The Dustbin
Day 59: Foreign Exchange Part 3
15th of Pegasus Moon, Night
As the desperate people of Derdriu ran further away from the now-burning city, leading the flock was Margrave Edmund himself, with him and his congregation organizing the evacuation.
"Everyone, we're almost there!" spoke the Margrave. "Just up ahead is where the Central Church will be waiting! Keep moving and aid those who cannot move! Abandon no one, and neither shall I or my congregation!"
The man at the head of the flock then turned to one of his staff and began speaking in a whisper.
"Any word on our scout?" asked the Margrave. "Surely, it shouldn't take that long for him this long."
"To be fair, Archdeacon, he did go on foot," said the Bishop.
Then as they walked further into the forest, a rising trail of a smoke signal was spotted from up ahead.
"There it is!" Margrave Edmund cried out. "Everyone! Steady on! Orderly and calmly!"
The evacuation then makes a beeline towards the sign they took for salvation and aid...
"This is the Archdeacon of the Eastern Church!" shouted the Margrave as he broke through the brush. "I hail civilians from Derdriu-"
... But instead, what they've come upon was a site of slaughter.
Banners bearing the sigil of Seiros was burning on the poles they fluttered from. Tents and tarps were all torn down and stained with blood. The ground was paved with broken bodies of men of arms and relief workers alike.
And strewn across the scene of carnage were none other than Almyrans, feasting on their supplies as their mounts with the head, wings, and forelegs of that of a raptor bird's or an eagle's, and the hindquarters and tail of that of a lion picked their beaks through the carcasses laid on the ground.
Horror then befell upon those hoping for escape. The devils have slammed the doors leading to paradise shut before their eyes.
"... No!" Margrave Edmund moaned in disbelief. "EVERYONE! SAVE YOURSELVES-!"
Then, as if they were spotting a mere pest, the Almyrans lounging on the ruins of their own creation then all pulled out their [Taksh] crossbows, aimed and fired their bolts at the civilians without so much as looking towards their direction. The members of Margrave Edmund's congregation shielded those who were fleeing from this nightmare-scenario.
Dull-black bolts racked the Bishops' and Monks' bodies like roof sprayed by rain from the heavens.
"(Alright)," one of the Almyran Griffin Knights groaned in his language. "AMIRA KHAWLAH! (YOUR NEXT ORDERS, PLEASE)!"
Swiftly descending from the night sky was the hijab-wearing Griffin Knight leading the group of surprise marauders.
"(Kill all the men and the elderly)," she coldly ordered as she then signaled her men to prepare for dispatch. "(The women and children will lead us to their leader)."
With the flick of her hand, all of the present Griffin Knights take off, but just as they were about to disappear into the night sky, a blast of blinding light was the shot towards the flock, disorienting their formation before recovering.
"... I... won't!" coughed Margrave Edmund as he kept his hand up as he struggled to walk with his bolt-ridden body. "... Let... you!"
All of the Griffin Knights then reached for their [Taksh] crossbows, but their Amira raises her hand, signaling them to hold their fire.
"(He's my responsibility)," Khawlah spoke. "(If it works out, then he'll be our insurance to our bigger plan. The rest of you, resume your pursuits)."
"NAEAM AMIRA!" the Almyran fliers barked in perfect unison as they disappeared into the night sky as Khawlah descended towards the wounded Margrave before dismounting.
"... How...?" the Margrave grunted through his bodily agony. "... How did you?"
Khawlah smirked as she then pulls out an elongated tent pole roughly twice her whole height from the ground without issue before twirling it around herself and pointing its tip towards him.
But upon closer inspection, Margrave Edmund knew that it wasn't just an ordinary tent pole. The ashes caked around the shaft was merely a façade, revealing an ivory hue underneath it, and at its end was a simple spearhead, but even further analysis reveals that the construction of the bladed end was nothing like that of Fodlan's metallurgy. There were water-like swirls flowing through the flat. But despite the bizarre patterning, all of the "flow" perfectly coalesced towards a singular vector, forming into a blade so fine that it appears and can split through a single strand of hair through its width.
Before Margrave Edmund could even react, he then suddenly saw his own bleeding stump that was his neck as the last thing he ever felt was his own head hitting the dirt.
Khawlah scoffs as she then retrieved the slain Margrave's head that she'd separated with a single thrust and swipe through his neck.
"... (And another one falls before my lance, the [Az-zaġāyah])," she spoke before mounting back onto her griffin. With the click of her tongue, the winged lion then takes off towards the sky, joining her men's pursuit as their plans unfold with the Fodlaners being utterly ignorant to her design.
Offhandedly, she then pulls out her [Aqqar], loads it with a bolt, and fires it behind herself before flying off towards the night sky.
Unbeknownst to the fleeing Church runner who'd survived the initial ambush from above, his plans were cut short as his head was staked through from behind before he fell dead on the dirt before he could reach his destination.
At Derdriu...
"THERE'S NO END TO THESE GUYS!" Raphael grunted as he elbow-dropped an Almyran Wyvern Knight out of the sky before punching another aside.
"DON'T GIVE UP!" Ignatz cried out as he shoots down another [Rashidun] with his [Silver Bow]. "THEY'RE NOT STOPPING, SO NEITHER SHOULD WE!"
The Golden Deer and Count Gloucester held the line against the seemingly-endless horde of the Almyran military. For each one they strike down, another dozen was ready to take their brethren's place. The Alliance's military managed to hold off the initial wave just fine, but after a prolonged period of urban conflict that escalated to parts of the city being set ablaze, attrition rates began to rise at alarming rates.
"COUNT GLOUCESTER!" one Paladin rode towards him while he pulled his [Silver Lance] out of a corpse. "OUR THIRD LINE HAS FALLEN AND ITS REMNANTS ARE FALLING BACK!"
"TELL ME SOMETHING THAT I DON'T KNOW!" the Count replied as he then threw a [Spear] towards an incoming Wyvern Knight. "TELL THE MEN TO HOLD THE LINE JUST A BIT LONGER! WE CANNOT FALL UNTIL THE CIVILIANS HAVE SAFELY EVACUATED THE WARZONE!"
"SHOULDN'T BE FOR LONG THEN!" Lysithea grunted as she casted [Swarm Z] to disorient the enemy fliers. "WE'LL BE FINE HERE! GO!"
The Alliance Paladin nods before returning to his station as the rest continue holding the line against the incoming horde.
"(ATTACK)!" the lead [Rashidun] howled as he led his fellow Wyvern Knights into the fray.
"Here comes the next wave!" the Count shouted. "Steady on!"
"Yes father!" Lorenz nodded as he and the others braced themselves. "... Claude," he the spoke to his House Leader, "... Khalid or Claude, I care for naught. Regardless, it was an honor fighting alongside you."
"Throwing in the towel already?" smirked the Bow Knight (without a horse). "C'mon, it ain't like you."
Lorenz smiles. "... To think I hated that lackadaisical moxie of yours."
The [Rashidun] then all pull out their matchlock pistols and fired their opening barrage towards them. Lorenz then casts [Ward] with Marianne's own magic supplementing it construction, forming a barrier of light that blocks the volley before dissipating.
"Thank you," the Paladin spoke.
Marianne nods confidently. "... Here they come!"
One of the [Rashidun] then belt out a feral howl as he thrusted his [Silver Lance] towards them, met with a parry that deflected his blow as his fellows all charged in like a swarm of bees.
Rapahael's physical might fends them off with his mighty arms, Ignatz's keen eye shoots them down flawlessly one by one, Lysithea's arcane mastery engulfs the enemy with awesome magic, Lorenz and Claude's impeccable teamwork allowing them to fight off the overwhelming horde, and Marianne's attentiveness keeps everyone in fighting shape with her [Faith Magic].
One of the [Rashidun] then take notice of her contribution. "(HEY! SHE'S THE ONE HEALING THEIR WOUNDS WITHOUT TOUCHING THEM)!"
"(ANOTHER WITCH)?!" another [Rashidun] cursed. "(ACCURSED FODLANERS AND THEIR SORCERY)!"
"(KILL HER FIRST)!" the third [Rashidun] barked out. "(SHE'S THEIR COMMANDER)!"
