Heretic Spellblade 6 - Ch4

Chapter 4

“I know,” Janice grunted. “There might be more, though, and I know the city. Given the head start they have, I’ll need to take shortcuts to beat her to the palace. If you root out others here—”

Nathan bit back a laugh, as it would be insulting. “We’re not wasting time on foot. Keep everyone on lockdown while we deal with this. Sunstorm, tell Sen and Fei to rest until we return. Meet me at the exit.”

Sunstorm teleported without another word, leaving Nathan to prepare his own teleportation spell. The Twins snickered at Janice’s confusion.

“Do you need to bring anyone else? I can bring a small squad if you trust anyone.” He paused, then looked at the Twins. “Can you even detect any agents?”

“Duh. This dipshit elite—call him Bauer, although I think his first name is Jack or something—uses mental magic to control everyone. While he’s good at it, he can’t hold a candle to actual succubi.” They puffed out their oversized chests, which should have caused them to topple over.

“So there aren’t any nearby?”

“Nah. We’d have told you to kill them if so.”

Janice and the other Champions scowled, but remained silent.

“Then we can take a unit of your knights if you want them,” Nathan told Janice. “But be quick.”

Without another word to him, Janice picked out a dozen knights, including the officer who had reported the agent to begin with.

“Then we’ll move to the portal—”

Nathan cut them off with his teleportation spell. By now, he’d worked out the kinks and could move a group of people without much effort. They reappeared by the exit from the portal.

Squeaks of surprise escaped the knights. They looked around, weapons raised, before realizing where they were.

“I understand now,” Janice said, narrowing her eyes. “You plan to teleport us to the palace.”

“Yes. Head start or not, the palace is a decent jaunt from the castle. We’ll reach Otto first,” he said, using Archduke von Salms’ first name.

She simply nodded. Seconds passed as they waited for Sunstorm to arrive. Afterward, they stepped into the grand hall of the castle.

Little had changed since he arrived here an hour or so ago. A small unit of guards remained by the doors, along with the immobile statues that guarded the gate into the portal itself.

Nathan ordered everyone to form up in the center of the hall, then began to cast another teleportation spell.

“Wait, do you even know where we’re going?” Maura interrupted. “You can blind teleport using leylines, but doing it without one will put you in a wall. I might be able to survive becoming one with a ton of rock, but you need to breathe, despite your growing…” she trailed off with a glance at the knights around them. “Girth.”

Janice glared at the succubus.

“Thanks,” he drawled, aware that Maura complimented his penis as a way to avoid bringing up the sensitive topic of his growing inhumanity. “And I do.”

Explaining why was a difficult topic among the current audience. Waier had become one of Trafaumh’s holdings, as it had remained largely untouched by the demonic invasion that felled the Empire. He’d visited it multiple times in his lifetime and knew both the castle and palace very well.

Somehow, the succubi automatically understood. Maura nodded and backed off.

He finished his teleportation spell. One hall vanished and another appeared. A solid crystal throne stood on a raised dais on the far end, but was the only furnishing in the chamber. Three pairs of solid steel doors barred the entrances. A small assortment of well-dressed men and women stood around the throne, although the best dressed man sat on it.

The moment they appeared, fifty knights in ducal guard uniforms raised their weapons and shouted at Nathan. Spell frames appeared around weapons and chaos nearly broke out.

“Stand down,” Janice snapped.

“Janice!” an unfamiliar man gasped out, striding over from the throne. Bastion Herman, Nathan surmised. “What are you doing here? How did you—”

“Bastion Nathan assisted us in defeating the Messenger, but there’s a new threat on the way,” Janice said. “An assassination attempt directed at either you or the archduke.” She paused and bowed at the man on the throne. “Your Grace.”

Archduke Otto von Salms raised a hand and the guards calmed. In Nathan’s mind, Otto wasn’t memorable for his looks, but for his position and wealth. He was maybe a decade older than Nathan, but as archduke he controlled nearly a third of the Empire’s territory west of the Gharrick Mountains. His dark eyes considered Nathan for several long moments.

His wife merely glared. She was an eerily similar image to Empress Alice, although a little younger and far less pretty. Otto had attempted to take Alice’s hand in marriage in the past, and appeared to have never gotten over his failure.

