A Dangerous Combination
As total war between the Maritime Alliance and the Great Tiger Empire drew close...
“Achoo! Urgh... It’s so cold.”
“Ookyakya! Glad you could make it, Miss Trill! And welcome.”
They were near the northern edge of the Republic of Turgis, in a city now named Tarus, which they’d gained in the last war. Here, Kuu, Taru, Leporina, and Nike from the Republic were meeting Princess Trill of the Euphoria Kingdom.
Trill rubbed her arms for warmth as she looked around. “The Republic is every bit as frigid as I’ve heard...”
“Oh, yeah? I feel like it’s pretty warm around these parts,” Kuu replied cheerily.
Sighing, Nike said, “I keep telling you, it feels totally different to us humans. Even during the summer, in a place like Sapeur, I feel I still need two more layers over my shirt.”
Nike and Trill were the only humans present. Since Nike wasn’t a member of the Five Races of the Snowy Plains, who’d adapted to life in cold climates, he felt the chill of the Republic all the way to his bones.
Kuu carried on, not letting Nike’s comment distract him. “Sorry to spring this on you when you’ve just arrived, Miss Trill, but I’d like your assistance in building defenses for Tarus and the neighboring city of Leporus. They will be the first battlefields when we go up against the Great Tiger Empire. We need to harden the defenses so they’re not easily breached.”
This was Kuu’s plan, for which he’d called in Trill, who was a foreign princess. During the earlier top-level meeting between the four countries of the Maritime Alliance, Kuu heard that Jeanne didn’t know what to do with the eccentric Drill Princess, so he made a point of inviting her to the Republic. Trill had been quick to accept his proposal.
“Big Sister Jeanne has already told me about it. But are you sure?” Trill said, tilting her head to the side. “I’m an amateur when it comes to war, so perhaps you’d be better to ask someone else?”
“Oh, I don’t mind that.” Kuu grinned. “I’ll come up with the ideas for defensive equipment, so you just decide if they’re possible. If you think you can pull them off, then Taru and her engineers will make them with you. All expenses paid by the Republic, of course.”
“In that case...I guess it’s fine.”
“Great. So, I’d heard about Bro having Mechadra remodeled by Genia and her team, and that pile driver was your idea? That’s when I thought I just had to bring you here to remodel the fortress walls.”
“Oh, that was a really hard job...” Taru sighed, recalling her involvement.
She’d worked on the remodel of Mechadra, albeit only as a craftsperson, with the ideas coming chiefly from Genia and Trill. She had suffered alongside Merula, the other common-sense person on the team, as they tried to turn all those ridiculous thoughts into a reality.
“Now, now,” Leporina said, trying to soothe Taru, who had a far-off look in her eyes.
Kuu clapped his hands.
“Anyway, we shouldn’t just stand around. Let’s take this somewhere we can discuss it at length.”
The group relocated to the mansion Nike had been given as the temporary magistrate of Tarus. The large desk in his office was covered in all sorts of documents scattered about at random.
“What is this...?!” Trill exclaimed, her eyes widening as she picked one up.
Each page carried some contraption Kuu wanted to be made, along with a simple illustration. But what surprised Trill wasn’t the contents but the volume.
“You have this many ideas?”
“Sure. I just wrote down things I wanted to try, and this is how it turned out.”
Kuu didn’t even feel bad about it. Trill looked at one of his ideas. It said, “Dragon on wall that looks decorative suddenly spews fire at enemies.” The other ideas were similar in nature.
“These are all very...offbeat, let’s say.” Trill was, uncharacteristically, a little weirded out. “You seem eager for this war, Kuu. Yet Big Sister Jeanne and Big Brother Hakuya looked so somber about it.”
“Huh? Nah. I think the war’s a pain. I just had kids, and I don’t want to waste my time on this stuff... Y’know?”
“Really? You seem to have a lot of ideas, considering,” Taru said, nonplussed by this surprising opinion from Kuu.
“Ookyakya! Because I don’t want to fight a boring war. This battle’s going to be a localized conflict anyway. The real result will be decided by the showdown between Bro and Fuuga. I just want to kick up all the dust I can and keep our losses to a minimum while we drive the enemy off. That’s all.”
The look on Kuu’s face as he spoke was unquestionably that of a ruler’s.
“Lord Kuu always catches us off guard when it comes to these things,” said Leporina, to which Taru and Nike both nodded.
Hearing that, Trill was taken aback for a moment but soon put on a bold smile. “Then I won’t hold back either. I’ll take on the task with everything I have.”
And so, the dangerous combination of Kuu and Trill joined forces and prepared to meet the Great Tiger Empire in battle.
No Comments Yet
Post a new comment
Register or Login