Chapter 10: Passage of centuries.
The doors to the meeting room opened slowly as the emperor of the Adrestian Empire walked into the room, an unmovable wall comprising of Jeritza, Byleth and Hubert walking slowly behind her.
As one, the occupants of the room who were sitting hastily rose up, but Edelgard waved them down.
"Hawthorne." Edelgard said evenly as she looked her host in the eye.
The man made a short bow as he gestured for them to sit. "Would you like any refreshments?"
"Bernadetta has gone to the kitchens already." Hubert said as he pulled a chair out for Edelgard. "I believe she will help us get our refreshments."
Hawthorne nodded. "Very well then. Shall we wait for her?"
Edelgard frowned as she glanced around the room. "Where is Monica von Ochs?"
"I sent her to gather refreshments for the rest of us here. I have a suspicion we will be here for a very long time."
"Sorry about that." Monica said as she hastily scrambled into the room, two servants and Bernadetta von Varley on her heels. "Shall we begin?"
"We should." Hawthorne said as he gestured the waiters forward, drinks falling into place before each of the assembled guests.
"Shall we skip on formal introductions?" Edelgard asked as she looked around the room. "We are all known to one another."
Hawthorne looked around the room as glances were exchanged. "Very well then. Let us skip the usual pleasantries. What is it that you have come here for?"
"There is much about Fodlan I do not understand. Especially regarding Shambhala." Byleth started as he took a small sip of water.
"I will do my best to explain to you, though even collectively, our knowledge of those who slither in the dark is rudimentary at best." Hawthorne replied.
"That much is to be expected." Hubert said coldly. "Now, is there anyone who wishes to go first on the topic?"
For a moment the room remained silent, much of the room having nothing to say.
"Very well then. I will begin." Jeritza said coldly. "I met three members of the group in the year 1176. They gave me the Scythe of Sariel."
"That weapon was created by them?" Byleth asked the pale haired horseman.
"Correct." Jeritza replied.
"Very well then, Emile, tell us about these three Shambhalans." Hawthorne said in an authoritative voice.
"My name is Jeritza. Please do not speak of Emile." Jeritza shot back.
"Very well then Jeritza. But do tell us about the three Shambhalans."
"The three of them consisted of two women and a man." Jeritza said. "The man did most of the talking. The two women seemed to be a hurry to be somewhere else."
"Go on." Byleth said as he leaned back into his chair. "Did they mention any names to you?"
"The older woman was named Aranea. The younger Mortis."
"Mortis?" Monica asked suddenly.
"You know of her?" Jeritza asked as he turned his gaze to Monica.
"Tall, dark hair, pale skin?" Monica asked.
Jeritza nodded. "While that particular description could fit a third of Fodlan, yes, that is an accurate description of what she looked like."
"Is that something that we should know?" Byleth asked as he glanced at Jeritza.
"It would seem to me that this Mortis is someone many of us have met before." Shamir observed.
"Indeed." Hubert chimed in. "I too, have had an interaction with this Mortis."
"When was this?" Dorothea asked.
"Regarding Monica." Hubert replied.
"Allow me to explain this particular situation." Hawthorne said with an annoyed sigh. "This Mortis was one of the Shambhalans who had participated in the abduction of Monica."
"How many were there in total?" Byleth asked.
"Three. The other two were a man named Yurius and a woman named Kronya."
The room silenced at the name of Jeralt Eisner's killer.
"Ah. I see that nobody informed you about that particular piece of information." Hubert sighed, shaking his head.
"Is something amiss?" Hawthorne asked as he turned his gaze to Hubert.
"Yes. Jeralt Eisner was murdered by this Kronya. A knife to the back."
Hawthorne glanced warily at Byleth, but seeing no reaction, nodded quietly. "I was not aware of that fact. I am sorry."
"The past is the past. But do tell me more about this plan of yours." Byleth said as he turned his gaze to the older man.
"The original plan was to kill me." Monica said in a quiet, shaking voice.
"It was." Hubert confirmed. "There was an outside complication that required a change of plans."
Dorothea frowned. "Was this Roderigo Midas?"
"Correct." Hubert replied. "He had attempted to abduct Miss Ochs prior to our own plans. His actions turned a clean assassination attempt into a months long debacle"
"Attempted?" Dorothea asked. "He attempted to kidnap Ingrid too."
