Correction: Chapter 19 is the final chapter. Then the Epilogue.

This is posted for the 42 loyal readers I still have.

My heartfelt thanks to them.

Chapter 18 - Part I

(Kaleb)

#

Standing with Mason and Weinberg in the upper loft of the observation room, I had some trouble keeping my gaze professional.

Let’s just say, Nicola Weinberg afil Lorian cut a resplendent figure in her grey-black training suit. There wasn’t a slender curve left to be emphasized from her lithe body.

Mind you, my self-control is considerably superior to Desanto’s but it was nonetheless a considerable struggle to prevent my gaze from falling prey to the charms of this blond beauty.

Seeing her in her usual business suit was one thing.

Seeing her in the training suite was a completely different experience.

I swallowed hard – twice – and did my damndest to concentrate on Principal Lavinia Mason’s question.

“I was asking,” Mason repeated, “how strong do you gauge him to be?”

I glanced away in thought, though it was more to avoid looking at Weinberg who chose to stand with a hand on her hip, her body making a gentle S-curve from the tips of her toes to the top her of her head.

Focus. Focus. Focus!

Swallowing again, and narrowing my eyes for effect as I regarded the view of the training cavern through the immense windows, I gave Mason’s question due consideration and an honest reply.

“In Kämpfer form, he’s already stronger than I am.”

After a long moment of silence, Mason inhaled long and deep. “Is that your honest assessment?”

I faced her. “Absolutely. The Kaiser’s Blessing is in a different league to my Dragoon Class Cuirassier.” Crossing my arms, I added, “I underestimated him. I won’t make the same mistake again.”

“I see….”

“There’s one more thing,” I said, noticing I sounded grim yet unable to help it.

Weinberg and Mason regarded me guardedly.

I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Desanto told me the Kaiser’s Blessing is haunted, and that sometimes the Ghost takes over.”

Mason said nothing, but after a moment, Weinberg wet her lips and then asked, “What did you tell him?”

“Nothing. The conversation drifted off in another direction.”

Weinberg frowned slightly, but gave me a very subtle nod. “I see….”

Mason held her silence for a moment longer, before turning away. “So he doesn’t know.”

I shook my head. “No. He doesn’t know the specifics of how previous Meisters leave their mark—their impression—on an Artifact. What worries me though is the strength of the Ghost’s influence on him. We’ve seen it before when he fought his sister in the Vault Chamber—the berserker power that overwhelmed Desanto, and almost cost him his life.”

Barely above a whisper, Weinberg murmured, “He has quite the struggle on his hands….”

“Yes, he does,” I agreed, and dropped my hands to my hips. “And if I’m going to help him, if I’m to continue training him to grow stronger and to gain control of the Ghost, then I’m going to need to unlock my Cuirassier.” I couldn’t help hesitating before adding, “Truthfully…once he breaks the next seal and gains the Krieger form, my strength won’t be enough to push him to new heights. Either I get a new stronger Fragment now and begin unlocking it, or someone else will have to take over training duties.”

As this point, I gave Weinberg a pointed look, to which she subtly shook her head. “My hands are full with Steiner,” she replied in a low, even tone. “She’s made some progress this week, but I fear she’s falling behind Desanto.”

Mason’s eyebrows rose upon hearing that. She spared Weinberg a questioning look. “Are you certain?”

“Yes. She’s troubled and its affecting her progress.” Weinberg looked uneasy, then said, “All the girls are falling behind. With the exception of Caprice, both Maya and Rina should have unlocked the seals on their Skin-Regalias by now. Instead they’re still using skinsuits to augment their strength.”

For a heartbeat, Mason pressed her lips into a thin line before asking, “Any suggestions on how to get them past this hurdle?”

The tall blonde beauty looked distinctly uncomfortable. “Well, there is one thing…we could try….”

Mason nodded subtly, arching an eyebrow. “And that would be?”

Weinberg looked even more uncomfortable, or perhaps more embarrassed, as she spared me a long sidelong look. “Well…when I was having trouble summoning my Skin-Regalia…they made me train in my—”

She stopped when a number of holovid screens winked to life within the observation room. That number grew until they blanketed the floor-to-ceiling windows.

Mason noticed them and muttered, “What in blazes is going on—?”

From the floor of the observation room, one of the tech girls called out, “Emergency Flash Traffic to all the Academies.”

“What…?”

Mason sounded oddly off the ball, so I cast a glance her way, faintly shocked by what I saw.

Galatea’s Principal had grown pale, her eyes glassy as she stared at the floating screens. “Again…?”

“We’re getting Flash Traffic,” the girl repeated. “It’s being sent by Public Security Section Zero. Code Avalon.”

I saw Weinberg regard her boss with a veiled puzzled look before she quickly asked, “Give us the details on Code Avalon.”

