<span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="text-decoration: underline"><div style="text-align: center;">Lindela - District 10</div></span></span><br/><br/><br/>The trip through the swirling dark gate was turbulent in the least. Lillith finds herself struggling from nausea and vomiting when she was spewed out of the rift. Her body tumbled on hard ground a few times before coming to a limp stop in the middle of... a lot of people. The horrified looks on their faces told her immediately that they have witnessed the whole event of her getting spat out in the open. She tried to collect herself but weakness hindered her attempt, followed by a violent churn of her stomach that sent bile up her throat and out of her mouth. The people took two maybe three steps back when she hurled. What is it with these people? She knew someone vomiting was not a pleasant sight to see but why do they look so mortified? Ahh, it could be the dark portal that tossed her out here.<br/><br/>Disregarding the stares she was getting, Lillith tried to move but suddenly stopped. She felt several pains aching all over her body. Normally she could walk off a tumble like that but this time around, she hardly had any strength, let alone the mindset to get up. Fear and panic gripped her heart. She was smack in the middle of Light territory with only a frail body and no power to help her. No doubt someone from these people would call for knights to come and she would... she would die in their hands. Something warm trickled down from her eyes unconsciously. Lillith weakly pulled a hand closer only to realize that she was crying. Why?! Why did she have to be subjected to this kind of treatment by Queen Eve?! She had been the good little spymaster for as long as she could remember! Why was her efforts hardly recognized by the Queen?! It was not long before her tears broke out into sobs. Never in her entire tainted life had she felt so... so helpless.<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">"Lady, are you okay?"</span><br/><br/>A voice? Someone was talking to her? Where...? Lillith turned her head back only to see a pair of boots. She traced the form of the man towering above her. She was surprised that he even managed to creep up on her like that without her noticing him. Upon taking a closer look at the stranger, she saw that he was carrying what looked like groceries in one arm but his posture immediately told her that this man had seen battle countless times. Why was he talking to her? Can't he see who she was? Can't he recognize that she was an enemy? Then it hit her, the fact she didn't want to admit. She was no longer Sin's spymaster. Queen Eve revoked her right to the power she once used to have and reduced her to this mortal contraption as punishment. What did she ever do to warrant such a fate? Her thoughts shifted to the side upon noticing movement from the stranger. She trembled when the man knelt beside her, one hand of his offering to help. She staggered back clumsily, flopping a few times before she could actually get a measely amount of distance between them.<br/><br/>"I'm not going to hurt you. What's your name milady?"<br/><br/><span style="color: #FF0000">"Don't come any closer!"</span>she forced the words beneath her labored breath.<br/><br/>The man sighed and lowered his extended hand. He looked at the woman with contempt. Why was she so hostile? He was just trying to be nice. "Fine. Suit yourself." he blurted nonchalantly and was just about to get back up when the woman reached out for him halfway.<br/><br/>What was she doing?! The mission! She needed to redeem herself! She needed to show Queen Eve that she deserved that power! What was it that she said? The more human she became, the easier it will be to blend in. Right, she could use that to her advantage. This man might just be her key.<span style="color: #FF0000">"I-I'm so..rry."</span>she stuttered; the words repulsed her.<span style="color: #FF0000">"I've... been through a lot."</span><br/><br/>"Yes I can see that." the man responded, gazing at her dirty self while maintaining his kneeling position and polite distance.<span style="color: #FF0000">"Are you a knight?"</span>she asked, the sudden question eliciting a barely noticeable widening from the man's gray eyes. He hesitated for a moment before falling to an easy smile. "I was, a long time ago. What's your name?" he changed the subject smoothly.<br/><br/>Her name. If this man was a knight before, she couldn't just tell him her name was Lillith.<span style="color: #FF0000">"Li-Lilac."</span>she answered, eyes averting the gray ones that looked at her. "Like the flower? That's a beautiful name. It suits your hair." the other commented.