"Yes. I'm aware. I was there when the attempt against Ingrid happened." Hubert shot back. "He's not very good at finding hired help."
"Correct." Hawthorne said calmly. "Whatever the case, he's dead now."
Dorothea looked relieved. "He's dead now? What a relief."
"Very. I was told that he had been found with a slit throat in Arianrhod."
"A dog's death well deserved." Hubert chuckled. "We made good use of his surviving assets."
"Are those all the Shambhalans that have been named that you have encountered?" Byleth asked.
"I encountered a number more over the course of the Insurrection of the Seven." Hawthorne offered.
"Were there any notable ones that you wish to tell us about?" Byleth asked.
"Two. Their names were Thales and Adrasteia, though both only for a few minutes at most."
The second name made Edelgard flinch.
"You met this Adrasteia before? And never told any of us?" Hubert asked, his face hardening.
"Once. He came to a bar of mine early in the rebellion. He was very angry about something."
"What did he look like?" Hubert half snarled, his stare rapt as he looked at the older crime lord.
"Thin. Fairly athletic. He walked in as if he wanted to kill someone with his bare hands."
"Did he mention what he was angry about?" Byleth asked.
"Something about him being overruled." Hawthorne replied. "I never saw him again after that night."
"What did he buy?" Byleth asked.
"Two hangover cures for the other two Shambhalans in the bar. Both minor grunts from the look of things. A glass of ice wine for himself. Paid in cash. Declined to accept change."
"I've heard his name mentioned before, but I never met him." Jeritza said as he took a sip of water.
"When was this?" Byleth asked.
"When the Scythe of Sariel was handed to me. The older Shambhalan woman said that a certain Adrasteia was quite annoyed that he had to give up the scythe."
"Your weapon originally belonged to this Adrasteia?" Byleth asked.
"According to this woman, yes. Though I do not know if they were telling the truth at the time." Jeritza said.
Byleth nodded. "Very well then. Is there anyone else who would like to add anything? If not, I would like it if we could go over the list of Shambhalans we have encountered."
"Very well then." Edelgard said as the room remained silent. "Start the roll call."
"First. This Mortis." Byleth began.
"Cold, paranoid little thing." Jeritza snorted.
"Aranea."
Blank stares followed him as he paused.
"Right. Only Jeritza has met her, and only briefly. Yurius."
"Very quiet in comparison to Mortis. Passive and somewhat afraid." Hawthorne offered.
"Adrasteia."
"Cold, mysterious bastard with a potential grudge." Hawthorne offered.
Shamir nodded. "That would seem to be the case, though we only have limited information about him."
"Cornelia, Solon, and Kronya. All dead."
The room chilled for a moment, but there was silence.
"Thales. The leader of this group, from what we can tell."
"Yes." Edelgard said quietly. "That would be correct."
"I believe that's all the soldiers we know of." Byleth said. "Have I missed any?"
"Ingrid?" Ashe called as he wandered through the charred city, his eyes on the lookout.
The burning sun was the only response he felt, with not even the wind replying to him.
For a moment, Ashe toyed with the idea of taking a small sip from the canteens he had been provided, the water inside calling to him.
A moment later, he began to run deeper into the city, trying to keep his mind off the water that tempted him every time the water crashed against the boundaries of the canteen.
"Ingrid?" Ashe called again, though the heat and dry climate made him wish he hadn't opened his mouth.
Still, the lack of a response from his partner was concerning.
"Where did I leave her?" Ashe asked himself as he turned another corner, the sun ever unforgiving.
He scanned the streets of the city hastily, tossing away strands of hair that blocked his vision in the process.
"Ingrid!" Ashe shouted again, wiping away a sheen of sweat that had formed on his brow.
A gust of dry wind tossed his voice away and filled his mouth with the bitter taste of ash and charcoal.
Ashe gagged on the bitter, smoke laced dust as he hastily bowed away from the wind, raising his arms to shield himself as a terrible screech filled the sky.
Then the earth shook as a great scream echoed off the walls of the ruined capital.
