To say that the Order of Lorelei was in chaos was an understatement that would make Yulia roll in her grave.
...Or so Anise thought. With the foundations of its religion shattered and the numbers of its military force reduced to a few hundred—no thanks to the late Dorian General Grants's defection—it was a miracle that there were still those who supported the organization as followers. With the number of fanatics still clinging to the Score and Daath's greatly reduced military power, restructure and reform were proving to be a great nightmare as ever. Well, to be fair, Anise and company also had a hand in reducing those numbers, and it was to their credit that the Order of Lorelei found themselves six God-Generals and one Commandant short.
Fortunately, Cantabile, the commander of the Order's 6th Division, reappeared as hell was slowly breaking loose post-Eldrant siege. Though she refused to divulge the details concerning the mission she undertook, she was a known Ion-sympathizer back in the day and Grand Maestro Tritheim trusted her enough to allow her to take over the vacant position of Commandant.
It was with these circumstances that Anise was offered the promotion to Conductor and along with it, the position of Adjuntant Commandant—an opportunity she quickly seized. Even though her ultimate goal was to become the Fon Master, it was something that did not happen overnight, and taking over what was left of the six divisions was a big step up as any. Reforms were much needed after all—especially regarding the clause requiring the Fon Master to have an exceptional command of the Seventh Fonon, as Anise's affinity with it is unremarkable at best.
Regardless, it was going to be a long, bumpy road ahead. It was not the position she wanted, but she supposed that the fact that she got to order people around did not hurt. The best part was that they had to listen to her despite her age as she reported directly to Cantabile, who quickly made a reputation as a no-nonsense commander who had zero-tolerance for inefficiency.
Unfortunately, Anise's current mission was an undertaking that she had to take on alone, as far as she was concerned, she was now at a point teetering between life and death, with little margin for messing up.
"Natalia, that's sugar you're holding, not salt," she said sweetly, though her inner self longed to shove Natalia out of the way and show her how proper cooking was done—though locking her out of the kitchen sounded like a better idea.
"Oh!" Natalia's eyes widened in shock at her mistake, quickly setting aside the offending ingredient's container. "I'm sorry."
Taking a deep breath, Anise counted quickly from one to five, then smiled reassuringly at Natalia. Mother Auldrant, she'd better be getting ten times her current pay after this! "It's OK." Even if it was the third time today that she mistook the sugar for the salt. "Just get the salt, and sprinkle some lightly over the pan like I did yesterday."
"OK." Eyes narrowed in concentration, Natalia then took a pinch of salt and began to sprinkle it into the pan, albeit awkwardly.
Anise heaved a sigh of relief. Mission "Protect Princess Natalia Luzu Kimlasca-Lanvaldear and Tonight's Dinner", accomplished. Yulia forbid they meet their untimely end thanks to Natalia's experiments. It would defeat the purpose of her presence there, after all. Though Daath had to turn a blind eye to Kimlasca's aggression towards Malkuth as it lacked the political clout and military force to function as backups, it was not as if the top brass was planning to take this breach of peace lying down.
"Commander Anise!" Breaking her line of thought, an Oracle Knight entered and paused before Anise. "An unknown ship has been spotted making its way toward us. It has breached the whirlpool security and is most likely at" the mouth of Ortion Cavern as we speak."
"I see." Anise pursed her lips at the report, none too pleased by the turn of events. "Why didn't you inform me earlier? All vessels within half a mile's radius of Ortion Cavern should have been reported to me." And be placed under heavy surveillance, Anise wanted to add, but the soldier looked like he wanted to say something.
"Apologies, but the vessel was only detected by our radar around 200 meters into—"
"Commander!" Another soldier came bursting in the kitchen. "Some intruders have been apprehended at the entrance of the cavern. They claim to be your friends, and are currently being detained at the front."
"OK, I'm on—"
"Anise?" Whirling around, Anise found Natalia next to her, with an uncertain look on her face. "Did they just say... 'friends'? I'd like to see them as well."
"No," Anise said flatly. "What if they aren't who they claim to be?"
"I'll stay in the background until you're able to ascertain their identity." There was a silent plea in Natalia's tone, and Anise could not help but feel pity for her, as she had the most restricted movement among the unfortunate souls taking refuge in Ortion Cavern. "I do not want to miss an opportunity to see our friends again, if those are the people at the entrance."
"Fine, but—" The impatient noise that escaped Anise gave way to a horrified gasp as she realized something important. "Natalia, the pan!"
"Ah!" Natalia daintily put a hand to her mouth. "You're right!"
Anise let out a long suffering sigh as she waited for Natalia to turn off the stove. She should have known better than to take her eyes off Natalia in the kitchen—if anyone could be counted on to burn water, it would be her.
On second thought, perhaps ten times her current salary was underpay. It better be twenty times plus a week's vacation at Keterburg once this was all over.
