C19 Chapter 19

Wednesday, May 21, 1681

First thing that morning, Sean and Leid were informed of Elmer Bellamy’s request for a meeting. Braghest was not interested in what someone so low-ranking had to say, but Sean Thiel convinced him to accompany him to the meeting. Sean organized the meeting for late that very afternoon. The lieutenant had never received such a request, so it had awakened his curiosity. Hours later, once some other Blue Hawks officers had left after a different meeting, they were alone in the meeting chamber. They were wearing high-ranking Albionese police officer uniforms, which were necessary to go unnoticed, as they sat in two armchairs facing Elmer, who was standing in front of them.

Sean had spent most of his youth in Albion and therefore he was fluent in Albionese unlike Leid Braghest who, despite speaking multiple languages, only had a basic grasp of the language. Magical translators existed for precisely these kinds of inconveniences.

The translators were usually glass objects, about the size of an apple, which came in different shapes, but which always held a unique liquid inside them. They allowed for two or more people speaking two different languages to understand each other. They worked in such a way that each person heard the other’s words in their own language, making communication possible. There were different types of translators of varying range and effects such as the ability to create an illusion so that the sounds that the listeners heard matched the lip movements of the other person, something that was often used by spies and emissaries. Leid’s translator had this ability. He usually kept it in the pocket opposite to his hip flask, inside his coat.

"Well?" said Old Braghest, looking at Bellamy’s face.

Elmer shared everything that he had seen the day before. When he had finished, Bellamy felt uncomfortable. Neither of the men had reacted to what he had said, they simply exchanged glances.

"That’s everything?" asked Braghest.

"Sir, with all due respect—" Elmer was interrupted.

"I asked if that was everything you saw yesterday."

Braghest’s words tested his self-control.

"Yes, that is . . . everything, sir."

There was a brief silence.

"Detective Bright Boldmir . . . with the general’s daughter . . . that is strange" said Sean. "We need to investigate. We need to know everything about them and everyone they know," he turned to Braghest, who stood up and walked toward the door, and then he looked at Bellamy. "That’s all, you may go."

"Sir," said Bellamy, getting their attention. Old Braghest stopped halfway. "I must emphasize the fact that a police detective and General Flightrod’s daughter could pose a risk to our institution."

"What are you trying to say?" asked Leid Braghest sharply, turning to face him completely.

"What would happen if they found something . . . ’questionable’?"

Braghest and Sean did not speak, looking into his eyes. Elmer felt insignificant in front of these men who now looked at him with deathly stares. He maintained his composure. He knew that his words could be the death of him, but he also knew that if he did not say anything, Boldmir might not be treated as a genuine threat. He wanted to see him brought down and therefore he was willing to run the risk.

"Ha. Ha. How entertaining," Sean said, standing up and clapping slowly, much to Braghest’s annoyance. "Very entertaining, Mr. Bellamy. Don’t you worry," he looked at Old Braghest, who, after giving him a disdainful look, continued walking toward the door. "We’ll take care of it."

* * *

Sean had a medium-sized office without anything noteworthy on the walls or floors. The lieutenant hadn’t put up anything of his own, not even on the large bookshelf that spanned the entire wall. The place meant nothing to him. When he wanted privacy, he preferred to go home or to the secret basement at the headquarters. The lieutenant and Old Braghest met in his office that night.

Both of them agreed that what Elmer had told them was something they had not expected to hear from an officer of the institution. They decided to use the Blue Hawks to stay informed about Boldmir and Carol’s movements. The other student was not important. They would need to do their utmost to keep Flightrod’s daughter out of this, they could not risk having the general working against them. Sean knew that General Flightrod was one of the most morally upright people he had ever met, legitimatized not just by the law but also the people. It would be a very bad idea to have him against them. Braghest thought they could send General Flightrod a ’message’ just in case he was plotting something along with his daughter. They both agreed that if an officer like Bellamy had realized that the Hawks were ’suspicious,’ then it was even more likely that someone higher up, such as the general, could be watching them.

