Chapter 5: Crime and punishment.

Arriving near the hospital, she noticed with dismay that it was partially damaged and from some windows she noticed small fires.

Oh, gods ...

She thought, before rocketing towards the building.

Once she entered the entrance she was faced with a chilling scenario: wherever there were corpses of patients and nurses.

Shit ... But what?

She explored each room for any survivors, but found none; same fate had its research on the second floor; when she reached the third and top floor she saw Kikyo, who was lying on the floor seriously injured but still alive, even though she would remain so for a short time. She approached her, kneeling beside her.

"Kikyo!" She called her.

"Ayano ... Smilas's soldiers spotted us. We fought, but we were few."

"How did they ..."

"There was a spy infiltrated in the hospital. But don't ask me who he is, I have no idea."

"But then the brew ..."

"It makes you strong, not immortal."

"It makes me alive ... I've never felt this way!"

"You have to be careful ... It's a double-edged sword! If you abuse it, you risk big. "

"Now I know I can beat anyone."

"Well. First ... Kill Smilas. Then take out Leila. You have to do it, otherwise we will have died for nothing."

That said, she took her last breath.

Ayano closed her eyes, then looked around and saw, a short distance from the deceased, the bottle containing the brew. Without hesitation she took it.

It will be useful in the future.

She think.

Outdoor exit began to move away from the building. She didn't even know where she was headed, she just wanted to find Smilas and kill him.

I have to find out where that bastard is and make him pay for it ... But how can we do it?

After a quarter of an hour's walk she saw, in the distance, a dozen soldiers who were lined up near a Renault VAB armored lightweight carrier.

If I can get on board without being noticed, they will take me to the nearest military base, and if I am lucky, that is where I will find Smilas.

She activated the invisibility and stealthily approached the group of soldiers, one of whom was speaking on the radio.

"We scoured the whole area, there are no survivors." He said.

"Well ... Now you can go back to base."

"Yes, sir."

Communication ended.

"On board, soldiers! Our work is done here!"

Having said that, he went on board with one of his subordinates, while the others settled in the back. Ayano went up with them but having no seats, she had to remain standing. After a while he heard the vehicle start.

Well ... Now I just have to wait.

She said to herself.

"We treated those Elevens as they deserved. Hard as mules, those. But we destroyed them. How right it is. We have nothing to fear." A soldier said.

"I wouldn't be so sure. We still have to defeat the Revolutionary Brigades." A fellow soldier intervened.

"Revolutionary Brigades are nothing ... Just a nuisance. Three months and we will have eradicated them."

"It's the same thing they said in London in 1792 ... Then we know how it ended: Napoleon invaded the British Isles and the British nobles were forced into exile overseas, in the New World."

"Now it's different ... A handful of rebels cannot defeat the largest empire in the world, extended from Lisbon to Vladivostok and from Iceland to South Africa."

"Yeah ... They not arevlike the empire of Britannia, which had stolen vast territories, then regained thanks to Empress Leila and the United Federation of Nations."

"But now Europia has left the Federation and relations with it have cooled." A third soldier intervened.

"True, Francois ... But the our nation does not need the Federation, not now that it has regained its greatness. It is self-sufficient both from the point of view of defense and from that of resources. "

"That's how it seems…."

After an hour's journey, the armored vehicle reached the base of Fort Napoleon, the largest in Western Europe. After passing the controls, the gatehouse stopped in a concrete area. After a few seconds the rear door opened and the soldiers got out of it, leaving in different directions. After them also Ayano, always invisible, came down and began to look around for any clues. Everything seemed normal: soldiers walking back and forth, planes and helicopters flying over the area, a few tank trucks used to refuel vehicles. The girl began to sneak around the structure, being careful not to get noticed.

This place is huge ... Where will that bastard's office be located?

She wondered.

Looking around she saw Pierre Anou, the man who was with Smilas and Leila when the latter had shot her, while addressing a soldier.

"I have to talk to Smilas right away!"

"The general is in his office in the western sector. Do you want me to accompany you?"

"I don't need to."

Having said that, he started.

I have to follow him .. He will take me to Smilas.

I think.

So he began to sneak after him, keeping his distance because she feared that he would hear the sound of her footsteps. After a quarter of an hour's walk, she saw him enter a low building, painted yellow. Entered in turn, she saw him advancing along a corridor, where a woman with long brown hair and blue eyes was waiting for him.

"Hello, colonel Anou."

"Hi, Miss Thompson. Is General Smilas in the office?"

"Yup."

"I need to talk to him about an urgent matter."

"Please, take a seat."

The senior officer entered, while Ayano waited outside. 5 minutes, 10, 15, 20 passed ... After half an hour the door swung open and Pierre reappeared, who after nodding to his equal degree, went towards the exit, in the company of Thompson.

It's my chance!

The swordswoman thought, then slipped behind the two and stealthily entered the office. She found him sitting at the desk, while fumbling at a laptop with a serious expression on his face. Beside him was a steaming cup of coffee, surely left there by the secretary. Without hesitating, she unsheathed the katana and pierced it in the belly, seriously injuring him and making him cry out in pain. At that point Ayano returned visible and, looking at his victim with contempt, said:

"I don't know how you can still be alive ... But now you have no escape: then you will be saved, but today you will die."

"Who are you? What's going on? "He asked.

"You know who I am!"

"I've never seen you in my life! Leila's apple ... She ... uses it to control people! You must believe me ... I was not master of me!"

"What happened to Weiswolf is only your fault!"

"Weiswolf? I never set foot in that fortress!"

He took her hand.

"Please ... Leila has ... Lost her head! And you alone can stop it! She is no longer a girl, but a witch! Look for Sophie Randall in Hamburg ... She will be able to help you, but first you will have to ... You will have to free her."

"Free her from where? From where?"

But Smilas could no longer answer, he was now dead.

Suddenly Ayano sensed a presence behind her. She turned, finding herself face to face with Pierre, who knocked her out and hit her in the head with the kick of his gun.

"Captured!" He exclaimed triumphantly.

When she recovered her senses, she discovered that she was tied hands and feet and that she was a prisoner in a cage.

"You're finally awake!" A voice said.

Looking up she saw Pierre staring at her mockingly.

"Too bad about old Smilas, but ... you had to see your face when I hit you! Eyes wide open and then ... Bum! Down to earth!"

"Fuck you!"

"You woke up in time. We are landing in Hamburg, the city that will soon be mine! Leila will be glad: Look! The girl who challenged you! Here is my gift for you! And he also has a samurai sword! "

"You are crazy! Everyone!"

"So Sophie Randall will removed from office, and Hamburg will be mine. This is certain. Like your death!"

He laugh.

"Oh yes, you will be a great gift!"