Chapter 25
The Meeting

~*~

Cassis stands before me in her red-head glory. From the hair to the tomboy demeanor, she's as I remembered. The only difference is she's now wearing a Silver Armor. She must've leveled up quite a bit since the Moaning Ruins.

"Hey...you...Do you remember me? It's me, Cassis. You know, the one who helped you become a priest."

I nod, unsure of what else to do or say. I'm just happy to see her.

"Come in, come in."

She pulls me into her chambers and closes the door behind us.

Her room is typical of royalty: large space, fancy furniture, and strange paintings. Most interesting of all is her bed. Dozens of coloring plush dolls lie on top of one another, no doubt having slumber parties with Cassis every night. I guess she's more feminine than I realize.

"This is my room. Um...surprise! I'm a Princess. I guess you've already figured that out."

Yes, I'm actually quite intelligent. What I haven't figured out is how she ended up here and how she learned about me.

"You must have a lot of questions..."

This first thing I want to know is what happened to her in the Moaning Ruins.

"I assume you want to know what happened to me in the Moaning Ruins. Well, it's a long story. I barely remember myself. When the ceiling collapsed, I thought I was a goner. Magnus saved me. He'll never let me forget it. Ugh, he's so full of himself."

Magnus must've used an Exit Gate or something.

"If it weren't for Cylaro teleporting us out the ruins, we would've fallen victim to that...woman...a Speaker. Oh, Cylaro is my father's long-time friend, a faithful servant to the kingdom. He's an extremely powerful Sorcerer. Mess with him and he'll obliterate you. But he's actually pretty nice. I should introduce you guys."

Maybe this Cylaro guy will join my party later in the game.

"Cylaro's teleportation skill didn't work on everyone. To be honest, I thought you were dead. Last night, the guards were rummaging through some bags in the mess hall and I just happened to see my Mother's Memento. Of course, anyone could've picked that up. But the guards confirmed there was a mute among the captives, so I had a feeling it might be you. Magnus almost didn't believe me, but I threatened to kill him if he did any harm to you."

I guess it's my lucky day. Who knows what would happen to me if Cassis hadn't come across her item. The thought makes me think of Elric and Oren. I have to help them.

"By the way, what are you doing in Asentus?" Her expression sours. "I leave you alone and you go and join the Heretics of the Word. I expected more from you, you... Tell me it isn't true. Tell me they forced you. Tell me you had no choice!"

I shrug. Any attempt at communication will simply get her worked up even more.

"I see...You were tricked. I'm not surprised. They're crafty folk. They've been spreading lies about Asharia for years."

Alright, I'm not some mentally disabled kid.

"We'll take care of the heretics soon. You won't have to worry about them coming after you."

They aren't bad people, except maybe Roshan and the Speaker. Most of them are ordinary, hard-working folk. I wonder if there's something I'm supposed to do to sort all this out. The more urgent matter at hand though, is saving Elric and Oren.

"Anyhow, let's not talk about them. I don't have training today. Shall I give you a tour of the kingdom?"

I nod.

She smiles. "Great! Let's visit the city. I haven't been out of the castle in days."

I close my eyes to see her stats.

It looks like the Inspire skill is unique to her Princess subclass and would come in handy during boss battles.

I decide to go check on Elric and Oren. At the stairs leading down to the dungeons, two men stand guard.

"Princess Cassis! Apologies, but even you may not pass. Prince Magnus's orders."

Cassis scoffs. "I bet my brother doesn't want people to see the evil that goes on down there. Not very paladin-y, if you ask me. C'mon, let's get out of here. The exit's south on the ground level."

I wander around the castle, testing the limits of where I can go. Even here, treasure chests lie around randomly for people to loot. I collect a good amount of gold and some items that may prove to be useful later on.

In the royal kitchen, the staff are preparing food. I make conversation with the NPCs to learn more about what's happening around the castle.

"Those Mavarkians are such picky eaters. They are vegetarians, but they want their food to taste like chicken. How the holy heck do I make that happen?"

