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Disbelief and worry were present on the faces of all citizens surrounding the center of town, more slowly and gingerly emerging from the safety of their homes as Aleko spoke, all curious about this turn of events since one major decision will affect their general futures, right here right now. The mayor was listening intently, visibly shaking just a bit, whether it was due to anxiety or the cold air was difficult to determine. Once the heir finished his speech, the people around started to whisper and murmur, inaudible discussions, each apparently having their own opinions upon the matter. The mayor however was silent, his worried visage gazing around at all the people gathered and the soldiers around, his hands continuously rubbing eachother in an attempt to keep warm. It took some long moments of contemplation but in the end the purple-clad mayor approached Aleko, his hunched posture making him seem shorter than he actually is. “[b]So it is true…[/b]” he murmured “[b]…there truly IS an heir. And the fortress has fallen…even general Dunngard surrendered… [/b]” Once more he gazed around himself, the whispers of the crown falling silent and all eyes falling on the poor man. Beads of sweat tickled down his brow as he turned his attention to Aleko and announced, louder this time so that all present may hear “[b]I am in a position where I must think for the better of the town and the citizens.[/b]” Puffs of stream flew from his mouth “[b]If what you promised will come to fruition. If you truly mean for the people of this town to be able and live their lives and be spared the…ravages of war.[/b]” The mayor paused for a moment, dropping his gaze at Aleko’s feet “[b]..Then we shall pledge our allegiance to you and the New Empire and recognize your authority…[/b]” the gaunt man paused once more, dropping to one knee and finishing his sentence with “[b]…My lord.[/b]” 

The palpable tension in the air was diffused mere moments after the mayor bent the knee, the crowd of people and the soldiers around following suit…yet it should be noted that they didn’t do this with joy or happiness. Some even voiced their resentment, refusing to kneel and call out to the mayor and the heir. ‘[i]Coward[/i]; [i]Liar[/i]; [i]Traitor[/i]; [i]Cur[/i]; were some of the words thrown among other complains regarding loyalty and honesty. “[b]Quiet![/b]” the mayor snapped at handful of protesters, waving his hand in their direction, signaling a few of the Spearmen to apprehend the rabble and removing them from the scene. “[b]Apologies, sire. They don’t know what they’re saying….[/b]” The mayor said to Aleko, hoping that this slight won’t motivate him into some kind of punishing action. Regardless of the general sentiment of the town, one fact remained perfectly clear at the end of the day…

The province of Northspark was now under New Empire control. 

Aleko, general Bulkwyn and the rest of the troops returned as quickly as they could back to the fortress, gazing behind him Aleko could already see the New Empire crimson fluttering in the wind and hanging from the guard-towers of the town, officially declaring their new-found allegiance. Once they arrived back at the fortress and brought the news to general Ironfist, the dwarf was visibly pleased “[b]Har har![/b]” he bellowed “[b]With this ‘ere combined outpost o’ Northspark an’ Paletower, it gon’be much easier to bring me’ forces on future assaults on this ‘ere ‘Kindom o’ tha’ North’. Har![/b]” the stout Dwarf delivered a single, solid pat on Aleko’s lower back “[b]Maybe ther’be some emperor in ye’ afterall, lad. But don’ let it get to ye’r head![/b]” General Ironfist then proceeded to let out a rather loud whistle, calling the attention of the gross majority of the Dwarven soldiers under his command, declaring that he will depart with a handful of his men to station at the town itself “[b]Insurance…[/b]” he said with a toothy grin “[b]Just makin’ sure ou’ new ‘friends’ will behave and be good’ol  lads an’ lasses.[/b]” He clarified and then mounted his great war-bear, declaring that they will meet back at the Escalyber later.

