Going to sleep feels good.
Waking up, however, sometimes doesn't.
Especially if you wake up in the middle of some dirt road, under the afternoon sun, in nothing but a dress shirt and panties.
This was Esdeath's predicament right now.
Kneeling up from her face-down position on the ground, blue-haired sadist rubbed off the dirt on her face before looking at her surroundings. She was in a clearing on a path in a forest, far, far away from civilization it seemed.
"How...did I get here?" she thought as she scratched her head.
If she remembered the events that occurred previously correctly, she was in a heated battle against Night Raid. Specifically squaring off against her beloved Tatsumi while Budo took on the rest of the Night Raid attack force. However, after freezing time with Mahapadama to try and execute the pink-haired bitch who her dear, sweet Tatsumi wrongly referred to as a girlfriend, she was suddenly and violently sucker punched straight in the gut and face almost simultaneously, knocking her out cold with the sheer force.
That would explain the splitting headache she was feeling at the moment, but how did she end up so far away from the capital? More or less, she needed to get back in any way possible.
Trying to stand up, she fell down to a knee. Why did her legs feel like jelly? Unacceptable! She would be standing up at the very moment. There was no time to be weak!
"DAMMIT! I WILL NOT REMAIN LIKE THIS!" she mentally screamed as she finally stood up, but was about to fall on her face until she quickly took ahold of a nearby tree to hold herself up.
The wind blew through the area. Its coldness was a relief to the blistering heat as it blew on her bare legs as she tried to get a sense of direction. The fact that the sun was just right above her meant that she could not use it to tell where was East or West. The road itself had no signs anywhere, so she decided that once she got the feeling back in her legs again, she would at least walk in one direction to get anywhere so she could reach a place to get to the capital.
The big battle between the Revolutionary Army and the Imperial Army was nearing! She absolutely must not miss this spectacle!
As the numbness was going away, the sound of hooves trotting and the clacking of a wooden cart could be heard distantly. Looking at the source of the noise, Esdeath saw an approaching horse-drawn wagon. The wagon itself was medium-sized, but it looked big as a large amount of brooms, conical hats, packages and boxes were tied to the sides and roof respectively. The driver was an old-looking man with a Fu Manchu-style mustache in a brown coat and a cowboy hat.
"You! HALT!" she ordered in her most commanding tone as the wagon drew closer. The old man quickly looked in her direction before stopping the horse.
"Woah, boy!" he said as the horse neighed in response before stopping as he pulled back the reins. He immediately got down from the driver's seat and walked towards Esdeath. He was briefly taken aback upon seeing her state and state of dress, but shook his head and reminded himself to be a proper gentleman by only focusing on anywhere but her body.
"Oh my gosh, lady, are you okay? Did some bandits rob you or something?" he asked. Esdeath was surprised that the man did not recognize her as a general of the Imperial Army, but as he looked to be some country bumpkin who probably had no idea about the current war against the Revolutionary Army and that she could use a ride out of the place at the moment, she decided to play the role of a victim. Sure it would make her look weak, but at this point she didn't have much of a choice.
"Well...yes, mister...they...they took everything..." she said, trying to sound convincing enough. "Wow. It feels really weird saying that, but as long as I can leave this godforsaken place..."
"Oh, you poor girl... No one deserves to be treated like that," the old man said as he took off his hat and put it on her head before taking off his coat and putting it on her. He was now wearing a brown chino shirt and denim pants with some old boots.
Esdeath put a hand on his shoulder as he carefully led her to the back of the wagon, which had a door with a wooden step below it.
"Let's get you out of here before any more of those fools come back," he said as he opened it and helped her in. Esdeath found the interior to be a small living space right behind the driver's seat. There was a futon big enough for one person, together with a pillow. An unlit oil lamp was hung from a hook on the left. On the right was a small drawer that presumably contained his belongings.
The old man got back on the driver's seat. "A'ight, Artie. Giddy up!" he commanded as the brown stallion neighed and started trotting. Esdeath took a deep breath before sitting up and leaning against the left wall of the wagon interior.
