Heretic Spellblade 6- Ch23

Chapter 23

“I’m not sure it’s my place to even talk about this,” Rosewald said, raking some of her brown hair over one ear. “Today’s been humbling in more ways than I thought imaginable. I may be a marquise and therefore senior to the counts and many lesser nobles, including those of ecclesiastical rank, but I’m out of my depth here. Even your commoner lieutenants know military matters better than I do.”

Grimaces rose to the faces of the inquisitors, but they didn’t argue. Ester rubbed the back of her neck.

Yet she was the one who chose to speak up in Rosewald’s defense, “We’re soldiers, Marquise de Rosewald. It’s our job to understand how to fight and command, especially as officers. I’ve been trained in much of what the Imperial knights know, and I’m as much a commoner as they are. You’re seeing experience in action.”

“And how would you rate the Imperial Army against our elite Inquisitorial Corps, Regal Champion?” Rosewald challenged.

“You’re being unfair,” Nathan said.

But Ester shook her head at him, then faced the noble again. “I fought the Imperial Army years ago, along the border just south of here. We often underestimated them and their ferocity, and especially their logistics. A lot of what I know came from those two wars.”

“The question?” Rosewald pressed.

“The knights around us are incomparable to the levies I fought around the Pearlescent Canyon. They’re blooded elites, with years of veterancy in multiple wars and experience battling foes I’ve only read about in the Inquisition’s most securely guarded tomes.” Ester licked her lips. “I didn’t really think Messengers existed.”

“So they’re superior.”

“They’re the elite of the elite. Have you ever met Bastion Dominic? Seen how his Champions and soldiers fight? I have. Every member of the Inquisitorial Corps does a rotation through one of his fortresses outside Soreaux.”

“Outside Soreaux?” Seraph asked. “That sounds specific.”

Nathan snorted. “The Inquisition keeps too many secrets beneath the citadel to let their new recruits into it. Dominic’s fortress is based in the ruins of the original Trafaumh, which the goddess constructed the citadel atop because the binding stone couldn’t be moved. The Inquisition headquarters is next to it.”

When Thanatos had carved open the citadel in his world, he’d blown open not just that fortress but also the many secrets of the Inquisition.

“Rosewald, you’re the representative of Trafaumh and the de facto commander of its forces,” Nathan said. “Especially as no other Bastion has joined us. Which is a problem.”

“I…” Rosewald sighed and ran a hand through her hair. “Don’t blame them.”

“There’s someone we can blame,” Sunstorm drawled.

Ester’s expression darkened. She remained silent, however.

“Deverese is another matter. He lodged an ‘official complaint’ about my actions, for what little that matters.” Rosewald rolled her eyes. “For a Bastion who left his nobility behind, he sometimes shows his upbringing. He has no power over me, just as I have none over him. That’s the problem. I have my own military and can handle foreign affairs, by virtue of controlling a march, but the Inquisition is a law unto itself.”

“That is our purpose,” Haverman said. “To ensure that the will of Omria and her warriors are beyond greed and corruption.”

“And pride?” Nathan asked.

Haverman grimaced. “I requested Bastion Deverese to assist us, given Her Holiness is in full support of our actions. But he is a Regal Bastion in service to Inquisitor Baudelaire herself. Even if she is publicly declared deceased, the laws and practices of the Inquisition still prevent me from issuing orders to him. So he ignores us.”

As expected.

Nathan looked at the map and noticed several tokens with black marks where Deverese’s fortresses stood. Some other binding stone fortresses had similar tokens, but most had a gold mark on them. Only a couple had red marks on them.

The rest had green marks. Nathan’s knowledge of regular castles and towns was sparse in Trafaumh, as his memories focused on landmarks and binding stones. But he spotted a few major cities and castles in the mix.

“You said you don’t blame the other Bastions,” he said. “What do you mean?”

Rosewald tapped on the map near the gold marked tokens. “I said I was humbled. Visiting the many fortresses with your Champions has been a major part of that. Until today, I’ve always seen the Inquisition as an inexorable force. Military might that sucks up an endless supply of funds better used elsewhere, and with little to show for it. We repelled the Empire twice and if even the Federation could withstand one of the largest cascades in history, surely we could?”

Naïve. The Federation had only handled that cascade because every fortress affected by the cascade had been full of soldiers and Champions due to imminent war.

“The Federation never fought a Messenger. If anything this bad struck back then, eastern Doumahr would be a wasteland,” Nathan said.

