-Black Cloak-
“Oroske,” Rel said in a haggard voice that betrayed his exhaustion, “Have Danfis send for reinforcements The four of you should head back to Tsumi’din, now that Kuro and Jarou’s examination hunt is complete.” He was hunched over the table in the common area, a serious and grim expression on his face as he looked down.
“Right away, Rel.” Oroske said with a respectful bow. “I suggest you get some rest in the meantime, it’s clear you need it. Vel can watch the embassy for a time.”
“I suppose you’re right,” the red cloaked man said with a sigh. He straightened his back, eyes closed. He looked like he could fall asleep right there, on his feet. “I’ll go rouse her. Make haste, friends.” He made it to the door leading to the stairwell, before turning back and adding, “Congratulations again, Jarou, Kuro. I look forward to seeing how you two continue to grow.” The door shut behind him with a quiet thud, and one could hear his tired feet thumping up the stairs.
“We have no time to lose,” Oroske said, reigning in Kuro, Jarou, and Nadred’s attention. “Nadred, you go get us a cab ready. Kuro, Jarou, go get your things from upstairs. I’ll use one of these meeting rooms to contact Danfis in the meantime. Get moving.”
The three younger hunters nodded, and Kuro and Jarou ran to get their luggage from their room.
They arrived back in Tsumi’din just after midday. Kuro had never seen an Aeth’mobile move that fast, nor heard its magic powered engine work so hard and so loudly. Oroske led the charge, walking fast but not quite running towards the Hunter HQ. All four Hunters simply carried their bags with them into the headquarters. Oroske was insistent on them getting to Danfis as quickly as possible, which meant they had no time to drop their things off at their homes.
The city was abuzz with excitement and activity, as Hunters scrambled to gather gear and supplies, and hail Aeth’mobile taxis. This business was matched at headquarters, with the line of Hunters waiting to accept Hunts trailing out the door. It was unusual for this time of day, when most Hunters had already departed. Kuro watched as they walked past the long line, and saw that many of the papers the Hunters carried had the same three symbols on them: The Tsumi Clan emblem, an emblem representing the Guardians, and a symbol signifying the request was urgent. They got no few glares as Oroske forced his way through the crowd, making sure to leave a path clear for the others. One white cloak, a burly man Kuro had only seen a handful of times and never talked to, almost started a fight after Oroske shoved past him, but stopped when he saw who it was.
Venn greeted them as they made it to the reception desk, along with - to Kuro’s surprise - Danfis. There were no words exchanged beyond initial greetings, and Danfis wordlessly motioned for the group to follow him. He led them to his office on the second floor, ensuring the door was shut tightly. “Kuro, Jarou, give me the short version of your Hunt’s report.” Danfis said in a cool, calm voice, tinged slightly with stress. After each gave their report, he turned to Oroske and Nadred. “Very good. You two, do you give them a passing mark on their exam?” The two mentors nodded, “Good. Were the situation different, I would have liked to give you a more typical report and review interview. However, we do not have time for formalities. We will host a Cloak Award Ceremony tomorrow, and you will both be promoted to full Black Cloaks. You have my congratulations. After the ceremony, I would like the two of you to return to Royal City with the reinforcements. Even amongst seasoned Hunters, the two of you have proven time and time again to be capable fighters, and I would have you join Rel on the frontlines there. The two of you have had involvement with this New Empire, and I believe your experiences may be useful there.”
“And what about us?” Nadred asked, concern apparent in his voice, “You would have them go without us?”
Danfis looked at Nadred with stern, hard eyes, “As of tomorrow they will no longer be your apprentices. I have work for the two of you as well, don’t worry. Oroske, I want you to take charge of things in Shadow’s Rest. There is a similar uprising occurring there, it seems this “Sixth Shadow” has garnered a lot of sympathy with the residents there. Nadred, I want you to take charge in Ish’din as our primary liaison. I also want you to look into Kared’s whereabouts and actions during the past year, and report to me your findings.”
Nadred seemed uncomfortable with the prospect of having to investigate and report on his own wife. Kuro had heard small bits and pieces from Oroske that she’d been unusually silent, and that for months, no one in the Clan had any idea where she was.
“Sir, it seems we have new information. Care to update me?” Oroske asked. “Who is the Sixth Shadow? How did the insurgency in Shadow’s Rest begin?”
