A/N: Here we go. Put on your favorite track, we've got a brawl coming.
Once more, we're sticking with the "Embers" rule for this little tale. Sad to say, but if folks don't like this, it won't be continued. Meaning that if the story itself ain't popular? Well, I'll love the drive to continue it! I'm working two jobs during the holidays so I barely have time to write; as such, I cannot afford to write something folks don't enjoy. So by all means, speak up! Your voice matters! Make yourself heard! As ever, reviews are the fuel that sustain me. Without them I cannot write a single word. Simple as that.
Working nearly all hours of the day keep me absurdly busy, and I can't bring myself to write something folks don't like.
Now for the usual comments, questions, and concerns. Feel free to skip this part if you like:
Q: Update schedule?
A: Just about every damn day, sans Wednesday. I'm trying to update some spooky stuff given its October. Sadly, no one's noticed T_T
Q: Do...do you hate Malenia?
A: In truth, I pity her, but she might be in for a rude awakening in this story. Ranni has good reason to dislike her half-sister, and Naruto's viewpoint is colored by what he's been told of her. Rykard isn't all that fond of her either. She's a living example of Radagon's betrayal to Rennala and you can bet the Queen of the Full Moon isn't keen on her either.
Doesn't help that the lot of them are currently fighting RADAHN of all people, a man ruined by her last act of petty spite.
When we reach her, and make no mistake we WILL eventually, its gonna be...intense.
Q: Could you make this a harem-
A: NOPE. Sorry, but I've got loads of those already. This remains a single pairing. I have few enough of them as it is.
Q: What is Radahn's fate?!
A: You'll have to read and see, won't you~!
Alright, then, this old man has kept you long enough now! I'll let you enjoy the story.
As ever, I own no quotes, references, themes or memes. Not a wit or a one!
They're tributes to legends far greater than I~!
"...alright. here goes nothing. This is my last resort.
RADAAAHN! There's only one way this ends!
That's right! C'mere! FIGHT ME!"
~?
Thy Last Resort
"Well...this is a most unpleasant awakening."
Ranni creaked an eye open with a soft groan, gazing blearily at the scarlet sky of Caelid. Raised a hand now, frowned at it as she beheld her missing fingers. She'd actually blacked out for a moment. That should not have been possible. Her body was not of flesh; here spirit merely clung to this doll's body. There was nothing to "knock out" as it t'were.
Yet here she lay.
She tried to move. Failed.
Memories came rushing back.
To think that Radahn would cleave her in two. Had her beloved brother truly taken leave of his senses? It stung, knowing that her own kin cut her down without pause. She knew it was not his fault-he'd fallen far yes, but he'd not asked for this. He hadn't wanted this. Nay, she knew his maddened state was Malenia's work. Her spiteful sister, so determined to win, they were even now paying for her sin.
Blast it all, she could still hear combat over the dunes.
Ranni tried to drag herself upright. Faltered. Failed, as she finally beheld the damage done to her body. She sought to sit up regardless, desperate to assess the ruined state of herself and already knowing -dreading!- what she would find.
...oh, dear."
Her puppet form lay broken and shattered across the sands of Caelid, cleaved clean in half, crumbling even now. Had she been of flesh and blood, she would surely be long dead. She owed her survival to her soul, though Radahn had cut that, too. That she still lived was was a miracle in-and-of itself.
A fresh pang of dizziness assaulted her. She shook it off and muttered a cantrip under her breath. All for naught. She couldn't cling to this broken body. The binding spells she'd wound it were undone. She could feel herself slipping, barely able to cling to this ruined shell. If she lost hold of it completely...no. She'd bind her spirit to the small doll in Naruto's possession. If she could just reach him...
...such would require touching it however, and her Consort was busy fighting for her life.
Another explosion rocked the sands. Radahn's great bulk hurtled past her, trading blows with Naruto and Rykard. Of poor Blaidd, she saw no sign.
They were themselves holding back, trying to hobble him, not kill.
But he just wouldn't stay still!
