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A Soldier's Life - 243 - (part 2 of 2) first draft
🕑 Added 2024-08-13 23:43:48 +0000 UTCChapter 243: (part 2 of 2)
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Castile stood in the dark, cool night while her legionnaires moved around her on alert. The Emperor had just shouted to move out, and the Imperial Legionnaires were heading into the portal to secure the valley beyond. Blaze fidgeted to her left and whispered something to Mateo. Adrian was on her right. “Smells like death to me,” he whispered to her. He knew of the plan to turn on the Emperor, and it was a veiled warning.
“We will follow Zyna’s lead,” Castile said with a confidence she didn’t have. This was a death sentence, and Adrian knew it as well as her.
“Eryk got off easy,” he mumbled. Castile winced at the statement. News of the Eryk’s death had reached them when they joined the Emperor’s Army outside of Caranhagan. Benito had already started a pool for when Fortuna’s son would show himself again. Castile knew better, though; his luck had run out. Centurion Cornelius had confirmed to her a few hours ago that the blood sample he had for Eryk didn’t point anywhere. She had chosen not to tell the men. Best let them hope their companion lived a charmed life.
It was her company's turn through the portal, and they fell in tightly behind a block of soldiers. Holding this portal open for so long was going to tax the Displacement Mages. Organization and speed were paramount to get everyone through and mustered for the assault. That was one thing the Telhian soldiers were good at as they moved in unison at a light jog.
Exiting the portal, she spotted the Emperor standing tall in his golden armor as he stared off into the distance. They had traveled hundreds of miles, and Neptune’s Tear was bright above them here. The blue ethereal light of the moon gave the emerging army a spectral appearance, like death spreading across the land. Her job was to protect the left flank of the Emperor from enemy mage spells. She had three other mages with her for offensive support, but only one was part of Antonia’s plan to remove the Emperor.
She hoped High Mage Zyna or whoever was in charge of this coup would be wise enough to wait until victory was achieved before moving on to the Emperor. However, she didn’t care if the Telhian Empire survived this rebellion; she knew how powerful and vindictive the ancient Emperor was, and in the last few days, she could see him fraying and constantly losing focus.
Cornelius had assured Castile that her blood samples in the Archives under the Imperial Palace would be destroyed within moments of the news of the Emperor’s death reaching them. With Eryk dead, they would find another way to destroy the secondary Archives. Castile took her position and waited for the remainder of the army to arrive so the attack on the rear of the Bartiradian Army could begin.
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Zyna bit her lip and smoothed the rich blue archmagi robes she was wearing. The boy who had given her the robes might be dead. Centurion Sergius had reported him dead, and Cornelius confirmed his death. But the truth was they didn’t have Eryk’s blood sample. Still, it was more likely than not that he was dead. The report said Hound Eryk Marco had been tasked with shadowing the Caliphate Armada and stopped communicating. Guilt racked her, and she hadn’t had the heart to tell Renna, who stood at her side. It was best not to distract the young mage on the eve of her first true battle.
Zyna stood confidently at the Emperor’s side and watched the endless stream of soldiers and legionnaires pour from the portal as the Displacement Mages strained to keep it open. The Emperor’s plan would actually be brilliant if it worked—as long as the Elves did not move on Caranhagan while they fought the Bartiradians here. The Displacement Mages would need a day or two to recover to send them back.
The Emperor turned to Zyna, “I am glad you are joining us. This will be my greatest victory.” The Emperor appeared lucid and focused. Zyna nodded and hoped he held it together long enough to win the day. She started inventorying the mages around the Emperor. Two were in on the plot, and the other five would have to perish with the Emperor if she chose to move. Renna was not aware of the plot but did not pose a threat to their plans. The night burned away to dawn as the army slowly and successfully arrived.
With the army gathered, the portal collapsed with the exhausted Displacement Mages. The Emperor looked over his army and moved to the front, yelling with an aetheric-enhanced voice about glory and becoming legends.
