Bold for demon speech, Painwheel speech, or similar characters talking.
Bold and Italic for attack names.
Italic for thoughts and flashbacks.
Recommended listening.
Lionel Hampton - It Don't Mean a Thing (Club Mix)
Yasushi Ishii, Hellsing Original Soundtrack: Logos Naki World.
X-X-X-X-X
Naruto felt the cold wind hit him like a warning. He hadn't been aware of it nor had he even sensed it. The freezing autumn breeze warned him as he leapt across the rooftops, behind him his trio of partners paused when they noticed him stop on a dime, his feet hovering above the expanse of air before he cursed and kicked himself back, landing on a water tower. He held onto his hat with his hand, muttering to himself in anguish.
"We've barely begun the night… and people have-" he cut himself, Filia giving him a concerned look while Samson inhaled the air.
Grimacing, the Parasite told his partner what just happened, "People got murdered, kid. They're getting murdered even now."
Samson could smell the blood on the air, even this far away, death was a scent one could never forget.
"You felt that, right, Muse?" the detective asked his partner, who had melded with the wooden shape of his arm.
Muse's head was nestled against his shoulder, with her arms enveloping his bicep and her frame rested functionally against his entire limb. The result was that he had to hide her underneath his coat, giving it a huge bulge at least until he could figure out how to store her better. The partnership between them was new to both, and he was still figuring the ins-and-outs with her.
Pulling his hat over his eye, the detective cursed underneath his breath, "It's not a fight, it's a slaughter."
He couldn't narrow it down, too much had been spilt at once. But what was clear to him was that this night had only just begun. With coat flying about him, Naruto, Filia, Squigly and Nadia landed down, observing the results of Taliesin's madness. The man had gone on a killing spree, transforming individual after individual after instruments, and then melding them together into crass brass monsters.
Each one was more malformed and twisted than the last one. The most numerous were small creatures that were shaped like birds, dogs, insects, beasts of all kinds that were all made of brass. And each one had the same hateful glare to their beady red eyes. The brass beasts.
A brass monstrosity resembling what could be described only as a tuba with teeth, legs, and oversized fists tore towards him. Its path of violence had it swinging through the rooftops and carving them apart, its maw roaring loud enough to deafen him.
Coat billowing in the breeze, the detective needed to just look behind him at the ragtag group who had come to call him comrade. A girl without her memories and living hair. An undead songstress with a worm in her head. And a cat girl who could fall to pieces, literally. Not counting the fox who he called his first partner, or the living instrument that had bonded to his body.
"It was worth losing so much and so many for part of the way forward is forgiving yourself, and you should remember that Filia! It's not the past that defines you, it's the path you make to the future!"
Half said for her sake, and half said for his own, he realized he had come far throughout the years spent in New Meridian. Holding out his normal hand, he stopped the beast cold with but a single Rasengan. Carving it apart and stepping right through the hole he had left in its place; he tilted his head and body to one side.
"What is-" Filia asked only to find her answer right then and there.
Sidestepping twin tubas that had tried to trickily trap him, "I know a guy who'd beat the shit out of this crazed musician. Turning people into his toys, trying to soothe his own broken ego…"
Letting his hands grab each of the smaller brass monstrosities, he threw them into the sky! Muse stepped off his arm and elegantly let one of her legs pierce one and then the other, she stepped back into his embrace when she kicked them off, their broken bodies sailing off and crashing down onto the streets below their location. His assistant's living hair gave a sigh of relief while the pudgy schoolgirl had a starry-eyed look in her eyes.
"So cool…" the girl gasped, much to Squigly and Nadia's surprise, but Naruto was more focused on the bigger issues.
"This city deserves better than to have its people get hurt by a scumbag like Talesin! Squigly! Give us a good melody!" Holding out one of his trench knives, he 'played' Muse who unfolded fully, her strings 'plucked' by the blade.
Leaning against her new partner, Squigly had both eyes closed until his hands picked up the perfect harmony. The undead songstress picked up when she clasped both hands together. Her eye closed before she sang. The peal of her voice rang out like a siren's call, piercing the air and sending each of the Tuba beasts flying to brassy shards. Her hands flowed into a natural stance, Leviathan coiling about her protectively as her good eye gained a ferocious red glare to it.
