A/N: Hey guys so in this chapter, Cassandra ran off to nowhere in disbelief of Siegfried's past. A lot of actions scenes here. Thanks again to snuggle boo for reviewing.
"Yes, I am…Nightmare."
Cassandra then fell to her knees in disbelief with tears starting to fall from her eyes. Siegfried then tried to approach the Athenian.
"Cassandra, I…" before Siegfried said anything, Cassandra slapped him across his face.
"You bastard, I thought you're a man who fights for what is right. Instead we all found out that you were the opposite of it. You're that monster who killed people for his own delight."
Cassandra then drew her sword and entered her stance. "I can never forgive you for that!" That last statement of the Athenian, pierced through Siegfried's armor to his heart. His worst fear has come true. To be hated by the only woman whom he truly love. He felt as if his life was taken away from him. He then lowered his guard and his head. Cassandra then charged at Siegfried with her Digamma sword pointing straight for Siegfried's neck.
"Cassandra don't do it!" as Mitsurugi shouted at the Athenian.
"Cassandra stop!" as Maxi shouted as well.
"Cassandra!" as Sophitia shouted at her sister. But no matter what they say, she will not stop on the charge, still determined to kill the once Azure Knight. Siegfried then closed his eyes, preparing himself for his fate. But just as the tip of Cassandra's sword was just inches away from his neck, she stopped. Siegfried then opened his eyes and was shocked at the turn of events. He was expecting that she had already finished him off.
"Why?" he then saw Cassandra starting to cry again. Without anything to say to Siegfried, she then ran away, disappearing through the mist and the fog of the forest. Siegfried then tried to follow her but was blocked by Sophitia, shaking her head.
"Let her go. She needs some time alone to think about the things that just happened. She'll come back when she lightens up. In the meantime, you've got a lot of explaining to do Siegfried."
Cassandra ran until she reached a place near a lake in the forest. There she drops to her knees, burying her face in her hands and continued to weep in despair. She knew she could not kill Siegfried. Even though she just found out the fact of him being the Azure Knight, she still couldn't do it. She loves him too much for her to spill his blood on her hands. She then prayed to her gods.
"Gods please forgive me for I have sinned. I cannot do what you have told me to. I cannot kill him. I cannot kill the man that I love. I just can't!" she then pounds the ground with her fist. " Why did everything turned out to be this way? I... I don't know what to do anymore." as the Athenian continued to weep.
Back with the four, they decided to make camp. Siegfried then explained to them everything about his past from the murder of his father, running off with Soul Edge and finally becoming the Azure Knight.
"So you're the one who ran off with the sword when we're about to destroy it? But why?"
"I thought I could bring back my father with the power of the sword. I should've known better."
"Why didn't you tell us about it? We could've shed some light for you."
"No you don't understand." Siegfried then stood up. "It was my responsibility and mine alone." Suddenly Maxi got up as well and punched Siegfried off his feet.
"Sorry for that bro. But you've got to understand you can't win a war alone. You need the support of everyone as well. To simplify things, you can't do everything alone. Every once in a while, you need friends and love ones to help you to make things easier." Maxi then extended his hand to the knight, helping him to get up.
"Continue with you story then."
"Very well…" Siegfried then explained what happened with Cervantes during their battle and how he changed back to human again.
"I'm sorry. I took over at the wrong time and in the process letting Cervantes get possession of the sword and claiming it yet again." Sophitia then put her hand on the knight's face.
"Getting rid of Nightmare was already a big thing. Don't put the blame on yourself for it."
"But still, a lot of people were killed for the satisfaction of that sword."
"Then you have to destroy it to atone yourself for those acts. Besides as I've told you already, getting rid of that monster was already a big achievement."
"Plus, you have also spared my life back then which was in my book a very big thing considering you were still not in control of your body."
"Wait, Mitsurugi you fought Nightmare?"
"Why of course Maxi. You know I always try to find and fight the best don't you?"
"Then why haven't you told us? We could've been to Ostrheinsburg without getting information on how to get there."
