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Chapter 8: "A World Away"
— PIÑA CO LADA —
Over the Philippine Sea, Earth
August 22, 2947 (09:30)
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Piña was familiar with chaos. She has walked away from battlefields soaked in blood and tripping over carcasses, both from friends and foes. She often oversaw the mass burials of discarded Warrior Bunnies after her brother was 'done' with them. When the fire dragon roused just recently, the sight of petrified and charred bodies of innocent children left in its wrathful wake was seared into her mind forever. Her hardened forbearances in the gruesome front lines and the Empire's atrocities led her to believe that she's seen the pinnacle of destruction and irreparable ruin.
To her horror, just outside the jumpship's window, the colossal and ravaged skyline of Tokyo proved that her chaos was the tip of the iceberg. Piña had never seen structures so high that they can rip through clouds, yet those same buildings were dismally stripped to their decaying steel skeletons, covered in revolting green vines and brown rust. Half a billion people were buried and lost to time here after the Collapse. Five hundred million in this city alone. Piña couldn't comprehend the concept of such a number, let alone as human lives.
This was the Collapse that Arias told her about—the reason why he and soldiers just like him were bestowed with such impossibly divine powers like resurrection. This world was brought to its knees by an invading force so inconceivably powerful that her people would readily accept them as Gods. But Earth didn't just survive—with the Guardians, its warpath was ferocious and triumphant.
The Empire launched a campaign to subjugate the people of this world. The result? They found themselves being rescued by them before even stepping foot into the Gate. Piña shuddered to think about the alternative, but a question pressed relentlessly in her mind since the Guardians' first visit.
"Mister Arias… what would have happened if we were your enemy?" She asked the Warlock sitting across the cabin's aisle.
He looked off to the side. "I'm afraid that's not my question to answer."
She gave him an understanding nod. "That's okay. I've just been thinking of what could have happened if the circumstances were… different."
"I can tell you that it wouldn't be a slaughter like you probably expected. Of course, we wouldn't nearly be as civil as we are right now, but we don't want to kill humans."
Piña breathed a sigh of relief. Considering that Guardians exist solely to protect humanity, less civility was the best scenario she could've asked for. But the situation still played over and over again in her head. Guardians indeed existed to protect humans, but specifically their humans. To them, her people were inherently alien. Inferior in literally every aspect. If the Empire caused enough damage, would the Guardians still be averse to turning the capital city into rubble and embers? If she's lucky, she'd be imprisoned for being complicit through her royal blood.
"Princess?"
She shot her head up, not realizing that she had spaced out for a moment. "Yes?"
"Don't worry about it," he gave her a warm, reassuring smile. "don't focus on what could've happened. Look at the reality. We're allies, and in the near future, friends."
Hamilton quietly chuckled next to her. "The Princess has always been the worrywart."
"Someone in my family has to be." Piña sat up, but the anxiety on her face barely faded.
"How about this? Look out the window when I tell you to. I promise you'll love it." Arias said.
Piña kept her eyes in the cabin as he directed his little Ghost to the cockpit. In a few seconds, she felt the jumpship tip upwards and accelerate, though gradual enough so as to not throw her off her seat. She had a good idea of where they were headed, but the surprise doesn't matter; there was only delight. As a child, she often dreamt of soaring as high as dragons. She came close to fulfilling that dream when she became a Rose-Order knight—she gained more experience on a wyvern than conventional foot soldiers, though less than specialist riders. Seeing Falmart from the heights of giants was always exhilarating no matter how many times she's laid her eyes on the view.
"Turn around. Welcome to the stratosphere."
Behind the window, that dream was finally realized, and it was overwhelming. In this ship, she stood taller than the most colossal giants and flew higher than the most revered dragons. The thick blanket of these clouds seemed separate heaven and hell; the embodiment of peace above and the pinnacle of chaos below. The magnificence in such simplicity felt like an insult to Sadera's most gifted artists and visionaries: there were only hues of blue and white as far as the eye can see, yet this was a sight worth a thousand masterpieces.
Her breaths grew deeper and steady; her heart slowed and followed the rhythm to an easy cadence. She realized how foolish she looked pining like a dog through a window, but she didn't care. With her ears filled with nothing but the soft hum of the ship's machinations, her soul reached perfect tranquility. All of her worries, whether regarding her day-to-day stresses or the future of the Empire, seemingly vanished. This view was nothing but ruin less than an hour ago. Now, she felt like she could just forget all of that.
Next to her, Hamilton was just as entranced; the stunned look on her face spoke volumes.
"Looks nice, doesn't it?" The Warlock asked.
'Nice' doesn't even scratch the surface.
"Quite. I haven't seen Hamilton this mesmerized since Norma t-"
She shot her head at Piña, her face conveying indignation behind such a deferential facade. "Princess, please."
"Oh, speaking of which," he stood in front of the seat between them. "I'd like for us to omit titles when we're in the City to maintain discretion. I apologize if this is too much to ask, but nobody calls anyone 'princess' over there. From now on, we'll all address each other by our first names."
Although she knew that monarchies were a thing of the past in this world, Piña hadn't thought about such a measure. She'd been thinking that 'Mister Arias' wasn't respectful enough for someone of his capabilities, but now she's meant to call him by his first name? How would she even begin? How should she adjust her voice's inflection in speaking his name?
She's called the most esteemed generals and senators of the highest authority by their names before, so why was she freaking out about this?
Hamilton gave him an amicable smile. "If you say, so Alden."
This girl.
Alden looked at the Princess. "Piña."
There was something about his voice that she'd never noticed. It wasn't harsh like a typical soldier—it was smooth as silk with a gentle and deliberate cadence to each and every one of his words. The way her name rolled off his tongue was quite natural, yet complemented by a dulcet timbre.
"Piña?"
"Sorry." She snapped out of her strange contemplation. "I haven't gotten enough sleep from the anticipation."
To her credit, she wasn't lying. She slept a grand total of four hours last night after studying a book Alden gave her on City colloquialisms and symbols in preparation for the trip, not to mention how tired she still was from the constant sieges on Italica just days ago. The guide was written in her language—how they managed to do that was beyond her.
"Don't worry. We'll be there soon. Just remember what I said; when we get down to the City, we're all meant to be peers, not political envoys."
"Understood." Both of the knights said.
"Have you gotten used to your clothes?"
Before they departed for the Last City, Piña and Hamilton were allowed to choose their outfits for their visit, as well as dual earpieces to understand the world around them.
These clothes weren't considered anything regal in either worlds' standards, but they were quite classy and moderately haut monde, at least according to the ones who provided them. Piña chose what looked to be a maroon-and-white form-fitting short robe accompanied by light-grey pants and matching jodhpur boots that rose to the top of her ankles. Hamilton went for something on the cursory side—she picked out a dark blue sleeveless long coat with black pants tucked under brown boots.
These clothes were abnormally easy to get into. The buttons snapped together instead of having to loop a lace around them. Most of the straps were easy to place over their receptacles, but they produced a terribly grating noise if one dared to pull them apart. Most apparently, these were breathable and cool. The summer humidity right outside the base in Old Japan barely peeved Hamilton and especially Piña, whose tight-sleeved robes maintained a surprisingly pleasant climate for her.
"I can fall asleep in these." Piña laid back in her seat, closing her eyes.
Alden chuckled. "Feel free to. We still have two hours left; I'll wake you when we're in the city."
