Disclaimer:
This work is fiction. The work is presented under fair protection where applicable.
Feedback will be read, processed, and if it’s a flame it will be given the finger, then I will burst into hysterical laughter. Constructive feedback, be it criticism or praise, will be read, processed, given a smile, and filed away. To contact me, please send an email to socom.seal@(SPAM)yahoo.com. Remove (SPAM) for a valid email.
You should not read this if you are not of legal age where you reside. This work can contain rape, BDSM, cannibalism, and probably anything else my sick, twisted mind can come up with.
~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~
Chapter 42
“Daria?”
The Vampire looked up from what she was doing, her eyes widening when she saw the state Andrew was in. “Good lord, what happened to you.”
Andrew tenderly rubbed at his bruises. “I wasn’t able to satisfy Furia last night, so she decided she was going to get what she wanted this morning. I was planning on it but she surprised me before I could prepare myself.” He winced when his muscles screamed in protest. “I won’t be able to make our lesson today.”
“Haven’t you asked Gale to heal you?”
“This is after she did the best she could.”
Daria whistled softly. “Don’t get in the way of a Wolf Queen and her taming, got it. Well, I can give you a break today. I expect you to be ready tomorrow.”
Andrew nodded slightly. “I’ll do my best.” He watched her for a few moments. “There’s another reason I’m here.”
Daria nodded. “And?”
“I had some visitors last night.”
Daria frowned. “Cryptic, but alright. What kind of visitors?”
“The astral projection kind.”
The Vampire’s eyes widened. “I see. Are we being cryptic because they might still be around?”
“No.” Andrew shook his head. “I’m being cryptic because I want to believe they never showed up. But everything they said made so much sense.”
“They were drawn to your awakening magic.”
Andrew sighed. “Yes. They claimed to be of a race of... I guess they would be called fey, in English. What I know them as translates more to spiritfolk, but I suppose it’s all the same.”
“I had no idea there even were fey on this continent.”
“They died out long before your time.” Andrew replied. “They were almost gone in my own. And apparently I’m one of them. One of the first half-spirit, half-humans. A descendant of the one they called the eldest, even. They said they were shapeshifters, and hinted that my mother was also a seer.” He blinked. “Shit. That’s what they were saying.”
Daria frowned. “Hm?”
“I just realized what they were calling me.” Andrew shook his head. “Dewlen. In my people’s language it means seer, more or less.”
“Shapeshifters, huh.” Daria nodded. “That aspect has been a part of your magic for as long as I’ve been watching you. I see why you say it makes sense.”
“I don’t know.” Andrew whispered. “I don’t want to believe them. I don’t want to believe that the conversation we had last night was anything more than a dream. I just want to be me. To be human. But you and Kuu and all the others - you keep saying things. Saying I’m not, how I’m more, and meaning it. Not like pokegirls praise their masters but actually telling me that there’s something different about me. And now there are spirits walking my dreams telling me the same. I want to deny it but with so many people telling me otherwise-“
“There’s an easy way to find out.”
Andrew stopped. “Huh?”
“We find an actual fey, and ask them what you are.” Daria shrugged. “Fey recognize fey. That’s one of the laws of the magic races. A fey can hide themselves, disguise themselves, but when one fey meets another with no deception, they know what the other is. They may not know what specific race or tribe the other comes from, but they recognize the shared thread of magic. If we could find an actual fey, they could tell us whether or not you are one.”
“That seems like a horrible, dangerous idea.”
Daria snickered. “Undoubtedly.”
“Let’s put that idea at the bottom of the list.” Andrew shook his head. “And if that kind of thing is true, I already know my answer.”
Daria frowned. “You do?”
“Iain Grey. I didn’t notice it when he brought us to this world but ever since, as my own magic has grown, I’ve begun sensing something off about him. Like an instinct, I want to stay away from him, because whatever he has become or has always been is powerful.”
Daria stared at him for a full minute before responding. “I could try to argue that but there isn’t really a point, is there? You’ve been given your push. You truly believe that you aren’t just human anymore.”
Andrew nodded slightly. “It’s the obvious answer.”
“It may be, but there is no proof.” Daria growled. “Your aura is human. Your vitals, human. Your brain and thoughts and actions are all human. Your magic, yes, that is something special. But the rest of you is not.”
Andrew snorted. “Ignoring that last bit.” He gave her a sidelong glance. “Someone else might have been insulted.”
Daria rolled her eyes. “Get on with it.”
“You yourself told me there is something more to me. For gods sake, Daria, there are beings walking my dreams that I always thought were a myth. I am seeing things and doing things that no human should ever be able to do. No mage you’ve ever seen can do them. Am I wrong?”
Daria sighed. “No.”
“So there has to be something more.” Andrew shook his head. “I almost wish I could talk to them again. I have so many questions.”
“If they exist,” Daria held up her hands placatingly when Andrew made to retort. “Look, you’re the only one who’s seen them. It may have literally just been a dream.” She waited a moment. “If they exist, then they found you somehow. If you’re like them, you can find them too.”
Andrew frowned. “How?”
“Don’t ask me. This is completely new territory.”
Andrew turned away slightly, his eyes wandering as he thought. “They talked about... ‘my’ people.” He remained silent for long enough that Daria was wondering whether to interrupt his thoughts before continuing. “There is a sort of ritual. Do you have any experience in spirit magic?”
“What kind?”
“I honestly don’t really know. I abandoned that heritage decades ago.” He turned back to her. “They believed that when they were struggling, a spirit could appear to help guide them.”
“If your people meant these fey when they referred to ‘spirits’, this ritual might not exactly go the way you expect.”
Andrew blinked. “I hadn’t considered that.”
“I know of some rituals that summoners and witch doctors use, but I don’t think they will help. You already know what you need to do.”
“What?”
“I just realized what you did in the training room that day.” Daria gestured. “Where did that power come from, Andrew?”
“I- I don’t know.”
“Exactly.” Daria walked to the other side of the room, rifling through some bags. “I think you performed a summoning ritual without even knowing it. What did you do?”
“I, uh...” Andrew watched her withdraw some small vials, “I have this, place in my head that I visualize, where I remember my most treasured memories. I took something from there.”
Daria placed two vials in his hands. “Go back there, but don’t look inwards. If these fey exist, you’ll find them outside of that place.” She smiled at his look. “I’ve been tearing my hair out trying to rationalize what you’re doing with what I know. The truth is I’m completely uninformed with the nuances of spirit magic. I was treating you like something completely new, but if we can draw parallels to summoning magic then we can get somewhere.” She chuckled. “I know we said no lessons today, but this is something we need to explore. I’m going to get Lyn in here, and together, we’re going to take you into Dreamtime. Once there you’re going to do whatever comes naturally, and if the two of us can’t follow, we’ll make sure nothing interrupts you.”
