Uther's Legacy (1)

The journey to get back to Londinium was mostly over and… we could already see the city in the distance.

Differently from the previous trek, things had been particularly 'calmer' due to two particular reasons all tied to the little redhead I was currently carrying: Starting with both Morgan and Scathach holding back from being too explicit about their odd behaviors around me due to the child I kept around all the time, the former was also fascinated by the girl herself. After all, how common was it for anyone to have a young Fae within reach? Of course, I didn't allow the blonde's curiosity to go too far, limiting it to simple questions that Lyanna sometimes answered and sometimes just ignored because it was too 'difficult' in her opinion.

I didn't coax her into providing any forced answer if she felt that she didn't want to, preferring to let her rest as I could tell she was still recovering from her recent… well, 'Pseudo-death'. It was unusual that something like this happened, a phenomenon where the representation of an entity's decadence was reverted back to said entity's form prior to her demise. But right now, as much as baffling it was, I could tell that it was a matter that could easily wait as I had other matters to address. Little Lyanna had trust issues that reached onto Scathach and Morgan, to the point where she would ask for me to keep around when she needed to take a bathroom break.

It was a bit awkward, but I managed to ignore the unusual circumstance for the kid's sake. She was putting out her trust with this move, and I didn't want her to be rebuked now that she needed someone to rely on the most. The girl kept around me all the time, even sleeping by my chest when it was time to rest and clinging on to my embraces so I could tightly protect her from any trouble around us. And now we were home and things took a curious change as I heard Lyanna asking me about the settlement in the distance.

"Is that home?"

She had been quite insistent about where home was, and I was to blame for mentioning I was a king that lived in a big castle. I could tell she expected me to have lied about it, or exaggerated on the dimensions of the fortress, but she slowly came to realize that this was it as I smiled and nodded.

"That's home," I confirmed with a kind voice, her eyes widening as she gazed over the approaching city.

There was a brief pause, with the girl gauging and pondering the overall dimensions of not only Londinium, but also the castle within it. Her interest soon poked her into speaking up once more, this time with the intention of drawing a clearer situation of her new life.

"And that big castle-"

"Is your new home," I interrupted mirthfully, a brief pout setting on her face at the interjection, but easily beaten back by her sense of delight.

Considering her previous life, I couldn't exactly fault her overjoyed reaction, something that Morgan didn't seem to share from her annoyed frown. Scathach was neutral about most of it, but a pity look would appear from time to time when Lyanna would unconsciously display behaviors tied to her orphaned situation. Orphans managed to get many women's attention and dismay, with a few exceptions such as Morgan. But, then again, Morgan wasn't exactly moved by children if those weren't hers to begin with.

Soon we were walking through the gates, the guards assigned to the duty stood around us and allowed passage into the city. Lyanna studied the situation quietly, hiding herself in the little sheet that she had turned into her ultimate layer of protection. Only her gray eyes were visible in that instance, with people around facing their returning king… and wondering what he brought back with him. I didn't stop to announce anything, that would have to wait until I was back to the castle to organize a proper speech. For now the focus was getting back to the castle as I had to introduce the newest member of the family to the rest of the people there.

Scathach left momentarily to see if things were fine back in her domain, while a pouting Morgan was escorted back to her cell. I could say that she now had a reason to expect a degree of leniency now that I relied on her help and kind of got properly helped through it. Not the way I wanted, but it was still helpful. With just me and Lyanna left, we proceeded to make our way through the castle's halls to see where Mya was and give her the news. Of course, things just weren't meant to be that easy.

"You!"

Lucy had been standing at the castle's main entrance room. Disarmed, but definitely ready to wage battle with the ferocious demeanor she got going. She marched towards us, forcing Lyanna back in her safe spot, and getting a frown out of me at that enraged behavior.

"Yes?" I calmly asked, growing annoyed at the fact that she was frightening the little Fae.

"Why didn't you take me with you!?"

Oh dear, this isn't what I need right now.

"I was asked to keep the group small by the expert that helped us in this case," I answered smoothly, just barely denting at the irritation of the redhead in front of me.

"You could have forced that decision."

"I could have not," I retorted flatly, her irritation keeping on simmering until… it completely vanished.

