Kleine

Solid ground vanished beneath his feet. The kaleidoscope of lights from Borealis poured into the area as the walls of Thanatos crumbled. The massive spire groaned like an ancient beast wailing in its final moments.

Kleine felt himself airborne. His body fluttered with the sensation of weightlessness. Novel. Stones and fragments of the collapsed tower filled his eyes to the backdrop of Borealis's vibrant lights. For a moment, he closed his eyes, soaking in this rare feeling of freedom. He would only have a few more seconds before gravity took its hold again.

He spread his consciousness out in a wide area. The psychic energy conjured from his Gift worked like extensions of his limbs. With it, he perceived the locations of the inmates of Thanatos in the vicinity. They were falling just like he was. Some were screaming. Some were flailing about, trying to right themselves after being tossed into the skies. Some had already died or were knocked unconscious by fragments of the spire. Others were quiet and impassive, seemingly indifferent to the disaster unfolding around them.

Kleine strengthened his will. Psychic energy began to latch onto the inmates closest to him. He felt a few of his attempts thwarted as some of them resisted his interference.

"Calm. Let me carry you to safety," he whispered with quiet authority, using his Gift to deliver the sound of his voice.

Those who rejected his will lessened, but there were still a couple that remained incorrigible. Kleine ignored them after another futile attempt. Very well. If they wanted to die, then so be it. He had no mana and time to spare for those who would refuse a lifeline.

He reached as many of the inmates as he can before gravity seized back control.

The descent was violent. Air blasted against his face. The oppressive weight slamming into his body felt like he was being repeatedly trampled. He strained to take a breath. A vague instinct at the back of his mind screamed out of horror, but he silenced it immediately. He didn't need fear right now. He needed to focus.

Mana stormed out of the fragments of Azurite sewed into his mouth. Kleine used the psychic energy produced by his Gift to stretch his senses. It was subtle, but it suddenly felt like he had a birds-eye view of the situation around him. The inmates under his grasp. The Lionhearts descending to their deaths. The falling wreckage of Thanatos. With a series of small tugs and pulls, he shifted the trajectories of the debris such that they would not fall onto them after they land.

I'm running out of mana.

He could feel the reserves within the Azurite fragments rapidly depleting. He was already straining himself. For the last length of this descent, the inmates of Thanatos would have to count on their own luck to survive. The seconds ticked down. The ground loomed closer. His instincts roared with desperation.

"Halt!"

His command willed reality. A screech of spatial distortion cut through the air. His body then skidded to a stop, frozen mid-air, just inches away from hitting the ground. The inmates of Thanatos who accepted his help also faced a similar situation. The rest smashed into the ground with a loud splatter. The bloody sight was quickly covered up by the falling debris of Thanatos.

Kleine let them down slowly. Debris continued to fall from the skies like salvos. Most of it narrowly missed the inmates thanks to his earlier intervention. A few of the unlucky ones were crushed like bugs.

"Karni!" Kleine yelled as he spat out a mouthful of blood.

The inside of his body trembled. Despite being enhanced by the Bestowed Project, he was still not immune to the effects of intense mana use. Especially when he had to manage at least fifty people with his Gift.

Rats stormed out of the earth's crevice upon his call. Like a rolling wave, they transformed row by row into grotesque monstrosities. Their enhanced frame loomed over him and the inmates, using their new grotesque bodies to shield them from the debris. Several rats bit into the cuff of their ragged shirts and dragged them into a nearby cavern.

"You look terrible, Kleine," Karni said, emerging from the darkness of the cavern.

The petite Gharian was in a hood accompanied by two of the monsters under her command. Her sullen eyes stared at the Thanatos inmates with a frosty disposition. A subtle murderous energy permeated the air. The monstrous rats around them growled with anticipation. In the background, the remnants of Thanatos continued to fall.

Please don't undo all of our hard work. Kleine pleaded silently in the back of his mind.

Karni's disdain for Ardairans was well-known, and she had more than enough reason to slay the inmates before them. Out of the hundreds of inmates jailed inside Thanatos, Kleine had only managed to save fifty. And out of these fifty, more than half had participated in the annexation of the Saar. With the prowess of the Exalted, Ardair forced the Gharians into submission through violent atrocities. Karni's gaze carried the weight of her race's hatred for their Ardairan oppressors. She had every right to enact revenge for the loss of their people and culture.

