Hey, the new schedule works.

In the home of suffering.

Tatsumi moved through the corridors in the torture chambers. Moving towards Esdese's personal rooms at great speed. Incursio's invisibility hiding him from everyone he passed by. Esdese had a couple rooms that were reserved for her. Located in the deeper parts of this horrible section of the palace. Tatsumi had been in these parts many times before but he still found it really unpleasant to be down there.

The smell in these rooms and halls were horrible. A mix of piss, shit, blood and guts permeated every room. Screams could always be heard in the distance and every room that he passed offered difffrent noises. Ranging from everything from pleading turning into screaming to gurgling sobbing from people who no longer were able to talk. Tatsumi had spent a lot of time here during his early days as a jaeger. Back when Esdese took him with her wherever she went.

Tatsumi was well aware that if his now grimmer and more hardened nature could be blamed on one singel thing, it was the time he had spent down here. The fact that he had grown so cold and calculated was simply because he was a bit more resilient and jaded now. And it was all because of this hellish place. Something within him had died in these cold and dark rooms. Something that was never coming back. It's death making him into what he now was.

That and Mine's death.

Tatsumi reached the doors leading into Esdese's rooms. Guards were posted outside of the door. Two rather competent warriors. One with a sword in his belt and the other one holding a spear. Tatsumi couldn't see who they were. Their helmets covered their faces. He didn't slow down as he checked that there was no one else around.

When he reached them, Tatsumi put all his strength into a vicious punch with his right hand. Hitting one of the guards straight in the chest. Pushing the man's body up against the wall behind him with the hit. Crushing all his ribs and puncturing both his lungs. Before the guard started to fall down, Tatsumi grabbed the sword attached to the man's belt and drew it as he spinned around. Slitting the other guard's throat as his spin came to an end. Killing the man before he could react.

Tatsumi had already started to look through the mans pockets before his body hit the ground. He found what he was searching for almost immediately. The keys. He opened the doors with lightning speed and then threw both the bodies into the room before walking into it himself and locking the door behind him. It was all over in less than fifteen seconds.

He turned around and looked into the room he had jumped into. He sighed in relief when he saw that it was empty. He hadn't expected anyone to be in it but he was relieved nonetheless. This was the room where Esdese kept her tools, drugs and records. The room had racks, drawers and desks in it. Containing all the things that she might have need for during her sessions. It also had a cabinet where she kept the diffrent clothes she might need.

He had been here many times before. In his early time with Esdese. When she had realized that watching her work down here had started to damage Tatsumi mentally, it had been this room that she had started to bind him down in while she went on with her business.

Tatsumi kicked the bodies of the guards to the side. Dropping the sword on the floor beside them. Their deaths had been necessary. He could not have anyone knowing that he was here and just knocking them out would mean that they would later be able to tell people that they had been unable to see their attacker. That would make people think about Incursio.

Tatsumi walked over to one of the tables in the room. The one covered with small notebooks and papers. Turning visible in order to conserve his energy. Two bloody gloves lay at the side of the table. Making Tatsumi think that what he was searching for was at that table. He found it lying on the top of it. A small black book where Esdese wrote down her ideas and what she had been doing down in these rooms.

Sometimes, Tatsumi wished that Esdese had been nothing more than a simple brute who just enjoyed hurting and killing people. The fact that she wasn't made things much more complicated for him. Cause while she did enjoy those things, she was far from dull. Esdese was inquisitive and curious. Always trying to learn new things. Searching for diffrent thrills and sensations. Experimenting with her ideas and theories on her victims. Entertaining herself with their reactions. Her self-gratification also granting her knowledge.

She recorded most of her proceedings down here into this book. As well as her ideas and plans. Tatsumi almost felt his hands shake as he started to turn the pages in it. Searching for the page about Leone. He was about to learn if he was too late or not. After a little while, he found her page. He could almost feel his heart stop when he saw how long the entry about her in the book was.

His eyes immediately traveled down to the bottom of the page. Leone's current state summarized in Esdese's beautiful handwriting.

"Alive and unbroken."

Tatsumi took a deep breath. Thank the gods , Tatsumi thought. He wasn't too late. He steadied himself internally and started to read through the entire page. Seeing if Leone would be able to move around with him. It was a heartwrenching read. Esdese had given Leone a lot of attention. She had experimented with Lionelle and Leone a great deal.

When Tatsumi had read through it all he swallowed and smiled bitterly. You stubborn woman, he thought and turned around. Walking to one of the doors leading into the other rooms. The rooms where Esdese actually played around with her victims.

