Thanks to the move coming up, March is gonna be a busy month, so the next update will be in a week or so; hope y'all enjoy! :) I shall be posting one new chapter at the first of every month, once I've settled in and reconnected.
Chapter Three: The Quest of Neideen the Naughty
Once they returned, Neideen and Cassandra found themselves pulled away before they could report their findings. Apparently, there were some rumors that had popped up about a man marrying a warrior…? That was certainly a first.
As they'd have suspected in such a situation, all forty-seven women currently in active duty had been called back the instant the Elders caught wind of such a claim… though a handful of them needed replacing. Apparently, Numbers 26, 39, 40, and 46 had been lost in the line of duty, while Number 17 had turned in her black card and been felled by her little sister a while back.
It was rather grim news, to say the least, but that was put on the backburner as literally everyone was questioned about this rumor… Miranda especially. The Handlers, the Elders, and her peers all unanimously suspected that she'd been the one to get herself hitched, as out of everyone, she seemed to be the most likely, much to the Number 36's immeasurable embarrassment. Even Cassandra thought it was her and was unspeakably worried for the one and only friend she had. (1)
But, it wasn't her… or anyone else, for that matter. Everyone had been questioned, and all of them had been determined to be telling the truth, thanks to a trainee whose abilities allowed her to detect if someone was lying based on various factors.
She'd prove quite handy in the years to come, but that was neither here nor there. (2)
Either way, this revelation left everyone baffled. Was the rumor false? It couldn't be… not based on the testimony of the villagers, and the trainee had determined that they weren't lying, either!
Was she...?
Cassandra cleared her throat as she and Neideen stepped forth before the Elders could jump to such conclusions and decided to voice their own suspicions.
"You may speak your minds," one of the Elders said, gesturing for them to come closer. This grabbed the attention of every warrior present and the trainee. "Do you two have something to add to this conversation?"
"We do," Cassandra replied.
"We weren't able to find Sylvia," Neideen chimed in. "She had gone completely missing from Training Ground Five. Her gear was also taken with her, apparently. Could it be possible that she was the one the villagers were talking about?"
One of the warriors perked up at that. It was the current Number 35, Roxanne. "Now that you mention it," she added, " Uranus and I did detect an unfamiliar warrior's youki heading towards that village a while back. I believe it's called Alpa, if memory serves. She was moving incredibly fast, too… Never seen someone cover that much distance so quickly. Didn't think much of it until now, though. I thought she'd just been a new recruit heading out for her first job, but seeing how she's not here, it seems I was wrong."
"If you'll let me," Neideen began, readdressing the Elders, "I would like to head to Alpa and get to the bottom of this. I'm familiar enough with Sylvia, so I'll be able to ask around pretty readily… and my ability to sense youki would come in handy in tracking her down." (3)
Also, given her particular skill set, she'd be able to extract that information pretty easily, even from the most tight-lipped of men… or women for that matter. She wasn't just called Neideen 'the Naughty' for crude jokes and flirting, after all. But, that was left unsaid.
"Very well," the Elder replied, nodding in approval. "If you do find her, bring her back for questioning."
"Understood," Neideen replied obediently. She was going to get to the bottom of this if it was the last thing she did!
It took awhile for Neideen to get to that village, even with roads making her trip a little easier. On foot, it took her just under three weeks to get from Staff to Toulouse. If she didn't stop to take a break many times through her journey, she might have been able to cut that time down by a few days. But despite her inhuman stamina, Neideen was still human. If nothing else, though, it was rather nice to feel like she was actually in control, again.
This village was quite the sight, too. Neideen had never been to Alpa before, but had heard many a tale of its legendary craftsmen. It was a quaint, happy, little town and very active, several-hundred people could be seen milling about the shops and stalls in town square as she made her way on up to one of the guards.
Needless to say, the sight of a Silver-Eyed Witch turned a few heads and Neideen's reputation clearly preceded her as a thunder of whispers erupted from the townsfolk. But, for now, she ignored them and focused on the man before her.
Said guard seemed rather nervous around her - looking to be rather young, too. "C-can I help you, miss…?"
She grinned wolfishly. "Please, no need to be all defensive," she giggled. "I'm Neideen. I came here looking for one of ours who went missing a little more than a month and a half ago. Soon after she did, we caught wind of a… unique wedding."
The guard perked up at that. "You think she's the one that went missing, then?"
"Our kind don't tend to get that far in a relationship... for reasons I'm sure you'd find obvious," Neideen replied with a shrug. "The missing girl's about yea high with pointed ears, white hair that was styled oddly and flowing into one direction. She also has no eyebrows." Neideen held a hand up to indicate Sylvia's estimated height. "Was she the one who got married, by chance?"
