Shadowbane

~Hyun's POV~

I tapped my finger against the desk repeatedly. Everything had been going smoothly until a few weeks ago, but ever since then problems have continued to pile up. And it all stemmed from a single massive issue that I currently had no means of fixing.

A few moments later Rai'ga's connection closed, informing me that he had returned to his slumber.

I reached out and touched my family photo, pouring a little mana into it when my finger connected. However, no matter how much I waited, he didn't respond to me.

Normally I'd begin to wonder if they were purposely ignoring me, but I know that isn't the case here. The Crotians may be warmongers, but they don't go back on their word, nor do they shun their allies. So something must have happened underground... But what? There's nothing down there in the hidden subset I showed them and the Nei'lah God is with them, so what possible reason could they have for not contacting me? It's difficult to penetrate the underground with mana or ether, so with them being underground and Master being extremely far away from Telebron, he's unable to keep his connection to the Nei'lah God active. It's my job to keep tabs on the Crotians to make sure they're ready, but I can't fucking do that if they don't respond to me.

I sighed and pushed the receptionist's button on my office phone. Barely two seconds passed before she answered me.

"Sir?" The receptionist said.

"Who gave Squad Seven their last orders?"

After a brief delay the receptionist said, "That would be you, sir. Thirty-two days ago you had them search dock seven's warehouse b-three for olera."

I slammed my fist down on the table, "Squad seven is the team that was just annihilated you fool! There is eye testimony that they were together before they were killed by that white haired freak. You're telling me they decided ALL ON THEIR OWN to drag her back to the Initiative?"

"O-One moment please!"

As outraged as I was, I could feel a sickness creeping up my spine. I can already tell that she's not going to find anything. Which means someone gave that order and then wiped the records. But the records are designed in a way that tampering with them is next to impossible...

A minute later the receptionist told me exactly what I had feared. There were no records pertaining to orders for squad seven; Rodger's squad. Wait... The phone. They would have received their orders the same way they always do.

"I'm going out for a bit. Have an escort ready for me downstairs."

"Yes sir!" The receptionist said before I hung up.

All I can do is pray that they weren't smart enough to wipe the phone records too. Normally I'd ignore something like this or have one of my confidants look into it, but the timing on this is bothering me. It's possible that Master had one of the others do this without informing me, but what would the point of that be? It's a ludicrous thought with no merit, so it can't be that. Which means it's something else that is somehow even more illogical than anything I can come up with. I can't for the life of me understand why someone would send a squad to forcibly drag that girl here, where I would have been waiting with a perplexed look on my face as they brought that white haired girl into my office.

... Unless.

I stopped as I reached the door to my office.

What if their was no order? It's possible they were planning on bringing her somewhere else... The squads have been quite loyal up to this point, but at the end of the day everyone has a price.

I shook my head and sighed again before opening the door.

Even if that ends up being true, I still need to check the records. That way I'll know whether someone contacted them through our usual means.

"Now do you see? There's far too many of us here." Kai said.

"I see way more than just your people. What the hell is this? Why is the western district so massive? It's at least four times bigger than the other three districts combined."

Kai and I were standing on top of a wall that loomed high above the western district. The north, east, and south were all on the same level, but the western district was over three hundred yards below them. From where I was standing, I could see a single steep incline on the left and right side that went down into the western district from the north and south. The south side incline had vehicles driving through it but I could only see foot traffic going back and forth on the northern side.

"Now that I think about it. I've never seen any vehicles heading north or east, and their 'roads' are much smaller than the ones we walked on to get here. Can you only get to the other districts by foot?"

Kai nodded, "Yes. Everyone who stays in Telebron needs to park their vehicles inside those three multi-level buildings right there." Kai pointed at three large buildings near the road. "From there, you'll need to travel by foot. And to your first point, the western district is the main residential area. They've continued to build upon it even when they didn't need the extra homes. Over seventy percent of the homes were empty and waiting for occupants, but as you can now see, they're almost entirely occupied now."

"Kai, just how bad was your Xerath problem? I don't mean to be harsh here, but old people and children aside, why didn't you train these people to fight instead of running away?"

