Center of the Deadlands, Ruined Castle: 936, December 31st, Monday, 12:00 AM.
“So that’s it…” Sovereign spoke to himself, resting his head on one fist as he leaned sideways on the black throne of the ruined castle—surrounded by red fog and shadows. “The empire might keep to itself for a while, and that young Albury acted just as I imagined he would. Sorry Jacob, but you made the wrong call at every turn.”
“That’s more lives that we managed to save at least,” Sebastian’s voice resonated in the young man’s head. “The less people remain in the continent the better. That said…”
“King did not heed my warnings it seems, but I can’t stop now. We need to bring Paradise back down to earth.”
“I know… I can’t believe he refused to let his people go,” the major growled, furious at the daemon knight for not attempting to save his own subjects. “I thought knights were meant to protect people, but I guess it is as you said.”
“Where are you right now?”
“Close to the south borders, I sense a few of those uh… what you call’em? None knights nearby. Should I do something about it?”
“No, let the specters handle them. Save your energy for the worst.”
“You got it,” the major replied, maintaining his spirits high as usual. “One more thing, aren’t you afraid that they will go after that girl? Uh… Lucy? What if that knight tries something against Cerberus again… my daughter should be there at the moment too.”
Sovereign repositioned himself on his seat, scuffing at the words of the major. “Not a chance. I made sure she was protected, and I don’t see King messing with HQ again. Not now that his Paradise is at risk.”
“That’s good to hear… Anyway, I have to concentrate here. Let’s get this done with so we can all go home… I can’t wait to be back in the outside world, and go for some drinks.” Sebastian expressed with enthusiasm.
With the major’s banter finished, the broken throne room rapidly fell into silence, and left Sovereign to deal with his own thoughts and the whistling winds of the hellish zone. He fixed his posture, and leaned his back on the throne, releasing a quick sigh while raising his head to look at the tall black ceiling of the castle.
“There’s no we in all of this…” he said as a short chuckle escaped him. “Just try to forget everything after this, Sebastian... I’m the one at fault here, and I can no longer see a place for me outside of my own home.” The young man lowered his gaze, raising his left hand closer to scan the black glove that concealed it with care. “I wonder if I’ll get to see her after this… Ki-Joon.”
Kingdom of Heildin, Capital City: 936, December 31st, Monday, 12:00 AM.
“Gh…” the black knight of Heildin bared her teeth at the intimidating foe that stood before her.
She clasped the grip of her sword, safely sheathed in her lower back. Behind her stood a large group of people, ranging from young children, to elderly men and women—all of them hiding behind her back with frightened expressions.
The room was quite vast, and mostly covered in darkness—poorly illuminated by a few lights installed in the concrete walls and ceiling. Plenty of floor mattresses were spread around a single area, while other parts of it served as a storage of sorts, showcasing many provision shelves supplied with water bottles and canned food.
At the very entrance of the concrete reinforced room stood a tall man of black hair wearing a taunting smile in his face, meeting the princess’ blue eyes with his glowing azures. Eutychia stood in between him and the sheltered refugees she’s managed to save over the past few months, glaring at the unconcerned man with gritted teeth.
“How did you find me?” she growled.
“Been keeping an eye on you these past few months,” Loki replied calmly. “It’s not easy to hide so many people when you have someone on your back at all times it seems.”
“If father wants to put his hands on them, then tell him to pay me a visit himself.” Eutychia laughed mockingly before proceeding. “Or is he afraid of his own daughter?”
“Maybe, it’s not my problem.” The knight shrug, drawing a puzzled expression from the princess. “But I’m not sure you’ve heard the news, so I thought I’d get you up to speed while I’m still around.”
“News?”
“That bastard Specter is sending his demons to invade the south,” Loki rubbed the back of his neck with a yawn, and continued with his explanation. “My duty is to kill him, not play babysitter with this place and its people, but since you enjoy the job so much… I thought I’d let you know that King will be quite busy for a while.”
“…” the black knight’s eyes widened, and she released her grip from the sword in her lower back. “Busy? Then we could…”
The young princess could not even finish her sentence however, as the knight lunged at her with a powerful thrust of his fist—aiming for the distracted girl’s face. Eutychia recoiled at his sudden attack but was unable to respond effectively, closing her eyes at the destructive fist that approached her. The black knight felt a cold wind scratching her cheek, but not the impact of Loki’s powerful punch, prompting her to open her eyes once again.
“Who taught you to let your guard down?” the knight warned her with a smirk—lowering his fist before turning away from her and the refugees. “I’m not lying by the way. King has no time for you at the moment so, do what you must with that information.”
“Ah…” Eutychia observed the knight with a dumbfounded expression as he casually strolled away, sighing with relief before nodding at him with a smile. “Thank you, Loki!” she expressed her gratitude, but received no reply as Loki made his exit through the dark hallway of concrete.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
Cerberus HQ, Vacant Office: 936, December 31st, Monday, 12:00 AM.
Standing at the center of a dusty and broken room stood the lead of the freshly formed Bloodhound unit, Claire Lionheart. She was surrounded by a flipped over wooden desk, a portable computer crushed in half, and broken furniture thrown everywhere around the room—engulfed in nothing but dust and darkness. A large window at the end of the office was now spread all over the floor, turned into tiny shards of glass, and leaving a wide opening that directly observed the crimson fog of the Deadlands.
Claire stood firmly, but her gaze was lowered as she inspected a small item in hand. She held its wooden frame carefully, noticing the tiny cracks that threatened to break its structure even further. The object’s small glass panel was shattered with a single blow at its center, protecting what looked like a photo through its fissures.
