Chapter Sixteen – A Captain's Duty
"Are you listening to me, Cyrus?" Aurelia snapped.
"Hmm? Yes, General… I am to be Lady Mildine's guardian this Sunday when she goes out to Heimdallr with friends," Cyrus responded.
"Then tell me who's supposed to be joining Lady Mildine on her outing," Aurelia demanded.
"Princess Alfin, and their friend, Elise," Cyrus responded. "With Princess Alfin being the other reason why you've assigned me this task."
"Yes, very good. Given your tutelage under Matteus Vander, you are also given the task of assisting the Vander Family with their job in protecting the Royal Family. As you know, His Majesty is protected at all times by the Thunder God, whilst the Empress is kept safe under the ever-sharp eyes of the Stormwatcher, Aurier Vander. Müller accompanies Prince Olivert wherever he goes, and when Matteus' youngest son, Kurt, is old enough, he will one day be Crown Prince Cedric's guardian. That leaves Princess Alfin, who chose you to be her guardian, as Master Zechs cannot fulfil his duties when stationed at Zender Gate," Aurelia explained.
"Yes, thank you for the recap, Aurelia. It's not like I wasn't there when Princess Alfin asked me to be her guardian," Cyrus snapped.
"When you are on official Provincial Army business, you will address me properly, otherwise I can find a suitable position for you scrubbing the floors of Juno, Captain," Aurelia glared, her usually crushing gaze having no effect on her brother.
"Apologies, General. Sometimes I forget myself," Cyrus stated, bowing to Aurelia. "I'll make sure it won't happen again."
"This is about Ferris, isn't it? I told you already Cyrus, we will address that when time permits," Aurelia stated. "Until then, this assignment from Lady Mildine demands your full attention."
"I understand that, but you can't tell me what Ducky said isn't concerning," Cyrus asked.
"No, it is… Ferris wouldn't do something so stupid, yet the words came right out of her mouth when we asked her about it. I don't think I've ever seen Auntie Ophelia look so distressed," Aurelia frowned.
When Aurelia and Ophelia arrived at Thors on the day the Midterm results were posted, they were there to see Ferris, as well as speak to the Le Guin-Florald Family Doctor, Donald 'Ducky' Mallard. The day before the results were posted, Ferris had finally woken up after days of care and observation from Dr. Mallard and Instructor Beatrix, and what she had told them concerned them greatly.
"I'm sorry, let me get this straight, you did it to yourself?" Aurelia asked, looking at Ferris incredulously.
"Yes…" Ferris muttered, looking down at the bed she was lying in.
"But… Ferris, darling, what in Thanatos' name would drive you to poison yourself?" Ophelia asked, her usually stoic face replaced with sorrow.
"I… I don't know… I just… I'm just sick of all the bullshit I've had to deal with the last couple of months," Ferris muttered.
"The poison Instructor Beatrix and I found in Ferris' bloodstream was a low-yield toxin. Non-lethal in small doses, but repeated use results in organ failure, which is what Ferris started to experience when she collapsed in class last week. Our preliminary testing showed signs of acute renal failure, so it's a good thing she was in class when she collapsed, otherwise, if she was by herself, she might not have been discovered until it was too late," Dr. Mallard stated.
"A good thing? A good thing?! My little girl tried to kill herself, and you're telling me it's a good thing?!" Ophelia shouted, tears forming in her eyes.
"Auntie, that's enough. You know that isn't what Ducky meant," Aurelia said, standing in front of Ophelia.
"Yes… Yes, you're right. I'm sorry, Dr. Mallard. Thank you for saving my daughter; you as well, Instructor," Ophelia sighed as she took a moment to compose herself.
"That's quite alright, Countess. We're just happy Ferris is recovering," Instructor Beatrix said with a smile.
"She was lying, you know," Cyrus stated, looking out of the window of Aurelia's office in her Heimdallr residence.
"Excuse me?" Aurelia raised an eyebrow.
"Ferris. She was lying about poisoning herself," Cyrus clarified.
"Yes, I've heard about your uncanny ability to detect a lie… Another parlour trick that teacher of yours taught you, no doubt," Aurelia scoffed.
"Call it what you want, Aurelia, but I know Ferris was lying. She's covering for that little rat, Patrick," Cyrus claimed.
"You have no proof that the Hyarms boy was involved. Yes, he might have had fifty million reasons to do it, but there's no way he'd poison someone. Yes, he's a cowardly little shrew who hides behind his father and surrounds himself with bootlickers, but he's not a killer," Aurelia responded. "I don't even think he'd know where to get poison from, let alone have the knowledge to actually give it to Ferris frequently without her knowledge. Do you honestly think Ferris would be stupid enough to accept anything from someone she doesn't trust?"
"No, you're right, but… Let's say it wasn't Patrick, who else would gain by trying to kill her?" Cyrus asked. 'Well, there's a dozen people I know already, but only one uses poisons, and not something weak like what Ferris had ingested…'
"Don't go down that path, little brother. You're only asking for trouble by making assumptions," Aurelia muttered. "For now, keep an eye on Lady Mildine, Her Highness, and this friend of theirs, and make sure they're safe when they go out tomorrow."
"Yes, ma'am. Will there be anything else?" Cyrus asked.
"No, you are dismissed," Aurelia said, waving a hand to send Cyrus away.
"General," Cyrus nodded as he left the office.
When Cyrus left Aurelia's home in Heimdallr, he was offered a ride back to Trista by Reginald, who had taken both Aurelia and Cyrus to Heimdallr in the first place, but he refused.
Instead, he decided to send Reginald back to Trista alone, since he now had the task of looking after Ferris himself after his daughter, Sariffa, had been judged to be unworthy of the task by Cyrus after Ferris collapsed in class.
After bidding Reginald goodbye, Cyrus decided to walk to the train station, which wasn't too far from Aurelia's residence in the capital. Judging by the time, he knew he should have enough time to walk to the station before the next train for Trista was due to depart.
As he arrived at the station, he sighed heavily and noticeably as he was greeted by half a dozen men wearing the grey uniforms of the Railway Military Police; he knew what this meant. As he approached the officers, he saw their commanding officer leaving the train station and walk over to him.
"Cyrus, isn't this a nice surprise?" the officer smiled.
"Captain Claire Rieveldt of the RMP… I think we both know this is the furthest thing from a surprise. I assume he wants to speak to me," Cyrus muttered.
"No, that's going to be my job. If you would please follow me," Claire beckoned as the other RMP officers stepped aside to allow Cyrus through.
Claire had ended up escorting Cyrus to a small briefing room inside Heimdallr Central Station, in which the RMP were based. When he entered the room and sat down, Claire handed Cyrus a manila folder and asked him to open it.
"What am I looking at here?" Cyrus asked, turning the pages around.
"That's the group His Excellency has asked you to eliminate," Claire stated.
"Hmph, the famed Blood and Iron Chancellor doesn't mess around, does he?" Cyrus snorted.
"He does not. Let me give you a quick rundown of the mission," Claire said, her face remaining expressionless. "The Sons of Zaros. That is who your target is for this mission. They're supposed to be an off-shoot of some Aidios rejecting cult that was wiped out a few years ago. I'm told you know of this group."
"Almost two thousand people… I can't pretend that I'm surprised some of them escaped," Cyrus muttered. "I assume this 'Zaros' is some kind of God they worship?"
"That is what the Intelligence Division uncovered, yes. Whatever they're up to, it seems that they require bodies for something, as a dozen people have gone missing off the streets of Heimdallr in the last week alone, and all of them children," Claire continued, watching Cyrus' expression darken considerably.
"This had better not be another 'Paradise'…" Cyrus whispered, poring over the files in front of him.
"What was that?" Claire asked, looking at Cyrus with curiosity.
"Nothing you need to concern yourself with, Claire…" Cyrus muttered.
"That's 'Captain' to you," Clarie stated with a frown, which made Cyrus laugh.