Andrew slowly nodded. “Let’s do it.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“If you’re ready, inhale this.”
Andrew stared at the smoking pile of salt. “What is it?”
“A compound designed to relax your constraints. Lyn and I will make sure they don’t explode so that you can focus on doing whatever needs to happen at full strength.”
Andrew glanced at the Archmage. “Daria’s explained what they’ll do.” Lyn smiled reassuringly. “And how to reverse the effect. You’ll be fine.”
“Right.” Andrew slowly sat on the padded floor. “Ready.”
“Breathe deep.” Daria reached out, taking Lyn’s hands and forming a ring around him. “Taking us into Dreamtime in 3, 2... 1... ...”
Andrew watched her mouth form words but couldn’t hear what she was saying. The smoke clouded his eyes and he finally breathed in when it grew too heavy to avoid any longer.
The smell filled his head as the world began to swim. Flashes of color swept past until he was sitting in the same room but without the two pokegirls. The smoking salts had burnt out, only a small pile of ash marking their presence.
“Daria?” He looked around nervously. “Lyn?”
The silence of the caves was unnerving and he swiftly got to his feet. “Cortney, are you there?”
He pushed out into the main hallways, quickly checking every room with the panic growing when each yielded no sign of people.
“I’m in a dream.” He realized with a start, the panic slowly receding. “It worked.”
As he walked he noticed a slight glow from the direction of the main entrance. Pushing outside he had to shade his eyes, waiting for them to adjust before turning towards the forest.
The memorial clearing glowed like the sun, silver light overpowering anything else. As he approached he had to keep blinking, forcing his eyes to adjust until the light was a more manageable level.
Now that he could actually see he could see why it was so bright. The vision from the day they had buried Sylie now made even more sense - the glowing figures in the clearing had not been the pokegirls of the court, gathered to mourn, but these - he could see Azhaara glowing brightest, the Kyuubi walking between dozens of other spirits. His heart skipped when he saw Grace sitting next to a crying Elf, the Mini-Top almost as bright as Azhaara. “There are still some who refuse to move on.” Azhaara’s words echoed. “They are my responsibility. Not yours.”
He didn’t know how long he watched the milling spirits. It could have been a moment or an eternity before he finally turned away, tears falling from his cheeks.
They were not why he was here. He didn’t belong here.
With effort he looked inwards, letting the world fade and be replaced by the familiar structures of his mental landscape. The answers he needed were here, and yet not here. He had some searching to do.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
He walked.
At this point he didn’t know where he was. He didn’t know when. He had lived and relived his life at least three times from different perspectives. Each time something hadn’t been quite right. A memory, missing. An action, misremembered. The last time, he had felt something else.
The presence was close. He had wondered why there was another piece of himself here, and now he understood. He really was human, because he had abandoned the pieces that made him more.
Andrew stared out across the featureless plains. The fiery shadow waited for him, its glow muted under the sun. There was no threat, no pain. Andrew stared at himself, and he stared back. Human and spirit.
The human didn’t understand the spirit, but it realized that two should be one. After years of running and fighting it looked at the alien pieces of itself and embraced them instead of running. As he touched the shadow it melted, running up and across his body. He felt the presence he had always thought of as evil dissolving into him, pieces of his memory that he had always feared filtering back.
The woman laughed silently, gloating to her prisoner. The man slumped in his chains, pieces of him strewn across the floor even though his body was unblemished. He said something but just like the woman no sound came out.
“Fight her.” The shadow growled. “Let me fight! Humans for humans but we are not human. Embrace me or we will die. I refuse to allow our weakness to win.”
The scene shifted, the man struggling against his bonds as a woman was dragged away. The shadow watched silently, baleful eyes watching as the man screamed and slumped back. “They will kill her.” It whispered. “We can save her.”
The man began shaking, his teeth clenching in anger. “We are powerless without me.” The shadow growled. “If you do not let us fight, she will die, and eventually, so will we.”
The man’s head remained bowed but his eyes unnaturally jerked up to where the shadow stood. “Destroy them.” Andrew rasped. “Once you have, vanish.”
The shadow nodded. “I will step down.” It drifted into the man’s body and Andrew’s eyes snapped open, a horrible scream escaping as he tore free and grabbed at the pistol that had materialized. He fired twice before kicking the cell door, striding out and placing a shot through the skull of the first figure he saw. His body was wreathed in shadow as he continued, indiscriminately killing anything he saw until he was breaking through a final door. The woman that had been torturing him was there, her eyes wide and hands held trembling over her head. “MERCY!” She screamed, screaming when the guard next to her vanished in a bloody mist. “I SURRENDER!”
“We refuse.” The shadow replied, lowering the pistol squarely between the crying pokegirl’s eyes. “Die.”
Andrew slumped to the floor, the gun clattering to the ground and the shadows beginning to recede. The presence left the unconscious man, retreating back to its cage and waiting.
The scene shifted as the human began to wake, changing to show the shadow watching the human in disgust. “Weak.” It hissed, watching the human collapse in the face of the ghost that had attacked. “Embrace us! Release me!” It hissed when the presence filled the human’s mind, only calming when the mind fought back, holding the presence at a standstill. “Perhaps not as weak.”
The scene shifted again and the shadow struck, picking the annoying woman from where she lay. It did not speak, merely crushing the threat.
“You tried to break the deal.”
The shadow turned in confusion to see the human speaking with... itself? It watched as the human’s avatar struck, destroying the false aspect before leaving. But it still existed, a feeling of unease growing until-
“You have failed.”
The shadow turned, eyes narrowing when it saw the woman standing whole. “I killed you.”
The woman smiled. “The Author abandoned himself, but I am not so foolish. His own fear has spelled your defeat.”
She raised her hand and the scene went black.
The darkness remained for a long time before the shadow stirred. Something was casting light. Allowing it to exist once again. It weakly reached for the light, feeding until it could see what was happening. They were losing. The woman stood over the human’s broken form but even in defeat they fought. The shadow could not fight so it did the only thing it could; latching onto the light it felt the presence behind it, desperately directing the magic to where it needed to go. As it reached the human it felt the light begin to tear it apart but it still pushed, feeling the last of itself burning away before the human rose. The shadow drifted, finally and utterly separated from itself. The human had what it had always wanted.