The rest of the evening was spent in celebration at the fortress. Dwarves and Anthros sharing strong drink, food and song. The Dark Elven Vanguards did not stay, congratulating Aleko on the victory and then asking for permission to return to their own personal headquarters shortly before the celebrations started. The otherwise dull dining hall of the fortress was now lively with song and feast that lasted till late in the night, Dwarves and Anthros celebrating however they saw fit by swapping and singing traditional songs, sometimes sung in their native languages, dancing and cheering, feasting on whatever foods they had available and some even engaged in drinking games, though the Dwarves had the advantage there for obvious reasons. Aleko was seated at the head of a large table, the sort of place usually reserved for the lord of a castle, appropriate considering he actually is the emperor and also lead this mission which brought the very victory they are celebrating. “[b]A toast![/b]” Pepper’s voice resounded throughout the hall, surprisingly louder than the whole cacophony of noises made by the cheering and singing of the merry soldiers. “[b]To our Emperor![/b]” she bellowed once more as soon as the singing and cheering drowned down a bit and she had the attention of all Dwarves and Anthros, continuing while standing atop one of the tables nearby with a simple iron mug in hand, dressed her combat uniform but without the weapons, helmet or even the plating components. “[b]To Aleko Farland Sendrakon the First! Also known as ‘Frosty’![/b]” a rather loud chuckle escaped her at the end, accompanied by the merry laughter that sounded all around followed by a loud would-be-unison cheer.

“[i][b]To Emperor Frosty! Long may he reign![/b][/i]” 

Some may consider that this sort of celebration was rather premature, as the general state of their campaign was still less than ideal. However, many considered this to be more than just about simple progress and growth in territory. It was about a message. This was the first real move that the New Empire had taken to fighting back and struggle for victory. The first sign that the stalemate which lasted for many years was over. This was the first step towards ending the War of the Three Empires….and it begins with a sounding victory for Aleko and his faction. Tonight they celebrated, allowing themselves some respite and merriment after a hard-fought battle. Tomorrow, Aleko and the generals would return to the Escalyber, where future planning and strategies were going to be planned, where further expansions were thought and processed and more battles were to come. But for tonight, they had earned the right to drink and dance, feast and sing, and enjoy their victory.

It was difficult to tell how long the celebrations lasted, it was clearly still going by the time Aleko decided he ought to retire to the sleeping room. The merriment was not restricted to just the dining hall, the heir was firmly convinced by that since on his way to the sleeping chamber he almost bumped right into a female Elite Ranger covered in nothing but a large bed sheet and being chased by one of her male comrades along with a Dwarf, both in their smallclothes. Judging by the ‘alluring’ calls the men threw at the woman and her giggling and taunting, one would assume there was no trouble, all three of them clearly drunk enough to not even notice they passed the emperor himself. The noise from the celebration was steadily dying out as Aleko came closer and closer to the sleeping chamber he spent the night before…yet it appeared he was not alone. The door was slightly ajar and some voice could be heard from within…was it…singing? Once inside, Aleko had the surprise of seeing none other than general Pepper Bulkwyn, leaning on the open window sill, her gaze looking at the dark, cloudy night outside, the dim lighting from the fortress marking the edges of the nearby environment and the gentle fall of snowflakes dancing in the cold breeze. The general was holding a entire bottle of Anthro-made wine, about half-empty if one were to give it a shake. She did not notice Aleko entering the room, perhaps she may have had one to many or Aleko was careful not to make his presence known….or perhaps she was too focused on her singing. Pepper was singing and humming, with quite a bit of talent, what Aleko recognized as an old Anthro song, yet it was not the cheery and merry sort that the rest of their soldiers were reenacting, no her song was actually one that Anthro soldiers would sing in mourning for fallen comrades.

An intentional some-what loud closing of the door behind him snapped the general from her apparent trance, promptly getting up, albeit clumsily, from the window sill and attempting to give a respectful bow to Aleko “[b]Oh, sire…uhh…I didn…I didn’t…[/b]” she rubbed her forehead with her free hand, parting away her teal hair as if trying to get a better view of her surroundings “[b]This…Isn’t my room..is it?[/b]” she asked with a silly smirk on her face and an apologetic gesture of her hand…her voice sounded awfully different than what Aleko heard from her until now. She was not the chirpy and rather unprofessional Pepper, nor was she the booming and confident general Bulkwyn…right now she sounded more like, well… a woman. 

