Flora had searched the whole house for her mother but could not find her the last place she had to check was her mother's bedroom approaching the door Flora could hear the faintest noise on the other side, it sounded like her mother was crying, "Mom?" She called out with a knock on the door but received no response "Mom are you okay?" She asked again once more knocking on the door which opened as the lock had not been latched, with a low creak the door swung open and Flora found her mother, face buried in her pillows weeping with great sorrow looking up at the sudden noise Nerco wore a glare at first until she saw it was her daughter as her glare softened and the tears returned "He's gone isn't he?" Flora asked as tears welled in her eyes "I felt the bond between our hearts sever" Nerco said through her tears "So yes… Gaile has left us" She said as her daughter too began to weep for the loss of her father, Flora climbed into the bed next to her mother and let out a squeak of surprise when she was pulled into a protective but loving embrace by her mother, "M-Mom?" She asked as he mother began to dry her tears "We cant sit here and weep all day my sweet, no matter how much we might want to we need to be strong now." Nerco said as she dried her daughters tears as well "I'll pass on the news to Lanius" Nerco said as she got up from her bed and walked down the hallway to the staircase that lead to the main foyer.
Merrick couldn't help but weep as he looked at the headless form of his friend and mentor "I'm so sorry Gaile..." He said through his tears as he produced a blood vial and healed his wounds that had been inflicted by Maria mere minutes ago "If I had just been faster!" He said as he punched the ground with all his might again and again letting out a loud yell of sorrow, before long he felt Onnen's hand rest on his shoulder "Where the hell were you Onnen" He said as he looked at her out of the corner of his eye "I-I… When I saw that it was Maria I froze!" She said in her own defense "You froze?" He asked as he stood up to match her height, as at age fifteen Merrick was just a few heads shorter than Gaile himself "Did the sight of your former mentor terrify you that much Onnen!?" He asked venomously, causing Thaeon to glare daggers at him "Hey, easy with her man she's hurting just as much as you are right now Gaile was like a brother to her and to me as well!" He shouted at the teenager as he rested a hand on the hilt of his Muramasa "All of you cool it!" Nerim shouted as she came to stand between the three "Whats done is done… Gaile is gone and there is nothing we can do to change that!" She said with a pause as she spared another glance in the direction of Gaile's lifeless body that had finally begun to break down into ash and embers as the body of every deceased Hunter always did, "But we cant just stand here and blame one another!" She said as a single tear rolled down her cheek "A brother?" Merrick said with a pause "Thats all well and good for the two of you…" Merrick said with a short pause as he regarded them with a deadly glare, "Gaile was the closest thing I had to a father and he's gone now!" He shouted at the two Keepers who were taken aback by his outburst "Then I'm sorry for your loss Merrick." Onnen said as a stream of tears rolled down her cheeks "We need to get back to our trench before they start shelling us again." Was Grant's swift statement as he came to stand next to Nerim and rested a hand on her shoulder "At this point I welcome death." Merrick said as he fell to his knees in defeat at the fact that he couldn't save his closest friend and mentor.
Lanius appeared to show no emotion in regards to the news he had received "Is there any chance you could be misjudging this Nerco?" He asked as Nerco shook her head "I felt our bond sever Lanius… He's gone." Though he secretly envied Gaile as he got to have the honor of dying in battle for those he loved, an honor he himself coveted more than any other though unlike Gaile he fought for himself rather than people he cared for because he had no one in his life to fight for.
