Rebellion: Prince of Dawn

Chapter 12.2: Fragmented Answers

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ANDREA DORIA

After getting me cleaned up, fed, and dressed, the colonel and brigadier, along with the rest of my unit, gathered in the brigadier's office. There was also a cat woman curiously checking us out.

   Hendrik and Rudolf sat in the corner taking notes from a book while the cat woman peered over their shoulders.

   "These notes are—Achoo!" Rudolf sneezed.

   "You've been sneezing a lot. Are you sick or something?" the cat woman asked.

   "No. I'm just allergic to cats."

   The woman sniffed herself. "Only my tail and head have hair. How severe is your allergy?"

   "Very."

   Hendrik and Rudolf shot a desperate look at the colonel.

   "Can you ask that woman to leave the room?" Camaro whispered. "We can't just invite people to this."

   Clegane shook his head. "She's a friend. Your unit is made up of people you trust. She's someone I trust."

   "Yeah, but she's not in the military."

   "The last I checked, you said Dr Creed told you not to trust anyone in the military. My friend isn't. She's safe."

   "Nya! Let me talk to him, Czeslaw," the cat woman went up to us, twitching her ears. "I've heard about you a lot, Colonel Camaro, so let me introduce myself. My name is Chris Lalatina. I was one of the finalists for this year's State Jynxist Exam. I was good friends with Ilias the moment the exam started."

   Camaro nodded. "So you're the girl he told me about that dresses in a lewd and revealing outfit."

   "I do not! This is for practical reasons!"

   "Let her stay," Clegane insisted. "Trisha's boy is good friends with her, same as me. And you said this was a mana incident? She almost became a State Jynxist, and unlike you, Ray, she can perform any type of jynx. She might come in useful."

   She raised her hand. "Ilias was a very nice kid. Colonel, I can sense from your voice that something has happened to him. I want to help in any way I can."

   The colonel sighed. "Fine."

   Everyone except for Hendrik and Rudolf, who were still preoccupied with that book, gathered around me.

   Camaro held my hands. "Take your time. Tell us everything that happened."

   I had been doing patrol when the skies started to change. At the beginning of my shift early in the morning, it was a normal blue. But as the sun rose, the more the colours began to change.

   There was something off about the feel of Gilead that day. The closest thing I could compare it to was the air feeling heavy. But it wasn't air. It was something else.

   By noon, Gilead was right under the eye of this swirling storm of colours and a compact bright light was building up in its centre.

   "Lieutenant Doria!" Colonel Fundin called out. "Something's wrong."

   "I know. My body is feeling all weird."

   "This has something to do with mana. I just know it. Find Ilias, he might know what this is."

   I removed my sword and pistol, leaving them behind at the library so I could get to Trisha's house faster. I did morning runs every day, but the sense of panic running through me caused my breaths to run short.