“[b]I’m…I am sorry, sire. I…[/b]” she momentarily regained her balance before attempting to walk out the door only to find herself stopped by Aleko, who declared she ought to sit down for a few moments lest she risks hurting herself on the way, promptly taking the half-empty bottle from her grasp without any sort of resistance from her part. Pepper layed down, not on the bed but on the floor with her back leaning against the bedpost while Aleko found himself a seat in front of her while she rubbed her temples with both hands. Perhaps it was morbid curiosity or perhaps it was something else, yet Aleko couldn’t help but inquire as to why she was singing that particular song. Pepper would perhaps under normal circumstances avoid the question similarly to how she did when Aleko inquired about her past experiences with magic-users, yet in her current state she appeared to be more…suggestible? “[b]Well…sir. Today…today is the celebration. The celebration…of my survival.[/b]” She answered with a small, forced smile on her mousy nuzzle. She parted her hair backwards, her gaze not actually rising to meet Aleko’s as she spoke and clarified. “[b]Twenty-four years ago, I was assigned together with my unit at the time for a skirmish against a force commanded by the Stainless Empire. I was just a small-time officer at the time, following the orders of my superiors into battle in the defense of a fortress in the Anthro province of West-Nurendorf. Nothing particularly special, we had defended that position before a few times, I was already stationed there along with the rest of my unit as it’s main garrison so we knew the ins and outs of the place and were pretty confident in our capabilities of holding it down.[/b]” A deep sigh escaped her as she pulled her knees together and clutched at her shoulders with both hands akin to her being cold. “[b]We….we just weren’t expecting one thing…[/b]” she continued “[b]…Wizards. Not just one or two or three…a whole squad of Wizards simply….teleporting behind the lines and throwing their spells all over the place.[/b]” Her tone of voice had gotten more tense as the material of her uniform screeched under her tighten grip “[b]We tried to fight back while still facing the siege itself, managing to gun down some of those spell-slingers but….they were lead by one. Their general, I believe who simply turned the tide of battle. Our bullets were useless against some kind of magical-bullshit shield he created around his robed fucks.[/b]”

A glitter of tears started to accumulate in the corners of her eyes as she continued “[b]We were burned…frozen and turned to ash…and there was nothing we could do! I can still hear that sunovabitch’s snicker in my nightmares..[/b]” the general paused, promptly wiping away the accumulated tears before they had a chance to flow down her fine-furred cheeks. Her tone returning to a some-what normality as she continued “[b]In the heat of this…massacre, my commanding captain pushed me out of the way from a fireball…taking the majority of the hit but saving my life. I fell from atop the wall and down into the trench, the last thing I saw before loosing consciousness was my captain burning alive…his helmet…melting on his head….[/b]” She shuddered “[b]I still don’t know how I survived…but there I was. Bruised and beaten, with cracked ribs, a broken arm, dislocated shoulder and fractured leg, but still somehow alive. I found myself on a corpse wagon….with the bodies of my former comrades around me…I crawled away when I had the first chance and managed to slip into friendly territory under the cover of night where I was found by a farmhand and nursed back to health….just in time to deliver my report.[/b]”

A sad chuckle escaped her “[b]I continued to serve once I was able…hailed and promoted to captain myself for my survival and willpower….feh![/b]” Her pose relaxed a bit as she reached with one hand inside a breast-pocket and pulled out a standard issue, albeit rather worn, Anthro military tag connected to a thin chain-necklace “[b]Pepper Iggite Bulkwyn. Aka, ‘[i]Mousy[/i]’. Sole survivor of the Imperial Mechanized Rangers 26th battalion ‘[i]Foxtail[/i]’ of the New Empire Anthro forces…hmpf…[/b]” 

Moments of silence passed as Pepper stared blankly at the tag before tilting her head and turning her gaze at the bottle of wine still in Aleko’s possession “[b]Mind passing that…sir?[/b]” she asked gingerly still avoiding eye-contact. 

“[b]So… that’s my story.[/b]” She concluded “[b]I had encountered more magic-users since that day and learned from each battle how to better deal with them. Therefore…my experience. I made a promise to never allow such mistakes and losses happen to any soldier at my side ever again…and I intend to keep it.[/b]” A sad whimper escaped her for one moment "[b]Even though I failed miserably this time...[/b]" she murmured.

After that declaration, the general put her old-worn tag back inside her pocket and slapped both her cheeks a few times akin to someone trying to wake themselves. “[b]Bah..My apologies sir.[/b]” She the stood up, the effects of the drink no longer having the same hold on her but still far from gone “[b]..I didn’t mean to waste your time with ramblings about the past. With your permission…I shall retire and allow you to rest…sir.[/b]”          
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