#Ingrid Zes Juvis

[kaoru-takaida]

Shadowbringers chapter:

What Is To Be Undone...

*may contain Spoilers*

A big hooded figure runs along, carrying a long hempen sack over his shoulder. The Roegadyn man smiles to himself, the mask over the top part of his race concealing his joyful expression despite the chaos ensuing all around him. With this, he could help the Royal Family restore order to the Capitol. He could curry favor and ask for a position o the Court. With this, he could abolish any competition for reputation. "Oh, what luck I have." He says to himself, readjusting his grip.

He runs towards a safehouse, where he plans to wait till the morning to run to the Royal Palace. He sits the sack against the wall and seats himself on the couch, removing his flask from his pocket. He takes a swig of the alcohol and sighs with bliss at the taste. "Damn, how lucky am I?" He says, staring at the hempen sack. "To find you right as the Empire goes to shit? Had it not been for my position in prison transport, I wouldn't have spied you." He scoffs. "After that, it was as easy as mixing sleep potions into your food. And right as I planned on taking you from the prison, this chaos erupts just as I need a distraction." The man chuckles. "Just how lucky is that?"

"Yes..." A low voice growls. The Roe man chokes as a slender gunblade is rested on his shoulder from behind. "How lucky I am to find you here, and stop you before you doom the entire Garlean Empire." The Roe man scowls, instantly recognizing the voice. "You'd forsake the Empire for your own personal gain and power? How the times have changed..."

The Roegadyn man scoffs. "The times never changed." He begins. "You did... Gaius Van Baelsar." Gaius tightens his grip on the handle of his gunblade. "You think you can take my only ticket to curry favor with Lord Zenos?" He asks. "We all know that you'll never find a way back into the Empire. Even if you were to bring him the prisoner."

Gaius glances over at the hempen sack. "That prisoner isn't here to complicate Garlean affairs. They've completed their duty." He looks down at the Roe man. "Return the prisoner or hand them over to me. Those are your only options..."

The man scoffs. "Really?" He asks. After a moment of silence, the Roe man springs into action. He bats the blade away before pouncing forward, just as Gaius snaps the sofa to the side with a crash. As soon as his gunblade trains onto the Roe man, he stops. "Don't move!" The man has the prisoner revealed, the top of the sack undone to expose a small hooded figure, a knife to her throat. Under the hood, Gaius could clearly see Xeala horns and scales, despite the fact that her eyes were covered by cloth and her mouth was covered by a handkerchief.

"Coward." Gaius says.

"Coward?" He asks. "And what are you? A hero?" The man tsks. "Nooo. No, no, no. I'm doing what you never could have done. Bring a Warrior of Light to heel for the sake of the Garlean Empire." He points his knife at Gaius. "You'll never fool the Empire into trusting you again. And I'll be the one to-." Just before he could finish his sentence, a bullet shoots through the window behind him and through his chest. The man drops forward, lifeless, dropping the Xaela Prisoner Girl with it. Gaius releases a little sigh in relief. He walks over and kneels beside the prisoner.

He undoes the tie around the sack, and takes the bound girl into his arms. Moments later, he exits the safehouse, looking around the demolished area.

A blond woman steps out of the shadows, sniper rifle in hand. "I see you've found my 'prisoner'." Ingrid says, her blueish green eyes cautiously gauging him.

Gaius stops in his tracks. "Ingrid Zes Juvis... Daughter of Grendel Die Juvis. The Legatus of the Special Ops chapter." He scowls. "Tell me:" he begins, gripping the side of the girl's hooded robe. "Did you bring the girl here?"

Ingrid sighs. "Aye. That I did." She answers.

Gaius clenches his teeth. "For what reason would you bring her here?"

Ingrid scowls. "The Legatus was murdered. And we believed it was an Eorzean by the name of Alphinaud Leveilleur." Gaius's eyebrows shoot up when he hears this. "Ah. You know the name as well?"

Gaius takes a moment to answer. "Yes. I briefly traveled the Burn with the lad before this. I'm sorry to hear of your father's death..."

Ingrid nods towards the bound girl. "She came here and cleared Alphinaud Leveilleur's name." Ingrid says. "She found the killer and drew it out before slaying them. A killer you're all too familiar with." Ingrid says. Gaius knew the answer but waited for Ingrid to say it. "An Ascian..." Gaius can feel the rage swelling within himself. But the same rage comes across Ingrid's face. "Turns out, the vile creature had taken the skin of a newly fallen young Elezen cadaver. And the order given to it was to eliminate my father. Since he was a candidate to become elected Senator..." Ingrid clenches her fists. "Throw in some smoke and mirrors and a little magic. And they succeeded in convincing our order that the Eorzean had done it."

Gaius takes a moment to respond. He now looks at Ingrid. "You best return her to Eorzea. Garlemald is not safe for her as of late." Ingrid doesn't say anything. Gaius steps forward. "Is something wrong?"