In response, someone translated the code into a series of directives that was displayed up on a holovid screen.

I stood before the balcony railing and read them in sequence.

Beside me, Mason breathed out an oath, and another glance at her revealed a little color had returned to her lifeless face.

“Ma’am,” one of the girls below called up. “We’ve got reports of a massive explosion in Island One.”

Another girl added, “The Nexus is being censored, but we’re getting a raw feed of the incident along with a report.”

More data appeared in a new holovid window. A second panoramic window showed multiple angles of an enormous hole in what appeared to be the Harbor Tunnel in Island One.

I read the report and glanced at the images. “So Pharos is in complete lockdown except for emergency and security services.”

Mason nodded apprehensively. “And we’ve been ordered to notify all our Familiars to make their way to their respective Academy and remain on standby.”

“Well that shouldn’t be a problem,” I said. “They’re still here in the training center.”

Weinberg spoke up. “No. Caprice Steiner has already departed.”

Mason and I both glanced at her.

Weinberg pointed at a holovid screen partially obscured by windows floating in front of it. “She’s already up above. She left without de-briefing.”

Mason exhaled unhappily. “What is that girl thinking?” After another unhappy breath, she said, “Get Steiner back down here.”

I frowned at the holovid window. “Can you bring that screen up front?”

Someone must have heard and complied with my request. A few moments later the screen was shown unencumbered.

“Who is that?” I asked, motioning to the young man wearing a Galatea Academy uniform standing some distance from the foot of the steps leading up to the building’s entrance.

Mason answered, “Klaus Shepherd afil Raynar. He transferred from Ophelia Academy at the beginning of last year.”

The name struck a bell within me. “Klaus Shepherd?”

“Yes. He’s a Familiar without a Fragment or Artifact.” I could feel Mason’s gaze on me. “Something the matter, Mr. Deneve?”

I grimaced faintly and shrugged weakly. “I’m not sure. Caelum was asking about him. He wanted to know if I could find out more about Shepherd without setting off alarm bells in the system.”

There was disbelief in Mason’s voice. “Desanto has an interest in Shepherd? How odd.”

I nodded. “Tell me about it. He rarely shows an interest in anything outside his passion for women’s lingerie.”

I glimpsed Weinberg stiffen. What’s up with her? I wondered.

On the holovid screen, Steiner and Shepherd continued to talk.

“Can we get audio on them?” Mason demanded.

The observation room’s interior speakers crackled faintly.

“…I’m here to protect you, Caprice.”

“Protect me?”

“I was sent here to protect you…on orders from your family.”

“My family? Why? Why would those bastards send you? Why would they send anyone to watch over me?”

“Because you’re in danger. You’ve always been in danger. You can’t protect yourself, even with your Valkyrie Armor. You can’t summon Brynhildr’s Maiden form, can you?”

On screen, Shepherd stepped closer to the bottom step.

“Caprice, you’re in danger but there are people out there watching out for you. Your family has been watching over you these past ten years, and I’ve been watching over you since I was transferred to this Academy a year ago.”

“I’m in danger from whom?”

“From her. From the one who killed your mother.”

Mason inhaled a lungful of air, yet sounded strangled. “What did he just say?”

“She’s gone…she’s gone…she left Pharos—”

“No, Caprice. She’s back. We found out she was back just now. She was sighted in the Old Docks of Island One. Our people in Public Security sent word, though Section Zero has yet to contact the Steiner Family with the news.”

On the holovid screen, Steiner collapsed to her knees and Shepherd hurried up the steps to her. He arrived in the blink of an eye, surprising me with his speed.

Wait—was that a maneuver-field?

Weinberg hissed sharply. “He has an Artifact.”

“What?” Mason sounded startled. “That can’t be. The records state he—”

“He has an Artifact or at least a Fragment,” Weinberg stated with a chill in her voice. “There’s no doubt of that.”

I heard Mason take a deep heavy breath. “Get them both down here. Now.”

“Aye, Madam Principal.” Weinberg turned on her heels and began striding fast out of the loft.

“Deneve, go with her,” Mason instructed me. “Back her up.”

“As you wish, Madam Principal.” I snapped her a mock salute, then hurried after Weinberg.

I arrived at the bottom of the stairs leading down from the loft, when an angry shout roar through the observation deck.

“GET AWAY FROM HER!”

The fury driving those words made me stumble and then stare up at the ceiling.

Desanto?

I spun where I stood and stared at the holovid window looking down on the building’s entrance in time to see Desanto rush at Shepherd who leapt away with blinding speed, swallowed up in the black mist of a breach between Pocket and real-space.

With that much anger propelling him, I wasn’t surprised to see Desanto summon his Kaiser’s Blessing and jump after Shepherd who stood a dozen odd meters away from the steps, robed in a white Skin-Regalia with armored arms and legs.

