The story has elements of both Dark War storyline and DemonxBunny's Masters of the Multiverse, so all credit goes to both Impact Wrestling and DemonxBunny. I do not own the characters, only the OCs. The story is entirely fictional.
Characters may look and act different than they do in real life. This was done intentionally, and things will change over time in this story, so please be patient.
Rating: M, for violence, coarse language, and mature themes/events that will appear throughout this story. Remember, this is Femslash, so if that's not your thing, you may not like this story.
Pairings: Allie/Rosemary (DemonxBunny), others over time.
Aftermath of the Dark War Chapter 21: Healing, Battle, and Premonitions by Jurassicfatt
Allie's Pov, Town Hall, Western Village
An elderly village woman thanks me as I bandage up the gash going across her left arm. Seeing that Geoffrey and his nurses were stretched thin, I took to Rosemary's words and asked if there was anything I could do to help. Geoffrey gave me two rolls of white wrap bandages, some sort of purple antiseptic, a washcloth, and a pail of water, and told me to look for anyone with minor injuries. He said if I see anyone with something worse than cuts or bruises, I should call him or the others and they'll move them to the makeshift infirmary. I took first aid back in high school, so I should be okay.
Looking around the main entrance of the town hall, I can't help but feel sad for the villagers. Watching them shift around uncomfortably in the cramped area. Hearing them cry, whimper, and mumble prayers. I can feel their pain without a word being uttered. I see a man sitting on the floor with scraped knees. Next to him is a little girl in a simple green dress. They look almost identical, so I assume a father and daughter. She can't be more than 7 years old, and has twin pigtails in her red hair. I walk over to the two.
"Need some help?" I ask. The little girl looks up at me.
"Yes, thank you." the man says, his green eyes looking over to his legs. I kneel down and take a look. The left knee is much worse than the right. I put the cloth in the water pail and clean his scraped knees of dirt and blood. I then pour a little bit of antiseptic on both, causing the man to grit his teeth. The little girl watches me, her gaze kind of disconcerting. Her green eyes are distant, staring directly at the pail of discolored water. Remembering how the other villagers were scratching at their eyes and smashing their skulls against walls, she's probably still processing what she saw. I know I am. Wrapping up the man's knees tightly, but with enough room for the wounds to breathe, I turn to her.
"You okay?" I ask. She looks up at me quickly, nodding, before putting a hand to her head and scratching above her right pigtail.
"She hasn't spoken since the attack. I was at a neighbour's house bartering for some crops last night when I heard the townsfolk screaming about the Warlord sighting. Serena was playing outside. I grabbed her and hid with our neighbour over night. When morning came, we looked outside and saw this carnage. Some of the villagers began breaking down the doors. We escaped through the back and ran here with the others, but I fell and ended up scraping my knees." the man tells me.
"I'm so sorry you two had to go through this." I tell him.
"We are too. But now that an assassin has arrived, we should be okay. You came in with her, didn't you? Is she good?" the male villager asks.
I nod. "Best I've ever seen." I say to him. I can't help but hope Rosemary's alright. If this thing killed the other assassin, who knows how dangerous it could be?
I can tell she's still upset. I didn't realize how bad my dreams were. I thought it was just leftover trauma from what happened, and I didn't want to drag her into more of my issues. After all, I only met her about a month ago. A month since I was brought the Undead Realm. It feels like it's been way longer. I notice the little girl close her eyes, a look of pain coming over her face.
"Hey, are you sure she's alright?" I ask again. The father looks to his daughter.
"Serena, is something wrong? Are you hurt?" he asks, grabbing her and pulling her close. He checks her head, arms and legs, as well as her stomach and back for bruises or cuts. Nothing. She looks down at the pail again, before yawning. He turns to me. "I don't see anything. Maybe she's just tired. If anything changes, I'll bring her to one of the aids."
"Okay. If you feel any warmth or itchiness from the cuts, you should come to the infirmary, too."
"Thank you again." he tells me. I nod and get up, taking the pail, antiseptic, and bandages in hand. I bandage up a few more villagers and then make my way back to the infirmary. On the way there, I hear loud voices shouting. Dropping the pail and going through the small doorway, I see one of the villagers on a cot shaking violently, two aids holding him down.
"The whispers! I need, ahhh!" he yells, his eyes dark and roaming for something. He sees some sort of surgical tool on the ground and tries to reach for it, but the aids continue to hold him in place as Geoffrey arrives. He and the aids strap him to the cot, before Geoffrey takes a vial of some sort, holds the man's mouth open and pours the liquid down his throat. He continues to thrash around, albeit with less intensity.
