So, I'm sure you're all sick and tired of waiting for an update. Well, here it is, and thank you for your patience, as well as your continued support even though these updates sometimes take too long. I appreciate the positivity, and even the constructive criticism, though it sometimes equals an emotional arrow to the knee.

Anyway, this update was a little slow in coming because I've finally decided to put my skills to use in writing an original manuscript. That doesn't mean I'll stop Fanfiction by any means, so never fear. Also, I spent a fair deal of time revising some of the older chapters for BC; my own dialogue made me cringe, so a rewrite was absolutely necessary.

Anyway, one of you specifically requested a more Ivy/Siegfried focused chapter. Obviously I can't make the entire chapter about them, but since you asked, I'll enlarge their role for this update.

Also, this is going to be a catch up chapter to see what the cast as a whole is up to, so prepare for a lot of perspective shifts.

Tira did not consider herself a very lucky individual. Throughout her life she had been faced with one tragedy and misfortune after another, most of them shaping her into the damaged and broken person she was today. Perhaps it was a vicious karma cycle? She was certainly not a good person by any means, and she had committed a multitude of sins in the seventeen years she had been alive. Maybe all of those evil deeds just caught up with her and the worst times imaginable throughout her life.

However, Tira was not so terribly unlucky that she could not find what she was looking for in this instance. She had retreated into the woods after escaping Wolfkrone castle, in hopes of finding any body of water to bathe in. Fortunately, she had actually stumbled across exactly that a few hours into her search. It was nothing more than a small creek that she'd barely be able to submerge herself halfway in, but it would serve her purpose well enough.

Shedding her soiled and dirtied clothes, Tira decided to clean herself before cleaning her outfit. It was hard to tell since it was crimson, but it was practically drenched in blood, and Tira didn't feel like scrubbing all of that out right now.

So instead, she tossed that to the side and let her hair down so it would be easier to wash. Being entirely alone in the forest, Tira had no problem being completely exposed as she was. Besides, she had been naked in front of people before; usually for the sole purpose of getting close enough to murder them, but the point still stood.

Either way, Tira slid into the source of water she had found without inhibition, taking a rare level of pleasure in something so simple. She rarely enjoyed herself outside of fighting and killing, but even for someone like her, Tira enjoyed the same things normal people did; washing away the dirt and grime of battle among them.

You know, I kinda forgot how nice something like this is. It feels like it's been a really long time since we just relaxed like this.

That's because it has been a long time you ditz! We've been in that dungeon forever, and you know we never had time to sit back like this in Ostreihnsburg.

Yeah, there really was no time for leisure back then...

Tira mentally noted how strange it was to refer to her service under Nightmare as 'back then.' On the other hand, it felt kind of nice to be free of those chains.

After initially cleaning her body from the filth and blood caking it, Tira decided to postpone washing her clothes. That was a bit more work than she wanted to do at the moment.

Instead, she chose to check her side. The physicians at Wolfkrone castle had crudely tended to the wound, but Tira had hardly needed it. Her malfested body healed at a speed far greater than any human. In fact, as she undid the bandage that covered the wound, Tira noted with satisfaction that it had already healed completely. There wasn't even any scar tissue to tell of it. The only mark left was the stitches that had not yet fallen out on their own. She would remove those later today.

It's really nice to be free of scars, huh? That poor knight with Soul Calibur would probably be super jealous if he knew malfested didn't have to worry about them.

Somehow I don't think he really cares. Besides, he's probably one of those weird guys who thinks scars add character.

Hey, for all we know Ciri might think scars add character.

And? Is that supposed to make me retract the statement or something?

Tira sunk as far into the creek as possible, though it still barely came up to her chest.

Well I thought we kinda liked him just a little bit, so...

Only you have such stupid feelings. I despise that insufferable fool!

But you're me, so if I kinda like him, shouldn't you?

You know damn good and well that we might as well be two different people by now!

Tira was about to argue with herself further, something that became increasingly common as her two personalities grew ever different from one another, but a slight disturbance caught her attention instead. While it was very hard to notice at first, a steady rumbling was reverberating throughout the forest, and growing just a little louder every second.

Quickly analyzing the situation, Tira decided that she didn't have enough time to reach her weapon before whatever was making this noise arrived, since she had moved rather far from it to bathe. An amateurish mistake really, but she had been too excited at the time to think about it.

With hiding being the best option, Tira moved from her sitting position in the creek to a prone one, allowing her to submerge herself completely. Of course, the creek was too shallow to hide her from anyone paying close attention, especially with her long black hair flowing through it, but then again, Tira only needed a few seconds to make the first move. If she could do that, this problem would be over in no time.

Tira had no trouble holding her breath long enough for the mysterious stranger to arrive, but when she spotted her target, she was met with utmost surprise.

What...is that thing?

On the opposite side of the water's surface stood a short, stocky, and very pale girl dressed in a long black dress. Her eyes were yellow, and her hair was nearly as white as her unnaturally pale skin. This figure also carried a large spear just taller than she was.

