Chapter 398 - Pieces Moving

Rachel

Emberhold

One month. That was how long she had before being called away from home again. One month. First was the Assembly that she had spent most of the year traveling to, participating in, and traveling back from.

Now, she was off to fight in yet another war.

And there had only been one month of relaxation between the two. She hadn't even had any time to replace her Profession yet. Which, admittedly, was a good thing in the long run, but it was still frustrating.

If she had managed to rip out her Profession, she would be thousands of attribute points weaker. She would still have her Mana Core and First Circle. Her Body of Wood and her Skills, but her stats would be nearly crippled.

One more, she thought, one last interruption before I can replace Cook.

The door opened to her study, and she saw Abigail walking in with some urgency. She didn't rush, but she also didn't dally. Snow covered her furs, and she was bundled up tight for the weather.

She stopped next to the hearth where it was warmest and rubbed her hands together. Everyone was better conditioned to the cold now that they'd lived here for years, but it was still winter. People without the affinity still needed warmth, Abigail included.

"I sent it. He knows now, and I fear what comes next." Abigail said after getting the shivering under control. Rachel helped move some heat around for her niece to warm up quicker.

Rachel sighed, "You know what he will do, just as I know what he will do. A path will be carved straight there, bearing nothing in mind except speed. He will rampage across the distance and arrive swinging."

She had seen what happened when Chris came in swinging, and she almost pitied Zuri's Faction because of it. Almost. If her rest hadn't been cut short because of it, she would have.

"I know..." Abigail muttered, "His anger frightens me at times. He's never gotten over what happened, and I don't think he ever will."

Rachel turned thoughtful at that. It wasn't a direction she thought this conversation would go, and it took a moment to change gears. "He's gotten better," she said, "He lashes out less and smiles more. Losing Connie set him back, but I don't think he'll never get back to the smiley, sarcastic, jokester he once was. It will just take time."

"Every time I think that, he's dragged into battle and comes out drenched in blood." Abigail frowned, "Against the Demons, I understood. Against the Orcs, I understood. But I don't know how it will be against humans. I fear it will change him. It changed Grandpa."

Ah, Rachel thought. Richard wasn't shellshocked or broken in the truest sense, but there were times when his trauma from the war shone through. Rare as it was, everyone had seen it at one point or another.

Now she feared Chris would end up the same.

"He recovered after what happened here," Rachel waved in the general area. To the city that had once been Lakeshore.

Abigail shook her head, "Doing what he did crushed him, but not in a way he showed. He bottled it up like he bottles everything up. Just like he always has." The last part came out with a touch of venom, but Rachel understood. "Even when he was justified after what we found and the condition the city was in."

Justified was underselling it based on what they had learned, but Rachel didn't point that out.

Rachel let the silence hold before changing the topic. "What will you do?" She was more curious about that than she was about what Chris would do. He was at least predictable. Abigail wasn't.

"I will do what I have for months already. Protect the city while everyone is gone." She said like it was obvious, "With all of our strongest away, I can't leave the city undefended, not with some of the rumors I've been hearing."

Rachel gave her a long, suspicious look. Rumors. More like Whispers in the Wind. Abigail stared back, almost daring her to say something about it. Rachel sometimes regretted how good her mana senses were, after finding things she wished she hadn't. Finding out Abigail was in on it had been a surprise, though. Rachel had expected only her to be involved.

Again, she said nothing. It wasn't her place, and it was a topic better left alone. Abigail knew what she had said. Rachel knew what she was hinting at, and she refused to be drawn into their cloak-and-dagger routine.

She wanted no part in it, and she made sure Hal was left out of it as well. Her boy didn't need to be going around assassinating and spying on people. The only reason she hadn't shut it down and run to Chris was because it was necessary. Safety came first. Always.

It also surprised her that Chris hadn't found out yet. He had better senses than people gave him credit for. What he lacked with mana, he more than made up for in aura. Sometimes at a level that neared her ability. He wasn't even below average with mana to begin with.

Maybe he has, but turns a blind I like I do?

It wasn't something she thought he would approve of, but he'd changed with the times already. What was one step further? Needs must was a saying for a reason.

"I should get packing," Rachel said, breaking the short staring session, "Vanessa's prepared and Zuri's Faction will be sluggish in the beginning, but the sooner I leave, the better."

A hard few days of long riding were in her future, with scant time to rest. It wasn't something she was looking forward to. With a D-rank Windstrider Horse, her trip would take days rather than months, but it wouldn't be fun, comfortable, or relaxing.

"I'll help Carrie with what she needs," Abigail said, "She may need some help through the Winter keeping Emberhold fed."

Rachel was glad for that. She was still getting used to owning a City, but she was glad she had people to look after it while she was gone. Brayden could do it, but he was too excited to get working that she didn't want to burden him with it. He'd already given up the better part of the year to go with her; she didn't want to drop the city on him, too.