"Sorry, I just rode a carriage that was going to the castle back then. I didn't know the directions back then. HAHAHAHA!" Maxi then then put his palm on his face in disbelief with the ignorance of his friend.
The sun had just set and Cassandra was still sitting there, still don't know what to do. Suddenly she heard a voice from nowhere.
"Well, well… What do we have here? That maggot from earlier, your one of the companions of my old master and it looks like you're all alone. How fortunate for me. I'm still going to get something to satisfy my master's hunger. HAHAHAHA!" as Astaroth appeared again through the mist of the forest.
"You… you're the one who's to blame. You and your master Soul Edge have done nothing more but to cause suffering to everyone." Cassandra then drew her sword and readied her shield. "As for you, you're just unlucky with your find. You just messed with the wrong girl who just had a really bad day." Astaroth then chuckled.
"I'm going to enjoy this." Astaroth then prepared his giant axe. The two then clashed weapons with each other.
"What's taking Cassandra so long? She should've been back by now." as Sophitia worries about her sister.
"Don't worry we'll go look for her. Let's go Mitsurugi, Maxi stay with Sophitia."
"Aye aye captain!" as the two went to where Cassandra ran off to.
"Just can't stand not being with her are you?
"After what just happened, I can't even look her in the straight in the eyes. But still, I just want her to be safe." The two then vanished through the mist and fog within the forest.
As the battle rages on, neither of the two could take advantage of one another.
"It looks like I've underestimated you girl."
"Shut up!" Cassandra then angel stepped to Astaroth then slashed her sword at his leg. The golem then growled in pain as lava flowed through the cut instead of blood. Cassandra then smiled at the agony of the monster.
"Grrr… You'll pay for that you little wrench!" Astaroth then swung his giant axe towards Cassandra but the Athenian quickly evaded it with ease and gave him another slash. This time her sword hit its mark in his back as he growled again in pain. He swung again his axe this time in a vertical fashion but Cassandra side stepped it and was ready to give Astaroth another slash of her sword but this time Astaroth anticipated the attack and gave a knee to her stomach which stunned the Athenian. The golem then followed it up with a back fist to her head which knocked her down to the ground. She then got up back to her feet and then rushed to the golem. She then sidestepped the golem when she was about get hit again by his axe then banged her shield against his head which caused the golem to stumble. She then leap to his back and slammed her shield with all her might at the back of his head and knocked him down to the ground. She then paused for a while to catch her breath. Astaroth then recovered slowly.
"Grrraaahhh! That's it, I've had enough of you!" he then rushed at Cassandra wielding his giant axe like a violent barbarian. The Athenian then readied her shield to block the attack. Astaroth then swung his axe against her shield and caused it to crack. He then charged his axe and swung it upward causing Cassanra's shield to break, fracture her arm from the impact and send her flying. He then leaped to the air, preparing for his titan bomb. He then caught her in the air then landed on the ground with her stomach landing on his knee which fractured some of the Athenian's ribs. He then threw her to the ground and tried to catch his breath. As Cassandra tried to get up, she started to cough out blood. As she finally stood up, her left arm is dangling at her side with her right, holding her sword while supporting her mid-section and her feet are now starting to became weak because of Astaroth's last move. With all of her remaining strength, she then charged at the golem. Astaroth then raised his axe, preparing to intercept the charging Athenian. But she was aware of it. With her momentum from the charge, she then quickly slid down between his legs, stabbed the back of his left leg and then stabbed the side of his body. Though the golem was in pain, he still managed to throw a chop at the Athenian and knock her down yet again. Cassandra tried again to get up once more but before she can even try, Astaroth grabbed her by the leg and sent her flying for some yards away. He then limped his way to the area where he threw her.
"Cassandra!" as Siegfried called out for the Athenian's name.
"Where could've she ran off to? This forest is too damn wide."
"If anything happens to her, I blame myself for it."
"Hey, don't think like that. It wasn't your fault."
"You saw her a while ago didn't you? She hates me. She hates me so much that she tried to kill me like I told you back then. Now she's off to God knows where. This is all my fault…" Mitsurugi then punched Siegfried in the face. He then approached the knight and grabs a hold of his armor.
