AN: Points to whoever finds the Mulan references in this chapter. ;) I couldn't help myself.
-o-o-o-
The forest slowly faded behind them as the trees thinned and gave way to endless glossy, green fields. Numerous white tents occupied a particularly flat, vast plain a short distance away.
The various sounds of the army encamped there grew louder as they approached; a hammer to sword and anvil in last minute tempering, shouts of men in combat training, the snap of flags and their curious symbols whipping in the wind atop every tent pole.
When they were roughly a five minute walk from the camp, Aaron came to a halt and took a deep breath, as if to ready himself for a trial. He turned to the pair of time travelers. "Whatever happens, don't stop. Stay right behind me, understand?"
Steven and Cynthia shared a distressed look. "Should we be worried?"
"Not exactly," Aaron replied as though the topic were a strain on his mental health. "It's just, things are very tense between the Lords right now, which in turn makes the soldiers tense. I can't guarantee what they will or won't do. Hopefully they will just stare in a stupor as we traipse through their camp."
Aaron started forward again only to pause once more a moment later. As if knowing it would cause an argument, he suggested with a hesitant tone,"perhaps if you held hands, this might go more smoothly."
"What exactly are you expecting to happen in there?" Steven pressed, suddenly much more concerned. He held no reservations for holding Cynthia's hand, so long as she didn't mind, but something about Aaron's tone worried him.
"I don't presume to know what things are like where you're from," Aaron said with a sweeping gesture at the camp. "But here, the only women present are either high ranking Lords or those in the ninja division. In other words, very rare."
"Your point?"Steven raised a dubious brow; he did not like where this was going.He also did not like the suggestion that Cynthia was a commodity,though he knew that had not been Aaron's intention. With a glance, he could tell by Cynthia's arms crossed stance, that she was none to pleased by the topic either.
"I simply do not wish for the lady to be needlessly harassed." Aaron turned to Cynthia and offered a polite bow. "Forgive my saying so, Miss Cynthia, but you are quite beautiful, to your detriment in this case."
In response, Cynthia simply sighed dismally. She was all too familiar with unwanted male attention since the start of her teenage years. Thus she was not argumentative when Steven acquiesced. "He is our guide," he pointed out, dipping his head respectfully as he held out an arm to her. "We should do as he says."
Cynthia rolled her eyes but nonetheless graciously curled a hand around his arm and gave Aaron an expectant look.
"That will do." Aaron nodded and finally stepped forth to enter the camp.
Thankfully, it was as they hoped. Not a single soldier so much as took a single step towards them despite the dead silent gawking. Aaron and his Lucario appeared to wield a great deal of authority and respect, among this group at least.
One thing was painfully obvious, however. As Aaron had anticipated, none of the soldiers had expected to see a woman stalk through their camp. Some of the men had even been occupied with their own hygienic practices, some disgusting, others redundant out of boredom.
There were also a handful of Pokémon wandering around throughout the camp that stopped to look. A Tepig here, and Charmander there...
Cynthia and Steven forced themselves not to get distracted by all the activity,but to focus straight ahead, following Aaron's lead as he and Lucario made a bee line for the biggest tent in the camp. There was a collective sigh of relief between them as they reached the threshold of the grand tent. The entrance flaps sported red and gold colors,with the same emblem that donned all the flags on all the other tents.
There were two guards stationed on either side of the entrance, both with perplexed yet respectful expressions as they gave Aaron a nod of approval. "My Lord," one of the guards called into the tent. "You have guests."
A low, booming voice replied seconds later. "Send them in!"
Aaron glanced at his charges and their Pokémon."Your Pokémon will have to wait out here with the guards."
"I'm not so sure that's a good idea..." Steven looked from Aggron to Garchomp dubiously. "These two don't get along."
"They'll have to," Aaron replied sternly, his gaze boring into each of the troublemakers. "Pokémon are not allowed inside the Lord's tent except for his own Rhyperior and of course Lucario because of his peacekeeper status."
"Alright,"Cynthia agreed first and gave Garchomp her own stern look. "You be good! No fighting whatsoever. Is that clear?" When Garchomp lowered her head and replied with a submissive whine, Cynthia added, almost comically, "Kiss is in charge." To that, Togekiss, who had been gazing off into the sky, snapped to attention with a bewildered chirp.
The other three Pokémon gawked at the fairy type avian as though they had all just been demoted.
"Right, let's not keep him waiting," Aaron said as he pushed through the tent flaps.
The inside of the tent was immensely spacious and barely furnished, as if it had been set up fairly recently. There were a handful of square pillows lined up on either side of the warlord's throne, which was basically just a lightweight chair stationed atop a wooden dais. A hulking shape behind the throne moved and the head of a Rhyperior appeared, its keen eyes scanning to inspect the visitors with a mild curiosity.
On the raised platform were two men, one stood beside the throne while the other was seated on it. They both appeared to be concerned over a tactical map on a small table between them before turning to their visitors. The man standing was tall but young, with messy brown hair and wearing a blend of armor and clothing of red and white.
The other, presumably the Lord, was a mountain of a man,with dark eyes as keen as his Rhyperior's. He too wore a kimono over his armor, both of which was also predominantly red. His wild, white hair was practically a Pyroar's mane flaring around his head, while the imposing red mask he wore covered the top half of his face, the gold horns making him look like something other than human.
