Hello everyone and welcome back to the start of chapter 81 of the story! OC2 has come out and from the spoilers, info, images and TVCM that I watched...man, I don't even know how to describe it. Ritsuka has really been through a lot, haven't they? Like, I always feel that they're just a snap of fingers away from having a completely full mental breakdown yet they keep on going and persisting. It's just...really, someone give a permanent vacation to them after all of this is over. In the trauma olympics, I'd say Ritsuka is climbing the ladder pretty much high. It's fair to say that they cooked with this one.
Also thinking about giving a try on HSR just because of the cinematics alone. God do they put a lof of effort in those.
Anyways, let's start it!
DISCLAIMER: All of the Nasuverse characters belong to Nasu and are property of Type-Moon, with the exception of the OC's that belong to me, the author
Zero no Tsukaima OST- Passed Away
"Hey Nala! Didn't expect to found you here in the garden. Are you appreciating the beauty of it?"
"..."
"What's wrong? You're looking quite grumpy. Did something happened?"
"No, ºººººº."
"Hmmm, that mark on your cheek tells me otherwise. You've angered your mom, didn't you?"
"...Maybe."
"What did you told her?"
"Nothing."
"Lying is bad."
"But I really didn't!"
"Look, whatever it was, you can tell me. I'll try to understand it, okay?"
"...Fine. It's about Peko."
"Ah, thinking about the exam you both did some days ago?"
"Yeah. I did it flawlessly! No errors! I completed the trials in the best way possible! But everyone is talking about him instead..."
"You can't blame him. People tend to gossip more about a person's failure rather than its success. The exam was an unfortunate to Peko. You shouldn't punch down your brother like that."
"But it isn't my fault that he failed, ºººººº! I've trained so much for that moment! For this stage of my life! To make you and everyone else proud! However, Peko had to screw it all up for himself and steal what would be my time of glory!"
"Well, it certainly isn't a nice thing to happen, I admit. But it is definetly much worse to end up as the laughing stock of the entire palace. You have to view his perspective. How humiliated he must have felt."
"If he didn't wanted that to happen, he shouldn't have bothered to show up in the first place."
"Did you said the same thing to your mother?"
"...I might had exaggerated a bit on it."
"Eh, a head deep in anger can make someone say and do irrational things in the heat of the moment, does it not?"
"I think so."
"Then don't worry. All of that ire and fretful sentiment is but temporary. It will eventually pass and heal over time. I'm sure those words without meaning can be easily forgiven. What Peko is needing right now, is of a sister like you to be supporting him."
"Thanks for saying that, ºººººº. But I don't know if I'm fit enough to give proper support to him."
"...Do you see the flower in front of us? It's pretty, isn't it?"
"It is. I'd say the most beautiful out of the entire garden."
"But to reach to such state of blooming, it had first to pass through some trials too. Turbulent winds, hellish rain, drying sun, crawling creatures nearby. All of that in order to reach to its zenith. Such endurance is what made this flower achieve this graceful state."
"You think I can also be pretty like the flower, ºººººº? That I can bloom as well?"
"With a good heart and caring soul, you'll be able to achieve it too, Nala. Your abilities tells me so. Yet, do you see how the flower doesn't reside alone but instead with other ones?"
"Hm?"
"It isn't because it shines more than the others, or is prettier than the others, that the flower decides to take all the soil for itself nor excludes the rest from inhabiting this garden. It allows the other flowers to bloom likewise. It acknowledges and recognizes them, allowing its coexistence to form such beautiful terrain. Collectively, they can build something far greater."
"Hehe, okay. I see what you're trying to do here."
"Then what will you be doing after this?"
"I think I'm gonna check on Peko. See how he is doing. That and apologize to my mom."
"That's good to hear. Remember, harmony between people is one of the most beautiful things in existence."
"Nnhm..nhgmmmm..." Blinking, Nala woke up to stare at the ceilling of the caravan, feeling the vehicle still in motion. "Mmm!" With a jolt in her body, Nala lifted her torso, with the memories of the dream she just had resurfacing on her mind. Such sudden movement caused her legs to inadvertently kick Elizabeth on the back, with the lizard girl servant waking up in a huge startle.
"W-W-WHAT A?! WHERE DID THAT CAME FROM?!" She shouted, having her beauty sleep interrupted.
Nala stared at her with a sheepish smile, shifting her gaze to the side to avoid contact. "Eeeeeeh..."
"It was you, wasn't it?!" Elizabeth accused her, figuring it out pretty easily.
"Mhmmm...what's with all this noise?" Ritsuka begun to wake up, dragging off the blankets from his body. Mash was also sleeping next to him.
"Is it...morning already?" The shielder asked, waking up as well.
"Uhm!" Thinking fast, Nala laid her body down and covered herself with a blanket, pretending to still be asleep.
"Why are you shouting like that Elizabeth?" Ritsuka asked to the idol servant who pointed a finger at the 'slumbering' Nala.
"It was her! She abruptly woke me with a kick!" Elizabeth explained her side of the story.
Mash went to take a look at Nala. "Hmmm, are you sure? Nala just seems to still be sleeping."
"Fu, Fou!"
"B-But she did it! I know she did!" Elizabeth insisted.
"Hummm...Mhmmmm..." Slowly opening her eyes, Nala acted like she had just woke up by Elizabeth's voice. "Why are you screaming like that? I was trying to sleep..."
"See Elizabeth? If she kicked you it must have been one of those involuntary kicks when someone is asleep." Ritsuka told to the servant who was agape in disbelief.
"The problem is that SHE DID IT ALREA-"
"I saw everything. Elizabeth started the entire ruckus." Nightingale speaked, being in front of the caravan. Since she was a servant and the most responsible of the group, the duty of driving the new motorized vehicle was up to her, having spent the entire trip and night until now on the wheel.
The lizard idol girl felt somewhat betrayed by the nurse's declaration, fully shocked. "BUT I-..."
"Let it be. Its waking up early that the makes the chances of having a good day higher." Ritsuka told her, not looking too angry about it.
"Even if it was surely disruptive, we had at one point to wake up." Rama said, having rested the whole night inside the bag. "Good mroning everyone!"
"Morning Rama-san." Mash replied with the same greeting.
Nala yawned. "Good morning guys." She said, still pretending.
"Grrr, you..." Elizabeth stared at Nala with an agressive glare for having got the blame of waking everyone up instead of her.
Nala innocently winked at her and stuck her tongue out. "It ain't my fault that I know to disguise it well, hehehe."
With everyone of the group having woke up, Nightingale recommended the group to make a stop for breakfast, pausing the caravan's movement as the party stepped out of it and settled a small table in order to eat, appreciating the dawn of the sun in a majorily dry area of the country.
"How much longer do you guys think it will take us to reach Alcatraz?" Ritsuka asked, eating his breakfast.
"It's hard to say. How many miles have we traveled by now?" Nala made the question to Nightingale, since she was the one driving.
