A plan set in motion

Jin

I explained my idea of how to securely manage to escape the enforcers’ grasp.
“Their strategy focuses on circling their target, I plan on using that against them”, I explained, “they will all come from the land of warlocks, and will basically be all but in range of their city, so they won’t have a trap set up for us. Which means they will surround us while in combat. If we willingly let them limit our movement, we will be forced to get closer together, allowing Erinara to teleport us into the kingdom itself. That will give us at least two hours’ worth of a head start. We will be in the most amount of danger in that brief period as well, of course.”
“You don’t have to risk yourself like this”, Fyor argued.
“I’m not. I know what Erinara and I are capable off. And I would never take any unnecessary risks regarding our lives, I have gained something much too precious to lose.”
Erinara reached an arm around me and pulled me closer to her.
“So have I. We won’t endanger ourselves. Besides, from what I know, the weapon type they use relies on poisoning their enemy from a distance. They are running into a really bad matchup with Jin and I.”
Erinara used her other hand to draw a defensive rune into the air, followed by a display of shadowy tendrils quickly covering the space in front of her.
Leptarus gaped at us in shock while Fyor raised an eyebrow in surprise. It appears he didn’t expect this turn of events, though he quickly seemed to dismiss any doubts he had.
Sera simply burst into laughter.
“Oh yeah, they don’t stand a chance”, she said with her head thrown back, “that is a determination even I would hesitate to face. I haven’t ever been this interested in fresh blood.”
Unbeknownst to us, Sera Bisoncrest praising anyone was a monumentally rare occasion.
Vorial musingly nodded his head, saying:
“Incredible.”

A few days later, Erinara and I were talking in her room at night.
“I can’t wait for this battle to be over and done with”, she said, lying beside me in a night gown, “I want to be able to spend more time with you. Time without a mission of the magnitude of overthrowing corrupt leaders looming over the horizon.”
“I understand what you mean”, I replied, moving closer to embrace her in a hug, “We have found ourselves in a situation that is really far removed from anything one could call remotely normal.”
“Yeah”, she said, rolling to lie on top of me and nuzzling against me, “but we’ll get through it. It’s a good thing we’ve been trying so hard to improve ourselves, my love.”
A soft, golden light radiated from Erinara, encasing both of us.
“I agree, we’ve managed to find a modicum of safety for ourselves because of it”, I said.
We let a comfortable silence fall over us.
With her head directly above mine and her hand on my chest, she softly voiced the words running through my mind:
“I’ll have you all to myself soon.”
I placed a hand behind her head, gently pushing her down to me. She closed her eyes as a pink blush found itself on her face.
We drew each other into a long kiss.

Erinara

Only three days before the mission was set into motion did I finally grasp how to utilize the glyph Lazzal had decided to impart on me.
“You learn quickly! I’m impressed! I expected to barely teach you by the last day! This will keep you safe if you need it”, Lazzal said.
The glyph she taught me used an incredibly complicated ruleset. It would activate only if a fatal attack would reach me, and counteract it fully. The rune took hours to set up every time, so it truly functioned as a last defensive resort.
“Is this why they call you the unkillable executive?”, I asked.
“Among other things”, she winked.

Before long, the day to put Jin’s plan into motion arrived.
In our time preparing for this day, us warlocks have readied a small-scale glyph to allow both Ebiron and me one free use of shadow teleportation. The three heroes had set out days prior. Lioncrest and Bisoncrest did so in order to lay low in the kingdom and stand ready, while Fyor Eaglecrest waited at the site of battle in case he misjudged the timing. Ebiron was monitoring his position using shadow’s eye in constant intervals.
The executives, Jin and I were currently huddled in the war room, waiting.

“Erinara, Jin, it is time”, Ebiron announced suddenly.
“Right. We’ll see you all when this is over and done”, I said, moving to the smaller of two glyphs on the floor.
“Thank you for your assistance once more”, Jin followed me.
I charged the glyph below me with shadow magic. In the next moment, we appeared beside Fyor.

“Remember the plan”, Jin said, “we escape if it gets too dangerous.”

Within a few minutes, we found ourselves face to face with the enforcers.
I felt a subtle change in the mana around me.
Ebiron had started broadcasting using shadow’s eye.