"There, that should start working in a few minutes." Geoffrey remarks, placing the vial back in his front shirt pocket and rubbing his forehead. I go over to him.
"What happened?" I ask.
"Another villager trying to harm himself. Many of the townsfolk had wood planks and rocks pelted at them during this morning's attacks by the afflicted. It has been difficult to determine who has a simple head injury and who is hearing voices. Some have both, adding more confusion to the matter. That's the fourth one to try in less than an hour. I give them a liquid sedative in order to calm them down." he explains to me.
I tell him I've finished tending to the villagers and ask if there's anything else he needs help with. He asks me to use wet compresses to help cool down some of the sleeping patients. I use the compress on five patients, while Geoffrey checks their pulse and injuries. On the sixth patient, he opens his mouth, before screaming can be heard outside the room. We turn around and see numerous villagers run through the main door of the infirmary, yelling 'fire!' and 'they're coming!'. I notice Serena and her father among them. Geoffrey and I help the people in, before going to close the entrance door. The last villager comes in, a tall blue skinned demon with large bushy silver eyebrows, holding a broken stick.
"What happened? Is there anyone else in the main room?" Geoffrey asks.
"Everyone still alive has been brought here. Some of the villagers went berserk again! One in particular, Targo, began speaking of the whispers. With his pitchfork, he knocked over many lamps, the oil spraying onto other villagers and causing them to catch fire. He then stabbed himself in the stomach with it. The men and I tried to put the fire out, but then a bunch of the villagers jumped onto the flames and ran at us. They caught many of the elderly and some of the men, lighting them aflame and spread the fire to the walls. I told the others to run, grabbed a broken tool, and held off the flaming crazies. We are all that's left." he says to us grimly. I see smoke and the light of a flame at the end of the hall. I cover my mouth as Geoffrey closes the door. I take a few washcloths, drench them in water from a pail, and place them at the bottom of the door. "We need to get everyone out of here. But how?" the blue demon questions.
"There's a window in the storage closet, to the left. We can break it and get everyone out. Come!" Geoffrey explains, before we run to the closet and open the door. Geoffrey tells everyone the plan, saying the young, old, and injured will be first to leave, followed by the other villagers and that he will leave last.
"What? And go outside when that Warlord is still running around? No way! We should wait for the assassin to return." a villager woman says, others agreeing with her.
"What is the matter with you? If we stay here, we will all burn!" the blue demon with the eyebrows speaks out.
"We cannot stay. We must leave. Plus, the assassin will protect us from the Warlord." Geoffrey states firmly, motioning for the blue demon to break the window. He walks into the other room. A moment later, the sound of glass breaking can be heard.
"That's what you said about the other one, yet there he lays!" a woman speaks up, pointing to the body. "How can we believe this one will be any different?"
"Rosemary is one of the greatest assassins I have ever seen! I've seen her kill Warlords, both large and small. She will protect us. She probably already killed the thing by now." I tell them, hoping to change their minds. They begin to murmur amongst each other before Geoffrey motions his aids to help with the injured.
"We have no time to debate this! The window has been broken fully, but be careful on the way out. Children, elderly, and injured first." he says. I help bring some of them to the window, the air in the room becoming darker by the minute. I can only hope what I said was right, that Rosemary has dealt with the Warlord and hasn't been injured too badly. God, please be alright!
Rosemary's Pov, Village Center
I wake up in a jolt. I grab my sword tightly in my hand and quickly search the area, ready for a fight. To my surprise, I haven't been attacked yet. I slowly shift my feet, scan the white stone wells for movement, and keep an ear out for a sound of any kind. Yet there is nothing but eerie quiet. Where is it? I hear and feel something shift behind me. I turn around, but don't see anyone, only two imprints in the sand where the figure was. Bipedal, human-like feet with five toes. Catching a glimmer in the corner of my eye for a split second, I duck and slash my sword behind me. Another blade clashes mine and I feel something slash above my head, before pair of feet jump away from me. Standing upright, I finally see the creature.