"I can't exactly guess the precise number, but if we account for all of the hours we've been traveling so far, I think we mustn't be that far-off now." Nightingale responded, trying to give the best answer she could altough it didn't made the things clear.
"I know! Why don't we ask to the doctor? He has a map of the entire United States with our current location after all." Mash suggested.
"Nice thinking Mash." Ritsuka told her as the shielder proceeded to call Romani.
"Hi everyone! How are you doing?" Romani greeted the group.
"Good morning doctor. We'd like to know of our current location as well as the distance that remains until we reach Alcatraz prison." Mash told to the doctor the motive for the call.
"Okay. Lemme show you the coordinates real quick." Romani typed on his keyboard for a few seconds before displaying an image of the United States map with two white dots on the west side, representing Ritsuka's group and the prison of Alcatraz and the distance left between the two. "Here it is! Take a look."
"Hmmm, we aren't that far now." Ritsuka commented, approaching his face to the screen alongside Nala.
"We may reach to the prison by tomorrow at this pace." The girl added.
"Hey! Don't get so close to it! Let other people see it too!" Elizabeth criticised the two, shoving them away. "Now, let's see where I'll be planning the next stage of my tour."
"Is that what you are thinking about here?!" Romani replied, totally dumbfounded.
"Once we reach to that prison, we have to find Sita's cell." Rama said, still sitting near the table. "Altough I reckon that there will be enemies in there guarding her."
"It would only make sense, being a stronghold for the Celtic Empire." Nightingale replied. "Freeing not only Sita but other prisoners too would be an harsh blow for them. You can bet that there will be enemy servants to stop us from freeing your wife and other people." She alerted the group to the possible challenges they would face in the prison.
"That I am also one-hundred percent sure." Rama looked to the location of the Alcatraz prison. "Sita...Hang in there. I'll be-cough ergh!" The hindu servant felt a rough and burning pain on his chest, mainly on his damaged heart, causing him to cough some blood and fall to the ground.
"Rama!" Ritsuka and the party went to check on Rama, with Nightingale being fast in picking him up.
The nurse inspected his lasting wound. "Crap! It is looking the worst it has ever been." Nightingale saw how the infected blood from Rama's wound had soaked the entire bandages covering his chest and spilling out of it. Her patient's condition was getting worse.
"I reaffirm that! Rama's Spirit Core is slowly deteriorating at each passing hour!" Romani focused his monitors on the servant, analysing his vitals. "Soon, the curse of Cú Alter's Gáe Bolg will have overtaken his Saint Graph completelly, destroying every last chunk of his heart."
Mash's mind knew what that meant. "But that implies..."
"He doesn't have much time left then." Nightingale tsked her lips, taking a sort of medicine out of her handbag. "Here, take one of this." She said, putting it in front of Rama's face. "These are painkillers. Whilst it won't cure this wound of yours, it will drastically reduce the pai-"
"N-No...thanks." Rama grabbed Nightingale's pulse, rejecting it despite discomfort he was feeling. "My pain...shouldn't have an easy way out. I deserved this...for having lost that battle and cost the lives...of others who tried to save me..."
"That is no excuse for wanting to prolong your own suffering!" Nala told him.
"Correct. Do you think the people who saved you did it so that you could suffer more?" Nightingale asked to Rama, insisting him on taking the painkillers. "Don't be absurd! Letting yourself to continue this pain would be a disrespect to those very same people!" She rised her voice. "By fighting and persisting to succumb to this disease in order to get healed, is the most honorable thing you can do to respect their sacrifices!"
"..." Rama couldn't argue against that. What Nightingale was saying was true. He was the reason some people forfeited their lives for his. Because they believed his survival would justify their deaths and bring the victory to their side. The hindu king couldn't ignore such noble acts by allowing himself to suffer. That wouldn't be worthy of those soldiers death. They deserved way more for their last and brave effort. "Okay...Give it to me then." Rama changed his opinion, accepting the painkillers from Nightingale.
"We better go back to continue our travel. At this rate I don't know if Rama can hold it much longer." Ritsuka said to the group, knowing that Rama's situation was getting bleak.
"Copy that master! The pause for breakfast has ended!" Mash speaked. "We need to arrive to Alcatraz as quickly as possible!"
Nala meanwhile was taking the last bites on a toast. "Good thing I'm nearly done with mine."
"That toast is mine! Not yours!" Elizabeth shouted, seeing Nala eating the rest of her breakfast.
"Womp womp. You didn't finished it so I do instead." Nala responded with deadpan eyes while chewing on the food.
As that was happening, Ritsuka helped Nightingale put Rama nicely into the back of the caravan. "Everyone hop on!" He told to the rest.
"Going already!" Nala replied, swallowing the last piece of the toast before looking at the map screen of America, looking to another white dot more to the east. "..."
"What are you seeing Nala?" Mash asked to the younger girl, gaining her attention.
"Oh, that's Peko's group!" Romani told them. "They also aren't that distant from Washington D.C. right now."
"I wonder how he and the others are doing." Ritsuka commented.
"Same here." Nala replied, thinking of the same thing. "Hope they're alright."
"And that's how you fit a hundred coins in your boots." Robin said, telling one of his stories as the famous thief of Sherwood not only to Peko but also to Billy and Nero.
"H-How?! That's sounds so impossible and yet you've actually done it!" Peko exclaimed in awe, fascinated by Robin's abilities to steal. "You really know a lot of tricks!"
"Didn't cha hurt ya feet or anythin'? You just went and did it like an actual madman?!" Billy said, also impressed. "Kay! I think I have to start respectin' ya alot more after this one."
"And no reshots or special effects? All of that done for real?! You must share with me those intriguing acting methods of yours! Umu!" Nero demanded, admired by Robin's feat.
"Hey now, one at a time! I can't handle that much praise!" Robin implored to the trio, trying to control their enthusiasm.
Meanwhile both Tesla and Geronimo would watch everything on the front, leading the group through some deep forest landscape.
"They all seem to be having fun." Geronimo noticed, happily for it.
"It sure looks so." Tesla replied, staring to the four but specialy to Peko. "And that's a good thing."
"By the way Nero. Why did you end up coming with us?" Peko asked to the roman emperor. "I don't think a servant of the Saber class would be well suited for an assassination operation."
"Oh, but you see, that where you are wrong about me. I'm not your mere average saber." Nero told him. "I have my 'Imperial Privilege'! It allows me to apprehend and obtain skills from other servant-classes that normaly would be off reach to me. Therefore, with that ability of mine, I can gain traits of an Assassin servant! Umu!"
"Is such thing even possible?" Peko was stupefied at such concept existing. Was it really possible to attain skills of other classes than not your own? For a servant to be polyvalent?
"Yes. It is feasible for a servant to do that." Tesla told to the boy. "However, it ain't every Heroic Spirit that can learn those type of abilities, making those who can to be a sort of 'special'."
