Through every generation of the human race, there has been a constant war, a war with fear. Those who have the courage to conquer it are made free and those who are conquered by it are made to suffer until they have the courage to defeat it, or death takes them.
Alexander the Great
Chapter 6: Lion Heart
Shun took a deep breath as he leaned his face against the window of the large helicopter. He watched as the twin volcanoes spirited up clouds of smoke and the endless rocky landscape around it as the so-called second worst training ground was coming into view. "Ikki, I'm so nervous," he muttered as a few tears began to stream down his face.
But that was when a steady hand came to his shoulder. "Shun, don't worry about it. I know you can do this," Ikki spoke as he tried to comfort his little brother. "You heard what Aiolos said, your trainer is very kind and patient. I promise you, I'll write to you once a week and visit you every couple of months, isn't that right Master Gorgo?" he spoke as he turned to the silver-haired, dark-skinned Amazon.
Her metal mask, with four long red streaks that ran down unevenly like fingers that ran from top to bottom with smeared red war paint, nodded. "That's right, Ikki. A brother or sister, is one of the strongest links in the life of a Saint and I would never imagine fracturing such an important bond no matter what the cost," her tone sincere but with a heavy accent.
Tatsumi rolled his eyes. "Oh, come on. They knew this day was coming. If they can't handle it now what are they-" He gritted his teeth as the Amazon pinched him right at his ear lobe. His hands crimped down in pain as he felt himself bend down until he was on his knees.
"In training, death can come for any of us, little boy." She growled.
Tatsumi felt himself shrink, her blank stare of her mask seemingly following his body as he lowered more to the floor until his knees met the ground.
If he wasn't so fucking ugly and she was thirty years younger, this would be the part where she pulled out the leather straps and showed bad of a master she really was. "A single day of detour wouldn't affect my student's training any more than this pinch would affect your ability to be stupider than you already are," she let go and allowed the butler to find his place back on his seat.
She watched her new student flash a smile at her, a sign that there was some poison between her new pupil and the butler. However, whatever happened in their past meant nothing to her, but rather his future prospects. The boy's intellect, strength, and determination meant nothing less than the legendary Cloth of the Phoenix.
The Crateris Saint could see that if the Kido Foundation dumped him on Death Queen Island, they would merely be squandering his potential. At the same time, she had a feeling Sanctuary would have never said anything that she was available. She felt horrible for what Ghost Saint Geist did, but she did as she was told and trained her as best as she could. Geist's potential was one of the most thrilling moments in her teaching career. Her abilities to create illusions just as well as she could would have served Sanctuary well. How was she to know that Geist would squander her gifts for greed and mortal possessions? To be blacklisted on the actions of her student, years after she's left her care was foolish. She was grateful that Aiolos was able to see past all of that and grant her a chance to make things right.
Tatsumi frowned at the Amazon as he walked over to the door and slid it open. "Alright everyone, we're here." A burst of the Andromeda Island heat slapped his face, grasped his lungs and knocked the wind out of him. His eyes bulged as he reached over and pulled the collar of his tux at his neck. "Jeez... why did I wear this?" He turned his head toward a blond haired man in blue armor with a little blonde six-year-old amazon at his side. He turned around for a brief moment before he sighed and climbed right out.
The Argentinian stood there as the large bald man was helping a small but lean green haired boy along with a stocky black haired child.
June zeroed in on the two. Originally, never having seen a helicopter, managed to convince her teacher to allow her to come along and get a better look. It was larger than it seemed, louder than she expected, but yet her curious eyes were drawn more to the fact that more than one child got out.
"Master, I thought we were only receiving one student?" June whispered as she held his large hand and leaned her sweaty short hair against it.
Albiore was also a bit curious. He continued to watch as the green haired boy held a small duffle bag while the one with black hair was grabbing his shoulders and saying something in Japanese. Even though he couldn't understand a word, it was clear that the older child was merely doing his best to reassure him that everything will be fine. "They're just saying goodbye, that's all. Let them have their moment," he spoke. He felt confident that was what they were doing until they both came along with the bald-headed man. Confused, he still reached over and greeted the butler. "Welcome to my island, Mr. Tokumaru."