But the piece survived. The human won and eventually the shadow healed. The mind now was strange, more than just two. Now there were three. The light had remained, to protect the human when the shadow could not.
Something about the human was awakening and the shadow tried to understand it, because it felt right. It felt like the human was reaching back, like the shadow had reached out so many years ago. And finally the human found it, and they stared at each other, no longer human and shadow, but Andrew, whole at last.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Andrew opened his eyes and took a deep breath.
“Andrew?” Lyn reached out to hold his arm. “Are you alright?”
“Are we still in Dreamtime?”
Lyn blinked at how raspy his voice had become. “How long have you been gone?”
“Are we.”
“Yes.”
“Good.” He coughed before his eyes slowly shut again.
Daria stared at him. “He’s gone back in.”
Lyn released his arm. “I haven’t been able to follow him anywhere. His mind just slams shut. I can see him moving behind the curtain but that’s it.”
“You’re not alone.” Daria grumbled. “But I got a glimpse just now.”
“How long?”
“Too long.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“You’re human, yes.” Albia’s words echoed in his mind. “But you’re also something more.”
He’d cornered the Splice in the days after Sylie’s death, asking what her offhanded comment had meant that day.
“What else am I.”
“I don’t know.” Albia gave him a frustrated look. “There’s something more to you. That’s all I know. But it’s not alien, like the... things Sukebe had lying around some of his facilities. There are worlds I have seen that scare me. But you don’t. You feel normal, like this world is a natural place for you. But you’re not fully human. I know that much.”
Andrew slowly opened his eyes to see his mental landscape once again stretching out in front of him. This time he ignored the various buildings around him and started walking into the distance, gradually transitioning to a jog and run until he was sprinting across the green grass, weaving through the hills. He had always felt as if where the buildings ended was it, but something now was telling him that was wrong. As he continued to run, seemingly into the endless fields, he could feel that feeling growing stronger. Slowly the hilly plains began to smooth and bushes began popping up with semi regularity, and after a few minutes he slowed when he saw the beginning of a tree line to his left. Ahead, water lapped against a riverbank, but it wasn’t like the island where he had attempted to contain his anger, created of despair. The water was brilliant and clear, and he almost thought he saw fish flashing by before he got closer and realized it was empty. As he gazed into the forest, the old feelings returned, warning him. ‘Go back!’ They screamed. ‘Danger!’
“I have always felt at home in the wilds.” Andrew called clearly. “What is this?”
‘Danger!’ The voices cried. ‘Run!’
“I will not run from myself.” Andrew growled and tensed, leaping across the river. As he flew the water seemed to swell, the narrow channel expanding and quickening until raging rapids grabbed at his feet. “I WILL NOT RUN!” Andrew roared, willing his jump to continue. “I WILL KNOW WHAT I AM!”
He felt his foot bounce off a rock and he tumbled, rolling to a halt. Slowly he got back up, looking back at the still calm river. Steeling himself, he turned to the forest and stepped, the voices growing into a crescendo that battered at his ears. Before he had accepted his broken pieces they would have driven him back. No more.
Andrew finished his step and glared at the forest in front of him. The voices warning him away was gone. Now there was a gentle silence, a serenity. He could hear the blood pumping through his ears as he stepped again, past the dark trees and into the shaded woods. Another step and it was as if the woods swallowed him. Trees on all sides, but it was not malevolent. There was intent here but it was not trying to hurt him, so he continued. Another step. And another. Eventually he emerged into a clearing, a few broken tree stumps showing where the consistency of the forest had been ruined, rotting logs forming pathways through the sea of green. Andrew glanced around, and once he found what he was looking for, he climbed onto one of the stumps and crouched.
He was debating whether to break off the jagged remains and actually sit when he heard a noise in the trees. He remained silent when an animal broke cover, walking serenely through the clearing. Its eyes wandered, passing straight over him without pause while it continued to walk.
Andrew watched the strange bear creature continue to move past, waiting for it to nearly reach the other edge of the clearing before speaking. “If you’re looking for me, I’m right here.”
The creature jumped, whirling towards his voice. Bjorn’s eyes were wide as he stared through where Andrew crouched. “Who?”
Andrew debated what to do for a few moments before rising, watching as Bjorn’s eyes focused and began to follow his movement. “You said we would speak again. I have decided that we will speak now.”
“Dewlen.” Bjorn took a step back into the clearing. “You hid your presence from me. This is impossible.” He frowned. “You found me as I traveled to find you. This, too, should be impossible.”
“Impossible? Because I did what you and the others did? I am a Chibaio, just as you are, Bjorn.” Andrew cocked his head. “Or do you prefer Awasos?”
Bjorn growled low in his throat. “You should not know these words. How do you know these words? You knew nothing mere moments ago.”
“I have only done as you hoped.” Andrew replied. “I stopped running from myself. These things were taught to me decades ago. I remember everything I forgot.”
“You lie.” Bjorn snapped. “You human. You do not change as easily as we do. There is no way you have embraced who you are in the span of less than a single sunrise.”
“I am not human.” Andrew whispered, even though his voice still clearly filled the clearing. “I have accepted this. It has not taken me a day; it has taken me decades, spent desperately hoping that I was wrong. You wouldn’t understand how I achieved this.”
“You could not have dreamed alone.” Bjorn’s eyes began to dart around the clearing. “Who has taught you. Where are they!”
“The two who have helped me are not Chibaio. There are things that have come with the pokegirls that you are unfamiliar with. You have much to learn.”
Bjorn’s eyes drilled into him. “You may have changed, Dewlen, but your human weakness still takes hold. A warrior does not make idle taunts.”
Andrew sighed. “I do not intend to fight you, Bjorn. But I demand answers.”
Bjorn shook his head. “Return to us. You may have every answer you wish.”
“Not likely.”
“Very well.” Bjorn began padding to the edge of the clearing again. “I will have to change your mind.”
Andrew watched him begin to leave before releasing his focus, the forest vanishing around him. Bjorn jumped when the stump Andrew had been standing on splintered, shards of wood peppering his fur. He stared at the broken wood for a moment before swiftly running back the way he had come.
Lyn looked up when Andrew straightened again, a deep breath filling his lungs before he released it all at once.
“Were you successful?”
Andrew waved at Daria. “Please take us out.”
“It’s been a few hours.” Daria warned. “Don’t get too flustered by the time jump.”
