Empires of Ashes Reboot

"I've seen it with my own eyes."

"When?"

"...Diana why are we arguing this exactly?"

"Because..." she pauses "Because I'm proud."

"Proud?"

"Yes. I'm proud of us." She lifts her breastplate, and begins to strap it on

Justin looks at her for a moment. It's hard to tell what's going on behind those tired, sad eyes. But after a few moments he finally speaks. "Alright"

She turns away and retrieves her veil, hooking it over her ears.

he smiles
"I wish you didn't have to cover yourself like that."

She looks over, eyes hard for a moment, then softening to his smile. "It's just tradition."

"I know"

She picks up her helmet "Thankyou, Justin."

"For what?"

"This... it was nice."

"It's alright. You know I'd do anything for you."

"So you say..." she turns the helmet around, and puts it on

he pauses at that again, before donning his own helm.

"Back to the war, huh?"

"Guess so"

She slaps him on the shoulder, and heads for the stairs

he pauses to strap on his gladius, before following

As she opens the hatch, the morning light that streams in hurts their eyes

heedless of this, Justin walks into the light, glancing around at the city around them.

Corpses still litter the streets, blood congealing in the cracks between the stones. Flies have started to decend

Before long, Trajan calls for a meeting of the army commanders at the Satrap's home

The young prince attends shortly, disdaining even a single guard now the town has been won, and so many walk the streets in any case. With his helmet under his arm, he wanders into the satrap's well appointed courtyard.

Akari is already there, in full battle dress, kanabo resting her kanabo on her right shoulder as she holds it one handed, her lone eye watching the prince as he approaches

Mordred had quickly slinked into the Satrap’s palace with little fanfare and was clad in his usual battle attire. He’d clearly been working in one of the ‘liberated’ smithies as fresh plates of steel now adorned his chest, having been woven into the chain to protect more than just his heart.

Ket: “I trust I am not late?” He crosses the grand mosaic. His soft soled boots whispering across the polished stones.

Akari: Depends on what you consider late. Suppose it is somewhat relative.

Ket: “I do not suppose Trajan has called us together for philosophy.”

"Who knows, he is a strange one."

“That is true. But I’ve not heard much of the arts from him. I do not suppose he is one for the thoughts of the world.”

she shrugs and gestures for him to go first

He places his hand upon one half of the great door, and slowly applies his weight. It swings inwards on well oiled hinges, with nary a sound. “Trajan.” He announces, before he has even seen the man, with no hint of a question mark in his tone.

Trajan and Justinian are stood beside a table, LI at their back, looming over them ominously. they look up as the door opens.

Ket strides up towards the table, his helm held at his hip, and a hand on the pommel of his sword. "A pleasant night, i trust?"

Trajan chuckles
"I've had worse"

"I am sure. Revelry well earned... But." he raps his knuckle against the table, lifting his hand from his sword to do so. "Now, back to war."

trajan nods and gestures to one of the dracian soldiers by the wall. he throws down a map on the table, as Trajan leans over it.

"Advancing along the banks of the vein towards Stracia would be inadvisable. We would be trapped should the grand army come from behind us." he demonstrates this with a few gestures along the two rivers, which form an enclosure if the south is blocked.

Trajan: where is the army now?

Ket shrugs impassively, and gestures to somewhere vaguely south east of where they are now. "My reports are a few days old"

"Heading which way?"

"Toward Stracia. They may be second guessing you."

Trajan: estimates of numbers?

"I couldn't say. Too many for comfort, certainly."

Akari's brow lowers at ket
"What makes you comfortable is useless here prince. You know this king, these commanders personally. How many would you expect them to send?"

"There are two possibilities, that i can imagine. Either every fighting man in the kingdom has been drawn into the grand army, to draw us to a single conclusive battle, or, the army was simply sent at standing force, so as to not leave anywhere vulnerable, should our bid for stracia be a ploy..." Ket drums his fingers on the table. "Perhaps as few as three hundred thousand... if the kingdom was truly stripped clean... more than a million, is possible."

Trajan: *pauses for a moment, studying the map* Do you think any of the commanders could be...goaded into splitting from the main force?