A briefing begins at Dr. Williams's office, with Mezos and Samza preparing holographic slides. Holograms depicting key locations of The Imperial Lands float above The Doc's desk.

Mezos displays the map of the Imperial Lands of Esthial. He says, "I received a note from our Mathilde a few minutes ago. She engaged in a meditation session to see where the other Mathilde ended up in. As I suspect, she got captured by Lexia forces."

Samza raises a finger. "Fortunately, we recorded the session when I convinced Mattie to wear the dream recorder prior to meditation. There's no sound though, but we caught a feed of two Lexia goons hauling Soldier-Mathilde into a magitech drop ship." The rabbit-fae loads a holographic snapshot of a passed out Soldier-Mathilde along with two distinct individuals sitting on the benches of the transport unit, opposite of each other.

Librascope-AI is not resolving the identities of the two Lexia soldiers, one male and one female.

The male looks heavily armored in white as he sits with his arms crossed and his eyes closed. His brown hair looks ruined and shuffled. A bandage sticks on his left cheek. Cracks, scratches, and dents decorate his armor, implying that he's been in a tough battle. Looks like Mathilde may have given him a beating before she passed out.

The female, dressed in a vibrant blue robe, sits on the bench across from the male. Unlike the male, she looks unharmed, her robe looking pristine and clean. Her hand is gripping on to a long white staff while a wide, evil grin paints her face. Pink swirling drills flank the sides of her head, adding style to her long, wavy hair. My best guess is they're high-ranking officers based on the intricate gold accents in their uniforms.

I ask, "Who do you think these two are?"

Mezos says, "Going by the gold accents, I'm assuming they're part of some elite royal guard. I just don't know their names."

Samza says, her voice loud and boisterous, "I just call the paladin-dude, Lars, until we get an official name. He looks like a Lars to me."

"Is he like special forces or something?" I ask, scratching my chin.

Mezos adjusts his glasses. "Not exactly. The Lexia Army's special forces unit, The Skyward Dragoons, comprises only — you guessed it — dragoons. The male looks like a paladin while the female is a mage of some kind. These guys probably work specifically for Queen Serahlyne II, and base themselves at Sky Fortress Zorntho."

Sky Fortress. A unique characteristic that sets the nation of Archaeus apart from the rest of the Imperial Lands. Librascope-AI gives me a rundown of what a Sky Fortress is. As the name implies, these fortresses levitate about 15,000 meters above the ground using magitech. Librascope-AI states Archaeus has four prominent sky fortresses, each specializing in a different task for the Lexia Imperial Army. For example, Sky Fortress Palompor trains mages and clerics, while Sky Fortress Baschenoa trains paladins and dragoons. Sky Fortress Sabingar specializes in unarmed combat. Finally, Sky Fortress Zorntho is all about the Queen's elite royal guard.

Mezos says to me, "When you dive tonight, I expect you to be in one of those four major sky fortresses. My best guess is Zorntho just on those two soldiers alone, but since our data is almost twenty years old. You might end up in a Sky Fortress that we have no data on."

"Besides rescuing Soldier-Mathilde, what else I'm looking for?" I ask.

Samza says, "Stuff about what the Lexia army is doing to fight The Nightmares, especially with airborne units."

Mezos taps on some virtual buttons on his holographic tablet. "I have updated the firmware on your Ad-Comm and Dream Recorder visor. Whenever you're ready, put that on—"

Samza says, finishing her brother's sentence with a commanding announcer's voice while waving her thumb back, "—and hit the sack!" She lets out a loud, jovial laugh.

—————

I take the dive into the dream and open my eyes.

With a quick glance, I find myself in a strange facility. Looking downward, it looks like I'm on a catwalk elevated over a dimly lit area full of tall steel pods. Each pod has a small window, allowing one to view the specimen inside it. Nearby, a scientist roams and glances through the window of a nearby pod while jotting notes on a digital tablet.

I continue roaming around, trying to establish my location. It seems I'm in a secluded elevated area, away from the crowd of uniformed employees and soldiers below. Glancing from above, it looks like I'm in a science-focused area.

