Opening Song: None
The carriage comes to a stop, and we bust out the door. Annalise's reality fades away, and Mr. K and I step into another reality. Yellow tinted energy forms a barrier around Hanzo Academy and separates it from the rest of the world.
"NO!" Mr. K yells as the both of us take off in the direction of campus grounds.
A feeling of disgust and anguish robs all the hope and joy from me. A pillar of orange smoke reaches up towards the barrier's yellow sky. Fire rages within the confines of what Mr. K, and the Hanzo girls called home. All the memories I shared here with Mr. K, Asuka, and the others is burning down right before my eyes. And like an idiot, I played right into Paladin's scheme.
"Mr. K? Alan? Is that you!?" Hibari yells in the distance.
"Is everyone alright!?" Mr. K blindly responds.
Mr. K and I follow the last word from Hibari's voice. Sitting around the campus' centerpiece fountain is that Gallowglass fellow named Sebastian and some of the girls. All of which look like they barely made it out of the burning remains. Underneath Hibari's partially burned clothing is some blistered skin. Smoke is smeared all over her face, and ash falls out of her dirty, pink hair.
Sebastian is putting pharmaceutical grade burn ointment on Katsu's hands and wrapping them with sterile bandages. Judging by the smell of burnt flesh and boiled blood, she is going to have to have skin grafts. I do a head count and try to make sure everyone is here. Three girls. Ayame, Hibari, and Katsu. I look around but Ikaruga and Yagyu are nowhere in sight.
"What's going on!?" Mr. K asks.
"I don't know! Some guy just walked in and torched the place! No warning! No nothing!" Sebastian replies.
"Was he alone?" I ask.
"As far as I can tell!" Sebastian replies.
Mr. K looks around and notices that two of his students are absent. "Wait…Where is Ikagura and Yagyu?" Words full of fear leak out of his mouth as he counts over and over again in his head to try and distort the reality he is witnessing.
"That…I don't know. We tried fighting him, but the moment it felt like we were gaining ground, he did something to Ikaruga and Yagyu." Hibari states as she cleans the ash off her pink topaz necklace.
Mr. K clenches his fists and charges forward towards the burning building. I stick close and try to quell the awful thoughts plaguing my mind. There's no time for an explanation. Every second wasted is another chance Ikagura and Yagyu won't walk out of this. That's if they are still alive.
"Hibari, I want you to use your power to try and break through this seal. Ayame? You take care of Katsu. I'm going to try and help Alan and Mr. K." Sebastian states.
"Be careful. That man is not just any hunter or shinobi, and I know for damn sure he is no yoma." Katsu replies.
Sebastian catches up with me and Mr. K as we enter a part of the building that's isn't ablaze yet.
"But I thought Gallowglass' motto was 'hunters bad?'" I say out of sheer spite.
"This doesn't change a thing. You're still a dead man, but this is a much more pressing issue since there are lives at stake." Sebastian replies.
"What's going on then?" I ask.
"The girls were getting ready for bed, and right before it was lights out, this guy steps in and sets the place ablaze. I rush in to protect the girls. He avoids me, grabs Yagyu and Ikagura by their mouths and cast some kind of spell. They hit the ground and immediately came after us. I was scared they would end up biting the other girls, so I held them off and then retreated. That's the last time I saw them."
"Got any kind of sedative?" I ask.
"Two syringes full. That's if we can get close enough to use them."
"Then it's settled. We'll hit them with that." I state.
"No argument here." Sebastian replies.
Smoke spews out the blackened walls, and a thick layer of orange paints the floorboard and wooden rafters up above. Dark clouds of thick ash skew visibility to the point that even the brightest flame is nothing more than a dull flash. Mr. K crouches down below the smoke and pushes deeper into the school.
Collapsing tiles of roofing fall from above while the raging fire continues to erode at the foundations of the building. A section of wall in front of us collapses and stirs up a violent cloudburst of embers and ash. Mr. K works his way over to a fire extinguisher and pulls the pin. White foam sprays out of the nozzle and attempts to quell the never-ending fire.
"Ikaruga! Yagyu! Where are you!?" Mr. K coughs.
