Chapter One
The Empires Collide
'They had not realized it at first. The Ottomans mined deep into the earth to find a deposit of a powerful mineral that unleashed a dangerously potent amount of energy when it was split down to the atoms and beyond. It was an enormous cache, and it contributed to the Platinum Ottoman Treasure. But they soon learned that this cache of mineral, which they dubbed 'Uranium', was actually attached to a sleeping beast that had been hibernating under the earth for several hundred years. And when they attempted another mining operation, it awoke. The miners were devastated by an attack from the beast. The Ottoman Emperor ordered it captured, as to sustain their source of Uranium. But it was no easy task.
The beast turned out to be an ancient and powerful Dragon named Ionicus. The Dragon spoke with the Ottomans who were sent to capture him. He convinced them to return to their Emperor and strike a deal with the ruler of the most powerful empire on the southwestern continent. And that deal was certainly desirable to the Emperor. In exchange for ending his soulless, haunting existence and moving his power to another host, the Dragon would give its Uranium littered corpse and hibernation cavern to the Empire. Ionicus had lost his soul hundreds of years ago, and only wished to pass its power and remnants of soul to a worthy successor. This pleased the Ottoman Emperor and he called upon his greatest wizards and scientists to achieve this goal.
Understandably, the rest of this story was kept secret from everyone in the Empire aside from the Emperor and his advisors. But luckily enough, yours truly had been outside the Platinum Gates when a powerful explosion leveled the city and all its inhabitants. This mysterious Dragon had indirectly caused the fall of the Ottoman Empire, in one way or another. May my country rest in peace with its emperor, Xerxes Ottoman VII.' – Final page of, 'Rise and Instant Fall of the Ottoman Empire' by Carritus Justinius.
Ulysses slapped the book down on his desk. It was one of the ones he carried with him, other than his 'Metallurgy- Guide to Metals and How to Forge!' book. And a manual, it detailed multiple fighting styles, namely swordsmanship. It was titled 'Fighting with Blades' and it was very old. He got up from the desk and looked out his inn's window. A silvery key hung from his neck and gleamed in the morning sun. The city he resided in, Helios, a coastal city, was quiet for a Saturday morning. Far more quiet than he liked. Ulysses slicked his long, brown hair back and his clothing magically appeared on his body with a red flash. A black, sleeveless shirt, olive jeans, black boots, fingerless gloves, and a long, grey overcoat with a wide lapel and collar. His key necklace, hidden under his form-fitting shirt. He noticed a man, shrouded in dark clothes with a white skull mask stalk the streets. Ulysses stared him down, his reptilian, glowing emerald colored eyes were easy to spot in the darkness of his room. The skull-masked man noticed this and started running towards the inn.
Time to go. Ulysses turned, grabbed his books, and they vanished into thin air with a bit of magic. And with the same magic, Ulysses conjured one of his psychotically sharp bastard swords with a green handle. He then vaulted out his open window, descending on the masked man. The man looked up in time to be pierced through the eye by Ulysses' sword. He died the moment the blade exited the back of his skull and was pulled free as Ulysses started rushing down the street. He turned a corner and ducked a swing of an axe. Another skull masked man tried to pull his axe from the white stones of the house. But he was too slow, for Ulysses cut him down before the blade was truly free. He left two halves of his would-be assassin in the street and continued towards the city gates.
"There's nowhere to run, Platinum." A voice called from the top of the gates as the street leading to it was flanked by masked men. Ulysses skidded to a halt and raised his sword as he was slowly surrounded by skull masks on either side. Their apparent leader, a man resting on top of the Helios main gate, wore a blue skull mask that smiled.
"Doesn't it just suck when you're the center of a gangbang?" Ulysses deadpanned as the masked men surrounded him. They all started laughing quietly at his joke. Ulysses grinned. At least they were happy before they died.
"Silence! Do you mock me, Platinum?" The blue masked man asked. Ulysses shrugged. He mocked everyone equally. This mysterious orgy-leader was no different.
"Yeah, I usually mock lots of people. So who are you, other than my enemies?" Ulysses asked, lowering his sword. The masked men did not know what to make of his sudden compliance. They tensely awaited orders. Ulysses casually leaned on his sword.
"Hmm… such arrogance for a dead man. But I suppose you could know who I am. Who we are. Who I work for, before you die and we take your treasures for ourselves. We are the Order of the Golden Skull. Perhaps you know of us?" the blue masked man wondered as he descended from the gate with a gentle landing. Ulysses noted the dexterity of his foe. And the title he had heard, the Order this foe of his spoke of. He knew it.
The Order of the Golden Skull. Assassins from the Babylonian Empire in service of the Cult of Ishtar. Motherfucker, they followed me all the way across the ocean to Fiore. Which means the Assyrians aren't far behind, and the Hittites are just a step behind the Assyrians. Fucking hell, are all my ancestral enemies gonna show up for a bloodbath? Ulysses thought. His distress for the newfound situation could wait, because the Order's assassins were slowly converging on him.
"I am your friendly executioner. Bluestone is my name, and if my men can't kill you, I will." Bluestone said as he drew a long, curved saber from his waist. Ulysses picked his sword up and cut down the first assassin as he tried to attack. The other assassins hesitated as their comrade fell with such ease from Ulysses. He grinned at Bluestone and whipped the blood off his sword.
"You can certainly try." Ulysses said. He was then swamped by attacks from all sides. Blade met blade as he dodged, parried, and slashed his way through Bluestone's men. Limbs flew as he sliced them off and kicked one man into another. He decapitated one assassin and brought his blade through the torso of another. He sliced through another's arms and summoned a dagger to plunge into a man he tripped. Blood splattered across the white stone streets of Helios, staining them red and painting a horrific depiction of death. And by either miracle or great skill, Ulysses remained spotless as blood caked his blade. He gutted one man and splattered his innards across another, simultaneously slicing the assassin's chest cavity open. And with another spin and flourish of his blade, the head fell off the last of the Golden Skull assassins. Twenty eight men in total, slaughtered like sheep in a matter of minutes. Ulysses released a hot breath as his blood flowed hot from the dance of destruction.
