Raynauld snapped his eyes open and slowly rose from his bed. Taking a look out the window, the dawn greeted him with a warm wash of light. He got up quickly, preparing himself to head out. It wouldn’t be a while until they were scheduled to leave, but not enough time to relax. He hoped that everyone else was ready, it would be incredibly short notice. Rubbing his face, he let out a sigh as he exited his quarters; he would have to inform everyone else now.

Presumably, Maria, Floyd, and Aldrich heard the news, but Felicia and Kashire probably didn’t. The others had been soldiers for a long while, Felicia was treated more as a noble than anything else, and people didn’t even know who Kashire was half the time, much less where he was. Somehow, Raynauld could always track him down, or maybe Kashire just let himself be found.

There was an obvious distrust from others when it came to Kashire, but Raynauld never understood it. Sure he was an outsider, but he never betrayed the city. He was skilled, more skilled than any archer Raynauld knew, and had an unnatural advantage when it came to reconnaissance. Many questioned the decision to bring him in, especially when Raynauld’s first meeting with him started with him attempting to shoot him full of arrows. However, there was more to everyone than first impressions.

He made his way through the hallway as the orange light spilled through them, illuminating the carpet under his feet. The smell of the morning washed over him as he reached the open terrace, taking in the view of the garden before him. It was beautiful out here, especially with the sun peering out on the horizon. Raynauld made his way up the long stairway which connected to the bridge up to the higher levels. As he made his way up the stairs, he noticed movement on his right.

A hand reached in front of him as he turned around.

“Hey.”

He looked over his shoulder to see Kashire standing in front of him. He always seemed to be awake earlier than him.

“Hello Kashire, what are you doing here?”

He let out a sigh and continued walking alongside Raynauld.

“A certain girl decided to sleep in the observatory.”

Raynauld raised his eyebrow and nodded.

“Is there any reason for it?”

“Probably the usual.”

Kashire paused for a moment before turning towards Raynauld.

“What’s going on?”

Raynauld continued forwards. Somehow Kashire always knew when there was something on his mind.

“We’re leaving at noon, are you prepared?”

“Always.”

They continued up the steps and arrived at the bridge. Kashire took a seat on the railing of the balcony.

“I’m guessing you’re going to go get Felicia now.”

“Yeah, I’ll need to inform her as well.”

Kashire sighed again and tilted his head back.

“See if she caught a cold or not. Well, actually, she couldn’t physically catch one, could she?”

Raynauld smirked and stepped onto the raft in front of him.

“I’ll see you at the armory in a minute.”

Kashire just nodded and swung his legs to dismount from the railing. Raynauld watched him jump off the side and down to a lower floor. He always neglected the stairs whenever he could, much to Raynauld’s confusion. The water below shimmered like teal crystals on top of the crisp white stone. Felicia visited the observatory often, but never seemed to talk about. She seemed to enjoy her time up there; this wasn’t the first time she had done this.

The breeze softly brushed against Raynauld’s skin as he leaned forwards on the raft’s railing. The calm whistle of the wind followed him as he neared the observatory. The giant glass structure glistened underneath the rays of sun. The whole building was almost a greenhouse with the amount of glass it had on itself, but somehow it never overheated inside. Raynauld stepped off the raft and walked towards the gold embroidered doors in front of him.

The entrance swung open smoothly as he walked into the building. The lower floor was covered in books and diagrams which Raynauld never was able to grasp fully. In front of him stood the caretaker, who was shuffling papers on his desk. He looked up at Raynauld, pausing his work.

“I suppose you’re here to wake her?”

Raynauld nodded.

“Yes, she’s still asleep?”

The man shook his head and smiled.

“I couldn’t bring myself to get her up. Anyways, she’s not getting in the way of anyone.”

Raynauld chuckled and started to move up the thin staircase to the upper levels. The caretaker adjusted his glasses and sat down, his long robes spilling off the sides of the chair.

“She’s welcome here anytime she likes, that goes for you too.”

“I’ll keep that in mind, thank you.”

The sun peered through the skylight as Raynauld walked upwards to the second floor. Arriving at the top, he looked around the room. It looked extremely cozy up here, multiple couches and chairs lined the room all around, surrounded by a glass wall which separated it from an open terrace which also had its own assortment of benches. Raynauld spotted Felicia in the corner of the room, curled up on a couch.

He approached her as she breathed slowly, her body slowly rising and falling. He reached his hand out, tapping her lightly on the shoulder.

“Felicia?”

She let out a small groan and slowly opened her eyes, looking groggily up at Raynauld.

“...Ray?”

She yawned and slowly pushed herself up with one arm, rubbing her eyes with the other. After blinking for a second, her face flushed red.

