It was a call from George that put an end to their day together. The engineer had supposedly found a solution to Rean's problems with Valimar's armaments and wanted to introduce the swordsman to an associate at the Roer Institute of Technology. Fie and Laura escorted him to the school, but elected to remain behind while he went in alone.
Actually Rean was pretty certain Fie just wanted to check out those fun looking remote controlled cars a couple of the students were playing with. Hopefully the mischievous girl didn't do anything to mess with them.
...And hopefully she kept Laura far away from the remote. That would only end in tragedy.
Once inside he met up with George who was quick to introduce him to the president of the institute, Professor Gerhardt Schmidt, one of the legendary Professor Epstein's three disciples. Unfortunately, despite his fame, the man was blunt, condescending, and someone with apparently no moral values of which to speak. It only made sense considering this was the man responsible for the creations of the Panzer Soldat and Railway Cannons, among other things.
And yet despite how distasteful the man was Rean couldn't help but be grateful to him when he offered a solution on how to get Valimar a weapon worthy of it: Zemurian Ore. A weapon made of that rare metal would be powerful enough to contend with Crow's double saber. And Schmidt was even promising to craft the weapon for him.
There was just the problem of actually finding the stuff. The metal was already quite rare, so finding enough of it to forge a tachi for a giant robot seemed nigh impossible. Still, it was the first lead he had gotten so there was no chance he was going to dismiss the idea out of hand.
After leaving the institute he and George reunited with Fie and Laura (and much to his relief confirmed that the Arseid practitioner hadn't accidentally destroyed anything during his absence) and began the return trek towards the Courageous, meeting up with some of the others who had the same idea. He could tell the others were curious about his meeting, but knew to wait until everyone was together on the ship.
Something which didn't take long to come to pass. Angelica – who had taken up residence as the pilot of the craft – was eager to get going and as soon as everyone was on board the ship departed Roer. It was then that he and George detailed everything about their encounter with Professor Schmidt.
Unsurprisingly none of the Thors students or Princess Alfin had any lead as to where they could possibly find such a large quantity of zemurian ore, but surprisingly someone else did. Celine haughtily informed them that those strange shrines they had been discovering all across Erebonia were actually built to quickly grow the ore. The fact they had been inside three of the shrines and never once learned about this was enough for most of the Class – Emma included – to glare at the cat in annoyance.
Her only defense was to give the feline's equivalent of a shrug and tell them that nobody had asked.
Obnoxious cats aside, they now had a mission, and with the war seemingly calm at the moment they had time to carry it out. They knew of four shrines: The three they visited before, and a fourth midway between Roer and the Schwarz Drache Barrier that they had discovered, but hadn't yet had the time to check out.
Plus they still had the normal requests to look into. The news of a hijacked airship was worrisome enough, but even that paled in comparison to the fact that Bleublanc of all people had sent them a request. That definitely spelled trouble, but the message was vague enough to put aside... for now.
With everyone looking at him he understood that a decision needed to be made. "I'm most worried about the airship passengers, so I think we should focus on that one first."
That statement earned him agreement from most of the others, but Fie seemed dubious. "Sure, but bringing everyone would be a bad idea. If they are being held hostage we should send a small team and handle it quietly and discreetly."
"Alright, that sounds good." He absolutely trusted Fie for something like this. In fact... "Why don't you handle that while Emma, myself, and the rest investigate the Roer Spirit Shrine?"
She grimaced at the idea. "Seriously?"
"I think it's a great idea!" Sara grinned in amusement as her ward glared in return.
"Ugh... Fine!" As much as the idea annoyed her Rean was confident that Fie would pull off the mission flawlessly.
Now that their goals were decided it was time to figure out the teams. "I've heard a lot about these Spirit, Shrines, I'm coming with."
"As much as I hate to agree with our Instructor I would like to experience one of these shrines for myself."
"If Albarea is going with Rean than I'm going with Fie!"
"Ooh! I wanna go with Jusis!"
"Are you sure? Given how ancient the Spirit Shrines supposedly are I would not be surprised if they are somehow connected to Lohengrin Castle and the Old Schoolhouse. Which would mean gho-"
"...I wanna go with Fie!"
"I'm not sure how much use I would be dealing with a hijacked airship, but I do want to see Hibelle again. Is it alright if I come with you, Fie?"
