Strange Bedfellows Ch. 03

"Thank you Scoutmaster." Kalus said, then frowned. "Were it up to me, I would've double-timed it through the forest and then taken a day of rest once we'd seen the back of it."

Titus frowned. "There are some in our army that couldn't keep that pace."

The others chuckled, and Shara got the distinct impression that they were referring to their slightly overweight king. This was seemingly confirmed by the significant looks and chuckles the men shared.

"Commander." The scoutmaster said. "Might I suggest pulling several squads near the command tent as extra protection?"

"For what purpose?" Kalus asked. "We have enough sentries to alert of any possible attack."

"To prevent a determined charge from cutting off the head." The wiry scoutmaster replied. Kalus started shaking his head, but the other man plowed on. "Before you reject the request, please realize it is only partially for you." He glanced at Shara and Lyra. "Women have no place in a battle and I would prefer to ensure their safety."

Kalus hesitated a moment. "I would not feel right ordering my men to do so."

"You don't need to." The scoutmaster replied, then raised his voice. "Octavian, Pernilus, Asikan; approach."

From some distance away, three men wearing the helmet of a centurion approached, saluted respectfully, and then stood at attention.

"At ease." Titus said, then took another bite of his meal as the centurions relaxed a bit.

"These men have volunteered their centuries to guard the nucleus of the camp, including your wives." The scoutmaster continued. "Is anyone opposed?"

Not a single one of Kalus's council objected.

"Commander, my men jumped at the chance to guard you and your wives sir." One of the centurions said proudly. "They threatened to mutiny if I didn't make the offer."

There were chuckles around the campfire, and Shara got the feeling that she was missing something. It took her a moment to realize how harshly mutiny would be punished; surely the man was exaggerating.

Kalus set his plate down, stood up, and shook the man's hand. "Thank you Octavian." He then turned to the others and shook their hands as well.

"I'm happy to do it; I'd be dead twice if it wasn't for you sir." One of the other centurions said.

"At least then we'd be spared the sight of your ugly mug." The last centurion said with a grin.

Everyone laughed.

Titus stood up. "I charge you centurions: under no circumstances shall you leave these women unprotected tonight, save the order of Kalus or the king himself."

"Yes sir!" The centurions said in union, then gave a sharp salute as one.

"Dismissed." Titus said, then sat back down. The men gave a respectful nod towards the ladies and then turned smartly and left.

Kalus sat down, and he had a proud smile on his face. "They volunteered?"

The scoutmaster nodded. "As soon as Kyselius spread the orders for the evening, which they assumed were to protect against ambush."

Kalus looked at Shara and Lyra, a proud smile on his face. "Those are my men."

Shara almost couldn't believe it.

She could, but...

Wow.

They really loved him. She'd heard hints of that before, but there was no denying it now. In the background, she saw a few hundred men breaking camp to move closer; probably three hundred men since a centurion was the captain of 100 men. They were moving closer to guard him, plus her and Lyra for no other reason than they were his wives.

Wow.

"Thank you." Shara said to Kalus, and she meant it.

Lyra got a sly grin on her face. She set her empty plate down and walked -- no slinked -- towards him. She sat down sideways across his lap, and scooted closer until her hip was definitely touching his groin.

"Thank you husband." She purred, then kissed him in a manner that Shara would've never considered doing in public. She wasn'tactually being inappropriate, but she was definitely on the edge of decorum.

"And I'll thank you properly later tonight." She 'whispered' loud enough for everyone else to hear.

Shara bristled slightly; that was over the line.

Way over the line.

Kalus clearly could tell too. His response wasn't exactly loud, but it wasn't whispered. "Not tonight Lyra; it's Katia's turn."

Lyra had the good sense to look a bit embarrassed.

They finished eating, though the conversation was mostly between the military men and concerned the affairs of the army. Lyra ate while sitting in his lap, though she refrained from doing anything scandalous and mostly just looked like a new bride enjoying closeness with her husband.

"We should retire soon." Kalus said to his wives after he had finished eating.

Shara nodded and downed her last bite, then stood up. Lyra hopped off his lap with slightly pink cheeks and didn't meet anyone's eye.

He led them into his tent and closed the flap behind them, then turned to Lyra and spoke softly, but firmly. "I appreciate how affectionate you are and wouldn't want you to change that, but that was too much in public."

