If only you could see me yesterday
Who I used to be before the change
You'd see a broken heart
You'd see the battle scars
Funny how words can't explain
How good it finally feels to break the chains
I'm not what I have done;
I'm what I've overcome
-What I've Overcome by Fireflight

With a busted lip and bruises around her neck, it hadn't surprised the girl that the stares continued, even after she had gotten off the ship. Was it so much of a surprise when her body drifted closer to the young man that had taken her under his wing? Perhaps, if she were a bit younger, she might had grasped his hand for support.

However, fourteen years of age gave her some sense of pride. That, in turn, gave her reason to simply stick by the man's side and keep her head held high. The more stares she received, the more firm her lips became.

She would not yield, not again.

Boarding a carriage that would take the both of them to Daath, she thanked Yulia that it was only going to be the two of them for this ride. While she dare not admit aloud, it had been exhausting to deal with all the gawkers and she wouldn't mind just a small break. Once the carriage door shut, her shoulders relaxed.

A sigh left her mouth.

No conversation were exchanged—the man sat there, his thoughts likely to be elsewhere. Finding no reason to bring up any topic to discuss at that moment, the girl flopped over onto the empty seat she occupied. Her hair was too short to get in the way, but that didn't mean she couldn't play with the strands.

The question came not too long after.

"What does lavender look like, Van?" Having grown up in Chesedonia up to this point, she hadn't seen the flower before.

"Why do you want to know?" His blue eyes were on her at this point.

She shrugged, sitting up slowly but still twisting a tuft of her hair. "They said my hair was like it, the color anyway. I've never seen one."

"Lavender is lighter than your hair, not as pale either. Though I suppose I could see why they would say as such. I would say that your hair might be more of a violet color." Van's answer was informative enough and that was that.

"Okay."

The silence stayed until they arrived at their destination. When the carriage stopped, Van was already opening the door. Though it sounded like a command, his tone was soft when he spoke to her. "Come Reyna."

And she did.

When her feet landed on the ground, her eyes wandered to and fro. A new setting in life, one so vastly different to her prior one. Reyna had grown up knowing only sand below her feet and the heat of living in a desert. This one contained green grass, shrubbery, and cool winds.

It nearly left her in awe.

"Reyna." Her attention laid briefly on Van before it turn toward the city. Her eyes slowly went up as she gazed at the large cathedral near the center. "Welcome to Daath."

Her mouth open, but no words came. Rendered speechless, the tears soon overwhelmed her and fell down her face. It was dumb to cry, especially when she was standing next to Van, but after everything, she hadn't had much of a reason to hope for a better life.

Yet, here she was. It was right here, right in front of her.

Wiping her eyes with the palm of her hand, she gave a nod. Van hadn't said anything to her, but he was nice enough to wait until she was ready before they began to walk. When they entered the city, her eyes wandered around more and more. They had different styles of clothing, more adapt to their climate, and their speech was different too. They almost sounded stuffy, if that were the right word. Formal, maybe?

Reyna took all of it in, the information she could pick up from this brief tour and stored it away for later use. Despite the fact that Chesedonia had been a melding pot for all sorts of cultures, Daath was on a different level.

This, she realized, was to be her new home and what a strange place it was.

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.

Some of the younger girls near her continued to talk, not caring if they were overheard at this particular moment.

"Master Evenos always prefers male Guardians. Don't you think that's unfair?"

"I think it's sexist. I mean, we have the Oracle Knights, so not many of guys train as Guardians either."

"You don't think…" Leaning forward, she, at least, had some sense to whisper the next part to her friend as they both giggled. To which Reyna had a good idea of what was being said about the current Fon Master.

Rolling her eyes, the girl, who had just turned fifteen not too long ago, continued to eat her meal. Personally, she had wanted to become an Oracle Knight, but Van suggested she go into training with the Guardians. Something along the lines that it would suit her well or whatever.

She regretted the decision for this precise reason.

Finishing, she stood and left the table. Only a few gave her nods of acknowledge while others continued to talk. Because of Master Evenos' preference for male Guardians, most of the girl trainees competed with each other so when they became full Guardians, they would have a chance to be picked by Master Evenos on the occasion he did choose a female Guardian. It was mind-boggling that they would rather put each other down rather than help each other rise up.

Or maybe that was just her new way of thinking these days.

Before, she might not have cared. It was the survivor of the fittest when it came to these kind of situations. Living on Chesedonia's streets had harden her, raised into someone who didn't care for other's well-beings. However, living in the Order for the past year, having a room, a bed, three square meals a day, it was nothing like Chesedonia. Why put yourself through all of this competition when you could use that strength to become better, not just as an individual, but as a whole?