He turned invisible again, opened the door and went into the next room. It seemed like Leone had been moved around down in the torture chambers but as luck would have it, she seemed to be in one of these rooms right now. According to Esdese's writing. Tatsumi only needed to find her.

The first room he entered had chains and hooks hanging down from the ceiling. The floor was dark with old blood and two naked people were hanging from the chains in the corner of the room. No one of them moved or made a sound. Tatsumi assumed that they were dead but they could just be very weak. Their bodies seemed relatively untouched. He couldn't see any trace of Leone there so he moved on.

He walked into the next room. It was a lot bigger than the earlier one. It had a big iron basin in the middle of it with a firelpace under it. The pot like container, huge enough to fit two or three people in it. Right now filled with murky water. Tatsumi could guess what it was used for. He didn't even dare to walk over and see if someone was in it at the moment. The room was completly quiet and Tatsumi could not see anyone else in it. He decided to move on immediately. The silence in the room made him feel like something was gonna jump out of the giant pot and come for him.

Tatsumi didn't understand how Esdese could feel comfortable in these rooms. Every new one he walked into looked like a scene from a nightmare. Yet he knew that Esdese didn't fear the same things that others did. Blood, gore and death were all natural things to her. Tatsumi knew that she didn't feel threatened at all down here. Rather the opposite actually. She was the apex predator and she often prowled these halls. In search for gratification and entertainment.

He recognized the room he walked into next. He had been there before. It was filled with benches and chairs. Designed with bindings and belts to chain people down into them with. Most of them were empty but a few were occupied with people. All damaged to diffrent degrees. The room aslo contained a couple of big wooden boxes that Tatsumi hadn't seen before. Spread out across the floor. A firelpace was burning on the left side of the room. Diffrent metal tools being heated in it. Aside from the silent crackling of the fire, the room was quiet.

Tatsumi was about to move on to the next room when he spotted Suzuka. She was sitting in a chair against a wall. Bound to it with belts. She was completly naked and slouched forward.

Tatsumi took a couple of steps towards her. She seemed to be relatively unhurt. She had a couple of bruises and she looked really pale but nothing more than that. But she did have some bandages wrapped over her eyes. Tatsumi assumed that Esdese had destroyed them. It was only when he got close to her that he noticed that something was sticking out against the bandages from under them. Something looking rather pointy.

Tatsumi took a sharp breath at the sight. Suddenly Suzuka head moved up and faced his direction.

"Esdese, is that you?" She mumbeld. "Have you returned for me?"

Suzuka had been sent down here this morning so it seemed like Esdese had made her into a prioritized activity. Tatsumi felt a bit of guilt but no pity. He knew that he had egged Esdese on to take care of Suzuka quickly. Her sudden movement did cause him to take a quick step backwards though. And when he did, one of his feet bumped into one of the boxes on the floor. The box moved a couple of inches to the side.

And then it started to scream.

The box started to shake and scream. The noise loud and shrill. Filled with pain and panick but lacking any words. Tatsumi looked at the box in horror as it rattled on the floor. It was way too small for a man to fit inside. Unless the person didn't have any limbs anymore. Or if it was a child.

Suddenly the silent room erupted in screams. Everyone that had been quiet started to shout and scream at the sudden noise. All the boxes started to emitt screams and moans. All those stuck on the benches and chairs starting to cry out.

"Where are you, Esdese?" Suzuka screamed out."Please don't do this to me, please let me feel it!" she called out in a desperate voice. Tatsumi felt his panic rise at all the sudden noises. His sharp instincts overpowered and numbed by the heightened volume. He turned around and leaped out of the room. Fleeing through a couple of rooms in illogical panic. Afraid that the noises would attract someone.

He ran through the next couple of rooms. Passing by one just like the previous one he had been in and after that he passed by something akin to a waste room. Filled with boxes full of discarded tools and two big piles of dead bodies. A few bodies hanging impaled on giant spikes, rising from the floor. Victims that Esdese wanted to remember or still studied after their death.

The third room he ran through was empty with the exception of a couple of iron poles and some people. Bound to the poles with long leashes. Tatsumi only needed a glance at them to see that these people were already broken mentally. They were all completly naked and and most of them were crawling around on all fours. Only a few seemed to be able to still talk.

Tatsumi recognized a few men and women that were leashed to the poles from the leaders of the imperial guard. Those whose will had been too strong to be coved by fear and their loyalty too fierce to abandon Budo's ideals. Even after his death.

