The sun rose on another Coren day.

Light washed over the still-cold streets, over the marketplaces that were already being set up, over the houses and buildings that would soon be full of the chattering of life. Countless people were waking up all at once, no doubt complaining about the loudness of the city bells and the lack of sleep they'd gotten the night before.

Some headed to the cathedral for morning prayers. Some grumbled down the streets towards their schoolhouse. Some watched, vigilant, from the city walls for enemies they knew could never appear.

Not one of them realized that, by the time the sun set again, the world would have changed forever.

The sun rose on another Coren day.

Bruno hadn't realised it before, but he'd missed this. This tension, this stillness in his bones that told him he was dancing on the edge of a knife.

He kept as quiet as possible as he led his squad, five of the least fresh faced rebels he could find, through the shadows of the cathedral. He'd hoped to execute this operation at night, but the time they'd emerged from the tunnel had made that impractical -- if they delayed any further, there was no guarantee this convenient state of affairs would last.

If there was a starship underneath this city, it was without a doubt the core of the enemy's operations -- if they seized it, they'd have a powerful bargaining chip for the future. The story Lily Aubrisher had told Ruth had suggested the ship was also the source of the Guardian Entities -- so taking control of it would be even more of a boon for them.

He glanced back at Ted, who was watching from the back of this group. This way? he mouthed, jerking his head in the direction of the stretching hallway.

The portly man nodded, and Bruno moved without delay.

Most of the Regulator army had apparently been in that swamp, so for the moment the majority of the personnel still at the headquarters were administrative, not combatants. Still, he didn't want to bet on that -- if any fighting were to happen, he wanted it to be after they'd reached their ultimate destination. That way, they'd be the ones in control no matter what happened.

Stone corridor after stone corridor greeted them as they made their way through the cathedral, more than once having to conceal themselves from a passing monk or scribe, but eventually they reached the stone door that Lily's story had described. Quickly, Bruno glanced either side up or down the hallway, before turning back to another of his squadmates.

"Go back to the staging area," he whispered. "Tell them we're entering the ship -- as soon as I send the signal, they should rush in from the secret entrance."

The young man nodded and turned, running down the hallway with painfully loud footsteps. Well, that was fine -- there was no reason for the enemy to assume that noise was an intruder. In fact, it would be more suspicious if someone seemed to be actively trying not to make noise.

Are we going in? Serena asked impatiently. Bruno glanced to Ted and -- receiving a nod of confirmation -- pushed the heavy door open.

The space beyond was just like Lily had described -- a dark and cylindrical elevator that the five of them could just about fit into if they held their breaths. As the last of the rebels entered, Bruno tapped the button on the control panel -- and the elevator shuddered into life, heading down into the earth.

"Ringing any bells?" Bruno asked Ted.

From what he understood, none of the Regulators remembered the exact moment they received their Guardian Entity. There was a good chance, then, that heading back into the place where it happened might trigger something.

"It seems familiar..." Ted mused. "But nothing specific. More like a dream after you wake up, than anything else. Do you get what I mean?"

"Right," Bruno nodded. Well, that was about what he'd expected. He didn't know the exact mechanism behind it -- maybe a Guardian Entity -- but the Regulators clearly had the ability to suppress or erase human memories. If that was some sort of automatic security, he'd have to watch out for it.

"Still," Ted sighed. "It's not like there's nothing. I'm not sure how to phrase it, really… but I can imagine being able to remember it, if I really try."

"That makes no sense." Serena's reply spilled out of Bruno's lips before he could hold it back.

Ted chuckled, his hefty stomach jostling with the motion. "It really doesn't, does it? I suppose I'm not in my best mind."

"Why's that?"

The rebel ran a hand over the smooth metal of the elevator wall, as if tasting it with his fingers. "It feels like my whole life has been… revolving around this place, in a way. First as a Regulator, then as a rebel. It all comes back down here -- like the moon spinning around the world. I just… wonder if it's even possible to break free of that after so long."

He narrowed his eyes slightly, and for the first time Bruno could see just how tired the man looked.

"I guess we'll see," Bruno muttered, reasserting himself.

Ted slowly nodded. "Yes. I suppose we will."

The elevator stopped, and the doors behind them opened.

Again, it was just as Lily had described: a dark, cavernous chamber lit only by the control computer in the center and the faint glow of the glass enclosures that formed a perimeter around the room. Through the fog behind those windows, inhuman shapes could be seen slowly moving around.

