A wounded dove

“Emperor Salvatore died from a collapse after his valiant defeat of Kojiro Adachi… I suppose that’s one way to look at it, if you are like blind or something.” Mercedes Oxida flipped through the papers on their workshops table with only her normal arm as the other was just the stump.

The workshop was already close and only she and her girlfriend were still around.

“They sure desperate do deny something they themselves showed on television, even super heroes abroad must be sharing a drink or two over this. Kojiro Adachi must have never thought he would have become such a famous hero from one day to another, honestly the whole world is rising in protests again and I thought that stuff was done for long year ago.” She put her feet over the table and looked Luisa who tinkered with a mechanical belt on their workbench barely listening to her.

“I heard Kojiro was cahined up with black steel, but it apparently snapped.” Luisa said without losing her concentration or looking back at Mercedes. “Yeah, that´s familiar isn’t it, could he have done this too, that creepy nerd, the Irvin kid.”

Luisa finally looked back at her. “¿I know of no one else that knows how to break that steel, but why would he?” Mercedes yawned as she shrugged. “He destroyed the Scorching Sun just to give them their victory at the end, talk about a devils bargain. ¿So are you sure we won´t reconsider our alliance with him?” Luisa denied it by waving her finger. “¡No,no,no, I need him otherwise I cannot build my master piece even if I finally have my blueprints back from Hiroshi, besides with the formulas for building with black steel and all of Hiroshi´s researching on hand our imaginations can go even farther than ever, that’s exciting, really exciting!” She giggled happily as she immersed herself back into her work.

“I guess as long as your happy, but you two better make me a new pair of wheels and another arm for all the trouble and please don´t go thinking we can trust that man.”

“Oh don´t worry I never trust men a in the first place and for your stuff. ¡Just wait we are going to make the new models better than ever, I’m gonna be making them with all of my love!” She raised a belt from the table and put it around her waist.

“hehe, still I have to say that the ambience is contagious I never thought Salvatore was going to die in a long, long time, that Kojiro sure is making me feel like rising up a storm again andmaybe that Irvin would come with an idea for it...” While Mercedes leaned back with her legs over the table Luisa was laughing by her side as she put on a pair of gloves and turned around.

“¡And this time I’ll be ready to party too!”

Luisa turned to show hereslef with a pair of metal gloves on her hands and a belt upon her hip, it had began to spark with a blue light and a small energy barrier in the shape of a sphere started to be created around her hands.

“¿Are you seriously gonna use that creepy thing?” Mercedes asked her in jest while smiling.

“Of course machines are sinless and everything that man had is mining now, and soon Ill create something that will leave even his legacy upon the dust, that is my new dream.”

Luisa made the force field disappear as she pumped her fist excitedly.

“Count me in, if it makes you that happy that´s enough for me.”

***

“¡What the hell are you doing!”

Tony Beretta rose from his desk in anger and disgust, his right eye opening wide as he raised both hand on the air to emphasize his confusion.

Upon his work desk someone had just thrown a pile of black long hair and there was no doubt for the mobster that it had belonged to a human being.

“The proof you requested, this is the hair of the Scorching sun commander, the remnants of Aoi Adachi.” Tony´s right eye twitched.

The man in front of him was Noh, looking already very different than how he did in times past, he now wore a proper white suit with hat that covered all of his tattoo´s and the mask he wore in his face was completely different, the mask depicted the face of a demon with short black hair and a smiling face with red lipstick, but he was still the masked Noh.

“¿Right…and the rest of her? Tony asked as he tried to remove the hair from his desk and to the floor little by little. “I eat her to become wiser.” The mobster’s expression twisted even more in bitter anger. “¡Right, listen unless I give you the ok try to put the corpses under the woods or deep on the sea like god intended to, we are proper business man here and I rather not have any of that serial killer nonsense all over the place alright!” The masked man simply stared at him in silence. “Good, at least this will tie all the loose ends in a nice little bow. I like that and so like I promised. Welcome to the family Mr. Noh.” The masked man raised his hand in objection.

“The Noh was one of the Scorching sun, but we no longer are one with that sun and so we are not the Noh anymore, as we now walk a path of betrayal we are now, but a simple Mononoke, that is our shape now and therefore our name.” He finished speaking as Tony just looked at him with a tired expression.

“Right, I have no clue what that means, but welcome to the team Mononoke-san.” He said cheerfully as he changed his expression completely and extended his hand to shake his; the Mononoke remained in silence and never extended his hand back.

“That will be our honor.”

“Right prepare yourself then, we will soon embark on our most important of projects and you my friend are one of the keys we needed the most, you along with another one that now has a great debt with us, and everyone must pay the piper at the end, everyone.” Tony spoke with a happy and light tone as he sat again upon his desk.

