Tea Gardner was known to many people.
The daughter of Ken Gardner, the commissioner of Domino. Once a respected man, then a feared one. And now a scorned one. The corrupt cop who had done the bidding of the Big 5 and who had tried to kill Edwin Chaos and frame Seto Kaiba for the act. The man that had allowed the Domino City Police Department to become utterly corrupt, filled with the worst of the worst… or the most incompetent and foolish. The ones that couldn't solve crimes or close cases. When someone suffered a tragedy in Domino they didn't call the police because it was very likely they would make it worse.
Poor Tea Gardner though wasn't corrupted. No… she was a sweet thing. Not like her sister, the rebel who had quit the force and now ran around with her goth punk outfits and dyed hair. Tea Gardner was like a fairy princess, who sang to animals and spoke of the power of friendship. Who stood on the sidelines cheering on her boyfriend Yugi Muto when she wasn't being captured by the Big Bad. A pretty girl who was fun and bubbling and light.
Tea Gardner was known to many people.
But Tea Gardner had not existed for quite a while.
No… Aiden Order had twisted her out of shape when he'd used the Millennium Rod to alter her mind and even though she had regained control over her own thoughts she would never be able to undo the warping he had done to her. Then, the likes of Marik and Ishizu Ishtar had taken hammers to her form, pounding away the delusions of naivety she might have had about the world. They had made her more cynical. More willing to see the darker aspects of life. Her father had removed the blindness she had once held that people were who they said they were. And then had come the battle of the Eternal Gate, which had been the forge that taught her to fight back.
Tea didn't talk about it with her friends. But that battle, when she'd used that strange weapon to grow to the size of a giant and fought to protect her friends? She dreamed about it often. Being strong. Being powerful. Being able to make a difference.
It had shown her who she wanted to be.
She didn't want to be Tea Gardner.
'The name we choose… it is a promise that we make.'
The newly named Tea Chaos drew her next card and stared down Martin.
"Now then!" Tea called out. "Since you saw fit to wipe out my field I'll just need to refill it! And I'll start with this: thanks to Sanctuary In The Sky being on the field, I can directly summon from my hand this monster. The dark shadow the Agents. Behold The Agent of Entropy- Uranus !"
There was a place for all things in the Heavens. Only fools believed that the Light was allowed within the Sanctuary; after all, what were shadows but the children of light? Thus the Agent of Entropy, a dark fairy with black wings and gray black skin, holding a dark staff. But he was not evil… he was merely yet another part of the universe, ready to serve his master.
"And now I will use his effect to send my Agent of Force-Mars from my deck to my graveyard in order to change his level to Level 3." As Tea slipped the card into her graveyard the ghostly image of Mars appeared over Uranus before fading from view. "Next I will select my Two Mystical Shine Balls and use them to Link Summon forth a new fairy. While it might not be one of the Agents of Master Hyperion this monster is an ally of them willing to come out when needed. So come forth Celestial Knightlord Parshath!"
The holy centaur appeared on the field, its eight legs churning up the clouds as it landed on the field. Its body was made up of holy crystals and its sword looked to be forged from diamonds blessed with the dreams and wishes of all those that had ever seen the angel gallop across the sky.
"And now I can use its affect to send one card that mentions Sanctuary in the Sky or one fairy monster from my deck to my graveyard. And I select the Lord of the Sanctuary, the commander of the Agents, Master Hyperion!" Tea smirked as her duel disc spat out the card, eyes narrowed as she stared down Martin. "But he won't be staying there for long. I can now banish Mars in order to summon forth Master Hyperion!" The burning, blazing sun appeared on the field before it exploded into a great burning fireball before collapsing back into itself, forming into Tea's monster. "And now, thanks to his effect, I can wipe out completely everything on your side of the field and end this duel!"
"Brah, that was some fancy card slinging," Martin said with a lazy grin. "But I'm afraid that we ain't done yet. Yes, I'm gonna reveal this card: Morgan, the Enchantress of Avalon."
She was a beautiful young woman, clad in green and holding a very thick staff with a green gem in the middle. She landed on the field and gently took Calliburn from Peredur's hands, the knight bowing as he surrendered his weapon.
