Re Zero does not belong to me.
Chapter 2: Let It Go...
I'm no stranger to time loops, in fiction at least. I am a long time fangirl for the mad scientist, HOUOUIN KYOUMA (and yes, that had to be capitalized) and I have seen several western movies using that as a plot point.
The first time it happens to the main character, they think that everything before was just a dream, and what follows is the world's longest example of deja vu. And if this happened in the normal world, I would have bought it. But I can't rely on the whole 'this is a dream' excuse every time something weird happens, can I? I'm already in a fantasy world after all. Who knows what's possible?
First things first, I needed to find Satella, and stop her from going to the slums... But how? Even without my help, I was sure that she would find the place and end up dead. Again.
So that means that I would have to find that insignia myself before Satella. I didn't get a very good look at the old man. But I could tell that he was nearly twice my height. Whoever sliced him up would snap me like a twig. But there was a sliver of hope.
The old man's blood was still wet when we got there, still shining in the moonlight. I'm no forensic expert, but surely that means he was killed within the hour, at least. I still have time to find the girl and warn the old man about the would-be murderer.
I ran as fast as I could, thinking that it would be best to get to the slums while it was still light out. Less risk of running into any unsavory people. It took me an hour to find the old man's place again, mostly because I wasn't so sure how to get there from the appa stand. But I got there eventually.
I approached the doors carefully, sniffing the air for blood, but I couldn't smell anything. If I strained my ears, I could hear somebody shuffle around in there. Somebody with big footsteps. I banged on the door. "Heey! Anyone in there? I know someone's in there so don't even bother hiding! Helloooo-"
"Ah, shut yer damn trap!" The door flew open, revealing a giant of a man, in every sense of the word. I was right, he was twice my height and his arms were bigger than me. His voice was sounded like it was spoken through a megaphone. He had thick, bushy eyebrows that were oddly braided at the end, but that was far from the strangest thing about his appearance. If actual giants existed in this world, this man had to be one of them.
"Whaddaya think yer doing, ya stupid little girl, makin' such a racket when ya don't even know the damn pass phrase?!" He continued to rant about how much I irritated him, then went on to demand what the hell was I doing alone around these parts, and then continued to complain about how stupid kids these days were. It took me fifteen minutes to get a word in and get myself in the little shack.
I sat at the counter, across from the man (who introduced himself as Rom), who was gulping down what I assumed to be alcohol. I struggled to comment on the time of day, this wasn't my house, after all. So I laid out why I was here.
"Hey, mister, do you know a girl, about a head shorter than me? Blond hair? Likes stealing things?"
Rom squinted his eye over his... tankard? Tankard seems right. He glared before speaking. "Why're ya lookin' for Felt? She nick somethin' off ya?"
"No, no, not exactly." I denied immediately. I didn't want to start trouble now, especially against this guy. "She stole something that I'm interested in, and I want to buy it. I asked around and I was told that this is where she unloads her loot."
"Well, ya came to the right place. As it happens, the brat told me that she had a client coming today, who was very interested in somethin', and hired her to steal it."
"You mean Felt is working for someone else?" That was bad. If Felt had already been paid, then so much for getting it myself.
"Mmhm. But... Felt will give it to whoever pays her more money. So... what do ya have on offer?"
Not exactly subtle, huh? Well, neither was I.
"I got this." And I plopped down the stun gun on the table.
On the way here, I wondered what I was going to negotiate with. I had no money, but I had some cool stuff. A cell phone, a stun gun, and a half-full bottle of pepper spray. All of them would be pretty handy in this new world, but I needed that insignia to save Satella, so I went for the thing that would be the most visually... shocking. Hehe. Worst comes to worst, I have the pepper spray.
Rom picked up the black device with a surprisingly delicate touch. "What's this?"
I plucked it from his hands. "This, old man, is cutting-edge stuff. It's a metia!" With a flourish, I activated it. Outside, the sparks were very dim, even though it was fully charged. Here, in this dimly lit shack, I imagine it was pretty damn impessive. The old man's jaw dropped slightly. Heh, meet the 21st century, dude!
"What... What is that?"
