A/N: Shorter than I'd like, but I'm back at it.
Once more, we're sticking with the "Embers" rule for this story, and others..
Meaning, if folks don't like this, it won't be continued. Meaning that if the story itself ain't popular? Well, I won't be able to continue it, sad as that may sound. I'm working two jobs -might need a third soon!- so I barely have time to write; as such, I cannot afford to write something folks don't enjoy. So by all means, speak up! Your voice matters! Make yourself heard! As ever, reviews are the fuel that sustain me. Without them I cannot write a single word. Simple as that. Working nearly all hours of the day keep me absurdly busy, and I can't bring myself to write something folks don't like.
Now for your questions, comments, and concerns. We'll keep it brief this time.
Q: When we gonna see Naruto go all out?
A: Until now, there hasn't been anyone for him to truly fight. As someone pointed out, its important that Naruto not reveal himself and Kurama; because the moment he shows his true nature...well. Everyone's going to realize he's much more than what he claims to be. He could get away with claiming Kurama was born a part of him, due to Serrosh being a part of Godfrey, but even that would be shaky ground.
Ergo, that upsets the Greater Will, Marika, everyone and everything.
Be assured, you'll see him cut loose soon.
Q: Does Naruto have a shadow?
A: He does not. Time will tell if he receives one. And I'm keeping the matter of him possibly being an Empyrean up in the air.
Q: Update schedule?
A: Untraveled Road should be next, since folks are clamoring for that and other RWBY stuff. Already updated Rise of a Beast Hero and The Boys earlier this month. I've got some surprise in store for you all! Hope you look forward to it!
Q: DRAGONS WHEN?!
A: Dragons now, in all their sparky glory.
Q: Godrick gonna be in this? I mean he's Godwyn's son and all.
A: Godrick is a distant DESCENDANT of Godywn, not his son. But suffice to say he might turn out different in this story. I mean, he's a crazed, crusty old man by the time we face him. Who can say what he was like in the beginning?
Hell, according to cut content, he was supposed to be our ally initially.
Q:...I sense chaos coming.
A: Read and see~!
Alright, I've kept you long enough.
As ever, I own no references, quotes, memes or themes. Not a wit or a one.
I'm just a humble author trying to make his way in this wild world, one word at a time.
As ever in the words of Kaif...
...SPOILERS!
"Why do you laugh, child? You face a dragon!"
I'm sorry. I can't help but laugh. Its just...funny. I've fought so many things. But a dragon? That's a first-even for me. I'll give you this. You're definitely the biggest beast I've ever seen. Congratulations. I don't even think the ten tails was this big. But unfortunately for you...
...I...
...we...
...are no child."
~The Conquest Begins.
Fire and Thunder
Gransax the Great struck like a falling star.
In his wake, for the first time since the Age of the Erdtree began, the capital walls were breached. Alas, the sentries weren't aware of him until he came crashing through the clouds. Likewise were the walls torn asunder before anyone knew what truly transpired; the poor souls who manned the heard only the bestial roar of thunder, saw only the towering spark of red lightning...
...then they ceased to be.
Nothing could be done to muffle the sound, however. Nor the sight.
Watchers in the distance saw the death of their brethren. A trumpet went up, joined by another.
Not satisfied with merely breaching the walls, Gransax dragged his great bulk into the city. Great jaws parted, bathing the capital in a storm of golden fire and blood. Knights died by the dozens. Pages were consumed in a torrent of scalding napalm, citizens crushed under avalanches of rubble.
All this, in less than a minute.
Thus did an era of true peace end...
...and the terrible War of the Dragons begin.
(.0.0.0.)
"That is a big dragon!"
Naruto felt his eyes spark at the sight in the distance. He saw the dragon from on high at the base of the Erdtree, heard it bellow a challenge, knew a smile was tearing across his face. Finally, a challenge after all these years. A real fight, a proper adversary. His heart pounded in his ears, the drums of a great hunt out for blood and he found himself standing; reaching for a weapon that was no longer there. He'd show that big bastard what for. See how he liked a tailed beast bomb in his-
"Brother?"
He looked down.
Remembered where -who!- he was.
Right, right. Couldn't go haring off to save the day just yet.