"I believe that list consisted of all the Shambhalans we have encountered over the years." Hawthorne offered as he took a sip of his drink. "Though I am interested to hear that the curer of the Holy Kingdom's dread plague was Shambhalan."
"It is possible that they could have killed the original Cornelia and replaced her with a duplicate." Hubert offered. "We simply do not know the truth of that matter."
"Whatever the case, I'd like to ask you which of the Shambhalans you worked with the most." Byleth said calmly.
"Yurius." Hawthorne said. "Yurius, if that is his real name, lacked a certain agency to act on his own initiative. As for Thales, I never spoke with him, I merely stood in the same room as him. Kronya and Mortis I met for a few minutes before they left for places unknown."
"I worked with Solon the most." Jeritza said. "Though it wasn't by much."
"What was he like to work with?" Dorothea asked.
"Very arrogant. I hated him. He hated me."
"Did he ever reveal anything that could be useful to us?" Byleth asked.
"He said that his replacement was a spiteful snake."
'Replacement?" Edelgard asked.
"I didn't pry at the time."
"I suspect he may have held an office before he joined the expedition to Garreg Mach." Hubert offered. "If that's the case, then it's likely that he disliked whoever took his role after he left for Garreg Mach."
"Solon pretended to be Tomas, if memory serves." Shamir said as she glanced around the dining hall.
"Correct." Jeritza said. "Though he's dead now."
"And with him, perhaps our last direct link to Shambhala." Byleth said grimly.
Edelgard coughed lightly. "Let's get back to the topic of living enemies."
"Indeed." Byleth said. "Solon is dead, and that does not help us in the present."
"Anything else you have to say about Solon?" Edelgard asked Jeritza as Byleth finished his sentence.
"None." Jeritza replied curtly.
"Very well then." Hawthorne said. "What about Mortis then?"
"She hated me." Monica said quietly. "Told me I was worthless. That I was only alive to tie up loose ends."
"Sounds like your average Shambhalan to me." Dorothea snorted. "If we meet her again, I'll make sure to hit her over the head with something heavy."
Hawthorne sighed. "I did not see her a great deal over her stay at my properties. She was in Enbarr for a few short days before she vanished."
"I had my share of interactions with her." Hubert said coldly. "Has she not been a Shambhalan, she could have been a valuable asset."
"That is rare praise coming from you." Edelgard said. "What did she do to impress you?"
"Despite her less than pleasant personality, she was also very capable." Hawthorne interrupted.
"Indeed." Hubert confirmed. "She was my primary contact when it came to eliminating witnesses in regards to Roderigo Midas."
"I didn't know that." Edelgard said suddenly. "I only met her once, if memory serves."
"You didn't need to know. It was all part of the wider plan to bring Kronya into the academy quietly."
"What happened in this little meeting between all of you?" Byleth asked.
The sun had long since set on the small hamlet when the last dress Maya had picked out was safely tucked within her trunk.
Ignatz sat slumped in his seat at the dining area of the hotel and buried his head in his hands.
"I need a drink." Yurius announced.
"I would get one, but whatever funds I had on hand are gone." Ignatz laughed weakly.
"I'm not so cruel as to let you go hungry." Yurius replied, gesturing for the bar manager. "Two shots of your strongest drink. Straight. On the rocks would be too slow."
The man nodded as he turned around, reaching for a long, slender glass bottle.
"I'm sorry about the afternoon. I never thought she could spend so much on clothes alone."
The bartender dropped two shot glasses before the pair, expertly filling each glass with golden amber liquid.
"Pardon me." Ignatz muttered as he downed the closer glass with a single toss of the head. "I'm going to have nightmares about gold from now on."
"I said I was sorry ok?" Maya snapped from the stairs. "Who knew that poor Evi only had one set of clothes?"
"Mortis has maybe three pairs?" Yurius shot back.
"Six. Well, now probably three." Mortis replied.
"What happened to the other three sets? I remember you wearing multiple outfits when we were travelling." Yurius asked.
"Destroyed with Arianrhod, I'm afraid." Mortis replied.
"You were in Arianrhod?" Ignatz asked.
"Our unit had a presence there. Mostly policing, keeping the city free of pests, making sure bandits and thugs were kept in line."
"Did you work with Cornelia?" Ignatz asked.
