NOVEL NEXT Book 5, Chapter 6
"So what's the plan for New Year's?" Faith asked, that evening. "How are we doing this?"
(I had, earlier today, had a brief correspondence with Duchess Melody Redwater through the enchanted notebook she gave me. To make a short conversation even shorter, she'd asked if we were back in Redwater, I'd told her that Emily was with me in Greenwood Village, and she'd informed me that I was invited to House Redwater's New Year's celebration, but also Duke Redwater would not be terribly incensed if I opted not to show up. Emily, however, would need to be brought back home to her parents by noon on New Year's Eve, and would not be free to leave for twenty four hours- and, furthermore, she would likely want to sleep before being carted back off to Greenwood Village. I kept my suspicions to myself regarding the balance of Emily's desires between sleeping after a long day and getting away from her family as quickly as possible; Melody could tell herself that Emily was just really in love with me without me contradicting her.)
"I find myself curious as well," Rebecca said, turning to regard her brother.
"We're going to be doing a small, familial gift exchange with Talia's parents on the morning of New Year's Eve," Dad said. "After that, myself and Ariel, plus the Joneses, have last-minute prep to do, and then we have a big communal New Year's celebration starting at noon on New Year's Eve and only really ending twenty four hours later."
"How exactly do you stay awake that long?" Emily asked.
"Some of us don't, some of us rely on long practice with operating on very little sleep, and some of us use stimulants," Dad explained. "Cat, while you're here, would you like to stock up on cocaine?"
"No!" Emily yelled.
"My Healer would be upset with me if I decided to pick up a drug habit," I said apologetically.
"What, is this your first time eating at a High Elf's table?" Dad asked, quirking an eyebrow. "Lemme be clear with you: Catherine lives a relatively drug-free life because she is boring, not because our culture discourages it. I regularly drink things that would put a human in the hospital, and I like it that way."
"He's not kidding," I said. "His idea of a light drink is like seventy percent alcohol, and the only reason it's not stronger is because he adds flavorings."
"So what is the difference between a High Elf and an Irishman, anyhow?" Faith asked.
"Irishmen aren't always blonde," Dad said dryly. "At any rate, I should've asked this morning, before you all ran off, but... what do you kids want for New Year's? Catherine, Talia, I assume you're good with your usual, but..."
"Actually," I interrupted, I blinked. "That regeneration talisman you gave me broke. Dying three times in one day in the Black Desert was a bit too much for it. Talia's still the only Druid in the party, so I'd, uh, I'd really like a replacement to stitch me back together."
"Those things take twenty years to make," Dad said, wincing.
"Shit."
"Anyhow... Faith, Emily?" Dad continued. "This is your first New Year's with us, and between Ariel and I, we can give gifts that're actually practical and useful even for the wealthy and well-connected. Still, we do have to ask what you'd actually find useful."
"An elven sword would be nice," Faith said.
"We've got a few of those," Mom said. "I'll put on some enchantments. Emily, dear, what about you?"
"Um... Something comfortable to wear that isn't my Healer's robe?" Emily admitted.
"I'm surprised Catherine hasn't done that for you already, but... yes, we can absolutely do that for you," Mom said, nodding. "Anything else?"
"Um... A bag of holding or two?"
"Catherine," Mom began.
"She never asked," I said defensively. "I promise you, I would have gotten her hooked up before now if she had, but she didn't."
"It's alright," Emily said. "You don't have to beat yourself up for not pre-emptively busting out the sewing machine and tape measure."
"I did it for Silas!" I protested.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Silas demanded.
"You'll see it for yourself soon enough," I said dismissively. "Also, I didn't bust out the sewing machine and tape measure. I'm a Wizard, I use magic to measure, cut, and stitch cloth into clothing. It's not exactly easy to find off-the-rack pants that fit someone who's simultaneously as tall and as wide-hipped as I am, after all."
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
"Did you never learn the enchantment for making clothes change to fit their wearer?" Rebecca asked.
"There's only so much enchantment you can really fit into a piece of cloth, and I prefer to use that capacity for stuff that can't be addressed with scissors and a needle."
"Would you have rather I didn't enchant your duster to grow with its wearer?" Mom asked, smirking as she quirked an eyebrow.
"That's different," I protested. "Silas is a full-grown man, he's not about to have a growth spurt."
"Unless I draw on the power of the dragon's blood in my veins, and become much larger in the process of taking on my half-dragon form," Silas pointed out.
"...Alright, alright, I'll redo the enchantments, fucking hell," I muttered.