"Fuck your rank, Claire. It means nothing here," Cyrus responded. "Besides, you know as well as I do that only subordinates address superior officers by their rank, and since I am neither your subordinate, nor are you a superior officer, I don't have to address you by your rank. However, if pulling rank is something you like to do, then you can also address me as 'Captain', given the position I hold in the Provincial Army."
"You're a Captain too?" Claire blinked. "It seems that information was omitted from your file…"
"What else does your little file say about me? Obviously, it contains suspicions that I was the Assassin known as Yang, before Lechter managed to confirm that in Parm, and it must also contain information about my ongoing feud with Ikaruga and their Death Squads, given how Lechter also hired the Second Squad Commander to come after me in Parm as well," Cyrus snorted.
"You knew about that?" Claire gasped.
"No, it was merely a suspicion, which you just confirmed for me now," Cyrus smirked.
Claire turned her back to Cyrus for a moment. Despite her usually cool and calm exterior, she was furious that Cyrus had managed to get the better of her and get her to admit sensitive information to him. Lechter had told her that Cyrus had gotten careless recently, allowing secrets he had kept buried for years to start to become uncovered, but was that really the case? Had Cyrus gotten careless, or had he simply made it look that way to find out what exactly the Chancellor been able to uncover on him?
While Claire was inwardly chastising herself for letting him get the better of her, Cyrus was sitting in his seat, enjoying watching Claire have her mini meltdown. He knew she was highly intelligent, as Aurelia's files on the Ironbloods had already stated, but Cyrus knew that Lechter was the smarter one between him and Claire, and he had decided it was a good opportunity to exploit that, given the Ironbloods were using him to do their dirty work.
"Ok…" Claire breathed as she turned back to face Cyrus, her face the picture of composure. "We have reason to believe this group are hiding out in a warehouse in the Port of Heimdallr. The Heimdallr Military Police have reported seeing several strange figures walking about at night, wearing cloaks and trying to keep to the shadows."
"So, if you know where they are, why do you need me? Just go and arrest them already," Cyrus shrugged, leaning back in his chair and putting his feet on the table.
"His Excellency has given you this task, because he wants no survivors. If they really are a part of this cult that is looking to regain a foothold in the Empire, making arrests won't cut it, and the HMP, nor the RMP can be seen killing civilians. For this, we need Yang to enter the building under the cover of night, and eliminate everyone inside," Claire explained.
"No survivors, huh…?" Cyrus frowned as he noticed the look on Claire's face. "What is it?"
"According to the intel the Intelligence Division has gathered, it seems this group have also been recruiting children to help with the kidnappings. It's a lot less suspicious if children are seen together, as opposed to a child being approached by an adult," Claire explained, swallowing hard.
"What aren't you telling me, Claire?" Cyrus asked, noticing how uncomfortable Claire had become.
"His… His Excellency expects no survivors… I trust you know what that means, Cyrus?" Claire whispered, swallowing hard again.
"You expect me to kill children as well? You work for one fucked up piece of shit, Claire. You do know that, right?" Cyrus responded, glaring at the Captain.
"Your opinion of His Excellency means nothing to me, Cyrus. Completing this task is for the greater good of the Empire. You don't have to like it; you just have to do it," Claire stated.
"Fine… But I want you to know this… The blood that I am going to spill is on your hands just as much as it will be on mine. I can live with that, but the question is, can you?" Cyrus asked, his gaze never leaving Claire as he stood up and left the room.
"Next Saturday night, Cyrus. That is when the Chancellor wants the job completed by," Claire stated as Cyrus left the room.
"That piece of shit is hiding something, I know it…" Cyrus muttered.
"How can you be sure?" Sara asked.
"It was the way Claire conducted herself. It was almost like she was trying to tell me something without actually speaking the words. I don't know what it is, but I don't like it. Killing children though… That's going to be a difficult one," Cyrus sighed.
When Cyrus returned to Trista, he found Sara sitting in the park with a black cat on her lap. The moment Cyrus approached Sara, the cat hissed and ran off into town. Noticing that something was bothering Cyrus, Sara offered to sit down and talk with him about whatever was on his mind. In the name of privacy, Sara had decided that her room was the best place to go and have the conversation.
"Don't think of them as just children, Cyrus. Despite their age, they're willing participants in the Cult's operations here. We can't have them coming back, not in any way, shape, or form," Sara stated after a few moments of silence.
"Hmph, I didn't expect you to be so cold, Sara," Cyrus snorted.
"It's just… I know how dangerous children who have been indoctrinated can be. Look at how dangerous Red Reaper and Bloody Shirley were, and they were barely out of their baby clothes," Sara replied.
"You can count yourself amongst the group of 'indoctrinated children' as well, can't you?" Cyrus asked, getting a surprised look from Sara.
"I don't know–" Sara began.
"Save it. I already know. Ibaraki-Dōji said you were as much, but I looked into it and found out the truth. You were recruited as a child to join the Northern Jägers," Cyrus stated.
"Leave it to you to uncover the truth," Sara muttered, letting out a snort of wry laughter.
"Correct me if I'm wrong, but that's why you took Fie in and brought her here after the Jäger King died in battle with the War God, isn't it?" Cyrus asked.
"Nothing gets by you, huh? Well, I suppose you're mostly right. I'm pretty sure it was my reputation as a Jäger that caused Rutger to seek me out," Sara muttered.
"Rutger, huh…? So, that's the old man's name. Yet, I'm surprised that he chose you, of all people, to seek him out and take Fie away," Cyrus mused.
"Apparently, it wasn't his choice. Before his fight with the War God, a man told Rutger to go find me. He knew exactly where I'd be, and when, and it kinda scared me at the time," Sara continued. "He wouldn't say who it was, but he just said 'be the light in the darkness that helps my daughter avoid becoming what we were'… It was almost… Prophetical, in a way."
"'Light in the darkness', huh? Interesting turn of phrase," Cyrus muttered. "Tell me, does the name 'Nemesis' mean anything to you?"
"No, should it?" Sara asked, looking at Cyrus with intrigue.
"No, no… Just a name I heard somewhere with that phrase. Pay it no mind," Cyrus sighed, leaning back and gently hitting his head on the wall of Sara's room. It seemed that whatever Celis had tried to tell him in Saint-Arkh was definitely top secret, which just added to the confusion surrounding the name.
"I take it you're still worried about these 'Sons of Zaros'?" Sara frowned.
"Yeah, I don't know what it is, but Claire was definitely hiding something important about them," Cyrus muttered.
"We could always go and ask her. I still owe her for what her master did to us Bracers," Sara smirked.
"Leave it, Sara, you'll just make things worse. Although, if a fight is what you're looking for, go ask Laura; I hear she's been letting Wrath flow free lately," Cyrus said, shaking his head.
"Yeah, it's no surprise you heard about that. I'm starting to get worried about her, Cyrus. She's not herself," Sara whispered.
"Well, trying to drown someone in the pool is definitely not something you'd expect from Laura. All that wrath… I hope she can control it," Cyrus sighed. "If not, I've taken steps to make sure she can be subdued."
"How so?" Sara asked, raising an eyebrow.
"How about I show you instead of telling you?" Cyrus suggested, offering his hand to Sara.
Her curiosity growing, Sara reached out and took Cyrus' hand gently. As soon as he felt Sara's touch, he grabbed hold of her hand and in the time it took Sara to blink, she found herself standing on the school's rooftop.
"What the fuck? How did we get here? What did you do to me?" Sara cried, recoiling from Cyrus.
"It's a little technique I picked up when training under Master Ka-Fai," Cyrus responded. "Some call it the Lightning Flash technique, but I prefer the name Master Ka-Fai gave it; Flying Raijin."
"What did you do?" Sara gasped, trying to keep herself from panicking.
"You know, you're holding together quite well; most people throw up the first time they experience this ability. Although, I was also impressed that Levana managed to keep her lunch down after I used it on her the other day," Cyrus muttered.
