A Samurai's Pledge
A/N: And another chapter is up!
I've tried to keep everyone as close as possible to their characters in the anime though I'm sure there will be a few OOC moments. Comments and reviews are much appreciated. Enjoy!
For those of you who left unsigned reviews, see my replies below:
love thus story – Thanks for the review! ^^ Drama you say? You have no idea. Lol. This story still has many chapters to go, so fear not, the end won't be for a while yet. :)
trumm12345 – Thanks for the comment. ^^ Things are doing much better now thanks. I appreciate the support. :)
Disclaimer: The characters and the worlds I write in do not belong to me. The stories that I write are intended for entertainment purposes. I do not make any money from them.
*** ~ Chapter 8: Love is my Enemy ~ ***
Shamal was ready to have a nervous breakdown.
Here she sat, in the north western courtyard of the Imperial Palace on the second floor, wringing her hands together restlessly. It was the most secluded of the courtyards on this level, Shamal having forgotten its official name in her nervous anticipation. To her left sat Victoria, the other blonde calmly drinking from a porcelain cup of tea, a plate of western biscuits sitting untouched on the table in front of them.
The reason for Shamal's current nervousness?
Today was the day she would introduce her cousin to her extended family.
The north western courtyard overlooked the lake at the back of the Imperial property, the open aired patio furnished with five glass tables with four chairs to match each table. It easily fit a group of thirty people comfortably. On occasion, Shamal would wander up here for the peace and quiet. And the view. It wasn't hard to settle one's thoughts up here, yet such a serene scene today did little to calm the Head Attendant's frayed nerves.
What would Victoria think of the others? What would the others think of Victoria?
"Calm yourself, cousin."
Shamal jumped at the sound of Victoria's voice, looking to the other woman with flushed cheeks of embarrassment.
"I'm sure they'll get here soon." The other blonde smiled at Shamal, patting her gently on arm. "I'm excited to meet them."
"I am too. For you that is."
Shamal didn't know how her cousin did it. What was her secret? Victoria was so calm and composed right now. Then again, Victoria was always the more unflappable of the two of them. Wringing her hands yet again, Shamal did her best to swallow down her fear and anxiety as they waited for the others to arrive.
The Empress and her knights were not related by blood (Hayate and Vita being the only exception), but the bonds they shared brought them closer than any blood related family could ever be. And because of that fact, Shamal worried greatly about this meeting. Their opinion meant so much to her, more than she often let on. If they didn't accept Victoria, or if Victoria didn't accept her extended family, Shamal didn't know what she was going to do. The sound of booted feet snapped Shamal out of her thoughts.
The Empress, along with Rein, Vita, Zafira, Agito and Signum rounded the corner moments later, taking Shamal's breath away. Violet coloured eyes immediately sought out a specific pair of blue eyes, the healer's heart fluttering at the sight of a certain pink haired samurai. Had it really been that long since she'd seen Signum last?
As if sensing she was being looked at, Signum's gaze raised to Shamal's, the soft expression on the swordswoman's face making Shamal's heart melt even further.
Then Signum's gaze shifted to Victoria and everything went to hell.
Had this not been a mandatory meeting requiring her presence, Signum would have been elsewhere and certainly not travelling through the hallways of the Imperial Palace. The samurai captain was no closer to finding her previous master's killer, and the fact that she could find no trace of this Cypha of Hückebein since their first face to face meeting almost a month ago, drove Signum crazy to no end.
The pinkette barely registered the presence of the others with her, those being the Empress (who was leading their group), Rein, Vita, Zafira and Agito who trailed behind the brunette. Signum was at the back of the group, her body moving as if on auto pilot, the samurai only thinking enough on the present moment to ensure she didn't accidentally stray somewhere else while following her current Mistress. It wasn't until sunlight blinded her did Signum's attention focus on where they were headed. It was the north western courtyard on the second floor, two occupants already taking up residence at one of the many glass tables on the white stone patio.
