MARIN DRASWIST IS CLOSE. Her goal has never been within her reach. The island is already divided into two warring sides, and Cardovia, the organization she serves, grows more powerful by the second with her help. But when a war against an extinct bu...
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2412, Iclis 12, Briss
The Heiress' tent was close to becoming Marin's dreaded place. Every time she went inside, she'd come out with a brand new job, and there would be a time when the task she's handed would weigh on her shoulders like a cloud of impending doom. What the High Queen said was right. Ilya was right. Cardovia was not an ally. It's a master, and she had no choice but to bend to its will, even if everyone told her not to.
Kymalin was right too. All of them were eager to have something they needed fulfilled, but the path to it was one of blood and deception. Pidmena would have a feast on the judgment day of Marin's soul, and of everyone else's in this space.
Was that really the fate she wanted for herself?
Still, Marin ducked inside the Heiress' tent and approached her desk as per the custom. "You called, Peredeira?" she said, tucking her hands behind her like the obedient cub she was.
"I have thought about it," the Heiress said, turning a quill here and there. Her eyes were glassy to the point of paling in comparison to the amused flickers they contained before. "Your plan of subduing the eastern half of the island. Let's do it."
It was an innocent suggestion—one Marin made a few days ago to boost her approval from the Heiress. She analyzed the efforts the Heiress had exerted so far, the treaties she handed out to various heads of territories, and realized they would have most of the eastern territories under their control should it come to fruition. That left out Dwanzeig, the nature fairy territory.
The Heiress told Marin she'd think about it, so this meeting must have been in response to that. Instead, the Heiress peeled off her desk and walked towards a clutter of objects Marin had never taken the time to peruse before. With a strong swipe, she uncovered the cloth covering a map rack. At least twenty sheets hung on the horizontal pole, showing them images of the other territories as the Heiress flipped through them.
Finally, with the last crinkle of dusty parchment, the Heiress flipped to a depiction of the entire island, complete with labels pointing where the Sea of Umazure and the Sea of Sirens were. The Heiress tapped a finger on the territory Marin knew to be Dwanzeig. "This is the only territory we lack before focusing our efforts in taking over Lanteglos. The Sovereign has taken over Alkara, and with it, Penleth. There's rumors of sieges in Carleon, and from my sources, Synketros is gearing to attack Narfalk."
"And the Sovereign recently destroyed the Peltran fortresses and took over two of its major cities," Marin said. "She's controlling the western part completely."
"If we don't hurry, we could lose our advantage and let Dwanzeig slip," the Heiress circled her finger around the blob of land she decided to turn her attention on. "I need you to go there and subdue them. But...as you can see, I'm at my wits end."
The Heiress, stumped? Well, that's new. "What seems to be the problem?" Marin ventured, stalking towards the spot beside the Heiress while keeping a respectable distance from the head of the organization. "I don't see what issue we can face if we continue the way we do."
