Chapter 5: Birthday Blowout
- Location
- USA
The War Chronicles of a Little Demon
Set in the Diyu Demons verse
A Saga of Tanya the Evil fic.
By Sunshine Temple
Naturally, I do not own Youjo Senki. So here's the disclaimer:
Saga of Tanya the Evil its characters and settings belong Carlo Zen, Shinobu Shinotsuki, and NUT Co., Ltd.
Previous chapters and other works can be found at my fanfiction website.
C&C as always is wanted.
Chapter 5: Birthday Blowout
The brush felt good in my hair.
"I'm so proud of you." Sister Clementia sat on my bed.
A nice thing about being injured, at least in relative peacetime, was your convalesce could be in a private room.
"For getting chewed up?" I raised my arm showing the fresh pale-pink skin of my regrown hand. Upside, I would not scar. Downside, I had been so very hungry these last couple days.
And that was despite being given a constant supply of heavy meals and intravenous supplements. My new species' ability to heal was impressive, but that meant that wounds would not get me pulled from the front, not for long.
"Dear, I'd say you chewed the enemy far more than they did," Sister Clementia smiled. She felt comforting, but there was something she was keeping from me.
"I uh.... yeah." In my previous life I had done things. They were all legal under the laws of war. Even if the way to justify those actions involved a careful reading of such treaties, declarations of intent at the right times, and judgment calls on who was and who was not a lawful combatant nor a civilian.
And while my direct role in, what the enemies of the Empire called, the Arene Massacre was one thing, I had helped write the legalistic formulation that allowed it to happen.
My actions south of Narvos continued that streak. My commanders saw me feasting on the flesh of War Mistress Rodswor as a necessary action. To them, it was a footnote in the official report.
I was quiet and just let my- just let Sister Clementia brush my hair.
"How is your recovery going?" she asked in her ever patient, gentle voice.
"Well, there's this," I gestured with my hand and then kicked my legs. I was in a set of dark purple exercise clothes. The loose sweatpants and blousy tunic were a bit warmer than being in a hospital gown. "And I'm sure Senior Prefect Centurion Florentina will want me back dancing with the rest of the Troupe before the week is out."
"That should be helpful."
I eyed her. "Yeah... it's going to be part of my physical therapy. My balance at the moment is not great. It'll be a while before I can wear a suit again. Not that I have a Ritual Plate to pilot."
A melancholy fell over me. I had gotten to speak with the team that had examined the combat site. Well, that had recovered the bodies that had fallen onto the borderlands fields and orchards.
That included one Polydora Mark 5. Looking at the pictures of my mangled suit was one thing. Yesterday when the boffins brought me to the hangar where it and the other recovered artifacts were stored was another.
I had spent nearly a year using that intricate collection of enchantments. It may have been surplus, and it might have been an old trainer and glorified acrobatics demonstrator, but it had kept me alive. At least it was being treated with care and as much of its components, spirits, and other critical parts were being recovered as could be.
The combat reconstruction team was respectful and did not patronize me by being coddling, though they did conceal a bit of diffident awe. It helped that my actions meant they had plenty of hardware to examine.
Two Flights of Satori Ritual Plate and one custom variant had also been recovered, in varying states of damage. That and nine bodies, also in varying states of damage. I did not know what happened to them. I could have claimed them, that was my right, but a very polite Tribune suggested it might be more diplomatic to let the Imperial Legion take care of that.
I cared more about the Ritual Plate than the flesh. It sounded like after the boffins got through tearing the Zioxan hardware down to learn anything new they would have enough parts and spares to make maybe a Flight's worth.
Which would likely be passed along to our Dissimilar Instructor Wing, specifically one of their Aggressor Squadrons. That was a group of pilots trained and equipped with the Ritual Plate of a rival House. They sounded like an excellent training opportunity.
And one I got a small taste of, training with some of the House Andromache cadets and their special, and different, doctrine. But now I had an in.
My tail lazily curled as I thought about that. Maybe I could do that. If I was skilled in using an enemy Houses' equipment and tactics I could be very valuable to teaching other pilots. Too valuable to be put to the front.
It would be a near-ideal posting for me.
Sister Clementia smiled. "And mentally?" she asked, switching to my wings. Most of the burnt feathers had been pulled but they were still a ruffled mess.
"I've got someone to talk to," I assured. It was very enlightened that the Legions had a mental health system that understood Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. I suppose it was an inevitability when you threw empathic soldiers into combat. Their term was Trauma Accumulation, but it was a similar phenomenon.
It is a bit annoying that the almost doleful comforting consoler with the twin pairs of curling horns and the chipper Librarian were so happy with my progress.
Yes, I was being honest to them with my feelings about the matter. But anyone who knew "Tauria", the little, nearly eleven year old, demon girl should have thought my subdued reaction to fighting off nine enemy pilots in an unarmed suit was stonewalling.
I mean those were my genuine feelings. After Norden, well... after being pushed in front of that train, I had had too many brushes with death. Too many situations where it was kill or be killed.
Oh sure, they wanted me to open up more, and were worried I was repressing too much, but that was less about the fight and more about my childhood.
Please, these demons might be more sympathetic, but in most of my lives I ended up killing people as a little girl.
It was a bit disquieting how accepting they were. Not of the situation, but of who I was. Part of it was simple consequences of our biology on society. With the dominant species in the House being all female and empathic, and with normal raw recruits being sixteen to eighteen years old there were a lot of pretty young women fighting, killing, and dying.
My actions were still outside of the norm, but less so than they were in the empire of my previous life. Here, I was an oddity on the far end of the bell curve, in that other empire I was statistically unique.
Maybe I was fooling them better than I thought. They could be seeing me as the model eager young cadet.
I did miss flying, and my Zephyr did as well. My feathers could have used a good preening.
I leaned back and let Sister Clementia work.
"Have you talked to your friend VioletBlood?"
"Oh yes, she was part of the debrief. I gave her simple orders, but she performed them exactly as required." I nodded as I stretched my left wing so she could get to my secondary feathers. "She had a good head on her shoulders, taking the mission first instead of unnecessary heroics."
Sister Clementia murmured. "Only then? You two didn't talk in a social situation? It was a very traumatic experience."
"I suppose it was the baroness's first taste of combat, but, as I wrote in my report, she performed well. Other than a bit of idle chatter and minor nervousness, at the start. Once things got serious, she did her job and got the Package out."
The Sister switched wings; there was that sense that there was something she was not telling me. It was odd having someone else obfuscating their emotions. "That's not what I meant, Dear. Did you and her... and your cadet and ballet friends go out to eat? Such celebrations are normal for after a victory. Feasts and the like."
I thought about the fate of the War Mistress. "Not exactly."
"Ah, well, we can go out and have a nice dinner."
"They'll let me off base?" I perked up, my tail swishing.
She beamed at me. "Of course, it is a special day."
"It is?"
Sister Clementia looked embarrassed. "It is your birthday," she admitted.
I blinked. That.... that was true. On the train ride up to Narvos, VioletBlood was plotting to have a big birthday party for us when we reached the next city.
So, I was twelve.
At least I was spending it with the woman who raised me.
++++++
True to her word, getting off base was easy. I put on my uniform and took a moment to inspect myself in the mirror. My blonde hair was pretty tamed, my wings were presentable. My tail swished about merrily.
I had few ill feelings towards the first orphanage I was raised in. Those nuns made do with what they had and no one starved, but some months were lean. Sister Clementia's order had better patronage.
It was nice to no longer be stunted. I was still a very delicate-looking and short girl. But being pretty, female, and lethal was not unusual in this society. On the contrary, it often felt like the norm. Which was a bit of a comfort.
The rank flashes were new. The promotion to centurion was the most welcome part of the awards ceremony yesterday. The least welcome were the hints that more was to come.
No, the most welcome part was that it was done in my hospital room. It was useful to have so many Legates get a favorable view of me, especially one who was a member of the imperial Family.
But I was well aware of the risks the reputation I was cultivating could bring me.
That was why I frowned at the other award I had been conferred as I tied the teardrop-shaped ruby just above my collar. It looked a bit like a drop of blood held protectively by a pair of wings or, more accurately, clasped by gold leaves.
"The Preserver Order," Sister Clementia said with pride.
I gave her a reassuring look. "I didn't set out to get this."
"Few do, and those who do normally die," she said, melancholy and a tinge of fear entering her voice.
Despite that, I nodded. Entry into the Preserver Order, or more properly the Order of the Crown of the Preserver, was mostly posthumous. The award was given to those who risked their lives with conspicuous gallantry to save the lives of civilians or non-combatants.
I couldn't argue with that. Unfortunately, both the duchess and VioletBlood testified that my priority was for them and Luddy to get out to safety. And that my intention was to fight an overwhelming enemy with the goal of buying them time.
There were lesser Preserver awards such as Phalerae disks, armbands, or their hairpin equivalents that covered the same action, just with less suicidal levels of gallantry.
I sighed as I slipped on my boots. By the letter of the regulations, and the spirit of long-standing traditions my actions did qualify for the Preserver Crown. And turning down being entered into that Order would be very unwise, especially since I was the youngest member on record.
At least the youngest member under the current incarnation. There were supposedly a handful who were younger than I but they dated to pre-Invasion times and were retroactively entered when the Order was created.
"At least the award is no longer literally a crown," I muttered. Though technically in the most formal of uniforms that would be required. Something to keep in mind if I had to present myself to the Imperatrix. At least that meant I wouldn't have to wear the crested centurion dress helmet.
"I think you'd look good in a golden-leaved crown with rubies, like a little princess."
After a few steps my legs ached a bit. It was not surprising given my healing and the physical therapy. Going down the stairs of the hospital, Sister Clementia took my hand.
Which was nice for the... balance it gave me.
Going outside was an experience. I had gotten noticed before on the base as a young promising Cadet, but now I was getting salutes and accolades.
I suppose the Preserver Order would have its advantages. It felt a bit awkward, but I gave a prideful smile and, with an imperious sweep of my free arm, cheered them on.
Getting outside of the base was easy. I almost had an honor guard after going through the guard post at the gate. Or at least there were a few Legionaries and pilots going the same direction as us.
I got my stride as we went down a few blocks and came to the edge of the upper section of Bovitar. Clementia unfurled her large, purple and grey wings as her matching red habit and dress rippled in the wind.
Still holding her hand, I spread my wings and we flew from the upper ridge to Victory Plaza in the heart of the city.
It was nice flying. Though flying under my own power was a pale imitation of flying with Ritual Plate. Still, my Zephyr were happy to be in the air again.
I hit the landing, but it was nice to have Clementia there in case I stumbled.
"We're eating in their restaurant?" I asked as she led me towards the Great Eastern Hotel. My stomach grumbled a bit. The hotel did have a really good steak grill on the back next to the bar. Red meat was more appealing to me in this life than previous ones.
"Maybe," she allowed.
I tilted my head. Sister Clementia did not have much in the way of worldly possessions, but she could afford a nice meal once in a while. "I will be getting a bonus with my promotion," I offered.
"You are so sweet." She patted me on the head before we went through the sweeping doors into the lobby.
The staff were oddly obsequious. Well, I did have a reputation. I supposed my story had started to spread.
Though as we got deeper into the hotel, my horns started to get a bit... muffled.
Sister Clementia squeezed my hand. "Trust me."
My tail curled a bit as she led me to one of hotel's ballrooms
A pair of servants in gold and purple livery opened the doors. I could feel the duchess's emotions and care for me.
And then I felt others.
The room was full. There was my cadet instructor: Prefect Centurion Quirinus, the head of the Ballet Troupe: Senior Prefect Centurion DeltaVoid, Baroness VioletBlood, IvyBlade and others from my cadet class and the ballet troupe, and Luddy.
I tilted my head as they screamed happy birthday.
"Um?" I turned to Sister Clementia.
"Do you really think we forgot?" she laughed and pulled me into the ballroom. While it was a literal room for ball dancing complete with polished floors, gilt ceiling and handsome woodwork on the walls, I was happy to be wearing a uniform and not a gown.
The duchess, however, was in a gown. She held a fluted glass and raised it as she strode to me. "Hail, Lady Tauria!"
While the others repeated the accolade she came in to hug me.
My tail went stiff as my arms flailed for a moment. I mean... being in the Order of the Crown of the Preserver did confer an honorary title.
"You did the right thing, I'm so proud of you." Duchess SilverFlight held me tight before letting go. "You're looking well."
"Uh, yes, your Grace," I said in a controlled, even adult, tone, while my tail was kept steady and did not wag.
The duchess shook her head and nodded to Sister Clementia. "Well done with the subterfuge."
"You were the one who kept the surprise once we got into the hotel."
I looked between them. The duchess masked the presence of her and my.... fellow Legionary Fliers... well...
Sniffing the air, I turned to see a bashful-looking Luddy walk over. She bowed her horns to me then deeply bowed at the waist. Next to her a couple servants were pushing a trolley that had a bunch of pastries and buns surrounding a two-tiered dark chocolate cake.
There were twelve purple candles on it.
I blinked. This... was not what I expected.
"I must thank you so much for helping free me," Luddy stated as she blinked and dabbed at her eyes. "You... don't... it was... I..." She steeled herself. "But I'm free now."
I returned the bow and found the wave of gratitude and stress from her and wanted to feel for her, to return the sentiment.
Luddy gave a small smile to me and the duchess put an arm around her shoulder. "Miss HeartWood and others have been a great help."
Baroness VioletBlood slipped over to me. Unlike most of the others, she was not in uniform. She had a frilly lavender dress with white ribbons. Her dark red hair was held back with a few pins that denoted she was promoted to full Optio and bore a small Phalerae. The polished copper disk pinned to her dress like a metallic corsage.
I nodded to her. She had done well and did deserve some recognition.
She gave a matching gesture but bowed a bit more. "I told you you'd have a great birthday party."
