The next morning, the coordinated Midland forces prepared for the second day of battle at Eisanyr. Duke Louis led his Reeve banners to the front lines accompanied by Duke Cole and the Stonemar banners.

The Banner of the Claw journeyed down the dried-up riverbed once more, making their way through a thick forest on a narrow path that ended in open fields speckled with tents.

JD led the Banner of the Claw with a determined look on his face. His plan to get past Luther and into the city was a risky one, but he knew it was their only chance at victory.

A loud roar emerged from JD, ordering the Banner of the Claw to storm into battle as they approach Eisanyr's walls.

Deema and his mercenaries recoil in confusion as they huddle upon the walls, uncertain why the Banner of the Claw is rushing towards them with no form of strategy.

“Now!" shouted JD as the Banner of the Claw arrived at the walls.

On cue with JD's orders, Chrysta created a small platform of ice below her feet. Around the Coldheart was Nightingale, three panthers, Marie, and Yuna.

As the ice wall arrived just high enough, Nightingale and the three Panthers climbed up the battlements while Yuna, Marie, and Chrysta used a wind disc to fire themselves onto the battlements.

The six maidens descended onto Deema and his mercenaries, ready to clash with the Archmage. Deema chuckled and cast his [Mana Silence] on himself.

"Did you whores forget that I made half of you useless?!" exclaimed Deema scornfully.

"Nope! We didn't forget!" Marie snapped as she grabbed onto Nightingale's back and leapt off the battlements, "You're too simple minded for an Archmage."

Yuna and Chrysta did the same with the other Panthers and followed suit.

Meanwhile, Luther and his Kaiser Elites arrived from the east to find JD and the Banner of the Claw fiercely clashing at the gates.

A smirk curled up on JD's face as Chrysta emerged from the silencing range and created an immense ice barrier to block Luther's path.

Luther raised his left arm and figured he could shatter the barrier. But no gravity spells emerged from his left arm, he was within range of the [Mana Silence] effect. The Kaiser Baron was furious and ordered his men to shatter the ice barrier before them.

His maddening gaze was forever rooted upon those who had escaped him without a single casualty.

 

Princess Emmeline opened her eyes and found herself in a blank white room that seemed to go infinitely. All she could remember was finishing the divine right and activating her Avens' power.

Before her was a six year old boy with black hair. The kid was playing with toy cars that Emmeline didn't recognize. The princess was a bit confused as the boy didn't look like Arlan nor did she expect the Avens' power to thrust her into the unknown environment.

Emmeline knelt beside the young boy and asked, "Excuse me, are you Arlan?"

He shook his head and smiled. "Nope, I'm Rove."

Surprised, she remembered that Rove was Arlan's name on Terra. "Oh!" she said with a smile. "Do you know Arlan?"

Rove looked up at her with bright eyes. "No, sorry."

Comfort settled over Emmeline as she nodded her head. "Thank you, Rove. Do you know where we are?"

The boy shrugged his shoulders in response.

"I see," she continued. "Rove, do you know who I am?"

"You're Emmeline," he replied without hesitation.

"Yes! That's right," she said happily.

"But why are you here? Aren't I supposed to be alone in this room?"

"I'm here to wake you from your eternal slumber," Emmeline explained patiently.

The child put his toys down again and looked up at her in confusion. "Eternal Slumber? Have I died?"

"Not yet," she said calmly, "but if you don't come with me..."

Rove lowered his gaze away from hers and pointed past her shoulder. "Look."

Emmeline turned around and found herself in a war torn city on Terra. The ground was torn apart, and the air was filled with smoke. Tracers were flying in every direction. She tried to figure out what was happening but her brain couldn't keep up; her vision was blurred by the flashing lights.

In the distance, she heard screams as hundreds of people came running toward her. They had nowhere to go; bodies were piling up on one another like ancient corpses at a well-known mass grave site.

Up ahead, she saw a squad of soldiers dressed in grey armor with dark blue trims and carrying unrecognizable weapons like they were crossbows. Their faces were covered by helmets, making them appear demonic. Emmeline ducked down under their gunfire and cried out for them to stop shooting.

The first few rows dropped onto the ground with neat round holes punched through their necks, shoulders, abdomens, and backs. Others behind tried to crawl away but weren't lucky enough to escape quickly enough. Blood spilled across the asphalt street as they were shredded by the bullets.

"What is this?" asked Emmeline with despair.

Emotionless, Rove answered, "My earliest memory of my hometown." 

The soldiers begin to walk over the bodies and fire coup de grace into any of the survivors.

