The fighting paused for a brief moment as every head turned toward the sound of bugle. A fresh army clad in white and gold had appeared. At first, the trapped pirates thought it was just another branch of Veridian forces which came around through a detour to trap them in a pincer. But the Veridians knew better. These soldiers weren't wearing the pure gold of Veridia. Their heavy plate armor bore the crest of the Golden Sun paired with an inner scale emblem- the distinct mark of the Valorian Paladins.
At the head of the contingent rode Selena Stormhold, the Valorian Princess herself.
She was looking thoroughly exhausted. Her armor was lightly scraped, as she had driven her makeshift cavalry at breakneck speed all the way from Valoria the moment word reached her that Veridia was under siege. She had feared she would ride straight into a smoking, desperate warzone- perhaps even find the outer gates breached and burning.
Instead, she trotted her horse straight into a secured, blood-soaked shipyard where Veridian soldiers were casually stacking bodies, and the war was already all but over.
Lorian and Selena caught each other's eyes across the ruined square. They both gave a quiet, tight nod, though neither looked particularly thrilled about the timing.
Lorian's pride was instantly on fire. Damn it, Selena, he thought, his chest tightened with frustration. After everything I just said about us being self-sufficient, about us being strong enough to wipe out the scum who dared touch our land... what are my people going to think? They will think we needed rescuing. Why did you have to show up right at the end and steal our thunder?
Yet, the moment he looked closer and saw the genuine, terrified exhaustion in her eyes, his anger melted. He had left the girl completely bed ridden a few days ago. He knew she had not recovered completely. Yet, instead of taking rest, the girl had risked everything just to get to him. He realized he was now walking a razor-thin line- he had to show her just how much he appreciated the gesture and make it clear how much he loved her for coming, while somehow keeping Valoria from hijacking their political victory.
On the other side, Selena understood Lorian far too well. She could read his expression instantly, and a wave of awkwardness washed over her. She couldn't order her men to charge into the fray now; that would strip the Veridians of the hard-earned glory they had won with their own blood. But after gathering her paladins and rushing them so far- especially when they were desperately needed back home to help rebuild and keep order in Valoria- telling them to just stand by and watch felt entirely ridiculous. She looked across the dirt at him with a helpless, quiet expression.
Lorian signaled to Kaelen to take over command of the line for a moment. He urged his horse forward through the mud and debris, riding out to meet her. Wiping a smear of sweat and blood from his forehead with the back of his forearm, he looked up at her across the churned earth and called out.
"You..." Lorian panted, shaking his head with a half-disbelieving, half-hysterical smirk, "You rode all night. With a whole cavalry."
"I heard the city was falling!" she shot back, her voice was a fragile mix of deep relief and absolute bewilderment, "You absolute idiot, I thought…. I thought…. you were…. dying!"
"Do I look like I am dying?!" Lorian yelled back, gesturing broadly to the thousands of dead pirates scattered across the mud around his boots, "We had it handled, you fool! The trash was already out at the curb! You brought an entire army to a cleanup operation!"
A few Veridian guards nearby muffled nervous coughs behind their iron shields, while the Valorian soldiers sitting behind their princess shifted awkwardly in their saddles, suddenly wishing the ground would open up and swallow them.
Lorian let out a breathless, sharp laugh, rubbing a hand over his face before looking back up at her, his expression softening despite himself. He nudged his horse a bit closer and rested a hand on his hip.
"Get down off that horse," Lorian muttered, his battlefield roar instantly dropped into something dry, frustrated, and yet deeply fond, "Come down here before my men start wondering why my girlfriend just tried to steal my victory lap."
Selena's face flushed a deep, burning red. She quickly turned her head away to compose herself, taking a slow breath before turning back to address not just Lorian, but the hundreds of soldiers watching them from both sides. When she spoke, her voice carried a crisp, formal authority, though it remained soft and composed.
"I came prepared to fight shoulder-to-shoulder with our closest allies," she began, pitching her voice so the surrounding troops could hear clearly, "Not to intrude on a victory your men have already so brilliantly secured. My knights rode hard because when Veridia bleeds, Valoria bleeds. But I am not blind, and I am certainly not foolish enough to rob lions of their hunt. Valorians do not steal or take what isn't theirs- neither wealth nor glory. Nor do we tarnish our blades by striking down an enemy who is already drawing his last breath."