Hamilton played with the seat's reclining controls, slowly sinking her back and raising her feet up on an extending footrest before she found her most comfortable position. "Oh, this is perfect."
Piña did the same—she eventually found herself lying down in the reclined seat. Although it wasn't as comfortable as her own bed, it was incredibly better than trying to sleep upright.
"Perfect, indeed!" She groaned as she stretched out her legs.
"Why can't we have this back home?"
Alden looked up at the ceiling. "Kythera."
As the cabin's lights and windows dimmed, Piña closed her eyes and sank into the recliner, her hands clutching a blanket that she didn't realize had been draped over her.
…
Piña slowly opened her eyes to Hamilton staring straight at her face half a foot away.
"Wow."
"Huh?" She rubbed her eyes as they acclimatized to the brightened cabin lights. "'Wow,' what?"
"It's 11:42 and Kythera said you would wake up by yourself precisely at this minute."
"Kythera can do that?" Piña pulled off her fleece blanket and stretched out her back. "How long have you been up?"
"I only napped for half an hour. You must've been seriously exhausted, Princess."
"It's Piña today, remember?"
Hamilton was taken by surprise and looked slightly away from her. "Oh, uh… my apologies… Piña. Goodness, that seems so jarring to me."
"You have called me by my name before, Hamilton. What's changed?"
"That was when we were children. Breaking the status quo might take a bit of getting used to."
Piña put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "If you get used to it, maybe you'll make the others back home jealous."
Hamilton chuckled. "I'm afraid that's the last thing I would want, Prin- Piña."
"Where are we, anyway?" She looked around.
They weren't airborne, nor were they moving at all. The lights were back on and Piña could barely see anything but gray pillars and objects outside the dim window. Alden stepped out of the cockpit and into the cabin, having just changed out of his Warlock gear. He wore a light-blue quilted jacket and white denim pants with brown brogues, a clash of colors that still somehow complemented his baby-blue complexion quite beautifully.
"You look…" Piña looked up as she searched in her memory. "You look snazzy."
He laughed. "Making use of that guide, are you?"
"I sure am. When did we land?"
"Fifteen minutes ago, give or take. Whenever you're ready, we can head out."
She cracked her slightly stiffened neck and ran her fingers through her hair to straighten it.
"What are we waiting for?"
…
Tower Hangar Bay, the Last City
11:50
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Overwhelmed is an understatement.
The Last City's skyline from the hangar bay was beyond that. The debilitated skyscrapers of Tokyo couldn't hold a candle to this; neither does the view above the heavens. Nothing could.
She almost forgot how to breathe, tears welled up in her eyes, her knees felt weak. It was as if Flare himself manifested before her unworthy eyes.
The colossal sphere floated still, impossibly suspended in mid-air as its own pieces encircled it like moths to a flame. This was the Traveler. The antecedent of humanity's Golden Age and the progenitor of all Guardians. Their God. And right below it stood a booming metropolis that, in its existence, spoke of the trials and tribulations that this world underwent. It was the unbroken and steadfast haven of a people who were battered and beaten beyond comprehension.
Even so, it looked as if this city suffered its share of adversity. Remains of what used to be buildings and burned patches of forest littered the outer edges, even finding themselves where homes may have been packed together. Craters that looked to be larger than the entirety of Italica dotted the grasslands in and out of the city. And if she had to guess, this destruction and the fractured state of the Traveler were related.
Alden seemed to notice both Piña and Hamilton staring down at the city's damages.
"This city was invaded by an overwhelming military force just five years ago. The Traveler looks like it's in terrible shape, but it's alive and well."
Piña had guessed right.
"They attacked it and stripped away our Light. It was the single largest loss of life of both civilians and Guardians in our entire history. For a while, it felt more like genocide than a war."
"Five years ago?" Hamilton muttered in shock.
"I won't depress you with the details, but in the end, we reclaimed the Traveler and scattered those invaders all over our system. We took back the City, but it's still healing."
Piña was disheartened. This city survived an incursion so immense that the Empire could never dream of matching even with the force of a united Falmart. Not only that, but they defeated them. Sure, the Guardians were initially routed because their Light was taken away, but she understood that in this outlandish form of warfare, the Light is their weapon and armor, not some crutch. She would never denigrate an unarmed soldier who was bested by one with a spear.
But even without their Light, Guardians still found a way to take it back. They were resourceful enough to fight back when they were crippled. When they got it back, they flipped the tables and won.
Had the Gate opened in the middle of this city, everything would've been over in a day. The extent of the damages the Empire could possibly inflict on them wouldn't have been anything more than a mosquito bite if even that. In the first place, what could the Empire even do to such a place where buildings stood as high as mountains?
"Enough about that," Alden put a relaxed hand on their shoulders. "let's go, shall we?"
Piña set aside those thoughts for now and looked at him. The only distractions she'll have today are the things in front of her, not unnecessary hypotheticals.
"Yes. Let's."
Tower Shuttle Station
12:00
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She was used to being surrounded by people—her status in Saderan royalty meant she spent plenty of time schmoozing with the elite in galas and in the slums and insulae tending to the indigent. But in this shuttle station, the only other time she felt this packed was in the frontlines, just without the misery of battle. Both she and Hamilton were nested right in front of Alden, who kept them being potentially stranded or lost. According to him, this was only one of two trains that took people to and from the City's central transportation hub, much like how Italica functioned as a trading center back home for merchants and visitors from every which way. No wonder why there were so many people around.
Piña looked to the right at the station's aperture and watched as the stunningly long monorail slowed to a halt in the terminus in front of them.
Ding! Ding!
Woosh~
"Now boarding for Core Central Terminal. Mind the gap between the train and the platform." The disembodied woman's voice announced.
The three shuffled into the monorail after its doors opened, followed by everyone else behind them. Alden directed them towards two vacant seats and stood in front of them, shielding them from everyone else as the adjacent seats and the shuttle's cabin filled up with the influx of passengers.
These people were so much more different than back home. They made a point to keep to themselves, refusing to even look up off their electronic devices—phones and tablets, as they were called—and seemingly operating on autopilot. Only those that are riding together in a party are the only ones making conversation; otherwise, there was only the sound of strange music, scattered conversations, and whatever noises were coming from the station outside the train.
"Stand clear of the closing doors."
Shortly after the doors slid shut, the monorail departed from the station, smoothly but quickly reaching a dizzying speed. They were only about a hundred feet from the ground, but the views from the windows were quite comely—to the left of the farmlands and scattered homes were the huge walls that kept this city safe, as well as the totaled remains of the Guardians' original Tower. To the right, the train quickly closed in on what looked like the City's residential area; they eventually found themselves following the snaking track between buildings both dilapidated and refurbished.
The music was distracting, to say the least. It certainly had a smooth, soothing effect, but the sounds sounded so artificial, playing strange tones and melodies that couldn't be reproduced by strings or wind like the instruments Piña was familiar with.
The most jarring thing she's been looking out for since they arrived were the number of Awoken and Exo people. Alden told of them when he was in Italica, how his Awoken race came to be when the Light and Darkness clashed on top of humans who tried to escape the chaos, and how the Exos were born out of people's minds and souls being transferred into steel bodies. It'll be easy to get used to them—as far as she cared to know, the Awoken are just blue-skinned humans and the Exos all acted, moved, and spoke exactly like humans. Not to mention they're much more pleasing to the eye than those atrocious goblins and orcs in the Imperial Army.
"Are you two okay?" Alden asked.
