A Practical Guide to Evil
A Practical Guide to Evil - Book 1 Chapter 28: Win Condition

鈥淥ur doctrine is one of cost-efficiency. Any officer who believes extermination of the enemy is a valid path to victory should immediately be demoted back to the ranks.鈥?/em>

鈥揗arshal Ranker

鈥淲hat makes you think she鈥檒l abandon the first wall?鈥?/p>

Kilian鈥檚 breath was steadier now that she鈥檇 had a few moments to catch it. Running in chain mail could really take it out of you, and if Captain hadn鈥檛 made a habit of drilling me in plate it might have been as hard on my lungs as the redhead鈥檚. I cast her a sideways look.

鈥淗aving doubts, Lieutenant?鈥?I asked.

She shook her head. 鈥淚鈥檓 trying to understand where your certainty is coming from,鈥?she replied.

鈥淚t took me a while to get it, but Juniper鈥檚 actually somewhat predictable,鈥?I grunted.

Now there definitely was scepticism on the pretty mage鈥檚 face.

鈥淧redictable is, uh, not a word I鈥檇 use for the Hellhound. Sir,鈥?she said delicately.

鈥淪he always makes the correct choice,鈥?I pointed out, closing my eyes. 鈥淲hen she has the necessary information, she makes the best decision she could make.鈥?/p>

Kilian frowned. 鈥淪o you鈥檙e saying鈥︹€?she trailed off, evidently not too sure about what I was saying.

Couldn鈥檛 blame her, really. This wasn鈥檛 something I鈥檇 figured out using wits and logic 鈥?it had been instinctual. Similar to the way I鈥檇 read opponents in the Pit, only applied to warfare instead of breaking a single person鈥檚 legs.

鈥淚f I know what the best move for her to make is, I can be fairly certain it鈥檚 the one she鈥檒l make,鈥?I replied, opening my eyes and turning on my belly to crawl my way closer to the crest of the hill.

The redheaded lieutenant did the same, joining me in taking a peek over the dust and stone. Like I鈥檇 predicted, First Company鈥檚 lines were preparing to retreat back across the mine field. One of Juniper鈥檚 sappers casually tossed a smoker into the hole I鈥檇 blown through the palisade a moment later, preventing me from getting a look at the path they were using. Ugh. I mean, I was pretty sure they鈥檇 do that but it鈥檚 still going to be a pain to figure out the way through.

鈥淚t鈥檚 limited in scope, Kilian,鈥?I told her as I pushed myself back into cover. 鈥淚 have no reliable way of knowing what she does and doesn鈥檛 know, so it鈥檚 still very much a guessing game. But if I have the initiative, then I can predict some of her reactions.鈥?/p>

I waved vaguely in the direction of what had once been Fox Company鈥檚 stronghold.

鈥淲hat she knows right now is that I have access to munitions that can blow through her first wall and some sort of expendable creature minions to deliver them,鈥?I grunted. 鈥淪o she鈥檚 going to pull back behind the rampart until she can figure out how I managed that. It鈥檚 not like she鈥檚 losing anything, anyway: even if we manned the first wall from the other side we don鈥檛 have the strength to hold it against her. She could just claim it back whenever she wants.鈥?/p>

By now the runner I鈥檇 sent to Nauk should have gotten the remnants of my company moving. Keeping out of sight as long as possible, they鈥檇 wait until the last moment to run across the ballista鈥檚 killing field until they could take shelter behind the enemy鈥檚 own palisade. Pickler had assured me that the same platform Snatcher had built to ensure the siege engine would have a clear shot at the enemy camps meant that once we got close enough Juniper wouldn鈥檛 be able to adjust the angle low enough to aim at us. There was something mildly absurd about using the enemy鈥檚 fortifications as cover against them, but the situation I was in was beyond the ability of orthodox tactics to salvage.

Pretty much the only advantage on my side at this point was that by holing up in the fortress Juniper had given up the initiative. It was, I believed, a conscious decision on her part. She could have assaulted us almost immediately after taking out Snatcher, but the Hellhound was aware of what kind of fuckery Names could pull when you put their backs up against the wall. She was doing all she could to avoid outright cornering me while still stacking the odds on her side. If I鈥檇 decided to pull out and head into the wilds, then she would have simply followed in her own time: First Company functioned at its best when on the field, so it wasn鈥檛 like she鈥檇 have been giving me much of an edge there. Regardless, after hitting the bottom of the barrel last night I鈥檇 bounced back into the semblance of a plan. My largest mistake so far was that I鈥檇 been trying to beat Juniper as a captain when the fact was that she was just better at this than I was.

