“We can’t mount another attack in time,” Seraph said.
Theus interrupted, “You mean that you can’t mount another attack in time. I am more than capable of it. Don’t lump your incompetence on me.”
Seraph rolled her eyes and took a big gulp of wine. “Of course, Master Theus. But even if you do attack, why would the results differ from your previous assault? That is my point. I can attack Gharrick Pass tomorrow, but I will lose.”
Knowing that Theus was about to interrupted her, Seraph spoke quickly, “This new Bastion, Nathan Straub, is far more capable than King George’s spies gave credit for. He has defeated two monogem Champions, converted the bandit spellblade we were grooming to become a Champion, and may have even stopped the cascade from happening.”
“I confirmed that the cascade took place,” Theus growled.
“And then he showed up in Nair’s tower the same day,” Seraph said. “Given the first thing he did upon arriving at Gharrick Pass was suppress our leyline disruption, it suggests that he has more advanced knowledge of the binding stones than we do.”
“If you had attacked him yourself, then we wouldn’t be in this mess,” Theus said.
“Or maybe nothing would be different, except that I wouldn’t be talking to you right now,” Seraph said, losing her temper. “I am a duogem Champion, but even I can’t instantly suppress a demonic invasion and appear inside a sorcerer’s tower miles away.”
“But you—” Theus shouted.
“Theus, enough,” Torneus said flatly.
Theus shut up.
“Seraph, give us your recommendation for the next move,” Torneus said. “I believe we’ve heard enough of your reasoning.”
His tone suggested that Seraph was treading on thin ice.
He hadn’t planned on the Empire winning any battles. Torneus’s grand ambitions were unraveling, Seraph realized.
“Ask for peace,” Seraph responded.
“Ridiculous,” Theus snapped.
“Enough!” Torneus thundered. The connection whined so loudly that Seraph thought he had cut her off. “Seraph, explain yourself.”
“I already did. We can’t attack the Empire. If we do, we’ll lose, like we already have. With every passing day, they’ll regain their strength. If they can attack us and win, then they will.” Seraph felt that she wasn’t getting through to them, so she pushed harder. “They’re focused on a different war. Our plans have failed. They’ll let us back away without raising any fuss. Bastion Leopold is a political animal. But that also means he’ll tear us apart if he gets the chance.”
“Tear us apart how? You’re overstating their strength,” Torneus said dismissively. “It’s precisely because the Empire is at war with Trafaumh that we don’t need to sue for peace. They can’t spare additional Champions here. When the moment comes, we strike.”
“If they have a dozen Champions at Forselle Valley, they already have the strength,” Seraph quipped.
“Don’t press your luck,” Torneus warned her.
Seraph’s lips tightened into a line. Evidently, he knew that Theus was full of shit. Maybe Korvell had bought his excuse, but not anymore.
“I’m afraid that Torneus is right here,” Korvell mumbled. “I agree that we cannot go on the offensive, but peace? Impossible. Too many guilds and trading companies have already factored in our victory. Their profit projections incorporate a Gharrick Pass that does not charge tolls or tariffs, and they must be able to use the mines, forests, and farmland on the arable side of the mountains.”
So that was it. The die had been cast before this meeting had been held. The profits of the Federation came before anything else.
Or more accurately, the profits of the wealthiest members of the Federation, who had captured the regencies of almost every state of the Federation.
“Honestly, Seraph, you’re too concerned about this Bastion,” Torneus said. “You still have our trump card.”
“She turned on us,” Seraph responded flatly.
“I disagree.” Torneus’s tone allowed no dissent. “Based on your report, the Bastion has her under his thumb. If she made her move to support us as initially planned, he would have taken her head in an instant.”
Seraph remained silent. That wasn’t the way she saw it, but she knew better than to argue right now.