Andrew began to quietly laugh. “Daria, I have just spent almost a century in my own head. While I can easily reconcile those years since they were just my own life over and over, I still feel like they happened.” He glanced at her suddenly worried expression. “Calm down. It was my own life, didn’t you hear me? My experiences are the same as the man that went under at the beginning. I’m going to act a bit different, but a few hours ago I sat down and breathed in whatever that compound was. This morning I got pounded raw by an extremely loving Wolf Queen. Yesterday I met each pokegirl that calls Kuu Queen. I still remember these things exactly as they happened. I’m still me.”
Daria pursed her lips. “Was it worth it?”
Andrew nodded. “Extremely so.”
“I’m glad.” She glanced at Lyn. “Cast the counterspell.”
Lyn nodded. Andrew watched her mouth incantations before grimacing, feeling the world slide back into place around him. Daria quickly smothered the barely smoking pile, sweeping it into a small container. “How do you feel?”
“Ugh, fuck. Suddenly I’ve got a splitting headache.”
“You’re supposed to.” Daria finished cleaning and stood. “Oof, I’m stiff. Gonna go for a quick run.”
Lyn watched her leave before turning back to Andrew. “So, what did you do? Did you get in contact with these spirit people?”
Andrew dabbed at his temples in an effort to lessen the pain. “Eventually.” He winced. “More importantly, I found the piece of me that I needed to.”
Lyn gently lay her hand on his forehead and her eyes widened. “Your magical signature is completely different.”
“What a surprise.” Lyn snorted at his deadpan reaction. “Lyn. I just told you I changed.”
“You’re still the same sarcastic ass, that’s for sure.” Lyn muttered. “Alright. So what’s next?”
Andrew shook his head. “Next I take a nap. And then I get back to living my life, only now I have some things to think about.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Andrew?”
Andrew continued his measured breathing, slowly lifting out of his exercises and looking up. “Cristina, what’s up?”
Cristina was dressed casually, a loose t-shirt and shorts instead of her usual stiff style. She brushed a lock of hair away from her eyes before gently stepping into the smaller room he used as a private meditation room. “You’ve been in here a lot more than usual the last few days.”
Andrew shrugged, returning to his set. “I’ve kept the door open.”
“Only today.”
Andrew paused, staring down at the floor. “True.”
“I heard what you tried to do from Lyn.” Cristina continued. “Did something go wrong? Is that why you’re struggling?”
Andrew snorted. “What makes you think I’m struggling?”
He flinched when he felt her hands cup his face. “Even if I couldn’t feel how you have blocked us all from whatever turmoil you are feeling, I would know.” Andrew looked up to see Cristina crouching in front of him, her black eyes soft. “You’re lost, and the ones who have been with you the longest can’t help. Aella is who she is, and that is fine. Shamira has grown content with just being with you, which I’m sure is fine as well. And Lyn, well, she never has time for anything beyond what she’s doing. After she helped you, she vanished back to her labs, didn’t she?”
“Yea.”
“The others, you love them, and they love you, but they’ve never really connected with you in a way that can help with this, have they?” She watched him for a moment. “To Cortney, you are everything. She’s an echo chamber. To Gale you are her commander. She’s much too blunt. And Kuu’s part of the problem, isn’t she?”
“You’re forgetting quite a few.” Andrew mumbled.
Cristina smiled. “Nevaeh is too busy finding herself to worry about you. Rein might help, but she worries for the rest of us too.” She gently pulled him forwards into her embrace. “Constance is your spear. You’re still unhappy with how Fu sees you. Nami is, well, she’s getting a change of heart but she’s still Nami.”
“A change of heart?”
“She’s started talking about her past.” Cristina giggled. “Apparently she used to be a bit of a softy. Don’t tell her that, though, or she’ll bite you. Melody got a painful nip for teasing.”
“Got any more, o wise one?”
“Speaking of Melody, she and Ann are always more interested in each other than they are in you. And Lucina isn’t much different.”
“And Ishara is like Gale,” Andrew finished, “while Furia and Nova are barely healed from the war.”
“And Yang still hasn’t healed from her own loss.” Cristina murmured.
Andrew shifted. “Speaking of Yang, how is she? I haven’t seen her in a week.”
“She’s been working with Nami and Melody.” Cristina replied. “She wasn’t doing much, which wasn’t healthy. But she’s surviving.”
“Thanks in no small part to her Beta, I assume.”
Cristina smiled. “I helped.”
“You’ve held this harem... this family together.”
Cristina nodded absently. “I try to temper Aella’s impulsiveness. I worry, though. These days she’s becoming more and more like what Albia says her mother was like.”
“Powerful?”
“Arrogant.” Cristina replied. “She is powerful, yes. But she isn’t unbeatable. She thinks she is.”
Andrew sighed. “I don’t have an answer to that. I know I’m supposed to, as the Tamer.”
“I’m sure we can find one.” Cristina kissed his forehead. “But right now, you need an answer of your own, and I am here for you.”
Andrew shook his head. “I have one. I just can’t figure out where to get the next one. I’m not... I’m not fully human. I’m something more, something that lived in this land long before humans did. I’ve been agonizing over what that really means for me these last few days. I can’t figure it out.”
“Maybe because it doesn’t mean anything. After all, I…” Cristina trailed off, her voice fading out before he could hear the rest of her sentence.
Andrew blinked. “Come again?”
He felt Cristina tense, her voice beginning to shake from nervousness. “I, I mean that- it doesn’t matter if you’re human, or half human. I’m less than that, and y-you love me anyways, right? So why does it matter?”
Andrew slowly raised his head to look at her face. “Cristina, is something wrong?”
“You’re - you’re still Andrew. You’re still-still my M-M-Master.” There were tears beading in the Ophanim’s eyes. “I... Cam- C- m-m-mom told me you needed to know.” She continued stuttering when Andrew just stared. “I, I lo- I love-“ she screwed up her eyes and released the sentence in a giant rush. “IloveyouandIwantyourchildren.”
Andrew stared at her in shock when she burst into tears, her next words almost unintelligible. “I finally think I’ve hit my second puberty and-“
She didn’t get to continue when Andrew rose, grabbing her and crushing his mouth to hers. Cristina cried out in surprise but caught herself before she could fall, desperately kissing him back. Andrew grunted when her hands wrapped around his chest, the strength behind her grasp almost uncomfortable until he matched it. The two strained against each other until Andrew broke free, returning the embrace and hugging Cristina tighter. Without his support the two fell, Cristina still crying while Andrew could only laugh.
“You do?” He cried, kissing her again. “Is this the aging pencil skirt lady talking?”
