Maria stood still, eyebrows quirked and head tilted as she thought. The little girl hummed and hawed as she stared up the giant brass circle before her set into the wall of her underground room, the shiny metal surface out of place against the stone walls painted to look like the forest around her continued on forever. Gazing up at the metal door Maria was always amazed by the sheer size of it! It was as big as an elephant! …Or well she supposed it was. Not that she had actually met one before, but she knew they were huge! At least that's what her books told her, and if anything was as big as one it would be the vault's door.
To the reason why she was there, standing before several metric tons of pure brass, it was simple: She was bored.
Bored out of her wits! The young Kharstien could only keep herself entertained by her lonesome for so long, and while she did enjoy the company of her critter friends they couldn't talk, and more than anything at this point Maria needed someone to chat with! The maids had still not returned, and Mother hadn't reappeared either during the night. Since nobody had shown up to come play with her then the most obvious course of action then would be to go see them!
…But how does one move a giant door made out of metal? Especially if one was not even a fraction of it's weight…
Maria had tried everything she knew to get it open; she had pushed it, pulled it, hit it, kicked it, slapped it, bopped it, and shouted at it! She had even asked nicely too! A "pretty please, with Barometz jam on top!" did diddly squat!
The brass wheel still stood still, despite Maria's best efforts.
How was she supposed to get out now? The young heiress was trapped until someone let her out it seemed… Perhaps that was what was happening… Mother had abandoned her and trapped her down here.
The thought left an empty feeling in her stomach, and it was then that Maria realized she'd been hungry for awhile now, dinner having been skipped in favour of now depleted snacks. A grumble shook through her, tears started to well up along Maria's sky blue eyes. With a whimper the girl fell to the grass and hugged her arms tightly around her knees.
"N-no… Mother would never leave me down here," Maria started rocking herself, "She'll be back soon… S-she promised."
As the tears started to come with each sob a small voice in the back of her head whispered to her. Just like what Father had said, but he's yet to return…
"N-NO!" Maria shouted away the flicker of doubt, "He'll come back! Mummy said s-so! Daddy's just far, far away on a trip!"
The shadows along the trees and bushes seemed to grow taller as Maria felt smaller than she really ought to be. Sneering faces that laughed at her appeared along the bark and branches seemed to turn themselves into razor sharp talons, ready to grab her up and take her away from her home. Panic took hold in Maria, as her heart pounded away in her tiny body as it shook like a leaf in the wind, her eyes frantically darted from one evil tree to the next. As the wind blew though the glade the sound of menacing laughter nearly drowned out the sound of a metal door being opened.
"…What are you doing milady?"
Maria screamed, the high pitch squeal was boosted somewhat by her latent powers, it became powerful enough to shatter glass as it echoed across the clearing. Several critters watching nearby dove for cover, finding shelter underground with at least a foot of soil between them and the shrieking child.
Gloria may have been undead, but that didn't mean she liked having to repair the damage done to her eardrums. Beneath her hands covering the sides of her head her mana was already at work stitching back together the torn membrane… The splitting headache wasn't what she expected to be greeted with when the Lich arrived to the underground sanctuary.
"MARIA! WHAT'S GOING ON?!" The undead Mamono shouted, her hearing still impaired, she winced as pain continued to stab inside her head.
With a jolt the young daughter of Camilla halted her screech. Confusion won out over being startled "...A-Aunt Gloria?"
"YES!"
The little blonde girl cupped her mouth, aghast at what she'd done to one of her Mother's friends. "Oh! Oh nonono! I'm so sorry! I-I thought you were some meanie out to get me!" Maria rushed up to give the suffering undead as best a hug she could… Maybe that would help make her feel better?
Gloria for her part couldn't be mad at the girl, even if she could be a handful at times she was also perhaps the most adorable existence in the realm. Who could complain with such giant blue puppy dog eyes aimed at them.
"I-It's fine, it's my fault for sneaking up and startling you…" The Lich recalled what she had heard on her way in… The young lady had been in the midst of a panic attack it looked like. Worry for her friend's daughter overriding much of her own pain. "What were you doing there by yourself? Where's the maids?"
"Oh… No, it's just me down here. By myself…" Maria seemed to go quite at that, her face rather downcast as she hugged the older Mamono tighter.
"…No, that can't be right…" Gloria recalled Camilla saying that she had sent one of her most trusted maids to look after her daughter. A feeling of dread washed over Gloria, she had a bad feeling about what that meant for the poor maid. "You haven't met anyone else? No one at all?"
"You've been the first one I've seen since…" Maria grew quiet for moment as she looked worriedly past the Lich's giant silver cross to the opened doorway. "S-since mother went up above with the others..."
