Chapter 6 : Knights in Waiting

Much time passed after the White Peak incident, and things were slow for the knights. Remiel practiced his swordplay and spent time in class learning about knightly ethics and the many cultures he would likely come across in his lifetime. He met many of the knights Relena had talked about on the way to their mission, and even became friends with many of them. Before he knew it, Remiel had met all of the knights as well as the knights-in-training. It had only been two months, but Remiel could already feel a change. It was the way he breathed, the way he laughed, and the way he carried himself. He knew that his decision to travel to Royaume de Chevalier was the correct one.

In one of the many assemblies at Saint's Cross, Remiel was required to speak. He talked about the country of Laplage, where he had grown up, and the mostly fishing culture that lived in that area. He also had to give a Water Elementalist demonstration at the urgings of Perrine and Relena.

Standing on a makeshift stage in the middle of the courtyard, Remiel began talking to those who had gathered for the demonstration. There were many of the Lesser Knights, who seemed on edge. Remiel assumed that it was because they themselves couldn't use magick and therefore envied his own abilities. Of the faces he recognized, Klaus and Guy had arrived, as well as the four Knight Captains, Jade, Blue Heart Annique, and Mina of the Golden Whirlwind.

"The tricky thing about water is it's ever changing. Of the four elements, it is the hardest to consistantly grasp. Fire may burn too hot, but only if it's wielder becomes too passionate. With water, it can be in the form of a liquid, a gas, or a solid. Recognizing that water changes, one must be able to constantly adapt. For Water Elementalists, it is as much a dance as it is a battle. Flowing like a river, crashing like a sea, standing as a solid, or being free as a mist, these are all important for the water magick user."

Remiel stood near a large urn filled with water, and using his magick pulled the water out, letting it follow his hand. He swirled it in the air, and quickly thrust his hand downward. The water followed his movement, and began to splash into the ground, before Remiel clapped his hands together and the water stopped mid-splash, forming a large icy crystal. Finally, Remiel pulled his hands apart, and the ice crystal shattered and sprayed into a mist. Remiel took a deep breath and smiled.

"And that is what being a Water Elementalist is all about!" He said. Those who had gathered applauded, and while the Lesser Knights and Captains filed out of the room, followed by Guy, Klaus, and Mina. Annique, however, stayed behind.

"Very entertaining Monsieur Delacroix." She said. "As a fellow Water Elementalist, it is always invaluable to see new uses for my element."

"Branching out from the heart designs?" Remiel asked.

Annique smiled broadly. "I doubt it," she said. "But changing the form of the water three times in just a few short seconds... that was fantastic. Is that your specialty? It must have taken almost all of your magick energies."

Remiel simply smiled. Annique told him about how rare Water Elementalists were becoming. "We've got to stick together! I'm sure we can learn a lot from one another!" She said. Remiel was suprised that someone of her level was talking with him as an equal. She was already a First Ranked Knight, the highest rank that a knight could receive save becoming one of the council's knights, commonly known as the Crusader Knights.

Yet Annique continued talking with Remiel, and asked if he would be interested in attending dinner with herself the Ranked Knights as well as the Captains. "You've got a lot of promise, Remiel. I'm not the only one who sees it. Several of our new recruits are promising, more than ever before. Yourself, Beatrice, and Guy are such stellar Elementalists, Luna is a fantastic bardknight, and Jade, Belle, and Klaus are becoming amazing fighters, if they're taking a little time to grow into their magicks. Even Thierry is showing much promise as a defender-type. Give that man a shield and I'm sure he could withstand the mightiest attack. We're throwing this dinner for those of you that show us all this promise."

"I've never heard of a bardknight before... what is that?" Remiel asked.

Annique smiled and cocked her head to the side, as if trying to find the words to describe what she wanted to say. "I guess the best way to put it is to say that a bardknight uses a mixture of musical talent and wind magick to create their own sort of magick. They can hypnotize, or affect the moods of those around them. Luna can make the perceptions of all those around her distort, as if she were slowing or speeding up time. I am not a wind magick user myself, so I couldn't go into the details, but it is very impressive."

Remiel nodded as Annique continued. "Now back at your room, you should have received a package with some dress clothes for the occasion. The dinner is tonight, and your ride should be leaving from the usual depature zone. The restaurant is in Glorelia, so it won't take long to get there. I'll see you later tonight!"

With that, the young lady knight took off. Remiel watched her go, and just before she got around the corner, she let out a tiny water burst in the shape of a heart. Remiel laughed. He headed back to the dorm, walking past the courtyard full of knights-in-training talking over their lunches, and he looked at the sky. Though it had been bright and blue for most of his time at Saint's Cross, he realized that it was becoming grey as the leaves on the trees turned color for the fall.

Belle met him on his way. "Are joo going to the deener tonight?" She asked him. He smiled and nodded.

"I guess you are too?" He inquired.

"Oh jess! I would not miss it!" She smiled broadly. "I was heading for my room right now!"

Remiel walked her to the girl's dorm before resuming the trip to his own dormitory. On his desk was a package with his name written on a card. He assumed that it must have been the clothes Annique had told him was delivered and looked around the room. Thierry was nowhere to be found, and Remiel started to undress. Suddenly his mind went back to Belle. He felt his face was hot as he threw himself down on the bed. He lay there for several minutes before deciding to start getting ready.