"The thought of a Spirit Shrine being so close to Roer bugs me. Let me come with you."
"I am willing to place myself on either team, but I must admit I would love to experience the feel of the Eisengard Mountain Range for myself..."
Rean listened to each and every comment, mentally placing his classmates on the proper teams. With him was Emma, Jusis, Alisa, and Instructor Sara. Fie currently had Machias, Millium, Elliot, and Gaius. That just left...
"Laura is coming with me." Fie declared.
"C'mon, Fie. Let her decide for herself."
"I am. She already decided to come with me."
"You can't just play on her kindness like that!"
The woman in question glanced between the two of them nervously. "Um..."
But Fie, being completely unreasonable, ignored her. "You already said that the hijacked airship was the most important mission! I need the extra firepower!"
"Trying to use my own words against me? Well aren't you the one who said you needed to be quiet and discreet. Pretty sure she is the opposite of that!"
"H-Hey...!"
"Oh yeah? Well I think you just want her freakish strength to lug around that big hunk of metal you're looking for!"
"T-That's not true and you know it!" ...But it wasn't a terrible idea.
"Excuse me!" It seemed that Laura had finally had enough of Fie's interruptions as she yelled loudly. The girl was red in the face as she glared at both him and her. "I can decide for myself, thank you very much!"
When she turned her attention towards Fie his heart sank. "I-I'm glad that you desire my company so much, but..." Never had that word sounded so good in Rean's ears. "...I think I would be better served assisting Rean in exploring the Spirit Shrine."
There had been few victories in his life that felt as good as the one he just now experienced. Father and master Ka-fai always told him to be gracious in success, so he limited his celebration towards a simple victory symbol with his fingers directed towards his honorable opponent.
The obscene gesture a pouting Fie sent in return was completely uncalled for.
"Aww. Is the show finally over?" Only now did he recall that everyone else was still standing there watching their little discussion.
Emma bobbed her head at Instructor Sara's words. "It was quite a touching display."
"Really? To me it was just a reminder at how nonsensical and moronic humans can be." Celine's tail swished in annoyance. "Can we finally get a move on?"
"Right." Rean turned towards the tiny captain of the ship. "Towa, can you get Fie and the others to the Eisengard Mountains before delivering the rest of us to Roer?"
"R-Right..."
Fie was not a petty individual. Having Laura side with Rean instead of her did not bother her much. The older girl had simply made a rational decision to go fight monsters at the Spirit Shrine. That was perfectly fine.
"You're making an awfully scary face right- Eek!" Elliot the coward was unable to finish his statement when she sent a purely curious glance in his direction.
Her day had looked so promising, too. How did she get stuck trudging through the snowy mountainous end of Erebonia with just the boring brigade at her side? She almost found herself missing Sara of all people!
This was definitely Rean's fault.
"We should be reaching the meeting point soon. Eyes open, everyone." But since Rean wasn't around she would have to vent her frustrations on the idiots who hijacked the airship. Get the job done, go back to the Courageous, and laze around for the rest of the day. That was the plan.
After a few pointless monster attacks she and the others reached the rendezvous point, and thankfully Klein and Hibelle were already there waiting for them. Two more Thors students to add to the collection. Hurray.
With them as guides the large group soon found the airship hidden away inside the mountain range. The surrounding mountains meant that there was only one real way for them to approach the airship. None of the hostages were visible, but it made sense to keep them inside where they could be easily contained.
Of interest however were the two guards. They dressed like jaegers, but Fie wasn't sure what jaeger corp would do a plan as stupid as this. Perhaps someone hired them to act in such a shoddy manner, but given how old their equipment looked and how lax their postures were...
She was pretty certain this was just a bunch of morons trying to take advantage of the war to do something stupid for some quick mira.
Now that she had a greater understanding of the situation it was time to make a plan. As they discussed their options she found herself impressed with the two second year students. All she really knew of them was that Klein was in Laura's club and Hibelle was with Elliot. Yet the swimmer and musician both had surprisingly keen minds for this kind of thing and had already scouted out the area and airship thoroughly.