A few miles into the march, the first Griffin Rider spotted them. Soon, the Griffin Riders swarmed like vultures over a kill. Zyna cast small fire dragons into the sky to remove the threat of the Griffin Riders. It didn’t take much to burn away enough feathers before the beasts spiraled out of the sky to the ground. The Griffin Riders retreated, but the surprise was no longer on their side. It was going to be a bloody engagement.
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Cornelius rested on a rock high above the valley the army was marching from. A bitter taste was in his mouth, and the sugar cane stalk he chewed on couldn’t clear it. Years of planning had come to this, and it was not the opportune time. They needed the Emperor’s void power as a deterrent and weapon. The stubborn old Emperor wouldn’t step down while the Empire was eating itself alive from within, so there was no other choice.
Centurion Sergius came and stood beside him. The vile man was placed in his position for his blood, not his competence, and Cornelius hated him. “My Hounds reported the west is clear. Just two Rangers, and they are both dead and didn’t raise a warning.” The smugness in his voice made Cornelius’ skin itch.
“Good. We eliminated seven Rangers north and west. The Bartiradians are not aware we have arrived yet.” Cornelius replied methodically to his counterpart.
Sergius moved a little too close, and Cornelius stepped to give him room to watch the assembly below. A few moments passed before Sergius spoke again. The bone etchings tingled in Cornelius’ arms, indicating Sergius was using his spell form to know if he spoke the truth. He wanted to know something, so Cornelius was prepared to answer. “The Archives were attacked, and my son is dead.”
Cornelius stepped further back and faced Sergius, his mind racing and his face showing shock. “The Bartiradians?” he asked, confused.
Sergius shook his head sadly, masking his clear anger underneath, “Unlikely. Three Hounds survived, but no one saw the assailants. Do you know who might have attacked the Archives?”
The itching increased in his arms. “No,” he replied flatly as his mind raced at the possibilities. “Has a necromancer questioned the dead? What about the Master Mage Othello?” Master Mage Othello could look into the past and replay what occurred. “Has the Emperor been informed?” Cornelius added.
Centurion Sergius looked disappointed at Cornelius’ reply. “I want answers before telling the Emperor what has occurred. Only one body was recoverable for the necromancers to question. When questioned, it said someone with a cat attacked the Archives. I have requested Master Mage Othello make the journey but wanted more answers first.” Sergius studied Cornelius as his counterpart thought.
“A cat? A shapeshifter, then?” Cornelius tried to puzzle out the implications. How much of the Archives had been destroyed? Were there other players he was unaware of? Did Antonia have a backup besides Eryk that she didn’t tell him about? Sergius stepped a little closer as Cornelius’ mind raced.
“No,” Sergius said hotly. Cornelius felt a heavy pressure on his mind, immobilizing him. Sergius’ dagger was out and into his chest in a blink, and he lowered Cornelius’ body to the ground behind a boulder. “It is a strong poison, my friend. It will take time to kill, but you will feel no pain. The necromancers will get the answers I want from your corpse. Know that my Hounds will take care of Antonia Segreto if the Emperor dies today.”
Cornelius’ muscles were seized, and he couldn’t move. Sergius stood over him, “Don’t look surprised. Duke Octavian told me of your plot to place him in the Emperor’s seat. I agree it is time for new guidance from the Empire, but it will not be Antonia or you guiding it from the shadows, but me. If I find out you killed my son, know your soul will be tortured for all eternity.”
Hound Hercule approached, and Sergius turned to him, “Take his head for the necromancer, but I want to be there when his spirit is questioned.” A Griffin Rider circled high above in the gray dawn light. Cornelius always wondered what it would be like to fly on the back of a griffin. Hound Hercule nodded and knelt, cutting off Cornelius’ head while he was still conscious.
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The day had been bloody, but the Telhians were victorious. The Emperor watched from a distance as the armies clashed in the waning battle. He had used a lot of aether today and led three assaults. The first had been a brutal massacre on the baggage train and camp followers, followed by the organized Bartiradian army.
Duke Tiberius and Octavian had been slow in closing the trap, but eventually, they had. The third assault had the Bartiradians trapped between the three armies and had nowhere to retreat. Spells of lightning, fire, and ice flashed and rolled over the men, indiscriminate of their allegiance. Bodies still screamed for healing or just death’s embrace.
