.
A Namekian in Halkeginia
Disclaimer – I do NOT own either Dragon Ball Z or Familiar of Zero. Dragon Ball Z is owned by FUNimation, Toei Animation, Fuji TV and Akira Toriyama. Familiar of Zero is owned by the late Yamaguchi Noboru.
So... yeah...
Not dead, by the way, just in-case anyone was wondering.
Life's just been rather busy the past year and a bit, so to speak. However, unlikely as this may seem, the story hasn't been lying abandoned this entire time. Though I've not had any real chance to take the time needed to do any work on it, I've been throwing plans and ideas around over the past while about where to take things; and now that matters have settled and I've actually got some free time on my hands, I felt it's time to dust off the old story files, and get back in action.
I've also gone back and touched up the previous chapters; mainly proof-reading, error correction, and so on – relatively minor things. I did, however, make one notable change, for story sake – in chapter 5, I changed Piccolo's explanation from being about his entire past, to simply being about events leading to him being summoned to Halkeginia in the first place (though with a few added details to keep up the level of unbelievable craziness about it all).
Furthermore, I want back and reworked part of chapter 2: specifically, the part dealing with Piccolo's initial acceptance of the whole familiar contracting. As pointed out in a few reviews, I realise that Piccolo came across as altogether too accepting of the situation in regards to agreed to complete the ritual. As such, I fleshed that particular scene out to try and give it a more believable feel.
I may also go back and perhaps re-tweak the first chapter, see if I can reduce the info-dump factor of it in any decent way.
Anyhow, it's been long enough, so I figure it's time we dusted off the old story glasses, and got the ball rolling again.
So let's see where things take us this time.
"Blahblahblah"– Speech
"Blahblahblah"– Thoughts/Dreams
Chapter 7: Complications
All across the lookout, the air was almost completely silent, save for the low whistle of a gentle wind and the rustling of the trees lining the circular edge of the floating platform. The sun above shone as bright as ever in the cloudless sky above, the white tiled floor bathed in its radiant light.
And at the platform's edge, directly opposite the central temple, was Piccolo. The towering Z Fighter stood with crossed arms and closed eyes, his weighted cape flapping idly about his ankles as he mulled over the events of the past few days... or more precisely, his present situation in relation to getting back home.
That was, at least, until his thoughts were interrupted by the sound of an all-too familiar voice inside his head.
"So, why exactly did you agree to that contracting ritual anyway, Piccolo?"
The Namekian couldn't help but smile, a brief chuckle escaping from his throat.
"I was wondering when you'd show up," the Namekian replied in a somewhat matter-of-fact manner, opening his eyes as he turned to face the central temple. "Besides, you already know the answer to that one... Kami."
Indeed, the spiritual essence of Kami, former Guardian of Earth, dwelt within the depths of Piccolo's subconsciousness. Having taken up residence there back when the two fused together during the Android threat. For the most part, Kami's own spiritual essence had been absorbed into Piccolo when the two halves rejoined and became one again that fateful day, given that Piccolo was the far stronger of the two overall. However, a small fragment of his spirit remained free, where upon he nestled himself deep in a quiet corner of his other half's mind.
Kami's spirit had lain dormant over the years, content to watch from the proverbial sidelines as Piccolo carried on in the struggles to protect Earth. However, there had been the odd occasion or two when he had opted to speak up, offering his own insight into whatever matter was at hand. An amusing memory came to mind at that moment, the two recalling the first time Kami had revealed to Piccolo that the ancient Namekian was still very much a part of his younger host's psyche.
Safe to say, that particular revelation had been quite the shocker for Piccolo; however, as time passed, he gradually became accustomed to his older half's mental and spiritual presence. In fact, in some ways it had been a bit of a blessing-in-disguise, as the stoic Namekian came to find, since in a rather bizarre way it actually helped to have another voice there to talk to every now and then... even if said voice did reside within his own head.
"I suppose that's true, yes," the aged spirit of the Earth's former guardian agreed, a faint hint of amusement present in his tone. "Something about giving our hosts the illusion of cooperation while you find us a way back home, If these thoughts of yours are anything to go by."
