It was another quiet night on the western shore of Erebonia and the port city of Ordis slept peacefully. This serenity wasn't due to an actual peace going on in the country, however, but enforced by curfew, with soldiers of the provincial army patrolling the streets. While the war was still far away from its location, the second largest city in the Empire had lost some of its luster due to the conflict, no matter how much its ruling lord tried to keep appearances.
But while Ordis' night was filled with the anxiety of its citizens, Bryona Island's was one of true, blissful peace filled with the sounds of nature. Cicadas, the brushing of leaves as the wind passed through the branches of trees and blades of grass and the sound of waves on the beach; quietude reigned in the deserted island.
Then a flash of light lit up the west side of the island and Valimar, alongside Class VII, materialized from thin air, specifically 2 arges above ground. The Divine Knight hit the ground with no problems while the others reacted with a series of yelps and screams; the more physically gifted managed to adjust themselves and fall with grace while the others fell on their butts.
Rean's tired sigh came from Valimar's speakers as the Knight moved to his rest position, kneeling down with a fist on the ground. "That was intense. Looks like I was off with the height, is everyone okay?"
"Everyone's in one piece and nothing's broken," reported Sara after a quick check on everyone. "Your idea worked perfectly, Emma. Good job."
"I'm certainly relieved it did but I didn't do all the work, we all had our share in getting here."
A few moments ago, the members of Class VII were in the Nortia Province, where the Courageous had landed on a plain field and the members of the Crimson Wings' ground team formed a circle around Valimar and Rean and established a combat-link between all of them. Emma instructed her friends to first think of the field studies that took place in the region, starting from the travel by train to the arrival, from conversations they had, sights they saw, even the feeling of movement, they were to recall as much as possible everything that pointed the way to Ordis.
After a while, the witch told them to recall what they did once they had arrived and her classmates divided between the group that stayed in the city and the ones who went to their real destination, Bryona Island. Once more they strove to think back on every detail of their field studies they could, from events to even their own feelings back in the day. That last one brought a bit of embarrassment from both Laura and Fie as the two had been on bad terms back then and now they could also feel how frustrated Machias and Elliot were with the two.
That meant that the plan was working, they had managed to bring their memories to the forefront of their thoughts with such intensity that they were overriding the ARCUS' prioritization of basic survival instincts. It was time to move onto the next phase and Rean accessed the spirit path.
While the others worked on recalling their experiences, Rean meditated and entered the state of the Unseen Eye to get a better grip of his senses and properly grasp the mentally demanding task ahead.
Slowly and carefully, Rean accessed the spirit path, the magical circle forming itself under Valimar and around the rest of Class VII, like a door being slowly opened. Rean had no idea how to read the flow of mana like the members of the Hexen Clan, so Emma and Celina accompanied him inside the cockpit and through their combat-link, the witch helped Rean pinpoint the exact direction towards Bryonia Island and the focus of mana that resided there. Flashes of their destination appeared in his mind.
Ordis…
Bryonia Island…
The lodgings, remnants of older societies that lived there, hunting down a monster in the caves… The Great Knight…
Accessing the spirit path without an idea of where they would go was like being suddenly thrown into a river and feeling the current try to sweep them away, but Rean managed to tether them on the ground still, although they were giving the crew of the Courageous watching one hell of a light show.
"They're going to be okay, Towa. Trust Rean," Angelica had told the airship's captain, with a comforting hand over her shoulder.
"I trust him, Angie, but I still can't help but worry."
Rean stretched out his fingers and through Valimar felt the mana passing by his hands like water as he continued to focus on the intense emotions of his friends. He started to imagine what the locations of the island looked like from the descriptions they gave him prior and his focus was set to land on the beach in the northern region of the isle.
When he felt confident enough, Rean let go of the metaphorical lifeline he was holding on to and fully entered the spirit path with his group and they disappeared.
The travel was not that different from the other times they used the spirit path except that Rean could feel them almost straying from the path at times but he easily corrected it. It was in that state, a bit tired, a bit anxious and a immensely relieved that they arrived on the island.
"Rean, how are Valimar's mana levels?" Laura asked, to which Rean responded after leaving the cockpit, saying they were on the lower end and while Valimar would still be able to move if necessary, it was best for him to conserve and gather more for the mission, something they had already counted for.
"The surrounding area is safe," said Fie after a quick survey of their surroundings. "Looks like Lechter's info was reliable on this front, the island is pretty much deserted."
Of course it was, the Intelligence Division could be terrifyingly resourceful even in times of war and Sara had a sneaking suspicion that they had been more than aware of the attack on the Bracer Guilds years prior and allowed them to happen just to use it as an excuse to kick them out later. But then that raised a question, how did they get caught by surprise by the Noble Alliance's coup?
Sara shook off her thoughts, this wasn't the time to worry about that. "Alright everyone, we've got a couple of hours until the next phase of the plan is put into motion. Let's patrol the area just to be sure we won't be surprised, those who come with me will check the lodgings and the dock at the south, the others will patrol the north region then reunite with us. Will you be okay here, Valimar?"
"I will. This area is rich in mana and I will be able to return to full power in no time," the Knight then turned to Rean. "My Awakener, if trouble arises do not hesitate to call me."
"I'll be sure to keep that in mind," Rean said with a smile, noticing that Valimar seemed to be getting more talkative. "Since we're dividing in groups I want to stay on this part of the island and check on the statue of the Great Knight while we're here, see if I can sense something out of it."
"Oh you mean like that 'vertigo' you felt with the Guardian back in Nord?" Jusis said with snark, leading Rean to scratch that back of his head and laugh awkwardly.
"H-hey, come on, what did you expect me to do? Tell everyone that a statue made me feel sick and sound like I was going crazy?"
"Since I'm familiar with the way there, I will go with you as well, Rean," said Laura, not that she needed a reason to stay with him.
"If you don't mind, I'd like to accompany you two as well" said Emma. "Maybe I could find some clues to a connection between these statues and the Divine Knights.
"I want to go as well. I've only been to the city of Ordis and I'm curious about the possible connection to the statues and the Divine Knights and what they could mean for Nord," said Gaius.
"I wanna go too, there was never anything here to spy so I never got a chance to come," Millium said excitedly. "I did get to buy a lot of ice cream in the city though!"
"Alright, I guess we have our group for the north section of the island then, let's get- Wait a second…" Rean's furrowed in thought and he looked around to all his friends then turned a narrow set of eyes to their instructor. "Why did I never get to come to Ordis?"