One of his duke generals rode up, “Emperor, a detachment of the Bartiradians is breaking east. They will escape the encirclement.” The Emperor turned to the mage on his right.
The mage turned his focus inward and sent out an all-seeing-eye. A moment later, he spoke, “About fifteen hundred men, two miles east.”
Zyna offered unwanted advice, “The day is won, most of the mages are spent. We should move north and send soldiers back to Caranhagan before the Elves move.”
“No. We will kill every Bartiradian we can today so we do not have to deal with them in the future.” The Emperor said sternly, the wildness of battle adrenaline still in his eyes. He turned to a mage, “Unpack the collectors and start harvesting the dead before it is too late. Duke Octavian and Tiberius can clean up here. I will personally lead a detachment to handle the escaping Bartiradians.”
Twenty minutes later, the Emperor led six hundred mounted legionnaires and fourteen mages east. He was happy to note that Zyna was among his mages as they all discussed how much aether they had. His mages gave them updates on the fleeing Bartiradians. Only a hundred were mounted, and they had less than ten mages.
How many mages had his own army lost today? He remembered the reports coming to him in the battle, but he couldn’t split his focus while he sent void lightning a quarter mile away into the enemy.
“They are forming a defensive line,” the mage to his left announced. The Emperor nodded and slowed the calvary. A half mile away, the Bartiradian were rapidly digging pits to defend against the horse charge. Sandy dirt was being tossed into the air as they tried to prepare something to break a calvary charge. Severus signaled a halt. Best to soften them first.
The Emperor rode forward and scanned the enemy, mostly humans with a few elves and dwarves in the mix. They noticed his golden armor, and he could feel their fear even from this distance. They had probably seen him wreak destruction during the battle today.
At this extreme range, there were only a handful of mages on all of Desia that could extend their offensive magic over this distance. The Emperor dismounted, and everyone followed his example. The Emperor pulled on his aether core, weaving the spell forms layer after layer over heartbeats. He frowned as he made an error in the spell forms and had to begin anew, this time successful. Black lightning danced between his hands, and nearby mounts danced nervously to the powerful unnatural void magic being formed.
Emperor Maximum Augustus Severus released the spell. A black web of lightning raced across the distance, spreading out in a wave of destruction. Some of the lightning struck the ground, leaving deep holes; some of the lightning headed into the sky, leaving after images to those watching it, but over half the black lines reached the Bartiradians. Screams of men suddenly sporting holes in their body erupted and the lightning raced though their ranks. He fed the spell forms until his aether ran dangerously low.
Breathing heavily from using so much aether today, he smiled, “At least a quarter dead.” He looked to his mages. “Finish them.” Zyna nodded, a frown on her face, and started to form her layered spell forms, creating a twisting, growing fire. As the dragon formed, the men prepared to charge with it. The fire dragon shot into the sky and came back down, encompassing Master Mage Naevius.
The Emperor was confused for a moment as his mind processed the screams of the burning mage. Then, his Imperial legionnaires were suddenly assaulted by other legionnaires. Chaos reigned, and confusion muddled the Emperor’s mind. Was a powerful mind mage controlling his people? A lance of fire lanced at his chest from Zyna’s hands. His aetheric shield flashed in defense, draining his amulet.
Severus reached for aether to form a void shield as Primus Scorpio yelled at him, “Protect the Emperor from the traitors!” His void shield formed, and then the weave dissolved as another blast of fire slammed into his armor. The runic etchings are flaring in defense, but the armor still heated and cooked him.
Zyna was screaming orders at the other mages as she pulled back. Primus Scorpio was off his horse and helping his Emperor to his feet. “We need to run. Some of the mages have betrayed you. The Imperial Legionnaires outnumber them, but they are targeting your loyal mages.”
