Okay! I promised an actual explanation for why I wanted to metaphorically stir the pot! As one of the few people who voted to flat out disregard the comfort of the Sol Invictus worshipers, I feel like this is the best way to get my feelings on the matter out.
First of all, asking advice from another more academically inclined Clergymember who is already alright with us being a Manakete is likely to have one of two results, with a few outlier results which people have been fretting over.
One: The clergymember laughs and doesn't really care, and launches into preaching about Sol Invictus and such. Essentially, they ignore the theological implications of Ryza's statement and just preach their beliefs. This is by far the most likely scenario, and as long as Ryza doesn't double down it's a pretty safe way to gauge if the person involved is actually going to take Ryza's statement seriously or not.
Two: The clergymember actually considers Ryza's statement (this relies on them being an academically inclined theologian) and gives us a measured response on how the revelation of such information would go over in a polity we frankly know very little about. It'll be, bluntly, biased one way or another depending on if they're revisionist or not, but it's still a fairly safe way to gauge the general opinion of the people who would be affected by such revelations.
Of course, now, let's go for the outliers.
Outlier One: Worst Case Scenario. Clergymember takes offense. We don't want that. Especially when we're not in a safe, neutral space right now
Outlier Two: They actually seriously consider our statement, tell us they'll get back to us, and spend hours upon hours of research digging up connections that we personally might not even have been aware of, and the Religion gains reformist/revisionist subset in a manner potentially similar to Protestantism. Or it becomes politically useful to prop up their connection to the Manaketes, and they just shrug and add it to the Canon.
Outlier Three: Everything Goes Horribly Wrong:tm:
Anyway, that was the mental though process behind my votes. I would still really prefer to not bury our heads in the sand and deal with it later, mostly because I personally would like to deal with it within the scope of the quest, not outside of the scope of the quest.
Additionally, the possibility that other Manaketes remain is very real, and something like this? Someone talking about their faith? Yeah, that'll get their attention pretty quickly if they're paying attention to the slightest about the human world.
Okay! I promised an actual explanation for why I wanted to metaphorically stir the pot! As one of the few people who voted to flat out disregard the comfort of the Sol Invictus worshipers, I feel like this is the best way to get my feelings on the matter out.
I like the way you've laid out your thoughts and I'll honestly spend some time considering it before the vote closes.
Edit: I was particularly interested in this course of action potentially serving as a beacon for other awakened manaketes if things turned out positively enough and the religious discussion spread amicably.
Ultimately, this vote comes down to a simple question:
Having realized she's already said too much, should Ryza do the intelligent thing and shut up, or keep talking and risk saddling Artemis with a diplomatic nightmare?
You can dress it up in all the pretty words you want, but that's what it boils down to. Ryza has made a major gaffe by questioning a nation's religious dogma - in their place of worship, no less. If anyone besides Melissa heard all that, they'd have grounds to arrest this little heathen. To push it even one inch further by mentioning this to a senior priest in any context other than a heartfelt apology is begging for Real Trouble. The very nicest advice she can expect at this point is to shut her fool mouth before she commits outright heresy, assuming she hasn't already crossed that line.
Even if she wanted to risk her head by pressing against a state religion, Ryza isn't here on her own business. She's the Head Mage of Agrithe, operating as part of a shaky multinational coalition force that's already overstepping its authority. She doesn't have room, personally or politically, to go pushing buttons over a pet theory with very little to back it up.
The priest shakes his head. "I continue my efforts to find both sympathetic ears and witnesses within the Divine Realm," he says. "But while I have had some progress, at the moment there is nothing new to report."
I did some rereading, and the Empire's religious figurehead/leader is actively in talks with the Divine Realm, officially or otherwise. I find myself extremely hesitant to risk creating cracks for them to gain a foothold with.
Granted, this is more of a meta argument since this was from a scene Ryza has no way of knowing about, but we got to see it so I'm not against using it to justify the way I vote.
And even if it probably falls under the worst case scenario of this one conversation spiralling into affecting international relations... I'm not gonna discount damaging a single relationship even if they promise to keep the heretical conversation we just had with them secret.
Call me paranoid, call me excessively risk averse, I'll agree with all of that. This particular gamble isn't one I feel comfortable with.
edit: That said, I still want to think on it. This is all just my gut feeling thoughts, and it deserves further consideration.
Ultimately, this vote comes down to a simple question:
Having realized she's already said too much, should Ryza do the intelligent thing and shut up, or keep talking and risk saddling Artemis with a diplomatic nightmare?
You can dress it up in all the pretty words you want, but that's what it boils down to. Ryza has made a major gaffe by questioning a nation's religious dogma - in their place of worship, no less. If anyone besides Melissa heard all that, they'd have grounds to arrest this little heathen. To push it even one inch further by mentioning this to a senior priest in any context other than a heartfelt apology is begging for Real Trouble. The very nicest advice she can expect at this point is to shut her fool mouth before she commits outright heresy, assuming she hasn't already crossed that line.
