A man dressed in a long black trench coat and a Kitsune mask on his face holds a stack of papers and documents, shuffling through each one absent-mindedly. In the distance, the sound of muffles shrills, and screams accompanied by the thwacks of limbs slamming against limbs echoed in the empty hollow rooms. Still, he paid no mind to them, reading the folders in his hand with a disapproving sigh.
"Boss," one of his henchmen spoke, opening the door to their 'advance interrogation' room with a huff of breath, "He caved. He said he'll tell us what we want to know."
The boss rose his head, a sound of understanding rumbling deeply through his lips, "I see, let me speak to him for a moment."
The worker nodded, keeping the door open for the man to walk through. He entered the dimly lit room where three of his apprentices stood in the back and one man remained tied in a chair, blindfolded and very bloody.
He nealed down to reach his height, grabbing his chin forcefully with gloved fingers to grasp his attention, "Well hello there agent Cobra, or should we call you Sagara?"
The man trembled, a shiver ran through his spine at the usage of his real name. "L-listen, I'm sorry, I was just following o-"
"Now slow down a sec, I'm not here to hurt you," he gave a knowing look to the other guys in the room, "I'm sure my friends over here already did enough of that haven't they?"
He stared back down at the guy in front of him before humming to himself, "You may not be able to tell, but I am currently in a very bad mood. Recently a worker of mine was sent out in the field to retrieve files of a very important case to me, and I wake up the next day only to realize that not only did she die but those very same files were all burnt. This clearly upsets me because of the amount of effort I had put into training her to work for my company."
His grip tightened, his voice growing darker, "Not only that but now I had learned that apparently there was a spy in my own headquarters trying to out me to the high council's public viewership. I think from anyone's perspective this is certainly a run of the mill of my luck now isn't it?"
"I- I don't work for the high council," the man squealed desperately, "I was just doing a favor for a friend."
"Oh, which friend?"
"S-some man that I work with. He pays me money time and time again to run into businesses and gather info for him. I-I-I've never seen his face before though, all I know is that once I tell him something that he wants to hear I get my dough and it's a done deal."
After some careful consideration, the boss tilts his captives to head back and forth diligently, "Then what secrets would you like to know about?"
This clearly confused Sagara gratefully, "Wha-?"
"I mean you're doing this for the money yes?" No response. "It would be quite the shame for you to go to all this effort only to show up empty-handed with nothing more than a few broken bones and bloody wounds to offer to this dear friend of yours."
"Ah- I won't tell him anything, I swear...just let me go and I'll lie and pretend that I didn't-"
He was cut off when his hand wrapped around his throat.
"I believe I asked you a question," he repeated, grip tightening with every punctuated word. "What. Do. You. Want. To. Know."
-
Maya had experienced second-hand embarrassment plenty of times before. She's peed on herself in a desperate attempt to stay warm. She's torn off her clothes during a rigorous day of outdoor time and exposed everything from the neck down to her entire kindergarten class. She's listened to Maria when she asked her to retrieve something for her from the boy's bathroom.
But nothing could ever beat the embarrassment of being slapped by someone in the public eye.
The sound was always so loud and would manage to attract anyone's attention no matter who they were or where they stood. It always followed after yells of disdain that could only be met with angered tearful eyes peering upwards back at them with cheeks both red, one from the sting and the other from utter humiliation.
Her parents gave her the fair share of a smack or two during her youth, how strange of her to use that type of wording, but eventually stopped once she reached a point of maturity where after disobedient act would become a punishment unto herself.
Maya was a respectful child, one that dreaded the thought of being hit, and used that dread for fuel to her overly large tank of 'responsibilities' and 'maturity. It had been so long since she had 'acted out' that she'd forgotten the feeling of a ruler against the back of her hand.
The sting always hurt more due to how frozen solid her fingers would be, striking sudden warmth and pain to her numb palm to which she would feel later when her skin unfroze. Then, she'd get to watch the skin slowly burn red, as though being held over a torch of fire, bright and alarming and attracting everyone near.
Her classmates would make fun of her for this for sure, they would hold up her hands and point at how easily she bruised, laughing at the red circle that would start form and how over time it only seemed to grow brighter. They'd scream and shout, 'caught red-handed' while dancing around her in circles.
