The generals, cabinet ministers and other officials immediately held a meeting. But the meeting was little more than a disordered ramble. Word had spread fast, about a sudden attack on the Tristanian fleet in La Rochelle by the superior Albion fleet. They all argued among themselves. While the princess looked on, her annoyance rising as she looked at them.
"It's an urgent report! After landing, the Albion fleet has started capturing land!"
"Where did they land?" the princess demanded.
"The outskirts of La Rochelle! It seems like in the fields of Tarbes!"
***Break***
In the garden of her parents' house, Siesta hugged her young siblings, watching the skies with an uneasy face. An explosion had been heard not long before in the direction of La Rochelle. Surprised, she went out to the garden and saw the dreadful scene in the sky. Numerous ships were on fire and sinking, crashing onto the mountain's surface and dropping into the middle of the forest.
Everyone was in a state of confusion. Soon, a large ship had descended from the sky. The ship, so large that it could be easily mistaken for a cloud, dropped its anchor on the field in the village.
Numerous dragons flew out of it.
"Sister, what's happening?" asked her younger brothers and sisters.
"Let's get in the house," urged Siesta, hiding her fear.
Inside the house, her parents were looking out the windows with troubled expressions.
"Isn't that Albion's fleet?" her father said, looking at the ship anchored in the field.
"Could it be … A war?" Siesta asked.
Her father shook his head. "That's not possible. We have a non-aggression treaty with Albion. The lord proclaimed it recently."
"Then why is the sky full of sinking ships?"
The dragons flying above the ship headed towards the village. Her father grasped his wife and stepped away from the window. With loud cries, the dragons descended upon the village and set the houses on fire.
Her mother screamed. The house was alight and the glass from the windows scattered everywhere. The village was saturated in the blazing flames, roaring of the dragons and the shrieking of the people. Carrying her unconscious mother, the father turned to Siesta, who was shaking.
"Siesta! Take your siblings and run to the forest!" her father screamed.
***Break***
Straddling a large wind dragon, Wardes smiled beneath his mask as he trampled on his home country. The dragoons under his command rode fire dragons. A wind dragon could not match a fire dragon in power, but surpasses a fire dragon in speed. He had chosen the wind dragon solely because he was commanding. To clear the path for the main force, Wardes mercilessly set the village on fire. In the background, soldiers were dropping down one by one with ropes from the repaired Lexington. The field was an excellent strategic foothold for the invading troops. Flat, level, and near a town with rich food stores. A perfect breach into this country.
From the direction of the field, dozens of the neighboring lord's troops were charging forward. The Tristainian troops could pose a significant threat to the soldiers disembarking onto the field. Wardes signaled his underlings to crush the small oppositional force. A barrage of fire magic flew from the dragons but still, the Tristainians ferociously charged forward. The reckless force was utterly devastated by the dragon's flames.
***Break***
It was past noon. Reports of the events came bursting in the conference room.
"The lord of Tarbes has died in battle!"
"The scout sent to investigate the dragoons has not returned!"
"We still haven't received a reply from Albion regarding our inquiries!"
Meaningless discussions repeated themselves in the conference room. Followed by meaningless arguments. The meeting could not reach an agreement. Mazarini was having difficulty coming to a conclusion himself. He was still hoping for a way to settle things diplomatically.
Amongst the heated debate, Henrietta looked at the wind ruby she wore on her ring finger. It was a memento from Wales. She was reminded of the man's face she entrusted herself to.
Did I not vow upon this ring back then? If my dear Wales has courageously died then… I too should live courageously.
"Tarbes is up in flames!"
She was surprised at her own voice but quickly regained her composure. With a deep breath, she stood up. Everyone looked at her. Henrietta spoke in a trembling voice.
"Aren't you all ashamed of yourselves?"
"Princess?"
"Our lands are being captured by enemies. There are things we need to do before bickering about asking for help and special envoys, isn't there?"
"But… princess… It's just some tension caused by a misunderstanding."
"Misunderstanding? Attacking our fleet, invading our land, and burning our villages? That's a misunderstanding? I would truly hate to see an act of war!"
"We have signed a non-aggression treaty. It was an accident."
"And that treaty is broken as easily as paper. They had no intention of keeping that treaty. It was just a lie to gain time after the royalists damaged their war making capabilities so heavily! Albion's actions clearly show that they have intention to war." Henrietta made sure to omit Zero's action in that. She didn't want him involved. If he was involved, Louise was involved. And she couldn't bare the thought of Louise being in danger again, after what she had put her dear friend through.
"But…"
Henrietta hit the table and started yelling. "The blood of our people is being spilled while we are doing this! Is it not the duty of nobles to protect them? For what reason do we bear royal and noble names? Have they not let us reign over them so we can protect them in times of need like this? Can we dare to call ourselves nobles if we do not protect them?" Everyone was speechless. Henrietta continued with a cold voice."You're all scared, aren't you? Albion is a large country after all. If we counterattack our chances of winning are slim. Is it because you think you will be held responsible as one of the leaders of the counter attack after the battle is lost? You all plan to cower here to lengthen your lives? Would you rather be remembered as the nobles who allows Albion to take Tristian without a battle!"
"Princess," interjected Mazarini.
"However," Henrietta continued."I will ride forth. You can continue your meeting here."
Henrietta burst out of the conference room. Mazarini and numerous nobles tried to hold her back.