"Shut up for one second will ya? Haven't you learned anything from earlier? All of them accepted you for who you are."
"But you heard her a while ago didn't you? She said she won't forgive me."
"She won't forgive the Azure Knight, Nightmare. But I know for a fact that she can find it in her heart to forgive Siegfried Schtauffen… like I did and everyone else. They saw you as Siegfried Schtauffen the noble warrior who fights for what is right that is why they accepted you. Take Aeon for example. When you told him you were Nightmare, he tried to kill you as well didn't he? But as you explain further, his hate became gratitude towards you. What I am pointing out is that Nightmare and Siegfried are two different beings and you, brother are not Nightmare. "Mitsurugi then helped the knight to get up to his feet.
"Thank you for knocking some senses back into me Mitsurugi."
"Now then let's go and continue to look for your lost star." Siegfried then got an idea on where to look for Cassandra.
"Wait, that's it. Let's go Mitsurugi! I know where to look for her."
"What? Where?"
"The lake. That is the only place in this forest where she can see the stars clearly. She always like to stare at the starts at night when she feels troubled."
"Well then what are we waiting for? Let's go find your damsel in distress!"
The two then rushed to go to the lake.
When Astaroth threw Cassandra, she then broke through a group of trees and finally crashed down at an open space nearby. She then tried to stand up but her body won't allow her. Her body has taken a lot of punishment ever since Astaroth fractured some of her ribs a while ago. She tried to get up again, but as she tried to get up, she continued to cough blood, signalling that she might have internal bleeding.
(Is this it? Am I going to die here? Is this the punishment of the gods for disobeying them?)
Astaroth then finally caught up on where the Athenian had landed.
"HAHAHA! Now time to make you pay for all the pain that you've given me." He then crept closer to her slowly. Cassandra then spoke softly to herself as tears started to fall from her face.
"Help… me. Somebody… Anybody… please… help me." Astaroth then laughed at the helpless Athenian.
"It's time for your soul to go to my master you maggot." He then grabbed Cassandra by the neck and lifted her above the ground. In return, Cassandra screamed in fear for her life.
"Siegfried, come over here. I found something."
"What is it?"
"Here take a look." Siegfried then stared in shock to see fragments of her Nemea shield.
"No, this is her shield. Something bad must have happened to her."
Suddenly, Siegfried heard a scream from nearby.
"Mitsurugi, did you heard that?"
"Yeah, it's coming from over there."
"That's Cassandra! She's in trouble. Let's hurry!" the two then rushed to where the scream came from.
Cassandra is now lying on her back. She then saw Astaroth raising his axe high above his head, preparing for the final blow.
"Sieg…fried… I… love… you…" as she closed her eyes awaiting her fate.
"HAHAHAHA! Say goodnight!"
As Astaroth was preparing to chop the Athenian with his axe, he then heard another cry. He immediately turned his head and saw a knight charging at him. With his reflexes, he managed to block the attack. Siegfried's eyes then widened when he saw Cassandra beside who was beaten to a pulp.
"Brother, watch over her. I need to settle something with my old servant."
"I got her covered." as Mitsurugi watches over Cassandra.
"You monster, you'll pay for what you did to her!"
"Don't act like this is something new to you. After all, you have done more brutal things than I ever did."
"That was done by The Azure Knight, Nightmare, which I admit that I was. Now I'm a different being. I am Siegfried Schtauffen, son of Margaret and Frederick Schtauffen and I promise to bring an end to Soul Edge and all its servants who embrace its evil." Cassandra was shocked to hear those words from Siegfried. She was delighted to hear those words coming out from his mouth.
(I guess I was wrong about him. I didn't try to peek through his soul to see the goodness within him. Nightmare was a monster who kills people. Siegfried on the other hand was the opposite. He is a knight who protects people from harm and tries to redeem himself for the sins he never actually did. The two of them are completely different beings. I just wish that I could've figured it out earlier.)
"Fool, though you maybe human and goes by a different name presently, you still can never cover the sins that you've already committed."
