Darkness in the Twilight
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
By Psycho Ferret and LunarCrystal
Basram and Die Katzchen
Angelina usually wasn't allowed outside without proper escort and guidance. Today, though, she had managed to convince her Uncle Ethan into taking her to the forests for an adventure. Being ever so carefree and wonderful as he was, Ethan, of course, took her. He was tired of the stifled life of being indoors anyway, and now that it was finally spring, well – what better time to take a stroll in the swamps?
Most of it wasn't *actually* swamp, just parts of it. Most of the areas behind the fort were relatively dry, save for the river that flowed swiftly toward the cliff over the limestone caves that house Crusade. Being a blind child, she had to have someone hold her hand in places she didn't know, lest she would fall into some peril that she could not have seen. But she was glad for the day, and she dressed in the same finery Allen had always insisted that she wore. Frills of a half-calf dress that was decorated with satin ribbons and bows, her silver hair tied up into cute little ringlets and one last bow at the top that held it all back from her face.
She smiled up at the sky, feeling flickers of light on her skin, and her baby teeth showed profusely white as she bit her full pink little lips. She tried to bounce and skip, but her uncle's hand was firmly wrapped around her own. She heaved a heavy sigh.
"Uncle Ethan!" she tugged violently on his hand, "I want to skip, please let me!"
Ethan has been reluctant to go outside with her, but after a long bout of convincing from her... that wasn't really all that long... he relented. He'd managed to convince her to let him tell Chris and Allen first, and made sure they knew, of course, that they weren't going into the swamp. They'd stay close to the fort.
The young man looked at the girl, arching a brow slightly. "I don't want anything happening to you, Angelina," he said softly, fondly. She really was adorable... and if anything happened, well... he'd feel horrible.
"But you're with me, Uncle Ethan!" she giggled, surprisingly able to wrench her hand away from his hold. The moment she was free, she bolted, running full tilt in the direction they were headed, having no fear of bumping into anything. If when she did hit something, it was never anything hard - mostly just hers and her father's beds that she collided in. Surely there is nothing harder than that to impact her.
"Angelina!" Ethan cursed under his breath, sighing and jogging after her. "Come back here!" Oh no. She was headed for the swamp...
The redhead quickened his pace a little, snatching her up right at the edge of it. The swamp... really was imposing when you got so close to it. The boy sighed, shaking his head. "Stayl close to me, okay? Don't run off like that, it's not safe for you."
"Why not?" she pouted petulantly, squirming mightily to get away from his hold. Her legs kicked and she pushed against his chest with all of her might. "Let me go! I wanna play!"
Ethan just tightened his hold on her, frowning. "Angelina, stop. It's not safe for you to go running off like that and I mean it."
"Tsk, tsk... was have we got heir?" came a rumbling voice from behind them, just within the swamp, and Ethan froze, tensing. He had no disillusions... there were still soldiers out there somewhere... "A kitten and a child..." The voice laughed softly and, Ethan annoyingly reminded himself, sinister. One hand clamped down hard on the young man's shoulder and he almost whimpered. A little ways off, he heard one of the bells in the fort. Had they seen him...? Did they know? Did they see them?
A tall, broad-shouldered man stepped out in front of him, a small grin on his lips. He wore heavy armor, though nothing like what anyone within the fort wore. He took an involuntary step back, his shoulder bumping against the man behind him.
"Ach... stop it, Herr... you're scaring die katze."
German. Why were they speaking German...?
These were new men, and for a brief second, Angelina gasped. She hugged Ethan close, her little arms around his neck. Although, after a few moments of silence, she realized they probably wouldn't hurt her - she was the princess after all. The look she gave, despite her empty blind eyes, was petulant and pouting.
"I wanna be the kitten!" she argued, "I've never held one but my father says they're fuzzy and cute like me." Then there was that signature lip biting she did, her bottom lip being enveloped by tiny baby teeth.
Ethan clapped a hand over her mouth. "Angelina... don't. Just... don't say anything."
One of the men leaned close to Ethan. He would have backed up, but he had nowhere to go. His lithe frame shuddered and he tried to shy away from both of them, but a thick arm slunk about his waist.
"Nein... neie, katze... you're staying heir." He laughed and Ethan tried to tug away. Yes... those were the bells of the fort, he knew those well enough by now. He heard someone yell off in the distance, but he couldn't make out what they were saying. The two men conversed softly, quickly, and one grabbed the girl from Ethan, holding her close.
"Katzchen," he murmured softly, in mock fondness, stroking her hair.
"Give her back!"
"Do you want to play, katzchen?"
