A/N: An impromptu War Council is had and they discuss their next steps.

-x-X-x-

“Thayla!”

“Ah, S-Sir Mikael!”

Thayla’s blush is pronounced as Mikael seizes her and lifts her up into the air, armor and all. Its not the most cushioned or comfortable of bear hugs, but that doesn’t stop him from greeting the female knight with one all the same. It only lasts for a moment anyways, with him relying on his enhanced strength and power to lift her off her feet, spin around, and set her back down again a moment later to catch her bearings.

The magical darkness that Foss Sangrey had left as a parting gift had turned out to have no nasty surprises waiting in it. Everyone had ultimately managed to leave the cloud, which had then taken the next several hours to dissipate. While there were a few injuries here and there, the most damage done had in fact been between Children of Syl who had blindly struck out at each other during the initial moments of confusion, not even realizing that their foes were fleeing the field.

Mikael had been surprised when it turned out the cloud of darkness didn’t have any sort of necrotic poison to it that would slowly kill them all over time or something. But he supposed it made sense. Foss had sacrificed offense for defense in this case, expending his soul fragment in a way that allowed him to cover the entire battlefield AND some of the surrounding area to obfuscate matters as much as possible. A more concentrated cloud might have been nastier to overcome, but it also would have been easier to escape and allowed more of his retreating forces to be put down before they could get away.

As it was, Bula had sent some Children of Syl to hunt down the undead Foss was recalling, but unfortunately running them down properly turned out to be more trouble than it was worth. Not only did they have a head start, but the mass of undead, steadily growing into a larger and larger clump as they all made a beeline for Alether, was liable to turn as one and swarm over any Child that got to close. Like soldier ants on a honeybee, Mikael had found himself inexplicably likening it to.

In the end, Mikael had told Bula to pull the Children of Syl back and they’d all regrouped with the beleaguered but still standing Order of the Rose. Now here they all were, holding an impromptu War Council of sorts.

Though… it was a testament to how much damage Foss Sangrey’s decapitation strike had done if THIS was the extent of their ability to form a War Council. On one side there was Thayla’s father, the Knight-Superior looking somewhat battle-weary but just as intense as ever in his ichor-splattered golden armor. Timothal Dawnguard looks bemused by Mikael’s greeting of his daughter, but also as though he’s not going to say anything at all.

Next to him is Chevalier Nathaniel Ironshield, a bandage wrapped around his head and covering one of his eyes. From the look of things, the Chevalier would never see out of that eye again… but he still stood tall and Mikael found himself feeling a surprising amount of respect for the other man, especially when compared to their first meeting what feels like a lifetime ago. Fuck, it wasn’t even a month ago though, was it?

After the two of them is Thayla of course, who looks like she’s definitely seen plenty of fighting, but also hasn’t taken any debilitating injuries, thankfully. The white-haired female knight is still blushing hard at Mikael’s greeting, but looks all too happy to be at his side once more… and makes no move to return to her father, something Timothal definitely notices but also doesn’t seem about to mention.

That’s it for the Order of the Rose’s side of the War Council. Then there’s them. Bula with one of the smaller Children of Syl keeping her company and representing the serious firepower she now represents. As well, Avina and Mikael bringing up the rear. The Lost Princess of Ocreatha and her successful experiment.

Funnily enough, it’s Bula who breaks the silence.

“Mikael. Said you were going for the tent. What’d you find?”

As curious eyes from everyone else shift to him, Mikael gives Bula a nod and steps forward, explaining everything that had happened after he’d left her side. Hearing that Zadicus Quinn was back in any capacity clearly set all of the girls on edge and Mikael couldn’t begin to guess which was more upset by the prospect. Of course, in the end it wasn’t really Zadicus at all and he sees the way Avina tenses up when he explains everything Foss had said before the end.

Indeed, when Mikael explains Foss’ threat and declaration that he would be waiting for them in Alether, the words trouble everyone there. Silence falls as he finishes recounting the events, with even Mikael not entirely sure what to say at this point. Their next steps seem like a foregone conclusion to him… but he’s not sure everyone agrees.

