0713MM: Hey guys! I welcome you to the 54th chapter of The Silver Valkyrie! I do not own Black Clover, nor its characters, nor the OCs that are used in this chapter. The OCs and spells used in this chapter belong to guardian of the aura Aurasoul and Warmachine375. Chapter start!^^
Chapter 54
After the 3rd month of staying in Elysia, Noelle recovered just enough that would enable her to go home. Pleased to hear this, Asta carried Noelle and their 3 kids all the way home. Mimosa thanked Gradielle for being her mentor, even if it was for a short while, and hoped to visit again. After that, she went back to the Golden Dawn base with Yuno and Ren. The rest of the Silva family, Liebe included, also returned to their respective homes. (With the exception of Mimosa's Mother-Erde, who returned to the Blue Rose Knights base.) Speaking of the Golden Dawn base, it hasn't even been a full week since the delivery of Asta and Noelle's triplets (Roughly 4 or 5 days.) and David was already celebrating, much to Yuno's ire, and Mimosa and Letoile's amusement.
"Hallelujah!" David cheered. "Fricking finally you and Ren are an item!" Yuno just gave David a blank expression, while Letoile and Mimosa laughed lightly.
"Ugh…" Yuno groaned. "You guys are gonna be like this for awhile, aren't you?"
"Heh. Obviously!" David grinned.
"It can't be helped, Yuno." Letoile told her squadmate. "It's been in the making since the Star Awards Festival."
"Maybe even longer than that." Mimosa giggled, unaware of the fact that she unintentionally referenced something. Ren, of course, figured out what Mimosa was talking about and felt her face heat up. As did Yuno's.
"Okay! Ren and I are going to bed now!" Yuno spoke as he picked Ren up and headed for his room. (Which he and Ren are now sharing.)
During this time, Vanica Zogratis had managed to get inside the Clover Kingdom thanks to a Spatial Magic stone her Mother gave her a few days ago so she could complete her mission. Masking her presence to ensure no one spotted her, she walked down the street in silence. Or rather, as silence as she personally could be.
"This is soooooooo ridiculous…!" She complained. "Why couldn't Mother send Zenon or Dante to do thissss? So not cool at all!" She would have continued to complain, but she had arrived at her destination: House Silva. Upon seeing it, her whiny attitude changed to a happy one. "Ooooh! Now we're getting somewhere! Now to get inside." Luckily for her, it wasn't that hard to get inside. Of course, she did have to use the front door. Masked presence or not, she couldn't risk herself to be heard by her breaking a window of a room to get inside. Once inside the dark house (no lights were on), Vanica began to look around.
"Hmm… Now where could the baby room(s) be?" Vanica wondered aloud to herself. She looked up and noticed stairs heading upstairs. Her lips curled into a dark smile. "Aha. So Asta and Noelle's kids are up there, hmm? Not only are they most likely sharing a room for the time being, but that bedroom is probably next to Asta and Noelle's. Heh. They make this too easy." After she said that, she then began going up the stairs. Once she got to the second floor, she looked around, trying to see if she could pick up Asta and Noelle's mana. If she could do that, then finding the 2's kids's room would be all too easy. Closing her red eyes, beginning to pick up the mana within the large house. Luckily for her, it didn't take long to find what she was looking for. A malicious grin appeared on her lips as she opened her eyes.
"Found you.~" She giggled to herself as she headed in the direction of the 3 babies' room. Once she got there, she placed her hand on the doorknob and turned it. To her surprise and delight, it opened up.
"Heh… I see they left it unlocked just in case the babies need there Mommy and Daddy." Vanica mused to herself with some slight giggling. Upon entering the room, she saw the 3 babies sleeping soundly in there cribs. She looked over each one carefully.
"Hmm… Mother didn't sound too picky about which baby of Asta and Noelle's I take back to the Spade Kingdom." Vanica mused to herself. "Does it really matter which one I take?" She then shrugged. "Ah well. Best to take one of them and get out of here." She looked over each baby soundly sleeping before picking one of them up and observed it.