More than just eastern Doumahr. But he didn’t need to doomsay too badly.

“I know. At least, I know now. The Inquisition’s fortresses are battered and broken. Bastions are exhausted from battling demonic invasions back-to-back. Many Champions are grievously wounded or dead, and their soldiers are laid out end-to-end in halls. I expected to arrive and be treated with the suspicion I’ve always received from the Inquisition. Instead, they took one look at the gems of your Champions and broke out in tears.” Rosewald closed her eyes. “I fear without you, this would have been the end.”

That boded poorly. In many respects.

As Nathan had said before, the south-eastern area of Trafaumh was dense with binding stones. With the rebellion in the west, that meant much of the defensive effort against Falmir would need to draw from this well.

If the cascades had tapped that well dry, who would be ready to hold the line? Forget the breaches, Trafaumh needed Bastions and Champions to defend itself against the aggressor to the west.

Nathan worried that the only option might be for the Empire to step in to deal with Falmir. And if that happened, the political situation would completely collapse. He might be able to justify moving in as the Royal Bastion to suppress demons and deal with Soreaux’s riots, but defending Trafaumh from invasion?

That would be tantamount to claiming Trafaumh as a vassal. Deverese had one point in his ranting and raving. If a nation that once seceded from the Empire couldn’t defend itself militarily from an aggressor, it might lose its right to claim sovereignty. At least in the eyes of the nobles Nathan needed approval from in the Diet. The Crusader faction would support Fyre when she asked for their soldiers to crush Falmir, but they’d expect a unified Empire in return.

A renewed Holy Anfang Empire. The very thing Alice wanted to avoid, and that Torneus had warned Nathan was coming over drinks earlier this year.

“That sounds like you know the situation on the ground and are more than able to speak about it then,” Nathan said, finally bringing the conversation back to where it had started. “Now tell me what these tokens mean and what’s going on.”

His Champions laughed, and even Rosewald allowed herself a thin smile. She’d gone on for some time now, only to end up doing what he’d asked.

Reine explained the tokens rather than Rosewald, “The black marks indicate fortresses that have spurned us. We are keeping an eye on them, as there is the possibility an agent has infiltrated them. But there are no signs of invasion or breaches.”

“Agent?” Ester asked.

Shit. Nathan had forgotten about this in the heat of the moment with Deverese.

“Messengers are sending mind-controlled agents through the portals. We intercepted one in Waier that attempted to assassinate Archduke von Salms,” he said.

Shock rippled across the Trafaumh assemblage. Even Ester appeared taken aback.

“I’ve never been trained about such a thing. Succubi and mental manipulation, but human agents?” She looked at the inquisitors in a panic, but they were as lost as her.

“Deverese?” Astra asked from the corner.

“It’s impossible for a Bastion to be replaced like that,” Nathan said. “His links to Ester and his Champions are still in place, not to mention his other binding stones. Even replacing his Champions is impossible, as he’d notice immediately. Ester, did anyone—”

She shook her head. “Nobody’s been whispering in his ear about you. He’s, um, never really liked you after your first encounter. I think he expected something else from you and you shattered that.”

Well, at least Nathan knew he really was the reason Deverese was so different.

“Continue, Reine,” he said.

The Spymaster nodded, mask firmly in place. “The gold marks are fortresses that are willing to work with us, but are too exhausted or weakened to assist for the time being. Most Bastions have drained their binding stones dry or have almost no soldiers available.”

Recalling how few soldiers Deverese had marched out with, Nathan nodded.

“That’s almost all binding stone fortresses, but there are a handful that can lend support,” Reine continued. “Mostly in the far north-west, where the cascade was weakest. Some didn’t feel the second cascade. We received terrible news from them, however.”

“Define terrible,” Seraph asked.

“Like, Messenger terrible or Charlotte terrible?” Sen clarified.

Ciana frowned. “Those sound the same.”

“Charlotte’s been annoying, but what has she actually accomplished?”

“Caused multiple cascades including the current one, invaded Trafaumh, and has incited rebellion across it,” Fyre said, eyes narrowed in annoyance. “I’d say more, but not around everyone here.”

“Caused cascades?” Haverman gasped. “That’s… heresy!”

“No shit,” Sunstorm muttered.

“It’s complicated,” Nathan said. “But we believe the actions of the prophets anger the Messengers and demons. The current situation where Princess Charlotte is unwilling to accept the will of the Empire and the Inquisition is greatly worsening matters.”

Rosewald and Ester eyed him.