I snorted lightly. Looking around, I saw there was a line of other foods, a set of tables, and that various servants had started circling about with glasses. Some seemed to have champagne while others were a bit darker.
"It's cider; soft cider; you teetotaler.," VioletBlood teased.
"I'm twelve," I shot back to her.
Holding her own glass, VioletBlood shrugged. "Fine, fine, wait a couple years then."
I shook my head. In my first life the drinking age was twenty, in my second it was about sixteen. In this life, it was somewhat younger still. Though it was more that drinking without parental permission was the actual prohibition. Crazy demons.
The duchess went back to me and after giving a pleasant chat with VioletBlood, politely pushed her off. Standing to one side behind me, the duchess pointed me back towards the cake.
Sister Clementia went to the other side.
"Do you want to make a wish?" the duchess asked.
I looked at the candles. What I wanted.... what I really wanted? I was not sure I could get it.
Knowing my luck, wishing for a nice rear echelon posting would just make things worse. Wishing for status could be nice, but would end up with all sorts of strings attached. Money and power had the same risks. Baubles could be nice, if I cared about material things.
Well, beyond basic comforts. It was all academic anyway. It had been twelve years with no sign of otherworldly beings interfering in my new life.
Other than cruel demonic House rulers via arrogant War Mistresses. I could not be sure, but the whole incident in Narvos felt like the result of plain old demonic infighting.
Sister Clementia squeezed my shoulder.
"Thinking hard?" the duchess asked.
Shrugging, I blew out the candles.
And there was polite clapping.
"Now don't tell us!" IvyBlade shouted as they started to carve up the cake.
The smell was heavenly.
Before I could get to it Sister Clementia and Duchess SilverFlight both handed me a gilt envelope.
I blinked.
"It's your first gift, if you'll accept it." Sister Clementia
I wondered if it was money or some sort of line of credit at a boutique or something. Holding the thick envelope, my confusion grew; it felt like many pages.
Sliding out a pinky claw, I carefully cut the side of the envelope. There were two nearly identical legal documents.
The only difference was in one the first party was Clementia Lusria of the Sisterhood of Our Hallowed Lady and in the other the first party was Volantes Tribune (Rorarii) Duchess SilverFlight.
In both the second party was Volantes Centurion Countess Tauria Magnus DiamondDust. And awaited my signature and seal.
They were adoption papers. Specifically, they were adoptio, the civil version of adoption instead of the biological version. That made things a bit less terrifyingly overwhelming.
"You... you want me as your daughter?"
"We've felt you've been our daughter for years," the duchess said.
"Neither of us wants to replace your birth mother or your sire mother." Sister Clementia took me in a one armed hug.
The duchess leaned in, her voice quiet. "And we know you're very... independent so making you a daughter, biologically-speaking, might not be right."
I frowned at the unspoken "for now".
"But you are old enough to make this choice, and old enough that you don't need mothers," Sister Clementia hugged me a bit closer.
I was old enough to fight and kill and possibly die for the House, so being able to pick my parents seemed like a reasonable allowance.
"The Magnus? And the Countess? Why does my name have those now?" I blinked and was... oh this was....
From her spot talking with the other members of the ballet troupe, Baroness VioletBlood saluted with her glass. I wondered if she would be so pleasant if she knew I had leapfrogged her in status. Her jealous streak was only matched by her competitive one. Wait... I didn't have to accept this.
Sure.
I could snub the woman who raised me and a powerful patron who I had risked my life to rescue and who was willing to risk her political capital and honor on taking me on as a daughter.
"Magnus is the Honor Name bestowed upon you by the Imperatrix. You'll be given a formal presentation by the Legates tomorrow."
"And?"
The duchess smiled. "If you are to be my daughter you will have a title."
I stared. In my past life I had gotten an honorific, becoming Tanya von Degurechaff, for academic excellence as part of my military education.
"If you insist on being a Lady Castilian, I suppose you can talk with my eldest daughter, your new sister, but it holds a lot of responsibility."
"That's, um, not what I meant."
The duchess tittered. "Oh, you already made yourself a Lady by your own efforts, I have to give you something extra."
I exhaled. That it was both of them meant this was not just a political move. A way for the duchess to solidify her claim on me and her reputation of finding and mentoring talented new pilots.
Oh yes, the nunnery's fortunes will be helped if it came out that the newest, youngest Ace Pilot, a Countess no less, was once one of their wards. But.... Sister Clementia was not like that.
I swallowed. My hand trembled as I held it out.
The duchess bowed her horns and placed a gold pen into my fingers. I was guided by a table. It was good that Clementia was there to help give me balance.
I spread out both sets of documents and read through them. As I went, I wondered if there was a way for me to get out of this. BlackSkyvian Nobility had a... reputation, especially in the Imperial Legions.
If anything, young Baroness VioletBlood was a restrained example of their gung-ho exuberance and dedication to combat. As I read I wondered if I even wanted out of this.
Being given piles of honors, awards, and promotions, especially for earned work were beneficial, but they all came with expectations and responsibilities.
A servant came up with a stick of gold and purple wax which was heated by a small flame generated between her fingers.
I did not have a signet, but I did have.... I undid the ribbon that held the ruby and gold leaves of the Preserver Order to my neck.
I closed my eyes for a moment and then signed both documents and then pressed the front of the Order award into the dollops of wax. The impression of leaves and teardrop looked professional enough.
There was a hush as I tied the award back onto my collar.
And then both Sister Clementia and Duchess SilverFlight pulled me into a hug as she did servants cried "Volantes Centurion Countess Tauria Magnus DiamondDust daughter of Clementia Lusria of the Sisterhood of Our Hallowed Lady and Volantes Tribune Duchess SilverFlight of the Duchy of Argenia!"
I was lifted off my feet by the embrace by the two taller women, by my... mothers. Adoptive.
I blinked and there might have been a purring rumble as the cheering grew distant, and I just enjoyed their company.
I was lowered back down onto my boots and managed to regain some of my dignity when I was given a glass and saluted the crowd.
My mothers flanking me, I noticed something had been placed in front of me. It was a giant case in purple wrapping paper with a big floppy pink bow on top.
"You didn't think we were just going to adopt you?" the duchess... my duchess smiled.
"I, um, didn't even expect that much," I admitted. A china plate with a slice of cake was put into my hands. I ate some to get a bit of a distraction. Moist, delicious chocolate cake and frosting and shaved chocolate helped.
"Well, it's something you definitely will like, need, and use."
I swallowed. Given the wrapped box was about the dimensions of an upright coffin.
My free hand went off and tore out the wrapping paper and sliced the ribbon. The packaging went away to reveal... a standard grey military crate.
But one I was familiar with. I finished my first slice of cake as Mother Clementia gave me a new slice and my duchess opened the front of the crate.
Inside was a standing Ritual Plate suit locked onto its restraints. Covered in intricate engravings, enchantments, I could feel the dormant power of the suit. It had spots for multi-mission modules but was far above my previous suit in complexity.
"That's a Polyxo Advanced Multi Role." Most of the plates were made of an almost pearlescent white metal with blue accents, and black trim, with golden runes engraved all over.
With the right mission packages, a Polyxo was equal to a dedicated long-range Lance Strike suit like a Telephe, an air superiority fighter like a Harmonia, or a ground attack craft like a Sarpedona.
"It's your Polyxo Advanced Multi Role," my duchess smiled. "Specifically, a Mark 15 with the Gamma Block power systems."
"Oh." That was the most modern production variant. And the Gamma Block used stronger, more robust arcane enchantments to keep mana, power, and flow from the fuel cells from burning-out components, especially in combat conditions.
I stepped around the suit. It was a bit taller than me, due to it being an armored suit, though more to the boots Ritual Plate models seemed invariably cursed with. But the important part was that it was my size. "How?"
"One of my artificer guilds makes RP power systems including the Gamma Block and other concerns make several of the components in the Polyxo. When the manufacturers heard about what you did, well... let us say that I was able to purchase one fresh off the MuArc Amalgamated line instead of being waitlisted."
I blinked. The Household Fleet and the Legions did allow for the personal purchase of kit and equipment. Provided the trooper could afford it, and the equipment met standards such as quality, performance, durability, maintenance, and compatibility in munitions, fuel, and spare parts.
"It's my size." Suits had to be custom fitted. For the most part, they were manufactured in a range of predetermined sizes and the final fitting could be done by Ritualista, but this one seemed to be pre built to my, admittedly delicate, proportions.
"I know your sizes, Daughter," my duchess seemed to revel in that word. "And I may have paid extra to have it fitted out by MuArc's own artificers. They were motivated to help you."
I tilted my head at her. Motivation aside, the Polyxo was by itself, one of the more expensive Ritual Plate, but having it installed with a Gamma Power system and then custom fitting out... all in a matter of days.
"I'm sorry if I was presumptive; I talked with your instructors," she nodded to Prefect Centurions Quirinus and DeltaVoid. "And thought you would make the most of the flexibility of this model. But if you want a Harmonia I could get you one. Or any other Ritual Plate you want."
"No, no, the Polyxo is amazing. I can't wait to put it on..." I may have put my hand out and remarked on how shiny the surface was.
My Zephyr reacted with great enthusiasm flowing through the various enchantments.
The potential in such a piece of hardware was immense, especially with someone of my skills wielding it.
Oh.
That was the worry. My duchess knew what was expected of me. And being a Countess would raise the bar further. I couldn't blame the Legates.
If I were a staff officer and had someone with my capabilities I would want to get the most out of them.
I pulled my hand and smiled. Two big upsides House BlackSky had over the Empire was that House BlackSky had a stronger diplomatic corps and tended to take a longer view of things.
That, hopefully, meant that my commander would decide it was better giving me a few years to season than feeling that they were forced to send me into some meat grinder to try and turn the tide in some big war.
I exhaled. I might have gotten the attention of the higher ups but I could still leverage their accolades into my plan of spending as many years of my twenty year term as possible in training, instructor, and other rear echelon billets.
And then after that, being a respected countess, maybe working in her adoptive mother's research and testing companies, would be a very comfortable life.
"I know your next posting is in flux, but there are few positions in the Legionary Squadrons where a Polyxo would be a detriment," my duchess assured.
I bowed my horns to her. Save for special applications, Flights were typically homogeneous in composition. This simplified command, supply, and maintenance logistics. Most squadrons were homogenous as well, but there were cases, especially with rare models like the Occultia, Svalinna, or Polyxo where a mixed Squadron gave some benefits.
Most Prefect Volantes Centurions would be happy to have one of their squadron's Flights be equipped with Polyxo. That gave them two Flights dedicated to their specialization (air superiority, strike, or ground support) and one multi-role Flight that could perform as well in said specialization or be swapped out into another.
It could enable a Lance Strike Squadron to have some fighter escorts, or give an air superiority squadron some heavier firepower in case of larger enemy targets. Or it could give a ground attack squadron some superior air cover or heavier firepower.
I smiled at the Ritual Plate suit. If I was going to be tossed into the deep end then I might as well have the best equipment possible. And unlike the cursed Type 95, this one did not seem to require brainwashing to use.
Mother Clementia stepped over to me and handed me a small box. "I know it's not as much, but...."
I took the box and looked up at her and shook my head. "No, don't. You've done more for me than..." I exhaled and let a bit of my feelings out.
I was suddenly pulled into her embrace.
My tail swished and I allowed myself to enjoy it.
After the hug she smiled down at me. Relishing the feelings of surprise of my fellow cadets and Troupe members, I opened her gift.
"Oh my," I pulled a silver locket out of the box and looked between it and a set of dark crimson earrings. The gemstones gave a slight shine to the touch.
"Arcane capacitors?" I turned around the two gems. They felt... empty, like they were waiting to be filled. Such devices were a way to store extra mana and energy. It took some time to top them off, but they were a way to give a reserve of extra power.
Normally, they paled in capacity to the alchemical power cells a Ritual Plate used. But they were still a handy way to have that much more power when not in a suit. These however felt like they had very complicated enchantments, very large capacity, and were very old.
"The Mother Superior of the Order may have donated some items from our Reliquary."
"These are relics?"
"About four centuries ago an orphan, Lady Jean BoneMoon, raised by the Sisterhood of Our Hallowed Lady joined the Legions. She won many awards for her heroism and was gifted many items. Many of which were donated to the Sisterhood upon her death.
"It is the policy of our order to loan such items out to those who would make the best use of them. The Sisterhood feels that they do more good for the House being used than simply gathering dust by an altar."
I nodded. It was an honor, and I would have to read more on this Lady BoneMoon, just to check for any Being X or Uriel style meddling. "I am honored to be the current custodian of such relics. And the locket?"
"That's just some mother's love," she smiled and popped it open.
On one side was one of the Saint-style pictures of DarkStar with her crimson hair and pious expression. The other was a picture of me as a very young girl being brushed by Mother Clementia.
I held out the locket and bowed my head to her. Sister Clementia undid the clasp and put the silver chain around my neck before clasping it. Then to my surprise I felt the pinch as she put the earrings in.
I might have winced. I was not one to wear jewelry, and earrings hardly ever, but these were functional. Once she put in the studs, I could feel a steady draining sensation as the capacitors began to fill. It would probably take several days for that to happen, but would be a useful reserve.
I exhaled and looked up at my adoptive mothers. "This is more than I could have ever expected. Thank you so much for the best birthday ever." It was the truth. While my first childhood was not bad, I was rather distant with my first set of parents. And as for my second life.... well not all my birthdays were on the front. But enough were.
"I hope you don't think it's over," VioletBlood said as she came up to me with her own giant box.
"Baroness-" I started.
"Countess," she interrupted with a smirk as her tail swished.
"You didn't have to," I said.
"I know," she was amused, a bit jealous, and... there was something else. "Are you going to commission a crown? For your dress uniform."
