A/N: Chapter 33 of Ginga Densetsu Alayus. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters except my own OCs. GDW and the other Ginga series belongs to the rightful owner.
Special thanks to the reviewers and to the readers who Fav/Alert this story, I really appreciate it.
Chapter 33: The final battle
Weed's group...
After the weary team dragged themselves back to the base much to the delight of the other members that waited for them, Weed rushed off with Missile and Rocket to spy on the circumstances regarding Gajou. Unfortunately for them they were just in time to witness the slaughter of Kamakiri's remaining soldiers in a battle of blood, listening to Hougen's senile laughter as the Great Dane enjoyed the spectacular show.
"That Hougen...he still is a heartless, fearless bastard, for sure..." Rocket commented with disgust.
"What did you expect from a bastard like him, Brother?" Missile replied with the same tone of disgust laced in his voice. "Jet was murdered by him...after all. And he just laughed like it amused him."
"C'mon. I've seen what I wanted to see." Weed said and ran back to the base with the brothers on his heels. The skies rumbled above with the scent of a storm so by the time they came back most of the army had lined up outside waiting for their leader's orders.
"Weed, how was it?" asked Akame when the three dogs came to a halt before them, his voice laced with curiosity. "What does Hougen have planned for us?"
"Hougen had arranged his forces up into three distinct groups." Weed said after gathering the new information he just witnessed. "With this he has a solid battle formation to confront us. But there's nothing to fear because he doesn't have any more hostages in his paws."
"One group is roughly 200 soldiers, which are at the front and rear of Gajou, and most likely in the forest as well..." Rocket added. "Even if we were to take down one group of the three, Hougen's group is still heavily guarding Gajou..."
"If we plunged straight in, we may end up losing a whole lot before we get close to Gajou..." Akame warned.
"I realized something after fighting Kamakiri's army. They're all very unorganized." Weed told them. "The main target is the Commanding Officer. If we take the one in charge, the others will get confused."
"I see, that makes sense. Does that mean we're gonna split our forces into three groups too?" Kyoshiro asked, getting an affirmative nod from Weed.
"That's right. We're going to commence the mission to take back Paradise! I'll announce the Commanding Officers for the three groups." Weed said with an encouraging voice, looking at the determined faces from his friends and comrades. "Unit #1's Commanding Officer is Tesshin. Please command the Koga Ninja dogs, and everyone from Shikoku."
"Understood." Tesshin replied, his chest puffed out with pride. "Thank you for choosing me."
"Unit #2 will be lead by Ken and Kagetora." Weed continued, getting looks of positive endorsement from both the parents of Ken as well as a head nod from Kagetora's uncle Kurotora. "The followers of that group will be the dogs of Koshu, and everyone from Mutsu. I'm counting on you."
"Yes!" Both dogs replied.
"And finally...the Commanding Officer for Unit #3..." Weed took a deep breath before looking Kyoshiro straight in the eyes. "will be Kyoshiro. I'm entrusting this task to you."
"W-W-Weed!" The battle-scarred Kishu uttered out, too choked with emotion after being selected for the opportunity. "You're going to leave this up to me?"
"That's right. If Toube were here he'd join your group as well."
"Weed...!" Kyoshiro stared at his Leader with wide eyes before nodding his head. "Thank you! I won't disappoint you!"
"Joining Kyoshiro's unit will be the dogs of Shoumen, along with Hook, Sasuke."
"I'm starting to shake with excitement..." Hook stated under his breath, his tail thumping against the ground. "This is really nerve wrecking..."
"But what are you going to do, Weed?" Sasuke asked, curious about what the leader himself was planning out.
"Weed!" A voice called out, interrupting Weed from what he was about to say in response. "Weed!"
"Jerome!" Weed replied as everyone turned in surprise to see the dog running up. "And you have Alayus with you as well!"
"Hey Weed." The female shepherd puffed out as Jerome trotted to a stop. "How's it going?"
"Alayus-sama!" Ryo rushed up, touching noses with the German Shepherd. "Thank goodness you're alright."
"Ryo, where are the others?" Alayus asked her assistant, her tail wagging back and forth from the greeting. "Are they here yet?"
"Didn't you two run into them on the way over here?" The Shikoku asked, tilting her head to the side. The look on their faces was all she needed to know. "You...you didn't? Oh no..."
"Waaaaaaait!" More voices filled the air and the Ohu Army turned to see a couple more dogs making their way up to them. "Waaaaaait! Wait for us!"
"Ryu! Hanji! Heita!" Ryo exclaimed when she recognized her siblings, her tail wagging in excitement. "There you guys are!"
"Toube!" Kyoshiro rushed up to the Tosa, his tail wagging back and forth with happiness. "Toube! You're okay!"
"Glad to see you too Kyoshiro." Toube cracked a grin.