There was recognition in the young man's eyes, "Y-yes. Now that you mention it, there was someone with that description who showed up here about a month ago. She was with a young man around her age… or what looked like her age. I've heard many a tale of you claymores not growing old, but..."
"It's true to an extent," Neideen confirmed with a nod. "What point we stop aging at varies at times, but it's generally in our prime." Then, she gave him a dead serious look. "Back to the girl. We suspect that she was kidnapped while she was still in training. Can you tell me more about this young man she was with?"
"Not much," the guard shrugged. "Just what he looks like. The innkeeper at the Wayfarer's Refuge could probably tell you more, though. There's also Father Anderson. He was the one who performed the wedding ceremony and can be found in the local chapel. Don't know which tailor she got the wedding dress from, but I'm sure you can ask around."
"I see… can you describe this young man to me then?" If she knew what this 'young man' looked like, then it would be easier to ask other people questions if she told them his description.
"Mmm, blond, messy hair; blue eyes; weird markings on his cheeks that look like whiskers…" The guard shrugged. "You'll know him when you see him. He seems pretty cheerful, but the young man has... 'seen some shit' if you'll mind my bluntness. Just something about how he carries himself and seems to look right through people. I couldn't tell you where he's from for the life of me, but I could 'smell the blood', if you catch my meaning."
"I see, I see." Neideen said aloud in a thoughtful manner. Then she smiled at him and gave him a polite nod, "Thank you for the information. I'll go check out this 'Father Anderson' and see what he knows."
"Hope you find your friend," the guard replied with a polite nod.
A loud sneeze sounded from a small, wooded area near the border between Toulouse and Lautrec.
"You okay?" Naruto asked… or one of them did. Much to Sylvia's immeasurable amazement, there were ten of them running about!
"I'm fine," Sylvia replied with a smile. "My nose just suddenly got itchy is all."
Another Naruto took that moment to say something, "Y'know, where I'm from, they say that if you suddenly have the urge to sneeze, it means someone's talking about you." (4)
"Really, now?" That was news to her.
"I got this," Naruto chuckled, waving the clone off. "Focus on the work. That house isn't building itself."
"You got it, Boss."
So the one who'd spoken first was the original, then…? Sylvia did hear the nine copies he'd… 'poofed' into existence call him Boss, but she'd lost track of which one was actually him at some point. The structure they were building was a wattle and daub house on a stone foundation. The clones had miraculously built that latter part within a few hours and now most were tackling the timber frame while one was making the whitewash and two others were collecting the branches for the walls.
Once the clone went back to what he was doing, Naruto approached his woman and plopped right down beside her. "So… married with a bun in the oven and a house in the works. How does it feel?"
Sylvia turned beet red at that. Though she'd never heard it heard it phrased in such a way, the young woman knew full well what the 'bun' was in all that. "I… uh…" She hesitated, needing a moment to take a breath. "I never thought it would happen to be honest. I must admit, though, that it's pretty nice."
Naruto smiled and pulled her closer, bringing his woman into a one-armed hug. She cooed adorably and smiled, leaning into him and enjoying the warmth of his embrace while the clones kept working on their new house.
Back in Alpa, Neideen found herself standing before the… eccentric priest who'd apparently performed the wedding ceremony for Sylvia and her abductor.
The man was Father Anderson, a towering blond with green eyes and a scar on one cheek. His round spectacles glared in the light behind him as his silhouette loomed forth. He had short hair and a light stubble and was dressed in all black, save for the white gloves and monastic scapula. (5)
"Oh, aye," he said. His voice was gravelly and he spoke in an uncommon accent that Neideen recognized as being from the southernmost coastal villages of Mucha. "What would ye like to know about them, wee lass?"
Neideen plastered on a grin, doing well not to let her nervousness show. This man was intimidating as fuck! How was he in the service of the Goddesses of Love?! If anything, he should be in Rabona, scaring off the youma with his aura alone!
"I have reason to assume that the girl was one of ours who'd been kidnapped a while back," she replied. "What was her name?"
"Sylvia, if I remember right." Father Anderson replied by cocking his head in thought when Neideen perked up. Clearly, this girl was the one she was looking for "The lad with the lass was called Naruto if it means anything to ye. Such a weird name."
"Never heard it before, myself…" Neideen frowned thoughtfully. "Thanks for the information. Anything else you can tell me?"
"They headed towards Lautrec shortly after they got married." the man shrugged, his back was still to her. "The couple had not been seen since."
"Lautrec, you say…?" Neideen asked. They could be anywhere in that whole damn country by this point! She had her work cut out for her… "You wouldn't happen to have caught wind of a destination…?"