Austin's mother would get the job done. She'd stopped participating in battles long ago and was content to just slay the odd beast or delve into the dungeons occasionally. She would nearly be able to slay the Settlement Waves single-handedly with her abilities and the Water so close by.

When the woman could turn rain into a deadly, widespread attack, sending armies of weak beasts didn't work out all that well.

Abigail turned to leave, but turned back before exiting the door, "Stay safe, Rachel."

Rachel smiled just a touch vindictively, "It isn't me you should worry about."

Vanessa may be the one people called the Flame Witch, but Rachel wasn't too far behind her. The fear she invoked was something people would start to feel when they heard her name, too.

She said her goodbyes swiftly and was on the road before the hour was up. She rode alone towards a fight she had known was coming for years.

___

Vanessa

Flame Falls

"Send Michael to East Fort, it needs reinforcements," She commanded while looking over the maps. The string of Forts she had constructed was doing its job, but the numerical disadvantage was hitting harder than she expected.

Within predictions, but nearing them sooner than expected.

Michael would set things straight and relieve the pressure on the Fort there so she could focus elsewhere.

Zuri's offensive wasn't just one massive attack, but a multi-pronged assault spread along miles of border. Over six Forts were under attack, with forces marching on four more.

Vanessa had known this would be the case, but she'd hoped for a massive battlefield all the same. She'd burn them all and be done with it, but no. Intelligence had won out, and sending massive numbers towards a woman who could set fire to acres of land wasn't their method of attack.

Instead of being able to sling widespread and wanton destruction, Vanessa was forced to play chess, sending numbers where they were needed, moving certain people where they would be better used. Giving ground where she had to, and punishing overreach where she could.

During it all, the only thing she wanted to do was get out there and incinerate everyone trying to take what was hers, but she couldn't. That wasn't where she would be best used, and no amount of wishing would change that.

The fact that Zuri also hadn't taken the field made it impossible for Vanessa to. She needed to be ready to face her wherever she appeared. She'd crush through anyone else. Michael was strong, nearly as strong as she was herself, but he wouldn't be able to hold out for long.

The map she had been staring at shifted. The lines of red buckled slightly while lines of white extended further into her lands.

The map was probably her best treasure to come out of that test. Information won wars, and she'd known this one was coming.

Faction Map

Shows and highlights all land claimed by all Faction-affiliated Pylons. Faction forces and invading forces are marked, with positions updated hourly. Can be enhanced with Scrying or Divining Formations to pierce certain veils and locate otherwise hidden invaders.

Vanessa's Profession had skills that synergized perfectly with the map, and even the most stealthy of Zuri's forces were depicted. Viscount had multitudes of Skills that could be used to enhance what the map could show: land topography, the state of fortifications, dungeon status, and even current taxes.

The map's only fault was that it didn't show power levels, and those had to come the old-fashioned way through messengers. What looked like a small group of a few hundred could have the strength of thousands if it were filled with D-ranks, while other large groups could be devoid of even a single D-rank.

Keeping track of powerful D-ranks took up most of the messenger's time, and nearly every Message Stone relayed enemy movement constantly.

The flurry had lasted days since the attacks began, and they were just finally getting into the hang of things. Experience was gained, and things were becoming smoother at a rate Vanessa was proud of. Training and drills could only do so much, and when put to the test, things weren't breaking.

That was all she could ask for.

A new mark appeared in the West that was a completely different color than she had gotten accustomed to seeing for the past few days. This mark was a deep and rich Blue, nothing like her faction's vibrant red or Zuri's blinding white.

An hour later, the mark had traveled over two hundred miles, setting a pace that only a few things could. As the distance between the mark and the city shrank, Vanessa's personal Message Stone buzzed.

Seeing who it was allowed a rare smile to appear on her face.

I'm here, and I won't be alone. Viscount Zalenski will arrive in three days, with the rest on their way. I'll be in the city by sundown.
-Rachel

They really came, Vanessa thought. They had signed the contract, but those could be broken almost as easily as a person's word was broken. Sure, it would cause some backlash to signee who violated it, but it wasn't crippling nor permanent.

She had known what was said about the man and how he took things like that seriously, but Vanessa couldn't help but hold some doubt. She had plans prepared in case they didn't, but it made everything easier that they were.

It seems I chose correctly.

Of the two potential allies she had sought, one of them had joined the other side and spurned on the attack, while the other was moving to stand with her.

She scowled, thinking about the sniveling weasel that had tried to force her hand. The attack coming now of all times didn't seem like coincidence. Word of Frostheim's participation in Gemini's war had spread wide and far. The attack on her Faction coming so soon after was either a divinely fated coincidence or by someone's deliberate hand.

She knew which was more likely.

If she saw the man in battle, it would be his last time meddling in her affairs.