"Thirty feet from stern to bow, ten thousand pounds displacement, an ingenious triple kinetic core engine, and it even has an energy roofing so we can go underwater for over an hour," Wriothesley declared, gesturing at the small ship parked in the underwater shipyard beneath the Fortress of Meropide.
"The Mini Fortuna Mark III! It's an early prototype of Big Fortuna V over there," he added, pushing a thumb back at the vast ship at the centre of the shipyard, "What do you think?"
Clorinde observed the bulky metal ship she'd been presented with somewhat dubiously. It looked like it had been cobbled together from bits of scrap, rough and blocky in appearance. She glanced back at Wriothesley, "Do you…know how to drive it?"
"Sure," Wriothesley shrugged, "I haven't had the time to get a driving license but we'll just have to manage. Besides, how hard could it be?"
"I see," Clorinde raised a brow skeptically.
"What do you see exactly?" Wriothesley looked back at her suspiciously.
Sedene hopped onto the gangplank leading up to the deck of the Mini Fortuna and skipped towards the bridge, "Don't worry! I can drive it!" she waved a paw at them, "I'm great at driving ships!"
"That so?" Wriothesley asked, both brows going up. Clorinde followed him up to the bridge of the ship.
Sedene hovered over the navigational console for a moment. The buttons were too high up for her however, so she simply clambered onto the console itself, balancing awkwardly on a bare space to the side to reach the buttons.
"I am almost four hundred years old," Sedene told them proudly, "I've picked up a few things here and there to better help Monsieur Neuvillette!"
Sedene pushed several buttons. A glowing film of energy enveloped the top of the ship as it dived down into the water and through a large, circular tunnel. She smiled sweetly, ears twitching like a rabbit, "You should call me Captain Sedene while I'm driving this ship!"
"But this is my ship," Wriothesley folded his arms, smirking impishly, "Shouldn't I be the Captain here?"
"No," Clorinde told him ruthlessly, "You don't have a clue how to drive this ship."
"You humans are so cute," Sedene said happily. She pushed several buttons as the Mini Fortuna emerged from the tunnel into the open sea and finally began to slowly surge upwards towards the surface of the sea, "How about this? I can be Captain Sedene and you two can be my Co-Captains!"
"I can live with that," Wriothesley laughed, "What do you think, Co-Captain Clorinde?"
"I do like the alliteration, but you seem to be enjoying yourself a little too much, Wriothesley," Clorinde paused as he raised a brow at her pointedly. She added, "Co-Captain Wriothesley, I mean."
"That's better," Wriothesley grinned. He glanced out of the cabin's windows and up at the surface. Even from this far down they could see the waves frothing furiously, the surface bubbling like it was being superheated, "So, the Hydro Dragon, huh?"
Were they going to talk about this now? Well, there was no time like the present, Clorinde supposed. It would take a while for the Mini Fortuna to rise from the depths.
"We knew Neuvillette wasn't human," Clorinde said matter-of-factly. She leaned against a wall, watching the swirling sea outside.
"Yeah, I mean, obviously humans don't live for as long as he has and he's got those horns and all," Wriothesley trailed off.
"But?" Clorinde prompted.
Wriothesley folded his arms, letting out an explosive sigh, "He likes having tea with me," he glanced up at her and shrugged, "He'll never admit it, of course- but I can tell he enjoys talking with me."
Clorinde fiddled with the hilt of her rapier. She spoke slowly, "I've caught him napping at his desk before- he tends to forget he needs rest when work gets hectic- meals too."
Wriothesley chewed his lip, "Neuvillette being the Hydro Dragon is…well."
They could hear it faintly even this far down under the sea, the wrathful roar of a Dragon.
"Indeed," Clorinde said heavily.
"Does it matter if Monsieur Neuvillette is the Hydro Dragon?" Sedene cut in, tilting her head inquisitively.
Clorinde and Wriothesley looked at each, both quiet for a moment. Clorinde thought about Neuvillette.
The Chief Justice in the Palais Mermonia everyday- diligently sorting through the endless piles of paperwork on his desk, listening attentively as Lady Furina went on her rants, smiling as he spoke gently with the Melusine…
"I suppose not," Clorinde said, smiling faintly.
Whatever he was, Neuvillette was still their honoured Chief Justice, the symbol of justice in Fontaine.
