The Next Morning [Finished]

[Isurugi Amelia]

Amelia gave the woman an annoyed look but then smirked. "Plaything? I am more than just some plaything. I am the Marshal of the Aviation Force who I would like to say can perform better than whatever trashy army that my sister has under her." Her eyes went over to her sisters. She really didn't need to attack her sister, but after what happened earlier and at the fact that both her and the random female's presence was not setting well with her, she felt it was needed. She couldn't possibly attack the lady just in case it was a Heaven King or someone of an importance, not if she wanted to look bad to Gin.

However she wasn't going to hop up and do whatever this lady wanted her to do, especially since she wanted to be with Gin before today's training. She could care less if she had some important documents she wanted to go over Gin. "Who are you anyway? And why do feel the need to talk to Gin right before we start our training session? Couldn't this wait until lunch or are you trying to get stuff done now when you should have done it already?" She crossed her arms and sharply stared at the Heaven being that was infringing on her time with Gin.

[Isurugi Mei]

After hearing Amelia's insult towards her, Mei clenched her fist even more so and glared at her sister. How dare she talk about my people after one of hers strolls in late as if it wasn't a big deal.

Amelia then started to question Tsubasa and it Mei couldn't let her sister do that. She could let her sister get chewed out by Tsubasa but it would probably make her, the Queen, and the rest of the faeries look bad. She decided that the best action was to deal with her sister herself.

"How dare you talk that way to an Elder of Heaven. You should show some respect towards her. You have some nerve questioning her especially since you're only a guest here in Heaven. I should report you to the Queen and lets see how long you'll be staying here after that. Now leave like you were asked to do or else you want to be thrown out."

She turned slightly away and spoke under her breath. "I can't believe that she is somehow my sister."

[Kouzetsu Gin]

Gin cleared his throat at all of the commotion going on in his tent. Adjusting his glasses on his face, a small grin appeared at the corners of his mouth as he put his hand on Ameila's shoulder, "Tsubasa, no need for such harsh words against a guest of the state, if personal meeting is what you seek, then it is given to you without hesitation."

"Amelia, your sister is right , Mikage Tsubasa ids one of the most esteemed citizens of Heaven, and she commands the respect of each citizen, guest, and King, myself included. Mind your tongue when speaking to her in the future. The last person who spoke to her in such a manner was that juvenile Fae by the name of Rosey, and I dare say without my intervention, she may have not been present yesterday for me to have had to reprimand conveniently enough." Gin said, his hand firm yet soothing in its grasp of her shoulder.

Gin motioned for everyone save for Tsubasa to leave his private quarters, matters of state and other inquiries Gin suspected being the reason for her visit. "Oh and Mei, I will speak to you privately when I am done conversing with Tsubasa, I will come find you before today's exercises begin." Gin said, removing his hand from Amelia's should to finish buttoning his tunic.

[Mikage Tsubasa]

Tsubasa said nothing in response to the Fae that Kouzetsu called Amelia. She did not deserve acknowledgement other than the request to leave. Likewise, she would not acknowledge that her words to Amelia were wrongly stated by not responding to Kouzetsu comment saying so. Apparently, the Fae really did have more clout as Kouzetsu's plaything than she had thought, despite Gin's mild phrasing of his rebuke, it was still one nonetheless.

She was surprised, however, at Mei's outspokenness on Tsubasa's behalf. Isurugi never said much of anything, even when it was obvious that her opinion was needed. So, it was nice to see that her tongue was not tied when it came to her dream-attuned brethren.

As far as the rest of what Gin said, Tsubasa answered, "I only asked the purple one to leave. Isurugi's presence here is also required, although I will not hesitate to allow you your time with Mei when I am done."