Upon the question being raised everyone turns to Sara as well, the Bracer feeling a little like a deer staring at a train's headlights.
"Now that I think of it, Rean was the only one to never visit the western side of Erebonia during our field exercises," said Elliot.
"What are you looking at me like that for? It just worked out that way, leave me alone!"
On the way to the Great Knight, Rean's group had to face off a few monsters and while they were aggressive they weren't much of an issue for them. In a way, the presence of monsters was good news since it meant there was no military presence on the island. It did seem weird how Lamarre's provincial army hadn't established even a simple outpost there but according to Lechter they did at first, but pulled out two weeks after the war started due to inactivity in the region.
Bryonia's Knight statue was located on a mountain wall, buried deep into the rocks, almost hidden, and required them to climb up a series of ladders carved into the cliff to reach as close as possible to the giant.
Rean mouthed a "woah…" when they reached it, still being able to feel awe at the sight of the statue despite his constant contact with Valimar. Just like Nord's Guardian, it was much bigger than either of the Divine Knights they had seen so far; covered in moss and other signs of the passage of time, the stone statue stood there imposing. Although calling it a statue couldn't be accurate anymore if the Divine Knights were related to it in some form.
"Incredible. Albeit with a few aesthetic differences, it's just like the one back home," said Gaius. "I suppose the legend of the Guardian welcoming the people of Nord into the land truly was nothing short of a myth if there is another one like it all the way over here."
Laura shook her head. "Not necessarily, Gaius. If they are as ancient as they look, they could be the predecessors of the Divine Knights, older models as it were, possibly from before the time of the Great Collapse, and the pilot of the one back in Nord could've helped your ancestors settle there. What do you think, Emma?"
The witch didn't seem very convinced by Laura's theory however, as she looked thoughtfully at the statue. "'Born of fire and rock, the Great One is now seven,' that is what was written on the walls of Valimar's Reverie Corridor. Those seven are the Deus Excellion, that is pretty conclusive, and the Great One I can surmise is either synonymous with the Great Power of the Knights or maybe even the source of the power itself. Either case, then where do the Great Knight and Guardian come from?"
"Could fire and rock mentioned in the inscriptions be a reference to them? There are two of them after all," suggested Laura.
"I've thought about it, but then where do they fit with the being described as the Great One and source of the Deus Excellion?"
"Maybe it could be just a metaphor about the process of creating these beings," Gaius suggested. "Fire and rock are the materials used to forge them and the Great One is the blacksmith."
"Didn't the witches and gnomes make the Divine Knights? Maybe they carved out the pieces from the statues to make and this is what's left of them," said Millium, which honestly seemed to be a likely theory.
There was also the unspoken fact that Emma's grandmother and leader of the Hexen Clan knew the truth and wasn't telling, which concerned Emma and frustrated the others.
Quiet until that moment, Rean muttered the words "The flames and jaws that devour the earth," causing the others to turn quizzical looks at him. "The stone and fists that crush mankind and the cold steel that spells the end of the world. That's what I heard right before I passed out after killing Loa Erebonius, a description of the Great Power. Maybe it's the same thing?"
"A description and a most foreboding warning. Are you feeling the same thing you did back in Nord?" Laura asked, placing a hand on Rean's shoulder, and he shook his head. "Flames and jaws, stones and fists and cold steel, all these vague mentions of natural elements does lead credence to Gaius' theory of it being more metaphorical in nature."
"Millium, get Airgetlam to carry me up and close to its face," Rean said and the little girl immediately complied, summoning the combat shell. On top of the silver doll, the swordsman floated up to come face to face with Bryonia Island's Great Knight and he searched the stony façade illuminated by the moonlight, looking for anything, even the disorienting feeling he had felt with its twin. Urging Airgetlam closer, he touched the statue's faceplate and the surface was just like any other rocky material, rough and hard.
Anything jostling your memories, Valimar?
[…]
Valimar?
[Only the faint sensation of familiarity, nothing more. For all intents and purposes, this is a hollow shell. I still cannot recall the origins of the Deus Excellion nor our purpose, all I can say is that this is a focal point of mana, which is something your witch companion has already pointed out.]
Well, nothing new, Rean was starting to get used to that unfortunately so he didn't sound much disappointed when he told the others. After asking Millium to lower him, Rean and the rest of the group finished surveying the area for any signs of enemies then headed out to the lodgings on the south of the island to get ready and wait for the rest of their allies to initiate the next phase of the plan.
Taking the zemurian ore from Ordis was a daunting task, the rare metal was being kept inside a warehouse at the docks which was patrolled 24 hours a day by the provincial army, although Lechter's information said that it was still on the usual levels for the current state of affairs, to avoid betraying the location of the zemurian ore. It seemed that even to the rest of the Noble Alliance, Duke Cayenne's possession of the ore was a secret, which Marquis Rogner ended up confirming later.
The most direct approach, which was for Rean to use the spirit path, break into the warehouse where the ore was being kept then teleport away with it, would maybe have worked if they knew in which of the dozens of warehouses it was being kept at, but having Valimar crack open each and every one until finding where it was being guarded wasn't advisable, Crow and Ordine were being very hands off so far but they weren't looking to push their luck just yet. There was also the fact they didn't want to cause undue destruction to the city.
So they'd have to find their objective first after which they'd quickly extract before the Noble Alliance took notice, even if they ended up being spotted before finding the ore, they should have enough time before reinforcements arrived. To that end, distractions would be provided by the RMP, Intelligence Division and Imperial Army all over Erebonia's western front that would keep the attention of Lamarre's Provincial Army away from Ordis until it was too late.
Among the distractions set for Lamarre's forces would be the 7th Armored Division pushing forward onto the province, which was actually rather fitting since they wouldn't be needing to worry about Nortia's provincial army anymore. That wouldn't be enough distraction however as the noble forces would absolutely have planned for this, which was why Victor Arseid would be putting a hold on his hunt for the Stahlritter to grab the attention of his former student, General Le Guin.
The Golden Rakshasa would see through the obvious attempt at luring her out but just like the Stahlritter and Steel Maiden's movements were meant to keep the viscount away from the Courageous, he would play the same game. A union of Matteus Vander and Victor Arseid on her doorstep, even if temporary, could not be ignored.
Meanwhile, the RMP and Intelligence Division would continue on their guerrilla tactics to keep the rest of the provincial army busy.
