The Starlit Void
(Chapter six)
"Speaking"
'Thought'
'Written'
Disclaimer: Zero no Tsukaima / Familiar of Zero (Light Novel) was written by Noboru Yamaguchi, illustrated by Eiji Usatsuka, and published by Media Factory (Seven Seas Entertainment in the US and Canada.) The first anime was directed by Yoshiaki Iwasaki with Studio J, and licensed by Geneon in the US and Canada... but as bluntly as possible in order to save time going through all other installments in the series – these authors are none of these people and have no legitimate claim to the series. Thus this work is strictly non-profit. Any use otherwise is not these authors' doing. Similarly, Mabinogi and all characters, races, concepts, ideas, and other material taken from it is the work and property of Nexon and BGEntertainment. These authors are likewise not affiliated with either group in any way or form and lay no claim to that property.
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Warning!
Some terrible scenes ahead! We promise you'll understand by the end to please don't bale the moment something happens!
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The carriage door closed with a quiet click and Siesta felt almost like the tiny noise was the final nail in her coffin. Her life was over, it had hardly begun and now... Her gaze hardened as she did her best to keep from letting her emotions show on her face. She took a hesitant step forward, the yard wasn't as nice as the academy but she had expected that. Mott hadn't stuck her as someone who really cared much for gardening. She was stalling, she couldn't help it walking into that house was the very last thing she wanted to do. Siesta froze as she felt a hand creep up her spine and despite her determination not to show how she felt she couldn't help the disgusted shiver that followed.
"Dont be so tense my lovely Siesta." Motts voice came from behind her, by the founder she hated that man. "Let me fetch Clarissa and have her show you to your room."
"Yes sir." Siesta answered mechanically. The presence behind her left and she was left staring at a dandelion off to the right of the path. Out of the corner of her eyes she could see the count's guards and how their eyes kept moving over her. She was incredibly uncomfortable and began slowly walking towards the house if only to get away from the stares. The house was nice at least It was a two story manor with elegant columns and the trees that surrounded the whole property only enhanced it beauty. She made her way up the stairs and placed her hand on the handle of the door only for it to be pulled open from the other side. Siesta blinked and paused as she looked at the young woman in front of her she wore a red, form fitting maids uniform with her blonde hair up in a simple bun. The most striking thing about her by far was her eyes, they looked empty as the woman looked back at Siesta with a lifeless gaze.
"You must be Siesta." The woman said after a moment to which Siesta only nodded in return. "I am Clarissa the head maid, please follow me to your room."
"Yes ma'am." Siesta said quietly only for the woman to turn around and walk into the depths of the manor without another word. With a sigh she followed behind and after a few minutes of twisting hallways and lavish surroundings Clarissa stopped outside of a plain wooden door. Clarissa motioned towards the door and opened it for her without ever speaking. Siesta entered the room to put away her things and was surprised to see the room was actually quite nice.
A click from behind her Startled Siesta and she spun around to see Clarissa standing in front of the door. "You will have the rest of the afternoon to settle in. I will come and fetch you at seven this evening, you will be bathed and dressed in the clothes the count has picked out for you and then you are to go to his chambers and wait for him. You are to do everything he asks and tomorrow morning I will come find you so I can train you for your duties." Siesta's heart clenched as the blonde woman scheduled out her impending violation in a dull voice.
"I have been a maid for several years, I am sure I can find my way around." Siesta said, her voice slowly beginning to crack as her shoulders slumped in defeat.
"It's not that kind of training." Clarissa said before turning around and leaving Siesta to sit and stew in dread.
.XXX.
Mathilda was in distress. She couldn't decide what to do. The owl circling about furiously hooting did nothing to ease her thoughts, and the unwavering, frozen calm of the woman in front of her certainly did nothing either. Indeed, it was her sudden fury - as stony and hidden as it was - which was causing her this problem. Mathilda herself had done plenty that would guarantee a one way trip to the headsman's block but she had the foresight to hide her identity and the skill to elude any traps or pursuers. Before the sudden change in the woman Mathilda wouldn't have even thought her capable of anything more than the simple discipline she had inflicted on the Gramont child. She somehow doubted Nao could ever do something like what she was probably planning. Something about the woman made her seem out of her element, perhaps the way she still spoke with the same calm strength, lacking the wild uncontrolled feelings most people were subject to when emotions ran high.
