Notes on text, which will be used heavily in this story:

-Underlined Text is equivalent to Red Text

-Underlined and Bolded Text is equivalent to Blue Text

-Underlined, Bolded, and Italicized Text is equivalent to Golden Text

Yes I know it's a poor system, but what else can I do? Fanfiction won't allow color text. If anyone knows otherwise; please feel free to tell me.


Episode 7 : Corruption of the Golden Witch

Move 1 : Top Board

"Please repeat that," Battler growled at Bernkastel; who regarded him in turn with a bored expression. "I may or may not be sure here; but it sounds like you just said that you were declared Game Master of the next game..." He left the thought dangling, stared contemptuously at the Witch of Miracles.

"If you require me to repeat it; yes I have been made Game Master." Bernkastel smiled slightly at this; a presuming, conceited smile that only further irritated Battler. "If that is a concept that is difficult to get through your skull, by all means feel free to retire for some time and think the concept through." Her childish grin widened; Battler fumed silently. "Go on. We're all waiting here." She gestured around the room; severals sets of eyes regarded her in turn: Lambdadelta and Bernkastel occupied one side of their game room; Battler, Beatrice, and Virgilia sat parallel to them.

"This is outrageous isn't it?" Battler nodded; Beatrice had every right to be upset. They had been in the winning position. The board had been cleared, the truth he already knew. So why then was Bernkastel taking his position as Game Master?

Battler regarded Beatrice, his incomplete shadow of the Beato lost in the fifth game. She seemed to be close to a break through; in her lay Battler's hopes for seeing the true Beatrice awakened again. She evoked many feeling in him at once; pity, sorrow... love. Battler hated to admit it, but he had fallen throughly for the Golden Witch: her feisty attitude, her golden blond hair, her brightening smile; Battler would give everything to bring Beatrice back. He would plow through a billion hells, face the devil himself to return the Beatrice he had known and loved. Battler knew that the key to Beatrice's resurrection was the game itself; if he could win, Beatrice's spirit could perhaps return... but first, he had a manipulative bitch of a witch to deal with.

"On whose authority are you allowed to take this title?" Battler inquired of Bernkastel. "I assure you; I would not award the title of Game Master under any circumstances. I'm still alive; I still hold the position. So who gave you the right to usurp me?"

"That would be me." Battler and Beatrice glanced about; found a newcomer occupying a chair between the two factions. Neither had seen her arrive; she had simply appeared in their midst with little warning. Her hair was a darkish purple, her dress a ludicrously overdecorated kimono complete with a medaled sash; what the medals meant, Battler couldn't guess at. A pair of silvery horns extended from the opposing sides of her head gleaning faintly in the brightness of the room; a smooth walking stick lay clasped loosely in a hand. She wore a grin; a coldly malicious grin that gave Battler an involuntary chill.

"So... so it is under your authority that Bernkastel is declared Game Master?" Beatrice sounded timid and Battler supposed he would have as well. Bernkastel and Lambdadelta were each scary in their own way... but this guest had a thoroughly unpleasant feel about her; a dark, malignant aura that seemed to leech the life from the room.

"Indeed." The newcomer turned to face them; her eyes were practical slits of purple that unsettled the pair of them, Battler and Beatrice averted their gazes. "I am Featherine Augustine Aurora; Witch of Theatrics and former mentor of that child over there." With this she indicated Bernkastel; Bernkastel offered Featherine an unreadable look. "Do not take it the wrong way; the game was adequate under your control. Bernkastel shall offer another viewpoint... a less biased one, anyways."

At this, Battler turned to face Featherine; furious. "And what presumptions of bias do you make?" Battler coldly stared at the Witch of Theatrics; she met his glare with a wicked grin. "If you are Bernkastel's former teacher, would you not be naturally favorable towards her? Have you not even seen what that bitch does? She's a monster!" Battler settled down; he smoothed out a few creases in his suit with care and deliberately sat back in his throne.

