Scarlet Blade: Record of Golden Wings - Chapter 46

SCARLET S BLADE
Record of Golden Wings

Chapter 46 : City of lies


* * *

On top of Oration Tower, Theodria was taking a tip in her personal swimming pool, wearing only bikinis. For a princess who didn't have a chance in a life to get out of the tower, she took her own health and swimming practices rather seriously. It was the day after Terrivia, Glerenceria and Cherry moved into the outer edges of Arktana, and right now, Theodria was being approached by 4 figures.

One was a Punisher with messy short grey hair and dull looking green eyes. Her combat attire left nothing for imagination when it came to torso and midriff, although the other parts of her skin were well covered under the nanomaterial enhanced white fabrics.

Another one was a Shadow Walker with similarly short dark blue hair, but with a straighter hairdo. Her lipstick was a choice of purple, matching the vicious look of her thin eyes with aqua colored irises. Her full body armor would enable her to stay completely invisible when the right times would come.

Another was a Whipper, who stood about as tall as the other two, which was quite rare for Whippers of the time. She had a long wavy blonde hair with pink dyed edges, her body and waist clad in scanty straps that held kevlar pieces together. She exuded an equal share temptatious aura compared to her aura of murderous intent.

Finally, a Defender that had an ominous looking black sword with red lights built into it, sheathed behind her. She had mauve colored hair done into a braided pony tail behind her, while her body armor made her look like a silver knight. With a relaxed tone, she spoke casually, "Good day, Princess. Are you going for a swim for the sake of broadcasted program?"

"No, Abolia. We don't have the technology to maintain my disguise outdoors. But I think it won't hurt for when I can finally swim outside. After all, that day is getting closer and closer to me." Theodria frowned.

"I hope it comes closer at a faster pace. I've heard about plans to finally integrate you to into our society." The Whipper giggled after Theodria's reply.

"Licentia, do you know exactly -when-?" Theodria asked.

"Not that there's anyway I can know for sure...." Licentia the Whipper shrugged.

"Hmph...." Theodria frowned and blew bubbles in the water with her mouth.

"No matter how long, we will be here for you. We are the Four Queens of Arktana." Abolia smiled.

"Yeah, I know that already. If it's not too much to ask, can I expect another souvenir?" Theodria got out of the water and asked.

"Oh, we can get you another. In person...." Abolia bowed with a convincing fake smile.

***

Viledon....

Supply Line 284....


The desert of Viledon was a trecherous place in more ways than one. Large mutant ants like the ones seen in Mereholt would threaten to destabilize the landscape as a desert's soil was already barren and soft. The ants whose growth was possibly caused by Shadow Army's pollutants, had constructed numerous skyward sand spires over the number of years. The centre of the valley was once under the jurisdiction of Genesis Corporation, but due to increased blood feud clashes between Royals and Frees, it decided to abandon the place and thus eliminate any trace of hope for an armistice.

This place would be one that had all the reasons for Juniper to let loose her combat skills and see to the deaths of more Royal Guards Arkana to come. But one scheduled meeting prevented her from that outcome.

"A tree covered by roses can be climbed, but one has to bleed while grabbing the rose stems to do so"

Niwatori Yuki, and her sister Miki, together with Janice Becker, were at the doorsteps of Juniper's encampment. A temporary barracks for Arkana to restock and refuel, further westbound from the battlefield of Viledon.

Juniper's hair was a silken green with the length trailing down to the back, made in a way so that it would electrocute any who would dare to touch it. Fitting for a 'passive agressive' approach, Juniper was a Whipper, but one who had a more subdued body and outfit, and looked to be of Slavic origin.

Janice had changed her outfit. From a Commander's uniform to a grey longcoat with a simple blouse underneath. Yuki and Miki escorted her all the way, without Royal Guards' notice, to here.

"I don't climb rose covered trees anymore. Be gone." Juniper declined.

"Then the whole world will be covered in blood once more. This isn't the time to play loyal soldiers anymore." Yuki insisted.

