It was a long two weeks for Reinhardt. For one thing, he agonised over his decision to give crucial intelligence to the Empire regarding his country. He also had some intelligence about Chelda Principality and the Farholm plane but he hadn’t decided yet if he would offer it up.

Traitor.

The stain of such a title would haunt him for the rest of his life, but is it treason if the ruler he swore to had been, himself, betrayed?

He’d already made his decision days ago, but he couldn’t help but wonder if he’d made the correct one. He kept worrying about it like a dog gnawing a bone.

It didn’t help that on the second day when he and his staff had been given the freedom of the deck, the interiors only, mind, and maybe an hour or two at the viewing deck which had a ceiling made out of transparent material, giving everyone a splendid view of the Chaos Sea, he had been visited by their saviour.

Sadeen Mishala looked like how he imagined Yuriko might in a few years. It wasn’t just the physical maturity but also the confidence and the demeanour of a ruler. Yuriko had that confidence but only on the battlefield. Outside of it, she was as awkward as any teenager. Socially, anyway. Her physical grace was as perfect as anything he’d ever seen and he’d been to hundreds of balls filled with gawking and nervous young boys and girls.

Anyway, given how Sadeen Mishala looked, Reinhardt should’ve fallen as easily infatuated as he did with Yuriko but oddly, he wasn’t. It wasn’t just because they were mother and daughter. In court, he’d admired several pairings, too. No, it was something else.

“You seem ill at ease, Prince Reinhardt Nostra of Isger,” Sadeen said with a cold smile.

“Merely in awe at your presence, Great Lady,” he answered smoothly.

They met on the observation deck, seemingly by chance. But it only took a level look from the woman to send Reinhardt’s attendant, Shara, and his bodyguard, Michi, running to a corner.

“Hmmm. You’re quite confident.”

Reinhardt bowed, even though as royalty, he should not have done so. He recognised great power when he stood in front of it. Someone who could command him to kill himself as easily as plucking a flower.

Yes, that’s what he was sure she did that moment in time. He felt it back then. The desire to do what she wanted. He felt it press down on his mind, seeking to twist his thoughts. Everything else would be gone, save for that desire, no that need, to do what she wanted him to do. Except, something in him rose up to push it away. The clash almost split his mind in twain. Thankfully, before anything permanent happened, the Great Lady withdrew her influence. The image of a golden haired girl, resplendent with an aura of golden flame, flashed across his eyes. And then, the influence returned, stronger and sharper. It had pierced through whatever defences he had, and given him an order, before pulling back just as quickly.

The next thing he knew, he was inside a decontamination room and being ministered to by a young man in form fitting clothes, followed by several hours of waiting, then finally, a meeting with the captain.

“How may I be of aid, ma’am?” he asked.

Sadeen stared at him straight in the eye. She was an inch taller than he, just like her daughter. “You proposed to my daughter.”

“No, ma’am, I merely asked permission to court, which, “ he quickly added, “I ask for permission from you now.”

Sadeen’s lips showed a hint of a smile, but it was gone the next moment.

“What do you have to offer?” she asked rhetorically. “An exiled prince, asking for asylum. A target for vengeful Isgeri revolutionaries. And…” she smirked, “in dire financial straits.”

Reinhardt bowed his head, sighed, then returned her gaze. “That may all be true, and I may not be able to offer riches, lands, and servants, but I can offer my devotion, knowledge, and skills.”

“I see,” Sadeen said flatly. “Your devotion. You do know that she can gain the devotion of any man whenever she wants it. What makes yours worthwhile?”

“I…uh…”

Sweat beaded on his forehead despite the cool air. He could feel it, pressure all around him, squashing him down. But…just like before, an image of Yuriko flashed in front of his mind and warded it away. He coughed, then straightened his bowed back. Sadeen’s eyes widened fractionally and there was no mistaking her smile now.

