Thanks to AquaEclipse for reviewing.
Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.
Chapter 74
Tibet was sitting across from Bangladesh, who was fidgeting desperately. Under normal circumstances, he would have dismissed this as Bangladesh not having experience with sitting still for so long, but these weren't normal circumstances. The fact that Bangladesh's hands kept going towards his ears made Tibet realise that.
When Bangladesh's hand was once again lifted, Tibet grabbed the wrist and lowered the hand to Bangladesh's lap, quickly grabbing the other one. Tibet was supposed to get Bangladesh's mind off of the current situation, and he was trying to meditate with Bangladesh, but obviously, that had a few problems.
It didn't take them long to realise that Bangladesh's ears were healing, and something like this would itch. But nation or not, there was still the chance that trying to do something about the itching would only make things worse.
Tibet glanced towards the other two nations. He had decided to stay with Israel and India, who were working with the Hindu pantheon to remove the curse placed on India. He figured that they could use some moral support, and the fact that this was an abandoned temple actually made Tibet feel more relaxed. Being in the country where Buddhism originated was also a bonus.
"Sorry," Bangladesh whispered.
Tibet turned back to him, smiling reassuringly. It took a bit of trial and error, but they realised that Bangladesh wasn't able to hear them yet, though loud noises seemed to be painful for him. He himself could whisper, but attempting to communicate with him verbally was a wasted effort.
It was also for Bangladesh's sake that they remained there. Tibet had led them away from India's group, where they wouldn't be able to disturb each other. Not that India's group really got loud, to be honest. But there was the occasional sound.
Everything was such a mess. Hopefully, balance would be restored soon.
…
France winced as he was pushed back by Venezuela. He was glad that he brought his rapier, especially considering the axe that Chile used and the staff used by Venezuela. It was strange that everyone from Requiem brought a close-range weapon with them.
"Not bad," Venezuela remarked. "For someone known for surrendering. I'm impressed you can hold your ground against the two of us."
France wasn't going to dignify that with a response. He knew that they were planning something. They didn't exactly look like the type who would compliment an enemy during a battle.
It was as Chile twisted that France saw it: tucked into the waistband of his jeans was a revolver. France only had enough time to take note of that fact before he had to block the next strike.
"You're awfully quiet today, France," Chile observed. "Where's all your flamboyance?"
France wryly smiled.
"I guess I'm not interested in conversation with two nations wishing to kill me," he said.
"Just like you, we're trapped here for an hour," Venezuela said, leaning against his staff. "Until that hour's up, you might as well indulge us. Or would you rather that we fight the whole time? Do you think your body can take it?"
France flinched at the question. Would his body be able to take it? Three hundred years ago, he might have said it was possible. But now…
He wouldn't deceive himself and say that they were being kind. They were most likely just trying to keep themselves from getting bored.
"Alright," France said. "Say that I decide to indulge you. What would you want to talk about?"
Chile grinned.
"Tell us, what do you see in him?" he asked. "Spain, I mean."
France froze.
"What?" he whispered.
"We know you're together," Venezuela said. "We already know what Spain sees in you. Going out drinking with him had its perks, after all. But we want to know what you see in him."
"I-I… How do you know we're together? What makes you say that?"
"We're smarter than you give us credit for," Chile said. "We can tell that something's changed between the two of you. It's not a falling out, which means that your relationship improved, and the logical choice would be that you finally bridged the gap between friends and lovers."
France took a horrified step back. He could see the cunning in their eyes. They were predators, and they were eyeing him as though he was their prey. Which, considering who he was dealing with, could be quite literal.
"…I see," Venezuela said at last. "I always knew that you weren't as foolish as you come across. You were a powerful empire once, after all, and you're still one of the strongest nations, at least outside of Requiem and Alvora. You have your suspicions, don't you?"
France took another cautious step back. He recalled how he was supposed to die the day that Requiem decided to make their presence known. He was supposed to die with England, Germany and the others, but he managed to escape that fate. And he remembered that Spain told him that Portugal informed him of Requiem's plans to use France against Spain.
"Our original intention with you was to taunt Spain," Chile said. "He would have lost you before he even had you. Kind of like Russia and Japan. But this works out so much better."
"You see, there's a spell we've been itching to try," Venezuela said. "One that only works if our target has a lover. And while we could have used it on India, the truth is, we don't hate Israel as much as we hate Spain."
"Actually, to say that we hate Israel is a bit of a stretch. More like resent. He was a potential recruit, after all."
"Too bad he was already with Alvora. Egypt was so disappointed. He wanted someone that understood the toxic atmosphere that he has to live in."
"Speaking of which, when do you think he's going to remove the weeds?"
"It should be soon. I can't imagine he wants to live with them for much longer."