"We didn't come here all the way just to take no for an answer." Miki added.

"Give me one reason why I should listen to you besides Varcosta." Juniper glared.

"The Narak are coming back. Hundreds of them. We can borrow you the access to our space telescope so you can see for yourself. We can't wait for cooperation between East and West to happen after fine print. We need to work together right now to stop them in their tracks." Yuki explained.

Juniper nodded her head slowly, "Fine. I'll trust you this once. But why did you bring your Commander here?"

"I volunteered. If you can make my capture convincing, you'll have an excuse to back your way out of the frontlines. I can pretend to be a defector." Janice replied.

"Can you?" Juniper's eyebrows twitched, "In order for me to trust you, you have to let me talk to Mother. If she can talk to me willingly, then I am willing to accept your conditions."

"Oh, she can talk to you alright. You can talk as long as you want." Janice grinned.

After entering Juniper's office, Yuki, Miki and Janice all took a seat on the floor, since there were no chairs but Juniper's own.

"Just set up a channel that goes to the army registry and Mother will pick up. We planned this." Janice spoke out.

After Juniper typed the digital commands on the keyboard of the computer, a holographic screen appeared with static transmission, before showing Lota's face.

"Greetings, my child. Your name should be Juniper." Lota spoke.

"You are correct, but I am not here for just an avatar. I want to talk directly to Mother herself." Juniper requested.

"What do you mean?" Lota asked.

"From my knowledge, Lota is only a front that Mother System uses to brainwash the masses with singing." Juniper spoke maliciously.

"I see. So you're not an art person." Lota lamented, "But I do not mind. For every desired thing, there must be someone else that doesn't desire it. But your words are unnecessarily harsh. My songs are not tools. They come from feelings and proper training. Singing is harder than it looks, especially when you want to be as human as possible."

"Your songs? You don't pay people to write lyrics for you?" Juniper asked.

"I don't. But that aside, why do you want to speak to Mother if you don't believe that I am her?" Lota asked.

"Simply because you are not. I want to know what kind of program was responsible for all of this." Juniper glared at Lota's way.

Lota closed her eyes for a few seconds, then spoke, "The ones responsible for everything will always be the Narak and their followers. If they didn't come, we wouldn't have existed. I will not question your beliefs, but I will state that your doubt concerning me is rather unfounded. I am what they call me Mother, and I am a social interface for my own vessel. Without a face to talk to, people will not recognize me as an individual. The need for me to exist as an individual necessitates my current identity."

"An individual? Not a tyrant?" Juniper asked.

"Tyrant is a subjective term, but I am sure you're not here to argue about such things. What do you hope to achieve by talking to me as if I am a target of your spite?" Lota asked.

"I spite you because you are so high and mighty for someone not human!" Juniper lashed out, "People are not just equations in a formula and when an error happens, you just start over and script everything once again! Humans and Arkana alike had died for real and you don't want to be responsible for them! Blaming it on another party until things blow over? Don't take all of us for fools!"

"And what exactly is fueling your outburst? You think that just because I am Mother, I deserve to hear every child complain? And even if I'm supposed to be just Lota, the commander in chief of Royal Guards, do you think that your tone was appropriate?" Lota asked, and on this occasion as rare as a blue moon, Lota's face displayed an expression of anger.

"What do you want from me?" Juniper asked.

"On behalf of the lives that had perished while fighting against the Shadow Army, I beseech you.... Assist the commander in your custody, and the Arkana sisters with her, in their investigation into western politics. I want you to know that doing so carries a great risk, but the survival of all of us, and the planet itself, are at stake. There are two Arks in this world, and in order for an Ark to become operational, an interpreter must first be assembled before the mass cloning process could begin. I had been the interpreter of the eastern Ark for 200 years. Why haven't I seen the one of the west?" Lota requested with an important question at the end.

Juniper nodded once at Lota's words, "Promise me you will arrange a ceasefire at Viledon in 7 days. I will use the opportunity to create a ruse and stage an internal investigation, and give your trusted people their chance to slip into the west under my care."