Even if she wanted to risk her head by pressing against a state religion, Ryza isn't here on her own business. She's the Head Mage of Agrithe, operating as part of a shaky multinational coalition force that's already overstepping its authority. She doesn't have room, personally or politically, to go pushing buttons over a pet theory with very little to back it up.
Refutation 1: She's already a filthy heretic. It is outright stated that most people don't believe in Sol Invictus, but rather practice a form of Animism that the QM came up with for the quest. It could become a major political gaffe if she screws up in the method she asks, but asking a question, even as a politician, in an academic setting, is not a political gaffe, it's an academic asking another academic a question. No, I'm literally not dressing this up in pretty words. I'm saying it how it is.
Refutation 2: I have, quite literally, laid out my thoughts without prose or pretty words. I gave you a list. When you are attempting to debate someone who has just posted a position succinctly and bluntly, you do not get to say "Oh those are just dressed up pretty words concealing a bad truth"
Refutation 3: Context Matters. If she's asking as a faithful of a dead religion, who's practice was wiped out by the False Savior, not the Head Mage of Agrithe, with warning and context given, no, it isn't her commiting a gaffe, it's her asking a question about a religion that she believes in towards another religion that follows suspiciously similar beliefs that depict freaking Divine Dragon/White Dragon Manaketes as angels, then no, she's not insulting they're beliefs, she's a curious member of a suspiciously similar dead religion. I don't know if you've met theologians, but they do actually tend to like working with the factual knowledge of their religion over religious dogma. Now, if she were to ask a Priest that isn't a theologian, the result would obviously be different, but the vote is "Ask someone specific that Ryza knows or suspects will be sympathetic to her questions" not "Ask some random Clergyman/woman off the street."
If you're going to refute the position I am currently voting for, at least make an argument that doesn't completely ignore the one I literally just posted, please.
[X] You decide Melissa does make some good points. With the Empire seemingly trying to take everyone over, any division among the people who are inclined to oppose that (who seem to overlap remarkably well with the group who tend to like you and your manaketeness) would be bad. You'll have centuries to figure out how to best share the oneness of Sol Invictus and the Mother, no need to rush it.
[x] You decide Melissa does make some good points. With the Empire seemingly trying to take everyone over, any division among the people who are inclined to oppose that (who seem to overlap remarkably well with the group who tend to like you and your manaketeness) would be bad. You'll have centuries to figure out how to best share the oneness of Sol Invictus and the Mother, no need to rush it.
The real question is if I felt comfortable swapping my vote because it wouldn't matter as the vote stands and all that changed was me feeling good about myself despite the lack of impact. And if that's the case, would I swap back in a moment of fear if swinging for it was able to catch up and take the lead? It's in those gut instinct split second choices that you truly know who you are as a primal being bereft of the chains of society and the buffer zone it offers you.
Edit: yeah honestly I think I swapped to soothe my inner feel good charity monkey and that feels dishonest the more I think about it. Going back to my original vote.
Refutation 1: She's already a filthy heretic. It is outright stated that most people don't believe in Sol Invictus, but rather practice a form of Animism that the QM came up with for the quest.
I feel like "person who worships a different god exists" and "person who worships a different god insists that we are wrong about our own religion" are rather different sins. For starters, pagans and the like are considered heathens rather than heretics. ("Heresy" is what you yell when crusading against the Protestants.) Also, if Ryza says "I think your god is the Mother," she's claiming to know the local church's god better than the people who worship her. Which is, political concerns aside, rude.
When Ryza is ready to argue about the historical relationship between manakete and humanity, when pissing people off by questioning their religious doctrine can't threaten any relevant military alliances, then we can raise the issue again. Which is a point I don't see anyone defending the write-in addressing. Why is this something Ryza should spend her time on now?
[X] You decide Melissa does make some good points. With the Empire seemingly trying to take everyone over, any division among the people who are inclined to oppose that (who seem to overlap remarkably well with the group who tend to like you and your manaketeness) would be bad. You'll have centuries to figure out how to best share the oneness of Sol Invictus and the Mother, no need to rush it.
-[X] That said, both you and Melissa are entirely too wet behind the ears and lacking in knowledge to do more than make vague guesses. The Mother/Sol combined Hearth to the Dragon, exactly to give temperance and sensibility to her children. And the temperate and sensible option would be to consult, if not older, then at least more experienced and wiser heads than your own. People like Melissa's mother, or aunt, or that charming abbot Father Simon.
As another one of the few who voted to not sit on this info in the original vote, my thinking is basically that that position lost the vote and as much as I might prefer to leave the door ajar a bit into revisiting that later - the specific formulation of the write-in addition is not really how I'd prefer to do try and go about that.
For better or worse, the (pretty decisive) winner of the vote was to hide this info. I still disagree with that decision (and am still unclear in what exactly it means, honestly) but the time for trying to formulate a write-in that I think moderates that decision somewhat to my liking is past.
