Victoria came out of the penumbra.

This was her most dangerous mission yet, a Teller had prophesized it would be her last.

Such a revelation had many possible interpretations, but the simplest was often the best.

Victoria heard the voices of the Firantes growing closer.

Soon, she would see their encampment.

Their true appearance would be revealed to her. She would be the first one able to report the ignominious sight that hid behind their beautiful magical masks.

She thought about the Imperatrix. Everything about her mission had been strange. She had been called into Her chambers privately instead of the throne room.

Considering the importance of the information revealed by the sumptuous Lady, maybe that was to be considered natural.

But how did the Imperatrix manage to hear about the Firante encampment on her own?

Why ask her to go check it out alone, with no escort?

Victoria walked towards the light of the fireplaces.

The Truth of the Firante, soon tragically revealed.

Last trip: Volume 3 of Victoria’s Quest.

Nay woke up in a room filled with exotic things. She could barely recognise any. Sliding doors made of cloth let the daylight enter partly.

She heard a plume pen scratching rigid parchment. She felt in a state of half there, half not, and even though she had no idea where she laid exactly, she felt serene.

She did not recognise the woman leaning on a little desk. It was the Rreico that showed Nay of who it was. There, sitting like that, Karmena did not seem as charismatic as before. She looked like a woman in her forties having lived too much already.

Without turning around, the woman began to talk.

“You are awake? Good. Drink lots of water, I put a jar next to the bed. You lost quite some blood. I would recommend no physical activities for a week.”

Nay knew very well her hellish training would resume the next day, and she forced herself to laugh at the recommendation.

Her belly ached in response, but the pain had dulled.

“Let me finish the accounting and I’m with you.” The courtesan continued.

Nay let herself be hypnotised by the sound of the creation of inky words on parchment.

Then, the sound ceased.

Karmena had turned around and came to Nay’s bedside. The older women examined Nay like a fish on a marketplace.

Who finally understood she was completely naked.

Now fully awake, the young girl hid behind the sheets, trying to save what dignity she had left.

But Karmena had finished her inspection already.

“Mhh, you’ll need that, and something else.” She said while handing over Nay’s clothes.

Nay put on her clothes quickly, only to stop briefly at the faint scent of lavender on them. Karmena was searching for something else in a nearby dresser. Once found, she gave it the young girl as well.

“You are lucky today is a sunny day, they are dry already.” The courtesan commented.

“I…Why?” Nay asked.

“I was obviously not going to give you blood soaked clothing. Why are you not putting on the brassiere?”

The what?

Nay examined the extra object Karmena had offered her. It was made of very flexible material, was quite soft, seemed to be made to strap onto your body, but had two small hills on either side of… she just realized what it was.

“I don’t need it…” She sighed.

“Excuse me? Have you looked at a mirror recently? It is not much to talk about, but that is just a matter of time seeing how sensitive and gorged of blood your chest seems. With my experience, I can comfortably tell you that you’ll need to wear them your whole life if you don’t want a broken back at thirty years of age.”

This revelation made Nay unable to respond. She looked at herself silently under the sheets.

It was not much, but now that she was aware of it, she had to admit there was something.

“Erm.” It was her wish to grow up, but this was all a bit much to digest in one go.

Completely unaware of the teenager’s internal maelstrom, Karmena pulled away the sheets and stripped her of her upper clothing.

“I’ll show you how to put it on. Don’t have any girl friends who can help you? You are welcome here whenever you want, but I can’t enter the Academy, you know. A woman like me, in a place like that, I won’t be able to retain my purity.”

Nay could swear that if there was something this woman was not, it was innocent.

The thought helped distance herself from the silky hands on her skin. The brassiere, clearly made to facilitate movement, was not hard to put on, and after proving to the courtesan that she was able to wear it on her own, she was free to go.

“Where am I?” Nay asked on the edge of the sliding doors.

“You are at the Soi, the establishment that breaks hearts in exchange of gold. More precisely, you stand in the very sought after room of the Matrone.” Karmena answered her with a teasing grin.

“All right.” Nay responded, distracted by a very visible breast under the courtesan’s transparent nightgown.

“You’ll need more training girl; I could have killed you three times by now.”

“All right.” Nay repeated.

The older courtesan laughed. “Get out of here little minx, take the corridor on the right, follow the garden then go left. Exit will be straight ahead. Don’t stop in front of the chambers, you could be mistaken for a client, or worse, an employee.”

With those words said, Nay turned around and hurriedly left the place. She felt weird.

Her body was not really hurting anymore, except her chest, but she felt different, almost light.

She found herself back to the Academy not really remembering how.

She was brought to her room with no words, where she stayed until someone told her that her father was there.

