RM Vol 3: For a World without Boundary – Chapter 59-4: Happenstances elsewhere (Part 4)

RM Vol 3: For a World without Boundary – Chapter 59-4: Happenstances elsewhere (Part 4)

Tripoli, FOB Oscuriad. Jointly controlled by the Inquisition-Shadow colonial administration, this coastal city of Libya now serves as a foothold to maintain the coalition's control over former Sardegnian colonies. These colonies, namely Libya and the newly renamed Spaniard East Africa, are vast. The old Spanish Empire would be pleased to see its descendants rebuilding its colonial empire, if only in some facets. Rather than siphoning the lifeblood of the colonies to serve their new owner, the coalition administration prioritized the reconstruction of the colonies instead.

It's a strategic move from the new colonial government. By showing that the new owner actually cares about their well-being, the colonized populace would be unwilling to cause trouble for the time being. Rather, they will take the chance to help with the reconstruction effort and regain some of their formal livelihood. To gain the loyalty of the natives for the foreseeable future, however, it's decided that a restructuring of the colonial machine must be made.

Old Sardegnian despots are kicked out and put on public trial for their crimes against the colonized populace. It's mostly a sham of a trial, however, it does get the job done in improving the natives' morale. Then, members of the Spanish Inquisition and Shadow Company who were skilled in administrative tasks were picked to help manage the colonies. Some of these are recently 'recruited' by Shadow Company, they are quite lucky that their new members somehow got the necessary skill set for the job at hand.

The main purpose of this joint administration body is to ensure not just the rights of the new owner but also those of the natives. With the formalization of this governmental body, a new directive is issued, much to the shock and hope of the African citizens. During the rebuilding period, the majority of the resources acquired by the colonies will be invested back into the colonies, setting up new schools, hospitals, and housing areas... New laws and policies were made to improve the living standard of the African people. After everything is back on track and the new infrastructure is laid down, the new colonial administration will then resume siphoning the colonies' resources. However, they will be doing so on a percentage basis, rather than the absurd monthly or even weekly quotas that the Sardegnians used to impose. This means that at the end of each quarter, the mined resources will be summed up with a percentage of them going back to Spain while the others are then used to reinvest back into the colonies. It's a simple, but effective system, as long as there's a monitoring division to make sure the balancing checks are correct. Something quite easy to do with how morally uptight the Spanish Inquisition is, not to mention Shadow Company is there with exclusive order to keep everything going smoothly for their Spanish ally.

Anyway, the point is, that the new reorganized system is there sole to ensure a win-win situation for everybody. It won't be just Spain that will be getting richer, the African populace too will get a better way of life. For once, the Africans will be treated as actual living and sentient beings, giving them hope that there's a better future for them all. As long as they follow the impartial laws, of course. For all the promises that the colonial administration is willing to enact, they know that not every native will be willing to cooperate peacefully. This is where the new colonial police force comes in.

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The Crusaders have fallen out of grace, and hard at that. Natasha knows that, and every single remaining crusader knows it. Yet, Kallen is probably the only one who fully understands what this entails. The former Saintess is their leader, after all, and she comes to know a lot of things about their future. Yes, Kallen has renounced the position of Saintess that was given to her during her time with the Sardegnian Papacy. Honestly, Kallen feels that she is undeserving of a title that was made upon the blood of countless people, despite the protest from her battle sisters. If anything, Kallen would like to etch out a path of her own, something that is morally upright at least. It's what she has told her sisters, and something that Kallen hopes to achieve herself one day.

Of the remaining Crusaders, those that are still alive, Kallen is pleasantly surprised and moved to see that they all have given her a semi-public vow to stick with her through thick and thin. None of them chose to leave when offered a chance to a fresh start, a civilian life elsewhere. That goes to say that Kallen's position in their hearts outweighs everything. To them, their Saintess sister is still there, shining ever so brightly to ensure them all a good future and to do what she does best, being kind to everyone. The latter, though blemished by their stint in the Spanish-Sardegna war, has returned in full when the Crusaders are entrusted with new responsibilities.

After the Stockholm Conference, the Spanish Inquisition integrated a not-so-small number of sympathetic Sardegnian prisoners of war under their umbrella. Due to Kallen and the rest of the Crusaders' cooperative nature, and because of the unanimous decision made during the Conference, the Inquisition adopted the supersoldier group as additional manpower on a probational basis. To avoid an outcry from the Spanish populace, the inducted Sardegnians were transferred to the African colonies to bolster the police force there. Many of the normal Sardegnian soldiers are those who had taken the sideline near the end of the Spanish-Sardegna war, opting to fall under Kallen's leadership instead. It's why the Spanish Inquisition and Shadow Company deemed it acceptable for them to be put in the field. They're barely trustworthy enough with Kallen at the helm. Nonetheless, it's prudent to have a supervising unit as a safety precaution. This is where handlers from Shadow Company come in.

