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The church was empty save for a few monks who were offering incense, and soon it would be time for them to head off as well. Rhea prayed to the statue of the woman wrapped in snakes chanting in the old language. As the two aids headed off to their quarters to sleep she felt a large cursed presence behind her.
“I see you have finally came avatar of Cain.” said Rhea standing and turning around slowly. Adair stood there with his sword drawn. The large scimitar reflected the flame from the candles around the room.
“Did you think you could keep it hidden forever?” asked Adair. “I know it's here.”
“Know what is here?” asked Rhea coyly with a giggle that was very out of character. “You did well to get in here unnoticed, but all that means...that I can get rid of you without anyone knowing...” She slid a simple knife out from her sleeve and flung it at Adair. Adair deflected it to the side, and charged for Rhea.
Leaping up he gripped his blade in both hands and stabbed down for Rhea. To his surprise she didn’t move. Suddenly a masked priestess jumped in the way taking the blow to the chest as Rhea looked on with a smile. Blood flowed from the wound and reddened her once pure attire. She coughed up blood that coated Adair. A large torrent of spiritual energy shot out from the body soon after. Adair ripped his blade from her chest looking at Rhea. Then out of no where he sensed an enormous spiritual presence behind him.
“How nice of you to join us Leona…” Rhea said. Adair turned around quickly to find Leona III hunched over looking at her hands. Rhea walked off laughing as she parted a curtain to the back section of the temple.
Gripping his blade he moved to follow Rhea but large bolt of lightning shot down from the ceiling in front of him baring his path. Turning he saw Leona III with her hand pointed towards him, breathing heavily. Adair glanced at the body on the floor and shook his head.
“Nothing but a vessel. What a sad life.” said Adair looking to the crumpled body on the floor. Lightning began to strike all around the room in random places. It was evident that Leona III was struggling to control her restored power. He needed to take her down now. Dashing towards her he held his blade to the side. Ready to attack with everything that he had.
“Not on my watch!” yelled Saren slamming his axe in front of Leona protectively as he stormed into the room. Adair narrowly jumped back in time. Standing with his back to Leona he stared down Adair before looking back to Leona. Her eyes were crazed and pulsating a bright gold color.
“What have you done traitor!” yelled Saren lifting his axe back over his shoulder. Adair flipped his sword so that he was holding the handle backwards.
“She is being made the fool. Her spirit was returned to her by the same person that stole it in the first place.” answered Adair. “We need to put her down before it crushes what is left of her sanity. That power is too great for her!”
“The only one being struck down today is you,” answered Saren swinging his axe down before holding it in both hands. Leona seductively walked around him, placing her hand on his muscular arm. Still wearing her insane grin.
“This one is mine,” she said standing in front of Saren. Bending over she ran her hands up her legs as static electricity began to build and spark from her fingertips. Stepping forward with her right leg she thrusted her right arm forward sending an arc of lightning towards Adair. Deftly dodging the attack the lightning shot a hole through a pillar in the corner of the temple.
“Mother what is going on here?!” yelled Leona IV running into the temple. As she laid eyes on her mother she could barely believe her eyes. Her mother’s spirit had returned. Adair looked at her and gritted his teeth. Then his eyes traveled to two shadows that he knew to be her bodyguards. Looking to Rhea he cursed.
“You planned this all out didn’t you?” he said to himself. There was no way he was going to make it out of this one, even if he went all out. Glaring at Leona he knew that if he could at least take her out then all was not lost.
Leona III looked at the man curiously as she closed her eyes and began to chant something under her breath. Even Saren who was right next to her could barely make out what she was saying.
Dashing towards Saren and Leona he zeroed in on the towering, axe wielding warrior, trying to read his movements. He would move to protect Leona III and he needed to plan for that. As he saw him wind up for a swing Adair dashed to the side putting Leona III in between them. Then launching off of his right foot he leaped into the air throwing himself into a spin.
“Stop him!” ordered Leona IV. Zhou and Fenfang threw out chains in an attempt to stop the man. But the metal links were cut in an instant. Leona IV ran in towards her mother.
Blades shot out from all over his body turning him into a rotating saw blade. Saren pushed Leona out of the way and slammed his axe down in front of himself to block the man’s attack. Adair slamming into it still spinning and used that to turn himself upside down. Then hooked a blade around the axe handle and spun around it before retracting his blades and using that momentum to run towards Leona once again.
“Leona!” yelled Saren reaching out and grabbing for Adair, but the man slipped through his fingers. Flames surrounded Leona IV as she got ready to protect her mother.
“Be still girl,” said Leona III began returning to her chanting. Leona IV heard her mother, but didn’t drop her flames. Zhou and Fenfang dropped to ground level and dashed towards Adair. Leona III stopped chanting and lazily opened her eyes. Time seemed to be moving in slow motion for her. Zhou and Fenfang were closing in, and would probably even make it in time. Her daughter was readying an attack, and Saren was for all his power to slow to react. Leona smiled sweetly. In any other time she would step back, and be protected. This wasn’t that time. She wanted to make a statement. She was back.
In a flash of lightning Leona teleported behind Adair with her hand raised and sparks dancing on her finger tips. Adair turned and tried to produce his blades from his body, but it was too late. Leona jabbed her nails into his skin as lightning tore through his nervous system. The blades that broke skin only helped to spread her attack faster.
†˜Interesting...you have no spirit.’ she said as she explored his body with her electricity. Adair gritted his teeth trying everything he could to move his body, but her power was immense. He was but a plaything to her now. The room was silent as they watched Leona playful toy with the man.
“L-Louise…” he gasped as he was able to move his arm just a little, and reached out for Leona. She narrowed her eyes and forced an enormous amount of lightning into the man, and his body went limp.
“I spared his life, for now…” she said as she ripped her nails out of him and he crashed into the floor. Leona IV walked up to her mother still in a semi dazed state. This happened so fast. Just earlier in the day her mother still had no spiritual power. Now she couldn’t even feel the limit of her mother’s power. But that wasn’t all. Her mother was changing. Her body looked younger and more healthy than before.
“Take him to the dungeon, I want to talk to him later. As a supporter of the war I think he deserves a chance to explain himself before his execution.” said Leona III, she was sounding like her old self again. Confident and commanding, just like a queen. Zhou and Fenfang tied up Adair placing his hands behind him before tightly binding the ropes together. Then the two carried him off.
“Mother how did this happen?” asked Leona IV.
Leona III glanced at the dead priestess for a moment. “I saw this man attack that priestess, and I tried everything to save her. However my powers awoke too late…” she answered. She knew that telling the truth might not be the best choice at the moment.
“It’s good to have you back,” said Leona IV embracing her mother. Leona III hugged her daughter secretly grinning. Saren noticed this but said nothing. He thought on what Adair had said but decided that, for now, this was better kept to himself.
Walking through the throne room with her mother felt weird feeling the intense difference in power. It was as if all that time she spent without it was just saved up and released at once. Leona III skipped ahead and plopped onto the throne.
“W-what are you doing?!” exclaimed Leona IV.
“No one is here. What is the harm?” said Leona III with a smile. “Besides it will be mine again soon anyways.” She brought a finger to her lips as she looked at her daughter. Leona IV felt intense pressure knowing that she was outmatched, but this was still rightfully her throne.
“You may be back, but the throne was passed to me.” answered Leona IV. “You can’t just come and take it.”
“I thought you studied more than that. That is precisely what I can do.” answered Leona III. “Any former queen has the right to challenge a new one if she believes the kingdom is being lead improperly.”
“Improperly! I-” Leona IV began she was cut off.
“I kept my mouth shut because I didn’t have my power before. I had no right or ability to challenge you. The times have changed my dear daughter.” answered Leona III.
“During the war? This is hardly the time to do this.” argued Leona IV.
“No, this is the perfect time,” answered Leona III. [/b]“In a time when a princess who has only ever known peace, and has weakened her kingdom because of it. A queen who is no stranger to blood will be more than welcome. We fight at dawn, you are welcome not to show up and let me have the throne.”[/b]
Leona IV was shaking, but at this point she didn’t know if it was anger or fear. Leona III stared down her daughter with a smile before she stood up from the throne. As she walked past her daughter Leona III kept her eyes forward confidently. Not looking back at her daughter as she left the room.
Leona IV broke down after her mother left and wept. Two shadows slinked in next to her one placing a hand on her shoulder. It was Fenfang wearing an encouraging smile. Though that did little to improve her mood, Leona IV appreciated the attempt.
Walking towards her room she was stopped by two guards who did not recognize her in her younger form.
“Halt! State your name!” ordered a guard.
“Leona Xinia III,” she answered.
The guards looked at each other incredulously before turning back to her. Saren walked up behind her and looked down at the guards.
“The former queen has regained her spirit, and with it she restored her former appearance. Please inform the other guards.” said Saren. Leona III looked up behind her and gave a thankful nod. The guards straightened up and bowed furiously.
“Our apologies!” they exclaimed over and over. Leona III who was tired of this waved them off.
“Stop that. This is joyous news after all. Spread the word to the town as well. We are having a succession tomorrow.” ordered Leona III with a smirk. The two stopped bowing eyes widened. They knew right away what that meant. Not wanting to keep her waiting they sprinted off to do as commanded. After they were gone she continued on to her room, and Saren followed as well.
“Are you sure about all this? You have only just reclaimed your powers, and you are already going to challenge the young queen.” said Saren. Leona III turned around glaring straight into Saren’s eyes. She was even shorter now, but the warrior didn’t intimidate her in the slightest. At this point no one did.
“I’m very sure. This kingdom will not last otherwise. You know this, and so does everyone else. I understand your concern for her, but know that this is the best for the kingdom. Also for her.” said Leona III. “There is no more time to waste. I need to take the reigns before we are steered further in the wrong direction.” As she finished she turned and headed into room that was nearby. Saren was no where done trying to change her mind. As he entered the room his cheeks turned flushed at the scene.
“Ugh these clothes don’t fit anymore!” exclaimed Leona III peeling off her clothes. Saren turned around and stepped outside closing the door. Leona III laughed knowing that would keep him out of her room, and spare her his lecture.
“Go find my maid, tell her I need a new wardrobe.” she ordered yelling out of the door to Saren. Saren grumbled as he headed off down the hallway.
The next morning came faster than Leona IV wanted. She was barely able to sleep. So much was happening at once. Climbing out of bed her maids who were waiting for her, walked across the room to assist her in her morning preparations. They said nothing about the succession as they knew it wasn’t their place to ask.
After she was dressed she wasted no time in leaving her room. She knew what everyone was thinking. Just being around her mother she could feel just how immense her power was now. She had honestly considered not showing up, but that would just confirm just what everyone thought about her. She was weak.
Stepping out of the castle into the plaza she saw that crowds had gathered around to watch the succession. They cheered for her as she walked out, and weakly she waved to the crowd as she walked over to her side of the plaza. As she looked towards the door of the castle for her mother to come out a flash of light went off in her peripheral vision.
As she turned she saw her mother in a black and purple outfit. Blue ropes were lightly wrapped around her waist and silver ornaments hung from them. The fabric was cut so that her legs showed and lead down to some long white and blue boots. Her chest was contained in a halter that wasn’t all that concealing. Her hair was done up in ornate black pins and her long white hair flowed behind her.
“Ohoho, you actually showed up,” said Leona III. The only thing separating them was the phoenix statue in the center of the plaza. The crowd stood in awe of Leona’s new appearance and cheered for the former queen as well.
“What do you think of this Saren?” asked Zhou. The three guardians present in Masario were standing on the podium that overlooked the plaza.
“This is the way things have always been,” answered Saren. [/b]“Even our former queen had to challenge her mother in order to become queen.”[/b]
“But those injuries eventually…” began Fenfang. Saren and Zhou’s faces darkened.
“It is not our place to question the old ways. We will serve whoever wins just as we always have.” answered Saren. Zhou and Fenfang fell silent.
“As the challenger I believe the first move is mine, correct?” asked Leona III. Her eyes began to change into a golden hue as small lightning strikes sparked around her. Suddenly a large lightning strike fired down at Leona IV. Sensing the spiritual build up she launched back just in time, but that was only the first step in her mother’s plan.
[]b“Fufu, so slow.”[/b] said Leona III. As the flash subsided she was left in its wake. Lightning dancing along her nails. Straightening her hand she slashed for her daughters face. Jerking back Leona IV narrowly dodged the attack. Then activating her spirit form she flipped elegantly back putting distance between her and her mother. Orbs floated around Leona IV protectively. Suddenly she felt a painful shock on her cheek and placed her hand on it. A gash began to bleed on her cheek with static moving across the wound.
As she looked back at her mother her eyes opened wide. A giant white and gold dragon coiled up behind her letting out a mighty roar before fading. The large beast flashed in and out with the lightning flashes that were going off next to Leona III.
“A cross-over?!” yelled Fenfang. This was the first time she had seen one up close before. It was breathtaking to say the least.
“Where did she obtain this power?” asked Leona IV focusing on keeping her spirit form.
“I see you have finally came avatar of Cain.” said Rhea standing and turning around slowly. Adair stood there with his sword drawn. The large scimitar reflected the flame from the candles around the room.
“Did you think you could keep it hidden forever?” asked Adair. “I know it's here.”
“Know what is here?” asked Rhea coyly with a giggle that was very out of character. “You did well to get in here unnoticed, but all that means...that I can get rid of you without anyone knowing...” She slid a simple knife out from her sleeve and flung it at Adair. Adair deflected it to the side, and charged for Rhea.
Leaping up he gripped his blade in both hands and stabbed down for Rhea. To his surprise she didn’t move. Suddenly a masked priestess jumped in the way taking the blow to the chest as Rhea looked on with a smile. Blood flowed from the wound and reddened her once pure attire. She coughed up blood that coated Adair. A large torrent of spiritual energy shot out from the body soon after. Adair ripped his blade from her chest looking at Rhea. Then out of no where he sensed an enormous spiritual presence behind him.
“How nice of you to join us Leona…” Rhea said. Adair turned around quickly to find Leona III hunched over looking at her hands. Rhea walked off laughing as she parted a curtain to the back section of the temple.
Gripping his blade he moved to follow Rhea but large bolt of lightning shot down from the ceiling in front of him baring his path. Turning he saw Leona III with her hand pointed towards him, breathing heavily. Adair glanced at the body on the floor and shook his head.
“Nothing but a vessel. What a sad life.” said Adair looking to the crumpled body on the floor. Lightning began to strike all around the room in random places. It was evident that Leona III was struggling to control her restored power. He needed to take her down now. Dashing towards her he held his blade to the side. Ready to attack with everything that he had.
“Not on my watch!” yelled Saren slamming his axe in front of Leona protectively as he stormed into the room. Adair narrowly jumped back in time. Standing with his back to Leona he stared down Adair before looking back to Leona. Her eyes were crazed and pulsating a bright gold color.
“What have you done traitor!” yelled Saren lifting his axe back over his shoulder. Adair flipped his sword so that he was holding the handle backwards.
“She is being made the fool. Her spirit was returned to her by the same person that stole it in the first place.” answered Adair. “We need to put her down before it crushes what is left of her sanity. That power is too great for her!”
“The only one being struck down today is you,” answered Saren swinging his axe down before holding it in both hands. Leona seductively walked around him, placing her hand on his muscular arm. Still wearing her insane grin.
“This one is mine,” she said standing in front of Saren. Bending over she ran her hands up her legs as static electricity began to build and spark from her fingertips. Stepping forward with her right leg she thrusted her right arm forward sending an arc of lightning towards Adair. Deftly dodging the attack the lightning shot a hole through a pillar in the corner of the temple.
“Mother what is going on here?!” yelled Leona IV running into the temple. As she laid eyes on her mother she could barely believe her eyes. Her mother’s spirit had returned. Adair looked at her and gritted his teeth. Then his eyes traveled to two shadows that he knew to be her bodyguards. Looking to Rhea he cursed.
“You planned this all out didn’t you?” he said to himself. There was no way he was going to make it out of this one, even if he went all out. Glaring at Leona he knew that if he could at least take her out then all was not lost.
Leona III looked at the man curiously as she closed her eyes and began to chant something under her breath. Even Saren who was right next to her could barely make out what she was saying.
Dashing towards Saren and Leona he zeroed in on the towering, axe wielding warrior, trying to read his movements. He would move to protect Leona III and he needed to plan for that. As he saw him wind up for a swing Adair dashed to the side putting Leona III in between them. Then launching off of his right foot he leaped into the air throwing himself into a spin.
“Stop him!” ordered Leona IV. Zhou and Fenfang threw out chains in an attempt to stop the man. But the metal links were cut in an instant. Leona IV ran in towards her mother.
Blades shot out from all over his body turning him into a rotating saw blade. Saren pushed Leona out of the way and slammed his axe down in front of himself to block the man’s attack. Adair slamming into it still spinning and used that to turn himself upside down. Then hooked a blade around the axe handle and spun around it before retracting his blades and using that momentum to run towards Leona once again.
“Leona!” yelled Saren reaching out and grabbing for Adair, but the man slipped through his fingers. Flames surrounded Leona IV as she got ready to protect her mother.
“Be still girl,” said Leona III began returning to her chanting. Leona IV heard her mother, but didn’t drop her flames. Zhou and Fenfang dropped to ground level and dashed towards Adair. Leona III stopped chanting and lazily opened her eyes. Time seemed to be moving in slow motion for her. Zhou and Fenfang were closing in, and would probably even make it in time. Her daughter was readying an attack, and Saren was for all his power to slow to react. Leona smiled sweetly. In any other time she would step back, and be protected. This wasn’t that time. She wanted to make a statement. She was back.
In a flash of lightning Leona teleported behind Adair with her hand raised and sparks dancing on her finger tips. Adair turned and tried to produce his blades from his body, but it was too late. Leona jabbed her nails into his skin as lightning tore through his nervous system. The blades that broke skin only helped to spread her attack faster.
†˜Interesting...you have no spirit.’ she said as she explored his body with her electricity. Adair gritted his teeth trying everything he could to move his body, but her power was immense. He was but a plaything to her now. The room was silent as they watched Leona playful toy with the man.
“L-Louise…” he gasped as he was able to move his arm just a little, and reached out for Leona. She narrowed her eyes and forced an enormous amount of lightning into the man, and his body went limp.
“I spared his life, for now…” she said as she ripped her nails out of him and he crashed into the floor. Leona IV walked up to her mother still in a semi dazed state. This happened so fast. Just earlier in the day her mother still had no spiritual power. Now she couldn’t even feel the limit of her mother’s power. But that wasn’t all. Her mother was changing. Her body looked younger and more healthy than before.
“Take him to the dungeon, I want to talk to him later. As a supporter of the war I think he deserves a chance to explain himself before his execution.” said Leona III, she was sounding like her old self again. Confident and commanding, just like a queen. Zhou and Fenfang tied up Adair placing his hands behind him before tightly binding the ropes together. Then the two carried him off.
“Mother how did this happen?” asked Leona IV.
Leona III glanced at the dead priestess for a moment. “I saw this man attack that priestess, and I tried everything to save her. However my powers awoke too late…” she answered. She knew that telling the truth might not be the best choice at the moment.
“It’s good to have you back,” said Leona IV embracing her mother. Leona III hugged her daughter secretly grinning. Saren noticed this but said nothing. He thought on what Adair had said but decided that, for now, this was better kept to himself.
Walking through the throne room with her mother felt weird feeling the intense difference in power. It was as if all that time she spent without it was just saved up and released at once. Leona III skipped ahead and plopped onto the throne.
“W-what are you doing?!” exclaimed Leona IV.
“No one is here. What is the harm?” said Leona III with a smile. “Besides it will be mine again soon anyways.” She brought a finger to her lips as she looked at her daughter. Leona IV felt intense pressure knowing that she was outmatched, but this was still rightfully her throne.
“You may be back, but the throne was passed to me.” answered Leona IV. “You can’t just come and take it.”
“I thought you studied more than that. That is precisely what I can do.” answered Leona III. “Any former queen has the right to challenge a new one if she believes the kingdom is being lead improperly.”
“Improperly! I-” Leona IV began she was cut off.
“I kept my mouth shut because I didn’t have my power before. I had no right or ability to challenge you. The times have changed my dear daughter.” answered Leona III.
“During the war? This is hardly the time to do this.” argued Leona IV.
“No, this is the perfect time,” answered Leona III. [/b]“In a time when a princess who has only ever known peace, and has weakened her kingdom because of it. A queen who is no stranger to blood will be more than welcome. We fight at dawn, you are welcome not to show up and let me have the throne.”[/b]
Leona IV was shaking, but at this point she didn’t know if it was anger or fear. Leona III stared down her daughter with a smile before she stood up from the throne. As she walked past her daughter Leona III kept her eyes forward confidently. Not looking back at her daughter as she left the room.
Leona IV broke down after her mother left and wept. Two shadows slinked in next to her one placing a hand on her shoulder. It was Fenfang wearing an encouraging smile. Though that did little to improve her mood, Leona IV appreciated the attempt.
Walking towards her room she was stopped by two guards who did not recognize her in her younger form.
“Halt! State your name!” ordered a guard.
“Leona Xinia III,” she answered.
The guards looked at each other incredulously before turning back to her. Saren walked up behind her and looked down at the guards.
“The former queen has regained her spirit, and with it she restored her former appearance. Please inform the other guards.” said Saren. Leona III looked up behind her and gave a thankful nod. The guards straightened up and bowed furiously.
“Our apologies!” they exclaimed over and over. Leona III who was tired of this waved them off.
“Stop that. This is joyous news after all. Spread the word to the town as well. We are having a succession tomorrow.” ordered Leona III with a smirk. The two stopped bowing eyes widened. They knew right away what that meant. Not wanting to keep her waiting they sprinted off to do as commanded. After they were gone she continued on to her room, and Saren followed as well.
“Are you sure about all this? You have only just reclaimed your powers, and you are already going to challenge the young queen.” said Saren. Leona III turned around glaring straight into Saren’s eyes. She was even shorter now, but the warrior didn’t intimidate her in the slightest. At this point no one did.
“I’m very sure. This kingdom will not last otherwise. You know this, and so does everyone else. I understand your concern for her, but know that this is the best for the kingdom. Also for her.” said Leona III. “There is no more time to waste. I need to take the reigns before we are steered further in the wrong direction.” As she finished she turned and headed into room that was nearby. Saren was no where done trying to change her mind. As he entered the room his cheeks turned flushed at the scene.
“Ugh these clothes don’t fit anymore!” exclaimed Leona III peeling off her clothes. Saren turned around and stepped outside closing the door. Leona III laughed knowing that would keep him out of her room, and spare her his lecture.
“Go find my maid, tell her I need a new wardrobe.” she ordered yelling out of the door to Saren. Saren grumbled as he headed off down the hallway.
The next morning came faster than Leona IV wanted. She was barely able to sleep. So much was happening at once. Climbing out of bed her maids who were waiting for her, walked across the room to assist her in her morning preparations. They said nothing about the succession as they knew it wasn’t their place to ask.
After she was dressed she wasted no time in leaving her room. She knew what everyone was thinking. Just being around her mother she could feel just how immense her power was now. She had honestly considered not showing up, but that would just confirm just what everyone thought about her. She was weak.
Stepping out of the castle into the plaza she saw that crowds had gathered around to watch the succession. They cheered for her as she walked out, and weakly she waved to the crowd as she walked over to her side of the plaza. As she looked towards the door of the castle for her mother to come out a flash of light went off in her peripheral vision.
As she turned she saw her mother in a black and purple outfit. Blue ropes were lightly wrapped around her waist and silver ornaments hung from them. The fabric was cut so that her legs showed and lead down to some long white and blue boots. Her chest was contained in a halter that wasn’t all that concealing. Her hair was done up in ornate black pins and her long white hair flowed behind her.
“Ohoho, you actually showed up,” said Leona III. The only thing separating them was the phoenix statue in the center of the plaza. The crowd stood in awe of Leona’s new appearance and cheered for the former queen as well.
“What do you think of this Saren?” asked Zhou. The three guardians present in Masario were standing on the podium that overlooked the plaza.
“This is the way things have always been,” answered Saren. [/b]“Even our former queen had to challenge her mother in order to become queen.”[/b]
“But those injuries eventually…” began Fenfang. Saren and Zhou’s faces darkened.
“It is not our place to question the old ways. We will serve whoever wins just as we always have.” answered Saren. Zhou and Fenfang fell silent.
“As the challenger I believe the first move is mine, correct?” asked Leona III. Her eyes began to change into a golden hue as small lightning strikes sparked around her. Suddenly a large lightning strike fired down at Leona IV. Sensing the spiritual build up she launched back just in time, but that was only the first step in her mother’s plan.
[]b“Fufu, so slow.”[/b] said Leona III. As the flash subsided she was left in its wake. Lightning dancing along her nails. Straightening her hand she slashed for her daughters face. Jerking back Leona IV narrowly dodged the attack. Then activating her spirit form she flipped elegantly back putting distance between her and her mother. Orbs floated around Leona IV protectively. Suddenly she felt a painful shock on her cheek and placed her hand on it. A gash began to bleed on her cheek with static moving across the wound.
As she looked back at her mother her eyes opened wide. A giant white and gold dragon coiled up behind her letting out a mighty roar before fading. The large beast flashed in and out with the lightning flashes that were going off next to Leona III.
“A cross-over?!” yelled Fenfang. This was the first time she had seen one up close before. It was breathtaking to say the least.
“Where did she obtain this power?” asked Leona IV focusing on keeping her spirit form.
0
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
(This is a Joint Post Starring:
TheLoneGentleman and Cinia Pacifica.)
As Louise walked into her room in the Augusta residence, her two hired muscle filed in behind her. As Kudzu walked he immediately felt ill. “Ugh, this is Masario alright,” complained Kudzu. His spirit was throwing a fit at being surrounded by sure pure spiritual energy.
“Hmmm I feel just fine…” said Durran looking around the room. “Where are we?”
“My residence… well, technically mine, anyway.” Louise replied as she eyed Kudu, feigning pity for him. “You’ll just have to get used to it,” she said to Kudzu with the smile of an innocent girl. As Louise was about to leave the room, Kudzu and Durran stepped in to open the doors as she left for the current head of the Augusta house. The Augusta house was originally the residence of her family – all of whom that died centuries ago. As Louise was the last of their survivors, the rights to its inheritance was supposedly her’s to gain. However, she fled from the city – never to come back, apparently – hence the house was simply inherited throughout the generations by her sister’s descendants. Louise allowed things to stay as they become and would only pay visit seldom with otherworldly gifts. Until recently, when she decided to come to the world due to unfinished business.
As Louise exited the room Xavier caught her in the hallway. “Oh you have returned?” questioned Xavier. “If you are looking for Lady Margaret she is out currently.”
“I’m assuming that your keen eyes have observed the situation currently? Care to fill me in?” Louise asked in response to the butler’s words, as she stopped to face him across the corridor.
“You give me too much praise, madam.” he said smiling. “Quite a bit has happened. But on the most important of topics, Leona III has regained her power. She wasted no time in challenging her daughter for the throne. The succession is already underway.”
“...She what? Are you telling me – that the mother and daughter are engaged in a battle at the moment?” Louise asked, a scowl was evident as her tone turned serious. How could she do this? Especially when it was her who loved her daughter so much. So much so that she wouldn’t even let a spec of harm come close to her. Albeit they had a few †˜bouts of fights here and there. They were natural arguments between a mother and daughter. This was going overboard.
“Yes that is where Lady Margaret is right now. She wanted to see it first hand. It is at the plaza if you would like to attend as well.” he answered. “Who are guests by the way?” Xavier looked to the door as Durran and Kudzu stepped out.
“Oh dear…”
“Tch, I didn’t wish to do it despite just coming back… but,” Louise muttered, apparently upset. She then raised her wand. “We’re taking another trip – much shorter one, at that,” she stated, creating a rift in the air before walking into it along with her so-called guards.
The three stepped out of the rift and came out in the sitting area that overlooked the plaza. Out near the podium they could see Saren, Zhou, and Fenfang looking down at the spectacle. Lightning sparked down from the sky, but the two fighters could not be seen yet. As Louise and her guardians moved to get a closer look Saren noticed them and turned.
When he saw Kudzu he tore his axe from the holder on his back. Zhou and Fenfang turned drawing their weapons as well. They looked at Saren before turning back to Louise and her companion.
Kudzu smirked recognizing Saren. “Still as sharp as ever,” joked Kudzu. Durran grazed his hand over his sword ready to act on a moments notice.
“What is the meaning of this, High Priestess?” asked Saren.
“I don’t know of your past, and nor do I care – in all honesty – they’re currently my bodyguards,” Louise said, her usual expression and smile of a high-class lady all up in the air. “Excuse us,” Louise said, leaping down in a flash, advancing towards the two even further. Saren kept a firm grip on his ace. Kudzu and Durran stood still not wanting to start a fight.
“...May I know what the meaning of this, is?” Louise asked, facing the two †˜Queens’ of Masario. More specifically, one a Queen and other the Former Queen – for now. For the former one to do this – how troublesome, she felt. She truly wondered – what the meaning of this was.
Leona III stilled her hand that was aimed at her daughter’s chest. Leona IV took the chance to put some distance between them. Leona III smiled as she turned to her old friend.
“Simply taking back what is mine.” answered Leona III. “It’s nice that you were able to come, but I wanted to surprise you with me, back on the throne.”
Louise didn’t give her usual smile. Rather, there was a scowl. If analyzed deeply; one would notice… pity?
Louise sighed. “And you?” She asked Leona IV. “...Any comments? What do you think of this farce?”
Leona IV was breathing hard and ragged. It was obvious she was taking all the damage in this fight. She was forced to use this distraction to gather her thoughts, and try to come up with something. “I don’t know where she got all this power from, but I don’t think this was the proper time to pull something like this.”
“And what better time is there? After the kingdom is reduced to ash by your own flames?” responded Leona III.
“You, pipe down,” Louise said, turning an eye to Leona III. “Interferences are unnecessary,” she said. The bad mood was definitely apparent.
The crowd was surprised at the way that Louise just interrupted the fight, but none were about to step up and say anything about it. Leona III sighed and turned back to her daughter.
“This is the way it has been for centuries.” said Leona IV. “I have no right to refuse a challenge.”
“I’d usually try to stop such foolish, and childish fights. However, traditions are there for their own reasons,” Louise stated, before sighing, then giving her traditional; classic shrug. “I’ll follow under the path of the victor to the end,” she declared. “My only true objective at the moment; is to lead humanity to a better path. It has strayed far too much as it is. I suppose Ishtar waited long for my memories to come back, but I won’t waste any more time dawdling around.”
“I take that as we are allowed to continue.” said Leona III grinning ear to ear. Raising her hand infront of herself she began to flex her hand open and closed. Torrents of electricity moved through the spaces in her fingers.
“...I’d love to know how you changed back to that form after this, by the way,” Louise said before closing her eyes for a moment, and cracking up a smile to Leona III. Despite the bad manners displayed to Leona III – they were still friends to the bitter end. “Welcome back, friend,” she could clearly feel the old spiritual energy was she once familiarized with as she spoke to Leona III. She could feel a torrent of power radiating from Leona IV; but casually ignored it. That could hardly graze the former Queen. Yet, despite knowing the glaring gap in power and control; Louise wished to give this young Queen at least one chance; letting her know that Louise intended to play fair till the end; she attempted to show her sincerity to both the legitimate successors, and the eyewitnesses.
Leona IV had secretly been charging the entire time they were talking. Even as they bantered she made sure she was holding in as much power as she could. Her spirit form’s flames began to burn brighter as a result. Leona III noticed this and smirked.
“Come girl, show me the limits of your power.” she said beckoning her daughter with a finger. Leona IV placed a hand behind her and fired off a small flame to propel herself forward. Then she launched up into the air and with all the power she gathered she fired off her Megiddo flame straight down at her mother. Leona III wore her crazed expression even as she was enveloped by the intense flames.
The crowd gasped as they thought that the queen had secured her throne. Louise smiled, however, watching the flames. The monster no doubt lied within… as the flames subsided – Leona III stood inside what seemed like a small electrical barrier. The ground around her was singed, but the former queen was left unscathed. Dispelling her barrier she crouched down as sparks lit up the ground. Then she stood up straight as the current moved through her body and gathered in her hand.
Leona IV was spent on energy and couldn’t muster a flame to propel herself out of the way. Focusing a condensed bolt of lightning, Leona III fired it straight at her daughter. Leona IV began to convulse in the air before her mother ended the attack early, sending the rest of the attack off into the sky. Leona IV fell from the sky unconscious and crashed into the hard ground.
The crowd was silent as they looked at their former queen lifeless on the ground. Leona III turned to the crowd staring at them expectantly. One by one they began to kneel, until it was a tidal wave of respect. Leona III felt nostalgic remembering the first time she saw this. Once again she was back, and she wouldn’t let anyone take her place again.
Louise, however, did not bow like the plebeians. Instead, she chose to give a respectably terse bow; placing a hand to her chest tenderly. “I shall support your cause, Leona III – my Queen,” she said, admitting Leona III’s legitimacy to the throne.
Hearing that the crowd cheered accepting their new queen, for better or worse. Saren, Zhou, and Fenfang jumped down to the plaza. Zhou and Fenfang went to address Leona IV’s injuries. Saren simply looked to Louise and Leona III.
“What is it?” asked Leona III.
Saren closed his eyes. “Nothing…” he said simply.
“Then lets go,” said Leona III. An attendant ran up to stop Leona.
“But your majesty, what about the speech?” he said nervously.
[b“Skip it, I’m tired.”[/b] answered Leona III.
“No, you are doing it,” Louise said, folding her arms. “Or,” she begun, smiling, “you running away from responsibilities already?”
“Ugh, fine I’ll make it quick…” answered Leona III walking over to the front of the crowd.
“Is this really for the best?” Saren asked quietly to Louise.
“Elaborate,” Louise whispered back to Saren, not shifting an eye to the concerned man.
“As her friend can you really support her when she is like this?” said Saren as Leona was giving her speech in the background, as short as she planned to keep it.
“Ah…good call; that reminds me,” Louise said, perking up towards Leona III as she seemed to be… done with the terse speech. “Leona. Mind a moment? I have something to say, you know – as your friend.”
Finished with her announcement she turned to Louise with a raised brow. “Yes what is it?” asked Leona III.
“Good,” Louise uttered, a smile of an innocent lady greeted Leona III, before her hand was laid tenderly over her cheek, rubbing it for a moment. Who’d have thought what’d happen next? Her hand parted the soft and alluring cheek, only to bash it with much force momentarily; she was slapped. Slapped hard.
A lightning bolt shot down near them as the hand assaulted Leona’s cheek. As she looked back to Louise her eyes were flashing gold. Leona quickly calmed herself down regaining composure. Her left cheek showing a red hand print.
“And what may I ask what that was for?” asked Leona III. The crowd behind her grew restless and began to talk amongst themselves.
“What do you think you’re doing? She is your daughter,” Louise said, wearing a frown with a fiery look. Even if Leona IV was actually picked up from the streets – Leona IV was still a daughter to Leona III. “Where is that loving mother gone – the person I met who requested me to join into the ranks of the officials? You’re nothing but a mere monster now,” Louise’s brutal honesty was apparent now, as she didn’t bother to sugarcoat her words.
“If that… is what I need to be to win this war. I’ll gladly become a monster,” answered Leona III. “If you thought I was out of line. You could have stopped me before, but you watched. Just like everyone else. Why? Because you all know you need someone willing to get their hands in the muck and blood.”
“Of course not. If you’re comparing how bloodied my hands are, with yours; then give up – it’s not even comparable,” Louise said, dropping yet another sigh. “I just feel that casting aside your daughter is what you should truly avoid. You could’ve done this in a much more civil manner – instead of being an absolute barbarian to receive the throne.” So much for a Queen, not picking a more peaceful solution was her mistake. Louise simply watched because of the tradition, and because Leona III made her own choices. This didn’t stop Louise from criticizing her, however. Someone who could be willing to bloody their hands? If Louise could become a Queen; she would – rather than watching foolish acts like these.
“Look, I held back. What more do you want? I expected you of all people to have my back here.” she answered. “I know better than anyone that she wouldn’t have just handed it over. We don’t have time to be civil.”
“If a Queen doesn’t live with her graces up, who do you expect to follow your example? Who’d give you the time of day to support you? Respect to the throne’s owner is one thing, and serving purely out of respect for you, yourself is another.” Such cases often gave rise to revolutions and acts of treason in other worlds. This was nothing new. Human minds can be judgemental, just like Louise. “Stop thinking about just the present, and the war. Start thinking about the future, too,” What if Leona IV completely loses the resolve to aspire to become a more competent Queen in the future due to her defeat? Leona III wasn’t immortal and was growing old day by day, while Leona IV was still quite young even now. “I’ll take care of Cain, so stop this pointless rush. Do not allow your emotions to cloud your judgement. I want you to be a proper Queen, not some desperate muddied lady who I don’t even know.”
Looking to her daughter she scowled. Then she turned to Louise and closed her eyes in thought. “You always had extreme ways of getting your point across, but stop worrying. This is where things get fun,” she replied with a kind expression.
“A fun… war?” Louise turned around, she muttered something. Something dangerous under her breath before she took her leave. Kudzu and Durran followed close behind once Louise was out of sight from the public eye. Leona III looked after Louise, and her compatriots as she walked away before averting her eyes back to her people with a questionable smile.
TheLoneGentleman and Cinia Pacifica.)
As Louise walked into her room in the Augusta residence, her two hired muscle filed in behind her. As Kudzu walked he immediately felt ill. “Ugh, this is Masario alright,” complained Kudzu. His spirit was throwing a fit at being surrounded by sure pure spiritual energy.
“Hmmm I feel just fine…” said Durran looking around the room. “Where are we?”
“My residence… well, technically mine, anyway.” Louise replied as she eyed Kudu, feigning pity for him. “You’ll just have to get used to it,” she said to Kudzu with the smile of an innocent girl. As Louise was about to leave the room, Kudzu and Durran stepped in to open the doors as she left for the current head of the Augusta house. The Augusta house was originally the residence of her family – all of whom that died centuries ago. As Louise was the last of their survivors, the rights to its inheritance was supposedly her’s to gain. However, she fled from the city – never to come back, apparently – hence the house was simply inherited throughout the generations by her sister’s descendants. Louise allowed things to stay as they become and would only pay visit seldom with otherworldly gifts. Until recently, when she decided to come to the world due to unfinished business.
As Louise exited the room Xavier caught her in the hallway. “Oh you have returned?” questioned Xavier. “If you are looking for Lady Margaret she is out currently.”
“I’m assuming that your keen eyes have observed the situation currently? Care to fill me in?” Louise asked in response to the butler’s words, as she stopped to face him across the corridor.
“You give me too much praise, madam.” he said smiling. “Quite a bit has happened. But on the most important of topics, Leona III has regained her power. She wasted no time in challenging her daughter for the throne. The succession is already underway.”
“...She what? Are you telling me – that the mother and daughter are engaged in a battle at the moment?” Louise asked, a scowl was evident as her tone turned serious. How could she do this? Especially when it was her who loved her daughter so much. So much so that she wouldn’t even let a spec of harm come close to her. Albeit they had a few †˜bouts of fights here and there. They were natural arguments between a mother and daughter. This was going overboard.
“Yes that is where Lady Margaret is right now. She wanted to see it first hand. It is at the plaza if you would like to attend as well.” he answered. “Who are guests by the way?” Xavier looked to the door as Durran and Kudzu stepped out.
“Oh dear…”
“Tch, I didn’t wish to do it despite just coming back… but,” Louise muttered, apparently upset. She then raised her wand. “We’re taking another trip – much shorter one, at that,” she stated, creating a rift in the air before walking into it along with her so-called guards.
The three stepped out of the rift and came out in the sitting area that overlooked the plaza. Out near the podium they could see Saren, Zhou, and Fenfang looking down at the spectacle. Lightning sparked down from the sky, but the two fighters could not be seen yet. As Louise and her guardians moved to get a closer look Saren noticed them and turned.
When he saw Kudzu he tore his axe from the holder on his back. Zhou and Fenfang turned drawing their weapons as well. They looked at Saren before turning back to Louise and her companion.
Kudzu smirked recognizing Saren. “Still as sharp as ever,” joked Kudzu. Durran grazed his hand over his sword ready to act on a moments notice.
“What is the meaning of this, High Priestess?” asked Saren.
“I don’t know of your past, and nor do I care – in all honesty – they’re currently my bodyguards,” Louise said, her usual expression and smile of a high-class lady all up in the air. “Excuse us,” Louise said, leaping down in a flash, advancing towards the two even further. Saren kept a firm grip on his ace. Kudzu and Durran stood still not wanting to start a fight.
“...May I know what the meaning of this, is?” Louise asked, facing the two †˜Queens’ of Masario. More specifically, one a Queen and other the Former Queen – for now. For the former one to do this – how troublesome, she felt. She truly wondered – what the meaning of this was.
Leona III stilled her hand that was aimed at her daughter’s chest. Leona IV took the chance to put some distance between them. Leona III smiled as she turned to her old friend.
“Simply taking back what is mine.” answered Leona III. “It’s nice that you were able to come, but I wanted to surprise you with me, back on the throne.”
Louise didn’t give her usual smile. Rather, there was a scowl. If analyzed deeply; one would notice… pity?
Louise sighed. “And you?” She asked Leona IV. “...Any comments? What do you think of this farce?”
Leona IV was breathing hard and ragged. It was obvious she was taking all the damage in this fight. She was forced to use this distraction to gather her thoughts, and try to come up with something. “I don’t know where she got all this power from, but I don’t think this was the proper time to pull something like this.”
“And what better time is there? After the kingdom is reduced to ash by your own flames?” responded Leona III.
“You, pipe down,” Louise said, turning an eye to Leona III. “Interferences are unnecessary,” she said. The bad mood was definitely apparent.
The crowd was surprised at the way that Louise just interrupted the fight, but none were about to step up and say anything about it. Leona III sighed and turned back to her daughter.
“This is the way it has been for centuries.” said Leona IV. “I have no right to refuse a challenge.”
“I’d usually try to stop such foolish, and childish fights. However, traditions are there for their own reasons,” Louise stated, before sighing, then giving her traditional; classic shrug. “I’ll follow under the path of the victor to the end,” she declared. “My only true objective at the moment; is to lead humanity to a better path. It has strayed far too much as it is. I suppose Ishtar waited long for my memories to come back, but I won’t waste any more time dawdling around.”
“I take that as we are allowed to continue.” said Leona III grinning ear to ear. Raising her hand infront of herself she began to flex her hand open and closed. Torrents of electricity moved through the spaces in her fingers.
“...I’d love to know how you changed back to that form after this, by the way,” Louise said before closing her eyes for a moment, and cracking up a smile to Leona III. Despite the bad manners displayed to Leona III – they were still friends to the bitter end. “Welcome back, friend,” she could clearly feel the old spiritual energy was she once familiarized with as she spoke to Leona III. She could feel a torrent of power radiating from Leona IV; but casually ignored it. That could hardly graze the former Queen. Yet, despite knowing the glaring gap in power and control; Louise wished to give this young Queen at least one chance; letting her know that Louise intended to play fair till the end; she attempted to show her sincerity to both the legitimate successors, and the eyewitnesses.
Leona IV had secretly been charging the entire time they were talking. Even as they bantered she made sure she was holding in as much power as she could. Her spirit form’s flames began to burn brighter as a result. Leona III noticed this and smirked.
“Come girl, show me the limits of your power.” she said beckoning her daughter with a finger. Leona IV placed a hand behind her and fired off a small flame to propel herself forward. Then she launched up into the air and with all the power she gathered she fired off her Megiddo flame straight down at her mother. Leona III wore her crazed expression even as she was enveloped by the intense flames.
The crowd gasped as they thought that the queen had secured her throne. Louise smiled, however, watching the flames. The monster no doubt lied within… as the flames subsided – Leona III stood inside what seemed like a small electrical barrier. The ground around her was singed, but the former queen was left unscathed. Dispelling her barrier she crouched down as sparks lit up the ground. Then she stood up straight as the current moved through her body and gathered in her hand.
Leona IV was spent on energy and couldn’t muster a flame to propel herself out of the way. Focusing a condensed bolt of lightning, Leona III fired it straight at her daughter. Leona IV began to convulse in the air before her mother ended the attack early, sending the rest of the attack off into the sky. Leona IV fell from the sky unconscious and crashed into the hard ground.
The crowd was silent as they looked at their former queen lifeless on the ground. Leona III turned to the crowd staring at them expectantly. One by one they began to kneel, until it was a tidal wave of respect. Leona III felt nostalgic remembering the first time she saw this. Once again she was back, and she wouldn’t let anyone take her place again.
Louise, however, did not bow like the plebeians. Instead, she chose to give a respectably terse bow; placing a hand to her chest tenderly. “I shall support your cause, Leona III – my Queen,” she said, admitting Leona III’s legitimacy to the throne.
Hearing that the crowd cheered accepting their new queen, for better or worse. Saren, Zhou, and Fenfang jumped down to the plaza. Zhou and Fenfang went to address Leona IV’s injuries. Saren simply looked to Louise and Leona III.
“What is it?” asked Leona III.
Saren closed his eyes. “Nothing…” he said simply.
“Then lets go,” said Leona III. An attendant ran up to stop Leona.
“But your majesty, what about the speech?” he said nervously.
[b“Skip it, I’m tired.”[/b] answered Leona III.
“No, you are doing it,” Louise said, folding her arms. “Or,” she begun, smiling, “you running away from responsibilities already?”
“Ugh, fine I’ll make it quick…” answered Leona III walking over to the front of the crowd.
“Is this really for the best?” Saren asked quietly to Louise.
“Elaborate,” Louise whispered back to Saren, not shifting an eye to the concerned man.
“As her friend can you really support her when she is like this?” said Saren as Leona was giving her speech in the background, as short as she planned to keep it.
“Ah…good call; that reminds me,” Louise said, perking up towards Leona III as she seemed to be… done with the terse speech. “Leona. Mind a moment? I have something to say, you know – as your friend.”
Finished with her announcement she turned to Louise with a raised brow. “Yes what is it?” asked Leona III.
“Good,” Louise uttered, a smile of an innocent lady greeted Leona III, before her hand was laid tenderly over her cheek, rubbing it for a moment. Who’d have thought what’d happen next? Her hand parted the soft and alluring cheek, only to bash it with much force momentarily; she was slapped. Slapped hard.
A lightning bolt shot down near them as the hand assaulted Leona’s cheek. As she looked back to Louise her eyes were flashing gold. Leona quickly calmed herself down regaining composure. Her left cheek showing a red hand print.
“And what may I ask what that was for?” asked Leona III. The crowd behind her grew restless and began to talk amongst themselves.
“What do you think you’re doing? She is your daughter,” Louise said, wearing a frown with a fiery look. Even if Leona IV was actually picked up from the streets – Leona IV was still a daughter to Leona III. “Where is that loving mother gone – the person I met who requested me to join into the ranks of the officials? You’re nothing but a mere monster now,” Louise’s brutal honesty was apparent now, as she didn’t bother to sugarcoat her words.
“If that… is what I need to be to win this war. I’ll gladly become a monster,” answered Leona III. “If you thought I was out of line. You could have stopped me before, but you watched. Just like everyone else. Why? Because you all know you need someone willing to get their hands in the muck and blood.”
“Of course not. If you’re comparing how bloodied my hands are, with yours; then give up – it’s not even comparable,” Louise said, dropping yet another sigh. “I just feel that casting aside your daughter is what you should truly avoid. You could’ve done this in a much more civil manner – instead of being an absolute barbarian to receive the throne.” So much for a Queen, not picking a more peaceful solution was her mistake. Louise simply watched because of the tradition, and because Leona III made her own choices. This didn’t stop Louise from criticizing her, however. Someone who could be willing to bloody their hands? If Louise could become a Queen; she would – rather than watching foolish acts like these.
“Look, I held back. What more do you want? I expected you of all people to have my back here.” she answered. “I know better than anyone that she wouldn’t have just handed it over. We don’t have time to be civil.”
“If a Queen doesn’t live with her graces up, who do you expect to follow your example? Who’d give you the time of day to support you? Respect to the throne’s owner is one thing, and serving purely out of respect for you, yourself is another.” Such cases often gave rise to revolutions and acts of treason in other worlds. This was nothing new. Human minds can be judgemental, just like Louise. “Stop thinking about just the present, and the war. Start thinking about the future, too,” What if Leona IV completely loses the resolve to aspire to become a more competent Queen in the future due to her defeat? Leona III wasn’t immortal and was growing old day by day, while Leona IV was still quite young even now. “I’ll take care of Cain, so stop this pointless rush. Do not allow your emotions to cloud your judgement. I want you to be a proper Queen, not some desperate muddied lady who I don’t even know.”
Looking to her daughter she scowled. Then she turned to Louise and closed her eyes in thought. “You always had extreme ways of getting your point across, but stop worrying. This is where things get fun,” she replied with a kind expression.
“A fun… war?” Louise turned around, she muttered something. Something dangerous under her breath before she took her leave. Kudzu and Durran followed close behind once Louise was out of sight from the public eye. Leona III looked after Louise, and her compatriots as she walked away before averting her eyes back to her people with a questionable smile.
0
This is a Joint Post Starring:
TheLoneGentleman and Cinia Pacifica
“They will be coming after us soon,” said Durran glancing behind him as they walked down the hallway. He had expected that Adair would find some way to contact them once they came to Masario. Adair was good at knowing when people of interest entered the city. Not seeing him meant that something was off.
“Haha, let them. I’ll reduce this castle to rubble!” shouted Kudzu.