He was not going to run. He drew his blade and located the mage who was preventing him from forming his void spells. The mithril blade reflected the sun’s light as lighting, fire, and explosions added to the chaos as men figured out who was on which side. The Emperor roared and charged the mage guarded by the lesser legionnaires. It had been years since he wielded the ancient blade but he would make use of it today.
Scorpio gave up trying to get his Emperor to flee and ordered the loyal legionnaires to defend him. The Emperor closed on the sweating mage as her legionnaires defended her. The ground burst around him in a fiery explosion, but his armor kept him upright as he marched to exact vengeance on the betrayal. Zyna would be next.
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Castile watched as the Emperor walked toward her. They had tried and failed. Imperial Legionaries sealed off Zyna and the other conspiratorial mages, their runic armor dulling the magical attacks. Only seven men guarded her from his wrath.
Konstantin had been loaned to the Hounds to scout for the army. Malory and Donte had fallen in the battle earlier in the day. Firth and Linus had been too injured and hadn’t joined this fight. It was a good thing; otherwise, Firth would have fallen to Adrian’s blade when the betrayal started. Adrian was keeping an eye on Wylie, who was currently stunned. If they didn’t have to kill a comrade, all the better.
Fire and earth erupted around the Emperor as Zyna tried to slow him, but she had her own problems. The Imperial Legionnaires outnumbered them two to one. She diverted her attention to send out a shadow chain to open the defense of one of the Imperial Legionnaires so Benito could get his spear under his chin.
Kolm fell to his knees to her left, his knee buckling from a powerful blow. Blaze was next to her and muttered to no one in particular, “Any chance you have a few arrows?” He had been deadly with his shots, striking legionnaire in the neck through gaps in their armor, but was down to just a few arrows.
Adrian moved out to face the Emperor, rather than let him get close to Castile. The Emperor was sloppy with his blade but faster and stronger than Adrian. Adrian’s runic blade, once Delmar’s, scratched the armor, but it didn’t matter as the Emperor grabbed his wrist and pieced him through his armor with the mithril weapon he wielded. Adrian punched the Emperor repeatedly in his face with his free hand. If they lived through this, it would be a funny story for him to tell—punching the Emperor of the Telhian Empire in the face.
The Emperor jerked his blade and kicked Adrian away in a show of remarkable agility in the heavy gold armor. Adrian clutched at his chest as he tumbled away. He reached for a lesser potion, but Castile knew the wound was too broad and deep. Blood poured from his mouth as he fought to drink, his lungs destroyed. Castile did not have time to watch her loyal friend die. The Emperor was coming for her next.
Kolm’s helm was crushed by a heavy blade on her right. The ground suddenly softened, every combatant in front of her sinking inches into the earth. The Emperor’s advance was paused. Then, the soft ground hardened just as fast as it had softened. A young, familiar, red-haired mage heaved deeply a short distance away behind Zyna. Castile had not been aware that Renna was part of the conspiracy. Her aid couldn’t have been better timed. Benito and Mateo had been out of range of the magical attack and raced among the Imperial legionnaires with their feet imprisoned in stone and unable to turn.
A wave of fire washed across two dozen other Imperial Legionnaires, cooking them and forcing them back. Primus Scorpio was screaming at the others to kill her. They knew she was holding the Emperor’s void magic in check. The Emperor was using his mithril blade to free his feet.
A thundering of hooves sounded a distance away, and she turned to see Duke Octavian leading a calvary charge with fifty legionaries all sporting his house crest. It was truly over then. The Emperor looked relieved to see his son rushing to his aid. But when the charge reached them, Octavian’s men targeted the Imperial Legionnaires and not the traitors. The Emperor roared and raged, his voice magnified by an aetheric weave in his armor.
Primus Scorpio had freed his legs, leaving his boots cemented in the hard earth. Mateo and Benito moved to shield Castile. Four quick exchanges found Benito bleeding from a neck wound, and Mateo’s sword arm cut the bone through his vambraces. Castile’s concentration was forced on the Primus, her aetheric shadow chains trying to bind him. Her focus was no longer on the Emperor. It wouldn’t be long now before she joined Adrian.
