It had been one week since the incident known as the Harpy Village massacre. Only seven days had passed, and already, news of the event spread like wildfire. It was only a matter of time before it jumped continents, at which point, the whole world would know.
Micaela had tried to suppress the story when it came out, but there was just no way she could. After all, it wasn't every day that over one-hundred people were killed, including a Queen-class monster. Once people heard of that, they wouldn't stop talking about it.
It had even reached the most backwater of human villages, who were known for their bigotry against monsters. How that had happened, Micaela didn't know. It was possible that some men managed to escape the village during the chaos, but she hadn't heard of any.
After such an atrocity, it was only natural that there were people out hunting for the perpetrators. Across many monster villages and locales, the faces of both Yuri Aera and Alexander Aera were plastered on wanted posters, promising an exorbitant amount of gold of the capture/killing of the mother-son duo. These bounty hunters were made up almost entirely of two different groups: vengeful survivors of the horrific massacre, and opportunistic monsters who just wanted to make a quick buck.
It was one of the former who was standing before Micaela, glaring at the angelic woman with an impressive amount of spite.
Micaela looked back at her, unimpressed. Sitting behind her desk, she had been looking over some rather important documents when the Harpy had barged in.
This particular woman was formidable, standing at over six feet tall, with dark, stormy eyes, and raven locks of hair. Her chest and stomach were a patchwork of bandages, stitches, and barely-healed scars, marring her once-beautiful form. She had clothes on, but they were little more than rags at this point, as she'd likely been wearing them when she was attacked.
"You harbored that bitch and her child for years!" The harpy exclaimed, her face red with rage. "You knew who she was, and you didn't do anything!"
The angelic woman raised an eyebrow at the upset harpy, showing her clear disregard for the woman.
"And so what if I did?" Micaela asked, her tone neutral. "They never committed any crimes, or otherwise did harm to my village. They were well-behaved, so I never felt the need to do something."
The Harpy woman snarled, taking a step forward, towering over the former seraph in an attempt to intimidate her. Micaela almost laughed in her face, just barely managing to school her expression.
"Yuri Aera was an international criminal!" The harpy shrieked, stomping one of her talons in abject rage. "If you'd just done your job and reported her, then the massacre of my village could have been avoided!"
Micaela stood up and glared at her, clearly annoyed.
"You all brought this on yourselves when you 'arrested' her son, who, by the way, was innocent." She spat, her sudden hostility putting the Harpy woman on the back foot. "To imply that I am at fault for the atrocity is not only insulting, but also damaging to your cause."
Before the bird woman could say anything else, Micaela pointed towards the door, signaling that the conversation was over. Petulantly, the woman growled, before stomping out of the building, slamming the door behind her with a mighty crash.
The former seraph let out a long, suffering sigh, before slowly sinking back into her chair. That had been the third visitor of the week, and Micaela was beginning to seriously consider locking her door. She was far too busy to entertain vengeful warriors, or ambitious mercenaries. There was paperwork to be done, along with a hefty amount of research.
Just how on earth had Alex managed to kill the Harpy Queen? The man may have been impressively powerful for a human, but there should've been no way for him to even hurt a Queen-class monster, let alone kill one! Even if he was grievously injured by the act, the fact that it happened at all was simply baffling.
Searching for answers was proving to be a massive headache. There were records of his father (who had been one of the most powerful heroes of his generation), but accounts of his actual abilities were unclear. His lineage was completely unknown, which made tracking down information even more difficult. To put it simply, she'd hit a wall. One that she wasn't sure could be overcome.
Of course, it was quite possible that none of it mattered anyway. Alex and his mother had last been seen fleeing Harpy Village, the young man cradled in his mother's arms. Actual accounts were conflicting, but it seemed like he was on death's door. There was a very real possibility that he had died, which was... more than a little concerning. If Alex died, then there was no telling what Yuri would do. Best case scenario, she'd kill herself. Worst case, she'd go on a rampage, killing hundreds until she was finally put down. Either outcome would be devastating, since the elven woman was one of the closest things Micaela had to a friend.
However, since there hadn't been any sightings of the former serial killer since the incident, it was safe to assume that either Alex was alive, or they were both dead. Another massacre was unlikely at this point. At least, until Alex appeared once again.
"That poor man..." She muttered to herself, thinking on all the trouble he'd gotten himself into. He probably had no clue about the magnitude of his actions. If he was alive, he'd be hunted to the ends of the earth. Yuri might've had a bit of understanding of what her son would go through, but it was almost impossible for her experience to compare. The elven woman, while a menace, had never killed someone in such a high position of authority. The harshest threat she'd ever faced had been a group of powerful kitsune (One of whom had been the subordinate of Tamamo, the Heavenly knight.).
