Hello there c: My trip was longer than originally intended, my tonsilitis left my head alone soon enough, I wasn't forbidden to touch my laptop, I returned Sunday night and almost all Monday I was a house elf. All in all, I was able to write quite a lot while I was at the beach and I even have the next chapter complete. Yay~

Disclaimer: Still don't own Victorious. Sadly.

Chapter 21 – First Visit and a New Ally

Tartarus

The pitch black light that surrounds Jade when she crosses the gate almost manages to blind her for a moment, to the point that when the light fades and nothing passes through her eyelids she panics a little thinking she is blind. Fortunately, she opens her eyes with no little fear and doesn't bother to contain a sigh of relief when she can actually see.

She's in a rather simple stone chamber, its walls with nothing more than eight plain black doors with about a meter between one and the next and four small torches giving just enough light to recognize the place. She's quite sure some Assassins, like her girlfriend, wouldn't even need that blue fire.

Now, where to go? Trina told her she should go to the realm the von Gieris traditionally belong to, but the lack of signs in the doors make it difficult to know what door to take. She has one behind her, probably the one she came from, which would mean that's the "gate" to Earth – the Fallen realm, if Lucifer even bothered to admit it as such. Looking closer, it seems as if there's some kind of disturbance above four doors. The von Gieri seal, maybe?

The former King of Hell was a fan of symbolisms, that much she remembers of her girlfriend's stories, so the Assassin realm is probably under one of those. But which one?

"Damn, Vega, couldn't you be more specific?" she mutters to herself. "I'll never find my way in here."

That's probably the idea, you moron, a snarky voice that sounds too much like her more public self mutters in her head. Anyone supposed to be here should be able to know where to go.

That, exactly, is what she needs. To think clearly instead of panicking.

"Let's see... what more did Tori say about the Assassins?" she bites her lower lip, trying to remember. "The most honorable job, the one every Demon wishes to have been born to do... the only one allowed to have ranks... proud, self-sufficient, all about your own success..."

She searches her pockets, and ends up taking out an empty box of mint Tic Tacs. Wondering when did she put them there, she places it on the floor between her feet and walks around the room. It won't do to forget where did she came from.

Finally, after long minutes of wandering and examining, she stops in front of one. Two seals to the left of the Tic Tacs. The door is slightly bigger than the others, an inch at most, and just a few shades darker, and the seal a tiny bit more obvious.

"This has to be it."

The most obvious thing that Jade thinks of to open it is doing exactly as she did before. To her surprise, she's sucked in as soon as she touches the surface. Unlike last time, though, there's not a blinding light nor a seconds-long trip, but just a sudden change of place that does leave her very dizzy. Teleportation, maybe? But it has to be a different kind than the one that they used to get to the camp, or the one that Beck used that time when he got them all back to the Vega Sanctuary...

Focus, Jade, she scolds herself. You'll have plenty of time to learn all this stuff once Tori's fine again.

This new chamber is an awful lot like the one she found with the Fallen cousins just minutes ago. Made of stone, a door behind her, an empty wall across the room and a torch at her right. Allowing the rush coming from the ring to give her confidence, and reminding herself to keep her face unexpressive, she goes to the empty wall and crosses it at once, without stopping. But she is forced to stop and blink when she's at the other side.

She's at a hill. A huge hill, all soil and plants and few big rocks –like the one hiding the chamber–. From there to the horizon there's a valley, green and healthy, interrupted by a few smaller hills, a big river to the left and a few very separated buildings that can't be anything but clan houses. The sun shines brightly, a calm wind keeps it from being hot, and everything smells so much like nature and happiness and peace and damn, she can't imagine just how anyone living in a place like this could possibly be bitter. Is this really the Assassin realm?

She's completely awestruck, in love with the scene and how awfully relaxed she feels, and only a distant sound distracts her enough to shake herself out of her sightseeing so she can climb down the hill. There's no path, though, so it makes it a little hard to descend. By the moment she's in flat land, she's pretty sure she almost broke her neck at least twice. Thank Lord she managed to get a hold of something firm each time she tripped.