That had been her new way of thinking as of late. When she didn't have to worry about where she would be sleeping that night or where her food would come from, then she found the sabotage and petty games pretty ridiculous.

Hence why after the first person had tried to get her into trouble, when Reyna fought back with such ferocity, showing that she wasn't a person to be messed with, her fellow trainees followed suit. Van told her if she had trouble, he could tell her and he would deal with it, but Reyna didn't and wouldn't need his help again.

She already owed him too much.

Sword training was going to begin soon, so she headed in the general direction of where the session would be held. Though, to be completely honest, it wasn't as serious as the name implicated. Yes, they did train with swords, but it was never for long and the rest of the times was used however they wished. The instructors didn't believe that Guardians needed as much training as, say, an Oracle Knight. If someone wanted to become better with a sword, then they found a training partner.

For those that didn't care about swordplay, they used the time to gossip, spreading around rumors. Most of it was trash and means of sabotaging someone's reputation, but there was a few times Reyna heard something of interest.

The rumor at the moment, at least with the Guardian trainees, was with the current Fon Master. His preference had led to her hearing many nasty things said about him. While many of the girls blamed the few males that joined, Reyna thought that if they actually showed some dedication and trained, the Fon Master might actually notice them.

Not that she thought the Guardians with the Fon Master were all that great, but he made his choices for himself.

"Reyna."

Stopping, she turned her head to see a fellow trainee walk toward her. If memory served her correctly, the other female's name was Iris. Two years her junior, she was one of the few that Reyna tolerated and probably the only one that took this as seriously as she did.

That didn't stop her from being blunt. "What do you want?"

"I want to discuss a proposition with you."

Interesting.

"And that is...?"

Arms crossed, the other gave her one glance over. Reyna could feel herself becoming agitated, but kept her composure. If this was some test, she wasn't going to let someone younger than her pressure her into a reaction. "You're more serious than the others. You know your strengths and play on them well enough to hide any weakness you have. You'll definitely become a Guardian."

"Get to the point." Reyna hated when people wasted their time leading up to wanting something from you.

"I see you becoming a leader, especially of the Guardians. I want to be there to support you."

This, she hadn't expected. Indicating for Iris to follow as she continued on to their lesson, Reyna took a moment before answering. "A bit young to be thinking that far ahead."

"Who's to say it'll be so far ahead?"

Inclining her head to the side, the elder of the two caught the other's gaze. "I can't expect to become Commander in a year or two. It'll take longer than that, especially with the current one."

"He's incompetent." Reyna couldn't argue with this. "He's not even a Guardian, just an Oracle Knight meant to watch over us."

"The others...?"

That actually got her a pointed look from Iris. "When have you ever cared what the others thought?"

Shaking her head and brushing off the statement, Reyna elaborated. "That's not what I meant. I can't certainly become a leader with just one follower. I'll need more and a backing to keep me going forward. I can't be promoted if I appear 'incompetent'."

"It'll be a start though, won't it? It's the thought that counts. You strive to become more than just a 'guardian', others will follow." Ha! What a smug smile this one wore. If they weren't so close to where others might hear or even see it, Reyna would have laughed. "Think about it."

"It'll be something to consider." That was her only reply as the entered the room.

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.

The best part about this was how taken back he appeared—that he couldn't believe she wanted him to become her sparring partner.

Iris had been watch the guy for a several weeks and mentioned that he would be a good person to practice with for her hand-to-hand combat training. That had been enough to interest her to check the guy out.

He was just a year older than her, would likely graduate in another year or two and she had no doubt he would become an Oracle Knight from there. The girl hadn't checked to see what his name was or any other personal information, but that hadn't been too important to her. Watching him from a distance for a few days herself, she noticed he was friendly, easygoing, and followed instructions without hesitation.

She also happen to watch him during sword practice and hand-to-hand combat. Iris hadn't lied; he was pretty good.

So, the idea came to approach him.

Reyna thought about a direct challenge, but opted to be more subtle about it. One evening, after dinner, she asked if she could talk to him in private, to which he agreed to and they set up a location and time.

An hour later, there they were. Before he could even ask her what she wanted, Reyna told him she wanted him to be her sparring partner.

And there they were, Reyna waiting for his reply while the brunet was still left stunned by her request.

"So?"

It took him another moment to gather himself. "Are you serious? I thought-"

She was quick to interrupt him. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Why me, then?"

"Because you're good at hand-to-hand. I need someone to practice with and maybe, I'd like to move up to weapons." She raised her eyebrow at him, wondering if this had been a mistake. "That's it, basically."

