Shackled Exalted

Emil

The air steeled with murderous intent. Emil flinched, taken aback by the flood of mana storming out of Kleine's body. Alarms sounded in his head. Danger loomed. His throat itched as if millions of tiny needles were prickling at his skin. Aoife stirred in his arms, whimpering at the oppressive energies.

Kleine's hollow laughter echoed through the ruins.

"Miles, get back!"

Rohan's words knocked out of his stupor. Emil jumped back, clenching the princess close. The monsters summoned by Rohan took his place.

"Hunt!"

As if eager to receive their master's commands, the monsters unleashed deafening roars. Emil winced, fighting his instincts to shrink at their thunderous cries. The noise of the monster's bellows shook the walls of the ruins. Primal animalistic urges seized control as they charged, trampling over the dissolving carcasses of the dead rodents. The beasts ran straight at Kleine, teeth and claws bared, consumed by an instinctual fury to tear the human apart.

Kleine watched the monsters with interest. The madness in his eyes shone even brighter, seemingly unperturbed by the sight of the ferocious creatures aiming for his life. Instead, he opened his arms wide, as if welcoming the monstrosities to a warm embrace.

"Twist," he uttered.

The monsters lunged. Emil stared in disbelief as the space before the beasts suddenly began to warp. Reality itself seemed to be distorted as localized pockets of space twisted in a vortex. A shrill, jarring dissonance erupted, screeching, vaguely resembling the sharp groan of machinery on the verge of breaking.

Squelch!

Emil's jaws dropped. He instinctively covered Aoife's eyes, not wanting the princess to witness the disturbing sight. Gore scattered. Blood splattered. The beasts' heads all simultaneously exploded into a pile of sanguine mess. The sickening sound of flesh toppling on the ground echoed as the monsters flopped to the ground.

"Rise," Rohan said. His voice cold and authoritative, undaunted by the carnage.

The freshly made corpses were suddenly engulfed by a swell of mana. Missing flesh began to grow anew as the decapitated parts sprouted from their roots. Within seconds, the monsters were standing up again. There was not a semblance of fear in their movements. They continued to growl and thrash with ferocity as if oblivious to their own gruesome deaths just moments ago.

For fuck's sake.

Emil swallowed the urge to throw up. An unsettling weight settled in his stomach. The gore was disturbing enough, but watching the decapacitated monsters sprout heads again was a new kind of horror that he never wanted to see again.

Suddenly, I feel stupid even having doubts about his Gift. Rohan's reputation of being the strongest is not unfounded. Each one of those monsters alone is troublesome to deal with. And he can just keep spawning and restoring them to his heart's content. As long as he doesn't run out of mana, he has an unkillable army.

Kleine took a step back at the resurrected monsters. He snapped his fingers as the creatures lunged once more. The monsters' assault was immediately stopped as they slammed against an unseen surface.

"This is a novel sight—bringing dead monsters back to life. A despicable authority befitting of the lord of monsters," he stated with a chilling nonchalance, "How troublesome. And utterly disgusting."

The space appeared to crack as the invisible barrier shattered at the monsters' relentless pressure. Kleine raised his hands. Before he could utter a chant, a harsh cry echoed through the air. A cadre of monstrous rodents suddenly emerged from the depths of the ruins, surrounding the man to protect him from the oncoming assault.

Emil raised his head.

A small Gharian woman stepped out of the darkness and into the moonlight pouring in from the ceiling. Mana enveloped her body. Her cold, unfeeling eyes stared at the carnage of monsters.

She must be the Exalted controlling these rats.

Fury flared in his chest as he was reminded of the corpses and the dying man in the depths of the forest. Rohan's advance forces. They had all fallen victim to this woman's gruesome Gift.

Karni

The entrance to ruins were drenched in violence. Monsters and rodents alike were viciously tearing each one apart. While Karni's rats were individually weaker compared to the beasts commanded by the Monster Tamer, she easily made up for the difference with sheer numbers.

"Kleine," she muttered over the nasty cries of monsters thrashing for dominion. Kleine was eyeing the battle with a sadistic glee, his eyes wide with madness as he indulged in the spill of blood.

Karni fought the urge to sigh. Her boss was normally competent and knowledgeable, but there were times like these where he became distracted. This ordeal with the princess and her knights was one of those whims. Their original plan to infiltrate the Academy was to seize important documents hidden within the Consortium to advance the next phase of their plans. The capture of Princess Aoife was something Kleine had decided at the last minute once they discovered that she would be present at the Academy. For someone as meticulous as Karni, the thought of adding another objective to an already complicated plan drove her insane. If it weren't for Melody's improvisations, things could have gone completely awry.