"Stop avoiding the question! I want to know how we went from my room to the school's rooftop in the time it took for me to blink!" Sara yelled, starting to feel unsteady on her feet.
"Calm yourself, Sara. Look at the wall behind you," Cyrus said calmly.
When Sara turned, she found herself looking at a peculiar black marking etched into the brickwork of the school. She had seen it before, when Vice-Principal Heinrich brought it up in a faculty meeting about graffiti.
"What is that?" Sara asked, tracing the pattern with her index finger.
"It's a Raijin Mark. It allows me to instantaneously move to any mark of my choosing, whenever I want. A Raijin Mark is permanent too, so no matter how hard the Vice-Principal tries, he won't be able to remove it," Cyrus stated.
"Ok, but how does that solve the Laura situation?" Sara asked.
"I can brand people with a Raijin Mark, making it easy for me to move about and move to people who are in need of my help," Cyrus stated. "At the moment, Alisa, Fie, and Laura all have one. Emma has one too, but hers is on a knife I gave her."
"How have they not noticed a mark on them? Where do you put it?" Sara asked.
"Wherever I want, simply. It's not that they haven't noticed, but more the fact they probably have no idea of the other marks' existence. Why would they ask one another if they had a peculiar mark appear on their bodies one day? As for where they are, Laura's one is on her left shoulder, Fie's one is on her ribs that got broken, and Alisa's is on her lower back. If you ask them, they'll probably show it to you… Especially since you now have one yourself," Cyrus stated, pointing at Sara's hand.
Looking down, Sara noticed the same black marking was now covering the back of her hand, in the exact place Cyrus had touched her when he had teleported them to the school's rooftop.
"Why would you put it on my hand?! Everyone's going to see it, and if I wear gloves, people are going to start wondering why!" Sara cried, trying to rub the mark off like it was made from ink.
"Just because it's permanent, doesn't mean it's not adjustable," Cyrus sighed, covering the mark on Sara's hand with one of his own hands and placing his free hand on Sara's stomach. "There, now it's on your stomach, and can be easily disguised as a regrettable tattoo, should anyone ever see it."
"I don't recall asking you to put a mark on me to begin with. Isn't that invasion of personal space or something like that?" Sara frowned.
"Perhaps, but if that mark can save your life, then it's really not that big of a deal, is it?" Cyrus shrugged. "Shall I show you just how frightening this little ability of mine is?"
"I really want to say no, but I also really want to find out more," Sara muttered.
"What's the time at the moment, down to the second?" Cyrus asked.
"Uhh, let me see…" Sara muttered as she pulled out her own ARCUS and opened it. "It's twenty-five minutes and seventeen seconds past nine o'clock."
"Come with me," Cyrus held out his hand, which Sara took.
As Sara blinked, she found herself looking at a room. A large room that was full of valuable trinkets and items. The walls were covered with weapons that ranged from swords and daggers to spears and bows. In one corner of the room was a large four-poster bed, and adjacent to it was a large floor to ceiling window that opened out onto an opulent marble balcony. As Cyrus led Sara outside, she found herself looking at a view of the sea, the sun slowly creeping down underneath the horizon.
"Where are we?" Sara breathed, in awe at the sight before her.
"My family's home in Ordis. Specifically, my room in the manor. What's the time now?" Cyrus asked.
"That's not possible…" Sara gasped as she looked at her ARCUS. "It's been six seconds since we were in Trista?!"
"Take into account it also took you the better part of five point nine seconds to take in your surroundings, travel time from Trista to Ordis was about a tenth of a second; the time it took you to blink, and it takes about half a day by train?" Cyrus responded. "You understand now how powerful the Flying Raijin is?"
"This is incredible, Cyrus! Do you know how simple this could make travelling?!" Sara cried.
"Hey, I'm not a fucking taxi service, you know! More importantly, this technique has two major drawbacks," Cyrus shouted.
"Who's in there?! This room is off-limits! Come out, you scoundrels!" a deep voice boomed as a heavy pounding from Cyrus' door interrupted the conversation.
"Shit, it's Grandfather… Why is he here? He's only ever here if Mother and Father are entertaining guests… Damn it… That must mean they are here…" Cyrus sighed. "Come on, we've outstayed our welcome."
"Wait, hold on a second!" Sara cried as Cyrus grabbed her hand and in the blink of an eye, found herself in Cyrus' room back at the Third Dormitory in Trista.
"It would have been trouble if Grandfather found us. He doesn't know I can use the Flying Raijin, and he would demand answers if he found me back home, especially with a woman alongside me. I'd rather avoid an interrogation from him," Cyrus muttered, swaying on his feet slightly.
"Are you ok? You don't look too good," Sara asked, looking concerned.
"This is one of the drawbacks I was telling you about. The first one is that I cannot move to a location that has no Raijin Mark, and the second is that it takes a hell of a lot of energy to jump from mark to mark, especially at long distances, and with company. I'll be fine after some rest," Cyrus stated as he dropped down onto his bed and let out a long sigh.
"So, by branding people with one of these marks, it makes it easier to jump directly to them, instead of hoping they're close to one you've already put up somewhere? They're basically a mobile jump point," Sara responded.
"Correct. It helps me stay close to those who need my immediate help, and it was the reason why I branded Fie, and gave Emma a knife with a mark on it too," Cyrus shrugged. "Given how much wrath Laura seems to be exuding at the moment, I thought it best to brand her too, and Alisa should be obvious."
"The incident in Saint-Arkh. But, if you've marked her, why are you keeping her at arm's length? If you can jump to her in fractions of a second, why tell her you can't always be there to protect her?" Sara asked.
"Simply because, one, it would put her at constant risk of being targeted by Ikaruga, and two, whatever she feels for me is a lie," Cyrus responded.
"A lie? How can you say that? It's so obvious that what she feels for you is genuine," Sara scoffed.
"No, it's Envy, plain and simple. Look at how she's been acting recently, she's been flying off the handle at others because they've all had or want something she wants. That's not love, or whatever the hell you want to call it, it's envy. But you already knew that, didn't you?" Cyrus turned, looking at Sara who stiffened up.
"I… I have no idea what you're talking about," Sara stated indignantly.
"Don't lie to me, Sara. You know why Alisa and Laura have changed recently, because you have as well," Cyrus stated, sitting up and looking at Sara. "You can see it, can't you?"
"I can… Though, I don't know if Alisa or Laura can too," Sara muttered.
"Oh, I believe they can see theirs as well… They are remarkable girls, after all," Cyrus said.
The following morning, Cyrus found himself standing in Heimdallr's Sankt District, waiting for his charge. Today, he was to escort Lady Mildine, niece to Duke Cayenne, wherever she wanted to go, along with her two friends, Princess Alfin, and Elise Schwarzer. As he was in Heimdallr on official Provincial Army business, he had to wear his own uniform.
As a Captain, Cyrus' uniform was not too dissimilar from Aurelia's. While he wore a long, white coat, to signify his rank as a Captain, instead of the cape Aurelia would wear, he wore the traditional white uniform underneath the coat, which was accented with deep crimson fabric, to further signify his position as a Captain. The uniform was designed by Aurelia herself, and bore a similar resemblance to the uniform their father and grandfather wore when they were the General during their own time serving the Provincial Army. Given that Cyrus' uniform was obviously different to Aurelia's, there was no chance that their uniforms would cause confusion amongst the other soldiers (and woe unto those who'd ever forget Aurelia Le Guin was their Commanding Officer and General).
"Good morning, Captain. You're early," Mildine smiled as she approached Cyrus.
"Good morning to you too, my Lady. Where is Her Highness and your friend, Elise?" Cyrus asked.
"Oh, they're coming. I just thought I'd take this time to let you know we have a fourth member joining us today," Mildine responded, her smile never fading.
"Does the General know about this? You know how she gets when orders change," Cyrus frowned.
