The Red Hand

Team Akagi soared high overhead, moving at an absolutely ludicrous speed as they zipped toward the Imperial Capital. Halifax watched in awe as the ground below them flew by so quickly while Amakusa screamed in abject horror.

"STOP THIS THING! I WANNA GET OFF AKAGI'S WILD RIDE!" Amakusa pleaded for Akagi to slow down but was again ignored.

{LET ME DOWN!} (Amakusa)

"There's no stopping the fun train!" Akagi cackled as they continued flying toward their destination. "This attraction goes until I say otherwise!"

{WHAT PART OF THIS TRAIN IS FUN?!?} (Amakusa)

"Judging by the mountains that we just passed, we should be near the Imperial capital soon. I'd recommend landing somewhere outside of it so we can walk in rather than cause a massive scene by landing within the walls." Halifax figured that flying straight inside would attract too much attention, and would complicate things.

"Alright everyone, hang on to your butts! We're gonna speed things up a notch to hasten our arrival time!" Akagi channeled more power, and speed up, moving to the absolute limit of what the girls could handle.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Amakusa screamed as they rocketed forward yet again. "SOMEBODY SAVE MEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

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"And we're here!" Akagi cheered as they slowly landed outside the Imperial Capital. In the distance, they could see the massive white walls that surrounded the city, and Halifax pointed out the main entrance which sat beside the mighty Tibrus River that ran through the city.

"SWEET GROUND! I'LL NEVER LEAVE YOU AGAIN!" Amakusa was practically kissing the ground after she landed.

{GROUND!} (Amakusa)

"Oh come on ya big baby. It wasn't that bad." Halifax chuckled. "Though hitting that bird wasn't very fun." It had practically exploded into a fireworks display of blood, guts and feathers when she smacked into it.

"I mean, seeing it explode into like that was kinda funny..." Yumi looked ashamed to laugh.

"Yeah! Not to mention that we didn't even go that fast! After all, we didn't even have to go to plaid!" Akagi laughed at an obscure reference that even Yumi didn't get.

{Note to self. Have Yumi watch that movie when we get back.} (Akagi)

"But let's give the pet a few moments to calm down. Halifax can you send a message to our awaiting Princess?" Akagi figured that Amakusa would need a minute to stop freaking out.

"Yeah." Halifax held out her hand and made a small semi-translucent dove appear in her palm. "Now, take this to Rebeckah, and don't let anyone see you, okay?" She pat it on the head before throwing it into the air. "And it's off. I'm betting we'll get a quick reply, so let's start heading down toward the city now. The bird will give me her reply if and when she writes it." She started walking down the hill, and Akagi, Yumi, and Amakusa followed, though she was being dragged by Akagi.

"Come on, pet. Let's go." Akagi had her by the scruff of her Kimono and dragged Amakusa along.

"Flying is scary... No more flying..." Amakusa whimpered as she was dragged across the grass.

After slowly hiking down a large hill and hopping onto the main road, Akagi and Co eventually found themselves at the main gate of the Imperial Capital. The massive white walls that surrounded the massive City emanated with magic, and Halifax mentioned that it had a reputation as being nearly impossible to successfully siege. Its walls were specially made by the Dwarves and enchanted with ancient Elven magic, which both reinforced them and passively repaired any damage they might take. In its history, the Imperial Capital had been besieged many times by both other humans and Demons, but it had never fallen.

Getting inside was ordinarily quite difficult, as you would need a special permit to enter and the wait times could be lengthy. However, as a Mythril-ranked adventurer, Halifax simply flashed her small guild plate and made up a lie about her being here on a special mission, which quickly got them inside.

{The perks of being important!} (Halifax)

Once inside, the scale of the city hit them full on. Amakusa and Halifax had been here many times, but to Akagi and Yumi, it was impressive. The paved cobblestone streets were dotted with numerous planted trees as well as light posts, which Akagi figured ran on magic, and the buildings that sat along the different roads reminded Akagi of the 17th-century Palladian Architecture of Italy with some Neo-Classical mixed in.

“Damn.” Akagi whistled. "This place is gorgeous. It feels like I've stepped back in time, not just into another world." She was beginning to wonder if the humans of this world had any relation to those of Earth with similarities like this.

{It wouldn't be the strangest thing if there was some connection between them. After all, its not like humans are the default for life, so having two worlds with them is a bit strange.} (Akagi)

"I figured that you'd find it impressive. The Imperial Capital probably one of the nicest cities on the continent, though Targul certainly gives it a run for its money." Halifax smiled before her face turned into one of worry. "It just hit me, but will you two be alright?" She looked between Akagi and Yumi. "Shiroe has divine magic which lets her speak the common tongue, but you two don't." She figured that Akagi and Yumi were going to have a hard time if nobody could understand them.

{I suppose I could translate, but that has its problems.} (Halifax)

"Don't worry." Akagi then spoke in Enoris' common tongue, much to Halifax's surprise. "I politely requested that Mizumi teach it to us, so we're fine." The two girls quickly figured out that Akagi's request was anything but.

"How did you learn it so fast?!?" Amakusa was shocked that she picked up a language in such a short time. "There's no way you could've mastered it in a few weeks!"

"Well, I probably could with my mental abilities, but I actually took Yumi and Mizumi into my shadow and dilated time to where we spent like a year in there as she taught it to us." Akagi answered. "We're not perfect, but it will do."

{Time dilation?!?} (Amakusa)

"Yeah, you're pronunciation is a bit off, but most people won't mind." Halifax nodded. "That's good. I was worried about needing to translate for you, and I assume you did something similar with your ninjas?" She figured that Akagi had done the same thing.