Her father.

Who had lied to her.

For once, she did not join Marke in a training room, she waited for him to come to hers.

He said “Nay?” and knocked once before entering.

“Large room, you are lucky.” He began.

Nay did not want to look at him. She was gazing outside her window for answers, the blue sky was darkening.

“I miss Lis.” She finally said.

It was not necessary to be a master of Rreico to guess that Nay was not in her normal state, and as such, the master Legio sat down on the only chair, as Nay was on her bed.

“She misses you too. She became quite hard to handle you know. I didn’t realize how much you took care of her before you left.”

There was a long silence.

“You’ll see her again in two months? Your half-year permission, right?”

She did not answer.

“Nay…please.”

She finally met his gaze.

“Dad, why did you lie about Redrick? Why did you warn me about him, truthfully?”

She saw shock on his face, quickly replaced with sadness.

“It is an old story, of no interest and…”

“If it is of no interest, why did you lie?”

The question silenced him. He then tried to answer, less sure of himself.

“I…I do not believe to have lied. I have…”

“You didn’t tell me you two are friends.”

Marke leaned forwards, gripping his hands together in a vice.

“We were friends. Very good friends. Best friends.” Marke seemed to be forcing himself to talk, as if every word was torture.

Nay waited.

“He was a boy from elsewhere. He had decided to travel at only eight years old. By miracle, he was holding on. Surviving how he could. I was orphaned, grabbing whatever I could out of this damned city.”

“City?”

“Makaka.”

“I never heard of it.”

“You don’t learn the names of the southern cities, that is why. Still, it is one of the largest of Striavie.”

“Where you come from?”

He nodded: “This is where, since the war of the Firantes, lives the last true Legio master: Vestigio.”

“You are a master Legio, dad.”

He laughed sadly.

“Compared to him? Not really. I’ll never be his equal.”

The respect with which he had said that surprised Nay. He only talked like that when speaking of Ra’fa, and even then, it was mostly tenderness.

He looked at her.

“You though…no, it wouldn’t be a good idea. Don’t try to meet him.”

Nay raised an eyebrow.

“Why?”

“He doesn’t like women.” Answered Marke immediately, before continuing: “Anyway, both of us, Red and I, were picked up by him, Vestigio, my master. He was harsh but just and gave both of us the opportunity to become Legios.”

He stopped to breathe.

Marke never talked so much.

“I wasn’t talented, Redrick was. Our relationship degraded because I was jealous of him. Still, we stayed friends. Until the day where, by pure luck, I managed to beat him.”

“The Commandare?”

He nodded.

“It wasn’t an honourable victory and honestly, it doesn’t count, but it profoundly shocked him. I won’t go into details, but that day I managed to feel the Rreico for the first time. I never understood why he so desperately tried to become the best, maybe it’s in his blood, I don’t know. He’s a genius amongst geniuses, no doubt about that.”

He stopped talking for a moment.

“What happened next?”

“He went to look for a troop of Bhani warriors in the plains and challenged them. I had followed him thinking we were training. At first, the warriors mocked us…so Red cut himself, making himself bleed, and threw his blood at their faces.”

The silence was heavy.

“Then?” She asked.

“To Bhanis, this is the most terrible of insults. It is the promise that you shall eradicate their whole lineage. They attacked us on the spot, to kill. I defended myself, protecting myself from the attacks of two of them. They are amongst the most dangerous warriors in the world.”

“And Redrick?”

“…killed all of them. All of them. More than twenty. Then, once rid of his victims, he killed those I was facing. I had managed to make one surrender. Red cut his throat without batting an eye.”

Nay gulped.

“I was told he changed. I still only half believe it. Gite is a beautiful city, it is why I chose it. But I don’t want to have anything to do with him anymore. Do not believe for a second that he is nice or not dangerous. He is unable to feel guilt Nay. No remorse, nothing. You understand?”

She nodded. This conversation was over.

“Good, now tell me why we’re not training right now.”

The young teenager blushed in shame.

“What?” Marke asked. Then, seeing as she still wasn’t answering. “Daughter! Talk!” He ordered.

“Well erm…I have my day of the woman today…”

“Your what!?” Marke seemed lost.

“Ra’fa calls it a period? You know when…” She let the end of her sentence hang, questioning how her cheeks had not already spontaneously combusted.

Marke said nothing more.

Shouts of students training outside broke the silence that had fallen quite deeply in Nay’s room.

“Well.” Said Marke. “I’m going to go back home. Ra’fa will be delighted to hear the news. We’ll see each other in three days?”

Nay nodded fast, not able to meet his eyes.

She stayed alone the rest of the afternoon, her only company the sensations of her changing body.