...
A beautiful sun shined down on a yet more beautiful clearing deep in a forest, far above the place where 'lesser' humans resided. In this clearing, a woman sat atop a blanket spread across the grass, an elegant and regal yet all too kind air about her.
Impassively, yet allowing some slight warmth to slip through once in a while, the woman watched two boys, -her sons- play around.
The older of the two had long hair, normally blonde, yet died black. He did his best not to grow too close to the younger boy, yet it was impossible. He tried to be impassive and curt, but the younger boy's bright eyes and warm smile made it nearly impossible. The older boy wore much more casual clothes than would be expected of him, though they were still much more luxurious than any normal outfit.
The younger boy had an unevenly cut, short mop of dirty blonde hair. It seemed as though there was a perpetual smear of mud or dirt on his face, but no one had the heart to make him clean, as he would always profusely apologize, a habit his Father desperately wished to eliminate.
The younger boy fell over again in the dirt. All he responded with to that, after a short expression of shock, was the innocent laugh of a child. He waved to the woman sitting on the blanket, a wide smile on his face.
"Mother~! Mother, look, look! Aki is teaching me to fight! I'm reeeeaaaally good too, right, Aki-?"
The boy directed that last part at the older boy, his older brother Akitaka Kentaro. The shortened name as a nickname had annoyed Akitaka at first, the younger boy's perpetual smile had softened the older boy's annoyance.
...Plus, once the nickname had caught on with most everyone else, Akitaka had no choice but to accept it.
The woman watching on giggled, her heart warmed not only by the younger boy's excitement and happiness, but also the clear gentleness in Akitaka's hits. The older boy always acted like he didn't care, but to the woman, to his Mother, his feelings were practically translucent, that love for his younger brother.
"Oh, my... Aki, it seems you'll have some competition for your title as 'The Strongest of the Kentaro Guard', soon~ Young Kata is growing fast, isn't he?"
Akitaka sighed, lowering the wooden sword he was using. He did try to inflict some annoyance into his tone and his grin, yet he was already winded, and with an earnest grin, and his hair let loose, not tied back as he would during a serious battle, it was a poor act indeed.
"...Hah. Maybe, Mother... but someday, he and I're gonna be enemies, ya hear? Someday, kid, we'll have a big ass battle, and there'll be lottsa explosions 'n shit, and no one's gonna be usin' magic, not in a fight between us knights! Ain't that right, kid-?"
The two boys' Mother had half a mind to chastise Akitaka for his language, but the Kentaro family had long since accepted that this boy had quite the foul mouth.
As Akitaka grinned down at the younger boy sprawled out in the dirt, their mother only watched on, as she reflected on Akitaka's seemingly hostile behavior.
Even at fifteen years old, that boy has such awful language... but, I don't believe he means to offend nor hurt anyone by it. ...in fact... I believe it is quite the opposite... that boy, Akitaka, he... is quite the gentle soul. There is not an ounce of hatred in him... it is only the shell of pain I have done all I can to remedy.
I suppose, after what happened to him, it's a miracle he's still alive, much less being so friendly with young Kata... such a kind, kind boy, that Aki. It is truly a shame he was hurt in such a way...
"...Mistress Ume. There is an issue."
Those five words, whispered into the woman's ear by an intelligence officer employed by the Kentaro family, made her stop midway through a sip of her tea. The two boys hadn't noticed yet though, which was fortunate for her.
Gently placing the ornate cup down, Ume kept the smile on her face as she watched the two boys spar, quietly whispering to the officer, attempting to hide it altogether from her two sons.
"...What is it, Tatsuki? -And stay quiet! I don't want those two to worry..."
The officer, Tatsuki, bowed their head, concealing themselves with simple magecraft channeled remotely through their cloak. They speak much more quietly, only barely loud enough for the woman to hear.
