A few days later:

Another letter arrived, this time by one of the praetorians. This one was shrouded in a cloak that drug across the ground and had a pair of eyes that glimmered like a set of candles in the darkness. Its hand was long and lanky but covered by a black glove.

The moment the letter touched my hand, it vanished in a muted display of gray light, leaving me stunned for a second. I sighed as I reached out and quickly undid the seal to read the contents.

Redrick,

I will be departing the domain in a few hours. However, I am unsure of the time difference between us. Alessia, Nyx, and a few of my palatines will accompany me. We will only stay for a few days at the most and intend to explore the town at our leisure. Because of the nature of our guards, we took a few precautions to shroud their origins, as I am aware of how many people within the town may act.

Calixa

Her handwriting was tight and meticulous and flowed effortlessly across the paper. It was a pleasure to read, unlike most of the stuff that touched my desk.

At least she was trying to make my life easier. Maybe I could keep this entire thing quiet. At least as quiet as possible. I folded the sheet of paper, placed it in my pocket, crossed my arms, and stared across the ground towards the shimmering purple haze that denoted the entrance of the domain. I was going to wander around the town and maybe pick up a few goods, but perhaps I should wait here for some time. After all, that meant I could better control this situation.

It took a couple of hours, and the sun had already started its journey across the sky and was well past its halfway point. The air was cool today, the wind didn’t kick all that much, and small clusters of white clouds traveled across the sky in tight packs.

The outside of the domain rippled, and it caught my attention, causing me to quickly stand up. From it came a being who wore a simple black cloak that seemed to hover above its body. All that radiated from the open hood was darkness and a piercing gaze that seemed to resemble that of the royal guard stationed outside my house.

I quickly activated my analysis skill and regarded the being that stood before me. Its name was painted a deep purple with twinges of other colors leaking in.

Palatine Commander

We stared at each other for a few quick seconds before it reached its hand back into the domain. The purple haze shimmered in various spots as more cloaked figures broke through it, totaling six altogether. Each wore a simple black cloak that obscured their appearance and hid what lay underneath. It was a great cover, but I wasn’t sure how it would make things easier on me. A team of six cloaked figures followed us around was sure to draw attention.

A few heartbeats later, the haze shimmered again, and Alessia walked out. She wore a black overshirt that opened up near her neck, revealing a white undershirt with a piece of purple fabric stretched down from her collar, and disappeared into the over shit. Her silver hair was tied in a high ponytail, with a single black band that held it all in place. But the most striking thing of all was her name, a vibrant orange, with twinges of silver slowly seeping into it all.

From what I could tell, she was breaking into raid boss status, and the horror in me was beyond words. Raid bosses were uncommon entities, as it was. So staring one in the face was a bit surreal. She took a step forward, grabbed both pieces of the fabric by her neck, and rolled her shoulders. The blades resting on her back shifted with her as she did it.

“Hello Redrick.” Her words held significantly more emotion than the last time I talked to her, and this time I could feel the disdain in her words. She really didn’t like me.

“Greeting, lady Alessia.” I gave her a nod and what felt like a tight-lipped smile.

A few seconds later, Nyx came rocketing through the haze. Her hair had grown a bit since the time I saw her and was reaching past her shoulders. The light caught her raven-colored hair and glimmered like feathers. Her emerald eyes were wide as she looked around, and a wide grin split her face.

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She was wearing what I could only describe as a mage’s outfit. But it was unlike anything that I had seen before. Her robe was a solid chest piece with purple runes that crossed its surface. Around her stomach, the robe split into two pieces that stopped just short of her knees. Each took on a different color, with the left being the color of a freshly raging fire, while the other was a purple so dark it looked as if the abyss would spew out of it at any moment.

Underneath the two flaps were a set of brown boots that stopped just short of her knees and were laced up. At first glance, the boots looked to be master crafted and were a sight to behold. But the scariest part of her appearance was the two bearded axes peeking out from behind her back. Mages rarely double specialized, though, through my interactions with Asteria, I knew there was always more than meets the eye.

