First Sunset
Summary: It was an impossibility is what it was. Made possible all because of a man in black. (fanon origin story)
Because Rigaldo has next to nil on backstory. For any of my stories with him you can assume that I used this as his origin unless otherwise stated in that story. Enjoy!
The stone was rough against the palm of his hand, the jagged ends digging into the fresh cuts on his palm. But he couldn't let go of the wall as he followed it around the back of the building. He had told Sister Crina he would be back in the chapel with fresh wood to keep the fire burning throughout the night.
It was too cold for the flames to go out. Especially tonight, a woman in the village had just given birth and was staying inside the chapel along with her husband and the orphaned children. Apparently they didn't have anything to warm their own house and if the cold wrapped itself around their baby it would die for sure.
The stone turned sharply into an edge and he walked around the corner, pausing a moment later. A shifting of rocks had caught his attention and he turned toward the noise, blinking. "What do you want?"
More shifting, rocks skittering across the dirt, large footfalls crunching the twigs and leaves beneath them. There was at least three pairs. He didn't doubt who they were at this point, just thankful the usual forth member of their group was stuck at home because of a cold. It was a shame these three weren't in the same situation right now. He had thought they would be asleep at this hour.
"Hello, bat."
There was a sneer to his right and he threw a punch in the direction without a single thought. It didn't surprise him when his fist went through the air, just feeling a brush of fabric against his skin. He just wished it had landed for once.
A knee connecting with his stomach drove the thought from him. His mind emptying of everything except how much he wanted to hurt them as a foot connected with his jaw. "Shouldn't you be inside, you freak? Or did you finally realize what a worthless lump of flesh you were and came out here to die?" Laughter assaulted his ears as more feet connected with his body and he began to curl his legs up, bringing his arms around to shield his face as bare hands and feet continued to leave a dull throbbing pain in their wake.
"Hey!"
He heard the sickening sound of rock connecting with flesh, a gasp of pain before the attack stopped. "Watch it you-"
This time it wasn't rock, but flesh upon flesh. There was a loud thump and he could feel dirt tickling his noise from where one of his assailants must have fallen. He hoped that one was in as much pain as he was, even though that was unlikely. As if anyone could understand what it felt to feel what must have been a few dozen bruises forming on their skin, and that wasn't counting the cuts from too sharp nails. The feeling of warm blood running down the length of his arms and legs.
"And stay out!" A sharp cry filled the air as the thudding of feet trailed off into the night. Until it was just the other boy back there with him, his feet shifting the ground beneath him. "Are you okay? Rigaldo?" his own name came out quieter, as if the owner thought he was a doll that would break in an instant.
"I'm fine," he muttered, forcing himself back to his feet. His hand reached out for the wall that he knew was to his left so he could lean against it and catch his breath. If he had just been able to get that punch in... His shoulders dropped an instant later. As if. As if he would ever be able to fight back and show that group of cowards what it felt like to be so utterly helpless.
The other boy was silent for a second and he could hear him walking along the stone, shifting the stack of small logs that always sat along the back of the church. "Here." The boy took his hand, fitting a log into the crook of his arm and Rigaldo raised his other arm to balance the log lying across his arms.
He felt the weight increase as the boy placed more logs on his arms with a practiced hand. Even with the weather the boy didn't rush to give him the logs; that would have just resulted in a mess anyway and then it would have taken them even longer to get back inside. He could hear the logs shifting again after not receiving another one for a few seconds. That had to be all he could carry then without them tumbling down to the ground. "Sorry," he muttered after a second had passed.
The boy only sighed though rather than asking what he was sorry for. He already knew. "It's not your fault they're jerks. I saw them pulling the wings off a butterfly just yesterday that had gotten stuck in a spider's web. Besides, I don't mind helping you. I already told you before, I don't find it troublesome."