"She didn't tell you? The fourth member of our group today was invited by me, but the General ok'd it. I'm surprised you weren't told," Mildine stated.
"Why do I have a bad feeling about this?" Cyrus sighed.
"Hey, Mildine! Wait for us!" Alfin shouted as she and Elise ran over to Mildine and Cyrus. "Oh, good morning, Cyrus."
"Good morning, Your Highness. Elise," Cyrus nodded, bowing to Alfin.
"I'm glad to see you're all better. I was really worried about you after our last encounter," Alfin smiled, referring back to the fight Cyrus had with the Imperial Liberation Front, and Löwe outside the very cathedral they were standing near.
"You need not worry, Your Highness, I assure you I have no intention of dying anytime soon," Cyrus stated, looking down at Alfin, who's smile brightened.
"Good, because I'd have been really upset if the last words I'd ever heard from you were 'I promise I'll come back for you'. Hmph, famous last words, if ever I heard them," a girl spoke as she approached the group.
The girl who had spoken was well known to both Cyrus, and Mildine. To Mildine, she was something of an older sister figure, as she had looked after the young Cayenne girl from an early age, being only six years older than Mildine. To Cyrus, the girl was something else entirely.
The girl was about a year older than Cyrus, having turned twenty just a few days ago, during the Summer Equinox. They had known each other since they were children, but it was only during their pre-teenage years, about three years before Cyrus left Ordis, that they became friends. This was due to the relationship between their families, who had been at odds with one another for decades, spanning back to the time their grandfathers were the respective heads of their families.
The girl's long, straightened blonde hair and piercing green eyes were mesmerising enough that anyone who saw her would turn to get a proper look at her; her beauty astounding even the most striking individuals, making them seem plain in comparison. Her tanned skin was so perfect, it was the envy of even the most habitual of beach-goers, and just added to the overall look of perfection that the girl radiated wherever she went. Her knee-length sundress and white sunhat added an angelic look to the girl that made even the most-devout of the Church question if Aidios Herself had created this girl and blessed her with life from the Goddess' own soul.
"So-Sophie…" Cyrus whispered, standing in awe at the young girl before him.
"By Aidios, you were right, Mildine! He's speechless!" Alfin gasped, a huge smile growing on her face as Sophie stood before Cyrus.
"Elise, since you've never met her before, allow me to introduce you to my 'big sister'; Sophie Dragonia," Mildine smiled as she properly introduced the girl.
"O-Oh… N-Nice to meet you, Lady Sophie," Elise mumbled, bowing to Sophie.
"Aw, aren't you just adorable? Who knew Millie was hiding such cute friends from me," Sophie smiled as she pinched Elise's cheeks.
"Sophie… What are you doing here?" Cyrus asked, his usual authoritative tone replaced by a quiet, soft tone.
"Well, considering I just turned twenty, I wanted to come see Millie and spend some time with her. Not only that, but after hearing about you enrolling in Thors after your little jaunt across the continent, I wanted to see you as well. It's been, what; three years since we last saw each other? I think this is long overdue," Sophie stated as she gently placed her hands on Cyrus' cheeks and kissed him.
"Ohmygosh, ohmygosh, ohmygosh! This is too much for a young maiden's heart to take!" Alfin squealed, jumping up and down excitedly.
"Your Highness, please! Control yourself!" Elise cried, going bright red as she turned away from the kiss in embarrassment.
"Ladies, meet the only woman in all of Zemuria who can temper the burning heart of love that lives within Cyrus. Other women may try, but they'll never be able to beat Sophie," Mildine smirked.
"Other women have tried, Millie, but they've all failed," Sophie stated. "Isn't that right, Cyrus?"
"Try as they might, but they'll never be able to compare to you," Cyrus nodded.
"The same can be said for me; no-one else makes me feel the way you make me feel," Sophie smiled, her hands still lingering on Cyrus' cheeks.
"Ahhh, this is just too cute!" Alfin cried, feeling giddy.
"Ah, right, as much as I'd like this reunion to continue, I have work to do. Lady Mildine, what are your plans for today?" Cyrus asked, looking past Sophie and towards the green haired girl.
"Well, we are going to be heading to Café Lucien in the Leica District. You two will be spending some much-needed time together," Mildine smirked, her eyes swimming with mischief.
"As much as I want to do that, I have a job to do, and that is to make sure you, Her Highness, and Elise are safe when exploring the city. Those are the orders General Le Guin gave me, and I cannot deviate from them," Cyrus stated.
"Hmm, he's so cute when he's serious, isn't he, sissy?" Mildine said, her smirk growing even wider.
"Absolutely, Millie. That seriousness is something I've missed about him. You don't have to worry; Aurelia has already approved of this arrangement. It was, after all, Millie's idea. Think of it as my birthday present from her," Sophie smiled.
"There's no way Aurelia would do something like this," Cyrus snorted.
"Oh, she would if it was a special request from me. Do you honestly think the General would say no to me?" Mildine purred. "You don't find it odd that she specifically said you had to do it?
"Well, yes… But Aurelia usually has a reason for the choices she makes; I simply assumed I was selected because of my ties to Princess Alfin," Cyrus responded, looking at the Princess.
"Oh, well, that helped too. When Mildine told us about Sophie coming to Heimdallr, I simply had to meet her. The way Mildine spoke of her, she made her sound like an Angel sent by Aidios, and now I can see just how right she was," Alfin explained.
"Aww, you give me far too much praise, Your Highness. I could never be on par with one of Erebonia's 'Greatest Treasures'," Sophie smiled as she bowed to Alfin.
"This had better not be some kind of game, Mildine," Cyrus warned.
"I swear on the Goddess Herself that it's not. I genuinely want you and Sophie to spend some time together. I can call the General, if you'd like?" Mildine suggested.
"No, that's… That's quite alright. As far as I'm concerned, as long as you girls are happy going to do your own thing, I won't intrude unless there's an emergency. Your Highness, do you still have that necklace I gave you when I returned to Erebonia last?" Cyrus asked.
"Of course. You asked me to never take it off, and I promised I'd never do so," Alfin nodded as she pulled a small crystal pendant out from around her neck. Inside the crystal was a very small Raijin Mark.
"Ok, good. If anything happens, contact me on my ARCUS, and I'll be there before you can put yours down. I know the Reinford Company gave the Royal Family access to the ARCUS Units too, so I assume you know how they work," Cyrus stated.
"Yes, it took some fiddling, but I now have a sound understanding of how its primary features work, especially the call function," Alfin replied.
"Well, now that the logistics are all settled, go away!" Mildine cried as she pushed Cyrus and Sophie off down the street. "Ta-ta, my darlings! Make sure to have enough fun for all of us!"
After more than three years, Cyrus and Sophie had finally been reunited, and the first place they chose to go to spend time together was Mater Park. It was the middle of the day, and the sun was shining brightly in the sky. Despite the awful weather at the start of the month, it seemed that Summer had finally arrived in Heimdallr.
The pair of them decided to take a seat on a nearby bench to catch-up. In the distance, they could hear the sound of violins being played, which just added to the atmosphere. Despite them not voicing it, both Cyrus and Sophie were sure Mildine had planned that as well.
"So, how are things back home? Last time I was there, I was busy," Cyrus stated.
"It's the same old Ordis. The Nobility are in a peaceful cocoon of blissful ignorance, only waking up to growl about the Reformist Faction trying to change our way of life. Meanwhile, the Commoners are starting to become more vocal, thanks to the efforts of the Reformist Faction," Sophie sighed. "Ahh, I dread to see the day the powder keg that is Ordis finally explodes and we have a civil war on our hands."
"I wouldn't worry too much about it. Aurelia and the Provincial Army will quash any sort of uprising the Commoners try to put on. Same for Wallace in Sutherland. Though, I'm not all too confident about the East… Marquis Rogner doesn't really care what happens, so long as he's not disturbed, and the less I say about Duke Albarea, the better," Cyrus muttered.