Alex, in contrast, would likely be hunted by at least one Heavenly Knight, if not more. The death of a royal monster was taken with the utmost seriousness. The fact that it had been a human who killed her made things even worse.
To put it simply, they were likely going to make an example of him.
The very thought of such things made Micaela sick to her stomach. She'd watched him grow over the years, and despite her doubts regarding his mental stability, she couldn't deny that she at least slightly cared about him. Yes, she'd considered killing him in the past, but that was different. She would've done it as quickly and mercifully as possible, while the monsters hunting him would likely drag out his death, humiliating him all the while. Micaela wouldn't wish such a thing upon anyone, regardless of their crimes.
Unfortunately, as much as she wanted to, the angelic woman simply couldn't intervene. Barring the fact that she had no idea where either of the two were, helping them would brand her a criminal. And if she decided to personally end Alex's life, thus sparing him of the misery he'd likely endure, then Yuri would go ballistic.
For now, all Micaela could do was sit back, and watch events unfold.
*LINEBREAK*
Thousands of miles away, in the continent of Hellgondo, sat a certain nine-tailed kitsune. Tamamo-No-Mae, a heavenly knight, and one of the six ancestors, was firmly seated in a rather comfortable chair, looking over ancient documents. Mostly, they were different maps of Ilias continent, each one highlighting a different location.
To put it simply, she was looking for something. Specifically, she was after the Poseidon's Bell, which was a rare artifact that protected ships from storms. The reason? Well, she was bored, and wanted something to do. She'd been planning on a trip to Ilias continent for a while, and it seemed like a fun activity. Also, Alma's storms were busy keeping people from traveling to and from the continent, and she didn't particularly want any humans to get around that.
However, all of that ground to a halt when Yao stepped through the door. There was an uncharacteristic grimace on the woman's face, which immediately put the old kitsune on edge. In her subordinate's hand was a stack of papers easily an inch thick, which was generally a bad sign all around.
"What is it Yao?" Tamamo asked, frowning. "More paperwork?"
Yao sighed, her disposition remaining generally dour. That all but confirmed that something serious was going on. However, even though Tamamo knew that something was wrong, she was entirely unprepared for what Yao had to say.
"The Harpy Queen has been killed." The kitsune's voice rang out, clipped and frustrated. "A human murdered her."
Tamamo's eyes widened slightly, thousands of years worth of discipline keeping her from reacting violently.
"A human?" She asked, baffled. "Who was it? Last time I checked, there wasn't anybody on that continent who was powerful enough to kill a monster queen."
Taking a step forward, Yao gently placed the papers on the desk, pushing them towards Tamamo with all the enthusiasm of a child at their parents' funeral.
"The man's name is Alexander Aera." She stated. "And it seems like someone actively tried to hide him from us."
That was troubling news for a couple of reasons. First off, Tamamo had spy networks throughout all the continents, each of which having existed for centuries. They were the absolute best at finding out information, so the fact that someone even could hide something this big from them was a miracle. Secondly, why would anyone try to suppress information on this man's existence? The only people capable of such a feat should realistically have no logical reason to do something like that.
It was only after some silent pondering that the more important part of her subordinate's statement occurred to her.
"Did... Did you just say 'Aera'?" Tamamo asked, her eyes widening slightly. "As in Yuri Aera?"
Yao grimaced again, nodding slowly.
"But she didn't have any living family when she was ambushed..." The ancient kitsune muttered. "Which means that this man must've come around... after."
It didn't take Tamamo all that long to realize the implications of that fact. Yuri Aera, the butcher who carved her way through Sentora, was still among the land of the living.
"How is she alive?" The Nine-Tailed Kitsune suddenly demanded, her tone furious. "You assured me that she was dead!"
Yao winced at the sudden hostility, her ears flattening against her head.
"She shouldn't have been able to survive the wounds she sustained in the attack." The subordinate kitsune explained hastily, attempting to quell her master's anger. "Her guts were literally spilling out of her body. Until recently, there was no reason to believe she wasn't dead."
Tamamo was about to respond with some less-than-kind words, but stopped herself at the last second. There really wasn't any reason to get angry at Yao for something like this. The ambush had been well over twenty years ago, and at the time, it had been extremely plausible to assume the elf had died.
The ancient Kitsune could clearly remember the day when Yao had come storming into her office, drenched in blood that wasn't hers. She had been frustrated at the fact that her target had managed to escape her at the last minute, despite having been practically disemboweled. Still, she'd been confident that the elf's fate was sealed, as there was no way she could patch herself up before she bled out.
At the time, Tamamo believed her, and decided to simply wait and see. After weeks of complete silence, it seemed clear that the woman was gone for good. As time went on, there had been no evidence to contradict that. So, even though noone ever found the body, Yuri was assumed dead, and the case closed. Of course, the bounty on her head was left up, just in case. Though, with each passing year, it had become seemingly more and more pointless to do so.