"I can't do that." Ingrid says. He stops quickly. Gaius feels his stomach sink a bit. The tension begins to build in the space between the two. Gaius stands there, unwavering. "I can't in good conscience let a Warrior of Light simply leave." Gaius scowls at her. Ingrid inhales slowly before smiling at Gaius. "However... if a certain rebel could be a dear and arrange for her to be returned. That would be ideal."

A masked figure just around the corner of the building looks away. He tsks and crosses his arms before walking out of his hiding spot and into view.

Kaoru opens her eyes. She hears the gentle whirr of an airship. That realization rushes to her and she instantly jolts forward. She chokes, finding she's handcuffed to the seat. "Easy..." A voice says. She looks over to the right and spots the driver. A tan Lalafell man with long dark brown hair and honey highlights pulled back in a braid. He was wearing a mask but Kaoru could see freckles on his cheeks. "You've been sleeping for quite a while." He says. Kaoru doesn't respond. Only stares at him with a serious expression. "You're fine. I won't hurt you... I'm actually doing the opposite." Kaoru cocks an eyebrow. She looks out the front window and can see that they're almost to the Burn. She chokes, eyes widening a bit.

"How long?" She asks. The Lala gives her a "hm", looking over at her. "How long have I been asleep?" He frowns.

"I... cannot personally say exactly. But it's been nearly a few suns since the exchange with Shadow Hunter." He says.

Kaoru purses her eyebrows. (How long was I asleep before I was handed over to him? And how much time passed on the First?) She looks over to the masked Lalafell. (And how could I know if I can trust him?)

"You're wondering if you could trust me." He states. He looks over at Kaoru. "Or am I mistaken, of which, I rarely am."

"You've a mask on and I am restrained to a seat in a Garlean airship as we speak." Kaoru begins. "What am I to do than question you?" The man chuckles. Kaoru scoffs.

"You're restrained because I was told that you'd resist once I told you we're heading back to Eorzea."

Kaoru stands up quickly, straining against the shackles. "What?!" She scowls. "No! Take me back!" She demands. "Have you any idea just how badly it's gotten there?! The Empire's-."

"The Empire's affairs are just that." He interrupts. "The Empire's. Yes, Garlemald is about to be in for a rough time. That much is clear. But meddling in their affairs was something you were to be exempt from handling." He says. "According to the Lady Ingrid and Shadow Hunter himself. Or am I mistaken?"

Kaoru gives him a bitter look. "You... are not..." Kaoru's expression softens a bit. (He has the right of it... I was to return after Alphinaud's name was absolved of the accusations. And they have been for nearly a month.) She seats herself back in the seat. (Ingrid had been so fed up with my attempts to investigate into the Royal Family that she'd thrown me in the prison as a way to keep me contained...) Kaoru tsks. "Gods dammit..."

"I understand it's hard to accept right now. But we've bigger concerns as of late and I'm unwilling to stand idly by anymore." He looks over at her. "Something big is about to happen, Kaoru. And you need to be there when it does." Kaoru cocks an eyebrow.

"Mine apologies. Do I know you?" Kaoru asks. "What's about to happen? And why do you know my name?"

The Lalafell hesitates but looks away a second. "I cannot tell you why you need to be there, or what's about to happen..." He says. "But as to how I know you're name, I've a confession to make." The Lala takes a second. "I've been watching you and yours for a few years now." He looks up at her. "You, Tius, Hope... Even your friends the Scions." He nods at her. "I've watched your journeys unfold from the sidelines. But I can watch no more."

Kaoru scowls. "Who..." She begins. "Just who are you?"

The Lalafell removes his mask, revealing two eyes of different colors. The exact color of eyes as Kaoru, but rather his left eye blue and his right eye green. "I'm a summoner soothsayer. My name is Nilele Nile. Nil for short." He gives a worried expression. "And I am here to tell you that you're all in grave danger."

THE FATES OF MANY HAVE BEGUN TO UNWIND,

FATES THAT MUST BE UNDONE...

The beginning of the Soothsayer Arc begins in the Kaoru/Tius narrative... please look forward to it. ^.^

The introduction of a new character, Nilele Nile, aka "Nil" is coming as well!

[kaoru-takaida]

Shadowbringers Chapter: Afterwards

*contains Shadowbringers spoilers*

FALLING INTO PLACE

Kaoru looks around. "Are we lost?" She asks. Hope scoffs.

"No. I know where we're going..." Hope tells her. "If you led the way, we'd get lost." Hope smiles smugly at Kaoru as they run. Kaoru doesn't say anything. Hope cocks an eyebrow. "Hey, what's wrong? I was just joking..."

Kaoru slows her run into a walk. "It's not that... I just... really am sorry about all of this..." She scowls. "I've decided to do a bit of soul searching between the Source and the First..." She sighs. "Alone." Hope stops, not saying anything.

She inhales sharply before motioning forward. "We can... discuss this later. Let's finish this." Kaoru nods and they begin running again, but Hope can't help but feel her heart hurt.

