“The fighting to hold the main gate was brutal,” Sky continued quietly. “Once we finally secured it, the kromians pulled back and turned their focus to slaughtering everyone still outside the walls. The priority of the remaining capital guards was then to hold the gate.”
Drake frowned. “The capital guards have interesting priorities.”
“It was not a matter of cowardice, but a matter of numbers,” Sky corrected gently. “Far more civilians remained inside the first wall than without. There were not enough capital guards to protect both groups.”
“So you took your people back out into the first crescent to save as many as you could anyway, even though you had no support and every right to hide behind the walls. You literally saved the city by holding the main gate, and you still went back for more?”
“They were slaughtering unarmed people.” That was all Sky needed to say. “Kari... took a bad cut while getting several children to safety. I knew it was a risk to push out and engage, but none of us could not stand idly by and watch those kromians slaughter civilians.”
Drake doubted any of the other manor lords would have thought the way she did. “Those people were lucky to have you yesterday.”
Sky simply sighed. “I only wish we could have saved more of them.”
“Same,” Drake agreed. “So what about Lord Proudglade? He was late to the party.”
“I have my differences with Lord Proudglade, but he could not leave the temple until the noble court was certain the kromians had not sent an additional force to assault it. Proudglade Manor is tasked first and foremost with the protection of the temple and the noble court. He couldn’t depart until those were confirmed secure.”
“So the noble court puts themselves above the common citizenry?”
“The noble court puts the Eidolons above all of us,” Sky corrected. “The gods must be protected. They still sleep deep within the temple, and if they were ever to wake...”
Drake belatedly remembered. Lydia had told him the Eidolons themselves were actual physical presences in the world, and that they all slept somewhere deep in the temple. It was strange to think this world’s gods were so close, but this was a strange world.
“You really think the world would end if the Eidolons woke up?”
“I think I don’t ever want to test that theory.”
Drake nodded ruefully. “Not much to gain by being right, and being wrong, well... end of the world.”
“You haven’t been to see them yet, have you?”
That’s right! As a manor lord, Drake was one of the few outside the noble court who would be allowed to see the chamber where the Eidolons slept. He’d been far too busy for anything like a pilgrimage to the world’s gods, and he was curious.
“I have not,” Drake admitted. “Are they really six-legged horses?”
“What they are... is not something I feel I can put into words. You should see them before you go. Seeing them changes things.” She breathed out. “It did for me.”
Drake imagined getting a look at the actual gods that had created this world would cut down on atheism. “Have you been to see them since you arrived?”
Sky shook her head. “Too much going on.”
“So you want to go see them together before we leave?”
Sky quirked an eyebrow. “Just the two of us?”
“Not the worst place to be, I hope.” Was he actually asking her out on a date?
She smiled faintly. “Perhaps. It could provide an opportunity I’ve been hoping for.”
Drake’s heart pounded a little harder than he expected. “What’s that?”
“If I invite Felix to join us, it would be a chance to speak with him privately.”
Drake’s soaring expectations rapidly smashed back to earth. “You think talking with him is a good idea?” Felix Proudglade had been polite enough during their negotiations after Westin turned himself in, but Drake had gotten his little brother’s chopped off.
“Felix is not his father, and he is his successor,” Sky said confidently. “He holds his disagreements with his father’s thinking and politics close to his chest. However, I know from our private discussions that his thinking aligns more closely with ours than his father’s.”
“So Felix isn’t committed to debts carrying over forever from lord to lord.” Drake’s disappointment at adding a third wheel to their date was replaced with hope that he could once again strengthen his manor. “You really think he’d be open to setting aside the past?”
“If he does not blame you for what happened with Westin.”
“If he does, that’s not my problem,” Drake said. “Westin forced my hand.”
“On that we agree. The question is if Felix can look past that conflict to the future. I believe he can, but I doubt he would admit as much in the presence of his father. Were he to learn Felix’s views so sharply differed from his own, he might replace him as his successor.”
“Which means we get one of the other two sisters as Lord Proudglade’s replacement, whenever the old man steps down,” Drake said. “Know anything interesting about those two?”
He’d read about Laura and Lena, the other two Proudglade siblings, in Zuri’s dossier on Proudglade Manor, but the information had been sparse. He knew they were twins and a bit older than him, at 26, but nothing about their political beliefs or position in the manor. If he was being honest with himself, he’d skimmed a lot more dossier than he’d read.
“I know only that their thinking aligns with their father’s,” Sky said. “I have not had the opportunity to get to know either twin well, but both covet Felix’s position as his father’s successor. They would not hesitate to remove him from that position if they could.”