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The traitorous mage had shifted away from him. Severus turned and immediately formed and released void lightning at Zyna. Her aetheric shield flared as it tried to stop the assault but quickly failed. Her blue robes scorched and sizzled as the void lightning flashed against it uselessly. He continued his assault, ignoring his body telling him he was aetheric past his limits. He could recover in time as he had done before.
Finally, an arch of black lightning diverted up into Zyna’s unprotected face. A hole appeared through her eye and out the back of her head. She collapsed to the ground, the young red-haired mage standing behind her, shocked by everything around her. Her time would come too, Severus swore. He looked around the battle, which was slowly turning in favor of the traitors.
How had that malicious son of his convinced so many of his people to support him? He would find out soon. He found Octavian on the perimeter of the battle and prepared to end him next. He ignored the burn and channeled aether and nothing. He turned sharply as his spell forms dissolved. A one-handed legionnaire had put a sword through Scorpio’s eye while he had been bound by shadow chains. The traitorous mage was blocking his aether shaping once again.
An alert from his right that the Bartiradians were forming a line to charge their position had dozens of men uncertain about what to do. The traitors pulled back first but didn’t retreat. They were putting the Emperor and his loyal men between them and the Bartiradians. There was a call from some of his Imperial legionnaires to gather horses. A legionnaire forced reins into his hands. “Emperor, ride to safety. We will guard your retreat.”
He pulled up his aching body into the saddle, his aether channels on fire, and nine other legionnaires joined him in saddles. A hundred of his loyal legionnaires remained standing. The Emperor turned to burn the faces of the traitors into his mind. An arrow pierced the eye slit on his helm. His head jerked back as he tried to register what had just happened. The arrow jutted out of his helm as the Emperor turned his head. Silence seemed to fall across the field as the Emperor slowly slid off his horse and hit the ground. The Imperial legionnaires circled around to defend their fallen Emperor. Some were calling for healing mages or a healing potion, but no mages remained, and all the potions had been used. Octavian pulled the other legionaries back away from the rushing Bartiradians.
Not all the legionnaires and remaining mages retreated with Octavian. Castile and her five surviving legionnaires moved into the dense woodlands. Wylie was still numb in shock at what had just happened. Blaze was still in disbelief that he had just killed his Emperor. Lirkin, limping and severely bloodied. And Benito was his neck wound wrapped, hobbled, supported by Mateo, whose right arm was shattered and unusable. He carried Primus Scorpio’s runic weapon in his good hand.
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Comments
Nicholas
Wow adrenaline from reading. Just waiting for my heart rate to slow.
Chaz Baz
Holy fuck. Brutal, savage yet felt like an actual event. Very well done ✓
Kevin O'Malley
Promised to “some son of the emperror.” Empress Renna
Gamt
Damn, Zyna was my favorite......
Kevin O'Malley
Just has a big hole in her head. She will be fine.
Brianna Stormcloud
I am so shocked, Cornelius was killed by Sergius the snake! Then Zyna and Adrian, brutal culling of our favourites. I feel like I didn't breath for the whole chapter!
Michael Neal
That was brutal
The 49th Khan
Guess you could say the Emperor went out in a BLAZE of glory.
J S
Dang!
Andrew Crews
And Benito *was his neck wound wrapped, hobbled, supported by Mateo, whose right arm was shattered and unusable. And Benito with his neck wound wrapped, hobbled, supported by Mateo, whose right arm was shattered and unusable.
Andrew Crews
He continued his assault, ignoring his body telling him he was * aetheric past his limits. He continued his assault, ignoring his body telling him he was past his aetheric limits.
Andrew Crews
Four quick exchanges found Benito bleeding from a neck wound, and Mateo’s sword arm cut * the bone through his vambraces. Four quick exchanges found Benito bleeding from a neck wound, and Mateo’s sword arm cut to the bone through his vambraces.
Andrew Crews
He had been deadly with his shots, striking * legionnaire in the neck through gaps in their armor, but was down to just a few arrows. He had been deadly with his shots, striking a legionnaire in the neck through gaps in their armor, but was down to just a few arrows.
