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βIt's time to break the umbilical cord. I don't need you anymore.β
γΙΞΉΞ±ΖΟgΟ Ρ cΟΖΟΡ:#4ca2b8 β ΡΠ½ΟΟ gΠ½Ρ cΟΖΟΡ #8b4cb8γ
|| Rolling Girl || Hatsune Miku ||
γΙΞΉΞ±ΖΟgΟ Ρ cΟΖΟΡ:#4ca2b8 β ΡΠ½ΟΟ gΠ½Ρ cΟΖΟΡ #8b4cb8γ
|| Rolling Girl || Hatsune Miku ||
After the arduous journey back to the palace - one full of the ugly side of the peace they won, the people's sadness and anger and rage convalescing to a desire for a culprit. Narcia was going to have make a speech, one to satisfy all of these feelings. It didn't matter if what she spoke were truth or fiction - the only thing that mattered was if her words could satisfy the emotions of those who demanded answers. This applied not only to the bereaved peoples who opposed Ashian Rule, but also to the Kora incident - to Shiro and Cress who might try to weave truth together.
It was like a stabbing aching pain in her chest, one that wouldn't stop it's wicked ebb. Normally Nee tried her best not to be an emotional person, to fall for such fancies of the heart, but now that she saw a world of love, ice alone wouldn't suffice. She still didn't quite understand how she wasn't pleased about her mother dying, but Nee just felt at a total dissonance with herself in general, there was no helping that. "He'll save her." Narcia said vaguely, referring to Corren and Kora, her fellow conspirator in this mess. "So don't worry. You were a good friend, Shi."
According to Corren, she wouldn't need her wheelchair by tomorrow. That was a relief - but in truth... - and Nee was doing her best to try to suppress this truth and pretend it wasn't real - but the truth was that, she enjoyed being carted around by Shiro all day. She enjoyed being the dependent one for once, being the weak one for once. Her mind was definitely undergoing some sort of metamorphosis, and this was a blatant example. In the past, it was unthinkable for her to think about appearing so weak, it was a Queen's duty to be invincible and unflappable, a force of nature that no one could stop. "That's good." The Ice Queen said, nodding, but her thoughts felt fragmented and unfocused. "I won't be a burden on Shiro once I can walk again." Shiro pushed her in and expressed that it was good to not need the wheelchair. She really had been a burden, hadn't she?
Peace. How did you even define peace in the first place? The word could have many interpretations, and it was difficult to really know which of them was the most accurate one. Right now, even though the war had ended, peace still wasn't achieved - not really. There was still too much discord and instability in the Eastern Continent, it was bedlam. You couldn't call that peace by any stretch of the imagination. The many merchants living in Frelia were panicking, and they were taking their families and friends on boats, fleeing to the safety of the Western Continent, leaving behind the poor and defenseless. This in turn would give Tartaria an excuse, and Tartarians would lash out at Frelia - picking apart the weak and vulnerable, blaming them for their betrayal during the Tartarian War, blaming them for being unable to protect themselves from Itward's invasion, while at the same time having the dual effect of taking and sapping resources from the area until there was none left for those who lived there.
Etruria wasn't faring much better. In just a few short months, their entire royal family was wiped out, and they couldn't hope to go for justice because now they were owned and occupied by those they once considered allies, in a similar position as Tartaria once was. The Etrurian peoples would mourn yet again, and no doubt they'd be the most difficult to win over. Their inherent integrity meant they naturally distrusted the words that any non Etrurian spoke. Coriandrum was troublesome as well - Riana ruled justly and fairly, putting her people in the top priority. After barely surviving the Tartarian War, another attack was done, and this time with disastrous consequences. Tartarian bandits would definitely target Coriandrum and try to steal as much medicine they could from the fragmented peoples up in the north.
So Narcia put her head down and focused, trying to figure out a speech to pacify them all.