Looking around her, Jade can't contain a grimace when she realizes how damn far away is the nearest building. But there's nothing she can do about it, so she just sighs and starts walking slightly to the left hoping she's in the correct realm because she can't think of going back to the Master Chamber without banging her head to a metaphorical wall out of frustration.

It's a nice surprise that the cloak is weather-resistant, though. Maybe Tori did have a reason for insisting she take it when she awoke for a couple of minutes before Jade left with Beck, Trina and Sikowitz –who teleported them to the camp–. Saved her from using hundreds of layers of clothing and/or a warming spell back in the Himalaya and then shedding them all at her arrival. Taking the dagger with her feels a little uncomfortable, but Tori was having none of it – "take it or stay, damn" were her exact words, accompanied by a red glare that made the others a little nervous and reminded her just why she's not the absolute dominant of their relationship.

She arrives at the house –mansion, almost, though not that big– with a feeling of anticipation and no notice of how much time she spent walking. There's a silver plate beside the door, just under a small chainless chime that would seem ridiculous if it wasn't because of it probably using magic, and she can figure out the words "Assassin gen Teummi" written on it. Glad of picking the right realm, and for having asked to be taught a little Ancient before shit went down with Tori disappearing and the war breaking out, she focuses on the chime in an attempt to figure out how to use it.

She doesn't have to, though, because at that precise moment a presence makes itself clear behind her and she can't help but to jump at the sudden appearance. Maybe she should've been a little more aware of her surroundings...

"May I help you?" asks the surprisingly young voice in a tone that's way too cold.

Containing a gulp, and reminding herself to keep her face straight, Jade turns around. Staying calm proves to be a challenge when she finds herself not even a meter away from a young girl, barely a teenager if one were to judge by appearance, staring at her from her position a head and a half under her in a way that almost manages to break her front. "Actually, yes, please."

"Before asking, though, identify yourself, stranger. Who are you to dare use my Master's cloak as if it were your own?"

... Master? Oh, Lord, please let it be... "My name is Jade West" ugh, maybe she should've asked for a Ancient name valid for her real one... that girl obviously picked she's not from around here. "May I ask you some things?"

Her eyes narrow. "You may. Which does not necessarily mean I will answer."

"Are you, by any chance, the Alumni of Her Highness?"

Thank Lord I paid attention to that lesson on Demons' manners Tori gave me... Jade thinks when the girl softens enough for her posture to return to coldness.

"I am indeed, and everything I am I owe to my Master, who has been most kind in guiding my apprenticeship since I was nothing more than a foolish little girl" she answers, raising her chin a little more and –maybe subconsciously– caressing the heel of her right hand.

Whoa, this girl seriously thinks of her as a goddess or something. "I am glad to hear that. I am here in benefit of your Master."

Now it takes the girl a moment to react, but when she does, she seems kinda suspicious of her. "Oh? Have you got any proof of that, stranger?"

Is it just Jade's impression, or is she actually expecting for a negative? "I do have a proof, miss..."

"Kaira Dravo, Matriarch of the Assassin gen Teummi, Esquire of First Darkness and Sub Commander of the Imperial Army of His Majesty King Mias of Tartarus" the girl introduces herself, sounding rather arrogant despite her coldness. Jade's pretty sure she learnt that from her Master.

"Pleased to meet you. Maybe we could take this somewhere more... private?"

That's suspicion, right in her eyes. She agrees nonetheless, and opens the door of the rather large house to let her in and guide her to a study in the first floor. There, they seat in a pair of very comfortable couches that have a low rectangular table between them. She can't admire the exquisite decor of the room, though, since Kaira's eyes are so fiercely fixed on her that they seem to pierce right into her soul.

"Now, West" she starts, and despite knowing the use of her surname is actually because they aren't familiar with each other, the tone of her voice makes it seem as if that was because of some animosity, "let us stop any pretense of real respect between us and explain what are you doing here, since I am absolutely sure I have heard your name beforehand and not because of some deed in any nook or cranny of Tartarus."

Ouch. That hurt. Specially because Jade does have some kind of respect for that girl, even if it is due to her capabilities and her success in earning such a high opinion of her exigent Master.

"You are right" answers Jade, figuring it's best to start from the beginning even though she doesn't feel like she has the time to. "I would be surprised if you did."