Naruto took a punch square to the face and grinned. Rykard stabbed his blade down, pinning the limb to the floor, giving her consort an opening. The blond swung a clenched fist upward in recompense. Ranni glimpsed a golden something -a needle perhaps?- clutched in his grasp, a shard of light gleaming in the ruddy red sky for all of an instant. Naruto hit him a moment later. His blow punched through her brother's armor with a hollow clang. Radahn convulsed, brought to a half for a moment.
But only a moment.
Then he rounded on Naruto, ignoring the thin wound even now gleaming in his grey flesh. Ranni realized his mistake before he did.
Radahn's blade swept up.
"Move!'
Rykard shouldered her consort aside, slamming him out of harm's way. He paid dearly for it and hurtled away in a shower of blood. His sacrifice was not in vain. Naruto vaulted up, grabbed a great fistful of Radahn's hair, using it as leverage to haul him down. The general's mouth opened for another defiant roar, to which her beloved retaliated by shoving a fistful of preserving boluses into his mouth. Her brother gagged, tried to spit them out, only for the blond to cram more down his throat; thereby forcing him to swallow or choke and die.
"That's right!" Naruto grinned at him. "Eat up!"
Ranni dragged herself up over a dune as they continued to wrestle with one another. Here at last she saw Blaidd. Her shadow limped her way, clutching his ribs, armor horribly dented. She saw his eyes widen in concern when he beheld the ruined state of her body and soul. Mercifully, he made no comment on either.
Radahn wailed angrily.
Blaidd made a noise of pity, echoing her thoughts. "Aye, those taste foul."
Naruto had naught but deaf ears for the general's complaints. Golden palms laid themselves to rest upon Radahn's chest. As she looked on, her brother's ruined legs-rather, the stumps of his ankles- began to mend and grow anew before her very eyes. Evidently that Needle had done something, and the boluses he'd shoved down his throat had aided in some small manner.
It wasn't enough.
A vicious backhand blasted Naruto away, medicine and all, sending him skipping across the dunes.
"Enough!"
Ranni saw Rykard climb to his feet not a yard away, bleeding from a deep tear in his chest. Despite his mortal wound he still stood...and the reason became apparent. His eyes, gold as always, but larger somehow, a hallmark of the monster he'd once been.
He stabbed his blade into a half dead corpse and his wounds began to close. Another stab, and he stood straighter. By the third, he'd regained some semblance of his strength. Enough to speak again.
"You always were the best of us, brother." a low, throaty laugh shook his shoulders. "However!" He swept his sword to the side, its golden blade scoured clean of the filth that once consumed it. Flames licked across its seething edge, burning down into the sand. "You have forgotten yourself and now you are far from what you once were!"
Radahn rounded on him with a roar. Rykar's sword flashed out and a pillar of fire consumed their sibling. He pitched back with a shriek.
"And in doing so, you have broken your oath!" Rykard parried with a fencer's grace and drove clenched knuckles into his face. "Done the one thing you swore never to do!" In the same instant he slashed the air and conjured spellfire to burn him, melting the armor encasing his chest. "Harmed our sister!" a pale hand flashed out, stabbing in her direction. "Look upon her and see what you have wrought!
Mad though he was, Radahn complied with this absurd demand. He looked at her. Saw her. Flinched like a naughty dog.
"Ra...nni...?"
Rykard struck like a snake. A savage kick rapped their brother's face and sent him hurtling across the dunes.
"Allow me to remind you dear brother, why you feared me!"
He slammed his blade down and fire burst forth with a blasphemous retort, wild red snakes of furious flame lashing out to coil around Radahn's limbs. As one they dragged the giant demigod to the ground, lashing him to the crumbling soil.
Radahn went berserk.
"Now, boy!" Ryakrd bellowed! "Do it now! I can't hold him!"
Naruto exploded out of the sand, shining brighter than the Erdtree itself.
Her went left. Rykard, right.
And the tide turned.
(.0.0.0.)
The tide was turning.
Naruto knew it. Rykard did, too. They all did.