I sighed and opened the giant gift. It turned out to be multiple stacked boxes with some hanging clothes and folded fripperies. VioletBlood grew more amused the longer it took me to sift through the items.
"This is a gown."
VioletBlood shook her head. "It's the least I could do. And you will need it."
"I was thinking of wearing my dress uniform to formal events," I admitted.
Tail flicking, VioletBlood looked to my duchess imploringly.
She stepped to me and ran a hand through my hair. "Daughter, there will be some responsibilities and duties you will have, and expectations as a noblewoman, but I will do my best to help you with them."
I gave a glassy smile and nodded. If I could swallow my pride and do ballet I could do this. The networking abilities alone of being a darling new daughter to my duchess could open many doors.
"It would be easier if I could..." my duchess shook her head. "We'll make sure you're healthy and happy."
"I'm fine, really," I insisted.
VioletBlood gave me a look
I gave her a sharp smile and idly tapped the gem at my neck.
She rolled her eyes.
"How about this one?" IvyBlade said as she pushed up between us with her own gift.
Inside was a recipe book. In Japanese. I looked up at her confused.
"Did I pick right?" the older pilot tilted her head. "I know you like Paymonish food and you like that human-style food from Luddy's maid cafe."
"Um.. yeah." I really was not much of a cook myself. And the book was a rather generic Japanese cookery book but the gesture was very heartfelt.
"I don't know if you'll be able to read it, but they're plenty of pictures!" IvyBlade said.
"How did you even get this?"
IvyBlade blushed. "I was talking to someone from the Capital yesterday and she pointed me out to a used book store that deals with imports down on the south side of Bovitar."
I absently nodded. "I'll have to get it translated, but thank you!" I might have forced the cheer. It was a very nice book, and I made no secret of liking Japanese food, especially desserts and teas. But the worry that someone might know about my past lives was... disquieting.
Her tail swishing, IvyBlade nodded.
Next came Prefect Centurion Artemis Magnus Quirinus, the instructor for my cadet group and Senior Prefect Centurion Florentina DeltaVoid commander of the Ballet Troupe. They were standing a bit close to each other and both passed me over a present.
"Another Magnus. I suppose there are worse Cognomen to have as honor names," Quirinus said.
"Like Veritas?" DeltaVoid offered with a swish of her tai.
"Humanitas seems more her speed," Quirinus replied.
"Maybe Narcissus then, for both of you," DeltaVoid laughed.
"Very funny," I sighed and opened the package. It was another book, this one was a slim volume with thick covers emblazoned with warnings and was more like a hefty portfolio or a succinct dissertation. There were also security warnings on the tied edges.
"Tactical Command and Control: Aerial Attack Study on the Applications of Energy-Maneuverability Theory," I read a sinking feeling in my stomach. Energy-Maneuverability was one of the theories Quirinus taught us.
It involved calculating performance based on taking the properties of a Ritual Plate, or aircraft, such as weight, thrust, drag, speed, and other factors and building a quantitative performance model. This allowed for comparisons and trade offs to be studied.
And was the root of various Aerial Attack Studies that determined the types of maneuvers and positioning that were useful to decide how, with a given set of assets, one could fight an enemy, with their given set of assets.
Much of our training was based on this. Which I found reassuring as it was a nice, organized, and logical set of tools. Part of me was suspicious as to where House BlackSky had got the underlying theory. It sounded very familiar, and might have been one of the many human, Earth, things that the various demon Houses had glommed onto.
The key thing, something that our enemies like Ziox failed to truly understand was that Energy-Maneuverability Theory was just that, a set of tools to reach a conclusion depending on the tactical situation. Much of their training treated it as a way to get a pre-generated set of instructions for how to fight various enemies.
That was not an invalid use of the methodology, but it was only a surface one. The true usage involved being able to collect data on the enemy, calculate the situation, create a framework for action and then execute it. And then the whole tradeoffs on an imperfect plan done quickly and updated rapidly versus a more perfected but delayed plan.
This however....
My duchess leaned in. "Are you going to tutor her? She just made Centurion."
And there it was. Yes, much of my cadet training had involved being a Flight Leader or even being in charge of a squadron, but a book like this was specifically for new Primus Volantes Centurions just starting out with a Flight of her own, but with an eye to Prefect rank and full squadron command.
Despite my worries from past experience, I ran a hand covetously over the book. Most of the concepts to Flight command of Ritual Plate were open, or open enough that a cadet could get them.
But learning privy data from experienced instructors...
"Is this to be my new assignment?" Formally, I was no longer a Cadet Optio, so I would need a new billet.
"Volantes Legate Aucto thinks you could use a bit of preparation before your next assignment."
I put on a smile and thought of a response. Fortunately, VioletBlood gave a bit of a jealous sigh.
"We did not forget your heroism, Optio Baroness VioletBlood," Quirinus gave a toothy smile. "We decided that while Volantes Centurion, ah yes, Countess DiamondDust will assume command of your Cadet squadron for the time being, you will be her second."
"That should help you both gain some experience, while also doing your ballet duties," DeltaVoid added.
"Oh," I exhaled. "We're going to have a lot of squadron level training exercises aren't we?" I asked, putting up some exuberance. It was looking like it would be impossible for me to get a nice boring posting. At least in the medium term.
If I could prove myself, then long-term an instructor role could suit me well. Which meant I had to excel at leading and training the cadet squadron to prove I could teach, and then having combat postings to prove my experience and capabilities were worthy of being passed on.
"We do not want you to get a swollen-head thinking you could take a whole 'spec ops' squadron and Ace of Aces by yourself."
"It was two flights, one of which was green, and of the other the War Mistress's desire to keep me alive was a great advantage. I would not call them a special forces squadron," I stated.
"You're being too humble," Mother Clementia assured me.
My duchess waved that aside. "Still, this will be great training, can she take this home to read or does it have to stay on base?" she asked, pointing to the Centurions' gift to me.
"We should really bring it back after the party," DeltaVoid admitted.
"Now, if you want to train against a real elite." Quirinus gave her smirk. "I know a bunch of Household Fleet Pilots want to test your mettle."
"Not to mention our Andromachin allies would also like to learn from someone who drew blood against Ziox," DeltaVoid added. "They might even want to bring some of their Lantian Squadrons down from their lunar homeland."
Knowing I had to succeed, I saluted smartly. "I'll be sure to do my best and perform beyond your expectations!"
+++
Wings spreading to either side of my chair, I wanted to slouch down and put my head on the table. Though that would ruin the paperwork I was filling out. My tail gave little twitches as I remembered the previous night in half-awake snippets.
True to Quirinus' promise, the last couple weeks had been... busy.
It was exhilarating to study squadron-level tactics in detail and, on the fly, make the calculations on how to maneuver my forces to the best position.
And I was certain that the other cadets were getting very useful training out of it all.
Still a full night's sleep was a rare luxury, even getting off base for morning coffee was a treat. I took comfort that there was little in the way of live-fire exercises. Though doing artillery spotting and fire support runs, all before suddenly being jumped by two Squadrons of Fleet Harmonia was not fun.
The real joy was being able to put my Polyxo through its paces. Though I had to be careful when on a mission to keep my camouflage system enabled and to only maneuver beyond the capabilities of a Polydora when absolutely required.
Even with those limits, my new Ritual Plate was a powerful, balanced instrument of precision arcane engineering. Despite all that, it was surprisingly robust. Early marks of Polyxo did have a reputation as hangar queens, but that was largely mitigated as the design matured. Which I suppose shows if enough funding is thrown at an evolutionary project with specific performance goals then progress can be made.
The training had been intense. Especially after that one training mission against Andromachin fliers when they realized which suit was mine and proceeded to, in a very methodical and self-sacrificing way, specifically target me.
"Rough debriefing, Countess?" VioletBlood asked as she sat down across from me.
I glared at her. At least until she passed over one of the two mugs and saucers she had taken from the cafe's counter. She carried a folded broadsheet under one arm.
I sipped the coffee. "It was... long. Not as bad as that training scenario."
"The one where a whole Andromachin squadron died to kill you?"
I nodded.
"The rest of us got the mission objective," she said with pride.
Which I had to give her. VioletBlood was a fair second in command and adjunct. Not the best I ever had. But it was not like Visha or Weiss were available. Though my tail did swish at the idea of Johan Weiss wearing Ritual Plate.
I sipped more coffee. I could have gotten a stronger stimulant in it, but... the Legion frowned on recreational stimulants above a certain potency. Which was perfectly logical as the military stimulants were saved for when they were most needed.
"And that's the argument after that debriefing. Both sides had differing priorities on their objectives. It's hardly rare but was a good case of showing that in a fight you and the enemy could both win or lose."
"Would killing you really be worth a..." VioletBlood paused. "It was a Fast Attack Craft that we were tasked with sinking that mission, right? It sort of blends together."
I nodded. "It depends. A skilled officer has value. Is that comparable to a small naval vessel? Depends on how much each side has of each in the battle. Though my argument was the cost. A full squadron to get rid of one person? That's a squadron that you can't have doing other things."
While I was.... a bit ahead of the curve; my superiors were familiar with prodigy pilots and had taken it upon themselves to show me that I was still mortal. Which, while I appreciated the gesture from an institutional level, was wearying.
Of course, I could not just tell them that I had no intention to act as if I were some fresh young pilot, certain of her own skill and immortality. They would ask where I had gotten such perspective and experience.
VioletBlood nodded.
"And you did command pretty well in my absence," I allowed. Praising subordinates when they did well was key to leadership.
She gave a smile and swished her tail.
Unfolding the broadsheet, she started reading the dense columns of newsprint.
I went back to my own paperwork. As part of my training I was now doing the evaluations of the cadet pilots under my command. It was pure coincidence that training me allowed Quirinus to offload more of her most tedious tasks onto me.
After going to a new page, VioletBlood started to giggle.
I glared at her.
She slowly lowered the paper. "Oh sorry, but the photo of you in this article is adorable."
"What?"
"How don't you know?" she passed the large paper over. "There's an interview with you in it."
Scanning the newsprint, I groaned. "The interview I did was for the Legionary Letters." That was the in-house newspaper for the Imperial Legions.
"Yes, that is the byline; it seems that it was picked up for syndication."
I kept my tail straight. "Well, that was unexpected."
"Really? Because Ivy, Shara, and Jade said they saw a newsreel about you before the main feature at a cinema they want to. What those girls see in those things...." VioletBlood shook her head.
"Movies aren't that bad." I shrugged, reading the article. It seemed to be a straight copy of the initial piece. That much was good. Though the glorifying tone was one thing for the consumption of the troops, it was another for the public.
"Yes, you would say that."
I looked up to glare at her.
"I mean, you are very technically minded, and you get enough of the stage by being in ballet," VioletBlood nervously explained.
I let that pass. Live theater was very popular and still maintained a lead over cinema. A large part was that cinema had no direct, emotional emissions. While some films could record emotional states, it was more complicated when doing it with several people over a long period of time and then broadcast it into an auditorium.
Having a vacation picture of a brood happy at the beach was one thing, and a bit pricey. Having a full sense recording of an opera? That was still a ways away. It was a bit like the early silent film days in my previous lives.
Cinema was seen as something of an inferior novelty, but it was a cheap way to propagate entertainment. And was seen in an unfavorable light relative to established entertainments such as sport, books, gaming, or theatre. Spectator sport, for example, was still big but for many here the idea of watching a recording was a bit alien. Though it was useful for archival and evaluatory purposes.
Personally, I was confident the entertainment guilds would figure it out. There was a strong fiscal incentive to get proper recording and distribution technology. Not only could you perform a play once before a camera and repeat it as many times as your prints held out, you could also edit the footage to have the best takes, and add in post production effects of all kinds.
And much like how the silent movies were overtaken by talkies and then color production, I was confident that eventually "empathys" would become practical and popular. It was something I could encourage my duchess to invest in.
"Diamond? Countess?" VioletBlood waved a hand.
"Oh, sorry." I sipped my coffee. "Yes, I also sat down for some of the newsreels. I think they even took some flying footage of me. Thankfully, I had to go to a mission planning session before things got out of hand.
"It couldn't be that bad."
I gave her a level look. "After they took a moment to consider the ballet troupe, they wanted to commission a piece where I reenacted the fight."
"As ballet?"
This time my glare was not directed at her, but she was in the way.
VioletBlood gave an apologetic smile. "You would look adorable, and it wouldn't be the first time something that violent was immortalized that way. It would really be a great way to solidify you in high society from multiple angles."
I now outranked VioletBlood, both in the Legions and in society. I wondered if she was now the social climber? "I suppose you are more aware of the intricacies of such things."
Violet Blood's tail swished. "You don't need to play the bumpkin. I know your mother has been giving you lessons."
"Mostly flight lessons," I assured.
She laughed. "Right, and you've got a few years before you have to make such decisions."
"That is the hope," I agreed, wondering why she was now talking about combat postings.
The slits to her eyes widened. "Really? You are making plans."
"Of course, Mother did spend a lot helping get me to this position and I have to think about her reputation and legacy."
"That's good to hear, Diamond. I honestly expected you to be oblivious to the whole marriage issue."
I blinked.
"It's very prudent that you're planning already. With your mother, your combat record, and honors, you show great potential. That is one level of potential for suitors. Now add in more years to gain experience and you can pursue a very useful alliance from a very strong position."
I slowly, very carefully folded the paper. "I'm too young."
"Exactly. I mean, obviously, any arranged betrothal would have to wait, but you're right that your best bet is to wait longer until you have as powerful a hand as possible." She sipped her tea. "But there is a limit, I mean you get into your thirties before getting married and some may wonder. But a way around that is to declare you are waiting until your first term expires to have children. Have them with your mate, and then wait until they're... mostly of age before going back in."