The samurai captain couldn't but feel a spike of anger run through her at this realization. Why in the blazes was she here when she could have been out searching for her master's killer? Just who was this stupid bureaucrat who required-
The moment Signum's gaze landed on Shamal, her current train of thought ceased. The blonde Head Attendant looked as magnificent as she always did, Signum realizing just how much she missed the woman over these past few weeks. She'd been so caught up in her own matters that she barely saw the healer. And when she did, she frowned silently knowing that those meetings were less than friendly.
Signum's expression softened the longer she stared at Shamal. The pink haired samurai smiled slightly. Gods, she missed Shamal so much. How long had it been since they last sat down to talk jovially? Pieces clicked in Signum's head, the pinkette vaguely remembering the Empress telling her about some missing relative of Shamal's. This was what this meeting was about. Shamal wanted her to meet her family. And Signum had never felt so humbled by that. The samurai captain looked away for a moment, but then looked back ahead.
She could do this.
Just for today. Just for now.
She could do this for Shamal.
It was the least Signum could do for the blonde considering how she treated the woman over the past few weeks. But when her gaze moved from her secret love to the one whom she assumed to be Shamal's long lost relative, all coherent thoughts stopped. In their place was only rage.
"KISAMA!"
"KISAMA!"
Cypha was just as shocked as Signum to see her here at this meeting. When Shamal told her that she had invited her family to this pow wow, the one eyed blonde didn't think the samurai captain was included in that. It was of no consequence however, for Cypha already knew how this would end.
"I will end you!"
Shamal yelped in horror and surprise at the terrifying twist of events. Signum moved so fast. One moment Shamal was sitting next to her cousin at their table, and in the next, the glass table they shared was cleaved in half, a line of fire separating herself and Victoria. Signum lunged at her cousin.
Cypha smirked, easily dodging the enraged samurai captain's first attack, drawing her sword at the same time. She rose from her crouch ten feet away from her previous spot, grinning.
"You say interesting things, knight."
In place of the blade Cypha had when she first crossed paths with Signum over a month ago, was a regular sized samurai sword with a black blade. Signum's Levantine flamed with orange and red fire, casting a demonic undertone to Signum's already savage look. Upon realizing her first attack missed, Signum charged at her target again, a feral cry erupting from her throat as their blades crossed in front of them. That attack sent Cypha skidding back on her heels a further ten feet, Signum relenting not one inch.
"Master!" Agito cried out in shock. The current sight of Signum horrified the fire sprite, the little winged guardian not knowing what she should do. Logic dictated that she help her master in her fight against her opponent. But in her heart, Agito knew something was not right about all of this.
"Signum!" Hayate exclaimed, equally horrified. "Stop that this instant!"
Never before had Signum lost her composure like this. What was supposed to be a joyous occasion had quickly turned into a nightmare. While the Empress knew Signum was never one to act without reason, Hayate was having a very difficult time understanding what could have possibly set her knight off like this. To think the pinkette was capable of such savagery was world shaking. Even during the JS Incident Signum had never resorted to this level of violence.
"Signum! Victoria!" With the help of Zafira, Shamal got to her feet, having fallen out of her chair in shock at Signum's erratic behaviour. By now, the fight between the pair, her cousin and her secret love, had pushed to the very balcony edge of the patio, a destructive wake of broken glass and stone left in their deadly dance.
Blow after blow, Cypha parried and blocked, and blow after blow, Signum only got further enraged. It was like the events of all those years ago were repeating itself, Signum's only thought being to kill the one in front of her. Everything else faded away into a haze of white noise.
After another particularly brutal slash, one of which Cypha blocked again, the blonde swordsman almost laughed out loud. To think the tiny pinkette she had met all those years ago had gotten so strong, truly excited her. Seeing an opening, Cypha lashed out at the samurai's left, only for Signum to barely block the attack with Levantine's scabbard. A quick flip of the wrist and their blades clashed again, both combatants pushing back from each other to leave a ten foot space between them.