[Kouzetsu Gin]

"Yes well, my word stands, everyone is to leave my tent immediately, save for you Tsubasa. If there is something that you would discuss with Mei present, then we shall attend to that afterward, but as of now there are thing between you and I that we must discuss." Gin said walking to the tent opening and holding the flap to it's side, indicating that only he and Tsubasa were to be present now. "Mei, have yourself ready for Tsubasa and my arrival, there we shall discuss matters of state that pertain to all of us, but for now I would rather talk to Tsubasa alone." Gin stressed, his face still sporting a smile to not seemed impatient.

[Isurugi Mei]

Mei, with her arms crossed, listened as Tsubasa asked for her to stay. However, Gin was adamant about both her and her sister to leave, possibly to talk about something that didn't concern her.

She gave a look to her sister to tell her that they had to leave before turning around to leave. She lifted up the flap and stood outside, keeping the flap up for Amelia. She had a mouth full to talk about to Amelia. She wanted to know why she kept going into Gin's tent. She feared that Amelia had Gin as her new piece of meat. She tried to prevent this from happening, but it would seem she would have to try harder to prevent Amelia from being the way that she is.

[Isurugi Amelia]

Amelia was mad that she had to leave and didn't want to, she was even mad that Gin made a comparison to some other fae whose name sounded familiar to her even though she didn't care for the name. However, Gin made it clear that whatever he had to say to this high ranking bitch was to be done in private.

She started to walk out of the tent and in doing so, she glared at the woman with no attempt to hide it at all. She pushed passed Mei as she made her exit. She could tell that her sister was angry as well and she knew that she would talk down to her as if she was high and mighty. Though to try to keep her sister from doing that, she took flight towards the tents of her men to get them moving along with their morning routines before they started their second day in training.

[Mikage Tsubasa]

Apparently Gin had more important issues to discuss with her, because he insisted that Mei leave. Burdened with the task of training Fae forces, she hadn't thought that he would be concerned with anything else, and as of the current moment she could not recall an issue other than the one that she was about to discuss with him--the one that required Mei's presence.

Was there something else on Gin's mind? Tsubasa had never pegged herself as the "confidant" type--too many of even her own previous subjects had made it clear that her harshness prevented her from seeming comforting at all, not that Tsubasa cared. She completed her work in the manner in which it was meant to be completed, and she achieved as close to the desired results as possible. That was all that was required of her, and it was her only occupation and hobby. There were too many things to be done in Heaven to slack off doing anything else. It was treason, almost, because the work load that sat on Heaven's soldiers.

Watching Mei leave, Tsubasa turned to Gin, soluting him silently. "Yes, Jouha-sama?" she asked, presenting her obedience to his will.

[Kouzetsu Gin]

"It would seem Tsubasa, that despite your history in service of our nation, there are those who would not very pleasant things to say about you." Gin said, fasting the last of his buttons, and tying his loose long, black hair into a ponytail, that he fastened behind his back. Chuckling at the sarcasm of his comment, he pointed to his desk, and the two available chairs, motioning Tsubasa to have a seat.

"Needless to say, a certain... 'agitator' from you past, has come to light, a rather well known agitator, and he has sought to 'redeem' himself by slanderous accusation, and cowering sycophantic actions, neither of which I approve. Tell me Tsubasa... why do did choose to use Oracle of all people in your campaign to become Ha-ou?" Gin asked, bypassing the nuances of small talk, something he and Tsubasa had learned to dismiss in their conversations, choosing to keep things blunt and concise, a small facet he enjoyed from their conversations.

[Mikage Tsubasa]

"I prefer to stand, thank you," Tsubasa replied after just having been told that there were those who did not have good things to say about her, ignoring the King's primping exercises. It was a gross understatement, at the very least, and Tsubasa would prefer to physically exemplify her acceptance of such news--whether or not she had known it before the current Ha-ou had said anything--with a strong front, by standing. At this point, Gin had only made a statement, and thusly, other than the comment about her preferred reclining position, Tsubasa could reply any further. Instead, she waited for Gin to say more, and as she suspected, he continued.

