Interlude 6

While something like this used to be beneath her, beggars couldn't choose what work they needed to do. As a queen, it was Penthesilea's responsibility to bring wealth and glory to her new country. If it meant being reduced to 'cleaners' in order to put the god Njord even more into her debt, who was she to refuse? Not like she forced the high ranking ones, like Argana or Bache to do this. The younger ones on the other hand required a lot more discipline, so this task suited them just fine. If nothing else, it gave her the opportunity to catch up with another one of her former allies in Chaldea. At the moment, they were seated at a nice table on a balcony, overseeing the work to repair and investigate the docks as quickly as possible. After all, without working docks, the Kali Familia wouldn't get a working ship, since their last was cut in half rather rudely.

She flexed her fingers, her eyes narrowing a bit. That was a declaration of war if she ever saw one. Once she got her hands on the culprit, who was apparently Far Eastern from the blind Pallum's report, she would tear her bones out and make a new mask for Kali out of them. She would've crushed that cannon fodder as well... if it weren't for the fact they died. This time none of her warriors were responsible for being too excessive. No, the prisoners, for that was what they were, started to bleed from their eyes and mouth.

Then they exploded. Suffice to say, it was a messy situation in all meanings of the word 'messy'. Thus she was robbed from a proper interrogation to let out her anger. Therefore she had to track the puppet player and tear out their intestines to fix this shame that was inflicted on her. She blinked when the collective in front of her, the Crozzo, the Renard, Bell, Kojiro and even the goddess flinched. She smiled ever so slightly. Ah. The satisfaction of causing fear in others. Especially in the otherwise calm Kojiro. It was always better to be feared than... than...

Before the memories could grab a hold of her, she felt a flicker against her stomach. Glancing to her side, she saw Kali wince, rubbing her own fingers while still frowning at the group in front of them. Penthesilea nodded in gratitude. She almost fell back into her past and the chains of rage. With a deep breath she crossed her arms, waiting for the opposite party to react first. To her surprise it was the goddess, laughing awkwardly as she scratched the back of her head.

"S-soooo... You are... a friend of Kojiro?"

"Former colleague." She bowed politely. "It is an honor to meet you, Lady Hestia?"

Maybe she has gotten soft over the years. Still, even if she was from the blood of Ares, she would always honor the gods of her own home. The goddess of the hearth was just one of those, even if she seemed rather ditzy in this world as she blinked like a lost child while pointing at herself.

"It is?" She coughed. "Err, I mean, sure! S-Same!"

Kali let out a dry snort, her chin resting on her hand. Raising an eyebrow she hummed thoughtfully.

"Didn't know you came down to the mortal world." Kali's eyes narrowed with suspicion. "See you got at least some half decent kids. What's ya secret?"

As expected, the innocent looking goddess held a secret, considering the way how badly she was at keeping it. Averting eye contact, whistling innocently. With a sigh, Penthesilea shook her head. While they seemed talented enough, only Kojiro was worth noting in her eyes right now. Turning her head a bit, she frowned at Kali.

"Lady Kali," she muttered in a low tone, causing her goddess to sigh dramatically. Then she nodded at Hestia with a polite smile. "Forgive her. She is... hard to handle."

"Don't act like my mom, Pen!" Kali huffed, crossing her arms with a pout. Shaking her head, the Asura merely sent her a flat look, long used to divine beings acting like children sometimes.

"Then stop acting like a child." She glanced at Kojiro who eyed her warily as if she was a wild animal being suspiciously quiet. "I presume you have leveled up from slaying that sea serpent?"

The entire Hestia Familia froze at her words. Then the swordsman let out a sigh before leaning back, raising an eyebrow at her.

"You noticed?"

"Hm. Your aura is closer to how it was in the past," she responded, nodding in approval. Whatever the reason was that Kojiro started later than everyone else, he was still making good progress. Meanwhile everyone was confused as expected. Kali rubbed her temples before glancing at Hestia with a scoff while pointing her thumb at her strongest child.

"Does your kid also keep saying shit like that?"

"So it's normal?" Hestia asked, raising her eyebrow. Unnoticed by the two divine entities, the Renard, the Crozzo and Bell silently nodded. Most likely drawing on their experiences with Sakamoto and Romulus most likely. Kali scoffed, her chin resting on the table before twirling her finger at her temples with a lazy smirk.

"Yup. Pain in the ass as well." She shrugged nonchalantly. "I mean, she told me everything and I still call bull on that."

"That sounds like a you problem, Lady Kali," Penthesilea commented in a blank tone, sipping at her drink as she ignored how her goddess narrowed her eyes before huffing and looking away.

