Act 2 - Chapter 2

Knowledge and power

"McNeil! Where have you been these last two days!" Jack Granger demanded to know as McNeil entered the Kodiak Strategic War Room.

The war room was a large rectangular with a Holo-table taking up the majority of its center. Computers lined the remaining walls, leaving only enough room for people to walk around and through to the room's two doors. The Holo-table was showing nothing above it, and instead just glowed a light blue, illuminating the room with its calm glow.

McNeil looked at Granger and sighed to himself as he walked across the room and sat at the end of the Holo-table, "I was out gathering information, and was able to find out what those nobles and that queen have been hiding from us. It's quite a bit."

Jack Granger raised an eyebrow and sighed as he walked over to the Holo-table and leaned on it a bit as he spoke. "What did you find?"

McNeil smiled as he pulled out a small silver ring with an image of a bird cage on it and tossed it onto the table. "It seems this continent is not nearly as upstanding as we thought. That ring is an invitation to visit a group that calls itself the Gilded Cage. It's a group of common people and nobles together that apparently work behind the scenes to keep things calm. I learned quite a bit from one of their members, who also happens to be the headmaster of that school we first saw."

"And? What did you find out, McNeil?"

"Roughly twenty year ago, a series of events transpired on this continent. They called it the Heretic's War."

"So it was a religious war then?" Granger asked as he stepped away from the table and moved to a nearby chair, feeling that he might need it depending on what he heard.

"In a way. The heretic in question was a noble child who, you will love this, found Tiberium and used it as a way to create her own army of fanatics. I was told just the bare minimum about the conflict, but from what I was told, it led to many serious battles, as well as an invasion by the Scrin."

"So that means that threshold tower had been used a mere twenty years ago, interesting. Is there anything else of interest that you learned?"

"Yes, two things. The noble girl's organization was collectively known as the Crystalists. They had Nod Scorpion tanks as well as other Nod weaponry under their control. But what got my attention the most was how the girl that led the group was described."

"Why? Was it unusual?" Granger asked as an officer brought him a cup of coffee which he gratefully accepted.

"You might say that. He described her as a short girl with bright pink hair." McNeil said as he tapped on a keyboard at his end of the holo-table. "It reminded me of a number of reports from near the middle of the third Tiberium war."

"Reports?"

"Yeah. Specifically this one, a report from the African red zone, the event where one of our MARVS was detonated from within. The only image is blurry, but take a look." McNeil said as he brought up the image sent from the MARV before it had been destroyed. The image was extremely blurry, as most images from Red zones turned out to be, but it showed the front of the MARV where it would entrap and process Tiberium. Clinging to the top of its mouth was the form of a person with long flowing hair, but from the looks of the picture, the person's hair looked brown or red.

"That image, yes, I recall it now. R&D had no idea how a MARV could've detonated like that when it had not been damaged beforehand. The one survivor from that incident. . . . He said something about that person's hair, didn't he?"

McNeil nodded. "I had questioned him myself at that time, and he said that a girl with pink hair was responsible. At the time I thought he had shellshock, but now. . . I think there may be a connection that we should look into."

"Hmm, yes, perhaps we should. There is a more pressing matter however, and that is the matter of setting down so we might hunt for Kane without problem . . . . . We received a letter just before you returned. It states that the heads of each nation will be in this country tomorrow, and that the meeting with all of their leaders will be then."

"I see. Are you wanting me to come with you?"

"No, I want you to keep finding information, and since you seem to have found a good connection, maybe look into it as well," Granger said as he flicked the ring back across the Holo-table toward McNeil, who caught it without looking.

"I see. Alright then. I much prefer being out in the field to stuck in a meeting hall. I'll find out what we need while you get us a base of operations." McNeil said with a smile and a wave as he stood up from his chair and walked out of the room, leaving Granger to prepare for his upcoming battle of wits with the noble or not so noble leaders of this world's countries.

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Siesta ran through the dark nighttime forests of Tristania with a single goal in mind. The Magic Academy.

The plan was simple really. Emelia would be inserted into the school as a sort of sleeper agent to give Clarity a place to hole up in between forays for information, and while Clarity was out, Emelia could find out what Tristania's nobles were up to. To do this she needed to have a false identity under a noble house, and it would have to be one that was little known, and not under scrutiny.

To that end all of the papers and work for the false identity had been set up correctly, the only thing left to do was the most problematic one. The information had to be inserted into the school in such a way that nothing seemed amiss, yet left the family itself completely out of the loop and unknowledgeable about it. And that was why she was here.

There were two options. The papers could be left on the headmaster's desk under other papers, making it look as if they had been misplaced, or she could have them given directly to the headmaster by a member of the school. The second option would be more believable, but it was unlikely.

