It was an uncomfortable visit for Cain. The first day was durable, but by the second day, his bottom had grown sore from sitting on the hard ground. Not to mention how embarrassing it was to need permission to relieve himself in the bushes.
The guards watching over him remained alert and refused to take their eyes off him, unlike his previous experiences. Cain half expected Maddox to pop in any minute to check on him but found himself practically on his own and his hope dwindled as the time passed.
One night he heard arguing outside but couldn't understand what was being said. He could identify Maddox's voice and scooched closer to the wall to try and hear better but was scolded for moving.
His food was stale bread and weak soup, which he barely touched until he heard the camp outside come alive with the sounds of soldiers' feet and clanking armor. Then, Thistle entered the tent and whispered something in the guard's ear before leaving without so much as a glance in Cain's direction.
The ex-Marquess was finally escorted out of the tent, wearing the same clothes he did when he arrived, and he stood in front of the queen who had her arms folded across her chest with a stern look on her face. She seemed troubled.
"The scouts have confirmed that the Emperor's men are in the north, and advancing into the Kingdom. They've also confirmed unusual weapons in their arsenal. Something you also mentioned, but none of our spies have ever gotten information on." She unfolded her arms and eyed him. "I take it that demon of yours is the informant?"
Cain frowned and shot a glance to the side where Maddox was located. Just as displeased as before. He really meant it when he said he'd tell them everything...
"Yes." He lied. "I also know how to defeat them."
"Do you now?" She asked, giving it a moment's thought, then held her arms out. "Very well. Come with me and we'll discuss plans."
Cain blinked and the crowd dispersed obediently. As the Queen walked off towards another tent, Maddox appeared at his side, clenching his arm and guiding him forward.
It didn't take a genius to tell that Maddox was still angry with him, and Cain had to wonder just what trouble the Villain was in for vouching for him.
The war tent had a table with maps and wooden models scattered about it. There were two other burly men, one with a thick beard and another with a messy mustache. They were pouring over the map as the Queen started moving the pawns for the Emperor's army to the northern trail where they'd last heard of their whereabouts.
"So this is where our spies found them. Which means we have less than a week before they make it far enough inland that they'll circle us."
"We need to move the camp." The bearded general suggested. "Pack everything up and backtrack before we're cornered."
"We're already cornered." The mustached one countered. "We need to follow behind them instead. They won't expect that."
"They will once they notice the army is not guarding the border."
"So we catch up to them fast."
"What if we split up? Half stay by the border and the other half sneak up behind?"
"We won't have enough men to endure a battle if one half engages before the other. It's too risky."
"What about the weapons?" Maddox interrupted their discussion. "Didn't the scouts claim they were unusual? How are we to deal with those?"
"That's what he's here for." The Queen eyed Cain and gestured to the map. "You said you wanted to help, right? So...Help."
Cain's mind raced as he tried to think of how to announce his plan. He'd never participated in a strategic meeting like this before and didn't want to come off as immature. Then again, he was pretty green to this sort of thing. Hopefully, they wouldn't be too disappointed.
"Those weapons are explosive cannons." He started, searching for a small rock to serve for his demonstration. He placed it in front of one of the wooden squares in the Empire's forces. "They have a range of 700 yards. At 200 yards they can break through buildings. And worse, the cannon balls don't just bounce when they hit the ground. They explode." He moved the rock forward to show the distance, then used his finger to circle the area of the explosion. "It'll shoot scrap metal in a wide radius, dealing even more damage to any nearby soldiers. In other words, accuracy doesn't matter with these weapons. The point is to get the ball to explode within the enemy rank. From there, the explosion with do the rest."
"The bastards." One of the generals cursed. "How do we fight something like that? We'd never get close enough."
"You can if it was raining," Cain suggested as he eyed the Queen.
"What would the rain do?"
"It'll stop the fuses from going off. Plus, the wind in a storm would make ranged weapons less accurate and prevent as much scrap metal from spreading. If the cannon balls are wet before being launched, then they won't explode at all."
"They could just cover them up."
"Which is why we'll need a lot of wind."
It sounded like a ridiculous request, and would have earned a round of mock laughter had it been anyone else in the tent. But not these men, because they knew exactly what Cain was referring to.
Queen Eleanor of Chalot was not just some noble with a sword. She was much more powerful than that. And while doing such a spell would deplete her magic in under a few minutes, she was more than capable of rendering the kind of storm Cain was suggesting.
In his past life, she would only use such magic as a last resort on the battlefield since it would make her incapacitated afterward. It was less of a useful weapon and more of an ace. If she were knocked unconscious in the beginning or even in the middle of a battle, then there'd be no one to lead their forces, and the war would end immediately.
It was a gamble.
"How do you know about that?" She asked suspiciously.
Maddox had the same curious look on his face and was drilling the back of Cain's head with unspoken questions.
"It's a power that gets handed down in the royal family, right?" Cain ventured. "It's not common knowledge in Sonnet, but I'm not so foolish as to not try to learn of your people's culture. It seems the commoners at least know the rumor that your family has some hold over the weather."
