It was a day unlike any other that came before it- the incompetent, puppet of a king had been overthrown, as both men and women alike were busy as roamed throughout the streets of the kingdom, with many of the citizens still engaged in their jovial festivities that they held in celebration for their newly-acquired freedom from their subjugators.
Life had drastically improved when their liberator had come and freed them from the shackles of their vassalage: the harsh taxes and tributes that were constantly being imposed upon them by the empire no longer caused any sort of city-wide famines and poverty, and the very streets of Polonia were finally safe to roam in without the constant threat of being assaulted by imperial soldiers for the very first time in a hundred years..
No longer were the Neugomians there to oppress them in the land they had owned, and no longer did they have to suffer the lamentations of having their women and children taken away from them by the sadistic whims of their now banished conquerors. They could now enjoy a life without the constant dread of being oppressed and looked down upon, a life that Polonia's citizens immediately began indulging themselves with to the fullest.
So wonderful was the arrival of their liberators, that the people had instantly chosen to give the vacant throne of the kingdom to him instead, which their saviour didn't even hesitate to accept in the slightest.
While all of these were certainly momentous experiences for the likes of Malfor, what was even more interesting to him however, was the very nature of their liberator, and how he had treated the kingdom ever since his first arrival into their very gates.
He called himself by the name of 'Novus', and when he first made his initial steps into their homeland, he demanded no tithes nor gifts for the grace he had just bestowed upon them- instead, he humbly asked them to assist him and his armies with his goal of conquering the other nations, and in exchange, he would lead them as his people and would never again allow them to be oppressed by other nations ever again.
Of course, not even Malfor could find himself able to refute such a thing- their liberator had a desire to improve their nation, and as a dedicated soldier of his country, what better option would there be for him but to help him? There was also the fact that even the saintess had proclaimed her support for their saviour's cause, and as a result, even Malfor had no choice but to wholeheartedly support that man's ambition.
"Sir Malfor, how was the training?"
"... Difficult, Casimir... Very difficult..."
Malfor sat on one of the seats in the massive training hall they were in while his close subordinate, Casimir Agnieszka, seated himself beside him. It was a tiring day, he thought silently as he sighed in exhaustion: the brutal training that they'd just recently finished quickly made his muscles sore and ache with a dull pain that slightly bothered his senses.
The re-training procedures that the templar knights had to go through in order to earn their place in their saviour's cause was incredibly difficult- a blonde-haired woman named Altair, a talented swordswoman who was completely magickless like them, had been assigned to lead and train their ranks in preparation for the myriad of plans that their liberator had in store for the future.
... Alas, however, this 'Altair' proved to be incredibly harsh with the lessons and instructions she gave to them amidst their training: using only a flimsy wooden sword, that small, lean-figure of hers easily allowed her to leave dents and tears upon even the toughest of plates they wore during training, which thus easily proved her strength, and, as much as the knights didn't want to admit it, they had quickly learned to respect the power that their temporarily assigned instructor possessed.
"Well, at least we managed to pass one of her tests this time.." Casimir asked amidst his self-doubt. "I mean, we couldn't even fight her for 10 seconds in our first days, even though we tried teaming up on on her a lot back then. I mean... We managed to fight her for 2 whole minutes this time, shouldn't that be a cause for celebration instead?"
"I guess you're right... Who could have known that we were that lacking when it came to technique and coordination... I'm surprised that we actually learned something from her beati-... I mean trainings..."
By now, 2 entire months had passed since their training began, and a vast improvement to their strength, skill and teamwork had already been made, which thus made them massively better and more capable in combat as a result.
However, even despite all the improvements they've made and the vast flaws that they've managed to solve, the knights were still hopelessly outmatched when it came to the power that Altair possessed, and it would take a while before even one of them would be able to duel with her successfully.
Suddenly, though, a different, unfamiliar individual would appear within the vast space of the training hall, as she would then perform something incredibly unexpected...
"Who the hell is this woman?"
"Oh, would you be quiet for a while Casimir? I bet this is going to be fun..."
...
...
