The Lantern

Having sleeping Alice on my leg, I carefully slid away. Taking the feather from her hand, I put it inside her jacket. Crouching, I lift Alice. Carrying her into a nearby park, I lay her on the bench.

"Goodnight Alice." Walking away, I feel my shoulder brun like crazy, Needing to treat my wound, I head in the direction of our apartment. Not knowing why, my wound doesn't stop bleeding, but when I noticed it, my apartment is not even near me.

Looking around, I see the street name. [St, Nicolas Retreat.] "My luck is never ending." Walking along the street, I spot a church, a small one, but a church nonetheless.

Pushing the door open with my body, the priest yelps in disbelief. "Child! You need a doctor!"

Not letting him finish, I pat over my clothes only to find it missing. "Latin... how was it..." Running up to me the priest puts his and on my clothes. "Child you need help!" Waving him away, I yell. "Miseri..... Miseri-cordiam in d-d-d-deserendo deserendo!!!! Or something like that!"

God, I should have paid more attention during my Latin lessons. "Mercy upon the forsaken! God! Just get me to Gabriel!" Almost falling over, I catch myself on my cane.

Stumbling towards the altar, we hear loud resounding stomps. Turning around, I see the blue-haired saint. "Gabriel, I-" Hitting me in the face, I fall onto the floor.

"God's mercy Saint Gabriel you can't hit people like that!" Waving the priest off, he lifts my unconscious body. "Saint Gabriel! That Holy sister is having a bad influence on you! We should-" Feeling a cold shiver down his spine, the priest goes silent.

"Anything else?" Gabriel asks. Not getting a response, he walks out of the church.

Feeling like I'm being carried on a wild horse, I wake up to the world-shaking around me. Starting to get motion sickness, I puke all over the blue-haired person. Letting go of me, they come to a sudden stop.

Flying through what seems to be a large door, I land on a sofa. Wiping my face into my sleeve, I see a fully plated knight covered in what seems to be someone's dinner. Raising my finger to say something, he just walks past me. getting to a table the armor fall off him as it was just held together by sheer belief.

"Gabriel, how are you doing?" Getting up and taking the emergency medkit off the wall, I hear. "Bad, Someone woke me up this early and puked all over me."

Nodding my head, I tell him that he has to have it pretty rough. Slamming his hands on the desk, he yells. "Is this it?! Did you just come to provoke me?" Shaking my head, I bite on my scarf, as I dig out the bullet.

*Cink* Falling on the metal plate, I stare at Gabriel. "The lantern has returned."

*Tick* Only the sound of the ticking clock could be heard, It was as if the world itself went silent at that.

*Tick* The clock ticks away another second and the world returns to the norm with Gabriel not even acknowledging that I thrown my cane at the clock.

"The lantern? Are you sure? Is there not some sort of mistake? I mean like a former member or something? Cause I clearly remember burning [Him] to ashes!" Shaking my head, I tell him of the encounter I had with, Alice.

No longer sitting but instead pacing from side to side of the room, Gabriel begins to pull on his hair. "Maybe [He] Had an heir we didn't know about....." Shaking my head, I say.

"If it was an heir he wouldn't be experienced enough to hide in the shadows like this. it's almost certainly... [Him]"

Collapsing into an armchair, Gabriel stays silent for a while. In the meantime running into the room is the holy sister. Spotting me and Gabrile she runs over to Gabriel. "Gab! You should have told me that you had a visitor!"

Checking on him, I see her eyes shine a bright yellow color. Turning to me, she asks for an explanation. Telling her about the Lantern and about what were discussing, she looks puzzled, since how can a secret organization pose any threat to anyone?

Getting out of the chair, Gabriel speaks up. "Rose, do you remember the great fire of Aquaria?" Tilting he head she replies. "Of course I know, it was 30 Years ago in 2068, why?"

Straightening his back, Gabriel explains. "That was no normal fire. It was a battle.... in the middle of Aquaria..... We've found this cult, [The Lantern Shadows] We didn't know what we were getting into, and before we knew it, giant parts of Aquaria were gone."

Remenesinc about it, Gabriel continues. "It was a hard thing to belief, the once-called city of new hope was burning, that cult.... it was way bigger than we anticipated, it took a whole week before we managed to suppress them."

Snapping my finger, I add some details. "You're forgetting the part where the cult let itself be found. They plan to take over." Jumping in, The nun, asks what I mean by the Plan to?!

"Well it's not over, we just found out that they still exist." Jumping up she she yells that we need to notify the pope about this. Immediately stopping her Gabriel explains.

"I do not question the loyalty of the pope, but it has already happened in the past, where a cardinal was a member of the Lantern." Stopping, she looks at Gabriel. "Then what are we supposed to do? I- I-" Letting go of Gabriel she begins to wander off.

"Is it a good idea to let her go just like that?" Shrugging his shoulders, Gabriel replies. "She's just gonna find some booze to fix this problem like always." Raising my finger, I remark. "That! I come she's so kind suddenly?"

Telling me that the tough and mean outside is just a facade she used to protect herself back when she wasn't the saintess, she remarks how he actually kind of likes it

"You've got weird fetishes, anyways what do you plan to do if [He] is truly alive?" Tapping the table again, he tells me that he's first gonna discuss this with his trusted friends. "Oh, and if I were you I wouldn't interact with Alice again, she could be using you."

Waving it off as Impossible, I say. "Absolutely not, it's clear that she's being manipulated by some magic or hypnosis!" Telling me that it could be an act, I ask him why she would act like it.

"To get you under their control? Raven you're the face of southern crime now, you're an important person and she's trying to use you!"

*Thud* Slamming my fist into his desk, I ask. "So what about before then?! Before I was someone?! Back when Alice and I used to attack copycats of the Lantern?!"

Clapping his hands Gabriel pushes back."You could have just been helping them eliminated the copycats! and once the mission was over they staged her dead so you would leave her behind!"

Telling him, he's delusional, he pushes forward. "Think Raven, Why would she suddenly appear again? Just when you became one of the pillars of the underground, think Raven! Think!"

Arguing over it, it ends with me telling him to go to hell. Pulling the cane out of his clock, I storm off. "I'm going home on my own!"

"Fine! I didn't want to carry you anyways!" Storming out of his woodland mansion, I suddenly get picked up by running Gabriel. "I thought you were gonna let me go alone?"

Telling me that he can't risk me getting hurt by the lantern, he slows down a bit so we can talk better. Still running as fast as a car, he asks.

"I guess you didn't stick around for the royal banquette." Stopping my train of thoughts, I look Gabrile dead in the eyes. "You're telling me that it wasn't fake?!" Now he coming to a halt, he turns to me.

"Wait... you're telling me that you didn't go?! Not even a second?!" Nodding, Gabriel looks at his watch only, to practically scream in fear.

3:30 the banquet lasts till 5:30. Both seeing the royal palace in the distance. Gabrile get's into a full sprint. "I put my name on the line so you would show up at least for a second! What the hell did you do?!"

Not Being able to resist the sheer wind resistance, I try to just say the word, Alice.

"Right, you were having fun with her! God's not gonna overlook this Raven!"

Starting to slow down to let me catch a breath, I yell. "Well, I'm sorry! I thought that it was just Amber trying to invite me to do something without her family getting suspicious!"

Telling that if we're not gonna make it, he's gonna kill me, I yell at him to speed up then!