Guardian Entities waiting to be recorded.

He couldn't see any other doors. Was there another entrance to the ship, then, or was the way to the command deck concealed somehow? Taking Aether into account made everything complicated: you couldn't rule things out just because they were 'impossible' or 'absurd'.

If someone with a power similar to North's was here, it was very possible for them to disguise the entrance.

"Check the walls," he commanded the squad. "Properly -- run your hands over them. You can't just trust your eyes."

The task took a few minutes: the rebels were understandably wary about putting themselves so close to the creatures beyond the glass. Finally, however, it was confirmed. There was no way out of the room other than the elevator they'd come in through.

"Could this thing be of any help?" Ted asked, tapping away at the console in the center of the room. Bruno stretched out a hand to stop him, but relaxed as he saw that nothing was happening. They probably didn't have access.

Bruno clicked his tongue. "Shit."

You shouldn't swear, Bruno.

"There's a lot of things I shouldn't do," he muttered, biting his thumb.

Ted frowned uneasily. "We knew this wasn't a certainty," he offered. "I don't suppose we have a choice but to move according to the secondary plan."

If there was no way further in through this room, the only thing he could think of was that there was another entrance to the ship elsewhere in the cathedral. They couldn't very well go searching the entire building with their current level of manpower -- and they definitely couldn't do it without being caught.

Nothing for it, then. They'd have to take over the cathedral before going any further. To do that, they'd need to make their way outside so that Bruno could get up to the roof. Once there, he'd shoot his Aether directly upwards, serving as a signal for the waiting forces.

Firing Aether as a projectile by itself did pretty much nothing in terms of actual damage, but it made a bright enough light to serve as a flare. They could organise a proper search once they had control of the building.

Bruno nodded to himself. That was the plan, then. He looked up from his thoughts --

-- at the three corpses strewn on the floor, the faces of the dead rebels locked into expressions of shock and horror. For two of them, the handles of cruel throwing knives protruded from their chests, each aimed precisely over their hearts.

Ted lay face down on the cold floor, five or six knives sticking out of his back. Warm blood spread out over the ground.

"Two paths lie before you," said a voice from behind Bruno. "A path of blue, and a path of red."

"Prester!" Embarco said as he hurried to keep pace with Garth. "It's a pleasure to see you -- and a welcome surprise! We didn't expect to see you back -- for many days yet."

Liar. You didn't expect me back at all.

Still, Garth felt nothing but relief as he marched through the halls of the cathedral, the frazzled-looking monk trailing behind him. He'd made it back before the rebels, forestfolk and Aubrisher both. He'd known nothing could beat Aka Manto when it came to travel speed, of course, but the last few days had taught him never to be too careful.

"Send word to the city guard," he intoned, ignoring Embarco's pleasantries. "They are to prepare the city for an attack posthaste. I will tolerate no delay."

Embarco paled at that news. It was no surprise: Garth had left the diminutive man in charge of the cathedral while he'd been joining Nael Manron's forces, but Embarco was no warrior. Being stung by a butterfly was usually more than he could handle. Still, he was competent enough to relay messages if nothing else.

As Embarco scurried away, Garth pushed open the doors to his study, trying to ignore the trembling of his fingers as he stepped inside. He had arrived before the enemy -- Aka Manto had been dispatched to secure the inheritance facility before anything else. He was still on top of things, but only by a hair. He had to move quickly and carefully if he was to seize victory.

He strode past his desk, clasping his hands behind his back to keep them still. The cool air of the outside was welcome as he stepped out onto the balcony, surveying Coren below. Would this beautiful city soon become a warzone?

How long did he have before the enemy arrived? It was difficult to say: the attack of the Grinhe and his subsequent escape had delayed his departure somewhat. He didn't know when the enemy had set off, nor what methods of transport they'd used. It was entirely possible that only minutes remained before the final battle began.

His eyes were drawn to a nearby building -- one of the orphanages his organization funded. On its roof, he could see children playing, tossing a ball back and forth in inscrutable patterns. It was one of those games that only made sense to children.

Their faces were innocent, clean of all but happiness. They were much too far away for Garth to actually hear, but clear and joyful laughter echoed in his head all the same. That scene, down there, was the pinnacle of life itself.

Garth narrowed his eyes, and a great rage began to burn inside his belly. Why couldn't these people just be satisfied with that simple happiness? Why did they have to insist on destroying lies that kept them safe, kept them happy, kept them pure? Was the truth really worth so much that they'd throw away these children's joy?