Both women nodded. Hamilton looked just fine, but the blindingly fast-moving scenery made Piña feel a bit tipsy, not to mention how the train was slightly stuffy from all these people. She kept her eyes in the cabin, subtly musing on the passengers around her for the rest of the ride, studying their City-like mannerisms and appearances that she'll never find anywhere in Falmart.
…
…
…
"Now arriving at Core Central Terminal. Mind the gap between the train and the platform."
Piña and Hamilton stood up on Alden's cue and held on to his shoulders.
Ding! Ding!
The passengers effortlessly flowed out of the train, and like an expert in all things public transportation, Alden slid into a space large enough for him and his two cohorts who stuck as close as they can to him. With him, they matched the flow of people and swiftly made it to the wide-open monorail platform building where they can finally breathe.
"I felt like I was floating the entire time!" Hamilton exasperated.
Piña stretched her legs. "I felt like people were watching me."
"I guarantee that nobody even noticed you. The people from the Core are pretty jaded, which could be a good thing for us. Anybody who initiates conversation with you is probably bad news."
"How bad?"
"Once you make eye contact with them, they'll never leave you alone. Just let me do the talking."
They wouldn't have it any other way. Dealing with solicitors in Sadera were a thing of the past, at least because they were either royalty or knight. Here, the last thing they wanted was to unknowingly pick a fight with someone because they missed some subtle cultural norm.
Both women were no longer holding on to him, now just following closely behind so he can pave the way through the flood of people. They made a point to look as 'local' as they can in that their heads weren't spinning on swivels, but anyone who looked at them for even a second would notice that their eyes were shooting around at just about everything around them. When they reached the main terminal, everything that was in the platform was amplified.
The building was huge—not even the roofs of the Imperial Palace's throne room and the Senate chamber reached so high. The floor was incredibly vast and dense with foot traffic as passengers made their way to the gates all around the station leading to various monorail platforms. The top half of the walls were entirely made of glass, filling the station with plenty of natural sunlight and beautifully bringing out the rainbow of colors ubiquitous among the predominantly marble-white surfaces.
Neither of them could wait to see the City on the outside, but the first order of business is to get something to eat. Their breakfast was deliberately on the lighter side so they can get their fill of this world's cuisine.
Alden took them upstairs to a 'food court,' where it was almost as packed as the grand lobby just below the inner balconies. These were restaurants, which worked much like pubs and taverns in that a customer takes a seat, tells the barkeep of their desired drink, and pays for it, except restaurants primarily serve food. To her surprise, the food here was, for the most part, just like what was available back home, just cooked or prepared in a different way. Alden pointed out the choices for them as they took a small tour.
The ingredients were familiar, but the dish was entirely alien. The gyro was made of small cut pieces of lamb, tomatoes, onions, and a sort of white sauce wrapped in some kind of bread known as a pita. There was sushi, consisting of rice and seaweed rolled over a clump of raw fish, cucumber, and cheese. There was a bowl overflowing with a small ear of corn, a chunk of beef, green beans, and a potato bathing in a dark soup, which Alden called a cazuela. There were tourtière, ful medames, pelmeni, hamburgers, lablabi, pad Thai, lumpia, and that didn't even scratch the surface in this place. Some were effective in making her mouth water like lasagna while some made her cringe and look away like that huge chunk of haggis.
It was clear that all of these foods were from all sorts of cultures. And when all of humanity lived in a single city, it's inevitable that everything mixed.
Alden rushed over to a table as its occupants began standing up. "Are you finished here?"
"Yeah, go ahead."
He waved to his guests to take a seat as he burned away the crumbs and gunk on the table with his solar magic, unbeknownst to everyone around them.
"Did you see anything you like, by any chance?"
It was too much. Her stomach felt loaded just feasting her eyes on everything.
"I like them all, but I also don't, at the same time." Hamilton said.
Piña nodded. "Surprise us, Alden."
He looked up in thought with a smirk before leaving them for the lines.
…
…
slurp~
"Haaaah!" Hamilton exhaled as the soup warmed her stomach.
Simplicity is perfection. The light saltiness of the broth, the noodles' softness, and the chili's subtle bite in ramen far outshined the overly complex Saderan mélanges and Italican cuisine that were just too bland. Each sip of miso and every bite of the pork were hearty beyond words.
"How is it?" Alden took a bite of his brisket.
"Filling and delicious," Piña gently wiped her mouth with a napkin before dropping it into the empty bowl. "I had no idea you could add so much to soup."
"I'm no expert, but cooking's all about experimentation. Throw some ingredients into a pot and you'll be fine as long as it tastes good and won't kill you."
Hamilton laughed before finishing her final sip. "Please share that wisdom with Mamina."
Piña rolled her eyes. "Mamina is a fantastic cook. You just have a lousy palate."
"We can open up your palate a bit more around here. Anything else you'd like to try?" Alden asked.
brr-
Hamilton almost let rip a massive burp, but she caught it and covered her mouth. As jaded as the people around them can be, ears would certainly perk up at hearing one.
"My- my apologies." She muttered as she let her stomach settle.
"Guess not." He grinned as he collected all of their bowls and utensils onto his tray. "Let's walk it off, shall we?"
…
Walking through the grand entryway felt like entering a different world. 'Automobiles' or 'cars,' they were called. Some of them worked much like horseless carriages in that they drove over asphalt on four wheels, but the majority of them flew high above them without wheels along a set route in what seemed to be layers of invisible overpasses. Those hovering automobiles cruised over the monorail's path and in between skyscrapers that towered so high up that Piña felt like she was going to fall over trying to look at them. It took her actually almost falling over before realizing they were in the middle of pedestrian traffic with their heads straight up at the sky. Thankfully, people just went around them without much of a care.
Alden walked with the flow of people, the knights in close tow.
Mall of the Traveler, Core Central
25 minutes later
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The mall was just a gigantic, multi-layered open-air marketplace, but that didn't make this place any less impressive. Everything she could ever possibly think of was here: clothes, footwear, and hats ranging from formal of the utmost opulence to casual ones sporting peculiar or minimalistic designs and colors, gadgets and gizmos she didn't even spend the energy trying to look at, perfumes and cosmetics made of aromas and colors both unknown and weirdly familiar and as expected, even more kinds of food than earlier.
They walked down the large paths, surrounded by shops at every turn.
"Go crazy."
Piña and Hamilton gave Alden confused looks.
"I'm sorry, go what?" The latter asked.
"Anything you feel like you want, go inside a shop and pick it out. I'll pay for it."
The two looked at each other with doubt. "We don't want to impose like that, Alden." Piña said.
"The Colonel wrote us a blank check before we left the base. The best part is, you don't owe a thing. You would not believe the budget Valiance Command has."
"Are you sure? That sounds like too much."
"Yep. I'm pretty sure the Colonel has trouble figuring out how he can spend the budget around the base. The only terms are that you can only buy what you can carry and anything you buy must be kept hidden from anyone outside a select group within the Rose-Order."
A blank check meant that any price tag was fair game. Of course, they definitely wanted to take advantage of it, but having grown up on the Empire's riches with an environment that fostered discipline, they weren't unreasonable when it came to things like this. The terms were much lenient than they expected, but it'd never come anywhere close to toeing that line.
"So…" he waved his arm towards all the shops around them. "go crazy."
