Chapter 12

Down to Sleep

Paul ran all the way to the harbor, without stopping. The ship was there. He asked the captain to take him back to Gallia, and went back down, to his room. He had a uneasy sleep, Derflinger still on his back and clutching the book against his chest. He didn´t dream anything or, at least, he didn´t remember. He woke up when the ship docked, went out and headed towards the palace. The guards wordlessly opened the door for him, and told him Joseph was waiting for him in the throne room. He had to walk around more that necessary because he couldn´t remember the path, but he eventually got it right. Joseph was sitting on the throne, a soldier on each side. When he saw him at the doorway, he stood up and the approached him. The guards followed him.

"Well, well, Gandalfr. You are not dead. That´s great. Now..." He extended his hand. "Give me the book."

Paul gave it to him. Joseph caressed the cover, a smile on his face and opened the book. He shuffled through its pages.

"Blank, eh? Interesting." He lifted his head. "It didn´t go smoothly, right? What happened?"

"The headmaster saw what I was doing, and he attacked me. I... I don´t think he broke something, but I am not sure. I escaped, and ran all the way to the docks. And that´s all."

"Ah, that´s a shame, but is not really going to change anything. Nobody can stand in my way any longer." He turned his head to his guards. "Take off his sword, and put him back on his cell."

A soldier took off Derflinger from his back, and the other turned him around and put the handcuffs on his wrists. Then, he was pushed out of the room and through the corridors, down into those stingy cells. One of them took a step forward, opened the door and pushed him inside. Then, the door was closed with a loud bag and darkness fell. He carefully sat up, and put his back against the wall. Paul closed his eyes.

He waked up, hearing a crack. He didn´t know how much time he had be in the darkness of the cell-more than a day or even three, but that was as far as it went. The door had been opened, and there were two soldiers looking down at him.

"Get up. Joseph wants to see you." Paul stood up, and approached them. They roughly grabbed him by the soldiers, and pushed him towards his destination. They left the dungeons, and soon after he had the certainty that they were taking him to the throne room, and that he was about to be sent on another mission. What could be, this time? Assassination? Kill another army? He didn´t know; he just knew that he didn´t want to find out. The soldiers turned right, and his certainty became knowledge. The door right in front of him was one of the doors to the throne room. One of the soldiers opened it, and they stepped through.

Joseph was there, in the middle of the room, Derflinger held on his right hand. At his side, there was a hooded person of womanly shape. The soldiers approached them, stopped and a moment later he heard and felt the handcuffs being taken away. They bowed, and left the room, leaving the three of them alone.

"What do you want?" Paul asked.

"Quick and to the point. I like that. But first, let me make the introductions. Sheffield, this young man is Paul Davis, and also Gandalfr, the left hand of god. Paul Davis, this woman is Sheffield, and also Myozunitonirun, the mind of god." Sheffield extended her hand towards him, and Paul took it. Then, they shook hands.

"Is a pleasure to meet you." She said, but Paul knew that this woman couldn´t care less about meeting him. Her tone gave it away.

"Likewise."

"Now..:" Joseph said, smiled and threw Derflinger at him. He cached it. "Kill each other."

"What?"

"I am not joking." That was exactly what worried him. Then, he felt something and a second later he was sent flying. He hit the wall, stopped and slopped down, still somehow holding on to Derflinger. He lifted his head, and saw Sheffield, her right hand extended towards him. There was blue light outlining her hand.

"You can´t afford to hesitate, Gandalfr." She said. Paul stood up, shakily, holding Derflinger with both hands.

"I won´t make that mistake twice." He answered, and charged at her. Strange beings suddenly appeared, surrounding her and they rushed to meet him. One jumped at him, claws extended and he cut the thing down in the air with a single slash and when the rest of the creatures closet on him, he held his ground. He was Gandalfr. He had decimated an army, and they couldn´t be no different. In less than a minute, he had cut down the twelve remaining creatures, but more appeared. He cut down the first one, and realized that two more had appeared. Paul grimaced; he wasn´t going to win this, if it keep going like that. So he stepped away from the things, and raw directly towards Sheffield. He felt a hot stab of pain, and saw from the corner of his eye one of these creatures jump down from his back. A wave of blue energy flew towards him, but he raised Derflinger and he absorbed it. Sheffield took several steps back, clumsily and seemly panicked.

