Jackal Among Snakes

Traugott gave them one last hex from beyond the grave—specifically, a headache. That was truly the only thing they gained from this interrogation. Anneliese had already cracked the code, so to speak, on his bid to use Sophia’s power contained within the shell of Good King Norman. Any information about the Heralds was precisely as they possessed—uncertain, imprecise, and further confirming that they were opposed to any finality to the cycle of judgment.

It did confirm, at least, that they were right to focus on Traugott before shifting gears to deal with Gerechtigkeit. His knowledge about their situation was frighteningly accurate, and even Anneliese had to concede that some of his plans for the tide of Shadowlanders he’d brought beneath his banner would probably be impossible to counter. With him gone, a threat to their safety, Vasquer’s safety, and Sophia’s safety were wiped, all in one.

Anneliese erased the shell once again. Given time, she would forget the precise intricacies, and the psyche of Traugott would be forever lost—not with the death that he’d wanted, but with a rational hand deciding his fate with the same compassion he’d shown all of his subjects of experimentation. It was a feat that deserved to be declared grandly to the mortal realm and the heavens both, but Anneliese was content with the deed itself as her reward.

With that final dragon slain, it had finally gone to the point where only the last enemy remained—the one who, in large part, might be considered responsible for it all. It promised to be a brutal struggle even after only the first skirmish—Orion versus the silver knight. More enemies of that caliber might join the fray in the final months cresting the horizon.

Argrave had taken away so many of Gerechtigkeit’s natural allies. The threat of the undead, brought about by the Order of the Rose on Berendar, had largely been culled—every day, the reports of attacks on travelers and rural villagers lessened. Beings like golems had been largely dismantled or subdued—and to that end, Durran collaborated with a large team to ensure the subterranean people of the Burnt Desert would not be turned on by their creations. Elsewhere, he actively worked to deprive Gerechtigkeit of minions, uprooting necromantic sects and lich enclaves.

Around the world, similar crusades carried on at the behest of one of the largest coalitions in the world. The Blackgard Union had seen the threat firsthand, now, and rumors abounded about Orion between the gods himself. Some people in the kingdom suggested that Orion himself should be king after his display of immense bravery while the king hid away. The knight-commander practically tripped over himself to correct the record and refuse kingship at the same time.

But it was not enough. With all other matters eliminated, Argrave could laser-focus upon perfecting the form with which they would face their enemy. He began this reformation with a series of robust communications. With the Blackgard Union, he clarified that he had established contact with the Shadowlands, and had a plan of action to prevent their incursions for this cycle. With the Kingdom of Vasquer and to a lesser extent that of the Great Chu, he made sure they knew he was present and able to defend all that was under his sphere of influence.

He issued proclamations of glory, outlining those who had worked to defend the kingdom. Orion was first among them, then came Garm and Llewellen, the last of whom was written down as a casualty in the battle for simplicity’s sake. He gave credit to the countless who deserved it, describing what each had sacrificed to keep the kingdom running, and what they had contributed to its safety.

Beyond the populace were the institutions. The nobles smelled blood in the water, but the sharks had long ago been purged—instead, the sight of blood only caused them fear. Elenore was instrumental in allaying that fear. They had been massing the army at Blackgard both to facilitate training and to centralize power, but this most recent demonstration clarified that the soldiers weren’t at their most effective so tightly grouped.

Using their fear as an excuse, Elenore distributed soldiers throughout the entire kingdom to maintain order, improve the infrastructure, and undermine the influence of regional gentry. Soon enough, their well-trained standing army had permeated the whole of the kingdom of Vasquer. They built roads, mitigated the effects of floods, assisted migration, and improved the garrison of the towns and cities. They were as much as a highly effective labor force as they were soldiers of the state.

Elenore was worried about corruption taking root in their ranks, as she deemed it ‘the biggest cancer of any nation.’ She tested the robustness of the Veidimen training with probes to try and deliberately corrupt soldiers. They proved largely fruitless, much to her satisfaction. They had a standing army that was loyal to the crown alone. Such a thing would prove invaluable in the times to come in the following months, and the following decades. Suffice it to say, the army was here to stay. It was a tremendous stabilizing force.

Regarding another stabilizer: the Order of the Gray Owl, after being devastated in the battle by loss of key personnel and leadership, was on its back foot. It would strain further under the enormity of what was to come. There was a large power vacuum, and those who remained might do something desperate to preserve their autonomy. They already felt threatened by the prospect of a constitution dictating how magic ought to be used. To calm them, Anneliese and Argrave both did something to give robust assurances that the crown would not undermine their existence—they applied for the title of Magister of the Gray Owl.

The application, of course, had to be reviewed by a tower master. Tarah, Castro’s successor, had died in the battle against the silver knight. Their application was merely a very subtle indication that the crown had no intention of taking overt advantage of the power vacuum, and that the living Magisters should get their Order in order quickly and peacefully. Covertly, however, Elenore had some angles. She intended to push Moriatran, a wizened elder and Castro’s self-proclaimed rival, as the next tower master. He’d proven very amenable to oversight by the crown, while his anti-Castro reputation might earn him supporters amongst those who doubtlessly intended to preserve the integrity of the order above all else.

Meanwhile, the merit of the knowledge unearthed by the research team headed by Anneliese and then Llewellen had set a fire in a great many—not just Vasquer natives, but those from abroad. Veidimen casters, and those of the Great Chu, were not so eager to return to their homelands despite the attack. It was partially due to their intellectual curiosity, partly due to incentives offered by both Artur and Elenore, and partly out of fear. They feared being left behind for another frightening innovation, as seen with soul magic. Argrave was especially gung-ho about cementing Blackgard as a center of scholarly research, as he knew the benefits of such a place in the world that he came from.

In a matter of weeks, their dynamic administration turned what was objectively the biggest disaster of its tenure into a neutral, perhaps even positive incident. The lives lost could not be replaced, but from their loss could spring a sweeping round of changes for the better. The parliament was especially agreeable, seeing the need for a strong, centralized power with the prospect of calamity above their heads.

There was silence from Gerechtigkeit, but all could tell that he was not idle. The phenomenon of the White Plane’s collapse was something noted by countless divinity who made journeys to the place seeking to establish contracts between one another. It was evident there was a malignant force battering against it, seeking to undermine and destroy it. This came alongside continued reports of a nexus of power coinciding with where the Gilderwatchers had met. The dwarves, closest to this power, loosened their isolationist policies further in case they needed aid.

The collapse of the White Planes was proper impetus to establish ties between deities that were not only enforced by its mysticism, but by the practicality of their reality. Argrave seized upon it ably, acting as figurehead in communications with countless other deities. Rumors had spread of his prowess in battle after the situation with Sataistador and Erlebnis, and now that the Fruit of Being had changed him, he was better able to make those falsehoods reality in person.

The Blackgard Union was made stronger—not weaker—by the prospect of the White Plane’s collapse, largely because its leadership was able to enforce more centralization. Gods, at the end of the day, were not so far removed from mortals in their needs and desires. They were guided by their domains, but not constrained to them. With the coming calamity, their priority to continue living combatted their desire for freedom. They relinquished the opportunity to betray one another, provided they themselves had similar assurances.

Gerechtigkeit had changed… but so had the world. Their reality had been tossed into the forge, and after being beaten and cooled, emerged as hardened steel. Only time would prove if they were equal to the opponent that they faced.