"You better answer squidgirl! Otherwise, I'm going to rummage through your room!" I add as I crawl into Yagyu's room.
Faint sounds of flesh and metal colliding erupt a couple rooms over. They must be fighting with one of the horsemen. Very likely it's coming from the dojo. I work my way out of Yagyu's room and rejoin Mr. K and Sebastian. The three of us crawl in unison towards the dojo.
The doors fly off the hinges, and the body of someone skids across the floor. Another person leaps over the three of us and gives chase. A black tentacle that's in the shape of a hand scrapes the ground and narrowly misses my leg by inches. The two silted silhouettes slam into one other midair and spin around the room.
"I don't know what's going on but kick his ass!" I yell.
What sounds like Yagyu's voice screams out as her opponent clamps their teeth down on her shoulder. Her humanity is quickly masked with a pure blooded yoma howl as she stabs at the attacker with the tentacle. Yagyu's attacker wraps their arms around her and leaps through a collapsed part of the roof.
"Quick! Grab on!" I yell as I sprout my wings.
Mr. K and Sebastian grab hold of me as I twist my body. The pressure builds to the point that the joints in my knees feel like popping. I release and launch myself through the hole and above campus grounds.
Yagyu and her opponent are slashing and clawing as they duke it out on top of the administration building. I drop Mr. K and Sebastian on the roof and fly ahead. Yagyu and her attacker stop their fighting and turn their attention towards us.
Another terrible feeling comes over me as my wings fold back into my body. The person Yagyu is fighting doesn't look anything like Cavalier. In fact, it doesn't even look like a man. Long black hair hides a set of off colored blue eyes that are in constant battle with the corruption raging within their body.
Torn white rags that used to resemble a pristine uniform studded with gold buttons barely covers the girl's lacerated body. Deformed wings steeped in blue fire drag behind her as she clenches her katana and struggles to stand. The terrible memory of when Ikaruga was stabbed with a knife coated in my blood nearly causes me to collapse to the ground. What happened to Ikaruga is all my fault.
Yagyu's body is covered in bloody bites and stab wounds. The tentacle from the parasite inside her brain claws at the ground as it scrawls "HeLp uS" into the roof. The vivid flashback of that night when Yagyu was attacked by that infected creature comes back to haunt me. How it tore her eye out, and how that parasite was wriggling around in her open eye socket.
Even when Roger and I got Yagyu to the hospital, it was too late. It already burrowed into her brain and all Jonathan could do was inject the parasite with a suppressant that would stunt its growth. She would live, but at the cost of that thing being a part of her forever. I wasn't fast enough.
"Yagyu? Ikaruga? Please come back to us." I slowly step towards them, and they tense up. Muscle memory from killing their kind overrides the ability to think as I reach around and grab the handle of my revolver. Corruption continues to fill Ikaruga and Yagyu's eyes despite their valiant effort to keep themselves from succumbing to those joyful violent desires.
I remove my hand from the revolver's grip and wiggle my fingers. Sebastian notices the movement and eases over. "Take it from someone who knows firsthand, giving into that blood craving will only bring regret. Ikaruga? How would you feel if you woke up and saw chunks of Yagyu's body laying before you? And Yagyu? Do you think you could live with yourself knowing you devoured a girl that's like a sister to you?"
The looks in their eyes and occasional snarling tells me that these words are falling on deaf ears. If it were anyone else, I would have already shot them both. Every terrible memory from all the people I killed continues to form a never-ending compilation of failures that builds to a point that it feels like I no longer have a heart. That life no longer has any purpose.
I grit my teeth as Sebastian hands me a syringe, "I have watched this happen time and time again. To people I hated and those I loved. I let it happen to Roger, and from that day onward, I made him a promise that I would never let it happen again."
Mr. K and Sebastian get into a defensive stance as I ready myself for a fight. A fight I am not prepared for. The sclera of Ikaruga's left eye turns completely black, and the corruption tarnishes her pretty blue eyes into a bright red color. I get on all fours and suck down to the ground. Yagyu continues to struggle with what's raging within her body, but it won't be long until she joins the fray.
"Mr. K? See if you can get squid girl back. I'll bring Ikaruga back." I say.