However, what surprised me was the speed Desanto displayed.

He’s faster than when he struck me down.

I had to overclock to follow the movements of both young men on the screen.

With my attention rapt on the battle, I heard Weinberg speak up somewhere behind me.

She sounded both amazed and wary. “A Celestial type Lucifer…so that’s how he did it.”

For a moment, I tore my gaze away from the battle and threw her a questioning glance.

Weinberg’s attention was on the holovid screen. “Celestials have the ability to hide themselves from other Artifacts and Fragments.”

She was right. It was something I’d forgotten.

Her expression darkened. “Angels amongst us. And the Devil too.”

Then she spun away, her body a dark blur as she ran for the observation room’s exit.

On the holovid, the Kaiser’s Blessing clashed with the Devil winged Lucifer.

“Bastard—what did you do to her? Why did you make her cry?”

I was wasting valuable time, and so I hastened out of the room, running down the corridor on my way to the nearest elevator up to the surface.

#

(Caelum)

#

At first, I honestly feared I’d overwhelmed him.

Gripped by my anger, and the Kaiser’s fury that pushed it to new heights, I believed that if I don’t hold myself back, I would take his life.

However, that wasn’t the case.

Far from it in fact.

Lidia had warned me not to fight him, claiming I wasn’t a match for him.

Despite the ghost driving me onwards, and despite its positive influence upon my skills, it was quickly clear that she was right.

Against Klaus Shepherd and his Artifact, I was all roar, fury, and no substance.

Far more bark than bite.

The truth was I wasn’t ready to face him yet. I had unlocked Schneider and Kämpfer, but wasn’t enough to face Shepherd on equal or better footing. Compounding that was the fact I was handicapped from the start.

I was struggling against Shepherd and against the ghost in the Kaiser’s Blessing.

In effect, the ghost was both a blessing and a curse.

At first, I believed the Kaiser’s rage was directed at Shepherd. However, not long into the fight, I came to suspect its anger was focused on Shepherd’s Artifact, the Celestial Class Type Lucifer, and I couldn’t understand why.

Was it some kind of primitive response to the Lucifer? Had something happened between the Kaiser’s Blessing and this Lucifer…or another Lucifer…sometime in the past?

In other words, was there history between the two?

Distracted, I almost failed to block Shepherd’s odd forked spear, a weird weapon that was tremendously long, and didn’t look like something made by man. Then again, nobody knew who made the Artifacts so that was a moot point. Regardless, Shepherd’s weapon resembled something fit for a demon king…or the leader of the fallen angels.

Its length made it difficult for me to approach him. My Gauntlet-Blades were doing a fine job parrying and deflecting the forked ends of the spear, but I just couldn’t get any closer to him.

One problem was that I couldn’t use the blades like a sword. They lacked the range of motion that could be accomplished with a sword. There’s something to be said about wielding a weapon by the hand. Circular parries, and deflections were out of the question for my Gauntlet-Blades.

My blades also sacrificed range.

Where I could grip a sword by the hand and have it extend from my wrist, the Gauntlet-Blades were attached to my forearms and that limited their range. In effect, they were better at blocking the spear – like a shield or buckler – than striking at it or Shepherd.

I needed to get some of that range back.

I needed to make them longer.

Hanging off my forearms wasn’t ideal.

If only—if only I could wield them like Celica wielded her blades.

If only I could make them part of my arms!

Something shifted in the Kaiser’s Blessing. Something slid and changed place, and when I next blocked the forked spear I had a surprise waiting for me.

The Gauntlet-Blades had reconfigured.

They were no longer attached to my forearms, but instead merged with them.

Knocking Shepherd’s spear away, I jumped back to give myself some room away from him. Thankfully Shepherd chose not to press his attack, and I took a second to study the blades. I had the sensation of having my hands and forearms sheathed within them. In this configuration, I’d added a few extra inches to their reach, but that wasn’t all. When I bent my wrist, I noticed the blades bent in response.

They’re not rigid. That’s so weird.

I held them up and tested their mobility.

Better than before, but will it be enough.

Abruptly I became aware of a change within me that left me surprised and gaping.

It’s—it’s gone! The anger’s gone. What the Hell happened? What changed? Was it something I did?

I took deep calming breaths, and saw Shepherd watching me with interest, his spear at the ready but he was making no move against me.

Why is that? Why isn’t he taking the offensive?

Sparing a glance at the steps to the Administration building, I saw Simone and Caprice watching us out on the sports field.

Could it be because they’re watching us?

With a start, I realized our fight had taken us away from the Academy buildings and onto the west sports field.

*How long have we been fighting?

The Kaiser replied with an answer of three minutes and fourteen seconds.

So what now?

I swallowed and spoke loudly out at Shepherd, using the Kaiser’s Blessing to amplify my voice. “What did you do to my friends?”

