Reaching Out To Zakat [CLOSED]

"Stop it!!" she screamed at the top of her lungs at the three men that were chasing her. She was so close to her destination and now this? Luxanna was powerful, but she wasn't a fighter. She was all about support Arcane along with little distractions here and there. Maybe traveling on her own was not the best idea. She should have learned her lesson about this years ago. Now, she was running for her life. She was so concentrated on dodging arrows, knives, and rocks that she didn't have enough time to concentrate on a damn spell. "This is the fourth group I've run into in the past two days. What the hell are they after?! I'm obviously not that Am-..." her thoughts were cut off when her foot did not hit level ground. Luxanna's body plummeted forward and began rolling harshly down a steep hill. "Ahhh!" she screamed out and tried desperately to regain her footing, but it just wasn't going to happen. Finally, her body slammed into the trunk of a tree, stopping her mid fall about thirty feet down. "Ow... Oh, no..." she felt some pain in her stomach, and it was not hunger pains. She heard a few voices and looked up to three men staring down at her. "Leave me alone!!" she screamed at them, begging them to stop. "Go around! Catch her on the next path." one of them yelled to his men and she saw exactly where she was going. She needed to move or she would be stuck, trapped by these brutes. "This is gonna hurt so badly..." she thought as she pushed her body off of the tree, allowing herself to continue the fall that the tree had stopped her from. It was another ten feet before she finally came to a stop on the next path. She writhed around in pain until she heard the voices of the men closing in on her.

"No, no, no!!" she got a boost of adrenaline and jumped to her feet, running down the path as fast as she could. Looking down it, she could see the city of Iserlohn not too far off. "I'm so close." she thought as she continued running. A little further down the path was a turn, further down the turn was a group of people, a few on the younger side; children. The men were getting closer and closer to her. Luxanna made a decision and did not turn on the path. Instead, she hurried in through a few trees and continued on. Luckily, and like she expected, they followed. Luxanna almost regretted the decision. This just took her off the path of the city. Suddenly she felt something hit the back of her leg and caused her to fall to the ground. "Ahhh!!" she screamed again, looking back to see them right on her. "Got you, ya little bitch!" one of them grabbed her ankle and pulled her into the air. "Ahhhh!" she screamed again, the pain through her leg being pretty bad. Luxanna saw a small dagger in his belt and grabbed it. She quickly infused it and shot off a small beam of light that had enough pressure to push him and the man behind him down. She was dropped. She quickly created three lights and threw them towards each of their faces. The lights popped, causing them to become blinded for a short moment. This moment allowed Luxanna to get up and run, though the pain in her leg was slowing her down. She glanced back while running and saw that they were not there. As she looked back, she suddenly stopped and looked down a cliff. "... You have got to be kidding me." she said as she heard them catching up to her. With slight hesitation and knowing she was going to regret this, Luxanna jumped. As she fell, she closed her eyes, shed a single tear, and finally her body splashed into a river, knocking her out in the process.

Days passed and finally Luxanna woke up with a fright, rapidly sitting up from her bed. "Ah!" she screamed as she came out of her sleep. Looking around, she had woken up in a nicely furnished room and was covered in a blanket. A woman came rushing in, asking if she was alright. "Wh-Where am I?" she asked. "You're in Iserlohn, my dear. My husband and I watched you jump off of that cliff to get away from those men... We brought you here, to our home." the woman told her and Luxanna smiled, taking in multiple deep breaths. "Thank you. Thank you, so, so much." Luxanna said, relieved that she hadn't fallen into the clutches of those men. "I need to see the Emperor." Luxanna said and pushed herself out of bed. "You can't go like this, you're hurt badly... People can't just go see the Emperor." the woman told her and Luxanna shook her head in reply. "I'm sorry, but it is my mission and there is something else I must speak with him about." Luxanna said and began looking for the exit, "I will repay you. May I ask your name?" A man stood and suddenly blocked her way, "She is my wife Lydia and I am Jacob Drakson. You should not leave in this condition." "I will repay you for saving my life, but my mission is both personal an urgent... I will get it done. Please excuse me." Luxanna left their home with no more words and asked someone where the Palace was. She was directed and luckily she was very close. With how large a city this was, she was shocked that she was able to get this close. It was good luck on her side for once. Usually she'd have to make a four hour walk just to get there.