Unfortunately, it seemed like they'd been wrong the entire time. This of course, brought up a frightening question. Just how did the madwoman manage to hide for so long? Yuri may have been many things, but a paragon of self-control she was not. So, why hadn't there been any discovered murders? It was unlikely that the elf had abstained from killing, so the more likely (and frightening) possibility was that someone was covering things up, just like someone had done with Alexander.
But who would do such a thing? Yuri was an international criminal, reviled for her cruelty and brutality. She cut a bloody path through most of Sentora, starting near Yamatai, and ending just outside of Port Natalia. At the time, there wasn't anywhere she could go without being recognized. Clearly, whoever had been hiding the woman was very skilled at suppressing information...
Also, how was this Alexander related to Yuri? The woman hadn't ever had any personal attachments that Tamamo knew of, considering her murderous nature. Such a thing just didn't make sense to the old kitsune.
"So, what is Alexander to Yuri?" Tamamo asked, feeling a little skeptical at the idea of a complete psychopath having someone to care about. "They have the same last name, so are they..."
"From what intel I've managed to gather, their relationship is that of a mother and son." Yao responded simply. "Everything I managed to find is in that packet on the desk."
Tamamo eyed the mountain of papers on her desk with a kind of wariness usually reserved for only the most dangerous of predators. As previously mentioned, it was at least an inch thick. To make it worse, it was covered in incredibly small writing.
"...I'll get on that." The ancient Kitsune said eventually, feeling morose at the very thought of having to read through all that paper. "Is there anything else important you need to tell me?"
Yao nodded vigorously, her expression becoming grim yet again.
"The one known as Alexander..." She began, taking a moment to find the right words. "He has reportedly drank the blood of multiple different monsters, and apparently he partially ate the Harpy Queen."
Tamamo paused, her mind grinding to a halt as she processed the absolutely horrific shit that her subordinate just said.
"E-Excuse me?" She asked, idly wondering if this wasn't just a very bad joke. "Did I hear that right?"
Yao nodded, adopting the expression of someone who has seen and heard entirely too much.
"I've personally seen the state of the Queen's body." She ground out, her eyes clenching shut at the memory. "Most of her torso was gone, and the remaining flesh was little more than bloody ribbons."
That was... Tamamo didn't even know where to begin with that. She'd never even heard of an incident like this occurring before. Just what on earth drove this human to eat a Queen-Class monster?
She needed to get to the bottom of this.
"Yao." The ancient Kitsune stated, her eyes narrowed. "Send a message to Granberia. These fiends need to be dealt with at once."
*LINEBREAK*
For the fifth time since Alex's disappearance, Luka prayed for the safety of his friend. It had already been a week, and if not for his belief in the red-headed man's strength, Luka would have assumed him to be dead... or worse.
He kept training in the field, both in an attempt to keep his mind of off things, and to hopefully catch Alex whenever he did return. So far, nothing had happened yet, but Luka refused to give up hope.
This hadn't even been the first time that Alex had disappeared. The only difference between this incident and the previous one was that the man hadn't told Luka about it in advance.
Speaking of the first incident, thinking back on that whole situation really bothered Luka. Why had his friend lied to him? The man's intentions might not have been harmful, but the whole thing was incredibly suspicious. Luka would have to ask him about it when he returned.
'If he returns.' Luka's traitorous mind responded, seeding doubt into the rather short hero-in-training.
With a growl, he shook his head, quashing that thought as best as he could. Still, the doubt survived, eating away at him from the inside. It was certainly dangerous out in the wild, and in the past week, it had only gotten worse.
There hadn't been much concrete information, but it was widely known that something horrific had gone down in Harpy village. Normally, news from a monster town would never reach Ilias village, but this particular event had been so bad that it jumped the proverbial gap.
Apparently, there had been a complete slaughter at the town. Over a hundred people died, and that included their leader. There were supposedly two culprits, but information on who they were seemed... muddy, at best. Nobody around Luka seemed to have a concrete idea on who those two individuals might be, and it's not like they could just go and find out.
Opinion on the incident was split right down the middle, with about half of the villagers praising the killers for their actions against the monsters, while the other half was condemning them, if only for the sheer cruelty of their actions. Had the victims not been mutilated so badly, more humans probably would've shown support, much to Luka's dismay.
The purple-haired shota was not blind to his village's faults. Even though they'd gotten much better since his mother's death, they still feared and despised monsters. As such, he kept his personal opinions on the matter private, so as not to cause problems. The only person he'd ever opened up to about his beliefs was... Alex.
And suddenly, his mind was on his missing friend yet again. It would be an understatement to say that Luka worried for him. Even before his disappearance, there were little hints that pointed to Alex's situation being not-so-great. He apparently lived alone in the woods, and he constantly drank from his flask (which the man claimed was full of 'medicine'. Luka didn't believe that for a minute, but he didn't want to start an altercation, so he let it be.)
