A/N: Ah, finally, an update! And yes, it's not really a one-shot although I had intended it to. Thanks to those who left a review, I'm truthfully grateful. Here is your long-awaited reward. Enjoy!
The crescent moon shone magnificently amongst the blackness of night, accompanied by millions of glistening stars. It was a perfect night for a quiet walk down the rocky trail that led to Sheridan's Mansion. Although the air was cool, almost to the point of freezing, Lucian did not mind.
He took his time for he was in no hurry. Both he and Nero were enjoying the lunar presence in the sky. Bathed in the luminous glow of the silver moon, each could feel their dark strength replenish under its guidance.
The journey was a quiet one with neither saying a word. Thoughts were kept silent for each respected one another's privacy. Although, there really was no need to pry into each other's thoughts since they practically could tell what was on the other's mind by a simple glance.
When the familiar silhouette of Sheridan's Mansion was visible in the distance, Lucian felt a familiar weight settle upon his right shoulder. Nero leaned forward from his perch to give the boy a sideways glance but otherwise said nothing.
The swordsman formed a small smile, one that only the Terrenial was allowed to ever see. Nero was his closest friend and dearest companion. Lucian was most comfortable to speak to the cat than any other being. The feline had once told him that Lucian was like a younger brother. Ever since then, the boy had felt a strong bond form between them that could never break even to this day.
Nero had been by his side for the past seven years, always acting as a guardian as well as a valuable asset to Lucian's dark powers. Without the Terrenial's help, the swordsman would have lost himself to the overwhelming power he had stolen.
The power of darkness… it was incredible…
A daunting evil that he had gained… it had nearly consumed his sanity. Almost driven mad with his own hatred and revenge, the swordsman nearly lost his human side to the power if Nero was not there to aid him. A black eye patch, marked with an ancient seal on the inside, was placed over his left eye to keep the power of darkness under control. Lucian had never taken the patch off since then, fearing at what he would become if he did.
"I'm assuming that you are going to Rymer's Mansion alone," Nero stated more than asked, finally breaking the serene tranquility the night could offer.
Smirking, Lucian shook his head. "No matter how much I'd want to, I just can't let that brat sit around and do nothing. He's good in his skills with the Solar Guns but not good enough," he replied in a truthful tone. His smirk became an amusing sneer. "He wishes to surpass his father… Heh, I'd like to see if he can manage that without failure."
He heard the feline smirk. "And you believe that he will?"
The dark swordsman did not answer but continued to walk at a steady pace, his sneer still evident under the shadows.
Once at the entrance of the large, noble-class mansion, the door swung open and Lucian was greeted by the professor's android maid. Quickly, he averted his gaze away from her and simply nodded as he walked in.
It was fairly lit inside, setting a mood fit for an evening. However, it was hours past midnight, giving the young man the intention that the others had been waiting for his return.
With his eye meandering everywhere but the android, he followed her down the extravagant hall and into the professor's impressive laboratory. Inside the technically advanced machine-filled room was a grey-haired old man slumped over a blinking console, snoring away.
"Professor, Sir Lucian has returned," announced the maid in a monotone, stirring the man awake.
"Hnn – Wha?" Sheridan snorted, blinking wearily through sleepy eyes. He finally noticed the waiting swordsman after stretching his body awake. "Oh! You're back. Want a room to stay in? I haven't quite finished yet."
Lucian was not happy by the news and was overall disappointed. He glowered at the professor. "What? I want them done right now," he demanded.
Sheridan winced from his tone. "But I'm so tired!" he countered, rubbing the back of his neck. "If I work on them now, I might make a mistake." That made the swordsman highly annoyed. When he saw the boy's reaction, the old man gestured to the far table, cluttered with many devices and objects, in the lab. "I did finish upgrading Vanargand and Aaron's Knight. I just need some more time for the rest of the Solar Guns."
The boy's anger quickly dispersed and was replaced by anxiety as he headed to where the weapons lied. Grinning inwardly, he grasped the hilt of his newly refurbished dark sword, pleased by the increased power he could sense within it. The blade had been cleaned and its edge sharpened, making the sword seem new. With little effort, Lucian lifted it to point it skyward before him, seeing his reflection on the sword's smooth surface. He sneered in delight.
