“Is everything packed?”
“At this point, if something isn’t packed it deserves to be left behind.”
“Jadis…”
“Yes, yes, everything that was marked to be loaded onto the wagon has been packed on.”
“Alright, good,” Aila said with her fists on her hips. Tapping her foot for a few seconds, she abruptly turned and stalked back into the guild hall.
“Where are you—”
“I’m just checking I didn’t forget to mark anything; it’ll be just a moment.”
Jadis sighed through all three of her bodies. Aila was being something of a worrywart, though she couldn't really blame her. They were finally departing on their first ever expedition as a mercenary company and it was clear that the arcanist wanted everything to go as smoothly as possible. There was only so much she could control, but making sure they had packed everything they could possibly need was something she could act on, so Jadis didn’t complain. If it made Aila feel better to double and triple check, then she’d let her.
But if they didn’t get rolling down the road in the next five minutes Jadis was fairly certain she was going to start pulling out her own hair.
“D—don’t worry, I’ll go help her check,” Thea told Dys with a hesitant smile.
The shieldsworn hurried into the building after Aila. Jadis appreciated her intervention. Thea’s extensive history and training in the military meant she was more than competent when it came to making preparations for an expedition. She’d been just as active in helping the group make sure they had everything they needed as Aila, though in a more matter of fact way rather than a mother hen way. Jadis hoped she’d be able to wrangle the arcanist back outside so they could get moving.
Everyone else was packed, ready, and waiting. Kerr and Eir had helped with much of the packing and everything they needed had been loaded up first thing that morning. Bridget had shown up with a modest pack of what she’d referred to as essentials which she’d promptly and efficiently stowed in one of the wagon cubbies. Sabina had brought the most extra equipment, as she’d used her pay to buy a small anvil and a few extra crafting tools. It wasn’t exactly a mobile forge, but they would be enough to help her perform any spot repairs that might be needed for armor, weapons, or the wagon itself.
Even the tiny demonling was ready to get moving. The little tentacle monster was curled up inside a new version of the glass and metal container that Sabina had once crafted for it. This time it was a round, disc-like container that was about a foot in diameter and six inches deep. Jadis planned on hanging it onto the front of the wagon so the demonling could see while they were travelling, though she had refrained from doing so until they were outside the city walls. She didn’t want to have to explain her reasons to any strangers or city guards who might question the oddity.
“Still not gone?”
Jay turned to see Noll standing near the front of the wagon, a mug of something steaming hot in one clawed hand. Hans was with him, the silent guild employee. He, too, had a steaming mug and was sipping it gingerly.
“Just… making sure we’ve got everything we need,” Jay explained with a helpless shrug.
“You’ll never have everything you need,” Noll grunted sagely. “You just won’t know it until you need something you don’t have. Better to know how to make do with what you have on you.”
“Thank you, O Wise One,” Jay said as she and her other two selves turned towards Noll and bowed mockingly. “Your words grace our humble ears. We shall carve them into our memory, and later into stone so that future generations can also bask in your glorious wisdom.”
“Fucking brats,” Noll growled. “Hurry up and get out of here before I start preaching more wise words.”
“Now that’s a threat,” Syd mumbled.
With Noll providing that extra bit of motivation, Jadis called out to Aila from outside, asking her to hurry up for the sake of her own sanity. A full minute and the start of another piece of Noll wisdom later and Thea exited the building with Aila in tow. The two quickly got on board the wagon as Jadis started pulling her harnesses on.
“Take care while we’re gone, Hans,” Jay called out to the stoic cook. “We left you some extra coin for emergencies.”
Jadis had made sure to pay the man for a full two months ahead of time already, since she wasn’t sure how long they would be gone. She trusted that he wouldn’t spend the emergency funds she’d left him unless he truly needed to. Besides, Jadis didn’t plan on their trip taking anywhere near that long. She just wanted to be sure her bases were covered just in case.
Hans raised his mug in acknowledgement and gave her and the rest of the company a wave goodbye as the wagon started moving. Noll also raised his hand in a single wave, his wolf-like face sporting a look of obvious amusement.
“Don’t tire yourselves out,” he said as the wagon rumbled past him down the road.
“Don’t die of old age while we’re gone,” Dys called back. “Or go senile. Or get sudden onset arthritis that makes it so you can’t move right anymore—”
“Enough with the old jokes!” Noll roared, which only made Jadis laugh as she picked up the pace and moved the wagon down the road.
Aila was, predictably, sitting in the wagon’s driver seat. She didn’t have any reins, but she had a cheaply produced copy of the High Priest’s map she’d drawn herself and so would be acting as navigator. Eir and Thea sat next to her on either side, the bench seat more than wide enough to fit all three of them. Sabina sat inside the open door that led inside the wagon, just behind the three. Kerr had chosen to ride on top of the wagon and, at her encouragement, Bridget had joined her. All were wearing their full gear and, while they didn’t have the uniform matching quality that the larger mercenary companies had, Jadis felt like they still cut impressively martial figures.
