Casus Belli Ch. 03: Road to Ruin

Cerny thought hard, "I slept two times..., so almost three days."

Cassandra blinked astonished, "Where did you sleep?"

Cerny shrugged, "By the trail, Musso kept me warm."

She swallowed, looked at Brando, "Aren't there wulfen at the moors this time of year?"

"I saw some," Cerny reacted, "but they didn't like my bow." They all gazed at the small girl with amazement, who eagerly finished her soup. When she had cleaned the bowl to her satisfaction she looked up at Cassandra again. "Will I be allowed to see the Kang now, Miss? The orcs captured my father, so I have to ask him for his help."

She swallowed, "My father was killed by the orcs, just a couple of days ago, Cerny."

The girl's face clouded, and she bit her lower lip, "I'm so sorry for you Miss." She hesitated, "But the Kang...," she stopped speaking again, and then her eyes went wide, "But you said your name was..., oh..., I see..."

Cassandra smiled softly, "Yes, Cassy is short for Cassandra." The girl's eyes dropped, and her lower lip started to tremble. She knelt down and hugged her, "Don't cry now, you have been so brave, and I don't think the orcs harmed your father."

The girl hugged her back, "Are you sure? I miss him so much."

Cassandra thought back to her meeting with Bashuk. The orc leader had possessed at least a semblance of honor, and the girl's father hadn't wronged him or his people. So unless the girl's father had been stupid enough to take up arms when an entire orc army came knocking at his door... And a man that stupid would never have fathered a daughter as smart and resourceful as Cerny clearly was. She smiled as logic seemed to support her gut feeling, "Yes, I'm certain they didn't harm him. Who would bring them food and make their beds if they did?"

She felt the girl relax against her, leaned back and locked eyes with her, "Still hungry? We're having beef stew with mashed potatoes... Cerny licked her lips, she looked over her shoulder at Brando, "Could you put a chair between ours?" Brando nodded smiling, a couple of minutes later the main course was served, and they ate with Cerny sitting between them. "You have a good appetite..." she said to the young girl, who was literally stuffing herself with food.

Cerny looked up at her, "I was returning from my daily ride when I noticed all the orcs. So instead of going back to the Inn, and be captured too, I headed south-west towards Iriskan. There were enough streams to drink from on the way, but for food I only had a couple of sticks of dried meat in my saddlebag, and some dried apples, but those were for Musso."

Cassandra smiled at her, "I see... I do think it's fair to warn you we're having fruit pudding with whipped cream for dessert though..." Cerny's eyes grew wide, and then she looked down at her rather overfilled plate in consternation. Cassandra chuckled, "Don't worry, you're excused, you don't have to eat all of it."

When dinner was finished she stood and addressed the councilors, "Please excuse me for a moment gentlemen, I'll be back soon to discuss these new developments with you." Next she took Cerny by the hand, and led her out of the dining room, down the hallway to her private chambers.

"Ooh," the girl moaned on the way, "I think I ate too much... But the pudding was so yummy..."

Cassandra chuckled, and then they entered the reception room, and both Denora and Moiga rose surprised from behind the desk. She smiled at them, "We have a guest of honor tonight. This is Cerny, she's the bravest girl in the whole of Nigawa." She looked down at the girl holding her hand, "I still have some work to do Cerny, but Denora here is going to take good care of you, okay?"

"That's me," Denora said, as the girl looked at Moiga and her.

Cerny smiled, and then she nodded at Cassandra.

She smiled back at her, and then looked at Denora again. "Cerny has been traveling for three days, so I think a bath and some clean clothing would be a good start. And then you'll have to come up with a place for her to sleep. But I don't want her to be put in one of the guest rooms outside my quarters. I want for you girls to be able to keep an eye on her. Maybe you could make some room in one of the children's rooms, and have the guards fetch a bed from one of the guest rooms for her."

Denora winked at Cerny, and then locked eyes with her, "Don't you worry milady, we'll work something out."

She looked down at Cerny again, and caressed her hair, "See you later? The girl nodded first, and then she leaned in to her and gave her a hug. By the time she let go of her again Denora had walked around to them. Cerny happily took Denora's offered hand, and Cassandra watched as her senior maiden led their young guest further into her private domain. Then she walked back towards the dining room, and found Brando and the counselors had moved to the conference room. When she entered a map was already on the table, and the men were discussing what the orcs might be up to.