The fact Nathan counted Otto as an ally said much, given Alice was Nathan’s fiancé.

“Given your method of arrival, I assume you believe there’s a plot afoot, Lord Nathan?”

“Yes, Your Grace,” Nathan said, choosing to be polite given he was in Otto’s domain. “The Messenger is sending an agent after you. One that has disguised itself as a member of your ducal guard.”

“Archducal guard,” Otto corrected mildly. “But I understand. All too well.”

His expression darkened. Nathan saw Herman and Janice both stiffen, as they interpreted Otto’s reaction negatively.

Before they could do anything, the front doors burst open. Twenty knights burst in, led by the same woman Nathan had seen escaping the blast in the portal.

“Your Grace, we need to escape immediately. The Messenger… has…” The agent froze, her eyes scanning the room. “General Janice, how are you here? What is the meaning of this?”

“Seize her,” Janice said coldly.

The knights accompanying the agent stood there, dumbfounded, while those that Nathan had teleported tackled her to the ground. Everyone else watched in confusion.

“Given your statement of confidence earlier, Bastion Nathan, I assume you can assure me that my captain is, in fact, some sort of doppelganger or agent of darkness?” Janice asked, face taut.

“Janice, wait,” Herman snapped. “Under what basis are we doing this?”

“Captain Roth claimed that I ordered her to evacuate you and the archduke. I did no such thing. Regardless of Bastion Nathan’s claims, that’s suspicious.”

While Herman bit his lip and nodded, Nathan looked at the Twins. They simply rolled their eyes.

“Duh,” Maura said. “She’s got Messenger stink all over her. Bauer has her mind in a vice. Dunno what happened to the original—probably targeted by Momoko—but this isn’t her. She’s oozing with power.”

Nathan reached out with his own mental magic and felt that same ominous presence surrounding Captain Roth.

That also confirmed Maura’s statement that Bauer lacked the skill of the succubi. Sure, this sort of mental magic impressed Nathan, but it failed to compare to even Kadria’s efforts. And Kadria sucked at mental magic. She’d managed to keep her influence over Fyre hidden until he probed Fyre’s core, and even then he hadn’t been sure of what he’d been dealing with. Kadria had even misled him to believe she wasn’t the one responsible.

So this Bauer lacked subtlety. Ironic, given Nathan recalled being skeptical of the Twins’ ability to be subtle.

“General Janice, you would believe this heretical scum over me,” Roth screamed. “They’re Messengers, and he’s consorting with them!”

Janice’s expression turned thunderous. But she wasn’t the one who corrected the agent.

“No, dear doppelganger, we don’t believe a heretic over you,” Otto said, leaning his head on one palm. “We believe a hero of the Empire over you, a woman who has disobeyed orders from your general and lied to your subordinates in order to breach my inner sanctum. Bastion Nathan is in Empress Alice’s highest confidences, and given his role in suppressing multiple demonic breaches that threatened the Empire, he is almost beyond reproach.”

Herman nodded. Nathan hid his surprise, given that both Janice and her Bastion had reacted negatively based on Otto’s cryptic comment earlier.

“But…” Roth’s eyes widened in terror.

She looked at Nathan, then the Twins.

Finally, her gaze focused on Otto. She appeared lost.

An odd feeling told Nathan otherwise. He reached for his sword, gathering magic.

Before he could draw his blade, Roth flexed her inhuman strength. The knights holding her down flew across the room, clattering off the stonework. She shot to her feet and roared across the room. Nathan followed her, but he doubted anyone else did. Otto barely blinked even as Roth crossed half the room.

Sunstorm appeared in front of the traitor in a puff of darkness. Her twin swords crossed in front of her body as both of her onyxes glowed. Roth’s eyes widened.

Then Roth’s body froze, crackling with energy as she spasmed and her skin blackened and bubbled. A gurgle barely escaped her before she collapsed to the ground.

Janice stood, sword pointed at the fallen Messenger agent, and her three sapphires glowed.