Shepherd looked confused. “I have no idea what you mean?”

“What did you do to Haruka? Did you Influence her?”

“As I said, I have no idea what you mean?”

“Don’t lie to me!” I yelled at him. “I’ve seen the security footage, and I know you did something to Simone’s memories. You made her forget—no, repress—your encounter with her. Why? Was it to hide the fact you had an Artifact?”

For a long while he said nothing, forcing me to slash the air with a blade.

“Answer me!”

I could feel my anger beginning to bubble, and beneath it I sensed the Kaiser’s antagonism toward the Lucifer begin to resurface.

Stay calm. Stay calm. I don’t need to lose it.

Shepherd’s laughter startled me. Yet he remained in stance, the spear hardly wavering. “I had a feeling someone would eventually find out. I guess there’s no hiding from all the surveillance holocams littering the Academy inside and out.”

“I’m waiting for an answer, Shepherd.”

He lowered the tips of his spear, yet his stance was anything but unguarded. “Yes, it’s true. I did Influence Haruka Amiella. I needed her help, so I had to nudge her feelings in a way beneficial to me.”

“Beneficial to you? Meaning what?”

“I needed her help to make Caprice see the light and realize that you’re not fit to be by her side.”

“Who are you to decide that?”

“I’m the one sent to protect her. As a Steiner, she has enemies simply because of her blood relation to that family. To keep her safe, I was sent here to watch over her. And I’ve been watching over her long before you entered the picture.”

My anger was tempered by doubts and suspicions. Yet, I remembered Lidia referring to Caprice as a rich girl, and as the daughter-heir to the Steiner Conglomerate. But Caprice blamed the Steiner’s for her mother’s death, so why would the Steiner Family go to such lengths to protect her?

And why had Shepherd disclosed this now? Was he really here to safeguard her wellbeing, or was it all a carefully crafted lie? Was my confronting him enough to unlock his tongue?

I had the deep impression something had happened, and that’s why he’d chosen to make his move. Perhaps the explosion in the Harbor Tunnel was the impetus for his grand reveal. But why would that be?

Slicing the air with the piercer-field surrounding my Arm Blades, I declared, “I have no reason to trust you or believe you.”

“That’s true,” he admitted with an easy smile.

“You say you’re here to protect her. You said I wasn’t fit to be by her side. Why don’t we put that to the test?”

His smile faded and became a chuckle. “Are you serious? Haven’t you realized by now that you can’t beat me?”

“We’ll see about that.”

He shook his head. “Don’t even bother. Your Fragment can’t match my unlocked Artifact. That’s all there is to it.”

“You don’t understand. I’m going to do this regardless of the outcome.”

“Well that’s rather pig-headed.”

I nodded. “That’s because I intend to kick the crap out of you for messing with my friends, and my girlfriend.” I pointed my right Arm Blade at him. “You messed around with Haruka’s head, and tried to turn her against me. I know that because Caprice suspected something was up with her behavior. Then you messed with Simone, and that really gets my blood boiling. Nobody—and I mean nobody—messes with my girl or my friends.”

For a moment, Shepherd looked nonplussed, then burst into laughter.

I knew he was just mocking me with it, but it irritated me nonetheless.

Lowering my right arm, I resolved I was going to mess up his pretty face with a few well-placed scars.

After regaining some of his composure, Shepherd shook his head in disbelief. “Fine. If you want to face me then let’s do it. It’s been a long time since I’ve gone all out, and this is as good a time as any. Besides, I want to see what my rival can do.”

“You aren’t my rival. You’re a just a step along the way to unlocking my Kaiser’s Blessing.”

“Oh really? Then I should tell you, your girlfriend has the sweetest lips.”

At first his words didn’t register. When they did, I felt a dull ache in the pit of my stomach, and a faint emptiness in my chest. “What did you say?”

“And those breasts,” he shook his head. “They really are something to hold. Their shape, weight and balance are just perfect. The way they rest in your hands, like soft yet firm melons. Words just can’t describe them.” He smiled mockingly. “Oh, but you know what I mean don’t you? Or could it be you haven’t held them yet?”

I started thinking what part of him I would lop of first.

Wait a minute—this could all be a lie.

Shepherd wet his lips. “Have you noticed, her breasts are like giant mountains of vanilla ice cream with chocolate chip powder sprinkled over them. I’ve never seen something so beautiful before.”

My mouth fell open and I suddenly felt nauseous, my vision swimming slightly.

I don’t believe it. I didn’t want to believe it. No—it isn’t true! It’s not true! IT’S NOT TRUE!

Cocking his head, Shepherd added, “I was surprised by how passionate she becomes when she’s turned on. I mean, that girl just explodes with sexual energy. And the way she kisses—”

He brought his spear up in time to block my stabbing thrust.