Now it was easy to see that their will was broken and they no longer remembered anything about loyalty.

Tatsumi ran through the room and couple more after that. And then he finally found what he was searching for. He jumped through yet another door, entering a new room and there she was. Finally.

The room was a little bit smaller then the previous ones. Lit up by candles in old chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. It only contained one person. Chained naked to the wall opposite to the door. Some trolleys with diffrent horrible tools upon them were standing beside her.

"Leone.." Tatsumi called out. He made himself visible and started towalk towards her.

She seemed to have been asleep but was now starting to wake up. To say that she looked horrible would be an understatement. She was thinner than the last time he had seen her. Probably a side effect of the constant stress her body had endured. She was pale to the point when it looked unhealthy. Her body was covered in scars. Usually Lionelle healed the wounds so perfectly that ther were no traces of them afterwards, so Tatsumi had to assume that the Teigu had been taken from her before it could fully heal her. Another testament to that was Leone's right eye. Even when it was closed, Tatsumi could tell that it was completly ruined. A trail of blood trailing down her face from it.

Even so, Tatsumi was suprised that she didn't look worse off. He had read all the things that Esdese had done to her in the notebook. And all the experimentation that Leone had been through at the ice queens hands. He was almost suprised that he still recognized her. Lionelle's powers truly were amazing. The question was how she was mentally. Esdese had written "unbroken" in the book but that could just mean that she was still capable of talking and acting like a human being.

"Leone." he called out again. This time a little louder.

This time Leone opened her remaining eye and looked at him. But her gaze was unfocused and confused.

"Tatsumi?" she called out weakly. It was clear that she was disoriented.

"Yeah, it's me." he said gently.

His voice brought her out of her confusion. She looked at him with disbelief. Standing there alone. In what she assumed to be the middle of the night. With Incursio's armor on him. She started to realize what was going on. "I can't believe it... Please tell me that I'm not dreaming. Please."

Tatsumi directed two kicks at the wall. Breaking off the chains that held her up. He dismissed Incursio and caught Leone as she started to fall forward. Wrapping his brown coat around her naked form.

Leone looked up at him. A weak smile slowly forming on her pale face. Filled with disbelief and happiness. Revealing that she was missing several teeth. Tatsumi tore off a piece of the coat and gently wrapped it around her head. Covering up her damaged eye.

"Even though I can't believe it, I am still not suprised. Strangely enough" Leone said as her smile grew. "Somehow I knew."

Tatsumi returned her smile.

"I'm sorry that it took so long, Leone. I have finally come to save you."

Wave slowly rose up from the floor of the training room. He was bleeding heavily from the nose. He reached up and felt it with his hand to check if it was broken. When he could feel that it wasn't, he focused on Esdese. She was calmly walking towards him. Her weapon still in it's sheat.

It was rather late at night so the big training hall was pretty empty. Kurome was the only one in the room, besides the two of them. Standing on the sideline with a first-aid kit in her arms.

Things were going way faster than Wave had hoped. He had already taken some nasty hits. It seems like getting Esdese fired up over this training match had caused some unfortunate side effects. He decided to try and slow things down a bit.

"So, commander, when we leave tomorrow morning, what forces will you bring?"

"I will bring one hundred and fifty thousand soldiers with me. More than enough to make short work of the city in the span of a day." she said. Not slowing down her stride towards him.

"Will that really be enough?" Wave said. Trying to back away as discreetly as possible.

"It will be enough to burn the city. But not enough to kill all it's citizens." Esdese said. Increasing her pace a little bit without thinking about it. Her hunting instincts reacting to seeing Wave back away. "Makeias will bring another two hundred thousand from his forces. They will incircle the city while remaining hidden. Making sure that no one escapes us."

The distance between them were growing dangerously short now. Soon one of them was going to act.

"And you want me to command the ships?" Wave said tentatively.

Esdese answered by jumping forward, towards him. Wave tried to leap to the side in order to avoid her. However, when he moved away from her, she grabbed one of his legs and threw it up into the air. Making Wave do an involuntary frontflip. Landing on his back with an "Oooff".

When he opened his eyes, Esdese was looking down on him from above. Standing a bit above his head. "Your role will be to make sure that no ships leaves the city while we burn it to ashes." She said and placed her hands on her hips. "Now why don't you summon your teigu, Wave. It is unwise to keep taunting me like this."

