Headed by a Snake

⟬ Moon Crescent Isle. ⟭

"Flame Eternal, keep Coraline safe..."

Elle had mounted up as soon as she saw the signal in the sky. With the last of her checks complete, Divine Armor Gaheris leapt off the side the Neptune's Revenge.

...Over the past several weeks the fates had thrown the two of them for the wildest loops.

On the southern plains of the Eastern States, Guild Metal Wolf lost over half its century.

Good people died... people she worked with... people she saw every sun.

She didn't have any relation to them. Most of them didn't even like her.

...But... it just... felt so surreal.

Elle would never see those people again.

There was one Wolf who *did* like her... though the feeling wasn't mutual.

She was the first to find his body after he took his own life.

...Elle felt horrible for thinking it, but... she wasn't sorry all those people died.

They had a contract... just like her. Survival was never guaranteed.

For Loki, though...

It was different.

...Elle quietly gave thanks to the Flame... for the blessings she had rather than didn't.

In that horrible situation... hundreds of malms away from their home, surrounded by xenophobic hostiles... the Flame sent a savior.

Guild Metal Wolf was saved... by one of their own.

Tychon.

He was a Duplicarius... a rank near impossible to attain in the Tyrion military.

And his guild was the pride of Tyrion, Sol Invictus. It was the same guild that inspired Elle and her friends to leave their hometown of Leopardon so long ago.

Besides being allowed to live-- Elle found something else... something she had never dared to imagine.

She found love.

Her.

Haelvia.

...Hagrid.

The weird, awkward, too-tall girl had managed to find a boyfriend... and that man was pretty much a hero.

That man risked his life... saved an entire company... saved her-- like it was... a casual stroll through the market!

After her darkest sun, the Flame saw fit to give Haelvia of Leopardon... more than she could ever ask for.

She got a new job and title-- a job that covered the costs of Gaheris' daily maintenance.

She got a loving boyfriend...

She even got a new best friend!

...Since Elle had left home, Coraline was her *only* friend not made of metal.

She and Gaheris were heading to the beach... first to make sure her bestie was okay.

But the real mission... was to protect their new lives with their own hands.

⟬ Gaheris is operating with near-maximum mana-efficiency. ⟭

Elle looked down through her mental link with Gaheris.

Below, the dark, ungentle waters of the ocean threatened to rise up and consume them both.

They were... flying.

...through the air.

...A hunk of metal, fifteen Tyrion feet tall... was actively defying gravity and soaring over the ocean...

By the Flame it was terrifying.

She didn't even know Gaheris could fly... not until she saw Tychon do it.

In the battle against Many-Big-Guns, he piloted Talks-With-Fire as if he were an arena acrobat, shooting up in the sky like an arrow... striking down like a hawk.

Tychon deserved some kind of medal! Or... maybe he could be named as an honorary Hero?

He was already a Duplicarius... but there had to be some kind of process to get him better noticed.

...Maybe if she wrote a letter to the Archbishop?

Elle opened and closed her hands. They were cold. Her palms were slick with sweat...

It wasn't only the flying that made her nervous.

On the beach... it was very possible... that she'd have to fight again.

She'd trained to fight. Tychon had taught her.

It was almost like... when they weren't sleeping together, they were training.

Only a couple of weeks prior, she and Gaheris had broken their personal records in speed, strength, and accuracy.

Her mana reserves had easily tripled. She could stay mounted for almost a full sun at a marching pace-- and that was without breaks.

She was even able to utilize a sword with Gaheris as well as if she was wielding it herself.

But... all that training... tore apart her confidence. It was like... everything she'd learned with Guild Metal Wolf was useless.

She might have grown to surpass Munifex Loukius in all things Divine Armored... but she was still a trash pilot compared to Tychon.

If there was an enemy on the beach... Elle felt like it'd be her first *real* combat.

An enemy...

Coraline was an Arcanist... belonging to a Witch Guild called the Sapphire Tower.

She was... so very strong-- easily on par with Gaheris.

What... could make *her* signal for help?

Elle shook her head.

No, she couldn't think like that.

Coraline was following protocol. If *anything* happened-- Tychon said... to use the signal.

It was... a safety measure.

It was... a  'just in case.'

Elle squinted her eyes as the beach came into view.

« Gaheris, zoom in... there. »

There... she saw bodies.

The Corallidae-- the crew...

Elle recognized Coraline's protective detail lying in pieces on the sands.

...Even Barrel Boy's barrel laid discarded and empty, stuck in the shallow sands.

Elle felt her stomach churn with nausea... but more than that, her heart swelled with anxiety.

There was... a roaring fire on the beach as big as a funeral pyre.

With its strength of the golden flames... it could only be Coraline and Beatrice.

Gaheris landed on the beach and held his hand out.

The enchanted sword, Summer Song, flashed into his grip-- enlarged to match Gaheris' frame.

"[Get away from her!!]" Elle shouted.

The force of her voice, amplified by her partner, washed over the boy standing in front of the flame.

...It ruffled his pale hair, but didn't seem to affect him any other way.

He certainly didn't seem scared.

Slowly... that boy turned around, his back to the flames.

He was... beautiful-- if that word could even describe it.

His hair was more than pale. It was snow-white... like the tip-tops of the tallest Tyrion mountains-- and it shined and sparkled under the starlight.

For a moment... Elle thought he might have been an angel descended from the heavens.

...She grew legitimately concerned that he'd have wings.

He wasn't wearing armor-- just a pair of trousers. However, his white skin was covered with flowing tattoos of power that glowed with mana.

He... he was definitely a Witch-- but unlike Coraline, he definitely wasn't one that Elle could suffer to live.

There was something about the way his eyes looked... glowing with a harsh, silvery light.

Even though she knew Gaheris would keep her safe, it sent a shivering chill down her spine.

"Voice of woman?" The pale boy said in accented Common, "But... only Bronze."

Then... he spread his wings.

He had... *actual*... white... feathery... wings?

Elle blinked her eyes. She shook her head. She even slapped herself on the cheek-- but the boy was still there.

He... WAS an angel!

--which meant... she was about to fight on behalf of her best friend... against the forces of heaven.

"Flame take me, this... this is *so* wrong," She whispered...

Elle clenched her fist, Gaheris's grip tightening on the ⌈Enlarged⌋ Summer Song... and together, they swung their blade at the enemy.

"[I said GET AWAYYYY!!!]"

The angel sneered as he pointed his palm outward to meet the strike.

⟬ ⌈Power Attack⌋ conditions met. Activate? Y/N? ⟭

Elle felt a rush of mana surging up to her chest and she screamed so hard her voice cracked.

"[⌈POWER ATTAAAACK!!!⌋]"

**BANG**

Gaheris' entire frame shook as he batted the poor boy away. He flew back into the trees, turning the bases of two into shrapnel, the cascade toppling a half dozen more.

Elle wiped the sweat from her brow with her wrist... "Gaheris... did... did we--?"

",