She’d perished before Nathan got the chance to learn her powers, but he now knew that her trigem ability involved some sort of devastating offensive gem ability. Presumably, her first two strengthened or sped up her spellcasting, given her earlier performance.

“I appreciate the assistance, Champion, but I am more than capable of ensuring the safety of the archduke in his own domain,” Janice said, inclining her head to Sunstorm. “But your swiftness is respected. It’s not often I get to fight alongside other trigems. Let alone two today.”

A breath escaped Otto as he straightened in his chair. His wife let out a strangled squeal and nearly fainted. With a gesture, Otto had her escorted out of the room by some knights. Then he rose and walked over to the fallen agent.

He bit his lip. “She is dead, right?”

“Oh, yeah,” Maura drawled. “Not a single neuron firing in that skull of hers.”

“Lord Nathan, could you order your pets to speak only when spoken to,” Otto said, annoyance crossing his face.

“Ooh, so we’re seen as pets,” Maura said with a grin.

“That’s hot,” Laura said.

Nathan rubbed the bridge of his nose and buzzed both of them with mental magic. They merely smirked at him.

When Laura opened her mouth to taunt him, he chose not to be nice this time. His next use of mental magic sent them sprawling to the ground.

He really thought he’d moved past the point where he needed to discipline them like this.

“Better,” Otto said, completely unshaken by Nathan’s ability to disable the Twins without saying a word. “Herman, this is a matter of utmost secrecy. I need to discuss more with Lord Nathan.”

Herman seemed to understand what that meant. He gave a half-bow, then issued orders to the knights. Almost all of them cleared out of the room, leaving only a handful behind. Janice ordered those that had been teleported here to remain outside for her and Nathan.

Once their numbers had dwindled, Otto sighed. “Nathan, this is quite the catastrophe. Two breaches in a matter of months, a cascade, and now a direct attempt on my life. Was this truly an attack by a Messenger, or a ploy by Falmir?”

Ah, so that’s what Otto had meant earlier. Nathan relaxed.

“This isn’t related to Maylis or the succubus who turned her against the Empire,” he said.

Herman and Janice grimaced. Very few people knew the truth of why Maylis had fallen. Otto knew because of his position, and the risk that Beatrice might attempt something similar again. The succubus countermeasures indicated he’d taken the threat seriously.

“You’re saying the Messengers are genuinely sharp enough to attempt to kill me, even where they fail at an invasion?” Otto asked.

“You said this is top secret, Otto. Well, what I’m telling you now is even more secret,” Nathan said. “Both this invasion and the one that caused the cascade have been caused by Messengers so powerful that only the goddess herself stopped them in the past. Or at least, that’s what Astra tells me.”

“Shit,” Herman breathed out. “They’re reacting to the prophet.”

“Of course they are,” Otto muttered bitterly. He began to pace. “Humanity is regaining the light and power that allowed us to build the greatest Empire Doumahr has ever known. The demons know that if they can’t stop us now, they won’t ever succeed. This means the other invasions might be as bad. Herman—”

“None of the other portals in our territory was ready for a Messenger invasion,” Herman said. “I’ll assume the worst, however.”

“Good. Nathan, where’s Her Holiness?”

It took Nathan a second to realize Otto meant Fyre. He hadn’t realized the man was quite this religious.

Then again, Nathan had been like this in the past. To the general public, he came across just as faithful.

“Returning from Soreaux,” he half-lied.

Because while Fyre was supposedly returning from Trafaumh’s capital, Nathan didn’t really know where she was right now.

“Then—”

“Otto, that’s not all,” Nathan said. “Falmir has invaded Trafaumh. Alice put you on alert that they might strike our borders as well, but the Imperial Spymaster doesn’t believe that’s happened. We do know that Falmir has instigated a rebellion in western Trafaumh and is marching on Soreaux with their armies.”

Silence descended.

“Demons and war,” Janice said. “It truly does sound like the descension of Omria, then. When she united humanity and led us to crush those who opposed us.”

“Except we were crushing beastkin, not humans,” Otto said.

“The prophet is a beastkin,” Nathan said.

“True.” Otto’s face turned into a mask. “I have no patience for Falmir’s warmongering or their false prophet. Tell Alice that my armies will be ready on the borders and that I’ll ensure the security of all binding stones here. But the western border is…”

“The Nationalists are still there and the cascade hasn’t reached that far.”