<br/><br/>Her hair? Lillith immediately grasped a lock of it and brought it before her eyes. It was true! Her previously glossy red hair was also reverted to the color they used to have when she was still a human, faint purple. Their conversation came to an abrupt halt when the crowd that encircled both of them parted to give way to a squad of knights. Lillith immediately tensed, they were so close and yet she couldn't even feel their presence! Dread and panic once again threatened to consume her. These knights were their hated enemy and now they are coming to get her! What could she do? What could she possibly do in this state?!<br/><br/>"Not a bad response time. Relax Lilac, they're just here for a routine check. You did come into town with quite an entrance." the man calmly assured her.<br/><br/>The words of this man, for some reason, washed away her fears. Why did she feel so relieved? What was it that's making her trust this stranger, this man that used to be a knight himself? Lillith crawled back when the knights approached, garnering eight pairs of eyes to look at her cautiously.<br/><br/>"Citizen, we heard reports of a woman coming out of nowhere in this district. Is that her?" The one who appeared to be the squad captain asked. The silence from the gray eyed man confirmed his suspicions. "Then we'll be taking her into our custody. In light of the recent attacks on Gless, we cannot afford to be careless."<br/><br/>"Is that really necessary? Surely you could feel that she poses no threat right? She may be tainted but it's hardly enough to convert her to a Sinner. If you ask me, she just needs a quick Absolve." the gray eyed man protested.<br/><br/>The squad captain stood his ground. "Sorry citizen, High Council's orders are to investigate anything out of the ordinary. No exceptions."<br/><br/>"Then where will you be taking her?" he asked the captain who simply sighed at his delaying tactics.<br/><br/>"District Six. We'll conduct the investigation in the knight garrison there and relay the findings to the Seraphs."<br/><br/>The gray eyed man sighed in defeat. He no longer had any authority and the new knights these days barely knew who he was. He then turned to Lilac and knelt before her once more. "Sorry, it's out of my hands. I wanted to help you before they arrived but things have changed even in Lindela after Gless got attacked. You'll have to go with these knights for investigation."<br/><br/>Lillith's eyes immediately displayed fear. There was nothing this man could do for her. She will be left alone in the hands of their hated enemy to die! Perhaps this was what Eve wanted to happen all along? Perhaps this is why she made the gate appear out in the open, to let the knights find her and kill her immediately. Tears were once again streaming involuntarily down her eyes, but the man's voice stopped her from breaking into sobs. "My name is Zied." he said with a warm smile. "Don't worry, I will come visit you as soon as I am able. They will probably hold you for a few days but if you don't have anything to hide, I'm sure you'll be okay." he reassured the woman.<br/><br/>Before she could say anything else, the knights moved in to secure her and whisked her away. Lillith didn't struggle, she couldn't say anything, other than it was futile, the man's words gave her a tiny bit of hope. Why was she... what was in that man that made her feel so... she couldn't place her thoughts. The only thing she could do is look back with pleading eyes towards the man named Zied.<br/><br/><div style="text-align: center;">__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________</div><br/><br/><span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="text-decoration: underline"><div style="text-align: center;">Grand Cathedral - Squad Eight Quarters (Evening)</div></span></span><br/><br/><br/>Another day of training came to an end for Guilford's squad. They were again out of breath and still struggling with exhaustion. Fiona never felt more tired than her entire life. She had ice packs wrapped around some of the most sore parts of her body. Today their Captain introduced them to a modified suppression pill. Right now, none of them could use their magic. All they could feel was that their magic points are sealed for the duration of their training session until now. It would have been nice if they could heal themselves but according to their Captain, the pill would serve to help train their magic proficiency while allowing their magic reserves focus on recovery.<br/><br/>"Captain... when would the effects of the pills we took earlier wear off?" Natalia painfully grumbled.<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"Is that a complaint?"</span>Guilford asked, readying himself to boost the weight enchantment on their weighted clothes.<br/><br/>Hyuga flailed his arms around, desperately trying to draw their Captain's attention. "N-no Captain! It's just an intellectual inquiry on her part," he paused, gaze suddenly shifting towards Natalia. "Right Nat?"<br/><br/>The blonde's head started bobbing almost immediately, realizing that she once again nearly had the amount of weight they had to deal with boosted by another notch. The magic in Guilford's right hand subsided followed by a unified sigh of relief that escaped the lips of the other seven in the room.