Interlude: Seraph Argyros
Lord Kateus, the Guardian of Fire and co-founder of Igarus, the Nation of Purity. As a divine being, Kateus bore the mark of the red-tailed hawk, Argyros. The Guardian of Fire decreed a single oath to the Pretorius family alongside the Guardian of Light. The Pretorius family must always show unwavering loyalty to the Guardians and guide the mortal world to a prosperous future.
To Lord Kateus, loyalty was the fundamental law of any nation, even in the face of radical change. For this reason, he founded the Argyros Knights. He beseeched to them the highest gift granted to mortals by a divine being such as he: The ability to control fire. Lord Kateus unlocked the path to what was once thought to be a creation of nature out of humanity's grasp.
This act, however, grew to be Vastel's undoing, for there was one aspect Lord Kateus failed to warn humanity about: Temptation. There is no greater enemy to loyalty, for temptation leads to betrayal. Not even the Guardians were immune to this unseen foe…not even Lord Kateus himself.
Lord Kateus watched the world as a hawk observing the ground below. His pierce gaze ever looming, and his sword always waiting for the threat to reveal itself. Little did he and his allies know that the real danger to Vastel…was…
(Torn Pages)
##
The day after the Alisen Industries incident.
In the Nation of Purity, Igarus, the people worship and revere the Guardians of Vastel, especially the Guardian of Light. This land is prosperous, with bountiful fields and farms to grow Vastel's food. Still, one section of land is devoid of all life: Geraki, the Eternal Wasteland.
The engine of a blue motorcycle with red flames roared across the desolate plains. Seraph Argyros, a tall adolescent with shoulder-length spiky black hair and purple irises, took a sharp right towards a ravine in the distance. The adolescent wore a silver t-shirt underneath an open blood-red leather long coat with black shoulder pauldrons. His shirt was tucked into black jeans, and he wore a combat belt with flashbangs and grenades dangling from it. In its black sheath, a black high-caliber gun blade hung from the back of the belt.
Seraph stopped the motorcycle at the top of the ravine and scanned the surrounding area. After confirming that no one was around, he took a pair of binoculars and gazed ahead. There he spotted a convoy of three Eclipse trucks driving across the road to the ravine.
Three Eclipse trucks drove across the road on their way to the ravine. Seraph stopped his bike at the top of the canyon and surveyed the surroundings. He took a pair of binoculars and looked ahead after confirming that no one was nearby.
"Looks like that intel was accurate. To think they would use this place to conduct smuggling operations."
He slipped the binoculars back into his inventory pouch and pulled out a high-tech crossbow. He fired two contraptions on both sides of the ravine connected by a thin thread from this item. After finishing, the adolescent gazed out to the horizon at the approaching Eclipse convoy.
The front truck tripped the wire as the convoy passed through the ravine, causing the two contraptions on each side to explode. The front truck spun out of control and tipped over while the other two stopped. The Eclipse drivers emerged from their trucks, enraged.
"What the hell happened?!"
Seraph smirked from above as his prey ran around like headless chickens. He took out his gunblade, Kitsuki, transformed it into a high-caliber gun, and shot at the tires of the other two trucks, immobilizing them.
"An ambush," shouted an Eclipse solder, "Defensive positions!"
Before they could set up a perimeter, Seraph descended on them, his weapon reverting to its blade form. He slammed onto the ground with the force of a falling meteor, whispering, "Too little, too late." The area around him instantly exploded into a fiery inferno, catching the soldiers off guard.
"Wh-what the?!" shouted a shocked Eclipse soldier, "A hunter?! All the way out here?!"
"He's not from the Pretorius Family! So how did he...?"
"Your little convoy party has reached its stop," Seraph said, glaring at them like a hawk, "Surrender, and I promise to make your arrest as painless as possible."
In response, the Eclipse soldiers drew their guns and blades. "Tch, who are you to order us around, brat?! You have a lot of nerve to attack the Eclipse like this!"
Soldiers surrounded the raven-haired teen and prepared to attack.
Seraph let out a sigh. "Why do they always choose the hard way?" He shrugged as his purple eyes glowed with a fiery aura. "Ah, well...more fun for me!"