"Why are they killing these innocents?!"

"The Arusan soldiers were indoctrinated to hate us. They were taught that if they didn't kill us, we would rebel and kill them."

"You said this was your memory...?"

Rove merely pointed over to four bodies huddled over a smaller body. Emmeline looked closer and the smaller body was moving.

One of the soldiers jerked over to the movement and aimed his rifle.

"No! Don't!" yelled Emmeline as she tried to stop him but her hands simply phased through him.

"There is no point," stated Rove, "This is merely a memory."

Before the soldiers could continue, another hail of bullets struck the merciless killers one by one and killed them all instantly.

The black death that was the helicopter appeared in the sky, its riflemen pointing down at the helpless people on the ground. The Terran Federation's emblem is marked on its side.

As if pulled from a nightmare, a small body emerged from the darkness, barely alive - a young Rove. Tears bled from his eyes as they locked onto the four bodies that were on him for any signs of life.

"Dad!? Mom?! Denise?! Howie?!" he screamed out in desperation. Still kneeling by the four mangled bodies that had sacrificed themselves to protect him, the child Rove begged and pleaded for them to wake up.

"Please! Please don't leave me!" he yelled through sobs. "Wake up.... Hurry!"

Emmeline and Rove just looked on in horror and sadness. With a shaking hand, the young boy stood up with bloodstains splattered across his clothes. Emmeline's vision blurred and suddenly they were at a refugee camp, surrounded by people who had seen more tragedy than anyone could ever imagine.

Child Rove was standing in line for food, gripping an empty tray tightly in his hands. The aid workers were doing their best to provide food, yet the queue seemed never-ending. Rove was second to last in line, with only a small girl behind him. Everyone else had families or other loved ones with them, but she and Rove were alone.

When it was finally his turn, there was nothing left but a scrap of mashed potato. The worker placed it on his tray with an apologetic expression before moving onto the next person. It was then that the smaller girl started to cry quietly to herself. Without hesitating, Rove turned around and handed her his tray filled with food. Her eyes lit up as she looked up into his tear-filled face; he smiled brightly and said softly, “It’s alright! I wasn’t really that hungry anyway!”

Emmeline couldn't help but start to cry too, squeezing Rove's hand even tighter.

"That little girl died a few days later in my arms," Rove whispered sadly. "The enemy attacked and killed indiscriminately - soldiers and civilians alike - she was among those they shot."

Emmeline couldn't find any words to say; nothing felt adequate enough to express the emotion encompassing them both.

The air was heavy with anguish and fear as the Terran Federation soldiers tore screaming families apart. Mothers, daughters, and sisters sobbed as fathers, sons, and brothers were dragged away for conscription. Even children as young as ten years old were taken from their families.

In the midst of the chaos, a brave soul stood up from the crowd - Rove, who had no one left to long for him. His heart was filled with sorrowful emptiness. He was alone in this world, and he would die alone too; even if his life ended here today, nobody would mourn his loss.

Ugly scars lined Rove's arms from failed attempts at trying to end it all. He could not take his own life out of remembrance for his family's sacrifice. With nothing left, he shouted out above the fray: "I volunteer to serve in the Terran Federation!"

Everyone froze in disbelief; none of them dared to speak for him. The commanding officer stepped forward, clapping slowly. "Boy, you wish to fight the Arusans?"

Rove nodded emphatically, his voice thick with anger: "I don't want to fight them... I want to kill them."

The officer regarded him steadily before finally saying, "Then come with me. I'll give you that chance."

Now Emmeline and Rove stood before the imposing façade of a military academy, its walls towering above them like an ancient fortress. The young Rove and the commanding officer from before stepped forward towards the entrance, each step seeming to take them closer to something far beyond what either of them expected.

Rove squeezed Emmeline's hand tight as he spoke in a low voice. "This is where I devoted my life, every day focused on one thought."

"What was it?" murmured Emmeline.

With a deathly intensity, Rove replied, "Revenge."

As Rove uttered his last word, the scene before them transformed into a war-torn battlefield. The acrid stench of gunpowder and death filled the air as Arusan soldiers furiously fired at a Terran Federation trench. Emmeline recoiled in terror from the explosions around her.

"Why are we here?" she asked desperately.

"At age eleven, I felt the fear and adrenaline coursing through my veins as I led a  platoon of orphaned children into our first battle."

The Arusan forces began to drop like flies around them, and a unit of small Terran Federation children rushed into the trench with miniaturized submachine guns, some only able to carry pistols due to their size.

"Rove! Kyle and Mark were hit on the way in! Justin was hit by the mortars!" shouted one of the orphaned soldiers.