"Heh heh, please, just call me Tatsumi," he replied as he took a moment to wipe his already sweaty hand with a cloth before he reached over for the Saint. "Hey listen, I know this is short notice, but I need you to fill out some paperwork with the boss in the helicopter there. So if you could..."
"-Paperwork?" Albiore gasped. "I'm sure I've filled out everything I need, and yet when I contacted the Kido Foundation on more information on my future student, I have yet to receive a single reply."
Tatsumi swallowed hard as he pulled his collar and smiled a bit. He did recall a bunch of letters from a few Saints, including the Cepheus that he just tossed in the corner. "Well... it's important so if you could just come over for half an hour possibly an hour or so..."
The Cepheus Saint shrugged his shoulders. This was not exactly the drop off that he was told he would have. "When we saw the helicopter, I told fifteen Sanctuary soldiers that needed retraining and five other students that I would be about ten minutes."
Shun and Ikki stood there confused, unaware that there was more to the goodbye than the adults were letting on.
"By the rock that Sisyphus must push..." muttered the Amazon as she sighed and leaped right out. It's been several years since she saw him, but she knew her presence was needed to counteract the buffoonery that was Tatsumi Tokumaru. "Saint Albiore, the paperwork has to be filled out in there." She took her thumb and pointed to the helicopter. "I'll take the kids and relay a message to the others. You take your time. It's important you fill out everything." She shouted.
He watched her take her mask and flashed her chin. The Amazon culture was engraved with different ways to express meaning due to the limitations of emoting with the mask. The most well known was when an Amazon tilted their head to the side, it meant a smile or happiness. The one she showed had two different meanings. One interpretation was that she wanted to sleep with him, but despite her voice and youthful appearance, that's obviously not the case being that she was old enough to be his abuela, the other meaning was that it was imperative. "Alright-" he trailed. "If you can do that, I'll take care of this paperwork."
As he made his way to the helicopter, he turned his head to watch as June, and the two boys were conversing excitedly to each other. He read on his notes that his future student had emotional issues while his brother was a massive headache in terms of discipline, but couldn't detect either negative trait on the two of them. He had grown men clawing and pleading to leave his island before they gave it a chance and the green haired child was calm and had an air to him like he was more than ready to take on the challenge. Then again, his report on the boys were years out of date, so perhaps things have changed for the better. He looked forward to teaching Shun and possibly will get a sample of what his brother is capable of during some of his visits.
The moment his hands came into contact with the helicopter, there was this odd sensation. It wasn't the fact that he hadn't felt an air conditioner in years, no matter how amazing it was to go from the duel extreme temperatures of the island to something in between. Instead, it was the sudden drop of cosmos. It made him a little dizzy, like a sudden pressure change in his home country when it switched from extremely hot to stormy and humid, but he recovered quickly. His guess was that the Kido Foundation knew of the effects of concentrated stardust and lined the aircraft as a means of precaution. Must have been extremely expensive, but Kido was infamously wealthy. It was no wonder none of his cosmos messages couldn't reach Saint Gorgo after she last contacted him in Bali.
His head turned, and his jaw dropped as Aiolos sat in his wheelchair. He did see streaks of him during some trips to Sanctuary. Despite his smaller frame, the curly hair, the red bandanna, and steely blue eyes, was more than enough proof that this was Sagittarius Saint. "You know, Sanctuary issued an order for all Saints to come to your strung up body and to officially reject you from the order. It was the first order I ever ignored." When he read that the Sagittarius Saint was to walk in shame, carrying the stake on his back, he knew something was not right. He once misjudged the distance between two cliffs, fell ten feet and was lucky to get away with a cracked pelvis. It took two months with cosmos before he was even allowed to try and walk without assistance. Considering the distance between the houses and the bottom was three times that amount led him to heavily question anyone attempting that. "Now I wish I went out of curiosity," Albiore spoke as he took a seat where Tatsumi once sat.
