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575. Letters and Leave

A period of calm followed after the raid. As Martel and Eleanor resumed their patrolling, they no longer encountered the enemy. Day after day passed with no sign. At first, Martel suspected this was only the sort of calm that preceded a storm, and he continued to wait for what he assumed to be the inevitable resumption of ambushes and fight for control of the area.

Yet a month passed and another, without either the mages or the common legionaries seeing any evidence of Khivan activity. ...

574. The Pace of Victory

The two Asterians and their Tyrian scout ran all they could, the latter in front. She knew the terrain and the route home, and even without magic, she was swift; Martel had to use bursts of his power to catch up every now and then. Any sounds of shooting or shouting faded behind them, though Martel knew they were far from having escaped danger; they had a long journey ahead of them back to the outpost.

After they had been running for a while, Freydis finally stopped. As they caught thei...

573. Mage of Fire

Nothing further happened that day; either Khivans had yet to pass by, or they had already done so earlier. In case it was the former, the two Asterians and their Tyrian guide made camp, trying to disguise their presence as best they could. Freydis arranged their brown cloaks like a primitive tent to shield them from unfriendly eyes, at least from a distance. Martel and Eleanor placed their runes of warning at the most likely approaches, and they used the same schedule for keeping watch as las...

572. On Crooked Paths

Before Martel and Eleanor could leave the next morning, they were intercepted by the legionary. "Prefects, Sir Avery bids you join her."

Eleanor glanced at Martel, who shrugged. "Very well."

They quickly traversed the outpost to reach the tent of its resident commander. Stepping inside, they found not only the mageknight, but also Wulfstan waiting for them.

"Prefects. Instead of your usual patrolling, I have a task for you. I will let the legate's liaison explain."

Wul...

571. A Light in the Dark

This time, Martel was not in doubt; the Khivans knew to expect him and Eleanor. About ten of them were just ahead, spread out in a semicircle. They must have spotted the mages approaching and prepared their ambush accordingly, taking positions and waiting for the pair to walk into the trap.

Crouched next to him, Eleanor watched him with an unspoken question on her lips. In response, Martel held up all of his fingers. Next, he pointed to the left and described with his finger the semicir...

570. Hardened Defences

The easy days of pleasant weather and peaceful patrolling did not last, Martel realised, as a bullet whistled past him. Whether the Khivans lay in wait for him and Eleanor, or whether they had surprised the Khivans, he could not tell; the result was the same regardless. Seven enemies, by his count as sensed by his magic, could be found dispersed around them. Nobody approaching from the back though.

Reaching out with his magic, Martel found the musket that had just fired at him and crump...

569. A Heart of Bronze

As Martel and Eleanor were on their way for their daily outing, they could not help but notice the activity in the middle of the outpost. Using rope, mules, and legionaries, efforts were undertaken to roll the captured cannons out of camp. All of this was overseen by Wulfstan, which made Martel curious, given their conversation yesterday. Evidently, the spy had a vested interest in these weapons, which was understandable; they gave the Khivans an advantage that so far had held the Asterian le...

568. One Shall Follow the Other

The next day's patrol proved as eventless. It seemed the Khivans had retreated to lick their wounds, pulling further back and abandoning the immediate area to the Asterians. Neither Martel and Eleanor nor any of the patrols made by the regular legionaries saw any sign of the enemy. While Martel knew this would not last, it heartened him to know that something good had come from the assault upon the outpost.

The Khivan cannons were truly fearsome, and being trapped behind walls under ass...

567. Intelligent Conversation

While a lot of repairs and other work still needed to be done in and around the outpost, clearing up after the battle, Martel and Eleanor would not lend further aid to these efforts; as a new day dawned, they had their orders of resuming daily patrols. First to be ready for departure, Martel idled about in the middle of the outpost, waiting for Eleanor. It was late in the morning; both mages had required a lot of sleep these last few nights after the battle, recuperating their strength.

566. A Matter of Courage

Martel did not have the numbers, but he suspected that the Asterians had lost as many soldiers as the Khivans by pursuing them into the forest. Once pursuit was no longer feasible, they began a slow march back towards the outpost, through woods littered by bodies. While Martel had fought dozens of skirmishes in the woodland hills surrounding the outpost, they had always been brief, involving only a handful of enemies and Asterians alike. Walking mile after mile back towards camp, seeing corps...