"Kid, behind you!" Filia performed a perfect handstand, letting one leg arc up when she heard Samson's heads-up!
Hair traced its way down her leg as it transformed into a buzz saw in mid-motion, her body flying up and shredding the brass beast that had tried to attack her, cutting it clean in half!
"Naruto, I'm heading your way!" Filia exclaimed.
The pudgy assistant reached out to the detective as a swarm of these brass monsters clawed their way up across the rooftops, surrounding them on all sides! She leaped skywards before Samson transformed into a pair of wings so she could glide to one side of the roof and then the other! Nadia wasn't far behind for the speedy cat girl was as agile as a leopard and as ferocious as a jaguar. Escaping the law didn't mean she couldn't show a feral side of herself, and the marionette show before her was bringing out the inner beast in the feline thief.
Hordes of brass abominations crawled out of the woodwork. Doors to houses, windows to establishments and dark alleys were marching in mechanical, erratic movements as a parade of death. It gave the crew a show of a true narcissist's vision of art. Or the corrupted vision of art from a sociopathic brat. Like a child making puppets mutilating the bodies of his own pets and forcing them to dance. Not a view any of them enjoyed, and thus one they wanted to end.
"Aaahhh…" sobbed a woman whose torso was replaced with a miniature organ; her lower abdomen turned into the keyboard while her ribcage was composed of brass pipes. Her dead eyes looked at the group, and a hint of a plea for mercy was seen shining behind the dark, foggy vision, "…mee… kill… me…"
With a furrowed brow, Naruto shut his eyes and with a swift swing of his hand, infused with wind, he coldly did what was needed without any joy or rage, just an emptiness which Nadia saw, "Hey… You-"
"I've had to do a lot of things I can never shake off," he replied and clenched his jaw. "Taliesin is the one at fault for all of this, so let's make him pay what he owes and give these people a proper rest."
"Not one to quip now, huh?" Nadia commented to try to inject some humor, but even she was mad as more people with lifeless eyes turned to them, reaching out with their limbs dragging along the floors and walls, scratching the concrete. "I don't think I have much of a stomach for this, though…"
"Trust me, it never gets easy," he admitted. "But remember this, we cut down the source. And the brass beasts die with him. "
Back-to-back with his long-time close friend, his lovely assistant, and the singer he had adored the most, and his newest ally.
Things were dire no doubt, on all corners and crawling up across the roofs were more brass monsters, and as the wind whispered through the clouds, he could sense where the conductor of this orchestra of death was working. The monstrous Taliesin had been given total freedom to do as he wanted, and he was doing just that.
Back-to-back with his long-time close friend, his lovely assistant, and the singer he had adored the most, and his newest ally. Naruto felt that he could deal with this threat soundly.
"We'll deal with that masked jerk, so Naruto, let's go! We're going to stop the Medici and have them answer for their crimes! Squigly, and everyone hurt by them." When Filia gave him her words of faith, that was all he needed to hear. The battle for the soul of New Meridian had begun that night.
X-X-X
Eliza had her own private bar in the middle of the city of New Meridian, an establishment she secretly owned for necessary escapes as well as emergency meals. Lavished with exquisite Egyptian decorations, shelves filled with the finest of wines, and her preferred stool made to resemble a sphynx. Placing her rump atop the head of the mythological feline creature, she glanced at her henchmen. Horace was quick to prepare her a fine cocktail while Albus went for a freezer and fished out a blood pack.
"I'm guessing you didn't want to just vent out after meeting that detective, boss," Albus told her after he poured the red liquid into the drink Horace prepared her. "How do you wanna go after that private dick?"
"Patience is a virtue, and we ought to examine him after what he did," Horace argued politely. "After all, we'd be dragging our boss behind considering his backup."
"Oh, Horace…" Eliza cooed, the tone alone capable of driving any man wild. "I should thank you and Albus more for arguing, dear. Your banter sometimes grants me good ideas."
"Like what exactly?" Albus asked, ruffling his white dreadlocks. "I mean, what part of any of that was of use?"
