Chapter 45: Evade

*Year 1015, Elysion 24 December, Marquisate of Andryade in the South. Since the engagement of Zeldoris and Arianne the two families Cailum and Rhodes had become much closer. Alysser Cailum had consolidated his political power and that suited him well. But as the Christmas holidays approached, the two families were reunited for a completely different reason. Sitting on a bench in the garden of the castle, Zell observed his little sister who was playing with another little girl of about her age. The other little one was Arianne's little sister, Adriana Rhodes, she was the younger version of her sister. Zell wore a woolen sweater knitted by her mother and Arianne had another in the same genre highlighting her figure a little*.

-Look at her. *Fit Zell smiling*. They have fun like crazy kids.

-And to think that she didn't want to come to the South because there was no snow.

*Zell rolled his eyes and looked around wryly*.

-I admit that compared to a winter on Galathea your winter stinks a little.

- Hey watch your language.

-Yes mam.

*Arianne leaned on his shoulder and put her head there*.

-Galathea *Fit Alfar while touching his throat*. It's been more than 7 years since we went back there.

-You have been paralyzed for more than 2 years, it's normal for you to be traumatized. *She says tenderly*.

-No, I'm fine, I didn't feel anything. It went so fast.

-If not, is it a new fashion for you to wear glasses at the moment?

*She stood up and tried to pull them off but he covered his face. She sat on his lap and he blushed then she took his glasses off slowly. His eyes were all black and all around you could see his veins oscillating between black and red*.

-Damn Zell, since when did you...

- It's nothing, don't worry about me. *He said tearing off his glasses*. I'm horrible huh, it's okay.

*smiles slightly and puts them back in place*.

- It's okay, you don't scare me. And I find you very beautiful like that.

*She put her hands on his cheeks and gave him a kiss on the forehead*.

-On the other hand, you will have to find a way to heal yourself. Does Hans know?

-He has other cats to whip and rats to experiment. *Said the blonde ironically*.

-Zell, Hans is a girl you know.

-Ha, you won't be able to make me believe that this fanatic is a woman.

*At that moment the two young girls came to them and found Arianne sitting on Alfar's lap*.

-Woooh lovers. *Fit Mel*.

-Don't be jealous girls. *Said Arianne, putting her arms around her fiancée's neck*.

-So it's true that you're getting married? *Asked Adriana*.

-Yes that's right. *Zell replied*.

-That means you're going to have lots of babies then. *she added*.

- Hey ho, calm down we are not in a hurry. *He answered promptly*.

-What's the matter ? I want lots of babies. *She said hugging him to her chest*.

-Does that mean that if you marry Adrianne and I will be sisters?

*Arianne gave Zell a startled look then stared at Mell with a smile*.

-Mell, you are already sisters. *She said smiling*.

*The faces of the two little girls began to beam. Later that night he had a little chat with Gilbert Rhodes around a roaring fire. Gilbert was kind of the innovative thought leader of Elysion. The ducal navy also ate out of his hand, so for Zell it was the best possible father-in-law*.

-I've heard of your ideas. Your turret tractors...

-Tanks. It's simpler that way. *He said to him*.

- Yes these famous tanks. I received a counter-proposal.

* The blonde boy showed a face more qu'amazed. What at that time could be better than tanks? An aircraft carrier? Gilbert showed him the sketches. It looked like*.

- Mechs. *He yelled before covering his mouth*. You don't think so, these things will be giant targets.

-Calm down Alfar. At the moment we call these models the DAMS or Draxler Antropomorphe Metal Suit.

-Draxler? Is Andre Draxler on the project?

-The head of the Ducal Marines has already placed an order. Between us it sells more dreams than a tractor equipped with a cannon.

-It's crazy this project is doomed to failure.

*Zell sighed and ran his hands under his glasses then stared back at Gilbert*.

-It's okay, I'm not here to criticize your projects, I'm here to talk about something else?

-Something else.