"Mezos, where do you think I am?" I ask through the Ad-Comm.

"I'm not sure exactly, but I'm getting Aether Dome vibes in this facility, and I don't like it. If you can get a closer look at what's in those containment chambers, then I can get a good idea on what's going on."

I press onward through the catwalk, a soft white light illuminating my path, exploring this strange facility. After a good minute, I arrive near an arena-like platform where a glass containment pod stands. Keeping my distance, I zoom into the pod using Librascope-AI to get a look at it.

"Shit!" Mezos gasps over the comms. "That's a Greater Nightmare. You can tell by all the crystallized masses on its body. Why do they have one locked up in a pod? What do they intend to do with it?"

"Beats me, but I don't like it," I say, observing the features of this strange Nightmare. The thing in the pod appears tall and humanoid. Male, I think. He has five scrawny right arms and one grossly muscular left arm. Crystallized masses form on his shoulders like armor plates. The face is clearly human, but looks sad and possibly in pain. His skin looks deathly pale, with flaking specks of crystal decorating his limbs. A light-blue glowing rock appears impaled on his chest, possibly the core of his power.

"I detect a unit rushing in your direction. Check your six."

A swift sound of steps comes rushing my direction. I pull out my triggerblade and point it towards that way.

Before me, a female soldier in bluish-black, dragon-scaled armor stands holding a spear with one hand. She stands straight at around Mathilde's height. "What a second," the soldier says with a posh accent. "You're that woman who accompanied Mathilde, aren't you?" She lifts the visor over her helmet, revealing the face of a pale-skinned woman with long blond hair flowing from the back of her helmet. Gray pearlescent eyes give a piercing gaze.

"You know who I am?" I ask, but still keeping my triggerblade pointed.

"I've seen you before," she says. "You assisted her in taking down that Nightmare Tower. If that's true, then you are not my enemy."

"Then why are you here?" I lower my triggerblade but keep it unsheathed.

"Prince Dione captured Mathilde Wairen and I'm here to bust her out — and then some to this bloody Sky Fortress."

"I take it Prince Dione is the guy in the white armor, right?" I ask, recalling the holographic images I saw during the briefing.

"Yes," she says and sighs. "He and I don't exactly get along all that well."

"So, what Sky Fortress am I in?" I ask.

One eye opens and her brow twitches. Her teeth grind with fury. "Bloody hells! What kind of fucking question is that? Are you some kind of muppet?" Then she turns her head and takes a deep breath. "Oh, right. I forgot you're not from here. Hells, you probably can't read the signs or understand our alphabet."

"No, I just happen to show up out of nowhere."

"Well, in that case, you are in Sky Fortress Camcapre, a facility focused on researching The Nightmares. In case you haven't figured out, each of these metal pods houses a Nightmare specimen."

"Camcapre," Mezos says on the radio. "That's a new location for our database."

My brow furrows as I scratch my chin. "What does the Lexia Army intend to do with these Nightmares?"

"They plan to siphon the Nightmare's liberal attunement to light and dark elements to augment the strength of their military. Though at the rate they're progressing, they might end up brainwash the Nightmares, allowing them to fight for the Lexia Army, instead of absorbing their power."

Mezos yells over the Ad-Comm, "What? That's just asking for all kinds of stupid to happen. And if the Lexia Army did that, I wonder if their brainwashing will hold long enough to be useful."

"Your friend is right," the armored woman says.

My eyes twitch. "Wait, you can hear my aetheric communicator?"

"I can," she says. "I scanned the aetheric waves for open communication channels using my communicator and stumbled upon an unknown feed. It was then I tracked you down. And that's where we are now."

Mezos says over the air, "If you can do that, then that means you must be a spy."

"I am," she says. "I suppose I should introduce myself. My name is Lyne Highwind, a former member of the Skyward Dragoons. Now, I'm an adventurer, just like you, with a mission to stop the diabolical experiments by the Lexia Army. What is your name?"

"My name is Arizona Ylfing," I say. "Just someone who pops in and out. I heard about Mathilde's capture and followed the magitech drop ship to this place."

"How about your friend?" Lyne asks.

