A call from Alfin summoned Rean to her quarters and he was there first thing in the morning after breakfast. The princess looked much better from the disheveled and somewhat pale look from the previous day when he delivered her to the care of the Courageous' medics.
"I wanted to express to you my sincere thanks for you rescuing me, Rean," Alfin said with the sweet, royal candor she was known for.
"Just doing my duty as a humble subject of the Empire, Your Highness," although it was something he wholly believed in, Rean delivered the words with a dose of playfulness as he exaggeratedly bowed to the princess, which made her to giggle.
"Oh stop it. Anyway, to simply thank you for your actions is not enough. A showing of such bravery and skill must be properly rewarded," as she spoke, Alfin moved towards the desk where a small wooden box was laying. She opened it and from the box produced a golden medal with a red and yellow ribbon. "As the Imperial Princess it is within my power to bestow to you the Medal of Friendship. It does not simply recognize your services rendered to the crown but it is, as the name implies, a symbol of utmost friendship between the Arnor Family and Rean Schwarzer."
Now that was a lot to deal with. Part of Rean wanted to say he didn't deserve it, that he hadn't done it alone and other bunch of ways to say he wasn't worthy of such praise, but he held those words in. Having learned to accept praises and compliments, even if at times with a layer of sarcasm behind it to mask how uncomfortable it made him feel, Rean just took it in stride.
"I'm… Honored, Your Highness. Truly," he simply said, with a genuine breathlessness in his voice as the medal was placed in his hands.
"Normally this would be a whole affair with a ceremony, long winded speeches and press, but I imagine you don't mind something smaller like this, I know I don't," she winked playfully. "And don't you worry about being singled out, everyone's getting one of these after the war if over, your family included, I just wanted to show my gratitude to you as soon as possible. Not that a piece of metal is necessary for you to know how much you mean to us, Rean, but you know how it is with royal families and their rituals and whatnot."
"Sure, yeah," he responded, still looking in disbelief at the medal for a moment before shaking himself off it and pocketing the award. "You know, I thought you'd have a little more to say regarding the whole, you know, flinging you into the air part. I'm sorry if I got a little too rough with you, Alfin."
That sure was a choice of words from Rean and maybe if the previous day hadn't happened Alfin might've tried teasing him for it. As things stood now however… "True, it was a tad too much excitement for me but in the end you set me free from Duke Cayenne's clutches and there was no harm. Besides, it helped me get over some things."
"Like fear of heights?" He asked cluelessly.
"Sure, let's go with that."
Rean furrowed his brow, especially at the innocent-but-not-really vibe the princess was giving off. What did Alfin mean by that? Get over what? Oh well, it was probably something only for herself, she and her brother could be kind of nutcases sometimes but they were good people.
With that done with, Rean excused himself as he had to go check on Valimar with Emma, while Alfin would be meeting up with her brother.
"Let's try this again, Rean."
Rean sighed at Emma's words. "For what good it will do."
The witch, alongside her familiar as well as Elliot, Alisa and George were accompanying Rean as he settled Valimar on the Courageous' hangar after the Divine Knight spent the previous night on the ship's deck. Fortunately there was more than enough space with no necessity for any changes to the hangar's layout and Valimar fit in comfortably. Aside from that, Emma had been insistent on Rean running the Ashen Knight's synchronization diagnostics and the results were what was unfortunately expected.
"Synchronization levels are suboptimal."
Rean left Valimar's cockpit, materializing from mana with a mixture of annoyance and resignation on his face. "See, it's the same old thing. Like I said, maybe something is broken with Valimar and it's not like when it mended back the damage from the fight with Crow. Do you guys think you can open it up and take a look?" He asked Alisa and George while ignoring the glare from Celine.
"I'm not sure even with Gwyn's help we would be able to do much," said George. "Don't get me wrong, Rean, I really want to take this thing apart-" At that, there was a subtle movement from Valimar's head towards the engineer. "But I'm not sure what we would even be looking for to begin with."
Alisa nodded, walking around Valimar with an inquisitive look to the Knight. "I don't even know where we'd start, is there any place with screws we can take off or would we need to take a powered blade to the plating then it will mend itself back up? What does even determine synchronization levels? I doubt there's a circuit board we can just solder back into shape."
"Can't you just ask Valimar how to fix it?" Elliot asked.
"Already did that. Look, watch… Valimar, how do we get better synchronization levels?"
