As they climbed the last steps of the Tower Edelgard and the Professor came face to face with Archbishop Rhea, Catherine and a small group of soldiers defending their leader.
Catherine and two soldiers pounced on them. The other two were already running towards them a few meters away.
-My teacher, I'll cover you! - claimed Edelgard, throwing herself, axe in hand, towards Catherine and the two soldiers.
The Profesor nodded and without saying anything she ran directly to the archbishop, who received her, sword in hand. The clash of steels sparked but Rhea succumbed and the woman, refusing to lose the control of the monastery, roared and became the powerful white dragon that they had recently seen defending their fiefdom. perhaps the beast was trying to flee, perhaps it was trying to take the teacher with her or away. A hit of her tail on one of the walls summoned a cloud of smoke so thick that it covered the entire room.
They had managed to free the monastery from the forces of the Church and many of their companions joined them. Garregh Mach had surrendered at the feet of the Fire Empress. The archbishop was showing her true colors again. From the smoke a dragon's roar was heard and the sparks of the fire could be glimpsed as the creature spat in rage.
Edelgard had defeated Catherine, who had fled leaving her to defend herself from the attack of the other two soldiers, who were advancing towards her. Seeing herself free of enemies she ran to where she had heard the dragon's roar to meet the Professor but she didn't see anything... nor anybody.
-Come on, the dome of the Tower might fall! -shouted Hubert as he reached the hall, too. He was followed by some students who, in the midst of their own emotional storms, had decided to follow Edelgard on the mission to free F dlan.
Many had turned their backs on the Church to follow Edelgard and her race to destruction. Was this the right decision to make? They would think about that later.
-Go down, there's nothing left here! -Edelgard encouraged them, looking around with concern. - Professor!
The Flame Empress searched through the chaos but the professor seemed she had vanished. She had disappeared into the smoke. There was no blood on the floor, no clothing, anything. She had struck the final blow on Rhea and after that the achbishop had become the White Fury and the rest was that chaos, only broken by the roar of the angry creature. Edelgard walked around the room, worried.
-I can't see the Professor! - shouted Dorothea as she approached.
-Go to the market, I'm going to look for her - answered Edelgard, firmly.
-No way, we have to go now, Lady Edelgard! - Huber refused, trying to pull her arm.
-I SAID I'M GOING TO LOOK FOR HER! - exclaimed Edelgard, freeing herself from the hands of the wizard. -Meet me at the marketplace, I'll see you there!
The Empress disappeared into the smoke and Hubert watched helplessly as Edelgard's recklessness could destroy the plans that had taken so much time and effort to implement.
-Edie! - wanted to follow Dorothea but Hubert pulled her in hard.
-She's made her choice, let's go. Let's meet with those who have decided to follow us.
The animist nodded and ran down the steps before the Tower succumbed. In the distance the roars of the dragon could still be heard and the clouds of smoke from the fire she was spitting gave an indication of the location of the unleashed beast.
Edelgard fought her way through fleeing people, falling stones and raining fire with her axe and shield. She searched through the ruins and followed the trail of the White Fury for hours.
Until the early hours of the morning she did not appear in the market, badly wounded, exhausted... masking the guilt and emptiness she felt.
Before entering the buildings it was necessary to check that the walls would resist, that the ceilings would not fall down. For the moment the Tower had held, although it had a large hole in the dome. They had decided to set up a small camp in the market and return inside the buildings once they had checked the damage to the structures.
Edelgard addressed the people who were gathered in that modest camp. She congratulated them on the victory, encouraged them to go ahead with the liberation of F dlan. It was not going to be easy but after seeing the true face of the Archbishop of the Church of Seiros and talking about the Crests, their creation and the unnecessary separation of classes and castes some doubts were dispelled. Her closest friends had followed her, at first possibly because of the necessary support of the Professor but afterwards, with some food and drink and time to process Edelgard's arguments what had been a leap of faith had become a voluntary and conscious movement.
Many noticed the absence of the professor. She was a heavy burden on Edelgard's conscience and a hard act to follow among others. Despite the work that was done, despite the work and the direction of the troops in the attacks that followed that day, Edelgard used to go out with a small group of soldiers to look for the professor and she would return in the early hours of the morning, unsuccessful.
-Don't worry, Edelgard, we'll find her. - Constance smiled, leaning confidently into the Empress' bedroom, safe in the knowledge that the night was upon her. It was remarkable to everyone how the character of the young noblewoman who had been sheltered in the Abyss for years changed with only the rising of the sun. So many years of refuge in the Abyss, far from the light of the sun, had affected her character considerably, much more uninhibited after sunset.
-I just don't understand what could have happened, Constance. Where could she be? It doesn't look like Rhea took her. She didn't show up after all the mess. It's like she just vanished! - exclaimed Edelgard in exasperation, banging on the table.
Constance smiled.
