Wars Never Bring Peace

Maria lay on the ground catching her breath. A deep ache filled her chest, but she couldn’t help but smile as the warm, golden light over the battlefield faded. The sounds of clashing steel and roars of raging men faded along with it.

Her companions stood to a side, watching with wide eyes as soldiers hesitantly dropped their weapons. Some stared at their own bloody hands, others still quarreled, but their gazes no longer held the blinding rage from before.

“After something like this…” Thomas let out a low chuckle. “Word of a Mythic-Level Saint will become widespread throughout the kingdom.”

Shocked expressions inspected wounds that should've been deadly but now were gone, at least among those that still held breath. Whispers spread through the valley among the soldiers, their eyes lingering on Maria.

She wondered why. All her spell did was help calm them down a bit and mend anyone in need.

From both sides, where seas of confused men stood, two large horses trotted forward. Each was ridden by imposing figures; they wore silver-plated armor, and grand capes adorned with emblems of their respective houses.

The men around them tensed.

“G-General Valen?” a young soldier called out as the large man stopped in front of his troops.

He raised a hand. “Stand down, men.”

Across the muddy divide, the general from House Ardent signalled the same to his troops. Though a heavy tension hung in the damp air, it was bearable now.

The two generals paused in front of one another. How long had it been since they had looked each other in the eye without a blade between them? Maria could only imagine.

After a brief silence, General Valen spoke with a deep voice that carried an exhausted rasp.

“General Ardent… Your son died at Red Vale.”

The other general settled his neighing horse with a steady hand on the reins. “And your brother… fell due to my order.”

The two men glanced at the quiet remnants of the battlefield. Bloodshed had ceased, and gaping wounds were healed, but their men still stood with sunken eyes and heavy feet. Not to mention the lifeless bodies of those who had fallen before the light arrived, laying silently in the cold mud.

“Maybe it’s time… to hold talks again,” General Valen said. “Hopefully, for the last time.”

General Ardent offered a single, solemn nod.

Maria’s companions came into view as she lay gazing at a drifting cloud.

“You okay?” Kaelan asked. Maria simply nodded.

“Maria, you realize you just stopped a war,” Thomas said.

She tilted her head. “Did I?”

He sighed. Her companions had a habit of doing so, Maria could never understand why.

“So,” Celeste glanced around as troops from both houses dispersed. “Who won?”

Maria smiled. “Their families.”

The young knight exhaled softly before grinning. But as two towering figures trotted in from behind, she became rigid. The generals leapt off their horses with a heavy thud and looked upon Maria, still sprawled on the ground.

A double solar eclipse?

“Word of a great traveling Saint had crossed our ears,” General Ardent said. “Never would have I imagined it’d cross our paths.”

They spoke to her with quiet reverence, thanking her for clearing a vision that had long since been fogged by decades of hatred. Thomas rubbed his eyes as the two high ranked men knelt and bowed to her.

Maria just politely insisted it was all thanks to the gods.

Before the conversation could continue, the wet thud of hooves echoed from the edge of the valley. A dozen riders in royal-blue surcoats approached. At their head was a slender man wearing a fine velvet traveling cloak and the silver crest of the royal house.

“Ah, the Crown’s Envoy,” General Valen muttered.

General Ardent let out a chuckle. “For once, we might bear him good news.”

Maria’s eyes widened. The Crown? …From the Holy Capital?

Kaelan’s hands hovered over his daggers as the slim figure approached.

The Envoy dismounted. His jaw slightly slacked as he took in the scene. He marched past the silent soldiers whose commanders led back toward their territories. His eyes locked onto the two generals standing together beside a very muddy, very flat young nun.

“Generals,” the Envoy adjusted his damp cloak. “What... what is the meaning of this? We saw a light that parted the gray skies.”

“The battle is over, Envoy,” General Valen said. “We have agreed to a ceasefire.”

The Envoy stared at Maria, then back to the generals. “A ceasefire? Just like that? But who... how?”

“The Sister performed a miracle,” General Ardent said quietly. “She showed us what we were actually doing to ourselves.”

“Sister…?” His eyes lingered on Maria. “The S-Saint…” His voice quivered.

Maria blinked. “So you are from the Holy Capital?”

