Chapter 4: Death Ballet I

By: ViolentBlue

"Pleased to meet you. I'm Elsa."

Subaru's heart stopped for a moment as he saw the stunning yet deadly figure of the Bowel Hunter enter the loot house.

Oh God...how could I have not remembered...She stood right there in front of them, and while her outfit may have made her look deceivingly beautiful; Subaru knew that it was only a distraction. For lack of better words, she was a personification of death itself. But it wasn't that he was trapped with the Bowel Hunter that filled Subaru with mounting dread. He had defeated her before, and he knew how she fought. He had defeated her, and had conquered foes that were more powerful than Elsa.

It was that he had forgotten.

If Subaru could no longer trust the memories and experience he gained from Return By Death, then what could he trust. RBD was his greatest asset, the one that enabled him to survive, to soldier on through death. But if he couldn't remember anything now, his mind atrophying from the repeated pressures that were thrust upon him, then he would simply repeat the same mistakes over and over again.

And over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over again-

Get a hold of yourself Subaru! You can't freak out now! He forced himself back into reality. Subaru had to think, think carefully. He'd beat her before, and Reinhard was on the way. He wasn't alone, all he had to do is hold off her long enough for Reinhard to come and save the day. That's all he had to do. He could do that.

Emilia looked at him, noticing his going into difficulty a second earlier, and briefly but tenderly put a hand on his shoulder, the touch calming him somewhat. She seemed slightly nervous at the prospect of Elsa's entrance, but she seemed to brave it regardless. Subaru wished to communicate to her about how dangerous Elsa was, but he didn't get the chance.

"There seem to be quite a few outsiders here. I figured the old man would be here, but I didn't expect these two." Commented Elsa, looking around.

"Well, us weaklings have our own brand of smarts here." Said Felt, gesturing to a table. "Rom's here to make sure things run smooth. These two are here because they wish to negotiate with me for the insignia. They're your rivals."

You didn't have to use the phrase "rivals" Felt. Subaru thought internally, looking at Elsa. He had managed to subdue his emotions for now, and stood up, facing her, Emilia doing the same. He narrowed his eyes slightly and did his best to stand tall. He had to, as there was no other option before him.

"Unfortunately, that metia is worth more than even 20 holy coins." Said Rom. "Sorry the deal didn't go your way for you and your employer this time, but you'd best bag them up and leave." It was clear that Rom didn't trust Elsa much, as he had his club close by the entire time.

Emilia for her part seemed calm, she didn't speak much during the brief negotiation, but she smiled at Rom's statement. The insignia was finally hers.

"Yeah. While I appreciate it, I agree with Old Man Rom. Sorry Elsa. I hope your employer isn't too upset."

"It's fine, my employer is at fault for trying to underpay regardless." Elsa licked her lips of the milk she had earlier during the negotiation, and stood up. "This deal ended in disappointment for me, so I shall take my leave."

Felt nodded, and put out her hand for the cell phone. "Alright then. Congrats on winning. Time to trade, now."

"Of course," Subaru still sat down, carefully watching Elsa, who turned to walk out. He was just about to reach over and hand the cell phone over to Felt, when he saw the Bowel Hunter's smile, and the flash of hidden blades. She was clearly aiming for Felt, but while she was fast, Subaru was prepared for it. In a burst of strength, Subaru utilized Invisible Providence to assist him, combining the hand with his own two to flip the table over at Elsa. The Bowel Hunter for all her grace and speed was unable to dodge the sudden attack, and the table knocked her into the wall, splintering.

Emilia gasped in shock at his sudden deflection of Elsa's attack, and tossed her cloak to the side, the half-elf standing in full view and ready to deal with any potential threats. Puck appeared at Emilia's side, already charged up to do battle. Felt stood in shock at seeing Emilia, realizing she was the person who Felt had stolen from. She didn't get to open her mouth to comment however, as Rom took Felt by the arm and took her to the side, the club in his hand. He had seen Elsa's attack as well, although he was too slow to stop it.

"Good save, boy. You just saved Felt's life." Despite the obvious anger in his tone Rom was clearly extremely grateful. He then growled at Elsa, who had quickly recovered from the surprise attack. "I should've known you would have tried something. I sensed somethin' off about you from the moment you came in here."