"By Ishtar's tits! You are as strong as the tales tell, Platinum!" Bluestone laughed and clapped as he approached the bloodbath. Ulysses retrieved his dagger and sheathed it on his thigh. He summoned a pure white cloth and wiped the blood from his blade with it. He tossed it into the pile of corpses where it mixed with more blood. But it was already red from his blade.
"Tales embellish far too much for my taste. I tend to live more modestly than that." Ulysses said as he rolled his sword over to the edge that was still razor-sharp. The other had sliced through too many men to be as sharp as its counterpart. Bluestone shook his head and raised his saber to the ready.
"Well, this is the end of your tale, Platinum. I've trained for years to take on master swordsmen like yourself. And I've never lost a fight to date." Bluestone said arrogantly. Ulysses could see him smile under his mask. He twirled his blade and raised it at the ready.
"There's a first for everything." Ulysses said with a grin. Bluestone dashed forward and struck first. Ulysses parried his attack and struck for his hand. The guard on his saber blocked Ulysses' attack and their clash ended. They clashed several more times before Ulysses locked his foe's saber with the guard on his sword. Ulysses broke the lock and thrust his blade into Bluestone's face. He managed to slice part of the mask off and revealed the mad, bloodthirsty grin underneath. Bluestone licked a drop of blood from his cheek.
"You know… you could have ended this with that magic everyone says you have!" Bluestone yelled as they clashed blades again. But he screamed as Ulysses broke the lock and rammed his sword into Bluestone's unused arm.
"I could. But if you have read the tales, then you know that I never use my magic." Ulysses said as he locked up Bluestone's sword arm and twisted his blade deeper in the assassin's arm. Bluestone laughed and screamed as Ulysses sliced his arm off. Bluestone dropped his sword as Ulysses smashed the pommel of his sword into the man's elbow, snapping it backwards. He then sliced that arm off, leaving Bluestone to drop to his knees as his shoulders squirted blood.
"Oh… I know… but I never expected to find a wizard with honor. Fine then. Ishtar take me." Bluestone said, accepting his fate as Ulysses leveled his sword with the assassin's throat. Ulysses had heard of the Order of the Golden Skull, but he had never expected to find an assassin with honor. He decapitated the man and left his body to collapse on the street. He whipped the blood off his sword and all his armaments vanished in a flash of magic.
"Rest well. You were a worthy opponent." Ulysses said quietly. He stooped down and collected Bluestone's saber. It was intricate and well-crafted. He got the sheath and added the blade to his collection as it vanished in a flash. A reminder of the terror approaching on the horizon. The scent of blood, defecation, and death riddled the air. Ulysses quickly realized he was still in Helios and made a mad-rush for the gate. It was shut and barred, most likely to keep him in while the assassins did their work. But it was no problem for him as he managed to vault the wall after clambering up it. Ulysses dashed off into the vast countryside of Fiore, leaving behind the terrible mess of dead assassins in Helios. He prayed he could get away and never return. But his prayers would go unanswered…
One Week Later…
"Why yes, a fellow just like that stayed here at my inn. He paid his tab. I don't ask too many questions past that. What do you need with him?" Benny, an old innkeeper, asked to the group of armored soldiers in his main hall. They wore silvery armor with red inlay and red shoulder capes. On their hips they had short swords and they carried large, dome-like round shields. Their commander wore a helmet that had a red crest atop it, while the others wore simple helms that covered most of their face in steel grates.
"Well, Mr. Benny, this man is a murderer and wanted by three different countries for various crimes similar to murder. I don't expect that you knew that, did you?" the commander said to Benny. The old man gasped and held his heart.
"No! I never knew! And you said he's wanted? Are you hunting him?" Benny wondered. He sat down on a stool to take in the shock. The commander nodded and placed a stack of Jewel on the counter.
"Please, sir, tell us anything that might help us find him." The commander said. Benny looked between the commander and the money. He nodded and adjusted his glasses.
"Of course. He said his name was Hephaestus, and he was going to head northeast I think. Said something of the sort, anyways. But the gate leading out of Helios goes southeast. I'm guessing he took the first left he could and kept going from there. Didn't leave a trace in his room, either. That's all I know, Commander Isswir." Benny said as he collected the cash and put it away. Isswir smiled and shook Benny's hand.
"Thank you, Benny. My scouts can handle this. Farewell." Isswir said and ordered his men out of the inn. Benny waved and had a drink for himself behind the bar.
"No problem, now you take him back to Assyria with you!"
Somewhere Else in Fiore…
"Those motherfucking Hittites are here!?" Ulysses whispered to himself as he hid in the tree line. The road leading northwest was occupied by a marching army. Their yellow and grey armor stood out against the green woods of Fiore. They carried tower shields and spears, their sandaled feet stomped against the cobblestone road, and they had tamed lions marching with them.
So the Babylonians send assassins, but the Hittites send a whole fuckin army? What did the Assyrians send? A few scouts and one battalion of soldiers? Ulysses thought as he watched the army march past. They soon stopped at the sound of shouts and jeers from somewhere ahead of them. Ulysses conjured up a telescope and sighted down the line of yellow helms. Ahead of the army was a small contingent of red and silver wearing soldiers who ambushed and clashed with the Hittites. The Assyrians. Ulysses watched as the group slowly cut through the thinned ranks of the Hittite soldiers. They tried to form up, but the road was too narrow. Suddenly, as if by fate's hands, Golden Skull assassins attacked the middle of the Hittite forces near Ulysses' hiding spot. He put his scope away and hid himself deeper in the undergrowth.