I know it's been chaos fighting off The Order, but how could anyone be so careless to leave a little girl all alone down here! Gloria normally didn't feel many emotions, but she could feel a vein on her temple twitch with irritation at the carelessness of the servants and even at her employer… This was just illogical, and there was nothing more Gloria hated than irrational behaviour at someone else's expense.
The undead floated lower, placing a cold yet comforting hand upon the blonde girl's shoulder. "Well, I'm sure they'll all be finished with their business up there soon. You did a very good job by yourself up until now, your mother will be proud."
The smile Maria gave her was uneasy, though she did try her best to share the optimism. "Alright, if you say so Aunty Gloria."
The hand was retracted as the Lich rolled her purple eyes, "How many times do I need to tell you, it's 'Big Sister Gloria'! I'm not an 'Aunty'!"
"But I heard Dad say that you're almost as old as Mother? And he said that only younger girls can be called a 'Sister'." It was adorable how Maria tilted her head like a little rabbit, innocent blue eyes looked quizzically back.
If I somehow ever see that bastard again I swear on Hel that I'll tear him a new asshole! Or maybe five!
"Well, he's wrong! I'm still a young maiden at heart, and that's what counts! Now run along back to the pond, I'll catch up with you in a bit. I'm sure you missed dinner, so I'll see if I can't whip something up for us."
"...But Aun-Big Sis, all you ever make is that cup noodle thing. And, Mom said that eating too much of that would make you rotten..."
A slight purple embarrassed blush came across the Lich's cheeks, "T-that's not true! Instant noodles just taste even better at midnight is all! Now run along before I add a lession on Mana and the conservation of energy to the menu!"
The young heir to the Kharstien family hastily nodded before taking off at a mild skip back towards the center of the bunker. "All right fiiine! I won't tell Mom about the noodles. I'll See you there Aunty Big Sis!"
The Lich smirked and shook her head, she'll have to teach that girl a lesson or two, else she turn out like her Father.
With a wave of her hand Gloria cast the spell to reseal the heavy metal doorway. Hopefully the wards and several meter thick stone would keep what ever horrors lay beyond from breeching the sanctuary, yet as the door rolled shut into place the grey skinned girl couldn't help but feel as if there was still something lurking out in the darkness, waiting for an opportunity to get in.
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"Hmmm, it seems our time here is up." The colourfully dressed gentleman looked up at the growing cracks in the fabric of reality with a bored expression. Milo on the other hand was having an absolutely wonderful time tearing his hair out as he bellowed in pain and animalistic ferality. His eyes were already squirting out rivers of blood from where he had previously gouged his eyes out. At this point the dark haired youth was nothing more than a raving lunatic driven to extreme existential suffering.
"…Perhaps I should fix you up first before I send you back to the waking world." With a snap of his boney fingers the incoherent gibbering young Hunter was engulfed in a wave of sable feathers. The plumage roiled around and around in a torrent until they all fell to the floor, as if the very wind that had borne them aloft ceased to be. A very puzzled and less raving mad Milo stood amongst the sea of black feathers.
"W-what the fuck just happened?"
Caim got up from his chair at the table to saunter over, "Sorry about all that my good chum, gave your soul a little 'reset' is all! I have a tendency to talk one's ear off, and unfortunately your mere mortal mind could hardly make heads or tales of all that was said! Real shame that, I got so worked up on finally talking to someone after eons and I completely forget how brittle your brains are."
As the entity dressed as a Human got closer Milo instinctively took a step back, "T-then all the more reason for you to shut up!"
The uncanny figure halted in his stride, still a few feet away, but for some reason to Milo the man seemed to tower over him like a giant's shadow. A disapproving frown came over Caim as he looked down, like a father about to scold a child. "What have I told you about such vulgar language? It'll ruin your tongue."
Another flick of his index finger and to Milo's horror his tongue popped right out of his mouth to wiggle like a worm amongst the feathers. Before the man could scream in terror (as he wouldn't be able to speak anything besides "bhgfhbhg" sans his missing facial muscle in the meantime,) Caim clamped an inhumanly large hand over Milo's mouth. "None of that now, need you to focus. You're already beginning to wake up in the world outside."
The spirit calling himself Caim pointed with his free hand to the ceiling, as massive cracks spread along the roof, letting blinding white light peak through. "It seems someone up there is looking out for you, they gave you something blessed with the Chief God's own power in it just strong enough to mend your mortal wounds… Well, technically I helped start that process, but I'll let Her take some credit here."
