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Aegis: The First Attempt
Chapter 53: Luxanne's Resolve

Chapter 53: Luxanne's Resolve

"This is it. Today we either stand victorious over Xeros's corpse, or the entirety of Polus's legacy shall be erased from history. My heart is ablaze; my body is resolute. We cannot invade from the sky due to the barrier, so we shall first advance through the gate...hm? You say that's not necessary, Lorelai? Ok, my trust shall always be yours. Deborah, ready the Shooting Star. We shall signal the horns of invasion with your piercing light!"

King Ascalon, Ruler of Polus

———

Luxanne

Luxanne tumbles onto the floor as the spire's foundation shakes and groans from the sudden force below. She looks around, mind still in a haze, and looks out of the now-shattered opening only to find a massive spiraling concentration of aura hurdling directly towards them. If that thing hits, the entire city and the layers surrounding the spire shall come crashing in a wave of indiscriminate destruction.

"Luxanne!" a voice roars by her side. Xeros shakes the stunned Nox commander back to reality and lifts her back onto her feet. "I cannot stay here. You must reorganize the army and take command over operations during my absence. Time is of the importance, do you understand?"

"Y-Yes Grand General," she groans, quickly regaining her posture.

"Good. Libevich?"

"Yup, still here," Libevich says whilst pushing away a piece of fallen debris on top of her.

"There is an army approaching the city gates. Herein lies the blood you so crave; I care not how you deal with them, just prevent the city from being breached and I shall take care of the attack in air."

A wicked grin full of bloodlust envelopes her face. "Oh, you old raven boy you~ to think you'd prepare such a wondrous surprise for me. Ah, the thought of engrossing myself in war after so long...my body is so hot; such delightful streaks of pleasure are coursing through me."

She gropes her own body and begins to pant like a rabid animal consumed with lust. "Oh, and you better not take any of my prey away from me Xeros."

"Any 'prey' of yours that slips into the city shall be my responsibility to deal with. Fulfill your duty faithfully if you do not wish to relinquish your claim."

"Fufu, if you say so."

Libevich turns around and gives Luxanne a big hug. She squirms as usual, but something feels different about the crazed woman. Instead of the usual air of madness, a cool chill of something more calm surrounds her. Anticipation, eagerness, and...acceptance.

"I'm off!" Libevich says. "I love you Luxanne! Oh, and don't bury me if I die out there. Just let the birds and the beast strip my body of flesh."

Luxanne doubts that anything will be able to kill the old woman. She's tried many times, but it seems not even the Stars want someone like Libevich to mingle amongst them.

With a final, maniacal cackle, Libevich jumps out of the spire and disappears into the distance. It would make everyone's lives easier if she does perish. Well, one can only hope. Luxanne really, really hopes she dies out there.

Xeros wraps his body in darkness and soars out into the air on a trailing cloud of smoke. "Remember Luxanne, the lives of everyone in this nation are within your hands. It would do well for you to abandon any foolish thoughts here."

What does that mean? Does...Does Xeros know of Luxanne's hatred for him? But before she ask, Xeros takes off leaving her alone in the crumbling spire.

Damnit! She wants to interrogate The Grand General about what he knows of her, but he's right. The whole city is in a panic and if nothing is done now then hundreds of thousands of corpses will line the streets.

She knows this. She knows this with all her heart, yet...even so, she can't help but foster a seed of something sinister within. It latches onto her body, whispering dark mutterings filled with such sweet words into her head. It covers her vision in red and shows her everything she's lost, every bit of suffering she's gone through, and shows her a future where her one, true wish is finally fulfilled.

This sudden attack is the perfect opportunity for Luxanne to finally enact her vengeance. This beloved city of his shall collapse into an ashen-heap of debris and rubble. This system of his where the strong thrive and the weak suffer shall disappear, and everyone will blend together into an indiscriminate pile of bloodshed. Everyone will finally be equal; this cycle of torment will finally end, and Xeros's legacy will be forever erased from the annals of history.

Oh, how wonderful that future would be. An indescribable feeling of bliss covers her from head to toe at the thought, and all she has to do for this rage inside of her to be finally smothered is to simply watch. After all, doesn't she have the perfect view? High up in this spire with no one else to bother her, she shall observe the bastardized remains of her mother's once-beloved nation be reduced to nothing. Everything will be destroyed. Everything.

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Those streets that she once walked upon with nary a care in the world, hand-in-hand with the one she loved most...

That workshop where she used to visit her mother tinkering away on an invention she believed would change the world...

Even her old home, still frozen in time after years of neglect and abandonment because it pained her to see the once-lively halls now so, so barren...

All of it will be destroyed.

"No..." Luxanne covers her face, tears gently gliding down her cheeks as she mutters out a weak cry. "I'm sorry mom...this isn't what you want, is it? Hah, I-If you could see me now, you'd probably be so disappointed in me. You'd scold me and shake me around like I've lost my mind, and I probably have, but in the end you'd give me a big, warm hug and tell me that everything is going to be ok. That I should look deep into my heart first and ask myself if this is who I truly want to be: a monster.

