Will be posting soon. Just need to figure out what Iesha would do in this situation.

@Evergreen Sounds great! For the future though, Iesha's 22. She's a young adult.

@Brookeira Sure! I'm fine with that.

Lieutenant Amadeo (10 minutes before contact)~

The Lieutenant smoothed back his hair and cursed under his breath. His ship hadn't even crossed over the borders of Spark, and yet his squadron was already down 3 men. It wasn't like this was one of his larger squadrons either. He only had 15 soldiers to begin with, including himself. Captain Sampson Edmunds, Sergeant Kohaku Kyo, and his son Orson. All dead within 2 hours of their first meeting. 

Cerus had been furious. Nobody even needed to relay the message to him, he saw the explosion from his own front window. "My daughter is at stake, and you let something like this happen an hour before dispatch? This is the kind of disgrace I would expect from a rookie, not a Lieutenant." 

Of course, this wasn't at all Amadeo's fault. He was miles below the ship when it happened. Everyone knew that Kohaku went up for some last minute warp-prep regimen. The accident, he deduced, was an unlucky engine malfunction. Nothing more, nothing less. It was the Emperor's nature to blame his pawns for something like this. It wasn't even like he cared about the three soldiers. The only ones he cared about were his daughters, Aloise and Maria. If you could even call it that. Oh, if Noventia only knew the things their Emperor did behind their back. If Amadeo pulled some kind of blackmail scheme like that, though, he'd gat a garunteed execution, courtesy of the crown.

Amadeo cleared his mind as the Island on the horizon grew closer and closer. As long as the millions who saw the accident firsthand didn't harbour any kind of permanent trauma, it wouldn't be much of an issue to him. He could find Aloise with with a 12 man squadron. If he'd dealt with the emperor's lunacy for years, he could do it again now.

Orson~

"I'm Corilis Asterlon! Headmaster Galligan sent me to help with the catapults!" 

Corilis Asterlon.. why did that name sound so familiar? I dig deep back into my memories.. Corilis.. Asterlon... Cadia? Why did the thought of her come up? Wait.. A couple years ago on my birthday, I remembered. Cadia had gotten me a huge scroll bound with a red satin bow. When I unrolled the thing on the floor, It was almost a meter across.

"I almost got you the smaller one, but you'd probably still get lost somehow." My father hadn't been very happy with the choice of gift, but I loved it. It was a map of The Sky, printed in magnificent detail. At the top, in the trademark hand I remember reading: Courtesy of Corilis Asterlon. But that didn't make sense, wasn't Corilis Asterlon some elderly cartogropher? He wouldn't be spending time at Spark Academy if that was the case.

Corilis finishes his argument with the man at the entryway, and hoists me around to the side of the castle. He lifts me off of his shoulder, and leans me against a wall. "Stay here." He then darts off, out of sight. I was alone again. Lovely.

"...you'd probably still get lost somehow."  

Cadia knew me well. It hadn't been 12 hours after I last saw her, and I was already lost in some new island hellscape, about as vunerable as a fish out of water. It would only take seconds to get crushed by a fireball, from my own fleet, too. I hold my face in my hands. I missed them.

I missed Cadia, my mother.. Edmunds and my father. You could blame either one of those two for what happened on the ship. But I knew that they both meant well, and they both believed in me.

And I let them down.

I picked up a sizable rock nearby. After holding it over my head with some effort, I heaved forward with a scream of anger and grief. I didn't even look to see it hit the side of the mountain. First the first time in a while, I was crying. If I was a normal soldier, I could've been in the hull of one of those Noventian ships, with the whole squadron, safe and sound. But because I was 'special', I needed a 'special' training session in that ship. And that ship cost us two lives. Three lives, as far as anyone knew. I was as good as dead to Noventia.

It was only by chance that I crashed in Vestocan. That doctor gave his life to save me. And what was I doing with it? Lying to everyone I saw, and crying on the side of a mountain.