"Hmm… Definitely a girl." Vanica mused to herself. She then looked down at the 3 cribs and noticed they had nametags on them. The baby from the crib picked up had the nametag of "Aci Silva".
"Aci Silva?" Vanica repeated with slight disdain in her voice. "What kind of a name is that? Booooooorrrrrriiiiiiinnnnnnng!" She then sighed, pulling out a Spatial Magic cube from her pocket and dropped it on the ground before stepping on it with her right foot; thus causing a portal to appear underneath her. "No matter. Mother will be pleased nonetheless." And with that, she fell through the portal, which vanished soon thereafter. Just after Vanica left, Asta and Noelle burst in, now picking up on the fact someone entered there home without them knowing. Why did they decide to check the babies room…well, that's where the sense of mana was coming from.
"Who was here?" Asta wondered aloud.
"I don't know but-" Noelle began, only to stop and notice one of the cribs was empty. Upon seeing it, Noelle's face turned pale from fear. "Nonononononono…..!" Asta, at first confused, followed where his wife was looking, and he too, felt his facial color change to pure white.
"Shit…!" Asta cursed in a panic before turning to Noelle. "Call Ren, Noelle!"
"I'm already on it!" Noelle remarked, frantically getting her communications device out of her pocket and called Ren. "Pick up pick up pick up…..! Please pick up….!"
Back at the Golden Dawn base, Yuno and Ren were in Yuno's room preparing to go to bed.
"Mm…~" Yuno hummed. "Training was long like usual, but still worth it to be able to do this with you."
"You mean when we go to bed together in the same bedroom?" Ren questioned with amusement in her voice.
"You could say that." Yuno agreed as the 2, now in there pajamas, climbed into there shared bed within Yuno's room. Once the 2 laid on the bed next to one another, Yuno turned his head so he was looking at Ren. "Soon, this year will be over. I hope by that point we'll be ready to invade the Spade Kingdom and put an end to this."
"That is the goal." Ren replied.
"Mmm…" Yuno hummed. "Well, goodnight Ren."
"Goodnight Yuno." Unfortunately for them, they didn't get to fall asleep for very long (roughly around 10 minutes) before Ren's communicator started to buzz on the bedside table. Yuno, slightly irritated, reached over to turn it off, but Ren beat him to it and answered.
"Hello?" Ren asked, a bit of tiredness within her voice.
"O-Oh thank god you answered…..!" Noelle's voice spoke through the communicator.
"Noelle? What's wrong?" Ren asked, frowning.
"Aci was taken!" Both Asta and Noelle answered frantically. This got both Yuno and Ren to freeze up-Ren moreso than Yuno.
"What?" Ren spoke softly.
"How?" Yuno asked softly as well.
"We don't know exactly…" Asta solemnly admitted.
"We just….." Noelle spoke before trailing off, tearing trickling down her cheeks. "Who would want to kidnap one of my and Asta's children…? And why…?" Anything else Noelle was going to say got drowned out by her own crying. Ren only frowned, starting to get up out of the bed. Yuno looked up at her in confusion; thus she replied.
"I'm going to spend the night at the Silvas." Ren told him. "It's clear that Asta and Noelle need me on this matter." Before Yuno could retort, Ren continued. "You'll see me again tomorrow for training. I can promise you that." Yuno fell silent before eventually nodding.
"Alright Ren." He replied. "Besides, if Mimosa heard us, she'd tell me to shut up and let you go to Asta and Noelle anyway."
"Good, you're learning." Ren grinned lightly before kissing him on the forehead. "I'll be back by tomorrow. Now you better be asleep by the time I leave."
"Alright Ren." Yuno told her. Ren only nodded before turning her attention back to the call with Asta and Noelle via her communication device. Though she took notice of the 2's light snickering at her exchange between herself and Yuno, Asta and Noelle's facial expressions ultimately didn't change.