She was a better tactician and her company was flatly superior to mine 鈥?which shouldn鈥檛 have come as a surprise, considering Ratface had tried to make Rat Company a knock-off version of hers. If I played this game the way it was meant to be played, I鈥檇 lose every time. Like Black had told me in his usual semi-cryptic jackass advice session, I had to win despite the rules instead of according to them. The suicide goats were a first step towards that, as a method of attack that had no real precedent in the war games. The necromantic constructs weren鈥檛 significant because of how effective they were, although it looked like they鈥檇 be pretty damned effective, but because by pulling out a new trick I鈥檇 been able to seize the initiative. As long as I had Juniper reacting instead of acting, the Heavens were on my side.

鈥淎lthough I guess technically they鈥檙e on neither of our sides,鈥?I muttered to myself. 鈥淧robably should stop calling on them period.鈥?/p>

Kilian shot me a curious look but passed no comment. I glanced at my tenth and was pleased to see they appeared to have recovered from the run. Whatever his flaws as a captain, Ratface had drilled his legionaries into very good shape.

鈥淎s soon as Nauk gets out of cover, we鈥檒l be running across,鈥?I called out, making sure all of them acknowledged the reminder before turning my attention back to more pressing matters.

Crawling my way back up the hill, I scanned the distance for the rest of my company. Couldn鈥檛 see any sign of them, which I put down as another mark in Nauk鈥檚 favour: the large lieutenant was a highly competent officer, when he wasn鈥檛 in the throes of the Red Rage. Overly aggressive in his tactics, maybe, but for a frontline commander that wasn鈥檛 always a bad thing. Captain had mentioned General Istrid was also considered a little too bloodthirsty and she was one of the most respected military commanders in the Empire. After the three Marshals, she was one of the household names forged during the Conquest. I waited in silence for Rat Company to appear, and my patience was eventually rewarded: without so much as a word of warning, sixty-odd legionaries started running downhill towards the palisade.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 our cue, ladies and gentlemen,鈥?I called out, pushing myself up.

I picked up my shield and waited a few heartbeats before starting to sprint back across the grounds I鈥檇 covered only moments ago. There was no point in having my legionaries form up: if anything, it would be a liability. A tenth moving slowly and clustered together was prime ballista bait. Feeling my lungs burn as I forced my body to move, I jumped over a low-riding bush and only barely managed not to trip as my foot got snagged into a root. Whirling on myself I steadied my footing at the last minute and continued to push through. My tenth wasn鈥檛 far behind and before I鈥檇 managed to catch my breath at the foot of the palisade the majority of them were already at my side.

鈥淲e got everyone?鈥?I panted.

Kilian nodded, too out of breath to get any actual words out. Gods, I hated running in armour. I鈥檇 heard no impact in the distance, which meant First Company either hadn鈥檛 been ready to shoot in time or that we鈥檇 offered them no target worth the effort. Nauk鈥檚 soldiers were milling by the palisade further to the south-east, slowly spreading out, and I gestured for my own tenth to join them. We walked, taking our time 鈥?there was no need to hurry this part of the operation, and going in unprepared was likely to see us brutally spanked. The lieutenant with the still-broken arm found me easily. There was a restless way to him, like he had an itch he couldn鈥檛 quite scratch.

鈥淐allow,鈥?Nauk greeted me. 鈥淒ivided the lot of them like you told me. We鈥檒l be ready to move as soon as Kilian reclaims her tenth.鈥?/p>

From the corner of my eye I could see the redhead heading for her mages, soldiers moving out of her way as she did.

鈥淕ood,鈥?I grunted. 鈥淧ickler managed to make all the screens?鈥?/p>

鈥淭hey鈥檙e ready,鈥?the orc nodded. 鈥淪hame we don鈥檛 have vinegar to soak them in, but we鈥檒l make do.鈥?/p>

I鈥檇 been more than happy to delegate the whole affair to the sapper lieutenant, having no experience whatsoever in crafting the likes of it myself. To be honest, my skillset largely considered of 鈥渂ashing people鈥檚 heads in鈥?and 鈥渙rdering people to bash other people鈥檚 heads in鈥? It was a good thing that for all their quirks my officers had a knack for their area of expertise, because what I knew about sapper鈥檚 work would fit into a thimble. And not even a very big one.

