Wild Wastes 5 -CH 21- (Patreon)

Vince yawned, sighed, and then rested his head against the curtain.

They’d been very careful to make sure no one would suspect they were watching the cafe from their room. Even when they’d left to get their equipment and belonging from the other room, it’d been done as carefully as possible. They really didn’t want to alert those they were watching to the situation.

Though he’d taken a risk despite not wanting to.

When he’d gone to get the gear, he’d drifted close enough to try and poke through their thoughts. He hadn’t found anything of use. There was nothing he could get to without pushing hard enough for them to notice.

That’d be just as bad as if they got noticed spying on them, if not worse since they’d suspect someone had gotten ahold of whatever information they had. They weren’t at the point that they needed to force them to rabbit off so he’d held back from that.

Fes was currently following two of the people they were watching. They’d received what was likely a message from someone passing near them, gotten up, then left together. Almost without saying anything at all.

Vince would go next time, if there was a next time, just to keep things mixed up.

A nearly silent pat near the door caught his attention.

While he normally tuned out most noises like this, this one felt like it was directly in front of the door.

Moving to the bedside table he grabbed up his hunting knife and went toward the door.

“Vince? It’s us,” whispered Ynes on the other side of the door. “Open the door?”

Pausing, Vince put the knife back then went and opened the door. Pulling it open Ynes and Elizabeth came in swiftly. They seemed concerned and anxious as soon as he laid eyes on them. Both of them dressed in their mercenary clothes and they each had debris on their person.

Bits of foliage as if they’d rushed headlong straight back to the city and didn’t pause to go around brush and trees. Going right through it instead.

Even as he closed the door Vince saw that Ynes was already looking at him, her mouth open and waiting for the door to completely shut.

“Prussany is invading,” pronounced Ynes the second the door had closed. “They’re pushing in hard across all the borders. Especially the southern one. They’re making rapid inroads in the south. On our side of the portal-storm that is.

“They’ll be here at Toulouse in a few hours. They rushed right over the border with a concerted push with their forces. We didn’t stick around to watch too long and ended up running ahead of it. We caught scouts and questioned them. Well, Elizabeth did.”

The Platinum Dragon nodded her head.

“I also read their minds as I did so,” she confirmed. “They launched a magical assault, used soldiers, and brought out a lot of mechanized antiques that’d been rebuilt. They even have magical constructs they’re using to fly and battle the Nullifiers in the air. They’ve pulled everything out to make this push succeed.

“From the very beginning, they accepted the cease fire just for this exact moment. Where Francia is completely tied up with our own forces.”

“Right,” Vince mumbled and then sighed, putting a hand to his head.

The people they’d been watching made a lot more sense now. They were spies and informants that’d been placed here to watch and report. Provide information to the forces of Prussany and their invasion before it happened.

“Right, okay. Then we need to get out of the city then. We also need to let Petra know immediately,” muttered Vince as his brain ran ahead. “I’m sure she’ll have some type of plan for this. Some… something she’ll want to do as soon as she learns it all.

“Now… correct me if I’m wrong, Ynes. When you send information to your partners… it’s not exactly a message. More like feelings. The same way Dea sends things, right?”

“Ah, yes! It’s very similar to that. We’re getting better at sending information but… it’s… yeah, it’s a bit of a jumble and things can and do get lost. I wish we’d have come with one of those communication things the Praecantrix have. We thought we’d be able to use Sam and… we screwed up,” Ynes lamented.

“It’s fine. You all did well just to get to me. None of you knew what was going on and what you don’t know, you don’t know,” Vince said with a dismissive wave of his hand. “It’s neither here nor there. Now… we need to get a message to Petra. Let her know what’s going on here.

“Her options are pretty simple but… I’m sure I can list the biggest directions. Move up the coast and hit Gascogne, where they transport things in from the north to the south or… or hit Prussany. Hit the invaders on the east and get them to pull back.”

“Or both,” Elizabeth interjected. “Then we could take Francia up to the portal-storm, the border of Prussany, and our own border. That’d be an easy border to defend and hold all the way across. Especially if the plans I saw being started get completed. A Dragon with two Dryads and two Elves would easily be able to fight the Nullifiers off. We suspected that they could take on three, but depending on who, it could go up a lot. We could hold our borders.”