"We tried that! There was just no time damnit... We went from holding them off while slowly expanding our area of control to being overrun at a speed that was impossible to deal with. They must have been holding their forces back until they were ready to swarm us. And as you can see, it obviously worked..."

"Did you not know that would happen? Not all Xerathian Gods are intelligent like that, but some definitely are. I even knew one who never invaded or battled any other God until the very end. He'd focus entirely on destroying any food production his enemies had while also cutting off any extra supplies from reaching them. Pure guerrilla warfare until the city or nation was too weak to fight back. And I unfortunately saw first hand what happened to the places that were unable to fight back."

I continued, "I was invisible on the wall in the town square, watching the God's spawn and his followers carry him on a seat made of that sinew they create to the center of the square. After they set him down, his people rounded up citizens who were hiding in their homes and drag them back to the square, where they'd be fed to the God, one by one. Crunching, slurping, and screams... That's all I could hear for hours before I finally couldn't take it anymore and left."

"A horrifying story... But sadly, not a story that was too far off from the fate most of my kin had to endure." Kai returned his gaze to the western district, "And we knew it was a possibility. The Lizardmen had warned us. But even if we knew, there just wasn't a way to prepare for it. If the Demons weren't constantly raiding us, then maybe, but what-ifs don't matter at this point. There's only one thing that matters now. I need to get these people to leave for Gaia in the next couple of months."

"How exactly are you going to convince them to leave the safety of a city such as this one? And not just for any ordinary destination. You want them to traverse over Mother. There's a reason nobody ever takes the portals that lead to her."

"I honestly don't know... The only thing I do know, is that we can't stay here on Aetheria. There would be no point to leaving Termia and trying to rebuild on Aetheria when the Xel'nethra are still out there."

Even if it is in desperation, I do understand why he's planning on going through with his plans. But weren't they talking about repaying Aresa for all of her help in the limo?

"There's one thing sticking out to me though. I get trying to save your people, but you'll be leaving Aresa when Viktor is still out there. Can't someone else lead your people?"

Kai looked at me with confusion for a moment, but then his eyes widened a little as he realized something, "I forgot that Aresa hasn't told you yet. Well, she hasn't told us siblings yet either, but she will be in a few days here. She's been formulating a plan with Lady Cera and Lady Euphemia. Yes, that woman who is engaged to the Supreme Leader. As you know, we do not like that man, so Xi and I are also extremely wary of Lady Euphemia as a result. But with that said, we do have faith in this nation's 'Goddess', so I'm making an effort to keep an open mind until I hear their plan."

"You think their plan is something you can assist with before leaving? Assuming you can even convince your people to leave."

"It must be. Otherwise, Lady Aresa would have said something by now." Kai said.

"Then it's pretty obvious what their plan is."

"... You think so too? It can only be one thing if their plan is supposed to be put into action in the next month."

"No need to go into the details yet, but just as a rough estimate, what are the odds they'll succeed in killing Viktor while he's here for the summit?"

Kai chuckled, "As expected, we were both thinking the same thing. And my estimate isn't good. It's not like Viktor shows up here all alone and stupidly eats from public vendors that we could easily poison. He brings several airships that stay high in the air the entire time he's here, including his flagship. And then there are all of his guards."

Kai continued, "Worst of all however, is that he also remains inside his airship all throughout the summit. So the only chance to attack him would need to be during the summit meeting, or the few minutes it takes him to walk to the meeting from wherever he warps down to. Although, there is one last option. We could blow up his airship while he's on it but Lady Aresa said he was bragging about how he massively upgraded the defenses on his flagship after seeing how easily one of his airships was destroyed in the past. And after watching your memories, I now know he was referring to the Tengu blasting it out of the sky."

"Aresa and the others must have some way of preventing him from warping then. Otherwise, any plan they come up with is going to require them to kill him before he can defend himself. Which is damn near impossible."

I turned around as a pair of footsteps approached the two of us. It was Artorus and his mother. When we met up with Kai earlier they said they had to make a call real quick and quickly headed toward the nearest phone booth.

