The Empire of Zeth/Chapter 12 (Ero)

Ranth hurried up to the large imposing building that served as the headquarters for the imperial high command. He was already sweating under his fancy dress armor, and not just from the day's heat. Slowing down as he approached, he steeled himself and attempted to calm his fizzing nerves. Taking a deep breath, he puffed out his chest and stood up straight. He was a captain of the imperial scouts and would act with the dignity his rank demanded!

Saluting the guards on duty at the gate, who saluted him back and opened the gates to let him past. Ranth walked inside the headquarters calmly, his face composed. Approaching the front desk, he addressed the young army secretary on duty there. He presented his orders to the young woman, who quickly read them over. "The high command is convening in the 3rd grand chamber. Third door on your left, down that hallways." She pointed to one of the many hallways that spread out from the lobby. Ranth thanked her, saluted, and walked briskly down the hallways she'd pointed out.

He stopped outside the door, taking one more deep breath. Ready, he grabbed the large brass handle and pulled the door open, walking inside. The room was set up similar to an amphitheater, with several rises of desks circling around a pedestal in the center. He walked briskly to the center, his metal boots echoing loudly on the polished marble floor as the various high ranking officers seated around the room fell silent and focused their attention on him.

Ranth stepped onto the pedestal and stood at attention with his hands clasped behind his back and eyes forward. "Captain Ranthian Fireblade of the imperial scouts 23rd detachment reporting for debriefing as ordered!" Ranth declared loudly, his voice filling the chamber. "At ease, captain." said a gnarled old man sitting on an ornate chair at the highest point in the center of the rise... a chair that Ranth would have never expected to actually have an occupant.

Ranth flinched, knowing that voice and looking up with a line of fear coursing down his spine. In his eagerness to appear professional he had neglected to actually survey the people seated all around him. He quickly dropped to one knee, bowing his head with his hand over his heart. "F-Forgive me, emperor! I d-did not expect to see you here - I meant no disrespect!" His heart pounded in his chest as he kicked himself. You must always greet the emperor first before all else!!

"That's quite alright, young captain. No offense was taken. I do not attend these proceedings lightly, but in light of what happened I wanted to hear the firsthand report myself. Please rise, captain Ranthian. Ranth got to his feet and stood at attention once more. Glancing at the desks he spotted his father and a dozen other high ranking military officers he knew. He was going to hear it later from his old man for his lapse in protocol, he knew...

Emperor Jullius Centura the 3rd cleared his throat. "I declare these proceedings underway. I formally turn over the running of these proceedings to First General Markus Orelius." The emperor nods to the grizzled man on the rise below his and bangs the granite ball in his left hand on the polished obsidian desk before him.

First General Markus Orelius cleared his throat. "Thank you, my emperor. We are here to debrief Captain Ranthian, sole survivor of the 2rd detachment of the imperial scouts, on the events that lead to the hijacking and capture of the supply train Defiant bound for Carthidge." The general banged his granite ball on his desk. "Captain Ranthian, you have the floor. Tell us in your own words what transpired."

Ranth swallowed, and looked up at the general as he recounted his tale. "My squad were ordered to accompany the Defiant on her journey to Carthidge from the imperial train yard just outside Faridge. The journey was expected to be uneventful, but my men and I were on alert for any trouble. We kept a close watch on the countryside for the first two days of the journey. On the eve of the third, I spotted an infernal legion war machine approaching the train from the rear and issued a call to arms. As we could not outrun their mechanism, I stationed my men at the train's only port of entry and prepared to repel the boarding party."

"Why did you not order the use of the train's cannons to destroy their vehicle?" asked a man to Ranth's right. Ranth blinked at him, his eyes going to the man's insignia. "Commander, I had been informed that the train had no weapons. Defending the entry port seemed the only option."

"No weapons?" the man exclaimed. "We outfit all out supply trains with rear and side facing cannons for just these eventualities." Another man across the chamber cleared his throat. "The cannons and their ammunition were removed Commander Anders. I ordered it done as imperial supply warden. By removing the weight the cannons the Defiant would have reached Carthidge nearly a full day ahead of schedule. It was hoped that this would be enough time to get the power crystals to recharge Carthidge's defenses before the legion's new weapon arrived at the front. Unfortunately, this was still not fast enough. Captain Ranthian is not to blame here." Commander Anders nodded to the supply warden and sat back. "I withdraw my accusations. Continue, Captain Ranthian."

