Lady February ~ Prologue!

February starts in June! Let's get started!

Prologue

“What do you mean she’s coming here?” Baron Thursday the Twenty-Second boomed at the runner that had just skid to a stop in front of his wagon. “Why is Lady February coming here? I’ve paid my taxes! W-why is she doing this to us? We haven’t done anything!”

The runner shrugged and started stretching right in front of the Baron, who’s eyes went cold. “You’re one of her lackeys… no one else would show this level of disrespect toward a member of the peerage!  Guards, grab this man and put him in a cell until he learns proper-”

“Baron Thursday.” The cool, crisp voice of a young lady cut through the orders and made the man himself tremble. “The issue is the fact that you are correct. You haven't done anything. You leave your people to fend for themselves, you hide away from dangers and threats in your fortified home.”

“I pay my taxes!” The Baron roared, pulling both himself and a halberd out the wagon. “You dare to come after me on the road, only because you know that you would never even get through the gates if you came to my home! My job is not the defense of the realm, my House provides the lifeblood of trade-”

Once more, the crisp voice cut him off. “I challenge you for possession of your Wielded Weapon.”

“N-no! I refuse to be like the others!” Baron Thursday clutched at his polearm in a way not dissimilar to a wealthy lady clutching her pearls when being robbed.

“Take the challenge, or do I need to pry your weapon from your broken fingers?”  A young woman stepped onto the road in front of the wagon, coming to a stop next to the runner that had arrived only shortly before her. “Just like everyone else, you can hand over your weapon now, prove your worth by defeating me, or I’ll leave you broken on the side of the road, and still take the Wielded Weapon.”

“Never!” Baron Thursday had spittle flying from his mouth, and his eyes were bulging as he stared down the Lady of the Month, ruler of District February. “Guards, kill them both! Spare no expense!”

Barely an instant passed before giving the order and every Vassal throwing a vial or weapon at the two people blocking their path. The wealth of House Thursday was on full display as the consumable items exploded into a kaleidoscope of colors and effects. Bottled lightning exploded outward, the packed dirt of the road was melted and instantly refrozen into glass.

“Should never have left the House.” Baron Thursday sighed at the mess that the road had become. He turned to get into his wagon, and glanced at the driver, “Double speed until we’re back to safety.”

His blood ran cold as Lady February’s voice rolled into his ears. She was not amused. “Fourteen Vassals, sixteen guards, two thousand and fifty-six cultivators under your command. Your duty is to protect the ten thousand mortals living in your Barony, at the very minimum. As of the last report, your defensive force has killed one. Just one monster. Over six months. It claimed the lives of thirty-two people before a cultivator crushed his skull. What did you do after this? You repossessed the land and homes of those people for unpaid rent. I judge you guilty of negligence, and treason against your rightful ruler.”

Baron Thursday watched in horror as Lady February sprinted across the glassed section of the road and drove a fist into the face of his Prime Vassal. The seemingly innocuous silk gloves she had been wearing had transformed into behemoths of metal and gems, gauntlets that were each nearly a quarter the size of her entire body barely weighing her down as she  followed through on the attack and brought the vassal to the ground, and could have easily crushed his skull like a grape. Instead, the man was only unconscious as she moved on.

Almost entirely unable to defend themselves, the Vassals fell one after another as they attempted to protect the Baron. For a reason unknown to them, not a single one was slain, only rendered unconscious. Too soon, it was Baron Thursday’s turn. He swiped at the teen with his halberd, intent on bringing her down for the good of his House. She easily dodged, her short skirt swirling up to reveal practical exercise shorts underneath.

Two hits followed. She hit him, he hit the ground.

“As punishment, you will be stripped of ninety percent of your total wealth. You are no longer a Wielder of House Thursday, just another money-grubber that does anything to stay ahead.” Lady February kicked the defeated man to get him on his side, not wanting him to drown in his own fluids. “If you want a chance at rejoining the Aristocracy, you have until the end of the month to prove your worth. Join the Tournament of Reallocation, and earn your position.”

She scooped up the halberd and started walking away, only pausing to collect the runner out of the tree she had tossed him in to save him from the initial attacks. Looking back at the fifteen people she had defeated in under three minutes, she shook her head and grumbled.

“Look at where hereditary transfers of power got us. This District is diseased, and I refuse to let us degrade any further.”