Monday at 2:36 AMAdd bookmark#24It was, once again, hard to find Arlan when she wanted to. Apparently, he just had a talent for being hard to find. Regardless, the lack of people to interact with had given her more time to think about what was going on, and how she felt about it. Make no mistake, she didn't think the Seven Shields needed to be overthrown, but his end results—regardless of how she felt about the actions that led to them—spoke volumes. This city was improving; there was no way around it. The people were openly happy now that the Grey Falcons were in control. Sure, from time to time, whenever she went to cities that weren't the capital or her own, she would occasionally see people this happy, but it was rare. And from what she could gather, they only started becoming this happy ever since Arlan took over, as if he brought them all hope.
Hope. That was the thing that a lot of areas in Eostia lacked, now that she thought back on it. Arlan was right about the fact that they were locked in a war that lasted centuries. It had its ups and downs, its high points and its low points, but at the end of the day, it still lasted for centuries. Then the Black Dogs were poised to bring an end to all of it, and remake it in their own image—or they would have, if Arlan and the Grey Falcons hadn't crippled them.
As she continued walking, she noticed a few Grey Falcons carrying crates of documents out of the Lord's Manor.
"Huh, you curious about what's in these crates, girlie?" one of the Grey Falcons asked.
"I would be lying if I said I wasn't," Alicia replied.
"Most of it's evidence," the Grey Falcon said.
"Evidence?" Alicia asked.
"Yeah," the Grey Falcon answered. "The former Lord Mayor of this city was a despicable piece of work, let me tell ya. He had a lot to write about his 'conquests' and whatnot. We've been combing through his manor to find it all."
She didn't have to think too hard about what "conquests" meant. And the thought sickened her. That a noble, charged with protecting and running this city, would operate in such a manner made her furious. But it would be remiss of her to not at least try to investigate.
"Can I take a look, then?" Alicia asked.
"Certainly," the Grey Falcon said. "Most of this has already been copied down anyway; we're just moving it out of the manor."
Alicia opened a book, and what she found completely disgusted her. Documented notes, detailed plans, and notes based on who was going where, doing what, etc.—all detailed notes on slaving and operations already finished. By her wager, about 15–20% of the names listed in this book alone were already sold, or worse.
"Is... is all of this accurate?" Alicia asked.
"As far as we're aware," the Grey Falcon said. "And that was one of the lighter books. You don't want to know what was recorded about the women sent to this 'Shamhauza' guy."
She recognized the name. He was one of Kaguya's friends, if she recalled correctly, though they apparently drifted apart at some point. If she ever got out of this city, she would have to ask Kaguya about it.
"That Shamhauza guy was some kind of sorcerer, I think," the other Grey Falcon said. "Experiments galore, from what Sir Arlan said. I've rarely seen Sir Arlan truly furious, but he was truly angry when talking about him."
"Yeah," the first Grey Falcon said. "Something along the lines of 'What he did means he no longer deserves even a basic trial.' Not like I care, but none of them deserve trials. Fuck the Black Dogs."
"Whoa there, far more animosity than normal," the other Grey Falcon replied.
"What? I said what I said," the first Grey Falcon said. "I was one of the ones that discovered the dungeon where they kept all the women in the Black Citadel."
"W-whoa, seriously?" the other Grey Falcon asked. "Damn, sorry. Didn't know that."
"No harm done," the first Grey Falcon said.
"Wait... what are you talking about?" Alicia asked.
"Oh, right," the first Grey Falcon said. "Have you ever encountered one of the undead some Dark Elves have taken to using?"
"Only once or twice..." Alicia admitted.
"Now picture about 60–70 women who all look like the undead, but were still alive," the first Grey Falcon said. "And so insensate and broken that unless you were having sex with them, they didn't respond."
"Wha—?!" Alicia nearly exclaimed. "Did the Black Dogs really...?"
"Those women were new," the first Grey Falcon said. "Couldn't have been there for more than a week, two weeks tops. That's what the Black Dogs planned on doing to every woman in Eostia."
Alicia nearly vomited after hearing that Grey Falcon's account.
Alicia kept the book she pulled, and the Grey Falcons let her. And she kept reading the accounts in it, and some of them painted a very grim picture. She couldn't recall the name of Claudia's husband or her father-in-law off the top of her head, but she needed to warn Claudia. Her father-in-law was planning to do something unspeakable to both her and her husband. So, despite regretting it, she paused her letter to her cousin and began writing a warning note to Claudia.
The man was a secret ally of the Black Dogs and was fully supportive of their plan to overthrow the Seven Shields. Despicable. If everything that was written in this book was the truth, then the fact that she and the rest of the Seven Shields ever considered the Black Dogs allies was perhaps their biggest mistake. And from what she could tell, there were more members close to the Seven Shields, or in key influential positions in the Eostian capital as well. It disheartened her to know that, contrary to what she believed, the Eostian government was pretty much either in the pockets of the Black Dogs already or was oblivious to it all.
They needed to be warned somehow. Hopefully, the Grey Falcons would see fit to allow her to send this message. ...The Grey Falcons. Come to think of it, they were aware of this mess before the Seven Shields were, if she tried to make sense of their actions. Not only were they aware, they put themselves in a position to stop the worst of it. ...It pained her to admit it, but if the Seven Shields win this war, she'll have to argue for amnesty for them, if nothing else. ...Another thought crept into her head, but it was one that she didn't want to entertain. Joining the Grey Falcons? Even if she wanted to entertain the idea, her cousin Prim was still on the opposite side of the Grey Falcons, and she would never harm her.
Spoiler: Author's Notes Like ReplyReport Reactions:gartf, HobDobby, Faux_Frog and 238 othersGontxvenMonday at 2:36 AMAdd bookmarkView discussionThreadmarks Chapter 12 New View contentGontxvenI honestly have no idea what I'm doing at all.Monday at 3:01 AMNewAdd bookmark#32Claudia Levantine looked at the letter that was carried to her by pigeon not long ago. She hadn't heard of Alicia triumphing over the Grey Falcons, but this letter undeniably came from her. It wasn't from her usual parchment or stationery. Curious, she opened it to find:
Claudia,
I write to you urgently about matters I have since discovered. I am currently held by the Grey Falcons after we were ambushed and captured by them. Our treatment has been more than fair, considering the circumstances. To dispense with further formalities, I have discovered that your father-in-law, Grave Levantine, has been talking to the Black Dogs behind your back. Further still, he has apparently had plans for raping you to produce what he called a true heir to the Levantine name. He planned to do this in front of your husband, Klaus, as well, based on what I've discovered. I've obtained plans detailing as much, but I dare not say from where. I have attached as much as I possibly could to this letter, as I'm certain you would have at the very least questioned the validity of such statements. Goddess be kind, this letter will hopefully find you as soon as possible.