"I'll be over at House Silva in 5 minutes or less." Ren told Asta and Noelle.
"A-Alright Ren…" Noelle spoke softly.
"See you then." Asta added before he and Noelle hung up. Ren rubbed her eyes before sitting up and getting out of the bed. Once she did, she went over to the door and opened it before closing it behind her. After that, she walked down the hall to make it to the entrance of the base. While she did that, she focused on Yuno's mana to make sure he went to sleep. Once she felt it reach a steady pace, she knew he was asleep, hence she left the base not long afterwards.
Ren was mad. No, she was furious. She didnt even care that her mana could be pulsating and waking up anyone in her radius and terrifying the citizens. If the culprit was still around she wanted them to get a taste of the upcoming wrath that was coming for them. Once she reached the Silva Manor, she slammed the doors open, ignoring the other awake household members and guests who could only stare at her fearfully. Once she reached the door to the nursery where she knew Asta and Noelle were still at. She took a deep breath to calm her temper, albeit for a moment and opened the door. Upon opening the door, Ren could see Asta and Noelle were just standing there, with a mixtured look of fear and uncertainty. They didn't even pick up on the fact that Ren had opened the door.
"H-Huh….?" Noelle spoke softly before turning to see Ren. "R-Ren…!"
"Tell me everything." Ren quickly said, seeing the other 2 babies in their arms.
"Well umm….. See, we just got here." Asta sheepishly answered. "But we did pick this up when we entered." He opened his free hand up to reveal bits of Spatial Magic mana.
"We….." Noelle began softly. "In all honesty, I don't know who did this….. From what little Mother told me about the Zogratis's, kidnapping a kid, let alone a baby, doesn't seem like something the youngest Zogratis kid out of the 3 would do. But we could be wrong…." That made Ren's mana flare as she took the stones.
"Oh no it could very well be them." She snarled lowly. "Especially now that they have Morris…!"
"You mean the Diamond Kingdom's former magic scholar?" Asta asked, which made Noelle shiver.
"All the horrid things he did to the children of Diamond…." Noelle spoke softly. "In addition to him potentially manipulating the Diamond Kingdom King to ensure he could do all that stuff legally… It's….. It's just….sickening…" Asta could only nod in agreement to Noelle's words as they listened to Ren continue to talk.
"Eva is the type who would have Morris experiment on a newborn for her own agenda. Especially those of her enemies." Ren snarled darkly.
"But why us?" Asta frowned. "I mean, not that I want them to get another person's kid, but I'm still lost on the whole kidnapping of one of our kids. Particularly Aci. And more importantly, who was sent?"
"Didn't we deduce Zenon?" Noelle told Asta. "But as I said earlier, does it really make sense for him to do this?"
"It doesn't matter which baby they stole; it could've been any of them. It wouldn't matter to them. All they wanted was emotional damage to us and to use the child as a weapon for them." Ren stated darkly.
"S-So…..wh-what do we do….?" Noelle asked fearfully, both from the prospect of what Morris would do to her and Asta's baby, as well as Ren's dark tone.
"Unfortunately we can't do anything." Ren snarled furiously. "The way we are now, we can't attack them until all the preparations are complete..!"
"Which isn't for another 3 or so months at the bare minimum…..!" Asta groaned. "Agh!" Ren looked at the stones in her hand, clutching them tightly causing them to shatter.
Eva Zogratis…..! You and your hellspawns are going to perish by my blades of light. I SWEAR IT! She thought furiously. Asta and Noelle looked at each other before turning their attention back to Ren.
"U-Umm R-Ren…..?" Noelle spoke softly.
"I'm going to spend the night here. In the morning, I'll discuss with the others about extra security around the borders. Better safe than sorry." Ren replied flippantly. Her tone was calm, but they both knew she was boiling with rage.