"This is… wonderful," was all he could say to thank the alchemist.
Sheridan lightly chuckled, appearing relieved. "Glad you like it. However," he paused, looking over the sword in the boy's hands, "it is still far from its true form."
Upon hearing that, the swordsman smirked and returned the blade to its hold. So the sword had yet to reach its potential. With such power he could already sense from the dark blade, he could hardly imagine what the sword could possess at its ultimate form. That meant Vanargand's power could reach an unbelievable level and would be deemed an unstoppable weapon. The boy was determined to see to it that Vanargand was at its peak when facing Dumas.
He turned to the professor. "What will I need to bring it to its true form?" he asked.
Sheridan merely shrugged. "I really don't know. But I believe I'm getting close to the recipe for it. Just keep bringing me the usual materials and I'll keep experimenting around." He suddenly looked thoughtful. "Hey, if you ever find any adamant, I'll try fusing that with Vanargand."
"Adamant? Where can I get that?" the boy inquired with a raised eyebrow.
Again, the professor shrugged. "It's a rare metal ore that some monsters have in their armour. If I remember correctly, Stoker once fused it with other metals to strengthen armours given to monsters. So likely from them you'll find adamant… By your look, you want to know which monsters, eh? Well, whichever ones wear armour."
"I can only think of Lizardmen."
"Then there you go! They probably have adamant-infused armour so bring some pieces back and I'll see what I can do."
"Hm." Lucian nodded politely to him and grabbed the recently upgraded Solar Gun. "Where's the brat?"
Sheridan suppressed a yawn and pointed to the ceiling. "He's sleeping in one of the bedrooms. Are you–"
"We're leaving right now but we'll be back," the boy interrupted, turning to leave. "Probably in a day or two."
"But won't he need his other weapons?" the professor called after.
"Hmph. No, this is what he'll only need," answered the swordsman, indicating to the Solar Gun in his hand.
The mirthful feeling of being with his comrades quickly vanished along with his dream when a loud crash startled him awake; causing him to roll off the soft, warm bed and onto the cold, hard-wood floor of the bedroom. Groaning in a tangle of sheets, he half-glared half-winced at the shadowed figure snickering at him in the doorway.
"Time to go, lazy brat," the boy heard Lucian command with a hint of amusement in his tone.
Snapping out of his sleepy daze, Aaron glowered at the dark silhouette of the swordsman before freeing himself from the numerous covers that draped around him. "Did you just break open the door?!" he demanded, wondering what that loud sound he heard was.
He saw Lucian cross his arms. "No, I slammed it open. Now hurry up. We're leaving." Before the gunslinger could make a response, the swordsman had already disappeared.
Fuming, Aaron looked outside the glass-paned window, seeing that it was still pretty dark out which meant he only had a few hours of rest at most. He was downright grumpy for being aroused awake from his much-needed sleep in such a brutal way.
With a sigh, he quickly placed on his gear and gathered his belongings. He couldn't hold back his urges to yawn when he made his way down the long stairway. He stopped momentarily when he spotted Lucian waiting at the bottom, holding Knight in his hand.
Aaron blinked quizzically as he slowly approached the swordsman. One red eye stared over at him briefly before the look of impatience settled upon his partner's face. The Solar Gun was given with no word followed by a "Let's go" as Lucian headed for the mansion's front door where Carmilla waited.
The gunslinger hesitated. "Hey, what about my–"
"The rest aren't done yet so you'll have to rely solely on that," the older boy answered without looking back. Groaning mostly to himself, Aaron followed the swordsman out the door after giving thanks to the android maid's hospitality and had asked her to relay his thanks to Professor Sheridan.
The bitter cold of night was not a welcomed feeling when he took the first step into the faint moonlight. Being inappropriately dressed for the cold nights the Arid Climate brought made the boy envious of Lucian's seemingly warm coat.
Oh, Aaron really wished he had a coat of his own…
Tired and shivering, the young gunslinger slowly walked to where Lucian was waiting ahead, having already called his Casket Rocket, Laplace, to their area.
Curious as to where they were heading, Aaron had to ask.
The swordsman, watching the night sky intently, produced a ragged, folded piece of paper from within his coat's sleeve and gave it to the boy to see. "To Rymer's Mansion," Lucian answered.
