To Lyger 0: Emil won't be causing any trouble ever again…
As silence fell in the village square, Valkyrie sagged with relief, bracing herself against Lucie with an arm over her shoulders. How long had they been here? It felt like it must have been hours ago that they had arrived at Lucie's home village and encountered the rest of her pack… but a glance up at the sun showed that it had hardly moved. When they had arrived, dozens of people had come out to see them – over a hundred, at least. The moment Emil and his followers had made themselves known, most of the civilians had fled for cover, though a handful had remained to watch the fight. The few who had stayed now started advancing nervously toward the bodies of the fallen, staring at them with a mixture of fear, nervousness, frustration, and sadness. Not that Valkyrie could really blame them. From what Lucie had said, the pack was very closeknit; all of these people had been her friends and relatives and schoolmates.
To one side of the village square, the Knight still stood over the body of Emil, sword in hand, the last of the blood dripping slowly off the tip. He stood for a long moment, looking down at the man at his feet – no longer a wolf, but turned back into a large, muscular man with short-cropped hair, his clothing torn to shreds. Two other bodies littered the ground; three live werewolves had reverted back to their human forms, sitting meekly on the sidewalk under the piercing gaze of the trio of werewolves that had come to Valkyrie's and the Knight's aid. The elder – the old man who had spoken to them – looked back and forth around the square, shock written plainly across his face. Finally, the Knight shook his head and turned to face Valkyrie and Lucie.
Valkyrie gave him a reassuring smile and wave, which he started to return, just as Lucie let out a sudden hiss. Turning to face her with wide eyes, Valkyrie quickly took in her drawn and tight face, the hand that she pressed against her side where her new "suit" had become stained by redness. Valkyrie's eyes widened. "What happened to you?!" she demanded, guiding Lucie down to the ground.
Grimacing and gritting her teeth, Lucie looked down at her side. "This is nothing – I've had so much worse."
Jogging over to them and stopping to kneel directly in front of them, the Knight told her, "I believe you. But I am not going to let you stay in pain – no if there's anything I can do about it." He held up one hand. "May I?" he asked, gesturing toward her injury.
Gritting her teeth, Lucie nodded. "Fine. Do it."
"Heilen."
Lucie gasped, her eyes widening, as the bleeding stopped. Relaxing, she gave him a small smile, testing her side by twisting her back. "Thanks. I do still feel the pain in wolf form… but it stings so much worse whenever I go back."
"Not a problem. I'm happy to help whenever you need." Looking around the square, the Knight's eyes fell on the last remaining transformed werewolf, a man who had come with Emil. Lying on the ground, the werewolf squirmed and whined with pain under the watchful eye of a larger werewolf. Kneeling next to the creature, the Knight placed a hand on his side. "If you wish, I can heal this for you," he told the werewolf. The werewolf whimpered. Sighing, the Knight whispered, "Heilen."
Reverting back to his human form after a moment, the man huddled on the ground, looking up at the Knight in confusion and surprise. He touched his side in disbelief. "But… why?"
The Knight held out his hand and pulled the man to his feet. "You were in pain," he told him simply. "Even if we were enemies, I do not want to see you injured."
The man swallowed. "Thank you."
The Knight nodded. "I meant everything I said when we arrived. You do not have to be the monster that your friend wished you to be, that the outside world thinks that you are. You can be better than that."
The other man frowned, looking around the village center, before refocusing his attention on the Knight. "But… what will you do with me now?"
"Me?" asked the Knight. "Nothing. Am I a judge or leader in your village? It should be your own people's decision what happens to you."
Lucie folded her arms, glaring down at the man. "Emil wanted to expose us to the outside world so they would fear us – something which you approved of and even encouraged. And you helped Emil hunt and kill innocent people. What do you think should be your punishment?"
The man's shoulders slumped.
The village elder stepped forward and cleared his throat. "I assure you," he interjected, "we do not take these actions lightly. You can be sure that we will handle this crime properly."
The Knight nodded. "Very well."
Giving the Knight an evaluating look, the old man hummed. "Thank you," he told him. "You have shown yourself to be an honorable man today."
The Knight held a hand out to him. "What will you do about those three who fled?" he asked.
The old man frowned, looking around the village. "I am… hesitant to say that we will 'do' anything," he answered. "If we leave here to hunt them down, we will expose our existence to the larger world – on a greater scale than at any time in hundreds of years."
"But if you do nothing, they could still hurt people," the Knight pointed out.
The old man nodded regretfully. "I know. But I must look out for my own people, first and foremost."
Lucie folded her arms. "I will finish this," she declared. "I will hunt the bastards down and make sure they can't bring any more danger to our people." She sighed heavily. "I can't shake the feeling that it's somehow my fault."
The old man hummed. "Very well," he agreed. "I hope you will have luck."
Valkyrie put a hand on Lucie's shoulder. "Well, as long as you're living in Berlin, you're welcome to stay with me!" she told her, before giving the Knight a glance. "Well, at least until the wedding…"