"Yep! And who wouldn't be able to achieve such prowess than none other but I, Roma's eccentric rose, Nero Claudius? Umu!" Nero once again praised herself, putting both of her hands on Peko's cheeks like some sort of sandwich. "My aptitude for art knows no bounds!"
"O-Oi! You're squeezing it!" Peko protested in reaction.
"So don't think I'm only good with the sword!" Nero proclaimed. "A great actress is capable of many other roles!" She let go off Peko, going torwards Robin and Billy, touching the cowboy's revolver. "Wether it be shooting!"
"Hands off!" Billy yelled, securing his gun.
"Riding!" Nero jumped onto Robin, leaning on his shoulders.
"Hey, can you at least warn me?!" Robin replied as the energetic Nero stopped hanging on his back and went in Tesla's direction.
"Or assassinating!" She covered herself up with the inventor's cape, much to Tesla's botherness.
"Stop with that already!" Tesla told her, showing that he wasn't in the mood to tolerate the emperor's playfulness.
"Nero was apointed to this group specificaly because of that. She can be as good as setting traps and planning like the rest of us even if it doesn't look like it." Geronimo said, explaining to them for the why of his decision to integrate her with this group. "But please, I would ask for you to take this matter more seriously. This mission of ours shouldn't be taken lightly as a fun joke." The native man advised to Nero.
"A joke? None of that, umu!" I'll let you know that I take my career very seriously!" Nero said to him, with a face that was demanding for respect. "Rest assured that I'm taking this job as importantly as all of you! Now onwards, my beloved filming crew!" She walked to the front of the party, humming cheerfuly to herself.
"Just our luck ain't it? When ya thought ya got rid of one of them oafs, there's always another one to sprout up." Billy said to Robin, seeing that altough they had freed themselves from Elizabeth, the two servants still would have to endure Nero's obnoxious behaviour.
"If someone tells us that we are cursed, I'd probably believe them." Robin replied.
"Humm, she really changed a bit however..." Peko stated lowly, observing the emperor's attitude.
"Hm? Oh yeah, you had already met her before." Robin looked to the boy. "Do say, was she any kind of different when you and your group met her?"
"Well..." Peko's mind went back to remember of all those moments the chaldeans had interacted with her on the Second Singularity where she was the, at the time, de facto emperor of Rome. And the memories he had of Nero during those events weren't exactly the best ones. "As shocking as it may be to say this, I think I prefer her now than before." Peko said with a drop of sweat falling from his head.
"Eish, for ya to say that...I can barely imagine it." Billy wondered how worse Nero might have been before in order for Peko to pick up this version over the previous one.
As the time passed, the group proceeded on their journey to Washington D.C., hoping to arrive in time for the parade that would take place in there. Eventually, being silent while walking begun tedious, prompting them to do something.
"Prrr, mac n cheese
feel the breeze with ease
what an american dream!"
Billy rapped, creating his own flow to the sound of Peko and Nero's beatboxing.
"Cowboy from the wild west
When distributin' lead I'm the best
Putting ya eyes to rest I must
See ya pal, you're dust! "
Feeling the song and beat too, Robin sang along with the gunslinger.
"Prrr, mac n cheese
feel the breeze with ease
what an american dream!"
Tesla would just stare at the four with a perplexed glare. "Are they really THAT bored to reach this point?"
"Woooo! Kay, that was awsome fellas!" Billy said happily. "I think we might've created somethin' here!"
Peko nodded in agreement. "This was certainly a fun way to spend time."
"You should consider creating a sort of band!" Nero introduced an idea. "Gather some instruments and you'd become great idols like me! Umu!"
"And get rid of the thieving life? No thank you. I'm comfortable the way I am." Robin told her.
"But as a part-time thing maybe. Who knows?" Billy didn't totaly discarded the possibility.
"If you end up going forward with that idea, don't forget to make me your manager!" Nero said. "No, scrap that! Your manager AND lead singer!"
"Can you be those two things at the same time?" Peko questioned.
"Uff, it seems we are the only adults in the room here." Tesla said to Geronimo, who was also hearing the others chatting.
"As the previous leader of my tribe, I have to thanks experience for making such task like this one easy to carry out. One gets used to the burden." Geronimo replied, not having much problem with leading the group of majorily teen-like servants. "Were you usually in charge of something when making your creations?"
"Not really. Initially, my time as an engineer was majorily working for an enterprise. Be it on a telephone company from Hungary or for that fool Edison. By the time I did got to work on my own projects independently, I always opted to work with small staff or by myself."
"Guess it couldn't be anyone who could have the honour of working under you." Geronimo commented.
"A lesson that I teached to myself was when you want a work of yours to be successful, make sure to gather people who see and understand the same ideas as yours." Tesla told to the native man. "They're the right people you can share your knowledge with."
"And some knowledge can be dangerous to be spread, which makes the less number of persons envolved the better." Geronimo expanded on the inventor's belief.
"That approach is no wrong at all." Tesla replied.
"Eh, some secrets are better off kept in se-!" Putting a stop on his feet movements, Geronimo stood still, having felt a sort of malevolent presence nearby in the area, his eyes gazing frontwards to some shadows of the forest trees.
Tesla found the native man's reaction weird. "Hm? Is something wrong-hm!" But like Geronimo he too felt some identities close.
The other four noticed the odd behaviour from the two.
"Huh? What's the matter chief?" Robin asked to Geronimo who made a signal with his hand, passing the message that enemies or monsters could be in the area.
"This doesn't sound good." Billy took out his revolver as Robin did the same with his bow and Nero with her sword, staying on alert.
"This sensation...Where did I felt this before?" Peko asked to himself with his weapon already in hand, having a familiar feeling passing on his body at the moment. Then his eyes shifted to observe the trees shadows moving out from their respective places on the ground, surrounding the party as they begun to take a shape that was slowly sticking out from the dark puddles. The boy was starting to recognize it. "Wait! This is..."
On the caravan, Ritsuka's group was going on their way to Alcatraz as the vehicle suddenly started to shake, alarming everyone in it.
"W-What's this?!" Ritsuka grabbed to the walls of the transport.
"Are we under attack?!" Nala thought, trying to maintain her balance which was being an hard thing to do with the caravan's wheels starting to being lifted up with the vehicle itself beggining to tilt.
"Foou!?"
"The caravan is getting turned upside down!" Mash exclaimed.
On the front seat, Nightingale stepped into the back of the caravan and grabbed the bag where Rama was. "Everyone, jump out of the vehicle!" She yelledm with everyone doing as the nurse said. The moment they got all out, the party saw the caravan being put upside down by the force of some shadows that pushed against it.
"It was the work of those things!" Elizabeth pointed at the shadows who stopped in front of them, shape shifting into some demonic looking creatures. Ones that Ritsuka, Mash and Nala had recognzed and fought before.