Young Morgott and Mohg looked up at him, clinging to his robes for guidance. They weren't excited. No, nay, never. Not at all. Why would they be? They were just children. Their home was under attack; with each tremor that shook the city, so too did they quiver.
"Aw, don't be scared." he knelt and took them into his arms. "You're safe up here. I've got this."
Mohg frowned at him. ...you're speaking strangely again."
Urk! Preserve his cover!
"I haven't the foggiest idea what you mean." he spoke quickly when Morgott tried to protest. "Now, be good boys and stay here with Alecto and Tiche, alright? They'll look after you."
It was too much for Morgott to endure. "You'e going to fight that thing?! You're mad!"
"No," Naruto chastised "I'm your big brother. Its my job to protect you, ya know."
The Omen Twins looked like they wanted to protest. Eventually, they relented under his glare.
"Good boys." He drew them into another brisk embraces, ruffled their horns, then paused. "Once this mess is over, I'll see if can't do something about these things." another quake rattled the city. He ignored it. "Wouldn't want one of you to lose an eye or something."
...promise?"
"Yup." he smacked his lips, gave Mohg's head a pat, and climbed to his feet.
Alecto quirked a brow the moment he did. "My lord, you cannot hope to fell such a beast alone. I will accompany you."
"Nah." he held up a hand. "You too, Tiche. Stay here with the twins. I'll handle this."
They blinked. The older of the two fund their voice first. "I beg your pardon?"
"Means no." he winked their way. "I don't need any help with this."
"Hast thou taken leave of thy senses?!" Tiche latched onto his arm, stalling him. "That is no mere "this" out there. 'Tis a great dragon!" she jabbed a pale finger at the madness taking place down below. "A dragon among dragons, the largest we've ever seen!"
Gransax roared in the distance, echoing her claim. A dragon among dragons indeed. He couldn't wait to fight him.
"My daughter speaks truly." Alecto took hold of his other limb, distracting him. "This is foolishness.
Aw, they were worried. Cute. He shook himself free. "Still gonna try."
"Then you will surely die!"
He quirked a brow at Tiche. "Do you think so little of me?"
If he words weren't enough to quell, his look was. She drooped, bright eyes flicking to her feet.
...no." Tiche stepped into him, stood on the tips of her toes and delivered a swift peck to his chin. "But if you must go, at least allow me to give thee...this."
In the same instant, she draped an odd necklace around his neck. Naruto reflexively touched a hand to it, frowning a little and the red-gold metal. Its touch brought with it a curious sense of vitality -not that he needed it!- leaving him all but buzzing with energy.
Deep inside him, Kurama perked up. "Well, that's certainly something...
"'Tis a Crimson Amber Medallion." Tiche averted her eyes when he looked her way. "It should allow thee to endure grievous wounds."
"'Oh, very well!" Alecto flung up her arms. "This is a fool's errand, but if I cannot dissuade thee...
Before he could think to stop her, Tiche's mother tore a long strip of cloth from her transparent blue veil. From there she took hold of his right arm and wrapped neatly to the elbow-pausing only to remove one of the many golden bangles from her wrist. Her hands worked quickly from there; she used the metal as a crude clasp of sort to secure the fabric there.
Another talisman, no doubt. Dark cloth with a pale lustrous sheen, it almost seemed to gleam in the mid-morning light.
"A concealing veil." she hastened to explain when he turned a questing look her way. "It should hide thee from the beast's sight for a time."
He couldn't help the wide grin that stretched across his face. "Awwww...you do care!"
She scoffed. "Of course I do. You are my lord. Here...let me remind thee."
Her lips alighted upon his.
Tiche whined. "Mother! Cease that at once!"
"If thou wished to embrace him, you should have done so earlier, child of mine."
Naruto bit back a smile as Tiche rounded on him, eyes blazing. He had an inkling of what she intended. Sure enough, twin palms clamped upon on either side of his face. He heard her take a deep breath to steady herself, then she dragged him down into a fierce, if clumsy kiss. He knew better than to respond, and simply held her; embraced all but threw herself against him, clinging to him for dear life until she had to break for air.
"Be safe." she whispered softly. "If ye die today...I'll kill thee."