At this moment, Wriothesley suddenly slapped a palm over his face, "Oh Gods…"
"What is it?" Clorinde asked.
"You ever called out to the Hydro Dragon when it rained as a kid?" Wriothesley's ears were red behind his hand.
"N-no," Clorinde felt herself flush as well. She cleared her throat, "Let's never bring that up…just in case."
"Aw, but I think it's very sweet though!" Sedene beamed at them, "Monsieur Neuvillette would be so touched to hear about how much you two care for him. That is…unless you would prefer for me not to tell him?" she added meaningfully.
Melusine didn't have eyebrows, just unmoving white markings above their eyes, but Clorinde bet that if Sedene did have eyebrows, they'd be waggling significantly right now.
Wriothesley stared at the Melusine in disbelief, "Are you…blackmailing me, Sedene?"
"That's 'Captain Sedene' to you, Co-Captain Wriothesley," Sedene replied primly. She pushed her paws together innocently, "I wouldn't call it 'blackmail' per say…but incidentally, I do love the Pate de Fruit from that corner store in Vasari Passage," she finished brightly.
Clorinde coughed into a fist, hiding a laugh. So that was what it looked like from the outside. Wriothesley had clearly never met a Melusine like Sedene before. Still, she supposed she should take pity on him.
"We'll be reaching the surface soon," she said, "What's the plan?"
Wriothesley turned serious. He rolled his shoulders, cracking his knuckles, "I don't think there's much of a plan we can make. We'll just have to go out there and hope for the best. We are facing the Hydro Dragon after all."
Clorinde tilted her head, "So we just go out there and…somehow talk Neuvillette into coming back to his senses?"
"We might have to fight it out a bit first," Wriothesley rotated his wrists and stretched his joints, "He doesn't exactly seem to be in a talking mood at the moment, if you get my drift."
"I don't like this. It doesn't sound like a very good plan," Sedene mused, tapping a paw against her chin, "But I guess we have no choice."
"You're not coming with us, Sedene," Wriothesley said immediately, crossing his arms, "Neuvillette would- well, it'd be bad if anything ever happened to you."
"But I want to come!" Sedene's face scrunched into a frown, "I want to help Monsieur Neuvillette too!"
Clorinde exchanged a look with Wriothesley. She turned to Sedene, "You're the Captain of the Mini Fortuna," she said, "We need you to look after the ship so you can rescue us if we get thrown into the sea."
Sedene deflated, "Oh…I guess that makes sense," she admitted. The Melusine peered at them unhappily, pressing her paws together, "Please take care of yourselves, will you? And Monsieur Neuvillette too, of course."
"Don't worry Sedene, things will work out somehow," Wriothesley said, waving a hand lazily, "Just leave it to us and keep my ship from falling apart, will you?"
Sedene looked at Clorinde, who nodded once.
"Alright," Sedene nodded as well. The ship was rising rapidly now, breaching the surface with a great splash. Some distance away, a massive dark shape stirred beneath the water, points of blue light flickering amidst the pouring rain. The Melusine called after them as they charged out of the captain's cabin onto the deck of the ship, "Good luck you two!"
Furina found herself pacing back and forth once again. She was dithering, she knew, but she couldn't help it. She was in an underground cavern. She had followed a narrow tunnel hidden on the beach of a lonely island in the sea to the doors of a domain. This was it- the place from that folder that Marie had delivered to Neuvillette's desk…
Hesitantly, Furina peeked past the darkened doorway of the domain. The Temple of Golden Ichor, where the Hydro Dragon had apparently once been imprisoned. By Remus…and possibly by her, if that ballad had been correct. It was so dark inside. She had no idea what she might find inside this long forgotten domain- no, what was worse was what she was afraid to find.
Neuvillette must have been researching the previous Hydro Dragon. That must have been why that clerk Marie had delivered that ballad about the fall of the Hydro Dragon to his desk. Furina patted the crumpled paper tucked away in her coat, crestfallen.
Did Neuvillette believe she had locked the Hydro Dragon away, once upon a time? Was that why he no longer trusted her?
Furina hugged herself, feeling cold. She was... lesser... in her current state, incomplete. She had an awful sinking feeling that it was entirely possible that she had locked the past him away but that she just couldn't remember because she was incomplete. It couldn't be true, could it? She'd never ever lock him away in a dark, awful place like this. No, surely she could never have been so cruel to him…
…could she?