In the end they decided upon a simple plan. One team would be loud and obnoxious and attack head on to draw the jaeger's focus while a smaller team would quietly infiltrate the airship from the other side. In hindsight Laura would have been absolutely perfect for the first team, something which she made a mental note of to rub in Rean's face later.
As the stealthiest and quietest student in Thors she naturally accepted the role of leading the assault team. Right now beating up some bargain bin jaegers was exactly what she wanted to do. Let the second years handle the stealth mission for a change.
The sentries were too busy being cold and stupid to notice the approaching group of Class VII students and were thus easy prey. While they were supposed to be the loud team the fact that they were able to take these guys out without making much noise was still beneficial to their mission. Easier to get into the airship when they didn't need to worry about prepared ambushes along the way. After the fight she noticed that Gaius was staring at the unconscious jaegers with furrowed brows. "What's up?"
"I believe these are the same jaegers we encountered during our field study in Nord."
"Bugbear, right?" Well, that pretty much confirmed that these guys were lame. Still, with hostages involved they needed to take this seriously.
With entry secure she and the rest of Class VII entered the airliner's hold while Klein and Hibelle circled around towards another entrance. There were no jaegers in the cargo hold, but they did come across a group as soon as they stepped out of the elevator on the next level. The Bugbear members were once again too surprised to mount a worthwhile defense and were dispatched after a short struggle.
Fie had expected that combat on the ship would alert the other enemies to their presence, but it didn't seem to be the case at all. Were they really that oblivious? No constant radio communications or overlapping patrols to quickly discover if a squad had been taken out?
These guys really did suck.
Exploring the floor revealed no passengers, but they did come across a Bugbear officer on break. Fie took personal responsibility in knocking the guy unconscious, something which she totally did not take enjoyment from. Given the guy's high rank she quickly checked his body for anything of value. It was a good thing she still had plenty of grenades on hand, as the ones this guy possessed were of such terrible quality she was surprised they didn't randomly blow up in his possession. Of actual use, however, was the airship card key to the next level that she happily liberated.
While the rest of the area was empty she was able to hear voices inside the closed off bridge. Listening in to the jaegers inside revealed what the students had already assumed: They had hijacked the ship to acquire random money and prestige, both of which they thought would make them into a real jaeger corp. It was almost hilarious, but now was not the time to lecture them on their stupidity. While the airship crew was stuck in there, the other passengers weren't, so Fie ordered her friends to leave that room for later.
The third level proved more productive to Class VII. The floor was mostly deserted, but Gaius heard voices from the lounge at the end of the area. This time they struck gold as they could hear the voices of scared passengers as they got closer. With everyone in position she kicked in the door and they stormed the room. Somehow the jaegers were still oblivious to their presence and were taken out before they could consider turning their guns upon the hostages.
Great. That was one thing taken care of, but the news that the wealthier passengers were on the top level meant she couldn't relax yet. One of the guys they had just freed was Norton, the reporter they had worked with a couple times during their field studies. He promised to lead the others to safety while they continued onward. One of the other passengers also looked kinda familiar, but she couldn't put a name to the plain face and decided to ignore it.
Thus far the mission had gone quite well and she was ready to bring it to a finish. Reaching the top level she ordered Machias and Millium to guard the steps behind them – Eventually Bugbear would realize something was up and she had no desire to be flanked by the jaegers coming from the bridge. That just left her, Elliot, and Gaius to handle whoever was left guarding the noble hostages.
The final room contained both the remaining hostages and the last few Bugbear jaegers. There were only a few of them so she was confident in victory if they could just get them away from the civvies. Some of which seemed to recognize the Class VII students. Given that they were girls wearing the St. Astraia uniform Fie could hazard a guess as to why.
The sounds of gunfire from the stairwell made her smirk. No ambushes this time. They jaeger commander seemed to realize this as he ordered his remaining squad to assault the outnumbered students. Outnumbered, but not outmatched.
Living up to her title as Sylphid she took the initiative and darted forward, drawing the focus of three of the four jaegers with her actions. Nimbly the lithe girl danced through their strikes, but failed to strike back in return. They probably assumed she was too pressed on dodging to have the chance to counter.
They were wrong.
"Fie!" The cry from Elliot was enough for her to move. Thanks to her combat link she knew the musician had been prepping a powerful water attack. Such an art would normally be quite dangerous in such an enclosed space, especially with hostages around, but she knew the young musician had improved quite a lot over the past year. She had faith he could pull it off.