"Ugh, Father has been nothing short of relentless in his pursuits to keep the Commoners under his boot. It's getting tiring," Sophie huffed.
"What's the Marquis been doing? Nothing good, by the sounds of it," Cyrus frowned.
"The miserable bastard is putting higher tariffs on any and all ships carrying goods for Commoners that come into the Port of Ordis. If they can't pay, then Oscar and his arsehole friends sneak onto the ships and damage the goods," Sophie scowled.
"Seems like Oscar is still acting like an audacious little prick. Given the fact Vladimir is letting him do this, who's pulling him into line?" Cyrus asked.
"Hmph, Mother has tried time and again to reign him in, but he refuses to listen. It's gotten to the point where Alexios has had to crack the whip on him. Of course, when that happens, he just goes running to Father, and hides behind him. Alexios has enough on his plate as Aurelia's Lieutenant General as it is, so he simply washes his hands of Oscar and goes back to Juno. Mother says he hasn't returned home in weeks," Sophie sighed.
"I take it the wedding is still going ahead?" Cyrus asked, looking at his feet.
"Yes. Thanatos knows what Amelia sees in my stupid little brother, but she's incredibly excited about the whole thing. Although, Oscar doesn't seem to give a shit either way anymore," Sophie stated.
"That's pretty fucking typical though, isn't it? We both know he was doing it just to fuck with me, but I knew that after I left, he'd lose interest," Cyrus grunted.
"This might sound incredibly petty, but I'm looking forward to seeing the look on his face when he find out about us," Sophie chuckled.
"In the interests of being petty, how about we…" Cyrus began, as he started to whisper in Sophie's ear.
"Oooh, I love that! It's no secret that he's been trying to show-off in front of me to his friends as of late, which makes this all the more entertaining. He might be my brother, but it's still disgusting that he acts like we're not related at all," Sophie shuddered.
"At least Rean and Elise aren't blood-related…" Cyrus muttered.
"What was that?" Sophie asked.
"Nothing, just a passing thought. Anything else you'd like to share with me?" Cyrus responded.
"Ah, well… Tahlia's gotten so big now, and she misses you dearly. You wouldn't believe the excitement on that little girl's face when she found out you were coming home in September. That child's smile can melt even the coldest of hearts," Sophie giggled.
"I'm amazed she's that excited, given the fact she's never seen the real me before," Cyrus stated.
"What makes you say that? She's seen pictures of you. I mean, granted, it's been five years, and she's just recently turned six, but that doesn't mean she's not excited to see you," Sophie replied.
"I would imagine Mother is having a hard time keeping up with her," Cyrus smirked.
"Not at all; Lady Mirellia absolutely adores Tahlia, and loves seeing her so happy. In fact, she encourages it," Sophie smiled.
"I never suggested she never adored Tahlia, but she's nearly fifty. She's not getting any younger," Cyrus shrugged.
"Hey! That's a horrible thing to say about your own mother!" Sophie cried, gently hitting Cyrus' arm.
"You know what I mean… I didn't think she'd have the energy to keep up with a small child, given how packed her schedule is already," Cyrus frowned. "Reginald tells me she's spending more time in Heimdallr these days than at home."
"Yes, that is true, and while she's been helping Conrad out in Ordis for some big festival for her birthday celebration recently, the opera house here demands her attention as well. Has she not been to Trista to see you?" Sophie asked, frowning slightly.
"No, she's been far too busy, so I understand. Auntie Ophelia has been by a couple times, but that was because Vinnie has been acting like a tool, and Ferrie has been sick," Cyrus muttered.
"When doesn't Vincent act like a tool?" Sophie laughed. "In all seriousness though, he's a good guy; he just needs to reign in his desires to find a suitable wife. Aidios knows he's tried to woo me more than once."
"Has he now? Looks like I'll need to have a chat to him about boundaries," Cyrus growled, cracking his knuckles.
"Darling, darling… It's ok. I love how protective you are of me, but I can handle myself just fine. A swift kick to the groin was more than enough to set Vincent right. Ahh, I haven't seen Ferris laugh that hard in a long time. She was in tears," Sophie smiled.
"Hmm, yes… It's been a good while since I saw Ferrie happy myself… She's been dragged into my messes, and it's taking a toll on her," Cyrus sighed.
"She knows about Yang?" Sophie blinked.
"What? No, I don't think so. It's this 'C' arsehole. He and his Imperial Liberation Front have been threatening her, because of something I did to them, though I don't know what that something is," Cyrus muttered.
'That fucking moron! What the hell is he thinking, trying to provoke Cyrus like this?! Ugh, I knew they were up to something!' Sophie thought, clenching her hands in anger.
"What's wrong? Are you ok?" Cyrus asked, placing a hand over Sophie's fist, causing her to relax.
"You know who 'C' is, don't you?" Sophie asked, looking at Cyrus.
"I'm looking into it, but I'm sure he has ties to the Church, or at least, one of his allies does," Cyrus stated.
"No, it's the Noble Alliance you need to be careful of. That's who's hired C and his Imperial Liberation Front," Sophie stated.
"Wait, what? That doesn't make any sense; Ferris is a part of the Noble Alliance, just like the rest of the family. If we're on the same side, then why is she being targeted?" Cyrus asked.
"I don't know why they're targeting you, or by extension, Ferris, but something isn't right here. You need to be careful, Cyrus. If Croire has given C carte blanche and he's decided to go after you, it'll be someone else pulling the strings in the background. If the ILF are serious about what they want to achieve, then their benefactor must be giving them some serious backing for them to be this stupid," Sophie explained.
"What is it they want to achieve? If they're working for the Noble Alliance, then that would have to be…" Cyrus trailed off.
"The death of Chancellor Giliath Osborne," Sophie confirmed.
"Yeah, that'll be about right… Not exactly setting the bar low, are they?" Cyrus sighed.
"No, and if the rumours in Ordis are true, they definitely have the firepower to make it happen," Sophie frowned.
"What rumours?" Cyrus asked, looking at Sophie.
"Well, given my connections to some of Ordisian Nobility's highest echelon, I've heard whispers that they've been given a cache of weaponry from the Concierge… Your sister and Alexios remain mute on the subject, which only lends credence to the rumours," Sophie responded.
"Let me guess, one of the weapons supplied to them was cache of KM60 Miniguns?" Cyrus muttered.
"Yes, how did you know?" Sophie blinked.
"Aurelia's not the only one keeping eyes on the Concierge. I've been aware of his movements in the underworld, thanks to my connections as Yang. I'd heard he had a new weapon on the market, and someone was keen on buying it. Looks like we now know what the weapon was and who it was that purchased a cache of them. Though, it does bring one question to the fore…" Cyrus mused.
"Hmm? What question would that be?" Sophie asked.
"If the ILF have a cache of siege weapons, why haven't they already tried to assassinate the Chancellor? The velocity of the black powder rounds it can fire alone are enough to shred tank armour, and the Orbal rounds are basically like chemically tipped rounds that add extra elemental energy to each shot. You could easily smash the First Armoured Division to pieces with just five of them before they need to be reloaded, so killing a human, even someone as well protected as the Chancellor of Erebonia would be child's play. Croire must have another plan in place, where killing Osborne isn't a high priority," Cyrus explained.
"You know, as much as I love you, your ability to work things out from such miniscule bits of information is, quite frankly, terrifying. I know that Father is definitely plotting something with Croire, but I have no idea what that something is," Sophie said.
"Now, that is a concern… Are you sure Vladimir isn't just licking Croire's boots? He's been trying to manoeuvre the Duke to his side for years, and usually for something so small and insignificant, like a wife for his brat," Cyrus grunted.
"I can see you still haven't gotten over that," Sophie giggled.
"Why should I care if Amelia wants to be with that smarmy little cunt? You've made it clear that he's trying to put all his energy into fucking you as of late, and we all know what he's like when he doesn't get his own way. As far as I'm concerned, if she's stupid enough to believe he's a good person, then she deserves to be with that loser," Cyrus growled.
