Egil fell asleep to the sound of Alvis's voice and his gossip of others who worked for the imperial family (last thing he really remembered was mention of some Gael'gar being an utter tool or something of the sort), and awoke to the sound of shouting. Based off the fear in Melia's voice and the anger in the stranger's, he supposed they had found their assassin.
He sat up and realized he was no longer near the entrance of the Villa, instead laid out nicely next to some flowers… Had Vanea or Linada moved him, then? He doubted Alvis was strong enough to… but that was a question for another time.
For now, he was quick to stand, pulling Meyneth's Monado from his sides and finding the rest of the group.
Melia looked quite afraid, clinging to a staff as Kallian stood between her and a masked woman. The woman was equipped with dual blades of sort, and she seemed ready to lunge, even as the rest of the group formed around Melia.
Egil was the last to make it to the group, standing to Melia's left. "The assassin, then? What a mask she's wearing… Any clue what it symbolizes?"
Alvis glanced back at him. "If you asked me, I would say a member of the Bionite Order?"
"What?!" Kallian looked to the Seer, eyes wide. "But the Order was abolished by Emperor Lumian!"
"Perhaps to the public eye, but is it really a shock to see it still surviving in the shadows?" Alvis looked to the Machina and Oka. "The Bionite Order is a cult, worshipping the Bionis in secret and quite against the mixing of High Entia and Homs bloodlines."
Kallian gasped. "But the mixing is for the good of our people. Without it we…" He trailed off. "No, I shouldn't speak of that, it's a matter for the royal family, not strangers."
"I know what monsters lurk within your DNA." Egil's voice was tight and he refused to look directly at Kallian. "But now isn't the time for that. This assassin is sure to be troublesome."
"Creatures of the Mechonis helping you?" The woman's voice was full of venom as she dropped into a fighting stance. "Yet more proof the dirtying of the bloodline is nothing more than a spit in the face to our people!"
Kallian pointed the spear in his hands towards her, frown on his face. "Believe what you will, but I will not allow you to hurt Melia!"
The assassin lunged towards Melia and Alvis cut her off quickly as Egil and Linada quickly pushed the princess further out of grasp. Oka was quick to begin cheering the group on, readying her biter for what was to come.
Linada loaded her rifle as Vanea lashed out at the woman with her whip. But the assassin was no slouch, either. She moved from Alvis to Kallian, her weapons hitting against the spear as she tried to push through him.
"You are of purer blood than that thing! Why protect her?!" Her words were made of venom as she sliced at his side. "The son of First Consort Yumea of all people should understand!"
"Unlike mother, I understand and honour the purpose of the Second Consort and the children born of them!" Kallian pushed her back, hissing as the blade connected. "Melia is my sister and the hope of our people! I will not let you take her from me!"
"That child doesn't deserve to be called your sister!" There was an emotion behind her voice that Egil could not quite place. "Do not let her fool you!"
"I've had enough of you!" Kallian lunged again as Linada healed his wound. "I will stop you!"
"This is getting quite interesting…" Alvis chuckled, hand to his chin. "I do wonder how this will all play out."
Egil frowned at him, slapping him upside the head. "Now isn't the time for that, fool. You have a weapon, don't you? Help deal with this problem."
Alvis chuckled, rubbing the back of his head. "Of course, Egil, my apologies."
And with that, things were back on track. Egil noted how easily the assassin's wings caught ablaze due to his drones, though he did note they seemed to go out faster than a burning Mechon did, and did less clear damage outside of singed wings.
Well, whatever. He wasted no time kicking her off balance, watching Vanea pull her to the ground with her whip. A kick in the head and she was down for the count for a good while, the group able to do plenty of damage.
Soon enough, she couldn't even stand. It seemed the fight was over.
Kallian pointed his spear at her neck, a frown on his face. "With that done, I'll make sure you don't pose a threat to Melia again!"
"Kallian…!" Melia ran forward, hands on Linada's arm. "Don't…!"
Vanea grabbed Kallian by the wrist, a frown on her face. "You plan to kill her?"
"What else would I do?" Kallian frowned. "She is a threat and an enemy to the throne. Letting her live would be foolish."
"Killing without finding out just how much of this was her idea is also foolish." Egil put his hand on his hip. "You should keep her around, find out more, and leave it to your law to handle her from here."
"But…"
"I understand, truly. If someone was trying to hurt Vanea it would take my all to not kill them on the spot." Egil's voice was tense as he thought of the voices, the way they begged him to take revenge. "But you should get information from her, first."
"Death is truly not the answer, either way." Linada spoke up, moving to hold the assassin up in her arms. "It will just become a cycle of violence, and I doubt you want to force Melia to see that."
"Melia…" He looked back at his sister, flinching as he saw the tears in her eyes. "You… you're right. I'm sorry you had to see that, Melia."
"Brother…" Melia was quick to approach, wrapping her arms around him. "I was so afraid."
Kallian ran his hand through her hair, holding her close. "I'm sorry, Melia…"
"Well…" Linada stood, pulling the assassin into her arms. "Let's treat the worst of the wounds and get her tied up. Make sure she's able to actually answer our questions when she comes around."
"Ah, yes." Egil nodded. "That would be for the best."
