Harmony War

Chapter VI - The Throne of Blood

June 28th, 701

"It... it's here."

There was nobody around Alina who wasn't silent. Their complexions took a paler hue, like a white sheet, as if having difficulty absorbing the information. That is, nobody except a certain man in a kimono sitting cross legged and smirking.

Alina's hand slowly reached out to let the familiar land on the top. "Master Edelfelt has accepted your proposal. He will arrive within fifteen minutes," was all the familiar was ordered to say, in its robotic tone.

"So, that's all the time we have to formulate a back-up plan?" Alexandra clasped her hands together, leaning against a nearby tree.

"It seems so, My Lady. However, under the circumstances you're in, I don't think it will be necessary," said the redhead in the kimono, waving his rapier around. This garnered a visible swallow from Alina. Unlike Valtr, she knew exactly which General that belonged to the vampire, and since Generals sync up with their Rulers, she only had the worst assumptions about the Edelfelt: that he was a deadly, genocidal maniac.

And yet, they had to put trust and faith into the bloodsucker. They needed as much help as they could get. They were simply lucky that they contacted him first.

As far as they knew.

Grant's General stood still as a statue, his hand on his pistol in his holster at all times, ready to summon his army at any moment. As for his Ruler, Grant was inwardly irritated that he had no choice but to join an alliance, even if it was for the greater good. Nero was nowhere to be seen at the base of the mountain, instead casting subtle illusion spells to try and pry open the magical barrier around the mountain without causing alarm. Valtr opted to stay seated, on the lookout for Edelfelt. Alexandra, the Queen of Fairies and Nina were all anxious about having to fight their own Generals; what sheer ineptitude as Queens had led them to this? They were not merely princesses anymore. They were in a full-fledged war.

The next fifteen minutes felt excruciatingly long for all parties; a minute passed by like an hour, and the silence was deafening.

And then, the water started rushing in.

Everybody was caught off-guard, but had no time to react at all, as the base of the mountain was suddenly flooded just below them, the horizon seeming like an endless, foggy lake. Everyone started in confusion, sans Valtr, who seemed amused, simply putting on his Venetian mask.

Not long after, the mist of midnight parted ways, a large ship silently making its way towards the coalition forces.

' Go.'

'Already, My King?'

'Do not question my orders.'

'Ahahaha, very well! As you wish!'

Valtr stood up. "Lady Alina, it would be most wondrous and my utter pleasure if you would join me for this meeting," he offered, with an outstretched hand.

Alina looked to everyone else in the group, nobody else willing to form direct contact with the vampire. She swallowed, took a few steps forward, and did not take the hand of the self-proclaimed gentleman.

"Oh, how admirable your bravery is, My Lady!"

The two walked towards the 'beach', the waves moving further inland, as trumpets blared, the ship docked, and a staircase lowered itself onto the ground. Steps of boots hitting wood were heard, and a man in a white coat and confident stride and smile addressed the two.

"So, we finally meet," the red-eyed, black haired vampire grinned. "I must say, it's incredibly refreshing to actually start getting into business. " With a click of the man's fingers, the water happened to deliver multiple branches of trees below him. He promptly took out a hammer, and he was covered in white smoke, loud banging noises emitting from it, until it finally gave way, a table and three seats quickly built in a few seconds, to the utter bewilderment of his guests. He simply smiled, crossed his legs, and gestured for them to sit down opposite him, as he took off his gloves. "I am Vladimir Khazeron Edelfelt, and you two?"

Valtr, unlike Alina, did not take long to respond, despite indeed noticing how bizarre Vlad's magic (if it even was magic) seemed to be. He lowered his torso in a respectful bow. "I am Valtrlein Farron, Commanding General of King Remi I, at your service," he said before taking a seat.

On the other hand, Alina, being sixteen, was inexperienced in handling eccentric individuals, despite the various narcissistic Magi she encountered at her school. Nonetheless, as a Queen, the Queen of the Skies, she had to keep it together, even in front of literal monsters - in this case, spawn of the Celestial Civil War. As such, she calmly took her seat, and azure eyes gazed straight into red.