Maria would never have to worry about things like those. One: her skin was much tanner than Maya's, although still brown it didn't flush red as easily as hers did. Second, she had on those fuzzy soft gloves, so even if it did end up bruising no one besides her would ever see it.
She unconsciously rubbed her sore hand with her free one, forgetting she was still being punished, which resulted in her second hand being slapped as well.
"No touching it!" Her teacher demanded, tapping the ruler on her open palm, "Unless you want another one across the face."
Her school, although she honestly felt as though they could care less, would never allow the teachers to actually physically abuse their students. All teachers were permitted to discipline using school-bought rulers made from material that would ensure none of the slaps would cause cuts and open wounds.
Each teacher was only allowed to tap their students three times a day, once on each hand and once across their face. At that point, the child would be too red and embarrassed to act out again or would get a sticky note tapped on them for their parents to see when they got home, where now laws applied and punishment was a definite guarantee.
The fact that the day hadn't even started yet and she already received her first two warnings strikes put her on edge quite easily.
"No ma'am," Maya mumbled, head down yet refusing to allow herself to break eye contact, "I'm sorry ma'am."
After some careful consideration, the teacher seemed pleased with the lesson she had taught before uncrossing her hands and making her way to her desk, "Next time girls I don't want you coming late again like this. You should learn to prioritize your education over all things, or sooner you will find out that this given opportunity was gone to waste. Take your seats."
Without much further word both girls rushed to their seats as Maya curled into her chair, wrapping her arms around herself in an attempt to hide her hands. She could practically hear the teasing from the back of the classroom.
"Alright then class, I am well assured that you are all aware of the individual task project due at the end of this week?"
The entire class let out a groan.
"As you may know in our ancient history the Neo Empire once favored in the art of healing, skills similar to those of the Gaean Nation. We would use our abundance access to both ice and water and scavenge for any rare seekable crops, producing ointments from almost out of thin air with the ability to heal even the toughest of scabs and wounds," the teacher pushed up her glasses, "you all, however, will be doing something a bit more domestic."
She reached into her desk and pulled out a small vial see-through vial of cream, showing the class, "You will have to make your own self crafted ointment or oils using your understanding of neo healing techniques are the few scarce crops grown in our countryside's farmland. The amount you make should be enough to fill a cup like this halfway and do keep in mind it must work well enough to assist in treating small cuts and wounds."
After allowing the class a few seconds to be mesmerized she fit the vial back under her desk, "Each of your creations shall be sent directly to the royal castle with your names on the bottles and given to different members of the palace guards/military. They will give an unbiased opinion and their point of view on whether or whether, not what you provided them was effective, and depending on their response shall influence your grade. As a practice, we shall spend our next class sessions studying all forms of previous healing remedies to assist in your creative thinking."
Maya sunk her head onto her desk after processing the information.
It was going to be a long week.
-
King Adrian sat behind his work desk, several files of paperwork out in front of him, all of which he could show very little care for. He was more on edge for the response of the two letters he sent out this afternoon, one to the Gean Emperor and another to the high council.
Of course, he shouldn't be expecting an answer so soon, it's not like it wasn't a day's travel just to get between the places, but still, he felt as though he could barely wait the week it would take for him to get some form of feedback. So as a result he did what he always did whenever he was on edge about something.
He did paperwork.
Either that or butter up his wife, who was nowhere to be found at the moment.
While it did suck the life out of his soul it also meant that he wouldn't have to worry about it later, which could result in some extra free time with him and Deborah. The sooner he could get this work done, the faster he'd be able to receive news back from either ruler on what to do next.
Although he was prepared he was still a bit shocked when the doors to his office were opened and his personal messenger boy came in kneeling respectfully.
That was fast.
He was surprised, he knew the carryout system of today's time was much more efficient in comparison to the early days when he was a lad, but it had barely been a solid twenty-four hours.
"Your Majesty," the messenger boy stuttered, "I have a delivery for you-"
"Who is it from?" He asked a bit more urgently than he would like to admit. He found himself standing and hands slammed on the table in suspense. He knew it had to be important, there's no way they would interrupt him in the middle of his work if it were just some fanmail from one of his supporters.
The worker didn't respond, but simply looked to the side, "I-I'm sorry your Majesty, I am unsure."
"If you are unsure of who it belongs to, then why are you disturbing me?"