"It sounds troublesome," Rigaldo said, turning his head in the direction that he had heard the band of child thugs run off in. "Even if they don't fight back because you're not..." A freak, he wanted to say. But that was wrong, he knew there were others that were born with his condition. That made him less than human in the eyes of the majority. Troublesome. Even if Xai said it wasn't it had to be. He needed others to look after him just because he was stripped of his sight before he was even born. If a yoma ever attacked he would surely be thrown at it's feet as a snack just so the other villagers could have some more time to get away. He was just a burden to everyone around him. It was a wonder they hadn't killed him when he was younger, especially after his mother passed away when he was barely one year old.
He heard Xei sigh softly, though he knew such an action was just a nasty habit it seemed to drive the edge of the blade deeper inside him, twisting; always twisting. "They're cowards as well. Don't think so much about it; it's not worth it. Let's go."
Rigaldo didn't turn until he felt the flat palm of a hand lying on his shoulder, guiding him back around the building so he wouldn't run into the wall and end up dropping the firewood. Xei spoke only a few words to warn him of loose rocks and other objects that might make him stumble on the path.
When he heard the creek of the door he continued forward until the hand on his shoulder gave a gentle squeeze and Rigaldo dumped the firewood onto the table that would be in front of him. With his hands finally free he pulled away from Xei, finger running along the edge of the table as he walked, reaching outward with his other hand to find the edge of the table alongside it and continuing until he got to the wall. Rigaldo slid down the stone to the floor, head resting on his knees.
The crackle of flames filled his ears, soft murmurs coming from the same direction. So everyone was around the fire then.
A soft tapping on the stone made him turn his head in the direction, eyes rolling in his skull to find the exact source but unable to pinpoint it. "Xei told me about the fight."
Sister Crina.
He turned his head away, closing his eyes. "It wasn't a fight." He hadn't put up a fight; he never did.
The woman didn't speak though, he could hear her sit down next to him, feel the cloth of her robes brush against his bare arm. "You should sit closer to the fire. You'll get cold over here."
"So I'll be blue; whatever that is." Rigaldo snapped, nearly biting his own tongue in the process. That was the absolute last thing he needed right now. Another wound, an even fresher cut that she might try to close. That had to be the only reason she was here now, to treat his latest injuries.
"You're likely already blue in a few places, and not from the cold." Sister Crina was silent for a time. "Black and purple as well in a few hours."
Rigaldo shifted slightly, head turned back to her general direction. "Purple?" She hadn't mentioned it before, but she seemed to make an effort not to mention these 'colors' that the world possessed. Probably because he couldn't feel it with his hands, not that he hadn't tried.
"It's... a mystifying color. Purple to some represents magic. If... if it were to be a form of magic it would be performed at a moderate pace, faster than blue. The magic would be of healing I suppose, it's why you're skin turns that color when the blood vessels are ruptured from a blow. So in that way it's the opposite of red. You only get it when you combine red and blue, at varying shades depending on how much of each is used to make it."
He felt his lips turn down at this news. More shades. Not only were there colors he wasn't aware of, but there was various shades of one color. The Sister had explained that these shades were referred to as their own color as well at times. It sounded so complex that he almost preferred the nothingness that he 'saw' whether his eyes were closed or not. Of course that feeling wouldn't stay for very long. He would prefer to see the world, to be able to point at a new color like every other child and ask what it was then let out a sound of wonder at the world.
Why had he been cursed with this affliction?
"Rigaldo." He made a soft noise to let Sister Crina know that he had heard her, but he wasn't in the mood for talking any longer. "I don't think I ever told you before, but your eyes are like a kitten's. So is your voice, you mewl just like them."
When he made the noise again at this comment she simply laughed. "Okay, I'll go now. But you really should move over to the fire instead of staying here. I'll check on you in the morning." With those words he could hear the rustle of fabric against stone as she got up, her footsteps becoming softer as she got further away.
The stone was quickly sapping the warmth from his body and as much as he hated it she was right. He would need to get a bit closer to the fire so he didn't catch a cold himself and become even more of a burden than he already was for the number of days it would take for him to get better.
Rigaldo pushed himself up from the stone, taking a few careful steps forward before reaching out with his hands to find the edge of a planter. He maneuvered himself around it, walking slowly towards the source of heat. When he could feel the air warm he stopped, about to sit down when he heard someone get up and head toward him.
