Hey guys sorry for taking too long to post, my life has been kinda hectic lately. I juts want to let you guys know that this story has been cross posted to Space battles. By the way please stop leaving cryptic reviews on the story, I honestly don't get what you are trying to say. Like what is " When the wind is slow, when the fire's hot
The vulture waits to see what rots" supposed to mean ?
Emiya had many thoughts running through his head as he battled the aquatic abomination that was trying to sink the ship. Where was his Master ? How did he not see something this big coming after them ?
But none of these thoughts ever came close, his shock at the sounds emitted by this creature. Turns out aquatic creatures were also susceptible to the light.
He fired more of his arrows as they exploded into an inferno upon contact. The flesh groaned with the same tune as before, betraying no hint of pain.
However his attack almost damaged the ship in the process as the flesh whale held onto the ship. This was gonna be difficult. He needed to kill this thing without damaging the ship. One hit from his arrows could blow a hole on this ship and cause it to sink.
Just as he was going to formulate a plan his thoughts were cut off by the sounds of familiar groans and clicking, but this time it wasn't coming from the monster he was fighting. He looked over to the horizon and paled as he witnessed 5 fleshy lumps in the distance moving towards the ship emitting the same noise as the flesh he was fighting currently.
"QUETZ ! DRAKE ! WE HAVE GOT COMPANY !" he yelled for their help.
"Kinda busy here Emiya !" Drake replied as she frantically tried to steer the ship away from the monster.
"Emiya, what's the situation ?! Is Master okay ?! Quetzalcoatl called out to him
"I don't know, I heard him yelling earlier !" I replied
Quetzacoatl rushed away quickly upon hearing this.
"Mash, stay with Emiya and protect the ship ! I will look for Master !"
"But shouldn't I come with you ? ! We can find him easier then !"
"No Mash! Your noble phantasm is perfect for protecting us and this ship ! We need you here !"
"But–"
"Don't worry ! I will ensure that Fujimaru will be safe ! Trust me !"
"Yes ! Roger that Quetz !" Mash took off running towards Emiya.
Quetzalcoatl did the same, however, running in the opposite direction. She bursted into the room that her Master was previously in, only to find that the room's floor had collapsed. The prisoner was also missing.
She jumped down the hole frantically searching for her master. She traveled deeper inside the hole as it led her to the lower levels of the ship. Water had reached her ankles as she moved further downwards.
She came across a figure that was hunched over, she moved closer to it as she prepared herself to speak.
"Um Hello, Master is that y–" Her question was cut off by a kick that she swiftly blocked and grabbed.
"Ahh! Get away from me ! A familiar man yelled back in fear.
"Wait, you're the prisoner ! Where is my Master ?!"
"Your Master ?"
"I said answer me now !"
"I don't know ! Please don't hurt me ! I can't handle it anymore please !" the man screamed in fear.
"Calm down, I won't hurt you !"
"You promise ? You won't hurt me like your friend did ?"
"What do you mean ?"
The man didn't respond and instead showed his hands to her. She stood there in shock with her mouth gaping open.
Her master did this ? No, that can't be possible. He wouldn't go this far.
"Why did he do this ?"
"I didn't answer his questions so he got mad and decided to torture me !"
Master wasn't like that. He can't be. I told him that he could talk to me about anything that is bothering him. It seems I have underestimated how badly he has been hurting.
I need to talk to him immediately. He can't keep going on this mission. We need to cancel it ! He is going to lose his mind at this rate.
"We need to find him." she spoke after a long moment of silence
"Hell no ! He is sick in the head ! I am not coming with you !"
"Ok fine, feel free to die here alone then." she walked away as she said it.
The man frantically looked around the room as he heard the sounds of the flesh whale. He quickly ran towards her and decided to follow her.
"You guys aren't those flesh monsters right ?"
"Do I really look like a lump of flesh without solid form ?"
"Well no I just thought you were because those things had the ability to mimic human voices so I really wouldn't put it past them to have the ability to shapeshift."
"Fair enough but a lot of you guys seemed to have this kind of thinking and I had to capture and restrain a bunch of you to prevent you guys from doing something stupid."
"Are they safe ?"
"Yes they are but I might have broken their limbs in the process of restraining them. Sorry."
"It's alright. You didn't have a choice, You are nothing like that psycho friend of yours."