"We need to evacuate the area. Something happened nearby... We've sent an envoy to Sydrial in the capital to request help, but-"
Nodding slowly, Ume began to calmly clean everything up, packing it all back into the basket she brought it all in. Without another word, just a simple nod, Tatsuki disappeared, knowing full well the direness of the situation. With a soft shout, without a hint of worry in her voice, Ume Kentaro called out to her sons.
"Alright, it's time for us to leave, boys! Your Father wants us to be home soon, and you know how he gets when we don't listen to him-! Hehe..."
The younger boy groaned, not suspecting a thing. Of course, there would be no need to suspect anything at all, wouldn't there? After all, when one is as innocent as the young boy is, there is no reason for others to lie or to withhold the truth, in their eyes.
Ume was so normal with her words, so average and happy, she nearly believed her own optimism. It was a facade, yet one worthy of the greatest actors the Celestial Realm has ever seen.
There was no need for suspicion, no inclination of suspense.
Yet Akitaka still stuck even closer to the younger boy on the way back than usual, after casting a single strange glance at his mother.
...
_______________________________________________
73 Days After First Encounter
...
"Damn... dammit! Ten weeks in, they're still not here...!"
A man standing at the head of a table, his tone urgent and despairing, pored over a small stack of papers. Thoughts rushed through his head, faster than he could understand them- Yet, his resolve came back just as strongly. His resolve to save all those still loyal to him, his resolve to save his children, his family, kept him standing amidst his entire world falling apart.
Taking a deep breath, steeling his nerves, the man directed all those waiting around the large table.
"...Captain Tsubasa. Take command of Rattle Squadron, and join up with whatever remains of the SCD. They can't last much longer without reinforcements...! Lieutenant Naoko, position your Omega Squadron at the edge of Dornein, and dig in there! If we lose that position, the capital will be overrun... Alpha, Havoc, and Shatter Squadrons will rally at the Viernein clearing! All Squads without orders will report to Position Tec-31. ...Dismissed!"
As soon as the stressed man finished speaking, the other men and women surrounding the table nodded, and hurried to fulfill the orders given to them.
Not a moment after the room had emptied, the man collapsed atop his chair- his throne.
Ten weeks. That was the length of time that had passed since this siege began. Ten weeks ago, it was Intelligence Officer Tatsuki Nagai who uncovered an oncoming horde of monsters. Creatures of bone, yet not of blood- moving, yet not alive.
Ten weeks ago, an envoy was sent, requesting relief from the capital. Either the envoy had been killed, or they turned rogue- for, if the envoy had truly arrived at the capital requesting aide, it was nearly a guaranteed fact that no less than Sydrial himself would arrive to the rescue of the Kentaro family garrison.
Ten weeks- far longer than any attack had lasted before. Positioned so far on the outskirts of the Celestial Realm, there was bound to be the occasional skirmish. But... for a battle to be so drawn out-
"...Father...? Are... are you alright...?"
That small, quiet voice echoing through the man's empty room startled him, who was deep in thought. Peeking shyly around a slightly opened door was the small face of the man's daughter- Chiho Kentaro.
The man immediately sat up with a smile, but he couldn't simply make the dark circles under his eyes go away- nor could he smile without it looking strained, artificial... But of course, the man still did his best, if only to ease his daughter's fears.
"-Ah! Yes, of course. ...But, it's very late, my Dear... do you feel sick?"
Chiho stepped into view more now, though still quite characteristically shy. The only thing overly different about her now, outside of her nightwear was what she was holding- a children's storybook.
"N-no, I was just ...I... I was wondering... could you... read me a bedtime story...? It's been a long time since last time, so..."
The man's expression softened, and his smile became more earnest, if only slightly. Though the bags under his eyes remained, though all his worries were in the back of his mind-
He was able to remind himself that, in this moment, he was not the Lord of a strategically placed encampment, nor was he commanding a losing battle-
The man was, at that moment, a father.
No more was needed, and no less would he allow.
...
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