Nor would Kleine be able to stop her in his current state.

"…Make your speech quick," she finally said, breaking the tense silence, "Once the spire fully descends, the Lionhearts will be pursuing us."

Kleine cleared his throat to get all the inmates' attention, thankful that Karni could set aside her grievances for the greater goal.

"Well, like she said, we have little time, so let's get acquainted." Kleine dipped his head in an extravagant bow. "My name is Kleine. I lead an organization called Vigil. Our goal is to burn down the rot festering within Ardair. Tear down the corrupt institutions. Change the status quo. Cleanse this nation of its hidden evils. We've already raided Exalted Academy. Now we've made history by destroying Thanatos, a symbol of the royal family's power. And we've managed to get a couple of you free and safe from the tower."

He snapped his fingers. As if on command, tiny rats emerged from the darkness of the cavern. After a few seconds of scurrying around, a pile of Azurite accessories gathered before his foot. Kleine felt triumphant. He didn't miss the insatiable desire flicker across the inmates' faces. For many of them, this would be their first time in years bathing in the presence of mana.

An Exalted's Gift was their soul. To be deprived of it was to rob them of their reason to exist.

"Here's the situation. Thanatos has fallen. The Lionhearts will be pursuing us from behind. In front of us is Isarelle. The city is currently in chaos. You have an opportunity to escape the Lionheart and House Belle's grasp. All you have to do is take the Azurite accessories and make it to one of the many entrances to Canticle scattered across the city. The rats will lead the way. You can follow them or carve your own path to escape. It's up to you."

The inmates remained silent—either processing the details of his proposal or eyeing the glowing blue pile in a mesmerized daze. Finally, one of them spoke up. "What's the catch?"

Kleine sneered.

"Our goal was the destruction of Thanatos. That's already been accomplished. But you see, I'm a greedy man. I always want a little bit more," he declared, baring his teeth, "I would be delighted if you have the hearts to join our cause."

Graf

Graf opened his eyes to a haze of sand and dust. The air was chock full of debris. His vision was clouded by the shimmering blur produced by his rattled mind. He felt strange. His body was uncharacteristically light. His cognition seemed clear. Despite the destruction around him, he was surprisingly at ease. No pain radiated from his limbs. No agony flared from his insides. No hint of panic or fear stirred his instincts to survive.

In truth, he had already accepted his death when Thanatos descended upon the Administrative District. He had erected mana barriers as a last-ditch effort, but those manifestations were like paper before the colossus's momentum.

If he was honest with himself, he had wanted to die. He thought proudly of taking responsibility for Isarelle's destruction with his last stand, but that was just prattle to assuage his guilt. Surviving this ordeal must have been the Goddess's punishment. Now he had to witness the aftermath of Thanatos's fall. Now he had to see the damages brought by his failures.

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Resigned to his fate, Graf shifted his weight. Stone and wood groaned as he pried himself out the wreckage. He felt a faint stab of pain radiate from his left shoulder. There was a slight tear. A small fracture. It felt inconsequential, until a wave of cold grazed the bone below his shoulder. The sensation was new. Even in the midst of his daze, he recognized the incongruity.

Curious, he glanced down.

Where there should been his left arm was instead a protrusion of bone.

He stared at it. For a moment, it didn't register what he was looking at. Only when he turned and saw the remnants of his dismembered arm poking out of the ruins of the Bank of Ardair did he realize his condition.

"Ah…"

He wanted to scream. But no words would come. His throat was suddenly seized by an oppressive restraint. The vicinity was eerily quiet. No signs of life. Only stone, wood, and dust shrouded the area around him.

What happened to the people he was trying to protect?

Where were his Couriers?

Innumerable questions raced in his head, desperate to fill the harrowing silence. But he already knew the answer. Most of the people around him were dead. Buried. He was standing upon an untold number of corpses hidden under the wreckage. The Administrative District had become a mass grave for those who were trying to seek refuge from the bombings.

What about the rest of Isarelle?

The air hummed with a mechanical buzz. The familiar sound stirred his mind awake. Graf looked to the distance—or at least, as far as he could see amidst the settling dust.

"And just like that, history made been made! Thanatos has fallen! You've all witnessed a once-in-a-lifetime spectacle! Assuming, you're not dead, of course. Tell me survivors, what do you think about this marvelous surprise?!"