Further observation brought many strange details to Tira's attention. This unknown person before her had strange lines around her joints, but most noticeably, she also had what seemed to be clockwork in her torso.

Is it human?

Whatever it is, it's even shorter than we are! That's saying something.

Hey, it's not like we're that short! Last time I checked we were five foot three...

As if the universe itself had reached the limits of its patience with Tira's mindless internal banter, her argument was once again cut short by the same person who had done so the first time; but it was now done with a giant metal spear plowing into the creek bed just in front of Tira's face.

Her body immediately acting on reflex, Tira shot out of the water as quickly possible, its shallow depth doing little to restrict her movement. The moment she set foot on dry ground, she was flipping away from the enemy and towards her weapon. It would have been an interesting sight, had anyone human been around to see it. As it was, the sight of a naked girl back-flipping through the woods was not questioned by Ashlotte. She had no reason to believe this behavior was any different for humans than anything else she had seen.

When Tira finally reached the tree she had left Drossel at, she could only glare at her attacker. "Do you have any idea how rude it is to attack someone while they're bathing? Where are your manners?"

Ashlotte quizzically tilted her head to the side, confused by Tira's questions. "I was created to destroy Astaroth. Manners are not required to do so."

"Yeah, but still. To attack someone when they're like this is just low."

Though, we have done the same to some of our targets before...

That's not the point.

Ashlotte made no effort to reply to Tira's words, so the malfested girl chose to continue, wondering if she should take the time to dress herself before this situation escalated. "What did you attack me for anyway? I didn't do anything to you!"

"You were hiding when I arrived. Only people with ill intent hide from others."

Honestly, Tira couldn't deny the fact that people who hid from others did usually have bad things in mind, but still...

"Whatever. I'm not in the mood to fight a... whatever it is you are. So go away."

Apparently Tira's statement equaled a question for Ashlotte, who chose to identify herself. "I am a battle automaton created for the sole purpose of destroying the creature known as Astaroth."

Hearing that this being before her was not human, Tira truly lost all interest in fighting it. "Well I don't see a point in killing something that isn't even alive, so I'm not even going to bother with you. And what do you hope to do against someone like Astaroth? You're even shorter than I am, and he's nearly seven feet tall. He could probably just step on you and be done with it."

The mention of Astaroth's name from someone other than herself completely changed Ashlotte's directives. The human before her had just mentioned Astaroth and a vague description of him. They probably knew Astaroth in some way. And Ashlotte needed to find Astaroth.

Tira barely had time to duck under a heavy swing as Ashlotte leaped over the river and swung her heavy metal spear at the girl, shattering the tree Tira had been leaning against.

Still, Tira's reflexes were much too fast to have really been in danger, and she managed to get some distance from Ashlotte in no time. "OK, so you're faster and stronger than you look. But I just said I have no interest in fighting something that can't bleed or feel. What are you attacking me for?"

"It is likely that you know of Astaroth's location. You will tell me."

Tira cocked an eyebrow at the machine before her, before pointing a finger in the rough direction of Ostreihnsburg. "That way."

If Ashlotte's face was capable of registering surprise, it would have. As it was, she could only question Tira with her typical, emotionless voice. "Why have you revealed this information so readily?"

"I don't feel like fighting a machine, I was in the middle of relaxing when you showed up, and Astaroth is an asshole anyway. I couldn't care less if you go after him or not."

Ashlotte accepted this explanation without question. "Very well. I will begin my search immediately."

With that, the spear-wielding automaton turned on her heel and walked off in the direction Tira had indicated, not bothering to ask for specifics. Advanced machine or not, she had a simple mind.

Tira sighed as she moved to extricate her still dirty clothing from the broken and shattered tree Ashlotte had destroyed. "Who the hell has time to make something like that anyway?"

"Ouch! Dammit Cyril, be careful!"

"I am being careful, Amy. This is going to hurt regardless of how careful I am."

"Well it would hurt a great deal less if you weren't jamming your finger in so hard!"

Cyril resisted the urge to call out Amy's poor choice of words as he applied some of the ointment she carried with her to a deep scrape on the girl's right cheek. "The point is to get it in as completely as possible. Just bear with me a little longer."

Amy decided to do just that. After all, while it did sting, she was happy to have Cyril take care of her like this, even if it was something small. Besides, he had already tended to the rest of her minor injuries, so what point was there in complaining about the last one?

Either way, Cyril finished his work soon enough, and quickly placed a bandage on the scrape he had been tending to. "There. That takes care of everything. I apologize for how much it stung."

Amy gingerly rubbed the freshly placed bandage as she answered. "Like you said, it would have hurt regardless... I know you were being careful. Thank you."

As they rested under a lone tree they had found some distance from the no longer lizard plagued town, Cyril noted with curiosity that Amy had grown somewhat meeker recently. He said somewhat because her usual personality was by no means gone, but nevertheless Amy acted much... 'sweeter' than she used to, if only on occasion.

"You don't have to thank me for something like this. I would never force you to continue before taking care of your wounds."

Feeling a little underestimated, whether or not Cyril had meant it as such, Amy quickly rose to her feet, brushing aside her minor aches and pains. "Come now Cyril, they were hardly 'wounds.' Not a single one of them was life threatening."