Jadis herself was decked out in her plate armor and while she was normally the most impressive of the bunch, she had the feeling the impression she was giving off today as she made her way through the city streets was slightly less dignified than normal, if not still impressive for other reasons.
All three of her bodies were hooked up to the wagon by large leather and steel chain harnesses. They had quick-releases hooks on them that meant she could get out of the harnesses at a moment’s notice, but while they were on Jadis was literally chained to the wagon. Using all of her combined strength, her three selves pulled the wagon along, acting as the beasts of burden necessary to drag the huge vehicle along.
It wasn’t easy. The wagon by itself was a considerable weight. Loaded up with all their gear and supplies, it was heavy mass that strained her muscles to get rolling. Still, it was manageable. Far more manageable than what would be needed to feed and care for the dozen aurochs it would have taken to pull the wagon.
As they made their way to the main gates of the city, the people who were out and about that morning stopped to stare at them. And also to get out of the way. The mobile fortress of a wagon took up most of the road, forcing anyone else driving a cart or riding a horse to wait on the side, whether they liked it or not. Jadis couldn’t hear what any of the people who gaped at them were saying to each other due to the sound of both their clanking armor and the rumble of the wagon wheels, but she hoped that they were talking about how strong the three of them had to be to pull the huge weight, rather than how silly the three heavily armored knights looked while doing so.
Eh. Probably both.
When Fortune’s Favored finally reached the gates, Jadis saw that the expected crew of guards Vraekae had warned her about was waiting for them. There were a dozen of them, six riding on horseback while the other six rode on a wagon of their own, one that was a more traditional size and pulled by a couple of work horses. Their captain, a human woman dressed in the same kind of armor that Thea used to wear, rode up to meet them.
“Good morning,” she greeted them politely. “I’m captain Willa, assigned to be your escort by Magistrate Vraekae. We’ll follow along behind. Set whatever pace you need, we’ll match it.”
“Fine,” Jay grunted. “Holler if you need something.”
Jadis tried not to be short with the captain but seeing her and the guard escort had dropped her mood low. Not because of them in particular, she was fine with them tagging along since they were just soldiers on a mission of their own and wouldn’t be interfering with hers. No, the reason why her thoughts had turned dark was how they reminded her of the discussion she’d had with Vraekae two nights ago. More specifically, what the Magistrate had told them about General Egilhard petitioning for their company to disband.
She had known that the general was interested in recruiting her into the military, specifically under his command, for political purposes but she hadn’t thought he’d be such a sleazy bastard about it. From what details Vraekae had been able to divulge, the general had submitted a multitude of complaints against nearly every single mercenary company present in the city, calling them out on various infractions via legal petitions. They were all legitimate violations, documented and above the board, but also entirely unnecessary and frankly not his business to enforce. He had, of course, claimed that he was just doing his duty as a military officer in making sure that the paramilitary elements of the region conformed to the operational standards of the empire. Not an unreasonable argument for a man in his position to make.
Jadis didn’t buy that excuse for a second, nor did the Magistrate. Vraekae suspected the general had written up the dozens of petitions as a smokescreen to make it seem as though he wasn’t specifically picking on Fortune’s Favored, just catching them in a general clean-up. How he could think that she’d ever be inclined to join him for anything after pulling such a scummy stunt she had no idea, unless he thought she wouldn’t find out, which was plausible. Dumb, since one of her known guildmates happened to be Magistrate Vraekae’s cousin, but still plausible.
Whatever the man’s reasoning and regardless of his political machinations, he’d still brought to light a valid point. Jadis had to get one more member to join her company for it to be an official guild. Leaving it in a provisional status wasn’t going to work, especially if assholes like Egilhard were going to poke their noses into her business and screw around with legal loopholes to try and control and influence her. She already had one manipulative blue elf bitch she’d come to be reasonably comfortable with. She didn’t have room for more politicians in her life.
Jadis wasn’t sure where she was going to find her tenth member, but once she got back from the expedition, she was going to go on a concerted recruitment campaign to find the right person. They didn’t have to take part in her lewd rituals, nor did they have to be a woman for that matter. She just wanted to make sure that the tenth person was someone she could trust.
Jadis’ thoughts about her mercenary company problems faded to the back of her mind as she crossed the threshold of the city gates. Fortunately, with the portcullis up and both doors wide open, the wagon did squeeze through, though Kerr and Bridget had to hop off of the roof to do so. Outside, the cobblestone road that led to the north lay before them, winding its way through the strange split hills of the region. The sky was blue and cloudless and the air was cold and crisp. It was a fine day for travel and that sight alone was enough to brighten Jadis’ outlook on the world.
“Oh, shit,” Kerr called out as the wagon reached the first valley the road led them through.
“What is it?” Aila called up to the archer who was sitting with her legs dangling over the front edge of the wagon roof.
“I think I left my extra pair of boots back at the hall. Can we turn around?”
“No!” All three of Jadis, Aila, Thea, and Eir called out at the same time.
“Can’t blame a girl for asking…”
372