Chương 25: B6C24 - Readiness

Heat haze drifted thick over the distant dunes, the rising air so scorching even birds avoided it until greater altitudes where it had cooled. As far as the eye could see, the rolling waves of sand rose and fell in an endless, shifting pattern. Looking at it during the day was known to cause pain and even temporary blindness as the harsh sun reflected off the sand.

When the dune winds blew, picking up the sand and whipping it through the air fast enough to cut stone, standing here, in the place Alicenza stood now, was as good as a death sentence. Thankfully, the outriders reported no sign of gathering winds and the dune skimmers were yet to report anything untoward was happening out on the sands. Yet, that didn't mean it would stay that way for long. Nobody lived this close to the desert without understanding the importance of vigilance.

"There hasn't been a crossing of the desert from the west in a thousand years or more," a voice from beside her complained. Alicenza lowered her looking-glass, holding in a sigh.

"Brother, there hasn't been an entire province put to the sword in that time either. And yet, here we are." Cholize, or Chol as she called him, ran a hand through his short black hair, peering into the distance without the aid of any tools. A fruitless endeavor.

"Do you believe that they really destroyed the entire province?" he said doubtfully.

"There are millions of people living there."

"There were," she corrected him, raising the looking-glass once more. Enchanted to cut out the glare and magnify her vision, it was a useful tool for anyone trying to keep an eye on the desert. The two of them had chewed over this same argument a dozen times and neither truly had the energy for it anymore. No matter what anyone said, Chol struggled to accept that the Empire would kill so many of its own people. Alicenza, two years older and a proper teenager, knew better.

Their ancestors had done this much and worse to parts of the Empire before. No matter the cost, they would never compromise on the mission that had been set before their descendants.

"Where's Father?" Chol asked.

"I don't see him."

"He went with Vincent further out into the dunes," she told him absently.

"Is it safe out there? What if the Dust Folk come?"

"Father has fought the Dust Folk his entire life. He will be fine." Chol was supposed to take up the mantle and fight against the strange creatures of the desert when he grew older, but so far the quiet boy had shown little inclination to the military arts. Hopefully that would change upon his Awakening and he received a good Martial Class. Alicenza herself secretly hoped that she would become a Dune Scout, but knew it was far more likely she would take after her mother and inherit the title of her house.

"Your father is on his way back, children," a deep voice rumbled from behind them. They both turned to see their bodyguard, a mountain of a dark-skinned man with twin swords peeking over his shoulders, staring out into the distance.

"You can see him?" Alicenza asked.

"I can." She couldn't, not even with the looking-glass. Truly the gifts of the Unseen were mighty indeed. She couldn't wait until she turned eighteen and had her Awakening.

"Is everything alright?" Chol asked, always the worrier, and the huge man laughed.

"Everything is fine, little raincloud. Do not fear, your father returns in the same number of pieces as he left. You will see him come around the dune there in just a few moments." Eager to see, Chol and Alicenza both turned to follow his outstretched finger. True to his words, there was a disturbance at the foot of the dune, sand flying and sliding a moment before a group of riders burst into view, a white-robed figure at their head.

Alicenza knew just how difficult it was to ride a dune hopper, since she'd been having lessons lately, but the way those riders moved with their lizard mounts made it seem as though they were one and the same creature. It was frustrating. She was certain she didn't look anywhere near that graceful when she was riding, no matter what her teacher said. As the riders drew closer, the two un-Awakened youths waved and jumped, eager to draw their father's eye.

Sure enough, the white rider peeled away from the rest of the pack and moved towards them. A dozen metres away, he pulled up, slowing the dune hopper until it stopped moving, then gave it a little longer to settle. Tongue flickering, the creature eyed the children sideways, its several eyelids blinking rapidly. Behind them, the giant man stepped forward, one hand rising to his blades.

"Hold a moment, Massan. I have meat here somewhere. Ah." Ripping into the packs strapped along the scaly hide of his mount, the white-clad figure withdrew a hunk of bloody meat wrapped in muslin. Not bothering to peel it off, he simply dismounted, they walked to the head of the creature and lobbed the bundle in the air. Faster than eyes could follow, the hopper snapped up the meat, its razor-sharp teeth shearing through the bone and snapping the cartilage in seconds.

Satisfied that the beast had been settled, the new arrival unwound the cloth from around his head, revealing a handsome but weathered brown face and eyes, a slight smile on his face.

"I wish you wouldn't bring the beasts so close to the children," Massan chided.

"There have been many accidents in the past."

"I trust my handling of the great lizards, but more than that, I trust you will keep them safe, Massan. And why are my children here on the dunes anyway? It's hot enough to cook stew on the ground."

"We heard about the invasion from the west," Alicenza said enthusiastically.

"We wanted to come and see for ourselves." The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Chol didn't speak up, but simply nodded.

"And how did you hear of this?" their father asked, frowning.

"Mother was discussing it with the chamberlain."

"And the two of you were eavesdropping again. Am I right?" Alicenza did her best to look innocent.

"I just happened to overhear, Father."

"Oh, I'm sure," he laughed, ruffling her hair.

"My ever-curious daughter would never be listening to things she wasn't supposed to hear, leaning around corners and pressing her ear against doors."

"Of course not," she said, looking solemn.

"She did," Chol muttered, and got his foot stomped for his betrayal.

"Did you see anything, Lord Sathin?" Massan rumbled, still standing between the children and the hopper.

"Any sign of invasion?"