Aiolos chuckled a bit, amazed the Silver was able to detect the trouble of Sanctuary so early on despite not being in Greece. "Well, to be frank, your rejection of Sanctuary is exactly why we're here." Understanding the limited time they had, he then told him an abbreviated tale, from the moment he opened the door to save Athena, to the day that the Old Master spoke to him about the possibility of him becoming Pope. While dropping off the children to their appropriate training grounds served as a good cover, he didn't want to draw too much attention to the Saints he needed. He even had Tatsumi type up bogus paperwork to give to Camus to fill out for Hyoga just to make it more believable, even if he heard that most of the time was spent with the French man playing grammar nazi on Tatsumi's poor understanding of written Greek. He thought of including the Aquarius in his plan, but knowing him, he was too methodical and too much of a wildcard to include him. Perhaps things will change once they enter Sanctuary itself.
"So, you want me to talk with Saint Misty on delaying the onset of Silvers once the plan moves forward?" Albiore asked, watching Aiolos' head nod. He took a deep breath and brought his hand to his mouth. "Look, yes technically, I refused orders in the past, but at the same time, I simply never provided a complete denial either. There is no crime in letting orders go unanswered." In fact, his inspiration was on the fact that his predecessor ignored them because by the time he could get off the island, the mission would be long over. "If there is, it is considered carelessness, and the only life that ends would be my own. I felt there was something off but at the same time no definite proof." He swallowed hard. "You being here definitely counters their claim of your execution. I hope you understand, I support you, I hope you can understand my predicament in that unlike ignoring orders, plotting against Sanctuary is treason, and with treason any known associates of mine are targeted from students to those who supply my island with goods and services. Many of my students have barely awaken their cosmos..."
Aiolos nodded. "I get it, you focus on doing the right thing, but with you having so many pupils, those consequences could cost them all their lives." He watched the Cepheus nod, feeling bad for him and knowing all too well how he was feeling right now. "I know its hard, but if you stay silent and it may feel like with all the connections you have that you are fairly well protected, but all this silence bides them time too and eventually they will find an excuse to silence you eventually."
"Oh don't get me wrong. I will not stand for what this Saga did. I just can't be reckless with any decision I make. Any action from here on out, must succeed. There are no second chances."
He could tell that if Albiore had stayed silent for this many years, he could continue to do so. Technically he could allow him to rest at peace, but the Bronze and Silver forces make up over eighty percent of the Army of Athena, a number greater if one added the foot soldiers that work beneath them. The idea of being sandwiched between a line of Gold Saints and legions of Bronze and Silvers would no end well whether they won or not.
Aiolos knew the feeling of being comfortable in one's setting. He's number one on Saga's hit list and he went from slinking out of the Kido Foundation walls to catch glimpses of news in Europe to doing karaoke night at a bar on Fridays. He had a feeling if Albiore had been doing this for a few years he could do it for a few more with no effort. Only by adding a little uneasiness can he crack through. Surely even he had some ego to pick at, "have you ever wondered why the original Pope chose Lizard Misty and not you to lead the Silvers?" Aiolos watched as he flashed a look of irritation before he quickly returned it back to his stoic demeanor. That was all he needed. "Now, sure you had the smarts over him, certainly a lot more respect and trust. However, Lizard Misty had one important characteristic that edged him then and is holding you back now, and that is you've always sided with being conservative while he was willing to risk things. I was there, Albiore when he decided it. A great leader must understand that he must risk his friends' lives or else the chance is lost. However, I understand your concern for your students, but if you want to risk saving all their lives, vs. playing it safe and getting them killed in the long term, I need you to do this."
O|======|O
Aiolia quietly sat in the conference room, he was earlier than expected, and wished he would have changed. Unsure of when everyone was free, he just got there as early as he could, still in his J-Pop shirt whose name he didn't know how to pronounce. Everyone had suits and dress outfits in the lobby area in the Kido Foundation building, but to get inside the facility, he had to travel with a group of bronze undercover saints, to a nightclub to celebrate. Everyone lied about their age just so they can do some drinking, but it's become almost a rite of passage since they've all been drinking wine since the age of six. He stayed for about two hours since it was the least he could do for his comrades and then snuck right out. Hopefully, Aiolos wouldn't get mad that he used the description of Futaba, the hot beef noodle waitress to slip away, but he didn't know any Japanese ladies on hand that he could pretend to be going to one of those weird love hotels with.