"That maybe so, but I can still redeem myself by destroying that cursed sword once and for all so that every person can enjoy their life in peace."
"HAHAHAHA! I like your spunk but no matter, you're still just another maggot whose soul will be fed for my master's eternal hunger and once I'm done with you, I'll kill those two as well." Siegfried then became more frustrated with the golem.
"You won't get them until you go through me and no way in hell that I'm going to allow that." Siegfried then entered his stance, with his zweihander ready in hand.
"It will be my pleasure!" Astaroth then charged full speed at the knight, swinging his axe again. As he swung his axe to Siegfried, he then parried it then gave him a counter attack that slashed through the golem's chest. Ignoring the pain, Astaroth charged his axe, preparing to hit Siegfried with the same attack that he used on Cassandra that sent her flying. Astaroth then swung his axe again to the knight this time in an upward fashion. But Siegfried swung his sword as well, however in a downward manner that caused the axe to be split into two. Seeing the opportunity, He then followed up his attack by thrusting his sword through the golem's chest causing him bend over. He then charged his sword over his head.
"This is for Cassandra and all the people you've ever harmed! Earth… Divide!" Faust then was fully charged and was slashed through the golem like a hot knife through butter, splitting him into two as he falls down, dead on the ground. He then turned into ashes and was blown away by the air. Siegfried then rushed to Cassandra and cradled her head into his arms. She then looked the knight in the eyes.
"Sieg… fried… I'm… sorry."
"No Cassandra. Don't be. I'm the one who should apologize for what happened to you. I wasn't there to protect you." Cassandra then gingerly placed her hand on the knight's cheek, gave him a smile and then suddenly closed her eyes and lowered her hand to the ground.
"Cassandra!?" as Siegfried worried about the Athenian. Mitsurugi then checked her neck for a pulse.
"She just passed out. She's exhausted from the fight and her body looks like it really went through a lot. Let's just take her back to the camp. Sophitia can give her some first aid but she really needs medical attention for her to fully recover."
"Then we have to reach Wolfkrone by tommorow. For now let's just take her back to rest." Siegfried then carried Cassandra in his arms as they return to camp with the others.
Meanwhile back at the Ostrheinsburg…
"Well, it looks like Astaroth did give me a soul for Soul Edge to feast on. Unfortunately it was his…" After a moment of silence, Cervantes shouted out with anger.
Grraaahhh! That cursed knight he will pay the moment he steps onto Ostrheinsburg soil." The pirate then lets the cursed sword feast upon the soul of his servant.
"Tira!"
"Yes Master?"
"Assemble your men back here. I've got a feeling that it won't be long when your old master returns."
"As you wish Master. I'll make sure to give him a gift when he returns." She then giggled as she disappeared into the darkness.
"Just try and come here Schtauffen. I'll make sure to finish you off for good."
As the two returned back with Cassandra, Sophitia and Maxi approached them to see what has become of the Athenian. Sophitia's tears then started to fall as she saw her sister's cruuent state. Siegfried then gently laid her down in her improvised bed to rest. He was then greeted by Sophitia.
"What happened to her?"
"She got attacked by Astaroth, the golem from earlier."
"That monster, I'll make him pay for what he did!"
"You don't have to worry about that Sophitia. I already killed him when Mitsurugi and I found her with him about to kill her as well."
"You killed him, but how?"
"It doesn't matter. The important thing is that Cassandra's already safe here."
"It's a good thing that you found her in time. Well then, I'll treat some of her wounds but we really need an expert in handling her broken bones."
"We'll head for Wolfkrone tomorrow first thing in the morning." Siegfried then walked away from them.
"Siegfried" The knight then turned his head.
"Thank you." as Sophitia smiled at him. In return Siegfried nodded his head and continued to walk away.
A/N: Hey guys. Sorry for doing that to Cassandra. I needed to do that so that Sieg can come to her rescue and for her to see the good side of him so that she can finally forgive him. Anyway, next chapter will tackle Wolfkrone. What will happen there? Stay tuned…