Chapter 9: Compromises
She was scared at first. Seeing illuminated capsules filled with homunculi, waiting to be matured. It was demented to see what looked like bodies to be recycled and restored just for the war. She wandered the aisle, looking at the faces. They were sleeping but she heard one capsule break. She ran to it, looking for the sound, but then stumbled into someone who fell to the ground.
"Sorry." she said and offered her hand. It was a boy, not even a teenager yet. He was in tan shorts and a white button down shirt. Blonde curls scattered on his head. He looked away. Not knowing how to react. She was smiling which scared him a little, people never seemed to be friendly. She noticed his command seals and showed hers, but he still looked away.
"I didn't mean to scare you. Darnic sent me to see Caster." His ears perked up rapidly, he knew who this woman was. In an instant he grabbed her hand and began to run.
"Teacher, she's here!" he said, and began to pull her through the rows of homunculi. Hazel saw the broken glass and one on a stretcher. She knew the sound now but knew that she only had to meet one man. The boy was fast, excited about whatever was going to be discussed.
Hazel chuckled. "Slow down." he was eager, and stopped. She saw a figure that appeared to float off the ground. Dressed in all purple with a gold mask to cover their face.
"Roche please be respectful." Caster of Black remarked.
"Sorry, Teacher." Roche said. Caster turned his face to Hazel.
"You may call me Avicebron or Caster of Black, whichever you prefer." he introduced. Hazel was not surprised by his appearance now, knowing his disdain for the world.
"Pleasure to meet you Caster." Hazel said. She held out her hand but he simply turned his back and began to walk in the other direction. Clearly he hid himself from the world and wasn't fond of people. She began to follow next to him.
"What did you have to question?" Hazel asked.
"After watching you fight I was curious how you healed so quickly." Caster asked. His master walked behind them, his smile was bright now that he was with his master.
"Blood magic from my mother's side." she responded. "I can heal small wounds almost instantly, larger ones take a good night's rest."
"So you are practically invincible." She shook her head to that as they turned down another row.
"I wouldn't go that far." she said, "If I was cut in half or run out of mana I can still die."
"But your endurance in battle is long compared to others." Caster was interested in her mage craft but Hazel was beginning to wonder why he was curious.
"Why are you asking this?" She stopped, these questions had to have a point.
"It deals with teacher's noble phantasm." Roche said smiling.
"Roche." Caster silenced him. He turned away. Hazel crotched down beside him, she appreciated him keeping the mood jovial in this creepy place.
"Is it a giant golem?" she said, her eyes opened with curiosity. Roche nodded with a smile.
"I have found the reactor core, here." Caster stood in front of the homunculus and Hazel took a closer look. He was small with waves in his brown hair, asleep like most of them. But the amount of circuits he had was impressive for something created by a mage.
"He has a lot of circuits already." Hazel remarked, "Sort of jealous."
Roche jumped in excited to explain. "Ms. Matterhorn, my teacher plans to use him as a reactor core, but…"
"Your magic deals with defenses, including healing." Caster cut the boy off. Clearly he wanted to control the conversation.
"Go on, Caster." She wanted a point.
Caster nodded. "If you made a blood seal with this homunculus, the core would be able to heal rapidly."
"Not exactly." she began, "It would be dependent on his survival. A blood pact acts as a curse. The enactor has control of who they pick, but if that pick is killed they also die."
"But if the holder died alone, the other would live." Caster inferred. It was like a master and servant pair.
"Correct." she said, but soon realized what Caster meant. He only wanted to protect the core until his creation was complete. That way, if she died, they could still succeed. It made sense to her why he would find no issue in this, because either way his dream would be realized.
"Look, how long do these guys have? Three years?" Hazel questioned then stepped away from the prisons. "Sorry, I want to live longer than that." Roche ran up to catch her.
"Ms. Matterhorn, your magic could enforce my teacher's noble phantasm." he said. Though this excited him, she saw other intentions from Caster.
"The homunculus has enough circuits, they'll be fine." Hazel said, trying to walk away. This place only upset her. To see how all this energy would be wasted.
Roche continued. "But his golem could be unstoppable. Invincible. The war would be ours…"
"Enough!" she yelled without facing the Master. He was blinded by Caster's work and did not see his final goal.
"Does this place bother you, Ms. Matterhorn?" Caster inferred, standing far away.
Hazel hated to do this, but she thought it would drive the point home. She lifted her shirt and revealed her torso which was completely scarred, like river markings on a map each line was a deep cut, a binding between her grandfather's shield and her magic circuits. This was where her grandfather did his work, embedding a shield to heal toxins and wounds from within at a rapid rate. For many, this is why she was seen as invincible, but they did not know the pain it took, how many tears and screams she held back because she was helping her grandfather with his dream. She just wanted to see him smile, just as Roche wanted to do anything to help the man he called teacher.