It was a feminine, yet intimidating figure that entered the massive chamber they were all in- a woman with long, red hair and an iron, human-face shaped mask that covered most of her face and concealed her true identity, as a black, sleek suit of unnatural armor enveloped most of her body and protected it from harm. A long, black staff was her weapon, which she tightly held using her right hand, as the iron-masked warrior then walked towards Altair and made a light bow.
"Ah, welcome. You may begin when you are ready. I shall let you strike first for today."
"..."
A minute hadn't even passed yet after she entered, and yet the strange woman wasted no time at all and instantly challenged their mad, blonde-haired instructor to a duel: it was most likely the reason why she had come to this place in the first place.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
The 2 immediately unleashed a rapid, flurry of precise strikes against each other, with their movements appearing as imperceptible blurs to the resting, spectating knights who could not believe what they were seeing- who even was this masked, red-haired woman, and how was she managing to fight that blonde-haired monster at such an equal level?
In truth, however, what the knights couldn't perceive due to the extreme speeds they were at while they were fighting each other, was that there was an incredible difference in the way that the the 2 warriors fought as they clashed against each other.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
"!!!"
"You are focusing too much on your strength. Please use more finesse with your strikes."
When it came to raw power, the masked-warrior definitely exceeded that of Altair's, who was somewhat weaker in that respect compared to the opponent she was facing- the strength of the attacks she unleashed using her staff were notably more powerful, as the staff would constantly produce terrible gusts of wind with every swerve and strike it made.
However, strength alone wasn't the sole factor that would allow either of them to secure victory for themselves.
"..."
"... You've improved. You still need to focus more on implementing techniques however, since you rely too much on utilizing your physical strength."
A long and grueling 5 minutes would pass by before the short-lived duel would finally come to an end: Altair inevitably managed to secure victory, and the way she had won was not all too difficult to understand if one were to look deeply into how they fought within that small span of time.
In short, the blonde-haired warrior had more technique in her attacks when compared to the blows that the iron-masked warrior threw against her: using efficient movements from the dull blade she held with one of her hands, Altair easily parried the physically monstrous blows that approached her by redirecting them in a precise manner that would allow her several opportunities of counterattacking, and because of this, she would ultimately be the one who would win in their duel by driving away one of the staff's crudely-unleashed blows and eventually managing a near-hit to her opponent's neck using the dull edge of her wooden sword.
"Now then... I believe we're done here. Rejoice, for the efforts you've all made for the past 2 months haven't gone to waste." Altair uttered loudly as she faced towards the knights who were still resting, immediately causing them all to rise from their seats despite being tired still from their training with her. "You're all ready now, since most of you already possess the necessary skills to move to the final phase. Proceed to the 2nd room in the hallway to your left... Miss Thurien has already finished with constructing the new armour you'll be using in future deployments."
Finally, they all screamed internally with joy. While the new sets of armor they were about to receive was something they had also been looking forward to, the main reason why they had chosen to stick through with the training was so that they could end finish it without problems; fortunately for them though, that time had finally come for them today.
"Thank you for your training, instructor." they eagerly responded in unison.
"Yes, yes, now go away, all of you. I don't want to see any of you still here by the count of ten." Altair uttered sternly, as the knights then began quickly leaving the room in a hurrying, yet organized manner of exiting. "1... 2... 3... 4... Ah, they're all gone now... I've really trained them well..."
A light feeling would form in her heart as she appreciated the efforts she made for a moment- she had molded those knights into better warriors quite well, and not only that however, but she had also managed to find good people to serve after being freed from that horrid prison she was once stuck in.
She was grateful for the sudden miracle that had come to her: indeed, this kind of life was the one she wanted to live. To live the life of a warrior, and to perhaps even mold others into becoming as strong as her, as well as to serve a liege that wouldn't regard her existence as merely that of a tool. She had finally achieved all these things after those 10 or so years of being tormented in that dungeon, and she couldn't help but be happy for miracles that had suddenly occurred in her life.
However, there were still some things she had to do, and the sense of duty within her heart immediately flickered to life as she quickly realized this...
Altair would then walk towards the masked woman and kneel before the masked figure she just fought against, as she then bowed her head deeply with an incredible manner of reverence.
