A true battle.
The day has arrived. It was now time to clear out the bandits and deal with the rogue knight Ogre. It would be the first true battle for most of the students, a battle where they would need to kill if they wanted to survive. Byleth was not to worried about her students. She made them train as much as they could, so a few bandits shouldn't be to much of an issue. She was more concerned about her sister and her class, as they were going after a far more dangerous target. Then again, Esdeath was going to be with them, so she hoped her precance would be enough.
Byleth and her students gathered in the Entrance Hall, to get ready for their mission.
"Hey, Teach. Glad you could make it. We've been waiting on you" Claude said.
"It seems the knights have our foes cornered. They are in Zanado–the Red Canyon" Lorenz said.
"It's bandit time? That sounds like real knight work. Let's get to it!" Raphael said in excitement.
Leonie looked determined "I'm itching to put my skills to the test as well. We have to win so Captain Jeralt can see how much I"ve learned!".
"I thought Jeralt wasn't coming with us. Either way, I'll give it everything I've got" Ignatz said.
Marianne looked down "Um... Even if I go, it's not like I'd be of any use...".
Lysithea looked annoyed "That's enough of that. If we don't work together and give it our all, we are doomed to fail".
"You can be pretty intense sometimes, Lysithea. But I agree! Let's do our best!" Hilda said in her positive attitude.
"Yeah, sorry Hilda, but I've seen what your best looks like. You will need constant watch you are even going to bother joining the fight at all" Leone said.
"Hey, be nice now" Hilda pouted.
"Everyone is so eager" Byleth commented.
"If we fight half as well as we chatter, we'll be fine. C'mon, Teach. Lead the way" Claude declared.
"Hold on a second!" Came a voice.
"Mine? What are you doing here? Are you here to take my place on the mission?" Hilda asked.
Byleth looked and saw a young girl of below average height. She has very long pink hair tied in twin-tails on the right and left sides of her head. She has big pink eyes. She wears a pink outfit, consisting of a tied shawl with a high collar, a pink long sleeve shirt, a gown and black stockings with pink shoes.
Despite never meeting her until now, Byleth could easily tell this must be Hilda's sister she spoke of. The similarities are uncanny, it wouldn't make sense if she and Hilda wasn't related in some way.
"I wish, given you always prefer to watch instead of acting. But no, I am here to have a small word with the new professor here" Mine said as she walked over to Byleth and looked her right in the eyes... something needed to lean her head back to do, given the hight difference "I've heard a lot about you. How you managed to hold of Esdeath and even got my lazy bum of a sister to actually do something. So I figured it's fair I give you a warning: If anything happens to my sister out there, or Goddess forbids if she dies. You will have earned a mortal enemy for life. Is that clear?".
Byleth only nods as Hilda smiles "Ahhh, I knew you cared".
"Oh shut up. If you die, I would have to be the one to tell our brother about it. And that would be a real bother I'd rather not deal with" Mine said.
Hilda giggled and rubbed her sister's head "If you say so, tiny sis".
"And I told you to stop calling me that! Now, I have training to get back to. So try not to get your lazy back side killed out there" Mine said before walking of.
Leone shook her head "You two look almost the same, but your personalities couldn't be more different".
"Yeah, but I still love her, and she loves me. Even when she tries to deny it" Hilda said.
"Cute. But we need to go now" Claude reminded.
Everyone agreed and they headed out.
Meanwhile, Esdeath had gathered the Black Eagles, Akame among them.
"Good you are all here. As you already know, our mission is to bring down a rogue knight named Ogre. He is guilty of betraying the Church and violating countless women. Capture is not an option, we are heading out to put him down like the dog he is" Esdeath explained.
"So the Golden Deer are going to clean up some bandits while we go after a rogue knight. Guess it's clear who the stronger class is" Caspar said in pride.
"Well, we did win the mock battle, so of course they would only send out the best to deal with the bigger threat" Ferdinand said.
"Ah man! Why did we have to get the more dangerous mission?" Bernadetta complained.
"Calm down Bernadetta, it's not like you're going to be alone out there" Dorothea assured.
"But she does make a good point. We are not going to fight some random low life. We are going after a properly trained fighter. If he was a former knight, he must be a dangerous opponent" Akame said.
"You are right about that, Akame. In fact, Ogre used to be one of the most skilled knights around. Try to avoid him and leave him to me if you can. Rhea would give me hell if anyone of you died out there" Esdeath began before she became silent for a moment and then looked back at them "And that goes double for you ladies. I heard more than enough stores of what he did to women. I would prefer he didn't lay a dirty finger on you".
"You concern is much appreciated, Professor Esdeath. But getting me will prove great difficulty for him" Petra said, her accent still strong.
"I have a feeling it will be hard to sleep after this. Let's just hope our professor can do most of the bloody work for us" Linhart said.
"We can't let her do everything for us. We need to fight with her, even if it means taking lives. This is what we've been trained for" Edelgard reminded.
