Chapter 6: Madame Lafayette(?)

As the days passed, and some relationships deepened, the Louds found themselves nearing their end goal. As they got closer to Madame Lafayette, the trail became surrounded by trees that reached the heavens with glorious flowers near the ground. Lisa was taken aback by the floral life as she sent M.U.T. to collect a few samples for each as most of her siblings just rolled their eyes at her enthusiasm. Lincoln, on the other hand, also took note of the beautiful colors of the flowers and even saw a few animals enjoying the relaxed environment. Soon, a few deer-like creatures walked up to the cart allowing them to touch and pet them; they were dear like form but their antlers were intertwined together like a crown.

After the dear rushed off, they found themselves at a cozy looking cabin in the shape of a mushroom. The house was surrounded by a crude looking fence with vines wrapped around it and blooming flowers sporadically on it. Atop the house was a chimney that was puffing smoke signaling that someone might be home which was confirmed by a silhouette of someone in the window. The Louds hopped off the cart and made their way up to the door while enjoying the pleasant scent of a meal bellowing from the house. As Lori knocked on the door, there was a response for a while which confused the eldest sibling.

The cabin wasn't big so someone could have heard the knock and opened the door within a few seconds. Before Lori could knock again, the ground below them opened up sending the ten siblings, and robot, to fall for what felt like several minutes before landing in a heap on a dirt floor. As they got to their knees, they were greeted by a spear in their face; held by an elderly woman. Her hair was gray and tied in braided updo and her clothes were just a patchwork of different cloths. As Lori tried to speak, the woman just jabbed the spear in Lori's direction.

"Who are you and what business do you have here," the woman asked before letting a few coughs out. Lori tried to be diplomatic but Lynn wasn't having it as she went for an attack. As she swung her ax, the woman easily dodged out the way before landing a kick onto Lynn's face; sending the tomboy to the ground. The two readied themselves for another clash but Lucy got in between them to stop Lynn. They two staring each other down for a bit before Lynn lowered her ax as the others got to their feet.

"I'm sorry but are you Madame Lafayette," Lincoln asked, causing the elder's ears to perk up. "Yes but no. I do inherit the Lafayette name but I am not the only one." Everyone was confused as she seemed to be a wise woman that Henway had mentioned but she was claiming not to be her. "I understand if things don't make sense. Please, follow me upstairs and I'll explain what I know." With that, the woman made her way up the clay stairs followed closely by the siblings.

Once they entered the main living area, the family was taken by surprise as they saw two older elderly women with a similar look to the one that they followed. One of the women got up and grabbed some food and refreshment while the other pinched the cheeks of the sibling while M.U.T. got a pet on the head. They were all confused before the first woman told them to sit where they could, which they didn't argue against. "Now, to start, we are Madame Lafayette; three bodies, one soul…kinda." While the others were in slack jaw surprise, Lisa was fascinated by this concept.

"Interesting. So, you all are Madame Lafayette but it appears that each of you have adopted a different quality of her," Lisa concluded as Lafayette one smile.

"My my, are you the inquisitive little girl. Yes, during the process that she… we used something went wrong. Instead of making three copies to help explore the world, we… she ended up making us. I got by Ette, I'm her combative side, " she points to the one handing out treats, "She is La, the kind hearted side," she points to the last one sitting,"And she's Phi, spelt P-H-I, she inherited the wisdom. Now, do you have any questions?" All three Lafayettes sat down and stared at the kids as they waited for any reply.

"Do you still have the notes from the process? I would love to-," Lisa began before being cut off by Lincoln. "Maybe another time Lisa but we came here for advice." As everyone took a cookie and a cup of milk, the three Lafayettes sat down to hear what was on the boy's mind.

"We are not from this world and we need to get back. However, a woman has our baby sister and we can't leave without her. So, do you have any idea how to fight Myra?" The three women did a double take at the mention of Myra before looking at each other with a bit of concern. They excused themselves as they hurriedly moved into another room making Lincoln a bit worried as he said something he shouldn't. A minute has passed before the women walked back in and settled back in their seats with a large tomb in the hands of the wisdom woman.

