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B3 Chapter 6

  "As you know, we have been petitioning for diplomatic envoys from your government." Said the Kin messenger to Panta.

  "And I have sent word to the Senate of your request in my many reports. I also have it on good authority," Panta replied, tilting his head, indicating Shree, "The Senatorial Guard has also mentioned your request in their reports, but as of yet, there has been no word other than to hold the fort and wait. Whether that is good or bad news for your appeal, it is impossible to tell."

  "Yes, we figured as much. So, instead of this little misunderstanding spiraling to reignite a war that has, for all intents and purposes, ended, let us slide this matter under the proverbial rug. It is best for us, and I believe you have begun to understand it is best for you."

  Panta looked at the messenger, and he gave a slight nod of the head in acknowledgment. All he had to do was climb up the nearest tower and look south to see the truth of the statement. To know the extent of his failure. It was the biggest battle of his life by far, and while he still retained the Triad, it wasn't the type of victory he ever wanted to have again.

  Over half his legion was considered enough of a casualty to need a spot in the medico ward. And that was putting aside the quarter of his legion who were outright killed in the fighting. Of those who were wounded, a too large proportion of them ended up dying of blood loss or infection in the days following the battle. And that wasn't even counting the number of goblins and militia dying next to the legionaries.

  From his last reports, four-thousand-three-hundred-sixty-eight were dead, six-hundred-eighteen were maimed, and five-hundred-thirty-two were still missing and presumed dead. In total, five-thousand-five-hundred-eighteen legionaries were killed, over half his legion, in a single night. It wasn't the worst victory he had ever heard of, but that was before you counted the fourteen thousand militia who were slaughtered beside them.

  Nearly two legions… dead. The worst part was that Panta knew if they had been faster with searching the city, half a legion, if not more, would have lived. Except Panta knew that that line of thought was going down a series of what-ifs that weren't healthy while ignoring reality and the limitations of mortals.

  The fact of the matter was that there was too much area to search. There were too many shattered and pot-marked streets blocked by rubble. Too many bodies and not enough workers being protected from the harassing goblins. After all the destruction wrought on the city, the skies were stained black, and the nights were lit as the legion continuously burned the dead for days.

  Weeks later, there were still bodies that needed to be dealt with, but most of the city wasn't safe. There were more tunnel exits than could be effectively covered, and more were popping up all the time. Unless Panta wanted to deploy a whole cohort to stand guard on a single block and another to act as labor, cleaning up the city would cost him too many people as the situation stood.

  The sly creatures would lie in wait and pick off someone separated from the group every chance they got. It didn't matter how often legionaries marched through the city during the day. Goblins would always scurry out of the cracks at night.

  Going down into the endless tunnels and caverns wasn't a realistic choice either, as those creatures were born for the earth, and it was their home. Tunnels were rigged to collapse, or they crafted them too, which was effectively the same, and that was assuming you were traveling on a passage that led to something important, which no one was certain of.

  From the reports of the scouts that fell into that abyss and came out, there was a city worth of uncharted passages down there, and now an enemy was calling it home. Taking up a constant part of his mind as it was an ever-present knife aimed at his back.

  Nearly every other night, the residents that returned to the first ring were fighting off raids. The second ring had a few hardy men and women who refused to leave, and they turned their warrens into fortresses. The Third Ring was all but entirely lost, though Panta had delegated a cohort to patrol along the main boulevard and houses, keeping them clear.

  It was impossible for Panta to know how long the dark elves were in his city. But he couldn't decide if he would rather have them here for years or months. On the one hand, the years would emphasize how lax and incompetent he was. However, if they had only been here for months, the amount of construction they proved capable of was terrifying. Excavating a stable tunnel system, and especially caverns, wasn't as simple as building a wall.

  To say Panta was developing a healthy wariness for the Letairry was accurate. And if the Kin had been fighting them for as long as they said, their experience would be critical for the Republic's survival. "I would agree with that statement, but my opinion on the matter will decide little."

  "Not true." Said the Kin, "You are the Guardian of the North. The commander of the unconquered fort. The Pillar amidst the rapids. So many titles are pinned to the commander of the Triad, but all convey the same thing. As far as I know, when it comes to the management and policies of the Republic's northern border, you — and only you — are in control. The only reason this authority hasn't been tested to its full extent is because, besides holding back the beastkin hoards, the position has never had any other purpose. But now, the situation has changed." As the messenger finished, he swept his arms out to his sides, gesturing to himself and all those he represented.

  At that, Panta leaned back into his seat, shocked at the words. The fox was right. The charter that established his position gave him broad authority to deal with every conceivable situation to properly face the external threats to the Republic.

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  Historically, that amounted to calling to the southern provinces for aid, stationing legions, and calling for province-wide conscription when large beastkin hoards appeared. However, the last time a conscription was called was a century and a half ago, the six legions stationed on the northern border hadn't moved their posts in over three centuries, and instead of calling for aid, the yearly correspondence to the south was begging the Senate not to cut their budget any further. Besides maintaining the status quo, his position did next to nothing, as nothing really ever changed.