Out of curiosity, I activated my analysis skill and looked her over.

Nyx: Gravitronic War Mage

Her color was golden, just like the empress’ was. Though I was at a loss for what it meant. I couldn’t seem to find anything in any records that I held. I was also unfamiliar with the class that she had. Perhaps someone at the mage guild would have an idea.

“Hello again!” Nyx spoke up, and I focused on her once more. This time, I saw something strange near her head. It seemed like a mass of air that was almost unperceivable, but it was there and slowly traveling around her head.

“Greetings, Princess,” I replied, knowing that if I didn’t, I would earn Alessia’s ire.

A wide grin split her face as she nodded approvingly before she spun around and rushed back into the domain. It was a few heartbeats before she appeared again, this time holding hands with the Empress of Asteria.

She radiated an almost sickeningly radiant aura that was hard to describe. It felt reassuring this time, but also confident, but above all else, it was comforting, like a mother’s embrace.

She seemed a little taller than before, and not to mention leaner. But she also felt more dangerous, like an apex predator was staring at me from underneath her usual mask. From the slits on the mask, her eyes raged like an unbidden fire, sending shivers down my spine. Her cloak, this time, was the color of freshly spilled blood that danced gently on the wind, and when it did, it revealed a pair of brown boots. Much like the ones that Nyx was wearing. But everything else was obscured.

“Hello, Redrick.” Her voice was more feminine than before, but there was power in her words. A power that made me feel helpless.

“Greeting’s Empress. It’s a pleasure to see you again. I was surprised that you came.” If anything, it was a pain. So much could go wrong in such a short amount of time.

“It was a spur-of-the-moment thing.” She replied as she walked forward. Nyx was still attached to her hand and matched her step for step.

The sight alone was enough to warm my heart. It wasn’t often that a noble expressed affection like that to their children. My father rarely did it, nor did my mother. “I understand. Well, if you come with me, I’ll take you to where you will stay for the next few days. Normally, I’d have arranged for a nicer place, but because of your position, I deemed it best for you to stay at my house, as it is the safest place in town.”

“Thank you, Redrick; I appreciate it.” She nodded her head and looked around the area.

“Of course. If you need anything, let me know.” I glanced around at everyone and saw that the six cloaked figures had vanished. It was almost as if they had ceased to exist.

“Redrick, tell me about this area.” The empress spoke up again, and I returned my attention to her. It was probably for the best that I let it be.

“Well, this area is called the neutral lands. It was once the heart of the Assyrian empire before it fell a few centuries ago.” I turned on my heel and hastened towards one of the side entrances of the town. I wanted to attract as little attention as possible.

“Tell me about them.”

“Not much is really known. They just appeared overnight; before we knew it, they had spread across much of the continent. Their war golems made up most of their armies, and they were, and still are, nightmares to fight.” I explained it to her and shuddered with the memories. Even now, the war golems still prowl the land. For the most part, there were only small pockets left in the outside world. But here in the neutral lands, they were many.

“War golems? Can you describe them?” She asked as I pushed the door open for them.

“They are metal monstrosities. Some looked like humans, while others were as tall as trees. Some have many eyes, while others have one on their head. They are all varied, but the most common ones are the humanoid ones.” The recent memory of one still haunted my memory. It looked like someone cast a metal skeleton and gave it life.

“That’s interesting. How did the Assyrian’s fall?”

“Well, a few centuries ago, the strongest mages of the kingdom gathered and crafted the strongest summoning spell they could, and much to our benefit, a few heroes, answered the call. Assyria fell in a few short years, though now the golems still plague the lands.” I recounted the tale from memory, though I wasn’t sure how much of it was true.

“Mother, can I fight one of those golems?” Nyx piped up and broke my train of thought. Something told me that the child was a battle junkie or was on the verge of blossoming into one.

“Maybe. If you want, before we head back home, we can ask Redrick where we can find some.” Her mother replied to her, and it immediately reaffirmed my thoughts. She was a battle junkie, and her mother was an enabler.