Welcome back everybody to the start of chapter 12! And I'm starting writing this at 1AM because what better time to write this then 1AM? New event from FGO just dropped, might play it if I have time for it.
With everything said, let's go to the chapter!
DISCLAIMER: All the Nasuverse characters belong to Nasu and are property of Type-Moon, with the exception of the OC's that belong to me, the author.
The group in charge of meeting with the Dragon Slayer in Lyon walked in the middle of the big open fields as it has already been some hours since they had separated from the other group. The walk has been peaceful and without much trouble, with no danger in sight to get in their way.
Altough it was a bit silent and borderline tideous, with the group chatting here and there but never for more than a minute. They just couldn't find an intresting topic to talk about. Until Mash found one.
"You and Marie seem always close, isn't that right Mozart?" She asked to the musician.
"Yes. We are a bit close indeed." Mozart told the shielder. "Marie is a sweet woman. She's a queen that loved her people."
"Her personality is a clear proof of that." Peko said, entering the conversation.
"She's always cheerful and joyful. Almost like nothing can bring her mood down. She's a good girl at heart." Mozart explained with a smile. "However, she's as naïve as she's happy." Mozart smilled dissapeard.
"What do you mean by that?" Peko asked, not understanding the change on Mozart's thinking about Marie.
"I think I get it." Ritsuka knew a bit about Marie's story as the queen of France. A bit enough to know what Mozart was talking about. "She ended up being executed by the very own people she loved, right?"
Mozart closed it's eyes and nodded. "She at the time just couldn't get it why. The fact that she was the queen of this nation at that specific time was simply bad luck to her."
"The people hated her?" Peko asked, thinking on how could be possible someone hate a person like Marie.
"It was more of a 'general hate' so to speak. The french common folk were just fed up with their monarchy as a whole." Mozart continued. "So Marie had the tragic end of dying beheaded, with her king and husband, her children and almost all of the royal court meeting the same fate."
"God! Does this country know how to treat their historic characters properly?" Kiyohime , who has been hearing until now, felt a bit angry at the way Marie was treated by her people at the end.
"That's right." Ritsuka said. "I at the time tought Marie Antoinette was kinda of a spoiled queen just like everyone else tought. But seeing her for real now...I can't understand how the people can do that to a queen like her."
"I never became a figure of nobility or royalty, but if I had to guess, I'd say sometimes being a good ruler doesn't mean that you are safe from the wrath of a whole nation. No matter how good your intentions and actions are." Mozart told Ritsuka.
"So she and Jeanne have a thing in common eh?" Mash said, seeing now how the situations of Marie and Jeanne seemed a bit simillar.
"Yes, you could say that so." Mozart watched two birds land in a nearby tree. "Perhaps that's another reason for why Marie is so found of Jeanne."
"But why would people hate her just like that? It doesn't make sense!" Peko still couldn't see how someone would kill such cheerful queen as Marie.
"From what I've heard at time I was alive as a musician across Europe, France's common people were suffering from extreme poverty and famine at the time while the royals and nobles lived in huge wealth. So as the years would pass and the situation would only get worse, 'some individuals' took chance to bring fort their ideologies to the nation's collective mind." Mozart frowned. "Marie tried her best, but was too foolish to understand that an angry mob's mind can't be easily changed."
"Or..." Mash tried to come up with something. "She knew that her people would be happier with her death."
Mozart looked at Mash, not saying a thing to her, and then looking back at the road up ahead. "That's what I'd like to assume."
"I have to give her credit for staying with her mood up after such ending like that." Kiyohime said.
"True." Peko replied to Kiyohime. "However, why would someone take chance of the folk's hard times to gain more power?"
"That is a whole other topic by itself, Peko." Mash told him. "I'll explain better to you later."
"And you might explain to me aswell." Ritsuka requested to her servant. "I never was very into the french revolution thing to know all the things about it." He scratched his head.
Mash smiled. "Of course,Senpai."
Romani's hologram appeard. "Well, looks like someone was also sleeping in history classes." The doctor smirked wt Ritsuka.
"I-It isn't like that!" The master of humanity protested. "It's just my school never gave much subject about the political things from another period."
"Hmm. Sure." Romani maintained his smirk.
"Sorry to interrupt the chat between you two but..." Mozart called the group's attention, pointing at the ruins of a big village up ahead of them." ...looks like we've reached to our destination."
"Uff! Walking so much is already hurting my legs." Elizabeth protested as she alongside Jeanne and Marie have been walking for quite some time now. "Are we at least getting closer?"