"For which we should be grateful. Those monsters were dangerous foes."

Recalling the battle that had taken place just a few hours ago, Amy had to agree that the lizard men had been very dangerous. Not that she would ever admit it. "Hmph. They were hardly a match for me. You're giving those creatures far too much credit."

Rising to his feet as well, Cyril couldn't help but smile. He found Amy's charade quite amusing, though she had indeed outmatched her foes. "Indeed. Your skills with a rapier are really quite astounding. Also, I didn't know you could back flip quite as well as you can. That was quite the surprise."

Unused to receiving praise from someone else besides her father, who lavished it onto her too much to take seriously anyway, Amy couldn't help but gloat a little. "Well, when you've got just a little too much time on your hands, there's a great many things to be learned."

Cyril cocked an eyebrow at her. "Such as... back flipping?"

"It was a particularly droll day."

Deciding to leave it at that, Cyril laid his eyes on the road ahead once more, providing the duo with enough silence for Amy to breach a new topic. "Speaking of wounds, Cyril... is your arm doing any better?"

Glancing down at his completely bandaged arm, Cyril tried to evaluate how much it had healed since Gungnir had burnt away most of the skin. "It hasn't been long since the injury, and only a day or two since bandaging it. I have regained some feeling, but it is mostly pain."

Not even being able to imagine the agony Cyril was feeling in his arm, Amy inwardly cursed herself for not having something on hand to ease his suffering. She had neglected to pack anything that could serve as a painkiller before leaving the castle. "Maybe we should remove the bandages... if they keep rubbing against your arm..."

"I guarantee you I would rather rub against the linen than my metal armor. I have dealt with worse than this before."

At this, Amy was unable to contain a disbelieving stare. "Really? What could possibly be worse that that?"

Cyril refrained from saying that it wasn't as bad as his mortal demise. Telling Amy that he had died once was not the best idea. "You know... this and that."

Not waiting for a reply, Cyril began walking down the road, trusting Amy to follow, though she did not do it silently. "This and that? What on earth is that supposed to mean?"

"It means exactly what I said."

"Must you always be so irritating?"

"Must you always be so curious?"

Glaring daggers into Cyril's back, Amy did not deign him with a response. How on earth had she fallen for this infuriating man?

Sociability was not one of Siegfried's strong suits. He had been born an introverted man, but his time as Nightmare had certainly done nothing to improve his human interaction skills. That was why he traveled alone when he could. He wasn't used to companions; but beyond that, he wasn't used to companions like Ivy.

She was fundamentally different from Siegfried in almost every way, especially in the modesty department, which troubled Siegfried the most as they rode a ship across the English Channel.

Even though they were embarking on a long, tiresome journey, Ivy was clad in an incredibly sparse, racy purple outfit that exposed so much skin it probably belonged in the bedroom alone. Beyond the obvious lack of practicality, Siegfried could not understand why anyone would want to be seen in public in such attire. And while, like any man, he could not deny that it was attractive, above all he found it confusing. High heels were not suitable for travel, and what Ivy was wearing would certainly not block the edge of a blade.

Unfortunately, whenever Siegfried was deep in thought, he tended to stare straight ahead. And right now, straight ahead was at Ivy herself, since she was the object of his thoughts.

Said woman had noticed his staring already, but had said nothing in the past ten minutes of him doing so, merely finding the entire situation amusing. Still, she had to break him out of his trance sometime. She knew full well that Siegfried was not enraptured with her body or anything, but the thought of teasing him was too good to pass up.

"I find your focus very admirable, Schtauffen. No one has ever ogled me for ten minutes straight."

Broken out of his musings by her words, Siegfried was temporarily unable to speak as he tried to think of some way to defend his honor. Unfortunately, his mouth moved without speaking, and Ivy quickly realized that Siegfried was more likely to act like a fish before answering her.

"Calm down Schtauffen, it was merely a jest. I'm aware of your personal morals."

Siegfried simply sighed, not understanding why Ivy would feel the need to torment him. "If you were aware, why make such a joke at all...?"

"For fun, obviously. Why else are jokes made?"

"That's a terrible reason."

Siegfried's stony countenance elicited a sigh out of his female companion. Ivy was fairly serious herself at times, but she did know how to enjoy herself every once in awhile. Siegfried could certainly learn to do the same. "You'll never attract a woman if you can't lighten up Sctauffen."

"My only goal is to destroy Nightmare and Soul Edge. Women aren't within that scope."

Ivy rolled her eyes in frustration. "Well what about after you do that? You're still fairly young, you'll have a long life ahead of you when this is all over. Don't tell me you're going to be chaste for your entire life?"

Siegfried glanced at Soul Calibur, which he held in his left hand by the hilt. "I haven't planned that far ahead. Honestly, I've never entertained the thought of surviving the final battle with Soul Edge."

Ivy looked down at her own blade, which writhed in a very lifelike manner. "Come now Schtauffen, that's no way to think of the most epic duel you'll ever face. You should look past it; tough battles are easier to fight when you can envision the reward."