Alicia Arcturus
As she looked on in shock at what was written on the letter, a bundle of papers, folded roughly in odd areas, tumbled from the back of the envelope. And—she couldn't believe it. Every word here was written in Grave's handwriting, detailing plans on colluding with the Black Dogs. There were insights into the capital's vulnerabilities, sympathetic nobles, and easily manipulated guards. The notes were too detailed. As much as she didn't want to believe what was written here… there was no other choice but to. Her father-in-law, a man many considered a hero, was selling out Eostia. Worse, it was all to sate his desire for a perfect heir. Would it not satisfy him that she was already working on having a child with her husband?
That the information came from the Grey Falcons did give her pause. After all, they would have every reason to discredit the Seven Shields and those associated with them. But at the same time, the evidence was undeniable. Oh yes, it didn't take much for her to figure that nugget of information out. If the Grey Falcons had captured her, where else could Alicia have gotten the information? She would have to bring this to Lady Celestine's attention and get her to weigh in on the matter. If she didn't wish to, that was fine as well. In absentia, as this was a matter directly relating to her family, Claudia had the authority needed to do what must be done. At least, she should, as one of the hands of the Goddess Reborn. Putting on her armor, she began walking to meet with Lady Celestine. Hopefully, she would be willing to act on this matter with haste.
Alicia sighed as she lay in the provided bed. It was a beautiful day, but she didn't feel like walking around the city right now. She hoped that Claudia received the letter. The Grey Falcon she gave it to assured her that their pigeons would be able to deliver it without issue—a small comfort in times like these. She also had time to talk to her own soldiers about what they were currently experiencing. The sentiments were mixed. Some still felt like this was all one big, elaborate ruse, while others were cautious. More still felt a bit optimistic given their condition.
"Lost in thought there, princess?" she heard from outside the door, as Arlan stepped in.
"What do you want?" she asked.
"Letting you know that we're moving to the next step," Arlan said bluntly. "I, and a large chunk of my forces, will be moving to the next city within a few days."
Oh, right. He and the Seven Shields were technically at war, weren't they.
"Why are you telling me this, then?" Alicia asked.
"Simple," Arlan replied. "Even if you told them we were planning on attacking another city, your comrades likely already knew. There's no real loss for me to tell you this in the slightest."
She supposed that, on some level, what he just told her was true.
"Further, it is my hope that you actually will tell them," Arlan said, catching her off-guard.
"Come again?" Alicia asked.
"You heard me," Arlan replied. "It is my hope that you actually will be telling them. After all, it would be far easier to get the civilians to leave the area if it came at the behest of one of the Seven Shields themselves."
…Oh, yeah. That would also be true, at least on some level.
"Your advance is far too rapid, you know that?" Alicia said.
"A lot of your soldiers said that to me," Arlan replied. "That means I'm doing my job right, as far as I'm concerned."
Arlan turned away and closed the door. Well, she would get to writing then. He was right that she wanted the civilians to be as unharmed as possible, given the circumstances.
"So how long do you think until she cracks, boss?" one of his men asked him.
"She won't," Arlan replied. "At least, not until we have the final piece with us."
"What makes you say that?" one of his men asked. "I mean, she pretty much already has reason to be sympathetic to us."
"Yes, but you appear to be forgetting one very crucial detail," Arlan said. "She has a cousin on the opposite side that she adores: Prim. Don't dismiss the bonds that family represents, after all. Now, status report. Are the troops ready to move?"
"Yes, sir," his aide answered. "Our detachment that's to remain has the city well under control. We have a temporary courthouse and a temporary hospital set up, per your orders. Local laws are currently being looked at, and both codified and simplified so that everyone can be made aware of them, should they wish to."
"Excellent," Arlan replied. "Do we have any idea when proper plumbing and the like can be made?"
"It will likely take a few months," his aide said sadly. "Several key places in the city were in severe disrepair. No doubt the Lord Mayor was siphoning funds to fuel a lavish lifestyle."
"Makes us glad we got rid of him," one of his men remarked. "Serves a bastard like that right, if you ask me. And it's odd that this is tame compared to some of the other shit he was up to."
"Yes, well," Arlan said, "we can talk about public works all we want. I'm just glad the city's now in a position where it can be built up better than it was before."
"Hear, hear," his men agreed.
"Alright, men," Arlan announced. "You have your orders. Pack up your things and begin moving. We march onto our next conquest!"
"YEAH!" his men cheered, and began getting their things in order.
Sometimes, it really sunk in that he was leading an army now. His self from Earth would have never imagined being in this position. He smiled and began gathering his personal effects. There would be time to reminisce later. Now was the time to march.
Spoiler: Author's Notes Like ReplyReport Reactions:gartf, HobDobby, Faux_Frog and 239 othersGontxvenMonday at 3:01 AMNewAdd bookmarkView discussionThreadmarks Chapter 13 New View contentGontxvenI honestly have no idea what I'm doing at all.Monday at 9:03 AMNewAdd bookmark#42Grave Levantine woke up from his slumber, only to find himself in a jail cell. Shaking his head, he tried to recall what had happened, but couldn't figure it out. Last night, he was trying to burn some evidence of his collaborating with the Black Dogs in his fireplace, and after having finished, he went to bed. And now he was in a jail cell, as if he was in a nightmare. The iron shackles around his legs, however, were very, very real.
"Finally awake, are you, traitor?" one of the guards nearby asked.
"What are you—" Grave tried to say.
"Don't bother, old man," the guard answered. "We've already secured evidence of your having collaborated with the Black Dog Mercenaries. You stand accused of treason of the highest order, and pending trial, are expected to be executed."
Grave felt his jaw hit the floor after hearing that.
"What do you mean?!" Grave shouted.
"I don't have to answer a traitor," the guard said. "Sit there and face your punishment."