"One of my Ruler abilities allows me to sense a servant's mana and aura." Jeanne who was at the front told to Elizabeth who was at the back of the trio. "It keeps growing, meaning we must be getting closer."
"My! That must be very helpful." Marie said.
"Yes it is an ability that all the ruler class servants have that can help us a lot in keeping Holy Grail wars in check." Jeanne explained to Marie.
"Does the Ruler class also have other abilities?" Marie asked, wanting to hear more of Jeanne's voice.
"I can also see the servants True Names now. So I should be able to quickly figure out who our enemies are next time we meet." Jeanne said.
"We know some already right?" Elizabeth went to think onhow many servants of the enemy side they knew about their true identity now. "There's the older me, D'eon, the Dragon Witch who we mostly guarantee to be you and...I guess it's all, not counting with the already defeated Saint Martha of course."
"Yes that's right Elizabeth." Jeanne confirmed Elizabeth's thinking. "However I also suspect of knowing the identity of another servant of the Dragon Witch." Jeanne put a finger under her chin. "But I still haven't seen him yet. His alter part at least."
"Who are you talking about Jeanne?" Marie didn't know who Jeanne was refering to.
"Gilles de Rais, a old friend of mine." Jeanne responded.
"Wait! Didn't we saw him back there during the fight against Saint Martha? How can he be working for the Dragon Witch?" Elizabeth asked confused.
"Moments before you came to our rescue back at my destroyed hometown..." Jeanne's mind went back to the moment were all her village and people were erased by the Dragon Witch's huge dragon. It still hurted a bit in her chest.
"You okay Jeanne?" Marie noticed the slight sadness on the saint's face.
"It's just at that moment, I felt powerless. With nothing I could do to save them." Jeanne then brushed her sorrow aside. "But anyway, I shouldn't let those recent memories haunt me. As I was saying, at that moment shortly before you came to rescue us, the evil me said Gilles name who at that time according with her words, was left back at the castle."
"So, that means he's one of them too." Elizabeth concluded.
"It's dark part it seems. I've heard...the things he has done after my death." Jeanne put a hand on her chest. "So when I saw Gilles as a normal and good moral man back there, I felt relief, knowing that at least his evil version is not the only one here in this Singularity."
"He means a lot to you doesn't he?" Marie smiled.
"Yes. He was and still is a very good friend of mine. And I hope it may continue this way even in the afterlife." Jeanne smiled back at Marie.
"Hey girls! Look!" Elizabeth called the two women who then told them to look what appeard to be a village just a killometer away from them. It was all intact and some noise could be heard, meaning that it was also populated. "Our servant is probably there! Let's go!" Elizabeth was about to run torwards the village gates.
"I never expected the young Elizabeth Báthory to be this energetic and alive but I'd say it's pleasent." Marie giggled a bit at Elizabeth energy.
"Yeah. Kinda difficult to imagine she ended up doing all those things afterwards." Jeanne added, being well aware of Elizabeth 's life when she was a life as a countess.
"I guess it shows how no one is safe from doing bad and sinful acts." Marie responded, thinking then about something. "Say Jeanne, you really do forgive the people who burned you at the stake, isn't that true?"
Jeanne didn't expected that question all of a sudden but still decided to answer. "I swore to myself to never let hate consume me, that it only drives me to terrible places in the mind. So I do forgive those men who burned me. I won't let those feelings control me. Or else, I may lose my way." Jeanne stared at her hand. "I can't let the hate I felt days ago come back. I need to resist it no matter what!"
The saint then looked at Marie. "And what about you Marie? I know about your death too. Sentenced to guillotine and beheaded while the nation smiled with your death. It must have been harsh."
Marie made a 'no' with her index finger. "Not really. I was someone who loved it's people. I'd docmany things to see the whole nation happy. So, when I realized my death would make them cheer, then I didn't mind dying, knowing my death would make a lot of people happier." Marie gazed at the sky. "So, I'd never hold any type of grudge or hate against the people who watched me die and contributed to my death. I'm 90% sure I'd forgive them."
"Why only 90%?" Jeannd asked curious.
"Because while I can forgive those who killed me and cheered on my grusome death, I'll probably never forgive those who killed my son." Marie's voice went the most deadly and cold it has ever been since Jeandn met her. The queen's face was also with no happy expression anymore. "I can forgive and give my empathy to the 90% of the persons who only wanted me gone with the rest of the royalty. However, hurting my son, will hardly have forgivness."