All of the remaining Wyvern Knights howl with reignited vigor as they all began concentrating their efforts towards Marianne.
"EVERYONE PROTECT HER!" ordered Count Gloucester. "THEY'RE AFTER OUR HEALER!"
The Golden Deer and the Count all rally around Marianne into a reorganized defensive formation.
"DAMN IT!" Lorenz cursed as he fended off one more Wyvern Knight after another. "EVEN AFTER ALL THIS, THEY STILL REFUSE TO QUIT!"
"KINDA WISHING FOR A MIRACLE RIGHT ABOUT NOW!" Raphael roared out as he punched another Wyvern Knight aside. "LYSITHEA! CAN YOU BLAST A SUPER-STRONG SPELL TO GET RID OF THESE GUYS?!"
"I NEED SOME TIME!" she replied as she blasted [Dark Spikes T] at a group of Almyran fliers. "WE'RE A LITTLE THIN ON NUMBERS, SO IT'S RISKY!"
"THEN I'LL FIGHT LIKE A HUNDRED GUYS!" Raphael then picks up a dead wyvern by its tail before flailing it around as an improvised weapon. "EVERYONE! LYSHITHEA IS ABOUT TO DO SOMETHING HUGE!"
"Do or die, huh?" grimaced Ignatz as he then drew his [Killing Edge]. "Guess we have the Dustbin to thank for making us consider such daredevil option!"
"I'll... fight too!" Marianne steps up before casting [Fimbulvetr] on the enemy fliers. "Everyone's fighting hard for me... so I have to fight too!"
"Don't die, alright?" Claude remarked as he then drew his [Silver Sword]. "Permission to indulge in a selfish act, Count Gloucester?"
"Don't let me stop you, so do it!" he barked back as everyone began their counterattack.
At the center of the chaos, Lysithea begins her concentration of her internal mana into a singular point. Both her implanted Crests of [Charon] and [Gloucester] began to glow with rising power as a small orb of magic began to form between her hands.
The [Rashidun] immediately take notice of the shifting of their formation, and spotting that the little white-haired girl was about to do something.
"(SHE'S UP TO SOMETHING)!" the Wyvern Rider cried out. "(STOP HER BEFORE ITS TOO LATE)!"
The [Rashidun] all begin concentrating towards the spellcaster as they did with Marianne previously, but this time, the Golden Deer were more than prepared for such outcome.
"Open fire!" Claude ordered as he then let loose his arrows as the others did with their own quills, spells, throwing weapon, and uniquely to Raphael, a giant boulder that he chucked towards the horde.
Most of them were shot out of the sky, but more than a few managed to slip through the fire.
"DAMMIT! WE CAN'T MAKE IT!" Count Gloucester cursed. "YOUNG LASS! WATCH OUT-!"
But just as one of the [Rashidun] could run her through with his [Silver Lance], a bolt strikes his mount's wing, causing it to veer off-course and collide with another, sending both riders flying off of their wyvern's backs, while the third was then pounced upon by a shadow wielding a [Steel Lance] that it then impales through the rider's back and out of his chest, with the spearhead going far enough to pierce the mount's head, killing them both as they crashed into a building, which then immediately collapses soon after.
"Oww... bloody 'ell... dat smarts..." grunted the person that came out of the wreckage, revealing herself to be Selene, rubbing her throbbing head. "... Oh. Hey guys. Did I miss sumthin'?"
"... No, your timing was actually impeccable," commented Lorenz as he then looked up to spot a griffin descending towards the Brigidian. "... That yours?"
"Name's Morrigan," she beamed. "Say 'hi' Morrigan."
The griffin squawks like a raptor bird in response.
"Gud girl," Selene nuzzled her head against its own. "... Oh rite, I was supposed te git ye guys fur sumthin'-"
But before Selene could recall what she was here for, a choir of feral shrieks echoed from up ahead, revealing themselves to be more [Rashidun] Wyvern Knights.
"You've got to be kidding me," sighed Lorenz.
"Not so bad if I do so say myself," Claude the looked back at Lysithea. "... In fact, I think we're in the clear."
The Warlock then slowly exhales a seething breath before opening her eyes, now glowing with overwhelming power.
"I don't have time for failure..." she growled as she then added her hatred towards Byron into her arcane concoction that she'd then unleashed upon the enemy reinforcements. "[HADES Ω]!"
A giant stream of damned souls screamed out towards the Almyrans, with the last thing they've ever seen in their lives was this horrid witchcraft that burnt the flesh off of their bones and into dust.
Claude whistles, impressed at the sight of her power. "See? Told you we're in the clear-whoa!" he then catches the little Warlock mid-fall, exhausted from her overusing of her magical reserves. "... Good job."
"... Oh rite! Just remembered sumthin'," Selene remarked. "... So, we found Leonie, but she got 'er arse kicked by de Almyran's leader 'nd is now missing a leg and if we dun't make it time, den de enemy leader's gunna make off with 'er as 'is sex doll."
"WE NEED TO GO! NOW!" Claude barked out as he then leapt onto Lorenz's horse. "Selene! Lead us there!"
"Careful though!" warned Selene as she got onto Morrigan. "De othas are caught in an ambush 'nd I barely escaped. Soon as we hit em, git ready te fite like 'ell."
"Go," Count Gloucester remarked. "I'll rally the rest of Alliance men for a final defensive line."
The Golden Deer then follow the Dustbin's Brigidian Griffin Knight as the Count then rides off towards the oppose direction to find any survivors among the scattered Alliance military.
At the Ruined Ports...
Back at the wrecked port, there were two different battles occurring at the same time.
Before Almyra's galleons, a duel between Duke Goneril, "Lion's Roar of the Throat" and Naqib Nader al-Azim Ehsanullah, "The Undefeated" took place, pitting the former's ferocity and wrathful swing's against the latter's calm and controlled way of martial prowess.
"HOLD STILL AND DIE ALREADY, ALMYRAN COWARD!" snarled the Duke.
"... (Sooner of later, you'll run out of curses and swears until you begin foaming at the mouth like that of an animal)," Nader mumbled to himself in Almyran as the Naqib nimbly dodged another axe-swing from his opponent. "... (Respect is dead, isn't it)?"
"Naqib!" one of the Arquebusiers shouted out. "(We're ready to shoot when give the say-so! Just say the word, and we'll remove this eyesore from this world)!"
"DO NOT MOCK THE SACTITY OF THIS DUEL, YOU SAVAGES!" Duke Goneril roared out.
Pot calling the kettle black here, Nader internally sighed as the duel continued.
Behind the Duke, another incursion took place inside one of the breached warehouses.
"Here comes another one!" Holst cried out as he then blocked the next oncoming aerial thrust from a [Rashidun] Wyvern Knight with his [Zhanmadao].
"MY EYES ARE WORKING JUST FINE HOLST!" Cyrus barked back as he then shot another Wyvern Knight with an [Iron Lance] loaded into his [Bowgun]. "HEY PRINCESS! IS BYRON BACK WITH US YET?!"
"NOPE!" Hilda replied as she then leapt down from the stacked crates and decapitating both the wyvern and its rider with her [Freikugel]. "... Seriously! How is he still asleep with all of this noise around us?!"
Just before anyone could answer, a shrill shriek could be heard from above.
"There's no end to these guys...!" growled Holst. "... Whatever the case, bring it on-!"
However, the passing by Wyvern Knight then drops something before flying further into Derdriu.
A lit powder keg was then seen dropped before them.
"RUN-!"
Cyrus couldn't finish his scream before the barrel of Shangri-La's black powder mixture exploded before them, consuming the whole warehouse in a loud conflagration that sent all four of them flying out directly into the firing line of the Almyran Arquebusiers.
"... Oh shit," gawked Hilda as she was then greeted by the hollows of the silver-lined barrels of the enemy's muskets.
"Hilda..." heaved Holst as he struggled to get up, "... get behind me."
"Like that's gonna do anything..." Cyrus bitterly chuckled as he sat back up. "... Before all of us eat shit, any last words?"
Holst sighs. "... I really wished that you were my friend, Cyrus."
"I'm in love with Marianne and I want her babies if possible!" Hilda cried out suddenly. "... THERE! I SAID IT!"
"My only regret is that I have to die knowing that I never killed you both myself," smirked Cyrus.
