"So that's the shack that Foquet is hiding in," Louise stated. "Not much for a master criminal."
Vale felt something off. "Hang on a moment before going in," he said. He turned back to the house. He stretched his senses and was sent reeling by what he felt (28 Fort vs. stunned dc 27) He pulled his sword from his back and marched to the house. The girls were surprised by this turn of events. "Do not go in," he said, "And beware Miss Longueville. I believe she has betrayed us." He marched resolutely into the house and found what he was looking for straight off, sitting on an open tabletop.
It was five feet long, made of a whithered, graying wood, with maggots sporadically appearing on the surface. He knew that type of staff anywhere; he had hoped to have seen the last of them. A Staff of Corruption. He felt another evil presence behind him and beheld something else he had hoped never to see again; a succubus was walking over to the Staff, smiling at him. "Ah, what fools you adventurer's are, never checking for what's inside." Her voice was soft and sultry and he prepared his sword for what inevitably came next. "Oh, what's this little adventurer? Why would such a creature as noble and powerful as yourself come to this far away world?"
Vale growled, "I was summoned here and I intend to fill the contract I was bound to. What are you doing here?"
The demoness smiled with a sultry look in her eye. "Oh, I just wanted to see what this world has to offer. Why would you want to spoil my fun?" She was smiling, but her eyes kept flitting to the staff. Vale moved to cover it.
"This thing needs to be destroyed," he said, "and I intend to do it."
The succubus lost her cool (hot?) demeanor and got ready to attack. "I don't think so!"
(Meanwhile, outside)
Foquet was watching the scene unfold in the house. When she saw the succubus' attack repelled by the odd familiar and said familiar strike her, she gasped and crashed through the window, taking the next strike intended for the Succubus. She heard a scream, and then felt darkness take her.
(back to Vale)
Vale looked on in a mixture of curiosity and concern as the Succubus covered the young woman with her own body. "STAY BACK FROM HER!" she screamed at Vale. Fury was in her eyes, despite the terrible wound in her side.
Vale thought quickly. "What is she to you? Your summoner? A tool?"
Tears were in the succubus' eyes as she bitterly replied, "My savior. She pulled me from the pits, where I was being used as a pleasure slave for some noble that got lucky with a summoning circle." Vale watched her get back up with a hand covering the wound on her side. "And if you think I'm not going to pay you back for hurting her, YOU'RE WRONG!" The succubus struck out with her clawed hand but it was simply caught against Vale's arm guard. Recognition flashed through his eyes and he decided to try his offer.
"If you let me, I shall heal her," he said. "But... I am going to have to talk to both of you after I do so." The Succubus collapsed on the ground, the pain of her wound overwhelming her due to her surprise.
"Wh-why would you negotiate with me? I should kill you for your insolence. Why don't you slay me instead?" she asked in angry confusion.
Vale pulled a potion out of his pouch. "Half for you, half for her. If I find you healed and not her, I will slay you as you wish." She shuddered and unstoppered the cork while Vale turned to the staff and prepared his sword. In a flash and a thunderclap he sheared through it, dispelling the evil energies of the staff. Vale heard windows explode and doors fly off their hinges at the massive release of energy from the wicked staff.
It was then that the rest of the girls came through the door to see what had happened, and the result was yelling in fright at the demon. They raised their wands but Vale stepped in front of them. "Hold, I'm going to talk to them." They wanted to fight, but the commanding tone in his voice brooked no argument. He turned back to the Succubus, who was holding the slowly recovering Foquet, or rather Longueville. Their wounds were quickly healing over.
He knelt down in front of the pair and the two held their breath as they studied him. "By the Right of Kord, I Demand The Truth," he intoned. A brief flash came from Longueville and a growl came from the Succubus.
"What did you do to her?" She asked as the human recovered.
He met her glare evenly. "I invoked my right as Divine Crusader of Kord, calling on his power to ensure that she speaks nothing but the truth. Now be quiet for a while."
The dazed human woman slowly sat up. "What do you want from me?" she asked.
"Answers. Why did you steal the dark artifact?"
She took a moment to answer. "I was offered a rather large sum by a man in a mask if I could find it and return it to him. I was offered a larger sum if I could figure out how to use it."
"Why did you want the money so badly?" he pressed.
"So I could escape with Tyriende to where we would not be hunted."
"Was the man in the mask working for someone?"
"I do not know, just that he mentioned something called 'Reconquiesta,' and that he talked about a continuous position in his organization." Vale nodded and turned to the Succubus.
"I'll know if you're lying, Demon, so answer me truthfully," Vale demanded. The room was dead quiet as he asked, "What is this woman to you?"
Emotion flashed through the succubus' eye. "She is the one whom saved me, whom found me when I was trapped in a - pardon the pun - hellish place."
Vale nodded and continued, "You're a demon, why would any place be considered terrible for you?"
The demon growled and Vale glared. "I was used," she eventually spat out, "and I was used as little more than chattel."
Vale took her chin and looked her in the eyes as a radiant glow began to come from him. "Answer me truthfully, would you give your life to save hers?" The Demon ran a hand through the hair of Longueville and nodded quietly. Vale nodded and withdrew. From within his cloak he produced a small box, and with this box he did something rather impossible for its size. He stuck his entire arm into it and began to rummage around. The four who had never been to Vale's plane of existence gawked at the impossible feat, but the succubus was merely curious, albiet cautiously so. Finally he nodded and pulled out a flawless diamond as large as his fist.