Elsa chuckled as she stood, wielding her two short blades. "You were correct. I should mention...my employer told me that if money was not enough...I should take the insignia by any means necessary. I do so look forward to splitting each of your stomachs and seeing the results- especially that little spirit over there. I've never seen your insides at all."

"You won't get the chance to!" Yelled Subaru. "Not while I'm here. I've seen you in action before, Bowel Hunter...and you won't be splitting anyone's stomach tonight!" Memories flooded his mind of the previous fights head had been in with her, and he took up a guard position. Adrenaline pumped through his veins, and his focus narrowed.

You may be more powerful than all of us, but all I have to do is delay till Reinhard arrives. And I've fought you before.

"So she's the Bowel Hunter." Said Rom. He blinked, coming to a full realization of the situation they were in.

Elsa devilishly grinned. "The one and only."

She then dashed toward Subaru, who grabbed the chair Elsa had sat in, charging toward her. The sturdy wood managed to block the blows, as they locked their weapons. At first, Elsa began to push him back, but once again utilizing Invisible Providence, Subaru pushed back with both his own force and the Authority of Sloth, shoving her back rapidly toward the wall. The usage of such power fatigued him, a drop of blood coming from his left eye as a result. However, he had momentum on his side, and was about to crash her into the wall. Pinning Elsa would easily enable Rom, Emilia, and Puck to land a blow, but it would not be that easy.

Elsa quickly disengaged the lock and sidestepped to the right, making a run for Emilia as Subaru barely adjusted himself in time to prevent crashing headlong into the wall. Unfortunately, she had run straight into a trap, as Emilia and Puck greeted her charge with a powered-up spear of ice. Elsa was able to partly dodge it, but still did get hit and was knocked down, bleeding from her side.

Surprisingly to the others, and unsurprisingly to Subaru, Elsa got up quickly enough, her wounds already regenerating thanks to her ability. Subaru recalled snippets of this being used during previous fights, and shouted out, "It'll take more than that! She's got some kind of regeneration power!"

"Well astute, boy." Elsa shifted her position, and while injured, she clearly still was a great threat.

"Glad to see you were introduced to my attack, face-first." Grinned Puck. "My name is Puck, and this is Emilia. Be sure to remember our names on the way to your grave!"

The duo continued their offensive, firing ice crystal after ice crystal at Elsa, preventing the Bowel Hunter from even getting within a few feet of them. Subaru ran over to where Rom was, yanking a shortsword off the wall by him for defense. "We got her wounded, but that bitch isn't going to quit!"

Rom nodded, readying his club as he watched the skirmish between Emilia, Puck, and Elsa. "All we would do is get in the way."

Felt stood with her weapon out, watching it. "That's...that's the girl who I stole the insignia from! She was with you?!" She looked at Subaru in shock, and in demand of an explanation.

"Look, when we aren't in a fight for our lives, we can make small talk. Now, we're all on the same side here."

"Boy's right." Said Rom. "We'll deal with questions later, but now we got to stop her. Felt, if I were you I'd make a run for it. We can handle things here."

"No way, Old Man Rom! I'm staying."

"Felt, I'm telling you…"

"That's all for now...but know, I'll be back." That's when Elsa promptly exited the duel, using the door to escape as an ice crystal from Puck narrowly missed her. She disappeared through it, the 5 looking around for her.

"Looks like she decided to leave." Said Emilia, still wary.

"Good, too. I underestimated her, it's 5, and my mana is exhausted…" Said Puck sleepily, rubbing his eyes.

"It's alright, Puck." Emilia grinned. "You did a fine job, and we did successfully drive her off."

"Agreed. That we did, and with that, I'm going to sleep. Good luck with the rest, Emilia." Puck disappeared into the crystal around Emilia's neck.

Emilia walked toward Subaru, a smile on her face. "That was very brave of you, Subaru."

"Well, I was just doing-" As he spoke, a figure crashed through one of the back windows of the loot house, Subaru recognizing it as none other than Elsa, who was heading right for Emilia. Subaru's eyes narrowed, as he saw the Bowel Hunter's blades flash toward Emilia, running straight to disembowel the half-elf before her.

Damn her! Elsa hasn't given up yet!