On top of that, there were multiple times where Alex had walked into town with numerous bruises and cuts all along his body. Whenever Luka asked about them, the red-haired man claimed that he'd either had a tussle with a monster, or he'd fallen out of a tree, or whatever else. Quite frankly, it was starting to seem like bullshit. Most monsters didn't fight in a way that left bruises or cuts. Sure, accidents happen, but generally, most monster strategies basically revolved around tackling and fucking their prey.
It was strange, realizing just how many secrets Alex kept from him. Luka wasn't angry, per se, but he did feel more than a little disappointed. They were supposed to be friends, so why didn't the man trust him?
Unfortunately, as much as Luka wanted to know these things, he couldn't really find out. Not until his friend returned, anyways. When the read-haired man showed his face again, Luka was going to corner him.
"Alex..." Luka sighed quietly, peering over at the tree line from which his friend usually emerged. "Just where have you gone to?"
*LINEBREAK*
After an amount of time that felt simultaneously very short and also longer than the universe had left to live, my eyes cracked open, bathing my ocular nerves with unbearable light. Grimacing, I blinked rapidly, shielding my eyes with my hand. After a while of this, I grew somewhat used to the brightness, so I removed my hand.
All around me was that familiar cloudy setting.
...Fuck.
Looking around, I quickly spotted Ilias standing over me. Considering what little I could remember before passing out, there was really only one question on my mind.
"...Am I dead?" I asked stupidly, looking at the goddess with tired eyes.
Ilias blinked for a moment, clearly not expecting that. After a moment however, she began to chuckle, covering her mouth with her hand. It was a beautiful sound, and for once, it seemed entirely genuine.
I didn't like that. I didn't like that at all.
"No, No Alex." She said eventually, shaking her head with a smile. "You're fine."
That was good, I supposed. Still, how was I okay? My memory of that whole incident I'd just been through was... spotty, to say the least. What little I did remember involved me breaking my body beyond all feasible repair. The fact that I was even breathing just didn't make sense.
Hell, I wasn't even sure what I'd been trying to do. I remember stabbing the Harpy Queen, and then there was a wonderful smell. Even just the memory of her red was enough to make me blush, my mouth salivating with hunger as I fantisized about-
Oh.
Oh no.
"What... happened to me?" I asked Ilias, suddenly feeling a spike of fear in my heart.
Ilias frowned for a moment, clearly considering her words. After a moment, her smile reappeared, albeit a little bit smaller.
"You greatly overstressed your body, to the point of almost dying." She tentatively explained. "Fret not however, for you were successful in your goal."
I blinked, swearing internally as I realized just what she thought my goal had been.
"So... The Harpy Queen is dead, then?" I asked her, my frown being the only indication of the inner turmoil I felt.
Ilias nodded happily, a beaming smile on her face.
"Congratulations, Alex." She said, her voice filled with a mix of pride and mirth. "You're the first human to vanquish a monster queen in a very long time."
...Shit. I'd had a suspicion that the queen was dead, but hearing it as a statement of fact was... more than a little upsetting. Don't get me wrong, I hated that oversized bird, but she was useful the the main story! I couldn't even begin to know the affect this would have on the world.
"Well that's... interesting." I managed to say, gritting my teeth as I tried to figure out how to change the subject. "So... How am I alive?"
Ilias' smile didn't lose its mirth, but it seemed to take on a slightly more feral quality. I had no idea what that meant, but it was probably bad.
"The mana you absorbed from the Harpy Queen was enough to slowly heal your body." She explained, her voice becoming slightly more neutral. "It is likely that you'll be in immense pain when you awaken, but you should be fine after a couple of days."
I winced, already imagining the horrific ordeal that moving would probably be. This was the worst I'd stressed myself in... well, ever. If the last time was as bad as I remember, then this was going to really, really suck.
"So, what now?" I asked her, changing the subject. "Not that I don't want to travel with Luka or anything, but there's probably gonna be a little heat on my tail after what happened."
She let out a sigh, her expression becoming much more complicated.
"Details of your exploits have already spread to even the most remote of villages on the continent. I was able to hide your identity from the human towns, but many monsters know of you." She explained. "I'm sure you'll be able to manage just fine with Luka, however."
I groaned quietly, but didn't object. My concerns clearly didn't matter, after all.
"Alright, I'll still travel with the kid." I nodded. "But quick question: why did you suppress my identity? Not complaining or anything, but wouldn't most human villages appreciate that I killed a Queen monster?"
Ilias grimaced slightly, which caused me to raise an eyebrow.
"Normally yes..." she muttered hesitantly. "But then again, most people don't eat the monsters they've killed. There's quite a few humans who would think of you as worse than a monster because of that."
