Unbeknownst to me, certain undercurrents began to flow. Some resided in the DG Cult itself, but some events have already started to take place in the outside world.
Somewhere in western Erebonia...
If one continued westward from Trista and Thors Military Academy and beyond the capital, Heimdallr, they would enter a similar-sized town, Leeves. It would be here that Thors Military Branch Campus makes its first appearance during the latter half of Cold Steel.
Beyond that, if one continued along the main road, they would come across a popular tourist destination, Gala Lake. While not as big as one of Liberl's wonders, Valleria Lake, it still had its breathtaking views, which included a very wide waterfall. Nearby was the town of Milsante, which offered a wide variety of goods and rest to said tourists.
Further beyond the town of Milsante was a popular cultural spot which behaved quite similarly to Crossbell City, Raquel. Many theaters and gambling sites were situated here, an entertainment city, so to say. It was much more crude compared to other cities of Erebonia.
Back when it was still S1194, there seemed to be some interesting developments in Raquel. A scruffy-looking information broker finished his business in Parm to the southeast, only to make his way home with a newly added family member in tow, at least temporarily. A snot-nosed brown-haired brat who had long run out of tears from crying too much. This man was Miguel, and he became pleased seeing the boy no longer making a fuss as they returned to Raquel. It did not take long for Miguel to find a potential client to take the boy in. Miguel knew he was quickly attracting the soldiers' attention, so he wanted to get rid of the boy quickly.
In the end, a local hostess who called herself Ellen accepted the boy, and became her adopted son. She adopted him without learning of the boy's extenuating circumstances for having survived the Hamel Tragedy. On that day, the boy swore he would take revenge on what transpired on that fateful night, and became grateful to Ellen who accepted him wholeheartedly. He also vowed to protect his new mother, and threw his old name away, Johan.
It was then the new name, Ash Carbide, was born, taking on his adoptive mother's last name.
From there, Raquel became even livelier.
Not too far away from Raquel was one of the more dangerous spots in all of Erebonia. A long and twisty canyon with elevated platforms that one could easily fall off of if.
This was Languedoc Canyon.
Those who were seeking a challenge would come to this canyon which was fraught with danger around every corner, both upward and downward. The paths crisscrossed like no tomorrow. One could encounter monsters on an elevated ridge, or deep within the canyon. It was the ideal battlefield to test out all kinds of different tactics. And above all, it was infested with monsters.
Presently, a small figure, who seemed no older than five or six years old, managed to wander into this dangerous canyon. Alone.
By some miracle, they avoided every single monster they came across. Every step they took, they appeared tattered. This person seemed to be a girl. Her hair was a complete mess, and dried up blood could be seen on her torn shirt. The shirt itself was far too large to call it her own. Lots of dirt painted her hair a dirty color, hiding away a nice shade of white.
Spotting a tree nearby, the girl decided to sit down. Was she lost, perhaps?
For some reason, the girl couldn't find her way. More than likely, she was lost. She didn't feel much energy left in her body. She couldn't move from her current spot.
Before long, the girl felt a cold wind chill strike against her loose shirt, causing her to shiver. It was then she detected several presences approaching the girl.
Not those of monsters. No, what the girl detected were fellow humans, much like herself.
"Oioi, you can't be serious. A brat actually managed to squeeze their way through this far in?", A rough voice said, calling out to the girl. It belonged to a man. He reached for her ears, only to get berated by a second voice. This one belonged to a woman.
"Oh can it, you stupid bear. You'll frighten the poor girl if you approach her directly like that. Granted, you aren't wrong. We do not see many wanderers into the canyon around these parts. Let alone a little brat like you.", The woman said. It didn't take long for these two to arrive in front of the girl. A man, and a woman.
Both of them wore a uniform of sorts in similar fashion. The little girl attempted to lift her eyes up at them, and just tilted her head to the side without much reaction. After she attempted to look at the two, a third figure soon followed. They then spoke.
"Not much of a response I see. What should we do, Boss?", The person said, appearing to be another man. He towered over the other two, and had quite the amount of muscle packed onto his body. He hid his eyes away with some black shades.
"It really does beg the question how you managed to even wander here in the first place, little one.", A fourth voice said, coming from behind the three people. "How the heck did you get this far in?"
Hearing that, the little girl spotted the fourth figure beside the three, but still didn't show much reaction. She didn't have a lot of energy to spare.
Going back to the first three people, they were Jaegers. Powerful ones at that!
They each held their own moniker. A title each one of them earned while fighting on the battlefield. The first man was the Killing Bear. The second man was called the Behemoth. As for the woman, she was called the Firebird. They were all strong in their own right, and led their own squads as part of their Jaeger corp. Several other lower-ranked Jaegers saw what was happening, but didn't dare to intervene.
The moment the fourth figure decided to approach the girl, she felt all the hairs on her back flare up, yelling at her to run away from this man. He was dangerous. Far more dangerous than the three people before her. But could she even run at this point?
This man was none other than the man who Naoto briefly crossed paths with while he sat atop His Imperial Majesty's orbal car along with Roselia. This took place a few years ago. And now, a few years later, this man presently stood within the depths of the Languedoc Canyon. One simply begged the question, just how did such a tattered little girl make it this far into this place? All four of them were surprised to see the girl here.
The girl didn't have much energy left. All she could do was look up at him, causing the man to chuckle.
"Heh, those are eyes I know well. You're a lost lamb, aint'cha? Quite a fortunate one to make it this far. Where'd that take ya?", The man asked, his tone appearing quite laid back.
"Dunno.", The girl replied. "Anywhere but there..."
"So you don't know. But that's alright. The progress you've made so far, I like it. I've taken a liking to ya, kid.", The man said, smiling at her. The girl just looked back at him, confused.
Killing Bear shifted his eyes toward the man, also confused.
"Oi, you aren't seriously considering taking in this brat, are you, Boss?", Killing Bear asked. Firebird scoffed at his words.
"Tch. You're such a buzz kill, Killing Bear. What's wrong with a new recruit? Better than letting the brat die out here all alone. If that happened, it'd be meaningless, you know?", Firebird responded, looking at him.
The girl didn't respond, but nodded her head in silence, acknowledging her words. Seeing the girl do this, the man laughed again.
"Haha! Well ya see kid, I'm kinda known 'round these parts. They call me the Jaeger King, as embarrasin' as the name sounds. But just for you missy, ya can call me Rutger Claussell. What do they call you?", Rutger said, introducing himself to the girl.
"Fie...", The girl responded.
"So the name's Fie, eh? Very good. From this day forth, you will be my daughter. Fie Claussell. Has a nice ring to it. Dont'cha think?", Rutger said, smiling again. "Any objections ladies and gents?"
"None. Welcome aboard Fie. It is always a welcome for someone to join our ranks.", Behemoth said, nodding his head.
"Neither from me, Boss. I've always wanted a little sister to play around with.", Firebird happily responded.
"This is going to be such a pain in my ass...", Killing Bear said, but he didn't outright reject Rutger.
"Good. They call us Zephyr. Glad to have ya, Fie.", Rutger said, and reached his hand downward at Fie. This was the moment that would decide Fie's path. If she chose to remain here, she would likely die from starvation. But if she followed and joined Zephyr, she would become one of them.
Fie remained silent for a moment. Her dull eyes regained some vigor, and deciding right then and there, she accepted Rutger's hand...