“Isn’t that just a fancy way to say that the dueling prophets is making everything worse?” Ester asked.

“Yes,” he said bluntly. “There’s been a reason I’ve been actively avoiding war at all costs, you realize?”

She winced in response. “Right. Sorry. You really have been. Everyone I know in the Inquisition expected war to have broken out by now, or that you would have made more threats when the Regal Council refused to recognize Fyre.”

“Her Holiness,” Haverman corrected.

“I’ll allow Ester to call me by name, as she is trusted by Nathan,” Fyre said.

Haverman and the inquisitors bowed to Fyre obsequiously.

Reine finally spoke up again, “The terrible news is that the Inquisition is forming a defensive line just beyond the reach of the cascade. That is luring away most military forces from Soreaux and the surrounding area. Many Bastions that can aid us aren’t certain whether they should suppress demons in eastern Trafaumh or fight off Falmir in the west.”

“So, they know Falmir is coming,” Nathan said.

“Some do.” Rosewald ran a hand over the southern fortresses. “I avoided telling most the truth. In their current state, more bad news would only harm them more.”

“I did the same,” Fyre said. “They need faith, not reality.”

Jafeila’s words from Nathan’s old world slapped him in the face. He nodded grimly.

“I understand. We stand on the edge of an abyss. I can’t even imagine how we’d handle this if you weren’t the shining light in this darkness,” he said.

Fyre’s cheeks lit up and she looked away. Yet most agreed with Nathan. Even his own Champions.

Hell, even Sunstorm nodded. She might have strongly disliked Fyre in the past, but that had faded at some point. Or perhaps Fyre’s willingness to be honest to Nathan had tempered her feelings.

“What are the green tokens?” Nathan asked.

“The private armies of nobles,” Rosewald said. “By the time we arrived at many fortresses, the invasions were over. So I took the time to visit other nobles. Not all are what I’d consider friends, but in war, everyone stands together. Falmir’s claws haven’t dug deep enough and few want to see their holdings destroyed by demons or handed over to ‘more loyal’ nobles that help Charlotte conquer Trafaumh.”

So this would be where their armies would come from.

Nathan remained silent as Reine and Rosewald ran through more details, including rough estimations of how long it might take to suppress the breach and the soldiers the nobles had pledged.

More nobles still needed to be visited over the coming days. These armies would take time to assemble. Weeks, even. Most of them lacked much experience in mustering. At best they might assemble their best fighters in a few days.

“We’ll leave the nobles to deal with Falmir and the breach,” Nathan declared. “Soreaux is the real worry.”

“We can march on it tomorrow if you want,” Fei chirped.

“No,” Seraph said.

Raised eyebrows all around. Given the festivities, Nathan had expected that everyone knew his position.

Or perhaps they assumed he wouldn’t rush matters but still wanted to move fast. Hard to say.

Nathan nodded, but gestured for Seraph to take the lead.

“We’re exhausted,” she said. “All of our knights have been fighting for 24 hours now, and we’re running on fumes. Sure, we have experience doing this in the past, but we’re lagging.”

“I’ve pulled a few all-nighters,” Sunstorm said.

“And then fought a Messenger?”

No response.

“Reine, is Soreaux burning down?” Nathan asked.

The wolfgirl shook her head. “Protests started today, but violence has been kept to a minimum. I expect things to worsen overnight. We won’t know how the Inquisition will respond until then. For now, most of their soldiers remain holed up inside the citadel.”

Nathan wondered if Baudelaire was trying to wait out the storm. If the cascade ended, she could potentially restore order without brutally slaughtering everyone.

Unfortunately, he doubted Falmir would allow that to happen. Every day that passed was one that Gareth and Beatrice might use to undermine the Inquisition and potentially try to breach the citadel with armed rioters and agents. Then Charlotte could teleport there with her own army and claim the city.

“Keep a close eye on things,” he said. “We do need to rest. More than that, we need to gather more soldiers. I rushed here with only our elite knights, because we’re fighting demons. But who knows what might happen when we enter Soreaux. Falmir is active there and will have entire rebel cells. A thousand knights isn’t enough to handle mass riots, let alone an army.”

He left the elephant in the room alone.

What if they had to crush the Inquisition itself? Haverman believed in Fyre. But for that to hold true, Fyre needed a good reason to overthrow Baudelaire. So far, the old hag was playing her cards close to her chest.

Another hour passed as he began issuing orders and assessing how many soldiers they might need to call upon. Rosewald was one of the only nobles who could reasonably assist him, mostly for political reasons. When they broke up, she handed him a note that contained some scribbles with other noble names and numbers on them.

