The Marchioness's battlefield-I mean-tea party would result in either one of two things, the Countess determined. Either an invitation to another after showing the nobility that the Blazkowicz family was perfectly normal despite the colourful rumours about them... or the social and hierarchal ruin of the name entirely.

This gargantuan task rested on the shoulders of both her and her son. Depending on their behaviour and what the nobility saw of them, they had a 50/50 chance of either outcome.

Yet what they came out with that day was far beyond any of their expectations. The Count and Countess stared at the signed and sealed letter from the Duchy of Lucius in awe. A letter inviting Sylvia and her son to a private tea hosted by the Duchess herself.

'What in the world happened that day, Sylvia...?' The Count asked, reading the letter over and over in disbelief. 'Is what the letter says true? That our son saved the life of the Duchy's heir at the tea party?'

Sylvia nodded slowly, scarcely capable of believing what she was seeing either. 'Well, you see, dear...'

The Countess recalled the event in great detail to her husband. How during the time she had engaged in relentless social warfare, word traveled quickly throughout the party of a certain scuffle between children. A scuffle that involved fallen bodies and carnage.

Feeling an inexplicable, creeping dread at the story, she arrived on the scene. And true to the rumours, the first thing she saw were the bodies. And at the centre of them was none other than her own son... he wasn't the only one standing, though.

He wasn't quite as tall as her son, but the strange boy's eyes - bright and blue - held something peculiar in them that she couldn't help but be struck familiarly by.

Spotting the bruises on his limbs, though, Sylvia only expected the worst. Which family was this strange boy from? That very honour she fought so hard to restore moments prior depended exactly on the answer to that question... until it answered itself.

'You're saying our William saved the life of a Duke's son!?'

'It... it would seem so.'

'How splendid!' the Count cried in relief. 'It seems our son is more capable than we think, dear!'

Yet Sylvia didn't share her husband's mirth. Noticing the concerned furrow of her eyebrows, he asked, 'What's the matter now? I believe this ordeal is a cause for celebration, not more worry.'

'I understand that, but...'

'But?'

'Teas are highly sociable events, dear,' she said, biting her nail as she held the Count's eyes. 'To put it bluntly... our son has to talk.'

The joyous atmosphere in the Count's office quickly turned into a familiar sombre as the two sighed deeply and longingly. Only time would tell what came of the invitation.

And that time approached faster than the family would have liked. The Countess and young master Blazkowicz sat through an hour-long carriage ride through the county and into the Dukedom of Lucius, arriving at a manor possibly five times the size of their own. In fact, it was more like a castle as they stepped out; Sylvia dazzled by the servants that lined up to greet them, following the head butler as he led them inside.

No sooner had the Duchess arrived with her son in tow, smiling, glowing almost in a way the Countess struggled to fathom but nonetheless reciprocated courteously.

'I'm so glad you could make it, Countess!' she grasped Sylvia's arm gently, pressing her cheek against hers in greeting. 'The young master as well. Come. I've prepared a separate tea for the young gentlemen and us noble ladies.'

Whisking away the Countess, a butler appeared in service of the boys, leading them through the manor and into one of the five gardens it boasted. They passed through pathways of fine gravel and brushes of lavender and snapdragons, bathed in the light of the afternoon sun, possessed by silence... a silence the butler couldn't help but find unsettling as the children followed hot on his heels and without falter.

Not that he should have been surprised at this point. The only heir to the Lucius name had been-well-odd from birth. The child was hardly normal, be it in his unusual speech, uncannily quick thinking, or the fact that Vega Lucius had no clue how to act around people.

So it was hardly surprising when the maids and butlers found themselves thrown into chaos by the prospect of the young master bringing someone home. And not just 'someone' home. A 'friend' home, according to the Duchess.

... If only the butler would have known though that expecting a miracle of the young master at this point was as good as him acting like a normal child. Because the boys spoke nothing since meeting again, even as he led them to a picturesque tea garden. They sat on wrought iron chairs and at a table decorated generously with fine chinaware, all filled with exquisite pastries, cakes, and other petite, complicated confections that looked far more ornamental than edible.

The butler poured them tea and stood aside primly, awaiting further orders. Yet the young master of Lucius dismissed him with a wave, and though curious, he obliged, leaving the two noble children to themselves.

Finally alone, Vega spoke for the first time that day, 'It is unfortunate, but it seems as if the only way to discuss matters pertaining to our 'era' is possible via social pretences in this world.'

With that said, Vega smiled. A stiff, almost professional smile as he chimed, 'Hello, Slayer. It is 'good' to see you again.'

Young master Blazkowicz grunted in what Vega only assumed was reciprocation. No longer integrated into the Praetor suit made analysing him difficult, but the Slayer - compared to his usual crowd - felt more relaxed in Vega's presence.

'After running some diagnostics, it would seem I am not omnipresent in this world,' Vega said, precariously cutting an eclair with a knife and fork. 'The last event I can recall from my hard drive on Mars was you disabling my core. I came to this world following my termination on the Mars facility. What happened after? What became of Olivia Pierce? Dr. Samuel Hayden? The UAC? I apologise for the inconvenience, but I require this information from you to attempt to determine some conflict resolutions to the current situation.'

After some heavy gesturing and occasional grunting, Vega gathered the gist of the story leading up to their peculiar awakening in this world, all the while staring wide-eyed at the Slayer as the latter finished an eclair... and then three macarons... and then a large serving of strawberry pavlova.

'Dr. Hayden?'

The Slayer nodded once as he cleaned his plate, clearly seething at even the prospect despite the cheery food he just ate.

'I see. The interdimensional tether was after all a prototype, meaning there is a great chance of there being fatal errors that went unrecorded with the technology... it would appear our situation is one of them.'

They sipped their tea in unison; an air of tense and thoughtful silence lingering; before Vega was the first to speak.

'I have a theory, Slayer.'

The words quickly held the Slayer's undivided attention.

'Assuming everything on your person was carried through the tether - my conscience being one of them, despite at the time existing only in data - it is possible that the Praetor suit and your arsenal have also materialised in this world.'

The possibility struck him like lightning. He shot up from his seat and slammed his hands down on the table; either impassioned or demanding elaboration; and Vega unconsciously chuckled, feeling a similar sentiment. Excitement. Something he first felt the moment he and the Slayer were reunited. An emotion otherwise impossible when he served the UAC as an AI.

'Of course, it's just a theory... a very likely theory,' he said; his lips returning to the thin, practiced smile he was known for. 'Though I have to run further diagnostics on the matter to prove it. In the meantime, I suggest we continue living in this realm as we have until further notice.'

The Slayer paced a small line in the garden restlessly; Vega's clear eyes following every step; before relenting, exasperated and annoyed as he sat down again.

The pair was oblivious to the eyes that watched them from within a room in the manor. Eyes that stared on in adoration and... shock, as the Countess and Duchess observed the truly bizarre behaviour of their otherwise mysterious children.

'I can't believe it...,' Sylvia whispered, bewildered by the scene of the two boys actually interacting. 'William's never spoken a word before. He's never even acted this... lively before, not even with the servants!'

'It's the same with my son, Countess,' Ludovika Lucius sighed wistfully. 'The child is a genius in all the sciences and arts, but Vega has never truly expressed emotions with anything or anyone... until today, that is! It's the first time I'm seeing him laugh in seven years.'

'As it is the first time I'm seeing William willingly interact with anyone. Let alone a boy his age!'

'Countess,' Ludovika smiled warmly at her. 'Let us be good friends.'

Sylvia reciprocated the look, feeling the most relieved she ever had in the past seven years.

'It would be my pleasure, Duchess.'