Vince nodded to that and could imagine a squad like that easily dominating the skies. More so if they were all bound together as they’d been planning to do.

And in the future when I’m not around, or I can’t hold anymore, they could easily bind themselves in and to a Dragon I bet. A dryad planting their seed in a Dragon, binding to it, then including the Elves.

Though… still curious how they’re going to make that binding. It’ll have to be something that hold in the same way as a Dryad Seed or Dragon Horn.

“Alright. Elizabeth, get in the air and fly back to Petra. Let her know what’s going on. If you can get back to me, great, if you can’t, oh well. I’ll be heading to the south-east and see if I can’t get more information about what’s going on with Prussany, then heading down to the wall to reconnect.”

“I… of course, Nest-mate. I’ll go immediately,” Elizabeth said with a dip of her head.

“No. I disallow it. Outright,” Ynes said with a chop of her hand. “What we’re going to do is simple. I’m going to go run down Fes, then leave with her. I can find her at any time because of my magic actively working in her. She and I can move easily across country at speed and without a concern.

“I’m her Dryad for her birth, so my ability to grant her stamina is very high. We can easily run all the way back to Petra in a short time, without stopping, or rest, and make it work.

“If Elizabeth got into the air, she’d have swarms of Nullifiers on her instantly. We ran across more than five camps of Nullifiers and their mounts when we were scouting around. They’re just waiting for Dragons or otherwise to fly by. Then they’d take to the air and that’d be it. So no, Elizabeth won’t be flying away.

“I’m sorry Snuggle-Bug, I don’t want to naysay you… but that’d just get Elizabeth killed. Your Flower-pot loves you, and is truly sorry, but she can’t let Elizabeth die for nothing.

“You and Elizabeth can get more information, then go to the wall like you said. Then run that all the way back home and we can get it all back together with a plan.”

Vince opened his mouth, paused, then let out a sigh with a small nod of his head. She was right and he didn’t like it, but he was a smart enough man to know when he was wrong. He wasn’t expected to come up with every plan. With every idea.

He wasn’t the be-all, end-all, in their lives. He was only one facet of it.

“Okay. Get Fes, get going,” Vince said, to which Ynes acted immediately. She’d spun to one side and began throwing together all of Fes’ belongings. Wrapping up everything she had left in the room quickly. “Elizabeth, let’s get outta here and get moving. We’ll need to get ahead of the Prussany forces if we’re going to get any decent information.”

“Of course, Nest-mate,” Elizabeth offered with a smile.

“I’m jealous,” whined Ynes as she wrapped something around Fes things and then tied it down to the top of her backpack. “I want to be alone with my Snuggle-Bug. Have him turn me into his Flower-pot more and more.

“Eeeeeh, hmph. Fine, okay, fine. Anyways. Remember what we talked about Elizabeth.”

Ynes hadn’t waited for them and was now leaving, rushing out of the room quickly at a trot after jerking the door open. Leaving the two of them standing there in the room.

Then Ynes came back in, slamming the butt of her rifle into the doorframe as she did so.

“I almost forgot. I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” Ynes went up to Vince and kissed him hotly while pressing in close to his front. After ten seconds of just about making out with him, her tongue running all throughout Vince’s mouth, Ynes finally came off him. “Its always too fun to kiss you, Snuggle-Bug. Okay, I love you. When we catch back up, remember to take care of me. Only you can do it so I need attention. I’ll make sure you get repaid in kind.”

Ynes kissed him briefly, gave him a bright lovely smile, then darted off again. Rushing off through the door and out.

“I think her Dragon and Elves are lucky,” murmured Elizabeth, turning to look at Vince. “Because I can smell your desire for her from here. It’s far more than what you give off for most Dryads. She must be unique.”

“And then some,” Vince admitted, then set about to quickly load his pack, then swing it over his shoulder. Slamming his hunting knife down into it’s sheath at his side he turned to look at Elizabeth. “Let’s go. We need to get out of here. A city under siege isn’t a place to be at any level.”

Vince and Elizabeth made it out of the inn and onto the street in a flash. He didn’t see Ynes anywhere but he imagined she was running Fes down already.