"It shall be done. I am.... grateful.... for your understanding." Lota ended the call.

"I thought that all bets were off for a bit." Janice shuddered from a chill at her spine.

"I was just testing her. I need to know whether I'm talking to a reasonable figure, or just a program written by a human. But I suppose, we're all programs written by biology...." Juniper mused.

"If you don't mind knowing this extra information, we are working in tandem with a team that had already made contact with Maciel." Janice added, "But that's all the headcount there is to spare. We're having hands tied with fighting against the Shadow Army and defending against your forces officially at the same time."

"If by Maciel you mean Bullet Face Maciel, then I know how to pull this off appropriately." Juniper held her own chin.

***

Terrivia, Glerenceria and Cherry had outfitted their new home. It was an apartment in a high rise that stood for twenty storeys tall and their unit was located in the tenth floor. Around this time, the apartments weren't in very high demand due to how far they were from vibrant locations such as downtown, concert areas and work centres. Arktana as a city didn't have a lot of shopping centres like the pre-apocalyptic world, so instead, it had outlet stores that sold things right after the production lines finished making goods.

Terrivia glanced out of the curtained windows, and saw this metropolis for what it initially was: a place governed by illusions of peace, merry populace and watchful eyes of its guardians. Glerenceria had a very different idea.

"This metro is hopeless. The people are completely taken hostage, yet they have absolutely no idea how vulnerable they are. It would be easy for Shadow Army to kill hundreds within seconds, and millions within minutes." Glerenceria spat out.

"Enough about that, Glare. Not that I want to undermine your superiority...." Cherry sighed, "What can we do to change this?"

As the three of them were moving things around in the wood-colored interior, Terrivia folded her arms right then and looked at Cherry in a lecturing gaze, "False names, remember?"

"Right, Levi." Cherry rolled her eyes, "Occulus, I think that some maps of this city sector are in order, don't you think?"

"There's an order to things. Before we memorize the maps, it's best that we get to walk the streets in person and avoid doing anything unnecessary. We learn what's in trend now, and try not to look out of place. Of couse, there's a risk that the most popular things are what bind the people to the Shadow Army or possible tyrannical measures. Fast foods, popular portable applications, fashion statements, almost anything not out of date." Glerenceria suggested.

"It's going to be slow, though. And I don't like slow and messy work myself." Terrivia spoke with a subtle tone of complaint.

"We have no choice now, have we?" Glerenceria replied, "Ok, time to test the communications."

The kitchen of the apartment had a microwave oven. The oven itself wasn't heavy, thus making it ideal to conceal a hidden panel right behind it. The panel was hidden further by a piece of plaster. After putting the plaster aside, Glerenceria used her fingers to interact with the touch-screen panel. There were communication links with pre-destined frequencies.

"Testing, testing." Glerenceria smiled.

From the panel, the image of Maciel appeared, "Well, looks like it's working alright."

"It's been a while since anyone used copper cables. I'm surprised this patchwork line is working just like in the formula." Glerenceria replied.

"Speaking of which, copper doesn't come out of nowhere. I'll need to come up with an excuse as to the reason why I purchased enough copper to kickstart another mining spree." Maciel stared.

"Come on! It wasn't that much!" Glerenceria rebuked.

"Even so, the reserves weren't a lot." Maciel replied, "Anyway, because this is all cable, there's no risk of anyone listening in. Unless someone is plastering her ears onto the door, of course."

"Don't jinx it please. Now that I'm contacting you, have you thought about what Beatrice told you?" Glerenceria asked.

"About defecting to the east? Sounds tempting, though I'm holding my cards for time being. But there's something of concern regarding what she said." Maciel replied, "From what was told to me, and from my experiences in the past, it seems like the pieces of the puzzle matched together now. About why the military system is so ambiguous and why the western society was raised this way. Make no mistake, this is a cunning plan that's expected to run for a long time. What I now fear the most is nearly all of Arktana's citizens being made into sacrificial lambs."

