La Cuarta Storia: La Strategia e La Santa Teresa
"So you just stood there and let her get away! I'll bet she just had to bat her eyelashes a little, and you helped her into the boat," Liberta shouted across the table at the snowy-haired leader of Coin. He narrowed his amber eye at the slight. For once in his life, he had no witty retort. While he had every intention of returning her to her cell, it was his failure that enabled her escape.
"Bickering isn't going to find her any sooner," Pace said between bites of lasagna. "Do you got a plan? Or do you just intend to continue belittling our friend?"
Liberta snorted as he crossed his arms. His bright aquamarine eyes flashed in irritation. Liberta was the one who found Debito, just hours after dawn, staring blankly into the sea. The leader of the Coins was unable to produce a reliable account of the events that transpired between he and the pirate. His recollection was clear, up until the point where he overpowered her, trapping her against the freight. After that, it was a confusing haze.
"She probably used her Arcana powers against him," Nova said. "There's not much information regarding their effects. Moving forward, it's best to be wary. You underestimated her, Debito. Let's be sure not to do so again."
"More like, I underestimated Jolly," Debito growled. He clenched his fists beneath the table.
"Jolly?" Pace inquired, an expression of shock and confusion painted across his mild featured face. The brunette set his silverware aside to fidget with his wire-framed spectacles. "He's involved in this?"
"I'm positive. He's acting even more suspicious than usual. So, I've been keeping an eye out. I followed the girl and the masked man last night. He brought her to the docks. I can only guess he's the one that let her out. Who else has the keys but Jolly? It couldn't be anyone else," Debito hissed. It was difficult to keep his voice low, but these weren't the kinds of accusations to be spouted in public. Jolly was the second highest ranked official in the Arcana Famiglia, ranked below Papa alone.
"Nova, for one. Felicita and Papa, too. I'm just saying that's not much to go on," Liberta said. The men around the table nodded in agreement.
Nova flipped through the file the Arcana Famiglia accumulated on the recently escaped pirate. His finger paused and he placed the map on the table in front of them.
"I have an idea on how to recover our prisoner. Her fleet plunders the trade routes between us and the main isle of Sicilia," Nova explained as he pointed out various locations on the map. "They also attack trade routes coming out of Sardinia."
"I see, I see! That's pretty clever, chickpea!" Liberta shouted. Much to Nova's dismay, or perhaps, because of Nova's dismay, 'chickpea' was the tow-headed sailor's endearment of choice.
"Don't call me chickpea," Nova said, scowling. Liberta paid no attention to his remark, now fully engrossed in the map.
"Now that we've narrowed down where they are active. We can locate their base of operations," Liberta said enthusiastically. "Based on what we know, I would say our best bet is here!"
He slammed his finger down on the map, resting on a tiny island in a wide expanse of blue. The red lines denoting trade routes crisscrossed in the near vicinity. It looked like a pretty sound theory, if Debito ever saw one.
"I'll talk to Dante about getting some ships to scout out the area," Liberta said before dashing out of the restaurant.
"I'm coming, too," Debito said in quiet resolution. He rose from the table leaving Pace and Nova to exchange a confused glance.
The Executive Head of the Intelligence Division reclined in his black leather office chair. He closed his eyes to the grand vista before him. His office overlooked Regalo's prominent bay. He kneaded his stigmata in attempt to banish the burgeoning migraine that throbbed with tension beneath his temples. It did not take long for the news of Amica del Diavolo's escape to reach him. While not necessarily his division's direct concern, he imagined it would not take long for her attempts to disrupt their fragile trade network to renew with great vigor, especially, when bolstered by a vendetta.
The circumstances that surrounded her escape were also worrisome. At the conclusion of the Cups' investigation, news circulated through the higher echelon of the Arcana Famiglia rapidly. There was a conspicuous lack of forced entry into her cell, as well as the cells of her compatriots. Dante could not begin to theorize on the potential suspects of an escape of such magnitude, only that it appeared fairly obvious that it was an inside job. He could not imagine anyone so foolish as to raise Papa's ire.