Then, there was an explosion that shook the world, and Paul froze. No. That was not exactly right. All of them had frozen; that hadn´t not be a part of the plan.

"We are under attack." Joseph said, making his heart churn inside his chest. "Kill them. Kill them all."

Paul turned, opened the door to the balcony and jumped over it. He landed on rail, crouching. A moment later, the creatures summoned by Sheffield passed him, advancing towards the enemy army. He jumped down, and ran, following that woman´s creatures.

When he followed them, he noticed that the enemy soldiers had two different uniforms. Tristania had to be got help for some other kingdom he didn´t know or just didn´t remember. But that didn´t matter now. He leaped into the fray. The enemies heard him come, but they were slow, far too slow. Paul cut down various soldiers at nearly the same time, evading the spells casted by the enemy mages, Derflinger adsorbing the rest. He felt vaguely guilty; they were not here to save them, not to do something. It was because they were powerful weapons and they didn´t want them on Joseph's hands, yes, but still, they were not evil. Yet, he was cutting all of them down without flinching. He felt sick, but Joseph could hurt Louise if I didn´t play his part, so he carried on.

Something hit him on the side, and he went flying. He hit the nearest wall, still holding tightly to Derflinger, and looked. He saw Henrietta, dressed again like the queen she was, making her way towards him through the soldiers, the tip of her staff shining.

"Get up." She said. "You can still turn back, Paul. You are not too far gone to not fix this. Please, stand down, and let us help you."

"Osmond didn´t tell you everything?" He said, as he shakily stood up. "I can´t. Louise..."

"Is a risk we have to take." Paul frowned.

"Is not a risk I am willing to take, Your Majesty. So shut up."

"Even at the cost of your own live?"

"Don´t be so conceited." He sneered, thought inwardly he was panicking. His fight against the Albion Army had not ended well, and that time he had Louise on his side. Now, he just had an army. "I am Gandalfr; I have already destroyed a army before. This... This is nothing."

Henrietta looked at him, for a moment. She raised her staff, which glowed with a soft blue light.

"So be it, then." She said, and a blast of water went towards him. Paul ducked his head, and the blast hit the house behind him, cracking the wood. He ran towards her, sword held high. A soldier got in his way, but he kicked him aside. Another blast of water went towards him, but Derflinger adsorbed it without trouble. He stepped out of the path of the next blast, reached Henrietta and knocked her staff aside with the sword. It went flying, and when it crashed to the ground it went clattering away. He put the tip of the sword over her heart, and froze. "This is the end, then. Fine. Do it, fast."

She closed her eyes, leaving herself completely defenseless. His hands began to shake, making Derflinger wobble dangerously.

"I-I ca..." He felt a hot stab of pain, screamed and fell, holding is left knee. Blood was pouring for it. He had been shot. He had been fucking shot. Paul found the strength to lift his head, and saw a woman with a musket in each of her hands. He groaned, and tried to stand up. The bullet went flying past his left cheek, leaving a bloody trail. He lost his balance and felt to the ground. Footsteps, closer and closer. Red and brow bots. A musket aimed at his head. He raised Derflinger, and slashed at her across the stomach. She opened her mouth, blood falling from it and dropping down her chin, and stumbled a few steps back, holding her stomach. Then, she fell to the side, eyes widening, shaking like she was having a seizure. Paul stabbed Derflinger through the ground, and used him as support to stand up.

"Agnes!" Henrietta screamed, and he turned towards her, in time to raise Derflinger. Her spell hit the sword head on, and was adsorbed. He took a step towards her, and nearly fell again. The world spun like the wheel of fortune, and he was just barely holding his bile down. When he lifted his head again, a blast of water hit him, knocking him to the ground. He tried to keep his eyes open, but his conscious slipped away.