"I'm Mezos. Arizona and I work for an organization of rebels from another dimension, which is the reason she doesn't understand the signs around the Sky Fortress. I serve as her translator and observer."

"Brilliant," Lyne says as she turns to face a forking path. "Down this way is to The Aetherlock Gaol. That is where Prince Dione placed Mathilde. We need to hurry. I fear that he or Princess Clarice will do terrible things to her while chained in confinement."

"Princess Clarice?" I ask, "Is that the short girl who accompanies Dione?"

"Yes," Lyne answers. "Despite her stature, her magicks are quite formidable. You should not underestimate her."

"Understood."

We press onward with Lyne taking point. With swift steps, both of us rush through the corridors to the Aetherlock Gaol while sneaking past security. Dark steel walls and white pulsing lights surround the passage ways. There are arrows with signs leading to different parts of the Sky Fortress, written in their runic-like alphabet. Librascope-AI translates them, the forward path leading to the Aetherlock Gaol, with us coming from the Nightmare Testing Arena.

"This is it," Lyne says as we enter an area resembling a prison with cells caging unfortunate individuals behind bars of iron spanning across three floors. It feels like a dungeon, but with brighter lights. Almost every cell has an occupant ranging from the well-dressed, sophisticated business tycoon to the unshowered bums from the streets. They even chained a few to the walls. A wide variety, but I have to wonder what the Lexia Army intends to do with them. With all the Nightmares they have in containment, I fear they might do more than just torture these prisoners.

While I would like to save them all, I'm not sure how to do it. Heck, I don't know if Lyne has an interest in saving them. For now, my focus remains on rescuing Mathilde.

A loud pounding grunt sound reverberates from a cell nearby. A familiar woman's voice yells, "Hit me again, fucker!" Then another loud pounding grunt sound. "You don't punch like a man. You punch like a bitch, Princeling." A few more pounding grunts sound from a cell, louder than before.

Oh, that's Mathilde alright. This world's version of her who has the mouth of a sailor. I can't forget that. The antithesis of the Mathilde I know in the real world.

"You hear that?" Lyne asks, pointing to a cell on the upper floor, its caged door open.

"I do," I say.

"Follow me." Lyne leads me through a secluded corridor and towards a nearby storage room with an assortment of blades, spears, and firearms. "I knew that dark aetheric energy was coming from somewhere," she says as she points at a pair of dark iron gauntlets resting on a storage bench. "Those are Mathilde's gauntlets. Take those and we can proceed to rescuing her."

I take the gauntlets and stow them in my coat. A certain coldness radiates from the dark metal forged into this piece of equipment. I'm not sure what to make of it, but something about these gauntlets makes me feel uneasy. Unsettling. Still, I continue following Lyne down the tight corridors.

We reach a spot near Mathilde's cell, where Lyne and I see her chained to a wall, dangling with her arms up. In front of her is Prince Dione, sporting a white coat with glowing pastel blue magitech cores attached to his shoulders.

"Ha!" Dione says, puffing his chest. "You're quite resilient. No wonder mother wants to keep you alive. She'll be here in about an hour."

Mathilde lets out a grin, blood dripping from her nose. She says, her voice raspy and low, "What does Queen Serahlyne II want from me?"

The prince turns his head. "I don't know. My mother works in dark and mysterious ways, more so after the King died two years ago. Last I heard, she thinks you and the Nightmares share a connection. I don't know if that's true or not, so my little sister took samples of your bodily fluids when you were unconscious."

"That little shit," Mathilde says, her teeth snarling.

"Aside from that, you seem to enjoy pain." With an armored hand charged with electricity, he thrusts his right fist deep into Mathilde's abdomen.

Mathilde winces and grunts. "I relish in pain and turn it into fury."

"Just as hot-headed as before." The prince lets out a low chuckle.

Meanwhile, Lyne says to me with a light whisper, "I'm going to throw a smoke bomb. You go after Prince Dione. I will unchain Mathilde."

"Got it," I say, matching her whispering tone.

Lyne grabs a metal cannister from a holster on her hip. It's about the size of a spray can. She pulls the tab and rolls it into the cell. It stops right next to Prince Dione's armored foot. A thick cloud of white smoke spews from the cannister and fills the cell.

