Asugi and Nina met up mere hours after the sun dropped, the former in his Thieves' Guild attire and the latter back in her Grimleal outfit. "There has to be a catch." He comments as Nina works on the lock on the jewelry store. "There's no way…"
"Recording devices off?" She interrupts.
"Mhm." He hums. "You know we wouldn't start until they are." He grabs a sucker before popping it in his mouth, "You're just trying to change the subject."
"Kana told me there was a buzzing in the air before Frederick gave that command out. I think he can sense magic." She starts off. "But if it is magic, then why? Is there a traitor among the Shepherds? Robin would be the only logical one." The door clicks and they are in. "If she is, then she has some sort of large-scale plan."
"So… say she is a traitor, whose side is she on, then?" Nina darts from one piece to the next, before her eyes land on the one she spotted. It is, without a doubt, the prettiest one to her. A ring, plated in gold, a sizeable diamond on top, with two amethysts on either side.
"What other recent groups are there?" She asks as she works her way around the glass. "The only ones I know of are Grimleal, Thieves' Guild, and Shepherds."
"Maybe another one is rising?" He shrugs as he too, grabs one that caught his eye, it is a stark contrast to what Nina chose, he picks out a simple silver chain, a small ruby hanging on the end. "If the Grimleal found enough to make a comeback, nearly any other can."
Done… she is finally done. Corrin slumps back in her chair and lets out a relieved sigh. Her eyes scan over the mountain of paperwork on her right, then the spot where all the papers were on her left. "Thank the gods…" She mumbles. Now all that remains is to deliver them to Xander tomorrow morning, have them distributed to Hoshido and Valla, and she should be finished.
...Finally. She gets up and heads towards her bed, before discarding her attire for a simple nightgown. She all but throws herself on the bed and lets out a content sigh. Soon, she will be with Forrest and Kana once more, and all will be…
A strangled gasp reached her ears and she jolted up. A sense of fear and dread reached her senses, there was also another scent that even she hasn't learned yet… sickly sweet, a cruel pleasure. She gets up and heads towards the door, before gently cracking it open and listening.
"Aw, already?" She picks up a voice asking, he sounds familiar. "Such a shame." Corrin holds her breath and slowly creeps out, her senses picking up even the slightest movement. She moves from hallway to hallway, then sees that Xander's door has been left open. "And there she is." A hand places itself over Corrin's mouth before she can shriek.
She thrashes about, before landing a lucky hit and she pulls herself free, "Who…?" She turns and sees that unmistakable face, "Niles?" The man casually stands next to her, the scent of bloody heavy on him. "What are…" Her throat suddenly feels constricted.
"Let's keep this quick and quiet." Another voice says… another one she recognizes. "Let's go, Corrin." A woman enters her line of sight and it is that same girl that serviced her just a few nights ago.
"Don't worry, lovely woman," Niles smirks, "You will remain very much alive." He procures a rope and ties her hands, "Now, let's go. You have a meeting to attend."
"Gods, Kana. What happened?" Forrest gasps as his son enters the house, the boy looks battered. "The Shepherds weren't too hard on you, were they?"
"Daddy, I have a question about mama." He grimaces.
"Can it wait until I look you over?" He doesn't wait, as he quickly gets up and grabs a first-aid kit. "What are these burns? Are they using actual weapons to train?"
"Dad!" He yells, startling Forrest. "This is an important question." The father steps back with a concerned look. "Did mama ever turn into a dragon?"
He furrows his brows, "Of course not. She got the nickname from her hot-hotted temper she had when she was young. Now hold still."
"Daddy, I turned into a dragon at the Shepherd's garrison." The other stops again, "It was scary…"
"Darling…" He pauses, "Let me take care of these scratches and burns, and I'll call mama, okay?"
The boy nods, "Okay." Forrest and Kana continue in silence, with the only occasional grunt of pain leaving the boy, followed by small apologies.
"Well, other than this, did anything else happen? Something good?"
Kana immediately flushes a bright red. "Nina…" He chokes out, then smiles, "Daddy, Nina loves me! I love Nina… we love each other!" He bursts into giggles, his bad mood completely gone.
Forrest pulls him into a light hug, "That is so wonderful to hear. How did it happen? I want every detail."
Then the good mood disappears as quickly as it came. "I'm… tired, actually, is it okay if I go to bed early?"
"Kana…" He pulls back and gives him a critical look, "Alright, but I do want to hear about it tomorrow, okay? Good night." The boy nods and leaves. Gods, what exactly happened there? Shaking his head, he makes his way towards the phone, which starts ringing mere seconds before picking it up. "Hello?"
"Forrest?" The voice answers.
"Leo? It is wonderful to hear from you. How are you?"
"Not well, I'm afraid I didn't make this call for good news." He hesitates.
"What's wrong? Is it Corrin? Nohr?"
He pauses so long that Forrest thought he wouldn't be able to get it out. "Niles broke out of Castle Krakenburg. Xander is dead, while both Siegbert and Corrin have gone missing. There is no evidence pointing towards them being attacked and… Forrest? Forrest!?"
The phone had dropped out of Forrest's hands. He chokes back a sob before picking it back up, "S-sorry. Is she…"
"There is no evidence on them being assaulted." He repeats. "Which leads to either an abduction or them simply fleeing."
"I… understand, anything else?"
"None as of this moment. I'm… sorry you had to hear that." He then hears Leo silently swear, "Gods, this is my fault. I accepted his case and…"
"Don't blame yourself Leo. You had no idea… and I would rather have you tell me than anyone else. Gods, we were relying on her payments. We're going to have to." He pauses. "Move again?"