The Envoy nodded. “We serve His Majesty the King, Sister.”

“Does that mean you know High Inquisitor Vane?” Maria asked. “I wish to meet with him.”

“I’m aware of who he is… especially nowadays." He cleared his throat. “Though I wouldn’t be much help in offering an audience. The Crown and the Orthodoxy operate under entirely separate authorities. We do not answer to the Inquisition, nor does High Inquisitor Vane report to the King’s diplomats.”

Kaelan rested his hands that hovered over his blades, but his eyes remained narrowed at the slim man.

“So word of her has reached the Holy Capital?”

“All throughout.” The Envoy glanced at Maria. “But you’re not quite how I imagined…”

Maria tilted her head. “How so?”

“High Inquisitor Vane doesn’t paint such a pleasant picture…” He glanced at the two generals before returning his gaze to Maria. “And yet it is evident that you've performed a miracle beyond comprehension. The Crown owes you a debt that cannot be measured.”

Celeste and Thomas turned to each other with unsure expressions.

“There must be a misunderstanding," Maria said. “I only wish to clear it.”

The Envoy shifted his gaze in thought. “If you intend to seek an audience with him, I must advise caution.” His voice came low. “The High Inquisitor’s power in the Capital has grown alarming of late. Even the royal court speaks of his rising influence in hushed tones.”

“I see… I only pray that he's willing to listen once I arrive.”

The two generals glanced at each other before turning to Maria.

“Politics can be a fickle beast… we know that first hand,” General Valen said.

“Sister, any support our houses can provide are yours,” General Ardent said as the two clenched a fist across their chest.

Maria waved her hands from below. “N-No, please. I don’t need anything, really.”

“If you can find it upon yourself, we ask that you serve a mediator during our talks.”

“Me?” Maria pointed a finger to herself.

“With you at the helm,” General Valen said. “I feel the gods' graces will shine upon us so that we may draft a treaty that will last.”

The further the conversation continued, the more pale Thomas’ face became. “This is actually happening…” he muttered.

Celeste stood stiff as a spear, trying to remain composed within the presence of the two generals.

“I’m not sure how much I can help,” Maria said, “but if you insist, I’ll try my best…”

The two generals thanked her with a rowdy cheer. Maria remained laying flat with a smile as The Envoy readied his riders back to the keep. He was just as thankful as the two generals, explaining how he was stationed at the nearby neutral border, attempting to negotiate a peace that both houses had spent weeks ignoring.

“You and your companions may wash and rest at the keep, while I prepare the negotiations,” he said.

Maria happily nodded. Still on the ground.

Kaelan stared at her from above with a blank face. “You can’t stand, can you?”

“Ah… I’m fine.” Maria averted her gaze. “It’s just… my toes are a bit prickly. And my body feels like lead.”

Kaelan sighed. “You never learn, do you?”

Before her companions even had a chance to help her up, General Valen swept in.

“I shall carry our savior myself. It is the least honor I can provide.”

He scooped up Maria's limp body and tossed her right over his armored shoulder like a sack of potatoes before jumping back on his stead.

The group followed the Envoy’s lead toward the keep. Thomas kept the man company out front, inquiring if he had any need for dragonscale.

Maria chuckled while she watched Kaelan as she dangled from General Valen’s back.

“Kaelan, your hair somehow looks neat from up here!”

He remained unamused. His narrowed eyes were locked on the general, who rode obliviously, looking at the rode ahead with a wide grin.

Celeste walked awkwardly next to General Ardent. “I-It’s an honor to march beside you, Sir!”

He looked down from his stead, inspecting the crest at the hilt of her sword.

“You’re of House Aurelian… I recognize a great knight when I see one.”

“G-Great knight!?”

“You will make your house proud, I’m sure.”

“T-Thank you sir! My hope is to also one day become worthy of the title of ‘Hero’!”

He gave a hearty laugh. “Then, I shall look forward to when that day arrives.”

Celeste nearly tripped onto the dirt road upon hearing those words.

The group continued their march out of the valley, and the battlefield soon disappeared past a final hill. Maria’s chuckling almost made her forget how heavy her body felt, but behind it, she could never forget the lifeless bodies that wouldn’t see peace finally arrive.