35 Rescue Operation

Around the dusk covered city of Skyworld, many peasants and middle class citizens were roaming the cobblestone streets within their Italianate structured architecture. The streets were full of people who all seemed to be heading towards the castle gates up at the highest point of the city.

A few templar stepped out of the pub, but they were all pretty sloshed in their laughter. One of which stumbled onto the streets, and the other two were forced to help the drunk man up. "Mate, I think you've had a bit much to drink! Haha!" One teased.

"Innit dat deh truth." The drunken man hiccuped, happily.

"You just can't hold yer ale, can ya?" The female templar rolled her eyes.

"Oooh I caaann too. Just give us a kiss and see!" The drunk one tried to kiss the lady templar, who proceeded to shove away his face in disgust.

"Knock it off mates. Come on now, The Grand master will have our heads if we are late to his event." The other male broke it up, so they could gather up their friend, and quickly be on their way.

Some barrels had been resting against the wall not far from them, as Ashewyn and Jackyn peered from behind them, carrying serious expressions. "They seemed in a hurry..." Ashewyn noted, quietly.

"Then we better move." Jackyn grunted, getting to his feet.

"Hey, just hang on. You really sure you're up for this, man?" Ashewyn asked, making one last attempt to get Jackyn to come to his senses.

Jackyn only glanced back briefly. "We're wasting time."

"If we split up, there's no guarantee I'll be able to watch your back. You know that, right?" Ashewyn explained, seriously.

"Yeah, I'm well aware of that." Jackyn abruptly said, taking off into the streets of Skyworld, as he pulled his hood over his head.

Ashewyn made a disgruntled groan of annoyance, as he held his head in frustration. No words could express what was going on in his head, but he begrudgingly made his way for the castle as well, hoping that Jackyn wouldn't do anything too brash.

The scene transitioned back to Dragon's Keep, where Eclipse was going over the strategy and plan of action. Sally and Maxwhyld had both shifted to securing the room by blocking the entrances from any Aoba loyalists.

"Coast should be clear." Maxwhyld looked to Eclipse.

"Very good, move in close so we can speak over this as quietly as we can." Eclipse gestured to the others.

The centaurs remained at their stations, as everyone else shifted closer to the Spymaster.

"Please understand the controversy of this meeting, we cannot allow any Templar loyalists to overhear any word of our treason. Grand master Aoba has proven to be unworthy of holding the position of King to our people. It's imperative that we remove him from his position before any worse instance can occur. A man like him should never have become king, so tonight we shall become the instruments of his demise." Eclipse explained quietly.

"(When they mentioned overthrowing the Templar grand master, I had no idea this was what they had in mind... Fuck.. We fail here... We're dead.)" Zyron thought, sweating a bit nervously.

"Tonight Aoba is holding an event, this should give us the best opportune moment to strike. So here is the plan we have decided on. Talis will be staying here, along with Sally. Zyron, being a Vulpis, you may draw too much attention, so I would like you to remain here and look after the two of them. Sally has been deemed a traitor to the King, and Talis is in no condition to fight. So it is up to you to keep them safe." Eclipse spoke to the canine across the table.

"Uh... Y-Yeah, sure I can do that." Zyron hesitantly nodded, glancing to Solitaire. He seemed worried about her, she responded with a soft smile to comfort his worries.

"Solitaire, I'll need you to blend in with the crowd of commoners and keep a look out for possible breaches in the Templar defenses. Hold back from fighting unless you have no other options. We may need to use you as a decoy to draw Aoba's attention." Eclipse explained.

"Alright, I think I can manage." Solitaire nodded, seeming comfortable with the idea. She knew Ashewyn had a plan of his own, but right now she needed this way inside Skyworld.

"Okay, so the rest of you are going to fall in line with the Templar and blend in for now. Keep your ears open for any information, and keep to the plan we per-established. As for my role, I'll be the one to strike the death blow. If this plan is obstructed or dissolved in anyway, it'll be me who takes the backlash of attempted murder. The rest of you are to flee, and never look back. Understood?" Eclipse concluded, looking over to all their watchful faces.

Everyone agreed, understanding the full chain of events that could pan out. However, this was a risk they knew that had to take.

Meanwhile in Skyworld, Nye had been taken to a corridor upstairs, where many paintings were placed around the halls. One of which was a charming full body portrait of Aoba, posing very regally. Nye stood there glancing at this, already having changed her attire. She was wearing some sort of gothic dress, but it was quite damaged, and not really what she was expecting to be forced to wear for meeting the Grand master. Her hands however, still remained joined by the magic-proof restraints.