鈥淲ish I could do more than stand around like a waste of flesh,鈥?Nauk admitted. 鈥淚鈥檝e been useless to you since the scrap with Morok.鈥?/p>

I clapped his shoulder. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 need someone to break skulls right now, Nauk,鈥?I told him honestly. 鈥淚 need someone to watch over the company while I try to outmanoeuvre Juniper, and you鈥檝e done that just fine.鈥?/p>

The large orc shuffled his feet uncomfortably. He looked pleased 鈥?or hungry. It could be hard to tell with orcs.

鈥淲ade in their blood, Captain,鈥?Nauk gravelled. 鈥淚鈥檝e been looking forward to this part since you told us the plan.鈥?/p>

So had I. It was about time we got to be the ones causing trouble. I left the orc lieutenant to it and went to check on the walking absurdity that was my trump card. Unsurprisingly, Robber was the one watching over Ratface鈥檚 Ex. My legionaries insisted on calling the goat by the verbal abomination that was the other proposed name, but I refused to humour them in this. A girl had to have some principles, and I drew the line at puns.

鈥淓verything ready, Sergeant?鈥?I asked.

鈥淥n our part, sure,鈥?the goblin replied, eyes still fixed on the unmoving goat. 鈥淐an鈥檛 answer for Lieutenant Kilian鈥檚 merry parade of magical minions.鈥?/p>

I let the dig pass without comment, since he鈥檇 at least bothered to tack on Kilian鈥檚 rank to it. Kneeling next to the corpse, I touched its forehead and with an exertion of will had it rise to its feet. To my surprise I鈥檇 manage to raise all of the carcasses provided by my men without any real trouble, though I鈥檇 yet to figure out how to manipulate more than one at a time. The corpses remained still unless I willed it otherwise, and I鈥檇 found that after leaving one alone for too long I needed physical contact to make it work properly again. There would be no zombie army for me, it seemed, and Weeping Heavens when had I reached a point in my life where I was using the words 鈥渮ombie army鈥?without a hint of irony?

鈥淭ell Pickler to get the line in position,鈥?I told another sapper standing close by. 鈥淲e won鈥檛 have much time between the first hit and the second.鈥?/p>

The female goblin saluted and scuttled off without a word as I returned my attention to the zombie. My main obstacle at the moment was the mine field. Assaulting the rampart was nothing more than a daydream as long as my company hadn鈥檛 secured a way across it. That we weren鈥檛 in the ballista鈥檚 angle of fire anymore was one problem dealt with, but the fact remained that any people I sent through would be getting peppered with crossbow fire the whole time. I could more or less deal with that by putting my cadets in a testudo formation, but packing them that tightly as they made their way through a field line with demolition charges would lead to horrific casualties. My first step, then, was to be clearing a safe path for my company. Thankfully, I had expendable assets to send into the grinder.

Ratface鈥檚 Ex dutifully followed me as I passed through the gap I鈥檇 had blown into the palisade, coming to stand at the edge of the killing field and gazing at the rampart. As expected the top of it was bristling with enemy legionaries, all of them armed with Snatcher鈥檚 crossbows. I couldn鈥檛 see Juniper, but I had no doubt that she was standing somewhere she could see the whole battlefield. Behind me my sapper line trickled through the hole, the front ranks carrying large screens of leather framed by repurposed sudis. All of the components had been cannibalized from Aisha鈥檚 camp, the leather coming from her tents and the wood and nails taken from her first line of defence. In the absence of the second tenth of my mage line and their large shields this ramshackle kind of cover would have to serve 鈥?much to my displeasure, every single member of that tenth had been taken prisoner with Ratface. Kilian鈥檚 mages spread out among the sappers in groups of three, the redhead in question coming to stand by my side in silence. I cracked my fingers and took a deep breath. Time to get the stone rolling.

Before I could get so much as a word out, Robber broke formation and strolled to the edge of the field. Straightening his back, he stood as high as his four feet and a half of height allowed him and slowly unsheathed his sword. Face solemn, he brandished the blade at First Company.