***

Remiel gave himself one last look-over before he headed out the door. He wore a pair of black pants and a black shirt with a blue tie. On the tie was engraved a small emblem just like the one on his back, the symbol for water.

Walking down to the meeting place, he met Mina and Guy. Mina, ever a vision, was dressed in a black gown with a golden sash, with a necklace in the shape of the symbol for wind. Her golden hair was pulled back very neatly and her eyes were darkened with makeup.e Guy wore an outfit nearly identical to Remiel's, with a green tie in place of the blue one Remiel wore and the earth symbol instead of water. Mina smiled as she saw Remiel, as did Guy, but neither spoke.

A horse drawn carriage came to take the three of them into Glorelia, and they were told by the driver that they were the last group out. Guy began to ask Mina what his own title might be, if she thought he was knight material, and how long she thought it would take. All his questions were made calmly, but very sincerely. Mina answered that she had no idea, yes, and that it depended on a lot of things, not least of all was how long it took him to become subtle. At this Remiel had to hold back a small chuckle.

They arrived at the restaurant, Chez Guillermo, and the three got out, dusting themselves off as they saw how nicely everyone was dressed. There were women with big fancy hats, men in long coats and robes, and even the waiters and waitresses were well adorned. In the back there was a special room set aside for their group, and the Captains sat with many Ranked Knights across from the knights-in-training. Beatrice watched as Guy and Remiel entered the room, and Remiel noticed that her eyes hung longer upon Guy as she let out a sigh.

Belle had an empty seat next to her, so Remiel slid into the seat. He watched as Guy sat between Beatrice and another knight-in-training, a dark haired young man who Remiel had spoken to only a few times who went by the name of Jerund. Klaus was seated next to Belle on the other side, and Jade was the next seat down. Next to her was a young lady who Remiel knew couldn't use magicks, nor was she an especially good fighter, but was well on her way to being an excellent statistician. Her name was Raquelle, and Remiel had known for some time that Klaus had eyes for only her. As for Remiel's eyes, they simply rolled at the thought, and settled on Belle. She was wearing the same clothes as Mina, but they contrasted nicely with her darker brown hair. She had put on makeup and smelled like some sort of flower, though which kind Remiel knew not.

"Attention, everyone," came Vega's voice. He was seated on the other side of the room, and every other mouth was hushed as he spoke. "We are here to celebrate the finding of so many excellent knight prospects. We have never had this many rookies come so far along so quickly, and we Captains agreed that a nice dinner was in order."

Relena stood with a glass of wine in her hand. "To the new candidates for knighthood!" She toasted. The other Captains and Ranked Knights cheered with her, followed by the clanking of glasses in response to her toast.

Jiron came over and got in close to Remiel's ear. "You have a mission this next week. Meet me tomorrow afternoon to discuss it in greater detail." Remiel watched as he leaned in to Klaus and Jade as well. They looked across at Remiel, who simply shrugged.

Luna and Vega had prepared a special performance for the group, and they began to play, Luna on a violin and Vega on an upright bass. The music was uplifting and energetic, and Remiel could feel the people in the room's happiness. Every knight and knight-in-training was, at that moment, happy. Remiel smiled to himself. After showing off his magick tricks and talking all day with Annique, he realized that for certain times, his own abilities paled in comparison to something as seemingly ordinary as a song. He turned to Belle and smiled, Klaus and Jade leaning in as well. The four of them chinked their glasses together and laughed.

***

Remiel and Jade reported to the assembly room, where Jiron, Klaus, and Annique were waiting. Klaus held his stomach and Jiron shook his head. Looking at the two new arrivals, he sighed and said, "the three of you were about to go on your first international mission. Annique has asked to accompany you, and will be going in place of the usual Captain. As she is, if anything, overqualified, you should take this opportunity to learn from her."

Klaus let out a moan and leaned into a trash can. He began to vomit, and Remiel thought he noticed blood in his teammate's vomit. "There's no way he's fit to come along." Annique stated flatly. "I hate to deny the young man his first real mission, but being this sick is a risk to the mission."

Jiron nodded. "However, the other teams are being assigned other missions just now, and there aren't any other options. You'll have to do the mission one man down." Remiel looked at Klaus and felt an enormous lump of pity.

"In the island nation of Illea, there is a precious stone that was stolen from our weaponsmiths. This is one of the stones that are used to form the soul weapons that knights use. This particular stone could create a weapon more powerful than most of our knights can wield. We have information that tells us the thief has taken it to Berma Castle, though whether that is on the authority of the government or not is still unclear. Fortunately, that particular castle is centuries old and currently uninhabited. You won't be facing an entire nation to get in, though perhaps several guards may be stationed there. We will be sending you with all the information we have in paper form including maps of the surrounding areas."

With this, Jiron dismissed the group and walked Klaus to the infirmary. Remiel looked over his shoulder at Klaus, who was doing his best to put on a brave face. Remiel smiled weakly, waving to the other man.

His first overseas mission had already started to turn sour.