"By surrendering to her one of my Knight's swords she is able to negate Master Hyperion's effect. Sorry, seems like you really did a lot to do that but hey, ya have to learn to accept things and move like. For example, I'm gonna destroy Arfeudutyr so I can destroy Hyperion… have ta learn ta accept that too, buuuuudy."
"True, you do have to learn to accept things," Tea said as the sword shattered, the shards heading towards her monster, "but you also don't just stand around and let stuff happen because everyone says that's the only way. You fight, you struggle, you find other ways. For example, I will save my Master Hyperion by using the Ring of Grace." Around her monster formed a shimmering pale white ring, which caught the shards in place and prevented them from striking her fairy. "This does lock Master Hyperion from attacking but I will take it if it allows me to keep him on the field."
"…well… alright, you do you," Martin said with a shrug.
Tea narrowed her eyes, trying to decide if he truly didn't have anything to say or was just being a brain dead idiot to try and hide his real thoughts.
"Oh, and one more thing," Tea said. "While I know that those swords will return to their original holders, now that you've finished using their effects, I also know that they can only do that once per turn, meaning its time I got rid of them once and for all! Celestial Knightlord Parshath, attack Noble Knight Pellinore!"
The centaur nodded and rushed forward, holy fire bursting from the ground at every point where his hoofs struck. Pellinore rolled out of the way but had to drop his sword to do so, finally shattering the mystical blade. (Martin-4000)
"And now your knight! Agent of Entropy – Uranus, attack Noble Knight Pellinore with Universal Decay!" The dark fairy nodded and thrust out his hand, sending a wave of energy that crackled and spat out sparks as it rushed towards him. The knight that was his target could do nothing to protect himself from the onslaught and found himself run down, shattering into bits. "And finally I use my Deck Master's ability to gain 600 more lifepoints!" (Martin-3700, Tea-4200)
Tea looked over the field and felt rather proud of herself.
'I managed to finally take out one of his knights, a sword, and bring out three of my powerful monsters,' she thought to herself. 'But… I can't sit back and relax for a second. I've seen it happen far too many times in far too many duels: someone thinks they have the game all wrapped up only for their opponent to suddenly drop some unexpected combo on them that completely flips the game on its head. No… I need to be on guard and be ready. There is no way I start my next turn with every monster currently still on my side of the field still there. Martin is going to attack and destroy at least one of them… and I need to be prepared for that.'
But she wasn't scared. She wasn't worried.
'I'm going to take you down, Martin. Then I'm going to find Tristan and find out what this was all about. I'm going to learn the truth. And then… Noah is going to pay!'
~MC~MC~MC~
"Such a wiggly puppy!" Serenity said as she cuddled the robotic dog close to her. She had reverted completely to her 'normal accent' though Maximillion couldn't decide if that was better or worse. On one hand it was what he was used to but on the other knowing that it wasn't her real accent but rather caused by her domineering mother trying to find yet another way to control her?
'It isn't your place to judge,' he thought to himself. 'You haven't been the best parent yourself.' He thought of his boys and wondered how they were doing; even though it had only been a few days since he'd seen them and he knew that, when they got out of the virtual world he would be able to talk with them easily, he still worried about them greatly. 'I need to, after this, just get away from Domino. The tour I took, to apologize for my actions and rebuild my reputation… that was just work. Now I need to take some time for me.'
That made him smile. A vacation… it had been far too long since he had been on a vacation. The last time he had traveled the world it had been trying to deal with his grief over Cecelia but now he wanted to travel just to travel.
'Cecelia wanted to visit so many places… perhaps me and the boys could visit them all. Or we could retrace my footsteps, follow the path I gook that led me to finding the Millennium Eye.' That thought made him smile all the more. 'Yes… erase the memories of pain and grief with ones of joy and excitement. Yako would love to Rio. And I know that Gekko would delight in seeing the Andes. As for Depre and Richie they would just love to travel with me… I see now they've grown worried about me these last few months.'