"Hey… She was your friend at one point, I can see you haven't forgotten that," Sophie said quietly, gently grabbing the small feathered accessory in Cyrus' hair. "You're holding on to a lot of anger and resentment, and for what? You two haven't spoken in five years, so how do you know she still hates you?"
"I honestly couldn't care less if she does hate me or not at this point, sweetheart," Cyrus laughed mirthlessly. "The fact of the matter is, she chose to defend your brother, even after finding out he killed that boy."
"Is that what this is about? You probably aren't going to like it, but ask yourself this; do you actually care about the boy who died, or do you care only because it was Oscar who killed him and got away with it? Don't misunderstand, however; Oscar is a disgusting little troll, and I will never forgive him for what he did, or Father for his part in covering it up. You, however, my darling… Do you care about the boy, or just the fact Oscar got away with murder?"
Cyrus sat there in silence and pondered Sophie's words. While it was true that Cyrus didn't actually know the boy Oscar had killed, did Cyrus actually care that a child had been murdered, or was it simply that he was angry that Oscar had gotten away with killing the boy? If the boy had been killed by anyone else – be it a mugger, or another Noble for whatever reason – would Cyrus have been so quick to condemn that person for the boy's death, or would he simply have shrugged and moved on, not even bothering to give it a second thought?
"No innocent person should ever have to die; as Yang, I know this better than anyone, and after what happened in Saint-Arkh a year ago, I understand how precious life is," Cyrus began. "However, people die all the time. Innocents are murdered by bad people for sometimes literally no reason at all, and I never care about them or the person who killed them. If someone else had killed that boy, then there's a good chance I wouldn't have cared about it as much as I do. So there's your answer; I don't care about the boy, only the fact your little brother was allowed to avoid consequences for his actions."
"Well, at least you're honest about it…" Sophie sighed, shaking her head. "So, if you don't care about the person who died, why are you giving Amelia a hard time over it?"
"She defended his actions! Even when Aurelia told her that Oscar was guilty, but Vladimir and the Duke forced her to bury the evidence, she still tried to rationalise and suggest Aurelia had made a mistake!" Cyrus cried. "What the fuck does that tell you?!"
"It tells me that all she wants in life is to see the good in people. Change roles for a second here; how do you think Amelia would act if she found out you were an Assassin, who's killed countless people? Would she condemn you, or would she try and say that through your actions, you've saved innumerable lives from being ruined?" Sophie asked calmly.
"I don't have an answer for that, because I haven't spoken to her in five years. We were children when I left Ordis, but we've both grown now. She might act like I'm some kind of paragon of righteousness, or she might brand me a killer and a hypocrite. Though, it makes no difference how she sees me; any love I once held for her died years ago," Cyrus remarked coldly.
"So, you finally admit that you did love her in some way?" Sophie asked.
"Oh, come off it. Like I said, we were children. I seem to remember you always staring at Vincent from afar when you were both little. Are you saying you loved him?" Cyrus snorted.
"Y'know, for someone who's supposed to have an IQ over two hundred, you're incredibly dense sometimes. I was never staring at Vincent; I was staring at you!" Sophie cried. "Look, it doesn't matter; whether you loved her or not, I'm not going to let her, or anyone else have you."
"I think you missed the boat on that one, Soph…" Cyrus muttered.
"Yes, you told me about your little Assassin partner, and the other one from New Year in the letters you sent to me. But I decided the moment I saw you today that I'm no longer going to sit idly by and watch others have you. You belong to me, and that's final," Sophie declared.
"I wasn't aware I was your property," Cyrus laughed.
"Hmph, I think the little gift you left me with after our first time was more than enough proof of your intentions, but I just wanted to be sure you still felt the same, and hadn't decided to run off with someone else," Sophie muttered, looking at the hand she had placed over Cyrus'.
"Oh, that… Yeah, I guess you were the first, huh? You gave the other one to Tahlia though, didn't you?" Cyrus asked.
"Of course… You told me that family is always important to you, so I made sure she got it as soon as I saw her after that night. Although, I get why you wanted me and Tahlia to have them, but what about Ferris?" Sophie replied.
"Ferris was different. She needed a way to be coaxed out of her shell, and while I think it worked, she's definitely starting to go backwards. The power of Pride means nothing if she can't actually harness and utilise it," Cyrus sighed.
"Actually, speaking of pride, your grandfather has been taking a front and centre role for the upcoming celebrations. He absolutely demands everything be unequivocally perfect for the day. Though, I think your grandmother has something to do with that, given they've just recently celebrated their sixtieth wedding anniversary themselves. You know, despite them both pushing eighty, and your mother and auntie turning fifty, none of them look even close to their actual age. Your grandparents look like they are nearly fifty, and Countess Mirellia and Countess Ophelia look like they're almost thirty. What black magic secrets are your family hiding?" Sophies asked teasingly.
"Grandmother has always looked young, but in Grandfather's case, I would assume it's his training regimen that's helped him stay in shape; for almost seventy years, that man has done one thousand push-ups, one thousand sit-ups, and a ten-kilometre run, every single day… It's no wonder he's looks so young, and looks as big as a fucking mountain," Cyrus snorted.
"Yes… I remember my grandfather trying to copy your grandfather's training regimen once. From what I was told, my grandfather collapsed after doing two hundred push-ups. Lord Regulus never let him live that down," Sophie laughed.
"Hmph, can't say I'm surprised. I'm convinced Grandfather is some kind of supernatural being. That, or Grandmother did something to him to make him like that," Cyrus shrugged. "But, enough of that… How long do you plan to stay in Heimdallr? I imagine you'll be returning for the Ordis Summer Festival next week."
"Love is indeed a powerful tool, so I can imagine your grandmother having something to do with your grandfather's inhuman abilities. As for your question as to whether or not I'll be returning to Ordis soon, no… I'll be staying in Heimdallr until the end of next month, so I can enjoy the Summer Festival in the Capital for a change. Ordis' festival is nice, but after twenty years of it, it's become a little stale. That's why I decided to come to Heimdallr this year; for something new," Sophie responded.
"I see… I guess that will make things easier on a logistical level to be able to see you more frequently for the next month. Ah, I almost forgot… We should probably go and check in on the girls. I still have my duties as one of Aurelia's Captains, and looking after those three was the task assigned to me," Cyrus stated, as he stood up.
"Hold on… Before we go, there's one more thing I want to ask you," Sophie mumbled, looking at her feet.
"What is it?" Cyrus asked, looking at Sophie with curiosity.
"Well, normally, it should be you asking this, but… Since I know this is probably not something you've considered outside of a passing thought, looks like the responsibility falls to me. Cyrus, I want to know if–" Sophie began, before she was silenced by the sound of Cyrus' ARCUS Unit.
As Cyrus opened his ARCUS, he never even had the opportunity to speak as both he and Sophie heard Mildine's voice immediately screaming out of the device.
"CYRUS! HELP US!"
Sophie's heart leapt out of her chest as she heard the panic and terror in Mildine's voice, and before she could react, she realised her immediate surroundings had gone silent, and Cyrus was nowhere to be seen.
"Alright, mission accomplished! I think that means it's time for cake!" Mildine giggled as she, Alfin, and Elise sat down at a table at Café Lucien in Heimdallr's Lecia District.
"Umm, Mildine? Can I ask what that was all about?" Elise asked.
"Think of it as my way of strengthening Ordis' future. Despite what Uncle Croire may think, like it or not, the Dragonia and Le Guin families are the two most powerful clans in the Lamare Province, and it's imperative we fix their bitter rivalry," Mildine nodded.
"Ok… But how does that achieve anything, and why are the families such bitter rivals?" Elise asked.