"A reasonable and appropriate fear. Given my position within Mother's ranks, I can arrange for an exfil of citizens, like a conducted exodus. Only for when the right time comes, of course." Glerenceria suggested.

"Awfully kind of you. I thought that you should give priority to your people first?" Maciel replied.

"I see nothing wrong with protecting mutual Earthlings, -if- it's within my power to do so." Glerenceria smiled.

"Got me there. So, how do you like your new home?" Maciel asked.

"Not too shabby. Could use a little more medical equipment but I can't have visitors expose me as a combat duty Arkana all of a sudden, can I?" Glerenceria let out a wry smile.

"Wait, you want to take in visitors in the near future? You out of your mind?" Maciel asked.

"Eventually and inevitably. We need to establish our identities, and not allowing other people to drop by would be more suspicious. We're just pretending that we're roomies." Glerenceria deflected.

"I see." Maciel took a look around her office and back to Glerenceria, "I have sudden matters. Later."

After the call was dropped, Glerenceria placed the plaster back in front of the panel and moved the microwave oven back to the intended position. Terrivia finished setting up a desktop computer for Cherry with some help, and with a sigh of relief, she let Beatrice set up a a communications gateway on this end.

"....I can barely do a thing with this computer, but given that I'm so used to a network of supercomputers, I guess I shouldn't complain. Beggars can't be choosers." Beatrice's image popped up in the corner of the monitor.

"It's enough help if you can even defend us from viralwares. Anything more is a blissful bonus." Terrivia added.

Glerenceria tucked her gunblade along a side pouch while adjusting her belt and hair decorations. Because the weapon itself was too long, the best that could be done was to put it between the right thigh and the pouch so that it would be less eye-catching. Terrivia on the other hand would have to settle for a shovel. It was put inside a guitar case so that it wouldn't attract awkward attention.

"Watch over this place for us. Alright?" Glerenceria asked.

"Sure thing. Not that I feel like doing anything else." Cherry shrugged with a smile.

* * *

Terrivia and Glerenceria, under the identities of Levi and Occulus, went on with their mission by leading seemingly ordinary lives compared to Arktana's citizens. First, they needed to study the individuals around them. Already, there were many signs amiss.

Humans and Arkana in general were living as equals, but some female humans were being distant and appeared to be more poverished. From hearsay, Arkana here were legally empowered to have a relationship with human males, which endangered the purpose of females. Even though it was said to have limits, Glerenceria and Terrivia could not believe that it was true.

By walking closer to the alleys, Terrivia and Glerenceria could see that there were Arkana who had no problems selling themselves to male hookers, who did their businesses indoors. Avoiding visual contact with the place, the two of them pretended to be lovers and walked closer to the administrative parts. It later dawned upon them that Arkana, if willing, could even marry each other in this metropolis.

After reaching a park, they sat down and looked to the sky, with Glerenceria appearing to be the more exhausted of the two.

"....what a mess...." Glerenceria deadpanned.

"It could've been worse." Terrivia sighed, "Well, things ARE getting worse, but I can think of more."

"I know you're expecting the Shadow Army to have openly operational businesses. Frankly, we can't tell unless we conduct full investigations into each and every company, but that's invasive and time consuming. Out.... of.... question..... *yawn* " Glerenceria stretched her arms upward and slumped back against the park bench.

"So, what's our plan for today? Just keep bumbling around and learn how to fit in?" Terrivia asked.

"I know it's not your thing, and it's not my thing too. But unless we learn how to pass off as one of the 'casuals' for 2 hours straight, we'll be sticking out like sore thumbs." Glerenceria grumbled.

Terrivia looked around at the park and noticed that the side lamps had holographic projectors that displayed rather pointless advertisements, like the walls of the buildings. The advertisements were about fashionable wear which borderlined on undergarments, and coupons elligible for taking from participating in web questionaires.

"If not for this scenery, I'd be more than pissed off enough to make some terrorist attacks using my Chakra this instant. This is my first time being in a park under proper sunlight. Not in an underground with artificial weather." Terrivia spoke.