"You know, my mom would never let me get a pet, Mr. Pegasus," Serenity said, breaking him from his thoughts. "She was afraid that I would have an allergy."
Maximillion glanced at her. "Yes, I suppose that is-"
"Oh, I knew she was lying," she said with a casual wave of her free hand… which the robot puppy nearly used as a chance to escape her. Maximillion had tried to convince her to release the poor thing, as it clearly wanted to get away from her… but then the dog would settle down, almost resigned that it would be carried by her. "I just wasn't for sure why. At first I thought it was because she was allergic and she just didn't want to admit it. Then I thought that maybe it was because she was worried about the costs."
Serenity gave a shrug.
"Now I think she's just a controlin' bitch," Serenity said, slipping into her original accent.
Maximillion blinked at that in surprise. "That was-"
"Cruel? Mean?" Serenity shrugged as she switched back to her sweeter, softer, more kindly voice. "I've been learning recently that family isn't blood. Its love. Joey is my brother by blood but he's also been working to help me out. Mai and Tea and Yuri have been teaching me how to play duel monsters. Edwin hadn't ever met me and he was doing all he could to make my life easier. Get rid of the house and the food and the clothes and you've done more for me than she ever did. She was willing to let me go blind rather than try find some way to restore my vision. Yes, I know that it cost a lot but there were ways… she just gave up."
Maximillion didn't know what to say to that other than, "I'm sorry."
"It is what it is," she said with a shrug. "To be honest… I think after Battle City I'm going to travel. I know I'm young but all my life I've allowed others to define me. I need to figure out who I am."
"That… sounds like a good idea," Maximillion admitted. "I did much the same when I was younger. A few years older than you but still…"
He trailed off as he heard voices and he held out his hand, causing Serenity to stop…
…only to let out a sigh of relief when he saw that it was merely Edwin, Koyo, Joey and-
"That's not Mai," Serenity whispered, staring at the woman that had Mai Valentine's face. But rather than her curly bouncy hair and coy smirk the woman walking next to Edwin had long straight hair and while she was smiling there was no warmth to her grin. No… it was as cold as the pale moon on a dark January night, when the blackness of midnight brought forth tears and fears, driving one to escape.
"Selene," Maximillion said at once, remembering what had happened to Mai when she had tried to confront Wyatt Chaos.
"Ah… so we find more of our companions," Selene purred. "Did you two also have duels against the Big 5?"
"I did," Maximillion stated.
"Pity," Selene said with a sigh. "Had Serenity dueled it would have meant we were almost done. That leaves us with still one member of the Big 5 and Noah himself."
"Not exactly," Edwin said and when the others looked at him he shook his head, mouthing 'Later'. Maximillion understood at once; Edwin had knowledge he shouldn't and they didn't need Noah finding out about that. "Obviously you won Pegasus… who did you duel?"
"Leichter," Maximillion stated. "Or rather I dueled the mockery of Cassie that he created." Edwin blinked at that and Maxmillion frowned. 'So… that was a change to how he saw things. Interesting… I wonder what caused that change.' Outloud he said, "What about the rest of you?"
"Koyo and I took care of Nezbitt and Gangsley."
"Good riddance," Koyo muttered darkly and Maximillion made a note to ask the young man about that.
"And you Ma… Selene?"
"I dealt with… Crump." She screwed up her face in disgust.
"Well, at least you had the most fair of duels," he commented; Crump would have been honorable in his duel. 'Truly is a pity that he had such loyalty to the rest of the Big 5…' There was no use though mourning over such things. "Is there anything else that we should be aware of?"
It was Joey who spoke up. "Apparently Ed here is some guy named Loogie."
"…you know who Loki is," Edwin complained. "You are doing that just to fuck with me."
"You'll never know, pal, you'll never know," Joey teased.
Maximillion though held up his hand. "I'm sorry… but did you just claim that Edwin was Loki? As in the Norse God of Mischief?"
"Lies, Magic, Stories…" Selene rattled off. "Though he wasn't an actual god. Not immortal. But he was given the title by you humans."
"You're not helping the situation," Edwin complained. "And I'm not Loki."