This has got to be the most hilarious thing ever. Three rival empires fighting each other in pursuit of the last of their other rival. But I have to fuck off and I have to do it soon. I'm betting that the Hittites are gonna get slaughtered here, but so will the Assyrians. The Golden Skull is good, so they won't lose too many men. Then they'll be on my ass like rabbits in heat. Ulysses thought as he started crawling through the brush. Even if he made enough noise to wake a sleeping serpent, the clashing of steel and rattling of armor overwhelmed it. He sincerely wondered how all three of his ancient enemies managed to invade Fiore and find him without consequence. But that could wait. Ulysses made his way back from whence he came, as the Hittite line blocked the next road he needed. He would be spotted the moment he tried to cross. So, unfortunately, Ulysses was forced back in the direction of Helios.
"I sure hope there's a way around…"
Later…
Aw fuck… Ulysses thought as he watched a battalion of the Fiore Army come marching up the road that crossed before him. He dove into the bushes again, not knowing if they were after him or not. He saw a man riding a horse who seemed to be commanding the force.
"Hurry men! A foreign army snuck their way into Fiore! We must counter this attack!" The commander yelled to his men. Ulysses sighed in relief. The Fiore soldiers were going to fight the Hittite army. He grinned as he walked out of the bushes and approached the Fiore commander.
"Excuse me! Are you a Fiore soldier!?" Ulysses called to the commander as he approached. The mounted man turned to regard him and drew his sword.
"Whoa! Hold there, citizen! Let my men pass in peace!" The commander said, holding his sword to bar Ulysses from getting any closer. He happily complied with the commander and stood where he was.
"I'm a traveler and I saw an army back on that road. I think they're from the Hittite Empire!" Ulysses called to the commander. The man looked back in shock at him and nearly dropped his sword.
"The Hittites!? One of the Three Great Empires from the Far East? This is worse than I imagined. How can you be sure? Describe them!" The commander ordered. Ulysses was again happy to comply. If he could make Fiore fight the Hittites, then that was one less enemy for him to deal with. Through coincidence and guile, he solved his own problem.
"Yellow helmets and shields. Lions painted on their shields. Skirted uniforms and spears. They even had lions with yellow capes marching with them." Ulysses said. The commander's eyes widened in shock and he suddenly road ahead of his men. Another horseman soon rode by at a bewildering speed, shaking the ground as he went. He was lightly equipped and carried a satchel. Ulysses smiled. A messenger. Soon all of the continent would know that the Hittite Empire invaded the Kingdom of Fiore. A war, just because they were clumsy and sent an army into a foreign county to capture one man. Ulysses was not sure if he should feel honored or guilty that the Hittites risked war to find him. He was not glad that the men of Fiore were being sent to fight his long-time enemy, but in a way, he could not wholly blame himself.
At least the Assyrians and Babylonians were quieter about it. But what happens when the Fiores discover an Assyrian corpse? Is it going to blow up into a three-way war, now that the Hittites know the Assyrians are here AND they invaded unbeknownst to Fiore? Ulysses wondered as he waited for the Fiore army to pass. They finally seemed to break up and he slipped through back towards Helios. He had to get to a safe area and regroup his thoughts and plans now that they had been thwarted by literal warfare. The mess he was creating was starting to stack up a pretty high price. But now he needed to find a way to escape to his destination. As the noise of warring armies slowly faded behind him, the forest became hills as a white city came into view. And from the gates came a small group of women. Ulysses casually walked past the group as they left the city and headed for the gate. When he entered there was a small crew doing finishing work on the stone just inside the city. Ulysses remembered standing there a week before, the stone stained red with the blood of his foes.
Whoops… He thought as he passed the workers. They completed their work and cleaned up the scene. But one of the workers was watching him.
"Hey Harold, isn't that the guy the Mermaid Heel wizards were asking about?" a worker said as Ulysses kept walking towards the docks. He stopped for a moment and glanced back at the workers. He could still hear them, despite the distance.
"I think so. Tall, grey coat, green eyes… Holy crap! Somebody get the wizards!"
Ulysses started running. His instincts went into full throttle. But he had not run another twenty yards before he had to dive out of the way of an attack. A sword stuck itself in the ground where he had been standing and Ulysses rolled onto his knee to face his attackers. An armored woman, a woman with a sheathed sword, a cat-like girl in a bikini and cloak, and two white haired women started to encompass the square Ulysses was in. The sword vanished in a familiar magical light.
"ReQuip Magic? Fuck." Ulysses cursed as the sword reappeared in the armored woman's hand. She leveled the blade at him and summoned another one in her other hand. The workers and civilians quickly cleared the streets.
"Hold there, villain. You're not escaping us. There's a bounty on your head and we intend to take it!" The armored woman shouted as the others readied themselves for a fight. The woman with the sheathed sword approached her comrade.
"Erza, do you think you can take him?" the woman with the sheathed sword asked. Erza, the redhead in armor, nodded and started walking towards Ulysses.
"Of course, Kagura. Stay back. There's no telling what he can do." Erza said. Ulysses sighed and stood up. He started taking his coat off and calmly laid it on a barrel next to a house. He walked out into the open and started chuckling. He should have expected as much.
"Damn those Babylonians. I'll give them credit for duping Fiore's wizards like that, but clearly they can't take me by themselves." Ulysses said as he summoned a very basic two handed sword. It was so plain that the women started laughing amongst themselves.
"A wimpy sword like that isn't going to help you against Erza. They don't call her the Queen of Knights for no reason." The cat-like girl called out. Ulysses smiled to himself. He was to fight someone dubbed, 'Queen of Knights'. He found it utterly exciting. But there was a reason he picked the most simple and bland sword in his whole collection. It was dull.
"You can ReQuip? Then I should certainly be the one to fight you. Prepare yourself, villain." Erza said as she stood just paces from Ulysses. He gave his sword a twirl and brandished it in a relaxed stance.