Milo continued to stare wide eyed at the creature, still too shocked to really grasp what he was even saying at this point. One of the rays of light breaking through landed on Caim's arm, searing the cloth and flesh beneath it, he didn't seem particularly perturbed by it. Nor did he care that the feathers beneath their feet start to smolder.
"Shame I can't stay and chat more, hopefully next time we shall meet we can gab till the crows come home!" Milo didn't ever wish to be within the same plane of existence as this monster, let alone socialize with the nutcase.
"In the meantime, for indulging an old man in some company, I shall leave you with a gift!" With one last flick of his fingers Caim withdrew his vice like grip from Milo's face, allowing the Hunter to gasp for air at last… There was an odd sensation within Milo's mouth, as if his tongue had been replaced with an eel as it writhed around in his jaw. With a shaking hand the man reached in to feel what the monster had done to him, and what he pinched felt like his tongue… But it was too long to be that of a Human's. As he pulled it out to see what mutation had befallen him Milo saw caught between his fingers a long black serpent like tongue that stretched out several inches than it really ought to. With a yelp the slimy muscle was released.
Milo snapped his hand up to grab a fistful of Caim's dress shirt, pulling the towering man down to eye level. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME?!" The new tongue felt off, like he had to talk around a marble due to the tongue not quite fitting back into place, yet his voice sounded more crystal clear than ever before.
Undaunted by the snarling Human Caim merely rolled his eyes, "Is that any way to treat someone who's gifted you the blessing of 'Voices'?"
A flicker of confusion rolled across Milo's features, "The what now?"
"You know, Voices? Speaking in other languages and species?" When the Human didn't reply Caim let out an exasperated sigh, "When you said you didn't know who I was you really meant it, huh?"
The cracks in the room spread even further, snapping up the table and chairs as they burst into flames. Another beam of light struck Caim, spearing him through the chest in several places. "No matter, I'll explain it to you again when you're ready. In the meantime, stay alive up there, I'd hate to see a new companion of mine turn to ashes." With that a multitude of lights broke through the shattering room, all that Milo could see as his world turned white was the form of Caim shatter into hundreds of burning black feathers.
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Jacob finished picking up the tags of one of his men, the poor soul had been clawed to death by a werewolf unlucky enough to make it past their defenses. The burly man cursed under his breath at letting another one of his boys meet an inglorious end in this god forsaken castle.
If I could have been a bit faster… If I was like Milo the I would have made it in time with speed instead of this bulky weight…
Jacob Valdis had to cut off that line of thinking before it took root, he couldn't second guess himself when the rest of his men needed him to keep them alive. He'd mourn later, when he'd make it back with the Prince in tow and the battle was over. After they had made it back he'd need to find a away to write another letter to his next of kin.
"Sir, I think I have something!" The beaked halberdier waved a hand over from further down the hallway, "Looks like an exit to this nightmare!"
The Order Captain stood up from the body, quickly saying a word of prayer and laying a torn off curtain over the boy. Jacob made his way over, leading the remaining two dozen to the open doorway. Past the grand oak doors a moonlit courtyard greeted them; It was enclosed from all sides by high walls, so it was no escape route, but the light from the sky at least meant they didn't need to rely upon torches to see where they were going.
"Wait… Something feels off…"
With the added light details amongst the courtyard seemed to become more apparent. Perfectly maintained lawns were dug up, hedges slashed in imperfect cuts, and statures lay in piles of overturned rubble. A battle had happened here, there was no doubt.
Then the question was "who fought whom?" Jacob and his men were the only major Order forces inside the keep's walls at the moment, but this looked like a hurricane fought against an earthquake here… There was only one other person here Jacob knew could cause such chaos.
"Milo…"
The Order soldiers formed themselves back into a square formation as they marched, pikes and halberds held at the front while those with short swords tightened up the rear. Jacob kept his head turning left and right, observing the damages to their surroundings; he had to keep vigilant for any ambushes if whatever Milo had fought still lurked in the shadows. The night gloom didn't offer much in the way of illumination, yet compared to the cramped stone and wood interior of the castle it was as a small blessing.
The men followed a short gravel path towards the center of the inner garden, nothing rushed out to attack them with feral rage or vain attempts to seduce them, the lack of any Mamono presence unnerved the men, many of whom were exhausted from fighting their way through the enemy lines. Each rustle of leaves or foot crush of gravel elicited a twitch from the soldiers.
Then they finally came across their first body. The men halted as Jacob made his way to the front, pushing aside the wooden poles aimed at the black bodied girl to get a better look. She was naked, covered in black sludge, with tentacles sprouting from her head. What caught the Order Officer's attention was the many wounds she had received; they weren't from a sword or shot, but from what looked like a rabid animal… Claw marks stitched across the Gazer, from her cheek, below her breasts, to even several severed tentacles. Black ooze poured from the gashes into a puddle on the lawn.