Ranth's mouth was paper dry. He had to swallow several times before he could continue. "The boarding party used explosives to breach the blast doors. By the smell it was likely a mix of volatile cordite and destruction magic. We had braced for an explosion but it was far greater than our protections... Some of my men were vaporized, others died when the metal shrapnel pierced their bodies. The orcs rushed through without giving us time to recover. I slew a large male that killed the last of my men before I was over-matched by an orc woman named... Zia?"

Murmurs went up throughout the room. "Zia'than the Blood-letter!? Are you certain?" demanded one of the lesser generals seated to First General Markus Orelius' right. "We must be sure - she was reported to have been with the bulk of their army at the siege!"

The first general banged his granite ball on his desk. "Order! We will find out." He turned back to Ranth. "Captain Ranthian, I trust you've been trained on the use of the memory projection device?" Ranth nodded. "Yes, first general!"

"Very good. place your hands palm-down on the pedestal and form in your mind the memories of what took place." Ranth placed his hands on the device as requested and concentrated. Images formed in the air above him, showing the explosion on the train and fast forwarding to the moment when Zia approached him. "Pause!" shouted the first general. Ranth did the memory trick to make the device hold the image as Zia's face was in full view. "It is her!" exclaimed the generals.

After banging his gavel several more times to quiet the room, the first general addressed Ranth once more. "Continue the recounting, captain."

Ranth told them what happened next, making the images from the memory device move once more. "She was about to kill me when her uruk-hai commander told her to halt, then approached me himself..." the images showed high commander Leg'than Direhammer's form approach out of the smoke. The room's silence immediately exploded into shouts and heated discussions. "Pause!" shouted the first general once again, and Ranth complied. It took him several minutes to get the room quiet again. "Ranthian! Did this uruk-hai say his name or title at any point!?" demanded First General Markus Orelius.

Ranth nodded. "He was not shy about expressing it... he claimed to be high commander Leg'than Direhammer, and he even demanded that I tell my superiors who had taken our train..." The room was silent for a long while.

A voice finally broke the dead silence. "So... the rumors are true. Leg'than Direhammer has returned..." The emperor spoke clearly and calmly. "Continue the recounting, Captain Ranthian." Ranth felt fear trickle down his spine like lightning. Of course he'd heard the stories and rumors about the villainous Leg'than Direhammer - who hadn't? But the fear from the leaders of the empire at his name spooked him greatly.

Shedding his paralysis, Ranth continued the recounting, showing how Leg'than had been about to kill him when Evy intervened. The room watched in stunned disbelief as the little drow girl held her own against the legendary commander of the uruk-hai in single combat, though even she was eventually over-matched. He showed that the uruk-hai high commander decided to spared both his and Evy's life, before having them thrown off the still-moving train.

"They must have known the crystals were spelled to self-destruct if they reached Carthidge after the cathedral was destroyed... But how?" said one man. "I shudder to think what the legion plans to do with hundreds of our most powerful warding crystals..." The room echoed him, murmuring their agreement.

Lord Tristan's commanding cut through the chatter. "The emergency mission I assigned young Evy was to secure the train.. and failing that, destroy the crystals. As a trained drow, even a very young one, few could have stopped her, even amongst the legion... That Leg'than himself would be leading the assault." He paused. "For such a powerful warrior to be sent to secure a supply train... they must have desperately wanted to get their hands on those crystals. This does not bode well."

Ranth continues showing them how Evy healed his wounds and they set off for the gate at Faridge together, and how they were caught. The talk in the room reached a fevered pitch as the memory device projected images from Ranth's mind of the Demon King Elron. "That cannot be his true form, that must be a glamor!" Exclaimed one man. "There's no way he's... human!"

"He has never once shown his face to any man or woman that was let live... how can you be so sure?" said another. The first general addressed Ranth again. "Captain Ranthian, do you have any evidence that he was wearing a disguise glamor?" Ranth swallowed and cleared his throat before speaking up. "I do, first general.. however..." He glanced at his father. "I am forbidden to discuss anything that took place during a Grand Council proceeding."