"So, you girls took a job to catch me… How much did they pay? One million? Two million?" Ulysses asked. Erza glared at him and rushed forward to strike. Ulysses grinned as she approached and rushed forward at the last possible moment. They met in the middle and the sound of steel being slammed against steel pierced the streets. Erza cringed and doubled over as her armor was dented at the waist and Ulysses pried his sword loose from her armor. He then whacked her across the head with the broadside of his sword, effectively knocking her out.
"Erza!" the other women exclaimed, shocked that their comrade was taken out. Kagura screamed in rage and charged Ulysses. He readied his sword again.
"They certainly did not pay you enough." Ulysses said as he clashed with Kagura. Her sheathed sword took a small chip out of the edge of his. Though surprised by her sword's ability, Ulysses broke the lock and lunged forward, kicking Kagura's legs out with a sweeping kick. Once she hit the ground he conducted the same method against the back of her head as he did to Erza and Kagura was out. And before he was even able to say anything, his sword arm was bound by a long, brown tube. He glanced out at the cat-like girl who held the tendril.
"Millianna! Careful, he's too strong!" one of the white haired girls yelled. Millianna gritted her teeth as she tried to control Ulysses' sword arm.
"I've got him, Mira, Lisanna, take him out!" Millianna shouted as she started pulling him towards her. Ulysses tried summoning another sword to cut the rope, but found his magic not working. So he took his sword from his bound arm and rolled it to the opposite edge. He was careful, not dumb.
"You know, I've been using the dull side up until now." Ulysses said as he slashed the rope off. Millianna yelped as she stumbled forward. Now with full control regained, Ulysses could defend against a sudden attack from one of the others. She had changed into a cat outfit and Ulysses blocked her claw attack.
"Mira, now!" Lisanna shouted as she struggled against Ulysses. He easily overpowered her and kicked her away in time to evade another strike. A blast of dark magic destroyed a part of the road stonework where Ulysses had been standing. He looked up to see the other woman flying above him and she had taken on a demonic form.
"Shit… are you trying to capture or- FUCK!" Ulysses cursed as he was tripped by Millianna's rope again. He sliced it off again and rolled out of the way as Lisanna pounced on him. He managed to get up and summon a shield in time for Mira's magic attack to hit it and send him flying into a building. With his ears ringing, Ulysses clambered his way out of the building and immediately had to evade another attack from one of the women. He exchanged his long sword for an arming sword and sliced Millianna's rope out of the air. He dropped down and caught Lisanna on his shield, slamming her into a wall. But she clung to his shield, forcing him to drop it in favor of rolling out of the way of Mira's magic attack. He summoned another arming sword and sliced off another rope that caught his right arm. He rolled out of the way of another blast from Mira and parried Lisanna's claw slash. He swung his other sword for her head, but her cat-suit came with serious advantage as she easily ducked his attack and slashed five claws into his left leg. Ulysses grunted as he dropped to one knee and his left arm was caught by another of Millianna's ropes. He sliced it off but not before Mira unleashed a far more powerful attack.
"Soul Extinctor!" Mira shouted as she let off an enormous blast of dark magic. Ulysses rammed his swords into the stone and took the attack head on. He screamed as the power enveloped him and blew apart the street he was on. He collapsed into the crater and his swords clattered to the ground next to him. For the first time in a long time, he felt the pain of being struck by a magic attack.
Damn… that fuckin hurt… fighting three mages without my magic is really hard… Ulysses thought as he slowly got up. But his small spell of rest ended when Lisanna jumped into the crater and pinned him down, her claws dug deep into his shoulders and he cried out. Ulysses felt his adrenaline pump in and he pulled his legs under Lisanna, kicking her off and jumping back to his feet. His shirt disintegrated as he jumped back out onto the street and re-summoned his swords. The silvery key about his neck glinted as he charged after Lisanna as she recovered. His onslaught of slashes forced her to dodge and defend, but some of his blows landed true and left her with several cuts. Ulysses then kicked her down the road and slashed away another of Millianna's ropes. The cuts on his leg slowly healed as he rushed Millianna and whipped one of his swords at her. She cried out as the handle of his sword cracked against her head and she collapsed from the force of his throw. Ulysses then rolled out of the way of another of Mira's magic shots. He dropped his sword when he landed and summoned a longbow and started flinging arrows at Mira. She blasted some out of the air and dodged others.
"You bastard! Take this!" Mira yelled as she unleashed another powerful attack. Ulysses dropped his bow and summoned one of his few magic items.
"ReQuip: Northern Ward!" Ulysses shouted as he summoned a mirror coated round shield. Mira's attack connected with his shield and reflected it back at her in an instant. She screamed as her own magic hit her and she fell out of the air, hitting a rooftop. Ulysses lowered his shield and checked the streets for his foes. Lisanna was struggling to get up while Erza, Kagura, and Millianna were all knocked out. Mira soon recovered and floated back up into the air. But before anymore fighting happened, it started raining. Ulysses felt his instincts flare up and he raised his shield again as a blast of water struck him. He grunted and dug his feet into the stone as the water blast continued. Ulysses managed to glance around his shield to see a woman under an umbrella controlling the torrent of water. He looked up to see Mira charging another attack while he was preoccupied. His shield cracked along the edge.
Shit, if I don't do something I'm a dead man. Ulysses thought. He started to turn his shield just enough so the torrent of water pushed him out of its own path. He swapped Northern Ward out for another round shield and started running alongside the buildings. He rolled out of the way of Mira's next attack and blocked a whip of water from the woman with the umbrella.
"Juvia! Catch him!" Mira shouted to the blue haired woman. She nodded and her water whip fell into the puddles. Ulysses prepared himself and summoned a spear in his hand. He kept moving and charged Juvia. She watched him approach and was surprised when he threw his spear and summoned a xiphos right away. But Ulysses stopped his approach when the spear simply glided through Juvia as though she was formless. He dropped to one knee and blocked a powerful magic blast from Mira.
