B4 Chapter 482: Delegation, Finale

With the two Silver mages meditating at the centre of the siege tower, low conversations spread out through the gathered groups.

Other than their five Silver leaders, the mages from Mystral had drifted to one edge of the tower opposite from Kaius and his friends. Almost instinctively, they gathered themselves according to their Spires — no doubt as much due to simple bonds of familiarity as it was political allegiance.

Happy to avoid as much attention as possible, Kaius stayed away from the centre — Rieker and Ro would be far more adept at politics than he was, to say nothing of the governor himself.

He couldn’t help but be absorbed in what he had just witnessed: an entire building arisen from the ground in seconds. Hells, he could still hear the churning crowds in the city streets below, yelling in confusion and surprise.

Even Ianmus seemed taken aback.

“So that was as impressive as it looked, then,” Kaius hedged a guess, keeping his voice low enough that his murmurs would only be heard by his team.

When Ianmus turned to look, Kaius caught the mage’s eye. “How are they not insensate? I’ve never seen you muster that much mana.”

Ianmus shrugged. “Different specialities — my magic lends itself to quick bursts, whereas something like this needs a slower, more considerate touch. Given the demands of their magic, Stonespire all but requires its initiates to invest in skills that help them deal with and recover from mana burn.”

Kaius shook his head. “They might be specialised, but a siege tower sprouting from the ground has a certain impact that other forms of magic lack.”

He couldn’t help but wonder — what would those mages be able to do if they reached the third tier? The fourth? Would they be able to conjure entire fortresses in seconds?

Even if specialising in construction had neutered their combat skills and spells completely — something he heavily doubted, considering both men had reached Silver — simply being able to move that much stone would make them terrors.

“A good thing they came when they did; the beasts could arrive any day now,” Kenva added, peering over the edge of the tower with an appreciative gleam in her eye. “Towers like these are invaluable. Less archers on the wall means more space for classers who are better suited for repelling any beasts that might scale them.”

Before their conversation could continue, Ophelia, the leader of Mystral’s mages, cleared her throat at the centre of the tower.

“Well. Now that our initial preparations have been made, and we find ourselves in a position of relative privacy, it is a good time for more…official introductions.”

Kaius didn’t miss the pertinent look that the storm mage gave his group — one that lingered equally on him, Porkchop, and Ianmus.

Hanrick glanced at the nearby earth mages, who were both unperturbed by their conversation. “Should we not wait for their work to be finished?”

“No,” Ophelia responded with a slight shake of her head. “Their plans for the defence of the city are extensive — they’ll be at this all night, and likely through the morning as well.”

Kaius couldn’t help but wince. He didn’t envy the mages; no doubt by the time they had finished, both of the Silvers would feel like they had ogres wailing on their heads.

He stilled as Ophelia’s eyes snapped to his group once more, the slightest of frowns on her face.

“I am curious, Governour — why did your missive not mention a greater meles? What possible interest could the Dens have in the fate of your city? They barely interact with the Conclaves, let alone grow invested in happenings outside of the Arboreal Sea.”

Kaius watched as every Steel mage in Mystral’s delegation froze, their eyes widening as they stared at Porkchop in disbelief.

That was a surprise. Considering how fast Ianmus had noticed when they’d first met, Kaius had assumed that the Spire mages would have recognised his brother immediately. He supposed that Ianmus was a half-elf, and had far more context than most.

Hanrick groaned, looking over his shoulder briefly with pleading eyes. “A simple oversight, given the urgency of the situation.”

“An oversight?” Ophelia responded, arching her brow.

As Kaius straightened, ready to clear up the misunderstanding, he felt a mental nudge from his bondbrother.

“I’ll do it.”

Letting out a soft grumble, Porkchop rose to his feet — an action that immediately drew the attention of everyone atop the siege tower. Sometimes it was easy to forget just how large Porkchop had grown.

Not now, when he had to crane his head to avoid the buttressed stone ceiling of the tower.

“The Dens have no involvement, nor am I here in any official capacity. I have been living in Deadacre for over a year, operating as a delver alongside my team,” Porkchop said, looking back at Kaius and the rest of his friends.

Kaius struggled to keep from laughing as Porkchop winked at him.

His brother’s answer seemed to catch Ophelia and the rest of the Silver mages flat-footed. Behind her, a woman in a green robe frowned — Madrigal, Kaius assumed, the life mage that Ianmus had mentioned.

“But…why? And how? Are the elves aware that a greater meles has left the Sea?”

Porkchop let out a soft growl — one Kaius knew to be a warning. “You are mistaken if you assume that the elves have any say in my actions, nor that of any of my kin. As for why? Because it is a good way to grow strong, and it serves the interests of my friends and I. The only thing that matters is that I am here, and I am willing to fight.”

While Madrigal paled slightly at Porkchop’s initial rebuke, she nodded.

“That explains some of your old student’s growth, I suppose,” Ophelia said, glancing behind her to the mage, Cantor.

“Some of it,” Cantor replied, his eyes flicking over Kaius and his team.

Kaius watched the man closely. Ianmus had made it clear there was history between them, but the man didn’t seem malicious.

“We’ve gotten off track. We’re supposed to be planning how we stop a horde of beasts from devouring this city to the bones, not gossiping like tavern regulars!” Rieker growled.

Ophelia took the Guildmaster’s words in stride. “A fair point. Let us start with our fortification plans — integrating our mages into your battle lines should be easy enough.”

To Kaius’s relief, the topic of conversation quickly diverted away from him and his team. The discussions were detailed: layouts of new fortifications and how troops could be arrayed to take maximum use of them.

Much time was spent on exactly where the tallest siege tower should be placed. Its intended use was for Silvers — the mages and rangers who would benefit from additional viewing angles, and could strike equally as powerfully from far afield.

That little revelation quelled some of his nerves for the upcoming battle — if Kenva and Ianmus were both there, they would be well defended and far from any intrusions.

“I wonder where they’re going to put us?” Porkchop asked privately, watching the ongoing conversation with interest.

“By the eastern gate, I imagine,” Kaius replied.

He remembered the massive beasts that had broken through the gates to Old Yon’s compound. Now that it was confirmed that they had been controlled by a malicious intelligence, there was no doubt in his mind that the tyrant would attempt something similar with Deadacre.

If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

That reminded him.

“What of the tyrant itself? How do we plan to deal with it?” he asked in a lull of the discussion.

“Overwhelming force,” Rieker replied. “If the army is limited to low Steel like Dross suggested, then a strike force consisting of Ro, Ark, your team, and I will have little difficulty punching through it. Signal flares will be distributed amongst us, guard leadership, and the militia — we gather when it’s been spotted. However, if this monstrosity has been holding stronger forces in reserve, they will likely need to be dealt with before we can strike.”

Kaius only hoped that the creature wouldn’t hide behind its army. The sooner they could break its compulsion over the beasts, the fewer lives would be lost. Even if the Tyrant had Golds, he’d killed more than a few of those before.

A slight tingle of thrill shot down his spine at the thought of facing down such a creature while surrounded by a teeming horde. Charging through an army would be dangerous — but he trusted his skills. Even hampered by his prosthetic, he refused to believe that beasts half his level would prove a challenge, especially not with his team being backed by three Golds.

Deadacre would not — could not — fall.

….

Ianmus leaned on the wall of the siege tower, staring out at the dead ground that surrounded the city.