"What do you mean I'm being sent home!?" Merrick yelled at Captain Graves in his office "Listen to me lad, the only reason we allowed you to fight in this war alongside us was because you were an apprentice Hunter who needed to complete his training" Graves paused, "But with your mentor dead there is no one to train you and we have more important things to focus our attention on, plus you're far too young to go getting yourself killed." Graves said with a tone of finality before Kara walked into the office having overheard Merrick's outburst "Why not let me take him on" Kara said with a neutral expression on her face "I can see his training completed as I have faced Gaile Arkenmire in combat and lived to tell of my experience after all." She said earning a knowing look from the Captain and one of disbelief from Merrick "You can guarantee his training will be completed?" Graves asked her firmly as she nodded "I can guarantee that and much more" She said as a faint smile graced her lips "His training can't be conducted here" Graves said as his steely blue eyes narrowed ever so slightly "The Darkwatch' barracks will have plenty of space for us to see his training finished" She said as she turned to regard Merrick with a critical eye "You will either thank me profusely or curse my name when all is said and done boy." Kara said as she grasped the collar of his jacket bringing him in for a closer look "You have red eyes…" She noted causing Merrick to blush at their closeness "I… uhm" Was all he managed to say before Kara released her hold on him "Come along boy. Grab only what you need and leave the rest behind as they'll be shipping it back to Yharnam" Kara said as Merrick grabbed a couple changes of clothing, his Chikage and Albrecht Repeater and reported before Kara who nodded and began to walk out of the lower barracks with Merrick trailing behind her, having reached solid ground Kara drew her Great Scythe off of its place across her back and with a swift twirl of the immaculate blade had opened a fiery rift to the Darkwatch barracks in Loran "You first boy." She said as Merrick walked through the rift before Onnen and Thaeon walked forward "You're taking him to Loran?" Onnen asked the scythe wielder who nodded "Just what are you planning to do with him Kara" Onnen asked as Kara regarded her with hard eyes "If you must know I plan on seeing his training completed so that he can realize his truest potential, training with Darkwatch can give him that." Kara said as she prepared to leave through the rift "How long do you plan to keep him?" Onnen asked as she looked at the scythe wielder with a hard glare "It is my prediction that this war wont last more than four to five years and so I will keep him for five years" Kara said as she bid Onnen and Thaeon farewell and walked through the rift as it sealed behind her in a wisp of flame, "He's gone… We won't see him again for five years" Onnen said as Thaeon rested a hand on her shoulder "Yeah, but the kid will be stronger for it he can only learn so much from the two of us because we're too easy on him" Thaeon said as he walked away from Onnen to chat with some of the other Keepers that were around.
"I still dont understand why we have to leave this place Mom!" Flora said as she followed her mother about the house as they packed up their most essential of belongings for their move to Byrgenwerth, "I understand you're upset Flora but I just think its time for a change of Scenery plus its what Gaile wanted for us as per the instructions of his letter to Lanius." Nerco said as she turned to look at her daughter with a sympathetic look "You just dont want to be reminded of Dad..." Flora grumbled as she turned away from her mother, "That's not the case and you know it Flora!" Nerco said in a raised voice before she let out a sigh "I'm sorry I didn't mean to raise my voice at you." She said as she knelt down and kissed her daughter on the forehead, "I know you've lived your whole life here Flora but this is for the best, Byrgenwerth is a nice place Gaile showed it to me once when you were still very small."
Nerco said as she held her daughter in a loving embrace "You'll get used to it with time" She said as she stood and went back to her previous task of packing her belongings, "So you say..." Flora said as she walked toward her room to start packing up her belongings "It just..." Flora started to say as her mother stopped and looked back at her "This is all happening so fast, we haven't even had time to grieve for dad yet..." She said as her mother looked at her in understanding "I know sweetpea, there will be a time for us to grieve but its not now" Nerco said with a slight shudder in her voice That flora picked up on as she hugged her mother around the waist "You dont always have to wear a brave face Mom" Flora said as she continued to hug her mother who was melting in her daughters embrace as she knelt down to meet her height as tears began to cascade down her cheeks "I miss him sweetpea..." Nerco said as she finally allowed the grieving process to begin "I miss him so much!" She said as a sob racked her form followed by another as she mourned the loss of her husband.
"I miss him so much!" Lanius heard Nerco say in a sad tone as he stood silent in the other room as Nerco began to mourn Gaile's passing, "I can't say that I know exactly how you feel Nerco, though I too mourn the loss of Gaile for though its for lesser reasons that I do so." He thought to himself, "He'll be back, I know he will, though the question is when?" He thought again as he picked up a box that held some of Nerco's belongings and carried it out of the front door toward a moving truck that would carry everything they needed to Byrgenwerth Manor "There is still a little bit more inside." Lanius said to the driver who stood patiently waiting at the back of the truck as Lanius loaded the box of Nerco's belongings into the back of the truck and returned to the house to check on Flora and Nerco.