"It's those demons again!"
"It's those demons again!" Peko exclaimed, seeing that the shadow demon monsters were back again on this Singularity as well. And just like the two previous occasions, it was to get in his and the group's way.
"You've seen these creatures before?" Robin asked, noticing how Peko already had previous encounters with these type of enemies.
"Yeah! And here's a tip: watch out for your backs as they can attack regularly from behind!" Peko warned them. "That and that their main weakness is light!"
"Figured that much." Tesla said, charging up his mechanical arm with electricity. "We'd be way too lucky to go this far without facing adversitites!"
"Charge my legion!" Nero shouted, iniciating the battle with the demonic beings.
Apart from Peko and Tesla, the rest of the party was having some trouble in slaying them down as their hits would simply pass through their shadow bodies like butter, not dealing that much of a great damage. Like Peko said, light and other concepts attached to it were able to be more effective on these demonic entities, with the light and electricity attacks being nearly fatal to the opponents.
"Luminary Route!"
"Tesla Coil!"
After some long minutes, the two struck down the last remaining imps, the battle having finished with their win.
"It's over. I don't see any more enemies around." Geronimo put down his knife. Even with a fire enchantment on his weapon, he had done barely any damage to the shadow creatures. "These demons. They somehow remind me of the wendigo despite being very different."
"Phew! Thank god! Those things were really persistent!" Billy said, passing a hand on his sweating face.
"They definetly weren't your typical foe." Tesla commented, painting a bit. "I'm feeling as if a good part of my mana had to be drained out to defeat them."
"S-Same..." Peko replied, his entire body having gotten exhausted from this battle. Why that every time he fought these imp creatures, he felt the energy inside of him being erased? "They're...that hard to kill..." The fatigue was such that he ended up sitting on the ground inadvertently after losing some equilibrium.
"Hm! Are you okay?" Tesla asked to Peko, concerned as the rest of the group also approached to the boy in worry.
"You're the one that has these demons main counter magic and yet the one who feels more exhausted as well." Robin noticed. "Perhaps you've hard-lifted too much against them."
"And they looked to be targetting you like rabid bees." Nero pointed out the fact on how the demons were mainly focused on Peko during the entire fight.
"It could be that since you are their weakness, they'll try to get rid of you first?" Geronimo wondered.
"Perhaps..." Peko replied, resting for a bit. "These monsters have been following me and my group for quite a while." He told. "Could have the others been attacked too?"
"Air Step!"
Dodging from the enemy's claws and tail, Nala sliced the imp in half with her bright blade, shifting her attention to other two who were already onto her. Like on the prior encounters, they were an annoying foe to deal with, forcing Nala to spent a good amount of mana to defeat them while the majority of them were targetting her, with the other ones being occupied with the rest of the group.
"Nala! One behind you!" Ritsuka alerted to the girl, spotting one enemy going behind her back as Nala took down another one.
"Mhpm!" Turning around, Nala put her sword on the defensive in order to block the opponent's attack. However, Mash anticipated to that and was the one blocking the hit with her shield instead.
But such action didn't go without consequences, with the wound on Mash's wrist reopening after feeling the shockwaves of the impact. "Ngh!"
For a moment, Nala hesitated to attack the imp, concerned about her friend's pain before pulling her mind back to the fight and stepping forward, slashing down the remaining monster. "It's done!" She said before falling to the ground, extremely tired.
"Are you fine Nala?" Mash asked to the younger girl, seeing her visible exhaustion.
"Never...been better!" Nala replied, taking some breaths to restore her energies. "I only wished...that these things...weren't such an hassle."
"Rest easy now Nala. You always look to push yourself too hard against those things." Ritsuka advised her. "And Mash, your wound, it opened again!" He said, looking to the blood on the Shielder's hand.
"The wound reopened?!" Nightingale exclaimed, having been making sure Rama hadn't been hurt in the meantime. "I'll better give it a look!"
"I-It isn't that much of a big deal." Mash answered, not wanting her companions to be too worried about her as Ritsuka hold kindly her hand with the injured wrist.
"I know those creatures were hard, but you were sweating like you were in the middle of summer." Elizabeth helped Nala get back on her feet, commenting on how fatigued she looked after fighting the demons.
"Ah, you don't know how much I hate to deal with them." Nala replied. "Weak to light but still resilient as hell."
"Do you think the demons also went after Peko's group?" Mash thought.
"It makes sense that they would." Ritsuka replied.
Nala's heart skipped a beat in that moment. "We have to check and see if they're okay!" She stumbled a bit after taking a precipitated step forward.
"Oi oi! Hold down your horses! You're still tired!" Elizabeth told her.
"We better treat our own wounds first." Nightingale said, grabbing Ritsuka's arm as she noticed a slight cut on it. "We can call them later after that."
"...Right. I do trust that they're okay." Ritsuka accepted the nurse's terms, letting her heal his wounds and do the same with the rest of the group, with the master of humanity even helping her on curing them.
"This should make you feel little to no pain." Nightingale said as she put a new bandage around Mash's pulse. "Don't force it too much next time."
"U-Understood. Thank you miss Nightingale." Mash replied.
"Okay. Now that we are all patched, we can-" Ritsuka was interrupted when he heard some voice sounding on his ears.
"Ritsuka! Guys! Are you hearing us? Do you copy?" It was Peko's voice, establishing contact with them through the earplugs.
"It's Peko!" Nala exclaimed shortly before responding back. "Yes Peko! We are listening you loud and clear!"
"Thank goodness! That means you're all okay." Peko talked back.
"Were you attacked by some shadow demon creatures as well?" Mash asked to his group.
"Yeah. In fact, we contacted you to know if you'd also been attacked." Robin responded.
"So it seems this was an organized assault on us." Nightingale said. "No way that it would be pure coincidence for the two groups that are on each coast of the countrty to be attacked by the same enemy at the same time."
"Was it work of the celts?" Elizabeth asked.
"No. Those demons have been a recurrent monster of ours for quite a while outside of this Singularity." Ritsuka corrected her. "It couldn't have been the Celtic Empire."
"Nor the West side. I know they have that occultist lady but she don' strike me as the type to be summonin' devils." Billy also discarded that possibility.
"Then what you're implying here is that this might have been the job of someone else that we aren't yet aware of?" Tesla theorized.
"But who?" Mash wondered.
"...Solomon?" Peko made a guess. "It wouldn't be odd if it was him."
"That or the Man of Sin..." Ritsuka also considered that one, thinking deeply about him. Supposedly, that man's identity was yet unknown to them.
"About those demons, I have something I want to share to you about them." Geronimo speaked. "I couldn't help but notice how their nature is similiar to those of the evil spirits, except I felt their malevolence was far greater. A sinful aura way bigger than any of the evil spirits I used to fought."
"Makes sense if they are demons after all." Nala commented on the native man's observation.