–
Ortion Cavern was a damp, chilly cave located at the southwestern part of the Radessian Continent. Due to the numerous whirlpools and unpredictable weather phenomena around the area, people did not make it a habit to visit the place, which made it an ideal location for hiding something—or someone. Monsters, however, had no such qualms and made the place their home. As such, Anise's squad spent their first week clearing the area of monsters in an effort to make part of the cave habitable. There was not much they could do about the cave's topography—cool, slippery stone floors and arched walls—but for the most part, it was livable.
It was with this in mind—the image of a battle-hardened commander who reconquered land—that Anise marched on towards the entrance, back straight, chest out. However, all formality was forgotten once she recognized one of the figures being detained at the entrance. "Guy! Is that really you?" Anise broke into a smile and wasted no time latching herself around the waist of a familiar short-haired blond. The owner of the said waist promptly responded by roughly pushing her off, causing her to lose her balance and land flat on her behind. It was Guy, alright.
"Commander! Are you alright?" Anise felt someone kneel next to her as her face scrunched up in pain.
"Ow..." She rubbed her back gingerly, and gratefully took the hand offered to her. "I'll be fine." Approaching Guy, though notably giving him a wider berth, she put her hands on her hips and pouted at him. "What was that for?"
"S-sorry..." he managed to say as he raised his arms in surrender, throwing an apprehensive glance at the sword pointed at his back.
"Boo, you're still not over that thing?"
"Only when you take me by surprise." He grinned nervously at Anise. "Please don't do that again."
"Aww, OK." Leaving Guy with a smile, Anise turned her attention to the other three arrivals flanked by several Oracle Knights, receiving the same sword pointed treatment as Guy.
"Yo, Anise! Good to see that you're well!" One of them was grinning at her, a tanned blond who looked oddly like—
Anise's eyes widened in shock as recognition dawned upon her. "Pe—" Catching a hint of warning from the man's gaze, she quickly changed tack. "—pleasure to see you again!" Right, he was supposedly dead, was he not? "My, you're looking as handsome as ever!"
Emperor Peony chortled as a confused air filled the cavern entrance. "Indeed, indeed. "
Anise smiled daintily in response, gaze flickering towards the other two with Emperor Peony. If he was alive, that must mean that the Colonel should be around the corner somewhere. But where is he? The white-haired man in a lab coat who was twiddling his thumbs and was refusing eye contact must be none other than Dist—though he certainly looked a lot more vulnerable without the ostentatious collar and his flying chair. The other person with them was a woman with flaxen brown hair tied into a braid. She seemed to be very much interested in studying the cavern wall, for she had her arms folded and her spectacled gaze met no one's eye. Unless...
The woman's gaze fell on her, and one brief moment of eye contact later, she knew. And was not sure what to feel about it. "Lower your weapons, everyone!" Well, she could mull on it a bit more once they moved to somewhere more private. "I'll be escorting my guests inside. Continue to monitor the outside for any unwanted activity."
She turned to Emperor Peony as the soldiers dispersed. "I'm afraid our accommodations aren't what you're used to, but..."
"No buts! It's just nice to see another familiar face after so long!"
Anise cracked a smile as she led the way. "I guess so."
–
And so, that was how Anise found herself back in her sorry excuse for an office, which was more or less just a hollow part of the cave tucked away in the innermost part of the cavern, with a table and some makeshift chairs at the center of it. The ever elusive Princess Natalia took it upon herself to beat them there, much to the surprise of a certain Gailardia Galan Gardios.
"Princess Natalia!" Guy's eyes widened in shock after seeing her idling by the desk. "You're alive!"
"Of course I am!" she said, placing her hands on her hips. "You don't believe the lies they have been spreading, do you? I'm made of sterner stuff than that!"
Guy was the only one who looked remotely pleased, albeit embarrassed. Emperor Peony's expression turned baleful at her presence, and Dist looked like he wanted to be anywhere but there, still throwing wary glances at the flaxen-haired woman with them. The woman—or the Colonel as she suspected—was pensive, observing Guy and Natalia's exchange with a hint of amusement on her—or was it his—lips.
Emperor Peony fixed his gaze on the woman. "Jade, you could have warned me that this was the truth we were going to discover here."
"You never asked," "Jade" said in response, raising a brow at him as if to mock his intelligence. If Emperor Peony's confirmation of the woman's identity proved to be lacking, the woman's—nay, Colonel's—response proved to be more than adequate. Dressing up as a woman did nothing to soften the Colonel's barbs, that much Anise was able to ascertain.
"I certainly did not expect to see you here, Anise, but this arrangement explains a lot of matters and would simplify retelling our situation" The Colonel's gaze then drifted towards Anise, who managed to keep her expression impassive despite the amusing situation before her. It was not without difficulty, as her gut felt like it was about to burst any moment due to the laughter she was holding in.