"Better Awakener/Deus Excellion integration is required."
"That's… not helpful."
As the others threw around ideas on how to fix the problem Rean was having with Valimar, Emma's headache just grew exponentially stronger. They were getting everything so wrong, understanding so little. Of course, she couldn't fully blame them, everything was so new even to Emma herself, but it was like they had not understood a single thing she had tried to explain about the bond between Divine Knight and Awakener, especially Rean.
Well, just like the times she tutored Fie, she had to just explain things again. "As I said before, Rean, the bond you two share is much deeper than you think, it's right down to a spiritual level. You have to see Valimar as an extension of yourself."
"I got that part, believe me. What you're saying is not that different from some of the things Master Ka-fai taught me about about making the tool an extension of its user, and as much as it has helped with the delay I was feeling when using Valimar it's not 100% there yet," Rean looked back at Emma and saw that she seemed somewhat distraught, so he reached out to her and put a hand on her shoulder. "Look, I'm not trying to blame you, alright? I know I'm new to all this magic stuff and that I need your help, Emma, but honestly I don't know what else to do with this thing.
"I try and try to sense this deeper connection," he said, walking back to Valimar and looking up to the mechanical giant with a scowl on his face, then Rean raised his right arm and extended his fingers, causing Valimar to replicate the gesture. "But whenever I'm inside its cockpit and press a button or try to swing a sword I can't help but feel this… Resistance from the controls, it's subtle but it's there and it causes a delay in my actions."
"There, that is the problem, Rean. You're still not seeing the full picture, you think you are but you're still failing to grasp what Valimar is," the witch said. "It's not just about you using Valimar."
"What is it about then, Emma?" Rean responded with a frustrated sigh. "I know there's a power inside it, the so-called Great Power, that I have to control and I know as much of its history as I can. If only this bucket of bolts could cooperate and explain what is wrong instead of giving non-answers."
Emma pinched the bridge of her nose as she sighed in frustration. How was Rean not getting it? Her grandmother had told her that it should be something the Awakener could understand instinctively, maybe with a little nudge if needed, but Rean seemed resistant to the idea. Was he still denying his role as Awakener after all of this?
The chief witch of the Hexen plan had explained that an Awakener coming to the realization on their own would make their synchronization even more precise, their bond deeper, something similar to reaching self-actualization through self-reflection instead of just being told to change yourself. But maybe that was the issue, Emma realized, Rean wasn't a fully resolved person, he was filled with sadness and anger and his life had been turned upside down, of course he couldn't fully grasp what being an Awakener was. Emma knew how much she herself struggled with understanding her own place in the world.
It was unfair to expect him to just have an epiphany about his role and connection with Valimar through subtle hints and esoteric talks about spiritual bonds. So maybe, as Instructor Sara would say, maybe he needed some tough love and with a look and a nod of her head, Emma gave Celine the order: yell at him.
The cat nodded back and almost seemed to smile with glee before she filled her lungs with air and turned her face to a scowl.
"HIM!" Celine yelled with a frustration that had been accumulating for days. "HIM! Valimar isn't a thing! Stop calling him an 'it'! He is a thinking being with more life experience than you could fathom!"
The outburst sent the others into silence as they looked at Celine with shocked surprise, trying to properly process what she had just said, but she wasn't done, oh no, she was going to really lay it out word for word so the dense swordsman would understand. It had been a long time coming.
"You call him a thing and think of Valimar as a weapon like he is just another sword you have to swing around then you get mad when he can't operate at full capacity like it's his fault! Do you want to know why the Azure Awakener keeps kicking your butt? It's because he understands that he and Ordine are a team working together, that a Divine Knight is more than just a weapon. His three years of experience are nothing to sneeze at but most importantly they are partners working together, hell, more than that, they fight as one while you think you're driving Valimar like a car! Until you can comprehend that you will never beat him!"
Her rant over, Celine was left panting and enjoyed the feeling of victory when she saw at the dumbstruck look on Rean. The other humans aside from Emma weren't much better, mouths hanging slightly open and eyes wide directed at her before turning to Valimar.
"Thank you, Celine, I'll handle it from here now," said Emma and the cat nodded, deciding to go get some water for her parched throat from yelling. "Ideally this was something you should've come to learn by yourself from your experiences with Valimar but we don't really have the luxury of time on our side. I'm sorry if Celine was a little too harsh."
