Redemption
Chapter 1
Several days had passed sense that day, when Siegfried had struck down Soul Edge. To him, it had seemed like a great burden had been lifted from his shoulders. The pain of having killed so many seemed lighter now that the one behind it all had been destroyed. Even so, Siegfried was compelled to come to where he now stood.
He stood underneath a great oak tree, as old as the ages. At its base, stood a single headstone, marking the grave of the man who lay buried underneath it. Siegfried knelt down before the tombstone, setting his great sword, Requiem, at his side, and clasped his hands together.
"Father," he said to the stone slab. "I've done it. I've destroyed the sword. I know, what I did to you was wrong, but I've done what I could for you. I destroyed that which drove me to do the evil deeds that I did." He closed his eyes, and lowered his head. "Please forgive me, for what I have done, father." A warm breeze blew past the tree, and with it, Siegfried's guilt was swept away.
Siegfried picked up his sword, and stood up. For the first time, in quite a while, the man smiled. Not in the evil way that he had done when he was Nightmare, but genuinely. He smiled in a way that could life the sorrow off of the most depressed heart.
Siegfried walked for a long time, with no real destination, or goal in mind. All he wanted to do was live. He wanted to live, everyday, and enjoy his freedom. As he walked, though, dark thoughts always seemed to bother him. He would never truly be able to live freely. He had killed many during his time as Nightmare. Soon, those who sought revenge for the fallen loved ones would come, and would try to kill Siegfried. That was the thought that troubled him the most; facing against the family of those whom he had killed. The thought alone put terrible nightmares into his dreams.
Siegfried decided that it was time for him to find a place to stay for the night. It was beginning to grow dark, and he had traveled sense early this morning. He found a small travelers town, and decided that this was a good place to stay. As he began to walk towards the village, he stopped and stared at it. He knew this town. It was one of many he had sacked when he was Nightmare. Most likely, he would not be welcomed back into this town, with open arms. He thought for sometime about what to do, but as he stood there, on the plain, darkness began to wrap around him, as the sun set into the distant.
At this point, Siegfried had no choice. It was far safer, in a town of people who hated him, then out on a plane at night. He pulled his traveling cloak over his head, to hide, as best as he could, the face of many people's killer.
Siegfried approached the town gate, and knocked. He could hear cursing beyond the door. A small hole opened up at eye's height, as the guard looked at the stranger.
"What do ye want?" the guard asked. He looked at Siegfried with intense suspicion.
"Please sir," he said. "I only wish to stay at the village inn." The guard looked at him again, and then shut the hole. He opened up the main door of the gate, to get a better look at Siegfried.
"Awfully late to be traveling isn't it?" he said to Siegfried. Siegfried could only nod to the man. After looking him over again, he stepped aside, and admitted Siegfried into the village. "The inn is just up that way." He said pointing down the road. "Just follow this road, and look for the sign that says 'The Old Ale.'" Siegfried nodded to the man in gratitude, and set off down the path.
As he walked along the road, many of the villager's eyes peeked out from their windows. They were curious to see who this new stranger was. Siegfried only pulled his cloak further over his head. If any one of them recognized him, it would become difficult for him.
Soon he arrived at The Old Ale, as the guard had said, and he stepped inside. The owner saw Siegfried, and promptly walked over to greet him.
"Good evening sir, what will you have?" he asked.
Siegfried looked at the little man behind the counter. "I need a place to stay for the night." He said. The owner looked Siegfried over. He saw the great sword that he had secured to his back, and pulled away. Siegfried shifted uncomfortable.
"I'm not sure if I have any rooms available right now, sir." He said. "Let me go and check for you." He hurried away.
Siegfried looked around the room where he was staying. There was a small pub, just across the hall from the main desk. Inside there were many different people laughing, and drinking happily. From what he could tell, Siegfried saw several thieves, a couple pirates, a few bandits, and one man, sitting in the corner, who had a sword at his side. Most of them were drunk and laughing happily with their party. Only the swordsman seemed sober. In fact, he sat quietly in the corner, smoking a pipe, and staying quite removed from the crowd. He looked in Siegfried's direction, and stared for a long time. Siegfried avoided looked away, trying to avoid making eye contact with the man.
When Siegfried looked again, the swordsman was gone. He scanned the bar for him, but saw no traces of him. Perhaps he had been found out, and he was running around the village telling everyone that he was here. If so, Siegfried needed to run away now, before guards arrived. As he stood contemplating his escape, he felt a hand grab his shoulder from behind.
Siegfried spun in surprise, jumped back, and grabbed the hilt of his sword. He had to stop, though, as he was face to face with the owner.
"Please forgive me sir. I did not mean to startle you." He said.
Siegfried relaxed, and let go of his sword hilt. "No, forgive, me. I overreacted." He said.
The owner smiled and nodded at Siegfried. "Tis quite alright young man. I get quite jumpy in this old place myself, what with all the riffraff in there." He jabbed his thumb at the pub. Siegfried smiled at the old man. "Oh, that's right. I am sorry to say that the only room we have available to you is the barn, outside. None of the other rooms are capable of housing your weapon." Siegfried shifted uncomfortable again, and grasped the strap that held his weapon to his back.