He asked about Oracle. Tsubasa was sure that the Ha-ou had begun this talk with a significant point behind it, and now the topic had been revealed. So Oracle was trying to redeem himself, eh? Even his involvement with Tsubasa hadn't been able to put him in a good light. That... creature had been on his own for some time now. It was such a pity that he wasn't dead.

But she did not hesitate to answer Gin's question. "I chose him because he was feared, and none knew anything about him. If I could contain someone in Heaven who was a fear to the citizens, for whatever reason that may have been, they would believe that I could do anything. That I could protect them. That I would not fail them, as Sanada had. I had, afterall, already conquered the Shijin--they were the oppressors. If I could lock away their oppressors, rid them of their fears and control that which they did not understand, then no other candidate could have opposed me...or so I thought," she added with a smile.

She was not above admitting that she had failed in the election, if not simply because the citizens felt more secure with a pansy who whispered nice things in their ears. The nation did not understand that to keep a nation safe, one could not always be nice, be polite, be sensitive. War was a very destructive thing, a very rude thing, an impolite thing. It was something that she could not, and would not sugarcoat, even if it cost her the election many years ago. The people had gotten what they wanted, and look at Heaven's place in the universe now. They were almost broken. However, despite this, Tsubasa was determined to make sure that Heaven made its way back to the top. She was as devoted a she had ever been a quality which had waned in Chiyo long ago.

[Hilde]

"... One Hundred Ninety-Eight, One Hundred Ninety-Nine, Two Hundred!" Hilde counted out loud as she finished up the rest of her exercises ordered by her bitch of a boss, Amelia. After a quick stretch and a few hyper-active jogs in place, Hilde smiled as she wiped off her brow with a towel she smuggled out the bath house before starting.

She walked toward the camp as she observed the other fae's heading for the tents that were supposedly serving breakfast. She chuckled to herself as she held the towel around her neck with both hands.

"Heh," she said quietly to herself. "Piece of cake, ma'am. I still have time for breakfast before training with Kouzetsu Gin!"

"-why did you choose to use Oracle of all people in your campaign to become Ha-ou?"

Hilde stopped dead in her tracks, hearing her teacher's name randomly used in what seemed to be idle conversation.

Oracle? she thought to herself.

Hilde looked at the closed off tent the sentence was stated from. It was the Ha-ou's tent, and it was definitely the voice of Gin that she heard ask the question. She moved a bit out of the way of the tent; far enough so that she wouldn't cast a shadow for the Ha-ou and whoever he was talking to to notice she was eavesdropping, and close enough to hear the conversation.

"I chose him because he was feared, and none knew anything about him," he heard a woman respond. Hilde was having a hard time trying to figure out who this chick was the Ha-ou was talking to, but it was definitely evident that she knew Mr. Oracle.

"If I could contain someone in Heaven who was a fear to the citizens, for whatever reason that may have been, they would believe that I could do anything."

Hilde frowned as she continued to listen to whoever this girl was demeaning her teacher. Even though she was doing a good job of composing herself, that didn't stop the thoughts. And besides; it sounded like she was telling her life story, so eventually she would find out who this bitch was anyway...

"I had, afterall, already conquered the Shijin--they were the oppressors."

Hilde's eyes widened. Tsubasa, she thought to herself.

"If I could lock away their oppressors," Tsubasa continued telling Gin, "rid them of their fears and control that which they did not understand, then no other candidate could have opposed me...or so I thought."

You're damn right! Hilde thought to herself. But she immediately snapped out of her inner commentary for the discussion and continued listening, seeing if the Ha-ou had anything to say regarding Tsubasa's answer.

[Kouzetsu Gin]

The answers that Tsubasa had given to him, give Gin the feeling that she was withholding information, small details that would incriminate her. Gin did admire that though she was his subordinate, she would only relinquish as much face as she thought necessary, refusing his seat. Gin then walked over to Tsubasa and sighed as he eyed her, "But Tsubasa, do you really think that these goals that even you would deem lofty has the been spoken by someone else, excuse the lengths that you went to to consolidate your power?" Gin asked as he felt a sudden disturbance in the field of magic he place around his tent, which allowed him to perceive who came within a small distance of his quarters, as he did with Tsubasa earlier.