At this Siegfried cocked an eyebrow at his companion. "But haven't you resigned yourself to falling at your final battle as well? You said so yourself; eliminating the influence of Soul Edge completely will include you, eventually."

Ivy smiled bitterly at this. "That is true, but unlike you, I plan to live my life out to the fullest before that time comes. In my case I'll die after doing everything I've wanted to. But you plan on dying in some final battle while still young. That's the difference."

"Well I can hardly wait around until I'm old. Nightmare certainly won't wait to destroy the world."

"True; perhaps destiny will not allow you to take your time. But then again, you can't be the only person in the world capable of wielding Soul Calibur. Maybe you can pass your burden onto another?"

The German knight's hand tightened on Soul Calibur's hilt. "I can't be that selfish with my destiny. The only way I can atone for my sins as Nightmare is to destroy the Cursed Sword myself."

Ivy folded her arms as she cocked an eyebrow at the blond. "Or maybe you just don't trust anyone else to get the job done?"

This earned a glare from the knight. "Are you going somewhere with this? Or do you really just enjoy tormenting me so much?"

"I'm not asking questions to irritate you, Schtauffen. I'm just interested in the how's and why's of your mission. After all, if I'm to accompany you, I have every right to know."

Siegfried's glare only intensified. "You chose to accompany me. It's not as if I forced you. I will keep my motives to myself.."

Seeing that Siegfried was in no mood to share, Ivy simply shrugged and turned her back to him, instead focusing on the frothy waters ahead of their ship. While not one to usually do so, she was starting to regret her decision just a little bit.

"I still don't see why we had to bring him along."

Sophitia glanced back at her sister as the two of them walked along a familiar road out of Greece. "He's an experienced warrior who has vowed to help us in our quest. I see no reason why we should have refused his help."

Cassandra turned to glare at the hooded Italian man walking further behind she and her sister. She hated that white hood; it stopped her from knowing when that lecherous man was ogling her ass. "Come on Sophie, he couldn't have been more transparent if he tried. He's along for the ride alright; probably doesn't even know where we're heading or what we're doing."

Then again, Cassandra couldn't really blame the man for being enthralled. Besides the fact that both she and her sister were quite beautiful, they were both quite under dressed. Hell, she wasn't even wearing pants really. But Sophitia was much worse. Her white clothes were barely opaque, and God forbid if it rained. Cassandra was honestly surprised that Rothion never said anything to his wife about the way she dressed. Maybe he just had that much faith in her.

Either way, Sophitia didn't see Cassandra's point. She was glad to have someone, even a stranger, who was willing to aid her in retrieving Pyyrha from the clutches of evil. She was so desperate that she would accept help from anyone, never mind someone who could actually fight. "If he makes even one step of our journey easier, his company will have been worth it. Besides, I still don't see why you dislike him Cassandra."

Cassandra sighed as she crossed her arms and glared ahead of her. "Sophie, you really are dense sometimes... just don't bend over too far and don't trip or anything."

Sophitia looked back at her sister questioningly, not understanding why she would warn her against such things. For someone who had conceived two children already, her mind was surprisingly naive. Because of that, Cassandra took it upon herself to maintain vigilance against Ezio; and so she made sure to block his line of sight to Sophitia, which earned a small frown from the Italian man. That was Cassandra's happiest moment all day.

One thing Xandra had always found ironic about her situation was the lack of teamwork it entailed. She, as a Sentinel, was part of a four man unit, but she never worked together with any of her colleagues. Then again, it was not as if the Sentinels necessarily liked each other. She detested Helios. He appeared to be nothing more than a brutish thug who liked to fight and destroy things, at least in Xandra's eyes. Not to mention his affinity for fire, which she considered to be a horrible, evil element. As for Theron, he was too quiet and solitary for Xandra to feel anything other than indifference towards him.

Chrysaor was the only Sentinel Xandra had yet to form a solid opinion on, because she had not interacted much with him during his short tenure in Valhalla. Either way, Xandra was sure she would probably dislike him as well. Very few people earned her favor, as she was hard to please.

"Xandra?"

Hearing her voice called out snapped Xandra out of her musings, and she looked down from the high tree she was perched on to see her companion gazing up at her. "What is it, Link?"

The Hylian far below the raven haired immortal seemed pleased to be addressed by his name, instead of one of the more brusque titles Xandra usually used. "I was simply wondering if you've spotted anything of worth yet. You have been up there for the better part of an hour."

Xandra hated to admit to either herself or the man below her that she had been daydreaming more than searching like she had intended to, and so leaped down without answering Link's question at all. The near one hundred foot drop would have killed her, had she not been immune to such pitiful mortality. After landing quite lightly for such a large jump, Xandra pointed an index finger in the general direction she had decided to go. "We're heading that way."

Not waiting for any reply from the man beside her, Xandra immediately moved in that direction, her swift steps causing her dark hair to billow out behind her. Link was by now used to this, so he wasted no time in following the woman. "What did you see in that direction?"

"Nothing."

"Nothing? Then why have you decided to go that way?"