"A-Ah, r-right!" Asta and Noelle both said with stammering voices. Ren looked at them before slowly calming down with a soft sigh, patting the heads of a sleeping Cordelia and James.
"Go to bed. All of you." She told them gently.
"Right." Noelle nodded before putting Cordelia and James back into their cribs. Once she did that, Asta and Noelle went for the door to leave and head for their bedroom, which they did and closed the door behind them.
"Aww maaaaaan!" Vanica whined as she entered the underground lab while carrying a still sleeping Aci. "Just as I left House Silva, I felt the mana of the Elysia Elf Tribe Leader coming! I so wanted to fight her! ;-;"
"...You'd lose. Horribly." Zenon bluntly told his older sister from one of the desks as he turned around to face her. Once he took notice of the baby in Vanica's arms, his blunt demeanor instantly vanished and became stone cold anger. "What the hell is this?!"
"What? Mom said to kidnap one of Acier Silva's grandkids so I took one." Vanica stated, not seeing the problem.
"...I'm returning that kid to her parents. Right now." Zenon snarled. "It's one thing to use the citizens of our own kingdom," He groaned internally at him saying that, but continued. "but to use the citizen of another for leverage? Unacceptable! I…I will not stand for this!"
"And this is exactly why I didn't tell you about this assignment I gave Vanica." Eva spoke as she entered with Morris and the black armored figure behind her. "I knew you'd react this way. Which is why….." She held up a stone filled with Spatial Magic. "I gave Vanica one of these. See, if you try to return that baby, the Silvas will believe that you were Aci Silva's kidnapper. Meaning should you try to return her, they won't believe you."
"You did what?!" Zenon snapped.
"You heard me." Eva smiled, almost wickedly. "If we are to gain an advantage in the upcoming battle, we need as many as we can. And if we end up breaking our enemies in the process? Then so be it." She turned to face Morris. "Morris. Be a dear and start the experiment with the baby."
"Experiment?" Zenon looked ready to vomit.
"Why yes!" Morris grinned gleefully as he took the baby from Aci. "There's quite a lot to be done, after all!"
"Oh and Zenon." Eva spoke to him. "As a form of punishment for attempting to go against the plan due to your silly morals that you still cling to, you will be watching the entire experiment from start to finish. Do you understand me?"
"She's an infant mother." Zenon scowled. "Have we truly sunk that low at this point? Or are you so afraid of the enemy?"
"Afraid?" Eva repeated before laughing darkly. "No Zenon dear, I'm not afraid. If that was really the case, I wouldn't have been sending you or your siblings on those missions to begin with. I sent you on them because I knew you could handle them. And I've been doing my part here. Besides, I think it'd be quite fun to see Ren and the others squirm. And what better way to do that than to turn one of there own against them? Morris will not only be accelerating her aging to that of 15 so she can receive a grimoire, but she'll be given false memories to ensure that Aci is truly loyal to us."
"Oh yes and I'm sure we'll all enjoy being headless corpses in our own pools of blood once a certain tribe leader deals with us." Zenon sarcastically remarked. "Believe me mother, this plan will not end well for any of us."
"Least of all you." Eva added.
"Oh like you won't be feeling her wrath. Vanica especially since she and Megicula were stupid enough to curse the Queen of Hearts." Zenon scowled, motioning to his older sister.
"Hey!" Vanica scowled, but was promptly ignored.
"Even if I die by Ren's hands, she'll be going down a dark path she can't escape from." Eva remarked, a dark smile slowly appeared on her lips. "You are aware of how an Elf becomes a Dark Elf, yes?"
"Mother if she hasn't turned into one by now, then she isn't going to become one." Zenon deadpanned. "That plan of yours is down the drain. She has the magic stone, yet not once has she shown signs of being a Dark Elf. You were way off base with her in that regard."
"Heh… Are you sure about that?" Eva grinned maliciously. "Or have you forgotten what I did to that magic stone already?"
"It should've worked when she spiked and crucified me!" Zenon snapped.