"I guess you could say something like that," Piccolo chuckled as swept his gaze over the lookout, his thoughts momentarily shifting to whatever training he might potentially end up putting Louise and Siesta through, before continuing. "The way I see it, I avoid needlessly wasting time in trying to convince these people to go along with letting a summoned being wander around unchecked. Plus, it means easier access to whatever information these people have regarding the whole summoning process itself... not that that's done us a whole of good, however."
Indeed, actually finding a way to return to Earth – or even just the Spirit Realm - was currently proving to be Piccolo's biggest headache. So far, all the Namekian had managed to glean about the familiar summoning ritual was that it summoned a familiar based on the person performing the summoning; that, and the process of was basically a one-way trip for the person, animal or thing being summoned... and If he was being honest with himself, the part about the summon reflecting the summoner only left him with more questions instead of answers.
Still, at least the matter of the runes on his left hand wouldn't be a problem; like he had shown Louise earlier – when he had 'laid out the ground rules', so to speak – he could easily just negate the contract through sheer brute force... not that it would require too much effort, all things considered.
"Still, I can't say our current predicament is really that surprising, all things considered," the former Guardian mused as he took in the thoughts currently swirling around inside Piccolo's mind. "If I had to make a bet, I'd wager there's never really been a need for a summoned familiar to be sent back, given the purpose and surrounding status of the ritual itself... at least, not that we know of."
Suddenly, the Namekian stopped dead in his tracks, his eyes widening for a brief instant. However, his momentary surprise faded no sooner than it had appeared, a grin appearing on his face as a new realisation came to light.
"Actually, you might be on to something there."
"Oh? What do you... ah, I see..."
"Yeah," the Namekian continued to grin at his newest idea, though one which he was actually a little annoyed at himself for not thinking of until now. "I think I'll go have a talk with a certain professor, see if he knowns anything."
His decision made, Piccolo pressed two fingers to his forehead... and then vanished.
Elsewhere...
It was another pleasant day in the outer gardens of the Magic Academy, rays of sunlight peeking through cloudy the mid-morning sky. The sound of chirping birds and swaying trees filled the air, accompanied by the occasional chattering of passing students going about their studies.
And it was in one of these gardens that Louise was currently sitting by herself, casually resting against the wall of the central tower between the earth and wind towers. With the current study period being a free one for the students themselves to utilise as they saw fit, the young Valliere decided the best use of her time would be to get some fresh air and just de-stress for a bit, her mind and thoughts wander freely as she tried to make sense of everything that had had happened since the Familiar Summoning Ritual.
Every now and then, a student or three would pass by now and again, but they generally left the pinkette to her own devices – likely in no small part due to Piccolo's now established intimidation factor. Still, Louise did catch the attention of the one or two students as they passed, each time prompting questions as to the whereabouts of her new-found guardian; and each time, Louise simply offered the same explanation that her enigmatic familiar had offered her when she woke up this morning, that being he was supposedly away 'gathering information'.
"Well, whatever that means..." the pinkette grumbled to herself as she turned her attention back to her musings.
Indeed, even though it had only been a few days since that now portentous moment when she had brought the Namekian into her world, the whole thing seemed like a blur to Louise. One moment, the realisation that she had succeeded in summoning herself a familiar was finally sinking in...
...and the next, said familiar had promptly scared the living hell out of her, beaten the utter tar out of Guiche, completely terrified a good chunk of the student body at the Academy – most of them in her own year group – and even managed to spark rumour and gossip amongst the common citizenry outside the Academy, after single-handedly thrashing a noble in broad daylight... and all without seemingly coming anywhere close to even trying.
And to top it off, he was also apparently some kind of supernatural spirit warden of hell back in his own world – one who had then gone and offered to train both herself and the maid Siesta to wield a power similar to his own.
However, Louise soon found herself taking pause, as an unsettling realisation came to mind: everything that had happened since she summoned Piccolo – or to be precise, everything that he had done – had indeed occurred over the span of mere days; and it was just now sinking in for the pinkette that she was bound to him via magical contract for essentially the rest of her life... or as long as it took the Namekian, as he called himself, to find a way back to his own world – which itself could take a lifetime, all things considered. As such, her mind was already filling with the countless possible ways in which things could go horribly, horribly wrong...
