Interlude 21. A Couple Letters

Interlude 21. A Couple Letters

(written in Kraut language)

"...therefore, consider this missive to be official orders. You are not, by action or inaction, incur the ire of the aforementioned jungfrau Gillespie. The only exception we the king of Kraut permit to you is if you can prove to our satisfaction that the lady in question is committing hostile activities towards our kingdom of Kraut or royal house Hohenzollern. Should you find her embroiled in any manner of legal dispute within our domain, it is our will that you assist in the situation by whatever means necessary to attain a compromise that satisfies lady Gillespie. Should that prove to be impossible, you are hereby ordered to immediately report any such situation before taking any action. Any existing plans that MIGHT result in involving the aforementioned lady, be they just schemes or already occurring actions, are to be halted immediately, subject to royal approval.

Do not, under any circumstances, allow another such blunder, Klaus. Crownmark is the lifeblood of Kraut, and our country hardly needs to bleed gainlessly."

___

(written in Albic language)

"I do sincerely hope this letter of mine finds you in good spirits and strong health, Cattleya.

In response to your question, I have been personally reassured by his highness king Abraham himself that my position by prince Edward's side remains unaffected. In fact, it was impressed upon me that now, more than ever, my service and vigilance are needed. I am not at the liberty to speak without restraint about the events that occurred at the Academy this autumn, but I am entirely at the liberty to confirm that in the end, we the Champagne nation and we the particular people have gained more than we lost.

The attack you inquired about in your last missive did indeed occur, and yes, I was at the forefront of the counterattack that thwarted the scheme, but it would be presumptuous of me to claim I did more than aid the castle guard. The bulk of praise should be given to lady Alyssa Gillespie, as it was her who broke the assault on his highness the king and it was her who recovered princess Lily-Anne from captivity. Furthermore, yes, she did wrest the secret oijan magics from the defeated magus and learned their fabled Worldstride. And yes, she did improve on the magic in question somehow. The exact formulae are well beyond my understanding and require of caster to be very thoroughly defiled to tolerate the exposure to the Void, but there are high hopes among the Royal Mages that with due diligence and effort, our kingdom may eventually benefit from our own Worldstriders.

The matters of kingdom aside, allow me to boast of my own gains. As I mentioned before, I did inquire with lady Gillespie on the topic of unusual weaponry, and although I did not expect anything beyond advice and maybe guidance, she delivered above and beyond expectations, as is her wont. To begin with, I must confess with some embarrassment that I have erred in my assumption that merely seeing the weapon would be sufficient for me to have it recreated. Upon impressing upon blacksmith what was that I wanted, this venerable craftsman pointed out that if he were to forge the hammer as I requested, it would be harshly unbalanced. At the time, I have rather arrogantly presumed him to be speaking in ignorance of this particular weapon's peculiarities, but once the item was finished to my specification, I found out, much to my chagrin (and loss of two planters) that he was quite right and the hammer as it was possessed no balance to speak if. Faced with such a quandary, I approached lady Gillespie for some advice and found out that Bec de Corbin she wielded was actually hollow in the hammerhead, filled with quicksilver instead of steel.

Through her contacts within the merchant guild, I was able to procure the necessary posson of quicksilver without delay and she deeply impressed me with her outstanding grasp of artisanal magic immediately after, hollowing out the failure that was produced to my specification to make it viable. She called the result 'dead blow hammer', and that name is very well deserved, I have to admit. As you are well aware, the crushing weaponry stemming from cudgels tends to recoil with each strike and by the strength of this recoil one could gauge the strength of the delivered blow. This simple maxim is potently untrue where quicksilver-filled hammers are concerned. Due to how the force is transmitted through the liquid metal, most of the blow power comes forth, leaving but a scant tithe at best to return to the giver as opposed to the full half one would expect. As such, I am currently in possession of a fearsome weapon that appears to be dangerous to any sort of foe. Lady Gillespie had cautioned me against practicing with my fellows at first, and I am glad to say I heeded her warning fervently.

___

(written in Oijan language)

"...as per your enlightened instruction, oh great vizier, this insignificant is elated to report that great vizier's most cunning plan to subvert the cursed corpses into useful labor is eminently successful. May the thrice bedamned White Witch choke on the lowly fig and die upon hearing the tale of her horrid curse being subsumed by the sublime mental might of Sultanate's oldest and most experienced servant of sultan Salaadin the Eminent, may his reign last until the end of times. This humble servant of a servant is proud to report the third firewood stockade had been completely filled as of this morning. Per the grand vizier's prescient direction, the cursed corpses had been lured away from hauling firewood and redirected according to ordained proportion. Seventeen to collect dried manure off the streets, six to refill plaza basin from the far wells and two remaining remanded to the care of most learned hakims as ordained by great vizier for the betterment of our understanding on the ways of subversion to this most insidious curse..."

___

(written in Albic language)

"Sand jackals had failed once again. By the looks of it, their mettle is broken. We might find a few holdouts willing to sell their lives for a chance to be remembered, but I would not count on them doing any better. Our best and most likely option by now remains Balthazar Lamarchand. Baroness XXXXXX arrived at Lamarchand viscounty two days ago, according to her last missive. She should be welcomed by viscount this evening. According to my sources, viscount should not need much in the way of provocation, he seems to be simply looking for an excuse. Baroness is confident she can incite viscount into declaring a duel.

Between us two, however, I have my doubts about viscount. Inciting him to hostilities should be remarkably easy, but I have no confidence he would be able to win. Lamarchands' fame notwithstanding, he had no serious duel for over four years and there is only so much that can be attained and retained through training. Say what you will about the impertinent bint, slaying a batal one-on-one is no easy task. Perhaps those of us with a modicum of foresight should begin planning for damage control in case viscount loses."

___

(written in Old Champaignan language)

"Tremper, you have drawn the attention of a powerful noble, and they aren't looking to buy your services. Rather, they seem to be rather miffed with you offering services to someone you really shouldn't have. House Gillespie is looking for you. I strongly suggest you leave Verdun before they come here. In case you do not get it, strongly suggest means I expect you to get the fuck out of Verdun by the next sunrise before one of my more ambitious footpads decides to offer your head to Gillespies in hopes of a reward."