"While you appear to be a bit lacking in it still, you've definitely made significant improvements with your technique... My liege..."
"Well... You were a good teacher after all." the masked woman stated with an metallic, unnatural voice. "I'm surprised my brother has someone who's as talented as you... Then again, he's quite the good leader-type himself anyway."
The iron-masked figure then took off the mask that concealed her face, undoing the small, black strap that held it in place as she slowly pulled it away from her head, finally allowing her to breath more of the air that abundantly surrounded her- as expected however, the masked woman's true identity was that of Aldyth, the now-former warrior princess of the empire, who had now chosen to take the side of her little brother; an act of treason of the highest order that would instantly sentence her to the most brutal executions by imperial judiciaries.
On the other hand though, the reason why Aldyth chose to wear the iron-mask was incredibly simple- the knights under Altair's tutelage were all citizens of Polonia, and Aldyth didn't want to risk causing any form of enmity or confusion to rise within the hearts of these men by revealing her face in front of them. They were going to be her subordinates in the future after all, and a general who is hated by his own men would never be able to bring their forces to victory.
The only problem she had with wearing such a bothersome disguise was that it somewhat limited the air she could breathe, which was why Aldyth preferred not to wear it when there weren't any unfamiliar people around her.
"... Oh, right, I nearly forgot..." Aldyth uttered with that odd, inhumanly metallic voice she'd already used previously. "About that meeting he mentioned... What time will it be happening again?"
"About 2 hours after the current time, my liege..."
"I see... We better prepare for it then, shall we? I heard there's going to many of us in that assembly..." Aldyth replied. "... And also... Would you please stop referring to me as 'My Liege'? We're supposed to be close with each other by this point... You should just drop the honorifics, alright?"
Altair quickly protested, though she would still maintain the reverence she held for Aldyth in the tone of her voice. "... But... How else should I refer to you? I am simply unable to just casually call you by your name..."
"... Fine, just... Don't call me that when there are too many people around, okay? They'll probably find out about my identity..."
"... Of course... My liege..."
"... It still feels a bit uncomfortable whenever I hear it, but..." Aldyth muttered a bit. "... I guess I'll just have to get used to it..."
________________________________________
The entire room seemed to be just as spacious as the training room: voices would echo whenever one would speak, as a long, black table with multiple, occupied chairs remained at the center of the chamber's space.
To one of the furthest edges of the table, Novus had already seated himself quite comfortably on his chair, while the rest of them would continue to wait for the other important figures to arrive in this assembly of theirs.
"H-hey! Why is she seated next to me?! N-Novus, do something about this, p-please! I don't want to get nearly-killed again!"
"..."
Not all of them were content with their seating arrangements however, as Thurien had unfortunately been positioned at a chair that was beside the very same individual who had nearly killed her all those months ago- of course, it was Aldyth, who remained silent even though she too felt at odds with the pink-haired medicae.
"Oh, would you be quiet? You're both allies now, so stop panicking." Novus responded quite callously. "Besides, she's not going to hurt you or anything. Well, unless you keep on yapping and complaining... Right, Aldyth?"
Aldyth gave a light sigh as she nodded in response. In truth, she only wanted to be done with this meeting as soon as possible, and she didn't really have that much of a problem with the one seated next to her, as long as she didn't prove to be too much of a bother.
Seeing the response of the cold princess beside her, Thurien would remain speechless for a while, as she couldn't believe that Novus wouldn't even help her with such an important matter- ultimately though, the medicae would quickly give up in her protests, as she eventually saw that there was no longer any point in doing them.
".... F-fine... I-I'll stop complaining, if that's what you 2 want..."
"Good. Anyway... Where even is Whitlea? She's usually not this late when it comes to stuff like these."
Speranza, who was seated close to him, quickly gave a response.
"She is... Well, according to Whitlea, my creator, she said her head hurts. The last time I checked up on her, she looked particularly in pain, and I did what I could to temporarily alleviate it." she explained. "Please understand her situation, as she's currently not feeling well. If she doesn't arrive today, I will brief her about what happened in this meeting afterwards instead."
"... I see..." Novus responded- Whitlea was in pain? Well, that was strange, as she was usually quite resistant to the likes of something like that. Perhaps it was due to the overuse of her powers?