Yurius watched Mortis flinch at the name of her former overseer, though Mortis recovered surprisingly quickly.
"Who else had the money to pay us?" Mortis asked with a forced laugh, though Yurius could tell a hard edge had slipped into her voice.
"I see." Ignatz said quietly. "I'm sorry for your loss."
"What do you mean?" Mortis asked, her voice tighter than before.
"When we took Arianrhod, Cornelia's golems began to slaughter Kingdom defenders. If your unit was still there, it's likely they were killed in the crossfire."
"I see." Mortis offered, her lips pressed into a grimace. "Thank you for telling me about this."
"We thought of it as odd at the time, with Cornelia firing on her own forces." Ignatz said. "Still, I'm sorry to hear about your unit."
Mortis shook her head. "I was transferred out shortly before the siege began. Someone in another unit had requested me by name."
"Where were you headed?"
"The unit in question was in the east."
"Did you find them?" Ignatz asked.
"No. From what it would seem, the unit had vanished without a trace by the time I had gotten there. Even now, I'm unsure of where they went."
"Were you three together?" Maya asked.
"Three?" Yurius asked as he downed his shot of alcohol, gesturing for another shot for the two of them.
Maya rolled her eyes. "You, Mortis, and Evi."
Mortis and Yurius shared a glance before Mortis shook her head. "No. We found Evi shortly after the bandit attack."
"How did you run into Mortis in the first place?" Ignatz asked. "From the sound of things, it doesn't sound like you've done all that much travelling, Yurius."
Yurius nodded. "I had retired for a while when I ran into Mortis asking around for the whereabouts of my old unit."
"So you're out here to serve as a mercenary again?" Ignatz asked.
"Are you out to challenge someone in the ways of the sword?" Maya asked in awe.
"I hope that's not the case." Ignatz chuckled as he eased up, taking a long drink of alcohol in the process. "We already have Felix to deal with."
"What about Felix?" Leonie asked as the door to the tavern swung open. "What did he do now?"
"Yurius here is only on this trip with us because he got bored of peaceful life. Does that not remind you of Felix?" Ignatz asked with a slight laugh, his face flushed.
"Well, I've known Mortis for a long time, so I can't exactly say no when she shows up in my village asking for help." Yurius protested
"So what do you plan to do once you get to Garreg Mach?" Ignatz asked, though his words were starting to become slurred.
"Drink good alcohol, maybe join another mercenary company. Lots of those around these days."
"Mortis, if you can't find your old company, might you be interested in working for the emperor?" Ignatz asked as he turned around to the other woman. "There's a lot of work for mages."
"When the time comes, we will see." Mortis replied as she glanced over at the bartender. "Until then, let's get some dinner."
"Nice. I'm famished." Leonie said with a large grin.
"You are always famished." Ignatz drunkenly observed with a chuckle as the bartender came over.
"I had contact with some elements of Shambhala well before we ever came to the academy." Hubert said as he sat back into his chair. "Minor mages moving about the palace, a few meetings I attended as my father's representative."
"So what does this have to do with this Mortis?" Byleth asked.
"I spent most of the year 1174 in the dungeons below the palace." Edelgard offered from her position at the end of the table.
Hubert remained silent, through a glimmer of emotion flashed through his eyes. "It wasn't just 1174. I did not see you until midway through 1175."
Byleth nodded quietly. "Hubert, I would presume that you were working with Shambhala during this timeframe?"
"Correct." Hubert replied. "I had initially sought to find information on Lady Edelgard's whereabouts at the time, but over time I came to learn more about their operations in the city."
"How does this connect to this Mortis?"
"I provided them a personal address for mail collection. Some time after they left Enbarr, I found detailed instructions on the abduction and subsequent execution planned for Miss von Ochs."
"And when following those instructions, you encountered this Mortis." Byleth said.
"Correct." Hubert replied.
"How many times did you work with her?" Edelgard asked. "Because from what I remember, we only met once."
"Correct, Lady Edelgard. I only met her once with you, and that was only in regards to the culmination of our campaign." Hubert said. "As for times I have worked with her without your knowledge, well. Four times."
"I trust the two of you worked well together?" Hawthorne offered.
"Very. I was able to learn a considerable amount of magical knowledge from her from the limited number of times we had met."