Drake snorted. “They sound like a fun family.”
“Felix’s rivalry with his sisters is why he keeps his differences with his father so closely guarded. I would not describe either sister as immoral, but both retain the rigid and burdensome beliefs of the elder manor lords. Unlike Felix, they would continue to hold you accountable for the crimes of Lords Gloomwood who have long since passed on.”
Drake thought back to his brief look at Lord Proudglade’s entourage. “Are the twins even here?” He hadn’t noticed any similar looking women with Lord Proudglade.
“Only Lena attended the cabal with his father. Laura is back at Proudglade Manor, running things and advising her father of any matters that take place back home.”
“Over that distance? Do they have a magic mirror too?”
Sky eyed him curiously. “You are not aware of their unique rarities?”
“I might be if I hadn’t skimmed the dossier. I got distracted after that Gilded Blade tried to suck the blood out of me, and then you had to be all heroic at Fort Graystone.”
“The twins have a rarity called mindspeak, which allows them to speak to the other across great distances. One twin always travels with Lord Proudglade when he leaves the manor and the other remains behind. It ensures both Proudglade Manor and any force they dispatch remains apprised of the other’s status.”
Drake whistled softly. “That’s damn useful. I thought rarities never repeated?”
“Twins, while rare, are one case where it’s been known to happen. I cannot think of any other examples, but it is certainly one of Proudglade Manor’s many advantages.”
“He has far too many of those,” Drake agreed ruefully. “But all in all, I’m glad you turned down my invitation to join us on the beach. Without you and your manor to defend the capital from the kromian attack, their assault might have gotten a lot further into the city.”
“Everyone had their roles to play. I imagine it will be the same when we organize to reopen the mouth of the bay, though Prince Lorel’s warning about Prince Varnath’s trap has me on edge. I don’t like letting our enemy choose the battlefield for us, especially when it’s clear they expect us to come and engage them on ground they’ve prepared.”
Drake grimaced as he considered her caution. “I feel the same. But we don’t really have a choice, do we? The noble court has spoken. Worse, if we don’t open the bay back up for commerce, the city starves. We really can’t bring in enough food and goods over land?”
“Not without significantly reorganizing the capital’s logistical situation and re-tasking hundreds of small farmers and merchants with a completely new pattern of trade. Lord Brightwater and her predecessors have, unfortunately, done too good a job at cornering the market on trade. Any land bound merchant groups capable of competing with her ships were long ago disbanded. This is a weakness that has long worried me.”
“And I imagine no one listened to your worries, did they?”
“They listened. They did not act, and being proven right is no comfort when the consequences are so dire. To be fair to the others, the kromians have never before acted as aggressively as they are now acting. No one truly believed they would blockade the bay.”
“There’s no need to be fair to the others, Sky. They should have listened to you.”
“Perhaps. Yet we truly live in unusual times.”
Drake ruefully shook his head. “How lucky for me I got here when I did.”
“And lucky for the rest of us,” Sky agreed.
Drake raised an eyebrow in surprise. “Thanks.”
Sky colored slightly. “No one can deny you’ve accomplished a great deal in your short time here. Even Lord Proudglade has to acknowledge that.”
“True, but it still feels nice to hear you acknowledge it.”
Unfortunately, the Master of Ceremonies interrupted their conversation before Drake could press his advantage. “Now arriving! Lord Ashwind, his steward Luka Calizo, and his master-of-arms, Sten. With the last manor lord’s arrival, the banquet will officially commence!”
Drake turned to watch the doors and observed as Lord Ashwind, dressed in finery but looking as haggard as ever, marched in with his slim and spectacled steward on one side and his towering barbarian blood thrall on the other. Sten.
Drake was impressed Korhaurbauten’s tailors had managed to find formal clothing that fit the huge man. Sten remained a human-sized Cresh. He might not be able to wrestle Drake’s huge zarovian general to the ground, but he’d have a chance with the others.
“Took him long enough,” Drake said. “Still... he’s got a lot on his mind.”
“Amedeo is his only son and his successor,” Sky agreed. “I suspect Lord Ashwind will push to be assigned to the force that handles Lord Redbow. We must also make sure he is not. I do not trust him to remain objective while his son remains a hostage of the enemy.”
“I agree,” Drake said. “Though it would be nice if he let us borrow Sten. Where do you even find a guy that large?”
“Where did you find Cresh?”
“Before my time. Though if you’re truly curious, Samuel might know.”