"Of course, commander." Wave said and started to stand up. "But I have to wonder, commander, is it really necessary to sack the entire city?" Wave said. Asking the question that had weighed heavily on his mind the entire day.

"It is also unwise to question your superior's command without a good reason for it." Esdese said as her eyes followed him. "So let me ask you, Wave, do you have another way to secure an end of the renegade group?"

Wave looked down at his feet and wiped some of the blood from his face. "No, I don't. My apologies, great general."

Esdese looked at him for some seconds before she spoke. "Don't worry about it. Just think before you object next time. Your commander's choice might not always be to your liking but you are a subordinate. It is the nature of your role to not always get your will followed." Esdese said."Now call upon grand chariot." she finished in an ordering voice.

Wave grabbed his sword and immediately did as he was bid. Esdese watched him as his figure transformed in the smoke.

"You are strong, Wave." she said as the smoke scattered and revealed Wave in grand chariot's armor. "But you are far weaker than me. So you will have to live by my will and wishes. And this time they don't line up with you own."

Wave took a battle stance against Esdese as she continued to talk.

"If you have regrets, then you can think about all the trouble night raid has caused the empire and all your friends that they have killed."

"Will this really work, commander?" Wave asked.

"Of course it will." Esdese said with a smile. "Najenda will only allow herself one choice and that will be her end."

She drew her weapon. Holding down at her side. "I promise you, Wave, in a week, night raid will be no more."

Wave simply nodded at her in respons.

"Now come here, you cocky little boy. Let me show you how a real fight goes down." Esdese said and gestured for him to come at her.

Wave swallowed and launched himself in her direction.

Tatsumi moved back to the entry hall in Esdese's personal torture chambers. Carrying Leone in his arms. Even though the girl was able to talk and smile, she didn't have much strength in her body right now. She was barely able to walk. Much less move with any form of speed. So Tatsumi carried her.

She coughed heavily in his arms. It was clear that, unless she got Lionelle back, she was gonna need medical attention. Soon. Her body didn't have the energy to move around like this.

Tatsumi had no way to get her teigu back right now. He didn't even know where it was. He had realized pretty early on that it would be impossible for him to get both the teigu and free Leone. So he had focused on what was most important.

He had a plan of how to get Leone out. She would have to dress up in the dead guard's clothes and armor. Disguising her appearance. Then Tatsumi would have to secure her a way out of the torture chambers by acting as a scout and lookout with Incusio's invisibility. Killing those who couldn't be avoided.

As soon as they were out of the central part of the castlem, he would be able to leave Leone to some of his friends that would escort her out of the capital before the night was over. She would be hidden in a box of food. Hidden among many other boxes in a trade caravan that was moving out of the capital.

That had been the plan but now he was starting to worry if Leone could handle that in this state. But he had no choice but to move on. He would have to help Leone as much as he could along the way.

They finally got back to entrance hall were the two bodies still were lying by the door that led out to the rest of the torture chambers. He put Leone down on the chair that stood in front of the desk with Esdese's notes and books on it.

"Tatsumi?" she said weakly. Grabbing the desk with a hand to steady herself.

"Just wait second. We're gonna disguise you in imperial armor." Tatsumi said and walked over to the two bodies. He bent down to one of them and started to undo it's belt.

He drew the soldier's sword from it's scabbard and threw it to the side. The moment the sword hit the floor, Tatsumi realized something.

He never put the sword back into it's sheat after he used it. He looked up at the lock of the door that led out of Esdese's rooms. The lock was broken.

He didn't have time to react before the attack hit his chest in the side. The hit knocked the air out of his lungs but he didn't fall over. He stumbled backwards from the force of it. He summoned Incursion immediately, by instinct. Not noticing that he had now sealed a lot of water inside the armor with him.

The man he had presumed to be the dead guard rose up. His helmet covering his face.

Had Esdese placed some sort of special guards at the doors?, Tatsumi qustioned in his head. He dismissed the idea quickly. He had felt the bones break under his fist when he punched the guard in question. This was not the same person. This person had arrived here while he was searching for Leone. This was someone who had disguised himself as the dead guard. Probably some special agent of the empire, Tatsumi reasoned.

As the man stood up he swung out with an arm in the air, towards Tatsumi's location. From a container hanging from his belt, four blue and shifting projectiles came flying towards Tatsumi. A less trained eye would have mistaken them for blue snakes. But Tatsumi had seen this attack before. A long time ago. The fact that this person could use it confused him even more.

He quickly jumped to the side and avoided the attack. The projectiles hitting the wall behind him. Splashing down into water again.