"But what you're saying is that the demons and the evil spirits of your culture do have a semblance?" Ritsuka asked, trying to understand him.
"Kind of. The sort of energy I got from the imps was almost identical to the one from the evil spirits." Geronimo expanded on his explanation. "It's as if they were familiar to each other despite also having enough traits to be whole separate beings."
"Hmm, that could imply us more on the demon's true essence." Mash said, understanding Geronimo's explanation. "Are you hearing this, doctor?"
The hologram of Romani appeared in front of them. "Yeah. Every bit of it. Geronimo's description of the demons does sound intresting." He rubbed his chin. "I'll see if I can dig something and find a possible correlation between the two."
"Right. Well, we will keep heading torwards Washington D.C and hope to reach in time for the parade." Peko told them. "I bet you'll also continue on your way to Alcatraz."
"Precisely." Ritsuka responded. "Travel save-"
"WE WILL SEND YOU PICTURES WHEN WE COMPLETE THE ASSASSINATION AS A WAY TO SHOW YOU MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!" Nero's high pitch voice interfered through the earplugs, making everyone's body recoil in pain.
"Agh! Don't yell like that Nero! The audio is too sensible!" Peko told her.
"Gah! This idiot! Can she do anything else other than hurting our brains? My eardrums almost exploded!" Elizabeth complained, rubbing her own ear.
"What you've done was reckless! I hope you know that!" Nightingale scolded the roman emperor.
"This was certainly migraine worthy..." Nala murmured, rubbing her own head from the aching loud noise before putting the earplug back on her ear. "Yeah, we're still going to the prison and rescue Sita. Wish for everything on that side is going smoothly!"
"Eh, likewise. Any problems so far apart from this attack? How's Rama?" Peko asked them.
"His condition has taken a slight turn for the worse but I think we can keep him alive long enough for Sita to cure him of the curse and save him." Mash gave the status of the hindu servant. "Take care Peko. All of you."
"Looking to seeing you again soon. Watch out for any danger until there." Ritsuka told him.
"I-I will! I'm always aware of that already!" Peko protested a bit on the other end of the line, causing some chuckles from Ritsuka and Mash as well as a sigh from Nala.
"I know. But it's a good thing to have extra caution." Ritsuka said.
"With all of us here, I think your worry about the boy isn't a problem, master." Tesla replied.
"Yeah. Anyways, we're ending the call here. Stay safe guys!" Peko wished them good luck.
"Same for you too!" Ritsuka replied, ending the call.
Hours passed and the day was already over, having started the night period. Having traveled some more miles and getting closer to their destination, Ritsuka's group eventually stopped for the day, with Nightingale doing an analysis on Mash and Rama's wounds as Ritsuka, Nala and Elizabeth stayed outside of the caravan.
"Does it hurt when I press here?" Nightingale asked to Mash as the nurse applied some pressure on the Shielder's wrist.
"A bit of a sensation. But nothing too grave I think." Mash replied to the nurse who took her hand off from her pulse.
"Try to rest it down for the next hours. Having suffered a direct below from a servant's weapon is very deadly. Your hand wasn't ripped of from the rest of your arm by luck." Nightingale advised her. "Let the blood vessels capacity to restore themselves and fix the damage do the rest."
"I know. I'll try and be careful next time." Mash said, resting on a seat.
"You won't try. You will be." Nightingale corrected her before heading torwards Rama.
"S-Sure! That's what I tried to meant. Sorry for the mistake." Mash lowered her head slightly.
"That isn't needed." Nightingale speaked back to her as she gave a deep look on Rama's infected chest. "I'm afraid you have two more days left by the look of things."
"Sita...I have to meet her and...tell her sorry." Rama speaked weakly, the mana inside his Heroic Spirit body getting more scarce.
"Hm? Tell her sorry for what Rama-san?" Mash asked to the mythical indian king.
"For having exiled her...when we were young and...the people believed she was betraying me..." Rama answered. "Never once...I ever doubted of Sita's love for me...like she never doubted mine..." He took a deep breath. "But then...when the demand and rally from my nation became too big to ignore...I saw myself being forced to send her away...far from the place she called home..." Weakly, Rama put an hand on his own chest. "I was weak...letting myself cast away the person who cared about me...If only I had been more absolute on my own choices..." He tightened the grip on the chest. "Maybe...I wouldn't have made her suffer the way she did...I need...to apologize for that...To be together with her."
Nightingale put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "That's the mentality. You aren't dying until you two reunite and prove how strong your love is by withstanding this pain. That's your wish and you shall live for it."
"That is a nice dream to make it true Rama-san. I'm sure you'll accomplish it!" Mash encouraged Rama, finding his desire to reunite with his wife to be highly noble.
"A dream? I think you've got it wrong." Nightingale stared at Mash. "Rama is wishing for something. Not dreaming."
Mash looked at the nurse, confused. "I don't get it. Aren't wishes and dreams the same thing?"
Having heard such take, Nightingale sighed and walked up to Mash, crouching down her body. "Miss Mash."
"Eh?"
"A wish and a dream are not the same thing. A wish is something that we can only obtain and realize by comprehending the reality around us and make it change through fighting for the path of the wish we desire to see become true." Nightingale explained the difference to Mash. "As for a dream, it is something that we fantasize but lack the true motivation to make it come to fruition. It's nothing but mere idealization that won't bare any meaning until we truly wish and fight for it."
"...Aah." Mash's eyes slightly widened in amazement. "Then that's the difference between the two."
"Do you get it now, Miss Mash?" Nightingale asked to her, wanting to see if she understood.
"Yes. I think I grasp it." Mash nodded with a smile. "A dream is more of a thinking we idealize about inside our heads, having a mental picture of what would be nice to have. Whereas a wish is the action and materialization process of a dream transformed into ambition, making us fight in order to see it granted." Mash smiled to the nurse, looking to the outside. "If so, then I want to aspire some of my dreams into wishes."
Nightingale smiled gently in return. "Yes. I think you do get it."
On the outside, Ritsuka and Nala were setting up a table for dinner with the help of Elizabeth.
"And the napkins go to the right at a nice well adjusted ninety-degree angle. The silverware on the left minus the spoon. That one is going to the right. the cups all need to be above the plates at the center and positioned to its left." Elizabeth was organizing the placement of the table in an elegant and stylish way, wanting for it to be well looking and fashionable.
That way of organization by the little details was slightly pissing Nala off however. "Who gives about where and how the cups or napkins are positioned? We just wanna eat!"
"Now now, this table may be way too plain but I think it is still deserving of some decorative attention." Elizabeth replied with a snobish tone, only making Nala get a little more annoyed.
"Yeah, 'decorative attention'." She grunted to the side.
Observing the situation, Ritsuka quickly snatched a napkin and threw it into the air. "Oi, Elizabeth!" He called the idol girl out. "The wind has just blown a napking away!" He pointed to the piece of paper he had just throw.