"Naruto has his not-so-little crew," the diva started. "One great man once said to divide and conquer."
Both beast-men shared knowing smirks at that statement.
Curling her lips like the wicked and sinful lady full of malice that she was, Eliza sipped from her wineglass and crossed her legs at her booth, breathing out in a smoky whisper, "The party is just about to begin. Soon enough…"
"She's really been looking forward to this, huh?" Albus asked Horace with a sly grin.
The birdman nodded as their boss got out of his seat, "Quite so Albus. The chaos that we will wreak will be one for the ages. The chains are proverbially unleashed, and now we can do as we please. The Red River shall flow~!"
Eliza purred to herself as she could hear the madness outside, she could feel it in her crimson marrow. The night was about to begin, the sun was setting, and she felt her lips curl into a maddening grin. Every last one of her teeth was exposed in a wide leer at the thought of what she had been given.
Express permission to do as she wished, and a wild hunt ahead of her. She got up from her plush seat, tossing aside the wine glass as she stretched both arms out wide. Fingernails glittering as she exclaimed loudly to herself.
"What is New Meridian? But another city to grind beneath my heel, a den of petty thieves and miserable truth hiding charlatans! But enough talk boys, we have a gala to attend!"
Draping her coat around her body Eliza exited her ride. Like a fattened spider sweetly stirring out of its parlor after a great feast, she was in perfect form as she walked towards the city proper. The people did not know what was about to begin as the night fell, in a way their ignorance was amusing.
How little their troubles bothered them during the growing darkness, Eliza only found contempt in her heart as she walked past the throngs of passerby. Her target had been locked, a building that was considered a black Egret outpost. The counterattack of the Medici Mafia had begun, and she had been given total freedom to bring Naruto to her. Along with that wastrel of his.
And her target? No less than the Canopy Kingdom Capital.
"I always wanted to meet the royal brats." She told her two bodyguards as she took off her sunglasses, which she wore them at night simply because she could. "No more hiding, no more lying around, we're going to enjoy this night. If this doesn't get that detective out and about, nothing will."
Chortling in a wheezy manner, Albus asked her as she handed them to Horace, "I take it after we finish the kidnapping task, we'll send some message to the detective?"
"Heavens no. I'll fetch him myself. I'm not a cheesy villain out of one of those droll silent movies. I don't sit around doing evil drudgery like cackling. I'm a Queen. And they'll do as I say or get their skin flayed."
The sickening little rhyme was delivered with a wink and a smile. Horace took exquisite care to fold her sunglasses, wrap them with a silken handkerchief, and store them into a glasses case. This case was solid gold and designed to resemble an organ jar, complete with engraved stylization of her appearance.
"I shall fetch the limo," the bird man told her with a deep bow.
Not much later, she made her presence known upon arriving at the royal home. The guards that noticed her approach grew stiff. The Black Egrets were disciplined and most of all dedicated.
"Halt there, wench! You're under arrest!" one soldier barked at her.
"And if I resist?" Eliza playfully asked with a smirk and a bump of her hips to the side.
"Fire!"
Dedication like theirs was why she didn't even mind when several bullets blew chunks out of her body. Bloody meat wads flew out of her form as she kept walking forward. Extending both arms as if to ask them, if that was is it then, she smirked at the poor soldiers who finally got an idea on how much trouble they stepped into. Clapping her palms together, tendrils of blood repaired each wound in her body leaving flawless ebony skin in its wake. Eliza was going to enjoy every terrified shriek she could.
"Hansel, get the Flammenwerfer 1944," a Black Egret said to another.
Eliza raised one slender black eyebrow when the very well-organized soldiers immediately brought out a flamethrower, "Oh, please boys. Fire can't kill me, but you're welcome to try. Do you think it'll actually work though?!"
Eliza's smug question was simply to antagonize them. It was easy for her to look down upon them, as she looked at the tiny black flame sprayer that was worn on a soldier's back like an adorable little backpack. It was a stubby little toy from her perspective, coupled with a small cartoonish rendering of Princess Parasoul wagging her finger on the side of it.