This time I had aimed true for his heart and didn’t hold back.

The mocking smile on his face was gone, and I saw real surprise topped with a hint of satisfying fear in his eyes. “How did you—?”

It was easy to see why he was so shocked.

I had crossed the distance between him and I in the blink of an eye.

It was the fastest I’d ever moved, but I was too enraged to feel surprised at my own speed.

Instead, I was disappointed I’d failed to pierce his heart and take his life there and then.

“You deserve to die,” I growled at him through clenched teeth.

Scissoring my blades and using my Gauntlet-Shield as well, I succeeded in locking onto his spear at the point where it forked. The Kaiser’s blades may have detached and merged with my forearms, but the shield components remained attached to the gauntlets. Thus restrained, Shepherd wasn’t going anywhere unless he released his spear.

As he realized this, I watched his eyes narrow as he looked behind me. “I see. You unlocked the Vector Wings and boosted your speed while ramping up your inertial canceller. It wasn’t that you moved. Rather, you made the space around you move. Moving without moving.” He grinned drily at me. “So you’ve managed that much at least—woah!”

Shepherd narrowly avoided the slash I aimed at his face, the piercer-field around my Arm Blade passing millimeters shy of his nose, but in the process he had to release the wicked forked spear. Using an effect-field around my left Arm Blade, I grabbed onto his discarded weapon and flung it away into the night where it vanished from sight somewhere over the Academy buildings to the north.

In the depths of my mind, part of me prayed that careless, angry toss hadn’t accidentally cost someone their life.

The rest of me couldn’t care less.

My emotions had solidified into a cold frost, turning my burning fury into ice.

I raged yet I was oddly calm, and the Kaiser’s simmering hatred for the Lucifer began to blend with my disdain for Shepherd until the two became one.

It really was strange to feel so angry yet remain so composed and detached. It was quite simply unnatural.

I heard myself talk, but I had some trouble recognizing it as my own voice.

It almost didn’t feel like I was the one doing the talking.

“Say goodbye to your hands,” I heard myself declare.

For several seconds, a thick black mist surrounded Shepherd’s right hand and arm. When it dissipated, he held a long spear with a cross blade leading the way.

Feeling the cold pulse of my anger throb within me, I aimed my right Arm Blade toward Shepherd. “When I’m done you’ll never touch another girl again.”

“Is that so?” Shepherd snorted, then grinned hungry. “When I’m finished here with you, I’m going to make your girlfriend mine. I’ll bend her mind and wrap it around my little finger. She’s going to give herself to me and that includes more than just her breasts. We’ll pick up right where we left off. And I might just include Haruka Amiella as well. Those two gorgeous girls are a handful, but I’m man enough for them.”

I slashed the air, and shifted my body into a lower stance. “In that case, I’m going to be taking more than just your hands.”

Behind me, the floating Vector Core and Vector Wings thrummed and I felt their power flow into me through the Kaiser’s Skin-Regalia. As it surged through me, my body became incredibly light – lighter than I’d ever experienced before – and an overwhelming sense of confidence filled my heart and mind.

Yet my anger remained as cold as before.

I’d heard that dry ice can feel like it burns on the skin simply because it’s that cold.

That’s how my insides felt.

With anger seeping into my cruel laugh, I readied myself to leap toward Shepherd with Arm Blades at the ready.

“From this day forth, it’s the girls’ bathroom for you, young lady.”

#

(Caprice)

#

I stood up slowly on the steps.

Beside me, Alucard was staring intently at the two combatants out on the field.

However, she asked me, “Damn it—what did Shepherd say to him?”

By using my Awareness-field to act as a receptor mike, I was able to hear their conversation faintly yet well enough.

I turned my attention on Alucard.

The girl’s face was pale and frantic. Her hands clenched and unclenched repeatedly.

Swallowing to clear my throat, I asked, “Did you cheat on Caelum?”

It took a heartbeat for my question to register in her mind.

She whirled toward me, eyes wide. “What?”

“Did you cheat on Caelum?”

“No—never!” Then her expression grew even paler and aghast. “Why? Why would you ask that?”

“Shepherd told Caelum that you exploded with sexual energy, and something about the way you kissed.”

Her expression became cloudy, and deathly grey.

Frowning inwardly, I pressed on. “He said your breasts were perfect in shape and weight, and they fit in his hands like soft, firm melons.”

“Why…why would he say that…we’ve never—”

Alucard abruptly stiffened, then stumbled and collapsed to her knees on the steps.

I watched her, but made no effort to help her.

She was breathing fast and heavily. “It can’t be…that time in the storage room….”

“Explain,” I softly demanded.

She shook her head, and looked up at me. “I have no memory of that time. I can’t remember it at all. I can’t remember any of it….”

I was surprised and failed to refrain from frowning faintly. “Explain, Simone Alucard. What do you mean?”