She's ethereal!? My spear did nothing! Ulysses thought as he dodged a wave of blade-like water from Juvia. His instincts kicked in and he ducked as Lisanna jumped him from behind. She landed and hissed at him. Her wounds were bleeding, but she still stood strong. Ulysses growled in annoyance as he was flanked by Mira and Juvia readied another water attack.
This would've been easy with my magic… but I swore... I'd never use that dammed power. Ulysses thought as he slowly turned to regard each of his foes. He noticed Erza and Kagura were starting to recover. His chance of winning slowly dwindling as the odds were now stacked against him. The two swordswomen were quick to shake off their injuries and rejoin their comrades.
"We've got you now, give up!" Mira yelled as she launched another attack. Ulysses tried to dodge but he was suddenly slammed into the ground by an invisible force. Mira's attack connected and smashed him further into the stonework. Ulysses grunted in pain as he tried to push himself off the ground, but another attack from Juvia slammed him into the ground again. The force got stronger on him and he soon noticed Kagura casting a spell with her free hand.
Gravity Magic? Shit… Ulysses thought as Erza slowly approached him. Mira landed next to him, a spell charged in her hand. Ulysses felt the air slowly being pushed out of him by the heightened gravity. Despite the pressure, he managed to get up and breathe again, but he let the gravity pin his weapon and shield to the ground. It soon let up as he raised his hands up in surrender.
"Finally… tie him up." Erza said, procuring a rope. Mira nodded and reached for Ulysses' hands. As soon as she gripped his wrist he reacted. He jumped up, kicking Mira's leg out and wrapping the rope around her neck. Erza tried to hit him but even with one hand he caught her wrist, twisting it and forcing her to drop her sword. He then delivered a powerful kick to her torso that sent her flying towards Kagura who tried to catch Erza. The swordswomen crashed into each other and tumbled across the ground while Ulysses choked Mira out. She soon passed out from a lack of oxygen as the recovered Lisanna pounced and tried to attack Ulysses, but he re-summoned his xiphos and deflected her attack. He released the passed out Mira and rolled away, picking his shield up along the way to deflect Juvia's water whip. Lisanna attacked again but Ulysses blocked her and tossed his sword up, forgoing it in favor of engaging her in hand to hand. He dodged her next few strikes before landing a blow to her torso, forcing her to double over so he could crack her in the head with his shield. With Lisanna out, Ulysses caught his sword and blocked a flurry of water attacks from Juvia. He then charged her, dodging her attacks as he ran and blocking her whip. She soon fired off a huge torrent of water which Ulysses slid underneath, using the slick stone to his advantage. But as soon as he reached Juvia she encased him in a bubble of water.
"Water Lock!" Juvia said as she caught Ulysses in her trap. He struggled to swing his sword at her but failed miserably as the water kept him encapsulated. He glanced back to see Erza and Kagura rushing towards him. He had to escape. His breath was running thin and the edges of his vision started to blur. He had one more trick up his sleeve.
"ReQuip: Surtur's Wrath!" Ulysses shouted underwater with the last of his breath. He summoned forth a huge greatsword that was on fire. With what strength he could muster against the water he stabbed the blade into the ground and it unleashed a huge explosion of fire, evaporating all of the water around him. Juvia was blown away by the fireball and Ulysses was left gasping for air. But his recovery was cut short as both Erza and Kagura engaged him with their swords. He blocked both of their attacks and Erza's swords slowly melted against his. The wrapping on Kagura's sword lit on fire and they both disengaged.
"ReQuip: Sea Empress!" Erza yelled, and suddenly Ulysses regretted bringing forth his most powerful sword. Erza shifted into a green 'armor' with a bluish sword in her hand. She attacked and when Ulysses blocked her, the flames on his swords started being put out by Erza's sword. He broke the block and swung, unleashing a massive wave of fire at her. Erza swung her own sword and canceled out his attack with a wave of water.
"Well fuck." Ulysses sighed as he hefted his sword. While he was strong, Surtur's Wrath was clearly meant to be wielded by an enormous being. It was nearly twice as long as he was tall. The unwieldy blade made fighting harder. And it seemed his foes detected this as Kagura cast her magic once again.
"Gravity Change!" Kagura called. The gravity affecting Ulysses soon strengthened and he was forced to drop Surtur's Wrath. The blade melted into the stone until he forced it back into his pocket dimension. The pressure even forced him to drop to his knees and hold himself up by his hands. He managed to look up as Erza held her blade to his neck.
"Unless you have any more tricks up your sleeve, give up." Erza demanded. Ulysses looked into her eye. Her glare was stern but held no violence. No hatred for him. She lacked the eyes of a killer. The sunken, distant look that were indications of their eyes having personally seen to another's death. Ulysses stared back with those eyes. The eyes who saw to the deaths of hundreds of men over the course of his twenty two years of life. Erza was visibly shaken by the look in his eye. He smiled.
"I suppose so."
Erza, unnerved by his visage, knocked Ulysses out cold with the pommel of her sword.
Sometime Later…
Ulysses awoke in a dimly lit room with his hands bound behind a chair and his ankles tied together. It was a very nice room and had a single window to his right. The sun was setting behind the lavender curtains and the small light above his head glowed yellow. His coat was laid on the table in front of him but he was still missing his shirt that had been shredded in the fight with the wizards. He remembered the struggle and how he was forced to give up when all of his efforts had been thwarted. The rope that now bound him was the same one used by one of those wizards. He cursed the Golden Skull for their trickery. But as he made sure his key necklace was still intact, the door to his room was opened. He sighed as several familiar figures entered.