"I look forward to cleaning up filth like Ogre. Petty men like him has no right to exist in this world" Hubert said.
"I am ready too. I've killed before, so I will not hesitate out there" Akame said.
"Glad to hear it. Now, time to leave" Esdeath declared.
Not long after leaving, the class arrived at the place where Ogre and his men had been traced to. Esdeath took a moment to look over their camp and smiled.
"Good, they don't even know that we discovered them. If we attack now, they won't be able to escape without leaving behind their most vital resources. They would die in a matter of days out here without it" She said before turning to her class "Remember kids, this is not a training mission or a mock battle. Everything you are about to see is real. Real weapons, real blood, real death. Now I know some of you have never taken a life before, so remember this: Close your hearts to your enemies faces. They will try anything to kill you, even pretending to beg for mercy. Do not feel for them. They will not feel for you".
"Yes professor!" Everyone answered.
Esdeath nods in approval "Good. We will attack from both sides. Edelgard, take Hubert, Caspar, Linhart and Ferdinand, and attack from the east. The rest of you are with me, and we will be attacking from the west. If we strike fast and on point, we can overwhelm most of them before they even know what's happening".
"A sound plan, alright, we'll follow your lead, professor" Edelgard said as they split up in to their chosen group.
"I am so not ready for this..." Bernadetta said in fear. She then jumped when Akame put a hand on her shoulder.
"Bernadetta. I will protect you. I promise" Akame said with a friendly smile.
Bernadetta calmed down a little at that "Thank you, Akame".
"Will you protect me too, Akame?" Dorothea asked with a wink.
"Of course, you are all my friends. I refuse to let any of you die out here" Akame promised.
Petra smiled "You have my gratitude. You are good friend, Akame".
Akame wanted to tell Petra to work on that accent so she can speak more fluently. But she already knew Petra was working hard on learning the common tongue, so Akame was not going to ask more of her.
"Alright, enough talking. It's time. You all ready?" Esdeath asked.
Everyone nodded. This was it, this would be their first true battle together. On Esdeath's order, everyone charged in from both sides. Hubert and Dorothea threw some fire spells that force their enemies to move away from each other. In the confusion, the melee fighters rushed in.
Caspar struck enemy's chest with his ax, and since his opponent was not wearing any armor, he was killed on the spot "Are all real battles this exciting? Come on, let's get on to the next one!".
Edelgard dodged a strike from an enemy and swung her ax, quickly cutting of his head "Regrettable...but there was no other way".
One tried to attack her from behind, but was quickly killed by a magic blast from Hubert "Allow me to clean this up for you, Lady Edelgard".
Meanwhile, Linhart did his best to avoid direct combat. But as luck would have it, an enemy charged him with a heavy ax. Linhart managed to avoid the strike, holding his battle knife ready. The enemy swings at him again, but Linhart managed to stab him between the ribs. He coughed up blood before falling down.
"I...I killed him. What have I done? The blood..." Linhart said in shock.
"Remain calm, Linhart! Keep your heart closed and mind focus!" Petra ordered as she struck down another enemy that tried to surprise Linhart from behind "People and beasts are as one. Calm your heart, and do not be worried about this killing".
Meanwhile, Bernadetta held an arrow in her bow with shaky hands. She was scared out of her mind until she heard a yell behind her and with a yelp she spun around and shot her arrow in to a female enemy's chest, making her fall down, dead.
"I don't care if they are enemies! Can I go home!?" Bernadetta begged.
"Sorry, Bernie. It's to late for that now" Dorothea said as she killed another female enemy with her sword "So, is making us experience a real battle part of the church's teachings?".
"It is now" Esdeath said as she finished of her 5th enemy "Where is Akame? And anyone seen Ogre?".
"No... wait! Did Akame run ahead to fight him alone?!" Dorothea asked in worry.
"Damn it! I told her to leave Ogre to me! Regroup with the others and stay together. If you work well with each other, these low lives will never be able to beat you. I will find Akame" Esdeath ordered.
"Don't worry about us, Professor. This is what you trained us for" Edelgard assured.
"I'll be trusting you with looking after the others then, Edelgard" Esdeath said before running on ahead, killing anyone who tried to get in her way.
While that was going on, Ogre had already tried to escape with his slave girls. But Akame managed to catch up to him and he had to block her strike and forced her back.
"Pretty gutsy to come after me alone, little girl. But also foolish! Now you are going to be another of my toys!" Ogre said as he attacked Akame with a powerful swing of his blade.
Akame jumped back and got ready "My friends can handle your men. And if I kill you, their job is going to be a lot easier. That is why I came after you alone".
"So you left your friends to be slaughtered by my men while you get captured by me? Not to smart" Ogre said arrogantly.
"They are stronger than you think. Besides, I fight better one on one" Akame declared.
"So do I" Ogre said before attacking her like a wild animal.