"Schlangeform!"
Cypha had only a moment to blink before the tip of the samurai's sword zipped at her face like a biting snake. She barely managed to dodge to the side, Levantine leaving a shallow slice in her left cheek. The click of metal was her only indication that Signum's blade had returned to sword form before the samurai attacked again.
"Rein, I need my Tome."
Rein's head whipped towards her Mistress in fright. "W-what?"
The Tome of the Night Sky was not something Hayate used on a daily basis. In fact, the last time she used it at all was during the tail end of the JS Incident. Never one to abuse power, the Empress only resorted to using her powers when of the utmost emergency. And right now, such was the thing.
"Hayate-sama?"
Something was not right with Shamal's cousin.
As much as the Empress hated to think so, just watching the fight progress so far, Hayate could tell something was terribly wrong. Any regular person would have been overpowered by Signum, by her first strike in fact. Yet here this woman was, fighting on par with the samurai captain, and she hadn't even broken a sweat yet. The Empress couldn't quite put her finger on it, but something dark and ancient emanated from the blonde swordswoman. And it made the brunette shiver uncontrollably.
CRASH!
A fiery explosion erupted on the far end of the north western courtyard, sending molten stone up into the air, the debris soon after raining down upon Hayate and the rest of her knights.
"Klarer Wind! Protect against it!"
"Yes!"
Shields of green materialized overhead, deflecting away the deadly barrage of flaming projectiles which would have most certainly caused a great deal of injury. Supported by Agito's Brennenkugel, the Empress and the rest of her knights had nothing to fear when it came to fist sized chunks of burning stone. Shamal however, had everything to fear. Her cousin and her secret love were fighting in an all out battle to the death. And she had no idea why.
When the smoke cleared, neither swordswoman was in sight, the sounds of battle echoing below in the forest surrounding the Imperial Palace's western edge.
Cypha grimaced, clutching at her right arm, her back flush against the nearest tree. Blood stained the coat of her right sleeve, liquid crimson running the length of her limb. Her sword was stuck blade down in the ground next to her.
That was intense.
It amazed the one eyed swordswoman how rage magnified Signum's strikes. One attack had broken through her defenses and nearly severed her arm. She would have died had her body still been human, made of flesh and bone. But as she was, she wasn't so much human anymore. And this near fatal wound was already starting to heal itself. Cypha could feel the skin of her arm re-knitting already.
A smirk.
A long time had passed since she had a decent fight. Now it was time to finally get serious.
Pulling a small dagger from her coat pocket, Cypha held it up in front of her as the sound of booted feet trampling through leaves neared her location.
"Engage König 944."
The dagger was trust into Cypha's palm.
"React."
A funnel of dark magic shot up into the sky, scattering birds and all wildlife currently occupying the imperial forests.
Signum skidded to a halt upon sight of her opponent. Shamal's cousin now wielded two swords, a short sword and a long sword, the longer of the two she recognized from their first meeting. With blades of pitch black, both swords had a grip protected by a spiked white marble knuckle guard in the shape of a crescent moon.
An amber coloured eye rose to meet Signum's gaze, before it dipped down to examine the sword in the samurai's hand. Over the course of their battle, the crack in Levantine's blade had progressed further, spider web-like cracks running the length of the blade itself now along with multiple hairline fractures. The samurai captain seemed unaware of the damage her sword had taken, her dark glare still focused on Cypha.
Cypha smirked again. "I am no longer interested in that weak blade of yours," she said.
Signum gritted her teeth at the insult.
"Now that I have König, the poison that will kill the world, I no longer have any further need for it." Another smirk. "Or you."
"Levantine!"
"Jawohl!"
Levantine's cracked blade blazed with fire again.
"These twin blades slay Legendary Weapon Wielders," Cypha said. "If you think you can stop them, go ahead."
Signum roared as she lurched at Cypha again, slashing with her flaming blade. Before her attack could connect, wires wrapped around the samurai's body, binding her arms to her sides.