Alucard swallowed hard a couple of times, and clutched at her chest. “Caelum showed me security footage that has Shepherd and I walking into the storage room on the third floor. A few minutes later it shows me walking out.” She shook her head slowly. “But I have no memory of that event. I don’t remember what happened. I don’t know what happened!”

“According to him, it sounds like the two of you spent seven minutes in heaven.”

Though my words weren’t exactly honest, I did believe she would faint upon hearing them.

Unfortunately, she was made of sterner stuff. That said, after a few seconds, Alucard stood up and staggered down the steps, using the guardrail for support.

I followed her, oddly curious to see what she would do.

Perhaps I shouldn’t have been surprised to see her hurry unsteadily to a small garden, and then heave her cookies behind the bushes. Alucard wretched over and over until she became dry, then stumbled weakly out of the garden and stared at Caelum and Klaus fighting out on the sports field.

I watched her as her gaze hardened into a glare, and her body began trembling all over.

“I’ll kill him…I’ll kill him…I will kill him!”

Hearing the way she said that, I believed she was serious.

To some degree, I could sympathize with her. And yet, a cruel, dark side to me basked in the emotional torture Alucard was enduring.

I walked up to her, stopping a few feet away from her, but close enough for Alucard to hear me clearly.

“You’re not fit for him,” I stated flatly.

“What did you say?” She almost hissed the words at me.

“I said you’re not fit for him. If a Familiar like Klaus Shepherd could bend your mind so easily, then this won’t be the last time you betray Caelum.”

“I did not betray him!”

“So you say. But you don’t know that. Truthfully, I suspect you have some residual memories of the encounter. Maybe you’ve even dreamt about it. But even if they don’t surface now, they may eventually surface over time. What then? What will you say to Caelum then?”

“You don’t know if it’s the truth?” she snapped harshly.

“Then why don’t we find out?”

Alucard blanched, as impossible as that sounded since she was already ghostly pale. “What…?”

“Ara ara,” I mocked her. “Don’t you want to know the truth?”

She looked dead on her feet, but then she shook head slowly. “No….”

“Then I’ll tell Caelum that it’s all true.”

“No!” she shouted.

“Then let’s find out the truth,” I offered her.

A long moment went, and out on the field the sound of barrier-fields and piercer-fields colliding filled the distant air with sharp zings and zangs.

Eventually, Alucard asked, “How?”

“Ara ara, so you do want to know the truth.”

“Tell me how?” she demanded, closing the distance between us down to a foot.

“Let me drink your blood,” I replied as I looked up at her. “With your Symbiote inside me, I can synchronize with the creature inside you. I can use Influence upon you, forcing your mind to remember.”

I saw her thoughts swirl behind her azure eyes.

After a few moments went by, she shook her head slowly. “No. I won’t do it. I don’t trust you.”

“You don’t trust me, but you trust yourself not to betray Caelum? Do you trust that you were strong enough to resist Klaus Shepherd and not submit to his will?”

“I didn’t betray Caelum….”

“So you say, but there’s no certainty in your heart,” I leaned forward slightly, “because deep down, you just can’t help wondering if it’s true.” I smiled faintly at her. “For a girl like you, doesn’t that give you just a little thrill? Isn’t that why girls like you cheat on their boyfriends? It’s the thrill of cheating, isn’t it?”

Alucard tried to slap me, but I caught her hand easily.

“Ara ara,” I mocked her again. “Losing your temper, Countess Alucard?”

“I was right about you. You are a monster.”

“So says the host with a monster inside her,” I retorted.

“The Symbiote is not a monster,” she defended. “But you clearly are.”

Alucard tried to free her hand, but I used an effect-field from my anklets to hold her still. “Countess, you bore me.”

“Let me go, Steiner.”

I dropped the effect-field and released her hand, tossing it away and causing her to stumble back a couple of steps. “If your feelings were true, you would have accepted my offer to know the truth.”

“No, I simply don’t trust you. Having you inside my head would be a horrible mistake.”

“And I’ll say this again. You don’t deserve to be by his side. A lascivious woman like you doesn’t have a faithful bone in her entire body. All you’ll end up doing is hurting him.”

“Go to Hell,” she whispered harshly.

I waved away her sentiments, and turned to face Caelum and Klaus out on the field.

But then Alucard said something that made my heart stumble for several beats.

“You’re just like her, the Kin Slayer.”

I regarded her sidelong. “Careful what you say next, Countess.”

Alucard had been cradling her wrist, but now she lowered her arms to her sides. “You’ve been blaming the Steiner’s for the death of your mother. But the truth is somewhat different, and you know that.”

I narrowed my eyes at her. “I told you to be careful.”

“The reason why the Steiner’s could never be held accountable was because they weren’t involved in her death.”

