Aqua Sanguine
Galatea stood on the city wall facing east, pondering over the clump of yoki aura, the time bomb, planted just a few miles outside Rabona. She wondered how something as destructive as the Destroyer, the combined consciousness of two of the most powerful fighters in the world, could have imploded like it did. She wondered what kind of force would draw the Destroyer away from its path of destruction, how powerful that force must be. Galatea's mind gravitated to what Helen told her, that in this... thing... was the consciousness of Clare and an awakened being. Apparently the awakened being had one horn and was able to draw the Destroyer back.
"It's too much to think about. Hopefully when the rest get back we'll-"
Right on cue, she stopped, sensing not seven, but eight yoki auras heading towards the city. Seven of them she recognized; there was no doubt in her mind the six that left had found Miria.
The eighth, however, was something different altogether. It didn't hold any recognizable shape. It shifted and morphed, bent and twisted, flowed and evolved, almost like water.
And it was faint. Galatea almost didn't sense it; it was one of the most well-hidden yoki auras she had ever sensed. In her Claymore days, there's no way she would have caught it.
She walked down to the city gate, then out to the woods to where the body mass containing the Destroyer, Clare, and Priscilla was. She leaned against a tree and carefully focused on the mass.
She slowly felt out Clare's aura, careful not to release the beings held in the mass. She felt the unstable focus of Clare's yoki aura, the contained explosiveness that epitomized every essence of Clare's being.
Again, she was interrupted when she sensed Priscilla's aura and its immense power. She gasped at the calm of it all. Priscilla's aura felt like a calm ocean, so large and immense, holding prodigious power, yet calm at most times.
Galatea shuddered at the thought of Priscilla fighting with all her strength. Galatea had been in the presence of two creatures of the abyss, who possessed enough power to sicken her. And yet, before her lay the hibernating aura of one vastly more powerful than those three.
She lowered her head in solemn adherence to the fact that she would have little impact on future events. She could not hope to even slow the power in front of her, let alone the Organization's various collection of trump cards. In fact, with the meager forces Miria had gathered up, there was no hope of ever prevailing against the Organization. This rebellion was doomed from the start.
Galatea shook of these thoughts of despair and thought back to the eighth yoki aura she had sensed, the liquid one. Right now, this puzzled her more than anything. She walked back to the city thinking about who or what it could be.
"Rabona-the Holy City," Hadrian spoke aloud. "It has been a long time since I've been here; the last time, I was almost discovered and had to leave quickly."
"Oh yeah? When was that?" Helen asked.
"Four hundred years ago. The city's changed since then."
Helen stopped and looked back with her eyes wide and mouth open.
"Four hundred? Just how old are you, exactly?"
"I've been alive since the Organization was a group of alchemists sitting around a table trying to figure out what a yoma is. 948 years." Now everyone stopped.
"So that's what you meant by 'a very long living,'" Miria insinuated. "You've been alive longer than all three of the abyssal ones were. You've had more time to hone your fighting ability, more time to suppress your yoki, more time to observe everything the Organization has done."
"Only too true," Hadrian said as they passed under the east city gate. "Now, where is Clare?"
"A couple miles west. We'll get to her eventually. For now, we need to check in with Galatea," Miria commanded.
They all walked to the chapel where Galatea was teaching.
"You keep some curious company, Miria. First a warrior of the Organization, now an awakened being," Galatea greeted them. Hadrian kept his hood on.
"Hello, Galatea. Good to see you still alive," Miria responded.
"Me more than you. Now there must be a reason for your traveling with an awakened being, Miria. I'll assume there are some mutual goals involved?"
"God-Eye Galatea," Hadrian nonchalantly said. "you keep yourself well hidden, and especially in a holy city. However, you would do well not to assume the yoki presence of certain individuals. I would show you my physical appearance for you to be sure, but as it is..."
Galatea smirked.
"Well then, who are you, if not an awakened being?"