"Don't sass me."

The Hestia Familia turned to Kojiro who raised his hand with a smile.

"I am always open to tell my story."

They opened their mouths... before slowly closing them. The Crozzo shuddered before crossing her arms.

"Yeah, see, every time I think about asking, I become afraid of the repercussions."

"Same," Hestia responded and the other two children raised their hands in agreement. The Asura scoffed. How weak minded. Putting her glass down, she smirked at Kojiro.

"Anyway... You are catching up then. Good. You wouldn't be a worthy opponent otherwise."

He slowly nodded before tapping the table with his fingers, tilting his head at her.

"You seem... rather... how to say this... ?" He trailed off, twirling his hand at her. The queen sighed before pointing at herself.

"Sane?" As he nodded, she shook her head as she lowered her hand, leaning back on her chair, causing it to tilt. "I am no longer a Berserker, just as you are no longer an Assassin."

"How did it feel?"

He was referring to her first appearance in this world. She closed her eyes with a deep breath. Having her sanity returned, her full sanity, devoid of the effects of Mad Enhancement was... sobering, to say the least. Not that she couldn't be 'sane' before, but lacking that mental trigger to make her completely lose it at certain topics put things into perspective. Not that she had forgiven him or any of those people. But knowing she would become nothing more than a mere beast instead of a true warrior... there was no regret. But discomfort existed for sure. Especially now, fifteen years of being incarnated, having gained new experiences in a world where he didn't exist. A world where she could live the life she always wanted. Actually succeed. She opened her eyes again, a cold mask forming as she looked at Kojiro.

"Varied." She cracked a smile. "Suffice to say, you have nothing to fear of me losing it."

Unless it was in combat. But then all bets were off anyway and it made her stronger. Especially now that she could somewhat control it, comparatively speaking. She ignored the dirty look she received from Kali, merely giving her hand a soft squeeze under the table as a show of appreciation, causing Kali to soften up a bit. Then she turned to Bell, who was staring at her quite intently with sparkling eyes for some reason. Raising an eyebrow, the boy blushed before clearing his throat. Pointing at her, he pressed his lips together.

"You really fought Romulus a year ago then?"

For a moment, the Asura had to think about what he was talking about. When she recalled it, she let out a soft 'ah'. Right. That time. With how many times she fought her fellow former servants, she lost track. With a scoff, she waved her hand dismissively.

"It was nothing more than a sparring match, all things considered."

The descendant of Aeneas was strong as always. But as he was using only a spear and she was only using her cool mind, it could not be called a true fight. Neither used the techniques of their past life, or in Penthesilea's case, the techniques acquired in this life. Still, despite her downplaying the boy's expectations, he still looked at her with admiration.

"He said that too..." Bell smiled brightly as he nodded at her. "Wow, you really are powerful!"

The moment he formed the P, she felt a surge of murderous rage. With fifteen years of existence, it was treated as nothing more as a muscle twitch that was dismissed. Instead, as he finished his sentence, she nodded with approval.

"Ahahaha. That I am."

This boy. She liked him. He knew his place and knew when to give respect to his betters. She glanced at Kojiro, who for a moment reached for his blade. It caused her to frown a bit. Only because the p-word was a hair trigger did not mean she would lose to rage. Not after everything she lived through on this mortal plane. Not after her shameful display five years ago against the King.

"So you are really patrolling for Njord?" Hestia asked with curiosity, shaking the amazon queen out of her musings. She nodded in confirmation.

"Yes. In exchange for our services, he grants us fish and men."

"Why do you need men?" Bell asked, tilting his head, as did the Renard. Kojiro coughed, looking away, while Solaris and Hestia crossed their arms, signaling for her to not explain. Naturally, she showed no mercy and explained anyway as she crossed her arms with a scoff.

"My amazon need to reproduce."

As expected of children, and virgin especially in Hestia's case, they all started to blush and stammer. Rolling her eyes in exasperation, she pointed down at her amazon, who were working… not hard, but hard enough.

"We only accept volunteers." She waved her hand in dismissal. "Those who are too afraid of our reputation aren't worthy anyway."

Sadly Melen was not exactly the best source of quality men, but they had to make do with what they were gifted. As the opposite party was still busy being blushing maidens, she rested her cheek on her hand, giving them a pointed look.

"How is Tiresias?"