Despite there was some moderation on the loudness of her voice, the overall tone still got to Lyanna as the girl was shivering in my hold. Being a perceptive individual when she was thinking of a comeback or anything in general, the former general paused over the sight of something shivering in my arms. Soon, she spotted a pair of visible gray eyes and some tears forming by their edges.

"I-Is that a-"

"Little girl, yes. I believe you may have upset her with that harshness."

Mortification flashed briefly on her face, but as Lucy tried to school her features back on the topic at hand, I decided to press.

"You should apologize to her," I added blankly, my request met with insolence.

"And why should I-"

"Because I'm deeply displeased with your behavior as of recent times," I cut her off, my voice leaving no space for protest. "Once you want to be submissive, then you get bossy and then you resume with the submissive attitude. You either pick one or another, you can't enjoy both good points and ignore the flaws of the respective roles you have."

Her lips twitched in pure frustration at that lecture, but I wasn't up to handle a childish individual like her. Her reluctance to let go of the matter just further annoyed me about it. I could barely grasp her logic, and I just didn't have the brain power in that specific moment to handle that kind of BS.

"And this conversation shall happen later today. I will give you the chance to think, to come up with some argumentation and I will provide you my full attention."

It wasn't a proposal, and she didn't get the chance to alter this order at once. Not when I was already leaving to resume my stroll. I slowed down a tiny bit as soon as we turned the corner, checking on Lyanna and hugging her close while apologizing for what happened. The child kept quiet and soon we were wandering towards the inner garden as the guards confirmed their Queen was there. Eventually we arrived at our destination and the scene there was pretty lovely. Mya was humming quietly, sitting together with Gaheris and Gareth as little Mordred sat in her older brother's lap while playing with the tiny flower crown on top of her head, trying to get it in her hands but being prevented by the playful interruptions from a smug-looking Gaheris.

As we approached, I was stopped by Lancelot, the knight having stood guard by the entrance. "Your highness."

"Lancelot, I hope everything is alright."

"It is, my king and… a fae?" He looked surprised, but I was even more stunned by the fact that he recognized her nature without seeing any particular hints about it. Lyanna was still hiding most of herself as far as I could see. In fact, the girl tensed up at the comment, shocked as much as I was if not more for that detail.

"Yes, Lancelot. She is… well, I believe I don't need to explain that Mya will be happy today."

His lips twitched, a mixture of brief amusement and bemoaning at the idea that I just adopted another child in this journey. And a Fae at that. Still, he didn't say much beyond the fact that 'Mya already knows I am here', which was… Well, annoying. Here I wanted to give her a surprise, but it was clear someone told her we were back. I nudged little Lyanna, and she carefully peeked her head out of her safe sheet. The fairy gave me a confused look, but I patted her head, calming her just enough to tell her that she was about to meet the rest of the family. Eagerness bubbled at that notion and soon we were there. As I approached the group, I saw that the first one to spot me was actually a little kid that was now trying to crawl out of Gaheris' hold.

"Daaah~!"

My smile widened at that greeting, with Mordred's loudness catching the attention of everyone else and redirecting it to me. Mya stood up and walked up to us, she quickly spotted the redhead, with each other sparing a long look, with Mya showing kindness and the little Fae showing… awe.

"She is beautiful," She blurted out softly, obtaining a quick giggle and a hum from Mya.

"And you look absolutely adorable, little one. What's your name?"

"L-Lyanna."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Mya."

I had been slightly worried about Lyanna being reluctant to accept the white-haired woman, but she was quite putty as soon as she was taken in the queen's arms, with both soon walking back to the circle. I followed soon after, enjoying the overall pleasant day before us.

As the girl got warmed up with the others, Mya actually asked if it was possible for her to speak with me about something important. And really positive.

"Is everything alright?

"Well, I think my 'news' is similar to yours," Mya hummed mirthfully, confusing me for a moment before I realized that she was… patting her belly. I hadn't noticed up until I returned from his small trek that the woman had a small bump. I just didn't expect for her to be pregnant this soon…

"Are you..."

"Yes, I made sure to check through Altuos," She assured joyously. "I'm with child. Yours."

I felt my breath missing, my words disappearing and I carefully hugged her tightly, eliciting another giggle out of her as she nuzzled her cheek against mine.

"Thank you," I muttered with a small smile on my face. A giggle left her lips as she tightened her hold over me.