"You know what they say... all monsters are born of other monsters." Featherine's grin widened further; a sickle like tooth gleaned sharply in the light. "Entrails are delicious you know; especially if they are from recently living subjects. That aside, you are just as guilty of bias as I am; you put your trust in Beatrice after all. She is a witch; like all witches she has a goal, and a plan to achieve that goal. You only trust her because she treats you better than more honest witches like myself and Bernkastel; in a way, she is even crueler than us for deceiving you so."

"Thats a lie," Battler interjected coldly. "She does not 'treat' me better; she is better than the rest of you cruel, heartless monsters. I will see her revived; and I will see the rest of you brought down for taking advantage of her like such." His eyes swept over the four opposing him; they returned his gaze evenly.

"Suit yourself," Featherine yawned as Battler's gaze passed over her. She rubbed at one of her horns, frowned. "You are free to hold whatever viewpoint you please; that is the right of a Witch." She glanced about the room, her frown growing in size.

"Something wrong, Lady Featherine?" Lambdadelta finally spoke; she spoke humbly, a bad sign given her normally impudent attitude towards anyone besides- occasionally including- Bernkastel. Featherine made a slight gesture, Lambdadelta turned to the others and shrugged. Virgilia and Beatrice shot glances at Battler; he shook his head. Featherine's behavior was as unreadable to him as it was to the other inhabitants of the room; save Featherine and perhaps Bernkastel.

Featherine suddenly stopped; her frown turned into a slight snarl. Righting herself onto her throne she said, "We have another guest." The rest of them looked about in a frenzy; Virgilia pointed to indicate a man sitting opposite Featherine in a chair that had been vacant only moments before.

This particular arrival was as ridiculously dressed as Featherine; if not more so. He wore a green robe; the upper portion of it obscured by some sort of brick red breastplate. He had a strong figure; a metal bat was grasped in one of his hands. He was a brunette; his facial features and figure hinted at a man in his late teens. His aura was decidedly different however; Battler sensed a sort of cocky wisdom in the mans fiery eyes and impudent face.

"Of course. Maebara. How charming." Featherine growled between clenched teeth; the two regarded each other with what could be described as respectful loathing. "I had returned under the premise that you had left the magical community; a self imposed exile, I was told. Of course, not all can go according to ones wishes..." Featherine slouched in her seat and silenced herself; occasionally shooting a dark glance at Maebara but otherwise remaining still.

"Featherine. Simply delightful to see you of course," Maebara said with a cheery tone that seemed to insinuate sarcasm. "Lambdadelta as well; the Senate sends their regards." Lambdadelta huffed, she turned her face pointedly from the brunette. "Virgilia, is it? You finally passed on your title; though I wish that you had had the decency to invite me to her coronation ceremony."

Virgilia smiled ruefully at the new arrival as he spoke to her: "I wish I had; but it was impossible to reach you at the time. Anyone who tried came back in a less than enviable state." Maebara chuckled at this; then proceeded to regard the rest of the room.

"Beatrice. I have heard much about you and your game; though I must apologize for your death." Beatrice shrugged; she didn't have any memories of this strange man. "And Battler, not even a year and already a Sorcerer!" Maebara and Battler considered each other; Battler nodded slightly, he wasn't sure how he should feel about the arrival; he didn't seem as obviously malicious as Featherine, but the case of Bernkastel and Lambdadelta had taught him to be wary of any magical creature that seemed to be friendly. "Yes, back in my day one was not lauded to the position of a Sorcerer so quickly; especially the position of Endless Sorcerer..." His head turned once more, back to where Lambdadelta still sat siltently fuming. "And the last one would be... Bernkastel."

The two exchanged glances; Maebara and Bernkastel sat silently staring at one another. For the briefest of moments, Bernkastel's mouth twitched upwards; she seemed to be on the verge of a smile. Suddenly, her face soured; she made a frown and coldly nodded to Maebara. He turned away, slowly; as if he had been disappointed by the outcome. Battler considered the pair for a moment, then irritably began to speak:

"Well, I suppose that this is fair enough for you magical creatures; chumming it up without a care in the world. I on the other hand will not stand for this. Not only do I have to face Bernkastel and Lambdadelta; but now more people have appeared?" Battler pinched the bridge of his nose; he sighed deeply and continued, "This game was supposed to be between Beatrice and I; but now the rest of you dare to interfere? I tolerate Bernkastel and Lambdadelta only because I need the game to bring Beatrice back to her full self. The rest of you however, can make yourselves scarce."