Turning toward the city gate Vince set off at a walk he hoped wasn’t suspicious, but swift enough to get them out quickly. They needed to go, but he really didn’t want to be stopped by guards either.

“Do we need any supplies?” Elizabeth murmured while marching along next to him. “My pack only has clothes and dried meat in it.”

I… uh… yeah, I guess that’s about right for what a Dragon would want to take with them.

Not really that much of a surprise, just strange when you hear it aloud.

“No, I have what we need in my pack,” countered Vince and shifted said pack around. He had a pot, canteen, steel, flint, and hatched. That was all he really did need. The rest he could make-do with things he could scrounge up. “We just really need to get out of here.”

Moving swiftly, they made it to the gate, and slipped out without anyone seeming to care. People were moving back and forth as if nothing were the matter at all.

Vince had no idea what the hell was going on that there were no fugitives, fleeing soldiers, or wounded had made it to Toulouse, but obviously the city had no idea what was going on. It meant that there was a distinct possibility that there were agents operating between Toulous and the army to prevent the news leaking.

Not waiting, Vince took off at a fast run, heading straight for the tree line. They needed to get out of here quickly. His plan was to get straight back to their strike camp to see what would happen to the area.

Rushing about as an army passed through the area was a good way to run across soldiers that may or may not try to do the worst to them. Especially given how attractive Elizabeth was.

Because that’s what happened with war.

Each side dehumanized the other to the point that they weren’t of the same value.

Even Vince had done the same and often wrote off anyone who opposed him as little more than meat waiting to be butchered. Trees that needed to be chopped down.

Shaking his head, Vince dove into the trees Elizabeth coming along right behind him.

He was no thinker, no in-depth philosophist. These were things that were beyond him and left to others far more intelligent than he was.

***

A large number of some type of magic user on flying constructs were cautiously flying about. They weren’t moving into the airspace around Toulouse, but they weren’t backing up either.

Opposing them were an increasing number of Nullifiers. Rising up from locations that Vince didn’t even realize they were in and joining the rest in the sky, or landing in Toulouse.

It’d only been three hours since they’d fled Toulouse, but in that time, the city had found out about the invasion. They’d closed the gates, buttoned up, and sent out Nullifiers that flew off in several different directions.

Vince assumed they all had messages about the situation and were alerting others to the oncoming invasion. It was quite possible they’d be hoping that all the forces in the border war with Yosemite would pull back and head north.

Except that kind of move would put them back to where they were previously, though much worse.

Previously they’d been fending off Prussany while looking worriedly at Yosemite.

Now they were being invaded by Prussany, while attacking Yosemite, and being forced to choose which side they wanted to lose on.

“If I were Petra… I don’t know what I’d do,” whispered Elizabeth, who then shifted around. Her wings lifted up off her back, then settled back down. Her great coat was laying on the ground next to them as she’d been overheating while wearing it. “I don’t know what I’d do if I was Francia, actually, either. They foolishly turned their back on someone they’d been fighting to the death for years.

“Only to turn and try to fight someone else who’d just destroyed a smaller partner in an alliance. I’ll be the first to admit that’s a very Dragon response but… they’re humans. Couldn’t they have just… reached out to try and message Yosemite to work out a truce? An agreement? Something so that you wouldn’t be an issue?”

“Tried that. Remember? You were there,” muttered Vince. “They sent their soldiers back with a command to go to war. They wanted to fight us. Wanted to go to war with us. Probably thought they could knock us down, then sweep down afterward, take all of Spain for themselves. Turn it from a minor ally into a puppet state.

“Didn’t turn out very well for them and now they’ve not only did their reach exceed their grasp, but they put their hand in a bear trap. One that won’t be letting go without taking a few fingers in recompense. Because let’s be honest… we know what Petra will do.”

“We do?” Elizabeth asked. She was facing him directly with her body as Dragons were wont to do. They were prone to staring at him in both interest and aggression.

“More along the lines of what you said earlier. Both. She’s going to knock the Prussany army back, take the lands south of the portal-storm, and offer a truce to Francia,” Vince summarized. He’d thought about it since Ynes and Elizabeth had quickly discussed it with him. “She knows we don’t quite have the resources to take more from Francia. Nor would we have enough to hold Prussany back if we took more than up to the portal-storm.

