Empires of Ashes

"I still have 3200 immortals, 100 archers and 100 light cavalry, a force to be reckoned with"

"It might be an idea if I took the remnants of men back to Cymria to help my father"

"Why does your father need help? Civil
War?"

"Something like that, lots of unrest with some of the less open minded lords. A show of power tends to shut them up. Plus I now have very few men here relative to numbers I had about a day ago. I would be of very little use considering that you alone have well over 9 times the number of men I do"

/Elsewhere\

*After having called out the rebels the Cymraic king and his host march to war, intent on crushing the rebellion before it can spread*

*looks to trajan* "We could send a force to cymrai, solidify our position here, and gain the full support of cymrai, that would be an alliance of three major nations."

"Cymrai and Dracia are cultural enemies. The only reason in here is because my mother is Dracian and it allows me to gain combat experience without putting myself at too much risk"

"I have already sent word to my brother-in-law. Should he allow it I will lend assistance"

"I cannot see many nations accepting my help, it will take some time to change kelthro's image."

"Just a tad"

"the true question is, do you intend to allow me to do this myself, or impose your own rule upon me"

"Well that depends"

"I would strongly suggest against, and i will leave it at that"

"Well for one thing, conquest of Kelthro is not our objective"

"You simply want one city when you could have an empire, sometimes i do wonder as to your sanity"

"Rapid expansion of your borders will lead to a political hellhole and constant rebellion. It is easier to slowly expand your borders and pacify each city before moving on."

"We already have an empire, Ket."

"hm, i only hope you realize, that this city will come under siege soon."

"Of course"

"Time under siege is not the best way to earn the peoples love"

he chuckles
"Very true"

"Well, we can at least prepare a surprise for my uncle, as for me... i need a large amount of paint"

"I beg your pardon?"

"To remove the lords heraldry"

"Ah"

"and to paint Fuck you Uncle on the walls... what? its the simple things"

"Alright then"

"If the heraldry can be removed it's likely fallen prey to my men. If it's worth something it is most definitely gone"

"Quite frankly if it's shiny and not nailed down it's probably already gone, if it is nailed down then the nails are gone aswell"

"The palace is being defended by my men, it's not being looted. And I was referring to the heraldry painted on the walls"

"Why is it being protected?"

"I need to properly sweep the area, there's no telling what could be in there, and I would rather not have cymeri soldiers stealing all of it, up to date maps of the dune-sea, caravan reports, family heirlooms. That kind of thing"

"They won't touch the maps, but anything that looks valuable is pretty much doomed. Especially if it's a weapon. Ancient super rare ancestral sword dating back to Stracia...spoils of war to us. Of purse if it's a weapon it'll be polished and bragged about"

"Reasons why they're not going into that palace include." *he gives a sarcastic look*

"I was just saying"

/At the palace\
*The guards hear glass shattering*

*they go to investigate the noises*

"Spoils of war, and you get so angry when we say that about your people" *he winks, and walks off towards the palace*

*The guards see a rather large amount of smash glass and then hear another window being smashed on the opposite side of the building*

*immortals are running through the palace looking for intruders*

*They catch several of the less experienced Cymriacs hiding, but it's obvious that quite a lot has already been stolen. Including but not limited to: Armour, Weapons, money, things that look valuable ect. Though they haven't looted the dead guards and prince yet*

*the caught men are dragged into the street, just as ket arrives, and the immortals quickly relay the situation* "hm, this is a diplomatic disaster waiting to happen. But how else can a man deal with men who steal from him?"

*A pair of Mordred's bodyguards leave a nobles house behind Ket. Seeing that he's captured several of their kin they wander over to investigate*

*ket strokes his chin for a moment.* "Find the post in the palace yard, and use some of the spare leather for a lash. A hundred strokes will suffice, for a crime usually punishable with death"

*he kneels in front of the cymeri men, who have been pushed to their knees and are being held down by immortals, still in full battle gear, bringing ket to their eyelevel* "do you understand me?"

???:*behind him* Ahem

*he straightens, and turns* "ah, surely you can tell me what the usual cymeri punishment for thievery in the military is? Since these men were found breaking into an obviously guarded palace"

he sees it is infact a Draciann
specifically an Invicti centurion

"Ah, greetings centurion, I apologise, I assumed you were these men's officer. Found looting the palace, I was considering punishments that wouldn't set off a diplomatic firestorm"

"And you thought a hundred lashes wouldn't do that? You didnt consider asking the prince first?"

"I considered hauling them in front of their comrades and threatening to start beheading them until all items had been returned"

"......That's rather.....idiotic"