Merrick had been waiting patiently on the other side of the rift for several minutes now, before long he saw a female Keeper walking toward him with a massive sword slung across her back "Uhm… Hi, my name is Merrick Akabane" He said as he offered the Keeper a handshake, though at this she merely tipped her head to one side before her eyes narrowed "Sira." She said as she continued past him and walked on seemingly minding her own business as Kara walked through the rift mere moments later, looking behind her as the rift sealed she saw Sira walking away "I see you met Sira." Kara said with an unreadable expression "Yeah, she doesn't seem like the friendliest person around though..." Merrick said with a confused expression "All I did was offer a handshake and now she seems to hate me." He said as Kara nodded "She doesn't hate you but she will have to take the time to warm up to you" Kara said as she bid Merrick to follow her "Get some rest because your training will start early tomorrow." She said as Merrick nodded "I cant wait." He said with a sly grin that caused Kara to let out a smile of her own, "I like your spirit boy, but unfortunately I'm going to have to break it." She said as Merrick frowned slightly "Though I wont break you just yet" Kara said with a pause "As I said I quite like your spirit." Kara said as she reached out to ruffle Merrick's hair despite the fact that he stood only a head shorter than Kara herself "Don't treat me too much like a kid" Merrick said as his grin returned "I just may surprise you with what I can do even as an apprentice Kara" He said as she nodded "I'll show you to the barracks where you can sleep and from there your training begins at dawn" Kara said as she bid him to follow her to the barracks they stopped in front of a small cot that sat in an alcove carved into the wall "This cot was mine before I became the captain of Darkwatch, you can rest here." Kara said as he nodded to her "Thank you Kara, for everything you've done for me so far" He said causing her to stop in the doorway of the Darkwatch barracks, looking back at him she wore her usual emotionless look of neutrality before she gave him a curt nod "I'll come to fetch you at dawn so be ready for me." Kara said as she walked out of the barracks as Merrick settled into a fitful rest.
Gaile began to stir as he felt the wind brush over him in a gentle breeze he awoke to find himself standing in a field of lumenflowers reminiscent of the field he fought Gehrman in sixteen years ago within the confines of the Hunter's Dream though many weapons were littered around the field staked into the ground caked in rust and dust as though they hadn't been used in ages and had simply been left there to rot "Where… am I?" Gaile wondered aloud as he stood up and walked the field looking at all the weapons of Hunters past as he did so, before long he stumbled upon his Crissaegrim staked into the ground still in pristine condition but when Gaile took hold of the hilt of the immaculate blade he found he was unable to draw it from the earth as though a force he could not see held it in place, "It appears my blade is no longer my own..." Gaile said as he released his hold on the blade he once carried at his side, not far from it he found a familiar blade caked in rust and decay "Maria..." He thought as he looked at the weathered shadow of what her once beautiful Rakuyo had become, unconsciously he reached his hand up to his neck and felt a scar that ran all the way around the base of his neck like a pale necklace, "Well… I know where I am now at least..." Gaile said somberly as he walked toward the edge of the field and looked down to find thousands of the familiar Nightmare Hunters he had fended off in the trenches of No Man's Land "Hello Gaile." said a familiar female voice that sounded from behind him, Gaile knew who it belonged to and didn't want to see the owner as he slowly turned and found himself face to face with the mother of all Hunters, "F-Flora..." Gaile said as she nodded with a benevolent smile "You arent here right now, I watched you die... Vridd killed you!" Gaile said as her smile faltered "What are you talking about Gaile?" She paused, "I'm standing right here..." Though Gaile was no fool and could see the illusion beginning to unfurl as the shape shifter before him began to weaken with prolonged use of her abilities "If you're truly Flora then tell me what we together six years ago within the Hunter's Dream" Gaile said as he waited for an answer before long the seeming doppelgänger of Flora broke out laughing before her voice began to fade from Flora's own to another more sinister tone, "…You're just as smart as they say Gaile Arkenmire" The voice said in pause as a foreboding miasma of black and purple began to swirl around Flora's form before crimson eyes blinked once and turned to a piercing powder blue her eyes held the fury of a raging storm as he looked into them before a pale blue hand reached out of the miasma and speared into Gaile's chest "Now go down there and play with the rest of the children Gaile!" The owner of the voice said as she violently tossed Gaile over the edge of the suspended field wrenching her hand free of Gaile's chest cavity as she did so.