"Ah, he's awake. Hello there, mister super soldier. I'm Ultear Milkovich, guild master of Mermaid Heel. I hear you were quite an opponent for my girls." Ultear, a buxom, black haired woman with villainous eyes and a dark bodysuit said as she headed the group of women. Ulysses took a moment to appreciate the fact that each of the women currently either glaring or scowling at him were absolutely gorgeous. There were a few he did not recognize, like Ultear, who stood just off to her right. One had pink hair, a different white haired woman apart from Mira and Lisanna, and a dark haired woman with a haughty demeanor to her. A blonde, busty woman also poked in behind Erza and Kagura. Ulysses realized he should answer Ultear.
"I guess. So, why aren't you turning me over to the assassins that hired you to catch me?" Ulysses wondered as he casually kicked his boots up onto the table. Ultear knocked his feet down and glared at him. Ulysses frowned at the denial of his relaxation. He poked at the back of his waistband. His smile returned.
"I'll be asking the questions. First, who are you?" Ultear demanded. The question was a sketchy one to answer. He could either lie a little, lie a lot, or be wholly truthful. He decided on a mixture of withholding truth while also speaking it.
"Well, my enemies call me Platinum. My friends used to call me Otter. And the rest of Ishgar knows me as Hephaestus. But you can call me Ulysses. Ulysses Ottoman." Ulysses said and winked. He grinned as some of the girls seemed unnerved by his attitude. His happiness was always because everyone underestimated him at all turns. Whether out of ignorance or out of arrogance, it did not matter. Bluestone thought he was invincible. And he ended up dead. Ultear was quiet before speaking again.
"That explains much. Hephaestus, master blacksmith and swordsman from Caelum. I'm guessing that's how you managed to fend off and even knock out six of my strongest mages with little more than a couple of weapons and your skills?" Ultear wondered as she picked his coat up. She searched the pockets and found several of his backup knives in them. Eight knives in total were easily accessible in his coat. The daggers sewn into the lining were easy to draw, but not easy to remove. Ultear removed the two daggers from his coat as well. Ten small arms were present in his coat at all times. Thirteen on his person. Ulysses shrugged. She made him sound far more formidable than he actually was.
"Well, I guess so. If the redhead and Miss sheathed sword hadn't been so reckless then I might've had a hard time." Ulysses said with a grin. Erza and Kagura both shot him a glare but were mesmerized by his daggers.
"This quality is amazing. And look here, Hephaestus's seal. Master, these blades are the real deal. I think we may actually be dealing with the Forge Master himself." Erza said as she handed the dagger to Ultear. The guild master examined the instrument and tested its edge against a rope Erza summoned to test it herself. The edge of the blade glided through the rope as though it did not exist. Ulysses smiled with satisfaction.
"Oh yeah. I don't spare any expense when making my own weapons. Each of those knives could slice you in two if they had to. Goes through bone a little harder than rope or flesh, but it gets the job done." Ulysses explained as everyone focused on him. Soon enough the women who fought him had wide eyes and dropped jaws. The realization of his words hit them quickly.
"S-So… you could have killed any of us, had you the chance?" Kagura wondered with terrified eyes. Ulysses shrugged.
"If I had to." Ulysses said simply. Kagura slowly set his dagger down on the table and took a step behind Erza. The other girls were just as shocked and scared as her. Even Ultear seemed in relief and utter surprise.
"I'm happy you spared my girls, Hephaestus. But onto my other questions… why are you here, in Fiore? And what lead to that bloodbath by the gates last week? The flyer for your bounty said you were responsible." Ultear said, setting his dagger down. Ulysses sighed and let his head lay back on the wooden seat he was tied to.
"Well, I'm in Fiore because I was heading towards Iceberg. And from Iceberg I needed to go to Nordland. And before you ask why, see this key on my necklace?" Ulysses asked as he glanced down at his key. Ultear nodded.
"What's this have to do with killing almost thirty men?" Ultear asked. Ulysses clicked his tongue and shook his head.
"I was getting to that. Anyway, this key needs to be destroyed. It's what those men were after, and believe me, they're the bad guys. I'm betting anything they're the ones behind the flyer. They're scared of me. Not sure of what I'm capable of. They're under orders from a psychotic murder cult from the Far East that wants a little bit of treasure, a little bit of immortality, and the whole goddamn world, and this key is what'll get them all of that. Now, if you don't believe me, then I don't know what else I can say." Ulysses explained curtly. He withheld the majority of the truth, but that also made him less believable. But he had to consider what was more believable. Ultear carefully dissected his words. He expected her to simply ignore what he said and hand him over to his enemies. It would certainly be a swift conclusion. But in Ulysses' experience, swift conclusions were about as common as Dragons.
"Hmm… that's so unbelievable I almost believe it. But why would a cult be after you, a master blacksmith? For a simple key?" Ultear wondered as she contemplated the scenario. Ulysses groaned and slumped in his chair.
"Look, Miss, believe it or not, it doesn't matter because I'll either be proven right, or die trying. So let me tell you this. We can end this in one of three ways. One, you hand me over, collect your meager reward, and leave me to die and cause the end of the free world. Two, you can let me go and I'll go fucking melt this magical key in the Ivaldi Forge. Or, three, you can help me stop three of the strongest empires from the Far East from taking over the world." Ulysses said. He was deathly serious. Those were the only options he saw, other than making a suicidal attempt to escape a wizard guild by breaking free and fighting his way out. He still never wanted to use that power. Ultear narrowed her eyes incredulously and contemplated his words.
"Hmm… you're serious. I can't figure out if you're really good at lying, or telling the truth. I need to think on this. Everyone, let's go. Minerva, would you guard Hephaestus?" Ultear asked to the dark haired woman off to the side. She nodded and smiled wickedly as everyone left the room. Ulysses was stuck with the seemingly uptight and arrogant woman who proceeded to examine his knives.
"So… Is this some sort of girls-only guild? Because I haven't smelled or heard anything that reminds me of a man since I've been in this building." Ulysses wondered as Minerva played with his knife. She stuck it in the table and walked around it to face him. She leaned down and smiled.
