Author's note : Hi, have u missed me? The story is getting near to the end.. sigh.. But I am sure you are not objected to it, lol. Enjoy.
"I can't! I can't!"
Kirika stopped wielding her sword. The girl—meanwhile she had been her training partner the whole time—was kneeling on the floor, while breathing irregularly. Kirika put down her sword and took a seat on the floor, like always. They had been repeating the same scenes each time. They would fight with swords, then after some time the girl would be exhausted or desperate then they would rest for some minutes. After that it was up to the girl's condition to see if she was still able to continue the training or not. If not, then they would stop.
Kirika had made much progress in connection with the girl. At least she didn't tremble again each time she had to face Kirika. They started to talk with each other, even if the conversation topic was only about winning and losing. Kirika asked herself if that was all Soldats wanted from her. To train the girl--seemingly.But it was too easy. Suspicious.
"Sorry, you must be bored to fight a weak person like me," the girl said depressedly.
"No, I don't care about that." Answered Kirika nonchalantly.
The girl was quite surprised. She eyed Kirika unbelievingly.
"Oh well. But for me it really sucks. To lose to you each time, each day. I want to be strong. I want to be strong!"
Kirika looked at her, frowning lightly.
"Is it so important? Do they ask you to fight me in order to defeat me?"
"Oh, no, no!" she wielded with her hands hastily. "I just think.. well... I need to be strong. Because... I don't want to get killed."
The girl pulled her legs toward her face, so that people could only see the upper half of her face. When Kirika saw her precisely, she realized that the girl was much younger than her. That explained her childish behaviour.
Then so suddenlyKirika felt a sharp stab somewhere around the chest that she was forced to bend down. It was, as if a massive sword was stabbed to her chest. She nearly got no more oxygen. She coughed, again and again. Her sword fell from her grip and she held both hands in front of her mouth. At that time someone kicked her sword away. Kirika looked up and saw the girl soaring over her. She held her sword over her head, ready to hit Kirika. Kirika had really thought that it would be her end. But later the girl put down her sword and kneeled next to Kirika.
"Uh.. sorry... are you okay? You are so pale."
Kirika didn't stop coughing. The girl tapped her on the back in order to stop her cough. Perhaps it helped a bit, since Kirika could breath better afterwards.
"Sorry!" the girl clapped her hands together in front of her face. "Sorry for wanting to attack you as you are in trouble. I was so desperate that I think.. well a little cheat would help. But I didn't want to kill you. Really!"
Kirika smiled understandingly.The girl was amazed because Kirika was not mad at all. She smiled happily—the first time Kirika saw her smiling.
"Hey, don't we want to be friends? I am Elena, what is your name?"
"I am..." Kirika fell silent. "I am Kirika." She answered at last.
Elena's smile got even wider.
"It is already three years since Altena's death and Soldats is going through a transitional time. It has always been two parties who occupy the highest position in Soldats' organisation. The one is the High Priestess and the other is the High Council.
The High Council has always been trying to take the whole control of Soldats in its hand. But Altena could prevent it with her authority and competence. I am her successor, and I don't have enough power to keep the High Council down. The High Council has taken care of everything since Altena deceased. All that I own is the title High Priestess. But that is not enough for the High Council. They want to eliminate the double-authority-system of Soldats. That means... the High Priestess will have no right to make any decision in Soldats anymore. Everything is up to The High Council, then."
"And why the hell do you involve me and Kirika!" yelled Mireille in wrath.
Marie could hardly bring out what she wanted to tell her.
"We are going nearer to the topic. Now, of course we don't want to give up that easily. Then the High Council rereads Soldats' old scriptures. The reason why there are two authorities in Soldats is, that the High Council is supposed to take care of the matters outside and the High Priestess the ones inside. Including the raising, choosing and training of the Noir candidates."
Marie took deep breath and stopped to see Mireille's reaction. The latter couldn't speak out of surprise. Marie decided to continue, before Mireille could expressed her anger in words.