Aiolia poured himself some sake that a friend gave him at the celebration and poured it in his empty glass, when he heard a familiar voice, chatting with one of the Kido security officers outside the door before it swung open. He watched his brother wheeling himself in, speaking in Japanese at a far slower and more pronounced pace that even allowed himself to pick out some of the nuances and words he's heard over and over. He waited until the guard closed the door before he opened up, trying to appear as if he hadn't waited for over an hour by himself. "So where is everyone else? How did it go with Bali and Andromeda Island?" He said as he pulled out the spare cup and poured his brother some.
Aiolos looked down. His brother was pouring a drink, that was meant to be taken like a shot of whiskey, like a chalice of wine. He still smiled and took up the offer even if there was more than enough for him to have trouble finding his way back to his room. "Went well. The Bali hermit was thrilled to have someone to train. She even knew about me being alive but was so mad at Sanctuary for blacklisting her, that she wasn't going to bother to tell them. The Andromeda hermit finally decided to stop being passive aggressive with Sanctuary and talk to the Silver Saint leader about delaying the onset of Bronze and Silver Saints when we have our planned attack on Sanctuary." He took a moment to sigh. Before he could get the Cepheus to agree, he had to hear each name and age of all the people that would be involved. It was an odd request. But for a man who has been teaching on a volcanic island for several years, he had more than enough trainees or retrained soldiers to have a miniature army, if it weren't for the fact that most were under ten years old.
Aiolia's finger gently tapped on the top of the sake bottle. His eyes fixated on the bizarre goofy characters on the front, but in truth there was something he needed to say. "are you sure we shouldn't have gone straight for Saint Misty? I know we can use dropping off the Kido Trainees as an excuse to meet up with them, but I have some connections, and we can easily meet with him at his orange grove in France. Wouldn't that ensure that the Bronze and Silver Saints were taken care of?"
It was a very good point, but his little brother needed to understand that just because someone had the most powerful position doesn't mean they had the most influence. "Here's the thing, Saint Misty can command and inspire, but Saint Albiore carries respect and trust. Misty can order the Silver and Bronzes to look at the sky, but Albiore can tell them that the sky changed into rainbow polka dots and they will look up at it for as long as they can because they believe him. Misty will listen to Albiore, and with them seeing two of the highest in agreement it guarantees we won't run into trouble from the rear...at least for the most part." He knew of one issue that may still yet occur. However, they'll have to wait until the day of, trust it will be taken care of, but plan if that one incident will still happen.
"Good point," Aiolia bit his lip. "I'm surprised though. After you were declared a traitor and putting a false Athena, all the door guards from the House of the Pope to yours were executed, including those that weren't even on duty at the time. I think all the servants as well since most of them died of weird causes or accidents. I'm surprised he's still alive."
"From what he told me, he didn't try to hide and he was very careful. Stayed in the good will of the people and he never gossiped so as to position Saga in a way that it would bring more suspicion for his death than to keep him alive. But the whole thing was a matter of endurance. If the Pope did wrong, he could cover it up, and if he made a mistake, that was it. I convinced him to realize if he tried to wait it out, Sanctuary would get him eventually. Like you said, it's a miracle he's still breathing."
"That's so true, on top of that, he's a Taurus," added Aiolia chuckling a bit, but paused when he noticed his older brother's confused look. "What... what is it?"
"I don't get it."
Aiolia raised his glass and hands. "Because of you know... the Taurus curse. In every single war, the Taurus Saints, especially the Gold ones, are the first to either get seriously hurt or die."
"That's just superstition! You know it's not true, and the proof is right before you. What do you call this thing that I've been glued to for the past five years?!"