She joined them, and like them she couldn't make anything from it. "They could be trying to reach Iriskan without having to confront the eastern army again, by taking the route over Merdion, but why? You don't want to attack a city with a functional army threatening your back...," Marecomb said.

Brando nodded, "Yes, and taking the long route all the way over Lagrono, to get across the Amunda, to be able to attack Iriskan from the south, or assist their western army with taking The Forks, doesn't make much sense either. In the former case they'll be attacking the city with just half their army, and in the latter case they risk letting our eastern army pass through Iriskan to attack them from behind."

A sheer endless number of possible scenarios, many offered by counselors without any military background, kept them busy for over an hour. None of them made sense though, and Cassandra found her attention drifting to The Forks time and again. "Let's assume, for a moment, that their western army did the same thing," she said, "Let's assume, they only left a token force behind at The Forks and moved the bulk of that army somewhere else too."

A short silence descended, and then Marecomb spoke up, "There's absolutely no reason thinkable for them to move half their available force west towards Suwal, or North towards Koban, so that leaves the road south to Rovan."

"Maybe they want to try to capture the ferry at Olbio, to reunite their armies south of Iriskan?" Sir Hardin offered.

Both Marecomb and Brando shook their heads, "It would take ages to ferry such a large army across," the latter said, "and should something happen halfway through the operation you would end up with a split army."

"That aside, the ferry is guarded, and prepared for torching," Marecomb added.

Cassandra was submerged in thoughts, looking at the map. What did the orcs have to gain with these peculiar movements? Why move their armies even further apart like this? Why move to the south, while their own forces were being concentrated around Iriskan? She suddenly had an epiphany, "I think I know what they are doing," she stated, drawing everyone's attention. She put her finger on the map, "Rogin" she said. Her finger slid south "Bulness," her finger slid east, "Roha," further east, "Bornum", even further east, "Soudra." She looked up at Brando and Marecomb, "That's where they're going."

A short silence fell, and then Marecomb said what all the others, going by their faces, seemed to think, "Why would they want to do that? What would that bring them? Except for fracturing their force while allowing us to rest and consolidate?"

She grimaced, "Five fortified towns that guard the only routes in and out of Nigawa? Soudra and Bornum are on the Cravas, the river that forms the border with Loras. Rogin is on the Bosan, and Bulness and Roha are on the Amunda, together these three control the border with Mercandon."

Marecomb frowned, "They want to guard our southern borders? Are they afraid Mercandon or Loras will come to our aid?"

She shook her head, felt a shiver run up her spine, "They aren't going there to keep people out, Marecomb, they are going there to keep people in. They are going to block all the escape routes out of Nigawa." She felt dread, "They are closing the cage before going after our army, because they don't want anyone to get away." A deep silence descended, she felt sure she had come up with the right explanation, and going by the faces around her, so thought the others.

"I'll be damned," Marecomb exclaimed, and she couldn't shed the feeling they all were.

Burgon Magwick was the next one to speak, "They're pretty sure of themselves it seems..."

Brando grinned, "Well, let's see about that, shall we? We'll start by sending scouts after them, to keep tabs on them while we reunite the army south of Iriskan. And then we move south too, and hit their shattered army groups one by one. Let's make them realize it's a long long way from the south of Nigawa all the way back to Baelok pass..."

Most of the counselors nodded, "They will be spread mighty thin for a while..." Marecomb agreed.

It looked like something that could work, As did so many things before, she noted to herself. But what else was there to hold on to?

"Succeed once and we offset most of our losses," Brando said, "succeed twice and we regain our initial numerical superiority."

The men around the table clearly started to regain confidence, and she felt herself gaining confidence too. Looking down at the map also brought anxiety though. Two orc armies were on the loose inside her country, and only the gods knew what carnage they were going to inflict on her defenseless people. She swallowed, and then she remembered what she had told Cerny only a short while ago. Every fiber inside her body had told her she hadn't been lying to the girl. And thus she found herself relying on an enemy orc's sense of honor to keep her sanity.