Time crept to a standstill inside his mind, Emilia turning in surprise, just in time to see Elsa only a few steps from her; the Bowel Hunter moving at lightning speed despite her injury which was already healing.

If Emilia took the full blow, she would die in short order. And if Emilia perished...he'd have to go back to Zero again, with only one way for him to do such a thing. Subaru knew that one more death could be the death that finally broke him mentally, and he couldn't count on it.

He thought to scream for Puck to shield her, reaching for a memory of him doing the same long ago in a past loop. But, Subaru realized that by the time those words left his mouth, the first cut would already land. As well, the light in the window indicated that it was roughly around 5. Not to mention Puck had gone to sleep, and there was no guarantee of him still being up to protect Emilia.

He couldn't use Invisible Providence to grab Elsa's arm or tank the blow, as given his recent usage it needed time to recharge. Subaru was still able to use it as a result of his exposure to the Authority of Sloth in his past loops, but it wasn't properly synchronized with this version of his body and so was weaker.

As well, because he was out of melee range of both Emilia and Elsa, there was no possible way for him to maneuver to deflect the blow himself in time.

...Or was there?

As his eyes widened, Subaru instinctively activated a remnant of a power that he had forgotten about, adrift in his looping timeline. By the time he did, Elsa's slash cut into Emilia, who despite her quick reflexes and athleticism from her heritage could only half-dodge the sudden blow. It exited in a millisecond, as the Bowel Hunter moved aside to prevent any counterattack hitting her when she slowed down, and then flipped back to marvel at her handiwork.

Emilia's dress was split open at her stomach, leaving a thin line that showed where the cut had landed. Puck had jumped back out just as it did, screaming "Emilia, NO!" as the spirit tried to assess the damage and heal her.

But there was none. She was untouched, and Emilia staggered back, blinking, both Rom and Felt looking on in surprise, and Elsa in shock and dismay. No one had managed to cheat the cut of her dagger before like that. But it wasn't Emilia's athletic skill or luck that saved the half-elf from her wound.

Cor Leonis, First Shift. An ability originating from the Authority of Greed that Subaru acquired long ago when he defeated Regulus, the Archbishop of Greed. Despite this being a completely new loop, Subaru still held vestiges of its power. It was a powerful tool in his arsenal, granting him the ability to absorb the fatigue and pain of others at the cost of taking it on himself. Subaru could even use it to prevent fatal injuries, saving his allies and friends from death.

But it would all be for naught if he couldn't prevent his own.

Immediately Subaru doubled over in pain, doing his best not to cry out. The same cut that he saved Emilia from receiving had been for the most part reproduced on himself.

Subaru remembered some of his first loops, where he had lost to Elsa and felt the exact same threatened to overwhelm him and drag him into unconsciousness. His vision became blurry and the corners of it turned black. However, Subaru was no stranger to such an affliction given, and beat back the darkness, remaining upright.

"How..." Emilia said quietly, amazed at not being hurt from Elsa's attack. She tossed a glanced over at Subaru, who could only weakly grin as he clutched his belly. Her eyes widened as she noticed a drop of blood fall down from below his jacket, but she would have no time to further realize what happened. There was still the Bowel Hunter to deal with.

Puck looked around, the spirit seeing Emilia was alright. "Emilia…you're alright…" The spirit was already drifting off again, but clearly was still distraught.

"You don't have to use any more power for me, Puck. Rest…" She said softly.

"Ok...I will. If-if it comes down to it, call me. Even if you have to squeeze me out of my Od." Puck then disappeared back into his crystal.

Emilia then immediately turned to Subaru, seeing him in his wounded state, more drops of blood dripping from underneath his clothes. "Subaru, what did you…"

"I did what I had to, Emilia." He looked at her, with both love and pain in his eyes. "To...save you."

Rom after seeing this, wasted no time and promptly vaulted over the counter, club in hand and heading at Elsa. "Here I come!"

Emilia rushed over to help Subaru as she saw his wound, the young man collapsing against the counter, struggling to remain conscious. Emilia immediately began to heal him, although her voice was fading in and out.

"Subaru...hold….just…." He felt the sweet embrace of unconsciousness began to wrap around him, but as he saw Rom and Elsa fight as his eyes closed, he realized what would happen if he went down.