"You're perceptive, aren't you? I had that feeling when they drug you in here by your boots. There's something different about you. Lots and lots of magic power… but Erza said you summoned so many weapons and even magical ones… yet your magic is still overflowing. And your eyes, they glow. And that light above you… it doesn't have any magic charging it. No gas either. It's lit up all by itself. I wonder why…?" Minerva said as she looked Ulysses over. His tanned skin was scraped up from his earlier conflict and his bare chest heaved as he grew nervous. She was picking up on the minuscule details of his power. Ones he could normally hide from most people. Ones that were usually ignored. And if she could do it, so could Ultear and some of the others.
The soldiers and assassins on my trail would never figure it out, since most of them aren't wizards. But these women, they'll find out I'm more than just a swordsman who can use a little Spatial Magic. I need to be careful not to use it, though. Never. Ulysses thought. He knew that Minerva could see his desperation on his features. Her malicious grin was enough evidence of that. She knew, that he knew, that she was onto him.
"Listen fast, 'cause I'll only say it once. Don't dig into things you know nothing about. You'll soon find out that they'll burn you." Ulysses hissed at her. Minerva scoffed and leaned back on the table. She smiled a cruel, wicked smile.
"Your speech was very interesting. Empires, world domination, immortality, all very intriguing subjects. And this key of yours… it's related? Why would you destroy such an important object?" Minerva asked. She eyed the key on his chest with eyes reminiscent of that of a greedy nobleman. He knew her eyes too well. Far too many fools had died with those same thoughts in their mind as were now forming in hers.
"I can see why Ultear left you to guard me. Should I break free and kill someone, she certainly wouldn't be losing much." Ulysses said, venom dripping from his words. Minerva's visage twisted to rage and she slammed her hand against his throat. But first mistakes often became last mistakes with Ulysses. He pulled his left arm free and gripped her wrist with his immense strength. Minerva was stunned as he twisted her arm off and pulled his other hand out. His right hand held one of his thirteen knives. He pressed the edge to her throat and forced her onto the table. He released her wrist, now having her at death's edge, and picked up one of his other knives. He threw it at his feet and released his ankles with the blade.
"You and your guild must be amateurs at political subterfuge and capturing hostages. You didn't even search my waistband or my boots for the other three knives I keep on me. Now look at where it's gotten you. At my fuckin mercy…" Ulysses said as he pulled Minerva off the table and slammed her against the wall. She stared at him, a mixture of anger and pure fear in her eyes. Ulysses chuckled as he summoned a blackjack in his other hand. And with a simple swing of the blunt device he knocked Minerva unconscious, letting her fall to the floor with a thud. Ulysses then immediately set to gathering his stuff. Once he had summoned another shirt, the same as his last but navy blue, and put his coat on, he turned his attention to the window. He moved Minerva's form away from it and kindly laid her on the table. He was at least decent for being a killing machine. But right as he went back to the window, an explosive device was cast through the glass.
Fuck.
"Master, he's dangerous. If what he says is true, then maybe we should turn him in to the kingdom." Mirajane suggested as they stood in the main hall of their guild. Ultear shook her head at Mirajane's words.
"Dangerous, yes. But if that is true, then it could put the kingdom in danger of those assassins and empires he spoke of. They might be as powerful as he says." Ultear said, disputing the idea. The majority of the guild members were gathered around, listening to the debate. Erza just had to drag Hephaestus into the guildhall and brandish him like a trophy. Speaking of female knights.
"I don't think he's lying. Those blades are definitely made by Hephaestus. He could have bought them, but he certainly fights too well to have bought them. He wielded all of his armaments like they were extensions of himself. Right, Kagura?" Erza said. Kagura nodded, confirming Erza's words. The guildhall erupted in murmurs. Most of their words were useless gossip and muffled the sound of breaking glass.
"Wait, did anyone else hear that?" Wendy, a small, blue haired girl wondered. Her guild mates ignored her. But they simply could not ignore the powerful explosion that rocked their hall and sent pieces of wall flying across their debate circle. A shape came flying from the blast and crashed into the ground in a heap. From the dust rose a figure holding up an unconscious woman. Ultear was alarmed to see Minerva in the arms of the very topic of their debate. He held a large tower shield in his other hand, blackened from the explosion.
"Hephaestus!"
Ulysses coughed as he hefted Minerva and handed her off to a very shocked Erza. He swapped his shield out for his bastard sword and with a powerful swing he blew away the dust cloud. It revealed a large group of women around him and a huge hole in the wall he was just sent flying through. He spotted a red masked man with a saber standing in the hole. The Golden Skull had grown impatient it seemed. But he was Ulysses' responsibility. Not the women of Mermaid Heel's. The assassin jumped down and landed in the circle with him.
"Everyone get back! I'll handle this fucker…" Ulysses said as he gave his sword a spin. He threw his coat off and readied himself as he and his foe started circling each other. The girls of the guild backed up and started retreating, some screaming in fear and others crying from the sudden shockwave. They started taking cover and Ulysses felt some relief.
"Oh, concerned for these fools, Platinum? You amuse me. And here I thought the man that killed my brother was a ruthless killer. Turns out, not so much!" the red masked man laughed as he brandished his saber. Ulysses cracked a grin. This man was even worse than Bluestone.
"Oh, I've no qualms about ending your pathetic existence. But these ladies needn't be harmed in the destruction of another Golden Skull idiot." Ulysses taunted. The red masked man howled in laughter.
"I like you! You're crazy! I love killing crazy fools like you! I am Redstone, and you killed my brother. Now I'm going to kill you, in the name of Ishtar! Die, Ottoman scum!" Redstone shouted, rushing Ulysses with reckless abandon. They clashed several times and Ulysses broke through his defense to land a cut on his chest. Redstone laughed maniacally.