"Princess! You should not be rash! This situation can still be solved diplomatically!"
"Let go of me, this instant!" she pulled her wand out and threw back the nobles holding her with but a word. she stormed down the hall. "My carriage and my guards! Come!" she yelled when she reached the courtyard. Her carriage was brought, led by the holy beasts, unicorns.
The remaining magical defense squad in the courtyard assembled at once on Henrietta's call. She unfastened one unicorn and straddled it. "I shall command the troops! Regiments, assemble!"
Aware of the situation, every soldier saluted simultaneously. Henrietta urged the unicorn forward. The unicorn magnificently raised its hooves up high under the bright sun and set off.
"Follow the princess!" cried the soldiers while following Henrietta, mounted on the beasts.
"Follow! A delay brings shame to the family name!" called another.
The nobles in the courtyard dashed out. The word spread through the regiments scattered about the town.
Watching this absent mindedly, Mazarini looked up at the skies. "I knew we would go to war with Albion someday, despite my efforts, but… our country is not prepared." He was not concerned about his own life. He bore the worries of his country in his own way, and for the sake of the people, he had made his decision. Even if it meant a small sacrifice, he didn't want to engage in a lost battle.
But, it was as the princess said. His efforts and devotion to diplomacy had been boiled away. Of what use is clinging to it? This could only truly be called an act of war. .
One of the high-class nobles whispered in Mazarini's ear.
"Cardinal, about the special envoy…"
Mazarini slapped the nobles face with his cap. "All of you! To your horses! If we let the princess go alone we will be forever cast in shame!"
***Break***
Louise looked at Zero who wore a serious expression. There were rumors the previous evening that Albion had declared war on Tristian, but no word from the palace yet. They were waiting for the carriage of the official messenger from the palace as confirmation. "I'm sorry this happened." she looked away. She'd decided she wouldn't order him around. It was only the second day since he had given that ultimatum. She'd been respectful of him. She'd tried not to be jealous. But still she would allow one selfish request... "Zero. I have an order for you."
"What's that?" He asked, as he looked at her. His face still set in that same serious look.
"Promise me... That you will come back. I know you're going to go into battle. Promise me you'll make sure to come back. If not for me, then Roll. You have to promise." She said, not looking at him.
He laughed. Her first order in two days and that was it? He shook his head with that same gentle smile he rewarded her whenever she surprised him. "Yeah. Ok. I promise I'll come back."
Soon enough a breathless messenger arrived at the academy that hazy morning.
The messenger asked them where Osmand's room was, and dashed away quickly after receiving the answer. The unusual scene caused Louise and Zero to look at each other. Sensing something had happened in the palace, the two of them rushed after the messenger.
Osmand was smoking his pipe, looking out at the school he was in charge of. It was peaceful moments like this that made him consider the world too boring. He wondered if there would be anything new or exciting today.
A loud knock came at the door.
"Who is it?"
The messenger from the palace burst into the room before Osmand had finished talking."Reporting from the palace! Albion has declared war on Tristain! Soldiers are currently heading towards La Rochelle! For safety reasons an order was issued stating that all students and staff are to be confined to the castle!"
Osmand's face grew pale. "A declaration of war? There's going to be a battle?" he wondered if this was his punishment for looking down on the peaceful morning the founder had gifted him with. He suddenly appreciated that boring beautiful morning he had taken for granted as he shook his head.
"Yes! Enemy forces have set up camp in the fields of Tarbes and are making preparation to move against our forces at nearby La Rochelle."
"The Albion forces must be very strong."
The messenger replied sorrowfully. "The enemy forces are a dozen in number led by a huge warship called the Lexington. The total number of troops is estimated to be around three thousand. Our main fleet has already been destroyed and counting all our troops, we only have around two thousand readily available. We weren't prepared for a war, so that was all we could field. However, the worst is that they have complete aerial dominance. Our troops will surely be decimated by their cannons."
"What's the current situation?"
"The enemy dragoons are setting fire to the village of Tarbes… We requested aid from Germania, but they say the soonest they can arrive is in three weeks…"
Osmand sighed and said, "… They're planning to abandon us. During that period, Tristain's towns will fall readily into the hands of the enemy. This is the price we pay for not having the marriage between the royal families."
The door banged open, and in walked Zero followed closely by Louise. Zero's helmet was glowing with an ominous light. "Good morning Headmaster," Zero said with a barely contained anger.
"Z-zero... Why is your helmet glowing like that? Or for that matter, your rune?" the shocked old man asked him. Gone was the young man he knew... Was this the weapon known as Zero that he had talked about? The rune on his hand was glowing brilliantly.
"What?" Zero asked, then realized that his rune and indeed, his helmet were glowing with power. "I didn't realize that they were doing that. That's not important. What are we going to do about this?"
"There isn't anything we can do. They're far enough away, that nothing short of a wind dragon might be able to get there in time... We shall simply have to wait..." Osmand said sorrowfully.
"Yeah. you're right that nothing short of a wind dragon can make it there. But something beyond a wind dragon could do it easily. Louise! Our mission starts now!" Zero said, as he ran out of the room.
"Where are we going?" demanded the young girl as she tried to keep pace with him.
"To Tarbes!"
"Why? How?" Louise asked, he was talking about the impossible!
"Isn't it obvious? We're going to go save Siesta, and stop those Albion bastards! And we're going to get there in the Zero!"
