Chapter 11

Raine dodged an arrow when Guy warned her about the liger, but she couldn't help but feel anxious. If Jade had been watching Luke closely enough to know he wasn't using fonons, he surely watched her with just as much interest. He must have realized she couldn't use magic after all and that's why he protected her. It was just frustrating standing there, trying to pull on the fonons with nothing useful happening. The strange frequency of the mana seemed so elusive and she just couldn't figure out why. She hoped to learn something from Jade's lesson, but in practice, she still couldn't find it. Something was definitely amiss.

Even with his back to her, she sensed him surveilling her though he never crossed sight over his shoulder to see her directly. He walked just feet ahead of her, no doubt feeling her watching him.

Behind them, Ion and Anise walked side by side. Mieu hung forlorn in the air, obviously worried about his master.

"What did they want him for?" Tear wondered aloud. Raine sped up to walk with her.

"It's interesting they'd take him to some ruins..." Raine said. "I would say it's probably connected to his first kidnapping."

"It could be," Guy said. "But I doubt it. Malkuth took him the first time and we don't even know why."

Hmm, Raine wondered, the God-Generals are chasing Ion and they're after Luke, too? What did that have to do with Malkuth? "Jade, you're a soldier from Malkuth. Did you ever hear about the kidnapping?"

"Not before Luke himself told me about it."

"I suppose it's not fair to expect a colonel to know everything," Raine said.

"But Field Marshall McGovern said that you and the emperor go way back," Tear said, stopping to let Jade come closer. "He never mentioned it to you?"

Jade shrugged, drawing suspicion from Raine. "Is that true?" She asked.

"We grew up together but that doesn't mean I'm privy to everything that goes on in the empire."

So he'll deny it. Raine figured as much. But now it just seemed odd that Jade wouldn't know about it. He was either lying or telling the truth. If he told the truth, Malkuth wasn't really responsible for taking him. Which was it? He didn't know what Choral Castle was because he asked Guy about it... He's telling the truth, she decided. Which meant Malkuth wasn't behind the kidnapping or the emperor either didn't trust Jade as much as everyone thought or even he didn't know about it. Which was more likely?

"I'm a bit curious about the kidnapping myself." Jade said. "However, it's more pressing that we find him alive. We'd better hurry before they decide he's not worth hanging on to until we get there."

Raine felt a sudden urge to head back for Kaitzur after all and wondered if anyone else felt the same way. Tear sighed and said, "Well, I suppose I'm responsible for bringing him back. He's probably scared to be by himself."

The sun began to sink below the horizon and the party finally stopped for the night. Guy insisted Choral Castle wasn't actually that far, but Anise complained that Ion was already too tired to go much farther. They'd still need some time to get there and the sunlight faded quickly. Raine acquiesced as well and put Elder McGovern's stolen book away that she was trying to read. She'd made some progress, but some symbols still eluded her, even after coming across the sign.

Tear worked on clearing a pit for a fire while Guy, resigned to worrying for the night, wandered picking up sticks to feed it with. Raine suspected he volunteered just so he wouldn't have to sit still. Ion rested on the ground, scratching Mieu while the Cheagle gnawed on some grass. Anise took up guard of the campsite, keeping a close watch on the sky. Jade set to work preparing ingredients for dinner. Raine approached him.

Now would be the time. It would definitely be better to talk to him on her terms rather than let him decide when to speak.

"Colonel Curtiss?"

"Call me Jade," he said, standing up. She walked away from camp, hoping that was sufficient for a message. Sure enough, he set down their food stores and followed her.

Now that they wandered away from camp, she wasn't sure how to broach the subject with his ability to control this strange form of mana. She glanced around; maybe she could see monsters in the distance somewhere. Maybe they would help bring up the subject, but then Jade spoke.

"You said you could use fonons." It was more of a statement than an accusation.

"I knew you caught on when you protected me." She was kind of thankful that he brought up the subject himself, though it made her uneasy now that words were said. Suddenly she felt she needed to defend herself. "I wasn't lying when I said I can fight for myself."

"Indeed."

"I noticed you were able to draw energy towards you, but for some reason, I couldn't. You're a human. If anything, I should be able to use it just as easily as you can."

"Human?"

Something in the way he said that made her pause. Why would he ask her that? He was a human, wasn't he? "Yes." At least, he looked it. Was he truly a half-elf after all? No, he didn't have a mana signature of someone who also had elven blood.

He pushed up his glasses and looked her in the eye. "And what about you?"

"I…" Raine stared at him. "What about me? I use mana very well." She replied hotly, daring him to challenge her. If he didn't believe her, she was certainly going to send him the message not to let the others know about this.

"Oh?"