Ah. It seems I had forgotten about people's stupidity for a moment there.
"Wonderful." I groused, slapping my hand against my forehead. "Thanks for doing that. I wouldn't have even thought about it."
She gave me a warm smile in response.
"It's really no trouble." She said. "I want to see you succeed, after all."
...Okay, where the hell was all this... niceness coming from?
"...Thank you?" I said/asked, bewildered. "Why are you going through all this trouble for me, though?"
Ilias chuckled again, her kind attitude never fading. I don't think I need to tell you how on edge that made me.
"Why, Alex..." She began, her light voice betraying no hint of the insanity which clearly resided in her mind. "You have the potential to do such good in the world. I want to see how far you can go."
That... shed absolutely no light on the situation. In fact, the only thing that did was make me even more nervous. I mean, seriously! Why the fuck was she helping me this much? I've done literally nothing for her. All I did was kill a queen harpy. Sure, killing a monster queen was impressive, but a harpy didn't warrant this kind of behavior.
"...Okay then." I muttered, not sure what to make of the whole situation. "I'll try not to disappoint you."
She chuckled again, before beginning to slowly float into the air. Having been through this song and dance multiple times now, I saw that as a textbook dramatic exit. That meant I'd hopefully be regaining consciousness soon.
"That's wonderful to hear." She said simply. "However, it would seem our time is growing short. Farewell, Alex."
With those words, my vision began to fade. Sighing, I closed my eyes, glad that my conference with the god was over with.
*LINEBREAK*
Even before opening my eyes, I knew I was awake. How so, you may be asking? Well, It's really quite simple.
I was in agony.
Now, I've been in pain before, mind you. I'd been in a similar situation after the whole fight in Enrika, so this level of pain wasn't unexpected. However, just because it was expected, didn't mean dealing with it was any easier. It felt like white-hot nails had been driven into my very bones. My skin was like boiling magma, and the inside of my head felt like the center of a thermonuclear bomb.
To put it simply: ouch.
Instinctively, I tried to let out a scream, only to immediately realize that I could barely even let out a whisper. My pained screech was instead a pitiful wheeze, almost unnoticeable due to its sheer lack of volume.
I felt a cool hand lay itself on my burning forehead, which, while nice, did absolutely nothing to curtail the immense agony I felt.
Cracking my eyes open, I was immediately blinded by the ambient light. Barely resisting the urge to close my eyelids, I watched the silhouette of someone's head make its way into my vision.
As my eyes adjusted to the light, the features of the figure became clear, revealing the worried face of Yuri.
She said... something to me. Honestly, I was far past the point of comprehending speech. The pain I was in pretty much prevented me from doing anything other than existing.
Whatever, what she said wasn't important. What was important was the faint green glow that emanated from her hand. With the appearance of that light, a pleasant numbing feeling began to spread throughout my body, followed by a sense of extreme exhaustion. My vision immediately began to fade, and my eyes closed instinctively.
'Oh right, she can do that...' I thought sluggishly. I mean, to be fair to me, she hadn't used that ability in a long time. Also, my mind was muddled by pain. I have an excuse. What's yours?
...Okay, that came out wrong. I apologize. The point is, Yuri used what little magical ability she had to put me to sleep. Normally such a thing would annoy me, but considering the circumstances, I was more than appreciative.
I fell unconscious again, though thankfully I wasn't bothered by any gods this time. My sleep was deep, dreamless, and most importantly, peaceful.
*LINEBREAK*
When I rejoined the land of the living once again, I immediately noticed that something was off. It wasn't necessarily a bad feeling per se, but it was definitely different.
I was still in pain, though that wasn't surprising in it of itself. What was surprising was how greatly the pain had lessened. I mean, I had no idea how long I'd been out since Yuri put me to sleep, so maybe the lack of agony wasn't quite so unreasonable.
Another strange thing that I noticed was the intense earthy smell which seemed to permeate the air around me. It was so overwhelming that my nose should've been in stinging pain. However, my nostrils were doing fine, despite the scent.
Once I'd begun focusing on this strange phenomenon, I began to notice other smells, which, while weaker, were still perfectly discernible in their own right. A strange combination of acrid sweat and delightful flowers tickled my nose, leaving me understandably confused. Slightly more distant, I could detect a hint of cut grass.
As I continued to concentrate on this weird development, I slowly began to realize that there was seemingly no end to the differing smells. I seemed to be catching the scent of everything around me, no matter how minute.
Finally opening my eyes, I blearily blinked the drowsiness out of my vision. Fighting back a yawn, I looked around, taking in my surroundings.
The ceiling was made of rough stone, as were the walls and floor. The latter of those were coated in dry, reddish dust, which appeared to have once been mud. I was laid upon a bed of leaves, which seemed to have been haphazardly scattered across the floor in a rough approximation of a mattress.