"Who'd you call? Aresa?"

Cera smiled, "Euphie. We told her about your plans to leave today until the summit is upon us, because only she and Aresa would know whether to ask for your help now, or wait until you come back."

"Kai should know about it too, yes?" Artorus said as he glanced at Kai.

"I believe I know what you're referring to, and we've already mentioned it in passing to Rei on the drive to Telebron."

"In the limo, right? Xi said something about needing my help since I can turn invisible."

Artorus nodded, "That is correct! You see, there's a specific person in the Initiative we'd like you to look into. It's a lady by the name of 'Victoria'."

"And what did she do that would require me to look into her?"

"We just..." Cera trailed off, pinching the brim of her nose and sighing. A few moments later she continued, "We really just need you to find out what's wrong with her, and to see if she has anything planned that we should be worried about."

"... Can you be a little more specific? This is the kind of request I'd get in Xelba that would take anywhere from a few days to several weeks to investigate. I'm leaving today, so whatever it is she said or did that has you spooked, lay it all out for me."

Artorus scratched his head and looked at Cera. She was looking right back at him with a perplexed look on her face. Seeing that neither were of them were sure of how to answer me, Kai spoke up in their place.

"Forgive them, Rei. As it is now we only have unsubstantiated claims and weird reports regarding the girl. Also, while we were watching your memories of Seifer, it reminded me of something I had read in one of the dozens of reports we receive every day. One of Aresa's men said that Victoria was seen with Niro a few years back. I had completely forgotten about it until I saw that memory of yours."

"It's not just that." We all looked at Cera, "Aresa has come into contact with her many times over the years, and according to Aresa, Victoria changed at some point, but nobody else seems to have noticed. She's always been weird after all, so if she does or says anything that would normally be seen as bizarre, everyone just shakes their head and forgets about it two seconds later."

"This is great and all, but I'm going to ask one last time, what's the substantial part of her behavior that is worrying you so much?"

"That's the thing, Miss Reimia. It's something that only Lady Aresa can feel from Victoria. She says when Victoria changed, she also began to feel something else from her. It's still her soul but it's corrupted and has an aura about it that she doesn't recognize."

"Rai'ga corruption probably. If she's hanging around Seifer and is in the Initiative, then it's nearly guaranteed she's a follower of his."

Kai shook his head, "No, it's not Rai'ga. And do you truly believe that Aresa wouldn't recognize Rai'ga's ether?"

"I do. I've only seen it a few times, but a couple of the Eldritch I met in the past were able to alter their ether signature. I was tracking one for weeks but no matter what I did I couldn't find its home, until I finally realized that the lava hound's lair I had been ignoring, was in fact not a lava hound lair."

"We can be fooled, no doubt about that. But Aresa is not like us. Her level of perception is far stronger than any Lord I've ever met. She even told us one time that she could sense you through your invisibility." Kai said.

... True. Seeing through my veil is no easy feat, so she should be able to tell whether Rai'ga is altering his ether.

"You've still not explained much of anything, like why nobody else can do this or why the fairies can't just slip in through a crack somewhere. But I do have faith in Aresa, so at the very least it couldn't hurt to poke around Victoria's home before I leave. I'll just have Aresa personally answer those questions when I meet up with her afterward."

A little breaking and entering won't delay me much. I've done that more than anything else in my life after all.

{We can't enter most of the homes in Termia without accompanying someone else like this. They have wards built in to prevent us from spying on them. People love mother in Termia now, but things were different when they thought we were in their homes watching them.}

"That's for the best. We don't fully understand it either, but Aresa is adamant that she wants you to look into the girl, and one other issue but that can wait until you come back. You want to head to Victoria's home now?" Artorus asked.

"The sooner the better. Also, are the Xerath a problem west or southwest of here as well? I'd rather stay away from the east side since Rai'ga might try to blast me from the sky again or send more people after me."

"There are plenty of Xerath on that side as well, but nowhere near as much as the southeastern side. Our border's end about fifty miles to the west, and the hives over there have been attacking them instead of us, so you'd be doing them a favor." Artorus replied.