“No, leave them be. This is unpleasant enough,” said Louise to Kudzu almost immediately. She didn’t wanted another headache to go over with. “For Leona III to change this much… I know something must’ve happened. I simply do not know what that is.” Behind-the-scenes were something almost always leaked here in Masario, until only recently. Things were at least starting to be under control again, she felt. However, this wasn’t quite the way a Queen should be… perhaps Louise was too fond of the first Queen. Someone needed to simply travel back in time, and watch the role model of a Queen in all her glory. Or should she simply seize the throne and show it herself?
“She will no doubt attack the cursed lands soon,” said Kudzu. “Do you think she is ready?”
“As if,” Louise said, cracking a smile. “But then, I’m here. Someone will have to save the day from the background, yes?” With the Queen treading the path alone; the world would fall into utter disarray and darkness. And Louise wasn’t about to let Cain do as he please with the entire world, nor would she let anyone with questionable intents and great powers plunge the world into the endless abyss.
“I believe that the queen has captured Adair,” said Durran quietly finally coming out of his thoughts. “He would have made contact with me by now.”
“Would you prefer him to, anyway?” Louise asked curiously. “Isn’t he an enemy to you, now?” Adair was a person working against Louise even after they met each other, save for the instances where he †˜saved’ her, most likely because they wished to take advantage of her existence. Besides, he was a spy, nothing good could possibly coming out of letting him see that they have become allies for now.
“He may know what has been going on here,” answered Durran. “Blythe won’t have been able to make it here in his condition. We can try and get some information out of him.”
“Well, there are other ways to gain knowledge regarding what took place here behind-the-scenes,” Louise stated calmly and coolly. There are many ears behind the walls of this city, unlike many other places.
“The Augustas are my sworn allies, after all,” she added, Margaret and her daughter were people of good heart who followed her to the bitter end, or so she liked to believe. She’d feel somewhat responsible if that were the case, however. As they seemed to be the kind of people who’d abandon Krieg for her sake, and that wasn’t quite… faithful to their own family. She wanted to believe that Krieg loved his family, to an extent, at least.
“At least, I hope they still are. They’ve been supporting me for centuries now.”
“I suppose we could ask them… I’ll leave it up to you. We are at your service after all,” answered Durran.
“I’m fine either way. I always knew the queen had a few screws loose. That’s all I need to know.” answered Kudzu.
“Well, this will still be better, I suppose,” Louise said. “At least with me around; we’ll make sure that the war turns to our favor,” she confidently added, she proud smile had never betrayed to portray her said confidence. Her knowledge and experiences wasn’t there for show. “However, I must admit; she is leagues better than her daughter.”
”In terms of confidence and power, I would agree,” answered Kudzu. ”Displays of power are always welcome. Her daughter is lucky that she held back that final attack.”
“Well, it’s a conflicting issue to her, I suppose. There was a time when her daughter made clear insults at her indirectly; like the time she left for Raltese, and made idiotic arrangements so that she couldn’t take over the throne… despite being the powerless person Leona III was at that time,” Louise stated, feeling somewhat sorry for her dear friend. She could still picture Leona III’s angry face when she learned of her situation back then. “I wonder if this means that her experiment has succeeded – now that her spirit is back.”
“Experiment?” asked Durran. “What kind of things has she been doing?”
“Spirit extraction,” Louise answered. “She literally managed to materialize my Ishtar – it was an impressive feat. It’s rather cryptic how she could do this to a friend, at least she courteously received permission, first.” Then again, she dared her to try. Louise could remember seeing Ishtar like that after a long time. That was truly a commendable technique she worked on. What was more impressive was that Leona III could manage to perform such acts without having a spirit at that time. Her spirit manipulation was top-notch.
“That is worrisome. I only know of one person that should be able to do that,” answered Durran. “At least to the degree that you explained. Someone that you also know as well.”
“And he would be?”
”Vejovis,” answered Durran.
“...I’m so glad that I didn’t allow him to touch my spirit,” Louise concluded as she grimaced, heaving a deep sigh of relief. She’d lose her life and who knows what the world would live to face after that.
The three soon entered the Augusta estate. The garden of roses were indeed a refreshing a sight – to Louise, at least. The halls were as grand as ever, the walls decorated with a myriad of portraits and intricate interior designs. Ironically, she found a portrait of herself… which was drawn at least a few centuries ago, she thought, as the designs of the dress and her hair seemed slightly more different than how it currently was. She soon skipped the mundane thoughts, and looked left to right – where could her butler be now?
A carriage rolled up in front of the estate and the stage coach driver climbed down to open the door. Out came Margaret and Talia, they looked a bit tired. Xavier met them at the coach and helped them out before showing them into the house. Margaret saw Louise and her group admiring a portrait in the hallway.
“Oh? I wasn’t expecting you. Did you come for the succession?” Asked Margaret.
“Who are these people?” Said Talia looking up at Kudzu and Durran; feeling a bit intimidated.
“Why yes, of course. How could I miss the wonderful battle between the mother and daughter?” Louise answered sarcastically as she faced Margaret; hardly looking at the daughter, as always. “I need you to fill me in with the details regarding what had been concocting under my absence – if you so have the time.”
”Not like we had many plans today,” answered Margaret looking at the two gentleman behind Louise. ”They’re welcome to join us as well… if they can behave. Kreig hasn’t been home in a while. I doubt he will come today.” Margaret and Talia walked into front room and sat on the couches waiting for their company to join them
”Why do I feel like a child all of the sudden?” Kudzu said.
“Oh, they’ll behave, no worries,” Louise said with a confident smile – accompanied by a delighted expression– while ignoring Kudzu’s comment – as she followed Margaret and Talia to the front room, as her so-dubbed bodyguards followed after. Louise, and Durran sat down on the couch across from Margaret and Talia, while Kudzu stood behind them not wanting to break anything.
“First, care to explain why you have a representative with you? We were lucky that the public hasn’t caught on to who he is yet,” asked Margaret.
“A-A representative?!” Talia exclaimed. Margaret clapped a hand hard over her mouth.
“Ex-representative,” added Kudzu. “I have no reason to stay with them any longer. The corruption runs deep…”
“I see… and who is this young man?” she then asked looking to Durran. Durran chuckled at her calling him young.
“My name is Durran. Pleasure to meet you,” said Durran. Margaret felt that something was off about the man, but Louise seemed to trust him. If she trusted him then so would she.
“Likewise, you may call me Margaret,” she responded. “So Louise, what would you like to know first?”
“Well, now that the introductions are done and dealt with; can you explain from our last meeting? You seemed to be rather worried of the coming wave of changes back then,” she asked. When she looked back; Louise was awfully ignorant about the topic. Rather, she wished to steer clear of it so as to not delve too deep into the politics of Masario. It was just not a place for an outsider to get into. Ironic, she knew – especially because she was born here. Yet, after being out of the world for so long, wouldn’t one that believe that she came back so late?
“You sure didn’t seem very interested then…” complained Margaret.
“Things have changed, memories have returned; I’ve once again remembered my original goal for coming back here, now please answer,” Louise replied. Indeed, Louise had completely shunned Margaret’s worries and pleas back then. However, she had responsibilities to bear now. Even if she had come back late, she had to make amends. She was finally following what Ishtar had wanted her to do for centuries now. After the war, however, Louise may leave the world again.
Looking in Louise’s eyes she could tell that she was finally serious and ready to listen. “Very well,” answered Margaret. “Around the time we spoke last I spied on Krieg a little bit,” to this, Louise cracked into a snicker, gaining Margaret’s attention, but ushered her to continue. “Ahem. I don’t know who was telling him to, but he received order to remove Arkasia from command. Then to gather all the soldiers he could muster in the border towns and villages. Raltese was simply the first place they wanted.”
“Vejovis, huh? A troublesome fellow. But… the removal of Arkasia, mn? I suppose I should’ve expected it, after telling him that Arkasia sent me to check if he was allied with the Cursed…” Louise openly mused. Not that she meant to betray her, but at that time Krieg was a better †˜ally’ to have for support. Arkasia wasn’t rich with background information like Krieg, either.
I suppose I have betrayed her, didn’t I? She thought, remembering her discussion with Arkasia; she was indeed naive. Louise almost felt bad for revealing her name, but it was for furthering her goal. Meeting Vejovis was a beneficial factor in her book, anyway. “Then again, for Arkasia to make me do such a chore. How dare her? I had to suffer such a humiliation,” she said, almost pouting.
“There was that whole debacle, but now that Krieg has all the power...I’m scared to see what he is going to do with it. There is no way Arkasia will go quietly,” said Margaret. “Now there is this whole incident with Leona III taking the throne. Leona IV has been preventing most large scale movements, but he almost forced the move on Arkasia using you as witness in his reports. Now that Leona III is back in power I feel that this was planned to allow Krieg to move his troops.”
“...Wait, they used my name? That’s very cheap of you, Krieg,” Louise stated, placing her palm over her forehead; disappointed. That’s literally framing her. Sure she told that it was Arkasia… however, Arkasia had definitely not betrayed Masario, she was trying to get rid of spies. And Krieg was a rat indeed.
“I know for certain that Krieg takes orders from Vejovis, and that man… claims to be supporting us Scions in the war,” Louise openly pondered as she recalled the connections between these people, placing her hand now under her chin. “It’d be beneficial if Vejovis continues to believe that I’m in his side. If he aims for true neutralism as he had claimed, then he’d eventually come to cause harm to Masario in order to maintain the †˜balance’.”
“You have to have known that you would be in the report,” answered Margaret. “He needs ground before attempt to discredit a high ranking soldier.” Talia kept her eyes focused on Durran and Kudzu the entire time. Kudzu waved to her and she tensed up looking down to her hands on her lap.
“Um, no, I believe I wasn’t informed. I didn’t even know what occurred to Arkasia,” Louise sighed, then saw Talia tense up. “Talia,” she leaned towards her with a bittersweet smile. “I apologize for being rude at times. Same to you, Margaret; I don’t understand what it means to be a mother, after all. I apologize if you took it to heart at times for my treatment towards her.”
“That is quite alright,” answered Margaret, honestly surprised by this change in Louise. “We all get lost in our lives from time to time.”
“Oh? Very well? Then is it alright to continue calling your daughter incompetent?” Louise asked with a strangely oblivious yet menacing expression.
“No!” yelled Talia looking at Louise. “That isn’t alright!”
Margaret laughed at her daughters response, and nudged her daughter. “I guess you have your answer,” answered Margaret.
Louise laughed, almost catching her stomach with her feeble-looking arms. “I suppose I did,” Louise said. She hadn’t laughed like that in a while – she felt. However, she soon showed a nostalgic expression, one with a hint of sorrow. “You see, a long time ago,” Louise begun, as if digging out wounds from her own heart, “I had a daughter, but...” she cringed a bit as she spoke; showing a complicated expression as her smile waned, but she felt that Margaret – the current head of the Augustas – needed to know this. There was this chance that Louise would be gone forever after going to meet Cain. She needed someone to remember her for what she was – she felt. “Cain had murdered her when she was still in here,” she stated, nudging her stomach to get the point across them. “In the end, I couldn’t help but want revenge; even though it’s one of the most pointless thing ever to do.”
Margaret’s expression turned soft as she leaned forward to listen to Louise. Kudzu closed his eyes and turned his head away from the group. “That fucking coward…” said Kudzu. Talia’s eyes began to water up as she grabbed a cloth from her pocket. Durran stayed silent having seen the memory first hand.
“I would want revenge in your shoes. I would still want the bastard’s head on a spike!” yelled Margaret.
“That’s the kind of man he turned into after losing control over his spirit. Pathetic, yes? But I was too blinded by love, and I couldn’t stop it,” Louise confessed, shaking her head. Not to anyone but herself. “I’ve never been unable to escape the trauma. Trauma of baring a baby… pitiful, aren’t I? I don’t want to stay this way, so I hope to put an end to this at the end of the war. Will you support me till the end?” Perhaps it wasn’t just a trauma, but deep regret. Perhaps she just didn’t wanted to think about what occurred to her late daughter’s soul, or where it went. She felt like a failure of a mother to let something like that happen. What if something went wrong again after she was pregnant again?
“Why are you even asking me, I will support you even after the end,” answered Margaret. “Anything you need from me or mine, you need only say the word.”
“Yes we are behind you all the way,” said Talia wiping her puffy eyes.
Louise laughed yet again. Perhaps even harder than before, a droplet of tear shined at the corner of her left eyelid before she stopped to wipe it away. “I needn’t ask, mn? Thank you.” Louise then eyed the man who possessed a large built of a body beside her – Kudzu. “What about you? I’ve labeled you a guard along with Durran in jest, but I am unaware what you plan to do in this world, at the moment?” She asked, wanting to confirm before moving on.
“I have only just found my son,” answered Kudzu. “Give me time for us to catch up, and I will lend a hand in taking down Cain. After all you can’t count on Durran for much,” Kudzu smirked at the smaller warrior beside Durran.
“More than she can count on an ungraceful fool like you for,” Durran answered not even turning to Kudzu. He smiled as well however.
“It looks like you have persuaded some powerful figures,” said Xavier who set some tea and crumpets down on the table.
Louise intentionally averted her gaze from the crumpets that made her reveal a rather embarrassing expression in the past as she shifted her eyes to Xavier instead. “Mostly came to me, though. Popularity is my virtue, I suppose,” she flattered herself with a proud smile. The mood was finally starting to become casual again.
“Something we have had to deal with recently,” said Durran referring to her suitor before. Durran laughed remembering how the man skipped across the water. Kudzu moved around the couch and grabbed for a crumpet. That turned into three with his giant hands. Shoveling the pastry into his mouth he licked his lips in delight.
“Not bad,” said Kudzu. Talia grabbed a crumpet fearing that the towering man was going to eat them all. Xavier chuckled at the fuss still made after his crumpets. They were a simple thing to make, but was always a favorite with guests and his masters alike.
“So what is your plan, Louise?” Asked Margaret. “If you are planning to take out Cain… then the current queen will be set on that path soon enough. It may be best to wait things out for the time being.”
“Well, I have an idea but,” Louise begun, replying to Margaret. “I must confirm its plausibility,” she stated with her eyes closed.
“I may have to ask some questions to your husband, in fact. I may end up backstabbing him, however. Will you be fine with that? With what I have in mind – I may end up scheming with the entire Scions,” she said, sighing, and making a bittersweet smile before she shrugged to herself. “Whatever happens, happens. But I don’t think it’s a good idea to just wipe out the Cursed. Not at least without giving them a chance to peace, first.”
”My husband has been trying to keep me out of most things,” answered Margaret. ”I honestly think that he does it to protect me, but the things that are happening lately; I’m worried. I have no problem with you throwing a wrench in his plans, but if you can please spare his life.”
”Do you really think that we can have peace with the Cursed?” asked Talia.
”I have to admit I am rather skeptical that we can as well,” added Xavier.
“I don’t think I’d kill those who’re fundamentally on the same side, at least; I wouldn’t if I don’t have to, but Vejovis’ faction isn’t really in the †˜right’ and may betray us for the sake of †˜balance’ at any given point in time – based on their concept,” Louise replied, resting her head over both her hands. “In fact, Krieg may be the first to point his blade at me for trying to do what’s †˜right’ according to my principles and opinions,” she added, her smile turned even more bitter with passing seconds.
“It all depends on how they’re raised, I won’t say all Cursed are bad just because they’re carrying the Curse of Ouroboros. Not like we can choose what spirit to have connections with when we’re born, yes? Nor can we choose where to be born,” stating the harsh conditions of reality, she continued, “I am well aware that going to war in order to gain peace is a contradiction. But, I don’t think this will improve if they keep fighting each other. In the past, when I was once the wife of Cain – the land of Cursed just felt like any other city, to be honest, the people weren’t exactly cruel or evil. Albeit, the ruler himself was crumbling under the pressure.”
Talia began to choke on a crumpet after hearing the bit about Louise being Cain’s wife. Xavier calmly walked over and hit her in the back making her cough it up.
“You were what!” Yelled Margaret standing up so fast she almost tripped over the table between them. ”What were you thinking?! Kudzu looked at Louise stroking his beard and thought silently to himself. Durran decided it was better not to speak as well.
“Right, I keep forgetting that my mouth has to closely guard the secrets more, these days,” Louise said with a giggle. That was intentionally slipped away. Again, she’d wanted someone to remember who Louise was. She didn’t wanted Margaret to think that Louise had never married in her long life before. There was this tiny possibility that Cain could somehow end her, after all. To Louise, the possibilities are infinite, if she collided in battle – with an immortal – such as Cain, who knows what would happen.
Margaret fell back into her seat and sighed with her hand on her forehead. ”Your life has been an interesting one that is for sure,” replied Margaret with a chuckle. ”Just what haven’t you done?”
“If I were to answer that, I’d say: that I haven’t died yet,” Louise answered with a shrug. “The only reason I am usually bored is due to trying almost everything I had an opportunity to do,” she stated casually as if †˜having done everything’ wasn’t a big deal at all now. “I’ve even participated in a war before; this isn’t anything new, either.”
TheLoneGentleman and Cinia Pacifica
“They will be coming after us soon,” said Durran glancing behind him as they walked down the hallway. He had expected that Adair would find some way to contact them once they came to Masario. Adair was good at knowing when people of interest entered the city. Not seeing him meant that something was off.
“Haha, let them. I’ll reduce this castle to rubble!” shouted Kudzu.
“No, leave them be. This is unpleasant enough,” said Louise to Kudzu almost immediately. She didn’t wanted another headache to go over with. “For Leona III to change this much… I know something must’ve happened. I simply do not know what that is.” Behind-the-scenes were something almost always leaked here in Masario, until only recently. Things were at least starting to be under control again, she felt. However, this wasn’t quite the way a Queen should be… perhaps Louise was too fond of the first Queen. Someone needed to simply travel back in time, and watch the role model of a Queen in all her glory. Or should she simply seize the throne and show it herself?
“She will no doubt attack the cursed lands soon,” said Kudzu. “Do you think she is ready?”
“As if,” Louise said, cracking a smile. “But then, I’m here. Someone will have to save the day from the background, yes?” With the Queen treading the path alone; the world would fall into utter disarray and darkness. And Louise wasn’t about to let Cain do as he please with the entire world, nor would she let anyone with questionable intents and great powers plunge the world into the endless abyss.
“I believe that the queen has captured Adair,” said Durran quietly finally coming out of his thoughts. “He would have made contact with me by now.”
“Would you prefer him to, anyway?” Louise asked curiously. “Isn’t he an enemy to you, now?” Adair was a person working against Louise even after they met each other, save for the instances where he †˜saved’ her, most likely because they wished to take advantage of her existence. Besides, he was a spy, nothing good could possibly coming out of letting him see that they have become allies for now.
“He may know what has been going on here,” answered Durran. “Blythe won’t have been able to make it here in his condition. We can try and get some information out of him.”
“Well, there are other ways to gain knowledge regarding what took place here behind-the-scenes,” Louise stated calmly and coolly. There are many ears behind the walls of this city, unlike many other places.
“The Augustas are my sworn allies, after all,” she added, Margaret and her daughter were people of good heart who followed her to the bitter end, or so she liked to believe. She’d feel somewhat responsible if that were the case, however. As they seemed to be the kind of people who’d abandon Krieg for her sake, and that wasn’t quite… faithful to their own family. She wanted to believe that Krieg loved his family, to an extent, at least.
“At least, I hope they still are. They’ve been supporting me for centuries now.”
“I suppose we could ask them… I’ll leave it up to you. We are at your service after all,” answered Durran.
“I’m fine either way. I always knew the queen had a few screws loose. That’s all I need to know.” answered Kudzu.
“Well, this will still be better, I suppose,” Louise said. “At least with me around; we’ll make sure that the war turns to our favor,” she confidently added, she proud smile had never betrayed to portray her said confidence. Her knowledge and experiences wasn’t there for show. “However, I must admit; she is leagues better than her daughter.”
”In terms of confidence and power, I would agree,” answered Kudzu. ”Displays of power are always welcome. Her daughter is lucky that she held back that final attack.”
“Well, it’s a conflicting issue to her, I suppose. There was a time when her daughter made clear insults at her indirectly; like the time she left for Raltese, and made idiotic arrangements so that she couldn’t take over the throne… despite being the powerless person Leona III was at that time,” Louise stated, feeling somewhat sorry for her dear friend. She could still picture Leona III’s angry face when she learned of her situation back then. “I wonder if this means that her experiment has succeeded – now that her spirit is back.”
“Experiment?” asked Durran. “What kind of things has she been doing?”
“Spirit extraction,” Louise answered. “She literally managed to materialize my Ishtar – it was an impressive feat. It’s rather cryptic how she could do this to a friend, at least she courteously received permission, first.” Then again, she dared her to try. Louise could remember seeing Ishtar like that after a long time. That was truly a commendable technique she worked on. What was more impressive was that Leona III could manage to perform such acts without having a spirit at that time. Her spirit manipulation was top-notch.
“That is worrisome. I only know of one person that should be able to do that,” answered Durran. “At least to the degree that you explained. Someone that you also know as well.”
“And he would be?”
”Vejovis,” answered Durran.
“...I’m so glad that I didn’t allow him to touch my spirit,” Louise concluded as she grimaced, heaving a deep sigh of relief. She’d lose her life and who knows what the world would live to face after that.
The three soon entered the Augusta estate. The garden of roses were indeed a refreshing a sight – to Louise, at least. The halls were as grand as ever, the walls decorated with a myriad of portraits and intricate interior designs. Ironically, she found a portrait of herself… which was drawn at least a few centuries ago, she thought, as the designs of the dress and her hair seemed slightly more different than how it currently was. She soon skipped the mundane thoughts, and looked left to right – where could her butler be now?
A carriage rolled up in front of the estate and the stage coach driver climbed down to open the door. Out came Margaret and Talia, they looked a bit tired. Xavier met them at the coach and helped them out before showing them into the house. Margaret saw Louise and her group admiring a portrait in the hallway.
“Oh? I wasn’t expecting you. Did you come for the succession?” Asked Margaret.
“Who are these people?” Said Talia looking up at Kudzu and Durran; feeling a bit intimidated.
“Why yes, of course. How could I miss the wonderful battle between the mother and daughter?” Louise answered sarcastically as she faced Margaret; hardly looking at the daughter, as always. “I need you to fill me in with the details regarding what had been concocting under my absence – if you so have the time.”
”Not like we had many plans today,” answered Margaret looking at the two gentleman behind Louise. ”They’re welcome to join us as well… if they can behave. Kreig hasn’t been home in a while. I doubt he will come today.” Margaret and Talia walked into front room and sat on the couches waiting for their company to join them
”Why do I feel like a child all of the sudden?” Kudzu said.
“Oh, they’ll behave, no worries,” Louise said with a confident smile – accompanied by a delighted expression– while ignoring Kudzu’s comment – as she followed Margaret and Talia to the front room, as her so-dubbed bodyguards followed after. Louise, and Durran sat down on the couch across from Margaret and Talia, while Kudzu stood behind them not wanting to break anything.
“First, care to explain why you have a representative with you? We were lucky that the public hasn’t caught on to who he is yet,” asked Margaret.
“A-A representative?!” Talia exclaimed. Margaret clapped a hand hard over her mouth.
“Ex-representative,” added Kudzu. “I have no reason to stay with them any longer. The corruption runs deep…”
“I see… and who is this young man?” she then asked looking to Durran. Durran chuckled at her calling him young.
“My name is Durran. Pleasure to meet you,” said Durran. Margaret felt that something was off about the man, but Louise seemed to trust him. If she trusted him then so would she.
“Likewise, you may call me Margaret,” she responded. “So Louise, what would you like to know first?”
“Well, now that the introductions are done and dealt with; can you explain from our last meeting? You seemed to be rather worried of the coming wave of changes back then,” she asked. When she looked back; Louise was awfully ignorant about the topic. Rather, she wished to steer clear of it so as to not delve too deep into the politics of Masario. It was just not a place for an outsider to get into. Ironic, she knew – especially because she was born here. Yet, after being out of the world for so long, wouldn’t one that believe that she came back so late?
“You sure didn’t seem very interested then…” complained Margaret.
“Things have changed, memories have returned; I’ve once again remembered my original goal for coming back here, now please answer,” Louise replied. Indeed, Louise had completely shunned Margaret’s worries and pleas back then. However, she had responsibilities to bear now. Even if she had come back late, she had to make amends. She was finally following what Ishtar had wanted her to do for centuries now. After the war, however, Louise may leave the world again.
Looking in Louise’s eyes she could tell that she was finally serious and ready to listen. “Very well,” answered Margaret. “Around the time we spoke last I spied on Krieg a little bit,” to this, Louise cracked into a snicker, gaining Margaret’s attention, but ushered her to continue. “Ahem. I don’t know who was telling him to, but he received order to remove Arkasia from command. Then to gather all the soldiers he could muster in the border towns and villages. Raltese was simply the first place they wanted.”
“Vejovis, huh? A troublesome fellow. But… the removal of Arkasia, mn? I suppose I should’ve expected it, after telling him that Arkasia sent me to check if he was allied with the Cursed…” Louise openly mused. Not that she meant to betray her, but at that time Krieg was a better †˜ally’ to have for support. Arkasia wasn’t rich with background information like Krieg, either.
I suppose I have betrayed her, didn’t I? She thought, remembering her discussion with Arkasia; she was indeed naive. Louise almost felt bad for revealing her name, but it was for furthering her goal. Meeting Vejovis was a beneficial factor in her book, anyway. “Then again, for Arkasia to make me do such a chore. How dare her? I had to suffer such a humiliation,” she said, almost pouting.
“There was that whole debacle, but now that Krieg has all the power...I’m scared to see what he is going to do with it. There is no way Arkasia will go quietly,” said Margaret. “Now there is this whole incident with Leona III taking the throne. Leona IV has been preventing most large scale movements, but he almost forced the move on Arkasia using you as witness in his reports. Now that Leona III is back in power I feel that this was planned to allow Krieg to move his troops.”
“...Wait, they used my name? That’s very cheap of you, Krieg,” Louise stated, placing her palm over her forehead; disappointed. That’s literally framing her. Sure she told that it was Arkasia… however, Arkasia had definitely not betrayed Masario, she was trying to get rid of spies. And Krieg was a rat indeed.
“I know for certain that Krieg takes orders from Vejovis, and that man… claims to be supporting us Scions in the war,” Louise openly pondered as she recalled the connections between these people, placing her hand now under her chin. “It’d be beneficial if Vejovis continues to believe that I’m in his side. If he aims for true neutralism as he had claimed, then he’d eventually come to cause harm to Masario in order to maintain the †˜balance’.”
“You have to have known that you would be in the report,” answered Margaret. “He needs ground before attempt to discredit a high ranking soldier.” Talia kept her eyes focused on Durran and Kudzu the entire time. Kudzu waved to her and she tensed up looking down to her hands on her lap.
“Um, no, I believe I wasn’t informed. I didn’t even know what occurred to Arkasia,” Louise sighed, then saw Talia tense up. “Talia,” she leaned towards her with a bittersweet smile. “I apologize for being rude at times. Same to you, Margaret; I don’t understand what it means to be a mother, after all. I apologize if you took it to heart at times for my treatment towards her.”
“That is quite alright,” answered Margaret, honestly surprised by this change in Louise. “We all get lost in our lives from time to time.”
“Oh? Very well? Then is it alright to continue calling your daughter incompetent?” Louise asked with a strangely oblivious yet menacing expression.
“No!” yelled Talia looking at Louise. “That isn’t alright!”
Margaret laughed at her daughters response, and nudged her daughter. “I guess you have your answer,” answered Margaret.
Louise laughed, almost catching her stomach with her feeble-looking arms. “I suppose I did,” Louise said. She hadn’t laughed like that in a while – she felt. However, she soon showed a nostalgic expression, one with a hint of sorrow. “You see, a long time ago,” Louise begun, as if digging out wounds from her own heart, “I had a daughter, but...” she cringed a bit as she spoke; showing a complicated expression as her smile waned, but she felt that Margaret – the current head of the Augustas – needed to know this. There was this chance that Louise would be gone forever after going to meet Cain. She needed someone to remember her for what she was – she felt. “Cain had murdered her when she was still in here,” she stated, nudging her stomach to get the point across them. “In the end, I couldn’t help but want revenge; even though it’s one of the most pointless thing ever to do.”
Margaret’s expression turned soft as she leaned forward to listen to Louise. Kudzu closed his eyes and turned his head away from the group. “That fucking coward…” said Kudzu. Talia’s eyes began to water up as she grabbed a cloth from her pocket. Durran stayed silent having seen the memory first hand.
“I would want revenge in your shoes. I would still want the bastard’s head on a spike!” yelled Margaret.
“That’s the kind of man he turned into after losing control over his spirit. Pathetic, yes? But I was too blinded by love, and I couldn’t stop it,” Louise confessed, shaking her head. Not to anyone but herself. “I’ve never been unable to escape the trauma. Trauma of baring a baby… pitiful, aren’t I? I don’t want to stay this way, so I hope to put an end to this at the end of the war. Will you support me till the end?” Perhaps it wasn’t just a trauma, but deep regret. Perhaps she just didn’t wanted to think about what occurred to her late daughter’s soul, or where it went. She felt like a failure of a mother to let something like that happen. What if something went wrong again after she was pregnant again?
“Why are you even asking me, I will support you even after the end,” answered Margaret. “Anything you need from me or mine, you need only say the word.”
“Yes we are behind you all the way,” said Talia wiping her puffy eyes.
Louise laughed yet again. Perhaps even harder than before, a droplet of tear shined at the corner of her left eyelid before she stopped to wipe it away. “I needn’t ask, mn? Thank you.” Louise then eyed the man who possessed a large built of a body beside her – Kudzu. “What about you? I’ve labeled you a guard along with Durran in jest, but I am unaware what you plan to do in this world, at the moment?” She asked, wanting to confirm before moving on.
“I have only just found my son,” answered Kudzu. “Give me time for us to catch up, and I will lend a hand in taking down Cain. After all you can’t count on Durran for much,” Kudzu smirked at the smaller warrior beside Durran.
“More than she can count on an ungraceful fool like you for,” Durran answered not even turning to Kudzu. He smiled as well however.
“It looks like you have persuaded some powerful figures,” said Xavier who set some tea and crumpets down on the table.
Louise intentionally averted her gaze from the crumpets that made her reveal a rather embarrassing expression in the past as she shifted her eyes to Xavier instead. “Mostly came to me, though. Popularity is my virtue, I suppose,” she flattered herself with a proud smile. The mood was finally starting to become casual again.
“Something we have had to deal with recently,” said Durran referring to her suitor before. Durran laughed remembering how the man skipped across the water. Kudzu moved around the couch and grabbed for a crumpet. That turned into three with his giant hands. Shoveling the pastry into his mouth he licked his lips in delight.
“Not bad,” said Kudzu. Talia grabbed a crumpet fearing that the towering man was going to eat them all. Xavier chuckled at the fuss still made after his crumpets. They were a simple thing to make, but was always a favorite with guests and his masters alike.
“So what is your plan, Louise?” Asked Margaret. “If you are planning to take out Cain… then the current queen will be set on that path soon enough. It may be best to wait things out for the time being.”
“Well, I have an idea but,” Louise begun, replying to Margaret. “I must confirm its plausibility,” she stated with her eyes closed.
“I may have to ask some questions to your husband, in fact. I may end up backstabbing him, however. Will you be fine with that? With what I have in mind – I may end up scheming with the entire Scions,” she said, sighing, and making a bittersweet smile before she shrugged to herself. “Whatever happens, happens. But I don’t think it’s a good idea to just wipe out the Cursed. Not at least without giving them a chance to peace, first.”
”My husband has been trying to keep me out of most things,” answered Margaret. ”I honestly think that he does it to protect me, but the things that are happening lately; I’m worried. I have no problem with you throwing a wrench in his plans, but if you can please spare his life.”
”Do you really think that we can have peace with the Cursed?” asked Talia.
”I have to admit I am rather skeptical that we can as well,” added Xavier.
“I don’t think I’d kill those who’re fundamentally on the same side, at least; I wouldn’t if I don’t have to, but Vejovis’ faction isn’t really in the †˜right’ and may betray us for the sake of †˜balance’ at any given point in time – based on their concept,” Louise replied, resting her head over both her hands. “In fact, Krieg may be the first to point his blade at me for trying to do what’s †˜right’ according to my principles and opinions,” she added, her smile turned even more bitter with passing seconds.
“It all depends on how they’re raised, I won’t say all Cursed are bad just because they’re carrying the Curse of Ouroboros. Not like we can choose what spirit to have connections with when we’re born, yes? Nor can we choose where to be born,” stating the harsh conditions of reality, she continued, “I am well aware that going to war in order to gain peace is a contradiction. But, I don’t think this will improve if they keep fighting each other. In the past, when I was once the wife of Cain – the land of Cursed just felt like any other city, to be honest, the people weren’t exactly cruel or evil. Albeit, the ruler himself was crumbling under the pressure.”
Talia began to choke on a crumpet after hearing the bit about Louise being Cain’s wife. Xavier calmly walked over and hit her in the back making her cough it up.
“You were what!” Yelled Margaret standing up so fast she almost tripped over the table between them. ”What were you thinking?! Kudzu looked at Louise stroking his beard and thought silently to himself. Durran decided it was better not to speak as well.
“Right, I keep forgetting that my mouth has to closely guard the secrets more, these days,” Louise said with a giggle. That was intentionally slipped away. Again, she’d wanted someone to remember who Louise was. She didn’t wanted Margaret to think that Louise had never married in her long life before. There was this tiny possibility that Cain could somehow end her, after all. To Louise, the possibilities are infinite, if she collided in battle – with an immortal – such as Cain, who knows what would happen.
Margaret fell back into her seat and sighed with her hand on her forehead. ”Your life has been an interesting one that is for sure,” replied Margaret with a chuckle. ”Just what haven’t you done?”
“If I were to answer that, I’d say: that I haven’t died yet,” Louise answered with a shrug. “The only reason I am usually bored is due to trying almost everything I had an opportunity to do,” she stated casually as if †˜having done everything’ wasn’t a big deal at all now. “I’ve even participated in a war before; this isn’t anything new, either.”
0
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
(This is a Joint Post Starring:
TheLoneGentleman and Cinia Pacifica.)
Xavier thought for a moment. “With people like Soul out there it may be a bit difficult to have talks of peace. Not to mention the cult of Ouroboros,” said Xavier.
“There hasn’t been a lot of activity from them since their attack here either. I’m not sure if we should be counting that as a blessing or not,” said Margaret. Durran’s demeanor seemed to change when she mentioned the cult, but only Louise noticed.
“Well, a world without corruptions and issues would be one from a fairy tale – a paradise, perhaps,” Louise replied. “I’m not saying that some people do not need to be dealt with; I’m simply saying that removal of an entire race is a rather devious endeavor, and it may as well never be achieved – only to drag on forever. Currently, Cain and Soul are the issues. If you want, we may count representatives and some of the avatars. I wouldn’t think the cult would just vanish; there may be something amiss… wouldn’t you think so, Durran?”
“I don’t think that it will be that easy,” answered Durran. ”They were at the point that they openly challenged the Scion.” Durran looked to the room seeing that all eyes were on him. ”Why would they just go quite like this? Why not move to city to city repeating this?”
”Maybe they could only do it that one time?” Replied Talia. Durran chuckled at her response.
“Hmmm… then that poses a perplexing situation. I’m not sure how to go about it with the cult,” Louise pondered openly. The cult has been causing issues one after the other throughout her life. Who knows what they could be after next. It was likely operated by Cain, or someone from the upper echelons of the Cursed? It could’ve been someone else with a powerful spirit, however. The possibilities were endless. “Are you implying that they may be gathering strength for one big attack?”
“That is one idea,” answered Durran. “Or their attack never really stopped.”
”What do you mean by that?” Asked Margaret.
”Say that during the time they advanced on Masario they placed people like the ones that attack in multiple places,” answered Durran. ”There is little way to prove this, but it’s possible. Their attacks could come at any time of their choosing, with no way to stop it.” Durran wasn’t done speculating however. ”Or if we go with the opposite. They are in fact building strength. Maybe us going right is a part of their plan? He continued. ”We can only realistically be prepared for one of these probabilities.”
“A troublesome bunch, I remember having trouble with such a cult from even the first century of my life; for which I left Masario for the first time,” Louise said, looking back to the distant past of her life. “If only there was a way to find more information about them...”
”There is someone we could ask, but it will cost us,” answered Durran. Since Adair was no where to be found there was only one other person.
“And he is…?” Louise asked.
”Balan,” answered Durran.
“Sounds troublesome.”
”That is pretty accurate. I can never tell what he is thinking, and he is out for himself in all situations,” answered Durran. ”If we can, I think we should still try to find my friend here in Masario...”
“I fear that he was caught? Worse case scenario is the church catching him. But then, he survived for so long… what could go wrong? I’ve spoken to him a few times, even in Margaret’s party in fact – I’d think he’d be safe from harm’s path,” Louise replied. At that time, they had shared a dance and none could see it as anything more than Louise stealing yet another heart from a man. It was rather laughable. For an avatar of Cain to casually yet elegantly dance with the High Priestess while no one taking notice of the monster who partook the party. All the while hiding his demonic presence at the heart of Masario.
”Who are you talking about?” Asked Margaret.
“Adair, you know? One who I danced with in your party,” Louise answered. “He was funding the military – if I remember correctly?” Indeed he was – or so Margaret claimed – when she was introduced to him, along with a few other guests in said party.
†˜Why did I even go through the trouble of not saying his name? Thought Durran giving Louise an incredulous look.
”Yes I remember him, why do you think he has been captured?” Asked Margaret. ”It’s hard to believe that the church would be after him for something...The church has been acting weird in their own right, however.”
“...Right, please explain, Durran.”
”Ugh is that an order? Complained Durran.
“If you wish to think that way; I suppose it is.”
Margaret and Talia were their allies. What good would it do to hide details from them now?
Durran looked at Margaret and then to Talia who was about to eat another crumpet. ”You may want to hold off on that one, young one. Wouldn’t want you to choke again.”
The table in the center of the room was blown apart, with crumpets and her expensive china scattered in pieces around the room. Margaret laid back on the couch getting a massage from Xavier who had restrained her before she destroyed the room. Kudzu had stood in front of Louise and Durran protecting them from the shattered glass and crumbled crumpets. Talia cried over the death of the crumpets. Louise looked with a bored expression, seemingly almost about to yawn.
”And you let one of them into my house!” Yelled Margaret still paralyzed from Xavier’s technique.
“Jeez, what rude behaviour before your ancestor,” Louise joked. Apparently not afraid of her wrath. She could claim that the house was actually originally her property; but she didn’t, knowing full well that she allowed Margaret to inherit it. “He is a mere bodyguard now, Margaret.”
”That is saying that being your bodyguard is a †˜mere’ job,” answered Kudzu wiping the crumbs and glass off his chest. Durran smiled pleased with what him telling the truth had caused.
”So saying this bodyguard of your’s is trustworthy. Which I am not saying that he is,” began Margaret. ”Why should we even attempt to save another one of his kind? Especially if you aren’t even sure he is still sane.
“Honestly, I didn’t like the idea of having them team up with me, either,” Louise stated, shaking her head in apparent dismay. Back in the prison land; Louise was about to blast him away… until she felt that she could use him. “But they’re better than trusting the Church, or something. Just how many reliable warriors are out there right now, exactly? You’re counting them with your fingers now? There's your answer.”
Talia stopped counting with her fingers and hid them from view. ”That is besides the point,” answered Margaret. [b]”You have gotten lucky so far, but If someone recognizes Kudzu there is going to be some serious problems.”[b]
“Fight fire with fire, they say,” Louise shrugged before responding to Margaret’s point. “Mn, so I’ve heard when I visited Leona III’s battlefield; I wonder if there’s a fitting place to hide him in.”
[b]”Please, as if we are hiding this big lug anywhere,”[b] said Durran.
[b]”Origin is the only place I can think of,” answered Kudzu.
”I certainly can’t hide him here, as soon as Kreig sees him this house will be leveled,” answered Margaret.
“I could have him in my private mansion… there are uh, worldly issues there, too.”
”No thank you, that world is far too… fragile,” answered Kudzu. ”I have no place in a world where I am not allowed to hunt for my food.”
“Well, it just isn’t a world for uncivilized barbarians; I’ll agree with you on that,” Louise nodded sagely with her eyes closed – wholeheartedly agreeing with Kudzu. “But then, I still can’t think of a better location.”
”Why not just give the man what he wants?” Asked Durran. ”The elder will be able to tell he is a softy. Let her deal with him.”
“Something about Vejovis makes me feel uncertain about that place, is all,” Louise answered, apparently worried. “You never know,” she said. She didn’t know what he could do, or when he could make a move, and that made her rather paranoid.
”You know I’m right here?” Said Kudzu. ”I’m not some kid that needs to be looked after!”
Louise and Durran looked at him for a moment before turning back to each other continuing their conversation.
”I understand what you mean, but think about it this way,” answered Durran. “No more sand on the carpet.”
“A sound reasoning,” Louise said, blatantly ignoring Kudzu’s declaration. “But he is still a vital piece to this war,” she stated the truth. Indeed he was, otherwise she wouldn’t have given him the honor of a †˜bodyguard’. “And Vejovis may have who knows how many informants in Origin.”
[b“I understand the man is strong, but vital might be pushing it a little,” answered Durran. Kudzu set his hands aflame and glared down at Durran.
”Hey hey! Take it outside! Wait… no don’t do that!” Yelled Margaret. ”Errr… behave!”
“Hm? Are you implying that you doubt my judgement, Durran?” Louise asked furrowing her eyebrows as if upset. “I feel slightly disappointed.” Louise then averted her gaze from Durran and looked away, albeit she was only acting; it was almost real.
Kudzu silenced his flames; glad that things had shifted in his favor. Durran wore a more panicked expression. “That isn’t what I was saying at all!” Exclaimed Durran.
”That is what it sounded like to me,” said Kudzu with a smile on his face.
Talia was blown away. Here where two of the most dangerous people that she was supposed to fear. Sitting there bickering over the favor of the Scion's High Priestess. It was Xavier who finally spoke up and interrupted the arguing.
”Why not simply send both of them to your estate. Durran seems perfectly capable of watching over Kudzu,” suggested Xavier.
“Sounds plausible. I can assign one of my maids for further assistance, too. Since he may be lost to the ways of that particular world,” Louise replied, agreeing with the idea.
”You can’t be serious!” Yelled Durran.
”I’m never going to see my son at this rate,” said Kudzu rubbing the back of his neck. ”Getting mixed up with you people is so bothersome,” Kudzu had to admit it was better compared to his old life however.
“Now, now. Think of it like this; if my plans succeed – you and your son will have a better world to live in.”
”That all goes to ash if he dies before that happens.” answered Kudzu.
“So you’re saying that your son is too weak to overcome the difficulties of this war?” Louise asked with a rather menacing expression. She knew how to play with others’ thoughts well.
Kudzu grumbled. “WIth all that has happened to him so far, I doubt that he will die as easily as that,” answered Kudzu. ”That being said. This is no normal war. I get the feeling this is all building to something we haven’t seen before.
“Well, with the kind of people participating…” Louise’s voice trailed off as she looked to Kudzu, then to Durran, and then herself. “...And there’s Cain. Who knows what else poses a threat. Then there’s Vejovis. I’d conclude something is all I can feel.” Doting fathers were so easy to manipulate sometimes, but Louise wouldn’t say that out loud.
”There just isn’t enough information for me to be satisfied,” said Margaret finally able to move her body again. “We will just have to go with what we feel is right. Only people I trust right now are in this room”
“Hmm, well. There aren’t many options. I suppose a risk has to be taken. But I need to pay Krieg a visit first,” Louise concluded. There were questions that needed answers for what Louise wanted, after all
”I don’t like the idea of sending you there alone,” complained Durran. Louise was already in the process of preparing her teleportation spell, and had no intention of stopping.
“Please, I’m no child. I can at least take care of myself – as I did for so many centuries,” Louise said as the portal appeared before her. Besides, what did he mean by †˜sending’. Louise literally is the one who does all the transportation works. It seems so simple that people takes it for granted sometimes. Where were the praises?! This could hardly be mimicked by a scholar of magic who had mastered his art!
”You have to let her go out sometime prince charming,” teased Margaret. ”I learned a long time ago that you will never be able to keep Louise in one place. No matter how much you squeeze her.
“Ugh, all those hugging; unwanted,” Louise grimaced at the idea of Margaret hugging her again. It was a flat-out rejection of Margaret’s way of expression her love.
[b]”You are breaking my heart Louise!” Said Margaret pretending to wipe a tear. ”You should hurry up before Krieg runs off somewhere.”
“I best do that, then,” Louise answered, ignoring her first remark before she walked into the portal. Durran reached out to try and stop her, but the portal shut right in front of his hand. Durran angrily walked towards the door about to find her in Arkasia. Two hands wrapped around him like a trap.
“I don’t need you making any more trouble.” said Kudzu walking him back into the house. Margaret shook her head wondering how she was going to keep them in line until Louise returned.
TheLoneGentleman and Cinia Pacifica.)
Xavier thought for a moment. “With people like Soul out there it may be a bit difficult to have talks of peace. Not to mention the cult of Ouroboros,” said Xavier.
“There hasn’t been a lot of activity from them since their attack here either. I’m not sure if we should be counting that as a blessing or not,” said Margaret. Durran’s demeanor seemed to change when she mentioned the cult, but only Louise noticed.
“Well, a world without corruptions and issues would be one from a fairy tale – a paradise, perhaps,” Louise replied. “I’m not saying that some people do not need to be dealt with; I’m simply saying that removal of an entire race is a rather devious endeavor, and it may as well never be achieved – only to drag on forever. Currently, Cain and Soul are the issues. If you want, we may count representatives and some of the avatars. I wouldn’t think the cult would just vanish; there may be something amiss… wouldn’t you think so, Durran?”
“I don’t think that it will be that easy,” answered Durran. ”They were at the point that they openly challenged the Scion.” Durran looked to the room seeing that all eyes were on him. ”Why would they just go quite like this? Why not move to city to city repeating this?”
”Maybe they could only do it that one time?” Replied Talia. Durran chuckled at her response.
“Hmmm… then that poses a perplexing situation. I’m not sure how to go about it with the cult,” Louise pondered openly. The cult has been causing issues one after the other throughout her life. Who knows what they could be after next. It was likely operated by Cain, or someone from the upper echelons of the Cursed? It could’ve been someone else with a powerful spirit, however. The possibilities were endless. “Are you implying that they may be gathering strength for one big attack?”
“That is one idea,” answered Durran. “Or their attack never really stopped.”
”What do you mean by that?” Asked Margaret.
”Say that during the time they advanced on Masario they placed people like the ones that attack in multiple places,” answered Durran. ”There is little way to prove this, but it’s possible. Their attacks could come at any time of their choosing, with no way to stop it.” Durran wasn’t done speculating however. ”Or if we go with the opposite. They are in fact building strength. Maybe us going right is a part of their plan? He continued. ”We can only realistically be prepared for one of these probabilities.”
“A troublesome bunch, I remember having trouble with such a cult from even the first century of my life; for which I left Masario for the first time,” Louise said, looking back to the distant past of her life. “If only there was a way to find more information about them...”
”There is someone we could ask, but it will cost us,” answered Durran. Since Adair was no where to be found there was only one other person.
“And he is…?” Louise asked.
”Balan,” answered Durran.
“Sounds troublesome.”
”That is pretty accurate. I can never tell what he is thinking, and he is out for himself in all situations,” answered Durran. ”If we can, I think we should still try to find my friend here in Masario...”
“I fear that he was caught? Worse case scenario is the church catching him. But then, he survived for so long… what could go wrong? I’ve spoken to him a few times, even in Margaret’s party in fact – I’d think he’d be safe from harm’s path,” Louise replied. At that time, they had shared a dance and none could see it as anything more than Louise stealing yet another heart from a man. It was rather laughable. For an avatar of Cain to casually yet elegantly dance with the High Priestess while no one taking notice of the monster who partook the party. All the while hiding his demonic presence at the heart of Masario.
”Who are you talking about?” Asked Margaret.
“Adair, you know? One who I danced with in your party,” Louise answered. “He was funding the military – if I remember correctly?” Indeed he was – or so Margaret claimed – when she was introduced to him, along with a few other guests in said party.
†˜Why did I even go through the trouble of not saying his name? Thought Durran giving Louise an incredulous look.
”Yes I remember him, why do you think he has been captured?” Asked Margaret. ”It’s hard to believe that the church would be after him for something...The church has been acting weird in their own right, however.”
“...Right, please explain, Durran.”
”Ugh is that an order? Complained Durran.
“If you wish to think that way; I suppose it is.”
Margaret and Talia were their allies. What good would it do to hide details from them now?
Durran looked at Margaret and then to Talia who was about to eat another crumpet. ”You may want to hold off on that one, young one. Wouldn’t want you to choke again.”
The table in the center of the room was blown apart, with crumpets and her expensive china scattered in pieces around the room. Margaret laid back on the couch getting a massage from Xavier who had restrained her before she destroyed the room. Kudzu had stood in front of Louise and Durran protecting them from the shattered glass and crumbled crumpets. Talia cried over the death of the crumpets. Louise looked with a bored expression, seemingly almost about to yawn.
”And you let one of them into my house!” Yelled Margaret still paralyzed from Xavier’s technique.