The Sentinel of Wind stopped for a moment to level her steely emerald gaze at Link. "Must you question every decision I make?"

Link thought it was unfair of her to ask that. "To be fair Xandra, I haven't questioned every decision..."

Xandra sighed before returning to her brisk walk. "We are going this way because I feel as though we should."

While he did not wish to irritate his traveling companion, Link could not help but question this as well. "You have chosen this path based on a feeling?"

"That is what I just said, is it not?"

"Yes, but that does not seem very... prudent."

Xandra stopped in her tracks again, this time neglecting to turn and face Link, though the lack of movement made her seem much more threatening. "You're getting on my nerves, Hylian."

Her voice was level and lacked inflection, but just like her lack of movement, it only further enticed Link to stay quiet for the next hour. He was apparently asking a few too many questions.

With the nuisance behind her silenced, Xandra breathed an inward sigh of relief. It was true that she was heading northeast based on an instinctual feeling, but what she didn't tell Link was that this feeling was intertwined with hunting down the Catalyst. With her higher affinity for nature, Xandra could sense where things in nature were amiss in the world; and as all the Sentinels knew, the Catalyst created many unnatural phenomena in nature. While there was no guarantee that her objective would be near this source of unease in particular, it was better than wandering aimlessly. In truth, it probably wouldn't have been that hard to explain this to Link, but Xandra was not the type to enjoy explaining herself to others.

"Hey Link, where are we going? Did she tell you? Huh? I bet not, she's pretty mean."

Xandra's left eye began to twitch as the voice of Link's fairy companion made itself known. The annoyance had disappeared into the woods for some time, but now that it had returned, Xandra's irritation multiplied tenfold.

In fact, she was not having any of this right now. She stopped in her tracks for the third time, though she did face Link. "Continue walking in the direction I have indicated. I'll be back."

With that, powerful yet controlled winds whirled around the woman, in a vortex Link recognized as her Gale Stream ability. Within moments, her entire body had been carried away on the wind, leaving Link and Navi to themselves, though the Hylian was the first to voice his thoughts. "I honestly never know if I can trust her when she says that."

Hilde was not usually vulnerable to uncontrollable rage. But as she looked down on the cold bodies of the dungeon guards, she was filled to the brim with unbridled fury. The dungeon's only occupant of a few hours ago was nowhere to be found.

"How did this happen..."

Though this was essentially a question, Gerhilde refused to answer her Princess. She knew that Hilde was asking herself more than anyone else, allowing the redhead to continue.

"I should have tripled the guard... dammit, I should have known better! I should have known better than to underestimate her!"

Hilde punctuated her angry words by slamming her fist into the stone wall beside her. Gerhilde wanted to urge her princess to exercise restraint lest she hurt herself, but she knew better than to intrude on one of Hilde's rare tirades.

"To think that she escaped before we could wring a single answer out of her! And who knows how many of our men she managed to kill on the way out!? Damn it! God damn it! This is all my fault! I should have known better!"

It was at this point that Gerhilde finally decided to venture a few words. "Ma'am, the malfested's escape was recent; if we dispatch our men now, we may be able to find her..."

Hilde said nothing as she glared down at the mutilated bodies of her comrades. It was only after several moments of brooding that she managed to formulate the words she desired. "Send out all of the search parties we can spare. And tell them that I no longer care about capturing the girl alive. Kill her on sight! She will pay for this, and for what she has done to our king!"

With that, Hilde stormed out of the dungeon, likely to go and join the hunt for the malfested herself. Gerhilde knew better than to try and stop her from doing so. All she could do was follow Hilde's orders, and round up the poor sods who would have to dispose of the corpses in the dungeon.

"My father?"

Amy glanced over at Cyril curiously as the two of them walked towards the source of dark energy the Sentinel had pinpointed back at the village. He had asked her what her father was like seemingly out of nowhere.

"Indeed. He is the only family I've ever heard you mention. I would like to know some more about him."

The petite redhead frowned as she considered Cyril's wishes. She had never actually talked about Raphael to anyone else. While she loved him as much as she would any blood related family member, it was difficult to talk about Raphael positively to others. After all, whether or not he loved Amy sincerely, he was not by any stretch a good person.

Seeing that Amy was hesitant, Cyril thought to retract his statements. "If you do not wish to speak of him I will not press further. We can talk about something else."

She almost took Cyril up on his offer, but Amy decided to indulge the warrior in the end. After all, talking about one man she loved to another could prove to be an enlightening experience. Of course it was different kinds of love, but maybe she would find some startling similarities. "Actually, I don't mind talking about him. It's not as though I'm ashamed of my father."

Cyril grinned at the girl next to him. "Well if he can put up with you, I'm sure there is little about him to be ashamed of."

Instead of getting angry or flustered, Amy simply smirked back at the brown-haired man. "Well you deal with me quite well yourself; unless it was your intent to make that point?"

Cyril had not been expecting such a smooth reply to his jest, but he found that he rather liked it. "Maybe."

