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Nero Walker, Book 3 Ch.44 (159)
🕑 Added 2024-04-23 22:30:01 +0000 UTCMage Adept Newbanks stood near the back of the mage tower’s central control room, monitoring the disciplined chaos with a practiced eye. Her domineering presence ensured that the thirty mage team currently managing the tower’s scrying control system would do their job to the best of their ability. She had made it clear that she would no longer tolerate the mages of Dorchester’s poor performance ruining the reputation of the Tower of Magic.
Although she knew most low-tiered mages treated their jobs as secondary concerns to their personal development, the culture here in Dorchester was by far the worst she’d ever seen. Perhaps it was a result of the previous court-mage’s influence, whom she’d heard had a mind for politics over magic. Or maybe it was the due to the region’s previously pathetic essence density, which while useful for essence-flow research was incredibly stifling for practicing mages. In the end, she didn’t really care.
Even though, her purpose in coming to Dorchester was to discretely ensure the king’s plans were carried out, she couldn’t stop herself from addressing some of the local mage tower’s most obvious shortcomings. After seeing how poorly the local mages reflected on the profession as a whole, it was almost a reflex to punish them until they started acting like the mages they pretended to be.
Glancing at the central pillar, she watched the battle which was being transmitted to army central command through a dedicated communications link. The large hologram displayed the overview of the battle in real-time, with several angles creating a vivid 3d model of what was currently happening.
Occasionally the image would blur, as the essence disruptions in the area interfered with the scry. Every time that happened, the surrounding mages would cringe, hoping that Mage-adept Newbanks wouldn’t publicly berate them in front of their peers. Her tongue was almost worse than the spells she pummeled them with in the arena during her ‘personal training’ sessions she forced on those unlucky few who caught her eye.
Shaking her head at their barely satisfactory performace, she left them to their work. She had a scheduled scry-connection that she couldn’t miss.
After making her way through the tower, she shut herself in her private office, sealing the room from any outside interference. Her preparations went quickly, and she stood in the middle of the room waiting for the appointed time to send out the connection request. She nervously continued to check her internal clock, not looking forward to the report she would have to give. Finally, the time came for her to activate the private communication orb, powering it through the array under the floor. The large orb hovered in the middle of the room,
The connection established itself, and she dropped to one knee and waited for the image to stabilize before speaking.
“Sire, greetings from Dorchester,” she said humbly.
The king looked as calm and collected as he usually did. His powerful, yet quiet, voice seemed to shake the room when he said, “Rise adept. I haven’t been watching closely, but last time I checked there weren’t any serious deviations or issues that needed to be addressed with the plan, so I’m curious as to what prompted you to alter the agreed upon communication schedule.”
Mage-adept Newbanks stood up, forcing herself to keep her hands from shaking. “Well, your majesty, I don’t exactly know what happened. Everything was going to the plan, Lord Walker’s team and the elites were put in the path of the kobald invasion point just like you asked, and I made sure to hide my involvement from any interested parties just as you commanded. However, I think there might be an issue with the time-table. The attack happened just like you predicted, but it was much too soon for our other plans to keep pace.”
The king frowned, then looked off into the distance, obviously using his prodigious powers to peer into the ether and investigate the situation.
Mage-adept Newbanks stomach dropped as she saw the king’s eyes widen slightly, which, to her, showed the king’s obvious shock at what he was seeing.
His face once again blank, he turned to look at Mage-adept Newbanks and said, “That does indeed change things. The kobald invasion occurring this early means that they will most likely never even reach the walls. I’m not sure if the current plan can be salvaged.”
The king seemed deep in thought, but Mage-adept Newbanks couldn’t help but speak up, “Sire, the city lord is already looking into the disillusionment of her consort agreements. I’m confident she will be free of any attachments within the month. If managed correctly, the plan should still be viable.”
The king’s face displayed a very tiny hint of a smirk when he replied, “That won’t matter anymore. It seems that a petition was just filed to elevate Lord Walker to unique citizen status. I very much doubt a situation will arise that we’ll be able to use to entice him into marriage. At this point, even if I personally declared Dorchester his territory, I don’t think he’d accept it.”
Mage-adept Newbanks jaw dropped in shock at the revelation. “Then, sire, I don’t see how we can pit him against the Tower of Fate anymore. Even they aren’t crazy enough to plot against a unique. Without him as a fulcrum, how will we keep the mages interested in the plan, not to mention the other towers which need to be drawn into the conflict?”
