"Mooooooooooom." A five year old Subaru pleaded. "Can you tell me a bedtime story?"
"Oh Subaru, it's almost time for bed though." Naoko said as she tucked him into bed.
Subaru pouted at this. "But Mom, I'm not tired yet, just one?" Subaru activated his ultimate technique, the puppy eyes. "Pleeeease."
Naoko sighed with a fond smile on her face, "Fine, you win," She said as she sat on the edge of his bed and ruffled Subaru's hair. "Just one though."
"Yay! Bedtime stories with Mom are the best!" The young Subaru cheered.
"Shhhhhhhhh, you don't want Dad to hear that, he'll be very jealous," She whispered with a smile on her face. "Now, this story is about our ancestors from long ago, on a faraway island. They hag big walls to keep out the big bad monsters, these people wer-"
"Big and scary monsters?" Subaru asked in a fearful voice, hiding under his blanket as he shook, imagining them in the shadows.
Naoko chuckled as she brought him out from under the blanket, "Subaru, it's rude to interrupt people, but yes, they were big and scary monsters. Bigger than our house!"
This comment made Subaru's eyes go wide as saucers. He looked at the window in fear, imagining a giant looking in on them. "Will they come to scare us?" He asked, his voice shaking.
"No sweetie, your great-great-great-great grandfather got them all to go away, so that they couldn't scare anyone else." She said in a reassuring tone as he began to emerge from the blanket once more.
"What was he like mom?" Subaru asked, an innocent look on his face.
Naoko looked up, and for a split second, it looked as if her eyes had flashed white, "He was a warrior, who only wanted for his people to be safe. He was brash on the outside, but was kind and caring on the inside." She said, looking back down at Subaru. "He was willing to give anything to save his people, and because of him, they were finally able to live in peace."
"Wow!" Subaru looked up at his mom with stars in his eyes, "What was his name?"
Naoko smiled at Subaru, "I'll tell you, but first, go brush your teeth!" She said while stretching her arms out to him, wiggling her fingers. "Or the tickle monster will get you!"
"Mom?!" Subaru exclaimed, running to the bathroom to escape the dreaded round of tickling.
When Subaru returned, he saw his mom looking at his bed, a forlorn look on her face. Her eyes looked as if they had white stripes, but they vanished when she looked at him and smiled, her pained expression gone.
"Brush your teeth well sweetie?" Naoko smiled.
Subaru gave an excited noise of confirmation as he jumped in bed, eager to hear the name of this ancient hero. "Story time! Story time! Story time!"
"Now calm down Subaru." His mother said as she lightly pushed him down into bed. "The name of this great warrior…" As she put her hand on Subaru's forehead, her eyes flashed white again. " … was Ere-"
Subaru jumped awake as he heard a loud crash outside his window. He opened the curtains to see that it was just one of Crusch's men dropping a box of supplies. Subaru groaned before beginning to prepare for the day. They were soon to set out to Flugel's Tree, to confront the White Whale.
Subaru rubbed his eye in a vain attempt to wipe away his exhaustion. 'Just what was that dream, I don't remember that ever happening.' He sighed. 'Whatever, it was probably just a meaningless dream.'
Subaru finished his morning stretches and donned his tracksuit before heading down to the main hall where everyone was meeting up. He was hoping to be one of the first ones there, but alas, most of the residents were early risers. He saw Crusch, Wilhelm, Felix, and a few others crowded around what seemed to be a map. The warriors were either resting or checking their equipment.
"Good morning Subaru-kun!" Said a cheery and energetic voice behind him.
Subaru turned to greet Rem, but instead saw a short blue-eyed female with piercing blue eyes and shoulder-length blonde hair. He looked in confusion, as he had no idea who she was, but then he blinked and there was Rem, with a tilted head and looking at him in concern.
"Are you alright Subaru-kun, you looked confused there for a second." Rem worriedly stated.
Shaking off the weirdness of that vision, he smiled. "Everything's perfectly fine Rem, may I ask how you are doing this fine morning."