Out of the corner of my eye, a bright flash interrupts my moping. I turn to face towards the battle.

An enormous mass a purple energy is growing, like a giant star, in the middle of the Academy. 

****

(BTW, The Amadeo thing was just for a little exposition, hope that's alright)    

Corilis~

A split second before it happened, I realized with a stomach-dropping dread what Galligan had created.

An electromagnetic pulse.

I had heard of the concept once last year when a Windtracer had flown into Spark with a report of developing Noventian technology. But this was not the work of Noventia. This was raw magical energy. On a scale of which I had never seen before.

The violet sphere that had been steadily expanding around the Headmaster's tower suddenley stopped its growth, hanging over Spark like an eerie sunset atop an ocean of blood. Its center glowed a brilliant white, almost difficult to look at without squinting, like a small sun. It was dead quiet. The screams from the square were all but silenced, and countless faces turned deathly white in the ghostly light of its shimmering core. It wavered, humming with distant energy for a few seconds. It shrank a little.

And then it detonated. 

My ears were ringing so loudly I could not hear anything else. A part of my body hurt but I couldn't tell which. I tried to run but realized I was on the ground beneath the guard tower. I must've fallen. I tried to get up but I couldn't. I used my arms to crawl to a vantage point, my face twisted in a grimace. Once I reached the edge of a cliff, I saw what had happened.

Most of the remaining Noventian ships, the Reaver ones too, had been completely devastated by the pulse. Even from here I could make out their engines combusting, sparks flying from them, some sinking into the clouds, some exploding into flame, their passangers trying desperately to flee, most failing.

I craned my neck to the left, an action much more painful than it should've been, to see what had become of the Headmaster's tower.

It lay across the mountainside in a million pieces.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Yep, Galligan just sacrificed himself. Sorry for anyone who wanted him to be a main characteror something, heheh.

* * * 

Iesha looked over to the girl, the dust around them stinging her eyes and clouding her vision. Iesha couldn't bring herself to say anything, the guilt swarming her mind. 

As they continued down the road, houses burning and the stones of the ground broken, a purple light filled the air. Iesha looked up in astonishment, as a purple... something cradled the headmaster's tower. As Iesha looked closer,  she realized who was controlling it. Nix Galligan himself.

Slowly, it expanded, bubbling like a blob of liquid. Silently rising up to the sky, it suddenly stopped. Then, the world screamed. 

Iesha fell to the ground, her ears ringing with the sounds so painful she could barely breathe. She tried to crawl away from it, away from everything. But then it stopped. As Iesha finally got a grip and got up, she couldn't believe her eyes.

The sky was completely void of ships. Their remains were bursting like fireworks, filling the air with light. And the headmaster's tower. Oh god. It was gone too. Iesha gaped, trying her best to comprehend what was happening to her. To everything.

"This is the worst thing that has ever happened to me." Was the only thing that she could think of. 

@Danie: I know this conflicts a little, but... it's really emotional and great! Please bear with me!

Terrence-

The column of violet light was growing.

Terrence's breathing was haggard as he landed, wings snapping back into his bundle. Galligan. He was using the contingency plan. Things really were hopeless.

Terrence ripped the communication device from his pocket and sent a message in Reaver Tap Signal to all of his ships, hands shaking.

CODE FINALITY. ABANDON ALL SHIPS IMMEDIATELY. TAKE WEAPONS AND EXPLOSIVES OFF FIRST. RUN.

(OOC: Reaver Tap Signal is basically Morse Code.)

He ran through the streets, clouds of gunpowder beating under his feet. He had to reach Galligan. He had to. He--

What could he do? Why did he care? Why didn't he take his ships out at top speed?

Hey, Papa Galligan, happy birthday!

Sweat sprung upon his brow as he slowed with halting steps. He wouldn't make it. He never would.

You remembered my birthday? What's that behind your back?

He turned down a street, numb, and came face to face with the girl he'd seen earlier and Iesha, shivering, eyes darting about wildly.

A card!