…
Four hours later
It started with small souvenirs and conveniences—a digital bookmark for Piña and a sleek blue headband for Hamilton. With a little egging on by Alden, they added a variety of simple shirts and trousers, and with a complete absence of egging on by Alden, undergarments. Their fashion choices quickly reflected their current outfit and tastes; Piña leaned towards coats, cloaks, and ponchos and Hamilton looked to more business-casual sections. From casual retail stores here to the gaudiest of all designer stores over there, they really scrutinized the mall.
In the end, all they had were three shopping bags each. They tried to 'go crazy,' but they just didn't know—or frankly, care—about this kind of outlandish fashion. Their interest primarily laid in goods that they had some familiarity with back home. Even then, there were too many fragrances and essential oils to possibly try without feeling nauseous and any jewelry they saw was either too plain or too extravagant for their tastes.
Being surrounded by towering buildings and so many people at once did feel a little suffocating. Ultimately, they found themselves retreating into a bookstore when they felt like they ran out of options. It wasn't like they were going to read anything; the only social connection they had was that words around them would be automatically translated into their own for them to hear; they didn't have special spectacles that would do the same for reading. The allure in the bookstore wasn't the books, but the vast lounge area where shoppers can relax a bit before heading back out into the fray.
Hamilton reached into one of her bags and took out a newly-purchased box of turquoise sneakers. Following along with plenty of other shoppers who were trying on outerwear, she released the mechanical lock on the pair with a click and removed her own boots. She set them beside her, slipped on the sneakers, and pressed a button on its side that automatically tightens the shoes around her feet. She stood up and looked at her reflection in front of a dim window.
"You look snazzy." Piña said.
Hamilton looked at her dubiously. "Was that an insult?"
"We went over this earlier, Hamilton."
She walked away to take a lap around the lounge to break in her new shoes.
With all this shopping, Alden surprisingly didn't pick anything out for his own. "I bet you already have everything here, do you?" Piña asked.
"Not at all. More like, I don't particularly want anything here." He said.
"Is it because you're a soldier? Even a soldier needs to treat himself every now and then."
"I get it, but that's not the case. It's more of the fact that I've been around for a long while."
Guardians don't age. He mentioned that in Italica. "Two hundred years?"
"Somewhere around that. Kythera keeps track but I personally try not to think about it. Makes me feel old."
"But that age comes with experience, right?"
"Plenty, sure. But I've still got a long way to go. The Colonel's got a couple more centuries than me under his belt. I know a Guardian that's only over fifty years old, but she's been through more hell than me."
"It must be nice, talking about your ages in terms of centuries." She sighed. "Rondel's academia said that our life expectancy was in the forties, not counting the poor infants that don't make it to their first birthday."
"It's nice depending on who you ask. Some Guardians love the heat of war and they'd gladly spend a thousand years with a gun in their hand. Some just don't want a protracted life like that."
Piña looked at him. "Where do you stand?"
Their eyes met. "As long as the Darkness is still a threat, I'm not going to put my weapons down. That's just how it is."
The commonalities between them were just that. Soldiers. Except the causes they fight for couldn't be any more different.
The Empire attacks and subjugates. The City defends and liberates. She takes to the battlefield with a fearless drive to wipe out the enemy and earn the Empire glory, riches, men, and sheer power. He fights to merely take back what was once theirs. Her sword is drenched in the blood of barbarians and cowardly traitors; his gun goes black with gunpowder taking down forces that could wipe out entire worlds. A single misstep means the end for her, but if death looked at Alden, he would simply stare right back at it.
Piña couldn't deny that they were both the best at what they do.
"Alden! Is that you?"
They turned to the voice of a large, burly Awoken woman standing beside him. She was dressed much like everyone else around them, though on the casual side. If Piña had to guess, she was either one of those Titans or a lady who simply never missed a training day.
"Nobody else. You, uh, you look horrible." Alden shook her hand.
"Wow, no need to mince words or anything." She chuckled. The droopiness in her eyes was much noticeable after what he said. "I was in the Crucible all night. Just here trying to get my ears to stop ringing."
The Crucible. It was one of the most interesting topics that Alden taught.
The best soldiers train and train until each and every swing of a sword or raising of a shield is as automatic as breathing. But undying brings to the table a sickening element: Guardians kill each other when they spar. The Rose-Order's members are skilled enough to train together using real blades, but even they still prefer to use duller training swords so that nobody loses a limb. But with these people, they fight fellow Guardians with the same extreme prejudice as their actual enemies. If Piña didn't know about their nature, she'd think that this is just as barbaric as anything out of her brother's sadistic head.
"Seriously?" Alden scoffed. "Since when did you ever need to take a break? You spend more time in the Crucible than in the field."
"And clearly, you're the exact opposite. It's Mayhem week, that's why. Got my shit rocked too many times to count."
Samara seemed to just notice the guest Alden had with him listening in not too subtly. She leaned in closer to him. "Did you finally open your heart up?"
It took Piña a moment, but her eyes widened slightly when she understood what she meant.
"Idiot. She's just a friend from 125."
"Whatever you say." she lightly patted him on the back. "I won't keep you guys. Alden, hop back into the Crucible some time. I bet everyone assigned to the SR is rusty as all hell."
"You better pray that's the case. See you, Sam."
With a wave, she walked away, soon disappearing into the sea of people moving in and around the lounge as she went outside.
"Sorry about that." He scratched the back of his head. "Guardians come in and out of this place, too."
Piña shook her head, conveying 'no problem.' She didn't let Samara's question linger.
…
Hamilton returned shortly thereafter and spoke softly to Piña. "If you let me fight in these shoes, I'll be standing on top of a hill of bodies."
She looked down at the turquoise high-tops on her feet. "Sure, but are you willing to get blood and mud on those?"
The eager knight also gave her shoes a once-over, picturing them with the stains of war.
"Probably not."
Piña noticed that Alden was deep in thought next to her. "Is something the matter?"
"Let me tell you something about the Crucible that I left out a couple days ago." He turned to them. "In order to improve physical prowess and weapon proficiency in the Crucible, we dampen our Light to a set level so that we don't become overly reliant on it in battle. Makes sense, right?"
They nodded. It's always a good idea to train in an environment harsher than that of a real battlefield so that when it came to actual combat, a soldier would fight with more tenacity than they normally would.
"Well, sometimes, the Crucible supervisor lifts all of those restrictions and officially considers it a 'simulation of real, open warfare.'"
"And unofficially?" Piña asked.
"Catharsis and mindless destruction. For us and the supervisor."
Piña knew what he meant. When the Rose-Order had just been organized in her adolescence, Grey occasionally threw a bone at her and the trainees by allowing them to wield a real sword and duel against him and other veteran knights, who themselves would only use the training swords. The trainees never once landed a hit on their superiors and the program was phased out after they grew skilled enough, but she'll never forget the sheer exhilaration of being able to go all-out outside of battle.
But what was the point of telling them this? Did he just want to teach it or instill some emotion into them? If it was the latter, Piña was feeling a confusing mix of being disturbed, envious, and awestruck. Hamilton wasn't any different.
"I'm planning on having us watch a Crucible match. I promise you'll like it."
Promptly, that proposal stripped all those feelings into anticipation.
"But not today. In a couple hours, we're meeting up with the Vanguard and getting you checked into the hotel. I'll have your bags delivered to your rooms before we go."
…Short-winded anticipation, that is.
The Vanguard. Piña had heard plenty of them—the three commanding officers of every Guardian, as well as among the most powerful of them. She wants to get to know them, but at the same time, she can't help but feel intimidated just thinking about that.