He didn't say a word when they stopped in front of him. Without knowing who it was he didn't care to play a game of, guess who. "You're Rigaldo, right?" At the waver in their voice he already knew he didn't know them personally and that his eyes were likely unnerving them as well.
Rigaldo held back a sigh and closed his eyes. "Is this better?"
"I..." Perhaps he should've cleared up that the question was rhetorical. "I just wanted to thank you for going out into the cold to get the firewood."
He blinked, eyes sliding open once more. It took him a second to find his voice but he did, "You're welcome. May I ask if your baby is okay?"
"Oh, yes," the mother replied in an instant. "She's perfectly fine. I'm sorry for what happened to you while you were out there. Such a task shouldn't have been made even more troublesome for you."
For a second his tongue flicked uselessly in his mouth and then the corners of his lips curled up. "It wasn't troublesome at all. I'm glad I could help," Rigaldo said with a smile.
"Oh. Good night, then." The sound of bare feet on stone told him she was going back to her husband and child now.
Rigaldo laid down on the floor beneath him, tugging his cloak closer around him to keep the cold from getting in. He closed his eyes moments later, slipping into dream land with a smile on his face.
When he woke up it was to the sounds of feet tapping harshly against the stone. There were raised voices as well, and though there was something akin to panic in them he didn't hear any shouts coming from outside so whatever had those in the church spooked couldn't be a yoma. He sat up after rubbing at his face with the heel of his hand to get the flecks of dirt off his face.
He didn't find much of a point in getting up though while the others were running about. If they happened to not be looking where they were going he would just end up flat on his back anyway. Since he couldn't very well move out of their way in a timely manner if the situation called for it.
Rigaldo tilted his head as he tried to locate the voices of those he was familiar with, but he wasn't getting anything other than the children running around, along with the more heavy footfalls of another Sister or even the Priest himself. With none of the adults yelling at them for such actions he surmised that they had to be busy with whatever had the church in such a state.
He sighed, head falling back as more footsteps passed him. What was going on? Everyone else must have a clue, but he was lost on the matter. If only he could see and come to a conclusion himself so he might have some idea of what it was that had everyone else so wound up.
Instead he did the only thing he could do. He parted his lips and let out a soft call, "Xei. Xei, where are you? Xei!" His calls grew louder as panic begin to set in his bones. Where was he? Where was Sister Crina? Why had they left him? "Xei!" he shouted at the top of his lungs as a tear ran down his cheek.
A pair of footsteps diverted on their chosen path and he let out a sigh of relief as a pair of arms wrapped around him. "It's okay, Rigaldo. I'm here."
He reached out to wrap his own arms around Xei's form, resting his cheek against the rough sleeve of Xei's shirt. After taking a few deep breaths to stop the shivers that had taken ahold of his body Rigaldo asked quietly, "What's going on? Sister Crina said she would see me in the morning. Where is she?"
Xei didn't stop rubbing his back in soothing strokes even as he spoke, "She's with the man in black."
"Man in black?"
He could feel Xei nod his head along his own shoulder. "Yeah. Her and Sister Beatrice are trying to convince him that all of us have already been adopted and are just waiting for our new families to arrive."
Rigaldo wanted to asked why the Sisters would lie about something like that when an angry shout came from the front doors of the church, swallowing up the sounds inside in an instant.
"You have no right to take any of these children from their home!" Sister Crina?
"Their home?" A man's voice filled the now silent church. "Sister, if they had a home they wouldn't be here. Besides, I have every right to be here. I am, after-all, going to adopt one or more of these children for the Organization." A peculiar series of thuds filled the room, what he suspected to be the sound of this man in black walking into the church. "Oh, look at that. You do have some lovely children here. So tell me, really, who's been adopted recently? None of them look like they're about go anywhere."
"I just got done telling you that none of them are available for adoption," Sister Beatrice hissed in a voice he found to be quite unsavory for her. Usually the Sister was much more soft spoken, not sounding like a snake of all things.
A harsh snort filled the air. "Stop with your ridiculous lies and let him take a child or two so we can leave already. I detest being in this place as much as you detest us." A woman's voice, but he didn't recognize it.