565. Blood upon the Leaves

If the sounds of battle had been loud and dissonant before, it all turned into a cacophony as the mounted cohort of the Tenth Legion arrived. Horses thundered into the clearing, legionaries on the walls cheered, and the Khivans discharged their weapons. Finally daring to leave his spot, Martel went up on the wall.

Gazing out, he saw the reinforcements sweep into the clearing while the Khivans hastily retreated. Relieved, Martel dismissed his spell. Only one concern remained. Swiftly, he...

564. Walls of Spark and Stone

Martel woke to the sound of a cannon's roar. Besides being a rude awakening, it also served as an unpleasant reminder of their situation. In some ways, the uncertainty was the worst part. Would the next shot bring the wall down? Would it take ten or twenty? Would it hold until reinforcements arrived, or would the other cohorts only find ruins and bodies when they finally reached the outpost?

Martel did his best to push such questions from his mind, knowing it to be useless speculation. ...

563. Fireflies in the Night

The walls held until nightfall. Whether they would continue to do so, nobody could say; Martel was the only one with the least bit of knowledge concerning enchantment, and even he dared not guess.

Outside their tent, the battlemage and his protector prepared for their task. They covered all metal to prevent any reflection of moonlight; Martel dearly wished he knew how to conjure clouds. He left behind his staff, and Eleanor her shield; raw magic would have to do, whether in terms of off...

562. Weapons of War

Given the simplicity of the fortifications, the tower in each corner was little more than a raised platform on the walls, allowing archers and sentinels a better vantage point. Martel and Eleanor hurried up the stairs until they could join Valerius, surrounded by legionaries, all of them staring towards the treeline.

"What is the situation?" Eleanor asked as soon as they reached him.

The mageknight pointed towards the forest. "Plenty of movement going on. They must have marched th...

561. The Eye of the Storm

They marched through the day, balancing their conflicting needs of haste and stealth. Martel used his magical sense regularly, staying vigilant; neither of them spoke, using only touch and gestures to communicate whenever either suspected that others might be near. Martel was keenly aware of how much magic he had spent fighting off the ambush; he might have enough spellpower for another skirmish, but not a third.

As night fell, it lessened the risk of being discovered at the expense of ...

560. The Straight Path

To travel on horseback between Esmouth and the outpost, it was necessary to stick to the dirt road made by Henry months prior. Martel and Eleanor rode at a trot until darkness fell, and they decided to halt. Both paid extra attention to their runes of warning, trying to cover their small camp from every approach.

"Do you think the Khivans will beat us to it?" Martel asked, as the silence of the forest settled around them, broken by the occasional insect or the horses snorting.

"Im...

559. Brief Respite

Martel and Eleanor went straight to the legate's house. The other prefects had gathered in the atrium, discussing the same news that Eleanor had brought him. Though one of them was able to tear himself away from the topic; with a disdainful smile, the decurion looked towards Martel. "This is a council of war; who sent for the alchemist?"

Demonstratively, Martel turned his back towards Dominic. He lacked the mood and the energy for any witty retort. "What do we know?" he asked of Lucius,...

558. Disruption

Day by day passed without Martel taking much note of them. He laboured his available hours in the workshop, creating potion after potion. At times, when he felt tired, he might momentarily believe himself to be back in the warehouse in Morcaster; he thought he heard the voices of Mistress Rana or Nora, or if someone entered the workshop, he thought it might be either of them.

In the infirmary, the cots slowly became empty. Some recovered on their own, others were healed by Martel's elix...

557. Spiders

Martel waited until evening before he dared to begin actually brewing, giving the plants further time to dry. Until then, he did his best to handle all the other steps by instructing the helpers at his disposal that they could churn out prepared reagents for him to use, much like the apothecaries had done so in the warehouse in Morcaster during the pestilence.

A crucial difference was that the men at his disposal had no experience with this work, and Martel found himself in the same sit...

556. Nocturnal Gathering

Swift activities followed Martel's return, though with complications. The Tyrians set up another abandoned building to act as storage where harvested ingredients would be brought and processed; a few of their number along with some legionaries received the task of doing the latter, preparing them to be used. However, a lack of tools meant only a few could be at work at the same time.

As for his workshop, Martel wanted to emulate the warehouse back in Morcaster, where he and the other al...

