This chapter introduces the second of the three viewpoints within the story.
The current containment war is going well. Two more companies had to pull out last week, along with another five regiments of the Army, but we've restored the borders to the originals. We expect the Tau to be set back about three or four years by their losses in this conflict. I request permission to strike into the Tau Sphere. I've decided to leave it up to you. My company has been rearranged to about full strength, and unless it takes losses here, it will be ready for such an action. The plan for the operation is attached to the message.
The Tau fleet was shattered at Moesia, so this might be the only chance we have for a deep strike of this kind. Ultimately, however, it's up to you. I won't act without confirmation, so there is no need to worry about rash action. Attached is the full order of battle for the current force. By the time you receive this message, there should only be hours left in the war for Nicomedia. The Goddess Protects.
Message from Captain Laia Placidia, Lifewardens 4th Company, Commander for the Seventh War of Tau Containment, to Alaria Caligula, Lifewardens Chapter Master. M41.451
The world was but a murky haze through her eyes. Occasionally, it rumbled. Sounds that should have been loud were muted in her ears. The girl gasped for breath, clutching at her chest as she shot awake. She looked around, breathing rapidly. As soon as her eyes recognized the room, she calmed herself.
Sleep well? A voice called, besides the single entrance to the room. The ground shook once again, silt dislodging itself from the ceiling. Meryet swung her legs from the cot, quietly replying.
It was fine. She remarked. Everybody healed? The girl at the door nodded. The armored figure, her suit dominantly black but with white outlines, marched up the steps quickly, Meryet hurrying after her. Both of their armors bore a cross, with a pair of black wings stretching out from it, on their shoulders. Coming to the top of the steps, Meryet emerged into a place that resembled some concepts of hell.
The world shook once again, blue bolts streaking through the smog-choked sky. Bright flashes were followed by trails of smoke, plumes of flame rising from behind. The dead were scattered throughout the streets. Bodies clad in armor of earthen shades, bulky suits of bright color, and everyday clothing shared the same space.
All manner of wounds had killed them. Again, the ground rumbled, explosions touching off as another wave of flashes shot through the sky, coming from both directions. The city was being blown apart. With every crump of artillery, every shriek of a missile, more rubble piled up.
The sky above was filled with more than just projectiles flung by distant batteries. Distinct, large shapes raced through the clouds, twisting and curving around each other, loosing bright streams of gunfire and bright points that were missiles. Sometimes, one of these dueling birds of prey crashed to the earth, plummeting from the sky on a carpet of fire.
Blood Angels started another offensive, the Vostroyans are behind them this time. Already broken through the main line in Beiling. The sergeant explained. Meryet could have discovered that all from merely listening to the telepathic network, but it was good hearing it directly.
The girl tapped into that expansive system, instantly being allocated her orders, and seeing all knowledge available for her current location. Behind enemy lines? She asked, almost laughing.
Yes. The Janissaries up at the hill retreated an hour ago, the enemy swept forwards. Nebet's kept us safe, but their Pathfinder teams are sweeping the area as we speak. Meryet's sergeant, Tentheta, was the one talking at the moment. They stood inside a bombed out building, having emerged from its basement.
Meryet pulled her weapon from her back into her hands, fingers running over the grip and trigger over and over again. All we have to do is find it and kill it?She questioned.
A pair of girls dropped down from above as Tentheta said, indeed. Clairvoyants found the enemy cadre leader with the ethereal. Just broke through the bugs' interdiction. From what I understand, the hole made was small enough so it won't be noticed, and they pulled right out. We're going in blind, but if we kill both, this sector is ours.
Meryet nodded. When do we move? She asked.
Right now. Tentheta replied, turning to face the other two. However, all four instantly turned to the side. Without even thinking, Meryet's weapon was raised. The bolter looked oversized, almost comically so, in the hands of the girls. With bright gold plating and embellishments of multi-colored gems, the weapon looked like it was ceremonial, almost useless.
Yet every knight hefted it with ease, like it weighed barely anything at all. In the time it would take for a human to merely raise their weapon, she'd already aimed it and fired. The barking sound of the gun sent a rocket-propelled high explosive slug across the street and streaking through a broken window.
The other three girls had done the same. A second shot had been fired by all four. Four bursts of blood and brain exploded through the building as the xenos died, their helmets and heads blasted apart. The second shot had followed the same path as the first.