"Jerome! You're gonna be with me, Rocket and Akame." Weed said, getting the German shepherd's attention. "What I plan to do is this: Myself, Akame-san, Jerome and Rocket will head to Gajou using one of the secret passageways, and try to take out Hougen."
"Just the four of you?!" Sasuke questioned once more. "Is that really okay?"
"The passage is narrow." Akame explained as he padded to join Weed's side. "The less of us that go, the faster we'll be able to carry out this mission."
"Toube, I told everyone earlier but will you be okay joining Kyoshiro's group?" Weed asked the Tosa.
"Of course." Toube replied, getting a huge smile from the battle-scarred Kishu. "I wish to repay the Ohu army even more by joining in this battle. You can leave it up to me."
"Akame, Rocket, Jerome...take care of Weed!" Kurotora spoke up and got head nods from the three dogs.
"Let me say this to all of you. This battle is not meant to wipe out Hougen's army. Even if his army is completely evil, this is a fight to confuse and take down that bastard himself. I won't allow a single one of you to die in this fight!" Weed gave his closing remarks, knowing that everyone shared the same belief as he. "Well then everyone, let's get going!"
"Weed, I'm gonna drop Alayus into the nearby hot springs so she can heal." Jerome spoke up before everyone headed out. "I'll join you in a minute."
"Let me do that Jerome." John stepped up with a somewhat hopeful expression. "You've been carrying her all this way...please rest for a bit. Weed may have assigned me something but I kind of didn't hear what he said but...I want some more time with my little girl."
"Very well. Take care of her."
"You can count on me." The older dog promised and shouldered Alayus' body over his back, making sure she was comfortable. "Let's get going."
"Thanks Dad." Alayus told him before directing her attention to the other members of the army. "Please stay safe everyone."
"Alayus-sama!"
"Alayus-sama!"
"Ryo, Ryu, Hanji, Heita. Please assist Weed to the best of your abilities." The German Shepherd said as she looked at the Shikoku siblings. "Do take care of yourselves."
"Yes Ma'am!" They replied and watched as father and daughter disappeared towards the hot springs. Turning on their heels, the siblings walked side-by-side with the other members of the Ohu Army. With Weed in the lead, each dog walked with confidence into the final battle.
There's gonna be a storm...I wonder who's side it will be on...Akame thought as he looked up towards the sky, watching the rumblings occur overhead. All of our friends who died in battle, please lend us your power...
Hot springs...
"There you go." John said as he helped his daughter in, making sure she didn't slip or anything. They made it to their destination safely just as the first blanket of snow started to fall from Heaven above. "Are you okay? Anything out of place?"
"I'm fine Dad." Alayus said as she rested her front paws on the edge. "Thanks."
"Damn it...if I had been there I'd rip that thug apart." The old German Shepherd stated gruffly as he sat down on his hindquarters. "I'd show him a thing or two about what it means to trifle with my kid."
"Heh, that sounds a lot like you." Alayus laughed at her father's overly-protected instincts. A small snowflake landed on her snout and she shook it off.
"Well, you're my only child." John replied simply. "I'll be damned if I let any mutt lay his fangs on you. Imagine what your mother would say if she saw you now..."
"It doesn't look that bad..." Alayus muttered, twisting around to nose her fur where Kamakiri slashed her. "Look! It's healing!"
"Of course it's healing! This is one of those special hot springs that Akame discovered when we were traveling with the Leader."
"How many hot springs are like this in the world?" She asked him.
"Umm..." John tilted his head to the side with a confused look on his face. "Who knows...I never counted. Akame is usually the one who keeps tabs on those kind of things."
"Some help you are Dad..." Alayus frowned, giving him a straight-faced look.
"Hey, I contributed more to the battlefield than searching for some springs!" John snapped his teeth irritably at his daughter's remark. "If I get hurt then I wait for Akame to heal me with his secret ways."
"Sure Dad...whatever you say." Alayus chuckled and appreciated it when he licked the top of her head with his tongue, returning the gesture by licking his cheek. "Whatever you say."
Back to Ohu Army...
"Dad! Mother!" Ken yelled after a majority of the Ohu army already crossed a ravine, looking back at the few dogs that have yet to cross. "If you can't jump then we can't take you with us!"
"Pah! Who the hell do you think I am?!" Ben barked back, feeling insulted by his son's words. "Don't treat me like an old man!"
"Where are you going...?" Cross asked as her mate started to back up and ended up facing the wrong direction.
"Huh?" The light brown colored Great Dane tilted his head to the side at her question. "What are you talking about?"
"The cliff is that way, where the wind is blowing!"
"Oh..." He replied and adjusted himself so he pointed the right way, ears standing tall and on alert.
"Are you sure you'll be alright?" Cross asked him, some hints of laughter hidden in her voice.