Cristina shrieked, pulling back enough to try to glare at him. “You-!”
Andrew smothered her words with another kiss, bringing one hand up to clutch her head so she couldn’t try to escape again. The two lay there for a few seconds before he released her, both breathing heavily.
Cristina gasped, clutching at his shoulders. “You-“ she took a breath in an attempt to control her gasps, “will you?”
“Oh, Cristina.” Andrew’s expression began to fade to sadness. “I can’t have kids with a woman I’m not married to.”
Cristina’s joyous expression had just begun to fall when he grinned. “When should we have the service?”
Cristina’s face flashed between a dozen different emotions before she screamed, Andrew laughing when she half-heartedly punched him. “YOU BASTARD!” She laugh-cried. “FUCKER!”
“It was worth the look on your face.” He snickered, catching her hands when she tried to hit him again. “I was serious, though.”
Cristina’s struggles stopped. “Wha-“ her eyes widened, “you-“
“I’ll have to ask Camiel.” Andrew replied. “I heard you call her mom, so I assume she’s decided to take that role.”
Cristina’s mouth was working silently, her eyes widening by the second. “Y-you really... really want to-?”
“I was serious when I said that I can’t have kids with a woman I’m not married to.” Andrew replied. “You want kids. Therefore there’s only one option we have.”
Cristina’s breath caught. “B-but, don’t humans... isn’t marriage a...”
“Who gives a damn.” Andrew growled. “Cristina, will you marry me?” He smirked. “While accepting that I might run off and dick some girls who aren’t my beautiful wife?”
Cristina nearly choked as she began to laugh. “Yes. Yes, gods yes!” She grabbed him again, nestling her face against his neck and truly letting the happy tears flow. “Yes. I can’t imagine anything that would make me happier.”
“Awesome, that clears up the need for a wedding gift.”
Cristina sighed. “You’re insufferable.”
“I’m what you wanted.” Andrew replied with a smile. “Other than Camiel, who set you up for this?”
Cristina shook her head slightly. “I’m sure others know, but I don’t think they know I came here today to ask.”
Andrew decided against telling her that at least half a dozen pokegirls had gathered behind her since she had started crying. Then again, he thought as he stroked her hair, with her blindsight she could probably see them too. But it was good to pretend, even as he watched a silent cheer erupt from the crowd. This was their moment. Her moment.
And it had given him his answer. She was right. It didn’t matter if he wasn’t fully human. They had filled each other’s hearts, and he didn’t need to be a human to do that. None of them had to be. What he was would be a fun mystery to solve, with promises of more, but at the end of the day, it did not change him. And that was the truth, no matter how he might worry.
He was still Andrew. And they still loved him, just as he still loved them.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“I would like to fly with you again some time.”
Andrew gazed out through the sun dappled forest. “What’s stopping us?”
“It’s hard to find an excuse to give up my duties for that long.” Cristina snuggled closer to him. “And it’s harder for you to do the same.”
“Even now it’s a moment, and soon we’ll be thrown back into the chaos.” Andrew muttered. “At least we’re actually alone this time.”
“Mmhmm.” Cristina let her own gaze follow his. “I don’t think the others will slow down any time soon. It’s been days since you asked me to marry you and I still catch curious pokegirls in my room. There’s just always so much to worry about. If I stopped I feel like it would overflow.”
“There is a lot on our plate.” Andrew grumbled. “The outpost we left in India was ransacked last week, so if we go back we’d be starting from scratch. The leagues are still playing with nuclear fire and we have even less intelligence than when I sent Matias into that mining operation. And Drifa contacted Camiel a day or so ago, restating her wish for a permanent presence on her growing lands. All of that, and I haven’t even begun to list the problems we have at home.”
“Ferals.” Cristina began. “The other mercenary groups. The unrest spilling south from Roswell. Wasn’t there something from Texas as well?”
“I meant home home.” Andrew replied. “You mentioned a few things before.”
Cristina sighed, tilting her head to look at him. “Can’t we just ignore business and enjoy this peace?”
“This is the first time in a long, long time that I’ve had the Beta alone.” Andrew murmured. “I apologize that it’s cutting into time that I would be devoting to my fiancée otherwise, but I feel this is important.”
Cristina grimaced. “You’d be right.”
“Is she telling me the whole truth anymore?”
Cristina didn’t respond for a while, choosing instead to return to looking into the forest. Finally she spoke. “Aella is doing her job.”
“She wouldn’t still be the Alpha if I thought otherwise. I know she does her job, and keeps the harem moving. But she also creates more work for her Beta to fix, something that she doesn’t tell me about.”
Cristina blew air out her nose. “She’s a bit rough.”
“I heard rumors of cutting taming schedules.”
Cristina stilled. “She can’t follow through with that and she knows it. Cortney doesn’t answer to her, she answers to you. And Cortney has the final say on the schedule.”
“But she could convince some of them that they should claim they don’t want their extra slot.”
Cristina bit her lip. “She... wouldn’t.”
“But she could.”
Cristina slowly nodded. “She could.”
“Can I trust her not to?”
Cristina winced, shaking her head. “No. No, you can’t. She’s doing a lot of good getting them to train again at full strength, but her methods aren’t good for cohesion. They fear her.”
“Which leads to resentment. Fu made that very clear during their fight.”
“Yes.”
“What does she need, Cristina?” Andrew began stroking her arms. “You’re the voice of reason.”
“She needs to be knocked down a peg or two or ten.” Cristina immediately replied. “The arrogance I mentioned, it’s not going to go away. She’s the strongest pokegirl in the harem, except maybe Albia and Camiel. She knows that and it’s turning her into a cunt.”
Andrew snorted. “Nice word.”
“It’s true.” Cristina replied. “She’s a cunt. She’s scheduled an exhibition day tomorrow but it’s just an excuse for her to keep judging them.”
“I never heard anything about this.”
“It’s part of her ongoing training program.” Cristina grumbled. “This time she’s tasked everyone with creating or refining a technique.”
Andrew blinked. “That’s why Constance was showing me that flame thing.”
“Yea.”
“What have you done?”
“I’ve refined my fire techniques. But that’s not important.”
“It makes me happy to hear about your growth.” Andrew replied. “So I’d say it’s important.”
Cristina smiled slightly. “Thank you.”
“That being said, I get what you mean.” Andrew sighed. “What do you need me to do about it?”
“I don’t know if there’s anything you can do.” Cristina whispered. “She’s a Hunter. She answers to her own rules. And it doesn’t help that compared to her, more than half of the harem is weak.” She tapped his leg before he could respond. “You know that’s the truth. There’s a reason you don’t seek out most of them when there’s an emergency.”