There was a knock at the door. When the door opened, a worker from the building said, "Mr. Dierst has arrived."

Friedrich Dierst was a young Kiltish emissary who had arrived on Monday. He had spent two days getting to know the city and memorizing the most important places. Friedrich had short, straight blond hair, piercing green eyes and an athletic build. He was possibly one of the best Kiltish emissaries trained for combat, coming from a short stint in the regular Kiltish army, or Kapila as it was called in the local language. He had been contacted by the Emissary Corps when they had learned of his abilities. Dierst had accepted almost immediately, he had always dreamed of serving his country regardless of the objectives. That attitude had earned him a post in this secret group chosen by Jorkast Kolamzi. He received training for a number of months before being sent to Albion, where he would be carrying out his first official mission as an emissary. Dierst was not only a skilled thunder mage but also had excellent hand-to-hand combat knowledge and was especially skilled at kicks.

The three emissaries met in the meeting chamber at the headquarters that night. Dierst’s perfectly laced and polished boots were a stark contrast against his disheveled clothes. At first glance, he did not appear to meet the minimum requirements of being an emissary; he was not even wearing the uniform, which he did not consider to be necessary. Dierst believed that the uniform was only useful if it served a purpose in combat. Sean was annoyed by his apparent lack of interest in his clothing, but his boots, on the other hand, gave him an idea of his readiness to fight. Braghest could not care less about what he was wearing. He was only interested in verifying that he was whom the documents said he was. What neither of them knew was that Dierst paid close attention to his footwear because he had once slipped during combat training. He had not put his boots on properly because of his own lack of interest in his appearance. During the fight, he had tried to give one of his famous kicks, only to fall to the ground and become the laughing stock of his comrades for several days. He had only been saved from a cruel nickname because his skills as a mage and fighter outweighed one bad fall.

"Friedrich Dierst," said the lieutenant, who had been standing waiting for him in the middle of the room. Both Sean Thiel and Leid Braghest were wearing their Kiltish uniforms.

Seeing their uniforms and cloaks up close, Dierst felt victorious. He was finally serving Kilto just as he had always wanted to since he joined the army.

"It is an honor to—" started Dierst, before being interrupted by Sean.

"If you were about to say ’Old Braghest’ I would recommend you try something else. He doesn’t appreciate being called by that name."

Braghest turned and looked coldly at the lieutenant, who met his gaze.

"Do you fully understand what our mission entails?" Braghest asked Dierst.

"They told me it would involve taking care of certain individuals," said Dierst, following a short pause. "I just have one question."

"What is it?" responded Braghest, firmly.

"In one of President Kolamzi’s letters," said Dierst, "he said it involved an elimination mission," Braghest and Sean noted a gradual change in him to a more malicious tone and subtly domineering posture.

"Do you remember the Aurora Stone they gave you in Kilto?" asked Sean, who felt uncomfortable at having to repeat orders.

"I’m sorry, sir. It’s just that . . . I wanted to confirm that we are talking about an elimination mission."

"Explain yourself," Old Braghest said.

"Well . . . " said Dierst, still in the same malicious tone, "apart from studying the city in order to orientate myself, I came across one of the targets along the way and well, I decided to get a head start on things."

Braghest and Sean watched him with serious faces. Dierst continued.

"I didn’t know what to do with the body. I thought that you might want to keep a register of who they were or—" a sudden, drawn-out and dark laugh erupted from Braghest, catching his attention and interrupting him mid-sentence.

"If you’ll excuse me, I have things to do, you can update me later, Thiel," said Braghest, walking toward the door, which was a few yards behind Dierst. As he passed by him, with a calm expression on his face, Old Braghest patted him on the shoulder before continuing on his way.

"Good work, young man," said Sean. "Old Braghest is very pleased."

"It’s the least you can expect from a Kilto native," said Dierst unflinchingly.

"Kilto . . ." said Sean, thinking aloud as he walked to one side, without looking at Dierst. "Of course. Let’s do our country proud."