Capitolo Terzo: Conquista (1)

It was morning, and the city Giorno and his mother were exploring was much different than any of the others they explored.

The style reminded him of the German ones they visited, somewhat also bringing to mind the Parisian quarters he had visited a year ago during a brief trip to France. Warsaw looked unique and yet familiar, with its people looking just as busy as he had seen in Berlin. It was an industrious place, but also one that had many ‘historical quarters’ that weren’t as monumental as the one in Germany. When the boy asked why that was the case, his mother was quick to explain how Congressional Poland had to handle a budget provided by the taxes from the locals that was limited by Russia. It was strange how a nation had its economy subjugated by another one to this degree, it seemed like a colony, a comparison his mother sighed and nodded to.

“That’s because they are subjected to Russia as a vassal country. Their leader is Russian and picked as a Governor-General.”

The little blond’s eyes widened. “So, is dad going to help them like he did with the others?”

There have been many stories Giorno heard about his father helping some natives against unjust ruling, giving them a chance of being happy while also being their friends. He heard so many good things from his father, from his amazing adventures but also his kindness towards others and… he just wondered if he would ever end up doing the same: helping people, making them happy and, maybe, being a hero too.

“Of course, sweetie,” The kind brunette replied warmly, ruffling his hair as they continued their stroll through the busy streets of the Polish Capital. “Your father might not be able to change things immediately, but he will definitely work to make sure any foul play is dealt with so that no one will suffer anymore that kind of treatment.”

A bright smile appeared on the giddy boy’s face as he nodded at his mother, quietly returning his gaze elsewhere as he studied Warsaw’s interesting roads. With his father having taken off to chat with the Governor-General himself, mentioning it was going to be an important conversation, it was just him, his mother and… Santana. Santana was a nice giant, one that looked really tough (and was tough from how strong he really was) but he was also gentle and not mean. Kids loved him for how compliant he was in playing games, and Giorno was particularly delighted when the man would talk with him when he was bored. He would listen and answer to his questions with ease, quite obedient even. It just felt odd that his father would always keep a degree of tension around the towering figure, but he never got an answer why he would do that.

Instead Giorno was left to blissfully enjoy some ignorance for the sake of learning other interesting things. Such as that Warsaw had a river like London had the Thames. The Vistula was lengthier than the example, three times as long from what his mother told him, and there were sections of the city that had small beaches where to go and play. And it wouldn’t take long for their walk to briefly stop by one of those zones. The sand was just like the pearly beaches in Normandy, except its shade was slightly darker and a bit ‘rougher’ compared to the soft grains in Northern France’s beaches.

His mother offered to build small castles and structures with him, an action that would be mostly impossible for normal people without proper tools, but interestingly fun when either of his parents were around to help him with that. The Ripple, or Hamon, was such a novel power that he was so interested in learning, having asked many times his father to teach him but… he would always refuse him with the same reason which, truth be told, felt senseless to a child like Giorno.

“It’s too early for you to learn that. The training might hurt your body.”

Bah! Why would it hurt me?

Hamon didn’t seem to put a strain on his mother’s body; the same thing could be said with his father, or Bhediya, or even Jonathan. He had plotted many times with his cousin, George II, to try and ‘borrow’ a book or two from Muddi Buri’s old study, the old Hamon Master having passed two years ago but still leaving a strong lingering presence in the Joestar family, one that Giorno himself felt awed about. Of all possible individuals, Muddi Buri was ‘ever-present, but not in an oppressive way’. These words were used once by his father to reason the bizarre feeling of being around the tall Tibetan monk, with the little blond actually accepting this curt depiction as the truest he could compare to his emotions when he was around.

Still, trying to get any book proved to be impossible with their hiding spot having been picked by Dio just to prevent any theft. He didn’t expect his own son to do that, but the reason he did so was ‘to prevent anyone from actually finding out that kind of power’. Despite his father’s good work and his company having a majority of people working under him with good intentions, there was always a slice of workers that held ulterior motivations beyond being part of his grand plans. And that meant they would be up to grasp the first opportunity to get to power and become bad guys. Which was really bad as far as Giorno could think of and he could see why taking those books wasn’t going to be easy.

Yet, right in that moment, that thought didn’t matter much. Building sandcastles was the priority and he was having quite some fun as both his mother and Santana started to compete on who could make the best castle in the least amount of time. Giorno was playing too, but he found the competition more interesting to watch, mostly because of how intense the two were going at each other and how fast they were going with the construction. Soon, he became a judge as the two wanted someone to tell them who won.

“Santana!”

His mother’s shoulders sagged. “I-Is that so?”

“You two did good but… Santana did more,” The kid explained his decision, waving over the extra towers the tall man had built before the challenge was over. “But I think your castle is cool too, mom.”

Her disappointment melted away in a smile. “Oh my~. My baby boy is so polite and honest.”

He smiled at the compliments, and even more when the woman pulled him close and gave him a soft kiss on his forehead. “Mwah! What a lovely child I have.”

A giggle left his lips, followed by one from his mother but… that moment of delight ceased when two men bearing military uniforms got their attention. His mother and Santana both went to talk with them, the latter knowing enough Polish to make a proper conversation and act as a translator for both the guards and the woman. Giorno was soon sitting alone by the small beach, quite near to the river’s calm and soothing flow while humming happily at his own sandcastles and occasionally frowning when he heard the tall man translate the reasoning behind that interruption. It seemed that this part of the beach was forbidden to visitors by some old law. It wasn’t a punitive law, but one that was generally respected by Poles and Russians alike. He wasn’t sure of why… yet.