"Ha! Not at all," Father Anderson laughed boisterously. "Such a shame the Organization's after 'im, though… the lad was such a good boy. I can see now why he didn't stay." He then gave her flat, dead serious look, before saying, "Ye might wanna be careful when ye meet 'im… if ye meet 'im. He's got the smell o' blood on 'im, stronger 'an I've ever come across, before. The lass loves 'im, too. She wouldn't stop clingin' to her man all day. If ye got beef with 'im, ye might wanna be prepared." He then gave Neideen a grin that would haunt her for years to come. "'Cause ye know what they say: hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. May Teresa and Clare have mercy on ye if ye cross her like that."
"Uh… D-duly noted," Neideen assured, a nervous grin on her face as she instinctively stepped back.
A few minutes later, Neideen stepped out of the chapel and let loose the breath she didn't even know she was holding. Holy crap, she had never been so scared of someone who wasn't part of the council in the Organization before! That was just so fucking creepy! Seriously he could give the Elder a run for their money! Shaking such thoughts from her mind, she decided that the inn was her next best bet to get information on this 'Naruto' boy and headed there. After all, inns are a hot spot for travelers and adventurers so rumors and information are in abundance.
An impish grin spread across her face at the thought. Finally, she was back in her element! Oh, this was going to be fun~!
Fortunately, the inn was only a few buildings down the street, so it was a very short trip.
Not even five minutes later, Neideen had her hands right on the balls of a particularly young and chatty patron in a corner of the Wayfarer's Refuge. She licked her lips and leaned in. "So…" She purred seductively. "Tell me more about this 'Naruto' character."
She was bent over at the hip, her nice ass swaying from side to side as if she were trying to wag a nonexistent tail and practically made the young man's cheeks glow with a lick.
"Awah… wh-what would y-y-you like to… to know?"
Neideen giggled, her grin becoming ever more predatory as she went in for the kill.
The next morning, the innkeeper couldn't believe his eyes. Upon every surface but one of his establishment, men and women of various ages and stages of undress were strewn about with euphoric grins on their faces. He swore they accounted for half the damn village! Meanwhile, sitting on a lone bar stool, wiping her lips with a napkin, Neideen appeared rather pleased with herself. She then dropped ten bera onto the bar, the golden rods bouncing with a clang.
"Sorry for the mess," she chirped. "I hope that'll pay for the inconvenience?"
Fortunately, amongst of those happy heaps was the tailor who'd made Sylvia's wedding dress… and his wife… and their two daughters… So, she didn't need to go searching for him, needless to say. Hopefully, nothing would come of all those discharges she proved unable to contain. Some of them got a little too close to one chick or another… and many a girl's unmentionables. Oh, well… Even if something like that did happen, it wouldn't be her problem after she left, now would it?
"I-it's fine," he sputtered in absent reply, still utterly flabbergasted. How was he supposed to react to this?!
"Alright," Neideen giggled. "I'll get outta your hair, then. Have a good one!"
Then the woman made her way out of the inn and continued her pursuit of Sylvia and this 'Naruto' fellow. Getting to Lautrec will take her around the same time it took to get to Toulouse. While she didn't get as much information as she hoped, Neideen did find out that Sylvia and her companion had planned on living in a remote place. If Sylvia was being taken hostage against her will - which Neideen was beginning to believe was not the case - then living somewhere with no civilization around would be ideal for her kidnapper.
Still, if what Father Anderson said was true, then this 'Naruto' person was someone not to be underestimated. Neideen decided to be careful in her approach; she knows Sylvia well enough so using her to calm the young man down if he gets hostile would be ideal.
Either way, she had to report back to her handler in a few hours, so Neideen decided to keep asking around until then.
Neideen took a deep, comforting breath and let it out, as she approached her Handler. She hated to admit it, but the longer she asked around, the more likely it seemed that Sylvia had actually gone rogue and that her 'kidnapper' was, in truth, her accomplice. She frowned, hoping that wasn't true, but pushed those thoughts aside for now.
The man in black waiting for her had two horses with him for some reason, prompting Neideen to look at him oddly. One, she could understand as Staff was rather far away and that would help with the travel time for obvious reasons. But... two?
"Report," the Handler barked.
Neideen snapped her attention to him and did just that.
"After checking around, it appears Sylvia is the one that has gotten married. The one she's married to is a young man named, Naruto. Their exact whereabouts are currently unknown, but they were last seen heading towards Lautrec; I was about to head over there now while the trail was still fresh…" the woman looked at the horse for a moment, before looking back to her handler, "unless, you have a new assignment for me?"