In unison, the four leapt upwards, flipping about in midair to reach what little remained of the roof. Six other girls stood up there. They made us. Tentheta said,But we have a confirmed bead on the target. Let's do this in five minutes. She ordered, the main line is a mile behind us, it'll take time to pull back the necessary battlesuits.
They leapt in the direction of the enemy artillery, adjusting themselves in midair to adapt a tight v-shaped formation. Almost instantly, blue bursts of plasma buzzed through the smog. The formation was just small enough so that the shield generated by the leader was enough to cover them all.
The plasma did nothing at all. Meryet kept her eyes focused forwards, her left hand uneasily messing with her weapon. Anxiety crept up on her mind, but focused on the telepathic network again, blocking out the feeling. She wasn't scared, just tense.
A pair of Barracuda attack craft were shifting in towards their location. Meryet silently wished them luck, knowing that it wouldn't help them. The shapes already prowled low through the air, like the fish they were named for. Clusters of rockets dropped from their underbellies, all curving in towards the group of magical girls, currently unhindered by any other factors.
The ten girls opened fire instantly, bolts tearing through the swarm. A single girl put down her weapon, letting it hang by its holster, extending her arms. Multiple symbols of complex lines and shapes appeared before her, then flashed bright, shattering into a million different points.
Forming from nowhere, a straight wall of bronze light appeared, before disintegrating into a hundred beams of light that shot forwards. The Barracuda pilots had but a split second to react before they had to dodge away. The beams destroyed the remaining rockets, the craft scratched by the volley.
Two girls were already reacting, letting their main guns hang as they shifted to an alternate weapon. One summoned a missile launcher into her hands, while the other held up the barrel of a large cannon, both flipping about in the air to track the enemy, but still maintaining the formation. Meryet raised her gun to take advantage of whatever opening she could find against the myriad enemies trying to shoot her and her companions down.
The two girls fired. A swarm of missiles hounded one Barracuda, refusing to fall for any countermeasure. Eventually they caught up, and the thing retreated with a punished rear. The other craft suffered multiple expertly placed shots from the heavy gun, eventually flying up high to avoid further fire.
The two dissipated their weapons, holding their normal weapons again. It had been a minute since they started moving. Meryet pointed her weapon straight ahead. She was second from the front in the right of the v. The Ethereal was in her sights, about half a mile away.
Her mind linked in with the rest of her squad, every other girl simultaneously confirmed that her angle was good. Despite the interdiction that shut down long-range telepathy and clairvoyance, close-range communication was still possible. The crystalline bugs that were the Tau's allies weren't that good at their jobs.
Slowing herself down, holding her breath, and feeling her eyes activate, Meryet saw every detail on the thing's head. The enemy didn't seem to understand they were coming in. Its confidence was obvious. Blinking quickly, Meryet saw the exact trajectory of her bullet, based on the current information she had about the environment. Shifting it in half a second's time, Meryet fired.
Through her magical eyesight, the girl watched and smiled as the thing's head exploded. But the cadre leader, located in the massive suit beside the blue-skinned creature, was to be a harder target. Accompanied by four other suits, the group opened fire.
Tentheta gave the order to disperse. They all split off on their own, heading out in a random direction. The air was filled with railgun fire a second later. Bright flashes encountered no resistance, anything that could have stopped them had already hit the ground.
Meryet boot's slammed against the ground as she ran, white tails following the missiles that curved through the sky. They fall all around her, not a single one striking directly. They hadn't been locked onto, so there wasn't any worry. Still, a lucky shot from a few could break through even her armor.
The girl dashed into a nearby building, leaping through the ruined structure of it to a window on its second floor. Quakes ran through the structure as the missiles struck the roof. Meryet counted to three, then leapt straight out the window, soaring into the air.
As the rifle's sights came before her eyes once again, she focused in. A battlesuit leapt through the air on jets of fire, the barrels of its weapon spinning as it warmed up. Its trajectory was traced out before Meryet, the exact path of her bullets towards it was clear.
On the battlefield, things are much easier. Kill or be killed. Meryet thought in a split second. She pulled the trigger. And down the sights of a rifle, things are even easier.
The plasma blaster was ripped apart by the well-placed bullets, before a line of projectiles made its way up the suit's armor as it flew through the air. Meryet continued on her path, her weapon totally stabilized as if there wasn't any recoil at all.