Elizabeth was shocked by it. "What?! Those things costed a fortune! I can't afford to lose those!" She exclaimed going after the napkin, leaving Ritsuka and Nala alone.
"Great move Ritsuka." Nala smiled to him, grateful for it.
"Better this way, don't you think?" Ritsuka went back to place some items in the table, expecting for Nala to reply back. Instead, it only came silence, with Ritsuka rising up his head to look at the girl. "Nala?"
Nala's eyes were focused on gazing at the view in front of her. "...So this is technically supposed to be California, right?"
"Yeah. We are in it right now." Ritsuka answered.
"I see." Nala continue to stare at it. "It looks like shit."
"Remember that the one you saw on the magazines isn't exactly from this era. You're a bit of early for that." Ritsuka told her, thinking that the girl was expecting to see modern day California.
"Hmmm, I think you're right. Don't know why I had expectations for it then." Nala went back to help Ritsuka place the objects on the table as the two didn't changed words for some good seconds. Until...
"Nala, why did you let him go?" Ritsuka asked suddenly to the girl.
"Hum? What you're talking about?" Nala questioned in return, puzzled.
"Why did you let Peko go to the other group? I thought you were solely against it." Ritsuka clarified, finding surprising how Nala accepted her sibling going to Washington D.C in order to assassinate Queen Medb when she was openly against it at the beggining. He didn't even had told her about the conversation he had with Tesla when the girl had changed her mind on the topic.
"Oh. That?" Nala scratched the back of her head, staring at the plate blow her. "I think...that it could help him. Help him to grow up in where he needs." Nala explained. "Sometimes, a person going straight into danger might be what they need in order to get stronger." Nala said, embaressedly looking to the side. "I-I know that saying this as his sister sounds awfully bad and-"
"No. I get you." Ritsuka told her. "There are moments were words just won't cut it."
"Yeah. Pretty much it." Nala was surprised in seeing how Ritsuka understood her.
"I can see what Peko's trying to do. In his situation, I'd probably do the same." Ritsuka proclaimed. "Taking action can be a good way to evolve."
"Eh, words of comfort can only be used as many times until it gets repetitive, right?" Nala expressed.
"Yes..." Ritsuka replied with a bit of dejection.
"O-Oh! I didn't meant to offend you with that Ritsuka! I'm sorry!" Nala exclaimed, thinking she might have hurted Ritsuka's feelings.
"It's okay. I didn't." Ritsuka told her with a smile. "The only way to get out of this alive is to better up ourselves!" He put an hand on Nala's head. "Don't you agree?"
Giving him back a smile, Nala nodded. "Aye aye captain!"
"Fou! Fou!" Fou exited from the girl's hair, landing on the table after making his animal noise.
"Is the dinner ready?" Mash asked as she stepped out from the caravan alongside Nightingale who was carrying Rama on her back.
And quite the good timing, as Elizabeth returned with the flying napkin in her hand. "With this here, yes it is!"
"Hope it's of a good nutrition. The healthier the content of the dish, the greater it will be for your body as well as keeping it immune to some illnesses." Nightingale commented.
"Yes yes yes yes yes! The plates are rich in nutritients. You can spare us the lesson." Elizabeth responded, already sitting down on her place to take a bite of the food.
Mash was kindly offered her place as Ritsuka slightly pulled the seat in order for her to sit. "Thank you master."
"The pleasure is all mine Mash." Ritsuka talked back. "How's your pulse?"
"Better. Miss Nightingale said that I could stop using the bandage tomorrow if I don't move it alot." Mash shared the diagnosis with her master, passing her hand on the damaged pulse.
"..." Nala sadly stared at it, seeing that Mash used to wear a seashell bracelet in that pulse as prove of their friendship. But now, like the one she used to had, it was utterly destroyed,
"!" Mash's eyes catched the sadness on Nala's face as she glimpsed at the younger girl. "I'm sorry Nala..." Mash told her with a sad frown, holding her own wrist. The Shielder was wondering how could she had left such precious treasure between friends be destroyed that easily. And after the enormous time and effort Nala had spend on it to offer her. "If only I had been more care-"
"No stress Mash." Nala told her with a friendly smile and a positive attitude. "We can always make another one."
The guilt and sorrow on Mash decreased to the point of almost being non-existant, with the Shielder smiling to her friend. Their bonds were way beyond of that of a regular seashell bracelet. "Yeah." Mash nodded to Nala, with the two girls beggining to eat their dinner alongside the group.
As for the other group, Peko's group, they had built a tent just on the outside of the forest they had walked through. And just a few miles ahead they could spot the neoclassical buildings from the capital city of America. After defining the perimeter and guaranteeing that no enemies were near around them, they decided to establish themselves at the city's doorstep. With that done they now moved onto other important topic. What would be the dinner?
"Peppermint in it?! Are you mad?!" Robin exclaimed to Nero after hearing her suggestion.
"In culinary our cretive minds should also flow free in order to create the best of dishes!" Nero replied, explaining why she thought her idea was a good one.
"Only if ya wanna die from food poisonin'." Billy told her. "I know we servants can't suffer that but the kiddo at least has gotta have somethin' decent to eat." The gunslinger pointed out how they should cook something nice for Peko since he was the only one of them who'd actually feel hunger due to not being an Heroic Spirit.
"Hmmmm, oh! I know! How about cake?" Nero came up with another option.
"At an hour like this?" Robin questioned her.
With the three discussing what would the dinner be, Geronimo decided to exit the tent, caughting Peko trying to perform some sort of spell.
"Hmmm, c'mon...You can do this." Peko muttered to himself, trying to make a plant germinate from the soil. Sensing the mana, the small green herb grew and evolved, generating two small potatoes embedded in the ground, much to his dissapointment. "I was aiming for blueberries..." He said to himself, grabbing one of the potatoes and removing it from its attachements with the plant. "I still can't perfect it. That one time with the wheats must have been pure luck."
"Having trouble?" Geronimo speaked to Peko, approaching him.
"Geronimo!" Peko turned his head around, seeing the native man present, assuming he most likely saw his attempt at making a plant grow. "More or less. I'm trying to do something but I'm not getting it right. I've tried some couple of times by now but it continues to come off."
Geronimo sat next to him. "Not the product you desired?"
"No." Peko simply said. "And I don't know what I'm doing wrong."
Geronimo tried to give him an advice. "Have you tried to listen to nature yet?"
"Hm? What do you mean?" Peko asked.
"If you speaked with mother nature already." Geronimo specified. "Learned how to communicate with her instead of doing things by yourself. Understand that nature takes time in giving fruit and results. You can't force her to speed up the things and give you in an instant."
"Then I should speak with her if I want to better my magic?" Peko asked to him.
"Indeed. If you want a quicker result, negotiate with her. Understand her so that she can also understand you. You can't force things while ignoring the spirits that bless this soil." Geronimo put an hand on the ground. "Close your eyes and put your hand like this on the floor. See if you can feel her and talk to her. Only then your magic will align with the results that you want. By being in harmony with nature." He said peacefully, almost in a transient state of being.
