Book 4: Chapter 56: Final Preparations |
After they closed the open rifts, fewer and fewer opened until only one remained. Not just within Old Hume, but even across the continent Michael couldn’t feel any new rifts opening. The relief was welcomed at first. Those within the camp were able to rest and recover for longer, do more work to prepare the defenses around the rift and even send letters to their loved ones. After nearly a month of nothing though, the attitudes shifted to concern. There was now only one problem to focus on, only one source of immense dread, and it pulsed on the edges of everyone’s awareness ceaselessly.
Michael busied himself with digging trenches, hauling wood and stone for makeshift fortifications, leading groups in prayer, and training anyone who asked. The number of troops at the camp had swelled over the previous month and there were always new people arriving with questions about the gods, or asking for a blessing. At this point Michael was giving blessings as freely as he could and they didn’t seem to exhaust, at least not with those that requested them and honored the gods themselves.
Those that arrived included the rest of Hume’s soldiers and knights, dozens of mercenary bands, more volunteers from across the continent, and Sorcerer Prince Azalceus of the lizardfolk with a strong showing of scaled mages. The last group to arrive was Gabriel’s. Michael sensed he was approaching sometime around when he left Broan and King Marlo himself rode down with his personal guard to meet him. Everyone in the camp knew that the kings would arrive that day and so a large crowd gathered to watch.
Marlo arrived first, and Michael was glad to see him looking stronger. His skin no longer had the deathly pallor it’d had before and he was starting to show some muscle tone. He wore a silver breastplate with golden gilding and had a sword with a bejeweled hilt at his side. All of it radiated divinity that marked them as titled items.
Less than hour after he arrived, Gabriel’s own retinue approached. Michael assumed they timed things with one another. Gabriel rode on one of the titled steeds with four of his knight-generals with him. Behind them were another hundred mounted knights, and behind them Michael saw a number of wagons in which dozens of armored dwarves were being pulled. Gabriel wore a set of shining armor with a burgundy cape around his shoulders and his usual simple iron crown.
Marlo rode out to meet him and they both brought their horses next to one another where they shared a powerful hand clasp which was welcomed by cheers from the gathered crowd. After Gabriel gave some orders to his men he broke off from them and made his way to the primary command tent. Michael went in after him and Marlo along with Prince Aza and the others. The tent was large with a round table in the center and chairs arrayed all around. Once they were all inside and seated King Marlo made a slight gesture with his hand and a silence enchantment settled over them, ensuring that no one outside the tent could hear them.
Michael shot his son a smile which Gabriel returned quickly before returning his attention to the others. They’d be able to say a proper hello later.
“Welcome to Hume,” said King Marlo.
“Thank you for hosting,” replied Gabriel with a wry smile.
Gabriel chuckled.
“I think it's quite ugly,” replied Aza from his chair.
“I’m with you,” agreed Ollie.
King Marlo’s smile faded and his expression grew more serious. “When can we expect the rest of your men?” he asked.
“Within two weeks. There will be more dwarven warriors joining us as well.”
“How did you manage that? Mercenaries?” asked Marlo.
“I didn’t manage anything,” he gestured to Michael. “They owe him a debt for healing their god and restoring passage through their mountain. Many of them are also just looking for a good fight, apparently things have been very quiet for their warriors recently.”
“Yet another debt I owe you,” said Marlo nodding at Michael.
Michael shrugged. “I live to serve.”
Gabriel chuckled, remembering that his father would say that whenever he or his siblings had asked him for a favor.
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“I’ve brought two-hundred mounted knights with me. I have five-thousand soldiers moving through the mountains along with another hundred knights. That’s all I can move and assemble in the time we seem to have.”
“It’s more than I expected and I am grateful. Your assistance in hiring mercenaries has also been a boon.”
Gabriel shrugged. “Gold’s cheaper than blood.”
Marlo turned to Aza.
“I know that gratitude has already been expressed, but let me thank you again for your assistance as well. Your might and the might of your people is appreciated.”
Aza shrugged. “If you fail, my people die. Easy choice.”
“True enough,” replied Marlo, turning to look at Michael. “Do you have any idea of when the rift might open?”
Michael sighed. “It had been speeding up initially, cutting down how much time I thought we had, but now it seems as if things have stabilized again. I’d guess a month, give or take a week.”