"Someone like you, a victim of the Organization. That's one-"
"We can discuss it on the way to Clare," Miria interrupted. They all turned and walked west.
Despite Miria's suggestion, they all walked in silence. Hadrian was content to stare at the ground ahead of him, conscious always of any possible dangers around him. Awakened beings could come up out of nowhere these days.
The civilians don't even notice us. Eight women carrying giant swords and a male Claymore, and they barely stop to blink, Hadrian thought. Galatea's presence must have calmed any rumors or suspicions about the Claymore in the citizen's minds.
They passed under the east gate. Galatea stopped and signaled all to do the same.
"Before we go any further, I wish to warn all of you: there is quite possibly the most powerful awakened being to ever live trapped in the yoki mass with Clare. If any of you are not prepared to die in case of an accidental awakening of the mass, you best get as far away as you can."
Deneve glanced at each one around her.
"We took on that risk when we went to find Miria."
"Very well. Let's-"
"The most powerful awakened being? Who might that be?" Hadrian interrupted.
"A one-horned awakened being. We're not sure what her name or former rank was, but she was the one to ward off the destroyer. At that level of power, does it even matter?" Deneve answered.
"I see. And she's trapped in this... mass? With Clare?"
"Yes. That is why the situation is so volatile and why we need to resolve it quickly. We do not want to leave Clare trapped in there with those things, but we cannot afford releasing them either," Deneve said.
They reached the yoki mass. Every female in the group held a face of disgust, each of them sneering at the mass. Hadrian had a fixed gaze upon it.
"Well, Galatea, what do you suggest?" Miria asked. She and Hadrian were the only ones that hadn't seen it yet.
"There is no solution I have been able to come up with that would not involve releasing all three beings inside at once."
"There must be some way. There is; we just have to find it," Deneve asserted.
"There is a way," Hadrian spoke up. "I can do this. I can get inside this thing and bring Clare out."
"What makes you so sure?"
"Galatea, sense my yoki. You know it is very similar to this thing's aura. I can mesh with it easily; logic dictates I can also part with it easily."
"Right. How would you even go about that?" Helen asked.
"He would have to awaken," Miria solemnly said. "You can liquefy a body part here or there, but you can't completely without fully awakening, can't you?"
Hadrian lowered his head and stared at the ground for a moment.
"No. I can't release them without awakening. Fortunately, though, I'm the only one among us who has successfully reversed the awakening process after its completion. It's the most logical decision to let me do it."
"We can't afford that risk, Hadrian. Of all of us, you should know best the destructive power of the Destroyer and Priscilla. You claim you've seen destruction that none of us can fathom, so the unbridled power of this mass should be all too familiar to you."
"Miria, this is a simple matter. Getting Clare out is our top priority. She WILL make the difference in fighting the Organization, Miria. You must be able to see this."
"No." Miria harshly said. "It's far too much risk. If you cannot come back or you accidentally release Priscilla, it will matter little that Clare is released. We find another course of action."
"Then you will die. The Organization will overrun us, and all the people of Rabona will be killed. Think, Miria. You have a responsibility not only to each half-breed here, but also the entire city. Their blood will be on your hands. Your-"
"That's enough. We will find some other way. Right now, this matter is closed. We will have neither you nor this mass awakening. That's final. And you will not touch this thing."
Hadrian took a deep breath.
"Well, I can see your mind won't be changed." He turned and walked back to the city.
Miria turned to the others when Hadrian was out of earshot.
"The mass is to be on 24-hour watch until we decide what to do with it. We'll take turns. Helen, Cynthia, you two are first. Two of us will relieve you in four hours." With that, she turned and walked to Rabona with Deneve, Tabitha, Yuma, and Galatea.
Once they passed the city gate, Galatea signaled Miria aside. They turned at a secluded-looking side street.
"Tell me, Miria, how much do you know about our new friend, besides what he told you himself?"
"Not much. You know something, Galatea?" They kept on walking.