"Why haven't we executed Grave already?" Luu-Luu asked. "After what we saw, he certainly warrants it."
"As much as I might want to," Claudia answered, "we're not in a position to be able to at the moment. Based on the evidence Alicia was able to send us, even under the Grey Falcons' captivity, there is an extensive network of nobles in the capital. One that would very likely go into hiding if they heard anything about Grave's execution. So long as he's alive, considering his influence, there's a chance his collaborators would risk a jailbreak."
"So you're gambling on the off-chance that his collaborators would be willing to risk their necks for him?" Kaguya asked.
"It's the best shot I have at finding them at the moment," Claudia admitted. "As much as it well and truly pains me to admit so. He was smart enough to hide the names of his collaborators."
"Where is Maia?" Kaguya asked. "With all that's been going on, I'm concerned about her."
"At the tavern, drinking," Claudia answered. "Don't expect to be able to get her out of there at all today. She's still in denial about a lot of things."
The thing about this next city, if what my scouts report is accurate, is that it's on a cliff, making approaching it rather difficult. It's not impossible, by any stretch of the imagination, but any attempts to intrude from below will likely be noticed far easier than the last city. I'm rather fortunate to have some Halflings on hand, though. Their strength, and ingenuity, has been vital to a large part of our operation. Seriously, they've been able to puzzle out how machines from Earth work just by me giving them a basic run-down on how they work or how they're supposed to work.
"What's the report on this next city?" I ask my men. "How many sympathizers are inside?"
"There are likely quite a few," one of my scouts answers. "But unfortunately, this city appears to have taken our threats a bit more seriously than the last one. They've begun cracking down on open sympathy to us."
"Not unexpected, but it certainly makes things more difficult," I reply.
"Yes, well, we do know something that might make it a bit easier," one of my scouts said. "There's apparently a local farm at the bottom of the path leading into the city. Shipments from the farm are expected to be delivered within a few days. We've already found out the son in charge of the deliveries is a sympathizer. It wouldn't be hard to convince him to perhaps smuggle a couple of our men inside under the guise of hired help."
"You're right about that," I muse.
Despite being able to handle them ourselves, Orcs are still a very real danger to most of Eostia. Having some hired help to deliver food wouldn't be out of the question. And we're very fortunate in that the Grey Falcons are made up of literally every sentient and sapient race that I could find in Eostia. Finding a couple that would blend in as mercs down on their luck enough to help with such a delivery should be easy.
"Gather some of our men," I tell one of my aides. "Look for ones that specifically would be able to blend in as down-on-their-luck mercenaries."
As my aide leaves, one of my falcons lands on my shoulder, carrying a note. I open it, and smirk. Looks like my plan for dealing with the remaining Black Dogs is bearing fruit. I'll have to wait for news of that to reach me. Vault honestly won't know what hit him.
"Sir, a report," one of my engineers said. "We've finished work on our latest prototype."
"Which one is this?" I ask.
"It's a prototype glider based on how you described it to us earlier," the engineer says.
"Interesting," I muse.
A glider won't help us with taking the city, but once we've taken it, considering its height... I could see gliders being used by the city's guards later.
"Once we've captured the city, you have the greenlight for testing," I tell them.
"Are we going to be able to use the artillery on this city?" one of my Halfling engineers asks.
"We are," I reply. "I know its position makes it awkward for some of the artillery, but with proper positioning, we should be able to use it."
"Are we going with the low-powered versions or the high-powered versions?" the engineer asks.
"Low-powered," I answer. "We save the high-powered ones for places that do NOT have civilians or civilian structures."
"Understood," the engineer replies. "It just bothers me that we aren't able to use the high-powered artillery, even though we have it."
"I know it does," I say. "But we have to keep the course. We will not harm civilians unless it becomes absolutely necessary."
"Yes sir," the engineer replies.
...I might have to launch an attack on the Black Dog Remnants soon, if only to give the more trigger-happy amongst my ranks something they can shoot with impunity. Honestly would be very cathartic. I will have to remember to make sure my men know that Vault is NOT to be killed. If I want a public example of what not to do in the Eostia I'm looking to forge, Vault would be the best one to parade around. Hmm, would a parade and trial be good, or would it work with just a trial? Decisions for later, I suppose.
Spoiler: Author's Notes Like ReplyReport Reactions:gartf, Faux_Frog, JohnWolfie34 and 277 othersGontxvenMonday at 9:03 AMNewAdd bookmarkView discussionThreadmarks Chapter 14 New View contentGontxvenI honestly have no idea what I'm doing at all.Monday at 10:14 PMNewAdd bookmark#52It wasn't hard in the slightest to convince the farmer's son to help out. And we found out something rather interesting about this city. Apparently, the Lord Mayor wanted to turn this into a slaver's paradise, much like the last city, but that was rendered impossible—at least conventionally—due to the sheer height that the city was on. He still, at some point, tried to push that policy through, but a few of his advisors seized power shortly after the attempt. He's just a puppet of them now, which is mildly amusing to me. Still doesn't change the fact that his advisors are likely pieces of shit with numerous skeletons in their closets as well.
So now all I have to do is wait as my men infiltrate the city. They've got their teleportation scrolls on them, which will allow my assassins in, and they can get to work. Fuck me, Dark Elves really are some of the best assassins around.
"Sir, our scout reports from the capital have come back," one of my men says.
"Any news on how the capital's reacting to our latest conquest?" I ask.
"A general unease has started to sweep through the nobility," the man answers. "But on a more interesting note: Grave Levantine has been arrested."
"Has he now..." I say. "I can hazard a few guesses as to why."
I wondered what Alicia wanted to send after my men reported that she looked through some of the Lord Mayor's info like I wanted. By my guess, it was info relating to Grave, and it managed to reach Claudia's hands. Claudia was likely one of the few relatively competent Seven Shields, but was too loyal to Celestine to really be allowed to spread her wings. If it involved a traitor that was targeting her and the Seven Shields, though...
"Yes, well, he's currently rotting in prison from what we're able to gather," the man replies. "One of our infiltrators has been assigned to guard him."
"Good, ensure he isn't killed," I say. "The more we have to parade around when we finally take over, the better."