鈥?em>Unleash the goat,鈥?he commanded, clearly relishing every word coming out of his mouth.

鈥淩emind me to stick him with latrine duty for at least a month,鈥?I told Kilian in an aside.

The mage snorted. With a sigh, I willed the goat to move forward. The pace I set was fast, though not enough to damage the corpse鈥檚 integrity, and I set it to a path that passed straight through the middle of the field. It was facing the only part of the ramparts that wasn鈥檛 ten feet high: instead of packed rock and dirt there was a palisade there serving as a makeshift gate. More importantly, it was the only part of the fortifications that wasn鈥檛 barred by the ditch. The goat made it about fifteen feet before the sand under it detonated. I grimaced. It was a good thing that my ability to sense through the creature鈥檚 skin numbed pretty quickly after I raised it, otherwise that would have been a bitch of a backlash. I focused on my connection to the necromantic construct and noted that while it was damaged it was still, in fact, capable of moving. Makes sense. Snatcher鈥檚 not going to use a munition grade that risks actually killing other cadets. No doubt a living creature would have been knocked unconscious or, barring that, been incapacitated by the shattered bones. Fortunately, Ratface鈥檚 Ex had no such limitations. Mustering vague memories of when I鈥檇 done the same to my own fingers, I pulled at strings and popped the goat鈥檚 bones back into place. It slowly got back to its feet and started limping forward the field. It managed to make it to fifty feet before the first fireball from the rampart struck it. Another three followed almost a heartbeat later, hitting the goat almost simultaneously.

鈥淕otcha,鈥?I grinned sharply.

鈥淣OW,鈥?Kilian called out.

My three clusters of three mages immediately fired back fireballs of their own straight at the source of the enemy magic. All but one of the enemy casters were drowned in a storm of flame before they could get back in cover. One fireball they might have weathered without too much damage, but three? Those three mages had been knocked out of the melee for now. Unfortunate that I鈥檇 had to split my mage line in clusters of three instead of pairs, but Kilian had informed me she couldn鈥檛 promise a sure takedown if she couldn鈥檛 concentrate the magic at least that much. First Company was superbly trained: before I could count five heartbeats the rest of its mage line was returning fire at my now exposed mages. Too late, Hellhound. My sappers moved their screens forward and the mages ran to take cover behind the stretched out leather. I frowned as the flame impacted Pickler鈥檚 screens: two of them held up admirably, but the third鈥檚 frame splintered as fire spread across its surface. Kilian cursed and I followed her gaze to a lone silhouette on the rampart, where a mage鈥檚 raised hand was slowly wreathing itself in bolts of blinding energy. Shit. I hadn鈥檛 anticipated Juniper would have any mages capable of calling down lightning. If they managed to hit the screen that had already been damaged鈥?/p>

鈥淣o you don鈥檛,鈥?the Duni growled.

The redhead bit her thumb as I blinked in surprise, drawing blood and swiping a line of it across her cheek.

鈥淚 am the root and the crown, the source and the flow, the storm and the calm,鈥?she murmured. 鈥淧ower is purpose, purpose is will. Gods of my mother, take this offering and grant me the wrath of Heaven.鈥?/p>

The last words were an angry hiss, and she threw her hand forward in a snap. A gauntlet of lightning burst into existence around her fingers, a thick thread of it streaking forward across the air with a violent crackle and colliding with the bolt thrown by the enemy mage maybe four feet above my fleeing soldiers. The magic impacted with a deafening howl but Kilian鈥檚 spell held, both streaks of lightning flickering out of existence after the clash. My lieutenant鈥檚 cheeks were flushed and she was panting, the streak of blood on her cheek somehow turned to ash.

That had been鈥?impressive. And, if I was to be entirely honest, just a little bit arousing. Seeing her harness that kind of power with nothing more than a handful of words and being pissed off鈥?I coughed and turned my attention back to the now-smouldering Ratface鈥檚 Ex. Now was definitely not the time to wonder what the redhead looked like out of her armour.