And pull it off he did. The blast of high-pressure water was enough to wash away all three dropouts and send them slamming painfully into the nearest wall, from which they did not recover. Turning she watched as the fourth jaeger had a painful meeting with the end of Gaius's spear. Easy peasy.
As was often the case in situations like these, once he realized the fight had turned against him the Bugbear commander turned his gun on the hostages, something that had become annoyingly common for them lately. But unlike the Nidhoggr commander or even the provincial officer with the funny accent, this guy lacked any confidence in his action as his gun wavered dangerously. Any second now and he would slip up and she could-
Never mind. The solution was made clear when the other door in the room opened up and out stepped Klein and Hibelle. Torn between two groups the jaeger wavered. Fie thought about taking him out herself, but instead opted to leave him to the second years while she instead made her way over to the hostages. Prioritizing the safety of civilians seemed like something Rean or Laura would do.
Once Machias and Millium rejoined the group they learned from the second years that they had already secured the bridge and freed the ship's crew. That meant that all the hostages were safely accounted for and all the jaegers were knocked out.
Mission accomplished.
Her good mood lasted until she overheard the St. Astraia students chatting with each other. One would think that they would be overjoyed to be rescued, but no. Instead they were lamenting to each other about how they wished they had been saved by Elise's brother instead. It kinda pissed her off that even girls he had never spoken with were swooning over the jerk. She thought about informing them that he belonged to her, but decided against it. Even with her lack of social experiences she understood that absolutely nothing good could come from telling anything to a bunch of gossiping girls.
With the crew in position and the airship undamaged it was a simple thing to take flight once all the jaegers were properly secure. Roer wasn't far away and the RMP would be there to ensure Bugbear didn't recover from this second terrorist attack. The Courageous was also informed of their status and would be meeting them later. Plenty of time for her to relax in the city.
Her final thoughts before drifting off into a relaxing nap in a quiet corner of the airport were of her family. How were they faring in their little Spirit Shrine excursion?
"Hiyaaaah!" The satisfaction of landing a heavy blow with her blade was enhanced as the dangerous fiend she had been fighting burst into light before vanishing. With the battle at its conclusion she allowed herself the luxury of wiping the sweat off her face.
When Laura arrived at the Ignis Shrine alongside Rean, Emma, Celine, Jusis, Alisa, and Instructor Sara she had thought they were fortunate that the shrine itself lacked the maze-like layout that the one she had visited prior, something which Rean had confirmed was the same for all the prior shrines. Instead the door that was their destination was merely at the end of a flight of stairs, with no enemies to contend with. With Celine now no longer hiding the fact she knew how to proceed further the little cat intoned an incantation of sorts, causing the barrier to remove itself.
...And that's when they learned to their dismay that the real trial of the Ignis Shrine was only now beginning.
The place they found themselves in was completely out of this world, making it all the more obvious that these shrines were created by the same people responsible for the trials of the Old Schoolhouse. The place really embodied the element of its name as they bore witness to lakes of fire, monsters comprised entirely of flame, and even the fiends that stood guardian over the previous shrines were visible roaming freely.
But worst of all was the oppressive heat. It didn't matter how skillful or powerful one was, no human could last for long under conditions like these. Combat would certainly be an ordeal.
Despite that, they pressed onward, believing in their constitution to carry them through to mission's completion. That belief seemed to be paying off, as once they figured out the trick to this area – the flames that controlled the pathways – progress sped up greatly. A few dangerous fiends weren't nearly enough to stop them after all the tribulations they had overcome and already the pathway that led them deeper into the area lay before them.
From past experiences she was fairly certain that there would be a formidable opponent awaiting them there, but that didn't matter to them much, mostly because the air felt cooler that way, which made sense as it was away from the pits of fire. So foregoing any sort of a break she and the rest of Class VII sped their way down the hall and into the large chamber awaiting them at the end.
The room was devoid of hostiles, but that meant nothing to fiends who could appear out of thin air. Despite herself, however, she couldn't help but lower her guard as her gaze was drawn to the prize waiting for them at the top of a long flight of stairs. She was no geologist, but one didn't need to be to know that the large radiant rock awaiting them was a massive chunk of raw zemurian ore. The same material that would be needed for Rean's new weapon.