"I'd like to present an addendum."
Byron then wakes up at the same time when the Almyrans fired their shots towards the four. In the next instant, the awakened Eligor then pulls out his [Hurricane Axe], its pinwheel-like blade spinning on its axis, stirring up a storm within the rotary blade before the Eligor then swung his axe blade against the oncoming volley.
The unleashed bluster then blows back the leaden shots back at the Arquebusiers, scattering the footmen's formation as some fell to their own shots.
"Sorry for the wait everyone," grunted Byron. "... Just needed something to warm me up after that cold wave."
The Almyrans who were scattered about the galleon's open port scrambled back into formation, fixing spikes onto their barrels and preparing for a melee charge.
"Guess dying's gonna have wait," Cyrus grinned as he then brought out his [Gradivus]. "... We'll hold them off. You two pinkies go get your old man back. Drag him back kicking and screaming if you must."
Hilda then looks up ahead, seeing her father still fighting against the enemy's general. But as she was pondering, Holst places his hand onto her shoulder.
"... Do or die, Hilda," he stated. "... Don't worry. I trust your judgement, so trust me to watch your back!"
With that reassurance, Hilda nods before looking back at Byron and Cyrus, both of whom were charging towards the spike-barreled Arquebusiers also charging towards them. "... Right," she nodded before getting up. "LET'S DO THIS!"
Both Goneril siblings make a break towards their father. Upon being spotted, the Arquebusiers took aim and fired a volley of lead towards them. The two then leap out of line of fire, gravel and splinter kicking up as the leaden balls struck the ground between where the sibling duo had ducked behind.
"Dammit! Those guys are going to shoot us up before we can reach father!" Hilda growled before she ducked under another shot. "... If we only had a cover that we can with us!"
Holst overhears what she'd said and notices the pile of rocks he'd ducked behind, absorbing shots better than steel armor.
"So thickness is a contributing factor..." the Swordmaster muttered to himself before he spotted something behind where his sister was ducking behind from. "HILDA! WHAT'S THAT BEHIND YOU?!"
The War Cleric looks back and sees a crate of wheat and other foodstuff behind where she'd stood. "IT'S JUST FOOD!" she shouted back. "I DOUBT IT'S A GOOD TIME FOR A SNACK!"
"PUSH IT TOWARDS ME!" he ordered. "USE THAT AS OUR SHIELD!"
With that said, Hilda began pushing the crate before herself and carefully maneuvering herself around the box to have the object take the shots for her rather than the other way around. Miraculously, the leaden shots were absorbed into the robust crate and protecting Hilda.
"NICE JOB!" Holst remarked as he then leapt in, taking cover alongside with Hilda. "Alright, on my mark, we're gonna push our way towards father and get him out of this place!"
Hilda nods as she and her brother placed their hands onto the crate.
"Three, two, one, NOW!" both the Swordmaster and the War Cleric began pushing the crate towards the direction of the duel, weathering against the hail of lead determined to shred them to bits for daring to approach them.
"(DAMMIT! THEY'RE MAKING THEIR WAY TOWARDS US)!" one of the Almyran Arquebusiers cried out.
"(Do we charge them)?!" the other asked.
"(NEGATIVE)!" the ship captain barked out. "(ALL OF YOU! KEEP SHOOTING! I'M GOING TO GET THE CANNON)!"
The Arquebusiers then keep firing at the crate being pushed against by the Goneril siblings.
"WE'RE ALMOST THERE!" Holst cried out. "KEEP PUSHING!"
As the two got closer, Duke Goneril's senses dampened by his kick of adrenaline began to return back to an equilibrium. He swore he could hear something, but as of now, all that matter was the fight before him.
"... Die... die... DIIIEEEEEE!" snarled the Warrior as he brought down his [Brave Axe].
Nader dodges, but just as the Duke was about excavate his weapon from the ground, the Janissary's Naqib stomps hard onto it, driving it further down into where it was planted, denying his opponent a weapon.
Undeterred, Duke Goneril quickly switches up to fighting with his bare hands, swinging an armored fist into Nader's face, the latter blocking the punch at the last minute with both of his hand cushioning the blow, but not enough to prevent him from being sent flying off of his feet, landing roughly during his descent, rolling himself across the ground and just as quickly getting back up.
"... (Damn)," he cursed as he snorted out a spray of blood from his nostrils. "... (Cunning bastard)."
Then when just as the Duke was about to retrieve his weapon, his ears perked to hear a familiar voice.
"FATHER!" Hilda cried out, her voice echoing in the Duke's mental void.
"... Hilda?" he heaved out as he looked back, spotting a crate being peppered by lead as it was pushed towards him. "HILDA! HOLST!"
"FATHER!" the Swordmaster cried out as he kept pushing. "HOLD ON! WE'RE COMING-"
The ship captain then lets out a snarl as he then lifted an iron club into the air before pointing it towards the crate, revealing it to be a portable mini-cannon on a stick.
"(I WON'T LET YOU)!" roared the captain as the club's sidebar then extended outwards for him to brace on as its fuse hissed down to its gunpowder feed. "(EAT THIS)!"
The ship captain's portable cannon then fired its payload so dense that the recoil alone sent the man carrying it flying all the way back to the end of the galleon's deck. The trade-off proved its worth, with the cannon shot destroying the crate that the two were hiding behind, sending both siblings flying off of the ground before landing on their backs with an audible thud.
"(THEY'RE DOWN)!" one of the Arquebusiers cried out. "(SHOOT THEM)!"
Through the haze, Hilda quickly gets up, and seeing that her father was still without a weapon, and that they were too far away to do anything substantial, desperation takes over her rational mind and ultimately settles on a course of action that would be insane in hindsight.
"FATHER!" Hilda then throws [Freikugel] towards him, the Relic arcing across the air before the Warrior catches it by instinct.
In a moment of clarity, Duke Goneril now knew what to do next. He immediately breaks off from his prior engagement and beelines towards the line of Arquebusiers.
"YOU WILL NOT HURT MY CHILDREN!" he roared out as the Relic began glowing brightly along with his Minor Crest of [Goneril]. "[APOCOLYPTIC FLAME]-!"
Then a loud crack breaks through the air. From behind the stilled Duke was Naqib Nader, holding up a smoking barrel of that of a flintlock pistol.
And bored before the smoking barrel, Duke Goneril's forehead was now sporting a fresh bloody hole.
"(Sorry... but I can't let you endanger my men... war be damned)," he growled in Almyran as he slouched his way back towards his men. "... (Open fire)."
All of the Arquebusiers, upon finishing reloading their muskets, all aim their barrels towards Duke Goneril and fired their shots towards him, shredding his body into mincemeat from where he stood.
All Hilda and Holst could do was watch their father be pummeled and ground to death by an endless hail of lead.
"FATHEEERRR!" Hilda cried out through the drumming of gunfire.
As the flashes of molten lead ceded, all that remained of the "Lion's Roar of the Throat" was that of an armless and headless torso decorated with with pulverized meat and bone, his armor now nothing more than a flower of gnarled steel, and his mighty legs that once the proud man stood with, finally fell to the earth in an undignified heap.
Hilda's heart was than shattered into a thousand pieces as she'd bore witness to an execution of the man who'd brought her to this world. All she could do was cry painfully. Scream. Curse. And mutilate her own soul as the torrent of rage, sadness, and disgust flooded her very being.
Nader was taken aback at what he'd inadvertently done. He'd killed a father before his own children.
"... (Oh fuck me)," he gulped in Almyran.
Hilda, with swollen and bloodshot eyes, looked up and found her father's killer. "YOU!"
She then gets up to her feet, stumbling her way towards Nader, gingerly picks up her [Freikugel] before lifting it up and smashing it back down, leaving behind a crater upon impact.
"... I had my orders," Nader stated in Fodlan tongue. "Your wrath is not unwarranted... but if you insist fighting, then I must resist!"
Hilda then rushes towards Nader and his men, but as they were hastily reloading their armaments, one of them managed to reload fast enough to shoot the maddened War Cleric in her eye, instantly downing her into a flailing and screaming mess that was once a complete human being. Eventually, her screams petered out into softened breathing, barely clinging to life with pain acting as her sole tether to the mortal realm.