  Except, like the foxkin said, things finally had. Since the Kin arrived, the northern side of the Rush and Twins was effectively their territory, regardless of what anyone wanted to admit, as the 15th Legion lost all ability to effectively project their strength into the area. Some would say that it is nearly identical to the Republic's border with the Imperium.

  From how the other man smirked at Panta like they were sharing a secret, he knew he was right. Allowing the conversation to follow the script the messenger had written could be problematic, but Panta decided to see where he wanted this to end.

  "It can be interpreted that way." Panta acknowledged.

  "Given your authority, you should have the right to declare you have discovered a new nation and will send representatives of said nation to your capital to begin diplomatic negotiations. You could also, if only temporarily, open up trade and travel between us to see if our two cultures are capable of interacting peacefully. This would, of course, be under controlled circumstances and serve as a test. And, since we have a mutual foe, it is only reasonable to establish a defense pact so that if we find the Letairry, we can fight them together."

  “…I will have to think over this, but I see nothing wro—

  "This is absurd!" Shouted the Prefect of the 14th. "These creatures are not capable of creating a stable nation! To treat them in such a way will only lead to our downfall! They have ravaged the Cradle from here to the Northern Holds, and there isn't a single living human remaining on the scorched land! They are savages and need to be treated as such!"

  "Prefect," Panta said, his voice severe, "Your actions have put the Republic in a difficult situation. The only reason I hold back any accusations of your actions is that you could not know the full scope of the situation. But if you continue to create problems after you learn the truth, that is a different matter entirely."

  The noble looked like a puffed-up peacock from how he was throwing his chest out, indignant that you would ever look in a direction other than the one he was in. From his expression, Panta knew this was not going at all like how he had envisioned, and now he would strut around to regain whatever honor and importance he needed within his mind.

  "Ahh," Cut in the Kin messenger, sounding remorseful and repentant. "He isn't entirely wrong."

  Turning to the messenger, Panta narrowed his eyes at the half-man. "Is he now? I was aware that the nearby villages were abandoned and burned down, but to be honest, I have yet to send out scouts on long patrols to the east and north. But I was under the assumption that you wanted to remain on friendly terms with us, and while the Cradle isn't technically part of the Republic, few would take it kindly if anything were to happen to its inhabitants."

  "Regrettably," The Kin said, bowing low, "That tree has already been chopped down."

  It took a moment for everyone to process the messenger's turn of phrase, but when they did, hostility toward the man markedly rose. "I would like you to explain that in detail," Panta said, showing no emotion in his tone or face.

  "First off, what I tell you can be corroborated by your scout." Said the fox. "It was one of the leading reasons behind accepting him as an ambassador and pushing him to explore the north with an exploration team. If you would accept my humble suggestion, I would ask Ambassador Green to be present to verify what he can."

  Eyes flicking to his guards, Panta flicked his chin toward the door, signaling them to grab the elf. No one said a word as the door opened, and the legionary stepped out. With no one so much as moving, the tension built as the guard came back a moment later, the scout following him to stand next to the pair he came with.

  Panta couldn't help but be surprised by the elf scout. The man looked irritated and angry. His hands were clenched to his sides, making fists, and when he moved, he was stiff. Panta could see Scout Green's jaw was clenched tight, but most noticeable of all was the challenge of the elf's posture and eyes.

  The number of times that Panta had called elves to stand before him for one reason or another — or ran into them on his travels, for that matter — were too many to count, and not once had he ever seen one gazing back at him like this. They usually looked regretful and ashamed, no matter the circumstances. The fact that this elf's head wasn't lowered and that he wasn't watching Panta through his eyebrows made him realize how weird such an expectation was, no matter how much his experiences backed it up.

  Shaking off the thoughts, Panta spoke as the scout saluted him, "Scout Green, thank you for joining us. I intended to debrief you shortly after dealing with the messenger and prefect, but the situation has taken longer than expected and changed." As he spoke, the tension seemed to bleed out of the elf, leaving him more relaxed. "This messenger tells me that you will be able to verify his story about the Cradle."

  Scout Green flinched at the words, and his body stiffened with a whole new type of tension. Before, it looked like he was ready to lash out at anyone, but now he seemed to be a barely sheathed blade pointed at the Kin. "I will tell you if he strays from what I know, but I was under the understanding they had already told you."

  "That is my fault, Ambassador Green. While the topic of having this discussion was brought up repeatedly, it was decided to wait until you and other witnesses had arrived. Now that you are, it is past time we clear the air so we can move forward to peace. Legatus Panta, just so you understand, my people are composed of clans that come together to form factions when they have a common goal. The factions have representatives that come together on a Council, which gathers to create the laws and policies my people will follow, each faction competing with the others to push for their various interests. The faction that is the most warlike within my people started a civil war a little under two months ago because of the Council's insistence that we commit to establishing peace between our peoples. Unbeknownst to us, one of his first actions was to ally with a cult within the Kin that we have been trying to exterminate for centuries. They culled the population in the Cradle and took their flesh to craft biological weapons of war."

  "I can testify to the veracity of this statement." Said Scout Green, to Panta's horror. "So can the Prefect Opious, if in a more limited scope."

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