"Anything that we can use today?" Hannemann asked, his voice hopeful.
"No. Whatever few minutes we spent together were either focused on basic offensive magic or the targets we needed dead."
"How many of them were there?" Monica asked. "I spent most of my time under guard by Yurius. I didn't see Mortis past the initial ambush."
"We met in person four times. The first came shortly before the intercepted the convoy that had stolen away Monica von Ochs."
"Hubert, when was this?" Edelgard asked as she looked at him with concern on her face.
"Do you remember when Lady Ladislava took you on the tour of Fort Merceus?"
"Yes. I was told that you had fallen ill."
"I was ill. The entire ambush was conducted by the three Shambhalans present."
"What about the other three times you had interacted with this Mortis?" Byleth asked.
"We assassinated various key figures involved with the kidnapping operation." Hubert replied. "Two were killed in Enbarr at her hand, one was eliminated three weeks before we ordered Flayn's kidnapping."
"And you met her one time with me in person?" Edelgard asked.
"Correct. I did not see her again after that last meeting."
"What was this last meeting about?" Byleth asked.
"It was about Monica. Specifically about getting rid of loose ends." Hubert replied.
Byleth sat quietly as he turned his gaze to the woman. "So, I believe the answer to killing you was a hard no."
"It's funny how things worked out." Edelgard said. "From what I remembered, both Hubert and this Mortis advocated for killing Monica."
"She was a liability at the time. There was no reason to keep her alive, and a half dozen reasons to have her eliminated." Hubert protested with a roll of the eyes, as if he had argued with Edelgard many times over the same subject.
"So why wasn't she killed?" Byleth asked.
"There were two reasons." Hawthorne said calmly. "The first was that Mortis was stationed in Arianrhod when the decision to kill her was made, with no means to get to Enbarr quickly. Yurius, who was alone in Enbarr, flatly refused to kill Miss von Ochs."
"Hawthorne implied at the time that he would refuse to collaborate with me should I continue to insist on her death. I value his network enough to agree to a compromise with Shambhala." Hubert offered as he leaned back into his chair. "Mortis signed off with the change with an understanding that Monica would never leave Hawthorne's sight."
"And how did the senior leadership in Shambhala react to this change?" Byleth asked.
"Mortis had reported back to a senior officer in Shambhala, who allegedly gave their blessings to the changed plan." Hubert said. "While I do not know how true that story is, the information that the senior officer had blessed the plan was the last news I had received from Mortis."
Byleth nodded. "I see. And we know the rest."
The room remained quiet for a moment before Edelgard spoke. "Yes. That's correct."
Byleth nodded. "I'll need some time to think this over. There's a lot I need to think about."
Hawthorne nodded as he gestured for Monica. "I will provide dinner for anyone who desires it."
Byleth shook his head as he rose to his feet, his pace steady as he stepped out of the room.
The giant creature that had landed in the central square was quiet for a moment as it stared at the corpse of the Immaculate One.
Then it let out a shriek that deafened Ashe as he dropped the clothes and lunch meant for Ingrid, his head in agony as he staggered away from the bird.
"I must find Ingrid." Ashe hissed to himself as he tried to drown out the horrific wail of the terrible beast.
He risked one final glance at the beast before he prepared to leave his cover, though for some reason the beast had turned to the northern side of the city, lashing out in rage at shadowy human soldiers.
As the bird reared up its head for another attack, Ashe leapt from his cover, deftly sliding behind another as human screams echoed against the walls of the city.
His new vantage point was hardly any better than his previous one, though he was indeed somewhat closer to the giant beast.
Despite its immense, hulking size, the bird was still quick and deft, though it had paid little attention to him.
Ashe leapt again out of cover, a wince escaping his lips as he collided awkwardly with a barrel.
It was a risky move, having brought him just one burnt out housing block away from the beast, but it allowed for him to get a good look at the monster's titanic form.
Then the bird leapt up, screaming into the sky as Ashe did his best to cover his ears, watching silently as the bird disappeared over the north wall of the city.
A moment later, Ashe threw himself at the spot where the bird had once battled, the stench of spilled blood assaulting his senses as he reached the shattered tiled where the beast had raged against its enemies.