"(DAMMIT! I USED TOO LITTLE POWDER)!" the Arquebusier cursed.
But just as Holst ran towards Hilda's rescue, the rest of Arquebusiers finished reloading their muskets and pointing their barrels at the Swordmaster.
"... I'll let you two off once," Nader spoke in Fodlan tongue. "Take your sister, her weapon, and nothing else. Then leave. Anything more, and I will be forced to shoot."
Begrudgingly, Holst takes the heaving and one-eyed Hilda into his arms along with placing [Freikugel] into her embrace before lifting both of them up.
"... Is this retribution for what my family have done to your people?" asked Holst.
"No," Nader shook his head. "Just a sad consequence of war conducted by my superiors. Nothing more."
A boiling sensation welled up inside the "Hero of Leicester's" heart. "... Then the next time we meet, I'll come at you with everything I've got-"
"WE GOT A PROBLEM!" Cyrus' voice cried out from afar as he and Byron now being pursued by a dense horde of [Rashidun] Wyvern Knights, their numbers nearing a hundred or more.
"WE'VE GOT THE WORLD'S MOST VIOLENT MILK RUN NIPPING AT OUR HEELS!" the Eligor barked out, running quickly despite his armor. "DROP EVERYTHING AND FUCKING BAIL!"
Wrestling past his conflicted feelings, Holst then joins the pair's hasty retreat back into the ruined city.
"Naqib," one of the men spoke in Almyran. "(They're still in range. Permission to open fire)?"
Nader sighs as he raises his hand. "(Permission denied)," he ordered. "(Our orders are to specifically hold the line and allow our filers to resupply. Any dereliction to said orders will be met with severe consequences)."
The Arquebusiers remain in position as their [Rashidun] compatriots begin resupplying before returning to the field of battle.
At the Industrial District's Alleyways...
Another two-pronged conflict continued taking place within the confines of the backstreets between the factories dotted throughout this piece of the urban sprawl.
Karna, Vidar, and Sorcha were fending off against the endless horde of footbound and aerial [Rashidun]. Even when outnumbered by one to a hundred, the three of the Dustbin fought like demons, turning the whole alleyway into a pit leading to what can it be described as pure, unadulterated Hell.
Bodies of the enemy began piling up to the point where the other [Rashidun] Wyvern Knights could see it emerging from the factories' rooftops. Those who were entering from the factory grounds were welcomed by the sight of the walls, ground, and the skies being paved to the gills with nothing but corpses.
And from the shade and the stench, a low, heartless cackle could be heard before a pair of glowing red eyes gleamed in the black.
"... (What's wrong)?" Karna spoke in Almyran as he dragged his [Scythe of Sariel] across the floor, the sparks ground from its friction briefly illuminating the dark to reveal his deranged smirk carved across his blood-splattered face. "... (TOO SCARED TO FACE THE DEVIL HIMSELF)?!"
As more screams of the next batch of victims echoed from afar, up ahead, illuminated by the moonlight was a duel between Topaz and her former master, Ameer Shahid Al-Mansur I Muhammad "The Great."
Their prize? The life of Leonie Pinelli.
"(Come on, little Hassashin)!" the Ameer sneered as he and the Espio broke off from one another. "(Your skills have dulled! I can barely sense any killing intent coming from you)!"
"... (Perhaps)," she replied, but her stance remained firm, betraying her supposed weakness. "... (I still can't help but hold back against a child still coddled by his own mother)."
Leonie didn't know what the two were saying, save for the fact that they were egging each other on. That, and the mounting blood loss coming from her lost left leg began to take its toll on her.
Her body began to turn icy to the touch. Her breathing became more labored. Her vision began to grow more foggy. The only thing that anchored her to the world of the living were the sparks flying out between the sharpened steel before her, and the ringing of said blades upon striking each other.
... How? she asked herself as she bore witness to the duel with her fading vision. How is she and her Dustbin are capable of doing these feats of war whereas I cannot? I know that I can do so much more... I was trained by the Blade Breaker himself...! So why...?! Why am I falling behind...?!
In a singular moment, Leonie's eyes saw the fight before her clear as day. In that instant, a portrait was burned into her very recesses of her mind.
To her left, a madman unbound by either honor or morals, fighting with a sadistic glee and free as the winds. Deftly wielding a beautiful blade in one hand and a brutal bardiche in another, altogether in a harmonious tandem so naturally that it can only be described as "perfect." And to her right was a monster, unbound by the physical shell of humanity, trading in skin for scales, nails for claws, and teeth for fang. It only pretends to be human, only for it to drop the act in the heat of battle, unleashing its terrible might upon those who were unfortune enough to get in its way.
Neither of them seemed out of place. Rather, it felt as if Leonie herself was the unwelcome intruder.
"... Monsters..." she mumbled as delirium began kicking in. "... Monsters."
Shahid and Topaz both each let out a hissing roar towards each other as they both brought down their blades against each other. The Ameer's [Dahaka] broke itself against the embedded [Blutgang] emerging from Topaz's left arm, while the latter's [Zulfiqar] ground its fine blade against the former's beautifully-edged [Shamshir], sparks flying from where the edges ground against each other.
"(IS THAT ALL YOU GOT)?!" Shahid cackled. "(ALL THAT MALFORMITY ISN'T DOING YOU ANY FAVORS)!"
"(Then how much did those combat instructors of yours cost, Ameer)?" taunted Topaz as she then kicked up with her clawed foot, forcing her opponent back before she pounced onto him, only for Azir to swoop down and rake its own talons against her, knocking her off and returning the battle back to its prior equilibrium. "(STILL TOO WEAK TO FIGHT YOUR OWN BATTLES?! FOR SHAME, AMEER SHAHID! FOR SHAME)!"
"(REGARDLESS OF METHODOLOGY, ONLY VICTORY MATTERS)!" the Ameer struck back with his weapons, causing the mutant Espio to defend with her arms. "(SURELY, EVEN YOU MUST UNDERSTAND)!"
Topaz snorts. "(You got me)," in midst of the weapon lock, Topaz kicks Shahid's wrist upwards, forcing it to shoot up and throw his weapon into the air. Through the transferred momentum, Shahid's [Shamshir] lands blade-first into a patch of dirt far away from the two of them.
Seizing the opportunity, Topaz then returns to an offensive posture. First, she then throws her [Zulfiqar] towards the Ameer before running behind it with her [Blutgang] drawn.
A two-phase attack, which given the cramped space of the alleyway, prevented the amount of options of where the Ameer could evade. If he moved either side, then he'd hit the walls. If he either jumped over or slid under the [Zulfiqar], then it would open for an opportunity for Topaz to move in on that opening and finish him off before the thrown sword could. If he moved forwards or backwards, then he would consider better ways of killing himself before Zoltan's masterpiece claimed his life as another casualty.
Those would be the options that a normal, sane person would wrestle with when placed in a situation precarious as this. However, no Almyran in their right mind would be classified as anywhere remote near the word "sane." Doubly so when said Almyran is Royalty, whose minds and bodies are forged in the crucible of political assassinations and slander, where the weak are weeded out in selecting the truly exceptional.
In a daredevil twist, Shahid then pulls out a loaded flintlock pistol from underneath his clothes, aiming true towards the point of the [Zulfiqar] where the two blades branched out. With his eyes locked onto that one spot, he pulls the trigger and unleashes the fateful shot propelled by ignited black powder sallying forth molten lead.
The lead then makes its mark, striking the vertex of the angle where the blades forked out from, shattering the weapon's bite into pieces, with one intact blade embedding itself into the wall next to Leonie's face, peeling open a scar under her eye shortly after from the blade's vacuum-like sharpness. The rest of Zoltan's masterpiece fell to the ground in an undignified hail of broken metal and dreams.
This did not deter Topaz from pushing through her assault, swinging her [Blutgang] down with all her might against the Ameer's mighty [Dahaka]. But at when the exact moment when the two arms clashed, Shahid, a deceitful cad to the bitter end, pulls out another loaded flintlock and aimed it towards Topaz's head.
"(I win)," he smirked at the same moment when the powder discharged, shooting a leaden ball directly into Topaz's forehead, knocking her down onto her back in a single, decisive blow.