“One must pay their debts that I must do as well and for that alone I choose to survive. I shall take my leave now Beretta-sama.” The Mononoke bowed his head before leaving thought the door in silence. Tony looked at his back disappear from his office with an arrogant smirk.

“I´ll never trust that creepy thing.” A woman spoke from the corner of the office. Jeanne of the black cross was leaning against the wall near the window with bandages covering half of her face.

“That goes without saying, but his still and important key for us to get our debts, but what really worries me is our other little friend.” Tony placed his hand over a newspaper at the side of desk, it spoke of the tragedy at the execution platform and how the members of its construction were about to be sentenced to jail for the collapse.

“I don´t how or why, but I´m sure that little man did this, utterly crazy. I knew he was suicidal but killing Salvatore and worse using us and even Kojiro for it, Haha talk about a walking powder keg, it’s a miracle we are all not at deaths row for having being involved. I never even thought he had a second plan on top of his already insane plan, because it would have been way too stupid to even consider it. ¡Crazy,crazy, crazy he is just the sort of man I hate, the kind that can´t ever be bought! The sort that can´t be really reasoned with…” Tony slammed his desk as his handsome face twisted grotesquely.

“¿So what? We saw them all in action and they couldn´t do a thing against us if we fight them for real or rather in a fight against me, dragon girl got skills and the dinosaur has quite the body, but honestly they both suck at fighting.” Joahnn spoke with a tired voice still looked at the skies through the window.

“At least against you they can’t, but still, Cindy has to be melted out of the ice again… and John barely woke up, we are at our worst right now so let’s not look for any more fights till we are in top shape. I´m sure they feel the same, besides if he can pull something like this, he might just be the final key we needed to get even…honestly is only fair.”

“I wonder If I´m strong enough now to go back there.”Joahn groaned holding her wounded arm.

“Haha, what´s that? Of course you´re, you fought the world’s strongest man.”

“And lost…”

“¡Well you still the strongest in my heart, so I will bet for you as many times as we need! Have faith, we are no longer the miserable children we were, so don´t let one lost get you down like this… I rather not see you down like this.” Tony spoke calmly as he looked back at her, his face looking like the handsome young lad he was without anything warped about it. “They won´t stand a chance against you I´ll bet on you anytime, so cheer up a little.” She said nothing and simply remained fixed on the window.

“I guess words are cheap, well no matter when the day comes you´ll jump to the fight like always, that’s the sort of woman you are I can always trust in that.” She laughed slightly under her breath and finally looked back at him. “If you keep getting so sappy I will have to punch you for it.” Tony grinned.

“¿Gonna hurt me, in a sexy way again?

Joahnn shrugged looking at the window again. “No, in the normal painful fashion, cause you are being seriously embarrassing.” He smirked as he pulled out a small photo from his desk drawers. “Haha well I did try, it’s not like I can do much for you, you wouldn´t let me… now, about the little man…” It was a picture of a boy a child between his mother and father, a tall man of white skin and blond hair with a handsome smile and a woman in a gas mask and black dress, the young boy remained emotionless between them, he was skinny and pale and wore sunglasses even at the moment of the photo.

“Salvatore´s death changes nothing for us, if anything it will make taking over the bay easier and its fine that the slaves left too. I hated that, if you´re going to exploit your workers to death at least pay them first it makes for a better look all around.” Tony put his finger over the child’s face. “You make us kill a titan for you, so it’s only fair you do the same for us.” Tony´s face twisted again, as his right eye began to twitch.

“¡Don´t get cocky you little shit, we own you now and you are going to pay us in full!”

He pressed his finger upon the voice face while smiling with a mad glee, his right eye opening wide.

***

“I’m so sorry, we utterly failed you….

“Geez, that’s enough I was the only one that lost that fight Jeanne if anything you should be the one scolding me for it.” The school student president Domina Salvatore rested upon a hospital bed, looking rather pale, but smiling with a pleasant expression.

The vice president sited at her side looking anxiously at if she were to banish, there was a man on the near the entrance, a very tall and stoic looking man that looking at them in silence from afar.

This was the first reunion of the student council since the shooting, now that she had finally regained consciousness and awakened to a very different world.

“I underestimated him or rather I forgot, another one of that woman´s warnings, I guess she expected this to happen anyway. Just like she nailed it with my father as well… that swindler, got the last laugh again.”

Jeanne seemed to melt on the chair; they kept their eyes to their knees not really understanding to what was she referring to. “Sorry about your father Miss Salvatore, none of us on the student council were allowed to be present that day.” Domina looked back at Jeanne unconcerned. “Yeah I would have liked to have had the honor, but the day is for Kojiro Adachi. ¿How is the situation abroad I heard the news flied fast thanks to my father´s love for making everything into a show.”