It's even better if we have Grave alive by the time we capture the capital. He would stand as a prime example of how deep the corruption in Eostia's government was. It sucks that, for right now, we only have a few infiltrators that would be in a position to watch over him, but I trust my men and their judgment. They should be able to keep him alive for long enough. Besides, if I'm right about what they want him for, they aren't going to execute him. They probably wouldn't even hold a trial for him. A trial presents an opportunity for him to get away, and if they want him for what I think they want him for, letting him get away isn't an option.
"Is there any other news that I should be aware of?" I ask him.
"Yes," the man answers. "According to reports, Prim has been locking herself in her room ever since news of Alicia's capture reached her."
"Not surprising in the slightest," I say. "Still, it complicates matters if we're looking to flip Alicia over to our side. We need her to confront us at some point. See if one of our infiltrators or sympathizers can help influence conversation in the capital enough for Prim to act."
"Sir!" the man replies, before running off with his new orders.
I take a look at the crude drawing of the walls of the city my men prepped. Our engineers would be able to produce a better one, but they're busy positioning our artillery. Obviously, the city's defenders wouldn't expect an attack from the cliffside, but that's a logistical nightmare even for us to pull off. If we could, it would be the best possible avenue of attack. It looks like there is a cave network along the cliffside, but it's near impossible to reach. Further, it looks like the cave networks aren't the most stable. I'd rather not risk losing troops on a pointless attempt.
"Hmm... Scouts, what do you make of the eastern walls?" I ask them.
"Well-defended, if nothing else," one of them answers.
"Yes, that much was obvious," I reply. "Do you think they'd be able to stand up to some of our high-powered artillery?"
"Negative, sir," another scout answers. "As well-defended as they are, a simple look from one of our spyglasses reveals several ancient areas in the walls. A shot from our high-powered artillery is likely to cause the entire wall to come crashing down if it hits the right spot."
"That's what I was afraid of..." I say. "We're only deploying the low-powered variants, so that shouldn't be an issue, but we'll have to address that once we have the city under our control."
"Yes, they're simply hired help," the farmer's son says, pointing to the two disguised Grey Falcons next to him. "Roving orc bands were spotted recently nearby. Figured it was better to hire what we could."
"Not surprising," the guard replies. "Very well, they can enter. Proceed."
The farmer's son nods, and the two disguised Grey Falcons follow him inside.
"I'll be taking a few hours to offload the food. You two go ahead and do what you have to," the farmer's son said.
Nodding, the two Grey Falcons left.
"So, should we split up or should we find someplace to use these together?" the older one asked.
"Splitting up is probably best," the younger one said. "Cause the guards to split when the assassins do their thing, and all that."
"Good point," the older one replied.
The older one then left and looked around for an abandoned warehouse or something similar. Finding a small abandoned house with an attached barn, he went inside and got to work. Putting the teleportation scroll on the ground, like instructed, he did as was told and activated it, causing a squad of Dark Elf Assassins to appear before him.
"Couldn't find a more defensible location?" one of them asks.
"I probably could have," he answered honestly. "But the only good places, from what I could tell, are still within eyesight of guard towers."
"Annoying," one of the assassins replied. "You still got us inside, though. Good job."
He nods and leaves, thanking whatever's above and below that he won't have to be present for the mayhem the squad causes.
"Might as well see if this place has a decent tavern before things go to hell," he muttered to himself. "I need a drink."
Spoiler: Author's Notes Like ReplyReport Reactions:gartf, aladdin47, JohnWolfie34 and 258 othersGontxvenMonday at 10:14 PMNewAdd bookmarkView discussionThreadmarks Chapter 15 New View contentGontxvenI honestly have no idea what I'm doing at all.Tuesday at 4:45 AMNewAdd bookmark#65"Prim, are you alright?" Claudia asked, knocking on the door to Prim's room.
She was concerned for the younger member of the Seven Shields, having not heard from her in a few days. Her guards assured her that Prim was getting the food she needed, but aside from that, Prim had been quiet. Not hearing anything in response, she opened the door to find Prim gone. The bed was neatly made, all of her things were where they should be, but there was no sign of the girl herself.
"Guards!" Claudia called out. "Come over here at once!"
She had a theory as to why Prim had disappeared, and she hoped she was wrong. The actions she felt the girl would take were far too reckless. Meeting with the leader of the Grey Falcons by herself?! That would just hand them another hostage!
Prim rode under cover of night, on the horse the sympathetic guard had given her. She had left a couple of days ago. By her estimate, it wouldn't take that long to reach what she assumed was the next target of the Grey Falcons. So many thoughts swirled inside her head, but the most pressing were of her cousin. There was no guarantee her cousin was safe, and she couldn't bear the thought of Alicia being hurt. She was fortunate that the guard also provided her with some "field rations," as he put it, so that she had something to eat on the way there. They didn't look like the most appetizing thing she'd ever eaten, but she'd eaten worse-looking things on the road before.
She was certain that her cousin was overconfident in her abilities, to a degree. Alicia was one of the foremost knights in the kingdom and wouldn't lose an honorable duel against most opponents. However, that all relied on her opponent having honor to begin with. Without honor, that advantage fell apart, and her fighting and leadership styles could be easily picked apart. Even Prim had noticed that in the few times she caught Alicia sparring with some of her soldiers. She was certain some of Alicia's soldiers had noticed that too. And someone like Arlan Grey wouldn't hesitate to take advantage of any gaps he found. Alicia would easily be defeated by an opponent like him in a real battle.
"...Come again? She's headed right towards us?" I ask my scouts. "Are you… absolutely certain of this?"
"Yes, we are," the scout reported, just as incredulous as I was.
"...On the one hand we wanted her to be forced to meet us," I say, facepalming. "But on the other, I can't believe how monumentally stupid it is to willingly charge into a potential battle zone by yourself to talk to the enemy leader."
"Should we do anything, sir?" the scout asks.
"No, leave her be," I answer. "In fact, once she arrives, ensure she's protected until she can meet me in person. Hopefully, by the point she gets here, we'll have taken the city, or at least enough of it to be able to have a talk in a relatively secure location."
"Sir," the scout says, before going to relay my orders.