She was..."safe" at the moment. Knowing how much criminal scum would normally prowl the lawless outskirts of the Empire's territory, the man she was riding with could possibly be one of them himself, pretending to be a nice person until he could strike at the right time. As such, she decided to keep on guard. If he did try to rape her, she could easily overpower him. She didn't need to use Demon's Extract, but it would be amusing to torture him with it.
"So lady...ummmm...is there any place you're planning to go to? I'd be happy to take you there," he asked. Clearly he was attempting small talk to break the silence.
"You...don't happening to be heading to the capital, do you?"
"What a coincidence! I was heading there meself! Gotta sell for a living you know."
Yes! She couldn't believe how lucky she was! But she still had to stay on guard: he might have been lying.
Looking around some more, she noticed a picture frame clamped to the wall. A young man and woman and presumably their daughter were smiling. The black and white photo looked quite old. Maybe they were his family when he was younger.
Below the picture, laying next to the drawer was what looked to be an axe wrapped in a cloth. To protect himself? To chop wood? To kill some unsuspecting victims? She didn't know, but all the more reason to be on alert.
There was nothing else besides the aforementioned things in the wooden cart. The silence prevailed again, with only the sounds of the horse's hooves trotting and of the forest permeating the air. He already tried to break the silence, so maybe it was her turn now.
"Where's your family, mister?" she quietly asked, trying to sound as meek as possible.
The old man sighed softly before replying.
"Well...they're...uhhhh...they're...they're in a better place now... Bandits...they...th-they...you know."
"Oh...errrr, I'm sorry to hear that."
The old man scratched his head.
"At least the bastards got what they deserved. All thanks to mah trusty axe over there."
Esdeath raised an eyebrow at that statement.
"You don't mean you-"
"Yeah. I...went out and killed them after I saw what they did...to my daughter...depraved assholes...but mah wife...ah, I remember her last words to me...'Live, honey. Please. Live for us.'"
Esdeath looked down at the wooden floor. She remembered what happened to her tribe back then.
"Anyways, enough 'bout me. How 'bout you? Where're ya from?" he asked.
Esdeath decided to withhold her status as a military official to play it safe.
"I...I was once a member of a tribe..."
"Oh! You were?"
"Why do you sound so surprised?"
"Weeeelll, ya looked like city folk to me. Pardon this old fella. I didn't know you were a tribal type."
"I get that a lot."
"What do ya mean by 'once' though?"
"Enemy tribe went over while I was away. You can figure out the rest."
"Oh...oh man, I'm so sorry about that."
"That was way back when I was a kid. I've gotten used to it now."
"Wow. I'm just...amazed at how you can talk so casually about that."
"My father used to tell me that 'the strong live, and the weak die'. That's what kept me going all the way."
"Sooo...I guess I can consider myself strong for surviving those bandits an' all now, huh?"
Esdeath grinned.
"And I thought you were surprised about how I can talk so casually about death."
The old man laughed in response.
"Just tryin' to make a joke and all to lighten the mood."
"To answer your question...yeah. I think you can."
"Don't look the part though. Hahaha!"
They fell silent again for a while before the old man spoke again.
"The name's Merl, by the way. Yours is?"
Esdeath hesitated for a moment.
"It's...Esdeath."
"Es...deze?"
"Es. Death."
"Es...death? That's a pretty...unusual name for a woman like you."
"I think it suits me fine."
"Whatever ya say, Esdeath..." he trailed off as he glanced at the sky. The sun was starting to set as they exited the forest.
"Looks we're outta the woods now, but it's still a long way to the Capital," Merl said as he focused back on the road.
"Why don't cha get some rest? Yer probably gonna need it when we reach the place."
As much she didn't want to fall asleep, Esdeath could feel that she was incredibly exhausted.