Not seeing why not, Peko went to give it a try. "Okay." Closing his eyes and putting his right hand on the ground, Peko followed Geronimo's instructions. He talked with nature and her spirits. Negotiated with her. Tried to understood her. Ask to lend her powers. With a tingling sensation crawling on the nerves of his arm, Peko transfered his mana onto the ground, emanating a green light in it. The boy opened his eyes to witness a new herb sprouting from the soil, fleshing into a small tree that gave origin to the blueberries Peko had desired as his original intent. "It...worked." Peko said surprised, a unintentional smile forming on his lips at seeing the final product.
"Well done. You and nature have come to an agreement." Geronimo smiled proudly to the boy, happy that Peko got to understand mother nature and her spirits.
"Thank you Geronimo! Wouldn't have made it without you!" Peko thanked him for having helped him to get a better performance of his magic.
"No need. The merit is also your own." Geronimo replied to the boy.
"What is this chat all about?" Tesla appeared walking torwards them, having catched their conversation.
"Oh Tesla! Look at it!" Peko grabbed a blueberry from the small tree and handed it to the inventor. "I was trying to summon a plant of blueberries and Geronimo helped me with it!" He explained with joy.
Taking a bite out off the berrie, Tesla was impressed by its taste. "It really tastes and feels like a true aliment. Well done, your cultivating magic works pretty splendidly. Almost as if it had really went through the entire agriculture process."
Peko knew that what Tesla meant in other more short words was a 'It's truly good.' "Hehe, glad you like it. I was a bit afraid of failing again."
"Why so? Because it would make you look like a loser?" Tesla asked Peko, not understanding why he should be afraid of it.
"Y-yeah..." Peko said, a bit ashamed.
"My boy, failing doesn't make you a loser." Tesla told him. "It's being too afraid to fail that makes you into one. Mistakes and failing are but a natural process of betterment. You shouldn't be ashamed for not getting something right first try. Keep on trying instead of giving up just because some people might laught at you. Let them mock as much as they want! In the end, he who laughs last laughs the best."
"So its okay if I fail?" Peko wondered, with Tesla's words having helped him see a new perspective.
"It is. Why do you think I became a genius?" Tesla replied. "While it may be true that not everyone can be a genius, everyone can have its own moments of geniality. Dare to expand your own horizons boy. You won't reach anywhere if you live reluctant of daring."
"Well, apart from the context of this mission where we can't fail by any means, I too think that doing mistakes is also a part of growing." Geronimo supported Tesla's argument. "If your will and patience are strong, no matter the attempts, you will eventually get what you want."
"That's what we call of determination." Tesla added.
"Aah, it must be a wonderful thing." Peko said with a smile, thinking more about it. "I'll work hard to have that same determination."
"That's already a step taken for it." Tesla commented.
With the time passing by, the three passed the time outside the tent and enjoying the view, ignoring the noise and screaming coming from the inside the tent as Robin, Billy and Nero were trying to cook the dinner.
"This country...it will have a civil war in its history after we solve this, isn't it?" Peko thought about the situation this America would be plunged into after they set its course back to normal with the conclusion of this Singularity.
"Yes. Approximately half a century from now." Tesla replied, also aware of it.
"And there's nothing we can't do to stop it because it did happened in history. Unfortunately its a conflict we must let it happen." Geronimo speaked.
"But, why a civil war? What could make people from the same nation fight one another?" Peko asked, the concept of such war sounding appalling and preposterous to him. "Shouldn't civillians from the same country have all the same views of wanting what's best for their homeland?"
Looking at one another, both Tesla and Geronimo tried to see how they could tell this to Peko, who's mind was ignorant of such thing till now. That and who would explain him about it.
"It's...complicated." Geronimo sighed, deciding to be the one telling Peko. "Humans can be very egotistical and narrow minded when it comes to ideals. Many don't like the differences they see on each other. Such differences makes them hate one another. It can be either in physical or mental aspects. Be it obvious or barely visible. It can be enough to make the human see another human as an enemy. And that's why we as a human species fight each other. We can't accept our own differences. Leading to tribe against tribe. American against american. And finally, human against human."
Peko looked dumbfounded at hearing such things. "But that...doesn't make sense at all! Humanity is a whole race! Why-"
"It's the truth. As much as it can be cruel, it is one." Tesla interrupted Peko. "Mankind as fought itself for ages because of such things as speaking a different language or following different believes." He crossed his arms, staring at the moon in the sky. "And as much as it pains to say this, I think there's still a long way for all the civilizations of the world to reach a consensus."
"I believe we can eventually reach that." Peko speaked up. "If humanity has more people like you two, like Ritsuka, Mash, everyone at Chaldea, I think we can get past those problems." He delcared, putting a hand on his chest. "I'm sure that humanity as a whole can be something for the greater good!"
"Aah, perhaps so." Tesla smiled gently. Geronimo doing the same thing. The two servants could only appreciate how a youngster's mind could be so positive. Perhaps that was the beauty of naivety.
"But we're servants. The time of opportunity to do that change has already passed for us." Geronimo told Peko, poking Peko's chest with his finger. "You and your friends will have to be the ones doing that."
Peko gave the native man a lively smile. "We will!"
Alcatraz Prison
"Open the gates jerks! Two warriors sent from the capital have arrived!" A man with short blond hair, red eyes and a body full of burn marks and scars shouted from the top of the prison, ordering his soldiers to open the gates, letting the celtic duo Diarmuid and Fionn enter Alcatraz. The man himself went down to the prison's yard to meet up with them.
"Ah, nice to meet you Beowulf. I see that the troops here are almost prepared for the surprise assault." Diarmuid greeted the scarred servant, shaking his hand.
"Which means this campaign should be easy. The West army won't be able to deal with such blitzkrieg." Fionn looked to the celtic troops around them.
"Being a success or not, let's go upstairs to my office. We can discuss this plan there." The scarred servant, Beowulf, pointed to the two celtic spearmen. The three entered the main building, passing through some cells while on their way to Bewoulf's office.
"Have you guys heard? Fergus dude has just kicked the bucket." Beowulf revealed the news to Diarmuid and Fionn, who reacted with slight surprise.
"Oh really? Hmm, that's a bit sad to hear. Guess he got the shortest end of the stick here." Fionn commented on his fellow celtic warrior downfall.
"Do we know who defeated him?" Diarmuid asked to Beowulf.
"Not yet. But whoever was must have been strong as hell ahahaha!" The scarred servant laughed. "And oh boy if I wanna meet that person just so that we can throw some punches!"
"As battle hungry as ever I see." Diarmuid replied with a bit of a concerned face.