"Angelina," Ethan murmured, his voice trembling. "Angelina, don't listen to him..."
"I don't know . . ." she answered honestly, confused about what was going on. She didn't like the way she was taken from her uncle's hold, or the way Uncle Ethan was frantically telling her not to listen to them. This man that held her now, she didn't know what he looked like - was he one of father's soldiers?
Her hands flew to the man's face, feeling around briefly, the stubble scratching her hands. The bells rang in her ears, and her head moved toward the resounding tolls of heavy copper ringing. This wasn't right. These men were not good men. But she didn't know what to do - everyone treated her the same, never badly.
"I don't want to play anymore," she said softly, trying to push away from the man, squirming like she had with her Uncle Ethan just a few moments ago.
The man tightened his grip slightly, enough to hold her. He was stronger than Ethan. "Nein, katzchen, you'll see how much fun it is." The man turned his gaze to Ethan and grinned. "You, too. Lots of fun..."
Ethan's eyes widened slightly and, despite himself, he whimpered softly, turning his head away. He wasn't a soldier. He couldn't fight. "Chris..." he murmured softly, frightened.
Allen strode out of his chambers, frowning slightly up at the watchmen. "What do you see!?"
"The princess, boss! And the kid! Ethan! There's Basram soldiers out there, sir!" The blonde visibly tensed at the news. His daughter... and Ethan...
Allen turned, running to the armory. Chris had to be there. He threw open the doors striding sternly in, glancing around.
Meanwhile, the men laughed, grabbing Ethan about the waist, pinning his arms to his sides, one hand clamped over his mouth tightly... and drug him into the swamp. The man carrying Angelina followed close behind.
"Chris! By Jechia, you better be in here..."
Chris stood up immediately upon hearing Allen's desperate plea, "I'm right here." He said, letting the swords he'd been polishing drop to the floor and hurrying over to him. He could tell it was urgent, important - dire. Something had just gone horribly wrong and a pit formed in Chris' stomach at the thought of it - anything - that might have happened. It never would have occurred to him that it involved their castle's beloved princess.
"What're the bells ringing for? What's going on?"
"Ethan and Angelina. Basram soldiers were right on the edge of the swamp. According to the watch, they were fine until she ran off and he chased after her." Allen frowned darkly, shaking his head, grabbing the other's shoulder and leading him outside. "Chris, look... I'm sorry about this. I never wanted to get you or your brother involved in any of this. After everything you've done for me, he got pulled into this stupid war."
The blonde ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head. "Anyway... we can't go after them right this second, no matter how much I want to. I don't want either of them in Basram hands longer than necessary, but we just don't have the power yet. We don't know their exact location, we don't know where they're taking Ethan and Angelina... but I don't want you to do anything drastic, okay? Just... we'll take care of it."
"Ethan will be fine," he assured Chris, though he didn't feel that he was right.
~
Ethan was frightened horribly. A cloth was bound over his eyes as they drug him back so he couldn't see where they'd come from, the hands that held him were anything but gentle. He whimpered behind the hand over his mouth, his small frame shaking... and the two men just laughed, bantering between themselves.
The bitter tears that escaped from Angelina's fair little face went completely ignored by the guards. She was helpless to do anything, they held onto her so tightly that it hurt. Despite how much she struggled and tried to push away from the ugly, scratchy-faced man that held her. Her dress which was once a powdery sky blue was now sullied with dust and mud. The ribbon in her hair was falling over, but the ringlets were still silvery and prominent.
"I want my father!" she yelled into the man's chest, "Uncle Ethan, where are you?! I wanna go home!"
Ethan looked frightened over at the girl... frightened more for her than himself. Well then... he bit down on the flesh of the man's hand, tasting bitter dirt and the man cried out, jerking his hand away.
"Angelina, you have to get away!" he yelled, trying to pull away from the man when he was promptly backhanded by the man who held her. The auburn-haired boy whimpered softly, spitting out the blood that swelled at his busted lip and the man growled something at him.
"Chris," he murmured weakly, trembling, "I'm sorry..."
"Uncle Ethan!" she yelled desperately. She was so frightened - her little body shaking and she writhed mercilessly against her captor. But he would not let her go. Her choked sobs went unheeded by the soldier that held her - she couldn't see, and she didn't have any strength to escape.
Ethan struggled, the man's hand once more clasped tightly over his mouth, as the soldier holding Angelina started walking off in a different direction once they'd reached the camp. It wan't the main camp, just something of a scouting troop. Scattered soldiers lay about, playing careds, joking around, drinking. Several of them looked up as they brought in the newest catch, eyeing both captives with victorious grins.