"Yes husband." She nodded her head. "I'm sorry."

"Good, because I would hate to turn you down in the future." He replied kindly.

"Really?"

"Did our detour from the path earlier not make that clear?"

She smiled.

He turned to Katia. "I know that you aren't interested in coupling, but there's still King Tyso's threat to contend with."

"That Saidow Spawn!" Lyra hissed quietly enough that no one outside the tent could hear.

"My thoughts exactly." The princess-in-disguise nodded.

"Language." Kalus said with a significant looked at Lyra.

"Yes husband." She nodded. "I'll have to get used to that; Pa'pa never cared if I was a bit... coarse with my tongue."

"You have a wonderfully smooth tongue." Kalus replied evenly, though the corners of his mouth twitched up. "I'd prefer it stayed smooth and not coarse." His eyes twinkled slightly.

Lyra blushed. "Yes husband, I'll try."

"Now, I will be sleeping in my armor. You two will sleep in your dresses with your shoes on, and with a shawl, coat, or wrap near-to-hand in case we are ambushed."

They both nodded.

"However, right now..." He looked at Shara. "We have something we need to do."

Shara looked down, swallowed hard, and nodded slowly. "I..."

"I know." Kalus said softly. "The moment I can be sure you are with child, I shall trouble you no longer. But until then..."

Shara sniffed slightly, then nodded.

"Um." Lyra raised her hand. "Katia, when did you last bleed?"

"Perhaps two weeks ago? Somewhere around there; I have lost count."

"Pa'pa taught me to sense the mana in a horse and how to tell the difference between a mare and foal so I could tell when a mare is pregnant." The horsewoman continued. "I'm rubbish at any other magic, but I can do that if you both don't mind."

Kalus looked at Shara and raised his eyebrow.

She nodded.

He nodded at Lyra.

"May I touch your stomach?" The ash blonde asked the amber-haired girl, who nodded.

Lyra put her hand on Shara's stomach, closed her eyes, and concentrated for around thirty seconds. Then, a small smile began to spread across her face. She adjusted her hand and put the other hand over Shara's womb. Her smile grew much wider about a minute later.

The horsewoman stood up and beamed at the two of them. "Congratulations."

Shara held her breath as she looked at Kalus.

His face was impassive for several seconds, then a smile broke out that slowly became the widest she'd ever seen on him. He looked at her, she looked back at him. He reached out a hand and placed it gently over her womb as if he couldn't believe it.

Shara reached down and placed a hand over her womb also, right beside his and both of Lyra's.

She was pregnant?

Already?

She supposed the timing was right for it to be possible. Her mother's family was famous for having many children, plus she was young so quite fertile, but still... She was carrying a child? She was going to be a mother? Almost on reflex and without her conscious thought, the corners of her mouth started to pull upwards. However, the happy expression had just barely started to form on her face when it faltered.

It was also his child.

He was a good man, but also the enemy. She was literally carrying a baby from a commander of the army that was invading her land. A good commander -- and a good man -- but still... She slowly shook her head, but couldn't keep the smile entirely off her face either.

She would be a mother.

If only he wasn't the enemy.

Then another thought occurred to her. Shara was her father's only daughter and he had no sons. If her child was a boy, then she was carrying the heir to the throne; the heir to her country's throne. Even more strangely, the heir to her country's throne had been fathered by the man who was conquering it.

* * *

Kalus had seldom found himself speechless, but this was one of those rare times. He was going to be a father? Despite himself, he could feel a wide smile growing on his face.

He was going to be a father.

He looked at his baby's mother and saw a conflicted smile there. It looked happy yet pained, and she somehow had her lips pursed as she made a pained half-smile.

"I clearly missed a lot." Lyra said, looking between the two of them.

"I'm happy, I really am." Katia said, then sniffled and her eyes looked a bit watery. However, Kalus couldn't tell if happy tears or sad tears were forming. They didn't look like either; perhaps both?

"My only regret is that you aren't as happy to be the mother of my firstborn as I am to have you be the mother." Kalus said softly.

She glanced up at him, swallowed hard, and blinked a few times. "Really?"

"Really." He nodded.

Katia opened her mouth to reply, then closed it.

"Please, speak your mind." He said.