-She will appear, she has never left us until now and it is not the first time she has disappeared. -She went out ready to enjoy the night.
Edelgard was left alone, stroking her temples, tired, feeling that the crusade was becoming a little more lonely again. She walked over to the desk, lit by a candle. On the reports of the progress of the war and the situation of the monastery there was a sketch. A barely recognizable face. Edelgard, free of armour, titles and responsibilities, in that moment of loneliness, took the charcoal and continued to outline the drawing. She wondered if she would ever see that face again and, if she hadn't lost her faith during her childhood, she would have prayed that the search for it the next morning would be a success. But she did not pray. She did not cry. She continued to draw, stubbornly, feeling that if he concentrated on that simple task, the rest of the burden on her shoulders would be easier to bear.
Weeks went by and then months. The monastery was once again like what it had been, a vibrant, bustling place. The difference was that the activity that now governed the place was of a warlike nature in its entirety. The central altar was a mountain of rubble. The war meant problems in supplies, lacks of equipment and the constant organization of troops. Hubert and Ferdinand were diligent, especially when Edelgard went out to look for the professor, something that she did not stop doing any day.
And so a year passed. And after the first year, the second year. And the third. Edelgard would go up to the Tower and wait for hours but the professor would not return. She went out less to look for her, but she still went out, sometimes disguised so that no one would recognise her. In fact she did that so Hubert didn't argue. Sometimes Constance or Dorothea accompanied her but the result was always unsuccessful.
-Next year is the celebration, right? -Dorothea commented as they returned to the monastery after another unsuccessful search.
Edelgard was silent.
-We had promised to meet all of us, like five years ago, but I don't know if I'll go... - Constance replied in a mournful voice. - I hope you don't mind my humble presence...
Dorothea looked up at the sky and smiled as she saw how the presence of the sun affected the young noblewoman.
-Oh, you will come, you will come indeed,- Dorothea laughed and looked sideways at Edelgard, who was still walking beside her in silence. - She will come, too. Trust her.
The addition made Edelgard sigh, she kept walking without saying anything but her expression changed subtly, a couple of wrinkles appeared between her eyebrows. Dorothea smiled and glanced sidelong at Constance for complicity but the noble blonde looked down at the front with an haggard expression. It was clear that she wished to return to the darkness of the monastery halls as soon as possible.
That fifth year the activity was frenetic in Garreg Mach but not for any celebration. The war was at a crossroads and what was least wanted was to celebrate anything... not even to commemorate the promise they had made five years earlier to meet again. Caspar had died two years ago. The Professor, vanished five years ago. The others had been busy with their daily tasks to cope with the emotional burden of the moment. Except for her.
Edelgard did not forget and climbed the steps of the Tower of the Goddess once more. She rested her axe and shield on the wall and looked out of the window. The wail of the wind filtered through the ruined part of what was left of the building and the sun, perhaps empathetic to her feelings, had hidden behind the clouds.
-It's been five years now... - murmured the empress, allowing herself the luxury of being simply Edel. - Five long years of absence. Sometimes I wonder how I am going to...
She heard footsteps coming up the stairs. The sole is biting on the paving of each step. Edelgard reached out for her axe, frowning, on guard.
-Who is there? - she asked, clutching the handle of her weapon, ready to attack.
Her interlocutor did not answer, she looked out of the hall and the heart of the fire empress, frozen after so many years, melted.
-My... teacher? - she muttered in a trembling voice, perhaps afraid that her eyes were playing some kind of cruel trick on her. - Is it really you?
They approached each other. Just as suffering had created small notches in Edelgard's eyes, the professor did not seem to have changed at all.
-Five years... -Edelgard started, her voice failed her but she struggled to keep her tone, to control her own emotions, which were betraying her. -I looked for you, I looked for you everywhere... Where have you been? What happened?
-I was sleeping, - she answered in a low voice.
Edelgard was furious.
-Do you think this is a time for joking? Seriously? -she exclaimed and her voice shook again. She moved closer to her, eliminating the gap between them. - FIVE YEARS! It's been five years! Five years in which I never stopped looking for you! Do you know how hard it's been? Do you have any idea how hard it's been for me to go on without you?
The professor looked down. Edelgard calmed down when she saw her grief.
-You are not lying... are you? - she mumbled and suddenly embraced her tightly. -Things have changed a lot, we have suffered losses but with you here... now that you are back...
Edelgard held on tightly, without letting her go.
-I can't believe you've come back, that you've kept your promise... -she whispered.
-Not even death would have made me break it - replied the professor.
Edelgard stepped aside, smiling.
-And you still keep your sense of humour, - she said, and it seemed that much of the weight she was carrying on her shoulders had left her. - Come, let's go down. The others will be thrilled to see you. We don't have many supplies but we will celebrate your return as you deserve.
The professor nodded and followed her. And although everyone had changed considerably, it didn't take long for them to catch up and the professor felt that she was back where she belonged.