Chapter 13: 12: Thoughts

Deidre swore as she walked across the cobbled streets. Bridget had been closed and no other local bar would give her a chance any more. She needed a drink to drown out her thoughts. Lyrica and Leannan. Lyrica and Leannan. Leannan and Lyrica and- Twins, she kept letting her mind wander onto the two of them and neither made her feel particularly great. Love troubles on her mind? No, Deidre had L troubles. 

She parted the crowds as she walked, none wanting to bother the Bloody Knight into taking a detour around them, lest her swords be reddened out of anger. Deidre wouldn't have done so of course, but the propaganda of Lord Kaga and her viciousness in fight (drunk or otherwise) had painted a bad picture for anyone who knew who Deidre was or what the Bloody Knight looked like. Deidre paid no mind to them, she was hurt by them but her knight training only let her scowl as she went by them. 

Two days.

Two days until Brio and Leannan and everyone worth a damn in the capital except Isolde, her and a few necessary governmental positions left for Tune Somnia. She just knew there would be some fighting- what with all the parties gathering there. The Empire. The Natives. Ruskalyka. 

She breathed slowly, stopping her imagination from turning that on. The thought of running blades through scores of enemies, depriving them of their dreams echoed in her head. The death of innocents who likely weren't wishing for anything worth her killing them over. After all the Empire's dream was much to complete to be so easily unraveled. And if it was? The Empire still could take the entire continent on in war and likely emerge the victor. 

Wish... What would she wish for? That was simple, though she doubted anyone would believe her or let her. But Lyrica being back and with them. On the right side. Like Deidre quite nearly had if the fucking cave hadn't forced her hand. She wasn't like Brio, Lyrica was Lyrica and... honestly that was who she preferred. Her, Lyrica, and La- Her and Lyrica. She smiled. A loyal Lyrica would be honestly one of the Empires most dangerous weapons. She had heard her father mention before Lyrica was 'killed' the first time that they were considering using her unique magical quirk as a way to force negotiations to go their way. She smiled, Lyrica would have never done it. Even then Lyrica seemed uninterested in the Empire's affairs. The only reason she had even gone with Brio to the Dominus's was-

Deidre. Cysgod, don't have doubts now. She sighed. Killing her was easy- killing always was but the doubt and regret after always killed her. She'd wish for her back and loyal to the empire- and then Deidre would take Lyrica and La- she would take Lyrica across the continent like she and Lyrica and Brio had planned as kids. Before Brio got it in his head to follow in his uncle's footsteps.

She walked into a local bakery and ordered a bagel, which a nervous old woman handed to her before recoiling at the hand of Deidre giving her coins. Deidre left, eating as she walked. She had the day off, no work to distract her. The bagel was good though. She walked down the path, curving deeper into the lower levels of the Capital. Her eyes brushed past the bar where the Cysgod agent had melted a man's innards, now posted with a few Guards courtesy of Brio. They saluted her as she walked by and she made a gesture back. Waste of guards, but she knew Brio would assume it would be better to act like the government cared about a supposed assassin in the city, and thus a few lucky guards got to stand around and break up bar fights for a while.

Deidre decided against trying that one as well. She knew they didn't serve anyone alcohol this early from experience anyways. So onward she went, until she reached the city gates. This was the side... a void in her memory had worked. A new guard had taken the voids place, and the job continued on. Whoever it was was another incidental death caused by Deidre. Another avoidable loss of life she had not avoided. Then again a court wouldn't blame her for not taking precautions against a woman who had just fallen into a canyon. 

Deidre gazed up at the sky, cloudless and blue. A nice day to be out for sure. She leaned against the wall of the city and let out a long sigh. That stupid Ruskalykan noble better get here quick.

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Mors watched as Rabo and Lyrica chatted, the girl able to break Rabo's usually walls with strangers down remarkably fast. 

"Are you certain?"

"Yes, Rabo. I've met her more than a few times now."

"But how? She was sent away."

"If that is what you want to know, ask her yourself. L'iia'cun Ys near Aria is aware of her whereabouts."

"Thank you."

Mors sighed. She hadn't offered a ride to Lyrica for Rabo to steal her. She had done it for her own company. She loved and enjoyed Rabo and his company but he was still older and a man- and often not one which whom she could just sit and relax in silence with. After all Rabo had to always be alert so he always let out a slight air of tension.

Lyrica noticed Mors frowning and slid over next to her. "Hmm, Lady Doch. What's the matter?"

"Nothing."

"Are you jealous?"

"Of what?"

"Me talking to Rabo?"

"I don't have feelings for my servant."

"You don't need to love someone to be jealous. After all, Rabo is your only friend right?"