I wanted to pinch my nose, instead I shook my head. I had not thought.... much about what I would do after my first term. Other than enjoying the comforts being a noble of some renown would give me. "I will be thirty-one when I get out."
"Perfect!" she said, swishing her tail.
I carefully sipped my drink. "Optio Baroness, I note a degree of exuberance on your part."
"I am concerned for your future and development. Us orphaned noble prodigies do need to stick together."
"I also note you're a year and a half older than me." I took a meaningful sip.
VioletBlood shrugged. "In five years our age difference won't mean much, and in ten no one will notice. Besides, if we get an arranged marriage, it won't be until we're older anyway. As you pointed out, we'd be thirty-one and thirty-three when our first terms end."
The cup almost slipped from my fingers. "What?"
"I'm not saying anything yet; it is presumptuous." She assured me by waving a hand. "But we do have some complementary traits and our families could support each other."
I shook my head. You kill the enemy when unarmed and outnumbered nine to one, get honors and adopted into a noble family and the suitors start popping up. "The timing is coincidental."
"No it isn't," she laughed. "The propaganda is nice and does prove your skills but-"
Hand up, I cut her off. "Baroness, I appreciate your concern for me, and you warning me about these social obligations that lay in my future. However, in the near term I want to focus on my training. I expect an active posting sooner rather than later."
In the full abstract, if I took my own personal views out of the equation, then yes someone like the Countess DiamondDust, youngest daughter of Duchess SilverFlight, could make a good pairing with Baroness VioletBlood, especially after a decade for both of us to season and gain more skill and honors. And to grow up.
That last part was important.
VioletBlood's eyes narrowed fractionally as her tail stilled.
But her implicit point was correct that I might gain yet more status and thus have the baroness further beneath me. Which could change the calculus. I could see why she was insecure and, blatantly, positioning herself so early.
"Understandable, I can see the Legates placing you in an environment to get more combat experience especially as part of a squadron."
I tapped my chin. She was a capable subordinate, perhaps I could direct that. "Violet, while I cannot make any promise with respect to such long term things. I would like to offer what help I can to encourage my mother Duchess and our family to give you and your family mutual assistance."
VioletBlood tilted her head. "Oh?"
"Nothing like arranged marriages. We agree it is too early for that, but such things as postings and assignments. I might find a billet that would suit you."
"Oh, Diamond, that would be wonderful! I'll make sure I'll be the best wingwoman you've ever had."
I picked my coffee back up and smiled. "I can't make any promises with where we get assigned, but I do agree that you have been very capable in that role."
She gave a thin smile and sipped her own tea.
I would have worried about any subtext on her part, but we had both agreed that such arranged marriage and other things were far too early. I did wonder if joining Mother Clementia's order would be a good option. The Sisters did have to take a vow of chastity.
And my duchess could hardly be angry at me following in my other mother's footsteps.
The vow of poverty would be irksome, but I could direct monies from my noble family to support the nunnery. Of course, being a nun was not exactly what I wanted out of life, let alone having to deal with other orphans, but there were worse jobs to have.
VioletBlood smirked. "Thinking about the propaganda again?"
"More about my mother's, other mother's, nunnery. And, um, how the others at the orphanage will react to it."
VioletBlood shook her head. "My you really are the pious ideal of military virtues."
"I'm not that pious."
"You're wearing holy relics, you have a locket of DarkStar on you right now, you joined the Legions after the Feast of DarkStar, and one of your mothers is a nun."
I frowned. That put my potential future thoughts of joining the nunnery in a new light. Good thing VioletBlood did not know about that. "I never looked at it that way," I allowed.
VioletBlood chuckled. "Those with true faith rarely do. Still, it will help recruitment. You're nearly perfect for recruitment posters."
"Except for the whole thing I did at the end of the battle and being so young,"
"I would be inclined to disagree; the War Mistress' body was forfeit when you defeated her and your age can be an advantage."
"In recruiting? I needed special permission to get in."
"It shows that such special permissions are worth giving out," VioletBlood countered. "But I see your point, I was thinking of a different propaganda value your age brings."
"Such as?"
"To other Houses, both our allies and our rivals."
"Ah, yes, the performance of someone with my age would be a good demonstration of our capabilities."
"Just good? An unarmed Ritual Plate Cadet, just before her twelfth birthday, took out a spec op squadron of Ziox fliers and one of their War Mistress trainers."
"That's not an accurate description of what happened."
"Propaganda," VioletBlood slowly enunciated. "You know it's close enough, Diamond, and you can figure out the implications. You've got a better sense of realpolitik than I do."
"Fine." I drank some coffee. "Yes, I can see the two ways it can be read. Most of our allies are smaller Great Houses. Thus, the narrative of one of our cadets killing the Ziox elite when she was outnumbered is reassuring. More or less saying: isn't it a good thing that you have an ally like us to give you hardware and training, so your own forces can fight like ours."
VioletBlood smirked. "Exactly, it reassures our allies that the BlackSkyvian Ritual Plate, training, and doctrine are still very effective. Which encourages them to continue to purchase from our arms contractors and that the defensive umbrella we offer is still strong."
"And it also serves as a warning to our enemies." I gave a vicious smile. "You think your second hand suits, and your third-hand training is enough? You think your elites can match our rank and file? You are dabblers. You cannot have just a few RP Air groups and expect to have a force that can stand up to us. You will need overwhelming, overwhelming numbers to defeat us and we outnumber you."
VioletBlood raised her cup in a mock salute. "You've got a talent for rhetoric and demagogue."
"I have experience. You need a certain attitude to train soldiers."
After a moment's realization, I winced at the slip up.
VioletBlood gave a demure laugh. "Yes, you have scared your former fellow cadets, much to the improvement in their performance," she admitted.
"That is the point of training. The Imperatrix has spent a lot on us, and every Cadet I, we, and the Centurion instructors, that we make sure survives that much longer on the front brings hope to recouping those costs."
"Especially as most of them will end up piloting Sarpedona." VioletBlood absently chewed on her spoon.
I ignored that nervous, and somewhat immature, action on her part. "Cadets tend to be fast tracked to Flight command of Sarpedona or put into a multi-role squadron, so yes."
"But what I mean is they'll be doing ground support, so the longer they survive the more Legionary hoof-sloggers on the ground they can help."
"Yes, that is our doctrine for air support." I gave a wry grin. "We'll make a proper Legionary out of you yet."
VioletBlood huffed and put down her spoon. "Are you hungry? I could go for some cake."
"That would be acceptable."
The baroness laughed. "Yes we all know you like cake, I'll get two slices of chocolate." She got up and went to the counter in the back of the cafe.
It was nice to have a capable second and aide again.
+++
Amber Island was beautiful. The largest island in the Atropia Sea; it was warmed by air currents and got a good amount of rain. At about the same latitude as far away Silvana, it was part of Islands Province, the westernmost province of House BlackSky.
My parents had moved here when our home, an island to the north between minor House Megera and the constellation of outlying islands held by House Elena was annexed.
My mothers did not want to live under those stiff, mask-wearing, conformists and were part of a refugee flotilla that escaped.
House Elena, ever pragmatic, only wanted my parent's island for the natural harbor it offered and how it gave them a better basing posture to support the southeast flank of their holdings in the Northern Atropia sea.
My birth mother wanted to go onto House Alecto and start a business there. She was worried about House BlackSky's reputation. Understandable as while we were officially part of House Megera, we were more of a buffer island between the two titanic Great Houses of BlackSky and Elena.
That all changed when it was found that I had arcane potential and could call upon air spirits.
Both House Alecto and House BlackSky used Ritual Plate and there were sign-on bonuses offered by both. Ultimately, I felt that my mothers and my sisters had a solid life in Amber Island and, to be blunt, House BlackSky offered a larger bonus and a more tangible offer.
Still my birth mother had a condition. She would allow this, but only if I entered the Legions. I tried to tell her that the Legionary Fliers could die just as often over the ocean if their ship was shot down, but she thought being a Fleet Pilot would be too risky with the odds of me dying alone over endless water.
I did not have the heart to tell her that, based on past experience, there were just as many ways to die alone flying over the ground.
Still, I got to fly and got my family a measure of extra protection and financial security.
While beautiful, Amber Island was strategically positioned to give House BlackSky, especially with House Alecto's help, the ability to straddle a line that divided the Atropia Sea into northern and southern halves. It also served as a "bridge" between House Alecto's Home Island and the continent of Diyu.
I had progressed though my initial training, some of which was on the mainland, but most was right in the massive fleet facilities of Opalescence Bay.
Despite my mother's concerns, I was still trained just as often by Fleet officers as I was by Legionary ones and would go on patrols over water.
I was assigned to the 25th Legion as one of the Headquarters' Multi-role Squadrons.
I had just gotten out of my Polydora after the morning's training exercise and was rubbing my arms as I went to the mess hall and got some cabbage stew, ground salt pork, a small loaf of wheat bread, and some fish soup.
"Centurion Shadow," my Flight commander sat down across from me. With long black hair and copper-colored skin and matching wings and little horns, she just had the soup and a loaf. Her uncloven hooves were chased in copper. Dark grey eyes looked up and down at me and my food.
"Primus Centurion AmberSmite," I quickly bowed my head to her.
"Well, you are still a growing girl," AmberSmite admitted with an almost maternal pride.
I looked down at my chest. It was a bit of a curse. But, this time, living as a demoness; it was hardly unusual, and in a way it was nice to be almost... plain, at least by succubus standards.
Being a brunette was almost exotic given the vast possibilities of hair color but it still managed to blend into the background. Sure, I was still lovely, if a bit leaner in the cheek and longer in limb, and there were other changes.
But I did not stick out among my Squadron, at least not physically. I was young and new but not unduly so. There were plenty of cadets and others with exemptions younger than I was.
"You did good today," AmberSmite assured.. "I know you don't have as much experience subbing in for a strike role, but you gave the rest of us good target telemetry. I'd say you're a natural with the Gorgon Rig. You even managed to work through part of your helmet display failing mid-mission."
"Thank you, Primus, I'm trying my best."
Okay, skill-wise I did stand out, but I had an advantage with regard to combat flying. I was far more experienced than my age would imply.
I started eating. It was nice to have plenty of food. I was not sure what kind of picky eaters complained about the quality of the Legionary mess. I was also a bit curious as to what sort of magical kitchen staff the Fleet had.
Rumor was their galleys were simply divine.
To date, I had spent limited time on board troopships so I had not gotten the chance to truly savor the supposed Fleet kitchens.
"Hi Vicky!" the other two pilots in our flight said as they came up to us. Ashley Suthos was a short woman about my age with white hair shaved down to a peach-fuzz, save for her bangs. It contrasted greatly with her spiraling horns. Her plate was nearly as full as mine. She buzzed with a chipper positive energy and was happiest when using her suit to strafe ground targets.
"Did you get that helmet issue fixed?" Antonia asked as she sat down. She was closer to AmberSmite in age. She had a reasonably full plate though it was a bit higher in greens than meat. She was odd like that. She was also relatively emotionally remote which was somewhat familiar to me.
In one corner of her tray was a folded up broadsheet.
"Urentia, my head Ritualista, is looking into it," I said, spooning some of the cabbage. There was cumin, caraway, garum, and a hint of honey. Rather good and filling for something that was made in a big vat. There were sensations of amusement from my Flight-mates as they felt my satisfaction with the meal.
"Anything good?" AmberSmite asked.
Antonia paged through the issue of Legionary Letters "Ziox being spoiled crybabies. Trosier showing off their shiny Armada. Elena acting as if they're the grand peacemakers. Luxon shedding crocodile tears about how they deplore the destabilization of minor House Vualia and wish to help."
"Just look at how much they helped themselves to the northern third of House Vualia," Suthos sarcastically said, her tail swishing.
"Their occupation isn't going well, not with Alecto providing help to whoever can pay," Antonia flipped to a new page. "Well this is cheerful, there's more about that adorable little Ace out in Eastern Province."
"Who?' I asked, giving genuine curiosity.
"Victorious, you didn't hear?" Antonia asked. "There was a newsreel about her."
"I don't really like cinema," I admitted.
Suthos gave me a chipper reassurance. She was especially empathic and found cinema to be a chore.
"Well, then this is a treat," she handed me the paper and I had to juggle it until I cleared some space in front of me.
"A cadet, in ballet equipment of all things, only armed with her mother's sword, found herself up against two flights of Ziox Satori Ritual plate led by War Mistress Rodswor," Antonia explained while I tried to read.
The first thing I saw were the names in the headline. It could be a coincidence but... no....
"You won't believe what she did," Suthos gushed.
Then I saw the picture in the article.
I saw her.
"She killed them all," I stated surprised by the nostalgic smile creasing my face.
"Reading ahead?" Antonia asked.
"Uh yeah..." Then I did read the whole thing. I was surprised and amused by the young Countess' actions, but not for the reason my Flight-mates thought.
"Shame she's on the other side of the House, it would be neat to meet her," AmberSmite said.
"I even heard she has submitted letters to the Journal on Air Combat," Anotia gushed.
I nodded enthusiastically and pondered how much it would cost to go over to Bovitar when I next got leave. It would be a challenge as Eastern Province was about three thousand miles, roughly due east, from here.
I wondered if there was some way I could finagle a transfer
The Major, well Colonel at the end, was always better at those things than I was. But this couldn't be a coincidence. If she had somehow been reborn to this world then I had to meet her.
We were both pilots for a reason. And I knew my place was at her side.
End chapter 5
Yeah this is more of a chapter of people telling Tanya how much she means to them and heaping her with praise and honors. I'm sure there will be no negative consequences from these high profile awards and raised expectations.
And as for the last scene. Well.... Uriel did hint about this way back in the prologue.
And thanks to Ellf for coming up with the name Victorious Shadow. And thanks to Kevin Hammel for going over the chapter as well!
