disclaimer: I do not own Soul Calibur, Soul Edge, Taki or Sophitia. These all belong to NAMCO.
Such a pity; they won't let me have them. Oh well. But this fanfic is mine.
Requietum
by jin long
jin_long@lycos.com
Chapter 6
Demons?
This was weird, Sophitia thought. "Demons? You kill Demons?"
"I hunt them, actually. My clan......" Taki's voice trailed off. It must be a sore spot for her,
Sophitia thought. Maybe it wasn't a subject to be pursued, especially since they had just
argued about killing and wanting to kill.
Sophitia felt as if she was going crazy, having said the words she had. I wanted to kill? I
actually wanted to learn how to kill? That was me speaking? No wonder Taki had been
taken aback. Surely, Taki could kill, and obviously was not entirely averse to it, but to
hear such words from a baker's daughter.....
Part of herself had wanted to know, she knew. Part of herself wanted the will to kill another
human being. She wondered what her family would think. Oh Hephaestus, she thought to the
heavens, this was all so confusing!
And surely Taki was sent by Hepahaestus, never mind Taki's denial of it. There was no such
thing as coincidence, Sophitia felt. The gods were too powerful for that, and the Fates even
more so.
Strange, Taki seemed so averse to the concept of following gods.
But Sophitia thought it best not to ask about these things. Not now, at least. She would find
the time and place to satisfy her curiosity soon enough.
-------------------
They soon came to a village. It was a quaint sort of village, the kind that had only hovels, the
basic blacksmith and maybe one stall that sold food. It was a farming community, as could be
realized by the fields that spread out behind it, and the folk that tilled them right now.
It reminded Sophitia somewhat of Greece. Some parts of Greece at least, the locations where
wheat was grown and olive trees thrived. Athens was in no way like this, but she recalled
being taken once to those farms where her father bought flour for their bakery.
Hardly anyone littered about the streets, and she could sense some fear about her. This village
had obviously been under some trouble, or some malevolent force. Sophitia could see people
peeking out at herself and Taki from the windows and doors of their hovels.
"They don't take to strangers, do they?" she asked Taki.
The ninja nodded. "I sense that a presence has been here, one of the frightful sort," Taki said.
"You sensed it too, didn't you?"
Sophitia nodded. "Yes. But if we're to stay somewhere for the night-" she paused to look west,
at the already setting sun- "we might as well assure them that we mean no harm."
Taki nodded once more, then looked around. She seemed to be lost in thought for a while before
she spoke again. "Let's try the blacksmith. I see the shop over there." Sophitia wondered for a
moment why Taki would think of talking to the blacksmith. "I just have a good feeling about it,"
the ninja answered, as if reading the Greek's mind.
---------------------
"You must excuse us. We've had some... problems lately," the woman said, placing a loaf of
bread on the table. She may have been Taki's age, Sophitia noticed, but apparently work
and marriage and probably even this current crisis had turned their hostess rather old and
tired for her age.
"Your husband... Where does he do his forging?" Sophitia heard Taki ask.
"Out back, he does mostly farming tools," their hostess answered.
"I should like to talk to him," Taki said.
"Oh, no, you shouldn't." Their hostess tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "He doesn't like to
be disturbed while he works, and he's having a difficult time right now with some woodcutters'
axes." She added a small cheese to the table. "He probably wouldn't be very welcoming.... that
is, unless you were a blacksmith yourself," she finished.
From Taki's tone, Sophitia surmised that the ninja had smiled. "Oh, I think he won't have a
problem with me. So, if you don't mind, I'll have a chat with him."
Their hostess sighed. Apparently she knew that whatever she said would not stop Taki, Sophitia
thought. "As you like. But I don't want to hear any whining if he throws you back in here."
With that, Taki left for the blacksmith's forge.
Realizing something, Sophitia spoke. "My apologies, we haven't been introduced. I'm Sophitia
Alexandra and my companion's name is Taki."
Her hostess smiled, replying "Ah, Alexandra. Greek, aren't you?" Sophitia nodded, then the woman
continued. "I'm Ingrid. My grouchy spouse back there is Jaeger." Ingrid giggled. "I hope he's not
too harsh on your friend!"
Sophitia tore off a piece of the bread and helped herself to a bit of cheese. "Oh, I have a feeling
he won't be." She chewed, swallowed then continued. "Ingrid, your town isn't too welcoming
when it comes to strangers, isn't it?" Sophitia tore off another piece of the bread. Ingird had
mentioned that the town had some sort of crisis and she was curious about that. "What were
those troubles you mentioned?"
Ingrid stiffened up for a moment before replying. "Aye, I suppose it shouldn't hurt to tell you,
young lass." She sat down in front of Sophitia at the table. "Depend on the kindness of strangers
and all."
She began. "We are opressed folk who lead simple lives. Aye, I can still remember the days when
this village was peaceful." Ingrid sighed, continuing. "Then they came, these damned bandits. Truly,
they were poorly armed and without the hardiness of soldiers, but what they lacked in their own
prowess they made up for in devil's work."