A blade is quickly held towards his throat as he finishes his sentence.
"Woah chil ou– !"
"Never ever insult my master ! He is not a psycho ! He has a name ! Ritsuka Fujimaru."
"Alright, fine ! But level with me here, he broke every single one of my fingers !"
"His head is not in the right place currently. He has suffered alot."
"So have I but you don't see me torturing people."
"You attacked us and we wanted to know if there were more if you guys on this ship that would pose a threat to us."
"Ok you make a fair point but it doesn't change the fact that he took pleasure in my suffering !"
"He is not that kind of person !"
"You said it yourself, he has a few screws loose, he was smiling while breaking my fingers. He kept doing it even when I agreed to talk !"
She stood there not even believing her ears as she listened to the account of this man's suffering under the hands of her master.
"I will talk to him about this. I am sorry, if I had been there I would have stopped him."
"It's alright. Let's just focus on locating him and any of the other survivors of the ship."
As we both headed further down the ship the visibility significantly reduced.
"Hey, do you have a lighter or flashlight I could use ?" the man asked her.
"No I don't but I do have this." She said as she spawned a flame onto her hand.
"What the fuck ?!"
"Lower your voice boy !"
"No you can't just tell me that after you just pulled that shit right now ! How the hell did you do that ?!"
"I am a goddess."
"Quit the bullshit, ain't no way in hell you a goddess !"
"Believe me or don't believe me, I don't really give a damn. My master's goal is to save the remaining humans that have survived this disaster and I am willing to fulfill it for him."
"Fine, have it your way 'goddess'." It's official, he has gone insane. The sun is broken and now a girl with fire powers is claiming to be a goddess in front of him.
"So if you are a goddess, why were you not there to save humanity when the sun started turning people into monsters ?"
"Number 1, I am not as omnipotent as you humans think I am. Number 2, your statement that I was not there to save humanity is incorrect. I have been assisting my Master in saving humanity for the longest time. You have no idea of the threats we in Chaldea have faced."
"What do you mean you have been saving humanity for the longest time ?! Up until a couple months ago there was nothing threatening humanity, what could you have possibly faced that could match the shit show we are currently in ?!"
"How about the incineration of humanity ?"
"What ?"
"Human incineration event. Hmm ? What's the matter ? Oh wait nevermind you probably never noticed it. Your statement that nothing was threatening humanity a couple months before the sun's change is incorrect. Humanity was destroyed in 2015."
"Impossible ! How the hell do you explain me being here to begin with ?!"
"I do not know how there are people still alive outside. The event wiped out all of humanity outside of our base known as Chaldea. My Master has been working tirelessly along with me and several others to restore humanity. The Sun's change caught us off guard and as a result we took a heavy hit. We had no idea that there were humans alive outside, we only realized it a day later. According to our researchers the entire outside world was restored even though all that was left of it previously was a white lifeless void. We still have no clue how it happened, but from your reaction we can assume that some kind of world reset happened that resulted in you and every other human being resurrected without memories of their demise. Almost as if it never happened."
"That can't be possible. There's no way."
"Believe me or not, it is the truth and you have to face it eventually. It is kinda ironic if you think about it, the humanity we were trying to save ended up experiencing a worse fate than incineration the moment they were saved."
"Quit screwing with me ! If what you are saying is true and humanity really did go extinct in 2015, then what year is it now ?!"
"It is 2016."
The man stood still taking in the revelation. His face held a look that barely hid the fear within his heart.
I ignored the man's expression and continued walking. It's no use trying to comfort him. He asked for it when he dared to question my efforts in saving humanity, master's efforts especially!
Silence permeated throughout our walk as neither of us were willing to converse with each other.
I continued down the ship and eventually came across an unconscious body lying in the water. Upon closer inspection I realized that it was Fujimaru ! Shit his face is bleeding. I have got to wrap up those wounds.
"Man he looks like shit." the former prisoner spoke.
"Yeah I know." I replied with a hint of snark in my tone.
"Hey don't judge me, I am just stating the truth."
"At least try to be helpful !"
"Really ? You are asking for my help ?" He stated amusingly as held up his mangled fingers.
I looked away ignoring my stupid question as I wrapped bandages around Fujimaru's forehead.