"From what I've been told by Olivert, both families are stalwart protectors of the Lamare Province, and have been the guardians of Ordis for more than a thousand years. However, the Dragonia Marquisdom has started making moves to solidify their own hold over Lamare, should anything happen to the Cayenne Dukedom. I don't quite understand what he meant by that last part, but I could never get him to tell me more than that," Alfin responded.
"There are many theories behind why the Dragonia and Le Guin families are now at odds, and one of the… shall we say, scandalous rumours dates back to the time of the previous heads of the families; Marquis Alexi Dragonia, and Count Regulus Le Guin. The way I hear it, there was an agreement between the two families that their first-born children would marry, but it seems one of them refused, and married someone else instead. Despite everything, Count Michael, Countess Mirellia, and Marchioness Sasha are somewhat amicable, but Marquis Vladimir is fiercely intent on showing the Dragonia Family are the superior family in Ordis," Mildine continued. "Honestly, Vladimir decided to take that insult personally, whilst Sasha just wanted a quiet life, and I think that's why she doesn't share her husband's vehemence towards the Le Guin Family."
"Sounds rather concerning," Elise frowned.
"I agree. But do you think Cyrus and Sophie can fix the relationship between their families?" Alfin asked.
"Of course! Sissy has loved Cyrus for years. Even when she used to look after me whenever Grandfather was out, all she could talk about was Cyrus. She did go through a slightly self-destructive phase when Cyrus left Ordis five years ago, but that's in the past. I wonder what they're talking about now…? I bet it's something cute like how many babies they're going to have together!" Mildine cried with delight.
"Mi-Mildine! Calm yourself!" Elise gasped as she felt the back of her neck heat up in embarrassment as several sets of eyes turned to look at the three girls.
"Oh, be still my heart! They'd have the cutest babies, and they'd have the most wonderful of aunties in you and I, Mildine," Alfin sighed.
"Y-Your Highness?!" Elise cried.
"Princess Alfin?" a voice called out as three men approached the girls.
"Yes? Who are you?" Alfin asked, looking at the men.
The three men were dressed in the dark green uniform of the Imperial Defence Force, who were tasked with guarding both the Royal Family and Valflame Palace.
"We are with the IDF, Your Highness, and we have reason to believe there is an imminent threat to your safety. We have been tasked with escorting you back to the palace," the first man stated.
"Oh, I see… Lead the way then," Alfin mumbled, starting to feel uneasy.
"Hold on… Who sent you? If there's an imminent threat to Princess Alfin, then why has her Imperial Guardian not been sent to gather her?" Mildine asked, narrowing her eyes at the men.
"I'm afraid that the Vander Family are tied up with other matters at the palace. General Vander asked us to collect Her Highness and bring her back to the safety of the palace," the man responded, locking eyes with Mildine.
"My Imperial Guardian isn't from the Vander Family… Everyone in the IDF knows that…" Alfin mumbled, taking a step back.
The three men tensed up immediately. The three girls could see that they were trying to formulate a response, and now that Alfin was suspicious of them, they were in a predicament.
"Damn it! Grab her! And take the others as well! That arsehole couldn't even give us the proper intel!" the man shouted as he pulled out a gun and aimed it at Alfin.
The moment the gun was pulled out, a nearby civilian screamed and sent the whole area into a panic. As people started to notice the gun, chaos started to erupt in the Leicia District. Using the chaos and confusion, Mildine grabbed the tablecloth from a nearby table and threw it at the false IDF officers and grabbed Alfin's hand.
"RUN!" Mildine screamed as she dragged Alfin away with Elise right behind them.
Upon hearing Mildine cry out, the man with the gun started firing blindly around him as he tried to take the cloth off his face. He heard a few bullets hit their mark, and when he finally managed to remove the cloth, found he had only hit random bystanders, with the three girls running off down the street.
"Don't just stand there! Get them!" the man roared.
The other two men pulled out their own guns and gave chase after the girls, with one of them raising their gun to fire.
"Stop it, you idiot!" the second man cried. "Our orders were to bring the Princess in unharmed!"
"Shut up, I know that!" the third man snapped. "Boss said nothing about the other two brats that are with her though."
Alfin, Elise, and Mildine turned a corner and took cover in an alleyway behind a dumpster. By this point, all three girls were shaken up, but Elise had started to suffer from a full-blown panic attack.
"Elise?! Elise! Listen to me! Everything is going to be alright! Your Highness, we need Cyrus here, now!" Mildine shouted, grabbing Elise by her cheeks and forced her to look into her eyes.
"Hey now, what's going on here?" a voice called out.
Alfin and Mildine turned to look at the person who had spoken, and found themselves looking at an elderly man, a baker for the café they had just fled from. By the looks of it, he was on his way out to the back of the shop to throw a bag of trash into the dumpster and came across the three girls.
"Ah, please! You have to help us! There are people after Princess Alfin! We need to hide somewhere!" Mildine cried.
"By Aidios, quickly! Hide in the back here; you'll be safe," the old man gasped as he held the door to the building open for the three girls.
Whilst Mildine was helping Elise to her feet, Alfin already had her ARCUS out and was about to call Cyrus before the sound of a gunshot exploded down the alleyway, causing her to drop her ARCUS in shock. As she dropped her ARCUS, a red mist clouded her eyesight, and she felt her face become incredibly sweaty.
When she put a hand up to wipe the sweat off her face, Alfin froze in horror as she saw her hand was now red. A dull thud next to her brought her to the conclusion that the red sweat she had on her face was something more sinister.
The old man who had tried to help the three girls now lay at Alfin's feet, with half his head missing. The bullet that had been fired had hit the old man square in the side of his head, making the opposite side explode in a cloud of blood and brain matter. What was left of his skull was now on the floor, leaking a massive pool of blood at Alfin's feet, the cloud of blood that had erupted from the man's head as the bullet penetrated it had covered Alfin from the chest up. Her face and usually perfect golden hair were now dyed a deep crimson, and her clothes had also been stained red.
Once Alfin had processed everything that happened, she collapsed to her knees, dropping into the blood pool with an audible squelch. Immediately, she kicked away in fear as she slipped in the pool, soaking herself even more in the poor man's blood. The sights, sounds, and scents of the incident overwhelmed Alfin to the point where all she could do was scream in terror.
"For fuck sake, be careful! You almost hit the Princess!" the second IDF imposter shouted, shoving his ally who held the gun up, still pointed in the direction of the three girls.
"Would you shut up?! I know what I'm doing. We just have to kill these other two, and scoop the Princess up. She's not going anywhere now," the other IDF imposter snapped, pointing at the Princess, who was curled up in a ball, soaked in blood, and wailing in fear.
As the two men were arguing, Mildine dropped Elise to the ground and dived for Alfin's ARCUS, falling over into the puddle of now muddy blood on the ground. The scent of dirt and iron assaulted Mildine's nose, and she gagged slightly before forcing herself to pick up the ARCUS and hit the call function. Immediately, the sound of the call being connected rang out from the ARCUS, and Mildine wasted no time in calling for help.
"CYRUS! HELP US!"
The words had barely left her mouth when she saw a shadow appear over her. Turning over in the bloody mud, she found herself looking at the unmistakable form of Cyrus. To Mildine, he was only a shadow, but she could tell it was him.
It took Cyrus less than a second to analyse the scene around him; Elise hyperventilating on the ground, Alfin soaked in blood, screaming and crying, and Mildine behind him, also on the verge of having a breakdown, and the dead body of the old man who had tried to help the girls. Directly in front of him were two IDF Soldiers, both holding guns, a look of shock on their faces as Cyrus had appeared from out of nowhere.
"Oh, what a mess… I'll be lucky if Aurelia doesn't strip me of my Captaincy over this…" Cyrus sighed, taking a step towards the two men, his right hand held out in front of him, with his palm facing upwards.
As he walked towards the two men, a strong wind started to blow from behind Cyrus, and began whipping up a small cyclone in his hand. The cyclone got larger and larger, before dissipating, and revealing a small pale unstrung bow in Cyrus' hand. The two men blinked in disbelief as they watched the wind manifest the bow right before their eyes.