Instead of continuing on with that tangent, Amy simply smiled as she begun relaying her past to the man she had come to love. "Well, I suppose the first thing you should know is that he is not my real father; not by blood, anyway. I was orphaned during a civil war in Roeun when I was still very young. Contrary to the state of affairs you first met me in, I have lived most of my life in poverty and filth. In comparison, my life in a castle with servants and maids has been very brief."

Hearing that Amy had not been a noble her entire life actually shocked Cyril. From her demeanor, he never would have guessed that Amy had once been no more than a hungry peasant on the side of a street somewhere. Either way, he stayed silent so she could continue.

"I first encountered Raphael when he was fleeing from French soldiers. As I would later discover, he had been exiled from his own family for possessing cursed blood of sorts, though I of course did not know at the time. He simply chose to hide from the soldiers near my place on the streets, and when they asked me if I had seen him, I said no. And while I would like to believe it, I did not do so out of some notion of mercy or goodness. I simply hated the soldiers that I partially blamed for my horrible life, and more importantly, I hoped doing so would earn some sort of reward from the nobleman I had saved. Of course, I was really only thinking of food as a reward at the time, but needless to say, I got much more than I expected."

"I would imagine so. But how does a nobleman exiled from his own family acquire a castle to call his own?"

Amy wondered how much of Raphael's dark deeds she should reveal. While his actions were not hers, she didn't know if Cyril would somehow equate his misdeeds with her own. In the end, she chose to lie about it. "Wallachia castle was abandoned during the civil conflict taking place. Raphael simply took it for his own before anyone else could. I received the benefits as well, since he had decided to adopt me before that point."

Cyril folded his arms as he continued to walk. "Because you had saved him from the soldiers?"

"Precisely. I believe he saw me as some sort of angel afterwards. In fact, I do not think he sees me as anything short of perfect, and nothing anyone can say or do, including myself, can convince him otherwise."

"And how do you feel about that?"

"Well I won't deny that he is delusional in that respect, as I have many flaws and shortcomings. In fact, I might go so far as to say that my father is obsessed and insane when it comes to many things; but either way I love him, because he is the first person to have loved me so completely in so long a time. I truly do feel like his own daughter when I'm with him."

While it was all sweet in it's own way, Cyril could not lie and tell himself that the relationship Amy shared with her father was healthy. If anything, it was probably detrimental for both of them; but the look of sincerity and satisfaction on Amy's face prevented the Sentinel from saying anything. He would not tear her down now.

"Well everyone deserves someone to care about them more than anyone else in the world. In that regard you are lucky, Amy. I envy you."

The way Cyril said it, he did not believe he had such a person right now. Amy wanted to say that she was that person for him, but could not muster up the courage to do so. She could only continue their conversation without drawing herself in. "Surely you have no reason to envy me... you must have someone like that as well..."

Cyril's countenance grew grim as he contemplated this. He did indeed have someone like that, many years ago. His sister had been that person who loved him more than anything, but she was gone now, and nothing would ever bring her back. Then again, he was not completely lost; he did have Eros, who loved him like her own son, and while he did not think Amy's friendly love for him was that deep, Cyril was glad to have her by his side as well. In the end, he managed to smile.

"Perhaps. I think we all have people who love us to that degree, and sometimes we just don't know it."

Amy couldn't help but dwell on the irony of those words. Cyril had no idea how well his own words pertained to him.

While crossing the English Channel had been tedious in itself, Ivy was disappointed when Siegfried desired to stop mere hours after they had disembarked and begun traveling towards Germany on foot. It was not even dusk, yet the man wished to stop at a roadside inn the two of them had happened across after a few hours of walking.

"Schtauffen, is lugging around that massive sword tiring you out? We've hardly traveled more than a few leagues. The sun isn't even down yet."

Siegfried was heaving a bit more than Ivy thought he should have been, but then again, he was carrying much more weight than her, with his armor and Soul Calibur combined. "I know... it's just... I'm exhausted. I don't know why, but I can... barely keep going. I have to stop."

Ivy gazed at the blonde with a modicum of worry. "Do you think it has something to do with Soul Calibur?"

"Perhaps... but I see no reason why the sword would be draining my strength. Unless you did something wrong during your experiments..."

While it wasn't exactly an accusation, Ivy was nevertheless offended. "I assure you this has nothing to do with my earlier investigations. Maybe you're just getting old."

Even though he was not one to make jests, Siegfried couldn't help but eye the woman next to him with a smile on his face. "I'm nearly a full decade younger than you, Ivy."

"And just what do you mean by that, Siegfried?! Are you trying to call me old?! And how do you even know how old I am?!"

"Someone you had dealings with in the past told me. You're thirty-two now, right?"

Ivy gritted her teeth as Siegfried nailed her age spot on. She would definitely find whoever revealed this information so freely. "Well if you're so much younger than me, Schtauffen, perhaps you should show me some more respect!"

Siegfried merely chuckled as he hefted Soul Calibur over his shoulder and walked towards the inn he had decided to stay in that night. "By the way, you used my first name just a moment ago."

Crossing her arms as she followed behind him, Ivy glared at Siegfried's back. "Don't let it go to your head, you insufferable fool. It won't happen again."