"Digging in heels, formation Turn A," the Black Egret who had fetched the Flammenwerfer 1944 told his fellow. Using a hand-crank to extend the nozzle of the flamethrower, the man held the circle shaped nozzle in front of them with another Black Egret bracing his comrade and holding the tube attached to said backpack, "Holding steady Greta."
Eliza just chuckled and crossed her arms. Moments before her entire body was engulfed in a white fire that tore apart every individual strand of flesh she had and singed her down to the bone. Albus and Horace watched the blaze without a change to their expression. The flames reflected ominously in the birdman's glasses as from a small image shown in them, the results of what it did were shown.
"My turn…" she purred under the flames. "OOOO~UUUUUUUUUHHH!"
A horrifying howl pierced the silence of the palace, an undulating scream that kept going even as Eliza's body collapsed to its feet. Her hands had grown into long claws and were waving about as she kept up the otherworldly shriek. The pain had faded after the initial blaze. She kept it up to intimidate, shock, and awe them. Also, because it hurt that bad in the first few seconds of the inferno.
"She's more of a monster than we thought…" a Black Egret shuddered where he stood but forced his gun to remain steady in his grip.
Every single soldier stared in horror at the burning diva when she showed them how useless fighting her truly was. Flesh peeled back together, bones that had been cracked reknit, and inch by inch the body of Eliza returned to normal. She was however stark naked. One Black Egret stared long and hard at the sight of heaven he was looking at. It wasn't due to the beauty of her flawless body, but because he knew that she was truly a wolf in sheep's skin.
"Backup, call for backup to kill this dem-grrrk!" her hand latched around his neck before she impaled him through the stomach, draining him dry like a mummy and tossing his shriveled-up body aside.
"Protect the princesses!" another roared, opening fire on Eliza who merely walked forward.
Albus grumbled to himself, "She's willing to waste a whole pool of blood to get to these girls just to get to that detective. If I didn't know any better, I'd say the boss has a crush."
Horace shrugged, "What few things truly please her can be counted on a hand's fingers. Fighting, blood, attention, luxury, and it is the first time we can count a fifth thanks to him."
"Captain, we must retreat!" one of the Black Egrets called to his superior, who slapped him across the face.
"Never, we live and die for this kingdom and so does the princess!" the man roared and pulled out a heavy rocket launcher. "Fire until you've got no ammo left and then fight to the death with your teeth if you must, you bastards!"
Eliza whistled, sashaying her hips when approaching the last line of defense, "Ah, this has been quite a good workout, boys. Thanks for the fun, but it's getting… stale."
With a wave of her hand, a boat of pure, solid blood appeared. Blades sprouted from its end as she sailed to the soldiers. Every single one stood their ground and fired everything they had, but the red liquid absorbed their shots. Given no choice, the men were about to retreat…
"Stop right there, you floozy!" yelled an infantile voice.
"What?!" Eliza nearly choked on her own spit when her boat was stopped… and eaten!
"Yuck…" called out the living weapon of none other than Canopy Kingdom's youngest princess.
Umbrella was ready for action, "And get some clothes, you meanie! Even my sister doesn't let hers hang out! And they're better than yours!"
Any sense of tension was brought to a halt as Albus roared in laughter, "Ha! Little one's either got a good amount of spunk or a stupid death wish!"
Horace pinched the equivalent of the bridge of his nose on his beak, clenching his eyelids shut, "I'm not even going to bother with a response…"
Eliza simply cooed, "Well, well, well, what a mouth you have on that cute little face." Her blood reformed around her, taking the form of an elegant black night gown, "And the perfect bait to boot."
"Oh, I know Naruto wants you, so I'm capturing you with the Egrets and getting him to sing me praises!" the girl said unashamedly.
"Arrogance is a sign of youth," Horace commented.
Albus rolled around his shoulders, "Don't be too hard on her, she's got a lot to live up to."
"Hey, go find a bone to suck on, doggy!" Umbrella snapped.
"Pfft," Horace had to cover his beak with a hand while Albus blushed.
"Grr… I'll assume she doesn't know of double entendre…" the jackal groaned to himself.