"I do," the Handler stated. "There's an urgent problem in the City of Nash. A suspected group of Youma is currently preying on the inhabitants there - particularly at the chapel. You're currently the closest warrior we have to that city, but you'll need to get there on horseback if the denizens are to have any hope of surviving." (6)
Neideen frowned. Nash was known far and wide as the holy capital of Teresa and Clare, the Twin Goddesses of Love whom she worshiped. This was… personal. "On it," she declared without hesitation. "Am I to assume that I'll be continuing my search for Sylvia when I'm done?"
"You are."
"Alrighty, then," Neideen nodded, approaching the horse and taking hold of his bridle. That was all the woman needed to know. She'll have to get there as fast as possible then. Make this job a quick and dirty one and get back to seeking out her missing comrade. With that in mind, she mounted the black stallion and was off.
Unfortunately, even with the horse's help it took nearly a month to get to Nash. Fortunately, the city was still standing when she did. Neideen quirked an eyebrow as she stopped atop a hill overlooking it, the morning sun to her back. There was only one youki signature, which was both a good thing and a bad one. Were it multiple youma, this place would have been gone by now. But judging by the sheer size of the aura, it simply had to have been an Awakened Being.
That would prove rather… troublesome. It was either that or this was an uncommonly strong youma. Either way both were bad news. And, considering where this youki signature was located, it was in the local chapel. Her lips curved down to a dangerous frown; those poor people. With a squint of her eye, Neideen didn't bother dismounting from her steed she rode it on in to town and towards the chapel. With the sun behind her, the light glinted off her armor, blinding almost all who dared gaze upon her descent into Nash.
Along the way, Neideen's appearance on horseback had turned many a head to say the least. It wasn't everyday that a claymore arrives on horseback. But, as much as she wants to go to the chapel and get this over and done with, there was protocol Neideen had to go through first: meet the mayor, make sure he has the money for her 'services' ready for the Organization, then go and kill the Awakened Being once it's confirmed. So that was what Neideen did first of all and rode to the center of Nash in the search for the mayor.
She dismounted in front of city hall and entered. The man she sought was inside and visibly surprised to see that the Organization pulled through. He was an elderly man, utterly bald up top, but with a large, grey, and very impressive full beard. He also had a respectable amount of muscle on him for such a ripe, old age.
"Oh, thank the gods!" The man sighed in relief. "We were beginning to worry."
"I am very sorry about that," Neideen replied, bowing respectfully. "We're a long way from Staff, so I took a while to get here. I already know you have a youma problem, so I take you already have the payment for me taking care of it?"
"We do," the man replied, presenting her with a large bag of bera.
Neideen nodded. "When I'm done here, a man in black will come to claim it," she stated. " Just give it to him, then. If I get myself killed, they'll send someone else free of charge. You're only expected to play if and when the job is successful."
"That seems reasonable," the mayor mused aloud.
"So… are there any details you can give me? How long has this guy been a problem?"
"It started nearly three months ago," the mayor replied, stroking his beard thoughtfully. "Several nuns in the cathedral have been found, not just eaten, but sexually violated." Neideen visibly didn't like the sound of that. "The beast seems to enjoy the younger ones in particular and has killed one girl every three days."
The one-eyed warrior nodded again, a grim expression on her face, before stretching. "Might as well get this done and over with, then." Once she was done here, the one-eyed woman figured she might want to ask around, just to see if the citizens had caught wind of this Naruto character and narrow down her search for Sylvia. "Got another job I'm also in the middle of, just so you know. Missing comrade. Once I'm done, I'll be asking around to see if anyone's caught wind of her. Then, I'll be on my merry way to continue that search."
"That's fine," the man replied with a smile.
With that, Neideen took her leave, sparing the victims of this thing a silent prayer on her way out.
Fortunately for the Number 9 the cathedral that the Awakened Being is in was nearby, located in the center of Nash, just across from city hall, in fact. So, Neideen made a beeline straight for it. The woman unceremoniously kicked the door to the cathedral open and boisterously strode in with her claymore drawn.
"Teresa and Clare," she muttered under her breath, "holy goddesses of love, may you forgive me for the blood I'm about to spill within your sacred hall." Her eye snapped to a man with a scar over his right eye, decked out in the garb of a monk. She pointed her sword to him. "Everyone but him, out! Now!" she barked. (7)
The man chuckled darkly, before addressing her. "So they sent their 'Eye" after me, did they? You found me far too quickly for that not to be the case." As everyone else bolted, not questioning the claymore, Neideen prepared to butcher her target. But, before anyone could blink, two of the fleeing shrine maidens were snatched up by a blur of motion and found themselves held aloft by several tentacles with bulbous, suspiciously-shaped tips.