The knight in front of her said nothing to this as he focused on buying rooms for he and his companion to stay in that night. And while being a knight wielding a holy sword certainly earned Siegfried a discount, it did not manage to free up space that did not exist. The inn only had one room available that night, as Ivy discovered when Siegfried returned to her.

"Well, there's nothing to be done about the lack of space. I assume it only has one bed as well?"

Siegfried nodded morosely. He did not know how to deal with this situation. "That is correct..."

After a few moments, Ivy simply shrugged. "Well, I see no problem with sharing it. It's not as if someone like you would try anything anyway. Besides being too honorable, you're far too much of a coward to make a move on a woman."

While this was certainly insulting, it was not Siegfried's primary concern. "The bed is much too small to fit both of us. There's no way we can share."

Ivy cocked an eyebrow at him. "So what, are you going to make me sleep on the floor?"

Surprisingly, this was a bigger insult to Siegfried than anything Ivy had said to him thus far. "Of course not! I would never ask something so crude of you! I will sleep on the floor, you may have the bed."

While she appreciated the notion, Ivy couldn't help but continue to heckle the younger warrior. "You do know that code of chivalry pertains more to battle than respecting women, don't you?"

"That's hardly the point. You could just appreciate the gesture for what it's worth."

Deciding that she could cut him a break for now, Ivy shrugged and lead the way up the stairs, a both mentally and physically tired Siegfried hot on her heels. He indicated the room that was theirs without much delay, and quickly found a spot on the floor he would use as a bed, not noticing that Ivy was beginning to shed most of her clothes behind him until he actually turned around.

"Wha-!? Ivy, what are you doing?!"

Making a renewed effort to mess with him, Ivy acted as if nothing was amiss. "Whatever are you talking about Schtauffen? Surely you don't expect me to sleep in the clothes I've been walking in all day? Do you plan on sleeping in your armor?"

"Well no, but... but why didn't you just wait until I left?! Just ask for some privacy!"

Before Ivy could make any retort at all Siegfried dashed out of the room, in such blind haste that he neglected to take Soul Calibur with him. Ivy couldn't help but smile at it all; his innocence was actually kind of endearing.

Very few things intimidated sailors, but the sight of a swords woman glaring down each and every one of them with the intent to fight was on the list. This swords woman happened to be Setsuka, who eyed everyone around her as if they would somehow purposefully damage her precious kimono. Taki on the other hand was simply standing at the prow of the vessel she had hired to take her and her companion to the Asian mainland. While she earned a lot more lecherous looks from the men around her, Taki was likewise avoided by them. She had quite the reputation around Japan, and anyone who knew she could take down demons certainly wasn't going to try her patience.

Setsuka warily made her way over to the kunoichi, staring down every man she passed as she did so. When she reached the woman, her kimono was no worse off than before. "Must we really use such a crude means of transportation to reach our goal, Taki-sama?"

Taki eyed the woman next to her with tired eyes. In some ways she found Setsuka exhausting. "We merely need to get from point A to point B. There was no need to waste valuable resources on a luxurious ship for a trip as short as this one. We'll see the shore in mere hours."

The blonde beside Taki refrained from stating how dangerous a few hours could be for her. "That may be so, but..."

Taki sighed before turning sharply to face Setsuka. She already knew the woman was going to say something about her kimono. "Setsuka-san, might I suggest that you purchase more travel appropriate clothing when we next stop in a village? That way you can safely store your kimono elsewhere and not worry about it getting damaged."

Setsuka frowned briefly at the suggestion, but managed to recover quickly enough. "That is not the only reason I'm uncomfortable here. I just feel like we should be above such men as these."

The purple-clad kunoichi cocked an eyebrow at Setsuka before turning her serious gaze on the sailors around her. "Why? They are just people, no different from us. There is no reason to think lesser of them."

"But surely you've noticed the lecherous looks they give you!"

Taki eyed Setsuka incredulously. "Of course I have. But it's not as if I can blame them. The clothes I'm wearing are hardly modest."

Setsuka's mouth was agape in shock as she tried to process Taki's answer. "B-b-but... then why do you wear it?!"

"It allows for ease of movement during battle, is comfortable on all parts of the body, and is suitable for nearly all weather conditions. The fact that it is immodest is an unfortunate side effect that I simply accept."

Setsuka still couldn't comprehend this completely. "S-surely this ease of movement you speak of is not so vital that you could wear something less revealing? What ease does this skin-tight apparel even offer?"

Taki sighed as she pinched the bridge of her nose. "Setsuka-san, as you may know, my fighting style includes many flips, leaps and highly acrobatic techniques."

"Yes? And?"

"And as you may have also noticed, my breasts are very large. What do you think would happen if they were not restrained by something very tight?"

A crimson blush spread across Setsuka's face as she thought about it. "O-oh... I see, I suppose you have a point there..."

Sighing, Taki turned to face the ocean once more, reminiscing on days when she traveled alone. In hindsight, there had probably been a reason for that.