Taking a moment to connect the dots, I quickly came to the conclusion that I was in a cave.
Yuri was sat against one of the walls, her eyes steadfastly focused on the ground. She seemed upset, which, considering what all we just went through, seemed reasonable, to say the least.
As soon as I saw her, I felt my heart leap into my throat. It was strange, but in that one moment, the weight of everything came crashing down on me like a meteor. Up until that moment, I hadn't even considered the implications of the events I'd gone through. Now though, as I stared over at my closest friend, I realized just how close to death I'd come. The thought of death itself didn't bother me all that much, to be fair. The thing that really hurt was the realization that Yuri definitely would not be okay if I passed.
Almost thoughtlessly, I rolled over onto my chest, before pushing myself up onto my feet. Yuri, for whatever reason, didn't seem to notice. It was only when I walked right up to her that she realized I was there.
I didn't even manage to get out a single word before she threw her arms around me, squeezing me into an almost crushing bearhug. After getting over my surprise, I hugged back, wrapping my arms around her.
After a moment, Yuri began to shake slightly. I didn't think much of that at first, until I felt a sudden splash of wetness on my shoulder. With a horrible, gut-wrenching feeling in my stomach, I realized that she was crying.
Almost instantly, I felt my throat seem to close up, my eyes beginning to brim with tears of their own. With a shuddering gasp, I hugged her even tighter, hoping she'd feel better.
"I-It's okay." I stuttered, barely staving off a sob. "Everything is fine."
She sniffled, but didn't say anything. She just continued to hold me as tightly as she could without hurting me. Normally, I'd have been a bit annoyed by this, but at that point, I couldn't bring myself to get mad.
"...Thought I'd lost you..." Yuri eventually squeaked out, having finally managed to impose some level of control over herself. "You weren't breathing... and there was so much blood..."
...Yikes. That sounded bad. I mean, I kind of had an idea about how that went down, but hearing someone else describe what was essentially your corpse was... jarring, to say the least.
"But I'm fine now." I said simply, trying to reassure her. It didn't really work though, because my voice was still wavering slightly. After a moment though, a rather important question popped into my head. "But now that you mention it, how am I alive?"
Yuri didn't answer for the longest time. She just continued to hold me, almost as if she was afraid I'd disappear the moment she let go.
"...I don't know." She said, sounding so very broken in that one moment. "There was nothing I could do for you. There was no pulse for the longest time..."
With that, she began to sob once more. This made me start crying yet again, because hearing her sound so defeated just broke my fuckin' heart!
"And... right before I started b-burying you, you just started spasming!" She continued, openly weeping. "I didn't know what to do... so I tried to put you to sleep."
I nodded wordlessly, thinking back to when I'd briefly woken up. I didn't remember doing much of what she was describing, but to be fair, the only thing I really remembered from that was being in pain.
Breaking away from the embrace, Yuri leaned back against the cave wall, and slowly slid down until she was sitting on the ground. She let out a long, drawn-out sigh, and wiped the remaining tears from her eyes. It took me a little longer than that to stop sniffling, but I also tried to rub the wetness out of my eyes.
Sitting down next to her, I continued the conversation.
"So... How long was I out?" I asked, my voice still somewhat unstable.
Yuri thought for a moment, her forehead creasing as she pondered an answer.
"You've been in and out for over a week now." She explained, frowning. "You weren't really cognizant though, so I had to feed you by pouring animal blood down your throat."
I cursed, more than a little dismayed at the amount of time that had passed. I had shit to do, after all, and events like this were just impeding my progress.
The conversation petered out for a bit. I didn't mind much, as the silence was actually quite soothing. There was a mild breeze blowing from outside, lightly brushing by my skin. I could hear birds chirping outside, as well as the distinct sound of wind whistling through the trees. In that one moment, sat by my best friend and technically adoptive mother, I felt completely at peace with the world. Serious challenges laid ahead of me, but they all seemed so distant and unreal.
"Alex..." Yuri began, placing a hand on my shoulder. Her voice was decidedly hesitant, and there was a distinct frown on her face. "I feel I should've asked this already, but how are you feeling?"
I shrugged, idly wondering whether or not to tell her about the weird thing happening with my nose. I mean, there was really no reason not to, but... something held me back. I wasn't really sure why, but I'd gotten the sudden feeling that I should keep that bit of information to myself.
"...Fine, I suppose." I eventually said, staring hard at the wall. "I feel a bit sore, but all things considered, that's not so bad."
Yuri hummed, nodding to herself.
"Are you well enough to travel?" She asked suddenly, giving me a slightly worried look. "We've been here for entirely too long. We need to leave before someone finds us."
I nodded, sighing as I imagined how that would go. After all the bullshit with the Harpy Queen, there wasn't a doubt in my mind that I was being hunted. I wasn't sure exactly what the price on my head would be, but I imagined it to be a pretty hefty sum.