Ikaruga raises her katana and charges towards us. I pounce forward and engage. She swings her sword downward and spins her wings around. I duck to the side and roll to safety as she rebalances herself and comes back. One hit, and it's over for Ikaruga.
She spins around and unleashes a flurry of rhythmic slashes. All of which keep me out of striking distance. I let the blade glide off the palms of my gauntlets and use that force to swat Ikaruga's attacks down. She brings her katana around and throws a kick. I grab hold of her leg and force her off balance. Ikaruga buries her sword through the middle of her foot and stabs me in the head. The bite of her katana separates a portion of my cheek from my jaw. Blood from Ikaruga seeps into my eyes and burns. The intense feeling of being splashed with scalding hot water sears every nerve above my neck. Her reddish, black essence form bubbles that boil and pop as it dribbles down my face and chest piece.
I let her go and jump back as she uses her leg as a means to slash with her sword. She spins around and forces me back once again.
"You're a lot tougher than you used to be." I say as Ikaruga rips the sword out of her foot. The wound heals back over as if nothing ever happened while the corrupted blood inside me stitches my face back together.
I briefly look over at Mr. K to see how he's doing. Sebastian is restraining Yagyu, but the sprouting tentacle in her eye socket whips around and claws at Mr. K the moment he closes in. Mr. K dodges an incoming blow and jabs Yagyu in the leg with the syringe. The tentacle in her eye continues to flap around, but she is losing the ability to fight back. A small burst of satisfaction causes me to grind my teeth in happiness. Mr. K and Sebastian did it. Now it's my turn to hold up to my end of the deal.
It's tempting to fight Ikaruga outright, but once the flow of battle takes place, all bets are off since I tend to lose myself in the middle of a fight. An idea comes to mind, but it's a really bad one. Even for my standards.
I carefully hide the syringe in my left hand and open my arms up. Ikaruga approaches with caution and keeps her sword ready. Even though she is lost to corruption, it seems she still remembers all of my antics. This might be a huge mistake, but there's no use in trying to back out now that the plan is in motion.
I do a mock imitation of putting a sword back in the scabbard, "Ole Toro."
Anger spreads her eyes apart as she grabs her katana with both hands and charges at me. I refer back to the time the both of us had a little quarrel, and I challenged her for that sword. Did I dodge to the left, or the right?
Ikaruga flaps her flaming phoenix wings and throws herself up into the air. I side step to the left and throw myself onto her. Ikaruga flaps her wings and bucks around up in the air.
"Easy there busty bronco! It will all be over soon!" I state as I jab the syringe into her neck and push the plunger down.
Ikaruga snarls and scrapes the side of her head. Her hand catches the syringe and throws it onto the ground. She becomes more irate and thrashes around even harder to try and toss me off. Ikaruga lands on top of the syringe and shatters it to pieces.
"Fuck!" I yell as I hop off her back.
Shards of glass stick inside Ikaruga's foot as the seeping liquid quickly evaporates from the heat given off from the building.
"Sebastian! You wouldn't happen to have another one of those syringes would you!?" I ask.
"I only had two! Why!?" He responds.
"I think we may need more than two for this one!"
I weave in and out of Ikaruga's slices and try to come up with some kind of alternative plan. The dose Ikaruga received was just enough to piss her off even more than she already was. And the plan to use a memory she despises to try and exploit her only made things worse. It goes without saying, this might have been a catastrophic failure.
The only thing left to do is let Ikaruga wear herself out, but there is no telling how long that's going to take, and the longer she holds that form, the harder it will be for her to revert back, and that euphoria given from that surge of power is what ends up killing a lot of people.
Yagyu is fighting with Sebastian and Mr. K, but it looks like she doesn't have much fight left in her. She'll black out, and they can focus on getting her, and the other girls out. Ikaruga though? It's going to take a miracle to get her back.
The thought of having to depend on some random chance miracle pisses me off. I slam my fist into the ground, "NO! I promised I wouldn't let this happen to anyone else, and by God, I am not letting it happen!"
On the other side of the roof stands two figures with crossed arms. Both of which are dressed in unique looking armor. The one with the hooded cloak has a satisfied look on his face while the other one dressed in leather armor claps in favor of what is happening.