The Warlord is actually smaller than I am by a few inches. It has a female human-like body, with wide hips and breasts, but it is still quite thin and boney. Its skin is a platinum blonde color, making it barely visible against the sandy terrain of the town. It is barefoot, with human-like feet. Its small hands, with long purple nails, hold two kukri-style blades. The hilts are a dull gray, the blades themselves pure black, with silver only at the very tip. Large thin red veins paint its forearms, twisting around in spirals all the way up to the shoulders. Those must be the markings Geoffrey mentioned. It has similar style veins on its legs. Small brown holes cover the neck, the body part expanding with air every few seconds. The Warlord's head is shaped like a square diamond, with no eyes, nose, ears, or mouth.
It faces my direction. In seconds, it runs at me full force with its arms by its sides. I clutch my sword in both hands and run straight for it, adrenaline kicking in. We both jump towards each other, the Warlord stretching its arms out to cut me from both sides. I flip over it, dodge the attack, and slash at its back, drawing blood. The Warlord hisses in pain as I drop to the ground and turn towards it. As I land, I feel a sharp pain in my shoulder. Fuck! The Warlord lands on its feet, still clutching the blades, blood leaking down its back and falling onto the sand below. It begins to speak aloud, the sound coming from its neck region.
"*Hiss* You little… You will pay for that with your life!" the Mother of the territory says with venom. It runs at me again, this time with blades in front. It tries to cut me multiple times, but I block, dodge, and weave away from the attacks, ignoring the pain. Anticipating where it will strike next, I slam my sword hard against the right blade, causing the Warlord to drop it. I swiftly swing at its head, but it blocks my attack with its remaining left blade.
I push hard against the blade, and the Warlord strains, its knees buckling as it hisses at me again. Using whatever strength it has left, it forces both blades out of our hands and then kicks me with a step up enziguri. I drop to one knee as the Warlord grabs my hair, yanks it hard, and throws me head first towards one of the wells. I place my hands in front of me to stop myself, before back kicking the Warlord in the face. It falls to the ground as I turn around. I see it looking at the blade I knocked away earlier. It runs for it, but I hit the Warlord with a dropkick, the soles of my boots colliding with its midsection. I land on my stomach, to avoid hurting my shoulder anymore. Scrambling to my feet, I grab the blade and try to stab its neck, but it tackles me down, the blade flying out of my hands. I land hard on my back. Ow! The Warlord punches me over and over. I quickly cover up and block as many punches as I can. I put a hand around the Warlord's neck and squeeze hard, eliciting a strangled hiss sound out of the creature. I flip our positions and begin laying punches of my own, many connecting with its head.
"AH! ENOUGH!" the creature yells, before sliding a leg between us and kicking me away. I see the Warlord scramble to a standing position and start to bolt. I push myself to my feet and run to intercept it.
"Get over here, sand bitch!" I yell, grabbing its head. The Warlord elbows me in the ribs and then punches me in the jaw, my grip loosening as a result. The Warlord breaks free, before going in the direction of the town hall. What a day to leave my hook on my bike. Grabbing my sword from the ground, I run as fast as I can, pushing through the pain. I begin to hear the villagers yelling, and sprint towards the sound. I reach the building. It is completely demolished; a fire has caused it to collapse, as black smoke clouds paint the sky above the rubble. No, no, please tell me Allie isn- I hear villagers screaming to my right. This time I can hear Allie among them.
"What is she doing?" she screams.
"Serena, get away from it!" I hear a man yell. I follow the sounds until I finally reach them. I spot some villagers standing near a small building, their sweat-soaked faces and wide eyes staring at a scene in front of them. I run up and see Allie standing next to a green-eyed bald man. Both of them speak to a small little girl, red pigtails in a green dress, who stands just inches away from the Warlord. The girl holds her head in her hands, then starts to speak.
"The whispers hurt. Mummy, can you help?" she asks, her innocent voice ringing out. Her green eyes are unnaturally dark, like she's in some sort of trance. The Warlord turns its head to her, then reaches out to grab the little girl.
"Leave her alone!" the man says, running at them. The Warlord grabs him by the neck with both hands, while the little girl stands perfectly still, unfazed by the actions. I run towards them with my sword in hand, but the Warlord spots me.
"MOVE AND SHE DIES!" she screeches out angrily, grabbing the girl's slender neck with her right hand, ready to snap it at a moment's notice. The veins on the arm holding the man seem to move, extending past the hand and up the Warlord's fingers. The man's neck begins sporting the same veins, his mouth open and eyes closed as color slowly drains from his face. The Warlord tips its head back, feeding (assumingly) off of the man's blood, but still keeping its right hand on the little girl. As I inch closer to the three, Allie turns her head to me and we lock eyes. She's only about five feet from them and is also moving closer. She pulls something from her belt and shows it to me: my knife. I shake my head quickly. Damn it Allie, don't do something stupid! She eyes the little girl, still held by the Warlord. She turns her head to me, then back to them, before she runs and stabs the knife into the Warlord's arm, then the chest.