"Yes, you are," Selene retorted.
Edwin rolled his eyes at that. "I have enough titles put on me, do NOT throw Loki on me either."
"It doesn't change the fact that you were Loki."
"Endymion was Loki."
Selene beamed. "And you are Endymion!" She giggled at that, running her fingers along his shoulder. "It is so cute when you play dumb."
Edwin rubbed his forehead. "You enjoy tormenting me, don't you?"
"It makes the sex so much better."
"None of us are old enough ta hear ya two talk about that kind of stuff!" Joey complained.
Selene though merely rolled her eyes as she continued to run her fingers along Edwin's body, though Maximillion saw she had moved on from just her hands to practically grinding against Edwin lustfully. He saw that Joey and Koyo were feeling as awkward as he was by the goddess pressing her groin against Edwin's hip bone but a side-eye look at Serenity showed she… wasn't reacting at all.
'Teenagers,' he thought.
"Well, I suppose if you aren't Endymion and aren't Loki that means you don't care about his children…"
"Of course I do," Edwin snarled darkly, eyes flashing gold.
"So you admit you are Endymion!" Selene sang.
Maximillion felt like his brain was being hit with Edwin's cane. It reminded him of when he had gotten the Millennium Eye and truly come to understood how big the world was.
"You're… children?"
Edwin grit his teeth. "Apparently… Endymion and Selene had at least two kids. Hela and Fenrir." He forced Selene to back away from him. "She won't tell me who they are though."
"Who… they are," Maximillion said slowly. "Reincarnation?"
"They were Demi Gods. So they weren't immortal." Selene shrugged. "They lived a very long time but eventually they passed on, leaving me to keep watch until daddy came home."
"Please don't say that," Edwin said with an annoyed shudder.
"But… they are around?" Maximillion stated. "And I mean… right now they are? In this current life of Edwin's?"
"Oh yes," Selene said before suddenly looking at Serenity.
"What? What is it?" Her eyes suddenly went wide. "Me… and Joey?"
Edwin's gaze became just as wide… right before Selene burst into laughter.
"THAT is not funny!" Edwin roared and Maximillion swore that Edwin's head had suddenly grown ten times in side, his arms little more than sticks that he waved violently. Selene, for her part, suddenly looked less defined, a bashful bemused smile on her lips even as she cringed. "This! This is why I want to know who our kids are! So you can't pull this bullshit."
And then he returned to normal, puffing slightly while Selene… nibbled on her lips, looking utterly delighted.
"Yell at me more, lover," she purred.
"How about ya don't, daddy," Joey said sarcastically. Koyo though leaned in and whispered to him, causing Joey to frown. "Wait, what? It can come off as DAT?! EEEEEEEEEE!" He suddenly went ramrod still. "Why would anyone use THAT as a term when they…"
"Joey?" Edwin said through grit teeth.
"Y-yeah?"
"Shut up."
"Aye aye," he said meekly.
~MC~MC~MC~
Tea watched as Martin lazily drew his next card. "That was some turn, man. You, like, totally went all out there."
For her part Tea rolled her eyes. 'I swear, his use of hippie surfer slang keeps alternating from barely there to overdone parody. Its like he can't decide what kind of stereotype he wants to be.'
"But not its time for me to show you how I take on even the highest waves. Because while you have to go with the flow you also need to know how to shift with the waters, either with it or against it." He held up a card. "I'll start by summoning in defense mode Nobel Knight Gawayn."
He was a big man and not just in terms of his form, which was large with thick arms and legs and a mighty chest. No… even in defense mode he seemed to spread himself across the field, demanding all focus on him.
"Next, I'll equip to my Noble Knight Peredur the legendary blade Noble Arms- Clarent." The sword was a study in duality, for one side was dark, with the crossbar black as ebony and spreading out along the blade itself, while the other was shining gold and bright as a summer's day. "And Noble Arms- Clarent is a real cool blade, you know? And not just because it looks so different and extreme. See, a monster that holds this can attack you directly, so long as I pay 500 lifepoints."