France shifted his attention to where Spain was fighting Romano. He didn't know what happened, but Romano must have angered Spain enough for the older Mediterranean nation to attack with such fervour. But in this moment of distraction, both of the South Americans decided that they were finished talking, and simultaneously lunged at France. Feeling that the axe was the more worrisome weapon, he managed to block that, but was left defenceless to the staff.
France yelped as the staff managed to hit a pressure point, rendering his entire arm numb. But he didn't have time to waste: the second attack was coming.
He tried to defend himself as best he could, but with the two attacking in tandem, it was impossible. The axe was the clear threat, but the staff was doing a lot more damage.
Eventually, a particularly brutal hit from the staff made him lose his grip on the rapier, and a second later, Chile raised his axe again. He had no way of blocking the axe which was now on a direct course to his chest, and he screamed as the weapon made contact with his flesh, digging in deep.
France could feel the axe's blade pierce his heart, and when Chile pulled the axe out, France's knees gave out beneath him, first sending him to his knees, and then he completely fell on the ground.
As the blood was fleeing his body, he lamented that he couldn't have spent more time with Spain. They could have bridged the gap a long time ago, but fear held them back. And now, he knew that he would be killed. He was supposed to die when this all began, and now Requiem was cutting the loose thread.
Fate was cruel, but before he succumbed to the void, he heard words that were far crueller.
"Don't worry, France," Chile said. "We won't kill you yet. We've still got some games to play."
…
Portugal's eyes slid to the screen when his phone started to ring. Moldova was there with him, working on a crossword puzzle. He looked towards Portugal as he answered the phone.
"Please tell me you have good news," Portugal sighed.
"Not unless you consider bloodthirsty Africans as 'good news'," White responded.
"What happened?"
If they were upset with Alvora in any way, then they would have to deal with the situation.
"Well, Uganda recovered from his lobotomy," White explained. "Should have been good news, if it wasn't for the fact that he recovered screaming. And when the screaming stopped, he just kept muttering 'they made me do it'. And when Tunisia went to comfort him… Miguel, neither of them said it outright, but… I don't think Algeria's the only one that took a bite from Tunisia."
Portugal's stomach dropped, before tucking and rolling. He knew a bit about lobotomy, and knew that the victim tended to eat anything placed in front of them if it was presented as food, regardless of their hunger. If they presented Tunisia as food…
Portugal tried not to picture as to how it could have happened. Instead, he knew that he needed to focus on the present situation.
"And… the Africans?" he asked, not quite seeing how the two problems were related.
"Let's just say, after everything they've seen and heard of Requiem, they've had enough," White sighed. "Everyone is in agreement that we need to put an end to them. At the very least, they want to send a message not to mess with Africa. They're angry and scared, Miguel. And trust me, that's not a good combination."
Portugal could understand that. He also knew that White was reaching her limit, and with the things that the other members had described…
"Do you have a strategy?" he asked.
"Wait… Are you okay with this?" White asked.
"Akmal and the others already asked if they would be allowed to capture a Requiem nation," Portugal explained. "Though the opportunity hasn't presented itself. They're equally worried about revenge. And I agree. Gilbert managed to contact me earlier…"
"So, he's okay? What about Raj?"
"…It's difficult. Gilbert reported that just before they were teleported out of the Washroom, Requiem played a brown note that locks its victims in a nightmare until they agree to follow Requiem. They had the help of the Hindu pantheon, so they managed to break free. Sammy also helped, though I'm surprised that he didn't tell you anything yet."
"Sammy? I'll check later. But, are they okay now?"
"Sim, or as okay as they can be. If you can think of a strategy, you'll have a lot of support for defeating Requiem."
White was silent for a moment, and Portugal waited patiently.
"…I think we need to eliminate Egypt," she said at last. "His magic makes him a nuisance, and he's personally responsible for a lot of grief. Themba going blind, Cape Town…"
As she was speaking, Portugal approached the map. He scrutinised it for a moment, trying to determine the best way to help her with her strategy.
"The problem is, from your side, Egypt's going to be the hardest to approach," he said. "He's given protection by Sudan and Libya, and while I'm sure you wouldn't mind taking down Libya, Sudan's hostile territory right now. The entire country is unpredictable, and that only makes me wonder what they're doing to him."
"I don't have a problem with going through Libya first," White said. "But Somalia, Eritrea and Ethiopia are also problems to deal with, and poor Djibouti is nestled between them. I'm afraid they might decide to retaliate, and she'd be the scapegoat."
Portugal turned his attention to the relevant portion on the map, and he nodded.
"I agree," he said. "We need to seriously incapacitate those three. With any luck, causing enough damage would seriously hurt them. But, are you sure you're willing to take that step?"
"They bombed my friends and I, they blinded my brother, they traumatised the brother of my brother's girlfriend, they tortured my friends… Miguel, how could you ask me that?"