Rean contemplated Emma and Celine's words for a moment. Once again he opened and closed his fist and his actions were mirrored by Valimar and he concentrated on that feeling. "Why didn't you say anything?" He asked the Divine Knight.
"It is not my place to correct my Awakener," Valimar replied.
"Oh but when it's time to bail you'll disregard my orders."
"To continue the fight against the Azure Knight and his Awakener would spell our demise. It was the correct course of action," the Divine Knight said plainly.
Rean was being petty, he knew that. He had been nurturing that anger since when he had woken up in the Eisengard Range days ago, and Valimar had been one of the targets of it as he tried to push on the blame for messing up their lives on the Divine Knight, even though that was completely irrational and the Ashen Knight was the only chance of getting things back to normal.
Now, a deep wave of embarrassment washed over Rean. Valimar had spoken to him multiple times, sure, but he never thought of it… of him as anything else but a machine he controlled and his voice as pre-programmed responses like an orbal computer but a little more advanced due to magic. Now Rean felt like he had been talking shit behind someone's back without realizing that they were hearing everything he said.
"I've… I've got to think about this," Rean simply said, not straight bolting out of the hangar but still at a brisk pace.
The others watched him awkwardly, also feeling a little embarrassed about how they were talking about Valimar as they looked back at the giant with new eyes.
Elliot waved timidly at Valimar. "Hehe, hi?"
"Greetings," Valimar replied.
"Aidios, this is awkward," Alisa muttered.
"Uhhh, sorry for saying I'd like to take you apart," said George.
"Hmm… You could try."
The reply took the others aback. It almost sounded like a challenge or a provocation.
"Emma, that talk of synchronicity from before… What does that mean, exactly?" Asked Alisa, already dreading the answer.
"Well, among other things, it means that the Divine Knight will inherit some of the Awakener's personality traits and they become closer."
The Reinford heiress groaned. They had two Reans now, one of them 7 arges tall. Fantastic.
While Rean and the others were checking on Valimar, the rest of Class VII was engaged in helping around the Courageous. Towa was assigned to handle administrative matters for the Crimson Wings operation, her assistance back during the Crossbell Trade Conference making her the go to person in Prince Olivert's eyes, and she recruited the assistance from both Machias and Jusis which in turn drew comments from Rean telling her she'd have her hands full just trying to wrangle both of them.
To their credit they kept their arguing to a minimum and Towa was smart to have both do completely different things.
Besides that, Towa's first order of business was doing inventory of the airship's supplies, to which she called to the rest of Class VII to survey what they had and what they needed. Prince Olivert and Viscount Arseid had only managed to get a hold of the Courageous ten days prior to their pass through Ymir after what the prince described as a "fantastic caper worthy of a most exciting song" and as such the ship was carrying only what was already on it.
"This isn't much," Laura said as she and Gaius took stock of the medical supplies, taking notes on a notepad she'd hand to Towa later. Dr. Frederick, a retired army medic who was friends with the viscount, had assisted the two informing them what items they most needed, from medicine to equipment.
"We'll need to restock, or I should say, stock on supplies soon," the Nordman said in turn, looking at the infirmary's mostly empty shelves.
"Not getting hurt isn't a real option, unfortunately," Laura sighed. "I suppose we're done here. Fie and Millium must still be doing inventory at the armory, do you mind accompanying me?"
Gaius looked to the sides, checking to see if anybody else besides them and the doctor were there, looking uncharacteristically awkward for him. "Sure, there's actually something I want to ask you, Laura."
Curious, thought Laura, but she made no comments as it was clearly something that her friend had to struggle to bring up, so instead she simply acknowledged his request and both started on their way to the armory and stopped by the stairwell where they could have some privacy to talk.
"So, what can I help you with?" The swordswoman asked.
"It's about Linde. Honestly, I thought both you and Rean could help me with this but he is busy with Valimar right now and, well, I suppose there is no reason to stall it."
"Oh I see. I suppose you'd like some advice on advancing your relationship with her? I'll assist you however I can, Gaius."
"It's… quite the opposite actually."
That was unexpected and Laura's surprised face made Gaius wince. "You see, she's grown rather attached to me since we've met back in Ymir and I suppose I am to blame for that. I was just looking to comfort her due to Vivi being missing but I think she's taken it as a continuation of our time together back at the festival, which I had never intended to be anything romantic, it was just a dance."