"Like I said, it's a metia. Jam this into someone gut and press the button, lightning will tear right through them. Not literally." I added hastily, before handing it back to him. "Still, you can knock out a grown man with a single touch."
"Something like this..." Rom pressed the button and nearly dropped it when the electricity lit up between the prongs. "This ain't magic-operated? It's mechanical?"
Hmmm... Puck said something similar. I guess some metias need magic to work. But I'm also guessing that this will make my 'metia' more valuable. "Well, do I look like a magic user to you?" I asked rhetorically.
"I ain't stupid enough to answer a question like that." he replied absent-mindedly. Huh, didn't expect him to have that kind of tact. "But, a mechanical-action metia that launches Yang element magic... I don't you'll have to worry about a higher bid."
I was happy about that. This could end well for everyone, but I had to do one more thing. "Hey, old man, do you have any idea who this client is, or what Felt is supposed to steal?"
"Hm? Nah, just told me to expect a good haul tonight!"
"Huu, is that right?" So the old man hasn't met whoever murdered him last time. Wait, what am I thinking, it might not even be the client! It could just be some psycho with a machete, and old man Rom got caught in the crossfire.
But still...
Whatever. Satella won't be here until after sunset so I have plenty of time. I doubt this giant would lose in a straight up fight, and now I'm here, there's no element of surprise. I could even help out with my modern weapons.
So I waited on the front steps, munching on the chocolate bar I bought earlier today. Or was it yesterday? Whichever it is, by this time, Felt would have just stolen the insignia from Satella and would be on her way here. That thief was fast, so she should get here within the hour. The sky had just started to turn orange, and soon enough, the petite blond girl appeared in front of me.
"Hey, lady, you lookin' to buy something or what?"
And so began my foray into the negotiation table. in all honesty, I was pretty confident. I wasn't the smoothest talker in social situations, but business was different. A depressing collection of games, figurines and other... memorabilia in my old apartment was a testament to my bartering skills.
Or at least, I thought it was going to be that easy.
Honor among thieves. I seriously thought that kind of thing only existed in fiction. I mean, sure there were crooks who were probably decent enough, but at the end of the day, the criminal who plays fair ends up behind bars or six feet under. I guess I underestimated these people.
"Look, your old man already said that my bid is practically guaranteed! Just give me the damn insignia and I'll be on my way!"
"And I said you'll wait your turn, Princess! I don't care if that metia is made of gold and came out of Lord Flugel's ass. I made a deal for this insignia, and you're gonna compete for it, you got me?!"
"Why the hell are you so insistent on this? You're gonna get richer one way or another, so just make it more convenient for both of us?"
"I don't know who you've been dealin' with, 'til now. But around here, we don't do shit just 'cause it''s convenient! That's not how it works, alright! Now if you don't want to get your ass chucked into the river like yesterday's garbage, sit down and shut the fuck up!"
At this point, she had started to rest her hand on the hilt of her very large knife. I should have backed off then and there. I don't even know why I took it this far, I'm usually more level-headed than this. But this brat just rubbed me the wrong way for some reason. It was a stark contrast to how easily I got along with Satella. I suppose it was asking too much for every girl I meet to be friendly.
But I swear to any god that exists in this world if that assassin doesn't kill this kid, I would!
"Are you threatening me, you little brat?" I growled, in my best menacing voice, gripping my can of mace.
"Believe me lady, I can do a lot more than just threaten you!"
WHACK!
"Alright girls, that's enough. Felt, ya know the rules; no fightin' in the shack. You two wanna duke it out, take it far away from here."
"Tch." Felt crossed her arms, refusing to look at me again. "As long as she keeps her yap shut, she can stay. But this is the biggest job I've had in months. You mess it up, they'll be finding pieces of you in the river."
"Much as I'd love to see you try, pipsqueak, your babysitter's right. Besides, I don't want to stay here any longer than I have to." I ignored Felt's indignant squawk at the word 'baby-sitter' in favor of sitting back and calming myself. The sooner I can leave, the sooner I can find Satella and give her the insignia. Neither of us would have to get an appendectomy today.