That was all the confirmation Tatsumi needed to verify that his opponent was using the teigu he had suspected, Black Marlin. His opponent was wearing gloves so he couldn't see the ring but he was certain now. He didn't understand though, that teigu was supposed to be in the hands of the revolutionary army.

He summoned his spear into his right hand. He might need it now, his enemy seemed rather proficient with his weapon. The man in the guard's armor moved his hand up in Tatsumi's direction again. Gesturing with it in the air. In the matter of a second, all the water that Tatsumi had sealed inside his armor moved up along his body, up to his mouth and forced it's way in between his lips.

At the same time, the water from the projectiles behind Tatsumi started to move again. Launching against him once more in the form of several long, thin spears. Tatsumi dodged them by making a backflip over them. But he couldn't stop the water inside of the armor from traveling down into his throat.

He was amazed over his opponents capabilities to use this teigu. It might even surpass the abilities of the man who had slayed Bulat with it, he thought as he landed. Either way, he only had one strategy available now. He couldn't breath anymore. The water clogging up his throat. He had a very short time limit now. He needed to go on the offensive. He needed to win this before he passed out from the lack of oxygen.

He jumped forward towards his opponent. Bringin the spear forth as he got close. He swung it in a long arc against his opponent. The other man barely managed to avoid the attack by ducking down. Though he didn't manage to avoid Tatsumi's follow up kick. Tatsumi's leg hit him in the chest and sent him flying a couple of meters to the side.

When he came to a halt, Tatsumi was upon him again. Not willing to lose a single second and not allowing his opponent to use Black marlin's ranged attacks. He brought his spear down against the chest of his opponent but the man quickly rolled to the side and got up on his feet. The man was apparently very well trained, Tatsumi observed.

He backed a couple of steps away from Tatsumi. Indicating that he was trying to prolong this. Waiting for Tatsumi to run out of energy. And it was working. Moving around made Tatsumi's need for air increase and he was already feeling how weakness started to creep into his limbs.

He would need to finish this with the next attack.

He followed the other man as he backed away. When he saw that the man in guard armor moved to shot another water based attack at him, he threw his spear towards him. Forcing his opponent to move to the side in order to avoid it. Disrupting his attack until Tatsumi got close.

His opponent started to bring up his hands in defense but Tatsumi was a bit too quick. He put the last of his strength into a powerful punch into the opponent's chest.

Too late he realized that he had used his right hand by instinct. The same hand that had been crushed in the training halls when he was paralyzed ,some weeks ago. When the fist connected, Tatsumi realized that he had made a mistake.

The hit wasn't strong enough. It was a powerful strike but not powerful enough to secure his victory. He could feel that immediately. His hand had almost healed completely but it was still a bit weaker than his other one. That added to the fact that his energy was fading made his attack way too weak to knock out his opponent.

It still did some heavy damage though. He could feel two ribs break under his hand, and the other man was sent flying into the wall behind him. The impact with the wall knocked the other man's helmet off. Revealing the blond hair and blue eyes of Isamu. The imperial courier that had attempted to charm Esdese by trying to fool her that he had beaten Tatsumi.

Tatsumi had not heard anything about Isamu after Esdese had tortured his friends to death. He had assumed that he had left the capital.

Tatsumi started to slowly fall down. His energy spent. He looked at Isamu. He understood why Isamu would attack him but he didn't understand why he had a teigu. Nor why he had been down here. Shouldn't he be trying to avoid Esdese right now.

With a silent "Thump", Tatsumi fell to the floor. His conscious started to fade away. His abilty to focus disappearing.

Isamu straightened up with a pained expression. Holding an arm over his chest.

Leone rose and tried to walk towards them. "Tatsumi!" she called out weakly but then stumbled and fell over.

Isamu's eyes traveled to her. "My lady, don't force yourself. I have come here to help you escape."

Leone just looked at him with hostility.

"Just wait a moment." Isamu said and walked over to the body of the other guard. He rolled the corpse over and revealed two items that he had hidden under it. A sealed letter and a teigu in the form of a belt, Lionelle.

Leone's eye widened. Not sure what to think anymore. Isamu walked over to her with the two objects. He gave the teigu to Leone and then turned around to give her some privacy as she attached it. Since she had no clothes except for Tatsumi's coat.

Isamu looked over at Tatsumi as Incursio disappeared into thin air. The sword rolling down on the floor beside him.