“Another time,” Sky said. “Now, back to our earlier discussion. I believe we may be able to find a time to view the Eidolons after we engage the kromians and reopen the bay. I also believe Felix would accept an invitation if it came from me. Would you like me to set it up?”
“Are you going to tell him I’ll be coming as well?”
“I think it would be better if I didn’t.”
Drake frowned. “He won’t mind being ambushed?”
“His father will likely question him about her plans. It would be best for all three of us if he wasn’t able to tell Lord Proudglade anything that might change his mind about allowing Felix to leave. I doubt Lord Proudglade will join us himself. He will have too much else to do.”
“We don’t have anything to lose,” Drake agreed. “It really will be just the three of us?”
“No one save a manor lord is allowed in the presence of the Eidolons. So if we wish to covertly open negotiations with Felix, there is no more secure place to do so.” She smiled faintly. “Who knows? Perhaps you two will get along better than you hope.”
Drake chuckled. “That’d certainly be a surprise.”
Doors all around the room opened, and small clusters of well-dressed people streamed inside. Along with, of course, a small group of zarovians. Cresh confidently led the way.
Concerned murmurs filled the room as Drake’s group of brave lizardmen entered the banquet hall. The zarovians had swapped out their armor for traditional tribal dress, which were closer to Greek togas than anything else. Drake thought they looked awesome, and if anyone gave them shit about being here, he would handle it.
“You should mingle,” Sky suggested. “Perhaps approach Lord Brightwater before the banquet ends. Her feelings about manor lord debt remain unchanged, but speaking to her face-to-face might at least improve her opinion of you as a person.”
“You’re not backing me up there?”
“I have business to handle with Lord Mistvale. I suspect it will take most of the banquet, and I also suspect it’s not going to be fun. Once dessert arrives, meet me back here and compare notes on the candidates we wish to nominate as our new manor lords.”
“Right. That makes sense. Good luck with the vampire.”
She eyed him curiously. “That’s the second time I’ve heard you mention those creatures. You implied they suck blood?”
“With the best of them,” Drake said. “Though, in Mistvale’s case, I think he just sucks.”
Author's Note: Next week, Korrag enjoys some snacks and Drake wins some votes.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
Read Ahead on the Patreon
Chat on the Discord
“The fighting to hold the main gate was brutal,” Sky continued quietly. “Once we finally secured it, the kromians pulled back and turned their focus to slaughtering everyone still outside the walls. The priority of the remaining capital guards was then to hold the gate.”
Drake frowned. “The capital guards have interesting priorities.”
“It was not a matter of cowardice, but a matter of numbers,” Sky corrected gently. “Far more civilians remained inside the first wall than without. There were not enough capital guards to protect both groups.”
“So you took your people back out into the first crescent to save as many as you could anyway, even though you had no support and every right to hide behind the walls. You literally saved the city by holding the main gate, and you still went back for more?”
“They were slaughtering unarmed people.” That was all Sky needed to say. “Kari... took a bad cut while getting several children to safety. I knew it was a risk to push out and engage, but none of us could not stand idly by and watch those kromians slaughter civilians.”
Drake doubted any of the other manor lords would have thought the way she did. “Those people were lucky to have you yesterday.”
Sky simply sighed. “I only wish we could have saved more of them.”
“Same,” Drake agreed. “So what about Lord Proudglade? He was late to the party.”
“I have my differences with Lord Proudglade, but he could not leave the temple until the noble court was certain the kromians had not sent an additional force to assault it. Proudglade Manor is tasked first and foremost with the protection of the temple and the noble court. He couldn’t depart until those were confirmed secure.”
“So the noble court puts themselves above the common citizenry?”
“The noble court puts the Eidolons above all of us,” Sky corrected. “The gods must be protected. They still sleep deep within the temple, and if they were ever to wake...”
Drake belatedly remembered. Lydia had told him the Eidolons themselves were actual physical presences in the world, and that they all slept somewhere deep in the temple. It was strange to think this world’s gods were so close, but this was a strange world.
“You really think the world would end if the Eidolons woke up?”
“I think I don’t ever want to test that theory.”
Drake nodded ruefully. “Not much to gain by being right, and being wrong, well... end of the world.”
“You haven’t been to see them yet, have you?”
That’s right! As a manor lord, Drake was one of the few outside the noble court who would be allowed to see the chamber where the Eidolons slept. He’d been far too busy for anything like a pilgrimage to the world’s gods, and he was curious.
“I have not,” Drake admitted. “Are they really six-legged horses?”