"̷̧̠͈̲̻̩̩́̀̑͑̊̌͜G̴̨̧͇͚̳̯̥̰̗̜͕̦̝̰̊̏͐̒̍͊̀ŗ̶̛͖̤͇̮̗̱̜͉̼̰̻̩̝̟̄͑͑͌͌̕͠e̵̤̺̣͖͙̗͒̈́̒͋̇̍̏̇̍͂͑̎́̃̚e̶̤̺̝̤͙͓̣̞̥̬͓̺̣͋̓̏͆̅ţ̴̡̛̛̥̲͔̳̼̒̚͘i̶̘͖͊̔͊̓̽̐͂̎n̶̗̯̫͌̓̀̿͒̓̈́̽͠͠g̶͓̘̓͋̅̅͝s̸̨̞̗̝̜̭̦̹̔̔͐ͅ ̵̰͂͆̇̈͊̉̅̈ͅg̷̡̡̛̼̼͖̰͉̱̰̗̰̙͛̓̋̔͒̃̕͘͘ͅͅũ̷̡̬̟͔̭͎̗͎͇̙̞͇̈́̉̔̍̉͐̈́̃͌͋͘͜ę̷̢͖̪̪̼̞̾̓͒͂̍̓́͑̚̕ş̴̢̢͕͔̞̳̠̞̠̖̣̖́̒̍̎͆̔̌̇̇́̍ṱ̸̽̎̓̅̈́̓͌͆s̶̢̝̜̟̞̦̥̖̦̺̰͂̃̑͗͜͜ ̷̢͈͙̩̜̭̜̠̾̅͛̄̔̇̑̉͐̈́̊̊̍̚!̵̢̟̱̠̲͎̹̝̣͈̔̎̍̃̄̇̐͂́"̴̢͉̣̥̗̯͎́́̊̑͌̓̄͐̂͛̕͠
"Great, like moths to a flame they always find us." I sighed in exasperation.
"Shit !" the man cursed
"Watch Ritsuka for me. I will handle them."
"Come on, you can't seriously think you are some kind of goddess to take all of them on !"
"Just watch ! I will show you a fraction of the power of a goddess !"
"You damn idiot !"
"Oh and by the way if you try to betray me and harm Ritsuka then I will catch up to you no matter how fast you run and shove my fist up your culo."
"..."
"Right, time to get started ! This Big Sister is ready !"
She jumped straight into the horde of flesh knocking one of the monsters with a punch. She moved with quick speed and charged the other monsters, launching them off with her kicks.
"Uno, Dos, Tres !" She started counting as the monsters splattered under her punches.
She continued her barrage of punches and kicks until all the monsters became mush.
"Hurry up ! We need to go back to the ship's deck ! These things will come back at any minute."
"What ! I thought you killed them." Just as he finished that sentence he saw the mush that the monsters were turned into had started to move and join together.
"Hurry, we gotta go ! We got someone on the deck who is better suited for killing them !"
The man nodded as he ran carrying Ritsuka to the previous direction they came from. He was followed soon by the goddess that grabbed him and moved through to the upper levels of the ship with immense speed.
By the time he had registered that he had stopped moving he buckled over and threw up on the floor. In the process he almost dropped the goddess's master but he was quickly secured by her. He looked up to the opening above them which had previously been the floor of the room he was imprisoned in.
As he pondered on how to get up there, he found himself in the air. Huh, she really just threw him up here.
"Ouch ! Shit !" He cursed as he landed on his ribs on an unbroken part of the floor.
The Goddess soon followed through as she landed right next to him.
"You know you could have warned me." he remarked
"Come, we don't have time. Put this on." She held out a piece of cloth and some goggles.
"What are these for ?"
"As you are well aware, the Sunlight is capable of turning you into one of those monstrosities the moment its light touches your body. It is best if you wear some protection for your face considering your current winter attire covers most of your body completely. Even if it is cloudy we still don't want to take the risk of any stray beams making it past the clouds."
"Got it." As he carefully walked past the drop on the floor by standing on the remnants of the floor.
He passed the door and proceeded to slowly walk to the outside. He hesitated briefly, what if the sun managed to still affect him ? What if the clothes won't protect him ? As he was about to spiral down his thoughts, the goddess placed her hand on his shoulder giving him a reassuring smile.