"Cross, are you doubting me too?" Ben accused her lightly. First his son and now his own mate, Ben was determined to show them that he still has it. "I've jumped this countless times! All I have to know is the way the wind's blowing, then it's all easy! Just watch me!"
"Ben-san!" Hook shouted as he and Sasuke watched the Great Dane take a running start.
"That's more like it!" Cross laughed as she followed him.
"Eh?! Cross-san too?!" Sasuke added as both dogs jumped.
"Wow! Impressive, Dad!" Ken said as he watched his father land on all fours. "I underestimated you!"
"Damn right you did!" Ben replied as his mate landed beside him with a small thump. "It's too late to underestimate me!"
"Hook! Sasuke! What are you doing?!" GB yelled into the wind, looking at the last two dogs that have yet to jump across. "Hurry up!"
"We are...well...!"
"Why is everyone else able to jump that so easily?!" Sasuke yelped, his knees trembling together. It just looks so daunting...!
"You're not afraid, are you?"
"Bastard!" Hook snapped angrily at the English Settler's taunt. Turning around, he padded off until he was comfortable with the distance and crouched down, eyes focused on the ravine. "Let me show you what I'm capable of!" Letting out an encouraging yell he took off running and jumped with all his might. His landing wasn't as graceful but he made it, tumbling along the snow-covered ground.
"Hook was able to do it?!" Sasuke exclaimed and he started to back up as well, not as far as Hook but he could feel his blood boiling from within. "Damn it..." He rushed forward and jumped. However he miscalculated the distance and landed right on the edge. As he scrambled for a hold, Hook and another member grabbed him and hoisted him onto solid ground.
"Now you're really an Ohu soldier!" Ben praised him. "Well done!"
"Thank you very much...!" Sasuke said breathlessly, feeling proud that one of Ohu's most loyal soldiers complimented him.
"Alright, now that everyone's over safely...Tesshin, Kagetora, Ken, Kyoshiro...I'm leaving the rest to you." Weed said and the dogs whose names were spoken stood proudly before their Leader. The army split up into their groups and rushed off to engage the enemy.
"Huh? They're here already?" Hougen mused as he watched from atop of Gajou. A loud yell caught his attention and he turned his head to see something charging from the front. "What the...?! What is that huge beast...?"
"Rrrrrrrrahhhhhh! Rrrrrrrraaaahhhhhhh!" Moss roared as he continued running, throwing snow up into the air with his paws. "Rrrrrrrrahhhh!"
"He's alone..." Kite mused, watching his enemy come closer. That's surprising to say the least...
"Nice bravery but he's gonna die!"
"Leave this to us, Kite-sama!" Two of his subordinates rushed forward to meet him, sinking their fangs into the charging dog's hide.
"Ha...Hahahahaha!" Moss laughed loudly much to their horror. "Young one, it doesn't even tickle me! You're gonna have to do better than that if you wanna take me down! Wahahahaha!" More footsteps announced the arrival of Moss' son Jura and his group of friends. Scared, the two dogs quickly scurried back to Kite with their tails tucked between their legs.
"What-?!" Kite exclaimed as Tesshin and his Ninja Dogs shot up from where they were hidden underneath the snow. "Where did they come from?!"
So he's the Commanding Officer! Tesshin's eyes narrowed as he focused his attack on Kite.
"Jeez...what the hell are they doing?" Hougen scoffed before noticing another large group coming straight from the front, led by Kyoshiro. "They split their forces up too? How humorous!"
"Go! Go!" Kyoshiro ordered, prompting Hook and Sasuke to veer from him so now his large group was split into three separate groups.
If that's how they're gonna play then fine! The corner's of Buruge's mouth curled up into a deadly smile, eager to face the challenge head on. "Go!"
"Yes sir!" Buruge's army rushed forward and the ground exploded into battle as dogs clashed with dogs. Teeth flashing and claws ripping into fur soon the ground was painted in red. Saving one of his comrades from the jaws of an energy Kyoshiro continued running, his eyes honed in on Buruge.
Two of the mutt's bodyguards rushed forward to intercept the battle-scarred Kishu but they were soon knocked away. A knowing smirk appeared on the platoon leader's face and he took part in the fight as well. The two dogs collided in a grapple of claws and teeth before separating, hitting the ground at the exact same time.
"I'm impressed!" Kyoshiro said as he faced off against the platoon leader, shaking some of the snow off his pelt. "Not bad, Buruge!"
"Heh, what the hell does a lying bastard like you have to say?" Buruge replied, standing opposite of his opponent. "You tricked me once, there's no way I'll fall for your words again."
"I had no choice that time." The battle-scarred Kishu told him, his ears laying back on his head. "Forgive me!" Buruge's eyes widened at the words before he let out a low snarl.
"It's too late for apologies now!"