Alitia: Crown of Ash

XLVI: Preparation for Salvation

"Well, I think that it's safe to say that Sophia's group passed through here."

Luce cringed at the sight of the endless vines that had stretched outwards to cover an entire balcony of the Ignite palace. There was no way in hell that all of those plants had grown in such a way naturally, so she agreed that it was probably safe to assume that Sophia, Tanith, and Helena had passed through the area at some point or another. Sophia's plant manipulation certainly would have created something that held this appearance. 

"There has to be a reason that they locked it up this tightly," Cessair announced anxiously, fiddling with her fingers wildly to keep her hands busy. "We shouldn't go in. I'm sure that we'll be able to figure out another way to get into the building if we do a little bit more looking around."

"I agree," Iris confirmed. She was still staring down at the palmtop device that she was using to track the other members of their group. "There are a few signals inside of there, but I don't recognize them. If I had to guess, I would say that they belong to unknown mages who were helping the king to keep the rebellion suppressed."

Luce frowned and nodded her understanding as she searched the nearby area for a way to get inside. When her gaze finally struck gold, a light smirk began to play at her lips. There was a single window that had been blown open, and Luce could see clear as could be that the lock on the glass had fallen apart long ago, leaving it at the mercy of the breeze. Luce flew towards it and braced her hands on either side, creating a thin layer of light magic to keep herself from being cut on any rogue sharp edges. She pulled them apart and widened the gap enough for herself to be able to pass through. 

After Luce managed to get inside, she glanced around and gestured for the other girls to follow her. The coast was clear. If Luce had to wager a guess, she would have assumed that this window was so out of the way when compared to other sections of the castle that their foes had decided to avoid it instead of bothering to shut it off. Given how stubborn it was in staying open, Luce figured that was probably for the best. 

As Iris landed, taking up the rear of the group, she hummed to herself and continued to examine her small computer. "There are three signals nearby. Given where we came in, you should be able to figure out where they are," Iris explained. She shut her laptop and started flying in the direction of their targets, gesturing for the others to follow her. Luce, Sylvia, and Cessair did so without question. 

It only took three corners before Iris came to a stop, and the metal mage grinned as Sophia, Helena, and Tanith all came into view. At first, Iris nearly collided with Helena, and the two girls stumbled away from one another as soon as Helena had regained her grip on balance. When the groups recognized each other, gasps rose into the air, and Sophia's expression broke into a wide grin. 

"Well, there's one group pulled together," Luce commented before turning her attention over to where Iris was standing. "We still need to meet up with Carys and S.M., and it wouldn't hurt if we found Nebula and Anneliese along the way. What do you think we should do next?"

Iris was silent for a moment as she navigated through her device's systems before settling on a plan. "Carys and S.M. are also above ground, albeit two floors below us. We can pick them up before moving underground. That's where Anneliese and Nebula are, but they're not alone, so we don't need to be quite as worried about them. Headmistress Claudere is still with them along with Headmaster Carpathia, Headmistress Latheia, December, Cerise, and Leviathan. I think that they're going to be more than alright even if it takes us a while to get to them," Iris replied. 

"Looks like we have a plan then," Tanith concluded with a confident nod. She started to fly once again, and she took off down the nearby hallway. The other members of the group took to wing after her, and they continued to streak through the air as a cohesive unit in search of Carys, S.M., and anyone else that they happened to pick up along the way as they planned to kill a king.