"I do not appreciate the way you said that, Lady Protothea."

"You never do. So, did they tell you what you would be doing exactly or did they just tell you to go to the Capital without a plan?"

"State secret. And you?"

"Oh, as I said: I am merely acting in a play."

"The Capital has no plays."

"I know, think of it as an impromptu performance."

"Why do I always make nice with the weird ones? You, Faira, Zurah."

Lyrica seemed to scowl at the last name. Mors slumped down into the seat some more as the trio continued on. Lyrica and Rabo continued chatting as she spaced out completely.

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"Leannan." Lady Galahad poked the sleeping girl a few times until she jerked awake. Her classmates laughed at her as she rubbed her eyes and shook the sleep from her head. 

"Hmm? Good morning, mom." She said stretching and yawning.

"I appreciate you being earlier for once, but you didn't come home last night. Did you sleep here?"

Leannan turned red from embarrassment. "I guess I might have."

Her adopted mother put a hand on her own forehead and chuckled, "Go home, and get washed up. Your stench will distract the class."

Leannan nodded, quickly grabbing her stuff and running out the door. She had crashed hard the night before, studying to distract her from the upcoming trip to the Tune Somnia. She raised an arm and sniffed. Hmmm, it wasn't that bad to her but she was sure that was just because she was used to it. The scrunched faces of people she passed as she made her way through the halls told her that it was in fact that bad. 

Left, left, right, up, up, out she went emerging onto the road up to where she and the rest of the richest of the rich rested their heads. She strode with purpose up the long and narrow path, the guards only nodding in approval as she strode past the ornate gates and began to the Galahad Estate. It was the same as most of the mansions, though slightly older and unpainted. Lord Galahad claimed it was because his ancestors couldn't agree on a color for it. Besides it was the Kaga Estate, painted an emerald green. She wondered if Deidre had stayed home today. She had it off, if Leannan's memory served her right. She drew some magic from her inker, writing a rune of unlocking. She turned the hand of the door and went in. 

The mansion was empty, with what little servants they Galahad's had out for errands. She made her way up the spiraling staircase, down the hallway to the main bath. She bathed quickly, not allowing herself to relax and lose time. Not like she had any place to be- she just didn't like dealing with the Galahad staff. After dressing in her usual attire she retreated downstairs and out the back door to the gardens. A hop over the fence and she was soon heading towards the back exit of the community- the one that lead to a short cut back to the Academy. Of course, short cut meant a twinsforsakenly steep incline that one risked death on foot, horse or cart. She quickly put a few balance runes on herself, enough to make it down and began to run. Her legs felt like any second she would faceplant onto the dirt and tumble down breaking her neck, but the runes corrected any stumble- though the sensation still was present. The world was passed by in a blur, her legs churning at speeds she'd never reach normally unenhanced. She made sure to keep her head down and her mouth closed. She had had her fill of bugs already. 

As soon as she reached more level ground the runes broke and she immediately stumbled and barely caught herself. After making sure no one had witnessed that she returned into the Academy via a backdoor. Or rather a backdoor into Brio's room that he used to use to leave to eat at the Galahad's- before he started spending weeks cooped up in his office/bedroom hybrid. To even see it you needed to enter a rune and to open it required a few runes of unlocking. Thankfully Leannan was able to simplify the runes and still have them work-not that Brio was aware of that, she didn't want him changing the locks. She emerged with a dramatic slam of the secret door scaring Brio shitless. Drago happily flew over to Leannan who gave the mini-dragon some chin scratches. 

"Could you at least knock?"

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"Why?"

"I could have thought you were an assassin!"

"Brio, I am the only one besides you and... besides you who knows of the door. By the way passage has rats. You should let Drago in it to clean them out."

"Last time Drago fought a rat he lost. Badly." Brio glared at Drago who seemed to be embarrassed on his bed of rejected papers.

"Have you even packed yet?"

"Have you?"

"I haven't unpacked, thank you very much."

"No, I haven't but as you can see from the stack of papers still on my desk, I haven't had the time."

"Couldn't you hire a secretary?"

"No, that's not in the budget apparently."

Leannan waved goodbye as she left the High Defender's office. She considered for a moment returning to class- but this was an excellent opportunity to cut. She smiled making her way towards the training rooms. She checked in with an attendant and made her way to a closed room. It was made for her to study and use rune magic at the school undetected. She quickly browsed the shelf of books stopping at one she hadn't studied yet, Illusionary and Mental Runes: Enemies into Thralls by Leonard Hoots. Not really a subject she had been interested in before but... it would probably be useful to have. Plus Brio hadn't learned it, so she could have a rune set that he didn't which would make him jealous even if he would never admit to it. And as a bonus it would be fun to use on Deidre to get her to forgive a few dozen debts Leannan had to her. She was sure it would be easy, after all the muscle control runes like the one she had done on Lyrica were in the same general vicinity.

