Kariah-Belle Nadire cried out at the top of her lungs. Her mana hull flared around her as she punch a hole through the titanium-7 wall that made up her room. The tears wouldn't stop streaming from her eyes.

She screamed again while leaping over to her study area and slammed her elbow clean through the desk. In another fluid movement, Kariah-Belle then spun and slammed her elbow through her bookshelf, sending books and pages flying everywhere.

She then fell to the floor to brawl.

Jet was dead...

Jet had died to keep her safe because she went into shock during an invasion. The medics told her it was due to trauma brought on her by Memphis slaughtering her branch. Kariah couldn't accept that.

She felt Akio's arms wrap around her, engulfing them both in a blanket.

Akio shed tears for her fallen comrade, though her features stayed unchanged.

Kariah could only imagine how Mae Lu was feeling. She and Jet had been friends since they were kids. Jet had been the one to save her back when they were first left to fend for themselves. That was the first time he had taken a life.

Kariah-Belle bawled even harder. She knew the young woman eyes sparkled with more than admiration for Jet. She wanted so badly to see them smiling again and to be able to smile along with them.

The young man had gotten her out of a few sticky situations but the one time she was supposed to keep him safe, she'd failed miserably.

Akio cradled her friend's head as she played with her hair. Kariah-Belle didn't know what she would do if Akio wasn't there with her now. Most likely she'd throw another tantrum and completely destroy her dorm.

Eventually, Akio lay next to Kariah-Belle. They would talk about Jet's heroic feats. Laughed at how someone could be so calm and analytical but couldn't tell when Mae Lu attempted to flirt. They reminisce on the times they had together, both good and bad.

Before long Akio fell to the Sandman and drifted off to sleep. They had been up most of the night grieving and reminiscing. Kariah-Belle now laid with Akio playing with her soft pretty emerald hair. The sun had been up for a while now and Kariah could hear the machines from inside her dorm.

The battle had been over twenty-four hours ago.

Unable to sleep because of her abnormal life force, Kariah-Belle slid out of bed, careful not to wake her friend. They painted her room to look like a sunset. The material used to decorate it, made the artwork look extremely lifelike. She admired it for a bit. The colors were vivid and the setting sun almost seemed to shine.

She took a deep breath before entering the bath. Pulling off her sleeping shorts, tank top, and socks the young woman stepped into the shower. She let warm water run down her sun-kissed caramel skin for a bit. Her mind often wondered to Jet's smile.

Shaking her head to keep from crying again, Kariah-Belle began to bathe. She stopped to look down at the scars on her belly. The two scars that refused to heal. She ran her fingers lightly along them.

Anger boiled within her as water rained down from above. That bastard Memphis had taken someone else from her. Her leader. Her friend.

Jet's smiling face flashed within her mind and tears escaped her eyes. She fell on the shower floor. The water still raining down on her. She brought her knees to her chest and began to sob quietly.

They told her even as he took his last breath the young man smiled.

Sometime later, Kariah-Belle found herself outside. The sun beamed down on her as she passed the ruined courtyard. Workers were repairing the broken statues of the fallen king. Memphis had been the one to lead the attack on the capital. The traitor had slain King Vermilion and destroyed her home. She was sure the man's bounty would become even higher than it is now.

She wondered if anyone would claim that bounty before her.

The Nadire had to admit, the more selfish parts of her hoped not. She wanted that scum to be brought to justice at her hands, but she wouldn't be too upset if someone else did it. At least he wouldn't be able to harm anyone else.

Kariah-Belle eventually found her way near the central area of the capital. On her way, she had seen all the damage done to the city and had tried to lend a hand here and there. However, she was looking for someone and couldn't stay in one spot for too long. Finally, she spots purple hair and olive skin.

Mae Lu was hard at work helping the workers with repairs. Lax-Rim was there as well. While most of the workers used mana powered machines, Mae Lu and Lax-Rim would bring materials to the workers on rooftops. Lax-Rim would weld the metals together using flame craft. They weren't the only university students to help out.

Kariah-Belle walked over to Mae Lu. She hadn't seen the girl since the day they admitted her into the infirmary. She looked to have recovered well, judging by the way she was working so hard.