“Jeez, what rude behaviour before your ancestor,” Louise joked. Apparently not afraid of her wrath. She could claim that the house was actually originally her property; but she didn’t, knowing full well that she allowed Margaret to inherit it. “He is a mere bodyguard now, Margaret.”
”That is saying that being your bodyguard is a †˜mere’ job,” answered Kudzu wiping the crumbs and glass off his chest. Durran smiled pleased with what him telling the truth had caused.
”So saying this bodyguard of your’s is trustworthy. Which I am not saying that he is,” began Margaret. ”Why should we even attempt to save another one of his kind? Especially if you aren’t even sure he is still sane.
“Honestly, I didn’t like the idea of having them team up with me, either,” Louise stated, shaking her head in apparent dismay. Back in the prison land; Louise was about to blast him away… until she felt that she could use him. “But they’re better than trusting the Church, or something. Just how many reliable warriors are out there right now, exactly? You’re counting them with your fingers now? There's your answer.”
Talia stopped counting with her fingers and hid them from view. ”That is besides the point,” answered Margaret. [b]”You have gotten lucky so far, but If someone recognizes Kudzu there is going to be some serious problems.”[b]
“Fight fire with fire, they say,” Louise shrugged before responding to Margaret’s point. “Mn, so I’ve heard when I visited Leona III’s battlefield; I wonder if there’s a fitting place to hide him in.”
[b]”Please, as if we are hiding this big lug anywhere,”[b] said Durran.
[b]”Origin is the only place I can think of,” answered Kudzu.
”I certainly can’t hide him here, as soon as Kreig sees him this house will be leveled,” answered Margaret.
“I could have him in my private mansion… there are uh, worldly issues there, too.”
”No thank you, that world is far too… fragile,” answered Kudzu. ”I have no place in a world where I am not allowed to hunt for my food.”
“Well, it just isn’t a world for uncivilized barbarians; I’ll agree with you on that,” Louise nodded sagely with her eyes closed – wholeheartedly agreeing with Kudzu. “But then, I still can’t think of a better location.”
”Why not just give the man what he wants?” Asked Durran. ”The elder will be able to tell he is a softy. Let her deal with him.”
“Something about Vejovis makes me feel uncertain about that place, is all,” Louise answered, apparently worried. “You never know,” she said. She didn’t know what he could do, or when he could make a move, and that made her rather paranoid.
”You know I’m right here?” Said Kudzu. ”I’m not some kid that needs to be looked after!”
Louise and Durran looked at him for a moment before turning back to each other continuing their conversation.
”I understand what you mean, but think about it this way,” answered Durran. “No more sand on the carpet.”
“A sound reasoning,” Louise said, blatantly ignoring Kudzu’s declaration. “But he is still a vital piece to this war,” she stated the truth. Indeed he was, otherwise she wouldn’t have given him the honor of a †˜bodyguard’. “And Vejovis may have who knows how many informants in Origin.”
[b“I understand the man is strong, but vital might be pushing it a little,” answered Durran. Kudzu set his hands aflame and glared down at Durran.
”Hey hey! Take it outside! Wait… no don’t do that!” Yelled Margaret. ”Errr… behave!”
“Hm? Are you implying that you doubt my judgement, Durran?” Louise asked furrowing her eyebrows as if upset. “I feel slightly disappointed.” Louise then averted her gaze from Durran and looked away, albeit she was only acting; it was almost real.
Kudzu silenced his flames; glad that things had shifted in his favor. Durran wore a more panicked expression. “That isn’t what I was saying at all!” Exclaimed Durran.
”That is what it sounded like to me,” said Kudzu with a smile on his face.
Talia was blown away. Here where two of the most dangerous people that she was supposed to fear. Sitting there bickering over the favor of the Scion's High Priestess. It was Xavier who finally spoke up and interrupted the arguing.
”Why not simply send both of them to your estate. Durran seems perfectly capable of watching over Kudzu,” suggested Xavier.
“Sounds plausible. I can assign one of my maids for further assistance, too. Since he may be lost to the ways of that particular world,” Louise replied, agreeing with the idea.
”You can’t be serious!” Yelled Durran.
”I’m never going to see my son at this rate,” said Kudzu rubbing the back of his neck. ”Getting mixed up with you people is so bothersome,” Kudzu had to admit it was better compared to his old life however.
“Now, now. Think of it like this; if my plans succeed – you and your son will have a better world to live in.”
”That all goes to ash if he dies before that happens.” answered Kudzu.
“So you’re saying that your son is too weak to overcome the difficulties of this war?” Louise asked with a rather menacing expression. She knew how to play with others’ thoughts well.
Kudzu grumbled. “WIth all that has happened to him so far, I doubt that he will die as easily as that,” answered Kudzu. ”That being said. This is no normal war. I get the feeling this is all building to something we haven’t seen before.
“Well, with the kind of people participating…” Louise’s voice trailed off as she looked to Kudzu, then to Durran, and then herself. “...And there’s Cain. Who knows what else poses a threat. Then there’s Vejovis. I’d conclude something is all I can feel.” Doting fathers were so easy to manipulate sometimes, but Louise wouldn’t say that out loud.
”There just isn’t enough information for me to be satisfied,” said Margaret finally able to move her body again. “We will just have to go with what we feel is right. Only people I trust right now are in this room”
“Hmm, well. There aren’t many options. I suppose a risk has to be taken. But I need to pay Krieg a visit first,” Louise concluded. There were questions that needed answers for what Louise wanted, after all
”I don’t like the idea of sending you there alone,” complained Durran. Louise was already in the process of preparing her teleportation spell, and had no intention of stopping.
“Please, I’m no child. I can at least take care of myself – as I did for so many centuries,” Louise said as the portal appeared before her. Besides, what did he mean by †˜sending’. Louise literally is the one who does all the transportation works. It seems so simple that people takes it for granted sometimes. Where were the praises?! This could hardly be mimicked by a scholar of magic who had mastered his art!
”You have to let her go out sometime prince charming,” teased Margaret. ”I learned a long time ago that you will never be able to keep Louise in one place. No matter how much you squeeze her.
“Ugh, all those hugging; unwanted,” Louise grimaced at the idea of Margaret hugging her again. It was a flat-out rejection of Margaret’s way of expression her love.
[b]”You are breaking my heart Louise!” Said Margaret pretending to wipe a tear. ”You should hurry up before Krieg runs off somewhere.”
“I best do that, then,” Louise answered, ignoring her first remark before she walked into the portal. Durran reached out to try and stop her, but the portal shut right in front of his hand. Durran angrily walked towards the door about to find her in Arkasia. Two hands wrapped around him like a trap.
“I don’t need you making any more trouble.” said Kudzu walking him back into the house. Margaret shook her head wondering how she was going to keep them in line until Louise returned.
0
This is a group post Starring:
TheLoneGentleman, BagMan, Ezlare, Galahad Milsl, Katsucha and Valentine_KiS5.
At the end of the day Masaki, and Arkasia were the only ones with energy left. Even Anastas found himself being put through his paces.
“Alright I think that should do it for the day.” said Arkasia seeing the forest start to darken. “Be ready for tomorrow. We will be going even harder. Also I see that Katya didn’t show up today. Do you know why Anastas?”
“No I don’t ma’am…” he answered still catching his breath. “I haven’t seen her around.”
“Well I’m leaving it to you to bring her here tomorrow.” answered Arkasia. “Let’s head back everyone.” Arkasia and Masaki started towards town as everyone began to drag their tired feet behind them.
Anastas hadn’t the brightest idea where to start looking for Katya, but he had a feeling she was at least still in the city. At night the entire feel of the city changed, and to make it worse Arkasia’s training had him tired. Katya’s tracking skills were on par with his if not a little bit better. If she were avoiding him it would be easy enough to kite him for the night. He needed to make it obvious that he wanted to talk.
Navigating to an empty area of the forest, he stood within a clearing of trees, it would be easy for him to spot anyone approaching him and likewise easy for them to see him. Giving a signal, Demyan called out throughout the forest, in hopes that Pavel would alert Katya.
“Well, what is it?” said Katya walking out from behind a tree. She must have been tracking him already. That was far too fast of a response time. He turned back to face her, stern and cold face as usual.
”You weren’t around for training today.” he said bluntly.
“What, was I missed?” answered Katya matching his tone.
Anastas furrowed a brow, ”Regardless of whether you were, did you not say you would stick with us?” he questioned, his stance becoming more confrontational as he stepped forward. ”I didn’t think you one to shirk out of training, are you bothered with something?”
“You didn’t seem to care before, Sticking with you all doesn't mean I have to play with you all in the woods.” answered Katya. “What did your owner send you after me?” She crossed her arms and stared at Anastas, looking him over.
Anastas clicked his tongue, ”Even if Arkasia hadn’t, I would still have come looking for you.” He was getting frustrated. He could hear Demyan chatting and laughing it up with Pavel but couldn’t tell what they were talking about from just one side of the conversation. He half suspected they were talking about him for a moment.
”I don’t understand you.” he closed the gap further, ”You chased after me all the way from the village and now that you found me, you want to be alone.” The thought was something hard for him to stomach, that she would just approach him out nowhere and leave it at that. On top of that, working with the Cursed to make her way here. He scowled at the thought.
”I don’t know...I was expecting…” she started finding it harder and harder to get words out.
”You were expecting?” Anastas asked, trying to draw the answer out of her. He took a step closer hoping the hear her better.
Katya tried finding the words to say calmly, but attempts on that front failed. “I wanted you to be happy to see me idiot!” she yelled at him feeling her self shake with anger.
Anastas was surprised by her outburst. Confused by what she meant until he realized. Their entire time together, they had been standing on ice, going at each others’ necks. A stream of guilt hit Anastas and lowered his head. Under grit teeth, he clenched his fists and muttered ”. . . sorry.”
As if struck with a sudden burst of energy, he ran towards Katya and embraced her in his arms. ”I’m sorry I never said it. Of course I was happy to see you.” Katya buried her face in his chest hiding the tears from view, but soaking his shirt.
“Liar,” she said muffled into his chest. He didn’t respond to it however. He just stood silently holding her in his arms.
Flames flared off of his bow as Anastas zeroed in on Katya charging in at him. Aiming for her leg he loosed the arrow sending the flaming projectile flying. Katya focused and formed a broader blade on her sword. Then she placed it in front of her blocking the arrow. The ice shattered on impact.
Anastas quickly slid his bow into its holder and ripped out his new sword that he received from Zelis. The weight was a little different, but the heavier sword felt better to him. Katya jumped to Anastas’ side hoping to catch him off guard, but Anastas slid back bringing up his sword to Katya’s chin. As Anastas was about to claim his victory he felt a burning front on his neck.
Arkasia clapped at the display. “Not bad, that will be enough for you two.” said Arkasia. Katya smirked as she removed her blade from Anastas’ neck, and he did the same. “What are you so happy about? You missed yesterday so you train twice as hard as everyone else.”
Anastas looked to Katya and smirked. “Good luck,” he said as he rejoined the group. Katya cursed under her breath, but said nothing out loud to Arkasia. The last thing she needed was to be on her own with a representative knowing she betrayed them.
“So how much does that thing even weigh Luna?” asked Razta looking at the cleaver that his father made. He had seen it before, but he never tried to actually use the thing. He figured it was just for show
“Hell if I know, it’s much larger and heavier compared to my old sword. Your father is one hell of a blacksmith, Razta.” Luna replied looking rather satisfied at her new weapon. “I need to test this little lady out soon…”
“He’s the best I know, he has even had a few students.” answered Razta looking over the blade again. “Don’t try that thing out on me. I don’t have armor like the captain.”
Luna shook her head and chuckled silently. “You have nothing to worry about,” She reassured. “After all, it’s not like you’re hiding anything from me.” Luna’s face then shifted to a sinister smirk.
“O-Ofcourse not!” said Razta. Adelina eyed the both of them up strangely from across the way. †˜How is everyone just ok with letting her join?’ thought Adelina. Suddenly she felt a hand on her shoulder. It was Owain.
“What?” asked Adelina.
“There a problem?” asked Owain.
“Why are we simply rolling out the red carpet for this cursed?” answered Adelina.
“She’s been through the exact same things we have, she was just fighting for the other side. There is no good and evil in war Adelina, only human nature,” Owain said thoughtfully, wanting Adelina to understand.
“I guess I just don’t think like you captain,” answered Adelina. “It will take me longer to adjust.”
“That’s fine too,” Owain said smiling, “As long as you do your best, I can’t complain.”
“Guess I can start by changing the room situation back. Masaki can have the room with Luna. I’m sure he can handle it.” said Adelina walking away from Owain. “Hey Razta I have good news…”
“What?” answered Razta.
Owain balled his fist in anger. “Damn you Razta!” he said under his breath just loud enough for everyone to hear.
“Alright that is enough talk lets get back to it.” yelled Arkasia. “Katya you stay next to me. If you fall behind, I’m making you do it again. Even if it takes all night.” Katya glared at her, but Arkasia stayed her ground and smiled. “Or me and you can go at it.” said Arkasia. Katya sighed and walked over to her.
“Let’s just get this over with..” complained Katya. Arkasia turned and began running as Katya took off as fast as she could to keep up. The others ran after trying to match that pace the best they could. After hours of running, weight training, and formation training the party was once again wiped out. Even Masaki who yesterday was so full of energy found himself moderately fatigued.
“Alright men that should to it for the day. We are making excellent progress.” said Arkasia breathing a little hard herself, but she could still take on more training. Looking to Katya she found that she was completely worn out, Anastas stood by her to help her stay upright. Arkasia was surprised that she lasted as long as she did.
“So what do you think of Arkasia’s training now?” asked Razta looking to Luna.
“A tad more tiring than Cursed,” Luna retorted “Only difference between Cursed training and Arkasia training is that she does it with a smile.”
“I know, training with a smile is always good.” Masaki crossed his arms and nodded.
“I don’t know how you did years of this Owain…” said Morgan still trying to fully catch her breathe..
“To be fair…” Owain began, “I’m not sure either,” he chuckled.
“Arkasia...how much more do we have of this?” asked Reymond. Arkasia placed a finger on her chin and thought. “We only have a week until Edile wanted to start. So from now until then I working you like dogs.” Reymond fell to the ground, dead for all intents and purposes.
Owain grabbed Reymond off the floor by the scruff of his neck, “Get up,” he ordered, “I don’t see anyone else complaining as much as you,” Owain said with distaste, “Even Morgan is doing ok, I think you’ll be fine,” he said pointing to the panting Morgan who was laying on the ground.
“You were saying?” answered Reymond with a laugh.
Yeeessssss~ Masaki was excited with what Arkasia said. Eventhough he was quite tired. “I’m actually quite excited. Haven’t had this kind of training in ages.” Masaki said happily since he couldn’t contain his excitement. Yeah, right. You want to nearly get killed like the old man did to you? TouTetsuOh interrupted. Not really no, but still! It was fun! Masaki defended. TouTetsuOh sighed, Yeah, right.
“You’re right,” answered Razta. “We gotta enjoy it while we can,”
“You two are insane,” said Ari. “Not even Nero… trained us this hard.”
“There’s a first for everything~” Said Masaki confidently.
TheLoneGentleman, BagMan, Ezlare, Galahad Milsl, Katsucha and Valentine_KiS5.
At the end of the day Masaki, and Arkasia were the only ones with energy left. Even Anastas found himself being put through his paces.
“Alright I think that should do it for the day.” said Arkasia seeing the forest start to darken. “Be ready for tomorrow. We will be going even harder. Also I see that Katya didn’t show up today. Do you know why Anastas?”
“No I don’t ma’am…” he answered still catching his breath. “I haven’t seen her around.”
“Well I’m leaving it to you to bring her here tomorrow.” answered Arkasia. “Let’s head back everyone.” Arkasia and Masaki started towards town as everyone began to drag their tired feet behind them.
Anastas hadn’t the brightest idea where to start looking for Katya, but he had a feeling she was at least still in the city. At night the entire feel of the city changed, and to make it worse Arkasia’s training had him tired. Katya’s tracking skills were on par with his if not a little bit better. If she were avoiding him it would be easy enough to kite him for the night. He needed to make it obvious that he wanted to talk.
Navigating to an empty area of the forest, he stood within a clearing of trees, it would be easy for him to spot anyone approaching him and likewise easy for them to see him. Giving a signal, Demyan called out throughout the forest, in hopes that Pavel would alert Katya.
“Well, what is it?” said Katya walking out from behind a tree. She must have been tracking him already. That was far too fast of a response time. He turned back to face her, stern and cold face as usual.
”You weren’t around for training today.” he said bluntly.
“What, was I missed?” answered Katya matching his tone.
Anastas furrowed a brow, ”Regardless of whether you were, did you not say you would stick with us?” he questioned, his stance becoming more confrontational as he stepped forward. ”I didn’t think you one to shirk out of training, are you bothered with something?”
“You didn’t seem to care before, Sticking with you all doesn't mean I have to play with you all in the woods.” answered Katya. “What did your owner send you after me?” She crossed her arms and stared at Anastas, looking him over.
Anastas clicked his tongue, ”Even if Arkasia hadn’t, I would still have come looking for you.” He was getting frustrated. He could hear Demyan chatting and laughing it up with Pavel but couldn’t tell what they were talking about from just one side of the conversation. He half suspected they were talking about him for a moment.
”I don’t understand you.” he closed the gap further, ”You chased after me all the way from the village and now that you found me, you want to be alone.” The thought was something hard for him to stomach, that she would just approach him out nowhere and leave it at that. On top of that, working with the Cursed to make her way here. He scowled at the thought.
”I don’t know...I was expecting…” she started finding it harder and harder to get words out.
”You were expecting?” Anastas asked, trying to draw the answer out of her. He took a step closer hoping the hear her better.
Katya tried finding the words to say calmly, but attempts on that front failed. “I wanted you to be happy to see me idiot!” she yelled at him feeling her self shake with anger.
Anastas was surprised by her outburst. Confused by what she meant until he realized. Their entire time together, they had been standing on ice, going at each others’ necks. A stream of guilt hit Anastas and lowered his head. Under grit teeth, he clenched his fists and muttered ”. . . sorry.”
As if struck with a sudden burst of energy, he ran towards Katya and embraced her in his arms. ”I’m sorry I never said it. Of course I was happy to see you.” Katya buried her face in his chest hiding the tears from view, but soaking his shirt.
“Liar,” she said muffled into his chest. He didn’t respond to it however. He just stood silently holding her in his arms.
Flames flared off of his bow as Anastas zeroed in on Katya charging in at him. Aiming for her leg he loosed the arrow sending the flaming projectile flying. Katya focused and formed a broader blade on her sword. Then she placed it in front of her blocking the arrow. The ice shattered on impact.
Anastas quickly slid his bow into its holder and ripped out his new sword that he received from Zelis. The weight was a little different, but the heavier sword felt better to him. Katya jumped to Anastas’ side hoping to catch him off guard, but Anastas slid back bringing up his sword to Katya’s chin. As Anastas was about to claim his victory he felt a burning front on his neck.
Arkasia clapped at the display. “Not bad, that will be enough for you two.” said Arkasia. Katya smirked as she removed her blade from Anastas’ neck, and he did the same. “What are you so happy about? You missed yesterday so you train twice as hard as everyone else.”
Anastas looked to Katya and smirked. “Good luck,” he said as he rejoined the group. Katya cursed under her breath, but said nothing out loud to Arkasia. The last thing she needed was to be on her own with a representative knowing she betrayed them.
“So how much does that thing even weigh Luna?” asked Razta looking at the cleaver that his father made. He had seen it before, but he never tried to actually use the thing. He figured it was just for show
“Hell if I know, it’s much larger and heavier compared to my old sword. Your father is one hell of a blacksmith, Razta.” Luna replied looking rather satisfied at her new weapon. “I need to test this little lady out soon…”
“He’s the best I know, he has even had a few students.” answered Razta looking over the blade again. “Don’t try that thing out on me. I don’t have armor like the captain.”
Luna shook her head and chuckled silently. “You have nothing to worry about,” She reassured. “After all, it’s not like you’re hiding anything from me.” Luna’s face then shifted to a sinister smirk.
“O-Ofcourse not!” said Razta. Adelina eyed the both of them up strangely from across the way. †˜How is everyone just ok with letting her join?’ thought Adelina. Suddenly she felt a hand on her shoulder. It was Owain.
“What?” asked Adelina.
“There a problem?” asked Owain.
“Why are we simply rolling out the red carpet for this cursed?” answered Adelina.
“She’s been through the exact same things we have, she was just fighting for the other side. There is no good and evil in war Adelina, only human nature,” Owain said thoughtfully, wanting Adelina to understand.
“I guess I just don’t think like you captain,” answered Adelina. “It will take me longer to adjust.”
“That’s fine too,” Owain said smiling, “As long as you do your best, I can’t complain.”
“Guess I can start by changing the room situation back. Masaki can have the room with Luna. I’m sure he can handle it.” said Adelina walking away from Owain. “Hey Razta I have good news…”
“What?” answered Razta.
Owain balled his fist in anger. “Damn you Razta!” he said under his breath just loud enough for everyone to hear.
“Alright that is enough talk lets get back to it.” yelled Arkasia. “Katya you stay next to me. If you fall behind, I’m making you do it again. Even if it takes all night.” Katya glared at her, but Arkasia stayed her ground and smiled. “Or me and you can go at it.” said Arkasia. Katya sighed and walked over to her.
“Let’s just get this over with..” complained Katya. Arkasia turned and began running as Katya took off as fast as she could to keep up. The others ran after trying to match that pace the best they could. After hours of running, weight training, and formation training the party was once again wiped out. Even Masaki who yesterday was so full of energy found himself moderately fatigued.
“Alright men that should to it for the day. We are making excellent progress.” said Arkasia breathing a little hard herself, but she could still take on more training. Looking to Katya she found that she was completely worn out, Anastas stood by her to help her stay upright. Arkasia was surprised that she lasted as long as she did.
“So what do you think of Arkasia’s training now?” asked Razta looking to Luna.
“A tad more tiring than Cursed,” Luna retorted “Only difference between Cursed training and Arkasia training is that she does it with a smile.”
“I know, training with a smile is always good.” Masaki crossed his arms and nodded.
“I don’t know how you did years of this Owain…” said Morgan still trying to fully catch her breathe..
“To be fair…” Owain began, “I’m not sure either,” he chuckled.
“Arkasia...how much more do we have of this?” asked Reymond. Arkasia placed a finger on her chin and thought. “We only have a week until Edile wanted to start. So from now until then I working you like dogs.” Reymond fell to the ground, dead for all intents and purposes.
Owain grabbed Reymond off the floor by the scruff of his neck, “Get up,” he ordered, “I don’t see anyone else complaining as much as you,” Owain said with distaste, “Even Morgan is doing ok, I think you’ll be fine,” he said pointing to the panting Morgan who was laying on the ground.
“You were saying?” answered Reymond with a laugh.
Yeeessssss~ Masaki was excited with what Arkasia said. Eventhough he was quite tired. “I’m actually quite excited. Haven’t had this kind of training in ages.” Masaki said happily since he couldn’t contain his excitement. Yeah, right. You want to nearly get killed like the old man did to you? TouTetsuOh interrupted. Not really no, but still! It was fun! Masaki defended. TouTetsuOh sighed, Yeah, right.
“You’re right,” answered Razta. “We gotta enjoy it while we can,”
“You two are insane,” said Ari. “Not even Nero… trained us this hard.”
“There’s a first for everything~” Said Masaki confidently.
0
BlinkXPoke
Cards and Hugs abound
This is a joint post featuring TheLoneGentleman and BlinkXPoke
Early the next morning Bruin woke up early to make sure that he woke up Sonya well before they had to go. He wasn’t going to almost get left behind again. Knocking on the the door hard three times he waited for a reply.
A loud yawn was heard from the other side of the door a couple of moments later, followed by Sonya’s groggy voice. “Just a few minutes…” She took some time to fully awaken, then quickly got dressed up and opened the door. “Oh, good morning, Bruin.” She greeted him sleepily.
“Congratulation Sonya, you are officially on time for the first time.” said Bruin clapping slowly. Bruin already had his belongings and was ready to head out once Marian gave the order. ”Are you ready to leave? Marian will be telling us to move soon.”
“Ehehehe…” Sonya giggled while rubbing the back of her head in embarassment. She, too, had all her belongings prepared, but she had to fetch them from her room. “Oh, yes, one moment please…” She hastily grabbed her own things and went back over to the door where Bruin was. “Alright, I’m all set!” Sonya confirmed, then yawned once more. “So, where are we meeting up?” She asked amidst her yawn.
”What time did you go to sleep?” said Bruin poking her in the forehead almost sending her toppling over. ”You said you were going straight to sleep when I took you to your room.”
Sonya groaned from the poke and muttered, “I did go right to sleep, though…” She swatted Bruin’s hand away softly. “I was soooo tired from our mission…” She admitted, looking downward in sadness. Luna being left behind still loomed over her. Bruin placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled.
”Maybe you should stay home for a while? I don’t think the war life is for you.” said Bruin.
“I miss my family quite a bit, but I can’t leave the army like this… I owe Chief Soul my life, and I would hate to disappoint Marian. And I want to find Luna and Selanus again…” She told Bruin while looking straight into his eyes. Sonya was determined to continue serving the Cursed Army.
Bruin sighed and scratched the back of his head. “Look kid..” started Bruin. Suddenly he heard footsteps behind him. Soul looked at them both wearing a smile coming from around a corner.
”Marian is calling us. Let’s go you two. he said. A bead of sweat fell down Bruin’s face as he hoped Soul hadn’t heard too much.
”Right away Chief,” answered Bruin nervously. Soul nodded at them and walked off down the hallway. Charlotte followed right behind him waving to Sonya and Bruin.
”Ugh we better get a move on.” said Bruin. Sonya nodded wearing a rather sad expression, and headed outside of the barrack building to meet the others outside. The elites were standing in a group waiting for Marian to give them their orders, E. Marian clapped sarcastically as Bruin joined the group on time for a change.
”Congratulations, keep up the good work.” said Marian. Looking to see that everyone was there Marian stood up straight. ”You have done well men. To the ones that have been welcomed to the life after...we salute them.” said Marian saluting. The elites saluted, and Sonya a moment later. Emma squeezed the comb that Marian had given her tightly.
Soul walked up to stand next to Marian. ”So we are finally heading back to Agreyus, and then all of you dogs are dismissed until we call you again. So enjoy it while you can.” said Soul. ” And no I’m not giving you another ride. So saddle up and lets head out.
“Yes sir!”
Early the next morning Bruin woke up early to make sure that he woke up Sonya well before they had to go. He wasn’t going to almost get left behind again. Knocking on the the door hard three times he waited for a reply.
A loud yawn was heard from the other side of the door a couple of moments later, followed by Sonya’s groggy voice. “Just a few minutes…” She took some time to fully awaken, then quickly got dressed up and opened the door. “Oh, good morning, Bruin.” She greeted him sleepily.
“Congratulation Sonya, you are officially on time for the first time.” said Bruin clapping slowly. Bruin already had his belongings and was ready to head out once Marian gave the order. ”Are you ready to leave? Marian will be telling us to move soon.”
“Ehehehe…” Sonya giggled while rubbing the back of her head in embarassment. She, too, had all her belongings prepared, but she had to fetch them from her room. “Oh, yes, one moment please…” She hastily grabbed her own things and went back over to the door where Bruin was. “Alright, I’m all set!” Sonya confirmed, then yawned once more. “So, where are we meeting up?” She asked amidst her yawn.
”What time did you go to sleep?” said Bruin poking her in the forehead almost sending her toppling over. ”You said you were going straight to sleep when I took you to your room.”
Sonya groaned from the poke and muttered, “I did go right to sleep, though…” She swatted Bruin’s hand away softly. “I was soooo tired from our mission…” She admitted, looking downward in sadness. Luna being left behind still loomed over her. Bruin placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled.
”Maybe you should stay home for a while? I don’t think the war life is for you.” said Bruin.
“I miss my family quite a bit, but I can’t leave the army like this… I owe Chief Soul my life, and I would hate to disappoint Marian. And I want to find Luna and Selanus again…” She told Bruin while looking straight into his eyes. Sonya was determined to continue serving the Cursed Army.
Bruin sighed and scratched the back of his head. “Look kid..” started Bruin. Suddenly he heard footsteps behind him. Soul looked at them both wearing a smile coming from around a corner.
”Marian is calling us. Let’s go you two. he said. A bead of sweat fell down Bruin’s face as he hoped Soul hadn’t heard too much.
”Right away Chief,” answered Bruin nervously. Soul nodded at them and walked off down the hallway. Charlotte followed right behind him waving to Sonya and Bruin.
”Ugh we better get a move on.” said Bruin. Sonya nodded wearing a rather sad expression, and headed outside of the barrack building to meet the others outside. The elites were standing in a group waiting for Marian to give them their orders, E. Marian clapped sarcastically as Bruin joined the group on time for a change.
”Congratulations, keep up the good work.” said Marian. Looking to see that everyone was there Marian stood up straight. ”You have done well men. To the ones that have been welcomed to the life after...we salute them.” said Marian saluting. The elites saluted, and Sonya a moment later. Emma squeezed the comb that Marian had given her tightly.
Soul walked up to stand next to Marian. ”So we are finally heading back to Agreyus, and then all of you dogs are dismissed until we call you again. So enjoy it while you can.” said Soul. ” And no I’m not giving you another ride. So saddle up and lets head out.
“Yes sir!”
0
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
(This is a Joint Post Starring:
TheLoneGentleman and Cinia Pacifica.)
Castle Arkasia was busy that afternoon. Soldiers hustling from place to place, this was obviously an army getting ready for war. Louise found it rather impressive how tight of a ship Krieg was running. People were working more for respect than fear. Stopping a soldier who was walking past her for directions, he bowed before informing her that Krieg was in the barracks. Then he pointed off in the direction she was supposed to head.
“Thank you,” said Louise with a smile. The soldier bowed again, and then hurried off to complete his task. Louise strolled towards the barracks looking around curiously at all the equipments that the various people were carrying. Most of them were boxed, so she couldn’t make heads or tails of any exact plan. It looked like she’d need to ask Krieg directly for everything. Then again, she could imagine such a man lying to her easily.
As she entered the barracks, it didn’t take her long to find Krieg. Who’d take so long to see that tall towering man who spoke to his men?
”Do you all have everything you will need in my absence?” Krieg asked. The men talked among themselves for a moment before they nodded.
”This should be more than enough, and we have enough men to still led aid to Masario should the need arise,” said one of the men.
”Good, then I will head back to see my family first before I leave for Raltese. For the Scion,” said Kreig. The three men saluted and spoke in unison. “For the Scion!” Then one of the men noticed a pair of eyes glancing over at them.
”Oh High Priestess! I did not know you were back!” He said as him and the others bowed. Kreig smirked and bowed as well.
”Any reason for you to grace us today?” Asked Krieg.
“I have a few questions for you to answer, is all,” Louise answered facing Krieg with a charming smile of a proper lady. She too, gave a slight yet majestic bow with her head in return as a greeting. Her eyes only glanced past the knights bowing to her; not much attention was spared for them, it seemed.
“I hope that I’ve not intruded in an appropriate moment?”
”Far better than the last time,” answered Krieg chuckling. ”Men, you are dismissed, see to it that things go as planned.” The men saluted before scurrying off. Turning to Louise his face went serious. ”Is something the matter?”Asked Krieg.
“Hm, let’s move to a better place, shall we? How’d be your old office where we met, do?” Louise asked, a barrack wasn’t the kind of place for her. She still wore the smile, and made sure to conduct herself the best she could, but it really reeked, and she didn’t like it.
”As long as you promise not to blow it up this time,” answered Krieg. ”This way.”
“I’m not here to fight, this time,” Louise said with a shrug. If he tempered her; it’d be a completely different story. She followed after him regardless.
Stepping into his office he offered her the chair in front of his desk as he moved to his chair. Taking their seats Krieg wasted no time. ”So what is it? You came all this way so it must be important,” questioned Krieg.
“Well, first I’d love to know what you’ve been up to – gathering troops like this for… quite a long time ago? What’s the plan so far?” Louise asked, that Margaret had been pretty worried about what this old man had been doing, hence her question. Louise didn’t particularly care in the past as she didn’t wanted the burden of responsibilities. At least not on a global level, but now that her mind came back to the right track; she indeed took all that up. She is the host of Ishtar; it is her job to lead humanity to the right direction.
”I’m clearing the Cursed from our territories, something that should have been done a long time ago,” answered Krieg. ”Where have you been by the way? You teleporting off at a moments notice really gives me a headache.
“Ohoho, were you keeping a watch on me?” Louise asked, with a chuckle. Louise was – by this point of time – used to the privacy abuse, but she had her ways to deal with them. “I have my own share of businesses to attend to, from time to time,” she answered. Even without †˜business’, Louise just hates walking, but she wouldn’t say that to Krieg.
“Hm, clearing Cursed off of our territories, you say? Then I suppose I may as well ask bother to ask but… do you know anything of the Cult of Ouroboros at the moment?” The Cult of Ouroboros had been in raiding for a long time, yet they recently stopped. She wondered if Krieg actually successfully got rid of them.
”Can you blame me for trying? As the High Priestess we get scolded by the church whenever you even see a battle. I heard some things happened over in Origin, but you weren’t there were you?” Asked Krieg eying up Louise suspiciously. ”As for the cult…
”Bunch of lunatics that seem to think Cain is their god. We have destroyed most of their rat dens that they had hidden in our territory. There are more of them than I thought. It is proving to be difficult,” answered Krieg.
“I had been meaning to deal with them – the church I mean – but that is for another time,” the church wasn’t so much worth her time right now – Louise felt. For now she had to clear some other business.
“Anyway, it seems that at least some of the cult have been dealt with, this is a good news, if anything, I suppose. Any news on the remaining rats?” Louise replied, before asking. “And what of Origin?” Louise knew that something went down in Origin, but she had to take her leave due to that one creepy avatar of Cain.
”The rats that we were able to take alive all killed themselves before questioning. Nothing we could get from any of them. Not like they were all there in the head to give us anything anyways,” answered Krieg. ”The representative staged an attack on their own people, answered Kreig. ”Killed them all without mercy, and then left back towards Agreyus.
“Hmm, too bad, but the representatives attacked their own people? How strange,” Louise replied. It sounded mysterious, for the representatives to suddenly turn back against their own people, but then Louise wasn’t aware of their political issues to be able to precisely comprehend. “I suppose the rest of the cult will still be an issue to deal with.”
”At least we have secured most of the town and villages. More than a few were completely cleared out. Without a damn trace. The only one we got some information out of was the one that your group passed through. The reports from there weren’t pretty. Besides the body pile up there was nothing worth while there. The research and lab were burned to the ground.”
Louise furrowed her eyebrows at the words †˜your group’. That was a terrible group. “Please, never ever lump my name with theirs, ever again,” Louise stated, as if angry, yet her tone of voice was unchanged. “That pervert of a captain, I’ll have him burned in a stake,” Louise sighed in order to calm herself. “Seems like we’re making good progress. Here’s the main deal for today… it’s about the device Arkasia tried to receive from Raltese.”
”That...the amplifier that was supposed to be finished ages ago. The only thing the old queen approved of when we were trying to make weapons. What about it? Replied Krieg.
“Do you know anything about it, like where it’s supposed to be now, or how it was created? I feel like we’ll need something like this in the war for a surprise attack,” Louise asked. Considering that the princess only validated this made some sense. She was also a pacifist forced to go to war, after all. She was kind at heart. Louise was the one who pushed her buttons, too.
”Why do you need to know?” Asked Krieg. We have been working on it, but we just don’t have the power that we need to make it truly effective. With Leona III back, I was thinking of simply moving on to other projects.
“Oh? I see. Then, by all means, leave it’s details and information to me; I may be able to operate it,” Louise said, taking the opportunity, it’d likely rust and rot here if what Krieg said is true – she doubt that his men would ever touch it again. “You need technicians for other projects, yes? You must lack the time for this.”
Krieg leaned back in his chair stroking his beard. ”What do you intend to do with it?” asked Krieg.
“Kill, of course,” the words came out through her lips instantly as if it’s as natural as breathing oxygen.
Krieg smirked. ”With its current power how do you intend to do that? Even our best and brightest can’t make that thing hold enough power to kill. It will be even harder to operate in the cursed lands,” answered Krieg. ”The main targets we need dead, are those able to survive in their own aura. So it needs to overtake multiple targets. You think you can do that?
“What it needs to do – is something I’ll be overseeing myself. Who do you think you’re talking to?” Louise spoke back, showing her good old confident smile.
Krieg reached inside his desk and grabbed something out that sounded like paper. Then placed it on the desk in front of them. ”These are the current plans for the device,” answered Krieg. ”The thing is still in Raltese. Take one of my men with you, and they can make sure you are shown to the device.”
“I believe I’ve seen it already, along with Arkasia? I don’t think I’d need another man tagging along with me,” Louise said, furrowing her eyebrows once again. There were something oddly suspicious about some of his men, after all.
”It was dismantled, and moved. You forget you weren’t the only one that found it,” answered Krieg. ”We couldn’t have them getting to it again if they did somehow get in.” Krieg stood up and walked around the desk. ”I’m actually looking forward to what you can do with that thing. Was there anything else you needed?”
“Hmm, if that is indeed the case; very well. He may bask in my presence,” Louise replied – she reluctantly accepted his condition; she needed the device, anyway – still sitting in the chair. “...That aside, do you know anything about a person known as Adair?”
”I can’t say that I do,” answered Krieg. ”Is that someone that I should know?”
“Hmm… never mind, perhaps not. It’s a personal issue, but I figured you get all kinds of information; couldn’t hurt to ask,” Louise replied, dismissively waving her hand before her.
”If you say so,” answered Krieg apparently deciding not to press the issue further. ”If that is all I can do for you today, I have more preparations to make before I leave for Raltese.”
“Just a moment… is it true that my name was used before attempting to apprehend Arkasia? What’s the meaning of that?”
”You were in the report. What of it?” answered Krieg.
“What right do you people have to use my name as you please, without even asking for permission beforehand?”
”You openly supported someone who meant to betray me,” answered Krieg. ”Would you have rathered I have your name smeared as a traitor of the divine? I believe I made the right choice.”
“What do you mean by betray? If anything – I’d say you did that first to literally everyone around here,” Louise sighed, then shrugged. Who was he acting before, here?
“Only you would truly suffer if you name me a traitor across the nation.”
”Everything I have done is for the strengthening of a nation on the verge of collapse. We are stronger now then we have ever been,” answered Krieg. ”A stronger and more powerful queen. People united for a common purpose, and warriors that believe in their leaders.”
“Oho, so it’s you who netted Leona III back in. But really, labeling me a traitor wouldn’t be doing any good for your Queen,” because unlike Leona IV, Leona III was Louise’s friend, she’d think that there was something going on if they labeled Louise a traitor. “I wouldn’t possibly think Arkasia that would be a bad person in power, however. She is simply naive at times, but she only doubted you; I doubt she did something worth calling it a †˜betrayal’. You have no true ground in terms of reality; you simply follow orders from another leader.”
”I have learned through experience. That with a man like him it is better to do just that...” answered Krieg showing an expression that almost looked sad. ”I also knew that you being lumped in with her would pose a problem. Whatever your ties to her, I suggest you cut them.”
“You people… are just scared of power,” Louise chuckled, as if pitying him. It was as though all this serious talks was but a part of her jest. She waved her hand dismissively. “Rest assured; I am not affiliated with her, not anymore. Her incompetence being enough reason.” Indeed, if she sticked to someone as naive as Arkasia; she’d have misused her powers even further, even if by a little; she wouldn’t want to do so. It’d be a huge waste of her time, too. Also, she wasn’t particularly lesbian.
”I am afraid of unrestrained power,” answered Krieg. ”Things that cause an imbalance in the world should be stopped before they begin.” Krieg placed a hand on the side of his desk, gripping the side so tight it began to crack. ”You of all people should know that is true.
“Hm,” a melancholic smile surfaced as the image of Cain was pictured by Louise. “I suppose so. However, Arkasia can’t influence me enough to flaunt my power excessively. Quit being a worrywart.”
”If I were truly worried I would have had my men pursue her further. Where she is now she is of little consequence to me, and I have better ways to spend my time,” answered Krieg. ”As do you if you want to make that device work by the time the real fighting starts.”
“I suppose so… where is she now, anyway?” Louise asked, tilting a head out of curiosity, she couldn’t imagine Arkasia living anywhere in Masario, perhaps in the bordering villages?
“Am I to have one of your men tag along with me after I arrive in Raltese, by the way?”
”Licking her wounds in Origin. She met up with her men who were on leave there, and joined up with Edile’s men. She won’t get far with that one,” answered Krieg. ” And yes, he will be sure to help you with whatever you need, and report back to me with your progress.”
Louise giggled rather menacingly. “How amusing, she’s like a stubborn stray cat,” Louise commented, not sure if she should pity or laugh at her for real.
“Right, speaking of her men, I need you to make a report to the church,” Louise begun, a rather angry expression surfaced. “Tell them that Owain took a peek on the High Priestess’ bare skin in the hot spring,” she said looking to the side, it was rather embarrassing to say it like this to another man. If only Rhea was here…
Krieg laughed for a moment. ”That boy has always been attracted to the female figure. He was always after Arkasia. Boy should have chosen an easier target,” answered Kreig. ”I will be sure to put in a bad word for him.”
“Then, we’ll leave it at that. Best of luck in your operations,” Louise said with a graceful terse bow befitting of a high-class lady, before standing up, and walking into a portal at a relaxed pace. Krieg kept his back turned from the portal glaring back into it as he stroked his beard.
As Louise exited the portal into Margaret’s house – she saw Durran, and Xavier absorbed in a game of chess. From the looks of it, they were about halfway done. They were the only two in the living room. Margaret, Talia, and Kudzu were nowhere to be seen, but there was loud laughter coming from upstairs.
Louise walked up to Xavier and Durran with a curious look on her face. As much as she loved playing chess herself, time was of utmost importance at the moment. “Call those three down,” she uttered in a serious tone.
”We tried,” answered Durran. ”Margaret dipped into her private stock, and Kudzu decided now was the time to try it too.”
“Maybe if you tell her that her husband is coming back soon; she’ll flip down here,” Louise said with a smirk.
”Ugh, this is not going to be fun…” said Durran flicking his king over letting Xavier have the win. Standing up he adjusted his tie, and straightened out his jacket. ”I have to say I like dressing like this, but it’s definitely not suited for battle.”
“You look so much more better, though; just get used to it,” Louise complimented and ordered in one single sentence. Was it an order? He may as well take it as one. “It seems like Krieg had been cleaning out places infested with Cult of Ouroboros inside the territory of Scions for a while now. We should assume that at least 50% of anomalies inside Masario are neatly swept out,” said Louise. She’d like to believe that at least 50% of them were wiped out. Then again, it was Krieg – he could lie to her face any day.
”You are probably right, I don’t sense much going on here as the last time I was here,” answered Durran. The two of them started walking up the stairs, and approached the door where the loud laughter was coming from. It was Margaret’s room.
Talia stood outside of the door pinching the bridge of her nose. ”My mother truly has no shame,” she cursed under her breath.
Louise shrugged after looking at Talia, and opened the door without a word, or a set of knocks, which would be considered rude, but she wasn’t quite in the mood to show utmost respect to a drunk now. Yes, drunk. She just knew. It was obvious from those unrestrained laughters; she had lost it. “I’m back,” she declared, stepping into the room. “I thought you hated members of the Cursed…? What’s this?”
The scene she witnessed was definitely not what she was expecting. Kudzu sat on the couch his arms resting on the back of the couch. Margaret cuddled up next to him her, cheeks flushed with alcohol. Kudzu had his shirt unbuttoned and she was running her hand over his chest.
”You must train… like a whoooole lot,” Margaret said, smiling.
“...” Louise looked with empty eyes; staring. She gave a blank face of disappointment looking at Margaret, then to Kudzu. “...Pffft… ahaha. Ahahahaha!!” Louise burst out laughing. There was no more restraint. She laughed out loud, holding her stomach. This was too much. “You’re the best comedian, Margaret!” She exclaimed, still laughing at the drunk woman. Durran sighed looking at the two of them.
”Oh Louise…” began Kudzu before he was interrupted by a hiccup. ”Did you know… I have never had alcohol before?...’s great.”
“...Ahaha...” Louise calmed her laughing streak, finally removing her hand from her stomach. More like, that line made her pity him so much that her jolly mood was gone. “Ah, yes. They’re absolutely great. Especially for relaxation. If I’d known that you prefer drinks; you could try out the more exotic drinks of the world I came from – they’re beyond Margaret’s imaginations,” she said with an index finger raised; proudly boasting of her cellar of wine. Her collection was wide, and known to leave her guests spewing secrets out – especially about their sexual endeavors – left and right. An amusing sight for Louise… until they start puking from excessive intake. However, she’d only show her guests a small portion of her collection – precisely due to their habit of excessive drinking.
”Oh phooey, talking about things that you didn’t bring with you today,” complained Margaret. ”Why not just help us finish off this bottle?”
“Um, no. They’re mostly for business, actually. You’d empty out my stock and plead for more, Margaret; so I never bring them,” Louise replied casually, as if it was the most obvious thing to do. However, it was no longer the time to entertain them with her jests and straight-man replies. “We have more pressing matters to attend to, you two,” she then faced Margaret with a stern look. “Margaret – your husband is planning to come back for a final visit, soon,” Louise said, heaving a sigh. “Get a hold of yourself, please.”
”Let him come. Kudzu can just beat him up… right?” Answered Margaret clinging more to Kudzu. Xavier walked in and began cleaning up the room in the background without a word. Durran looked at him strangely wondering how he could just ignore the scene. Margaret also seemed to ignore him.
”No, he can’t. Because we would have the entire stationed army on us after that,” answered Durran. Kudzu stood up taking the bottle from Margaret, and downed the rest of the bottle before dropping it. Xavier caught it and placed it in a bag.
”Then I jus’ beat them all tooo!” announced Kudzu. Margaret put her hand in the air cheering with him.
“I won’t let any of you fight in this estate. This discussion is done,” Louise replied, furrowing her eyebrows before her right palm had a long meeting with her forehead. It’d been a long while since she did that. “This is the Augusta Estate, stop being barbaric here please,” she added as if requesting, but she clearly held a commanding tone. “Durran, I am given the information that the device I seek lies in Raltese… unfortunately; I’m not sure I can take you there, I’d also have a guard from Krieg. Most likely a keen eye to keep me in check.”
”He sure likes to keep tabs on you, doesn’t he?” answered Durran. ”We killed a few of his men, before we met you in that abandoned town. Don’t let your guard down around him.”
“The church is behind him – I can’t quite blame him. I suppose it’s a win-win solution for them. Both the church and Vejovis’ side benefits from knowing my activities,” Louise said. They likely did, Louise was a side of her own despite being the crowning High Priestess. That Head Priestess Rhea controlled the church as if it’s her own… the gall of that person is something Louise tends to loathe. However, it was partly her own fault for coming to join the church so late.
“I’m not certain how much details of my activities are actually reported to the church, however,” Louise added. Perhaps Vejovis likes to pick certain information out from what’s collected, then fragment and have Krieg report? It was a likely scenario. “Oh, that said, I heard the Cursed raided Origin, too.”
”You were there the day we did it, you know that right?” asked Durran.
“I have no inkling of what occurred; I’d love someone to provide more details,” Louise replied to Durran with a complicated look of confusion. “I went along with that insane avatar of Cain – a former comrade of yours – and have hence left before anything truly begun to take place,” she stated. All she heard was something akin to a loud noise. That was it. Louise evaded the proposal of a fight she felt that she’d be overpowered in due to the short distance between the two.
”We had a deal with the representatives. Taking you out of the equation also took much of the pressure off them. Having you there presented obvious concerns,” answered Durran. Speaking of concerns...Are you taking us back to your estate?”
“Well, considering that I still had a sealing placed in my spirit, I’d only have had about one-fourth of my original powers, unless they were concerned about not wanting to beat me up, of course,” Louise replied, yet again with her majestic shrug. They feared what little power they had? Or for Cain’s plans? She didn’t know, but she knew that they treated her especially in comparison to every one of the scions in the entire world. “The one in the other world… hmm, well, how much of your presence are you able to hide publicly? I could have you hiding in Raltese along with Kudzu… perhaps?”
”I can hide myself perfectly, but I can’t say the same for him,” answered Durran. ”I also think that that decision is a bit too risky. Perhaps at the least the forest around Raltese.”
“Hmm, alright how’s this – you go to Origin ahead of me, and try to find me a technician who could work with this device?” Louise proposed after thinking for a moment. It was an idea she was pondering about for a while. “All you need to do is find a capable talent for me,” Louise said.
”Seems simple enough, I will leave Kudzu with his son in the mean time. I don’t need him to find what I am looking for.” answered Durran. We are leaving soon I hope. I don’t know how much longer Talia can take this.”
“We’re leaving effective immediately,” Louise declared. “Also, here,” Louise handed a few papers to Durran. However, not all of them, she kept half of them to herself. “I’m keeping some of these papers since they’re truly necessary but… use these to check if the talent you find can at least understand the gist of things. They have the basic layout of the plans in them,” she said. She’d keep the rest just in case. She didn’t know what kind of technician Durran may come across, after all. She had to be cautious to an extent. “And Margaret – I hope you spend a… ahem, quality time with your husband soon. Let’s not speak of cheating, shall we?” Louise said with a wink before turning her back on the shameful woman known as Margaret. Margaret was disgraceful, but Louise didn’t show her disappointment anymore so as to save the mood from being ruined for good. She then pulled up her wand to chant for the teleportation spell.
