Private Tales Something Amiss

[Kaska]

"You're the one with magic stuck in your head," She retorted. "Finally walking straight, I see." She kicked off her boots once they pressed deep enough in, sitting down and undoing what she could on her own.

She couldn't help back to caste a pointless glance over her shoulder. Sarah with Saul... she'd caste her charms in an instant.

She kicked at a rock, scowling at the air. "Hate that elf."

 

[Lia]

"She's a good Ranger." Lia said quietly, frowning at Kaska for a moment.

Sarah had been a great help throughout all of this. Truly the best scout and saving them more than once from a bandit patrol. She supposed Kaska hadn't seen that though. Not that she expected Kaska would admit to it anyway.

"The Magic wasn't too bad." She commented. "Odd, really."

A frown touched her lips again. "Almost as if it were sapping my strength."

Like the Lich had attempted to Leech its way back to life.

 

[Kaska]

And she was currently batting her eyes at Saul.

The whore.

Lia's words sent this grumpiness to a pause, concern blossoming where jealousy had stewed. She tilted her head, studying LIa with furrowed brows.

"...Even now?" She asked carefully.

 

[Lia]

She shook her head. "It passed around the middle of the day."

The frown on her face did not go away though, almost as if she were considering saying something else. After a moment she snapped her jaw shut and shook her head.

"I'm sure his explanation for it was true." Though she was not entirely sure she wanted to rely upon the Templar for that sort of information. There were many things she did not know, but for some reason this made her more deeply uncomfortable than any of the others.

The gap in her knowledge could have gotten them killed.

"I suspect he knows something else is behind this." She told Kaska. "Unfortunately he's no fool."

 

[Kaska]

Kaska frown down at her legs, slowly sliding her arm out of the makeshift sling.

“No, he’s not...”

She mulled, unconsciously rubbing along the joint she would have lost if not for Sauls quick thinking.

He was beyond knowledgeable. He was well intended, and dare she say it... trust worthy? It was a hazard, a guess, and one she never made lightly. But in circumstances like this, they had placed themselves vulnerably into his hands and he...

Well...

“He deserves to know,” she leveled softly, unsure if she was saying that because of her own bias or out of truth. She continued on, defending her words.

“That sword is foul. We can’t send him off without a warning. And they’re still out there, whatever —whoever did this... it is likely his men might get caught in the cross fire again. He could get hurt if unprepared, and that would be our fault.”

 

[Lia]

Lia nodded slowly. "Though I'm not entirely sure it will matter if he does know."

There was an air to this situation that she did not quite understand. Obviously the Templar had absolutely no need to tell them anything, though he had shared enough that she knew there was more to his own story.

From what she knew of the Templar their Order was a broken one, splintered into a thousand different pieces. The fact that they thought a Lich warranted thirty men when her own Organization had only sent twelve though...that...that had to mean something more didn't it?

She frowned.

"I believe he has more of a handle on the sword than we ever could." Thankfully. "I'm more than happy to let him keep it."

 

[Kaska]

Kaska nodded slowly. “I will tell him our suspicions then. ...another time. Maybe let him hang for a bit,” she grumbled.

She squeezed her shoulder a little tighter, then let it go in a huff.

“He... he did confide to me that his own order was ... strained.” Something she was sure was not her place to tell, but Lia was her commander, and it felt relevant here.

“Perhaps it’s all tied in...” she shook her head, trying to banish the mass of confusion this mystery caused.

“Help me out of this shirt, I wanna soak.”

 

[Lia]

"Possibly." Foolishly she'd never even considered that thought. "But..the Templar have had troubles for hundreds of years."

An understatement really, though of course Lia did not even realize that the Templar were made up of dozens of different Chapters rather than one whole organization.

Such things were not entirely common knowledge. "Regardless, a small warning at least is not a bad idea."

The idea was not a bad one, and Lia began to mull it as she helped Kaska undress. They would need all the allies they could get, or at least people who knew what was happening.

As long as they were trustworthy.