Make no mistake, Radahn fought hard. He made them work for every inch, every step a song of blood and fire. The great general broke free more than once, pushed their patience -and their bodies!- to the very limit, but he was faltering. Without loyal Leonard to carry him forth into battle, he could no longer move as he once had. Bleeding from more than a dozen wounds as he was, the greatest of the demigods gradually began to weaken under their assault. He raged as only a warrior could, refusing to go quietly into that good night.
And then he leaped.
Naruto didn't expect it; not at first; one moment Rykard had his brother bound and they were closing in to finish what they'd started. Then quite suddenly, they weren't, and he found himself squinting into a sharp haze of stinging sand as Radahn hurtled into the clouds. Someone that big shouldn't be able to jump like that...!
"Above!"
He looked up. Up some more.
Something fell from the sky. No, someone.
Said someone was rapidly growing larger; alaming trail of death hurtled down from the upper atmosphere. Rykard saw it, swore, and flung himself aside. Naruto's first instinct was to do the same. He looked back a second later. Scowled. Ranni was behind him, and Blaidd with her, both terribly wounded. If he tried to dodge now...he'd charge right through them. They'd be killed. Rykard must've realize it too; because he flung up a barrier of coiled serpents to shield them.
They both knew it wouldn't be enough. Not against someone like Radahn. A bead of sweat ran down his brow.
"Are you prepared?"
"More or less. Lets give this one last go, shall we?" He planted his feet. Spread his arms. "...here goes nothing. This is my last resort."
Gold light blazed up his body, burning brighter than ever before.
"RADAHN!" He raised his gaze and called out to the falling meteor. "There's only one way this ends!" Was it his imagination, or did the falling star change course just now? No, it was definitely curving toward him. "That's right! C'mere! HIT ME IF YOU DARE!"
"Naruto, you fool!" He heard Ranni rage at him. "Move!"
Nope~!
Radahn crashed into him like a falling star. In another lifetime, another world, he'd nearly died from such. This time he was ready. His boots bit into the dunes and his back shrieked at him for his foolishness, but his legs held. A thin line of blood ran down his noise. It did nothing to hide his wild grin. Radahn made a noise of confusion; because now it was his turn to look up.
Up.
Up again.
Up even more.
Kurama grinned down at him in all his golden glory, holding him at bay with a giant palm.
"Sorry, big guy. Game over."
A massive claw swung down with impossible speed.
Radahn punched up to meet it. No dice. Kurama flattened him to the sands.
"I told you. Now hold still." Naruto hopped down and planted a boot on his head. "And lemme fix your everything!"
A single punch laid Radahn out once and for all, leaving him a stunned wreck on the sands.
High above, the stars began to shift. Naruto never saw them. Why would he?
The moment Radahn went down, he grabbed him by the head.
And in he went.
(.0.0.0.)
The stars were falling.
Radahn could feel them slipping through his grasp. He couldn't hold them. Here at last he'd become too weak. One by one they streaked across the sky, hurtling to their ultimate destination. He could no sooner stop them than he could catch the wind in his hands. With each passing moment his failure grew more pronounced, his heart heavier.
He lay there in the dark, unable to see, unable to move, yet somehow able to think. Why?
Radahn had an inkling. That strange Needle thrust through his ribs; it touched a tiny piece of his mind that he'd sealed away, a fragment before Malenia's awful poison took him. Those awful boluses buoyed it; granting him a measure of coherent thought for the first time in an age. Even now the Rot buzzed at him, trying to reclaim him, yet unable to. Something held it back. Something was healing him. Mending him. Regrowing ruined organs, fishing him forth from the Scarlet Rot as one might a fish out the lake.
He couldn't even fight that, so weak was he.
What did it matter if his mind remained? Or his body somehow was regained? He'd failed.
Just as he'd failed his family. His men. Caelid. The Golden Order. Himself. For all his might, he wasn't strong enough to do what needed to be done. Not when it mattered most.
His failure first began with Father, unable to make him stay with Mother. The first mistake of many.
Everything had spiraled downward from there, one error compounding another.