[x] You decide Melissa does make some good points. With the Empire seemingly trying to take everyone over, any division among the people who are inclined to oppose that (who seem to overlap remarkably well with the group who tend to like you and your manaketeness) would be bad. You'll have centuries to figure out how to best share the oneness of Sol Invictus and the Mother, no need to rush it.
That's a weird way to frame "Don't bring up your theory about Sol Invictus here".
First off, it's not really information; it's one manakete's theological speculation. There's a decent chance that there is some being which the manakete called the Mother and the Solists call Sol Invictus, but Ryza doesn't have proof that they're the same being. Her theory has more support than (say) Romans telling Germans about similarities between Odin and Hermes, but there's not much for Ryza to hide.
Second, Ryza isn't really hiding her theory. She's just deciding not to talk about it yet. It's not like Sol Invictus is going anywhere! I'm sure Ryza really wants to share her discovery, but she also realizes that this might not be the best time to argue about theology.
That's a weird way to frame "Don't bring up your theory about Sol Invictus here".
First off, it's not really information; it's one manakete's theological speculation. There's a decent chance that there is some being which the manakete called the Mother and the Solists call Sol Invictus, but Ryza doesn't have proof that they're the same being. Her theory has more support than (say) Romans telling Germans about similarities between Odin and Hermes, but there's not much for Ryza to hide.
Second, Ryza isn't really hiding her theory. She's just deciding not to talk about it yet. It's not like Sol Invictus is going anywhere! I'm sure Ryza really wants to share her discovery, but she also realizes that this might not be the best time to argue about theology.
I mean, you're not really telling me much I don't know. I essentially raised very similar points during the initial vote when casting a vote in Ryza being open about this. Again, this ultimately comes down to me not having a clear grasp on what the vote is determining.
When I was laying out what I considered the tiers of evidential strength of the information Ryza has, I explicitly labelled the Mother = Sol bit as a mere hypothesis, but noted that the vote option for being open phrased it as Ryza not wanting to "hide parts of [her] people's history". In my view that hypothesis can't credibly count to Ryza as the history of the manakete so is there more to this? Is it some character flavoring where Ryza becomes stubbornly fixated on the hypothesis as truth? Or is she acknowledging that if she shares the stronger, more concrete evidence she does have that people are (and in fact already have) reach this same hypothesis and so if she's looking to avoid that result she has to hide at least some of that more concrete evidence to avoid putting enough dots out there that people can connect?
The essential thrust of the decision seems to be "do we let this Mother = Sol theory come up during the duration of the war?" Except to me it would seem a bit off if that just means "Ryza simply doesn't literally say it herself." To begin with, it's not even really her theory - Lacroix came up with it upon hearing Ryza's explanation of the Mother and seeing the scroll depicting the Union. He simply connected the dots and shared it with Ryza who agreed it made sense. So, if the narrative purpose of this vote is "do we keep this theory to ourselves for now to avoid risking agitating the devout in the Divine Realm" then it logically follows to me that Ryza has to, at a minimum, stop sharing the information on the Union. Lacroix made the connection once he had access to that information so clearly that's enough to cause the theory to begin coming up. Now, of course, not everyone is going to connect those dots - Melissa was just given the same info (well probably less on the manakete side since she hasn't been around Ryza nearly as long as Lacroix was) and her take was "Wow, that's such a nice story!" and it wasn't until Ryza explicitly raised the idea that she stopped and went, "Wait, that might not be a good idea to spread."
It seems like it defeats the purpose of deciding that we shouldn't risk causing cracks in the unity of the anti-Empire forces by giving voice to the Mother = Sol thing if we interpret it to mean that Ryza is still totally willing to lay out all the (more strongly based in evidence) information that both she and we know can lead people to reach that conclusion themselves. To me it just comes off as Ryza still being willing to provide all the puzzle pieces laid out neatly that when put together reasonably lead to the conclusion that we've just voted that Ryza wants to avoid people reaching (at least for now.) Like, sure, technically it adheres to the letter of "Well, Ryza herself didn't literally come out and say it - other people can make of it what they will" and if Ryza didn't watch someone put that puzzle together in front of her I could buy that but now it just feels like a loophole in violation of the spirit of the vote wording. (For instance, I am personally unclear if just withholding the information on the Union would be enough to prevent people from drawing similarities between the Mother and Sol if Ryza gave them a lecture on the Mother in detail but I think it's a reasonable holding on Ryza's part to not necessarily realize this and to feel that it was only the Union bit that served as allowing the connection to be made because she has a relatively small sample size of people she's shared information with and Lacroix is her only case study in coming up with the theory.)
And as a minor quibble, nothing about the way the vote is worded suggest it's merely Ryza not bringing up the hypothesis here (I assume the Divine Realm.) That, to me, would be a short term decision and the decision itself seemed to me to be more of a medium-to-long term commitment on Ryza's part ("You'll have centuries to figure out [...]")
