Showtime

Milena tightly buckled that hidden protection on her forearm. Behind her, Rayan was personally lacing up her corset, a more flexible version than what she was used to. It was meant for protection, not to be an elegant support, and was another of Chartiana and Yasina's latest creations. Milena was also wearing a tight coat with a hood to cover her face, a short skirt over hunting pants and thick boots that would allow her to jump and run comfortably. She liked the outfit, but regrettably, it wasn't meant to be fashionable, but practical and inconspicuous. She could imagine the number of concessions Yasina had had to do while designing this to suit her. In fact, the color was a dark brown, unlike the velvet black Milena was used to, and the materials were high quality but unpolished. The whole outfit suited Milena, but she wouldn't have worn such a thing if it wasn't for the upcoming battle. Bella would be the one wearing the usual dress, metal corset and black colors of the Grand Princess, to dupe their enemies. Milena's hair was also arranged in a low ponytail, keeping most of her curls over her shoulder. 

Things were strangely silent in the De Boreal Manor. They were all getting ready, putting on coats and weapons, their gloves and everything else they needed before the final battle, but no one spoke a word. Even the quick dinner they had before had been quick and informal, as they had mostly been focused on the last preparations of their plan. Although it was only details to be added now, or the pieces of latest information that came to the Manor. Everyone present there knew what they were set to do. Few words were exchanged, and there was heavy tension in the air. Outside the De Boreal Manor, the sun had begun to set, the signal all their allies were waiting for.

Milena felt Rayan finish lacing her corset, then he put the coat on her shoulders. She turned around to face him, the two of them exchanging another one of those long, silent glances. She could see his expression had stiffened, but he was still holding on to every single second they had together. He even held out her gloves for her, while she tightened his collar around his neck.

"You stay alive too," he suddenly whispered. "I don't want to see a single scratch on my wife."

"I'll try," she smiled faintly.

She knew Rayan would be much more at risk than she was. He was to lead the Army directly against the Royal Castle, while she would do her best to stay hidden for her mission. Their tasks were completely different, yet the success or failure of one would heavily impact the other. Milena smiled, and stepped closer to put a quick kiss on his lips.

"It reminds me of some of our dates," she chuckled.

"...We don't have the same memory of our dates, dear," Rayan frowned, confused.

"Going out under the cover of night," she smiled. "Sneaking in or out at dusk..."

"Ah. Well, I sure hope the ending now will be as satisfying."

While Milena blushed slightly, he put a quick kiss on her cheek before turning to everyone else.

"Everyone has the plan in mind?" He asked, taking a more authoritarian tone.

"It's quite simple for us," sighed Henry. "But the Queen, the Saint and myself will stay here and act as if you're all still here. If things evolve one way or another we will do our best to help out, if we can..."

"Don't put yourselves at risk unnecessarily," said Milena, looking at her sister-in-law. "It's going to be a war out there, there isn't much you can do."

Philomenie nodded very faintly, but Milena had a hunch it wasn't making her happy to simply sit back ahead of the battle; In fact, it only seemed like she had agreed because there wasn't anything else she could do, and also because her daughter was there. 

Everyone else was about to leave with them, and the group would gradually split into smaller and smaller groups outside. It didn't need to be some grand goodbye, this time; if things went well, perhaps this whole battle would be over before dawn. No one added a word before they stepped out of the Manor, quietly. In fact, the knights of the House De Boreal were already preparing on the grounds surrounding the Manor, prepared to defend the territory. Henry had already sent forces ahead to support both Rayan's army and the rebels lying in wait downtown, but his own troops were quite limited, and his main task would be to protect the Queen.

"Everyone stick together," said Lucian, leading them.

Right behind him Chartiana and Prudence nodded, and everyone else followed in silence, Rayan and Milena closing the group. She had already pulled the hood over her head, most of her face now hidden, and was simply following her husband's lead, her hand in his. Their surroundings were incredibly quiet, as they were making a detour around the domain to stay close to the forest, and far from the main entrance. It wasn't the Emerald forest, but Rayan would have to go through this one to run back to his men, stationed at the other end. 

They quickly made their way to the horses hidden a bit further.

"Black Bella!" Milena exclaimed, surprised to see her horse here, running up to her.

"Olivia left the Manor with her and kept her for you," Lucian winked at his sister.

Milena hugged her horse, happy to see her beautiful mount there. It seemed the gorgeous horse had left the previous battle almost unscathed. She felt a bit sorry the superb creature had to face yet another fight...

"This is where we say goodbye again," sighed her husband behind her.

Milena's heart fell. She turned around, and quietly hugged him. She heard Rayan sigh a second time.

"I kind of hate having to say goodbye to you," he said. "I need to break the habit..."