"My hometown used to have a park too. Not as large as this, but at least people used it as a place to gather while tending to the lawn at the same time." Glerenceria recalled her past, "This park is nothing but a decoration."

Meanwhile, a middle aged woman who wore a broad garderner's hat and orange junksuit was passing by, carrying with her a floor rake and towing a hovercart for gathering leaves and garbage. Mustering her composure, Glerenceria walked over to the woman while readying to speak in English accent, but instead, the woman acted first by giving Glerenceria a dismissive look.

"What do you want, porcelain?" The woman spat out.

<What the fuck!> Terrivia was enraged, but Glerenceria used her mind to stop her.

<Stop. Don't do anything rash. I'm making a gamble I can afford to lose.> Glerenceria then let out a sad smile, "I'm sorry, but I'm not from around here. I want to ask some questions. I can help you if you like."

"What, you comin' from the mountains and expect to get friendly? Don't take your chances. Besides, I'm not sure what to answer you. I'm an Arkana hater." The woman growled.

"I'm not originally an Arkana, but that point matters not. Are you aware that prolonged exposure to radiation-filled environment will damage your organs in time unless you take Stardust injections?" Glerenceria asked.

"What kind of dumbshit question is that? Of course I know! But you probably think that kind of injection is cheap for everyone, right?" The woman spat out.

Glerenceria shook her head and looked into the woman's eyes, "I can tell that you've been ignoring the publically recommended injection times for more than a decade, and the damage is now being extensive. But I cannot help you if you keep on being so caustic. Ok?"

"Are you pulling a scam on me?!" The woman shouted.

"I'm not even peddling. Now you're just being rude for no apparent reason." Glerenceria bit back.

"Well at least now I know you're not lying about being new here. Listen to me, china cheeks." The woman gritted her teeth and spoke bitterly, "I used to love a good man with good grades and good job. Then it all went south when an Arkana hooked him by his bloody heart. He dumped me after giving me some cash to live off of."

"Sounds like mind control." Glerenceria nodded as she listened on.

"I don't care if it's mind control. Arkana are not meant to mingle with humans to the point of getting into marriage. It's like the original purpose of our bodies had become obsolete. Nowadays, to reproduce, you have to pay some money up front and do paper work, and your child has to be absolutely flawless. Barring that, if you have to hope that the Ark management can take your eggs and let them be given the 'descendant protocol' " The woman added.

While Terrivia wasn't looking at the woman and Glerenceria, her ears had heard the conversation clearly.

"I can help you regain some years of lifespan without charge. All I want is to have you be my conversation partner. Alright?" Glerenceria asked.

"I ain't got time for this. I have a tracker on me, and if I don't finish on time, I'll suffer a pay cut." The woman refused.

"The two of us will help you clean this park. The employment system shouldn't be so cruel as to have you do all the work for years without stopping." Glerenceria took the woman's left hand and immediately, she channeled some of her Chakra power, causing her clothes and hair to flow in the air. Radiation poison was being taken out of the left arm. Although it wouldn't return all the stolen years of lifespan, the woman was apparently feeling better when her body functions were being empowered.

Bit by bit, Glerenceria's power was sent through her body to the woman's organs, and in doing so, some of the woman's chronic problems were met with improvements.

"What is this.... I don't have as much rasp in my throat.... And my gut no longer has burns.... My body feels lighter..... My voice is lighter too....!" The woman sounded excited.

Glerenceria parted her hands from the woman, panting for air. It seemed that Glerenceria had reached her limit for time being. "All Arkana have power that they can use if they know how. My use of power is to give hope."

"You mean this isn't permanent?" The woman asked.

"There's a limit to how much your body can recover on its own when removed of radiated parts and given stimulus. I don't have time to stay with you for a whole year to remove your radiation, but I think you'll be fine like this for 3 months." Glerenceria smiled.

"Oh, this won't do. I'd like to thank you but I have to go...." The woman spoke worriedly.

"We'll talk more if you see us at this park. Just do us a favor." Glerenceria smiled, "Don't tell anyone yet about what happened between us. Ok?"