He'd then failed to turn the Two Finger's gaze from Ranni. Perhaps, had he done so, he could've prevented the horrors that followed. But he hadn't, had he? Likewise, he'd failed to see his sister's schemes until it was too late. His blindness led to the death of Godwyn during the night of the Black Knives.
Mighty though he was, he could not contain the chaos that followed the Shattering. He'd failed to take Leyndell from Morgott and in doing so, restore peace. He had failed Rykard, and so his brother became a monster that turned against him. Defeat after defeat. Setback after setback. Then, at the end, he'd failed finish Malenia quickly. His honor had been his undoing. And in doing so, he'd unleashed the Rot, dooming both Caelid and his men. He'd failed poor Leonard too, his truest friend left to rot with him throughout the ages.
The Scarlet Bloom mocked him even now. Failure. Failure. Failure.
Yes...Radahn the Failure. It had a miserable ring to it.
"You didn't fail."
Something glowed in the void, a light in the dark, searing through the shadows shackling him. Radahn raised his head to greet it, lethargic in his despondency.
"You did everything you could, didn't you?" Faint footsteps reached his ears, each one burning away the black miasma. "No one could've asked for more."
Who dared enter his mind? A stranger? No, he knew this one. It was the golden warrior from before. He'd heard his name shouted across the dunes, screamed on his sister's lips.
Naruto.
Strong steps carried him forth, but rather than finish him, the blond's specter sat beside him. He made no move to attack. Radahn almost wished he would. Death would be preferable to living with the shame of his sins, his very failure a shackle around his neck...
"How do you feel?" the whiskered warrior plonked down at his side, giving him an idle look. "C'mon now, say something." a hand slapped his shoulder. "I burned up a lot of chakra to drag you back. Least you can do is be a good host and answer me."
Radahn rasped out a gasp. "Like death warmed over. Let me die."
"I can't do that." the blond being before him shook his head. "They're waiting for you. Rennala, Rykard, even Ranni. You might sleep for awhile after this, but you definitely won't die."
Ranni. He'd seen what he did. Radahn remembered.
...I harmed her. Rykard, too."
"You weren't in your right mind, and she looks kinda different right now. I'm sure she didn't mean to upset you. As for Rykard...well." a rueful smile tugged at his the corner of his mouth. "He's a cranky old bastard, but I think he'll forgive ya."
...and mother?"
"She's getting better." His words didn't care even the thinnest shroud of deceit. "I'm sure she'll be happy to see you again."
...why do this?" he glowered down at him. "Why help me? What do you want?"
"I want it all." Naruto spread his arms wide, encompassing all before them, and with those words, the sun rose in the dark. "I want to give everyone a happy ending." he stood against it, so bright that Radahn found he had to look away, such was his brilliance. "Don't worry about what you did. That wasn't you. I'll take responsibility for it. I'll devour your sins." A merry smile shone through the light. "Every last one of them. And when I find Malenia, the one who made you this mess...
He slapped an open fist into his palm.
...I'm gonna spank her. Its the least she deserves, I think."
It was too good to be true. Such a being should not exist. And yet he did. Such a stubborn, golden soul such as this...
Radahn chuckled at the last, a weak, hoarse sound. A single tear rolled down his scarred face.
"Noble warrior...thou truly art...a greedy one...
Let there be light.
(.0.0.0.)
He'd done it.
Ranni watched Naruto stumble away from Radahn's body on weak legs. Not a corpse. Body. Her brother slumbered peacefully on his back, sprawled against the dunes. Leonard lay only a few yards away, enjoying a well-deserved rest. Ah, but her consort looked most concerned for her. She must look an awful sight, her body broken, soul nearly cleaved in two...
"Ranni!" He thrust her miniature doll at her. "Here."
...my thanks."
She reached for the doll in his grasp. It was smaller, and wounded as her soul was she would have to squeeze, shed parts of herself, compact down into it. Weakened as she was, she might even lose a great deal of...oh. She paused, a pang of dread overtaking her. No. No, she couldn't. She wouldn't. She mustn't. Trembling fingers pushed the little thing away. Naruto cried out and tried to shove it back, but she wouldn't have it. Her spirit was fracturing to be sure, but if she cut off a piece of herself and thrust it into that doll...