"Don't worry, even if she doesn't come today, it's alright as long as you tell her what happened here. Tell her to get well soon after this."
In any case, it was alright if she wouldn't be able to arrive right now, as Novus could understand that the excuse she made was reasonable in the first place.
"Thank you for your thoughtful consideration, my creator." Speranza humbly thanked with a smile: she had always appreciated how much this man cared about her and her elder sister, and until now he still truly did.
"Of course. Anyway, since Whitlea is the only one left who's missing, and since she also might not be able to arrive today, let's begin the meeting now, shall we?"
To most of their surprises, a series of holographic lights would emerge on top of the flat, disc-shaped device at the center of the table, revealing a large, detailed map of not only the continent, but various other land masses that many of them were unfamiliar with.
"First thing's first..." Novus started. "While we did well in 'liberating' this kingdom and making it join our cause, there are other problems that've already risen..."
The light display would then shift into that of a live video feed of a vast, marching army of soldiers adorned in pure steel, men who were marching in battle formations as they gradually approached the very location that Novus and his companions were all too familiar with.
"In short, the Empire has already made its moves, and they've sent multiple forces in order to retake the kingdom."
Excluding Aldyth, most of them would immediately become surprised upon hearing his words- they had moved that quick? It had only been 2 months since the kingdom was freed from their tight grip, yet how was the empire able to mobilize such massive numbers in such a short amount of time?
"This time though, their numbers appear to be higher than the previous forces we've faced before." Novus stated. "Based on the intel from our recon drones, the forces they sent possess numbers that reach about 200,000..."
"Aldyth, how many soldiers does the Empire have in total again?"
The red-haired woman took no time to respond. "...1 million and above... As far as I know..."
"So they sent a staggering 20% of their total forces... I guess they're really keen on seizing Polonia back." Novus uttered, still somewhat astonished with how much effort the imperials were putting into this venture of theirs.
"... Would it be correct for me to assume that you already have a plan in mind, my creator?"
"Of course I do. I wouldn't assemble all of you here if I didn't have a plan in mind."
The holographic display would shift its presentation once more, and this time it would shift to that of a massive stronghold surrounded by empty, uneven fields of grass.
In truth however, the very fortress that was visible through the display was the same, western stronghold that Whitlea had previously demolished, and it had simply been rebuilt in preparation for the encroaching Neugomian forces that were slowly about to arrive.
"Thanks to Thurien here, we've managed to make some decent preparations already. "However, there's one more thing that I want to talk about."
"... What is it then?" Alydth questioned.
"... We're going to be dividing ourselves into groups of 2... Maybe even 3. One will stay and handle the western fortifications, as well as the capital's defense just in case..." Novus answered, though his next words would prove to be an incredibly baffling collection of phrases.
"While the other half will come with me and strike at the Empire's capital. We're going to end this as quick as possible, so that we won't have the Neugomians constantly breathing down our backs in the future."
"..."
"..."
"... How are we going to do this, exactly?"
"Whitlea, Aldyth and I will strike at the capital, along with the other new ally we have who currently can't attend the meeting. We've already made a plan about this part, so none of you need to worry." he began to explain. "Meanwhile, Thurien will be in charge of manning the western fortifications, while Speranza will stand by and assist her in case anything goes south. Prevent their march at all costs, and don't let them penetrate the defense perimeter. If you do, we're going to have another serious problem at hand."
"Now as for our new recruit.... Your name is 'Altair', correct? The assassin from the Eastern Clan of the Southern Lands?" Novus asked as he looked at her from head to toe- this woman looked no different from what one would call 'normal', and yet despite this, he could tell that a great strength and talent lied within her.
"You trained the knights quite well. I was expecting that it'd take more than 4 months, but... It took you less than 2, and they're already fully combat-capable. The re-training process greatly exceeded my expectations... Good job." Novus praised her for the efforts she'd done for the past months. "Unfortunately, your duty still hasn't ended though, since I have one more task that I need you to do."