"I would rather not." She bit her lip, but her words weren't defiant. Oddly she didn't seem to be pushing him away.

"May I ask why?"

"I don't want to be..." She bit her lip again. "That is, I don't wish to be mean."

He took a deep breath, guessing at what she was thinking. "I would know your opinion, even if it stings."

"Are you sure?"

He nodded.

"I'm... I..." She took a deep breath and wouldn't meet his eyes. "My baby's father is the enemy."

Ouch.

Years of military service and leading men had trained him to not react when he wanted to avoid it, and he drew on that to keep his face as it was. But he could feel some of the joy leaving. She still didn't want to be married to him. The conversation the previous day and her apology earlier had given him some hope, but it appeared she was as resolute as ever.

The former handmaiden hadn't lied on their first night together. She truly was a patriot. That was honorable and commendable and he wished he could say the same. His home country of Har'peton hadn't been kind to him and he held little love for it. He admired how much she loved her country, even if it led to her hating him because of it.

"That is your right." He finally said, though he wasn't entirely successful in keeping a note of sadness out of his voice. "I do hope that--"

"Commander Kalus!" His herald called from outside the tent. "King Tyso summons you."

The commander took a deep breath, then looked at his first wife. "I shall return soon. Since you are with child, we shall not couple tonight unless you wish it."

She bit her lip, then slowly shook her head.

"Very well, I shall return soon."

"Might I have a kiss before you leave husband?" Lyra asked stepping forward.

He gave her a quick kiss and then departed the tent, inwardly cursing the king for this interruption among many, many other things.

"He summoned you after the others Commander, likely to make you late." His herald whispered urgently as soon as he had exited the tent.

"Thank you Kyselius." He patted the man on the shoulder, then double-timed it to the king's tent.

The commanders were usually encamped around the king to give him greater protection, but the forest road didn't allow for that. Instead, two commanders were in front of him and two -- Kalus included -- were behind, though Kalus's legion wasn't the rearguard. The king's tent was pitched in the middle of Marcelus's legion, which was in the center of the five legions

"You called my king?" Kalus said after he'd entered the tent.

The other four commanders of the army were already there, and it looked like they had been there for some time.

"Glad you finally decided to join us." King Tyso said with an edge in his voice.

Kalus gave a respectful head bow, but otherwise didn't reply.

King Tyso eyed him. "There's a lot of commotion coming from your camp Kalus; what's going on?"

"My king?"

"No drilling and half your men standing watch." The king replied impatiently. "What are you up to?"

"I have concerns about ambushes my king." Kalus replied. "I have one man from each squad on watch, and the rest sleeping in their armor. I was just about to don my own when you summoned me."

"Ambushes?" The king laughed. "We are eighteen thousand strong to their, what? Two thousand?"

"My scoutmaster reports at least four thousand, likely more and they were last seen near this forest." Kalus replied.

"Two thousand Kalus." King Tyso corrected. "There's two thousand enemy troops and we're ten times their size; there's no way they would dare to attack us. And if they had a death wish and decided to attack, good; we'll slaughter them wholesale."

"Yes my king." He acquiesced, making sure not to let his displeasure at the idiocy of the idea show. History was replete with records of smaller forces destroying much larger forces by catching them unawares.

The king looked at him sternly. "You will tell your men that they can get some sleep and don't need to sleep in their armor. There's also no need to set more than the standard watch."

"Yes my king." Kalus gave a head bow, noting the specific wording.

Tyso hadn't actually ordered him to tell his men to take their armor off or remove the watches, just that they didn't need them. He knew his men well enough to know that if they were given the option, they would follow his lead instead of the king's in matters of combat. He might face the king's wrath in the morning if they weren't attacked, but that was better than having hundreds or thousands of dead men in the morning if they were ambushed.

"Oh and Kalus." The king added. "One more thing."

* * *

"You're not happy?" Lyra asked Katia after Kalus had left, not fully understanding her fellow wife's position on the matter.

"I don't know what I am." The former handmaiden sighed, flopping down on the bed.

Lyra sat down next to her. "Well, I saw a smile. Let's start there; what makes you happy about this?"

The amber-haired girl looked at her as the smile returned. "I'm carrying a child; I'm going to be a mother."

"Then what makes you sad?"