The leader of the troop was overjoyed. The girl had been seen with the blonde commander--whom they noted was no longer blind--often enough to figure out they were close to one another, if not the true relationship. And the boy... well, he'd shown up when Allen had. Bartering chips, of course, that's what they were. That... and entertainment. It was quickly decided that Ethan would be a big source of entertainment.
While he was pretty in general, the piercings, the weird haircut and the other accessories made him exotic. And what better way to anger your enemy than shame their friends? The clothing was quickly shed, much to Ethan's horror, ropes binding his wrists at his back, then around his waist. Terror fluttered in his chest, knotting in his belly as he was forced to kneel before the commander.
~
Gaddes was just as frantic as Allen was, going to each troop and placing them in posts for a watch, while at the same time he gathered Allen's personal crew to form the party that would be searching for his surrogate daughter. While the Crusade's men prepared themselves with various weapons and gear, Gaddes finally had the gall to approach Allen on the matter.
"What should we do?" he asked, for Allen was still the commander.
Allen frowned slightly, shaking his head. "I'm not sure how Chris is taking this, for one. We have to keep in mind that it's not only Angelina that they've got. Other than that... do we know their position? Did they take them back to the main camp or some other one that we don't know about? We can't just go tromping about in the swamps safely... while we might know the area better, they've picked out the prime spots by now."
"Northwest of here, that place in the swamps that's actually more solid that the rest. Not far from the willow pond, actually. But they're really well guarded and way too well armed. Those cannons they have . . ." said Gaddes. Chris had just walked in, hearing the last of the conversation. His brother was in trouble. They didn't honestly think he would stay out of rescuing him, did they?
"Cannons?" he asked, his eyes widening as he stopped in mid pace. "Like - huge big fucking cannons?" Gaddes turned on him, a bit annoyed at the interruption. There wasn't much to be done about it, so he resigned to giving the man an answer. They were the same age, yet Gaddes seemed to act so much older.
"Hand cannons with long barrels. . ." began the sergeant.
"You mean rifles?"
"...Is that what they're called?" Allen arched a brow, looking at him. One of the other men had sketched one out for him awhile ago and Allen shuffled through maps and papers, pulling out a crude sketch of one, holding it out to Chris. "That's what one of them said they looked like. Is that what you're thinking of?" Allen perked slightly at the chance of having some kind of advantage.
The blonde looked at him expectantly, waiting.
"Y-Yeah . . . " said Chris uncertainly, not even needing to look closely at the crude sketch of the Basramian rifle. He peered at Allen closely, "You guys don't have guns?"
"Guns?" questioned Gaddes, looking to Allen for some explanation on the matter.
"No..." Allen frowned slightly, shaking his head. "The most advanced weaponry we have are the guymelefs." The blonde knight set aside the sketch, tapping his chin lightly. "You don't have any idea how we could defeat them, do you? These rifles?"
"You can't stop bullets," began Chris, still looking uncertain and suddenly feeling the weight of responsibility press down on his chest. "But I know about gunpowder. It's easy to make. . ."
"Is that what they use, then?" Allen cocked his head to the side slightly, looking at Chris. That... might be their ticket.
Chris heaved a heavy sigh and went into a brief explanation of gunpowder, how explosive it was, what caused the ball of metal to shoot out of it at high speeds - and how deadly one of those shots could be. "But we can make some and make bombs easy. Just because I have a psych degree doesn't mean I wasn't a destructive little fuck as a kid."
Allen brushed the crude language aside and just grinned, glancing over at Gaddes. Well, Basram wouldn't expect bombs from them, he was sure of that. "Good, good... now all we have to do are get the materials and get making them, hm?"
"Charcoal, sulfur, and salt peter," shrugged the former Terran. He only hoped they would find his brother before they started bombing the bejesus out of Basram soldiers.
"What's salt peter?" asked Gaddes, who was now thoroughly confused and hated being left in the dark. Chris turned, seeing his expression of utter flabbergast and wracked his brain trying to think of how to explain.
"Um - ammonia," he said, but still received that confused look from the sergeant. Chris sighed, but suddenly straightened again. "Manure!"
Allen slowly arched a brow, then glanced at Gaddes, shrugging slightly. "We can cover that well enough. If nothing else, use the guymelefs for transport. The Crusade'll be left below grounds unless we need to get out."
The blonde could only hope they could get to Angelina and Ethan both before anything happened to them.
So Gaddes sent Chris off with his new task - to gather the supplies with Teo and Katz, and the Terran quickly left to do what he could. Anything to save his poor brother. He couldn't stop thinking of how scared he must be, Ethan being more of a gentle sort and not really one for war or violence, despite his numerous piercings.