"Calm yourself," the man spoke again. "I'm sure they have their reasons for trying to deceive us. Now," The footsteps of the man fell short. "What about this one?" His question was answered with an unintelligible stammering and the man seemed to chuckle: a rough, grinding sound; like a rock being dragged over wood floor boards.
The sounds of him moving across to another child filled his ears and he turned his head slowly in the direction as the man seemed to be criticizing another's appearance. Something about the child never going to be adopted if they didn't clean up properly from time to time. The manner in which this person was speaking was just so... condescending.
The footsteps drew closer not long after. "You two, stand up."
Another second passed before he felt Xei pull away, wrapping a hand around his wrist to help him to his feet as well. From the rancid breath on his face he could guess the man in black had crouched next to them soon after, to look over them. "What's your name?"
A squeeze along his wrist told him who the man was speaking to. "Rigaldo."
"Hm, tilt your chin up so I can look at you properly, Rigaldo." After a second Rigaldo raised his head further up by a few inches before stopping, having no way of knowing if it was good enough or not for the man.
A rustle of fabric filled his ears and he felt Xei go rigid beside him in the next moment. "What is it, Xei?"
"His... face."
Rigaldo blinked. The man's face? What about it could possibly make Xei respond in such a way? "What's wrong with your face?"
Another of those gravely chuckles met his ears. "If you really wish to know..."
A hand wrapped around his one free hand, raising it up until he could feel flesh beneath his palm, the hand letting go of his own. Unlike the skin he could had felt previously the man's face was rough against his own skin. Not smooth like Xei and Sister Crina, all the other people who's skin he had come in contact in some way or other before. It felt... odd. He ran his hand down until he felt something similar to bone. Teeth? But then... where was the lips? He moved his hand along the teeth until he came across the lips and then he could feel proper skin again as well. No, that was wrong. He moved his hand back over so he could feel the teeth again, uncovered from the softer flesh that should have been there; that seemed to be present for the other half of his face. That wasn't skin he was feeling; it was muscle. "Where's your skin?"
"I'm afraid I lost the exact location of that patch a number of years ago. If I knew where the jar had gone I might have re-attached it to something else." The feel of the muscle moving beneath his palm as the man talked was unnerving and he withdrew his hand so it hung at his side once more.
The man was silent, but he could still feel the breath on his face, and then that seemed to become hindered. He could still feel the breath, but it wasn't even like before. It felt like there was something blocking the path of air from coming into contact with him; and it was moving. "Stop that."
The man gave another of those chuckles, even so whatever it was that had been moving in front of his face was gone now, and for that he was grateful. He didn't particularly care to have anyone waving anything in front of his face. It was annoying and reminded him of yesterday with those other kids, who loved to torment him in more devious ways. Apparently his lack of sight was amusing even to this man. How despicable. "Quite a bark, but no bite. I think I can fix that."
Fix it? Rigaldo tilted his head up as he heard the man stand. Did he mean his eyes?
"Lutecia, take this one back to the Organization, would you? I have one last village I would like to visit before going back myself." He felt a hand on his shoulder then, tugging him away from Xei, his friend's fingers slipping from around his wrist. "Walk that way." The man said while giving a pat to his back, after directing him to face what he knew to be the general direction of the front of the church.
But... there was something else there. He could sense it, in little pieces, scattered at various heights, in the shape of what was similar to a person. What was that? As he took a step toward it he could hear that woman's voice from before, could hear it getting louder as he got closer. This... this aura of sorts, was it her? The woman?
"I have more important things to do than play babysitter for you, Dae. In case you forgot there is a yoma still trailing us and I wish to kill it before a villager here dies because of another of your stupid 'requests' of me. And before you say it again, I don't care if it's more curious than it's brethren which makes you wish to dissect it. You can 'report' of my disobedience as much as you like, but I'm killing it. End of story; so find another to deliver your latest spec-"
He stopped in his path as he sensed something else; something more... whole. His head turned toward the source of this feeling, higher than the woman. Like it was on a... a roof.