That side of the operation would be starting right before dawn and would extend itself throughout the day or until Class VII accomplished their objective. If they required more time they would be on their own, which was understandable as the Imperial forces could only maintain the farce for so long.
So, with the stage set, Class VII awaited at the lodgings of Bryonia Island, where Emma put the finishing touches on Millium's glamour spell. Having gathered enough ingredients this time, she managed to cast the enchantment on all of their members, producing more convincing disguises than flimsy glasses and hats could.
Their weapons as well had been enchanted. Placed inside cases to be easier to carry, the illusion masqueraded them as baskets with food, tool boxes and other unassing items. As long as nobody else tried to grab them at least.
"Woah, my face feels weird," the young spy said, poking her own cheeks.
"That'll pass in no time, Millium. And while you won't be able to tell the difference, everyone else will see you as a brunette with tanned skin and yellow eyes."
"Brunette? Couldn't you give me purple hair? Oh! And make it really long and-" Millium would have continued but a withering glare from the witch made her shut up. "Brunette is fine actually."
Truth be told, while the spell could disguise their appearances, it wasn't one for elaborate disguises. Besides a few adjustments to everyone's faces, their hair color ranged in different shades of brown with some differences in size and simple stylings, while the color of their eyes was basically randomly chosen between them.
Looking at their companions, Laura hummed to herself thoughtfully before turning to Rean. "How do I look?"
"Oh, uhh…"
Rean looked Laura over and from the curious and innocent look she was giving him didn't seem to realize how she had put him on the spot, although everyone else seemed to wait for his response with bated breath. The spell hid the Arseid girl's beautiful, elegant looks behind a plain façade and she was now sporting light chestnut hair stopping at her shoulders and her golden eyes had been replaced by gray ones. She was… okay-ish, Rean supposed, plain but not ugly, a bit mousey, kinda like Dorothee- Argh, don't go there.
Well, there was really only one correct answer. "No magic could hide your beauty, Laura."
The cheesy line was delivered with an earnest grin that caught the swordswoman unprepared and had her giggling. Meanwhile, the spectators reacted in a mix of eye rolls or pretending to puke, an "aww" from Emma and, as usual, Celine calling humans stupid.
"Alright, Mr. Casanova, enough of you," said Sara, picking up her ARCUS to check on the time. "The Imperial Army should've started their maneuvers by now and soon civilians will start to move around the city so we can blend among them. So if everyone's make up is done, we should get ready to leave. Emma, Celine, you two good to teleport us?"
"Yes, after checking the map of Ordis we have in the Courageous' archives, I remember that we passed by that empty building Captain Lechter told us about from our field exercises. The distance is greater than I have ever teleported us before but I believe that with Celine's assistance it'll be no issue, although we'll have spent most of our mana so neither of us will be able to cast another spell for a while."
The abandoned building was located in the northern district of the city, its poorer section and far away from the noble district. It was far away from the docks and warehouses where the zemurian ore was being kept, however it was the safest location to teleport to due to its abandoned status, the only place where they could be sure nobody would see them coming in.
"We'll watch out for you, Emma," Rean said, his voice full of confidence. "We'll probably have to take down some of the guards at the docks when we get there but we'll catch them by surprise, so don't worry about having to fight. Once we find it, we'll get that zemurian ore and go straight to Roer so Schmidt can make a sword for Valimar and we'll be one step closer to ending this war."
Rean's determination echoed in all of his allies. After traveling through the spirit path and helping guide Rean and Valimar together through the combat-links, the bonds between the members of Class VII seemed to strengthen further. They trusted their plan but most of all in each other, and that was enough for them to move forward undeterred against whatever would come their way.
Their minds set, Class VII formed a circle around Emma and Celine as both started to cast the teleportation spell. Ancient glyphs formed themselves under them as the magical circle started form, along with beads of sweat on Emma's face as the witch struggled with the distance they would be traversing, but she didn't falter nor did her familiar and in a final push, a burst of light illuminated the room of the lodgings before they disappeared.
When they appeared at their destination, they immediately assumed combat stances, well, all except for Emma and Celine to collapse to their knees due to the exhaustion. Despite the intel from Scarecrow being trustworthy, they had to be ready to handle any unforeseen developments, even if it happened to be nosy citizens taking a gander at the abandoned building.
Luckily for them, the old three store apartment building they arrived at continued devoid of human occupants, with only rats and spiders being witnesses of their arrival.
"Are you okay, Emma?" Said Gaius, extending a hand to help their friend up.
"Yes, thank you, Gaius, I'm- Ah!" The witch yelped, her eyes wide looking at Gaius, who stared at her in confusion at first then surprise. Both looked around and saw that the rest of their team had similar expressions as well as they gaze at each other's faces.
Their real faces.
"The glamour… Broke?" Said Alisa in confusion, touching her own face though that hardly made any difference. "Did the teleportation erase it? No, wait, that doesn't make any sense, when you used it on me back in Roer we teleported too and it stayed on me the whole time.
"That shouldn't be possible. The simpler a spell, the more stable it is, teleportation shouldn't have disrupted it," Celine moved among the humans, looking up at them trying to figure out what happened.
The answer came from a shimmering blue light, flickering on the ceiling that illuminated the dark room. It floated for a moment before descending slowly, softly, light… like a feather. When it touched the floor, it popped like a bubble and released the sound of a feminine voice chuckling lightly and the mocking squawk of a bird.
After a moment of heavy, stunted silence, Rean encapsulated their feelings perfectly with one simple word.
"Crap."
Good news, Emma had concluded that there was an anti-magic field around Ordis, which was what caused their glamour to fade away. It permitted teleportation within its field of influence specifically to trap anyone trying to infiltrate the city the way they did, limiting their options on how to leave. That meant it was an automated spell and that Vita and the Noble Alliance weren't already privy of their plan beforehand, otherwise enemy soldiers would have already been waiting for them, so their position was not fully compromised, yet at least.
Bad news, they were now in the middle of the western Erebonia's noble capital without any disguises and no way of teleporting out that didn't involve Valimar bursting in the middle of the city and giving away everything, making the whole endeavor pointless.
"W-what do we do?" Elliot nervously clutched to his orbal staff. Everyone was exchanging looks of apprehension and doubt amongst themselves, thinking of their next course of action.
Rean broke the silence.
"We can still go with it," he said while inspecting his sword. "The situation is not ideal but it's no reason to back down now. We managed to sneak around Bareahard, we can do it here. What do you all say?"