Sympathizers among her political faction, he realized. Plus their militaries. She’d evidently been busy with Tarako.

Nathan wondered if the real reason the old fox was with Narime was out of annoyance for being caught up in Rosewald’s political schemes. He might need to fluff her tails in apology.

And, surely, he had no ulterior motive in getting his hands on Tarako’s tails. There wasn’t an entire series of books about Tarako and a Bastion that involved copious amounts of tail care. Not at all.

They broke up afterward. Some of his Champions remained behind to assist with arrangements.

After reminding everyone that they’d have days to sort everything out and the worst had passed, so they needed to get rest, Nathan left. If he loomed over them at all times, they’d never have the confidence to do things themselves.

So far, he’d succeeded by allowing them to do things themselves. While he’d made some missteps while responding to the cascades, things had worked out. Much of that was his ability to rely on his Champions. They knew how to take command and make decisions on his behalf. Now wasn’t the time to mess things up.

Once outside, he looked around for Nurevia. No sign of her.

He took a step toward where he sensed her.

“Um, Bastion Nathan, do you have a minute?” Ester asked from behind him.

Turning, he saw Ciana and Fyre standing in front of Ester. His other Champions left them be. He hadn’t realized he was being followed by more than Ciana.

“Of course,” he said. Taking in Ester’s nervous disposition, he had a hunch what this was about. “Why don’t we walk and talk?”

Gesturing toward where he had intended to go between the many tents, Nathan waited for Ester to agree. She nodded repeatedly like a puppy before trotting past Ciana and Fyre.

Silence descended as their feet crunched on the dirt. A minute passed like this.

Eventually, Ester said, “I thought this would take longer. And that I’d be more help.”

“There’s always more to do,” he said. “There’ll be demons around the breach for weeks. Soreaux is a tinderbox, just waiting for somebody to light it up. We might have missed something and a new breach might erupt. And Falmir will eventually move on us once they consolidate.”

“But that’s weeks away, right?” She sighed. “I got what I wanted. To see what things were like under you, rather than Deverese.”

“And?”

“You’re everything I dreamed of. There’s a passion and drive in everything you do and say that I’ve tried to hold onto.” Her voice filled with stars as she spoke and stared up into the night sky. “I thought Deverese held that spark. Maybe he did, but he lost it. You haven’t. But I feel so insignificant here. Sure, I helped your knights against the demons, but you have trigems. Fei vaporized armies. Narime coated the forest with her sorcery. Sen torched everything around her.”

“Last I checked, Sen’s not a trigem.”

Ester giggled. “True. That just makes me feel…”

They continued walking, wordlessly.

No sign of Nurevia. They’d passed where she should be, which meant Nathan needed to poke his head into a tent later.

For now, he focused on the conversation and directed Ester around a corner so they didn’t get too close to the edge of the camp.

“Every Champion is important. Do you really think Deverese could have held the portal without you?” he asked Ester.

She shook her head. “Of course not. But that’s Deverese. He needs me. Which is the problem. I wanted to defend my people, when he wouldn’t. But I’m not sure I can do much more now to justify abandoning my Bastion. He’ll surely be returning to Soreaux and if it’s in so much danger…”

So this was exactly what he’d expected. Nathan stopped, and Ester responded instantly. She turned to face him and looked up at him.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I feel like I—”

“Sorry for what?” he asked. “You said it yourself. A Champion’s duties are to the goddess, their country, then their Bastion.”

Well, that’s how she was taught. Nathan knew that most of his Champions would staunchly side with him over anything else. Which was a can of worms he chose to ignore.

“I know. That’s why it’s frustrating. I need to return to Deverese, because Soreaux is where I’ll be needed most and he’ll be with Inquisitor Baudelaire. But I just wish…” Ester played with one of her pigtails. “I hated you when you first showed up and brushed me aside like nothing. Like I was a silly little girl. But the passion in your eyes and voice, and the power you used to battle Baudelaire herself… I can’t forget. Ysabelle talks about Omria and voices all the time. But I can see why Fyre chose you.”

Nathan blinked. This conversation was taking an unexpected turn.

“Trafaumh is my home. And Deverese remains my Bastion. But… I hate saying this.” Her voice dropped almost to a mutter as she looked at her feet. “I wish he was like you.”

“Really?”