As the three servants passed by, a young looking woman with large red twintails watched them pass by her cell, staying quiet in order to not draw their attention. After all, she was a prisoner here, incapacitated by the chains to do something to escape from here. She could only wish for someone to appear and rescue her.
"Please, come quick Rama."
Washington D.C
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!"
Coming down the hall, Cú Alter entered the oval room, wanting to know why Medb had just screamed. "What happened?" He asked, looking a bit concerned and with his giant spear in hand, thinking that they might be under attack.
"Cheese! Someone put cheese in my food!" Medb yelled in panic, hiding under her chair from the broken plate on the floor with the food messing it up.
"That's why you were screaming?" Cú Alter said with a deadpan face, wondering how someone like Medb could be the queen of such vast empire.
"Hm hm! It was scary..." Medb nodded, giving him sad and teary puppy eyes.
"Mature up already." Cú Alter said, not giving much of a damn to Medb's horror of cheese.
"Mature up my ass!" Medb exclaimed, coming out from under the chair while accidentaly hitting with her head on it in the process. "You know how deadly that thing is to me!" She said while rubbing her head.
"I have a revolutionary idea for you. Why don't you ban all the cheese then?" Cú Alter told her.
"Oh! Exactly! You're a genius big guy! Why I didn't tought of it before?!" Medb got immediatly up, amazed by her partner's idea.
"Because you're stupid..." Cú Alter muttered.
"What was that?" Medb thought she heard it wrong.
"Because you are an amazing and lovely queen! Everyone is so lucky to be under a ruler who isn't such a narcissistic moron!" Cú Alter faked a smile, talking in a sarcastic way.
"Awww, I love you too big guy!" Medb hugged him from behind, thinking Cú Alter's comment was genuine.
"You're a lost cause at this point." Cú Alter said to himself.
"Hope to see a nice and big smile for the parade tomorrow! You will love every second of it!" Medb patted Cú Alter's head.
"As long as I can be undisturbed." He told Medb, getting out from her hug and walking out of the room. "If so, I don't care about it at all." His mind went back to the moment his arm had gotten pierced by a spear similar to the Gáe Bolg. "I need to know if she really is here."
Being left alone, Medb just shrugged her shoulders and laid back on her chair as response to Cú Alter leaving. Passing a hand on her luxurious pink hair, Medb stared at the ceilling, stretching up her arm while giggling. "Soon, everything will be in the palm of my hand." She closed her hand into a fist.
"Just how I like it."
Denver
Helena was walking through the halls of the fortress of the West army when she heard some noises coming from Edison's office.
"No! This won't do it! It's crap!"
Hearing some violent noises coming from it, Helena peeked inside the office. "Humm, is everything alright Presiking?" Opening the door, she saw some broken mechanical pieces scattered on the ground as Edison himself sat on his desk, his hands hiding the look of frustration from his face. "Having an hard time coming up with something?" She entered the room, sad for seeing her leader unhappy.
"No ideas are coming up to me. I'm having a sort of writer's block here." Edison admitted with a distraughted voice. The situation on these last days had gotten worse for his side. The advantage that he used to have due to his fast and large manufacture of helter skelters was beggining to dissapear, with the Celtic Empire taking more territory and means of production from his army day by day. The pressure and need to come up with something new as a response for the dire situation was aching the inventor's mind. His brain couldn't conjure any new concepts to create.
"Hey, cheer up! I'm sure that we can come up with something." Helena tried to elevate his moral.
"But what if we don't? What if America dies because of my inability?" Edison thought, looking at Helena with a tired face. "With no extra help, I think we will have ti take drastic measures at this point..." His lips and face then shaped into a scowl. "No! I won't allow it! I'm a genius ain't I, Helena?! I ned to think like one! A genius always thinks of a way to get out of a desperate situation!"
Helena smiled a bit nervously to Edison's sudden unwavering sentiment of not accepting defeat. "Y-Yes, you are one Presiking."
Meanwhile, Karna stood by the door's entrance hearing the hopelessness and stuborness in Edison's words. "..."
The Following Day
"Here. We've arrived! But this is the closest that I can bring you to the prison."
A boatman told to Ritsuka and his group as the boat docked on some rocky shore of the Alcatraz Island, having traveled to the back of the island in order to avoid detection from the possible prison guards.
"Thanks. You can go sir. We'll take the rest from here." Nightingale told to the man as she and the rest of the party got off the boat and stepped into the small island.
"So this is where Sita's being held captive." Nala said, stretching her arms, prepared for the enemies that they'd most definetly would have to face here.
"We need to find a way inside." Mash said, looking back to Ritsuka. "Are you ready, master?"
The noise and cheers from the celebrations of the parade started, echoing through the entire city while two celtic guards were on surveillance of one of the city's entrances. But they wouldn't be on duty much longer as two arrows swiftly strucked each one down, making way for the invaders that planned to assassinate the queen of the Celtic Empire.
"It's opened! Let's go!" Robin said quietly as he rushed to the entrance after taking his invisible cape, being followed by Billy, Nero and Tesla.
A little more behind, Geronimo stared up to the city's entrance before looking back at Peko. "This is it. Are you ready?"
Peko answered. "I am!"
Ritsuka answered. "I am!"
To be continued...
And that was it for chapter 81!
This chapter was what I'd like to call as the calm before the storm. Talking, bonding, having fun and all before shit starts to go down within the fights of the next chapters. So I hope you enjoyed the characters dialoguing with each other because the next ones are about to get serious. But if you asked me, I think the strongest aspect of FGO and Fate in general is when the characters are speaking and interacting. Fights are cool (specially if animated by Ufotable) but I think the characters are what helps readers/viewers get more invested in a story. Like, a battle with good animation can be good, but a battle with characters people care about can be even greater.
Anyways, that's all I wanted to say, and see you next time on chapter 82!
P.S:
(WARNING: 'SPOILERS' FOR OC2 CHAPTER OF THE MAIN GAME!)
Ritsuka: T-This is...
Tokyo, 2015
(Peko and Nala appear in front of him dressed in middle school uniforms)
Peko: Hi Ritsuka! It's good to see you! On your way to school too?
Nala: Morning Ritsuka! Wanna go with us to the game store?
Peko: Why are you saying that!? We're supposed to go to class! Not skip it!
Nala: Aaah, what gives if we decide to miss only an hour or two of school?
Peko: That's highly irresponsible of you!
Ritsuka: Peko and Nala are...
Peko (dragging Nala with him): A-Anyways, we are about to get late for school already! See ya later Ritsuka!
Nala: That's not fair! I wanna go to the game store!
Ritsuka (still in shock): W-Wai-
Mash (dressed in an high school uniform): Hello senpai. How are you today?
Ritsuka: M-Mash..?
Mash (smiles): Shall we go to school together?
Ritsuka: Ah...ah...
Dantès (From the shadows behind him): So this is the life you used to have.
Ritsuka: No...(A single tear rolls from his eye)...This is the life I dreamed to have had.