Devil's work? Sophitia wondered what the woman meant by that. She'd heard stories about the One
God and his eternal foe The Devil, told by knights passing through Greece every so often. Her
skepticism for this tale was only too true, for to her there were no gods other than her people's
own.Apparently, Ingrid here was a believer in such tales. Sophitia kept quiet, however, listening
intently.
"We would fight now, but we remember the lesson from our past. Once, we set ourselves upon
them,and so they set upon us this abomination, this Balrog. Aye, it was a terrible, terrible tragedy.
Now, because of that creature they drain us until we starve!"
"My apologies, lass. I would speak no more of it, if you don't mind. Ingrid's eyes seemed to brim
with tears, Sophitia noticed. She would not have expected otherwise. She had probably caused the
conjuring up of some very unpleasant memories. "I do not mind."
Then she had this one thought, an idea out of empathy for this woman and this village's loss.
Sophitia found herself almost enraged at the bandits. Such people always got a rise out of her
if she heard of their deeds. But first, a last question. "Ingrid, what is a Balrog?"
"A demon of the worst and fearful sort, lass."
Great. She'd need Taki's help for this one too. And she wondered if Taki would even be willing to
fight a foreign demon.
But Taki seemed to a be a good sort of person, Sophitia thought. After all, hadn't the ninja saved
her back in Spain? Hadn't the ninja dressed her wounds and watched over her all three nights
that Soul Edge's venom assaulted her mind?
For some reason, Sophitia began to blush slightly at the thought of the ninja watching patiently
over her. She further reddened, realizing just how Taki would have been able to get at all her
wounds. Gods knew that the Soul Edge fragments had embedded themselves just about
everywhere on her body. Taki would have had to... had to...
And she remembered, though vaguely, that the hands that had attended to her wounds had been
very gentle and quite caring.
Sophitia gulped. She shouldn't think of Taki that way.
It wasn't... right...
to be continued...
*jin long's notes*
ah, finally finished in spite of betareading, sleep deprivation and writer's block. I swear, these
chapters get longer as I go.
oh, and that balrog..... if anyone has seen or read the Lord of the Rings trilogy, well, you can be
sure the dynamic duo have got their work cut out for them.
where's the action? where's the adventure? if anyone hasn't been paying attention to my notes,
last chapter I gave every sign that both are going to start come chapter 7.
thanks to my two latest reviewers, Rain and Uche Boche.
...
that's it for now.
Such a pity; they won't let me have them. Oh well. But this fanfic is mine.
Requietum
by jin long
jin_long@lycos.com
Chapter 6
Demons?
This was weird, Sophitia thought. "Demons? You kill Demons?"
"I hunt them, actually. My clan......" Taki's voice trailed off. It must be a sore spot for her,
Sophitia thought. Maybe it wasn't a subject to be pursued, especially since they had just
argued about killing and wanting to kill.
Sophitia felt as if she was going crazy, having said the words she had. I wanted to kill? I
actually wanted to learn how to kill? That was me speaking? No wonder Taki had been
taken aback. Surely, Taki could kill, and obviously was not entirely averse to it, but to
hear such words from a baker's daughter.....
Part of herself had wanted to know, she knew. Part of herself wanted the will to kill another
human being. She wondered what her family would think. Oh Hephaestus, she thought to the
heavens, this was all so confusing!
And surely Taki was sent by Hepahaestus, never mind Taki's denial of it. There was no such
thing as coincidence, Sophitia felt. The gods were too powerful for that, and the Fates even
more so.
Strange, Taki seemed so averse to the concept of following gods.
But Sophitia thought it best not to ask about these things. Not now, at least. She would find
the time and place to satisfy her curiosity soon enough.
-------------------
They soon came to a village. It was a quaint sort of village, the kind that had only hovels, the
basic blacksmith and maybe one stall that sold food. It was a farming community, as could be
realized by the fields that spread out behind it, and the folk that tilled them right now.
It reminded Sophitia somewhat of Greece. Some parts of Greece at least, the locations where
wheat was grown and olive trees thrived. Athens was in no way like this, but she recalled
being taken once to those farms where her father bought flour for their bakery.
Hardly anyone littered about the streets, and she could sense some fear about her. This village
had obviously been under some trouble, or some malevolent force. Sophitia could see people
peeking out at herself and Taki from the windows and doors of their hovels.
"They don't take to strangers, do they?" she asked Taki.
The ninja nodded. "I sense that a presence has been here, one of the frightful sort," Taki said.
"You sensed it too, didn't you?"
Sophitia nodded. "Yes. But if we're to stay somewhere for the night-" she paused to look west,
at the already setting sun- "we might as well assure them that we mean no harm."
