Thanks for all the reviews! Really, I love them all (and all of you, my dear readers)!
I don't own Hetalia.
Several things happened at once. And all of them happened very quickly.
"Germany!" cried Italy with great fear.
"West! Behind you!" warned Prussia as he started to run towards his younger brother.
"Germany-san, watch out!" exclaimed Japan, his hand on his sword. I, on instinct, put my hand on my gun but before I could pull it out, Freland touched the top of Germany's head with the tip of a finger.
Germany, who was alarmed by his friends' and brother's warnings and was reaching for his whip, suddenly froze. His eyes went wide with fear and for a millisecond, he let out a sound that sounded like he couldn't breathe. Then Freland lifted his finger off of Germany's head.
Where there should have just been air between Freland's finger and Germany's hair, there was a wisp of light that was a mixture of the colors yellow and blue. Like smoke, it trailed up from the top of Germany's head to Freland's finger, which he had raised high. When the light finally stopped coming out of Germany's head, Freland flipped his hand so that the light-like smoke was in a bundle in his hand.
Before I could react in any way to all of this, Germany unexpectedly fell forward like a stone. As Prussia reached him in time to catch him, Freland opened his mouth and popped the light bundle into it. After Freland swallowed it, he gave a creepy smile that told me that he delighted in whatever he just did.
All of this happened in less than a minute. For the next second, no one talked. No one made a sound. No one moved a muscle. And I don't know about my brothers and friends, but my mind was totally blank as well. Then that second was over, and I could think again. WHAT THE HECK JUST HAPPEN?! What was that smoke light thing? What happened to Germany?! Why did Freland eat the light thing that came out of Germany?! Is Germany going to be alright?!
"GERMANY!" screamed Italy as he ran over to Germany and Prussia.
"GERMANY-SAN!" cried Japan as he too rushed over to the two brothers.
"What did you do to my brother?!" demanded Prussia angrily as he turned the motionless Germany over. Germany's eyes were closed and his body hang limp in his older brother's arms.
"I wouldn't bother if I were you," said Freland as he licked his fingers when Prussia put his hand on Germany's neck in order to feel his pulse.
"What do you mean?" said Japan with a low growl as he stopped running and faced Freland.
"Hmm…a strategist…good with a whip…a fighter…those are good qualities to have," said Freland, completely ignoring Japan.
"Answer my question you monster!" yelled Japan furiously as he drew his tachi and pointed it at Freland. "Or else I will make you suffer before I kill you!"
"If you can do that, I will be impressed. But then, I already am, since you killed everyone else on my alliance. Which I have to admit, I'm glad you did…I was afraid I wasn't going to have any fun with you guys…" responded Freland, his smile getting even creepier.
"I can't feel his pulse!" exclaimed Prussia, panic in his voice.
"What?! Germany, wake up! Have a pulse! Please!" exclaimed Italy hysterically as he shook Germany's body. No…Prussia just made a mistake right? Germany has to still be alive…
"Of course you can't feel a pulse. I just ate his spirit. Or soul. Whatever you want to call it," said Freland nonchalantly. My heart skipped a beat and my blood froze. What?
"What?" asked France, sounding totally stunned.
"That's…that's your gift? Your superpower? To…take out other people's spirits out of their own bodies and…eat them?" asked Japan in horror.
"And take on all their talents, abilities, etc. All with a touch of a finger," answered Freland as he waved the very same finger that touched Germany's head. Never before have had I felt so horrified than at this very moment. This…this can't be happening…
"NOOOO!" cried Italy in grief and horror.
"Oh please, don't be so horrified. I know he did spirit objectification, after all, how can all of you still be alive right now if you didn't have a second life? Or did Germany used up his first life already? In that case, yeah, be horrified that he's permanently dead," added Freland. Something in the way he said those words, like he didn't care a bit about the preciousness of life, planted a seed in me. A seed that grew into a raging fire that threatened to consume my entire body.