"Yeah, but it didn't happen during Holy War. That's like saying that one guard that fell off a cliff broke the curse because he was a Virgo."
The door swung open once more, this time Kento appeared, still with the faded shiner from the Leo Saint fight a couple of nights ago. Along his side, was Athena. He was shocked that Mr. Kido wasn't there. It felt like he hasn't been seen in over a month and thought he'd be over the moon at the idea of a living, Gold Saint in his prime, would bring him in. Now he's starting to worry, but he'll have to wait until later to find out what is going on. "Lady Athena, tell my brother that the whole Taurus Curse is just some dumb superstition."
"So, Tatsumi told me the good news about the talks on the Andromeda Island," Athena smiled, totally ignoring the statement earlier.
Aiolos, unsure whether to correct his Goddess simply smiled back. "Yes, they did. Hopefully, we don't expect any reinforcements during our attack and keeping the lower ranks of your army safe."
Athena nodded as she touched her heart as if she wanted to unleash her feelings, but yet felt they were too tender to let them be known. "I know you all wanted to rush through, but understand that from the noblest of Golds to the young foot soldiers of my army, they are innocent of the wrongdoing of Saga. I know all of you were trained to die no matter how great the battle, but I can't stand anyone's blood to be needlessly spilled and would like it to be avoided when possible." She turned her head toward the sixteen-year-old, gazing at his stunned look. "Is something wrong, Saint Aiolia of Leo?"
He rubbed his curly hair, his face stunned, while his eyes and ears struggled to connect the context of the subject to the high pitched voice. "You're…six, right?" He watched her nod. The body language presented a woman of elegance and grace. Even the gaze she gave with her heavenly blue eyes made her seem too perfect for this world. He felt love, but it wasn't the warmth of his late mother nor the dreamy drunkenness whenever Marin was around. He couldn't explain it, but it felt good yet pure. It didn't take much for him to change his perception from how could they convince others she was real, to why they would mistaken her for a fake.
Now he felt even more guilty for not wearing something more fitting of his position of a Gold Saint. He still had the white chiton still neatly folded in his suitcase along with his white stardust cape. If he had to stick with Japanese fare, he could've gone conservative like his brother and simply wore a plain shirt with a nice set of jeans or khakis. He could have at least gone up and offer a bow when she first came in.
Nope, his first encounter with the goddess was him, his breath heavy with Sake and whatever he had at the nightclub, leaning back in a chair like a punk, decked out with black fucking leather pants, with a seductive Japanese pop singer,eyes closed, grasping the microphone as if it was a source of pleasure while the fabric itself was drenched in a musky cologne. He felt embarrassed, wishing he would have taken five minutes to change out in the bathroom. "Wow… I…"
She reached over and grabbed his arm, trying to ease his nerves. "It's alright… you are not the first and certainly not the last. The cosmos of my first incarnation as Athena is the same as it has been for thousands of years. Therefore, when I awaken, which was much earlier than I expected, I have been imparted with her eternal wisdom regardless of my size. Any thoughts from the past, are the past. You are here. You are my Leo Saint."
He lowered his head, as a strange sense of peace came over. Maybe it was her words once more, or her cosmos that permeated the room, but less than five minutes and he was ready to fall to his hands and knees for her for forgiveness of even doubting her claim, if she hadn't already forgiven him. "If only Saga realized that before and maybe he wouldn't have tried to kill you," spoke Aiolia as he folded his arms. He blew his bangs. "Unfortunately, he now has several Gold Saints who seem to have folded into the same belief now." He was almost one of them.
She too, was surprised, but at the same time, was not. "I can see from his perspective at the difficulty of trusting a little girl. But that is the nature of the side of chaos in the Gemini. It takes small doubts and weaponizes it into fear, and fear can lead rationalization of the darkest of actions-"
"-including the murder of a baby," Aiolos muttered as he leaned his head into his hand, still shocked that one of his best friends would do such a thing. It almost sounded like some scary tale that the Maidens of Sanctuary would tell to frighten the children. But there he was, the dagger gleaming, the baby crying. It comes down and even when he stopped him, the Saga only became even more fixated on killing her.
