Andrei

There was relief in the wake of revelation.

In the morning, Sinclair and I agreed it was the best sleep we'd had in years. The inn was comfortable, yes, but the peace of mind we felt reigned supreme. For Sinclair, not only had the frustration she'd been stewing in for the past thirteen years been validated, but she'd been correct: religion, the system, even our history. It didn't add up, and she was vindicated. For myself, there was closure in reconciling what Faust had been to me for most of my life—a mother and a mentor—against the manipulator it appeared she was becoming. I further confirmed she alone had been the one to advocate for my life, but not through the Assembly as I'd thought. The very idea she'd done so in front of a council of Anima who could have reduced her to ash with a snap of their fingers was humbling and heavy.

As we prepared to leave Leberecht with Michael Reider and Feargus Finlay, she promised she would maintain our discretion. To Councilwoman Oranen and Blanchett, she would say we were indeed nowhere to be found in Amalia, that we were all but confirmed dead. And if Number Two foresaw the truth of the matter, she wouldn't be permitted to share it with anyone. Her place, after all, was to observe the threads of fate without disrupting the weave.

The walk back to the base was long, quiet, and by the halfway mark, we had little choice but to move through a treacherous snowstorm. I did what I could to keep everybody warm, but controlling the will of the sky was far beyond my capabilities.

Michael, who'd been assigned to us as our bodyguard, seemed satisfied with his new role. But he remained perplexed as to why we all kept insisting we knew him. Feargus Finlay, who promised to explain himself when we were finally all together again, remained reserved.

Much to our relief, Adeline was waiting for us when we returned to the base, seemingly unscathed and chipper. She was thrilled to see Finlay and Michael, who appeared surprised but by no means disappointed when she showered him with hugs.

Notably, Everleigh Gloom was nowhere to be seen, but I was certain that wherever she was, she was, as ever, gloomy.

Our first order of business was to change out of our drenched travel wear, and when we reconvened, it seemed none of us were sure where to begin. Michael, not yet re-assimilated and still respecting his new role, remained by the stone stairs.

Finlay chose the chair. Sinclair and I together on one couch, Adeline on the other.

"Sebastian pop back in yet?" Sinclair asked.

"I'm afraid not," Adeline answered. "But Everleigh says she can still feel him. Wherever he is, he's alive. Or re-alive. Or simply still moving. I'm not sure of the correct terminology."

"Where is Everleigh?" I asked.

"Well, I don't know." Adeline paused. "But I woke up this morning and she was gone."

The possibilities were endless where the unreadable Strachan was concerned. Perhaps she'd gone to collect more food. Or she'd left to alert the Anima population as to our whereabouts. Either way, "It's for the best," I said. "For what we have to tell you."

It was then Sinclair and I each took turns explaining everything Councilwoman Faust had told us: from the secret alliance within the Assembly, to the Six, to the details of what we knew about the experiment in Leberecht.

"I see why you people need a bodyguard," Michael said.

"Tell me about it," Adeline answered. "Not to mention, my mother's an even more terrible person than I thought. And she truly did send me here to die."

"Aye, but you really showed her, didn't you?" Finlay remarked.

"Yes, I did." Adeline paused. "But wait. She told me you had requested me. Personally."

"Well, technically, Kelly did. You were never part of the original plan, but she knew you and Rhian could work well together and had become mates. No easy feat, that. You also have certain skills we reckoned might come in handy. With your mother wanting you out of the way as it was, it wasn't too tricky convincing her to ship you out."

"Why does everybody think I can't make friends?" Sinclair interjected. "I can make friends. Got plenty of friends."

"Well, I've always found you to be irresistibly charming," Adeline said.

"Aye, that's more like it."

I gave Sinclair a squeeze.

"And Michael," Adeline continued, "you truly don't remember anything?"

"I know my name's Michael," the Commander answered. "I know I grew up in Leberecht. I know my parents, my siblings. I remember training at Palisade."

"You remember Marta?" Adeline asked.

"Yeah," Michael said. "Haven't seen her in years, though."

"She's going to be so thrilled!"

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According to Councilwoman Faust, the original purpose of the experiment in Leberecht was simple: to determine if a person were stripped of their emotional damage, would their Anima return without the trauma pattern? Could they exist in polite society safely?

But over time, as the power and the ambitions of the Trio grew, and as those before Faust became further indoctrinated by the Six and more frustrated by their rebellious servants, the scope of the experiment also grew. The city became the Trio's attempt to create a perfect society with perfect Barrens and perfect Partisans. Compliant, yet still autonomous enough to make decisions where needed.Those who were born with grey eyes there were stripped of what formed their personalities as children before being shipped to Palisade.

Michael Reider was one such a child, and we learned Helena Varis was another.

"What about Verena? Or Endica?" Sinclair asked.

"Verena sounds like a place? And Endica's the territory northeast of Amalia, right?"

"Right," she said. "You don't remember being there?"

"No."

"And you don't remember any of us at all?" Adeline wondered.

"No," Michael said. "But I wish I did. You all seem nice. Except the blonde one. You're sure we were friends?"