"M-Maybe... they were right." Luxanna thought as she struggled her way through the city to get to the Palace. She realized now, after the initial shock was over, she really was horribly injured. Her right leg, the one that was struck by those men, was in so much pain she could not walk normally. She felt like a rib or two might have been broken and the only easing of her left arm was her holding it tightly to her body as she walked. She knew it was broken. It was pretty hard to breath when every step caused you to gasp in pain. It took thirty minutes, but after the long struggle, she finally made it to the Palace. The first thing she did was try and speak to a Guard. "I r-really need to speak with the Emperor." Lux said through a breath of pain, "Part of it is urgent, other is a request. M-May I... pleas-..." Lux was interrupted by the guard, "No one is allowed to see the Emperor at this time. Come back when you're someone important enough to grace the Emperor with your presence." Well that took her by surprise. Lux looked at him with a shocked expression at his rudeness and then her expression just dulled to an 'are you fucking serious'. "Miss! I apologize for the rudeness. What I am sure he means is that you need to go through steps to get to see the Emperor. You don't just walk up and ask to see her." a nicer guard came forward and explained. "I see... Thank you" Lux said and nodded as she turned and walked away, "I swear to god, Pariah... You better be having more luck that I am." She began walking away when she realized something. "Oh, I should not do that." she thought, but decided that yes, she was going to break probably a million rules to get her job done.

"Shit..." she thought, continuing to walk away before casting a certain spell. Her body suddenly vanished in sight, became completely intangible, and no one would be able to sense her Arcana or hear her movements. "This is so stupid..." she thought, knowing she was going to get herself into a hell of a lot of trouble. "I've got two hours before the spell ceases and I need to be careful on how quickly that I move." she thought and turned back towards the Palace, walking right passed the guards she had spoken to. She gave a mental apology to the kind one and glared at the rude one before keeping a steady walking pace into the castle. Though she was still in pain, she did her best to walk right. Her body was in a lot of pain and wasn't making it easy for her though. As she entered the castle, she began looking around, wondering exactly where she should look first. "How the hell am I going to explain to the Emperor that I broke into her house to talk to her?" she thought to herself, her expression dulling under the invisibility cloak she created over herself, "Hi Emperor... Wait, they mentioned she was female... Empress! Hi Empress, I am so sorry to break into your home in such a suspicious manner, but trust me, I've come in peace! Wanted to warn you of these-.. Arg, I'd have me killed. Aye, I hope she's as kind as all the rumors say she is." Luxanna sighed and continued looking around until finally she came to what is obviously the main hall. "Wow..." she thought, her eyes examining the entire place in awe.

A low gasp exited the woman's mouth the moment she realized that her cloak had been knocked open. She knew she had been seen, so before it had the chance to re-cloak her, she dispelled it. This was not good. Oh my god, this was not good. She looked around in a bit of a panic, though it was obvious that she just looked lost beyond all reason. It probably happened a lot, someone getting lost in this massive palace. A man walked up to her and she turned to him with a slight grimace expression. Obviously she was not disgusted with him or anything of the like, no. The fact was, she was in an immense amount of pain and the sudden revealing of her pretty much breaking into the palace gave her an instinctual jolt. "Ow..." she said before she even attempted answering his questions. She placed her hand on her arm and pulled it into her body to prevent it from just hanging around. Seeing as this man was polite, she didn't know what to do. "I-I'm... here to see the Empero-... Empress." Luxanna said, trying to think up a lie of sorts and speak through the pain, "God damn it. I don't want to lie to you." Luxanna glanced off, knowing she was about to be in trouble if she straight out told him how she broke in. She was taking deeper and deeper breaths and began to look around to sit down somewhere, but the quick glance showed her nothing.