Terrence took the both of them by their arms and steered them away from the blast. Iesha was crying. Crying like he'd been in that gutter, seventeen years ago.

Terrence, you didn't have to.

"Guess I'm getting used to taking blows for people, hmm?" Terrence said, smiling. He shouldn't have been smiling. Should he?

I made it for you, Papa.

Terrence wrapped Iesha and the other girl to his chest, shielding them as a blast rocked the city. White light seared his skin on his back; his wings, though flame retardant, grew hot and drooping on his back, like Icarus' wax dripping in the sun.

I love you, Terrence.

Terrence felt some small relief as he watched his crew leave just in time, flying to Earth, sprinting like rabbits to cover. They'd be alright.

I love you too, Papa.

And then everything was quiet for a long, long time.

The other girl--Evelyn--moved first, thanking him and thanking him. He smiled and blinked back tears. Those came later.

He realized his arms were still around Iesha. She'd stopped shaking. Now she simply looked panicked. Terrence wondered if he should run.

He didn't; he simply backed away slowly, as though she were a cornered leopard.

"I'm sorry." he told her, taking Evelyn's arm and pulling her back in case Iesha went rogue.

"Why did you shield me? You're burned, Morningstar." Iesha's voice was toneless. Terrence winced.

"Just call me Terrence. Morningstar's done for the day." he said.

There was a long silence. Terrence took Evelyn by the arm and steered her away.

He was crying. It was silent. His face didn't move at all.

"Iesha?"

"Yes?"

He'd regret this, but he couldn't shake her terrified face from his mind. "Do you want to come with us?" 

@Evergreen I was kind of sad to kill him off too. lol. But remember, Harry talked with Dumbledore even after he was dead (hint, hint)

@Danie What if Iesha's dad stole a piece of the Thystus and that's how she learned magic? Just an idea.

**************************************************************************** 

Corilis~

If it was this bad for me, a person who had studied the art of war and Noventian history for years...

Then I couldn't even imagine how bad it must've been for everyone else.

To be told that everything would be fine, not to worry... and then to have the smiles ripped from your faces as the fireworks turn to fireballs and the snow turns to ash and the songs turn to screams. The uneducated peasants of the Upper Tier, the ones who knew nothing of the islands below, had put their faith in Galligan to ensure their safety during a celebration of peace, and he had failed them.

As Orson and I tried to make it back down the mountain, supporting each other's weight, him clutching his side and me trying not to put weight on my right leg which was bent at an unnatural angle, I wondered who was to blame.

Noventia was the most obvious candidate. To attack Spark during a festival of harmony was not just ironic, it was a new low for them. If I had any doubts before of Emporer Cerus's complete and utter lack of empathy towards other human beings, that was long gone.

Then there was Terrence. He certainly could've been a little more civil in his warning, but in the end it was probably the only thing that saved Spark from complete destruction.

But Galligan. 

I kept trying to tell myself that, no matter what we'd done, the peace that Spark had enjoyed for so long would've had to come to an end sooner or later. But another part of me said that if we had just cooperated with the Reavers, If we had just done everything in our power to mobilize for the attack, if we had just saved the Festival for another day... then we might have stood a chance.

But now, the man who had been a father to me and so many others was gone and it was on his own hands. He had not been there for the people who needed him, instead selfishly choosing tradition over safety, even at the cost of innocent lives. I wondered what I would've done if I had been in his situation. Was he really all that selfish for choosing tradition? And, if so, did his sacrifice make up for his misjudgements?

Or was his sacrifice his most selfish act yet?

Orson and I finally reached the bottom of Mount Arjus, and he collapsed in a heap. "Are you okay?" I asked breathlessly.

"Do I look okay?" he said, his voice muffled by the dirt on which he had fallen face-first.

I felt like laughing, strangely enough. Instead, I pulled him back onto his feet, also grabbing a tree branch and using it as a makeshift walking stick for my busted leg. I almost said So this is what it feels like to be Galligan. Thank God I didn't.