I shook my head, deciding to ponder on that subject later. I had bigger fish to fry at the moment.
"Yeah, I'm fine." I nodded, before an important question popped into my head. "Also, not to be a downer or anything, but where else can we even go?"
Yuri bit her lip, her face flashing with frustrated worry. She was silent for a moment, as if considering a response. That hesitation did not spark any confidence in me, but I still quietly hoped she had an idea.
"I... don't know." She said eventually, placing her head in her hands. "Alex, I can't even begin to articulate the kind of trouble you've brought upon us."
Her tone wasn't accusatory, but I still found myself wincing anyways. I'd really messed things up for us, and at this point, there wasn't a way to fix it. We were out of a home, and were likely hunted all across the continent.
Now, don't get things twisted. I didn't regret my actions whatsoever. Those harpies literally fucking kidnapped me. Sure, I didn't have to kill their queen, but she was probably going to come after us if I left her alive. Besides, tasting her red was an experience so wonderous that I'd bear anything to get it.
"...Things spiraled out of control." I eventually stated, shrugging. "Shit happens. All we can do now is move on."
Upon hearing those words, Yuri's mood change was immediate. She looked up at me with a fierce glare that seemed to materialize out of thin air. She stood up, her face red with rage as she loomed over me. Under normal circumstances it might've been intimidating, but after the shit I'd been through, I couldn't be bothered to give a fuck.
"Alex, you chose to kill the queen. You had the perfect opportunity to run away after injuring her wing, and yet you didn't take it." She spat, burning with a bright, sudden rage. "Instead, you opted to eat her alive, which brought the attention of the entire village! You were so engrossed in your little feast that I had to defend you from the hordes of angry townspeople!"
I felt my face heat up, a mixture of embarrassment and anger mixing together in my stomach. I barely managed to keep myself from snapping at her, instead letting out a long, raspy sigh.
"Yuri, that's not fair." I said eventually, my clipped tone merely hinting at the emotions which laid just beneath the surface. "You know that I have issues controlling myself when I go into a rage."
Her jaw tightened, and for a moment, it looked like she was about to hit me. She didn't though, instead letting out a growling sigh.
"Alex, I killed innocent people that night." She stated eventually, her voice losing volume, but still burning with anger. "Those harpies and their men came out to protect their queen. I had to slaughter them so they couldn't get to you..."
I felt confused for a moment, wondering why in the hell Yuri cared about that. They attacked us, so they got killed. It was as simple at that.
"They made their choice." I grunted, crossing my arms. "Play stupid games, win stupid prizes."
Yuri was silent for a moment, giving me a slightly disbelieving look. When it became clear that I was completely and totally serious, she let out a snarl.
"They only attacked because you were killing their queen!" She shouted suddenly, her previous anger flaring up like a thatch roof in the summer heat. "They didn't come looking for battle! They didn't do anything malicious! Their only crime was trying to help someone who was being torn apart!"
I stared up at her, taken aback by her rant. Her words hurt, which was surprising. I hadn't even thought about all that until she mentioned it.
Disturbingly, I didn't feel all too guilty. That realization is what hurt the most, honestly. Was I losing touch with my morals? I probably should've felt at least a little bad about those deaths. The fact that I didn't was... a little unsettling.
Whatever, I could wonder about my failing conscience later. Right now, I had an angry Yuri to talk down.
"...That is a good point." I conceded, nodding my head towards her. "And I admit that I might be somewhat to blame for what took place. Now, can we move on from all this?"
I was hoping my words would be placating. We needed to move on, and quite frankly, this was a discussion I really didn't want to have. Evidently however, Yuri saw right through my words, her mood growing even worse as a result.
"And now you're just being patronizing!" She accused, pointing a finger in my direction. "You don't even care, do you? You don't give a shit that you made me murder innocent people! I'd promised myself I'd never do something like that again, and you made me break that!"
She was crying again now, tears streaming down her reddened face. Unlike the previous sobbing session however, these were angry tears. I made to say something, only to be interrupted by a tight fist grabbing me by the collar of my shirt, lifting me to a standing position.
"I made orphans that night!" She continued, ranting and raving at me with such fury that I felt genuinely terrified. The words I'd prepared in defense died in my throat, crushed into nothingness in the face of this absolute tirade. "I saw little children looking on in horror as I slaughtered their parents! I did all that to protect you, so show some fucking decency, and feel guilty!"
I stared wide-eyed at her, my face only inches from hers. She was shaking with rage, to the point where I quietly wondered if whether or not I should've feared for my life. I had never seen Yuri be this upset before. To say it was frightening would be a gross understatement.
"I..." I croaked, struggling to find the right words. "I never realized this was such a big deal to you."