"Look, I did something stupid a-and I'm sorry, but those guards at the entrance were no help." Luxanna told him, shaking her head, her voice strained as she fought to breathe, "I-I... b-broke in. I mean no harm, but there are people that do and they're the one's that did this to me." Luxanna's feet gave out from under her and she began collapsing to the ground. "I just... P-Please, is there any way that I can see her? I don't care if it's in front of every single guard in this Palace. If I do anything to even attempt to harm her, you can take my life. I just need to ask her a couple of questions and explain to her about the men that are running around her kingdom harming anyone that fits my description!!!" Luxanna forced out the words. Once she stopped, she just kept her eyes to the floor and continued taking deep breaths, trying her best to calm down. This was almost too much for her, but she had to get the point across some how.

"Emperor?" Luxanna nodded and went back to the term. It was odd for her to say Empress for some strange reason anyway. "Yes, I apologize." Luxanna said and continued speaking with the correction. Luxanna really did not want to lie to him, so she spouted off the truth the best she could. When she heard him sigh, she became nervous. "I can say that you're much kinder than the first I spoke to..." Luxanna replied to him with a weak smile before having fallen to the ground. He spoke up over her injuries and she could only nod. Her mission was close at hand, so she was glad that she came, but she still wished she had waited a few days to be healed. This moving around with bad injuries was taking a huge toll on her body. "Thank you. Yes, I can agree to those terms." Luxanna attempted to push herself to her feet, but stopped when pain shot through her arm, "S-So, I just... keep looking straight forward or to the floor? Th-That's fine, but am I allowed to look at the Emperor? I don't think she'll take me seriously if I can't look her in the eye when speaking." At this point, Luxanna wasn't sure she was going to have enough strength to look up.  "I can do this." she said to herself and with a strong burst of will, she pushed herself to her feet, quickly placing her uninjured leg under her to take on most of her weight. "Alright..." she said, letting out a breath of relief and looked to him, "L-Lead the way... Oh, and my name is Luxanna Luminere in case anyone asks." And from there, she would follow him.

Lux closed her eyes, "Oh no..." She had to let go of her arm? She already walked around with a broken leg, probably a broken rib, and now had to stop the one thing that was lessening the pain in her arm. She merely nodded and let the arm loose before opening her eyes again. "I understand." she said and began following his directions. At first she wondered why he walked behind her, but then realized it was the more logical way of escorting someone through the Palace. No sneak attacks. She could respect that. The only problem she had was hiding her limp completely. If someone asked, she could just say that she had a bum leg, but if they later found out she lied, she could be in a lot of trouble. She also didn't want to get the man who was kind enough to help her in trouble, so she'd do as he said and say nothing. "It's rude to introduce someone?" Luxanna blinked in confusion. She thought it would be more polite to introduce Luxanna and make it where the Emperor would not have to do the work. Oh well. If this was how they preferred it, then this is how she would act. As they walked, Luxanna glanced around as casually as she could, even giving kind smiles to the guards they passed by. Of course, the pain was getting to her and she was not sure how long she was going to last like this. Finally, they came to the room and Luxanna's eyes immediately laid themselves on the Emperor. "Oh my..." she mumbled, blinking a few times at the woman she saw.

"Th-Thank you." Luxanna did her best to curtsy towards the Emperor, but her arm didn't exactly move like it should have. She hoped it wouldn't be seen, but it obviously was. A chair was asked for her and she gladly sat down, after looking towards the man who had helped her with an apologetic expression. The moment she sat down, the most relieved looked came onto her face. There was really no way of hiding it. There was little pressure on her likely broken rib, arm, or her broken leg. "Oh, no. I need no more hospitality than I have already been shown." Luxanna smiled to the man who had helped her, trying to give him all credit she could, "Emperor, I apologize, but I do not know your full name. Mine is Luxanna Luminere. I originally came from the Open Lands to request something of you, but that has recently changed. I apologize greatly for not having an appointment. I usually would have done this the correct way, but I feel that you must know there are men moving through the Zakatian Empire looking for a certain person. Apparently a young woman  with long blonde hair, wearing a dress annihilated a group of brutes while they were trying to apprehend a young girl wearing white. These men attacked me thinking I was this woman and chased me for days until I finally made it to this city. The only reason I am alive is because of a couple, Jacob Drakson and his wife, saving my life." Luxanna spoke like she normally does, with a gentle voice, but a resolute tone behind it. She kept eye contact with Tsubine the entire time and once she stopped, stayed silent until asked to speak again.