"Perhaps not all the way, but it still worked." Eva pointed out. Zenon only snorted in disbelief. "And as for why Vanica and Megicula cursed Lolopechka….isn't it obvious Zenon? Who's the one person Ren is close to that isn't any of her immediate family members?"
"Oh good so we know the order of who's heads she is cutting off, good to know." Zenon scoffed sarcastically. "And when we die and in hell, I'll be sure to say 'I told you so' to all of you."
"You simply don't get it, do you Zenon?" Megicula spoke through Vanica. "If Lolopeckha dies, Ren will be broken beyond belief. And the 1 year left on Lolopechka's life is nearing, too." But to their surprise, Zenon only darkly laughed.
"And you greatly underestimate Ren Ombra, Devil. So do what you wish. I'll still be seeing you all in Hell." He stated, and with that turned and left.
"Oh no you don't." Eva told him. "You are watching this experiment on Aci Silva, like it or not. And if you refuse any further, I'll send you to the wolves."
"You already did that to me since I was a child, not much of a difference." Zenon deadpanned. "And I have to go back to work on the scouts that you placed under my orders. So unless you want to be behind on reports, good day." With that Zenon left as Vanica pouted, arms crossed.
"Who the hell does he think he is?" Vanica scowled. "You should have just cut him a bit before he left."
"Unfortunately he knows his duties, so he knows his loopholes." Eva frowned.
"Humph. Oh whatever." Vanica retorted before grinning. "I wanna see this experiment!~"
"Then by all means Vanica follow me." Morris smirked.
"Whoooooo!~" Vanica cheered gleefully as she followed Morris. Zenon let out his mana in a cold mantle, scaring off the servants and disciples as he walked down the halls outside. He robotically reached Allen's grave once again and finally let his breathing hitch as he kneeled down. Soon he felt his heart pounding against his chest as if it would jump out, his breathing becoming erratic as he clutched his sides tightly, coming to the realization he was having a panic attack in front of his best friend's grave. Again.
"I'm so sorry Allen, I'm so sorry Ren…! Im sorry Im so sorry….!" He choked, feeling his breath quicken. He soon felt a hand on his shoulder.
"Zenon?" A woman's voice asked him, worriedness evident within the tone. Zenon swiftly moved, unaware of his surroundings before facing the woman before him. A beautiful woman with long straight black hair, eyes as blue as her namesake, and skin as pale as the snow surrounding them. Zenon was shaking but his breathing slowly calmed at seeing the true Queen Consort of the Spade Kingdom: Ciel Grinberryall. The one he let everyone think he'd kill years ago.
"Wh…..Why are you here…?" Zenon asked her softly.
"I asked the others from the Resistance to allow me to get the information this time." Ciel said gently.
"Th…..That's good…" Zenon murmured. "And yes, I….I do have information…"
"Must be severe to have you reacting like this." Ciel remarked sadly. "You know you don't have to continue this. You've done so much for all of us as is."
"I know…." Zenon replied softly. "But if I stop…it'll give me away as a traitor… To them, I mean…"
"Zenon, my husband and Allen would never want you to tear yourself on the inside like this." Ciel said sadly. "And Ren…"
"Ren already hates me." Zenon answered.
"Once her memories come back." Ciel began.
"That's an if, Lady Ciel." Zenon corrected her. "And I'm not even sure if or when they will. There's the possibility that I'll be dead when she gets them back." He looked up at her. "Oh, and your son hates my guts too. But I guess that's part of the job of being a double agent."
"Zenon…" Ciel frowned sadly.
"I…..I'll tell you that information now, if you'd like." He remarked. Ciel could only frown but nodded in agreement. Once he saw her nod, Zenon took a breath before starting.