Louise grabbed his arm and said "You can't! we can't make it there in time!"
"You'll get your ride in the Zero fighter just like I said, just a little earlier. The enemy is attacking with those airships right? Believe me, the Zero is a hell of a lot better than any dragon. We'll show those bastards just how much."
"What can you do with a toy like that?" She demanded as they descended another flight of stairs into the open courtyard.
"This isn't a toy. My rune reacts to it. Haven't you figured that out? It means its a weapon!" Zero grabbed the Zero fighter's wing with his left hand. His runes shone even brighter."It's a tool for killing people. It's not a toy."
Louise shook her head. "Regardless, whether this is a weapon from your world or not, there's no way you can win against those large warships! Don't you understand? You can't make a difference! Just leave it to the soldiers! You promised you'd come back! If you leave now..." said Louise, looking straight into Zero's face.
"He said that Tristain's fleet had been wiped out didn't he?" Zero said to her. "I'll show you what a weapon over four-hundred years old can do against those ships. And since you're always saying a familiar shouldn't do things alone... You can come with me. Trust me, with what this world has, there is no threat. Remember, while we were held in that cell I got to see exactly what this world's weapons are made of! Grapeshot. That seems to be the best you guys have against this type of weapon. And its entirely ineffective if I stay high above, or go well below the ships.. " Zero looked at her with a confident grin. He knew she'd see death if she came. But she was going to be exposed to that no matter what. Whenever something is powerful they'd get pulled into the events around them. He was powerful, and by connection so was she. Better to have her first encounter with death and killing not be on her hands.
Louise looked at the calm expression Zero had. She trusted this. He'd asked for her faith. He'd never let her down. She'd do this. "Alright. I trust you. But I still don't see how this thing can actually fly..." she said as she looked at the plane doubtfully.
"I'm not from this world. It might not be my home, but seeing the beauty this world has, what mine once had, makes me want to protect it. For the first time, I think I've found a reason to fight. Not for the sake of others. But for myself. I will protect this world because it is what I want."
"Zero..." Louise said his name softly, then looked at him again. "Zero, you may not be from this world... But if you care enough about it... I'm certain it can be your home!"
"Stay here, I need to see if Colbert finished making the fuel for this thing." Zero left her standing there and ran off towards Colbert's lab."
Louise looked at the fighter, and bit her lip. "Just what chance does this thing have of winning against Albion's forces!" she demanded of nobody in particular.
***break***
Zero woke up the sleeping Colbert as he came charging into the lab.
"Huh? What?"
"Mr. Colbert! Have you made the gasoline?"
"Huh? Yes, I've made the amount you needed. It's over there."
"Good! Help me carry it." Zero said, as he walked over and grabbed two of the large barrels. As he turned around and saw Colbert sitting up sleepily, he added,"NOW!"
Colbert shot upright, fully awake, at the tone Zero had used. He rushed to grab two of his own, and asked," What's wrong!"
"Albion destroyed the fleet of Tristian, and are now burning villages and invading. I'm going to stop them. Is that harness I asked for done?" Zero asked, and then walked out the door of the lab with his two barrels, with a slower Mr. Colbert following him.
"Ah yes, The harness is behind the seat of the Zero. The leather worker made it exactly as you wanted, but gave me quite a few odd looks," he responded while struggling to follow the young man in front of him.
Louise was standing there, watching the two bring the barrels out. She watched Zero and Mr. Colbert add the fuel to the tanks with a metal funnel. It seemed interesting at least. The smell of the fuel was odd, but she found it somehow pleasant.
"Okay, we're good. Colbert, we're gonna need some help. we need a longer runway to get this thing off the ground. Since we don't have that, and we don't got time to move her, we'll need some extra boost to get us off the ground. As soon as we start moving, try and lift the plane as much as you possibly can.
"What? So it needs magic? What's a runway?"
"No it doesn't need magic, but it needs to speed up enough to get off the ground. to do this, I need a longer area to move before it takes off. Normally its a paved area that is straight and level. We don't have that, so we need to make up for that with magic. just like the tool that can be used to start the propeller manually. Don't worry, you'll see us fly."
"Ah. I understand."
Zero grabbed the unusual looking leather harness from Colbert and put it on. He checked the metal buckles on it. Nodding, he jumped into cockpit. He ran through his quick checks, and started setting up for the engine ignition. "Come on Louise, get up here!"
"Partner, you sure you wanna bring her? Its going to be a war zone," Derflinger said from his shoulder."
"I know. But you honestly expect her to just let me go if i didn't take her? Besides, she's going to be pulled into battle anyhow. Might as well get her used to it. And its not like anything in this world can really threaten me in this." Zero responded, as he buckled himself into the seat.
Louise climbed into the cockpit timidly, but was pulled into position by Zero, who started placing straps around her and buckling her in. She was about to protest, as she was pulled closer to him, but stopped as she realized..."Zero, are these straps to keep me in place?"
Zero looked at her, and nodded,"Yeah. This thing goes a little faster than your average dragon. Would rather not have you getting thrown around the cockpit if I have to make a sudden turn,"
He checked the gauges. The runes on his left hand told him that everything was normal with the plane. He checked the cannon in front of him, it was loaded with 60 rounds. The machine guns on the wings were also loaded to their maximum of 500 rounds each.