"AHHHHHH!" she screams as it lets go of the man and the girl. Allie swiftly scoops the little girl into her arms and runs off, the Warlord quickly chasing after her.
"I WILL SLIT YOUR THROAT, REALMER!" the Warlord screams out. And that's the brick that broke this Vrandoff's back. As my anger rises, I feel the amulet heat up, my body alongside it. The voices return, and I feel them completely taking me over. Within seconds, I sprint faster than I ever thought I could, the pain shooting through my shoulder. I watch myself catch up to the Warlord, reach into my jacket with my right hand, pull out a gas bomb, and shove it into one of the Warlord's throat holes. The bomb explodes into green smoke, causing the Warlord to shriek and collapse. It rolls on the ground for a few seconds, before stopping with its face to the dirt. Allie runs behind one of the buildings, still holding the little girl in her arms. I see myself twirl my sword, ready to end the fight. I hear the voice from earlier speak again.
"Make her suffer. Make her bleed, Death Dealer." the raspy voice tells me. The Warlord coughs and tries to get up, but I slash its left thigh open, the blood running down its leg, and another hiss sounding out. I then cut across its back again, the Warlord screaming in pain. It looks up at me, and I swear I can hear a whimper. To know the creature is scared and helpless… makes me joyful. I can't explain it. I feel a smile grace my lips.
"We told you to submit or you would suffer, monster." I say alongside the voices, before I scowl and yell at the Warlord. "YOU DO NOT THREATEN THE BUNNY!" I scream with them, stabbing my sword deep into the Warlord's shoulder, twisting it slowly. A cry of pain comes from the injured creature. Seeing the blood pooling from the large wound, I roughly yank the sword out and kick the Warlord over onto its back. The Warlord continues to cough violently, then speaks in an angry tone.
"*Deep breath, violent coughing* You stupid fool… *Cough, cough* I am trying to save these wretched Realmers!" the Warlord points to them. "I would have bee-e*cough*-n their mother! Protected them. Given them a more merciful death!"
"Your lies mean nothing, wretch. No one here believes you." 'we' say to it.
"*Cough* Well, believe this. I can peer into the future, assassin. A great conflict is coming, one even you cannot comprehend. I know not where it comes from, nor who or-*cough*-chestrates it. Only that it is near." the Warlord then laughs. "You will be powerless to stop it *cough*. The academies will burn. The temples will sink. The cities, destroyed! Everyone will die, including that little bitch of yours!"
I stab into the Warlord's neck and run my sword down its abdomen, blood leaking from neck to navel. She screeches again, before she collapses onto the ground and bleeds out. Pulling my sword from its corpse, I hear the villagers gasp, and then seconds later, cheer over my victory. Allie comes back from behind the building, still holding the little girl. The girl jumps from her arms and runs to the man.
"Papa, Papa! Are you okay? Papa? What's wrong with him?" she asks, tears beginning to form in her eyes. Geoffrey runs up and checks his pulse.
"He's alive, barely. Aids, help me lift him." he says. Two aids grab his legs, Geoffrey takes his shoulders and they carry him to the other building, the little girl following after. Allie then comes into view. She watches them take the man away, before looking down at the Warlord's remains. She looks at me and puts a hand out.
"Rosemary, are you okay?" Allie asks. As I open my mouth to respond, the voice from earlier speaks in my head.
"Assassin, if you wish to know what is happening to yourself, we must meet. Once you are able, find the book of Zarash from your sorcerer friend and contact us immediately. We have much to discuss…" the low/raspy voice says, before disappearing. Wait who are you and why does this keep happening? I think to myself, but no one responds. The voice is gone. The amulet cools and I feel like I'm in full control again. I stretch out my hands a couple times to make sure. I turn to Allie, ready to scold her for what she just did, when I hear the roar of an engine behind me. Turning around, I see a vehicle coming down the hill and straight towards us.
Inching closer by the second, I see it in plain view. A large three-wheeled motorcycle, black and green with silver shamrock-shaped highlights. It parks a few feet from me, the rider disembarking shortly after. A 6ft. man with dark brown hair, a stubble beard, and brown eyes walks up to me. He wears a dark green sleeveless shirt, black elbow/knee armor and a pair of dark green boots with the Northern Heights symbol, although the two icicles, in the shape of an X stabbing up into a mountain, are greener than usual. He has a large baseball bat in his hands, black and silver, with a dark evergreen handle. A light-brown kendo stick is strapped to his back with white rope.