"Well for starters, Eva assigned Vanica an assignment to kidnap one of the Clover Queen's grandkids for some kind of experimentation by Morris's hands." Zenon began. "I would have returned the baby, but…..Vanica was given a Spatial Magic mana stone when she went to collect the baby. So if I even tried, the SIlva's would believe I did it." He put a hand to his forehead. "That's…only a portion of it…..." Ciel covered her mouth in horror at this as Zenon continued.
"They're…They're attempting to break Ren, as well as the others that oppose them. So that connects to the experimentation on a baby…" Zenon continued softly.
"Eva…! Just how low are you going to sink in this abyss…?!" Ciel whispered softly in her horror.
"Until they fucking succeed." Zenon scowled.
"And breaking Ren… This just shows how much Eva views her as a threat…" Ciel frowned.
"Yeah…." Zenon agreed. "And if Lolopechka does die to Megicula's curse or by any other means….that very well might do it….."
"Ren…" Ciel whispered softly.
"I…I don't know what to do….." Zenon tearfully spoke, looking up at Ciel. "Lady Ciel….. What…What do I do…?" Ciel hugged Zenon tightly.
"We may not be able to stop them from doing what they'll do to that poor baby, but we won't let Ren fall. I'll relay this to the others so they can pass it to Nacht and Tyson. We won't let them win, I promise you Zenon. And Ren will remember us again and someday we'll laugh together just like we used to." Ciel spoke fervently. Zenon hugged Ciel back tightly, feeling himself beginning to cry.
"This is so hard….." Zenon spoke softly. "But I have to keep doing this….."
"And the kingdom will be eternally grateful to you once we reclaim it, that I promise you." Ciel swore.
"I…I hope so…" Zenon softly replied. "I just….I just needed to get away from them… I don't even want to know how they do that awful experiment with that baby….."
"Neither do I…" Ciel frowned. Zenon shivered and felt the urge to vomit just thinking about it.
"You sure you'll be ok in the long run though?" Ciel questioned, worried.
"...I don't know…." Zenon spoke softly. He looked up at Ciel again. "But…..there is one way I can get Ren's memories back….. First, I'll have to insist to my-Eva that I bring the experimented baby with me when I get assigned another mission. Out of my siblings, it'd just make sense for me to bring her with me."
"Where are you going with this Zenon?" Ciel frowned, not liking where this was going.
"If we want Ren to regain her memories, I have to be the one that puts her near death." Zenon answered. "And with the child with me, she won't fight her hardest." He looked down. "I…I know it's cowardly, but if we want her to regain her memories back faster, I have to do this. So please…!"
"Zenon, one wrong move and Ren might just kill you." Ciel spoke, panicked at the thought.
"If she regains her memories because of that, then I'll take it." Zenon retorted.
"Zenon she'll be guilty." Ciel began.
"Maybe." Zenon admitted. "But considering all the crimes I've committed, it won't really matter." Ciel frowned, still worried about the plan and Zenon clutched her shoulders. "Please…..!" The Queen of Spade looked at him for a moment before she sighed.
"I do not like this, but alright. But just promise me this: Do not tear your heart more than it already is and remember all the teachings Ren gave you." She said. Zenon looked down after hearing that.
"Right… Ren's teachings….." He spoke softly.
"She won't be disappointed with you Zenon." Ciel stated firmly. "If anything once she remembers, the Magic Knights of the Clover Kingdom are going to have to try everything they can just to calm her down."
"Calm her down?" Zenon repeated.
"Because she'll be so furious and storm the castle and steal you from them." Cel stated, making Zenon sweatdrop.
"O-Oh…." Zenon murmured. "Well, it's not like your son would allow me to be around Ren anyway…"
"Eh? Are they actually close?" Ciel blinked.
"They are." Zenon nodded. "When I fought your son back at the Eye of the Midnight Sun's base and threatened Ren, he got extremely angry and awakened the usage of his forced Devil Contract with Astaroth. He aimed to kill me for my words, but he failed."
"... And did you do something similar to Ren?" Ciel questioned.