I mean, I suppose in reality the simplest explanation is that I am dumb or have otherwise way overthought a matter that is very simple to everyone else and have become lost in my own head and nothing I am saying relates to the reality that everyone else resides in. That is something that happens... too often for me.
Pretty sure the point is that as long as Ryza doesn't directly say "your religion is actually my religion with the names and terms changed around", it doesn't matter what connections people make with the information Ryza shares about other stuff, ie the Union. If the totally not related (lol) historical information on a country where Manakete and humanity lived together makes people think that maybe there was a religious link, then that's not Ryza's fault .
And if someone does make that connection and straight up asks, Ryza can honestly say "I don't know, all I have is speculation." It's far more circumspect and respectful of the harm that might be caused by a blunt statement.
Scheduled vote count started by SoaringHawk218 on Feb 11, 2024 at 7:17 PM, finished with 49 posts and 25 votes.
[X] You decide Melissa does make some good points. With the Empire seemingly trying to take everyone over, any division among the people who are inclined to oppose that (who seem to overlap remarkably well with the group who tend to like you and your manaketeness) would be bad. You'll have centuries to figure out how to best share the oneness of Sol Invictus and the Mother, no need to rush it.
[X] You decide Melissa does make some good points. With the Empire seemingly trying to take everyone over, any division among the people who are inclined to oppose that (who seem to overlap remarkably well with the group who tend to like you and your manaketeness) would be bad. You'll have centuries to figure out how to best share the oneness of Sol Invictus and the Mother, no need to rush it.
-[X] That said, both you and Melissa are entirely too wet behind the ears and lacking in knowledge to do more than make vague guesses. The mother/Sol combined Hearth to the Dragon, exactly to give temperance and sensibility to her children. And the temperate and sensible option would be to consult, if not older, then at least more experienced and wiser heads than your own. People like Melissa's mother, or aunt, or that charming abbot Father Simon.
Alright, play things safe and keeping on the down-low it is.
This vote got a bit heated at times, so I just want to remind everyone of something: I don't give trap options, nor do I allow trap write-ins. Either vote would have the potential to turn out good or bad depending on the situation/future votes and rolls. Please, keep things civil.
You keep your back straight and your stride even as you walk through the halls of Castle Southguard. There are not many people in your way, since you're currently making your way through the upper levels of the main keep, well away from most of the servants who kept the largest castle of the Southlands Duchy running. Those servants you do see are well-dressed, marking them as the aids and assistants to the large group of nobles that currently call this castle home, at least temporarily.
From the way these servants often straighten and fall silent as they see you approach, you can tell many of them are still concerned about the events of the past few weeks, and fearing the consequences of someone with power overhearing their grumblings and worrying. You wish you could tell them not to be so fearful of their words; you'd never begrudge people their feelings, and Callista had always been a woman who preferred to hear a hard truth so that she can correct it rather than dancing around an issue. However, old habits died hard as they say, and too many nobles preferred that everything appear calm and certain on the surface, even if the air-currents were blowing hard and in the wrong way.
The Southlands Duchy had not had a good few weeks. While there had been some whispers that the Southern Kingdoms had been planning something (if only because a great many spies had suddenly stopped reporting in) nobody had expected the full-scale invasion that had struck across the entire border at once. Many of the small border baronies and fortifications had fallen within days, creating an overflow of fleeing nobles and knights seeking to regroup deeper in. The Kingdoms' forces, meanwhile, had used their momentum to keep going, and were now besieging, or had taken, several second-level castles and defensive points.
Callista, as soon as she'd heard word of the invasion, had leapt into action. Sending her household troops out, she'd aimed to bolster these second lines of defense, including sending you towards some of the worst hot-points. Meanwhile, she had ordered a full gathering of her nobles, including some of the ones who had been dragging their feet on raising their levies and gathering their retinues, for a war council and to bring their armies to full readiness. By the looks of it, most of them had arrived, though there were some noticeable banners missing.
You don't pity those nobles who choose to still play political games with their duchess in this hour.
You force yourself not to sigh; you'd had some success on your mission, though probably not as much as Callista had surely hoped. Still, you'd needed to come back to get a few replacement tomes anyways, so you had agreed to carry the message for Dame Odette as she continued to hold Castle Tempest. You'd have to hurry, though, as the situation still looked grim.
Nodding to the pair of guards standing at the door, you are quickly ushered in, nobody wanting to keep the Head Mage from a war council. The large room is filled with nobles and their aids, with only the most important able to find a place around the central desk where Callista stands, wearing one of her most fetching dresses and most fearsome scowls. Her eyes flash slightly as she sees you gently making your way through the crowd, but she continues what she'd been saying. "-my lord husband has sent word from his mission to Wyrmrise," she says in a sharp, clipped tone.
