And here we have the first of the next two chapters.
Overcoming Destiny
"Talking"
'Thinking'
"Wireless communications"
Ch 11
Kirito sat in a chair looking at the expansive wall in front of him contemplating. He still hadn't figured out what had been going through Kayaba's mind when he wrote it into the system. After he had awoken within this timeline he noticed that there was another inventory slot that was unable to be accessed. When Louise had transitioned everybody those that had anything within it found the contents in a room under their dwellings. Or in marked rooms that were within the trunk of Yggdrasil if the players didn't have an in game house. He was currently looking at Liz's wall at the moment, impressed with how many different creatures from the upper floors that she had beaten for materials. Kirito was doing this because this was the first time he had had any spare time since the transition as everybody had taken to calling it. He had already sorted his trophy wall and was watching Liz sort hers. "It wouldn't surprise me in the least if Kayaba took some cues from a few older American movies when he made this addition to the game."
"Yeah well all I know is that these are being very annoying." Liz mumbled easily hefting the skull of a dragon that was as big as she was into the jigsaw puzzle that was her collection.
"Annoying or not I'm actually very impressed with some of the upper floor critters you've taken down in your solo forays."
"Well you didn't make it very easy for me to go off by myself buster." Liz said in mock anger.
"You're blaming me for trying to keep you safe? You wound me." Kirito stated holding his hand to his chest with a smile on his face before turning somewhat serious again. "Still I find it somewhat unnerving that I feel this ingrained urge to take trophies like this."
"I can concur." Liz answered finishing with positioning her current skull. "But I look at these skulls and see what I had to go through to get them. As well as friends lost getting out of there. So if it'll make you feel any better you can think of it as a memorial wall or a diary of your fight for survival." She finished trying to draw the conversation a certain way.
"I see. Well you want to go spar to get some practice in?" Kirito asked expectantly. Liz a disbelieving look on her face as she faced the wall away from him. Wondering when he would either get the hint to either fulfill his husbandly duties to her or turn her into a being like him so that he could do so without chancing hurting her.
Sighing in frustration Liz turned around with a wide smile. "Sure why don't we do that."
OOooOO
In a certain castle situated within the branches of a certain tree, Klein was lying in bed staring at the ceiling contemplating the facts of life as he knew them. "Well even if I die because of wanting to be on level ground with my wife I can be content in the knowledge that my bloodline will continue." He mumbled thinking of his twins before falling asleep, the only time that he was able to escape the constant burning ache of his body.
Klein was dreaming. He knew that he was because everything was slightly out of focus. He was looking over a battlefield that had dead Fae and soldiers from three different armies from other countries. "Your people need to prepare." A voice calmly stated over the scene. On one end of the field he saw Louise on her knees on a pile of corpses wailing to the sky at the losses to her people; his massive bulk in dragon form not far from her, unmoving. Both of Kirito's swords were broken, he had cuts covering most of his body. His clothes were in tatters and he was holding Yui in his arms as he comforted her with Liz's corpse beside them. Silica laying in a pool of her own blood surrounded by the people she had killed trying to remain alive. Agil was lying on the ground missing an arm and his axe broken in half. "Your people will be unable to stay out of this planets politics so prepare to protect your new home. This will be your fates following your present course if unprepared. Be calm and do not despair; getting worked up will do neither you nor anybody else any good."
Klein awoke instantly listening to his surroundings and more recently smelling them since that part of his physiology heightened fairly quickly. Opening his eyes Klein looked around feeling something was off in his and Louise's room. It became apparent what was wrong as he finished his inspection when his eyes landed on a being that appeared to be clothed in light standing beside the door to the balcony.
"Be at peace RyoutarouI come bearing a message for you from Yeshua." The messenger stated grabbing Klein's attention even more than it had been before. "For the next few years those who accept the transformation that you're going through will have a one-time chance to fully transform if the situation is truly life or death. The draw back will be it will take longer for your magic to stabilize if you make use of this option. When the transformation is dropped you will return to your previous transitionary state. Use this knowledge well."
"It shall be done." Klein answered in a whisper before the messenger faded from view. "It shall be done my Lord." He mumbled to the ceiling glad for the turned maid that had agreed to help him shortly after she had awoken.
OOooOO
Siesta had been in a constant state of euphoria after she had awoken two weeks prior as an Imp. Yes she had been treated well working as a maid within the academy. She had been content with her lot in life that meant she was a commoner in the employ of nobles there were shortcomings but that was life. Now that she had been given the chance to make something of herself she took it. At the moment she worked to improve the comfort of another but as an equal not as a servant which made a big difference as far as she was concerned.
"Siesta." Her current charge stated when she came in as this was one of the times he was awake when she entered after cooking meaning that she didn't have to hold the meal under stasis.
"Yes Klein?" Siesta answered the inquiry.
"When she gets back can you tell Louise I need to speak with her so that she'll hang around till the next time I awaken?" Klein requested before he started eating; annoyed that he was relegated to eating with his hands at the moment unable to use utensils of any type, though glad that he still had some mobility.
"I can do that." Siesta answered preparing to tidy up the room so that she could get back to her book; something that she had been unable to do at the academy.
OOooOO
Louise, at the moment, was annoyed. They had finished hammering out the details and finally signed the treaty between their two nations but some people just wouldn't take a hint.
"What is it Wardes?" Louise asked deadpan ready to relieve somebody of their head.
"Can I not visit my fiancée to reacquaint myself with her? Even if she is now different." Wardes asked hopefully, having not seen her for years.