"That sounds complicated. Were you anyone else, Gaius, I'd warn you about leading her on but I know that you are not that kind of person."
"Yes, I'm aware of how this sounds," he sighed, feeling disappointed at himself. "Linde is still distressed about her sister, so I don't want to hurt her feelings even more. On the other hand I don't want to, as you've said, lead her on."
"It's quite the unfortunate coincidence that both you and Fie may have unwittingly started a relationship with the Bösche twins at the same time, were we back at Thors all sorts of rumors about Class VII would start," Laura said with a bittersweet expression on her face, imagining what would it be like if things were still normal. "Well, Gaius, as unpleasant as it is I think you should-"
At that moment, the Courageous internal speakers came alive, her father's booming voice interrupting Laura. "This is Captain Arseid speaking. The members of Class VII are to be in the conference room immediately."
"Ten minutes ago, the Courageous received a call for help from Nivrim, a small village located northeast of the Vestia Forest. For the last few days the villagers have reported sightings of an unidentified monster roaming the woods but due to the lack of any detailed information it was deemed a low priority. That was the case until two days ago when the monster invaded a farm, slaughtering the cattle, and when the three RMP officers stationed there engaged the creature one of them was killed while another was left grievously injured. The remaining officer contacted the ones at Ymir who then relayed the message to us," the Radiant Blademaster reported the situation. "Despite direct contact with the creature we still don't know what species it is, leaving it to the possibility it might be a cryptid, which is where Class VII comes in. Your mission is to exterminate this monster and assist the village in related matters."
The captain ended his briefing, the screen behind him highlighting the location of the village that was to be their destination. "Any questions?"
Millium raised her hand. "Oh, why can't you mister Radiant Blademaster just go in there and cut it in half by yourself? Not that I'm lazy, I just think it would be much quicker than all of us put together!"
"I didn't want to say it but…" Said Machias.
"You might be right, little one, however as the captain it is my duty to oversee the ship and operations. While you're at Nivrim, I will be taking the Courageous on a reconnaissance mission to the outskirts of Roer. Taking back the Reinford company is a priority and to do that we need information on the whereabouts of Irina Reinford," Victor beckoned to Sharon.
"As such I will be accompanying Lord Arseid, after which I shall part ways with the Courageous until Lady Irina is found safe and sound."
Oh what a shame, thought Sara.
"Wait, seriously?" Alisa said with surprise. "Are you going to be okay, Sharon? I mean, I know you will but…"
"Your worry warms my heart, my lady, but do not fret nothing will stop me from seeing you and your mother reunited."
"And I'll be accompanying Class VII as well due to the RMP casualty and the injured officer," said Captain Claire.
"If there aren't any more questions I believe you all should prepare yourselves. We'll be arriving at our destination within an hour," said Victor.
"It's not about the mission but…" Laura hesitantly held up her hand. "Father, what are you wearing?"
Victor raised an eyebrow at the inquiry. "My captain's hat?"
"No, father, it's the… it's the glasses."
"Oh these," he responded, removing the pair of sunglasses with mirrored lenses he was wearing and holding them up with a little bit of pride. "They go very well with the hat, don't they? It was Rean's suggestion."
"You look very cool, sir," Rean said with a thumbs up while ignoring Laura's narrowed gaze directed at him.
"It is very dashing if I may say so!" Sara chimed in chipperly, sounding almost bubbly.
"Oh thank you, Lady Valestein, that is very flattering."
"Sara S. Arseid," Rean whispered in Laura's ear to which she responded with a low grow. Who could've said Rean would be a bad influence on her father?
The Courageous dropped Class VII and Captain Claire at southeast to the village of Nivrim, a couple of selge away from where they would make the rest of the way on foot, while Rean ordered Valimar to fly down and hide among the woods so as not to scare any of the villagers.
"Alright everyone, stay sharp! The monster was sighted on the other side of the village but we can't ever be too sure," said Sara as she and the others drew their weapons. The Bracer took point alongside Captain Claire and Rean. "It's time to put all those monster hunting skills you've honed in the last few months to practice and then some, these cryptids aren't your everyday day rhinocider, although some of you don't need me to say that. Anything we should know, Emma?"
The witch shook her head. "With so little information on the creature it's hard to say, the best advice I can give is to get ready for anything."
"Understood," Claire nodded firmly. "This monster managed to bring down three RMP officers, we shouldn't underestimate it."