That was when he felt a gentle shove. He turned to Aiolia as he was staring at him, bewildered along with everyone else. "You alright? You were just staring there."
Aiolos turned to the clock and noticed the hands had moved quite a bit. "I was just thinking," he muttered. But he knew exactly what had happened. It was a flashback. Sometimes, when the true Pope would tell him and Saga stories about the past Holy War, he would trail off. He and Saga used to get somewhat freaked out by it, thinking the Pope had a stroke, but instead he would tell them that he just had this vivid memory of his friends being torn apart or the vacant stares of death that they would give him. The Pope had a way of telling them these stories in a way that would make Aiolia rethink his original run through, kill everything plan. He can't even get over the remains of Galan back in Greece after all these years, sometimes wondering what it would be like had Kido left him there. His neck lost strength as he gazed at the floor, saying the same thing that the old Pope would tell them after these moments. "I need some air," Aiolos sighed. "I know we all just got together..."
The Chinese undercover agent for Dohko had seen him act like this before, sometimes with the children. "The Old Master can sometimes be difficult to contact at this time. Since we need him for this next part, let's take a break for ten minutes so that I can update him on what has happened and ensure he will be on call."
Athena nodded her head in agreement. "I should check on grandfather. He wanted to come, but felt ill. I'll see if he's feeling better."
Aiolia watched as his brother just nodded and waved before he began to wheel himself back out. Ever since he was young, he's always known him to be strong of mind, but he's noticed this weight that seemed to drag with him since Master Dohko spoke with him. He gingerly followed behind him, cautiously keeping a fair distance away of a room away. He watched his brother remove his red headband before he went outside, clearly understanding how easy it was to recognize him with it on. There he sat on the balcony, watching the people move about their business in Tokyo. He stopped and watched his brother's eyes. He knew he wasn't taking in the view. He had been in Japan for about a couple of years and had grown used to the busy sights of street merchants and people hurrying from place to place. Instead, he could tell he was searching, and judging by him focused on Yoshinoya, the beef noodle place as if he'd be lucky to catch a fleeting glance of her. He knew he's done the same when he memorized the times Marin would go out to resupply her pantry, and he'd happen to be there to help her carry her stuff. "Is her shift ending soon?"
Aiolos darted his head and guiltily turns his gaze to the side. "Not sure. She's usually not scheduled, but lately, she's been forced to cover this one woman's shift since she's about ready to have a baby."
"She knows I'm out here." He knew he wouldn't think it, but just in case, he didn't want to look like a lonely creep to his little brother. " In fact, she started it first when I would go here every morning and just watch the sunrise. I was leaning down to adjust my brakes when I caught her waving." He smiled again. "So when I'm out here, she waved, and I would do the same." He watched him nod in understandment. "By the way, I like your Piko shirt. Looks good."
Aiolia opened his mouth a bit in pleasant realization. "Thanks. I was wondering what the characters on it said. I just picked it up because I liked the pose. She looked really hot."
Aiolos chuckled. "Yes, he's a major heartthrob here with the ladies. Even Athena has his poster."
His jaw dropped. "Are you fucking kidding me... he looked up and down...He?"
Aiolos smiled. He liked torpedoing his brother's ego. "Oh yeah, it's pretty different here. Women like men who have a soft edge." Aiolos continued to laugh as he imagined his brother seemingly flashback to probably every moment he's walked around with it. He relaxed on one side of his chair. "You know, you've been here for a couple of years. You don't seem like you picked up much of the culture."
"Well, if you recall, I said that it was the perfect opportunity, but I never said I was the perfect candidate," the Leo shrugged. "I told Saga I needed out of Greece and when the Pope tells them they had to take me, they had to take me. Don't know any Japanese to do the actual infiltration or surveillance. The only thing I could do was simple stuff like cook lunch, deliver messages from here to Greece; a lot of footsoldier duties that were easy but didn't let me absorb into the Japanese culture. Some felt nervous because I was doing so many menial tasks for my rank, but they got over it when I told them why I was here. They understood and to make them feel like I was more utilized, I'd help them with developing cosmos and sparring in their down time." Sensing that his brother was more open right now, he felt this was an excellent time to bring it up, Aiolia carefully folded his arms over the beautiful face of Piko and tilted his head. "You know, you've been a lot more reserved since you got back. What's up?"