"Who are you, Jade West?" asks the Demon, sounding a bit surprised. Well, that's something. At least she's not trying to kill her yet...

"Angel-Demon half-blood, daughter of a Lost couple, former top one priority of King Lucifer, lover of Rivot von Gieri and the only reason she ever fell out of grace."

Ha, speechless! Take that, brat!

"Oh. I see. The hybrid no one at the Dark Domain wanted to talk about for fear Her Highness would hear" she says after a moment of silence. A raised eyebrow is Jade's only response. Then she seems to process the rest. "The only reason my Master fell?" she hisses, narrowing her eyes to threatening slits. Wait, that's only the absolute last bit. It doesn't sound like she got the part of them being a couple.

"In my defense, it was completely unintentional on both sides, but mine is a hundred percent justified by me not having ever met her at the time" that does little to calm her down, though, so she hurries to continue. "I came here with her blessing" she raises her right hand, and the girl deflates.

"My Master's ring" she mumbles, fisting her own right hand – where she has a rather simple jewel of her own, probably the one that proves her as an Esquire. She has a necklace above her clothing, too, and its gold stands out maybe a little too much against her black coat. Although that's probably the idea. "I understand. You would be dead by now had you put that ring on your finger without her consent."

"Will you listen to me now?" asks Jade, deciding to ignore that comment.

"Listen, yes. Help, depending on what is a Holy, even one such as yourself, doing here in Tartarus."

My Lord, how difficult! You raised her well, you bastard, she thinks with a contained grimace. "I came here looking for exactly that, Dravo. Help. Your Master is currently being affected by an unknown force that has her under such pain that has her, as we speak, utterly useless."

"My Master is in pain? But... how can it be?" Kaira murmurs softly to herself, looking suddenly weak and young.

And now you're worried. Of course. I should've known the quickest way to get you to help was to point out your beloved Master is in danger.

"We want to know why did this happen, and how to help her. But we need a Demon to help us, because we have no one who knows how to detect the problem."

"I see. I take it you have someone in mind, yes?"

"We do. We were hoping King Mias would agree to help..."

"Ah, what a shame" the young Dravo makes a grimace, clearly not caring anymore of appearances. "I fear there is an obstacle there, West. His Majesty is currently incapacitated to receive anyone..."

"Why?"

"He has much work to do, and has declared he will recluse himself in his office until the coronation next week..."

"Well, I am most sure he will put his work on hold if his granddaughter's life is in danger" Jade hisses, impatient. "She might fucking die, so don't give me that shit."

The girl's eyes open wide, most likely stunned by the sudden change in attitude of the unexpected guest in her clan house. "Die? But... my Master... how..." Okay, scratch that, she's more concerned about the content than the way it was phrased.

"Just a few minutes ago, you told me to stop pretending respect and go straight to business. Well, here's the thing. I did respect you, because your own Master told me how damn difficult is to accomplish matriarchy of middle ranks before turning seventeen, and because I have seen how much of a bastard she is when she is teaching, specially if her student is a stubborn brat. Now, my respect for you was solely due to your successes and your ability to impress her, since I know how hard that is. She was still worried about you even after two years of being expelled, for Lord's sake!"

"She was?" asks the younger teen, who now looks so much as a kid that it almost makes Jade stop her rant out of pity. Almost.

"But the point is, Kaira, that I am not in the mood for stupid millennial manners and traditions and whatever your King might have said, because my girlfriend is going to die, soon, if nothing is done about it, and I know for a fact he will leave everything aside to help her if needed because I have seen how they interact and your Master's older sister told me so. Now, will you take me to him, or do I have to try and enter by myself and risk her safety even further?"

The girl finishes her deflating, and sinks in the couch with the aspect of someone who has been dealt an emotional blow so strongly and expertly delivered that they will be a mess forever or until someone really special to them takes them out of their misery – not by death, mind you. But Jade doesn't have time to care, and she stands up to continue her search.

"Well then, if you excuse me, I have to go look for him unless I want her dying. I mean, how hard can it be? It's a fucking palace, can't be hidden..."

"It is."

Those two words stop her dead in her tracks, and she turns from her position at the door to look at the Assassin with questioning eyes, her hand still in the doorknob and a perfect poker face she learnt from Tori. Well, not perfect – Tori's the only one who can actually pull that off.

