POV: Captain General- Syn

Another Imp fell before me. Its body easily cleaved apart with a mere thought. Its putrid ichor stained the venerable walls of the imperial palace. Beast. All of them. I crushed another with a glance, and just pressed further on. My hands remained crossed in front of me as I tried to quell the emotions that were surging in my chest.

My Empress had returned, and with her, all the emotions I had buried. All of my shame, all of my anger. I should have stayed by her side. I should have died next to her that day. For the longest time, I was sure that these feelings would have passed. Yet, now that she was here, I once again faced the truth..

This was my duty, and I had shirked it. That thought alone made guilt crash into me, threatening to bow me over. For so many years, I had roamed these lands without my gear. I had thrown myself into battles I knew that I’d never win. Yet, fate, it would seem, was a fickle thing. Instead of granting me the sweet release of true death, it left me even more empty.

I was an Athanatoi, the most honored amongst her majesty’s warriors. We were her guard, her companions. We were the chosen few who stood over even the heroes. Yet, we were not enough. She still died, and there was nothing we could have done to stop that.

Guilt blossomed into anguish and embarrassment as I reached out and backhanded an imp that got too close. Its head exploded in a mist of black, and its body fell limp to the side. Another wave of intense emotions exploded in my chest. I wasn’t good enough. We weren’t good enough. I could have avoided all of this if we had just killed Quintus from the start. Those wretched heroes just had to ruin everything.

I smited another wave of imps, with a minor explosion of ki as I spiraled deeper into my own thoughts. It’s been over five thousand years, and my pain hasn’t faded in the slightest. All it took was seeing her face.

The long forgotten taste of iron flooded my mouth as my fangs bit into my cheek. The pain did me well to bring my focus back to reality. My sight focused as I took a second to pause. It must have been hundreds of imps slaughtered by my presence. There was a tidal wave of them laying broken and torn asunder like the weak, pitiful things they were. A heavy sigh left my lips, and I closed my eyes to bask in my failure. We could have done more. We expected her to return, yet our grief clouded our senses.

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We could have done more, yet we didn’t. We failed, and even beyond that, I failed as their commander. Instead, we let ourselves die one by one, as we tried to find some solstice from our guilt. What a miserable cur I must be. I opened my eyes and began my march once more. One glance back told me that the other two felt the same as why I must have been feeling. How far we as the golden host have fallen. Could we ever atone for our crimes?

Perhaps in the flames of war could we find our redemption? Or was that line of thought what brought us to this point? I could honestly say there was no clear path forward. It was moments like this that I wish the Captain was still here. She could lead us far better than I could ever dream of. Maybe the path she took was the right one after all. A self imposed exile to atone for our crimes.

Even then, was that the right answer? I couldn’t seem to think straight with everything that I was feeling at that moment. It’s been so many years since I laid my eyes on the Empress’ face. I couldn’t quite seem to remember her mannerisms or how she acted, so I wasn’t sure of what was in store for us. For now, I think it would be best if we just completed our task and went from there.

“Saber, fetch the sub commanders of the guard. They are to clear the auxiallary halls around the throne room. They are to push the lines no less than a kilometer out and hold until further orders. Griffon, take a force of palatines and begin reclamation operations around the area. I want a detailed brief in my hand in no more than a day and a half, and foot holds established to launch raids in the surrounding area. I want every detail, no matter how small, and I want a detailed breakdown of every person of interest in the surrounding successor kingdoms.” With my orders given, I took another step forward.

I pulsed out a small wave of ki, enough for the wretched imps to see me as weaker and come rushing to me. “Yes, captain.” The mana stone I had in my ear echoed twice with their voice and their presence faded faster than my dead heart could beat. Now, I alone shall take the throne room. This is the start of my penance.

With my mind made up, I marched forward once more as my aura reached out, and cut through the next wave of Imps that had appeared. Come, throw yourself at me like lambs to the slaughter. May your blood paint the path of my redemption.