The Time to Strike

Eleanor's arms and legs were still stained with an inky shade of black. It was hard to tell in her frock if she had any more abnormalities on her body. Eudora didn't exactly give us the full rundown or diagnosis of what happened to her.

"Here's something to drink." I sat a cup of tea in front of her, but she stared at it with indifference and suspicion. "It's really just tea, I swear!"

"Forgive me for being cautious. I have little memory of what happened, so to awaken in the company of witches after years of training to fight them…" Eleanor's eyes screwed shut, clutching her head as she tied to recall her last memory.

Belle put a hand over Eleanor's shoulder and squeezed. Both of them looked each other in the eyes, then cast their glances away as though embarrassed.

"At the very least, you can trust me," Belle said.

Our new guest left little opening. Even in her sitting posture, Eleanor appeared poised to fight even if the odds were stacked against her. I recognized her kind. Her small eyes were sharp like a blade, hair as black as night, and an ever-present frown adorned her otherwise attractive features. She was from the far eastern, of a people with no kingdom nor lands, but were nomads who were both reserved and mostly kept to themselves.

"Regardless of our past circumstances, I thank you for saving me. When I was trapped in that state of unconsciousness, my only comfort was someone who whispered my name. It sounded very much like you," Eleanor said to Belle, who blushed and turned the other cheek.

I gave the two of them some time to catch up. They needed it, that's for sure, and it would do Eleanor good to loosen up around so as to feel more inclined to speak her mind later. We reconvened after an hour. While I was gone, Belle had taken the liberty of giving a short explanation of what happened during Eleanor's absence. I filled in the blanks.

The knightess was not amused. Occasionally, she left her seat and paced back and forth. At one point, in revealing Councillor Anora's treachery as the crimson witch of old, Eleanor nearly punched a hole in the wall.

"How could we be so stupid?" Eleanor muttered to herself, clearly referring to her own order. "Discipline was supposed to represent the best of us. She has proven herself a traitor."

"We need to know how to fight her. With demons appearing all over the continent, Edith's army grows even larger." The sliver of hope in me wanted so much for Eleanor to have the key to our victory, but she was as much a victim as any of us.

Eleanor returned to her seat and drank the now cold tea in one gulp. "I'm afraid I don't know. If there is one silver lining to this, Edith has made an enemy of the world. No self-respecting knight of the order or kingdom will side with her."

The door swung open and in came Noelle, carrying a tray of tarts. He froze up seeing Eleanor, who had yet to recognize him at all.

"I-I've baked some food. You must all be famished," Noelle said, laying it on the table.

"What a sweet, young girl. You remind me of a fellow knight, but I cannot quite place my finger." Eleanor stared hard at Noelle until he fessed up.

"Actually… Milady Eleanor, I'm Noel Theodin…" He clutched the hems of his dress embarrassed.

Eleanor choked and spat out the partially chewed tart onto poor Noelle.

We left Eleanor in Noelle's care since she still needed more rest and time to process what had happened. She awoke to a world on fire, an order gone mad, and a colleague who had been feminized. That was sure to have given her quite the whiplash. I just hoped she wouldn't accidentally discover the cellar.

The situation was certainly dire, but Eleanor was right about one thing. Edith ushered demons into this world. She gave her former allies cause to betray her, and an enemy for us to rally against.

"What should we do now?" Belle asked as we exited the tower.

"It might sound pointless, but I think returning to Ferellis and Semiramis to survey the damage done is our next best move. If there is even a glimmer of hope of finding Princess Lisette and her sister Quinny, their armies could add to our numbers," I explained.

Right now, the bulk of Ors' forces were in Juna. The princess situated them there waiting for the right moment to overthrow King Uldrin. They must have been thrown into disarray with the sudden appearance of demons. It would be wise to check on and make contact with Quinny.

Sheila was beaming when she found us walking back to Ellowyn from the tower. Her ears perked right up. It looked like she was holding back her lust, because her body language indicated she would push me down right here if she didn't risk another scolding from Ceris.

"Ellori, Belle! I have good news. Sheila has at last gathered our armies. They are a thousand strong, but I assure you each warrior carries the strength of five of your best knights," she said.

"Maybe we can finally take the fight to Edith," Belle remarked in jest, but I took her words more seriously than she liked. "Wait… You're not thinking—"

"I am. Possibly as soon as one month's time," I said.

Mira was smoking her pipe when I returned to the great hollow. I put my hands on my waist and glared. It dropped out of her mouth when she saw me, the contents of dried herbs spilled to the ground.

"I can explain," she said, scrambling to come up with an excuse.

"Rio." I called for my familiar, who swooped in to pick up the pipe and put it in my hand.

"Oh, someone's in trouble." Belle snickered.

"You're halfway there, Mira. If I see you smoking again this again, I will break it in half," I threatened.

She went pale as a ghost. "That pipe is made of enchanted carafell wood and fairy dust! I won't smoke anymore, so please, don't break it."

Sighing, I placed it back into the box in which the seal had been broken by Mira's tampering. She watched with great sadness her beloved smoking instrument thrown back into the lockbox.

"By the look of Belle's goofy smile, that lady knight has been successfully awakened? What are our next moves?" Mira asked, searching for a distraction to losing her addiction.

I took a deep breath. Eudora had been working on amassing a large enough army to face Edith's own. Everything was slowly coming together, and we needed to act soon.

"The longer we delay fighting Edith, the more disadvantaged we become," I began. The other two nodded at my assessment. "Two things must be done first— find Princess Lisette and secure her army and any allies in Juna. Then we strike at the heart of Thanreas, the Eternal City."

"You're sure about going alone?" Mira asked as she and Belle climbed atop Zeke in preparations to return to Ferellis.

"The sooner we can gather our numbers, the better. I'll be fine with Rio and Thelia. You two, on the other hand, might be walking right back into the hornet's nest in Ferellis," I countered.

Since Edith was there last, no one could know what was still there. But putting two powerful witches side by side should give them an edge in case something were to go wrong. With the help of the erinyes and Rio's demonic strength, I should be a force to reckon with unless they had any more surprises in Semiramis.

"I'll try to keep an eye on Mira as much as I can, but you know her." Belle rolled her eyes.

"Count your lucky stars I'm coming with to keep you safe. Maybe I should have a little fun with you, hm?" Mira fired back, gripping the leash threateningly.

"Oh, I'm trembling. You'll be sorry when the collar finally runs its course!" The two of them bickered like an old couple more than anyone else I knew. But I loved them both like sisters. Well… one of them, more so.

Zeke took flight with Mira and Belle at each other's throats. I could only pray for their success while I focused on my own mission.

"Are you absolutely sure bringing me along is a great idea?" Thelia asked.

"There are demons all over the place. We need to show people that witches are not to be messed with. What better way to demonstrate that than to show off my slave?" I grinned.

"Ah… So it is like that then… ahem… Somehow that excites me," she mumbled to herself.