Thanks to Eternal Nexus Warrior and AquaEclipse for reviewing.
Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.
Chapter 78
"What do you mean, there's a truce?!" White demanded.
The moment White and the other two arrived back at the base, White saw that there was a message from Portugal, requesting a call with all of the members present and the phone on speakerphone. After getting everyone together, with the exception of those that were exhausted after the rescue earlier that day, White called Portugal. Haiti, despite being exhausted himself, decided that he would sit through this meeting as well.
And the first thing Portugal announced was that Romano had called for a truce.
"I'm sorry Miguel," Mozambique said, "but that is something we cannot do. Especially after what they did to Tino."
"What's this about Tino?" White asked.
There was an awkward silence.
"You mean, you don't know?" Angola asked. "Didn't you check your messages?"
"I didn't check any of the group messages," White admitted. "Especially when I saw how many there were."
"But… when the first message came?"
"First, tell me, how many of your countries have cell phone reception in a cave, in an area known for the traditional people living there?"
Silence again.
"Fair point," Ecuador sighed. "The thing is… They murdered Tino."
White, Brazil and Haiti were horrified to hear this, and they expressed their horror in different ways. The sound of Portugal clearing his throat brought their attentions back to the phone.
"Now that everyone is on the same page," Portugal said. "There are two reasons why I decided to agree to the truce. The first reason is because we'll need to properly bury Tino. We're given a chance to do it in peace."
"Alright," Haiti said. "That's fair. What's the second reason?"
"To give you time to prepare for your attack. They don't attack us, we don't attack them, but once the truce ends, all bets are off. We don't want to rush things, and a week would be sufficient enough to allow you to put your preparations in place, especially if you're going to work with humans."
White sighed, shaking her head.
"I guess those are… valid reasons," she said. "So, when should we have Tino's funeral?"
"The day after tomorrow, I think," Portugal responded. "We'll need to get his corpse back from Spain. Vlad and Feliks are still there, but… Sounds like they did something to Feliks. I don't know much. Antonio's the one who explained, since both Vlad and Feliks passed out."
"We'll have to wait for Vlad to wake up and share his side of the story," White sighed. "In other news, I managed to recruit the inkenyamba and the grootslang for our attack against Requiem."
"How the hell did you manage that?" Mozambique demanded.
"I'd rather not think back on it," Brazil said. "That thing was really creepy."
"Which one are you referring to?" Haiti asked.
"The grootslang especially."
"But if they can help us against Requiem, then it's worth it," White said. "The end justifies the means."
"Exactly," Portugal said. "Well, looks like the worst is over, at least for tonight. Good night, and good luck with your preparations."
…
When Australia returned to the house, he was surprised when he felt arms encircle his waist. When he looked down, he saw that it was Kiribati.
"Aulani?" Australia asked. "What's wrong?"
"You went with New Zealand," she muttered. "I was worried that you wouldn't make it back. That he'd hurt you."
Australia frowned. How did she know that New Zealand was a danger?
"Well, I'm alright," he said. "But I need to talk to everyone. Do you think you could help me call them?"
Kiribati nodded, before she ran off. She went upstairs, so Australia started looking downstairs. Of course, a lot of the others came closer when they realised that Australia had returned home. It was pretty late, and some of them were usually asleep at this time of night, but he expected that they had remained awake because of him. So he needed to be as brief as possible to allow them to get some sleep as soon as possible. Then again, what he was supposed to tell them might prevent them from getting sleep, but it was still necessary for them to know.
After a few minutes they were all gathered in the living room. Australia's eyes scanned the others, checking to make sure that everyone was indeed there, and with a sense of relief, he decided to spill the beans.
"So, as you all know, I went to a meeting in France, and Kiwi came with me," Australia explained. "This was about who killed England and the others. Turns out, there are two groups that operated in secret, and one of them is confirmed to be pretty dangerous. And Kiwi ended up being part of the dangerous group."
The others all reacted in surprise and discomfort, with the exception of Kiribati. Again, Australia wanted to know exactly how she seemed to know what she knew, because it was obvious that she expected something like this.
"And… where's he now?" Marshall Islands asked.
"He managed to escape," Australia said. "I think he might have joined the rest of his group again. I'm just glad that he didn't come back here."
"Do you think he would have?" Papua New Guinea asked.
"Considering some of the things they've done, it's more than a possibility," Australia said, before he looked towards Tuvalu. "By the way, Peru's part of that group too."
He knew that Tuvalu was afraid of Peru, and when she heard that the nation she feared was part of this dangerous group, she reacted just as he expected. She shrank back, letting out a yelp, and looked around her, partially to ensure that Peru wasn't there, and partially to make sure that the nations surrounding her would be able to protect her.
He hoped so.
"W-what are we going to do now?" Fiji asked.
"I've got a base out in the Outback," Australia said. "It's pretty safe. The last thing we need is for them to target any of you."