Kai and I stepped down from the walls to follow Cera and Artorus as they began to walk toward the east.

By the way. Did you notice anything strange during the meeting with Hyun? Anything at all. Doesn't matter how small it may seem, just say it.

{Umm...}

As Luna pondered the question, we advanced toward the eastern district.

"She lives near Aresa?"

"Fortunately. It's allowed us to keep tabs on her, but past that there's not much else we can do." Kai replied.

{The mirror...}

What? A mirror?

{In the hallway. Outside his office there was a mirror that had a lot of mana residue on it. Like someone uses it for spells or something...}

"Does Hyun use spells or abilities that require mirrors?"

Kai quirked an eyebrow, "What made you ask that out of the blue?"

"The fairy?" Cera continued after I nodded, "No, Hyun doesn't. But I've heard that Victoria does."

"Do you know what she does with them? Luna, the fairy, says that the mirror outside of Hyun's office is covered in mana residue as if it's been used over and over."

"I'm sorry, Rei. We don't." Cera said.

From there we continued walking in silence until we reached my home.

"Your summon is fishing...?" Kai said as we walked over the bridge.

"It surprised me at first too, but he's giving everything he catches to the locals. They were scared of him at first apparently, but now they've warmed up to him. Although I assume they're still wary of the skeletal Crotian with red eyes and heavy black armor, as anyone should be."

As we entered the eastern district a white aura appeared over one of the homes in the distance.

{It's there.}

"This is close enough you three. The fairy just pointed Victoria's home out to me."

Everyone stopped and looked at me.

"I'll have the limo ready to go for when you're finished. Lady Aresa is still using it and I assume it'll take you a while, so I'll have it parked near the bridge in two to three hours, okay?" Kai said.

"On the ball as usual. And are you still planning on looking for Arkaios' temples today? I'd also like you to look for my uncle and two other people while you're at it."

"You mentioned your uncle before, but not anyone else. Although, after watching your memories, I already know who you're referring to. It's just, well... There isn't a whole lot to go on when it comes to Simon and Nera, your friends from Xelba. If they registered here under those exact names then we'll find them. But otherwise..."

"I know it's a long shot, and if Simon didn't pledge himself to an Eldritch then he's probably already died of old age, or he'll be really close to it at this point. But even with that said, please try anyway. I really would love to see them again."

Kai smiled, "Don't worry, Rei. If they were here, or are still here, I'll find them."

Odds are they left for Gaia though. That was always our plan, and when I never showed up on Aetheria, they would have assumed I died and made their way to Gaia. Which means the chances of me finding them is close to zero percent. But even so, despite all the horrible shit I've been through, I still want to hold out hope that they are in Gaia right now. Living out the dream we had always hoped for.

I said my goodbyes to the others and began advancing toward Victoria's home. It was one of many identical-looking mansions lined up on either side of the street. It had a large fence around it just like the others, which is more for the aesthetics than it is for actual defense against robbers or murderers. Unless there are runes engraved onto them, which there very well might be, but if there is, then so be it. I just need to make sure I don't get trapped or disabled in some way.

I slowed down as I came within two hundred feet of the home. There were people out and about but it wasn't busy by any means, which meant I just needed to coast along until nobody was looking in my direction.

As I neared the home the last person who had eyes on me passed by me on the other side of the street. I immediately turned invisible and jumped over the fence. No runes, good start. But the door and windows are the real test...

I ran up to the home and jumped up to the third floor, grabbing onto the ledge outside of a window. I then opened the window and pulled myself inside, rolling onto the carpet as I landed, waiting for the inevitable alarm or some other form of defense to sprout up, but as the seconds passed by, nothing happened.

Turning around, I was beyond confused as I saw that there were in fact multiple Dwarven runes carved into the window frame, but shockingly, they were completely devoid of mana. The hell? She doesn't maintain her runes...? Is she truly not worried about anyone breaking into her home?

Looking around the room, I found that I was in a bedroom, and most likely the master bedroom. There was a huge bed on the left side with drapes covering it and all sorts of other aesthetics that I had only seen in noble homes up to this point. And there was also a large mirror in the room on the right side next to a desk.