Most survivors had congregated on a hill equidistant from the city square and the ruins of the Headmaster's tower. I don't think anyone wanted to be in either of those places and I didn't blame them. They were quiet, mostly just tending to their wounds. I think they were like me. I think what had happened hadn't sunk in yet. I didn't feel sad, or scared, just... empty. 

Kalya Hyeweathre, the Dean of Spark Academy, was standing in the midst of the crowd, her arms folded behind her back, towering over everyone else. Even if they had been standing too, she would've still towered over most. That was always the first thing people noticed about her. How tall she was. Her salt and pepper hair was pulled back tightly in a bun, and a narrow pair of silver-rimmed spectacles rested on her nose. She looked strangely, almost comically, impeccable, considering all that had happened. Her unforgiving bronze-colored eyes darted to me when I approached.

"Asterlon, your leg's broken."

"Thanks for the info."

Usually being sarcastic with Dean Hyeweathre would land you a detention before you knew it. But now, she just shook her head slightly and turned her face away from me, staring blankly at nothing.

"So what happens now?" I asked her.

"Well, we should be able to repair the few ships we can salvage from this mess, and hopefully we'll be able to send the Reavers and the Noventians on their merry way."

"The Noventians?" I scanned the crowd in shock to find that a few silver-plated soldiers were among us, tending to their wounds like any other villager. "You're sending them back?"

"Well, what did you expect, Asterlon? Public executions?"

I didn't tell her that was exactly what I had been expecting. It didn't seem all that strange, after everything.

Kalya sighed. "If we killed them, we would be no better than the emporer. Just because we were grazed by a brand new war doesn't mean we cannot continue to be the city that strives for peace. Who knows, maybe sending back a handful of soldiers after Cerus sent out hundreds might even give the old codger a message." 

I knew that wasn't true. I knew that as soon as word got out that the biggest threat to the emporer's power was gone, it wouldn't be long before Cerus set his sights on us again. Noventia might've lost a good chunk of its military, but Spark was more vulnerable now than ever before. And the next time Noventia came knocking, Galligan wouldn't be here to protect us.

I didn't say any of this. Instead, I lowered myself and Orson to the ground and looked absentmindedly at the dreary landscape. I was near the boulder, the last place I had seen Galligan. Then, I suddenley remembered one of the last things he had said to me. My eyes lit up and my heart started racing.

The cane.

I have to find the cane. 

Orson~

I'm still in awe by the time we sit by the boulder. So many had already died that night, but to top it all off, the Headmaster of all people? Of course, not personally knowing him, I couldn't be in more shock than people like Corilis. But one of the fabled superpowers of the Sky had just disappeared in an instant. I don't think anybody wasn't shaken by that, even if just a little.

In the past day, I had experienced the most ups and downs in a long time, perhaps in my whole life. I could go on for hours reminiscing in everything that had happened to me, but there were much more important issues than mine. The Sky was faced with a grim future.

I look around to see who's still standing after the horrific battle. The hill is occupied mostly by villagers and Windtracers, it looks like. Suprisingly, a few Noventian men were still here. Likely just wounded foot soldiers, waiting for whatever fate Spark saw fit for them. I assumed that was all they were, anyway.

Out of the quiet mass of survivors, a man approaches the hill. His tall figure sticks out like a sore thumb. In a stark contrast to the other Noventians, his armor was shiny and bright, with hardly a scrath. He removed his helmet, and I instantly recognized his long, pale face and blue-ish hair. Amadeo.

I jump behind the boulder on the side opposite him. I don't know what would happen if he saw me. I could probably come up with some story to explain myself, but no matter what I said, one of the two sides would punish me. I didn't want to find out what that punishment would be. Betraying Corilis was the last thing I wanted to do anyway.

I peek my head around the side of the boulder, and see Amadeo talking to the stern-looking woman who seemed to be in charge. They towered over the surrounding crowd, almost level with eachother. I crane my neck and try to make out a few words. "Noventia...Cerus...daughter....Aloise...."  

