Noble stood in the doorway surveying the scene. She had arrived only a moment before with Roan, Helie, and Aether on her heels, but it wasn't until the man with the dark hair and orange streaks opened the door that she announced her arrival.
Looking at the sisterly huddle, Noble frowned. Maelys clung to Syrce like a blanket.
How had Noble ever been jealous of such a pitiful creature?
But even pitiful creatures could be dangerous, and desperate ones even more so. Noble readied herself for a battle. Though what kind of battle this would be depended solely on the mossy-haired woman being embraced by a monster.
"Bel!" Syrce's face was full of relief. "I was told you had left."
"Rumors of my departure were exaggerated." Noble smiled softly.
The commander pulled away from her sister to greet the newcomers, much to Maelys's chagrin.
"Of course you wouldn't leave without bidding my sister farewell, Lady Bel. I should have known better. You will forgive me for the unkind words. I only wanted what is best for my sister!" The Elder Saint bowed her head.
"I do think you meant to comfort her in your own way," Noble answered carefully. She didn't want to speak falsely and alert the mirror creature prematurely.
Maelys had been shocked to see her; that much was clear. However, the copy did not seem to be aware of what had happened to her army, or at least the part that had been sent after the cohort.
That meant the group still had a little bit of time.
"I was just sending you the message about what has happened here. As you can see, everything was devastated. If Mae weren't so strong and swift, things could have ended very differently." Syrce glanced toward her sister, whose eyes welled with tears.
"I am lucky to be alive, it is true."
"Come and look at everything. Not even a speck of blood! How could this be possible?" Syrce tried to lead Noble into the room to show her what had transpired.
But Noble kept her place by the door. "If traveling Realms has taught me anything, it is that anything is possible. Lady Syrce, may we speak to you outside?"
"Oh?" Maelys stepped forward. "Whatever it is, surely it can wait until morning. My sister is already overworked, and we are still trying to get to the bottom of what happened here."
"Come on, Mae. You make me sound like an old lady in need of a nap. A little exhaustion is nothing for Transcendants."
"I assure you what I have to say will only take a moment, Lady Mae," Noble promised. "I am here to say goodbye."
"Oh!" Excitement flashed across Maelys's face before being replaced with a more neutral expression.
"Oh," Syrce's grey eyes became sad once more. "I see."
"Let me be the first to say how much we appreciate all you have done for us. I know I would not be here without your help." Maelys reached out to take Noble's hand. Realizing it would not be welcomed, she pressed it against her stomach and dipped her head.
Noble was very glad that the mirror being could not feel her emotions spike. Getting credit for unleashing these monsters on the world wasn't exactly something the floating Master considered to be an achievement.
While it was very likely that these creatures were released from the mirror in the original timeline, Noble had certainly expedited the event by producing the missing piece. There was time to lament those choices later. Just now, she needed to keep her mind clear of everything but the task at hand.
"Yes, well, I certainly cannot take all the credit," Noble forced a smile. "Many people worked very hard to bring you here."
"Lady Bel?" Roan furrowed his brow.
He didn't need to finish his sentence. They were running short on time. The gate shutting would delay the alien army, but not for long. And the detour to feed the Pink Ones the promised fruit had cost them precious time.
"We need to go, I know." Noble nodded politely.
"I am ready to go when you are." The man with the scar over his left eye stepped forward.
But Noble held up one hand while the other flinched toward the sword at her side.
"We can talk about that in a moment. For now, I think you should stay here and guard Maelys, at least until Syrce returns. I wouldn't want anything unexpected to happen again."
"Bel is right. Stay," Syrce's word was like an ironclad law, pushing back false Flint with an invisible force.
Noble relaxed slightly, motioning for Aether to exit first. Helie and Roan followed. Noble backed out of the room slowly, beckoning Syrce while keeping her eyes on the two monsters with her.
Maelys watched the floating Master retreat, her smile never reaching her eyes. Noble knew what the mirror Mae was feeling. She shivered at the intensity of emotion.
'I think I like it better when they hide it.'
Flint bowed politely, not seeming to share in the Saint's ire.
'More confirmation that they aren't all one being like the Skinwalker.' Noble filed this information away.
Whether or not he had any animosity towards Bel was moot in the end. Noble had more than enough hatred for him for killing her friend. But she hid this feeling behind her own polite smile.
"We will be back," the floating Master dipped her head as she passed through the door.
"I will protect Lady Mae until then," Flint folded his hands.
"You had better," Syrce warned. She shut the door with a sigh.
Out in the street, Noble waited until they were a safe distance from the building before slowing down. The only people in the street were people under Syrce's command, and she dismissed them with a wave of her hand.
The area became deserted except for the four Masters and the ancient Saint.
Roan summoned a Memory and surrounded them in silence. If Syrce noticed, she didn't say anything. Instead, she sighed as she looked at the four warriors around her.
"Is this really goodbye, Bel? I know I asked you to leave for a few days, but this feels more permanent than that."
Noble pressed her lips together.
"All things must come to an end. I am anxious to get home to my family."
"I understand…" The Saint could not fault her friend on that front.
"But how soon I can go depends on you, Syrce," Noble spoke slowly.
"Oh?" The commander raised her eyebrows and looked at the other Masters. Their faces betrayed nothing.
"How does it depend on me?"
Taking a deep breath, Noble met the woman's grey eyes.
"It depends on how much you trust me."
"Bel, I trust you completely. Surely you know that by now." Syrce placed her hand on her heart.
Allowing the others to keep watch, Noble did not take her eyes off her friend.
"The things I am about to say will be hard to hear, but before I can tell you any of it, I need you to do one very important thing for me."
"Name it." The Saint tilted her head.
Noble pointed at the belt around the woman's waist. "Give me the mirror."