Whispers of a Dead Empire - Chapter 107

Dundundun

“Captain, here are the reports.”

I glanced up from my desk and toward the man who spoke to me. A set of hazel brown eyes that flickered with a gregarious warmth gazed down at me. His face locked in a pleasant grin as he passed a stack of papers.

“Thank you, Lieutenant Flint.” I reached out and took the papers from him. But as I did so, I felt a vague sense of Déjà vu. How many times have I done this.?

“Are you feeling alright, Captain?” He grabbed a chair and pulled it over to us, and sat down.

“I suppose so. I’ve been having the strangest of dreams lately.” My thoughts were going slightly haywire, and it was something that was occurring more and more.

“Perhaps they aren’t dreams, Captain.” He stared at me and flashed his pointed teeth in an almost feral grin.

The haze that clouded my vision flickered as he spoke, and a skull overlayed half of Aaron’s face. At first, horror dawned on me as I gazed at the face of an undead, but just as quickly as it came, it slowly vanished, only to be replaced by a sense of cold emptiness that drowned out all sense of emotion.

“What is going on, Flint?” I brought my hands up to my face and gazed at them. One hand was askew and covered in graying and decrepit flesh that oozed rivets of puss. Some of which had long since slothed off, revealing the snow white bone underneath. The other looked as normal as could be, matched by a uniform that was as pristine as humanly possible.

“Nothing, Captain. Everything is as it should be.” He flashed me another grin, reached out, and gave me a pat on my shoulder. Then, he stood up without another word, leaving me alone with my thoughts.

But the thought’s never seemed to linger long. Just like the constant cycle of the tide, they were swept away by the fog that coiled itself around me. I stood up from my desk, barely paying attention to the stack of papers built up on the side of my desk. What was I doing again? I pried through my thoughts until I finally settled on patrolling the stronghold.

I walked out of the makeshift war room and quietly strolled along the well-trodden paths. All around me, the loyal warriors of Asteria were busy training and finalizing the construction that the Empress had ordered. That was good. We needed to be ready. The skirmishing on the border has only increased intensity, which worries me. We could be under attack any day now, and it was my job to hold the line. If this stronghold broke, then the entire southern portion of the empire would be ripe for raiding, and that was something that I would not allow.

I strode further through the stronghold, ignoring the slow, crushing weight of mental exhaustion that was trying to consume me. I was tired, and I wanted to sleep, yet I couldn’t. Not yet.

I bumped into something as I was walking, consumed by my own thoughts. Tentatively, I glanced around, yet there was nothing in front of me. How odd. I took another step forward, and I felt my garments getting tugged. I froze and glanced around again. But a voice assaulted my ears. “Please……Alessia….The…coming..” It was the voice of a child. One that I recognized. The fog that swirled around my vision ebbed and flowed as it slowly receded. Revealing the stronghold in all its damaged glory.

My eyes were drawn to the little girl that stood before me, at waist height, Her hair was as dark as the feathers of a raven, and her flesh was dark, almost like a tan, with a faint silvery hue. But her face reminded me of someone. Who was it again? The image hung in my mind, teasing me as I tried to connect it to something.

“Please. Alessia needs help. She stayed behind.” There were small trails of tears that were pouring down her face.

At the mention of Alessia, I dropped to a knee and reached my hand out. We all knew who Alessia was. She was the right hand of our Empress. A figure well renowned and loved by all. “Quick, tell me. Where is she?” A sense of urgency bit at my ankles as I tried to pry the information from the child.

She sniveled and wiped away some snot that had gathered around her nose. “She.. She said the fog is coming.” At her words, the fog flickered, and a pulse cleared my vision. The haze that had clouded my mind for so long vanished, and information rushed into my mind like a tidal wave, filling the void left behind. I knew who she was; I knew who she looked like and what had happened here. Everything was as clear as day now.

Those words, I knew what they were. I stood up and placed my hand on her shoulder. “Someone, get the princess to the stronghold. Alert the troops; there are invaders outside the gate.” She stared up at me as a few of my soldiers rushed over as I started to dish orders out without hesitation. The princess could only gaze at me as the soldiers guided her away, shouting at me to help Alessia.

The bells tolled around the stronghold not even a few seconds later. The deep sound filled the air with a baleful moan as metal struck metal, and the stronghold came to life once more as orders that had been issued ages ago went into effect.

Troops rushed around me like water, rushing towards predetermined positions. Archers rushed up ladders with their bows in hand and arrows at the ready. Swordsman lined the wall right behind them, ready to assail anyone who thought it best to climb the battlement. A few squads positioned themselves around the gate and other vital places, ready to intercept anything that breached our vaunted walls.

A squad of strange humanoid snake-like creatures approached me, and each stood taller than a man and was clad in the armor of polished black stone arrayed in a panoply of scales. Each armor set rose past their neck and rested just under their jaw, and extended the same in the opposite direction, just past their groin, giving the impression of wearing a stone skirt. “What’s going on?” The lead one had scales the color of freshly fallen dawn that glimmered in the midday sun.

“We are about to be attacked. If you want to help, feel free to do so; otherwise, stay out of our way.” I placed my good hand on the hilt of my sword. However, my words came out as mere groans, which infuriated the strange snake man. However, just as he was about to retort, a large man appeared from the headquarters. His sheer size dwarfed everyone around. His eyes burning with the rage of a freshly born star.

“Rikard, what the hell is going on?” If I was still alive, my heart would have skipped a beat as I regarded the man before me. It was the Warmaster. The Demon of Asteria. The breaker of Alathar.

I dropped to my knees and crossed my right hand over my heart. “Warmaster. Forgive me. The princess came bearing a message. She informed us that the fog was coming.”

The fire in his eyes faded slightly as a look of recognition danced across his face. “I understand. Rise now, Rikard.” He stepped back and affixed his gaze to the gathering of all the non-Asterians and gave them a nod. “It appears that we are under attack. Considering that this is from the outsiders, we will handle this unless you want to join.”

“Aye, we will sit this one out then. We don’t wish to start an incident.” The lead one nodded his head and flicked his forked tongue before turning away with the rest of his platoon.

I gazed at them and narrowed my eyes. Mercenaries were the worst sort. No honor, no loyalty, outside of who pays them the most. The only one who didn’t wore the attire of a professional soldier. His hair was shaved, and his face was wizened with the passage of time and the harsh reality of battle. Ah, a man worthy of respect.

“Where is the princess then, Captain?” He turned his fearsome gaze back towards me

“I sent her to the inner sanctum. She should be safe there.” I rose back to my feet, still feeling entirely unworthy of being in this man’s presence.

“Good. What of Alessia”? Was she not with the child?” Octavian crossed his arms. The sheer amount of muscle underneath pulled his gray combat slacks taunt.

“No. The princess said that she stayed behind.”

“Blasted woman. Of course, she would.” He growled as he spun around. “Do you know where the princess came from?”

“No sir. I was still in a haze when she arrived.” I felt a tiny flicker of shame light in my chest. A mere candle compared to the endless void deep within my chest. I was trapped in that fog for so long, and now I’m awake.

“Be that as it may. Once we deflect the assault on the stronghold, then we will go find her. Until then, we will remain here. Our priority will be the princess.” As cold as it sounded, it was true. Alessia would prefer it that way.

“This stronghold has always been my charge, Warmaster. I will defend it in death as I have in life.” As the words left my mouth, the severity of what had passed, and what was to come hung heavily on me.