He paused as he looked at that smile. It felt so familiar to him. He felt weird. This girl's smile managed to elicit a warm feeling in his heart. The only person who has ever managed to do that was his mother. Ah yes that makes sense now. As he looked at her now he couldn't help but reminisce about his past. He regretted working overseas and leaving his mother alone in her home. He thought that the pay was good enough to keep her safe and stable but he never once bothered to ask how she truly felt about him leaving. She knew he was trying to help her but she never tried to voice her concern because she didn't want him to feel bad. He genuinely thought that this was the best decision he could make to take care of her since dad passed away, but now he realizes that he should have just stayed with her in the end. She would have died happy knowing that her son was there by her side, but he wasn't.
He took in a deep breath as he felt the fresh air he had been deprived of ever since he hid himself inside the ship. The fear of the sun always managed to override his desire to venture out but now he no longer felt that fear. All he felt was elation now. Tears seeped through the gaps in his goggles as he looked at the horizon in front of him. It was so cloudy, the ocean was crystal clear with pieces of ice floating across. The sun was hidden away by the clouds.
"It's a beautiful day." he stated solemnly.
"It is a beautiful day but it could be better if we could bask in the sun safely. Which is why we shouldn't idle too long. We need to go help my friend." she stated
"Is there truly a way to fix this broken world ? I mean even if you and your friend make it out of this mess, will you truly be able to end this hell ?"
"I am not sure, our duty was to save humanity and yet we couldn't predict something like this happening. Our mission currently was to establish contact with the outside world and retrieve any survivors. We may not have a solution yet to end the Sun's terror, but we are trying to help people survive this hell. I know our future may sound bleak but we have to try for the sake of future generations. We can't just give up on the hope that one day children can play outside without being turned into monsters. If humanity lives in eternal fear of the sun then they have already lost what it meant to be human. Humans have experienced lots of hardship but they never allow themselves to stay stagnant. Whatever hurdle that comes their way, they will always find a way to overcome it. You put a mountain in front of a human and they will try to scale it to reach the other side. "
"You are right. I am being pathetic. I can't mope around like this. A world where everyone can enjoy going outside like before is what I want. It was something I took for granted. I was so stressed about my future that I never took time to enjoy the present. I guess it's as they say, you never value what you have until you lose it."
"..."
"Let's go help your friend, if there's anyone who can save humanity it's you."
"Thank you, but I think my Master is the one that will save humanity."
"As much as I hate the guy, I will trust you on this. If you are this loyal to him then I have faith that you two will accomplish many things."
"Thank you. I am glad I met you. Let's go now, we have talked for too long and my friend has been fighting for a while."
"Davis."
"Huh ?"
"My name is Davis Kimberly. I thought it would be best to give my name to my new friend."
She smiled at his declaration.
"The name's Quetzalcoatl. But you can call me Quetz instead !"
"Alright Quetz let's head out !"
We both ran towards the front of the ship. I was keeping up with her speed but I had a feeling she was holding back on purpose. Maybe she is afraid that I might get left behind ?
We arrived at the front deck and witnessed the sight of a tanned archer slashing at a flesh monster with a sword that appeared to be engulfed in flames. Seriously, are these guys some government super soldiers ?! Like holy shit was that a magic fire sword ?! I might have questioned my sanity if I had seen this before, but the state of the world currently has dulled my ability to question these impossibilities.
"Crap What took you so long ?!" he yelled
"Sorry Emiya, Master over here got knocked out, but I just made a new friend !" she replied, gesturing to the unconscious Ritsuka on her shoulders and the stranger beside her.
"Since master is down for the count I hope your new friend here can help me get this thing off the ship !"
"Can't you destroy them in one blast with that sword ? It looks like you are holding back." she remarked
"Well no shit I can, the issue is that I don't want to burn the ship in the process. Even you can't use your noble phantasm to draw them away."
"Noble what ?!" Davis asked. Davis was getting more confused by the minute.
"She can summon a flying dinosaur to lure these things away but she can't right now because it poses the risk of it being exposed to the sun and being turned into one of those flesh monsters !" Emiya yelled as he tore off another tendril with his sword before quickly switching to a bow and shooting flaming arrows into the distance.
"You know what, I am not even gonna question it, Quetz." Davis replied clearly mind boggled by the supposed abilities of Quetz. He was on a ship with a freaking goddess that can summon a dinosaur.
"So is there anything you can do ?! For crying out loud, Quetz help me out here ! There are more of these things being attracted to our ship ! We need to remove this thing from our ship before its friends reach us. It was a horrible idea to make those radio broadcasts earlier !"
