Micky was aggrieved to be interrupted in the midst of his alchemy. It was only the basics of basics of an alchemy set with only some local herbs and flowers that could be acquired just outside his little slice of not death. It was a green set on the verge of blue because the producers had been trying to dumb it down even further. Almost a charity case, though no respectable alchemist would allow their apprentice to use such a setup. Instead it found use for alchemists as a field study kit. Something they could pack up, and be durable enough to travel with in the field. Not very durable, but you could little and carefully walk with one or two replacement parts and not worry about the consequences. It also helped it was criminally cheap.

Micky sighed as he put down his latest test batch, a small potion of [Health] that could also be a small potion of [Mana] as far as he knew. It was more a restorative and supplement. However, supplements were the base of almost all potions. So if it could supplement both then that would save transportation fees on other ingredients and simply locally sources these. Unfortunately Micky did not discover anything the local alchemists have not, though he did make some creative combinations that would make them worse. At least they still functioned and he wrote them down in his journal. And yes it was a journal not a diary, even if he put his thoughts on other subjects inside of it…

Well, that all took out five minutes of pandering. Micky got up and walked over to the anxiously hopping from foot to foot or pacing commanders. One of which was a fellow senior centurion and the other was a junior centurion. So of course the first thing they did was order him around…

Even more hilarious it was the junior centurion that was giving the orders. Even the fellow senior centurion looked aggrieved, though he didn’t say anything since it benefited him. But Micky was not ‘requisitioning them’ all his horsemen and half his supplies no matter what they said. In particular Micky turned around and ordered the junior centurion to hold the line in front of him till he received the order to retreat. An order that would never be given, but Micky would be damned if he was going to be court marshaled for stupid shit by the legate again. Not that the legate has ever gotten anything to stick but Micky already knew what a dog and pony show the army was.

Of course, this only made the junior centurion even more furious. He brought up who his mother was and how she would have Micky’s head on a pike for ‘rebelling’ against him and his orders. Apparently she was some big shot baroness somewhere but she was also a clanner, and they did not take things well when they lost ‘face’. So much so that they would not admit that face was just another word for honour and vis a vis.

And, Micky did not care. “I’m sorry, if she is so aggrieved with me she can see me in my tent personally. I will be sure to treat her with the utmost respect and care that she deserves.” Stated Micky. The sarcasm rolling off of him was a physical thing. Micky felt that he had achieved an entire new level in the dao.

The ‘young’ junior centurion was so aggrieved that he looked like he was having a heart attack. Never mind, it seemed he actually was having a heart attack. His arm by his side was limp and he had gone pale with sweat on his forehead. Micky considered it a win, and if he [Dead] there standing up Micky would find this acceptable. After all he wasn’t the one that killed him, maybe Micky would blame it on the other senior centurion there. “You… you dare besmirch the name of my mother. While I’m standing here before you?!” the junior centurion weezed out. He should probably lie down… “I’ll have your head for this, no I demand a duel! I demand that you die to repay my mothers good name I...” the words plopped out of the centurion’s mouth like he was having some exceptionally foul diarrhea.

Unfortunately for him, he did not realize where he was. And he was right in the middle of Micky’s camp. His fellow the senior centurion did and took over after forcing the junior behind him. “I don’t think a supply captain should be making any rash decisions here. We have made a request for your horsemen, we will expect them in half a candle stick.” Said the senior centurion making to leave.

Micky sneered in their direction. “I’m sorry but no. Did you not see my flag flapping over my centuri in the middle of my camp? I am a senior centurion and I will have my respect in my own fucking camp or you can have words in the middle of my fucking brig you limy bastards!” said Micky. This brought cheers from the encampment. They weren’t about to let these slick bastards run their depot. Granted it was just a supply depot but it was their depot that they built for their own centuri. They may have allowed it’s use for the furthement of the war effort, but it was still Micky’s and meant only for Micky’s own purposes.

The junior behind the senior centurion made to interject but the senior centurion had the good sense to block thim. “Then we shall take our leave. Good day to you.” Said the senior centurion. Micky was honestly amazed at how well the two worked together since they came from opposite directions. But he was glad that they left. Micky had already been dealing with hot headed centurions trying to order him around for… well this entire week. Almost since Amelia came every centurion, junior or senior, had been making demands of him. Some of which he acquiesced to to further the war efforts. But simply because he acquiesced to one, seemed to mean that he was easy to step over and would acquiesce to every demand that was made of him, even from those same ones that ‘owed him a favor’. Worse, they would make plans based on him excepting even after he had blatantly told them no, in no small words, and blame him for their failure afterwords. It was infuriating and he wasn’t about to allow two more centurions to step over him.

Micky sneered as he watched the centurions leave. He was going to enjoy beating the shit out of them at the next senate of the centurions. Closing the gates Micky got back to his refining. He had much to do and little time to do it in. He obviously needed to put the emotion blossom into the concoction in order to act as a regent but it would be reactive in the later steps. So instead maybe he should use hydro grass and mix thoroughly? But that would not give him the same consistency and oh the gods was that a battle horn?

Returning to the walls Micky could hear the telltale sound of a battle horn. For a second Micky thought that it was the two centurions trying to attack him. But he could only hope. No, it was a vast army. Easily double what the two centurion would have had combined. It was so blatantly obvious why Micky had not seen it. They were fucking running and they left him here as a distraction. No fucking duh, no wonder they were being so stupid. No, that wasn’t true, Micky was the one being stupid, they were just being smart cowards.

“Retreat! Abandon the walls! Forget what wagons we have, leave the supplies and spike what you can. Retreat!” Micky yelled. This was what he prepared for and yet he still had his pants around his ankles. Micky didn’t know how the hell it happened, he was glad for his preparations but it was still not enough. And where the hell were his scouts? They should have long been reporting back. No, had those traitorous bastards killed his scouts just so that he wouldn’t be informed of the encroaching enemy? Fuck, he was going to kill them! He should have while he had the chance…

Micky quickly ordered a horsemen to deliver a message back to command about those traitors. The horsemen then told him that they themselves had already sent out a message each. Micky’s face puckered like he was just smacked with a lemon. “Did they use my messenger for their messages?” Micky asked.

“No sir. Considering, we thought it best that they used their own messengers, since you know...” The horsemen trailed off.

Finally some good news. They were going to learn that he owned the roads the hard way. Micky quickly penned three letters. One for command about the traitors and two more for the commanders of each outpost in line in case they passed the first. He also gave the messenger his flag so that he could blaze through all the checkpoints and patrols.