First General Markus Orelius' glanced back at Lord Tristan and scowled. "Lord Tristan! You already performed a debriefing!? I don't care if he is your son, this is highly irregular!" Lord Tristan met the first general's gaze calmly. "The security of the empire was at stake. I felt the breach in protocol was necessary."

Markus Orelius grunted. "Will you allow this tribunal access to the information? You alone have the authority to disseminate it..." Lord Tristan nodded. "Captain Ranthian, as head of the council I give you leave to disseminate any relevant information gleaned during a high council session in regards to the demon king's appearance... though not how we acquired the information."

Ranth nodded, concentrating the memory of what he saw in Evy's mind during the magical probe. "This is the demon king's true form..." The room went silent as the horrifying visage of the demon king was projected for all to see. After a long silence, the emperor spoke. "So... at long last we know the true face of our enemy."

First General Markus Orelius' voice broke the silence. "Captain Ranthian Fireblade, with testimony given I will bring this tribunal to a close. For your valiant service in defense of the empire, and for bringing us this most vital of intel, you are promoted to the rank of 1st Centurion and assigned to the internal reconnaissance branch of the imperial scouts. Report to their offices tomorrow at high noon for your assignment."

Ranth's eyes went wide - he'd expected to be demoted for his failure to protect the train, not promoted! He stood up straight and saluted the first general. "Thank you for this high honor, first general! I will not fail you! Long live the empire!" The room echoed him. "You are dismissed, centurion." Ranth bowed deeply, trying to hide his trembling hands as he clenched them into fists. Stunned, he turned and walked out of the chambers.

...

The huge market square was in the center of the capital was as busy as always. Vendors hawked their wares, customers shouted offers or indignation at the prices, and everyone moved about at their own pace. Evy materialized in one of her favorite perches atop a crumbling archway where she could look out over the square and watch everyone move about. In the past she would often sit here for hours, wishing she could join the throng of people. Now, at long last - she could!

Evy looked down at all the people and gulped. Now that she actually had permission to mingle and didn't have to hide anymore, she was a bit nervous to actually go down and talk to people. Glancing around the square, she saw a group of kids playing by the fountain, and decided that she'd go say hello to them first. With a final moment of hesitation, Evy dropped the two odd stories worth of distance from her perch, landing squarely on the rough flagstones that made up the square.

Her fall had not gone unnoticed. Several shoppers turned to look as she impacted the ground with a small thud. One by one, each person who saw her stopped what they were doing to stare. Blushing, Evy walked past them, heading for the fountain and trying to ignore the whispers threading their way through the crowd.

"It's true - a real drow!" ... "But she's just a little kid. The stories said she was a mighty warrior!" ... "I'm not buying it - that's probably just some kind of fancy costume!" ... "Is she really as strong as the stories claim drow are?" ... "What if she's really a legion spy!? I mean, why would a drow want to sever the empire anyways..?"

Evy tried to ignore all the things they were saying about her, though she head all of it. She was determined to start with meeting the kids playing by the fountain and foraged onward at a brisk pace. As she got close, though, mothers and nannies who had been gossiping and washing clothes on the other side of the fountain descended and scooped up their kids, ignoring their protests. By the time Evy got to the fountain there was nobody left to talk to around it.

Feeling dejected, Evy sat on the lip of the fountain and played with the water. People hurried on past her, as if not wanting to stay near her for very long. She lost track of how long she sat there sniveling and fighting back tears. She had hoped that someone - anyone, would come over and say hello.. but everyone seemed to be afraid of her... When she heard someone passing by call her a "freak", she decided she'd had enough and that it was time to go home. If they didn't want her here she'd leave...

Preparing shadow step back to her chambers, Evy heard a crash a ways behind her that made her sensitive ears twitch. Whirling, she saw a cart horse rearing, spooked by something or other. The handler lost control of the reins and the horse sped off down the square.

The horse overbalanced the cart and it crashed into an ancient pillar on the edge of the square, near her perch. The pillar, a remnant from the civilization that had originally built and inhabited Coravan, wobbled. It cracked and fell over onto a small wood and stone building, breaking through the roof and walls. Screams echoed from inside.

