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575. Letters and Leave

A period of calm followed after the raid. As Martel and Eleanor resumed their patrolling, they no longer encountered the enemy. Day after day passed with no sign. At first, Martel suspected this was only the sort of calm that preceded a storm, and he continued to wait for what he assumed to be th...

574. The Pace of Victory

The two Asterians and their Tyrian scout ran all they could, the latter in front. She knew the terrain and the route home, and even without magic, she was swift; Martel had to use bursts of his power to catch up every now and then. Any sounds of shooting or shouting faded behind them, though Mart...

573. Mage of Fire

Nothing further happened that day; either Khivans had yet to pass by, or they had already done so earlier. In case it was the former, the two Asterians and their Tyrian guide made camp, trying to disguise their presence as best they could. Freydis arranged their brown cloaks like a primitive tent...

572. On Crooked Paths

Before Martel and Eleanor could leave the next morning, they were intercepted by the legionary. "Prefects, Sir Avery bids you join her."

Eleanor glanced at Martel, who shrugged. "Very well."

They quickly traversed the outpost to reach the tent of its resident commander. Stepping insid...

571. A Light in the Dark

This time, Martel was not in doubt; the Khivans knew to expect him and Eleanor. About ten of them were just ahead, spread out in a semicircle. They must have spotted the mages approaching and prepared their ambush accordingly, taking positions and waiting for the pair to walk into the trap.

570. Hardened Defences

The easy days of pleasant weather and peaceful patrolling did not last, Martel realised, as a bullet whistled past him. Whether the Khivans lay in wait for him and Eleanor, or whether they had surprised the Khivans, he could not tell; the result was the same regardless. Seven enemies, by his coun...

569. A Heart of Bronze

As Martel and Eleanor were on their way for their daily outing, they could not help but notice the activity in the middle of the outpost. Using rope, mules, and legionaries, efforts were undertaken to roll the captured cannons out of camp. All of this was overseen by Wulfstan, which made Martel c...

568. One Shall Follow the Other

The next day's patrol proved as eventless. It seemed the Khivans had retreated to lick their wounds, pulling further back and abandoning the immediate area to the Asterians. Neither Martel and Eleanor nor any of the patrols made by the regular legionaries saw any sign of the enemy. While Martel k...

567. Intelligent Conversation

While a lot of repairs and other work still needed to be done in and around the outpost, clearing up after the battle, Martel and Eleanor would not lend further aid to these efforts; as a new day dawned, they had their orders of resuming daily patrols. First to be ready for departure, Martel idle...

566. A Matter of Courage

Martel did not have the numbers, but he suspected that the Asterians had lost as many soldiers as the Khivans by pursuing them into the forest. Once pursuit was no longer feasible, they began a slow march back towards the outpost, through woods littered by bodies. While Martel had fought dozens o...

565. Blood upon the Leaves

If the sounds of battle had been loud and dissonant before, it all turned into a cacophony as the mounted cohort of the Tenth Legion arrived. Horses thundered into the clearing, legionaries on the walls cheered, and the Khivans discharged their weapons. Finally daring to leave his spot, Martel we...

564. Walls of Spark and Stone

Martel woke to the sound of a cannon's roar. Besides being a rude awakening, it also served as an unpleasant reminder of their situation. In some ways, the uncertainty was the worst part. Would the next shot bring the wall down? Would it take ten or twenty? Would it hold until reinforcements arri...

563. Fireflies in the Night

The walls held until nightfall. Whether they would continue to do so, nobody could say; Martel was the only one with the least bit of knowledge concerning enchantment, and even he dared not guess.

Outside their tent, the battlemage and his protector prepared for their task. They covered all...

562. Weapons of War

Given the simplicity of the fortifications, the tower in each corner was little more than a raised platform on the walls, allowing archers and sentinels a better vantage point. Martel and Eleanor hurried up the stairs until they could join Valerius, surrounded by legionaries, all of them staring ...

561. The Eye of the Storm

They marched through the day, balancing their conflicting needs of haste and stealth. Martel used his magical sense regularly, staying vigilant; neither of them spoke, using only touch and gestures to communicate whenever either suspected that others might be near. Martel was keenly aware of how ...