"A rather poor show for our host; don't you think?" Featherine suddenly inquired of her peers. "A game is open territory in the magical community; anyone may join. You have no right to-"

"-In the barbaric world of the other witches perhaps," Battler interrupted, voice as cold and hard as steel. "Beatrice is superior to the rest of you; cruel monsters and interfering bastards and bitches alike." Beatrice smiled warmly at the comment, Virgilia glanced at Battler with a shadow of doubt.

"And you presume yourself and Beatrice to be superior? You are an incompetent, blind fool Battler Ushiomiya." Lambdadelta shot back. "Your bias will be the death of you. You're beginning to reek of bias; Beatrice has gotten into your head: hook, line, and-"

"And we are the bad people here?" Battler roared, the assembly of magical creatures bristled at the sudden outburst. Beatrice shied back; she seemed to be frightened. Struggling to master his temper; Battler continued to rant in constricted tone, "Perhaps I am biased. But Beatrice and I are still better people than the lot of you. Virgilia aside-" He nodded briefly at the silver haired witch; she nodded in return, "-the rest of you are monsters who play with peoples lives. I can't speak for either Maebara or Featherine; but undoubtedly you two are," he gestured at Bernkastel and Lambdadelta.

"Good and evil are not the only standards by which one should be judged." Maebara quietly muttered from his seat. His comment seemed to end the debate; everyone settled down and sat in a cold silence. Battler glanced from Beatrice to the others and back again. After a few minutes of uncomfortable quiet; he coughed and began to apologize:

"I am sorry for my outburst; my mind had not been clear since the loss of Beatrice..." He struggled for a moment to find the proper words. "I... I will consent to letting Bernkastel become the Game Master of the new board. But on the condition that Featherine and Maebara do not; under any circumstances interfere with the game."

"While I agree to your exclusion of Maebara; I will not allow myself to be ousted from this game so easily," Featherine addressed Battler. "I came into this game to be entertained; and in no way will I allow upstarts like you to do as they please." She finished her retort icily; gave Battler a dark glance. He felt slightly intimidated; but he held strong and remained level with her glare.

"I am doing this on a mission from the Witch's Senate." Maebara made his own retort immediately after Featherine. "Obviously, it is very difficult to perform a mission properly if you are not where you need to be. I will not be removed from this game either."

Battler rankled at the open challenge to his authority by the both of them. "Then in that case, I will disallow Bernkastel from taking the title of Game Master. Beatrice and I will suspend the game; we are capable of waiting until you all come to your senses." He adjusted himself in his chair with deliberate care; his move had put his opponents over a barrel, so to speak. They all desired the continuation of the game; if it stalled, they would all lose. Battler traded a conspiratorial look with Beatrice; she grinned wickedly in response.

"If you two are done being obvious- bad acting I must say- I would like to shoot down the silly notion that you two have won." Featherine's dark smile had suddenly returned; Battler began to feel uneasy again. "I am Featherine, Witch of Theatrics; I assumed you would be smart enough to figure out my power from that title, but I suppose I was wrong. I can control any game, any game of my choosing; with the power of the playwright. In other words, my power as the playwright supersedes even yours; I can make Bernkastel the Game Master whether you like it or not. As a human once said, 'There is no world without theater,' after all. I control everything." Featherine laughed openly, haughtily; Battler suddenly felt the crushing weight of futility in light of Featherine's power.

He glanced at Beatrice; who appeared just as hopeless as he did. Featherine's chuckles died down; she regarded the pair with a smug face. Suddenly; something occurred to Beatrice, a smile came to her face as she tapped Battler on the shoulder.