"I'm doing as fine as I can with all things considered." Rem said while looking around the hall. "I just can't believe we're actually going through with this."
Subaru looked around the hall at all the preparation being done. "Yeah me neither, but everything's going to be ok! Natsuki Subaru the Great is here to protect you!" He exclaimed with his extravagant pose.
Rem giggled. "Well thank you, my knight in shining armor."
They both shared a laugh at this. Although on the inside, Subaru was still questioning that illusion. 'I have never seen anyone that looks like that and yet… I can't help but feel that I recognized her.' Pushing those thoughts aside, he struck up a conversation with a demihuman named Ricardo, who was the head of Anastasia's mercenary team, while more soldiers were filing in. After Ricardo left to speak with his boss, Crusch came over, and Subaru told her about the plan to use him as bait, as mabeasts were attracted to him. 'I just wish the only way to bait them wasn't to risk having my heart crushed.' He thought as he bid goodbye to Crusch.
After Crusch gave an awe-inspiring speech, everyone began to head out. The time the White Whale was set to arrive was after dark, but nonetheless, Crusch wanted to arrive plenty early, so that equipment could be checked, and defences could be set. During this, Rem and Subaru were relaxing by the base of the tree, preparing for the conflict to come.
"Whoooooaa." Subaru said in awe looking up at Flugel's Tree. He was sitting on his butt and had his legs sticking out in front of him as he gazed up at the gargantuan tree.
Rem gave a small smile at his reaction. "It's incredible isn't it, it really is one of a kind." She said with slight wonder in her own voice.
Subaru jumped up. "Exactly! This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, let's check it out together!" Subaru exclaimed, grabbing Rem's hand and pulling her along with him to the tree.
"Subaru-kun!" Rem exclaimed in shock, and slight embarrassment. "What are you doing!"
Subaru gave her a mischievous smile. "I just want to spend some nice time at this beautiful landmark, with my most demonically inspired friend of course!" Once they reached the tree, Subaru released Rem's hand (to her disappointment) and saw something peculiar. "Hey Rem, I think some people carved their names into the tree over here!"
Rem looked at the marks in the tree with a confused look on her face. "But why would someone do that to the tree, do they want to hurt it?"
Subaru chuckled. "No silly, they carve them in with someone else to show that they will forever be connected." Subaru teased with a light and jolly tone. "Speaking of which, do you have a knife I could borrow?"
Confused, Rem handed him one she had on her, (Subaru was deeply concerned, like where did she pull that out of) and Rem's expression turned to one of shock as he stabbed the knife into the tree, and began to carve something out. "Subaru-kun! What are you doing!"
"Well I said that carving two names together in a tree symbolizes an everlasting bond right?" Rem nodded, still confused. "Well, I just wanted to make sure that our bond would never be forgotten!" Rem's expression became full of warmth and happiness upon seeing the words SUBARU + REM carved into the tree.
Rem started to laugh. "Y-you really are the silliest Subaru-kun."
They both laughed, and for a moment the world seemed to fade away, leaving behind all worries and stress, and the only thing that remained was this one moment of happiness. Sadly, it was not meant to last. A beep sounded from Subaru's phone, and it was then that the moment was broken.
"We have about twenty minutes before the Whale gets here, we should get ready." Subaru said with a serious tone.
Rem nodded. "Right."
Any second now, Subaru's phone would ring, and the battle would start. Soldiers waited with bated breath, scanning the area for any sign of the White Whale. Suddenly, a chime rang out, and with it, they knew it was time. One of the greatest battles of history was about to be fought and there was no guarantee of survival.
"WROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAA"
The sudden roar had fear rippling through the hearts of everyone present as they looked up and saw a giant shadow covering the moon. The shadow swept above them and they soon saw the clear figure of the White Whale. Its massive body, covered in white leathery skin, combined with its elegant horn and rage-filled eyes, struck terror into the hearts of those present.