Ranni felt a pang of dread for the first time in an age.
"Take it away."
"Ranni, c'mon!" the anguish in his voice hurt her more than any word ever could. "What're you doing?!"
"No!" She tried to lean back, but that just had her falling out Blaidd's arms. "I won't!'
...it wouldn't just be her power that she might lose. T'would be her memories.
If there was even a chance, however small, she would not take it.
To live a life without memory was akin to death for her.
She would be killing the "Ranni" that knew Naruto.
There could be no crueler fate.
But the alternative meant death, or return to the Erdtree. That too, might well destroy her. They had no means by which to return home quickly. None of them were truly Tarnished after all; they were not touched by grace nor could they use it to move about the Lands Between. Nowhere to run. Nowhere to go. Her soul crumbled with each passing moment. Think of something! Anything! Wasn't there another way? Hadn't Naruto said something earlier? She was sure he had, butohgodsthepainmadeitsohardtothink...
She touched a trembling hand to his. "M'sorry...!"
A startled look flashed across Naruto's face. "Rykard! Plan C!"
'Plan C?' She tried to marshal her thoughts, but everything was so fuzzy. 'Whatever is he on about...?
Her brother responded instantly, drew forth a gleaming medal of purest blue from his ruined robes and slammed it down upon the sand. The world began to blur away in motes of blue light. At first she thought it was her dimming vision, but no, the world was changing around them and Radahn, shifting into...
.
..
...what sorcery was this?
They were back at Raya Lucaria. But how? Had mother given them some manner of trinket...? Did she foresee this?
"Move aside, move aside!" Rennala pushed past them. Saw Radahn, bleeding all over the library floor. Rushed forward. "Oh, my dear boy...you're alright, I'm here... She flicked a look to Naruto. "Does he live?
Naruto snapped something at her and stabbed a finger mother's way. He spoke quickly. Rennala looked pensive, but granted him a nod and reluctantly moved away from Radahn's prone form. Ranni couldn't hear it over the sudden ringing in her ears. Blaidd set her down. Mother leaned over her.
"Are you sure..."
Of what? Being helped? She didn't understand. She lifted her chin to look up at him. "Yes...?"
What had she just agreed to?"
Renala squealed and leaned down to embrace her battered, broken body with her severed soul. "My little girl! I'm so proud...!
Ranni couldn't blush in her current form, but she could squirm in embarrassment. "MOTHER!"
Rykard scoffed. "See? Now you know how it feels!"
She must've blacked out again somewhere in the interim; because she suddenly found herself staring up at the ceiling. There was no sign of either of them. Someone had propped her up under something; even then, she could barely see.
A hand waved before her face. "Eyes up, lass."
She squinted, trying to focus on it, put a name ot the face. "Jerren?"
The old eccentric pulled her upright. "Its alright. We have you. Won't be but a moment.
Naruto was suddenly there beside him. He wore a strained smile.. "Sorry, but we're doing this here."
"Doing whaaaaargh?!" She trailed off in a gasp as another pang rocked her fractured soul. "What is this? Where am I? What are you doing?"
Radahn's right hand man frowned. "She's delirious. Best get to it, lad. I can't keep her soul tethered for long."
Naurto held up his arms. His left hand pulsed with scarlet flame, whilst embers of azure danced in his right. Ah. She remembered now. Those words he'd said to her so long ago.
"Want a new body?"
Ah, yes. That.
"Creation of All things, remember?" his voice tugged her forth fro the past. "I can't do this by myself. I need you to help me." he held is hands over her, eyes glowing in the gloom. "Visualize the form you want to have. I might screw something up if I do it alone...
Fuzzy thoughts pushed to the forefront of Ranni's mind. She knew what to do. Right.
Stay awake.
Don't drift off.
Mustn't let the Erdtree claim her.