Fucking idiot. If it weren't for the fact that we were made aware of this, she would very likely have been killed trying to approach us. A hooded stranger, under cover of night, approaching a military camp? Yeah, no—she would have been shot dead on the spot, and that would have undone all the progress I worked towards with Alicia. This is nothing to say of the fact she could encounter roving bands of bandits and orcs. I'm thankful we have scout patrols along the way, because otherwise Prim could very easily get killed trying to reach us. This is a headache I really, really didn't need to think about right now. Granted, this might accelerate my plans for her.
I take a look at the night sky and see a signal flare light up from the eastern end of the city. It's red, and sparkling. That means the assassins have done as much as they think they can and need an evac pronto. I clear the teleportation circle and activate it, bringing the assassin squad to us.
"Report," I ask them. "How much damage have you managed to do to the city's guards?"
"We've managed to do enough to cripple the guards stationed inside the walls," the leader of the squad says. "One of the towers will likely be out of commission for the next few days as well. The grain stockpile for that tower has been spoiled, thanks to the poison we used on it."
"Very good," I reply. "Would you say we're clear to begin the assault?"
"I would, but I'd be lying," the assassin says. "Our artillery can protect us as we advance, but once we get in, we still have a large, well-armed force to deal with. As we're trying to avoid civilian casualties, we're still not in a position where it'd be easy."
"Well, that might have been thrown out the window," I reply. "What of the other assassin squad?"
"We lost contact with them but assume they're still fine, as they haven't sent out an emergency signal," the assassin says.
"Don't worry about it, the lot of you get some rest," I reply.
I move to my main tent, where I keep the stone used to track my assassins, and see that the other squad is still alive and in good health. Knowing the leader of the squad, she must have changed tack. I touch the stone, and an image of her appears before me.
"Report, what's your status?" I ask.
"We're having a bit of trouble," she admits, "but it's nothing we can't handle. We managed to secure entry into the Lord Mayor's abode, but we've yet to determine the identities of all of his advisors."
"Annoying," I reply. "We need their identities so we know who to spare. How many of them do you think you're missing?"
"We estimate about three or four," she says. "According to the serving staff, they don't really like entering the manor without their 'slaves' to attend to them."
"…And this is a problem how?" I ask.
"We are unsure, but something was wrong with the slaves recently," she says. "We do not know if it's injury-related, sickness, a mixture of both, or something else unexpected."
"Could they be dead?" I ask, a frown on my face.
"That was our thought as well, sir," she replies. "But the serving staff assured me that they do not kill their slaves. Something about ruining their appearance, if memory served."
"…Three guesses as to why," I say. "Expedite your search. Use whatever means you have to that won't leave you exposed. An unforeseen circumstance is forcing our hand. We'll have to accelerate the attack, as much as it pains me to admit."
"Sir," the assassin replies. "By your orders. Are we allowed to use the memory alteration scrolls?"
"Yes," I answer. "Do whatever you have to. Ensure no one knows about it."
The assassin nods before cutting off the signal. I hope I won't have to deal with a Manga timeline Prim, because I don't know if I'd be able to stop myself from hitting her. Goddamnit.
"Get me the good mead," I say. "I need a drink."
Spoiler: Author's Notes Like ReplyReport Reactions:aladdin47, JohnWolfie34, GenericEric and 260 othersGontxvenTuesday at 4:45 AMNewAdd bookmarkView discussionThreadmarks Chapter 16 New View contentGontxvenI honestly have no idea what I'm doing at all.Tuesday at 9:20 PMNewAdd bookmark#95"There it is..." Prim said to herself, overlooking where the Grey Falcons' camp was.
It took her a while to get here, but it was worth it in the end. Now, she'll be able to meet with Arlan and hopefully negotiate for Alicia's release. ...As she thought about what she might use as a bargaining chip, however, she realized that this wasn't the most thought-out of her plans. She only had herself to use as a negotiating tool. ..Still, if it came to it, she was fully willing to take the role of hostage herself so Alicia could be set free.
As she approached, strangely enough to her, she was let inside the camp without much fanfare. It's as if they were expecting her to show up, which, if she were in the right state of mind to question things, would cause her to be concerned. As it was, however, she was just thankful that they let her inside.
"You'll have to forgive us, but Sir Arlan is in the middle of a meeting," one of the Grey Falcons said. "You'll have to wait until the meeting is over before you're able to see him."
"That's quite all right," Prim replied. "So long as I can speak to him in person."
The Grey Falcon nodded and left, leaving Prim alone with her thoughts. There were certainly some machines of some kind around the camp that, were she not occupied with something else mentally, she would ask about. She likely wouldn't get an answer, but she would still ask the question all the same. There were other towering machines that, despite the intricacy of some of them, didn't take much to figure out their purpose, even with how distracted she was. They were likely some form of cannon or something similar. She had seen a few before, as she toured the fortress she was supposed to oversee.
She absentmindedly wondered how long Arlan's meeting would take, but didn't want to ask. She was here to negotiate with the man, after all, and making him angrier was not something she wanted to happen.
"She's already here?" I asked. "Damnit, that's what I was afraid of. Regardless, this meeting takes priority. Status report: how is maintenance on our artillery going?"
"About as well as can be expected, given how we're having to rush deployment of some units," a Halfling replied. "We're lucky we had this in consideration when making them, but even still, it's faster than we would like."
"Obviously," I said. "The other assassin squad is still looking for the rest of the Lord Mayor's advisors. I was hoping they would be found, so we could have taken a more secure position before my meeting with Prim. Alas..."
"It is regrettable," one of my aides said.
"My plan for the meeting with her remains unchanged, obviously," I replied. "I just prefer having a more secure location before doing what I need to do. It's going to take a large amount of focus, after all."
"We're aware, sir," one of my aides said. "Locating the Lord Mayor isn't hard. He has to make public appearances, as despite his advisors being in control, they still need to put on a public show every now and then."
"Let me guess, in the event that one of the Seven Shields or some other important noble decides to visit, they don't want them questioning things too much?" I asked.
"Got it in one, boss," one of my scouts said. "I would feel sorry for him, but he's a piece of shit. I don't feel sorry for his circumstances in the slightest."
"Agreed," I replied.
"One thing does concern me, though, boss," one of my scouts said. "After talking with the assassin squad that returned, we noticed something."
"Noticed what?" I asked them.
"Some of the wells in the city are starting to dry up," the scout answered. "It could be easy enough to manipulate for our favor. After all, the Lord Mayor was legitimately a piece of shit, and we do have the tech needed to dig or find new wells."