If he passed out, Rom would soon lose to Elsa and die, along with Felt and Emilia. He hoped Reinhard would arrive soon, and he knew the Sword Saint was going to, but he couldn't wait. He had to do something, anything.

His mind flashed for a second, as he felt Cor Leonis's power inside his being. He could use Cor Leonis's other ability. Second Shift. Just as how First Shift enabled him to take the burdens of others, he could do the same in reverse with Second Shift. But he couldn't transfer the wound he took for Emilia back to her, nor would he do so to anyone of his allies.

...But there was one he could try. He focused his power on Elsa, using the last of his strength to try to force Second Shift onto her, but it was futile. Second Shift's limitations prevented him from putting fatigue and injury onto another person who was not willing to accept them. There was a wall there, blocking his ability to transfer his own injury and fatigue to the Bowel Hunter.

He was now drifting between consciousness and unconsciousness, sleep and wakefulness, his mind beginning to shut off. His senses were fading out, and he couldn't hear Emilia's panicking speaking anymore. Nothing but a blurry fight scene between Rom and Elsa. The wall was ever present, and he couldn't break through it.

...But Subaru would try.

Once more summoning his tattered will, he staved off sleep entirely, and focused Cor Leonis into the wall that blocked off Elsa from being touched by it. The wall moved. He felt his fatigue drain away slightly. Emilia's healing helped the matter, as she slowed down the bleeding from the deep wound. It ensured his bowels stayed not only inside him, but gave him enough to continue trying.

Subaru concentrated despite his lightheadedness, focusing everything in his Authority of Greed against the wall, pushing on it. He could feel the limitation budging, but he needed more. So he added more. Feeling his own Gate, he added it's unstable power to the mix. Not enough. The wall was still there, but much weaker.

In a decision that could perhaps come back to haunt him later, Subaru focused once more, and put all he had, every bit of magic, every bit of Authority, and even his own Od, chipping away at the wall that limited his Authority. And then at all at once, the wall broke.

As Elsa leaped on top of Rom's club to dive down upon him and deal a blow, the Authority of Greed hit her like a truck, knocking her off balance and crumpling her to the ground. She managed a weak slash across Rom's torso, but that was all. As she stood, her eyes widened in surprise to see her own stomach was now cut into, and staggered both in shock and pain.

That...should hold her. He thought, Emilia's eyes widening as his wound disappeared from him.

By sheer force of will, Natsuki Subaru had managed to break through an Authority's limitation. Using Cor Leonis to share his burden on someone who didn't wish it, and had successfully brought his fatigue and injuries onto Elsa. Sensing the battle was going against her, Elsa quickly limped away before Rom could recover for another strike. She said something, but Subaru couldn't hear what the Bowel Hunter's parting words were. Neither did he care.

Cor Leonis. Third Shift. Subaru considered in his mind. While his wound and fatigue from earlier were gone, the stress and new fatigue of having used his own lifeforce to force an Authority's power through weighed on him heavily. He knew that later his use of power could be significantly problematic, but for now Subaru didn't care. He had beaten the Bowel Hunter once more, and without a single death.

He looked up at the ceiling, feeling himself slip away as the adrenaline faded and exhaustion took its place. Emilia said something, likely pleading with Subaru to stay awake, but he still couldn't hear her. The last thing he saw as a figure with distinctly red hair run in, just in time to see the aftermath of the battle.

As he closed his eyes and drifted into sleep, there was only one single thought on his mind.

In mind, and in body...I'm still intact.

A/N: And that concludes Arc 1! Thanks for joining me on this set of chapters so far. Writing them was a pleasure, and I hope you all enjoyed reading it. After this there will be a short Interlude, and then we'll be going into Arc 2. I won't give away any spoilers, but this is when things will really get going, and I do have lots of plans.

Hope the addition of Cor Leonis, Third Shift was well done. While it's "canon plausibility" depends on whether or not you think Authority limitations are unbreakable or not, I thought it'd be an interesting addition to Subaru's power set. Let's just hope it doesn't come to haunt him later…

Regardless, thanks to all my reviewers and those who fav'd and followed this story. Really appreciate you guys, and the next chapter of Re:Make will be coming shortly!