Cassandra returned to her private chambers with Brando in tow, a small waxed coat over her arm, and an equally small hat in her hand. She found Denora in the living room, but Cerny was nowhere to be seen. "We bathed her, milady" her senior maiden said with a smile, "and then we waited a short while, for you to return. She was dead tired though, and she kept dozing off on the couch, so we put her to bed."

Cassandra glanced at the wall mounted chronometer, and realized her after dinner meeting with the council had taken longer than planned. "You put a bed for her in one of the children's rooms then?"

Denora chuckled, "That was the plan, but someone objected..." Cassandra frowned. "The girl loves her pony, and there's someone else who loves horses too...," Denora explained, "they were thick as thieves in a heartbeat..."

It surprised her, and then Polly's voice sounded behind her, "She misses her father, and fears for his life. I didn't want for her to sleep alone in a strange room."

When she turned around she found Polly biting her lower lip. She lifted an eyebrow, "She slept alone by a trail on the moors for two nights..."

Polly got defensive, "She wasn't alone! She was with Musso..."

She smiled at her junior maiden, "You can relax Polly, I'm just teasing you a bit. I think it was a very lovely thing for you to do. How is she?"

Polly smiled, "She's sleeping like a log." She blushed a bit, "I stayed with her until she was in dreamland."

Cassandra chuckled, "Yes, I already noticed."

Polly frowned, and then she reached up to her ruffled hair, "Oops..."

She turned to Brando, "Talking about having guests sleeping over, why don't you go and fetch yourself some fresh clothes for tomorrow morning..."

He blinked surprised, "But..., what about..."

She put a finger on his lips, silencing him, "I think we're well past that station, I have no doubts the entire keep knows where you spent last night by now." She leaned into him, and her voice trembled, "Should the need for another wedding candidate arise, he can have my 'purity' checked if he considers it necessary." He hugged her close, and she pecked him on the nose, "Now go and get those fresh clothes."

He smiled at her, and then he turned and left the living room. She turned towards Denora, and felt a blush creep up her cheeks, "Denora, could I have another word with you in private?"

Polly chuckled, "Uh oh, time for the still blissfully innocent girls to leave..."

She laughed, and then she sat down on the couch while Polly made herself scarce. When the living room doors closed, Denora sat down next to her. Her senior maiden smiled softly, "More advice, milady?"

She nodded, "If you still have any..."

Denora thought for a moment, "Are you comfortable taking him down your throat now?"

She blushed anew, and then she nodded, "Yes, you were right, it took a little getting used to, but once I got the hang of it, it was easy."

Her maiden nodded, "If he's a considerate lover, and I suspect he is, you could consider having him go on top, reversed, and mount your throat like he would normally mount your pussy."

Cassandra felt hot imagining how that would be, to have Brando on top of her, inside her mouth, and down her throat, taking her as a man would take a pussy. She noticed Denora was clearly checking her reaction.

"You'd best place a cushion beneath your shoulders," her maiden continued, "So you can lean your head back, and better line up your throat with him." Her pussy twitched, and she moaned loudly as she imagined how naughty it was going to be. "Just make sure he's aware he can easily suffocate you that way," Denora added, "agree on some method to warn him if you're running out of air."

She leaned in and hugged her maiden close, "Thank you Denora." When she let go of her again she noticed the sad look in the girl's eyes. She renewed the hug, "Don't worry, I'm sure you'll find love again..., I'll find someone for you myself if I have too." Denora hugged her back, and they sat like that for a long moment. After a minute or so she let go of her again, "I would like a quick bath before Brando returns?"

Denora recruited Moiga to assist and they bathed her in the small bathtub. By the time they were ready Vala had joined them, and proceeded to quickly comb her still moist hair. Then they clad her in a soft and fluffy bathrobe. She had just sat down on one of the couches in the living room when Brando returned. She stood and met him at the center of the room. They hugged, and she sniffed him, "Hmm, not just fresh clothes it seems..."

Brando chuckled, "I wouldn't dare turn up for a night with you all dirty and sweaty."