Without even thinking, Evy braced herself and leaped, soaring dozens of meters forward and landing nimbly, then dashing forward, her eyes fixed on the wrecked building and the victims trapped inside. Reaching the wreckage in only a few seconds, she grabbed the pillar. It was easily two times as thick as the length of her small body and made of solid granite, and heavy enough to give her trouble.

Hearing the continued cries for help from inside quickened Evy's resolve. Snarling, she dug braced her legs and pushed up against the fallen pillar with all her strength, her muscles screaming with the effort to move such a heavy object. With a final push the pillar flew up into the air and landed beside the building with a crash. Evy flipped to her feet and raced into the rubble. She called upon her magic and gestured at the air, casting a detect lift spell. As it formed, she red glints showed her where people were trapped underneath the rubble.

Dashing over to the nearest spot she began digging furiously, and unearthed a woman caked in dust and dirt. Evy pulled her from the rubble and slung her over her shoulder in a fireman's carry, taking her back outside and setting her on the ground. The woman coughed and coughed, trying to clear the dust from her lungs. Evy did a brisk inspection to for life threatening wounds. Finding none, she rushed back inside and started digging out the second victim.

Only a minute or two after the pillar collapsed, flashes of golden light began appearing in the square and soldiers rushed towards the scene. Seeing them approach as Evy carried the second victim out - an elderly man, she called out to them. "The pillar collapsed - people are buried in the rubble!"

The soldiers blinked at the young drow, clearly not expecting to see her here. Their captain was more disciplined, however, and quickly set aside his curiosity until the people were out of danger. "Do you you where?" he asked. "Yes, I've marked the spots with a life detection spell!" Evy said, pointing back inside. "Good work!" he said, and turned to his men. "Stop gawking at the nice young lady and get to helping! There are people trapped in there still!" The men all snapped to attention and rushed into the building.

Evy spent the next half an hour helping the soldiers dig people out, and their medics to heal the wounded. Exhausted, she was about to go give her report to the captain when the first woman she'd saved grabbed her arm. "H-Have you seen my son??" She asked Evy, her eyes frantic. "H-He was with me in the shop when it collapsed! M-My son's a little boy, only five years old! I can't find him." Evy's eyes went wide. "I'll check again!" she said, and pulled out of the woman's grip to rush back inside the collapsed building, ignoring a guard who moved as if to try and stop her.

Inside, Evy swiftly cast a true sight spell to enhance her vision and scanned the ruins. She'd not had time to check for the dead, but she also remembered that a detect life spell could sometimes fail for smaller creatures, those mortally wounded - or both. She scanned the rubble, hoping not to find him. Maybe he'd gotten out in time...?

About to give up, her eyes locked on a small form buried several feet down. Not wanting to waste time, she simply used shadow step to move a large section of the rubble outside. She heard some shouts from outside the broken walls as people no doubt reacted to seeing shadow magic dump a huge pile of rubble at the edge of the square, but she had no time to be polite. Rushing forward, she dug out the small motionless body of the little boy, grabbing him and taking him back to the square.

The woman shrieked to see her battered and bloody son in Evy's arms. The girl shook her off, and gently set the little boy on the pavement. As she stared down at him, a surge of memory flooded over her and she saw not the little boy, but the piled up dead bodies of her fellow drow. Tears leaked from her eyes and she swiped them away angrily. She may not have been able to save her people, but she could save this innocent little boy! Evy looked down at his body defiantly, her mind made up. Examining him with her magic, she found that the boy had died a few minutes ago. That meant she had very little time to act if she was to save him.

Some of the army medics rushed towards her, but she shook her head at them. "St-stand back..! P-Please?" she said to the woman and the soldiers. "I th-think I can save him... but this is extremely dangerous magic." The captain who had also come over to see if he could help looked hesitantly at her, as if wanting to object. Seeing the unflinching resolve in her eyes, he blinked and reconsidered. Hesitantly, cleared his throat and bellowed orders. "EVERYONE BACK!" he shouted, clearing a large area around Evy and the little boy.

Without hesitation, Evy began drawing a protective ward, comprised of four cardinal points of magic runes. Black fire ran from the points to form a shimmering diamond that encompassed them. With the wards cast, Evy steeled herself from what came next. In her left hand she called up holy magic - the essence of life, healing and renewing. In her right, she called on chaos magic - the essence of entropy, destruction and death. This was drow high magic, and even for a drow considered to be one of the most difficult spells to master...