"If you really wish to fight Myra and go back home, then it will be a rather hard challenge," all three said in unison as they opened the book, sending a purple swirl of magic above their magic formed into a series of pictures as they continued their story. "Many years ago, a powerful necromancer, known as the Plagued One, ruled this land with their army of undead soldiers. No one was strong enough to take them on the necromancer's lieutenants until heroes from a far land managed to inspire hope amongst the people. Soon, the tides of war began to shift as these heroes managed to defeat the lieutenants and seal away the necromancer behind three locks; The Lock of Patrinal Rage, The Lock of Matrinal Sorrow and The Lock of Innocent Blood."

As the story finished up and the book closed, Lincoln shifted uncomfortably in his seat while the others hung on every word. The three women sat in silence before Ette spoke up. "If Myra is freely roaming then she must be trying to awaken the necromancer. I'll see if I can get in contact with some of the nations to rally the armies." With that, she left to write letters and gather some of the fastest creatures the forest had to offer. Meanwhile, La led the kids to the kitchen to eat as she went upstairs to set up the guest rooms. The Louds thanked La and as they got their fill of food, Lori looked over the table an noticed someone was missing; Lynn

Downstairs where the Louds first met Ette, Lynn was waiting there with her arms crossed and watching the steps. As Ette reached the bottom step, she stared down Lynn as she let out a sigh. Without saying a word, she picked up her spear as Lynn slung her ax over her shoulder. The two stared down at each other for a moment before Lynn charged at the woman once again but like before she easily dodged the ax swing. However, Lynn quickly shifted her momentum and managed to nail the woman in the back, sending her tumbling to the ground. Lynn followed up by swinging the ax down but Lafayette rolled the way before tripping Lynn. The two tussled on the ground before the older woman managed to get the younger in a chokehold while Lynn threw elbows into Ette's sides.

The fight lasted for a full hour before Lori and Phi walked down to see what the commotion was about. As they walked in, they saw both women bruised and bloodied while they panted heavily from their scrimish. Despite their heated fight, both of them had a smile on their faces as if they enjoyed the challenge before them. They rushed toward each other one more time and both connected a heavy punch to the other's face before both collapsing in a heap of blood and sweat. The two bystanders let out a disappointed sigh as they picked up the unconscious bodies and carried them to bed. After laying them to bed and dressing their wounds, Lori and Phi sat down in the living area; each with a cup of tea.

"Thanks again for the help, Miss Lori. It's usually a pain to carry bodies up from the fights," Lafayette said as she sipped her tea. "Does Lynn often get into fights like that?"

"No. Not unless someone disrespects her or our siblings. Other than that she's normally competitive," Lori answered as she added some sugar to her tea. Lafayette chuckled as she remarked how Ette was equally competitive to a flaw. The two let out a collective laugh before Lori's mood slightly shifted to a sadden mood. It didn't take long for Lafayette to notice and ask Lori what was wrong. "It's nothing just… there's a guy back where I'm from and I miss him deeply."

"Oh, I'm not as well versed when it comes to matters of the heart but I can lend an ear."

"No no, that's fine. It's just, being away from him for these past few days has made me really think. I do love him, honestly, but I haven't always been the best girlfriend. He's done some much for me from just being an amazing guy to coming on a picnic after getting his wisdom tooth removed. All I ever really done for him was send him nudes and jerk him off when we're in the same town." Phi cringed a bit but Lori continued. "I do love him but I wanna do more to show that I love him. Do you have any advice about it?" Phi just sat there as she finished her tea before letting out a sigh.

"Like I said, I'm not familiar with love however, it seems that you're guilty about not taking his feelings into consideration. Maybe once you guys go home you can treat him to a dinner date or give him something from the heart." Lori looked down into her tea before smiling and thanking Phi for her advice. The two finished their tea and cleaned up as they headed upstairs to rest. However, Phi's word rang through Lori's head to the point where she couldn't sleep. She soon woke up and began to think about Bobby again and the things she could do. She paced back and forth until the door opened to reveal Luan on the other side.