The Lieutenant's eyes suddenly point in my direction. I duck my head back behind the rock again. If I was going to get out of here, I needed a disguise.

I unsheath my knife, brandishing it with my left arm. With my free hand, I hold my bun steady. It was a miracle how it had held up this far, but I guess it didn't make much of a difference now. I make a swift motion, and a large chunk of my hair falls to the ground beside me. I feel something in my right hand, and look to see that Cadia's red hair ribbon had survived with hardly any damage. I clench it in a fist, and quickly shove it in my pocket. No matter what happened next, I needed to keep at least a part of my family with me. It's what she would want, right?

I close my eyes and throw some dirt in my face, in an attempt to disguise it. I peek back over the rock, and see that Amadeo has resumed his discussion with the lady. I sigh in relief, and slump down on the boulder.

"Hey, Corilis..." After a few moments with no response, I looked to the space beside me, where I had last seen him. Corilis was gone. 

Ba'al-

Lord Morningstar was crying. Ba'al said nothing, simply watching from the shadows as Terrence's shoulders shook.

Ba'al stepped out in a swirl of ebony capes and stood at Morningstar's side.

"Lord. You must... address the people." the espionage officer said.

Morningstar jolted in surprise, then stood, holding Galligan's still form.

"Right." he said, sounding far, far too calm. "I'll gather the crew. Thank you, Ba'al."

Ba'al nodded, then turned and saw someone who made his heart stop in his chest.

Curly brown hair. Perfect posture. Eyes the color of dusk garnet.

Ba'al let out a sigh. Morningstar turned.

"Ba'al? Are you alright?" asked the Reaver Lord, tilting his head toward him.

"I'm alright." Ba'al said, too stiff. He took a step toward her, one hand out.

"What are you doing?" the girl, yes, Iesha, snapped, taking a step back.

"You can teleport. You can do incantational magic."

"How do you know that?" Iesha asked, brow wrinkling.

Ba'al felt his chest closing in. The burning wrecks of the ships grew brighter in his peripheral vision, and his raven-like mask felt so, so stuffy.

"Crows are an intelligent species," Ba'al said, removing his mask to reveal a dark, shaven head, "and most intelligent species can recognize their own children."

---- 

* * * 

Iesha stared at the man in front of her for a whole minute. Then, she reared back and punched him in the face. 

"You left me!" Iesha snarled at him as he held his cheek with not a bit of surprise.

"I... expected that response," He smiled weakly, his posture mimicking Iesha's own.

Luekas Merl. Father of Iesha Merl and Husband to Jazmi Merl. The man who set on a mission to find what was beneath the clouds. The man who was supposed to be dead.

"How are you even alive? You and mom ran off to go into the Subtropos, and were never seen again!" Iesha felt like punching him again, but she held back. "...Where's mom? I swear to god if you left her there--"

Luekas sighed and stared at Iesha with a look of pure earnest. "I can't tell you."

"YOU CAN'T--" Iesha realized people where staring and calmed herself down. In a softer but sharp tone, she continued, "What do you mean you can't tell me."

"Look, Iesha," Luekas grabbed onto Iesha's shoulders and looked her straight in the eyes. "Something big is happening, that is bigger than all of us. I can't explain it because it can't be explained just yet."

"That doesn't make any sense," Iesha gritted her teeth. "God, you sounded exactly like this when you left."

"All I can say is, the people back there saved me when that journey became rough," He gestured to the Reavers, beaming. "I truly think you should give them another chance."

Iesha sat down, looking down at the ground with a look of amazement. Then she began laughing softly to herself. "You can't believe how surreal this is.

"You told me I would change the world. So when you left, I decided the world didn't need me," Iesha looked up at Luekas. "But I guess I did change the world. Just not in the way you wanted."

