Valkyrie's Shadow

Empire in Chains: Act 4, Chapter 27

Empire in Chains: Act 4, Chapter 27

Chapter 27

“Up ahead,” Sergeant Zint said. “It’s uh…weird.”

“Weird?” Captain Germund asked.

“You’ll see.”

Rangobart frowned as the Fifth Company made its way through an unfamiliar stretch of jungle that was at the same time indistinguishable from every other stretch of jungle they had seen. Unlike previous sorties, however, their target wasn’t a Demihuman settlement. Instead, they had been sent to search for the Thirteenth Company, which had failed to return that afternoon.

With it potentially being the first sign of real resistance in The Blister, Commander Enz had sent out the first ready company on hand to investigate the matter, which happened to be them. They came in from the light combat of their morning assignment and were turned right around after Captain Germund submitted his report.

An unseen stream trickled through the undergrowth, adding to the sounds of their passage down a narrow animal trail. Eventually, they came into a clearing where the stream cascaded into a small pond half-cradled by the roots of a colossal tree. The fragrant scent of jungle blossoms filled the air and a rare slice of sunlight illuminated the jungle floor.

The light glinted off of polished steel plates, drawing Rangobart’s attention to the ‘weird’ scenery Sergeant Zint had mentioned. Around the clearing were the members of the Thirteenth Company. A few of them stood around chatting with one another while others basked in the sunlight. A couple of men had their boots off and were bathing their feet in the warm waters of the pond.

“Okay…”

Their steps slowed as they entered the clearing. The men in the clearing offered their greetings as they joined them. Rangobart examined a few as he walked by. They didn’t look distressed or concerned over what they were doing there. Captain Germund approached one of the other company’s Sergeants.

“Sergeant, where’s your Captain?” He asked.

The man wordlessly shrugged in response. Weird.

Rangobart made his way through the clearing, walking over to the base of the tree. After making it halfway around, he found the Thirteenth Company’s Captain. He found a clear spot between the thorny vines draped over the exposed surface of a nearby root. Then he stared down at the body, which was lying face-down in the dirt.

Still clad in his armour, there wasn’t much left of the Captain inside. The skin of his neck had shrivelled, hanging loose around his spine. Nearby were several robed men and a dozen Clerics, strewn about in a similar condition. He sighed at the sight, wondering what he should do as he settled more comfortably in his seat.

With things as they were, Rangobart had distracted himself from pursuing his family’s wishes by keeping himself busy. He had to do something about it at some point, however. Not that he had any problems with Lady Zahradnik. In fact, it was quite the opposite. She was accommodating, yet stern. Exotic and beautiful; strong, intelligent and empathetic. She was the fantastic embodiment of an impossible ideal and Rangobart was certain that most would leap at the opportunity to become her consort.

Except…it didn’t feel right. Maybe the thinking of the martial Nobles had influenced him far more than was healthy. He didn’t want to simply pursue a relationship with the Baroness – he wanted to prove himself first. Stand on his own achievements. A half year ago, he would have scoffed at the notion and mocked himself for his imprudence. Opportunities were to be seized, unclouded by frivolous sentiment.

Back at the Imperial Magic Academy, he was highly eligible as far as Noble scions went. Rangobart was from a well-to-do family with status and connections. He had a good academic record and had made solid inroads with many of the other students. In a world where men and women weighed relationships purely on merits and demerits, he conservatively counted himself amongst the top five in his year. Even if a woman absolutely despised him for some reason, she would most likely accept a match out of raw pragmatism and for the benefit of her house.

While some might say that it was due to his efforts as a student, no amount of effort would have made up for not having the support of his family. His Noble upbringing; his aristocratic and arcane education; his enrolment in the Imperial Magic Academy; his connections, looks and resources…were not solely his own. He was Rangobart of House Roberbad, emphasis on ‘House Roberbad’.

He couldn’t ever completely separate himself from what he owed to his family, but, at the same time, he still wanted something that was his. It was an extreme and arbitrary notion, but there it was.

“Roberbad.”

Captain Germund called out to him as he walked over. Rangobart didn’t bother standing.

“Captain?”

“What are you…”

His voice trailed off as he noticed the corpses. Around them, the thorny vines shifted, writhing against the surroundings before detaching themselves from the trunk, roots and forest floor. Something moved in the canopy.

They looked up as a huge crimson blossom descended towards them. Several of the vines hovered lightly around Rangobart and Captain Germund. The blossom’s petals opened before them, revealing a voluptuous woman with bright green skin and red ‘hair’ formed out of small leaves. She drifted closer to the Captain, lush lips turning up in an enticing smile.