Horrifica came up behind her, leaning her face close to Nye's ear. "Isn't he the most enchanting man you ever saw?"

"(So this is the Grand master...)" Nye thought, as the scene transitioned to showing fancy boots exit a chamber, before they proceeded further down the fancy corridor with Templar knights guarding at the end of it.

"I wonder... Are you excited, Amygdala?" Horrifica chuckled, licking her lips.

At the same moment the two knights opened the large doors behind them, with the Grand master entering the corridor where they awaited. As Nye turned around, she noticed Horrifica had already reached his side, and was pulled into a deep kiss with their tongues entwining together in a most disgusting manner. Mere moments passed, before Aoba was brought over to where Nye stood. Before any words could be spoken, Aoba gently took the chain that linked Nye's wrists. He pulled it close to his face and like a Prince, he pressed his tender lips against to top of her hand.

Nye stood there for a moment, watching him with a disconcerting expression, as the King rose back to meet her eyes with his. "Might I just say, it's quite a pleasure to finally meet you, darlin'. I do have to comment however on this distasteful ring. Such a repulsive thing does not match the beauty you hold." Aoba smiled whimsically, as he made note of Nye's cursed ring.

Before Nye could reply, Horrifica placed a hand to Aoba's shoulder, looking mockingly at Nye. "The ring just wouldn't come off her hand. I think it's rather fitting of such a disgusting creature."

"Now now, no need for trivial conflict sweet pea. Do play nice won't you?" He kissed into the Succubus' neck, before turning to Nye with that same whimsical grin of his. "Alas, the ring shall remain for now I suppose." He chuckled. This man was in fact charming, but Nye didn't seem to waver like these other woman did. It only made him more curious how she worked, as he eyed her further.

"Why was I brought here?!" Nye demanded, finally breaking her silence.

"Patience now, darlin', we have much to discuss." Aoba placed his hand to her lower back, guiding Nye to walk with him towards the door on the opposite end of the chamber.

Another set of Templar knights opened two large doors for them, allowing them to reach the top of a luxurious spiraling staircase. Descending to the lower level, Nye noticed it was a large ballroom filled with many people wearing ballroom gowns and suits, as well as many of them having monstrous masks concealing most of their face. There wasn't any set race here either, she quickly took notice of the humans, Lupis, Rhyme, and even races like Terra and centaur amongst them.

Many Leashed also seemed to be handling them like royal servants at an extravagant celebration. Classical music appeared to be playing not too far from where the dancing was taking place as well. Many, if not all their eyes locked onto Nye and Aoba as they drew closer to the ballroom floor. The crowd parted letting Aoba lead Nye further into the crowd of his followers, and they halted as they reached the center of the vast dance floor.

Aoba took Nye's hands. "Mark me, but I do believe it would be rather difficult to dance with your hands bound." He said, as he removed the chain holding the magic restraints together. "There, isn't that better?"

"I have no intention of dancing with you." Nye leered at him, without even batting an eye.

"Afraid that's a shame. See, your spells are still bound, and my entire celebration is fully secured with many of my loyal Templar knights. They might have to kill you if you don't cooperate, darlin'." Aoba only smiled in his usual manner. "Come now, tis only a dance."

Nye begrudgingly allowed the Grand master a dance, his hand placed to her hip to pull her close, before he took her palm with his free hand. Many eyes fixed on them as the two took center stage, stealing the spotlight from every single person in the room.

Aoba elegantly guided Nye as they danced for all to see. "You desired to know the purpose of you being here, correct? As you can see by now, I have no intention of killing you, I merely wish to talk." He spoke to her confidently.

"About what?" Nye asked, still not enjoying herself.

"As you may have noticed, I enjoy a variety of pleasures. So as you can imagine, this exchange does not come without a purpose. I have an offer, and if you agree willingly, then I may consider sparing your people from mass genocide, and granting them their freedom. I am a most benevolent ruler, however my intention is purely that of including you in my compendium of woman." Aoba smiled, almost in a humble way that really didn't match what he had inquired.

Nye immediately pulled from his grasp with the most repulsed expression on her face. "Not interested." She bluntly stated, with cold eyes focused on the light blue haired royal.

"Oh?" Aoba pursed his lips. Without any given warning, Aoba roughly snatched Nye's wrist, forcing her closer in a very harsh manner. "Apologizes, but did I give an impression that you had a choice, darlin'?" He said, in an almost completely different tone than usual. Yet besides his hostile grip on Nye, he carried a smile that felt more chilling and threatening than the ones he carried prior. Nye could feel his hand shaking as it clutched tighter to her wrist.