Leonie couldn't believe her eyes. One of the Dustbin had fallen before her. A Dustbin member had fallen before a far superior foe.
She felt like a lamb before a farmer with an axe with her name on it as Shahid then walks before her with his [Dahaka] in hand.
"... Now," the Ameer smirked as he returned to speaking in Fodlan tongue, now having free reign while the other of the Dustbin were too occupied with dealing with the still-unrelenting horde of the [Rashidun]. "... Where were we?"
He then raises his axe over his head, the shadow of his weapon now casting over Leonie's other leg.
"OFF COME THE REST-!"
Then, from below, Shahid was seized by his ankles and thrown face-first into the wall opposite of where Leonie was situated at.
"... No way..." she gasped as the Espio got back up, the hole on her head still spouting blood down to her face. "... You're still alive?!"
Topaz smirked with her razor-sharp canines. "... I've left the realm of man ages ago."
Then pressing her hands against the Ameer's head, Topaz then begins to drag his face across rough brick wall, grinding his skin and meat against the course surface as the victim's screams now melted in with that of the [Rashidun] entering the Devil's Den lying beyond the darkness before her.
Leonie began to chuckle deliriously as her current perception of reality began to set in. As her chest and throat belted the mirthless laughter, her mind unwinding upon itself from seeing that violation of natural order before her very eyes, a squawk was heard from above before it was then followed up with a thud.
"OI!" a semi-familiar voice cried out. "I SEE LEONIE!"
Then neighs were heard in tandem with the voice, revealing themselves to the one-legged Leonie to be the rest of her fellow Golden Deer.
"She's already lost a lot of blood!" panicked Marianne as she casted [Heal] onto her wounds, the verdant light warming up her body.
"DON'T GO INTO THE LIGHT, LEONIE!" Raphael's booming voice echoed in her mind. "STAY WITH US!"
"LEONIE!" Ignatz cried out before he noticed that she was missing a leg below one her knees. "... Oh goddess... what've they done to you?!"
"Is her condition stable?" Claude asked Marianne, to which the latter checked her pulse and nodded in confirmation. "... Alright then. Me, Lorenz, and Lysithea will go and find the others and help them out. The rest of you, including Selene, watch our butts, okay?"
"Dun't let me of all people stop ye," scoffed the Griffin Knight as she then assumed overwatch position with her [Crossbow]. "Do wat needs te be dun."
The three from the Golden Deer then venture deeper into the dim alleyway, where all light from the sky was blocked out by the suffocating amount of corpses laden throughout the pavement and the walls.
Lysithea tried not to vomit as she and the other two literally had to step on the floor made of dead bodies as they continued delving in further. "... Ugh," she shuddered, "... I really hope the others are having a better time than we are right now-blargh, I think I heard a squish."
Lorenz gags at the aghast sight around them. "... Remind me, how many of the Dustbin are able to pile up this many kills?!"
"Don't ask," Claude replied. "... We'll live longer."
As the three continued traversing deeper into the alley of corpses, they begun to notice an absence of certain people amidst the pile.
"... Alright, where are the Dustbin and their professor?" asked Lorenz. "Surely, they aren't dead even after fighting... over a hundred... Almyrans... oh dear."
Lysithea gulps. "... You don't think they're dead, don't you?"
"One way to find out," shivered Claude. "PROFESSOR YUGA!"
The three were met were only silence.
Lorenz shakes his head as he pivots his heel back around where they've come from. "... Come on, let's go-"
"Peek-a-boo," a voice spoke from below Lysithea's feet, causing her to scream in terror before kicking where the voice had come from, revealing Karna buried underneath the bodies of his enemies. "... Gargh... my nose..."
"WHAT WERE YOU THINKING, PULLING THAT KIND OF SHIT?!" screeched the white-haired Warlock as she found herself perched on Claude's arms.
"Excuse me, princess. I was taking a nap," Karna answered before snorting out a wad of blood. "... The pile fell on me shortly after."
"So wait," Lorenz remarked as he facepalmed. "... The others are also buried as well?"
Right as he said it, a bandaged head gasps out of the layer of bodies as if he were submerged in water. Vidar then resurfaces with the groaning Sorcha in tow, holding one of her [Ne Zha] gauntlets by its inactive blade between his teeth.
"Found em," the Professor remarked.
"What were you two doing, taking a nap in a middle of a battlefield?!" asked Lysithea.
"... Enemy... strong... and many," grunted the War Master. "... First time... slept well... after... years."
Sorcha then promptly returns to sawing logs before dropping her other [Ne Zha] onto another body, prompting Vidar to piggyback her while Karna retrieved the other half of the Vanguard's weapon.
"... By the way, how are things going on at the other end?" asked Karna.
"We found Leonie and secured her safety," Lorenz answered. "... It was just her in the alleyway, by the way."
"... Super," Karna smacked his lips as he blinked. "... Anyone know where Topaz and the Ameer went?"
Everyone then (sans Sorcha) looked towards at the recently-uncovered trail of blood streaked across the wall leading down towards a certain endpoint.
"... One way to find out?" asked Claude as he and the others then promptly run in the direction where the red trail ran down towards.
At the Rearguard Artillery Line...
"Maintain fire!" ordered Duke Riegan. "The enemy comes from the skies! Make them pay for every inch they take!"
"Milord!" the attendant came up to his liege. "Our rear scouts have returned! They've spotted a group of people coming from our rear!"
"Any confirmation of who they are?" asked the old Duke.
The attendant shook his head. "... No sire," he answered. "Our scouts just said exactly what I've delivered. Although in my opinion, methinks that it's the Church's army coming to our aid! The Almyrans will be scarce from our lands in due time!"
The old Duke glares at his attendant. "... For your sake, you better be correct."
"Sire!" a Soldier cried out. "Marquis Daphnel has returned with critical injuries! She's unable to fight in her state!"
"Who brought her?!" asked the Duke.
"... A horse, sire," he answered. "... Said horse just dumped her off of its back before galloping back to Derdriu on its own."
The three men go silent at the sheer absurdity of what combination of words had been uttered.
"... Gentlemen," the old Duke spoke. "I wish you both the best in your future endeavors."
Exasperated, Duke Riegan walks away elsewhere. Enthusiastic and semi-helpful as he was, the attendant's vitriol was akin to that of those he hears among the more prejudiced circles of nobility within the Alliance. Granted, the Duke himself knew that he wasn't any better (he did disapprove of his own daughter running away to Almyra and end up marrying the Shah/Head Ruler himself), but he at least kept his own supply of vitriol to himself.
He's a professional. Just because one hates the enemy personally doesn't excuse one to dismiss them as insignificant.
With that out of the way, he spots Count Ordelia leading his regiment in firing their Fire Orbs and Ballista. "... Working hard?"
"Hardly," sighed the mousey man. "I'm just doing what I can."
Duke Riegan shrugs. "As long as you're busy, then I will say nothing more."
Then just as the artillery continued firing, one of the Ballista suddenly explodes into flames. Then another catches fire with another eruption just as sudden.
"What's going on?!" panicked Count Ordelia before he was then tackled down by Duke Riegan as the Fire Orb nearby exploded into flames, the explosion being bigger than the ones that disabled the Ballista, consuming both men and equipment alike in a single flash. "... Duke Riegan!"
"I'm fine," he growled as he got back up before picking up his younger compatriot. "... We best move elsewhere."
"... R-right!" the Count then gathered his bearings and began issuing the next order. "EVERYONE! SAVE AS MUCH OF THE EQUIPMENT AS YOU CAN AND MOVE FURTHER BACK! THE ENEMY IS UPON US-!"
Another Fire Orb explodes from behind the two, with several Warlocks operating it sent flying into the air smoldering husks.
"... MOVE!" the Count shouted as everyone began their retreat under the rain of fire pelting onto their positions.
The horses were reserved to drag the Ballista elsewhere, leaving everyone to run away on foot or risk getting burned to death by the flames above. As both the Duke and the Count fled for their lives, destruction and chaos reigned supreme with the flames burning out of control, and with one half of the moving artillery pieces being destroyed when the Fire Orb in the middle of the convey explodes.
"WHERE ARE THESE FLAMES COMING FROM?!" asked the Count as he continued running.