"As long as you're sure. Hopefully, Antonio and the others managed to get the news to enough nations about what's going on. If they understand the type of people they are, then no one could fault us for attacking those nations. And on that note, do you think you could call the Dutchman and Adamastor to help?"
"I know Adamastor's been tormenting Greece, and I'm not sure about the captain, but since they're all coastal nations, with the exception of Ethiopia, they should be able to help out. And I've made a new friend or two that I could ask as well."
"Make as many friends as possible. Tell the others to prepare. Get in touch with Akmal… Actually, call Gesang first. Akmal went to get Raj, and I'm not sure about his condition right now. Tell them about the plan. And I'm sure that David would appreciate getting even with Egypt as well. Oman and Yemen are also options, and I know that Oman went to recruit Afghanistan."
"Great! So, hopefully we have enough firepower to give Requiem a really bad time."
After discussing things a bit more, Portugal hung up the phone. He sighed, shaking his head. He knew that it was contrary to how they wanted to do things, but Requiem was leaving them no choice. And they needed to be eliminated.
The ends justified the means, after all.
…
Bulgaria quickly glanced at his watch while Italy blocked a strike from Romania. It was almost time, though Chile and Venezuela had already disposed of France, and Chile had gone to engage Spain while Venezuela kept watch over France's body. Spain was truly berserk now, and he wondered how Romano would pull off his victory.
He took a few blows from Romania as well, and he was a bit disappointed that Romania wasn't in the mood to talk. He was probably over Bulgaria's 'betrayal', and didn't want to have anything to do with him at the moment. That was fine, actually.
When it was Italy's turn again, Bulgaria checked the time, and he smirked.
"Five minutes left!" he shouted for everyone to hear.
Romania jerked in surprise, and Italy grinned, attacking with earnest. While Romania's sword was locked with Italy's, Bulgaria slipped in behind Romania, removing a pistol. The weapon was loaded with bullets designed to kill a nation.
It was a shame that Romania wasn't interested in talking. It would have been his last chance.
As Bulgaria levelled the weapon, Romania seemed to realise what he was doing, and just when Bulgaria pulled the trigger, Romania attempted to pivot away. Romania cried out in pain when the bullet buried itself in his arm, and Bulgaria immediately pulled the trigger again, only for Romania to use his magic to create a shield, protecting him from the next bullet.
The bullet ricocheted and hit Italy, and Bulgaria immediately stopped in order to check on his leader.
"I'm sorry!" Bulgaria exclaimed. "Are you alright?"
Italy waved him off, glaring at Romania. Thankfully, the bullet hit him in the shoulder.
"You'll pay for that," Italy said.
…
Philippines smiled when she heard that time was nearing its end.
"Looks like playtime's over," she said, before she gracefully twirled.
She managed to slice Thailand across the neck, and while he was reeling from that injury, she stabbed him in the heart. She grinned as he was downed.
"Be glad we have other plans for you," she said.
…
China jumped when he heard the call of 'five more minutes', and he realised with a jolt that they've only been buying time. Greece smirked, before he really started to attack. There were no words to describe the terror China felt when his wok was split in two.
"Next time," Greece said, "you might want to consider a more practical weapon. Of course, there's not really going to be a 'next time'."
China's eyes widened when Greece raised his weapon. China was too tired after nearly an hour fighting with someone who was clearly only toying with him. He couldn't run. He was going to die.
He pursed his lips. He had died many times before – temporarily, of course. He just needed to convince himself that it was one of those times.
Just as Greece prepared to bring down the weapon, he was knocked away. China's jaw dropped when he saw his rescuer.
…
While Poland was fighting, he saw Jamaica gesture to Hungary. She nodded, and the next time he struck, she blocked it, as usual, but then freed one of her hands to grab him by the wrist. He winced in discomfort as the sword dropped, and Jamaica grabbed his other wrist. The two then worked to force him onto his knees, despite his struggles. It could have been because of the small jolts of electricity that Jamaica sent out.
"Watch," Hungary instructed.
Poland looked up, and immediately froze. From his position, he could see Finland's fight with Denmark and New Zealand. And Finland had just been unarmed.
"TINO!" Poland shouted.
That might have been the wrong move. Finland turned his head ever so slightly, most likely in response to Poland's voice. And Denmark used that moment of distraction to his advantage as he brought down his axe.
"NO!" Poland screamed as Finland's head was separated from his body.
It was nothing compared to the scream he released when New Zealand raised a revolver, shooting Finland's body. It wasn't merely an insult to injury: Poland could no longer feel any trace of Finland. It was as though Poland could sense that Finland's soul had departed, and he realised that the bullet used was one of Requiem's custom bullets.
"And now for the final step," Jamaica whispered as he moved his hand to Poland's head.
There was a piercing pain, and a fog descended over Poland's consciousness. The last thing he saw before he completely lost awareness was a dragon and a phoenix looking at him.
Well, I did say that I wanted to kill someone from Alvora.