"No you can't." Louise answered with a glare. "Because you don't have a fiancée anymore. I'm married."
"So what lowlife made you marry him?" Wardes angrily bit out appalled that his plans might go unfulfilled.
At this Louise started cackling in mirthless laughter. "Someone better than you. And he didn't force me." With that she spun on her heel and began walking off.
Wardes growled in anger seeing his carefully laid plans falling apart around him. He knew that Louise was a void mage and wanted to have children with her, thus creating an army of void mages. He'd settle for forcing her if he had to. Unfortunately for him he had failed to see the match between Titania and the Heavy Wind so was unprepared when she blurred into motion after he grabbed her shoulder. Louise grabbed his wrist, yanking it in front of her as she performed a shoulder throw that landed him flat on his back knocking the wind out of him, twisting the arm she was holding behind his back forcing his face into the floor. "I'll say this once and only once. Don't. Touch. Me. Wardes." She growled out with as much venom as she could muster.
Releasing the soldier after she said this, Louise turned and leapt out the window taking wing and heading back toward Yggdrasil.
Wardes sat up, wincing at the pain from his dislocated shoulder. "You'll pay for that, I'll make sure of it." He said with a manic look in his eyes.
OOooOO
Tabitha looked up from her book as her husband trundled into the much larger room of the house she was currently residing in the branches of Yggdrasil. It was made to accommodate the size that she would grow into in another month to a year. Based upon her current rate of growth Titania figured it would be another two months before she had fully transformed into her dragon state. She wasn't worried about it though because she was currently in the most defensible location on the planet. The house that Titania gave to them was elsewhere within the canopy and they would live in it after their respective changes were completed.
"How are you today Nagisa?" Tabitha asked to which Nagisa answered by nuzzling her and giving a deep throated purr because he didn't really speak unless he was excited. "That good huh?" Tabitha mused as she held his face next to hers with a sad look of contemplation in her eyes.
"Geez you'd think that she was mad at me or something." Kirito mumbled loud enough for Tabitha to hear.
"Who mad?" Tabitha asked
"His mother is apparently mad at me for being clueless." Kirito answered indicating Nagisa. "But enough about that; your fur has fully come in and you're no longer able to walk normally. Based on what Louise has told me you're making good progress. How are you feeling?"
"Tired, sore, sleeping more." Tabitha answered.
"Good your body has now taken over your transformation fully so let it." Kirito said before adding with a smile. "I bet that Nagisa's memories are boring aren't they?"
"No." Tabitha answered with a blush across her cheeks with a sad look on her face.
"What's wrong?" Kirito asked as his smile dropped and worry crossed his face.
"You have a happy family and everyone loves each other. You and your adopted family watch each other's backs." Tabitha stated in the first full sentence Kirito had ever heard her say as tears slid down her face. "My uncle killed my father and tried drugging me, but my mother drank the poison that was meant for me making her lose her mind. My uncle holds her safety over my head to force compliance. I decided that in her current state it would be better for me to get on with my life than to subject her to anymore of the hell that is her current life treating a doll like her daughter." Tabitha finished as she buried her face into the fur on Nagisa's snout using the willing dragon as a security blanket which kept her magic from going haywire.
"Tabitha, the name of your doll wasn't it Charlotte?" Kirito asked rising from his chair as the information clicked inside his mind.
"Yes." Tabitha mumbled through the fur.
"And if it is possible you wish to save your mother from your uncle." Kirito said quietly as he sat on the edge of Tabitha's bed.
The crying girl answered by nodding.
"I'll see what I can do then." Kirito stated before standing up from the bed and leaving.
OOooOO
Omake:
Natsu lay on his death bed surrounded by three generations of Dragneels and friends. His wife Lucy had passed on less than a month prior leaving him the last of his generation of Fairy Tail mages. Later that day he drew his last breath and left the land of Magnolia behind.
"What? Where am I?" Natsu asked realizing he looked like a teenager again. Patting himself down to assure himself that it was, in fact, real.
"You're finally here." Lucy called happily as she wrapped her arms around Natsu giving him a kiss.
"Where is here?" Natsu asked after ending the kiss with his wife. Looking around he could see that they appeared to be standing in the middle of a meadow surrounded by oak trees and a large building to the side with others from his generation standing in a group.
"Took you long enough Salamander." Gajeel called with a smirk.
"What does that mean?" Natsu asked before a smile played across his face. "It just proves that I'm more stubborn than you."
"Quit arguing." Erza called amused. "Come on in Natsu, the old man wants to have a word with us."
"Someone I know?" Natsu asked intrigued.
"You'll see when you come in." Erza answered. "He wished to speak with us as we got here, but we asked to hold off on that discussion. He said he would wait till all of those that actually fought in the mage wars appeared, that's you."
"I see." Natsu said to himself before looking up. "Then let's get on with it."
A few minutes later found the sixteen most prominent members of Fairy Tail having an audience with their mysterious benefactor.
"I asked all of you here because I have a proposition for Fairy Tail, specifically your group." Stated a man wearing a grey cloak with the cowl obscuring his features.
"What do you need us for?" Wendy asked.
"There will be a race of beings coming into existence on a world that has been bereft of them for far too long." The man answered. "Due to certain reasons I am giving y'all the option of assisting this land through its hardships."
"What is this race?" Levy asked.
"They are the Fae." The man answered with a smirk earning a gasp from those gathered in front of him.
OOooOOooOO