"Let. Go. Of. Me." Nye hissed, trying to pull her hand away from his violent grip.

"Hasn't Horrifica spoken to you of MY greatness? How I'm the absolute messenger of the Maker himself? You should feel HONORED that I want you in my collection, woman." Aoba insisted harshly in tone, almost in a whisper so that his followers didn't notice.

"I said, let go." Nye reiterated, coldly.

"How Peculiar. Oh well, perhaps I need to elaborate on my reasoning's. I do quite enjoy tales of valor, and many stories that have graced my ears have been of you. Through my knights stories, I have vicariously grown fond of you. I suppose I am much like my mother. You see, I have an intense desire to make you mine, my sweet Queen of Fiends." Aoba explained, not yet releasing Nye from his clutches.

"You're mistaken. You have me confused with another Amygdala. I am NO queen." Nye grew more angry in tone.

Aoba's face began to twitch, as he attempted to restrain his emotions. However, without a second thought, Nye was flung roughly into the crowd of shrieking party goers, and slid across the marble tile. Aoba was breathing heavily as he drew closer to where Nye laid in shock. "Yet you have THIS ring." Aoba gritted his teeth, stomping his iron boot down on Nye's right hand.

"Ahhhh!..." Nye cried out, feeling the presser worsening. She abruptly shifted, attempting to use her free hand to shove against Aoba's foot; however it didn't budge an inch. She felt the bones in her hand crushing under his heel.

Grabbing the hair on the back of her head, Aoba forced Nye up to her feet. He let her wounded hand slip out from under his foot, but gazed at her pained expression with much enjoyment. No one in the crowd dared bothering to help her, only continuing to dance at the snap of his fingers.

"There is one thing I hate far more then traitors. Do you know WHAT that is?" Aoba gripped tighter, as he brought Nye's face to his. "Liars." He growled, with hostility. "Woman are nothing more than a man's property. It's your duty as a female to obey your lord and master. Understood?!" Aoba went on, the atmosphere around him had grown much more sinister than the whimsical side he usual carried, it was rather frightening.

Elsewhere in the castle, during the moment that Aoba left the room to meet Nye. A masked intruder had been hiding next to a suit of armor, carefully watching Aoba leave. Just as he was out of sight, the masked intruder came out of hiding to investigate the room. As he moved a familiar orange tail and ears became visible. While the door creaked open slowly, the masked was lowered from his face to peer inside the dark chamber. As the masked was removed, Miles's face became exposed. The feline had followed the others inside the castle and took it upon himself to go exploring.

"Jeez it's dark in here..." Miles grumbled, looking for a lamp switch. Upon finding it, he turned to to slowly light up the room with the lanterns that hung from the ceiling.

He peered around the dimly lit room noticing something very out of place in this castle. There weren't any windows inside this chamber, just a few steps in front of him. Letting curiosity get the better of him, Miles descended into the lower level of the cylindrical shaped room. There he found something terrifying. Within the chamber was several sadistic sexual devices, included ceiling, wall and standing restraints, along with Bondage gear, punishment tools, and a small cage that a small humanoid could fit inside.

Miles stood there uneasily, with a shocked expression. That was, until he hear a soft moan. "Kyu...."

His eyes grew frantic as he nervously looked around the room. Then he noticed her, a female figure laying on the cold ground, completely unclothed and covered with an extreme amount of cuts and bruises. He didn't recognize her, but it was Aoba's pet Leashed, Hitomi. Her arms had been bound behind her back and her tail tied to one of her thighs. She weakly glanced up to see Miles from her position, letting the collar clank against the metal chains that held her captive.

Drawing closer, Miles could see that her face was swollen, and one of her eyes blackened with a bleeding lip; as well as human-like bite marks on her breast, with some on her arms and legs. Miles seemed concerned on what to do, also taking notice of some white sticky residue left on the stone, not far from where she laid. It was clear she had definitely been bludgeoned and forced upon not long ago.

"K-Kyu....." Hitomi whimpered again, much more desperate this time.

"I-I don't understand what you're saying..." Miles breathed anxiously, only able to stare at her naked form.

"K...Kyu.... Kyu....." Hitomi begged, tears streaming down her face in fear. She seemed to be asking him to help her, but it wasn't transmitting.

Miles had no idea what to do, but he found himself walking towards Hitomi. He crouched to her level, feeling his body trembling. His hands reached for Hitomi, gently touching her leg that her tail was strapped to. Hitomi flinched, trying to pull away, but Miles set his other hand on her tail.