-My daughter Arianne, what do you think of her... Concretely?

-Arianne...

*Still frozen for several but the old man felt he was overthinking the thing to the point of overheating*.

-Hey, it's good, no need to think about it so hard.

-She is awesome. *He said with great seriousness*. She's the best woman on earth. I don't want any other.

- You're not just saying that to flatter my ego?

-No need to flatter yourself sir the facts speak for themselves, Arianne is the best.

-Really ? Yet in all objectivity there are much more beautiful women in the world, right. Miss Elysion last year for example.

-Beauty is certainly a criterion, but Arianne is distinguished by other qualities. Her presence of mind, her kindness, her sagacity. She is distinguished and cultured, never openly belittles other people, she knows how to listen and above all she is a conversationalist.

-You describe the perfect human being there.

-I just said she's perfect. *He repeated while shouting*. And beyond all that father in law, didn't you even marry your wife thinking she was the most beautiful woman in the world?

*Old Gilbert couldn't believe it. There was not an ounce of malice in his remarks. It made him burst out laughing for a good minute and then he calmed down.*

-Ha Ha... in that case make me a promise...Promise me that...

"Whatever the objective or your ambitions my daughter will not be hurt"

*3rd day of invasion*

*12 hours earlier Nahel had instructed Dimitri to go to the Ranch on personal business. He was reluctant even he who was used to hardcore missions but he ended up bringing little Aisha with him. When she arrived, the little Shaman went to greet the wolf on guard in front of the house*.

-Stay there, I won't be long. *He says taking out his pistol*.

- Yes, hurry up. *She said coldly*.

*Dimitri entered the house, the two assigned guards woke up with a start and aimed their rifles at him*.

-Dmitri? You freaked us out, moron.

- If I had wanted to, you would have already died, cretins. Where is she?

-The top, I believe.

- You're in deep shit if anything happens to hzr.

*He climbed the stairs and entered the bedroom to find Arianne Rhodes. The blonde was sitting on a chair in her bedroom writing in a notebook. As soon as Dimitri entered she hid it in her pocket*.

-Arianne. *he says calmly*. What were you doing ?

*She turns around slowly and notices the gun in her hand*.

- A wish list. Can you believe that today is my birthday.

-Happy for you. *he says*. Get dressed, Nahel wants talk to you.

*What they didn't know was that outside the house 2 Elysian special forces teams were watching them. Arianne grabbed her white fur coat and pulled on her boots. She also wanted to take her pistol but Dimitri gave her a certain look and she understood that it was out of question. Going down she ran into Aisha again and she wasn't her biggest fan. The little one gave her a beautiful, amused smile*.

-I killed a lot of Elyos you know. Dozens of your fellows haha. So how does it feel to be in front of someone who killed yours? At least you're not frustrated?

*Arianne didn't get angry, on the contrary she patted her head and said*.

-It's sad that a 14-year-old girl has to get her hands dirty on the battlefield. At your age, you're supposed to lkve a peaceful life with your family, make friends, discover love.

*She gave her a small smile and sat up*.

-I wish you happy Aisha Rashford.

*Aisha was shocked at her reaction, she didn't understand why Arianne was acting so calm and it made her even more angry*.

-By the way, Dim, did you search on her? *Aisha asked*.

-No need she is clean. *he says*.

-Or maybe you're afraid to search a woman.

-She is clean, I said.

*The little one noticed the notebook sticking out of her pocket and in a flash stole it before leafing through the pages*.

-Do you see that. What are all these notes you play the spies now is that it?

-Give it back to me. *Said Arianne*.

- Or else what ?

-I ask you politely. Please give it back to me.

-I don't want to.

*She tore out one of the pages. Arianne jumped on her and subdued her before recovering the notebook. Dimitri then put his gun to her temple*.

-Gently Arianne I like you but I won't hesitate to blow your brains out.

-Let's calm down, Dimitri.

*She raises her hands in the air and stands up*.