The street beyond was a scene of carnage. A dozen bodies, some relatively intact, some missing limbs, and some little more than bloodstains lay in the street, having died where the bird had found them.
As he stalked forward, his eyes nervously scanning for survivors, Ashe felt his heart sink.
A silvery scrap of armour, perhaps once part of a wider suit, lay abandoned and dented on the ground, the crest of House Galatea still visible despite the damage done to the armour of the plate.
"I thought you had left." Edelgard said softly as she approached Byleth, her eyes watching him quietly as she sat next to him on the cool stone bench.
"There's a great deal that I need to take in." Byleth replied, his voice barely audible. "Hubert had told me once that he did not enjoy working with this Shambhala, but he didn't tell me how deep you were involved with them."
For a brief moment, Edelgard felt a cold stab of shame rise from the pit of her stomach, her words dying in her throat as she felt the ring on her finger grow heavy.
Byleth turned to face her before he looked down at the ring that belonged to his father.
"El." Byleth said softly. "I love you. I always will, but this is a time I need to be alone."
Edelgard nodded. "When you are ready, rejoin us."
Byleth nodded as he turned his gaze away. "Yes, I can do that."
Spite sat quietly in his office with another small file in his arms, the room silent apart from a small pendulum that he had set up, the slow, steady beat.
It was a small file, usually kept deep in an empty freezer deep in Vault November, recently taken out on his exclusive order.
With a sigh, he flipped the folder open, looking into his own eyes that reflected on the page.
He studied his twin sister for a moment, smiling as he remembered the mindless, wasted days of his childhood, so many decades past.
He moved onto Kronya for a brief moment, smiling to himself as he remembered the way she had grasped at the mysterious camera after the picture had been taken.
The memory gnawed at him before a slight cough drew his attention.
A woman, her face fearful, stood before his desk, her eyes unwilling to meet his.
"You are part of the cooking staff?" Spite asked as he shut the file with a sigh, turning his full attention to the woman.
"Yes. I am." The woman replied.
"Very good." Spite replied. "However, the emergency supply team consists of more than a single person. Where are the others?"
The woman flinched. "I-"
"Allow me to guess. They have fled Shambhala." Spite said coldly.
The woman flinched. "How did you know that?"
"Human nature. They fear punishment, especially the sort I have in mind to inflict on the guilty party of this debacle."
"What will you do to them?" The woman asked, her hands clasped tightly around her front."
"First, I will have them decimated. It's not a punishment I enjoy, but they must remember what the cost of failure is."
"Decimation?" The woman asked, her face terrified.
"Yes. For the crime of tampering with emergency rations, which, if you remember, are a fundamental backup that our people need in times of crisis."
The woman took a step back as she closed her eyes. "I see."
"You will be exempt from the selection process. We do not put pregnant women in harm's way."
The woman flinched. "You knew?"
"The father of your child confessed to me a few weeks ago. Good on him. Rare for men to take responsibility."
The woman looked quietly at her shoes. "I see. What about the others?"
"There is only a single punishment for desertion with intent to flee." Spite replied as he rose from his desk. "I will organize a kill team."
The woman seemed stunned. "And me?"
"For the fact that you have the courage to admit your failure in this debacle, you will be spared. That being said, I will have you make a full set of replacement meals for this wasted set."
"I see." The woman said as she bowed, her eyes focused on the tips of her shoes.
"Wear something suitable for walking." Spite ordered as he passed the woman.
"Pardon?"
"You will join us in the kill team. I will need to know if anyone we encounter randomly is in fact a simple peasant on a poaching expedition or a deserter trying to flee my wrath."
"I-"
"That being said, you are with child, so I will not put you in harm's way when dealing with these traitors, which is why I would urge you to wear something sensible for a great deal of walking."
The woman looked down at the simple flats she wore. "Of course sir."
"I expect you in the machine hall in an hour. Do not be late."
"Of course sir, but what about you?"
"I must prepare the rest of the kill team." Spite replied as he rose and stalked out of his office.
Dinner screeched to a halt as Byleth and Edelgard returned, as the former diners hastily put down their forks.
"It's fine." Edelgard said quietly as she settled into her seat. "Finish your meals."
Jeritza glanced down at the slice of tiramisu before him before pushing the plate away. "No. We should finish what we came here to do first."