“Will your troops arrive by then?” asked Marlo.
“They should. I took my time to ensure everything would be as ready for them as it could be.” He paused. “My larger concern is why? From the reports you’ve shared there are a number of irregularities here. The smaller rifts have ceased opening, there haven’t been any lizardfolk emerging in months, and now it almost feels as if we’re being allowed to take our time and get ready for them.”
“That’s right,” said Aza simply.
They all looked at him in askance.
“The Empire of Chitin has two ways of conquest. The first is subtle. Infiltration over time, toppling what exists, bleeding into a world until they can take control easily. The second is to simply swarm them and crush them beneath their might.”
“So they’re waiting intentionally?” asked Marlo.
“Yes. They want you to gather as much as possible. Once you are crushed the strongest counter to their strength will be dealt with and they can swarm across this world unimpeded.”
They all sat with Aza’s statement quietly for a few moments.
“I think they will be surprised by what we have waiting for them though,” the lizardman continued. “I don’t believe even my people brought forth a resistance as great as the one that has gathered here.”
That statement lightened the air a bit.
“And do you have any insight as to why other lizardfolk haven’t come through the rifts recently?”
He frowned. “They are being punished for what I did… or they are being made into tools of war. My greatest worry is that they are being used to strengthen the rift.”
“Strengthen it how?” asked Gabriel.
“Some of my people that were more willing slaves determined a way to hold rifts open against your people’s ability to close them. I don’t know that it would be possible with a rift this large, but if it is, they will try it.”
Michael recalled seeing a circle of lizard sorcerers performing some kind of ritual to keep a rift open and needing to kill them so that he could close it.
“If they did manage it, we’d have to fight our way into the rift to stop it. Through whatever is pouring out.”
Aza nodded.
“And we can’t attempt to seal it before it even opens?” asked Gabriel. “I assume it's been tried.”
Michael nodded. “I can't even make an attempt until it opens and I’m uncertain I’d be able to seal it alone. It will likely take the efforts of all the diviners we have.”
“We’ll have to place priority on keeping them safe. I’d like to stage everyone close to the rift, but with how difficult it is to tell exactly when the rift will open I don’t want to simply put them there and hope for the best.”
“When it opens I believe that all the other diviners will be able to feel it even from here.”
Marlo sighed. “Okay. I think we’ve done all that we can to prepare for now. King Castor I would appreciate it if we could go over the defenses erected so far along with some of your men and the dwarves. I’m sure you all could offer more insights into how to improve them.”
The conversation turned to a more focused discussion on defenses, men, food, and logistics. The conversation turned to action, then those actions expanded over the next several weeks as more troops and mercenaries arrived and the rift grew like a cancer just beyond their reach.
They could not prepare more than they already had. Michael had faith that they would succeed. He just wished he knew how high the price of their success would be.
…
As the silence enchantment settled Michael and Gabriel shared a quick hug before separating. Gabriel poured a glass of wine and handed it to Michael before pouring out his own.
“How’re you?” asked Michael.
“Worried. The world might end soon. Happy to see you though. How’re you?”
Michael felt thoughts of Lys cross his mind and let them pass through him. “As good as I can be. Alyssa, Mikhail and Yuna are okay?” He could feel the weight of the purple flower Alyssa had given him against his chest.
“As okay as they can be. They’re worried about us, of course. Yuna’s even started them praying… still figuring out how I feel about that.”
“It’s their way of helping. Every prayer strengthens the gods.”
“That’s true, but its still strage that that’s true. And you? DId you speak to your doctor? I can’t imagine my uncles let you get away with not doing so.”
“Carmen’s been monitoring me. She maintains that I’m a freak, but a healthy one. I have a few more wrinkles, but otherwise I’m completely fine from what she can tell. I haven’t had to exert myself too much since I’ve returned though.”
“Did she figure out what’s causing it?”
“Her theories are the same as yours and mine. Exertion, most likely. Beyond what the body is supposed to do.”
“So during the final battle?”
“Even if it is aging me, I’m still younger physically than I was when I died. As long as I don’t get gray nose hairs longer than a finger I should be fine.”
Gabriel laughed, but it was tinged with concern.
“You know you’ve got a lot of grandfathering left to do?”
Michael smiled. “I know.”
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