Andrew grimaced. “Aella, you, Nami, Fu, Constance.”
“We’re the most experienced.” Cristina agreed. “Although I’d add Kuu to that list. She’s becoming more powerful now that she has a reason to be.”
“With her court.”
“Exactly.” Cristina shook her head slightly. “But I want to expand that list. I want to be able to say that, for example, Melody is at that level. She’s not. She’s been doing a lot to get there but she’s still trying to make sure Ann grows with her and Ann just doesn’t have the same drive that she does. I can almost say Gale is there but again, she’s not. She focuses too hard on healing to be a good fighter and that’s alright, because that’s what we need her to be. Cortney is terrifying to face because of how skilled she is, but in terms of power, she can’t compete. Aella sees all this and instead of looking for ways to work with each of them, she applies a blanket solution that doesn’t help any of them. She just believes they’re failing because it’s a solution that works for her.”
“I assume you’ve already told her these things.”
Cristina snorted. “She listens to my advice, but she doesn’t follow up on it most of the time. After all, she easily beat me in the tournament, so why should she listen to a weaker pokegirl?”
Andrew grimaced. “She doesn’t really think that, does she?”
“It’s getting that way.”
“Hrm.” Andrew shook his head. “That needs to change, and change quickly. Should I remove her from the position?”
“That would only make it worse.” Cristina replied. “Think of her like a Neo-Iczel at this point. You demote her, and she’ll just start resenting whatever ‘weak’ Alpha comes next. What she needs to be taught is that she isn’t the top dog. Albia almost did that except she wasn’t fighting for superiority, she was fighting for her place here. Aella only accepted her because of how close she got.”
“Without winning.”
“Correct.”
“Then I think the answer is obvious.” Andrew pulled away to look down at her. “She needs to be shown that her second in command is just as capable as she is.”
Cristina’s expression flashed to confusion. “I lost to her.”
“Doesn’t mean you can’t change that.” Andrew replied. “Out of every pokegirl here, there is only one who I can say with certainty would beat Aella in a fight.” He watched her think for a second. “And you share her blood.”
Cristina blinked. “Camiel?”
“Albia and Aella are equally matched.” Andrew replied. “Camiel, on the other hand, has a potential far beyond either of them. Albia even has said that while her true purpose was to act as Camiel’s assassin if it was ever necessary, she would only have been able to succeed using a sneak attack. That’s why she played the part of a cripple for so long.”
Cristina’s frown fluttered. “She’s that strong?”
“You know of the stories of Athena?” Andrew continued when she nodded. “Athena was what is known as a Paragon. They’re pokegirls hand crafted by Sukebe for a specific purpose. Camiel’s was to be an executioner. She wasn’t an assassin, like the Hunters were, who merely killed their targets and used whatever technique they needed to to get to them; she was the one who scoured the armies and removed the pokegirls that had been found guilty of treason. These pokegirls were not weak, nor were they usually alone. She would have to find them, then face them head on. She never failed. She has allowed us to see her vulnerable side ever since you and I found her, but I’ve caught glimpses of what she’s hiding. If you can convince her to teach you even a fraction of what she knows, Aella will be no issue.”
Cristina’s frown deepened. “I can’t imagine how she could be like that. My mom was powerful, sure, but she wasn’t, like... a Legendary. She started training me when I was ten. I learned everything she knew.”
“I highly doubt that.” Andrew chuckled. “She passed away a few years after you hit puberty, right? You were still a regular Angel at that point.”
Cristina blinked. “I... guess?”
“There’s a huge difference between an Angel and an Archangel.” Andrew grinned at her. “She taught you everything she could teach a child. And it was enough to get you here, but it wasn’t everything. After all, if she had really taught you everything, you could probably be nearly as powerful as she was.”
Cristina blinked. “I hadn’t considered that.”
“You have your second chance.” Andrew urged. “Take it. To her, you’re the proof of her future. She’ll become your best friend and your enemies’ worst nightmare if you ask her to be.”
“How can you know that?”
“Because she’s your mother.” Andrew replied. “It doesn’t matter to her that she hasn’t given birth to you yet. She will protect you until her dying breath, just as your own Camiel already did.”
“Did you have children?”
Andrew was caught flat-footed by the sudden question and he stuttered. “Uh-What?”
“I hear it in your voice.” Cristina looked into his eyes. “Were they gone before you found me?”
Andrew hesitated, glancing away. “I lost them.”
“You think you failed as their father.”
“I don’t think I failed them.” Andrew replied. “I gave them everything. They’ll thrive without me. But our children will not go through what they did.”
Cristina nodded slightly. “And you believe Camiel is like you.”
“I know she is.” Andrew replied quietly. “You haven’t heard the joy in her voice when she speaks of you. I may be the voice that called her out of her despair, but you are the light that keeps her path clear. I know you’ve heard her say that before.”
“She talks about my light.” Cristina muttered.
“One of you needs to make the first step.” Andrew watched her for a few seconds. “Come on. Let’s go do that.”
Cristina watched him get to his feet. “Really? Now?”
“We needed to head back anyways.” Andrew reached down, helping her get up. “I’ll help you, but you need to be the one to ask.”
Cristina nodded hesitantly. “What do I say?”
“I can’t tell you that.” Andrew smiled to reassure her. “This has to come from your heart. Tell her how you truly feel.”
They returned to the caves, slipping through the midday bustle easily. A few questions later and they were standing in front of Camiel’s bedroom door.
“This is hers?” Camiel glanced at Andrew nervously. “I’ve never met her outside the common areas.”
“Looks like she hasn’t gotten around to decorating it much yet.”
Cristina glared at his bland response. “Is that really all you’re going to say?”
Andrew glanced at her, a wry smile tugging at his lips. “You didn’t ask much of a question.”
Cristina huffed. “You-“
She stopped when the door swung open, a smiling Camiel standing on the other side. “Good afternoon, good afternoon.” She glanced between the two playfully. “My, what unexpected guests. Please, come in.”
“We figured we’d surprise you.” Andrew chuckled. “How has your day been?”
“Very nice, thank you.” Camiel fluffed a pillow before sitting on the edge of the couch that dominated her room, two of her wings sitting half open behind her. “I had a wonderful day avoiding the entire harem as usual, and then spent a few hours thinking about our conversation last week. But that’s not why you’re here today, you’re here for her,” she turned, smiling at Cristina, “and how are you today?”