"Mae Lu..." Kariah-Belle said as she approached the other young woman from behind.

Mae Lu turned around. Her concentration was momentarily broken. "Oh, hey Ri," she said, trying for a smile. "Come to lend a hand?"

Kariah-Belle was quiet. She stared at the other girl. Worry on her face.

"Ri, really. I'm oka—"

Mae Lu was interrupted when Kariah-Belle hugged her tightly. "Oh Mae." Kariah-Belle began, tears escaping her eyes. "I'm so sorry."

Mae Lu was silent for a moment. She hugged her back and she too had tears in her eyes. "It's not your fault Riah. It's that Rygilya guy who did the deed."

"Yeah, Ri-Belle." Interjected Lax-Rim. He wrapped his arms around the two girls.

Kariah-Belle stayed silent. She enjoyed the feeling of having her two friends close.

Soon, Lax-Rim and Mae Lu got back to work. Kariah-Belle joined them. Helping where she was needed. It was a good way for Kariah-Belle to work off some stress as well as keep her mind occupied.

"Hey you three." Called Ianna. She made her way over to Kariah-Belle. Two others in tow, Kyko and Vale. The group looked grim. Which was understandable with what took place.

The girl knitted her brows as she searched for Manty and Monty. "Where are the twins?" she asked.

The newly arrived trio exchanged looks. Sadness and remorse were drawn on their faces.

"Dead." said the raven-haired boy who was Kyko. "Well, Manty is. She died during our evaluation. We walked right into a Vympiri ambush. Even the Holy Knight we were with wasn't prepared. Monty hasn't left his room since."

"Oh no." Mae Lu said softly. "Poor Monty."

If they were led into a trap too then there's definitely a spy among the four nations. Thought Kariah-Belle.

She clenched her fist. The two had been inseparable since she'd known them. She couldn't imagine what it felt like for Monty to have to live the rest of his life without his sister at his side.

"Those bastards," Lax-Rim said. The venom in his voice was easy to detect. "They attack our home and take our friends. Fucking bastard!"

Everyone was silent for a few moments. Kariah-Belle didn't need a Nurolink to know what they all were thinking.

If only we'd been stronger.

They had only just met the girl at the beginning of the year back when they had joined the Advance course. The top ten students had been introduced on the day they had their first mission in the capital. Now two of them are dead.

They all knew that Knighthood could end in a violent death. They just weren't prepared to face that reality so soon.

It was Mae Lu that broke the silence. "I-I'm sorry guys," tears dropped down her cheek and she choked back a sob. "I can't be here right now."

Kariah-Belle took her hand. "That's alright, Mae. I'll walk you to your dorm."

Mae Lu nodded and the two said their goodbyes before heading to the dorms.

Kariah-Belle invited the other young woman to spend a few nights with her and Akio. Mae agreed.

The next several days went by in a blur. There was crying and trips down memory lane. After the funeral for the fallen, Kariah-Belle and the rest of her squad-mates lingered at Jet's grave.

The Nadire formed a plan she would execute tonight.

First, she wanted to check on Monty.

Together with Akio, she made her way to Monty's dorm.

The brown-skinned young woman knocked. No answer.

She knocked again. Still no answer.

Akio decided to use a little more force, giving the door a loud bang as she hit it.

Finally, Monty opened the door. He looked horrible. As if he'd been crying all day.

"Oh Monty. I'm so sorry," Kariah-Belle told him.

Monty's lower lip quivered before he broke down in tears. Kariah-Belle hugged him tightly. Monty hugged her back and wept.

Two hours had passed when the duo left Monty, the young man cried himself to sleep. Now the two young women were in their dorms. Akio was in the shower.

Kariah-Belle was currently packing a bag. She packed it with clothes including her battle gear, gold and silver coins, her Holopad, and snacks. She strapped the bag over her shoulder then grabbed her mother's sword.

Her plan was to wait until everyone was asleep to sneak out while everyone else was asleep. The reason...

To hunt Memphis and his protege.

She blamed them for Jet's death as well as Manty's. She was going to track him down and make him pay.