But, then, before anything could happen to them, the tentacles went slack and the girls fell to the ground with a pair of yelps.
"Get going!" Neideen shouted, whipping the purple gore from her sword with a single flourish. The girls nodded, sparing their savior a silent prayer, wishing her luck in the fight to come. When the shrine maidens dashed past her Neideen took a defensive stance and glared at the Awakened Being with her one good eye. "You're going to pay for dirtying this place of worship." she promised. There was no playfulness in her voice, just a calm, deadly stoicism.
The man cackled with a wide, twisted grin spreading across his lips. "If nothing else, it will be fun to see how you measure up to me. I was a Single-Digit, back in the day… I wonder how rusty I've gotten over the years." Then, without warning, another blur of motion shot forth from his left arm, but Neideen literally saw it coming.
No less than a dozen tentacles came for her. Being a highly trained warrior, deflecting those tentacles was child's play for Neideen. She sliced those tendrils, purple blood spewing from the stump and the other half falling to the ground; however there was another spray of blood as the tips regrew in almost the blink of an eye and continued their assault.
She charged at the man, looking to end this fight as swiftly as possible. But, then, his yoki spiked and as the man transformed Neideen came to an abrupt halt as she assessed this threat. What looked like thousands of writhing, black tentacles sprouted from his legs, torso, and arms, enveloping and seemingly absorbing everything below the neck while his head twisted and morphed into a circular maw of long, jagged teeth in the center of all the countless limbs, a single eye stock jutting up from just above.
The woman narrowed her single eye, "Well… that's a first." she muttered. She never saw an Awakened Being with a form like that before. Then again, all Awakened Beings have a unique monstrous appearance to them. The Abyssal One of the North was said to have an awakened form that looked to be part man and part horse. She never saw it herself mind you, but that was what his form was reported to be.
Pushing those thoughts aside, Neideen evaded as several of the creature's limbs took a swipe at her. She deflected more with the flat of her sword, cut through several more as they tried blindsiding her, only for them to regrow and continue anew. Neideen hopped over some benches and started dashing towards the other end of the room, dodging and weaving through many more of the tendril limbs as they tried to stab her or grapple her. She clicked her tongue in annoyance. This one was going to be a bitch to deal with, wasn't it?
Then again… Neideen looked at the tendrils and saw they had not at all changed. She smirked inwardly. This could be a little 'fun' if she played her cards right. But she had to find Sylvia and her 'husband' ASAP. The woman suddenly turned and dashed straight for the Awakened Being, and hacked and slashed her way through the dozens upon dozens of tentacles that were sent her way. She leapt up and hacked at several more, before stabbing the beast right in his maw. Of course, it wasn't as easy as that. The damn things teeth was made of sterner stuff and he managed to clamp his teeth down on the sword and hold it in place to prevent it from going further into his mouth.
Neideen let loose a startled yelp when several of its limbs wrapped around her limbs and tossed her back. She let out a grunt of discomfort when her back impacted against the benches, shattering many of them upon impact. But, she hopped back onto her feet and charged again at the Awakened Being with a loud battlecry.
The racket that ensued from there could literally be heard throughout all of Nash and the retellings of this fight in years to come would have some hilarious consequences… but that was a story for another time. (8)
1: In light of Roxanne's original rank being Number 35, Cassandra's canonically unnamed friend, Miranda shall be bumped up to 36. Also, yes, she has been given the same name as in Naruto's Quest. You can thank Spyash2 for making that stick, lol.
2: Anyone remember a girl with that ability from Naruto's Quest? =3 She, too was among my contributions. Not sure if she'll be playing a major role in this story, yet, but I certainly wouldn't mind giving her one.
3: Alpa is a non-canon settlement created in this story and named after the Swiss Alps. Pretty straightforward, eh?
4: A common belief in Japan is that if you suddenly feel the urge to sneeze, it means someone's talking about you.
5: Any fans of Hellsing, out there? =3 Alexander Anderson is one of my favorite characters, I must say. The Abridged series made him so much more entertaining, though.
6: Nash is a non-canon settlement created in Naruto's Quest, named after Nashville, Tennessee. Another of my contributions.
7: I think it makes sense for this version Neideen to be part of the 'young' religion.
8: Thus, we have what really happened when St. Nymphetamina slew the One-Eyed Beast of One-Thousand Dicks. Again, this was one of my contributions to Naruto's Quest, though Spyash2 was the one who suggested adding this to Into the Void. I had so much fun coming up with that, though, I must say, lol.
And that's all for now. Hope you enjoyed!