"JUST KEEP MOVING!" Duke Riegan rebuffed before his face was then tickled by a fallen feather. "Gah! What the?!"
Upon grabbing the quill out of the air, the Duke inspects it, its size being roughly the twice of that of a common raptor's while its musk held some traces of raw black powder.
He then looks up, spotting winged beasts ridden by men with lit torches lighting their payload held by the former's talons before they were dropped.
"THE FLAMES ARE COMING FROM ABOVE US!" Duke Riegan cried out. "EVERYONE! ABANDON YOUR EQUIPMENT! WE ARE AT A DISADVANTAGE!"
Hastily, the Alliance military cut their horses loose as a full retreat was then executed, condemning their firepower to the enemy's flames.
Eventually, the remains of the rearguard all safely manage to escape with their lives, secluding themselves in the forested road leading out of Derdriu.
"... Everyone present?!" asked Duke Riegan as he then placed his hand on his knees to catch a breath.
"Well, I hate to point this out, but didn't we just leave our allies that are still at the city by themselves?!" Count Ordelia pointed out.
The old Duke sighs heavily. "... I'm fully aware of the fact that I'm going senile," he deadpanned. "No need to remind me."
"Duke Riegan!" his attendant the pointed towards the coming crowd up ahead. "Look!"
From the shade of the dark forest emerged the civilians of Derdriu, consisting only of women and children, all of whom bearing the look of utter fear on their faces as they all marched in clumsy unison.
"... What's happening?" the attendant asked. "... Where are our reinforcements-?!"
Then right behind the civilians were the Almyrans, all of whom had their [Taksh] crossbows aimed at their backs, with their griffins corralling the people in a similar manner to how sheepdogs kept their charge in line.
"... Oh Goddess help us," Count Ordelia then fell to his trembling knees. "The Almyrans outflanked us!"
One of the Griffin Knights then handed his weapon to his fellow before stepping forth before the old Duke.
"... NOW LISTEN HERE!" the young the attendant put himself between his liege and the Almyran. "SHOW SOME REVERENCE TO THE LEADER OF THE LEICHESTER ALLIANCE-!"
The Griffin Knight wastes no time grabbing the young man by his collar before dragging him in closer and snapping his neck like a twig, all the while, bearing the expression of a man who'd looked as if he'd almost stepped on a dog's shit lying on the road.
"... He talk... too much," the Almyran spoke in broken Fodlan tongue before tossing the dead man aside like yesterday's trash. "... Surrender. Or they die."
The Duke himself was caught between a rock and a hard place.
"... What happened back there?!" asked the Duke. "... There were supposed to be help coming for us!"
The Griffin Knight smirks before handing the Duke a bloodstained banner of the Church of Seiros, with its fringes now eaten away by the black marks of the flames once burning.
"... Surrender," the Almyran spoke again. "... The men in white died screaming... like little girls."
Duke Riegan was utterly loss for words at what the man was saying to him. Again, the Almyran noticed his shock and smirked.
"... You old... I understand... you being slow..." he taunted. "... So allow me... to help."
Placing his two fingers between his lips, the Almyran then blows a shrill whistle towards the night sky, which was then replied by a screech coming from afar.
In the next moment, something dropped between the Duke and the Count. The latter then belts out a horrified scream as he sees Margrave Edmund's severed head placed before him. As the death grip of fear seized his heart, the mousey Count, screaming and crying, faints, but not before the crotch area of his pants were darkened by his own piss.
"... I ask," spoke the Almyran as he gazed into the Duke's defiant glare without fear. "... Do your faith... believe in heaven?"
Before the Duke can retort, he was then suddenly seized up by his shoulders before suddenly finding himself getting further and further away from the ground as the griffin that had just kidnapped him flew higher up into the night sky.
"(Good girl, Simurgh)," Khawlah stroked her mount's head as she then flew back to Derdriu, joining her escort of her own Griffin Knights. "(The final phase of our plan finally begins)!"
"WHAT ARE YOU PLANNING TO DO WITH ME?!" the old Duke screamed out as he drew his glowing sword, revealing itself to be the [Sword of Begalta]. "I WILL NOT GO QUIETLY-!"
Khawlah skillfully flicks the sword out of the old man's hands from atop of her griffin with her lance that was twice as long as her vertical height, forcing the old man to helplessly watch his own weapon fall towards the earth like a shooting star losing its glow.
"(Stubborn old fool)," she scoffed in Almyran.
At Derdriu's Commercial District's Central Square...
Heaving through the corpse-littered streets of Derdriu's Commercial District, Cyrus, Byron, and Holst (with Hilda in his arms) continued running away from the [Rashidun] that were in pursuit of them after the post-battle extraction.
"Okay..." Holst heaved out briskly as he ran with his sister in his arms, "did we lose em yet?!"
Cyrus then looks back, only to see that there were Wyvern Knights still after them, but most of the horde were beginning to disperse towards different directions. "NOT ENOUGH TO HAVE US STOP RUNNING!"
Byron then spots the incoming alleyway. "We'll shake them off in the next turn!" he suggested. "Either they'll pass by us or they'll have to go on foot to fit through here!"
"Excellent idea!" Holst agreed. "We'll follow your lead!"
The three then make a break for the alleyway, jumping into the tight crevice before hiding in different directions.
"(Hey! Where did they go)?!" one Wyvern Rider cried out.
"(They went inside the alleyways, you moron)!" another shouted back. "(After them)-!"
But before they could continue their deliberation, another [Rashidun] flies up to them before murmuring something to him before pointing his finger up to the night sky.
The three are seen nodding with each other by Cyrus peeking at them from afar before they fly off elsewhere.
"... We're the clear," he remarked. "... Might be rich coming from me, but I think we can breathe easier for now."
Byron then unfurls his visor from his chameleon-like helmet. "Egads, Cyrus. Given our current experience fighting those fuckers, I'm pretty sure that your approximations of our enemy's strength was an underscore!"
"Give me a break! I've been out of the loop on their capabilities for around 5 to 10 years, so excuse me if I'm a little rusty!" the Bow Knight retorted.
"Wow, so they improved that fast?" Holst chuckled. "Man, it felt just like yesterday when I was clashing blade to blade with those guys and now they're bringing in all sorts of crazy new toys that I never thought I'd see in my lifetime."
"You guys have black powder, but not only yours suck, but you don't even use them properly!" groaned Cyrus. "Seriously! Even my tribemen managed to steal a few fire lances from Shangri-La's military and figure out how to use and recreate them!"
"Blade the Church for that crap, regulating all forms of innovations for the sake of stability..." sighed Byron. "... The Central Church is like overbearing parent."
"I mean, I'm sure they have their reasons for doing so..." Holst remarked. "... I mean, who knows? Maybe after this battle, the Church might start relaxing said regulations and we might not be in need to fear future invasions!"
"If they don't, then this is my shocked face," Byron pointed at his own, unimpressed expression. "... Alright, break's over. Let's go find the others before we get jumped. Again."
The three (four counting the gravely-injured Hilda) resume traversing through the alleyways while hopefully avoiding any future encounters with the [Rashidun], or any enemy Almyran for that matter.
Eventually, the group them stumble upon a clearing of empty stalls and deserted roads leading towards other parts of the capital. "... So," spoke Byron, "... where are we now?"
Holst then looks around to see anything significant before shaking his head upon reaching a consensus. "... We're at the marketplace," he answered as he then looked around more thoroughly. "... Odd. This place's a little too empty. I mean, there's gotta be some damage around here, right?"
"I think we're just lucky," Cyrus pointed out. "... Welp, time to blindly look around."
The group them pass by the stalls placed between the streets, the air itself being less dense of blood and smoke compared to that of rest of Derdriu. If where the lion's share of the fighting took place was akin to a chthonic netherworld where demons came out to play their infernal games with their victims, then the place they were at right now felt like a forest that has been driven out of all of its native inhabitants, almost as if a terrible monster had claimed dominion over this environment.
"... The vibes of this place is killing me," growled Byron as he then clicked his visor back on. "It's too damn quiet."
"Yep," nodded Cyrus as he picked up a rock and loaded into his [Bowgun]. "Back at Battu, this usually means either an ambush is waiting for us... or some shit went down."
"Former might be unlikely," Holst pointed out. "... That's a defensive maneuver, if nothing else."