"I'll call back tomorrow with some ideas, okay? Be safe."
"You too…" Forrest hangs the phone up before leaning against the wall. "Love…" He whines, "Why you? All we want is peace, why did they target you?"
Nina rolls the ring from one palm to the other as she makes her way back to Kana's house, alone. Asugi dropped her off about a half of the way there, before he actually got an order from Gaius. Two quick goodbyes later and she is a mere ten minutes away. She really hopes this ring will do, a few quick touch-ups and the ring had received enough engravings to give it a different look. With the house in sight, Nina puts the ring in one of her many pockets.
She reaches the front door and listens, the lights are off and there is no sound within, perfect. She deftly picks the lock and lets herself in, then turns around and locks it. Sure, she hasn't been in here before, but she wasn't going to let something like an unknown path keep her from Kana. Smiling to herself, she makes her way across the hallways before coming across his door. She gently opens it to find the love of her life sprawled across the bed, lightly snoring. Containing a giggle, she closes the door and removes her current clothing and climbs onto the bed with him. She carefully pushes him to make some room and plants her body on his, relishing in his warmth.
"Hi…" She jumps in place when he spoke. "Couldn't sleep." Gods, he sounds awful.
"Those were some pretty convincing snores, then." She quietly giggles as her hands travel across his body. "What's wrong?" She asks as she inches closer towards him.
"I… overheard daddy earlier." He admits.
"Doing?" She pulls her body closer to Kana's, so that they are practically rubbing each other with every movement.
"Crying." He pauses again.
"About?"
"Mama is missing." His own tears start to form. "I heard daddy say that Xander has been killed, and that both mama and his son are missing…"
Her heart stops for a few precious seconds… so there was more to Grimleal's plan than to just have him escape. She knew it, but… "Gods." She mutters, before her expression turned deadly serious. If this were to happen not even a month earlier, it wouldn't have bothered her, but now? Kana has broken down because his mother is missing… the work of her father, no doubt. "He will pay." She swears through gritted teeth.
"...Nina?" He shakily asks, "You're scaring me…"
"I'll fix this, Kana." She assures him, "For you."
Corrin bolted up, breathing heavily and sweating, she looked around. "Siegbert?" She asks. The boy was nowhere to be seen. "Gods…" In fact, it was rather dark in here, thankfully, her enhanced senses allowed her to make out what was around her. It was a cell, a chilling breeze flowed through. Corrin took a few steps, before gasping in pain and a chain preventing anymore movement. "What?"
"Ah, Corrin." A voice that just screamed 'evil' spoke, "The renowned peacekeeper." A tall and thin looking man stood in front of her cell bars. His skin seemed to be a dark shade of brown, but grey in some spots, his black hair is pulled up.
"Where is Siegbert?"
He laughs, "How predictable, worrying about someone else first. But, do not worry, I only needed you."
"You killed him!?" She could catch the scent underlying his statement. "He was just a boy!"
He smiles, "Perfect, you truly are a descendant of the Dragon King." He casually unlocks and enters the cell. "Toughened skin." He pulls out a hidden dagger and scrapes it against her skin, no cuts are formed. Corrin back up towards the wall, "An aura of peace that can even calm the Grimleal's most dangerous man, Hans." He approaches her, "Pointed ears, red eyes, narrowed pupils." His hand grazes her ears and she recoils. "Enhanced senses… but, the most defining and desired aspect. The blood that flows through you."
"You are a creep."
He frowns, "Well, that's not diplomatic, now is it?" Corrin gasps as a blast of something hits her, the man is smirking. "Listen, Dragon Girl, if you do as I say, you'll be safe… under my protection. If you don't? Well, I can work some leverage against you."
"Who are you?"
"Validar, High Priest of the Grimleal." He proudly states.
"The cult that has been hounding my every step. Why?"
"I'm afraid you are in no position for demanding questions." His hand reaches out and pins her to the wall, preventing any movement. "And you are far too valuable to just die, or rather, your blood is far too precious."
"What do you want?"
"Much better. You see, Queen Azura has recently risen to power. A shame, really, since we were so close to getting Anankos to do this." He turns and starts walking, but Corrin is still pinned. "Valla is known for its magic, and the royal family has a treasure that the Grimleal desires. A treasure that is finally time to retrieve. I need you to get it."
"Why me? What… Ahh!" She shrieks as another invisible blast hits her. "What is that?"
"Magic." He simply replies. "Your bloodline links you to the royal family. Azura will gladly take her sister back. You will return for this teary-eyed reunion, use your skills to worm your way into their defenses, and steal back the Grimleal's rightful possession, the Fire Emblem."
"What do you…" She stops as the man's hand is shrouded in a dark cloud.
"Good girl, you are learning." He faces her, "Succeed, and you will be the first one I will let go alive. Fail, and I will make sure Forrest's and Kana's screams will be forever planted in your mind."
"Don't you dare touch them!" She struggles against the invisible magic bindings.
"A sore spot? Aw…" He cackles, "As long as you are working, I assure you, they won't be harmed. Now, will you accept, or will I need to set an example?" She pauses, "Excellent." He continues as if she eagerly agreed. "But first, I need to draw something out of you." Both the physical and magical binding are gone. "And I 'regret' to say this, but since you kept your dragon locked up for so long… this will hurt." Corrin was about to talk, but ends up screaming in pain. "A lot."