"That was Germany's first life but…" said Japan with a glint of rage in his brown eyes. Meanwhile, Prussia carefully handed over Germany's body to Italy and stood up.
"I'M STILL GOING TO KILL YOU!" screamed Prussia with pure fury as he drew his own sword swung it right at Freland. As Prussia swung his sword, Japan rushed forward, his sword out and ready to help Prussia avenge Germany's first life. The rest of us except Italy, drew out our own weapons, ready to help Prussia and Japan. Even Canada had put Wales back on the bed and took out his bow and an arrow, ready to shoot through Freland's silver forehead.
Then even though Prussia's swing was right in front of Freland and was fast as a hawk, Freland just swiftly dodged to the side, missing the weapon completely. Meanwhile, Japan swung his tachi right at Freland's neck, only to have Freland rapidly but gracefully duck to safety. Moving his hands just as swiftly, Freland touched both Prussia and Japan's chest.
My heart was squeezed by the icy hand of anxiety and terror as I quickly pointed my gun at Freland so he wouldn't take their souls as well. I squeezed the trigger, but Freland just moved his head to the side as he stopped touching Prussia and Japan. As both Japan and Prussia fell to the ground lifeless, I saw that Freland had their spirits in both of his hands. Prussia's spirit was a combination of silver and red, while Japan's spirit was a combination of black and brown.
"NO!" both Canada and I cried as we both shot at Freland before he could eat our friends' spirits. It's bad enough that Germany's was eaten, but Japan and Prussia can't have theirs eaten as well! Especially Prussia! Canada told me he had already died once! He can't die permanently! He just can't!
However, despite both of mine and Canada's determination, Freland in a blink of an eye jumped to the side, completely missing my bullet and my brother's arrow. And somehow in that brief millisecond, Freland had also ate Japan's spirit. Nooo!
"JAPANNN!" screamed Italy, still holding on to Germany's motionless body as France and England rushed towards Freland, totally bent on killing him.
"No more! You will not eat any more spirits!" cried Russia as he swung his iron pipe at Freland's back. Just when I thought when Russia had him, Freland did a high jump backwards, his back arching inches over the iron pipe.
"Why not? They're delicious and they are good for me. As you can see for yourself, eating 72 spirits has done wonders to my agility and my body as a whole," said Freland as he did a complete flip and landed on his feet. Then, before anyone could do anything else, Freland ate Prussia's spirit. "Now 73."
"NOOOO!" Italy and Canada screamed. England also screamed no as he stumbled in shock. I would have screamed too but shock, grief, and horror blocked my vocal cords. No…no…no…
"This…can't be happening…" spoke France as he stopped and shook his head, like that would wake him up from his horrible nightmare. I had a desperate hope that somehow I would wake up, and everything that had happened since England's Christmas party was just a long and terrible nightmare. But I didn't. Which meant that Germany and Japan really had their first lives taken in such a horrible way. Which meant that Prussia was really and truly dead.
"Oh come on, why are you acting like me eating your friends' spirits is such a bad thing? It's quite fun actually," said Freland as he suddenly sped forward a few steps and grabbed Russia's wrist. Not him too!
I desperately moved my gun around, trying to see a place where I shoot Freland without worrying about shooting Russia instead. But I couldn't, and seeing the way Canada was moving his bow and arrow around, he couldn't find a good place to shoot his arrow either. Suddenly, there was a blue, brown, and white blur that raced past England and right towards Russia and Freland.
"ONLY FOR YOU!" exclaimed Italy as he swung his white flag, making direct contact with Freland's head. While Freland didn't fall to the ground, he did stumble for a good few minutes that satisfy me a tiny bit. But any satisfaction that I had disappeared when I saw Russia fall lifeless to the ground, and that Freland had dropped a gray and purple spirit, obviously Russia's.
Russia's sudden fall caused England to trip over him and fall right on his face. Meanwhile, Russia's spirit floated slowly back to Russia's body till it went into Russia's chest. It went back inside Russia's body! Thank goodness!