“Oh, did I-”

Raynauld nodded and took a seat on a chair opposite to her. She quickly straightened herself up, clasping her hands on her lap.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have been up her anyways, it was late and I was tired so I decided to lie down and-”

“Felicia, it’s alright, I’m not angry.”

She peeked upwards at Raynauld and quickly shrunk herself downwards.

“I- um, thank you”

Raynauld let out a sigh and placed his arms on his knees.

“It’s alright, but you need to get ready, we’re leaving at noon.”

She took a moment to process what he said and then bolted upright.

“I’m so sorry, did I sleep too late? Is everyone already waiting?”

Raynauld shook his head and motioned for her to sit back down.

“Dawn just broke a while ago, it’s still morning.”

She nodded and kept her feet planted squarely on the floor, visibly attempting to stop her fidgeting. Raynauld got up from his seat, taking a look at Felicia.

“We’re designated to be in the centre courtyard for transport.”

He moved towards the stairs, giving her a wave as he left. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted her rub her eyes with both of her hands and lean backwards. The caretaker walked past the base of the staircase, shelving the papers he was previously organizing.

“She does know that she’s allowed in here, right?”

Raynauld reached the bottom floor, turning to the caretaker as he shelved some books.

“I believe she does, why do you ask?”

He shrugged with a chuckle.

“She always avoids everyone when she visits, half the time I don’t even notice she’s there.”

Raynauld nodded with a smile.

“That’s just how she is.”

The caretaker stepped back to examine the giant bookcase in front of him.

“Is that so? Well, whatever the case, I would be glad to have a conversation with her once in a while, not many people come up here, it gets a bit dull.”

Raynauld looked at the charts once again, their delicately carved scribbles covering gridlines.

“She’s a bit timid, you’ll have to start one yourself.”

The caretaker smiled and walked to the other side of the room, pulling out more papers and looking through them.

“Good to know, best of luck.”

Raynauld pushed the doors open again, feeling the wind rush past him. He made his way back down to the bottom floors. Letting out a sigh, he stretched his arms out as he walked. After this was all over he needed to have a talk about Felicia’s sleeping habits. Maybe he should’ve cracked down on it earlier, but it was hard to discipline her without affecting her concentration for the rest of the day. Besides, she already beat herself up over it judging upon how apologetic she always was.

Moving through the terrace, Raynauld let his mind wander. This was actually happening, wasn’t it? Sure it wasn’t the first time he was sent to hunt traitors, but none of them were as dangerous as this. Haureulman and Tylocke had evaded the city for years, and the deaths of hundreds of innocents were on their hands. They must be brought to justice, and Raynauld’s team was the instrument that was being used. No matter what, they wouldn’t stop until the job was done.

~

Maria sat on her bedside, holding her head in her hands. She tried to will herself to get up, but her body refused to move. The light from the sun gave no comfort as the lack of sleep made her eyes droop. It all happened so suddenly, and as much as she didn’t want to admit it, she wasn’t ready to hear it all. They were moving today, possibly confronting them both before sunset. She cursed herself, pushing her body upwards. She had no right to have second thoughts.

Stumbling forwards, Maria leaned against the wall, shaking her head from the wave of nausea. Shoving the thoughts out of her mind, she moved to the balcony. The doors creaked open and wind rustled the trees next to her room as she took a deep breath of the air, letting the cold breeze refresh her. A leaf blew by her face, flowing upwards into the sky. She watched it fly away, far out of sight and past the city. Her hand reached up to her chest and onto the locket around her neck.

With a sigh, she headed back inside to her desk and grabbed a piece of ribbon to tie her hair back. Taking a look in the mirror, she examined her face. The scar on her forehead seemed to be more faded than she remembered, and the one under her chin was just a faint outline. She shook her head and turned away, moving towards the door. As much as she would like the marks to disappear, she knew that was impossible, especially for the one on her neck.

The corridors felt empty as Maria slowly walked down them. The walls opened to railings and columns, allowing the light and wind to fill the area. It was such a beautiful morning, it didn’t feel right. She took a moment to ponder what she should do, slowly realizing she had extremely few options. A group of scholars walked by, giving Maria ample space as they moved past. She gripped her hands into a fist and walked forwards. It would probably be best to examine her armour and weapon, as much as she didn’t want to.

After a few minutes of walking, she stood in front of the armoury doors. She hadn’t been here in a while, her superiors would’ve disciplined her harshly for not regularly maintaining her equipment back in the day. She pushed open the doors, walking into the familiar rows of tall cabinets. Moving forwards, she brushed her hand along the cabinet doors. These used to be used by people she used to work with, who knew which regiment now had their equipment stored in them.