“She’ll offer them an out that they can take with the idea of working towards something else later. They’ll believe they can take it back from us in the future, so they’ll take it more than likely.

“Especially if Prussany has to garrison people on the border with us to keep us out. Which they will after we give them a bloody nose. Petra will push up along the eastern side of the wall. Up from Barcelona. I think it’s Barcelona. Anyways… she’ll push up from there. Run it along the edge of Spain to where the old border of Francia and Prussany was.

“Probably not a single inch forward from there and not even trying to go ahead. I’ll probably end up being sent to that border and asked to make it very uncomfortable for anyone to try and push in. Likely you’ll be there along with a number of squads of… whatever… we call the Elves, Dryads, and Dragons. Is there a name for you all combined?”

“Nothing really formal. A few nicknames and some suggested names,” Elizabeth admitted. “We’re working on it. I’m sure we’ll come up with something. Maybe they already did while I’m away.”

“Well… a few squads of everyone with me and then making the border uncomfortable,” Vince continued. “The portal-storm… no idea how to handle that, but I’m sure Petra will come up with something.

“Probably something with magic or the like. I don’t know. Not really my forte. I’ve successfully cast like… twenty spells in my life and they were all either over-powered and awful, or so small and weak they did nothing.”

“I-ah-that… yes. I could see all of that. Thank you for sharing your thoughts with me,” Elizabeth said, then reached out with a hand and laid it to Vince’s back. “Can I ask you a different question? One that has nothing to do with any of this?”

Vince watched as Nullifiers and the mages started to get closer. The latter closing in on the city of Toulouse. Likely matching the approach of their ground troops and staying with them.

Distantly, he could hear the rumble and grind of what sounded like internal-combustion engines. Something that Vince had somewhat discounted when he’d heard it spoken, but now finding that it might actually be true.

“Am I doing well as a Human? I’m trying to live much more as a Human, than Dragon,” Elizabeth asked nervously. “I’m… I feel like I’m doing much better. I’m pulling in Dragons at every opportunity by being a Dragon, but amongst… amongst non-Dragons… I’m… living as a Human. Or as best as I can. I feel like I’m doing well and I’d like feedback.”

Vince blinked, frowned, then glanced to Elizabeth and thought on it for a few seconds. He didn’t have to really think about it really hard either.

“Honestly… I forgot you were a Dragon,” he admitted with a shrug of his shoulders. “I’d say that yes… yes, you’re definitely living as a Human to the point that it feels more like you’re a Dragonnewt.”

“Ah, lovely. Lovely, lovely. That’s… lovely,” Elizabeth responded with a wide smile. “I’ve been working really hard on it. Mother has told me that I’ve done well as the Dragons see me as their wing-leader, and non-Dragons see me as a very non-Dragon version of Elizabeth.

“The better I can walk in both worlds, the easier it’ll be for me and my kind. We’ve more or less refused integrating with Yosemite as a whole and… that can’t continue. We’ll need to be more like the Reds, but even more so. Especially in working with Dryads and Elves. Changes must occur.”

There was a boom that shook everything around Vince and caught his attention. Looking back to the sky Vince saw that the aerial battle was now underway. A boom sounded and then a trail of dust and smoke rose up into the air from Toulouse.

As if it’d been hit by something that exploded.

“I guess that’s the start of it,” murmured Vince and stood up. “Time to go get some answers. Maybe we can get a chance to talk to their general and make this work out in advance.”

“I think I’ll be transforming into my Dragon shape and then chewing people to death,” Elizabeth murmured and stood up as well. Then she started to strip out of her clothes. “I don’t want to ruin these so I’ll just put them aside for now at the camp. They’re rather comfortable and the material is quite nice.”

Hm.

Really is becoming a human-like Dragon. More so than even Dragonnewts. I wonder if she’s unique in this or just that much more intelligent than everyone else.

Or that willing to experience growth. That’s a skill all on it’s own

Should probably get my armor. Pistol and sword, too.

Things are going to get interesting.

Interesting and terrible.