Chapter #5Princess protection program by: Kooplan   "I don't like it, Ike. Not one bit." Soren started off the conversation with his usual amount of tact.
Ike, the only other person present in the room, looked at his most trusted tactician with doubt. Not only had the green-haired boy stormed into the room like someone had just insulted him greatly, but he didn't even bother to start with the pleasantries Ike might expect from someone else. However, the blue-haired lord was used to Soren's attitude, and so did not even bother to chastise the tactician.
"What's eating at you today, Soren?" Ike asked, with a hint of caution.
"You've noticed our fair princess Elincia out on the battlefield, yes?" Soren asked, rhetorically. Ike nodded. Soren scoffed, "I'm sure you're aware of this, but Elincia is the last remaining person with the blood of the Crimean royal family, no?"
"That's right..." Ike hesitated to say. Others might not have picked up on the subtleties that Soren put down with his words, but Ike knew Soren too well to ignore it. He had a good idea where the boy was going with his complaints.
"We need to get her away from fighting, not right in the middle of it!" Soren exclaimed.
"Soren, please. She's proven herself to be quite capable, and besides, you and I can much better protect on the field then having her wait helplessly at base." Ike explained. Soren just rolled his eyes.
"Honestly, I can't believe you even agreed to let her out there in the first place." Soren chided Ike. He quickly added, "There isn't much left to this war, I figure, but the hardest battles are yet to come. You of all people must understand that, right?"
"I do." Ike answered, honestly. He smiled and placed his hand on Soren's shoulder to calm the green-haired tactician. It didn't work.
"Good. That's why I've got this." Soren showed Ike a potion that he'd been carrying with him. Ike examined it.
"What is this?" Ike asked.
"Be careful with it." Soren warned. "That is a shrinking potion."
"A shrinking potion!?" Ike exclaimed loudly in shock. The blue-haired lord had never heard of such a thing, but the implications that could be inferred from the name alone were surprising.
"Yes, yes..! Not so loud..!" Soren said quietly, trying to shush Ike. He grabbed the shrinking potion back from Ike.
"Why do you have such a thing? Where did you even get it?" Ike questioned.
"It's my own creation. Hard to make, so don't even bother asking to use it on our enemies." Soren stated flatly. He offered up the potion to Ike again. "No, this would be much better suited for one princess that refuses to understand the amount of risk she's putting not just herself, but the entire kingdom, in!"
"What are you proposing, Soren..?" Ike asked, dreading to hear the boy's response.
"It's simple." Soren said, placing the bottle of potion down on a table nearby. "You take this to Elincia and get her to drink it, she'll shrink, and then it will be that much easier to keep her safe and hidden for the rest of the war."
"You've got to be kidding me." Ike was not impressed with Soren's idea. If it were anybody else, Ike might've thought this all to be a practical joke in bad taste, but since it was Soren, he knew better.
"No. I've got a growth potion, too." Soren replied. Ike groaned, hoping he'd just call the whole thing off, but Soren continued, "You just said she'd be helpless all alone at the base, and that's where the potion comes in. Once she's down to about three or four inches tall, then she'll be so easy to hide that you won't need to worry about her."
"Really, Soren? You don't think I'd worry about having Elincia that small at all? Have you even considered what she'd think of this? Or even Lucia or Geoffrey?" Ike said, getting a little upset with Soren for even thinking of such a ridiculous plan.
"Hmph, it would be a waste of time. They'd never understand that desperate times call for desperate measures." Soren added with a shrug. Ike couldn't help but think his friend wasn't thinking things through, but he had to agree that the princess's retainer's would never agree to such a plan. Still, he wondered if it was the right thing to do.
"Fine. Let's say we go ahead with your plan, then what? What can we possibly tell the others?" Ike asked.
"Easy. We make up a reason for Elincia to need to to retreat from the battlefield for the remainder of this war." Soren stated as if it were all so simple. Ike sighed.
"And I expect you want me to be the one to ask her to take the potion?" Ike asked. Soren could tell Ike was not completely on board, but he nodded anyways.
"It has to be you. She'll never listen to my reasoning. Besides..." Soren drifted off.
"Besides... what?" Ike asked.
"You have guests, commander." Soren responded, pointing to the entrance of the room.
Ike looked to see none other than Elincia standing there, in her casual, orange dress, and her long, green hair let mostly down. She looked quite confused, no doubt hearing the somewhat heated exchange beforehand. Ike gulped, not sure how Soren could remain stone-faced, if Elincia had heard his plans, then it could spell disaster.
"What's going on in here, my lord Ike?" Elincia asked, still in the dark about things. Her expression, her movements, and even her tone seemed so demure and innocent. Ike could finally tell what Soren meant by needing to get her off the battlefields. Even so, could he really go through with having her shrink? What kind of conversation would that be?
"Ike can explain things." Soren quickly said. He bowed to the princess, then took his leave. But not before giving Ike a look that confirmed he expected the commander to do as he'd asked.
"Soren..!" Ike groaned under his breath.
"My lord Ike?" Elincia repeated, now sounding a little worried about him.
Ike froze. The potion was on the table, and Elincia was right in front of him. He had to explain things to her, or did he? Maybe he could just trick her into taking the potion. Then again, he didn't really need to do anything. Soren had a point about keeping Elincia safe, but that didn't mean they needed to shrink the poor princess keep her protected. Ike could hardly think, Elincia was staring up at him with those big eyes of hers, and he decided...   indicates the next chapter needs to be written. |
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