Kali blinked a bit before yawning and raising herself from her bed, scratching her messy hair with a tired sigh. It felt like ages since they returned to their ship, after her children ran away like, well, literally panicking children. The goddess growled at the thought. They knew she could handle Penthesilea, but no, now she didn't even get to see how the fight ended. Well, she did, but not in the way she wanted. She tightened her fists at the memory. Seeing her flying through the air, spilling blood. The way she seemed to go limb, her consciousness fading as she soared, as if she died in that moment. The breaking of Kali's heart until relief washed over her when they found her, still breathing…
She stared out of the window of her door and felt her eyebrow twitch. There she was, her captain, wrapped in bandages, not staying in bed like a good girl and instead staring out at the waves reflecting the moonlight with a blank look. Normally Kali was all for leaving kids to themselves but with Penthesilea... She let out a sigh once more. Here she thought the level up would cheer her up, but if this was anything to go by, it only made things worse.
Welp, time to play the responsible goddess for once. With that in mind, Kali cracked her neck and opened the door. With her skull mask back on, she casually opened the door and shuddered at the cool wind brushing against her face. She exhaled slowly as she stopped next to her child and leaned against the railing. Glancing at her apathetic child, she let out a scoff and tried to act casual.
"Don't drown yourself after we hauled your ass back on the ship."
Silence. Silence but the waves and the wind. The goddess clicked her tongue in irritation before scratching the back of her head awkwardly. She was not a compassionate goddess. This whole 'cheering up' thing was outside her area of expertise.
"Bad dreams?" She asked awkwardly. Somehow that got a response from Penthesilea. She glanced at her, eyebrow raised ever so slightly as if surprised. Kali puffed her cheeks up a bit. How rude!
"That implies I slept at all," the queen muttered with a self depreciating smile. "Tch, Artoria's meddling was not needed... "
Kali hummed thoughtfully. She didn't expect that weird relationship with the Radiance the Asura had to be so handy. After all, when they found the crash site of Penthesilea, she was not remotely as injured as she should have been, compared to how she flew through the air. She wasn't fully healed up, but she wasn't at death's door anymore. Which begged the question of why the Radiance was in the area in the first place. She heard some rumors about her escorting the Braver and the Nine Hell after they got their asses kicked by the Legiones, but rumors were just that: They could be fake as hell after all. Anyway, the deity took her victory when she got it, as in Penthesilea actually talking, so she patted her child's back with a small laugh.
"I for one appreciate not having to spend more money than I need to."
The queen let out a snort, shaking her head in small amusement. That smile quickly fell however, causing Kali to bite her lip, But before she could say anything, Penthesilea looked up at the moon with a somber expression.
"I don't remember anything."
Her voice was barely a whisper. Yet her hands gripped the wood of the railing so hard it easily shattered underneath her fingers.
"When he said that word... I don't remember anything. Did I defeat him? Did I even touch him? Did I kick him or punch him?" Her voice turned into a whisper as she looked down, her eyes shimmering. "Nothing."
"He sent you flying, but you did knock him ou-"
Kali didn't get to finish her words. Penthesilea snarled, snapping her head with her eyes turning ever so red as she cut through the air with a swipe of her arm.
"That doesn't matter! I lost! To him! To myself!"
Her breathing grew heavier as her eyes became more wet with frustration.
"I am a warrior... not a wild animal... !" She clawed at her bandaged head with gritted teeth. "Why is he still shackling me from the past, my darkness?! All that effort, to be the master rather than to be the servant, to turn my anger into a tool and not a chain, all meaningless!"
Biting her lip, Kali shook her head slightly. Then she took her mask in her head, looking Penthesilea in the eyes with a deep frown, looking past her crying face.
"You're wrong."
She didn't use her authority as a god. Instead, she used all her trust and faith she had for this one mortal, enough to make her look at Kali in surprise and in silence. Kali pressed on, pointing at Penthesilea with narrowed eyes.
"You stopped attacking when you knocked him out. Even your Berserker self would've realized you didn't kill him. Yet you moved on." She shrugged. "Sure, it could've just been arrogance. Or you wanted a healthier target. But either way, you stopped." She pointed at the ship itself with a small smile."You stopped killing your own Familia as well. So don't act like your efforts amount to nothing."
"But-"
"But it's not good enough. Ya right." Kali hummed thoughtfully. She didn't plan to do this ever in her stay in the mortal realm... But she smiled. Well, if anyone was worth it, it was Penthesiliea. She stepped back a bit until reaching the middle of the ship. Then she spread her arms open as she exhaled. "Watch."
Unlike the first time she showed a hint of her martial skills, her dance was slow. Soft even. It didn't have a hint of bloodlust, or killing intent. Instead, it was like a gentle gust caressing her, leading her, with happiness and love. It only took a few minutes, but Penthesilea was staring at Kali with full attention. The goddess giggled at the look she was receiving before finishing her slow, seductive movements. With the illusion gone, she put her hands on her hips, any sign of the sex appeal and attraction level she had gone and replaced by the small, warrior goddess.
"Whaddya think?"
Penthesilea blinked before clearing her throat. Confusion was visible in her eyes before tilting her head.
"...It was a… nice dance, but what was the point of it?"
Nice. Another word was beautiful. Kali nodded in self satisfaction before crossing her arms.
"Do you think I'm weak?"
"What? No!" Penthesilea shouted, offended on her behalf. The goddess laughed before rolling her shoulders with a satisfied nod.