“What they are... is not something I feel I can put into words. You should see them before you go. Seeing them changes things.” She breathed out. “It did for me.”
Drake imagined getting a look at the actual gods that had created this world would cut down on atheism. “Have you been to see them since you arrived?”
Sky shook her head. “Too much going on.”
“So you want to go see them together before we leave?”
Sky quirked an eyebrow. “Just the two of us?”
“Not the worst place to be, I hope.” Was he actually asking her out on a date?
She smiled faintly. “Perhaps. It could provide an opportunity I’ve been hoping for.”
Drake’s heart pounded a little harder than he expected. “What’s that?”
“If I invite Felix to join us, it would be a chance to speak with him privately.”
Drake’s soaring expectations rapidly smashed back to earth. “You think talking with him is a good idea?” Felix Proudglade had been polite enough during their negotiations after Westin turned himself in, but Drake had gotten his little brother’s chopped off.
“Felix is not his father, and he is his successor,” Sky said confidently. “He holds his disagreements with his father’s thinking and politics close to his chest. However, I know from our private discussions that his thinking aligns more closely with ours than his father’s.”
“So Felix isn’t committed to debts carrying over forever from lord to lord.” Drake’s disappointment at adding a third wheel to their date was replaced with hope that he could once again strengthen his manor. “You really think he’d be open to setting aside the past?”
“If he does not blame you for what happened with Westin.”
“If he does, that’s not my problem,” Drake said. “Westin forced my hand.”
“On that we agree. The question is if Felix can look past that conflict to the future. I believe he can, but I doubt he would admit as much in the presence of his father. Were he to learn Felix’s views so sharply differed from his own, he might replace him as his successor.”
“Which means we get one of the other two sisters as Lord Proudglade’s replacement, whenever the old man steps down,” Drake said. “Know anything interesting about those two?”
He’d read about Laura and Lena, the other two Proudglade siblings, in Zuri’s dossier on Proudglade Manor, but the information had been sparse. He knew they were twins and a bit older than him, at 26, but nothing about their political beliefs or position in the manor. If he was being honest with himself, he’d skimmed a lot more dossier than he’d read.
“I know only that their thinking aligns with their father’s,” Sky said. “I have not had the opportunity to get to know either twin well, but both covet Felix’s position as his father’s successor. They would not hesitate to remove him from that position if they could.”
Drake snorted. “They sound like a fun family.”
“Felix’s rivalry with his sisters is why he keeps his differences with his father so closely guarded. I would not describe either sister as immoral, but both retain the rigid and burdensome beliefs of the elder manor lords. Unlike Felix, they would continue to hold you accountable for the crimes of Lords Gloomwood who have long since passed on.”
Drake thought back to his brief look at Lord Proudglade’s entourage. “Are the twins even here?” He hadn’t noticed any similar looking women with Lord Proudglade.
“Only Lena attended the cabal with his father. Laura is back at Proudglade Manor, running things and advising her father of any matters that take place back home.”
“Over that distance? Do they have a magic mirror too?”
Sky eyed him curiously. “You are not aware of their unique rarities?”
“I might be if I hadn’t skimmed the dossier. I got distracted after that Gilded Blade tried to suck the blood out of me, and then you had to be all heroic at Fort Graystone.”
“The twins have a rarity called mindspeak, which allows them to speak to the other across great distances. One twin always travels with Lord Proudglade when he leaves the manor and the other remains behind. It ensures both Proudglade Manor and any force they dispatch remains apprised of the other’s status.”
Drake whistled softly. “That’s damn useful. I thought rarities never repeated?”
“Twins, while rare, are one case where it’s been known to happen. I cannot think of any other examples, but it is certainly one of Proudglade Manor’s many advantages.”
“He has far too many of those,” Drake agreed ruefully. “But all in all, I’m glad you turned down my invitation to join us on the beach. Without you and your manor to defend the capital from the kromian attack, their assault might have gotten a lot further into the city.”
“Everyone had their roles to play. I imagine it will be the same when we organize to reopen the mouth of the bay, though Prince Lorel’s warning about Prince Varnath’s trap has me on edge. I don’t like letting our enemy choose the battlefield for us, especially when it’s clear they expect us to come and engage them on ground they’ve prepared.”
Drake grimaced as he considered her caution. “I feel the same. But we don’t really have a choice, do we? The noble court has spoken. Worse, if we don’t open the bay back up for commerce, the city starves. We really can’t bring in enough food and goods over land?”