Tea at once braced herself as Noble Knight Peredur rushed past her monsters and slammed its sword right into her belly. She cried out, it feeling like her insides were on fire, before the knight ripped his sword out, causing her to fall to her knees and pant. 'I'm okay… I'm okay.' She patted her stomach, reassuring herself that she was fine and not injured at all. Still, she couldn't help but go back to what had happened to Edwin: the horrible moment that Ishizu had speared him through the heart, killing him before any of them could react.
She swallowed and slowly willed herself to stand up.
"And now, because I have Noble Arms – Calliburn on the field, I am able to get back my 500 lifepoints. Isn't that just so amazing? The ebb and flow, like the tide itself." (Tea-1800, Martin-3700)
Tea glowered as she slowly settled herself, running her hands along her shirt, straightening and smoothing out wrinkles that weren't there. "If… if you think that was going to scare me into stopping then you are mistaken," she finally said.
"I don't care what you do, so long as you are true to yourself. That's all that matters, buuuuuddy."
"…right," she said as she drew her next card. 'I need to stop focusing on what happened and what I am going to do next,' she thought. 'With that equip card letting his knight attack me directly I am done next turn if I don't defeat him here. I need to go at him hard and fast and more importantly I need to destroy his Noble Knight Peredur NOW.' She considered all of her options before slowly nodding to herself. 'Yeah… I think that might work perfectly.' Holding out a card Tea said, "I'll start by summoning The Agent of Mystery – Earth!" The young angel, with wings of green and blue, smiled happily as she settled next to the Shine Ball, lightly tickling it and causing the orb to wobble in delight. "Next, I'll use its effect to add an Agent monster from my deck to my hand." She looked through her deck before nodding, "This'll help. But now its time to bring something new to the field.
"The Earth and the Sun have a special relationship. Without the light of the sun there would be no life on our planet. We would be just a cold rock that had nothing on it but dust. So my Agent of Mystery is loyal to Master Hyperion… and willing to aid it in times of need. Such as now! I use my Agent of Mystery – Earth to Tune my Hyperion for a Syncro summon!"
The little blue fairy giggled as she leapt into the air, becoming a ring of energy that Master Hyperion leapt at, turning into a beam of light as he did so. The moment the beam passed through the ring its light changed, switching from bright orangish yellow to a blinding red. The beam rocketed high into the air, hovering above the Sanctuary in the Sky before suddenly twisting down towards them. When it struck the ground it consolidated into a humanoid form… one though that was very different from what Master Hyperion had been.
He was the sun at its greatest… a massive Red Giant with a corona of golden plasma bursting from its surface. Towering over all of them, so that it felt like he could reach down and place each and every duelist not just in that duel but in the entire Virtual World in the palm of his hand.
"Behold… Masterflare Hyperion!"
"That… is one big dude," Martin stated.
"I think I hate you," Tea commented.
"He must need a HUGE surf board… bet he can catch some sick waves though!"
Tea just rubbed her forehead before declaring, "Yeah, you ponder that while I continue this duel. I will now send a second copy of Master Hyperion from my deck to the graveyard in order to give Masterflare Hyperion his effect. So now I will banish two Mystical Shine Balls from my graveyard in order to destroy two cards on the field."
"Gonna go after my monsters?" Martin asked. "Or maybe my swords? Would be what I'd do."
"And it's a good thing I'm not you," Tea stated. "Because that is a dumb move. No… I'm tired of you giving your monsters extra lives so I'm going to make sure you can't do that anymore. That's why along with the sword held by your Gawyen I'm also going to destroy your field spell! Masterflare Hyperion!" She thrust out her hand and the giant avatar of the Sun unleashed a solar flare that burned away Camelot completely, leaving nothing but a charred landscape before that too shattered. All that was left was the Sanctuary in the Sky, which hovered over the endless sky.
"That was, like, far too bogus, man," Martin complained.