"Wait, you guys were the ones who launched those radio broadcasts about the dangers of the sun ?!"
"Yeah and it's coming to bite our ass right now because these things are attracted to radio signals."
He pondered in thought as Quetz jumped in with Emiya, destroying a stray tendril while he fired arrows onto the oncoming flesh in the distance. But then suddenly an idea came into his head.
"Wait, I can lure these things away !"
"No offense man but you are not as fast as us. You are just a regular human, I am sure Quetz has explained to you what she is ?"
"She is a goddess apparently. Are you a god like her ?"
"What ?! No, I am a heroic spirit !"
Great, another new term I have to get used to. As if the existence of a goddess isn't enough there is something called a 'heroic spirit', don't know what that means but I hope it means he is strong.
''Heroic Sp–?"
"Forget it, just tell me what you have in mind !"
"You said these things are attracted to radio signals right ? What if we broadcast a signal from the port and attract them away to the port while you guys finish the one on the boat off ?"
"That is not a bad idea but how do you suppose that one of us gets back to the port and broadcasts a signal there ?"
"I will do it, this ship has a motorized lifeboat attached to it. I can use it to speed my way to the port. We have not gotten too far away ever since you guys started this ship."
"Are you sure you want to do this ? By the time we had left the port there were numerous flesh still roaming around."
"Yes I want to do this. I have caused you guys enough trouble, it's the least I could do to make up for it."
"Fine, let's get you to the boat. Mash get over here ! You don't need to help me out anymore. Quetz will cover me from now on. Accompany this man to his destination."
"Roger that Emiya senpai !"
I nodded at the pink haired woman now named Mash as I headed to fulfill my duties. I traveled to the edge of the ship and came across a hatch. I winced as I opened it with my broken fingers to find the lifeboat I needed. I pulled the rope out and slowly lowered the boat down into the water.
"Mister, I overheard what you and Emiya senpai were discussing. Are you sure you want to do this ? There is still time to reconsider."
"No Mash I have long gone past that point. I was stuck on this ship because my fear of the sun prevented me from venturing outside. I am not letting fear overtake me again. My fear of what could happen is the root cause of why I am here today. If I had just found another way to be financially stable then I wouldn't be on this ship to begin with. I couldn't trust my loved ones to survive without my help and ended up hurting them more in the process. I should have just learned to have faith in them."
"It doesn't need to be this way. You can still fix your mistakes. You don't have to put your life on the line for it !"
"This is how I will fix my mistakes. There is no other way. Please just trust me. Don't make the same mistake as I did. Have faith in me."
She paused in contemplation after I finished my speech. I hope I got through to her. I could see the conflict brewing in her face. She needs to accept that. There is no reason to try to save a dead man who is walking.
"Fine but you better come back in one piece !"
"I will try to."
I grabbed onto the ropes with my legs and slowly slid down while occasionally using my hands to regulate the speed of my descent. I eventually landed on the boat without too much force. The boat shook a little but it was nothing too bad. I looked at the engine as I looked at my hands. I am going to have to pull that starter cord to get the engine running, but my fingers aren't in great condition.
"Fuck it, lets do this !" I yelled as I grabbed onto the cord with my hands and teeth wincing at the pain.
I pulled once but only the faint sound of the engine could be heard. I did it again, and again and again. My lips started bleeding under the pressure.
"Please work. It can't end like this." I pulled one last time and this time the engine started roaring.
"Yes, finally !"
The boat started moving, I looked up at Mash one last time. I gave her nod before turning around as the boat started speeding away.
No point in saying goodbye. It will only make me hesitate.
As the boat sped across the ocean, I could see at least ten of the flesh heading towards the ship. I need to get to the port quicker. I increased the speed of the boat significantly.
The sight of the port seemed to be getting closer. I am almost there !
As the boat reached near the port it started slowing down.
Wait what's happening ?
The boat slowed down until it reached a complete stop. I pulled the starter cord again but it only let out tiny sounds. Crap I am out of fuel.
"No,No, No, No ! Work you damn piece of junk!" I kicked the engine as it refused to start.
I sighed as I looked at the port and I was close to it but there was still a lot of distance I needed to cover. I stared at the icy water in contemplation before looking back at the ship.
"Fine, I will do it myself." I scoffed