"Perhaps they will not go willingly..." She said mischievously with a sly glance in Featherine and Maebara's directions. "But that doesn't mean we can't 'make' them go..." She left the thought dangling; her meaning was obvious enough. Everyone in the room regarded Beatrice with incredulity' minus Battler, who seemed to be considering her suggestion seriously. He began to slowly nod; rising, he clapped his hands together and began to address the room.

"This shall be the contract. I will accept Bernkastel as Game Master; regardless of whether you two agree to leave or not. If you do not leave; I shall summon my furniture to kill the both of you. If you do leave; it shall be finished. So, what shall you do?" He looked around the room; half expecting to see the assembled witches agreeing with him. Instead, they began to laugh.

"Oh- oh dear thats rich!" Featherine choked on her words, she doubled over in her chair; laughing herself silly."You- you honestly think that you can-" The rest of her words were lost in her fit of laughter. Bernkastel and Lambdadelta held each other laughing loudly, Maebara seemed to be restraining a chuckle only with difficulty. Beatrice frowned; she did not understand the hilarity in her suggestion. Battler grimaced, he probably should have expected the arrogant witches to act like this. He patiently waited for their laughter to die down, then addressed them once more:

"So I take it then, that you will not consider my offer?"

"Go ahead and attack us if you wish," Maebara cheerfully offered the redheaded Sorcerer. "Trust me, it will not get you far; but you could always try. Who knows, perhaps Bernkastel will be favorable to you and give you a miracle? We'll even give you the benefit of a first-strike; go on Battler Ushiromiya, you may make the first move." Featherine nodded in agreement, the pair of them stood; apparently awaiting Battler's attack.

Battler paused; he considered the situation. Their confidence made him uneasy, unsure. He exchanged glances with Beatrice; she seemed to be uncertain about her own suggestion. He shrugged, she smiled in response. Emboldened by her gesture; he decided to go for it.

"Virgilia, summon Ronove and Gaap and attack Featherine. I'll use the Stakes of Purgatory on Maebara." His hand descended to his robe, he began preparing the summons in his mind.

"Battler-san... I don't think that this is such a wise..." Beatrice caught her gaze; naive assurance emanated from the blond witch's eyes. Virgilia's retort died in her throat; with a heavy sigh, she summoned Gaap and Ronove into the world. Giving them their orders; she stood parallel to Featherine, who regarded her with the look that a wolf would give it's prey. Across from them, Battler and Maebara evenly regarded one another; with a gesture from Battler , the Seven Stakes appeared in formation between Maebara and herself. Maebara tapped lightly at his chin, then made a gesture in response:

They appeared; three men wearing indigo blue tights and flouncy dress shirts of a similar color. Their sleeves were frilly, their blue tights furled up to knee level. It was a silly ensemble that would look outdated in Dark Ages Europe. Considerably less silly looking were the impressively long pikes that they held with seeming ease in their hands; the handles were of burnished mahogany wood, the heads of the pikes glimmered with a red aura. The apparent leader; a tall black haired man sporting a trimmed beard; turned to Maebara and saluted. "The SS Van Dine and I, Wizard-Hunting Wright; stand at your service."

"The SSVD?" Lambdadelta asked; with a hint of awe tinting her voice. "Impressive. The council must be really desperate if they assigned them to you." Bernkastel and Featherine nodded in unison. Virgilia openly groaned; Battler and Beatrice looked at each other in doubt. Rarely was Virgilia disturbed by anything; the SSVD must have been a formidable force to elicit such a response from her. But it was too late now; Battler was sure that giving up now would cause him to lose even more power to his unwanted guests. He had to plow on; even if the threat of losing was clear. He motioned to the Stakes and Virgilia:

"Right. Attack your targets now."