Milo didn't do this… Why would the Mamono fight each other?
One of his men came up at his side, it was his NCO Sargent Gaffin. "Captin Valdis, Sir. We've spotted something else you might want to see… We've got a live one… And she's not alone."
Sargent Gaffin led Jacob's formation over to a crumpled statute, it looked like it had been blasted apart and melted into slag at the same time. Amongst the rubble a single maid crouched over a body, at the sound of the men approaching the Mamono turned her head up to watch in wide eyed terror as the armed soldiers take aim at her. The Mamono stood up with her hands raised above her head, though with her short stature she didn't even reach past Jacob's chest. At first Jacob was sure she'd bolt, her body was trembling and she looked in no shape to put up a fight, but still she remained at the foot of the statue. She had placed herself between the Order forces and the prone figure behind her, as if to shield him from harm…
"W-who are all of you?" The red haired Kikomora spoke first, anxious green eyes darted between the assortment of lethal weapons aimed in her face.
One of the riflemen present stepped out of line and whipped the maid across the head with the butt of his rifle. The girl cried out in pain as she collapsed to her knees, cradling her head in her arms. Still she protected the body by laying across the man. "Shut your mouth you dirty mongrel!"
"Stand down Private Pile! Do not act unless ordered to!" The man was violently pulled back into line by Sargent Gaffin, Jacob could swear he saw through the NCO's mask to the beet red scowl hiding under the white beak mask.
Pile looked about ready to protest, before he too saw the look in his Sargent's eyes. "T-they… They killed Stefan… We should kill them all before they get us too…"
"We'll talk later." The finality in the Sargent's tone left no more room for debate, as the rifleman was placed further back in the formation. If he survived the night there was bound to be a flogging in store for him. Jacob empathized with the young man, but order had to be maintained or else no one would make it out alive.
Placing his massive war hammer down in the grass beside him Jacob knelt down to the Kikimora's level. Several of his men snapped up their weapons in case the monster retaliated, but the giant Human waved them to stand down. The girl wasn't much of a threat, and if it came down to it the burly man was sure he could snap her like a twig if he so wished. "My names is Captain Valdis, with the 52nd Royal Order Foot, Brave Company. What's your name?" A thick leather glove was put forth to offer the maid a hand.
Still reeling from the bash on her head the Kimimora blinked a few times, blood began to weep from the cut along her forehead. Still, the Mamono proved to be made out of stronger stuff than she first appeared, as she shook the daze from her mind. "Di-… Dianna, that's my name. I serve Lady Camilla…"
Jacob nodded, his large white beak mask bobbing. "Alright, Dianna, if you wouldn't mind I'd like to see who's underneath you. I'm sure you must be light, but I'd hate for my friend there to suffocate."
With a slow nod the diminutive maid removed herself from above the Human she was guarding. To no shock at all Jacob found himself staring at a familiar owl shaped mask.
Milo was perhaps in the worst shape Jacob had ever seen; his coat was tattered into ribbons, his body was covered in blood, and each breath he made came in the wheeze of someone with a punctured lung. But, he was alive.
Noticing the arm with some crude bandages wrapped around them Jacob gently picked up the limb. The white fabric was torn from the hem of the maid's outfit, though it was already soaked a deep crimson He spied the empty Holy water injector underneath and the spot on the arm it had been administered. "Dianna, did you do this?"
"U-uhmm… Yes?"
The Human Captain reached up with his spare hand towards the trembling girl. The Kikimora cringed, believing she was about to be beaten over the head once more. Instead she was met with a large hand gently rubbing the top of her head between her ears. The maid gawked in surprise as the Human soldier patted her. "Good girl. I thank you for aiding Milo here, his wounds would have been fatal had you not tended to him."
Diana didn't exactly know how to feel about the scary giant masked man touching her hair after they had just met, but she didn't think she could exactly tell him off with so many guns pointed to her head, so she allowed him… Admittedly it did feel a bit nice too.
With a nod from their Captain one of the company healers rushed forwards, taking over their spot and beginning the process of professionally bandaging up the wounds.
Seeing his childhood friend being taken care of Jacob felt a bit less anxious. He was still concerned of course, finding your best friend beaten to smithereens in a monster filled castle was never a good feeling, but knowing he was in good hands now was a step in the right direction… Speaking of who's hands he'd been in, there was a Mamono that had been all over him… And yet she had made no move to ravish him while he was out for the count…
Turning to the amber haired Kikimora Jacob set himself into finding the truth of this mystery. "Now Dianna, would you mind telling me what exactly happened here?"
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