As for Piccolo's offer, that in itself was an entirely different dilemma altogether.
There was no denying that the Namekian was incredibly powerful, based on what she had seen him do so far - especially given the possibility that he hadn't yet come close to showing what he was really capable of - so the very idea that he could somehow teach both her to control a power like that was almost unthinkable... especially since, if what he said was true, it was entirely possible for even a commoner like Siesta to also gain that kind of power.
That last thought suddenly gave pause to Louise's rumination, the realisation of such a development hitting her like a bolt of lightning: a power that both noble and commoner alike could wield... the ramifications of such a development could potentially upend the very foundation of their entire society. No longer would lineage or magic grant standing and authority; no longer would blood or birthright decide who ruled – instead, it would all be decided by nothing more than pure power.
Even then, both the Brimiric religion and magic system were very clear in their teachings that any and all magics outside of the established elements were deemed as heresy - and to be branded a heretic was basically a death sentence in itself. If word ever got out that she was dealing in forbidden practices, she would no doubt be excommunicated and hunted down to the bitter end by inquisition. Plus, there was the effect such a revelation would have on her family; If the rest of her clan somehow weren't put to the sword for simply being related to a confirmed heretic, they would likely disown the pinkette and cast her out for bringing shame open to the Valliere name, if not even going so far as to hunt her down themselves, no doubt in some kind of attempt to vindicate themselves and restore the family's honour.
So yes, one could say the young Louise Francoise le Blanc de la Valliere was feeling just a bit overwhelmed right about now.
And all because fate had decided to drop quite the world-shifting conundrum right into her lap.
"I'm doomed..." the pinkette groaned as she leaned back against the stonework, her eyes unfocused as she stared vacantly at the blue skies above and watched the clouds lazily drift by.
The young mage wondering if maybe this was all some kind grand joke orchestrated by fate itself to punish her for some unknown transgression; or maybe she was destined to summon Piccolo, or some other equally powerful and uncontrollable familiar... or maybe she was just really, really unlucky; it was kind of hard to tell, actually, now that the youngest child of the Valliere thought about it.
Still, despite all the craziness that had already ensure thus far, it could always have been worse; for one, she could have wound up summoning some pathetic, embarrassing excuse for a familiar... or even nothing at all!
So in hindsight, Louise was actually somewhat glad she had at least managed to summon herself a rather strong familiar... even if said familiar was someone like Piccolo, at the end of the day.
"Besides, he didn't say I had to accept his offer," the pinkette said trying to reassure herself that everything would work out, her face brightening for a brief instant before the gnawing sensation of doubt struck again. "Then again, he did say it was either 'take it or leave it'..."
Regardless, Louise's consternation momentarily came to a halt as her attention was snapped back to the present by the sound of approaching footsteps, the pinkette turning her head sideways only to be greeted by the sight of two familiar faces.
"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you look lost," remarked a rather surprised Kirche, having not expected to find Louise there, as she strolled over to where her classmate was seated with the ever-quiet Tabitha in tow. The redhead eyed her fellow student with a quite curious look, while Tabitha looked on in her usually impassive fashion.
However, rather than giving the kind of reply they expected, Louise instead just stared at the two for a few seconds before slowly turning her gaze skyward again, a rather visible expression of uncertainty etched on her face the entire time. The pinkette's unusual response elicited a confused reaction from the two mages, the redhead and bluenette exchanging a puzzled glance before Kirche spoke again.
"Are you alright?" the Germanian enquired, her voice taking on a more concerned tone at her classmate's odd reaction, especially when she noticed just how unsettled Louise looked. Whatever the case, there was something just... off the way the pinkette was acting.
"Burdened..." the diminutive Gallian then spoke up, the observation causing Kirche's brow to furrow.
"Is that so?" the redhead remarked as she turned back to her seated classmate, curiosity coming to the fore again. "What's got you so down, Louise?"
This time, the young Valliere actually responded, though not in the manner they expected.
"I just... I don't know," the young mage sighed, her gaze falling to the floor, her anxiety as visible as ever. "These past few days have been so... confusing."