"You." The woman was no longer speaking to this Dae, but to him. He knew from the shift he had just felt in whatever that thing was. An aura seemed to be the best way to describe it, but hers was more calm, unlike what was up there; it was oozing hate, this new feeling was telling him to leave the area.
"Now, hold on a second," Sister Crina's voice penetrated his mind. "You can't just take-"
"Hn." He suddenly felt an arm wrap around his mid-section, raising him up into the air. In the next second he could hear a heavy whoosh, quickly followed by a swift swish. The sounds were accompanied by cries and yells of surprise and fear both from inside the church and out on the dirt path running through the small town. Not only that, but a plop of individual pieces of flesh not long after.
The voices from the church floated toward him as the woman who held him became still for a second, and then he could feel her other arm wrap around his lower body. Her previous grip adjusted, so she was now carrying him in both arms.
"The... the yoma."
"It's dead."
"She didn't even draw her blade. Just hacked it to pieces with her body..."
"You owe me a specimen." Dae, who's footsteps he could hear drawing closer. Of course this man wouldn't be fazed by whatever the others had just seen.
"I'll give you two if I'm allowed to help in the boy's training," Lutecia's voice was loud in his ears and so was something else... He tilted his head further, one side of his face pressed against her. A steady thudding was coming from within the body; her heart. It's melody was soothing to his ears.
"That would be against protocol."
"Because you're all about protocol," she snapped in reply.
Dae chuckled. "I'll see what I can do."
"Then I hope you arrive in pieces." His body rocked slightly as Lutecia began to walk in what he presumed was the direction of the Organization, east.
"Rigaldo!" A pounding of feet on stone sounded in his ears, crunching over dirt in the next few seconds. "When your training is done, come back; okay?"
"Xei! Get inside," Sister Crina was speaking quickly as their footsteps assaulted his ears: hurried, a pair dragging in the dirt while the other met with stone first.
He raised his head slightly at the sound of the door closing with a bang. Just minutes ago he had been in that church with the other orphaned children, and because of a man in black he was now heading to the Organization. That in itself was an odd realization, but so was their behavior at the man, Dae, coming for a child. Was it really so bad that any of them went to the Organization? That they became a Claymore? What was so terrible about fighting the yoma? To protect others?
Or was it simply because most of the children there were like family to each other? Did the Sisters not want them to be torn away? Xei had been nice to him, so had Sister Crina, but... that was it. There wasn't really any reason for him to have stayed was there? Besides... the man, he said he could fix him. He wondered if such a thing was possible.
"It'll be awhile before we get to the Organization. You should just sleep for the time being. I'll wake you later."
"Okay," Rigaldo said, lowering his head to press against her before closing his eyes and slipping into unconsciousness.
When he did wake up his eyelids were heavy and there was a stinging pain running along the center of his body. As he emerged from dream land the pain increased with every passing second and he lowered his hand, finding his chest was bare right before his fingers slipped along a thin wet line and he could feel a dull ache coming from numerous points along it then. His skin... there was a cut down the middle of his body, kept closed together by something, but the wound itself was still open. The air stung against it... against...
A scream tore it's way up his throat at the feeling. His insides, they were pushing right up against this thing... this scar.
"Shh," a voice sounded next to him and he turned quickly, reaching out, desperate to grab a hold of something. All of this had to be a bad dream, didn't it? This... the Organization couldn't have done it while he was asleep, could they? "It's okay. We all bear this scar, every Claymore. I know it hurts right now, but once the transformation is complete you won't even notice it," Lutecia's voice was soft, warm breath running over his ear as an arm wrapped around him and he quickly latched onto her with his hands as tears ran down his face. It hurt... it hurt so much. "I'll be here until it goes away."
"How very considerate of you." Dae. "But, I am going to need access to his eyes at the moment or we'll end up with a blind Claymore." He felt Lutecia shift him in her arm, laying his head back against the stone. "Don't worry, you're not going to feel a thing."
His face went numb as a thin object pierced his cheek, and he didn't feel anything. Whatever Dae was doing, he couldn't tell, but the rest of his body still hurt and he dug his nails into the fabric of Lutecia's outfit.