Blue eyes widened at the mention of the vampire's name. "Rymer's… The Rymer Margrave?" Aaron questioned, a sense of awe suddenly rising as he recalled the legends he had heard before meeting Lucian. "You went in his own home and bested him just like that, right? I can remember all the rumours all about it in Old Culiacan! So why are we heading back there?"
Lucian faced the boy, slightly annoyed by the praise he was getting and nodded towards the paper. "There's a hidden treasure somewhere within the mansion. Supposedly a 'Legendary Weapon.' We're going to look for it."
Aaron's interest piqued after hearing that and with growing excitement, he carefully unfolded the parchment. Squinting in the limiting light the moon gave off, he couldn't make out what was contained on it.
A flickering of lights flashing overhead along with a familiar loud sound of an engine diverted his attention. Suddenly, a strong hot wind began to blow from above, threatening him to loose the vital piece of paper he held. With haste, Aaron tucked it away just as Laplace noisily landed before them.
The ship never ceased the gunslinger's amazement as he happily bounded over to his partner's side on the robotic hand that acted as a platform. The boy was grateful to have such a cool form of transportation.
When they were up in the night sky, Aaron took a gander at the paper once more. The paper was yellow and visibly old in the ship's interior lights.
"Oh, a map," he exclaimed, seeing the fine details of the ancient drawing sketched upon it with dark ink. There were many arrows and strange characters of a language he had never seen. Along side those characters of old was evidence that someone had tried to decipher the words. It was apparently an extremely old map but Aaron could not see how it could relate to Rymer's Mansion. "And this is supposed to tell us that there's treasure in Rymer's Mansion? I don't see how… it looks more like a cavern than an actual building…" He stated the last part truthfully.
He noticed Lucian quietly sighing before shooting a sideways glare at him. "There are ruins under his mansion. Old, ancient ruins that run deep underground," the swordsman explained. "Once we find the entrance to them, that map will lead us to the treasure."
"The treasure… 'Jor-mun-gan-dr'," the boy slowly read the underlined deciphered word aloud. He pondered at what kind of weapon it could be. It could possible be powerful; strong enough to defeat Dumas easily.
So that explained why Lucian was in a hurry.
"Yes. The Legendary Weapon, Jormungandr." The swordsman sneered, almost taunting. "Getting to it probably won't be easy so you better be ready, kid."
Aaron pursed his lips and gave the older boy a sideways stare. "You should've let me take my other guns."
"Heh. You tend to juggle between them too much for your own good. Perfect your skill with your own Solar Gun instead of struggling with all of them at once."
The young gunslinger slightly frowned at Lucian's tone but nodded at his advice. He had to suppose the swordsman was right; Aaron often carried all his Solar Guns with him. Doing so obviously slowed him down and greatly hindered his movements. Having obtained Ernest's Dragoon just recently, he had a total of four Solar Guns – five if Kay's Ninja guns were counted separately. He couldn't take them all with him; it was impossible to move with so much weight. (And Lucian, that stubborn jerk, wouldn't even help him carry them.) At most, he could carry three: his Knight, Kay's Ninja, and either Witch or Dragoon.
Choosing between the two larger guns was going to be difficult. (He had yet to try out Dragoon and was hoping to get a chance once Sheridan was finished upgrading it.)
Well, since he only had one gun to focus on, he didn't have to worry about which to take with him for now. Freeing his Solar Gun from its holster, Aaron let out a sigh as he looked over the polished barrel. "Fine, fine. I guess more practice with Knight will come in handy. I wonder how strong it is now," the boy pondered with anxiety, pulling the trigger. There was a pleasant click while no bullet came out since it was not powered.
He received a dangerous glare from Lucian. "Don't you do that again," he warned with a growl. "I don't want you to 'accidentally' shoot down my ship."
Aaron scratched the back of his head with a sheepish smile. "Sorry! I'll be careful!" he quickly apologized. He timidly glanced to the side as he hesitated to ask, "Um, hey. Could we stop by the general store? I need to restock on supplies. Oh, and could you lend me some Soll? I really don't have much left…"
A disgruntled sigh was the other's reply. "Just take one of my potions," Lucian grumbled, steering Laplace down the dark visible mansion below.
