"My dear shiftling... you make it seem almost as if I want you to fail." A sense of mischief flashed across the Emperor's face so quickly that Ash barely managed to catch a glimpse of it. From what she had observed from the Emperor so far, it seemed rather uncharacteristic of him, but she supposed that she didn't truly know that man all that well. The man’s cunning seemed to be otherworldly, yet would it be wise of her to discount the depravities that are capable of one man? She really didn’t know, though she certainly wouldn’t mind knowing exactly what was going on in the Emperor’s head. Something was off and things just didn’t feel right. Did Rohaan feel the same? He had to; the Shifter was no fool. It was so odd - recognizing that they were now unlikely allies. She’d have to make the most of it for now.

“My chief concern is the death of Thoburas. Insofar as that, we remain aligned, least of all due to the reward you will be entitled to at this end of this sorted affair. Thus, there’s no need for you to think of clever ways in which you plan to blackmail me.” The Emperor shrugged as if even addressing the issue was a waste of time for him. “If you think a Vokurian can ever convince an empire of the misdeeds of their emperor, then you’re welcome to try. Just admit that I’m your only friend among Man.”

“More importantly, your ‘methods’ are of no interest to me, so long as Thoburas turns up dead. If your personal morality facilitates that objective, then so be it. Our previously agreed upon terms shall remain intact, so there’s nothing to worry about on that front.” The Emperor proceeded to divert his gaze to Ash, once again acknowledging his daughter. “I don’t expect that you’ll stand aside as the Vokurian conducts this operation. Besides, you’re the only one on hand that could prevent him from getting hopelessly lost in the tunnels underneath the fortress.”

If Durgan was the most impressive structure on this side of the continent, then the intricacies of the tunnels below were just as amazing. Some claimed that these were the constructions of the Dwarves, though they were rarely taken seriously. No person from the last few Ages had ever even seen a Dwarf, and most scholars generally accepted the belief that they were nothing but a myth. In truth, there are already much stranger creatures that currently inhabit the world. The tunnels were complex enough to easily get lost in if you had no idea what you’re doing. Ash had grown up exploring these tunnels so she knew them better than most. And she believed that she already knew where Thoburas was performing his dark ritual - the one subterranean chamber that her adoptive father, Lord Cassander, had always forbade her from going into.

 “I can get Rio where he needs to go, so long as he doesn’t slow me down.” It was said in jest to lighten the mood, though Ash ended up giving Rohaan a look that suggested she wasn’t entirely unserious. 

The Emperor only shrugged at Ash’s offhand comments. “It can only be good if you manage to teach him some humility. Vokurian pride can be a dangerous thing.”

“As for Thoburas… he’s a verifiable lunatic. Despite his madness, he still possesses a decent amount of cunning, which I’ve learned to my detriment. He remains the only true threat.” Ash regarded the Emperor’s words carefully, but she didn’t really care how capable the elf was. She’d make sure that he was dead. “As for his followers, they are of little concern on a whole. Nothing but simple brutes, mostly mercenaries. The rest are sadists and men of ill repute. These sort of men tend to congregate with each other. None of them are sorcerers of any consequence; Thoburas would never associate with someone that could directly oppose him. A desire to hoard this dark knowledge for only himself was so all encompassing that it was difficult for me to actually collaborate with him.”

“Thoburas is quite focused on keeping me from acting against him directly with the present ward that he was in place. I wouldn’t expect any other traps since he has no one else that is working to stop him other than myself. This is what makes the two of you my wildcards.”  The Emperor began to fidget a bit, twisting at the ring on his finger. “The elf is a master necromancer that specializes in curses and illusions. I’m aware that Vokurians are resistant to this kind of magic - that is part of the reason why I enlisted you in the first place. If he was easy to kill, I would have done so long ago.”