Luna, how about that mirror?

{It's worse. Far worse. The residue on that mirror is so strong it's grossing me out... It feels weird. Is this what Aresa meant by 'strange aura'?}

I don't know. I can't feel anything from it.

I went to riffle through her desk drawers and stopped short when I noticed that it was covered in dust. Apparently she doesn't use this desk, but I still need to check it.

And as expected, everything inside the desk was three or more years old. I looked under the bed next, but everything down there was covered in dust as well. Up to this point I still wasn't all that bothered by the state of the room, but as I moved around the mansion, looking through all of the rooms one by one in the hopes of finding something that would give weight to the worry my friends expressed toward the lady living here, I became more and more perplexed.

Luna, is your mother watching this?

{Yes.}

Then I need to ask her. Does Victoria really live here?

{She says 'She does. We have witnessed her return to this home every day for many years now. Which is why I'm also confused by the state of the home itself. And where are all of her servants?'}

That part surprised me as well. There aren't any servants, and the whole place is covered in dust as if nobody has been here in ages. Everything else aside, how is the bathroom, kitchen, and bed covered in dust? At the very least she'd need the kitchen to survive. The only place where the dust is disturbed is the front door and the path leading toward the main bedroom.

I doubled back, looking through all of the rooms one by one, hoping to find something that I might have missed. I was looking through the bathroom again when I heard something downstairs. I quickly exited the bathroom and closed the door before heading for the main hall. Once I arrived, I saw a relatively small girl climbing the steps. Knowing where she was heading, I turned around and returned the main bedroom, closing the door behind me just as she entered the hallway.

There was a small gap between a large dresser and the wall on the right side(with the drawer and mirror from earlier being right next to it on the same side). I crouched low in the small gap and waited for her to enter the room. Not long after that, she opened the door and immediately walked up to the mirror. I lurched forward a little so I could see her past the dresser, and just as I looked at her she walked through the mirror and disappeared.

... Well, that explains why this place is covered in dust. She doesn't actually live here.

Ten seconds later Luna said, {Mother says you can leave now. There's obviously no point in staying here or looking for evidence. And don't touch that mirror.}

I know. If she's using it as a portal then odds are she'd notice any outside mana interacting with one of her gateways. Even so, I'm going to wait here for a few hours and see if she comes back out.

{Why?}

I just need some peace and quiet to prepare myself for the battles to come. I was going to do it in the limo, but since I won't be meeting Kai for a few hours anyway, I might as well do it here. It's really quiet in this abandoned home after all. And there's still a slight chance she might return.

Instead of crouching, I sat down in the corner this time and cleared my mind. I meditated like that for over an hour when suddenly I heard someone walking through the room. Opening my eyes I saw Victoria again, which despite what I had said to Luna, it wasn't something I had expected to happen. She walked straight up to the chair in the middle of the room and sat down.

I watched her, waiting to see what she was going to do, but no matter how much time passed, she literally did nothing. She just sat there, and over time I realized she wasn't even blinking. She stared forward, unblinking, unmoving, for minutes upon minutes. I was becoming more and more weirded out as the minutes dragged on, and it reached a breaking point when I saw a fly crawl over her left eye. Her response? Nothing. She remained still, not blinking or budging even a little.

What is going on...? How could she not react to that?!

{R-Rei, there's something weird about her...}

No shit genius.

{No! I mean her aura! I can feel something dark emerging. Mother says you should leave right now.}

I can't sense anything like that, but I don't doubt that she's telling the truth. But how do I get out of here? The door is soundless, which would make it the obvious choice if she wasn't staring right at the damned thing. And the window made a loud creaking sound when I opened it earlier, so... Ahh fuck it, I'll just open it real quick and flee. It's not like she can see me---

Just then, someone else walked into the room through the mirror. And as if it wasn't weird enough up to this point, Victoria's head turned around one hundred and eighty degrees to look at the new arrival. At no point did I hear a snap as her head completely turned around.

... Okay. Now that I would love for someone to explain to me.