Cory Crowell
this chapter is good but i hate it( not really) ;/
CryptoBird
Bravo!
Joseph Snyder
Not naive, over confident he saw himself as so far above serious that he didn't matter.
Invalid Entry
Don’t understand why Castile didn’t let the emperor strike at Octavian before interrupting him again. From how it sounds Octavian was coming in at a different angle so it should have been clear who he was focused on.
ShadowOfHavoc
I wish you hadn't killed Zyna.
Abdullah Abdulhameed
you would think Antonia would provide Castile's company with greater healing potions wtf.
Adunn
Kinda wish renna died lol.
Tom
She kinda served her purpose to the story, tho. If she survived, she'd just be another Castille type character.
Deadmoo53
Renna be like "I guess we're killing the Emperor now."
Ivan Kanewske
ignoring his body telling him he was aetheric past his limits. He could recover in time as he had done before. Was using aether past his limits
Ivan Kanewske
Adrian’s runic blade, once Delmar’s, scratched the armor, but it didn’t matter as the Emperor grabbed his wrist and pieced him through his armor with the mithril weapon he wielded Pieced him through his Armour Should be Pierced
Enk
its weird how ppl think renna's in trouble, when she just handed the victory to octavian - more likely, she's about to implement eryk's plan for her along the lines of 'if you don't want to be told what to do, become empress'.
momo2009
Rereading this chapter kinda show the betray fight wouldn't make sense since apparently the imperial legion had runic armor that had high defense against magic so how could the coup be successful. Thus it didn't make sense to start the coup unless the imperial legion were severely weaken, or there was a way to weaken their defense, they outnumber the traitor 2 to 1. Any sane person would do a coup right away and wait for a better time. Since the emperor would still had to fight the elves again, the orc in the west and the globin in th south. More opportunities that is less risky.
Unwired Rob
yeah, she was pretty cool
Karnnie
Very nicely done!
momo2009
Yeah his dad imperial legion were still alive, if one make it out with the truth mean civil war with the other Duke and duchess.
DheeAreBi
"News of the Eryk’s death..." , remove the the
momo2009
Cornelius was distracted and kinda naive. Why would you stand close to a super spy like yourself when you live in a world of magic.
Jairic
Wow soo much happened and so many good guys went bye bye. Crazy chapter. Had to comment twice
Jairic
Man i hate sergius. I cant believe he got one over on cornelius!! Cant wait for that evil f..ck to die! Nice chapter btw lol.
Lemes
Blaming the Bartiradians is a certainty. The problem is that no secret shared by more than one person remains a secret for long. In the case of the emperor's death, this secret is shared by a few hundred people. It may even be possible to fool the populace, but not the nobles. There must be many nobles who were loyal to the emperor, and there must also be many others who are interested in increasing their own power and who will try to take advantage of Octavian's lack of legitimacy. As for the elves, according to what was said, they were embarking reinforcements and must come (at least they should come) with a great thirst for revenge. At the very least, a serious attempt to take the city of Caranhagan and force the empire to negotiate the ruins of the giants. There is no logic in them and the Bartyradians not trying one last card to try to force the empire to give something. They have to try now that the empire is in trouble.
Erick Thiemke
what I am thinking is he is going to blame the Bartiradians for teh Emperor's death. the loss of the mages hurts but they just crushed the Bartiradian threat. the elves were licking their wounds. He is going to abandon the Western Empire to the orcs. they just wanted their ancestral land back anyway. so his only true threat was getting stabbed in the back by another ambitious First Citizen...but he has Sergius to deal with them but the Archives burning down is a problem. Especially when the primary Archives under the Imperial Palace in the capital mysteriously catch fire.... He is going to have to make deals to secure his seat but the groundwork is laid. Not that the reader will see this unless the vote on a future POV.....