 

[Kaska]

Kaska nodded, mute now. She would tell him. Perhaps later. After a long soak and a drink. Or maybe tomorrow, or the last night? Perhaps she would just seduce him into another fuck and tell him in the after math on the forest floor. Cuddle him a bit. Let him think her loose mouthed and pliable.

The tactic was a fond one of hers, but she half thought the Templar Commander would see right through it.

She gritted her teeth as she lowered herself into icy water. She pushed off, the groans of pain and relief slipping from her as she closed her eyes and floated.



"So who landed the killing blow?" She peeked over at Lia, mischief in her gaze.

 

[Lia]

Lia thought for a moment, frowning. "I think...both of us in a weird way."

In truth she hadn't even really considered it until now. It had happened of course, but all of the action and her own sickness after it had made her forget. Now that she looked back on it though she remembered rather well how it had actually happened.

There was nothing upsetting to it of course, they'd eliminated a threat to the Reach but....

Well she'd wanted to kill the damn thing!

"I stabbed my blade into it's chest." Just as Kaska had done with her own sword. "But the damned thing didn't die until the Templar wrenched it free."

 

[Kaska]

Kaska flicked water Lia’s way. “Really? Ugh! Can’t believe you let him one up you like that. No wonder why he was acting so smug. He right thinks he saved our ass now!”

Which he totally did. But still. She splashed again, annoyed.

“Last time I leave you to deal with things, shoulda shoved him off the wall to be stuck fighting dead things. Leave us to the fun.”

She huffed, dipping under in her grumbles and popping back up into the cool night air.

 

[Lia]

"Not like it was my own choice." She pointed out, still frowning about the whole thing. The Lich had been stronger than she'd anticipated.

Lia wouldn't admit it outloud, but the fact of the matter was without the Templar they very likely wouldn't have been able to pull this off. The thought made her somewhat queasy, if only because it forced her to consider that her own Organization hadn't taken this threat as seriously as it should have.

A lich was dangerous.

"Whatever raised it is the threat now." Lia said quietly. "We'll have to find that..."

It was the next step, the next threat.

 

[Kaska]

Kaska sobered at that, biting her tounge.

“This is over in the slightest, is it?” She asked softly, the babble of water filling the silence between them as she treaded lazily in place.

 

[Lia]

Lia slowly shook her head.

"No." Far, far from it. With what the Templar had told her she was now sure that whatever had raised the Lich was stronger than it, or at least in one way.

That was enough to concern her. "There is a root cause of all of this."

She paused.

"A person." Had to be, right? "We need to find out who."

 

[Kaska]

“I think we already know who,” she dared to grumble, her opinion on this matter still not entirely a group consencious. She understood why Lia didn’t want to believe it, but she didn’t know what Kaska did. Kaska kept this to herself though, her usual need to run her mouth curbed on this topic in particular.

 

[Lia]

"Proof." She said quietly. "We need proof before we do anything."

Especially when it came to this.

The territory they were operating in was now growing extremely dangerous. Every step had to be carefully watched, every move had to be observed. Lia held no illusions about any of this.

If they went the wrong way, they would find up dead, or worse.

A sour expression crossed her features. "We need allies."

 

[Kaska]

Kaska sat up, treading herself closer to Lia. The problem was mulled over, more silence falling over them as they soaked. Laughter traveled down the river, muffled yet identifiable as their own people settling down for celebrations up stream.

Kaska looked to Lia like that, the suggestion hanging on her tongue. "We could... tell them all the truth. All ten..." She drifted off, already sensing the multiple complications that that could bring, but at least it was something to start with.

 

[Lia]

Lia chewed her lip unconsciously, slowly shaking her head. "I-"

She cut herself off.

"Is that a good idea?" It was the first time she had sounded unsure of their situation. Always she'd made the decision, always she'd pushed for her own thoughts, but at the moment she wasn't entirely sure which direction they should go. What was actually safe.

"If you're right..." He glanced towards the camp. "One of them could be a spy."

More than one.

 

[Kaska]

No, of course, Lia was right. "Any one of them on that compound could be," she concluded, almost forlorn.

"I don't think we should linger then. How he responds to our arrival will say enough. They don't expect our return. I'm not sure if that should raise any red flags back in Alliria or if..." They just didn't know how much of a threat Liches really were. Which was a concern in itself.

