Children of Sol

Anglestan 

Janus 17, 1923 A.V

St. Solarias Orphanage, New Lundun

Latevia

The door to her room creaked open as she slowly stepped out—climbing out of the basement. She gazed upwards from the second step of the stairs, peering into the open window across from where she stood. The darkening sky gave her confidence to walk all the way up, her hands reaching up to check if her mask was placed perfectly on her face as she did. 

"Good evening, Latevia!" a voice greeted her from the hallway, drawing her attention as she slowly turned her head to the side. A young woman smiled brightly at her, waving a hand enthusiastically in the air. "Did you sleep all day again?" she teased. 

Latevia rolled her eyes behind the mask. "You always make that same joke. Don't you tire of it, Agnes?"

"Nope!" Agnes grinned, shaking her head slightly. 

The young nun placed her hands on her hips and cocked her head towards the main door just up ahead. "So!" she started. "Do you plan on heading out for a meal?"

Latevia shook her head. "Maybe in a little while, when all the kids are asleep." 

"Aw, don't worry about it! I'll cover and watch your two little munchkins while you're out!"

"It's fine, Agnes, really," she said with mirth in her tone. "Besides, I don't trust you won't be overwhelmed by those two. They're a handful."

"That's why I've got two hands, duh?"

Latevia snorted, letting out a gleeful laugh as she turned her head up to the ceiling, clutching her stomach. She shook her head and turned back to the other sister. "You are a joy, Agnes. Did I ever tell you that?" She nodded at her. "Anyway. Did you come all the way here to kill me with your jokes, or were you simply passing?"

"What? Me? Coming all the way here for you?" she said, placing a hand to her chest in faux shock, sarcasm dripping from her every word. "Okay, honestly, I was looking for Sister Heathers and Jane. But since you're here, want to go together?" 

"I don't know, Sister Agnes. As you can see I'm pretty busy standing idly in the middle of the hallway. Pretty important stuff if you ask me."

"Oh, ha ha. It's not funny when you make the jokes, Late." 

"And that's because…?"

"Everybody knows I'm the jester in these halls!" she giggled, reaching out to take Latevia's hand, and dragging her along. "Now come, Sister! We make haste to the dining halls!"

"Is everyone there?" she asked.

"I would expect so," Agnes replied. "I mean, it is dinnertime. Sister Elise and Sister Ingrid must be serving the children by now—or at least getting all those little rascals to settle down."

Latevia nodded, seemingly lost within her thoughts as Sister Agnes' rambling slowly faded into the background. They headed inside the cafeteria together, where everyone else had gathered. All the children were there, along with Sisters Jane, Heathers, Elise, and Ingrid. The only one who seemed to be missing now was Mother Elizabeth. Latevia waved Agnes away and gave her a nod before heading toward Sister Elise. 

"Good evening, Sister." Latevia smiled. 

"Oh! Sister Latevia! I was just about to call for you!"

"I appreciate the thought, Sister Elise. Have you seen Mother Elizabeth?"

"She went outside just an hour ago. She should be returning soon for dinner."

"Ah, that's good," she said with a wave. "I was thinking of talking to her about the adoption papers for Camilla and Jeremy. Poor Henry has been waiting for a while now, and I wanted to know if there was anything we could do to hurry the process."

"Those two sure are eager, aren't they?" Elise replied with a nod. "Well, if I remember right… Mother Elizabeth actually went to the child welfare office earlier. Bureaucracy can sometimes make things really, really, slow. But I think she was headed there to put Henry on the priority list."

"Really? Mother Elizabeth didn't tell me anything."

"Well, she took it upon herself already since she could basically see you itching to ask her about it." Elise chuckled. "You may wear a mask, Late. But you wear your feelings on your sleeve. It's not hard to tell that you've become anxious lately."

A soft sigh escaped her lips as she let her head hang low. "It's just…" she started. "Camilla and Jeremy have been here the longest. They've seen some of their friends come and go over the years. I've had to ask Camilla to be patient many more times than I can count in this week alone. She's excited, thinking the next day will be the day. Henry has been feeling the weight of the wait too. Sol, I will miss them."

Elise smiled warmly, reaching out to take her fellow sister's hand. "You know, Late. If I didn't know any better I'd say you wanted to be rid of them as soon as possible."

"That's not what—"

"I'm kidding," she chuckled. "You've been their main caretaker for what, Five? Six years? I know you'll miss them. I know you care so much about those two, but there are things that are completely out of our control, and all we can do is to trust in Sol's guiding light to lead us to walk the planned path. You just have to trust and—to take your own advice—be patient." She winked, giving her hands a gentle squeeze.

"Wow, when did you get so good at giving advice, El?"

"What do you mean? I've always given good advice. You lot just don't listen! It's my Sol-given wisdom," she said with a soft giggle.

"Was keeping Mother Elizabeth from knowing about the broken chair this morning part of this 'wisdom' you speak of?" Sister Ingrid interjected, rolling her eyes as she placed a hand on Latevia's shoulder. 

"Don't listen to her. She's just mad that her fat butt broke the chair leg and fell! You should have seen it!" Elise laughed.

Ingrid gave her a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. Instead, they were glaring daggers straight at the younger sister. Agnes soon came walking up to them at the sound of laughter. "Wait! What did I miss?!" she said, looking between Elise, Latevia, and Ingrid.

