Village of the Maiden

"Daddy," shrieked Angelique a few minutes after the battle, "You're ok!" Prier looked to see that they had arrived at the intersection and the guys were coming down the other side of the road. She felt relief wash over her; since they had been attacked by a Demon, she wondered if the rest of the team had the same horrid luck. At least now she knew that Croix and Culotte made it through the woods as well.

"Good to see you're ok Angie. And your mother as well," Croix commented as he picked his young daughter up. She squealed with delight; loving every moment of attention she received from her father. But then, just as suddenly, she shot her head to the edge of the trees. A strange aura had come over the forest. However, it was not one of darkness at all; rather, one of light that called out to her.

She jumped down and rushed towards the trees. There, barely visible, was a path through the woods. Ignoring her mother's yelling, Angelique stepped onto it. She then heard the others begin to follow her; knowing they didn't want her to run off on her own, she suspected them to come along. As they continued, the sensation of holy power grew stronger. However, there was also a foul stench of Demons; though not living ones. Something had been destroyed down the road a bit. Afterwards, a holy aura seemed to cover and protect the area for some reason unknown. Perhaps that battlefield would hold a key towards gaining the upper hand on Sang, Loup, and Javelot. Angie felt her excitement build.

After only about five minutes, the child found the path blocked by a bush. Prier grabbed her baton and began beating the living daylights out of the shrub; knocking leaves off left and right. When it cleared, they saw what appeared to be a destroyed village; the homes made of rotting wood that was scorched by flames. To Culotte, it appeared as if the place had been abandoned for at least a hundred or more years. Old ghosts seemed to linger in their pain. And that's never a good thing for anybody.

Suddenly, shortly after they entered the gates, Croix fell to his knees; clutching his head in pain. In his ears, he heard cries of, "Demon! How dare you return to this place! Isn't our destruction enough for the likes of you? You already killed the Sister and her offspring; what more could you want?" For once, he couldn't try and hide his pain from Prier. Their angry voices shouted louder and louder the more he tried to shut them out.

Prier could sense what was going on; though she couldn't hear the ghosts, she was able to put two and two together. "Hey you! Just lay off of him! The Dark Prince is dead; her hold on this man's body has been destroyed. He's been trying his best for four damn years to come to peace with himself and the things he has done; as well as help those in need to make up for his sins. Why don't you just forgive and forget? Killing or torturing Croix won't bring you all back; revenge isn't the answer to it."

'She's matured a lot,' thought Culotte, 'I mean, Prier is a vengeful person normally. But she wants so badly to care for Croix. I wish I could have a relationship like hers. If only Sister Alouette hadn't been killed…would I have eventually been able to tell her how I really feel and she eventually see me as more than a kid brother?' He sighed; there was no way he could be able to change the past. Right now, he had to live with what had happened and move forward.

"How can we forgive him! He is a murderer who slaughtered innocent people. Someone like that does not deserve a second chance. Let him feel our torment and then the Goddess will deal with his crimes!" shrieked the ghosts; audible to the entire team now. Then, they materialized. Their ages ranged from young children to senior citizens; all armed with pitchforks and scythes. Deadly hunger was in their eyes. As they rushed towards Croix, Prier found herself jumping out in front to protect her beloved; struck by a weapon and knocked down. He panicked and pulled her closer to his body; ready to shield her.

They only paused for a moment; shocked that this woman was that determined to protect a man like the Dark Prince. However, that delay was short and they were ready to strike once more; Prier bleeding from her wounds and Croix holding her close to protect her from further injury. Just then, another voice screamed, "Please stop this! The darkness has been dispelled as I predicted! The girl is right in what she says and in her devotion to protect him. Can't you see it in her eyes? She is in love and it is her lance. That is something that must be commended. In the name of the Goddess stand down!"

The crowd parted to make way for a woman. Culotte and Prier looked up at her and did a double take; well, as much as Prier could do being injured. She looked almost exactly like Angelique; Croix's late fiancée, not his daughter. However, her long brunette hair was worn up in a ponytail. Unlike Angelique who wore a white shirt under her dress, this woman's black dress stretched up to her neckline and had short sleeves. She also was not wearing a headband but had cross shaped hair clips. But her eyes were the same shade of brown and her face was shaped a lot like Prier's. When she smiled, it was the same one that Prier and Angelique wore. Something about her made Prier feel funny; like a past memory.

One child ran up to her. "Lady Soeur! How can we trust him? He destroyed the village and killed your daughters. A monster like him does not deserve to live. The Goddess has wished for his destruction all these years…did she not?" But the woman gave him and the others a stern look.

"Everyone deserves a chance to repent," the woman stated, "It says so right in the Holy Book. And my children did not die; I preserved them with my powers. Now then, Croix, give me the woman who has saved you. I promise to heal her injuries. I might not be up to Angelique's level, but I was always decent." Croix handed Prier's injured body to the woman as she arrived at their position. She chanted a prayer to Poitreene under her breath and cast the Blessing Miracle; completely healing the girl's injuries.

Prier stood up on her own; clutching her head to keep from getting dizzy. Croix caught her; willing to take his chances with this because even though he knew he might get slapped or slugged, Prier's health was more important. Luckily for him, she was too light headed to even think of doing that. Prier simply smiled at Croix; happy that she was able to protect him again.

"Anyway, Soeur," Croix inquired, "What in the world are you doing here? Last I heard you had left Fatima in sorrow after Claude's murder." The others looked at him in confusion. "Soeur was Angelique's older twin sister. Her fiancé was killed by Imperial Soldiers for his unwavering faith in the Goddess; Claude, Angelique, and Soeur were all born with Holy Powers and trained at a nearby church to control them. In her sorrow and pain, she fled to seek a new life for herself. Soeur was always the tough one."

"This was where I settled after crossing the sea. I lived here for five and a half to six years before Calamity attacked the village. Because of my final stand, I was nicknamed 'Maiden of Light' by the people at my church; they didn't know I had twin girls. The name then just stuck to everyone else who battled the Dark Prince. But let's get comfortable before we tell the full story. My house, well what's left of it anyway, is down the road," she told them as she pointed. They all then began heading towards it.

Teefa's Last Words...

Soeur's past will get explained in the next chapter; how she arrived here, about her twins, and what happened during the invasion. It's a vital point to the resolution of this story; though it doesn't seem to effect many things right away. And some major plot twists that started out as a darn joke; we were trying to figure out what to do about Soeur's backstory after leaving Fatima and one of our sillier ideas suddenly got thrown onto the forefront.

You know...I just realized that I have way too much fanservice with the newest fic I'm working on; Croix is in nothing but his shorts for about two and a half chapters. Oh well, not like I care; I enjoy imagining Croix in nothing but shorts.