Melody's cheery voice rang over the carnage.

"I don't hear many responses. Ah, but I suppose a lot of people are dead. Or you're just too gobsmacked to say anything! Understandable! Witnessing history does demand a certain level of awe. What a shame! But fret not, the day isn't over yet! For the concluding hour of this show, Vigil has prepared an encore for our beloved audience.

With the fall of Thanatos, comes a set of inmates who are trying to escape! They're some of the most terrifying Exalted to have lived in the history of Ardair, and they've been all been armed with Azurite! Imprisonment has made their hearts vengeful and they're eager to air out all of these malicious grievances! For the last act of this show, I welcome the inmaaaaaates of Thanatos! Will they use their Gifts to their heart's content? Or will they attempt to escape Isarelle to attain their freedoms? Even I don't know what will happen next! Please enjoy everyone, the Isarelle Death Games!"

Damn you, Vigil.

He sneered, imagining himself rip the cheery girl apart with his bare hands.

Even after desecrating the city and destroying Thanatos, you still want more?!

Vengeance drove Graf forward as he limped away from the wreckage of the Bank of Ardair building. He had to get out of the Administrative District. With the inmates of Thanatos on the loose, the Lionhearts and Steiger agents would have too preoccupied to look for survivors. Someone had to take charge in the midst of this chaos.

He wanted to believe that House Belle would finally emerge out of their estates to assist in this disaster, but he couldn't pin his chances on it. Graf knew their true nature. Despite his cunning and shrewd reputation, Otto von Belle was secretly a coward. The man never took risks. He took the Belle family to the top of Ardair by making the least mistakes. Whereas other families relished in high-risk, high-reward gambles, Otto only made guaranteed bets. Slowly and steadily piling out small wins over a long timeframe. It was a pragmatic approach.

But it also meant this unpredictable disaster was beyond him.

Graf heard a faint squeak by his foot. A rat. The tiny rodent met his eye before quickly scurrying off. He glanced up. A silhouette suddenly loomed behind the cloud of dust. The figure was a goliath. They stomped towards his position. The creak and clank of armor rattled over the haunting silence.

Graf smirked. The figure revealed himself to be an Eastern warrior. A terrifying large scabbard rested at his waist. The sword must have been incomprehensibly heavy, but the man somehow held it in one hand without difficulty.

Nagi of Vigil.

He grunted with derision, still unable to produce a sound. Whatever damage he suffered in Thanatos's collapse must have affected his ability to speak.

"I bear no ill will towards you," Nagi said as he drew his sword. Even under the dust, the blade that he produced gleamed with an otherworldly lustre, "But I've been ordered to ensure the Steiger branch leader's death."

Graf lowered into a fighting stance. With only one arm and a battered body veering on Overclock, he knew he had little chance of surviving. But he was overjoyed. A member of Vigil was standing before him.

Finally, he had an opportunity to enact his revenge.

Finally, he could do something with this rage boiling in his chest.

Mana swelled. He ignored the scathing protests of his limbs. It no longer mattered.

Because he was already a dead man.

Aoife

Someone was screaming.

The disembodied sounds of distress boomed in her ears. Reluctantly, she opened her eyes. At first, she was confused by the apparent darkness. A dim light leaked in from the gaps of her enclosure. When she tried to move, a heavy weight above her back pinned her in place. The realization made her take a breath—a reflex from an instinctual panic that she might be suffocating. Her lungs burned from her attempt. The air was thick with dust and debris. Only when her eyes began to water from the hacking cough did Aoife remember what had happened.

Thanatos had fallen.

Vigil had blown apart the cliffside where the spire stood with a much more powerful Borealis. A portion of the tower then descended upon the northern edge of the Black Shoal. Unfortunately, it also happened to be where the emergency medical tents were raised.

"Your Highness!"

"Aoife!"

The call of her name jolted her awake. Someone was looking for her. For a brief moment, Aoife was glad that she hadn't been forgotten during the disaster. The relief went away quickly when she recalled her status. Of course, they would search for you. You're the princess. The fact still hadn't fully settled in yet. Sometimes she still forgot that she was regarded as an official member of the royal family now.

She extended her senses, searching for her Azurite accessory. Thankfully, the brooch that she wore was still affixed to her shirt. As her mind regained clarity, she remembered something crucial.