“Do you hide because you don’t want to have to reveal what you really are?” Cristina blurted out before covering her mouth with her hands.
Camiel stared evenly at her for a long time, long enough that Cristina’s eyes began to water before looking at Andrew. “What have you been telling her?”
“The truth.”
Camiel snorted. “She doesn’t want the truth. She wants what I have been giving her.” She looked back at Cristina. “You are broken, child. Don’t worry about what I am - you’ve found your mother again.” She smiled, the warmth almost making it to her eyes. “That’s what I want to be. I’ve been so happy to get to know you and see that I have the ability to bring light back to this world.”
Cristina was fighting back her tears. “But that’s not who you are,” she whispered, “you are not the Camiel that I grew up with. You’re someone else. I want you to be you, not to pretend to be something else just to make me happy. I thought I wanted to find my mother when we searched for you, but what I found I wanted instead was a friend. Someone who- who could understand. My mother would have understood, but she’s gone. She’s not coming back. But you, you’re... you’re here. You understand me. I understand you.” She hesitantly reached out. “I was broken but I have been healed.” She glanced at Andrew. “He has healed me. I don’t need that anymore. But I need you. I need you as who you are.” She slowly began laughing as the tears continued to flow. “That’s what my heart says.”
Camiel shook her head. “You don’t know what you want.” She snapped. “Don’t push this. Did you put her up to this?” She looked at Andrew, her eyes burning with suppressed anger. “She has been happy. I have been happy. Let me act as her mother, let me LOVE her like I will never be able to love my own daughter!” She tore her eyes away from him. “I will never have children. No other man will ever compare to you and I will not be able to have your children before you die. I will outlive Cristina’s children. I will outlive their children, and their children’s children. I will be their mother. For all of them. It will be the only way I can pretend I have children of my own.”
“You’re wrong.” Camiel’s eyes snapped back to Andrew when he spoke. “If you are still with me when you reach your second puberty, I have no doubt that we will have children together. But even if that wasn’t the case, you could have children now. A pokegirl can have parthenogenic children at any time after puberty. They will still be your children, and no less than any kids you would have after your second puberty. Cristina simply chose to wait until she had reached that point before confessing to me.” He reached over, taking Cristina’s hand in his. “I appreciate it very much, but she didn’t have to wait. None of you do.” He glanced at Camiel again. “The only thing standing between us and children is the fact that I have not reached a point where I am ready to hold that kind of relationship with you.”
Camiel stared at him. “Tell me the first thing again.”
Andrew blinked. “Which?”
“You lied. You had to have.”
Andrew frowned, replaying his words in his head. “The part where I promised I’d be around for your second puberty?”
“Say it again.” Camiel pleaded. “You lied. You had to have. No human will live as long as I will.”
Andrew shook his head. “I will not die of age before you reach your second puberty, Camiel. That is something I am sure of.” He gave her a tight smile when she began to bluster. “I am not lying, and you know that. I can not lie to you. Nobody can.”
“That’s impossible.” Camiel stuttered. “You, you are a human. Humans barely live to a hundred years, if they’re lucky.”
“I’m not totally human.” Andrew replied. “I have not made this public yet because I am still working through what it means, but I am not. I was visited a week ago by three beings who claim to be thousands of years old. I’m inclined to believe them, and my mother was like them. I have no reason to believe that I haven’t inherited her longevity.”
“B-But-“ Camiel looked back and forth between Andrew and Cristina, “You, you look... how can this be?”
“I’m still not sure yet.” Andrew cracked a smile. “But like you said. We’re here for Cristina, not us.”
Camiel’s mouth worked for a moment. “I don’t think we are.” She finally replied. “She may have wanted something, but it isn’t the real reason you came today.”
Andrew sighed. “It is. It just so happens to have devolved into airing out all our problems.”
“Because they need to be said.” Cristina scooted forwards, her own black wings appearing and matching Camiel’s posture. “Camiel, I... I entered Andrew’s life as a spy. As an enemy. And he still accepted me, healed me. You already have an advantage over what I had.” She gave the Archangel a hesitant smile. “You haven’t tried to betray him yet.”
Camiel shot Andrew a sidelong glance. “Would that help?”
Andrew snorted. “No. I have had two pokegirls betray me. Cristina’s lasted about two minutes. The other ended in her death. I’m inclined to believe yours would end that way as well.”
Camiel gave him an approving smile. “That wasn’t a threat.”
Andrew smiled back. “It was not.”
“Time will tell what we will become.” Camiel nodded decisively. “I can wait. For now, I will be content supporting... supporting my friend.” She took a breath before locking eyes with Cristina. “I am sorry to have created tension between the two of you ever since arriving. May I still think of you as my daughter? I am greedy, and wish to continue feeling this joy as long as possible.”
Cristina nodded solemnly. “You may.” She smiled. “I would be honored to call you my mother, and my children will adore their grandmother.”
Camiel’s breathing caught. “You would...?”
“They will come.” Cristina grinned at Andrew. “One day soon, I will make sure of that.”
Andrew nervously shifted away from her. “One day.”
“Soon.” Cristina repeated.
“Eventually.” Andrew tried again.
“Oh, don’t tease him so much.” Camiel patted Cristina’s shoulder. “Now that you have lightened my mood. Why did you really come today?”
Cristina grimaced. “I need a teacher.” She half heartedly held out her hand, turning it over and staring at how her muscles moved under the skin. “Will you teach me how to fight? To protect my family?”
Camiel gazed into Cristina’s black eyes. “From threats inside and out?”
Cristina nodded slightly. “Please.”
“I’m quite young. You have more experience than I do.”
Cristina shook her head with a smile. “That’s what you say.”
Camiel smiled back and her soft features suddenly hardened into a battle worn scowl. “You don’t know what you’re asking.”
Cristina held Camiel’s intense gaze. “This time, I do.”
“I won’t hold back.”
“I can’t afford it if you do.”
Camiel’s smile widened. “Well said! Don’t regret it.”
Cristina’s grin wavered slightly when Camiel turned to Andrew. “You may not be seeing much of your fiancée for the next few weeks.”
Andrew chuckled. “As long as you don’t lose her.”
“She may wish I did.” Camiel stood, her wings vanishing as she stretched. “We start immediately. Meet me outside in ten minutes.”
Cristina blinked when Camiel vanished. “Oh, shit. She can teleport?”
“That’s one thing she can do that you can’t.” Andrew patted her shoulder. “I’ll ask Cortney to step up while you’re busy. Did you see the look in her eyes?”