Suddenly the trail stopped, two more shots coming in right under the shoulder-mounted missile launcher. The final shot pierced metal and flesh, detonating in the rear portion of the armor. With a tearing of metal and flesh, the suit's arm came off, right before a bright ball of flame consumed half the thing's body as the ammunition was pierced. It wasn't a particularly strong suit, a standard infantry-model.
Meryet was already turning away as the suit fell back to the ground. Her eyes suddenly revealed to her the half a dozen lines of fire she was exposed to. She merely curved her mouth upwards in a grin, flipped upside down, and kicked downwards.
Her leg sounded with an impact as a railgun blast struck the armor, sending her flying. Meryet caught a glimpse of the swarm of missiles headed towards her, curving all around so as to avoid counter-fire. Bursts of magic all around herself stabilized her, helping her to barely avoid the railgun shots that followed the missiles.
Conduct. Meryet knew what her squadmate meant by that. She felt their minds meld. A second before the missiles hit, there was a flash around Meryet's body. A bolt of lightning struck the magic repulsion field around the armor, already intentionally bending around it, while Meryet took the lightning and helped her comrade repulse it back outwards.
A hundred bolts leapt out in every direction, blowing apart every missile. The explosions tossed Meryet to the ground, but it was her destination anyways.Thanks. She called to the electromancer, before moving across the square she found herself in.
The knight reloaded the gun in her hands, deftly sliding in another cartridge as she dashed across the square. Small bursts of magic with every step propelled her forwards, making her movement into more of a quick blur. Meryet stepped to the side as a burst of white-hot heat erupted there, scorching the stone.
From behind her was the sound of a gunship hovering, its fusion blasters making the superheated air hiss. Meryet leapt upwards as another shot came in. The medium-sized craft backed off, retracting its blasters and popping out the missile pods.
Meryet didn't both fighting it, instead pushing herself forwards towards the building at the other end of the square. She crashed in through the windows, leaping around a corner as the missiles swept in. The mage knight was leaping out the other side of the building as it collapsed, hearing news on the network.
Drones incoming in three seconds. Battlesuits ten behind them. IFVs and tanks are right behind. Cadre leader has been encircled, but is covered by Broadsides. Multiple gunship squadrons incoming, three minutes out. Wrap this up. The message took less than a second to be understood, and Meryet was already closing in by the time it ended.
In an intersection of four streets was the enemy unit pinned down. A pair of the heavy bombardment suits were joined by four standard types. A number of small battlesuits joined them, and about two dozen infantrymen were scrambling for cover in the buildings around. The leader's suit was in the middle of the group. They'd be dead, but the powerful shields of the elite Broadsides were protecting them at the moment.
Behind her, Meryet heard the gunship she left behind being taken down. A quick check of the squad's positions confirmed it was their electromancer. Meryet herself slid up to a corner, around which lay their target. She stood up alongside another squad member.
Alicia, She nodded to the girl. Meryet received a greeting back, briefly peeking around the corner. She knew her comrade was an illusionist, specializing in somehow disrupting the enemy's capacity to see. Meryet got an idea. Not a plan, but an idea.
She stepped back, grabbing Alicia. Keep them occupied. She ordered her, spinning hard and tossing the girl around the corner. Despite the armor, a knight was still just a little girl, and the armor was light. Mage knights could lift tanks with some effort and the right application of magic. Sending one of their own flying wasn't very hard.
Straight into enemy fire she flew, right as Meryet slid out, having already locked her gun to her back. She held out her empty hands, a bright red flash signifying the appearance of her bow. Her fingers found the string and pulled back as her eyes zoomed in on the Cadre leader.
Alicia had already thrown out a huge set of magic against the enemy, but it only affected those she selected. To the Tau, the street was now a twisting world of a million different colors. But to her comrades, the street was clear. Meryet opened fire as she leapt forwards. In the air, several more bolts were released. Despite the illusions, the Tau could still fire. Alicia was receiving a beating, as the other knights tried to react to Meryet's recklessness.
But the enemy had moved. There was now a slight gap where the Broadside's shields did not cover the Cadre leader. His own suit had been previously damaged by Meryet's comrades, wounding the shield system. The other arrows had taken down his weakened shield.