"I suppose a quick nap wouldn't hurt...but just try and touch me, Merl. " she thought as she moved to the futon. She might have "befriended" this old man, but she still couldn't trust him.
A couple hours later...
"Halt! State your name and business here in the Capital..." a muffled, unfamiliar voice said as the wagon abruptly stopped, following the neigh of the horse. Esdeath was awoken by it as she got up and rubbed her eyes. Her sleep wasn't very comfortable due to the bumpiness of the road, but at least she wasn't sleeping face down on the ground.
Merl and some unknown voices-probably border guards-were talking to each other. Just as she pressed her ear to the wall, the door of the wagon swung open as a Military Police soldier peered in, catching Esdeath off-guard. The soldier was wearing a light brown trenchcoat with a polo and tie underneath, a red armband and a black steel pot helmet with a white stripe around it. He was holding what looked to be a gun-spear.
"Well, well, well! Look what we have here!" he said as he grinned before grabbing Esdeath by the arm and dragging her out the wagon, abruptly dropping her on the cement road.
What the hell? How could they not recognize her? Perhaps it was because of her appearance, but that was impossible! She was in the Capital! Surely everyone would know her!
Meanwhile, Merl was shoved by some soldiers to the back of the wagon while one of them questioned him.
"Is she part of your merchandise too?" he scathingly demanded.
"No! She's...my daughter."
"Yeah, right," the soldier who dragged Esdeath out said as he walked over to him.
"First you say you don't know anything about our policy regarding entry papers, and now you claim that this half-naked broad is your daughter?!" he said as he looked at Merl in the eyes.
"Just admit it, buddy...you're a goddamn human trafficker!" the soldier loudly said as he threw a punch at Merl's gut, forcing the old man to collapse to his knees in pain.
Esdeath looked on in disgust as the soldier glanced at her. There were three soldiers present. Two standing behind Merl, and the aforementioned soldier, who was in front. She needed to make a move. and fast.
"Hm hmmm...your boss must've hit the jackpot! This one's got a nice bod..." he said as he lecherously sneered at her before crouching next to Merl and turning his head to him.
"Listen up here, bud. We'll be willing to let you and her go...but only if you pay us a little something."
"H-How...m-much?" Merl asked as he winced in pain.
"6,000 Imperial marks. Does that sound good to y'all?" the soldier said to the other two while mocking Merl's accent.
"Yeahaha, sir."
"Sounds like a fair trade!"
"6,000 each, buddy. Take it or leave it."
Merl was visibly shocked upon hearing it.
"I-I only have a couple thousand!"
The soldier shook his head in disappointment.
"Tsk, tsk. Well...that won't do. Looks like we're going to have to 'confiscate' your 'merchandise' and send you to jail, old man," he said as he pushed Merl to his side.
"Don't worry about her though..." the soldier said as he looked back at Esdeath. "She'll be a very important asset to our...'investigation'..."
The soldier reached out to grab her wrist, but Esdeath pulled her arm away as she stood up.
This was enough.
"STOP THIS RIGHT NOW! DON'T YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHO I AM?!"
The soldier and Merl looked at her, stunned.
"What."
"DO ANY OF YOU EVEN RECOGNIZE ME?! I AM GENERAL ESDEATH OF THE IMPERIAL ARMY! LEADER OF THE JAEGERS!" she shouted in her most commanding tone before pointing a finger at them.
"AND I ORDER YOU TO CEASE THIS BULLSHIT!"
The soldiers looked at each other and laughed while Merl looked on in confusion.
"What are you doing?" he mouthed to her.
"STOP LAUGHING THIS INSTANT!"
"What the fuck?! What is going on here?! Why are these bastards laughing?!" she thought as she looked on, confused and irritated. How dare these soldiers not acknowledge her authority! It was the when it came to her when she saw the red armbands again.
They had the Revolutionary Army's logo on it.
Her eyes widened in shock.
Had the battle already happened? Did she miss out on the spectacular battle she would've had in ages while she was out cold?
THIS WAS UNACCEPTABLE!