"Hm... It could indeed," I replied. "But you're thinking of stopping that, I take it?"
"Yes," the scout admitted. "Some of those wells are ancient, and if we invade the city, we'd need to draw from them as well for water for our troops."
"That we would," I replied. "It's unfortunate, but our larger supplies of alcohol wouldn't be easy to transport up there without being fired upon. And without alcohol, we need to rely upon local sources of water to quench our thirst. See if you can get our assassin squad still in the city to look into this. We need the water just as much as the people in the city do, after all."
"Sir!" the scout said, going to relay my orders.
Prim was alerted that the meeting was wrapping up, and she was escorted to a rather modestly decorated tent. All that was in there was a table, and maybe some maps here or there of various locations in Eostia. She could recognize a few of the maps, she had copies of them herself.
"Alright, Prim," she heard from outside the tent, as a man in his early thirties entered. "You wanted me, well here I am. I doubt you need it, but my name's Arlan Grey. Let's dispense with the formalities. What. Do. You Want?"
That... was a rather harsh tone, all things considered.
"I.. am here to negotiate for my cousin's release-" Prim tried to begin.
"No deal," Arlan said.
Immediate rejection was not something she expected, but she supposed that was a naive assumption to make.
"But I-" Prim tried to reply.
"But nothing," Arlan said. "You have literally nothing I want on your person, nor accompanying you. Further, it was apparent from the outset that this little trip of yours was so poorly thought-out that I nearly had an aneurysm trying to process this."
Arlan began approaching her.
"I was going to save this for later, you know," Arlan said. "But you've legitimately pissed me off with your actions. And considering how nonsensical they were, I have a feeling I know what's in that head of yours."
His hand began glowing green, which Prim instinctively tried to back away from.
"Good night, Prim," Arlan said, as his hand was on her head and she blacked out.
Spoiler: Author's Notes Like ReplyReport Reactions:CrazyGuy, Noxim, aladdin47 and 246 othersGontxvenTuesday at 9:20 PMNewAdd bookmarkView discussionThreadmarks Chapter 17 New View contentGontxvenI honestly have no idea what I'm doing at all.Tuesday at 11:49 PMNewAdd bookmark#105Prim screamed as she woke up, memories that she was certain weren't her own, but couldn't shake the feeling they were, clouding her mind. She looked around and noticed she was in a bed, being looked over by what she could only assume was a doctor or healer of some kind. The memories were far, far too vivid to really deny, and a shameful trickle of arousal coated her legs at the thought of some of them. She shook her head, trying to deny she was anything like what those memories implied. Joining a band of rapists, and watching with either disinterest or pleasure as her friends and allies were raped, taking joy in the ability to rape her own cousin, and listening to that despicable man in the memories. She couldn't shake it. She couldn't get rid of this massive feeling of guilt, and so, when the doctor wasn't looking, she tried to grab the nearest bladed implement and strike herself down.
Unfortunately for her own efforts, the doctor saw all this happening and was able to pin her down before she did any lasting damage. It didn't take long for the doctor to restrain her after that, and despite her pleas, he wouldn't let her out of them. She continued wailing, these feelings of guilt just not going away no matter how much she knew that these memories weren't hers.
"How is she reacting?" I ask the doctor overseeing Prim.
"Her reactions are about what we expected to some extent," the doctor replied. "It's hard to process your own memories from another timeline, after all. She's likely trying to deny that those memories are hers, even though they are. Well, a version of her at any rate."
"Unsurprising," I noted. "At the very least, this makes her easy to manipulate."
"It does indeed," the doctor replied. "So, may I ask what your intentions are for her, aside from converting her to our cause?"
"My thought was to make her a part of the public relations side for our group," I said. "For as much grief as we may give them, Prim was always seen as the most kind and merciful member of the Seven Shields, behind Celestine herself. Imagine what it would do to their public image were said member to switch sides."
"It can't be too sudden," the doctor noted. "Otherwise people will think we brainwashed her."
"That is what I've done, to some extent," I replied. "But you're right. We won't deploy her on that front right away. She would make a good informant for us, being a member of the Seven Shields themselves. Further, when it's revealed she's joined us, Alicia is almost certain to immediately switch sides as well."
"You're awfully certain she will," the doctor noted.
"Considering the wailing she's doing," I reply, "I'm fairly certain she will. It's only a matter of selling it correctly."
"True enough, I suppose," the doctor said. "Well, I'm going to ensure she isn't trying to injure herself again."
"You do that," I reply.
"Well, looks like you've been through the wringer," I said, noting the rough shape Prim seems to be in.
"Wha-what did you do to me? What is- how are-" Prim tried to get out.
"One question at a time, girl," I said. "The first question is a simple one to answer: I linked your memories to a version of you that would have happened in the future had we not intervened."
"What-" Prim tried to say, only to begin gagging as vomit started coming out.
Quickly thinking, I fetched a nearby bucket and managed to angle her so the vomit ended up in the bucket.
"Th-that can't be true," Prim tried to deny.
"Deny it all you want, you know they're real," I point out. "You willingly joined the Black Dogs. You were jealous and wanted to be the one to rape your cousin instead of them."
"T-that... it... it can't..." Prim struggled to say.
"I'll give you some time to process that," I reply. "But I am being truthful when I say that what you saw was exactly what would have happened in the future had the Grey Falcons not intervened."
I walk out of the tent, leaving Prim alone with her thoughts. If her line of thinking goes how I want it, we might suddenly find ourselves with a very fanatic supporter soon.
Prim was left alone with her thoughts. As much as she wanted to deny what Arlan said was true, she couldn't deny how she felt when looking at some of the images. The rush of shameful pleasure she felt when looking at herself raping Alicia sent her mental state spiraling. She wasn't like that, she tried desperately to tell herself. She would never do those things, she tried in vain to deny. If... If, by some slim chance, what Arlan said was true... She was despicable. Completely and utterly despicable. She was one of the most wicked women to ever walk the planet. She was willing to sell out her people, the people under her watch, nay, the entire nation, just to get the chance to rape her cousin.