Set in the Diyu Demons verse
A Saga of Tanya the Evil fic.
By Sunshine Temple
Naturally, I do not own Youjo Senki. So here's the disclaimer:
Saga of Tanya the Evil its characters and settings belong Carlo Zen, Shinobu Shinotsuki, and NUT Co., Ltd.
Previous chapters and other works can be found at my fanfiction website.
C&C as always is wanted.
Chapter 5: Birthday Blowout
The brush felt good in my hair.
"I'm so proud of you." Sister Clementia sat on my bed.
A nice thing about being injured, at least in relative peacetime, was your convalesce could be in a private room.
"For getting chewed up?" I raised my arm showing the fresh pale-pink skin of my regrown hand. Upside, I would not scar. Downside, I had been so very hungry these last couple days.
And that was despite being given a constant supply of heavy meals and intravenous supplements. My new species' ability to heal was impressive, but that meant that wounds would not get me pulled from the front, not for long.
"Dear, I'd say you chewed the enemy far more than they did," Sister Clementia smiled. She felt comforting, but there was something she was keeping from me.
"I uh.... yeah." In my previous life I had done things. They were all legal under the laws of war. Even if the way to justify those actions involved a careful reading of such treaties, declarations of intent at the right times, and judgment calls on who was and who was not a lawful combatant nor a civilian.
And while my direct role in, what the enemies of the Empire called, the Arene Massacre was one thing, I had helped write the legalistic formulation that allowed it to happen.
My actions south of Narvos continued that streak. My commanders saw me feasting on the flesh of War Mistress Rodswor as a necessary action. To them, it was a footnote in the official report.
I was quiet and just let my- just let Sister Clementia brush my hair.
"How is your recovery going?" she asked in her ever patient, gentle voice.
"Well, there's this," I gestured with my hand and then kicked my legs. I was in a set of dark purple exercise clothes. The loose sweatpants and blousy tunic were a bit warmer than being in a hospital gown. "And I'm sure Senior Prefect Centurion Florentina will want me back dancing with the rest of the Troupe before the week is out."
"That should be helpful."
I eyed her. "Yeah... it's going to be part of my physical therapy. My balance at the moment is not great. It'll be a while before I can wear a suit again. Not that I have a Ritual Plate to pilot."
A melancholy fell over me. I had gotten to speak with the team that had examined the combat site. Well, that had recovered the bodies that had fallen onto the borderlands fields and orchards.
That included one Polydora Mark 5. Looking at the pictures of my mangled suit was one thing. Yesterday when the boffins brought me to the hangar where it and the other recovered artifacts were stored was another.
I had spent nearly a year using that intricate collection of enchantments. It may have been surplus, and it might have been an old trainer and glorified acrobatics demonstrator, but it had kept me alive. At least it was being treated with care and as much of its components, spirits, and other critical parts were being recovered as could be.
The combat reconstruction team was respectful and did not patronize me by being coddling, though they did conceal a bit of diffident awe. It helped that my actions meant they had plenty of hardware to examine.
Two Flights of Satori Ritual Plate and one custom variant had also been recovered, in varying states of damage. That and nine bodies, also in varying states of damage. I did not know what happened to them. I could have claimed them, that was my right, but a very polite Tribune suggested it might be more diplomatic to let the Imperial Legion take care of that.
I cared more about the Ritual Plate than the flesh. It sounded like after the boffins got through tearing the Zioxan hardware down to learn anything new they would have enough parts and spares to make maybe a Flight's worth.
Which would likely be passed along to our Dissimilar Instructor Wing, specifically one of their Aggressor Squadrons. That was a group of pilots trained and equipped with the Ritual Plate of a rival House. They sounded like an excellent training opportunity.
And one I got a small taste of, training with some of the House Andromache cadets and their special, and different, doctrine. But now I had an in.
My tail lazily curled as I thought about that. Maybe I could do that. If I was skilled in using an enemy Houses' equipment and tactics I could be very valuable to teaching other pilots. Too valuable to be put to the front.
It would be a near-ideal posting for me.
Sister Clementia smiled. "And mentally?" she asked, switching to my wings. Most of the burnt feathers had been pulled but they were still a ruffled mess.
"I've got someone to talk to," I assured. It was very enlightened that the Legions had a mental health system that understood Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. I suppose it was an inevitability when you threw empathic soldiers into combat. Their term was Trauma Accumulation, but it was a similar phenomenon.
It is a bit annoying that the almost doleful comforting consoler with the twin pairs of curling horns and the chipper Librarian were so happy with my progress.
Yes, I was being honest to them with my feelings about the matter. But anyone who knew "Tauria", the little, nearly eleven year old, demon girl should have thought my subdued reaction to fighting off nine enemy pilots in an unarmed suit was stonewalling.
I mean those were my genuine feelings. After Norden, well... after being pushed in front of that train, I had had too many brushes with death. Too many situations where it was kill or be killed.
Oh sure, they wanted me to open up more, and were worried I was repressing too much, but that was less about the fight and more about my childhood.
Please, these demons might be more sympathetic, but in most of my lives I ended up killing people as a little girl.
It was a bit disquieting how accepting they were. Not of the situation, but of who I was. Part of it was simple consequences of our biology on society. With the dominant species in the House being all female and empathic, and with normal raw recruits being sixteen to eighteen years old there were a lot of pretty young women fighting, killing, and dying.
My actions were still outside of the norm, but less so than they were in the empire of my previous life. Here, I was an oddity on the far end of the bell curve, in that other empire I was statistically unique.
Maybe I was fooling them better than I thought. They could be seeing me as the model eager young cadet.
I did miss flying, and my Zephyr did as well. My feathers could have used a good preening.
I leaned back and let Sister Clementia work.
"Have you talked to your friend VioletBlood?"
"Oh yes, she was part of the debrief. I gave her simple orders, but she performed them exactly as required." I nodded as I stretched my left wing so she could get to my secondary feathers. "She had a good head on her shoulders, taking the mission first instead of unnecessary heroics."
Sister Clementia murmured. "Only then? You two didn't talk in a social situation? It was a very traumatic experience."
"I suppose it was the baroness's first taste of combat, but, as I wrote in my report, she performed well. Other than a bit of idle chatter and minor nervousness, at the start. Once things got serious, she did her job and got the Package out."
The Sister switched wings; there was that sense that there was something she was not telling me. It was odd having someone else obfuscating their emotions. "That's not what I meant, Dear. Did you and her... and your cadet and ballet friends go out to eat? Such celebrations are normal for after a victory. Feasts and the like."
I thought about the fate of the War Mistress. "Not exactly."
"Ah, well, we can go out and have a nice dinner."
"They'll let me off base?" I perked up, my tail swishing.
She beamed at me. "Of course, it is a special day."
"It is?"
Sister Clementia looked embarrassed. "It is your birthday," she admitted.
I blinked. That.... that was true. On the train ride up to Narvos, VioletBlood was plotting to have a big birthday party for us when we reached the next city.
So, I was twelve.
At least I was spending it with the woman who raised me.
++++++
True to her word, getting off base was easy. I put on my uniform and took a moment to inspect myself in the mirror. My blonde hair was pretty tamed, my wings were presentable. My tail swished about merrily.
I had few ill feelings towards the first orphanage I was raised in. Those nuns made do with what they had and no one starved, but some months were lean. Sister Clementia's order had better patronage.
It was nice to no longer be stunted. I was still a very delicate-looking and short girl. But being pretty, female, and lethal was not unusual in this society. On the contrary, it often felt like the norm. Which was a bit of a comfort.
The rank flashes were new. The promotion to centurion was the most welcome part of the awards ceremony yesterday. The least welcome were the hints that more was to come.
No, the most welcome part was that it was done in my hospital room. It was useful to have so many Legates get a favorable view of me, especially one who was a member of the imperial Family.
But I was well aware of the risks the reputation I was cultivating could bring me.
That was why I frowned at the other award I had been conferred as I tied the teardrop-shaped ruby just above my collar. It looked a bit like a drop of blood held protectively by a pair of wings or, more accurately, clasped by gold leaves.
"The Preserver Order," Sister Clementia said with pride.
I gave her a reassuring look. "I didn't set out to get this."
"Few do, and those who do normally die," she said, melancholy and a tinge of fear entering her voice.
Despite that, I nodded. Entry into the Preserver Order, or more properly the Order of the Crown of the Preserver, was mostly posthumous. The award was given to those who risked their lives with conspicuous gallantry to save the lives of civilians or non-combatants.
I couldn't argue with that. Unfortunately, both the duchess and VioletBlood testified that my priority was for them and Luddy to get out to safety. And that my intention was to fight an overwhelming enemy with the goal of buying them time.
There were lesser Preserver awards such as Phalerae disks, armbands, or their hairpin equivalents that covered the same action, just with less suicidal levels of gallantry.
I sighed as I slipped on my boots. By the letter of the regulations, and the spirit of long-standing traditions my actions did qualify for the Preserver Crown. And turning down being entered into that Order would be very unwise, especially since I was the youngest member on record.
At least the youngest member under the current incarnation. There were supposedly a handful who were younger than I but they dated to pre-Invasion times and were retroactively entered when the Order was created.
"At least the award is no longer literally a crown," I muttered. Though technically in the most formal of uniforms that would be required. Something to keep in mind if I had to present myself to the Imperatrix. At least that meant I wouldn't have to wear the crested centurion dress helmet.
"I think you'd look good in a golden-leaved crown with rubies, like a little princess."
After a few steps my legs ached a bit. It was not surprising given my healing and the physical therapy. Going down the stairs of the hospital, Sister Clementia took my hand.
Which was nice for the... balance it gave me.
Going outside was an experience. I had gotten noticed before on the base as a young promising Cadet, but now I was getting salutes and accolades.
I suppose the Preserver Order would have its advantages. It felt a bit awkward, but I gave a prideful smile and, with an imperious sweep of my free arm, cheered them on.
Getting outside of the base was easy. I almost had an honor guard after going through the guard post at the gate. Or at least there were a few Legionaries and pilots going the same direction as us.
I got my stride as we went down a few blocks and came to the edge of the upper section of Bovitar. Clementia unfurled her large, purple and grey wings as her matching red habit and dress rippled in the wind.
Still holding her hand, I spread my wings and we flew from the upper ridge to Victory Plaza in the heart of the city.
It was nice flying. Though flying under my own power was a pale imitation of flying with Ritual Plate. Still, my Zephyr were happy to be in the air again.
I hit the landing, but it was nice to have Clementia there in case I stumbled.
"We're eating in their restaurant?" I asked as she led me towards the Great Eastern Hotel. My stomach grumbled a bit. The hotel did have a really good steak grill on the back next to the bar. Red meat was more appealing to me in this life than previous ones.
"Maybe," she allowed.
I tilted my head. Sister Clementia did not have much in the way of worldly possessions, but she could afford a nice meal once in a while. "I will be getting a bonus with my promotion," I offered.
"You are so sweet." She patted me on the head before we went through the sweeping doors into the lobby.
The staff were oddly obsequious. Well, I did have a reputation. I supposed my story had started to spread.
Though as we got deeper into the hotel, my horns started to get a bit... muffled.
Sister Clementia squeezed my hand. "Trust me."
My tail curled a bit as she led me to one of hotel's ballrooms
A pair of servants in gold and purple livery opened the doors. I could feel the duchess's emotions and care for me.
And then I felt others.
The room was full. There was my cadet instructor: Prefect Centurion Quirinus, the head of the Ballet Troupe: Senior Prefect Centurion DeltaVoid, Baroness VioletBlood, IvyBlade and others from my cadet class and the ballet troupe, and Luddy.
I tilted my head as they screamed happy birthday.
"Um?" I turned to Sister Clementia.
"Do you really think we forgot?" she laughed and pulled me into the ballroom. While it was a literal room for ball dancing complete with polished floors, gilt ceiling and handsome woodwork on the walls, I was happy to be wearing a uniform and not a gown.
The duchess, however, was in a gown. She held a fluted glass and raised it as she strode to me. "Hail, Lady Tauria!"
While the others repeated the accolade she came in to hug me.
My tail went stiff as my arms flailed for a moment. I mean... being in the Order of the Crown of the Preserver did confer an honorary title.
"You did the right thing, I'm so proud of you." Duchess SilverFlight held me tight before letting go. "You're looking well."
"Uh, yes, your Grace," I said in a controlled, even adult, tone, while my tail was kept steady and did not wag.
The duchess shook her head and nodded to Sister Clementia. "Well done with the subterfuge."
"You were the one who kept the surprise once we got into the hotel."
I looked between them. The duchess masked the presence of her and my.... fellow Legionary Fliers... well...
Sniffing the air, I turned to see a bashful-looking Luddy walk over. She bowed her horns to me then deeply bowed at the waist. Next to her a couple servants were pushing a trolley that had a bunch of pastries and buns surrounding a two-tiered dark chocolate cake.
There were twelve purple candles on it.
I blinked. This... was not what I expected.
"I must thank you so much for helping free me," Luddy stated as she blinked and dabbed at her eyes. "You... don't... it was... I..." She steeled herself. "But I'm free now."
I returned the bow and found the wave of gratitude and stress from her and wanted to feel for her, to return the sentiment.
Luddy gave a small smile to me and the duchess put an arm around her shoulder. "Miss HeartWood and others have been a great help."
Baroness VioletBlood slipped over to me. Unlike most of the others, she was not in uniform. She had a frilly lavender dress with white ribbons. Her dark red hair was held back with a few pins that denoted she was promoted to full Optio and bore a small Phalerae. The polished copper disk pinned to her dress like a metallic corsage.
I nodded to her. She had done well and did deserve some recognition.
She gave a matching gesture but bowed a bit more. "I told you you'd have a great birthday party."
I snorted lightly. Looking around, I saw there was a line of other foods, a set of tables, and that various servants had started circling about with glasses. Some seemed to have champagne while others were a bit darker.