"But you're not here. All I have left is your memory, and this nation that you worked so hard to change. What worth is there in getting revenge on Xeros if it means destroying all that you've ever built? If it means the death of those you cherished with all your heart?"

She looks out at the city below. Frantic cries echo from every corner of the nation, and people frantically rush to get to safety, trampling those unfortunate enough to be caught within the raging wave of bodies and footsteps. There's so many screams, so many wails, filled with pain, but in this cacophony of terror, they are but one of many caught within this ever-growing chaos.

"I...I remember the day you were elected for the first time. I was only six, and though my memory of those days are still a bit hazy, what will never vanish from my mind is that image of you standing so proudly to the cheers of the people, and the oath you swore with a voice so filled with dignity and strength. You promised to protect everyone, to usher our nation into an age of advancement, with a vigor that enraptured everyone within its spell, yet here I am planning to destroy it all for my own selfishness. Hahah, I really am a vile person, aren't I?"

Luxanne smashes her fist into the walls and pummels it until her knuckles are bloody and sore. Pain envelops her hand, but she doesn't care. She needs something, anything, to quell this growing darkness within her. She won't be like Xeros and give up on the vision her mother sought after. No, she will be better. She will live whilst following her heart rather than casting it away.

Xeros must die one day, that much is true, but for as long as Luxanne lives, she will prioritize the safety of her people and the nation above all else. That is what defines a proper Ruler.

Luxanne dashes out of the room and leaps into the black abyss below her, quickly descending down the levels as she freefalls in the air. Soldiers and officers are running around in a daze all throughout the spire, though luckily they're moving about with a bit of a more orderly semblance than the frantic masses on the outside. It's time for Luxanne to say goodbye to the little girl obsessed with her own well-being. Now, she must act with authority befitting someone of her position: a Commander.

Luxanne covers her throat in a sound-altering sorcery and bellows for all to hear. "ATTENTION, ALL SOLDIERS AND UNITS OF THE NOX CAELUM EMPIRE: THE CAPITAL IS UNDER ATTACK. I REPEAT, THE CAPITAL IS UNDER ATTACK. GRAND GENERAL XEROS IS CURRENTLY OCCUPIED WITH DEFENDING THE CAPITAL. FROM HERE ON OUT, I, COMMANDER LUXANNE, SHALL TAKE OVER HIS DUTIES OF ACTING GENERAL AS DICTATED IN THE EMERGENCY WAR CLAUSE OF THE STATUTE. DO NOT PANIC. REPORT TO YOUR ASSIGNED DIVISIONS AND HIGHEST-RANKING OFFICER. ALL UPPER-LEVEL PERSONNEL SHALL PROCEED WITH PROTOCOL OMEGA. I REPEAT, PROTOCOL OMEGA IS CURRENTLY IN EFFECT. FOLLOW THE PROCEDURES AS DIRECTED IN YOUR TRAINING."

Luxanne fires a bullet from her gunblade at the walls of the midpoint of the spire, the impact growing a large mass of roots and branches below. She swings from one of the tendrils and lands near the central control room, bursting through the doors and startling the people within. They appear to be already running diagnostics on the current state of the city and have mostly organized themselves despite the sudden attack. If there's one thing she'll begrudgingly give to Xeros, it's that he knows how to pick his personnel.

"Where's the chief of defense and chief of engineering?" she barks. "You've heard the announcement; I want a report on the city's operations and the current state of the army."

"Of course, Acting General," a burly, gruff man dressed in uniform says. "The troops are a bit disorganized due to the sudden situation, but there should be no problem in deploying them to the city gates soon. We are receiving active reports on the various sectors of the army through our network of intelligence magi and we've begun prepping the underground shelters for the city. A total evacuation to the shorelines of the south has already begun."

"And do we have visuals of the invading forces?"

"Indeed, we are being besieged by the entirety of Polus's knight orders. Among the assault are high-threat designated targets such as Sarathiel of the Thrones and King Ascalon. Their ground forces are moving quickly, and a swarm of winged Seraph will descend upon the city in only a few moments."

"Commander Libevich shall take charge against their ground troops for now. Do not allow the ground troops to draw near her rampage; they shall fortify the surroundings and cover every point of entry. Assemble the ballistae and defenses on the walls and outer layers for now."

"By your command."

"Now, what of the city's barrier and the spire's condition?"

"Not looking good ma'am," a woman in an oil-stained coat says. "Something or someone destroyed the main core of the barrier. It'll be impossible to make a new one with the time we have now, and most of our control systems for the weapons throughout the city are down as well. We can't operate the Elysian Rays, and we can't operate the Chain-Arc Lightning System. At best, we've got the turrets operational and some anti-air projectiles, but we ain't getting anything more than that."

Luxanne groans and paces around the room. "It's better than nothing. For now, we'll keep our eyes on the outside and act accordingly. Soldiers will proceed with Protocol Omega as planned and begin defensive formations outside and within the city layers. Have the engineers fix what they can and take out every piece of ammunition we have stockpiled. Use all of it. Do not let a single resource go untouched, am I clear?"

"Yes, Acting General!" everyone in the room shouts.

"Good, then let the Stars guide us on our path to victory. Nox Caelum shall not fall here today!"