The major bowed, his face lit by a single light coming from the moonlit sky.
In front of him was one of the members of Myrka's royal council, the chief of warfare and Myrka's strike army, general Rudolph, one of the few homunculi to be granted a name by the king himself.
To his right was battalion nine's Colonel, a homunculus who had yet to be granted a name.
He was the youngest colonel, as well as Rudolph's protégée.
While exchanging pleasantries, he could see Rudolph piercing gaze leveling towards him, making him shift uncomfortably.
Rudolph had a particular name in the lower circles of the army. One that spoke volumes about why one would do well to fear him.
The Dark Monarch.
"Dark Monarch" was a title that kingdoms from old, back in the steel age, granted to special individuals. A Dark Monarch was someone who was the king's equal, operating in the shadows to keep prosperity and safety.
It was abolished after a lot of nations succumbed to civil war, but these are strange times, that calls for even stranger methods. If this was helping in the war against the Umbral, it was worth the risk, at least in his opinion.
"Major, do tell me, are they ready?"
"Yes, my lord," he almost stuttered, knowing full well who the general was speaking about. "This batch is most curious. While the personnel at the Cradle didn't deliver enough Espers, their work on genetics is improving. All the three show promise with their ESP, and even the weakest is a quick thinker. One of the Espers, V1NC-3T, is especially talented."
"Ah, yes… That one," he drawled, his voice carrying a hint of boredom mixed with mild interest. "He was different from the others, if my memory serves…"
"It says in his file that he never cried, even as an infant."
"Yes, but that's not all," the major continued, pride blossoming in his chest. "His ESP is also unique. Vector Manipulation… and he learned how to use it in record time".
The Dark monarch raised an eyebrow, but chose to say nothing, his face showing the same bore as always. However, his calculative mind was doing the math.
The odds of him actually making a difference in the war are greater than most…
With a pleased smile, he addressed the Major once more.
"You will bring him to me after their first mission. Should he survive, I shall grant an audience to the boy."
That crushed any pride in the official, and fear soon took hold of his heart, a gripping almost as cold as the arctic ice.
"Yes, my lord."
Few were the ones who held a dragon's attention without being burned at least once… The same applied to the cursed existence that is the Dark Monarch…
He could only hope that Vincent would survive both ordeals unscathed, unlikely as that was.
...
It has been a week after my last appointment with that woman.
"Stop blinking" she ordered, her voice as sharp as a whip tearing through my skin.
"It's hard when someone's peering into my eyes with a microscope while strapping my bloody arms! Is this really necessary?"
"Yes… now shut it!" She then began writing something in that accursed paper. "It seems you popped another vessel. If you keep filtering through Ether like you are, you either will become stronger or you'll die trying."
"I'll take the risk, now, can you please take this accursed thing off of me?"
Feeling my restrained limbs being free, then being able to see something that wasn't only light, made my headache a little more bearable…
She eyed me for a second, thinking, then sighed.
After that, she wrote in another paper and handed it to me. A prescription?
"This is a new, experimental drug some of the higher ups want to test. If you're so eager to kill yourself, then make sure it'll help somewhat! Now," Her eyes briefly lit up, showing she was filtering the Ether around. "Get the hell out of my office, brat."
"Whatever ya say, old hag."
I was then thrown out of her lair.
While she was beautiful and in her late twenties, I knew what annoyed her, so why shouldn't I say it? Especially when it meant less time spent in that cramped room, even more when considering all the annoyance that being still gives me.
I'm trying not to be a bastard, but it's difficult when I am used to going from place to place, gunning down enemies and completing tasks for piss dictators and controversial figures.
While walking, I took the prescription and eyed it with a quick sigh.
This might be worth checking, I suppose.
...
So, I decided to give a quick peek into that project, but, in just a few minutes, I was accosted by two soldiers, alongside the Major.
"Sir, may I help?"
"At ease, soldier" his voice was soft, and I allowed a small smile to blossom on my face. The Major was one of the few friends I had here, and, while I'm not a child mentally, I can't deny that having someone feel pride in you is quite fulfilling. "I'll discuss this with the other two, but since we crossed paths, might as well tell you. You'll lead a squad composed of you and the other ones plus ten men… It'll be your first test, so give it your all."
He was tense. Why that was, I didn't know, but whatever may be, it is above my pay grade and thus, not important right now.
After all, I'll always be a mercenary at heart, and I have a policy of not asking too many questions. Those who did it usually end up in an early grave.
Still, I'm happy. After two grueling weeks, I finally got an assignment. If I face demons, that's a plus, since it'll be one step closer to finding my way back home.
I'll see my children earlier than expected.
After the Major walked away, I allowed a wistful smile to blossom on my face.
So, with this line of thought, I walked away, deciding to drop on that experiment after the mission, if I come back at all.
It'll be soon, just wait for Da, my dears.