He's really pushing our luck here, trying to pick a fight with the Monster Tamer of all people.

"Karni. You're back."

The sound of Kleine's voice brought a much-needed relief. He still had his rationality. Karni wasn't sure what she was going to do if her boss had been consumed by his murderous urges.

"We should leave. More of the Lionhearts are on their way."

"Hmmm." A guttural sound escaped his throat. Kleine seemed unconvinced. Karni winced.

"…Nagi has already left. Melody is securing our escape route," she tried again.

"Do you have the vials of the princess's blood?"

"It's with Melody."

Kleine tilted his head back creepily. Karni felt her skin crawl as she watched his eerie visage.

If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

"Fine, I'll rein myself in this time. But what a shame. It's not everyday that you get an opportunity to fight against the Monster Tamer."

I think I rather not.

"There will be other chances. Clashing against the Lionhearts is inevitable if everything goes according to plan."

Kleine scoffed before turning back to address their foes. Tendrils of mana faintly spiraled around his throat.

"Your Highness," his calm voice resounded over the chaos, delivering private words meant only for the princess's ears, "Think about everything I've said carefully. When you're ready, seek out the Consortium. The truth will hurt. But I hope you won't run away again."

Karni clapped her hands. More monstrous rats emerged from the ruins to cover their escape. Kleine finally turned around and accompanied her to a hidden exit within the abandoned mausoleum.

"We spilled quite a bit of blood for your little interlude with the princess," Karni snapped. Anger swelled to her chest as she finally felt comfortable enough to voice her complaints. "You want to explain what the hell that was all about?"

"I was planting a seed."

Karni narrowed her eyes.

"The princess awakened to her Gift when I told her the story of her mother's demise. But she's still in denial. She doesn't fully believe in me yet. But what do you think will happen once she uncovers irrefutable evidence? Once she accepts the inconvenient truth, what do you think she will do?"

What a nasty guy.

Karni shuddered as Kleine's mouth curved into an eerie smile. She could never get used to the man's eccentricities. Kleine was like a powder keg. Intelligent, yet unpredictable. Sometimes she wondered if she made the right choice partnering with such a freak.

As long as we continue to get results.

Then my dream of Gharia's freedom might not be so distant.

A gnawing thought suddenly came to mind.

"Did my eyes deceive me, or did I witness an Exalted use two Gifts back there?" she asked.

The picture of the masked knight fighting against Kleine with earth and flames was etched in her mind. The sight was so shocking that she wasn't sure if she was hallucinating.

"You did. That was Emil Milligan. I believe he's like Melody and I, a victim of the Bestowed Project."

The name was vaguely familiar. It took Karni a second, but she soon realized why.

"…The finalist of the Clash of Dawn? What the hell is a student doing here? And what? Is he concealing his nature then?"

"If my hunch is correct, then I suspect he's an agent of Steiger. The Academy and the Council likely don't know about him. Well, actually it's almost certain that he's Steiger since he was working with Rohan to rescue the princess. The Monster Tamer holds a ceremonial position within that despicable organization after all."

Karni frowned. "A Steiger agent masquerading as a student in the Academy? Does he have a death wish?"

"An Exalted who can use two Gifts is perfect for infiltrating the Academy, don't you think? Well, I suppose he's doing a rather poor job of concealing his nature. But I digress. Steiger's presence in Azure City means that director has finally stopped dragging her feet."

"Should we expose his nature then?" Karni suggested, "If he's Steiger, then he will continue to oppose us. With two Gifts, he's going to become a formidable opponent in the future."

"…No. Keep it to yourself. His intrusion into Azure City is beneficial for Vigil. I need Steiger and the Council to maintain an antagonist tension to keep their eyes off of us."

"Are you sure you're not being sentimental?"

Kleine let out a scornful laugh.

"That's impossible," he said with sullen eyes, "I've long lost the ability."

Aoife

A week had passed since Vigil's attack on Exalted Academy.

Aoife was back in the royal palace within Upper Dannan. The moon glowed ominously from the night skies, casting its ethereal glare upon the hanging gardens that adorned the palace grounds. Light from the celestial body drenched the lush greenery. Tiny refractions bounced off the misty dew clinging to the leaves and petals, resulting in a pale blue glow that permeated the gardens.

She was reminded of her conversation with Kleine in the ancient catacombs.

Chills rushed down her arms. She shuddered as she saw sights that she never wanted to recall. As much as Aoife tried to forget the details of the wretched man's mad tales, she couldn't. She remembered every single line with immaculate clarity. Her mind refused to sit still, forever tormented by Kleine's words.