In fact, Giorno was quite surprised when the reason behind that law manifested in quite the unexpected way. He stopped his sandcastling when he heard something shift within the water nearby, his gaze moving to try and see what it was and… his jaw almost dropped when he stopped his search right before a pair of two curious red-blue eyes. The humanoid had light-blue hair with soft red hints, just like her skin and… the tail wagging behind her. A child, like him, is a bit feminine.

A mermaid?

“Czy jesteś księciem?(1)”

“...What?”

He was confused by what she just said, but he could at least say it was a simple question, one packed with interest and awe. But what could she have asked, he wondered and… he saw her reaching out with a hand. An offer for a handshake? From a mermaid? It sounded like quite an interesting thing to tell George once this big trip was over but…

He soon learned that the girl meant something else with that gesture. As his hand grasped her soft palm, she squeezed fairly hard and suddenly pulled him into the water. Surprised, Giorno struggled but his efforts proved to be futile as he was dragged away and into the water, swiftly swimming through the river as the mermaid rapidly took him away from the beach and into an unknown place. The pressure and the fright soon took him out as his consciousness faltered and he fainted at the dreadful experience, uncertain of his current future as he was pulled the furthest away from the others.

Once his mother was done chatting with the guard and was ready to leave, she would notice her baby boy missing. The only clue remaining within the beach itself being a small wristband with some seashells to it.

------------d-d-d-d-------------d-d-d-d----------

“Lord Joestar, it is a true honor to make your acquaintance.”

I smiled diplomatically as I shook hands with the highest authority in Warsaw. Governor Pavel Andreyevich Shuvalov was a figure that was considered outstanding due to his actions in the last few years, focusing primarily on calming the relations between the Russian Empire and the German Kaiserreich.

“Governor, I’m surprised to be invited here out of nowhere. Let’s just say my visit was tied to a bit of a bigger situation.”

“I heard that Saint Petersburg has your attention, Lord Joestar, but it wasn’t my intention to delay your visit to the Tsar,” The balding figure replied kindly. “I was just interested to find you and share a brief conversation with you regarding some economic opportunity.”

I raised a fascinated brow at that. “In which regard?”

“I believe you’re aware that Poland is far from stable due to the clashes between the garrison and its people,” The man explained, getting a nod from me at that affirmation. “Which is why I wish to try and ease down tension by introducing something that the Poles have asked for a while now.”

“Which is?”

“Work. I’m willing to offer a degree of leeway for your company to establish at least ten factories within Congressional Poland within five years.”

I blinked in surprise at that request, confused about a specific aspect of this request. “Why would you need my help for it? I thought you had the Tsar’s good will to embark on any changes within the country if necessary.”

“I wish that was indeed the case,” Pavel argued sheepishly. “The aristocracy bickers, the majority’s line being that Russification should continue without hesitation like it was enforced by my predecessor and that Polish traditions should be squashed at once. By my own idea, this is wrong as the Poles would fit within the Empire better through the same way we have integrated the Novgorod culture, through moderate assimilation.”

“And so you wish to ask for my support to create workplaces that would satisfy the Poles without having trouble asking for money from the hardliners?” I half-summarized half-asked and the man sighed and nodded. “I guess that could be interesting, but I would like to ask for guarantees for workers within the factories.”

“Such as?”

“I’m expecting you will ask for guards to monitor progress at the factories to prevent any socialist uprising, but I want some guarantees that they will not try to abuse that role to terrorize my workers,” I replied strongly and the Governor smiled.

“It’s acceptable. The last thing I need is to cripple Poland’s economy by allowing some foolish soldier to compromise it through their babbling and behavior.”

I offered a polite smirk. “Then I guess we can discuss more about it and-”

A guard suddenly barged in. “G-Governor, Lord Joestar’s wife- she is currently causing disturbances within the entrance of the building. She is looking for her husband.”

The suddenness of the entry stunned us both, with the Governor actually ignoring the fact the man had entered uninvited and without asking for permission to open the door.

“Any particular reason for her upset?” I asked tensely and the guard looked very very uneasy.

“Y-Your son-”

“Apologies,” I muttered before bolting from my chair, stunning both guard and Governor with that move, with the latter slowly nodding before getting up and calmly following after me.

Eventually I made it at the entrance of the building with a nervous look on my face as I could tell something was wrong. And I felt even worse when I saw Santana struggling to keep Hannah under control as she looked ready to lash out and destroy everything and everyone around her in that wild fit of anger. I rushed up to her, with the Pillar Man letting her go just as I took over and pulled her in a tight embrace.

“Hannah dear, what’s wrong?” I asked in a soothing way.

Her struggles soon disappeared as she heard my voice and… it was all replaced by tears and sobbing as she returned the hug, keeping me really tight and close to me as she tried to explain what had just happened.

“G-Giorno. So-Someone took him!”

She didn’t add more, merely showing a strange wristband that looked to be sea-themed and… held a degree of Hamon in it. My eyes narrowed at the bizarre development feeling like this was going to be quite an interesting and yet dreadful adventure. One that I didn’t ask for as my son was definitely in danger.

And I wasn’t going to rest or stop until the perpetrator was dealt with.