Book 8 – Chapter 26 – Mobilization

“As you will it, it shall be done Mother.” Her lead Feather replied. A brooding one with a hood of white, knives held in his hands. An assassin of sorts. Relinquished barely remembered his name. To’Regis? She could open up the datafile and read it into her memory, but the idea bored her.

Instead, she held her hand out to the dark mite containment cube before her. Something she’d kept here hidden for the past seven hundred years now. Too afraid to even post defenses nearby in case it would draw attention.

The other locations of interest, she’d assigned two or three Feathers to guard. This one required the best of the best. She brought out nine, all from the second generation. Together, they were a force that could hold off or even kill a protofeather. They’d worked before to do exactly that.

“You will lead this defense personally.” She said. “Should an enemy approach through this gateway, you are to inform me immediately, and then bar passage or eliminate the enemy. Stall at last resort. Am I understood?”

The Feather knelt down, humbled as he should be.

This would be the seventh installation she’d walked to, posting up guards to protect it. Strategic locations that the machine empire required. Cashes of weapons she hadn’t been able to destroy but needed to keep them away from the enemy hands. She didn’t know what contingency plans A22 had set in motion. And what she didn’t know, she feared above all else.

There would be dozens of different critical locations to solidify and protect while she was blind from the mite’s meddling.

And this mite containment cube held the worst of all weapons out there. Obscurity had been the best defense. This biome’s entrances and exits had equally been collapsed, leaving only a single portal that would only activate with her personal signature. She’d paid her dues to the mites centuries ago to force them away from restoring this biome or meddling with it again.

Tsuya could never find this, even the majority of her empire didn’t know it existed. A sanctuary for herself and herself only.

And now, she didn’t trust that sanctuary would remain safe.

“May we know more information on this, my lady?” One of the nine Feathers asked. To’Irelia? Or To’Iranda. Something with an I, Relinquished didn’t care.

“This cube contains the greatest weapon Tsuya could bare against me. An old thorn in my heel that I could never truly rid myself of.” She began. “What is inside is mine to know. You nine will stay here in a formation, and guard this with your life. Am I understood?”

She got pings requesting army logistics. This location was far beyond their territory. Which meant leaving behind their armies to guard their thrones in their steed.

Relinquished sent them permissions to use the local forces within this strata, in order to protect the outer portal leading inwards, and to deliver a steady supply of power cells through the portal to supply the Feathers that would remain here guarding the cube.

Controlling and commanding armies was already ground down to a snail’s pace with the machine network turned off. They had to go through the digital ocean itself, which required mite terminals to function. Of which, could be turned off at any moment on their whim.

No, armies couldn’t be relied on until the network was allowed to be restored. She needed her defenses to be impervious and independent.

None of the Feathers here complained. None cared that the lessers wouldn’t stand between them and the enemy to come. Rather, they preferred it this way.

They knew an army wouldn’t assist against the foes they would be pit against. Not when nine of them were called up to guard the same location all together.

“This is where you will remain until I deem it unneeded anymore. You will not leave. You will not falter. You will guard this until I deem your service complete.”

All nine Feathers knelt before her, then held still. She knew she wouldn’t hear a single one of them complain for the lack of things to do besides stand upon this bridge shoulder to shoulder and prevent entry to the containment cube behind them.

There had been only one time in history second generation Feathers were forced to work together in teams like this.

They could tell something dangerous would be here soon. Something that would be equal to the danger of a protofeather.

The only thing in their minds were one single sentence:

What could be coming?

Occult crackled in a spread of red and pale teal, mist formed out of nowhere, and deep within a pulse rippled out. The shadowy figure of a relic knight formed within the mist, stepping out.

Two more steps and everyone could see the imposing figure as he raised his hands in glorious return.

“I’m back!” I said, waving out to the audience as I fully stepped out of the occult mist. “Rise of hands, who here missed me? Fido, I can see your claw there twitch, so I’m counting that as a yes.”

All around were raised weapons aimed directly my way, along with Fido himself curled up over the rooftop, jaw slightly unhinged and glowing a dangerous blue in my direction. He shut it slowly, hissing.

Probably had to do with Lejis there quickly patting him into submission.

As for why everyone was aiming my direction, easy: The mite teleportation cube took one entire hour to trigger. So for one hour, on the other end they saw the building mist of occult and power strumming here, building up to something they hadn’t seen before.

Before the shadowy relic knight of House Winterscar stepped out along with his two minor accomplices, and everyone couldn’t help but keep their attention directly on him.

“Lady To’Wrathh!” They started to cry out, flocking over to Wrath as she walked out of the mist next to me. Now there were people all over us, hands reaching out to touch or shake her hand. By this point, all the weapons had lowered and the little town here was now filled with energy.

A few even gave me dirty glares as they passed by, recognizing my emblem and armor. And none of them even noticed Drakonis, who sulked off to the side, watching as the ‘cultists’ he’d fought not even a few days ago were now all right here and off-limits.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Tammery was right in the center of things, marching straight up to Wrath as she smiled like she’d always believed. Which, I’m pretty sure she actually had. Wrath had basically always come through on everything she’s ever promised, which is the boring way to gain trust and a reputation for reliability, if someone asked me.

“You can’t bribe the peasants here with shiny gold.” Cathida snickered in my helmet. “They know who they like.”

“Yeah, yeah, I see where this is going.” I sighed, folding my hands on my chest. “I’ll be gracious and let Wrath have her heroic moment. I had my fun already.”