Erick Thiemke
yeah he wasnt part of the core group and didnt go with them
Lemes
I'm sure Octavian had a plan to seize power, but the old maxim that no plan survives first contact with the enemy (in this case, with reality) remains very true. I doubt he planned for the coup attempt to take place in the midst of a sweeping invasion of the empire on four different fronts: Bartiradians, Elves, Orcs and goblins. Nor must it have entered into his plans for a good portion of his mages and archmages to be killed, injured or have their ether channels burned. At this moment he has the Elves thirsty for revenge on one front, the Bartiradians broken, but who received a great boost in their morale when they discovered that the hated emperor is dead and who will suck up every last troop to try to take advantage of this fact. The goblins must descend from the mountains in devastating waves against their cities and the Orcs will be on the lookout to take advantage of any opportunity that appears. So I think Octavian has his hands full of shit and will need a lot of political and military skill to save anything from the empire, you can't think that he could simply sit on the throne and continue running things as they were before.
Diego Villa
My second favorite female character now dead
Blorcyn
Well that’s the Emperor and the Empire dead. An Internecine power struggle to be commander in chief during a ‘lightning’ blitz of an Orc army while a goblin and elf army are both separately ready to invade, half your mages will now desert, half your high mages are dead in the coup, and your harvest is fucked by recent storm magics… When it rains it pours. Nice one Eryk. Freedom was a long time coming.
cRoMaToR
Thanks for the chapter. Now i want a Castille or Renna POV 😃
Dillon Zepeda
Amazing, poor Zyna though 🥲
Erick Thiemke
who has any idea what the author is going to do. fortunately for him all the main players are leaving the Telhian Empire but if you remember Octavian was part of the plot to remove the Emperor and conspired with Centurion Sergius so he probably had a plan - part of the plan was eliminating Antonia Segreto
Lemes
Another question. In a normal world, a fratricidal struggle for power after the emperor's death would be more than expected. There are several blood relatives of the emperor who would feel entitled to fight for power. Some would probably even attempt secession. I hope the author doesn't use a Deus Ex Machina and put Octavius in power without any difficulty. It would be very unrealistic.
Jeffrey Worrall
Castile should have included Renna in her retreat to the forest. Renna is so screwed if she doesn't get out of there, no one left to protect her from Octavian.
Lemes
Sorry, I meant Linus, the company medic. According to the story he was absent from the battle because he and Firth were injured. I hope Linus and Konstantin reunite with what's left of the company.
Erick Thiemke
he doesnt believe Cornelius and Cornelius and his control of the Eastern Hounds is in his way. The Archives are a hard weeks+ travel from where Varvao is located. The orcs are not marching in that direction but south. yes....if too much time passes the mage will not be able to look back far enough to see Eryk kill Aesop (name will change)....did I forget to include Lirkin? he is with Castile as everyone needs a decent cook
Lemes
Some questions that were a little unclear to me: If Sergius used his truth-seeking powers on Cornelius, why would he still want to investigate his soul? How would the time mage get to the archives with the orcs in the way and a horde of goblins approaching? From what I remember, the more time passes, the harder it is for the time mage to see the past. Did Lirkin manage to join the Castile troupe for the escape? Had Erick met with the old blacksmith? Will he try to recover his books? Maybe take advantage of the confusion to destroy the last archive? Very curious and looking forward to Erick's visit to the capital.
momo2009
Is the hound master even a first citizen or from a powerful family back ground. The 16 dukes and duchess are assumed to be the children, grandchildren or some how close related to the current or past emperor, and their no way an outsider can convinced them to support their new regime.
Silver Beard
Nice chapter but still curious what Eryk will do when he gets to the Capital Will Octavion really allow the primary archive to get destroyed or will he keep Castille's blood and others to hunt them down later. Hoping the damage to Zyna's brain enough to preclude Necromancer questions.
Silver Beard
Looks like Renna gets to suffer what was meant for Castille
Angus
Considering she was just part of a large scale pitched battle. If she attacked the Bartiradian’s like the Emperor had ordered she would probably have been out of mana. I see it as a now or never situation.
Angus
Zyna, Adrian ,Kolm & Dante May their spirits find solace in Pluto’s realm.