“Not without significantly reorganizing the capital’s logistical situation and re-tasking hundreds of small farmers and merchants with a completely new pattern of trade. Lord Brightwater and her predecessors have, unfortunately, done too good a job at cornering the market on trade. Any land bound merchant groups capable of competing with her ships were long ago disbanded. This is a weakness that has long worried me.”
“And I imagine no one listened to your worries, did they?”
“They listened. They did not act, and being proven right is no comfort when the consequences are so dire. To be fair to the others, the kromians have never before acted as aggressively as they are now acting. No one truly believed they would blockade the bay.”
“There’s no need to be fair to the others, Sky. They should have listened to you.”
“Perhaps. Yet we truly live in unusual times.”
Drake ruefully shook his head. “How lucky for me I got here when I did.”
“And lucky for the rest of us,” Sky agreed.
Drake raised an eyebrow in surprise. “Thanks.”
Sky colored slightly. “No one can deny you’ve accomplished a great deal in your short time here. Even Lord Proudglade has to acknowledge that.”
“True, but it still feels nice to hear you acknowledge it.”
Unfortunately, the Master of Ceremonies interrupted their conversation before Drake could press his advantage. “Now arriving! Lord Ashwind, his steward Luka Calizo, and his master-of-arms, Sten. With the last manor lord’s arrival, the banquet will officially commence!”
Drake turned to watch the doors and observed as Lord Ashwind, dressed in finery but looking as haggard as ever, marched in with his slim and spectacled steward on one side and his towering barbarian blood thrall on the other. Sten.
Drake was impressed Korhaurbauten’s tailors had managed to find formal clothing that fit the huge man. Sten remained a human-sized Cresh. He might not be able to wrestle Drake’s huge zarovian general to the ground, but he’d have a chance with the others.
“Took him long enough,” Drake said. “Still... he’s got a lot on his mind.”
“Amedeo is his only son and his successor,” Sky agreed. “I suspect Lord Ashwind will push to be assigned to the force that handles Lord Redbow. We must also make sure he is not. I do not trust him to remain objective while his son remains a hostage of the enemy.”
“I agree,” Drake said. “Though it would be nice if he let us borrow Sten. Where do you even find a guy that large?”
“Where did you find Cresh?”
“Before my time. Though if you’re truly curious, Samuel might know.”
“Another time,” Sky said. “Now, back to our earlier discussion. I believe we may be able to find a time to view the Eidolons after we engage the kromians and reopen the bay. I also believe Felix would accept an invitation if it came from me. Would you like me to set it up?”
“Are you going to tell him I’ll be coming as well?”
“I think it would be better if I didn’t.”
Drake frowned. “He won’t mind being ambushed?”
“His father will likely question him about her plans. It would be best for all three of us if he wasn’t able to tell Lord Proudglade anything that might change his mind about allowing Felix to leave. I doubt Lord Proudglade will join us himself. He will have too much else to do.”
“We don’t have anything to lose,” Drake agreed. “It really will be just the three of us?”
“No one save a manor lord is allowed in the presence of the Eidolons. So if we wish to covertly open negotiations with Felix, there is no more secure place to do so.” She smiled faintly. “Who knows? Perhaps you two will get along better than you hope.”
Drake chuckled. “That’d certainly be a surprise.”
Doors all around the room opened, and small clusters of well-dressed people streamed inside. Along with, of course, a small group of zarovians. Cresh confidently led the way.
Concerned murmurs filled the room as Drake’s group of brave lizardmen entered the banquet hall. The zarovians had swapped out their armor for traditional tribal dress, which were closer to Greek togas than anything else. Drake thought they looked awesome, and if anyone gave them shit about being here, he would handle it.
“You should mingle,” Sky suggested. “Perhaps approach Lord Brightwater before the banquet ends. Her feelings about manor lord debt remain unchanged, but speaking to her face-to-face might at least improve her opinion of you as a person.”
“You’re not backing me up there?”
“I have business to handle with Lord Mistvale. I suspect it will take most of the banquet, and I also suspect it’s not going to be fun. Once dessert arrives, meet me back here and compare notes on the candidates we wish to nominate as our new manor lords.”
“Right. That makes sense. Good luck with the vampire.”
She eyed him curiously. “That’s the second time I’ve heard you mention those creatures. You implied they suck blood?”
“With the best of them,” Drake said. “Though, in Mistvale’s case, I think he just sucks.”
Author's Note: Next week, Korrag enjoys some snacks and Drake wins some votes.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
Read Ahead on the Patreon
Chat on the Discord