Evy had only ever performed this particular ritual once in her life. It was a ritual designed to cheat death, and required a level of spellcasting and skill beyond anything anyone but a drow could hope to achieve.

Evy made one final check to ensure that the warding diamond around them was complete and unbroken, then slammed her hands together, condensing the two magics into one. The magics did not want to mix - they were polar opposites, as unlike as light and dark. They fought her control as the girl attempted to cast a spell that defied the natural order of their world. Grimacing, Evy bore down with her will, demanding that the magics obey HER! With a snarl, Evy forced them to mix, creating a type of magic that should not be able to exist on the mortal plane - the power of creation.

Evy knew that once the creation magic had formed she would have less than a second to use it before it unraveled and backfired. If this occurred, the level of destruction that would follow would be utterly devastating. As soon as the magic formed she cast the spell, pouring a life-well of primal magics into the little boy's lifeless body. A blinding pure white light flared out in all directions as the spell was cast, penetrating even the inky black fire of the protection ward. Instantly the boy's wounds vanished as Evy willed the reversal of time itself on his body. Dust flew out of his lungs and off his skin as she turned back the clock. He inhaled, eyes going wide as he replayed the last few moments of his life in reverse.

Evy screamed the ending incantation, spiting the remaining magics apart and sending them off in opposite directions back into the aether from which she had summoned them. The blinding white light suddenly cut off and vanished, and the black fire of the protective circle ebbed and died. Evy collapsed onto the pavement, her vision spinning as she threw out her arms to catch herself. The little boy began to cry, and his mother broke free from the soldiers and rushed to his side, seizing him up in a tight hug. Eyes overflowing with tears, she stared at her little boy, then down at the drow girl lying on the warm flagstones. Timidly she reached down and shook Evy's shoulder. "M-Miss? Are you okay? *Sniff*

The girl groaned and rolled onto her stomach. The young mother helped Evy get to her feet, letting Evy lean on as they walked back to the crowed. Stumbling forward with exhaustion, it took Evy a few moments to realize the sound she was hearing was that of cheers. Blinking she turned to look at the line of soldiers and saw a large crowd had gathered behind them. The crowd was cheering, cheering for her!

Evy blinked, then feeling like she should do something waved at the tiredly. The young mother helped Evy over to one of the army medics. Sitting on the stool he set out for her, Evy rested her arms on her knees as the man examined both her and the little boy. "H-He's in perfect health... I don't believe it!" he exclaimed. "I don't even see signs that he was healed, either naturally or magically."

His examination of the little boy complete, he swallowed and moved to check over Evy. One he was satisfied that she was not wounded, he asked her. "W-What did you do to save him..?" Evy glanced up at the man tiredly. "Ummm... I made... c-creation magic." The medic blinked at her like a lizard. "Y-You... You m-made WHAT!?"

Evy shook her head, more to try to clear it than anything else. "It's... drow h-high magic. You weave together holy and... and um... and.. chaos magic... then.. you can do pretty much anything you want with it, but... it's the most volatile magic in existence.. b-because it doesn't WANT to exist..."

"B-But... that's a level of m-magic only the gods..! Oh.. r-right..." he stopped himself, remembering the stories about how the drow became so powerful: with power taken from the god who had enslaved them.

"It.. it's not very useful.. not in the mortal planes, anyways. I m-mean, not unless you wanna b-blow yourself up along with half the countryside." Evy said. "The magic doesn't WANT to exist - not here. That's why I had to act so fast - if he'd been dead for much longer I wouldn't have been able to use the spell. If creation magic isn't used within the space of.. of a single breath, it will explode... v-violently."

The man considered what she said. "Should you really be telling me this..?" he asked her. Evy put her head in her hands. "P-Probably not.. I guess... but I'm exhausted and you seem nice..." Her vision spun faster, and Evy knew she'd overreached even her limits with that spell. "C-Can you help me get back home?" she gasped, putting her head in her hands.

"Um, of course! You're, uh..." his mind scrambled, trying to remember where he'd heard she was in service to. "Order of... D-Devout Hand..." Evy said before she collapsed, her eyes rolling up as she fainted. The army medic caught her as she fell. "Captain!" he called out, and the man came over at a run.

Chapter 13: Studies

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