She lit her lamp and sat down at her desk and began to read.

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The masked woman slid her fingers across her face making a disappointed sound as she did so. "Boring. She was right, this is boring. But it has to be done. There must be flesh and blood in her honor."

 She kicked aside a dead body, an elderly woman who had tried to stop her from using a rune to collapse the lungs of her two slightly less elderly children that had been unfortunate to meet the masked woman as she wandered. She had given her the gift of a rune insanity and she had died choking and bleeding on the bones of her eldest child.

She still had time before she needed to be in the capital, before she'd meet her again. She wondered if it would go like She had said. That kind of role would be interesting to see her in, back with those people. She was slightly jealous, after all She had said she has hers first. They did share the same magic after all. Or rather would. For now her future and herself were stuck with the same magic as available to everyone else.

Her boots tracked the blood of the woman and the son across the green fields, easily marking her path. Not that the mask woman cared, as a disciple of the Goddess no one could hurt her regardless. Zurah had made sure all of them knew that. After all if Zurah could kill as many people as she did in broad daylight- what fear did the rest of them have? 

The masked woman was one of the most important servants- after all her destiny was tied directly to the Goddess, she would be one of those most gifted by her revival. Of course, she already knew what gifts she would receive- fate had already deemed to her them. 

She spun a caster she had pilfered off a corpse a while back between her fingers as she walked. Its glass container was cracked and leaking staining her hand with refined magic. The masked woman licked and sniffed her hand, and laughed. Weak. The caster wasn't even able to create deadly force. That fact that the corpse had even tried using it on her was laughable.

After all, aim to kill if you're facing a killer. And the masked woman was that. After all this was a world fate deemed to only be temporary- one whose only purpose was the revival of the Goddess. The next one would be a paradise for all the believers. The masked woman just knew it.

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Chief Ys nodded. "Yes. That is acceptable, thank you L'iia'cun Pi'yt." He bowed to his fellow chieftain, a man many years his senior.

"No need to thank me. After all you are only here on my lands to improve the lives of all of our blood."

"Yes. It is better to ask permission still?"

"Worried that I would be of that sect? I am much too old to desire of war, youngster."

"You have shot an arrow into the heart, Pi'yt. I worry of that sect. They seem more interested in chaos than order, war over peace. They cannot see a forest for the trees."

"Yes, fools they are. After all as our legends say, when all is ablaze in war the world shall begin its final days."

"Clearly some no longer believe our myths. After all the only remains of the gods we walked besides resides more often with the descendants of the colonizers than with her mother's children."

"I blame her not for that. After all, we are not without the sin of hate for her."

"Yes, another reason why I must tell the Kir'fo'yta of dreams the dream I have for all of our people."

"May the Kir'fo'yta bless G'erytfo'wla."

"May the Kir'fo'yta bless G'erytfo'wla."

The two l'iaa'cun bowed and began to drink their tea.

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Lyrica watched Mors sleep, thought drifting to memories that they shared, but only Lyrica experienced. Mors was a good person, genuinely. The fact she had this time been sent to the capital was odd, but comforting. She trusted her to not get in the plan's way if anything went south.

Rabo, well he was almost guaranteed to not be involved. He always kept to himself during this act. After all, Mors and he needed their space. Though that was usually at a location more inopportune for that to occur. Both should be safe in this new and improved version of the act.

Lyrica turned her thoughts from Mors. Towards Deidre. 

The Bloody Knight, the child of the woman who had killed her parents. The only friend Lyrica had in the capital and... someone she still found important to her. How many times had she tried to get her to defect, to betray the empire, to break free of Cysgod, and every time she had failed. She was a fool, after all she knew Deidre wouldn't leave the Empire, she was too loyal. Loyal enough that if Lyrica ever gave up on the boss and asked Deidre to take her back, to let her rejoin the empire she would. Unless she needed to kill her evidentially. It was folly to think she might betray them at all.

But the fact that the time she had convinced Leannan still gave her hope for Deidre. Then again, Leannan had more reason to hate the Empire, like Lyrica so there was a thread to pull in that case- with Deidre it was merely hoping Deidre's feelings for Lyrica would win out. If only it could have been as easy as her Lara, asking to join her. Of course nowadays none of her sisters would be so easy- much more close to the difficulty of getting Deidre now.

She would enjoy the look on her face when they met again. She always did.

She just hoped this time she'd be able to see her again, without reliving the pains of being unable to say goodbye again for yet another time.

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