"My grandfather spent his life creating this shield." She turned to Roche, still showing the scars. "I was so excited to be his heir that I forgot the pain because it made him happy. Seeing this cesspool of creation that are not going to have a chance against a Heroic Spirit is wasteful. It would be better to use both of your golems."
"They still need a core miss." Roche clarified.
"I know. But ones you pull from the Earth. These homunculi never get to see the good things in the world. Just war."
"They are breed that way." Caster said cold, Hazel put down her shirt. "Their energy allows us to use our phantasms freely, without restriction from a master."
"So this is what we have come to. Quantity over skill?" she chuckled. To think this is how Darnic went about preparing for this war was ridiculous. He wasn't being as strategic as she thought, instead made nameless faces for the slaughter. However, she felt if she left without doing anything, there would be consequences.
Hazel turned back to the homunculus and found an opening in the top of the capsule. She found a piece of stone on the ground and cut her finger open. Then, used her one arm to pull herself up and dripped the blood into his tank. She watched as he inhaled it, and winced at first but soon settled, like a baby being poked with a needle. As long as her blood was in his system he would have a chance to be healed by her.
"There, one time is all he gets." she said, refusing to look at them as she walked away.
"Thank you Ms. Matterhorn." Roche said, excited that they were one step closer to winning the war. But Hazel could see that he was distracted by who he had summoned.
Hazel went to the exit, but she began to feel Caster linger behind her, as though to escort her out.
"Why would you do that after professing your disdain?" he asked, thinking she had already made her decision. But, she had a simple answer.
"War is full of compromises. If an ounce of blood will help the Black Faction then so be it." She paused turning to look at Caster. They were at the base of the stairs to the exit door. She could tell he was almost annoyed by his master who wanted more to be involved. She would rather see golems fighting instead of homunculi. At least they didn't have human faces.
"That boy only wants to please you, just throw him a bone once in a while will ya?" she said, but there was no response, Caster simply bowed his head and left. He was strange but not in a manageable way. He wanted people to stay out of his business, and Hazel would gladly do so from now on.
Berserker was leaning against the wall by the door, waiting for Hazel to emerge. Once she did, he began to follow behind her.
"Sorry to keep you." she said and he huffed. She put her hand on his shoulder. "We'll get to bed soon."
"How did it go?" Suddenly Darnic emerged from one of the side hallways. He was patient to know what had transpired. Hazel began to follow, mostly because she wanted a place to sleep.
"He has a small amount of my blood. That way if he is compromised before Caster can use him or is killed, I can heal him."
"You refused to make a blood pact?" he said, almost upset.
"I don't know much about golems or homunculi but I know they don't live long." she said, "That homunculus has enough circuits, he will be fine until they use him."
"I must say, you have improved in these last few years." Darnic complimented, she was not as gullible as he thought.
"Are you a fan of my work?" she asked. Hazel thought talking about killing rogue mages and creatures was more comforting to him.
"Yes. But you only stayed for four years before researching to become a professor." Many asked that question since they claimed she was good at her job as an Enforcer. But she knew the answer to that.
"I wanted to get out before I was consumed by it. The Mages Association gives you a small window of glory, once that passes then you are nothing to them." she replied, hoping he would believe it. Darnic laughed.
"Is that how you felt when you killed?" he questioned. Hazel had to remain calm. He was a man who could rage a war through words. She had to be careful.
"It is a skill I have perfected, and can execute." she said, "I assumed I was tipped in your favor from the beginning of this selection process."
"A killer can never escape what they are good at. Unless their authority tells them otherwise." Darnic wanted her reaction to the fifty mages that he and Lancer had slaughtered. This was a spin Hazel was prepared for.
"The Mages Association didn't send me because they knew I'd be killed." she began, maintaining a steady pace. "I guess my life was worth more to them than theirs. Yet, they didn't pick me to be a part of their elite team of the Red Faction. They insulted my loyalty, now they will pay for their judgement." Though she said it with vengeance, Darnic felt there was still something that he could not trust. Though he relied on Fiore to be his heir, he saw Hazel as a useful weapon, one he would have to find weaknesses in to control.
"We are glad to see you've come to our side. Here we are." he said politely and he opened the door, letting Berserker enter first.
"Goodnight, Darnic." she stated and locked the door. The room was bigger than the bunker in the woods. It was well decorated. A large bed with four posts and sitting area, and two French doors which led to a balcony. She collapsed on the bed, not realizing how exhausted she was until she closed her eyes.