"Ah..." the redhead hummed upon hearing the reason behind her rival's dispirited demeanour. "Still having trouble dealing with the past few days worth of insanity, are we?"
"You could say that, yes," came the young Valliere's tired response, giving both Kirche and Tabitha a weary look before turning and staring out across the open courtyard in front of her.
"Okay, so things haven't gone entirely to plan so far," the Germanian said with a grin as she placed her hands on her hips, giving her beleaguered classmate an encouraging look. "It's not like it's the end of the world! Besides, with the familiar exhibition coming up soon, I'm sure that mysterious familiar of yours will find some new way to amaze – or terrify – us all once more."
Kirche's attempt at getting Louise out of her slump appeared to have works, though again not in the way she'd intended. Instead of showing any kind of relief or relaxing, the pinkette went bolt upright, her wide-eyed face looking like she had just seen a ghost.
"Oh no..."
And right then, almost as if on cue, the devil himself arrived.
The air just a few feet away shimmered for all of a second before the Namekian in question warped into existence, his unexpected appearance catching Kirche and Tabitha off guard. The redhead in particular practically jumped when he abruptly materialized before them, though Tabitha too was not without a surprised expression, neither of them having seen him perform instant transmission before.
Upon spotting the three students, Piccolo turned his attention towards Louise, a perplexed look adorning his face.
"What's the matter?" he asked as he moved over to his young charge, curious as to why the girl look so tense. However, in stark contrast to her prior demeanour – and much to Kirche and Tabitha's surprise – the pinkette quickly rose to her feet and dusted herself off like it was business as usual.
"Oh, it's nothing; I'm just a bit tired, that's all," the youth replied as she fixed her cape, the Germanian giving her almost disbelieving look upon hearing this, along with her classmate's unusually rapid change in manner. "Did you find what you were looking for?"
"In a sense," the Z Fighter replied as he briefly glanced over his shoulder the courtyard behind him, his dissatisfied expression puzzling his young summoner. "Anyway, isn't your next lesson due to start soon?"
Louise and Kirche both shared a questioning expression, before Tabitha gave a short nod and started walking off toward the wind tower, followed quickly by her red-headed companion.
"Ah, you're right," Louise remarked in a somewhat perplexed tone, having lost track of just how long she'd been sitting outside for. "Well, we'd best get going then."
So, rejoined by her protector, Louise and Piccolo set of for the next lesson – and with any luck, a far more stress-free day this time around, the young Valliere silently hoped.
"So, what exactly were you looking for, Piccolo?" the pink-haired mage asked as they headed for the wind tower, hoping some idle conversation would take her mind of her worries.
"Just trying to find out something, that's all," the Namekian replied, his summoner's question reminding him of his prior conversation with a certain two mages...
Earlier...
"And there's absolutely nothing else you can tell me?" a frustrated Piccolo asked, only to then give an irritated sigh when both Professor Colbert and Headmaster Osmond shook their heads.
"I'm afraid that's the long and short of it, unfortunately: as far as anyone knows, the Familiar Summoning is a one-way process. To date, there has never been any recorded instance of a familiar being returned to its place of origin." came the sympathetic reply from the Headmaster as he idly stroked his beard. "I doubt there's much else we can tell you that you don't already know for yourself."
The Namekian let out an irritated growl, his planned talked with the Professor not yielding the result he had hoped for. Initially, he had hoped to speak just with Professor Colbert about the Familiar Summoning Ritual – or more specifically, about how to reverse the effects of the summoning.
Having already spent a good part of that morning trying, with little success, to dig up any more intel on the summoning ritual, the Z Fighter thought he'd hit a lucky break when he discovered that the teacher was busy speaking with the headmaster in the latter's office. He figured the headmaster, being as old as he appeared, could possibly have known just as much, if not even more about the ritual than Colbert himself.
Sadly, this proved to be anything but the case.
"Well, so much for that idea," Piccolo grumbled internally, annoyed at having made little progress following his initial stints within the Academy library, the protestations of the staff working there notwithstanding. It would seem that, past the core workings of the process itself, any further information regarding the familiar summoning ritual was exceptionally scarce, barring what were essentially a few rumours or folklore pieces.