"What do you mean?" Zenon asked her. "If you mean a forced Devil Contract, then no. Ren is contracted with Fay and that won't change."
"Zenon, I know Eva. I'm sure she had you do something similar to Ren by making false threats or words. Did you or no? And how did Ren react?" Ciel asked.
"...You remember the magic stone that's been your family for generations?" Zenon asked her.
"Yes and I know Yuno has it. Why?" Ciel questioned. Zenon fell silent for a few moments, pondering his next words before he replied.
"Well, the magic stone is now in Ren's possession since Yuno gave it to her." Zenon answered. "As for what Eva did…..she infused it with more negative mana. So if Ren's emotions like anger or sadness go off, the magic stone will now greatly enhance those emotions to….dangerous levels for an elf. Especially if their emotional reactions are extreme enough."
"She did what?!" Ciel gasped.
"I saw it happen." Zenon spoke softly. "And Vanica dragged off the other one that got captured by Vanica trying to save Yuno and….Megicula cursed her, too…"
"Oh no…" Ciel gasped.
"I don't know if the curse that Megicula placed on the vermillion-haired girl is a killing one like the one on Lolopechka or not." Zenon frowned deeply.
"I'm sure Nacht knows something, so I'll speak with him." Ciel sighed softly. "But for now we'll do what we can."
"R-Right…." Zenon spoke softly. "W-Well, I guess I better get back in there, huh?"
"Are you sure you want to continue this? No one would fault you." Ciel began sadly.
"Someone has to." Zenon replied. "I know that if Allen were still around, he'd…he'd take turns between me and him….. Though he'd also be the one to tell me that I can stop at any point. And maybe…..maybe I would have….." He shook his head. "But Allen's dead because of me…. So….I'll continue…..for him…..and for everyone else in the Spade Kingdom…."
"Alright. If you're sure." Ciel nodded.
"I am sure, Lady Ciel." Zenon told her firmly. Ciel nodded as she stood and placed her hood on.
"I'll relay what you told me to the Resistance. Best of luck to you Zenon." She spoke.
"Thank you Lady Ciel…." He hugged her one more time before he turned on his heel and headed back towards the Spade Kingdom Castle, albeit slowly.
"I keep telling you I didn't kill anyone!"
"Yet."
"Shut up Fay!" Ren was scowling at her spirit while speaking on her communicator device.
"I'm just saying that both Fanas are in their rooms looking utterly disturbed." Fanzell remarked.
"Oh they'll be fine." Ren sighed. "Look, just know I am not in the middle of a murder spree."
"We should hope so." Alice replied on the other end.
"Weren't you going to talk to Queen Acier and the Wizard King about something?" Mars asked, remembering something being said earlier in the conversation.
"And you Vice Captain need to get your girlfriend out of her room." Dazu told Mars, which made Friede snicker and for Mars to groan.
"Yeah I was. Till you lot called me accusing me of murder!" Ren hissed.
"Hey, we had to be sure!" Mars countered.
"I apologize for this Ren." Valeria spoke up.
"Just be sure those 2 are ok and are eating." Ren sighed. "Plus I'm sure you won't be the only one accusing me."
"Probably not." Sister Lily added in with a light laugh.
"5 yul Yami calling accusing you of killing his vice captain." Fay sighed.
"Ha ha." Ren scoffed.
"Well, I'm off to train with Tyson and Friede." Valeria remarked. "Come on Friede."
"Coming!" The blackette girl called to her older squadmate as she left the Amber Phoenix squad base. Once the 2 left, Mars turned his attention back to the call.
"I'll go make sure that Fana and her elf counterpart are okay." He told Ren.
"Thank you." Ren sighed, hanging up and rubbed her face. She stood in front of the palace before finally going inside and walking down the halls to the door she was looking for and swung it open. Acier and Julius jumped with a yelp, quickly looking up to see an unamused Ren.
"O-Oh! Hello Ren dear." Queen Acier spoke.