“Hey! That’s the little hero!”, a particularly gruff looking individual shouted, “Finally. I’ve been waiting to tear you apart limb from limb. And the legendary hero too!”
‘Huh. This might be easier than I anticipated’, I thought.
“We would prefer to talk”, Jin said, “Like I had already said the first time we met, I do not want to be your enemy.”
“What reason do I have to talk with an incompetent failure of a lapdog”, he snarled.
Jin remained unfazed.
Not getting a response, the enforcer yelled:
“I will let your screams speak to me instead!”
Instantly, an arrow shot towards Jin’s face. He calmly swiped it to the side with one of his swords. Five more whistled through the air from behind the gruff looking man. Jin avoided all of them.
“Well that’s rude”, I muttered.
“What’s that? I don’t know who you are, demon, but if you’re with them that means you’re someone I’m authorized to butcher as well!”, the enforcer laughed maniacally. Jin’s grip on his swords tightened upon hearing the word ‘demon’, turning his knuckles white.
A second arrow from the trigger-happy enforcer shot at me. Jin sliced it apart before I had to block it myself.
I was not going to use my magic outside of emergency defenses, such as to not scare the citizens watching via shadow’s eye any further.
“Stick to the plan”, I whispered.
“I know”, Jin nodded.
Fyor spoke up:
“What crimes have we supposedly committed to warrant such a reaction?”
Three men, dressed in robes of grey, green and brown respectively, stepped forth. Their clothes bore the crests of the royal lineages Wolfcrest, Hawkcrest and Elkcrest.
“You want to talk? Fine. You have betrayed the kingdom”, one of them said monotonously.
“How did we do that?”, Fyor asked.
“You have failed to fulfill the council’s wishes”, he answered.
I noticed very subtle movements around us in the darkness of the forest, just out of the grove’s reach.
“You mean the wish that demanded I fought someone even though our nations should be at peace? Which I even fulfilled, misguided as I was, might I add”, Jin said, spotting an opportunity.
“The land of warlocks? Peace? You are misguided now, little hero. If you had just done your duty, killed that target and returned to the kingdom without another thought, you’d live a lavish life. The council would have taken care of you. But no, instead you are trying to disrupt our precarious balance.”
“Even though the war has ended years ago already?”, Jin pressed.
“Who cares.”
“What if we stop you?”, Jin asked.
“The majority of the so-called heroes are on our side, and the residuals are branded traitors who ran away with their tails between their legs. Their reputation will be sufficiently shattered in due time. The royal lineages will remain in power, and everyone will continue to happily play their little role in our service”, the man continued, constantly talking in the same monotonous tone.
“You’re vile”, Jin stated grimly.
“So? The victors write history. You are but a somewhat larger spec of dirt under our boots than usual. I tire of this conversation. By the verdict of the council, we declare the death of Eaglecrest, his squire, and the demon with them. Halt at nothing to kill them, enforcers”, it wasn’t until the final sentences that the monotony of his voice changed to that of sadistic anticipation. He was hoping to see us suffer in front of his eyes for his own amusement. The other royals remained silent, before exploding into a myriad of commands and requests of how to wound us, so that we would live the longest.
The royally adorned men slowly walked back behind the enforcers.
“Oh, and Eaglecrest, you hardly are a tactical mastermind anymore. So easily led into a trap.”

As soon as he finished his sentence, a hail of arrows started raining down from all around us.
“I assume that’s good enough, right?”, I asked, already beginning to concentrate on my spell.
“Definitely”, Fyor said.
The shadows around us slowly deepened and bent.
Jin was a whirl of steel all around me, his blades cleanly keeping any attacks from hitting me. If an arrow wasn’t on a direct collision course with me, Jin simply let it fly by, masterfully focusing on only the shots that posed a threat.
Fyor circled me in accordance, doing the same.
I was defended so well that none of the defensive runes placed under my clothes had to protect me even once.
Shadows sprung up around us before the enforcers even had a chance to fire their fourth volley.
“You’re fleeing again? No matter. We will stop at nothing until we have your head. Nowhere will be safe. We will find those close to you and hunt them too!”, the councilman said, getting louder and more manic with each sentence.
The sphere of darkness collapsed in on itself.