There are a few murmurs from the gathered nobles, You know that many of them thought that Duke-Consort Talus, the "man of the house," should have stayed and led the defense of the Southlands. This overlooked not only the fact that he had no military experience, but that he has more friends and contacts in the Heartlands of the Empire; which meant he would be better suited to getting the reinforcements that are so desperately needed. True, Callista herself has little in the way of direct military experience, but she's a better organizer and motivator than her husband, and in this sort of wide-scale engagement that is of greater importance.
The young brunette's eyes narrowed dangerously at the noise, and the discontented nobles immediately shut up. While she's willing to accept earned criticism, pointless grumbling is far less welcome. "Unfortunately, it seems that this invasion came at a… 'delicate,' time for the Empire," she continues darkly. "According to my husband's message, the Regent's council has decided that the primary focus of the main Imperial army is the rebels in the north. Therefore, while we have been promised reinforcements 'soon,' no timeline has been put on their arrival. We are instead commanded to be the Shield of the Empire, to protect the Emperor's people."
The grumblings begin again, this time a little louder. "Is it not the duty of those of higher station to protect those who swear allegiance to them?!" one of the younger nobles snaps.
There was a momentary hush as Callista pins the similar-aged man to the wall with her eyes for a few long seconds before smiling grimly. "That is true," she says. "Which is why, in addition to having Talus request support and reinforcements from the official channels, he has been in contact with personal friends and family living in the Heartland. Apparently, my father-in-law is gathering as much of his personal forces as he can to march to our aid, and two Talon companies have been hired; one through our own treasury, and another by smaller allies in court. We will have reinforcements with which to retake the lands lost to the invaders, and to protect those who have kept faith in my family's oaths to protect them."
There are a few breaths of relief, and you nod in agreement with them. Marquess Wachenberg does have military experience, having won many battles during the latest of the Felician Wars. If he is bringing his own men, he will bring enough to make a difference. However, the young baron still frowns. "While Marquess Wachenberg's soldiers will be most welcome, Your Grace," he says carefully, "I have some… concerns, about the arrival of more Talons. Was it not their bungled invasion of the Kingdoms and the abduction of several young nobles that caused this mess?"
You recognize the subtle shift in Callista's dark smile as the young baron falls into alignment with one of her own opinions, but she cannot directly admit it. You'd been there when she'd told that Barons Rickman and Warwick had gone over to the Kingdom's side, citing her "inability or unwillingness" to bring the Deathwing Chapter to justice for their instigation of this mess, and as such not protecting or avenging the abduction and pain inflicted upon their son/future son-in-law.
In private, she'd ranted about how she'd have liked nothing more than to send the heads of those incompetent mercenaries' leaders to the Agrithians, Legerians, and anyone else they'd wronged. However, despite her efforts to have the Grandmaster of the Talons censure them, it seemed that the bungling mercenaries still had some friends in high places, and as such were beyond Callista's reach. You frown; you have your suspicions on who is protecting them, based on Ryza's information that this was all part of a plot by powerful people in the Empire to reconquer the Southern Kingdoms, but there are some things best not discussed in public. She certainly couldn't continence secession from the Empire herself in protest of the alleged order that might or might not have come from Wyrmrise on the matter!
In the present, Callista waves a hand. "Mercenaries are always an option taken grudgingly," she says. "However, we do what we must to protect our people from invaders." The young baron nods slowly, accepting the unspoken rebuke. "With the report from the Heartland discussed, let us turn our eyes to the front. Head Mage Skyfire, your report?"
"Of course, Your Grace," you say. "Castle Tempest continues to hold the southern flank of the front line, despite the efforts of a combined Rignali/Legerian attack that was beaten back." You don't say it aloud, but the Meteor tome you'd burned out in that battle had been a large part of why the attack was turned away; you'd managed to wipe out one of the smaller camps of attackers without a scratch, allowing a sortie from Dame Odette to destroy enough supplies and siege gear to compel the Kingdoms to retreat in decent order. Not a crushing victory, but a victory none-the-less.
Your lady nods gratefully, a tiny smile finally breaking through her scowl for an instant before she hardens her face. "And our raider issues?" she asks.
You nod back. "The Whitewings will be less daring from now on," you say. "Sir Hyperion, Sir Genarog and I were able to ambush two of their raiding flights and all but wipe them out. While there were survivors, it is likely the Kingdoms will keep their mercenaries closer to their own lines in future. That should lessen the burden on our supply lines."
The rest of the frontline nobles, or at least those who were able to send messages or representatives, are quickly reported. While Tempest is holding firm, a few of the other second-line castles have either been taken or are pressed hard enough that reinforcements are desperately needed; the Southlands isn't out of this mess yet, not by a long shot. You frown; you'll have to hurry back even faster than you'd thought. A few potential breakthroughs are dangerously close to leading to an encirclement of Dame Odette and her army, and you'll have to head that problem off.