I can't put it off any longer.

She let out a sullen breath to steel her resolve. Heavy bags clouded beneath her eyes. She hadn't been able to sleep. Each time she closed her eyes the sight of the grotesque skeleton peering back at her flashed in her head. And when she finally managed to drift off from exhaustion, nightmares poisoned her reverie, robbing her of a restful sleep.

She was going to lose it. She could feel her sanity beginning to slip.

"Helena."

Her new lady-in-waiting was standing by the edge of the gardens. She was the replacement for her deceased butler, Horace.

"I'm heading to the royal mausoleum."

"Your Highness? What for?"

"I want to pay respects to my late mother. Layla Amethyst, surely you've heard of her? It's nearly the day of her passing."

"Yes, of course."

Aoife narrowed her eyes. Helena's reaction didn't seem out of the ordinary. Not that I expected her to know anything. Her new lady-in-waiting wasn't one of the original servants who attended to her mother in the mansion of her childhood. Aside from Horace, who met his untimely end at the hands of Melody, none of the original servants of that house still worked in the palace. Nor could Aoife uncover any traces of what happened to them over the past week.

How convenient. It's like they just vanished.

The royal mausoleum was a short trek from the outer gardens of the palace. Located at the rear of the palace estate, it was a majestic building built out of ivory-white marble surrounded by neatly trimmed hedges and vivid flowerbeds. It looked more like the site of a banquet rather than a tomb to hold dead bodies.

"You can wait out here," she said. Helena obliged without resistance, stopping before the entrance.

Aoife ventured inside. A small oil lamp in her left. A bouquet of flowers in her right. The dimly lit interior of the mausoleum was surprisingly chilly compared to the tranquil night. She walked forward. Footsteps echoed against the silent room. Her heart raced.

Deep inside, she finally found the casket containing her mother. A familiar plaque was hammered into the front face.

"Lady Layla Amethyst."

It was accompanied by the dates of her death.

Aoife recognized the intricate design of the ivory casket. It was just as she remembered on the date of the funeral, minus the blemished paint and quality of stone mauled by time.

"Hello, mother."

She set down the lamp and bouquet.

"So much has happened recently. I became a princess. I awakened to my Gift. I also made a new friend," she whispered. The image of her mother sitting on that bed smiling pensively came to mind.

Aoife leaned in.

"Are you—"

And pried open the casket.

"—still watching me?"

Empty.

The casket was empty.

Not a single hint of decomposed bones. A shred of flesh. A speck of hair or rotted nails.

Nothing.

Nothing was left of her mother.

Everything had been taken away.

They couldn't even leave me with a fake skeleton. Something to conceal the blasphemous act. They didn't have the courtesy of hiding it.

Aoife let out a pained laugh.

***

She made her way to the throne room.

It was deep into the night, but rest didn't come easy for the most powerful person in the kingdom. Especially not when the authority of the royal family was dangling precariously in front of all the ambitious nobles.

To Aoife's surprise, however, she found a different person in the spot of her father.

"Good evening, dearest sister," the snide voice greeted her with the ring of amusement and curiosity, "This is a rare encounter. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Blond hair. Intelligent eyes that gleamed with the glint of steel. A warrior physique. And a visage that was deeply admired by both man and woman alike. If there was a real-life version of the hero kings described in folktales, then her oldest brother would be its spitting image.

Aidan von Astrea, the Crown Prince.

"Where's father?" Aoife asked calmly.

"Retired to bed. The toll of recent events hasn't been kind to his health. First, Rory gets disgraced. We then lose our alliance with House Belle. You get captured. And now there's a terrorist group rampaging through Ardair," Aidan said with a chilling calm, "Don't you think it's strange that things just conveniently decide to fall apart right as I'm about to succeed the throne?"

Aoife closed her eyes and resolved herself. Her brother's prattle fell on deaf ears.

"…I have a request."

"Oh?" Aidan raised an eye. "That's a first. Do tell."

"I wish to attend the Academy. I will take Rory's place as the royal family's representative."

"You?" A derisive snort escaped Aidan's throat. "Even if you are royalty, even if the Council of Mana does owe us for their failures against Vigil, what can an Ordinary possibly want to do with the Academy?"

Aoife snapped her fingers.

The accessories dangling by her ears suddenly began to glow. Blue lights transformed into azure flames as the conflagrations flared across her body, unveiling a majestic suit of silver armor. Aidan's eyes went wide.

"I've awakened, brother."