"Are you sure you want to do this? There will probably be consequences, many dire consequences." Mathilda finally ventured, casting a grimace across the table. After all, it would be a terrible shame for the mysterious woman to throw her life away on a fools errand. It was simply the fate of those without power to be preyed upon by those who possessed it. In the moment Nao returned her worried gaze across the tea table with one of unwavering cold certainty Mathilda was sure that her concerns would fall on deaf ears. "Towards the capital city, a few hours walk, there will be a lane that branches into the forest."
"Thank you." Nao rose to her feet and began heading for the door her black dress swirling around her as if it had taken on a life of its own. The owl Elridge swooped down and took up a roost on the woman's shoulder just as she disappeared into the hallway.
With a sigh Mathilda slumped into her chair. She hoped Nao didn't go and get herself killed, the loss of the mystery the strange woman represented would be irritating. Especially after putting so much time into needling out the meager facts she had already uncovered. All that effort wasted...
She was pulled from her rumination when Professor Colbert's balding head popped in through the still open door. "Miss Longueville, I was walking by and I saw Miss Pryderi leaving rather quickly, is everything alright?"
"Well, she's gotten some bad news from home it seems." Mathilda straightened and motioned to the chair Nao had recently vacated. "Would you like some tea?"
"Oh, certainly if it would be no trouble." Colbert said as he fully entered the room and took a seat.
"Not at all, the tea would go to waste otherwise." Mathilda said taking a sip before grimacing at the tea that had grown cold while Nao had been reading her letter.
"She is quite an interesting one isn't she?" Mathilda said, donning the minimal disguise of Miss Longueville.
"Oh yes, quite interesting. The records we've discovered don't mention her but somehow I feel like she is connected to- ...Oh!" Colbert suddenly froze realizing to his horror that he had said things he wasn't supposed to. He gulped slightly as he nervously started to stammer and backtrack but Mathilda only grinned at him over her tea cup.
"Oh? You've found something about her giant friend?" Mathilda couldn't quite hide her smirk and the aging professor's expression hardened.
"You weren't supposed to hear that." Colbert said tersely.
Mathilda smiled at him and was happy to see the tiny hint of red on his cheeks. "Oh dont worry so much professor. She has made me curious as well and I have been speaking with her and Linde, gathering hints and facts. Perhaps we could exchange notes?"
Colbert swallowed nervously. "U-um what have you discovered?" He fidgeted on his seat and looked around nervously as if checking for unseen ears.
"Oh, one or two things. Perhaps you should look in your records for a people called Milletians? Or perhaps a land named Vales?" Mathilda finished off her tea and leaned forward towards the stunned professor.
"I'll... talk to the headmaster, perhaps you could be of assistance with this little mystery." Colbert stood and bowed quickly before making his way out of the room.
Mathilda smiled to herself. Letting the professor know she had been snooping was a slight risk but it was more than worth it to gain access to any new information he or the headmaster might discover. With luck, Nao wouldn't die or find herself in prison as a result of this incident. Mathilda sat back in her chair now totally alone with a smug expression. She suddenly frowned and grimaced at the pot of tea on her table, great everyone had run off and left her with a whole pot of tea to finish by herself.
.XXX.
"Now where could she have gone?" Kirche wondered aloud, pacing her way through the academy like a cat - proud and well aware of the attention she was receiving, though she wasn't paying it much mind at the moment. Her attention was focused on other matters at the moment. Matters regarding a certain mysterious white-haired woman. Kirche bit a fingernail in frustration, Nao was no where to be found on the campus. She'd checked the kitchens already as well as Louise's room. Where was she staying, anyway? They probably wouldn't house a tutor in a student's room, especially when it was already overloaded as it is.