Finally, as the last report is finished, Callista nods. "While the situation is not what we'd hope it to be," she says. "We will prevail. Sir Trevor, Sir Julius, devise a plan to best reinforce the chinks in our line before they can be spread." The two older knights, the leaders of the young duchess's military advisors, quickly nod, drawing away from the rest of the meeting and beginning to discuss. Turning, Callista looks around. "Are there any other reports or concerns that this council should know about?" she asks. (The world at large receives good fortune)
There's a long moment of silence before Count Montgarde clears his throat. "There have been some concerning reports from the Meridiem," he says. "When the invasion began, I reached out to some of my friends and allies in that duchy to request assistance. However, it seems that there was a diplomatic incident with the Whitewings as a nation that is taking all their attention. A Meridiem noble had put an illegal bounty on killed or captured Whitewings in their own lands, and the leaders of the Whitewings found out about it." He grimaces. "Sky-Marshal Seryph lead the attack personally, killing the noble, taking his castle and decimating his forces to rescue the prisoners, and from some of the things I heard were being done to the prisoners… spirits I can't help but feel they were justified in doing so…" He shook his head. "I do not believe it will spread; it seems the Sky-Marshal sees vengeance as having been meted out, but we can expect no help from that duchy."
You can tell that Callista is biting back a curse; you know she'd sent some requests to the Meridiem for aid as well, but if the Whitewings had launched an attack, even one that seemed to have a limited scope and a legitimate casus-belli, there was now no way anything other than an order from the Regent or the Emperor would get more troops out of that duchy. Still, what's done is done. "That is unfortunate," she says grimly. "But we will persevere." After a minute of silence, she gestures. "You will all receive your orders soon," she says. "And we will begin the process of retaking our homes and lands from the Kingdoms." As the nobles begin gathering their things and discussing the meeting, you start to turn to leave before your duchess's voice stops you. "Head Mage Skyfire, stay with me a minute."
You force yourself not to sigh as you turn, bowing slightly. "Of course, Your Grace," you say. While her voice had sounded mild, you know her well enough to recognize an upcoming confrontation when you hear it. Still, you wait calmly as the crowd clears out, finally leaving you and your lady alone. She remains silent for a long minute longer, simply staring you. You meet her eye calmly; you were there when her father learned this intimidation tactic from his father.
Finally, she speaks up in a deceptively mild voice. "You know, Talus has had to spend a lot of time in balls and parties getting our aid, since the Season is ongoing," she says. "And he's heard a lot of interesting stories and rumors." Picking up a tightly-rolled piece of parchment, she un-does the string holding it together and passes it over to you, never taking her eyes off you as she does. "There's apparently something of a story-campaign ongoing by… certain elements. Tell me, does the girl in that picture look familiar to you?"
You take the paper and look down, unsurprised to see a detailed picture of Ryza staring back at you. It's an excellent representation, showing her sitting atop a rocky outcropping, staring out at the horizon with her wings flared behind her, her long blonde hair blowing and a pensive smile on her face. The picture isn't perfect; she looks a bit older than she does in reality, and her wings are a bit too small. However, it is a well-done piece, giving the young manakete a sense of gravitas and dignity.
You nod. "That is indeed Ryza Levinheart," you say calmly.
Callista raises an eyebrow. "Apparently, she's pretty popular these days in certain circles," she continues in the same faux-friendly tone. "Though there is a building pushback campaign reminding everyone of all the terrible things the Fell Dragon and its kind did to humanity." She puts her hands on the table, leaning forwards in a way that would have been very distracting to a man who hadn't been keeping her father from storming the midwife's chambers so he could be with his wife and child when she was born. "When were you planning to tell me that I was playing host to a dragon, Lacroix?"
"Manakete," you correct calmly. "Ryza's most insistent on the terminology."
She finally grits her teeth. "I deserved to know, Lacroix!" she snaps. "And you kept it from me!"
"And what would you have done if you had known?" you respond. She starts to open her mouth, but pauses. "I know we haven't agreed on this point for a long time, Callista," you continue softly. "But Ryza is not the monster the stories speak of. She's a quiet, polite, intelligent young woman who's been thrown into a world almost unrecognizable to the one she knew, but is managing to keep her spirits up and her eyes forwards. She deserves the right to show the world her real self, rather than being arrested or murdered for the circumstances of her birth, for crimes she never committed, crimes that horrify her to a level I don't think she's really allowing herself to believe they actually happened. That some of her people did such terrible things. So yes, I did keep that knowledge, to prevent you from having to make a choice between doing what the Regent would want you to, and thus having to suffer his wrath when it was discovered you hadn't, and murdering an innocent child."
Your lady growls slightly. "And if she turns up here?" she asks. "If the next Whitewing raiding party is backed up by a lightning-spewing monster out of myth, what then, Lacroix?"