-She's a spy, blow her head off. *Said Aisha annoyed*.

-Arianne, what is in this notebook?

-My diary. *She says quietly*. But you don't believe me.

*Shakes his head no*.

- I suspected it.

*Suddenly the dog in front started barking. Dimitri quickly turned his head but a bullet hit the window and went through his mouth*.

-HEAD DOWN. *Screams Arianne*.

-Oh fuck. Dmitri are you okay? *screamed Pit*.

*Arianne moved over to him to help him up*.

-Don't approach him witch. *Said Aisha who pointed her gun at her*.

- Is there a sickness inside you ? I am helping him. *say the blonde*.

*Outside was confusion. Decken's team had not yet entered the house when a sniper fired. They stopped barely a hundred meters away*.

- This is Ghost Leader. Ghost 1-6 was it you who opened fire? .

-It's not us sergeant. *Replied the pointer*.

-Are you sure rookie? Tch, Assassin Leader is that you who...

-Here Leader Assassin, the target was in danger so we took the initiative.

*A second shot hit the barracks*.

-Damn anyone know where the shots are coming from? Pit, Emett? *Asked Arianne*.

-It's all your fault, they're there for you.

- It's really not the moment Aisha. *Screams Arianne*. Now you shut up and let me think

*Aisha surprised to see her raise the tone obeys*.

-Do you have your rifle with you?

*She took out hers and showed it. Another shot entered the room and she could estimate where it was coming from.

-Looks like the shots are coming from the hill in front. *She says*.

- Can you locate the shooter?

- Yeah wait.

*Pit pulled out a saucepan and waved it in front of the window as Emett lifted a mirror slightly to peer outside. The little trick distracted the sniper for about 30 seconds before he broke the mirror*.

-Found. *say Emett*.

*Arianne had put a piece of cloth on Dimitri's cheek to prevent him from bleeding more*.

- Will he make it? *Asked Pit*.

-I don't know. *She says*.

-I wouldn't die for this. *He said coughing up blood*. Aisha go there I cover you.

*He leaned back against the wall and aimed his gun then passed his pistol outside and fired in all directions. For her part Aisha closed her eyes and went into a sort of trance. She leaned against the window and ran her sniper rifle through it.

-Lend me your eyes. *She whispered*.

-I dream they intend to replicate like that. *Said the sniper*. Amateur will...

*He looked through the scope and noticed that the rifle was pointing strangely in their direction*.

-What... She's aiming here. *he says*.

-No it's just a shot....

*The bullet went and hit the scope. The sniper's face was immediately covered in blood*.

-Luck ?

*The other turned his head and saw his partner on the ground*.

-Uh?

*A second shot fired and the bullet lodged in the hips of the second operator. The other members of the team took cover*.

-Assassin 1-5 is down I repeat assassin 1-5 is down. Assassin 1-3 is hit. Team pin down. Ghost Leader do yo copy ?

-Well what are these shots, she doesn't even look here.

*False, Aisha saw them very well even, thanks to her gifts of Shamans she had shared her vision with an eagle which flew over the area, so she saw them as if in the open air. She had already practiced long distance shooting with this method and even Blanka recognized her talent for Marksmanship*...

-Is simply inhuman.

*Another shot and the bullet grazed the knee of another behind the tree. Suddenly the wolf began to bark again and then shots rang out*.

-Lucan? *Aisha said suddenly worried*.

*Light footsteps were approaching in the house, Dimitri gave the signal, Pit slammed his gun against the wall. Arianne shivered thinking she knew who was there. Suddenly a grenade rolled slowly in the middle of the room*.

-Oh fuck.

*It exploded, spitting out a huge cloud of smoke. A man dressed in white suddenly entered with two pistols each hand and opened fire. Upon seeing him Enter Pit hid behind a door and Emett knocked over a table which he used as a shield. Dimitri had hidden behind the couch with Arianne and Aisha*.

-We wait for it to recharge and we light him.