"Well, I think you're one of the good ones. Help me clean up this park real nice, alright?" The woman towed the cart away and left the park in a hurry.

"Seems like that paid off." Terrivia stood up.

"Now, we have to help this woman clean up. Just one problem though." Glerenceria held her own chin in deep thought.

"What is it?" Terrivia asked.

"This park is kept intact only with the use of human labor. What happened to Arkana? What jobs do they work on every day?" Glerenceria asked.

"....Got me there." Terrivia was stumped. She looked stupefied on spot.

"This might be a wild guess but.... Vauxhall said that humans are catering to Arkana here. If he was implying that Arkana here don't really have to involve themselves in important jobs and let all the humans do the heavy lifting, then the social dynamics here are in a huge risk sudden stalling. Worse, there may be plans underway to conduct a destructive revolt." Glerenceria pondered.

"In other words, you're saying we'll look out of place by cleaning this park by ourselves. What a pain in the ass...." Terrivia shook her head in disdain.

"Let us not break a promise made on a first meeting. Looking awkward or otherwise, it's only within courtesy to clean up." Glerenceria smiled, "And we'll do it without garbage bags or tools."

"Well, time to feel like a janitor." Terrivia smiled.

* * *

While Glerenceria and Terrivia were cleaning up until noon, Theodria was escaping from the top of Oration Tower by slipping past the guards. The method in doing so was a daring one: she made a makeshift parachute out of stolen bed-sheets and had a small hole cut in the middle, and the ends of all four corners of the sheets were tied with torn cloths, so that they could be fastened to her wrists and ankles.

After her daring jump, she unbound the sheets and pulled one to form a hood around her face and figure. By the time the guards of the tower were alerted, she had managed to run past the entrance, where the guards had no knowledge of Theodria's identity.

"Oh crap oh crap oh crap oh crap....." Theodria was muttering to herself out of fear. She didn't want to be kept around and wait as for the world to revolve around her. But her escape didn't have several factors put into consideration. One of which was her destination. To where could she hope to shelter herself?

She had no idea, but she knew that she must run. Blending herself into the busy streets, she soon discarded the sheet and walked like a normal Arkana while avoid showing her mouth as much as possible. That way, the most that could be made out of her appearance would only be that she had blue lips, possibly from a lipstick color. Without a set destination in her mind, she continued on her feet, until more questions appeared to prevent her from staying calm.

Where to get money to buy food?

How to identify herself as a legal citizen without any identification?

How to get someone to accept her for who she was?

The more she thought about it, the more she shedded tears through the corners of her eyes. She had never felt this helpless before.

Eventually, her feet carried her to somewhere between the living areas and the urban sector. She went from the western end of Arktana, all the way to the center. Coincidentally, Terrivia and Glerenceria exercised their identities as Arktana's new mercenaries and paid for a ride in the transit system with the use of their fabricated debit cards. The magnetic monorail took them to the central district just in time for Theodria to collapse on her feet at an alleyway.

When Glerenceria and Terrivia went to one of the roads less travelled, they happened upon her like the stars had arranged them to. Just as Niwatori Yuki had foretold, the 'princess of blue' was in their sight, but no one would know that it was her just yet.

"I think that's an Arkana. Why's she collapsed there?" Terrivia asked.

"I don't know, but I'll check her pulse." Glerenceria kneeled down in front of Theodria and used her fingers to press against the wrists, "She's alive..... Just starved and worked up." When she saw Theodria's blue lips and tongue, a cringe could be seen on her face, "She has blue blood in her veins...."

"What?!" Terrivia was surprised, "Is she a Shadow Army member?"

"Can't say. I certainly don't feel any void within her, and she most certainly feels human from her life force." Glerenceria deduced.

Theodria opened her eyes instinctively and nudged herself back against the wall in fear, "Wh-who are you??"

Glerenceria answered with her English accent, "We're freelancers, if you will. We just saw you lying down around here. Are you on the run?"

