GATE: Journey in the New World Vol I

Arc 2: Noble City VS: The Terror From Above

Disclaimer: I don't own Gate or Nihon-koku Shoukan as it belongs to its rightful owners.

Arc 2: A City, A Diplomacy A Dragon

Noble City VS: The Terror From Above

All that she needed right now was to get a grip on herself.

Her faint footsteps could be heard across the entire hallway as she could be seen barely having enough strength to continue on. She held the walls for support and her only goal was that keep her going.

Ine had no choice from the beginning. She had the option of fighting back or being killed. Choosing to fight back increased her chances of life, but escaping the clutches of her former colleagues was a miracle.

"What are they?" She wondered for quite some time.

"T-They were human before...What has happened to them?"

She had to watch their sudden transformation into hostile beings hungry for a kill and vowing allegiance to the enemy. She was being hunted throughout the stronghold, and no matter how much speed and strength she summoned, they kept catching up to her from behind.

She passed through an open window and when the ray of the sun found her, there were little signs of blood stains on her armor which she had not noticed.

Her recollection got hazy; all she remembered was being able to put one of them down, but she didn't know if she had killed him. Her determination to live free of this tension undoubtedly aided her.

Her whole body was numb, she couldn't feel any pain, with the exception of the weariness.

"Almost there." She muttered to herself, finally reaching the last hallway.

That one single door at the end was her ticket to salvation as she hoped. A chance for the people of the principality to receive a saving grace before the enemy arrives.

Despite being a well-trained member of the defensive corps and a fierce one in her own right, the young captain had experienced terror for the first time. Fear of confronting people she has known for a long time. People who have become a part of her life since she became a member of them.

"I need to keep going!"

She pushed herself despite the weakness that was pulling her down and after not too long, she was right in front of the door itself.

Ine placed her hand on the wooden surface and slightly banged on the door. She did not possess the keys, to begin with, but she was aware that the ones assigned in the room were often instructed to keep their guard up and to not trust anyone in case tragedy befell the principality. Be it a friend, comrade, or superior.

The young woman continued to knock on the door, hoping that someone will answer.

"Please." She begged silently, as her emotions were catching up to her.

Then out of the blue, she began to hear noises from behind, faint footsteps and voices that seemed to spread that same fear and looming shadows.

A little panic had set in and she was becoming more desperate, by the time, she attempted another knock, the door suddenly opened and the first thing she saw was the tip of the crossbow directly aimed at her head.

"Don't move..."

The man assigned to protect the room had said, cautious and suspicious.

Ine froze as she stared at her possible demise. He could have pulled the trigger but instead, he spoke again.

"Prove that you're not one of them." He said.