"I take it from all your reports that this is the part where the scary monster appears?"
She and everyone else looked at Instructor Sara in surprise. "I-I didn't think you actually read our reports." Emma said what they were all thinking.
"H-Hey! I usually read a couple of them when I'm bored!"
"Will you guys cut it out! It's coming!" Celine's warning was enough to put an end to their argument.
As expected, a ball of light proceeded the arrival of the shrine's guardian. Laura expected to see some kind of powerful fiend awaiting them when it faded, but the enemy that appeared was nothing of the sort. Instead it was a massive humanoid machine that bore some resemblance to a Panzer Soldat, but was seemingly more arcane in nature.
Although she had never seen an enemy like this before, she had a feeling as to what it could be. "I take it this is one of the Magic Knights you mentioned?"
"Yeah." Rean breathed out as he drew his tachi. "They're slow, but very powerful and can use arts! I can't summon Valimar here, so we'll need to hit it with everything we have once it starts regenerating itself, or it'll become a battle of attrition!"
Right. She recalled him mentioning that after he and the others had faced on in Nord. Everything she had, huh...
Perhaps this fight was as good a time as any to use that?
Before such a decision could be made first they needed to weaken the Magic Knight. Since Fie wasn't around the position of faster member of Class VII fell to their teacher, so the older woman took the lead in assaulting the enemy with Rean linked up just behind her. Even if Instructor Sara didn't know it, she was filling in for Fie in a formation Laura had utilized with her lovers before to great effect.
They were the hammers and she was the anvil.
The Magic Knight flailed wildly as it tried to drive off the two speedsters assaulting it. Although it lacked a sword unlike the other ones Class VII had fought there was no doubt in her mind that its fists were more than capable of flattening them if they connected. But that wasn't something it could do while preoccupied with the others. With a cry she leapt at her distracted foe and brought her greatsword down in a mighty strike that cut through the thick leg armor with ease.
Jusis followed up her own attack with one of his own. While his saber lacked the sheer power of her weapon, he made up for it with his affinity with arts, creating a sheet of frost that followed his strike and coated the mechanical monstrosity. It wouldn't stop the Magic Knight for long, but the icy layer was enough to keep it from moving as Emma and Alisa laid into it with powerful arts, causing the machine to roar in agony as it was engulfed in a pair of powerful explosions.
It was hurt, but it certainly wasn't out of the fight as it marched out of the flames towards the closest available target – herself. Laura was prepared to back away and let someone else take advantage of its focus, but she felt a peculiar sensation as it approached, as if a wall had been placed between her and it. A glance towards the others showed that it was Jusis who had done something to her. That was new. Still, even if she didn't fully understand his action she would place her trust in her classmate, Taking up a defensive stance the Arseid practitioner elected to meet the Magic Knight head on.
The meeting of armored fist and blade threatened to unbalance her, but against all odds her guard held firm against the massive foe. It reared back for another strike, but a pair of arrows impacting its face was enough to divert its attention away from her and towards the arts users. The Magic Knight stood straight – even ignoring Rean as he struck it from behind with his Flame Impact – as it prepared its own attack. It took Laura a second to realize its intentions. "Watch out. It's casting an art!"
Whether her warning was heeded or not she was unsure as it was at that moment that the enemy released its spell, sending a powerful attack towards Alisa, Emma, and Jusis. As much as she wanted to check on them the guardian was still directly in front of her. To look away now would be a great folly. She would need to place her faith in Emma's ability to shield everyone from the attack.
A streak of purple impacted the Magic Knight before revealing itself to be their instructor, blade piercing its armor. Pulling away to evade the enemy's retaliation the older woman capitalized on the opening by firing some potent shots from her gun into the rent armor, turning a minor injury into a much more significant one. Again it roared in defiance of the injuries it had taken.
But this time instead of attacking the Magic Knight stood tall and began glowing bright. She wasn't sure what it was doing, but it felt like it was gaining more power...
"It's regenerating! Take it down!" Rean's warning was accentuated as his tachi began burning with blue flames, signaling his intent to use his strongest attack.
Heeding his advice, Laura took a stance. He was probably expecting her to use her Radiant Waltz, but that was not her intent. Instead it was time for something new.