"I see. So even Marie can have these emotions within her." Jeanne tought, this being the most serious and cold she has ever seen Marie. Jeanne couldn't blame her, hurting and killing someone you like, specially family, was something quite infuriating. "Her son was prince Louis XVII if I recall. Poor kid suffering lasted longer than of his parents. Can't imagine Marie's reaction when she discovered it."
"So yeah...I can understand why some people like your friend Gilles would end up going mad." Marie lamented. "Sorry to not be always the optimistic and happy queen who cannot hold bad feelings like you've seen me until now."
Jeanne put a hand on Marie's shoulder, smilling to her friend. "No. It's alright Marie. I won't judge someone who's anger is justified. Your son never deserved what it happened to him."
"Thank you, Jeanne." Marie grabbed Jeanne's hand, feeling a bit relieved now.
"You are a friend to me. So if you want to vent your frustrations, I'll be here." Jeanne told her.
"Hehe. Having the beautiful Jeanne D'arc as a friend." Marie said. "Now that is a very dream of mine."
"Then shall we proceed, my queen?" Jeanne, in a knight gesture, showed the path ahead that would lead to the village, with Elizabeth halfway there.
Marie's smile grew bigger and her face blushed a bit. "Sure!"
"The village, it's all abandoned." Mash saw all the buildings and while some remained, others were completely ruined. But to wherever she and the rest looked at, they wouldn't find anyone. The village was totally deserted, being more of a ghost village now, with no human in sight. The dead silence only turn it more menacingly.
"Are we sure the dragon slayer we're looking is here?" Seeing the situation, Peko doubted if they would find the servant since no signs of human life appeard on the village.
"Hey doc." As Ritsuka finished those words, Romani's hologram appeard next to him.
"I'm already searching for any signs of an Heroic Spirit. It will take a minute or two, ao please be patient." The doctor told them.
"We better search for the servant too." Mash proposed. "See if it's at least are nearby."
"Agreed." Mozart supported Mash's idea. "Let's split and look across the village."
"That makes the search easier." Ritsuka said. "Mash, Peko, you're with me." The master pointed at the two of them.
Kiyohime looked unhappy. "And what about me?" She protested.
"You can go with Mozart, Kiyohime." Ritsuka told to the japanese servant.
"Hmm,ok. Even if I'm not too much found of it, if Anchin-sama says so then I'll do it." Kiyohime smiled all lovely torwards Ritsuka.
"Thanks Kiyohime." Ritsuka sweated a bit.
"We'll seek the north part of the village while you seek the south one." Mash pointed to the directions.
Both Mozart and Kiyohime nodded and went to one way while Ritsuka, Mash and Peko went to the opposite way.
Walking around, the tought of the servant not being here was becoming more plausible, as minutes would go by and still no sign of the servant or even someone else. Romani also was taking a bit of time with the scanning of the area.
"Do you think it has gone already?" Ritsuka speculated to Mash and Peko, has the three of them had just finished searching another destroyed building that just like every other one they searched till now, was empty and decadent.
"Hmm, hope Mozart and Kiyohime had better luck." Peko said, kicking a random pebble in front of him.
"Or that Jeanne's group was able to foind the other servant." Mash said, wishing for the success of the other group aswell.
"I sure hope too." Ritsuka, knocked on a broken wall near him. "It seems majority of the villages here have been destroyed by te Dragon Witch's army or herself."
"Have we searched for that building yet?" Peko pointed to a house who despite it's cracks and broken windows, seemed the most unharmed of all the buildings around them.
"Guess not." Mash said, thinking at all the buildings they've been in.
"Then I think it's time we look inside of it." Ritsuka walked past Mash and Peko, heading to the house. Mash followed him with Peko close behind.
"A dragon slayer...They must be a very powerful person to deal with that dragon..." Peko imagined the power of someone like that must had, to defeat a dragon as big as the one the Dragon Witch has. The boy dismissed his thinking, only wnating to focus now in finding the Dragon Slayer.
"?!!" As a shock who had just went through Peko's entire nervous system, he sensed like something or someone was close to them.
"W-what's this?! Why is my body feeling all heavy all of a sudden?!"
In confusion, Peko tried to understand why he was feeling things that were unknown to him. "Ritsuka! Mash-" By calling his friends names, Peko's guts told him something: that 'something' was about to attack the two, coming from the dark hallway on Ritsuka's and Mash's left. With no second to waste, Peko rushed torwards the two.