Xavier pulled Margaret away from Kudzu as she whined. Then he began making her look more presentable. Kudzu didn’t even notice she was taken from him. “Do travel safely madam,” said Xavier. “I will take care of Lady Margaret from here.”
“I leave her to you,” Louise said to Xavier, who seemed to be an assuring professional unlike the apparent lady of the house here. Who was truly the lady of the house, anyway? Was it Louise, who existed and had been a sparsely appearing member of the house for centuries now, or Margaret – the generation’s successor to the public? She didn’t know. She didn’t wanted to know. She didn’t wanted to deal with that issue that lied in the gray area for so long. She was tempted to leave it that, in fact. Besides, she may leave this world for good soon, in more ways than one.
“First is Origin, get in here, Kudzu, and Durran, too.” Louise and Durran stepped into the portal, while Kudzu stood in front of it; hesitating. Talia pushed him through, glad to be rid of him.
TheLoneGentleman and Cinia Pacifica.)
Castle Arkasia was busy that afternoon. Soldiers hustling from place to place, this was obviously an army getting ready for war. Louise found it rather impressive how tight of a ship Krieg was running. People were working more for respect than fear. Stopping a soldier who was walking past her for directions, he bowed before informing her that Krieg was in the barracks. Then he pointed off in the direction she was supposed to head.
“Thank you,” said Louise with a smile. The soldier bowed again, and then hurried off to complete his task. Louise strolled towards the barracks looking around curiously at all the equipments that the various people were carrying. Most of them were boxed, so she couldn’t make heads or tails of any exact plan. It looked like she’d need to ask Krieg directly for everything. Then again, she could imagine such a man lying to her easily.
As she entered the barracks, it didn’t take her long to find Krieg. Who’d take so long to see that tall towering man who spoke to his men?
”Do you all have everything you will need in my absence?” Krieg asked. The men talked among themselves for a moment before they nodded.
”This should be more than enough, and we have enough men to still led aid to Masario should the need arise,” said one of the men.
”Good, then I will head back to see my family first before I leave for Raltese. For the Scion,” said Kreig. The three men saluted and spoke in unison. “For the Scion!” Then one of the men noticed a pair of eyes glancing over at them.
”Oh High Priestess! I did not know you were back!” He said as him and the others bowed. Kreig smirked and bowed as well.
”Any reason for you to grace us today?” Asked Krieg.
“I have a few questions for you to answer, is all,” Louise answered facing Krieg with a charming smile of a proper lady. She too, gave a slight yet majestic bow with her head in return as a greeting. Her eyes only glanced past the knights bowing to her; not much attention was spared for them, it seemed.
“I hope that I’ve not intruded in an appropriate moment?”
”Far better than the last time,” answered Krieg chuckling. ”Men, you are dismissed, see to it that things go as planned.” The men saluted before scurrying off. Turning to Louise his face went serious. ”Is something the matter?”Asked Krieg.
“Hm, let’s move to a better place, shall we? How’d be your old office where we met, do?” Louise asked, a barrack wasn’t the kind of place for her. She still wore the smile, and made sure to conduct herself the best she could, but it really reeked, and she didn’t like it.
”As long as you promise not to blow it up this time,” answered Krieg. ”This way.”
“I’m not here to fight, this time,” Louise said with a shrug. If he tempered her; it’d be a completely different story. She followed after him regardless.
Stepping into his office he offered her the chair in front of his desk as he moved to his chair. Taking their seats Krieg wasted no time. ”So what is it? You came all this way so it must be important,” questioned Krieg.
“Well, first I’d love to know what you’ve been up to – gathering troops like this for… quite a long time ago? What’s the plan so far?” Louise asked, that Margaret had been pretty worried about what this old man had been doing, hence her question. Louise didn’t particularly care in the past as she didn’t wanted the burden of responsibilities. At least not on a global level, but now that her mind came back to the right track; she indeed took all that up. She is the host of Ishtar; it is her job to lead humanity to the right direction.
”I’m clearing the Cursed from our territories, something that should have been done a long time ago,” answered Krieg. ”Where have you been by the way? You teleporting off at a moments notice really gives me a headache.
“Ohoho, were you keeping a watch on me?” Louise asked, with a chuckle. Louise was – by this point of time – used to the privacy abuse, but she had her ways to deal with them. “I have my own share of businesses to attend to, from time to time,” she answered. Even without †˜business’, Louise just hates walking, but she wouldn’t say that to Krieg.
“Hm, clearing Cursed off of our territories, you say? Then I suppose I may as well ask bother to ask but… do you know anything of the Cult of Ouroboros at the moment?” The Cult of Ouroboros had been in raiding for a long time, yet they recently stopped. She wondered if Krieg actually successfully got rid of them.
”Can you blame me for trying? As the High Priestess we get scolded by the church whenever you even see a battle. I heard some things happened over in Origin, but you weren’t there were you?” Asked Krieg eying up Louise suspiciously. ”As for the cult…
”Bunch of lunatics that seem to think Cain is their god. We have destroyed most of their rat dens that they had hidden in our territory. There are more of them than I thought. It is proving to be difficult,” answered Krieg.
“I had been meaning to deal with them – the church I mean – but that is for another time,” the church wasn’t so much worth her time right now – Louise felt. For now she had to clear some other business.
“Anyway, it seems that at least some of the cult have been dealt with, this is a good news, if anything, I suppose. Any news on the remaining rats?” Louise replied, before asking. “And what of Origin?” Louise knew that something went down in Origin, but she had to take her leave due to that one creepy avatar of Cain.
”The rats that we were able to take alive all killed themselves before questioning. Nothing we could get from any of them. Not like they were all there in the head to give us anything anyways,” answered Krieg. ”The representative staged an attack on their own people, answered Kreig. ”Killed them all without mercy, and then left back towards Agreyus.
“Hmm, too bad, but the representatives attacked their own people? How strange,” Louise replied. It sounded mysterious, for the representatives to suddenly turn back against their own people, but then Louise wasn’t aware of their political issues to be able to precisely comprehend. “I suppose the rest of the cult will still be an issue to deal with.”
”At least we have secured most of the town and villages. More than a few were completely cleared out. Without a damn trace. The only one we got some information out of was the one that your group passed through. The reports from there weren’t pretty. Besides the body pile up there was nothing worth while there. The research and lab were burned to the ground.”
Louise furrowed her eyebrows at the words †˜your group’. That was a terrible group. “Please, never ever lump my name with theirs, ever again,” Louise stated, as if angry, yet her tone of voice was unchanged. “That pervert of a captain, I’ll have him burned in a stake,” Louise sighed in order to calm herself. “Seems like we’re making good progress. Here’s the main deal for today… it’s about the device Arkasia tried to receive from Raltese.”
”That...the amplifier that was supposed to be finished ages ago. The only thing the old queen approved of when we were trying to make weapons. What about it? Replied Krieg.
“Do you know anything about it, like where it’s supposed to be now, or how it was created? I feel like we’ll need something like this in the war for a surprise attack,” Louise asked. Considering that the princess only validated this made some sense. She was also a pacifist forced to go to war, after all. She was kind at heart. Louise was the one who pushed her buttons, too.
”Why do you need to know?” Asked Krieg. We have been working on it, but we just don’t have the power that we need to make it truly effective. With Leona III back, I was thinking of simply moving on to other projects.
“Oh? I see. Then, by all means, leave it’s details and information to me; I may be able to operate it,” Louise said, taking the opportunity, it’d likely rust and rot here if what Krieg said is true – she doubt that his men would ever touch it again. “You need technicians for other projects, yes? You must lack the time for this.”
Krieg leaned back in his chair stroking his beard. ”What do you intend to do with it?” asked Krieg.
“Kill, of course,” the words came out through her lips instantly as if it’s as natural as breathing oxygen.
Krieg smirked. ”With its current power how do you intend to do that? Even our best and brightest can’t make that thing hold enough power to kill. It will be even harder to operate in the cursed lands,” answered Krieg. ”The main targets we need dead, are those able to survive in their own aura. So it needs to overtake multiple targets. You think you can do that?
“What it needs to do – is something I’ll be overseeing myself. Who do you think you’re talking to?” Louise spoke back, showing her good old confident smile.
Krieg reached inside his desk and grabbed something out that sounded like paper. Then placed it on the desk in front of them. ”These are the current plans for the device,” answered Krieg. ”The thing is still in Raltese. Take one of my men with you, and they can make sure you are shown to the device.”
“I believe I’ve seen it already, along with Arkasia? I don’t think I’d need another man tagging along with me,” Louise said, furrowing her eyebrows once again. There were something oddly suspicious about some of his men, after all.
”It was dismantled, and moved. You forget you weren’t the only one that found it,” answered Krieg. ”We couldn’t have them getting to it again if they did somehow get in.” Krieg stood up and walked around the desk. ”I’m actually looking forward to what you can do with that thing. Was there anything else you needed?”
“Hmm, if that is indeed the case; very well. He may bask in my presence,” Louise replied – she reluctantly accepted his condition; she needed the device, anyway – still sitting in the chair. “...That aside, do you know anything about a person known as Adair?”
”I can’t say that I do,” answered Krieg. ”Is that someone that I should know?”
“Hmm… never mind, perhaps not. It’s a personal issue, but I figured you get all kinds of information; couldn’t hurt to ask,” Louise replied, dismissively waving her hand before her.
”If you say so,” answered Krieg apparently deciding not to press the issue further. ”If that is all I can do for you today, I have more preparations to make before I leave for Raltese.”
“Just a moment… is it true that my name was used before attempting to apprehend Arkasia? What’s the meaning of that?”
”You were in the report. What of it?” answered Krieg.
“What right do you people have to use my name as you please, without even asking for permission beforehand?”
”You openly supported someone who meant to betray me,” answered Krieg. ”Would you have rathered I have your name smeared as a traitor of the divine? I believe I made the right choice.”
“What do you mean by betray? If anything – I’d say you did that first to literally everyone around here,” Louise sighed, then shrugged. Who was he acting before, here?
“Only you would truly suffer if you name me a traitor across the nation.”
”Everything I have done is for the strengthening of a nation on the verge of collapse. We are stronger now then we have ever been,” answered Krieg. ”A stronger and more powerful queen. People united for a common purpose, and warriors that believe in their leaders.”
“Oho, so it’s you who netted Leona III back in. But really, labeling me a traitor wouldn’t be doing any good for your Queen,” because unlike Leona IV, Leona III was Louise’s friend, she’d think that there was something going on if they labeled Louise a traitor. “I wouldn’t possibly think Arkasia that would be a bad person in power, however. She is simply naive at times, but she only doubted you; I doubt she did something worth calling it a †˜betrayal’. You have no true ground in terms of reality; you simply follow orders from another leader.”
”I have learned through experience. That with a man like him it is better to do just that...” answered Krieg showing an expression that almost looked sad. ”I also knew that you being lumped in with her would pose a problem. Whatever your ties to her, I suggest you cut them.”
“You people… are just scared of power,” Louise chuckled, as if pitying him. It was as though all this serious talks was but a part of her jest. She waved her hand dismissively. “Rest assured; I am not affiliated with her, not anymore. Her incompetence being enough reason.” Indeed, if she sticked to someone as naive as Arkasia; she’d have misused her powers even further, even if by a little; she wouldn’t want to do so. It’d be a huge waste of her time, too. Also, she wasn’t particularly lesbian.
”I am afraid of unrestrained power,” answered Krieg. ”Things that cause an imbalance in the world should be stopped before they begin.” Krieg placed a hand on the side of his desk, gripping the side so tight it began to crack. ”You of all people should know that is true.
“Hm,” a melancholic smile surfaced as the image of Cain was pictured by Louise. “I suppose so. However, Arkasia can’t influence me enough to flaunt my power excessively. Quit being a worrywart.”
”If I were truly worried I would have had my men pursue her further. Where she is now she is of little consequence to me, and I have better ways to spend my time,” answered Krieg. ”As do you if you want to make that device work by the time the real fighting starts.”
“I suppose so… where is she now, anyway?” Louise asked, tilting a head out of curiosity, she couldn’t imagine Arkasia living anywhere in Masario, perhaps in the bordering villages?
“Am I to have one of your men tag along with me after I arrive in Raltese, by the way?”
”Licking her wounds in Origin. She met up with her men who were on leave there, and joined up with Edile’s men. She won’t get far with that one,” answered Krieg. ” And yes, he will be sure to help you with whatever you need, and report back to me with your progress.”
Louise giggled rather menacingly. “How amusing, she’s like a stubborn stray cat,” Louise commented, not sure if she should pity or laugh at her for real.
“Right, speaking of her men, I need you to make a report to the church,” Louise begun, a rather angry expression surfaced. “Tell them that Owain took a peek on the High Priestess’ bare skin in the hot spring,” she said looking to the side, it was rather embarrassing to say it like this to another man. If only Rhea was here…
Krieg laughed for a moment. ”That boy has always been attracted to the female figure. He was always after Arkasia. Boy should have chosen an easier target,” answered Kreig. ”I will be sure to put in a bad word for him.”
“Then, we’ll leave it at that. Best of luck in your operations,” Louise said with a graceful terse bow befitting of a high-class lady, before standing up, and walking into a portal at a relaxed pace. Krieg kept his back turned from the portal glaring back into it as he stroked his beard.
As Louise exited the portal into Margaret’s house – she saw Durran, and Xavier absorbed in a game of chess. From the looks of it, they were about halfway done. They were the only two in the living room. Margaret, Talia, and Kudzu were nowhere to be seen, but there was loud laughter coming from upstairs.
Louise walked up to Xavier and Durran with a curious look on her face. As much as she loved playing chess herself, time was of utmost importance at the moment. “Call those three down,” she uttered in a serious tone.
”We tried,” answered Durran. ”Margaret dipped into her private stock, and Kudzu decided now was the time to try it too.”
“Maybe if you tell her that her husband is coming back soon; she’ll flip down here,” Louise said with a smirk.
”Ugh, this is not going to be fun…” said Durran flicking his king over letting Xavier have the win. Standing up he adjusted his tie, and straightened out his jacket. ”I have to say I like dressing like this, but it’s definitely not suited for battle.”
“You look so much more better, though; just get used to it,” Louise complimented and ordered in one single sentence. Was it an order? He may as well take it as one. “It seems like Krieg had been cleaning out places infested with Cult of Ouroboros inside the territory of Scions for a while now. We should assume that at least 50% of anomalies inside Masario are neatly swept out,” said Louise. She’d like to believe that at least 50% of them were wiped out. Then again, it was Krieg – he could lie to her face any day.
”You are probably right, I don’t sense much going on here as the last time I was here,” answered Durran. The two of them started walking up the stairs, and approached the door where the loud laughter was coming from. It was Margaret’s room.
Talia stood outside of the door pinching the bridge of her nose. ”My mother truly has no shame,” she cursed under her breath.
Louise shrugged after looking at Talia, and opened the door without a word, or a set of knocks, which would be considered rude, but she wasn’t quite in the mood to show utmost respect to a drunk now. Yes, drunk. She just knew. It was obvious from those unrestrained laughters; she had lost it. “I’m back,” she declared, stepping into the room. “I thought you hated members of the Cursed…? What’s this?”
The scene she witnessed was definitely not what she was expecting. Kudzu sat on the couch his arms resting on the back of the couch. Margaret cuddled up next to him her, cheeks flushed with alcohol. Kudzu had his shirt unbuttoned and she was running her hand over his chest.
”You must train… like a whoooole lot,” Margaret said, smiling.
“...” Louise looked with empty eyes; staring. She gave a blank face of disappointment looking at Margaret, then to Kudzu. “...Pffft… ahaha. Ahahahaha!!” Louise burst out laughing. There was no more restraint. She laughed out loud, holding her stomach. This was too much. “You’re the best comedian, Margaret!” She exclaimed, still laughing at the drunk woman. Durran sighed looking at the two of them.
”Oh Louise…” began Kudzu before he was interrupted by a hiccup. ”Did you know… I have never had alcohol before?...’s great.”
“...Ahaha...” Louise calmed her laughing streak, finally removing her hand from her stomach. More like, that line made her pity him so much that her jolly mood was gone. “Ah, yes. They’re absolutely great. Especially for relaxation. If I’d known that you prefer drinks; you could try out the more exotic drinks of the world I came from – they’re beyond Margaret’s imaginations,” she said with an index finger raised; proudly boasting of her cellar of wine. Her collection was wide, and known to leave her guests spewing secrets out – especially about their sexual endeavors – left and right. An amusing sight for Louise… until they start puking from excessive intake. However, she’d only show her guests a small portion of her collection – precisely due to their habit of excessive drinking.
”Oh phooey, talking about things that you didn’t bring with you today,” complained Margaret. ”Why not just help us finish off this bottle?”
“Um, no. They’re mostly for business, actually. You’d empty out my stock and plead for more, Margaret; so I never bring them,” Louise replied casually, as if it was the most obvious thing to do. However, it was no longer the time to entertain them with her jests and straight-man replies. “We have more pressing matters to attend to, you two,” she then faced Margaret with a stern look. “Margaret – your husband is planning to come back for a final visit, soon,” Louise said, heaving a sigh. “Get a hold of yourself, please.”
”Let him come. Kudzu can just beat him up… right?” Answered Margaret clinging more to Kudzu. Xavier walked in and began cleaning up the room in the background without a word. Durran looked at him strangely wondering how he could just ignore the scene. Margaret also seemed to ignore him.
”No, he can’t. Because we would have the entire stationed army on us after that,” answered Durran. Kudzu stood up taking the bottle from Margaret, and downed the rest of the bottle before dropping it. Xavier caught it and placed it in a bag.
”Then I jus’ beat them all tooo!” announced Kudzu. Margaret put her hand in the air cheering with him.
“I won’t let any of you fight in this estate. This discussion is done,” Louise replied, furrowing her eyebrows before her right palm had a long meeting with her forehead. It’d been a long while since she did that. “This is the Augusta Estate, stop being barbaric here please,” she added as if requesting, but she clearly held a commanding tone. “Durran, I am given the information that the device I seek lies in Raltese… unfortunately; I’m not sure I can take you there, I’d also have a guard from Krieg. Most likely a keen eye to keep me in check.”
”He sure likes to keep tabs on you, doesn’t he?” answered Durran. ”We killed a few of his men, before we met you in that abandoned town. Don’t let your guard down around him.”
“The church is behind him – I can’t quite blame him. I suppose it’s a win-win solution for them. Both the church and Vejovis’ side benefits from knowing my activities,” Louise said. They likely did, Louise was a side of her own despite being the crowning High Priestess. That Head Priestess Rhea controlled the church as if it’s her own… the gall of that person is something Louise tends to loathe. However, it was partly her own fault for coming to join the church so late.
“I’m not certain how much details of my activities are actually reported to the church, however,” Louise added. Perhaps Vejovis likes to pick certain information out from what’s collected, then fragment and have Krieg report? It was a likely scenario. “Oh, that said, I heard the Cursed raided Origin, too.”
”You were there the day we did it, you know that right?” asked Durran.
“I have no inkling of what occurred; I’d love someone to provide more details,” Louise replied to Durran with a complicated look of confusion. “I went along with that insane avatar of Cain – a former comrade of yours – and have hence left before anything truly begun to take place,” she stated. All she heard was something akin to a loud noise. That was it. Louise evaded the proposal of a fight she felt that she’d be overpowered in due to the short distance between the two.
”We had a deal with the representatives. Taking you out of the equation also took much of the pressure off them. Having you there presented obvious concerns,” answered Durran. Speaking of concerns...Are you taking us back to your estate?”
“Well, considering that I still had a sealing placed in my spirit, I’d only have had about one-fourth of my original powers, unless they were concerned about not wanting to beat me up, of course,” Louise replied, yet again with her majestic shrug. They feared what little power they had? Or for Cain’s plans? She didn’t know, but she knew that they treated her especially in comparison to every one of the scions in the entire world. “The one in the other world… hmm, well, how much of your presence are you able to hide publicly? I could have you hiding in Raltese along with Kudzu… perhaps?”
”I can hide myself perfectly, but I can’t say the same for him,” answered Durran. ”I also think that that decision is a bit too risky. Perhaps at the least the forest around Raltese.”
“Hmm, alright how’s this – you go to Origin ahead of me, and try to find me a technician who could work with this device?” Louise proposed after thinking for a moment. It was an idea she was pondering about for a while. “All you need to do is find a capable talent for me,” Louise said.
”Seems simple enough, I will leave Kudzu with his son in the mean time. I don’t need him to find what I am looking for.” answered Durran. We are leaving soon I hope. I don’t know how much longer Talia can take this.”
“We’re leaving effective immediately,” Louise declared. “Also, here,” Louise handed a few papers to Durran. However, not all of them, she kept half of them to herself. “I’m keeping some of these papers since they’re truly necessary but… use these to check if the talent you find can at least understand the gist of things. They have the basic layout of the plans in them,” she said. She’d keep the rest just in case. She didn’t know what kind of technician Durran may come across, after all. She had to be cautious to an extent. “And Margaret – I hope you spend a… ahem, quality time with your husband soon. Let’s not speak of cheating, shall we?” Louise said with a wink before turning her back on the shameful woman known as Margaret. Margaret was disgraceful, but Louise didn’t show her disappointment anymore so as to save the mood from being ruined for good. She then pulled up her wand to chant for the teleportation spell.
Xavier pulled Margaret away from Kudzu as she whined. Then he began making her look more presentable. Kudzu didn’t even notice she was taken from him. “Do travel safely madam,” said Xavier. “I will take care of Lady Margaret from here.”
“I leave her to you,” Louise said to Xavier, who seemed to be an assuring professional unlike the apparent lady of the house here. Who was truly the lady of the house, anyway? Was it Louise, who existed and had been a sparsely appearing member of the house for centuries now, or Margaret – the generation’s successor to the public? She didn’t know. She didn’t wanted to know. She didn’t wanted to deal with that issue that lied in the gray area for so long. She was tempted to leave it that, in fact. Besides, she may leave this world for good soon, in more ways than one.
“First is Origin, get in here, Kudzu, and Durran, too.” Louise and Durran stepped into the portal, while Kudzu stood in front of it; hesitating. Talia pushed him through, glad to be rid of him.
0
The week of training seemed to go by faster as each day passed. In the final days more time was spent on formations than anything else. By the time they were done Arkasia wanted them to flow in and out of formation as easy as they breathed.
“Defensive!” yeled Arkasia. Adelina and Luna fell in line on the side of Owain. A shield Golem materialized smashing its shield down in front. Behind them Masaki, Katya and Razta were on standby. Morgan, Anastas, and Reymond took up the back line ready to support.
“Offensive!” yelled Arkasia. Owain moved back into the formation as Ari moved up. Owain focused as he used Avalon enveloping the party. Adelina, Luna, Razta, Masaki, and Katya charged some dummies that Arkasia had set up. Owain and Ari stayed back defending the back line as they prepared spells. As the spells were ready the group hoped back as swords, and arrows rained down on the dummies. Nothing was left of the poor training materials.
]“Alright! That will show them!” said Masaki rejoicing in his victory over the inanimate objects.
”I thought that she would have made a giant one to simulate Soul though.” joked Razta.
”Don’t give her any ideas,” replied Ari glaring at Razta.
“Ya the last thing we need is to be told we didn’t destroy a giant pile of sticks correctly.” said Katya walking up to the group. Arkasia smirking seeing that the group was starting to come together. Even she was skeptical of if she would be able to work with former cursed, but perhaps Edile’s ideas were rubbing off on her.
Alright I think you guys have the formations down.” yelled Arkasia. ”Edile will make an announcement tomorrow. Until then you all have time off. Enjoy it.”
“I sure could use some time off,” said Adelina. “Morgan what is there to do around here? Other than the hot springs. I think we’ve had enough of that place.”
“Well lets see…” said Morgan thinking of something to do in town. Razta snuck up on Owain and jabbed him in the side.
“So you and Morgan have been getting along well.” said Razta. “Any plans for tonight?”
“Hrmm?” Owain said, turning in Razta’s direction, “What do you mean getting along well?”
Razta looked at Owain confused. “You mean you two aren’t a †˜thing’ yet? What are you waiting for man?”
Owain blushed, “Wh-what are you talking about?”
“This reminds me of that time at camp,” said Razta looking at Morgan.
“Which time?” Owain asked.
“You sent me and Adelina out to get firewood, and I took your advice. I told her my feelings, and you know what she said?”
“No?” Owain replied, remembering the hand mark on Razta’s face that day.
Razta stood in front of Owain and slapped him. ”What took you so long?” answered Razta with a grin. ”Don’t you want to know what she really thinks? Before we go off into this war.” Adelina and Morgan were looking over at them, but were too far to hear what they were saying.
Owain gulped, Morgan had always been his childhood friend, they had been inseparable, despite the three years between them, but recently maybe he had seen her as more than that.
“What if she rejects me?” Owain asked, seeming much less like the captain Razta knew, for the first time in a very long time Owain showed genuine fear on his face. Razta placed a hand on his shoulder and smiled.
”I don’t think that will be the case captain.” answered Razta. Razta placed a fist on Owain’s chest. ”Just say what’s from here, and you can’t fail. Its the power of LOVE!!!”
“L-love huh?” Owain gulped again, he thought that Morgan would always be beside him whether or not they were dating but maybe he was mistaken, “Y-yeah… okay,” he said breathing in deeply.
Walking somewhat unsteadily over to Morgan he called out to her in a weak voice, “Morgan?”
Adelina and Morgan looked at him strangely. Adelina caught a glimpse of Razta calling her over, and just walked off without saying a word. Morgan was getting confused beyond what words could explain.
“Are you ok Owain?” she asked looking at him. He looked sick.
“I think so,” Owain said, so nervous he felt like he was about to puke, “Can we talk for a bit?”
“Sure, d-did you want to talk in private?” said Morgan stuttering as she noticed Adelina give her the thumbs up from behind Owain.
“Uh, yeah,” Owain said, relieved he wasn’t going to have to do this in front of everyone else. Morgan turned and lead Owain out of the clearing into the woods. Before she knew it she was shaking and nervous, and the feeling grew stronger with each step. †˜Is this it!?’ she thought, her heart racing.
“S-so what did you want to talk about?!” she said being much louder than she intended.
“Us,” Owain said, steadying his nerves.
“Is something wrong?” she asked.
“No, I think it’s the opposite,” Owain said smiling weakly.
“W-what do you mean?” said Morgan as a blush started creeping across her face.
“Morgan,” Owain began, pausing to breathe deeply again, “I think I love you.”
“L-love! me?” she said holding her face with both hands. Her entire face was bright red at this point. “B-but you only think that you do?”
“I… I’ve never felt this way before Morgan,” Owain admitted, embarrassed.
”When you left. I always thought that you would go and find a girl elsewhere. T-that I would be forgotten...” answered Morgan looking up to Owain’s eyes. ”I g-guess I worried for nothing.”
“Does that mean… what I think it does?” Owain asked wishing for himself to be right.
“Yes,” she answered smiling. “I love you too Owain.”
Owain emerged from the forest , Morgan’s hand in his own. The grin on Owain’s face that had been there for some minutes now remained as he constantly looked to his side to see Morgan, also smiling, bright red.
Luna took notice to the two, they were strangely close-- more so than usual. She merely smiled at this, knowing that the captain finally made a move on the girl. “Well it’s about time...” she mumbled before walking out of sight with crossed arms.
”I see you had the courage after all captain,” said Adelina with a smile. Razta covered her mouth with his hand laughing nervously.
“Glad to see it captain,” said Reymond. “Looks like you lost your chance Ari.” Ari kicked Reymond hard in the side making him crumple to the floor painfully. Arkasia laughed at reymond as she looked to Ari, and then to Owain.
“Looks like my knights are far ahead of me,” said Arkasia.
Owain laughed, “I wouldn’t say that sir,” he said, “You just have to find the right person, I think I’ve found mine,” he grinned squeezing Morgan’s hand gently. Morgan looked up at him and smiled, being claimed by the man she had admired for so long put a warmth in her heart.
”Maybe when I’m not busy looking after you lot,” answered Arkasia. ”Alright we are heading back to town. You all can do what you want. Just show up tomorrow morning. That means you Katya.” Katya waved her off as she started to walk back to town, and the others followed.
As the others seemed to pair off to do whatever they had planned Ari decided that she would practice around with her spirit. She was confident that she could call up either one of her golems if needed, but she needed something more if she was going to really help anyone. Sneaking out into the forest was easy enough, and Arkasia had given them free range that night.
From two boulders in the forest she created an attack golem and a defense golem. Looking at the two of them she thought of what she could do to improve on them. Suddenly a voice spoke in her mind. †˜Do they no longer please you Mistress Fay?’ said Gaius. His voice was deep with an ancient feel.
”It’s not that…” she answered. ”I just want to become stronger.” Gaius went silent as the two golems moved closer together until their bodies began to combine. Ari was confused as to what was going on. As the stone began to show its form she noticed right way that it was the spitting image of her spirit.
“Acting independent of you has become easier as of late,” said Gaius into her head. “Why is this? Something has you motivated.”
”I want...to find her.” answered Ari.
“You wish to save a life you thought lost. Just be sure you don’t throw your own away in the process.” answered Gaius.
“So that’s what is was.” said a voice from behind a tree. Reymond stepped out from the shadow and looked at Ari, and her golem. “Who were you talking about?”
“It’s none of your business! Why are you following me?!” exclaimed Ari.
“We are a team now. It’s kind of our job to make sure people aren’t going off doing crazy things isn’t it?” answered Reymond.
”Saving my sister is-” Ari went quiet.
“Sister hmm?” answered Reymond. “And you are sure she is still alive?”
“She has to be,” Ari said shaking the thought of her dying from her head.
“Does anyone else know about this?” asked Reymond .
”Anastas does...he told me he would help.” she answered. ”When I fought her in Raltese, Anastas saw what happened. He let her escape. I haven’t seen her since then. She didn’t even remember me”
“This isn’t the first time I have heard of something like this happening…” said Reymond holding his book tight. “I might have an idea of what happened, but that won’t make you feel any better.”
”Tell me!” yelled Ari stepping towards Reymond.
“That woman we fought before in the abandoned town,” answered Reymond.
”That’s right you seemed to know her.” answered Ari.
“She did the same thing to...my fiance.” answered Reymond wincing as he remembered his fiance’s face.
”What happened?” Ari asked.
“I killed her.” answered Reymond. “She left me no choice, and I struck her down...with this sword. I was almost glad to be rid of it when I lost it in Raltese…” Reymond gripped the sword pulling it from it’s sheath. Ari began to back away from Reymond.
“Appropriate response, but you have no reason to be afraid of me.” answered Reymond. “The only blood I want on this sword is that woman’s. When we go to save your sister, if we find her involved. Promise that you will leave her to me.”
“Defensive!” yeled Arkasia. Adelina and Luna fell in line on the side of Owain. A shield Golem materialized smashing its shield down in front. Behind them Masaki, Katya and Razta were on standby. Morgan, Anastas, and Reymond took up the back line ready to support.
“Offensive!” yelled Arkasia. Owain moved back into the formation as Ari moved up. Owain focused as he used Avalon enveloping the party. Adelina, Luna, Razta, Masaki, and Katya charged some dummies that Arkasia had set up. Owain and Ari stayed back defending the back line as they prepared spells. As the spells were ready the group hoped back as swords, and arrows rained down on the dummies. Nothing was left of the poor training materials.
]“Alright! That will show them!” said Masaki rejoicing in his victory over the inanimate objects.
”I thought that she would have made a giant one to simulate Soul though.” joked Razta.
”Don’t give her any ideas,” replied Ari glaring at Razta.
“Ya the last thing we need is to be told we didn’t destroy a giant pile of sticks correctly.” said Katya walking up to the group. Arkasia smirking seeing that the group was starting to come together. Even she was skeptical of if she would be able to work with former cursed, but perhaps Edile’s ideas were rubbing off on her.
Alright I think you guys have the formations down.” yelled Arkasia. ”Edile will make an announcement tomorrow. Until then you all have time off. Enjoy it.”
“I sure could use some time off,” said Adelina. “Morgan what is there to do around here? Other than the hot springs. I think we’ve had enough of that place.”
“Well lets see…” said Morgan thinking of something to do in town. Razta snuck up on Owain and jabbed him in the side.
“So you and Morgan have been getting along well.” said Razta. “Any plans for tonight?”
“Hrmm?” Owain said, turning in Razta’s direction, “What do you mean getting along well?”
Razta looked at Owain confused. “You mean you two aren’t a †˜thing’ yet? What are you waiting for man?”
Owain blushed, “Wh-what are you talking about?”
“This reminds me of that time at camp,” said Razta looking at Morgan.
“Which time?” Owain asked.
“You sent me and Adelina out to get firewood, and I took your advice. I told her my feelings, and you know what she said?”
“No?” Owain replied, remembering the hand mark on Razta’s face that day.
Razta stood in front of Owain and slapped him. ”What took you so long?” answered Razta with a grin. ”Don’t you want to know what she really thinks? Before we go off into this war.” Adelina and Morgan were looking over at them, but were too far to hear what they were saying.
Owain gulped, Morgan had always been his childhood friend, they had been inseparable, despite the three years between them, but recently maybe he had seen her as more than that.
“What if she rejects me?” Owain asked, seeming much less like the captain Razta knew, for the first time in a very long time Owain showed genuine fear on his face. Razta placed a hand on his shoulder and smiled.
”I don’t think that will be the case captain.” answered Razta. Razta placed a fist on Owain’s chest. ”Just say what’s from here, and you can’t fail. Its the power of LOVE!!!”
“L-love huh?” Owain gulped again, he thought that Morgan would always be beside him whether or not they were dating but maybe he was mistaken, “Y-yeah… okay,” he said breathing in deeply.
Walking somewhat unsteadily over to Morgan he called out to her in a weak voice, “Morgan?”
Adelina and Morgan looked at him strangely. Adelina caught a glimpse of Razta calling her over, and just walked off without saying a word. Morgan was getting confused beyond what words could explain.
“Are you ok Owain?” she asked looking at him. He looked sick.
“I think so,” Owain said, so nervous he felt like he was about to puke, “Can we talk for a bit?”
“Sure, d-did you want to talk in private?” said Morgan stuttering as she noticed Adelina give her the thumbs up from behind Owain.
“Uh, yeah,” Owain said, relieved he wasn’t going to have to do this in front of everyone else. Morgan turned and lead Owain out of the clearing into the woods. Before she knew it she was shaking and nervous, and the feeling grew stronger with each step. †˜Is this it!?’ she thought, her heart racing.
“S-so what did you want to talk about?!” she said being much louder than she intended.
“Us,” Owain said, steadying his nerves.
“Is something wrong?” she asked.
“No, I think it’s the opposite,” Owain said smiling weakly.
“W-what do you mean?” said Morgan as a blush started creeping across her face.
“Morgan,” Owain began, pausing to breathe deeply again, “I think I love you.”
“L-love! me?” she said holding her face with both hands. Her entire face was bright red at this point. “B-but you only think that you do?”
“I… I’ve never felt this way before Morgan,” Owain admitted, embarrassed.
”When you left. I always thought that you would go and find a girl elsewhere. T-that I would be forgotten...” answered Morgan looking up to Owain’s eyes. ”I g-guess I worried for nothing.”
“Does that mean… what I think it does?” Owain asked wishing for himself to be right.
“Yes,” she answered smiling. “I love you too Owain.”
Owain emerged from the forest , Morgan’s hand in his own. The grin on Owain’s face that had been there for some minutes now remained as he constantly looked to his side to see Morgan, also smiling, bright red.
Luna took notice to the two, they were strangely close-- more so than usual. She merely smiled at this, knowing that the captain finally made a move on the girl. “Well it’s about time...” she mumbled before walking out of sight with crossed arms.
”I see you had the courage after all captain,” said Adelina with a smile. Razta covered her mouth with his hand laughing nervously.
“Glad to see it captain,” said Reymond. “Looks like you lost your chance Ari.” Ari kicked Reymond hard in the side making him crumple to the floor painfully. Arkasia laughed at reymond as she looked to Ari, and then to Owain.
“Looks like my knights are far ahead of me,” said Arkasia.
Owain laughed, “I wouldn’t say that sir,” he said, “You just have to find the right person, I think I’ve found mine,” he grinned squeezing Morgan’s hand gently. Morgan looked up at him and smiled, being claimed by the man she had admired for so long put a warmth in her heart.
”Maybe when I’m not busy looking after you lot,” answered Arkasia. ”Alright we are heading back to town. You all can do what you want. Just show up tomorrow morning. That means you Katya.” Katya waved her off as she started to walk back to town, and the others followed.
As the others seemed to pair off to do whatever they had planned Ari decided that she would practice around with her spirit. She was confident that she could call up either one of her golems if needed, but she needed something more if she was going to really help anyone. Sneaking out into the forest was easy enough, and Arkasia had given them free range that night.
From two boulders in the forest she created an attack golem and a defense golem. Looking at the two of them she thought of what she could do to improve on them. Suddenly a voice spoke in her mind. †˜Do they no longer please you Mistress Fay?’ said Gaius. His voice was deep with an ancient feel.
”It’s not that…” she answered. ”I just want to become stronger.” Gaius went silent as the two golems moved closer together until their bodies began to combine. Ari was confused as to what was going on. As the stone began to show its form she noticed right way that it was the spitting image of her spirit.
“Acting independent of you has become easier as of late,” said Gaius into her head. “Why is this? Something has you motivated.”
”I want...to find her.” answered Ari.
“You wish to save a life you thought lost. Just be sure you don’t throw your own away in the process.” answered Gaius.
“So that’s what is was.” said a voice from behind a tree. Reymond stepped out from the shadow and looked at Ari, and her golem. “Who were you talking about?”
“It’s none of your business! Why are you following me?!” exclaimed Ari.
“We are a team now. It’s kind of our job to make sure people aren’t going off doing crazy things isn’t it?” answered Reymond.
”Saving my sister is-” Ari went quiet.
“Sister hmm?” answered Reymond. “And you are sure she is still alive?”
“She has to be,” Ari said shaking the thought of her dying from her head.
“Does anyone else know about this?” asked Reymond .
”Anastas does...he told me he would help.” she answered. ”When I fought her in Raltese, Anastas saw what happened. He let her escape. I haven’t seen her since then. She didn’t even remember me”
“This isn’t the first time I have heard of something like this happening…” said Reymond holding his book tight. “I might have an idea of what happened, but that won’t make you feel any better.”
”Tell me!” yelled Ari stepping towards Reymond.
“That woman we fought before in the abandoned town,” answered Reymond.
”That’s right you seemed to know her.” answered Ari.
“She did the same thing to...my fiance.” answered Reymond wincing as he remembered his fiance’s face.
”What happened?” Ari asked.
“I killed her.” answered Reymond. “She left me no choice, and I struck her down...with this sword. I was almost glad to be rid of it when I lost it in Raltese…” Reymond gripped the sword pulling it from it’s sheath. Ari began to back away from Reymond.
“Appropriate response, but you have no reason to be afraid of me.” answered Reymond. “The only blood I want on this sword is that woman’s. When we go to save your sister, if we find her involved. Promise that you will leave her to me.”
0
Luna rejoiced in the fact that she no longer shared a room with Adelina. As much as she enjoyed the attention, she didn’t want to think about a blade at her throat every time she tried to close her eyes. She could see the moonlight illuminate through the window as it shined onto her pale skin. She knew it was about the time revisit a cherished moment from her past.
Closing her eyes she began; The little bird, so valiant and tame, lost her home a was put to shame, she was used, abused, and no one gave a care; she was found by a gray owl that helped her find her way…” Luna sang to the moonlight, everything about her danced their ways out as she poured her heart out to the lost souls of her past; friends, family, and her. Sonata was also feeling the impact of this rarely displayed and alien side of Luna; she was glowing-- quite literally as she sang. A red aura formed over her body, dancing around her while she revisited the memories.
Masaki was walking back to his room after training alone on the courtyard when he heard sounds coming from his room. Huh? Did someone got in to my room and sing? He thought as he slowly peeked in. He quickly jumped back in surprise. L-L-L-Luna?! W-why is she in my room?! A-and what’s with that godly voice?! Masaki shook his head in disbelieve and waited until she was finished.
Luna wiped whatever strayed onto her face and stared at the hand she wiped her face with; the same ring she’d been gawking at the moment she left Cursed, it seemed to have held so much importance to her. The question remains, what was her song about? As her song ended, Luna sighed and sat back into her bed in silence, staring down the grayscale moon.
Masaki clapped as he walked in, ”That was a nice song.” Masaki praised.
Luna’s sight darted to the clapping man, her face colored with surprise as she did not expect anyone to be anywhere near the house at this time. “H-How much did you hear!?” Luna struggled to readjust her voice to her ordinary tone.
”Until you’re done, I think it was from the beginning.” Masaki nodded. ”Though that was a very nice song and your voice was amazing~” He praised again.
“Tch.” Luna looked away from Masaki in exasperation. “...You weren’t supposed to hear it.”
”Why not?” He asked curiously.
Luna clicked her tongue. “It’s none of your damned business.”
”Ahahaha~ Don’t be so grumpy about it, you should be proud! Have a nice voice like that.” Said Masaki happily.
Luna sighed pinching the bridge of her nose. “Why are you so damn happy…?” She asked.
”Why shouldn’t I be happy?” He asked back.
“Not many reasons to be smiling, is all I’m saying.” Luna replied simply.
”Well, just be positive, no matter how dark your past is.” Masaki said as he sat on his bed, right across Luna’s bed. ”Thing is that the more you think about how bad it is, the harder your life will be.” Masaki chuckled. HA! What the hell are you saying, Masaki? Trying to impress the lady with the old man’s words? TouTetsuOh laughed. Oh shut it you.
Luna shook her head. “It’s complicated, alright? I don’t know about you but some things stick to people and...wait,” Luna paused. “What do you know about my past…?” Luna asked in skepticism. She could only recall telling Morgan and the captain of her past, how Masaki came into the equation was a mystery.
”I know nothing.” He said confidently and continued. ”So why not tell me about your past?” He asked her. ”I know that it’ll make you a little bit better.” Masaki nodded.
Luna rolled her eyes, the man and his giddiness annoyed her she would do anything for silence at this point since killing him was no longer an option. She sighed and sat onto her bed adjacent to Masaki’s cross-legged to get comfortable. ”Well fine then, Cap already knows, why not? Maybe that’ll get you to see how fucked up this world is.” She said in an attempt to convince Masaki.
”I know how bad the world is, I just don’t think about it so much.” He leaned back to the wall behind him. ”Now, please tell me about your past. Miss Luna.”
She ran a hand through her hair as she thought of a starting point. And so she began, she told Masaki of her tales of pain and heartache, she told of how many men used her for their own personal gain, she told of the many men she had killed and how good it felt to do it; Luna’s friends, her family, loved ones, all dead because of her. “...And my fiance, she died because of me. I got too close and that bastard sent men to kill us both.” She continued. “They made me watch as they...did vulgar things to her right before slitting her throat in front of me.” Said Luna almost bluntly, she wanted to keep her composure in front of the man, as she was done shedding tears for just a mere memory.
”Ahhh. I see. Now that’s something.” He paused. ”Wait, so you’re telling me that your fiance was a woman? That’s strange.” He scratched his head.
Luna held her mouth open as if she wanted to say something but closed, as she was at a loss for words. The man didn’t know much, that’s for sure. “...Do I really need to explain to you how love works?” Luna replied at the peak of irritation.
”Nah, Mentor told me that love is a dangerous thing, so I just stay away from it, even though I don’t know what it is. Besides, at least you have a past. Hahaha~” He laughed.
Luna shook her head at the man. “Well what about you? We’re pretty much sharing our entire life stories here. Tell me a little about yourself.”
”Thing is I have no idea, I was found by my Mentor back at the temple, and he raised me till I was big enough and gave me this gauntlet.” Masaki showed his gauntlet on his right arm and continued, ”Then he trained me mercilessly. Pretty much like what Arkasia did but with much more brutal force. Thought me how to survive in the wild, and such. And this guy didn’t help at all.” He looked up at TouTetsuOh. What? It’s not like I can help you in the physical world you know. Besides, seeing you suffer is entertaining. TouTetsuOh laughed. Masaki sighed Anyway one day on his death bed, he told me to explore the world. Then years after that I entered the military because it has free food and here I am.” He smiled.
“Hmm, so you’re telling me that you were sheltered all your life up to this point?” Luna asked. Hmph, that explains everything, he ain’t the sharpest sword on the rack, Lunie. Sonata giggled at Luna. Luna frowned and shook her head in silence from the comment.
”Yeah. . . .Oh and I nearly died because of that wolf dude. He nearly bit half of my body off. Hahaha~” He laughed at him self. ”By the way, you should smile sometime. I bet that grumpy face of yours has an amazing smile.” he randomly said.
Hearing this sparked a small grin from Luna, she wanted to at least give Masaki the benefit of the doubt at least once, besides, even though it seems like he doesn’t have much in between the ears, the man has been fed wise words. “Whatever.” Luna said keeping her cracked smile.
“Ahahaha~ See~ Keep that up and you’ll be the cutest women I’ve ever met!” Masaki gave Luna a double thumbs up.
I’m surprised you didn’t gag yet, kid. This man is giving you all these compliments and you haven’t blew chunks! Are you switching even more flags on me, Luna? Sonata teased. “Oh, uhh you’re barking up the wrong tree, kid.” Luna advised, taking both Sonata and Masaki’s comments into account.
“Really? It was just an honest compliment, I have no intentions at all.” Masaki said and continued, “Did it offend you or anything?” He asked.
Luna felt silly even bringing that up at all, the fact that she thought that a man like this would try to make a move on her was absurd. “Well, I can’t say it didn’t.” She said. “Just past occurrences has me jaded around men, you see.” Said Luna.
“Ahh, that explains your lack of enthusiasm. Well you see, I just wanted to know how my new roommate is so that I won’t hit several †˜land mines’ that could get me †˜killed’.” He stopped and think for a second, “Come to think of it, I never had a roommate before. Since in the past I mostly spend my time alone in some random forest near my tent and all.” He chucked.
Looking back, Luna never really shared a room with anyone herself, besides with Adelina her first night there-- and with Charlotte that one night. Even remembering something like that at a time like this made Luna flush heavily. “W-Well, you have nothing to worry about.” She said a bit flustered.
Masaki sat near the corner and looked closer, “Your face is a bit red, are you al-”
“Y-Yeah, I’m fine.” Luna said almost without giving Masaki the chance to finish his sentence.
Masaki narrowed his eyes. “Suspicious.” He suddenly stood up and crouched down at the corner where his bag is located. He pulled out a bottle and returned to Luna. “Here, you should drink. It’s normal mountain water incase you were suspicious about the contents. Ahaha~”
“This ain’t bad, where’d you get this?” Luna said surprised after taking a swig from the bottle.
“I don’t really know. Everytime I see a water source in the mountains, I just pull out my bottles and fill them up.” He sat back on his bed.
“Well it’s not bad. We don’t really have mountain streams in Agreyus, it’s dry as all hell up there.”
“Great!”
Luna sighed as she bunched up into a comfortable position onto her bed. She held her newly acquired cleaver close while she sat up. “Anyways I’m gonna get some sleep. I have a feeling Dia might work us dead tomorrow; I wanna be wide awake when that happens.” Luna said almost joking before shutting her eyes.
“Ohhh~ Can’t wait for that.” Masaki nodded. “Good night Miss Luna and your spirit.” Said Masaki as he jumped to his bed and pulled out a book from his vest. Now where was I? he thought as he opened the book and started to read through the night.
Sneaking through the dark forest was a simple endeavor even with the increased security around Origin. Guard patterns, and spirit trackers were something that Inferus had been trained to deal with. At this point it was all just a big joke. Slithering through the woods he sometimes took the form of guards, or even animals that he had spotted in the area, and as he reached the gates to the city no one was the wiser.
Climbing up a tree as a squirrel he looked down at the gate, and its guards before turning into a bird, and soaring right over the gate.
What a joke Inferus thought, if this mission wasn’t so important he would have just walked through the gates, the security was so lax, however, he couldn’t afford to take any risks. Landing on a perch of a building he looked around before turning into the form of a guard. He was waiting for someone, but he wasn’t sure who.
“Sorry I’m late,” said a muffled voice approaching him. A man stood in front of him wearing a dragon mask over his face. Blonde hair spiked up around it edges.
“I’m impressed you noticed me,” Grinned Inferus in a voice that belonged to the guard he was impersonating.
“It’s easier when you know what you are looking for.” answered the man. “I’m supposed to tell you where the boy is, but you have a little something for me right?” Inferus reached into the †˜guard’s’ pocket and pulled out a small brown bag that he dropped into the man’s waiting hand.
“Perfect,” answered Balan bounding the bag in his hand a few times. “So you will be looking for a man named Selanus. I recently saw him with a man name Grigore. You might know him as one of the people Kristina had contact with.”
“I know him,” Inferus said, “You can go now, don’t want to attract attention now do we?” he smiled, knowing that attention was the last thing that was going to be drawn to him.
“No, no we don’t” replied the man with a silent chuckle. “Send me regards to the lady will ya?” The man turned and began to walk away.
“Selanus, huh?” Inferus wondered aloud, “Well this should be an interesting job at least.”
Sensing something approaching Inferus quickly changed into a rat and began nibbling on some strange object on the roof. A pale fellow jumped onto the roof and kept running, obviously on his way somewhere.