We held each other closely, but soon two announcements were given that very day. The nightly partying across the city was particularly loud, especially when the people rejoiced at the news that a new individual joined the royal family and that the Queen bore my heir to the throne. Any unease at the idea of my departure leaving no one in charge soon vanquished by the joyous news and… Yep, I slowly but surely began being a bit more careful around Mya to make sure her pregnancy went just fine. Despite my openness on the choice, I really wanted a boy. Just to 'equalize' things at home with my other two daughters.

Someone to also take the brunt of two unusual girls while I was busy so they would never worry about being ever so close to being neglected due to my work.

It took a few weeks for Lyanna to get accustomed to her new life, and even then she had a few moments where she wasn't exactly convinced that it was all real.

It was kind of adorable to see her seemingly 'relearning' what she already knew of a few things in her life. Simple things were now elegant, refined- she was no longer forced to a poor take on life, but one with regal connotations. What got the message through about this behavior was when it was time for her to get some clothes. Her new dresses had her questioning me if she was dreaming with each precious-looking fabric being presented to her. She loved her cute dresses, and to be around Mya most of the time. It was kind of cute to see how much she lingered around the happy woman, interested by the growing bump on her belly and asking if the baby was already kicking. Despite the bump, Mya was just too early on with her pregnancy to already experience that but… I didn't have the heart to really tell Lyanna about that.

Mordred wasn't excluded by the new changes in life, not when Lyanna saw the little blonde toddler as a curious element to 'study'. It was more of the two playing with each other, but the redhead was obviously worried of going too far about it to not 'hurt little MorMor'. And as I enjoyed cuddling up with the 'giddier' Mya, with the woman actually getting a bit friskier due to the pregnancy, I also took care of the kingdom's affairs since things were soon starting to take shape as I had expected. There was a lot to do just yet, but I could already enjoy some of the newest results of the long-term policies I had applied some time ago.

Starting with the rural infrastructural project to try and rework the major hubs of trade within the kingdom while also adding new steps to finalize the reconstruction of all old roads into finer and more resilient ones. Reforms for the Picts also began at once, with some laws instituted to preserve their culture, language and tradition, but also foster a necessity to add the kingdom's current main language as the basis of communication. And there I had to also handle the sluggish problem that was 'creating a common language' for folks that was meant to respect traditions on both sides of the citizens, Britons and Romans, but also bring the best out of both worlds.

The result was that while there was a main language for folks that took most of it from Celtic and diluted Latin, pure Latin became an important element when it came to the codification of laws and religious texts and rites. Translations were possible, but it was recognized that the higher echelon of bureaucracy had to learn Latin for the sake of 'restoring a form of proper administration'. Which wasn't a bad idea from a statesman's notion of modern Kingdom. I just had to finalize some aspects of diplomacy and decentralization. As much as I can be the chief in charge of the country, I couldn't address all minor issues if those weren't found by loyal administrators first. I had to rely on others if I had to keep the kingdom running at max speed without crashing and burning in the process.

Then there was the Britannian Navy Plan as it was mostly completed. Two months were still needed to obtain a considerable naval force to keep up in the protection of the whole island, but the current force was enough to permanently shut down any hints of privacy unfolding within the Northern Sea. Any raiders that were caught trying to attack civilian merchant fleets near the home sea were properly dealt with. The process had just begun, but I could see the issue becoming non-existing by the end of that month. With the maritime trade safely stabilized, I had the idea of finalizing the touches behind the European trade nodes and the fact we were an island.

By concession of King Clovis to facilitate deals between Londinium and Koln, which was picked as the capital of the newly formed Kingdom of Austrasia, Calais was turned in a 'Trade City' with a special administration held by the Austrasians, the Gallians and the Britannians to regulate the convoys entering and leaving the city's docks. It was a way to consolidate Londinium's control over the continent in a way, trying to keep track of the economy so it wouldn't cause us any major trouble while also getting ready to avoid any plagues coming our general direction by closing the drain before it was too late.

The army continued to improve as I kept on working to get a permanent land force that was disciplined, experienced and capable of taking arms if needed. A Reservist Roll was prepared to maintain a large army even during peacetime, except it was going to take a while to get the force to be mobilized, while also providing for a much needed defense ground force in case of utmost necessity. Next technologies were adopted, such as large calibers of cannons and even faster naval weapons to keep the supremacy we had when it comes to military equipment. Civilian lives prospered as much as possible with medicine making the huge steps to consolidate an increase of life expectancy, a reduction of child mortality and greener fields to keep the peasants happy.