His lips pursed, making her want to laugh at how ridiculous he looked. "You're...not training to be an Oracle Knight, are you? I don't remember seeing you in the classes."

"Guardian training, actually. Except it's..." There was a brief pause as Reyna considered this guy again. "...not exactly as serious as I'd like it to be."

He nodded in understanding, a pause following as he stared at her. Observing her, as she noted. It was when his eyes met hers that she realized something. "Alright then. We can do it in the mornings before classes start and after dinner, if that works."

He was a good person.

"It will. I...appreciate it."

And he smiled, that kind of friendly smile that she figured he gave everyone. It was no wonder he was one of the more popular trainees in the Oracle Knight program. "Sure. I'm Gerard, by the way."

"Reyna."

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.

"You notice anyone?" Reyna asked, adjusting her uniform. She hated the tabards they had to wear over the uniform, but she wasn't in the position to change it and complaining to Van about them seemed pointless. Her eyes going to her fellow Guardian, she inclined her head to the side. "There had to be some trainees that you noticed. You always do."

"A few, none of which I would approach at this moment. They're young and their training would take a few years. Though..."

"Though?"

A pause, as Iris adjusted her glasses. "One of the older trainees has potential. Her control over fonons is incredible. I also feel like she takes this seriously, more so than her fellow classmates."

"Check in on her, offer her tips if you can. Maybe we can even invite her to eat with us." Reyna mused over this as her roommate nodded at the instructions. "Also, how is Master Evenos?"

Sighing, the other shook her head. "Not good. I believe this illness may take his life soon. Maybe in a few months, if he's lucky."

"Then Ion will take over..." She mumbled, mostly to herself.

"We should go, though with how Master Evenos is, we'll likely to have another free day." Reyna could hear the agitation in her voice. Amused, she patted the other's back. "Stop that. You know I hate it when you treat me like a child."

The young woman actually laughed at this. "True, but you're only sixteen. Not quite an adult, but not a child either I suppose."

"We're going to be late."

"Don't change the subject!"

"I bet Gerard's waiting for you then." A smug look was on her face, to which Reyna just rolled her eyes. "I'm surprised how close you are to him. I thought surely after the training, you'd become indifferent toward him. Maybe even snub him to get the message through."

"I didn't do that to you, did I?" It wasn't a retort, just pointing out the obvious.

Shrugging, the sandy blonde moved toward the door. "I'm still useful to you. He isn't. I can't help but wonder if you are fond of him."

Sometimes, Reyna felt irritation that everyone assumed they knew so much about her. Hadn't Van said the same to her on more than one occasion? It was becoming a sore spot, which led to people wondering if she did have feelings for the man, which she didn't. It wasn't like that, but she would be lying if she said she didn't think good of him. Unknowingly, Gerard had wiggled his way into her life and at times, she felt it would be too much just to abandon this...friendship they had. Reyna had explained as much to Van, but he still didn't like it too much.

And often, Iris would mention it. Most of the time for her own personal amusement, others times for ammo when she didn't have anything left to use.

"If by fond, you mean I consider him a friend, then yes. I am very fond of him."

"You know what I meant." As she stepped out of the room with Reyna not too far behind. "I mean, he is handsome."

"As you've mentioned before." A grin slowly appearing on her face. "You aren't the first that's said that about him. Makes me wonder though..."

"Please, I'm not interested in him."

Laughing, Reyna gave her a casual shrug.

And just like Iris had mentioned a bit ago, Gerard was waiting down the hall. Catching sight of the duo, he made his way over to them. Reyna noticed right away the expression he wore and started to worry. "Hey girls. I have a message for you two."

Nodding her head, she gave a glance to Iris, who shook her head. She didn't know anything about a message, which was odd. "What's the message?"

"Master Evenos is dead."

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.

Two years since Master Ion had taken over and she was concerned where this was going to lead in the long run. Iris was the one to worry more than her, but Reyna knew that if any mistake was made, they would lose so much ground.

For the moment though, she had bigger things to worry about.

"You want me to consider that guy. He's idiot."

Iris let out a huff, frustrated. "He's not an idiot, he's bullheaded. Something you and he have him common."

Scoffing at her statement, Reyna continued. "I think I'd rather take Antonis than Stephen."

"Take them both, for all I care. You need to stop being so picky! Mari is only just barely on board and the fact that you have that Dimeka girl, I'm surprised this hasn't fallen apart already!"

"Fine! Fine, you deal with them. It's bad enough I have to deal with you and that bastard Mohs in one day."

Iris stopped, her mouth open from her about to make a retort. Concerned washed over her in a second. "What does the Grand Maestro want?"