Uncertainty didn't last long among his classmates as they felt the confidence emanating from Rean and soon words of support emerged from them, as they leaned on his determination to see things through. The only one to not speak up had been Sara, who was pacing around the room.
"You all know I appreciate a reckless plan fueled by equal measures of youthful cockyness and skill, but are you guys sure about this? After Roer, I doubt it would be easy for any of us to move around Bareahard either, never mind here."
"We can't really give up after all the work we put in planning this, with so many of our allies fighting right now to give us a better chance at seeing this through. This will work, instructor, I can feel it."
Rean was bursting with confidence, Sara noticed, even more than usual. Some of it was him still overcompensating for his own personal mess but it wasn't like Rean hadn't grown a lot back in Thors and wasn't still changing, improving little by little in spite of all that was going on. She wondered if all this mess hadn't happened, how much better things would be with him.
So it wasn't him just putting up a strong front, Sara also had to recognize the spark of determination in Rean as well, that kind that wouldn't let him give up no matter what. She recognized that very clearly because it was what had kept her going for her first years as a Bracer, after she left North Ambria and that life behind, and because of that she knew there was the other side of the coin as well.
He can't stop, no matter what happens.
No matter what.
She should've talked to him sooner, helped him out sooner, but so much crap was happening at every moment. Even when nothing was happening immediately around them, even in the brief moments of respite they had in the previous days, stuff was still happening somewhere else that kept her attention because it was a war and… None of that was an excuse for her failing to address this.
After this mission, I'm telling all of them about me and the Northern Jaegers, Rean especially deserves to know. If it helps, that's good, and if he ends up hating me… That's fine too. I just hope I don't screw it up.
Her mind made up and feelings properly buried for the moment, Sara approached Rean with an easy going smile and slapped him on the shoulder playfully. "And that's why you are my wunderkind! Alright, folks, we've hung around here long enough. We can't be sure that tripping Vita's counter-magic spell didn't alert her of our position, so you gotta move. The plan continues the same, we'll split up in two groups and regroup at the docks."
Rean, Laura, Fie and Elliot carefully threaded through the streets of Ordis, doing their best to blend in with crowds of civilians while carrying the not so unassuming cases containing their weapons. Not the best approach but Ordis was the second biggest city in the Empire, losing only to the capital, and the morning bustle meant most people were too worried with their jobs or grocery shopping to pay much attention, while providing just enough cover from the patrols of the provincial army.
More used with this kind of operation from her jaeger days, Fie took point and guided them through the streets. It didn't take long for her to figure out the patrol's patterns, allowing them to easily avoid incoming groups of soldiers, with the frequency of the amount of detours they had to make indicating how intense city security had become.
At some point, Fie's intuition and Rean's senses told them they were being watched and she suggested that they enter a café. Worried, Elliot questioned the decision, saying that they would end up lagging behind meeting the others and not only that, wouldn't that make it easier for the soldiers to surround them in a closed environment?
"Relax, Sara's probably doing the same with her group as well," the former jaeger whispered as they entered the establishment. "'Sides, it's better to have a defensible position inside a building than to be caught in open streets."
The café wasn't too busy, only a couple of tables were occupied, and their arrival was met with indifference from the patrons as the chime of the bell at the front door announced their entrance. They chose a place to sit, somewhere that gave them ample view of all the entrances and close to a window for an emergency escape, and an employee took their order, just some coffee and light food as they had to look convincing. To really sell their supposed casual stop at the café, they chatted a little, although the amount of topics they had to talk about that could be heard by the general public wasn't that great.
"This is not how I expected returning to Ordis with you," Laura offered Rean a bittersweet smile, recalling their conversation months ago when she returned from her Bryonia Island field exercise and gave Rean a sword scabbard as a gift.
Rean sighed. Yep, this sure wasn't how he expected a tour date through Ordis with Laura either.
"Well, at least you two are still together. There's always a next time, right?" Elliot offered enthusiastically.
"Right," Rean held Laura's hand under the table. "And what about you, Fie? What do you think of bringing Vivi here?"
The silver haired girl stopped mid bite onto her delicious tuna sandwich (can't go wrong with fish in Ordis) and stared blankly at Rean as if he had just asked a stupid question. "For what?" She finally said.
"You know, on a date? We could go on a double date, that could be cool."
Fie's response to the suggestion was an expected "We're not dating" that made their eyes roll.
"Right, you two just get together in secluded places on the ship to kiss one another. Platonically," Rean threw a blank stare of his own back at Fie.
"Don't know what that word means but yes. We don't get mushy together and constantly hold hands like you two, so we're not dating. We just make out and it feels nice. Also," she pointed an accusatory at Laura and although Fie's eyes were fierce, there was a hint of blushing on her cheeks. "Don't give me one of those 'but are you sure Vivi feels the same way' because she's the one who suggested it. I have more important stuff to think about than having a girlfriend, so get off my ass and, I dunno, bother Elliot, he doesn't even have anyone to kiss."
"H-hey!"
The swordsmen snickered at Elliot's reaction and that eased a bit of the tension for the moment. Honestly, Rean was just teasing Fie a little because her reactions were fun, he trusted his friend to deal with her relationship with Vivi however she wanted.
Despite relaxing a bit with their chat, they kept close eyes to the entrance, spotting a trio of soldiers had passed a little after they had sat down then another two minutes later, one of them glancing inside the café but not making any moves to stop.
"Yup, they were suspicious of us alright," said Fie. "If we had left too early the second group would have stopped and searched us while the first set of soldiers doubled back to surround us."
Unfortunately they couldn't avoid looking suspicious lugging around their weapons, the oversized cases that contained Rean and Laura's swords drew everyone's eyes, while Fie could put her gunblades inside a backpack and Elliot could collapse his staff and fit it nicely into a violin case.
After waiting five more minutes just to be sure, they paid their bill and left the café, still feigning no hurry. The morning continued busy for the port city as pedestrians filled the sidewalks and cars crossed the streets and they blended in with the crowd once again, continuing to avoid enemy patrols.
Instead of going from the north district straight to the harbor, their series of detours led Rean's group to the business district where they passed by the main city square, Ordis' main postal card with the ancient Animist statue of the daughter of the great spirit of the sea Azure Ondine, who, according to legend, protect passenger ships along the coast of the Lamarre Province
…
Wait, what?
The realization made the group gawk at the monument with much different eyes. It didn't require much imagination to think that the statue and the legend behind it were related to Ordine, the Azure Knight. It was easy to envision a woman centuries ago being the Azure Awakener and using her abilities to protect ships in the port city, then the system of the Divine Knights that erases the traces of previous Rivalries and transformed her history into the legend of Ondine, an Animist spirit.