He saw that the body of the young man was twitching. Tatsumi's conscious long gone. Isamu looked at him for some moments and then dissmissed Black marlin's control of the water in Tatsumi's throat. Making it slowly pour out of his mouth. He walked over to the sword that Tatsumi had thrown away. The sword that belonged with the guard attire that he was wearing.

"Drowning seems like a too cruel way to go." he said and picked the sword up. "Even for you, Tatsumi the traitor." He walked over with the sword to Tatsumi's limp body. He looked down at the unconscious boy for some moments and then raised his sword.

But as he was about to bring it down, a big, feral and clawed hand grabbed his arm from behind.

"Let go off the weapon or I will show you a cruel end." Leone growled from behind him.

Isamu let go off the sword. He looked at her over his shoulder as the sword fell down on the floor. Isamu could easily see that Leone was pushing herself. He could see that she was barely able to keep Lionelle summoned. Even so, the regenerative powers that the teigu showed when activated amazed Isamu. He could literally tell the diffrence from a few moments ago.

"My lady, I have been sent here by Najenda. Here." he reached over with the letter still in his left hand. "She told me to give you this. It will prove that what I say is true."

Leone let go of his arm but still looked at him with unfriendly eyes. She opened the sealed letter and quickly read through it. After she was done, she looked up at Isamu with disbelief. "Are you our new member?"

"I can completly control Black marlin, yet I have only had it in my possession for some weeks now." Isamu defended. "And not to sound rude, my lady, but night raid isn't really in a position to be picky about capable Teigu users."

Leone closed her hand around Najenda's letter. "Then why did you attack Tatsumi? He was clearly helping me."

"You are mistaken, Leone. He coming here is just a facade. It is a plan made up by Esdese to make you leak out information about night raid to him." Isamu lied.

Leone wasn't convinced. "How do you know this?"

"I am a courier. I deliver secret messages all the time. There are many diffrent methods of reading a letter without opening it."

Leone still looked doubtful.

"That is the only reason why I am here right now." Isamu said. "I timed my attempt to break you out with their plan. So that we can capitalise on the fact that they believe that any jailbreak right now is staged." Isamu had always been good at improvisation.

Leone didn't answer. She looked down at the unconscious Tatsumi.

"Think about it, Leone." Isamu urged on. "Why did you think that he first came down here now. After such a long time. Did he give you any reason for that?"

Leone sighed and closed her eyes. "So how do you intend for us to escape?"

Isamu smiled at her. "We will use the same plan that Tatsumi was given. We will disguise ourselves as guards." He said and pointed to the dead guard.

Leone looked at him for some moments and then nodded.

When Tatsumi conscious started to return, his head hurt like hell. Almost five minutes had passed. He looked up with dizzy eyes. Still too weak to move much.

Leone had almost completly changed her outfit to the guard's uniform.

"... and where do we go from there?" Leone asked Isamu.

"I have some friends that will help us move far away from the capital quickly, as soon as we reach them." Isamu answered as he put on his helmet. It's vizor covering up his face. "We will travel north at first. Then we will change course to the east. Towards the port city of Garu. There we will meet up with the rest of night raid. If everything goes as planned."

Tatsumi's thoughts hadn't caught up with the moment yet. Garu? What was that? That isn't right. Leone is supposed to escape in a food caravan heading south, he thought confused.

Isamu looked over and noticed that Tatsumi was starting to wake up. "What shall we do with Tatsumi?" he asked Leone. "He is waking up so we have to make a decision right now."

Tatsumi shifted his half-lidded eyes to Leone. He didn't understand what was going on. Leone looked at him for some moments. Her expression serious.

"I can do it, if you don't want to." Isamu offered.

"We're not killing him." Leone answered in a hard voice.

"Are you kidding me?" Isamu exclaimed.

Leone looked at the big blonde man. He had been very helpful and polite towards her but Lionelle's instincts didn't like him. "If you want to kill him, then you will have to go through me."

"Excuse me for being blunt here, my lady, but this is not the time for mercyful gestures." Isamu argued. "This man is jaeger. Even if he once was your comrade, before he betrayed you. Now he is one of the stronger warriors the empire has. If we leave him alive then all who oppose Esdese will suffer from it."

Leone looked at Isamu and then back at Tatsumi. Isamu did have a point. Leone was well aware that leaving Tatsumi alive now was not only stupid but also genuinely unfair. As an assassin, she had killed a lot of people. A lot of people that probably deserved way more leeway than Tatsumi did right now. She knew that leaving him alive would be blatant favouritism.