"Assassin." he says, his voice calm and focused.
"Yes?" I answer.
"I'm Professor Eddie Edwards. I teach at the Northern Heights Academy. My students and I have been going through training. One of them, Maran, never checked in. I sent the others back home while I searched for him." he explains. "I spotted his bike outside this town."
"I'm sorry Professor Edwards, but he's gone. When I arrived earlier to deal with the Warlord, the village healer told me they found him this morning. I saw the body myself. Killed by this one." I show him the corpse. He doesn't say a word, just takes a deep breath before speaking again.
"Where is his body?" he asks.
"In the town hall. Some of the mind-controlled villagers set fire to it. We had to escape through the back window." Allie tells the both of us.
"Shit. Take me there. I need to collect his weapon." We lead Edwards to the building, now reduced to smoldering ash and blackened rubble. We help the villagers use water to get rid of what remains of the fire. The smell of soot fills the air. I help him dig through it. We find the body, now charred and smoking. He curses under his breath. Edwards grabs the sword and tries yanking it out, but the handle is too hot to touch. He comes back with his three-wheeler, wraps a chain to the sword and pulls it out of the rubble. He quickly straps it to the back of the bike.
"Was that him?" I ask. He breathes deeply.
"Yes, that's him. He went down fighting. But, damn it, he should have listened to me! I told him it was too dangerous." He stops, then stands up straight and looks in my eyes. "Thank you, assassin. I appreciate you helping me with this. However, I need to ask you for a favor."
"What favor, Professor?"
"As you know, all assassins, if possible, must be buried with proper rights. Maran is dead and I want to bring his belongings back to the Northern Heights. But I have another assignment, to the North-East of this town. I was hoping you would take my place for that, so that I can give him a proper burial." he tells me.
"What kind of assignment?" I question, rolling my shoulder to ease the tension, a move Allie notices.
"Simple. You know the Omni Sports Tournament?" I nod, remember it vaguely from posters around Kaduran. "I've been given the whole 'assassin-on-guard' task. Useless shit, considering Warlords never show up to those events. My student's burial is more important. It would be a big help if you can take my place. But if you can't-"
"No, I understand. I'll fill in for you. I have a companion, though." I say to him. He looks over my shoulder at Allie, before pulling out a triangular atlas. He asks for my name, pushes a few buttons, and then a beeping sound pans out.
"Alright, you've been transferred my assignment. You and your friend are registered. The Tournament starts in three days. Thanks again for this. Oh!" he states, before tossing me a room key. "Just a few miles from here is the Talbott inn, the place I've been staying at. Big enough for four, with a summoning cauldron. It's already been paid, so you and your companion can rest there tonight, then head to the tournament tomorrow." Good, I can call Caretaker and tell him where we're going so Cal can meet us.
"Thank you. I'm sorry about your student." I say to him.
"So am I… Fucking Warlords. Mark my words, I'll make sure he gets a memorial for his service." Edwards tells me, before getting on his three-wheeler and speeding off. I go back to see Geoffrey, informing him the job is done. The villagers thank me for what I did, before saying goodbye. I motion for Allie to follow me, not saying a word.
We won't be going back to Kaduran anytime soon, but she and I are going to have another talk when we get to the inn, that's for damn sure!
Author's Note: Hey everybody. Hope you've been enjoying these updates. So, Allie made good use of her first aid skills, and Rosemary fought with the Mother of the territory. After a hard-fought battle, she tried to 'feed' off a man while threatening to kill a little girl. Luckily, Allie was there to help, much to shock of Rosemary. When the Warlord threatened her, all bets were off! Did she say she 'enjoyed' feeling the Warlord's pain? The voice wants to speak with Rosemary, but how? And we had the introduction of 'Professor' Eddie Edwards! I tried to capture his character as best as I could. I hope I did well. Looks like another assignment for the Demon Assassin and the Bunny: the famed Omni Sports Tournament. I have a feeling Rosemary might be a little pissed at Allie for what she just did in the town, don't you? To find out what happens next, tune in to the next chapter! Until next time, stay safe and warm!
Thanks for reading. If you enjoyed, feel free to review and remember to follow and favorite! It's always appreciated. Have a great weekend!