"But you don't mind getting all dirty and sweaty again while spending the night with me?" she whispered into his ear. He groaned loud in response, and she chuckled, "Oh my, it seems I woke the barbarian again." She kissed his cheek. "Better take me with you to your lair then, before some other barbarian turns up and claims me," she whispered in his ear again. She felt him harden against her, and then she yelped as he scooped her up and threw her over his shoulder. He set off towards the bedchamber doors with her next, and she got treated to the view of three grinning maidens waving her goodbye. "Ooh," she moaned, just before they disappeared from view when the bedchamber doors closed behind her.

Brando walked over to the bed, dropped her on top of it unceremoniously, and then proceeded to get out of his clothes. He looked excited, very excited, maybe even too excited. She sat herself up, he was bare chested already, and busy getting out of his boots. "I need you to really be in control of yourself, because I have something special in mind for you," she said. He came to a stop with his trousers halfway down his legs. She smiled, "Ah, that got your attention." He stood, and the trousers slowly slid down his lower legs, with the compliments of gravity. "Can you do that for me?" she asked, "being very careful and considerate." His eyes turned into huge question marks, and then he nodded slowly.

She groaned softly as she realized how much power she had over him, not due to her position, but due to her femininity, her sexuality. She loosened the sash around her waist, let the bathrobe slip from her shoulders, and then down her back. She was naked beneath it. His eyes dropped a bit, and she knew he was looking at her now exposed breasts. She reached up and cupped them, "You like these? You prefer looking at them to looking at my face?" He moaned, chastised, and she chuckled softly, "Fie Cassy, for pestering your poor betrothed like this..." She let go of her breasts, and beckoned him with her finger, "Come here, and let me make it up to you."

He pouted most adorably, and then he kicked off his trousers and came over to the bed. There was a large bulge in the front of his long johns, and she couldn't help licking her lips. "Better get out of those too," she said, with her eyes glued to the arousing bulge, "or I won't be able to make it up to you..." He put his fingers behind the waistband and pushed down, freeing his erection. Her eyes locked on it the moment it sprang free; the object of her desire. He knelt on top of the bed, and then he closed on her, with his cock swinging.

And then he was there, and he growled as he pushed her onto her back, before coming down on top of her. His lips found hers, and they kissed feverishly, until he came up and locked eyes with her. "So..., you had something special in mind for me?"

There was eagerness in his eyes, and she chuckled softly, "Yes, I have. Could you get off me for a moment?" He nodded, and then lifted himself before rolling onto his side next to her. She reached out, and pulled one of the cushions towards her, before lifting up a bit and pushing it beneath her shoulders. She leaned back on top of it, to check if she was able to lean her head all the way back. It worked as advertised, lining her mouth up with her throat. She lifted her head again, and locked eyes with Brando, who was looking at her intrigued. She beckoned him again with her index finger, "Now get on top of me, on all fours, looking away from me..."

He looked puzzled for a moment, and then he blushed, "Cassy, you don't have to do that..."

She grinned, "So they did teach you that..."

He nodded slowly, "Not like this exactly, but with the woman hanging her head back from the edge of the bed, and me on my knees next to it."

She chuckled, "Well, this is how you do it with a lady..." He looked uncertain, "Would you prefer for me to hang my head back over the edge...? So you can take me like you took those whores?" She asked seductively.

He blushed fiercely, "No! It's just, I..., I wasn't expecting this."

She smiled softly, "Do you know why I want you to take me like this, and not sitting on your knees next to the bed?" He slowly shook his head. "Because you can't put your mouth on me while sitting on your knees next to the bed... I want you to take me like this so we can pleasure each other simultaneously, just like we would be able to if I didn't have to preserve my virginity. I want to offer you a warm opening to fuck, while you pleasure my pussy."

Brando's eyes moistened, and he blinked frantically for a moment. "Gods I love you... And I so don't deserve you." he managed. He moved on top of her, on all fours, and shuffled backwards until his knees were positioned beside her shoulders. She watched his engorged cock swing between his legs above her, and then he squatted down, and she dropped her head back as her eyes followed his descending erection. She reached out and grabbed his cock, and then used it to position him until, with him all the way back on his knees, she could take the head inside her mouth.

Her lips closed on him, and she lapped at the pre-cum covered glans, making him moan loudly. She opened her mouth again, and pulled him out of it. "Just be a bit careful..., at first," she said.