A threat rises

They enter to find Lord Greyheart sitting in his throne, speaking with a pair of advisors. As the champions approach, he dismisses them, and they bow before hurrying off. Lord Greyheart nods to his champions as they all drop to a knee in front of him.

“Thank you for coming, all of you. Please, on your feet.”

They all rise in unison, and he gives a grim smile. “I wish I had better news for you, my loyal guardians. We have discovered the source of the **** attempt that Kael recently foiled.”

He shakes his head. “It’s our neighbor to the north, Karlia.”

All of the champions except Bernal are surprised by this. In ages past, Foresthearth had been simply a part of a larger nation. After the war that established humans as the dominant race, there was naturally some upheaval among the newly triumphant nations, leading to most of them fracturing into much smaller sovereign states. Karlia is the remnant of that once powerful nation, and often made attempts at reclaiming its former glory. They had never struck south towards Foresthearth before, though.

Lord Greyheart sighs. “It seems that there’s been a change of leadership. Our intelligence network can’t determine what happened, but there’s a new, more aggressive regime in charge. What’s more, they have the support of their people, having whipped them into a nationalistic frenzy with promises of a return to their former glory.”

He shakes his head. “With the buildup of their forces that I’ve received reports of, I’d expect a declaration of war within a weeks time. I’ve sent messengers to our other neighbors, asking for aid, but time is short. The five of you are my best hope for holding back Karlia, should they attack.”

Kael nods. “What would you have us do, my lord?”

Lord Greyheart smiles at him. “Ever eager to serve, Kael. For now, be ready. Should war break out, I will be sending all of you save Bernal to the front line. If we can crush their first advance, we may **** them elsewhere. If not…well, they vastly outstrip us in manpower and resources. It’s a grim outlook without allies.”

Bernal speaks up. “I will remain here to ward Vince. The four of you are each armies unto yourselves. And we’ve never sent all four of you to one fight. Combined, you should turn the tide of any battle, but beware. It’s not like you’re a secret. It’s likely that Karlia will have a surprise or two of their own.”

Orin grins. “I doubt they have anything that can stop four of us.”

Ria shrugs. “If they do, we’re screwed anyway. But we’ll be careful.”

Koa nods. “We will not lose. We always win.”

Lord Greyheart nods solemnly. “That’s all I had for you today. You are dismissed. Except you, Kael. I want to speak with you for a moment.”

The others turn to leave, save for Bernal, who takes his place beside the throne. Ria punches Kael’s arm and grins. “Sounds like we should move up those dinner plans. Get on it, big guy!”

With that, she laughs and follows Orin and Koa out the door. Lord Greyheart raises an eyebrow, smiling. “Dinner plans?”

Kael nods. “Ria wants to meet Evie. And Evie wants to meet Ria. Therefore, dinner.”

Lord Greyheart nods. “Ahh, I see. You and Ria are still quite close, I understand.”

Kael nods. “That’s right, my lord.”

Lord Greyheart smiles at Bernal, who chuckles. “Well, I wish you luck in this endeavor.”

Kael looks confused. “My lord?”

Lord Greyheart laughs, waving a hand. “Never mind, it’s not important. I kept you here to give you this. It’s for…Evie.”

He hands Kael a small, rectangular box. Kael opens it to find a delicate gold necklace, set with an emerald. He closes the box and bows. “Thank you, my lord. I know she will appreciate it.”

Lord Greyheart nods. “It is a thanks for what she’s done for you, my champion. Send my appreciation as well, would you?”

Kael can tell that there’s more that Lord Greyheart wants to say, but cannot. “Of course. As I said, I know she will appreciate it.”

Smiling, lord Greyheart sighs and leans back. “That’s all for now, Kael. Go and rest. Prepare.”