“Alucard—”

“Your mother Karina was killed by her younger sister, Gehanna, out of envy, because she loved your father. Yet he chose Karina, and that was a knife into her heart. Yet it didn’t kill her, but it wounded her and the incessant pain drove her to murder.”

My mouth and throat had become dry, so I found it hard to swallow. “You…don’t know what you’re saying.”

“Yes I do. You forget my sister is the so-called Raynar Witch. When she inherited Public Security Section Three from her predecessor, she had access to the case files on your mother. It was Section Three under her predecessor that investigated her death, despite the fact that a member of Section Zero saved your life.”

I could feel my heart beating unevenly, and I sensed the growing emotional strength within Alucard as she felt she was turning the tables on me.

The Countess stared hard into my eyes. “Your aunt killed your mother out of love for your father, and she would have killed you too if a member of Section Zero hadn’t stepped in.”

This time I managed to swallow. “You’re wrong.”

“Why do you deny it? The evidence is there. I can get it for you. I can show you the files.”

“Shut up!”

Alucard pressed her lips into a thin line, before ploughing on. “Do you know what Public Security thinks of you?”

“What?” Now I was genuinely puzzled.

“They have profile on you. And do you know what it says?”

“How could I?” I snapped abruptly at her.

“It says there’s little difference between you and Gehanna Valerian”—Alucard dipped her head at me—“as you’re both obsessive to the point of murder.”

I felt something shatter inside my mind.

The next thing I knew, I kicked Alucard with an effect-field wrapped around my right leg. The blow sent her flying backwards through the air.

She would have landed hard a dozen meters away had it not been for a dark blur that raced over the ground, caught the falling girl as she fell. That blur resolved into the figure of Kaleb Deneve afil Lanfear, dressed in the Skin-Regalia of his Cuirassier.

With shock on his face, and a stunned Alucard in his arms, he turned to stare at me.

“Steiner?”

I sensed something pass over me, high overhead, and fly toward the sports field. But my attention was riveted on the astonished expression masking Deneve’s face.

“Steiner, why did you—?”

I turned and ran away, summoning my Fragment as I sprinted away from Deneve.

In seconds, I was dressed in the Skin-Regalia, my legs and body sheathed in the Valkyrie Armor.

My mind a blank, my body felt incredibly light and I ran the distance to the west parking lot in a matter of seconds. However, when I arrived my Awareness-field sensed a handful people standing in the darkness – all of them radiating Awareness-fields – and a trio of black aero-cars resting in the parking lot.

My heart thumped loudly in abrupt terror, and I skidded to a stop on the hard surface.

Standing before one of the flying vehicles, was a young woman dressed in a tight business suit and skirt, her light, blonde hair tied back into a perfunctory ponytail. She reminded me of Nicola Weinberg afil Lorian, the pet lapdog of Principal Mason’s. However, for some reason I felt this woman was somewhat more dangerous, and when I met her eyes a stark chill ran down my back.

As soon as I stopped on the permacrete pavement, she began walked calmly toward me.

“Caprice Steiner afil Lanfear.” She spoke my name in a formal tone that made me even more uneasy. “My name is Brigitte Shepherd afil Raynar. I am the Head of Security for the Steiner Family.”

My thoughts stumbled.

Shepherd? Another Shepherd? And she’s the Head of Security? Then…then is she my mother’s successor?

Brigitte halted a few meters away, yet I sensed an incredibly powerful Awareness-field emanating from the bracelets she wore under the sleeves of her dark business jacket. If the field was this strong without the need to summon her Artifact, then her device was something I couldn’t possibly hope to counter.

She bowed to me respectfully. “I’m here on orders from the head of the Steiner Family, Merlin Steiner Raynar.”

Upon hearing the name, my heart jumped and my stomach clenched into a nervous, quivering ball.

Brigitte Shepherd straightened and resumed looking me in the eyes. “Caprice Valerian Steiner, in light of certain troubling developments, your grandfather sent me here to bring you home.”

The men and women standing in the darkness entered various pools of light within the parking lot. I saw they were all dressed in dark suits, lending to their austere air.

I swept my gaze over them, feeling the walls of fate encroaching upon me, before looking down at Brigitte Shepherd.

A thin smile curled her lips. “Caprice, you grandfather misses you.”

I swallowed hard past the lump building up in my throat, while my chest grew heavy with my conflicted emotions.

“And my father?” I asked her.

Brigitte nodded slowly just once. “He’s waiting for you too.”

I took a number of deep breaths, but I couldn’t keep my emotions from colliding forcefully within me. Seeking a way out, a distraction, I asked her, “Is it true? Is it true that she’s back?”

“Yes. We learnt this not long ago. Your grandfather immediately dispatched us to fetch you.” Brigitte lowered her head slightly. “He wishes to take no chances with your safety.”