*Once he was out of ammo they stood up but were surprised to see that he had an entire gun belt on his chest*.

-Real men don't have time to Reload.

*He went back to spraying them as they ducked back. Arianne smiled slightly as she guessed who it was. He suddenly stopped shooting and ducked behind the kitchen gate*.

-Arianne? Still alive ? I didn't kill you I hope.

-Decken? You freak you gassed me.

- Do you know this madman ? *Aisha asked furiously*.

- This is my best man. At least when I will get married.

-To all lobisomem teams here Ghost leader. *he says out loud*. Confirmed target AR. I'll Procede the extraction.

*Decken drew a cowboy gun he had crafted himself with custom bullets. He fired but not an ordinary bullet, this one made a faster rotation and made several ricochets in the room before entering the left cheek of Emett who collapsed on the ground*.

- Damn Emett. *Dimitri growled*.

*Decken fired a second time as Pit came out of hiding to pull his friend away. He managed to save him but the bullet ricocheted on several surfaces then bypassed Pit's hiding place and lodged in his hip*.

-And 2

- Damn motherfucker.

*Dimitri fired in the direction of the kitchen, Decken swung his cap and the little girl attracted by the white color aimed, except that Troy fired again and the bullet sped this time in the kid's eye. Dimitri made a shield of his body and it lodged in his stomach*.

-Scheisse.... Are you okay?

-Dmitri... You...

-I'm a solid guy.

- I confirm my friend. But I'll shoot you anyway. You see Arianne is kind of my own sister, so either you hand her over to me now, or *He cocks the dog for his new shot*... I'll blow your brains out.

-When it comes to long range shooting there is none better than Swan Der Linde. *Explained Arianne*. But the master of eccentric shooting remains Decken. If this continues he will kill you Dimitri gives me back.

-I didn't say my last word.

*Arianne was wondering what to do to get him out of this impasse. She noticed the keys to the jeep on Dimitri's belt and snatched them away. She suddenly got up from the hiding place and ran*.

-It's okay Troy I'm going out. *she shouted*.

-You're not going anywhere.

*Aisha stood up and aimed at her but Decken who had come out had his gun pointed at her head. He was about to take her down when a growl sounded, the girl's wolf bit his left arm and pinned him to the ground*.

-Lucan... You are alive.

- Damn dogs.

-I've got you *said Dimitri.*

*He tried to shoot but Decken used the wolf as a shield, Aisha got out of the house but Arianne was already far away*.

-Look, it's the kid with the gun. *Says Assassin Leader*.

-I'm going to do it.

*The sniper only had the scope exploded and glass fragments in the eye, he pointed his weapon at the small one and replaced his destroyed scope*.

-Forget her. We need to recover the Target AR.

-Shit. Lucky day for this kid.

*Decken had stabbed the wolf twice in the stomach, which released him and growled, then he went out to join Aisha. The little girl petted her injured wolf then climbed on top of it*.

-Forward Lucan.

*She went on the hunt for Arianne with her animal, cutting through the mountain. For her part, Arianne, who was rushing at full speed, was far from suspecting that she was heading towards the meeting place between Beowulf and the rebels. Aisha followed her for a good hour, the injured Lucan trying to follow the jeep as best he could. Exhausted and out of breath, the wolf finally collapses on top of a mountain.

-Thank you my friend... Rest.

The beast was following her as best she could took position in the heights before pointing her with his rifle. She kept blinking from Dimitri's blood splattering on her but she kept her target in sight*.

-I promise you I won't miss it.

End of the chapter

At the ranch Decken had managed to get out of the house despite his injured arm leaving Dimitri and the others for dead. He was joined by the rest of his team in front of the barn.

- What do we do with the house sir? Blue asked.

- Burn it. We erase all traces of our passage.

-And how do we get out of here? *Asked Eastal?*

Decken opened the barn door, inside the barn was a brand new light transport plane that was full of Kerozene.

-Ghost Leader. End of transmission