"Signum!"
Blue feral eyes glared at the owner of the third voice.
"Stop this Signum!" It was Shamal. "Please!"
Signum's gaze showed no recognition of the blonde healer.
The Empress' head healer was in tears, having just barely caught up to the pair in the Imperial forest. She stood twenty feet away from the duelling swordswomen, the trees in between them blocking her cousin's massive blades from Shamal's sight. To the Empress' Head Attendant, it looked as if Signum were charging her cousin who was unarmed. Little did she realize how wrong she was.
With her heart torn between backing up her secret love and defending her cousin, Shamal chose the latter and immobilized the less than rational samurai with Klarer Wind's wires. Shamal gritted her teeth, pulling with everything she had on her wires to keep Signum from advancing another step closer to Victoria.
"Please don't hurt her!" Shamal pleaded, her tears blinding her to the true nature of the situation.
Cypha, facing no such restrictions, grinned. "Do you finally understand why you can't defeat me?" By now, her once almost severed arm had completely healed, the one eyed swordswoman raising her long sword to the samurai captain's ensnared chest.
Rage filled eyes snapped back to Cypha at that motion, Signum struggling further against Shamal's bindings.
"Die!"
König thrust forward, breaking through armor and flesh, turning red.
A gasping breath.
Levantine fell to the ground, its blade shattering into pieces the moment it connected with the earth.
"Farewell, knight," Cypha said, pulling back on her blade. She very much enjoyed the squelching sound it made upon being freed from flesh. "Our sword battle was a close one, but I win at killing."
Shamal stumbled backwards with a jerk when Klarer Wind's wires suddenly went slack. An audible thump sounded ahead, the blonde healer quickly wiping her tears to survey the scene again. All of the colour drained out of Shamal's face when her violet gaze caught sight of Signum's motionless body on the forest ground. She had been too far away to hear what was said between the two swordswomen, her tears blurring much of what she could actually see.
Throwing caution to the wind, Shamal immediately dashed towards the samurai's prone form, tripping on twigs and above ground roots. Klarer Wind's wires detracted along the way. When she finally slide to a halt next to the pinkette, her heart stopped.
"S-S-Signum?"
Shamal couldn't breath.
In spite of its magical enhancements, ones cast by Shamal herself, Signum's armor did little in protecting its wearer. Gashes and scratches littered the pinkette's armored body, both shallow and deep. The samurai captain herself was flat on her back, crimson pooling around her, soaking into the earth, gushing freely from a wound in the middle of her chest. Crimson ran down the length of Signum's chin, the streak of red originating from her lips, the pink haired warrior deathly silent. The samurai's eyes were covered in the shadow of her hair. Levantine lay next to the swordswoman, its blade shattered, with its pieces scattered all over the forest floor.
Victoria was no where in sight.
"S-Signum?"
Klarer Wind immediately lit up with power, Shamal's shaking hands hovering over Signum's worst wound. Tears spilled freely from her eyes again as the first touch of the magic verified what she already knew.
There was no heartbeat.
A/N: This battle is heavily based on the fight between Signum and Cypha in the manga Force to the point of borrowing some lines. You can find that battle here (take out the extra spaces and brackets): (w) (w) (w) . mangareader . (n) (e) (t) / 1173 / mahou-senki-lyrical-nanoha-force . (h) (t) (m) (l)
For those of you confused, Cypha and Victoria are the same person. The question on whether Cypha is the true identity, or Victoria, will be revealed later. :p
For those of you unfamiliar with the non-English words, I have translated them below.
Kisama = You (usually used to show the speaker's extreme hostility / outrage towards the addressee)
Schlangeform = Snake Form (German)
Brennenkugel = Burning Ball (German)
König = King (German)
Jawohl = Yes/Roger (German)
For an explanation of Japanese honorifics (eg. [name]-sama), please check out: (h) (t) (t) (p) : / / wiki / Japanese_honorifics