Sighing, you reach out and take one of Callista's hands. "I am still your Head Mage," you say sadly. "I am still the man who swore to your father that I'd support you whatever happened. While I will take no pleasure in it, if I must fight Ryza to protect you and the Southlands, I will do so, just as I would fight any other mage I studied alongside." You very much hope you don't have to do that, and you've been heartened by the fact that there have been no reports of Ryza's presence in the Kingdom's battle line.
She sighs, deflating slightly. "Thank you..." she says. "I... bloody void, I wish I could see things the way you do, but with everything that's going on..."
"This will pass," you say. "The Kingdoms don't have the numbers to take the whole Duchy, especially not once Talus returns with reinforcements. We will endure, and then, we'll sort out the aftermath."
As your young lady nods, gathering up her papers to go to the more quiet meeting with her most important advisors, you hope that you won't have to fight Ryza.
Hope that Agrithe is not so desperate for victory that they'd send a child to war.
Robin POV
Standing atop the tower of a recently-captured castle, you take a long, slow breath.
Today should have been a good day. You'd managed to overcome the defenders of this fortress, claiming another piece of the Southlands and putting even more pressure on the Empire to pull forces away from the North. Eventually, even that ancient, mighty wyrm would reach the limits of its strength, and it would be forced to sue for peace rather than suffering death from a thousand cuts as the free people of the world rose up as one to tell it that they would not be bullied or intimidated.
Of course, the capturing of a castle was always a chaotic, dangerous endeavor. Not only had you lost good men, including some of the boys and girls you'd personally taught how to use the bow, who'd trusted your lessons to keep them safe, but you'd also had to clamp down on the excesses of a victorious army. There were always going to be nasty things that happened in war, but His Highness had made his will clear: no atrocities would be tolerated in this war, and anyone who was caught committing them would be severely disciplined. Some of the surrendering Imperials had been subjected to reprisals that went far beyond the bounds of honor, which had forced you to imprison some of your own men. Thank the spirits that there had been no murders, or worse, either among the captured warriors or the civilians who had not been able to escape the castle.
You have no desire to hang any of your own soldiers who crossed those darkest of lines, but you would if you had to.
Your eyes catch a flash of white in the distance, and you raise your spyglass to see a pegasus flapping its way towards you, carrying a messenger's banner. "Friendly approaching from the north!" you call down to the re-manned ballista (those that had survived the capture of the castle, at least). You faintly hear affirmative responses, and you grab a flag of your own and wave it in a patter, allowing the Whitewing to land on the tower next to you.
"Message from His Highness and the main force," the pegasus knight says, slipping exhaustedly off her mount and tossing you a scroll before starting to rub her equally tired pegasus. "Don't know the details, but one thing you should probably know is that I saw what looked like a small Imp relief force on my way over. Probably won't try to re-take the castle now that you have it, but best be careful."
Nodding, you unroll the message and scan it. "Thanks for the warning," you say. "How many?"
"A few hundred, maybe a thousand," she says. You grimace; the high end of that would be a bit bigger than your force after the losses you took taking the castle, but not insurmountable. "Probably a day or so away."
You lean back against the crenelations, watching the young woman tend to her mount. "Any news on the rest of the campaign?" you ask.
She shrugs. "The main army's marching on Castle Littlewyrm, should be there in a few days" she says. You hope that's accurate; if the Kingdoms can take the centerpiece of the second line of the Southlands' defenses, that will make things a lot easier going forwards. "A few other small forts have fallen too; apparently one to a single man." She snorts. "Not sure if I believe that…"
"If it was Kopoi, then it's possible," you say. "He bears a Fell Seal; an assassin is a dangerous foe when they're able to pick their engagements." You'd heard stories of Agrithe's spymaster and "trouble-shooter" wiping out entire bandit camps and monster lairs singlehandedly. A small castle was therefore disturbingly possible, especially if he was able to sneak in at night and get at the garrison while they were sleeping… you shudder, yes, you could absolutely see that icy-cold Sealed assassin murdering his way through a barracks full of tired soldiers.
You'd have to redouble your patrols; while you don't think the Southlands have any Fell Seal bearers, you don't want to be on the receiving end of any sort of trick like that.
The pegasus knight shrugs, clearly not believing you but too tired to argue. "You unfortunately won't have a lot of aerial support for the foreseeable future," she says. "We got hit hard by some wyverns, and without Angela and her girls we're spread thin. Fuck, I wish we had that dragon with us…"
"Manakete," you correct. "Ryza's most insistent on the terminology." The Whitewing rolls her eyes again, but doesn't argue. "And she's gone where she's needed most, as have we all."
"Isn't that how it always is," the knight says dryly. "Well, even with some losses, we should be able to get messages around, so if you need anything let us know."
"Thank you," you say. "As always, the support of the Whitewings is most appreciated."
She snorts. "Flatterer," she shoots back, but you see a faint smile finally cross her face. "Well, I had been tasked with figuring out if you'd succeeded in your mission, but it seems like you have, so I'll let His Highness know." With that, she swings herself back onto her pegasus, which rears up and flares its wings. Stepping back, you give the pair space to leap off the tower, falling a short distance before catching themselves and flapping their way back north.