Running my gaze over her and then her companions, the impression they were serious about the threat to me was what forced me to make a choice.

I closed my eyes, then sent Brynhildr back into her Sarcophagus.

When the breach sealed and the black mist cleared away into the night air, I watched Brigitte walk up to me and offer me her left hand.

“Let’s get you home,” she said softly, and the tenderness in her voice made my heart ache just a little.

“Home…?”

She nodded faintly. “Yes. Home to where you belong with your family.”

I hesitated in taking her hand, and thus accepting her offer.

“Caprice, it’s time to stop living like an orphan, because you have family.”

Looking up at her, I saw sincerity in her eyes and in her smile.

“Let’s go home,” she repeated gently.

In the end, I didn’t take her hand, but I allowed her to guide me with a hand on my shoulder, and together we walked toward the waiting cars.

I had promised myself never to return there, to that house that held so many warm…and cold…memories.

How easily I had broken my promise.

Far behind me out on the sports field, a loud boom filled the air and the ground trembled, but I refused to turn around.

When Kaleb Deneve called out to me, his running footsteps drawing near, I squared my shoulders and climbed into the middle aero-car.

Had Caelum called out to me, I would have changed my mind in a heartbeat.

But Caelum wasn’t here.

Caelum was out there fighting Klaus, and he wasn’t fighting over me.

He was fighting for someone else.

#

(Kaleb)

#

Mason hadn’t just dispatched Weinberg and I.

She’d also sent Khayman and Sayen, so I was able to leave the injured Simone Alucard in their care while I hurried after Steiner who’d run in the direction of the west parking lot beyond the gymnasium and aquatic center.

At a run, I summoned my full Cuirassier, Skin-Regalia and all.

With the flintlocks in both my hands, I approached the parking lot, spotting the three black aero-cars and the dozen Familiars before them.

In the corner of my Awareness-field, I sensed a number of the bowling pin shaped security bots had been disabled. They stood motionless as though frozen in time.

The woman who’d closed the door on the car Caprice had climbed into, now turned around and stepped toward me.

I stared at her, recognizing her within seconds, my heart clamping up reflexively.

She greeted me calmly. “Hello, Kaleb. It’s been a long time.”

“Shepherd,” I breathed out. “Why are you here?”

“Steiner Family business. We’ve come for Caprice on orders from her grandfather.”

“Why?”

“Because she’s in danger, Kaleb.”

“From what? From whom?”

“From her aunt. The Kin Slayer has returned.”

I felt a cold wind rush through me, chilling me to the bone. “What did you say?”

“Gehanna has returned. We can’t afford to keep Caprice here, so we’re taking her home to the new estate on Island Five.”

“How do you know this? Tell me!”

Brigitte smiled. “Kaleb, you know that we have people everywhere. And our Lorelai is amongst the best. It’s hard to keep secrets from us.”

I stepped closer to her.

Her people moved in response, but Brigitte held up a hand, stopping them. “Kaleb, please don’t interfere. I promise you, you will have access to Caprice, by her choice of course. But the Steiner Family wants her home, and I intend to carry out their wish.”

“Arisa will want a full explanation.”

“And she shall have it. After all, Grandpa Steiner is eager to meet her.”

I jerked my chin over my shoulder, indicating the sports field behind me. “So that’s your younger brother out there. That really is little Klaus?”

Brigitte sighed. “Yes, he is. And the idiot made a mess of things.” She crossed her arms and gave me a deep shrug. “Do with him what you will.”

“What?”

“Punish him. Reprimand him. Give him a month’s detention. Have him clean the toilets for a week. Do as you please. He needs to learn the consequences of his actions.”

I stared at her in disbelief. Was she seriously handing him over to us?

Brigitte nodded lightly and shrugged yet again. “However, as foolish as my brother is, he’s not a bad person so don’t hold it too much against him.”

“What do you mean?” I asked, genuinely puzzled by her statement.

“He really didn’t mean any harm to those girls. He was just doing what he thought was best. Unfortunately, I’m going to have some explaining to do to the Raynar Witch.”

Turning on her high heels, Brigitte opened the door to the aero-car behind her. Abruptly she stopped and looked back at me.

“It is good to see you again, Kaleb.”

Again, my heart clamped up.

Brigitte’s eyes held my gaze for a long moment, before she smiled sadly, and then climbed into the aero-car – the car with Caprice inside – and then closed the door behind her.

Almost immediately the other Familiars in dark garb climbed quickly into the other aero-cars. Within a minute, they had departed the Academy grounds, the trio of black vehicles lifting off into the artificial night sky, and flying out of sight between the towering buildings of Habitat One.

“Brigitte….”

I felt my heart sigh.

A long while went by before I found myself able to turn away, and leave the parking lot behind for the battle at the sports field.

###