Behind him, the door of his office flew open with such great a force that the papers on his desk scattered across the room.
"Dante!" Liberta called loudly. He trained a weary eye on his energetic subordinate.
"Nova and I were able narrow down a potential base of operations for the pirate," Liberta informed him.
Dante nodded, his interest piqued by this new development. He pulled a map from his drawer. It detailed the existing trade routes between Regalo and the neighboring island kingdoms. Liberta and Dante poured over the map, occasionally pausing to grab for different ones when a subtle knock roused his attention. The leader of the Coins' Division stood in the door, a determined scowl marred his normally carefree expression. In a previous debriefing, Liberta had mentioned casually that the young man was acting unusual since the pirate's escape. Perhaps, it was the after effects of the girl's Arcana.
"I will be joining in on this mission," he stated. "Any resources that the Coins has will also be available to you."
"I see," Dante replied thoughtfully. He wondered if it was revenge the hot-blooded young man sought after.
"Piracy is a direct concern for flow of Regalo's finances," Debito added. It appeared to the leader of the Intelligence Division as if this were almost an after thought. Dante nodded. There was not much he could do to discourage the other division leader against participating.
"Oh, yes, that reminds me. I came to ask if there were ships available to scout the location for any pirate activity," Liberta said.
"I understand. This is a mission that may require a level of naval strength we do not have available at this time. Considering the past discretions against our trade routes, I have increased the security for mercantile ships," Dante responded. "However, I could allow clearance for one of the larger vessels, La Santa Teresa. The condition being that you first inquire with Cups about Nova's participation. I believe his abilities will prove useful if the necessity for combat arises."
"You already have my agreement, sir," Nova's cold tone drifted into his office, not the first of his unexpected visitors. First the strange, impromptu visit from not only the leader of the Coins Division, but also the leader of the Cups as well.
"Then it's agreed upon. Liberta, make the arrangements with the crew of La Santa Teresa. She's down in the moorings. Make all haste, and have a safe journey," Dante said.
He knew that this was potentially the most dangerous mission that his subordinate had encountered during his career. If they could goad the pirate into close quarters combat again, the odds favored Liberta. Throughout his life in the Arcana Famiglia, Liberta dedicated himself to honing his skill with a blade. There were few that rivaled him. Although, he was uncertain that the pirate was fool enough to fall for the same tactic twice. A long-range naval battle may prove deadly. There were few ships on the seas as formidable as Il Diavolo del Mare. Dante, personally, crossed its path in his youth, and barely managed to escape with his life. In those days, the Bloody Spaniard, Santiago de Mataro, captained the fearsome Man-of-war. However, Amica was no less capable a sailor. Dante knew she could have sunk their frigate with ease. She simply chose not to.
The young men, still boys in Dante's eyes, left his office to prepare for the hard voyage ahead. He turned his chair again towards the window behind him, and stared out towards the sea.
A/N: Sorry to disappoint, but this turned out more to be a filler chapter than I originally intended. I had to put a break between these scenes and the ones forthcoming, because it would have turned out too long. There's going to be more action in the following one, I promise.
This story is taking quite the unexpected turn. I don't even know what's going to happen next... Even still, I'm having a lot of fun just playing around. I stumbled across the fandom a few weeks ago, and the rich culture of the world caught my attention. It's really too bad that I don't have access to the visual novel, because that seems like it would be neat. As it stands, I'll just have to console myself over the scanlations of the manga. I have my doubts that they are going to make a second season for the anime.
If you guys feel inclined, go ahead and shoot me a review. I'd like to hear your thoughts on how I'm keeping to the characters. I don't feel like I'm really doing the best job with that, myself. Any suggestions or criticisms in that manner would be most appreciated, and taken into consideration for editing and future chapters.
I've also thought about going back through and making a glossary of the Italian phrases used. Not only in the chapter titles, but also in certain dialogue pieces. A bit of warning, I don't speak Italian. I just ask Google.
La Cuarta Storia: La Strategia e La Santa Teresa – The Fourth Story: The Strategy and The Santa Teresa.
3.16.14