"If only there was some sort of group of experienced monster hunters in Erebonia, a group of people specialized in helping the civil populace with situations other organizations aren't trained for, some sort of guild perhaps…" Sara sneered at the policewoman's direction and the Icy Maiden reciprocated with a glare of her own but said nothing, choosing instead to just distance herself from the Bracer.
"I feel like I'm the last person who should say this but that was uncalled for, instructor," Rean said hushdely to her. "One of her colleagues died here."
"Psh, I didn't know you had a thing for women in uniform, my wunderkind. Or is it the blue hair?" Sara tried to play it off expecting a smartass remark from her student but instead he just sighed.
"I'm just saying. She put her people to watch out for my folks, she can't be that bad. It's not like Captain Claire herself made the Bracer Guild leave the country."
That surprised Sara even though it shouldn't have and she cringed internally at herself. Rean was right, she knew that, even as an Ironblood neither Claire or anyone else at the RMP had enough pull to ban the Bracer Guild from Erebonia. Ironically it had been the rare occasion where the reformist and the noble factions working together.
Claire's people are watching for Rean's family while mine…
As they approached the village, the students went over their immediate plan. They'd separate in groups to take care of their immediate tasks: gathering information from the villagers and policemen, establish a base of operations and survey the farm that was attacked, after which they'd set on to hunt the monster. If everything went well, they would be done by the time the Courageous returned to get them.
"Ugh, this is so lame, it's like Laura's dad and Prince Olivert dropped the kids off at a sleepover and are coming back the next day," commented Fie. "Big task force that we are."
"Only you could view a military operation to take down a dangerous monster from another plane of existence as a sleepover," said Jusis. "I do understand your frustration, however, this should be the job of Nortia's provincial army but I suppose wasting time and lives fighting the imperial army is much more beneficial to the Erebonian people. Even as conservative as Marquis Rogner is, I expected him to have a better head on his shoulders," the same way he expected his brother to be more level headed but Jusis kept that to himself, no need to bring down the mood.
"Well, helping people is what we do best and when the time comes I trust Viscount Arseid and Prince Olivert will know how to use our abilities for the best. You could say this is a trial run!" Said Emma, injecting some needed positivity into the conversation.
"Yeah!" Millium said, pumping her fist in the air. "And after we are done here we should go get some ice cream! Lechter and gramps always gave me ice cream after I came back from a mission!"
Some much for it not feeling like a sleepover.
At Nivrim they set out on their tasks. Claire checked on her colleagues and got their description of the monster while the others interviewed the owner of the farm that was attacked as well as anyone else who had any sort of contact with the cryptid in the past few days, trying to trace any sort of behavioral pattern that'd help them track the beast.
It all came naturally to Class VII, even if on a bigger scale it was just like their field exercises and it was a nice return to what they were used to. In no time they were venturing into the woods looking for the cryptid.
Laura pointed out that the forest shared many similarities to the Vestia Great Forest in Lunaria Park, with massive trees extending to the skies that blocked out much of the sunlight. But then, Rean explained, this was all part of the same forest until the construction of roads cut a path through it along with the people of what would one day become the village of Nivrim settling in and expanding the divide between the two forests.
It was an explanation which made Fie raise an eyebrow at their leader. "How do you know all that?
"Because I pay attention to class?"
"Right, I forgot you're Instructor Thomas' favorite student."
A shiver went down Rean's spine at the thought. "Don't even joke about that."
While it shared some similarities with the monsters Sara had tracked in her years as a Bracer, the particularities of the current situation made her question everything she knew. This cryptid left footprints in irregular intervals that almost threw them off multiple times, sets of prints suddenly stopped just to show up arges ahead as if their target had leapt but neither sets indicated any for sort of jumping. And for a thing that huge it left barely any signs of destruction.
"Also what happened to the cattle it killed?" Commented Gaius. "I've seen my share of animal attacks back with my tribe, generally a daring wolf that managed to sneak in and kill a sheep or even a foal. It is not as bloody as you'd expect but there is still some blood on the ground but in this case…"
"There was nothing," said Elliot. "It was like they were desiccated. Although the RMP officers that were attacked reported the monster just charged and trampled them, also they said it was like a horse with tentacles? That's beyond freaky."
As they went deeper into the forest, the tracks left by the monster got harder and harder to find until they simply vanished among the tall trees. "Now what?" was the sentiment among the group but they were quick to spread out to find any traces of the monster.