Paul waked up. There was a pressure on his wrists, and he felt that his back was against something. When he looked around, he saw that pieces of destroyed ships had fallen upon the buildings, destroying them, and had started burning. He looked back, and saw that he had been tied to a post. Derflinger was nowhere to be seen. The post looked kind of flimsy, but without the Gandalfr runes activated, that didn´t mean much. There was a barrel in front of him, and of the top of him rested a lamp made of glass. He kicked the barrel, and the lamp toppled over, breaking against the ground. Paul flinched at the noise. One piece of the broken glass had landed near his bonds, so he tried to use it cut them. He heard a snap, and his wrists were freed. He stood up, hesitated for a second, and then grabbed one of the pieces of glass. It cut into his hand, drawing blood, but the Gandalfr runes blazed to life. Good.

He crouched, and headed towards the castle, avoiding the few soldiers he saw, in the ground and upon the buildings. When he reached it, he saw that the gates had be breached and heard the sounds of battle from the inside. Best not to go that way. He went to the back and climbed over the fence. Paul looked up the castle wall, and wondered if he could make it. The Gandalfr runes should keep its body up, but aside for that, it couldn´t help much in climbing. And the drop was a high one; enough, at least, to break his neck. But it didn´t matter. He couldn´t allow it to matter. Louise was in danger, and he had to save her. He approached the wall, seeking a grip for his hand, and found it. Then, slowly and carefully, he started climbing up, without letting go of the piece of glass. His grip was so tight that his knuckles had become white, and the skin of his fingers ripped, drawing blood. Paul carried on.

A cold wind blew. It hit him like a physical weight, causing him to stop and grip even harder. Even so, for a moment he thought that he was going to be blow away. He breathed in relief, and went on. The wind blew two more times, in rapid succession, but he managed to keep his hold. He reached the halfway point and, after a moment of deliberating, jumped over the railed instead of continuing the climbing. Joseph should be in the throne room, along with Louise. He slowly opened the door, crouched, and walked down the stairs. He had only been out of his cell three times, but he had at least had an idea of where the throne room was. Or so he hoped. He went down, guiding himself by his memories, changing paths when he saw or heard soldiers on his way.

"Well, well." Paul froze; it was Joseph's voice. "It appears we are on a stale mate, Your Majesty."

"Let her go." Henrietta said.

"Oh, shut up. Like you are in any position to make demands." He said, and then there was a cry of pain and several short, sharp gasps. Louise. It had been Louise´s voice. "If you step out of line, I kill her."

No, no. Calm down. He was not going to do that. Just another bluff; it was just another bluff. If he killed her, he would lose her power and his own in a single stroke, running whatever plans he had. So there was nothing to fear. He had to do this with a level head, for both of their sakes. Paul gripped the piece of glass tighter, and put one hand against the door. He breathed, in and out. Then, he kicked open the door. There was a loud bag, and every head in the room turned towards him. It didn´t matter. He looked at Joseph, and threw the piece of glass at him, screaming at the top of his lugs. The glass flew through the air, now nothing but a blur, and hit Joseph right in his hand. He screamed, and took several steps back, dropping his wand. Louise fell to her knees, stood up and broke into a run. Sheffield, who had been besides Joseph, raised her hand, summoning several of those creatures in a circle around her. Louise ran to his side, lifted her head to look at him, near tears, and then turned towards Sheffield, her creatures and Joseph. One of the soldiers looked back at him, and threw him a knife. Paul cached it, and drew it. The runes blazed to life.

"The stalemate has be broken; what a shame." Sheffield said, and smiled. "Oh, well. It doesn´t matter."

Joseph stood up, and ripped the piece of glass from his hand. He turned his head towards him, his eyes wide, like a maniac.