"While I would lecture the hell out of you both for no doubt working the entire night. But after hearing what happened to Aci. I'll hold it off." Ren replied. "I wanna discuss with you on doing border patrols at the kingdom." Queen Acier and Julius look at one another before there attention back to Ren; concern evident on both of there faces. Queen Acier's moreso.
"I… Of course Ren dear." Queen Acier replied.
D-Dammit…! Queen Acier thought. I'm so sorry Asta, Noelle. I…I'll find a way to make it up to you…. I promise…..
"How would you like the border patrols to be done Ren?" Julius asked the Elysia Elf Tribe Leader.
"Have them set with Knights of different squads. We're knocking the doors of war soon, so we need group teamwork from all squads. Make sure the teams are versatile and able to back each other up if and when needed. Keep the ranks of the groups balanced so we have a strong opposition both inside and outside the kingdom. And drill it in that there will be no egos clashing or they will deal with me." Ren listed, arms crossed. Queen Acier and Julius both nodded at Ren's words.
"Right." Julius replied.
"That is reasonable." Queen Acier agreed.
"Good. As for schedules-!" Her communicator went off making Ren sigh and pick up. "Yes?"
"What the hell Miss Tribe Leader?!" Yami demanded.
"Huh?" Ren questioned. "I didn't kill anyone thank you."
"It certainly felt like you were." Yami deadpanned. "Mind telling me what the hell is going on?"
"Acier's granddaughter was stolen by the Zogratis." Ren stated simply. Yami opened his mouth, then closed it.
"...Those guys are so dead." Yami deadpanned.
"No doubt." Ren agreed. "But if that's all, I need to continue discussing some business with Acier and Julius. That, and I'm pretty sure I'm going to get more calls from the other squads about last night."
"Mm? Oh." Yami remarked. "Well, have fun with that." And with that, Yami hung up, making Ren pinch the bridge of her nose.
"It's alright Ren dear." Queen Acier told her reassuringly. "We'll figure this out."
"Right." Ren only nodded. "Then let's get to work.
Back at the Spade Kingdom, Zenon enters the castle and goes down to the laboratory to check up on the progress. Albeit, reluctantly.
"Whatever Morris and Vanica did to that baby, I'll be taking it off there hands regardless." Zenon told himself as he entered the lab. As soon as he did, he felt his face turn white as he saw what they did to the baby. Now no longer a baby, Aci's normal silver hair was now back and down to her shoulders, and she wore similar clothing to the other Zogratis's (military-like clothing). Despite all this, her eye color remained pink.
"Is she done?" Vanica asked Morris.
"Just about." Morris grinned as he did some more work. Soon after, he finished as a black mark appeared on Aci's forehead. "And now she's done! Memories rewritten, and contract with the Supreme Devil Asmodeus! Isn't it wonderful?!"
"Indeed!" Morris grinned maliciously. Aci opened her eyes and looked around.
"Is…?" Aci spoke softly. Morris and Vanica blinked in confusion.
"Huh…" Morris hummed. "Odd…"
"What happened?" Vanica wondered.
"...She may have the appearance and memories of a 15 year old girl." Zenon began, getting there attention. "But her mental state is still that of a baby's." As soon as Zenon said that, Aci felt nervous. While Morris and Vanica didn't notice, Zenon went over to her and gently grabbed her wrist.
"Oi Zenon!" Vanica pouted. "What are you doing?!" Zenon didn't turn around, but responded anyway.
"Taking her with me." He replied simply. "To help and train her." And with that, he left the lab.
0713MM: And that is that! Again, I'm sorry this took so long to finish. Had some other things going on. But ayyy! We got Ciel introduced and revealed the fact that Zenon is a double agent, so that's nice!^^ The other characters don't know that yet though! But they will eventually!^^ Oh! And Aci got taken by Vanica Zogratis and experimented on by Morris and Megticula, much to Zenon's horror. So with that in mind, what do you think they did to Aci Silva in the experiment?