It was a few moments later that the most sensory sensitive fighters in there noticed that the forest had gone eerily quiet, it seemed that even the insects that buzzed around had retreated. Rean, Gaius, Fie and Sara's alertness spread through their group through their combat-links as they started to form a circle with their backs to each other, waiting for the moment the monster would strike.
Tension grew by the second, they could feel the creature staring at them but somehow not a bush rustled, not a twig snapped, it was enervating. Then a leaf fell from top of Alisa's head, which she brushed off with no second thoughts, then another one, then even more along with a small branch in front of her and that made her look up.
How could they have expected the monster to come from above?
Although the sunlight obfuscated the finer details on the creature, it was just like the officer had described, it was incredibly similar to a horse in its body shape but with what seemed like tentacles sprouting out of its torso that the monster used to hang itself on the top of the large trees.
"Oh shit!"
As the signal to run passed through their ARCUS link, they scrambled to get away as the monster roared back and dropped itself to crush them. It all made sense now, the uneven tracks and its sudden disappearance, it was using the trees to move itself around without leaving traces behind and confuse its pursuers, it was hunting them as much as they were hunting it.
With the cryptid in full view it was clear now that what they thought were tentacles were more akin to vines wrapped around its body with a tail shaped like the bulb of a massive flower, moving independently like a combination of animal and vegetation. It was much more bizarre than the ones Laura and Emma had fought in Legram and seemed much more dangerous as well.
The beast's plant-like elements made the first course of action simple and Alisa fired a carnelia charged arrow at it but the cryptid whiplashed at it with its vines and the arrow exploded causing only superficial damage to it.
"Ignis!" Emma cried out the incantation, setting fire to the right side of the cryptid and scorching the roots of its tentacles.
The beast roared and lashed out, spinning its body as its vines and tail slashed out in a deadly tornado. It was surprisingly fast for its size. Gunshots from Machias, Claire and Sara fired out, nipping at the creature but not doing much damage.
"Hey Rean, maybe you and Valimar should handle this?" Machias called out.
That was the most obvious option. They had decided they shouldn't rely too much on Valimar, they couldn't risk getting complacent and be caught off guard in a situation where the Divine Knight couldn't be used for whatever reason. But if push came to shove like fighting panzer soldats or other dire situations like lighting a powerful cryptid like they were doing right in that moment, that would be the ideal moment to call up Valimar, but the conversation with Emma and Celine that morning had made Rean rethink how he should pilot Valimar again. Or even if he could.
"I don't think that'll be-" he stopped talking to jump behind a tree, avoiding an incoming pashing of a vine that sent splinters flying in all directions. "Necessary."
"Are you kidding me!?" Machias cried out as he too took cover behind a tree trunk.
"Millium, cast adamantine shield on me. I'm going in," said Fie and the young intelligence agent quickly cast the Art, protecting the former jaeger as she made a mad dash to get closer to her target, jumping and spinning in the air and sliding on the ground with seemingly almost no effort to avoid the vines. The others took care to keep the monster distracted with Arts and bullets so it wouldn't single her out.
When she was close enough, Fie pulled out a grenade from her coat's pocket, armed it and threw the explosive at its face. The cryptid didn't get the full force of the explosion, managing to use some of its vines to protect itself, but it was still effective and made the beast recoil. Thinking the cryptid was sufficiently stunned, Fie was about to arm another grenade when a vine snuck up behind her and grabbed her, hoisting the girl up in the air.
"Oh you piece of- Let me go!" She pulled out one of her gunblades and cut down at the vine but before she could hit the ground, a set of vines held her up again and this time making sure to hold her torso, arms and throat. A stinging sensation spread over wherever the vines made contact with her skin. Adamantine shield wasn't working, the Art responded to physical impacts and this thing wasn't trying to hit her, it was doing something else.
Fie then remembered the state of the cattle. Desiccated. Oh crap!
Emma used the ignis spell once again, setting fire to the root of the vines that had captured her friend. This time however, the monster didn't back away in pain, instead it identified the source of the flames, setting its sights on the young witch, and started on its stampede in her direction.
Emma had been concentrating, trying with all of her might to intensify the spell and burn away the vines holding Fie but it seemed more appeared to hold the girl, and by the time she focused back on the incoming danger she didn't have time to react and were it not for Captain Claire jumping in to tackle her out of the way she'd be paste.
"You okay, Emma?" Asked the policewoman.