...isn't that a bit redundant?"
"You know what I meant!" She slapped his chest and stalked away
Alecto quirked a brow. "Well played, mine daughter."
Tiche absolutely hissed. "'Tis not a play at all! You would know if you ceased thy games-
He was moving almost before he realized it; leaving their squabble behind to join the fray. At first he bounded down the steps three at a time, and when that wasn't fast enough, he took to the rooftops themselves. Great leaps devoured the distance between him and the great wyrm below. Even from here he could feel it; countless lives, snuffed out in an instant. His enthusiasm for the fight faded, tempered by the loss of life. Gransax was a mighty dragon indeed, quite possibly the greatest, even.
It would take more than wise words and talismans to fell him.
And yet distant laughter told him someone had already engaged the beast in battle. Didn't take much to guess who.
"Of course he's down there."
Naruto grit his teeth as he spied a familiar ax-wielding man hewing against a giant leg. He winced when Gransax rounded on him, driving a towering golden bolt down, narrowly deflected at the last. Even that effort sent him crashing down to a knee.
Oi! Old man! Don't go dying on me!"
He found
The old man boomed another laugh and hefted his ax as he climbed back to his feet. "What a dragon this is! Ha! T'will will be a worthy death!"
Godwyn rounded on him with a dangerous smile. "Don't even think about it."
Blast. He winced. "T'was merely a jest, my son."
"Sure it was...
The great dragon growled down at them. "Who dares challenge the mighty Gransax?!"
Naruto bit his lip. He tried. He really did. Even then, he couldn't quite quell the snicker that followed.
A giant eye locked onto him, brimming with raging wrath. "Why do you laugh, child? You face the truest of dragons!"
"I'm sorry." he sighed, wiping a mirthful tear from the corner of his eye. "I can't help but laugh. Its just...funny. I've fought so many things. But a dragon?" bare arms spread wide, shimmering with sparks. "That's a first-even for me. I'll give you this. You're definitely the biggest beast I've ever seen." he would never disrespect his foe for that much, at least. "Congratulations. I don't even think the ten tails was this big. But unfortunately for you...
...I...
...we...
...are no child."
His eyes flashed red.
"And this is the end for you."
Gransax saw it and reared back. "Then fell me if you can! Fail, and I shall fell thine city!"
A flicker of concern stirred in him. He'd wanted to fight Gransax, but that was an awful lot of power building up in that bolt of his. As he looked on the clouds darkened from on high. An awful ringing rose in his ears as that terrible spear began to pulse an awful, ominous red. Gransax's arm swept back with slow, ponderous intent. He could have sent it crashing down and destroyed everything.
But he didn't. Maybe it was some strange semblance of honor. Perhaps he simply wished for a proper challenge, who could say?
"Prepare thy strongest attack." Regardless, he rumbled his challenge. "I shall pierce it, and thee, in a single strike!"
Kurama stirred to life within him. "One strike? One kill?"
'Let's do that.'
Naruto rocked upright and opened his right hand. Blue light burst between his fingertips. Kurama's cloak engulfed his right arm. Not his entire body, just that limb. It was enough. More than enough. A keening Rasengan howled to life, small at first, then larger. Larger still. Yet larger, now...
Bigger.
No, bigger.
He needed more than this.
Naruto's arm swept up. A giant rasengan rose with it, casting him in its baleful, beautiful blue shadow. He heard Godfrey -Dad!- say something, but his words were lost in the roaring energies held overhead. Just as well, too; the mighty dragon saw his doom coming, and brought that awful lance of his to bear with a defiant yowl. Red lightning swelled, reaching a feverish pitch. No doubt he intended to pierce it, then devastate the capital in a singular strike.
A sound strategy...until the rasengan swelled larger still.
Gransax's bolt struck its shimmering surface and found itself summarily diverted, its piercing edge skittering aside. Crimson radiance whistled past to obliterate a nearby building, root and stem. And the Rasengan crashed down on the beast's head. For a mere moment, he thought he saw a flicker of surprise -acceptance?- in the old dragon's eye. But there was also so much fear. Terror pierced the wyrm's heart like a blade, bringing with it the true knowledge of what he faced, and the dread for his people.