"Your," she took a deep breath, easing the tension in her chest as the urge to laugh ebbed away, "situation?"
He threw a pointed glance at Natalia, then Guy. "Guy, explain."
"Me? Why—" Guy's protest fell short as he noted the none-too comforting sub-zero smile on the Colonel's face. "OK, OK..."
As the story went on, Anise could not help but notice how Natalia's expression visibly dimmed. It seemed that she was not the only one who took note of it, for the Colonel was also regarding Natalia thoughtfully from the corner of his eye, a hand cupped to his chin in thought.
"Say, Colonel," Anise said as Guy finished his story, "how did you know that you'd find us here? Besides Grand Maestro Tritheim and Commandant Cantabile, the only ones who know that Natalia's here are the people stationed here, and none of us have left since we were posted at this place, and I'm the only one allowed to send any outside communication."
"Noir was quite helpful in that regard."
"I see." Anise nodded. Right, Noir. She was the one who pointed them to Ortion Cavern, after all, claiming that she made a lifelong promise to someone—to help out a certain Kimlascan princess whenever she was in trouble. Though Anise was not incredibly fond of her, there was no denying that it was a good idea to remain in her good books, especially when one considered her mercenary-like status. "But Colonel, I totally didn't expect you'd go and work with her! Weren't you trying to get her arrested some time back?"
The Colonel shrugged. "When one is no longer employed by the military, such matters are the least of my concerns. In line with that, there's no reason to keep on calling me 'Colonel'. 'Jade' will do."
"Fiiine." Anise pouted at the Col—Jade. Fighting the force of habit was difficult, to say the least. "But how did you get here? We only detected your ship a few meters shy of the entrance."
"It's all thanks to Saphir here!" Emperor Peony said, clapping a hand around Dist's shoulders. Oblivious to the other's discomfort, he continued, "His invisibility thing's a life saver, though it's a shame it had to conk out when we were so close to the finish line!"
Dist quickly extracted himself from Emperor Peony's grip, pushing him back rather roughly as he threw a vehement glance at him. "At least I was doing something useful instead of just bench warming!"
"Saphir, not all of us could be ace pilots like you! At least I did something, right?"
"A cheagle could be trained to do that job, Pea Brain!"
"Anise, is there some place I may retire to?" Jade asked, sighing as he turned to Anise. "These old bones do not take kindly to long trips, and it's quite tiresome to hear these two argue."
"My room is at the far end of the cavern, though privacy's pretty much the same as what we have here in this room."
"That will do," Jade said, leaving the room.
Anise huffed. How rude! Leaving without a "goodbye" or even a "thank you"! Sure, Dist was a bit annoying, but did it really dampen his mood that much? Plus, they just saw each other again after like, months. Couldn't he summon just a teensy bit of excitement at seeing her and Natalia again?
"Excuse me," Guy said, striding towards the door and slipping through it, probably to follow Jade.
Guy's exit seemed to snap the two out of their argument as they turned to see him disappear. "Saphir." Emperor Peony's expression turned serious as he addressed Dist as if they were not bickering earlier. "Now that Jade's gone, could you tell me—us—what seems to be the matter? You've been stealing worried glances at Jade this whole time."
"I wasn't!" Dist said as he stared at the floor, shifting nervously on his feet.
"Right." Emperor Peony raised a brow at him. "And selenias don't bloom during night time."
"I can't! I promised I wouldn't—"
Emperor Peony grabbed Dist by his collar, throwing him a glare. "Whatever you promised him, you broke it the moment you started acting like a rappig in the vicinity of a blazing furnace. So spill." He let go of Dist, causing him to stagger backwards. "What the hell is going on with Jade?"
"Dist—"
"Don't call me by that name!" Dist said angrily as he regained his bearings.
"Sorry," Anise said, though her tone was barely apologetic. "It's just that if the Col—Jade is hiding something, it's never good news, isn't it? Still, he usually has good reasons for keeping whatever it is to himself, and he'll reveal whatever it is in due time, right? So there's no need to tell us if it would betray his trust."
"I'm afraid your trust is misplaced," he said, folding his arms as he refused to meet Anise's eye. "I suppose that idiot Franz is right. I can't possibly keep a promise I've already broken."
Franz? Who on earth...? Anise's gaze then fell on Emperor Peony, who was looking at Dist strangely.
"He denied it, but I know what I... saw." Dist said, his lower lip quivering as he faltered.
"Saphir," Emperor Peony said in what Anise thought to be a reassuring tone, though she could sense a hint of impatience underlying it, "what did you see?"
Dist let out a loud sniffle. "Jade," he hung his head and gripped the hem of his coat tightly, "is dying. And... and..." he covered his face with his hand as tears started to roll down his cheeks, "t-there's nothing we can do about it!"