"Gandalfr, Gandalfr. You never learn, do you? Well, I will make you learn." He said, and then bent down. Spells flew towards him, but Joseph didn´t move. Six of those creatures put themselves in front of him, fast, bearing the brunt of the spell. Joseph picked up his wand, pointed it at them, and started chatting. Sheffield´s creatures rushed towards Henrietta´s soldiers, and the soldiers charged at them, screaming in challenge as one.

"Your hand..." Louise said.

"Is nothing." Paul said, and ran towards them. He jumped over Henrietta´s soldiers, knife raised over his head. Some of Sheffield´s creatures jumped at him, but he cut them down in the air, and landed safely just in front of Joseph. He slashed at his heart, and he disappeared, rigth before his eyes. No, not disappeared. Ran. Ran so fast he had be unable to follow him, even with the Gandalfr runes. A laugh. Paul turned towards the voice, and he was punched in the stomach. He winced, and punched back, but Joseph ran out of the way of his strike again. "Shit."

"Indeed." Paul turned, and got his legs kicked out for under him. "How patetchit Gandalfr. You can do nothing but scurry across the ground, begging to not be killed. Is this the legend everybody fears? Is it? Tell me! Tell…!"

He scrambled to his feet, at slashed at Joseph wand. The hit connected this time, making the wand go tumbling out of his grip. He raised the knife and slashed, aiming for his heart. Something hit on the side, and he went flying against a wall, somehow holding on to his knife. One of these creatures. He stabbed it in the head, fast. The creature screamed, showing teeth that were as big as his knife, and try to get away. Paul kicked the beast in the chest, knocking it back down on the ground, on their backs and stabbed it on his stomach. The creature screamed again, and tried to shake him off, but died soon.

He tried to find Joseph, and saw him about to pick up his wand. He ran towards him. Joseph picked it up, and started chanting. Paul smashed against him, knocking the king back a few steps and making the wand tumble out of his grasp. He grabbed Joseph by the throat, and slammed him back against the wall. Then, he stabbed him in the stomach, looking at him directly at his eyes. His hands went to his wound, and were soon stained with blood.

"This is for both of us, you son of a bitch." He said, driving the knife harder through his flesh.

"Really?" Joseph laughed. "Or is only for yourself?"

Paul felt a sudden weight on his back that made him fall down to the ground. The creatures of Sheffield pilled on him, hitting hard. He raised one arm to protect his head, at slashed at the creatures with the other. They fell fast, but they were so many than that didn´t really matter. The world was spinning a little, like a drunk and he feared that he could pass out. Still, he killed all of the creatures. He tried to control his breathing, and then Joseph appeared. He kicked him in the head, took away his knife and slashed at him. Paul grasped the knife´s edge, making the runes blaze to life again, and try to push it back. It was a losing battle, even with the Gandalfr runes. He knew that all too well.

"Paul! Get him away for you!" Louise´s voice. He didn´t even consider for a second that the voice could be fake; he could fell she was she, and that was enough for him. Paul raised his legs, and kicked Joseph in the stomach, making him stumble back a few steps. He rose to his feet, turned his back on him and jumped. An explosion tore the ground where he had been a second later, and there was a scream. The smell of burning flesh reached him, soon enough. He landed messily, almost falling and breathing hard. He felt a hand on his shoulder, and lifted his head. Louise, looking at him while crying.

"Tha…" He hacks out a cough. "Thank you. You saved me, mas…"

A blood curling scream ringed in the throne room, cutting him off. He looked to the side, and saw that Sheffield´s creatures had melted, and that the light of her runes had banished. Her hood was thrown back, showing a stern but beautiful face that was twisted in madness. Her mouth was half open, and her teeth looked unnaturally sharp. Her eyes flashed.

"Joseph!" She screamed. "Joseph!"

She ran towards him, not even taking notice of her surroundings, but one of the nine remaining Tristania soldiers hit her with a spell right on her back, putting her down. When she lifted her head, Paul saw that she was crying. The soldiers surrounded her, and handcuffed her hands behind her back, while she screamed the name of the dead king of Gallia, over and over again, until it was nothing more than a broken gasp.