Kirche's frustration lasted until she came to the end of the hallway T-section and was nearly bowled over as her target rushed by with death in her eyes and chaos in her wake. Students lost hold of papers as they were blown away by an ethereal wind, dust was kicked up out of the floor and crevices where the serving staff had missed cleaning, and everyone in her path stepped aside out of a sheer instinctual fear of the woman's wrathful aura... Kirche blinked in astonished surprise before quickly dashing to the corner as she lost sight of her. Kirche followed behind taking care not to be noticed by Nao as they descended the tower and emerged into the main courtyard. Not that going unnoticed was particularly difficult, Nao seemed to be focused on nothing but her rage as she left the school grounds, quickly walking down the road.
...Kirche didn't know where they were going, but the academy had long since passed out of sight and her feet felt like she'd been walking on hard earth and rough stone. Which she had. For the past several hours, at least. It had been mid afternoon when they left, but already the sun was dipping below the horizon and Nao showed no signs of stopping or even slowing. They'd taken a turn, and the plains had faded in favor of dense forest with claustrophobic branches hanging over head. But there was no giving up at this point - she didn't really have a choice but to continue after all that walking… and if the large gates that they'd just come across were any indication, they'd be arriving at their destination soon. There had better be something worthwhile at the end of all of this or Kirche was going to be rather upset.
As Nao approached the guards at the gate crossed their pikes and called out a challenge, to which the mysterious woman replied by… singing? It was a soft song, wordless and consisting only of meaningless tones but - nevertheless - those tones were sang beautifully, and carried a promise of comfort and shelter within them. Before Kirche's astonished eyes, the guards began nodding off and, in moments, slumped against the walls, fast asleep. Nonchalantly, the woman continued gracefully on her way into the manner as if the doors had been opened for her and she'd been cordially invited in, rather than… whatever had just happened.
Kirche shook her head, clearing her mind of the implications of the event she had just witnessed before stepping over the fallen guards and dashing across the distance to the house to the doorway… only to stumble and fall ungracefully onto her posterior as the doors flew off their hinges and the windows exploded.
.XXX.
As Nao stepped through the entryway, a thought occurred to her. She'd forgotten to knock. Glancing speculatively to the doors she'd shut behind her, she shook her head. It wouldn't be loud enough to carry throughout the entire building. Turning her eyes to her staff, she smiled in the same malignant, mischievous manner as she had when Louise informed her of the circumstances of Linde's arrival. Demurely angling the implement toward the floor and lifting it into the air, she focused and gathered a small modicum of power into its tip. Then she brought it down and softly tapped it against the ground.
BOOM!
It was as if a thousand thunderclaps sounded at once in a united, deafening chorus. The tiled floor beneath her fractured - heavy statues hewn of marble were cast aside like grains of sand and shattered against the walls in clouds of silvery gray dust. Paintings were torn from the walls. Candles were extinguished, and their bases ripped out of the stone and mortar. The mammoth arched windows flanking the doorway shattered into so many fragments of glass and shot outward into the courtyard where they embedded themselves in the perimeter gate. The chandelier rocketed upward into and through the ceiling above it like a bizarre geiser of brass and iron before falling back down and plummeting to the ground at Nao's feet. It wobbled about unsteadily for a few moments like a spun coin before finally settling into stillness. The air was still and thick with dust from the carnage. It was as if God had directed his wrath at this one portion of the world and smote it into ruin.
"Knock knock~." She sang, voice positively saintly, not-quite-smile still in place.
A serving maid that had been standing atop the stairs at the end of the hall, carrying a hamper full of clothes, dropped it numbly from her hands and stared askance, at the havoc the angered goddess had wrought.
"Would you please direct me to the count dear? I would like a word." Nao said conversationally.