"Is there anything else you want to buy from here? We still have time."
Piña and Hamilton looked at each other, then at the few shopping bags they have with satisfaction.
"We're alright." The former said. "I'd like to meet the Vanguard as soon as possible, anyway."
Naturally, they couldn't help but keep their heads looking straight up at the flying automobiles as they retraced their steps back to the terminal.
Commander Zavala's Office, Tower
19:30
.
The three of them waited in the large room with a full, uninterrupted view of the Traveler and the skyline below it. In the center of the room was a rectangular setup of couches facing a table in the middle—Alden sat on the table facing the door while the knights stood right in front of the Commander's desk, peering over it through the window. They were instructed not to touch anything in the office, but this view had kept them busy for the entire hour they sat there.
Soon, the double doors opened and four people came in one-by-one: the three Vanguards and Colonel Lee, who they had met just this morning back in the Tokyo base.
With couth, Piña and Hamilton turned to face them while Alden stood up with a quick salute. The former two felt tiny and inert in front of the Vanguard. Of course, Alden prepared her and Hamilton for them, and they were just like how he spoke of them. Commander Zavala reminded them of the Empire's most tenacious army generals. He was stringent and domineering, from the way he looked at them even with a kind face and his straight posture. Ikora Rey was quite cordial and spoke as eloquently as Alden, but a menacing aura of mystery and duplicity radiated behind that motherly look. As for Cayde-6, Piña was well-acquainted with his type. He was sarcastic and lackadaisical—as if they'd rather sleep than anything else—but when push comes to shove, he'd surely be the last one standing without even a drop of blood on his clothes.
Zavala bowed and extended a hand. "It's a pleasure to finally meet with you, Princess Piña and Lady Hamilton."
"And you as well, Commander, Miss Rey, Mister Cayde." Piña said as she and her page returned the bow.
"Did you enjoy your time in the City?"
"Very much. It goes without saying, but quite literally everything I saw was something new. I can't say I truly understood much of anything, though."
"That's fine, we don't expect you to." Ikora smiled. "But now that you're here, we can discuss more pressing matters."
Despite the day's overwhelming sights and experiences, the issue of politics never left Piña's mind. She had been anticipating this conversation since she stepped on Alden's jumpship.
"I am looking forward to it."
Ikora gestured for them to take a seat on the couch Alden occupied. She sat with Cayde directly across from them while the Commander and the Colonel sat on the perpendicular chairs to the left and right of Piña respectively. Once Alden had served Piña and Hamilton green tea and everyone else with coffee, he took his seat beside her.
"Princess, as it stands, you are our first and only major connection to Falmart, what with your royal lineage. For all intents and purposes, our conversation here tonight will only serve as a means for us to at least understand each other, so please don't be afraid to be frank. I understand that we can be intimidating, but I promise you that we are all friends here."
Piña responded with a smile and a nod; her intimidation did not really abate that much, but it did take a little political pressure off her shoulders.
"Do you know the reason for our presence in Falmart?" Zavala asked.
"Yes. According to Alden, you chased your enemies into the Gate as soon as it opened to prevent them from spreading too far out over our world. You stayed and established a base around the Gate to defend us because more of them are set to arrive and wreak havoc on us."
"That's exactly right. What are your thoughts on this situation?"
Piña felt that needed to choose her words carefully, but she did have concerns she wanted to air out. All the better, since these people didn't seem like the type who only wanted answers they wanted to hear.
"Before I speak, my words are my own—not the Empire's."
"Tonight, you're simply voicing the perspective of an ordinary resident from Falmart."
"Very well. If I am being honest," she straightened herself and looked at all of the Vanguard with relaxed eyes. "I do not fully trust you, as it stands. Although you and the Guardians I've met have shown me nothing but hospitality, provided me the opportunity to safely tour the Last City, and even fought alongside us to protect a major settlement in our world, there is simply nothing stopping you from stepping on us should you decide to on a whim. I hope you understand."
"We absolutely understand, which is why we would like to begin with you to build trust with us, as well as allow ourselves to prove it to you, however long it will take."
"May I ask the same question to you?"
Zavala nodded. "We somewhat share the same sentiment; after all, the Empire's original purpose with the Gate was to invade. Had it been us on the other side, it wouldn't be a favorable situation for both Earth and Falmart. But the fact of the matter is, the Gate was nowhere near any human settlement, and on account of our shared identities and strengths, we can afford to feel more amicable towards you."
Somehow, that didn't make Piña nor Hamilton feel any better. What he really meant was that if the Empire stepped out of line at all, Guardians can simply force them to course-correct because they're strong enough to.
"We will be as transparent as possible with you tonight, so rest assured, none of our intentions will be kept vague."
"Thank you."
"Colonel." Zavala looked across the table to Lee.
"Commander." He cleared his throat.
Piña was glad that they handed off the talk to Lee. He's a more familiar face to her, after all. Not to mention that his demeanor strikes a middle ground between Zavala's stoicism and Ikora's approachability, though leaning towards the former.
"I'll get straight into it. Princess, the threat that your world is facing is of the same kind of military that invaded the Last City five years ago: the Cabal. As you can see from the Traveler alone, we're still recovering from the aftermath. We established a defensive position in an uninhabited area of Falmart to keep the same disaster from happening to your world."
"Wouldn't simply closing off the Gate on your side be easier?" Piña asked.
The Guardians all looked at each other in concern.
"You're mistaken," Lee said. "this threat will come from the skies, not through the Gate."
Piña tried to suppress her look of confusion, but her mouth still ran slightly agape. Part of her thinks she should've known, but another part feels genuinely stunned. She understood that Guardians and their foes are capable of faring high above the skies to travel to other worlds without a Gate, but this Cabal had invaded Falmart through it. What's different now? Was it because Guardians held the Gate and now they've found an alternative?
"Why didn't they just attack from the sky in the first place?"
"The Cabal legion threatening you now is different. This one is meant to reinforce the legion that invaded through the Gate." Ikora responded. "They're a legion that we know next to nothing about, only that they are similar to the ones we do know."
Come to think of it, their method of attack makes sense. Guardians take to the skies and beyond to fight their wars. She learned that they don't reach other worlds through a Gate, but rather by flying to them.
The Empire has never had to look up while fighting the enemy. Throughout history, their wyverns secured air supremacy—an aspect of warfare that has won Sadera war after war. All an opposing army has to do is remove those wyverns to uncover a disturbingly significant number of paths to victory. True terror is knowing that the enemy's battlefront is the sky; that doesn't even count what they're capable of on the ground.
"With that being said, we do monitor the space above Falmart vigilantly. If anything, we've already staged an ambush before you can see them with your naked eye."
"What would you have us do, then?"
"We only want the Empire to do one thing for us. Stay out of it and remain neutral; do not provoke us, and we will do the same."
Piña narrowed her eyes. Simple. Too simple and incredibly irrational. "I know you seek something more in return."
"Yes, but our requests are modest and also takes Guardian activity in Italica into account. Only just enough land and resources for us to fend off the enemy. Aside from that, we will retain all spoils, wreckages, and all other materiel that belongs or has belonged to either Guardians or the Cabal. Anything of Falmart origin will remain untouched when we begin cleaning up battlefields."
She couldn't believe what she was hearing. The Guardians were fighting on Falmart's behalf, but all they wanted were the minimum of what they could ask for. If this potential war is truly as vital to Falmart's survival as they make it out to be, and the terms are to let them do all the work, the Empire would probably be willing to give up half its territory to them.