"Nothing for certain, although there is an old story I think I should tell you. Most Claymore's dismiss it as myth, but in light of recent developments, there may be some truth to it."
"I'm listening."
"About a half century ago, a great hunt was put together by the Organization. Five single digits along with several powerful Claymores were assembled into a team designed to kill an ancient awakened being. They hunted him for months, carefully searching every town and village for signs of an awakened being.
"It was only a matter of time before they found him. He fought back and managed to kill half a dozen of them, but they eventually wore him down. He fled into the woods faster than the Claymores could track them.
"The group checked around the town for any sign as to where he would have gone when the group's eye sensed another yoki aura. They tracked it down and were shocked at what they found-a child. She gave off only the slightest yoki aura. Her mother was with her.
"They took the child, fearing the worst. And their fears were realized. The child was the offspring of the awakened being. She was 25% yoma, much like Clare, only her ability was naturally integrated into her genetic code."
"How does Hadrian relate to this?"
"It was reported that the awakened being had a distinctly different yoki aura. The records speak of it as 'liquid,' or constantly 'flowing.'"
Miria stopped. She stared at the ground for a brief second then slowly looked at Miria.
"That's... interesting. The chances of it being a coincidence are slim. If the story is accurate, then not only are we dealing with a superiorly powerful awakened being, but also with a father. Do you know what happened to the daughter? Or the mother?"
"The mother was killed. The daughter drops off the map at that point. If anybody knows where the girl is, they didn't put it into the Organization's records."
Miria stood there wide eyed, mouth open.
"That's the story, at any rate. I simply thought you should know," Galatea said with a smile. She turned and walked to the main boulevard several feet further. Miria remained where she was, completely flabbergasted at the news.
"So, have you seriously lived 950 years or however long you said?" Helen eyed Hadrian curiously as she sat across the table in the alehouse.
"Why would I lie? I've got nothing to hide," Hadrian said. He slouched in his seat with his ale in front of him. His unfocused gaze wandered around in front of him.
"Wow-900 years... Were you ever given a nickname as a Claymore?"
"No. I never served the Organization. I awoke at an extremely young age. Since then, the Organization has been no friend of mine."
"Did they hunt you?"
"Several times. For a while, I came close to dying quite often. They sent dozens of Claymores after me. At first, I killed them; I was scarcely 20 years old when they first sent a group after me. What did I know?
"After a while, though, the constant killing took its toll. I realized the Claymores were simply tools created by the Organization, just as I was."
"You mean as an awakened being, you felt pity for us? I didn't think that was possible." Hadrian chuckled a bit as Helen said that.
"Yes, I felt pity. The only difference between your average Claymore and awakened being is the awakened being has a measure of freedom. Either by force or by choice, awakened beings must live free from obligation, from superiors, from anything, and just as any other human has, they have to choose what to do with that freedom. They can gorge themselves on desires and hungers, or they can try and live some sort of faintly normal life."
"What about your hunger? You still had an appetite for guts."
"True, but a hunger is simply that-a hunger. It was my choice as to whether I ate or not. Granted, I continued to feast on innards for years after my initial awakening. Nonetheless, I stopped killing, and no matter how many Claymores they sent after me, not one has died by my hand since."
"Wow. You must have hidden yourself well. Amazing," Helen said in her usual sarcastic voice. It was hard to tell when she was actually being sarcastic-she used it so much.
"And you should find some pity in your heart for awakened beings." Helen laughed at the thought.
"What? You must be joking. Feel pity for those monsters that kill whoever gets in their way? Who killed my friends at Pieta? Right."
"Take it from one who's been in their position. Perhaps not all of them deserve pity, but most of them do. How are they different from you? If all Claymores craved innards, it wouldn't be long before someone had their guts feasted on. They fight who they have to simply to survive. Put yourself in their position. You'll find yourself not to be very different." Now Helen was agitated.
"What? No, there is nothing we have in common with those freaks. I gag at the thought of eating human flesh! There is no way I am like them."