"Huh?" Ritsuka turned around after hearing Peko calling his and Mash's names. "What is it Pe-"
The next seconds happened too fast, so fast that neither him or Mash could explain what just happened.
From Ritsuka's left, where a shadowy hallway stood, a skeleton figure appeard, ready to attack him by surprise. Neither he or Mash would have enough time to react, being almost impossible for Ritsuka to dodge the blow of the skeleton's sword.
"NO!" Peko shouted as his body got quickly beetween Ritsuka's body and the skeleton's blade. Peko in a instinct, raised it's right arm whose hand was shinning a bright silver. It only took a few milliseconds for the light on Peko's hand grow larger and brightly as the sword of the skeleton would come closer.
Peko, however, didn't mind to sacrifice he's right arm if it meant seeing a friend safe. "I cannot stand by and watch it anymore!!!!"
*Clink!*
As the skeleton's sword was about to cut Peko's arms, it was instead, met with a cold and white metal that upon contact, effortlessly made the skeleton's sword to bounce back, lefting the skeleton's open for a counter attack.
"Gyah!" Mash bashed her shield against the skeleton enemy whith all her strenght. It was enough to break almost all the bones of the enemy and made it vanish into the air defeated. The scare had just passed.
"Y-you okay, Ritsuka, Mash?" Peko aksed still worried.
"Y-Yeah I am. Thanks for defending me from that surprise attack. I can't imagine how worse the situation would be." Ritsuka was still processing what happened. "But how exaclty did you blocked that attack?" He asked curious.
Peko looked at his hand, no longer shinning the bright white light it was a second before. "I...don't know."
"Perhaps your magic?." Mash told him. "I too dont know. It just happened too fast."
"My magic?" Peko stared for quite some seconds on his hand that had shinned. "All that I did was rise my arm and..." The boy wasn't sure if what his hand just did was magic. "But it felt like...I was holding something with it."
"Whatever it was Peko..." Ritsuka put his hand on Peko's hair. "...thanks for saving me." He smiled.
"S-sure." Peko responded. "Was that feeling on my body the mana flowing through it?"
"Yep. You did a good job Peko." Mash thanked the boy too.
"Fo! Fou!" The little fur creature appeard behind Mash and went to the ground just stand in front of the trio.
"Hm? What was it Fou?" Mash questioned the pet.
"Is it trying to tell us something?" Ritsuka saw Fou's movements, suggesting the animal wanted them to know about something.
Fou proceeded to run ahead for a little, stoping at the building's broken door that would be searched by the trio next. The creature looked more energetic than usual.
"Wait! Don't tell me Fou smelled something!" Peko said what all of them were thinking.
"Probably he did. Fou has a good flair after all." Mash told the boy. "I think we should see for ourselves, don't you think?"
"Absolutely!" Ritsuka exclaimed, walking to the building's entrance. "It can't be any other thing."
Mash and Peko both headed to Ritsuka and the three now at the entrance, took a step in inside the building.
"Remember to stay alert." Mash warned. "It can have more enemies nearby."
As the trio walked more inside the house, they started to hear a noise.
"Fou!" Without warning anyone, Fou sprinted ahead to a semi open door and passed through the gap, surprising the trio.
"Fou wait!" Ritsuka went after the animal.
"Master don't be hasty! It can be a trap!" Mash walked quickly to Ritsuka, knowing he'd still enter the door Fou went in.
Ritsuka however, ignored Mash and gave a shoulder load against the door, opening it by force. Entering careless in the room, Ritsuka looked everywhere to see where Fou was.
"That was reckless Senpai." Mash told him, at least relieved that there seemed to be no enemy inside the room.
Peko also looked around the room and found Fou just two meters to their right. And someone lying next to him. "Guys look!" Peko caught Ritsuka's and Mash's attention, revealing to the two where Fou was. Both of them also caught sight of the person lying next to Fou.
It was a man with long grey hair and a body in good physical shape. He wored a black skintight suit with red patterns alongside pieces of silver armor. The only exposed part of his skin was the man's chest who had what appeard a large tatoo that shinned a bright blue weakly. Next to his right arm, laid the man's long silver sword, drenched in blood. The man was visibly wounded, with a cut across his chest. He clealry was exhausted and seemed to have no energy to try anything. What he needed now, was medical assistance.
"I'll contact Dr. Romani." Mash told Ritsuka and Peko. "Call Mozart and Kiyohime too. We've found him. The Dragon Slayer."