"Whatever the case, eyes peeled, everyone," Byron ordered as he brandished his [Hurricane Axe]. "... If there's anything I learned today, is that I hate surprises."
The three of them then placed their backs against each others', covering their blind spots for safety's sake as they traversed through the eerily-quiet market streets.
Cyrus then began sniffing. "... I smell blood."
"Name what doesn't around here," Holst replied.
Cyrus shook his head in rebuttal. "... Nah," he pointed out. "... IT'S COMING RIGHT FOR US-!"
Then right next to where the three were walking, the building next to them erupts outwards as something crashes through it and the stalls standing in front of them. Within the cloud of dust and gravel, a low growl was heard reverberating throughout, followed up by a red gleam piercing through the opaque veil.
The dust settles, revealing the mutant Topaz, snarling and heaving as held within her left hand was Ameer Shahid Al-Mansur I Muhammad "The Great," now missing the left half of his face, with nothing but few slivers of raw meat hanging from his exposed skull.
"A Demonic Beast, here?!" Holst then drew his [Zhanmadao].
"Hey chill! She's with us!" protested Cyrus, calming the Swordmaster down. "... So, hi Topaz."
"Sup," she then dropped her unwilling passenger on the ground. "... Hell of a night we're having, right?"
"Stating the obvious," deadpanned Byron as he then opened up his visor on his helmet. "... So, who's the half-and-half creep?"
"Ameer Shahid," she answered. "The leader of this invasion. For an overprivileged turd, he was a pain to fight against."
"So you got the leader?" Holst enthusiastically remarked. "That's awesome! Now this invasion can finally come to an end!"
"Question is, how do we even broadcast this message?" asked Byron. "Or better yet, are they going to even listen?"
Everyone else then looked at Cyrus for reference.
"... Don't look at me," he replied. "I dunno if they're either gonna call a retreat or double down when they hear that their Royalty ate shit."
The footsteps were heard coming from the other side of the streets, revealing themselves to Karna, Vidar (carrying the snoring Sorcha), Claude, Lorenz, and Lysithea.
"Hey guys," the Professor waved his hand, "finally found you all-OH MY FUCKING MOTHER'S ARSE! WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO HIS FACE?!"
Upon seeing Shahid's exposed skull on the left side of his face, Claude and Lorenz immediately back away while Lysithea vomits on her own shoes in sheer digust.
"Pussies," scoffed Topaz as she then seized her victim by his head before dragging his feet across the ground like a child dragging its doll lackadaisically. "... For now, I propose we head back to the others."
The little mutant Hassashin then walks in through the hole that she'd emerged/rammed out from.
"Follow me!" she remarked to the others. "This way's the shortcut!"
The group then follow Topaz as they all walk through the series of holes that the mutant Hassashin had plowed the unfortunate Ameer through during his execution course that consisted of several buildings with their corresponding amount of walls, all the while there being a consistent streak of blood left behind the wreckages' side.
"Oh my Goddess, Topaz, haven't you heard the definition of 'overkill'-" Lysithea's words were interrupted as a wet sound was heard from under her foot. She then lifts up before screaming at the crushed eyeball, looking more akin to tree gum than anything resembling a human organ. "WHY IS THIS HAPPENING TO ME?!"
"This coming from a magical powder keg barely scratching past five feet in vertical height is just rich," snickered Topaz. "Trust me, if the Almyrans don't sell you off as a bedwarmer, then they'll consider your talents as another valuable asset."
"Good grief, Almyran treat women like garbage, don't they?" Lorenz sighed. "... Granted, my mother wasn't better off, but still, Goddess bless her soul."
"Eh, it's... complicated," Karna explained. "Laymen's terms, women at Almyra don't have any rights like self-determination or even education, but in exchange, the men are expected to ensure their happiness and safety, and even the slightest sign of domestic abuse can get them beheaded."
"I'll... not pry any further," shrugged Claude. "... Then again, as a son of the Shah himself, I feel like I hold some stake for all this."
"Eh, probably his fault and look what happened to him," Karna pointed at Shahid.
"He was, bar none, the scummiest man I've had the pleasure to send to the afterlife," Topaz remarked. "But in spite of that, he was a worthy combatant, both in wit and strength."
Something the glimmers in the dark, catching Byron's interest and spurring him to run towards it.
"Whoa, sick!" Byron gleefully cackled as he then picked the dropped [Dahaka] as he observed its craftsmanship. "... Light in weight yet durable in make...! Length optimized for mounted combat...! Heavens above, this axe is almost perfect!"
Covetously, Byron stows the looked weapon into himself before huddling it around himself protectively.
"... Mine," hissed the Eligor.
The others adopt a look of bemused bafflement before carrying on and eventually reaching where the others were waiting at.
"Hello everybody!" Karna called out towards the group waiting for them. "How are them works?"
Leonie looked at him unamused. "... Is this all some kind of game to you?!"
"I wouldn't be here now if I was Downer-Debbie 27/4," he retorted as he then looked up where Selene was perched from. "Hey there!"
"Professor, dere's sumthin' goin' on over 'dere," she remarked as she readied her [Crossbow].
"Really now?" he replied as he then used his [Gravity H+] to float himself up to the rooftops and try to see what she was seeing. "... Is that griffin?"
"Uh... Professor?" asked Selene. "... Is dat griffin carryin' sumone?"
Karna blinked for a second before trying to come up with the words he was supposed to speak. "... Pardon?"
Selene then squints her eyes closer together to better focus in on what was flailing around the griffin's frontal talons. She faintly makes out a vague humanoid shape flailing about below the beast. Then she spots color grey around where the head should be, indicating an advanced age.
"... Okay, so far, it's an ol' geezer," she muttered to herself as she kept staring. "... 'Nd de clothes it's wearin'... looks nice, a bit of green 'nd yellow... Ugh, ye gods, can't see shite."
Selene the jumps back down on the alleyway in frustration and joining up with the rest of the group. "... Okay, so 'ere's wat I got."
As she began explaining to the others, Vidar then kneels down to where Leonie was situated at, the latter looking at him with utter contempt.
"... Don't pity me," she grimaced.
Vidar shook his head. "... No," he answered, "... you... strong... but... it hard... to feel... weak... like me."
Leonie scoffs. "... Whatever."
As Vidar stepped away from the one-legged Bow Knight, he then rejoins the group being explained of Selene's testimony.
"Okay, so an old man was kidnapped by a griffin," Karna remarked. "... Why?"
"Definitely a hostage," answered Holst. "... But who?"
"Someone important," Claude pointed out as he began piecing the information together. "... Selene, you mentioned grey hair and yellow and green clothes, right?"
"Uh, yeh," she nodded. "Why?"
Claude then turned towards Karna with the utmost urgency. "... They got my gramps."
Karna blinked as he then figured out what the enemy's plans were this whole time. "... Motherfucker," he cursed as he looked towards the half-faced Shahid. "YOU MEAN THAT THIS SON OF A BITCH WAS A DECOY?!"
"No time to explain!" Lorenz then mounted onto his horse before taking Claude up with him. "WE MUST MAKE HASTE!"
A neigh was then heard from afar followed up by the thundering drumming of hooves.
"Darius!" Cyrus cried out as his mighty horse galloped towards him before the former seamlessly leapt onto his back. "Alright, who's coming with me?!"
"Make room!" Karna then used his [Scythe of Sariel] to vault onto the Battu Steppe King's mighty back. "The rest of you, get to safety! Or any place cleaner than here!"
The four then make their way towards where Duke Riegan was held above at. As they closed in, the skies above became more populated with Griffin Knights surrounding the whole perimeter, each man being armed with a [Taksh] crossbow and a lance with blackened finishes, their sable blades gleaming in the night sky like miniature stars.
"... I don't like the look of this," grimaced Claude.
"Neither do I," Lorenz agreed. "... This is all beyond harrowing."
As the four then approached the epicenter, a person was waiting for them at its center.
"... (You're late)," she spoke in Almyran, revealing herself to the four.
"(Well excuse me, the whole war thing kinda slowed us down, so sorry if we couldn't be punctual)," Karna replied in fluent Almyran.
Then next to them, Count Gloucester rode up to the five before dismounting. "YOU THERE!" he spoke to the woman. "WHAT IS GOING ON?!"