Taki nodded once more, then looked around. She seemed to be lost in thought for a while before
she spoke again. "Let's try the blacksmith. I see the shop over there." Sophitia wondered for a
moment why Taki would think of talking to the blacksmith. "I just have a good feeling about it,"
the ninja answered, as if reading the Greek's mind.
---------------------
"You must excuse us. We've had some... problems lately," the woman said, placing a loaf of
bread on the table. She may have been Taki's age, Sophitia noticed, but apparently work
and marriage and probably even this current crisis had turned their hostess rather old and
tired for her age.
"Your husband... Where does he do his forging?" Sophitia heard Taki ask.
"Out back, he does mostly farming tools," their hostess answered.
"I should like to talk to him," Taki said.
"Oh, no, you shouldn't." Their hostess tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "He doesn't like to
be disturbed while he works, and he's having a difficult time right now with some woodcutters'
axes." She added a small cheese to the table. "He probably wouldn't be very welcoming.... that
is, unless you were a blacksmith yourself," she finished.
From Taki's tone, Sophitia surmised that the ninja had smiled. "Oh, I think he won't have a
problem with me. So, if you don't mind, I'll have a chat with him."
Their hostess sighed. Apparently she knew that whatever she said would not stop Taki, Sophitia
thought. "As you like. But I don't want to hear any whining if he throws you back in here."
With that, Taki left for the blacksmith's forge.
Realizing something, Sophitia spoke. "My apologies, we haven't been introduced. I'm Sophitia
Alexandra and my companion's name is Taki."
Her hostess smiled, replying "Ah, Alexandra. Greek, aren't you?" Sophitia nodded, then the woman
continued. "I'm Ingrid. My grouchy spouse back there is Jaeger." Ingrid giggled. "I hope he's not
too harsh on your friend!"
Sophitia tore off a piece of the bread and helped herself to a bit of cheese. "Oh, I have a feeling
he won't be." She chewed, swallowed then continued. "Ingrid, your town isn't too welcoming
when it comes to strangers, isn't it?" Sophitia tore off another piece of the bread. Ingird had
mentioned that the town had some sort of crisis and she was curious about that. "What were
those troubles you mentioned?"
Ingrid stiffened up for a moment before replying. "Aye, I suppose it shouldn't hurt to tell you,
young lass." She sat down in front of Sophitia at the table. "Depend on the kindness of strangers
and all."
She began. "We are opressed folk who lead simple lives. Aye, I can still remember the days when
this village was peaceful." Ingrid sighed, continuing. "Then they came, these damned bandits. Truly,
they were poorly armed and without the hardiness of soldiers, but what they lacked in their own
prowess they made up for in devil's work."
Devil's work? Sophitia wondered what the woman meant by that. She'd heard stories about the One
God and his eternal foe The Devil, told by knights passing through Greece every so often. Her
skepticism for this tale was only too true, for to her there were no gods other than her people's
own.Apparently, Ingrid here was a believer in such tales. Sophitia kept quiet, however, listening
intently.
"We would fight now, but we remember the lesson from our past. Once, we set ourselves upon
them,and so they set upon us this abomination, this Balrog. Aye, it was a terrible, terrible tragedy.
Now, because of that creature they drain us until we starve!"
"My apologies, lass. I would speak no more of it, if you don't mind. Ingrid's eyes seemed to brim
with tears, Sophitia noticed. She would not have expected otherwise. She had probably caused the
conjuring up of some very unpleasant memories. "I do not mind."
Then she had this one thought, an idea out of empathy for this woman and this village's loss.
Sophitia found herself almost enraged at the bandits. Such people always got a rise out of her
if she heard of their deeds. But first, a last question. "Ingrid, what is a Balrog?"
"A demon of the worst and fearful sort, lass."
Great. She'd need Taki's help for this one too. And she wondered if Taki would even be willing to
fight a foreign demon.
But Taki seemed to a be a good sort of person, Sophitia thought. After all, hadn't the ninja saved
her back in Spain? Hadn't the ninja dressed her wounds and watched over her all three nights
that Soul Edge's venom assaulted her mind?
For some reason, Sophitia began to blush slightly at the thought of the ninja watching patiently
over her. She further reddened, realizing just how Taki would have been able to get at all her
wounds. Gods knew that the Soul Edge fragments had embedded themselves just about
everywhere on her body. Taki would have had to... had to...
And she remembered, though vaguely, that the hands that had attended to her wounds had been
very gentle and quite caring.
Sophitia gulped. She shouldn't think of Taki that way.
It wasn't... right...
to be continued...
*jin long's notes*
ah, finally finished in spite of betareading, sleep deprivation and writer's block. I swear, these
chapters get longer as I go.
oh, and that balrog..... if anyone has seen or read the Lord of the Rings trilogy, well, you can be
sure the dynamic duo have got their work cut out for them.
where's the action? where's the adventure? if anyone hasn't been paying attention to my notes,
last chapter I gave every sign that both are going to start come chapter 7.
thanks to my two latest reviewers, Rain and Uche Boche.
...
that's it for now.