"Have you ever heard rumors of those that appeared in the ranks of the Divine after an encounter in the Material Plane?" he asked. She nodded with dawning comprehension. "Then do you know what I am going to require of you for the protection of your loved one?" The four women stared at the demon. She merely nodded and took the diamond into her hands. "This may hurt for a moment, I am sorry for that."
He stepped back and placed the etherial blade of his greatsword against the top of her head. "Kord, I have found one who seeks Redemption. Show this Lost Soul the way to a pure life, that she may learn what it is she truly seeks." The Succubus glowed brighter than the sun for a moment before she fell to the floor, her body turning to ash before the horrified women.
"What did you do?!" screamed Longueville with tears in her eyes. "What did you to to Tyriende?!" He put the diamond into Longueville's hands and she could only stare at the gem with tears in her eyes as a cloudy substance circled inside.
"In a few months, maybe as little as a few weeks as she's already got a reason to change, she will come back," Vale said quietly. "She may feel love for you now, but her soul is corrupted with a taint stronger than any mortal bonds. The spell I cast is known as 'Sanctify the Wicked'. I took a piece of myself and used it to bind her in this diamond until her soul turns completely good."
Longueville's face turned up to him. "I won't tell any of the staff about who you are," he continued, "But, in return I want something from you." The girls in the room were listening intently to the way Vale was talking. "I want you to turn away from the path you were living. I want you to abandon your practice of stealing and do your best to live life well. I want you to come talk to me at least once a week so that I may see how you are progressing, and I want to make sure that when she comes back," he gestured to the diamond in her hands, "she has a chance to live a good life with you."
The woman nodded and Vale stood back up with his usual warm smile. "Good. Now, if you don't mind, I'm a bit tired from that spell. Let's go back to..." Vale's eyes closed and he collapsed onto the ground. Louise panicked for a moment, but was surprised to hear her familiar snoring.
Kirche recovered first. "Well... I take it that," she pointed to the shattered halves of the staff, "was the Rod of Destruction, so we'll need to bring it back."
Tabitha pointed at Longueville, "Foquet?" The woman in question nodded. Tabitha looked her over and said, "Trust the familiar, he's not a bad guy." So saying, she turned and picked up the halves as she walked out the door.
Louise stared at her Familiar with a mixture of curiosity and anger. "What in the world are you, you stupid familiar?!" Even out like a light, that same smile seemed to stick on his infuriating face. Sighing, she picked up one of her familiar's arms and turned to Kirche and Longueville. "Well," she asked, startling them, "are you going to help me lug him back?"
The school was in an uproar. Old Osmond was trying to quiet the teachers down, but they wanted answers. Why had a familiar destroyed a relic? Why did the group all say that Foquet had disappeared in the middle of the house? And why was the familiar unconscious when they needed all the answers? His thoughts were interrupted by a loud yawn from behind him, where the group that had gone to recover the artifact was.
Silence reigned for one beautiful moment and the clink of scales against plate mail was heard. "So," said a man's baritone voice, "How many questions do I have to answer this time?" As one, nearly all the teachers face-vaulted. This had happened before?
Old Osmond cleared his throat, turned to the familiar and asked with an air of authority, "Well, I'd like to ask you the one question that is of the most pressing concern; why were you unconscious?"
The familiar's smile widened to practically a grin. "Well, I had to use one of my most powerful spells, and Kord always demands a bit of restitution when I call on that much power."
The teachers all roared out in unison, "SPELL?!"
Vale winced. "Yes, spell. I am a Divine Crusader of Kord, one of the Paragon Dieties, and in return for my service he grants me access to a bit of his power, in the form of divine spells and a few other minor abilities." The crowd murmured for a moment amongst themselves.
Finally Old Osmond turned back. "I'll test your so called spells myself, later. For now I must know; why did you destroy the Rod of Destruction?"
Vale turned with disgust to the halves of the abominable weapon. "It is a weapon of my world that was crafted for a single purpose; corrupt those of pure heart. I have seen allies fall to its wickedness and I have no desire to see that happen here. It is within my job description, in fact, to destroy evil wherever I see it." He felt Longueville's eyes on the back of his head, boring into him, but he ignored it.
Osmond nodded at him slowly. "I see. Would you mind telling me where Foquet went?"
Vale shrugged and grinned, "Sorry, not a clue." (Bluff roll: 18 (unskilled) vs. Sense Motive roll: 29 (skilled; what, you think the head of an entire school would be overly gullible?))
The Principle glared at Vale. "Why do I have the feeling that you are lying?" Vale's grin only widened. Osmond sighed. "Well, just as long as he is dealt with and whatever you did doesn't come back to bite us, we'll be fine."
(I figured that really, Longueville deserves a second chance. It was never said in the manga exactly why she was stripped of her titles, so I figure 'to heck with it, Imma have some leeway with this. Lee, you've been warned.
Also... Phew! Long chapter! But I felt this had to be done in one shot, so here it is. 'Til next time, see ya.)