How could they consider themselves soldiers when they barely grasps the real dangers of the world? Escorting rich people around, scaring off bandits-- pah. It was almost laughable to her now.

They could do so much more.

"How can we still be in so over our head?" She breathed, disturbed.

 

[Lia]

"This isn't exactly something you train for." Lia commented coldly, her fingers tightening for a brief moment as she took a deep breath and shook her head.

What else were they supposed to do?

Neither of them had exactly ever prepared for something like this. They weren't set up for it, hell...far from it. She had worked her way up the Command structure since joining the Ranger's, but Lia was hardly qualified to go up against Corruption...much less hunt for it.

That was the work of a spy, not a soldier.

Scrubbing a hand through her hair a noise of frustration left her.

"I don't know." She said finally. "I really don't."

 

[Kaska]

Kaska glanced up in shock at Lia, somehow never expecting to hear those words and that tone from her.

They really were over their head.

Kaska let out a slow breath, trying to calm her stress and likewise, not push the conversation forward. "Let's not... concern ourselves with this tonight," she concluded, her voice tighter than she'd wish.

"We did one impossible thing. Let's just enjoy that for a moment." Before they both drowned in their own stress. She offered Lia a tight, almost apologetic smile. "We will figure the rest out, when we're not so... tired." She dragged herself over and sat on a rock with Lia, wrapping her arms around herself and holding in a shiver.

Up river a splash and deep laugh echoed down to them. Another set of voices bathing.

 

[Lia]

Her fingers slowly interlaced with one another, a nod tipping her chin for just a moment.

The truth of the situation was...she really didn't have any idea what to do next, what to even make of any of this. It was above her pay grade, above her ability to comprehend. She wanted to take over the Rangers, she wanted to lead...but she hadn't imagined doing it for another decade.

Maybe even two.

Lia wasn't ready for this.

It didn't matter of course. It didn't matter that Kaska and Lia were next to clueless, it didn't matter that in the eyes of many they were practically children. They were the ones who knew about this, they were the ones who would have to pull back the curtain and reveal the light.

There was no one else.

 

[Kaska]

~~~~~​

Kaska sat back, a slight smile to lips as she felt Saul do the same besides her. If anyone noticed their return from the woods together, no one mentioned or lingered on it. It was utterly the opposite of what she expected from a group of men like this, but the easy acceptance into their ranks was something she was growing to appreciate.

Maybe Rangers and Templars could do more than coexist well after all.

The previously preserved fish was being warmed by the fire. She stretched out her good hand to bask in its warmth, glancing at Saul and the lack of shirt she had left him with.

What. He had tore hers again. Lia was going to kill her for that. She slyly sniffed at the oversize material on her body, then crinkled her nose at.

"Gods, you should be shoved into the river."

 

[Saul Talith]

”There’s not exactly a place to wash clothes without them getting lost.” The River was there, obviously, but...well he wasn’t going to chance it when he only had one or two left.

Besides, he could always just wear his armor.

A frown touched the Templar’s lips for a moment, fingers drumming for just a brief second as he glanced out through the forest. The other Templar had remained silent of course, no judgement, no snide words.

It was typical of those that traveled and fought with Saul. All of them knew why they were here, what they had done. They were proud of their accomplishments, and happy to know that they had done it. Particularly with Rangers at their side. It was odd how that camaraderie had grown, but more than good.

He hoped it did not slip away when they returned to Alliria. ”This has all turned out well.”

The words held no hint of sarcasm, a small smile touching his face.

 

[Kaska]

Kaska laughed under her breath, an amused yet skewed glance cast his way. "Yes, I suppose you could say that." A slight inflection hit her tone at the 'you', a tease for what they had just walked back from.

Puft, men.

She stretched out her bad arm, feeling more banged up than not after exerting it. She hadn't asked him to get a sling back over her, so she wiggled her fingers carefully and brought it back to her side instead.

She took a deep breath in and out, relaxing further into the moment. She cast him a smile. "Suppose I could too. I'm glad we went for you. It was the right thing to do."