"Then how about this for even more bogus," Tea said, internally wincing at how utterly lame that comeback sounded in her own head. "Masterflare Hyperion, attack Noble Knight Peredur!" The solar avatar nodded and held out his hand, sending out another blistering wave of heat and light that flash cooked the knight right where he stood, causing him to shatter. His equips went to Gawayn but Tea shook her head. "Uranus, attack his Noble Knight Gawyen and then Knightlord Parashath attack Martin directly!"
Her monsters did as they were commanded, with Uranus sending out a wave of entropy that caused Noble Knight Gawyen to crumble to dust before Knightlord Parashath rushed Martin, slamming his hooves into him and causing him to fall to the ground.
"And finally I use the Lord of Harvest again to increase my lifepoints!" (Martin-500,Tea-2400)
Martin slowly got up… and let out a laugh. "Man… that was a rush. Like catching some waves off the coast." He shook his head. "Dashes ya and slashes ya but ya still have ta get up in the end and give it another try!"
Tea just shook her head. "I know you have something planned. You wouldn't be this calm if you didn't. So come on… let's see what you have in store for me."
That caused the surfer hippie bro to shake his head though. "Man, can't you just… go with the flow? Let things come when they come. You're so concerned about getting to your destination-"
"Yeah, you know why?" Tea finally snapped. "Because my destination is leaving this place! Its getting back to my friends and leaving you, the Big 5, and Noah all to rot here! You act like this is some fun little game but it isn't! You are trying to steal my body, you deranged bastard, and I'm not going to idly sit here while you preach to me about stopping to smell the roses! Every second you want me to waste just breathing in the good vibes or whatever other shit you are peddling only means your master's friends get to go after the people I love. So to quote my brother: Fuck off and duel already!"
Martin considered her for a long moment and Tea wondered if finally he would throw off the act of him being someone who just went through existence aimlessly, shrugging their shoulders and continuing on with life as if nothing was wrong. That she would finally see him for what he truly was and not the pathetic caricature he presented himself as.
"…man, you are really wound up, aren't you?" Martin said.
"Just… fucking… duel…" Tea ground out.
Martin shrugged. "Well, first off, I got no monsters in my hand so I will summon my Deck Master to the field!"
As the Lord of the Noble Knights, Noble Knight Artorigus, stepped forward Tea forced herself not to get excited. 'Yes, if I can destroy that card then I'll win this duel automatically… but I can't count on it being easy. He wouldn't bring it out if he didn't think there was a chance that he could win. This isn't a desperate final gambit… I can feel it-'
Martin suddenly flickered.
Tea frowned at that. It had been only for a second but the AI Duelist's entire body had shuddered for a moment, like a movie skipping a frame so that a character moved a touch too quickly. It was so fast that she could believe that she had imagined it. But no… she had seen him flicker.
She just had no idea what that meant… but it had her worried.
"Alright, next I'll activate The Grand Armory of the Noble Knights, which allows me to draw cards up to the number of Noble Arms cards in my graveyard." He did so… only to flicker again; Tea was now 100% sure she wasn't seeing things. "Alright! I just drew an amazing card. I mean… for me, not for you! I activate Crowing of the Noble Knights, which allows me to turn my Noble Knight Artorigus into his regal form: Sacred Noble Knight of King Artorigus." The deck master dipped his head as ghostly hands appeared to place a crown on his head, his armor shifting to something more regal. "A surfer can't go anywhere without his board, a duelist no where without his deck, and a king no where without his sword. So now Sacred Noble Knight of King Artorigus brings out his weapon… the only weapon that a king can wield. Noble Arms Excaliburn!"
Tea knew the myth well. Three years ago during the summer break from school she and Yugi had ended up on a Camelot kick. In fact many of the monsters that Martin was using were familiar to her because of that.
So yes… she knew of the sword he spoke of.
The sword of kings. Once two swords they had been fused into one, gifted by the Lady of the Lake to her chosen. King Artorigus took the blade and bowed his head before lifting it up and bellowing to the heavens.
"And now, because he's like the king and all, he is able to add up to three of the swords in my graveyard to himself." The swords suddenly appeared on Sacred Noble Knight of King Artorigus' hips, including Clarent.
"I activate Masterflare Hyperion's special ability!" Tea said quickly. "I banish my Master Hyperion from my graveyard to banish your Deck Master from the game!"