"Just serve them chicken and call it tofu and be done with it."

"Hmm, good idea!"

The two chefs scramble, pushing pass us to get around the kitchen.

"Out of the way!"

Cassis sneers at them. "Excuse you!?"

"Princess! Gosh, I didn't realize it was you. Did you want something to replenish your body? You must be exhausted from training."

She doesn't answer them.

I continue to explore the castle, passing the mess hall, the armory, and the royal gardens. Talking to the guards by the war room, I learn that there's some sort of summit going on among the leaders of Zephyria.

"King Triton is meeting with the leaders of the world to come up with a solution on how to deal with the growing problem...whatever that is."

"You don't know anything, do you? They're talking about the Speaker that appeared in the Moaning Ruins. Apparently, it's a big problem."

"I bet it is. The meeting will last for days, I hear. The cleaning staff is making the room spick and span."

"I just hope we don't have to go to war or something."

Cassis rolls her eyes and turns to me. "These guards are useless. If evil ever strikes, they'd be the first to die. Come on, let's go. The main gate's through the throne hall that way."

I follow her directions, arriving at the throne hall, where some NPCs are meandering around. They all seem to be waiting for the king to show himself so the meeting can commence. The screen fades to black as I exit the castle, then the blinding sunlight envelops us as we appear in the exterior.

Guards line the drawbridge every few yards or so. Asentus sure is well protected. With the arrival of leaders from around Zephyria, it doesn't surprise me. As I cross it, I make conversation with some of the men to see if they'd reveal any more information about the situation at the kingdom.

Seeing one of the blond-haired guards, I suddenly recall a quest I started back in Fiddles. I give Lisa's letter to the him.

"What's this?" he says. "A letter from Lisa? My Lisa? That chick! I was having a bad day, but this makes me so happy. Thank you so much for delivering the letter." He then turns to one of the other guards. "Hey, I'm taking my lunch break early today."

"Go ahead, Tom. I'll keep watch here."

Tom leaves his post at the bridge and heads into the castle. I was hoping to get some sort of reward, but no such luck.

The city comprises mainly brick structures with colorful roofs. Streetlights with intricate designs line the pristine cobblestone streets. Not a speck of dirt is visible. The residents themselves seem to float as they parade the streets in vibrant clothes, showing their wealth to one another.

Unsure what I'm supposed to do, I decide to go check the shops to upgrade my skills and gear. I buy a new set of priest robes and staff to get a little boost in stats.

Remembering Oren's remark about a cartographer friend, I check every house to see if I can find this person. But no such luck. I guess I need to have the monk in the party to trigger an event.

"The public gardens is to the east," Cassis tells me. "If we're lucky, we might catch some street performers there."

The gardens is as expected. Interspersed around the grounds are jugglers, magicians, and singers.

"It's true," a man sings as music magically emanates from the lire he's holding without his fingers even making contact with the instrument. "The world has no face. It has no voice but the squawks of a pigeon. By the wishes of Her Grace, there's no choice but to follow this religion..."

Though the music is respectable, having to read the lyrics takes away from the experience. I wonder when the residents of this world will discover the joys of having a voice. I certainly miss it.

When the song's over, the audience claps. The man bows and walks off. I see something drop from his body and go pick it up.

It's really that easy? I wonder what I can play.

"As a kid," Cassis says, "my father forced me to take singing lessons. 'That's what sweet little princesses do,' he'd say. I was so horrible that the royal Musicians begged my father to encourage me to try something else. The truth is, I faked being bad to get out of it, hah! What interested me most was the sword."

I absolutely can't imagine Cassis in a dress, singing...what 'singing' means in this world.

"Speaking of Father, he should be holding a meeting with the other leaders about now. I don't want to miss it. Let's head over to the war room."

We leave the gardens and make our way back into the castle. Guards have secured the area outside the war room, signaling that what lies ahead must be protected at all costs. Cassis uses her credentials and threats to clear a path for us to the war room.