"It's cider; soft cider; you teetotaler.," VioletBlood teased.
"I'm twelve," I shot back to her.
Holding her own glass, VioletBlood shrugged. "Fine, fine, wait a couple years then."
I shook my head. In my first life the drinking age was twenty, in my second it was about sixteen. In this life, it was somewhat younger still. Though it was more that drinking without parental permission was the actual prohibition. Crazy demons.
The duchess went back to me and after giving a pleasant chat with VioletBlood, politely pushed her off. Standing to one side behind me, the duchess pointed me back towards the cake.
Sister Clementia went to the other side.
"Do you want to make a wish?" the duchess asked.
I looked at the candles. What I wanted.... what I really wanted? I was not sure I could get it.
Knowing my luck, wishing for a nice rear echelon posting would just make things worse. Wishing for status could be nice, but would end up with all sorts of strings attached. Money and power had the same risks. Baubles could be nice, if I cared about material things.
Well, beyond basic comforts. It was all academic anyway. It had been twelve years with no sign of otherworldly beings interfering in my new life.
Other than cruel demonic House rulers via arrogant War Mistresses. I could not be sure, but the whole incident in Narvos felt like the result of plain old demonic infighting.
Sister Clementia squeezed my shoulder.
"Thinking hard?" the duchess asked.
Shrugging, I blew out the candles.
And there was polite clapping.
"Now don't tell us!" IvyBlade shouted as they started to carve up the cake.
The smell was heavenly.
Before I could get to it Sister Clementia and Duchess SilverFlight both handed me a gilt envelope.
I blinked.
"It's your first gift, if you'll accept it." Sister Clementia
I wondered if it was money or some sort of line of credit at a boutique or something. Holding the thick envelope, my confusion grew; it felt like many pages.
Sliding out a pinky claw, I carefully cut the side of the envelope. There were two nearly identical legal documents.
The only difference was in one the first party was Clementia Lusria of the Sisterhood of Our Hallowed Lady and in the other the first party was Volantes Tribune (Rorarii) Duchess SilverFlight.
In both the second party was Volantes Centurion Countess Tauria Magnus DiamondDust. And awaited my signature and seal.
They were adoption papers. Specifically, they were adoptio, the civil version of adoption instead of the biological version. That made things a bit less terrifyingly overwhelming.
"You... you want me as your daughter?"
"We've felt you've been our daughter for years," the duchess said.
"Neither of us wants to replace your birth mother or your sire mother." Sister Clementia took me in a one armed hug.
The duchess leaned in, her voice quiet. "And we know you're very... independent so making you a daughter, biologically-speaking, might not be right."
I frowned at the unspoken "for now".
"But you are old enough to make this choice, and old enough that you don't need mothers," Sister Clementia hugged me a bit closer.
I was old enough to fight and kill and possibly die for the House, so being able to pick my parents seemed like a reasonable allowance.
"The Magnus? And the Countess? Why does my name have those now?" I blinked and was... oh this was....
From her spot talking with the other members of the ballet troupe, Baroness VioletBlood saluted with her glass. I wondered if she would be so pleasant if she knew I had leapfrogged her in status. Her jealous streak was only matched by her competitive one. Wait... I didn't have to accept this.
Sure.
I could snub the woman who raised me and a powerful patron who I had risked my life to rescue and who was willing to risk her political capital and honor on taking me on as a daughter.
"Magnus is the Honor Name bestowed upon you by the Imperatrix. You'll be given a formal presentation by the Legates tomorrow."
"And?"
The duchess smiled. "If you are to be my daughter you will have a title."
I stared. In my past life I had gotten an honorific, becoming Tanya von Degurechaff, for academic excellence as part of my military education.
"If you insist on being a Lady Castilian, I suppose you can talk with my eldest daughter, your new sister, but it holds a lot of responsibility."
"That's, um, not what I meant."
The duchess tittered. "Oh, you already made yourself a Lady by your own efforts, I have to give you something extra."
I exhaled. That it was both of them meant this was not just a political move. A way for the duchess to solidify her claim on me and her reputation of finding and mentoring talented new pilots.
Oh yes, the nunnery's fortunes will be helped if it came out that the newest, youngest Ace Pilot, a Countess no less, was once one of their wards. But.... Sister Clementia was not like that.
I swallowed. My hand trembled as I held it out.
The duchess bowed her horns and placed a gold pen into my fingers. I was guided by a table. It was good that Clementia was there to help give me balance.
I spread out both sets of documents and read through them. As I went, I wondered if there was a way for me to get out of this. BlackSkyvian Nobility had a... reputation, especially in the Imperial Legions.
If anything, young Baroness VioletBlood was a restrained example of their gung-ho exuberance and dedication to combat. As I read I wondered if I even wanted out of this.
Being given piles of honors, awards, and promotions, especially for earned work were beneficial, but they all came with expectations and responsibilities.
A servant came up with a stick of gold and purple wax which was heated by a small flame generated between her fingers.
I did not have a signet, but I did have.... I undid the ribbon that held the ruby and gold leaves of the Preserver Order to my neck.
I closed my eyes for a moment and then signed both documents and then pressed the front of the Order award into the dollops of wax. The impression of leaves and teardrop looked professional enough.
There was a hush as I tied the award back onto my collar.
And then both Sister Clementia and Duchess SilverFlight pulled me into a hug as she did servants cried "Volantes Centurion Countess Tauria Magnus DiamondDust daughter of Clementia Lusria of the Sisterhood of Our Hallowed Lady and Volantes Tribune Duchess SilverFlight of the Duchy of Argenia!"
I was lifted off my feet by the embrace by the two taller women, by my... mothers. Adoptive.
I blinked and there might have been a purring rumble as the cheering grew distant, and I just enjoyed their company.
I was lowered back down onto my boots and managed to regain some of my dignity when I was given a glass and saluted the crowd.
My mothers flanking me, I noticed something had been placed in front of me. It was a giant case in purple wrapping paper with a big floppy pink bow on top.
"You didn't think we were just going to adopt you?" the duchess... my duchess smiled.
"I, um, didn't even expect that much," I admitted. A china plate with a slice of cake was put into my hands. I ate some to get a bit of a distraction. Moist, delicious chocolate cake and frosting and shaved chocolate helped.
"Well, it's something you definitely will like, need, and use."
I swallowed. Given the wrapped box was about the dimensions of an upright coffin.
My free hand went off and tore out the wrapping paper and sliced the ribbon. The packaging went away to reveal... a standard grey military crate.
But one I was familiar with. I finished my first slice of cake as Mother Clementia gave me a new slice and my duchess opened the front of the crate.
Inside was a standing Ritual Plate suit locked onto its restraints. Covered in intricate engravings, enchantments, I could feel the dormant power of the suit. It had spots for multi-mission modules but was far above my previous suit in complexity.
"That's a Polyxo Advanced Multi Role." Most of the plates were made of an almost pearlescent white metal with blue accents, and black trim, with golden runes engraved all over.
With the right mission packages, a Polyxo was equal to a dedicated long-range Lance Strike suit like a Telephe, an air superiority fighter like a Harmonia, or a ground attack craft like a Sarpedona.
"It's your Polyxo Advanced Multi Role," my duchess smiled. "Specifically, a Mark 15 with the Gamma Block power systems."
"Oh." That was the most modern production variant. And the Gamma Block used stronger, more robust arcane enchantments to keep mana, power, and flow from the fuel cells from burning-out components, especially in combat conditions.
I stepped around the suit. It was a bit taller than me, due to it being an armored suit, though more to the boots Ritual Plate models seemed invariably cursed with. But the important part was that it was my size. "How?"
"One of my artificer guilds makes RP power systems including the Gamma Block and other concerns make several of the components in the Polyxo. When the manufacturers heard about what you did, well... let us say that I was able to purchase one fresh off the MuArc Amalgamated line instead of being waitlisted."
I blinked. The Household Fleet and the Legions did allow for the personal purchase of kit and equipment. Provided the trooper could afford it, and the equipment met standards such as quality, performance, durability, maintenance, and compatibility in munitions, fuel, and spare parts.
"It's my size." Suits had to be custom fitted. For the most part, they were manufactured in a range of predetermined sizes and the final fitting could be done by Ritualista, but this one seemed to be pre built to my, admittedly delicate, proportions.
"I know your sizes, Daughter," my duchess seemed to revel in that word. "And I may have paid extra to have it fitted out by MuArc's own artificers. They were motivated to help you."
I tilted my head at her. Motivation aside, the Polyxo was by itself, one of the more expensive Ritual Plate, but having it installed with a Gamma Power system and then custom fitting out... all in a matter of days.
"I'm sorry if I was presumptive; I talked with your instructors," she nodded to Prefect Centurions Quirinus and DeltaVoid. "And thought you would make the most of the flexibility of this model. But if you want a Harmonia I could get you one. Or any other Ritual Plate you want."
"No, no, the Polyxo is amazing. I can't wait to put it on..." I may have put my hand out and remarked on how shiny the surface was.
My Zephyr reacted with great enthusiasm flowing through the various enchantments.
The potential in such a piece of hardware was immense, especially with someone of my skills wielding it.
Oh.
That was the worry. My duchess knew what was expected of me. And being a Countess would raise the bar further. I couldn't blame the Legates.
If I were a staff officer and had someone with my capabilities I would want to get the most out of them.
I pulled my hand and smiled. Two big upsides House BlackSky had over the Empire was that House BlackSky had a stronger diplomatic corps and tended to take a longer view of things.
That, hopefully, meant that my commander would decide it was better giving me a few years to season than feeling that they were forced to send me into some meat grinder to try and turn the tide in some big war.
I exhaled. I might have gotten the attention of the higher ups but I could still leverage their accolades into my plan of spending as many years of my twenty year term as possible in training, instructor, and other rear echelon billets.
And then after that, being a respected countess, maybe working in her adoptive mother's research and testing companies, would be a very comfortable life.
"I know your next posting is in flux, but there are few positions in the Legionary Squadrons where a Polyxo would be a detriment," my duchess assured.
I bowed my horns to her. Save for special applications, Flights were typically homogeneous in composition. This simplified command, supply, and maintenance logistics. Most squadrons were homogenous as well, but there were cases, especially with rare models like the Occultia, Svalinna, or Polyxo where a mixed Squadron gave some benefits.
Most Prefect Volantes Centurions would be happy to have one of their squadron's Flights be equipped with Polyxo. That gave them two Flights dedicated to their specialization (air superiority, strike, or ground support) and one multi-role Flight that could perform as well in said specialization or be swapped out into another.
It could enable a Lance Strike Squadron to have some fighter escorts, or give an air superiority squadron some heavier firepower in case of larger enemy targets. Or it could give a ground attack squadron some superior air cover or heavier firepower.
I smiled at the Ritual Plate suit. If I was going to be tossed into the deep end then I might as well have the best equipment possible. And unlike the cursed Type 95, this one did not seem to require brainwashing to use.
Mother Clementia stepped over to me and handed me a small box. "I know it's not as much, but...."
I took the box and looked up at her and shook my head. "No, don't. You've done more for me than..." I exhaled and let a bit of my feelings out.
I was suddenly pulled into her embrace.
My tail swished and I allowed myself to enjoy it.
After the hug she smiled down at me. Relishing the feelings of surprise of my fellow cadets and Troupe members, I opened her gift.
"Oh my," I pulled a silver locket out of the box and looked between it and a set of dark crimson earrings. The gemstones gave a slight shine to the touch.
"Arcane capacitors?" I turned around the two gems. They felt... empty, like they were waiting to be filled. Such devices were a way to store extra mana and energy. It took some time to top them off, but they were a way to give a reserve of extra power.
Normally, they paled in capacity to the alchemical power cells a Ritual Plate used. But they were still a handy way to have that much more power when not in a suit. These however felt like they had very complicated enchantments, very large capacity, and were very old.
"The Mother Superior of the Order may have donated some items from our Reliquary."
"These are relics?"
"About four centuries ago an orphan, Lady Jean BoneMoon, raised by the Sisterhood of Our Hallowed Lady joined the Legions. She won many awards for her heroism and was gifted many items. Many of which were donated to the Sisterhood upon her death.
"It is the policy of our order to loan such items out to those who would make the best use of them. The Sisterhood feels that they do more good for the House being used than simply gathering dust by an altar."
I nodded. It was an honor, and I would have to read more on this Lady BoneMoon, just to check for any Being X or Uriel style meddling. "I am honored to be the current custodian of such relics. And the locket?"
"That's just some mother's love," she smiled and popped it open.
On one side was one of the Saint-style pictures of DarkStar with her crimson hair and pious expression. The other was a picture of me as a very young girl being brushed by Mother Clementia.
I held out the locket and bowed my head to her. Sister Clementia undid the clasp and put the silver chain around my neck before clasping it. Then to my surprise I felt the pinch as she put the earrings in.
I might have winced. I was not one to wear jewelry, and earrings hardly ever, but these were functional. Once she put in the studs, I could feel a steady draining sensation as the capacitors began to fill. It would probably take several days for that to happen, but would be a useful reserve.
I exhaled and looked up at my adoptive mothers. "This is more than I could have ever expected. Thank you so much for the best birthday ever." It was the truth. While my first childhood was not bad, I was rather distant with my first set of parents. And as for my second life.... well not all my birthdays were on the front. But enough were.
"I hope you don't think it's over," VioletBlood said as she came up to me with her own giant box.
"Baroness-" I started.
"Countess," she interrupted with a smirk as her tail swished.
"You didn't have to," I said.
"I know," she was amused, a bit jealous, and... there was something else. "Are you going to commission a crown? For your dress uniform."
I sighed and opened the giant gift. It turned out to be multiple stacked boxes with some hanging clothes and folded fripperies. VioletBlood grew more amused the longer it took me to sift through the items.