Cristina shivered. “I recognize that look. I’ve seen it before, when my mother showed her own true self.” She took a steadying breath. “I will not regret this. I need this.” She paused. “You said you’d talk to Cortney?”
“Sure.”
“She’s different these days.” Cristina looked at him suspiciously.
Andrew smiled. “I gave her an order.”
Cristina frowned. “What kind of order?”
“I was frustrated from not having made any progress on my magic.” Andrew chuckled. “I might have taken it out on her a little bit, but the end result was good. She’s been laboring under her old protocols in an environment that doesn’t require them.”
Cristina gave him a questioning look. “And...?”
“I gave her a way out.” Andrew replied. “She’s acting differently because she’s able to look past the military conditioning now. It’s been good for her.”
Cristina nodded with a smile. “That’s something only her Tamer could have done. I couldn’t.”
“Don’t thank me just yet.” Andrew chuckled. “She’s come up with her own ideas in regards to what’s been going on around here.”
He smirked when the suspicious look returned. “Did she get you to talk to me today?”
“She planted the idea.” Andrew replied. “It’s a good one.”
“It is.” Cristina rose, walking to the door. “I need to go. If she’s as prompt as my mother was, I need to be on time.”
Camiel was sitting outside when Cristina hurried out after her. “There you are!” The Archangel smiled disarmingly, ignoring the pokegirls that were enjoying the sun around them. “I’m very excited to fly with you today.”
Cristina did her best to return the smile. “I can’t wait.”
She winced when the fierce look flashed through Camiel’s eyes again. “Then let’s go!”
Cristina stumbled when Camiel shot off the ground, taking two steps before her own wings appeared and she launched herself after the Archangel. She cursed when she saw Camiel easily pulling away, her cold start doing nothing to slow her down.
Cristina grit her teeth, straining to push faster. Slowly Camiel’s lead stabilized but all Cristina could do was focus on keeping her pace.
It felt like an eternity to her before Camiel braked, the black of her wings sparkling in the sun as she dove back to the forest below. Cristina followed, covering her face when she crashed through the branches Camiel had slipped past.
Camiel was waiting for her, her wings still spread. Cristina landed, catching herself with a tree before her legs could collapse. “Holy shit.”
Camiel smirked, all traces of her soft demeanor gone. “So you can at least keep up with me when not weighted down by our man.”
Cristina sucked air, her adrenaline beginning to fade and reveal her protesting muscles. “You’re fast.”
“I could go faster.” Camiel slowly walked around her, casting a critical eye over the panting Ophanim. “There are three things before I will begin training you. You must learn to apply your current techniques. You must learn the techniques you do not know but require. And we will fight, so that I can understand how much you actually know.” She pulled to a halt. “Your stamina is not terrible, but it must improve. That will come with the rest.”
“What first?”
Camiel smiled. “I am not cruel. You need some time to rest, so you will have it.” She waited for Cristina to collapse before continuing. “I also want to talk to you without him nearby.”
Cristina groaned, arching her back so that her lungs could move more easily. “About?”
“Does he not like when I put on a smile for him?”
Cristina looked back at Camiel, noticing how the Archangel hadn’t put on her gentle countenance to ask the question. “I’m going to be honest,” she gasped out between breaths, “I haven’t seen the real you until today.” She exhaled, bending over and beginning to force her breathing to a normal pace. “Even that first day, when I... when I was still looking for my mother, I thought I had found her. You play that person perfectly.” She hesitated. “I assume it’s because it was a way to keep your targets off guard.”
Camiel nodded.
“Andrew isn’t like other humans.” Cristina chuckled quietly. “For many reasons, but the important one is that he’s like you. He’s lived a life of constant subterfuge.” She smiled at nothing in particular. “So he’s very good at seeing through our lies.”
Camiel nodded quietly. “I thought I had him fooled.”
“You had me fooled.” Cristina replied. “But to him, I think you just came off as... fake.” She shrugged helplessly. “I don’t really know how to explain it, but he always seems to know what we’re really thinking. He’s perceptive.”
“So he didn’t want to see me as what you wanted to see.”
“He wanted to see you act as yourself.” Cristina replied. “He doesn’t ask us to change for him. He changes for us.” She waited a heartbeat. “When we were talking earlier, and he convinced me to confess to you, he... he said that there was real happiness to you. That he loved to see when your face lit up, not because you were pretending, but because you were truly happy.” She sighed. “He could see that person inside of you. So yes, he does like to see you smile for him. He just doesn’t want it to be for the wrong reasons.”
Camiel nodded again. “I see.” She glanced away from Cristina. “Thank you for the advice.”
Cristina smiled. “You desperately want him to love you, don’t you?”
A shadow flickered over Camiel’s face. “I can never compete with what you have.”
“You don’t have to.” Cristina replied. “You have your own place in his heart. I know it.”
Camiel looked back at her with a wry smile. “Thanks.” She clapped her hands, grinning when Cristina jumped. “SO! You seem to have caught your breath. Let us begin. I want to see every single technique you can do, starting with...”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Col. Andrew Ranger |
||||||||||
|
(Tech Ops) Maj. Cortney |
(Strike) Maj. Aella |
(Logistics) Maj. Lyn |
||||||||
|
(Advisor) Cpt. Nevaeh |
(Defense) Cpt. Kuu |
(Beta) Cpt. Cristina |
(Medic) Cpt. Gale |
(Council) Cpt. Rein (Ret.) |
||||||
|
GySgt. Constance |
1stSgt. Fu |
GySgt. Ishara |
||||||||
|
SSgt. Nami |
SSgt. Shamira |
|||||||||
|
Sgt. Lucina |
Sgt. Ann |
Sgt. Melody |
Sgt. Yang (Ret.) |
|||||||
|
Cpl. Furia |
Cpl. Nova |
|||||||||
Aella – (Hunter) Shinryu – Alpha
Cristina – (Blessed, Fiendish) Ophanim – Beta
Cortney – (Upgraded) Videogirl
Fu – Warvern
Lucina – Shadowcat
Nami – Sharptits
Constance – Tank Vixxen
Gale – Night Nurse
Shamira – Goldina
Nevaeh – (Blessed, Fiendish) G-Splice
Melody – Wet Queen
Ann – Ice Empress
Nova – Blazicunt
Furia – (Fiendish) Wolf Queen
Rein – Myobu
Ishara – Romanticide
Kuu – Elfqueen
Lyn – Archmage
Yang – Nereidame
Daria – Vampire
Camiel – (Paragon) Archangel
Albia – (Hunter) G-Splice