Story:Kings of Strife/Part 18

Part Eighteen
"I've decided I want to accelerate my plans."

The words came from Noltsuvainia as she sat in a small boat on the Shimurian swamps. The land in every direction was a barren jungle with no life or movement, and the water her boat floated down was still and stagnant. No current existed to push them along, so she had to push them with an oar every now and then. Her only companion, the Crimson Death, lay on his back and had been doing so ever since they had boarded the boat hours ago. By this time the sun had risen and she could clearly see the marshland that she traveled on.

It had startled her when the sun rose that morning. After the events at the Castle the past night, she hadn't been able to get a wink of sleep in the dinky little boat she had commandeered with Gin. Yet despite the unbelievable things that she had just witnessed, no matter how much changed for her and Gin and that man, the sun rose without a care and the world was engulfed in light again. She had thought about that fact for a while, fascinated about it, before she came to a conclusion of her own about it. It meant that she, Gin, the mercenary, everyone in this world were truly just weak and miniscule creatures. Even Gin and the man in black who both defied death could never make such an effect on the world that the sun would not rise.

"That is the change I will make to this world," she had finally said to herself. "I will impart my destiny on this world so that the very universe must stop and look at me with awe."

Speaking of Gin, she still could hardly believe that he was still alive. As soon as she left through the back door of the castle and boarded the small vessel that Gin had left tied to the ground, she had attempted to sew up his remains. Somehow, despite every terrible injury he had taken, the man still continued to bleed and breathe. His chest twitched often and his mouth moved occasionally, but besides that he did not speak or move or look at anything. Remarkably, sometime after Vainia would attach a limb or body part back to his main body, it would twitch along with him.

She hadn't taken many Anatomy classes back at Zeta Academy, but Vainia was almost entirely sure that body parts should not be able to continue working after being removed and simply sewn back on. She had felt foolish while doing so, but once his body was completely put back together and moving slightly and slowly, she had felt relieved - and terrified. Just what was this man?

No matter how she felt, it was definitely a relief to have him on her side, at least for now. After he had all his body parts attached, Gin had sat and simply looked up to the sky with his same blank expression. It would have normally worried Vainia, but now that he didn't need to be healed by her, she had started rowing more frequently and watching her environment. Shimura; the country of disaster. Ravaged by plagues some 15 years ago, the country hadn't seen a living thing grace its shores ever since. Nobody ever knew what happened to the country, or just how such a plague could be so devastating as to remove an entire population, but it didn't matter to the world, and the country had been closed off to everyone ever since.

That Black Pass she had left from was also recognizable as the only safe way into Shimura, or at least it used to be. The Black Mist that guarded it had appeared shortly after the genocidal incident in Shimura and had ravaged anybody who attempted to enter. The only reason she and Gin were able to enter the Black Pass, she had been told, was that they had come up from the way that she now fled through. That had left her with two burning questions: Why did Gin know his ways about Shimura? And how did the man in black get to the castle?

Those would be her first priority to ask Gin about when she could, but in his current situation, pondering those issues was pointless. Instead she had looked around the Shimurian swamps with curiosity and bated breath, waiting for something to strike at the two and kill them as well, but it never came. Instead she was in awe of how absolutely silent the forest and the waters were. So still was the environment that she felt as if she was trespassing into it, breaking the graveyard that had once been peaceful and tranquil.

That hadn't lasted long either before she began to think of her most important, most personal topic; her ambition. Now that she had been kidnapped by the Crimson Death and hauled across the country, it must have been days since she had been seen on Zeta Academy. If a missing person's report wasn't filed for her yet, she was definitely in hot water for missing so many school days without visiting the attendance office or having an excuse. That meant her Zeta phase had been cut short much quicker than she had planned.

Sadly, she hadn't gained much inner information of Inusia as she had planned, but the fact of the matter was that she was stronger and had maintained a strong presence among the students of the Academy. Being one of the most popular within the thousands of students attending the school, there was no doubt that she would be able to use the Academy later on as a potential resource. That was fine with her, though, because with the faltering of one opportunity, another had risen to take its place.

Having seen Gin's amazing regenerative abilities firsthand, she now knew that she held an amazing power both within her and around her. There was no doubt that the man had acted to protect her often that past night, even in the face of her own weakness. If he was as willing and devoted to her as he said he was, who was she to let such a resource go? Sure, she couldn't trust him just yet, considering how unstable he was, there would be no point in antagonizing him further or pushing him away any further. After all, with any Queen, there would always be a Knight standing right behind her.

And with her Knight in hand, Vainia felt confident that she could start making her move on the world.

Now that Inusia was out of the picture for a first strike and Shimura was deserted, she found that her only option was Shorica. The large peninsula of naval dominance, both with military might and boisterous economic power. Ever the superior rival to Mortis, it held a special place in her heart, one that filled her with black rage. "I will make sure to find an opening in that country and exploit it to the best of my ability." With a glance, she looked to Gin, who now looked at her with his dead blue eyes. His body was healing amazingly fast; still horribly and gruesomely wounded, but now they didn't look like lethal wounds that would kill a man in a second. In addition, his burns had all but disappeared, and his skin was coming back in a sickly pink shade. She could have sworn she saw a twinkle in his dull blue eyes for a second. She looked back and lifted her chin slightly in her characteristic pompous thought. "The government will have a fault, the masses will have a complaint. I will find something and use it until it becomes my weapon. And you," she directed this at the Crimson Death whom she knew was listening to her every word, "will do whatever it takes to help me in my quest."

He spoke for the first time to her since the incident, amazingly, and his voice was hoarse and quiet. He spoke slowly, as if choosing his words or searching his brain for them. "I know a man in Phenicks that has been working a rebel terrorist circuit for years. They have a strong backing, and with proper leadership... They could aspire to something great."

Vainia refrained from turning back, both to look onto her future reflected on the dark waters and to hide her smile from Gin's blank eyes. "Very good. That will be my stepping stone... And you will be my sword. Together, we will bring Shorica down." She found herself almost shaking from the excited passion that bubbled within her. The awesome feats that had occurred the night before had almost completely left her mind now, pushed out to make way for lofty dreams, complex plans, and unmistakably strong ambition. Her eyes looked only to the future. "My first conquest will be one of legend. The very heavens will shake as I curl that despicable country and its people to its knees and show them the terrible crimes that have been done to my people. You and I will make an empire, Taoris." Still she did not turn to him, instead looking down at her gloriously dirty, messy, and sleep-less reflection, and continued to shake ever quicker for her excitement.

Despite himself, Taoris could not help but feel excited along with his mistress. He found himself breathing a sigh of relief now that Silverius had been left behind in the black castle and they rowed along the boat, further and further away from his past. Neither one of the combatants had died, but now Silverius' quest was clearer in his mind and Taoris found his own unfolding in front of him like a divine map. Their next clash would be one in the far future, Taoris knew, and would come only when Taoris had helped the girl in front of him to reach her dreams. His purpose was slowly becoming clearer to him and his end was beginning to take shape. With a painful yet sincere smile, Taoris responded to the young woman in front of him. "Yes, my Queen."

Vainia swept her hair from her face as now she looked into the sky. As before, nothing around the two moved except for her destiny. "Taoris... I am finally moving towards my goal. I can do this - this empire will be mine."

"Yes, my Queen."

"Taoris... I am the empire."

...End of Part Eighteen.

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