Naruto always remember the words that followed. He would never forget them; simply because he couldn't.
A presence brushed his mind, the last fleeting thoughts of the doomed wyrm.
"I...will not be the last...my children will come. Please, spare them...
"I promise." his closed his eyes. "...and I'm sorry."
The rasengan detonated in all its fiery glory.
Let there be light.
A/N: Aaaand scene.
Worry not, we'll see Lansseax and Fortisax next chapter.
Yes, both talisman is a thing in the game and the invisible one is a PAIN to fight.
Do you want this to be a story? Yes? No? Maybe so? Make yourselves heard!
Once more, we're sticking with the "Embers" rule for this particular story, and others.
If folks don't like this, it won't be continued. Meaning that if the story itself ain't popular? POOF! Gone. Completely. I'm working two jobs -might need a third soon!- so I barely have time to write; as such, I cannot afford to write something folks don't enjoy. So by all means, speak up! Your voice matters! Make yourself heard! As ever, reviews are the fuel that sustain me. Without them I cannot write a single word. Simple as that. Working nearly all hours of the day keep me absurdly busy, and I can't bring myself to write something folks don't like.
Aaaand there we go. As ever, reviews keep me alive. Without them, I cannot write. So...in the Immortal Words of Atlas...
...Review...Would You Kindly? And have some previews -potential blot bin things- that I'm working on.
(Previews)
Fortisax reared back, looming large over him. "You would face a dragon? Bold, even for one of your kind."
The demigod's smile worried the dragon more than he cared to admit. "I've faced worse."
"You don't lack for spirit, it seems." He conjured a scarlet spear to his claw. "Come, then! To battle!"
Lansseax blinked. Once. Twice. Thrice.
On the third, her golden eyes narrowed to dangerous slits.
"Peace?!" laughter burst out of her human lips, a harsh, bitter bark that drew a frown from the golden god before her. "Between our kind?! No. Nay. Never. Your depredations will not be tolerated."
"What will it take to convince you?"
He wanted to play that way, did he? So be it."
"Lop off your right arm." she hissed. "Then I'll give you peace."
Godwyn -Naruto!- shrugged and raised his blade. "A small price to pay."
Surely he would flinch. He was not a Dragon. He lacked strength. Resolve and-
She grabbed his wrist as the weapon fell. "What are you doing?! T'was a jest! A jest!"
"I've waited ever so long to meet you, my lord." the black-robed woman dipped a curtsy. "I am Fia."
"As expected of my son! You hold little back, both on and off the field of battle."
Naruto palmed his face, cursing himself for the slip. "...how much of that did you hear, exactly?"
Godfrey rumbled a laugh; it was a deep, throaty sound he seldom heard these days. "Enough. But it matters naught."
"Eh?"
"You are my son, Godwyn." a large hand came down on his shoulder. "Whatever you were in another life, whoever you were before, it means little to me. I raised thee...and I may not see thee for some time.
"Hey...you're starting to scare me. You're acting like your leaving."
"Remember my son, I am proud of thee. I always will be.
"Oi! Knock it off! Stop acting like this! I mean it!"
"Trust in thine mother. Marika has a plan."
"Never change, little Ranni...
The child stomped her foot. "I am not little! Cease thy prattling."
Naruto bit his lip to stifle his laughter. He knew she'd never forgive him if he snickered now.
He should be dead.
Why?! Why wasn't he dead?!
...I know your kind. You never learn...unless you're made to learn."
As they looked on aghast, Godwyn dragged himself up onto one knee. A hand rose. Tore his bloody robe away.
"Very well." he exhaled slowly, a low burst of steam leaving his lips. They couldn't see his eyes, not with him hanging his head like that. "I've given thee courtesy enough...
His back glowed gold. Then a monster burst forth.
"Then we're all in agreement, then? All of us?"
He turned to face those sitting at the table. They were many.
Some might call this treason. Perhaps it was-no, it almost certainly was.
"Would you like an heir, my dear Godwyn?" She touched a hand to her still-flat stomach. "You have but to ask. Woulds't thou care for a son, perhaps? Or mayhap a daughter...?"
Naruto felt the tips of his ears burn a bright red.
R&R~!