"K, now Colbert. Start her up!" Zero said, receiving a nod from the teacher. He watched the gauges, engine start successful. Letting it idle for a moment, he checked the gauges. All good.
"Its really loud!" Louise yelled over the roar of the engine.
"Yeah, it is. Its okay you'll get used to it! Although we should probably make something for your ears if we do this a lot!" Zero shouted. He released the brakes, and the Zero fighter started moving. He looked to the front and headed in the direction of the best take-off spot. As the incantation for the spell finished, a strong gust of wind came from the back. He put the goggles Siesta entrusted to him on Louise's head, and released the pressure on the brake entirely as soon as he felt the wind spell life him up. He opened the cowl flaps and adjusted the prop's pitch lever, and pushed the throttle lever to take off.
Like a spring, the Zero fighter accelerated forward with great force. He pulled the control stick slightly. The tail had left the ground. The Zero fighter was gliding. The academy's walls flew below them and he retracted the landing gear.
"Wow! It's flying! This is pretty interesting!" Derflinger said excitedly.
"Yeah... This is amazing..." Louise said as the ground sped past them far below.
"Of course it is. It was made to fly. Now what I'm amazed at, is you and Derf actually agreeing on something," Zero said with a smirk on his face. "Okay, I'm going to give you this warning just once Louise... Once we get to the battle, you will not touch any buttons, and you will hold on tight if I tell you. This thing can do some maneuvers that a living creature like a dragon could only dream about."
"Ok..." Louise said absently, as she watched the ground get smaller, as they ascended further. "This is amazing..." she repeated.
"Yeah. Isn't it. Its a sense of freedom to fly like this." Zero said, as he looked at her in amusement.
***Break***
The fire consuming Tarbes had died down, but the picturesque village had changed into a cruel battlefield. Battalions had been assembled in the field trampling the flowers, and were awaiting the moment they would clash with Tristain troops in the port city La Rochelle. Protecting them above were the Lexington's dragons. The Tristain dragoons would attack sporadically, but they had been killed brutally by the unforgiving invaders.
Before the battle, Albion's command decided that they would use the cannons of the warships to deal with the Tristain troops. And so, the fleet prepared its cannons.
One dragoon on the lookout above Tarbes noticed an enemy dragoon was approaching from above, about two thousand five hundred meters away. The dragoon had the dragon cry out, alerting the others that an enemy was approaching.
***Break***
Zero looked out from the windshield and saw Tarbes below him. There was no trace of that simple, beautiful village he had seen before. The houses were scorched with black smoke rising from them. He clenched his teeth. He remembered how recently he and Siesta were looking out at the field. Siesta's words replayed in his head. "Isn't this field beautiful? This is what I wanted to show Zero."
"Oh no... This is... this is horrible!" Louise said as she looked at the broken village below. Why had they attacked the commoners? This wasn't fair!
A dragoon unit breathed fire at the forest located at the outskirts of the village. The forest was instantly set ablaze. "I'll kill you. I'll kill every last one of you bastards" He said in a low voice.
Zero pushed the control stick to the bottom left while pressing the throttle firmly. The Zero fighter started to swoop down towards Tarbes.
***Break***
"What could one dragoon possibly do?" muttered one of the ascending dragoons as they prepared to attack.
"What type dragon is that?" asked one of the rear dragoons. It seemed to have wings that were... Flat, fixed. Could a dragon like that even exist? However… no matter what dragon it was, it would be finished off with a single breath from the Albion fire dragons, just like the rest. When its wings were burnt it would probably go down.
"This is the third," said the last dragoon, with the corner of his mouth bending into a smile. His smile turned into a frown as he realized something. It was fast. Faster than any dragon. Panicking, the dragoon made the dragon breathe fire. At that moment, the wing of the descending enemy flashed. A few shining white things were flying towards him. A large hole appeared in his dragon's head, then a another few slammed into him. The dragoon was reduced to a spray of red mist and meat, as he and his dragon plummeted to the battlefield below.
Zero continued to descend in the Zero fighter. The fighter's machine gun range was tens of times than that of the dragon's breaths. Letting his rage take control of him, he fired the 7.7mm machine gun on the dragons in his sights, having turned off the 20mm cannon to conserve the smaller ammunition. He limited himself to short bursts of fire. He only had so much ammunition, and it prevented them from having a line of fire to try and dodge. Better to have them just be hit by the bullets. Two more dragons and their riders fell from the sky from the precision shots, one of which exploded.
Four more dragons joined the ones already in the skies above the village. They had seen the dragon which exploded from the enemy's attack, as well as the two that had dropped before that. The attack wasn't a breath,which meant that it was probably a magic based attack. Whatever attack it may have been, one dragoon alone can't do anything. Three dragoons ascended to attack while the last dragon moved to take the Zero from the side.
"Three more are coming from the bottom left," said Derflinger in his usual tone.
"Thanks partner," Zero said.
"Don't get hit by their breath. You'll get burnt to ashes in an instant if it hits the wings." Derflinger warned.
"Louise, time to hold on!" Zero said in a calm voice, as he fired two short bursts at long range. One of the three fell.
"Okay!" she said, as she grabbed the harness straps with her hands, tightening her fingers until her knuckles went white.