There were still some unresolved projects, mostly because the current situation wasn't optimal to either keep them up at a faster pace such as when it came to the aircraft production project which required some more experimenting to avoid endangering people, or ambitious ones that were definitely going to take many years to accomplish like the colonization of America. Of course, the project itself would be one of friendliness towards the natives, but even though the intentions were good and the ships were proving to be strong enough to brave the Atlantic Ocean, the real issue was a lack of people. There were just enough to populate the Isles, so trying to create a colony was unnecessary as of yet. There was plenty of space and the population had yet to experience positive growth through the recent reforms.

Things were going immensely fine when it came to paperwork… until three issues became too difficult for me to ignore.

The first one wasn't exactly a problem as it was tied to Ria. She wanted to talk about something urgent regarding recent political upheavals in her kingdom. Nothing that shook Camelot too much, but that saw her asking for help in that difficult matter. Which was why I saw it as a problem itself considering things, by what I knew, were fine. At least, that was what Lancelot knew through his active correspondence with Galehaut. The flamboyant noble sure liked to write lengthy letters and pressed for his 'closest friend' to return the favor at a quick pace.

Very amusing from a distant enough spot, but it also gave us some insight on how things were doing in Ria's kingdom from time to time. Sure, Ria herself would speak of any concerns of her, but there were some things that she either omitted or lied about due to personal pride. It was a frequent reason as to why I found multiple 'clashes' between her side of things and Galehaut, with the sole difference that the latter source was less implied in most of those and had no reason to lie about them to Lancelot. Instead, Ria had good enough motivations to not appear 'weak' before me. It wasn't like she expected me to be influenced by any hints of weakness, but I had the growing suspicion she just didn't want me to help her this frequently. Which was fine, but I expected her to put her pride aside if it meant helping her people to be well.

Still, back on this matter, there were no genuine issues in Camelot. In fact, there was nothing wrong happening in Camelot from what I got Galehaut's own words beyond a minor issue with maritime trading due to Irish ships sabotaging the local fleet. So either, Galehaut was lying about this, which felt incredibly off due to his usual friendliness towards the bond between the two kingdoms, or Ria was in trouble, but for other reasons that I would have to personally dig more about. I definitely planned to hear some crazy issues coming up for the poor blonde. Did Merlin do something I should be worried about? It was a strong possibility, so I braced myself for any surprises of the flower wizard kind.

The second one was… irritating at best.

I had that talk with Lucy, she tried to make a case where she was convinced standing on the middle ground between being a slave and a political prisoner was a good arrangement. Sadly, she didn't have a way to prove that it was 'good' for me as I mentioned the few times where her behavior had caused me no little hassle with nobles and guards. No one said anything bad about her, but I heard many were keen to avoid the 'Lucy Lottery' when it came to be her guard for the day. What I thought would have been the ultimate way to prevent the former Roman commander from being too much of a nuisance in the near future led to something else. Something far more 'sinister' in nature.

What happens when a Tsundere of the aggressive kind plotted 'clumsy accidents' here and there along the way, aiming to annoy and irritate me? You get so many instances where I would be glaring at her as she 'apologized' for 'tilting too aggressively her cup of cool water' at me. Or maybe when she would end up setting up a trap to make me trip on her and notice that she was… well, lacking underwear to not add what exactly she concocted. The harassment was plain infuriating, but I knew the moment I snapped I would face the repercussions of my actions. I just had to plan something to counter this frustrating dilemma.

Next up, and perhaps the most pressing of the list, was… Fairies.

I thought it would have taken either earlier or a little later for them to come back and be a hassle for me to deal with, but I was stunned to receive reports that some of the fields around the capital were suddenly 'growing dry'. It was as if nature had slightly 'pulled away' and was letting the usually fertile land grow weaker by the day. Not a pleasant development as Altuos commented there was a high chance this was caused by direct Fae's intervention and, while there were runes to weaken the effects of that magic, that it would have been best to approach them and see what they were up to. I got a location, and I decided to personally check on this matter what was going on in the fields first. I remembered Scathach's words about Fae's magic as I looked at the corrupted magic repelling the natural life within this section of the region, with my annoyance doubling at the mere sight as this was definitely not a slight I could allow to pass unpunished.

The Faes were going to pay for this.