Archive of Our Own ^beta

Larsa had been jittering with excitement since they left the ambassadorial residence. In Archades, Lea Monde was the stuff of fairy tales, a port city with a diverse population, surrounded by an enchanted forest. The finest magickal trinkets came out of the city, alongside their wines and potent balms and elixirs. It was said the black markets of the Undercity housed even rarer objects, which was part of the reason the Imperial contingent was here; while Judge Magister Zargabaath held official council with Lea Monde's mages, Gabranth's men of the 9th Bureau were searching the darker recesses of the city for more illicit material.

Drace had joined the party at the last moment, deciding a visit to one of the Empire's semi-autonomous city-states would be an educational experience for the young prince. Even as she arranged it she knew this was little but an excuse to get the child out of the stifling Imperial compound. He spent all day with nursemaids trailing after him and tutors struggling to keep with his sharp mind, and only and hour or two each day with different Judge Magisters, at the Emperor's request. So this was a treat for both Larsa and Drace, because not only did she get to spend time with a bright, attentive student, she had also left her amour behind.

Zargabaath had grumbled good-naturedly from behind his faceplate when she smiled cheerily at him over breakfast.

"Drace, look!"

She turned away from the display of jewels on the stall before her (each one guaranteed to bring luck, wealth or love into a person's life, and each one appearing to be nothing more than coloured glass to her eye) and watched the boy lean over the parapet of a bridge. She joined him, holding her headscarf to stop it fluttering in the stiff breeze.

At a small dock further down the river, a bangaa and two humes were scrabbling about, trying to gather up glittering trinkets from the wooden boards. A crate had over-turned, spilling it's contents and packing straw in their feet. There was a haze of the heads of the workers, and she only realised why when there was a blinding flash and one of the humes was knocked into the water; they had spilled a shipment of potions, which were reacting with each other in unpredictable ways as they came into contact.

"Oh, look, look!" Larsa's sharp eyes had picked out something she might have otherwise missed: as the bangaa scooped up armfuls of unbroken vials and turned to put them back into the crate, his tail knocked over a keg of some sort of magickal powder. Almost instantly a thick rime of ice covered the dock, and the man in the water yelped as the temperature dropped rapidly.

Drace grabbed hold of Larsa's arm pulled him none-too-gently away from the edge, fearing the worst. But just as the words of a shielding spell tumbled form her mouth she could see two city guards must have had the same idea, and were throwing a protective charm up over the entire mess. She didn't know whether this was a common occurrence in Lea Monde or if these guards were just especially quick of the mark, but either way their quick thinking had saved the lives of the workers. The spell seemed to be focused on the wood and stone of the dock itself, allowing the hume and bangaa to scramble up the steps past the ward and into the street. Their companion was being hauled, shivering, from the other side of the river, brushing ice off his clothes and hair.

"That was interesting," Larsa said. Drace hadn't realised that she'd pulled him in close and instinctively shielded him with her own body, but he had shifted in her grip and was peering out over her arm, watching the weird shapes and colours that were being produced as more and more magickal reagents from the crates were combined. There was a low rumble and the bubble flashed black inside. "Oh, do you think was a Dark mote?"

Of course the boy would find such chaotic destruction fascinating. Drace released her hold on him slowly, but kept one protective hand on his shoulder. "I think it may have been. And look, see those crackles of elektricity, along the bottom? That's from a white fang, I'd wager."

"Is this what they do in Draklor?" Larsa had turned his head to speak to Drace, but his eyes were still firmly glued to the events below. Now the bangaa and hume were arguing with one guard, no doubt attempting to foist the blame on each other or someone else, while the other guard maintained the bubble. "That's what I'd do if I had access to all those things. Mix them together and see what they do."

"This may be a little more dangerous than the Imperial laboratories, my lord, although not by much." Drace smiled. "Although that protective spell that's containing the danger is why we're here, in a round-about sort of way."

"Oh, really?" Larsa did look around now. He had been pestering Zargabaath for more information during the entire journey from Archades, pushing the Judge Magister's deep reserves of patience to near their limit. Drace had let him, ignoring her friend's pleading looks as Larsa found yet another convoluted way to ask the same question. "Don't we have our own spells like that? Shell and, um, Protect?"

"Yes, of course. But Zargabaath is here to find a way around such spells."

"I see." Larsa was silent for another moment, then frowned. "Is this about Nalbina?"

Drace couldn't hide the surprise in her face, which was answer enough for Larsa. "Where did that come from?"

"Well..." he didn't seem sure if he was in trouble, so she softened her expression into a smile of encouragement, and he continued more confidently. "Vayne has said the negotiations are failing. When I was training with Gabranth he used Nalbina as an example of defense as a good offense, and seemed to find it funny. And when I was in Bergan's study last, he had a board with maps of Nalbina fortress, with notes about their paling in Zargabaath's hand."

"My goodness." Drace shook her head. "I should recommend you for the 9th Bureau. Even a trained agent might not have made those connections."

Down below, a dozen more guard appear one after the other from a glowing blue circle on the ground. She pointed them out to Larsa.

"See that circle of magic? It's roughly the equivalent of our teleport crystals. While normally we would not be able to 'port directly into Nalbina if their paling should be erected-"

"-you think the mages here might be able to change that?" Larsa nodded. "We could get our nationals out in such an emergency, then."

"Or...?" Drace led him into the question. She knew better than to sugarcoat the nastier aspects of the Empire's military action form the boy.

"Or, I suppose, we could launch a surprise attack against the most well-defended town on the border. Take Nalbina Fortress from within."

"With a minimum of bloodshed," she corrected. "Cut the army off at the head to protect the foot soldiers."

"Is Nabudis not considered the head of Nalbina?"

"Politically, yes. But a battle there would be much easy with the Imperial Fleet, would it not?"

"Ah. Nalbina has little in the way of air support. Their cavalry is renowned from Balfonheim to the ends of Rozzaria, but what defence would it have from an aerial bombardment?" Drace recognised that line about the cavalry from her own teachings, with a small surge of pride.

"Indeed. And furthermore, the fortress might be considered something of a bolthole for the lords of Nalbina. Taking it preemptively might prove incentive enough to move negotiations forward. To end the talks without bloodshed would benefit us all. We must always strive to protect the innocent, Imperial citizens or not."

"Yes." He frowned again, thoughtful. "And yet we will fight them anyway. So says Vayne, at least."

I'm sure he does, Drace thought, but it was best to keep her opinion of the most bloodthirsty of the Solidors to herself. He claimed to have a weapon in mind of pacify the people of Nabudis; considering his close alliance with Doctor Bunansa of Draklor, there was little telling what might be unleashed. "Perhaps. You would best speak to Gabranth or Bergan on such matter; my office deals with Archades' internal affairs."

"Of course." Larsa snaked one hand up into her own, pulling close to Drace once more. "Can we return to the embassy soon? I am tired."

"At once, Lord Larsa."

Anyone else might have seen cause to worry in the young prince's sudden pensive mood, but Drace knew him well enough to guess at the problem. He had been presented with new ideas, a new thought to puzzle over , and would need time to work though it on his own. As she led Larsa back to their residence she adjusted the fall of her headscarf again, wondering whether she should warn her fellow Judge Magisters to be more discreet in their dealings around her charge.

With a mind as sharp as his, Lord Larsa would no doubt outwit them all someday.