Shit.

She hadn't noticed it initially because of her daze, but there was someone cradled in her chest. In the final moments before Thanatos's descent, Aoife had pulled a child into her embrace. It was the same kid who was crying over the death of their mother. Realizing that they were still underneath her, Aoife immediately fortified herself with mana. Strength engulfed her body and she pushed upwards, trying to free both of them from this earthy grave.

"Diana, she's here!"

The Lionhearts found her.

"I have a child with me!" Aoife tried to yell, but her voice came out hoarse. Dust and sand still coated her throat despite her earlier coughs. She cradled the child in her left arm as gently as she can. She hadn't felt a single movement from them since she regained consciousness.

A few seconds later, Diana's face emerged from an opening in the wreckage.

"Take the kid!" Aoife handed the child to her with the utmost care. She tried her best to keep the falling debris from crushing him. Diana didn't ask any questions and immediately took the kid to apply first aid. The rest of the Lionhearts under her regiment helped her out of the ruins shortly after.

Please be okay.

She pried herself away from all the hands trying to analyze her condition. She was fine. She knew it. Her Exalted constitution was unparalleled and her Gift granted her an enhanced healing factor. She was the last person to be in danger.

The child, on the other hand, had been crushed underneath the wreckage. Aoife had tried to shield him from the brunt force of the collapse, but the ensuing pressure might have killed him regardless. She had no way to know just how much weight was above her.

When she got to Diana, the woman simply shook her head with a somber look.

The boy was sprawled on the ground. His face was deathly pale. Dust and ash covered his body. Diana's verdict thundered in her head.

"His ribs were crushed. The bones pierced his lungs."

Aoife dropped to her knees.

She screamed.

She kept going under her throat refused to produce any more sounds. Her body shook. Grief pressed down on her chest like an oppressive weight. Her face was salty with tears. When she finally exhausted herself, she turned to Diana with the first question that came to mind.

"Where's Charlotte?"

***

Her friend was unconscious on a makeshift bed. Lionhearts and volunteers were swarming the area just outside of the range of Thanatos's collapse, preoccupied with digging buried individuals out of the rubble.

Aoife walked towards Charlotte. Her brown hair had been dyed to a splatter of gray by the ash and dust. Dried stains of blood painted her body. The gruesome sight of her friend crushed Aoife's heart. But Charlotte was breathing. And she hadn't lost any limbs or suffered any lethal damage.

"She experienced a blow to the head. A concussion, but otherwise, her condition is stable. Given her Exalted constitution, she should be fine," Diana explained.

Aoife clasped her hands together.

"Tan lei or."

Angelic wings sprouted from her back. The construct forged by mana began to radiate a soothing aura. The light blue haze permeated the vicinity with a gentle sensation. Slowly, the wounded's expressions softened. The Lionhearts and volunteers moved with a renewed vigor. Aoife continued to hum, resonating the mana with her voice as she spread strength and vitality to the crowd.

Diana suddenly turned with a grave look. "Your Highness—"

"I know."

She had already sensed it. A flood of mana surged from the direction of what used to be Thanatos. The ground began to patter with a stampede of footsteps. Aoife narrowed her eyes. Over the horizon, an army of grotesque rodents were barreling towards their site.

Karni.

The Gharian lady and her rats invoked a traumatic memory. A chill shuddered down her spine. She winced. For a moment, she was Ordinary again, confined in that room in the mausoleum while rats ravaged her body and mind.

"…What's our fighting force?"

"Just my squadron. We're trying to make contact with Lionhearts and Steiger Couriers from other districts. None seem to be responding at the moment," Diana replied.

"What about House Belle? And the nobles?"

"Silent. They seemed to have secluded themselves when the bombings began."

Aoife let out a frustrated sigh. I expected this. But for once, I hoped that these useless fools would surprise me. She shook her head, discarding the thought. It was a waste of effort lamenting about cowards who would never show up.

"Form ranks!" Aoife commanded.

Valkyrie activated, materializing a suit of divine armor. She extended her wings, letting the radiant constructs dazzle under the cloudy daylight. Aoife was no stranger to her own appearance. Valkyrie bestowed her the look of a divine being. She would make use of it—if only to inspire and bring hope to those around her.

"I will lead the defense."

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