Turning around the corner, she spotted the one that was hers. It had practice swords leaning against it’s door and dust coated the handle. Maria sighed and put the swords onto the floor. She couldn’t fault whoever put those there, they must’ve thought it wasn’t in use. Slowly opening the doors, she looked inside. Everything was how she left it, just with a bit more dust on it. She pulled out the old cloak off it’s hook and examined it’s faded blue fabric. Pausing for a moment, she touched her fingers to the insignia on its shoulder; a rose coiled around a cross.

Quickly putting the cloak back, she picked up her longsword. The grip immediately felt comfortable in her hand and she slid it out of its sheath. The metal glistened under the candlelight, reflecting it with a glow. With a twirl, she focused on the blade. A gust of wind came from behind her and stopped near the blade, creating a ghostly image of the sword in midair. It took her a long time to perfect this technique, but it was worth the trouble. She smiled and sheathed the blade. Still have it.

Her smile slowly faded as she looked down at her hand. The familiar sting of ether blight trickled down her arm, pulling at her skin. The pain subsided quickly as she closed the cabinet doors, keeping her sword at her hip. She briskly walked out of the armoury, listening to the birds from outside call to one another.

The hallways were still as Maria walked to the courtyard. The sun blinded her as she exited the shade of the hallways. Shielding her eyes, she kept walking with a sigh. Taking a route off the main path, she made her way onto a patch shaded by trees. She slowly pulled her sword out of its sheath once again and took up a stance. Closing her eyes, she let the muscle memory come back to her.

Wind rushed by again as she stepped forwards with a strike, creating a mirage of a blade from another direction. She swung again, letting the gusts of wind create the illusion again from a higher angle. It was a useful tool at the start of a battle, but people caught on if the fight dragged on for too long. With a final swing, she let the air dissipate. Her breath remained calm as she moved back into her stance, the handle by her hip and the tip of the blade at head height.

Maria paused for a moment as the sound of footsteps came from behind her. She lowered her blade and turned around, spotting Floyd walking towards her.

“Hey, fancy meeting you here.”

She let a small smile onto her face and sheathed her sword.

“Hello.”

He stretched out his arms and let out a yawn. He ran his hand over his short orange hair, his hand brushing over the burn mark on his face.

“You’re practicing?”

“Yes, it would be best to start remembering things before we headed out.”

He chuckled and took a seat at the base of a tree.

“It’s been a while, huh?”

Maria paused and looked downwards.

“It has.”

Floyd took a look at her and rested his hands behind his head.

“I didn’t think the order would pop up so soon.”

“Me neither.”

Maria put her sword down and took a seat opposite to Floyd. She ran her hair through her hands as Floyd spoke.

“What do you make of this whole situation? With us being sent out after a single target?”

She took a moment to think, crossing her arms with a sigh.

“In all honesty? I don’t know what to think.”

He nodded and looked upwards.

“Yeah, that’s fair.”

The birds kept chirping in the distance as Floyd continued to speak.

“I’m not sure how we’ll deal with this, we’re not fighting a war anymore.”

Maria lowered her head.

“We never were fighting a war, it was a rebellion.”

“Sure as hell felt like one.”

“... Yes, it did.”

Floyd let out a long sigh before speaking in a lower tone.

“So, do you think you can kill him?”

Maria sat in silence for a moment before responding.

“He was already skilled when he was with us, and he’s only gotten better. I don’t know.”

“But do you think you’ll be able to kill him?”

Maria winced and kept her gaze off of Floyd.

“I… he was our comrade, I would’ve even called him a friend back then, but I’ll do what I must.”

Floyd nodded grimly and let the ambience of the courtyard fill the air. Maria took a look at her hand, the white scars blending into her pale skin. She let a sigh out as she shook her head.

“Where’s Aldrich?”

“Hm? Probably in the sanctum.”

“Still? I thought he would’ve stopped visiting so frequently by now.”

Floyd let out a snort.

“If anything he’s been going there more, he practically lives there.”

“Do you know why?”

“Well, I would ask but that just seems insensitive.”

Maria leaned back, folding her hands on her lap. Aldrich always was mysterious and a force of nature in battle. As imposing as he was, it seemed like he had the best interests at heart. He never looked back once he was finished, and if he saw someone as an enemy no quarter was spared. Floyd got up, stretching his legs out.

“I guess we’ll be meeting back up soon, good luck.”

“Hm? Oh, you too Floyd.”

Watching him walk off again, she let out a sigh and closed her eyes, listening to the leaves rustle above her. Maria let her thoughts wander once again. She hadn’t seen Aldrich in so long, well, she hadn’t seen a lot of people in a long time. In fact, that meeting with Floyd was the first she talked to him in a month. Even so, he didn’t question her absence around the grounds, and she was thankful for that. No matter what, Floyd tried his best to understand others. Maria got back up, pulling her sword out of her sheath again. She needed to stop her mind from wandering. Bringing her sword into a stance again, the wind blew behind her and she swung.