Akame avoided his strike and move to slash open his neck. But Ogre saw this coming and grabbed her arm before throwing her in to the ground. Akame recovered quickly and jumped back on to her feet. Ogre wasn't some thug, he was skilled. Just as Akame expected from a former knight Seiros. Akame took a breath to calm herself and remain focused. It was true that Ogre was far more deadly than anyone Akame has ever fought in a battle to the death. But she remembered her father's teachings, so she knew she could beat him and she will.
Akame charged in, ready to end him with a quick and precise strike. However, Ogre only smirked as he got ready. And just when Akame launched her strike, threw his sword at her. Akame was surprised and quickly stopped her attack to knock the blade aside with her own. But by doing so, Ogre rushed in and grabbed her sword arm before using his free hand to grab the front of her top... a rip was heard before Akame backed away, noticing her top had been torn clean of, revealing now bare upper body to the world. She quickly covered her chest with one arm and was ready to fight with her other arm.
But Ogre used his size to force her down on the ground, making her drop her sword. His large hand grabbed her neck neck as he smirked at her "My, what smooth skin you have. Oh yes, you will make a fine new toy! I am going to ravage you, like I've done with so many others".
Akame's eyes flared in rage before she suddenly reached up and forced her thumb in to Ogre's remaining eye. Ogre roared in pain as blood gushed out of his destroyed eye. Akame kicked him of before retrieving her blade and used it to cut his head of. Blood hit her bare skin and the freak was finally dead. Akame was breathing hard, adrenaline and anger still pumping in her body.
"Akame!" Came a voice before Akame felt a hand on her shoulder. Akame spun around, swinging her blade, but her arm was caught by Esdeath "Calm down! It's me!".
"Professor?" Akame said before she finally calmed down "S-sorry for running ahead. I thought killing Ogre quickly would make the mission easier. But he was stronger than I thought and he-".
"Stop. Yes, I am angry than you ran of without telling us... But I think the lesson you learned here tonight is punishment enough" Esdeath said.
Akame looked down and covered her breasts with her arms. Soon after the rest of the class arrived with Edelgard speaking "Professor, the enemies are all dead and... Akame! What happened to you?".
The boys, minus Hubert, blushed at the top less Akame, but all had a bad feeling about what happened.
"Ogre... tried to..." Akame began but didn't want to finish.
Everyone looked at Ogre's dead body with disgust, but Caspar quickly removed his vest "Here, put this on".
Akame kept one arm over her breasts as she accepted the vest "Thank you, Caspar".
Dorothea suddenly looked at the boys "Look away!".
Not needing to be told twice, the boys looked away, allowing Akame the privacy she needed to put the west on, saving her modesty.
Esdeath looked at the slave girls and sighed "The mission is over. Let's help the girls back to Garreg Mach".
Everyone nods and went to help the poor girls who had to endure endless abuse from their captors. Though Dorothea made sure Akame was alright first and Akame assured her she was fine... but Dorothea was not to sure about that.
Back at Garreg Mach Monastery, Byleth reported to Rhea that her mission had been successful.
"So, you have safely disposed of those bandits. I pray that their souls find salvation. But why did they target the students to begin with? We must further investigate the true cause of all that took place. Until we know more, I ask that you support the students and relieve them of any unnecessary worry" Rhea said.
"I will do all that I can" Byleth said.
Rhea smiled "Good. I have high expectations for you. By the way, how was your time in Zanado? Legend has it, in ancient times, a goddess alighted upon this world in that very canyon. For a goddess from heavens, Zanado could only have been a temporary haven".
"A temporary haven?" Byleth asked.
"Long ago, the divine Seiros received a revelation from the goddess. A gift, to help the lost. The goddess is always watching over Fódlan from her kingdom above. However, in ancient times, the goddess graced this world with her presence and offered salvation to the people here. She is the mother of all life, the arbiter of every soul" Rhea explained.
"My father never told me" Byleth said.
"I see. During your time here, I pray that you come to devote yourself to the teachings of Seiros" Rhea said.
"Uh...Lady Rhea, I am sorry to interrupt. There is something I must ask about in regard to those bandits..." Seteth suddenly spoke.
"As you wish. We shall continue our discussion when next we meet" Rhea said "But before you leave, I think you should know that you sister and her class arrived back shortly before you did. Esdeath informed me what happened. The sinners have been dealt with, but they also saved several young women who had been defiled by those horrible people... and your sister almost became one of their new victims".
Byleth looked worried "Is she alright?".
"Physically, yes. But I can't speak for her. You should go to her" Rhea said.
Byleth nods and hurried to find Akame.
Akame sat on her bed, her hands sore from trying to wash of Ogre's stench... but no matter how much she washed herself, his filth wouldn't go away. She heard the door open, and looked up to see Byleth walk inside. The two sisters looked at each other before Akame got up and hugged her older sister. Byleth hugged her back.
No words were needed. All Akame needed right now, was to be in her sister's arms.
.
Tell me what you think.