"I did not," the Lord replied, placing a soothing hand on the head of each of his children.

"Even the Dust Folk are being unusually quiet out there. In fact, I barely saw any kin. The dunes haven't been so peaceful in years." Chol and Alicenza were greatly relieved, such that they didn't notice the serious look exchanged between the two men watching over them. Quiet Dust Folk? No rift-kin terrorising the sands? These were the signs that something unusual was happening. Something serious. If the Dust Folk weren't active and killing the kin, then who was?

"There, see? No need to worry, children. Now, it is too hot and too dry for young Nobles to be out here under the sun, especially ones who haven't Awakened yet. Massan will take you home. If you hurry, your mother may not notice that you've snuck away."

"We didn't sneak away!" Alicenza protested, but not especially convincingly. Chol pulled on her sleeve and the hot-headed young teen soon allowed herself to be dragged back towards the sand sled they had travelled on, leaving Massan and his Lord with a few moments to speak.

"How bad is it?" Massan asked.

"Nobody knows. Word from the Central Province has been confusing, to say the least, until recently anyway. If the latest missives are accurate, then we could be invaded by a force of tens of thousands of highly advanced undead." Heavily muscled beneath his tunic and leather armour, there wasn't much that looked as though it could rattle the stoic warrior, but even Massan blinked at those words. Tens of thousands of undead would be horrifying.

"I thought we were fighting a single Necromancer rebel," he said.

"We are," the Lord replied dryly.

"By the sands." Lord Sathin nodded.

"I've seen enough to be concerned. Go back and keep the children safe, Massan. I will speak to you when I return to the palace." Clapping his loyal warrior on the shoulder, the Lord moved away, returning to his mount and rejoining his men as they finished their patrol. Massan returned to the sled after speaking with the rest of the guards assigned to the children, ensuring they were all on alert to this new potential danger.

Hours later, he was summoned to a small audience chamber to find the Lord and Lady of House Sathin, the Lord Commander of the House Militia and the Head Priest of the house present. In the summer, there was no need for the heating stones in the walls to be activated, only the enchanted globes of light on the ceiling to provide illumination.

On the wooden, circular table in the centre of the room, a map of the border territories that House Sathin administered had been unfurled, the Lord placing figures on it to represent the garrison.

"I told you it wouldn't be long," Lord Sathin said with a wink as he continued to carefully place each of the little soldiers.

"Leras, behave yourself," Lady Sathin snapped before welcoming Mannas with a smile.

"Welcome, old friend. How are the children?"

"They are resting, my lady, much relieved thanks to my lordmy Lord's deception."

"It wouldn't have been necessary if I made sure to keep a guard on the door to my study," the Lady reproached herself.

"That girl is as sneaky as a street rat."

"You should refrain from using such language to refer to those with Divine blood, cousin," Priest Miriem remarked with a laugh.

"Our Divine Ancestor may not appreciate it."

"Oh hush, cousin," the Lady replied.

"Yes, hush," Lord Sathin said, straightening from his now completed layout.

"We need to get down to business." Massan and the others stepped forward, their playfulness gone in an instant.

"We have levied the full militia and deployed the Soldiers of the house to these locations. Does this look accurate to you, Trevan?" The Lord Commander nodded shortly.

"It does," he confirmed.

"Excellent. Together with House Orinos to the north and Leerly to the southwest, we cover the majority of the border with the endless sands and the Southern Province. According to the Administration of War, the heathen Necromancer and the rebellion might come here next. An army of undead can move through the desert where a living army could not. It'll be the perfect way in. After the latest patrol, I'm convinced that something is wrong, even if I don't know exactly what. We need to start taking action."

"Should we send word to our fellow houses?" Lady Sathin asked. As the Head of the House, such diplomacy was an integral part of her role.

"Absolutely. I recommend reaching out to the Duke as well. Better to look too jumpy than have the province caught with its pants down." Lord Commander Trevan pointed to several locations on the map.

"If we are going to start acting as if the invasion is coming, then we should swiftly move to evacuate these villages. Innocent civilians will only become undead soldiers if we leave them in place. Has the War Administration spoken of deploying the Golden Legion?" Lady Sathin nodded.

"They have, but they won't arrive for several weeks. Right now they are busy fortifying their western border."

"If the Necromancer wants to jump straight into the Central Province and get himself killed, that would be doing us all a favour," Miriem remarked.

"That's not a very priestly thing to say," Lady Sathin said.

"Divines willing," Miriem added, rolling her eyes. Ignoring them, Trevan continued to focus on the map.

"Without the aid of the Golden Legion, we should do our best to avoid a direct confrontation. To defeat a Necromancer like this, a decisive strike is required. A drawn-out conflict will only serve to weaken us and strengthen the enemy. We need to do everything we can to avoid losing Soldiers and preserve our strength until that time comes. Ensuring all of our allies are on the same page in this matter is crucial. If one house throws their Soldiers away, our enemy will grow all the stronger for it."

"So what do we do if an army tens of thousands strong marches out of the desert and lays siege to the city?" Lord Sathin said with a brow raised.

"We retreat and let it burn," Trevan said bluntly, no flicker of expression on his worn, leather features.

"This is the ancestral seat of House Sathin," the Lady protested hotly.

"My family has ruled here for two thousand years!" Trevan offered a blunt reply.

"What's more important, my lady, your palace or your soul?" His gaze flicked upwards, towards the resting chambers of the young heirs, his message clear.

"I would rather your children did not suffer to become undead," he said softly, "I am rather fond of them."