B4 Chapter 51: Allies

"Yep. This is dwarven work."

One of Claude's apprentices scowled at the band of gold in front of him, turning it over in his hands. A pile of similar treasures lay nearby, filling a full half of the command tent with their bulk---and that was after they'd shrunk to a size wearable by humans.

Gaius sat behind his desk, fingers steepled. "You're certain?"

"Very." The mage---whose bone white hair marked him as ancient in his own right---jabbed a finger at one line of runic inscriptions. "Look at this. They're still using the same shoddy conduit-structured casting when a simple imbuement would do. Why? They've had centuries to iterate on those changes! It's like they didn't even listen to Master Claude's critiques..."

Marcus leaned against a tent post as he listened to the mage angrily mutter at the "poor quality" and "inefficiencies" of the masterwork quality items before him. The fact that the Grand Mage had even visited the dwarves at all was news, though not particularly surprising at this point. He could imagine a few reasons why the his"advice" might have gone unheeded, though. Especially for a people so focused on tradition and form.

He glanced over at Gaius. The Legatus remained impassive, hiding his emotions well. But Marcus could read the tension clear across his brow. It was one thing for Marcus to suggest dwarven involvement. But having it confirmed...

"Can you give an approximate age to the items?" Gaius pressed. "Are they recent constructions, or ancient?"

The mage's hand glowed as he muttered a spell under his breath. The bangle flashed momentarily, its golden glow filling the room before dimming back to its normal appearance.

"Hmmm." The mage frowned. "[Appraise Legacy] says that this is at least a couple hundred years old. But..." The mage pointed to a few places. "Here, and here, and here. There are regulators that throttle the flow of mana. The goal is to make for more even and stable drain on the user, though in practice... It's just so inefficient. If they had simply imbued a little bit more intent, they could have just used one and had much less lossy compression---"

Gaius cleared his throat. The mage snapped out of his ramblings and shook his head with a sigh. "Ah, right. Anyway, the spell says it's old. But Master only started complaining about these kinds of regulators after his latest visit to the dwarves, about thirty years ago. He left a scroll of his own there a few years before, hoping that they'd finally take a hint and improve their designs. But when he came back, all he found was a bastardization of one of his own designs that simply didn't measure up. So it can't be older than that."

The young Legatus remained motionless. "I see. Thank you for your insight. You are dismissed."

The apprentice mage nodded, tossing the priceless bangle on the pile with obvious disgust before making his exit. After he was gone, Gaius turned to Marcus.

"What are your thoughts?"

Marcus pushed off the post until he was standing. "Truly? I still believe it's possible that such artefacts were merely stolen in a raid similar to this one. But... I cannot entirely dismiss the alternative."

He glanced meaningfully toward the pile. The sheer quantity of enchanted goods, all bangles and necklaces and other items that a creature such as a dragon would have no problem using. There wasn't a weapon, gauntlet, or standard piece of armor among them. Perhaps the massive beasts had simply been choosy in their selections, but...

Gaius finally let out a sigh, letting his stoic demeanor drop to rub at his temples. "I agree. But I also see that 'other possibility' as far more likely. It wouldn't be the first time someone attempts to wage an underhanded proxy war against the empire."

An edge entered Gaius's tone as he spoke. Marcus remained silent. The last thing he wanted was for the Legion to decide genociding yet another race was the clearest path forward. But given what he'd seen so far, the dwarves truly did seem up to no good. Which would really hamper his ability to spare them that fate.

Marcus tried to dial things back a bit. "Let's not jump to conclusions, now. Regardless of how the dragons acquired such artifacts, the fact remains that they were unable to secure their victory."

"They resulted in additional losses and more resources used in the assault." Gaius said.

"True. But the work of your healers ensured that even the orcs took fewer losses than they might have otherwise."

Gaius's expression didn't change, but Marcus thought he sensed a flicker of something at the mention of Eleonora. By now he had to be aware of the rumors, and everything he'd seen suggested that he and the [Healer] were on quite good terms. But whether Gaius was using their assumed relationship as an excuse to take her along on campaigns, or if he actually did return her affections... The young Legatus remained rather tight-lipped about such things even to Marcus.

He decided not to push the matter further right now. "Perhaps there is a reasonable explanation for this," he continued. "We simply lack the required knowledge. Though I do believe that such information is rather important to relay to the emperor."

Gaius nodded. "Indeed. I'll let him deal with this headache. For now, we'll focus on hunting down the ones that fled---and making sure there's not more of those lizards in hiding."

Marcus left Gaius to his work, sweeping out of the tent with a final bow. He imagined Tiberius's reaction to their discoveries, as well as the dwarves currently residing in the capital. He did not envy them one bit.

***

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Tiberius sat behind the broad wooden desk of his private audience chamber, a fireplace crackling behind him. His stony gaze bored into the comparatively short figure standing before him with ramrod straight posture. Between them sat a collection of large golden bracelets and necklaces.

"These are of dwarven make." Tiberius said simply. "Explain."

To his credit, the dwarf didn't blink. "Aye. They are. And my people are truly grateful for their recovery. One of the dragonflights raided our treasury not that long ago, taking with them a hoard of such items."

"You claim that they were stolen then?"

"Of course." The dwarf answered instantly. "Our people have threats of our own to face, emperor. Great beasts from the depths, threats in the mines... The dragons themselves. It shouldn't come as a surprise that we prepare equipment for such matters."

It did make sense. It was quite a convenient explanation. And Tiberius didn't buy it one bit.