The Namekian pondered his next course of action regarding how to get back to Earth for a minute or so before filing the plan away for later, figuring he would merely end up aggravating himself further if he were to continue on at present. Besides, he figured his energies could be better spent elsewhere, a certain other plan coming to mind.
"No harm done trying though, I suppose," came the voice of Kami, the former guardian of earth's words echoing inside Piccolo's head, causing his host to gaze upward.
"Easy for you to say, given which of us is doing all the legwork," the warrior replied, before turning back to the two older mages and giving them an appreciative nod. "Thanks anyway – if nothing else, at least it was a nice change, having someone other than a bunch of children to talk to."
"Think nothing of it, Piccolo," Professor Colbert remarked with a smile as he adjusted his glasses, before taking on a slightly more pensive expression. "If anything, I'm just a little annoyed I couldn't be of more assistance – however, this kind of situation is one we've never encountered before, nor has any such happening ever been previously recorded, it seems."
Piccolo gave another nod in return: based on what he'd learned about their world in general while looking for a way back home, he could understand his being a bit of an unusual situation for these people, since along with limited information on the summoning ritual he hadn't found any other records of a humanoid familiar being summoned... well, other than some rather vague pieces about something called a 'Gandalfr', whatever that was.
"Anyway, I have other matters to attend to, so I'll leave you two to your business."
With that, the Namekian gave the pair his regards and then departed, leaving the two senior mages alone again in Sir Osmond's office. Once the familiar was gone, the balding professor turned to his seated counterpart, an curious look in his eyes. "So, what did you make of him, Headmaster?"
The venerable mage remained silent for a few minutes, again casually stroking his silvery beard, before letting out an intrigued hum. "This Piccolo is a most peculiar fellow indeed – hard to get a read on him, actually."
"And the rune on his hand?"
"Yes, I see what you mean now," Sir Osmond remarked as he unfolded a copy of the original sketches Professor Colbert had made of the runic symbol that had formed on the Z Fighter's left had when Miss Valliere had first summoned the towering warrior, his aged eyes slowly tracing the finer details of each drawing in turn. "Which means that if your guess is correct..."
"...then our friend Piccolo here is not the only one we need keep an eye on," Professor Colbert finished the headmaster's sentence, his own ageing features taking on a more serious expression.
Indeed, having now seen it for himself, the near-identical appearance between runes on Piccolo's hand and the ancient Gandalfr runes of the Founder's legendary familiar confirmed the Headmaster's suspicion that they now had a very real – and dangerously volatile – situation on their hands...
...and one that, if not properly managed with the utmost care, could have utterly disastrous consequences for all involved.
The rest of the day had gone by fairly uneventfully, much to Piccolo's satisfaction.
So far, it seemed as though the typical jeering and mockery that Louise had told him about had all but ceased at this point – and no doubt due in no small part to the Namekian himself. However, while it wasn't actually one of his designated goals, the Z Fighter had to admit it was certainly a nice side-effect of his recent actions, since he was in no mood to have any more time wasted by one or more of the students here trying to pick a fight with him, whether it be to prove themselves, score some credibility with their peers, or even just to feed their own egos.
However, while for the most part it was back to business as usual for the Academy and its inhabitants, there was at least one thing that the Piccolo had noticed as still being out of place – and strangely enough, it was actually Louise herself.
For whatever reason, his young summoner had seemed rather on edge ever since Piccolo had earlier rejoined her, based on what he had observed over the course of the day. She'd also been unusually restless during her classes, often at times nervously rubbing her hands or fiddling with her clothes – and on top of that, she'd also been noticeably unfocused, even being pulled up by her teachers for not paying proper attention or otherwise spacing out. In fact, her behaviour had gotten so odd, that during their last class of the day the professor in charge had asked if she was feeling unwell. The pinkette had dismissed the question, insisting there was nothing wrong with her – but as far as the Namekian was concerned, that couldn't be further from the truth.
And that presented him with a new problem.