Eliza's face was smug up until the moment Hungern, Umbrella's weapon, rammed itself against her head and clobbered her neck to the point it spun around twice. Several rapier thrusts later and a swift dash from Umbrella to dodge a counter swing from Eliza, and she had holes blown out of her stomach. Despite her blows, Eliza healed her wounds instantly.
She enjoyed the rush of battle, a worthy opponent, and a target that was fighting back, "Where did you learn to fight, little girl?"
Umbrella kept out of arms reach, Hungern held at the ready in a loose stance, "I learned from my big sis! With some tricks from Naruto!"
'Detective Uzumaki, of course,' Eliza felt a twisted grin rip across her face, Umbrella seemed to have her act together however as she didn't look away from the unsightly grimace. "Somehow, it seems that he is always making a problem for me."
Umbrella kept her distance as Eliza was preoccupied, mainly, with chuckling to herself. The young girl thought with a sweat drop on her cheek, 'How long can I keep this old hag away before my sister or Naruto get here?'
Gripping Hungern in her hands, she spun the living weapon around, its tongue hanging out while Eliza took it in properly. No more games, she was getting serious and that meant nothing, but pain was ahead of Umbrella. The little pink-haired princess valiantly let out a battle cry and charged, swinging her large weapon to strike the evil before her like she had seen her sister do so many times before.
"Cute," Eliza cooed as she casually kicked the girl backwards, sending her skidding to a halt with quite the brutal strike. "But I don't do cute, little girl."
"Ugh…" the princess gasped once she got back up, seeing the woman strut to her with her exposed body as if flaunting her power wasn't enough. "I'm… freaking adorable!"
Umbrella ran again, but immediately jumped once she felt that Eliza would attack. Said diva only waited for any opening but raised an eyebrow as the girl opened her namesake weapon and glided towards her with fury in her eyes. Despite her small size and weak little body, the singer almost felt tempted to praise such bravery if it wasn't so stupid. Once both were withing range, they attacked.
Eliza brought up her arms, creating bloody, razor-sharp beetle wings… and was immediately wrapped up by a tongue! "What th-"
She was silenced as Hungern slurped her up and started to chew on her. Being made of blood and bone made the pain somewhat tolerable, but the humiliation of being turned into bubblegum by the brat she had easily struck away made her boil with rage. Umbrella didn't stop there, she swung and slammed her weapon like it was a hammer, making sure to add as much damage as she could before flinging it around to throw the woman out towards her guards.
Horace panicked as he and his partner caught the diva, "Boss!"
"How's that?!" the pinkette smirked.
Albus grew concerned, "Uh-oh…"
Eliza wasn't mad… she was livid, "Well, so the little girl wants to play… Then play we will!" Her skin split apart, and Sekhmet was free, attacking in a berserker state as her claws scythed through the air towards Umbrella! The girl yelped and froze for a split second, Hungern having to protect her by opening its mouth and swallowing her up, bouncing back the Parasite who landed on all four of her feet, "You're coming with me, you little brat! One way or another, so stop resisting and give in! The inevitable will happen, one way or another, your will or your body will break! You will lose, or someone might come to save you… and I'll kill them."
Umbrella's expression was unfazed, and her reaction perfectly predictable if one knew her personality, she clubbed Sekhmet with Hungern hard enough to send her flying into a wall, creating a perfect imprint of her body, "I won't let you touch a hair on their heads! You think that just 'cos I'm the little sister of my big sis Parasoul that I'm weak?! News flash! The only time I'm ever willing to be a damsel in distress is when Naruto's around and I get him to play Heroes and Knight with me!"
Sekhmet dropped out of the hole she had been thrown into, no worse the wear as her jaw cracked and Eliza reformed around her, "Interesting. Your living weapon might be strong, but that wonderful detective… He taught you how to use it, and your big sister… she helped you master it."
Eliza's grin warped into a distorted scowl. Splitting at the gums to show off the full amount of her unsightly fangs, "You're delaying the inevitable. You can't kill me. That detective had been holding back, but even he can't kill me. I… Am the end."