Aiolos sighed. "I was just thinking about earlier. You know, it's pretty easy to tell a guy to risk it all, but it's another to actually do it." He raised his hand for a moment and closed his eyes. "If we fail, Saga's not going to be easy on anyone. He'll execute every foot soldier, every Saint who's sided with us, every civilian they've made contact with no matter how little they had to do with it," he took a moment to look at the restaurant from afar. "Those who are closest to me, he's going to make what he did to Galan look like a fucking mercy killing." He began to hold his head as the floodgate of emotion spilled out. "All my trainees that I'm sending out now, I told them that they are going to make the world a better place, and yet they have no idea that the place that I am asking them to work with may kill them off because of me. They'll make sure Athena is good and dead this time. They aren't going to take it easy on you either."
But the Leo Saint rolled his eyes. "So? Do you think the Specters aren't going to kill us all? That the Mariners will have mercy? You never had any issue with that. You never looked back with doubt at the possibility that we're going to Hell itself whether it be miles underground or fathoms underwater. This battle is a lot more personal, but the risks are still the same."
"Really?" Aiolos turned his wheelchair around. "The risks are determined based on how many Golds will actually accept me. Besides you or me, we have Dohko, Mu, most likely Aldebaran. I know Saga and Shura will not go with it, and Aphrodite and Deathmask will side with them. But if you factor in the fact that I can't use my legs, they have both of our Cloths, Mu is stuck in a rock and Dohko is...old. If Milo, Camus, and especially Shaka side with Saga, we 've-" he felt a punch so hard that it caused his chair to bang against the rail.
"We have Athena!" Aiolia shook his head. "Back when I was by myself at the House of Leo, I felt empty. I could see it in the other Golds too, like this flame that was lost from their eyes as if their hearts were fucking ripped out of their chests. You saw me back in Greece! So many times I would be on patrol in my House and would be wondering for days wondering what's the point in sacrificing my life for all of this! Why was she so special? But the moment she stepped in earlier, I felt this cosmos. I felt complete! I felt strong like my soul was steel! I felt like that maybe, we can do this and change Sanctuary for the better! I felt something that I felt was missing over these years, and now I am ready to die for all of this. If you doubt her will now, you're no different than Saga!"
But Aiolos turned to him, still rubbing his face. "Alright genius, then how come I've been around our Goddess all this time, and this renewal of energy is not affecting me right now." He watched his little brother flashed a dirty look. "What? Why are you looking at me like I'm stupid?"
"Because you are. Think about it. If I was in your same position and after training for so long that I discovered I was going to be stuck in a wheelchair and couldn't serve Sanctuary, I would've fucking killed myself. The moment they would free me, I would find the nearest ledge and the first sunrise I saw would be the last I see. Here you are, never once speaking about ending your life and doing the exact opposite." Aiolia sighed and walked over and leaned against the rail. "You're just nervous about losing everything because you fucking care about everything and that's what makes you qualified to be Pope. Besides, fear is important! All this fear is probably part of Athena's greater plan to make sure everything goes fucking right because we can't afford a single mistake." He leaned down and lovingly stroked Aiolos head like a little child. "Isn't that right, big brother?"
Aiolos smacked him and grinned from his little brother's pale imitation of him from long ago when Aiolia was struggling to awaken his cosmos. "So, being in the presence of Athena has caused you to get over your fear of striking a cripple."
"No way, it's the masculine beauty of my Piko shirt that has given me the strength to punch your unfeminine face. Athena's will is what gives me the strength to follow my idiotic brother's idiot plan to the death."