Like he had said to the young mage a few days prior, Piccolo had no problem protecting her whilst looking for a way to return home. In regards to direct or overt threats, he was certain there would be no issues, since such dangers could easily be identified, intercepted, and dealt with. However, any potential problems would lie in dealing with whatever situations might arise if his summoner was at risk from some kind of indirect danger, such as threats against her family, or perhaps even health problems... especially if the alien warrior didn't even known what said dangers were to begin with.
To that end, he resolved to find out what was wrong with Louise, given how clearly she was being affected by whatever was causing her to appear so edgy – and seeing as how the students' lessons had now finished for the day, he had been presented with the perfect opportunity to do so.
Right now, Piccolo was waiting for Louise outside her last classroom, watching as the last few remaining students dispersed for the evening. The pinkette had waited behind to speak to her teacher, looking for some addition information on the day's lesson, before heading back to her room for the night. Once she was done, they would head back to her room, where Piccolo would be having some words with her again.
"So, what exactly do you think it might be?" Kami chimed in as his host continued to mull over possible reasons for his summoner's current quandary.
"Honestly, I'm not quite sure," the Z Fighter replied, glancing over at the classroom open door to his left, where Louise was still in deep conversation with her teacher, before bringing his left hand up and scrutinizing the runes etched into his skin. "Though from what I can tell, this glorified tattoo seems to have established some kind of mental or spiritual link between me and the kid, since I've been getting weird vibes from her pretty much all day, unlike the past few days where I've not really felt much at all."
"Hmm," the ex-guardian hummed, the Namekian feeling a sense of curiosity coming from his former other half. "Perhaps this bond only picks up on particularly strong thoughts or emotions, hence why it's only today that you've actually felt anything."
"Could be..."
And then, in a spot of perfect timing, Louise appeared next to his left, strolling out of the classroom.
"Louise," Piccolo called out sharply, the edge in his voice startling his young summoner and causing her to recoil a little. "Your room... now."
The Valliere blinked a few times, a mixed of confusion and concern crossing her face as she tried to imagine what reason he familiar had to be angry. "Wh-What's wrong, Piccolo?"
"We need to have a little talk, you and I," the Namekian replied as he turned and set off for the pinkette's room. However, he had only moved around half a dozen or so feet before suddenly halting, his heightened hearing picking up a distinct lack of footsteps coming from behind him. Looking back, he found Louise still rooted to the spot where she stood, the brooch that held her cloak together grasped nervously in one hand, a short yelp passing her lips when she made eye contact with her guardian's stern gaze.
Piccolo let out an irritated grumbled, Louise suffering some kind of mental breakdown being the last thing he needed to deal with right now. Turning around fully, the Namekian crossed his arms again, his tone softening slightly as he spoke. "Look, If it'll calm you down, you're not in trouble – now let's go."
An audible sigh of relief escaped the young girl's mouth upon hearing this, her shoulders visibly relaxing as she made her way over to her familiar. Then, with a nod from her protector, the two made their way back to the diminutive noble's room. It wasn't long until they arrived, the Z Fighter ducking slightly as he followed his young charge into her quarters, with Louise exhaling loudly as she collapsed onto her bed.
The moment they were inside – and once he was certain there was no-one else nearby – the Namekian forcefully shut the door and then turned his attentions to the young mage in question.
"Alright, Louise - what's going on?" the Z Fighter asked bluntly as he threw his pint-sized summoner a suspicious stare.
Confusion once again descended upon the young Valliere, the young mage being at a loss as to what exactly was going on.
"What are you-" she began, despite a small part of her not really wanting to know where this was going. However, her towering summon cut her off with a raised finger mid-sentence, her breath catching in her throat when he shot her another suspicious look.
"Look, I'm not stupid, nor am I oblivious," he stated bluntly, the pink-haired youth shrinking back slightly at his words. "Ever since we regrouped earlier, you've been distracted, restless, twitchy, or just acting strange in general - hell, your last teacher even thought you were ill or something, your behaviour was that off."
"And despite what you might have claimed earlier, I don't buy that it's just case of 'being tired', kid," he continued, moving toward Louise until he stood right next to her, his imposing frame utterly dwarfing her own much smaller form. "So if there's a problem here, just say so, and say it straight – and none of this messing around trying to 'put it right way', ether."