"Sir Aaron, you've returned!" the Lord boomed with a wide, welcoming gesture. "So soon, and with an entourage this time."
"My Lord Shingen," Aaron greeted in turn as he and Lucario both bowed respectfully at the waist. "I regret to report that my assignment to visit Lord Kenshin has been delayed. Lucario and I ran into some... distractions." He hesitated, his gaze sweeping over to the young man standing beside Shingen. "Forgive me My Lord, but this matter is quite, confidential..."
Shingen merely huffed in response, looking between Aaron and the young man beside him. "Yukimura is my protege and is being groomed as my successor. He will remain, regardless of the circumstances," he told Aaron, but to Yukimura he said, "and he will remain silent."
"Very well." Aaron proceeded to introduce Steven and Cynthia, explaining their situation in detail, including the involvement of a time-traveling mythical Pokémon.
When Aaron was finished with the explanation, Shingen was silent for a long, contemplative moment before he finally nodded and regarded Aaron's charges. "I understand your situation, and although I find it hard to believe, I will agree to help you."
He turned to Aaron. "Sir Aaron, in order to avoid their conscription into any army during their quest, will you agree to take them on as your temporary apprentices? If they claim to be peacekeeping ambassadors then the other kingdoms should leave them alone."
Aaron thought for a moment before nodding his head thoughtfully. "Yes, I agree. That should work out fine."
Shingen regarded the pair once more. "I sympathize with your plight, however, I simply do not yet have the fighting force to topple Nobunaga's army. Although I am in the process of making a treaty with Lord Kenshin and his Kingdom of Illusio, we still require at least two more armies if we are to succeed."
"So, basically, we'll have to be patient and wait around for you to amass more forces before we can go rescue Celebi," Steven surmised with a frown.
"Actually," Aaron said. "You'll both need to come with me, if you're to pose as my apprentices, that is. You see, Shingen has asked me to visit certain Kingdoms in order to establish peaceful dialogue in the hopes of forming alliances."
"Oh good," Cynthia put in and made a bothered gesture with one hand. "I hate sitting in one place for too long."
"Good then, with that settled, there is... one other matter to address," Shingen said, his gaze gravitating towards Cynthia. "For the lady's protection, I would also suggest that the two of you claim to be married while you're here."
"Married?"both Steven and Cynthia chorused in mild disbelief, though they both remained poised despite the suggestion.
"Forgive my bluntness, er, My Lord," Steven replied with a nod of respect. "But I'm not sure we could... emulate that. Before today, Cynthia and I have barely spent five minutes together."
"I'm afraid you have little choice in the matter," Shingen told him, a strictness in his tone. "If you are to travel about the various Kingdoms and their armies, you will encounter countless soldiers along the way. War weary soldiers that would think nothing of harassing a pretty young lady passing by. However, should she appear married then they are going to be much less likely to bother her."
"I agree," Aaron put in. "It's a good idea."
"Yes it's fine," Cynthia finally said with another bothered gesture and met Steven's dubious gaze. "It's just an act right? We're champions, playing the part is practically second nature for us by now."
Steven nodded reluctantly, hanging his head bit. "I guess you have a point."
Shingen nodded with approval. "To go one step further, it may also be beneficial for the young lady to claim to be with child as well."
"Excuse me?" Cynthia scowled, suddenly taking issue with that suggestion, her one visible eye flashing indignation. "Do I look pregnant to you?"
"N-No!" the Lord sputtered in response to her fierce reply. So caught by surprise, he released an amused chuckle whilst waving his hands defensively. "Forgive me, my dear, it was merely a suggestion... In any case, you both should visit the armory for a change of clothes.Your current attire is much too... conspicuous."
Cynthia was still seething when she stepped out of the tent, Steven, Lucario and Aaron trailing behind her. When Lucario paused to look back at the tent, Aaron stopped as well. "What is it Lucario?"
"It is curious," Lucario commented, his mind-voice sounding a little mystified. "Lord Shingen and Miss Cynthia both have a similar Aura.Both of them blaze like a bright, orange flame."
Aaron allowed for a small chuckle as he glanced at a still fuming Cynthia, whilst Steven made attempts to appease her mood. "Curious indeed."
-o-o-o-
Inside the tent, Yukimura was trying and failing to contain his laughter.
"Not a word, Yukimura," Shingen grumbled with a pointed glare.
"But My Lord!" Yukimura nearly exploded with a laugh. "She told you what for!"
"Yes, yes, get it out of your system," Shingen said with a bothered wave of his hand. A moment later he gave his protege a stern look, instantly silencing the younger man into a sober stance. "Mark my words boy, you don't meet a girl like that but once every dynasty."
-o-o-o-
Bonus scene:
Garchomp: "Argh! Kiss is in charge? Seriously Master?"
Skarmory: "Who cares? It's not like it matters as long as we wait patiently."
Aggron: (Grunts.) "Whatever."
Togekiss: "What does one even do with this much power?"
Garchomp: "We could torment the guards."
Skarmory: "That's not waiting patiently."
Garchomp: (Sniffs.) "I think I smell food in their pockets."
Skarmory: (Suddenly interested.) "You take the one on the left."
Togekiss: (Sighs.) "I'm getting blamed for this, aren't I?"