Perfect, Inferus thought, A guardian will do just nicely, he grinned internally, as he ran behind the man keeping a safe distance despite his form. The man ran for quite a ways. Bounding from rooftop to rooftop without stopping even to catch his breathe. Inferus began to wonder if the man was even human. Finally the man leapt off one of the rooftops apparently reaching his destination. Inferus stopped on the top of the building looking down at him.
Below he could see that Ezekiel was conversing with a man who had his eyes bound up. As he looked he found the blind man was beginning to look in his direction.
Inferus’ eyes widened, could the blind man see him? No, impossible, no one could see him. After glancing in his direction Bael turned back to Ezekiel who was talking up a storm.
“So your turn Bael, I’m turning in for the night.” said Ezekiel patting him on the back. Bael nodded and looked up to where he saw Inferus before, but Inferus was long gone. Dismissing it Bael turned to start his shift watching the forest.
Ezekiel opened his window and stepped into his room on the second floor of his house. Taping a spot on the wall a light shot up it before turning on the lights to his house. “Where would we be without you Leon?” said Ezekiel as looked around. Around a small brown couch there were piles of books stacked up next to it. The rest of the house was relatively clean, and simple. Wood and stone walls in a pattern of swirling wood. The floor was all wood with some area’s that could probably stand to be redone.
Sitting down on the couch he picked up a book and smiled as he opened it up to his bookmark and started reading.
“I hope that’s a good book,” Inferus said, concealed in invisibility.
Ezekiel jumped up in surprise, book forgotten. Suddenly he felt something pierce his back, a long thin blade, but where the blade should have been there was nothing. Blood flowed from the wound and from Ezekiel’s mouth as the unseen blade pierced his heart. Ezekiel’s eyes widened as his wound began to heal at a rapid pace.
“Oh?” Inferus said, in surprise, “We can’t have that now can we.” Inferus twisted his stiletto to reopen the wound, smiling as Ezekiel screamed in pain.
Púca giggled in delight at the screams, This is such a brilliant prank! she said happily.
The corner of Inferus’ mouth turned up as a black mist poured from him, down the blade and into Ezekiel.
“How’s that?” Inferus asked sweetly with the voice of a little girl, while concealed his eyes were wide with glee “Feels great doesn’t it? It does for me.”
Black filled Ezekiel’s bloodstream, his veins slowly dyed in Inferus’ colour the blood pouring out of his mouth was stained black, and it flowed like tar from inside Ezekiel’s body. He couldn’t even scream anymore but Inferus could still hear those screams that Ezekiel could no longer make.
“Ah, how wonderful,” said a voice that scared Ezekiel the most. It was his own.
“It’s beautiful, don’t you think?” The voice seemed to be asking no one in particular, but Ezekiel heard the response.
It is, it is! This is why I love you Inferus, a girl’s voice seemed to say, maybe he was going mad with the pain.
“You’ve lived far too long, Mister Vampire” Inferus said in Ezekiel’s voice.
Maybe he was right, one hundred and twelve years was much too long for any normal human. It was fading, the pain was subsiding. This was the end.
Suddenly the blade that had pierced Ezekiel was sharply removed, naturally Ezekiel had no remaining strength to stay upright, collapsing onto his front. After a few seconds he felt his head pulled up by his hair, to his dismay the person he now gazed upon was himself.
“Bye bye,” the new Ezekiel said smiling warmly, waving as the last vestiges of life drained from the Ezekiel now lying on the floor.
Closing her eyes she began; The little bird, so valiant and tame, lost her home a was put to shame, she was used, abused, and no one gave a care; she was found by a gray owl that helped her find her way…” Luna sang to the moonlight, everything about her danced their ways out as she poured her heart out to the lost souls of her past; friends, family, and her. Sonata was also feeling the impact of this rarely displayed and alien side of Luna; she was glowing-- quite literally as she sang. A red aura formed over her body, dancing around her while she revisited the memories.
Masaki was walking back to his room after training alone on the courtyard when he heard sounds coming from his room. Huh? Did someone got in to my room and sing? He thought as he slowly peeked in. He quickly jumped back in surprise. L-L-L-Luna?! W-why is she in my room?! A-and what’s with that godly voice?! Masaki shook his head in disbelieve and waited until she was finished.
Luna wiped whatever strayed onto her face and stared at the hand she wiped her face with; the same ring she’d been gawking at the moment she left Cursed, it seemed to have held so much importance to her. The question remains, what was her song about? As her song ended, Luna sighed and sat back into her bed in silence, staring down the grayscale moon.
Masaki clapped as he walked in, ”That was a nice song.” Masaki praised.
Luna’s sight darted to the clapping man, her face colored with surprise as she did not expect anyone to be anywhere near the house at this time. “H-How much did you hear!?” Luna struggled to readjust her voice to her ordinary tone.
”Until you’re done, I think it was from the beginning.” Masaki nodded. ”Though that was a very nice song and your voice was amazing~” He praised again.
“Tch.” Luna looked away from Masaki in exasperation. “...You weren’t supposed to hear it.”
”Why not?” He asked curiously.
Luna clicked her tongue. “It’s none of your damned business.”
”Ahahaha~ Don’t be so grumpy about it, you should be proud! Have a nice voice like that.” Said Masaki happily.
Luna sighed pinching the bridge of her nose. “Why are you so damn happy…?” She asked.
”Why shouldn’t I be happy?” He asked back.
“Not many reasons to be smiling, is all I’m saying.” Luna replied simply.
”Well, just be positive, no matter how dark your past is.” Masaki said as he sat on his bed, right across Luna’s bed. ”Thing is that the more you think about how bad it is, the harder your life will be.” Masaki chuckled. HA! What the hell are you saying, Masaki? Trying to impress the lady with the old man’s words? TouTetsuOh laughed. Oh shut it you.
Luna shook her head. “It’s complicated, alright? I don’t know about you but some things stick to people and...wait,” Luna paused. “What do you know about my past…?” Luna asked in skepticism. She could only recall telling Morgan and the captain of her past, how Masaki came into the equation was a mystery.
”I know nothing.” He said confidently and continued. ”So why not tell me about your past?” He asked her. ”I know that it’ll make you a little bit better.” Masaki nodded.
Luna rolled her eyes, the man and his giddiness annoyed her she would do anything for silence at this point since killing him was no longer an option. She sighed and sat onto her bed adjacent to Masaki’s cross-legged to get comfortable. ”Well fine then, Cap already knows, why not? Maybe that’ll get you to see how fucked up this world is.” She said in an attempt to convince Masaki.
”I know how bad the world is, I just don’t think about it so much.” He leaned back to the wall behind him. ”Now, please tell me about your past. Miss Luna.”
She ran a hand through her hair as she thought of a starting point. And so she began, she told Masaki of her tales of pain and heartache, she told of how many men used her for their own personal gain, she told of the many men she had killed and how good it felt to do it; Luna’s friends, her family, loved ones, all dead because of her. “...And my fiance, she died because of me. I got too close and that bastard sent men to kill us both.” She continued. “They made me watch as they...did vulgar things to her right before slitting her throat in front of me.” Said Luna almost bluntly, she wanted to keep her composure in front of the man, as she was done shedding tears for just a mere memory.
”Ahhh. I see. Now that’s something.” He paused. ”Wait, so you’re telling me that your fiance was a woman? That’s strange.” He scratched his head.
Luna held her mouth open as if she wanted to say something but closed, as she was at a loss for words. The man didn’t know much, that’s for sure. “...Do I really need to explain to you how love works?” Luna replied at the peak of irritation.
”Nah, Mentor told me that love is a dangerous thing, so I just stay away from it, even though I don’t know what it is. Besides, at least you have a past. Hahaha~” He laughed.
Luna shook her head at the man. “Well what about you? We’re pretty much sharing our entire life stories here. Tell me a little about yourself.”
”Thing is I have no idea, I was found by my Mentor back at the temple, and he raised me till I was big enough and gave me this gauntlet.” Masaki showed his gauntlet on his right arm and continued, ”Then he trained me mercilessly. Pretty much like what Arkasia did but with much more brutal force. Thought me how to survive in the wild, and such. And this guy didn’t help at all.” He looked up at TouTetsuOh. What? It’s not like I can help you in the physical world you know. Besides, seeing you suffer is entertaining. TouTetsuOh laughed. Masaki sighed Anyway one day on his death bed, he told me to explore the world. Then years after that I entered the military because it has free food and here I am.” He smiled.
“Hmm, so you’re telling me that you were sheltered all your life up to this point?” Luna asked. Hmph, that explains everything, he ain’t the sharpest sword on the rack, Lunie. Sonata giggled at Luna. Luna frowned and shook her head in silence from the comment.
”Yeah. . . .Oh and I nearly died because of that wolf dude. He nearly bit half of my body off. Hahaha~” He laughed at him self. ”By the way, you should smile sometime. I bet that grumpy face of yours has an amazing smile.” he randomly said.
Hearing this sparked a small grin from Luna, she wanted to at least give Masaki the benefit of the doubt at least once, besides, even though it seems like he doesn’t have much in between the ears, the man has been fed wise words. “Whatever.” Luna said keeping her cracked smile.
“Ahahaha~ See~ Keep that up and you’ll be the cutest women I’ve ever met!” Masaki gave Luna a double thumbs up.
I’m surprised you didn’t gag yet, kid. This man is giving you all these compliments and you haven’t blew chunks! Are you switching even more flags on me, Luna? Sonata teased. “Oh, uhh you’re barking up the wrong tree, kid.” Luna advised, taking both Sonata and Masaki’s comments into account.
“Really? It was just an honest compliment, I have no intentions at all.” Masaki said and continued, “Did it offend you or anything?” He asked.
Luna felt silly even bringing that up at all, the fact that she thought that a man like this would try to make a move on her was absurd. “Well, I can’t say it didn’t.” She said. “Just past occurrences has me jaded around men, you see.” Said Luna.
“Ahh, that explains your lack of enthusiasm. Well you see, I just wanted to know how my new roommate is so that I won’t hit several †˜land mines’ that could get me †˜killed’.” He stopped and think for a second, “Come to think of it, I never had a roommate before. Since in the past I mostly spend my time alone in some random forest near my tent and all.” He chucked.
Looking back, Luna never really shared a room with anyone herself, besides with Adelina her first night there-- and with Charlotte that one night. Even remembering something like that at a time like this made Luna flush heavily. “W-Well, you have nothing to worry about.” She said a bit flustered.
Masaki sat near the corner and looked closer, “Your face is a bit red, are you al-”
“Y-Yeah, I’m fine.” Luna said almost without giving Masaki the chance to finish his sentence.
Masaki narrowed his eyes. “Suspicious.” He suddenly stood up and crouched down at the corner where his bag is located. He pulled out a bottle and returned to Luna. “Here, you should drink. It’s normal mountain water incase you were suspicious about the contents. Ahaha~”
“This ain’t bad, where’d you get this?” Luna said surprised after taking a swig from the bottle.
“I don’t really know. Everytime I see a water source in the mountains, I just pull out my bottles and fill them up.” He sat back on his bed.
“Well it’s not bad. We don’t really have mountain streams in Agreyus, it’s dry as all hell up there.”
“Great!”
Luna sighed as she bunched up into a comfortable position onto her bed. She held her newly acquired cleaver close while she sat up. “Anyways I’m gonna get some sleep. I have a feeling Dia might work us dead tomorrow; I wanna be wide awake when that happens.” Luna said almost joking before shutting her eyes.
“Ohhh~ Can’t wait for that.” Masaki nodded. “Good night Miss Luna and your spirit.” Said Masaki as he jumped to his bed and pulled out a book from his vest. Now where was I? he thought as he opened the book and started to read through the night.
Sneaking through the dark forest was a simple endeavor even with the increased security around Origin. Guard patterns, and spirit trackers were something that Inferus had been trained to deal with. At this point it was all just a big joke. Slithering through the woods he sometimes took the form of guards, or even animals that he had spotted in the area, and as he reached the gates to the city no one was the wiser.
Climbing up a tree as a squirrel he looked down at the gate, and its guards before turning into a bird, and soaring right over the gate.
What a joke Inferus thought, if this mission wasn’t so important he would have just walked through the gates, the security was so lax, however, he couldn’t afford to take any risks. Landing on a perch of a building he looked around before turning into the form of a guard. He was waiting for someone, but he wasn’t sure who.
“Sorry I’m late,” said a muffled voice approaching him. A man stood in front of him wearing a dragon mask over his face. Blonde hair spiked up around it edges.
“I’m impressed you noticed me,” Grinned Inferus in a voice that belonged to the guard he was impersonating.
“It’s easier when you know what you are looking for.” answered the man. “I’m supposed to tell you where the boy is, but you have a little something for me right?” Inferus reached into the †˜guard’s’ pocket and pulled out a small brown bag that he dropped into the man’s waiting hand.
“Perfect,” answered Balan bounding the bag in his hand a few times. “So you will be looking for a man named Selanus. I recently saw him with a man name Grigore. You might know him as one of the people Kristina had contact with.”
“I know him,” Inferus said, “You can go now, don’t want to attract attention now do we?” he smiled, knowing that attention was the last thing that was going to be drawn to him.
“No, no we don’t” replied the man with a silent chuckle. “Send me regards to the lady will ya?” The man turned and began to walk away.
“Selanus, huh?” Inferus wondered aloud, “Well this should be an interesting job at least.”
Sensing something approaching Inferus quickly changed into a rat and began nibbling on some strange object on the roof. A pale fellow jumped onto the roof and kept running, obviously on his way somewhere.
Perfect, Inferus thought, A guardian will do just nicely, he grinned internally, as he ran behind the man keeping a safe distance despite his form. The man ran for quite a ways. Bounding from rooftop to rooftop without stopping even to catch his breathe. Inferus began to wonder if the man was even human. Finally the man leapt off one of the rooftops apparently reaching his destination. Inferus stopped on the top of the building looking down at him.
Below he could see that Ezekiel was conversing with a man who had his eyes bound up. As he looked he found the blind man was beginning to look in his direction.
Inferus’ eyes widened, could the blind man see him? No, impossible, no one could see him. After glancing in his direction Bael turned back to Ezekiel who was talking up a storm.
“So your turn Bael, I’m turning in for the night.” said Ezekiel patting him on the back. Bael nodded and looked up to where he saw Inferus before, but Inferus was long gone. Dismissing it Bael turned to start his shift watching the forest.
Ezekiel opened his window and stepped into his room on the second floor of his house. Taping a spot on the wall a light shot up it before turning on the lights to his house. “Where would we be without you Leon?” said Ezekiel as looked around. Around a small brown couch there were piles of books stacked up next to it. The rest of the house was relatively clean, and simple. Wood and stone walls in a pattern of swirling wood. The floor was all wood with some area’s that could probably stand to be redone.
Sitting down on the couch he picked up a book and smiled as he opened it up to his bookmark and started reading.
“I hope that’s a good book,” Inferus said, concealed in invisibility.
Ezekiel jumped up in surprise, book forgotten. Suddenly he felt something pierce his back, a long thin blade, but where the blade should have been there was nothing. Blood flowed from the wound and from Ezekiel’s mouth as the unseen blade pierced his heart. Ezekiel’s eyes widened as his wound began to heal at a rapid pace.
“Oh?” Inferus said, in surprise, “We can’t have that now can we.” Inferus twisted his stiletto to reopen the wound, smiling as Ezekiel screamed in pain.
Púca giggled in delight at the screams, This is such a brilliant prank! she said happily.
The corner of Inferus’ mouth turned up as a black mist poured from him, down the blade and into Ezekiel.
“How’s that?” Inferus asked sweetly with the voice of a little girl, while concealed his eyes were wide with glee “Feels great doesn’t it? It does for me.”
Black filled Ezekiel’s bloodstream, his veins slowly dyed in Inferus’ colour the blood pouring out of his mouth was stained black, and it flowed like tar from inside Ezekiel’s body. He couldn’t even scream anymore but Inferus could still hear those screams that Ezekiel could no longer make.
“Ah, how wonderful,” said a voice that scared Ezekiel the most. It was his own.
“It’s beautiful, don’t you think?” The voice seemed to be asking no one in particular, but Ezekiel heard the response.
It is, it is! This is why I love you Inferus, a girl’s voice seemed to say, maybe he was going mad with the pain.
“You’ve lived far too long, Mister Vampire” Inferus said in Ezekiel’s voice.
Maybe he was right, one hundred and twelve years was much too long for any normal human. It was fading, the pain was subsiding. This was the end.
Suddenly the blade that had pierced Ezekiel was sharply removed, naturally Ezekiel had no remaining strength to stay upright, collapsing onto his front. After a few seconds he felt his head pulled up by his hair, to his dismay the person he now gazed upon was himself.
“Bye bye,” the new Ezekiel said smiling warmly, waving as the last vestiges of life drained from the Ezekiel now lying on the floor.
0
The central streets were flooded with people, with guards patrolling the rooftops all the way down to the elder’s building. Everyone was waiting to hear what the elder had decided to do in response to the attack by the cursed. Arkasia had volunteered her squad to help patrol the roof mainly to not have to stand in the crowd of clamoring spectators. But waiting on the roof for her to finally appear was still starting to wear on the commanders patience.
“What is taking this old crone so long?” asked Arkasia a bit too loud. A guard eyed her up, but did nothing about it.
Owain smiled, “I seem to remember you saying something similar in Masario,” he said, “Your lack of patience amazes even me sometimes Dia.”
“Tch, political figures are like that apparently; fashionably late.” Luna spoke up, gawking at the sea of people in the streets with a slight frown.
”Cain must have gotten lost in his wardrobe then.” answered Reymond with a chuckle. Masaki covered his mouth trying to not to make a scene with his laugh.
”Alright pipe down, I think she is finally gracing us with her presence. said Arkasia as she looked down to the balcony of the elder’s office. The door flew open as Ezekiel and Bael walked out side by side. Ezekiel took his place right of the podium and Bael on the left. Ezekiel looked out at the crowd with a grin. Bael simply looked at him before looking to the elder as she passed through the doors. The people below began to cheer as she came into view.
Edile allowed the crowd a few moments before raising her hand to quiet them down. The fell completely silent within seconds. “As you know I called you all for a serious reason today. First, my heart goes out to all those who lost loved ones in this recent attack. To all of us, they were family as well. We share in your grieving…” she said going silent for a few moments.
Arkasia was almost ready to tell her to hurry up and declare war. She was never one for sentimental speeches, and this one was as bad as they came. The people here wanted revenge, and Arkasia was more than happy to guide them on that path.
“As it has always been our way to forgive, I hesitate with this decision...” said Edile looking out to the crowd.
”She has got to be kidding me!” said Arkasia walking to the edge of the roof.
Owain grabbed Arkasia’s shoulder in an attempt to stop her, “Dia wait, the announcement isn’t over.” Suddenly there was a low hum of something from within the crowd. Arkasia and the others strained their ears to hear it as it slowly got louder.
“What is taking this old crone so long?” asked Arkasia a bit too loud. A guard eyed her up, but did nothing about it.
Owain smiled, “I seem to remember you saying something similar in Masario,” he said, “Your lack of patience amazes even me sometimes Dia.”
“Tch, political figures are like that apparently; fashionably late.” Luna spoke up, gawking at the sea of people in the streets with a slight frown.
”Cain must have gotten lost in his wardrobe then.” answered Reymond with a chuckle. Masaki covered his mouth trying to not to make a scene with his laugh.
”Alright pipe down, I think she is finally gracing us with her presence. said Arkasia as she looked down to the balcony of the elder’s office. The door flew open as Ezekiel and Bael walked out side by side. Ezekiel took his place right of the podium and Bael on the left. Ezekiel looked out at the crowd with a grin. Bael simply looked at him before looking to the elder as she passed through the doors. The people below began to cheer as she came into view.
Edile allowed the crowd a few moments before raising her hand to quiet them down. The fell completely silent within seconds. “As you know I called you all for a serious reason today. First, my heart goes out to all those who lost loved ones in this recent attack. To all of us, they were family as well. We share in your grieving…” she said going silent for a few moments.
Arkasia was almost ready to tell her to hurry up and declare war. She was never one for sentimental speeches, and this one was as bad as they came. The people here wanted revenge, and Arkasia was more than happy to guide them on that path.
“As it has always been our way to forgive, I hesitate with this decision...” said Edile looking out to the crowd.
”She has got to be kidding me!” said Arkasia walking to the edge of the roof.
Owain grabbed Arkasia’s shoulder in an attempt to stop her, “Dia wait, the announcement isn’t over.” Suddenly there was a low hum of something from within the crowd. Arkasia and the others strained their ears to hear it as it slowly got louder.
0
Event: War Announcement 2!!
"Chuuu yaaaa raaaa laaaa ru kaaaaa zheee laaaakaa...." sang multiple voices from inside the crowd. With all the people it was almost possible to dictate the source, and it was coming from different sections in the crowd as well.
Arkasia ripped her sword from her sheathe as wind gathered around her. Owain and Ari drew their weapons as well.
”Is this going to be the same as Masario?!” yelled Ari.
“No,” Owain said, with determination, “We’re stronger than we were then, we wont let that happen again.”
”I couldn’t have said it better myself,” added Arkasia.
”Masaki our home is on the line, don’t get hurt like last time.” teased Razta. Masaki looked at both of his gauntlets and smiled.
”You just need to worry about not falling behind,” answered Masaki. Razta and him bumped fists before turning back to Arkasia awaiting orders. Adelina smiled at this thinking of all the times she pulled Razta out of danger. This time was more than likely going to be no different.
Luna had a rather wide and sinister grin across her face, showing teeth and all. Something about this particular scene had got her pumped. “Hmph, war? Fine, let’s go!” she said riled up. Sonata cooed in approval of Luna’s sudden change in attitude.
Anastas was already tracing his arrow on possible targets, but didn't want to fire unless he was completely sure. None of them were acting like the weird figures in Masario.
”Why didn’t they pull this when the representatives were here?” asked Katya looking over the crowd with Anastas. Suddenly one of the male civilians began to glow red and began dancing as a dark aura shot out. The people around him grabbed for their necks as if they were suffocating. Anastas didn’t hesitate and fired his arrow to kill.
Hitting his target right in the head the man fell to the ground as his aura dissipated and the people around him were able to breathe once again. People began to push and shove to get away from each other. No one was trusting anyone at this point. The scene was absolute chaos.
“Ezekiel! Bael! Go and assist the civilians!” ordered Edile. Ezekiel bowed and ran off using the rooftops. Bael jumped off the edge of the balcony and ran off opposite of Ezekiel. As the crowd began to thin there were about ten people that just stood there.
Arkasia leapt of the roof and landed gracefully on the street below using her wind to slow her descent. Reymond focused and lowered everyone within a large orb of gravity that dispersed on impact. Arkasia eyed a stragler strangely as she approached the nearest one a few yards away.
The man was muttering to himself, but Arkasia could barely make out what he was saying. As she strained her ears, and tried to make the man out the others turned their heads to her with a snap of their necks, before falling over dead still on the ground.
“What the hell is going on here?!” yelled Arkasia. Edile looked down at the bodies wondering the same thing. Looking deeply into one body she saw a spirit, grotesque and transformed.
“Stay clear of them!” yelled Edile. The bodies began to violently spasm and convulse as their bones snapped into a different shape, and they scrambled to their feet. The party’s thoughts immediately went to that abandoned town with the well.
”There is no doubt about it captain, these things are the same as what we fought back then…” said Adelina raising her shield as they took a defensive position. Owain, Adelina, and Luna took the front lines. Morgan and the others stood behind them ready to act. Arkasia slowly backed up to join the front lines.
“I’m getting flashbacks to Masario, I’m telling you,” Owain sighed, drawing his sword, “It’s like these things only happen when there’s an announcement of war.”
“That’s where the real fun is.“ Luna said as she stepped forward next to Owain, cleaver drawn and propped onto her shoulder.
”I don’t remember having much fun the last time,” answered Razta.
“I don’t even remember what happened last night.” Masaki chuckled.
Owain grinned, feeling power surge into his armour. “Maybe I’m finally getting used to this,” he said, mostly to himself before rushing into the fray. Ducking under one of the figures, he brought his sword up slicing it in the chest. A black ichor sprayed from the man as he crumpled to the ground.
Luna dug her feet into the ground before pushing off into a mad dash for the citizen. She swung her cleaver towards the figure, but getting used to the weight from the cleaver overwhelmed her for a moment, causing her to miss horribly. She jumped back to the group to do a few test swings before trying again.
“Feeling a bit off, Lunnie?” Owain grinned.
“Tch...because you wielded an eight foot cleaver before, right? ” Luna replied sarcastically, she swung a few times to get in the jist of her new weapon.
“I wouldn’t need a weapon so ridiculously big,” Owain joked, “I would say you’re over compensating but you’re a girl.”
“Oh, are you saying you would be into me having that sort of thing, captain?” Luna joked in return.
Owain just smirked, readying his shield.
Fucking weird… Luna thought readying her cleaver as well.
Adelina smacked an incoming enemy in the face with her shield while during under to stab her blade into its chest. Ripping the blade out she pushed the figure over. Sensing a presence behind her she turned to block another figure that pounced towards her. The impact never came and instead black blood sprayed across her shield. Lowering her shield she saw Arkasia swinging to cleanse the blood from her sword.
“These things are weaker than what we fought in Masario. What a waste of time.” said Arkasia.
”This feels like a distraction more than anything.” said Reymond as he flipped through his book.
“Stop!” yelled Edile leaping down from the balcony. “I will handle things here. I may be able to do something for them. These are still my people.”
For the moment the other figures were simply standing there lost in thought. Arkasia wasn’t sure what these people even were, and she didn’t have the patience to worry about trying to save them.
“If you don’t get rid of these things now you are going to lose everyone. We don’t have the time to try and save enemies right now.” Arkasia replied. “This is war. You can’t save everyone.” Edile narrowed her eyes at Arkasia and then to the distorted figures of people she once knew.
“Elder I think we should listen to them. They sound like they have went through this before.” suggested Morgan. Edile was surprised to hear that from one of her guardians.
“Ya why don’t you listen to them ya’ old crow?!” yelled a voice from on top of the elder’s house. The voice sounded like a young boy, but he was completely hidden in a black cloak hiding his appearance. Drawing a hand out the boy started to spin a circular blade on his finger. Owain recognized it immediately. The man that killed all his men in Masario used the same thing.
“You!” Masaki paused. “That person that, uh,” Has that circular weapon and climbed the walls like a monkey. TouTetsuOh helped. “Yeah! The guy that has that weird looking weapon and climbed walls like a monkey!” Masaki yelled at the person.
“It’s like these cursed fuckers have literally one plan they like to rinse and repeat,” Owain said laughing.
”Only one difference between that time and now, said the boy with a giggle. Throwing his weapon he guided it around with his hand decapitating all of the afflicted citizens. A black spray went into the air, and began to swarm into a black miasma. As the sun was blotted out by the miasma it became harder to breathe.
As they were fighting for air a sound began to resound all around them. The sounds of moaning and cracking bones filled the streets. More of those crazed citizens from before were coming, but in a much larger number. Due to the darkness they were thrown into however they couldn’t see how many.
”I am going to blow this miasma away. Hold on to something! yelled Arkasia. Focusing on that power she felt before when fleeing Raltese, she tried to mimic that ability now. A wind gathered around her, but no where near what she had that one moment. Dispersing what little power she gathered she was able to clear a small space around them. Already Arkasia could see it creeping back in however she would need to keep an aura up with her wind to keep it at bay.
A laugh echoed around them. ”This is going to be more fun to watch than I thought! said the boy. His voice distorted and echoed so that they could find his location in the darkness. Razta looked at the others struggling to regain their breath and looked at his hands. He not only could still breathe, but he felt really good.
What the hell did that woman do to me! thought Razta trying his best to keep calm. Looking at the miasma, flames began to engulf his hands. Katya looked up at Razta standing firm while her and the others fought to take a breathe. Edile taking great interest walked up and seized Razta by the shoulders looking into his eyes.
”What the hell are you?asked Katya.
”Your spirit is so much different than before… said Edile. ”I have not seen this before.
]”I will clear a way through the miasma,” said Arkasia. ”Keep them off me, and stay close.”
“Roger that sir,” Owain confirmed, “You heard the lady, we’re going right through this thing. Adelina drop back, I don’t want that rear unprotected.” Adelina fell back joining Morgan and the others in the rear.
Looking back at his unit he was surprised to see that Razta was seemingly unaffected by the miasma. Seeing the captain looking at Razta Adelina wondered what was up.
“I don’t know how, and I don’t care how,” Owain began, “But seeing as you aren’t affected by this stuff Razta, I want you to be our eyes and ears in it.”
”Understood Captain,” answered Razta. Razta focused to try and see through the miasma, and despite having a little trouble he was able to get a feel for it. The miasma was a living thing that he could interact with.
”We have three in the front, and two in the back!” yelled Ratza. Anastas and Adelina prepared to repel the enemies trying to flank them.
”I see them!” replied Adelina steadying her hand ready to strike.
“I’m on it!” Masaki dashed in to the figures that Adelina saw. Sliding into one Masaki slammed it in the chest with his right fist then followed with his left and lastly he hit it with both fists. As the hits connected a bit of spirit was drained. The 4 gems on both of his gauntlets shone with a little light. The figure staggered back from the blow. A flash of light flew past Masaki and stuck into Masaki’s target. With a small explosion the foe was decapitated. Masaki smiled as he jumped back into formation.
Following the two ahead, Owain rushed past them, hammering into one of the figures with his greatsword, knocking it dead to the floor.
Spotting one alone in the rear lines, Anastas pulled five arrows from his quill. Taking aim, he fired but only pulled back halfway, releasing it early so as to fire the next arrow faster. In an instant, Anastas fired off all five from his bow, each close on the tail of the other. Though taken aback by this technique, the infected citizen managed to dodge two before being struck hard in the shoulder and again in head. Dropping dead on the floor, Anastas still clicked his tongue in disappointment.
Luna spotted one of the infected creeping forward, and raised her blade into the air ready to give it one more try. Gripping the blade tightly, she swung as the crazed citizen ducked, and lunged grabbing for the blade. Luna wrestled it from it, and kicked it away frustrated. Razta spun past Luna small flames trailing off his hands. Entangling his leg with the citizen he kept him from running. Then he head-butted him dazing the enemy. Balling his fists Razta delivered three swift strikes to the enemy. Slamming into him twice hard Razta hesitated on the last blow seeing that the enemy was defeated. Standing up straight the infected man fell to the ground dead.
”Have you been holding back during training Razta? asked Arkasia. How modest of you Arkasia trying to keep up the field. Putting all she had into it she pushed the miasma back far, as the boy came into view among the crowd of infected. He walked behind them using them as a shield.
”You have lasted longer than I expected…” said the boy gritting his teeth displeased. As Edile saw the boy she knew something was off with him. He was...blank. The connection he had with his spirit was a forced one. They weren’t working together, but rather being controlled by an outside force. If she could she wanted to save him.
”Killing him should end this nightmare,” said Owain trying to find a path through the crowd.
”I want him taken in alive,” ordered Edile.
”You are out of your mind aren’t you?! yelled Arkasia. Edile ignored her and looked to the rest of the group. Owain shook his head in frustration. He remembered how he lost all his men in Masario to a situation just like this. There was no way he was going to let that happen again.
” I cannot follow that order, and I will not order my men to still their blades either.” said Arkasia. ”We have lost far too much.” Razta looked out trying to see what he could make out for the team. Many more enemies were coming from the front than the back.
”I think that Guardian Ezekiel may have run into some trouble. said Ratza. ”The direction he left in has a lot more activity than Bael’s.
The boy began to laugh at this observation. These people were a mess. They had no idea what they wanted to do. Their leader wanted to try and †˜save him’. He didn’t need any saving. It was quite the opposite really. Spinning the disc on his finger he threw it at Edile. A thick gathering of roots shot up in front of her and reflected the disc. Reaching out the boy called the disc back and gritted his teeth.
”I do not want to hurt you, please lay down your weapon and surrender. Haven’t you been through enough?!” yelled Edile trying to appeal to the boy.
”Shut up! You don’t know anything about me!” yelled the boy back. ”Shut them all up! The crowd of civilians began to push forward in large number. The boy ran off wanting to get as far away from them as possible. As the boy left the area the Miasma began to disperse. Arkasia gave it one last push and sent it into the sky. As the miasma cleared Anastas tried to shoot at the boy but he was covered by a zombie who took the shot to his head instead.
”Dammit,”[/b] cursed Anastas as he knocked back another arrow getting ready to fight.
As the sheer number of enemies came into view Edile broke down, and fell to her knees. ”I-I have already lost that many of you? mumbled Edile. Morgan tried to shake Edile back to her senses, but the woman was almost too far gone.
Ari summoned two golems as they took up position on the front line. [color=#c35817]”What are we going to do! There are so many![/b] yelled Ari. Arkasia smiled at the challenge.
”Nothing has changed. We fight through them sword in hand. said Arkasia glad that the miasma was no longer a problem. What Edile tried to do had actually proved to be useful. Now they just needed to tear their way through. With a unified effort the crowd rained on them with claws and teeth.
A crooked smile crept up onto Luna’s face as she spotted an infected citizen coming towards her, she readied her cleaver in anticipation, her grip grew tighter on the hilt of it.[color=#800000]"Fine then, they'll be the first..." Luna swung her blade downwards and without hesitation, she slashed at least three citizens in half with one slash. She snickered at these results.
Ari began chanting as soon as she finished her chant the earth near some enemies began to rise. “Gotcha” Ari smiled as her Terra prison caught ten enemies within it. “Alright, Gai strike them down.” Ari ordered. Both her golems then striked at the terra prison both spears went through the walls striking at the trapped enemies. The earth prison then fell showing all those trap standing still as the golems spears went through their bodies.
That’s new,” said Owain with a smirk. Suddenly he felt a rush of power shoot up through his suit. Steam began to pour from the armour like a torrent. ’But she’s not the only one with new tricks, eh?” thought Owain prompting a sigh from his spirit. Spreading out the built up power all over his suit he felt it become even easier to move, and the grip on his sword even tighter.
Masaki, in front of you to the left! Tipped TouTetsuOh. “Okay!” Masaki dashed in at the direction that his spirit suggested him. ”Ha!” He shouted as he punched the infected on it’s stomach. He then deliver his knee to it’s face. Masaki then pummeled the infected with his kicks, “Seiya!” he shouted as he hit the infected’s chin with a last kick. It flew the infected up and dropped on it’s back, dead. “May Volkrus bless thy soul.” He said after stepping back into formation.
Beholding the sheer number of infected, Anastas furrowed his brows. ”At this rate, we may become overwhelmed.” He thought to himself as he began to focus. With a spark, Anastas conjured up a spiritual flame that enveloped the heads of his arrows and readied his bow on his next target.
Reymond raised his swords over the party and began spinning them around the party protectively. Katya picked up on this, and added to her barrier as icy winds began to swirl around the party as well. Through the few blind spots enemies began making their way through. Others were frozen and then shattered by the blades. Three zombies charged Arkasia and were met with the tip of her blade. The three fell to the ground dead.
”No more holding back. We need to clear this area and move on!” yelled Arkasia. As if fueled to simply stop Arkasia the civilians gave a hard push to stop the parties progress. Overwhelming them the poured into the ranks and lashed out at whoever they could. Pushing Morgan out of the way Owain took a barrage of attacks in her stead. A group of enemies climbed up on one of Ari’s golems and were able to bring it to the ground the golem self destructed taking four of the corrupt civilians with it.
"Chuuu yaaaa raaaa laaaa ru kaaaaa zheee laaaakaa...." sang multiple voices from inside the crowd. With all the people it was almost possible to dictate the source, and it was coming from different sections in the crowd as well.
Arkasia ripped her sword from her sheathe as wind gathered around her. Owain and Ari drew their weapons as well.
”Is this going to be the same as Masario?!” yelled Ari.
“No,” Owain said, with determination, “We’re stronger than we were then, we wont let that happen again.”
”I couldn’t have said it better myself,” added Arkasia.
”Masaki our home is on the line, don’t get hurt like last time.” teased Razta. Masaki looked at both of his gauntlets and smiled.
”You just need to worry about not falling behind,” answered Masaki. Razta and him bumped fists before turning back to Arkasia awaiting orders. Adelina smiled at this thinking of all the times she pulled Razta out of danger. This time was more than likely going to be no different.
Luna had a rather wide and sinister grin across her face, showing teeth and all. Something about this particular scene had got her pumped. “Hmph, war? Fine, let’s go!” she said riled up. Sonata cooed in approval of Luna’s sudden change in attitude.
Anastas was already tracing his arrow on possible targets, but didn't want to fire unless he was completely sure. None of them were acting like the weird figures in Masario.
”Why didn’t they pull this when the representatives were here?” asked Katya looking over the crowd with Anastas. Suddenly one of the male civilians began to glow red and began dancing as a dark aura shot out. The people around him grabbed for their necks as if they were suffocating. Anastas didn’t hesitate and fired his arrow to kill.
Hitting his target right in the head the man fell to the ground as his aura dissipated and the people around him were able to breathe once again. People began to push and shove to get away from each other. No one was trusting anyone at this point. The scene was absolute chaos.
“Ezekiel! Bael! Go and assist the civilians!” ordered Edile. Ezekiel bowed and ran off using the rooftops. Bael jumped off the edge of the balcony and ran off opposite of Ezekiel. As the crowd began to thin there were about ten people that just stood there.
Arkasia leapt of the roof and landed gracefully on the street below using her wind to slow her descent. Reymond focused and lowered everyone within a large orb of gravity that dispersed on impact. Arkasia eyed a stragler strangely as she approached the nearest one a few yards away.
The man was muttering to himself, but Arkasia could barely make out what he was saying. As she strained her ears, and tried to make the man out the others turned their heads to her with a snap of their necks, before falling over dead still on the ground.
“What the hell is going on here?!” yelled Arkasia. Edile looked down at the bodies wondering the same thing. Looking deeply into one body she saw a spirit, grotesque and transformed.
“Stay clear of them!” yelled Edile. The bodies began to violently spasm and convulse as their bones snapped into a different shape, and they scrambled to their feet. The party’s thoughts immediately went to that abandoned town with the well.
”There is no doubt about it captain, these things are the same as what we fought back then…” said Adelina raising her shield as they took a defensive position. Owain, Adelina, and Luna took the front lines. Morgan and the others stood behind them ready to act. Arkasia slowly backed up to join the front lines.
“I’m getting flashbacks to Masario, I’m telling you,” Owain sighed, drawing his sword, “It’s like these things only happen when there’s an announcement of war.”
“That’s where the real fun is.“ Luna said as she stepped forward next to Owain, cleaver drawn and propped onto her shoulder.
”I don’t remember having much fun the last time,” answered Razta.
“I don’t even remember what happened last night.” Masaki chuckled.
Owain grinned, feeling power surge into his armour. “Maybe I’m finally getting used to this,” he said, mostly to himself before rushing into the fray. Ducking under one of the figures, he brought his sword up slicing it in the chest. A black ichor sprayed from the man as he crumpled to the ground.
Luna dug her feet into the ground before pushing off into a mad dash for the citizen. She swung her cleaver towards the figure, but getting used to the weight from the cleaver overwhelmed her for a moment, causing her to miss horribly. She jumped back to the group to do a few test swings before trying again.
“Feeling a bit off, Lunnie?” Owain grinned.
“Tch...because you wielded an eight foot cleaver before, right? ” Luna replied sarcastically, she swung a few times to get in the jist of her new weapon.
“I wouldn’t need a weapon so ridiculously big,” Owain joked, “I would say you’re over compensating but you’re a girl.”
“Oh, are you saying you would be into me having that sort of thing, captain?” Luna joked in return.
Owain just smirked, readying his shield.
Fucking weird… Luna thought readying her cleaver as well.
Adelina smacked an incoming enemy in the face with her shield while during under to stab her blade into its chest. Ripping the blade out she pushed the figure over. Sensing a presence behind her she turned to block another figure that pounced towards her. The impact never came and instead black blood sprayed across her shield. Lowering her shield she saw Arkasia swinging to cleanse the blood from her sword.
“These things are weaker than what we fought in Masario. What a waste of time.” said Arkasia.
”This feels like a distraction more than anything.” said Reymond as he flipped through his book.
“Stop!” yelled Edile leaping down from the balcony. “I will handle things here. I may be able to do something for them. These are still my people.”
For the moment the other figures were simply standing there lost in thought. Arkasia wasn’t sure what these people even were, and she didn’t have the patience to worry about trying to save them.
“If you don’t get rid of these things now you are going to lose everyone. We don’t have the time to try and save enemies right now.” Arkasia replied. “This is war. You can’t save everyone.” Edile narrowed her eyes at Arkasia and then to the distorted figures of people she once knew.
“Elder I think we should listen to them. They sound like they have went through this before.” suggested Morgan. Edile was surprised to hear that from one of her guardians.
“Ya why don’t you listen to them ya’ old crow?!” yelled a voice from on top of the elder’s house. The voice sounded like a young boy, but he was completely hidden in a black cloak hiding his appearance. Drawing a hand out the boy started to spin a circular blade on his finger. Owain recognized it immediately. The man that killed all his men in Masario used the same thing.
“You!” Masaki paused. “That person that, uh,” Has that circular weapon and climbed the walls like a monkey. TouTetsuOh helped. “Yeah! The guy that has that weird looking weapon and climbed walls like a monkey!” Masaki yelled at the person.
“It’s like these cursed fuckers have literally one plan they like to rinse and repeat,” Owain said laughing.
”Only one difference between that time and now, said the boy with a giggle. Throwing his weapon he guided it around with his hand decapitating all of the afflicted citizens. A black spray went into the air, and began to swarm into a black miasma. As the sun was blotted out by the miasma it became harder to breathe.
As they were fighting for air a sound began to resound all around them. The sounds of moaning and cracking bones filled the streets. More of those crazed citizens from before were coming, but in a much larger number. Due to the darkness they were thrown into however they couldn’t see how many.
”I am going to blow this miasma away. Hold on to something! yelled Arkasia. Focusing on that power she felt before when fleeing Raltese, she tried to mimic that ability now. A wind gathered around her, but no where near what she had that one moment. Dispersing what little power she gathered she was able to clear a small space around them. Already Arkasia could see it creeping back in however she would need to keep an aura up with her wind to keep it at bay.
A laugh echoed around them. ”This is going to be more fun to watch than I thought! said the boy. His voice distorted and echoed so that they could find his location in the darkness. Razta looked at the others struggling to regain their breath and looked at his hands. He not only could still breathe, but he felt really good.
What the hell did that woman do to me! thought Razta trying his best to keep calm. Looking at the miasma, flames began to engulf his hands. Katya looked up at Razta standing firm while her and the others fought to take a breathe. Edile taking great interest walked up and seized Razta by the shoulders looking into his eyes.
”What the hell are you?asked Katya.
”Your spirit is so much different than before… said Edile. ”I have not seen this before.
]”I will clear a way through the miasma,” said Arkasia. ”Keep them off me, and stay close.”
“Roger that sir,” Owain confirmed, “You heard the lady, we’re going right through this thing. Adelina drop back, I don’t want that rear unprotected.” Adelina fell back joining Morgan and the others in the rear.
Looking back at his unit he was surprised to see that Razta was seemingly unaffected by the miasma. Seeing the captain looking at Razta Adelina wondered what was up.
“I don’t know how, and I don’t care how,” Owain began, “But seeing as you aren’t affected by this stuff Razta, I want you to be our eyes and ears in it.”
”Understood Captain,” answered Razta. Razta focused to try and see through the miasma, and despite having a little trouble he was able to get a feel for it. The miasma was a living thing that he could interact with.
”We have three in the front, and two in the back!” yelled Ratza. Anastas and Adelina prepared to repel the enemies trying to flank them.
”I see them!” replied Adelina steadying her hand ready to strike.
“I’m on it!” Masaki dashed in to the figures that Adelina saw. Sliding into one Masaki slammed it in the chest with his right fist then followed with his left and lastly he hit it with both fists. As the hits connected a bit of spirit was drained. The 4 gems on both of his gauntlets shone with a little light. The figure staggered back from the blow. A flash of light flew past Masaki and stuck into Masaki’s target. With a small explosion the foe was decapitated. Masaki smiled as he jumped back into formation.
Following the two ahead, Owain rushed past them, hammering into one of the figures with his greatsword, knocking it dead to the floor.
Spotting one alone in the rear lines, Anastas pulled five arrows from his quill. Taking aim, he fired but only pulled back halfway, releasing it early so as to fire the next arrow faster. In an instant, Anastas fired off all five from his bow, each close on the tail of the other. Though taken aback by this technique, the infected citizen managed to dodge two before being struck hard in the shoulder and again in head. Dropping dead on the floor, Anastas still clicked his tongue in disappointment.
Luna spotted one of the infected creeping forward, and raised her blade into the air ready to give it one more try. Gripping the blade tightly, she swung as the crazed citizen ducked, and lunged grabbing for the blade. Luna wrestled it from it, and kicked it away frustrated. Razta spun past Luna small flames trailing off his hands. Entangling his leg with the citizen he kept him from running. Then he head-butted him dazing the enemy. Balling his fists Razta delivered three swift strikes to the enemy. Slamming into him twice hard Razta hesitated on the last blow seeing that the enemy was defeated. Standing up straight the infected man fell to the ground dead.
”Have you been holding back during training Razta? asked Arkasia. How modest of you Arkasia trying to keep up the field. Putting all she had into it she pushed the miasma back far, as the boy came into view among the crowd of infected. He walked behind them using them as a shield.
”You have lasted longer than I expected…” said the boy gritting his teeth displeased. As Edile saw the boy she knew something was off with him. He was...blank. The connection he had with his spirit was a forced one. They weren’t working together, but rather being controlled by an outside force. If she could she wanted to save him.
”Killing him should end this nightmare,” said Owain trying to find a path through the crowd.
”I want him taken in alive,” ordered Edile.
”You are out of your mind aren’t you?! yelled Arkasia. Edile ignored her and looked to the rest of the group. Owain shook his head in frustration. He remembered how he lost all his men in Masario to a situation just like this. There was no way he was going to let that happen again.
” I cannot follow that order, and I will not order my men to still their blades either.” said Arkasia. ”We have lost far too much.” Razta looked out trying to see what he could make out for the team. Many more enemies were coming from the front than the back.
”I think that Guardian Ezekiel may have run into some trouble. said Ratza. ”The direction he left in has a lot more activity than Bael’s.
The boy began to laugh at this observation. These people were a mess. They had no idea what they wanted to do. Their leader wanted to try and †˜save him’. He didn’t need any saving. It was quite the opposite really. Spinning the disc on his finger he threw it at Edile. A thick gathering of roots shot up in front of her and reflected the disc. Reaching out the boy called the disc back and gritted his teeth.
”I do not want to hurt you, please lay down your weapon and surrender. Haven’t you been through enough?!” yelled Edile trying to appeal to the boy.
”Shut up! You don’t know anything about me!” yelled the boy back. ”Shut them all up! The crowd of civilians began to push forward in large number. The boy ran off wanting to get as far away from them as possible. As the boy left the area the Miasma began to disperse. Arkasia gave it one last push and sent it into the sky. As the miasma cleared Anastas tried to shoot at the boy but he was covered by a zombie who took the shot to his head instead.
”Dammit,”[/b] cursed Anastas as he knocked back another arrow getting ready to fight.
As the sheer number of enemies came into view Edile broke down, and fell to her knees. ”I-I have already lost that many of you? mumbled Edile. Morgan tried to shake Edile back to her senses, but the woman was almost too far gone.
Ari summoned two golems as they took up position on the front line. [color=#c35817]”What are we going to do! There are so many![/b] yelled Ari. Arkasia smiled at the challenge.
”Nothing has changed. We fight through them sword in hand. said Arkasia glad that the miasma was no longer a problem. What Edile tried to do had actually proved to be useful. Now they just needed to tear their way through. With a unified effort the crowd rained on them with claws and teeth.
A crooked smile crept up onto Luna’s face as she spotted an infected citizen coming towards her, she readied her cleaver in anticipation, her grip grew tighter on the hilt of it.[color=#800000]"Fine then, they'll be the first..." Luna swung her blade downwards and without hesitation, she slashed at least three citizens in half with one slash. She snickered at these results.
Ari began chanting as soon as she finished her chant the earth near some enemies began to rise. “Gotcha” Ari smiled as her Terra prison caught ten enemies within it. “Alright, Gai strike them down.” Ari ordered. Both her golems then striked at the terra prison both spears went through the walls striking at the trapped enemies. The earth prison then fell showing all those trap standing still as the golems spears went through their bodies.
That’s new,” said Owain with a smirk. Suddenly he felt a rush of power shoot up through his suit. Steam began to pour from the armour like a torrent. ’But she’s not the only one with new tricks, eh?” thought Owain prompting a sigh from his spirit. Spreading out the built up power all over his suit he felt it become even easier to move, and the grip on his sword even tighter.
Masaki, in front of you to the left! Tipped TouTetsuOh. “Okay!” Masaki dashed in at the direction that his spirit suggested him. ”Ha!” He shouted as he punched the infected on it’s stomach. He then deliver his knee to it’s face. Masaki then pummeled the infected with his kicks, “Seiya!” he shouted as he hit the infected’s chin with a last kick. It flew the infected up and dropped on it’s back, dead. “May Volkrus bless thy soul.” He said after stepping back into formation.
Beholding the sheer number of infected, Anastas furrowed his brows. ”At this rate, we may become overwhelmed.” He thought to himself as he began to focus. With a spark, Anastas conjured up a spiritual flame that enveloped the heads of his arrows and readied his bow on his next target.