“Hmm, there is a lot of trouble, people are quite unsure the empire can remained united without a heir or rather they don´t want one, Kojiro made a very fine light shine on the hearts of populace as well, they scream for independence, some territory lords have even declared rebellion and there a rumors of an invasion from the united nations…”Jeanne continues still staring at their lap.

“In short words its all a disaster.” Naga Kochar said in the most bored of manners. The vice president leaned forward towards her looking very anxious of speaking. “It’s even worst at home; all three great generals have requested to speak about the succession and what role you will have in the empire from this point onwards, the ministries as well…” Jeanne spoke feeling so anxious it almost felt like it was their fault somehow, but the president simply yawned.

“They sure do, Shang Li has lost the biggest chain around his neck so I don´t expect him to be so passive anymore, Barracas will surely move the white hounds quarters to the island again specially with her best woman stuck with the mechanic, and Aria Maximillian, well god knows what that woman is thinking, but they will all surely go for my position if not my head.” Domina didn´t seem angry, but rather sort of amused.

“Very well, this too is my chance to soar into the skies, there will be no other choice if my nest is about to fall down. That said the whole situation feels very suspicious to me, there are far too many strange happenings in slavers bay and the result being my father’s death is the hardest part of all to believe, do you two have any data on Irvin´s current whereabouts.” As soon as she spoke his name the vice preside stirred sitting straight.

“He is on his dorm, but we receive a notification from General Aria to not intrude or pursue him again or she will respond in turn.” The president put her hand under her chin. “Right that is an admission that it was indeed her son; we have already lost our one chance to catch him without triggering a political minefield.” Jeanne clenched their fist upset as their golden arm seemed to shake. “If only I had made that man talk, that coward that shot you, but I ended up panicking on the middle of it and…” Domina held their golden hands. “You and I both, but thanks to you at least I know who was the person who shot me now, to think he would get me at the end, our arrogance sure got us both this time.”

The two stayed in silent for a moment, Naga raised his eyebrow as he looked at them both in surprise he never thought the president to be so thoughtful of someone.

“But, I feel like I got the answers I needed, that man really is the same as me and that is why I’m sure he is responsible somehow for my father’s death.” The president smiled.

“He too has seen it, a sure clear view of a perfect victory, if so there is no doubt to me that only one of us will stand at the end, so I have no more doubts of what will our fate be.”

Jeanne looked concerned as they fixed their curly hair out of their face. “So what is our next move if you want him death I can pull it off very secretly.”

“No, it’s best to not bother with him for now, besides we have plenty of more powerful enemies coming we can´t get distracted with someone like him, not for now at least, besides till his relationship whit his mother is clearer to us the risk is too much so let’s focus on strengthening ourselves first for the court.”

Jeaned crushed theirs fist together with a heavy clank. “Indeed, court manners are my specialty after all, they all about backstabbing’s and beautiful gowns.”

“Poison as well.” Naga mumbled at his corner and the president finally stared at him.

“It’s not too late for you to retire from this, you said my eyes where something that shouldn´t exists in this world and if you remain here you will walk only the path that my eyes show me.” Naga shrugged by raising his shoulders. “I will judge you myself If you disappoint me, then I will take those eyes from you by force.” The vice president was about to rise from her side when she forced them back with one hand. “That´s perfect, I wouldn´t be worthy of them otherwise. I promise to live up to your expectations Mr.Kochar.” Jeanne sited down again looked at him annoyed. “You can be so un-cute sometimes Mr. Secretary.” He closed his eyes annoyed with all the sudden attention and hoping they both would ignore him again.

“Still I feel like things ended the way they should have and with some luck Mr. Irvin and I can finish our conversation the next time in peace, even if one of us dies at the end…” As she spoke her eyes began to glow with a purple light. “The future his eye saw cannot be the same as the ones I saw, so I´m certain that only one of us can be victorious. I won´t let him take anything more from me.” Her eye where shining more and more and Naga looked straight at them with a furious expression, but he never moved from his place.

“Hmm, I feel so strange now that my father is gone, almost like I don´t really know what kind of victory I really wanted to see, now that I know someone else could deny him far better than I ever could….but I know there has to be something I can do as the one who will inherit his broken world.” Domina Salvatore´s eye had their light flicker till the purple glow completely banished.

“That sure is my friend.”

The door to the hospital room was opened by another guest, a woman with a white light dress that carries herself with a strange staff and whose eyes were bandaged long ago, she was smiling gladly as both Jeanne and Naga looked at her entrance with concern but neither of them said a single word.

“It’s strange for you to come all the way down from the upper villa Galatea.” The president broke the silence fist, but she also seemed confused.