Days passed by like that: with Lutecia at his side, comforting him; while Dae ran experiments on his eyes. All he could do was tug Lutecia closer as no tears fell due to whatever Dae had injected him with he couldn't control the muscles in his face at all. He couldn't scream even though he wanted to cry out from all the pain. Rigaldo simply endured those days in hell, until he woke up and his face was no longer numb, his body was no longer in constant pain.
And... it was bright, there were things flickering all around him, lighting up the area. When he turned his head towards where one of his hands was currently clasped around Lutecia's shirt he froze. He could see his hand in front of him, attached to the woman, Lutecia. She wasn't moving though, just looking back at him.
Rigaldo released his grip on her, fingers moving up - and he could see them moving up - to stop at the corner of her right eye. "What... what color is this?"
She blinked at him: lashes fluttering over the light color, dancing for a second along pale skin before they were open once more. "They're blue. Like yours use to be, but darker."
"Blue," he repeated and then his hand was moving again, down to her lips. "What about this one?"
"Pink," she replied, the skin moving beneath his fingers when she spoke. It was tinted darker from where his finger fell across it, like below on her chin.
"Why's it darker around here?" He pressed his finger lightly against her lip as he spoke, not sure how else to ask about something he didn't have a name for.
"That's a shadow cast by your finger."
"A shadow?" He withdrew his finger, looking down at it, at the ground, the way it grew darker when his finger hovered over it.
"This," When Lutecia spoke his gaze drew up as she pointed at the fabric of her outfit. "Is white, and..." Her own finger moved to hover over something that was shining around her neck. "This is a type of metal." She hit the edge with her finger, making a familiar ring sound out around the room. He had heard that sound before. "It's grey, but can sometimes shine like silver in the light. In the middle of it is my insignia from the Organization. You'll have your own once you've finished your training. Though, your outfit will be different in some aspects of course."
"Ahem," A cough sounded behind him and Rigaldo turned around to see Dae, a man he recognized just from his unusual distinct voice. "As nice as it must be to have gained your sight I do have to take him away for actual training with the other trainees, now. You'll see Lutecia again near the end of them."
Even though it was evident that he was expected to get up and follow him Rigaldo could only stare. Dae was covered nearly head to toe in what he presumed to be a black cloak, only his face was visible, the half he had touched before was still skinless making the muscle look angry and being a distinct color he still didn't have a name for.
He was about to actually get up when he felt the strands of hair fall across his face and saw the color was different from the cloak. "My hair..." Sister Crina had said it was black, but it didn't look anything like it. It was... brighter.
"It changed colors during the transformation. It use to be black and now it's a shade of blonde, like gold."
"Gold?" He pinched a strand between his fingers, looking it over critically. He hadn't heard of that color before, unlike the others.
"Get up." He heard Lutecia stand up briefly before feeling her fingers around his arm, tugging him up alongside her. "Come with me for a moment."
"I can't exactly stand here all day, Lutecia-"
"You'll have him in a moment, Dae," she snapped, tugging Rigaldo down a hallway before spinning on a hell and throwing the windows open.
For a moment Rigaldo couldn't see, it was too bright. When he opened his eyes again slowly he found they had adjusted to the brightness quickly and look out on a flat plain, with jagged figures, like stones sitting on thinner plains that kept rising up closer to his view. "It's mostly a desert here, just a bunch of rocks, cliffs, and dirt," Lutecia said in a rather flat manner as he stared at the scenery with wide eyes.
"It's amazing," Rigaldo somehow managed to remember to breathe and get the words out in the process.
"I didn't pull you out of that dank hole to show you the 'amazing' properties of dirt, Rigaldo. Look up."
He moved his gaze up, mouth falling open at the colors blazing across the sky in front of him. "It's the sun setting. The edges there and halfway to the middle of the sun is orange. The sun itself is yellow, and see where it's touching down beyond the cliff?" He nodded his head vigorously as she swamped him with the information, never taking his eyes off the breathtaking sight in front of him. "That's red. The color of blood."
Note: Lutecia is a Claymore briefly mentioned in Scene 110, with an unknown era; not an original character.
It is my head-cannon that she is of the "Lost Generation"