Herman snorted. “We’re trusting in Tharban after what happened down south? You’re the last person I thought to trust in the Warhound, Nathan.”

“No,” Nathan said. “But it means we have an army on that border and we’ll know if something happens. I’ll let Alice know, Otto. Given the chaos and the likelihood I’ll be marching on Soreaux myself, she’ll appreciate it.”

Otto’s expression softened. “Excellent. Omria’s blessing, Nathan. Although I suppose you have that.”

Nathan and Janice left while Otto and Herman began discussing deployments. Little of interest happened back in the portal, although Nathan had the Twins scan the remaining soldiers for any possible agents. Sen and Fei confirmed nobody had left.

“Whatever comes, Bastion, I doubt we’ll be on the same front,” Janice said, saluting him with a fist over her chest. “But it was an honor to fight alongside you and your Champions today. Thank you for defending Waier.”

Given Nathan had endangered it by causing the cascade in the first place, he found the thanks a little poisonous. Instead, he simply nodded.

“The worst is still to come, unfortunately,” he said.

“War.”

“War,” he agreed. “I don’t think Falmir will stop at anything less.”

With that, he exited the portal and gathered his Champions. Plus the Twins, who hadn’t spoken a word since he used mental magic on them.

He gave them an odd look. They returned it. Then they poked him with mental magic, still silent. Fei giggled at their expressions and poked Maura’s cheek, which caused the succubus to bat away the catgirl.

“Can you really not speak?” he asked.

The succubi bared their teeth at him, but remained silent.

“Um, I rescind my earlier order?” he said, uncertainly.

Not a peep.

Strange. He couldn’t even recall ordering them to remain silent. Sure, he’d intended for them to shut up around Otto, but hadn’t directly said as much. Rather, he’d just slapped them around with mental magic with that in mind.

Recalling earlier instances of how he’d ordered the Twins with his voice, he repeated his words with more force. “I rescind my earlier order.”

Both succubi sighed, then shivered.

“Fucked if I know if I’ll get used to that,” Maura said. “Like, I’m used to being ordered around, but not being a literal fucking pet. Your orders have always been kind of temporary before, but this one stuck. Hell, you never even said it aloud. Try not to order us to do anything stupid, right? I think we’re way more susceptible due to the whole mind parasite thing.”

“Or maybe we just like it this way.” Laura giggled.

“Seems that way,” Sunstorm drawled. “I think we’ve spent enough time here. Although I wouldn’t mind being told what the fuck has gone down, I think everyone needs to find out. And while I’m beat, I bet there are other portals in danger.”

Nathan nodded. “We need to return to Aleich and check with Reine and Seraph. If we’re lucky, this might be it.”

“Except Trafaumh.”

He looked at Sen, who leaned against him, half-asleep.

“No. We need to rest,” he said quietly. “The Order of Trafaumh may need to fend for itself for a night.”

He hated saying that. Especially as he knew that a breach might destroy everything he’d worked to achieve.

Yet if he ran himself ragged, he couldn’t hope to stop a powerful Messenger. Two elites had struck against him already. What if a third took advantage of the chaos? This one, Bauer, had been far weaker than Artemis, but strong enough to overcome multiple trigems.

In fact, without Sen’s aid, he wondered how he’d have stopped the berserk Tomoe. He may need to improve his ascended magic.

Or, perhaps, to increase the number of allies capable of stopping something like Tomoe. Fyre probably could. But he had a certain Messenger in mind. One who had remained on the sidelines until now.

“Let’s go home,” he said. “To Aleich.”

- - - - -

Commentary: Politics. Also, Nathan's mental powers grow again.

The Twins get an outsized presence in the intro chapters, but will probably shrink away for a few chapters. Although you can expect a fair bit of them in general. With how important Messengers are, it's difficult to keep them out of the limelight. But given how easily the Twins dominate a scene and chew the scenery, I need to find ways to prevent them from shoving everyone else out of the way.

Anyway, I think this makes for a better intro than the original one I had at the start of the year. Hopefully you agree.