Kbzzy
Hasty way to kill someone
momo2009
More people don't follow real hema.
momo2009
Why didn't zyna focused on the emperor 100% after eliminating the non traitors mages? How can the emperor armor still keep him alive after his aether shield failed due to Zyna magic and he did get burn. But why didn't he fell to the strongest fire mage? The fight should be more clearly defined. And unless Zyna made a mistake she shouldn't a launch the coup until all the enemies were defeated or the imperial legion were too distracted fighting the enemy to prevent the coup. Oh and gold melt at not that high temperature so his armor runic magic should had melt.
Adrian Engel
dang, why'd Adrian have to die?
momo2009
How can she be dead when her future chaper is being voted on for the next book. Zyna was the most obvious to die since no vote o
BubblyGhost
I will say there's no way in hell Octavian is letting the hound master be the next emperor
momo2009
Can you clarify the necromancy power. So do the dead only move on if there body or head is destory or they aren't link to aether line? Or is the ghost only a partial fragment of a dead person and can only answer certain question but the true soul has moved on or is destroyed from death? And what is clerical magic, do gods exist , In this world. Can it bring back the dead?
momo2009
I agree in that it make no sense unless he has equal or better powers then his dad. Or he brainwash etc. But a broken empire is the result with no other solution.
Gwalmeich
Sergius is gonna be a pain in the ass, isn't he?
momo2009
She still alive and can me married of in an alliance for octivian
momo2009
Pretty obvious she was toast when she said she like the Mc and all she had was vengeance.
momo2009
Many imperial legion left to fight off. Octavian is evil but why would he overthrow his father now when the empire is attack on 3 side with a goblin raid on the way. Unless you make his power equal or close to his dad, it wouldn't make sense strategy wise even if the opportunity was perfect to kill him but the empire would still break.
momo2009
Know zyna was going to die base on how you were writing but I wish she could had at least injured the emperor a bit for her husband and daughter in vengeance. Still wouldn't it had made better sense for the coup to occur after all the bartiridan were dead then attack the emperor with octivian at the same time? Unless anger clouded Zyba judgment since their were too ma y
Prinny Knight
Sad about Zyna
Rhys Jones
Its always an arrow through the visor
Andrew
Thank you!
Erick Thiemke
the Emperor needed a small W
Mason W
Yay for Renna surviving, sad Zyna was lost, did,t see this twist.
Kbzzy
Was hoping Zyna survived since she was nice, but at least Castile made it
Eriach
It'll be a nice betting pool
Andrew Glass
Naw, I bet she'll live. If I remember, she's a pretty good mage, and they just lost a whole bunch of people. Shouldn't just kill people who are on their team, even if it was an oblique connection through her teacher
Erick Thiemke
No renna is alive and with Octavian
Zurko
so Zyna's apprentice (forgot her name, think it started with an R) is just dead right? Octavia wouldn't keep her alive and she's got nowhere to go. Castille should have taken her with them, but I guess she doesn't really know her.
Erick Thiemke
With Octavian, she lives
Thresher
Damn a whole lotta deaths. It’ll be very interesting to see everyone’s reactions when they find out Eryk is alive. Thanks for the chapter and congrats on finishing book 4.
Eriach
Strong both of them
Eriach
Renna? Where's Renna?! 😢
BubblyGhost
We should really get a big list of all the characters for the end of this book for a brief description and current status lmao. There's a bunch of names at this point
BubblyGhost
Good fucking shot, Blaze!
Erick Thiemke
they had a huge victory over the Elves and just decimated the Bartiradian army. but yes, they have greatly weakened the Empire. Find out in book 5 what Octavians plan is.....
Andres919
I wonder how strong Octavian is compared to previous Emperor … Giving up the guy that can take on armies in the middle of a war doesn’t seem like a great plan
CJ Tamberella
Great finale chap. Thanks!
Satanael
Not Zyna! She was great, wish she could’ve survived. RIP Adrian.
Lenora
Thank you for the chapter!
Erick Thiemke
3rd of 3 for cycle and the end of book 4! So much needed to happen to close up the fourth book and plot threads. This is just the first draft. dont expect me to change who lives/dies but I may change how they meet their fate. Back to working on the World Sphere Chapter