Her eyes zoomed in on the optics unit. A single bright red arrow of energy flashed in and ripped apart that with which the enemy saw. Meryet jumped again, as the illusions faded away. Alicia was in trouble. Meryet grabbed her body, dissipating her bow as she reached in for the girl's chest.
Let me in, she ordered, knowing that this girl would definitely trust her Alicia let go of her body, and a blue sphere was preceded by tendrils of light as Meryet slowly pulled her hand away. She grasped Alicia's gem in her hand, dropping the lifeless body on the ground.
Then Meryet leapt up again, as the enemy struggled to hold out. Her left hand held her bow, while her right still had Alicia's soul. With this, she pulled back the string, blue light from the gem mixing with that of the arrow. As the arrow came all the way back, Meryet flicked the gem away, grasping the projectile all the way, before firing.
Her eyes had found a single tiny damaged spot near the cockpit. The empowered arrow shot down and slammed through. It would have went right into the pilot's right shoulder, not to mention the damage it did to the suit. The thing froze up, wobbled for a second, then toppled over.
Meryet spun around, grabbing Alicia's gem before she went back towards the ground. The Tau, distracted by Meryet and the death of their leader, were easily torn up by the resurging attack. Those who ran were allowed to do so. They wouldn't be a threat.
Meryet landed on the ground right as the first signs of the arriving enemy battlesuits showed up. Missiles started to impact around them, railgun shots ripping up the ground. Gather on me. Tentheta ordered, as she and those with her pulled back from the enemy.
Meryet leapt towards her, placing Alicia's gem in a container on her belt. The thing was blackened from keeping the body alive as long as it did, but it went into Meryet's container of spare grief cubes. It would survive just fine.
As Meryet arrived, a teleporter popped in. Clad in the colors of the Lifewardens, she ensured everybody was there. Automatically, the squad mentally linked with her, and were all drawn into the ensuing teleport.
The next thing Meryet knew, she was on a ridge. In an entirely other part of the city. Two miles from her previous destination. Good luck, Tentheta called to the teleporter as she rejoined her unit, blinking away again.
Now, the squad stood within the main base camp for the knight forces. Slipping Alicia's gem from the box, Meryet hurried over to the medical tent, followed by the other members of the squad who needed healing. It wasn't hard for a knight to recover from her wounds, but it was easier and less taxing for a dedicated healer to do it.
The camp wasn't very large. The largest tent was the medical one, and that was because it did not serve only mage knights. The second-largest was the command tent, where the command squads of both companies were gathered. Any clairvoyants and telepaths that were needed were also located there. There were then twenty other tents. They were all small, for one person. Simply there for girls currently off-duty who wanted to rest. Not that such a thing was exactly necessary for a magical girl.
Otherwise, the camp had nothing else in it. An invisibility generator in the command squad of Meryet's company covered the command tent, while another was always kept in the medical tent to conceal what wasn't hidden by the other.
All teleport jumps were made within the field's boundaries, so the Tau had no way to figure it out. Especially because the main Army camp was several hundred feet further down the ridge, there wasn't any reason to fire at what seemed to be nothing. The xenos also had not the artillery to spare on guessing where their enemy was.
Meryet strode into the largest tent, seeing multiple unmoving bodies lying on the cots present. The bodies had suffered massive damage, but even then it was not a necessity to go immobile. Theoretically, a magical girl could keep moving even after losing her major body functions.
However, they were not the focus of the apothecaries and healers within. The tent was so large because the most intensive cases from the Army were immediately sent here. Loud screams echoed through the room, as the girls rushed around handling each of the cases.
Meryet felt a shiver pass through her body as her eyes passed over the bloody messes lying on the sheets. Magic put them back together easily again, but there wasn't any way to save one who was already dead. However, those who did survive were quickly ushered out, sent back to the Army camp.
A teleporter was specifically assigned to the medical tent for this purpose, and even as Meryet's squad, the 6th in her company, arrived back, humans were being teleported out in groups.
Meryet didn't bother disrupting the healers in their work, so she found an empty cote, put down her own box of grief cubes, and placed Alicia's gem there. Non-vital, Meryet emphasized, off-duty, let her take her time. She received confirmation from the healers, then hurried out.
Good luck with the sergeant. Her own company's apothecary called, as if the lack of any body to accompany the soul gem was standard.