She couldn't deny any longer that what she felt for her cousin was more than familial in nature. The shameful way her body responded to those images made that abundantly clear. No matter how many times before she had tried to deny it, what was staring her in the face was impossible to ignore. It was... disheartening to realize that. It was even more disheartening to realize that, if Alicia ever knew the depths she could sink to, there was no telling how she would react. She needed to purge this sin from the world. To purge herself. But the Grey Falcons prevented her from doing so, having bound her to this bed.
...The Grey Falcons. Now that she thought about it, Arlan would be right if what he showed her was accurate. Without their intervention, Eostia would have fallen into a land of debauchery and vice. One ruled by the whims of men, to act as they saw fit. Women would be raped whenever a man felt the need to relieve themselves. If her new memories were accurate, this occurred even if they didn't. It was just simply for the fun of it sometimes, which sickened her. ...Maybe there was a way to purge this sin from the world without sacrificing herself. Or, at the very least, a way to ensure that this world was purged before she had to.
It was a decision that, were any of her friends to find out about it, they would call her idiotic for even considering it. But, with what she has in her head now... she needs to know the truth. If what Arlan said was true, then there was only one path forward that she could see. She would join the Grey Falcons.
Spoiler: Author's Notes Like ReplyReport Reactions:aladdin47, JohnWolfie34, Jacob Parks and 234 othersGontxvenTuesday at 11:49 PMNewAdd bookmarkView discussionThreadmarks Chapter 18 New View contentGontxvenI honestly have no idea what I'm doing at all.Yesterday at 9:42 PMNewAdd bookmark#156"Damnit all!" Vault shouted, looking at the latest reports to cross his desk.
Damn near everywhere in Eostia, people were becoming more willing to straight-up fight the Black Dogs. This wasn't supposed to be going like this.
"Report!" Vault shouted. "Why can't we get a hold of Shamhauza?!"
"I don't know!" one of his men replied. "We sent as many messages as possible to him!"
"Damnit!" Vault said. "Grey Falcons must be intercepting them. Gather the men in charge of sending them, NOW! I need answers!"
This base was likely compromised in some way, which pissed Vault off immensely. It was one of the few strongholds they had prior to the capture of the Black Citadel. Now they'll have to abandon this one as well before the Grey Falcons decide to just pick them off here. How, in the hell, were they intercepting their requests for reinforcements?!
"How far ahead did that bastard plan for all of this?" Vault asked himself. "There's no way something like this was last minute. He had to have planted someone months, or even years, in advance for this."
This stronghold was one of their earliest. No way would anyone new be trusted with outgoing and incoming messages here. If there was a plant, they had to have been there for a long damn time.
"Fuck," Vault said, shattering his tankard on the table.
A falcon outside his window took off without him noticing.
"Huh, so that's bearing fruit, is it?" I say to myself, reading reports.
Fun thing about having a decent amount of mages in the Grey Falcons. Some know how to transform, and have been using that to wonderful effect. Causing Vault to begin questioning his own men was something I took great pleasure in. If nothing else, watching someone you hate crumble to paranoia was always amusing. This had the added beneficial effect of slowly, but surely, whittling down the amount of strongholds the Black Dogs were actively using. The fewer there are, the higher the chance that when we launch an attack, we'll be able to capture Vault himself.
"Sir," my aide, Rudolf said. "It appears we've finally located the rest of the Lord Mayor's advisors."
"Have we now?" I ask. "Report."
"One of them had found a new slave to bring to gatherings, and started joining them again," he replied. "Seems the lot of them like abusing and torturing their slaves to no end, even when they're dead. I... don't want to go over the rest of the details, but I'm certain you can fill in the blanks yourself."
"I can, and I don't like it," I said. "Well, we're in a good enough position... Prepare to attack."
"Sir!" he replied, dashing off to relay my orders.
Prim woke up to the sound of explosions happening outside. After calming down last night, or as calm as she could have been given the circumstances, the doctors removed the restraints. She looked outside to see those cannons, or whatever they were, firing at the city's walls. Some of the walls took serious hits as they pelted them, and she was worried they might crumble in some areas. She looked around and saw the Grey Falcons advancing towards the city, while the city's defenders tried to repel them.
It was difficult to watch as the city's defenders were forced to either fight off the Grey Falcons' advance, or reinforce the walls where possible. There were notably fewer defenders than there should have been on the walls, given what was going on. She wondered about that, but figured that the Grey Falcons were likely responsible for it.
"Excuse me," she asked one of the guards outside her tent. "Do you know where Sir Arlan is?"
"He's in the command tent," the guard said. "He's busy directing the fight right now. If you have anything to say, it will have to wait until the battle's done."
"...Very well," Prim replied, going back to her bed.
It was disappointing that she wasn't able to talk to him just yet, but she supposed she could wait, given what she wanted to talk to him about. It wasn't something she could just drop without distracting him from whatever his duties were at the moment. Seeing nothing else to do, she picked up one of the books in the tent and began to read. She recognized the book as one she read before, so she knew it would be a reasonably enjoyable read.
"So, now that the attack's been launched," I began, "do we have confirmation on where all of the advisors are?"
"Yes, they're holing up in the Lord Mayor's manor," Rudolf said. "We were worried they wouldn't, but that worry appears to have been unfounded."
"Being prepared for that scenario was still a good idea," I pointed out.
"Yes, well, to no one's surprise, they're attempting to put a layer of peasants between them and the manor," Rudolf replied.
"Irritating, but not unexpected," I said. "The assassins were fortunate enough to grab a map of all the escape tunnels that were made for the manor. With luck, a squad or two will be able to find them, and use them to enter the manor."
"We're close enough that within a couple hours, if not sooner, we should be able to seize the gates," Rudolf replied.
"Good," I said. "Prim's arrival forced us to launch this earlier than I would have liked, but everything seems to be working out so far. Speaking of, what is Prim's current status? I recall she seems to be doing a bit better."
"She's doing better," Rudolf replied. "One of her guards pointed out that she wanted to talk to you about something."
"Three guesses as to what," I pointed out. "She'll be a good infiltrator into the ranks of the Seven Shields themselves. We can't exactly have her publicly switch sides juuuust yet. It will be far too obvious that we did something to her mind that way."
"You did force an alternate timeline version of her's memories into her," Rudolf replied. "But you're right, sir. Having her join publicly too soon would be a problem."
"Something to think about when this city's in our grasp," I said. "What of the wells?"
"Our men aren't going to be able to approach them with that layer of peasants in the way," Rudolf replied.