Zero pulled back on the control stick, and ascended again, avoiding the trap they tried to spring on him. They were going at most a third of his current speed. After a few seconds, Zero looked over his shoulder. The three dragons were trying to follow, but were being left behind. They had also foolishly clumped up. leveling off, for a moment, he eased the control stick forward and to the left, getting the dragons centered in his sights. Using the speed of his decent, he pushed the throttle to the maximum. Zero looked at the air speed gauge. 590 Kph from the dive. He'd have to be careful. He doubted the frame could take much more than 650kph with the vibrations it was making now. Louise clutched to him tightly. As he dove, he fired a few more short bursts of fire. Two more dragons down. The third immediately pulled its wings into itself, and dove, trying to get away from whatever the new threat was. Zero fired three more short bursts, and the dragon finally fell.
Zero quickly made the airplane ascend once again. The first thing to do was to control the area above the enemy. He knew this. With the shining runes on his left hand, he maneuvered the Zero fighter like he'd piloted this plane hundreds of times before.
Derflinger acted as his spotter, making it far easier to pick targets. Three more dragons later, Louise finally spoke.
"T-T-T-That's incredible! These Albion dragons are reputed to be unrivaled yet they're dropping like flies!" Louise finally spoke as she looked up to Zero.
"Yeah, I know. I wasn't lying when I said conquer the skys. While magic is nice and all, and I might be biased, human ingenuity and drive tend to impress me more than any amount of magic." Zero said as he patted her on the head.
Derflinger spoke up in a teasing manner,"Sorry to interrupt ya love birds, but ten from the right have just arrived."
The fire dragon's breath came flying to them. At that instant, he pushed the control stick quickly to the left. The plane rolled and dodged the breath of the dragon. Zero made the plane descend. The dragoons couldn't follow his movements. Taking advantage of this moment, he made the plane ascend and took out two more with quick shots from below. At its peak he turned it around. With the sun behind him, he descended again. Aiming at the dragoons who were chasing him, he let fly enough hail of gun fire.
Louise realized, suddenly, that she couldn't do anything. It was always like this, but this time she felt a tinge of regret. Zero was always saving her. Always saving everyone. But he was always alone... She was his master and still, she was never able to stand with him. She searched her pockets for the Water Ruby ring Henrietta gave her, and put it on. She grasped that finger tightly. "Princess, please protect us…" she whispered as she watched another wave of dragons come to meet their fate against her amazing familiar.
***Break***
"They got… wiped out? In only twelve minutes they got wiped out?" Sir Johnston, the supreme commander of the invasion force, who was on the afterdeck of the flagship, Lexington, looking over the preparations of the bombardment attack with the ship's cannons, turned pale at the report. "How many enemy units were there? A hundred? Tristain has that many dragoons left?"
"Sir. A-According to the report, only one."
"A single unit?"
Johnston stood motionless with a dumbfounded expression. He threw his hat to the ground. "Nonsense! Twenty dragoons taken out by a single enemy unit? Surely you jest!"
Frightened at the supreme commander's attitude, the messenger took a step back. "According to the report, the enemy dragoon had incredible speed and agility, and also had strong, long ranged, magic based attacks. Our units were killed one by one…"
Johnston grabbed the messenger. "What about Wardes? Wardes, who was given command of the dragoons, what about him? What happened to that cocky Tristainian? Was he also killed?"
"The viscount's wind dragon was not included in the list of casualties. But… it seems like he wasn't seen around…"
"So he betrayed us! Or otherwise he was too much of a coward! Whichever it was, we can't trust him…"
Quietly reaching out his hands, Bowood said, "Reacting like that in front of all the soldiers will lower their morale, commander in chief."
Enraged, Johnston took his anger out on Bowood.
"What are you saying? It's your fault that the dragoons got wiped out! Your lack of competence was just asking for our precious dragoons to be destroyed! I will report this to His Excellency. I will report it!" Johnston yelled as he reached out to grab Bowood.
Bowood drew his wand and jabbed Johnston's stomach. The white of his eyes showing, Johnston fainted to the ground. He ordered the soldiers to carry him away.
Should have just made him sleep in the first place, Bowood thought.
Noise apart from that of explosions and cannons only agitated the troops. A single decision could be the difference between victory and defeat, especially during battle.
Bowood turned to the messenger who was staring at him with a worried expression. He spoke with a calm, composed voice.
"Even though the dragoon force has been wiped out, the Lexington is still undamaged. Also, Wardes has probably devised a plan. Don't worry about it, just put effort in what you're doing." He stood there silently for a moment. It was impossible for it to be the same one who was responsible for him being here now, "A single unit killing twenty units? A hero, eh…Let us hope it is not like the last hero I encountered," Bowood whispered to the founder as he remembered the battle that had elevated him to the position he was now. It had been not a promotion of merit. He'd simply gotten his promotion due to the fact, all eighteen people above him had been slaughtered mercilessly, while he was part of the rearmost vanguard. From unfavored, to top ranking, in the course of forty thousand deaths.
He issued orders. "Advance the entire fleet. Prepare the left cannons."
After a while, far away, at the other end of the field of Tarbes, the battle array of Tristain's troops, situated in La Rochelle, which was a natural stronghold due to the mountains around it, could be seen.
"All fleets advance slowly. Ship to starboard."
The fleet turned so that the Tristain forces would be facing their left side.
"Fire the left cannons. Continue firing until further orders."
"Upper part and the lower part, prepare the right cannons. Use grapeshot."