A sigh crackled over the wireless before Torneus said, “We’re offering her what she’s wanted for so long. The Empire has been denying her for years. Denying her lineage for even longer. Unlike them, we honor our promises. Remind our precious contact in the Empire that our offer remains open. She merely needs to fulfill her end of the bargain and deliver us victory at the right moment.”
As always, Torneus refused to identify who this contact was. Seraph followed suit, but wondered why that was the case. She knew her identity. Sunstorm had as well.
Did Torneus distrust Korvell or George? Or maybe he thought that the knowledge would leak from Theus to one of his Champions, and from them to the Empire?
Probably the latter, Seraph thought. Torneus didn’t become a regent by blindly trusting every idiot under his command.
“Victory, High Lord?” Seraph repeated, her tone questioning. “Are you suggesting that we attack again?”
“As we should,” Theus muttered.
“Theus,” Torneus said, shutting the Bastion up. Torneus paused, then answered, “No, you are right that being overly aggressive is the wrong choice. But peace is not an option. We will find an opportunity before winter.”
By which he meant that Seraph would find an opportunity. She held her tongue again and remained silent as the meeting wrapped up.
Seraph had been a Champion long enough to see where this story ended. Unfortunately, her hands were tied. And she had already sent far too many of her younger brethren to their deaths.
Poor Sunstorm, she thought as she turned off the wireless communication device. Lilac had no real future as a Champion, but Sunstorm’s fate saddened Seraph.
Given a good Bastion who cared, Sunstorm had the potential to be a duogem Champion. But onyx gems were poorly understood on the mainland. The legacy of the Anfang Empire meant that almost every Champion used amethysts, diamonds, and rubies. Sapphires also proved popular due to the influence of non-human races. Those were considered honest, reliable gems on the mainland.
Only on the Kurai Peninsula were rare gems such as onyxes used.
Even when somebody understood what an onyx could do, it didn’t help Sunstorm. A Champion skilled in assassination was an asset to people like Torneus, but also terrifying. The idea of someone so stealthy and capable of undetected murder, but with the power of a duogem Champion?
Seraph imagined that Torneus slept better now that Theus had told them that Sunstorm was dead.
With a flash of her gem, Seraph vaporized her wine bottle. She scowled. Her fingers dug into the plush upholstery of her chair. For several seconds she fought the urge to turn it into dust.
But then she’d have to get a new one, and she was in the middle of nowhere. She sighed.
Tomorrow was a new day, she supposed. She didn’t know how many new days she had left in the Federation.
Chapter 33
“Color me impressed. I didn’t expect you to stop both a demonic invasion and the Federation,” Leopold said, perhaps a little too bluntly.
He joined Nathan in a watchtower within the portal. The two of them stared out over the volcanic plains. No demons wandered here, and none had arrived since the invasion.
“I’m not sure if I should be proud or appalled,” Nathan drawled. “Whatever the case, the portal is a heck of a lot larger.”
“Yes, that happens when you show off too much,” Leopold said.
Nathan blinked. What did he say?
“Haven’t heard that before? It’s a pet theory of mine, to explain the growth of portals.” Leopold grinned, and the edges of his lips vanished into his sideburns. “Portals open because the demonic energy is trying to escape. Th
e faster we defeat the demons, the faster the energy is emitted. We know this. But what if we think of the energy like a river? What does a river do when it flows downhill?”
“It finds the path of least resistance,” Nathan answered.
Leopold nodded. “Exactly. That’s what I think the portals are. The binding stones are confluence points of leylines, which is why the demonic energy tries to escape here through a portal. When we suppress a portal, the portal grows. And the faster we suppress, the faster the growth.” He rubbed his chin while frowning. “It’s not a perfect explanation, and many events don’t fit the logic, but it explains why portals grow faster in the presence of Bastions and stronger Champions. And why your portal is growing rapidly compared to most.”
Nathan had a separate theory, given what Kadria had told him.
But he had to admit that Leopold’s theory also made some sense. Kadria had implied that the Messengers didn’t pay much attention to their portals, and that Nathan’s primary mistake had been to draw that attention to him. That meant that the portals had some automated means of growth.