Locking in on the hidden person's position, Gin turned his back to the door and folded his arms as he continued to address Tsubasa in an informal manner allotted by the lack privacy of his personal quarters. "Tell me Tsubasa, do you still have these aspirations of obtaining the throne? Would you dispose me if given the opportunity." Gin said to her, deducing the identity of the person as a Fae, now focusing in on the particular traits as the stood with his the range of his magic.

[Mikage Tsubasa]

As she expected, the Ha-ou continued to question her. She was not going to let up. She would stick to her story, particularly because as far as Tsubasa was concerned, those things were in the past. Yes, she had broken the rules, even if it was for a good cause. Her punishment? Death. And she had in fact died. However, since she had been resurrected, she had not broken any rules at all, and therefore she had a clean slate. She had paid for her crimes, and at the moment, although she would not have changed any of the decisions that she had made in her past life, they no longer existed in the current scenario.

"No, I do not," she answered, calmly. "But I assure you that I have paid the price for my actions. Not only was retribution on the behalf of the kingdom taken for the things that I did that were deemed wrong, but frankly, all of those were transgressions that were dealt with by previous Kings, and previous Elders, despite any reservations that you may have about it." She was still minding her place, so she would not say it out right, but it was not within his jurisdiction to judge her. Not for the scenario that he was hinting at.

He continued to ask her, probe her, for any signs of weakness of prelude of mutinous intentions. Here she spoke with the most honesty. "I do not currently covet the throne, Ha-ou. Disposing of you is not anywhere on my task list. In my opinion, you are doing a decent job of attempting to cleanse this Realm of the filth that inhabits those who linger here unwelcome. Should you cease to complete that job thoroughly...I am confident that you, as a noble citizen that has already made sacrifices to this nation, to dispose of yourself." She so much as made a chuckle. "I am getting a bit old, experience-wise, to be ambitious."

[Hilde]

Hilde was on Gin's side with this situation; she couldn't possibly see Tsubasa using Mr. Oracle to try and take over Heaven. If she wasn't trying to make sure she wasn't noticed, she would have laughed at the idea. But hearing Tsubasa try and defend herself as far as if she planned on trying to take over Heaven again just made Hilde's face start to scowl. To Hilde, Tsubasa seemed to be one of the bitches to live by the proverb, "if at first you don't succeed, try and try again."

But, Hilde wasn't stupid. She knew that if she continued to stay here, eventually she would have gotten caught by Gin and would have to hear Amelia's bitching. So she left toward the tent serving the fae's breakfast, knowing all that she needed to know about Tsubasa.

[Kouzetsu Gin]

"Indeed, it would seem then my line of questioning is misplaced then Tsubasa, and you have my most sincere apologizes. As for removing the filth from our realm and you 'task' list as you call it, please continue to handkle things in the manner that you deem apropriate, I am greatful for both your didligence and service to the new nation I seek to forge. Gin said walking over to where the interloper last stood from inside his tent, reading the imprint left in the soil. Finishing before his guest could try to deduce what he was doing Gin walked back over to Tsubasa.

"Ah yes, older we all grow Tsubasa, but I do not need to tell you that aging is not hindrance, for I wouldn't trade anything for the wisdom that I've acquired in my, 'old' age. Besides, the alternative to being older and cautious I would have to say would be to resemble the likes of Hotaka, and I would much rather trust my rusted, war tested sword than a shiny saber that has yet to spill a drop of blood, holding all the potential to shatter at first contact behind its lustrous facade." Gin said to Tsubasa, smiling at his own humor, his hand folded behind his back in their usual manner.