"Good. That way, we can change what you think of those words. Not as signs of weakness. Not as an insult." She made a snap with her arm, creating a burst of wind to lash out as she showed her teeth. "But a symbol of destructive power."
Beauty didn't mean weakness. That was Kali's plan. By using her dance based martial arts, she would beat it into Penthesilea's mind that the most powerful were the most beautiful. Thus, being called pretty was no longer an insult to her existence, but a confirmation of her strength. At least that was her theory anyway. Penthesilea bit her lip, unsure about this. But seeing the earnest look in her goddess' eyes... she shook her head with a sigh.
"...I am not a dancer."
"Well, too bad, you're gonna become one now." Kali grabbed the queen's arm and dragged her into the middle. Then she took a starting position and winked at Penthesilea. "Mimic me."
This time her movements became way more ferocious. Gone was the womanly energy and instead was replaced by raw raging power. It was just a few moves, as Kali didn't expect Penthesilea to learn anything more than that before stopping. After witnessing the violent storm that was Kali, the Asura narrowed her eyes a bit.
"That's a different dance."
"Fits you more." Kali shrugged and twirled her hand. "I doubt you want Lasya compared to Tandava. Ya want power, that's the one to go with."
Penthesilea nodded slowly. Then she tried to replicate her goddess' movements. To say it was super awkward was an understatement. Painfully slow. Stumbling. Shaking. After it felt like an eternity to recreate the movements, Kali held back a laugh before shaking her head in amusement.
"Until we get there, we gotta make sure ya don't have two left feet. Heh, guess the queen isn't perfect after all!"
"Silence!" Penthesilea actually blushed before letting out a small growl."I'll get the hang out of this, mark my words!"
As the Asura focused back on her efforts, Kali felt her mouth form a soft smile. Ahhh, she was way too cute. One wouldn't think she was the beautiful incarnation of rage that made her heart beat so fast. Kali blushed ever so slightly with a fond smile before putting her mask back on, shaking her head a few times. Alright, gotta focus now! With that in mind she let out a boisterous laugh before clapping her hands.
"This is gonna be a long night! One two three, not one two and three!"
/
"Healing Power sure is something." Hans commented as he leaned against the doorway, raising an eyebrow at the patient within the room. "I thought you'd be drinking soup only for at least two more weeks."
Ottar let out a grunt, observing his face in the mirror. His jaw healed quite nicely all things considered. Not a hint of deformation. The rest of his face however was another picture however. The bright red scars, like claw marks, still marked his face. It would serve as an eternal reminder of his shameful performance in front of his lady. He let out a sigh before turning to his Familia member, giving him an expecting look. Hans sighed, rolling his eyes in exasperation before shrugging casually.
"Penthesilea survived."
Ottar closed his eyes before lowering his head. He had a feeling that was true. But he hear it out loud...
"Then it is my loss."
Hans let out a scoff at his words.
"Funny, I'm sure she thinks the same."
She probably did. In terms of results, she was the one that was launched away. However. Ottar was more than just the King. More than just the child of Freya. He represented the perfect might of Orario. The fact he was reduced to such a sorry state was defeat itself. It meant the outside world could actually pull its weight against the center. Sitting on the bed, he rested his arms on his knees as he shook his head slowly.
"...I have been ruled by arrogance since my victory over Zard."
"Don't you start that," Hans muttered in annoyance. But Ottar would not be deterred, instead giving a pointed look at the Mimir.
"It is true." He looked down at his hand and clenched it with frustration. "I desired a challenge that wasn't the Starfall. I wanted the thrill. Here I should have known better than challenge fate itself." He scoffed, a wry smile on his face. "After all, was it not I that defeated a level seven as a level six?"
Hearing a sigh, he looked up and saw Hans scratch the back of his head before glancing at the King.
"If it helps, this battle could've gone to anyone. Mad Enhancement, or whatever it's called now, is fickle like that. It can easily change the tides when activated."
"Is that what you call the Berserk skill?" Ottar asked, raising an eyebrow. Hans scoffed in response.
"Berserk implies some sort of sanity being left over." He pointed at Ottar. "Let me assure you, if you had used your abilities from the start, even if she went full power, you would've have won more easily."
"Even with her escalation skill?"
"Who knows how much time she would need until she could surpass you even with all you crap activated."
Ottar felt himself smile. Hans narrowed his eyes, trying to glare a hole into his head, but the King ignored it and instead voiced out his observations.
"I didn't expect you to comfort me."
He retched in response, gagging at his words before shuddering, causing Ottar to chuckle lightly.
"Ugh, don't say it like that, you giant idiot."
"...Your allies are strong, Hans," he muttered quietly, causing Hans to nod with what could be called pride.
"Human History would have long died out if they weren't."
"Another of your mysterious references?" Ottar asked, long having given up on receiving a straight answer.
"I'm an author, it's in my blood." Hans was about to leave before stopping all of a sudden. He snapped his fingers and pointed at the injured captain. "By the way, I gotta relay an order from our head slut."
Ottar felt his eyebrow twitch as anger rose up in his heart. If it weren't for the fact that Lady Freya allowed it, he would have long joined his other Familia member in smashing Hans' head in. Instead, he exhaled slowly.
"What is it?"
"Don't pick another fight with the upcoming guest."
"Who?" Ottar asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Braver and Nine Hell are returning with the Radiance." Hans rubbed his temples with a long suffering sigh, ignoring Ottar's wide eyed look. "Let's hope that gorilla doesn't start a mess as well..."