I say out loud, my fists flaming hot, channeling the aether from the drive core of my triggerblade, "Hey Princeling! Coming at ya — bringing the heat." With charging steps, I deliver an empowering rising uppercut, my left arm engulfed by a swirl of flames. My fist connects to the prince's chin and sends him flying upward. Finally, in mid-flight, I send him crashing back down with a fierce haymaker. "Sit down, and shut up!"

"What the hells?" Mathilde says, her voice struggling, as Lyne unchains her from the wall. Her body slumps, but slowly recovers and regains her footing. I hand over her gauntlets, and she takes them and puts them on, readying herself for the next battle. "I guess it's not everyday I get punched in the stomach over thirty times."

"Let's get out of here," Lyne says with haste, motioning us to follow her.

The moment we leave the Aetherlock Gaol, sirens and red lights start flashing. Guards start marching into the halls, equipped with their swords, halberds, and gunblades.

I unsheathe my triggerblade and ready a battle stance. Lyne gets her spear ready and Mathilde gets into her hand-to-hand combat stance.

Prince Dione says over the intercom, "Make sure the assassin stays alive. The Queen needs her. The other two can die."

Lyne's gaze shifts to Mathilde, then returns her gaze back to our adversaries. "Sounds like the Prince has a thing for you, mate."

Mathilde pouts. "The Prince can go fuck himself."

"After them!" A commanding guard yells, pointing his gunblade forward. The soldiers behind him charge and our battles commences.

With a quick spin and my triggerblade extended, I unleash a wave of fire, sending the front line staggering.

Lyne takes a leap, and with her spear downward, dives into the fray. The impact of her landing pounds hard with a gust of wind launching them backwards. Some guards splat against the wall while other tumble on to the soldiers from the back line.

With a shadowy aetheric burst, Mathilde rushes forward. "Aetheric Gyrodrive!" She lets out a furious yell as she launches with a piercing drill kick through a line of soldiers, followed by an upward spiking kick straight to the commander's chin. "Easy job," Mathilde says.

We finally arrive at the Nightmare Testing Arena. Prince Dione stands at the center of the circular arena, expecting our arrival. He says, his arms open and his face showing a wide smile, "I knew you'd come. Let me show you what I've been working on, my friends. I'm sure the princess of Bektorias would be happy to know that her older brother is still around."

Mathilde grits her teeth. "What do you mean by that? I thought Prince Caienne was dead."

"Oh, he's alive and well. Just not in the same familiar form you're used to seeing him in." A holographic panel appears before the crown prince. He taps a few virtual buttons and then the panel disappears. Behind him, the metal pod rotates, revealing the glass opening and the Greater Nightmare sleeping inside, the same odd-armed hulking freak I saw prior to Lyne's confrontation.

Mathilde lays a piercing gaze on the face of this monster. "No," she says, gasping. "What have you done to Prince Caienne yos Figarosa?"

Dione lets out a chuckle. "The Nightmares did most of the work. I simply tamed the beast. I'm sure Princess Cammy yos Figarosa would be pleased to know about her brother's whereabouts."

"Bastard!" Mathilde says, her fists clenching, brows furrowing, and her teeth gritting.

"Now, Caienne, it's time for you to play." Dione presses a button on the control panel next to Caienne's containment cell. The pod's glass door swings open and steam puffs from the inside. The transformed Figarosa prince lets out a low moan and wakes up. He leaps and lands in front of Prince Dione, standing at twice the height of the Lexia prince. Dione waves. "It's time for me to depart. If you have the guts to take down Caienne, then I guess I'll see you again sometime." And then he's gone, vanishing away with his cape flowing and swaying.

Caienne's muscular arm glows and a crystallized mass forms from his fist. The mass extends, transforming itself into a club-like weapon. The transformed Figarosa prince lets out an agonizing moan.

Mathilde's cheeks twitch as she grinds her teeth. "I guess we don't have a choice but to put him down."

"Yes," Lyne says.