A little shook but unharmed, Emma thanked the captain and got herself up.
The cryptid continued its run for a few arges and for a moment it seemed it was trying to escape but then it turned back to its pursuers with defiance in its eyes. With Fie still in its grasp, the super monster dangled the girl in front of them, making those with ranged weapons pause. It was smart enough to know to use her as a shield.
"L-let me go, d-damnit!" Fie yelled out between gasps, seeming disoriented and out of breath. They were running out of time.
Rean, Sara and Laura rushed in for a direct approach, clashing directly with a barrage of vines. Their swords slashed incessantly as the countless appendages tried to strike or grab them but the trio fought in complete sync, protecting themselves and each other while gaining ground to get closer to the monster and Fie. Meanwhile, the others made their way to flank and surround the monster again.
Laura's sword descended onto a thick vine, cleanly cutting it in half, then she used her momentum to follow up with a spin that cut another set of tentacles that was coming for Rean, which in turn gave him an opportunity to prepare an Arc Slash combined with Karmic Flame, imbuing the air blade with fire and do sufficient damage to make the monster recoil and allow Sara to use dash forward, evading the vines and making contact the monster's body.
Sara jumped up, landing on the cryptids rump and stabbing into its flesh with her sword for stability before kicking herself off in the direction of her protegé, her blade ready to cut the vine that held Fie and free her, but instead she missed her mark completely as the cryptid once again used its multiple vines to latch onto the trees.
"Damnit, we can't reach it if it stays up there. Rean, call Valimar," Sara ordered.
Instead, Rean hesitated, watching as the cryptid went up higher, every second getting farther away from them and this time dragging Fie along with it. Maybe there was still some way of freeing her, he just had to think harder, there had to be a way.
"Rean!" Laura's voice called out to him. "Is Valimar coming?"
What if he messed up? What if Valimar didn't want to obey him anymore? He had treated the Divine Knight like crap these past days, being dismissive and uncaring, he hadn't stopped to think that maybe there was more to Valimar than just being a weapon. Valimar had been a companion to Emperor Dreichels himself for Aidios' sake, it… He didn't need to deal with a nobody like Rean giving him lip.
Fie screamed a curse again, her voice hoarse.
It's my fault if something happens to her either way.
"Heed my call, Valimar the Ashen Knight!"
As the decision was made in his mind, Valimar had already woken up and taken flight as the words left his mouth, surging from his hiding place south of Nivrim and crossing the village at a speed equal to Rean's worry for Fie. Rean concentrated on the cryptids movements, paying attention to where it would go, then when it took a sharp turn to the north Valimar came crashing through the canopy and clashed straight with the cryptid, surprising the monster and making it lose its balance.
"Woah, watch it!"
"Hang on, Fie!"
Rean was running up to Valimar and the cryptid while ordering the Divine Knight to try to get a hold of the monster, although it was a clumsy affair as Rean flailed his arms in front of him. Vines lashed against Valimar's armor and stung against Rean's skin but were merely a distraction, he kept on moving until he was right under the two giants at which point he ordered Valimar to quickly come down and entered his cockpit.
"Okay, okay, I can do this," he said to himself as he grasped the controls, feeling them differently this time.
"Valimar, are you… good to fight?"
[I am at your service.]
Well, that didn't help dispel the notion Valimar was more than a tool at all. Why couldn't he just… Rean took a deep breath. There was no time for that.
Valimar flew up again, hovering in the air face to face with the cryptid, and adopted a posture similar to the Eight Leave's unarmed form but stiffer and lacking the usual leg support of that form for obvious reasons. The cryptid roared and snarled at the new threat and it seemed annoyed that its vines didn't dissuade its pursuer so it started to back away.
Valimar lunged forward with an overly telegraphed and delayed movement and by some miracle Rean managed to make contact and tackle the creature. Valimar's left arm went around the cryptid's neck, holding it tight, and with the other he tried to grab the vine holding Fie, all the while the cryptid thrashed about, kicking with its front legs and headbutting Valimar and now those Rean knew he'd be feeling the next day. If only he had a sword things would be much easier but his last one had been destroyed by Crow during the last fight.
Rean tried to reach out for the vines but they were too quick and their movements too unpredictable and Valimar, he, was too slow.
"Synchronization levels?"
[Below to the last readings.]
"How? I'm trying to coordinate with you, letting you take the reins too. Just… just please tell me what I should do, Valimar."