Louise could only stare in silence as she processed in her guardian's words, the young girl being taken aback by just how easily the giant in front of her had seen through her admittedly dismal attempts at trying to keep up a calm facade, despite the concerns that had been eating away at her all day; and whether she liked it or not, he had her figured out clean.
With that in mind, the youngest of the Valliere clan calmed her nerves as best she could, and then turned to face her protector.
"Alright..."
From there, Louise then spent the next while telling Piccolo everything that had been on her mind since she got up that morning, pacing back and forth around her room as she did; from the fear and uncertainty of having an uncontrollable familiar, to the worrying implications and consequences of Piccolo's offer to train her, Louise just let it all out. All the while, Piccolo himself remained silent, save for the occasional prompt for his summoner to continue her explanation.
Eventually, the pinkette finished, collapsing back onto her bed as an actual sensation of tiredness began to wash over her. However, at the same time, she felt oddly lighter, as if a weight of sorts had been lifted from her being. However, the lengthy silence that followed next began to unnerve Louise, the young mage propping herself up on her elbows as she looked toward her summon. In spite of a tiny part of her expecting an unhappy or even angry reaction from Piccolo, the pink-haired youth was surprised to see him simply leaning against the wall opposite her bed, arms folded as he eyed her curiously.
And if it weren't for the low light coming from the table lamp on the desk next to her bed, she would have sworn he was actually smirking, even if only very slightly.
"I see," the Namekian eventually said with a subtle nod, his eyes never leaving his young summoner, the pieces of the proverbial puzzle already falling into place.
Upon reflection, Louise's concerns – at least regarding his offer to train her in the same fighting arts he used – made sense. While reading up on some general information about the surrounding lands, he'd come across some pieces about how magics outside their established system were basically outlawed, with rather hefty punishments waiting for anyone caught undertaking such practices. At the time, he hadn't thought anything of it, since what he offered to teach her wasn't even magic to being with. However, looking back at it, he could appreciate her trepidation, given that from their perspective there was probably no difference between his powers and any other kind of forbidden magics.
As for her worry about having an 'uncontrollable familiar', as she put it, Piccolo actually found those a little amusing – though again, it did make a little sense from her point of view, when he thought about it.
"Well, that certainly explains the unusual behaviour," he began, cracking his neck as he stood up and straightened himself out.
"If I had to make a bet, I'd say you're worried about me being 'uncontrollable' because you're scared of any possible backlash from my actions – meaning you're worrier anyone who takes issue with my actions might try to strike at you as payback, either directly or otherwise," he then said as he threw Louise a calculating smirk, much to the youth's puzzlement. Yet again, she was surprised by just how on point he was with his observations.
"Well, based on what I've seen and sensed since arriving here, I can tell you right now that there is nothing here that can even remotely pass as a threat to me – and by extension, you," he added, cracking his knuckles for emphasis, causing the pinkette's eyes to widen at the implication. "Besides, if anyone was actually stupid enough to try anything against either you or me... well, let's just say they'll be in for a world of pain."
Louise gave an involuntary gulp, especially at the way Piccolo emphasised that last part. After all, if what he did to Guiche previously didn't count as putting someone through a 'world of pain', then she wasn't entirely sure she wanted to find out what did...
"As for my original offer, I don't blame you for being apprehensive about it, all things considered," the Namekian continued, "However, the fact that you're still doubting yourself over what to do makes me think that, deep down, a part of you still wants to find out if you really can wield my kind of power, even despite the risks... am I right?"
Yet again, Louise found herself blown away by how clearly her guardian had seen through her, the young Valliere's gaze falling to the floor as she let out another wordless sigh.
And the silence that followed told Piccolo all he needed to know.
"Look, I don't want you to feel like you have to take me up on it; if you'd rather just to stick to what you know, that's fine by me," he finished in a marginally softer tone, trying to appear at least somewhat reassuring, lest the pinkette slip into some downward spiral of despair. "All I'm saying is if you do decide to go through with my offer, then you only get one shot, so you'd best be determined to see it through to the end."