Caienne rears back and then swings forward with his crystal club with a devastating bashing attack. I parry the impact with my triggerblade while Mathilde and Lyne jump backward.

Lyne catches wind and performs a double-jump. With precision, she dives and thrusts her spear, aiming for the head of the Caienne. The Greater Nightmare shifts and the edge of Lyne's spear breaks off the crystallized plate on the shoulder.

"Taking aim!" Mathilde rushes in and delivers a piercing drill kick towards the crystal chunk on Caienne's chest. The crystal cracks and smaller pieces break. However, the Nightmare still stands, readying another attack.

Caienne's five smaller arms glow. He looks like he's charging an attack.

Mezos says over the Ad-Comm, "I'm detecting heavy aetheric signatures. Prepare defensive tactics!"

Five streams of magic launch from Caienne's hands and home in at our positions like heat-seeking missles.

With expert swiftness, Mathilde counters with a quick spinning back-fist, bypassing the streams of magic, and striking with her own concentrated form of shadow magic. Caienne staggers, wobbling backward, but he remains stable.

"Crack-shoot!" With my triggerblade, I deliver an overhead slash, swinging the multi-elemental streams away, reflecting them back at Caienne. The streams make contact, crashing on to the Nightmare's chest and shoulders. Caienne loses footing and stumbles forward, one knee down. However, he holds on with his club upright, maintaining stability.

"Lyne!" Mathilde says, preparing a desperation attack. "Let's finish this."

Lyne points at Mathilde. "Bahamut, be our guide and grant us your sight!" The eyes of both soldiers glow red with fury. The dragoon holds her spear high as an oversized pastel-blue aetheric projection of a dragon's head appears above the spear.

Mathilde flips and stands on the point of Lyne's spear. Then she launches herself up again. While Mathilde remains mid-flight, Lyne jumps and takes a heavy dive, crashing down in front of Caienne. The Greater Nightmare loses footing, both knees on the ground.

"Locked on!" Mathilde says while descending like a swan dive. With precision, Mathilde delivers a slashing kick to the Greater Nightmare's head. The coupe de grace to end the battle as the Nightmare falls and explodes into a burst of aether. A solemn mutter escapes from Mathilde's lips. "I'm sorry, your highness."

Lyne rushes to the control panel at the northern end of the arena. She taps a few buttons but lets out an angered grunt. "Bollocks! They changed the codes on me."

Mezos asks, "What were you trying to do? I can hack that panel if you need to."

Lyne says, "Just shut this place down. If not permanent, then mayhap long enough to know not to fuck around with me or Mathilde. Also, fireworks."

I point my triggerblade at a random pod around the arena. "Oh, I can do the fireworks part. Just tell me where to shoot."

Lyne points at a large glowing pipe running down to a lower level. "You see that? Break all four and that's going to shut this place down for a week or two."

I set my sights on the four cooling pipes. With a steady hand, four explosive rounds fire from my triggerblade. The burning projectiles fly up and collide with each pipe, striking home. The glowing coolant oozes from the pipes and the lights flash red.

"Red alert! Red alert! Please seek a shelter pod or evacuate the testing areas immediately. Stray Nightmare infestation is imminent!" The message repeats itself as the lights continue strobing.

Lyne motions us to follow her. "The magitech drop ships are this way." The dragoon takes point and leads Mathilde and me to a docking station where drop ships of various sizes remain parked. Gates open and some ships depart the sky fortress, blasting away from imminent danger.

We board a rectangular transport unit, big enough to carry six people. Lyne takes the driver's seat while Mathilde is on shotgun. I have the back to myself, standing but hunched, with my hand grasping on to a rail above me.

"Here we go!" Lyne says while starting the engine of the transport unit. A low hum sounds from the flanking and bottom sides of the ship. The transport unit wobbles for a moment, but after Lyne taps on some holographic buttons, the ship blasts out and on towards the clear night skies.

As I glance outside through the drop ship's window, I wonder where we'll end up. It seems we're above the clouds, but I see mountain tops ahead. Librascope-AI scans the mountain scape and spots a temple-like structure near the top of one of its peaks.