"Stay alive and it should be the last time," she muttered.

"Promise. After that, I'm going to stay with my Queen no matter what. This is the last goodbye."

Milena fought the urge to cry. She had to repeat to herself, again and again, that this was temporary, and probably the last time. He wasn't even going that far, they would see each other again soon enough. As long as they both stayed alive, after this, they would have all eternity together. She took a deep breath, and f****d herself to step back, putting up walls around her heart. One last quick kiss, and Rayan suddenly turned around, leaving without another word. She knew he meant to end this as soon as possible. The sooner the battle began, the sooner it would be over... She still watched until his cape disappeared behind the trees. If anyone else had seen the Vampire Prince leave, none of them said a word, quietly preparing for the rest of the journey. This had been the easiest part; now they all had to head downtown and not be seen...

They didn't ride the horses to not be noticed. Instead, they grabbed the bridles, and followed behind Lucian once again, the young knight guiding them through the trees. He carefully stepped where the snow wouldn't make too much noise under the horses' feet, and where their group would be right out of sight but still heading downtown. Soon enough, they reached the part of the forest that wasn't the De Boreal territory anymore, but in the quiet outskirts, just streets away from the Capital itself. Milena could tell they were getting closer to the Capital's streets as the ground turned from dirt to proper pavement under the blanket of snow, and that it was animated downtown. In fact, there were too many lights ahead for that time of the day. At first, it could have sounded like a rather busy day, but if one listened closely, they could hear protests and shouting going on. They hadn't exaggerated about the situation outside, it was tense to say the least. As they began to reach the narrower alleys, she could hear shop owners arguing with the Royal Guards on the other side of the block, or women shouting at the Royal Proclaims still coming from the Castle. There really was a witch hunt going down, and many weren't blind enough to buy it. Milena almost felt sorry she had been unable to act sooner to stop this. Nothing was like it was supposed to be downtown... 

They quietly followed Lucian's lead. He had unrivaled instincts to avoid the guards, and knew exactly when to stop and wait, or where to hurry to next. Soon enough, they arrived into the busier streets, hiding amongst the normal citizens but still going towards their goal. The commotions outside played in their favor, as the guards were busier inspecting buildings than people passing by. They had taken off the saddles from their horses or hidden them under cheap blankets, and all their coats were those any commoner could have afforded. It was nerve-wracking how close they walked by some of the Royal Guards at times, but Lucian always managed to sneak them away before any of them got interested in their little group. Finally, they reached what seemed from the outside like a second-hand clothing shop. From the outside, it looked completely abandoned, but there was a heavy lock on the door, which opened with a key Chartiana took out. Leaving the horses in the alley next to it, the four of them quickly stepped inside, closing the door behind them. 

The ground floor was completely dark, quiet and even a bit dusty, but a silhouette stood up right away to greet them.

"You made it!"

Raelius walked up to them, hugging Milena right away.

"That was quick!" He said to Lucian like a proud parent.

"Hush," frowned Lucian. "Let's just get downstairs Gramps, we're still too close to the door."

He nodded, and they all quickly stepped behind the shop's counter, into another secret passage that led to an underground floor. There was a lot more going on down there; In fact, as soon as she arrived on the last step, Milena was immediately greeted with another hug.

"My Lady!"

"Yasina," she smiled. "It's been a while."

"A while, you say!" Her friend protested. "It's been forever, and I was so worried about you! All the news we got was so cryptic, and those kids barely even talk!"

"That's what we trained them for."

Milena stepped aside with her friend to let the others come down, and looked around. The room was much larger than what was let on from the ground floor, and there were at least fifty people hidden down there, all already wearing armour and carrying guns and weapons. There were knights from different families, but also a mix of commoners. After Yasina, Bella De Camellia stepped up to greet her. She was wearing a black dress and metal corset of Yasina's design, very similar to Milena's typical outfit, with just a little hat and a veil to somewhat hide her red eyes.

"Not my best work," sighed Yasina. "But it will do for a short while! I could have worked the details better if I had more time, of course..."

"It will do," said Bella. "Our enemies should only see me from afar if everything works according to plan. Lady Milena, glad to see you on your feet, we were worried indeed. We already sent one of the children to warn Lady Carseus you had made it to us."

Milena nodded.

That was another part of her plan: using the Orphans to relay the news downtown. While the Royal Guards were going to inspect every house and interrogate most people they would see, looking for any suspicious activity, there was one kind of the population they would never pay attention to: the street children. Exceptionally, Mint, Bandit, and a few others of the older kids were back on the streets, acting as messengers to relay information between Milena's allies scattered among the streets, but also to keep track of where the Royal Guards were, and warn them if one of the hideouts was about to be discovered. Milena had realized the children would be the best way to pass on messages unnoticed, as no one ever paid attention to the beggar orphans in the streets. The Royal Guards were probably on the lookout for carrier birds or adult messengers, maybe even a white shape-shifter, but they'd never think about checking the children running around and begging for scraps in their poor clothes. Milena didn't like her method much, but those children themselves had volunteered to participate in her plan and go back to the streets for one night. Tiphania was the one charged to coordinate with them and the Guild, so even shop owners could know when to act up to get the guards' attention away from the hideouts.