Arenvald points towards the gates. "Get going! I'll hold them off!" Tius hesitates a second. Arenvald scowls. "Now!" Tius tsks before sprinting down the stairs. Tius sprints all the way back to Revenant's Toll. Tataru is already sprinting out of the tavern doors into the plaza when Tius returns.

"Tataru?!"

"Help me!" She shrieks as 4 men chase after her, all masked and with killing intent on their eyes. Tius grabs onto Tataru and pulls her to his chest, removing a dagger and blocking a swipe from a gunblade.

"Hold on tight!" Tius shouts, slashing the man down. She clings to his vest. Tius dodges an attack from behind, swiping his leg under, and promptly tripping the man behind him who falls back and hits his head unconscious. The other two men pounce at him, gunblades drawn. Tius steps back, unable to dodge and turns his back to them. One swift whistle of a blade slicing air, and Tius feels an instant sharp pain surge down his back. "Ah!"

"Tius!" Tataru shouts. Tius rolls forward with the Lalafell girl still in his left arm and gains his footing. "Are you alright?!"

Tius adjusts his grip on her, watching the last two men circle around him. "I'm fine for now." He says, wincing. Tius looks down at the ground. In the chaos, his linkshell had fallen out and gotten crushed. He can feel warm blood dripping down his back and the backs of his legs. "I need you to get on my back and hold on tightly." Tataru hesitates. "Now, Tataru! I need both hands." She lets go of his vest and scurries behind him before jumping on his back, piggyback style. Tius removes his second dagger, assuming his fighting stance as soon as Tataru wraps her arms around his neck.

Kaoru and Hope gain access to the control room, which is empty. Kaoru scowls, putting a hand out for Hope to stop. "Wait... Something is amiss..." Kaoru looks around the room. "There should be people in this room..." Hope looks around.

"Aye." A woman's low voice says. Hope and Kaoru shudder at this and Hope swiftly removes her scythe. A tall blond Garlean woman steps out from the corner of the room. "I was beginning to think you'd stood me up. I've been eagerly awaiting an evening with the likes of you," she smiles, blue eyes peering at them, "Warriors of Light."

Kaoru steps back a step. "Who exactly are you?" She asks, fists clenched.

The woman bows to them. "Ingrid Zes Juvis. Leader of the Special Ops Legatus team III."

"Three?" Hope asks, alarmed. "There are two more teams?" Ingrid laughs, making Hope scowl even more.

"There's more than three, dearie." Ingrid says. Kaoru chokes in alarm. Ingrid removes a curved sword. "But that's all I'll allow myself to say. You know my name and intent... Now we shall fight." The blonde haired woman dashes at Kaoru. Kaoru flinches, ready to brace herself. A huge clang of metal is heard and Kaoru looks over her shoulder at Hope, guarding with her scythe in front of Kaoru. She pushes Ingrid back and scoffs.

"Get into the controls and fry them!" She commands. "I'll deal with Blondie here." Kaoru hesitates but nods, running to the control panels. Hope charges forward, scythe clashing against the sword in the woman's hands. Hope presses forward, trying to force Ingrid back. "You're name and your accent... You're Ala Mhigan! Why are you still fighting for the Empire?" Ingrid scoffs.

"The same reason that the traitor Fordola forgot!" She hisses. "The Garlean Empire ushers in strength. This Alliance you all fight for will someday end. End horribly due to indolence and weakness." Hope kicks the woman back, swinging her scythe. She blocks the way to Kaoru with her scythe, glaring at the woman. "You Eorzeans are all the same. Teaching the next generations of weaknesses such as peace and alliances. True strength comes from fear of ones ability, and domination over those who can not take care of themselves or have nothing to offer in society." Ingrid props the sword in her hand against her shoulder. "And you bloody Scions are the worst lot of all." Hope's eyebrow twitches, rage begging to come undone. "You preach of equality with the beast tribes and their thrice damned deities when you slay their eikons left and right. You court peace with Garlemald when your organization is responsible for the coldblooded murder of our captain!"

Hope cocks an eyebrow. "Excuse me? YOUR captain?" She asks. Kaoru stops what she was doing to look over her shoulder.

"You're convinced we murdered someone of your party without reason?" Kaoru asks. Hope scowls.

"Kaoru, keep hacking!" Hope tells her. Kaoru shakes her head.

"Nay!" She steps forward. "Tell me about this murder!" Kaoru demands, stepping out in front of Hope's scythe. "Tis true that a few of your order not their end by my hand. But it was in defense of my comrades that-."

"Not by your hands, you arrogant whelp!" Ingrid shouts, clenching her fist and dropping her sword, aiming it at Kaoru. This took the both of them by surprise. "I speak of that wretch of a boy, Alphinaud Leveilleur. He slew our captain in the capital! He sliced the man's throat after stabbing him through with a dagger..."

Kaoru and Hope stand their, completely shocked and confused.

AUTHORS ANNOUNCEMENT

Sorry the chapter was short. The last part will be up soon. My tumblr has technically been on a hiatus but it will be ending the 1st of Dec. Thank you for reading! Please continue to support me and my works!