The king shook his head slightly, his features almost softening in amusement. “I’m not sure we can. The young man will most likely still save Dorchester, just as I predicted. However, I don’t think it will be in the way I expected he would do it. I have to say, it is refreshing to see him constantly carving a new fate through what would otherwise be a normally simple political game. It’s no wonder the matrix is having so much trouble predicting his moves.”
As a studied mage, Mage-adept Newbanks knew the scientific principles behind how fate prediction worked, and the fact that even the matrix of fate had troubles predicting Lord Walker’s actions made her uncomfortable, to say the least.
The king raised his chin, as if he were done this topic for the moment. His voice returned to its usual serenity as he said, “For the time being, continue as planned. Until I see how the next few days play out, you’ll just have to try and do what you can to ensure Lord Walker stays in Dorchester. Now, more than ever, he’ll be essential to city’s survival and keeping the mage council antagonistic toward the Tower of Fate. Despite his new status, he still has a part to play in the greater game. The key to our victory is not relying on his actions, but carefully managing our own.”
Nodding her head, Mage-adept Newbanks replied, “As you command, your majesty.”
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The trip across the mountain turned out to be less intense than he thought it would be. There weren’t too many monsters, and the ones they did see were much weaker than the one’s they’d encountered in the eastern wilds. As such, Nero had plenty of time to mull over his newfound social standing, and how it affected the people around him.
The conclusion he came to after being shoved to the back of the formation by Sergeant Wesker, and ‘protected’, was that he really didn’t like it. As a long-time trouble maker, mischief-lover, and troll, he felt most at peace when he was treated with caution, or at least thought of with some hostility. By far, the worst part about the current situation was that Rose’s calculating gaze had all but disappeared, only to be replaced with doe-like eyes filled with nothing but loyal support. Rose and Wesker’s illogical personality shifts were enough to make him want to tear his hair out in frustration.
Luckily, Nero had to only put up with them for a single night before they were met by the troops Captain Angelton had told them to expect.
Upon meeting up with the 40 person squad, the Captain in charge greeted Nero with a smile, ignoring everyone else like they didn’t matter to him at all. The man just gestured for one of his sergeants to go talk to Wesker while he walked up to Nero and bowed dramatically, his teeth shining like he was applying for a tooth-paste commercial.
“Lord Walker, it’s an honor to meet you. My name is Captain Erik Ventir, 2nd heir of House Ventir, leader of the 32nd armored assault squad out of Gate 19. General Branson personally requested that we ensure your safety and deliver you to Dorchester command as soon as possible. Please be assured that we are the best of Dorchester’s forces, and you’ll be utterly safe in our care. Do you or your companions need any healing, food, or rest before we head out?” he asked, while his troops arranged themselves in a support formation around Nero’s team.
Nero watched as the burly men and women in impressive armor spread out in the defensive formation, every one of them giving off a feeling of danger and strictly controlled violence.
Nero looked up the tall man, and replied, “Uh… no. I think we’re good. Let’s just get going.”
Seeing Nick’s watching the interaction with a grin on his face, Nero felt like throwing something heavy at the man.
While Nero was distracted with Nick’s mocking amusement at his situation, Captain Ventir’s loud shout of, “Rippers! Move out!” made him jump a little in surprise, then cover his ears with his hands in a wince.
Nero saw that Cathleen had appeared on his left, while Nick stayed on his right. Rose and Wesker took the lead, everyone surrounding him in layers of protection that made him feel like he was being led through the mountains like an overly-important young master, or more likely someone currently under arrest.
Feeling a little restless, Nero tried to make some conversation while they were moving. “Hey Sarge, why did the captain refer to them as ‘rippers’?” he asked, hoping to get the man talking so that he would stop being so stand-offish.
Wesker looked over his shoulder to address Nero, seemingly perfectly happy being surrounded by steel-clad soldiers treating him like a delicate flower. “Different teams typically adopt monikers or titles to express their team’s unity and camaraderie. ‘Slicers’, ‘Boomers’, ‘Killers’, some even take on animal names which are pretty common. When I first joined the monster hunting squads, I was assigned to the 103rd MH Scratchers out of gate 11. We were known for taking down prairie bulls and larger monsters that are usually only found in the open areas around Dorchester. I’m guessing the ‘rippers’ got their name because of their preference for jagged weapons and the ‘tearing’ style wounds they cause.”