***Break***
Five hundred meters in front of the Tristain troops crowded within La Rochelle, the enemy force could be seen. It had the three colored Reconquista flag, and was approaching quietly. Having never actually seen an enemy before, Henrietta, mounted on a unicorn, was shaking. She closed her eyes to offer a prayer so that the soldiers around her wouldn't see her shaking in fear.
But… her fear did not stop so easily.
Henrietta looked up at the large enemy fleet and turned pale. It was Albion's fleet. The side of the fleet flashed. It was enemy fire. The cannon shells accelerated by gravity were flying towards Tristain's troops.
Impact.
Hundred of cannon shells dropped down on the troops in La Rochelle. Rocks, horses and people were thrown together, sent flying through the air. The troops were trying to flee from the overwhelming might before them. The place was drowned by the sound of thunderous roars.
"Calm down! Everyone calm down!" Henrietta shouted, driven by her fear.
Mazarini whispered in Henrietta's ear.
"You need to calm down first. If the general is distraught, there will be chaos in the blink of an eye."
Mazarini quickly whispered to the generals nearby. While Tristain was a small country, it was one filled with history. Its history included many righteous nobles. Of all the Halkaganian nations, the Tristain army had the highest percentage of mages within it's ranks.
By Mazarini's command, the nobles created barriers of air within the openings of the mountains. The shells would hit them and break. But some of the shells got through. Screams could be heard with rocks and blood scattering.
"As soon as the enemy stops their bombardment, they will most likely stage an all out assault. There's no other way but to face them," whispered Mazarini.
"Is there a chance of being victorious?"
Mazarini noticed that the soldiers were starting to tremble before the enemy bombardment. They had advanced with great vigor but… there are limits to people's courage. He did not want to tell the truth to the princess who had made him remember something he had forgotten.
"We're evenly matched."
Impact.
The ground below them shook. As the cardinal looked out at the field sorrowfully, understood that the enemy force was made up of three thousand strong troops, while their forces, crumbling from the bombardment, only numbered two thousand.
They had no chance.
***Break***
Zero, who had wiped out the dragoon fleet, looked over the sky. Above the fields, he spotted the large warship between the gaps of the clouds, far away. Below that ship, was the port city La Rochelle.
"Partner, that's the head. No matter how many small frys you take down, if you don't take it down… nothing will change…"
"I know. Take the head, and the body follows," Zero said.
"It's impossible." Louise said.
Zero remained silent and opened the throttle of the zero fighter. It was at full boost. The zero fighter ascended. Once he was at 9000 feet, he leveled out, and waited. He was almost directly over the Lexington.
"It's impossible, partner. No matter how much you try, it is impossible." Derflinger said, as he evaluated the situation.
"I've come to the conclusion, partner, that nothing is impossible. We just might not know how to do it yet," Zero said, as he opened the throttle, and sped towards the Lexington. He turned the 20mm canon on, and let fly with a long burst of fire as he strafed it from above.
Suddenly, Zero pulled the control stick hard to the left, as he dodged bolts of... Plasma! He rolled heavily, and got a look at the deck of the ship. His eyes widened as he saw a familiar sight he thought never to see again. Pantheons! He moved the plane a greater distance. Pantheons weren't that big a danger, but he wanted to assess the situation. Like why the fuck there were those damned X-cloned troopers on the ship!
"What are you doing?" Louise screamed, as the plane literally rolled through a full loop, as Zero dodged the incoming fire.
"There's nothing i can do! I can't get near it at the moment! Those are Pantheon troops! One buster hit and we'll be up in flames!" Zero said, sounding more than a little annoyed.
As if suddenly thinking of something, Derflinger said from his shoulder. "Partner, go straight below the ship."
"What?"
"There's a blind spot there. It's where the cannons can't reach, nor can those freaky blue cyclopes!"
"But Derf, this thing doesn't have any bombs or heavy artillery on it. This thing is made to destroy other fighters or bombers, its too solid for us to break from the bottom. The only way this thing can get them is from the relatively thinner upper decks. Try and blow their powder like I did when I was on the eagle!"
Louise opened the canopy. A strong wind blew across her face, her eyes seemed to be blank. She drew her wand out.
"Hey what are you doing? Close it damn it! Louise? " Zero said, as he banked and went low, to try and strafe them.
"Partner, I think she's awake" Derflinger said to him.
"What are you talking about? She's not responding to anything at all! That is the exact OPPOSITE of awake!"
"No, I mean her void. Its awakened. She's finally awake." he said sagely.
Louise took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Silently, she seemed to be mouthing words. With each set of words spoken, her voice increased slightly.
"I think that's the explosion spell! She's using one of Brimir's lowest ranking, but most powerful attacks!"
Zero was circling below the Lexington in the Zero fighter, trying to keep them in a position where they could attack without being a target themselves.
It was at that moment Derflinger called out, "Partner, behind and above!"
Quickly looking behind, a dragoon could be seen flying towards them like a gale.
It was Wardes, black cape and mask to boot. Zero smiled wickedly as his eyes narrowed.
***Break***
Mounted on top of the wind dragon, Wardes grinned. He had been hidden amongst the clouds above the Lexington, waiting for his chance to strike. So this was the mysterious dragoon who had crushed all the fire dragons. Wardes didn't have much chance of winning if he faced him head on. Which is why he had to aim for a weak spot.