"Don't just stand there! Patch their wounds immediately! Everyone else come with me - let's clear this fucking trench!" yelled Rove with an urgency that could not be denied.

He continued somberly, "Everyone but Kyle, Mark, and I were killed in that first battle - orphans just like us. I was the only student from the military academy."

In a flash they were taken to the aftermath of the battle where they saw forty black blankets covering the corpses of child soldiers who had perished under Rove's command. Kyle and Mark were nowhere to be seen and had been moved to a nearby field hospital. Tears streamed silently down Rove's face yet he remained stoic, barely even blinking as he looked upon his fallen comrades.

Emmeline was rendered speechless as Rove declared his fate, the bitter finality reverberating within every word. "I cannot come with you," he spat, and his tone was cold and vicious. "I am nothing more than a destroyer of worlds, an instrument of death. I take perverse joy in slaughtering my enemies and watching them suffer under my wrath." His stony gaze tested her to deny what he said, but she could not - for she had seen the dark truth with her own eyes.

Emmeline slowly embraced him, taking him off guard with her display of warmth. She whispered into his ear, "That doesn't matter. That part of you does not change how I think of you. Your past is your tragedy, but your present is your strength. Despite becoming a monster, there is still light shining through and that is why I chose you, that's why I still choose you despite knowing your monstrous past."

A white energy illuminated Rove's form transforming him into Arlan. Tears streaked down his widened eyes as her words embraced him with understanding.

"You have fought so hard for your family and the people you love, risking your life countless times to save them- you are a hero who has only wanted to do good. Despite all that has happened I still see it clearly."

"Emme-"

"Hush now, stay still my dear. Let me bear your pain and unlock the path forward. For I will become your sheath-to protect you forever."

Arlan was dumbstruck as he questioned further: "Protect me?"

Emmeline nodded solemnly, gripping Arlan closer against her chest. "Yes, no matter if you are Rove or Arlan. I will always think of you when no one else will," she continued, "I used the last of my Avens' power to be here. It allows me to enter your core and take on any of your afflictions or mortal wounds."

Rove gasped desperately as he pleaded with her, "No! Don't do this! You would be entering an eternal slumber!"

Emmeline smiled tearfully, her voice full of conviction. "Yes, because I know my last moment was spent speaking with you and learning of your hardships. Arlan Reeve- I love you and I'm willing to bring you back however I can!"

Arlan froze in place, shock overriding his senses. He shouted out, "No, I can't accept this! I already lost someone I loved once due to my own ineptitude and that pain was excruciating enough! I can never bear the agony of losing you!"

A huge cobalt abyss suddenly opened up behind him, increasing in scope and intensity.

“You can endure it, I know you can,” Emmeline said with determination, her voice quavering only slightly. "This is my last request; you must save Althea."

Before Arlan could make a move to stop her, she pushed him forcefully into the azure chasm.

"What are you doing?!" he yelled in terror.

Emmeline's eyes pooled with sorrowful tears as her trembling voice filled the air with a desperate plea, "This mana stream will link our cores so that you can wake up. Promise me you'll tell my father how much I love him."

As Arlan descended deeper, pain jolted through him like lightning as he remembered the orphanage that he failed to protect. He'd promised Emmeline safety and yet here she was, sacrificing her life so that he could survive.

His mind circled around his failures like a vulture, delivering wave after wave of agony until his breath came in ragged gasps.

Arlan's heart stopped cold with dread, the silence of the chasm piercing his soul like a thousand ice daggers. But then suddenly a voice that Arlan thought he'd never hear again broke through the darkness - Miss Petrah's voice. "My oh my, are you going to give up that easily?"

He gasped in disbelief as she materialized before him. "Miss Petrah!" He shouted out her name, unable to contain his shock and amazement at this sudden miracle.

"A wonderful surprise that you never forgot my voice." She said calmly.

"How is this possible?" He asked desperately, trying to make sense of what was happening.

"The Avens' Power bridges the planes from the beyond and your core." Miss Petrah explained quickly, her words rushed but precise.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't protect you and the others," he admitted shamefully, bowing his head in grief for all those who had died during his lifetime- Rove's parents, his two siblings, the little girl he met at the refugee camp, and everyone else from Althea.

But hope returned to him as Miss Petrah spoke once more. "It's alright! But we don't have much time. You can save Emmeline."

Arlan looked up in desperation and demanded "Tell me how!"

"Break the seal on your Regalia and unleash its true form! You'll be able to amplify the Avens' Power and change its parameters." Miss Petrah instructed firmly.