Nero leaned forward so he could see past Nick, trying to examine the ripper’s weapons so he could see what Wesker was talking about. Each of the ‘rippers’ were carrying jagged swords that looked like turned off chainsaws, but much thinner. Like always, the moment someone bothered to answer one of his questions, it only spawned another thousand in his head.
Figuring it was pointless to get into the vagaries of weapon construction, he replied, “OK. That makes sense I guess, thanks.”
Sergeant Wesker smiled, nodded, then turned back to continue walking in front of him, as if he were more than happy to just wait for Nero to address him whenever he felt like it.
Nero shook his head a little at the man’s total personality change, then looked up at Nick and asked, “Hey man, so if I am a unique or whatever, what’s going to happen to House Walker? Am I still a lord, or more importantly, what happens to all the money I’ve acquired? I’m not like automatically ‘adopted’ by the state or something, am I? Cause if that’s the case, I promise you that shit’s going to get real crazy, real quick!”
Nick chuckled, well aware of how Nero tended to assume whatever situation he found himself in would be horrible, and require justifiable violence, or at least harsh language to get himself out of it.
“No Nero, you’re not going to be ‘adopted’ by the state. You’re still the head of House Walker, and you will still keep all of your money and business interests. Nothing really changes in that regard. Well, mostly. In a way, it’s good that you already have Vera as a proxy because that will make things a little easier for you,” he said.
“What do you mean?” asked Nero.
Nick replied, “Well like I said before, unique citizens are not bound by the city of their birth, or more to the point, they are bound to the kingdom as a whole. Therefore, they are kind of like royalty in their own way. Like members of the royal family, they can go wherever they want, establishing their presence in whatever city they deem fit. There are of course fewer restriction for unique citizens, as they aren’t bound by the royal family’s house rules dictated by the king. In fact, unique citizens can, if they choose to, open a branch house in any city they want, without restriction. So, here in Dorchester, you could sire a child, then have Vera raise them to be your house head in Dorchester while you went off to wherever you wanted and did the same thing in the next city you visited. The branch houses will all pay tribute to you and further your interests while you attend to the duties of your position.”
Nero offered Nick a look that conveyed every inch of his unhappiness with what he was hearing. “OK. That all sounds great, I think. But a couple things jump out at me from what I just heard. One, what the hell do you mean I can ‘sire a child’ and have Vera raise him to be my representative here in Dorchester? I don’t have any intention of knocking someone up and then taking off to go see the sights across the kingdom. And what ‘duties’ are you talking about? Am I getting involuntary drafted into a particular duty, or not? I put up with joining the army because it was temporary and it got me my title or whatever, not to mention that it sounded like fun, but until I hear exactly what the powers-that-be want me to do, I’m not agreeing to anything.”
Cathleen, who’d been walking alongside of them, chuckled happily. “As a unique, you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to. In fact, you now have the ability to just tell the powers-that-be what you’ll be doing, and then request for them to pay you for the privilege of sponsoring your interests,” she said, her voice implying that Nero seemed to deserve what was coming to him.
Nick added, “That’s right. Unique citizens typically choose a personal pursuit, then apply for funding through the capital. Or at least I think that’s how it works. I’m not sure of the specifics, but almost every unique I’ve ever read about has had some grand personal project that they dedicated their life to. I know for a fact that The Shaper’s quests are sponsored by the crown. So, you can probably just choose whatever you want when you meet the king.”
Nero’s head snapped around as he asked, “Wait, I’m meeting the king now?”
Nick replied quickly, “Not now, but at some point. Why does that surprise you? You were already going to Hennings to receive your award for the exploit you’ve found. Huh? Now that I think about it. I wonder how being a unique will affect the meritorious award you have coming. I’m pretty sure uniques don’t pay taxes.”
Nero’s eyes widened as he practically yelled, “I don’t have to pay taxes! Vera’s going to shit a brick!”
Cathleen coughed, trying to contain her laughter. Apparently Nero’s new position was enough to finally crack her ever-serious exterior and finally allow the personality Nero always knew she had to come bubbling to the surface.