His plan hinged on the warship. The enemy's aim would definitely be this warship. And if he was a skilled enemy, he would be able to find its blind spot. Thus, hiding nearby and waiting was the best option. Wardes' prediction was right. He watched the dragoon dive, after avoiding the attacks from those weapons that that woman had given to him. while they missed, they seemed quite intimidating. And the few that he saw hit the ground left craters. Perhaps they'd be more useful than he thought.
My wind dragon's speed is greater than that of the fire dragons. Now that I have seen how you avoided the fire dragons, i will kill you. Wardes steadily shortened the distance separating them. With deep interest, he looked at the Zero fighter. He realized that it wasn't a dragon almost immediately upon closer inspection. That's… not something made from Halkeginia's logic… the "Holy Lands"?
He saw a familiar face, with pink hair, inside the cockpit. The grin on Wardes' face grew larger.
So you're alive, my Louise. And so brave, truly the only woman who would have been worthy of me.
Then the one controlling the psuedo-dragon would be…
The left arm he had once lost throbbed. His wind dragon's breath wasn't of any use, but he had his powerful spells. Gripping the reins with his artificial left hand, Wardes cast the spell. 'Air Spear'. The air solidified to form a spear to skewer them.
***Break***
Zero couldn't lose the dragon that was following them. If he did, he'd move out of their blind spot, and the pantheons would probably hit them. Damn it! He set the throttle to minimum and opened all the flaps. As if something had grabbed the Zero fighter, its speed dropped. He pushed the control stick to the bottom left. At the same time, he stepped on the foot bar. The vivid earth and sky rotated before them. 'Lets see that dragon follow this!' Zero thought.
***Break***
The Zero fighter had disappeared from Wardes' sight, who had just finished casting his spell. He looked around him restlessly. They weren't anywhere to be seen. Suddenly he heard that sound the fighter made again. The Zero fighter was smoothly spiraling down as if tracing a path inside a bottle. It quickly got behind Wardes' wind dragon. Followed by a bright light, the machine gun bullets tore through the wind dragon, which had thinner scales than the fire dragons. Wardes was hit in the shoulder and back and his face distorted in pain. The wind dragon gave out a shriek. As if slowly gliding down, the dragon Wardes rode crashed to the ground.
Zero ascended the Zero fighter once more. Damn it, that had brought the plane way too freakin low for his liking. His final maneuver had been within a hundred feet of the ground! What the heck is she doing, Zero thought to himself. He noticed he could hear the words clearly now.
"Eoruu Suunu Firu Yarunsakusa"
A rhythm had started pulsating through Louise. She felt as though knew the rhythm from somewhere. With every word of the incantation, the rhythm grew stronger. It sharpened her senses, while not a single noise around reached her ears. It was as if something within her body was born, and was searching for a destination… Louise remembered what she was told once. When you recite an incantation of your own branch, a feeling similar to what she was feeling would be felt. Is it really what I'm feeling? Me, who has always been despised for being a zero. Me, who was said to have no talent in magic by teachers, parents, sisters and students. Is this the real me? Was Zero right?
"Osu Suunu Uryu Ru Rado"
She could feel a wave being born inside of her, slowly swelling.
"Beoozusu Yuru Suvyueru Kano Oshera"
The wave inside her, searching for a destination, went berserk. "Void" The legendary branch of magic. I wonder how powerful it is? No one knows. Of course, there would be no reason I'd know. This was supposedly beyond legendary.
"Jera Isa Unjyuu Hagaru Beookun Iru…"
After the long incantation, the spell was complete. At that moment, Louise understood the power of the spell. It would swallow everyone. Every person in her vision, would be swallowed by her spell. There were two options. Kill, or don't kill. What was she meant to destroy? With the winds blowing against her face, she looked down. A large warship appeared before her eyes as they focused. The Lexington. Following her instinct, she aimed at a single point and swung her wand down. Zero had told her that killing was simple. It was the reasons behind it that made it complicated. These people had killed Wales. They had destroyed this village and the people who had lived here...They had made the princess cry...she thought only one word. "Kill"
***Break***
An unbelievable scene unfolded before Henrietta's eyes. The warship that had been bombarding them with shells and odd balls of fire magic was suddenly engulfed in a large sphere of light that had appeared in the sky. It was like a smaller version of the sun, and it expanded. And… it swallowed it. It had swallowed the warship in the sky. The light continued to expand until it was all she could see. There was complete silence. Henrietta suddenly closed her eyes. The light of the sphere was so intense that anyone would think that their eyes would burn from staring at it. And then… after the light had faded, the whole fleet was on fire. The fleet led by the Lexington had all their sails and decks burning. the head of the fleet fell first, the magic keeping it in the air totally gone. The others followed suite shortly after. A tremor in the earth could be felt. The fleet had come crashing down. Henrietta was dumbfounded. Complete silence overcame them. Everyone stared at the unbelievable scene.
The first one to come to his senses was Cardinal Mazarini. He was looking at the silvery wings, shining under the sun in the sky. It was Zero's zero fighter. It was an odd name, for an odd familiar, but he kept himself abreast of the news in the academy. Trouble tended to come from it, and he recognized that curious item. Mazarini cried out, "People! Look! The enemy fleet has been destroyed by the legendary Phoenix!"
"Phoenix? The immortal bird?"
A commotion spread through the troops.