"Look at what our Father has done! His will be done!" Cavalier shouts.
"If Father was so powerful, then he would have been able to stop this from happening." Belum adds as he twirls a ballista bolt around his body.
Ikaruga jumps in the way and prevents me from moving forward. The blinding rage causes me to forget that I was currently in a fight. She slashes at an angle and catches me right across the gut. There is no pain but blood mists out. Feelings of drowsiness descend upon me, and the intense pain of my ribs trying to burst out the open wound with every breath causes me to fall to the ground. All the feeling leaves my legs, and my face hits the ground. Cavalier cheers and claps at the sight of my downfall.
"Alan!" Mr. K yells. Yagyu slams her umbrella into Mr. K. He rolls across the building and stops right by the edge of the roof. The sudden burst of action catches Sebastian off guard. The tentacle punches through Sebastian's neck and causes him to hit the ground choking.
"I expected so much out of my father. How disappointing to be felled by a beastly human." Belum states.
Ikaruga pays no mind to me and proceeds towards Belum and Cavalier with her weapon ready. Cavalier pulls out a cat of nine tails and swings it around. The strap hooks Ikaruga by the leg and trips her up. Cavalier drags her across the rooftop and grabs her by the hair.
"Belum? Go get the trophies." Cavalier says.
"Sure thing."
A strange looking mark forms in Cavalier's hand as he sticks his fingers into Ikaruga's mouth. Sparks bounce off his armor as Ikaruga fights with everything she has left to try and break free. She coughs and gags as her ability to struggle decreases with every swing. He tosses her to the ground and casually approaches Yagyu.
"Goddamnit! Get up!" I curse myself. The wound stitches itself back together, but not at an acceptable rate. The previous fight with Paladin used a lot of energy, and all that's left is the bare minimum to survive. The hot air given off from the burning ash makes breathing agonizing. Every breath superheats the cracks and fractures on my fusing ribs. Fresh scar tissue that is forming on my lungs makes it feel like everything vital within me is being deep fried.
"What…what's going on? Why is there fire?" Ikaruga stumbles to her feet. The realization of what's going on sets in as she sees Sebastian trying to regenerate the huge wound in his throat. She casts her eyes in the direction of Cavalier.
"Come here sweetie! You've served your purpose!" Cavalier states as he makes kissing noises and speaks to Yagyu like an animal.
"Hey! What are you doing!?" Ikaruga yells.
"As my brother Belum puts it, 'claiming my spoils.'" Cavalier replies as he grabs Yagyu and jams his fingers into her mouth. He catches the tentacle and wraps it around his arm as he takes Yagyu to the ground. Saliva drips out of her mouth as she helplessly pounds against his armor.
"Put her down!" Ikaruga yells.
"Ikaruga…No…" I wheeze. The statement causes blood to jet out my mouth as I collapse back to the ground.
Cavalier dodges Ikaruga's incoming slice and tosses Yagyu into her. The both roll over to where I am laying. I work my legs around and prop up on my knees. Cavalier fearlessly walks over as he twirls his cat around. Polished leather studded with human teeth form each strand of his weapon. Yagyu lays on the ground disorientated and confused at what is currently happening as Ikaruga leaps back up and engages with Cavalier again.
"Alan? Is that you? What are you doing here? Why is everything on fire?" Yagyu asks as she sits up. She looks closer in horror as I crouch in a puddle of my own blood.
Yagyu scrambles over and tries to figure out what is going on. "What is happening!? Why!? Is this just some kind of bad dream!?" She sobs. "Where is Hibari!? Katsu!? Anyone please! Make this nightmare stop!"
"This is no nightmare." Cavalier replies as he takes Ikaruga back down to the ground and shackles her. Mr. K and Sebastian return to their feet and rush over to Yagyu. Maybe they can get Yagyu, and the others out of here.
As for me? I will just have to fight to the death. Cavalier whistles, and his horse jumps up onto the roof. He loads Ikaruga the horse's back and secures her with a series of locks to keep her from falling off or attempting escape.
"A fine trophy you girls will make for the new world. Ancient artifacts from the lineage of Hattori Hanzo."