"This is a gown."
VioletBlood shook her head. "It's the least I could do. And you will need it."
"I was thinking of wearing my dress uniform to formal events," I admitted.
Tail flicking, VioletBlood looked to my duchess imploringly.
She stepped to me and ran a hand through my hair. "Daughter, there will be some responsibilities and duties you will have, and expectations as a noblewoman, but I will do my best to help you with them."
I gave a glassy smile and nodded. If I could swallow my pride and do ballet I could do this. The networking abilities alone of being a darling new daughter to my duchess could open many doors.
"It would be easier if I could..." my duchess shook her head. "We'll make sure you're healthy and happy."
"I'm fine, really," I insisted.
VioletBlood gave me a look
I gave her a sharp smile and idly tapped the gem at my neck.
She rolled her eyes.
"How about this one?" IvyBlade said as she pushed up between us with her own gift.
Inside was a recipe book. In Japanese. I looked up at her confused.
"Did I pick right?" the older pilot tilted her head. "I know you like Paymonish food and you like that human-style food from Luddy's maid cafe."
"Um.. yeah." I really was not much of a cook myself. And the book was a rather generic Japanese cookery book but the gesture was very heartfelt.
"I don't know if you'll be able to read it, but they're plenty of pictures!" IvyBlade said.
"How did you even get this?"
IvyBlade blushed. "I was talking to someone from the Capital yesterday and she pointed me out to a used book store that deals with imports down on the south side of Bovitar."
I absently nodded. "I'll have to get it translated, but thank you!" I might have forced the cheer. It was a very nice book, and I made no secret of liking Japanese food, especially desserts and teas. But the worry that someone might know about my past lives was... disquieting.
Her tail swishing, IvyBlade nodded.
Next came Prefect Centurion Artemis Magnus Quirinus, the instructor for my cadet group and Senior Prefect Centurion Florentina DeltaVoid commander of the Ballet Troupe. They were standing a bit close to each other and both passed me over a present.
"Another Magnus. I suppose there are worse Cognomen to have as honor names," Quirinus said.
"Like Veritas?" DeltaVoid offered with a swish of her tai.
"Humanitas seems more her speed," Quirinus replied.
"Maybe Narcissus then, for both of you," DeltaVoid laughed.
"Very funny," I sighed and opened the package. It was another book, this one was a slim volume with thick covers emblazoned with warnings and was more like a hefty portfolio or a succinct dissertation. There were also security warnings on the tied edges.
"Tactical Command and Control: Aerial Attack Study on the Applications of Energy-Maneuverability Theory," I read a sinking feeling in my stomach. Energy-Maneuverability was one of the theories Quirinus taught us.
It involved calculating performance based on taking the properties of a Ritual Plate, or aircraft, such as weight, thrust, drag, speed, and other factors and building a quantitative performance model. This allowed for comparisons and trade offs to be studied.
And was the root of various Aerial Attack Studies that determined the types of maneuvers and positioning that were useful to decide how, with a given set of assets, one could fight an enemy, with their given set of assets.
Much of our training was based on this. Which I found reassuring as it was a nice, organized, and logical set of tools. Part of me was suspicious as to where House BlackSky had got the underlying theory. It sounded very familiar, and might have been one of the many human, Earth, things that the various demon Houses had glommed onto.
The key thing, something that our enemies like Ziox failed to truly understand was that Energy-Maneuverability Theory was just that, a set of tools to reach a conclusion depending on the tactical situation. Much of their training treated it as a way to get a pre-generated set of instructions for how to fight various enemies.
That was not an invalid use of the methodology, but it was only a surface one. The true usage involved being able to collect data on the enemy, calculate the situation, create a framework for action and then execute it. And then the whole tradeoffs on an imperfect plan done quickly and updated rapidly versus a more perfected but delayed plan.
This however....
My duchess leaned in. "Are you going to tutor her? She just made Centurion."
And there it was. Yes, much of my cadet training had involved being a Flight Leader or even being in charge of a squadron, but a book like this was specifically for new Primus Volantes Centurions just starting out with a Flight of her own, but with an eye to Prefect rank and full squadron command.
Despite my worries from past experience, I ran a hand covetously over the book. Most of the concepts to Flight command of Ritual Plate were open, or open enough that a cadet could get them.
But learning privy data from experienced instructors...
"Is this to be my new assignment?" Formally, I was no longer a Cadet Optio, so I would need a new billet.
"Volantes Legate Aucto thinks you could use a bit of preparation before your next assignment."
I put on a smile and thought of a response. Fortunately, VioletBlood gave a bit of a jealous sigh.
"We did not forget your heroism, Optio Baroness VioletBlood," Quirinus gave a toothy smile. "We decided that while Volantes Centurion, ah yes, Countess DiamondDust will assume command of your Cadet squadron for the time being, you will be her second."
"That should help you both gain some experience, while also doing your ballet duties," DeltaVoid added.
"Oh," I exhaled. "We're going to have a lot of squadron level training exercises aren't we?" I asked, putting up some exuberance. It was looking like it would be impossible for me to get a nice boring posting. At least in the medium term.
If I could prove myself, then long-term an instructor role could suit me well. Which meant I had to excel at leading and training the cadet squadron to prove I could teach, and then having combat postings to prove my experience and capabilities were worthy of being passed on.
"We do not want you to get a swollen-head thinking you could take a whole 'spec ops' squadron and Ace of Aces by yourself."
"It was two flights, one of which was green, and of the other the War Mistress's desire to keep me alive was a great advantage. I would not call them a special forces squadron," I stated.
"You're being too humble," Mother Clementia assured me.
My duchess waved that aside. "Still, this will be great training, can she take this home to read or does it have to stay on base?" she asked, pointing to the Centurions' gift to me.
"We should really bring it back after the party," DeltaVoid admitted.
"Now, if you want to train against a real elite." Quirinus gave her smirk. "I know a bunch of Household Fleet Pilots want to test your mettle."
"Not to mention our Andromachin allies would also like to learn from someone who drew blood against Ziox," DeltaVoid added. "They might even want to bring some of their Lantian Squadrons down from their lunar homeland."
Knowing I had to succeed, I saluted smartly. "I'll be sure to do my best and perform beyond your expectations!"
+++
Wings spreading to either side of my chair, I wanted to slouch down and put my head on the table. Though that would ruin the paperwork I was filling out. My tail gave little twitches as I remembered the previous night in half-awake snippets.
True to Quirinus' promise, the last couple weeks had been... busy.
It was exhilarating to study squadron-level tactics in detail and, on the fly, make the calculations on how to maneuver my forces to the best position.
And I was certain that the other cadets were getting very useful training out of it all.
Still a full night's sleep was a rare luxury, even getting off base for morning coffee was a treat. I took comfort that there was little in the way of live-fire exercises. Though doing artillery spotting and fire support runs, all before suddenly being jumped by two Squadrons of Fleet Harmonia was not fun.
The real joy was being able to put my Polyxo through its paces. Though I had to be careful when on a mission to keep my camouflage system enabled and to only maneuver beyond the capabilities of a Polydora when absolutely required.
Even with those limits, my new Ritual Plate was a powerful, balanced instrument of precision arcane engineering. Despite all that, it was surprisingly robust. Early marks of Polyxo did have a reputation as hangar queens, but that was largely mitigated as the design matured. Which I suppose shows if enough funding is thrown at an evolutionary project with specific performance goals then progress can be made.
The training had been intense. Especially after that one training mission against Andromachin fliers when they realized which suit was mine and proceeded to, in a very methodical and self-sacrificing way, specifically target me.
"Rough debriefing, Countess?" VioletBlood asked as she sat down across from me.
I glared at her. At least until she passed over one of the two mugs and saucers she had taken from the cafe's counter. She carried a folded broadsheet under one arm.
I sipped the coffee. "It was... long. Not as bad as that training scenario."
"The one where a whole Andromachin squadron died to kill you?"
I nodded.
"The rest of us got the mission objective," she said with pride.
Which I had to give her. VioletBlood was a fair second in command and adjunct. Not the best I ever had. But it was not like Visha or Weiss were available. Though my tail did swish at the idea of Johan Weiss wearing Ritual Plate.
I sipped more coffee. I could have gotten a stronger stimulant in it, but... the Legion frowned on recreational stimulants above a certain potency. Which was perfectly logical as the military stimulants were saved for when they were most needed.
"And that's the argument after that debriefing. Both sides had differing priorities on their objectives. It's hardly rare but was a good case of showing that in a fight you and the enemy could both win or lose."
"Would killing you really be worth a..." VioletBlood paused. "It was a Fast Attack Craft that we were tasked with sinking that mission, right? It sort of blends together."
I nodded. "It depends. A skilled officer has value. Is that comparable to a small naval vessel? Depends on how much each side has of each in the battle. Though my argument was the cost. A full squadron to get rid of one person? That's a squadron that you can't have doing other things."
While I was.... a bit ahead of the curve; my superiors were familiar with prodigy pilots and had taken it upon themselves to show me that I was still mortal. Which, while I appreciated the gesture from an institutional level, was wearying.
Of course, I could not just tell them that I had no intention to act as if I were some fresh young pilot, certain of her own skill and immortality. They would ask where I had gotten such perspective and experience.
VioletBlood nodded.
"And you did command pretty well in my absence," I allowed. Praising subordinates when they did well was key to leadership.
She gave a smile and swished her tail.
Unfolding the broadsheet, she started reading the dense columns of newsprint.
I went back to my own paperwork. As part of my training I was now doing the evaluations of the cadet pilots under my command. It was pure coincidence that training me allowed Quirinus to offload more of her most tedious tasks onto me.
After going to a new page, VioletBlood started to giggle.
I glared at her.
She slowly lowered the paper. "Oh sorry, but the photo of you in this article is adorable."
"What?"
"How don't you know?" she passed the large paper over. "There's an interview with you in it."
Scanning the newsprint, I groaned. "The interview I did was for the Legionary Letters." That was the in-house newspaper for the Imperial Legions.
"Yes, that is the byline; it seems that it was picked up for syndication."
I kept my tail straight. "Well, that was unexpected."
"Really? Because Ivy, Shara, and Jade said they saw a newsreel about you before the main feature at a cinema they want to. What those girls see in those things...." VioletBlood shook her head.
"Movies aren't that bad." I shrugged, reading the article. It seemed to be a straight copy of the initial piece. That much was good. Though the glorifying tone was one thing for the consumption of the troops, it was another for the public.
"Yes, you would say that."
I looked up to glare at her.
"I mean, you are very technically minded, and you get enough of the stage by being in ballet," VioletBlood nervously explained.
I let that pass. Live theater was very popular and still maintained a lead over cinema. A large part was that cinema had no direct, emotional emissions. While some films could record emotional states, it was more complicated when doing it with several people over a long period of time and then broadcast it into an auditorium.
Having a vacation picture of a brood happy at the beach was one thing, and a bit pricey. Having a full sense recording of an opera? That was still a ways away. It was a bit like the early silent film days in my previous lives.
Cinema was seen as something of an inferior novelty, but it was a cheap way to propagate entertainment. And was seen in an unfavorable light relative to established entertainments such as sport, books, gaming, or theatre. Spectator sport, for example, was still big but for many here the idea of watching a recording was a bit alien. Though it was useful for archival and evaluatory purposes.
Personally, I was confident the entertainment guilds would figure it out. There was a strong fiscal incentive to get proper recording and distribution technology. Not only could you perform a play once before a camera and repeat it as many times as your prints held out, you could also edit the footage to have the best takes, and add in post production effects of all kinds.
And much like how the silent movies were overtaken by talkies and then color production, I was confident that eventually "empathys" would become practical and popular. It was something I could encourage my duchess to invest in.
"Diamond? Countess?" VioletBlood waved a hand.
"Oh, sorry." I sipped my coffee. "Yes, I also sat down for some of the newsreels. I think they even took some flying footage of me. Thankfully, I had to go to a mission planning session before things got out of hand.
"It couldn't be that bad."
I gave her a level look. "After they took a moment to consider the ballet troupe, they wanted to commission a piece where I reenacted the fight."
"As ballet?"
This time my glare was not directed at her, but she was in the way.
VioletBlood gave an apologetic smile. "You would look adorable, and it wouldn't be the first time something that violent was immortalized that way. It would really be a great way to solidify you in high society from multiple angles."
I now outranked VioletBlood, both in the Legions and in society. I wondered if she was now the social climber? "I suppose you are more aware of the intricacies of such things."
Violet Blood's tail swished. "You don't need to play the bumpkin. I know your mother has been giving you lessons."
"Mostly flight lessons," I assured.
She laughed. "Right, and you've got a few years before you have to make such decisions."
"That is the hope," I agreed, wondering why she was now talking about combat postings.
The slits to her eyes widened. "Really? You are making plans."
"Of course, Mother did spend a lot helping get me to this position and I have to think about her reputation and legacy."
"That's good to hear, Diamond. I honestly expected you to be oblivious to the whole marriage issue."
I blinked.
"It's very prudent that you're planning already. With your mother, your combat record, and honors, you show great potential. That is one level of potential for suitors. Now add in more years to gain experience and you can pursue a very useful alliance from a very strong position."
I slowly, very carefully folded the paper. "I'm too young."
"Exactly. I mean, obviously, any arranged betrothal would have to wait, but you're right that your best bet is to wait longer until you have as powerful a hand as possible." She sipped her tea. "But there is a limit, I mean you get into your thirties before getting married and some may wonder. But a way around that is to declare you are waiting until your first term expires to have children. Have them with your mate, and then wait until they're... mostly of age before going back in."
I wanted to pinch my nose, instead I shook my head. I had not thought.... much about what I would do after my first term. Other than enjoying the comforts being a noble of some renown would give me. "I will be thirty-one when I get out."