Unfortunately, my zombie was no longer in a state fit for running. I willed it to crawl forward anyhow and it made it another ten feet before a last fireball destroyed it beyond even my ability to control. I clenched my fingers and unclenched them. Sixty feet out of a hundred, not bad. The question was, was there another charge buried in those last forty feet? The path I鈥檇 cleared was the easiest, quickest way to the fort鈥檚 entrance. If there was somewhere to mine, that was definitely it. On the other hand, Snatcher might have thought that no one would be stupid enough to go further in a straight line after running into a charge fifteen feet in. Out of my four undead, two were already unusable. The remaining goat and the gazelle were loaded with munitions I couldn鈥檛 afford to lose on a mine: I needed that gate blown up, and quickly.

鈥淲ell, Snatcher,鈥?I murmured to myself. 鈥淗ere鈥檚 hoping you decided to get tricky on our asses.鈥?/p>

Pickler had brought the next goat forward when she鈥檇 moved in her sappers, propping it up against the palisade like it was a poorly-built bookshelf. It took no more than a few moments to re-establish my connection with the undead, the animated corpse skipping back with me when I returned to Kilian鈥檚 side.

鈥淕ive the signal,鈥?I ordered her. 鈥淲e鈥檙e beginning phase three.鈥?/p>

鈥淥peration Fainting Goat is a go,鈥?she murmured, and I shot her a genuinely betrayed look.

Kilian had been one of the few strongholds of sanity left when the undead suicide goat plan had spread to the rank and file, that she would get on the wagon now was treachery of the worst sort. That Hakram had been the one to dryly suggest the name was even worse. Regardless, the mage raised her hand and with a few mangled syllables created the Miezan numeral for three out of flames. A moment later half of my sappers got moving, escorted by the surviving tenth of Ratface鈥檚 line: Sergeant Tordis led from the front, shield raised high. This would be the tricky part, when it came down to it. I should have made Juniper wary of using her mages by making it clear my own would immediately retaliate but she had other options. Risking one of my remaining tenths in fighting shape left a foul taste in the mouth yet it was necessary if the sappers were to get within range without getting put down by crossbow fire.

The first bolts hit when they鈥檇 made it twenty feet in through the path I鈥檇 cleared. Immediately my regulars tightened their ranks and the sappers crouched behind them, the lot of them still pushing forward at a glacial pace. When Juniper鈥檚 mages popped out my own were ready to pre-empt them, but she was ready for us this time: every one of First Company鈥檚 spellcasters had a pair of soldiers covering them with their shields. Not even concentration of fire managed to break through it. I grimaced when the enemy鈥檚 own fireballs impacted Sergeant Tordis鈥?group, knocking three cadets out of formation and immediately seeing them shot.

鈥淜ilian,鈥?I spoke up. 鈥淭hat thing you did with the lightning; could your mages do the same with enemy fireballs?鈥?/p>

鈥淣o,鈥?she admitted. 鈥淭he spell they teach us at the College isn鈥檛 precise enough for that.鈥?/p>

鈥淕odsdamnit,鈥?I cursed, watching as another two members of Tordis鈥?tenth bit the dust. 鈥淭his is going to cost us.鈥?/p>

They were in position now, at least. The sappers wasted no time in throwing their smokers ahead, their whole position becoming obscured by the thick smoke in a matter of moments. They started backing up almost immediately, another regular getting hit by a blindly-thrown fireball but managing to shake it off since it wasn鈥檛 immediately followed by getting shot. The sappers dragged back our unconscious cadets, the entire formation managing to get back safely out of enemy range without any further trouble. From fifty feet into the path to the very bottom of the enemy rampart was now covered in smoke, but there was no time to waste. Smokers didn鈥檛 last as long when the space they filled was that broad, and though the day wasn鈥檛 particularly windy it wasn鈥檛 absent of wind either. Without so much as my looking in its direction, the goat started running forward.

鈥淪o what鈥檚 this one called, anyway?鈥?I absently asked Kilian.

I could feel her smile through the tone, though my attention was still on my zombie.

鈥淪natcher鈥檚 Cousin,鈥?she replied.

鈥淭hat feels mildly racist,鈥?I mused.

鈥淐an it really be racist if goblins are the ones who named it?鈥?she wondered out loud.

I didn鈥檛 answer the question, as the Cousin had finally entered the smoke. I鈥檇 ordered the obscuration of the battlefield to ensure Juniper couldn鈥檛 blow the zombie before I did, but the obvious downside was that I couldn鈥檛 see where it was going either. All my Name was giving was a vague sense of where it was standing and how its parts were moving. It would have been useful if I鈥檇 been able to see through the zombie鈥檚 own eyes but when it came down to it what my ability could create was little more than an elaborate flesh puppet. All I could do was send it in a straight line and hope for the best. With a silent tug of the strings I had the goat halt at what I estimated was about eighty feet, returning a portion of my attention to Kilian.