"Wow that actually got me. Good for you, you have impressed me," said Freland as he stood back up, still wearing that creepy smile.
"Well, you haven't impressed…" Italy started to say, his white flag ready to strike Freland again when the alien rapidly sped to Italy and grabbed his arms. At the very next instant, Freland swung Italy and threw him against the wall by the window, making Italy drop his white flag.
"Italy!" I cried as I fired four bullets, one right after the other, at Freland. Canada shot more arrows at him too but Freland missed all of the arrows and bullets as he ran towards Italy, reaching him in only one second.
"How do you like your reward for impressing me? Because you did, I decided to play rough-house with you for a tiny bit," said Freland in that creepy but sincere voice as he put his foot down hard on Italy's side.
"Don't you dare!" cried Russia, whom to my relief was alive again and was quickly starting to get up.
"Fight someone who can fight!" cried England as he too started to quickly get up, despite the fact that the fall and all the abuse he had endured before was clearly causing him pain. Freland didn't turn around to my ever increasing horror though, and in a millisecond, had laid his hand on Italy's head.
"It will be a pleasure to acquire your great speed," said Freland. France, England, and Russia ran towards Italy and Freland but I could tell they were going to be too late. Canada rapidly shot another arrow at Freland but this one missed widely. I quickly tried to shoot at Freland again, only to find out that with the sound of clicks that my canister was empty. There's not enough time to load it again! Italy! Not you too!
Then all of a sudden, with a loud crash, the window broke into a million pieces. What the… Startled, everyone, including Freland, looked at the window. At first, I couldn't see anything or anyone. Then what broke the…
"Red!" cried England. Red? Isn't that…the name of Wales' dragon? The one we used to pretend to ride on? Unless, that wasn't pretend…Right after I had that thought, I saw him. The magnificent red dragon that I used to play with when I was younger was right there, his head and neck through the window and peering down at all of us. He…he is real…
"Red? Who is Red…oh my…" gasped France, who like me, could suddenly see the big dragon now.
"Red! Eat him!" ordered England as he pointed at the stunned Freland, who could obviously see Red now too. Red, as a result turned his head towards Freland and growled. For the first time since I knew him, Freland looked afraid. But before he could move, Red quickly swooped his head down and swallowed him whole.
For a millisecond, there was a terrified scream but then it got cut off. Then for the next second, all of us just stared at Red in silence as the dragon chewed and swallowed, with no sign that the silver alien was trying to escape the dragon's mouth. Red…Red did it…he killed Freland! Thank you deus ex machina!
Then the mythical beast stopped chewing and swallowing, and instead started to spit. But instead of dragon spit, it was my friends' spirits. My heart jumped with relief and happiness when I saw Japan and Germany's spirits float towards their respective bodies. My heart also did a backflip in joy when I saw Prussia's spirit floating towards his body as well.
"Oh thank you Red," said Canada, his voice heavy with relief as England, France, and Russia watched the spirits progression with big, relieved, and joyful smiles on their faces. I also watched the spirits as they floated closer to my friends' bodies with a big and joyful smile, along with a small relieved laugh.
"Oh thank goodness…thank goodness…" sobbed Italy with relief as our friends' spirits finally slipped back into their bodies. Prussia is going to be alive again! And Japan and Germany aren't going to lose their first lives! Hallelujah! Thank you Red! Thank you so much! Then, right as my friends started to shift and groan, I had a thought that needed to be spoken out loud. And so I did, with a rise of my hand.
"Everyone who agrees that we shouldn't tell them where their spirits have been, say aye."
"Aye," everyone quickly said as they held up their own hands.
Holy cow...how was that chapter guys? And silly America, he isn't a deus ex machina...well, not really. In any case, there is a pretty good reason why he arrived, which will be explained in the next chapter. And that will be up tomorrow most likely. Till then, please review and have a great day/night!