Political altruism does not exist. She thought the Empire would come out of this indebted, and providing 'just enough' land and resources is merely their down payment.
"I don't mean any offense, but what you ask for is too modest, to the point that I believe it's unreasonable."
"What do you propose is even more reasonable, then?"
"Princess," Hamilton whispered to her. "what are you doing?"
'Making sure this doesn't come back to bite us' was what she wanted to say, but can't.
Piña cleared her throat. "Material goods besides land. Tribute of anything you'd like, from gold or a steady supply of manpower."
"And by manpower?" Lee asked.
"Workers that you need not pay a salary or compensation for labor."
"Is there a name for workers like those?"
Piña couldn't help but feel like he was egging her on.
"We call them slaves. I don't know what you would..." She trailed off.
The room went quiet. Lee turned to the Vanguard as if telling them 'I told you so;' everyone else in the room looked at Piña and Hamilton with muted expressions, though with placid eyes that distinctly imparted disappointment. On her right, Alden kept his eyes straight ahead. Somehow, that stung her the most.
"What else did Mercury say about slavery?" Cayde asked Lee.
"Nothing beyond claiming it exists." He said. "CSO Hawkins also corroborated that from a secondhand claim from the Princess herself."
Ikora nodded and turned her attention to Piña. "Please, tell us about them."
They weren't unhappy—they must've been trying to evaluate their worth. She was happy to oblige.
"I can personally assure you that we have slaves that can perform to their highest-"
The Colonel interrupted her. "We don't want an appraisal. We want to know who your slaves are, where they came from, how they're treated, and what they're used for."
"Well… the Empire's slave population is almost entirely made up of prisoners of war. A small portion is made up of convicts charged with nonviolent crimes like tax evasion or fraud. Their treatment and their jobs are dependent on the benevolence, wants, and needs of their masters, but typically, they do not get to live with anything close to the luxury of regular folk."
"Alright, enough about that." Cayde waved his hands around to stop her.
Hamilton frowned. "Are you sure? I feel like she hasn't fully answered the Colonel's question, yet."
"It's fine, she already gave us the gist of it. We can figure out the minutiae ourselves." Cayde looked at Ikora.
Piña had barely explained it to them—her answers were incredibly vague and prefatory to real ones. Her last statement was supposed to ease them into the harsh reality of forced manual or sexual labor that slaves live through, not pass as an actual response. It seemed as if they were satisfied with it, and if that was the case, they had to have known what slavery was.
No, not just that. With the way they were talking...
"So, uh, who's gonna tell her?" Cayde asked around.
"Princess," Alden said softly beside her. "slavery is an extreme legal and social taboo here. Any case of chattel slavery and involuntary labor outside of prisons is strictly forbidden."
Both of the knights were each split on being stunned and unsurprised. On one hand, slavery was an entire culture in and of itself in Falmart because labor is simply too dangerous and too expensive, but on the other hand, they did notice many workers who were neither human nor humanoid, and the fact that this is the only permanent settlement in this world meant the consolidation of extreme wealth.
"Will this be a matter of concern, then?" Piña asked.
"As it stands, no, it won't be." Lee said. "Sociopolitical norms in your world are not ours to manage. But know that, if we do decide to leverage anything at all, the matter of slavery will be at the top of our priorities."
In having such a mindset, she didn't deny that they were people of virtue. Piña—having grown up alongside it—didn't particularly mind slavery, but she won't deny feeling pitiful towards plenty of slaves, especially those unfortunate enough to be caught in Zorzal's leash. The thing is, slavery has been the economic backbone of the Empire and its vassal kingdoms. Without it, Piña couldn't help but imagine that the Empire wouldn't last a month before fiscally crumbling.
"By leverage, you mean to request diminution of it, right? The consequences of that will be drastic for the Empire."
"Indeed." He said coldly.
The weight in that single word was unnerving.
"Returning to the discussion at hand," He cleared his throat. "all we ask for, as I said, are to keep any and all Cabal and Guardian assets and ample use of Falmart's land and resources. That is all we want for now; we are still deciding on any other requests."
"As long as your battle is truly so important, I'm sure the Empire will make it worth your while."
Alden nodded. "It is; for your survival, as well as for our knowledge."
"Everything we discussed with you, we wish to repeat to the Emperor himself, as well as other topics I didn't touch on today." Lee said. "Princess, as a member of the royal family, we request that you grant us an audience with the Emperor."
She hasn't seen her father and brothers since a few days before departing for Italica. The Empire was still reeling from the attack, and after finding out that a vaguely similar force that devastated them had set up a massive fortress on top of the Gate, they refused to even consider returning. After Evelyn aided the defense effort in Italica, Piña had sent a messenger to Sadera to inform her father of what happened. He didn't show it on his face—as is typical of him—but after hearing about Alnus, Piña could tell from his decline in his typical bravado that he was concerned.
Her father had a tendency to be cold and cynical, but he wasn't stubborn. He'd be open to at least hearing out 'those monsters from Alnus.'
"I can make that happen." Piña said. This was her turn to be assertive. "Also, understand that your presence is a source of apprehension to Sadera—the Emperor, the Senate, and the people. In that regard, I would like to make a proposition."
"Go ahead."
"Allow me and the Rose-Order of Knights to physically escort you into the capital city."
Hamilton turned to her in a jolt. "P-princess?"
Piña raised a hand to silence her. "If you were to enter Sadera accompanied by a troop of Rose-Order knights, as well as a Princess of Sadera, you would be explicitly seen as political envoys under the direct purview of the Saderan royal family, rather than getting by on mere asseveration. This is not merely for your sake, but also for the Saderan residents' sense of security as well as the government."
The Colonel looked to the Vanguard for their approval. With their nods, he gave Piña a smile. "That would be much appreciated. Thank you."
Bringing along the Rose-Order wasn't just for guard detail. She wanted her knights to have as much early exposure to Guardians and their technology as possible to impetuously bolster potential military relations that may arise from this in the future. Even deeper than that, she wanted to observe them.
"Whew, and here I thought we were gonna have to get surrounded by spears again." Cayde chuckled.
"We asked for thirty Rose-Order reinforcements during the siege at Italica; they should be arriving tomorrow. I've issued an order to the acting Rose-Order general to keep them there until my return, should bandits return to the city. We will take ten of them to Sadera, not including me. When would you like to meet with the Emperor?"
"Would seven days after you return home be fine?" Lee asked.
"I'm afraid riding from Italica to Sadera and back will take much more than a week. Unless you have a faster mode of transportation in mind." She wore a cheeky smile. Riding that distance on horseback was both a waste of time and a boring one at that.
"Of course. We will pick up your knights by VTOL then fly out to Sadera. We'll land outside the main gate and you can walk us in."
"That sounds like a plan. A week, you say?"
"Yes; seven days after you return to Falmart. We'll give you a heads-up on the morning of the fifth, just in case."
Ikora spoke after him. "Zavala, Cayde, Colonel Lee, and a small auxiliary group of six more Guardians will attend. I must remain here to supervise ongoing Guardian operations in the System. Alden, would you be willing to represent the Warlocks in my stead?"
"Gladly." He said.
Piña couldn't help but feel pleased with his acceptance.
"Princess, are there any other matters that you would like to talk about?" Ikora asked.
"Yes. What would have happened if the Gate was in the Last City, and not out in the land of Old Japan?"