"It's possible that the Azure Knight's trial grounds might be here. It makes sense since Vita courted favor with Duke Cayenne," said Laura with a sigh. "Whatever good that bit of information does for us now. It's best if we keep moving."
They continued on their way, crossing the city square and passing by a couple of more streets before heading towards the harbor district.
It was almost 10 o'clock when Sara's group arrived at the harbor and if her instincts were right, if Rean's wasn't there already they'd soon arrive. The harbor sprawled across selges of Ordis' coastal line and innumerous buildings lined up the view, the zemurian ore possibly being hidden in any of them. Of course, the smaller ones could be discarded as well as any without a single guard posted, even if Duke Cayenne wanted to keep the presence of the metal hidden from his allies he still had to protect it.
She knew where to look, as did Fie and Millium, while the rest of her students were smart and had good enough instincts to figure things out. It didn't make the task any less tedious though.
"Jusis, Machias, Millium. Start over there," Sara pointed to their right. "Then work your way back, we'll take the opposite direction and our two groups will meet in the middle. Stick to the plan."
"Understood, instructor," both Machias and Jusis said simultaneously, drawing irritated grunts from both and a giggle from Millium.
"We'll keep an eye for any buildings being guarded by the provincial army and if any of them looks like they could contain the target we'll try to check in further. If we find it we'll immediately call Rean to pick it up with Valimar then everyone converges on our point," Millium said in textbook manner, a rare occurrence that showed that despite her looks and demeanor she had what it took to be an intelligence agent.
"Anything, Fie?" Asked Laura while the silver haired girl had both feet on her shoulder as she looked through a window into a building. Down south at the harbor, they had come across a set of four, large identical buildings that stood out due to looking fairly new. Aligned in a four by four grid and with mere four guards posted on each side plus another patrolling its premises, it ticked all of their boxes of suspicion.
Getting past the guards was easy, the men looked like they had been standing there, looking at the same landscape for the past month with nothing noteworthy happening and it took all but a moment of distraction for the four Class VII students to get past one of them.
The buildings couldn't be more than two arges apart, making the space between them somewhat narrow but not impossible to move, they just had to be careful with some cardboard boxes and garbage cans piled up along the way.
"Nope, just old armored cars," Fie replied, quietly jumping down from Laura's shoulders. "If they're all like this, we should try getting inside. I got a good feeling."
"Yeah, me too. There's something around this area that is bugging me before we even got past the guards," said Rean with a thoughtful, concerned expression on his face.
Laura not only agreed with their assessment about the set of buildings, she had felt a sensation of foreboding since they had arrived in the city. A slight tightening on her chest and a feeling of restlessness, not something she could easily describe but she attributed it to nerves due to their situation and the tense atmosphere in the city, and as such she didn't believe it worth bringing up.
They continued onto the next building and Fie's quick examination of the inside of it brought them to another vehicle deposit, as such they moved on to the next.
"I'm not-" A muted thud interrupted Elliot and he stepped back, bit caught off guard. It was almost imperceptible but for someone attuned with music and sounds like him, the sudden nature of the noise startled him, which unfortunately made him back away and knock down a garbage can and various boxes piled on top of it.
Predictably, the noise drew the attention of the guards and yells of "Hey, what was that!?" and "Go check it out," resounded.
"I-I'm sorry," poor Elliot stuttered as he looked at the others and the mess he had made.
"Should we take them down? It's gonna blow our cover but I don't see another option," suggested Fie.
"Who's there? Show yourselves!" The guard yelled, coming closer and closer to their position and about to round the corner into the alleyway between buildings.
A tense moment passed as Rean looked towards the passageway from where the guard would show up at any second and then back to his friends.
"Follow my lead," he said, then dropped the case containing his sword and immediately pulled Laura for a deep and passionate kiss, pressing her against the wall.
The swordswoman was stunned for a moment but then she quickly did the same, her arms wrapping around Rean as she put her weapon down with his, kicking it further into the alleyway so that their bodies obscured the cases.
Fie shrugged. "Alright."
"Wait, wha-hmph!"
Elliot had no time to process as the former jaeger grabbed his face and went in for an equally deep kiss.
"Who goes there!?" The incoming provincial army yelled from afar, dashing straight at the source of his suspicions before grinding into a halt when he realized what the mass of wiggling limbs and loud smacking sounds were.
"W-what in bloody Gehenna is going on over here?" Stupefied beyond belief as to what he was seeing, the soldier lowered his weapon reluctantly as he was completely ignored. "Hey! I said, what do you brats think you're doing here!?"
"Heeeey, sorry about that," much to his own displeasure, Rean realized he went immediately for an impression of Crow, which he pulled off better than he wished. Not a thing he wanted to associate while his lips rested above Laura's neck. "We just needed some privacy. You know how it is."
Privacy? These kids had trespassed their security to make out? It was utterly absurd!
"You see, my good man, our boyfriends, they-Ah!" Laura whimpered. Aidios, this was embarrassing but if it meant the guard would leave then alone it was worth it. "O-our boyfriends have been called to join the war effort and will be leaving soon. My cousin and I, our family is too overprotective and doesn't allow us any moment of respite."
"I-I see…" The man said slack jawed. They were really going at it, the other two further in the back couldn't even speak and honestly, it was making him a bit embarrassed to continue staring and so he turned his face away. He could understand the feeling however, more than once his duties with the army had forced him away from his beloved wife for months and the longing was painful.
"You kids have ten minutes, if you're still here when I return I'll report you boys to your superiors, understand?"
"Loud and clear, sir" Rean said with a jovial voice and a mock salute before returning to kiss Laura.
The soldier hurried away and left the two couples to their privacy, and only after they were sure that the man had bought into the farce that they disengaged, Rean and Laura slowly while Fie immediately stepped away from Elliot, who looked completely and utterly lost.
"Sorry about that," said Fie, wiping her mouth with her sleeve. "Are you alright?" She then asked with genuine concern because if she didn't know any better, she'd swear Elliot was shellshocked.
"Y-yeah, I'm… I'm fine, ah, phew!" The musician let out an awkward laugh and sighed to calm himself, although his red face told another story. At least Fie's nonchalance made it easier to get over what they had just done.
"That noise came from that building, didn't it, Elliot?" Rean tapped him on the shoulder and pointed towards one of the warehouses they hadn't checked yet, shaking the redhead out of his stupor.