Seraph's Theme Song: "Red Sun" Metal Gear Rising Revengence
"Charge!" The Eclipse soldiers rushed towards Seraph as others shot at him.
The adolescent blocked each sword swing and countered with punches and kicks. With each attack that came close to hitting him, he repelled it. He booted the attacker back into the group of soldiers behind him. His speed and agility allowed him to sidestep every attack the Eclipse threw at him. The raven-haired teen heard gunshots and ducked behind a truck for cover, blocking incoming bullets from the Eclipses snipers.
"Two snipers..." Seraph whispered as he opened his jacket to retrieve concussion bullets for reloading his weapon. He then reached for his belt, grabbed onto a flashbang grenade, yanked the ignition ring out, and launched it as far as possible. After hearing a loud bang and the screams of the Eclipse soldiers, Seraph rushed out of his cover to shoot both snipers, knocking them down and out.
"Tch, who is this boy?" The convoy master asked, hiding from the ensuing battle, "Something about his sword looks familiar."
"You done gawking at me over there?" Seraph turned to face the convoy master.
The convoy master flinched at the teen's piercing stare, pulled a button, and hovered his finger on the trigger. "I don't know who you are, but I won't allow you to disrupt our operation!"
"You're not in a good position to speak so confidently."
"Neither are you, brat." The convoy master smirked. "We were meant to deliver these without a scratch, but desperate times call for desperate measures."
The second truck in the convoy opened at the push of the button, allowing a swarm of humanoid robots to exit and surround the raven-haired teenager.
"Ah...so these are the stolen Akumen warrior robots," Seraph said, "If you're planning on bringing these to your allies, you're in for a disappointment."
"That snark of yours won't save you from what these will do to you, boy!" The convoy master raised his hand and signaled the robots to attack. "Slice him to pieces!"
Seraph let out a chuckle. "Didn't your parents warn you not to play with fire? I'm happy to oblige if you're desperate for a show of force." Immediately after saying this, he deflected a spear strike from a robot lunging at him, embedded his sword in fire dust, and sliced through with a strike, melting the robot.
The convoy master's eyes widened in shock. "Wh-what?!"
"Surprised? These robots you stole may seem advanced, but they can't handle intense heat. I'm guessing 500 degrees is their threshold."
Seraph jumped over one of the robot's strikes and kicked it in the back of its head, sending it barreling toward the ones behind him. He ducked under another's attack, allowing it to hit the robot approaching his front side. The raven-haired teen used a sweep attack to cut off the legs of the remaining robots before leaping high into the air. He transformed his weapon back into the gun form before landing on top of the third truck, loaded the gun with thunder dust bullets, and fired an emp shockwave at the robots to shut them down.
"I-Impossible…" The convoy master placed his hands over the sides of his head, his eyes shaking and sweat dripping down his brow. "These robots were supposed to be of top quality!"
"Is that what your informant told you?" Seraph asked, "I hate to disappoint you, but my client has had eyes on your smuggling operations for the past three weeks. He's quite perceptive for an old man."
"Wait, you mean..."
That was when Seraph heard the sounds of police sirens. "Ah…the cavalry." Seraph sheathed his weapon and approached the convoy master. "You and your friends will be handed to the authorities, but I need one thing from you." He then took a photo of a pink-haired faunus girl with grey eyes, "I'll only ask you this once. Have you seen this girl?"
The convoy master's eyes widened. "Lady Lin?! How does someone like you know her?"
Seraph's face hardened. He grabbed the man and forced him to look into his glaring eyes. "Answer the question."
The Eclipse member gritted his teeth. "I'm not telling you a single thing, brat. Mark my words…you humans will get what's coming."
The black-haired teen huffed as he tossed the convoy master to the ground. Hearing footsteps approaching from behind, Seraph quickly fled the area before the Igarus police surrounded the Eclipse smugglers.
##
Knowing that the guards were rounding up the Eclipse members, Seraph rode his motorcycle back home to Mariana, the capital city of Vulna. However, a call came in on his phone, which he answered with an auto-response command.
"Hello?" Seraph saw a picture of his mother, Hinata Argyros, on the screen of his helmet and instantly regretted answering.