"Zarkonheinz?" Luxanna replied and blinked her eyes as if she were surprised by the name, "Please excuse my expression, but I believe there is another matter at hand. I will explain that after my initial point." Lux quickly explained everything she needed to explain and appreciated the fact that the Emperor was listening so intently. "She knows?" Luxanna thought and then nodded in reply. She listened to the Emperor, but highly disagreed with her reaction towards it. "Trivial?" Luxanna repeated back to her in a shocked tone, "I apologize, but I highly disagree with that. This matter is not trivial. I was chased by six different groups with numbers up to fifteen through out the entire southern land of your Empire and even before I entered Zakat. And this happened all because I have the same color hair as some other woman? We could not count the amount of women have blonde hair and wear a dress even in one city. Their numbers are large, ma'am, and I am sure I did not run into every one. I fear for the town, city, and village people who they will relentlessly run down to find who they're looking for. If they were willing to chase me to the edge of this very city, can we even guess what they would do to someone they caught?" The look on Luxanna's face was one not easily described. She was both angry and scared. She had a fire in her eyes when she spoke. Her friends knew that when she spoke like this, she was putting her very being into the meaning of her words.

"Please forgive me, Emperor. You are correct. That is not my original reasoning for coming here. I merely felt it might be more important. Either way..." Luxanna pushed herself up and sat straight in the chair, placing her hands into her lap and ignoring the pain that this non-relaxed position caused, "I am a member of a group called The Noir. We are not very large and most call us a guild of sorts, but we prefer to be recognized as a family. We are a group of people, weak, strong, poor, and rich... who seek to act as help for those in need. For some time now, we have done little jobs here and there for anyone who could not. As an example, ridding a village of an attacking dragon, escorting a caravan between cities, or even something as simple as helping an elderly couple with chores around their home... Now, we know that it isn't something many think of or even like the idea of, but we were hoping to be able to have a settlement within Zakat. We understand that your guards are here to protect the people of the city, but they do not need to be bothered with trivial matters. They are an army of strong soldiers, we are a group of skilled workers, assistants, and guides. All we ask is permission to build, buy, or even rent a building within either of your main cities and take on the requests of your people that your Military should not have to, or even do not want to have to deal with. We make our own money and take care of ourselves. We would just like permission to do it."

"I understand..." the words practically came out in a light whisper, though audible enough for anyone around to hear. Luxanna was completely taken aback. Never before had she stood in front of a leader of any of the territories, nor had she heard someone speak with such a strong will. For someone to actually move Luxanna with their words was a big deal. No one could normally do such a thing. During her speech, Luxanna could not take her eyes off of the Emperor. "She's amazing..." was Luxanna's only thought through out the entirety of this beautiful woman's speech. And when the speech ended, the smile could only warm Luxanna's heart. "What is this?" she asked herself before she cleared her throat and moved on to speaking about The Noir. She felt awkward speaking about The Noir, knowing that normally someone would have to go through a much more lengthy process to even get this close to her. Now that she knew that she should have reported it to the Guard, she felt sort of stupid. This was now how Luxanna usually did things, so she felt out of place. Once she finished and the Emperor explained the situation with the guards, Luxanna nodded a few times.

"I see... Well, besides what I have already told you, I can tell you that we intend to have eight leaders that we call Devotes. The Devotes are not just the strongest, but those who have a strong foundation with The Noir and wish to live by the goals and beliefs of The Noir. We each have a small pet, a Felli that is drawn to us by the power we have within ourselves. Mine is not with me because she is sickly and needed her rest." Luxanna explained as clearly as she could, "We moderate our own members, though if a member breaks a law that requires they be disciplined by the Empire, then we will hand them over without hesitation. We are also attempting to establish branches in other territories as well. Pariah and I, the founders of The Noir, are the only one's currently sent out, but he has made his way to Arcadia. If a branch was established here, we would happily act as messengers between territories. Also, if one were to be established in Zakat, I would be the one heading it." Luxanna stayed silent, thinking to herself whether she got all of the details out that she needed known. "If you have any questions, Emperor, I would be quite happy to answer them."