Hawthorne nodded as he pushed his plate out of the way, gesturing politely to Byleth. "You have the floor then."
Byleth paused as he glanced around the room of his allies before he closed his eyes for a brief moment. "We cannot stay in Enbarr while Shambhala is still out there."
"Alright then. What is it that you propose we do?" Hubert asked.
"We must scour Fodlan for Shambhala. Enbarr holds no more information for us to uncover." Byleth replied. "In a few weeks time, we will convene in Garreg Mach with the rest of the Black Eagles Strike Force. From there, I hope we can find threads that will lead back to the source of this Shambhala."
"Do you wish for me to come as well?" Hawthorne asked as he shakily rose to his feet.
"Only if you wish to." Byleth replied. "If possible, I'd like to request that Monica comes."
The crimson haired girl nodded as she looked away. "I guess I don't have a choice anyhow."
"I would like to set out tomorrow." Byleth said.
The crimson haired girl blinked in confusion. "Wait, really?"
"There's little reason we should remain in Enbarr. This city holds no purpose for us. We are not going to find Shambhala in the sewers."
"Ah." Monica said quietly. "I should get packing then."
"I will get the maids to assist you." Hawthorne replied calmly. "That being said, finish your dinner. No point letting good food go to waste."
Byleth nodded. "If we have no other objections, I would like to leave for the night."
Edelgard nodded as she rose from her seat with Byleth, the others in the room hastily rising before she waved them off, her pace steady as she walked into the afternoon sky.
Edelgard found Enbarr in the dying hours of the day to be cool and fresh, the night having taken away some of the suffocating heat that had plagued Enbarr for much of the summer.
"Are you hungry?" Byleth asked as he took her hand again, his fingers absentmindedly stroking hers.
"Just a little, but I can wait until we get back to the palace."
"Why not get something out here?" Byleth asked as he began a slow, leisurely pace.
"Well, I don't know Enbarr that well." Edelgard mumbled. "Father never took us anywhere interesting."
"Then let's begin to fix that, shall we?" Byleth asked as gestured around the street.
"What would you like?" Edelgard asked as she turned her head back to Byleth.
"A quiet, well balanced dinner, since we are going to start travelling tomorrow."
Edelgard nodded as they reached a bustling street corner, her eyes watching the street carefully.
"Perhaps a quiet place with only the two of us." Edelgard offered.
"I disagree. I like the open air market down the street."
Edelgard turned and smiled as she saw the riot of colours and sweet smells that made up the celebration. "Good eye."
"Shall we?" Byleth asked as he raised his hand.
"But of course." Edelgard replied, her smile bright. "We have an entire continent to explore. Might as well get started somewhere."
I'm going to head out." Mortis said quietly as she rose from her seat. "My head hurts."
"Do you need me to walk with you?" Yurius asked as he quickly downed his ale.
Mortis shook her head as the bar continued to fill up, gesturing for an older man to take her seat. "A walk around town would be nice."
Yurius nodded. "I agree. I'm done here anyways."
"Headed out so soon?" Lorenz asked as he descended the stairs, his eyes darting toward the empty seat Yurius left behind.
"Just need some fresh air." Yurius assured Lorenz. "We should be back shortly."
"Of course. Enjoy your walk." Lorenz said before turning to the bar, gesturing quickly at the overworked bartender.
"Any particular place we should go to?" Mortis asked Yurius when they stepped out into the open air.
"Not particularly." Yurius replied. "What do you think of our new friends?"
"More trouble than they are worth. The fact that they know Hubert von Vestra personally alone makes them dangerous."
"The pale, sickly guy we met during the battle?"
"Correct. From what I've been able to gather, he's become a big shot in this new order set up by our former puppets."
"Big shot how?"
"Being a retainer for the emperor." Mortis replied.
"He's always been like that, hasn't he?"
Mortis shrugged. "You have a point there. Still, he probably has the authority to have us arrested if he figures out that we are here. So it's best to avoid him."
"You think the other three will mention us?"
Mortis snorted. "Of course they will. It's only a matter of time. The only question is how quickly they can get in touch with those who can cause us trouble that matters."
"And how many people can get us in trouble?"
"Five in total."