“Impressive,” she said before he could utter a word. “Well, it looks like you will make a fine votary.” Her smile grew wider. “I will not stand in your way, but I don’t think you’d make a good husband. Perhaps a consort.” She shrugged. “But that’s entirely up to her.”

“Consort?” Reinhardt asked. The captain said the same thing but he wanted to make sure of the term’s meaning. “Do you mean one of many?”

Sadeen smiled. “If she wishes. For now, perhaps you will serve as her attendant. Once we enter Realmheart. She has no close follower and it wouldn’t do for her standing.”

Swallowing, Reinhardt nodded in acceptance. With that, the Great Lady left, while he remained staring at the Chaos flows outside. Being on the other side of the fence was a novelty and he wasn’t sure he liked it. But…suddenly, the thought of being apart from her, of never being able to see her again, hurt far more than the thought of sharing.

Great Spirits! He hasn’t even seen her in days. Nor had he spoken to her the last time he saw her at the mess hall.

She was clad in scandalous clothing, but then again, everyone on this ship wore clothes that were too revealing, quite unlike the sensible robes and voluminous trousers and coats the Isgeri wore.

Still, that glimpse of her ankle, of her calf, and the tantalizing alabaster skin of her shoulders and neck, had set his heart racing. He wasn’t really a stranger to women, but her visage overshadowed everyone else’s.

“Oh Great Spirits, what has come over me?” he murmured. The very same influence that the Lady Sadeen had, Yuriko also possessed, and it looked like he’s caught in her net, and though he could guess how to go about escaping, he found that he didn’t even want to do so.

So he sat on a bench, watching the Chaos flows while he contemplated what the future held.

________

The last time Yuriko went through a Chaos channel, the Ebon Horizon had shaken so much that she had grown dizzy and nearly threw up. This time around, she didn’t even know that they’d gone through one, at least until Kiyo entered her shared quarters and told her that they’d arrived in Realmheart and if she wanted to take in the sights on the observation deck.

It was early morning, just before breakfast and Yuriko had just finished her morning ablutions and had been on her way to the training room for conditioning. But it was easy enough to break the routine.

While she had always maintained that she didn’t want to live in Realmheart, she was still curious about the Empire’s Capital plane. So she threw on a sundress, green with a halter top, sandals, and a diaphanous shawl that she wrapped around her back and arms, then hurriedly followed Kiyo to the transport hall.

Days of using it had yielded some of the strange hallway’s mysteries. For one thing, access to the other rooms was determined by the Silver Tiger’s animating spirit, which was a white tiger cub that plucked at Yuriko’s heartstrings.

Such big expressive eyes! Tufted ears and swishy tail! If the spirit had a physical manifestation rather than just an projected light image, he would have been mauled by Yuriko’s cuteness aggression.

Ah, and the hallway messes with the ship’s spatial qualities.

The rooms were already bigger than what should have been possible. The hallway adjusts which room is currently connected at the end of the hallway, and despite the fact multiple people could use it at the same time, unless they entered from the same room, they would never meet each other along that hallway. There was also only one transport hall.

It boggled Yuriko’s mind but Aunt Layla and Aunt Kiyo said that it was all a matter of the proper runescript lines and enough power. The Chaos ship had one of the strongest Runescript Engines, and one of the most advanced, in the Empire. And the cost was more than enough to buy the entirety of Rumiga.

That was how wealthy the Mishala Clan was. Yuriko could scarcely believe it, and for a brief moment, her imagination frolicked with fantasies of swimming in gold coins. Her sanity reasserted itself quickly though. No matter how wealthy the clan was, what had it to do with her?

The observation deck was filled with people, mostly with the former crew of the Ebon Horizon. The deck was enclosed, of course, and looked more like a picnicking garden than anything else. It was roughly thirty paces long, and twenty wide. A walking path went around it, and at the center were several benches, long tables, and loveseats. Flowering bushes and shrubs, as well as small, carefully pruned trees, provided secluded nooks that also dampened whatever sounds came from within.