"But first I do have a statement. If I were to allow your organization to set up a branch within our Empire, I am afraid I could not permit you nor your organization to act as 'messengers' between territories. That is far too risky considering the Empire's position."

"Completely understandable. A position such as that would only be at the request and permission of the Emperor." Luxanna immediately reassure Tsubine with a quick and motivated response.

"Even though Arcadia is currently the target of a recent project to help ease tensions between the Empire and the other great kingdoms, I would not feel as though what your organization would help. I believe the dialogues that are between two nations themselves mean more than if there were to be a third party involved. Of course that is not diminishing the fact that your organization could help in that regard, I simply do not feel that would be a viable reason."

"Yes, of course. Everything within The Noir is done upon request. Using the two nations as an example, the only way we would actually assist is if Queen Aranhartte or yourself had requested us to do so. We are always there and willing to help, but would never do so against your wishes." Luxanna smiled kindly to the Emperor, calmly addressing the situation to the best of her ability. Seeing the Emperor change position, Luxanna's attention was pulled into a more serious state. Luxanna merely nodded along with the Emperor until she asked all of her questions, memorized them, and then took a deep breath. "Of course. Pariah... Well..." Luxanna glanced off to the right as she recalled her friend. As she thought of him, her expression softened and a familiar smile came to her lips. "He's... a goofball." she said quite bluntly, "He's not the type you'd expect, at first glance, to lead anything. He's kind, fun, a little immature and naive at times, but he's got one of the purest and most loyal hearts you can imagine. Honestly, I would call him the heart of The Noir, while I am the brain. He's a great guy." Luxanna actually dazed for a moment, a flashback coming to her before she quickly snapped out of it.

"To answer your next question, yes actually. Pariah and I both are." Luxanna said and then came up with an idea on the spot, "If you would like, Emperor... Right now, we are merely branching out to try and help more people, but once we become more settled and absolute, if you choose to allow us a branch within Zakat, I can give you a monthly update on every member that has chosen to join The Noir. The report can include names, appearance, their current living quarters. I will also include whether or not they are an Arcanist, and if they are their class; Evoker, Scholar, or Sorcerer. I would say I'd include their powers as well, but though I want to be able to establish a trust between us, as you said, some look upon Arcanist with scorn. There is also the safety and privacy of our members as well..." Luxanna kept a straight and professional demeanor through out the entire conversation, but oh my goodness did this next question throw her off. She was stuck. Her face froze with a drop jaw and she blinked a few times before shaking her head out of the trance. "My goodness... A felli is actually very, very common. I guess not in Zakat, but they are these tiny creatures with cute faces and longer ears. Like with many animals, their are different breeds. The breeds are based off of a lot of the elements within Aurora. Their are eight I believe. There is the  Normal, Fire, Electric, Water, Leaf, Ice, Light, Dark, and Fae. Light, Dark, and Fae being the rarest of the breeds."

Everything seemed to be going great when the Emperor replied. It almost felt like they were having a casual conversation, sort of observing each other, while keeping a professional appearance. It wasn't something Luxanna was used to, but she did enjoy it. "That's the second time now..." Luxanna thought when she noticed a certain tint change in the Emperor's skin. She had noticed it before, but pushed it off just in case it was some sort of fluke, or even in her own imagination. The Emperor was quite cute when she was like that. She was a natural beauty who held a strong stance, but still had this gentle aura about her. Luxanna felt completely relaxed in the Emperor's presence. It was a strange, yet nice feeling. Seeing that the Emperor wanted to see a Felli, Luxanna immediately had an idea. She always had a way of checking up on her little Lina, so she could use that to show the Emperor. Right as she was about to bring it up, Tsubine spoke up again and her words struck a little disappointment in Luxanna. She stayed silent and listened to the Emperor, and she could tell that Tsubine wouldn't mind it happening, but she was more worried about the reactions and feelings of her people. "No, of course not. There are always chances to reconsider. If it cannot happen now, then hopefully times will change and the possibility can open up again later." Luxanna was once again going to bring up the Felli, but the guard behind her caused her to jump in her chair. The sudden movement reminded Luxanna of her injuries and she had to fight not to scream.