"Who?"
"Loose ends. The emperor, Hubert von Vestra, Jeritza von Hrym, your precious little pet, and this Paul Hawthorne."
"In other words, the people who we worked with the last time."
"Memories can fade, but we worked with those five long enough that I doubt they would ever forget us."
"Who is this Jeritza von Hrym you mentioned?" Yurius asked as they turned a corner into a wide central square.
"Some bastard who murdered practically his entire bloodline. I was there to hand him the Scythe of Sariel."
Yurius winced at the name of the weapon. "Was it a good weapon?"
"I'm told it was a master crafted weapon. Rare, hard to find. A shame we had to give it away."
"Who made that choice? Yurius asked as he turned a corner into a large, open square.
"Entire ruling council seemed to have a hand in it. Solon, Thales, Aranea, Spite."
"They were content with giving away that kind of hardware for free?" Yurius asked, his voice failing to conceal his shock.
"I was told at the time that it was meant to serve as a warning to our puppets in Enbarr, a little warning that we had powerful weapons at our disposal."
"Let me guess, this Jeritza has turned against us, with the Scythe of Sariel in hand."
"Correct. It's a mess through and through."
"What do you think about our new friends?" Yurius asked, changing the topic quickly.
"I have yet to see them fight." Mortis replied. "Though if it boils down to a fight, we might have to surprise attack them."
"Why would we do that?"
"A three on two fight is bad enough already. Even worse if they are ambushing us."
"But they don't recognize us at all."
"Suppose at the Great Bridge of Myrddin we encounter one of the five people we have met previously. All it would take is one chance encounter and our entire mission goes up in flames."
"Then what would you do to stop this from happening?"
"I'd like to converse with Spite, but there's no way to contact him with someone else in the same room."
"That's not good."
"It's the hand we have been dealt. For better or for worse."
"If you had to fight them, who would you take down first?"
Mortis paused as she considered the question for a slow moment. "I'd have to say Ignatz. If an engagement was to be started against us, he would be able to rain arrows upon us if we tried to pull a retreat."
"But would they really attack us if Hubert von Vestra suddenly shouted at them to do so?"
"I don't know. It would have to depend on them and what they choose to do with the information. Still, they just might choose to follow orders and ask questions later."
"Speaking of Hubert, where do you think they know him from?"
Mortis frowned. "All three of them attend Garreg Mach the same year as our puppets, or so the reports from the time claim."
"What were they doing there?"
"Fellow students under a certain Claude von Riegan." Mortis replied. "Turned over to the same class as von Vestra over the course of a few months."
"You knew them beforehand?" Yurius spluttered.
"I was stationed in Arianrhod for practically the entire duration of that year. I read over the reports, but I never attached a human face to any of the names I saw."
"Why didn't you tell me this earlier?" Yurius asked.
"Never found the time alone with you. I would have pointed this out if we were alone earlier."
"So what do we do from here on in?" Yurius asked.
"Pry whatever information we can out of them. Make it seem like we might be interested in serving in their legions alongside them." Mortis replied.
"Is that our plan moving forward?" Yurius asked.
"Until we can get a clear picture of what is going on in this damn war, yes."
Yurius sighed as he glanced back at the tavern. "How much do you think they'll drink?"
"Not our problem in the end. We aren't picking up the tab."
"Fair point." Yurius chuckled as he turned on his heel. "Shall we rejoin the others?"
"But of course." Mortis replied with a flick of her hair.
AN: Tiny plot hole fixed.
As always, Review, Favourite, Follow, all that.
Physical inspirations for Characters:
Mortis: Cross between Arbiter Mortis (Rage of Bahamut) and a Pixiv original artwork.
AN 2: Link to the Pixiv artwork will be posted on my page. (Note, due to the fact that links don't generally work on FFNet, this artwork may be difficult to access).
Yurius: Yurius, Rage of Bahamut/Granblue Fantasy.
Spite: Victor Lynch (with red hair), Assassin's Creed Syndicate
Paul Hawthorne: Laimes/the fake Leanan-sidhe, Shakugan no Shana.
Post timeskip Monica von Ochs: Dahlia Hawthorne, Ace Attorney.
AN 3: Finally 60,000 words in. Thank you for your continued support!