"The High Council intends to take the control of Noir—as a symbol of Soldats—in its hand. And there both of you appeared to be part of the deal. Mireille, you are the one who represents the existence of the High Priestess. Kirika, and also one other girl, will represent the High Council. We are going to repeat the same thing we have done three years ago. We are going to choose Noir out of the three of you. If you lose, Mireille Bouquet, the High Priestess is going to be nothing. If either Kirika or the girl loses, Soldats will return to the old system—double-authority. That's what we expect, then."
"Wait a second. Why do the High Council have two representatives and the High Priestess only me?" Mireille cut her down.
"Our position is not good enough to decide the matter. Moreover, Noir is to be selected among three persons."
"And how could you be sure that Kirika and I will do as your plan?" Mireille raised one eyebrow.
Marie chose to take note of her fingers instead.
"Kirika Yuumura will do it. Soldats knows her more than you do. She was raised within Soldats. We are her parents. We know her inwardly and outwardly. And you..."
Mireille waited.
"You were born as an outsider. Later your family joined the Soldats."
"You just answer the half of my question. Let me repeat : How could you be sure that Kirika and I will do as your plan?"
Marie didn't answer directly. Mireille got the impression that she had the answer, but she just couldn't say it.
"I am... your mother's half sister."
Mireille gazed at Marie, her look full of disbelief and shock.
"Wha.."
"Wait! Please, let me finish." Marie said pleadingly.
"Don't misunderstand me. I am not going to use blood connection to force you to participate in this matter." She said hastily. "But I do choose you on my side, because I think... we are much or less a family, so perhaps you could understand me. I should be the only one who can convince you to take part in this. We don't have any other choice. You are part of Noir, whatever you do and say. I..." she couldn't continue it. The atmosphere between them was just too tense.
Noone spoke up for some minutes, then Mireille said,
"Please, could you leave me alone, now? I... need time to think it over."
"I am wondering who you are, Kirika," Elena remarked after another monotone training session.
They were now sitting together on the floor, side by side. It had been two weeks since they knew each other. And Elena was a much nicer girl compared to herself the first time Kirika met her.
"I... I don't know. I don't know much about my origin."
"Oh..." Elena looked at her, feeling compassion for her. "But you will surely find it out. Me, I come from Greece. My parents were still staying there."
Kirika smiled. That explained the black, curly hair and her appearance.
"Do you know what we are training like this for?" Kirika asked.
"Oh... um... it has something to do with Noir's revival. There should be one more candidate. Two years ago, many girls supposed to carry the potential seed to be Noir were brought together, raised and trained. I am one of them. Then last week we had a big mass fight. Only one could survive out of the whole matter, and luckily I won the mass fight. I was so relieved... it had been scary. Blood everywhere. I never had any chance to see if my opponents were still alive or not, since from behind somebody always came to attack. And a new fight began."
She grinned at Kirika.
"That's why, as I saw you for the first time, I thought I would also have to kill you. I would rather finish it before I knew you any longer and we became friends. I had had to kill many of my friends in the mass fight. It really hurt, you know...
But you are strong! That way, I won't be worried about you, you are stronger than I am. You will just be allright."
Kirika smiled softly.
"Say, have you also had a big fight before we came together? Well you looked very calm..."
Kirika shook her head.
"I have done nothing like that. People had taken me away from my friend and so I arrived here."
"Oh..." remarked Elena again. "Wow, you must be something special. Concerning your skill, no wonder..."
Kirika stood up so quickly at the end of Elena's words that the latter jumped up of shock.
"Hey, you really make my heart jump! What.. what happened?" she looked around after seeing Kirika's expression.
"Someone... no, more than two people are spying on us."
"But I see nothing. Kirika, if it is a game, please stop it. I..."
Then Elena saw a shadow passing by with a high speed somewhere between the bushes, and she screamed out.
"What is it!" Kirika turned to her worriedly. The girl trembled uncontrollably.
"I felt something... I guess they are.. they want to..."
"To kill us." Kirika finished the sentence for her.