鈥淚 can have it at the gate in about six breaths,鈥?I told her. 鈥淭ell me when to get it moving.鈥?/p>

The redhead frowned but nodded, eyes faraway as she tried to puzzle out the timing. Aiming for perfection here would be overestimating ourselves but we couldn鈥檛 let it stand in front of the gate too long either: I couldn鈥檛 take the risk Juniper had figured out a way to deal with it without blowing it up. Frankly, just sending out a legionary to pick it up and run back inside might do the trick if they were fast enough. The mage softly started chanting and I kept an eye on her as red-orange flames started forming around her hand. Suddenly she nodded and instead of replying I set my construct moving, the ball of flames shooting into the smoke a moment later. A few heartbeats later I felt the goat run into something solid. The explosion that struck a moment later was, once again, deafening. While I couldn鈥檛 see the effect of it through the smoke, I had a hard time believing it wouldn鈥檛 have wrecked the gate. There were twice as many sharpers stuck inside the goat as last time, after all. Hopefully none of Juniper鈥檚 soldiers had been standing right behind the gate, because that would have been pretty brutal to go through.

鈥淣ow what?鈥?Kilian asked, peering into the distance.

鈥淣ow we-鈥?/p>

Before I could finish the sentence a flash of lightning came out of the smoke. I reacted on instinct, trying to get Kilian down, but she pushed away my hand and thrust out her arm. I felt goose bumps on my arms as she spat out a word in that strange tongue mages used, sorcery meeting sorcery once again. Whatever it was she鈥檇 done, it stopped the better part of the lightning: a shudder run through me but that was the only effect I could feel. The redhead fell on her knees and I made to help her up when I noticed her hair had turned鈥?strange. It looked more like fire than dark red locks, and when she turned to face me her eyes had turned from hazel to an inhumanly vivid green. Her body had a spasm, her back arching like something was trying to break out of it, and I wasn鈥檛 sure whether I should try to hold her down or let it happen. Thankfully, after a moment it stopped.

鈥淔uck,鈥?she cursed, the words coming thick and slow on her tongue. 鈥淚 hate it when that happens.鈥?/p>

I helped her back to her feet. 鈥淭oo much magic?鈥?I guessed.

鈥淭ried to abshorb 鈥?absorb 鈥?the hit to keep it from splashing,鈥?Kilian replied.

She took a deep breath, then stood on her own.

鈥淚鈥檒l be fine, Captain,鈥?she told me. 鈥淏it of a headache, that鈥檚 all, and I鈥檒l keep the spells simple for a while.鈥?/p>

I clapped her shoulder. 鈥淭ake a break, Lieutenant,鈥?I ordered. 鈥淣othing鈥檒l happen until the smoke clears anyway.鈥?/p>

I let her limp away without comment, deciding it was about time I relocated myself. Whoever had said lightning never struck the same place twice obviously had little experience with mages.

By the time the smoke cleared I鈥檇 returned to my old vantage point, the undead gazelle idling by my side. Robber had informed me it had been dubbed 鈥楽tealth Goat鈥?by popular acclaim at which point I鈥檇 informed him that he was going to find me a stool or I would be dragging him along for the ride as my official footrest. I took great satisfaction in the fact that he looked genuinely worried by the threat. To my surprise he reappeared later with a fold-up stool apparently looted from Aisha鈥檚 camp. I blithely pretended I hadn鈥檛 been sending him on a fool鈥檚 errand and assured him he was safe from my feet for at least the next few days. The first thing I noticed when the ramparts came into sight again was that the new batch of munitions had definitely been more powerful than the last. There was no trace of the former gate and even the tightly packed sand and stone surrounding it had been damaged.