"He's over there. Just turn left and you'll see him." A person from the village gave directions to Marie who had asked the person about the servant they were looking for.
"Thank you for the help." Marie said to person.
"Sorry to ask you this but...what's your name?" The person asked,intrigued by Marie's appearence and clothes.
"Marie Antoinette." The queen responded. "I'll tell you a secret here. Pass that name down to the next generations for about 300 years and you might get a surprise." She chuckled.
"So the servant is protecting this village eh?" Jeanne looked around to see how this one was still intact and with its inhabitants living inside their home. It was rare now seeing villages that weren't empty or outright destroyed.
"Then they must be doing a good job." Elizabeth said as the trio walked in the middle of the population, heading to the servant. Seeing a small crowd in fornt of them, Elizabeth stand on tiptoe to have a better view and ended up caughting glimpses of a man who seemed to be speaking to the crowd. "Oh, looks like we found him."
The man had a very long brown hair and wear a full bronze armor and a large white cape with red lines that covered a half of his body.
"Wait. I think I know him!" Jeanne excused herself to the people she would kindly shove out of the way in order to meet with the supposed servant. Marie and Elizabeth followed her. "Excuse me. Coming through." She was grateful that at least the people here seemed to not recongnize her as the Dragon Witch.
The servant who stood upon a wooden platform, got the sight of Jeanne in the middle of the crowd alongside the other two. The man also recognized they must be servants. "Alright! The reunion is over! You may go now!" The bronze knight dispersed the crowd, facilitating Jeanne's work to meet him.
The saint accompanied with Marie and Elizabeth, were bow standing in front of him. "Thank you for noticing us." Jeanne told him.
"The pleasure is all mine to meet another saint such as yours, Saint Jeanne D'arc." The man slightly bowed out of respect.
"I could say the same thing to you, Saint Georgios." Jeanne speaked out the man's name. "I've always heard alot about you."
"It takes a saint to recognize another I presume." Georgios smirked.
"We came here because we felt your presence. You're a servant too, right?" Marie explained why they had come here to this village.
"Yes I am indeed. As I assume you are aswell." Georgios replied. "I also don't feel the Dragon Witch's influence on any of you, so I'd say you're clearly of my trust."
"Yep! And it's about the Dragon Witch we came here." Elizabeth told him. "We are in need of help. The more servants on our side, the better chances we got to take down the Dragon Witch."
Georgios smile grew a bit. "Then it's good to see we have the same goal in mind. I too was thinking about gathering some servants across this Singularity to go up against the Dragon Witch."
"We have good news for you then. We have other servants in our group too who are at this exact moment looking for another servant on other village." Marie informed the male saint. "And we took out one of the Dragon Witch's servants already!"
That last bit surprised Georgios. "Really? Then, the tides must be changing." He laughed a bit. "A complete and powerful assult on the Dragon's Witch base within a day or two and we might have good chances of winning."
"That's what we're all hoping for." Jeanne said. "I'll inform the others from our group. You don't mind to let us all stay here for the night?" She asked to Georgios.
"Any ally is welcome here." Georgios put an hand on his own chest. "You have my word to help you from here on out."
Jeanne smiled. "Thank you so much!"
"Stay calm. Breath deeply." Mash instructed to the wounded Dragon Slayer has she tried to stagnate his injury.
"This doesn't look good." Romani, in contact with Ritsuka's group, had finished his analysis on the servant's saint graph.
"What's the bad news Doc?" Ritsuka asked him.
"His Saint Graph core has been deeply damaged and cursed. He cannot heal normally." Romani explained.
"S-sorry..." The injured Dragon Slayer reunited a small fraction of his remaining strenght to talk. "...they were too many."
"Please don't talk now Mr. Slayer." Mozart told him. "For now just focus on resting and maintaining your consciousness."
"Is there something we could do?" Peko asked to Romani.
"Hmm. I know how, but unfortunately we don't have one..." Romani muttered.
"What we don't have? Speak it!" Kiyohime demanded to the doctor.
"The curses he has can only be broken with a kind of specific rite. Baptism Rites to be more precise. And it has to be performed by a Saint Servant of higher rank." Romani explained to them.
"So someone like Jeanne should be able to do it!" Peko said. "Do you think you can contact her and the rest now?"