Subaru was the only one unaffected by this horrifying visage, as he looked at the beast with nothing but hate. About to signal Rem to charge, and as he looked the beast dead in the eyes, he made a vow.
'No matter how many times I die, I will keep moving forward, until all of my enemies are destroyed.'
And with that vow forever made in his mind, he shouted out to the frightened troops, with the words coming out as if he had said them before. "Your objective is right in front of you! Take down the White Whale, don't let anyone else die in vain!" His cry cut right through their fear, and with courage in their hearts, they began the charge.
The Battle at Flugel Tree had just begun.
Flashes of magic flew over their heads as the small army charged the White Whale. The close combat warriors took jumps to land blows on the ancient mabeast, while constantly dodging away from the whale's lethal attacks. With the light of the artificial sun, the whale had nowhere to hide and was getting slaughtered.
Subaru couldn't believe his eyes. They were doing it! They would be able to save Emilia and the others! However, nothing good will ever last. Upon Wilhelm ripping out the White Whale's eye, it let out an earth-shattering roar, and with it a disguising cloud of fog. Warriors were getting killed left and right. Wilhelm was knocked out when the whale smacked him into the ground with its tail. Crusch barely had the strength to stand. Patrasche was beginning to foam at the mouth, and Rem couldn't even lift her Morningstar. Subaru saw this and began to race back to the base of the tree, before he heard Rem's cry.
"Subaru-kun, watch out!"
Before Subaru could react, he was thrown up into the air and impacted the ground harshly.
'Uhh, what was that?' Subaru questioned drearily as he turned around, only to be filled with horror at what he saw. Where Patrasche once stood was just a ditch in the dirt, with the tattered remains of her saddle drenched in blood. 'Wait, where's Rem?!' He frantically scanned the area, before seeing Rem crumpled in a heap about five meters away. He saw a large cut along her leg but he saw her struggle to stand, relief filled him as he knew she was alive, he looked around to see Ricardo rushing at them with a look of terror in his eyes. Subaru was wondering why he looked so terrified, but then he heard a sound that made him freeze in dread.
"WROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAA"
Subaru whipped around to see one of the White Whales bearing down on him and Rem. Time seemed to slow. He saw Ricardo, with desperation and fear filling his eyes as he tore towards them, as if he already knew he wouldn't make it in time. He saw Rem, paralyzed with fear and still unable to attack. He saw the White Whale, with nothing but malice filling its remaining bloodshot eye. Upon seeing this, Subaru knew what he had to do. Gathering the last of his remaining strength, he sprinted towards Rem with the White Whale close behind him.
'Even if I die… ' He thought while racing towards Rem. '… even if I tear myself apart …' He grabbed Rem. '… I will …' Rem looked up at him, tears filling her beautiful blue eyes. '… protect her!' With the White Whale looming over him, he threw Rem to Ricardo, and in that moment through tears in her eyes and fear in her heart, Rem saw Subaru with a smile on his face and hand outstretched. And with the jaws of death itself closing upon him, Subaru issued to Rem one final message.
"Fight."
The whale bit down, severing Subaru's hand, and covering Rem in his blood as she screamed a silent scream in loss. Ricardo grabbed Rem around her waist and began to turn back towards the tree as his eyes filled with tears at the loss of another comrade. His final thought looking back upon the whale was,
'Natsuki Subaru, you were truly a warrior among warriors … may you rest in peace.'
After Ricardo dropped Rem off with the rest of the wounded as he went back out to fight. Rem just simply sat where Ricardo put her, numbness filling her as she sat, repeating the same phrase over and over again.
'I failed I failed I failedIfailedIfailedIFAILED'
She knew she was useless, the one man that convinced her otherwise, the man she loved, a Hero, had died because she failed.
Her once vibrant eyes, full of life and joy, have faded into a light, hazy blue. With the dried tear-tracks on her face, and the blood and gore covering her, she looked as if she was dead. An empty shell of a once proud warrior. But as she watched the White Whale slaughter more warriors, something began to flicker in the depths of her soul. As she heard their anguished cries and saw their gruesome demises, that flicker began to grow. As she looked around and saw the haunted and defeated soldiers around her, a fire was growing in her empty shell. At one point or another Felix came around and healed her leg, but that went unnoticed by the blue-haired Oni. As she saw the White Whale, she was reminded of her saviors final message,
"Fight."