Shocked, the maid pointed a limp hand at a door off the hallway. As Nao passed her by, her eyes remained focused on the ruin the foyer had become. Nao nodded her thanks before going to the door and pushing it open. The sight within gave her a moment's pause. Siesta was laying on the bed, looking to the side with tears on her eyes, and Mott was in the midst of climbing onto it. The moment passed, and Nao coughed authoritatively, causing Mott to turn around - and meet the side of her staff as she struck him across the cheek with an audible crack. He toppled gracelessly onto the floor before standing and reaching for his wand with murder in his eyes, "How dare-" He started to cry in outrage, only to choke up as he felt the tip of Nao's staff on his throat.
"Quiet, please." She intoned, flinted eyes turning to Siesta. "Are you alright?"
Siesta could only manage a quiet whimper when she tried to speak but finally nodded her head. Her clothes were somewhat disheveled, and notably not the same ones that Nao had spotted her wearing before. On closer inspection, Nao noticed that her human friend's hands and wrists were held fast by restraints and her normally gentle heart cried out again in fury.
"Now see here!" Mott cried indignantly, having stealthily slipped away from Nao's staff, drawing her attention back to himself, "This is my house! I am the master of this house! I am a noble - a count - and the royal messenger! You cannot simply barge in here and - and waltz into my private quarters and interpose yourself between myself and my servants!" His face was purple with rage and his wand arm was trembling mightily.
Hearing his words and dismissing them as unimportant, Nao turned back to Siesta and began untying her bonds, prompting Mott to completely lose his head. Chanting a brief incantation under his breath he thrust his wand forward imperiously, "Water Dart!" He called. Nao had just enough time to turn and see a glob of high-pressure water form at the tip of Mott's wand and shoot forward. Reacting quickly she brought her staff into its path and the projectile glanced off it and toward the bed. Nao froze as a terrible certainty overcame her, the sound of the spell piercing flesh echoed through her mind. Slowly she turned to look and beheld the gory mess that had once been Siesta's throat. The poor girl stared up in fear as her final breath gurgled from her before she fell limp and lifeless. Horrified, Nao stared as the last dregs of life slipped out of Siesta's body and she felt the girl's very soul pass out of her and onward to whatever realm awaited her.
Nao clasped her free hand around Siesta's limp, pulseless wrist and just… stared. For a moment, all present were held still by shock.
Then Nao turned to Mott, eyes burning with barely restrained divine fury. She turned stiffly from Siesta's body, movements unnaturally graceful yet somehow artificial and broken at the same time. She lifted her staff above the ground and power gathered about her in a wreath of white, holy energy. It spread out from her heart and over her form and - for a moment - one could swear they saw the faint outline of angel's wings behind her, as brilliantly white as the rest of the energy, but filled with ominous black specks. Then it all shot to the end of her staff as she brought it to the ground.
What followed couldn't really be called an explosion.
Everything vanished in a haze of white. The entire room erupted outwards. Walls were sent flying in fragmented pieces, furniture splintered into unrecognizable bits, the floor caved inward… everything the light touched was seemingly annihilated as a wave of overwhelming force contemptuously pushed it aside. Mott was sent sailing into the courtyard, thoroughly battered. Only Nao seemed unaffected, hovering in place like a messenger of death, with her black dress billowing in the wind, faint angel's wings still shimmering behind her… and then she vanished in a shower of white light.
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Clarissa hid behind one of the larger trees on the estate. She had been seeing to the wash when she heard the explosion and shattering glass and assumed the worst. She hoped whatever had caused it would leave her be. She didn't dare hope but in her inner most thoughts that whatever had happened had killed her 'employer'. Seconds ticked by, then minutes as she waited for something to happen. She could tell something was wrong, the guards were silent, there were no maids fleeing the house, only thick silence. Then it seemed the portion near the front of the house erupted in a spray of wood and plaster. Great chunks of plaster fell around her as planks and beams bounced off the tree she was hiding behind. A meaty thump was the last sound that stood out among the last of the racket from the falling debris. She poked her head around the trunk to try and find some answer, any answer to what had happened... and a small smile formed on her face.