Berserker stared at his master, motionless as she slept. She reminded him of someone he loved, a woman that was his initial reason to fight. He was content he had found a good partner, knowing that she was not hesitant to go into battle with him. He grabbed a blanket from the foot of her bed and threw it over her body, then went outside to a large tree and sat in it. He wanted to keep an eye on her and keep watch for any servants.
After an hour or two, Hazel woke up disorientated. She looked through the French doors and saw Berserker sitting in the tree. He was staring at the moon like the night before. Hazel watched him, how content he looked in the wilderness. Sadly, a good portion had been destroyed but in the distance they could see a faint battle. Flashes of blue and orange mixing together. It was one they did not have to tangle themselves with. He was sane enough to understand that.
Though others saw a wild beast, she saw him differently. He was a warrior and even without words she could communicate with him. She was glad he was here with her.
He looked at her and smiled. She laughed.
"Hey, you want some company?" she asked and he nodded offering a hand. She jumped, trying to land on the branch but her foot slipped. Her left leg hooked the branch and Berserker pulled her up so they were facing each other.
"You're very agile, I wish I had some of that." said Hazel, making a joke. There was a silence as a breeze went through. Though the lights were on in the mansion she did not care about this fortress. She would prefer the woods anytime.
"Battle was fun right?" she asked, he looked at her arm again, seeing that it was healed. He smiled at that.
"I told you it wouldn't take much. Are you okay? No more wounds?" He shook his head to verify he wasn't injured. Hazel felt he was being honest. That was something she admired in her line of work.
"Good." she said. But she was thinking about what Lancer said and how it had played out. She did not realize how much both of them fighting would deplete her mana. She had a good reserve, and was aware that if they fought she'd need to fight minimally. It bugged her but she knew her servant's wish. She would have to keep her distance at least until she knew the power of the other servants and masters.
She pressed her hand against his chest. Feeling the warmth of it. It seemed to calm him down.
"Berserker," she looked into his red eyes, "You don't like when I get hurt, do you?" He paused a moment then put his hand against hers and pressed on his cheek. He shook his head, feeling his master was not going to be safe if she fought the enemies she claimed to see. She moved her hand abruptly.
"You'll have to get used to that, but I'll stay away from your fights, okay?" She figured a Master of Red would have to turn up other than Kairi. She knew he would not be involved unless there was another master on the battlefield. At this point Hazel began to feel her finger tips becoming numb from the breeze. Though she didn't mind being outside, the bed was still calling to her with the cold breeze turning into heavy wind.
"Well if you are okay I'll go back to bed." She stood up but Berserker reached for her hand. He feared that if they were separated something would happen to her. His instinct could pick up on how Lancer and his master were people she did not trust. He only wanted her safe.
"Again?" she questioned, still tired. But, after how he helped track and fight off Rider, it was the least she could do. His eyes were gentle, the red glow did not intimidate her.
"Okay, we'll stay in the tree, just don't let me fall." she said and Berserker wrapped his arms around her, and his tail latched on like a seatbelt. He was warm and though his physicality was odd, Hazel was not put off by it. If holding his hand and listening to his suggestions would result in him fighting by her side, then that was a good thing. The more relaxed he was the less mana he used.
"This works I guess." she said as she leaned her head in and fell asleep, using his chest as a pillow.
The dream was bright, Hazel couldn't tell what this place was. There was a castle in the distance. An old stone with moss growing off the side. The hills grand and lush with greens and flowers. She felt a pressure on her chest a hand came around her waist.
She couldn't see him, but knew someone had to be behind her. This affection was strange. But then the other hand presented a flower. A wild lily like she had given her sister. When she grabbed it she could see her hair was no longer black, but a wavy red. This body was not hers, but she could feel the motions.
"Keep it." His voice said and she took hold. She still could not see his face. But something about his tone was comforting.
"As long as I live, I will protect you," he said, "I swear, you will not fear danger."
"No." Hazel said though she did not want to. She was simply reliving this person's memories and feelings. She crushed the flower. And ran toward the castle. He followed behind her.
"Wait." he said, Hazel felt the body stop. She clenched her fists, and turned to him without raising her head.
"If you wish to claim my heart, prove to me you are more than a name, but a legend." she said, cold. Hazel didn't understand.
"I promise, no matter what I must do." he said. "My heart already belongs to you."
"Please, show me how great you can be." Her hand pressed to his bare chest, free of red rune marks. "Goodbye, Cú Chulainn." The woman said, and continued running away. Hazel could feel her pain. She wanted to be with him, but knew it was the wrong time and place.