“I thought something important could happen and so I came to see. ¿Now my friend can you tell me something?” She made her way in front of the bed forcing Jeanne to move aside.

“¿Why was it that you lost?” The woman raised Domina´s chin with her staff, but she didn´t react to it, only stared back at Galatea with her eyes down cast. “It’s funny I wasn´t able to abandon my sword, at the precise moment that I needed to…I guess because when my father gave it to me, he said it was just like his and the very proof of my skilll, so I felt that if I were to lost it…he would have been disappointed in me…. ¿Maybe that is why? Just to entertain that thought is upsetting me greatly I’m supposed to be above such things….”

“So he told you, your father who discards his blades like nothing. Cast it aside as well, there I no one to prove yourself to other than yourself now, hatred will no longer give you wings as there is no one to punish. ¿So I ask you again what is I that you truly crave?” The vice president was frozen in place the never saw the president show such a sad expression before, Naga simply listened in silence as he always did.

“I guess…I still want to surpass him, to prove that this kingdom was a failure and to fix it, but I no longer know how.”

“¿Did you see that white dove? Even if his wings were weak and feeble did he not fly above you all the same? Listen then, that the reason is a simple one, that he long ago saw a vision, a sight that drove him mad, a vision of a world where the Salvatore empire simply didn´t exist a world that was not reality, that could not be reality, so he made a choice; He became mad to deny the world and make that senseless vision the only true one, just like there was once a man who saw a mad dream of a unified world. So tell me can´t you see such a thing as well. ¿How else could a human attempt to fly if the very act speaks of madness? ¿If he is not mad? ¿So tell me have you seen a world that can never exist? Do you not wish to make it true, remember now my friend, and your eyes shall see again.”

“Yes I did… in fact that white dove even called me naïve and it’s true that I´m naive, the world I think of has never existed and can never be even if I…” Galatea smiled taking her staff away from her face. “Even if you were to rule the world…now isn´t that a crazy think to say, can you even imagine it?” Domina seemed to understand he words and remained quiet with a slight smile forming on her lips “To imagine, as always you only speak nonsense, but then again...” As Domina spoke the purple light began to shine anew upon her eyes.

“If you believe the empire must be preserved, then see the future you want for it or else that boy who has seen its destruction may one day archive it and he cares not for what comes after, he cares not for a single soul in the empire regardless how wretched it may be, all he sees is the end of all things.” Galatea spoke on with amusement in her voice, as she measure her friends every reaction.

“Correct, someone who doesn´t believe in the future has no right to lead.” Her eyes shinned turning white till the glow became a flame that burst from her eyes and the lights on the hospital flickered for a moment.

Naga Kocchar stood up as he saw that burning purple flame his hand shacking as he felt a need to strike against her, but his legs couldn´t move when he saw straight into her white bright eyes and the lights returned.

“Amazing it was never this vivid before, it felt so real to look at. ¿If this is the sight my father saw then it’s no wonder that he went mad so easily? Galatea smiled at her, Domina seemed to have regain her fierceness as she flicker her hair behind her with a satisfied smile, her eyes retaining that white glow that made them resemble those a beast.

“Of course, father failed as his purpose was one and one alone, to build the empire that only I can lead and so I must the one to finish our conquest.” Domina stared at her open palm as she closed it a calm delight showing on her face.

“You have your wings now.” Galatea told her with a gentle smile.

“¿President what just happened? The Jeanne was more than concerned, but they couldn´t move at all, the woman in front of them, seemed to radiate with an inhumane glow, her very present felt more distant that it has ever been as if she would burn the moment they reach for her again, but she just showed Jeanne a kind smile as she stretched her arm and reached for their face.

“President…I….” Jeanne mumbled unable to speak as the light from Domina´s eyes finally began to banish.

“I finally saw it, a clear sight of the future we need to reach, a promised and certain victory.” Galatea retreated herself from near the two of them simply walking backwards till she ended at the side of Naga Kochar. “¿What do you think of her eyes now, Mr Kochar.”Galatea said whimsically.

“Her eyes are not something that should exist on this world…but…” Galatea smirked satisfied. “¿But what Mr. Kochar?” He gulped as he tried to form the words he needed.

“But unlike that man they are quite beautiful, so I… want to see what they can see.”

“And you will, the four of us here and now, will be the ones to share her victory, after all an emperor will always need three grand pillars upon her side within this empire and just as I dreamed the impossible will finally be real for you as well Mr.Inmortal.”

Naga seemed to grow pale as she spoke; his eyes staring somewhere far away above them.

“I will give you that victory Ms. President, regardless how many more lives we will need to sacrifice I´ll give them all to you… all of them.” Jeanne held her hand now and kissed it as a knight should, but she just shook her head denying their words gently.

“It’s your Victory as well, a true victory for all of the empire.”