~Aveh Outskirts~
“Didn’t they tell you that I used to be the Element of Fire at Jugend, old man?”
It took more self-control than Sigurd knew he had to bite his tongue. He’d of course been briefed beforehand, and knew exactly what Seraphita, besides being
unable to shut her mouth for five seconds,
was capable of.
Still, the fact that this girl had been his direct successor after he’d fled the city years ago did not particularly impress him. And in her case, it was Solaris that decided they didn’t need
her
anymore, rather than the other way around.
They’d been assigned to do reconnaissance on the northern side of Aveh territory, a place he had vested interest in the reoccupation of. Currently, the Sect of the Holy Mother was providing aid to Lahan to the even further North, and the two of them would, hopefully, detect any retaliatory action in time to evacuate.
“You don’t say,” he remarked with minimal effort, while committing his undivided attention to the HUD in the cockpit of his gear.
Seraphita apparently took that as an invitation to continue. She’d started off talking about her experiences at the academy, but transitioned seamlessly to more mundane topics such as her hair.
Sigurd had continued to tune her out until she, in the midst of talking about a new pair of combat boots she’d been instructed to test out, had casually mentioned the name
Krelian.
His blood turned cold. Not many people knew that name, and if Krelian had been taking a more active role in the Jugend academy, then it followed that he was in the midst of attempting to make a bid for power.
Sigurd knew who he would find pulling the strings at the other end.
His introspection had all but allowed him to ignore both Seraphita’s incessant prattling AND his gear’s readouts when a shockwave rocked his gear, jolting him out of his reverie.
And Seraphita was suddenly a different person. “2 marks, maybe a mile and a half South. Currently inbound, ETA maybe 90 seconds?”
Sigurd was so taken aback at this sudden display of competence that he didn’t know what to say. And although she couldn’t see his face, she responded in turn. “I get that a lot. Lowers people’s barriers. Lucky you’re on my side, hmm?”
Sigurd couldn’t help a ghost of a smile forming on his face. “…You may take point,” was all he said, which was as generous a tip of his hat he could give in such a situation.
“Woohoo! Let’s kick some Solarian
asses!
”
If he’d been in a position to slam his head on his panel, he most certainly would have been doing just that.
A bright pink blur blew past him as he struggled to follow in its wake, radioing for backup as he did. The first skirmishes of the battle for Aveh had begun.
He would not fail his people again.
(This arc will continue later)