"Don't be scared..." Miles furrowed his brows, as he began to untie the bondage holding her tail against her thigh.

There was a sudden creak on the stairs behind them. "Hitomi!?" Gasped a male voice.

Miles turned quick, notice Hige rushing at him. "Hey! Wait a sec!" Miles gasped, retreating his hands away from her quickly. "I'm just trying to-"

BAM. That was the sound the metal pipe made upon connecting with Miles' head, before his body hit the ground. Hige was panting for a moment, before rushing to Hitomi's aid, quickly moving to untie her, and pull her into a worried embrace.

"H-Hitomi... What did he do to you?..." Hige held onto her tightly, as tears streamed down his face.

"K....Kyuu..." Hitomi whimpered, her ears backwards.

"What?" Hige pulled back to look at her and then to Miles, who laid unconscious on the ground. "He wasn't...? It was Aoba? AOBA!?" Hige's expression grew darker, as he gritted his teeth.

"Kyu, kyu...." Hitomi mewed fearfully. Hige quickly turned to the door, hearing footsteps approaching.

"Someone's overstepping their bounds." Spoke the sinister tone of a dark silhouette in the doorway.

"Dammit... Talk about hook, line and sinker... Hurry Hitomi." He spoke under his breath, as he unshackled her collar and helped her move.

The two of them quickly hid, as Gaigas emerged from the shadows to investigate the room. Then he noticed Miles laying on the ground. "Hmph. What do we have here?" He grunted, moving over to where Miles laid.

Hige noticed this and took the opportunity to pick up Hitomi, and sneak out the room quickly, while the dragon was distracted. Hige glanced back before they left the chamber, his eyes on Miles. Shadows casted over his face as his grinned in his creepy way. "Sometimes others gotta take the blame for our actions. Ku-hoo hoo. Only way any of us will every really survive." He muttered with a smile, before the two of them vanished out into the halls.

Gaigas grabbed Miles by the back of his shirt collar, with a slight scoff of boredom. "Tzz..." His eyes trailed around the room, seeing no sight of Hitomi. "Just what were you doing in here?" He asked boredly, before he picked up the unconscious feline, and dragged him up the stairs before proceeding down the corridor, and disappearing around the corner.

"Wait. Was that?..." Muttered a soft whisper, from Ashewyn as he stepped into the opposite end of the hallway, seeing Gaigas drag Miles off somewhere.

Ashewyn proceeded to follow them, traversing the hallway. As he rounded the corner he halted abruptly, nearly running into a familiar elven woman. Eclipse gawked, watching in shock as Ashewyn managed to maneuver himself out of the way in time, before he could crash right into her. She turned his direction, as he continued to run.

"Hold on! Ashewyn?!" She called, in surprise.

This made the red head suddenly stop, as he glanced back to her in confusion. It took him a moment, but then he recognized her. "Eclipse?" He quickly realized he shouldn't be talking to her, and abruptly turned away as he prepared to take off again.

"Wait." Eclipse called again, stepping closer. "Are you.... an Amygdala?" She asked softly.

Ashewyn turned back around, with furrowed brows. "I can't...."

"You don't have to say it. It's just. Aoba... He might have a friend of yours." Eclipse explained quietly.

Ashewyn fully turned to face her this time. "You know about Nye?"

Eclipse nodded. "Yes. I'm here with some others who oppose him. Please. If you are indeed friends with this 'Nye', we must work together to put a stop to Aoba." She explained, seriously.

"Hang on. You're the one Zyron mentioned, aren't you?" Ashewyn was surprised.

"I see, so you're friends with Solitaire and Zyron then. That's good. We have some allies in common." Eclipse forced a smile.

"I'll help you, but only if you tell me why you're betraying him. We already have a plan, and I don't know what your motives are." Ashewyn replied, showing caution.

Eclipse sighed, as she closed her eyes. Her hand trailed to her sleeve and she pulled it all the way passed her elbow, to expose many cuts and bruises that have seemed to be healing. "This... This is just a sample of what that madman has put me through... Please... I don't know if I can do this on my own... I'm really scared now that I'm here... The others... I can't show them this weakness..." Eclipse pleaded, her voice cracking. She was restraining tears the best she could, before they inevitably trailed down her face. "I promise to tell you anything you want to know, once this is all over.... Aoba can't remain King... He just can't."

Ashewyn grew concerned as he saw the marks of bludgeoning on her body. Without saying anything he stepped closer to her, and placed his hands gently to her shoulders. "You don't have to say anything more. I'll help you. If you need anything... Just let me know. Okay?" Ashewyn looked to her in worry.