"That would be impossible, but I know where you're coming from. Let's say the Cabal base the Gate opened into was actually a Last City-sponsored settlement or base. Your army would face military police units stationed there; they're not Guardians, but they're equipped to appropriately deal with modern human threats. By comparison, the Empire is not a modern threat."
"Would Guardians not attack us?"
"No. We will find out that the attackers are humans, at least for the most part, so Guardians will not step in unless the military police are overwhelmed. If that does happen, whether or not Guardians will strike nonlethally or with full impunity depends on how much damage is done to property and life."
Full impunity. Considering that all they'll face are military police—that is, regular human soldiers and not Guardians—there was no doubt that the Empire would throw men after men into the line of fire and easily overwhelm them through sheer numbers. Piña has seen what 'full impunity' looks like in Italica. If a single Guardian can wipe out dozens upon dozens of bandits, she couldn't imagine the utter devastation if more Guardians joined the fray.
"After the smoke has cleared, we'd still try to figure out why there are humans in your world, as we are now. Only, in such a circumstance, there wouldn't be a military invading your world to worry about."
"I'm glad that wasn't the case."
"So are we. Don't think about hypotheticals like that. Unnecessary worry only cultivates fear."
"You're right." Piña nodded. "That's all I have. If anything else comes to mind, I will bring it up during our conference at Sadera."
"That settles it, then." the Commander stood up, followed by everyone. "Again, it was a pleasure to meet both of you. I hope the future bodes well for us. You have two more days here; I hope you get to enjoy as much as the City has to offer."
"The pleasure is all ours, Commander. Thank you."
Alden got the attention of the knights and gestured to follow him out the door as the Vanguard and the Colonel remained in the office.
…
In the main courtyard, Piña couldn't stop wiping the sweat off her hands as the chilly night air made her hands even colder. The entire time, her nerves had been running rampant. She wasn't scared by any means, but rather she felt as if the fate of the Empire was vested in her words even if she was given assurance that her opinions would not be likened to that of the Emperor's.
Neutrality. All they want from the Empire, aside from land, is to stay away.
Piña knows that the Empire knows how to do anything but stay away. Thank the Gods that neither Zorzal nor Diabo were calling the shots.
"What time is it?" Hamilton asked.
"20:07."
"What?! That felt like two hours!"
Alden laughed. "Were you that stressed? You weren't even the one talking, Hamilton."
"I certainly am quite stressed," Piña leaned against the railing and felt her stomach growl. "And hungry."
Hamilton leaned next to Piña. "I honestly can't wait to try another kind of your food, Alden."
"I know just the place. Back to the Core, we go."
…
203rd-floor hallway, The Carlotta Resort, Core North
23:14
.
Stuffed like a festive Alguna turkey and ready to retire, Piña and Hamilton followed Alden through the seemingly endless hallway as he looked at the numbered signs hanging over the doors. "Forty-five… forty-six… forty-seven. Right here."
"Good evening, Piña Co Lada and Hamilton Uno Ror." A man's voice said out of nowhere with a loud click.
Piña looked at their door in bewilderment. "Did… did this door just speak to us?"
"Yes. You have to greet it back or else it won't open."
"Really?"
"Apparently, a polite and uplifting expression every night can go a long way in improving sleep quality."
"Oh, that makes sense. Uh…"
"I'd like to try, Princess." Hamilton stepped in front of her before clearing her throat. "Good evening, room forty-seven."
Alden calmly reached over to the handle and pushed the door open with a massive grin on his face. Piña burst into a laugh as a peeved Hamilton merely stood there with her eyes closed, taking deep, calming breaths.
"That did not uplift my mood at all." Hamilton pouted.
Piña lightly patted her back. "It uplifted mine."
"You're a bastard, Alden." She glared at him before roller her eyes into a giggle.
"Even if you had to talk to the door, it wouldn't have understood you in the first place." He said.
"Bastard."
They entered the small hotel room and Hamilton immediately collapsed on the bed nearest to the door. She moaned loudly as she relished in the cool, comfy queen-size.
"Don't get too comfortable. We still have things to-"
*snore…*
"Oh, my."
"It's up to you if you want to wake her up." He said.
Piña couldn't blame her. After taking a seat on the other bed, she was also being threatened by a wave of relaxation.
"It's quite alright. No need to rush; we're still here for another couple of days."
"Are you going to sleep, too?"
"Not yet." She shook her head. "I was hoping you can stay for a while."
He chuckled. "I'll have to show you how to operate the shower and the air conditioner first, so I don't have much of a choice."
"I meant, I'd like to talk a little bit more. Maybe with a drink or two."
There were two more days left, which meant plenty of time to spend with Alden and Hamilton touring the city and doing whatever he has planned for them. Something in Piña doesn't want to see him go just yet, though.
"Normally, I don't like to indulge," Alden walked over to the desk, which also functioned as a machine to order food from. "but I bet a piña colada would taste amazing tonight."
That statement utterly floored Piña beyond words. Her face burned hot and her jaw hit the ground. She quickly turned to him and covered her hand with her mouth—she had never felt so embarrassed before in her life.
"What?! T-taste?! I- Alden… uh, I… th-that's really not what I…!"
"Are you sure? There's no harm done if it's just the two of us."
The nerve on this man. Her face burned even hotter and her heart raced—whether in outrage or embarrassment, she didn't know.
"But- but Hamilton's here, a-and…"
"Your name is also a name we have for a drink. A piña colada." He continued calmly.
She was still reeling from it. "Wh-what?"
Alden laughed. "There's a famous alcoholic beverage here called a piña colada. I've been wanting to make a play on your name since we met. So just a little."
"Th-that wasn't funny." Piña still felt hot, though she wasn't as angry as she should've been.
"What did you think I meant?"
She rolled her eyes humorously. "I don't want to spell it out, you knave."
He turned back to the table and tapped his fingers across it. "I'll order a piña colada—the drink—for myself, and uh… what's your taste in cocktails?"
"Strong with a hint of something sweet. I can handle my drink."
"A negroni, then. You'll like that one, probably." After swiping all over the table, he finished it by tapping a big green button that appeared on the table's screen.
Piña got up and leaned against the windowsill, looking out at the bright lights all over the Core district. In the reflection, the screen hanging on the wall in front of the beds turned on and flipped through different videos as Alden sat on the bed Piña claimed. In a few minutes, Alden answered a knock on the door and returned to the room with a tray of two drinks: one yellow like a banana with a triangular piece of fruit wedged on a tall cylindrical glass, and the other was a dark red with a slice of orange dropped inside a shorter, wider glass. He set the tray down on the table and handed her the yellow drink.
"This is the piña colada. Have a taste, see if you like it."
"Wow. You weren't lying."
The woman in question took a small sip from the glass. Saccharine, tart, and tangy, and creamy. Hiding behind that tropical flavor was a deep sweetness colliding with the slight bitterness of a distilled spirit.
"That's too sweet. I can't believe I share a name with this." She put down the glass and picked up the other, reddish one.
"Well, the word 'piña' means 'pineapple,' and that's the main fruit in the cocktail."
"Pineapple?"
"I don't actually know what it is, but it's known for being sweet and a bit on the acidic side."
Taking a sip from the negroni, it was an instant improvement. Bitter and strong, yet the hint of fruity sweetness completely rounds it all out into something that matches her palate forged in sophisticated royalty and in the stoutness of the military.
