"A few minutes before, or maybe, when your whole machination started, Cyrus? By the Gods, I swear, I'll have yo-" Aleko growled, the storm that he became completely dismantling the otherwise calculated half-breed, "for fuck's sake, can it with your apologies and start talking!"

He took a few moments to read the letter, his eyes darting from edge to edge, his throat rumbling as he muttered the words to himself, until realization fell upon the top of his head; a cold shiver ran down his heated hide, his fingers unlatched the paper from his grasp as a reaction to what felt like a powerful blow to the gut. 

"When?" Was all that he could muster, his voice trembling under the weight of his anger and, perhaps, fear for his beloved parent.

"When!"

The answer came, and it was an infuriating one. He closed his eyes shut, his snarl closing into a silent form of rage, his teeth grinding against each other with enough force to erode the enamel. There was a sense of futility already rising from his situation, the thought of an underhanded attack over the city he was born in only churned his insides and froze his blood. For Aleko, there was no doubt this strike was a premeditated one, especially since it was the Stainless Empire of all possible assailants to have trampled over his birth place, of all possible provinces that could be overtaken. There was no valuable resource there, nothing in particular to attract an invading force, at least, nothing that would interest the heir. 

"Call all available generals for an emergency meeting." He uttered, facing the door in preparation to storm his way towards the war room. "We have to muster a liberating force and push the Stainless out."

But the wizard did all that he could to keep the half-breed from rushing into a blind charge, having to manhandle the heir to have him stop and listen. He refused to even look up at the elderly man, his gaze affixed unto his own boots. Cyrus insisted that they had to think of a plan and a better moment to move in and liberate the province, but Aleko's fiery rage was yet to be reduced to embers.

"Plan? How many more plans do you have in store that I am not aware of, Cyrus?" He asked, his tone still a rumble of his throat, but words perfectly articulated for the old wizard to understand. "You could at least tell me about my origin before I take my leave. Gods, I don't know where I will go, I'm a deserter in the eyes of the Independent Anthro Forces, I have to bloody run for my life and become a mercenary, thanks to your brilliant machinations! You've ruined me!"

To this, the wizard had cast a spell of sorts that he isolated them from, pretty much, everything else. There was indeed an uneasy sensation, as everything around them faded into monotony and silence, save for the sounds emerging from the two wrapped inside the bubble.

"Gods, I swear, you will not make it alive out of this chambers if you won't stop it with this madness."

Then, finally, the truth arrived. The heir listened intently, but as much as he tried to remain unfazed by the massive reveal, his eyes bulged and his jaw dropped slightly as he found out that his father indeed made it alive, albeit him being ready to be entombed. With everything else, his mother agreeing to form the union, her wanting to become an apprentice of his, they were all strong blows that had the heir dismantle his aggressive attitude, to allow an exhausted one to surface. 

[i]That is why he felt so familiar to me,[/i] thought Aleko, his eyes drooping from tiring himself out, [i]he[/i] must [i]have visited mum when I was an infant.[/i]

And now, this woman he considered to be the bravest of them all, had grown much, much more in the eyes of a hopeful child. Again, he felt helpless in the face of this peril that threatened his mother, and he could simply not imagine what she was going through right now. He could only hope that she hid somewhere, that she still had the wits around her to slither away from danger and maybe, maybe, Cyrus indeed have taught her a couple of tricks to keep herself alive. She must be alive, she was no weakling to tremble in fear under the boot of a band of fanatical purists. Aleko knew that this was a personal attack from the Stainless, he simply knew it; therefore, the Stainless had just painted a large target upon their backs, and the heir was more than sure he would pursue it and strike it down.

"If you leave, I leave." He stated, tiredly. "But if I leave, you leave too, and my mother would still be in danger. She trusted you enough, as for my trust, you've shattered what ever figment of it I had. We'll see about your deception some time later, but now, we've an empire to grow. Tomorrow, I want you to bring me a report, a feed-back from our population in regards to their demands and desires. If the envoys have no matters to discuss tomorrow, I want you to rally them to the council chamber so I can have a word with them, and you are to join it too."

"I-" he cleared his throat, throwing a furtive glance at Cyrus's robes carefully, to avert his watered eyes, "I will have a word with general Planestalker. Afterwards, you'll find me in my personal chambers."

Said and done, the heir left, rather unsure on his own feet. Immediately, he searched out the general, and upon finding him in the large dining hall, he pulled the dark elf aside with little regards as to what he was doing before the heir requested his attention. It was a desperate time for him, thus, Aleko had momentarily dropped the respect towards a higher ranking officer to make a personal request, which hopefully, the elf would understand. The heir made sure to present all the details, and the implications of the invasion of Zeiserberg.

"...therefore, I will ask of you to send infiltrators to the province and keep watch over the activity of the Stainless. If any opportunity of subterfuge, or sabotage appears, they are to take it; if they could even inspire rebellion, let it be so, make the invasion force have a hellish time keeping the province occupied and under controlled. Furthermore..." the heir swallowed dryly.

"Should they find clues about my mother, they are to immediately pursue them. Should they, gods be merciful, find her, they are to contact her with the following words: 'flakes of white make the fur go bright, frowns and growls make a pup go wild'. I am aware it sounds ridiculous, but, she will know that it is I who's sent the infiltrators." He even went the length to write down the motto for the general.

That was all that he could do, and it pained him, as he sat slumped in an armchair in his chambers. That day, he did not eat, or drink; the heir refused to leave his chamber, unless something required his immediate attention. He didn't have any other bursts of energy to consume on a hapless target, rather, he boiled himself in his own fears and doubts inside his own room. This was a position he never experienced before as a soldier, or as a person, all of it was completely new to him.

[i]And I better get used to it,[/i] he told himself, his fingers rolling a ball of paper against the surface of his desk, [i]there is no honor in war and diplomacy, much less from such scum. I have to swallow this attack, for now, but they mustn't mistake my patience with submission. For when they will be at my boots, begging for my patience and mercy, they will know that I remember.[/i]

He fell asleep sometime late in the night, but it was hardly a fitful slumber, with his thoughts keeping him mostly awake. But, the next day had to arrive, him being prepared or not, and his empire required its emperor.