"That's right. It was like, I don't know, an impact traveling from the building to the ground. I'm sorry I almost got us caught."
It was most strange, Emma didn't say anything about zemurian ore doing something like that. This new development would make them check the building either way regardless if it was related to their objective or not. They took their weapons out of their cases and Rean and Elliot kept an eye out while Fie climbed on top of Laura again.
The interior of the suspicious warehouse was dark, much darker than the other ones and it was harder for Fie to see what was inside, not helped by a large shelf right next to the window that didn't let her have a full view of the interior. Not another armored car depot, that she was certain, just a dark, vulturous shape she couldn't discern fully, covered by a large tarp. It was worth investigating further.
The window was locked but thankfully had no grate over it, unscrewing a steel grate would be a pain and the guard would be back by then, at which point giving up on stealth would be preferable. The window was big enough that they all could pass through it and pressing her face against the window, Fie saw it was locked by a simple mechanism on the other side, she just had to reach it
Fie pulled an orbal glass cutter from her satchel, a device that used orbal energy to vibrate a thin blade of steel at high frequencies that allowed it to precisely cut glass. First, she cut a small, circular hole on the glass, just big enough for her finger to pass through and the small shard to glass fell on the other side, the noise of it shattering barely being heard. She then put her index finger through the hole and then used her thumb to pinch the glass, that way she'd avoid the bigger piece she was about to cut to fall and create much more noise than the previous one.
When the second piece of glass was cut, Fie handed it to Laura who then passed it down to Rean to carefully place it on the ground. Her way open, Fie put her arm through the hole and felt her way around it until she found the lock and finally opened the window, unceremoniously passing through it and silently landing on the other side.
Next was Elliot and Laura gave him a boost. Credit where it was due, Elliot did not struggle to pull himself up and pass through and his landing was pretty graceful as well.
The swordswoman then turned to Rean, ready to give him a boost when she saw he was doing the same stance as her, ready to boost her up.
"Your turn now," he said.
"It's no issue for me to boost you as well, Rean."
"Yeah, well, still let me help you. You can't jump as high as I can."
"But I can still jump high enough to reach the window."
"I'm more agile than you."
"And I'm taller than you."
Rean opened his mouth but no fitting response surged in his mind for that point. Defeated by math, he accepted the assist from his girlfriend while grumbling that it was "Just by one and a half rege at most" under his breath.
First Rean passed his and Laura's swords through the window and Fie caught them on the other side before going through. When the thud of his feet signaled he had safely gotten over to the other side, Laura backed away, picking as much distance as the alleyway afforded her then jumped up, kicking the wall for an additional vertical boost, allowing her to reach the edge of the window.
Pulling herself up by her finger tips proved to be a little more difficult than she'd ever admit but she managed to join her friends, and not a moment too soon as the guard from before had returned to just miss the soles of her boots disappearing inside the building.
"Have you found the source of the noise… Ah!" the swordswoman covered her mouth with a hand and her eyes widened in astonishment, just like the rest of her group.
To their left on the other side of the building, bound by massive, thick chains stuck on the ground was a magic knight, shaped like a centaur like the one they had found embedded into a rock back in Roer's outskirts. Its head hung low and it was kneeling on its forelimbs, looking subdued, and upon closer examination it was possible to see a magical circle under it, likely keeping the beast down.
The golem let out a muted, low roar that reverberated across the building, the same kind they had heard from outside, and slightly tugged at its chains but aside from that, it didn't seem to acknowledge their presence yet.
It was madness to keep a creature like that in the middle of the city, for what purpose would they do such a thing, they thought. The answer came from Fie, who was checking under the tarp she had seen earlier and there they found it, various pieces of rock emitting a faint green glow, the zemurian ore just as Emma had described.
"If I summon Valimar here…" The monster would awaken and cause havoc, Rean was sure of it, and a magic knight let loose in the middle of the city would spell disaster, dozens dead before it was stopped. He couldn't risk it and his brain started to work overtime to figure out what to do.
"Elliot, call Emma, maybe she can-"
It turned out that a choice was about to be made for them instead.
"You bleeding idiot!" A man shouted from outside as boots stomped the ground, reaching under the window Rean and the others had used to get in.
"I thought they were just kids fooling around!" They recognized the voice of the guard who had caught them before.
"Fooling around my ass, you imbecile. They were obviously spying on our facilities. I can believe you'd be taken by such a blatant…" There was the sound of glass shattering, the piece Fie had cut initially, and a moment of silence before the man started speaking again, this time clearly talking into a radio. "Cosmo, check inside warehouse B-2. Yes, I'm aware we're not allowed to go inside unless it's an emergency and this falls under that situation, now get moving!"
"This is going to go bad, isn't it?" Said Fie, readying her weapons.
"Another dud," said Alisa as she and Gaius walked away from a warehouse while their instructor distracted the two guards on post.
A few moments later they reunited with Sara, Emma and Celine, the Hexen members feeling a little more rested.
"I didn't have much hope for that one either but it was worth a sho-" Sara stopped when she saw a couple of people run past them. Then more people. Then even more and the shouting started followed by provincial soldiers going towards the commotion. The source? The same direction Rean's team was supposed to be because of course it was.
Her ARCUS chimed soon after, Laura calling her. "What happened?"
"Instructor, they had a magic knight guarding the zemurian ore! Rean's currently engaging it," judging by her labored breath, Laura was running and sounds of destruction could be heard in the background. "We're following them and helping any civilians caught in the middle of the combat."
"Understood. I'll call Milllium's team and we'll converge on your position to assist you," Sara put her ARCUS down and took her weapons out of their case. "Alright, guys. Cover's blown and all hell's breaking loose. Let's help anyone we can on the way and hope the provincial army has more important stuff to worry about than us."
Valimar slid across the streets of Ordis as the magic knight rammed him with a charging tackle. Activating his boosters, Rean stopped their momentum then ground Valimar's feet onto the ground.
Rean was too aware of the precarious situation going on around him. On the streets people were running away screaming, scared, and inside the buildings on each side were people that couldn't run or that believed they'd be safer inside. One mistake could spell disaster.
The magic knight beat its fists and headbutted Valimar with ferocity greater than any other Rean had encountered, no doubt enraged after being locked up for who knows how long. How lucky that the magical golems had one emotion and that was fury, if only those idiot soldiers hadn't started shooting at it the moment they saw the creature this could've been avoided.