They approached her, Louise awkwardly supporting him. Henrietta looked at them, at smiled.

"You are fine; thanks' goodness." She said, and grimaced. "But this is still unfinished, so I need your help."

"I don´t care. Just give me Derflinger back."

"Derflinger?" Something in her tone made him clench his fits, hard. She probably didn´t even know how important he was to him, but still… still… it hurt. It hurt to hear his partner so easily dismissed.

"Yes, Derflinger; the sword you took away for me. Give him back."

Henrietta nodded, and signaled towards one of the soldiers. He approached them, and Paul saw Derflinger´s sheath hanging for his belt.

"Yes, your majesty?"

"Give him the sword." The soldier didn´t even ask why; he just grabbed the sheath, and threw it and him. Paul cached it, and drew Derflinger.

"Uh, thank good you are back, partner." For the corner of his eye, he saw the soldier looking at Derflinger like he hadn´t not be wielding him during the majority of the battle. "That guy sucks. I mean, don´t get me wrong, is not the worst performance I have seen, but he still sucks."

"Thank god you are back, too." He said, and laughed. "Don´t get me wrong, I like knife as much as the next guy, but is not the same thing at all. The knife didn´t even talk."

"Good one, partner. Good one."

With its king dead, the rest of Gallia felt quickly. It was by no means an easy battle. Tristania had taken heavy casualties in the siege, so the Gillian soldiers outnumbered then. However, he was the Gandalfr, and with Louise back on his side, there was nothing they could do. When they finally realized that the battle had a foregone conclusion, they surrendered to the Tristania and Germania army. Someone tugged at his arm, and he looked down.

"Master?"

"Call me Louise."

"Eh, uh… Louise?"

"Follow me, and don´t ask questions. Please." Then, she turned and walked away. Paul followed her. She leaded him through the castle´s hallways, into what had to be a library, and stopped in the middle of the room, put her back against one of the bookcases, and took off a book from inside her uniform. It was the Founder´s Prayer Book.

"Master?" He said, but she just opened the book, like she hadn´t not heard that, took off her wand and pointed it at the floor. Then, she started chanting. It was as melodious as the first time he had heard it, and made his hear beat weakly. She was enchanting, like an angel. After sometime, she stopped the chant. Space rippled right before his eyes, forming a huge circle, and inside of it shone all the colors of the rainbow. His breath was taken away. "What… What is this?"

"A Void spell. I think Joseph unlocked it, somehow. Maybe it just appeared when I took back the book. I don´t know. But it doesn´t matter. Is a door, Paul. The World Door." Louise said. Paul´s throat was suddenly dry; it was here, what he searched for so long, and had lost all hope of finding. A way home. Finally, a way home. "Step through it, and you will be back where you belong."

"Louise… but…"

"I can´t maintain the spell forever, and I can only cast this one more time today. So, make a choice now, Paul."

"T-this is so sudden..:" He was hesitant, but he just couldn´t understand why. It was like he was being… pushed, into that mindset. His head started hurting.

"I know, but is the only thing I can do. For both of us." Paul took a step forward, and looked into the portal. The Kaleidoscope of colors dissolved, revealing a hill, a city beneath and the sky. It was his home, so close… "Please, Paul. Go away. Just go away. If not for yourself, then at least do it for my sake."

Paul closed his eyes, trying to not think too hard about the meaning of her words, or what could happen to her if he went away. He turned towards her.

"Come with me, Louise." She looked shocked, for a second, and then recomposed herself.

"I can´t… no, of course I can, but I don´t want to. You are… important to me. But Halkagenia is my home. I can´t just leave all behind."

"They are going to lock you away, Louise, until they needed your powers. Or kill you or worse. Please, please, come with me. You can just use a translation spell to understand the language, and I am sure my family could adopt you or something. I… I take care of it, okay? You can trust me." She looked down for a second, and then nodded, blushing heavily.