"I won't…let you take her. None of them." I state as I stumble to my feet.
"And what are you going to do about it? You can't even stand up straight. No pride as a man. No honor as a father. Pathetic." Cavalier states as he walks towards us.
I step forward and try to act as a barrier, "Just get out of here."
"Running won't save her. Just hand the girl over, and we'll be on our way. You don't want anyone to die, do you Alan?" Cavalier says.
I ignore his threating offer and continue walking toward him. Each step gets painstakingly more difficult to take as the urge to succumb to the pain becomes easier with each passing second.
"Well, I guess that answers my question. Care to do the honor Belum?"
A huge arrow whistles through the air and strikes something. The sound of leather crimpling and chainmail links expanding rises above the sound of flames chipping away at the building's structural integrity. Time slows to a crawl as I look over my shoulder. Red droplets drip off the tip of a ballista bolt.
"Mr. K? Mr. K!?" Yagyu's voice cracks as she grabs hold of his arm and shakes.
He looks down at Yagyu and pats the top of her head. Blood oozes out of his smiling face as he slumps to the ground. Sebastian rushes over and drags Mr. K behind some metal framework as a barrage of ballista bolts keep them both pinned down.
Something strikes me in the side of the body. All nine tails of Cavalier's cat tear through my armor and sink into the bones of my right shoulder. My weight vanishes as Cavalier picks me up.
"Now be a good father and bring down the barrier for your boys."
Cavalier spins me around in the air and flicks his wrist. The magical energy used to keep the barrier intact busts like glass and digs into my skin. I spin out of control with no idea where I am heading. The only thing that is certain is the landing is going to be hard.
Gravity yanks me back down towards earth and plants me right in the middle of the burning building. Burning rafters, dry wall and smolder ashes cover me in a coffin of fire. Every bone in my body feels like it's broken as a small section of the building collapses atop of me.
Through a small gap, I can see Belum and Cavalier riding off on their horses. The Hanzo girls bound and shackled on the back of their horses. Sebastian is carrying Mr. K and Katsu away from the destroyed ruins and in the general direction of the hospital.
Boiling tears stream out of my bloody eyes. Both of disappointment and joy. Pain and relief. Katsu was able to escape the Horsemen's wrath, but at the same time, Mr. K, and the other girls were victims to it.
"ALAN!" I hear Daemogina cry out.
"Talk to me boy!" Raesetsu's voice follows.
Ending Song: "Devastation" by Johan Soderqvist
The sounds of individuals digging through the ruins overtake the screaming of burning wood. A massive weight is lifted off my back as Rutur hovers over me. He chunks an entire section of wall out of the way and hooks one of my arms around his neck. Daemogina wraps my other arm around her as they hoist me out of the ashes. Raesetsu shoves collapsing rubble out of the way and tears out an entire section of building.
She throws the weight upon her shoulders and holds the crumbling frame in place as Rutur and Daemogina carry me to the carriage. I look over my shoulder and see Raesetsu holding up what's left of the building's foundation. She drops it and gets out of the way as a huge cloud of smoke and dust obscures the burnt ruins of Hanzo academy.
Daemogina turns my head the other way, "Don't look back."
They carry me up the stairs of the carriage and lay me across the floorboard. Raesetsu shuts the door, and the driver snaps his reins. Daemogina puts her hands together and hums. Her pale skin changes color and glows brighter than polished gold. White symbols form on her hand and tongue as her humming turns into actual lyrics. A dead language only a few have heard throughout all of existence.
"Qsodaeo pentasa hurnra." She chants out loud.
An aura that can only be described as stars sparkling in an endless and empty void hovers over me. The stars intertwine with one another and form a looped cross that spins around. The agony fades into a mild soreness. Yet it leaves me unable to move or fight off the encroaching feeling of weakness.
"Rest boy. When you wake, you will be back in Cainhurst. From there, we will decide our next move." Rutur states.
I am unable to resist the urge to fight any longer. Paralysis sets in, and the lulling feel of falling asleep takes hold. Yet the only thing I see is Mr. K bleeding and Hanzo Academy burning within the solitude my dreams try to offer…