“In short, the Sixth Shadow is what the leader of this new empire is calling himself. The Ish’din Parliament reported to us about a letter of a declaration of war that was found in their throne room, signed with that name. While we have no solid confirmation, Parliament Member Shadowchild has put forth the theory that he may be her younger brother, Beneferse. We do have some evidence, as apparently Sixth Shadow is quite young, and has claimed to the citizens of various cities, mostly Shadow’s Rest, that he is the rightful heir to the empire, and is the descendent of previous Emperor’s Shadows. He has apparently used this fact to gather a bit of a cult following. Reports state that the New Empire has been spreading the idea that they will overthrow both Human and Demon governments, unite the two realms, and rid us of the ‘Guardian’s oppression.’ Bold claims, from someone so young, if you ask me.” Danfis had a small grin on his face as he said that last line. “It seems many residents of at least the Demon Realm are in support of this movement. Can’t say I blame them, with how the Parliament has been running things recently.”
“If I am to be our Ish’din representative, what is Lorn going to be doing instead?” Nadred asked.
“Lorn will be taking up a position in the Port of Fyr’ra, which has also been reported to have a lot of New Spire Empire sympathizers. No conflict has arisen there yet, but I suspect it may. I want her on site before anything happens, and if possible I’d like her to prevent anything from happening in the first place. Tensions between the realms have been getting higher and higher each year over the past decade, I worry about the possibility of a war breaking out.” Danfis explained, folding his arms. He turned his head back towards Kuro and Jarou, who had remained silent, standing next to the door. “Both of your new Cloaks are already being made. I will ensure they are ready for tomorrow’s ceremony. If I had my way I’d hand them to you now and send you on your way back to Royal City tonight. Unfortunately I fear doing so would undermine not only tradition, but the other Hunters who will be receiving promotions. You two should return home for the night and get some rest. You deserve it, and will need your energy.” He grabbed two folders off of the table, each with one of the apprentices’ names on the front, and handed them to their respective Hunter. “Give these folders to Venn on your way out. If she’s busy, just drop them off, she’ll know what to do. The two of you are dismissed. Oroske, Nadred, stay here for a moment, I have more to discuss with you.”
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“Yes, sir,” Kuro and Jarou said firmly, accepting the files and bowing slightly.
“Crazy to think we’ll be getting our Black Cloaks tomorrow, huh?” Jarou mused as they walked through the hall. It was quiet, save for the echoes of excitement coming from the lower level.
“Yeah.” Kuro agreed.
“I kind of wish we could have gotten the more usual experience with our final report as apprentices, and gone through the more normal formalities. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience, I feel like.”
Kuro shrugged with his shoulders, “I don’t really mind either way. I think I almost prefer skipping the formalities.” He’d had enough of that with the written exam, and with every Hunt he’d participated in before now. He couldn’t wait to be able to go out on Hunts without a mentor watching over him. He wanted to prove, to himself just as much as others, that he was capable of great things, and didn’t need Oroske’s ridiculous strength and magic prowess to succeed.
The two walked in silence. The line to Venn’s desk had thinned noticeably, though it still nearly reached the door. The girl always seemed unnaturally calm to Kuro, even when dealing with the crude Hunters clamoring at her desk, yelling and shouting over one another. They approached from the side of the desk, and silently slid their folders onto the table, which earned them some glares and shouts from the Hunters in line. The two absconded from the headquarters quickly, and silently, keeping their heads up and faces confident.
They parted ways just outside the building, and Kuro began walking towards home, as if on auto-pilot. He stopped just shy of the streets leading out of the central plaza, before looking up to the sky and judging the time. The sun was past its highest, but it was still practically midday. He thought for a moment about maybe going out and doing something to kill time, but he couldn’t think of anything he’d want to do. He wasn’t used to having time completely to himself at this hour of day. Ultimately, he decided he would simply practice and study magic at home. That was relaxing enough, right?
The rest of the day and night passed quickly, and before Kuro knew it he was standing in the Tsumi’din central plaza again, standing near the wooden stand they always erected for these award ceremonies. Many Hunters who accepted missions involving the New Empire had left that morning, and Kuro was surprised to find the crowd to be mostly civilians. He even spotted a small handful of outsiders, gathering around to see what was going on.