“Of course. Composed, driven, passionate in the right way, caring, and focused on what matters. Baudelaire is terrifying and an expert in needling people, but you handle her like a pro.” Ester gulped, then sighed. “But, as I said, Trafaumh is my home and I serve the Inquisition. It’s time for me to go home and do my duty.”

“I understand. Remember that we’re on the same side and that we want to accomplish the same thing. To protect Doumahr.” Nathan reached out and placed a hand on Ester’s shoulder.

She gripped his hand with one of her own and smiled at him. “I know. Whatever happens… I’ll remember where my true loyalties lie. But for now, I’ll see you in Soreaux, Nathan.”

Then she reached up and landed a peck on his cheek. Without another word, she turned and darted away.

Ester had run the wrong way. After a minute, she rushed back with a red face while refusing to look at him. Nathan watched as she ran past.

Ciana and Fyre looked at him with expressionless faces.

“What?” he asked them.

“I am considering the definition of irony,” Ciana said.

Fyre rolled her eyes. “I’m not that classy. But I can’t believe she left.”

Deciphering their words took effort Nathan didn’t care to apply. Especially as Ester had done something similar in his world. Back when she’d confessed her crush on Deverese, she’d landed a similarly chaste kiss on his cheek afterward. Her frustrations with him had been different, but somehow similar.

With more years under his belt, Nathan recognized the crush Ester had on him. He wondered if he’d missed signs in his old world.

For now, he needed to find Nurevia. He worried about her.

She lay on a bedroll in an otherwise empty tent. Once he found her, Nathan chased away Fyre and Ciana. Rather than leave, they chose to stand guard out the front. So he placed some wards on the tent. For what little good it might do given they could eavesdrop on him using the mental links.

“Tired?” he asked Nurevia.

“Mrrm,” she mumbled, turning over to face him. “Why are you here?”

“You’re my Champion and have gone missing. I wanted to make sure nothing happened.”

“Oh. You keep doing that. Even back in Straub…” Nurevia bit her lip.

Her hands ran along her dark skin. She wore so little that Nathan didn’t need to imagine much, as her abundant cleavage spilled out across her chest as she fondled them for his viewing pleasure.

“Don’t you want to make use of your living body pillow?” she murmured, eyes fixed on his crotch.

The use of the Twins’ insult reminded him of exactly what the problem might be.

“Are you sure? I figured your third gem might help, but…” He narrowed his eyes.

“Help with what? The fact I’m just a replacement for the real Nurevia?”

“No.” He kneeled next to her. “You’re the only Nurevia for me. The real one.”

“But there’s an infinite number of me. If I annoy you, those succubi can just replace me. Hell, you can just twist my mind up like you did Tharban.” Her purple eyes locked onto his, even as her hands began to undo his pants. “Why haven’t you? I know that you hate the things I make you do. You’re a softie in bed. Hell, Ciana’s told me that you like her to act a bit rough and insult you.”

He choked back a laugh at the idea that he might be a “sub” in Nurevia’s mind. Given the way he often treated the succubi in bed, that wasn’t really true.

Her fingers popped his cock out and he felt warm air rush over it. The dark elf shifted and kneeled in front of him, her shapely ass sticking up. Her breath washed over his length.

“I could be anything you want me to be. You’ve made me your trigem. Become greater than anything I ever imagined, and greater even than any Bastion in history. You’re not the Nathan that walked away from me all those years ago, but you’re the Nathan who’s been reshaping me. So shouldn’t you finish the job? Use this huge cock and all that power of yours to make me the Nurevia of your dreams.”

He knew there’d only be one way to clear things up. And that would be to give Nurevia what she lusted for.

More than that, he needed to remind her that he loved her for who she was. She didn’t need magic to change, because she had done everything herself.

First, though, he needed to deal with the fire running through his cock as her tongue lapped around the rim of his glans. Her lips suckled on the very tip while she smirked up at him.

“You are the Nurevia of my dreams,” he grunted.

Then he grabbed the back of her head and stuffed his entire cock down her throat.

[nurevia sex scene and character stuff in full book]

- - - - -

Commentary: Sex scenes often get finalized as the very last thing in the book. In this case, Nurevia's scene will likely be one of the last as I want to revisit it and potentially rework it entirely if I get the chance (as I know some people skip sex scenes entirely and integrating her character development into one will mean they'll miss it).

Otherwise, the aftermath of the cascades and breaches is pretty clear. This is effectively a scenario that would have destroyed Trafaumh in Nathan's world, much like the Empire collapsed, but he's narrowly averted a complete collapse. We're building up to Soreaux now.