Giving the Crusaders and their subordinated force Spanish handlers may or may not cause some unforeseen conflicts. That's why the handlers are veteran Witches of Shadow Company instead. Many of them are officers who will be able to utilize this mixed forces of normal and enhanced individuals while simultaneously keeping them in line. One of the handlers is Staff Sergeant Langley, leader of the 6th Force Recon Section, Shadow Company. Now, she is holding the post of chief liaison between the colonial government and the Crusaders.

The girls chat for a bit more before moving on to do their work for the day, falling back to the usual rhythm of a more lively Africa. What they don't know is that also in Tripoli is an acquaintance of Kallen. To Kallen, she's a friend of sorts now, deemed missing during the Auschwitz fiasco. The woman is none other than an Ottile Apocalypse in disguise, and a very good one at that.

Gone away are her immaculate dresses and lab coat with her ever-calculating face. Now, Ottile presents herself as a gentle and wise, albeit a tad mischievous lady. Wearing a two-piece black and white dress alongside a wine-colored coat, Ottile's attire now features less superfluous elements, only retaining its comfort and subtle elegance. Her hair and eyes, formerly yellow and green in color, have their colors switched with one another. Utilizing her forbidden knowledge about the human body, Ottile has concocted something that allows her to modify a bit of her physical features. Nothing too serious, and it's quite painful, but it does get the job done in creating her new persona.

Now, even Kallen may not be able to recognize Ottile even if they're to stand face to face. Trust Ottile on that as she has intercepted Kallen once in Africa. The poor Saintess thought that Ottile's persona was just another damsel in distress. However, it irks Ottile to no end when she sees her favorite Saintess being lovey-dovey with that Raven. Nevertheless, Ottile accepts it with grace that she herself is not the best option as a romantic partner anyway. Kallen has picked a good choice for a partner, though Ottile will not sit by if that Raven dares make her Saintess cry.

Ottile, now goes by the legal name of Emma Planck according to the documents, once again reaffirming her desire to support Kallen from the sideline. Obviously, with how the world is right now after the Catastrophe, going about inhumane research without any backing is tantamount to suicide. The world has all unanimously agreed upon a stringent grasp on such activities, making it so that Emma's plan to relocate to the Rusviet Union fell through. Now without a base of operation, Emma can't exactly resume her endeavor without painting a giant target on her back.

Hence, for some time already, Emma has been shadowing Kallen, going from place to place, living using her talents in many fields as a freelancer. She has netted up a reputation around the Spanish colonies, and for the first time in a long time, it's a positive one. It feels... Oddly nice to be a good person, surprisingly. Still, Emma is a beautiful lady, much like her former identity of Ottile Apocalypse, and has gotten into a fair bit of trouble already. It's why she manages to build a new connection to the policing Crusaders, and ultimately a new bond with Kallen. Honestly, it's a weird, trippy feeling to act like a damsel in distress to Kallen out of the blue. Though Emma could have taken care of the thugs on her own, getting saved by Kallen and getting to know her once more was such an interesting experience.

That's enough about her adventure from Ottile to Emma though. Emma has recently been approached by a very intriguing party, one that seems highly interested in her skillset as a freelancer. Yet, more worryingly, they have left behind a hint that they know of her former life as an Apocalypse. Emma has no idea how they can trace her past to here, she has made sure to clean after herself properly. Nevertheless, it's apparently not enough. This is very troublesome because Emma is worried that a potential blackmail could implicate Kallen. So, tentatively, Emma has taken it upon herself to set up a meeting with this enigmatic party that wants her service. There are contingencies in place, Emma just hopes that it will be enough if things fall through.

Sitting in a coffee shop that is very much open to the public and next to a Crusader team's patrol route, Emma now awaits the other party to arrive. She has been idly caressing the rim of her coffee mug when someone pulls out the seat in front of her. It's a woman, no, a girl?

"Well met, Emma Planck. Or should I say, Miss Apocalypse?" The girl with long black hair and golden smirked dangerously. "I am Dreamer, and we have much to discuss."

At this point, Emma can't help but think that she is dealing with a Devil with how bone-chilling Dreamer's grin is. When Emma finally is allowed to leave the coffee shop, it's only when she has accepted an offer that's too good to be true. Even if her acceptance is a good thing, Emma thinks that she has no other choice but to say yes. On the bright side, at least the job will allow her to resume her life's work with regular paid leaves. More importantly, she may be able to officially work with Kallen, rather than scurrying around her.

So, is working with the Office of National Intelligence a win in Emma's book? Yes, yes it is. All is for Kallen and no one else.