The two remained silent for the next several minutes once the conversation finally ended, each taking their time to process what the other had told them. For Piccolo, it was an informative look into the inner workings of the young girl's mind, while for Louise, it was a rather eye-opening glimpse at yet another facet of her ever-enigmatic guardian.
"Anyway, it's getting late, so I'd suggest you get some rest for tomorrow," the Namekian eventually spoke, wanting to put the topic to rest so that the pinkette didn't wear herself out fretting over it any further. "That is, unless, there's anything else you feel you need to tell me."
The unexpectedly sheepish chuckle that following from Louise immediately told Piccolo he may have, regrettably, just opened up an entirely different can of worms.
"What it is now?" the Z Fighter sighed.
"Well, there's this event coming up soon," Louise began hesitantly, nervously scratching the back of her neck when Piccolo threw her a questioning glance. "And it's kind of like an exhibition of sorts... for familiars..."
The Namekian simply stared at her with a deadpan look on his face for a few minutes before letting out an irritated grunt, Louise wincing slightly as another sheepish laugh escaped from her mouth.
This was going to be a long night.
While the rest of the Academy slumbered, a solitary figure stood outside the school, bathed in the radiant light of the two huge moons that currently occupied the night sky – or to be precise, said figure was standing directly on the wall of the main tower, the moonlight above casting a long shadow down the side of the building. The figure stood roughly level with the fifth floor of the Academy, roughly in line with where the treasury was located, the rather noticeable lack of security allowing them to sneak around unimpeded.
Of course, the figure in question was no ordinary intruder.
In Tristain, there was a mage thief by the name of "Fouquet The Crumbling Dirt"; a thief of infamous repute with a penchant for targeting those in possession of treasures and artefacts of a magical nature. Such was the thief's range of operation that many noble houses and institutions across the land had taken extra preventative measures to ward off any potential intrusions.
However, this was often for naught, given the wide range of tactics employed by the duplicitous pilferer; from broad daylight raids by way of giant earth golems, to silently moonlit escapades via the use of potent alchemies to turn obstacles to dirt and sand, the shadowy thief could seemingly bypass any and all barriers in their path, often leaving behind taunting notes for their unfortunate targets in the wake of their thieving sprees.
And it was this very same mage thief that now had their sights set on the treasury of the Tristain Magic Academy.
Of course, even one such as the infamous Fouquet was not immune to encountering the occasionally impediment when it came to carrying out their devious schemes – and right now, the magically enhanced main tower of the Academy was proving to be such an obstacle. Placing a hand against the wall, the mage thief could literally feel the power coming from the wards that secured the central building, a frown crossing their hooded features.
"As strong as it looks, that's for sure," the thief mused, pondering how exactly they could get passed this particular stumbling block. Based on the strength of the magic they felt upon touching the structure, Fouquet ruled out being able to silently sneak into this latest target, meaning that physical force would be the only means of getting inside.
Of course, the problem with that approach would be finding the perfect opportunity to attack; there was no doubt in the swindler's mind that one of their earth golems would be able to break through the reinforced tower eventually. However, the problem would be getting inside before the academy staff were able to interfere and potentially ruin the entire heist – especially given the veritable treasure trove of artefacts likely to be contained within the Academy's vault.
"No use in rushing things," Fouquet concluded, not wanting to risk their entire plan due to simple impatience. "Besides, I've plenty of time to crack this particular lock... and crack it I will."
With that, the mage thief deftly leapt from the main tower, a simply levitation spell slowing their descent as they floated down to the ground.
Then, with a last look back at the tower, the infamous "Crumbling Dirt" turned and vanished into the night.
Alrighty, then...
So yeah, it's been a while since we last saw anything from our favourite Namekian and his new-found sidekicks.
Again, my apologies for the massive hold-up with the story – though life can be complicated like that, I suppose.
Anyway, I will more than happily admit that it's been way too long since I last updated – I blame the ravenous maw that is 'full-time employment' for devouring most of my time over the past year and a half, give-or-take. However, with the recent Xenoverse game, movies, and new TV series that's now starting up, I guess you could say I've been hit with a bit of the old Dragon Ball fever.
Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this latest – and long overdue – instalment of the story.
And with that, I'll see you all next time.