Latevia couldn't help but let out a mirthful laugh at the situation. "Well, then. Let's go tend to the children," she said. "I'm sure they're getting hungry now while we're here exchanging quips. Mother Elizabeth should be back soo—"

She paused in her words as her ears twitched under her hood. She could hear a faint sound from the outside. She placed a finger up, signalling to the others to stay silent. The other sisters followed as their eyes scanned over the room. A faint sound that slowly got louder by the second. Louder. Boom. Boom. 

Boom. The sisters and staff could hear it now. In the distance, getting closer.

"What is that?"

Boom.

"Latevia, should we—"

Boom.

"Are those explosions?!"

Boom. 

The sounds were even louder now. They could feel the vibrations through their feet. The unmistakable sound of a deafening propellor in the distance. It wasn't moving directly in their path, but rather parallel to their street. But the force of the explosions could be felt all the way to where they were. Latevia turned her eyes back to the children and the sisters of St. Solarias orphanage with fear in her eyes. A frown frightened frown formed from behind her mask. "Everyone inside. Stay togethe—"

Boom. 

The entire orphanage suddenly shook as the ground suddenly quaked, followed by a sudden powerful gust of wind. The oppressive heat crashed through the windows like a wave, shattering them as the sound of explosions were heard from the outside. The children started screaming, and the guards burst into the orphanage to seek shelter. That was close. Too close. Several bombs had fallen just twelve meters outside their orphanage. 

There was a pained scream from outside. 

Latevia's eyes went wide as she caught sight of a woman in the distance—clothes burning in flames, running towards the orphanage. She dove out of the nearest window and ran towards the woman, colliding with her heavily. The sister tore away the woman's clothes and threw it across the cracked and shattered road, before putting out the rest of the flames still licking her skin. Mother Elizabeth. She had cuts on her face, second and third-degree burns on her skin decorating her skin like horrific patchwork. The grime clung to her face as she shook in Latevia's arms in pain. 

"M-Mother Elizabeth!"

The woman looked at her weakly, her lips quivering. "L-Latevia… t-the children…"

"Everyone inside!" Latevia cried out, lifting Mother Elizabeth up into her arms. She ran back into the orphanage slamming the orphanage doors behind her with a kick. "Barricade all the doors! Get everyone in the cafeteria!"

"M-Mother Elizabeth?! What is happening?!" Sister Agnes gasped, placing a hand to her mouth and running toward them to help. 

"I've got her. Make sure all the kids are inside."

"B-but Late—!"

"Now, Sister Agnes! Do it now!"

The nun nodded quickly and ran through the halls, checking every room and calling out for any kids who might still be out and about. Latevia rushed into the cafeteria, setting Mother Elizabeth by the far side of the wall away from the kids. "Elise, Ignis, get the bandages," she said. "Heathers, Jane, keep the children from coming over to this spot. Don't let them look."

The guards had locked the orphanage doors and barricaded the broken windows with some of the cafeteria tables the best they could. Sister Agnes came running back with determination on her face. "All the children should be here, I found none in the rooms nor the halls," she reported. 

"Good. Go with Heathers and Jane. Count all the kids. Make sure everyone is accounted for."

"Yes, Sister Latevia." Agnes nodded before turning away to do her task. 

Latevia surveyed Mother Elizabeth's injuries. They were quite severe, bringing worry to her already aching heart. She breathed weakly, looking up at Latevia. "You would have made a great 'Mother'. Your fellow sisters look up to you…" 

"Hush now, Mother Elizabeth. Save your strength."

"You know what's coming, little one. Y-you have to protect them. Not me. This is it for me."

"No. It is not."

"Late…"

"Now is not the time for games, Mother Elizabeth!" she exclaimed, gripping the older woman's shoulders. 

 "Child. Protect them. Promise me," Elizabeth said softly, her voice turning into a soft wheeze. Her chest rose and fell, shorter with each breath. Her eyes closed as she forced the last words out from her mouth. "You need to be there for them…" 

A slow breath escaped her mouth, before her body slumped lifeless against the wall. 

Latevia shook. She held herself as her hands gripped Mother Elizabeth's body. Her heart shattered. Lips quivering behind the mask as she carefully laid the body down on the ground. Sister Agnes returned with the bandages in her hands. 

"I-I have the bandages! W-what do we do, Late?"

The masked sister didn't answer, continuing to stare quietly at the body in front of her. 

"Late! What do we do?!"

"She's gone," she said quietly, swallowing hard. She held back the tears that were threatening to form behind her eyes. Mother Elizabeth always taught her to hold back her emotions. Now was not the time to cry. There would be a time to mourn. She had a duty to protect the children. 

She took a handkerchief from the pocket of her habit and placed it over Mother Elizabeth's face, making the symbol of Sol. "May Sol's light guide you, always and forever," she whispered. 

Agnes' face fell, and tears flowed freely from her face, wrapping her arms around Latevia. The rest of the sisters gathered around and looked down, crestfallen by the sudden loss.

"W-What do we do now?" Sister Ignis muttered.

Latevia took a deep breath and stood up. "Barricade the cafeteria doors," she whispered, turning to look at all of them, even the guards. "Those bombs. The skyships earlier. We can only assume the Crescent moon has returned. We hole up here as long as we can. Protect the children. Hope to Sol they do not find us."