Jade really made her uncomfortable. He sounded like he didn't believe her. Did he suspect, too? "Elder McGovern asked you to protect me."

"Oh, well, I suppose I'll have to do that before I can crucify you." Jade shrugged his shoulders. "Until then, I suggest learning how to use fonons or you'll be in danger of being less useful than Luke, especially in his current state." She narrowed her eyes and glared. He definitely didn't believe her. The insult was a bit much, too.

Then she softened, realizing the meaning behind his words. He didn't mean it about the crucifixion. He knew she was a half-elf, but he also wasn't going to hurt her. There was a bit of comfort in the sarcasm that allowed her to smile. He was as sympathetic as Elder McGovern. He, at least, didn't fear or hate half-elves even if tension was high.

"I presume you taught Genis all about mana. Who taught you?"

"That's none of your concern." Raine turned her nose away from him. Even if he knew she was a half-elf, he might not be quite as lenient if he knew she was from Sylvarant, too.

"Perhaps not," he said, "but you're a bit esoteric. You know things I wouldn't expect you to know."

Like what? Raine wondered.

"You insinuated that you're self-taught, which means you've read some ancient books. I suppose that makes more sense than you having an ancient tutor. It leads me to wonder where you found such books on Radessia."

Ancient? "I study ruins," she said simply. "The ruins of the Meggiora Highlands yield much ancient knowledge, if only I could have acquired it all. Unfortunately, we had to move on." She lied, feeling less and less like she should volunteer anything else. He must have sensed as much and took the conversation in a different direction.

"You were found outside of St. Binah," he said, "with a flying machine."

"Yes," Raine said cautiously. She certainly hadn't read any ancient books on those... He must know that.

"The Kimlascans have come a ways with using the hover drive on it." Jade had merely commented on an observation, but Raine found it harder to control the build in anxiety. It almost felt like a spider had spun a web around her and she felt its fibers closing in. "How did you come to have the flying machine when it's not yet finished?"

Not yet finished…? Raine puzzled over those words. How could the flying machine not be finished? They stole perfectly good machines from the Renegade base, but Raine didn't believe they were that new. Come to think of it, even Guy seemed to think they were new.

"Hmm…" Jade watched her, so she turned her back to him completely.

Something was definitely strange here. If the Rheairds were still being perfected for flight, how come they worked so perfectly before now? It did seem strange for them to be trying to build flying machines when the Renegades clearly had their own. But then again, Sheena had said that the Renegades had told them about Sylvarant and their Chosen. Somehow, she assumed that just because Tethe'alla was in contact with the Renegades and had flourished, that maybe technology had already advanced. Not only that, Sheena had said that exspheres were used to power magitech…. But now that she thought about it, she hadn't seen as many machines as she expected before she got here. In fact, something else bothered her, and now would be a good time to ask.

"With the available technology, why are we on foot?"

"Spoiled from using the flying machine, I suppose?" Raine ignored his remark. "The God-Generals took control of the Tartarus."

Oh heavens, Raine thought, clenching her face as she closed her eyes. What the hell was that now? The Tartarus, at least, she could assume was some sort of vehicle, like a motorized wagon. Didn't Luke mention something about that once? She pulled her notes out of her bag and flipped through the pages, though in the darkening light, it was much harder to read.

Jade waited for her to say something, so when she didn't, he pressed her. "It seems ancient knowledge isn't your only forte. It is news to me that the flying machines were considered ready for flight."

"Guy mentioned Class M's hundredth win," she said, speaking of what little she did know of Tethe'alla. "Besides, you're a colonel from Malkuth. I wouldn't expect you to be completely current on Kimlasca's research." What if the people of Kimlasca somehow stole or borrowed the technology from the Renegades and were now perfecting it? That might explain this... But she couldn't find anything about the Tartarus in her notes and she closed her book.

"I suppose not."

Something about his response deepened the mystery, as if he knew more than he was letting on. She could see Guy knowing more about the Rheairds, but why should a foreign Colonel think he should know more about them? Unless the emperor had a spy somewhere. That could be. In that case, the emperor would trust Jade. She shook her head, not knowing what to think. She didn't say anything further, but returned to pondering about the strange energy.

"Where did you really find the flying machine?"

Raine looked back at him and noticed he refused to look at her directly. So, he didn't believe her about that either. She wasn't actually from Sheridan, was that it? "I stole it."

"Ah." Jade nodded, smiling knowingly. "That would explain your lack of knowledge of it. That's pretty gutsy, stealing a flying machine from Sheridan."

"Yes, I suppose it is." Raine said. She smiled, too. He wasn't going to do anything about it, she knew that now.

"I'd be interested in hearing how you managed it. It would be a perfectly good way to enter Malkuth, though not as undetected as you would like, I'm sure."