"Would they?" Solomon Islands asked. "I mean… what would they want with any of us? You I can understand, but the rest of us…"
"You'd think so, but no. These nations have kidnapped, tortured and killed regions. In other words, those who have even less influence on the world than you do. I'm not going to take any chances."
The others shifted nervously, and Australia was glad to see that they at least recognised the danger they were in.
"When do we leave?" Samoa asked.
"Tomorrow morning," Australia announced. "I'll give you a list of nations to look out for, but for now, we should all get some sleep."
…
"You called for a truce?!" Italy demanded. "Without consulting me first?!"
Romano had called all of the members at Vatican's house for a meeting, and after making his announcement, this was the first thing anyone could say.
"Si," Romano said. "But before you fly in a rage, allow me a chance to first tell you my reasons."
Italy grumbled.
"Okay, first, the reason why I didn't consult you," Romano said. "That would have been a waste of time, to be honest. Time which Alvora could have used to prepare a counterstrike against us. With the Washroom having been compromised, we need time to recover. By delaying the inevitable, I've given us time to prepare for their attack."
Italy narrowed his eyes, but it didn't look as though he had an argument.
"Are you saying that you didn't think we'd be able to handle Alvora's retaliation?" New Zealand asked.
"Don't misunderstand me," Romano said. "I have full faith in our members. But… That thing that happened with Poland… I've never seen anything like it. Makes me wonder what else Alvora has up their sleeves. And I don't know about you, but I'm not going to take that risk. I'm also giving us a chance to research exactly what it is that happened, and whether or not it can be stopped."
Italy sighed in frustration, but Romano could clearly see that his younger brother was giving up the fight. He could see that Romano had valid points, and Romano enjoyed the victory of having his brother see reason.
"Okay, I see the point in buying ourselves some time," Malta said, "but didn't you also give them a chance to prepare an attack?"
"Si, I know," Romano said. "But we can still prepare for any attack. We can examine what we know about them, and prepare for every possibility. A week should also be enough for Greenland to get the new recruits ready."
Italy nodded his head.
"True," Italy said. "And what do we do if Alvora decides to ignore the truce?"
"Then we punish them," Romano said. "I warned Portugal that we would target their landmarks if they break the truce. Likewise, they're going to target our landmarks if we break the truce."
"And considering how Alvora tries to pretend that they're altruists with the moral high ground, if they break the truce, it could serve as a means to psychologically torment them," Greece said. "Especially if we pointed it out."
"That is true," Romano said, only now realising that point as well.
"So, we occupy ourselves with preparations?" Albania asked.
"Si," Italy said. "We'll be busy preparing. Angelo, could you tell the others?"
Vatican nodded, before he stood up. Romano's attention then fell to San Marino. He was a bit upset that Jamaica had left. Romano understood that his brother wanted to spend some more time with his lover, especially since almost everyone else had their lovers with them. The only exception was Vatican.
Speaking of which, Romano was curious to know how Slovenia was progressing with Bosnia.
…
Jamaica stood frozen in his living room. All of the bags were gone, and he could sense that none of the other Caribbean nations were in his land anymore.
Someone must have gotten in contact with them and warned them about him. He was a bit disappointed that they didn't seem to doubt any of it. He thought he had done a good job planting the seeds of doubt towards Haiti and faith in Requiem.
No matter. He supposed that it wasn't too important. He could always reach them in other ways. At least now he could focus on other things.
Like returning to San Marino. But in the morning. He'd used a lot of magic to transport all of the others back to their stations, not to mention what he did to Poland. He needed a few hours to sleep. Twenty-four ought to be enough, right?
…
"Y-you can't be s-serious," Canada stammered. "You e-expect us to agree to a t-truce?!"
Quebec and Åland were staring at Canada, but they agreed wholeheartedly. The three of them had looked up to Finland. They were Alvora's cold members, and they often spent a lot of time together. They were more than just friends. They were brothers. And now Finland was gone, and he wasn't coming back.
Åland swallowed thickly as the thought struck him. What would happen to him now? Did his land also fall under Denmark's control? Or did he have independence, like the American states?
"I know it's hard," Portugal said through the phone's speaker. "But I have my reasons. The Africans are planning an attack against Requiem's African members. The truce is giving them a chance to make their preparations. They especially want to eliminate Egypt."
"I suppose his magic makes him a dangerous target," Quebec said.
"The fact that he's directly responsible for many of the things done to us is the main reason. Torturing Raj, blinding Themba, attacking the capitals…"
"Do you think the Africans are going to need help?" Canada asked. "Because I can arrange for my soldiers to provide aid."
"They might appreciate it, though I'm not sure how much it's needed. When I'm saying that the Africans want to attack… I'm not just referring to our Africans."
It took a few seconds for the meaning to dawn on them.
"Wait," Quebec said. "You're saying… all the Africans? Including the non-members?"
"Exactly," Portugal said. "They found out that Requiem forced Uganda to cannibalise Tunisia. And they decided that they didn't want to be victims. Since Tunisia was targeted without being a member of Alvora, they realised that Requiem wouldn't leave them alone. And if they weren't with Anika and the others, then there was a chance that more of them would have been captured and tortured."