Sinclair snorted.

"She was your best friend," I said.

Silence until Michael spoke again. "Yeah, I'm only kidding. No offense to the rest of you, but she's my favourite so far."

"See?" The cushion shifted beside me. "I can make friends. Twice, even."

There was a moment for laughter, and a short period where everyone chatted excitedly about whatever idle thought came to mind in the moment. Michael may not have remembered us, but there was something within him that still knew us. I was almost certain.

"It's your turn now, Agent Finlay," Adeline said when the conversation had died down. "While you were sneaking around behind our backs, no doubt spying on us at every turn, what exactly have you reported back to the Assembly?"

"Right, fair question," Finlay said. "Kelly, Faust, and Hall weren't all that interested in what you lot were up to from one day to the next. They cared about the big events. The decisions you made along the way. They wanted to know if anyone would crack, if you could think on your toes. And if there'd been any rifts forming between anybody and whatnot."

"So they were testing us?" I asked. "You were testing us?"

"Aye, basically," Finlay confessed. "Mostly you, though. And Addie. They already knew what Rhian and Michael were capable of, but they were still interested in how they'd deal with the Anima. Like I said, I'm sorry, mate, but I'm also really not. Never mind it was my job, but strategically, we're in an excellent position."

"Right, I get it," Sinclair said.

"Check out this place, though," Finlay added. "A lot nicer than my cabin."

"Speaking of your cabin," Adeline interjected. "Do you still have my things?"

Feargus Finlay did still have her things: spare clothing, what remained of the black powder, her tools, and various gadgets. He promised to deliver them soon.

"One last question." I turned my head in the general direction of the Strachan. "What is your actual middle name?"

"It's Alistair, mate."

"Thank you," I said. "That's been bothering me for months."

Among a number of other issues, we had a logistics problem. While we had almost everyone under one roof, we were missing Alexander and any reasonable means of travel between the base and his estate. Sinclair couldn't continue running back and forth. Not only could it accidentally give away our location, but it was risky to expose herself on a regular basis. Not to mention, the estate itself was compromised. The Anima knew we were allied with Alexander, and his home in the forest was no secret. Not only would that be dangerous for us, but for Rhydian and Evelyn who were still guests at the estate.

Add to that, if we were to cull even more of the Anima, including ending the experiment in Leberecht, we were going to need resources we didn't have. Namely, more people with certain experience and a certain likemindedness. With Sebastian still gone, we had to make a decision.

That evening, the very same day we returned from Leberecht, Sinclair ran to the estate to collect the remainder of our belongings. At the same time, she invited Rhydian, Evelyn, and Alexander to the base where Peter and Teeth would also join us in due time. While Rhydian and Alexander were capable of keeping up with Sinclair, her mother was Barren. Later I would learn that Alexander had carried her. Much to Rhydian's chagrin, no doubt.

It was a full house: Two Sinclairs and a Sinclair-adjacent, Alexander, Adeline, Finlay, Michael, but still no Everleigh Gloom. The initial chaos of introductions and pleasantries was overwhelming, but Evelyn Green was as warm as her daughter had described. Without reservation, she pulled me in for a hug and welcomed me to the family.

Wonderful as that all was, there were matters to discuss, so we invited Evelyn and Rhydian to our room for privacy where we stood in a small circle in the centre of the room.

"How'd you lot find this place?" Rhydian asked.

Earlier, Sinclair and I had come to a decision. We'd been lied to our entire lives. We were giving serious consideration to putting up a stand against those who had deceived us, and against those who demanded we be deceived. We would do things our way.

We would do things differently.

So, we told Rhydian Sinclair and Evelyn Green everything.

Firstly, I confessed to asking Riz to destroy the Anima at the lair, and explained what happened to Maryse. Sinclair then spoke about Vincent Delestade, giving her parents a rather colourful rundown of our time in Delphia, when we'd first met the man. We explained what we knew about Zacharias, about Sebastian, about Jakob, and asked that Rhydian please not slay them or Everleigh Gloom—at least for now. All was revealed, including our knowledge on Leberecht and our new quest from Councilwoman Faust. With purpose, neither of us let either of them get a word in edgewise, and when we finished telling our story, the silence was deafening. Ten, twenty seconds until Rhydian Sinclair burst into loud, boisterous laughter. After a moment, Evelyn joined him, and it was another ten, twenty seconds before they'd recover.

"Aye, all right," Rhydian finally said. "Let's do this, then."

"What do you mean, 'let's do this'?" Sinclair asked. "Just like that?"

The elder Sinclair snapped his finger. "Just like that."

"You're not upset about the Anima?" I asked.

"Fuck 'em. I was getting sick of looking at 'em, anyhow. All these years of nothing making any goddess-be-damned sense, and the pair of you get the answers in what, a few fucking months? Aye, that's our girl. Let's do this. What do you both need?"

"Information, weapons, any other useful arsenal and whatnot," Sinclair said.

"We'll need people as well," I continued. "Specifically: Lucas Bellamy, Markus Lund, and perhaps most importantly, Matteus Rizik."

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