“…Captain?” The woman said in a sultry voice, then pointed at the ground, “Like this Captain?”

“Yes, ma’am,” Captain Germund nodded.

“They need help,” the woman told them. “Can anyone help? Magic casters, perhaps?”

The Captain turned to call the other mages and the Clerics. They wandered over, and the woman offered them a beatific look. More vines closed in around them.

“Thank you, Captain,” the woman said. “Th–”

Something shattered against the woman’s shoulder, spilling its liquid contents over her. A moment later, her skin burst into flame. The woman’s piercing shriek filled Rangobart’s ears. Another arrow struck her, adding to the growing blaze.

The woman writhed frantically, swatting at the fires over her body and the withering petals of the giant flower. Yet another arrow streaked in, feeding the inferno with even more alchemist’s fire. The stalk of the flower extended, moving the burning woman towards the pool. A figure in white dashed into the clearing and the blade of a glaive cut a shining arc through the streams of afternoon light.

Trails of viscous liquid flew into the air as Lady Zahradnik’s assault bit deep into the stalk of the flower. The woman shrieked again, pointing a finger at the Baroness.

“?Hold Species?!”

The glaive flashed again, removing the woman’s outstretched arm. Half-burned face a mix of fear and confusion, the woman continued to scream wordlessly as thick vines rose around her. Two of them snaked up Lady Zahradnik’s legs, only to phase through them as they tightened their hold.

A Freedom effect…

As the Baroness defended herself from the assailing vines, Rangobart idly wondered where such a powerful enchantment had come from. Freedom was a Fourth-tier spell; the Clerics in their company had Third-tier magic, at best.

“?Charm Species?!”

The plant woman cast another spell. Again, it appeared to have no effect on Lady Zahradnik. More thorny tendrils shot out and a cloying odour filled the air as Lady Zahradnik’s glaive worked to fend off the assault. Dozens of severed vines were strewn over the ground before the blossom closed around the plant woman and started to withdraw.

Baroness Zahradnik’s glaive flashed out, splitting into three and catching the blossom near its base. It smashed into the tree trunk, tumbling limply over the roots. A flask shattered against it, once again lighting the flower aflame. Lady Zahradnik didn’t spare the growing blaze a second glance, jogging over to the Captain and slapping him in the face.

“What–”

“Rouse your men,” the Baroness told him. “They’re still pacified. I’m not sure if you can do it for the Thirteenth Company. If not, get your men to snap them out of it by ha–”

A shimmering hemisphere briefly flashed around the Baroness. Rangobart stared as a long, black arrow spun to the ground. The next thing he knew, he was on the ground, mouth opened in a silent scream as pain lanced through his neck.

?GET DOWN!?

The Captain’s command came too late. Not that it seemed to help. Around the clearing, no one moved. Lady Zahradnik produced a round shield from her magical container, tossing it over to Captain Germund before turning to kneel beside Rangobart. Her dark gaze held his.

“Can you understand me?”

He could barely nod.

“Hold still.”

Rangobart let out a gurgling noise as she snapped the arrow piercing his throat. He tensed in mute horror as he felt the shaft slide out of his neck. Fluid filled his windpipe, and he coughed weakly. His hand came up, and he felt warm liquid pulsing out from between his fingers. The wet fabric of his robe stuck to his skin.

Oh gods, I’m going to die…

Something splashed into his face. The gaping wound in his neck closed. Several objects landed on his lap.

“Use another one if you need it. Get your defensive enchantments up. Help anyone you can reach.”

The shimmering hemisphere flashed around Lady Zahradnik again as another arrow bounced off of it. She turned to join Captain Germund, who was going from caster to caster, waking them from their stupor and pushing them down in between the tree roots. It was unnecessary for a few, as arrows had found them first and they ducked behind cover of their own accord. The Clerics started tending to the wounded amongst them.

Crawling forward on his hands and knees, Rangobart suddenly retched. His arms felt like water and he nearly went face-first into his own mess. He rolled onto his back, weakly reaching for an antidote in his belt pouch as he struggled under his short, shallow breaths.

Venom, too? Is putting an arrow in my throat not enough?

Out in the clearing, arrows continued to fall. A few of the men had been struck, crawling their way towards the tree with arrows stuck in them. The rest remained blithely where they were as if waiting to be felled by their hidden assailants.

“What the hell is going on?”

An arrow hammered into the round shield held up by Captain Germund, stopping against his vambrace.