"The Dark Domain?"

"Yes. Only we Council members know where it is. Assignments are given in the offices placed in each realm, and those called to the palace have to use the letter as a one-use key in the central squares so the location is kept secret. It has been that way ever since our people first arrived to Tartarus, for the gates were not nearly as hidden as they are now. Safety measure turned tradition."

"Where?"

Kaira shakes her head and looks up from her hands to cross her red eyes with Jade's blue ones, but ignores the question. "I take it you have not learnt how to teleport?"

"I haven't, no."

"I figured as much. I am bound by oath to keep a secret the location of the palace, anyways, so it would not have been any help."

"Will you take me, then?"

Dravo stands up, back straight and chin up. "For my Master, I would challenge God and my King."

That's loyalty, right there. My Lord, I can't believe these kids.

She tells Jade to follow her and they leave the study, walk to the second floor and through the surprisingly empty halls, and enter a bedroom with little to nothing besides the simple bed, closet, desk and mirror. Spartan much?, thinks Jade, trying to figure out if all Demonic bedrooms are like that or only this girl's. If it's just Kaira, maybe that's because of her Master.

"Have a seat" offers the younger teen, motioning for the bed.

"Uhm, thanks. All Demons are this simple with decor, or...?"

Wait, is that a smile? "Simple, yes. This much, no. My Master has always been of the opinion of decoration being little more than nuisances, though, so I spent fourteen months in a room that looked quite a lot like this one. I got used to it and, understandably, I have had all my bedrooms be as I got used to ever since."

"Did you move around a lot? When you were with her?"

"We did" Kaira answers, opening her closet door and revealing more books than clothes in there. "She escalated rather quickly, so..."

"Escalate? How come?"

"She never told you there are also ranks amidst the three major ones, did she?"

"No, but now that I think about it I should've assumed it anyways."

"Well, when she took me as her Alumni she was a member of the Assassin gen Tarump, one of the lowest middle-rank clans. By the time I left with my first leader, Mias D'Rak, she was part of the Assassin gen Thohov, one of the fifteen strongest. A few months later, she became matriarch of the Assassin gen Teummi, the elite middle-rank and the one who would be ascended to high-rank if that was possible."

"This same clan?" asks Jade, surprised and feeling a new respect for the little girl that's seemingly selecting a book of the many in her closet.

"Well, yes" she admits, turning with a sheepish smile in her face and a heavy volume in her hands. "It took me less time to enter middle-ranks, but much more to get to this point" she sits down next to the half-blood. "An Assassin's value is decided depending on the things they accomplish as they advance, though, so I am nothing when compared to her. No one cares if you were insanely good as a low-rank, but could do next to nothing in higher ranks. Plus, I have no Alumni of my own, so my reputation still needs to be worked on. Only those who are thought worthy of leaving a legacy are named Master."

"I think you are good enough anyways" she shrugs. "You are in the Council, which means the higher-ups trust in you, and you are in charge of a highly appreciated clan. That's good enough, for a midget. But you have to keep escalating if you don't want T– Rivot to get disappointed."

"I know, I know. Here, take this. Chapter one to four. I expect you understand Ancient, yes?"

"I do, but..."

"Rules, fundaments and basic theory of teleporting magic. You will not be the one making the spell, but knowing the way it works helps with dealing with the effects" she confides the older girl. "Master would not lend me this book until I had learnt everything on camouflage, defense and up to the middle levels of difficulty of all the elements, and let me tell you, those were some awful months."

She grimaces, remembering her own dizziness after entering the Assassin realm, and hurries to take the volume. Before opening, though, she decides to ask one more question. "Hey, how is it that it took her longer to get to middle ranks than you did?"

Kaira frowns. "She would have been there at eight, but... her Master was expelled just when she was about to be named matriarch of a low-rank clan. It made her career backtrack all the steps she had taken. She has had to work restlessly day and night ever since, and even though she had such a successful curriculum it took her more than two years to receive what she was already worthy of. I was already a middle rank by the time she disappeared, so it took no such blow to my career."

Jade frowns as well, confused. "I thought you were a low rank" Dravo looks at her. "She told us that the last she knew of you was you being considered to take over a clan."