Speaking of which, a squad of soldiers had just arrived at the scene and started to fire bullets and Arts at both Valimar and the magic knight. Not that it did any damage to Valimar, it was annoying but he could ignore it. The magic knight however wasn't so considered.
Pushing Valimar away with both arms and front legs, the magic knight disengaged from his main quarrel and turned around to lunge at the soldier, but Valimar grabbed one of its hind legs and pulled the monster back towards him and stabbed his soldat sword on the beast's back.
The golem howled and shook itself, kicking with its free hind limb and freeing itself. With the sword still lodged on its back, it turned back to Valimar and Rean, recognizing them as the only threat it had to concern itself with.
"You, Ashen Knight, cease your reckless destruction this instant!" A voice amplified by a soldat's speakers boomed over the chaos and destruction and Rean saw a hector panzer soldat approaching him, halberd in hand. "I don't know what game you're playing bringing that monster here but-"
"Me? You people kept that thing locked in a warehouse!"
"But your act of terrorism ends now!" The hector raised its weapon, ready to strike but then the magic knight roared fiercely, emanating magic energy from its joints as a second set of arms spawn in it along with swords, one for each of its limbs, and two sharp horns like a bull's sprouted on its head.
"Aidios really must hate me."
"This way, follow me," said Laura as she urged an elderly couple away from a building that had been caught in the melee, a pharmacy judging by the half destroyed front sign. The owners perhaps? She thought about what relation they had to the building really hard as to push away memories of a fateful day 2 years ago and another building reduced to rubble.
These people were alive and counting on her, she couldn't falter.
They arrived on the other side of the street safely then rounded a corner where more people were gathering. Elliot was among them, administering a spell of Tear on a man with a bleeding arm. "Are you two well? Do you require medical assistance or healing Arts?"
"We're fine, dear, thank you so much for the assistance," said the kindly woman.
"Alright then," she then turned to the rest of the crowd. "I know it's obvious but I still must advise you all to get yourselves as far away from the conflict as possible. Look for soldiers of the provincial army, they may guide you best to safety."
It's the least they could do.
"Laura, I think that's everyone that hasn't managed to run away," said Elliot as he moved to her side. "Should we continue following Rean?"
"No other choice," she responded with a sigh. "Let's go."
It was madness. No sooner that one hector had showed up, it was joined by a spiegel model, and both were trying to simultaneously deal with the magic knight and apprehend Rean, only serving to cause more havoc in the space of a couple of minutes.
If this were to happen in Bareahard, no, within the borders of the Kreuzen Province I'd have these men's heads, thought Jusis as he took cover from a blast of dust and debris as the hector crashed against a building. He waited for it to settle down just enough to peek around the corner of the street and he saw the magic knight about to deliver a killing blow on the soldat when Valimar intervened, intercepting two swords with his left arm and deflecting the blow before pushing the golem away.
Well, at least someone had lost their heads, noted Jusis when he saw the hector's head rolling next to its feet. Despite Rean's intervention, the soldat was all forms of damaged and unusable, as was the building it had collided against. People were fleeing the scene, both bystanders who were outside and those inside the buildings. Instructor Sara had told them to help however they could with the collateral damage and that they'd take the zemurian ore later and Jusis had a mind to suggest Lamarre's problems should be solved by Lamarre's provincial army, but the citizens didn't deserve to suffer due to their lord's foolishness.
Cautiously, the young Albarea approached the destroyed building. "Is anyone here in need of assistance?" He called out from outside while behind him steps hurried away. Good, less people to worry about.
A quick scan of the interior area didn't tell much about what the establishment was, some kind of office at best. Jusis heard a pained grunt coming from inside and took a first step to enter the building but then he paused, looking back at the soldat, its cockpit clearly open, and he unsheathed his sword.
"I can cast healing Arts if you require," he spoke up once again as he carefully passed by the destroyed entrance. Soon, he found the pilot sitting on a couch and although he was covered in soot and bleeding from a cut in his forehead, he didn't seem at any risk.
"H-hey, yeah, over here. I think I sprained my ankle. Could you help me get up?" The man said.
He seemed fine enough, Jusis thought, surely he would be able to take care of himself. But then, Rean had seen fit to save the man's life and it would be a waste of his efforts if anything were to happen to him. Sighing, Jusis sheathed his sword and walked to the man, lifting him up and putting his arm around his neck to help him walk.
"I will take you to some place where there is no risk of the roof collapsing on your head, is that agreeable?"
"Yeah, thanks, kid," the provincial soldier said in earnest and the weight he put on Jusis' shoulder indicated that his limp was genuine as well. "I'm Frederick, what's your name?"
Jusis roleld hsi eyes. "This is hardly the time for pleasantries, but if you must know, I'm Jusis Albarea."
"Albarea…" The man muttered as his body went rigid and Jusis realized his mistake.
Both exchanged glances for a tense second that seemed to last an hour then simultaneously reached for their weapons. Jusis' sword slashed as it came out of its scabbard, something he emulated from Rean's Morning Moon, it wasn't the fifth form of the Eight Leaves One Blade, not even close, but it did the job of allowing Jusis to deliver a cut across the soldier's chest in a faster motion than what was common for his practiced court fencing.
On his end, Frederick pulled a small orbal pistol, recklessly pointing it at Jusis in and firing, the projectile grazing the young noble on the left shoulder.
The two fell on the ground and though Jusis was quicker to get himself up, Frederick fired another shot at his feet and kept the gun pointed at him, making Jusis stop.
"Is that how you express gratitude to someone helping you?" Jusis grunted at the pain on his arm.
Frederick, still on the ground, fired another shot at what he perceived as Jusis trying to make a move. "Don't take it personally, your lordship," the man groaned as he pushed himself off the floor with one arm, not daring to lower his gun. It was a struggle for him to lift himself up and hurt like hell to stand up, balancing all of his weight on one leg, but he did it and fired another shot for good measure.
"But you must know you're a person of interest for Duke Cayenne."
Cayenne specifically, not the Noble Alliance. He narrowed his eyes at the realization. "So that's the duke's game."
"You figured it out fast. Yeah, that's right, and there's a big reward for anyone who manages to capture you, so you'll excuse my lack of gratitude. Now throw the sword to the side and raise your hands."
Jusis stared defiantly and didn't comply, but when the orbal pistol fired at his feet he saw no other choice and threw his weapon between them.
"This is ridiculous. Do you expect to push me throughout the city in your state? Hopping on one foot while pointing a gun at me?" Jusis almost laughed at the thought but held it in, hoping to convince the man to give up his plan.