"This won't do," she mumbled, nibbling the inside of her cheek, "I- I can't do this on my own, Neuvillette, I really want you to come with me…but- but I have to," she bit her lip and drew in a heavy breath, "I- I have to find out the truth, and- and then I- I must be the one- I have to tell it to you."
Furina perked up as an idea came to her. She didn't have to face this scary domain and whatever it held alone, did she? Yes, she'd feel a lot better if she had an audience! And, and maybe, just maybe, she could pretend for a little while that Neuvillette was with her…She clasped her hands together, calling the Hydro in the air to accumulate. Moments later, a hydro lifeform popped out of a puddle before her. Furina surged forward and hugged the creature in her arms, mashing it against her cheeks.
"I'll call you…Neuvi!" she told the otter-shaped Hydro organism, "You look just like him! W-well, close enough anyway."
It stared at her with its glowing, beady eyes, a distinctly unimpressed stare on its little face. Yes, that exasperated look reminded her of Neuvillette when he caught her doing something he didn't approve of. It wiggled out of her arms, landing on the floor. It stood up on its back legs and pushed its paws together, tilting its head up at her doubtfully.
Furina cleared her throat, making herself step past the threshold of the domain and into the dark Temple within with more confidence than she felt, "Come along, Neuvi! I, Focalor, shall not accept any cowardice before me! I am the Hydro Archon after all, so we shall s-surely conquer this domain!"
She put her hands on her hips, feeling a lot better for all of five seconds before the domain doors shut behind her, plunging her into darkness. Furina quickly grabbed Neuvi again, the glowing Hydro organism illuminating the dark stony walls around her. She turned back to the doors of the domain and gulped. The hydro otter patted her hands with its little paws, shooting her a concerned look.
"W-well," Furina tried to muster up her confidence again. Neuvi was here with her! She couldn't lose face in front of him, never mind that Neuvi was just a Hydro organism she'd just created on a whim. She forced a smile on her face, "Onwards and forwards, my dear! I-I'm the God of Justice, never fear!"
Furina stumbled through the Temple. After a while, she got used to the darkness. Thankfully there didn't seem to be any monsters inside, perhaps because it had been abandoned for so long, but there were…other things…inside.
Murals on the walls depicted a dragon chained beneath an underground tower. Foul puddles of black ichor here and there stained the ground, somehow resentful and alive. The huge, barbed chains that snaked through the Temple spoke of cruel imprisonment. This wasn't a place of worship but of something far darker...far worse.
Furina plodded through the darkness, wincing at all the horrible things she saw. There was no telling how long she had been walking through this hellish place. There was no light from the outside world to tell the time. It wasn't long before she'd gotten completely lost in the maze-like corridors. There were traps and restrictions everywhere, hemming her in. Furina pressed on, taking one shaky step at a time. She hugged Neuvi tightly, allowing the hydro otter to comfort her with its presence.
And then she saw it.
Furina froze as she spotted a Statue of the Seven in the centre of a vast chamber, falling to her knees. The unfeeling stone visage of herself stared down at her without remorse, sword raised in judgement.
"Am I guilty, Neuvillette?" she whispered.
You are guilty! her conscience shouted at her, You must have been here, once upon a time when you were not diminished…
"I- I've never meant to hurt you," she clenched her hands into fists. She could feel tears coming to her eyes and she wiped her face angrily, "It's just because I'm- I'm just too weak…"
You are guilty! You hurt him even now…
Neuvi nudged at her side, putting its paws in her lap. Furina shook her head. No, she didn't deserve to be comforted. She took a breath as she faced the darkened Statue, forcing herself to look at its face.
You are guilty! You can't even tell him the truth…
"What can I even do?!" she demanded, her voice raw and shaky, "I- I'm too weak to do anything! Some god I am, I can't even- I can't even tell you how I feel, Neuvillette…"
Closing her eyes in the darkness, the God of Justice clasped her hands together and prayed. Not to Celestia, for they would never understand. Not to the gods, because she knew herself too well for that. No, there was only one that she could pray to, the only one who had always been by her side.
Please don't cry because of me, Neuvillette…
She did not know how long she knelt there before there was a sudden tremor. The ground buckled underneath her and Furina staggered upright. Worried, she grabbed Neuvi in her arms, stumbling again as the ground rocked.