The moment Chris left, Allen and Gaddes stood in the commander's room. Allen was poring over schematics and strategies he'd already drawn up before his daughter was taken. But Gaddes approached him slowly, pushing the man's hair from his neck and gazing at the marks that were on his flesh. "I'd been meaning to ask - where did you get these?" he asked softly.
Ethan had gotten so many piercings... because he'd been bored. Because he liked piercings. But even then... he didn't like pain, he really was a gentle creature, not used to blood or hurt... as evidence by his reaction to Allen when they'd first found him on the Mystic Moon.
Allen blinked, lifting his head a little. For a moment, he was confused, then he reached up, tracing his fingers for a moment over the soft, irritated skin. He was silent for a moment, then he smiled over his shoulder at the other.
"Celena, of course." With that, he went back to studying the maps.
For the moment, he had to let it go. Gaddes had no choice but to disregard it. They needed to concentrate on finding their daughter, and as long as Allen was doing so - any delusions the commander might be experiencing could be looked over for the moment. The pain was so harsh in his heart, however. All he could do was clench his teeth and force it aside.
He swallowed, "Right. Celena." But his brow was furrowed. He knew what today was. The day was marked in everyone's hearts - the day of her death. Let him have his grief and fancies.
Allen seemed oblivious to the turmoil in the other, instead marking off places on the maps that he had gotten the soldiers to create all those years ago.
"I wonder... just how thoroughly they've looked in the swamp. There aren't any maps of them besides these, are there?" The blonde tapped his chin thoughtfully, glancing over at his lover. That bright intensity flickered in his eyes, the promise of a challenge set before him.
"Not that I know of," answered Gaddes quietly after a moment, having been distracted with his own wayward thoughts. He was about to touch the knight's arm, a friend reminder of reality, that he was still real - but his hand fell away and he quickly walked passed him. "I'll go check in the map room." he said on his way out, and left the knight to stand there, staring after him.
Allen pursed his lips slightly, not quite understanding why Gaddes was so seemingly upset. It's not like Celena hadn't been there or anything, so he couldn't be jealous of that. That was just ridiculous.
Allen scoffed to himself, turning back to the maps and his own musings.
~
As it turned out, the men that had Angelina really weren't so bad, so she really didn't understand why her Uncle Ethan was so upset about it. They spoke in a funny language, but she didn't care - they still spoke some Asturian when they directed words toward her. She couldn't hear her uncle's voice anymore, so they must have taken him to another part of their house - because in her mind, they were in a place with many little fabric houses.
Though her little white dress was soiled, it still flounced around her in a flurry of ruffles and petticoats, the ribbons dancing. One of the soldiers had fixed the ribbon in her hair, straightened it so that she looked presentable again. She had smiled toward him and received a pat on her head. Now she found herself running around within a circle of soldiers, finding one before being twirled playfully and pushed off into the other direction.
The men who played with her laughed at her antics. They'd figured out pretty quickly that this adorable little girl was blind, and so accommodated for it by keeping her protectively among a circle of them. With her arms outstretched, and giggles being emitted from her throat, she ran up to a soldier whom introduced himself to her as Hans.
"Hans, Hans, where should I go now?" she asked happily of the Basram soldier.
"I don't know, katzchen, where do you want to go?" Ethan had stayed in the back of her mind, kept out of her reach. He'd cried and pleaded... and they loved to see him writhe and thrash in his emotional and physical pain. They weren't terribly kind about their 'discipline,' after all. He'd been used and used again, tromped through the small encampment bound, sometimes his skin bare, other times, crying and stumbling--he could hear their laughter at him, could feel their dirty hands, even when they weren't touching him any longer--and with a blanket wrapped about his waist, riding low on his slim hips.
At night, he would curl up, his hands still bound at his back, and sob... wishing to be home. Nikki's taunting had never been so bad. He'd never hurt so much before. But he was convinced that he wouldn't see Chris or the others again...
The commander had told him he was dirty and used, that the others wouldn't want to see him again... and left to his own misery, Ethan couldn't help but believe it.
"Hans," said the little girl, her hands reaching to find his nose. She squeezed it, testing it in case it was really button that made some funny noise like some of the other soldiers had done. "Where's my Uncle Ethan? Is he playing too?"
Hans grinned, tickling her gently as she poked at his nose, making a little squeak. "Ja, katzchen, he's playing. He's having lots of fun, too." A few of the soldiers around him guffawed and laughed. Hah, yes...