"Oh, Luan, what are you doing still awake," Lori asked as Luan walked in. "I had to use the washroom. What are you doing awake?" The two stood there staring as Lori relayed the conversation she had with Phi. Luan sat on the bed while patting it signaling Lori to sit which she did. "Lori, you're a great girlfriend. I don't know many people who would travel as much as you just for an hour date. Plus, when you really want to, you can rip a car door off its hinges." Lori blushed at Luan's compliments as she continued. "And sometimes, I think Bobby is lucky to have someone like you. Kind, supportive… beautiful…"

The room went quiet as they both blushed from Luan's choice of words. Just as Luan got up to find a place to sleep, Lori dragged her back down onto the bed. "Luan… you can share a bed with me tonight." Luan's face turned a darker hue, visible under her fur, as she simply nodded before the sisters climbed into bed together. Lori would toss and turn in her sleep until Luan wrapped her body around Lori's, soothing her nightly discomfort and letting the older sister sleep peacefully. As the Louds were soundly asleep, everyone wasn't as some lights were still on.

Downstair, La and Phi sat in the living area while looking at each other. They knew that with Myra's presents and the kidnapping of their visitors' baby sister, that the first seal could be broken at any moment. The two discussed possible plans for an attack but without Ette's tactical brain, convincing the other kingdoms would be an uphill battle of itself. La went to wake up Ette as Phi formed an idea that could possibly work. As soon as Ette sat down, Phi went over the details.

"We could have our visitors get the weapons." Ette slammed the table with her fist and asked if she went crazy. "Let's be honest girls, at our age we'll only be good for making plans and healing on the battlefield. But if those kids can get Nirvana, it may not only seal the necromancer but kill him outright."

"I can still fight Phi. You saw what I did to that girl," Ette bellowed out as Phi just stared. "I saw you fighting at full strength. In your hay day, you'd kill that child at full strength; not hurt her." "But she-" "Passed out from exhaustion. She knocked you out." Ette gritted her teeth before sitting back down. The three soon came to the agreement that the kids will go on this quest as La and Ette prepped the Louds cart for the trip. Meanwhile, Phi opened her desk drawer and grabbed an old map with the location of Nirvana on it. "For everyone's sake, let's hope that those kids can pass the trials."

Elsewhere, Myra was carrying Lily as she fell asleep in her arms. Myra placed the youngest Loud in a bassinet before leaving her to rest with two golems guarding the door. When she thought no one would come in, Lily woke up and made her way to the bookshelf in her room. While she couldn't reach most of the books, all she needed was the ones on the bottom shelf as she pulled out one of the books. Even though she couldn't read most of the book, she did enjoy the pretty pictures and circles that covered some of the pages. Unbeknownst to the young girl, a spark of power began to glow within her as her eyes scanned the pictures before her.

Meanwhile, Myra sat at a large table with an elevated map of the Russtale with a small flashing mark on it. She looked at the mark and smiled as a shadowy spirit appeared before her. Myra knelt onto one knee as the spirit began to talk.

"Myra," the spirit began in a gravelly voice, "I sense the seals are breaking." Myra nodded to confirm that they were making the shadow rather pleased. "Excellent. Soon, my master plan will come to fruition and rule this land with an undead iron fist."

"Not only this land but another as well," Myra said, causing the shadow to look perplexed. Myra went on to talk about another world ripe for the picking as the shadow looked on in interest. "There's only one possible hiccup in your plan but don't worry, I have an eye on the situation." Myra diverted her attention from the shadow to the mark on the map as a wicked grin spread across her face. Meanwhile, at the Lafayette house, Lana held her stomach in pain unaware that Myra is behind it.

Thank god the writer's block curse has been broken. This chapter was much easier to write compared to the last one. Also boom, third ship Lori and Luan. The highlight review goes to Fantastical Redeemer. You can rest assured that there will be no Loud harem. It's over done and, personally, not all that creative. There's creative ways to do it but the concept isn't. That's all for now so until next time, remember to stretch before any workout