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βCome up to the stage? Are you trembling with fear or excitement?β
γΙΞΉΞ±ΖΟgΟ Ρ cΟΖΟΡ:#30b818 β ΡΠ½ΟΟ gΠ½Ρ cΟΖΟΡ #d1ca00γ
|| Crystal || Of Monsters and Men ||
γΙΞΉΞ±ΖΟgΟ Ρ cΟΖΟΡ:#30b818 β ΡΠ½ΟΟ gΠ½Ρ cΟΖΟΡ #d1ca00γ
|| Crystal || Of Monsters and Men ||
It was funny, wasn't it? The Ashian Queen, the one that everyone looked up to and saw as invincible, she was the one in need of protection, she was the one at risk of falling into some sort of trap. Aya couldn't help but find it ironic that a group of allies had gathered in order to discuss the best way to protect the lie. Narcia was like an ice statue - peerless at first sight, but when you got down to it, she was the most fragile of them all. One good whack of a hammer and she would break.
"Aya wants to help people, she doesn't want people to keep hurting." The lamb nodded her head, feeling disgusted at herself for having possessed her sister's body - even if it was in this false, artificial way. Corren was here, and Itward arrived with Benkov not soon after. The strategy meeting was going to begin - a strategy against Shiro from finding the truth and having her heart broken. The love of the Ashian Queens depended on Shiro worshiping Narcia and filling Nee with the feeling that she really was as invincible and intelligent as she thought she was. Their mutual deficiencies lead to this dependency on each other. So if Shiro ever realized that Narcia wasn't actually perfect, the love would become unbalanced, wouldn't it?
So Aya agreed with Corren. They needed to come up with a lie. "I was hasty." Itward admitted, and he didn't look happy as he said it. "When I said that Kora was injured while guarding Shiro, I didn't consider a lot of things." That was the fact of the matter. The lie they needed to construct was based around what Itward told Cress. Whenever this so-called attack happened, it had to be between after Kora and Shiro said their farewell that night, and when Itward's angel ship flew towards Tartaria to search out the fallen ship Heron was piloting.
"You're a fool, elder brother." Corren said tensely. It seemed the two brothers-in-law held a lot of emnity for one another for their roles during the rebellion. Aya didn't want that, she knew they had to work together. "Aya thinks most important is agreeing on a single story." She said clearly. "A story that everyone will believe." So then after some more discussion, it was determined. The most likely person to discover the truth was Shiro. And the person Shiro trusted the most was Narcia. But that created a dilemma - Nee couldn't tell a lie to her lover without shattering her own heart in the process.
Benkov himself stated that he was the least trusted to Shiro, since they rarely ever spoke. Itward also brought up a point that had to be addressed. "Shiro doesn't have the best impression of me." He admitted, no doubt haunted by his past again. Aya didn't like that though, she forgave him for that a long time ago. Furniture didn't have the right to hold a grudge, after all. "Shiro has a negative association with me as well." The doctor said firmly, almost regrettably. "I'm a source of pain to her, since I administer her treatments." That was true, wasn't it? So that left two people - or one, if that was how you wanted to consider it.
"So I need to be the one to tell her?" Aya asked, piecing the puzzle together on her own. She would be the mouth to their lie - her and Kora both. Once that was confirmed, what was next on the list was to actually make the lie itself. It would be an assassination, Ramiel's chip - and he didn't have one, so Narcia would have to program a fake chip in - was installed into an assassin-class android and targeted Shiro, but Kora dressed as Shiro and took the damage herself, falling into a coma, and as a result, woke up as Aya.
But of course, to make it true, something had to be done to give the appearance of an injury where there wasn't one. "I'll stitch the back of your head, Aya, okay?" Corren said, lowering himself to her level, treating Aya like a child. It was a little insulting. Aya was just as shrewd and clever as Kora was, Aya was just as smart as her beloved twin sister. Sure, she didn't act like it, but sometimes, Aya was even the smarter of the two! "A fake injury to bring a fake truth to light. If it will protect the lie and our Queen's hearts, Aya is okay with a little pain."