Altair immediately stood up from her seat as she gave a deep bow. To her, the man who had directly spoken to her was the man behind the scenes of the miracles that saved her life, and while it was ultimately Thurien who rescued her from that damned prison cell, Altair still saw Novus as the true reason of her freedom- he was the only one who the powerful people in this room listened to without complaints after all, and the fact that he was instantly crowned with kingship the moment he first entered the kingdom spoke volumes about how effective his leadership truly was.
"Thank you for your praise, my liege... Although, what is this 'last task' that you want me to fulfill?"
"You'll be in charge of defending the capital in the unlikely scenario where the approaching Neugomian forces manage to come within the capital's vicinity." he replied with a continued explanation. "We've had some... Past experiences with the Empire using teleportation magick to barge into places we don't want them in..."
"If that situation ever occurs... You're allowed to take full command of the men you've trained." Novus continued. "Lead them in battle and let them gain a bit of practical combat experience if that unlikely scenario does occur."
The assassin quickly gave another deep bow as she spoke once more. "I understand, my liege. I shall do my best if that possibility does indeed suddenly happen."
"Good. Now as for the assignments and how each of you are going to be deployed..."
________________________________________
It had been several hours already, and yet her head remained plagued with that throbbing sense of pain that felt as if her brain itself was becoming swollen- it was impossible in the first place, as her very existence was of a biomechanical origin, and that alone already made such forms of intolerable pain supposedly nonexistent to her body.
As the poor woman lied down on her soft bed, false visions of some unknown time and place would repeatedly cloud her thoughts... A series of illusions where an untold amount of vast, bloody wars took place and made the conflicts of today appear as mere squabbling compared to its sheer power.
A million deaths, perhaps even more, would sweep through this world in an undying wave of cold, indiscriminating fury, as the very earth she walked on would be shattered by forces that far surpassed the peak of her own strength.
"... W-what is this... What am I seeing all of a sudden..." Whitlea muttered to herself quietly, unable to believe how terrifyingly surreal, yet exceedingly horrific her visions had become- were they real or perhaps just a figment of her imagination? Either way, she really couldn't tell for certain.
Suddenly, however, a voice would answer the questions she had meekly uttered, its tone whispering into her mind in an ethereal manner that her ears alone wouldn't be able to detect.
"This is what will happen in the future..." it spoke telepathically to her in an eerily gentle tone. "... That is, if you allow it to happen..."
"... H-huh...? W-who the hell... Are you?"
The voice giggled a bit before it made its reply. "You and I... We are one and same... However..."
"I am far more powerful than what you could ever hope to be~"
A pitch black void instantly became what surrounded Whitlea from every direction, as an imposing, yet familiar figure would suddenly appear before her very eyes.
"... Well, to make it simple for your feeble brain to understand..." the figure spoke to her in a somewhat haughty manner, as her expression would suddenly become incredibly cold and serious. "I am you.. But..."
"I'm a version of you hailing from a different world where everything went wrong."
The pale figure before her was of a black-haired woman with purple-iris eyes, with most of her appearance and features being incredibly similar to that of Whitlea's own. The one thing that distinguished this replica of hers however, was that terrifying look of insanity on her mad pair of eyes...
It made her look like she had seen countless horrors that passed through most of her life, while at the same time, it made Whitlea feel like she knew everything about her down to the very last detail.
"... So basically... Y-you're me?"
"Precisely~ Good girl~" the other Whitlea praised. "Now if you don't mind, I've been planning to do this for a while... I've always hated how weak and... Passive my past self was... I'm going to give you a little makeover~"
Caution, and then fear, would form heavily in her mind... What exactly was this 'other her' planning?
"... What do you mean by a 'makeover'?"
"Our belove-... Ahem, I mean, Novus... Is going to get gravely injured in the last parts of the plan he made..." the other Whitlea elucidated. "I don't want that to happen, so right now, whether you like it or not..."
"We're going to merge with each other~ I get to exist in this world with you as the anchor that holds my powerful presence in place, and you receive access to my incredible powers in return..."
Whitlea furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. "Merge? Power? Anchor? I can't exactly make sense of what you're saying..."
"You don't have to. Once we merge, you'll instantly understand everything..." the other Whitlea interjected. "Now, please hold still, and don't resist..."