The gunslinger pouted in disappointment. "But I hate potions…" he murmured quietly under his breath.
It did not take long for the pair to discover the entrance to the ruins. Lucian's gathered information had led them deep within the monster infested mansion. Past the chamber where the battle between vampire and hunter had taken place, (evident from the various battle-scars riddled around the room), was a passageway filled with more powerful creatures of the dark. It was obvious that they were protecting something.
Battle-driven by the sight of monsters radiating an aura more powerful than the ones that guarded the foremost interior of the mansion, Lucian had made short work out of them easily. Although the fiends the two warriors had encountered were incomparable to the demons that lurked in New Culiacan.
While the swordsman fought, Aaron stayed back to provide any necessary cover fire. (But, there was hardly any need for cover fire at the rate Lucian felled the monsters – not that the gunslinger would mind being tired and all from the lack of sleep.) When the last Fire Zombie collapsed before Lucian's feet, the younger boy ran up to him with an admirable smile.
"Rymer was just as easy, eh?" Aaron asked, curious of the battle between the vampire and hunter. Even though he had heard the rumours as well as Bea's tale, the gunslinger wanted to hear the story from the Legendary Dark Swordsman himself.
The purple-haired boy glanced at him sideways in a rather annoyed way. "Hmph. Far easier," Lucian replied, making his way forward. He did not go into any more detail.
His lack of explaining just how "easier" it was fighting a vampire such as Rymer than any ordinary monster made Aaron frown in disappointment. Sighing, the young boy followed the swordsman in silence.
They entered a largely sized room filled with many enormous crates stacked in piles all over. Strangely, they were inconveniently placed on the narrow walkways of the top section of the room. There was apparently a bottom section of the room since there were huge openings on each side of the walkways. What lurked on the bottom floor was a mystery for it was too dark to see anything down below.
It was like a void of darkness… The thought of what could be waiting chilled Aaron's blood completely. For sure he would avoid falling down there as much as possible. However, with the walkways devoid of safety railings, one misstep could be likely if he and Lucian were suddenly attacked by monsters hiding around…
"I can smell traps," Toasty informed the pair after a short examination of the room. He hovered over a black opening. "Be careful you two, one wrong step and you will fall down there… possibly to your death."
The gunslinger gulped at the thought but quickly took a deep breath and shook his fear away. He had to prove to Lucian that he was capable of handling himself. Both ready and wary, the boy glanced over at the other, seeing the swordsman smirk.
"Heh. You heard that? If you fall I'm not coming to save you," the older boy said in a devilish manner.
Aaron crossed his arms and rolled his eyes. "Ha ha. That's really assuring," he retorted sarcastically. "You know, partners are supposed to look out for each other."
Lucian's smirk turned into an amusing one. "Since when did I agree to you being my partner?" he said, not expecting an answer as he walked away.
That aggravated the gunslinger. He silently glared at the other's back, annoyed by Lucian's reluctance to admit that they were indeed partners. Oh well, it didn't matter. Aaron knew that Lucian really did consider him a partner in his own quiet way.
They walked along the narrow pathway, cautiously maneuvering around the many crates to avoid a surprise attack from any monsters. There was no sign of any on the first walkway they passed. They stopped at an intersection.
Aaron was about to suggest a direction to go but soon stopped when he saw the older boy tense and reached for his sword. An audible scuffling noise was nearby; an all-too-familiar scuffling noise. A Hound was near, patrolling the area.
Aaron really despised those dogs. Having been chased around by those ravage beasts back when he tried to help members of the Guild escape from 13th Street may have contributed to his hate for them. And the fact that their teeth were sharp and their bite was awfully painful.
Lucian motioned the young gunslinger to fall back and hide behind a nearby crate. A Hound's hearing was very sensitive and if Lucian had spoken the command it would have heard it. And when fighting a Hound, going head first against it was never a good idea because they were incredibly fast. Large and vicious, the monstrous canine would knock its opponents to the ground easily before tearing them to pieces with their large fangs.
Aaron had always imagined such a scenario where he would be torn limb from limb whenever he encountered a blood-thirsty Hound. Taking the dog by surprise was the key…
Bringing two fingers to his mouth, Lucian whistled loudly before joining Aaron in hiding. There was a series of startled barks coming from two – no, three Hounds – that patrolled within the room. The younger boy carefully peeked around the crate, seeing the three drooling beasts scamper over to the centre of the intersection in search of the whistler.