She cautiously removed the broken pieces of the picture frame, peeling them off with her finger to get a better look at the picture inside. The sharp fragments of glass dropped near her boots one after the other, and the lieutenant safely took the photo from the frame.
“…”
The memory felt somewhat distant despite how recently the events leading to it had happened, with so many experiences taking place in that exact same year. She remembered the mostly uneventful day in the photo, as there was little she could do at the time while her team continued to operate without her. Despite the lieutenant’s condition in said picture, a bright smile was plastered in her face alongside the others present. Her inexperience in posing for a photograph was demonstrated in her nervous and unnatural smirk, though that did not stop from enjoying the moment.
She lied in a hospital bed with a broken arm, having Lucy playfully rest her head on top of her abdomen. Next to the bed was Sovereign, sitting in a small wooden stool as he kept his head lowered—concealing most of his face from the picture, and only revealing his grinning teeth to the camera. The photo was taken by Yeon from a fairly close distance, just enough to keep everyone in frame. The picture of her father and his unit could be seen resting in a desk next to her bed, proudly displayed in a frame similar to the one she now held.
Claire dropped her arms once she finished inspecting the item, and raised her gaze to look at the crimson fog of the Deadlands through the broken window. No one could see her furrowed brows and curved mouth, and she simply sighed before concealing the photo in the small pocket of her vest.
“I guess I already knew…” she told herself—taking one last look at the demolished room she stood in. “Can’t think about this right now…” she shook her head. “There’s a crisis outside, and my team is waiting at the gates.”
Just as she began to turn towards the exit however, a strange glow from the azure ring she wore in her finger quickly caught her attention in an instant. She observed it with awe, and raised her hand near her face to take a closer look. Its glow resembled the light of a gladean knight’s eyes, and she was left wordless by its brightness—simply looking at the ring her mother once wore, lighting up her face with its soothing glow.
“What is this?” she softly spoke, confused by the sudden reaction of the ring.
Her few seconds of admiring the item were cut short by a set of tiny steps approaching from behind however. The thumping steps echoing across the empty and dark hall reached her ears almost immediately, prompting Claire to make a quick turn towards the entrance of the office.
“Lucy!” she reacted in shock, meeting the young girl’s shy crimson eyes. “I thought I left you at the dormitory, how did you make it here?”
“Job?” the girl asked with an innocent tilt of her head.
“Yes… You already know how this works.” Claire responded with a sigh, smiling and taking Lucy’s tiny hands into hers as she kneeled down in front of her. “Lucy, can you do me a favor?”
“Yes!”
Her reply drew a happy chuckle from the lieutenant, who pat her head gently in response. “I’ll be leaving for the Deadlands in a minute, so I need you to look for a vehicle that may be heading out of headquarters, and leave with it, alright?”
“Hm?”
“I know you’ve seen what’s happening out there, and I don’t want you to be left here on your own.” The lieutenant clarified. “I need you to be strong too, got it? Find anything that can take you out of headquarters, and away from the Deadlands. I will find you once I’ve completed my mission.”
“Is someone there?”
Claire flinched at the sudden call that came from the obscure hallway outside of the room, jumping back on her feet before giving Lucy a quick gesture with her eyes—prompting her to look for a place to hide. The girl nodded with a worried expression, and hastily threw herself behind the flipped over desk of the office.
“Lieutenant?”
Emerging from the dark hall and into the broken room, was the current and only head of Cerberus—Arwen Rhys. His curious eyes looked at the young woman standing at the center of the office, whose rank prohibited her from entering without previous authorization. The man found no words to express for a few short seconds, caught off guard by Claire’s presence in the abandoned room.
“Sir!” the lieutenant slammed both feet together, and proudly saluted at the company’s CEO with a straight back.
“Ah… lieutenant, w-what are you doing here?”
“I thought… I thought I heard something, sir…”
“Huh?” Arwen flinched, and his mouth opened at the woman’s claims, beginning to shiver at the thought of invaders. “No way… have the specters made it here? Is it the knights?”
“N-no, sir. Nothing of the sort, the area is clear.”
“Ah… I see…” the man sighed with relief, placing one hand on his chest. “But… you are not authorized to be here.” He protested, having a sudden shift in behavior that startled even the lieutenant. His brows lowered, and he kept his jaw tightly clenched—frantically moving his eyes around every corner of the office. “We are in a moment of crisis, lieutenant. You and your team were requested to report at the gates leading to the Deadlands, please be on your way.”
“Yes, sir! Sorry, sir!” Claire replied firmly before marching out of the room, taking a quick look back to search for Lucy. Despite her orders however, the lieutenant stopped herself at the exit, pressing her teeth together before turning back towards Arwen. “Sir…”
“You have your orders, lieutenant.” The man replied with his back turned towards her, possibly scanning the room even further. “There’s plenty of work to be done.”
“Yes, sir. Sorry, sir.”
Claire stormed out of the room, keeping both the girl and the crisis at the Deadlands in mind. She looked back at the office a few times, and noticed the strange behavior of the man standing still at the center of the room. As she continued to make distance, the lieutenant was only able to catch a few sharp movements from the CEO’s hands, head, and legs—as if striking conversation with someone she could not see.
“Clar,” the pitchy voice of an infant took the lieutenant by surprise—almost drawing a gasp from her lips.
“L-lucy?” Claire stopped herself at the end of the hallway, one foot already placed in the stairs leading to the lower floors. She kneeled before the girl and quickly lifted her into her arms, pulling Lucy into a tight embrace. “Smart girl,” she told her with a smile, rubbing the tip her nose against the girl’s. “I’ll give you a few treats later, but don’t tell anyone.”
“Chocolate!”
“Chocolate,” repeated Claire. “Now let’s head out… I’m taking you out of here.”
END OF CHAPTER