I mean, to be fair to me, this was the first I'd ever heard of this promise she made to herself. I mean, I knew she heavily disliked the killing of innocents, but I never thought she'd feel guilty about defending herself...
...Then again, did this count as self-defense? I mean, sure, she was keeping the both of us from being hurt, but it was my actions which led us to this point. I supposed, in a way, that did make her a murderer. Logically, I could see why she'd be angry, even if I didn't agree with her sentiments. Still, I didn't really feel much guilt. I'd done what my body demanded of me. Besides, anyone who abuses their power by falsely imprisoning someone deserves to die. No ifs, ands, or buts.
...Well actually, now that I think about it, my stint in Harpy jail didn't exactly count as false imprisonment. They truly believed I was guilty. In the eyes of the Harpy Queen, she was just punishing a violent criminal. She'd been fed bad information, and it's not like she was going to trust me...
Okay, looking back on it, perhaps more blame laid with me than I initially thought. Still though, it wasn't like I had many other options. I had to intervene in that fight, because Yuri would've been killed otherwise. So what if things got a little out of hand? I did what I had to, and it wasn't like I was going to feel guilty about that.
I was snapped out of my thoughts by a loud crack, followed by a stinging pain on my cheek. It took my brain a few seconds to connect the dots, before I finally realized that Yuri had just slapped me.
"Are you fucking serious?" She roared, her voice echoing throughout the cave. "You're genuinely telling me that you didn't think I would care?! After I told you about how my family was murdered? About how I am an orphan? Did you well and truly believe I'd be fine with doing that to someone else?!"
I began to feel just the slightest twinge of guilt, though that was probably more because I upset Yuri, than because of the people who died. For whatever reason, I just couldn't seem to feel bad about those deaths. That apathy was without a doubt a really bad sign. I know I'm repeating myself at this point, but the fact that I didn't feel bad was... deeply disturbing.
Honestly, it was really strange knowing that I should feel ashamed, but didn't. It left a certain ickiness in my stomach that was hard to describe. I could not stress enough how odd it wa-
I was once again broken from my inner monologue. This time however, the cause was not Yuri. There was a weird smell that tickled my nostrils, filling my head with the distinct aroma of ash, along with an underlying metallic scent. I tried to focus on it, and-
Power.
Raw, unadulterated power. I became immediately weak in the knees upon sensing it, to the point where Yuri was holding up my entire weight. I was so shocked by this sudden feeling that I didn't even question how I could sense someone's energy through smell. All I knew was that there was a swirling mass of dark energy headed our way.
"Y-Yuri," I began, a deep pit forming in my stomach. "Something's wrong."
The smell was becoming stronger and stronger, signifying to me that the source was rapidly approaching. I didn't know what it was precisely, but I could tell that it was leagues above the Harpy Queen. That alone made me almost piss myself in terror.
Yuri shook her head, scowling at me. "You're not getting out of thi-" She began, before pausing, her eyes growing as wide as dinnerplates. It seems she felt it too...
Dropping me like a sack of potatoes, she quickly turned towards the source of the energy, drawing her blade with a shaking hand. I stood up beside her, doing the same with my sword, which had been laying on the ground next to me.
The immense presence was almost upon us, the absurd power nearly driving me to my knees. I barely held on, trying my hardest to get used to the pressure. God, what in the world could be this powerful? Was it an ancient abomination that had somehow been awoken? Was it a titanic monster with a penchant for ripping people apart with their hands/appendages?
As I watched a strangely humanoid figure step into sight of the cave's mouth, I realized with dawning horror that the answer was so much worse.
Sleek, gleaming armor covered her torso, leaving exposed her green-scaled arms, legs, and tail. Her purplish cape flowed in the wind, giving the figure an awe-inspiring look that would've been a wonderous sight under different circumstances. Her hair, which was a bright red, framed the figure's greenish feminine face. Her eyes, however, were her most striking feature. They were bright yellow, glowing with barely-restrained fury. It was the kind of look that promised death, no matter how hard you fought. I supposed that was fitting, considering who those eyes belonged to.
"W-what..." I heard Yuri breathe out, her voice barely even a whisper. She was shaking badly, clear terror on her face. I couldn't even blame her for being so scared, because I was in exactly the same boat.
After all, it's not every day that you're faced down by Granberia, the Heavenly Knight of Fire.
A/N: So... that happened.
I'll admit, while I did genuinely enjoy writing this chapter, I can't deny how rough around the edges it is. I mean, the emotional scenes are, in my opinon, not that great. I've never been all that good with writing parts like that though, so I expected them to be a little sucky. Maybe I'm overthinking it, I dunno.
Also, I'd like to clarify that it had been a week when Alex first woke up. When he awoke the second time, it had been a little over a week. That's how Granberia had enough time to find them.
As always, feel free to mercilessly point out any major mistakes I make. I'm a fool, and I screw things up constantly.