560. The Straight Path

To travel on horseback between Esmouth and the outpost, it was necessary to stick to the dirt road made by Henry months prior. Martel and Eleanor rode at a trot until darkness fell, and they decided to halt. Both paid extra attention to their runes of warning, trying to cover their small camp fro...

559. Brief Respite

Martel and Eleanor went straight to the legate's house. The other prefects had gathered in the atrium, discussing the same news that Eleanor had brought him. Though one of them was able to tear himself away from the topic; with a disdainful smile, the decurion looked towards Martel. "This is a co...

558. Disruption

Day by day passed without Martel taking much note of them. He laboured his available hours in the workshop, creating potion after potion. At times, when he felt tired, he might momentarily believe himself to be back in the warehouse in Morcaster; he thought he heard the voices of Mistress Rana or...

557. Spiders

Martel waited until evening before he dared to begin actually brewing, giving the plants further time to dry. Until then, he did his best to handle all the other steps by instructing the helpers at his disposal that they could churn out prepared reagents for him to use, much like the apothecaries...

556. Nocturnal Gathering

Swift activities followed Martel's return, though with complications. The Tyrians set up another abandoned building to act as storage where harvested ingredients would be brought and processed; a few of their number along with some legionaries received the task of doing the latter, preparing them...

555. Blue Skin

Martel and Eleanor were on their way out of the small camp when a voice called out. "Prefects, one moment!" They both turned around to find Florence, the mageknight in charge, striding towards them. "This came for you yesterday." She handed over a brief missive.

Reading it, Eleanor looked u...

554. Suppression

Martel practically fell to the ground, bullets flying over his head. Next to him, Eleanor appeared, blood on her blade. "Situation?" was all she asked.

Martel closed his eyes and let his magical sense flow in every direction. The trees interrupted his reading here and there, but he received...

553. Predators and Prey

On the morrow, ten legionaries including their princeps stood in the middle of the outpost, gathered underneath the cohort banner. Seeing two prefects approach, they stood at attention.

"Princeps," Eleanor said, "we shall be conducting patrols on our own. You and your men may go northeast a...

552. An Intelligent Suggestion

As Martel woke the next morning, he spent a moment pulling himself together before he finally got up. He did not look forward to three days of horseback riding, or the thought of being back at the outpost with the daily patrols once that journey ended. At least he would have a few days alone in t...

551. Fires of Solstice

Unlike the last time he was invited to the legate's house, Martel kept his expensive clothes in his chest. Instead, he simply dressed in one of his red robes like he would on an ordinary day. Leaving his tent, he waited outside until Eleanor joined him, likewise clad in her usual black tunic.

550. Keeping Count

After three days of travel, they reached the camp. Seeing the walls at the end of the road, Martel felt a sense of homecoming, stronger than he would have expected, only marred by the discomfort of his body being stiff and sore over.

They reached the river, crossed the bridge, and rode thro...

549. Between the Trees

Martel did not know whether to stare at Eleanor or the two horses. "I don't know how to ride," he told her, dropping his pack on the ground that he might cross his arms.

"You are a prefect, and it is time you learn. This is the perfect opportunity." She opened his pack and stuffed the conte...

548. In the Forests of the Night

Martel reached out with magic and crumpled the tip of the Khivan's musket. That still left six enemies ahead of them and two behind. They had changed tactics, using only sharpshooters; none of them engaged in close combat. "I'll draw their fire," Eleanor told him. She ran with empowered speed thr...

547. Ostracised

They saw no further sign of Khivans, neither that night or the following days. It seemed to have been a lone patrol, returning to find the Asterians occupying the camp and taking what revenge they could. With their muskets gone – the Asterians found most of them discarded in the forest, their b...

546. Heat and Metal

The shot woke Martel. He stared in the dark, confused as he summoned a flame for light, until he recognised the small tent he shared with Eleanor. On the other side of the cloak dividing the space, he heard her stir as well. "Wait here," she told him, "and let me go first."

She left the ten...