555. Blue Skin

Martel and Eleanor were on their way out of the small camp when a voice called out. "Prefects, one moment!" They both turned around to find Florence, the mageknight in charge, striding towards them. "This came for you yesterday." She handed over a brief missive.

Reading it, Eleanor looked up. "Why are we only receiving it now?"

Florence shrugged. "You weren't in camp when it arrived, and I forgot. Safe journey." She walked away.

Grumbling, Eleanor handed over the missive to ...

554. Suppression

Martel practically fell to the ground, bullets flying over his head. Next to him, Eleanor appeared, blood on her blade. "Situation?" was all she asked.

Martel closed his eyes and let his magical sense flow in every direction. The trees interrupted his reading here and there, but he received enough information to understand their predicament. "Bad," he simply replied at first. "Several around us, in every direction except that." He pointed to his right. "They are moving. Complete the cir...

553. Predators and Prey

On the morrow, ten legionaries including their princeps stood in the middle of the outpost, gathered underneath the cohort banner. Seeing two prefects approach, they stood at attention.

"Princeps," Eleanor said, "we shall be conducting patrols on our own. You and your men may go northeast and north, while Martel and I shall go southeast and south."

"Sir," the princeps mumbled, "we were told we have mages with us. Considering enemy activity, we all feel better with magic by our sid...

552. An Intelligent Suggestion

As Martel woke the next morning, he spent a moment pulling himself together before he finally got up. He did not look forward to three days of horseback riding, or the thought of being back at the outpost with the daily patrols once that journey ended. At least he would have a few days alone in the company of Eleanor, and last night had been pleasant, save for his brief encounter with the decurion.

Once they were both ready, they made their way towards Esmouth and the stables. This time...

551. Fires of Solstice

Unlike the last time he was invited to the legate's house, Martel kept his expensive clothes in his chest. Instead, he simply dressed in one of his red robes like he would on an ordinary day. Leaving his tent, he waited outside until Eleanor joined him, likewise clad in her usual black tunic.

"Sir Martel, not wearing your finest today?"

"Borrowed feathers. This is who I am."

"I find you look rather dashing in a doublet, but given my own choice of attire, I shall not chastise...

550. Keeping Count

After three days of travel, they reached the camp. Seeing the walls at the end of the road, Martel felt a sense of homecoming, stronger than he would have expected, only marred by the discomfort of his body being stiff and sore over.

They reached the river, crossed the bridge, and rode through Esmouth until they arrived at the stables, and he could mercifully dismount. They remove their belongings from the saddle bags and left the animals in the care of stable hands.

"Are you comi...

549. Between the Trees

Martel did not know whether to stare at Eleanor or the two horses. "I don't know how to ride," he told her, dropping his pack on the ground that he might cross his arms.

"You are a prefect, and it is time you learn. This is the perfect opportunity." She opened his pack and stuffed the contents into a saddlebag.

"But the post riders need these horses. You know, to ride with the post." Martel looked around as if he might spot one of them to bolster his argument.

"They can spar...

548. In the Forests of the Night

Martel reached out with magic and crumpled the tip of the Khivan's musket. That still left six enemies ahead of them and two behind. They had changed tactics, using only sharpshooters; none of them engaged in close combat. "I'll draw their fire," Eleanor told him. She ran with empowered speed through the forest.

Focusing on the enemies behind, Martel could destroy one of their muskets the same way as the others. The second, however, had yet to fire his weapon, and Martel had no way of a...

547. Ostracised

They saw no further sign of Khivans, neither that night or the following days. It seemed to have been a lone patrol, returning to find the Asterians occupying the camp and taking what revenge they could. With their muskets gone – the Asterians found most of them discarded in the forest, their barrels shattered – the Khivans had vanished into the woods; the Tyrian scouts found no trace of them.

Without further interruptions, work on the outpost continued. Under Henry's supervision, t...

546. Heat and Metal

The shot woke Martel. He stared in the dark, confused as he summoned a flame for light, until he recognised the small tent he shared with Eleanor. On the other side of the cloak dividing the space, he heard her stir as well. "Wait here," she told him, "and let me go first."

She left the tent, and he could see her wearing only a tunic but armed with sword and shield, looking in every direction. He grabbed his robe – putting on armour in the dark while crouched inside the tent was a foo...