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It was a sunny place. A field of wheat under a sunny sky dotted scarcely with clouds. A single house stood, two stories tall and made of wood with a simple wooden fence forming a perimeter around it. Her house. Her family's house. It was exactly as she remembered. It was better than she remembered - all the wood was freshly sanded as if it were new, the fence wasn't broken in so many different places, and the door - when she tried it - didn't creak with the yawn of rusted generations. It was exactly like she remembered it, but it wasn't… right. Something was wrong.
She walked inside, and the floor was clean and bereft of dust. Paintings hung on the walls of her friends and families and… why was the hallway so long? Where were the doors? The kitchen? Why hadn't she been greeted yet by a dozen little arms fighting each other for a hug? Where was her father's hearty laughter, or her mother's gentle smile? Beyond the door was just an endless hall of paintings. When she turned to look back outside, the door was gone and she could only see the hallway continuing on into the distance. Something was wrong. This wasn't home.
Frightened, she took off running in the direction the door had been before. She passed paintings off her family, her mother - her father - all of her siblings. Paintings of her home - the mill - the chapel - the fields - the villagers. Paintings of the Academy - of fellow maids and coworkers - and nobles - and tasks and chores. Paintings of everything she'd ever seen and done. Paintings of everything she wished to see and do. And paintings of things she would see undone. The hallway grew narrower and narrower, but showed no signs of ending. When she looked back she could see only darkness - and it was rapidly closing in.
The hall grew so narrow that she could no longer continue running and she turned to face the encroaching dark - barely a stone's throw away now - and frantically tried to back herself into the impossibly narrow wedge. The paint began to drip on the paintings and faces started to blur and distort. The darkness was within arms reach now - she could see the world drifting away into it as if it were made of sand. Madly, she grasped at the walls, getting paint on her hands and knocking frames aside, but to no effect. It would reach her soon and then -
"I'm here."
- warmth, and love, and safety. The darkness, the walls, the paintings - her body - everything vanished in a blur of white light.
.XXX.
Nao sighed in relief. That one had been far too close. Usually souls would last at least an hour before they started to fade… but here… it seemed the void was more… intense, if that was even possible. Cradling the brightly shining spirit that she'd just rescued in her hands, Nao sent a tendril of power into it to start the process of Rebirth and then stepped away, watching as the ball of light drifted further away and into the air. The light intensified, turning from a wisp of colored air into a bright white silhouette - and here Nao noted that the soul she rescued was a human female, or at least choosing to be such. Now that she had a basic shape, the fledgling Milletian began to gain a form. Color drifted into the body as light turned to flesh, which was quickly covered in a simple white-cloth dress. Hair sprouted from a bald head - a reflective black in color - and a face formed on the featureless head. Eyes, a nose, a mouth...
When her new Milletian was finally born, Nao stepped back in momentary surprise, before smiling in a queer mix of relief and sadness.
Standing before her, eyes blearily opening and blinking at the stark whiteness of the world around them, was Siesta. The newly reborn girl stared about in wonder at the world around her, as little of it as there was to see, before her gaze found Nao and she gasped in shock. "N-Nao?" She managed, stuttering over the word in uncertainty.
The goddess gave her human friend a gentle nod, "Welcome to the Soul Stream, Siesta."
"The… soul stream? I'm…" Just like that, the memories of what had just occurred flashed back to the front of Siesta's mind and she cried out in shock. Before she had a chance to do much more, however, she found herself held tightly in an embrace by the older woman.
"You were." Nao said simply, answering Siesta's unspoken question, "But no more. Your soul is pure, and it drifted here, which allowed me to reincarnate you. You're alive. And…" The goddess blushed, looking bashfully to the side, "Well… and you're going to stay that way. Trust me."
Siesta blinked, confused, "But I died you… reincarnated me? Brought me back to life? That's impossible. No one has that… where are we? What is this place?" Revelation crossed her face as she had an epiphany, "Nao… are you… an angel?"