"I guess not," Hadrian chortled.
As he said that, the door swung open and in came Deneve and Miria. They walked over and sat down next to Helen and Hadrian.
"Ah, the Captain and her Lieutenant. What can I do for you?" Hadrian asked. Miria responded the second he finished.
"You can tell us who you really are." Miria sounded more authoritative than usual.
"I'm not quite sure I fol-"
"Save us the bullshit, Hadrian," Deneve cut in. "We know of your family. We know the Organization killed your wife. We know you have a daughter, and we know the Organization took her."
"Oh, really? And how did you find this information? The Organization's records? No, you must have heard it from someone. An old story passed around the campfire?" He sounded a bit like he had let the beer get to him.
Both Miria and Deneve glared at him in silence.
"Could it be... Galatea? Yes, that's it. She's the one. Clever girl, that-"
"Is the story true or not?" Miria sternly said. She crossed her arms.
"What does it matter to you?" Hadrian's lighthearted demeanor somberly changed. A businesslike air filled the room as his tone changed.
"I make a point of knowing who I am allied with. If I do not know you, how can I trust you?" Miria said.
"You know me enough. I've already told you my intentions-to destroy the Organization. Are the reasons not obvious enough?"
"You obviously hate the Organization, but if you were just like any other awakened being, you'd have little drive to destroy the Organization.
"Here's the real truth: you seek vengeance for your wife, and the answers to your daughter's whereabouts lie with the Organization. You intent to find her."
Just as she finished, Galatea and Tabitha stormed into the pub.
"Yes?" a slightly agitated Miria asked.
"Sorry to disturb your lovely conversation, but we have a bit of a situation brewing outside the city."
"How many?" Miria hurriedly asked.
"Several Claymores, two of them single digits."
"Helen and Deneve, Go ahead and check it out. See what they are looking for." Miria turned to Hadrian as the two walked out the door.
"They're headed for the mass," Hadrian said with a faint smile. He looked up at Miria with smug eyes.
"What makes you so sure?"
"Other than the fact that they are on the east side of the city, moving in a deliberate path towards it? Just a hunch."
Miria sneered at him and stormed outside. It doesn't matter, she thought. They are victims of the Organization and deserve to be told the truth about their employers.
She met up with Tabitha, Cynthia, and Yuma and hurried for the eastern gate.
"So, Hadrian, what are you going to do?" Galatea asked him in the alehouse.
"About the Claymores? I have every confidence that Miria will be able to handle the situation. She is a natural leader, after all."
"That she is. How much evidence does she have at her disposal, though? Besides you, she has little, if any, proof that the Organization is as evil as she makes it out to be. " She walked over and sat down across from him.
"You want me to go help her."
"It would certainly bolster our forces."
"And we are at war, aren't we? Galatea, there is something that you should understand. I'm surprised you don't already.
"The Organization cannot be fought and killed like an awakened being. It cannot be removed by martial might.
"The Organization is a monstrous entity-it absorbs ruin and destruction and always claws its way back into existence. Every single time the Organization has been thought to be destroyed, they have come back into a thriving business.
"No-this is an enemy that has to be fought with sabotage, with moral. Kill the people involved, and they are easily replaced, even the council members. Kill its spirit, its willingness to continue living, and we can grind the Organization into the dust."
"Its willingness to live?" Galatea perplexedly asked.
"Every consortium with a goal like the Organization is driven by just that: a goal. There is only two ways to stop something like this. They either accomplish the goal, or it becomes impossible. In this case, the Organization's goal is to create perfect soldiers to combat descendents of dragons and possibly, dragons themselves. If we can stop the Organization from creating the perfect warrior, we win."
"You think we can master our yoki auras so as to not awaken. Or so that we can awaken with our consciousness intact."
Hadrian nodded. His eyes were level with hers, and blind though she was, Galatea sensed his gaze and nodded back. He said nothing and walked out the door on to the Claymores gathered outside the city.