She never met her in person. Only letters from Arash. She usually didn't respect those that were weak and had to rely on tricks, but levels did not lie. If nothing else, she had good taste with the Braver, the captain of the Hiryute Twins. At the thought she frowned a bit. Such a waste. They were level six by now but their mentality was certainly lacking. She was tempted to follow the wishes of Kali, to interrupt their business with another meeting, another test... but what would that cause? Nothing. They were no longer amazons. They severed their ties a long time ago. Even if she had a certain soft spot for them, a queen had to be resolute. Shaking her head, she listened to Hestia's words.

"She's still recovering. She was more hurt than we thought... "

"Hm."

Before she could further contemplate on the information, Kali hit the desk with her palms. Glancing at her, she raised an eyebrow at the feral grin the goddess showed.

"Oi, Pen. Just to be clear." She pointed at Kojiro, who blinked in surprise. "This guy is another one of those 'old pals'?"

"Speak your mind, goddess," the Asura asked bluntly, not in the mood for games. Kali chuckled before pointing at the small crowd that appeared to form, waiting for new orders.

"Well, the girls need some stress relief. New meat, you get me?"

Immediately, the air shifted. Hunger. Lust. Pride. All for the sake of combat. Penthesilea looked at Kojiro, motioning with her head at him.

"Kojiro?"

He didn't hesitate for a moment. Chuckling, he looked down and rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"I am interested in how your amazon fight."

The queen laughed a bit. As expected of the swordsman. Standing up, she purposefully raised her voice.

"Be prepared that they want to court you when you win."

"When?" One of the more hot headed, middle class amazon shouted.

"They will lose." She didn't even look at them to make her point more clear. Those who heard her showed their teeth, insulted by her words. The queen ignored their indignation as she glanced at them at last, instead nodding with a small smile to show her pity. "Lose well."

As intended, fire lit up in their eyes. They all glared at Kojiro, who politely waved his hand back at them.

"We'll see about that!"

"Young master, everyone, let us prepare," the swordsman raised from his seat. Immediately, the other children of Hestia pointed at themselves in shock. Then the Crozzo shot up and raised her bandaged arm with a snarl.

"Oi, I'm still fucked!"

"Nothing our potions can't fix," the Asura said with a dismissing scoff. Thus the three children were dragged out by Kojiro, towards her warriors. Penthesilea covered her mouth as Hestia objected and helplessly chased after her kids, not realizing it was futile. It should be a good show, and learning experience, for the weaker amazon.

"Y'know, you smiling like that? Kinda makes me jealous."

Her smile fell and she frowned at her goddess.

"Am I not allowed to smile, Kali?"

"Weeeell, not if I'm not the source," Kali commented, her arms crossed behind her head. She rolled her eyes before patting the small goddess. She grumbled but made no movement of shaking her head away. Looking back, she observed how an impromptu circle was drawn, for the sake of the duels that were about to commence.

She couldn't wait once their warm ups were done. She wanted to see how good Kojiro and his Familia was when they go up against her after all. How large the gap was and how long she needed to be patient in order for the Hestia Familia to be worthy opponents.

/

Solaris wasn't someone that called herself a racist, but the thoughts that entered her mind, as she gasped for air, could only be summed up with two words: As expected. Not the fact that they managed to heal up her burns rather fast. She wasn't under the impression that they had any potioneers, so that implied trade with people that could cook up something potent enough. Amazing considering how 'savage' amazons could be.

Still, surprises aside, the Amazons were hungry for combat as expected. She glanced at the other beaten up Amazons, winking at her. Solaris let out a grunt and looked away, her chin resting on her palm as she calmed her breath. Here she thought their race only fell in love with men that beat them like ragdolls. But apparently there was the occasional black sheep, if the way one or two of them looked at Haruhime. Fortunately for the Renard and Bell, the two of them were too busy recovering from their own exhaustion to parse this and be blushing messes. Not Solaris though. She was never interested in romance anyway. And as expected, Kojiro was cool as stone as he whacked yet another Amazon in the face repeatedly.

She raised her arm, seeing it still shake before she clicked her tongue, trying to alleviate the pain she felt. Despite having a shield, the Amazons' brute power wasn't just rumor then. Fighting more like animals, they would be excellent shock troopers in terms of army combat. Throw them into the ranks of disciplined soldiers and they could easily wreak chaos. More focused on being duelists and instinct than anything else. Which was to be expected since their training method could be described as a blunt giant hammer. Not good enough against someone like Solaris, who had both street talent and actual training from Rakia's military, but it was still closer than she liked some times. She couldn't help but glance at the top tiers of Telyskyura. The two sisters were openly bored, the one with the veil glancing at her sister yawning openly with a flat look. Meanwhile the Asura was stretching idly, her face betraying nothing about what she thought of their performances.