Arlan shouted in desperation, “What do I have to do to break this seal?!”

"My child... Forgive yourself for everything," Miss Petrah said softly before fading away like a whisper on the wind.

Arlan's mind drifted back to the memories of loved ones who had died before him. But the memories of their smiles and laughter started to fill both his mind and his heart.

He squeezed his eyes shut as tears streamed down his face and he spoke out loud, "Thank you, everyone. You will be forever with me in my heart."

The white room transformed into a blazing golden halo that vibrated with power. Emmeline watched as Arlan plummeted towards the bottomless blue chasm below. Just when she thought her lover was gone forever, Arlan appeared before her-- hovering in midair, his hand outstretched toward hers.

"I'm taking you with me," Arlan said with a reassuring smile. "I'm not letting you die."

Emmeline was paralyzed with confusion but there was no time to hesitate. She grabbed onto Arlan's outstretched hand and felt herself pulled into his embrace. He held her tightly as the two spiraled down into the aqua maelstrom of energy, leaving behind a trail of mana sparks in their wake.

 

The Midland Princess stirred from her deep slumber, the details of her surroundings slowly coming into focus. As she awoke, her gaze fell upon the bed that had cradled her upper body; her legs were still dangling off the edge of the mattress.

Suddenly, a warm hand grasped hers firmly. In an instant she knew it belonged to Arlan. Emmeline shot up, eyes wide open with shock. There before her lay the scene of a conversation between Arlan, Jin and her father, King Richard.

King Richard bellowed out his daughter's name as he held her close, his eyes desperate with hope. Emmeline saw Arlan smiling like a beacon of light from over her father's shoulder. Jin took in a deep breath of relief and declared, "Arlan, you've both miraculously woke up and Princess Emmeline doesn't seem afflicted. How'd this happen?"

"To be honest, I can scarcely put what happened into words," replied Arlan. "But all I can tell you is that my regalia was finally freed from the seal it was held in, allowing me to manipulate Avens' Power to save Emmeline."

Jin studied Arlan and nodded sagely, "Ah, yes. Your core is golden - a color I've never seen before. An incredibly absurd amount of essence and mana seeps from your core. I am perplexed as to which is your mana lane or your essence lane. There is no difference in your golden lanes."

King Richard then dropped to his knees in adoration before the King's Blade, "I owe you an eternal debt of gratitude for all that you have done."

"Please stand up!" pleaded Arlan.

Emmeline sprang onto her lover and embraced him tightly, whispering with awe, "You're amazing, Arlan Reeve."

Arlan's tone was cold and unwavering. "As much as I want to rejoice," he growled, "We need to continue where we left off before Emmeline awoke. Sixteen days have I laid in a deep slumber. Now tell me, where is my Banner of the Claw? What news regarding the frontlines?"

King Richard exhaled heavily as he spoke. "The Banner of the Claw is attacking Eisanyr in force alongside the Reeve-Stonemar Joint Army," he began. "They are two days into the fight already. And House Lansley has laid siege to Levencourt, far to the north." As he finished his answer, a wave of foreboding seemed to fill the air.

Arlan rushed to prepare, hastily donning his teal mithril armor and securing his blacksteel claymore in its scabbard. Emmeline watched with fear and dread as he affixed his red cloak around his broad shoulders.

"Pardon my haste," stated Arlan with grim determination, "Then I must join my bannermen."

Jin questioned the King's Blade, "Eisanyr is at least three hours East of here. I doubt the siege will still be ongoing when you arrive."

"With Kage, I can get there in forty minutes," Arlan answered, his voice heavy with a sense of duty.

“Arlan, I will arrive shortly with the rest of the Royal Army and Grand Marshal Dink Rorschach,” stated King Richard.

“Then upon my arrival, I shall inform the rest of your timing. Your Grace, I must now take my leave,” answered back Arlan.

"If only I could just hold you a little longer," wished Emmeline desperately. But understanding the gravity of the situation, she continued, "But I know you're needed."

Arlan nodded solemnly, turning away from the Midland Princess’ reluctant embrace. Sprinting towards the courtyard, a nearby King's aide had already brought forth Kage for Arlan to ride.

But before leaving, Emmeline ran up to him and held him close, gazing intently into those deep brown eyes she loved so much. A single tear rolled down her cheek as she whispered gently into his ear, "I forgot to say… Arlan, I love you!"

The weight of her words seemed to reverberate through his heart and he replied confidently, "I love you too, Emmeline." With that Arlan bowed and galloped off on his shadowy steed, Kage.