"That is really disheartening to hear," I said. "See if we can't drill a hole or two in the walls near the wells. With luck, we'll be able to avoid the peasants altogether, and begin work on them."
"Sir," Rudolf replied, before leaving to relay my orders.
Spoiler: Author's Notes Like ReplyReport Reactions:aladdin47, Caligula, JohnWolfie34 and 194 othersGontxvenYesterday at 9:42 PMNewAdd bookmarkView discussionThreadmarks Chapter 19 New View contentGontxvenI honestly have no idea what I'm doing at all.Today at 5:50 AMNewAdd bookmark#174"What is happening down there?!" the Lord Mayor shouted.
"Don't yell at us, pig!" one of his advisors responded. "We'll be just fine."
"Somehow, I highly doubt that," the Lord Mayor said.
He was the ruler of this city for a while, and the Black Dogs' plan provided a unique opportunity. One that he had been hoping to have for quite a while, if he was being honest. True, it would have been immensely difficult, considering his city's location, but he could easily have made this a slaver's city. If only his treacherous advisors would let him! The traitors didn't think it would help the city's economy any. Bunch of spineless cowards, if you ask him. Sure, there were difficulties getting slaves up and down to the actual roads, but the rewards could have been worth it!
"And you said the peasants would provide a wall against those bastards!" he heard an advisor shout to another.
"They were! They really were! But then those bastards must have found a way around them!" the other advisor responded.
That was another problem he was facing at the moment. The Grey Falcons had, somehow, managed to get a few squads inside the city. And now they were surrounding some of the wells, doing something to them that he couldn't quite figure out. They weren't preventing the peasants from accessing them, if need be, though, which was infuriating. He was hoping to be able to expose them as hypocrites with the peasant barrier earlier.
"Blast it all! You, slave!" the Lord Mayor said, pointing to a Dark Elf maid. "Bring me some of the mead. NOW!"
As he turned around, he heard the sound of something dropping on the floor. A strange, sweet smell permeated the room, but before he could turn around, he felt himself getting dizzy. Trying to grab onto something, he saw the Dark Elf in question give a smirk, before he passed out.
"You really outdid yourself this time," I said, patting Idaola, the chief engineer on the back.
"Aye, that I did sir," she replied. "Makin' the drills tiny enough to not deal severe damage to the walls was a pain, but we got it in time."
"Any word on breaching the gate proper?" I ask.
"Nah," she answered. "Not like we really need to at this point, boss. Yer scouts reported that a lot of the peasants seem to be dispersin', much to the dismay of the guards. Thinkin' it has something to do with the fact we're fixing their wells."
"I'd say so, but I don't want to be optimistic on that front," I replied. "Status report on your other projects."
"Aye, so here's the thing boss," she said. "Had to beat some of my workers over the head for a bit. They really like the explosive weapons. And I mean really, really like 'em. Like they tried to make a handheld explosive launcher earlier. I might like explosions as much as the next Halfling, but even I can see that's a recipe for disaster in their hands."
"...Don't remind me," I replied. "Glad to see you have that under control."
"Sir," Rudolf said. "Even if we don't need to breach the gates, it would still be beneficial to do so."
"Your reasoning? I don't disagree, personally, but I'd like to hear your thoughts on the matter," I replied.
"Even if we've sown confusion amongst the ranks of the guards, having successfully broken in and everything," Rudolf said, "We've yet to actually break their morale. You'd think we'd have done so already, but..."
"No, I agree," I replied. "Breaking their morale would be a benefit, if for no other reason than to make the roundup when all's said and done easier. The advance continues."
"Sir," Rudolf said, going to relay my orders.
"Boss, I'd also like to be able to test somethin new, if we're still chargin and everything," Idaola remarked. "Remember that thing you were saying about sniper rifles?"
"....I have a feeling I'm going to enjoy what you're about to say," I said.
"We managed ta build a prototype," Idaola replied. "Figured you'd like the first shot from it."
"...Very few things bring me joy at the moment, and you just gave me one," I said. "How powerful is the scope?"
"Not very," Idaola admitted. "It is just a prototype after all."
"Still better than nothing," I said, looking through the scout reports.
I do remember there being some high-profile enough targets to warrant noting down, but not important enough to care whether they lived or died in the attack. One of them was the guard captain, and looking through my spyglass, I do see he's trying to command the guards manning the gate.
"I can already see ya got a target in mind, boss," Idaola said, handing me something. "Have fun."
"I will," I replied honestly.
"Men, stop panicking!" the Guard Captain shouted. "Reinforce the walls that have been breached! You, get the guards from the cliffside wall to help reinforce us already!"
The Guard Captain was not having a good day right now. Oh, he knew this day was coming since that declaration earlier, but he still dreaded it all the same. At least with the Black Dogs, he could just let them in and he would be alive. Now, with the Grey Falcons? His life was in serious danger. They were not shy about butchering anyone who was caught even being remotely related to the Slave Trade. At least, as far as he was aware.
"You, there, prepare to get-" he tried to say, before his head was blown to smithereens.
"Hm, I can see why you let me try it out first, Idaola" I said.
I had wondered about how she and her crew managed to skip who knows how many steps involved in making this, and the answer was simple. Only a mage could properly wield this prototype. A small magic circle was inscribed where the ammo is, and by putting a small amount of your own magic in it, something that happens when you pull the trigger, you give the explosive force needed to launch the projectile. Clever. Very clever indeed. It still needs some work, however. No way could we mass produce this, and there aren't enough mages in the Grey Falcons that have the constitution needed to even properly shoot this thing in the first place. The Halflings might be able to, lord knows they have the strength. But they also made it abundantly clear that they really, really like explosions.
I don't really blame them for that. Explosions are nice to look at, I will admit, but we really need to keep a lid on them. In testing grounds and against Black Dog strongholds? Sure, go nuts all day, provided you don't kill priority targets. But outside of those circumstances? No.
"What do you think about its performance?" I ask her.
"Seems to work just fine, boss," she said. "Might need to work on the barrel later, though."
"Works well enough in my opinion," I reply. "What do you think about making specialized ammo for it?"
"I'd love to," she said. "I have a few plans I think would be very interesting to try out."
"So long as it doesn't involve explosions in civilian centers, go right ahead," I reply.
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