"I truly hate to turn down such an offer, but I feel that I must soon see a doctor or healer of sorts." Luxanna said in a very strained tone as she forced herself into a straight sitting position, "B-But before I do that, there are two things I would like to speak of... If you don't mind..." Luxanna didn't exactly wait. Her hands began to glow, which would probably catch the attention of the guards, but a short moment later a 'screen' of sorts appeared. "This is Lina. My Felli. She is of the rare light breed. I found her a few months back, sick and malnourished. Since then, she has become a great friend of mine." On the screen was a perfect picture of a small pink animal with a red dot on her forehead. She was lying in a bed, with a small blanket over her with a water bowl and food next to her. "It seems that they're taking good care of her as well... Thank goodness..." Luxanna took a few moments look at Lina and then sighed in relief before dropping the spell. Her mind immediately went to the third matter that she had concern over and then she looked right back to the Emperor. "I hate to bring something like this up, but you said your last name was Zarkonheinz, right?" Luxanna sat there and waited for an answer, "Do you recognize the name... Eira von Zarkonheinz?"

Luxanna just felt like she had stepped on a landmine. The moment she saw the color fade from Emperor Tsubine's face, she felt her own heart skip a beat. “What did I just do?” she thought to herself, her own inner voice coming in horror. As if some sort of omen, things darkened. This did not allow Luxanna to feel any better. She felt part of her slipping away, her body becoming weaker with the lack of light in the room. She gulped silently, taking in a slow breath as the feeling washed over her body. Seeing Tsubine order everyone out and seal her in, Luxanna's eyes widened in terror, her heart raced, and she had to fight the urge to stand and run. She glanced towards the door as it was shut and locked, her head snapping back towards Tsubine with wider eyes as the woman began walking towards her. She couldn't speak. “T-Trouble?” Luxanna's frail mind repeated the words to herself. As Tsubine came closer, Luxanna felt herself pushing her body back into the chair she was sitting in. As if she could go back any further, Luxanna began lowering her body into it, wanting to move away from this frightening aura that the Emperor gave off. She even looked away from Tsubine and to the ground, not feeling right to look the woman in the eyes. She almost regretted mentioning it, but then she heard the slip-up. Luxanna's gaze shot back up to the woman and she muttered two words. “Your... sister?” Luxanna said in almost a whisper. She doubted the Emperor wanted that to be noticed, but at the moment it wasn't something that she could merely ignore. “She's... your sister.” Luxanna had a few facts enter her mind, “Blonde hair... the dress and armor... your eyes are different, but the name is too unique for some random woman to share... How could someone so beautiful and kind like yourself... be related in any way... to such a monster.” Probably not the best of words, but Luxanna was in such shock that it didn't matter. She could not believe for one bit that Tsubine was related to that woman.