Reymond raised his swords over the party and began spinning them around the party protectively. Katya picked up on this, and added to her barrier as icy winds began to swirl around the party as well. Through the few blind spots enemies began making their way through. Others were frozen and then shattered by the blades. Three zombies charged Arkasia and were met with the tip of her blade. The three fell to the ground dead.
”No more holding back. We need to clear this area and move on!” yelled Arkasia. As if fueled to simply stop Arkasia the civilians gave a hard push to stop the parties progress. Overwhelming them the poured into the ranks and lashed out at whoever they could. Pushing Morgan out of the way Owain took a barrage of attacks in her stead. A group of enemies climbed up on one of Ari’s golems and were able to bring it to the ground the golem self destructed taking four of the corrupt civilians with it.
0
Ezekiel jumped from roof to roof looking down at the chaos in the streets with a smile on his face. People were being ripped apart by people they used to trust, and that brought a twisted pleasure to Ezekiel’s face. These people were expected him to step in and save him, but he had other plans, another objective.
Spotting his target, he jumped down to the street level and stood in front of the house or Grigore, the man responsible for leading the cursed refugees. With the chaos going on he figured that man had his hands busy helping his people. Making this so much easier. Kicking in the door he stepped into the house ignoring the pleas of people dying in the street.
Ezekiel hummed a little tune to himself, with a grin on his face. “Now where could those documents be,” he said in a sing-song voice. Looking around the house he began his search for his objective. Looking on the table in the office he started to rip drawers out of the desk. Pulling out the lower right drawer sent a bag falling to the floor. Lifting the bag he found Kristinas name and smiled. Placing the bag on the desk he starting going through it to make sure what he was sent to steal was even in the bag.
Taking out a random sheet he looked them over, and examined the departed scientists horrible handwriting. †˜I will never know how people write like this, and think it is acceptable. As long as she can read it I guess its fine.’ thought Inferus as he slid the paper back into the pack. Hearing the door fly open down stairs Inferus absorbed the bag into himself. Sadly he noticed too late that this room didn’t have windows. Any other time an air duct or crack in the wall would work for him, but he had cargo that he couldn’t damage.
“Make sure this place is secure, and lets get as many people as we can in here. Then we hold down until we figure out what the hell is going on. I will stand guard outside. You fetch me if you need me!” yelled Grigore. Helena charged in first, and looked around the ground floor.
“Selanus you check the uptairs, and I’ll clear down here.” said Helena.
Selanus rushed in after the her, noting that for some unknown reason, the door to their house had already been opened. Could have been a civilian trying to take refuge from the chaos outside. He sped upstairs, boots pounding as he tried his best to fulfill Grigore’s command. They were using the miasma Kristina had made with great effectiveness, he had expected no less, but the innocents dying in droves made his blood boil. He hadn’t thought it would be used for this purpose.
He barged into his room and noticed that the room was in a mess. Someone had gone through the drawers, open as they were. He looked around warily as he hadn’t seen anyone. Astaroth hadn’t felt anyone in the home either. Keeping his eyes peeled, he walked over to inspect the open drawers.
Inferus grinned, seeing who it was that had entered the room. Of course he hadn’t noticed him, no one ever did.
“Selanus, is that you?” he said in a woman’s voice.
Selanus whirled, coat flaring as his eyes searched the room. He looked around but was absolutely sure that he hadn’t seen anybody in the room, let alone a woman. Astaroth was equally as perplexed, sniffing the air and looking at him with slight confusion. Perhaps it was in his mind, or he had inhaled some of the miasma by accident.
“Selanus it’s me,” the voice said, revealing itself. The woman that stood there was none other than Selanus’ aunt. He whipped his around in response, eyes wide. ”It… How can it be? I saw you…” He questioned, confused. There was no mistaking it was her, Kristina. His mind seemed to split as it tried to come to terms with what he was seeing, Astaroth herself equally as confused.
“I’ve missed you so much,” Kristina said moving slowly closer to Selanus. As she drew in, he reached out his arms and tears began to well up in his eyes. Perhaps, she had a contingency that day and somehow had managed to survive. Yes, his aunt would have been smart enough for that. ”I’ve missed you too.” Selanus replied, voice almost ready at breaking.
As Kristina slowly moved towards Selanus, her face began to melt away, flesh dripping and bubbling to the floor until what stood before her was a completely different person. The person who stood before him now was Kudzu, the man who had killed his aunt.
“You’re a failure kid,” Kudzu scorned, “You couldn’t even protect your own family.”
Selanus became even more confused as he watched the shift, and his blood boiled as Kudzu talked down to him. His face a mask of fury, Selanus ripped out Cerberus with a roar and answered Kudzu with a blast from the shotgun.
But Kudzu was already gone, nothing in his place. “You’ll have to be faster than that,” Inferus whispered into Selanus’ ear from behind, revealing himself as a tall dark haired man, wearing a black jacket and trousers, a devilish grin on his face.
”You.” Selanus spat harshly, ”You have something that belongs to me.” He unsheathed Fenrir, slowly circling around Inferus. ”Sullying the Delham name will be the last thing you do before I rip out your throat.” He was disgusted at both himself and the newcomer, getting too emotional at the illusions, as real as they seemed.
“My, my,” Inferus laughed at Selanus’ reaction, “You sure overreact to little jokes, isn’t that right?” he said aloud to someone who wasn’t in the room.
That’s what makes it fun, Púca giggled.
“I suppose you’re right,” Inferus agreed, completely disappearing, “Now boy, you make ripping my throat out sound easy, but I could leave at any moment, I could have been gone before you even arrived, however I chose to have some fun with you,” he began, “You should be thankful.”
”Fun?”” Selanus responded as he put up his guard, eyes peeled. ”I suppose you’re responsible for the “fun” outside as well, then?”
“I don’t work with amateurs,” Inferus replied, sounding honestly hurt by Selanus’ remark.
Selanus concentated and linked with Astaroth, a sensation of power flooding his veins as the spirit quietly came into form, smiling as she too had her own “invisibility”. ”I don’t know whether to be irritated or honored that you only call me out for these kind of enemies. They do put up a good struggle but… can’t you handle them yourself?” She joked across their link. A pang of displeasure was shot through their link and she chuckled at his reply, focusing on searching for Inferus after.
“Oho,” Inferus laughed, “Interesting.” The voice seemed to be coming from nowhere in particular, it was impossible to pin point. Suddenly a black mist began to pour from a corner of the room, and then the next corner and the next and the next until the whole room was was full of the mysterious substance.
”What the hell is this?” Selanus exclaimed, covering his mouth with his sleeve. Astaroth seemed to be more affected as she started to cough. Beating her wings, she moved closer to her master, growling at the mist.
“This is a nice watered down version for you,” Inferus said, “But that won't stop it corrupting those civilians in this house. You really should have closed that door,” he observed laughing.
”Damn it.” cursed Selanus, eyes flicking over to the aforementioned entrance before continuing their futile search for the intruder. This man was making everything so frustrating. He inched over to the doors with Fenrir at the ready, yelling to make sure he was heard. ”Helena, get everyone out of the house!”
Selanus found a finger stopping him from saying anymore, “Shhh,” Inferus whispered, “You don’t want any of this stuff getting in your mouth,” he laughed before the finger was gone.
Slamming her spear onto a man’s head she knocked him out flat. A strange mist had seeped through the floor and turned the civilians into mindless drones. ”Dammit!” yelled Helena. Fighting them off she made her way towards the front as she heard Selanus yell from upstairs. Walking up the stairs she felt a presence pass her by. A giggle sounding in her ear. Swinging at where she thought someone was her attack came up empty.
Selanus opened the door and saw Helena standing there. Suddenly behind her a mob of crazed citizens with pale skin scrambled towards them. Spinning her spear she snapped into combat position. “They leave us no choice!” she yelled. The group of citizens moved faster than Helena and Selanus were ready for. Charging up the stairs they grabbed Helena’s leg and yanked her down as they began biting at her.
Selanus marched forward, brandishing his weapons. As he did so, spirit energy welled up from inside and burst forth, cloaking him with darkness. ”No one takes anything from me, anymore.” He said with finality, prepared to engage the horde. Activating her armor she was able to force the civilian back and prepared her spear to deflect them from going up the stairs.
”I won’t let them pass me. Hurry up and take them out.” yelled Helena. ”Grigore must be busy outside. We are on our own for now.” The citizen charged her again but with pinpoint strikes she was able to trip them back down the stairs, but it wasn’t long before more climbed over them.
Selanus cocked his shotgun, filling the three barrels with energy and firing it into the horde with a roar, making sure not to hit Helena. The gun bucked in his hands as the buckshots left the chamber and the closest few civilians reeled from the onslaught. Rolling down the stairs they caused the other civilians trying to force their way up to fall back as well. Seizing the moment Helena charged forward and stabbed her spear through five civilians. Ripping it out she spun her spear cleansing the weapon of their filth.
As the blood splashed onto the walls, they seemed to be absorbed into the shadows permeating the stairway and multiple spikes lanced out into the horde, skewering many of them. Tinkling laughter could be heard as the barbs withdrew, dissolving into nothingness as the impaled citizens collapsed. From behind Helena, Selanus eyed the slaughter with slight distaste though he could feel the satisfaction from Astaroth.
Helena spun her spear protecting herself from the explosion and charged in. Leaping onto a civilian she crushed it under her heel. Then with a series of well timed swings she disposed of the rest of the cursed civilians. Breathing heavily she turned to the door as it opened. Grigore was covered in black blood. Looking at the floor he saw the same fate he was trying to avoid fell upon the civilians he was trying to save.
”Everything is clear in here I see…” said Grigore solemnly. Selanus wiped some of the blood off his face, wordlessly heading back up to his room to check if there was anything that the bastard didn’t take. The grim expression as he came back down said it all, and he threaded his way through the corpses to the ground floor. Looking at Selanus he knew what he was feeling, but they had no time to mope.
”Let’s get out there, and try to save as many as we can. It doesn’t matter if they are cursed or not. Everyone is important! said Grigore. Helena nodded and walked out the door. Selanus was a few moments behind loading more shots into his aunt’s old gun.
Spotting his target, he jumped down to the street level and stood in front of the house or Grigore, the man responsible for leading the cursed refugees. With the chaos going on he figured that man had his hands busy helping his people. Making this so much easier. Kicking in the door he stepped into the house ignoring the pleas of people dying in the street.
Ezekiel hummed a little tune to himself, with a grin on his face. “Now where could those documents be,” he said in a sing-song voice. Looking around the house he began his search for his objective. Looking on the table in the office he started to rip drawers out of the desk. Pulling out the lower right drawer sent a bag falling to the floor. Lifting the bag he found Kristinas name and smiled. Placing the bag on the desk he starting going through it to make sure what he was sent to steal was even in the bag.
Taking out a random sheet he looked them over, and examined the departed scientists horrible handwriting. †˜I will never know how people write like this, and think it is acceptable. As long as she can read it I guess its fine.’ thought Inferus as he slid the paper back into the pack. Hearing the door fly open down stairs Inferus absorbed the bag into himself. Sadly he noticed too late that this room didn’t have windows. Any other time an air duct or crack in the wall would work for him, but he had cargo that he couldn’t damage.
“Make sure this place is secure, and lets get as many people as we can in here. Then we hold down until we figure out what the hell is going on. I will stand guard outside. You fetch me if you need me!” yelled Grigore. Helena charged in first, and looked around the ground floor.
“Selanus you check the uptairs, and I’ll clear down here.” said Helena.
Selanus rushed in after the her, noting that for some unknown reason, the door to their house had already been opened. Could have been a civilian trying to take refuge from the chaos outside. He sped upstairs, boots pounding as he tried his best to fulfill Grigore’s command. They were using the miasma Kristina had made with great effectiveness, he had expected no less, but the innocents dying in droves made his blood boil. He hadn’t thought it would be used for this purpose.
He barged into his room and noticed that the room was in a mess. Someone had gone through the drawers, open as they were. He looked around warily as he hadn’t seen anyone. Astaroth hadn’t felt anyone in the home either. Keeping his eyes peeled, he walked over to inspect the open drawers.
Inferus grinned, seeing who it was that had entered the room. Of course he hadn’t noticed him, no one ever did.
“Selanus, is that you?” he said in a woman’s voice.
Selanus whirled, coat flaring as his eyes searched the room. He looked around but was absolutely sure that he hadn’t seen anybody in the room, let alone a woman. Astaroth was equally as perplexed, sniffing the air and looking at him with slight confusion. Perhaps it was in his mind, or he had inhaled some of the miasma by accident.
“Selanus it’s me,” the voice said, revealing itself. The woman that stood there was none other than Selanus’ aunt. He whipped his around in response, eyes wide. ”It… How can it be? I saw you…” He questioned, confused. There was no mistaking it was her, Kristina. His mind seemed to split as it tried to come to terms with what he was seeing, Astaroth herself equally as confused.
“I’ve missed you so much,” Kristina said moving slowly closer to Selanus. As she drew in, he reached out his arms and tears began to well up in his eyes. Perhaps, she had a contingency that day and somehow had managed to survive. Yes, his aunt would have been smart enough for that. ”I’ve missed you too.” Selanus replied, voice almost ready at breaking.
As Kristina slowly moved towards Selanus, her face began to melt away, flesh dripping and bubbling to the floor until what stood before her was a completely different person. The person who stood before him now was Kudzu, the man who had killed his aunt.
“You’re a failure kid,” Kudzu scorned, “You couldn’t even protect your own family.”
Selanus became even more confused as he watched the shift, and his blood boiled as Kudzu talked down to him. His face a mask of fury, Selanus ripped out Cerberus with a roar and answered Kudzu with a blast from the shotgun.
But Kudzu was already gone, nothing in his place. “You’ll have to be faster than that,” Inferus whispered into Selanus’ ear from behind, revealing himself as a tall dark haired man, wearing a black jacket and trousers, a devilish grin on his face.
”You.” Selanus spat harshly, ”You have something that belongs to me.” He unsheathed Fenrir, slowly circling around Inferus. ”Sullying the Delham name will be the last thing you do before I rip out your throat.” He was disgusted at both himself and the newcomer, getting too emotional at the illusions, as real as they seemed.
“My, my,” Inferus laughed at Selanus’ reaction, “You sure overreact to little jokes, isn’t that right?” he said aloud to someone who wasn’t in the room.
That’s what makes it fun, Púca giggled.
“I suppose you’re right,” Inferus agreed, completely disappearing, “Now boy, you make ripping my throat out sound easy, but I could leave at any moment, I could have been gone before you even arrived, however I chose to have some fun with you,” he began, “You should be thankful.”
”Fun?”” Selanus responded as he put up his guard, eyes peeled. ”I suppose you’re responsible for the “fun” outside as well, then?”
“I don’t work with amateurs,” Inferus replied, sounding honestly hurt by Selanus’ remark.
Selanus concentated and linked with Astaroth, a sensation of power flooding his veins as the spirit quietly came into form, smiling as she too had her own “invisibility”. ”I don’t know whether to be irritated or honored that you only call me out for these kind of enemies. They do put up a good struggle but… can’t you handle them yourself?” She joked across their link. A pang of displeasure was shot through their link and she chuckled at his reply, focusing on searching for Inferus after.
“Oho,” Inferus laughed, “Interesting.” The voice seemed to be coming from nowhere in particular, it was impossible to pin point. Suddenly a black mist began to pour from a corner of the room, and then the next corner and the next and the next until the whole room was was full of the mysterious substance.
”What the hell is this?” Selanus exclaimed, covering his mouth with his sleeve. Astaroth seemed to be more affected as she started to cough. Beating her wings, she moved closer to her master, growling at the mist.
“This is a nice watered down version for you,” Inferus said, “But that won't stop it corrupting those civilians in this house. You really should have closed that door,” he observed laughing.
”Damn it.” cursed Selanus, eyes flicking over to the aforementioned entrance before continuing their futile search for the intruder. This man was making everything so frustrating. He inched over to the doors with Fenrir at the ready, yelling to make sure he was heard. ”Helena, get everyone out of the house!”
Selanus found a finger stopping him from saying anymore, “Shhh,” Inferus whispered, “You don’t want any of this stuff getting in your mouth,” he laughed before the finger was gone.
Slamming her spear onto a man’s head she knocked him out flat. A strange mist had seeped through the floor and turned the civilians into mindless drones. ”Dammit!” yelled Helena. Fighting them off she made her way towards the front as she heard Selanus yell from upstairs. Walking up the stairs she felt a presence pass her by. A giggle sounding in her ear. Swinging at where she thought someone was her attack came up empty.
Selanus opened the door and saw Helena standing there. Suddenly behind her a mob of crazed citizens with pale skin scrambled towards them. Spinning her spear she snapped into combat position. “They leave us no choice!” she yelled. The group of citizens moved faster than Helena and Selanus were ready for. Charging up the stairs they grabbed Helena’s leg and yanked her down as they began biting at her.
Selanus marched forward, brandishing his weapons. As he did so, spirit energy welled up from inside and burst forth, cloaking him with darkness. ”No one takes anything from me, anymore.” He said with finality, prepared to engage the horde. Activating her armor she was able to force the civilian back and prepared her spear to deflect them from going up the stairs.
”I won’t let them pass me. Hurry up and take them out.” yelled Helena. ”Grigore must be busy outside. We are on our own for now.” The citizen charged her again but with pinpoint strikes she was able to trip them back down the stairs, but it wasn’t long before more climbed over them.
Selanus cocked his shotgun, filling the three barrels with energy and firing it into the horde with a roar, making sure not to hit Helena. The gun bucked in his hands as the buckshots left the chamber and the closest few civilians reeled from the onslaught. Rolling down the stairs they caused the other civilians trying to force their way up to fall back as well. Seizing the moment Helena charged forward and stabbed her spear through five civilians. Ripping it out she spun her spear cleansing the weapon of their filth.
As the blood splashed onto the walls, they seemed to be absorbed into the shadows permeating the stairway and multiple spikes lanced out into the horde, skewering many of them. Tinkling laughter could be heard as the barbs withdrew, dissolving into nothingness as the impaled citizens collapsed. From behind Helena, Selanus eyed the slaughter with slight distaste though he could feel the satisfaction from Astaroth.
Helena spun her spear protecting herself from the explosion and charged in. Leaping onto a civilian she crushed it under her heel. Then with a series of well timed swings she disposed of the rest of the cursed civilians. Breathing heavily she turned to the door as it opened. Grigore was covered in black blood. Looking at the floor he saw the same fate he was trying to avoid fell upon the civilians he was trying to save.
”Everything is clear in here I see…” said Grigore solemnly. Selanus wiped some of the blood off his face, wordlessly heading back up to his room to check if there was anything that the bastard didn’t take. The grim expression as he came back down said it all, and he threaded his way through the corpses to the ground floor. Looking at Selanus he knew what he was feeling, but they had no time to mope.
”Let’s get out there, and try to save as many as we can. It doesn’t matter if they are cursed or not. Everyone is important! said Grigore. Helena nodded and walked out the door. Selanus was a few moments behind loading more shots into his aunt’s old gun.
0
Luna rushed up behind the civilians attacking Owain and slashed sideways, making sure she wouldn't hit the captain, she ended up killing at least two with a single slash."C'mon Owain, no dying now!" She yelled.
“Think I’d die from that?” Owain laughed, steam still pouring from his suit.
Flames erupted from Razta forming in the shape of horns and a halo. Wings formed around his ankles as he hovered slightly. Slamming his fists together flames enveloped his forearms. Dashing forward he slid under Reymond’s blades as his flames kept the frost off him. Using his hand he pushed off the ground kicking up hard, sending a civilian flying up like a rag doll. Flipping to his feet flames shot across his dagger. With two strikes he danced from enemy to enemy leaving a trail of fire. Their bodies combusted in the order he hit them in. Then as the group began to close back in on him he slid back into the protection of Katya and Reymond’s attack.
Two enemies that made it past the barrier were closing in on Reymond. Adelina stepped protectively in front of him and raised her shield holding them back. Bringing her sword around her shield she stabbed both of them through the head before ripping her blade out, and pushing them off her shield.
As Razta rejoined the party he saw an enemy sneaking up on Masaki. ”Behind you Masaki!” yelled Razta. Throwing his dagger he caught the civilian in the back of the leg. Masaki turned seeing the weakened civilian.
“HA!” Masaki did a backhand smash to the weakened infected civilian. He then did an open palm hit to it’s chin, resulting a cracking sound coming from it. Hearing this, Masaki clenched his right fist, charging his spirit energy to his clenched right fist. Masaki punched the infected right on the left cheek, sending its head to oblivion. Leaving the headless body drop down to the ground. Masaki quickly looked at Razta. “Look out!” Masaki quickly pull the knife that Razta threw earlier and throw it at a creeping infected right behind Razta’s shoulder, hitting the side of it’s chest. Ripping the blade to the side he brought the civilian in between him and Masaki. Both fighters lunged forward and punched through shattering the enemy. As the enemy fell Masaki and Razta turns knocking their fists together.
“Hahaha, this is great,” Owain laughed, enjoying the rush his fully charged armour gave him. He was moving faster than he ever had, and he was stronger than he ever had been before. Clearly demonstrating his new ability, Owain danced, sword in hand cutting away at several of the infected citizens, bashing others away with his shield. Decapitating his sixth infected he paused, “Just how many more of these things are there?” he asked, worried that others might not be able to keep up or even worse, that Morgan might get hurt.
Not many. We are thinning their numbers quite a bit,” answered Razta standing back to back with Owain for a moment.
Morgan was making no progress in snapping the elder out of her crazed state of mind. She would need to protect her until they were safe. Pulling up her bow she shot three skillful shots that rode the blizzard winds for a moment before spinning outside of the circle into random infected.
Sheathing her blade Arkasia focused on the group of five in front of her. With a quick step in she unleashed her blade and diced one in two. Then with another step she decapitated another. Sheathing her blade again she kicked on into one of Reymond’s blade as it made its rotation. Then as the two closed in on her sides she ripped her blade from her sheathe on final time using a wind to rotate her faster. The two infected civilians fell to pieces around her.
Increasing the speed of her winds Katya appreciated the meat shields keeping the enemies off her as she focused. Reymond using her winds began to raise and lower his swords in a random pattern catching the enemies that were trying to find ways to sneak in. Black blood colors the winds for moments as their blood sprayed out of the circle. Soon after Katya’s winds subsided as the swords slowed their spin around the party. Katya looked around breathing heavily. That took a lot out of her.
Looking around at the lowered numbers Arkasia smiled. ”Glad to see all that training didn’t go to waste.” commented Arkasia.
Luna hoisted her cleaver onto her shoulder and smirked as she swept the blood from from her face."Hmph, this kinda reminds me of my first battle, though my kill count was much higher, then. This is just child's play compared to what I went through!" She then scoffed at the squishiness of these so-called "zombies"
Morgan kneeled next to Edile one more time trying to snap her into her sense. Finally it seemed that she was able to make some progress as Edile slowly rose to her feet. There were about fifteen or so civilians left. Edile looked to the floor and saw the ground think with dead. Raising her hand the ground began to shake. Roots shot up from the ground under the civilians impaling them on sharp branches before retracting quickly killing them without much pain.
”Wish you would have that earlier.” said Arkasia. Edile glared at her and with a flick of her wrist brought a sharp branch to Arkasia’s throat. Arkasia smirked at her seeing that she had finally snapped. Morgan pulled on Edile trying to get her atteniton.
”Elder stop it!” exclaimed Morgan. Razta walked to her side as his flames died down. Placing a hand on her shoulder Razta was able to calm her down.
”We still need to find the one responsible for this. said Razta. Slowly the branches were brought away from Arkasia. The two female leaders shared eye contact for a moment before both averted their eyes.
”Ok men spread out and find that brat. Bring him to me alive if you can. If not you know what to do.” ordered Arkasia.
Owain, Adelina, and Morgan ran down the street towards where the boy was last seen headed in. As they headed down the street Morgan started to feel a extremely strong presence. Following what Morgan was sensing she eventually came to an alley way. Miasma hung in the air lightly, but no where near what is was before. Adelina peered past the miasma trying to see what was in there before she blindly when in. A figure in a black cloak stood over a figure sitting down and leaning on a wall.
As Adelina laid eyes on the standing figure it spotted her. A feminine face smiled at her and the group. Owain and Adelina recognized her as that woman from that destroyed village. Adelina rushed in trying to catch her before she made an escape. A wave of Miasma shot down the alley. Adelina covered her mouth and raised her shield. Swatting the remnants away she dashed forward coming up empty.
”Dammit she got away…Where the hell did she go!” cursed Adelina. Morgan looked near Adelina to her side and she saw the boy from before sitting down on the wall shaking.
”But he didn’t.” answered Morgan walking over to him. Adelina stepped in front of her and raised her sword to him.
”We should simply kill him here captain. Bringing him back alive may give him another chance to attack us.” suggested Adelina.
”But we may be able to learn something from him!” argued Morgan.
Owain’s brow furrowed as he stomped towards the child. “Get up,” Owain ordered, not caring that the kid was obviously not in good shape. The kid ignored him focused instead on the spot where the woman was standing before.
“I said get up,” Owain said, sterner this time. Adelina stepped in and pulled the boy up by the arm, and held him in front of Owain. His hood fell off showing a pale young boy. His hair was black with strands of grey already filling it. Around his neck was a collar that he had seen a few times before.
“This thing again,” Owain sighed, “Just what exactly are these?” Owain asked the boy. The boy kept his eyes away from Owain not wanting to have eye contact.
”I don’t think we are going to get anything out of him.” said Adelina. Morgan walked up looking at the collar closely. Touching the collar she yanking it back feeling an intense heat coming from it.
”Razta knows a bit about them. Maybe we should have him look at it? answered Adelina.
“Can you go get him then? I don’t think we’ll be able to get this off properly,” Owain asked, looking the boy up and down.
”Sure but where are we taking him for now?” asked Adelina.
“Me and Morgan will take him to the Elder’s place, you can go get Razta,” Owain said. Adelina released the boy into Owain’s custody and headed off to find Razta. Morgan looked into the boys eyes before he panicked and looked away.
”Should one of use go after that woman?” asked Morgan.
“I get the feeling she’s already long gone,” Owain replied, “There will be a time to deal with her later.”
Ari led a small team with Razta and Reymond. They were heading out to find what happened with the other Guardian. They tried to find him around town to no avail. Suddenly they were approached by the blind guardian, Bael.
”Follow…” said Bael. This was the first time that even Razta had heard the man speak. The seriousness in his tone gave a sense of urgency. They walked through the town they arrived at what seemed to be Ezekiel’s home. Bael tried the door and found it locked. Looking up he saw that the window was open. Kicking hard Bael burst down the door before heading in. Once in Bael made his way up the stairs.
Looking around the kitchen nothing seemed to be out of place. It was exceptionally clean for someone that lived by themselves. Ignoring the downstairs for now the group headed up to follow Bael. When they reached the top they found Bael crouched over a body on the floor. His skin was blackened and rotting worse than the civilians that they disposed of earlier. Upon noticing this Bael took off running down the stairs to fetch the guard.
“Think I’d die from that?” Owain laughed, steam still pouring from his suit.
Flames erupted from Razta forming in the shape of horns and a halo. Wings formed around his ankles as he hovered slightly. Slamming his fists together flames enveloped his forearms. Dashing forward he slid under Reymond’s blades as his flames kept the frost off him. Using his hand he pushed off the ground kicking up hard, sending a civilian flying up like a rag doll. Flipping to his feet flames shot across his dagger. With two strikes he danced from enemy to enemy leaving a trail of fire. Their bodies combusted in the order he hit them in. Then as the group began to close back in on him he slid back into the protection of Katya and Reymond’s attack.
Two enemies that made it past the barrier were closing in on Reymond. Adelina stepped protectively in front of him and raised her shield holding them back. Bringing her sword around her shield she stabbed both of them through the head before ripping her blade out, and pushing them off her shield.
As Razta rejoined the party he saw an enemy sneaking up on Masaki. ”Behind you Masaki!” yelled Razta. Throwing his dagger he caught the civilian in the back of the leg. Masaki turned seeing the weakened civilian.
“HA!” Masaki did a backhand smash to the weakened infected civilian. He then did an open palm hit to it’s chin, resulting a cracking sound coming from it. Hearing this, Masaki clenched his right fist, charging his spirit energy to his clenched right fist. Masaki punched the infected right on the left cheek, sending its head to oblivion. Leaving the headless body drop down to the ground. Masaki quickly looked at Razta. “Look out!” Masaki quickly pull the knife that Razta threw earlier and throw it at a creeping infected right behind Razta’s shoulder, hitting the side of it’s chest. Ripping the blade to the side he brought the civilian in between him and Masaki. Both fighters lunged forward and punched through shattering the enemy. As the enemy fell Masaki and Razta turns knocking their fists together.
“Hahaha, this is great,” Owain laughed, enjoying the rush his fully charged armour gave him. He was moving faster than he ever had, and he was stronger than he ever had been before. Clearly demonstrating his new ability, Owain danced, sword in hand cutting away at several of the infected citizens, bashing others away with his shield. Decapitating his sixth infected he paused, “Just how many more of these things are there?” he asked, worried that others might not be able to keep up or even worse, that Morgan might get hurt.
Not many. We are thinning their numbers quite a bit,” answered Razta standing back to back with Owain for a moment.
Morgan was making no progress in snapping the elder out of her crazed state of mind. She would need to protect her until they were safe. Pulling up her bow she shot three skillful shots that rode the blizzard winds for a moment before spinning outside of the circle into random infected.
Sheathing her blade Arkasia focused on the group of five in front of her. With a quick step in she unleashed her blade and diced one in two. Then with another step she decapitated another. Sheathing her blade again she kicked on into one of Reymond’s blade as it made its rotation. Then as the two closed in on her sides she ripped her blade from her sheathe on final time using a wind to rotate her faster. The two infected civilians fell to pieces around her.
Increasing the speed of her winds Katya appreciated the meat shields keeping the enemies off her as she focused. Reymond using her winds began to raise and lower his swords in a random pattern catching the enemies that were trying to find ways to sneak in. Black blood colors the winds for moments as their blood sprayed out of the circle. Soon after Katya’s winds subsided as the swords slowed their spin around the party. Katya looked around breathing heavily. That took a lot out of her.
Looking around at the lowered numbers Arkasia smiled. ”Glad to see all that training didn’t go to waste.” commented Arkasia.
Luna hoisted her cleaver onto her shoulder and smirked as she swept the blood from from her face."Hmph, this kinda reminds me of my first battle, though my kill count was much higher, then. This is just child's play compared to what I went through!" She then scoffed at the squishiness of these so-called "zombies"
Morgan kneeled next to Edile one more time trying to snap her into her sense. Finally it seemed that she was able to make some progress as Edile slowly rose to her feet. There were about fifteen or so civilians left. Edile looked to the floor and saw the ground think with dead. Raising her hand the ground began to shake. Roots shot up from the ground under the civilians impaling them on sharp branches before retracting quickly killing them without much pain.
”Wish you would have that earlier.” said Arkasia. Edile glared at her and with a flick of her wrist brought a sharp branch to Arkasia’s throat. Arkasia smirked at her seeing that she had finally snapped. Morgan pulled on Edile trying to get her atteniton.
”Elder stop it!” exclaimed Morgan. Razta walked to her side as his flames died down. Placing a hand on her shoulder Razta was able to calm her down.
”We still need to find the one responsible for this. said Razta. Slowly the branches were brought away from Arkasia. The two female leaders shared eye contact for a moment before both averted their eyes.
”Ok men spread out and find that brat. Bring him to me alive if you can. If not you know what to do.” ordered Arkasia.
Owain, Adelina, and Morgan ran down the street towards where the boy was last seen headed in. As they headed down the street Morgan started to feel a extremely strong presence. Following what Morgan was sensing she eventually came to an alley way. Miasma hung in the air lightly, but no where near what is was before. Adelina peered past the miasma trying to see what was in there before she blindly when in. A figure in a black cloak stood over a figure sitting down and leaning on a wall.
As Adelina laid eyes on the standing figure it spotted her. A feminine face smiled at her and the group. Owain and Adelina recognized her as that woman from that destroyed village. Adelina rushed in trying to catch her before she made an escape. A wave of Miasma shot down the alley. Adelina covered her mouth and raised her shield. Swatting the remnants away she dashed forward coming up empty.
”Dammit she got away…Where the hell did she go!” cursed Adelina. Morgan looked near Adelina to her side and she saw the boy from before sitting down on the wall shaking.
”But he didn’t.” answered Morgan walking over to him. Adelina stepped in front of her and raised her sword to him.
”We should simply kill him here captain. Bringing him back alive may give him another chance to attack us.” suggested Adelina.
”But we may be able to learn something from him!” argued Morgan.
Owain’s brow furrowed as he stomped towards the child. “Get up,” Owain ordered, not caring that the kid was obviously not in good shape. The kid ignored him focused instead on the spot where the woman was standing before.
“I said get up,” Owain said, sterner this time. Adelina stepped in and pulled the boy up by the arm, and held him in front of Owain. His hood fell off showing a pale young boy. His hair was black with strands of grey already filling it. Around his neck was a collar that he had seen a few times before.
“This thing again,” Owain sighed, “Just what exactly are these?” Owain asked the boy. The boy kept his eyes away from Owain not wanting to have eye contact.
”I don’t think we are going to get anything out of him.” said Adelina. Morgan walked up looking at the collar closely. Touching the collar she yanking it back feeling an intense heat coming from it.
”Razta knows a bit about them. Maybe we should have him look at it? answered Adelina.
“Can you go get him then? I don’t think we’ll be able to get this off properly,” Owain asked, looking the boy up and down.
”Sure but where are we taking him for now?” asked Adelina.
“Me and Morgan will take him to the Elder’s place, you can go get Razta,” Owain said. Adelina released the boy into Owain’s custody and headed off to find Razta. Morgan looked into the boys eyes before he panicked and looked away.
”Should one of use go after that woman?” asked Morgan.
“I get the feeling she’s already long gone,” Owain replied, “There will be a time to deal with her later.”
Ari led a small team with Razta and Reymond. They were heading out to find what happened with the other Guardian. They tried to find him around town to no avail. Suddenly they were approached by the blind guardian, Bael.
”Follow…” said Bael. This was the first time that even Razta had heard the man speak. The seriousness in his tone gave a sense of urgency. They walked through the town they arrived at what seemed to be Ezekiel’s home. Bael tried the door and found it locked. Looking up he saw that the window was open. Kicking hard Bael burst down the door before heading in. Once in Bael made his way up the stairs.
Looking around the kitchen nothing seemed to be out of place. It was exceptionally clean for someone that lived by themselves. Ignoring the downstairs for now the group headed up to follow Bael. When they reached the top they found Bael crouched over a body on the floor. His skin was blackened and rotting worse than the civilians that they disposed of earlier. Upon noticing this Bael took off running down the stairs to fetch the guard.
0
Attacking ferociously dancing around the street Grigore took down enemy after enemy making sure none got to the civilians in the center that they were protecting. Helena stood closest to them making sure that none made it through, and reassuring the civilians. Cursed, Origin, and Scion all huddled together just hoping for this to be over. It was sad that something like this had to happen in order for them to finally come to some sort of understanding.
”This is getting bad, just how many of them are there?! yelled Grigore. They were in fact starting the thin out, but not by much. Suddenly arrows rained down on the civilians as a chilling wind circled Grigore, Helena, and Selanus. Selanus readied himself to fight as he tried to see if anything was coming through the winds. Slowly the winds began to fade, and the sound of steel and bone became more clear. Then a familiar figure came into view. Selanus walked past the others approaching his old comrade. Anastas nodded down at the group before he and Katya ran off to help elsewhere.
Looking upon the pile of bodies, Luna couldn’t help but feel accomplished from the past fight, she was always accustomed to fighting large groups. To her, it was almost like crushing a group of ants beneath her foot. Scanning the area for anyone that would resemble the boy from before, she managed to spot somebody from the corner of her eye, somebody whom she had not seen in a long while-- one of the first people she called friend in years. Luna had thought Sonata was playing more tricks on her from what she saw, however, this was no practical joke. Luna rubbed both of her pupils in amazement. "Selanus..." She whispered to herself.
In response, he raised a pistol at her. Luna was taken aback by the action. "W-What do you think you're doing?!" She kept a hand primed to pull the cleaver from her back to cut the man down if she had to. Face grim, Selanus fired the pistol and the projectile slammed into a civilian charging at Luna, brains spilling out of its head as the body fell. Luna looked at the corpse in disgust, but looked back to Selanus with an approving nod but with a face colored grim.
Lowering his gun, Selanus gave her a questioning look before he turned to dispose of the last zombie, Astaroth materializing and slicing the ghoul into two halves before decapitating it. Black blood gushed out on the spirit and she giggled, shuddering with pleasure as she licked her hands clean of the blood. She then smirked at Luna through half lidded eyes before poking Selanus and fading away. ”Why are you here?” He stated simply, both puzzled as to why indeed she was in Origin and that she would be fighting alongside the Scion.
Luna sighed in response before composing a viable answer. She looked away from the man, fighting the urge to synch eyes with him, writhing in her own humiliating downfall of being abandoned by her former comrades and being captured. "I didn't want to be held down." Luna remarked simply, of course, that was a lie.
Selanus gave her a look over, noting how her armor and weapon had changed. More specifically, she was wearing the armor of a Cursed elite. ”It seems you weren’t, judging from that. So why leave?” He sheathed the pistol, cleaning it of blood before doing so. Something felt off about Luna, especially since she wasn’t exactly talking to him.
”We are going to continue on ahead. meet up with us when you are done. said Helena turning and walking off. Grigore nodded to the two and started off after her leaving the two old “friends” to catch up.
"I didn't leave," Luna confessed, feeling the stab of Selanus' comment. "...They left me. I spoke out against Marian’s orders, and they left me." She snapped.
”I can see Marian doing that. Now could you explain why you were here in the first place and why you spoke out against her?” Selanus questioned further, still not entirely convinced.
Luna clenched her fist remembering the objective of her last mission with cursed. She strained to look the man in the eye before saying, "Our mission...was to retrieve cursed refugees and bring them back to the Capitol whether they liked it or not..." She confessed. "If they showed any resistance, we were ordered to kill them." Luna grimaced, her fist clenched even harder at the very thought. She knew the cursed were low but she never thought them capable of killing their own.
Narrowing his eyes at her confession, Selanus could only huff in anger. ”And they abandoned you when Marian realized that you did have some morals after all. Who else was with you? Soul?” They were mere refugees and a crack squad had been sent after them, judging from the armor. Selanus could only imagine how much worse it would’ve been if Grigs wasn’t around.
"He's the one who carried it out. He did it right before we had the chance to react.” Luna said with a hint of melancholy to her voice. “I know I can be...violent, but killing my own is just beyond despicable.”
Selanus chuckled softly as he shook his head, shoulders drooping as he seemingly carried an unseen weight. ”It appears that betrayal is rife within their ranks nowadays. So, what are you going to do now?”
Luna wracked her brain once more for an answer, it wouldn’t be an option to return to Agreyus. Unfortunately, she doesn’t know herself. “I’m already in too deep with these guys, I can’t leave them now.” Luna said unable to come to a conclusion. She looked up to Selanus and bit her lip in contempt. “I’m sure you want to jump ship right now, huh?” Luna said eyes shifting to Selanus’ to the ground sheepishly.
Laughing bitterly beside himself, he gave her a very measured look. ”Jumping ship is the least of my worries. Besides, you know I don’t roll with the Scion. It’s not my style. Whatever you do is your business but I’m not going back to Cursed. Simply put, there’s no place left for me.”
“Hey,” Luna spoke up. “I’m here, wouldn’t that count for something?” She furrowed her brows as she said this, however. She figured that would be one of the last things she would say to Selanus, or a man in general. She strained her face for a weak smile and jabbed the man in his arm. Then the man’s words implanted themselves in her head, no place left for him? “What about your aunt? Don’t you go and visit her sometimes?”
Flinching away from her, Selanus remained silent but looked at the ground as Luna reminded of him of the recent encounter. Luna felt a poke in the small of her back and over her shoulder, a scowling Astaroth wagged a finger at her in warning before blinking out. ”That isn’t possible anymore.” He replied softly.
Luna raised her brow at what the man could possibly mean, but the vague warning and grim look of Selanus spoke to her. Could the aunt he spoke so fondly of be dead? With his rate of luck recently, that wouldn’t be surprising to her. Upon realization Luna narrowed her eyes and frowned for a moment. “...I see. Did you at least find him? Alma’s killer?”
A sudden jab in Luna’s back, enough to make her feel uncomfortable, was how Astaroth announced her displeasure. ”I don’t think you shall be asking any more of those, hmm?” She purred, leaning onto Luna. She waved a lazy hand at her master as she vanished, Selanus dismissing her before she got out of hand. He knew she was doing it for his sake but sometimes her methods could be wanting. ”Yes but I don’t need more trouble on my plate than necessary.”
“...Right.” Luna nodded in affirm. She looked the man in the eyes and could tell he’s been through hell-- a look, she thought, was familiar. “...What will you do, now that everything is behind us then?”
”I haven’t the faintest idea.” With a smile laced with bitterness, Selanus looked at the carnage around him. ”I… For now, I have a place to stay. That is enough for the time being.” He shuffled around the corpses in the open, inspecting them and found that they were the handiwork of his aunt’s collars. He frowned deeply and turned to Luna. ”Did you see anyone wearing a collar?”
Luna pondered deeply about the question, and what the meaning could be. From the passed few days of fighting with the Scion, she could only remember faint images of that particular collar. But then the answer hit her, she could remember exactly who it was that Selanus was referring to."You mean Razta, right? Why do you ask?"
Selanus clenched his fist at the name, giving her a hard look. He knew it wasn’t her fault, she wouldn’t have known but it stung him nonetheless. ”No, not him. There should be someone amongst the corpses with a collar, I need to see it.” Selanus said with a bit of spite as he began to rifle through the corpses, anxious as anyone amongst them could be the progenitor.
Luna sighed and willingly knelt down to rummage through the corpses with the man. Kicking through a pile, she had not seen anyone with the aforementioned collar."I don't see anything yet. Hell, when I cut through the bastards I bet my cleaver broke it."[/b] She practically joked.
[color=#6cbb3c]”It wouldn’t break so easily.” Replied Selanus somewhat absentmindedly, remembering how sturdy the material was. Luna’s strength was no laughing matter but the collar was probably beyond her. The pair dug around for awhile more but it was just too much for two people and Selanus called it off. ”Just let me know if you see a body with the collar.” He continued, voice laced with exasperation. ”I bet you have things to return to after this anyway.”
Luna shook her head and smirked. "Don't be so quick to get rid of me." She said in a matter of fact tone."Haven't seen you in a while, man. We should catch up." She walked up from from behind the man and placed a hand on his shoulder.
”Over those drinks again?” He said jokingly, arching an eyebrow at the contact. ”Well I’ve met someone who could drink us both under the table, would give you a run for your money at the very least.” What happened during that exchange brought a short chuckle to him and Selanus looked around the carnage with a jaded eye. ”All this has really caught up to me.”
Luna wore a face of regret for a moment, though it was quickly shrouded with her usual blank expression. "It caught up with me the second I joined this damn war." She mumbled, though she was sure Selanus could hear her.
”Both of us have to stop speaking like the elders around here. At the very least, we aren’t them.” Selanus said lightheartedly as he tried to lift the mood, indicating the hordes of bodies. He turned to go back to Grigore’s place, waving Luna along. ”Stop by if you’re free, I’ll rustle up something if you do. Besides, you gotta know your competition.”
"Will do. Hopefully they won't try and rip my head off the moment I synch eyes with them." Luna said wishing she was joking, though at this point she had stopped caring a while ago. "I might as well tag along, better than staying here, bearing this sight." She said gazing upon the corpses, the grim sight ironically, made Luna a little sick to her stomach.
”I don’t think they will. In case though, just watch yourself around Helena, she’s a bit hot headed.” Selanus said with a wry smile, not adding on that they had gotten into a scuffle. ”Where are you staying?”
Luna’s eyes lit up for a moment at the mention of another woman, if anything Selanus knew how to pick them when it came to that subject, a hot headed one at that, it sounded familiar but she couldn't quite put her finger on whom It was. She came back to her senses to answer the man’s question."In a house, with a bunch of the Scion. I've already made a few friends there so they're not as hostile-- as much anyhow." Answered Luna.
”No wonder you were already in with them. Housemates so soon and little old me has to scrape by.” Selanus said with mock distress, playing the part of an abandoned comrade. ”The less of them I see, the better. I think it’s a bit too early for me to say this but our doors are always open.” The last bit was said with genuine concern for his friend.
Luna nodded in response, it seemed like the man wanted to stay acquainted with her at least, that and she would likely have to meet with Selanus in secret, lest Arkasia and the others find out.
”This is getting bad, just how many of them are there?! yelled Grigore. They were in fact starting the thin out, but not by much. Suddenly arrows rained down on the civilians as a chilling wind circled Grigore, Helena, and Selanus. Selanus readied himself to fight as he tried to see if anything was coming through the winds. Slowly the winds began to fade, and the sound of steel and bone became more clear. Then a familiar figure came into view. Selanus walked past the others approaching his old comrade. Anastas nodded down at the group before he and Katya ran off to help elsewhere.
Looking upon the pile of bodies, Luna couldn’t help but feel accomplished from the past fight, she was always accustomed to fighting large groups. To her, it was almost like crushing a group of ants beneath her foot. Scanning the area for anyone that would resemble the boy from before, she managed to spot somebody from the corner of her eye, somebody whom she had not seen in a long while-- one of the first people she called friend in years. Luna had thought Sonata was playing more tricks on her from what she saw, however, this was no practical joke. Luna rubbed both of her pupils in amazement. "Selanus..." She whispered to herself.
In response, he raised a pistol at her. Luna was taken aback by the action. "W-What do you think you're doing?!" She kept a hand primed to pull the cleaver from her back to cut the man down if she had to. Face grim, Selanus fired the pistol and the projectile slammed into a civilian charging at Luna, brains spilling out of its head as the body fell. Luna looked at the corpse in disgust, but looked back to Selanus with an approving nod but with a face colored grim.
Lowering his gun, Selanus gave her a questioning look before he turned to dispose of the last zombie, Astaroth materializing and slicing the ghoul into two halves before decapitating it. Black blood gushed out on the spirit and she giggled, shuddering with pleasure as she licked her hands clean of the blood. She then smirked at Luna through half lidded eyes before poking Selanus and fading away. ”Why are you here?” He stated simply, both puzzled as to why indeed she was in Origin and that she would be fighting alongside the Scion.
Luna sighed in response before composing a viable answer. She looked away from the man, fighting the urge to synch eyes with him, writhing in her own humiliating downfall of being abandoned by her former comrades and being captured. "I didn't want to be held down." Luna remarked simply, of course, that was a lie.
Selanus gave her a look over, noting how her armor and weapon had changed. More specifically, she was wearing the armor of a Cursed elite. ”It seems you weren’t, judging from that. So why leave?” He sheathed the pistol, cleaning it of blood before doing so. Something felt off about Luna, especially since she wasn’t exactly talking to him.
”We are going to continue on ahead. meet up with us when you are done. said Helena turning and walking off. Grigore nodded to the two and started off after her leaving the two old “friends” to catch up.
"I didn't leave," Luna confessed, feeling the stab of Selanus' comment. "...They left me. I spoke out against Marian’s orders, and they left me." She snapped.
”I can see Marian doing that. Now could you explain why you were here in the first place and why you spoke out against her?” Selanus questioned further, still not entirely convinced.
Luna clenched her fist remembering the objective of her last mission with cursed. She strained to look the man in the eye before saying, "Our mission...was to retrieve cursed refugees and bring them back to the Capitol whether they liked it or not..." She confessed. "If they showed any resistance, we were ordered to kill them." Luna grimaced, her fist clenched even harder at the very thought. She knew the cursed were low but she never thought them capable of killing their own.
Narrowing his eyes at her confession, Selanus could only huff in anger. ”And they abandoned you when Marian realized that you did have some morals after all. Who else was with you? Soul?” They were mere refugees and a crack squad had been sent after them, judging from the armor. Selanus could only imagine how much worse it would’ve been if Grigs wasn’t around.
"He's the one who carried it out. He did it right before we had the chance to react.” Luna said with a hint of melancholy to her voice. “I know I can be...violent, but killing my own is just beyond despicable.”
Selanus chuckled softly as he shook his head, shoulders drooping as he seemingly carried an unseen weight. ”It appears that betrayal is rife within their ranks nowadays. So, what are you going to do now?”
Luna wracked her brain once more for an answer, it wouldn’t be an option to return to Agreyus. Unfortunately, she doesn’t know herself. “I’m already in too deep with these guys, I can’t leave them now.” Luna said unable to come to a conclusion. She looked up to Selanus and bit her lip in contempt. “I’m sure you want to jump ship right now, huh?” Luna said eyes shifting to Selanus’ to the ground sheepishly.
Laughing bitterly beside himself, he gave her a very measured look. ”Jumping ship is the least of my worries. Besides, you know I don’t roll with the Scion. It’s not my style. Whatever you do is your business but I’m not going back to Cursed. Simply put, there’s no place left for me.”
“Hey,” Luna spoke up. “I’m here, wouldn’t that count for something?” She furrowed her brows as she said this, however. She figured that would be one of the last things she would say to Selanus, or a man in general. She strained her face for a weak smile and jabbed the man in his arm. Then the man’s words implanted themselves in her head, no place left for him? “What about your aunt? Don’t you go and visit her sometimes?”
