"So what happened while I was gone?" Miranda asked.

"Not much." Ferdinand took a sip from his glass. "The angels and demons took over the humans. Whatever's north of the Central Mountains belong to the angels, and whatever's  south belong to the demons. Even so, battles still occur every now and then on the border."

Miranda drank her water. "How were you able to come in to the Netherworld? Are you another one of me? A creation?"

"No, I'm just half demon, that's all."

"Hold on, I'm gonna go look for something." Miranda left the central room.

While she was gone, Ferdinand thought it would be a good idea to search the dead for any recognizable faces. He was relieved to find out that neither Atlas nor Pandora were among the dead. They met back at the central room where Miranda turned on a projector she'd found and called her mother immediately. The projector showed Perdita's face who almost cried at the sight of her daughter, she asked how everybody up north was doing. They weren't able to answer that well.

"How many are dead?" Perdita asked.

"Half of us here are dead. While the rest are gone. We don't know where they are," Ferdinand answered.

"If they're not dead, then they're most likely taken captive. You say they had tanks, do you know where they're heading?" Perdita asked.

"Wait." Miranda left the room and went outside into the snow. She observed the tracks that were left behind by the seraphim transport. Either they came from the east headed west, or the other way around. She headed back in to report to her mother.

"Miranda, find a map. Maybe you can point out where they're heading," Perdita ordered her.

Miranda turned on the hollow table, which surprisingly still worked despite all the damage that it sustained. The table displayed the map of the land from the Northern Mountains to the Esiron desert down south.

"Oh, did I mention that there's a traitor among us?" Ferdinand suddenly said.

"Who?" Perdita demanded an immediate answer.

"Jerimoth. Or as we call him, Oberon. Turns out he's an angel all along. And he's been right under our noses learning about our secrets." Ferdinand was starting to hate Jerimoth now, after thinking of him as an amiable guy.

Still within the territories of the seraphim imperium, Miranda spotted another Resistance base far east to where they are. "There's another Resistance base in the Lathrion hills."

"Then that's where they're headed." Perdita found their answer. "It can be assumed that in addition to those tanks, they also had prisoner transports. After taking down the base you're currently in, they're most likely to head there to besiege it as well, and take whoever's left captive. You two need to go there immediately. I'll warn the people in Lathrion of the impending danger." And with that, Perdita ended the call.

Miranda turned off the hollow table. "Ferdinand, isn't it?"

"It is," he verified.

"Gather whatever you need. We'll be making a long journey. Meet me in the stables."

*****************************

So what do you all think of this chapter? What adventure awaits Ferdinand and Miranda? Find out next time. Also please don't forget to leave comments and vote. They're always much appreciated.

I dedicate this chapter to JustNostalgicTears keep doing what you're doing. Life may come around hard, but we'll pull through as always ☺️

-Zyrofern