Theodria thought for a few seconds before answering, "Yes, I suppose. I don't know what I am, who I can be in this world. A group of people created me this way and I'm trying to get away, but I'm in no way a legal citizen...."

"Don't worry. We don't have friends in high places, but we can take you in temporarily until a more permanent solution can be found." Glerenceria smiled, "I am Occulus, and I'm a freelancer Medic. This is my partner, Levi."

"We should talk indoors. Others might catch up to us if we dally any longer." Terrivia added.

"Thank you...." Theodria blushed a faint blue across her face.

"Do you have a name?" Glerenceria asked.

"I was called....." Princess? No. That would give her away too fast. Theodria could only think about her own color, and came up with ".... Sapphire."

"Well then Sapphire, we have to avoid attention for time being. I'll contact some of my acquaintances and they'll provide transport before long." Glerenceria smiled.

Terrivia used her mind to communicate, <Are you sure this is a good idea?>

<She may not be telling the whole truth, but I don't like the thought of leaving a running girl to her capture even more.> Glerenceria replied. She then walked away to another corner and started making a call.

Terrivia kept Theodria company with a smile, "I don't know who you were or what you did, but if you ran away for a good reason, you can stay under our watch. We'll do our best to keep -you- a secret."

Theodria had mixed feelings from hearing that, but she nodded all the same, "You seem dependable."

"I tend to get that when things get rough." Terrivia giggled.

"You don't seem to be from around here." Theodria remarked.

"Well, neither are you." Terrivia winked.

"Touche, I guess." Sapphire laughed.

Fortunately, in just minutes, one of Birchwood's trucks had arrived to where they were at. Aspagra was the one driving.

"Come. Our ride's here." Terrivia spoke to Theodria.

* * *

Glerenceria sat next to Aspagra while Terrivia and some other Birchwood members were guarding Theodria. They too didn't know who Theodria really was. Aspagra was told to drive themselves to the new apartment so they could shelter her there.

"First day moving in, and you've already gotten yourselves a leecher." Aspagra spoke out.

"I wouldn't want to just abandon this girl. Her presence brings a disturbing series of implications, and makes the whole big picture muddy." Glerenceria replied, but not loud enough to be overheard.

"Yeah. Never heard of blue colored blood myself." Aspagra tilted her head for a second and focused on driving.

"Me and others had seen green and purple colored blood before, but only from the Shadow Army. I suspect this one's a rather tamer variant." Glerenceria added.

"One question. Are we locking her in?" Aspagra asked.

"We are, and we have to. She doesn't seem to be more legal than us. Having her bumbling around will not be good for us, but there's a limit to how long we can keep her in." Glerenceria answered.

"If we are, then we'll need a new apartment. Pretend that you live apart. Otherwise, I just can't see how this functions as an infiltration operation in the current state of affairs." Aspagra suggested.

"Don't you worry about that. I have it covered." Glerenceria grinned, "With Beatrice shedding a part of her resources to the apartment's computer, you can relay any new information to us, through her, without a single flap of gums."

"If you say so." Aspagra drove on.

Meanwhile, Terrivia created small pyrotechnical sparkles from her palms. Small, orange colored cinders would come out of thin air, then made to ignite and sparkle like fireworks.

"Wow! How do you do that?" Theodria asked.

"Chakra, of course. After pretty extensive training, that is." Terrivia giggled, "I can't tell if you are half human or half Arkana. Someone did a lot of work trying to make you into a perfect split in the middle."

Theodria was going to say something about needing an artificial drug that would prolong her lifespan, but chose to withhold the vital information, "Sometimes, I don't really know myself. But does it matter? This is the city where humans and Arkana co-exist in harmony. What's wrong if I turn out to be half Arkana?"

Terrivia couldn't help but frown at 'Sapphire's statement, then turned her head away, "This city is lots of things put together, but harmony is not one of them. If you really are a half Arkana, then it sets a precedence for ugly researches to come."

"Are you a revolutionary?" Theodria asked.