Ranni closed her eye for but a moment to focus. With it, her thoughts began to clear. It felt like the work of an eternity; ants of ice crawling under her skin. She did not desire her old form, the flesh of an Empyrean, slave to the whims of the Two Fingers. She'd taken the likeness of her mentor long ago for her puppet body. She would do the same with this one. T'would not the be the same of course but different. Crafted to perfection, this new form, not yet a true goddess, would nevertheless be every bit deserving of a demigod. And then at last she would wait...what was that?
Ranni gasped at the sudden surge of sensation. Moonlight blue light filled her vision.
Two halves were made whole. Her world blurred.
She was born anew.
A/N: Aaaaand scene.
Ranni's got herself a new body, even if she hasn't quite ascended...yet.
Well? What say you? Hope you're enjoying this, so by all means, lemme know!
Once more, we're sticking with the "Embers" rule for this little tale. Sad to say, but if folks don't like this, it won't be continued. Meaning that if the story itself ain't popular? Well, I'll love the drive to continue it! I'm working two jobs during the holidays so I barely have time to write; as such, I cannot afford to write something folks don't enjoy. So by all means, speak up! Your voice matters! Make yourself heard! As ever, reviews are the fuel that sustain me. Without them I cannot write a single word. Simple as that.
So in the Immortal Words of Atlas...
...Review, Would You Kindly?
And have some previews.
Granted, some remain far off, but still...
(Previews)
...you do realize the Fingers are going to hunt you down now, yes?"
"Let them come."
Ranni felt it, pale moonlight shimmering over her skin. Was this how it felt to have flesh? It...tingled. She touched a hand to her face. Felt it. Four palms flitted across her body.
She was not complete, not a goddess true, not yet, but she couldn't keep herself from smiling.
It felt like coming home from a long journey.
...but where was Naruto?
Ranni was silent for a long moment.
Then she walked past her mother. Knelt before the chest.
She could feel Rennala's gaze searing into her back. His curiosity. Did she dare? With her ring and this oath, she could begin her ascension. Could she?
But the idea of simply slaying the Two Fingers and leaving him behind...that hurt even more.
An awful crash shook the room next door. Someone squawked. "He's awake!"
She sighed. "But is he sane?"
One way to find out.
"This is not a war. This is a squabble, brother fighting brother, sister fighting sister and for what? Scraps. I fought in a bigger war than any of you will ever know. I did worse things than you could ever imagine, and when I close my eyes... I hear more screams than anyone could ever be able to count! And do you want to know what you do with all that pain? Shall I tell you where you put it? You hold it tight... til it burns your hand. And you say this: No one will ever have to live like this. No one else will ever have to feel this pain. Not on my watch."
"When you take that first stab, no matter how right you feel, you have no idea whose going to die! Whose children will scream and burn! How many hearts will be broken! How many lives shattered! how much BLOOD will SPILL until everyone does what they were always going to have to do from the beginning! Sit! DOWN! AND TALK !"
Note: Kudos if you get the reference.
"That's your idea?!"
"Indeed. 'Tis a brilliant one, no?"
She sounded so serious; it was all he could do not to laugh.
"Did you think the Greater Will would stay silent forever?"
"I think I don't five a flying F**k about some deranged god. Get out my way or I'll stick your head up your arse!"
"Now just hear me out, Iiji. There's no need to lock Blaidd away. I've got an idea."
"Do you, now?" he felt a flicker of concern stir in his withered chest.
"I want to take him to Nokron with me."
His mirror helm tilted toward the boy.
That would be...ill-advised."
Naruto, no.
Naruto yes. I just wanna talk to Malenia. Loudly. Repeatedly. With my fists.
EDIT: Hey, you made it!
Once more, we're sticking with the "Embers" rule for this story, and others. If folks don't like this, it won't be continued. Meaning that if the story itself ain't popular? Well, it won't be continued. I'm working two jobs -might need a third soon!- so I barely have time to write; as such, I cannot afford to write something folks don't enjoy.
So by all means, speak up! Your voice matters! Make yourself heard! As ever, reviews are the fuel that sustain me. Without them I cannot write a single word. Simple as that. Working nearly all hours of the day keep me absurdly busy, and I can't bring myself to write something folks don't like.
Looking forward to chatting with you all when I get back~! Have a great day~!
R&R~!