Katia looked down, pulled her knees up, and wrapped her arms around them. "Kalus is my husband, but he's also the enemy. He's leading -- well, helping to lead -- the army that's invading my country. And my baby will be--" She stopped short.

"...will be?" Lyra prompted.

"I... I can't say." The former handmaiden finished.

"Why?"

"Because... um, I just can't." She rocked back and forth a bit. She clearly very bothered by something, though Lyra had no idea what.

"Okay, well I won't push then." The horsewoman said gently. "But if you ever do want to talk, I'm always here for you."

"Thank you." Katia gave her a pained half-smile.

Kalus returned to the tent not long afterwards. His fist was clenched and his jaw was set. He looked like a coiled spring and his breathing was much heavier than normal.

Katia shrunk back a bit when he entered.

At this, he took several deep breaths and slowly unclenched his fist. "I am sorry Katia, Lyra." He looked at each in turn. "I am not angry with you, but with..." He glanced in the direction of the king's tent. "...with someone else. I apologize if you bore the brunt of my frustrations.

"Don't worry husband." Lyra said standing to greet him with a kiss.

"Katia?" He said, and while his tone was still clearly frustrated, it also had a softness to it.

She looked up at him.

"I am sorry if I startled or frightened you."

The girl nodded and tried to smile, but didn't seem able to.

"What has you so tense husband?" The horsewoman asked, partially to diffuse the tension.

"The king in his infinite wisdom has decided that the camp is so completely secure that he 'suggested' I take my wives out for a romantic stroll in the moonlight." He set his jaw. "Outside the camp."

Katia sucked in her breath.

Lyra's jaw dropped.

"Don't worry, we won't." Kalus said. "My duty to Illuminar to protect my wives trumps my king's asinine 'suggestion'. However, know that we will likely suffer greatly in the morning for disobeying him if our army isn't attacked tonight."

Katia's lip drew into a thin line. She was still sitting on the bed; she glanced down at her stomach and bit her lip.

Lyra wasn't sure what to think. Obviously Kalus was right in his decision, but she worried about what it meant for her new family. The wrong side of a king's pleasure was never a good place to be. Ever. She almost hoped that her country-- Hmm, was it her country anymore with her being married to Kalus? Anyway, she almost hoped they would lose soon so that her husband could be separated from King Tyso before the king did any real damage.

"I expect an attack tonight." Kalus said after a moment. "Thus, I need to get my armor on and prepare. Should anything happen -- anything at all -- you two will stay in this tent no matter what happens."

"Yes husband." Lyra replied.

Katia just nodded.

"Good. Hopefully they will think you are prisoners and will treat you well should we be overrun."

"She's a handmaiden to the princess." The horsewoman indicated her fellow wife. "That should help."

"True." He nodded. "Now, would one of you be willing to assist me with my armor?"

Lyra beamed.

* * *

Kalus stood outside his tent dressed in his chainmail, but he hadn't put his surcoat over it. Instead, he'd opted for a thicker cloak that was full enough to hide the chainmail if he pulled it closed. He didn't want anyone to report to the king that he was wearing armor, but he definitely didn't want to risk being caught without his armor if the enemy ambushed them. He was virtually certain sure they would.

He would if he was in their position, especially against an unwary enemy.

King Tyso's army had camped at a slight bulge in the road that looked like it was often used as a mid-forest campsite by merchants, travelers, and the like. While it was better than actually camping on the road, the army was still stretched pretty thin, making them vulnerable to attack in many places from both sides.

As he looked around, he was glad to see that every squad camp from his legion had at least one man outside the tent standing guard. They were wearing thicker cloaks like him and also had them closed like him.

He smiled.

He spent a little time walking through the camp and checking on the various parts of his army. He felt safe leaving his wives behind because of the three centurions who had volunteered to guard them. He strode among his own men, knowing they were the best in the camp because of how hard and how often he drilled them. He wasn't disappointed to discover that every one of them remained in armor with their weapons within easy reach.

He popped his head into his tent to check on his wives and saw them both asleep under the covers. They weren't exactly snuggled together, but they were close and seemed comfortable with each other. That was good; he would've hated it if his wives didn't get along.

An hour passed with no activity.

Then two.

Kyselius wandered over to him, a large-ish item wrapped in cloth under his arm.