Nick all the sudden became a little serious as he changed the subject a little. “One thing you’ll have to do before anything else is file your paperwork for the completion of your trials of nobility. Once that’s done, you’ll then need to quickly choose some adherents for your house. I strongly recommend you do that before you leave Dorchester. I’m sure Vera will tell you the same thing, a house is only as strong as its members, and right now, you’re only member is Vera, and she’s only a temporary hire. Regardless of what she tells you, I’d not count on her being with House Walker forever. That being said, I’d appreciate if you didn’t mention this conversation to her,” he said, while sharing a warning glance with Cathleen who just nodded along in agreement with what he was saying.
Nero was having trouble keeping up with the information dump he was getting. He was barely getting used to being a noble, and now he was going to have to get his house in order. He’d hoped he would have a few years before he needed to deal with any of this, but it looked like that wasn’t going to happen.
Furthermore, Nero was having the uncomfortable feeling that Nick was readying Nero to say goodbye. Since finding out Nero was going to become a ‘unique citizen’, Nick had stopped treating him like a current friend, and started treating him as if he were a friend from college he was soon to be leaving behind. There was an unspoken distance developing between them that Nero was decidedly unhappy about.
Looking up at his friend, he asked, “What are the chances that I’ll be leaving Dorchester in the immediate future?”
Nick replied with a soft smile, “Very likely. I’d be surprised if Hennings weren’t already sending someone to collect you as we speak. Of course, you’ll still be allowed to go wherever you’d like, but I doubt you’d want to come back to a city currently under the threat of multiple city-destroying crises. But don’t worry Nero, I’m sure wherever you end up, we’ll still be able to see each other once in a while. I doubt a unique will have any trouble arranging inter-city transportation.”
Cathleen spoke up, her tone a little too eager for Nero’s liking, “I’d recommend heading North. There you will find a great many opportunities to test your skills, and push your potential to its limit. If you want to continue to grow, you can’t hide yourself away in a tower, you must face the world boldly and overcome the challenges that are presented to you on your journey.”
Nero listened to them both assuming things about his future with a growing feeling of annoyance bubbling up in his gut. If there was one thing he hated, it was people assuming they knew what was best for him. In fact, it might be a core character flaw of his, since he had the same problem in his past life. Whenever someone had told him that ‘it only makes sense’, he almost instinctual took the opposing viewpoint. On more than one occasion he’d proved that he could be the very definition of a ‘contrary individual’.
Frowning, Nero said, “Look. I don’t know what’s going to happen. None of this class designation crap means much to me to be honest. I’ll happily not pay taxes, and getting payed for doing whatever I want sounds right up my alley, but if they expect me to leave you guys in a lurch, they can kiss my pale cream colored ass. I haven’t even had a chance to visit the mansion I won off that douche-nozzle Dorken, and I’ll be damned if I leave Dorchester before I get a chance to start my T-shirt company. If I wanna stay here and fight kobalds, monsters, and assassins, then that’s exactly what I’m gonna do. Besides, you both still have shit you have to teach me, and I still have to figure out how Howie manages to carry around his spell-forms the way he does. So, both of you stop acting like I’m going off to my great reward. We’ve still got nobles to fleece and deals to make. Got it?”
Nick and Cathleen shared a look over the head of their young friend, both of them feeling a profound bond with their little protege.
Nick replied, “Sure thing, Nero. We’ll just have to see what happens.”
Nero nodded, his steps becoming a little firmer as he stomped through the mountains on the way back to Dorchester. ‘Sons of bitches wanna tell me what to do!?! I’ll show them. I bet this is all Jennings fault somehow. That asshole wanted to get me out of Dorchester from the beginning. If this is all some stupid plot or something, I swear I’m gonna piss in his coffee pot,’ he promised himself darkly.
Comments
Shaun McDonough
Why do I feel that Cathleen and Nick just deliberately played Nero into staying at the city? 🤔 They seem to be some of the only people who actually understand him enough to know that by saying what they did it would result in Nero staying 🤣🤣🤣
Ocean Breeze
Wow. Poor Nero. At least he still has Nick, Vera and maybe Cathleen to keep him grounded. I can't imagine how aweful being put into such a situation would be. It sounds cool at first, but it's going to make it almost impossible for him to form genuine friendships going forward. And all for something that he doesn't even have the context to properly understand.
HereForHFY
"You are literally one of a handful of individuals with this high status" "So what you are saying is that I don't pay taxes now?"
Osama Laden
Can’t wait to see the shit show that’ll be Nero discovering he’s being played by the king
