Broken Providence

(4) Your Silence, Please

Claire fumbled through the halls, furious and running her brain to find a solution that would work. She needed to get Arielle back, there was no question. But to disobey her mother was something so grave and terrifying that she was in a moral conundrum.

Not seeing where she was going she slammed head on with an upcoming soldier. She muttered a curse as she looked up at Corporal Ruper. Corporal Ruper looked down sincerely at her.

"Lieutenant colonel De Lune! At your service!" She said saluting her respectfully. Claire looked away and waved her hand.

"As you were Corporal," she said quickly walking away toward the lieutenant quarters.

She paced around her room, trying to avoid seeing Arielle's things. They practically shared a room together because Arielle didn't like to sleep alone. Only officially Arielle had her own room. She began to shed bitter tears. She began to hum that little song Arielle would sing when she consoled her.

While they think of things to heal me
Let's love until then,
And although you won't see my end,
Accompany me then,
Don't you think it humorous?
That they burn me with words,
Not knowing that I already burn,
With this passion I feel for you.

She couldn't recall if Arielle had told her where it came from, just that she has always sung it.

She made up her mind. She's going to rescue her and bring her back no matter what. No matter her mother's punishment if and when she found out, no matter if she died trying to sneak in, she was going to do it so help her Deus. She got her duffle bag she normally would use for outdoor training camp and stuffed clothes and her taser. She didn't have a specific weapon, she was more of a strategical lieutenant, she didn't go out to the front lines but she had a standard taser and that would have to be enough.

She began to walk toward the second wall. Trinity was a fortress with four thick walls surrounding around all of the buildings. Belm had shown her an opening in a wall years ago. Before, when Belm and her were so close that they were literally so inseparable, growing up together, training together, living with each other, but that all changed when Belm discovered her core... she dropped everything to try to get into the graces of Lady Monarch and now she's Core chief Belm. That was when they were eight. Claire remembered a time when she was all alone, without Belm, neglected by her mother as Trinity thrived. But then when Claire was twelve a small Trinity building near the frontline was burned down and their group came to Trinity headquarters, that is when she met Arielle, a timid child, she had no parents or anyone to protect her, working to survive. Claire saw a little girl almost as thin as a skeleton, eyes baggy with exhaustion and cold. Claire's heart saddened at the faint memory of Arielle as a child, a starved child who had seen war before her eyes.

"Lieutenant Claire, where are you going?" a voice called out. Claire stood in place, she held her baggage and tightened her fist. She wasn't at the exit yet but still... the luggage was suspicious. She turned and there stood Corporal Ruper.

"Ruper..." she began. Ruper had this surprised and realized face.

"You're going to Arielle. I heard she was taken," she said looking half betrayed. "What if you get hurt? We can't lose another lieutenant colonel, especially a strategist," she said rationalizing. Claire had to stop her before she thought it through.

"Ruper, think of May, wouldn't you sacrifice yourself for her?" She asked softly trying to coax her to calm down. Ruper thought of her girlfriend May, She would do anything for her, She nodded slowly. Claire swallowed the tension. "Then let me do this for Arielle, you mustn't tell anyone," she said warningly. Ruper slowly nodded.

"You better hurry though, I've heard some rumors of how Infernals are treating their captives..." she started but couldn't finish. She looked away. Claire grit her teeth, she knew what she had meant, she had also heard the rumors.

"Thank you," she said softly before turning and continuing on her path.

"Good luck lieutenant colonel Claire," Ruper said quietly in the background as Claire got farther and farther.
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