"Look at that bird flying in the sky! That's the legendary bird that's said to come at Tristain's hour of need! The Phoenix! The Founder has blessed us for fulfilling our duty!"
Shouts of joy could be heard everywhere.
"Long live Tristain! Long live the Phoenix! Long live the Princess!"
Henrietta asked Mazarini quietly, "Cardinal, the Phoenix… was it the truth? I haven't heard of anything called the legendary Phoenix…"
Mazarini mischievously smiled. "I couldn't have told a larger lie, my princess. But, everyone's sense of judgment is lost at the moment. They can't believe the scene they saw. Neither can I. However, the truth is that there was an unfamiliar bird fluttering about after the enemy fleet had fallen. There was no choice but to use it."
"Hah…" Princess Henrietta had to control her laughter. A wave of relief swept over her.
"What? No one cares if what I said was the truth or a lie. What they do care about is whether they're dead or alive. In other words, victory or defeat."
Mazarini peered into the princess's eyes.
"You must use everything that you can use. It's one of the basics of politics and war. Remember it well, Princess. Because from today onwards, you are the ruler of Tristain."
Henrietta nodded. It was just as the Cardinal had said. The thinking… could come later.
"The enemy's morale will be low and they will no doubt be trying to flee. Their supporting fleet is now gone. There's not a better chance to strike."
"Yes."
"Princess. Shall we go forwards to victory?" asked Mazarini.
Henrietta nodded strongly once again. She held up her shining crystal wand.
"All troops, charge! Royal troops, follow me!"
***Break***
Tired, Louise leaned into Zero.
"Hey Louise."
"Hm?" replied Louise, absentmindedly. A feeling of fatigue overcame her. But this was a nice tired feeling. It was fatigue that came with the satisfaction of accomplishing something.
"Can I ask you something?"
"Yeah."
"What was that just then?"
"It's a legend."
"Legend?"
"I'll explain later. I'm tired."
Zero nodded and smiled. He patted Louise gently on the head. She'd done good. He was troubled by the appearance of Pantheons though. Just where the hell did they get them?
"Yeah, later is fine."
"Well, I suppose its up to us to provide some air to ground support." Zero said, as he directed the Zero fighter down to the fray, firing off only short bursts of shots into the areas he saw magic coming from. This battle was over, Albion's troops must know it now too. he wondered if any of them would surrender.
***Break***
That evening… With her siblings, Siesta timidly came out of the forest. News that the Albion troops had been defeated reached the village people who had taken shelter in the forest.
Albion's troops were crushed by Tristain's charge, and many had surrendered. Well, there weren't any Albion soldiers strutting along the village around noon. The angry bellows, the clash of arms and the explosions had ended. Black smoke rose from the field, but the battle had ended.
A thunderous noise could be heard in the skies above. After looking up, a familiar object was flying in the sky. It was the "Dragon's Raiment". Siesta's face brightened. It was Zero!
When the Zero fighter landed on the field, Zero opened the canopy after unhooking Louise from the harness. Someone from the forest, south of the village, came running towards him. It was Siesta. Zero jumped off the Zero fighter and walked towards her.
Louise watched Zero as he moved to meet the maid and sighed. "Well, I guess it's good that that girl is still alive, but couldn't he spend more time consoling me? The spell just then… "Explosion" of the Void magic branch. It seems like it didn't happen. Perhaps it doesn't feel real because it was Void magic. Am I really the "User of Void magic"? Is there some misunderstanding? But it explained how I was able to give Zero the legendary Gandálfr familiar powers. There are lots of legends, aren't there," she whispered. "In any case, it'll probably be busy from here on. I really feel as if this didn't happened… and I can't believe that I'm the one mentioned in the legend…" Louise sighed. If this were a dream, I would be so relieved. But I've decided not to think too much about it. I should learn from that idiot familiar of mine. Although he's the legendary familiar, he doesn't seem to care about it at all. But perhaps that is for the best. Anyway, this "legend" stuff is too much for me.
"Hey, legendary mage."Derflinger had called out to Louise in a teasing tone.
"What, legendary sword?"
"It's okay to be stubborn… but if you don't go after him, he'll get taken by that village girl."
Louise's cheeks went red. "I don't mind."
"Really?" whispered Derflinger.
Giving a cry of frustration Louise hopped out of the cockpit and chased after Zero. Derflinger watched Louise's running figure and said in large voice. "And she even understands that she's the one mentioned in the legend… Perhaps her love life is more important to her. Humans around this age are beyond help."
While running, a stream of thoughts ran through her mind. When she looked at Zero's back, her pulse hastened. Her mind would go blank. It was weird. That idiot. He even kissed me. Is that girl really that good? She might be cute. She's good at cooking as well. I know boys like girls like that. But, I…I…have the Void magic branch! I'm special too! I'm not a failure anymore, and I'll make him see that! If I don't go after that familiar of mine, he'll be gone somewhere. If I don't open my eyes wide and run, I'll be left behind. But, if it's going to be like that… I'll just continue chasing him. I'll chase him wherever he goes… Because he said... he believes in me!
***Author's notes***
Yay. Only one more chapter till the story catches up to my what i had done by Halloween. More reviews for the chapter that is out = faster updates till i catch up to my buffer.
Cardinal cap slap. That is all.
It appears that the Cardinal is a better man than some people have thought. Perhaps he was just trying to protect people in the only way he could.