Was this whole thing some sort of game to the Messengers? Nathan failed to wrap his head around what the Messengers wanted. Kadria seemed oddly content to help Nathan, and even more content to spend time with him. Whatever her aim was, it seemed different to destroying this world.
But he couldn’t forget that she had done exactly that in his timeline. What changed her?
“Deep thoughts, I take it?” Leopold asked.
“Knowing that being better at my duty might make the Empire less safe doesn’t make me feel better,” Nathan half-lied. He told the truth that he didn’t like the idea, but he had been thinking of something he couldn’t tell Leopold.
“True. That’s why we keep our secrets and take our oath. The things that people may do if they knew how this worked are difficult to fathom,” Leopold said. His expression was stony.
Nathan wondered if Leopold had some idea of what those things were. The old man worked with people with the power to do very dangerous things, and who might not take kindly to the truth behind Bastions and binding stones.
“I can provide you with some good news, at least,” Leopold said, clapping Nathan on the back. He descended from the watchtower as he spoke, “After an invasion of this size, it usually takes a few months before they attack again. And if the portal is growing this much, maybe even a year.”
“Months,” Nathan said flatly.
“Take what good news you can get,” Leopold said. His fake smile drifted back into place, but seemed strained. “To your office?”
Ciana and Fei met them inside the keep. Fei’s cheeks were bulging with food, and bread crumbs ran down her chin and uniform. By contrast, Ciana was the model Champion, with not a hair out of place. Not that Ciana was a Champion yet.
Fei blushed at the looks she received from Leopold and Nathan. She hurriedly brushed the crumbs away and swallowed her food. Her mumbled apology, flattened ears, and downturned tail earned her a visit from Nathan that night.
Once Nathan and Leopold arrived at the office, the two girls trooped off to a neighboring room. Nathan made some coffee in the percolator, while Leopold examined the map.
“You’re rather transparent, aren’t you,” Leopold said.
“Am I?”
“You have markers in place along the entire border. Last I checked, you’re only responsible for defending Gharrick Pass.” Leopold’s tone was dry. “And that map on the wall is one I am terribly familiar with.” He pointed at the smaller map hung on the wall, which covered the north of the Empire and its contested border with Trafaumh.
“I like to stay up-to-date,” Nathan said. “Your coffee.”
“Thank you,” Leopold said. He stared at the map on the wall while he drank. “Do you know why we’re fighting over the Pearlescent Canyon?”
“Do you want the official answer, the academic answer, or my opinion?” Nathan asked. He loudly slurped his coffee when Leopold looked at him sidelong.
“You’re much more confident this time,” Leopold commented. “I suppose you’ve earned the right. Last time we met, you had defeated some bandits and fought off a monogem Champion. Now you’ve accomplished more than most Bastions do in a decade. Arguably their entire careers, given you’ve prevented a war.”
Nathan paused at Leopold’s comment.
The war with the Federation had been prevented? That was Leopold’s view on the matter?
Had Nathan already accomplished what he had come back in time to do? He had been convinced that he had much more to do. Surely the Federation wouldn’t give up after one failed assault, given they had gone to the extent of causing a demonic invasion.
“I want your opinion, assuming it’s accurate,” Leopold said.
“You’ll quickly tell me if it’s not,” Nathan said.
“No, I’ll just think less of you.” The older Bastion chuckled at Nathan’s look. “I live and breathe politics. If I gave away my hard-earned knowledge for free, then I’d have been replaced long ago.”
Nathan nodded. If he were younger, he’d judge the old bastard harshly.
Scratch that, he still judged him harshly, but that didn’t make Leopold wrong.
“The Pearlescent Canyon is where the Watcher Omria is believed to have descended to Doumahr millennia ago,” Nathan explained. “It’s a holy place. That’s why the Order of Trafaumh will fight for it. They adore Omria and consider the canyon to be a sacred site.”