A tense silence continued. I checked my phone again and again, growing more and more restless each time. Rom lit up a lamp once twilight set in. 5 o'clock passed by, meaning that if Satella came here now, Puck wouldn't be here to protect her. Honestly, I just wanted this done and over with, the suspense was killing me. I was just about to stand and pace when an oddly specific sequence of knocks. The recognition on Felt's face only confirmed it.
...You know, I never thought I would be so eager to meet a potential assassin.
Then again, I doubt there were many assassins that looked like this one. I mean, seriously this woman was the very definition of 'femme fatale'. Long and luscious black hair, a figure that forced me to clamp down a mix of emotions, and clothes that would have gotten her arrested in Japan. Even the way she moved was graceful and sensual. What the hell kind of assassin draws so much attention to herself?
...Right, fantasy world. Never mind.
But, really, after the initial shock of her sheer sexiness, I didn't find anything else to like. Elsa Granhiert was cool, calm, eloquent, gracious, and she creeped the hell out of me.
Throughout the entire negotiation, she didn't twitch once. Not when I was introduced. Not when it was revealed that my stun gun was worth more, even with her additional gold coins. Not when Felt eventually gave me the insignia she went through so much trouble to find. Her face didn't move a millimeter. She was like one of those supermodels who have so much make up on them, their masks would crack at the slightest change of expression.
In the end, that's how I knew shit was going down.
"If I may ask, what do you plan to do with that insignia?"
"Huh?" I suppose it's a legitimate question to ask someone who just outbid for a precious item. But... "Sorry, but that's kind of a personal thing, ya know?"
Wrong answer.
All I saw was a tiny crinkling of her eyes, and my 'oh shit' reflex kicked into high gear. I threw myself backwards as hard as I could, but I was only... partially successful. In my peripheral vision, I saw the table, the chair, and the floor boards explode into splinters. But I was more focused on the splashes of red that filled my vision.
Was it just me, or was my leg really far away?
"Oh dear. I was aiming further up. Amputations are so bo~ring!"
Someone started screaming. It was probably me, somwhere between terror and pain, at the time, I couldn't really tell the difference. Elsa, the charmer she was, was swinging a wicked purple knife like it was a toy. I looked up at her face and realized something really freaky. Her smile was 100% genuine. More than that, her cheeks were slightly flushed, and she had the so-called 'bedroom eyes'. This sick bitch enjoyed what she did to me!
That epiphany was what spurred me into further action, or as much action as I could take on my ass with a severed leg. However, it seems that I didn't need to worry. A gust of wind blew through my hair, and Felt appeared in front of me, a knife of her own in hand.
I'm not exactly sure what happened next. Not just because I was about to pass out from pain, or because I was still in shock (though that was a big factor). But because I couldn't fucking see it! Felt was zipping around the room, and if it weren't for the flashes of metal, i would have thought that she had totally disappeared. Elsa wasn't moving as much, but occasionally she swayed around and her arm lashed around, most likely responding to Felt's strikes.
It ended as fast as it started.
The thief had locked her knife with Elsa's. It didn't make sense, since Elsa could easily overpower her. But Old Man Rom had read Felt's intentions. The giant of a man was surprisingly quick, and had hefted a club as tall as he was to bear it down on Elsa's back. I remember feeling relieved, but it didn't last long.
The assassin had a second knife.
With depressing ease, Rom and Felt were butchererd like animals. Their blood rained down on the psychopath, and I watched, disgusted as she moaned at the sensation. She went as far as to rub it into her skin, giggling and marvelling at the spilled intestines like a childplaying in the ocean.
Then she turned to me.
To be honest, I was barely conscious. I think she may have said something, or nothing. I think she cut me again, or maybe she just watched me. I think I may have said something, but I don't think she heard me.
I was certain she was smiling.
...
...
...
When I came to, I couldn't stop vomiting.
Okay, people seem to like this, so I am going to continue it. Here's the thing, I have not caught up to the light novels, and so I am not that sure about the background of the setting, or the characters, or the lore, shit like that. I could just make it up, but I am missing out on a lot of key elements and I really don't want to risk it.
I'll be updating as often as I can, since there is a while to go until I plan to make rather significant and obvious ripples. So don't hold your breath for the next chapter.
Peace out, bitches!