“Knight-Superior… the Knights of the Rose will follow you unto death itself. But I must advise caution. I do not know if we even have the manpower to besiege Alether at this point. Especially if the enemy is bolstering his numbers with the city’s population as we speak…”

Mikael winces at that. He wishes he could tear into Nathaniel for his words of caution. Say something like ‘Man and I was really rooting for you before you went and turned out to be a coward’ or whatever. But he can’t. Mostly because the Chevalier is right. Just a look at Nathaniel’s own injury makes it harder to claim the man a coward. He’s personally sacrificed much in the fight for his homeland. Is it really right to ask him, Timothal, or the rest of their Order to sacrifice anymore.

The Knight-Superior remains silent, still deep in thought. Thayla, on the other hand, shakes her head.

“The fight’s not over just because the Supreme King has run away. If we leave him to his own devices, he will simply turn the entire population of Alether into undead, using them as levies for what remains of his army of well-equipped summoned heroes. From there, if we ignore him long enough, he will simply launch another attack on Zuveria. He can’t afford to give us enough time to figure out who to put on the Imperial Throne so they can figure out how to cycle our defenses at the border with the Savage Lands to spare enough soldiers to destroy him.”

Mikael pauses at that. Thayla… well, he doesn’t think she’s stupid necessarily. But damn if that wasn’t a lot more tactically minded than he’s used to from her. And he’s not the only one that thinks so either, because practically everyone there is staring at her in surprise. Thayla flushes at the attention and ducks her head for a moment before lifting it high and giving a shrug.

“What? I have been by my father’s side for the past week, learning much.”

Finally breaking his silence, Timothal chuckles and gives his daughter an approving nod.

“Much indeed, daughter, much indeed.”

Thayla blushes at that but stands a little bit taller all the same, pride clearly swelling in her chest. Meanwhile, Timothal moves over to a table covered in a map that dominates the center of the area.

“Dame Dawnguard is right. Leaving the Supreme King to his own devices is not an option. We must push our advantage while we still can. Chevalier Ironshield is also right though… besieging Alether and destroying Foss Sangrey will be nearly impossible if he has transformed the entire population into undead. Unless of course… our resident half-orc can be relied upon to make a siege unnecessary.”

Bula straightens up as Timothal throws her a curious look. After a moment, she grins ferally… and the Child of Syl she’s been petting all this time bristles in tune with her vicious bloodlust, bearing its fangs and extending its spines.

“Yes.”

That single word answer seems to be enough for the Knight-Superior, who just smiles grimly and nods.

“I have to admit, I wasn’t sure what to expect when I sent you all to the Sylian Woods. If we were extraordinarily lucky, elves was my best hope. Just having you three return to us alive was all I dared pray for though. And yet… and yet, you come back from the woods with an army of monsters straight out of legends even more ancient than the elves themselves.”

Timothal’s exhaustion shows in that moment as he shakes his head, looking genuinely lost for a heartbeat.

“I do not know how you did it, though I imagine it’s quite the tale.”

Avina and Mikael exchange a glance at that, before Mikael quickly makes eye contact with Bula and gives her a small shake of his head. The half-orc has her mouth open and knowing her blunt ways, was just about to straight up tell the Knight-Superior precisely how they’d done it. Truthfully, Mikael doesn’t THINK that Timothal would judge them too harshly for taking part in a genocide… but perhaps it would be better if what happened in the Sylian Woods STAYED in the Sylian Woods.

… Hm, why did that statement resonate with Mikael so much? Eh, no matter.

In the face of their silence, Bula’s a bit more mulish, Timothal raises an eyebrow but doesn’t press further. With a shrug, he shakes his head.

“No matter. A story for another time, perhaps. Either way… some of our new allies can literally leap the walls of Alether in a single bound. Others could scale it in a handful of seconds. With such powerful beasts on our side, I have no doubt that we would not be kept from invading the city for very long at all. That said… there is something else that must be discussed. The Princess’ safety.”