"I did take over, a little while before she left for her last assignment. It took me two weeks to be ascended, I think mainly because the matriarch that asked for me had been an underling of my Master's. Being her Alumni was a boost for my reputation, at least while she was here, and then when she came back."

"... Is it really that important? Who is it for you?"

"Not who as in the relations they have, although that does help, but in how successful and loyal they have been" the girl answers. "After all, the Master is the major influence in their Alumni's life, since they live only four to five years with their parents. Plus, they are the responsible of teaching everything to the Alumni."

"Everything?"

"Not Ancient, of course, that is the parents' job. But they do teach magic, physical and social skills, the three Codes, the geography of Tartarus and Earth, human anatomy, our traditions, swordsmanship, the location of the gates to Heaven, history, and values like responsibility, obedience, respect, honor and loyalty. The reason why not every successful Demon can become a Master is because of that – what kind of values they have. Because a bad Master can only have a bad Alumni, but a good Master can have both."

"Both? What about a Master who can just produce–"

"There is no such thing as that. The best they can do is teach them well, and hope they will be wise enough to be loyal to what they were taught."

"If the Master is expelled, everyone just assumes the Alumni will as well?"

"It has happened, although it is a rarity. Story repeating itself, I mean. After all, few Demons worthy of being Master would betray the King."

"... How are they treated?"

Sensing the meaning behind her question, Kaira grimaces. "Everyone expects them to do something wrong as well. They are forced to be lonely, not even relying on each other because they are too preoccupied trying to prove themselves. They are hated and isolated by the ones they once called friends. They are full of resentment, hate and bitterness. Their work is never properly recognized. They never show emotion, and learn not to rely on them to use their magic easier than anyone. They are the pariah of Tartarus."

Jade looks at the book in her hands, feeling suddenly sick. Now that she has this more extended explanation, and she's calmer, she can understand why Tori had those beliefs so firmly implanted in her head, and why she was so worried about Kaira. She herself had been victim of all those things, and as such she knew what was her protégé going through.

"However" continues the girl, smiling softly, and bringing her back from her thoughts, "there is a reason King Lucifer once said he liked the U-kids better. They are hardworking, trustworthy, successful and loyal to death. My Master herself is the best proof of this – matriarch of a middle clan at twelve, when most Demons cannot do it until seventeen years old, and even less so in a clan like that with such a brief story at the rank; member of the Assassin bai Kalaus at thirteen, which no one had accomplished before twenty-five and no one without escalating through the internal ranks first; Knight of Darkness at eighteen, a feat very few accomplish, and none before forty years before her; Paladin of His Majesty, a title forgotten by us Demons but one that had only been taken by extremely talented Knights with more than fifty years of age and a fairly long history on the Council until she, with eighteen years and having been a member for less than half a year, was proven to have the trust of her comrades. She is a legend in Tartarus and the pride of the U-kids, the proof they can go higher than anyone, even though they are pariah, if they work hard enough to show even the King they do not deserve to be looked down upon because of the mistakes of the Master they had."

"... Is she really that good?" she asks, in a small voice that shows all her surprise. "She never– she only ever told she was powerful and arrogant and proud, and that bit about the Kalaus, but..."

"She is" Kaira nods enthusiastically. "There has never been someone half as good as her, and there will never be. Ask whoever you want. The kids born to be Assassins want to be like her, our Alumni admire her more than anyone, all Demons look up to her, and she will be the one and only Demon to be remembered forever because of their success."

"How much?" at the questioning eyes, she explains herself. "How much completed assignments has she had?"

"I am not quite sure" the girl says slowly. "I only remember that, the first time I helped her with her job, it was her assignment number 410. She was ten years, and I seem to remember she never failed until..." and Jade receives a look full of meaning that makes her grimace. "Oh, but I managed to keep all her possessions for her once she left, hence all these books, and among those was... it has to be here, somewhere" she stands up, very excited, but stops in front of her closet to look at the paler teen. "Are you sure you want to know?"

"No, but I need to."

The Demon nods understandingly, and begins her search after telling her to start reading because they have limited time. And damn, thinks Jade right after opening the book to the first chapter and seeing how much she has to read, she really should've practiced a little more.