"Aren't you glad to be back where I can nitpick you?" Mom asked, sweetly.
"Jokes aside, this is extremely nostalgic for me."
---
"Cousin," Silas said, after dinner. "A moment, if you will?"
"We'll be in the garage," I said, before leading the way. I shut the door behind him with a click, and threw up a quick Occult privacy ward just to be safe; I already had Arcane sound-dampening on the garage, but no reason not to be thorough. "What's on your mind?"
"The future of our people," Silas said. "I am aware that my, ah, previous plan was... not exactly a favorite of yours. But surely you recognize that something must be done about our conquered homeland."
"Taking the Rosewoods back from the Hikaano is a nice fantasy," I said. "The problem is that it's just that- a fantasy. The High Elves casually maintained military dominance for thousands of years, and then the Hikaano finally figured out a way to turn vast hordes of conscripted teenagers with cheaply-made weapons into armies that could actually beat the legendary heroes of the High Elves. And these days, Hikaano industry and weapons technology have only advanced further than they were in the War of the Roses. There's just... That's simply not the sort of thing we can beat as a band of half a dozen conventionally attractive heroes."
"Now where did I ever say that was my plan?" Silas asked, smirking. "A little backstory about myself, which you may not know- I was in the Republican Navy. I got into a military academy, went through officer training, and was commissioned as Ensign Bowser. I gained experience in the modern way of war, practiced by the Grigians with equal facility as the Hikaano. And what I did not experience, I studied relentlessly in my off hours. I spent two years as a Lieutenant Commander serving as a personal assistant to an Admiral, and then... my term was up, and I chose not to renew. I felt I understood naval warfare enough to do it myself."
Ah.
"And that's when the Bowser family branched out into piracy," Silas said. "Father earnestly believes it was his idea, but I assure you, I worked very hard to ensure he had this idea in the first place."
"So that pirate fleet was a practice run for waging a modern, industrialized war against the Hikaano Imperium," I said.
"Very much so," Silas said, nodding. "So... Catherine. I'm aware you have reasons not to trust me. But then, I have reasons not to trust you, myself. After all, you did kill me in the service of the Imperial Government. But... If I told you I had a plan to defeat the Hikaano, and free our people, would you work with me?"
"If I thought it'd work," I said. "I know a thing or two about industrialized warfare myself, Silas."
"I'm aware," Silas said dryly. "Those fireball munitions you were firing were largely non-magical- the only magic was in the trigger mechanism, to make them detonate near their targets."
"Right, and getting the materials for those munitions was... decidedly non-trivial," I said. "And then you need somewhere to process the materials into munitions, and you'll need a hell of a lot of munitions, and at that point, people have noticed the flow of militarily-useful goods into an area, and you get caught before you're ready to throw down with the Imperial Army."
"You're forgetting an important trick, Cat," Silas said. "High Elves are often Druids and Wizards, who can simply conjure the wood and minerals necessary for military hardware. I'm not saying this would be easy, of course- far from it. But! If we could create a hidden enclave where we can work in secret, then we could build up a proper modern army without anyone realizing what's going on."
"That's... potentially workable," I admitted. "If, and only if, we can get enough people for that army. After all, elves are not exactly rapid breeders, and our population still hasn't recovered from the War of the Roses."
"True, but you have, thankfully, provided part of the solution," Silas said. "As someone who has watched your airship tear apart an entire fleet of state-of-the-art military airships all on its own, I do believe that the advanced military technology you bring to the table will tip the balance, allowing a handful of elves to destroy entire companies of Hikaano soldiers. It will be like a return to the old days of legendary heroes, except instead of a gaggle of virgins on talking horses, it will be soldiers wielding advanced weaponry."
"Alright, let's lay off the Mage-Knights," I said, defensively. "They did plenty of damage to the Hikaano during the war. There just... weren't enough of them."
"What, are you aspiring to be one of them?" Silas asked. "Please, Cousin. Save yourself the heartbreak and give up on that foolish dream."
"The unicorns aren't gone," I snapped.
"Perhaps not," Silas said. "But gone or not? They will not save us."
I grit my teeth.
"We have time to make our decisions," Silas said, more quietly. "Despite what I just said about the Mage-Knights, I do think consulting with your father would be a wise decision. This need not be decided today. But... Think about it, Catherine. Think about how we can gather allies and people for a hidden enclave, and build up to an army. Keep it in the back of your mind, in the event opportunity comes calling."
I sighed.
"Sure, Silas," I said, quietly. "I'll think about it."
"That's all I ask for."