Nao blushed even more… though, technically, she probably should have seen that as an insult. It was accurate enough, and she'd seen Siesta's very soul with her own eyes. The girl was being earnest. "Well. Something like that." She affirmed simply, "And you…" She released Siesta and turned away, twiddling her thumbs, "Well… ah… There's no easy way to say this so… Congratulations! You're adopted."
Siesta blinked again, then stared, "...What?"
"You're… adopted. You're one of my Milletians, now. When I brought you back to life, I did so using a fragment of my divine power. I'm more or less your god-mother, in a way." She elaborated, finishing brightly, "But your blood is still the same. Your parents are still your parents - your family is still your family. You're just… a bit different now. There's a bond between us that can't be severed."
When Siesta continued to stare ahead owlishly as she tried to comprehend Nao's words, the goddess decided a different tactic was in order, "I'm sorry but… We can't stay here forever." Well, they could - time flowed much faster here; not even a second had passed by on Halkegenia, "And it will take a long time to explain so… we should head back now."
Before Siesta had time to put together an answer, Nao placed her hand on her shoulder and the pair of them disappeared.
.XXX.
Kirche stared in horror and astonishment as she fell back from the blast. A winged Nao floated a few inches above what was left of the floor before vanishing in a white light. Kirche crawled forward, not trusting the dangerously creaking boards. The entire structure of the house in front of where Nao was had been obliterated, and the count was nowhere to be seen. An upturned bed caught her attention and the corpse of the maid still hung limply from where her wrist had been tied to a bedpost. Crawling further onto the ruined floorboards she cast a small fire spell, breaking the rope and allowing the body to tumble the rest of the way to the mingle with the dusty, splintered remains of the floor. looking sadly upon the visage of the girl whom she knew only by proxy. Still... Valliere and her familiar would be devastated and they would never forgive her if she left the body of the poor girl to the birds.
Reaching out she managed to grab the ankle and pull, the floor creaking dangerously, though thankfully nothing more collapsed as she pulled the body from the rubble and began to hobble into the hallway and down the stairs. More maids emerged from their hiding places and after many sad and terrified looks began to follow Kirche into the courtyard, one charitable soul even helping her to carry the remains down the steps. Finally reaching the courtyard Kirche placed the body on the grass and turned to look at the devastation from the outside. Nearly two dozen girls milled around the courtyard looking shaken and oddly relieved by the day's events.
Kirche was about to call one of them to help her find a carriage, respect for the dead was one thing but there was no way she was carrying the maid's body back on foot. Before she could even open her mouth a bright white light filled the area and many of Mott's maids hid among the debris and around the house.
Gasps filled the area as they all bore witness to what could only be described as a miracle. Kirche backed away and blinked rapidly as the very girl whose corpse she had just carried from the house stood next to the white haired, formerly winged Nao. The area was chaos as the maids came to the same realization. Siesta was alive.
.XXX.
When her vision cleared, Siesta found herself standing in the Count's courtyard… and it was a mess. Shards of glass littered the ground alongside copious coatings of sawdust and splintered wood. There were maids everywhere, most of which she hadn't been introduced to yet, as well as Miss Zerbst… for some reason… and - Siesta recoiled, a hand covering her mouth. She nearly stumbled, but was steadied by a pair of warm hands she instinctively recognized as Nao's, "I'm sorry," The woman said sadly, "Usually, you wouldn't have to see the body."
Siesta couldn't respond. She barely straightened herself, allowing Nao to support her as she fought with nausea and shock. There was no denying it now. She had died. That was her corpse laying over there, all broken and empty like some… discarded doll. However, and whyever, Nao brought her back… the fact remained that she had died. Which meant… what did it mean? She died, but she wasn't dead. That was her body, but… it wasn't her body. She was standing her, after all. Nao had called her a 'Milletian' - but what did that even mean? Was she some kind of spectre brought back to the world to haunt the living? A revenant parody of life on a puppet's strings?