"You can have the piña…" She trailed off, realizing what she was about to say.
Alden caught it. "I can have...?"
"The beverage that you have ordered for yourself."
They both laughed it off and enjoyed their drinks, with Alden sitting at the foot of her bed and Piña returning to the windowsill next to it.
"You know, we still owe you, Guardians, for saving our lives in Italica." She swirled the ice in the glass. "We've never formally drawn up a compact regarding that."
"We don't need to."
Piña frowned. "I understand that this City has all the riches it could ever want, at least from what I've seen. We can't provide you with warriors; even the most elite of the Rose-Order and within the Imperial garrison cannot provide any help at all in your battles except act as fodder. Slaves for domestic labor are certainly out of the question."
"We're fine in those regards."
"Maintenance around here looks troublesome and frequent; you may not want slaves, but you might still look for cheap manpower. Our gold may not be of much value compared to glimmer, but I know there are ways to melt it down for decorative purposes. Anything at all that we can give, we will."
"Piña. We're okay. We don't need or want those." He emphasized.
"Then…"
"Then?"
She took a deep breath. She was bound by honor to say it—Italica has never forgotten, and the Rose-Order and the city itself needs to provide something in compensation to the Guardians. This is the least she can do.
Piña steeled herself. "If nothing else, then I will gladly offer myself and the women of the Rose-Order Knights to you or whoever wishes to use our bodies for personal services. As daughters of nobilities, we-"
"Absolutely not."
"Huh?" She was taken by surprise.
"I'd never do that to you. Nobody will." He stood up. "That's not what we want. The Vanguard's still going to want something, though. Just know that it isn't money, people, your body, or anything that you have yourself."
Piña felt relieved, but a small part of her still wasn't quite satisfied with that answer—it may have been the knight's obligation to uphold honor still influencing her.
"What would they ask for if not…?"
"Political conveniences. If I had to guess, one of them would be free, unmolested access to Italica. Otherwise, nobody will come to collect anything from you."
She turned away from the window to look at him. "But is there really nothing I can do? It also happens that my dignity is on the line."
Alden gave her a look that distinctly asked if she was listening to what he's been saying. "You think giving your body to us for the sake of clearing a debt is that dignified?"
"I-" She stopped herself. "No, nothing that involves anything I mentioned earlier. Maybe I will owe you a favor in the future. Or when you come back to Italica, I can treat you to the best drinks that we have."
"Piña, you know that I'm completely unrelated to the Guardian that fought with you, right?"
"I know, but you're more readily available, and from my understanding, she's the secretive type. I thought that since you're both Guardians, and that you came to us right after she left, anyway…"
The ice melted in her glass as he pondered over it.
"Fine. I'll think of something."
With the chatter from the television and Hamilton's deep snoring in the background, they enjoyed their drinks in a short moment of silence.
...
"Earlier in the mall, when you asked whether I wanted a long life of war or to settle down at some point..." Alden turned to her.
"Yes?"
"How about you?"
That wasn't exactly a fair question. Alden was immortal; Piña was vulnerable to every weakness of man. He followed orders; she gave them. She still thought about the question for a moment, though.
Her life was dedicated to the Empire and its prosperity. She'd fight tooth and nail for it, even going as far as to create the Rose-Order and establish them as the paragon among the Imperial Army's elite combat regiments. But she was a princess of the Empire, first and foremost—if she can influence the world around her in such a way that the Rose-Order went obsolete from a lack of conflict, she would.
"I don't share the same hawkish outlook on life as the rest of the royal family; they marvel the glory of war, but I know enough about it to believe otherwise. I sincerely wish that I will no longer have to, but I will still take to the battlefield for the Empire. I will claim lives and gladly give mine up for it."
He chuckled. "You and I aren't so different, then."
"You fight in the name of benevolence and refuge. I'm ashamed to admit that it's not quite the same for us." She looked down at her feet.
"The fact that you're ashamed says plenty."
"Yet, my heart belongs to the Empire. If it says anything, it's hypocrisy."
"Does your heart belong to the Empire as it is now or to the Empire you wish to create, Princess?"
It had never crossed her mind. She wasn't the heir to the throne; in fact, she was far back in the line of succession. There was virtually no chance for emperorship, but deep inside, her perspective of a lasting peace was something she didn't know she was clinging to. But it was that belief of her ultimate lack of true power that kept her feelings grounded to the empires of the avaricious Molt Sol Augustus and the bloodthirsty Zorzal El Caesar, not the fantastic Pax Sadera of Piña Co Lada.
Maybe that really was why the Rose-Order came to be. Not as the Empire's tools of war, but as pioneers and peacekeepers.
She shook her head with a scoff. "You're a dangerous man, Alden. Imparting thoughts like that in someone like me is unethical."
"Somehow, I feel like you agreed with me, anyway."
Looking back out the window with a smirk, she took a sip and refused to comment on that. Alden stepped to the window across from her.
"Alright. I have something in mind. About that debt you wanted to clear so much."
"What is it?"
"I'd like the Rose-Order to be on especially friendly terms with Guardians."
"How friendly?"
"The 'we might as well be allies' kind."
Piña scoffed. "The Rose-Order is a branch of the Imperial Army. What you're asking for can be seen as seditious."
"It's not sedition if we aren't enemies. Besides, what are you and Hamilton doing right now?"
"We are only responsible for our own actions and behaviors; we and the Vanguard have established that as an official precept. I can't say the same for three hundred knights."
"The point is, this kind of friendship goes a long way. From my understanding, the Rose-Order never participated in Alnus, right? That means everyone except the knights will be inherently hostile to us. I'd be happy if we had an unbiased affiliation to the Empire."
It does make sense. Indeed, building bridges this early into their relationship will be beneficial both to the Empire and the Guardians. Neither her father nor the Senate might be enthusiastic about her acting on the Empire's behalf, but she wasn't signing its death certificate. This was a step in the only direction they can afford to go.
With this, the Rose-Order is truly a league of pioneers. Beyond practicality, this was the direction Piña personally wanted to go.
"Why didn't you mention this earlier with the Vanguard?" She asked.
"It's easier to think about friendship when you and I are having drinks together. I'll discuss my proposal and your answer to them."
The book told of a certain greeting from this world. One that's used in almost every facet of life in both friendly and professional settings, whether meeting people new and old to closing deals. She extended her hand to him, and he did the same. With a firm grasp, the bridge's foundations were laid down.
"Friends it is, then."
Facing her, he raised his glass in front of him. "The others sing this song of Light and Dark. We, together, have transcended such unimaginative limitations."
Piña raised her eyebrow. "Aren't you being a little melodramatic?"
"It's a proverb of the Awoken, for the Awoken. I figured it made sense."
"You've gone mad if you find this situation we're in unimaginative." She raised her glass.
"It's a mad world, Piña. And I welcome you to it."
*clink*
.
AN: I debated on whether or not this chapter would go into 7.5 or a full 8th chapter, but 12,000 words and a couple of plot points later, and alas, it's the latter. I may continue Piña's tour of the City in future .5 chapters, especially as she watches a game of Crucible Mayhem, but that's not much of a priority for me. I considered including all of it here, but I ultimately decided against it for the sake of not doing too much in one chapter.
Although the Rose-Order of Knights is merely a ceremonial yet extremely skilled group of warriors in the lore, Piña does have real and gritty combat experience in this universe as the general of the Rose-Order, but she's no Leonidas.
Happy holidays and stay safe, everyone!