There was a sound- piercing through the depths of the earth. That sound- faint but growing ever louder. It was the roar, no, the scream of a Dragon. The whole domain was shaking, cracking, bits of rubble falling all around her. Furina turned, her gaze jerking up to fix on the ceiling above.
You are guilty, screamed the voice in her head, but it was drowned out by the agonized cry of a Dragon.
"So what if I'm guilty?" the words came to her, softly at first. She raised her voice, strength surging within her with every word, "What does it matter if I, Focalor, am found guilty?!"
It was like being doused with cold water as a sudden clarity washed through her. All the doubts and fears that had been plaguing her suddenly seemed so unimportant. Furina grit her teeth so tightly that she could taste blood.
Neuvillette is in trouble - she knew this instinctively- Neuvillette needs my help .
Behind her, the Statue began to softly glow. Furina took a deep breath and struck a pose, flourishing a hand in the air.
"I am Focalor, the God of Justice!" she declared to the world, "Even I can be judged, so praise my magnificence and purity!"
Yes, she was weak. Yes, she had lied. Yes, she had hurt Neuvillette, possibly more than she could ever make up for. But did that matter? Neuvillette needed her help now, and that was all that had ever mattered, wasn't it?
Furina puffed out her chest, feeling proud of herself…and then she yelped and dodged hastily to the side as a large chunk of ceiling fell down next to her. Neuvi squeaked at her urgently. Furina nodded hastily at the Hydro organism, laughing nervously as the domain began to collapse around her, "Y-yes, that's quite right, my dear little Neuvi! It's time for yours truly to make her grand re-appearance!"
Whatever was going on with Neuvillette outside, she could figure it all out after she got out of here!
Translucent scales cut through the surging waves, a majestic glowing blue mane swayed along the Dragon's length like a line of flickering flames. What little Vasily could see of its form whenever it breached the surface of the sea was sleek and serpentine, its powerful body swirling with phosphorescent blue markings and iridescent, glassy fins.
"How beautiful…" Lady Arlecchino murmured.
The Pyro Agent yelped involuntarily as the ship bumped over a huge wave. Before him, the Fourth Harbinger stood. She looked immortal, he couldn't help but think, standing tall and proud with her eyes blazing fearlessly as the storm raged before her. Vasily hung for dear life from the wheel of their ship, fighting against the sea to follow the wake of the Dragon.
"A-are we going to die?" he asked, frightened.
Lady Arlecchino laughed, looking out at the raging sea. That lonely island in the sea where the domain known as the Temple of Golden Ichor was hidden was not visible because of the pouring rains but they would be reaching soon at the speed they were going.
"Perhaps," Lady Arlecchino's smile was haunting, "Are you afraid?"
Vasily hesitated, "Yes!"
She began to laugh, clearly pleased with his answer. Lady Arlecchino walked slowly towards him, perfectly balanced on the deck despite the violent waves. She spread her arms out to the side magnificently, "I may well be leading us to our deaths...but they do say I am a madwoman after all. Do you…also think I'm mad, Vasily?"
Certainly. No sane person could have done as she had, driving a Dragon mad in an attempt to kill a god. But Vasily had been there with her this whole time. He had seen her concern for the children of the House of the Hearth. He had witnessed the tireless efforts she had made for the sake of the people of Fontaine.
In the end, Vasily could only say, "I believe- I believe you have your reasons, Lady Arlecchino!"
Lady Arlecchino's eyes widened faintly. Vasily almost believed that he'd managed to surprise her for once. But then in the next moment she frowned, tilting her head to the side. Vasily heard it a moment later, the buzz of a kinetic core engine filtering distantly through the rain. Glancing back, he caught a brief glimpse of an ugly-looking heap of metal bouncing through the waves as it rapidly gained on them.
"The Duke..." Arlecchino said flatly, "Keep heading for the island," she ordered, heading for the door leading outside the bridge.
"Lady Arlecchino?" Vasily called after her hastily, "W-where are you going?"
She glanced back at him. Vasily's breath stuck in his throat. Her red-crossed eyes were glowing with the hunger of a crazed beast. The frenzied smile that scrawled across her face was completely at odds with her elegant attire. She spoke softly, like she was savouring a fine wine.
"I'm…going for a walk."