Luckily Siesta had an idea that could make the second option work, but she still needed to get into the school to go through with it, but that wouldn't be a problem for her.

Breaking out of the forest, Siesta grinned as she ran down the hill towards the walls that surrounded the academy. Running at full speed she crouched down at the last second and leapt up at the wall, reaching almost all the way up, and scrambling the rest of the way without making a sound.

Looking around Siesta could easily tell that the top of the wall was clear, but it was quickly confirmed that the grounds of the academy were not. At least a handful of familiars prowled the grounds, likely using the time to stretch their legs, but also posing a problem for anyone who wanted to break in. It was not a problem for her though.

Slinking across the wall Siesta dropped behind the building used by the school's maid staff and stopped beside the window that led to the kitchen. Checking over the latch she found it the way it had been years ago, and slipped it open without a sound. Moving into the kitchen, Siesta felt a pang of nostalgia strike her. It had been years since she has been here, but everything was arranged the same way as it had been before. It felt strange to say the least.

"Is someone there?" came the sudden and gruff sound of an older man's voice from the entrance to the kitchen.

Darting her eyes toward the person she could see his silhouette at the entrance, but it was so dark that she knew her identity would be safe. All she needed to do was slip out and make them think they saw something. But something seemed off. Anyone walking in this area in the dead of night would have a candle on them, or had to be up to something less than good. Letting her hand drift to the hilt of her short blade on her waist Siesta began moving to the side as slowly as possible, ready for any possibility. With the room this dark, if she did not move fast most people would assume their eyes were playing a trick, and if they moved forward with bad intent, she would be more than ready to spill their insides upon the floor; though she hoped she would not have to.

Unexpectedly, the man did not move away or forward. Instead he slowly reached to his side and pulled out a box that sounded to Siesta that it was likely a matchbox. Proving her guess right the man pulled out a match and lit it, illuminating himself, and the kitchen, just enough to see the edges of things clearly.

" . . . . That, that's you isn't it . . . Siesta." Marteau said unsurely.

Siesta was quiet for a moment as she let Marteau 's voice ring in her ears. She hadn't heard his voice in as many years as she had been here, but unlike the academy itself, his voice carried only good memories. He was the single reason why the maids always could keep their heads strong when they worked here. He did not let them get pulled into a nobles business if he could help it, and he had always been kind to them.

Now though, he looked, wrong. He had been middle aged when Siesta had been at the academy all those years before, but now he looked old, far older than he should by all rights. His skin was wrinkled and loose, and his eyes looked cold and empty, like life was flowing out of them. He looked like he was tired, more tired than the oldest person Siesta had ever seen. He did not look healthy.

"You looked better when I last saw you." Siesta said after a few moments of quiet as she stepped out from the shadows and into the match light.

"I would have, yes. . . . I- I had heard the rumors all those years ago, but I had never fully believed them, you are with those Crystalist people, aren't you?"

Siesta smiled and raised her free hand, conjuring an orb of water that quickly began to glow a cool blue in color from the Tiberium inside it, illuminating her more properly. "And if I am?"

Marteau shrugged, "Then nothing really. It seems that old rumor that Crystalists had magic is true. It's odd seeing you use it so easily."

"I've had practice, but we have a problem now." Siesta said calmly.

Marteau nodded. "I figured as much. The Crystalists are thought to be dead, but if you are alive, I'm guessing others are as well, and there must be a reason you are here."

Siesta nodded, "Yes, there would be. . . . . Out of curiosity, what are your thoughts on everything that happened in the past?"

"If you are meaning the Heretics War, then I was always on the fence. I think the nobles acted poorly considering the situations, but I think the Crystalists, and Louise, could have given out more information to the nobles as well."

Siesta smiled and lowered her arm, pulling out a slip of folded paper, closed with a wax seal. "Then would you be willing to do something for me? For old times' sake?"

Marteau thought for a few moments before speaking up, his voice wheezing slightly as he began. "Will anyone come to harm if I do?"

"Everyone is always in danger, but no, it will not cause anyone direct harm. All I need you to do is to hand this letter to the headmaster. Say, as if it got mixed up in the mail perhaps." Siesta said as she threw the paper on to the nearby counter.

Marteau carefully walked over to the counter and picked up the paper, looking over its wax seal. "This, is this a letter for a student to join the school?"

"Yes, it is, but don't worry, no harm will come to anyone from this action. Will you do it?"

Marteau nodded. "Yes I will I guess. I'm guessing this noble house is connected to you then? Who's the student coming to the school?"

Siesta smiled as she walked over to a doorway and walked halfway through it, stopping to say a last word before disappearing from sight. " It'll be my daughter."