"Seraph Argyros!" The loud female voice of an angry Hinata Argyros shouted from the other end.
Seraph flinched at the sheer impact of his eardrums. "Nice to hear your beautiful voice, Mom…"
"Would you mind explaining why you're driving through Igarus territory? Again?!" Hinata asked.
Seraph let out a sigh. "It was just a mission, Mom. Nothing you and Dad should worry about."
"The fact that you didn't tell us about it is exactly what has me worried."
"I couldn't risk leaking info and tipping off the targets, so I didn't tell you right away," Seraph explained.
"Targets?"
That was when another call came in on Seraph's phone. "I'll explain everything when I get home, okay, Mom? I have an important call to take. I'll call back soon, so please don't be mad. Sorry!"
"Wait, Sera-"
Seraph hung up on his mother and picked up the second phone call. "You picked an awful time to call."
"Apologies, Mr. Argyros," said the low voice of Griffon Pretorius on the other side, "Did I interrupt something important?"
"Just a scolding from my angry mom." Seraph heard the sounds of laughter from Griffon.
"Ah, Lady Argyros found out about your mission, did she? I'll have to make it up to both of you later. I received the call about those Eclipse smugglers. Excellent work. I knew it was wise to trust you with this task."
Seraph shook his head. "I wouldn't call it a 'wise' choice. You should have left this to one of your trusted associates, not some teenager from another nation."
Griffon let out a chuckle. "With all due respect, Mr. Argyros, you misunderstand here. The 'Akumen Project' I spoke to you about was nothing more than a rumor I created to draw out the Eclipse. Surely you noticed how frail and weak they were, hm?"
"Yes, I did," Seraph answered, "But frail as they are, they can be deadly in large numbers. Letting them fall in the hands of the Eclipse would not be a boon for Vastel."
"A fair point, Mr. Argyros," Griffon said, "but that's exactly what I aim for. The Eclipse are free to use their futile attempts as they desire, searching for a treasure that doesn't exist. They'll crawl from their holes right into our trap every time. In the end, it is the strategists who win because they play the long game."
"An impressive plan you have there, Mr. Pretorious. I see now why my father had only positive things to say about you."
Griffon let out a chuckle. "I appreciate such kind words. As promised, your reward will be delivered to you in a week. Hopefully, you retrieved valuable information from the targets?"
Seraph let out a sigh. "No…they all refused to tell me anything."
"That's unfortunate."
"I'm used to it by now." Seraph's heart dropped after speaking those words, but he didn't allow his tone to show it. "Is there a reason you trusted a young teenager like me with this important task?"
"I simply wanted to gauge your capabilities," Griffon explained, "And you exceeded my expectations. Will you be going to Oroseia Academy, by any chance?"
"In two weeks, yes," Seraph said.
"If it isn't too much trouble, I would like to invite you to my daughter's inauguration celebration next week. I'm sure you two would get along well."
"Thanks, but no thanks. My mom's likely not going to let me go after today," Seraph said.
"I understand." Griffon let out a sigh. "I shall explain things to Miss Argyros to hopefully soften the blow for you. Good luck in your endeavors, Mr. Argyros. I look forward to working with you again, should we have the chance."
"... Feeling's mutual." Seraph ended the call and let out a sigh. On his helmet, he brought up the picture of himself as a child hugging a little pink-haired girl. "Thank the Guardians she wasn't with them." He looked up at the cloudy skies above the ravine, "Lin…where are you…? Why did you leave me…"
…
…
…
"…to join the Eclipse?"
Seraph Argyros
Race: Human
Affiliation: Freelance Hunter
Dust Affinity: Fire
Weapon Name: Kitsuki
Submitted by ShinigamiMaster
Jurabi: Hello! What a feeling to have my creative juices flowing faster and faster. Soon, we'll have finally finished with all the interludes for the main cast. Now there's one more character left. The next interlude will also have an extra scene so look forward to that. Thanks for your patience and support for this story. I dearly appreciate every one of you. If any of you are excited for the final interlude, please stop by my discord server. I'm always happy to chat with my readers. If you loved what I had to offer this fine day, please leave a review, a follow, and a favorite. I would really appreciate your support of this story. I'll see you all in the next chapter~!
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