551 Equal Reaction

After Reima had interrogated the spy he'd contacted those available and requested for a meeting in the war room, an hour later they were all gathered. Quelaag, Quelana, Solaire, Ciaran, Risryn, Talem, Geralt and Vesemir were all present as Reima leant on the table.

Reima "So, I'm guessing most of you heard about the spy Lamberts party had come across?"

Ciaran nods along with everyone else, "Give me thirty minutes with him, I'll show him some Lord's Blade techniques."

Reima scratches the back of his head, "Yeah, about that. I've already questioned and executed him."

...

Solaire "Forgive me my friend but, shouldn't we keep prisoners alive as long as possible gather more information?"

Reima nods, "Yeah, but that guy pissed me off, so I fed him to the Threstrels."

Vesemir "Thestrels?" he asks, wondering if it was a creature from another world.

Reima shrugs, "Winged carniverous skeleton horses..." he states blandly.

Quelana "Ignoring your crude manner of disposal, did he know anything useful... Was he even a spy?" she asks with a weird expression.

Reima nods, "He was, apparently the new ruler of Kaedwen wished to set his religious dogs, the Eternal Fire on us... Their name was Mensfeld or something?" he says with a frown.

Geralt "Mensfeld? Hmm, he was only the Voivode of Ard Carriagh before Henselt was assassinated... Had many shady dealings from what the rumours say."

Reima "I'm not familiar with them, Vesemir do you know anything?"

Vesemir shakes his head, "I've tried to stay out of politics, only ends badly I say." he states with crossed arms.

Quelaag "For their attempt we should retaliate, burning their capital city to ashes would be a start." she says while pointing at Ard Carraigh on the map.

Ciaran and Quelana nod in agreement, however the others don't agree.

Talem "Senseless violent against them will only bring us to their level, not to mention the innocents residing there that would undoubtedly be killed."

Reima "To be fair, these "Innocents" likely support the Eternal Fire, a religion that burns magic users and non-humans to death for simply existing."

Vesemir "You must not forget that the destruction of a nation's infrastructure will result in deaths no matter who's targeted. Destroying Kaedwens capital will halt all trade in the area, allow brigands to ransack nearby villages and remove any protection nearby farms would have had. I don't doubt that thousands would starve not soon after its destruction." he says slowly and methodically.

Quelaag "But we cannot just sit on our hands and do nothing, we must retaliate, let them know we are not to be trifled with!"

Risryn nods, "Perhaps we should adopt those Blue Stripes Guirreilla tactics? We have the men, skill and knowledge for it... Though it would not send much of a message if they didn't know who was causing them troubles." she questions.

Reima leans back in his seat, "We should just kill that douchebag Mensfeld, wouldn't be hard. Just pop in, crack his neck and pop out." he says with a shrug.

Geralt "As great as that sounds, regicide isn't something to be casually done... Trust me."

Quelaag "Then, what should we do? We are strong enough to fight them and I care not for the lives of their peasants, we must focus on our own people and how to defend ourselves."

Vesemir "I feel you are all missing the other antagonist in all of this... While yes the ruler of Kaedwen attempted to provoke them upon us, the real threat is the Eternal Fire, eliminate their leadership and our worries would be over... For now."

Reima nods, "That's not a bad idea, wouldn't mind tearing a crackpot "Hand of God" in half." he mutters with a chuckle.

Geralt "As much fun as they would be to do and watch, you would have no chance getting to them without alerting the entire city... We aren't exactly human."

Vesemir "Not to mention we have no idea who "They" are, investigation on the subject would be needed, and if a Witcher were to be seen asking about them then all hell would break loose... That and I will not manage the settlement in you stead Reima."

Reima frowns, "Then, who should we send?"

Talem "Well, forgive me for sounding arrogant but aren't we Prospects the perfect assassins? Not only are we well versed in combat but we do not risk death."

Ciaran "This is true, but I am unsure about your skills in subterfuge... Gathering information is incredibly different from fighting, there are layers upon layers that you may have to peel back to gain true insight."

Risryn "We can, and will do it. I will go with Talem and a few others." she states, leaving no room for argument."

Reima "That's great and all but while you look human you are all still wearing masks, only a few of you can even take them off yourselves..."

Geralt "That's fine, it isn't uncommon for people to conceal their features in a large city like Ard Carraigh, getting past the gate would just be a bag of gold away." he explains.

Quelana "I can agree to a plan like this." she states.

Vesemir "Good, doesn't anyone have any objections to this course of action?.... No? Then we will send out Lady Risryn and her chosen Prospects to Ard Carraigh when they're ready."

Reima breathes out a sigh, "Ahh, finally. Though, I feel like I'm forgetting something... Something to do with Kaedwen..."

...

Quelana looks at Quelaag before returning her gaze to Reima, "Another woman I'm guessing?" she says with a chuckle, a jab by Quelaag only increases her amusement of the situation.

...

Reima's eyes open wide, "Oh shit... Wasn't Arie handing in a contract to Ard Carraigh?" he says quickly.

...

Geralt "Shit."