"Who said anything about me dragging you across the city?" Frederick said, reaching his belt for a radio. "Now don't try anything stupid. The duke requires you to be alive, not unharmed. So get down on your knees until reinforcements arrive or I'll blow your kneecaps!"
The threat was barked with sufficient amounts of aggression that Jusis was sure it wasn't an idle one, in fact, he had the suspicion his enemy might attempt to cripple him anyway just to be sure he wouldn't escape. He had no other choice, he still had his ARCUS strapped to his belt and so he would attempt to cast Adamantine Shield on himself then retrieve his sword.
Then there was the familiar sound of a shotgun being fired and Frederick fell to the ground.
It took Jusis a moment to realize what had happened. At first he believed to have been shot, his brain not having enough time to process the difference between the sound of a pistol and that of a heavier gun, then there was his would-be captor falling lifelessly with a heavy thud on the ground. And then he saw Machias behind the man, his weapon raised and shaking and his breath ragged.
"A-are you okay, Ju- Albarea?" He saw Machias swallow a lump on his throat and try to pick himself up. His hands hadn't stopped trembling.
"This is merely a flesh wound," Jusis said calmly, pointing at his shoulder. He then picked up his sword and walked towards his friend, putting one hand on his shoulder while the other gently pushed the shotgun down. "I thank you for your assistance, Machias. Now, let's rejoin Millium and the others."
Machias swallowed down again and closed his eyes shut, taking a deep breath and exhaling really slowly. "Y-yeah, let's… Let's get out of here."
The fight between the giant raged on and the second interfering panzer soldat, a spiegel, laid down on the streets of Ordis, its pilot long having fled.
It was difficult to fight the centaur knight, he should've killed the monster by now but Rean couldn't keep his eyes focused on the enemy as he was always making sure no civilians were nearby. He also was careful with his attacks, not wanting to risk hitting buildings where people might be hiding, and it limited his movements.
But Rean had gotten much better as an Awakener and his opponent was still a magic knight, all power and not technique. The monster was missing two arms as well as one of its horns, although due its nature it didn't fear death but instead became more and more relentless on its attacks. Rean had to wonder if Vita Clotilde had done something with it with how stronger it was in comparison to other magic knights.
The centaur knight charged at Valimar again with all its fury and although Rean braced himself for the impact, putting the soldat sword between them, the golem dragged him across the street and smashed the knight against a building. Around them, people scattered.
Rean struggled to push the centaur back and get it away from him and especially the building he and Valimar were being pressed against. Valimar's left hand caught his enemy's corresponding one, stopping it from striking him.
[Awakener]
Valimar sent the mental signal and Rean shifted his attention downwards to a girl that was dangerously close to them. Judging by the dust covering her, she had just managed to avoid being crushed by Valimar and fell to the ground. From the way she wobbled and struggled to get up, she seemed disoriented.
As Rean tried to push back against the centaur it raised its front legs and threw more of its weight on the Divine Knight, pinning him to the building while kicking with its hooves. The added weight and successive shaking of the building were all that was needed for a decorative statue of a seahorse placed on the roof to begin to fall.
Right above the disoriented girl.
No!
Rean didn't think twice, he didn't have the time to. He dematerialized from Valimar's cockpit and launched himself in the direction of the girl. He tackled her just in time to avoid the piece of rubble from crushing her (and himself), if he had been a half a second too late and held her tightly, using his body to protect her as they rolled on the sidewalk.
When their momentum stopped, Rean immediately got up and extended a hand towards the person he had just saved and helped her get up. "Are you hurt?" Her eyes were wide and breath ragged, there were cuts all over her face, her clothes were in tatters and she looked absolutely frightened. But she was alive and responsive, evidenced by the frantic nodding of her head.
She started to stammer a thank you but Rean flinched, interrupting her, and he turned his back to her.
"How much mana?"
[Reserves are short, but it'll be enough if we calculate it correctly.]
"Do it."
[Acknowledged.]
For a brief moment, Valimar emitted a faint glow and then he disappeared, just to reappear again behind the magic knight, causing the centaur to lose its balance and tumble forward. Rean didn't waste time, he engaged Valimar's remote control and raised his own arms, feeling the weight of the soldat sword in Valimar's hands as if it were on his own, and he thrust downwards, stabbing through the beast's back and pinning it into the ground.
The monster was finally finished off once Rean twisted the sword and sliced across its torso. Once it was finally over, he started to rush towards Valimar and pulled out his ARCUS unit, calling Laura and telling her to call and gather the others to the zemurian ore. He jumped at Valimar's direction and disappeared in a trail of mana and the Divine Knight took flight.
In the eyes of the girl Rean had just saved, it was the most heroic and daring demonstration of strength and nobility she had ever witnessed. Her analytical mind took in her surroundings, the destruction, injured people but no bodies, no deaths save for the rampaging monster that was now disintegrating.
The young noble girl, with lilac eyes and long, mint-green colored hair, would remember that moment forever.
Author's notes: This was a beefy chapter. Initially it'd have been split into two as they arrived at Ordis, but neither chapter felt satisfying by itself.
I wonder how many players thought about the statues being Sept-terrions (not necessarily the ones of Fire and Earth) before the explanation in CS4 but even then, considering the other Sept-terrions in the other games, I think it's hard to imagine them as mechas instead. Admittedly, the fic has more clues about it but even then "Fire and Earth fused into Steel which then divided into seven Divine Knights" is one hell of a leap and even Sara, who knows about the Aureole from Bracer Guild reports, wouldn't jump to that conclusion.
So yeah, that was Ordis. From the get go as soon as I decided I didn't want to do the shrine dungeon explorations, I wanted to make getting the zemurian ore to be something to do with Ordis. It was hard figuring out how to exactly proceed though. Where would the ore be kept, how would Class VII get it, why can't Valimar pop in, grab it and leave, etc. A heist plot is all about writing problems and solutions, those solutions failing and the characters adapting to that, I realized writing this. I can see it wasn't the most elegant thing in the world but I hope it was still entertaining.
And despite being a difficult chapter to write, the main ideas here have been floating around in my mind since the early days of the fic, including Machias saving Jusis and Musse's cameo.
Oh, coincidentally yesterday's Northern War episode featured the main cast in Ordis, which was... a weird one. It's a bit of a confidence boost to me, because if paid professionals saw fit to push that onto the public, maybe a little messy piece of fanfic isn't so bad.