Using a new technique for the first time in battle was always an exhilarating experience, so it took her a second to prepare herself, both mentally and physically. That gave plenty of time for Rean and Instructor Sara to hit the Magic Knight with their own powerful attacks, further weakening but failing to bring down the opponent for good. There were even a few attacks sent from their other classmates showing that at least some of them were still fighting fit after being hit by the art.
With the Magic Knight wide open now was the moment for her to strike. Letting out one final exhale the swordswoman darted forward, blade at the ready. Her attack would leave her exposed for a moment, so ensuring the enemy was off-balance was essential – even if her comrades had already done a good job of that. To that end she opened with a flurry of powerful strikes, executed as swiftly as she could, but still with considerable force.
Once certain the Magic Knight could not take action, the Arseid user leapt high into the air before slamming down upon the undefended foe. The power of her greatsword enhanced by the gravity of her descent made for a powerful combination. And that combination had a name. "Radiant Lion!"
Not even the armored golem could withstand the force of such an attack as her blade scythed through its frame with little resistance. It unleashed a final roar as she sliced through its core before vanishing into a ball of light, signaling its ultimate defeat. The victorious girl sheathed her blade before turning back to her comrades to make sure they were alright. It was only after she confirmed they all were that she allowed the tension to leave her body.
There was a silent but unanimous agreement to take a quick breather before retrieving the crystal, as while the trial hadn't been overly difficult or long, the heat had left them exhausted nonetheless. Laura too was content to relax and recover in peace, but that changed when Rean approached her. "That move... Is it new?" He asked.
"It is. An advanced level Arseid technique that I have been working on since leaving Thors. This was the first time using it in a real battle." She paused before adopting a sheepish look on her face. "Truth be told a part of me had been hoping I wouldn't need to use it during this war. Would have loved to surprise you during our next spar."
Rean laughed nervously. "Kinda glad it turned out this way." Her fellow swordsman gained a mischievous glint in his eyes. "...I'll keep it a secret from Fie."
She giggled, already liking the idea. The face her rival would make after such a resounding defeat... "I appreciate it."
"Still..." Rean mused as he glanced towards where the Magic Knight had been standing. "I guess I need to redouble my own efforts. Don't want to fall behind for long."
His comment earned him a curious glance. "I take it that means you have been working on something yourself?" The question itself was pointless. He was like her. They were always striving forwards. But the way he said it made it sound like it was something equally decisive as her new finisher.
Naturally he understood her real question. "As much as I can. There are so many powerhouses on the other side. Trying to even the scales a bit."
"Would you like my assistance?"
He shook his head. "Thanks, but I think I need to do this myself. It's a seventh form technique." From what she recalled, that form was all about emptiness of form and mind, which would certainly explain why he didn't think she could provide much help. Rean shot her a reassuring smile. "I'm pretty close, I think. Hopefully it'll be ready before the war's end."
"Very well, but if you change your mind do not hesitate to let us know."
Once the break was over the group of six humans plus one cat made their way up the stairs to take in the zemurian ore up close. It was almost the size of her and glowed with such radiance. It truly was the most impressive crystal Laura had ever laid eyes upon in her life. A weapon forged from that metal would be very powerful indeed.
"So, um..." Alisa looked around nervously. "How exactly are we supposed to get this giant crystal back to the Courageous?"
"Huh?" Instructor Sara looked confused. "I thought Fie answered that already. Don't we have someone with freakish strength with us?"
That statement confused Laura initially, until she realized the older woman was staring at her with a grin on her face. The looks that Alisa, Emma, and Jusis were sporting as they turned her way was more apologetic, but just as hopeful. D-Did they seriously expect her to carry the ore? A pleading look towards Rean showed her dear leader was looking anywhere but at her. The nerve of that coward!
...In hindsight she really should have chosen to go with Fie instead.
Heads up: Next chapter is gonna be delayed. There's a game coming out on July 7th. It's a niche game in a niche franchise, so I'm certain none of you have ever heard of it. That being said, it's a game I have been waiting over two years to play. The time I normally dedicate to writing will definitely be spent playing the game instead.
But worry not. I'm sure I will binge the game super hard and be back to writing in a week. I have absolutely no self restraint, after all.