This one word set Rem's soul ablaze with life as she began to rise up. The memories they had together would never be forgotten, and she felt something deep within her stir. An unstoppable force, an endless flood of emotion that got Rem to stand in defiance. As she picked up her Morningstar, the emotion that she had been holding back released. Pure rage coursed through her veins as her horn slowly emerged from her forehead, if she looked like a corpse before, now she resembled a true devil, a beast of destruction, hellbent to its purpose. But, as she was about to charge, something happened.
A flash of light lit up the sky.
A few minutes before…
"Crusch-sama." At this, a beautiful warrior with flowing green hair turned to address the uncharacteristically quiet cat-boy.
Crusch Karsten, one of the five royal candidates, and the leader of this operation immediately picked up on his odd attitude. "Felix, what's wrong?" She asked out of concern for her knight. But as she saw the somber look on his face, she quickly came to a conclusion. Bracing for the worst, she asked, "Who did we lose?"
He responded in a quiet tone. "When I was healing the wounded, I saw Rem alone, covered in blood, muttering to herself about failing, upon observation, it would seem like Natsuki Subaru had died."
This shocked Crusch to her core. Despite being physically weak, Subaru has been shown to be incredibly smart in these scenarios, and him being a casualty never even occurred to her. "I-I see, and how is Rem?" She asked, trying to change the topic.
"Physically, she's fine but mentally," He sighed. "Frankly I don't see her recovering from this anytime soon."
"You know, Felix-dono, the people you find in the greatest depths of despair are always the ones to surprise you." Said a gruff and fatherly voice.
Both Crusch and Felix turned around to see Wilhelm van Astrea, also known as the Sword Devil. The man was looking onto the still raging battlefield with a faraway look in his eyes. He grunted as he held his side, which was covered in bandages along with his head. However, before they could question his sudden appearance,
A flash of light lit up the sky.
A few minutes before…
Subaru gasped as he sat up and clutched at the stump of his arm, only to find that his arm was perfectly fine? 'Did I reset?' He thought in shock before noticing where he was, his eyes quickly began scanning this new area. It seems that he was in a desert that had no end in sight, but he saw a river, of seemingly white energy flowing through the desert. Looking around, he saw multitudes of other rivers leading to a central point off in the distance. Deciding that this might be the way out of this place, he began to follow it while taking in more of the environment. The sky above his head was pitch-black, a void that seemed to be endless. The sands seemed to glow white, as if they were covered in non-existant moonlight. As he thought of the others, likely still fighting the White Whale, he began to increase his pace. As he approached the central point of the rivers, he found a tree, seemingly formed out of the same white energy as the rivers. When he got closer, he saw a figure sitting by the base of the tree. The figure seemed to be a young man, not much older than Subaru himself, he had long, black hair and his face was shadowed from view.
"Hey dude, do you know where the hell we are?" Subaru yelled out at the figure in desperation. Seeing no response, he shouted again. "Hey pal, did you hear me, I'm wonderin-" Subaru never finished this sentence as a voice that seemed to come from the land itself began to speak.
"NATSUKI SUBARU"
Subaru immediately whipped around looking for the source of the voice, before turning back to the figure from before.
"I HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU"
As this was said, the mysterious figure lifted their head. As amber eyes met green, the final message was spoken.
"I HAVE CHOSEN YOU TO BE MY SUCCESSOR"
Before Subaru could question what that meant, he was suddenly filled with white-hot agony. His body felt like it was burning from the inside out, his bones were liquefying, his skin was melting, and his blood was boiling. Before he lost consciousness, he heard one last thing.
"Remember your oath, Natsuki Subaru. You must protect them."
And with that he lost consciousness, and then,
A flash of light lit up the sky.