’s borders, so even they weren’t heard very often. They could get used to that.
A half-hour or so later, the wagon reached its next stop, the town of Wilmark. It wasn’t especially large, but did have a sizable inn. As Rani moved toward it the quiet was drowned out by the sound of celebration coming from within.
Rani swung the door open, making sure to put enough force it hit the wall behind. Beyond was a wide dining hall where most of the tables seemed to have been pushed into the center. The people sitting in them were now staring at the newcomer, not all of them in a friendly way.
Without saying a word Rani approached the center table, ignoring a server who tried to get a word in edgewise. Sitting there was one of the young men Constance had mentioned, who raised a hand as they came close. One of his fellow diners sat back down slowly, letting go of a blade partly hidden in their belt.
“Quite the entrance, friend,” the young man said, a friendly smile on his face. “You looking for me, or do you walk into every building like that?”
Back home there had been well-off people, but food was scarce enough that someone Clive’s shape would have been a sight to remember. The fancy clothes he wore certainly had their work cut out for them. On the other hand, something in his eyes gave Rani the feeling his body was still far more function than fat.
Rani looked around at his entourage and then back at him. He was chewing a bit of chicken in the meantime, nonplussed. “You’re Clive Cliffton, correct? I heard you were hiring help.”
“Yeah, he did,” one of the men growled.
Clive waved him off as he took a gulp from his tankard. “Ahhh. Direct, I like that. Sit down, sit down.” He gestured for two of the men sitting across from him to make room.
Once Rani sat down, the feeling of hostility from the other diners only grew. Clive was probably a walking meal ticket for a lot of them. “So,” said the merchant cheerfully, “you’re a Runic Knight rider, I assume. How many years of experience?”
The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
Constance had warned them he’d probably ask a question like this. “Whatever your experience is, I’d cut it down by a bit,” she had advised. “He’s already sharp, and you don’t want him asking why a veteran is suddenly falling into his lap.”
“Five,” Rani said. That was half of how long they’d really been piloting a Vanguard for. It was very impressive back home.
As Clive’s eyebrow raised enough it almost left his face, it was obvious they’d said the wrong thing. The scowls on the faces of his entourage deepened. “Right, Mr. Cliffton has better things to deal with than a liar-” one said as he rose.
Without skipping a beat or looking away, Clive grabbed his fork and rammed it down into his dinner hard enough to make the plate rattle. The speaker sat down. “My apologies, friend,” Clive said. “Some of my new friends are just a tad high-spirited, coming all this way for the Royale. You know how it is.”
He leaned forward. “Five years as a Rider for hire, you say, and still with all your own limbs? Mighty impressive.” The merchant’s lips pursed as he gave Rani another once-over. “You look as though you’re from the desert out east, which would mean you were probably working the wastelands or the mountains. Tough work, but with very lucrative clients, even by my own standards.”
The implication was obvious enough he didn’t really need to say it. “They pay in money, but usually not in loyalty,” Rani said, now improvising. “I wanted something more stable.”
“Ah, understandable,” Clive said, slicing a chunk of meat. “If you want quiet, Leonhold certainly is the place to be right now, and there’s plenty of places to find work.” He swallowed what he cut off and chewed it, slowly. Rani’s gaze didn’t leave his as he did.
“I see what you’re thinking, and it is smart thinking,” Clive continued afterward. “Not only does the Cliffton family have a long memory for favors, we’re practically a household name in these parts. ‘If that young lady can help him win the Royale, think what she can do for me!’.”
He leaned back in his chair, gesturing to the men around them both. “Trouble is, a few other people had the same thought. What can you give me that they won’t? Five years or fifty, one Rider is still only one Rider.”
“I can decide to not go help Oxwald instead,” Rani said bluntly. They were going to play this card eventually. Now seemed as good a time as any.
Clive’s smile didn’t budge for a moment, and then he actually laughed. “Well, I did ask - young master Oxwald prefers a pedigree for people he hires, but I’d wager he probably would ignore that for someone of your experience.” He paused, one finger on his chin as the other diners simmered with anger.
Finally the merchant clapped his hands together. “Oh, why not? Letting a prospect get away completely is bad business.”
He rose, gesturing to the room at large. A man in his later middle-aged years hurried over, and Clive whispered something to him as they stepped away from the table. That gave Rani a moment to take a look at the entourage working for him. They were trying to hide their faces, but the two men they’d encountered yesterday were definitely present among them.
Clive and the older man returned, the former leaning over the table. “The mayor has graciously allowed us some space nearby,” he told Rani. “Let’s see if you can make a good impression.”
’Nearby’ was relative, considering the size of what they’d be fighting in. It ended up being close enough that the people of Wilmark would be able to see them, but not close enough that one slip would crush anything. The wagon Clive had commandeered came to a halt, letting Rani and Clive’s chosen Rider off.
“Now, nothing too crazy here, you two,” Clive advised as they walked some distance away. “The local knights have better things to do than worrying about a friendly match. We’ll have you go until disarmament.”
Once they’d made enough distance, Rani reached into their bag, withdrawing the Vanguard’s new power source. It had shrunk quite a bit when they’d removed it, but it was the same gem that had been stuck into its waist. Constance insisted it was perfectly safe, and it would be hard for it not to be compared to the reactor, but it was still a strange feeling to be carrying it around like this.
Rani raised it into the air, thinking back to what Constance had told them. “The gem knows you’re its master, so it will respond to your thoughts. Envision it in your hand, as vividly as possible.”
Rani had done so, and like a magic trick the gemstone vanished from within the Vanguard and appeared in their hand. “Now it also knows what shell it’s meant to move,” Constance had gone on. “If you think of your machine being where you are, the gem will make it so - within reason. It won’t move it across nations, but a few miles is simple enough.”
It didn’t sound simple enough to Rani, but there wasn’t much choice but to try it now. Raising the gem in the air, they concentrated. There didn’t seem to be any magic words needed, so Rani pictured the Vanguard standing here in the field.
Long enough passed that Rani wondered if they were doing it wrong, or could even do it in the first place. Then the Rune Gem floated up and out of their hand, stopping at a point about five feet off the ground. A second later it had grown back to its original size, and with a pop of displaced air the Vanguard was around it.
No-one around seemed to find that unusual, but the Rider Clive had chosen to fight Rani grinned nastily as he looked over their unit. “You were fighting with that knight out in the wilds? It’s a miracle it even carried you here.”
The insult made more sense when Rani saw the man’s Runic Knight. Until now they hadn’t actually seen their Vanguard next to what it was imitating, and the horned knight he had just summoned was both taller and wider. If a difference in size was the only thing that stuck out to him, though, that was fine by Rani.
The Vanguard’s hatch swung open again as they neared. Rani glanced back and saw a similar one on their opponent’s Runic Knight. At least they wouldn’t be found out because of something small like that.
Once inside Rani had the Vanguard stand, drawing its sword as they did. Then they faced their opponent. The first one, at least.
“You didn’t mention it would be three-on-one,” they called over at Clive, still sitting on the wagon.
“To be fair, I also didn’t say it wouldn’t be!” he shouted back, cupping his hands. “You’d expect to have to send at least three men for someone of your experience, wouldn’t you? Think you can handle it?”
Rani sized up the first Runic Knight, and the two that the extra pair of mercenaries had summoned.
“Absolutely.”