“We walked into an Alraune’s territory,” Lady Zahradnik said. “So did this other company. Hold on…”

A winged shadow crossed over the clearing. Rangobart froze, body seized by primal terror. He needed to hide. He had to survive. There was a space under the exposed root next to him. He clawed at the soil, trying to widen it enough to stick his head in. Not fast enough. Maybe he could force his way through…

“Brace your men, Captain!” A woman’s voice called out, “Capt–”

The woman sighed. Snarls and yips drifted through the trees to the north, receding into the distance.

Rangobart came to his senses a half-minute later. He spit dirt and bits of rotting debris out of his mouth. The hammering in his ears slowly receded as he pushed himself up on shaky arms. His legs wobbled as he tried to make sense of the chaos.

A slap sounded in the air.

“Sergeant,” Lady Zahradnik said, “go and wake up your men.”

“R-right,” Harlow replied in a shaky voice.

“We have casualties out here,” the Baroness called out in his direction.

Boots scraped over the ground as the Clerics nearby moved on unsteady feet into a surreal scene. Soldiers struck down by arrows were littered all over the clearing. Many of them seemed to have dragged themselves over the ground while those less injured had scampered away to the nearest piece of cover. A few lay amidst pools of their own vomit and excrement. Groans of the wounded rose all around him.

In contrast, the uninjured men remained where they were. They stood and continued to chat and lounge about. One man sitting at the pool worked on a strip of jerky, calmly looking at the man who had been killed right beside him. Three arrows were buried in the corpse; a trickle of blood dripped steadily into the water.

What strange hell is this…

“Officer Roberbad,” Lady Zahradnik said. “What did division headquarters say?”

“I…I haven’t contacted them yet,” Rangobart replied. “What do I even tell them?”

“The Thirteenth Company fell victim to an Alarune,” the Baroness told him. “Then we did. Their blossoms emit a fragrance that can pacify those that breathe it in. The result is as you see: people go on as if nothing is amiss. No fear; no panic; no strong emotions. Seeing dead bodies and even watching people holds no special significance.”

Cries of grief and frustration rose as more and more of the men were brought to their senses. Rangobart swallowed as bile pooled in the pit of his stomach.

“You weren’t affected?” He asked.

“It’s not unresistible,” Lady Zahradnik answered. “That’s why the Alarune came down when you replied to Captain Germund. It saw him as something like a Demihuman Lord, which isn’t wrong when it comes to the threat that he represents. If he broke out of it, he could have potentially used a Command Skill to snap the men out of the effect. Then she used a Spell-like Ability similar to a Suggestion spell to have him gather all of the magic casters who also might have been able to do something about it.”

The Baroness looked pointedly at the corpses nearby.

“That’s what happened to the Thirteenth Company. She removed all of the threats and left the rest of the men standing around to consume at her leisure.”

“Why would she do something so evil?”

“I couldn’t guess over whether she was good or evil,” the Baroness said. “You can’t measure other races by Human standards. An Alarune is a predatory plant Heteromorph. Any living thing that enters her territory is potential fertiliser.”

“…and we almost became fertiliser, too.”

They turned at Captain Germund’s voice.

“Not that I’m unappreciative,” he said. “She got really close, though.”

“I wasn’t sure what the cause was until she came down from the canopy,” Lady Zahradnik said. “She was strong enough that I wasn’t sure how the fight would play out, so I called my Frost Dragon and waited for as long as I could while she flew over to us. Getting ambushed by Gnolls was a complete surprise, though.”

Rangobart shivered at the still-fresh sensation of having an arrow through his neck. Then the embarrassing memory of trying to burrow under a tree root made him cringe.

“So that mass panic…was dragonfear?”

“Yes. Since everyone else was pacified, I thought it could be used against the Alarune without making a mess of the company. I ended up not needing it for her, but it came in handy against that Gnoll ambush.”

“About that ambush,” the Captain said, “do you think it was a coincidence or were the Gnolls working together with the Alarune?”

“I can’t imagine that the local Demihumans wouldn’t know that there was an Alarune in the area,” Lady Zahradnik said, “but they should have come to her aid as soon as I attacked if they were cooperating with her. With the advance of the army, the Gnolls probably saw it as an opportunity to deal with as many soldiers as possible. All they had to do was have someone watch for prey falling into her trap. I’m not sure how far they came from, but the Gnolls might have gotten greedy – they saw one company get ensnared and might have been hoping for more before killing everyone…which is what happened.”

One of the Sergeants called out to the Captain. He turned one last look at Rangobart and Lady Zahradnik.

“That dragonfear wore off a while ago,” Captain Germund said. “Let’s move before those Gnolls reorganise.”