Much to her chagrin a few times she thought to explore.

She spotted Tiernan Hersal resting on a bench.The cadet officer had made a full recovery from his unconsciousness and confessed that he barely remembered anything from when he got thrown out of the Horizon. He did remember that Yuriko saved him, but nothing beyond that. She thought he was lucky. Memories of that horrid place were better off scrubbed from her mind.

Reinhardt waved to her from across the footpath and pointed at an empty bench. Nodding in gratitude, she strode up to him and settled down on the bench. She half expected him to sit next to her, but Reinhardt bowed to Kiyo and gestured for her to sit.

“Why thank you,” Kiyo said with a lazy smirk.

“My pleasure,” Reinhardt said. He positioned himself just to the side of the bench, near where Yuriko sat.

After giving him an odd look, Yuriko’s attention was caught by the view outside. The ceiling was transparent, and the multihued glowing of the Chaos streams were much more beautiful viewed from up close.

The Chaos streams crowded together the closer they got to Realmheart’s Veil, which looked like an enormous pearl. It was milky white, but reflected the hues of the Chaos easily. There was a shimmer beyond the Veil, which made it harder to see its features. Yuriko got the impression that the Realmheart’s Veil wasn’t exactly spherical. There were four huge structures just outside of the Veil, and looked like giant arches, gateways.

The Silver Tiger maneuvered towards one of them, and at the peak, a sigil lay prominent. It was a spiralling fractal that brought to mind the howling winds of the Season of Water, the heavy snow caps on top of the Zarek Mountains, and the bone deep weariness of the cold. Yuriko shivered.

Their ships entered through the arch, moving near the top. She caught a glimpse of other Chaos ships below, but the Tiger’s angle soon obscured them.

Just like that, they were inside the Empire’s capital.

“No checkpoints?” Reinhardt murmured.

“Of course, there’s a checkpoint,” Kiyo sniffed, “but that doesn’t apply to us.”

“Ah, I see.”

Soon enough, they were past the channel and into the planar proper. The skies were blue and the Radiant Sun shone down on Yuriko, filling her with warmth and vigour. Her shawl slipped off her shoulders as she let the heat suffuse her body. Her Anima seeped out, painting a golden corona around her. She absentmindedly heard Reinhardt gasp, but her focus was all on the Radiance.

When she managed to shake herself out of her stupor, the Silver Tiger had started to descend. A few minutes later, it landed and they were directed out of the observation deck and back to their rooms to pick up their gear.

Mum was in their shared quarters and had laid out a fresh set of clothing.

“Change into these,” she said as soon as Yuriko entered.

The coat was a familiar blue, and it took Yuriko a long moment to recognise Sharom’s uniform. “Eh?”

“You’re still a student.” Sadeen rolled her eyes. Mum was clad in the same battle dress she wore back in the Pure Lands.

With a shrug, Yuriko stripped out of her sundress and put on the uniform. A snow white, long sleeved, button down shirt with ruffles along the neckline, a grey pleated skirt that fell just above her knees, black tights, and black leather shoes with a silver buckle. They fit her perfectly.

“Where did you get these?” Yuriko wondered as she buckled on her belt and hung her Plasma Lancet and belt knife on opposite sides. Her safe pouch fit snugly within her bosom.

“I had these fabricated here,” Mum answered nonchalantly. “Well, let’s go. And welcome home.”

“Oh. Thank you,” Yuriko murmured.

The transport hall brought them immediately to the exit hatch, and once she stepped back into the sunlight, her eyes immediately took in the wide open space. That was currently filled with hundreds of young men and women, clad in the same outfit as the attendants within the Tiger.

As soon as they saw Sadeen and Yuriko, they split into two rows, then bowed or curtsied. All of them. Bowed or curtsied. Ah, except for a couple near the far end.

“Well now. Why are they here?” Mum murmured. “Well, let’s get this over with.”

She nudged Yuriko to move, and together, they crossed the divide.