Flinching away from her, Selanus remained silent but looked at the ground as Luna reminded of him of the recent encounter. Luna felt a poke in the small of her back and over her shoulder, a scowling Astaroth wagged a finger at her in warning before blinking out. ”That isn’t possible anymore.” He replied softly.
Luna raised her brow at what the man could possibly mean, but the vague warning and grim look of Selanus spoke to her. Could the aunt he spoke so fondly of be dead? With his rate of luck recently, that wouldn’t be surprising to her. Upon realization Luna narrowed her eyes and frowned for a moment. “...I see. Did you at least find him? Alma’s killer?”
A sudden jab in Luna’s back, enough to make her feel uncomfortable, was how Astaroth announced her displeasure. ”I don’t think you shall be asking any more of those, hmm?” She purred, leaning onto Luna. She waved a lazy hand at her master as she vanished, Selanus dismissing her before she got out of hand. He knew she was doing it for his sake but sometimes her methods could be wanting. ”Yes but I don’t need more trouble on my plate than necessary.”
“...Right.” Luna nodded in affirm. She looked the man in the eyes and could tell he’s been through hell-- a look, she thought, was familiar. “...What will you do, now that everything is behind us then?”
”I haven’t the faintest idea.” With a smile laced with bitterness, Selanus looked at the carnage around him. ”I… For now, I have a place to stay. That is enough for the time being.” He shuffled around the corpses in the open, inspecting them and found that they were the handiwork of his aunt’s collars. He frowned deeply and turned to Luna. ”Did you see anyone wearing a collar?”
Luna pondered deeply about the question, and what the meaning could be. From the passed few days of fighting with the Scion, she could only remember faint images of that particular collar. But then the answer hit her, she could remember exactly who it was that Selanus was referring to."You mean Razta, right? Why do you ask?"
Selanus clenched his fist at the name, giving her a hard look. He knew it wasn’t her fault, she wouldn’t have known but it stung him nonetheless. ”No, not him. There should be someone amongst the corpses with a collar, I need to see it.” Selanus said with a bit of spite as he began to rifle through the corpses, anxious as anyone amongst them could be the progenitor.
Luna sighed and willingly knelt down to rummage through the corpses with the man. Kicking through a pile, she had not seen anyone with the aforementioned collar."I don't see anything yet. Hell, when I cut through the bastards I bet my cleaver broke it."[/b] She practically joked.
[color=#6cbb3c]”It wouldn’t break so easily.” Replied Selanus somewhat absentmindedly, remembering how sturdy the material was. Luna’s strength was no laughing matter but the collar was probably beyond her. The pair dug around for awhile more but it was just too much for two people and Selanus called it off. ”Just let me know if you see a body with the collar.” He continued, voice laced with exasperation. ”I bet you have things to return to after this anyway.”
Luna shook her head and smirked. "Don't be so quick to get rid of me." She said in a matter of fact tone."Haven't seen you in a while, man. We should catch up." She walked up from from behind the man and placed a hand on his shoulder.
”Over those drinks again?” He said jokingly, arching an eyebrow at the contact. ”Well I’ve met someone who could drink us both under the table, would give you a run for your money at the very least.” What happened during that exchange brought a short chuckle to him and Selanus looked around the carnage with a jaded eye. ”All this has really caught up to me.”
Luna wore a face of regret for a moment, though it was quickly shrouded with her usual blank expression. "It caught up with me the second I joined this damn war." She mumbled, though she was sure Selanus could hear her.
”Both of us have to stop speaking like the elders around here. At the very least, we aren’t them.” Selanus said lightheartedly as he tried to lift the mood, indicating the hordes of bodies. He turned to go back to Grigore’s place, waving Luna along. ”Stop by if you’re free, I’ll rustle up something if you do. Besides, you gotta know your competition.”
"Will do. Hopefully they won't try and rip my head off the moment I synch eyes with them." Luna said wishing she was joking, though at this point she had stopped caring a while ago. "I might as well tag along, better than staying here, bearing this sight." She said gazing upon the corpses, the grim sight ironically, made Luna a little sick to her stomach.
”I don’t think they will. In case though, just watch yourself around Helena, she’s a bit hot headed.” Selanus said with a wry smile, not adding on that they had gotten into a scuffle. ”Where are you staying?”
Luna’s eyes lit up for a moment at the mention of another woman, if anything Selanus knew how to pick them when it came to that subject, a hot headed one at that, it sounded familiar but she couldn't quite put her finger on whom It was. She came back to her senses to answer the man’s question."In a house, with a bunch of the Scion. I've already made a few friends there so they're not as hostile-- as much anyhow." Answered Luna.
”No wonder you were already in with them. Housemates so soon and little old me has to scrape by.” Selanus said with mock distress, playing the part of an abandoned comrade. ”The less of them I see, the better. I think it’s a bit too early for me to say this but our doors are always open.” The last bit was said with genuine concern for his friend.
Luna nodded in response, it seemed like the man wanted to stay acquainted with her at least, that and she would likely have to meet with Selanus in secret, lest Arkasia and the others find out.
0
BlinkXPoke
Cards and Hugs abound
This is a joint post featuring: TheLoneGentleman and BlinkXPoke
Returning to Agreyus didn’t have all the bells and whistles it usually would this time. It was a small operation, and none of the civilians were informed of it. The most they got were small applause from the people in the streets at the moment. For some reason that made returning with less people feel even worse. Bruin looked at Sonya with her head hanging low and sighed.
”You going to be ok kid? asked Bruin.
“Huh…?” Sonya was in somewhat of a daze until Bruin called out to her. “Oh, I’m fine!” She replied while forcing a smile. She didn’t want Bruin to be so worried about her. However, Sonya couldn’t keep herself calm enough. She couldn’t stop thinking about Luna, Selanus, Alma, her old squad… many people she was acquainted with in the army who have disappeared one way or another. She promised she’d make up for them, but after two lost battles, Sonya wasn’t sure she’d be able to.
She thought about her family once again, and her thoughts began to waver. I wonder how Father and Sister are doing right now… They must be worried… Sonya had planned to visit her family once again, regardless, but Bruin’s suggestion came back to mind. Maybe you should stay home for a while? I don’t think the war life is for you. she recalled him saying. She was considering it, now. “They must be so worried…” She mumbled, inadvertently voicing her thoughts.
”Well we are officially on leave once we turn in these horses. You have all the time to see your folks. I’ll even escort you there. Maybe I can mooch some money off your folks.” joked Bruin.
Sonya had a small laugh, replying, “I don’t think they’d appreciate that!” Her mood was improved with that. “We should go to my home, then. I really want to see them!” Sonya told Bruin. She put her decision on hold for the moment; she still was unsure if she should return home for a short while, or remain in Cain’s army.
”Then it’s a date,” answered Bruin. As they then went into small talk their short ride through the city slowed to a halt at the gate. Parking their horses at the stables Bruin and Sonya called a carriage to take them over to Sonya’s family estate.
”So what is it like being the daughter of a family like this? asked Bruin as they sat in the comfortable seats of the carriage.
“I don’t know...” Sonya said after a moment of thought. “I suppose it’s comfortable, I always got to do what I wanted, though people used to come and try to attack us. Apparently they were rival families that our family surpassed.” Sonya recalled, seemingly unaffected by the incidents, since she knew none were successful. “After a while, though, they stopped, and it was peaceful, again. Father always seems under stress, though.”
”If I remember right your family forks up a lot of money to support the army on top of the people they supply. That can’t be an easy thing to manage.” answered Bruin. ”My parents were always in debt so we didn’t have much. As soon as I could I ran away to the army. Hasn’t exactly gone as planned…”
“Father’s always nervous around Chief Soul, as well. I wonder why…” Sonya genuinely seemed curious. Despite the obvious frightening things he could turn into, she had the impression that Soul was a trustworthy person; that he only showed his fangs in battle, among other things. “That’s very sad…” She responded to Bruin’s circumstance. “Have they been able to recover? Have you gone to visit them, recently?”
”No need to. Nothing would have changed.” answered Bruin. ”I’m a lot better off just not knowing how they are doing.” Suddenly the carriage pulled to a halt. Looking outside of the carriage Bruin could see Sonya’s manor. It somehow seemed bigger than the last time he saw it. ”Looks like we are here,” said Bruin opening the door. He held it open so that Sonya could exit as well.
Sonya was somewhat saddened by Bruin’s response, but understood his circumstances. When they arrived at her home, her father and sister ran up to her and hugged Sonya tightly. She was surprised, but pleased. “Long time, no see, Father, Sister!” She told them with an innocent smile. “This is Bruin, an elite in the Army.” She introduced Bruin.
Releasing Sonya from their embrace for only a moment they looked at the stranger. Sonya’s father was simply glad that it was not Soul that had come to visit once again, while Sara was rather disappointed that he didn’t show up.
”Welcome, Bruin.” said Sonya’s father. ”Why don’t we go inside and get a bit more comfortable?” Sonya’s father quickly ushered them inside and the group sat on the couches in the living room. Bruin looked around a bit overwhelmed at how ritsy the place looked.
”Can we get you anything Bruin?” asked Sara.
”Some water would be fine.” answered Bruin. Sara looked to a butler that bowed before walking off to get the water.
“Let me get some, tea, too, please!” Sonya called out to the butler before he left the room completely. She saw him nod, indicating to Sonya that he got her order. Satisfied, she sat down onto the couch and quickly became comfortable.
”I have never been in a house like this. I guess in the military you have the lower ranks to order around, but it just isn’t the same you know?” commented Bruin.
”So how long have you been an elite? asked Sara as she crossed her hands over her lap. Bruin took a moment to think about when he first joined up with the elites.
”I suppose not that long before now. I was an apprentice under Emma for a while, but that ended before Masario. I was an elite a little before that I suppose. We were going to be sent into Raltese should they fail the initial attack. Good luck for us. I did not want to have to deal with Arkasia.”
“What happened at Raltese?” Sonya asked curiously. She was aware of the name Arkasia; it was the name of the commander of the Scion army, as Sonya recalled. She seemed like a strong woman to Sonya.
”We got what were supposed to get. That is all that our job was. That was thanks to your unit if I remember correctly.” answered Bruin. ”You seem to have left a pretty good impression on Soul and Marian.”
“Oh, right… that battle…” Sonya slumped her head. She remembered that skirmish was her first battle, in which her entire team was killed. She hardly knew many of the details of the objective, only that her team needed to infiltrate the enemy’s castle.
”Sorry if that brought back bad memories kid,” said Bruin with a sigh. He knew that she really wasn’t cut out for this line of work. It was cruel to put her through this. The servant that left before returned with their beverages and set them down on the table in front of them. Bruin took his water and took a satisfying drink.
“Oh, it’s fine, don’t worry…” She tried to seem like she had come to terms with it already, but she still felt some responsibility for the events that occurred there to this day. It weighed heavily on her. However, she had still managed to fight through other battles, and still endured several losses. Her motivation to remain with the Cursed Army was wavering, but she still felt an obligation to continue serving them; specifically Soul and Marian. What should I do…? Sonya seemed tormented by this choice.
She took her tea and drank some of it, and changed the subject so that she could at least try to shift her attitude to a more positive one. “So, Father, Sister, how have you two been while I was away? I’m sorry to have worried you all this time!” Sonya asked with a slightly forced smile.
”Things have been going well here. The war economy has always been kind to this family.” said Sonya’s father. He smiled with a bit of pride. ”But lets not talk about business. Tell me what has happened!”
Returning to Agreyus didn’t have all the bells and whistles it usually would this time. It was a small operation, and none of the civilians were informed of it. The most they got were small applause from the people in the streets at the moment. For some reason that made returning with less people feel even worse. Bruin looked at Sonya with her head hanging low and sighed.
”You going to be ok kid? asked Bruin.
“Huh…?” Sonya was in somewhat of a daze until Bruin called out to her. “Oh, I’m fine!” She replied while forcing a smile. She didn’t want Bruin to be so worried about her. However, Sonya couldn’t keep herself calm enough. She couldn’t stop thinking about Luna, Selanus, Alma, her old squad… many people she was acquainted with in the army who have disappeared one way or another. She promised she’d make up for them, but after two lost battles, Sonya wasn’t sure she’d be able to.
She thought about her family once again, and her thoughts began to waver. I wonder how Father and Sister are doing right now… They must be worried… Sonya had planned to visit her family once again, regardless, but Bruin’s suggestion came back to mind. Maybe you should stay home for a while? I don’t think the war life is for you. she recalled him saying. She was considering it, now. “They must be so worried…” She mumbled, inadvertently voicing her thoughts.
”Well we are officially on leave once we turn in these horses. You have all the time to see your folks. I’ll even escort you there. Maybe I can mooch some money off your folks.” joked Bruin.
Sonya had a small laugh, replying, “I don’t think they’d appreciate that!” Her mood was improved with that. “We should go to my home, then. I really want to see them!” Sonya told Bruin. She put her decision on hold for the moment; she still was unsure if she should return home for a short while, or remain in Cain’s army.
”Then it’s a date,” answered Bruin. As they then went into small talk their short ride through the city slowed to a halt at the gate. Parking their horses at the stables Bruin and Sonya called a carriage to take them over to Sonya’s family estate.
”So what is it like being the daughter of a family like this? asked Bruin as they sat in the comfortable seats of the carriage.
“I don’t know...” Sonya said after a moment of thought. “I suppose it’s comfortable, I always got to do what I wanted, though people used to come and try to attack us. Apparently they were rival families that our family surpassed.” Sonya recalled, seemingly unaffected by the incidents, since she knew none were successful. “After a while, though, they stopped, and it was peaceful, again. Father always seems under stress, though.”
”If I remember right your family forks up a lot of money to support the army on top of the people they supply. That can’t be an easy thing to manage.” answered Bruin. ”My parents were always in debt so we didn’t have much. As soon as I could I ran away to the army. Hasn’t exactly gone as planned…”
“Father’s always nervous around Chief Soul, as well. I wonder why…” Sonya genuinely seemed curious. Despite the obvious frightening things he could turn into, she had the impression that Soul was a trustworthy person; that he only showed his fangs in battle, among other things. “That’s very sad…” She responded to Bruin’s circumstance. “Have they been able to recover? Have you gone to visit them, recently?”
”No need to. Nothing would have changed.” answered Bruin. ”I’m a lot better off just not knowing how they are doing.” Suddenly the carriage pulled to a halt. Looking outside of the carriage Bruin could see Sonya’s manor. It somehow seemed bigger than the last time he saw it. ”Looks like we are here,” said Bruin opening the door. He held it open so that Sonya could exit as well.
Sonya was somewhat saddened by Bruin’s response, but understood his circumstances. When they arrived at her home, her father and sister ran up to her and hugged Sonya tightly. She was surprised, but pleased. “Long time, no see, Father, Sister!” She told them with an innocent smile. “This is Bruin, an elite in the Army.” She introduced Bruin.
Releasing Sonya from their embrace for only a moment they looked at the stranger. Sonya’s father was simply glad that it was not Soul that had come to visit once again, while Sara was rather disappointed that he didn’t show up.
”Welcome, Bruin.” said Sonya’s father. ”Why don’t we go inside and get a bit more comfortable?” Sonya’s father quickly ushered them inside and the group sat on the couches in the living room. Bruin looked around a bit overwhelmed at how ritsy the place looked.
”Can we get you anything Bruin?” asked Sara.
”Some water would be fine.” answered Bruin. Sara looked to a butler that bowed before walking off to get the water.
“Let me get some, tea, too, please!” Sonya called out to the butler before he left the room completely. She saw him nod, indicating to Sonya that he got her order. Satisfied, she sat down onto the couch and quickly became comfortable.
”I have never been in a house like this. I guess in the military you have the lower ranks to order around, but it just isn’t the same you know?” commented Bruin.
”So how long have you been an elite? asked Sara as she crossed her hands over her lap. Bruin took a moment to think about when he first joined up with the elites.
”I suppose not that long before now. I was an apprentice under Emma for a while, but that ended before Masario. I was an elite a little before that I suppose. We were going to be sent into Raltese should they fail the initial attack. Good luck for us. I did not want to have to deal with Arkasia.”
“What happened at Raltese?” Sonya asked curiously. She was aware of the name Arkasia; it was the name of the commander of the Scion army, as Sonya recalled. She seemed like a strong woman to Sonya.
”We got what were supposed to get. That is all that our job was. That was thanks to your unit if I remember correctly.” answered Bruin. ”You seem to have left a pretty good impression on Soul and Marian.”
“Oh, right… that battle…” Sonya slumped her head. She remembered that skirmish was her first battle, in which her entire team was killed. She hardly knew many of the details of the objective, only that her team needed to infiltrate the enemy’s castle.
”Sorry if that brought back bad memories kid,” said Bruin with a sigh. He knew that she really wasn’t cut out for this line of work. It was cruel to put her through this. The servant that left before returned with their beverages and set them down on the table in front of them. Bruin took his water and took a satisfying drink.
“Oh, it’s fine, don’t worry…” She tried to seem like she had come to terms with it already, but she still felt some responsibility for the events that occurred there to this day. It weighed heavily on her. However, she had still managed to fight through other battles, and still endured several losses. Her motivation to remain with the Cursed Army was wavering, but she still felt an obligation to continue serving them; specifically Soul and Marian. What should I do…? Sonya seemed tormented by this choice.
She took her tea and drank some of it, and changed the subject so that she could at least try to shift her attitude to a more positive one. “So, Father, Sister, how have you two been while I was away? I’m sorry to have worried you all this time!” Sonya asked with a slightly forced smile.
”Things have been going well here. The war economy has always been kind to this family.” said Sonya’s father. He smiled with a bit of pride. ”But lets not talk about business. Tell me what has happened!”
0
”Your family is pretty good with money, huh?” commented Bruin. ”All that talk of finances was a bit boring after a while.” Bruin and Sonya had went out to the backyard to get some fresh air. The fountain in the middle of the yard was complemented by statues of beautiful women and carefully lines shrubs.
“Yeah, I don’t really understand it, still, either…” Sonya replied in a discontented tone. Listening to her father ramble on about finances nearly bores her to sleep. “He often has complaints about our servants, too. Some of them were once members of the rival families. Sometimes he doesn’t want to pay them,” she added, with a bit of a giggle. Due to those houses dissolving, those servants swore loyalty to the Milan household, and could be trusted. Sonya’s father was still wary of them, though.
”Sounds rough, but power always comes with enemies.” answered Bruin looking too the fountain. As Sonya looked at him he seemed to be completely lost in thought. It was a few minutes before he said anything at all. ”Things are getting worse and worse here in Agreyus, but you can’t see it from your house. You ever thought about leaving this cursed place?”
"I sometimes have... With everything that has happened, I've certainly considered it..." Sonya replied softly. "I had to fight in many losing battles, and I've lost my friends as quickly as I make them... Most have died, disappeared, or have been captured..." She looked down and tried to hold back tears, before continuing. "Maybe you were right: perhaps, I should settle down a bit at home... What should I tell Representative Marian and Chief Soul, though? I feel like I'm betraying them..." She asked, distraught with her decision. Sonya knew that staying back would probably be better for her, but she couldn't stomach the fact that she would be turning her back to those two, as well as abandoning her chances to search for her lost comrades.
”I’m sure that Marian would understand. I know a bit more than the average soldier.” answered Bruin taping on his forehead. ”But Soul is way too difficult to read. For some reason he has had his eye set on you for a while.Why is that?”
"I suppose I've been able to survive this many battles... He's the one who offered me to join the Army, so maybe he's observing me...?" Sonya tilted her head in slight confusion as she tried to search for an answer. "I hope he won't be disappointed with this decision... Chief Soul has taken such good care of me during my time in the Army; I feel like I owe him..."
”That is what they want from you kid. They will use us until our use is up. Then discard as easy as they did Luna…” answered Bruin. ”I’ve given it a lot of thought. I’m not staying here another night. I suggest you do the same.”
Bruin's declaration shocked Sonya. "W-wait, what do you mean...? A-are you leaving the Army, too...?" Her eyes were wide, and she was shaking in nervousness. Images of everyone she's ever met that had disappeared one way or another flashed through her head. She couldn't stand it anymore. "Are… Are you leaving me, too...?" She had only intended to rest at her home for some time, to perhaps let time heal her traumas. Sonya couldn't imagine that Bruin meant for her to desert the Army entirely. Tears rolled down her cheek as she stared at Bruin.
”Look kid I am trying to help you here. This place is only going to get worse as time goes on. You can come with me if you want.” answered Bruin.
Sonya continued to stare at Bruin blankly, unsatisfied with his response. So he is leaving... Just like Luna... just like Selanus... just like that boy, and all my squadmates... She was shaking uncontrollably, barely containing her emotions. "No, you can't leave... You're the only one left!" She couldn't hold back anymore and reached for Bruin's throat, intent on making sure he was unable to leave, under any circumstance.
As her fingers wrapped around his throat Bruin grasped at her hands. ”Las...come to your…” choked out Bruin. Looked at her expression her eyes were wide open with a grin across her face. He wasn’t sure what set her off, but she meant to kill him. Fighting for air a small flame formed built on his finger, and began to burn at her arm.
Sonya ignored the pain for as long as she could as she tightened her grip around Bruin's throat, but after a few moments, she was forced to pull her arm away. Her skin was flayed where Bruin had burned her. Angered by this, she scratched at Bruin's face a few times and with a lust for blood in her eyes. She was blind to everything else. All she could think about was putting down Bruin. She lunged forward and clawed at his throat once more.
Bruin breathed deep as the flames on his hands erupted swallowing his body the flames licking at Sonya’s hands as she reached for his neck. ”Stop it! Come to your senses Sonya!” yelled Bruin as he stepped back away from her. With each step his flames set flame to the once beautiful garden. Sonya began pacing back and forth looking for a way in. Bruin knew he couldn’t keep his pseudo barrier up for long, but he didn’t want to harm Sonya more than he already had. Suddenly as he stepped back he felt something sharp at the bottom of his back. As tried to turn the sharp object shot through his abdomen in an instant.
Bruin’s flames began to dim slowly as he grasped at the foreign object. A blade formed of bone, and flesh. ”No why don’t we keep this going.” said Soul kicking Bruin from his transformed arm. Bruin scattered to the floor grabbing his stomach as he started bleeding out fast. His flames we almost all but out. Looking up to Sonya he saw nothing but a playful grin.
”You were already lost…” muttered Bruin.
Sonya giggled maliciously, seeing Bruin sitting in a pool of his own blood. She looked over at Soul, and bowed her head to him. "Thank you for coming to my aid yet again, Chief Soul! I don't know what I could've done without you..." Her voice trailed off as she returned her gaze to Bruin, glaring at him with a stern expression. "I couldn't believe he planned to betray us..."
”Exactly what you are going to do now. Finish him off.” said Soul motioning for Bruin with his sword arm. Bruin started crawling trying to get away from the two. Clawing at the soil he pulled himself along the dirt and flames he started earlier.
”What is the meaning of this!?” yelled Sonya’s father coming out to the garden. Seeing Soul her father stopped in his tracks.
Sonya disregarded her father as she made her way toward Bruin. She planted her heel into his wrist to prevent him from crawling further away, and kicked him several times in the face, puncturing his eyes with her shoes, dislocating his jaw so that it hung loose, then moving onto his ribs, where she drove her foot until it sank deeper than it should have into his chest. Bruin had become nearly unrecognizable, as he gasped his final breaths, bleeding from various locations of his body. Sonya rolled his body into a part of a garden which Bruin's flames had completely consumed, and watched as he burned in his last few moments. Sonya wore an emotionless expression, but breathed heavily as she stared at Bruin, now unmoving.
”Such is the fate of a traitor...I heard all that you were talking about. I can see at least you are still loyal to the king.” said Soul as his sword changed shape back to his regular arm. ”And I think you deserve some sort of....reward for uncovering this man’s plot. Don’t you?”
Sonya turned to Soul but lowered her head, slightly shamed. She told him, "I had only planned to take a short leave from the Army to recuperate... I didn't expect that Bruin wanted me to leave the country entirely... I'm sorry if I caused a misunderstanding..." She looked up and asserted herself, reassuring Soul by saying, "I have always remained loyal to the King's Army. It was merely my determination that wavered. I swear that it will not happen again."
Soul walked over to Bruin scratching his arm. With a bone-crunching sound his arm split open as flesh tendrils dragged Bruin into himself. The man was shredded and assimilated in an instant. The flames that enveloped him where snuffed out with the last of the man’s life. Soul patted his stomach satisfied. ”Perfect…” he answered appearing to ignore Sonya’s excuses. His arm that split apart reformed as Bruin’s blood dripped off his fingers. Bringing them up to his lips he licked them clean as he looked as Sonya with a smile.
”I know it won’t…” answered Soul. ”But that might be my fault. I didn’t properly motivate you.” Walking up to her he seized her by the chin and brought her lips close to his. Sonya’s father balled up his fist and headed out into the burning garden.
”Sonya get away from him! Was one of my daughters not enough for you, monster!?” he shouted.
It wasn't Sonya who closed the final gap. Gisa's influence grew strong after Sonya's psychotic episode. Since Sonya's grasp on her own mind was loosened, her spirit took the opportunity to assume some amount of control. She couldn't fully take over Sonya, though. Sonya, herself, had her eyes wide open in shock. She did not understand a thing that was happening ever since her initial scuffle with Bruin.
Parting Sonya’s lips Soul brought a smile to his own. This girl was on the border of losing her mind, and he was drinking of this insanity like a fine wine. Guards filed out to the garden. Some went straight to fire control while others hesitantly surround Soul and Sonya. Pulling away from Sonya soul turned to the guards.
”Stand down. I already have eaten my fill.” said Soul as he straightened out his right hand. The fingers began to fuse together and and bone cut through skin to form a blade along the edge. The rest of his arm began to take the shape of a sword as well.
”What are you waiting for! Deal with this blight upon the city. We have dealt with this for too long!” yelled Sonya’s father. The guards began to close in on Soul watching for any sudden movements. As Soul raised his left arm the guards ran off leaving their weapons behind. Soul simply scratched the back of his head and laughed loudly. ”What the fuck was that?!” yelled Soul looking after the fleeing guards. Looking at Sonya’s father he saw he was absolutely livid. Placing a hand on Sonya’s head he spun her around to face her father. ”Go and deal with him, but leave him alive ok?”
Sonya was unable to speak, but her spirit took action for her. She still didn't have a complete grasp of reality yet, but she hear Gisa speak within her, instructing Sonya what she was told to do. Go punish your father... He's been a bad boy as well... It has been a while since Gisa had been so active, it surprised Sonya. But her spirit had always guided her in the right direction. Now should be no different. Sonya didn't realize exactly what she was being made to do, however.
Once Sonya was directly in front of her father, she kicked him between the legs, causing him enough pain to bring him to his knees. She then scratched at his face, digging her nails deep under his skin and scarring him. Afterward, she pulled his hair with one hand, holding his head in place, and suddenly brought her knee to his forehead, knocking him to the floor unconscious. He wasn't moving much, but was clearly still breathing. Sonya turned to Soul after the deed was done.
”Hehehe, you really have grown heartless haven’t you. I expected you to hesitate just a little bit.” said Soul walking over to her father raising his blade arm into the air. ”But as it stands this man tried to attack me. With this you will have a new head to the family…”
”Stop!” yelled Sara as she leapt out in front of Sonya’s father. Shielding him from the blow. Slowing his strike he made only a small incision into her neck. ”Get out of the way.” said Soul raising his blade once more.
Sonya had regained control of her body as she saw Soul raise his blade against Sara, causing her to take action and pull her away. What the hell are you doing!? Gisa demanded an answer from Sonya. "Sara didn't do anything wrong... Only my father, right...?" Sonya replied out loud, desperately. She just stood against Soul! Gisa explained angrily. She was in some danger as well, she lived within Sonya, and thus, sometimes to her frustration, was bound to her.
Bringing down his sword he sliced Sonya’s father in half by the waist. A ruby spray coated the three as Soul slowly pulled his blade free of the corpse. A low quiet laugh soon became loud and insane as Soul relished in the display. Sara struggle and pulled away from Sonya to be by her father. Cradling his head as the last bit of life flowed from him.
”Father…” she said mournfully.
“And so the roles change. Congratulations are in order. said Soul looking down on Sara. “I hope that you will do better to mind your station.”
Sara stood up shaking in wroth. ”You killed a man for the crime of trying to protect his daughters!”
“No I killed a man for the crime of treason. A punishment I have no problem giving twice in one night. I’ve played with you enough anyways.” Soul answered licking his lips. Sara grabbed a knife from her belt and charged for Soul. Souls left bone broke at the elbow and fell loose as it extended to the ground. Then like a snake it sprung at Sara grabbing her by the throat cutting off her air. Then violently it ripped her to Soul as he gazed into her eyes waiting for the final bits of life to be snuffed out. Panicked she began to stab at Soul with decreasingly effective results. Her strength began to fade along with her oxygen.
Suddenly three scissors stabbed into Soul’s arm. The arm decayed and rotted off falling to the ground, and Sara was freed. Sara coughed violently as she fought to breathe again. Marian stood at the edge of the garden with both swords drawn. “What in the devil’s name do you think you are doing!?” yelled Marain. Useless to him now Soul abandoned the arm severing it at the shoulder as it fell to the ground and began to decay.
“It is so rude to interrupt someone in the middle of dinner.” said Soul as his sword arm began to change shape. Tendril shot out from it and stabbed into Sonya and Sara’s father. Sara reached and grabbed her father's head, but seconds after it was ripped from her grasp as Soul devoured him in an instant. Sara began to cry loudly wiping away furiously at the tears.
“Sonya get your sister out of here!” ordered Marian.
"Y-yes, Ma'am!" Sonya complied without hesitation, though she took a moment to glance in the direction of her father. The sight was too gruesome for her to look upon for even a second. She escorted Sara to the frontmost room of the mansion, where they had all been earlier; Sonya was just talking to Bruin and her father in this room. Now they lay dead in the garden. She was shocked as well, but she wanted to be strong for her sister. This was yet another loss Sonya had experienced, and she was beginning to become numb to it. She was directly involved in their deaths, after all.
After Sara was out of the wa Marian slowly began to circle Soul. Soul smiled at her and simply followed her with his eyes as she paced around him. “What are you thinking you are going to do here? We have done this many times before, and it always ends the same.” said Soul.
Marian gripped her blades tightly and dashed in ignoring his words. Soul’s arm snapped into the shape of a shield, as he began to block Marian’s assault. Stabbing at a breakneck pace she was missing him by inches. Soul was simply playing with her. As she thought herself getting closer he widened his shield protecting himself further. Suddenly the center of Soul’s shield snapped open forming a giant hand. Marian leapt back but her foot got caught between his index finger and thumb. With a simple squeeze he snapped her foot at the ankle and slammed her on the ground. Marian called out in pain. Releasing her she began to crawl away.
Soul smirked as he began walking towards the weakened Marian licking his lips as a second mouth cracked open from his throat. Both spoke at the same time in a truly disgusting display. ”How foolish of you to challenge the first C-” said Soul before his head crashed to the ground. His headless body slumped to the ground without commands from his brain.
”Who-?!” yelled Soul. Sonya peeked out hoping that her commanding officers we finished. A long haired redheaded woman in red, gold, and black armor stood holding a broadsword. A black cape flowed gently in the breeze. Her gold and red breast-plate gave her the appearance of high rank, but Sonya had never laid eyes on her before. As Sonya gaze at the woman’s eyes she found them looking back at her. A glow of crimson showing unbridled fury.
”Lives are thrown away with such reckless abandon.” said the woman. Her voice was strong and commanding. ”But not on the battle field. Instead on our own soil, by our own hands. I have truly been away far too long.” The woman swatted Soul’s blood from her blade and sheathed her sword.
”Marian!” yelled Emma running into the garden, and to Marian’s side. She helped her up the best she could with her short stature. The red maiden looked to Soul starting to rebuild himself his head inched for his body.
”Why must such a foul creature be tolerated…” complained the woman. Soul responded in a garbled voice, side effect of his incomplete throat, and that simply fueled the woman’s rage. Stomping on him she forced his body to the ground and severely slowed his healing. He writhed under each stomp. Marian was at a loss for words. Never had she seen him struggle against any opponent. This woman was making him appear as a child’s plaything.
”Oh you are fortunate to have Cain’s affection. I will stop here today.” said the woman casting a look at his broken body. Looking back over to the doorway where Sonya was hiding she called out. ”Come here child let me get a look at you.”
Sonya stayed put. Enemies of Soul were usually decimated in a moment. This woman, on the other hand, had made quick work of him, instead. She didn't dare to risk herself. She was already channeling Gisa's energy in case she needed to defend herself, and her spirit graciously complied. Both were worried, as Sonya continued to stare at the woman from the doorway.
”I will not ask you again.” said the woman crossing her arms across her chest. Soul began to squirm under her heel and she stomped hard pinning him to the ground. ”You have a part in this as well don’t you?
“She is just a child,” said Marian looking up at the woman.
”She stopped being a child a long time ago.” snapped the woman in response. ”She happens to be the reason that I am here tonight…”
Soul's unfortunate state was worrying Sonya. Usually he'd pull himself together more quickly than this. But, he always does eventually; at least, that was her hope for this instance. She remained still, keeping her guard strong in case the mysterious woman attempted anything. Sonya was uncertain she could defeat this woman if she could defeat Soul. Exposing herself to this woman could be extremely dangerous. If Soul wasn't going to recover soon, though, she thought that she may have no choice but to try to rescue him.
Stepping off of Soul he began to slowly come back together. The farther she was from him the faster he seemed to regenerate, but as he stood it was obvious that he was still in a lot of pain. ”Long do I miss the days when this army was trained by men of worth.” said the woman walking over to Sonya. Sonya tensed up as she got to about a few paces away. The woman stopped at that point and looked over Sonya closely. ”There is potential. Not much.” said the woman to herself. Marian pushed Emma to help her get closer.
After the display this woman had just shown, Sonya started to quiver slightly as the woman walked toward her.
”She isn’t suited for it. You are wasting your time.” said Marian acting more than a little desperate.
Ignoring Marian the woman spoke once again to Sonya. ”Your father is dead, what are your plans now?” asked the woman.
Sonya was stunned for a moment when the woman spoke to her, but the moment she regained her bearings, she spoke. "I will continue to serve Cain's army. I want to keep my sister safe in our territory." Sonya looked directly into the woman's eyes as she said this.
”You are a foolish child, but I will not stop you from doing this.” answered the woman. ”I will train you. There is a use for you, but it will take everything from you. Is everything something you are willing to give?” Looking to Marian she saw her look away to avoid her gaze. Her sister behind the wall just looked lifeless. This decision she would have to come up with on her own.
"If it gives me the strength to protect my family and find my friends, then I'll do it... but only if you promise never to hurt my comrades ever again..." Sonya replied, while glancing over at Soul. She had much to suspect from this woman, especially after what she had just done, but there was no denying her strength. Sonya thought she may learn something useful for coming battles if she follows the woman's instructions.
”What is left of your family anyways…” answered the woman. ”I guess it is time that I introduce myself. True head of the elites, Tiance Verdelet. As for Soul I will still be keeping him in line. I don’t have the patience to clean up his messes all the time like this.”
Soul had finally rebuilt himself, and his bones reconnected with a snap. ”Ugh, why wasn’t I told that you were back?” complained Soul as he stood up. Looking at Marian and Emma he smirked. ”Don’t expect me to thank you.” Marian stayed silent, and Emma stood protective over her glaring at Soul.
”Sonya, you now have the title of representative initiate. I hope you are prepared for what that entails.” said Tiance. ”I will see you again soon. Settle anything that would get in the way of your training." She said motioning to her sister, Sara.
“Yeah, I don’t really understand it, still, either…” Sonya replied in a discontented tone. Listening to her father ramble on about finances nearly bores her to sleep. “He often has complaints about our servants, too. Some of them were once members of the rival families. Sometimes he doesn’t want to pay them,” she added, with a bit of a giggle. Due to those houses dissolving, those servants swore loyalty to the Milan household, and could be trusted. Sonya’s father was still wary of them, though.
”Sounds rough, but power always comes with enemies.” answered Bruin looking too the fountain. As Sonya looked at him he seemed to be completely lost in thought. It was a few minutes before he said anything at all. ”Things are getting worse and worse here in Agreyus, but you can’t see it from your house. You ever thought about leaving this cursed place?”
"I sometimes have... With everything that has happened, I've certainly considered it..." Sonya replied softly. "I had to fight in many losing battles, and I've lost my friends as quickly as I make them... Most have died, disappeared, or have been captured..." She looked down and tried to hold back tears, before continuing. "Maybe you were right: perhaps, I should settle down a bit at home... What should I tell Representative Marian and Chief Soul, though? I feel like I'm betraying them..." She asked, distraught with her decision. Sonya knew that staying back would probably be better for her, but she couldn't stomach the fact that she would be turning her back to those two, as well as abandoning her chances to search for her lost comrades.
”I’m sure that Marian would understand. I know a bit more than the average soldier.” answered Bruin taping on his forehead. ”But Soul is way too difficult to read. For some reason he has had his eye set on you for a while.Why is that?”
"I suppose I've been able to survive this many battles... He's the one who offered me to join the Army, so maybe he's observing me...?" Sonya tilted her head in slight confusion as she tried to search for an answer. "I hope he won't be disappointed with this decision... Chief Soul has taken such good care of me during my time in the Army; I feel like I owe him..."
”That is what they want from you kid. They will use us until our use is up. Then discard as easy as they did Luna…” answered Bruin. ”I’ve given it a lot of thought. I’m not staying here another night. I suggest you do the same.”
Bruin's declaration shocked Sonya. "W-wait, what do you mean...? A-are you leaving the Army, too...?" Her eyes were wide, and she was shaking in nervousness. Images of everyone she's ever met that had disappeared one way or another flashed through her head. She couldn't stand it anymore. "Are… Are you leaving me, too...?" She had only intended to rest at her home for some time, to perhaps let time heal her traumas. Sonya couldn't imagine that Bruin meant for her to desert the Army entirely. Tears rolled down her cheek as she stared at Bruin.
”Look kid I am trying to help you here. This place is only going to get worse as time goes on. You can come with me if you want.” answered Bruin.
Sonya continued to stare at Bruin blankly, unsatisfied with his response. So he is leaving... Just like Luna... just like Selanus... just like that boy, and all my squadmates... She was shaking uncontrollably, barely containing her emotions. "No, you can't leave... You're the only one left!" She couldn't hold back anymore and reached for Bruin's throat, intent on making sure he was unable to leave, under any circumstance.
As her fingers wrapped around his throat Bruin grasped at her hands. ”Las...come to your…” choked out Bruin. Looked at her expression her eyes were wide open with a grin across her face. He wasn’t sure what set her off, but she meant to kill him. Fighting for air a small flame formed built on his finger, and began to burn at her arm.
Sonya ignored the pain for as long as she could as she tightened her grip around Bruin's throat, but after a few moments, she was forced to pull her arm away. Her skin was flayed where Bruin had burned her. Angered by this, she scratched at Bruin's face a few times and with a lust for blood in her eyes. She was blind to everything else. All she could think about was putting down Bruin. She lunged forward and clawed at his throat once more.
Bruin breathed deep as the flames on his hands erupted swallowing his body the flames licking at Sonya’s hands as she reached for his neck. ”Stop it! Come to your senses Sonya!” yelled Bruin as he stepped back away from her. With each step his flames set flame to the once beautiful garden. Sonya began pacing back and forth looking for a way in. Bruin knew he couldn’t keep his pseudo barrier up for long, but he didn’t want to harm Sonya more than he already had. Suddenly as he stepped back he felt something sharp at the bottom of his back. As tried to turn the sharp object shot through his abdomen in an instant.
Bruin’s flames began to dim slowly as he grasped at the foreign object. A blade formed of bone, and flesh. ”No why don’t we keep this going.” said Soul kicking Bruin from his transformed arm. Bruin scattered to the floor grabbing his stomach as he started bleeding out fast. His flames we almost all but out. Looking up to Sonya he saw nothing but a playful grin.
”You were already lost…” muttered Bruin.
Sonya giggled maliciously, seeing Bruin sitting in a pool of his own blood. She looked over at Soul, and bowed her head to him. "Thank you for coming to my aid yet again, Chief Soul! I don't know what I could've done without you..." Her voice trailed off as she returned her gaze to Bruin, glaring at him with a stern expression. "I couldn't believe he planned to betray us..."
”Exactly what you are going to do now. Finish him off.” said Soul motioning for Bruin with his sword arm. Bruin started crawling trying to get away from the two. Clawing at the soil he pulled himself along the dirt and flames he started earlier.
”What is the meaning of this!?” yelled Sonya’s father coming out to the garden. Seeing Soul her father stopped in his tracks.
Sonya disregarded her father as she made her way toward Bruin. She planted her heel into his wrist to prevent him from crawling further away, and kicked him several times in the face, puncturing his eyes with her shoes, dislocating his jaw so that it hung loose, then moving onto his ribs, where she drove her foot until it sank deeper than it should have into his chest. Bruin had become nearly unrecognizable, as he gasped his final breaths, bleeding from various locations of his body. Sonya rolled his body into a part of a garden which Bruin's flames had completely consumed, and watched as he burned in his last few moments. Sonya wore an emotionless expression, but breathed heavily as she stared at Bruin, now unmoving.
”Such is the fate of a traitor...I heard all that you were talking about. I can see at least you are still loyal to the king.” said Soul as his sword changed shape back to his regular arm. ”And I think you deserve some sort of....reward for uncovering this man’s plot. Don’t you?”
Sonya turned to Soul but lowered her head, slightly shamed. She told him, "I had only planned to take a short leave from the Army to recuperate... I didn't expect that Bruin wanted me to leave the country entirely... I'm sorry if I caused a misunderstanding..." She looked up and asserted herself, reassuring Soul by saying, "I have always remained loyal to the King's Army. It was merely my determination that wavered. I swear that it will not happen again."
Soul walked over to Bruin scratching his arm. With a bone-crunching sound his arm split open as flesh tendrils dragged Bruin into himself. The man was shredded and assimilated in an instant. The flames that enveloped him where snuffed out with the last of the man’s life. Soul patted his stomach satisfied. ”Perfect…” he answered appearing to ignore Sonya’s excuses. His arm that split apart reformed as Bruin’s blood dripped off his fingers. Bringing them up to his lips he licked them clean as he looked as Sonya with a smile.
”I know it won’t…” answered Soul. ”But that might be my fault. I didn’t properly motivate you.” Walking up to her he seized her by the chin and brought her lips close to his. Sonya’s father balled up his fist and headed out into the burning garden.
”Sonya get away from him! Was one of my daughters not enough for you, monster!?” he shouted.
It wasn't Sonya who closed the final gap. Gisa's influence grew strong after Sonya's psychotic episode. Since Sonya's grasp on her own mind was loosened, her spirit took the opportunity to assume some amount of control. She couldn't fully take over Sonya, though. Sonya, herself, had her eyes wide open in shock. She did not understand a thing that was happening ever since her initial scuffle with Bruin.
Parting Sonya’s lips Soul brought a smile to his own. This girl was on the border of losing her mind, and he was drinking of this insanity like a fine wine. Guards filed out to the garden. Some went straight to fire control while others hesitantly surround Soul and Sonya. Pulling away from Sonya soul turned to the guards.
”Stand down. I already have eaten my fill.” said Soul as he straightened out his right hand. The fingers began to fuse together and and bone cut through skin to form a blade along the edge. The rest of his arm began to take the shape of a sword as well.
”What are you waiting for! Deal with this blight upon the city. We have dealt with this for too long!” yelled Sonya’s father. The guards began to close in on Soul watching for any sudden movements. As Soul raised his left arm the guards ran off leaving their weapons behind. Soul simply scratched the back of his head and laughed loudly. ”What the fuck was that?!” yelled Soul looking after the fleeing guards. Looking at Sonya’s father he saw he was absolutely livid. Placing a hand on Sonya’s head he spun her around to face her father. ”Go and deal with him, but leave him alive ok?”
Sonya was unable to speak, but her spirit took action for her. She still didn't have a complete grasp of reality yet, but she hear Gisa speak within her, instructing Sonya what she was told to do. Go punish your father... He's been a bad boy as well... It has been a while since Gisa had been so active, it surprised Sonya. But her spirit had always guided her in the right direction. Now should be no different. Sonya didn't realize exactly what she was being made to do, however.
Once Sonya was directly in front of her father, she kicked him between the legs, causing him enough pain to bring him to his knees. She then scratched at his face, digging her nails deep under his skin and scarring him. Afterward, she pulled his hair with one hand, holding his head in place, and suddenly brought her knee to his forehead, knocking him to the floor unconscious. He wasn't moving much, but was clearly still breathing. Sonya turned to Soul after the deed was done.
”Hehehe, you really have grown heartless haven’t you. I expected you to hesitate just a little bit.” said Soul walking over to her father raising his blade arm into the air. ”But as it stands this man tried to attack me. With this you will have a new head to the family…”
”Stop!” yelled Sara as she leapt out in front of Sonya’s father. Shielding him from the blow. Slowing his strike he made only a small incision into her neck. ”Get out of the way.” said Soul raising his blade once more.
Sonya had regained control of her body as she saw Soul raise his blade against Sara, causing her to take action and pull her away. What the hell are you doing!? Gisa demanded an answer from Sonya. "Sara didn't do anything wrong... Only my father, right...?" Sonya replied out loud, desperately. She just stood against Soul! Gisa explained angrily. She was in some danger as well, she lived within Sonya, and thus, sometimes to her frustration, was bound to her.
Bringing down his sword he sliced Sonya’s father in half by the waist. A ruby spray coated the three as Soul slowly pulled his blade free of the corpse. A low quiet laugh soon became loud and insane as Soul relished in the display. Sara struggle and pulled away from Sonya to be by her father. Cradling his head as the last bit of life flowed from him.
”Father…” she said mournfully.
“And so the roles change. Congratulations are in order. said Soul looking down on Sara. “I hope that you will do better to mind your station.”
Sara stood up shaking in wroth. ”You killed a man for the crime of trying to protect his daughters!”
“No I killed a man for the crime of treason. A punishment I have no problem giving twice in one night. I’ve played with you enough anyways.” Soul answered licking his lips. Sara grabbed a knife from her belt and charged for Soul. Souls left bone broke at the elbow and fell loose as it extended to the ground. Then like a snake it sprung at Sara grabbing her by the throat cutting off her air. Then violently it ripped her to Soul as he gazed into her eyes waiting for the final bits of life to be snuffed out. Panicked she began to stab at Soul with decreasingly effective results. Her strength began to fade along with her oxygen.
Suddenly three scissors stabbed into Soul’s arm. The arm decayed and rotted off falling to the ground, and Sara was freed. Sara coughed violently as she fought to breathe again. Marian stood at the edge of the garden with both swords drawn. “What in the devil’s name do you think you are doing!?” yelled Marain. Useless to him now Soul abandoned the arm severing it at the shoulder as it fell to the ground and began to decay.
“It is so rude to interrupt someone in the middle of dinner.” said Soul as his sword arm began to change shape. Tendril shot out from it and stabbed into Sonya and Sara’s father. Sara reached and grabbed her father's head, but seconds after it was ripped from her grasp as Soul devoured him in an instant. Sara began to cry loudly wiping away furiously at the tears.
“Sonya get your sister out of here!” ordered Marian.
"Y-yes, Ma'am!" Sonya complied without hesitation, though she took a moment to glance in the direction of her father. The sight was too gruesome for her to look upon for even a second. She escorted Sara to the frontmost room of the mansion, where they had all been earlier; Sonya was just talking to Bruin and her father in this room. Now they lay dead in the garden. She was shocked as well, but she wanted to be strong for her sister. This was yet another loss Sonya had experienced, and she was beginning to become numb to it. She was directly involved in their deaths, after all.
After Sara was out of the wa Marian slowly began to circle Soul. Soul smiled at her and simply followed her with his eyes as she paced around him. “What are you thinking you are going to do here? We have done this many times before, and it always ends the same.” said Soul.
Marian gripped her blades tightly and dashed in ignoring his words. Soul’s arm snapped into the shape of a shield, as he began to block Marian’s assault. Stabbing at a breakneck pace she was missing him by inches. Soul was simply playing with her. As she thought herself getting closer he widened his shield protecting himself further. Suddenly the center of Soul’s shield snapped open forming a giant hand. Marian leapt back but her foot got caught between his index finger and thumb. With a simple squeeze he snapped her foot at the ankle and slammed her on the ground. Marian called out in pain. Releasing her she began to crawl away.
Soul smirked as he began walking towards the weakened Marian licking his lips as a second mouth cracked open from his throat. Both spoke at the same time in a truly disgusting display. ”How foolish of you to challenge the first C-” said Soul before his head crashed to the ground. His headless body slumped to the ground without commands from his brain.
”Who-?!” yelled Soul. Sonya peeked out hoping that her commanding officers we finished. A long haired redheaded woman in red, gold, and black armor stood holding a broadsword. A black cape flowed gently in the breeze. Her gold and red breast-plate gave her the appearance of high rank, but Sonya had never laid eyes on her before. As Sonya gaze at the woman’s eyes she found them looking back at her. A glow of crimson showing unbridled fury.
”Lives are thrown away with such reckless abandon.” said the woman. Her voice was strong and commanding. ”But not on the battle field. Instead on our own soil, by our own hands. I have truly been away far too long.” The woman swatted Soul’s blood from her blade and sheathed her sword.
”Marian!” yelled Emma running into the garden, and to Marian’s side. She helped her up the best she could with her short stature. The red maiden looked to Soul starting to rebuild himself his head inched for his body.