"Those are exaggerated. I'm not capable of doing what you suggest."
"Because it'll use up all your magic, right? But here's the thing. Those are currently the only cannons in the Empire. If you take them out here and now, you'll have a massive advantage over the war. The Emperor would have to scramble to make more weapons, so he'd have fewer resources to support his troops to continue his assault on Chalot. I know I'm an outsider, so I'll acknowledge that it is ultimately your decision on whether or not to take the risk."
She mulled over his words and rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Yes, I'll have to consider it. For now, I'll dismiss you, but you will remain in the camp. Your information has been good so far, but I'm not convinced we can completely trust you just yet. We'll see how this goes."
"I'll escort him." Maddox took Cain's side. "Please consider your discussion."
This time, it was the Queen who waved the villain away dismissively, and the two left the tent.
Maddox didn't say a word until he was completely out of earshot, then he examined Cain's shadow and scowled at him. "You have a lot of explaining to do."
"Once again, the pot calling the kettle black."
"You could have been killed coming here."
"I have plenty of time to do that back in the Empire. I just wanted a change of environment."
"You've made new enemies?"
"Yes and no," Cain replied. "Some things have been put in motion that have forced my hand. I'd have preferred to of been more careful than this, but I had no choice."
"I see." This time Cain noticed Maddox examining his dyed hair and realized he might not have entirely trusted that he was Wolf Brooks in the first place. Between the mask and the change of hair, he could very well have been an imposter. No wonder Maddox seemed hesitant. Though he also liked how flustered the man appeared to be.
"Were you worried about me?" He dared to ask.
"I don't have as much control here as I would back in Sonnet. I'm at the whim of the queen if I'm to remain on good terms with her. I was even forbidden from checking on you until your information was proven true by the scouts."
Well, that explained why he didn't show up for two days. "So what now?"
"Now you wait here," Maddox advised. "The queen will make her battle plan without outsiders like us to oversee. She'll give the instructions, I'll follow, and if she succeeds you'll have proven yourself as an ally.
"I have to wait here?"
"You have to go where she tells you to." Maddox put a hand on his shoulder and grasped it tightly. "Do not try to do anything suspicious. Understand?"
It was odd seeing the usually stoic and confident Maddox on edge. Almost unsettling. Cain nodded just to satisfy his demands and they waited until the rest emerged from the tent.
"Don't suppose we'd have time to continue those training lessons while I wait?" Cain tried to lighten he mood, earning a small smirk from the man.
"Unfortunately not."
That was fine. He'd just wanted to break the tension. In truth, he found a combat trainer not far from his new home and spent a few weeks training there. He still wasn't a master fighter, but it was an improvement.
Maddox was immediately ordered to take his men and head north. Cain was ordered to stay behind, while more men took the road back toward the Empire. They were going to trap the Emperor's forces. Whether or not they'd survive the blasts from their cannons was another story.
Fortunately, Cain was not forced to sit in a tent all day as he waited. Maddox had probably noticed that Catalina wasn't with him, since he had her doing something more important. However he still could summon her if his life ended up in danger, so he was glad it never came to that.
Thistle was put on escort duty. It was almost nostalgic being forced to stick to this man's side again. Cain had done this before while apprenticing in his previous life. Thistle seemed more annoyed than anything with the setup. Probably since their first meeting had been impertinent.
Cain did try to impress him at one point when he read a cipher over his shoulder out loud. The man just snapped the rolled paper closed and shifted so that Cain couldn't see anymore.
Cain meanwhile was starting to feel grimy. He had no change of clothes and had to resort to cleaning off his own things in the nearby creek. All under supervision. It was annoying that he couldn't take his mask off, even for a second.
While none of the Chalot knights would have recognized him, he feared Thistle would. Especially since information was the man's key strength. Thus the mask remained on.
The days dragged on and eventually, some of the troops returned. The Queen remained at the battlefront, but the scouts announced victory over their first encounter. That meant that the Emperor would be returning home to announce the war had officially started.
He wondered if anything happened to the Queen, especially if she had used her powers as he'd suggested. But naturally, none of the knights would tell him anything, and ultimately it was Maddox's return that signaled he could go home.
His dark green cap was tattered and covered in blood, and his leather armor was replaced with black steel, which itself had scrapes and dents in it. It certainly must have been one hell of a battle for him to be so dinged up.
Initially, the man paid no attention to Cain when he arrived as he was checked into the medical tent. His heavy armor was removed for repairs, and his squad was likewise treating each other's wounds.
Cain watched the doctors work on sewing a cut closed along one of Maddox's sides, where he noticed that same scaled pattern along his hips. He once again wondered if Maddox was human when the man shot a look toward him and they locked eyes.
Maddox dismissed the doctor then and gestured for Cain to get closer. He did as he was advised, and eagerly sat beside him to get filled in on what had happened on the front lines.
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