Leaning back, you study the message again. Archduke Letoro has indeed ordered you to hold your position now that you've taken the castle. You've done your part in cracking the defenses, now you could give your boys and girls a chance to rest and recover for a while. All in all, things are going very well for Agrithe and the other Kingdoms.
So why do you feel like your back's being measured for a knife?
…
Atop a hill overlooking the fallen castle, a figure steps from the darkness as if they had always been there, arms folded and hood pulled high as they studied the castle.
After a few seconds, the figure huffed; they didn't want to be here. They had so many other things they needed to do with their time, but events were moving faster than planned. The figure grimaced. That foolish little girl was doing her level best to ruin everything by throwing off the carefully-laid plans of her betters with her naive, bumbling interference. It would be one thing if she was doing it on purpose, the figure might be able to respect that a little, but it was clear she had no clue what she was getting in the way of as she flailed around wildly, inadvertently sending everything off the carefully charted path!
Taking a long, slow breath, the figure reasserted discipline. The little brat's time would come, but for now events here needed to be brought back under control. This invasion, while not inherently bad for the plan, was moving far too fast. Perhaps ironically, a bit of chaos would serve to put the plan back on schedule.
Kneeling, the cloaked shape pressed a hand to the dirt, purple light flaring about it. Hissing out commands in a dead language, pulses of magical power beyond anything these fools could possibly comprehend dug into the soil, lashing out far and wide. "Arise…" a hissing voice commanded. "Arise my servants, and bring death to this benighted world!"
Behind the figure's eyes, images flashed as if it stood among them: in tombs and crypts, fell light gathered in the eyes of corpses and skeletons, twisting and warping them to rise from their graves to obey the command. Packs of hunting doogs howled as their primitive minds were overtaken and redirected, leaving their wild, distant territories to come to the lands humans had claimed. Fangs clicked together as the eight hairy legs of an elder bael blurred into motion, leaving its web-strewn lair to join the hunt.
All over the Southlands, monsters were on the move. Many would find the invading armies of the Kingdoms, sowing chaos and confusion wherever they went. Some, however, would strike the already reeling Southlands defenders, slaughtering people already pushed to the brink by sudden invasion. The figure smirked coldly. Let them suffer. Let them all suffer. The plan would succeed, and nothing, not even a foolish little manakete girl out of her depth, would stop it!
With that merciless thought, the figure stood, darkness gathering around it until it vanished as if it had never been.
AN: Having a bit of trouble with the next main chapter, I'll figure it out eventually. Until then; I'd done the roll for how the Southlands invasion was going, here's a look into its successes (and some of its upcoming problems.)
The figure grimaced: that foolish little girl was doing her level best to ruin everything by throwing off the carefully-laid plans of her betters with her naive, bumbling interference.
The figure smirked coldly, standing. Let them suffer. Let them all suffer. The plan would succeed, and nothing, not even a foolish little manakete girl out of her depth, would stop it!
Interesting that Dark Sorcerer guy seems completely unsurprised by a Manakete being around, and uses the correct terminology with no prompting. This would imply a certain level of familiarity with Manaketes. This, combined with the emphasis on long-term plans, reads to me as evidence that there is, in fact, an evil dragon behind the troubles in the Empire, in traditional Fire Emblem fashion. That or some other form of immortal is lurking around...
I enjoyed this! Getting to see multiple perspectives is always a treat.
One writing suggestion I offer for whatever it's worth; when you have a narrative that's mostly focused on one protagonist in 1st person, shifting to 3rd person for these kinds of interludes seems to work well. It flags for the reader that they're not seeing through the main character's eyes.
Not that 1st person interludes don't work, they do, I just think the perspective shift is a neater solution.
She certainly couldn't have continence secession from the Empire herself in protest of the alleged order that might or might not have come from Wyrmrise on the matter!
You frown; you'll have to hurry back even faster than you'd thought; a few potential breakthroughs are dangerously close to leading to an encirclement of Dame Odette and her army; you'll have to head that problem off.
One writing suggestion I offer for whatever it's worth; when you have a narrative that's mostly focused on one protagonist in 1st person, shifting to 3rd person for these kinds of interludes seems to work well. It flags for the reader that they're not seeing through the main character's eyes.
Not that 1st person interludes don't work, they do, I just think the perspective shift is a neater solution.
I enjoyed this! Getting to see multiple perspectives is always a treat.
One writing suggestion I offer for whatever it's worth; when you have a narrative that's mostly focused on one protagonist in 1st person, shifting to 3rd person for these kinds of interludes seems to work well. It flags for the reader that they're not seeing through the main character's eyes.
Not that 1st person interludes don't work, they do, I just think the perspective shift is a neater solution.
A good idea, yeah, but that would mean I'd have to go back and fix all the previous side stories I've done in first person, and I'm feeling kind of lazy at the moment
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