With a resonating thud Gaile landed on the hard ground beneath him, with a groan he clambered to his feet as he reached into his coat for the one thing that wasn't there "My blood vials… Did she?-" Gaile's thought was cut short as several Feral Hunters rushed toward him, weapons drawn for the kill "Shit!" Gaile thought to himself as he rolled to the side to dodge a Beast Cutter from one of the Hunters that had rushed him with a lust for blood, defenseless as he was Gaile had no chance of fighting back "To hell with this!" Gaile thought aloud as he turned and ran from the Feral Hunters as they roared with an unquenchable thirst for blood and began to give chase, "BLOOD!" One of them yelled as he lashed his weapons, a pair of Threaded Canes in their whip form at Gaile in an attempt to hit him in the back and slow him down, that they might catch up to and slaughter their prey, as he ran from the bloodthirsty Hunters his lungs began to burn in protest noting where he was he let off a short nod of knowing "If this was the waking world it would be where Nerco and I first-" Gaile said as he walked over to a decaying wrought iron fence and broke one of the posts free of the cobblestone ground "Not much but in here you take what you can get." Gaile said as he readied himself for a long and hard fight, he was outnumbered sure but he still had his sanity against what were little more than bloodthirsty animals, "Alright you bastards, you want some... THEN COME AND TAKE IT!" Gaile roared at them making them take a step backwards for just a moment before one of them let out a feral growl and rushed him Boom Hammer raised above his head for a downward swing that could have easily crushed Gaile's head had he not rolled to the side to avoid the attack "Eat this!" Gaile said as he jammed the section of fence into the blood drunk animal's chest and wrenched it free with a great spray of blood and a pained howl from the hunter as he fell backwards landing on his back dead "Finally a weapon." Gaile muttered as he snatched up the fallen Hunter's Boom Hammer and fired the furnace that was contained within the head of the hammer before a malevolent grin formed upon his face, "Let's see just how much you animals enjoy being chased down!" Gaile said as he rushed them with killing intent showing on his face as he swung his weapon in a horizontal arc that caught one of the Hunters in the side of his head violently forcing it to and awkward angle and breaking his neck with a sickening crack and a small storm of flames from the activated furnace in the head of the hammer, "And then there was one." Gaile said murderously as he fired the furnace in the hammer a second time and rushed the last hunter who carried a Beast Cutter "You're mine!" Gaile said as he swung the hammer in a diagonal arc as the hammer spewed flames in the wake of the hard and fast swing Gaile let loose with the weapon, with a tuft of worn gray smoke and embers the third Feral Hunter vanished "This one can use the quickening, this is going to be fun!" Gaile thought to himself as he fired the furnace for a third time as the hammer roared to a fiery life with a metallic clang as the firing hammer was struck by Gaile moments later the hunter reappeared as the quickening wore off and he readied his Beast Cutter for a long winded slash "Your blood is mine beast!" the Hunter yelled as he lashed the weapon in a wide and long vertical arc that was deftly dodged by Gaile who ran forward "Hammer beats Cutter!" Gaile roared with fury as he took the Feral by complete surprise as he disappeared in a burst of static reappearing in front of the Feral with his hammer raised for the kill, with a sickening series of cracks and a spray of blood Gaile buried the head of the Boom Hammer into the head of the hunter with a ferocity he normally reserved for his greatest foes, though the head of the hammer broke off of the handle of the weapon and flew off into the distance with an audible clang reaching down Gaile grabbed hold of the far more familiar Beast Cutter and slung it over his shoulder, "Welcome back old friend" Gaile said as he looked at his work against the thee bloodthirsty animals that had attacked him before a familiar voice called out to him, "Gaile… what are you doing he-" the voice of Maria started to as as Gaile turned on a heel Gaile grabbed her by the neck before he violently slammed her into the ground with great force "WHY!?" Gaile roared at her with fury as one of his eyes shifted to that of a beasts "Why …what!?" She choked out as Gaile's hold tightened on her neck, "Don't act as if you don't know what you've done Maria!" Gaile yelled at her as his nails shifted to claws that grazed the soft skin of her neck drawing a light trickle of blood that excited Gaile's inner beast "L-Let go of me I c-can't breathe!" Maria choked out as Gaile glared mercilessly at her, "Give me one good reason why I should." He said as he tightened his grip ever so slightly drawing even more blood from the woman under him he was about to tear her throat out when the blade of a familiar scythe came to rest around his neck from behind, "Seems like wherever I end up you always make a bloody mess Gaile…" Gehrman said tiredly as Gaile wordlessly loosened his grip on Maria's neck ever so slightly as the blade of the scythe was pressed into his neck as he did so the action drawing a small amount of blood from Gaile's neck "Now let go of her, Gaile" Gehrman said as Gaile looked at him out of the corner of his eyes, "Why should I? She's the one who killed me!" Gaile said as Gehrman let out a sigh, "I figured, look I know what's happened, but I'll tell you only if you let go of her." Gehrman said with a pause as he pressed the blade of his scythe against Gaile's neck again, "tsk… fine" Gaile said as he wordlessly released his grip on Maria's neck and allowed her to stand as a hacking fit took her by force.
When she recovered from the fit she stood glaring at Gaile "What… WHAT THE HELL ARKENMIRE!?" Maria yelled as he turned to glare at her with murderous intent but said nothing "Both of you stop acting like children and listen!" Gehrman sharply barked at the two as he began to speak of what happened "Much has changed in this place" Gehrman said with a sly grin as he began to explain the history of where everything went south, "If you thought the nightmare was bad back in the day, you haven't seen anything yet Gaile," Gehrman paused for a moment, "But considering how you look right now, I can see that you just might have lived it. This isn't a nightmare anymore. Welcome to Hell, Gaile." Gehrman said with a curt nod to the two Hunters that were still glaring daggers at one another.