"Uh, sir?" Cyrus spoke out. "I don't think she even speaks a lick of Fodlan."
"THEN HAVE HIM TRANSLATE!" he barked back as he caught Karna's attention. "... So, who is she?"
Karna translates what the Count had said to the woman.
"I am Princess Khawlah Al-Mansur I Muhammad, 'The Ruthless'," Karna translated back to the Count. "And I have taken your leader hostage. So if you wish for his safety, surrender."
Count Gloucester snarled as he ground his teeth together. "... Insolence," he growled. "JUST WHAT ARE YOU HERE FOR?! WHAT DO YOU WANT?!"
Karna again relays the message back to the Amira before resuming his translation.
"You are not in the position to demand anything from us," Karna translated. "If anything, we are the ones demanding capitulation. Our negotiators were dismissed by your officials as barbarians even after they took the time out of their lives to learn your language, so we are to resort to force in order to get you all to listen."
"YOU WERE ATTACKING US LONG BEFORE YOU SENT AMBASSADORS!" the Count pointed out. "THAT'S NOT HOW NEGOCIATIONS WORK!"
Karna translates again, to which Khawlah then scoffs before handing him a telescope and pointing her finger towards the sea.
"... How do you use this?" he asked before Karna snatches it out of his hands and uses it in his place.
He then extends the device outwards, peeks his eye through the looking glass towards the sea, and upon seeing what he's seeing, he almost drops the device out of pure shock.
"... Count," Karna then handed him the telescope. "... You might wanna look."
He then peers through the glass, and spots Sir Alois and Sir Gilbert from the Knights of Seiros being held overboard by chains, hanging over the bow like bait on the lines ready to be cast out into the waters.
"What the...?!" he gawked as he then turned towards Khawlah.
"(Surprised)?" the Amira then smirked. "(It took me and my personal Battalion, the [Mubashir] alone, less than a month to overrun Morfis and enslave its people and Pharaoh. That was practice. Now, here are the terms and conditions: surrender, and I shall release them and open for further negotiations. Resist, and I shall burn this whole continent down to dirt within a year)."
Karna then reluctantly translates what she'd just demanded. "... Don't," he begged. "A single shot of their secret cannon has wiped out an entire port. That was a warning shot. Next one will be aimed right at us."
The Count gritted his teeth in frustration. "... Can't you do something about this?!"
"I could by killing her now, but it will most likely trigger a deadlier retaliation from the Shah himself," Karna pointed out. "... This ain't like the Fodlan's Throat anymore. They're out for fucking blood, and even though they'll have the possibility of losing the possible war, the entirety of Eastern Fodlan will a scene out of the Devil's dreams."
"(I'm running out of patience)," growled Khawlah. "(Make your choice now, or I'll do it for you)."
Karna then sighs before looking at the Count with a heavy. "... Sorry, but even I'm not dumb enough to deliberately start a war."
Karna then steps up before the Amira before kneeling before her.
"We surrender," he spoke in Almyran.
Khawlah nods before pulling out a flintlock pistol and firing it into the air, illuminating a green flare. Upon that signal, the griffin carrying Duke Riegan then descends back down on earth, eventually let go upon reaching a safe enough of a height to drop him into the Count's arms.
"Are you alright?" asked the Count.
"... I'll live," he answered with labored heaving. "... Blasted curs, fighting dirty like that."
"I'm just glad you're alive, gramps," Claude pointed out as he helped him get around. "... So, Karna had to call a surrender for your sake."
"... Regrettable," he grimaced. "... I'd condone it... but she also threatened to kill the people if we didn't surrender as well."
"Cowards, all of them!" Lorenz cursed.
"Nah, I'd do the same," shrugged Cyrus. "They're fighting smart by aiming for the leader, and their raid upon us was a show of force."
A sense of total defeat pervaded everyone's hearts as the [Mubashir] began dispersing throughout the ruined city of Derdriu, informing their [Rashidun] compatriots to round up the remaining Alliance military back to the rear lines to quash further resistance.
The words "surrender or they die" spoken in broken Fodlan tongue was echoed throughout, breaking what little fighting spirit the Alliance military had left.
"... I'll go deliver the bad news to everyone else," sighed Cyrus as he got back onto his horse. "... This fucking sucks! WE LOST DAMMIT! FUUUCCCKKK!"
Karna then turned towards the Amira as Cyrus rode away swearing like the sailor. "... (So)," he spoke in Almyran, "... (our negotiations)?"
"(I gave my word)," she replied as her [Mubashir] Griffin Knights flew in with their mounts carrying crates with their frontal talons. "(The future of this nation that you now represent rests solely on your words and appeal. That much, I can promise you)."
Karna then lets out a blustering sigh before bracing himself to deal with the incoming fallout of this defeat.
To Be Continued...
Author's Notes: Yep. The Dustbin lost this one.
Not because they were too weak, but because they were outplayed by a foe that was more numerous and unscrupulous as them. Basically, if Shahid's army in Three Hopes were massive in numbers, then Khawlah's tactics and her own personal Battalion fresh out of conquering Morfis turns the army of unmotivated soldiers into a deadly and ruthless fighting force. Shahid was patsy to further Khawlah's plans. He had the chance to stay on the ship, but alas, he just had to show off how cool his [Rashidun] were.
Khawlah earned the moniker of "The Ruthless" for a good reason. She and her [Mubashir] are black-ops to Shahid and his [Rashidun]'s spec-ops. The former ensures that they leave no witnesses unless said otherwise.
And yeah, this whole arc was meant to show that the Almyrans' performance at Fodlan's Throat was them softballing. When Almyra goes to war, their borders are painted red. Nader lived up to his title as "The Undefeated" by him making Duke Goneril a complete joke, Shahid, for all of his faults, was proven to be a capable and ruthlessly cunning combatant (and the only reason he lost is that Topaz is more Demonic Beast than human at this point), and saying anything about Khawlah would be redundant. Let the whole arc speak for the rest of her.
As for our protagonists, well, Leonie's resolve is now shaken, Hilda lost her left eye from a misfire, two out of five of the Five Great Lords ate shit, and now the Dustbin's pride and reputation as invincible troublemakers is put into doubt.
So really, this is the Dustbin's first uncontested loss. Now they'll have to learn how to deal with it, and hope that the [Dantalion Cannon] doesn't wipe them and everyone else off of the map in the next chapter.
Now if you excuse me, I have a webcomic script to edit and another to draft. See you whenever around Feburary.
References:
- Khawlah's Griffin Knights' crossbow weapons, along with her own, the [Taksh] and [Aqqar], are imports from Fire Emblem Radiant Dawn, with the former meaning "one who has an eye in the forehead", "to invent", "to form in the mind", and/or "to create" in Sanskrit, and one of the titles of Ganesha, whose beautiful eyes are like that of a pigeon's. The latter is named after a siege crossbow used by the Saracens (5th Century catch-all for any Arab, Turkish, or any devotee of Islam), its full name being Qaws al-'Aqqar, the "Qaws"-part meaning "bow."
*Disclaimer, I got the latter info from a forum at [ROMhacking dot net] because the Fire Emblem Wiki is stumped on its entomology, so take that as you will. And if the info is valid, someone put that on the Fire Emblem Wiki for clarity's sake.*
- Khawlah's signature weapon, the [Az-zaġāyah], is an Arabic spelling for the Assegai, a light throwing spear originating from the African continent, with its spearhead being forged from Damascus steel, with its absurd length is based of her namesake's legend of using a tentpole to fend off bandits in the desert and Alexander the Great's strategy of better arming his hoplites (by giving them longer spears).
- The ship captain's "mini-cannon iron club" is based off Admiral Vigoro's weapon from Skies of Arcadia.
- Khawlah's griffin, Simurgh, is named after the legendary mythological bird of Iran that is used in many of their iconographies. And her personal Battalion of Griffin Knights, the [Mubashir], mean "Harbingers" in Arabic.
- Shahid's fatal facial horror is based off Gustavo Fring's death from Breaking Bad Season 4, Episode 13 "Face Off," although its method of death is vaguely similar to that of what A-Train did to Blue Hawk during "Herogasm" from Season 3 of The Boys (2019).