"Nothing serious. He just wanted a 'progress' report. I'm sure he knows about the-"

Iris kicked her and Reyna let out a low growl only to stop when the other indicated at a couple of soldiers coming their way. Quickly, they changed the topic as they passed the Knights. It wasn't until they were back in their room did the both of them let out a sigh. "We need to be more careful. You know the Grand Maestro has a following, right? I'm sure he's got ears everywhere and that's becoming rather bothersome."

"...I've heard. It pisses me off, but if I can bide my time just a little more, I'm sure I'll be close to a promotion. At least then, I'll be in a position of power and we won't have to worry about him looming over us."

"I heard him and that Van Grants are working together. Actually, they were seen together and working on a project from a couple of years ago. Do you know anything about it?"

That, huh? She had, in fact. "Rumors, yes. I'm not sure if they did or not. I've been focusing on Master Ion."

"He keeps that Arietta with him most days, though. I don't think you'll get a promotion that way."

"Point being, we need to find someone that can give us good information and sort through the lies. That'll be another task you can focus on."

"Yay..."

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.

Ceremonies were never her strong suit, but thankfully, this one was small. Van was there as was Mohs, but she paid no mind to him. Her promotion felt long overdue, but here she was. Twenty-two years of age and she was commander of the Fon Master Guardians. Iris had been ecstatic to hear about it as were the others. Though her following wasn't too terribly big, she had those she trusted enough. That was more than she could say for some of the others that could have been the commander.

Van gestured for her to come over where he was standing, which she did. He gave her a smile and rested a hand on the shoulder. "To think you would have made it this far. You have done well, Reyna."

"You're one to talk, Commandant Grants."

A chuckle escaped him. "True. We both have worked hard for this."

They talked for a bit more before Reyna excused herself and wandered off. She had purposely avoided Mohs, though she had a feeling he was smugger about this than offended. It was annoying, but there was no point in ruining this for herself by polluting her thoughts with the bastard.

Later, after the ceremony was over, she headed back to the commons area. Reyna had only just entered when someone picked her up and twirled her around. Hearing a familiar laugh, she saw those familiar brown eyes and started to laugh with the guy before hitting his shoulders. "Put me down, Gerard! Everyone's watching!"

"Let them watch! Congratulations Reyna! I'm just so damn happy for you!"

"Congrats, Commander!~" Uresa called out, trying to make her way over to them, but being the shortest of the group made that difficult.

Once her friend put her down, she felt a gentle pat on the back from Antonis and Stephen followed up by nudging her shoulder. The twins, Cora and Claudia both gave her hugs while Mari held a cake in her hands, her expression remaining passive. However, it wasn't hard to tell that she was excited for her. Even Iris gave her a big and warm hug, surprising Reyna. Whispering in her ear, so that only Reyna could hear, she said, "I'm so happy for you. I knew you could do it..."

Laughing, the new commander patted the other's back awkwardly. "Yeah, yeah. Thanks though...for everything."

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.

"Arietta, you're being promoted to God-General." Reyna kept her gaze steady as she watched the wild girl stare at the floor for a long moment. Receiving no answer, she continued. "This is effective immediately."

"No! Master Ion only got better! I-I have to see Ion! I have to protect Master Ion! That's what a Guardian does!" Having shot her head back up, the petite girl pushed herself forward, standing in front of Reyna's desk. A desperate look on her face, she was pleading with her eyes. "I don't want to be a God-General!"

"Arietta." Her tone was cold as she indicated for the girl to move back. "This decision has already been made. Your things have been removed from the Guardian's quarters and you are to report to Commandant Grants as soon as possible."

The girl shook her head, tears welling up. "B-But Master Ion-!"

Her hands slammed on the desk as she stood. "You are to do as you are told or you won't be allowed to see the Fon Master at all!"

The girl looked absolutely devastated and even though Reyna felt bad, she wasn't going to change what she said. Seeing this, Arietta quickly covered her face with that doll she had been carrying around as of recently. There was no noise as the pink-haired girl turned and ran from the room.

Sinking into her chair, the woman rubbed her temple.

It was becoming tiresome, all of this change. She had to move around some of the Guardians and even transfer a lot of them out. Though she had wished to argue with Van about this, she was only barely able to keep her little circle of Guardians that she trusted. If not for some quick-thinking, she may have lost them all. With how Mohs had been, Reyna had become anxious. It was only luck that she managed to keep her forces at the number that they were.

And with this Arietta situation, Reyna wasn't sure how much more she could take.

"Commander?"

Glancing, she caught sight of pigtails and a pink uniform. "It's alright, Anise. Come in."