A hush falls over the War Council as all eyes turn to Avina. Mikael’s Soul Mechanic stiffens, her own eyes having been on the map that Timothal had been looking at. Her gaze had been fixated on the dot that represented Alether until the word ‘Princess’ had left the Knight-Superior’s lips. Flicking her dark eyes up from the map, Avina narrows them as her black lips press into a thin line.

“… I hope you are not suggesting that I stay behind, Knight-Superior Dawnguard.”

Straightening up to his full height, the Order of the Rose’s Grandmaster sighs.

“I am not suggesting anything specifically just yet. But as I said, it must be discussed.”

Avina crosses her arms over her chest.

“I’m going. No matter what, I’m going. It’s probably already too late to save Alether. But if I don’t go and confront Foss, who’s to say he’ll even come after Zuveria a second time right away?”

That causes a stir of confusion, with Nathaniel furrowing his brow and asking the question on everyone’s minds.

“… Why wouldn’t he?”

Stepping up to the table, Avina gestures to Zuveria on the map.

“His initial strike has failed. He might have killed the Zuverian Imperial Family and much of the Order of the Rose’s leadership, but he’s been pushed back. He was trying to rush into Zuveria and take over before anyone could muster a defense. Maybe it would have even worked if his assassins had actually killed the Knight-Superior and he’d made it to the Imperial Capital before anyone could respond. But that doesn’t matter anymore, because that didn’t happen.”

Stepping away from Zuveria and over to Ocreatha, Avina gestures again.

“What if he doesn’t make a second go at Zuveria so soon? What if you all go to Alether without me and when he sees I’m not with you, he… retreats further? He’ll have to abandon Alether. And he’ll be in the heart of Ocreatha with an ever-growing undead army. I don’t think he’ll stop building it either. I think he will continue to turn the people of Ocreatha into undead until he feels ready to destroy even an army of Sylian Beasts.”

Taking a step back from the table, Avina crosses her arms over her chest again as she punctuates her point.

“He’s gone off the deep-end. He doesn’t care about ruling anymore. He’d just as happily rule a kingdom of dust as he would a kingdom of people. I’m the one thing he wants. So I have to go to Alether, as bait if nothing else.”

It’s a fair point. Not to mention Mikael wouldn’t leave Avina’s side anyways. Not for anything at this point. But he doesn’t really think that needs to be brought up right now. For a long moment, Timothal contemplates Avina’s words. Finally, the aged Knight-Superior nods, his expression grave.

“And what if he takes that bait, Princess? What if he manages to capture you after all?”

Avina hisses and her hands curl into white-knuckled fists as she leans forward with her teeth bared in an open-mouth snarl.

“I will DIE before I give that bastard ANY of what he wants. Count on that, Knight-Superior.”

Mikael steps up to Avina’s side and places a hand on her shoulder, a silent show of support. She jolts at the touch, looking at him for a moment before smirking slightly as she looks back at Timothal.

“Besides. So long as I have Mikael with me, Foss can do nothing. He’s stopped him at every turn. The safest place in the world for me is right here, at Mikael’s side.”

The Knight-Superior looks at them both for a long moment… before nodding once.

“Then so shall it be. The Order of the Rose will not falter here, not when the battle is still far from done. You will have our Knights in the fight ahead, Princess. Fret not.”

Despite her fiery words, Mikael can feel Avina’s relief through his hand on her shoulder at Timothal’s words. At the same time, she flicks her eyes over to Bula questioningly, causing the half-orc to snort in amusement.

“What? Of course we’re in. Bastard thinks he can run just when the fight is getting good? I’m looking forward to showing him and his corpses exactly what we think of that!”

Behind her, the Child of Syl hisses its approval, flaring its spikes and shaking them in response to Bula’s bloodlust once more as it continues to ramp up. Mikael just chuckles and so does everyone else.

At the end of the day, everything has come full circle. They’re going right back to where it all started. Back to Alether at long last.

-x-X-x-

A/N: Back to where it all started! Hey look, it's not a weekend cliffhanger!

Be sure to let me know what you think!