Goddess, he missed him. It was so hard to think that Aiolia had become a man in the time he was gone, and now he needed to treat him as such. "I want you to go, Aiolia." He watched him flinch, but he raised a hand to show he wasn't done speaking. "No, I'm not saying you're out of the plan, but hear me out. You said so yourself that the undercover mission is over here. I know how these things go, and you're really stretching out your time. It draws suspicion every time you come here with no reason. You know the plan, so go back to wherever you're staying, pack up, be ready to ship back to Greece. I want you to...take care of...well anything you want complete."
"Hmph. Just in case I don't make it since neither of us will be going in with our Cloths in a Sanctuary that's full of them?"
"Well, as suicidal as it seems, the fact that we both signed up to do suicidal things like Specters and Mariners makes that fact moot. Besides,I know you'll be careful. You don't need me holding your hand in Greece to ensure you'll be safe by the time we come."
The Leo pursed his lips, his muscular arms still twisted with the eyes of Piko peaking over them. "Yeah, you haven't done shit for me for a long time." He smiled. "But don't think I still missed it. So what's the signal? A wooden horse in the town square? A black dove with a message tied around its foot? Perhaps the dead head of a horse at Saga's feet?"
"Mmm, originally it was going to be the horse head, but Saga is not worth wasting such a majestic creature. Besides, I want my horse to be alive unless you're going to be my steed in Sanctuary. I was thinking of when a messenger goes to Marin's hut and lets her know that Seiya is coming. That will provide you a twenty-four-hour heads up that I want you to make your way at the meeting point."
"Heh, Pegasus, eh? Let me guess, the Saint that was the first to cross all twelve Houses by himself just to prove to Athena that he was worthy of being her Nike during the first Holy War. The Godslayer of the Second will be the guiding light-"
"Man, you're overthinking it. I picked Seiya because he's the closest to Sanctuary," laughed Aiolos. "But when it comes time to tell the tales of the two idiotic brothers who decided to confront the evil at Sanctuary, it would make a good tale for bards to strum-"
"-and virgins to sing!" Aiolia chuckled, remembering the words of the old bartender back in Greece. He reached over and grabbed hold of him in a loving embrace even if he's the one who's forced to bend over every time..
Aiolos sighed as fear filled his heart, wondering if his only family would be safe there. "Don't do anything out of the ordinary. Just celebrate, meet and greet... and remember... if there are things you want to do...take care of them."
Aiolia finally pulled away. "I know... and I can definitely think of one of the hardest things that I've meant to do for a long time. Goodbye, brother! Don't worry, we'll win this! I know it!" He climbed over and perched himself on the metal bars. He turned his head toward the door, as Athena came through with effortless grace. He waved once to her before he used his cosmos to speed out of there.
Aiolos sighed as he watched the bits of cosmos wave in the wind, reaching out and sensing the familiar warmth. Even after so many years, it hadn't changed since he was a child. That wasn't the only thing. Aiolia was just as bold and brash, firm but willing to take time to listen. But he could judge by how much he held back that Aiolia would be a beast in battle, true to the Leo Saints of the past. He was grateful for his enthusiasm, but there was a thing that he didn't want to say in front of him. While it was true that with Athena, they had victory, but it didn't mean they won. How was losing ninety-nine percent of an army considered a win? As Shion put it, winning the last Holy War was the same as bragging about being stabbed in the back twice while the loser was stabbed four times.
What he was going to attempt had never been done before. If only Aiolia knew how conflicted he was at the idea that he wanted to save as many people as he could, but uncomfortable at the thought of his little brother willing to throw himself into the crosshairs to achieve it.
To Be Continued…
Author's Note: I haven't provided a personal update in a long time. Anyways, as I've told others, I plan on finishing up this story while remastering it at the same time. A long time ago, this was written as a fic gift. While I work hard and write the best I could, I was also under a huge time constraint, and the story on the website was limited to two huge parts. Now that the other site is gone, I decided to finish it after a request to do so. However, I've given the old chapters a grammar scrub, and I'm adding the scenes that I wanted to include in the original, and the chapter system is allowing me to break it into more fitting parts. To give you a timeline, this story is about 70-80% finished. I hope to have it done by the end of this month.
Jenny D