She paused, letting her gaze soften just a fraction as she looked back down at Lorian.
"So, if I may, my Lord... Valoria's forces will not taint your triumph by swinging a sword in a battle that is already won. But we will stand witness. We will secure the perimeter and ensure that not a single rat escapes out to sea. We came to secure our ally Veridia's safety- and by the gods, we will secure it to the very last breath, even if it means acting as your honor guard for the cleanup."
The remnants of the pirate horde, cornered against the smoking docks and desperate for any lifeline, was watching the exchange between the young lord and the Valorian princess, keenly. When they saw the soft look in Lorian's eyes and realized the newcomer was not an executioner, but rather King of Veridia's romantic partner, a desperate wave of false hope rippled through the survivors.
Before Lorian could answer Selena, several ragged, bleeding pirates dropped to their knees in the mud. They threw their bloodied cutlasses aside and began crawling forward, weeping and wailing toward Selena's horse.
"My lady! Princess Selena!" one of them sobbed, pressing his forehead into the dirt, "You're a noble of Valoria! You have mercy! Look at us, we surrendered! We threw down our steel! The boy- your lord- he's gone mad with slaughter; he wants us all dead! Please, have mercy on us! Spare our lives!"
"We'll swear fealty to Valoria!" another cried out, clutching at the hem of a Valorian paladin's tabard before being kicked back, "Send us to the mines, hang us in chains, just don't let him butcher us! Valoria is known across the continent for their noble mercy- please, protect us!"
The entire dockyard went dead silent. All eyes shifted to Selena. The Veridians knew, if the princess herself asked the King, he might not deny her.
The pirates also rejoiced at the thought that they had found a loophole. They thought they could use diplomacy, play on the trope of noble mercy, and exploit her relationship with Lorian to force him into spare them.
They however fundamentally misunderstood who she was.
Selena sat motionless in her saddle, looking down at the groveling men whining at her horse's hooves. There was no warmth in her eyes, no hesitation, and certainly no pity. Beneath her quiet, soft-spoken, and hesitant demeanor around Lorian; laid a cold, razor-sharp pragmatism and a cruelty that matched Lorian's when it came to enemies of the crown.
She did not flinch, nor did she raise her voice. She simply looked down at them like they were insects on the floor.
"You speak of nobility," Selena began in her soft, delicate voice, which carryied an eerie, quiet stillness that cut through the ruined docks more effectively than a shout, "And you ask for mercy from a crown you tried to burn without any provocation."
She tilted her head slightly, her expression remaining entirely neutral, making her suddenly look like a psychopath.
"You are mistaking my restraint for softness. I am not here to slaughter a defeated enemy because it is beneath my men to strike down those who cannot fight back. But do not ever mistake that restraint for a lack of stomach."
She leaned forward, resting one gloved hand lightly on the pommel of her saddle, as her gaze hardened into something sharp and lifeless, "You marched on an innocent city. You murdered families, burned homes, and brought terror to people who only asked to live in peace. And now, the moment the walls hold and the tide turns against you, you weep in the mud like whipped dogs, begging for the very grace you denied every man, woman, and child in Veridia."
The pirates froze; blood drained completely from their already pale faces as the true weight of her tone settled over them. "If I ask the Lord of Veridia to grant you safe passage," Selena continued smoothly, her voice never rose above a conversational murmur, "you will simply carry your poison to the next shore, leaving more corpses in your wake. Valoria does not harbor rabid animals. And more importantly..."
She lifted her chin, casting a brief, pointed glance toward Lorian, a faint, dark ghost of a smirk touching her lips, "...I would never insult my ally by showing pity to the vermin they spent days and sleepless nights clearing out of their home."
She straightened in her saddle, withdrawing her gaze from the groveling men as if they had already ceased to exist. With a flick of her wrist, she signaled her paladin commander.
"Clear them from my horse," Selena said softly, her voice devoid of any human warmth, "And feed the rest of them to the sea."