"Perfect!" she said, swishing her tail.
I carefully sipped my drink. "Optio Baroness, I note a degree of exuberance on your part."
"I am concerned for your future and development. Us orphaned noble prodigies do need to stick together."
"I also note you're a year and a half older than me." I took a meaningful sip.
VioletBlood shrugged. "In five years our age difference won't mean much, and in ten no one will notice. Besides, if we get an arranged marriage, it won't be until we're older anyway. As you pointed out, we'd be thirty-one and thirty-three when our first terms end."
The cup almost slipped from my fingers. "What?"
"I'm not saying anything yet; it is presumptuous." She assured me by waving a hand. "But we do have some complementary traits and our families could support each other."
I shook my head. You kill the enemy when unarmed and outnumbered nine to one, get honors and adopted into a noble family and the suitors start popping up. "The timing is coincidental."
"No it isn't," she laughed. "The propaganda is nice and does prove your skills but-"
Hand up, I cut her off. "Baroness, I appreciate your concern for me, and you warning me about these social obligations that lay in my future. However, in the near term I want to focus on my training. I expect an active posting sooner rather than later."
In the full abstract, if I took my own personal views out of the equation, then yes someone like the Countess DiamondDust, youngest daughter of Duchess SilverFlight, could make a good pairing with Baroness VioletBlood, especially after a decade for both of us to season and gain more skill and honors. And to grow up.
That last part was important.
VioletBlood's eyes narrowed fractionally as her tail stilled.
But her implicit point was correct that I might gain yet more status and thus have the baroness further beneath me. Which could change the calculus. I could see why she was insecure and, blatantly, positioning herself so early.
"Understandable, I can see the Legates placing you in an environment to get more combat experience especially as part of a squadron."
I tapped my chin. She was a capable subordinate, perhaps I could direct that. "Violet, while I cannot make any promise with respect to such long term things. I would like to offer what help I can to encourage my mother Duchess and our family to give you and your family mutual assistance."
VioletBlood tilted her head. "Oh?"
"Nothing like arranged marriages. We agree it is too early for that, but such things as postings and assignments. I might find a billet that would suit you."
"Oh, Diamond, that would be wonderful! I'll make sure I'll be the best wingwoman you've ever had."
I picked my coffee back up and smiled. "I can't make any promises with where we get assigned, but I do agree that you have been very capable in that role."
She gave a thin smile and sipped her own tea.
I would have worried about any subtext on her part, but we had both agreed that such arranged marriage and other things were far too early. I did wonder if joining Mother Clementia's order would be a good option. The Sisters did have to take a vow of chastity.
And my duchess could hardly be angry at me following in my other mother's footsteps.
The vow of poverty would be irksome, but I could direct monies from my noble family to support the nunnery. Of course, being a nun was not exactly what I wanted out of life, let alone having to deal with other orphans, but there were worse jobs to have.
VioletBlood smirked. "Thinking about the propaganda again?"
"More about my mother's, other mother's, nunnery. And, um, how the others at the orphanage will react to it."
VioletBlood shook her head. "My you really are the pious ideal of military virtues."
"I'm not that pious."
"You're wearing holy relics, you have a locket of DarkStar on you right now, you joined the Legions after the Feast of DarkStar, and one of your mothers is a nun."
I frowned. That put my potential future thoughts of joining the nunnery in a new light. Good thing VioletBlood did not know about that. "I never looked at it that way," I allowed.
VioletBlood chuckled. "Those with true faith rarely do. Still, it will help recruitment. You're nearly perfect for recruitment posters."
"Except for the whole thing I did at the end of the battle and being so young,"
"I would be inclined to disagree; the War Mistress' body was forfeit when you defeated her and your age can be an advantage."
"In recruiting? I needed special permission to get in."
"It shows that such special permissions are worth giving out," VioletBlood countered. "But I see your point, I was thinking of a different propaganda value your age brings."
"Such as?"
"To other Houses, both our allies and our rivals."
"Ah, yes, the performance of someone with my age would be a good demonstration of our capabilities."
"Just good? An unarmed Ritual Plate Cadet, just before her twelfth birthday, took out a spec op squadron of Ziox fliers and one of their War Mistress trainers."
"That's not an accurate description of what happened."
"Propaganda," VioletBlood slowly enunciated. "You know it's close enough, Diamond, and you can figure out the implications. You've got a better sense of realpolitik than I do."
"Fine." I drank some coffee. "Yes, I can see the two ways it can be read. Most of our allies are smaller Great Houses. Thus, the narrative of one of our cadets killing the Ziox elite when she was outnumbered is reassuring. More or less saying: isn't it a good thing that you have an ally like us to give you hardware and training, so your own forces can fight like ours."
VioletBlood smirked. "Exactly, it reassures our allies that the BlackSkyvian Ritual Plate, training, and doctrine are still very effective. Which encourages them to continue to purchase from our arms contractors and that the defensive umbrella we offer is still strong."
"And it also serves as a warning to our enemies." I gave a vicious smile. "You think your second hand suits, and your third-hand training is enough? You think your elites can match our rank and file? You are dabblers. You cannot have just a few RP Air groups and expect to have a force that can stand up to us. You will need overwhelming, overwhelming numbers to defeat us and we outnumber you."
VioletBlood raised her cup in a mock salute. "You've got a talent for rhetoric and demagogue."
"I have experience. You need a certain attitude to train soldiers."
After a moment's realization, I winced at the slip up.
VioletBlood gave a demure laugh. "Yes, you have scared your former fellow cadets, much to the improvement in their performance," she admitted.
"That is the point of training. The Imperatrix has spent a lot on us, and every Cadet I, we, and the Centurion instructors, that we make sure survives that much longer on the front brings hope to recouping those costs."
"Especially as most of them will end up piloting Sarpedona." VioletBlood absently chewed on her spoon.
I ignored that nervous, and somewhat immature, action on her part. "Cadets tend to be fast tracked to Flight command of Sarpedona or put into a multi-role squadron, so yes."
"But what I mean is they'll be doing ground support, so the longer they survive the more Legionary hoof-sloggers on the ground they can help."
"Yes, that is our doctrine for air support." I gave a wry grin. "We'll make a proper Legionary out of you yet."
VioletBlood huffed and put down her spoon. "Are you hungry? I could go for some cake."
"That would be acceptable."
The baroness laughed. "Yes we all know you like cake, I'll get two slices of chocolate." She got up and went to the counter in the back of the cafe.
It was nice to have a capable second and aide again.
+++
Amber Island was beautiful. The largest island in the Atropia Sea; it was warmed by air currents and got a good amount of rain. At about the same latitude as far away Silvana, it was part of Islands Province, the westernmost province of House BlackSky.
My parents had moved here when our home, an island to the north between minor House Megera and the constellation of outlying islands held by House Elena was annexed.
My mothers did not want to live under those stiff, mask-wearing, conformists and were part of a refugee flotilla that escaped.
House Elena, ever pragmatic, only wanted my parent's island for the natural harbor it offered and how it gave them a better basing posture to support the southeast flank of their holdings in the Northern Atropia sea.
My birth mother wanted to go onto House Alecto and start a business there. She was worried about House BlackSky's reputation. Understandable as while we were officially part of House Megera, we were more of a buffer island between the two titanic Great Houses of BlackSky and Elena.
That all changed when it was found that I had arcane potential and could call upon air spirits.
Both House Alecto and House BlackSky used Ritual Plate and there were sign-on bonuses offered by both. Ultimately, I felt that my mothers and my sisters had a solid life in Amber Island and, to be blunt, House BlackSky offered a larger bonus and a more tangible offer.
Still my birth mother had a condition. She would allow this, but only if I entered the Legions. I tried to tell her that the Legionary Fliers could die just as often over the ocean if their ship was shot down, but she thought being a Fleet Pilot would be too risky with the odds of me dying alone over endless water.
I did not have the heart to tell her that, based on past experience, there were just as many ways to die alone flying over the ground.
Still, I got to fly and got my family a measure of extra protection and financial security.
While beautiful, Amber Island was strategically positioned to give House BlackSky, especially with House Alecto's help, the ability to straddle a line that divided the Atropia Sea into northern and southern halves. It also served as a "bridge" between House Alecto's Home Island and the continent of Diyu.
I had progressed though my initial training, some of which was on the mainland, but most was right in the massive fleet facilities of Opalescence Bay.
Despite my mother's concerns, I was still trained just as often by Fleet officers as I was by Legionary ones and would go on patrols over water.
I was assigned to the 25th Legion as one of the Headquarters' Multi-role Squadrons.
I had just gotten out of my Polydora after the morning's training exercise and was rubbing my arms as I went to the mess hall and got some cabbage stew, ground salt pork, a small loaf of wheat bread, and some fish soup.
"Centurion Shadow," my Flight commander sat down across from me. With long black hair and copper-colored skin and matching wings and little horns, she just had the soup and a loaf. Her uncloven hooves were chased in copper. Dark grey eyes looked up and down at me and my food.
"Primus Centurion AmberSmite," I quickly bowed my head to her.
"Well, you are still a growing girl," AmberSmite admitted with an almost maternal pride.
I looked down at my chest. It was a bit of a curse. But, this time, living as a demoness; it was hardly unusual, and in a way it was nice to be almost... plain, at least by succubus standards.
Being a brunette was almost exotic given the vast possibilities of hair color but it still managed to blend into the background. Sure, I was still lovely, if a bit leaner in the cheek and longer in limb, and there were other changes.
But I did not stick out among my Squadron, at least not physically. I was young and new but not unduly so. There were plenty of cadets and others with exemptions younger than I was.
"You did good today," AmberSmite assured.. "I know you don't have as much experience subbing in for a strike role, but you gave the rest of us good target telemetry. I'd say you're a natural with the Gorgon Rig. You even managed to work through part of your helmet display failing mid-mission."
"Thank you, Primus, I'm trying my best."
Okay, skill-wise I did stand out, but I had an advantage with regard to combat flying. I was far more experienced than my age would imply.
I started eating. It was nice to have plenty of food. I was not sure what kind of picky eaters complained about the quality of the Legionary mess. I was also a bit curious as to what sort of magical kitchen staff the Fleet had.
Rumor was their galleys were simply divine.
To date, I had spent limited time on board troopships so I had not gotten the chance to truly savor the supposed Fleet kitchens.
"Hi Vicky!" the other two pilots in our flight said as they came up to us. Ashley Suthos was a short woman about my age with white hair shaved down to a peach-fuzz, save for her bangs. It contrasted greatly with her spiraling horns. Her plate was nearly as full as mine. She buzzed with a chipper positive energy and was happiest when using her suit to strafe ground targets.
"Did you get that helmet issue fixed?" Antonia asked as she sat down. She was closer to AmberSmite in age. She had a reasonably full plate though it was a bit higher in greens than meat. She was odd like that. She was also relatively emotionally remote which was somewhat familiar to me.
In one corner of her tray was a folded up broadsheet.
"Urentia, my head Ritualista, is looking into it," I said, spooning some of the cabbage. There was cumin, caraway, garum, and a hint of honey. Rather good and filling for something that was made in a big vat. There were sensations of amusement from my Flight-mates as they felt my satisfaction with the meal.
"Anything good?" AmberSmite asked.
Antonia paged through the issue of Legionary Letters "Ziox being spoiled crybabies. Trosier showing off their shiny Armada. Elena acting as if they're the grand peacemakers. Luxon shedding crocodile tears about how they deplore the destabilization of minor House Vualia and wish to help."
"Just look at how much they helped themselves to the northern third of House Vualia," Suthos sarcastically said, her tail swishing.
"Their occupation isn't going well, not with Alecto providing help to whoever can pay," Antonia flipped to a new page. "Well this is cheerful, there's more about that adorable little Ace out in Eastern Province."
"Who?' I asked, giving genuine curiosity.
"Victorious, you didn't hear?" Antonia asked. "There was a newsreel about her."
"I don't really like cinema," I admitted.
Suthos gave me a chipper reassurance. She was especially empathic and found cinema to be a chore.
"Well, then this is a treat," she handed me the paper and I had to juggle it until I cleared some space in front of me.
"A cadet, in ballet equipment of all things, only armed with her mother's sword, found herself up against two flights of Ziox Satori Ritual plate led by War Mistress Rodswor," Antonia explained while I tried to read.
The first thing I saw were the names in the headline. It could be a coincidence but... no....
"You won't believe what she did," Suthos gushed.
Then I saw the picture in the article.
I saw her.
"She killed them all," I stated surprised by the nostalgic smile creasing my face.
"Reading ahead?" Antonia asked.
"Uh yeah..." Then I did read the whole thing. I was surprised and amused by the young Countess' actions, but not for the reason my Flight-mates thought.
"Shame she's on the other side of the House, it would be neat to meet her," AmberSmite said.
"I even heard she has submitted letters to the Journal on Air Combat," Anotia gushed.
I nodded enthusiastically and pondered how much it would cost to go over to Bovitar when I next got leave. It would be a challenge as Eastern Province was about three thousand miles, roughly due east, from here.
I wondered if there was some way I could finagle a transfer
The Major, well Colonel at the end, was always better at those things than I was. But this couldn't be a coincidence. If she had somehow been reborn to this world then I had to meet her.
We were both pilots for a reason. And I knew my place was at her side.
End chapter 5
Yeah this is more of a chapter of people telling Tanya how much she means to them and heaping her with praise and honors. I'm sure there will be no negative consequences from these high profile awards and raised expectations.
And as for the last scene. Well.... Uriel did hint about this way back in the prologue.
And thanks to Ellf for coming up with the name Victorious Shadow. And thanks to Kevin Hammel for going over the chapter as well!
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) being playful and joking with Violetblood, especially in the tail flicking and curling aspect which means she is embracing her new self more. Can't wait to see where this new teasing Tauria will go with such newfound power.