"Okay." Louise said, and approached him. They stood, side by side, in front of the World Door. She grasped his hand. "Hey, Paul?"

"Yes?" He said, wondering what she wanted at a time like this. He felt her hands on his face, that pulled his head towards her, and then she kissed him, on the lips. Paul stiffened, for a second, and then put a hand around her waist, pressing her against him. He had never really kissed anybody before- that time at the Familiar Summoning Ritual didn´t count-, so he awkwardly tried to return the kiss and make her feel good, his mind lost in a haze. Then, seemingly at the next moment, she pulled him away. "Louise?"

"Goodbye." She said, and then Paul understood. He didn´t react fast enough; she smiled softly, put her hands on his shoulders, and pushed him through the portal. He lost his balance, and fell, rolling on the ground with his eyes closed. He came to a stop when he hit something hard, and heard a dull thud. One of the bookshelves, he thought. She missed, and made him hit one, but tan was that. For a moment, he almost believed it. Then, he opened his eyes.

He was him a hill, the same hill he had seen through the World Door, and the portal had disappeared. He was, finally, at home. Forever at home. Paul stood up, shakily at walked to the spot where the gate should have been.

"Hey, this is a joke, right? You are just fucking with me like you always do, right?" He fell to his knees, his hands clenched into fits. "Why the fuck did I protect you all those times, almost dying for you, if you are just going to throw me away now? Why? Just… why…"

"Halkegenia is already out of your reach, partner." He looked down on his hand. That´s right. He didn´t even have the time to sheath Derflinger. "I will hurt… at first. But you get used to it. And I will help you do it."

"Used to it?" He said. Then, he repeated, nearly growling: "Used to it?"

"Yes…"

"Shut up!"

"That life you had there was a lie, you are better off here, parn…"

"I said shut up! Shut up!" He broke down, and sobbed. "Shut up…"

"One day you will understand, partner. I hope so, anyway. The damage is no irreversible." Paul just stood up, like he hadn´t not heard Derflinger and walked away, towards home.

He reached the city in less than half an hour. While crossing the streets, the people gave him odd looks and pointed at him. Maybe because they recognized it for being the boy that had disappeared moths ago, son of James Davis and Mary Davis; maybe just because of Derflinger, who was still strapped to his back. If so, then he thought that they must have just thought how odd it was that a teenager was carrying around a toy sword. Nobody could have thought that not only Derflinger was a real sword, but that he had killed with it. Nobody could have thought he came for another world, after ending a war. Nobody knew him.

He reached his house without nobody brothering him, not even a police officer and crossed the gate. He approached the door, and rang the bell. Waiting, he heard the footsteps coming for inside. The door opened, and he saw his mother for the first time in months. At first, it was like she was looking through him. Then, she took a step forward. He saw the hand extended towards him, afraid that he disappear and noted that she had lost weight. A lot of weight. Now, she looked like he could pick her up without effort.

"Paul… is that you?"

"I am home, mother." Paul said, and smiled weakly, tears in his eyes. She rushed towards him, and hugged him. He hugged her back, his grip tight, thinking about the familiar runes that he could still see for the corner of his eye, of the weight of Derflinger´s sheath on his back and how many legal problems he could cause him.

But mostly, he thought that at home, in the arms of his mother, was the first time he felt completely alone.

Author´s Notes

First of all, I want to apologize for the delay. Yeah, I know I promised one chapter each week, and I have managed that even now, but for a long while I manage to publish one chapter every wednesday or thursday, so it kind of makes me fell bad. Sorry again. Also, one last thing. The title is a quote for the lyrics of The Reverse Will, which is used in Silent Hill 2. Said lyrics are taken for the children´s bed time prayer "Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep"

EDIT: This is the end of the story; there won´t be a second part. Some of you may have expected this, I suppose, but I just want to make it oficial. Yes, there is still a big fat unaswered question-how is Louise going to survive without a Gandalfr. But, still, this is a good ending, no matter if the outline I had extended beyond this.