"I dreamed of becoming one, but I'm just a traveller for time being. I didn't mean to make judgemental statements during our first meeting." Terrivia let out a sad smile, "Me and Occulus were from the fringes, where mercenaries lived on scraps of war. Disillusioned with the war between Royals and Frees, we were on a journey together to study how communities thrive on the world where barely two nation-states exist."

"I was told that this city is a counter testament to Mother's rule. They said that Mother is a machine that does not think, and only governs all individuals like a computer guiding its resources." Theodria interrupted.

Terrivia giggled like a war veteran refuting a rookie, "If Mother is such a machine, there wouldn't be a today. Keep that in mind."

* * *

After getting off of the truck, Glerenceria, Terrivia and Theodria made their way to the apartment hideout. The three of them entered the living room that seemed to be good enough for just 4 people, while Theodria was gawking around like a curious child because she had never been to another person's home, given her past.

"We're back." Terrivia spoke out.

"Welcome back you two. And who's that girl?" Cherry turned around while sitting on a chair in front of the computer table.

"Someone on the run for being a biological experiment." Glerenceria answered, "Sapphire, this is Cherry, a computer expert."

Theodria bowed down gracefully and smiled, "Nice to meet you!"

In an instant, Terrivia and Glerenceria were communicating in their minds....

<She seems a bit too refined for a mere experimental subject, don't you think? She knows how to talk to people and how to behave around them.> Terrivia narrowed her eyes.

<My thoughts exactly. But I'm still not quite clear on her stance. Is she letting herself to be rescued by us? Or was she ordered to run away?> Glerenceria pretended to look around.

Oblivious to their communication, Cherry smiled briefly, "Yeah. Very nice. If you excuse me, I have to write up some code for a side project."

"I'm hungry after all that running away. Any of you know how to cook?" Theodria asked.

"If I could manage wildlife, then I can manage domestic ingredients just fine." Terrivia smiled and glanced at Glerenceria, "Occulus, looks like tonight's gonna be my treat."

"Have it your way then." Glerenceria sighed.

* * *

Meanwhile...

Oration Tower...


#BAM#

Grant Willson slammed his fists on his table when Sati was in front of him at his office.

"Our canary has run off SOMEWHERE for more than 3 hours! Where did she go with the feet of a shut-in?!?" Grant shouted angrily.

"Your anger helps us not, Mr. Willson, but please calm down. While a search is currently being conducted by the Queen of Diamonds and her chosen subordinates, our canary would most likely had left trails to be picked up, like security camera footages, or last eyewitness accounts. Besides, it's unlikely that she herself would choose to get away from this nation." Sati smiled in assurance, "That means she's either in this city at an open location like a stray animal, or she's taken to shelter by our likely enemies. Either way, patience wins the fight."

"If I knew curiosity would take over eventually, I would've rigged ALL of her clothes with tracking devices!" Grant growled, "But you are right about one thing. She might still be in this city, and they would no doubt be coming up with brilliant ways to smear us with her blood. Just let me contact the spy in their ranks....."

Grant made a voice call by bringing up a holographic console that functioned like a telephone. Soon after the dialing, a woman's voice could be heard through it.

<Sleeper, reporting.>

"Sleeper, this is Watchdog." Grant spoke, "Has Bluebird made contact at your end?"

<I'm sorry, what?> The woman's voice contained an obvious tone of confusion.

"Rrgh..... The false princess." Grant growled.

<Negative, Watchdog.> The woman replied briefly.

"Keep looking. This is top secret at the moment, but Bluebird has slipped out of the cage. Someone of your assigned organization must've gotten to her and delayed her procurement on purpose. I expect good news within 72 hours. Did I make myself clear?" Grant instructed.

<Yes, Watchdog. I will continue my duties now.> The woman ended the call.

Grant looked down on his table and spoke, "So there are random bitches who took pity on her. Big deal. Depending on the situation, we may have to raise a different princess in Theodria's place."

"Our resources indicate that it's not an option. Just try not to lose too much of your composure for time being. The search will continue....." Sati smiled.


***

The end of Chapter 46