"I'll try. Wai- uh what's this?" Romani saw he was receiving a call from Jeanne. "Heh. Speaking of the devil..." Romani then put a hand pn his mouth, realizing what he just said. "O-Or in this case the saint of course hehe." He laughed nervously, making contact with Jeanne.
"Hello? Dr.Romani here. What is it Jeanne?" The doctor questioned.
"Good news Dr.Romani. We found out the other servant and he's completely willing to help us." Jeanne informed him.
"Nice! We also have some hum...good news too. And bad in the mix." Romani said.
"What's the bad news?" Marie asked to Romani.
"Well in this context it should've come after the good news but anyway. The good part is, we found the servant Saint Martha told Jeanne about, the Dragon Slayer." The bad news are..."
"He's working for the Dragon Witch?!" Elizabeth jumped hastily to the conclusion.
"No no. Less 'worse' so to speak. He's deeply wounded and with a lot of curses on his body and Saint Graph." Romani said. "The wound we can treat it nicely but the curses will only go away with a Baptism Rite performed by a Saint Servant of high-rank."
"You can do it Jeanne?" Since Jeanne was a saint, Marie suspected that perhaps she would be able to do it."
"Unfortunately no." Jeanne sadly frowned. "My Ruler abilities still don't give me enough power to do so." Jeanne closed her eyes, trying tink on something. She then realized who they had just met. "But I know someone who can!"
Jeanne went next to Georgios. "Excuse me Saint George. But we have a problem."
"What was it Saint Jeanne D'arc?" Georgios was all ears.
"A servant that another part of our group found has been terribly cursed. It will only go away with a Baptism Rite of a high Saint Servant."
Jeanne didn't need to continued that Georgios understood what she was asking for. "Then bring that wounded servant here. My skills are high enough to perform a rite of that kind."
Jeanne smilled in appreciation. "Thank you Saint Georgios. Did you heard that doctor?" Jeanne switched her focus back to Romani.
"Yeah I did. Wow. We where lucky to find someone like him in this Singularity then. Probably Counter Force shenanigans." Romani sighed of relief. "Did you heard that guys? Jeanne and the rest have found the other servant that thankfuly for us, happens to be a High Ranking Saint."
"That's good to know." Ritsuka said. "Where are they?"
"Lemme see..." Romani typed on his keyboard. "Some miles north from where you are. They'll be waiting for you in the village that surprisingly has been standing until now."
"Good. Now we just hope that he can resist the pain the whole trip." Peko looked at the Dragon Slayer who was being helped to get on his feet by Mash and Mozart.
"Servants are resiliant Peko. He will be able to go through the trip." Romani said relaxed.
"Phew! It's all working well so far." Ritsuka said. "Once we reach there we will have quite the group of servants to go toe to toe with the Dragon Witch's ones."
"Yeah! The Dragon Witch hasn't even made her move after she lost Saint Martha." Romani smiled. "It's good when things go well don't you guys think?" He laid back on his chair, enjoying the moment.
Then something appeard on the doctor's monitor. "Eh? What's this?" He got closer to the screen. "Oh crap! This is bad!"
"What is it now doc?" Ritsuka asked.
"Enemy forces are coming in your way! They are literally at the village's doorstep."
"Wha-"
A loud roar emerged from the nowhere, warning the group that the enemy was already here.
"You should stop with those lines doctor." Mash stared at Romani a bit angry. "It kinda gives us bad luck."
"I swear to never celebrate victory before the time ever again!" Romani speaked quickly, making the promise to himself.
"Dr. Romani! Still there?" Jeanne and her group were now trying to speak with him.
"Please don't tell me you're having trouble there too!" Romani said in a way that he wished that wasn't the case. But Jeanne couldn't lie about the situation.
"The village is about to be raided out of nowhere by the wyverns!" Jeanne loudly said as she stood in the middle of a fleeing crowd of people who where trying to exit from the opposite end of the village.
"Becareful everyone! Make sure you don't leave anyone or anything special to you behind! Don't panic!" Georgios tried to maintain the people calm as he guided them to evacuate the place with the help of Marie and Elizabeth.
"Damnit!" Romani cursed loudly. "Now that I see, it's an enemy servant coming to your way Jeanne! The Dragon Witch is also coming with it!"
"The Dragon Witch?!" Jeanne exclaimed. "Ggrrgh!!"
Batman Arkham Asylum OST - The Abyss of Fear
Upon mentioning that name, Jeanne felt her vains hurting throughout her body. Trying to move her arm was difficult, as if something was trying to hold her body still. After making an effort, she looked to her hand and saw what some sort of shadowy black branches spreading through it as if it was a tattoo growing larger.