<span style="color: #0080FF">"Those pills were not meant to seal off your magic. It was meant to make it hard for you to use magic. Unlike suppression pills that regulate the flow of magic circulating freely around your body, these ones completely stops the circulation but leaves your magic points open. It will be up to you to draw your magic from the points to be able to use it."</span><br/><br/>"I see now. Should we manage to properly use magic under the influence of the pill, our proficiency will be greatly boosted when we're... sober? Is that right Captain?" Hyuga inquired, hands already with a pen and paper jotting down notes. The Seraph simply nodded to answer and went back to reading, stamping and filing reports.<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"First one to use their Magic properly will inherit my Nirvana. I reforged it last night."</span>Guilford mindlessly mumbled to his squad.<br/><br/>It didn't take long for his entire team to start forcing their magic to their command. They were clearly straining themselves denoted by the silly, almost laughable expressions on their faces. Georg looked like he was having toilet trouble, Alfrei's pretty-boy face looked like he ate something disgusting, Natalia seemed like she was having a bad hair day, Vlad seemed calm and fine at first but a closer look would reveal that he was nearing the border of being cross eyed, Joaquim looked like he was ready to flip a table, Hyuga seemed to want to rip all his hair out, and Fiona's grace and elegance simply went down the drain. Yet despite their best efforts, not even a fume of their magic sparked from their hands. Guilford simpy sighed and went back to his paperwork. An hour passed and still nobody was able to draw their magic.<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"Breathe. Don't force something that doesn't want to come out. Call out to your magic, make it want to come to you and not the other way around."</span>he instructed before falling to silence, engrossing himself with a new stack of paperwork.<br/><br/>"Can't you be a little more specific Captain?" Hyuga frustratedly groaned. He was the second best caster in this squad yet he's having tremendous difficulty. It wasn't the sword he wanted, he just wanted to retain the pride of being a caster.<br/><br/>Guilford laughed.<span style="color: #0080FF">"Calling out your magic differs per individual Hyu. You have to understand how your magic responds to you so I can't say anything more than what I have already told you."</span><br/><br/>"Ugh! This isn't working!" Natalia huffed. She took a deep breath first before resuming the attempt at making her magic manifest. Normally, she could feel it free-flowing in her body and she just willed it to her command without much effort but now... it felt like her magic was refusing her, well, not just her but everyone else. Still, for being one of the most talented ones in the arcane arts, she felt disgrace that a simple pill could stop her from using her forte. It wouldn't stop her from trying though, the humiliation wouldn't allow her to give in to the idea of being defeated by a pill. The minutes ticked into hours with much of the same.<br/><br/>He had already finished another stack of paperwork when he started sensing the built up frustration from each member of his squad. Guilford shuffled the finished reports in his hand and set it down for a moment.<span style="color: #0080FF">"Keep your mind calm. Any other thoughts would only serve to hinder your progress."</span><br/><br/>A sudden surge of magic caught the attention of Guilford and the rest of the squad. Fiona's eyes were gleaming with delight. She held an awestruck gaze at her hands that were flickering on and off with her magic. Whatever previously less dignified expression her face held was replaced with her cheerful and elegant expression. "I... I think I'm getting it!" she gleefully announced, much to the surprise of the others and a lot to Natalia's envy. Soon Fiona was completely able to draw upon her magic and was using it to heal herself. Then Alfrei's hands began to glow, calm and gentle yet obviously brimming with his own magic. Vlad was the third one to accomplish the task, then Hyuga, then Joaquim and then Georg. Everyone else was able to draw upon their magic but her... the number one caster in this squad.<br/><br/>"Captain... may I be excused?" Natalia bravely requested, clearly trying to force the tears back.<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"You're free to go Nat."