But Martin shook his head. "Sorry, bruh, but ya can't banish a deck master."
"Should have seen that coming. Too easy. Alright, I banish Clarent then, to prevent you from being able to attack me directly.
Martin shrugged as the sword shattered. "That's okay… he has enough swords as it is. And I have something else for him. I equip Gwenhqyfar, Queen of Noble Arms, to Sacred Noble Knight of King Artorigus."
She was a beautiful maiden but also sad. Her heart was heavy even as she stood behind the king, her hands upon his arm.
"Calliburn and Gwenhqyfar give King Artorigus 800 more attack points," Martin informed her. "That brings him up to 3000. Aw man… that means your Masterflare Hyperion is about to get wiped out!" King Artorigus rushed forward and slashed with his swords, cutting the avatar of the sun down and causing him to shatter. It was only thanks to the Sanctuary that Tea survived with no life point loss. "And now I gain 500 more lifpoints thanks to my other swords." (Martin-1000)
"But before you end your turn its time for me to show off some of my monsters and their skills!" Tea declared, pointing at her Celestial Knightlord Parashath. "I am able to banish the second Master Hyperion that's in my graveyard in order to summon from my hand the Agent of Miracles – Jupiter!" The angel, with bronzen skin and wings, appeared and held out his beefy hand, warning Martin that he would suffer if he dared attack him.
"Well, that was-" Martin glitched AGAIN, "-interesting."
Tea frowned as she watched him set a card facedown on the field. 'What is going on?'
~MC~MC~MC~
Johnson sighed, reaching up and adjusting his glasses. "Well… it seems as if your little friend is figuring things out. I had hoped I might be able to deceive her a while longer."
"Like you tried to trick me?" Tristan said as he looked over his side of the field, his Machina Possesstorage facing down Caesar's Fire King Monsters. "Tea is smarter than that, Johnson… she's seeing through your lies, just like I did! You tried to turn us against one another-"
"Yes yes, prattle on," the man said with a wave of his hand. "It doesn't matter. One of you will fall here and I will claim your body. It is simple as that."
Tristan frowned. 'Hopefully Tea is doing better than I am… because I don't want to think about her being in as much trouble as I currently am!'
~MC~MC~MC~
OMAKE:
Written by Garnettfox and Edited by The Patient One
"Percy—Percy, I-I can't—!"
"Just a little farther Cassandra!" the boy lied, his body screaming to stop, to rest. But they couldn't. The sounds behind them confirmed that: the thundering of the Briarwoods' horses' hooves, the cruel laughter of their riders, and the sounds of arrows cutting through the air, too close too close.
The river wasn't far. It would be swelled and raging from the meltwater, but drowning would be a swift mercy compared to returning to the dungeons of what had been their family home.
Terror gripped his heart as Cassandra screamed, her hand falling from his as he heard the sounds of arrows sinking into flesh—
He turned, expecting to see his sister, the last part of his family dead in the snow—
She wasn't.
She was in the snow, but blessedly alive, and staring up at—
A man. A man in leather armor with a pair of arrows sticking from his chest, having pushed Cassandra out of the way.
"Aria, get the kids to safety. Now," their savior said.
The boy barely held back a scream as a ginger Tabaxi skidded to a halt next to him looking to the man.
"But Remus, the others are too far away to back you up—!"
"I don't need backup. Get the kids to safety. Now."
The Tabaxi—Aria apparently—lashed her tail in irritation before looking to Percy. "Think you two can hold onto a horse long enough to get away?"
Percy worked his jaw, struggling for words, before nodding and pulling Cassandra up from the snow. "We'll have to be."
Aria shook her head and snorted as, in a blaze of magic, her form changed into a horse, Percy throwing his sister up onto her back before climbing on, clinging with all his strength, Aria's mane in one hand and Cassandra in the other.
"So, you beasts think you can get away with hurting kids?" Percy looked back as Aria turned and started to gallop away, the man, Remus it must be, pulled free the two arrows dug into his flesh. "You are monsters of the lowest order, hurting those who can not protect themselves. Let's see how you fare against a true monster."