"Thank you. You have no idea what this means." Eclipse smiled, before looking back the way she came. "I need to check in with my friends. Can we meet in the Ballroom? It should be the safest place to blend in with Aoba's followers."

"Sure thing. I just need to check a lead real quick. I thought I saw someone I knew." Ashewyn explained.

"Of course. Meet me there in a few minutes. Thank you again." Eclipse smiled softly to him before rushing off to find the others.

Ashewyn watched her go, before turning quick to go investigate what he saw leaving that room.

Back on the dance floor, Aoba was still looking to Nye, as Ayame came to Aoba's side. "Grand master, I have word of some new developments." She informed him.

"Oooh do tell." Aoba grinned like a fox, as Ayame murmured something into his ear. His eyes then shifted back to Nye, dropping her back to the ground. As she glanced up at him with an angered expression, Aoba regained that whimsical expression as he held out his hand. "Come now woman. We have a dance to resume. If you do not comply, then I'll see to it that your little friend we captured doesn't survive the night. You wouldn't like that, now would you?"

"Friend?" Nye was taken back, realizing that one of her friends got caught while trying to save her. "...." Nye lowered her head, letting it cast with shadows as she took Aoba's hand. She flinched as their hands connected, bruises already showing from here he stepped on her.

"That a girl." Aoba replied, carrying a cunning grin.

Meanwhile, Miles was starting to come back to his senses. Attempting to sit up, he realized he had a collar around his neck, and a chain connected from it to the ground. His shirt had also been removed, which caused him to grow uneasy. "What?" Miles muttered, still somewhat dazed from being knocked out.

"Aaaaaaahhhhhhh!!!! AKKKHHHHHHHHHHHH!!" Screamed a terrified voice.

Miles frantically turned to the sound, seeing a man strapped to a torture table. His head was in the process of being cut open, with blood spraying out from under the manual saw. A silver haired man with feminine features only smiled as he severed more of the prisoner's head. Miles quickly realized he was inside a torture room; watching fearfully as the man's screams slowly died out, before his body fell limp in the puddle of his own crimson ooze. The silver haired man placed down the saw, wiping some blood from his face as he turned to Miles.

A finger rose to his lips as he gently made a shushing noise to Miles. "Shhh, don't ruin the surprise for brother now. Dimitri will be so thrilled to have another plaything. Hmhmhm. I hope he enjoys you, then he won't bother spending all his TIME with that... that female Lupis!!!"

"Merric. What in Maker's name are you yelling about?" Called Dimitri's voice as he stepped down some creaky steps.

"Oh! Dimitri! Brother! Y-Yes! I-I have a surprise for you, brother. See. Come, come." Merric lead Dimitri to Miles, as he pushed up his roundish glasses.

"A leashed..." Dimitri boredly replied.

"Yes. This one snuck into the Grand master's private play room. Gaigas brought him here. Such a good dragon. Yess!" Merric explained nervously, in a very unusual manner. "You can do whatever you wish to him, brother. Please, have at it. He is my gift to you." Merric giggled, in a creepy tone.

"What would you have me do, Merric? I grow bored of this." Dimitri scoffed.

"D-Dimitri. He needs to be punished! This cretin might be the reason that the Grand Master's pet has disappeared! He's a villain, you hear me!!" Merric insisted, almost obsessively.

"Very well. Do inform Ayame so that Aoba knows what's going on." Dimitri stated coldly.

"Yes. YES! Of-Of Course brother!" Merric hurried for the door in excitement.

"One more thing, Merric." Dimitri glanced over his shoulder to his brother, with a cold gaze, as he forced Miles against the wooden table, his face shoved into the puddle of blood.

"What is it, my precious brother?" Merric eagerly awaited Dimitri's words.

Dimitri reached for a nearby scalpel. "Stop trying to gain my approval." He said in the most sternest tone, at the very moment he slammed the knife down, aimed at Miles' left hand.

The feline screamed loudly, as his middle finger was removed. "Get moving, you imbecile!" Dimitri snapped at his younger brother, who rushed off in a hurry.

"STOP IT!!!" Miles cried out, tears flowing from his eyes. He was becoming frantic, and attempted to pull away, but Dimitri shoved him back to the table.

"Keep this up and you're going to lose more than just a finger or two." Dimitri stated, coldly, as he sliced off Miles' index finger next.

"NOOOO!!!! AHHHH!! SOMEONE! Please!! Huhuhhuh... H-H-Help!!" Miles pleaded as he continued to sulk, desperately crying for help. He had the look of terror, while Dimitri could only grin in pleasure at his traumatized prisoner.