Stepping in, she placed a pile of papers on the desk. Taking the top few, she paused. "Some of these are a bit dirty and seemed wrinkled. What happen?"

"Hahaha...I just tripped, Commander. I'll do better next time, don't you worry!"

Reyna stared at the girl for a long moment, watching as she tried to remain as neutral as she could before the commander simply shrugged it off. "If you say so. How is the Fon Master?"

A smile of relief appeared on her face before she beamed at the older woman. "He's good! He stays in his room and does a lot of work, so I haven't have much trouble."

"Good. Since you're his new personal Guardian, Anise, you have to keep an good eye on him. Not just for his health. It's important that you watch over him."

The girl nodded her head, but it was obvious that she wanted to roll her eye. Reyna excused her and let her get back to work.

The exhaustion continued to build up.

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.

When she wanted to be, Reyna could be a force to be reckoned with. This was a lesson a few Guardians had learned and would still be learning once she let Iris in on the situation. Her second-in-command had become busy with teaching some of the classes for the Guardians, but she managed well enough. She thought of mentioning it to Mari, but Iris was enough. Those girls wouldn't be fooling around anymore, even if it meant expulsion from the program.

Maybe she could get Van to pretend it would be from the Order itself, but...no. She had her business with the Guardians and he had his dealing with the God-Generals and the Oracle Knights as a whole.

"If you face keeps scrunching up like that, you'll get wrinkles early on in life."

Rolling her eyes, she turned to see Gerard watching her. He had a grin on his face as he leaned against the wall. For a moment, she looked over him. Still the same old Gerard, except his farmer's tan might have gotten just a tiny bit darker. That and he had been transferred to the First Division with Largo. While she was happy for him, it didn't stop what was in the back of her mind.

"Whatever. Anyway, you going to tell me why you're here or what?"

His grin grew. "I heard about those girls. You've frighten them to the point that I hear they might quit."

"Good riddance too! I hate people like them."

He laughed for a few moments before he stopped and his face grew serious. She waved her hand to indicate for him to say what was on his mind.

"Did you hear about Commander Cantabile?"

That was a surprise. Reyna hadn't figured Gerard knew her, but realized she had been associated with the God-Generals, which was surprising. All things considering, anyway.

"That she's...away, yes?"

Gerard nodded his head as Reyna moved ahead, walking past him and he followed suit. "I heard early today they're going to revoke the idea of her being in charge of the Sixth Division. I think they're going to give it to that Asch guy."

Huh.

"Well, you shouldn't worry about it too much. You'll only interact with him when the other divisions get together for a big mission or are out training together."

"True, but I feel uneasy."

Squinting, Reyna didn't know what she should say. Letting the silence follow, they walked until the two of them had to part ways. Though she wished she could have said something to make him not worry, the woman had other things on her mind. Besides, Gerard had grown up. Especially after what happen two years ago when...

"I'll see you tomorrow, alright?" She asked and he smiled at her.

It was a smile she knew by heart at this point. "Of course. We can even train in the morning for a bit. Bring Uresa along if you want."

He waved as he went off to attend to his duties.

Watching him, Reyna couldn't help but let her thoughts go back to when she arrived back at Daath. Next year would be the decade mark—for when she first came here. She could almost scarcely believe it. From Chesedonia to here.

This had become her life now.

AN: Hello everyone! I want to welcome you to an entirely new chapter one for Different Paths. For those of you that are old readers, you will notice the next chapter is the previous chapter one. This is because while I was working on revising this story, I tried to add a bit more to the beginning which turned into this chapter. I hope you enjoy the extra tidbits on Reyna and her life in Daath prior to the start of the story.

Note! Those of you who know about Reyna later on in the story, I kept certain chunks out during this. It's more to focus on her becoming a Guardian and then to becoming the commander. This chapter also introduces many minor characters that are important in Reyna's life as they will play roles later on. As such, I wanted you to get a feel for them now rather than throwing them at you later.

I'm rewriting the chapters before I upload the newest 'new' chapter where I left you all hanging. That is why I will be reuploading the chapters with either small or big changes! Please read the chapters as I reupload them, either as to refresh yourself with the story or to see if you notice the changes! And please, tell me your thoughts on the chapters and changes!

Edit(8/11/14): Changed the titles back to what they were originally. Trying to be witty in titles is not working. ):

Preview
Chapter 2: Days Gone By - The year is ND 2018. A decade has passed since Reyna came to Daath and we see what a normal day is like for her as commander of the Fon Master Guardians. However, with Mohs at her back and that of a Malkuth emissary to deal with, Reyna has a lot on her plate. Little does she know that her life is about to get a lot more hectic.