Oh man… three of them?! Aaron felt dread wash over him as he stared at the ugly monsters. There was a tap on his shoulder, bringing his attention to the swordsman. Lucian seemed to glare when he saw the uneasiness in other boy's expression. Aaron quickly shook his fear away and grinned to show that he was all right.
With a slight look of annoyance, Lucian then started to form signals with his hands: He pointed to himself then to the right. He gestured at Aaron then pointed to the left.
The gunslinger nodded; understanding the swordsman's command. Lucian would take the dog on the right side while Aaron handled the left one. That left the middle one, the farthest of the three, a free target. Without hesitating, Lucian ran out and Aaron quickly followed with Knight clutched within his hands.
The retreating beasts were unaware of the two warriors until two of them let out a whine of pain simultaneously, catching the attention of the third. Aaron shot multiple Sol bullets at his angry target, scorching the barking Hound all over its body until it dropped to the ground, unmoving. Quickly, he turned to face the third Hound which was already flying through the air, targeting the closest warrior which was Lucian.
The swordsman was already aware of the beast having finished his first target with one attack. He brought his dark sword around just as he lowered and turned his body to face the lunging monster. Swiftly and cleanly, Lucian swung his great sword upwards when the Hound was about to sink its canines into him. With a pitiful whine the beast flew back and landed with a dull thud in a motionless heap.
Aaron couldn't be more amazed by how graceful Lucian fought no matter how many times he witnessed the teen battle. His swordplay was absolutely flawless and his knowledge of Aaron's solar guns was incredible. Many times the younger boy had been given advice on how to properly wield each of his weapons even though he had never seen Lucian use a firearm before. Nonetheless, the swordsman's advice was pretty helpful in giving Aaron the know-how of each of his solar guns.
They traversed down the centre path with Lucian in the lead. Rounding past the horribly placed giant crate the least expected thing suddenly happened: Lucian stepped onto a trap door.
With a startled cry, the swordsman seemed to disappear in front of Aaron's eyes. Letting out a gasp of horror, the gunslinger dove forward in one quick reaction and grasped the older boy's outstretched hand before the trapdoor could close. Lying on his entire front, Aaron had managed to prevent himself from following the swordsman into the dark hold.
However, it wouldn't be too soon until he would eventually.
Lucian was heavy. Being bigger and carrying an enormous sword would contribute to that fact. The young man had a tight grip on the gunslinger so it would be impossible to just allow the purple-haired one to fall. (Not that Aaron was willing to let go of the older boy…)
Thankfully, all the Terrenials appeared by their side to lend some help. Nero dug his claws into Lucian's clothes while the others flew down to push from the boy's feet. Aaron gritted his teeth as he pulled the swordsman with all his strength.
With a strained grunt, Aaron yanked hard to give Lucian the needed lift for him to grab the ledge with his free hand. From there, the swordsman used his own strength combined with Aaron's to escape the hole willing to swallow him up.
Nearly out of breath, the gunslinger fell back in great relief while Lucian, rising to his feet, acted as if nothing happened. But there was a gleam in his red eye that Aaron saw that quickly made the younger boy crack a grin.
"Ironic, huh?" Aaron began after he regained his normal breathing, "What was that you had said about falling before?" He raised his brow in a teasing manner, drawing an intense glare and a sharp huff from the other. Aaron wasn't fazed. His grin actually broadened.
"Oh, shut up," Lucian growled as he stormed past him to return to the intersection.
The gunslinger, still smiling, got back up on his feet and dusted himself off. He bounded after the stubborn young man, hearing the Terrenials give warnings of other possible trapdoors. Aaron rolled his eyes when he saw Lucian wave his hand at them in annoyance as he strode down the next path without a care.
Sighing, Aaron caught in step behind the purple-haired boy just in case he fell again.
A/N: Did you know that you can actually ignore those holes by running over them? Why need to tread carefully? You can just sprint over the deadly trapdoors!
So, how did you all enjoy this chapter? I would love to hear what you liked or disliked and how I can improve. Please tell me! Otherwise, I hope you all enjoyed it.