"What the hell kind of Art was that? We're at a serious disadvantage if those new ARCUS Units can do that. Let's get out of here and regroup!" one of the men muttered, turning to flee.
"Wind Style; Roaring Bowstrings," Cyrus whispered, holding the unstrung bow up and motioned like he was firing an arrow from it.
The moment Cyrus motioned to release an arrow from the small bow, a powerful blast of wind roared through the air, slamming into the shoulder of the man who was attempting to flee. The force of the impact was so incredibly powerful, it punctured through the man's body armour and pierced his flesh, exactly how it would have been if he had been hit with a real arrow.
The force of the impact was strong enough that it flung the man back a good distance, knocking him to the floor. The other IDF imposter had decided it wasn't worth sticking around to help his ally, and instead ran off, leaving the stunned man to fend for himself.
"Get back here, you coward!" the man shouted as he watched his partner disappear around a corner and out of sight.
"I wouldn't concern yourself with him, if I were you; I'll make sure he is punished for his actions," Cyrus muttered as he crouched down and gripped the man's shoulder, stabbing his thumb into the open wound caused by the wind arrow.
"Argh! Get off me! You're going to regret this!" the man cried out, writhing in pain as he tried to break free from Cyrus' vice-like grip.
"The more you struggle, the faster you're going to bleed out, and the faster you bleed out, the higher your chance of death. Now…" Cyrus whispered as he reached under his coat and pulled out a black object and pressed it to the man's temple. "Who sent you, and why were you trying to kidnap Princess Alfin?"
The IDF imposter shuddered as he saw what the object was that had been pressed to his head; it was a firearm, as black as the night and the metal stung like it was made of ice. As he watched the gun be brought up to the side of his head, the man saw a name was etched into the weapon's grip; 'Mercy'.
"Tch, our Regimental Commander is more frightening than you. You're just some brat playing soldier. You don't scare me," the man spat, glaring at Cyrus with a malicious grin.
"So, you're a Jäger, are you? Interesting… Then perhaps Jäger tactics need to be applied here," Cyrus sighed as he lowered Mercy from the man's head, eliciting a faint sigh of relief from the man.
The man's relief was short lived, however, as Cyrus jammed his gun into the back of the man's knee and pulled the trigger. A loud bang echoed across the now silent Lecia District, causing birds to scatter at the loud sound. The bullet smashed through the man's knee, effectively destroying it; shards of bone and globules of blood splattered onto the cobblestones adjacent to where the man was sitting.
"AAAAAGGGGGGHHHHHH! YOU FUCKING FUCKER! FUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCK!" the man screamed in agony, gripping the knee in a vain attempt to keep it together.
"I won't ask again. Who sent you, and why were you trying to kidnap Princess Alfin?" Cyrus repeated, this time placing Mercy right in between the man's legs.
Despite the pain of having his knee blown off, the realisation that he could lose something far more valuable gave the man the ability to speak up.
"The Society. They sent us to help out in Erebonia. Their plans demand Erebonia be drowned in a sea of blood, and targeting the Royal Family was the easiest way to start," the man cried.
"The Society…? Well, someone has obviously lied to you, because targeting the Royal Family is the stupidest thing to do. They're protected by the Vander Family, and I watch over Alfin. Whoever sent you clearly kept that from you; you weren't sent to fulfil any plans, you were sent to be executed," Cyrus stated, now pressing the muzzle of Mercy against the man's forehead.
"No, no, wait–!" the man begged, but was promptly silenced by the sound of the gun being shot, which fired a bullet directly into his brain, killing him instantly.
As the corpse dropped to the ground, Cyrus stood up and directed his attention back to Alfin, Elise, and Mildine. Physically, he knew all three girls were unharmed, but mentally? That was something else entirely.
He made his way towards Alfin, who was still curled up and sobbing, the blood starting to dry on her face and in her hair. He knew her outfit couldn't be saved, but Cyrus knew he could at the very least clean her face and hands up of some of the blood.
Tearing off a strip of fabric from his coat, Cyrus held out a hand and allowed a small orb of water to form. Quietly, he forced the fabric into the orb and soaked it, before turning his attention to the Princess.
"Alfin… Alfin, it's me. I'm going to get you cleaned up, alright?" Cyrus said gently as Alfin gripped herself even tighter when she felt Cyrus' hand on her arm.
Still in tears, Alfin slowly released the grip she hand on herself and allowed Cyrus to wipe down her hands and face, and even some of her hair that still had wet blood in it. The whole time, her eyes were still closed and tears were constantly streaming down her face.
"Mildine, what the hell happened here?" Cyrus asked, as he turned his attention to the green haired girl.
"I don't know… They just approached Alfin at the café we were at and tried to take her away. Something didn't feel right, so I asked who sent them. Only you have the authority to collect Alfin if she's in danger, so I asked who had sent them. Not once did they mention your name, meaning they had to be imposters, hoping that mentioning Matteus Vander would be enough to stand up to scrutiny. Once they found out they had been caught out, everything went to hell, and this is the result," Mildine explained, looking at the bloody scene before them.
"I'm surprised you're so calm, Mildine…" Cyrus commented, looking at the dress Mildine had on, which was now dripping with a mixture of mud and blood.
"It's just the adrenaline. It's a good thing Sophie is still in Heimdallr, because I'm going to need her later when I've calmed down," Mildine responded, forcing a laugh that turned into a sob.
Elise had fainted as a result of her panic attack, and was lying on the ground next to where Cyrus was standing. After checking her for any wounds, he concluded she was unharmed, but was probably going to have nightmares for a while.
"I'm going to have a hell of a time explaining all of this to not only Aurelia, but Master Matteus, and the Emperor…" Cyrus sighed, as he picked up Alfin, who had just fallen asleep.
"This wasn't your fault, Cyrus. I was the one who selfishly asked Aurelia to send you to me so you could reunite with Sophie. If it wasn't for that, you wouldn't have been here in Heimdallr, and things would have been much worse. Don't blame yourself, because if you weren't here, I don't even want to begin to imagine what the outcome of this would have been.," Mildine stated, holding on to Cyrus' free hand, mainly to comfort herself more than anything else.
It wasn't long after that the real Imperial Defence Force showed up, and took over proceedings.
"Well now, that was fun, wasn't it?" Campanella chuckled, watching over the Leica District from the sky.
Campanella turned to the other three people who were standing with him, also looking down on the chaos that had unfolded below.
"Tch, he's not worth my time…" a tall man with a crimson coat and blue-pink hair grunted.
"Aww, well that's just disappointing. Here I was thinking I had found you a fun new plaything, McBurn. How sad," Campanella frowned.
"He did me a favour by killing that useless piece of shit. Honestly, you threaten to blow a guy's dick off and he'll spill everything," a young girl snapped. "Not that it matters, the other two were just as cowardly by running away. Hey, Blitz!"
"They have been dealt with, Miss Shirley," Blitz's voice crackled through an earpiece.
"I knew bringing you along as insurance was the right thing to do," Shirley smiled darkly.
"Well, child, what say you? Would you like to play with our new toy?" Campanella asked, turning to the fourth person in the group, a young girl.
"So that's the Assassin known as Yang, huh? He's the one Lady Mariabell wants to kill… He's not as impressive as the Lord Ravager, but my interest in him has increased considerably… Meh, I suppose he could be fun to play with," the girl smirked.
"Tch, an Angel versus a Dragon, huh? Walter would fucking cream himself at the thought of that," McBurn scoffed.
"Even I'd like to see our little Renne go toe-to-toe with him… I was sure I killed that guy years ago, yet he managed to survive… The way he got back up just before Cassius Bright arrived on the scene… It was like he was possessed," Shirley muttered.
"As much as I'd like to go kill him now, the Lord Ravager says the time isn't right. I guess I'll just have to start by bringing his attention to me…" Renne sighed.