"W-What's this." Jeanne skin also felt the shadow branches crawl into her neck and reaching up to her left cheek, almost touching the eye. "This feeling...it can't be..!"
"Now O'Saint, let that slumberish vitriol nurture within you."
"This voice!" Jeanne immediatly recognized where she had heard it before. "I...don't want to hear you ever again! What you're trying to do with me...it won't happen!"
"Ah, then why does thou anger rises at the possible sight of that witch?"
Jeanne felt the dark brenches advance more. "N-no! You're wrong! I don't feel hatred for her anymore!" Jeanne tried to make the voice dissapear.
"Hmm, are you really sure, Maiden of Orleans?" The voice echoed stronger and louder. "Is thy mind not trying to deceive thy soul, Jeanne D'arc?"
"Ggh! Stop it! I won't...give in..!" Jeanne was feeling more and more weakened, her mind seeming to be about to give up as the shadow branches were now growing bigger across her whole body.
"Do not deny the hate. Accept it and use it." The voice seemed to be closer to her ear.
"I have...to resist...the temptation!" Jeanne was trying her best to resist, but as she tried more and more images of the Dragon Witch killing hundreds of innocents, including her own mother, would appear in her mind with her soul feeling heavier as it's light was about to be totally eclipsed by the darkness. The saint's hate growing larger alongside the branches against despite Jeanne's resistance. The sensation was suffocating, as if Jeanne was drowning into a deep black ocean without bottom.
"Use it against the evil self. Purge her and her sinful existence. After all..." The voice went closer to the saint's ear. "...the wicked shall not go unpunished."
"!!!" Jeanne struggles stopped, as if she knew fighting against it was of no use anymore. "I'm..." Weakly, Jeanne stretched her arm up in the air, as if she was trying to reach for something. "...too weak to resist it."
Her eyes, now null of life, started to slowly close. "Forgive me Father, for I...could not be the purer and holiest of the maidens." Her eyes closed, Jeanne letting herself now to be engulfed by the dark pits of her hate.
"It's okay." Another voice echoed through the darkness. A voice to her rescue. Up above, a small light emerged from the dark surroundings.
"This voice..." Jeanne's eyes went to open again. She recongnized it too.
"You don't have to hide it forever." The light grew brighter, tearing down the darkness.
"Marie..." Jeanne called out her name, the eyes slowly coming back to life and the dark shadow branches retreating from Jeanne's skin, most likely afraid of the light.
"Just be yourself. I won't judge you." The light grew bigger, outshinning all the darkness there was in the place before. It became so strong that it ended up reaching out to Jeanne.
"Marie. I..."
Naruto OST - Man of The World
Jeanne realized she was again back to the middle of the village, probably never dissapearing from there in the first place. She felt Marie hugging her from behind. A hug that made Jeanne feel safer.
"It's okay to feel hate. It's a human flaw. And it's okay to be a flawed human." Marie told her, tightning the hug. "So even as a saint, you don't have to be perfect, Jeanne."
"Marie, I..." Jeanne looked at her friend as she undid the hug. "...I'm sorry. My mind was-"
Marie put a finger in front of Jeanne's lips. "Heh. I understand it." Marie smirked. "Hate even if powerful, is also a disgusting weapon. It turns us more into beasts than men. But, negating it completely also makes us less human."
Jeanne didn't know what to say. Georgios and Elizabeth were also next to them.
"The enemy is approaching." The bronze saint said. "I have to stay here and fight them off until everyone evacuates this place and away from it."
"That won't be necessary, Mr Georgios." Marie speaked, caughting the lther three servants attention.
"Why are you saying that Marie?" Elizabeth asked confused.
"Because,I'll hold down the Dragon Witch alone while you help the citizens evacuate."
Everyone's reaction was of shock, hearing that Marie was planning to fight the incoming servant and the Dragon Witch all alone.
"What?! Are you crazy?!" Elizabeth protested fully against Marie's decision.
Jeanne was on the same page. "Marie don't do this! You won't be able to stop someone like her for much time!" Jeanne said nervously. "At least let me stay behind and help!"
"No." Marie answered simply. "You have to help the people escaping Jeanne. With the three of you defending them, it's guaranteed not one innocent life will die today."
"And what about you?!" Jeanne almost shouted at Marie's face.
"Oh me? I'll also be protecting them except it will be on the frontline ,you silly. I'm the queen of the french people after all." Marie smiled, being totally comfortable with her decision.