"That is Mount Tribulation," Mezos says over the Ad-Comm. "The temple at the top is where one would go to engage in their trial for enlightenment. Samza and I were there fifty years ago. It can be an eye-opening experience. Just be mindful of the strong winds."

"Fifty years ago?" Lyne says, "You don't sound that old — unless you're a fae, are you?"

"Indeed! I am a Reul-Sìthe fae, born under the Constellation of the Goat."

"Ah, that explains things then. I had suspected you were a goat, considering your knowledge."

Mathilde turns her head, facing Lyne, with her eyes looking lazy. "Who are you talking to?"

"Arizona's friend through my aetheric communicator," Lyne says while keeping her focus forward. "He's quite a knowledgeable lad."

"Is that an encrypted channel?" Mathilde asks.

"It is," Lyne says with a nod.

A panicked beeping sound comes from the cockpit's control panel, along with a flashing red message in their native language.

"Bloody hells!" Lyne pounds her fists on the dashboard. "We're almost out of fuel. The ship's going to crash." The dragoon disables the auto-pilot and takes control, attempting to keep the ship stable as it descends, down, down, down.

Turbulent winds toss the transport unit as I scramble in the back of the ship like tumbled laundry.

"Get ready for impact," Lyne says, her hands grasping on to the ship's steering wheel.

I hear the violent sounds of the ship colliding on to trees and foliage. We continue tumbling until we reach a sudden stop. I get up and realize the ship is upside down. I guess I should have worn my seatbelt because that landing sure is rough and painful.

Lyne and Mathilde undo their seat harnesses and slump down from their seats.

"Fuck!" Mathilde says, grunting while trying to exit the ship. However, her door appears shut, so she makes her way to the rear hatch and opens it, revealing a forested night scene of pale gray trees with the sounds of hooting owls nearby.

Lyne sighs. "Where the hells are we?"

Mathilde points ahead, spotting a dirt road leading to the entrance of the mountain. "That looks like the way to Mount Tribulation."

"At least we're getting closer to Svyataya Reka, the capital city of Bektorias."

"Ari," Mezos says, "it's almost morning. Finish up any loose ends and then we'll have our briefing."

Lyne turns to me with her eyes wide open and her mouth agape. "Wait a second. Are you a Valkyr dream diver?"

I nod. "Yes, I am."

"That means you'll disappear soon and return to your original location. Bugger. Well, I suppose this is a good time for us to rest then. Besides, going up that mountain during the night is not a smart idea."

I smile at the two. "Don't worry, guys. I'll be back." A short chuckle leaves between my grinning teeth.

Mathilde looks through the storage compartments of the drop ship and finds two bed rolls. "Convenient. We can rest here, but with the technology on this ship, I wonder if the Lexia Army will track us down."

Lyne smacks the rear door of the transport unit. "I disabled the tracking modules. They will not find us here."

"Good," Mathilde says while preparing the bed rolls.

Lyne turns her head and smiles at me. "Well, I hope to see you soon, Arizona. It's great to have you around. It's not everyday I run into a skilled gunbreaker like yourself."

"Gunbreaker? Never heard that word before," I say.

"Mayhap the Valkyr use a different word to describe your job class. Berserker maybe? I don't know. All I know is that your skills are something else compared to the gunblade-wielding commanders of both the Lexia and Figarosa Armies. A wonderful display of finesse. Anyway, I'm sure you'll fade away soon. With that, I give you my thanks."

"Any time."

—————

I wake up from my sequence and proceed to Dr. Williams's office where Mezos and Samza await, readying themselves for the post-mission briefing.

"Yo! How's your morning, dawg?" Samza asks, her arms wide open.

My stomach answers before me with a slight growl.

Samza points at a glass bowl full of wavy potato chips and cheesy puffs sitting on her desk. Next to it is a plate full of brownies. "Okay, not exactly a healthy thing to eat for breakfast, but at least it's something," she says before chugging down a can of energy drink. "You want a brownie?"

I tried the brownies a couple days ago and my head felt very weird, like I saw colors I never knew existed. I'm not sure what it was, but I think the brownies have something in them that didn't sit well with the way I was thinking. "Nah, I'm good. I think I'll pick up a protein bar at the Café. Thanks though," I say.