Desperation filled Rean's mind as he watched Fie and that was felt keenly by Valimar, making so that even their instant mental communication had a pause on it, but along also came a new form of understanding between Awakener and Deus Excellion. Rean needed Valimar's help, he was pleading for it and through that he was acknowledging that there was more to Valimar and their bond than he initially thought.
[You are going halfway through your actions and commands, my Awakener. My autonomy is limited, we must work together.]
But how? What else was needed? And how could he figure it out in the next 30 or so seconds before Fie was killed by that thing? If only Valimar also had an ARCUS…
!
That was it, the answer had been right in front of him that whole time. Rean could try treating his connection with Valimar the same way as a combat-link, the intrinsic trust when fighting alongside his companions, the constant communication of their intents and actions they fed each other during battle. He could try the same with Valimar.
The swordsman concentrated, remembering back on the first days of school and the exercises designed to train his class' combat-links, communicating to Valimar his intentions and paying attention to what was required of himself. That feeling of establishing a combat-link with someone else, because that was what Valimar was, another individual he had to work with. Rean felt the Knight's own limbs as he grasped the controls, he breathed in the air inside the cockpit and felt the air outside. He was guiding and being guided.
Valimar pulled away from the cryptid then flew right at it once again, his thrusters shifting direction at the last moment to sidestep his target and get behind it. The cryptid was then put into a chokehold and the Knight's thrusters flared up as Rean forced the beast back down on the ground.
Vines were torn and ripped out of the cryptid's body as it was dragged down and even the strong trees it held on to started to snap under the strain. The monster landed back with a thud and an enraged roar, flailing its limbs and tail as it got pinned down by Valimar, and in its desperation let go of Fie, sending the girl flying to a thicket of bushes.
With Fie (hopefully) safe and out of danger, Rean tightened the grip around the monster's neck using both of Valimar's arms and still using the thrusters to pin it down on the ground. Vines lashed at the Ashen Knight ineffectively while the cryptid tried to throw off Rean and Valimar but it was all for nothing, eventually the monster's roaring was shut down by the loud, sickening snap of its neck, and no sooner Valimar let go of the creature it started to disintegrate.
When it was over, Rean was breathing heavily and covered in sweat, feeling more exhausted than usual. Was it the adrenaline, his connection to Valimar or something else, he wondered. "Fie!?" He called out through Valimar's speakers, searching for her.
"We've got her, Rean! She's bruised but nothing major!" Gaius shouted out as Jusis slung one of her arms around his neck and lifted her up.
"Ugh, this sucks," the former jaegers whined, barely feeling capable of lifting her limbs.
"Still think this is a sleepover?" Jusis smugly asked her.
"Screw you. Get me some water, I feel like I almost turned into a raisin."
Rean let out a sigh of relief and turned his attention back to Valimar. Without a battle to worry about, he focused again on his connection to the Knight. It felt different, stranger, better. "How are the synchronization levels now?"
"Synchronization between Awakener and Deus Excellion has not yet reached its full potential... But it is at a higher level than previous instances."
It sounded promising, Crow probably had to go through something like that all those years ago. I just have to be like him… heh. Nah, I'll be better. I have to be.
"I guess I, I mean, we got a lot to work on, don't we?"
"Yes."
But that would have to wait until later, for now, Rean and the others would go back to the village and assist its residents however they could and take care of their wounded, namely Fie. For what it was worth though, their first mission could be considered a success.
AUTHOR'S NOTES:
Bosche: an original surname for Vivi and Linde since they don't have a canon one, taken from Virtual Delirium's (excellent) fic Laura's Melody with their permission.
Nivrim: original village for this fic, meant to be located around here: /a/0dss9Kb
The image of Victor Arseid being the kind of boomer who puts on shades to drive his car around (or in this case captain an airship) and being influenced by Rean's bad tastes is very funny to me, please bear with it.
Anyway, silly shit aside, this is the biggest deviation from canon so far (Rean aside), Class VII hasn't been handed the ship yet as that is more of a mechanism in the games to give players some freedom, and cryptids/magic knights are a bigger problem than in canon since they actually move around and cause chaos instead of standing still in one location waiting for Rean and his friends come and kill them. The cryptid featured in this chapter is Sacred Beast Heidrun which in the game is fought in the Lunaria Park. Not all cryptids will appear on this fic but I have at least one more planned.