</span><br/><br/>The words stung her. She didn't expect to hear those from her Captain, the one who handpicked her from her class when she graduated. She was expecting some form of encouragement if anything. Perhaps the man realized how useless she really was on this squad and just couldn't bear to say it in front of everyone. With a forceful groan, Natalia willed herself back to her feet even under the strain of the weighted clothes she was still wearing. She hobbled a few steps mostly from exhaustion but finally managed to storm out of the squad quarters. An air of awkward silence descended those left in the room when the doors clicked close. Nobody knew what to say or if there were any right words to say. After all, the best caster in this squad failed to call upon her magic before everyone else, that alone is hard to swallow.<br/><br/>Joaquim stood up to go after her but Guilford immediately shot the idea down.<span style="color: #0080FF">"Leave her be. She will not grow if we continue to pamper her. Dark times lie ahead of us. We all must learn to draw strength not only from the others around us but from ourselves as well. Let her alone to her thoughts for now, I'm sure she will come to her senses and realize what it is she has to learn."</span><br/><br/>Joaquim bitterly sat back down. He didn't like having to leave Natalia alone when she's in a fragile state, but right now the words of their Captain held a lot of truth in them. He could only sigh and hope for the best.<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"I will be heading to Lindela's District Six garrison tomorrow. Alfrei, I trust you to oversee the squad's training in my absence."</span><br/><br/>"Lindela Captain? What business do you have there?" asked the Vice Captain who was still playing with his magic.<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"It's just a routine check. One squad says that they have in their custody a woman who just appeared out of nowhere on District Ten."</span><br/><br/>Silence followed his words. The remaining members of his squad looked at each other with apparent dread in their eyes. That was how Eve attacked Gless! She appeared out of nowhere! Alfrei immediately stopped toying with his magic and stood up, eyes displaying calmness but his clenched fists telling a different story.<br/><br/>"Relax. If it was Eve, District Ten would be long gone by now." Georg tried to calm the other down.<br/><br/>"While I admire that ability of yours to act calm and composed Lieutenant, I seriously think you're taking this too easy." Hyuga drily commented. "A woman appearing out of nowhere calls for a little surprise don't you think? Teleportation spells aren't all that common you know." he lectured the other. Georg was about to react but was cut off by the voice of his Captain.<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"That's why I'm going."</span>Guilford butted in before things escalated between the two.<span style="color: #0080FF">"None of you are ready to face the likes of Eve so all of you are staying put. Understood?"</span><br/><br/>A unified acknowledgement sounded in the quarters. After a couple minutes, Guilford then stood from his desk and went straight to his knight locker. Within he plucked out a familiar sword in a white sheath. He walked over to Fiona who had her eyes closed and was still in the process of soothing her sore body with her Healing spell. He knelt before her and called for her attention. The other who was dragged back to reality at the call of her name immediately poised herself upon seeing her Captain kneeling before her. She tried for words but nothing came out. Was this a proposal? It's so soon! Oh dear she wasn't ready! However, her thoughts seemed to finally found their bearings when he held out the sword and offered it to her gracefully.<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"As promised. This is my Nirvana, it is yours now."</span>he said, offering the weapon to the woman in the traditional Rosenwulf way.<span style="color: #0080FF">"May this sword serve to protect you always."</span><br/><br/>"C-Captain..." Fiona trailed off. She didn't think the offer for a Rosenwulf weapon was for real but now... she took the sword and immediately unsheathed it, revealing the sea blue blade within. She saw this broken blade in the memorial but now that she was holding it up close, she began to truly appreciate the craftsmanship. There was hardly any remnant of the last battle this sword saw. It looked completely new. She was in the middle of admiring the sword when she suddenly began to feel strange, like the sword was sucking her consciousness in. Guilford snapped his fingers right before her face and she was suddenly back in the room.<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"Sheath the sword now Fiona. I'll tell you this beforehand, Nirvana is hard to master. The sword will consume you if you let your guard down. You're going to be spending nights trying to understand that sword. However, I trust that you can make it submit to you."</span>he winked at Fiona who was still awestruck at what she just felt.<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"Okay, you're all dismissed for the day. Make sure to get plenty of rest for tomorrow. Good night guys."</span>