Danfis arrived shortly after the crowd stopped growing, climbing onto the stage and dressed in his usual black robe with red embellishments. “Thank you for coming to celebrate and congratulate the Hunters who have made advancements in the recent days. Today, the First of Twelfth, Sixteen-fifty-three, we have a rather small number of advancements.
“To start, Yeui, Lisforse, please come up.” Two people, a boy and a girl, right around the same age as Kuro, walked up on stage. Danfis delivered a practiced speech, very similar to the one he had given when Kuro and Ari had been made Blue Cloaks. They both donned their new “cloaks.” Lisforse, the girl, had a thick, sleek coat clearly made to keep the wearer warm during winter, while Yeui had a high-collared trench coat that reminded Kuro of the Incol Clan’s officer uniforms. After donning their uniforms, the two went to stand by their respective mentors. Kuro was surprised when Yeui stood next to Xeron, who gave him a pat on the back. He hadn’t expected him to take on another apprentice so soon. Lisforse stood next to a Black Cloak Hunter that Kuro had never met.
“Up next, we have Jarou, and Kuro. Please come up.” Kuro took a deep breath as he approached the stage. Once he and Jarou were lined up in front of their leader, Danfis continued. “These two have completed their training, and proven to be very capable fighters. I want you two to remember, there is always room to improve. I expect great things from you both. Wear these new vestments with pride and honor. You will no longer have your mentors to keep you in line, but I trust the two of you will not act in ways unbefitting our people.” He handed them their cloaks. Jarou had kept his very similar to his current one, a blazer with white patterns on the front and back. Kuro had actually requested two, one for the winter season, and the other for warmer weather. He received now his winter variant, which was the same design as his current cloak, but made thicker and the hood lined with fur. He had been told his other one will be delivered to his house once it is ready.
The two young Hunters shed their blue coats, and solemnly donned their new black ones. Kuro’s was a deep, dark black, whereas Jarou’s was more a dark gray. Danfis offered them another round of congratulations, and the two walked off the stage.
“And now, Xeron. Please come up.” Kuro knew his senior was working on getting his White Cloak, but just as he hadn’t expected him to take on another apprentice, he didn’t expect him to finish the certification so quickly. Despite becoming a blue cloak at the same time as Kuro, Ari had earned her Black Cloak a couple months before. Oroske had told Kuro that usually it took anywhere from half a year to a full year to become a White Cloak after your first apprentice graduated. Continuing, Danfis said, “You have successfully trained a member of the next generation from start to finish, and besides that, proven yourself to be an extraordinary Hunter. You possess great strength and magic ability, and have a level head and I trust you to make sound judgments even in the most strenuous situations. I name you the newest addition to the rank of White Cloak, and trust that you will live up to the prestige and honor the station grants you.”
Xeron bowed, accepting his new vestments. After removing his black coat, he donned the white cloak with a flourish. Kuro was surprised to see a traditional cloak, which shrouded the shape of his body from shoulders to his feet, ending inches from the ground.
Once he had moved off of the stage, Danfis spoke once more. “This concludes today’s award ceremony. Thank you all for coming, you are all dismissed.”
Kuro was surprised at how quickly the meeting had gone. Danfis did a good job of not showing it on his face, but his voice and hurried attitude towards the ceremony gave insight to his stress and worry about the current situation across the two realms. Kuro could only imagine how stressful recent events must be for one as important politically as Danfis, and one so central to keeping the peace between the realms.
He was shaken out of his thoughts by Oroske and Nadred coming up to congratulate him and Jarou.
Oroske gave Kuro a strong pat on the shoulder, “Congratulations, both of you. Come on, we’ll walk with you to the East plaza.”
“Don’t you two need to be going in the opposite direction? Like, right now?” Kuro asked as they began walking.
“We have a bit of time before we have to leave,” Nadred explained. “This could be the last time we see each other for a while, so let’s enjoy the time we have.”
The four walked, chatting idly about anything and everything but their upcoming missions. They did not prolong their goodbyes. The coming days would be filled with danger for all four of them, but Kuro was confident they would all see each other again. Kuro would be lying if he said not having Oroske around made him nervous. But as nervous as he was, he was just as excited.
The sun was just past its highest point when Kuro and Jarou were in yet another Aeth’mobile, on their way back to Royal City.