Yet she still didn't want to kill him. Lionelle's instincts were telling her things that she didn't fully understand. It told her to not trust Isamu and it told her that Tatsumi didn't want her to suffer.

She looked up at Isamu. "We will take his teigu."

"And leave him alive? Esdese will know about our escape within an hour." Isamu said with desperation.

"Then you better prove that you can run fast enough to be a part of night raid." Leone said with a grim smile. "Or you will have to fight me. The choice is yours."

Isamu looked at her for some moments. Even in her damaged state, Lionelle still made her look fierce. He had managed to get the suprise on Tatsumi and had thus managed to put him on the clock with his control over water. Just as he had planned. But he didn't think that he should try his luck against Leone right now.

Nor did he want to. He honestly wanted to join night raid. If the rest of the members looked anything like Leone, then he knew that he had made the right choice.

He nodded to her. He took some steps towards Tatsumi and then bent down to take up Incursio where it lay beside the other boy. When he reached down to take it up, Tatsumi finally realized what they were going to do.

Tatsumi reached out and grabbed it. He might still need it. "No." he said. His voice almost a whisper. "My brother gave this to me." he pleaded.

But he was weak and lacked any strength. Isamu simply kicked his arm away and grabbed the blade. Rising up and walking to the door that lead out of Esdese's rooms.

Leone stood there for some moments and then put on her helmet and moved after him. Isamu slowly opened the door and looked out. Then he moved out of the room.

Tatsumi tried to rise up on his arms a bit but they shook as he did. "Leone." he called out feebly and looked at her. Her appearance now completly disguised as a guard. She turned around to him. He couldn't see her face because of the visor of the helmet.

"I..". He didn't know what to say. What he wanted to say. He still couldn't focus very well but he had managed to understand what was going on. He wanted Incursio back. He wanted to know why she was running away with a imperial courier. But most of all, he wanted to know that they were friends. "I... I am sorry." he finally called out, meekly.

Leone looked at him for a long while. He wished that she would take off that helmet so that he could see her eyes. But then she turned around and walked out of the door. Silently closing it behind her.

"Leone!" Tatsumi called out a little louder. He tried to rise up but one of his arms gave out under him. Making him fall down on the floor again.

He remained there for some minutes. Gathering his thoughts and his feelings as his strength and mind returned to him. After a while he crawled up to one of the walls and put his back up against it. He rested there for a long while. Thinking about everything.

He had traded Leone's freedom for Incursio. That seemed like a good trade. He hoped it was. He hoped that she actually managed to get away now. Since he himself would have to be much more careful from now on.

He slowly came to realize that Isamu probably was a spy for the revolutionary army. That would explain why he had the teigu and also why Leone had followed him. It seemed that his plan had overlapped with Isamu's. He wondered if Isamu had always been an agent of the revolutionary army. That would explain his disdain towards Tatsumi and why he had tried to get close to Esdese.

He also couldn't help but think about why Leone had followed Isamu. Did she really despise him so much that she would rather put her life in the hands of a complete stranger? Or had they had contact before. There was too much that he didn't know to make any assumptions. But that didn't make it hurt any less.

He sat there and looked at the ceiling for a couple of hours before he rose up. Intending to give Leone all the time he dared without things starting to look too suspicious.

He picked up his brown coat from the floor where Leone had left it.

He looked at the broken lock on the door. Victory did rarely taste this bitter.

He started to walk out of the torture chambers. Heading towards Esdese's quarters. Not bothering with staying hidden. Just slowly walking through the corridors. He didn't understand why he felt so down. The mission had still been a success. Even if it had been a lot more costly than he had hoped. But Leone had managed to escape the torture chambers. Maybe even the capital. He should be happy but he wasn't. He just felt lonely.

It had hurt to see Leone run away from him. It had hurt to be left behind. Not that he had planned to follow her out of the capital. Nor had he expected any sympathy from his old friends at this point. But it still hurt. It had been a painful reminder that things could never go back to what they used to be. He could never go back to his old friends. His just desserts bitter to the end.

He was alone.

His only real companion was the ice demon. To Tatsumi, the fact that he enjoyed so many aspects of being her partner was more than enough to make him deserve this loneliness. But that didn't make it easier to bear.

After forty minutes, he arrived at the doors to Esdese's quarters. Her insignia carved into the top of the two big doors in beautiful black metal. It was probably a couple of hours past midnight by now, Tatsumi reasoned. He could feel that she was awake in there. Her presence was forceful and strong. She wanted him to know that she was there. He sighed and walked through the doors.