"Well," he bit his lip, "...it's hard to put into words. It's would be better if your majesty takes a look at it yourself." He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a letter with the edges and center partially scorched, an unusual way to seal an envelope that's for sure. He approaches the King and hands him the letter before bowing and hastily walking out of the chambers.
Adrian stares at the letter in curiosity, before opening it and reading the contents inside. His eyes nimbly scanned over the words before they widened, feeling his heart drop. He fixed his glasses and re-read the entire message to ensure that he had seen it properly, unconsciously gripping the paper tighter.
He froze dead on the spot and allowed the letter to slip and fall to the ground, watching the way his hands shook and trembled. He clenched his teeth and suppressed his rage, before quickly marching his way out of his chambers.
"Get me the Queen, now! I want her and all the maidens in this castle to be present for what I'm about to tell them."
-
Because of the heavy downpour outside, everyone was forced to find a spot in the largely abandoned classrooms to sit and chat with during lunch.
Maya was rubbing her hands, the sting is long gone but the mark still visible. She was a bit surprised at the major lack of teasing she received that day. Usually, news of a beating, since they didn't happen too often, would travel around fast considering how many few students there were. By lunch, there would be a flock of kids by her side following her around and grabbing at her arms, keeping her from eating.
"Everyone seems to have forgotten all about it," She spoke shockingly.
"It's because we're all still pent up about the project," Maria spoke the best she could with a sandwich still halfway down her throat. She chewed passively then swallowed, "Which reminds me, want to partner up?"
It's always made some inner part of Maya itch at the way her friend treated her meals, never savoring any of it as she goes and swallowing it whole with the fewest of bites.
"I thought we weren't allowed to work in pairs?"
Maria kicked herself off the high table she used as a chair and dusted her hands, "Of course I knew that, dummy. The work may be individual but the research, we can just study together for a bit, then write down the same thing but slightly different so she can't tell we cheated."
"So you admit it's cheating?"
"Only if you get caught..." here it comes. She knew it from the moment Maria grabbed her hands and held them high in the room, the red side of her palm reflecting off the light from the ceiling.
"Red-handed!"
Every person in the room turned their heads to see what the commotion was, before all laughing together in that mocking way Maya knew well. Flushed even redder than her hand she pulled it out of Maria's grasp, who was also laughing to herself at the situation.
"What's wrong with you Maria?" She scowled, "Your hands are probably red too. You just keep them hidden underneath your gloves!"
Maria looked nervous and offended at the same time, "No they're not, my hands are perfectly fine, they don't bruise as easily as yours do Maya."
"Then why don't you show us?"
The room had gotten quiet, though the attention was still on her, everyone anticipating Maria's reveal.
Maria broke a sweat, before stumbling, "I can't! My hands are too cold, you're just jealous because my family actually has the money to buy me warm clothes!"
It was a desperate attempt to save herself from the shame of being at the end of the joke, but it worked like a charm.
Once again the laughter picked up, softer than before but still obviously directed at Maya. She didn't understand why half the people in the room were even giggling the way they were, they were just as poor as she was, some even worse to be honest.
A part of her guessed they were mostly doing it to gain the respect of others, it's better to put someone else in the spotlight than to let it be yourself. Still, that didn't change the fact it hurt nonetheless.
She no longer wanted to remain in the room, grabbing Maria's gloved hand and pulled her out, not caring if she spilled her food along the way.
"Hey, I'm still eating!" Maria growled, who was only halfway through another big spoon of her meal. Some of it spat out as she spoke which made Maya want to curl into a ball and roll around on the floor.
"I'm honestly very mad at you," Maya spat once they were out of the room. "I'm even starting to reconsider helping you at all with this project."
After cleaning her mouth Maria smiled and leaned on Maya's shoulder, "I'm not just doing it for myself, I'm doing it for you too. Didn't you tell me your parents give you extra food if you do well in school right? Unlike you, my parents always prioritize my needs first so I don't even need to pass this class."
Despite having eaten at the mentioning of food Maya felt a deeper part of her stomach begin to rumble greedily. It wasn't loud but she knew Maya heard it from the way she poked her stomach.
"S-still! You have no right making fun of me in front of everyone like that!"
Maria tsk, "It's just teasing you, dummy." The finger on her stomach went to her head to give her a gentle flick.