Sekhmet's declaration to the little girl did little to stop her, "And my family's been kicking the butt of far worse monsters than you, old hag!"
"Now, now, that's no way for little ladies to… TALK!" the diva lunged forward, sinister glee in her eyes.
Extending an arm, blood swirled and transfigured it into the wings of a crane, the sharp feathers clashing with Hungern in an immense show of force! A wave of force pushed Umbrella back a precious inch or two, the loss of ground being an obvious sign that her opponent was playing for keeps. Despite her melodramatic spiel, Eliza hadn't been idle in their brawl. She had been calculating the best way to proceed and had found her vector of attack! Launching herself away from another homerun swing of Hungern, Eliza collected herself on the ground in a bloody pile. Concentrating her lower body and transfiguring it into a snapping crocodile head, her staff opened itself up to form a complete barrier that protectively kept the young girl at bay!
"Oh crumbs," Umbrella swallowed to herself.
The small princess leapt skywards, dodging the snapping jaws below her! Hungern opened its jaw, lashing out a tongue like a whip and grappling her around a pillar. Eliza extended one palm and twisted it into a blood ankh, which intercepted the princess when she hurled herself at the Parasite.
Jaws splitting apart at the edges, Sekhmet taunted the girl with a twisted purr, "I can keep this up all day you little brat! I've been holding back because I want you alive, not dead! But I never said I wouldn't harm you!"
She was surprised when she saw not a flicker of fear in Umbrella's expression, "Good for you, you old mange-riddled cat! Because I've been holding you back just so the coolest guy in the Canopy Kingdom could get here!"
The parasite snarled, "The detective? You think he'll be here!? HAH! What a positively blood-warming joke! He's occupied, my sweet little thing. Occupied with that scrumptious plaything he calls a cat, your own sister, and the motley rabble he's allowed to distract him on his journey to crush a family of criminal clowns!"
Umbrella bravely stomped her foot forward, "I can still kick your butt while he gets here!"
Sekhmet found it odd that despite this knowledge being clear, Umbrella wasn't perturbed. In fact, the princess had a knowing look on her face. As if she knew something the parasite didn't. The look annoyed her, so much so that she whispered under her breath as Eliza reformed, her succulent red lips pulling downwards into a cold scowl.
"Very well, what's one limb or two gone? As long as I don't kill you and you serve as precious bait for that darling Naruto, you'll do just fine!"
Before she could make do on her desire to remove one of the girls' limbs, Umbrella reached for her hat and clenched it in her fist tightly. Despite the look of confidence she had, Umbrella was fretting inwardly. The bluff was called as Sekhmet realized Umbrella had nothing left. She was still young, and even with Hungern, she wasn't equipped to fight Eliza. The realization both had only brought Umbrella agony and Eliza pleasure. The change to her mood was instantaneous murderous rage to smug pleasure.
"Hm… hmhmhaha! Then again…" Eliza closed her fist, considering her next action as she careened her neck from side to side.
She chuckled through her nose as she realized how many bodies were present. Umbrella noticed where she was looking and could only gape in disgust as the monster inhaled deeply. The reason for her disgust was visible. Blood was flying into her body from the crumpled forms she had left lying around, her breath coming out in a chilling gasp.
"U~ah! Delicious. Suck, suck, suck." From the open wounds of the dead and dying, Eliza controlled the sanguine flood and inhaled it with a lick of her lips as she recharged her body.
Umbrella couldn't take it anymore, her friends, her people! They were being hurt by this monster, and worse was the fact that she could hurt anyone she wanted!
"Stop! STOP IT! STOP IT YOU BIT- Urk…"
What she had wanted to say was silenced prematurely, Eliza had snapped her fingers, and when Umbrella hadn't been looking, a meaty fist had struck her stomach hard enough to lift her into the air. Dangling off the arm of Horace, she reached out hopelessly to the Black Egrets who had been lost.
The last thing she saw with her fading consciousness was the pile of bodies Eliza had left, their husks crumbling to dust as their blood fed Eliza's hunger. Those who hadn't been able to do anything could only watch in shame, horror, and rage while she threw back her head and let both hands stretch out, her victory screech undulating and terrifying all who heard it.