The very idea was incomprehensible -- and unacceptable. He would not permit such a thing to take place. Not so long as he stood responsible for this world.

He would not lose what he had. That he swore.

Aka Manto, he spoke to his Guardian Entity. Report.

The reply was swift.

A small group of rebels was present inside the inheritance facility. I've dealt with the majority, and will be finished in but a moment.

Alarm spiked inside Garth's brain. The Grinhe?

Negative. These are Aubrisher's men.

His fingers twitched. Aubrisher rebels -- not terrible, but not great either. If there were a few of them lurking around, there were certain to be many more of the rats waiting in the wings.

Squeezing his hands together with punishing firmness, Garth commanded his Guardian Entity:

Deal with the survivors, and then return to me. It's begun.

The knives were fast as lightning.

Bruno ducked under one projectile, blocking the second -- which had been aimed in anticipation of his dodge -- with a split-second forcefield. Before the two knives had even hit the ground, however, he already had more to dodge.

The Guardian Entity -- Aka Manto -- reappeared throughout the room in flashes of red-and-blue Aether, each time throwing half-a-dozen knives with deadly accuracy before disappearing again. Bruno was forced to whirl around, constantly dodging and deflecting in a mad dance for survival.

One mistake, and that would be it. Once one of these Aether-infused knives hit him, he wouldn't be able to dodge the others.

Let me fight, Bruno! Serena cried out. I can beat him!

Probably, Bruno acknowledged. But that's only if you can get close to him. He won't let that happen -- he'll keep fighting like this until it wears us down. If we switch from defense to attack, he'll get us!

He felt Serena's mental pout. It didn't matter. Right now, he had bigger things to worry about than her wounded pride. Not dying in the next two seconds, for one.

Attack wasn't an option. Escape, however, was another story -- and the route he needed was right in front of him.

Bruno created and destroyed a forcefield behind himself, providing the propulsion he needed to launch himself across the room and into the waiting maw of the elevator. As he flew through the air, he took a deep breath -- for this last bit, he needed the utmost reflexes -- which meant…

Serena, he said. Hit the panel before we hit the ground!

Serena didn't fail. In a moment, she took control, her hand lashing out like a serpent and striking the panel on the elevator's wall. The doors smoothly slid shut in the same instant as they hit the ground. For a moment, Bruno could hear the dings of Aka Manto’s knives hitting the closed doors.

Then, nothing. The elevator began moving up again.

Bruno's satisfaction tilted Serena's innocent smile into a smirk. His gamble had paid off -- even if that Guardian Entity could turn itself into Aether, that Aether cloud still had to obey physical laws. It couldn't very well move through solid matter.

He only had a few seconds to be satisfied before Aka Manto appeared in front of him again. The Entity moved in a flash, grabbing Bruno by the throat and lifting him off the ground, squeezing with such force that he had to channel all his Aether into his throat just to avoid having his neck snapped.

"A fine hypothesis," Aka Manto whispered mockingly. "But I only need there to be the slightest gap between the doors to pass through them."

Bruno kicked wildly at the Guardian Entity's body, but without Aether his attacks were pathetic -- like flies going up against an elephant. Aka Manto simply chuckled without even flinching.

"I asked you a question earlier," it cooed. "But you refused to answer me. It seems we'll be travelling the path of blue and the path of red together, now won't we? I hope you're prepared. I certainly am."

The grip intensified, and the elevator doors opened behind Bruno, allowing light to flood into the dark space. Aka Manto's sapphire eyes widened, just a tad.

"Gemini Shotgun," said a clear voice.

The attack struck Aka Manto directly in the face, sending it slamming into the wall of the elevator and releasing Bruno from its deadly grip. The second he hit the ground, Bruno retreated backwards into a roll, Aether already coursing through his body once again as he looked up at the new arrival.

As expected.

"Looks like things aren't going your way," Dragan said, illuminated by the light filtered through stained glass, already preparing his next Shotgun. He glanced down at Bruno. "Need a hand?"

Bruno looked away. "I'd appreciate it," he muttered, focusing on the enemy before him.

Aka Manto had already recovered from the attack, floating over the ground once more, but it remained in an unstable position, hands held over its face as if trying to cover it. In a movement that seemed slow and deliberate despite the lack of time passing, it moved those hands away, allowing what was left of the mask to crumble away into nothing.

"How dare you…" the man seethed, Aether crackling around him. "How dare you…"