"I'm trying to be a good friend here Maya," Maria insisted, "trust me, you'll be thanking me later."
Maya still had a pouty grumpy expression on her face, hands, and forehead aching. She crossed her arms in retaliation to Maria's attempt to hug her, not giving in to the other girl's antics. Besides, it was her fault anyway that her hands were like this, they both got slapped because they were both late.
After a while she expected Maria to let go, upset by her persistence till she felt fluffy fingers tickle themselves into her side, causing her to laugh uncontrollably and nuzzle deeper into Maria's embrace out of instinct.
"Okay! Okay! Stop it!" She squealed, the two girls laughing to their heart's content in the hallways. "I'll work on the project with you!"
Finally, Maria pulled away, a satisfied grin on her face, "That's good to hear." She began to turn around, already walking away from Maya, "I'm heading back into the cafeteria, let's go to the community library after school okay?"
Maya almost agreed before she remembered, "But I have chores after scho-"
Without waiting for her response she waved and walked away leaving Maya to herself in the hallway. It would have been awkward to follow after her when she just left so she stood there in contemplation of where to go next.
Perhaps she'll head to the bathrooms and run her hands under cold water, hopefully, she'll be able to remove the bruising before class starts again.
Her stomach rumbled once more, louder than before.
She pouted and place her hand on top of it.
She was still hungry.
-
"Your Majesty!" shouted one of the lately arrived maidens of the castle. "Apologies your majesty, I was busy trying to locate her majesty."
Adrian stood with his arms crossed behind him, a clearly frustrated look on his face. He turned his head to the side slightly, "Did you manage to find her?"
The maiden looked embarrassed before shaking her head and bowing respectfully, "None of the other staff members have located her either."
"Blasted..." Where was that woman? It wasn't often she wasn't to be found by his side. Although the woman wasn't entitled to him and was free to go on about her own ways during the afternoon, she couldn't have gotten so far. It was around their time for a shared lunch, so she must be somewhere close to the dining hall, yet if no one was able to locate her...
Adrian sighed and pinched his eyebrows together, "I suppose we shall start without her. I ask if any of you see her after this meeting end please send her news of what she will miss."
"Yes, your Majesty."
He turned around and approaches the table in front of him, slamming the letter down furiously.
"This here is a letter sent straight from the people of the Ember Domain," He announced, immediately gathering everyone's attention and worry looks. "I have just recently been informed that the chief of the Pheonix clan will be arriving for a seven-day vacation retreat right here in the Neo empire, and will be traveling by boat. He is coming shortly in two days, though knowing how impatient those Embers are we are to expect him here by tomorrow."
"Your Majesty," one of the butlers interrupted, "pardon the intrusion but could it be he wishes to directly declare war against us?"
Adrian held his head low, "I am currently unaware as to what his intentions are, or why he would have the audacity to show face here when he should know damn well what our current situation is like. Perhaps he is telling us in advance to ready our military for a home-based battle and feels cocky enough to the point that we wouldn't be able to stop him even knowing of his arrival."
He felt his fingers tighten around the letter, crumbling it up in one hand, "However regardless of his intent do not be expected to show this man any form of hospitality unless directly order by me to do so. I want al militia on guard during the seven days he arrives here and I want back-to-back tabs of where he is staying and every person he has ever met or talked to during."
He stands up tall and faces the people in front of him, "If that man so much buys clothes from any of our stores I expect a full report on the materials those items possess and where exactly he got them from. I should be able to tell the exact moment he inhales the minute he exhales, and would like to be alerted no less than mere seconds from when he steps foot onto this nation, am I clear?"
"Yes, your Majesty!"
"Prepare spare sleeping chambers and make sure everything is ready by midnight." With that being said the butlers and maidens got to work, already hustling around the castle to fulfill his request. "I will not tolerate any form of slacking off." Once they were gone he stepped back and slipped heavily into his throne, crown slightly falling off his head as he covered his face with one of his hands, breathing slowly.
He stares up at the portrait of his father and feels those same pricing diamond eyes staring through him like a window
"Dear father," he spoke, "have mercy on us. I don't know if this is your attempt to spite me in some way or if I have offended you somehow but whatever the reason either please protect us or leave us alone."
Obviously, there was no response, as he let out a sigh, knowing well it was about to be a long week.