”Why must such a foul creature be tolerated…” complained the woman. Soul responded in a garbled voice, side effect of his incomplete throat, and that simply fueled the woman’s rage. Stomping on him she forced his body to the ground and severely slowed his healing. He writhed under each stomp. Marian was at a loss for words. Never had she seen him struggle against any opponent. This woman was making him appear as a child’s plaything.
”Oh you are fortunate to have Cain’s affection. I will stop here today.” said the woman casting a look at his broken body. Looking back over to the doorway where Sonya was hiding she called out. ”Come here child let me get a look at you.”
Sonya stayed put. Enemies of Soul were usually decimated in a moment. This woman, on the other hand, had made quick work of him, instead. She didn't dare to risk herself. She was already channeling Gisa's energy in case she needed to defend herself, and her spirit graciously complied. Both were worried, as Sonya continued to stare at the woman from the doorway.
”I will not ask you again.” said the woman crossing her arms across her chest. Soul began to squirm under her heel and she stomped hard pinning him to the ground. ”You have a part in this as well don’t you?
“She is just a child,” said Marian looking up at the woman.
”She stopped being a child a long time ago.” snapped the woman in response. ”She happens to be the reason that I am here tonight…”
Soul's unfortunate state was worrying Sonya. Usually he'd pull himself together more quickly than this. But, he always does eventually; at least, that was her hope for this instance. She remained still, keeping her guard strong in case the mysterious woman attempted anything. Sonya was uncertain she could defeat this woman if she could defeat Soul. Exposing herself to this woman could be extremely dangerous. If Soul wasn't going to recover soon, though, she thought that she may have no choice but to try to rescue him.
Stepping off of Soul he began to slowly come back together. The farther she was from him the faster he seemed to regenerate, but as he stood it was obvious that he was still in a lot of pain. ”Long do I miss the days when this army was trained by men of worth.” said the woman walking over to Sonya. Sonya tensed up as she got to about a few paces away. The woman stopped at that point and looked over Sonya closely. ”There is potential. Not much.” said the woman to herself. Marian pushed Emma to help her get closer.
After the display this woman had just shown, Sonya started to quiver slightly as the woman walked toward her.
”She isn’t suited for it. You are wasting your time.” said Marian acting more than a little desperate.
Ignoring Marian the woman spoke once again to Sonya. ”Your father is dead, what are your plans now?” asked the woman.
Sonya was stunned for a moment when the woman spoke to her, but the moment she regained her bearings, she spoke. "I will continue to serve Cain's army. I want to keep my sister safe in our territory." Sonya looked directly into the woman's eyes as she said this.
”You are a foolish child, but I will not stop you from doing this.” answered the woman. ”I will train you. There is a use for you, but it will take everything from you. Is everything something you are willing to give?” Looking to Marian she saw her look away to avoid her gaze. Her sister behind the wall just looked lifeless. This decision she would have to come up with on her own.
"If it gives me the strength to protect my family and find my friends, then I'll do it... but only if you promise never to hurt my comrades ever again..." Sonya replied, while glancing over at Soul. She had much to suspect from this woman, especially after what she had just done, but there was no denying her strength. Sonya thought she may learn something useful for coming battles if she follows the woman's instructions.
”What is left of your family anyways…” answered the woman. ”I guess it is time that I introduce myself. True head of the elites, Tiance Verdelet. As for Soul I will still be keeping him in line. I don’t have the patience to clean up his messes all the time like this.”
Soul had finally rebuilt himself, and his bones reconnected with a snap. ”Ugh, why wasn’t I told that you were back?” complained Soul as he stood up. Looking at Marian and Emma he smirked. ”Don’t expect me to thank you.” Marian stayed silent, and Emma stood protective over her glaring at Soul.
”Sonya, you now have the title of representative initiate. I hope you are prepared for what that entails.” said Tiance. ”I will see you again soon. Settle anything that would get in the way of your training." She said motioning to her sister, Sara.
0
By the end of the day, Grigs and Helena had cleared the bodies out of the house, and placed them in the carriage for the guards to take to be cremated. They were able to save most of the people in Origin, but their losses shook the village to its foundations. Both sides lost many in the past month, and somehow this brought them together. For now the labels of cursed and divine were lifted. These were just people trying to deal with the loss of their families.
”So where was Selanus headed off to again? He missed all the work.” complained Grigore. Helena shrugged taking off the gloves and apron she was using to move the bodies without getting coated in filth.
”I am supposed to keep an eye on him all the time? He is a grown man I am sure he can handle himself. He probably can’t handle dead bodies so well, and just wanted to get off the hook.” answered Helena. Suddenly from behind a passing carriage Selanus and Luna came into view crossing the busy street when the time was right. Most of the town was being cleaned at the moment, and the streets were full of workers.
Grigore looked at Luna and began taking off his gloves. ”Luna was it?” asked Grigore extending his hand.
"Yeah," Luna said connecting her hand with the man's and shaking it partly diplomatic. "You must be Grigore." Her blank expression unchanged with the new faces. She couldn’t help but avert her eyes from the bodies, however.
”Haven’t you seen enough of those already?” answered Helena seeing her interest in the bodies. Selanus chuckled at the barb as he moved to assist her with the bodies. ”Wait till you see her fight. At least these bodies are in one piece.”
Luna shook her head at the comments, if anything she was only flabbergasted how many people that boy had gotten to within a few seconds. She had no problem with cutting them down but they were still people in the long run. "I'm doing my job the only way I know how; these people were no different than any other person I had to kill." Luna replied modestly.
Selanus scoffed in reply, heaving as he chucked a particularly heavy corpse. ”Happen to me one too many times with my profession.” He wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of a clean hand and picked up Helena’s discarded apron. ”You’re not using this?”
”Knock yourself out.” said Helana. ”What are you using it for? Most of the work is already done.”
Selanus smiled to himself as he put it on, tying the knot seamlessly. ”I just don’t want my suit getting dirty. You know how expensive it is to remove stains?” After the nightmare of getting powdered by Anastas, he took to being a bit more conscious about his prized uniform.
"Come now, getting blood on your uniform ain't so bad," Luna jested, she almost wished she was joking from that notion. "As long as you can get past the smell of guts, you're fine." she then turned to the new faces faintly feeling the urge to strike up a conversation; friends of Selanus are friends of hers, right? "So, how do you guys know Selanus?" she asked as she hefted a body over her shoulder.
”I taught him everything that he knows.” answered Grigore. ”Everything except cooking that is.”
”I have only just met him.” answered Helena. ”So far he has proven to be mildly useful.” Looking around Helena was glad that there were no more bodies to dispose of. That meant that what they did had actually made a difference.
”You are a strange one aren’t you?” asked Grigore. ”Even I get a little queasy around bodies.”
Luna shrugged indifferently, her face remained blank and expressionless to the man. "If you have nothing to do with your spare time other than kill, you can easily get used to it." Luna replied simply, she talked almost as if killing was something of a career for her. "The matter of coping with the mental images of murder-- and being fine with it however, is something you would have to take on alone."
”The cursed lands have changed more than I thought since I took my leave…” answered Grigore. ”Back when I was running my unit we still understood the meaning of human life. Now it seems the lessons have become a bit distorted. Who is training the troops now?”
Looking back to Agreyus, Luna returned into the rumination of her former comrades, scowling as she did so. "Marian... that bitch." Luna said coldly. She'll just drop anyone who question her, won't she?"
”Marian? That little tyke.” answered Grigore with a smirk. ”I take it that Soul is still up to his old ways. Kudzu must have had it with the way things were going as well.”
”I’d imagine so, which would explain why he’d be out in the desert like that.” Luna replied. ”Soul however, spends most of his time eating opposed to racking his brain every now and again, I wouldn’t be surprised if that would classify as old ways.” She said, snorting at the thought.
”That sounds about right...How much is he eating now?” answered Grigore.
"More than what's considered humane." Answered Luna. "You saw his latest meal yourself...didn't you?" questioned Luna thinking back to that day. She scowled as she said this, the horror Soul had caused was going to stick with her for a while. Ironically, the man managed to top her overall kill count anyhow, it was a mystery Luna would be grimacing this in the first place.
’There isn’t much time left.’ thought Grigore to himself as he seemed rather distraught by Luna’s answer. ”Yes, I did, but I stopped him from eating too many. We are lucky that we were able to draw him away.” answered Grigore.
"I suppose that's all that matters, huh?" replied Luna rhetorically, feigning a slight hopelessness in her voice. "He's gonna pay, all of them. Him, that bastard Cain, the representatives-- Charlotte..." she growled, whispering that last part as lowly as possible.
”Guess getting left behind will do that to a person won’t it. Still you seem to have adjusted rather quickly.” said Helena.
"I was planning on giving 'em the slip anyhow. Any sane person would have after all that." replied Luna as she turned over to Helena. "I'm just doing this on my own terms at this point, going against the current." she said shrugging.
Hope you are a good swimmer,” answered Helena with a chuckle.
”Alright lets go and see who else needs some help Helena.” ordered Grigore starting to walk off. Helena sighed and followed him waving to Luna.
”Alright, but I’m not movin’ anymore bodies.” answered Helena.
”So where was Selanus headed off to again? He missed all the work.” complained Grigore. Helena shrugged taking off the gloves and apron she was using to move the bodies without getting coated in filth.
”I am supposed to keep an eye on him all the time? He is a grown man I am sure he can handle himself. He probably can’t handle dead bodies so well, and just wanted to get off the hook.” answered Helena. Suddenly from behind a passing carriage Selanus and Luna came into view crossing the busy street when the time was right. Most of the town was being cleaned at the moment, and the streets were full of workers.
Grigore looked at Luna and began taking off his gloves. ”Luna was it?” asked Grigore extending his hand.
"Yeah," Luna said connecting her hand with the man's and shaking it partly diplomatic. "You must be Grigore." Her blank expression unchanged with the new faces. She couldn’t help but avert her eyes from the bodies, however.
”Haven’t you seen enough of those already?” answered Helena seeing her interest in the bodies. Selanus chuckled at the barb as he moved to assist her with the bodies. ”Wait till you see her fight. At least these bodies are in one piece.”
Luna shook her head at the comments, if anything she was only flabbergasted how many people that boy had gotten to within a few seconds. She had no problem with cutting them down but they were still people in the long run. "I'm doing my job the only way I know how; these people were no different than any other person I had to kill." Luna replied modestly.
Selanus scoffed in reply, heaving as he chucked a particularly heavy corpse. ”Happen to me one too many times with my profession.” He wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of a clean hand and picked up Helena’s discarded apron. ”You’re not using this?”
”Knock yourself out.” said Helana. ”What are you using it for? Most of the work is already done.”
Selanus smiled to himself as he put it on, tying the knot seamlessly. ”I just don’t want my suit getting dirty. You know how expensive it is to remove stains?” After the nightmare of getting powdered by Anastas, he took to being a bit more conscious about his prized uniform.
"Come now, getting blood on your uniform ain't so bad," Luna jested, she almost wished she was joking from that notion. "As long as you can get past the smell of guts, you're fine." she then turned to the new faces faintly feeling the urge to strike up a conversation; friends of Selanus are friends of hers, right? "So, how do you guys know Selanus?" she asked as she hefted a body over her shoulder.
”I taught him everything that he knows.” answered Grigore. ”Everything except cooking that is.”
”I have only just met him.” answered Helena. ”So far he has proven to be mildly useful.” Looking around Helena was glad that there were no more bodies to dispose of. That meant that what they did had actually made a difference.
”You are a strange one aren’t you?” asked Grigore. ”Even I get a little queasy around bodies.”
Luna shrugged indifferently, her face remained blank and expressionless to the man. "If you have nothing to do with your spare time other than kill, you can easily get used to it." Luna replied simply, she talked almost as if killing was something of a career for her. "The matter of coping with the mental images of murder-- and being fine with it however, is something you would have to take on alone."
”The cursed lands have changed more than I thought since I took my leave…” answered Grigore. ”Back when I was running my unit we still understood the meaning of human life. Now it seems the lessons have become a bit distorted. Who is training the troops now?”
Looking back to Agreyus, Luna returned into the rumination of her former comrades, scowling as she did so. "Marian... that bitch." Luna said coldly. She'll just drop anyone who question her, won't she?"
”Marian? That little tyke.” answered Grigore with a smirk. ”I take it that Soul is still up to his old ways. Kudzu must have had it with the way things were going as well.”
”I’d imagine so, which would explain why he’d be out in the desert like that.” Luna replied. ”Soul however, spends most of his time eating opposed to racking his brain every now and again, I wouldn’t be surprised if that would classify as old ways.” She said, snorting at the thought.
”That sounds about right...How much is he eating now?” answered Grigore.
"More than what's considered humane." Answered Luna. "You saw his latest meal yourself...didn't you?" questioned Luna thinking back to that day. She scowled as she said this, the horror Soul had caused was going to stick with her for a while. Ironically, the man managed to top her overall kill count anyhow, it was a mystery Luna would be grimacing this in the first place.
’There isn’t much time left.’ thought Grigore to himself as he seemed rather distraught by Luna’s answer. ”Yes, I did, but I stopped him from eating too many. We are lucky that we were able to draw him away.” answered Grigore.
"I suppose that's all that matters, huh?" replied Luna rhetorically, feigning a slight hopelessness in her voice. "He's gonna pay, all of them. Him, that bastard Cain, the representatives-- Charlotte..." she growled, whispering that last part as lowly as possible.
”Guess getting left behind will do that to a person won’t it. Still you seem to have adjusted rather quickly.” said Helena.
"I was planning on giving 'em the slip anyhow. Any sane person would have after all that." replied Luna as she turned over to Helena. "I'm just doing this on my own terms at this point, going against the current." she said shrugging.
Hope you are a good swimmer,” answered Helena with a chuckle.
”Alright lets go and see who else needs some help Helena.” ordered Grigore starting to walk off. Helena sighed and followed him waving to Luna.
”Alright, but I’m not movin’ anymore bodies.” answered Helena.
0
Owain and Morgan carried the boy across town. The boy seemed to have no further control over the infected citizenry. The last of them were being gathered and put to death. Something that Owain noticed immediately was that they still retained their shape after death. Looking down at the boy he thought about asking him, but knew that with the way the boy was acting it was best to let the elder try and get it out of him.
Passing by a barricade of guards they looked at the cause of all this. ”Is this the boy from the reports? asked one of the guards looking at him gripping his spear tightly. This was the first time that Owain had seen someone from Origin this blood thirsty.
“Yes but… are you okay?” Owain asked, genuinely concerned for the state of the people of Origin. He didn’t like the fact that a neutral nation could be so aggressive.
”We lost so many today…” answered the guard.
”Something needs to be done!” yelled a female guard walking up. Morgan walked in front of them with a serious expression.
”I understand your feelings, but now more than ever we need to believe in the Elder. said Morgan.
“Morgan is right, deserting your principles now is the same as letting the Cursed win,” Owain agreed, “You have to stay strong, and keep your heads up.”
The guard looked to the ground in disgrace as he allowed Morgan and Owain to pass, and head into the Elders house. As the door closed behind them Morgan let out a deep sigh. ”I’m kind of lost at what to do here myself. I hope that the Elder knows what to do. She seemed really lost out there. Maybe Arkasia was able to help…”
Owain wrapped an arm around Morgan’s small body a sympathetic smile on his face, “Just remember I’m here for you now Morg, you don’t have to do anything alone anymore,” he said moving his arm up to ruffle her hair.
Morgan turned to him and gave him a smile. ”You’re right.” replied Morgan. Turning she heading down the long hallway wooden carved and headed up the stairs. Before the door Morgan hesitated, but then knocked three times. Arkasia was the one who opened the door.
She looked over the two for a moment before opening the door all the way. As she saw the child she seemed somewhat disappointed, probably because he wasn’t dead. Opening the door wide Owain and Morgan could see Edile leaning on her desk. Looking over at the boy she motioned for Owain to bring him to her. The boy squirmed not wanting to get anywhere near her.
As he was brought over to her against his will Edile painfully grabbed his chin and forced him to look her in the eyes. The boy squirmed and yelled as he grabbed for his collar. As he did it began to burn at his pale fingers, but still the Elder did not let go.
”What is wrong with him?” said Morgan as she began to prepare to heal him. Arkasia placed her arm in front of her stopping her.
”Let her continue,” ordered Arkasia. After a few more minutes the boy passed out from the pain and the Elder released him letting him fall to the floor. Morgan rushed over and began healing his serious burns.
”So what did you find?” asked Arkasia. Edile walked over and leaned against her desk once more looking down at the unconscious boy.
”He is just as Razta was...but it was a more complete process with this one. His spirit is restrained, and any attempt to free it stopped by that infernal collar.” responded Edile. ”It is safe to say that this boys actions were against his will.”
“The people won't be happy to hear they have no one to pin the blame on,” Owain said frowning.
”There are plenty of people that we can pin the blame on.” answered Arkasia. ”We just to find out where this little one came from. Did you find out anything about him?”
”Well there was that strange woman from the alley. Adelina and Owain seemed to know who it was.” answered Morgan.
”Was it the same one that you told me about before Owain? In that abandoned village?” asked Arkasia.
Owain nodded solemnly, “Seems that way,” he said eyebrows furrowing as he remembered his previous encounter with the woman that ended in her escape. Suddenly there was a demanding knock on the door to Edile’s office. Bael barged in very frantic. Guards came in moments later lugging a stretcher. A cloth covered the body. The guards wore solemn expressions not uttering a word. Placing the body down the two guards walked out closing the door behind them.
”Who is this Bael?” asked Edile walking over. Bael knelled and lowered the cloth to show the face of one of her guardians. He now slept forever.
”Why...how did this happen?” said Edile falling to her knees and touching Ezekiel’s cold skin. Her mind went back to all the jokes he would make when they were both younger. He had always been there for her, and now due to her unwillingness to fight. She lost yet another friend.
”Who is responsible for this Owain? This woman who is she?” asked Edile.
“If only I could tell you that Elder,” Owain said scratching his head, “I honestly don’t know.”
”If I had to make a guess it would be the Cult of Ouroboros.” answered Arkasia. ”They seem to use these collars on all of their †˜members’”
Once again there was a knock at the door. Guards shown them in as Razta, Adelina, Reymond, Ari, and Masaki entered. Razta looked at the body of the former guardian. Even though he had just seen it...seeing it again hit just as hard.
”Did we find anything out? asked Razta.
”An autopsy will have to tell us more. He looked similar to the other civilians that were infected. He does seem a bit different though…” answered Edile. ”But Razta we were hoping you could shed some light on these collars.” Edile was trying to avoid further talk about Ezekiel for the moment.
”Sadly I’m no expert on them, and apparently I was a special case.” answered Razta. ”Those things have a way of getting into your body in the most painful way though.”
”Then that brings us back to where we started,” said Adelina.
”The streets were cleared. Thanks to Grigore the district that Ezekiel was supposed to help was kept relatively safe. We owe him a great debt.” said Reymond.
”But that leaves us at what to do with the boy…” interjected Arkasia. ”He is for now under control, but I doubt that he is harmless. If we leave him alive there is always the risk that it could come back to bite us. Child or not...”
“I don’t think it’s right to kill him when he did none of this under his own volition," Owain interjected.
”I agree” answered Morgan standing at Owain’s side. Arkasia crossed her arms and looked to Edile who she was sure would agree with Owain and Morgan.
”What do you think Bael?” asked Edile looking at him. It was obvious that the man was in pain from the loss of his friend. Edile knew his answer without him saying it.
”This isn’t right. I was in his shoes once I might have done some horrible things as well if I wasn’t saved. We need to give him that chance.” Adelina scoffed and walked out of the office, it was obvious what they were going to choose.
Reymond sighed. ”We can atleast see what we can learn from him. He is the first one that we have been able to capture alive.” added Reymond. ”You should go after her Razta. I’ve seen that look before.” Razta looked around the room and bowed before heading out after Adelina.
”We will imprison him for now. Keep eyes on him until he feels like talking. First thing we need to do is get that collar off of him. If not Razta we need to start looking for alternative.” answered Edile. ”We will bury our dead...and then we decide.”
Ari placed a hand on her chest, and tried her best not to think of her sister ending up like him. No matter how hard she tried however her emotions never settled down. [i]’I need to find her...I’m wasting time here.’[i] thought Ari.
Passing by a barricade of guards they looked at the cause of all this. ”Is this the boy from the reports? asked one of the guards looking at him gripping his spear tightly. This was the first time that Owain had seen someone from Origin this blood thirsty.
“Yes but… are you okay?” Owain asked, genuinely concerned for the state of the people of Origin. He didn’t like the fact that a neutral nation could be so aggressive.
”We lost so many today…” answered the guard.
”Something needs to be done!” yelled a female guard walking up. Morgan walked in front of them with a serious expression.
”I understand your feelings, but now more than ever we need to believe in the Elder. said Morgan.
“Morgan is right, deserting your principles now is the same as letting the Cursed win,” Owain agreed, “You have to stay strong, and keep your heads up.”
The guard looked to the ground in disgrace as he allowed Morgan and Owain to pass, and head into the Elders house. As the door closed behind them Morgan let out a deep sigh. ”I’m kind of lost at what to do here myself. I hope that the Elder knows what to do. She seemed really lost out there. Maybe Arkasia was able to help…”
Owain wrapped an arm around Morgan’s small body a sympathetic smile on his face, “Just remember I’m here for you now Morg, you don’t have to do anything alone anymore,” he said moving his arm up to ruffle her hair.
Morgan turned to him and gave him a smile. ”You’re right.” replied Morgan. Turning she heading down the long hallway wooden carved and headed up the stairs. Before the door Morgan hesitated, but then knocked three times. Arkasia was the one who opened the door.
She looked over the two for a moment before opening the door all the way. As she saw the child she seemed somewhat disappointed, probably because he wasn’t dead. Opening the door wide Owain and Morgan could see Edile leaning on her desk. Looking over at the boy she motioned for Owain to bring him to her. The boy squirmed not wanting to get anywhere near her.
As he was brought over to her against his will Edile painfully grabbed his chin and forced him to look her in the eyes. The boy squirmed and yelled as he grabbed for his collar. As he did it began to burn at his pale fingers, but still the Elder did not let go.
”What is wrong with him?” said Morgan as she began to prepare to heal him. Arkasia placed her arm in front of her stopping her.
”Let her continue,” ordered Arkasia. After a few more minutes the boy passed out from the pain and the Elder released him letting him fall to the floor. Morgan rushed over and began healing his serious burns.
”So what did you find?” asked Arkasia. Edile walked over and leaned against her desk once more looking down at the unconscious boy.
”He is just as Razta was...but it was a more complete process with this one. His spirit is restrained, and any attempt to free it stopped by that infernal collar.” responded Edile. ”It is safe to say that this boys actions were against his will.”
“The people won't be happy to hear they have no one to pin the blame on,” Owain said frowning.
”There are plenty of people that we can pin the blame on.” answered Arkasia. ”We just to find out where this little one came from. Did you find out anything about him?”
”Well there was that strange woman from the alley. Adelina and Owain seemed to know who it was.” answered Morgan.
”Was it the same one that you told me about before Owain? In that abandoned village?” asked Arkasia.
Owain nodded solemnly, “Seems that way,” he said eyebrows furrowing as he remembered his previous encounter with the woman that ended in her escape. Suddenly there was a demanding knock on the door to Edile’s office. Bael barged in very frantic. Guards came in moments later lugging a stretcher. A cloth covered the body. The guards wore solemn expressions not uttering a word. Placing the body down the two guards walked out closing the door behind them.
”Who is this Bael?” asked Edile walking over. Bael knelled and lowered the cloth to show the face of one of her guardians. He now slept forever.
”Why...how did this happen?” said Edile falling to her knees and touching Ezekiel’s cold skin. Her mind went back to all the jokes he would make when they were both younger. He had always been there for her, and now due to her unwillingness to fight. She lost yet another friend.
”Who is responsible for this Owain? This woman who is she?” asked Edile.
“If only I could tell you that Elder,” Owain said scratching his head, “I honestly don’t know.”
”If I had to make a guess it would be the Cult of Ouroboros.” answered Arkasia. ”They seem to use these collars on all of their †˜members’”
Once again there was a knock at the door. Guards shown them in as Razta, Adelina, Reymond, Ari, and Masaki entered. Razta looked at the body of the former guardian. Even though he had just seen it...seeing it again hit just as hard.
”Did we find anything out? asked Razta.
”An autopsy will have to tell us more. He looked similar to the other civilians that were infected. He does seem a bit different though…” answered Edile. ”But Razta we were hoping you could shed some light on these collars.” Edile was trying to avoid further talk about Ezekiel for the moment.
”Sadly I’m no expert on them, and apparently I was a special case.” answered Razta. ”Those things have a way of getting into your body in the most painful way though.”
”Then that brings us back to where we started,” said Adelina.
”The streets were cleared. Thanks to Grigore the district that Ezekiel was supposed to help was kept relatively safe. We owe him a great debt.” said Reymond.
”But that leaves us at what to do with the boy…” interjected Arkasia. ”He is for now under control, but I doubt that he is harmless. If we leave him alive there is always the risk that it could come back to bite us. Child or not...”
“I don’t think it’s right to kill him when he did none of this under his own volition," Owain interjected.
”I agree” answered Morgan standing at Owain’s side. Arkasia crossed her arms and looked to Edile who she was sure would agree with Owain and Morgan.
”What do you think Bael?” asked Edile looking at him. It was obvious that the man was in pain from the loss of his friend. Edile knew his answer without him saying it.
”This isn’t right. I was in his shoes once I might have done some horrible things as well if I wasn’t saved. We need to give him that chance.” Adelina scoffed and walked out of the office, it was obvious what they were going to choose.
Reymond sighed. ”We can atleast see what we can learn from him. He is the first one that we have been able to capture alive.” added Reymond. ”You should go after her Razta. I’ve seen that look before.” Razta looked around the room and bowed before heading out after Adelina.
”We will imprison him for now. Keep eyes on him until he feels like talking. First thing we need to do is get that collar off of him. If not Razta we need to start looking for alternative.” answered Edile. ”We will bury our dead...and then we decide.”
Ari placed a hand on her chest, and tried her best not to think of her sister ending up like him. No matter how hard she tried however her emotions never settled down. [i]’I need to find her...I’m wasting time here.’[i] thought Ari.
0
Anastas and Katya made their way through the city a few more times before Anastas was finally satisfied. They were able to stop this before the attack truly gained momentum, and he didn’t want any weeds sprouting up again. In the end it was the villages togetherness that helped to keep the losses low. In Masario it was able to build up in the slums before releasing out onto the city.
”We have checked this section three times already. complained Katya. ”I think it is safe to say that there were no more than what we saw.”
”I suppose.” Anastas replied, scanning the streets ever so vigilantly. ”Let’s head back and report to the others then.”
”What what is that?” said Katya noticing a black figure sitting on the roof. He had almost blended color of the wall. Further investigation showed it to be Masaki covered head to toe in the blood of the infected.
”No comment.” said Katya.
“What? It’s not like this is new. Everytime I fight, one or more of them spew their blood or insides on me for no good reason.” Masaki sigh. “It’s not smelly, isn’t it?” He jumped down and landed near the two.
Anastas chuckled at the sight. Masaki always seemed to be so carefree, it’s amazing he hasn’t gotten himself seriously hurt yet. ”Well since you’re here, might as well tag along with us.” He offered.
“Sure, I’ve looked around this area from the trees. I think that there’s nothing left here.” He said as he jumped down to the roof that they were on. Katya looked at him and shook her head in disbelief.
”You should probably get that stuff cleaned off. Who knows what it will do to you.” advised Katya. The group jumped down from the roof, and started back towards the elder’s house. At this point the civilians were being escorted back to their homes by guards, and damages were being assessed. The bulk of the attack seemed to be around the elder’s house.
”It seems the majority of their efforts were directed at the announcement.” said Katya. ”What was their objective?”
”Is it not simply like what they did in Masario?” Anastas asked, he honestly hadn’t given it much thought with all that’s been happening. Strike the enemy as soon as they show hostile intent and before they’ve had time to act upon it. . . “ He clenched his fist at the sort of ruthlessness the Cursed displayed in their tactics.
”It feels more like they are trying to provoke more of a response. They don’t target the leaders. They target the people.” answered Katya. ”As a leader it is hard to turn down an entire city calling out for war.”
”It worked for the Scion, I suppose.” Anastas replied, still feeling bothered by the turn of events. ”Still, they must either be extremely confident or extremely stupid if they’re wanting to fight a united Scion and Origin. . .”
“Or they could be trying to keep us busy and take something or someone away.” Masaki said as he rub his chin Or they could be testing us. We didn’t see any of their higher ups right? They could be thinning our numbers bit by bit by using the infect people. TouTetsuOh said to Masaki. “Yeah, It could be like that, TouTetsuOh.”
Anastas nodded along as Demyan relayed the words of Masaki’s spirit, ”That’s possible. . . “ He sighed, all were viable reasons but frankly, they weren’t anywhere close to figuring out what the Cursed’s true intentions were.
”We have checked this section three times already. complained Katya. ”I think it is safe to say that there were no more than what we saw.”
”I suppose.” Anastas replied, scanning the streets ever so vigilantly. ”Let’s head back and report to the others then.”
”What what is that?” said Katya noticing a black figure sitting on the roof. He had almost blended color of the wall. Further investigation showed it to be Masaki covered head to toe in the blood of the infected.
”No comment.” said Katya.
“What? It’s not like this is new. Everytime I fight, one or more of them spew their blood or insides on me for no good reason.” Masaki sigh. “It’s not smelly, isn’t it?” He jumped down and landed near the two.
Anastas chuckled at the sight. Masaki always seemed to be so carefree, it’s amazing he hasn’t gotten himself seriously hurt yet. ”Well since you’re here, might as well tag along with us.” He offered.
“Sure, I’ve looked around this area from the trees. I think that there’s nothing left here.” He said as he jumped down to the roof that they were on. Katya looked at him and shook her head in disbelief.
”You should probably get that stuff cleaned off. Who knows what it will do to you.” advised Katya. The group jumped down from the roof, and started back towards the elder’s house. At this point the civilians were being escorted back to their homes by guards, and damages were being assessed. The bulk of the attack seemed to be around the elder’s house.
”It seems the majority of their efforts were directed at the announcement.” said Katya. ”What was their objective?”
”Is it not simply like what they did in Masario?” Anastas asked, he honestly hadn’t given it much thought with all that’s been happening. Strike the enemy as soon as they show hostile intent and before they’ve had time to act upon it. . . “ He clenched his fist at the sort of ruthlessness the Cursed displayed in their tactics.
”It feels more like they are trying to provoke more of a response. They don’t target the leaders. They target the people.” answered Katya. ”As a leader it is hard to turn down an entire city calling out for war.”
”It worked for the Scion, I suppose.” Anastas replied, still feeling bothered by the turn of events. ”Still, they must either be extremely confident or extremely stupid if they’re wanting to fight a united Scion and Origin. . .”
“Or they could be trying to keep us busy and take something or someone away.” Masaki said as he rub his chin Or they could be testing us. We didn’t see any of their higher ups right? They could be thinning our numbers bit by bit by using the infect people. TouTetsuOh said to Masaki. “Yeah, It could be like that, TouTetsuOh.”
Anastas nodded along as Demyan relayed the words of Masaki’s spirit, ”That’s possible. . . “ He sighed, all were viable reasons but frankly, they weren’t anywhere close to figuring out what the Cursed’s true intentions were.
0
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
(This is a Joint Post Starring:
TheLoneGentleman and Cinia Pacifica.)
Kudzu stepped out into the village amidst the clean up from the battle. Dressed in his suit it was hard to believe that he was from this world better yet the cursed lands. This played out to his advantage. Behind him Louise and Duran stepped out laying eyes on the chaos as well. Louise remembered this from the recent attack on Masario.
”They hit here too already?” Said Durran. He closed his eyes for a moment and tried to sense out for something, but it came up empty. She isn’t here, but her puppet is...Interesting. thought Durran. His face showed curiosity as he looked around at the streets filled with bodies.
”Razta!” said Kudzu running off into the city in search of his son.
”Should we go after him?” asked Durran.
“No, I shall let him have his way here; he is here for his son, after all,” Louise answered with a shrug. “...And for his safety… perhaps.”
”I guess there isn’t too much that he could do wrong around here. We can get done what we came for while he is visiting with him. Lucky for us that he didn’t drink as much as we thought.” answered Durran.
“Him drinking would most likely cause a loss of wives, we wouldn’t want that,” Louise spoke in jest before moving onwards. Durran laughed following behind Louise down the side streets.
”I didn’t think the oaf had it in him.” answered Durran.
“Yet Margaret was glued to him... ”
”I am trying to forget about that you know?” answered Durran with a chuckle.
Simply being in Origin Louise could tell that a battle had taken place, without seeing the various cleanup crews. The air was heavy with the residue of miasma. A feeling that she never wanted to revisit. It reminded her of that presence she hated for so long. Durran nudged her out of those thoughts and lead her into an alley nearby. Kudzu had headed off to find his son, and talk with the elder. Neither of which Durran wanted to be a part of. This week was about getting everything that they needed into position. That, Durran and Louise could handle without Kudzu.
”You doing alright in there?” asked Durran. ”Balan is almost here.”
“Ahh… yes, I shall deal with it, I can’t face him if I am unable to handle at least this much,” Louise said, holding her temple with an annoyed expression, she didn’t think she’d be greeted with this such miasma after coming here. She thought about how peaceful and comfortable a place Masario can be, sometimes.
”We’ll I haven’t had to deal with you for a while Durran. To what do I owe the honor? Asked Balan appearing from the shadows of the alley. Wearing his mask over his hair like a hat. ”Or should I say, what is it that you want to know?”
”Tell us what the cult is up to recently,” said Durran. Balan smirked at Durran and his eyes then drifted to Louise with a grin.
”They are one person that I won’t just give up the information on. Not even for you Durran. Certainly not for her. The cost for that I don’t think either of you can afford,” answered Balan. “How did this… ” asked Balan pointing at the two of them, “happen anyways?”
“I’ll be judge of whether the cost is possible to attain or not… and, what may you be speaking of?” Louise stated, then asked as he pointed at them.
”I’m guessing that the cult is a thorn in your side? Correct?” Replied Durran.
“I suppose so, they’re definitely irritating, to say the least,” Louise said, trying not to furrow her eyebrows. Frowning ruins a woman’s face, after all.
”You get rid of a problem for me, and the information is yours. Sound like a fair deal?” Answered Balan.
“Let’s hear it,” Louise said tersely, her ears wide open for the details of the deal.
”Kill that bitch Rhea for me. She has been getting in the way of my business for far too long, and I can’t get close to her. You can,” answered Balan. “I’ll have everything you need to go after the cult,” Balan leaning against the alley and smiled. “Is it a deal?”
“Hmm, I see. That Rhea of the church… What does she actually do, anyway?” Louise curiously asked. Been out from this world for years upon years, she’d hardly come to contact with the church before becoming a High Priestess once again. She didn’t know what Rhea had been doing behind the scenes. What she knew was that Rhea wasn’t an ordinary Head Priestess. There were more than what met the eye.
”Heh, what doesn’t she do?” Answered Balan. ”She has more blood on her hands than even I do,” Balan took his mask off of his head and placed it on half of his face. “Of course she is seen as a saint for many,” said Balan with a sweet face on the shown side. Then he moved the mask to the other side of his face. This side shown his eye open wide with a sick grin. ”She is truly an enigma. While her true purpose is to find the three great divine, I have no idea what the hell for. Her activity became sporadic after you came back into the mix, and she started sending her goons far and wide.”
“Funny, a lot of the saintly people have a lot of blood,” Louise commented, considering the amount of blood in her hands; she didn’t particularly loathe Rhea in that regard. “The three great divine huh… in the text of the old days – there were three gods – spirits who’d be carried by fated individuals, one of them happens to be me,” she said, placing a hand under her chin. “The church is a mystery indeed. They keep an eye on everything I do, and happens to panic and scold Krieg’s men every time I teleport… what do they truly want?” She mused. Despite being the High Priestess, they had the gall to keep her in the dark; using her as but a decorative jeweled gem – it was as if they were mocking her behind her back. It made Louise frown uncontrollably.
”So! What is your choice? I got other things I need to do today,” asked Balan.
”Give us a moment,” answered Durran. Balan sighed and turned around, putting hands behind his head. Louise and Durran stepped out of earshot range.
”So what do you want to do? If you want I can do this for you, but...I will be unable to accompany you further. I don’t see a way I can take her out without being detected,” whispered Durran.
“Can’t think of another way, in all honesty. If I am seen drawing Rhea’s blood then that would be cataclysm,” Louise stated, “in more ways than one. Once we’re done finding a technician; we may have you pursue her,” Louise said, she then reached for his ear specifically. “Try to find out what the church is truly up to while you’re at it. If you feel that it’d benefit me for Rhea to be alive, leave the job be,” she said, with a rather sly expression. Louise was sly, as so was Rhea. She felt that only one such player was best left alive.
”So what do we tell him? Durran asked again. ”He won’t give us this chance again.”
“We’re obviously accepting the deal,” Louise answered with a nod. “If we won’t have this chance again, it doesn’t matter whether we fully go along with the request or not. If we’re able to convince that she’s dead, he may provide us what we require,” she said with a light menacing smile. May as well try to trick him if worst comes to hand. “However, I am not telling you to keep her alive even if she proves to be useless and an eyesore to my activities. The fact that they survey my actions are particularly irritating, after all.”
”You two done yet?” Said Balan getting impatient. Durran turned and walked over to him.
”We will take the deal,” answered Durran. Balan eyed him up and then peered passed him to Louise.
“That is honestly very surprising,” answered Balan. ”I guess I’ll give you a taste of the info. I’ll make it a little cryptic so you can have fun too,” Balan laughed and placed his mask firmly on his face. ”Start where you lowered your numbers. In hell there is something only you angels can see.”
“Is this supposed to be a riddle to solve?” Louise asked, tilting her head, confounded.
“That has always been his thing. It’s just annoying really,” answered Durran.
“Of course its a riddle,” answered Balan.
“Sounds interesting,” Louise replied, shrugging. “In hell, hm? So it’s obviously a place you demons can’t easily traverse into?”
“But he said hell… ” answered Durran.
“It may go both ways. Hell is supposedly a torturous place where the residents are purged, and demons usually get a tough time in Masario,” Louise presented her theory.
“Brr... you are pretty cold there, and Masario is way too chilled to be hell,” said Balan with a snicker. ”But thats the only hint you get. Good luck!” Balan vanished in a flash of flames.
Louise looked at Balan with a blank face, then turned casually back to Durran, almost ignoring disgusting smirk. Almost. “Hm, Masario is a place where people like you can still live through, I suppose,” Louise stated, pondering closely. “If he said an angel, it may be possible for only me deal with this specific area.”
”What do you think he meant by start where you lowered your numbers?” asked Durran
“When I lowered my numbers, huh? That would be… when I left that squad? Or left behind the priests of the church I was aided with in the battle of Raltese?”
”Come to think of it wasn’t there an underground area where you left your escorts? Perhaps hell means something under the earth?” answered Durran.
“Yes, that’s the squad I was referring to… wait, how do you know that?” Louise asked, forgetting for a moment that she has quite an assortment of guests stalking her – always.
”The church isn’t the only one keeping tabs on you,” answered Durran. ”But at least you can see me following you.”
“...A pretty flower will always be stalked, I suppose,” Louise said, sagely nodding with her eyes closed, to herself. She was definitely letting her ego speak for herself now. “I suppose he could refer that to hell. What concerns me is how Rhea is connected to this. Next thing we know; she’s concocting illegal experiments underground and needs massive spiritual powers to fulfill her strange desires?”
”That sounds like something from out of a play,” answered Durran with a chuckle. ”When should we check that out? We still need to find the technician in this town. Or what’s left of this town anyways…”
“Once I get back from Raltese, and find us a technician and finalize the matter of it; we may begin with Rhea. Oh, but I would love to have a chat with the elder here regarding Kudzu, too,” Louise replied, before she smiled. The elder seemed to have piqued her interest, she only hoped that she was someone wise. “I trust that you’ll do fine in trying to find someone in here with expertise in technology.”
”Consider it done,” answered Durran. ”I’ll head out now and look around. You know how to reach me if something happens.”
“Then I’ll be moving on,” Louise said, taking up her wand to teleport herself to Raltese. Durran turned and walked out of the alley straightening out his suit. While Kudzu was settling things with his son he finally had some time to himself. Even if in this time he had some work to do he appreciated the solitude.
TheLoneGentleman and Cinia Pacifica.)
Kudzu stepped out into the village amidst the clean up from the battle. Dressed in his suit it was hard to believe that he was from this world better yet the cursed lands. This played out to his advantage. Behind him Louise and Duran stepped out laying eyes on the chaos as well. Louise remembered this from the recent attack on Masario.
”They hit here too already?” Said Durran. He closed his eyes for a moment and tried to sense out for something, but it came up empty. She isn’t here, but her puppet is...Interesting. thought Durran. His face showed curiosity as he looked around at the streets filled with bodies.
”Razta!” said Kudzu running off into the city in search of his son.
”Should we go after him?” asked Durran.
“No, I shall let him have his way here; he is here for his son, after all,” Louise answered with a shrug. “...And for his safety… perhaps.”
”I guess there isn’t too much that he could do wrong around here. We can get done what we came for while he is visiting with him. Lucky for us that he didn’t drink as much as we thought.” answered Durran.
“Him drinking would most likely cause a loss of wives, we wouldn’t want that,” Louise spoke in jest before moving onwards. Durran laughed following behind Louise down the side streets.
”I didn’t think the oaf had it in him.” answered Durran.
“Yet Margaret was glued to him... ”
”I am trying to forget about that you know?” answered Durran with a chuckle.
Simply being in Origin Louise could tell that a battle had taken place, without seeing the various cleanup crews. The air was heavy with the residue of miasma. A feeling that she never wanted to revisit. It reminded her of that presence she hated for so long. Durran nudged her out of those thoughts and lead her into an alley nearby. Kudzu had headed off to find his son, and talk with the elder. Neither of which Durran wanted to be a part of. This week was about getting everything that they needed into position. That, Durran and Louise could handle without Kudzu.
”You doing alright in there?” asked Durran. ”Balan is almost here.”
“Ahh… yes, I shall deal with it, I can’t face him if I am unable to handle at least this much,” Louise said, holding her temple with an annoyed expression, she didn’t think she’d be greeted with this such miasma after coming here. She thought about how peaceful and comfortable a place Masario can be, sometimes.
”We’ll I haven’t had to deal with you for a while Durran. To what do I owe the honor? Asked Balan appearing from the shadows of the alley. Wearing his mask over his hair like a hat. ”Or should I say, what is it that you want to know?”
”Tell us what the cult is up to recently,” said Durran. Balan smirked at Durran and his eyes then drifted to Louise with a grin.
”They are one person that I won’t just give up the information on. Not even for you Durran. Certainly not for her. The cost for that I don’t think either of you can afford,” answered Balan. “How did this… ” asked Balan pointing at the two of them, “happen anyways?”
“I’ll be judge of whether the cost is possible to attain or not… and, what may you be speaking of?” Louise stated, then asked as he pointed at them.
”I’m guessing that the cult is a thorn in your side? Correct?” Replied Durran.
“I suppose so, they’re definitely irritating, to say the least,” Louise said, trying not to furrow her eyebrows. Frowning ruins a woman’s face, after all.
”You get rid of a problem for me, and the information is yours. Sound like a fair deal?” Answered Balan.
“Let’s hear it,” Louise said tersely, her ears wide open for the details of the deal.
”Kill that bitch Rhea for me. She has been getting in the way of my business for far too long, and I can’t get close to her. You can,” answered Balan. “I’ll have everything you need to go after the cult,” Balan leaning against the alley and smiled. “Is it a deal?”
“Hmm, I see. That Rhea of the church… What does she actually do, anyway?” Louise curiously asked. Been out from this world for years upon years, she’d hardly come to contact with the church before becoming a High Priestess once again. She didn’t know what Rhea had been doing behind the scenes. What she knew was that Rhea wasn’t an ordinary Head Priestess. There were more than what met the eye.
”Heh, what doesn’t she do?” Answered Balan. ”She has more blood on her hands than even I do,” Balan took his mask off of his head and placed it on half of his face. “Of course she is seen as a saint for many,” said Balan with a sweet face on the shown side. Then he moved the mask to the other side of his face. This side shown his eye open wide with a sick grin. ”She is truly an enigma. While her true purpose is to find the three great divine, I have no idea what the hell for. Her activity became sporadic after you came back into the mix, and she started sending her goons far and wide.”
“Funny, a lot of the saintly people have a lot of blood,” Louise commented, considering the amount of blood in her hands; she didn’t particularly loathe Rhea in that regard. “The three great divine huh… in the text of the old days – there were three gods – spirits who’d be carried by fated individuals, one of them happens to be me,” she said, placing a hand under her chin. “The church is a mystery indeed. They keep an eye on everything I do, and happens to panic and scold Krieg’s men every time I teleport… what do they truly want?” She mused. Despite being the High Priestess, they had the gall to keep her in the dark; using her as but a decorative jeweled gem – it was as if they were mocking her behind her back. It made Louise frown uncontrollably.
”So! What is your choice? I got other things I need to do today,” asked Balan.
”Give us a moment,” answered Durran. Balan sighed and turned around, putting hands behind his head. Louise and Durran stepped out of earshot range.
”So what do you want to do? If you want I can do this for you, but...I will be unable to accompany you further. I don’t see a way I can take her out without being detected,” whispered Durran.
“Can’t think of another way, in all honesty. If I am seen drawing Rhea’s blood then that would be cataclysm,” Louise stated, “in more ways than one. Once we’re done finding a technician; we may have you pursue her,” Louise said, she then reached for his ear specifically. “Try to find out what the church is truly up to while you’re at it. If you feel that it’d benefit me for Rhea to be alive, leave the job be,” she said, with a rather sly expression. Louise was sly, as so was Rhea. She felt that only one such player was best left alive.
”So what do we tell him? Durran asked again. ”He won’t give us this chance again.”
“We’re obviously accepting the deal,” Louise answered with a nod. “If we won’t have this chance again, it doesn’t matter whether we fully go along with the request or not. If we’re able to convince that she’s dead, he may provide us what we require,” she said with a light menacing smile. May as well try to trick him if worst comes to hand. “However, I am not telling you to keep her alive even if she proves to be useless and an eyesore to my activities. The fact that they survey my actions are particularly irritating, after all.”
”You two done yet?” Said Balan getting impatient. Durran turned and walked over to him.
”We will take the deal,” answered Durran. Balan eyed him up and then peered passed him to Louise.
“That is honestly very surprising,” answered Balan. ”I guess I’ll give you a taste of the info. I’ll make it a little cryptic so you can have fun too,” Balan laughed and placed his mask firmly on his face. ”Start where you lowered your numbers. In hell there is something only you angels can see.”
“Is this supposed to be a riddle to solve?” Louise asked, tilting her head, confounded.
“That has always been his thing. It’s just annoying really,” answered Durran.
“Of course its a riddle,” answered Balan.
“Sounds interesting,” Louise replied, shrugging. “In hell, hm? So it’s obviously a place you demons can’t easily traverse into?”
“But he said hell… ” answered Durran.
“It may go both ways. Hell is supposedly a torturous place where the residents are purged, and demons usually get a tough time in Masario,” Louise presented her theory.
“Brr... you are pretty cold there, and Masario is way too chilled to be hell,” said Balan with a snicker. ”But thats the only hint you get. Good luck!” Balan vanished in a flash of flames.
Louise looked at Balan with a blank face, then turned casually back to Durran, almost ignoring disgusting smirk. Almost. “Hm, Masario is a place where people like you can still live through, I suppose,” Louise stated, pondering closely. “If he said an angel, it may be possible for only me deal with this specific area.”
”What do you think he meant by start where you lowered your numbers?” asked Durran
“When I lowered my numbers, huh? That would be… when I left that squad? Or left behind the priests of the church I was aided with in the battle of Raltese?”
”Come to think of it wasn’t there an underground area where you left your escorts? Perhaps hell means something under the earth?” answered Durran.
“Yes, that’s the squad I was referring to… wait, how do you know that?” Louise asked, forgetting for a moment that she has quite an assortment of guests stalking her – always.
”The church isn’t the only one keeping tabs on you,” answered Durran. ”But at least you can see me following you.”
“...A pretty flower will always be stalked, I suppose,” Louise said, sagely nodding with her eyes closed, to herself. She was definitely letting her ego speak for herself now. “I suppose he could refer that to hell. What concerns me is how Rhea is connected to this. Next thing we know; she’s concocting illegal experiments underground and needs massive spiritual powers to fulfill her strange desires?”
”That sounds like something from out of a play,” answered Durran with a chuckle. ”When should we check that out? We still need to find the technician in this town. Or what’s left of this town anyways…”
“Once I get back from Raltese, and find us a technician and finalize the matter of it; we may begin with Rhea. Oh, but I would love to have a chat with the elder here regarding Kudzu, too,” Louise replied, before she smiled. The elder seemed to have piqued her interest, she only hoped that she was someone wise. “I trust that you’ll do fine in trying to find someone in here with expertise in technology.”
”Consider it done,” answered Durran. ”I’ll head out now and look around. You know how to reach me if something happens.”
“Then I’ll be moving on,” Louise said, taking up her wand to teleport herself to Raltese. Durran turned and walked out of the alley straightening out his suit. While Kudzu was settling things with his son he finally had some time to himself. Even if in this time he had some work to do he appreciated the solitude.