The dwarves were valuable trade partners, while simultaneously acting as the most cutthroat people he'd ever had the displeasure of dealing with. Their wares were clearly valuable to both him and his empire, and the dwarves knew it. They took advantage of that to gouge prices and extract no end of resources from Rome wherever they could.

They clearly wanted to weaken Rome. That much was evident, given the resources they targeted and how steep the costs they demanded were. But so far, Tiberius had managed to navigate those waters and keep the price from taking too large a toll. It was worthwhile for such useful enchantments and better equipment for his Legion---especially once they reverse-engineered the craftsmanship and could replicate it themselves. Something the dwarves had devoted a significant amount of effort to thwarting.

Outfitting enemies... that was a step further than the pragmatism and greed the people had displayed so far. The more charitable interpretation would be that they simply lost the equipment, or sold it to some third party that distributed it to an enemy of Rome. But either way, it was not something he could overlook.

He refrained from tapping his finger against the desk. If it was true, then their newest "allies" were certain to have more aggressive conflicts planned---direct or indirect ones. He would be entirely justified in sending a legion to their doorstep and conquering their mountains. Yet he was under no illusion that such a campaign would be without cost. The dwarven defenses were nothing to sneeze at, and Gaius had reported on the strength of these enchantments. If this was what they were willing to give away to dragons, then what did they keep for themselves?

He saw a bead of sweat roll down the dwarf's brow. He didn't think it was from the heat of the fireplace.

"You mentioned there are more pieces like this?" The envoy finally asked. "Might I ask how many?"

"You may not." Tiberius answered. The dwarf's face tensed ever so slightly.

"Regardless. My people will be glad to hear of that treasury's recovery." The envoy finally said. "I am certain the consuls and the senate would be happy to compensate you for their return."

"I will keep that in mind, should I decide to return them."

Tiberius took the implication of the dwarven envoy and squashed it. Regardless of how the items had come into the dragons' possession, the Legion had taken them through battle. The dwarves held no more claim over them. And if they tried to assert such a claim, Tiberius would have some rather pointed questions for them.

The dwarf visibly grimaced. But he did not say anything. Tiberius loomed over the stocky envoy, even seated as he was, considering his next moves.

The dwarves were operating within an area of plausible deniability. Tiberius considered that Caesar would have had them all executed for even the appearance of treachery. But could Tiberius afford to lose such valuable trade partners? Even if they did conquer the mines, he would need to assign his own people to work them and extract their value. And given what he'd seen, the dwarves were certain to have measures in place against interlopers scattered within. Meaning their vengeance might persist well past the death of the last dwarf. Another layer of tedium added to the ordeal.

Meanwhile, the Legion was better armored than ever. Even better, they were making real progress in reverse-engineering the dwarves' crafting techniques and applying them in new ways. Gareth's most promising students had designs for lightweight metal shields that could outperform their standard wood and hide ones without sacrificing in weight. Gareth himself had recently made a suit of steel armor that fully encased a man without any sacrifice in mobility. All this while also improving one's stats.

There were also other promising projects on the way, assuming they could get more examples of dwarven work---and more of their ore. In fact, it wouldn't be long until the dwarves themselves were no longer required for such things. But not yet. Until he was confident in his own people's ability to harness the different technologies they were being faced with, the short race of cave-dwellers still remained useful.

That meant that dealing with them would prove a bit more complicated than Tiberius would like. Executing an envoy on suspicion alone would be a swift way to sever those connections prematurely. Then again, if he remained too lax, they may find themselves emboldened to continue such behavior. Even if he didn't truly think the dwarves were suicidal enough to make direct dealings with dragons, perhaps their next clients would prove a bit more organized in their attacks.

Tiberius leaned back in his seat as he came to a decision. "It seems that the dwarven holds are less impenetrable than I have been led to believe. The news that one has been breached and looted to this extent is... troubling."

The dwarf relaxed slightly at the change of topic. "Indeed. We were caught off guard. But since then, our finest smiths have made greater defenses should more lizards come skulking about."

"See that it is so." Tiberius tapped one finger on his desk. "Such matters are of great concern to the Empire. You have been developing technology and providing equipment for us, and we cannot afford to have such knowledge leaked. Nor can we afford such advantages falling into the hands of enemies. Since your own defenses prove insufficient... Then we shall provide assistance of our own."

The dwarf froze. "Assistance?"

"Indeed. I will ensure that Legionnaires and auxiliaries are placed to defend you, your people, and their treasures. I will not have our valuable trade partners pillaged by foes with such wanton indifference."

A crack appeared in the envoy's measured expression. His face darkened. "We are more than capable of dealing with the dragons."

"Your story says otherwise." Tiberius noted. "But no matter. My Legionnaires have a proven track record against them. Surely their presence will prove reassuring to your people."

Tiberius saw the barely-suppressed rage flash across the dwarf's face. The intent of the move was clear. If the dwarves truly had been taken unawares, then the Romans would be a help. If not... then Tiberius had just found an opening to send an occupying force under the mountain. With the possibility of more to come, should the dwarves act out again.

Despite his rage, the envoy bowed his head. "I am grateful for the emperor's help."

Tiberius dismissed him shortly after. He would send an entire cohort of the First Legion with the envoy as a "defensive force" to ensure the dwarves remained "safe" under their mountains. He would ensure that plenty of scouts and spymasters went with them. Perhaps he would even have Gaius stationed with them. It was only a few days from the capital, after all, on a swift horse.

With the most pressing matters taken care of, Tiberius nodded to Lucius, who waved the next audience in. The commander of the Third Legion had finally returned. Apparently Quintus had quite the story to tell about his campaign in the east, and more than one explanation for his tardiness. Tiberius would judge for himself whether such an explanation was adequate.