Meryet nodded, smiling a little. Her helmet dissipated, and she evened out her dark hair with her hands. I shouldn't need it. She started walking out of the tent. No one else was entering that way. In the rear of the tent, shouts and moans rose up as fresh human casualties were teleported directly in. Tell me when Alicia's up, I expect she'll give me more than the sergeant.
Lining up perfectly with what Meryet expected, the sergeant stood by the tent, matching pace with the girl as she left. Throwing your comrades at the enemy isn't recommended. The girl said. It's not just that telepathy was faster. In the sake of efficiency, any control over the jaw was cut off during battle. And since this was the frontline, it wouldn't be put back on anytime soon.
Meryet set her destination towards a higher point near the edge of the camp. It worked. Meryet said, You can't deny that.
At least try to recover the body. Tentheta requested. I know you wouldn't do something to get someone else killed, but the armor still matters as well. Meryet nodded. The two walked together through relatively clear camp. No one was running about and the loudest noises were from the battle miles away and the artillery a few hundred feet down the ridgeline. It wasn't hard to keep things quiet and orderly when one could speak instantly with their comrades, and stay constantly linked into a network that spanned the entire planet.
Of course, there was always the steady shots and blinding flashes from the multiple sniper teams scattered about, firing shots that traveled miles. It wasn't difficult when they were specialized for the task. Steps from the side signaled another arrival. Meryet knew what was coming as soon as she saw Lucine run up, a sniper rifle in her hands. May I? she asked, walking alongside the two.
The sergeant nodded. Sure. Don't waste any magic, though. The dark-haired girl nodded, before Tentheta stopped, and spun around. Going to see the captain in person. Unless things change, we're back on in twelve hours. That meant the dark. Don't sleep, though, things will probably change. She walked quickly away.
Meryet started up again immediately, her squad mate bouncing alongside her. You seem annoyed. The girl observed with concern.
I am. Meryet replied. You know why. The two walked casually through the camp, as if it was a perfectly normal day in a perfectly safe place.
Meryet reached the spot she'd selected, just in between the camp proper and the lines of artillery. It was a little mound of dirt, fairly obviously natural. A sigh emanated from the girl's mouth as her eyes scanned over the ongoing conflict.
It was easy to tell where the knights were. While the average battle would raise clouds of dust and debris, sometimes some fiery explosions, the attack of just a squad of knights would be a fantastic array of bright flashes and huge detonations.
Meryet could see the groups moving throughout the city, tearing through the already demoralized Tau forces. The knight's own unit would still be out there, but they'd used up enough magic for one day. No sense in wasting any.
Looking into the overall network, Meryet could see that the battle was effectively won. In exactly two minutes and thirty-eight seconds, half of the Lifewardens 5th Company would redeploy by drop pod to the south of the city, encircling the enemy within. From there, it would be a good old-fashioned massacre. The Tau had been swept into the southern hemisphere of the formerly Imperial world, running hard and fast from the liberation. But with orbital superiority achieved, it was now just a matter of hunting down the remnants.
While she had stood there, Lucine was on one knee, preparing the large weapon. A bright light flashed over the thing. When the wave was gone, the thing was embellished with gold and jewels, seemingly just made fancier. It wasn't her summoned weapon. She loved to snipe, but had unfortunately been robbed of the chance to do in the best way possible. Neither her magic nor her weapon supported that method of attack.
Well, it's not our fault that you like to sleep. Now sit down and find them. Meryet found it more enjoyable to be in the thick of the action, but obliged to assist, taking a seat on the rocky ground.
When Alicia comes looking for me, what happens will throw you off. She quietly commented, starting to zoom in her eyesight. It wasn't a result of her personal magic, just the standard enhancements she had. She sat there with her legs crossed, her cheek resting on her palm.
I don't care. Lucine said. The comments from the rest of the squad were already rushing through Meryet's head. She stopped paying attention to them, knowing that this was going to be treated as a comedy. Meryet pulled up the current map of the city, cross-referencing her current sight. What she saw instantly went to Lucine's head. She stretched out her arm, taking a deep breath but keeping her eyes on target. Lucine moved the rifle a little.
She fired. The enchantment previously placed on the rifle reduced the recoil to negligible levels. The barrel moved just a little once more. Another shot. This repeated several times, as Meryet scanned the surrounding area, giving target after target. Minutes passed, Lucine reloading, Meryet continuing to mark the targets. They couldn't kill anything too big, but that was fine.