Hours after her arrival in the one village that had survived the desolation of that wretched tsunami, Talim was covered in sweat and grime. Not because she had chosen not to bathe; she simply did not have time. When Talim had first set foot in the village, she was met with the sight of dozens of survivors from the catastrophe, all begging for aid and assistance. Well, they had not really been doing so, but the mere sight of them guaranteed Talim's help.

Her first order of business had been to commandeer a home from a generous couple that agreed with the priestess' desires to aid the survivors. After doing that, Talim had quickly rounded up anyone and everyone who needed some sort of healing. It was literally all she had been doing since separating with Cyril several hours ago.

It was grueling work, especially considering the sheer number of people that needed to be treated, but Talim was honestly just glad that there were so many survivors in the first place. The desolation she had seen after being rescued by Cyril had led Talim to believe there had been no survivors besides herself. For once, she was glad to be mistaken.

Still, she had seen no sign of her friends since arriving, and every passing hour filled Talim with more hopelessness. Even she found it hard to believe that they were still alive.

But even though Talim was crushed by the thought of it, she continued to care for the injured that came to her. No matter what emotional state she was in, the young healer could not refuse someone who needed her aid.

However, her stamina was not limitless. Sooner or later she would run out of energy to heal with, and Talim would collapse. That was her plan anyway. She had promised Cyril to take it easy, but Talim had no intention of doing so until everyone she could help in this village had received her attention. She would not rest until they could.

Though she was getting very lightheaded as she continued to treat the seemingly endless tide of victims, so a rest was probably going to be forced upon Talim soon regardless...

"Talim! Talim, oh my God, you're alive!"

As a very familiar voice called out to her, Talim felt all of her vitality come rushing back to her, though that may have just been excitement. As the young Filipino turned on her heels, she came face to face with someone she had been dying to see; Seong Mi-na. She was soaked and her clothes were torn, but it was definitely her.

Before Mina could say anything else, Talim enveloped the young woman in a bone crushing hug; a surprising feat for the petite girl. "Mina! Oh thank goodness, you're here! I thought for sure you'd... oh thank goodness!"

Mina was a little surprised to hear Talim thanking something besides the wind, but she was too exhausted to comment on it. Besides, Talim was squeezing all of the air out of her. "Ta-Talim... you're hurting my ribs..."

A look of panicked apology coming to her face, Talim quickly released her friend. "Mina, are you alright? Have you been injured? And where is Hwang? Is he with you?"

Mina frowned as she cupped a bloody gash on her side. "I got this from some broken wood floating around out there. As for Hwang... I haven't seen him since the wave hit us."

Talim couldn't help but think the universe was cruel, to crush her spirits right after raising them; but perhaps it was actually some form of mercy. She had not expected to see either of her friends again, never mind one. She should be grateful for what mercy was shown to her.

"Well, I am glad to know that at least you are safe, Mina. Let me look at your wound..."

Mina lifted her arm to allow Talim to see her side, but she knew well enough what the girl was thinking. "Talim, you know how tough Hwang is. He's been victim to much worse during his days as a captain..."

"Really Mina? I hardly think he could have experienced worse than this."

"That doesn't change the fact that some rough seawater would never take him down. We'll find him soon. Actually, he'll probably find us."

Talim looked over her shoulder for some bandages. "Speaking of which, how did you find me, Mina? What happened to you?"

"I was washed away like everything else when the wave hit. I woke up waist deep in water, but thankfully with my face above the surface. I kinda just wandered around until I spotted this place. To be honest, I had no idea you were in here until I walked in. At least it was a pleasant surprise."

"I agree with that. I was starting to think neither of you had made it."

Mina cocked an eyebrow at the girl. "That's uncharacteristically pessimistic of you."

"Can you blame me?"

Looking at the dozens of victims in the room with her, Mina sighed. "No, I really can't."

"This looks... ominous."

Cyril couldn't help but agree with Amy's observation of the dark cave far below the stony ridge they stood on. This was the place that Cyril had detected a dark aura from. Whether or not it was the Catalyst was debatable, but it was better to investigate something suspicious than to wander about without direction.

"If I had to make an assumption, I would say that this is the lair of those creatures we encountered earlier."

Amy glanced at him. "Whatever could have given you that idea?"

Cyril glanced back at the girl, wondering why she had to criticize his words like that. "You were being much sweeter earlier."

"You weren't making such obvious statements earlier."

The Sentinel was about to point out that she had plenty of reasons to be nicer to him when he suddenly felt a new source of energy enter the area, though this one was actually quite familiar.

"Oh great... what on earth is she doing here...?"

Amy looked at him questioningly, but soon decided to follow Cyril's gaze towards a peculiar vortex of winds that was concentrating a lot of dust in one area. "Cyril, what is that?"

Instead of choosing to answer, Cyril simply let the wind continue to blow, until Amy could identify the distinct shape of a person within it. Only then did Cyril answer her query.

"That, Amy, is another Sentinel."

Lots of dialogue and that's about it, but hopefully it was either funny or allowed you guys to see what was up with the rest of the cast. Sorry it took so long, but I really needed to rewrite some of those old chapters. That dialogue was awful.