Aki IV: Hekugaewake 
*** 

Things only started to get stranger from then on. 

More questions rose, and the mystery deepened. 

*** 

"Sir, there is a message from the Optistery Ministry of the Federation of Windurst. It appears that Koruha-Boruha is concerned that the beastmen are starting to gather together at Castle Oztroja outside the Federation, in order to possibly attack the kingdom." The words came from the raspy voice of my office assistant, first class private in the Juenoan Guard. 
Two weeks, and one day had passed since I saw her again. 

My rough fingertips started to message my temples as I closed my eyes in deep frustration while standing in a position that left me facing the wall away from him. 

"Private, please get a notebook, and a writing pencil, and prepare to take a dictation to be sent out immediately back to that taru." I commanded quietly to him. 

I heard him fumble in his pockets for his scratchpad and pencil for a couple moments. "Ready, sir!" He said with more than a faint trace of...soldierness...in his voice. 

"Dear Minister Koruha-Boruha...", I began slowly, tracing the words that I want to say slowly in my head, putting them together into some sense of order. 

"Dear Minister Karaha-Baruha...We at the Grand Duchy of Jeuno have yet to receive any word from our spies within the beastmen empires that they have any designs upon any areas beyond their current borders. Or to put it simply, the Federation of Windurst is safe. If the situation changes, the Grand Duchy will inform the appropriate authorities of your native land about any threat." 

I briefly paused, and rocked slightly on the balls of my feet. 

"Yours sincerely, yada yada yada, of the Jeunoan Guard, yada yada yada..." 

With that, I gave the private a backwards flick of my hand to dismiss him from my office. I heard his feet scuffle along the plush carpet as he retreated softly, and then the ever satisfying click as the door closed shut. 

I let out a gentle sigh, and turn around, clenching my hands on the red velvet plush chair at my wooden desk. 

I never will understand these tarus…so concerned about their Star Sibyl, believing that everything she says is going to come true. I couldn’t understand why they were so worried about a war for that matter either. The world had entered into a period of peace not seen since before the Elvaan were removed by force from the Quon continent many years ago. 

Even the towns of Tavnazia, Selbina, and Mhuara were flourishing, bringing prosperity to their parent countries. 

And except for that incident a couple weeks ago in Tavnazia, the world was at peace. 

I picked up a slice of a Kazham pineapple that had been left over from the luncheon that I had had brought to me from the soldier’s cafeteria earlier in the day by the private, and then started to nibble at its tangy, but tasty, flesh. 

Tasty... 

That thought entered my brain as I played around with the yellow flesh on my tongue. I really ought to stop buying those bags of herb seeds covered in rock salt that are so damn addictive...these are so much more healthy for me. 

It was with that thought that my office door was slammed open, and in marched five armed paladin gaurds with the distinctive crest that marked them as being part of the Ducal Guard. In between them, they were dragging along with them a person in chains that their armor obsured from my sight. 

One stepped forward from the rest, and stands at attention before speaking. 

"Sir, we caught this person plotting a conspiracy with the goblins in order to counterfeit the international currency of gil that currently exists. What are your orders sir?" 

I quickly looked over at the prisoner, and saw a sniveling geeky looking individual. He nervously tried to adjust his half-shattered glasses that kept trying to fall off his face as he twisted his head from side to side looking around the room. When he wasn’t trying to fix his glasses, he was clasping and unclasping his hands, rubbing them nervously together. 

A rather pitiful being. 

"What is his name and background?" I inquired of the soldier. 

Not wasting a single word, the guard spoke: "Amas Depotana. Employee at Cid’s workshop at Bastok’s Metalworks. Wife, two children. Is bilingual." 

It was that last part that caught my ears. 

"Is his hands properly restrained with the proper enchantments?" I asked of the man. 

He nodded quickly once. 

"Fine then, all of you, leave me. I want to ask him some questions. Alone." I gave the command in a tone of voice that does not suggest even a minute tolerance of disobedience in it. 

They paused for a moment, and then quickly turned around with the sharp turn that was drilled into them at the academy, upon which they filed out, being sure to close the door behind them without my having to ask them. 

I strolled over to the prisoner, stopping two feet away from him, just out of his arm’s reach. 

I looked him up and down a couple of times, and then coldly stared into his eyes. He immediately averted his gaze away from me, mostly likely out of fear. 

"You are accused of crimes that amount to treason against the Grand Duchy of Jeuno...how do you plea?" I spoke in an emotionless voice to him, not really caring WHAT he said. 

He stumbled over the words slightly as he admitted to the crime to me. 
"G-G-G-Guilty..." 

He then turned his head back to me, and looked me directly in the eyes with bloodshot eyes. 

"I had to! No choice. The war is coming…can you not see it?! Can you not feel it in the air?!" 

He chuckled softly, that grew into a higher and higher pitch of tone, and that grew louder and louder. He then tilted his head back towards the ceiling and let out a howl. 

"The tombs...the tombs...the tombs...the tombs..." 

He started to ramble that over and over again, until I slapped him hard across the face. His head twisted to the point where I feared that his neck was going to snap, but instead it just popped back into place. 

"Get a hold of yourself man." I commanded of him. 

My breath stuttered in my lungs as I closed my eyes, trying to remember the mage’s words perfectly. 

"Now tell me this...what does 'Watashiwa watashichiga futatabiaukotoo shitteta…' mean?" 

I saw his body suddenly take a entirely different composure, pulling itself into something that seemed to approach sanity. He tapped his finger to his bottom lip and appeared to think for a moment. 

"Hmm...that’s an interesting phrase. The closest I can come up to is 'I knew we would meet again..." Is that what you are looking for?" 

I don’t bother to give a response, trying to instead remember the other thing that she said to me back in Tavnazia. Unfortunately, only a single fragment comes back to me in any sort of order. 

"Then...what does 'yomino mimali' mean?" I ask with a hidden interest in my voice. 

He immediately replied without pause. "Why, that means 'keeper of the dreams'. What, you going to interrogate me with phrases? Idiot." He snorted that out at me, with a slightly arrogant tone to his voice. 

With that, I stepped back behind my desk, and clicked a small red button on its underside that indicated for the gaurds to come back in. 

They came in, and immediately assembled around the prisoner preventing him from escaping. 

"He has admitted to treason. I want him placed in the prisons beneath the city streets until the Archduke sees fit to execute him." I say, my mind reeling over what the traitor had said. 

The leader nods, and they quickly exit, leaving me along with my thoughts. 
"I knew we would meet again..". 

"Keeper of dreams..." 

I spoke the words, trying to reason them out to myself. How could she know that we would meet again? And what is this "Keeper of the dreams"? 

So many more questions, so many more than what I had ten minutes ago, before that piece of garbage had been brought before me. 

-fin Aki IV: Helugaewake