Chapter 3: Danger
St. Petersburg, 9.30 am
A pall of lead-gray clouds hung over the capital of Euro-Britannia, giving it a gloomy appearance. Plus it was cold. In Caesar's palace, the seat of government, Grand Duke Henry Velaines coughed.
Damn… More than September it feels like December!
He coughed again.
"What a bad cough…"
Andrea said, standing in front of him.
Henry settled himself better on the throne.
"Lord Farnese… This is a stupid, ridiculous problem, but it's still a problem! Which also gives me no respite..."
"You should take an aspirin."
Henry stood up.
"After breakfast, not now. In fact, I'd better get going, it will be served soon. Do you want to keep me company?"
The blond man nodded.
"Yes, Grand Duke."
Once in the corridor the two walked towards the dining room.
"Have you heard the latest news from Area 11?" Andrea asked.
"If you are referring to the events in Fukuoka, yes. The Chinese Federation certainly has a hand behind this matter." The Grand Duke replied.
"What do you intend to do about it?"
Henry snorted.
"Let the motherland take care of it… We must fight against Europia."
Andrea nodded.
"Not that it's an arduous task... Europia is an ectoplasm, a few pushes will be enough to make it collapse definitively." He commented boldly.
The man smiled at the prospect.
"Soon we will be able to take revenge for the humiliation of Edinburgh, which occurred two centuries ago… We shudder at the thought of it!" He exclaimed.
The Grand Duke gave him a brief glance, then sighed.
"I don't think it will happen anytime soon... The situation is frozen, and the so-called ghost of Hannibal inflicts heavy losses on our forces."
At those words Andrea darkened.
"Yeah… A real bogeyman for our ranks, given his ferocity in battle. However, a single opponent, no matter how terrible, certainly cannot change the fate of the war."
" Joan of Arc." Henry reminded to him.
"Now it's different. No unhinged maiden will awaken the fighting spirit of the European people."
His subordinate stated, with conviction.
Paris, 8.45 am
Leila had just entered General Smilas' office.
"Take a seat." The man invited her, with a wave of her hand.
The blonde sat in front of him, staring at him seriously.
"How are things in Weiswolf?"
She shrugged.
"As usual."
"Those three Elevens?"
"They are proving to be excellent pilots. They have demonstrated this several times, inflicting severe blows on the enemy."
Smilas smiled.
"Perfect. They should thank you, if it were up to me I would have sent them to the guillotine."
"And you would have made a mistake… They are good fighters, as well as good friends of mine." Leila stated, smiling.
Her interlocutor snorted.
"Many would disapprove of your friendship with Elevens, especially if they are criminals."
Leila waved a hand casually.
"I don't care about other people's judgment... And then they are no longer criminals."
"As you wish… However, I didn't summon you here to have a conversation. Do you know what RIE is?"
Leila nodded.
"Recherche d'Intelligence Extra-terrestrial, better known as RIE, a program dedicated to the search for extraterrestrial intelligent life, started in the 1960s."
"Exact. Until recently it had given no results, apart from the so-called WOW signal, but now..."
"Now?"
"We received a message from space."
The blonde raised an eyebrow.
"But are you sure?"
"Oui. Our scientists have determined that this is not a hoax, nor a natural phenomenon."
"Are you saying that an alien civilization has contacted us?"
The blonde girl was incredulous.
"Exact."
Leila's disbelief changed to amazement. She had always found alien theories absurd, and now it turned out they were real.
"What kind of message did they send us?" She asked.
"Our linguists are still deciphering it. So far we have deciphered only one word."
"Which word?"
"Danger."
"Danger? What danger?"
Smilas shook his head.
"I have no idea. And I fear that such news not matter to our rulers… They don't care about Britannian invasion of our homeland, imagine any alien threats."
"And what should I do about it, General?"
"Keep your eyes open. If you notice anything abnormal, contact me immediately."
Leila nodded.
"Yes, sir."
The general looked at the time, then asked:
"How about having lunch with me?"
"I wouldn't want to disturb... And then there's Lieutenant Hyuga with me."
"Bring him too. An extra guest is always useful."
Leila nodded again.
"Oui, mon general."
Going out into the corridor she found herself face to face with Akito.
"Everything okay, Commander Malcal?" The latter asked her.
She nodded.
"Oui, Lieutenant Hyuga. General Smilas invited us to lunch."
"I understand…"
"Why the long face?" The blonde asked, noticing her distressed expression.
Akito shook his head.
"Nothing."
"It's better this way... Later we will enjoy a wonderful lunch, prepared by the best European chefs." The girl said, cheerfully.
Akito smiled, even in his heart he was thoughtful. Out there, somewhere, was his hated older brother Shin, who many years earlier had ferociously massacred his family, then vanished. He was the only one left of that bloodbath, and he intended to avenge the victims at any cost.
I will kill him... Maybe not today, not tomorrow, but sooner or later I will eliminate him with my own hands!
The boy thought.
Constantinople, 10:00 am
Shin had just finished breakfast when he suddenly sneezed.
Tawagoto… I hope I didn't catch a cold.
"Everything alright, Lord Shaing?" Jean asked him.
"Yes." He replied.
"You seem to have a cold." Ashley interjected.
"Maybe someone is thinking about me..." The Japanese surmised.
"Who?"
Shin wiped his lips with a napkin before answering.
"Probably Maria and Alice…"
Or Akito.
He thought.
"They must care a lot about you…"
He nodded.
"Exactly, Jean..."
"How about we take a walk around town?" Simon proposed to him.
Shin looked at him and smiled.
"Good idea."
He stood up from the table, then added:
"Let's get moving, I want to stretch my legs a bit."