Solaris wasn't a big betting woman, but she could easily imagine that these three would exemplify the best and the worst in Amazons. Raw, wild energy, with a temper as bad as herself on bad, hot days. She was shaken out of her musings when Penthesilea was suddenly stepping into the arena, stretching her arms with a smirk. At once, the whispering among the Amazon stopped. The next instance, they began to shout.

"Hundred valis on them lasting ten seconds!"

"A minute at best for two hundred."

She saw Bell flinch at the apparent lack of faith. Yet Solaris shared a look with Haruhime. The two of them shared an awkward laugh. No hard feelings whatsoever. In fact, they shared a look of understanding. After all, if this was someone against Lord Quirinus or the Mizuchi, would they act any differently? With that in mind, they all rose up to stand next to Kojiro, trying their best to focus on the opportunity and tune out the words of the peanut gallery.

"Now then." The Asura nodded at them before spreading her arms. "First move goes to you."

Logically, Solaris understood that the queen was allowed that arrogance since she had the power to back it up. Emotionally however, she only showed a thin smile before cracking her neck.

"Don't regret it." Taking a deep breath, she leaned forward. "Bell, charge up!"

With those words, she threw fire at Penthesilea's face. As expected the woman didn't even flinch from that, but it did do the job of messing with her senses. The moment the magic left her hand, everyone moved. Bell kept his distance as the white light began to glitter around him. At the same time Kojiro took the front as the other two girls flanked the Amazon. Moving as one, the three attacked. Kojiro chopped down the blade, aiming for her neck. Covering her shield on fire, Solaris aimed for her stomach with a straight punch. Haruhime on the other hand lowered herself and aimed to sweep Penthesilea's legs away from her. To their surprise however, the queen remained motionless. Unlike even Lord Quirinus, she didn't even bother trying to dodge or block even if her defense was stronger. The next moment, her body twitched, moving ever so subtly, before showing off why she didn't try to defend.

Pain flared up in her arm and she flinched back. Her attack managed to hit awkward enough that Solaris thought she tore something in her arm. Judging from the way her fellow attackers reacted, they weren't the only ones. Haruhime hobbled backwards, rubbing her right knee while Kojiro rolled his shoulders a bit with a strained smile. She sent Penthesilea a wide look, unable to believe what just happened. One person hitting someone else awkwardly was a coincidence. But the three of them weren't beginners. They fully knew how to let their own attacks bounce off, to prevent any clumsy damage to themselves. Which meant that the Asura forced that damage onto them.

As if wanting to check that theory, Kojiro attacked once more, swinging upwards towards her chin. All she did in response was grit her teeth and moving her head in a certain way. The blade hit skin. Once more, Kojiro hissed, his arms shaking as if all that energy he used was sent straight back at him. Tilting his head at her, they saw the Amazon chuckle before giving Kojiro a pointed look.

"I had fifteen years to incorporate Hector's strategies. They even worked against the King rather well."

The Hestia Familia except Kojiro gasped in shock. Even Ottar was affected by whatever she was doing right now? Then her eyes widened. Wait a second. Those five scratch marks across his face... did that mean that the rumors were actually-

"You mean the Trojan Style?" The Swallow Slayer asked, a hint of disbelief in his voice. Penthesilea nodded, flexing her muscles a bit as she tilted her neck a few times.

"Destroying while defending, yes."

"I am relatively certain that is not what he meant," he responded in a flat tone.

"Does it matter if it works?" She asked in return. Cracking her knuckles she leaned forward a bit. "Well, it's not much of a demonstration since you are so much weaker than me."

She raised her arms for the first time in a boxing stand. The next instance, Solaris let out a scream as she swayed back so fast she almost broke her own spine, narrowly avoiding the punch. Of course that meant nothing when Penthesilea moved fast enough to suddenly be next to the girl, arm still stretched out in order to slam her down by the throat. Gasping for her, she hit the ground with her back. Immediately after, she numbly saw Haruhime kick with her heel at the Asura's head. But the foot was promptly headbutted. Solaris, even in her daze, winced at the crack and following scream before that leg was grabbed. Forced to the ground, Penthesilea twisted Haruhime's limb a bit before letting go and jumping up before Kojiro's blade could reach her. His eyes widened before he had to twist his blade in order to divert the downwards kick from Penthesilea's spin. As Kojiro fought her off, being forced on the defensive, Solaris struggled up.