I stood in sight of the walls for a long time, letting the lazy breeze fall on my face. Juniper must have believed I was baiting her mages, because there was no repeat of the lightning incident. I didn鈥檛 think it would have been enough to take me out anyway. I鈥檇 punched a sharper two days ago and all my fingers had gotten out of the experience was a set of bruises. Squires were a hard breed to kill, apparently. After remaining in the open long enough that there could be no doubt Juniper had seen me, I left Stealth Goat behind and casually strolled down the path I鈥檇 cleared earlier. I left my shield behind, keeping the folded stool under my arm instead. My soldiers milled uncomfortably behind me as I kept walking, stopping about halfway through without anyone from the ramparts trying anything. I was close enough to see that two full lines had crossbows pointed at me, but for now they refrained from shooting. Calmly, I unfolded the stool and placed it on the ground. I plopped myself on it and waited.

Juniper didn鈥檛 make me wait long. The tall female orc strode out of the gate-hole without a shield or a helmet, though like me she鈥檇 kept her sword at her side. I was amused to note she鈥檇 brought a stool of her own, of identical make. Must have been Legion-issue. Her face was inscrutable as she made her way towards me, setting up her own seat to face mine barely a few feet away. The wooden frame creaked under the weight of her when she sat down, still silent. A moment passed, then she turned to the side and spat in the dirt.

鈥淪o you want a draw,鈥?she flatly stated.

I raised an eyebrow. 鈥淭hat obvious, huh,鈥?I said, not denying the truth of it.

鈥淚 looked up the old rules too, Callow,鈥?she grunted. 鈥淭wo-way draw means we keep half the points we bid. Probably shouldn鈥檛 have bid twice what Rat Company has in the negatives if you wanted to keep it quiet.鈥?/p>

The idea had struck me when the cadets Ratface had sent to scour the College archives for old five company melees had dug up a record three-way draw. When the instructors had outlined the rules for the melee they鈥檇 said nothing about draws of any sort, meaning they hadn鈥檛 specifically denied the old ruling. It was sketchy as Hells, but I was pretty sure I could swing it. There were advantages to having the Black Knight on your side, and if Heiress wasn鈥檛 above using family connections to her advantage then I wasn鈥檛 above pulling rank through my teacher.

鈥淔igured it was a good thing to have as a back up, if things went south,鈥?I admitted.

鈥淵ou鈥檇 lose the bet,鈥?Juniper pointed out.

鈥淎h, but here鈥檚 the thing,鈥?I smiled. 鈥淭he Dread Empress specifically phrased so that Heiress only got the appointment if I lost. A draw isn鈥檛 a defeat, it鈥檚 just not a victory.鈥?/p>

And should, Gods forbid, our Squire lose? Those had been her exact words. I鈥檇 wondered in the aftermath of court why a woman who was supposed to be the political patron of Black hadn鈥檛 seen fit to give me a helping hand when I was his de facto apprentice. It was only the night before the melee I鈥檇 realized that she鈥檇 subtly steered the terms of the bet to give me a better chance.

鈥淰ery clever,鈥?Juniper smiled unpleasantly, flashing her fangs at me. 鈥淣ow tell me, why exactly should I give a fuck?鈥?/p>

鈥淏ecause it could go either way, right now,鈥?I told her frankly. 鈥淚 still have some of my little minions and I can make more.鈥?/p>

鈥淵ou鈥檒l run out of munitions eventually,鈥?she growled.

鈥淵ou鈥檒l run out of soldiers eventually,鈥?I replied. 鈥淭he munitions won鈥檛 take you out of the game, sure, but then I still have fighting men left.鈥?/p>

鈥淲ho鈥檒l have to cross an open field while getting shot at,鈥?the Hellhound snarled.

鈥淭hey will,鈥?I shrugged. 鈥淲hich is why I鈥檒l put my wounded in the front to soak up the crossbow fire.鈥?/p>

The orc鈥檚 eyes narrowed. 鈥淪ome of them could be crippled for life. It messes up mage healing if you break the bones again too quick.鈥?/p>

My answering smile was a cold, cold thing. 鈥淵ou underestimate how badly I want this, Hellhound. If you have moral qualms about crippling cadets, then don鈥檛 shoot your fucking crossbows at them.鈥?/p>

That was the thing with scruples: they could so very easily be thrown back at the person throwing them at you. Juniper looked at me like it was the first time we鈥檇 ever met. In a sense, it was. My little interlude at the War College had been a pleasant diversion and I鈥檇 picked up useful skills, but there was a reason I鈥檇 come here in first place. I was not so much of a hypocrite that I鈥檇 flinch in the face having people crippled when I鈥檇 signed the death warrant of thousands by letting the Lone Swordsman go. The other captain rolled a shoulder calmly, chewing it over.