Of course, the sarcasm in his tone went unchecked - for what would a little girl know of such things. She only giggled delightedly at their laughter, glad to know that her uncle was having as much as with these men as she was - so she thought. Jumping happily, her little black shoes already soiled by mud, she grabbed one of Hans' hands and pulled him.
"Do you have sweets? May I have some sweets?" she pleaded.
"Oh? I'm sure we have some somewhere, eh?" Hans laughed, calling out to one of the other soldiers--Hans was a little higher ranking than most of them. "Berlitz! Your Madchen sent you some chocolates! Give them to the katzchen!"
Indeed, chocolates were brought to the little girl, their kindness seemingly genuine.
"Mmm, chocolates!" she said, popping one in her mouth after feeling around the box carefully. She chewed, swallowed and licked her sweetened plump lips. "I've never had chocolate before." Of course, she was only allowed a few pieces, because Hans warned her of a stomach ache she might get if she ate to much. Like any good little girl, she sadly relented and continued to stay in the soldier's company.
"How long have I been playing with you now, Hans?" she asked as she was picked up to sit upon the soldier's knee. She smiled in that irresistible way and felt his face. He - unlike the others - was clean shaven, able to afford a shaving kit to take with him in the armies. He smelled of soap, not of the flowers that her father smelled like, but it was still a nice smell. His face felt smooth beneath her touch and she was able to see the contours of his jaw and cheek with her fingertips.
Hans was a young man, though far more broad shouldered and strong than the little girl's father. He smelled manlier, heavier... an altogether harder manner about him. He was as much a soldier as Allen was a fop.
The soldier smiled seemingly kindly, ruffling her hair gently, fondly. "For quite some time now, katzchen. Today, it's already nearing night time. Dinner should be ready soon, eh?"
"Will you be having dinner in my castle?" she asked curiously, leaning her head on the man's shoulder - children were so easily impressed sometimes. Her little frame was completely eclipsed by the man who held her, her body being so small and thin - her dress took up more room than she did, as her ruffles and petticoat settling about his knee where she sat. Her hand lingered on Hans' cheek, moving back and forth from the bridge of his nose to his eyebrows.
"Ach? Nein, katzchen, but you can stay with us and eat here. It'll be fun, I promise." Hans rested a broad hand--strong and protective--at her back to keep her from falling off his thigh.
She giggled, "I'm a princess, you know. My castle is . . . somewhere. It's here. But we're not in it. And my father's the knight in charge of all the soldiers, but he's really nice and doesn't speak in a mean voice to them like my uncle Gaddes." She snuggled into his shoulder. "My father is the bestest person ever. When will he be coming to get me, Hans?"
"Oh? He's been busy and he left us to take care of you. He told us straight out to take very good care of you and to keep you safe." The man nodded matter-of-factly, smirking cruelly to himself. "Of course you're a princess. A perfect little princess who should get anything she wants."
But Angelina went a little quiet for a moment, though she had been smiling just a moment before. She knew what perfection meant, had heard about it in stories, of all the characters that her father would tell her about, the people who were perfect... she had heard men talk before, about her. She was a bright little girl, and she knew better than most what perfection was. And that she was not it.
"Wouldn't a perfect princess be like everyone else?" she asked softly, "I know I'm not. I know my eyes don't work. Because of that, I'm not really perfect, am I, Hans?"
Hans shook his head, stroking her hair. "You are perfect. You can live without something most of us have. And you live well. That means that you are like a goddess in your perfection."
"A goddess?" she asked, perking up a bit. Goddess had magic, she knew that from stories too. But the stories she'd heard were about a goddess who didn't know she had magic until she used it. Maybe that was her real purpose, her gift... and she would have to wait to get her magic, "Like Aquine? She's a goddess of the sea! She's Jechia's wife."
"Of course, katzchen, of course. And some day, you'll have a husband and he'll be perfect with you."
"A goddess. . ." she whispered, her fingers playing with Hans' ear. She lay contentedly against him, her face buried into his neck. Her little button nose with gently pressing and rubbing against his flesh - one of her many ways of affection. She liked this man. He treated her kindly, just like father and Uncle Gaddes and the others. "Would you be my husband, Hans?" she asked softly.
Hans cocked his head to the side a little, chuckling at the question, as well as the laughter from the men around him. "Ah? When you're older. Of course! To marry a princess, a goddess. Of course I could, katzchen."
"Good," she giggled, lifting her head and planting a tender little kiss on his clean shaven face. "Because I like you." She leaned her head into his, nuzzling him affectionately, her silver ringlets shining in the firelight. It was simply . . . too adorable.
Hans chuckled a bit, stroking her hair to subtly cover her ears as they took Ethan by, the boy broken, stumbling and sobbing again. "I'm glad."