Mezos adjusts his glasses and loads an array of holograms around the office. "Thanks to your new friend, Lyne Highwind, we got a whole stash of data. We downloaded stuff about the Lexia and Figarosa armies and imperial families, along with updated maps containing the locations of the Figarosa castrums and Lexia sky fortresses. What should we start with first?"

"Let's start with the bases," I say.

Mezos waves a hand, and a hologram of a floating metal spire appears. "This is Sky Fortress Camcapre. That's where you just came from — the place where the Lexia Army is experimenting with Nightmare specimens. There is also another base like that called Sky Fortress Lisaienaud, a facility built for training summoners. Looks like the Lexia Army wants a piece of that summoner action."

Samza raises a finger, revealing a hologram depicting a military base enclosed in dark iron walls. "A few new Figarosa bases popped up since the last time we looked at the map. This one is Castrum Tormenti Spiculum, the home of VIth Legion's Royal Red Assassins' Cohort of the Figarosa Army. It is near a village called—" the rabbit fae takes a brief pause and clears her throat, "—Belaya Derevnya. I probably butchered the pronunciation of that. Anyway, that is the base where Soldier-Mathilde trained at."

"How about the royal families?" I ask.

Mezos taps on the side of his glasses and a hologram displays two important individuals, Prince Dione and Princess Clarice. "You've seen these two already. Dione is the oldest child, while Clarice is the youngest one. There are also two middle children, Serahlyne III and Balthea. Balthea deals with political matters and little influence over the military. Serahlyne III—"

"—ain't got shit, dawg!" Samza finishes. "Her file's all blacked out. It's almost as if they cut her off the family tree."

"I think so, too, Sam. Must have pissed off her mother."

I scratch my chin, wondering about the other side. "How about the Figarosa family?"

Samza shrugs. "You met Caienne. He dead now."

Mezos continues, waving a hand, displaying a hologram of a pale skin boy with blonde hair wearing a white mage's robe with red accents. "There are two more. This is Prince Alphio wen Figarosa, an apprentice summoner. As an apprentice, he only knows how to summon three or four eikons, whereas Samza can summon a selection big enough to make a fighting game out of them."

Samza waves her hand, revealing a tan skin girl with green hair tied back into a ponytail. She's taller than the boy and wears a red uniform resembling a pilot's sleeveless jumpsuit. Her shredded muscular arms are bare save for a bronze bracelet on her left wrist. White metal boots with gold trims protect her feet, verdant green feathers decorate her shoulders and hips, and a faded pinkish-red patterned cape covers her neck and back. Samza raises a brow. "Seriously? That's her name?"

"Yup!" Mezos nods. "Her name is Cammy yos Figarosa, Princess of The Holy Nation of Bektorias. According to the dossier report from the Lexia Army, they classified her battle jobs as Dervish and Junctioner."

I scratch the back of my head. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Mezos says, "A dervish is a subclass of monk. Meaning that she practices martial arts like a monk but augments many of her attacks with wind-aspected magic. She probably fires Aeros and Aerogas like they're Sonic Booms — to put things in perspective for Samza's two brain cells." Mezos points at his rabbit-eared sister.

Samza shrugs. "I guess this Cammy fights more like Guile. She must be all about that down-back life."

"Yup!" Mezos nods.

"And the Junctioner part?"

Samza says, "It's a summoner thing. Unlike fae summoners like me, imperial summoners need a junctioner to help them control their eikons. Worse case scenario would be an Empress Garnette situation where she summoned Eden but didn't have enough junctioners to control it. Eden be like, I'm finna dump my Rage Art on your country, and now you have a big-ass crater west of Mount Tribulation."

My phone in my pocket vibrates. Mezos and Samza's phones at their desks also sound a chime.

Samza checks her phone. "Yup! I knew it. Looks like an email from Mr. V. Gods dammit!"

I check my phone and skim through Mr. Vahn'dien's email. Crap! I guess the short, rich guy wants us to meet at Rowynn's shop for a briefing. I should have seen this coming, considering the news coming from the White House yesterday.