鈥淣o deal,鈥?she finally said. 鈥淣othing in this for me, Callow. Could go either way, sure. Means I could win.鈥?/p>

I sighed. 鈥淵ou know, I wondered what company scores were for when I first heard about them,鈥?I told her.

She鈥檇 been about to get up but when I continued speaking she stilled. If she was confused by my interjection, then she showed no sign of it.

鈥淕et your officers to brief you,鈥?she grunted. 鈥淚t affects placement in the Legions when you graduate.鈥?/p>

鈥淚 know that now,鈥?I replied. 鈥淒idn鈥檛 seem like a big deal to me at the time, but then I remembered I had a dream.鈥?/p>

The orc bared her teeth mockingly. 鈥淵ou going to tell me you have all these big plans so I should let you win? For shame, Callow. You were almost starting to be tolerable.鈥?/p>

鈥淣ot that kind of dream,鈥?I said softly. 鈥淚 mean the Name kind.鈥?/p>

That got her attention, sure enough. Her mouth closed with a snap.

鈥淭he gist of it, I think, was that sometimes you have to give to get,鈥?I mused. 鈥淪o that had me wondering: what do you want, Juniper?鈥?/p>

鈥淵ou getting to a point would be nice,鈥?she growled.

鈥淪ee, I keep hearing all these things about you,鈥?I continued. 鈥淭he Hellhound, never lost a game. Best tactician to grace the College since the Reforms, top of the class in every class.鈥?/p>

I could see her mustering what was no doubt a pretty scathing retort but I interrupted her.

鈥淭he one thing I didn鈥檛 hear about you,鈥?I spoke softly, 鈥渨as that you鈥榬e Istrid Knightsbane鈥檚 daughter.鈥?/p>

The orc鈥檚 meaty hand closed around the hilt of her sword.

鈥淵ou threatening my mother, Callow?鈥?she snarled.

I shook my head.

鈥淚t鈥檚 telling, that you don鈥檛 bring the family name into this,鈥?I told her. 鈥淢eans you want to make it on your own merits. Means you鈥檙e ambitious.鈥?/p>

鈥淚t鈥檇 be a pretty nice feather in my cap to waste you, you know,鈥?the orc grinned nastily, 鈥淚f I beat a Named on the field I鈥檇 join as a tribune, or at the very least senior captain.鈥?/p>

鈥淵ou take your chances and try for that,鈥?I agreed. 鈥淥r you could make a draw with me right now, and be named the highest-ranked officer in the Fifteenth Legion.鈥?/p>

She gaped at me and I really enjoyed the sight of it more than I should.

鈥淵ou can鈥檛 promise that,鈥?she growled.

鈥淪ure I can,鈥?I retorted flatly. 鈥淭he whole thing with being a villain, Juniper, is that you can basically do whatever the Hells you want unless someone stops you. And who鈥檚 going to stop me in this? Black? If I know anything, he鈥檚 doing that vicious smile thing he does as he eavesdrops on us right now.鈥?/p>

The other captain got her bearings back after a few moments, her now calm face creasing with a frown.

鈥淚鈥檇 be under your command,鈥?Juniper said.

鈥淵ou鈥檒l be under someone鈥檚 command whatever happens,鈥?I shrugged. 鈥淒o you want to serve under the shadow of someone who earned their spurs during the Conquest, or forge an entirely new legion with me?鈥?/p>

I could see the conflict in her eyes, and that meant I was winning.

鈥淵ou鈥檙e bribing me,鈥?she accused.

鈥淪hamelessly so,鈥?I admitted. 鈥淏ut the fact that I have to bribe you means you鈥檙e worth bribing.鈥?/p>

That got a snort out of her.

鈥淎ll a draw means is that I鈥檓 admitting that, right here and right now, we鈥檙e equals,鈥?I said, meeting her eyes. 鈥淚鈥檓 not too proud for that. Are you?鈥?/p>

I offered up my arm. After a long moment, she leaned forward and clasped it.

鈥淒raw,鈥?she grunted.

鈥淒raw,鈥?I echoed.

Thunder clapped twice and both our standards appeared in the sky, orange-red. We rose to our feet and I looked aside.

鈥?em>Despite the rules, you said. See? I do listen, sometimes,鈥?I whispered.