Chapter 23
The Lord Admiral's Pets
Outside Navarre, Arbonne, Clovingian Empire
Two days had passed since the destruction of Aix-Clovin. By the time Marx and Sunny had put some distance between themselves and what was once the Imperial capital, the news had spread and the authorities acted quickly to clamp down and contain any panic. The trains were stopped, roadblocks and checkpoints were put up, access into cities and towns were restricted, and curfews were put in place to keep people off the streets as much as possible. It was like putting a lid on a boiling pot. You could try to contain it, but it would not hold for long.
More importantly for the two of them, the situation was not at all favorable for a pair of strangers trying to pass through. They could not get into any town, which meant food and lodgings were hard to come by, not that they had any money for either, and the climate of fear had a way of chilling people's sense of charity. At least they were well accustomed to camping out in their earlier travels, but the food situation was becoming a more pressing concern.
Marx hoped things would improve once they were out of ÃŽle-de-Clovis. It had not been long since they crossed the provincial border and the first city was in sight. They would find out soon enough.
Sunny stopped. By this point, Marx had come to understand that she did not stop like this without reason. However, before she changed, she was like an animal being hunted, mostly because that was exactly what she was. Now, there was no fear, no tension. Merely recognition, as you might notice a file of ants on the ground in front of you. It was a testament to how different she had become, and how powerful.
"You should probably get out of here, Marx," Sunny said.
"What is it?" Marx asked, knowing it was foolish of him to ask.
Sunny answered him all the same, saying, "An old friend has come to visit."
"I would have him bear witness to our duel," a voice in the distance replied.
The voice sounded familiar enough, and even from far off, there was no mistaking that pink hair. It was Major Yang, looking no worse for wear despite having La Miséricorde dropped on her head. It would seem Sunny was right about needing to finish her off when they had the chance. How much was he going to regret his reluctance to do what needed to be done back then?
Sunny waited for Major Yang to get closer before speaking.
"I can understand them sending you alone the first time," she said, "but they wouldn't do it twice, not after what happened."
The Major said nothing.
"Should I consider you AWOL," Sunny asked, "or are you a deserter like me now?"
"There is no going back," Major Yang replied.
"I don't suppose you've come around to my side, though," Sunny said.
"You may be a fool in many things, Oberleutnant Van Houten, but at least when it comes to survival, your wits are sharp enough."
The last time these two faced each other, Sunny had been at a marked disadvantage, but the way she carried herself now, it was clear that the tables had turned. Did Major Yang understand this?
"You know you don't stand a chance against us," Sunny said so matter-of-factly that it was chilling in its own way. Her voice then softened somewhat as she followed it by saying, "We're not your enemy."
Major Yang was unmoved by both the threat and the offer of peace. She had the same implacable bearing as before, but there was something off about it. Before it came from the full knowledge of her superiority and the confidence that came with it. Now it seemed more like an act, a bluff, a house built on the shifting sands.
"So long as you stand against the Empire, you are my enemy," Major Yang said.
"The Empire?" Sunny asked. "Or the Lord Admiral?"
"They are one in purpose," Major Yang replied. "To oppose one is to oppose the other."
"What about your loyalty to blood? To our kind? To our sisters in chains? To Mother?"
"Do not speak to me of Mother," Major Yang growled. "She is a myth."
"No, she isn't," Sunny said. "You know better than that." She placed her hand over her heart. "You can feel her."
"No!" the Major snapped in an uncharacteristic outburst of emotion. "I refuse!"
"What do you hope to accomplish by denying what you are, what we are?"
"I am a tool in the service of His Majesty the Emperor, wielded by the hand of the Lord Admiral. You will not take that from me!"
"I haven't," Sunny said. "You have, the moment you decided to come after me. It's like you said. You've got nowhere else to go now."
"Then I kill you so that I might die with honor!"
Sunny shook her head.
"Don't do this, Yang."
"Enough!"
Major Yang let out a howl as a shockwave shook the air and nearly knocked Marx off his feet. He recalled Sunny's desperate effort to boost her powers to contend with Major Yang the last time, and now it was Major Yang's turn. Even without having the Gift himself, Marx could feel the crushing pressure of Major Yang's heightened power. However, both of them had this ability and before Sunny was only able to achieve something nearing parity because she was willing to push her limits harder and faster than her overconfident counterpart. Now that the roles were reversed, Sunny did not meet the Major's challenge, and Marx had the distinct feeling that this was not mere overconfidence at work. Ever since her change, Sunny's resting power level was enough to match a boosted Yang. If this was something Marx was able to sense instinctively, surely Major Yang knew, right down to the marrow of her bones, and still she threw everything into this opposition that was almost certainly in vain.
Sunny did not boost her own powers as she walked toward Major Yang as if she were no more dangerous than a kitten. No wonder Sunny tried to warn her, but there was a fanaticism to Major Yang unlike anything Marx had ever seen before. If there was a way to go beyond giving everything that she had, Major Yang would have done it. However, the cruel thing was that even this would not be enough.
Streaks of blood cascaded down Major Yang's face from her eyes, ears and nose. Her veins bulged and her body quaked as it appeared that she would burst before she could even get off her first shot. All the while, Sunny continued to close the distance, not quickening her pace and not slacking it either. They had not exchanged a single blow and already the outcome seemed to be a foregone conclusion.
Major Yang said she wanted Marx as a witness to this duel, but she underestimated the limits of mortal flesh. The moment she unleashed her powers, it was like being hit with a ton of bricks. If it was not enough to kill Marx, it certainly felt like it as everything went black.