Nao wouldn't do something like that, her heart said. Nao couldn't do something like that. She knew these things to be true just as much as she felt them. But… what if that was simply an effect of whatever magic had animated her? Could she even trust herself? She shuddered. She had to… She couldn't afford to doubt herself. It would be utterly maddening. Whatever Nao had done - heresy or miracle - she was alive now and… that had to be enough. The only proof that she had ever died at all was in front of her, at that, but… It was her body. What was she to do, just… incinerate it and pretend nothing had ever happened?
Perhaps mercifully, the decision was taken from her when Ms. Zerbs took a deep breath, steeled herself, and incinerated Siesta's body with a wave of her wand and a murmured spell word. Flames wrapped around it almost gently, greedily devouring the dress and skin almost as fast, before moving on to the muscles and bones until nothing was left but a pile of ash. This done, the Germanian turned to Siesta with a hard, stony gaze, "You didn't die here. Okay?" Siesta started to stammer out a response, but she was cut off by Kirche, "You," She insisted, "did not die here. You never died. You definitely weren't… brought back. Nothing of the sort happened. Okay?"
Finally catch on to what Kirche was saying, Siesta nodded, "Right. Of course. That would be silly. The stuff of stories."
The Germanian's shoulders sagged in relief before it occurred to her that there were dozens of witnesses to deal with as well.
"Don't worry milady," One spoke, somewhat uncertainly, "She's one of us… as brief as that was… and… we owe a great deal for what was done here. Our lips are sealed."
And here Siesta sighed too, honestly touched. Maybe… somehow… everything would turn out alright after this… ordeal was through.
.XXX.
Mott hurt. He hurt all over, unbearable pain erupted from his twisted and broken body. But the worst part was that he could not feel anything below the waist. His legs, twisted as they were did not burn with pain like the rest of him. Mott Struggled to move, only managing to flop over onto his back as he gasped from the pain of shattered ribs. He tried to keep his breathing steady but his vision was becoming blurred from the pain and blood loss and this sent him into a panic. Relief washed over him as the hazey form of a blonde woman stepped into view. Clarissa, his head maid, she could help him, save him from the death he could feel slowly approaching. "H-h-heeeelp," Mott rasped as he weakly reached out towards her. Then a strange smile overtook her pretty face as Mott felt the heel of her shoe press down onto his throat. Mott struggled as his vision darkened, it didn't take long...
Clarissa grinned a mad grin as she pressed her heel harder into the count's neck. She smiled as the man's face darkened and turned blue, his weak struggles brought feelings and emotions back that she never thought she could feel again. Happiness, joy, hope flooded through her as the last twitches died and the man finally choked to death. She turned to see the newly resurrected girl standing next to the angel... the Goddess that was the woman with the black dress and white hair. She had seen enough to know what had happened. Siesta that poor girl had been killed, the red headed noble lady had carried her body into the courtyard and now she was standing next to the Goddess like nothing had ever happened. Clarissa dropped to her knees and clasped her hands in front of her
face as flames erupted around the empty former shell of the young girl. "Thank you," She whispered as tears of happiness rolled down her cheeks.
.XXX.
Author's Note (Number III): *Lightning Strikes.* AND I HAVE CREATED LIIIIIIIFE, MWAHAHAHAHAH. The story lives, believe it or not. This story has been quite long in coming, which is unfortunate because I, at least, was certainly looking forward to writing it. I was not disappointed. It was quite fun. I don't know how you'll react to reading it, but that's half the fun on its own. A note about Clarissa; she's Radon's project. Bug him about her. The Siesta thing was his idea too. Nao was me though. Also, don't worry, this chapter is pretty unique - don't expect it to be this dark all the time or anything. With that, I leave off.
Co-Author's Note (Radon088): Well, that was a long break... I HAVE NO EXCUSE! Except for a new girlfriend... and work... and other things. But we finally delivered! Was it everything you hoped it would be? Why not drop us a review or a PM and tell us what you think... Yes turning Siesta into a Milletian (and ergo killing her) was me... bring on the hate! Clarissa is an interesting little side plot that might show up now and then so watch for her.