"That's, quite alright," Siegfried said. "The barn is just fine with me." He handed the owner a small sack of gold, and he led Siegfried out to the barn.
Siegfried looked around the place that was too be his room tonight. It was small, having only enough room for about 3 horses to stand. There was a pile of hay in the corner, that Siegfried could only assume was supposed to be a bed. A small oil lamp hung from a nearby wall.
Siegfried un-strapped his sword, and set it down near his bed. He removed his cloak, and threw it down on the pile of hay. It would have to act as a blanket for the evening. At last, he unhooked a small Chinese sword from his belt. He moved to set it down, next to his Requiem, but before he could, the Soul Calibur changed into its great sword form. He set it down, next to the Requiem, and it slowly changed back into its normal form.
Siegfried sighed, and laid down on the pile of hay. He wouldn't be able to stay long. He thought it best that he would have to leave in the morning, shortly after sunrise. He would have to hunt for his breakfast, along the way.
Siegfried pulled his cloak over his body, for warmth, and slowly began to fall asleep. Here, he had a nightmare. He was once again, possessed by the Soul Edge, and he was killing everyone who confronted him; Soldiers, bandits, thieves, rouges, women, children. All who came before him, died. Siegfried screamed in his own mind, calling for help, calling for death, anything to stop this madness.
"No Siegfried." said a voice inside his head. "You belong to me forever." His body moved on its own, toward a clean lake. He looked down at his reflection. He was no longer Siegfried. He was once again, the Azure Knight, Nightmare. As he stared in horror, the lake changed. It was no longer a clean, peaceful lake, but a like a blood; the blood of those who he had killed.
Siegfried screamed at sat upright. He was breathing heavily, and there was a cold sweat on his brow. He stood up, and tried to collect his thoughts. Even though it was only a dream, the thought still shook him. It had felt so real. He looked down at his hands, which were both shaking. He walked to the window, and looked outside. It was raining now, rather heavily. Siegfried felt glad that he was able to find a place to stay that night. It would have been terrible if he had stayed out in the rain.
Siegfried suddenly heard a slight vibrating sound coming from behind him. He turned and saw that Soul Calibur was vibrating to something. Siegfried's eyes widened in horror, as his mind came to the only conclusion he could think of. He was here. Nightmare was still alive, and here to kill Siegfried. He dashed over to his bed, and picked up the vibrating sword. It instantly transformed into it's great sword counterpart.
Several minutes passed by. Siegfried's eyes darted back and forth, looking for the perpetrator. He knew he was still there, because the Soul Calibur was still vibrating. He scanned the darkness around him, looking for the knight's armor. He slowly walked over to the window, and expected to see a demonic fist, come crashing through the glass. He chanced a peek outside, and saw nothing. He turned back again, to the barn. Standing in the middle of the small room, was the swordsman whom Siegfried had seen disappear before.
Siegfried stared at the man. He could tell that he was pulsating with an evil aura. He grinned evilly at Siegfried. "I will kill you this night." He said to Siegfried. He drew his sword, and swung it with all his might.
Siegfried easily avoided the strike, and moved to the side. He swung again, and missed again. Each time the swordsman swung his blade, Siegfried dodged, with minimal effort.
"No more games." The swordsman said, and jabbed his blade tip at Siegfried. He missed, and got his sword stuck in the wall. Siegfried raised his sword up, and cut the man's sword at the hilt.
"It's over." Siegfried said, and he turned his back on the man.
"It's never over, Azure knight." The swordsman said. Siegfried stopped, and turned to look at the man. He smiled again. "You will never be able to escape the sin's you've committed." His words slowly ate at Siegfried. He lowered his head in shame.
As he did so, the swordsman drew out a knife from his pocket, and went to stab Siegfried. He was surprised by the man's final attack. He moved to kill Siegfried, but was not fast enough. Siegfried swung his blade upward, and he cut the man in half. The two pieces of what was once the man, fell at Siegfried's sides. Siegfried sighed to himself, and reattached Soul Calibur to his belt, which quickly melted back into it's Chinese sword form.
He turned around from the corpse, picked up his sword, and reattached it to its strap. He refastened his cloak, and turned to leave. He looked down at the corpse, and it slowly began to fade away. Siegfried watched as it slowly faded away, leavening only a small metal fragment to where it was. Siegfried bent down, and looked at the metal shard. He reached down to pick it up, but his hand began to pulse. He could feel evil energy coming from this shard, and his body reacted to it. Images of his dark past began to fill Siegfried's thoughts. He started hearing the familiar buzzing in his head. He grabbed his forehead, and looked down at the metal fragment.
"Soul….Edge?" he said aloud. He picked up the tiny shard, and placed it in a small bag on his belt, near Soul Calibur. Siegfried knew that his mission was not over. Soul Edge was alive, Nightmare was alive, and he had to make sure to destroy them both. He stood on his shaky legs, and began his journey anew.