Canada bit his lip.
"No matter how strong your forces are," he said, "going against the forces of an entire continent, especially one as large and with as many nations as Africa… It's going to be a challenge. We might actually succeed in taking at least one of them down. Still, I think I'm going to offer my help."
Åland wished that he was large enough to have his own military capable of fighting in a battle like the one that was being promised. But for now, all he could do was support the others.
"…I was thinking of having a funeral for Tino, the day after tomorrow," Portugal said.
"We'll be there," Åland said. "You can count on it."
"Poor Feliks," Quebec remarked.
…
Romania frowned when he felt himself being shaken. Who was rude enough to interrupt him when he was sleeping? He cracked an eye open, and at first he thought that it was Portugal, but after a few seconds he realised that it was actually Spain.
"What happened?" he muttered, sitting up.
"You passed out," Spain said. "How much do you remember?"
Romania frowned, and he tried to recall the events of earlier. He looked around him, but it wasn't until his eyes landed on Poland that the memories returned to him, and he whipped his head to face Spain.
"Where's Tino?" Romania demanded. "Where's Finland?"
Spain flinched, and Romania wondered what news could be worse than his friend being dead.
"He's in another room," Spain said. "But, for some strange reason, they took his head."
Romania's stomach twisted, and he tried to think of a reason why the head would have been taken, and he could only think of one explanation.
"Denmark has Sweden and Norway as prisoners," Romania said. "He must have taken the head to keep them in line, and to scare them."
Spain nodded in agreement. Romania wondered if Spain came to the conclusion earlier, or if Romania had made him understand the logic behind Requiem's actions.
"I suppose that's possible," Spain said.
Romania looked at the window.
"It's late," he said. "Is there a reason why you woke me?"
"Si," Spain said. "Russia and the others are on their way. I don't think they'd be happy to know that you're here. And I think Miguel's worried."
"You're probably right… I don't think I can wake Feliks. So… could you help me carry him to where Tino's body is?"
…
Bosnia was showing signs of snapping out of his lobotomy, and Slovenia couldn't help the surge of triumph he felt. The average lobotomy for a nation lasted about three days, but it wasn't always the case. Some recovered earlier, and some later. But one would usually be able to tell when that moment was, based on the screams.
He'd made sure to whisper his ideals to Bosnia, and there was a good chance that the other would adopt those same ideals. But it was the period after the recovery that determined the fate of Bosnia. He would be confused and scared, and it would be Slovenia's job to put his mind at ease. And in the process, acquire a new recruit.
He turned around when there was a knock on the door, and Hungary poked her head in.
"Sorry to bother you," she said, "but we received word from Italy. We're currently in the middle of a truce. We're not allowed to harm Alvora for a week."
Slovenia shrugged.
"That doesn't bother me," he said. "A week is more than enough time."
Enough time for Bosnia to recover from the lobotomy, and perhaps enough time for the restoration. It was also enough time to discover where Serbia was, along with the others. He couldn't wait for them to see how much happier Bosnia was with Requiem.
…
"So, you're asking me to accompany you to South Africa," Afghanistan said. "How? Because last time I checked, no one can get anywhere in Africa."
"Oh, there are a few exceptions," Oman remarked. "Us, for example."
"That's right," Yemen said. "We have access. We just need to get to our countries first."
Afghanistan narrowed her eyes.
"And are those flights direct?" she asked.
"If we hire a private plane, yes," Oman said.
Afghanistan shook her head, before turning her attention to the other two female nations. Oman had received a call from Portugal, asking them to join the Africans. And Afghanistan no longer had a choice.
"So, anything to do before we go?" Oman asked.
"Wait," Afghanistan said. "I just remembered about something. Do you think we could ask one other person to join us?"
Oman shrugged. Afghanistan remembered someone that could use a bit of help, and who could offer an equal amount of help.
This was not a war that involved humans. Nations were directly involved. And not all nations felt comfortable with firearms. They needed someone who could help them in that regard.
…
Uganda whimpered, rocking himself back and forth. Rwanda sat down next to him, with Senegal lurking nearby. He was constantly around her lately, and she couldn't figure out why. But for now, she needed to focus on Uganda.
"Are you doing okay?" she asked.
"N-no," Uganda said, and she felt foolish for asking a question with an obvious answer.
"Just so you know, none of us are blaming you," she said. "It's them. And we'll make them pay for what they did to you."
"That's… not exactly the problem." He looked her in the eye. "I can't sense my country at all. There's… nothing."
South Africa has entered a 21-day lockdown. This is Day 1. There are over 900 patients, but none of them are critical, and no deaths have been reported yet. The greatest concern is of course the high number of TB and HIV patients in this country, and if one of them gets this virus… Especially since many of them are miners and live in rural, densely populated settlements. And now we just need to be careful of cabin fever.
On a lighter note, my sister made a good point: you know you're antisocial if, after all of these precautions, nothing's changed for you. But I feel bad for her. Today would have been her graduation ceremony.