"Don't flatter your empire," Raine said. "I had no intention of breaking into a place where I am unwelcome. This has always been an accident."

"I see." He glanced past her, noticing something. "I suppose I'll leave that alone for now." He walked back to the camp to prepare their evening meal, but she stayed where she was. Something still felt very off, but this time, she couldn't quite place what it was. Everyone's behavior was so strange, yet they knew exactly what she really was. How could they possibly know? She sat on the grass and looked out, watching a cloud pass bathed in red from the sunset over the distant ocean. The Renegades seem to have technology that others didn't have, but the difference here was that everyone seemed to know about the Rheairds. And the half-elves were sharing the technology with the humans while simultaneously not sharing the schematics. Perhaps that was why tension increased. Was there a possibility of war breaking out over the use of the technology?

She settled her chin on her knees with her arms wrapped around. The ground seeped moisture through her clothes, but she ignored it.

"Are you okay?" It was Guy. Again? He sat down next to her—well, as "next to her" as a prejudiced man can be when joining a half-elf's company.

She sighed, but didn't answer.

"Come on, you can talk to me."

"You insist, huh?"

"Sure, if that helps you cheer up a little. Are you worried about Luke?"

"No, but you are," she said. "I saw the disgust you threw at Jade when he announced it's time to rest." In fact, she suspected he only came to sit with her to forget his own worry.

He shook his head and looked away.

"It would be stupid of them to kill him," Raine said.

"I just can't figure what they'd want with him. And why Choral Castle?" He sighed and turned back to her. "Actually, this gives me the perfect excuse to check things out. I think you're the only other one who'd be interested in going to that place." She couldn't deny it.

"You wanted to look into Luke's kidnapping?"

"It was just weird." But he didn't elaborate. Instead, he said, "You love studying ruins. Any interesting stories?" Of course there were interesting stories! Well, interesting to her, anyway. They probably wouldn't entertain him, though. His asking... Guy definitely wanted to focus on something else. His loyalty to Luke was unfounded, and Raine couldn't help but admire him for it, even with his prejudice against her.

"Stories about ruins? I doubt you'd want to hear any."

"Of course I do. Anything is better than thinking about what the God-Generals are doing with Luke."

"They won't kill him," she repeated.

"Literally, anything else."

"Is it common for Cheagles to talk?"

His eyes widened at the question. "No, actually. It's the Sorcerer's Ring. He got it from the Cheagle elder."

The ring around Mieu's middle? Ears perked, she couldn't help but feel a little excitement. This was something she could ask about! "How did you get it? How does it allow him to talk?"

"I actually wasn't there for that, but from what I've gathered, Luke saved Mieu's life and now he has to serve him. I think there was something going on with Ligers, hence Arietta's being upset with us."

Ah, that. Raine wondered about that, the ligers' home being burned and then Tear and Luke killed the liger queen. That was related to this? "Luke told you about that?"

"I had asked him, but he told me he didn't know the liger was Arietta's adopted mother. He went into the forest to check out something about Cheagles stealing food, but then he went into a rant and I quit listening."

Raine laughed, causing him to smile, too. "That sounds like him." Finally, she opened up her body language, sitting with her knees pointed at him. "You want stories about ruins, huh?"

"Please."

She told him about working with a man named Linar on a puzzle. What the locals thought was a summon spirit was actually a monster preying on the village.

"I played the maiden who was to be the next sacrifice, and when we realized what was really going on, we fought and killed the monster." He was a good audience, entertained by the story, even if his indulging smile betrayed his true thoughts. He didn't believe a word of it. For some reason, that didn't matter.

Another replica? How many are there? Jade wondered as he molded balls of rice with his hands. He suspected Ion, Luke, and now Raine, although for some reason, Raine wasn't taught the basics of how the world works like Ion was. Which meant that Raine was probably an experiment. She was older than Luke, and therefore possibly a test before Luke's creation. Her brother, Genis, was likely another. She had been fed and physically taken care of, but she wasn't properly educated. She could read, though, which he thought was strange. Why teach her to read and nothing else? Or was she programmed that way? Was the purpose just so she could learn on her own or to test the intelligence of a replica?

She loved her books and always had them open, studying. Thinking that she learned everything from ancient books, it certainly explained her knowledge of such an ancient thing as mana. The only problem was... well... He glanced back at her and Guy talking. She had said she traveled with her brother for twelve years…. Did her creator resolve the issues with the Big Bang?

A/N: So, some new material, some you might've seen before the plot shift at Fubras. :) There are no Luke diary notes because he's not here to write them. Oh well. He'll have a lot of catching up to do when we get there! The next chapter should be posted in early March, 2021. I'm juuuuust about finished with it. See you soon!

~~Kat