The trip started out innocently enough. The shuttle craft was a bit more cramped than usual since Subaru had squeezed in two more passengers and their belongings leaving little space. That didn’t bother Touma or Olivie at all.
Obviously with the mother and son about to become new citizens, they had been handed a package that had information about the different regions and communities in Mid-Childa, the education system and other things to help them as newcomers get settled as new residents on the planet. She had expected them to be able to understand things easily since the package was presented in such a simple manner.
But there were a few problems…
“What kind of weird looking alphabet is this? This character looks backward!”
For starters, Olivie was unable to read the Mid-Childan language. While she was a very educated individual, her literacy only applied to Ancient Belkan languages.
Fortunately for her, Touma was able to help although his reading level wasn’t as high as it should be thanks to his education being quite different for the past three years. Eventually, Subaru had to spend time to help them understand things instead of working on her report to reopen the investigation regarding the ‘accident’ on Vaizen.
So aside from finding suitable housing and a job and finding a proper school for Touma, Olivie would also need to take adult literacy classes. ‘It’s times like these that I wish the basic translation spells made it easier for someone to read another language.’
After a few hours of going through this information, Subaru decided to give them a break. “Okay, let’s take a breather for a bit.”
“Thank you, Su-chan! Ah… all this information just to become a citizen of a new world. I bet Asteion never had that problem whenever he moved from country to country on his adventures.”
The Bureau officer blinked in confusion. “Who?”
“Asteion!” chirped Olivie. “He’s the childhood story character that me and Claus liked so much. A little hero with a heart always full of courage.”
“Tales of Asteion? I think there were a few new stories published to introduce him to a new audience,” murmured Subaru.
The red and green eyes of the other woman lit up. “Really? Please show them to me!”
“You came, Siegfried… just as I thought you would.” A pause. “So you’re planning to save the world, huh?”
The silver armoured Knight only drew his weapon in response. “That is our mission. We have yet not lost hope. What I cannot understand is why someone such as you has given in to despair, Asteion.”
Laughter came from his red armoured opponent. “Hope? The hope you desire is nothing but a dream! If you keep chasing that, you’ll never see the truth. That no matter what you do, it won’t mean anything in this endless war. The continuing cycle of battle, death and rebirth is the only truth in this world. Foolish things such as hope should be abandoned and you should accept the cycle as it is. I have… and I gotta say that I’m at least getting a kick out of the never-ending battle!”
“What is this? What happened to the Tio I remembered?!” wailed Olivie from her seat.
“Um… well, the thing is that there are no intellectual property rights to Asteion at this point. The character and the setting have been part of the public domain for the past few years so that means he can be freely used for derivative works without permission,” said Subaru while taking a break from her storytelling. “The book I got here is simply a reinterpretation of the source material for a different audience.”
“He sounds a lot more different from the bedtime stories that Mom told me,” murmured Touma. “It’s a bit weird.”
“This version got quite a bit of mixed reaction back home but it’s bringing in a lot of money for the authors so trying to force them to halt their take on Asteion’s not likely.”
Olivie didn’t like hearing what Subaru just said. “B-but… I… AUGH!”
“You’re taking this awfully seriously. I mean, he’s just a fictional character.”
“He’s not just a fictional character to me,” said the blonde woman quietly which caught Subaru by surprise. “As a child growing up on the Cradle, everything I saw… everything I experienced… everything I learned was tied back to the Unification War in some fashion. Except for the bedtime story my nanny would tell me: the story of the courageous hero Asteion. I grew to treasure that fictional world where a happy ending was possible with enough resolve and determination instead of the dreary life of never-ending war.”
Subaru really didn’t know how to respond to that. “Uh…”
“The strong feelings brought out by those stories… if it weren’t for them, I probably would have had a harder time understanding Claus.”
“Uh…” Fortunately for the Bureau officer, she was spared any further awkwardness by the shuttle controls alerting her that they were arriving at their destination. “Sorry but I… you know.”
“Ah, go right ahead, Su-chan!” The gloomy tone of Olivie vanished and she was once again that sunny woman and nurturing mother of Touma.
Subaru headed back to the cockpit and began a slow shut down of the dimensional drive before making the standard hail. “This is Shuttlecraft Swordfish to Dimensional Station Kappa. Requesting clearance to dock.”
“This is Dimensional Station Kappa. You have been authorized to dock at Port 4A.”
“Acknowledged. Swordfish out.”
“I don’t understand why she requested my help. Immigration cases aren’t exactly in my jurisdiction,” said Hayate Yagami while she waited in her office for her latest appointment to come.
“She’s probably more comfortable dealing with you,” said the other woman sitting on the guest couch while sipping tea.
“But you’re more used to handling these types of issues, Carim. The Saint Church takes in plenty of people seeking sanctuary. You’re better equipped to evaluate and review these types of cases.” The Lieutenant Colonel paused for a moment before glancing at Signum and Vita who had popped into the office from the second entrance. “And what are you two doing here?”
“Heard you were meeting up with someone strange and we just wanted to check out who it is,” said Vita. “I’m guessing that Carim’s not the guest you’re expecting.”
“No, it’s not. And you two are overreacting!” exclaimed Hayate.
“We will only stay a few moments to evaluate this guest for ourselves. Once we are satisfied, we will take our leave,” replied Signum.
The group then heard a knock on the main door before they saw a familiar face slowly poke into the room. “Excuse me… am I interrupting?”
“No, come in, Subaru!”
The main door opened to reveal a saluting Subaru and her guests standing right behind her. “Corporal Nakajima reporting as scheduled, madam! Allow me to introduce my guests…”
Carim Gracia’s eyes widened in shock along with the other three inhabitants of the office. “That’s…!”
“… … Vivio?” No, that other woman carried herself differently in a far more mature and powerful manner. Hayate couldn’t put her finger to it though.
“Subaru-san?” There was something odd about the way Olivie sounded. Instead of that spunky warm woman she met back on Vaizen, this Olivie was far more formal and guarded. Appropriate for a Warrior King.
It made Subaru Nakajima rather nervous. “What is it?”
“I didn’t realize you were associated with a pair of killing machines,” said the Saint King as her green and red eyes locked on to the two Wolkenritter.
See other episodes by Yasanagi
(Posted Thu, 28 Apr 2011 16:16)
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