"Marie..." Jeanne already knew there was no way of changing Marie's mind.
"The time of the last few days were wonderful. Passing them with the great Jeanne D'arc was a wish come true. I'll always be grateful on spending this short second life of mine with you. It was so nice to get to be your friend." Marie brought up the conversations she and Jeanne had in this Singularity ever since they've met."
"E-excuse me sniff Marie...sniff." Elizabeth was trying her best to hold back the tears falling from her eyes. "D-did you sniff also saw me as a friend?" Her voice stammered.
Marie smiled to the pink haired girl. "Of course Liz! It was nice being your friend too. Of Kiyohime , Ritsuka, Peko and Mash too. One day if possible, we'll surely make a musical duo,understood?" She put a hand on Elizabeth's shoulder, whose tears now were falling more and more.
"U-understood!" Elizabeth wipped off the tears from her face.
"Looks like your mind is made up." Georgios commented. "Best of luck to you Queen of France." He bowed and proceeded to go to the other end of the village where the citizens were still evacuating.
"I'll be supporting you even from afar. Good luck Marie!" Elizabeth hugged her one last time before running torwards the crowd to help Georgios.
Now it was only Marie and Jeanne left alone. The two stared at each other for a bit.
"You should go now Jeanne. The people need it's 2nd most heroic figure to save them." Marie said.
"Oh, I wonder who's the 1st then." Jeanne tried to laugh even if she was helding back some tears at the same time.
"Be strong Jeanne. Whatever you feel or what people say to you. What even the Dragon Witch can say to you. Continue to be yourself." Marie hugged the saint again.
Jeanne this time, hugged Marie back. "I will. Thank you Marie. Thank you for everything you've done ever since we've met. I won't forget it."
The two undid the hug and Marie nodded to Jeanne, signaling that she should go now. Jeanne, without saying any other word, just runned out of there, trying to not even look back at Marie.
Some seconds after, Jeanne dissapeard from Marie's vision, lefting the french queen totally alone.
"So you are doing it eh?" Romani, who went unnoticed by all the servants there until now, finally catched Marie's attention.
"Yep. I'll get this under control. You can tell to the others to not worry about me." She tought back at everyone who went to Lyon, specially Mozart. "I've got this."
"Okay then." Romani sighed, probably thinking this would be the last time he would see Marie. "I'll inform them. Good luck." And with that Romani'a hologram dissapeard in front of Marie.
The queen started to walk to the village's gates and stood up just in it's entrance. It didn't took too long for the enemy servant to appear. Marie however, seemed to not be surprised by the servant's identity. "Wow. It really is irony of destiny to meet each toher again."
The servant, wielding a big sword stopped some feet away from her. He smiled, having the same tought as Marie. "It is indeed, my queen."
"How's the blade? Sharp enough to do a second time?" Marie joked.
"It's has sharp has it's ever been." The man smiled. "But for you, I will always make sure to be just a little bit sharper. For I, the executioner, Charles Henri Sanson, will take the opportunity to separate Marie Antoinette head from her body twice!" The servant, now revealed as Sanson, smilled evily at Marie, with his weapon ready in hand.
"I warn you Sanson." Marie took her battle posture. "This time, I'll offer resistence."
To be continued...
And that's it for chapter 12! Wow, releasing a 2nd consecutive chapter in a week! What a miracle guys! Hope I can keep it like that. (Unfortunately I'll have exams next week soooooo, we'll see haha).
I wanted to include a bit more content on this chapter but I felt the tease of Marie vs Sanson was a nice way to wrap up this chapter. Also I hope my musical choices don't bother you or don't take off impact of the scenes. But if it does, feel free to tell me.
So this chapter happened quite a few things. We meet personally one of my favourite servants, Mr Sumanai aka Siegfries (i like to call him that) and best photographer of Chaldea, George. And well, everyone that has played, or wasn't lazy enough to at least finish the first Singularity of the game, knows that Marie's time is up, sooo enjoy while she lasted guys. And weird things happens to Peko. What is it? We'll see. Let's just hope for now they can get out of the situation safely (and of course they will lol)
Anyways that's all I wanted to say and see you next time on chapter 13! (Favourite unlucky number) Peace!
P.S: Man, can't believe that I've been addicted to Tetris lately. It's just such a simple game, but at the same time fun to play like, now I understand it's success. It's that kind of game I think everyone from every age likes to play.