Letting them drop, Eliza shook a finger mockingly at them, "Tell the pretty little brat playing as a ruler and that wonderful man that I took their princess! Hahahaha~!"
Albus had by now fetched the limo, Horace carting Umbrella away with him while their boss shook her hips from side to side. To say the least, she was more than excited.
Soon, so very soon. He'd learn of how she had started the fire.
X-X-X
"P… please, by the Trinity, help me. Don't just look at me… pl… pleaaaughghghh- raaaaaauuuuughhhh!"
Pressing a hand against the screaming face of a tall elderly man, Taliesin warped his flesh using the False Muse he carried over his back. The misshapen puppet was a far cry from the true Remote Parasite, but he had always found her commentary and disappointment in him an irritation. An artist didn't need any critics to complete his work.
And so, he had secretly commissioned through indirect payments and funds sent to various part makers, using his collection of instruments to aid in the process, of creating the False Muse. A lifeless husk of a puppet with oversized wooden hands that attached to his own through wires and flesh strings.
"Shush, shush… an artist needs only quiet. You will become another masterpiece, another weapon, another tool to kill that detective! Look at what he has done to me, both of you!"
Cerebella's face was ashen and cold as stone for all her heart could take at the madness he was unleashing. Around him were the bodies of innocent people, the occasional victim scooped up by his arms, and the people who might owe the Medici Mafia when he came to collect. He was conscripting them into an army with which to destroy the Canopy Kingdm, his madness was far gone at this point, and she couldn't understand why it upset her.
"Do you still think this is a good job?" Feng told her friend. She pressed again when she noticed Cerebella hadn't responded, "Do you still think this is a family, Cassandra?"
The leg-breaker silently left without another word, pulling Vice Versa down so she didn't have to hear the screams of people begging Taliesin for salvation. He had none to spare.
Cerebella armed herself with courage, "I'm going to go out and fight Whiskers."
Feng followed her wordlessly. She didn't want to be near Taliesin any longer than she had too either. In her heart the Dragon Empire acrobat felt despair sink in. With this many monsters now crawling out of the Medici Tower, all of them ready to wage a war over New Meridian with the Canopy Kingdom, things were so bad she thought that not even Naruto could do anything.
What could one detective do against such reckless hate?
Feng had to call her out yet again, "And what then? I mean, if you win, Taliesin gets to do his thing."
A shiver coursed through the acrobat's back at the thought, but she forced it down, "Whatever that creep does, we can deal with later. Right now, all I want is to settle the score with that detective."
Letting out a sigh of mental exhaustion, the petite circus girl nodded, "I'm with you to the end, though. I just hope you can keep your eyes open for the worst."
"Yeah, I know…" Cerebella looked at the ensuing chaos and then at Feng. "Thank you, Feng. I mean it."
Red flared on the other girl's cheeks at the unexpected gratitude, "Hey, when did you-"
And the bruiser was gone, already jumping into the fray, and leaving the blushing performer on the roof.
Suffice to say, the night was young, and the music was about to get started with quite a beat.
-X-
Swordslinger: I'm not dead, surprise, surprise. Just busy with the holidays, some heavy workloads popping out of nowhere, and a few things I'm sorting out, but I'll keep writing even if at my infamous snail pace. Hopefully, I'll be able to keep helping my friend The Lord Of Pages here and write more of my own stuff better as next year things may ease up.
Lord of Pages: Hey yo folks. As I said in my author's note, I am not dead, nor will I ever give up on anything I write. I love writing too damn much to abandon my fics, or abandon fic writing.
I wanted to tell you all that I'm not going anywhere, even after I graduate and start work. I'll always write because this is my passion, something I enjoy so much it brings me total joy to do. Reading your reviews and the warm words in them reminds me of why I love it so much.
So, I want to say thank you all for your patience. I'm back, I'm shaking the rust and dust off, and with my ever-beloved best friend and brother at my side, we're here to stay! Until the next time, so long, farewell, may we meet again! This is the Lord of Pages, off to record another chapter~
PS. I told you all there'd be a new chapter, it's a little short but it'll be continuing things into a new arc!