"Not all of them, no." Akagi shook her head. "A few like Chloe, Nina, and Hikari were taught, but for the rest, I had Imp make a translation item that would do the job for them." Having everyone learn the language would've been a pain, and Mizumi could only stand teaching the same thing so many times.

"Good, then that will-" Halifax was cut off as her dove familiar returned, landing on her head. "There's a message attached to its leg." She pulled the small paper off and read through it, a scowl slowly forming on her lips. "Looks like I was right. Rebeckah wants to meet with us, ASAP. Her letter says to come at the eighteenth bell since she wants to contact Elariel and get her in on this."

{I knew that she'd be coming, but still...} (Halifax)

"And how long do we have until then?" Akagi asked about the time. She knew that Enoris ran off a different system than Earth but was unsure how the Empire tracked it.

"Based on the clock tower..." Halifax pointed to one in the distance. "We're at the thirteenth bell, so we have approximately five hours until our meeting." Enoris had a twenty-seven-hour day segmented into standard units of measurement, which approximated how time was kept on Earth.

"So we've got time to wander around a bit, good." Akagi looked around. The Imperial Capital here reminded her of the one from FWO, and she could tell by the look on Yumi's face that the Priestess thought the same. "You two know this place, so show us around a bit. We've got nothing but time to kill at the moment."

"I figured that you'd burst into the Palace or sneak in or something. Are you really just going to sightsee?" Amakusa doubted Akagi's intentions.

"It's not the Princess that I care about anyway, so busting in right now would do nothing to advance my goals." Akagi shrugged.

"In fairness, Elariel is the more important of the two, so yeah." Halifax nodded. "I don't mind looking around a bit though. I haven't been to the capital in a while, so it will be nice to see it again."

{There are some excellent shops here, and the food at Nisha's place is great.} (Halifax)

“Then lead on, oh wise tour guide!” Akagi chuckled as Halifax led them around the expansive Imperial Capital. Halifax told Akagi about its history, how the Empire once covered most of the continent before losing all but a small portion to rebellions and invasions, and how successive leaders had been pushing for a total reconquest.

"I take it that beastkin are not treated well in the Empire?" Akagi said as they walked past an open-air slave market which was primarily filled with beastkin for sale.

"They're not only slaves if that's what you're thinking." Halifax pointed out a few beastkin who were running shops and wandering the streets. "It just that with the invasion and reconquest of the Northern Beastkingdoms two decades ago, the number of beastkin slaves has increased. Though it would be fair to say that within the Empire, beastkin aren't treated great."

{I know plenty who've been turned into playthings.} (Halifax)

"And you just had to make me one..." Amakusa sighed.

"If people think you're just Akagi's slave, that actually will make things even easier." Halifax gave a wry smile.

"I mean... She is." Akagi laughed. "I call her pet, but in reality, she's my slave."

{Or should I say intern?} (Akagi)

"..." Amakusa glared at her.

"Am I wrong?" Akagi looked back at her. "You're my pet, and must do whatever I say. Thus, you are a slave."

"I..." Amakusa bit her lip.

"Be grateful that I did not make your subconscious personality the entirety of your being." Akagi smirked. "Or would you rather be my happy pet all day?" She wiggled her fingers over her shoulder. “I can easily rescind my kindness if you want.”

{Dark...} (Halifax)

"Ethical issues aside, Akagi is right, Shiroe." Halifax interceded. "For the most part, you still have your free will, and based on what I've seen from that Black Company of hers, you got off easy."

{Part of me is saying that I should be angry with Akagi for doing something so cruel, but then that part fucks off and says that Shiroe deserves exactly what she's getting... Damn... I really don't care anymore, do I?} (Halifax)

"They might not be the best example either." Yumi gave a wry smile. "Besides Elna, the rest had their personalities entirely wiped and a new one implanted. It is similar to what happened to Shiroe, but I'd say it's far more extreme." She approved of the newly transformed Black Company and was always happy to have more converts to the Cult of the Demon Lord.

"Either way, Shiroe is my happy pet and will gladly do tricks and wag her tail if I want." Akagi laughed. "So just remember your place, and all will be well."

Amakusa looked to Halifax for help but received a shrug.

{You're barking up the wrong tree, little doggy.} (Halifax)

"Ignoring that whole issue, there's one place we should probably avoid." Halifax moved up next to Akagi.

"If it's the one with the literal God hanging about, then I understand." Akagi laughed. She'd sensed the Divine Energy the moment she closed in on the Imperial Capital and as she got closer the 'signal' only got stronger.

"Ah, so you already detected her. I guess that's not surprising all things considered." Halifax gave a wry smile. "There are temples dedicated to each of the Gods in the Capital, and Lady Tahena spends a lot of time in hers. If you're sensing divine energy in the City, then that's probably her."

{Out of all the Gods, she was the one who interacted with the mortal world the most, but... I'd say that her interactions and generosity weren't entirely out of a sense of altruism.} (Halifax)

"If I'm correctly recalling the information that Mizumi and you gave us, Tahena is the Goddess of Health and Fertility, right?" Yumi recalled what she could about Enoris' Gods.

"Yes." Halifax nodded. "She's pretty popular among average people for I'd say pretty obvious reasons."

"Now the real question is, where does she stand on the issue?" Akagi asked about whether she was one of the Gods that supported Elariel's 'rebellion.'

"Sadly, she supports Gale's plan, but not out of a simple desire for self-preservation." Halifax answered. "From what Rebeckah told me, Tahena just wants to continue blessing people, even if it is in another world."

"Her reasons are irrelevant." Akagi continued. "All Gods are going to get a punishment, but I plan on being a bit nicer to those who are at least trying to stop Gale's plan."

{Though nicer doesn't mean a free pass, and Elariel herself is going to get a very fitting punishment when things go my way.} (Akagi)