"You should not have done that! Pain makes me stronger!" Redstone cackled as he rushed Ulysses. They clashed again, and Ulysses parried his attacks with ease. Redstone was less composed than Bluestone had been and his attacks were easy to deflect. But when Ulysses landed another blow, slicing open Redstone's leg, the man just laughed again. His insane fighting style became even more erratic and almost unpredictable. It seemed he became more rabid the more pain he felt. Ulysses need to end him. He caught Redstone's sabre and pushed it away with his cross guard. He then disengaged his sword and spun on his heel, delivering a slash to Redstone's sword arm that lobbed it off. Redstone laughed again.
"Go ahead! Do it again!" Redstone yelled as he charged again. Ulysses dodged away from his repeated attempts at grabbing him. Blood spewed from his stump, but it did not seem to both the psychotic man. Ulysses managed to side step him and get behind Redstone. But before the man could turn around, Ulysses flipped his sword around, holding it by the blade as he smashed the guard into Redstone's head. The man had turned his face just enough for his mask to shatter upon impact. What was behind the mask was more terrifying than the mask had been. Redstone's face was melted down to the bone and the only untouched flesh was his eyes. His nose, lips, and ears were gone. Ulysses decided to end the man's pitiful existence as Redstone dropped to his knees. With a flip, flourish, and a swing, Ulysses decapitated Redstone and his jugulars squirted blood all over the floor as he collapsed onto the marble. His disgusting head rolled to a stop at Ultear's feet. Ulysses whipped the blood off his sword and the blade vanished with a flash.
"Fuckin psychopath…" Ulysses cursed as he nudged Redstone's corpse with his boot. He sighed tiredly as he stuffed his hands in his pockets. Slowly but surely the whole of the guild gathered around Ulysses and his most recent kill. Ultear carefully stepped over Redstone's head and approached Ulysses.
"Well… that certainly proves something. And it looks like you saved Minerva's life… Though I suspect you knocked her out in the first place. How did you escape your bonds?" Ultear wondered, avoiding the puddled of blood pooling at their feet. Ulysses could not help but grin despite the dead man before him. He pulled out one of his many knives.
"You found ten out of the thirteen blades I keep on me at all times. This one I keep in the back of my waistband. Two others are in my boots. I suppose this is lesson learned, huh? But that aside, do you believe me now?" Ulysses asked as he kicked Redstone's corpse again. The dead assassin squirted some more blood. Ultear held back the urge to gag, unlike many of her compatriots who straight up ran off to puke or did gag at the sight. The heavy scent of blood in the air made it hard to breathe.
"I do. This man clearly came here to do something malicious, and did not care who he killed to accomplish it. You also spared my girls and saved another one from certain death, so I think you're owed your freedom at the very least." Ultear said, still somewhat distrustful of him. Ulysses nodded and glanced over at Minerva who was still in Erza's care. Erza herself was staring at him with a mixture of shock and anger.
"Thanks. I'll get out of here before any more of them show up." Ulysses said and retrieved his coat. He put it on and headed for the doors of the hall. But he was stopped when a sword stuck itself in his path. He turned to regard a very upset Erza who glared at him. Gasps and murmurs erupted from the girls of the guild. Ultear herself was even surprised.
"What… What gives you the right… to kill? To say when someone should die? What gives you the right to take the life of another person!?" Erza shouted, trembling as she summoned another sword. Ulysses sighed and turned to face her. It had appeared to him that he had angered someone who believed strongly in the value of life. Ulysses could not stand idealists.
"What gives me the right? Nothing. Listen fast, Erza, that fucking assassin would have killed me, you, and everyone in this FUCKING GUILD HALL if I didn't cut him down first! Now try to imagine for a fucking second, imagine seeing everyone you loved and cared for bleeding to death on this very same floor! He knew nothing but murder! I… I value life just as much as you do… maybe even more. I've seen men die for less. Killed men for less. But never have I once reveled in it. Not once, not ever. Nothing is perfect. Don't live in a dream, they always get shattered by reality." Ulysses explained, his voice stern, commanding, and wavering ever so slightly. He looked down at Redstone's corpse. The visage behind the mask haunted his eyes once more. Not only because of the psychotic eyes he had, but because he was now another death weighted against Ulysses' soul. His words cast silence over the guild.
"Hephaestus…" Ultear said softly to him. Ulysses glanced at her, his eyes cold and daunting. The guild master flinched. She stepped forward and put a hand on his shoulder. She could tell. Ulysses knew when he was showing his emotions. Ultear seemed to read them well.
"If I never aimed to kill my enemies whenever I picked up my sword, I'd be dead by now. But when you and your friends attacked me, I knew you weren't going to kill me. You could have put that sword through my back and killed me on the spot. So I showed you the same courtesy. And here you are now, accusing me of being a cold hearted murderer. I don't kill. I survive." Ulysses said quietly. His gravelly voice shredding the silence. Erza trembled and dropped to her knees, still holding up the unconscious Minerva. Ulysses stepped away from Ultear and approached Erza. He placed two fingers on Minerva's neck.
She's still alive. I guess I did manage to cover her from the explosion. Ulysses thought. He sighed in relief and stood up. But a sudden, shooting pain in his side made him cringe and double over. He looked down at his abdomen and saw large shards of wood lodged in his left side. Minerva had naught but a few scratches on her. But it seemed his shield had not been enough to stop himself from getting injured. He felt woozy and noticed the blood starting to stain his jeans.
"U-Ulysses?" Erza said. But he did not listen to her. He felt his heart pump again, the last of his adrenaline flowed through him before an intense pain hit him. It was enough to drop him on the ground, cold and unconscious. The last thing he heard were screams.
This so happens to be the third iteration of a story I started a long while ago. I feel like this time it came out in a way I wanted it to. If I'm going to leave it up or continue it, then I hope to see some positive feedback.
Thanks Guys.
See you next time with Bonds.