The rooms were dark. The only light there was came from the bedroom. Tatsumi walked over and moved into the room. Esdese was sitting at the rooms only desk with her side towards him. The lamp that stood on the desk was the only light source in the room. She was only wearing a sweater that reached down to the middle of her thighs and was currently writing something down on some papers. Her face a mask of cold irritation.

"Tatsumi." she said in a threatening voice as soon as he walked through the doorframe. Her eyes not leaving the paper as her pen moved across it. "What have I told you about what happens if you deny me what I desir-" she halted herself when she looked up at him. Her eyes widened slightly at his battered appearance. "Tatsumi?" she said and rose up.

He stumbled into the room. "I'm sorry, Esdese. I might need a little help." he said and started to fall over. Overplaying his damage. He needed some compassion right now. And as always when it was him, Esdese provided.

She crossed the room in a heartbeat. Crouching down in front of him before he hit the floor. Allowing him to fall into her open embrace. "What happened to you?" she asked with worry. Lifting him up and carrying him towards the bed.

"I heard you were down in the torture chambers so I came to meet you, a couple of hours ago. But when I got to the chambers, I was attacked by some people trying to get into where you keep the prisoners." he said as she gently laid him down on top of the bed.

"Are you badly wounded?" she asked and stroked the side of his face. "Were they strong enough to hurt you?"

"They have at least two teigu users among them. They took me by suprise and knocked me out. I came here as soon as I came to."

"Do you have any serious wounds?" Esdese asked again. Her voice a little more demanding this time.

"I don't think so. I'm still a bit dizzy though." he said.

"Good. That's good, Tatsumi." she said and smiled with relief.

"Esdese."

"Hmm?"

"They took Incursio." he said. Looking at her with genuine sadness. As he said it, he realized that he had just lost a part of himself.

The fact that they had taken a part of Tatsumi's strength from him, combined with his hurt expression, awoke Esdese's anger.

Even if she often fought and hurt others, it was still very rare for her to be more than irritated. Her cruelty and love for violence didn't stem from anger or hate. She simply enjoyed the acts in and of themselves. Not really caring about her victims enough to be angry with them. But now she felt anger rise inside her again.

"They will pay for this. Dearly." she said with cold fury. Her eyes defining maliciousness. "Did you hear where they were heading?"

"I think they intended to hide in a food caravan heading out of the capital. To the south." he said. "But I am not sure."

Esdese nodded. Then she bent down and kissed him lightly on the lips before standing up. She was about to start walking to the doors when Tatsumi grabbed her hand. She looked at him in suprise.

"Esdese.. please don't leave me behind." Tatsumi said. His voice begging.

She looked at him. Noticing the desperation in his voice but not understanding it. She was going to be back soon enough, so why was he worried. Her eyes widened slightly. Was he scared? Had they actually hurt Tatsumi enough to scare him? Her anger grew even stronger. Not realizing that Tatsumi's request was about much more than just this moment.

She bent down towards him again. "Don't worry, Tatsumi. You're safe here." she said and kissed him again. This time with more warmth and force. Pushing his head down lightly. "I will be back in a short while, I promise." she said and squeezed his hand in her own.

Then she rose up and walked towards the door with haste. "I will send someone over to examine you properly while I deal with this." She turned around in the doorway and looked at him. "I will be back very soon, so don't move an inch." She said before she left the room.

Tatsumi took a deep breath when she was gone. It would not be hard to comply with her orders. Almost drowning had taken it's toll on him.

He started to slowly fall asleep. Not even having the energy to wait for whatever medic Esdese intended to send to him. When sleep took him, he dreamt that he was walking alone in a snowy forest. With nothing but death to accompany him.

Author's note:

So, this time I actually managed to get the chapter done to the promised date without having to rush things. Seems like 8-10 days is the way to go.

I have recieved a lot of kind words since the last chapter. Thanks a lot for that. It really keeps me going.

Though I have been thinking about for how long I can keep this going. Don't misunderstand me, I do intend to tell the entire story as I have it planned. And I intend to finsih it before the manga, since the writer of the manga has said that they are moving into the last arc of Akame ga kill.

But I don't know if I will be able to keep up these short intervalls between the chapters. We will see what happens. For now, you can expect the next chapter to be released in 8-10 days.

Thanks a lot for reading. While I do enjoy writing this, I wouldn't be doing it if no one was reading it. So thanks for all comments/reviews, follows/favorites and so on. It keeps this going.

Take care of each others until next time!