Iesha smiled lightly, but it wasn't one that lifted her cheeks. "I should be happy about this, but I'm really not. Luekas, whatever it is that happened to you back there, it won't make me forgive you for what you did." Then she stood up. "But I think I can understand why you trust them so much. Because I think I'm starting to too." 

Ok, I'm gonna do a different POV because why not.

Kalya~

Dean Hyeweathre was scared. 

You couldn't tell it from her face, which was broadcasting the same austere glare that she had perfected over the years, perpetually masking her true emotions. But she was scared all the same. And at times like this, her ability to hide fear certainly came in handy.

She should've seen this coming. She should've seen the warning signs. Noventia had been unstable for a long time, and yet, she never thought it would come to this. 

But standing around wasn't going to solve anything. She had people to tell, old friends to contact. Plans to arrange. An all-out war could still be prevented. But she would have to act quickly.

As if on cue, a hand tapped her shoulder. Edwin Katz. A senior whom she had trusted enough to fill in on some of the more... confidential matters of the Sky's information traffic. She would've preferred a Master, but as he seemed to be the only tracer in a well enough state to fly, he would have to do. He knew this too, otherwise he wouldn't have approached her.

"Send a message to Skylark," she said shortly. "The Winged Wolf has fallen."

Katz nodded stoically. "It will be done, Ma'am." He wasted no time spiraling off into the dawn sky. She watched him disappear.

Now, about that Asterlon lad. Kalya had personally never agreed with Galligan's intuitions, but she had never told him that. Still, a promise was a promise, and now certainly wasn't the time to go against his wishes. Asterlon needed to be told the truth. And, just as she was considering looking for him, or, god forbid, the possibility that he hadn't made it, there he came down the mountain accompanied by a long-haired fellow in ragged clothing...

***

Corilis~ 

The pain caught up to me.

I tried to fight through it. The tree branch helped a little but not much, mostly just something to keep me on my feet more than anything else. The hill was steeper than I ever remembered it being. Was it really always this steep? And  how could one leg hurt so much? I heard shouts behind me, people understandably confused as to why someone with a broken leg would suddenly feel the urge to take a hike. I heard Hyeweathre shout at me to come back. I didn't. No one tried to stop me, maybe because they had their own problems to deal with. Or maybe because they thought I would eventually fall.

I didn't.

My vision blurred and it took every ounce of willpower not to scream out in agony as I created the hill, early morning light flickering up over the horizon. It felt like I had been on that hill for an hour but it had probably been less than a minute. The one thing that kept me going was my determination to fulfill Galligan's final request, not because I particularly wanted to, but in hopes that in doing so I might've been able to restore just a little bit of the honor that he had lost this night.

The cane.

The cane.

The cane. 

When I finally reached the top, I stopped in my tracks, my pain momentarily replaced by surprise that I was not the only one here. Terrence. And in his arms... 

Iesha was there too, for some reason. As were a number of Reavers. The one standing next to me, clad in black, I paid no mind to.

Until he turned around. 

That face.

Even through my vision distorted by pain, even through the mist of time, I recognized that face. It was burned as permanently into my memory as my scar was to my face.

The man who had saved my life all those years ago.

***

Surprise surprise, another twist. (Hopefully you're ok with this one, Danie)

Evelyn~

This has got to be the hardest day of my life. The most complicated.

I'm on scouting duty when the Reavers arrive. A young woman arrives with a knife in her stomach. The Noventians attack just as I ask to join the Reavers. The Noventians destroy everything. I rescue a young woman* called Iesha. In turn, we're rescued by Morningstar, and for a moment I can almost believe that we're all family. Headmaster Galligan sacrifices himself to save us. Then I witness the reunion of a father and daughter- not exactly a happy one, though.

I start thinking about my twin- whatever her name is. And I can almost feel her- like I know that she's out there somewhere. It's a comforting thought.

Then Corilis Asterlon, mapmaker, appears at the top of the mountain. He looks surprised.

Who knew a day could be filled with so much turmoil?

***

I'm out of ideas for the time being, so this is all for now.