THIS IS WAR

"So, what are you guys saying? The Empire is in some kind of Civil War?" "War" asked after "Wind" explained the situation to him.

"No not exactly. It's more like a Cold War, or a Secret War really." "Wind" replied, "None of the citizens even know about the conflict between the Emperor loyalists and High Command."

"Wait a minute. You said that the conflict was between the Emperor loyalists and High Command, but what about the Emperor himself? Where does he stand in this whole thing?" "War" asked.

"As you've probably figured out, the Emperor is pretty hands off in his approach to governing the Empire. Other than a few orders here and there he is more likely to be found partying than ruling. The Ministers of the Right and Left are the ones who actually rule the Emperor is basically just a figurehead, he's not actually involved in the conflict at all ironically enough." He continued.

"So if the Emperor isn't involved then what is the point of this conflict?" "War" asked.

"The Ministers want to keep the Emperor placated by giving him food and drink and women. They want to keep him isolated from anyone who would urge him to take power away from the Ministers and rule himself." "Wind" explained. "The Ministers have overseen many atrocities during their reign, and there are many who would want to see them gone. The only person who has the power to take them down is the Emperor himself."

"Hmm, ok, so what do we do now?" "War" asked while deep in thought.

"Well, Chihiro was known to be an Emperor loyalist. In fact he was trying to petition the Emperor to put a stop to High Command's oppressive actions. Ironically if you hadn't killed him, it's likely that they would have done it eventually." "Wind" said.

"The rest of us aren't really on a side, however our affiliation with Chihiro and now you; has put us in the crosshairs of High Command. They have been working against us for a while, I suspect that they had something to do with the Amazon Rouge incident as well." He continued.

"That being said, we're likely low on their list of priorities. If we keep a low profile and don't cause any more trouble we can probably stay off their radar. I think that would be the best course of action."

"Yeah that's a good point buddy. We probably shouldn't go picking sides. I mean I never meant to get involved in the first place." "War" said.

"Speaking of which, how are you feeling Captain? After your fight with "Star" I mean." "Wind" asked.

"I'm fine some bruises and broken bones but nothing that won't heal." "War" said

"That's not what I meant." "Wind" said. When "War" had first joined the Imperial Army he was truly convinced that he was the strongest. After all, once he had finished his training in Mongolia, there was no one on Earthia who could even be considered a challenge for him. Although he considered the likes of Chihiro and "Wind" to be on his level, he still hadn't faced anyone who he truly thought could defeat him. Thus he had formed an unshakable confidence in his combat ability that he carried into every fight. After being thoroughly defeated by "Star" "Wind" was worried that his confidence would be completely shattered.

"Well I really did get whooped huh?" "War" said. "And I really am grateful for that."

"Huh? What do you mean?" "Wind" asked clearly confused.

"When I first came out here I really did think that I was the strongest. But now I know that there's a totally different level of how strong I can get. It really fires me up." "War" said.

"Of course, I was a fool to worry at all." "Wind" said with a chuckle.

"War" took his leave with Toudou and Denjimi flanked behind him. As they walked down the hallway, "War" made sure the three were alone before he said, "I have two questions for you guys." He said as he stopped abruptly.

"Of course my lord ask us anything." Said Toudou.

"My first question is, why are you two so loyal to me? You've only met me a few weeks ago and yet you act like you've been my life long retainers. It's almost suspicious." "War" said.

"It's nothing of the sort my lord. As we said before the soldiers of Vercheg are fiercely loyal to the 7 Elements and you are their leader." Denjimi said.

"Yeah but I killed the last leader of the 7 Elements shouldn't you guys all hate me?" "War" asked.

"Not at all my lord, your fight against Lord Chihiro was an honorable dual, it's nothing a true warrior would hold a grudge over. Moreover, we have all heard of how you saved the rest of the 7 Elements as well as Lord Chihiro's family. That alone proved to us that you were deserving of our loyalty, and your actions in the last battle only reinforced that sentiment." Toudou said.

"You see My Lord, honorable warriors are unfortunately a rarity among Imperial officers." Denjimi added.

"Well I'm grateful for that, and that leads me to my next question. Between the Emperor and High Command, where does your loyalty lie?" "War" asked.

The two exchanged looks then took a knee and bowed their heads and said, "Our loyalty is to YOU My Lord." They said in unison. "And the same could be said for the men of Vercheg." Toudou added.

"That's good to hear, because we're not going to pick a side. We're going to crush both the Emperor and High Command. I know we don't have the power yet but we will build up our strength until we do. What do you say to that?" "War" asked.

The words "War" said were so ridiculous that their brains clearly told them that there was no way he could ever actually accomplish that feat. However, their hearts believed him completely and they said in unison, "Yes Sir!!".

The 7 Elements would go on to fight in 10 War Festivals over the next two weeks, winning every one by a score of 5-2. Their next task would be to conquer the planet of Orenden.