Their current target was a squad of standard infantry. A rare sight these days, but obviously an auxiliary unit sent to the front in desperation. Aim up. Meryet said. You're going low. Now they weren't having their kneecaps blown off, but instead being thrown onto the ground from a chest shot. The infantry squad scattered for cover, a Hammerhead tank sliding in front of them.
The railgun turret swung about, slowly lining straight up with their location. That's new. Meryet commented. Had her heart's rhythm not been steadily regulated by her mental controls, it would have started pounding. A single ping for assistance went out. Their squad was resting at the moment, but Lucine and her comrade were only fifty feet away at the most.
Damn you both. Nena, the squad's shield generator, muttered. She landed between the two, right as her shield flashed bright under the weight of the shots fired.
Hey, they're better at spotting now. Meryet commented. Request assistance, sniper team. She called out to the general network within the base camp. The message was accompanied with the exact location of the offending vehicle, Meryet keeping the feed live as she flicked on her magic to observe it.
Roger that. From a Lifewardens sniper team. Meryet kept watching, linking with the shooter. She directly transmitted the target data, which was merely subsumed into the myriad information already being assessed at an incredible rate.
As Meryet watched the tank slowly drift away, still preparing to fire once again, a blinding light pierced one of its cannons. The Hammerhead now scooted down the street. Fleeing with its tail between its legs, the hovertank had barely gotten half of itself round the corner before another beam left a blackened hole in a propulsion unit. Now trailing smoke, the tank made its escape, the other Tau forces not daring to rouse the attention of the snipers.
Well, well, Meryet winced at the ladylike voice of the spotter for the Lifewardens team that had assisted them, looks like you messed up.
Thanks for the assistance. Meryet replied, not biting. To her own comrades she ordered, You three, get back in. They're not as clueless as we thought. We're wasting magic at this point. Meryet stood up, taking one more look at the city. Right as the knight turned around, realizing she'd had her helmet off the whole time, she paid for that mistake, as Alicia's slap hurt.
A bone broke under the impact, and a few drops of blood leaked from Meryet's mouth. Rude. She remarked in a private message.
As if you didn't do worse. The girl said. Her anger was real. The displeasure on her pale face made it hard for Meryet to meet her gaze.
Can't blame her. Meryet thought to herself as she reached out to lay a hand on her shoulder. Nena's only fifty, but Alicia's the youngest at thirty-seven, not from the same planet as anyone else. Not even from a planet at all.
Look Alicia, it had nothing to do with your ability. You're perfectly good at your job. Despite this, Alicia looked no better. In fact, she seemed worse off with the hand on her shoulder. Meryet waved forwards, realizing they were still out in the open. Hurrying back inside the protection of the invisibility field, Meryet continued. But that was your third time, right?
Yes, it was. The girl was uneasy, and rightfully so. Dying just didn't get easy for some girls.
Sorry, I forgot. It should be easier the next few times. Meryet promised, heading back with her towards the tents. I'll do my best to not be a cause of it in the future.
Alicia nodded, thank you. Meryet looked at her. The voidborn's jet-black hair was long, reaching all the way to her knees. Her strangely dark eyes never had a distinct color in them. The aura she gave off was a strange one.
The worst part is that she understands all that. Meryet sighed, thinking to herself as the accompanied the girl into the tent. The only good part is that besides her appearance, there's nothing off about her. To Alicia she suggested, lay down, get a bit of rest. Don't go to sleep, though, we may have to get back out there soon.
Alicia nodded. Thank you for that, sorry for that slap. Meryet shook her head. The dark-haired girl laid down, while stood by the exit, trying to find the right words.
In the end, she chose the simplest there were. I deserved it. Meryet emerged out into the battlefield once more, catching the sight of a fresh barrage of artillery landing near the opposite edge of the city. The knight grinned. Fifty-eight years of this and it still doesn't get old. She thought to herself, confident in that enjoyment.
Meryet Aleanudh: Currently a member of the Fallen Angels 6th Company. Capable of enhancing eyesight to analyze a target, taking into account a variety of factors. Capable of calculating trajectories and making detailed scans of objects. Classified under analyzers.
-Grimoire Ingenium
I feel like clarifying that everything within the first person narration is within the bounds of an official record written by Vergiana. Everything third-person is not within that record.