She opened her room door to find Akio and Mae Lu waiting for her. A travel bag strapped over their shoulders.

"Don't look so surprised," Akio said. "We both know I can read you like a book. You're not going anywhere without me."

"I...I want to fight beside you and avenge Jet." Added Mae Lu.

Kariah-Belle hugged her two friends. "I should've expected this," she smiled.

Soon the three young women exited the dorms and made their way to the rear exit of the University. In the dark, she spotted Lax-Rim's unkempt red hair.

"Figured we could use some backup so I called ahead," Akio said when Kariah-Belle looked at her.

"So we doing this or what?" Lax-Rim said, throwing his traveling bag over his shoulder.

Kariah-Belle smiled at her friends. She knew they all had their own reasons. Still, she couldn't help but get a little teary-eyed.

"Yeah." she said. "Let's do this."

"Do what exactly?" said a familiar voice from behind them.

They all turned around to see Iris Eloclipse walking towards them.

"And just where do you think you're going?" she asked as she came to a stop in front of them with glaring eyes and crossed arms. Bandages wrapped around her head and arms. She looked exhausted.

The group said nothing.

"Oh, let me guess. You're going to hunt down your friend's killer, right? Then what? You don't honestly think you can kill him, do you? Memphis ranks fourth on the Knights Bounty Dashboard. He's a powerful criminal with powers you couldn't begin to fathom. Memphis would rip your little asses to shreds." She looked at Lax-Rim. "You couldn't even handle his weakened apprentice.

"So what? We sit here and do nothing?" Kariah-Belle said defiantly.

"Your head is pretty big so I'm rather surprised you're this foolish," Iris said glaring daggers at her. "Why do you think the Four Universities were founded? It's to train future Knights like you and prepare you for the outside world. As you are now, you'll never see Memphis. However, if you're patient and hardworking you can stop something like that from ever happening again. Understand?"

"Yes ma'am." The students said reluctantly.

"Good. Now get back to your dorms. Dismissed."

With that, the students followed her orders and headed to their respective dorms.

*******************

Later Iris sat on the bed of her room. A bottle of lasorian rum was in her hands and tears streaked her cheeks. Her body still ached but the warm beverage brought some relief.

She heard a knock on her door before it opened. In walked Van Lycanna, a Holy Knight and a long-time friend.

The tall, muscular man walked over and sat beside Iris.

"I couldn't stop him. I fell right into his trap and couldn't stop him."

"Don't be so hard on yourself Iris," Van said.

"Kariah-Belle would've died if she wasn't surrounded by people who love her." Iris sobbed as she thought the young woman looked so much like her mother. "I was responsible for those greenhorns and one died on my watch."

Van said nothing. He too had lost a young woman. The team he was evaluating was caught in an ambush set by Vympiri. One of Dracula's Royal Guard, Remi The Reaper, was among them. The Drakon known as Manty, was killed in front of him.

Van took the bottle from her hands. Reluctantly, she let him as a hiccup escaped her.

"Again he's slipped through my fingers," Iris whispered.

Van wrapped his arms around her as she wept.

Suddenly, Iris pushed the man to the bed and straddled him. She undid her silky black robe, exposing her soft dark brown skin. Red bra and panties covered her sensitive parts but the scars on her body were visible.

Van bit his bottom lip.

"Take me," she told him with fire in her teary eyes.

Van was only the second person she'd ever trusted with her body. Right now, she just wanted to forget her failure. She'd do anything to forget. Even if it was just for a moment.

"Iris, you're drunk," Van told her, watching another hiccup escape her lips. However, his words didn't match what his body was saying. Iris could feel his bulge against her crotch.

"You need this too," Iris whispered softly in his ear as she kissed the tanned skin of his neck. "Please Van," she added with a plea, knowing he wouldn't be able to resist her.

Van flipped her on her back. "Dammit, Iris," he said before biting into her neck.

He rubbed his hands down her body before pulling off her panties. Earning him soft moans from Iris.

The two kissed, then proceeded to ravish each other, drowning their sorrows in booze and lust for the rest of the night.