"What the hell did you do to her, old man? That must've been some kinky torture!"
Esdeath got into a combat stance as she prepared to use her Teigu on the soldiers. Once she was finished with them, the rest of the Revolutionary Army was next.
At least she could enjoy the carnage all by herself.
She thrust her left hand forward and mentally ordered "Freeze."
Nothing happened as the soldiers started to stop laughing.
"Huh?! Why...why isn't Demon's Extract working?!" she thought as the soldier in front of her looked at her strangely after regaining his composure.
"What are the fuck you doing now?" he asked.
Esdeath frowned harder as she tried to make her Teigu work.
"WEISSSCHNABEL!" she shouted. No icicles materialized to impale the three.
"Is this some kind cuss word I haven't heard off?" one of the soldiers asked.
"Why isn't it working?!" Esdeath demanded mentally as she looked at her hand. As she brought it closer to her, she noticed something.
The tattoo on her chest was gone.
"Nonononono...this isn't possible!"
For once, Esdeath briefly felt how it was to panic. Demon's Extract was gone.
"Okay, bitch. Enough bullshit. You're coming with us!" the soldier in front of her attempted to grab her arm again, only for her to grab his and judo throw him to the ground and break his arm by stomping hard on his elbow.
*CRACK*
"AUUUGGGHHHHHHH!"
The two other soldiers and Merl looked on, stunned yet again as Esdeath picked up the fallen gun-spear and charged the two.
She drove the spear blade deep into one of their necks, pushing him down to the floor and jamming the blade into the ground, with Esdeath tripping over his body. The other soldier gritted his teeth as he attempted to stab her with his only for an axe to split his head and neck in two.
The still blood-spurting body of the man fell to her side as she saw Merl holding his bloody axe.
"Thanks? But I think I had that covered," she said to the old man, who tossed his axe back into the wagon.
"Sure you did. Need a hand up?" he asked he offered her his hand. Esdeath obliged.
"Been a while since I used that ol' thing on a man. Now let's go hide these bodies."
"Go figure."
It was only then when Esdeath looked around to see the Capital. It didn't look any different than it did before. The Imperial Palace still dominated the skyline, although buildings just as tall or more were now being built.
She and Merl dragged the bodies into a grimy alley and covered them with a nearby dirty canvas. Afterwards, they regrouped back at the wagon.
"Err...welcome to the Capital, Esdeath. I honestly wasn't expecting my welcome to be like this," Merl said as he put a hand on his still-aching abdomen.
"Me neither."
"What was all that about bein' a general, anyway?"
Oops!
"I...uh...well...I uhhh...I was trying to distract...them?"
"Ahhhh. Well it certainly worked! Where did you learn to fight like that too?"
Esdeath looked aside.
"My father taught me a few things..."
"Bless his soul then! I'd say he's raised a fine young lady who can defend herself!"
"You are aware that we just killed three men, right?" Esdeath jokingly replied.
"Well, anyway. Are you gonna go by yourself now or do ya still want a ride around here?" Merl asked.
"I think it'd be best if we part. We shouldn't stick around here after all this."
"Oh, right. Good thinkin'. Them coppers gonna be here any moment."
Merl inspected his wagon before looking back at Esdeath.
"Are you suuure ya wanna go around like that? I don't think I have any clothes that can fit ya in here..."
"It's fine, it's fine. You should get going already, Merl. Thanks for the ride."
"Aww shucks, don't mention it. Take care of yerself. If ya need anythin' I'll be peddlin' 'round here and the market."
"I'll...drop by when I have time," Esdeath said as she looked at the Imperial Palace.
"'Till our paths cross again, 'General'! Hahahaha!" Merl said as he rode off.
Esdeath cracked her neck and stared down the Palace.
"Time to find out what the hell is going on here."
Author's Note: I'm not sure if anyone has made this kind of story yet, but either way, here it is! A story with Esdeath becoming the "hero" of the people! Please read & review!