"They have only found one of our hideouts so far," added Bella. "But we had it evacuated in time. We're running out though my Lady, we need to act as fast as possible."

"I know," said Milena, turning to Raelius. "Go and activate the bomb."

"Will do, my Love!"

He vanished in a blink, headed to activate the bomb they had planted in one of their safehouses. The explosion wouldn't be big enough to harm anybody; the goal was to get the Royal Guards' attention as well as send a signal to Alexis and all of their allies that the fight was starting. Then, Milena turned back to Bella.

"I will go ahead with Chartiana to reach the next safehouse. My horse Black Bella is in the next street, take her. Perhaps it will give us a few seconds before they notice the difference."

"We also got a white cat," nodded Bella, glancing down at the white weasel on Milena's shoulders, her nose poking out of the hood.

"Good. Then..."

Before Milena finished her sentence, a loud detonation reached them. They all paused, eyes up, and waited for a second.

"Gramps didn't lose his time," sighed Lucian.

Milena nodded. According to the plan, Raelius was going to Alexis' hideout next, and then to Rachael's agreed spot in the Emerald Forest, to confirm the Vampire Prince had arrived to lead his army.

"It's showtime then," sighed Yasina.

"Let's go."

They all ran up the stairs. As agreed, Lucian, Bella, Yasina and Prudence ran to the horses, while Chartiana and Milena stepped aside. Milena exchanged a quick glance with her brother.

"You better punch the bastard," he said with a smirk.

Milena nodded, and he turned around, riding his horse ahead with Bella, everybody following after them. Seeing Bella with Lucian, who was easily recognizable, would add to the deception for a little bit. 

Meanwhile, Milena and Chartiana were now the only ones left in the street. Blanche jumped out of her hiding, turning into a white horse the two women immediately climbed on. They rode in a different direction than the others, but they could hear the commotion in the streets and, far ahead, see the flames and smoke from the explosion. Chartiana grimaced behind Milena.

"I had told them to go easy on the gunpowder..." She sighed.

Blanche rode in a different direction than the explosion, though. While they took a left, headed for another empty street, Milena heard the first shootings coming from the other end of the Capital. The fight had begun. Somewhere on the main street, Alexis de Carseus would have begun the fight with Bella acting as the Grand Princess by her side. She hoped Lucian would stick to the plan and not stay long before going to evacuate the citizens, but she suspected her brother would be more interested in getting some of the action. Either way, Prudence and Yasina would be taking care of the evacuation of the citizens... 

Meanwhile, they reached another safehouse, outside which Tiphania was waiting, g*n in hand and her eyes on the smoke coming from a few blocks west. They didn't even wait for Blanche to completely halt before jumping down. Behind Tiphania, more men were coming out of the house, and one of them brought a box to Chartiana, who opened it with a hint of excitement in her eyes. It contained a surprisingly large g*n, with an impressive amount of ammunition and even a tripod. Milena frowned.

"What in the world is that thing?" She asked Chartiana.

"Something I never hope to see allowed on the market," sighed her friend. "I conceived it as part of a project, but it's really dangerous, so only I can use it. To be honest, I'm a bit excited to get to try it..."

"You've never tried it?" Muttered Tiphania, her eyes on the scary-looking gun.

"Well, not in real conditions, but it should be fine!"

Milena and Tiphania exchanged a glance. They would have never imagined the shy Chartiana was capable of conceiving such scary weapons of death. Milena mentally noted she'd have to make a strict law about that thing as soon as she was back in court... For now though, she had no choice but to let Chartiana use her toy. 

Then, Chartiana herself handed Milena a small g*n, a long blade and a dagger.

"As per your request, the g*n has been modified to be more silent than most, but I still would recommend you only use it in extreme cases, my Lady."

"Are you sure that's going to be enough?" Tiphania asked, visibly worried.

"It will have to be. I can't risk bringing too many people with me if I want to go in as discreetly as possible. Hopefully, no one will be in the library at such a time..."

Next to her, Blanche shape-shifted back into a weasel, climbing up on Milena's arm to get back to her secret spot in her hood. Tiphania nodded, glancing at the white-fur creature.

"Please stay safe, my Lady," she simply muttered. "We will all be praying for you."

Milena nodded, and this time, she left alone, running towards the castle in the deserted streets.