However, Magnus is standing on the inside by the open doors, his arm stretched across the entrance. "Little sister...did Father say you could join the meeting?"

"Stop calling me that. I was only born five minutes after you."

"You are the youngest in the family, so you'll be addressed accordingly. That is a matter I will not debate."

"Shut your patronizing mouth and let me in."

Cassis tries to push her way through, but Magnus has his arm firmly in place.

As the two continue to bicker, a man in a bejeweled platinum armor approaches them from inside the war room. "The two of you are causing a scene."

"Lucian!" Magnus says.

"Big brother!" Cassis pushes pass Magnus and into the room.

I follow her in.

Magnus sneers but doesn't try to stop us.

"Be nice to our sister," Lucian says. He gives the three of us a stern look, then heads to the far end of the room where King Triton is seated.

There are three other leaders aside from the king, each with their own body guard or assistant standing behind them. Clock-wise to his left is a gray-haired woman in a thick fur cloak. Next to her is a young man of princely stature, looking formidable in his jewel-gilded armor. The final person is yet another mystery. Save the eyes, the person's entire body is completely wrapped in blue cloth.

The meeting is already underway, with each leader offering their own opinion.

"We've sent a letter to the Elders about the matter..." King Triton says, but his thought trails off.

"And their response?" the armored prince asks.

"They refuse to admit that one of their own is the culprit."

"If the Elders won't do their part, we'll have to redouble our efforts."

"What more evidence do they need?" the gray-haired woman chimes in. "Based on accounts from witnesses, the sorceress' body was covered in floral patterns. Only a Speaker would tarnish their flesh in such a fashion."

"Speaker or not," the clothed man or woman says, "we must stop this woman from whatever sinister objective she possesses."

"It would seem she is trying to resurrect the old demon."

"Eudimon..."

At the mention of the demon's name, the room falls quiet. Everyone shifts around uncomfortably, fidgeting with their hands or weapons.

Finally, King Triton continues, "One of the seal has already been broken. It seems that rumors of the Zephyrion Sword tricked some into opening the seal."

Magnus casts a quick glance in Cassis's direction and shakes his head.

Cassis gives him the stink eye.

"There are, what, three seals, right?" the foreign prince says. "Do we even know where they are located?"

"That knowledge rests with the heroes who created them," the king says, "the last of whom passed away over a hundred years ago."

"And their descendants?" the gray-haired woman asks what I'm sure all of us were thinking.

"I've sent my men to request their assistance."

"We, the nation of the South, shall send men as well," the prince says.

"As will ours," the gray-haired woman says.

"We're also in," the masked person says.

And with that, the meeting comes to an end.

The leaders and their escorts all file out of the room, none giving me more than a split second of attention. They don't know it, but I'll be interacting with them in the near future. If my gamer instincts are correct, I'll somehow get involved in all this.

Cassis joins her father and brothers at the table. "Father, I want to help."

"You do not possess the experience nor expertise to be of use to us," Magnus says with a half smirk on his face.

"Shut up, I'm not talking to you."

Lucian's eyes dart back and forth between Cassis, Magnus, and the king, but he remains silent.

King Triton slouches down in his chair. "There is much all of us can do. Lucian, continue with reaching out to the descendants. Magnus, you are to track down the whereabouts of the Speaker. And Cassis..."

"Yes, father," Cassis says, waiting eagerly for instructions.

"You will stay in Asentus and continue training."

"Absolutely not!" she says. "It was me who informed you of the Speaker! You must let me partake in this! I can help!"

"I have already decided. You will stay in Asentus to train."

"But father!"

"That is all."

King Triton gets up from his chair and leaves. Lucian and Magnus follow without another word to Cassis or me.

I can almost hear her disappointment. She wants to help but feel like no one respects her. However, from what I know about her, I doubt she's about to give up.

"Father can't stop me," she says with a smirk. "I'll show them how good I am and get to the bottom of this fiasco. Will you help me? It'll be like old times."

I nod, eager to resume my adventures with Cassis.

~*~