Boxing. Some sort of wrestling. Even something that reminded her of Far Eastern kicks. All those styles... and Solaris knew that each one of them was half assed. It could not make it more clear, given the easy smile on the Asura's face, that she was just playing around. And that was still enough to send them flying like ragdolls. It was still enough to use that Destroying while defending bullshit, as each counter attack by Kojiro just served to hurt himself in the process.

After what felt like an eternity, even though it could only be three minutes at best, the three combatants were sweating like crazy, gasping for air as Penthesilea idly rolled her shoulders.

"Kojiro, any insights or plans?!" The captain asked in exasperation, glaring at Kojiro who let out an awkward laugh.

"Well, given that I am used to her being utterly rampaging insane, I am at a loss."

"Welp, ace in the hole it is." She snapped her head back. "Bell!"

Solaris had no idea why Penthesilea was ignoring the White Fool, but that was her mistake. Fully charged up now, Bell exhaled and rushed forward to meet the queen head on with a combat cry. Did she believe they could win? Absolutely not. But let the heavens be her witness, they were going to put some fear into that smug expression, damn it! She cheered with her Familia, urging Bell on as he moved his two blades as jaws, aiming for Penthesilea who raised her eyebrow.

"Dragon Fang!"

She enjoyed the gasps from the audience as the giant dragon head spawned into existence. That smile vanished quickly however when the Asura closed her eyes with a smirk. The next moment, her eyes opened, exhaling literal steam out of her mouth as the sclera in her eyes turned a hint crimson. The pressure increased immediately and Solaris wanted to run away as that teeth filled smirk grew a bit more feral. But then time slowed down as she couldn't parse what she saw next.

She raised one leg, her heel touching her back. Two fingers bend as if they formed a C, pointing at herself. Her other arm stretched back. Solaris could swear it looked like the start of some sort of dance. The moment that thought entered her mind, Penthesilea moved.

The fangs of the dragon tried to bite down. But the force of the limbs of the woman twisting in the air shattered the dragon into pieces, smashing them back into raw magic. Bell's eyes widened. But despite the backlash he still moved Homebringer, trying to cut down the woman in mid air. Yet it was like she was made of water, sliding past his blades with no issues before spinning on the sand, her feet forming a circle as she held her hand up in the air, her neck tilted a bit as she looked at the sky. Despite the angry expression, the way the woman danced, for that was the only word that could apply, Solaris only two words on her mind.

How beautiful.

That was the last thing she could think of before everything turned black.

/

"Wha-What just happened?" Hestia asked quietly. It was tough to see her kids unconscious. It was even tougher being alone now with the woman that did that to her children in the first place and her goddess. Penthesilea crossed her arms, leaning against the doorway before frowning at Hestia.

"A secret you are never to tell anyone."

Hestia immediately made a zipping motion over her lips. Nope, deleting that memory from her mind then! Even if she was surprised to see it. It must have been several thousand years ago, in one of those combat festivals back in heaven. The dance that should have been slow, but its unique rhythm and destructive power giving even other war gods trouble. As if confirming her thoughts, the Asura turned to the one who gave her that name, her features softening up a bit as she tilted her head.

"Kali, what do you say?"

The goddess in question let out a snort before slurping on her juice. Then leaning back as she kicked up her legs she raised her arms lazily.

"What can I say? Holding back isn't exactly what Rudra Tandava is supposed to do." She chuckled a bit. "But points for progress I guess."

"Does it pain you so much to be straight with me?" The queen asked in exasperation, causing Kali to laugh and snap her fingers at Penthesilea with a teasing smirk.

"Don't you know it, girl~!"

Hestia forced out a laugh as well, trying to join the good mood. It was tough however and she mentally cried for her children to wake up quickly. A part of her really wanted to shoo the two of them away, but with what power?!

"Before I forget it." Hestia felt a shiver down her spine when Penthesilea eyed her. The amazon acted casual, but there was steel behind her gaze. "I know what you thought when you saw me dance. Don't say that word outloud or I will kill you."

"C'mon, Pen, you're better than that now!" Kali shouted, throwing her arms up in exasperation. The Asura sighed, shaking her head.

"Yes, but I am afraid my self control does not help with someone on the level of a mortal."

The goddess of the hearth pulled at her twintails. Agh, she couldn't take this anymore! Why was every acquaintance of Kojiro so weird?! What was wrong with being beautiful?! She looked at Bell and her other children, tears threatening to escape her eyes.

"Hurry up and wake up so that we can leave!" She thought angrily at them, almost tempted to use her Arcanum to actually send that message into their minds directly.