"The SSVD? Are you suicidal Battler-kun?" Lucifer asked the question with some nervousness; her sisters uneasily considered their counterparts. Battler gave a slight nod; with a rueful smile; Lucifer ordered her sisters to charge. Likewise, and with equal amounts of regret; Virgilia did the same for Ronove and Gaap. The sides clashed: Battler and Maebara, Virgilia and Featherine. Wright barked orders to his two counterparts, they held out their pikes and began to parry the Stakes and their arm-blades:

"Vance, hold the pike closer to your center! Benson, one of them is behind you; adjust your positioning to account for her!" All this while fighting three of the Stakes singlehandedly. Lucifer shouted orders in response; the sisters converted into their signature stakes and began to whistle menacingly throughout the room. Satan was slightly too slow to transform; a pike thrust from Vance felled her. Even in stake form the Stakes found it difficult to pierce the SS Van Dine's defenses: here Mammon and Asmodeus were cut down in mid-flight by Wright, there Leviathan was brutally impaled onto the wall by Benson. The remained stakes grew increasingly ragged and desperate; soon they were all dead, blood flowing thickly onto the ground. Wright dusted off his shirt; none of the three SSVD had taken a scratch.

Battler gaped in horror and shock. Backing away from the grisly scene slowly; he turned to consider Virgilia's battle. An even worse sight greeted him there. Bits and chunks of corpses had been strewn throughout the room; blood was splattered up the walls and even onto the ceiling. Featherine, Lambdadelta, and Bernkastel had congregated around a mangled body; only vaguely recognizable as that of Virgilia's. She had been brutally disemboweled, her bloody intestines spilled out onto the floor like many sausage links. And the three of them were treating them as such; daintily chewing on the viscera as if they were cookies that one enjoyed with their tea. Featherine searched for Battler's gaze; she found it and gave him a truly malicious and evil smile, bloody teeth bared. Featherine hadn't even summoned any furniture; yet she had still massacred the forces sent at her. And she also hadn't taken a scratch.

Battler fell back into his seat; he felt slightly faint from nausea and despair. He had completely lost; and he was now the mercy of his opponents. He looked over and Beatrice; she seemed to be on the verge of vomiting, eyes glazed over and a hand clasped tightly onto her mouth. Their gambit had failed utterly; already Maebara approached him with a telling smile plastered onto his face.

"I told you that such a move would not take you far." Maebara put a hand against the golden throne and leaned above and before Battler; forcing their gazes to meet. "You are lucky that you are an important factor for this game. I would be willing to spare you even if not; but trust me, Featherine is not that merciful." From the group huddled over Virgilia's corpse came more chewing and gulping; Battler resisted the urge to be ill. "As I'm sure you can tell, she has a taste for entrails; I've tried them myself once out of curiosity. They are surprisingly good; though the method for obtaining them is obviously less than savory." Chuckling heartily; Maebara dismissed the SSVD and returned to his seat.

After a horrible minute of feasting, the three witches straightened up and returned to their seats; Virgilia's corpse left desecrated where it had fallen. Wiping at her mouth with a bloody cloth that Battler realized- with a jolt of horror- had formerly been Ronove's; Featherine smiled cruelly at Battler and Beatrice. Beatrice had subsided, sobbing quietly into her seat; Battler remained strong only with difficulty. Featherine nodded ironically at Battler.

"It seems that I win. Act closed; if you will." Bernkastel and Lambdadelta tittered; Featherine made a dramatic sweep of her hands as if ending a production. "I must thank Maebara here- reluctantly mind you- for his wonderful role in destroying your Stakes. Now then, I assume that you will agree to all of my demands; seeing as how you have been crushed so throughly." Battler nodded faintly. "Right. I declare Bernkastel the master of the seventh game of Rokkenjima. Furthermore, Maebara and I shall be allowed into the game as actual players; not just observers. If that is all; then I shall be departing now. Feel free to revive your... furniture at your leisure. I hold no grudge against them." A pause. "Virgilia was delicious, after all." Laughing, Featherine faded out of existence; followed closely by Bernkastel and Lambdadelta.

Maebara watched silently after them; then turned slightly to address Battler:

"Be careful. This newest game shall have far more at stake." He paused; considered his words. "And consider expanding your viewpoint. You may think you have learned the truth, but there is always more to learn. This game is far deeper than you have ever imagined it to be. I shall see you next game, Battler Ushiromiya."

With that, Maebara was gone. Battler and Beatrice were left alone; silent in the gore spattered room.


At some point I will remake Chapter 1 to bring it up to standards. But not now.

Thanks for reading.