[Mikage Tsubasa]

Tsubasa allowed herself to smile at the quip that Gin made about Hotaka, finishing up the conversation and inquiry with her more quickly than she had previously thought possible. "Hotaka holds great potential as a soldier, if he is conditioned properly." She honestly believed that, for that was the original reason she had recruited him in the first place. He was a bit consumed in his own ways, which were indeed foolish, but if given the proper motivation he could tap into his own magic. She knew this.

[Tsubarisu Hotaka]

"We are just in what we fight for, for Heaven is the one true Law."

That is what Hotaka said to his army before the exercises began. Though Heaven in all of its entirety was something worth fighting for, people still needed motivation. Simple Patriotism was not something every man had though he was completely for his nation.

Hotaka wanted the soldiers in his military to completely abandon care for Domiel and the Fifth Layer itself, but instead raise up a banner of fighting spirit for all of Heaven. Even then though, Hotaka wanted the men and women of his fighting force to think of their families whilst they fought and let the thought of their families safety drive them to victory.

"You have done well on today and on the RME that have been performed for the safety of the Layer." Hotaka said smiling to show his approval.

"The OSF has been training tirelessly as well in the many satellites that circle the Fifth Layer in all of its entirety, so we give them praise as well."

"The Aegis Defenders as we as the Aegis Siege Force have also proven themselves to be just as magnificent as I had hoped. And for that I give them praise as well." Hotaka smiled again.

"All of you have done well, and please show Hallowed Protector Gin that those of us that reside in the Fifth Layer are more than ready to Defend." Hotaka said

"As you know," Hotaka said smiling

"I want you all to realize that though I am your King, we are all in the same boat together. That is why I built the Aegis Fortress alongside you, and also why I will part take of the upcoming exercises with you." Hotaka finished and his entire army applauded him.

[Kouzetsu Gin]

"Well, it would seem that our conversation has run into the realm of banter, and I would indeed say that I have other matters to attend to. As always, it was a pleasure Tsubasa." Gin said smiling to Tsubasa, walking over to his tent entrance and holding the drape open for her to exit along with him. In the distance Gin could hear Hotaka's voice, speaking to his own troops in an upbeat manner. Smiling, Gin was prepared to head over to the Fae quarters to speak to Mei, as he said he would prior to his and Tsubasa's conversation. Walking along, he nodded in acknowledgment to his own troops, his stroll gallant, with his hands folded behind his back.

Over in the Fae quarters, the morning meals were being served, as Gin walked inside the mess hall, tracking the signature similar to the one outside his tent. Saturating his private quarters with his own Law magic, Gin found traces of it residing on one Fae in particular, the one who arrived to the orientation late, resulting in her being scolded by Amelia. Satisfied with this, Gin made his way over to Mei's tent, standing outside to make sure he did not intrude on anything inside. "I have arrived and wish to speak to you Mei." Gin in a softer voice than his one used to address the other soldiers, the one he used while he and Mei conversed among themselves.

[Isurugi Mei]

"Oh, come in." Mei called from inside as she got up from her modest looking bed. She had been sitting there starring at her sister's bed while she listened to what was going on. She could hear the commotion from Hotaka's army and she could hear sister yelling at her men. It sounded like she started her men on today's training even though it wasn't time for today's training yet. She wondered if she was pushing her men to hard sometimes and have been meaning to talk to her aunt about it but never got to.

She started to wonder about what Gin had to say to her. Was it about her men? Was it about her sister? Or was it something about what they would be doing today?

[Kouzetsu Gin]

After hearing his request to enter acknowledged, Gin stepped inside Mei's tent, surrounding the area with a field of Law magic, as to monitor the privacy of their conversation. "Hello Mei, I daresay I am quite embarrassed to have been prompted to conversation with you in this manor." Gin said, walking over to here the Fae commander had previously sat. "The manner I speak of is the compromising situation I was found in earlier with your sister. Despite being within the confides of my own tent, I must apologize for any sight that may have made you uncomfortable, you were in the right of coming to inform me that I had a visitor in Tsubasa." Gin said, looking into Mei's eyes behind his glass, his hand still lying behind his back.