It had been years since Luxanna felt such fear. It wasn't every day that a random woman walked up to the leader of one of the Six Kingdoms and angered them to this point. Truthfully, she feared for her life, but that changed. Her words on this woman, Eira von Zarkonheinz. She no longer knew her sister. That brief allowance of information made Luxanna calm down completely. She closed her eyes and let out a slow breath. She felt bad for the Emperor now. Glancing away, back to Tsu, and then towards her pocket all in quick succession, Luxanna reached into her dresses pocket. "I am very sorry, but... I don't think you know your sister anymore." Luxanna said, her own words choking within her throat in fear and sorrow. She pulled out a piece of paper and flipped it over to reveal it to be a picture. It was of a young woman with white hair and blue eyes. "If you wish to know more about your sister, this is the girl you will need to see." Luxanna said as she held the picture out to Tsubine, "This girl and another are witness to multiple murders that a woman looking just like you, with the name I mentioned, committed along the southern borders of Arcadia. Her name is Nadia Cyanea. She's... an interesting person, but she's very kind. I know she will answer any questions you ask. Just know that even mentioning that woman's name around Nadia frightens her horribly." Luxanna glanced away and stayed quiet for a moment to allow everything to sink in. "I am sorry for insulting you and bringing you such horrible news. I j-..." Luxanna sighed a little and looked back towards her with a more serious and determined expression, "I just hope that they are two completely different people... I don't want this woman to be your sister, but if it is... I need you to know that she's a target of The Noir. She's been considered a Rogue Arcanist for years now and is wanted for mass murder in both Arcadia and Cieria."

“Ahhhhh!!!” Luxanna was unable to hold back the scream of pain as her face was suddenly struck by the harsh metal of the Emperor's gauntlet. She felt the gauntlet tear through her skin while that brief moment sent her flying from the chair, the force being that powerful. Her body fell hard, slamming into the hard ground, causing Luxanna to let out another short scream, followed by a whimper as she laid there for a short moment. Before she could do anything else, she felt the metal of a blade touch her neck and her eyes widened in horror. Looking up to the Emperor and seeing those tears broke her own heart. To make such a strong woman cry this way, she felt tears fighting their way to the surface as well. She wondered why she was not fearing for her life when she had a blade to her throat, but it was easy to realize. The Emperor was mad, furious at her, but she was not a senseless murderer. “I'm sorry...” was all she could mumble before she pulled out the picture of Nadia and showed it to Tsubine. The image was snatched angrily from her hand, but still she did not retaliate. She only wanted to ease Tsubine's thoughts and stop those tears at this point. She didn't like seeing it, so maybe this little ray of hope to find out whether this woman was really her sister would help that idea?

“I told you the name frightened her so you could take care. If you say that name, Nadia will shut down, she will run. I understand my words here have hurt you, the idea of your sister being a murder is obviously unbearable, but I also know by this short meeting that you are not senseless. You are kind and caring. You are also strong, since a weaker person would likely have beheaded me for what I have done here today.” Luxanna spoke up to Tsubine with a dulled expression, but that was done only to fight the tears she felt coming. And then Tsubine spoke up about the way she spoke of her sister. Luxanna's demeanor switched up, anger coming to her own eyes. “OF COURSE I DON'T WANT IT TO BE YOUR SISTER!” she forced herself up to her feet with a burst of adrenaline and actually, foolishly, shouted towards Tsubine. At this point, tears were falling from her eyes. “Do you really believe I came here to insult you? To hurt you!? Do you think I enjoy seeing you so upset at me?! I did not speak about this Eira von Zarkonheinz to insult and treat your sister as a monster. The moment I heard your name, the only thing that came to my mind was the possibility that someone was out there tarnishing your name. It did not even cross my mind that she might be your sister or someone of any relation to you.” Luxanna felt her body buckling in on itself, but she fought to keep herself as straight as possible. She put most of her weight onto the uninjured leg and held her arm to herself, ignoring the blood dropping from her now throbbing face.

“If it is your sister and the Noir find her first... I will make Zak-... I will make you my priority. The Noir are always attempting to track her movements, so if we receive any new information, I will personally make sure that you are the first to know. I was not the one originally on the case, but when I get back I will put myself there...” Luxanna told her, trying to ease the tension so she knew that Luxanna really was on her side with this, “I'm sorry that our meeting took such a horrible turn. The only reason I spoke up about it was because of your last name. I never meant to anger or hurt you. I understand your decision on the Noir, but know that I will keep my word. The bridge will never burn, the offer will stand, and you will be the first one to hear of any news on this person with the same name as your sister.” Luxanna was doing her best to keep herself conscious, but after that last hit, her vision was blurry. She stumbled off to the side, feeling lightheaded and almost losing her balance. Quickly catching it, Luxanna took in a deep breath, knowing that she was not going to last much longer like this.