Chapter 4
Owl sighed, reading the news. It had been six months since the Einri War and the mood across the Empire wasn’t exactly getting better as the time passed. The military, in specific, was getting grimmer and grimmer.
Einri was a large territory and although they weren’t nowhere close to Alynthi’s military power they were known for their warrior monks. Rumors (and official reports) said that one warrior monk was able to take ten or twenty men with their bare hands.
Which explained why their troops were having so much trouble diffusing the situation; putting revolutions was not exactly a new thing for the Empire. The closest to the borders, the highest probability of conflict as the higher powers always said.
Owl knew exactly how difficult it was for normal people to fare against well trained individuals; he was one, had been one , and knew exactly how easy it was to take them out when they were slow and clumsy as a child in relation to you.
“Sir!” Captain Charis entered the office without her accustomed calm; Owl looked up, confused and then alarmed at the afraid note in her blue eyes.
“Captain, what’s wrong?” He was up and crossing the distance so they could meet in the middle, looking her up and down so trying to find any kind of injury.
“We have orders from Central.” She extended him a beige folder, “Directly from his Excellency.”
“What?” Owl took the folder and opened in a rash move, he read the official document with growing horror. Gasping as it finally hit him the seriousness in which his Excellency was taking the issue of Einrini.
“Sir?” She insisted, now a little more alarmed after his reaction.
“His excellency has decided that all Imperial Alchemists are to go to the front-lines as soon as possible.” The words feel like ash in his mouth. He looked deeply into his friend’s eyes, his voice sounding detached. “The order includes every man under our command. This means that we have to take the train tomorrow morning. You better pack, Captain.”
“I will, sir.” Yun nodded, her eyes hardening. She turned to leave the room but before she crossed the threshold she stopped.
“I’m a soldier, Syed.” Her tone was gentle, but Owl knew that her eyes must be shining with flames of determination that characterized. “Should I still serve under Colonel’s Tatch I would already be on the battlefield, so this is not your fault. You understand?”
Owl hesitated, but forced the words out. “I do.”
He knew she meant well; he also knew that playing along was the best option since fighting between them could only make things worse with them going to the battlefield soon. That didn’t mean he felt those words.
"Good. Have a good night, sir."
Owl put the orders on the desk and walked towards the window, looking at the lights of the city. Gantrick is a beautiful city, even if somewhat little in compassion to Central. But then, Central is in fact the fifth part of the Empire territory.
“I know.” Owl repeated, looking at his ghostly reflection with hard eyes. “That doesn’t make it any better, Yun. Because this is madness and could very well take your life and I’m not ready to lose you…”
He shook his head, frowning.
What was his Excellency thinking?
Owl looked down at his wrist. The golden letters hadn’t changed, the message was the same as it had been since the moment he became Imperial Alchemist, three years ago. Owl traced the letters with his fingertips: Become Colonel.