Leopold gestured for him to continue.
Nathan continued, “But the Empire doesn’t care about the religious importance. What matters is that the canyon is a reminder of the power of the Empire. When Omria walked Doumahr in the flesh, she backed the Anfang Empire and the Emperor. Every day that the canyon doesn’t belong to the Empire is another day that it is reminded of its weakness.”
“So you think we’re taking back the canyon purely as a show of strength to the rest of the world?” Leopold asked. His expression hadn’t shifted.
“I don’t pretend to know why we’re starting a war now. But I think we want to control the canyon because it’s a symbol of the Empire’s power. A legacy of the glory days.”
Leopold grimaced. “A fairly grim assessment of your homeland.”
“Is it wrong?”
“I did say I wouldn’t correct you,” Leopold said. He paused. “But I will say that your opinion would fit in well with those making realistic plans to help His Majesty. I can tell that you ran a county once. And also why your father didn’t like you. He is a nationalist, through and through.”
Leopold drained his coffee cup. It hit the table with a hard thud. Nathan frowned.
“Something wrong?” he asked.
“I gave you good news earlier,” Leopold said. “I’m afraid there won’t be much more to come.”
Nathan waited. He heard Fei’s excited noises from next door and realized that his office wasn’t sound proofed very well.
“The Empire has begun its assault on Trafaumh,” Leopold said.
“That’s behind schedule,” Nathan commented.
In reality, it was on time. Nathan knew that the Empire started the war around now. The difference was that he had already repelled the Federation. In his timeline, the Federation launched their attack within the next few weeks.
“There was some hope that negotiations may allow us to claim ownership of the canyon, under strict terms with Trafaumh,” Leopold said. “In practice, those negotiations bought time for the Empire to get as many Bastions and Champions in place. I was naive to believe we may escape a war.”
“So there are no reinforcements coming,” Nathan said slowly.
“No.”
“Why are you here then?” Nathan asked.
“Because I am an old man who can do what he wants, and everybody is too scared to tell me what to do.” Leopold laughed. “That, and His Majesty understands that we’re being invaded by the Federation. It’s in my hands to salvage th
e situation. But he needs a victory in the north, and I am his trusted right-hand man. I’ll take out the trash trying to sneak in over the mountains.”
“I thought you told me that you didn’t have any more good news?” Nathan said.
The pair chuckled. Leopold drummed his fingers on the table and stared at the markers.
The arrival of food put their meeting on hold. Nathan stared at what the servant brought in.
Bread, fried eggs, hunks of local ham, cheese, and onions. Nathan was very familiar with the sandwich, but it was the sort of thing one of his Champions made him. Anybody could make it, especially with the fire enchanted ovens and cooktops in a modern kitchen.
Serving it to one of the most powerful men in the Empire seemed like a faux pas.
Leopold picked up the sandwich and bit in. He let out a grunt of approval and took another bite. Yoke ran down his chin, and he wiped it away with a cloth that had been provided.
“This is a guilty pleasure of mine when traveling,” Leopold admitted when they finished lunch. “In the capital or my fortresses, my chefs insist on serving me their fanciest and most impressive creations. But sometimes a man prefers simple.”
“And loaded with meat,” Nathan noted. “Fei would have been impressed by your sandwich.”
“Don’t lie. I read the reports. Her appetite is part of the reason she’s a Champion,” Leopold said. “Beastkin eat a lot, but no village can sustain a girl that practically eats a deer every day.”
With lunch out of the way, they returned to the main subject. Leopold shuffled some markers around on the map.
He held up one in particular. “This is a Federation Champion, isn’t it?”
“It is. Sunstorm, the one that I first encountered with Sen,” Nathan explained. He knew what was coming.
“Why is she now part of the Empire according to these markers?” Leopold asked.
“I came to an agreement with her and transferred ownership of her gem to my binding stone.” Nathan held his breath after explaining.
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