The man threw back his head and howled as his form changed and grew, transforming into a werewolf still clad in his armor. With a snarl, the Werewolf launched himself at the Brairwoods, and Percy lost sight of them between the trees. He could only maintain his iron grip on his companions and hope for the best.
0o0o0o0o
"Oh, hey, you're finally awake!"
Percy blinked blurrily at the purple blur in front of him, before his glasses were gently placed on his face and the blur solidified into a dragonborn with gem-like scales and a pair of glasses balanced delicately on her snout.
"You passed out pretty much the second Aria stopped, almost crushed Moose when you and your sister fell off her and onto him. Lowkey, fucking hilarious."
Percy slowly nodded and tried to sit up, only for the Dragonborn to gently but firmly hold him down with a claw on his chest. "Nuh-uh. Cleric's orders: you and Cassandra are staying horizontal and resting as much as you can manage. Even between a pair of Clerics and a pair of Druids…Fuck, the damage done to you two…"
"Doctor Ripley was…extensive." He frowned as the dragonborn turned away and grabbed something before holding out a single berry to him "…I know you're supposed to give starvation victims small meals—"
"It's a goodberry. Druid thing: basically all the calories, vitamins, and minerals a good adventurer needs in one little bite. You and Cassandra are having one of these a day and anything we can get in you without you throwing up is just extra calories to help you recover."
Percy sighed, taking and eating it before speaking again.
"Where is she?" he asked, frowning.
"Still asleep," the Dragonborn said. She moved aside, and Percy felt himself relax seeing Cassandra sleeping, curled up in a ball. "Her injuries aren't as bad as yours, but still…Bad."
"She's…we're really…safe…?"
"Nooooot completely," the dragonborn answered, frowning a little. "We're waiting for Remus to catch up before we hustle our asses out of here to somewhere safe."
"Remus…the…Werewolf, yes?" Percy frowned "I…I don't think your friend—"
"Don't worry, kid, Remus can take care of himself," the Dragonborn chuckled.
"Against a wizard and a vampire?"
"He'll enjoy the challenge."
Percy shook his head at her optimism. "I wish I could share the sentiment, miss…Ahh?"
"Cassandra," the Dragonborn answered, smiling at the look Percy gave her. "Ya, good thing I hate it, so just call me Cassie. Your sister's more than welcome to be the only Cassandra. And you're Percy, right?"
"Percival Fredrickstein von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III," the boy said, almost reflexively.
"…but you're fine with Percy, right?"
"Yes," the boy answered quietly before changing the subject. "How many of you are there?"
Cassie smirked wryly. "Let's see, you know Remus and Aria. Zachary is our half-elf druid, Martin is our high elf Cleric—he completely wiped out his magic healing you two, so he's sleeping it off. Sasha is a Kalashtar fighter/rogue; Moose is the dwarf warrior-bard; Ven a half-elf paladin; Tom is the rogue Trition, you can usually find him in whatever river or steam is nearby; and Nate—"
She paused as a small explosion sounded outside the tent followed by raised voices.
"…Nate is fucking dead, I do NOT have the spells to reattach his arm again!"
The voices got louder as Cassie marched to the entrance of the tent opening the flap—
And Percy's eyes widened, seeing a blond man in familiar armor meeting her, smiling despite the blood around his mouth.
"Hey, let's get them loaded up on the wagon and head out. We need to be out of here before that Vampire regenerates."
"But you're bleeding…" Percy protested, doing his best to sit up. Remus—It had to be him—looked surprised he was awake.
"Oh, this? Not mine." He wiped at his mouth with a smirk. "Hope that Vamp's a lefty since there's only so much his regeneration can do against holy werewolf bites~ Now then, load the kids up, and let's head to Emon. We still need to sell off that dragon's hoard before we settle on our next job."
"You got it, boss~" Cassie jokingly saluted going to Cassandra muttering a spell as she picked the girl up. "I'm gonna put a spell on you too, to keep you asleep while we're moving. Trust me, you'll thank me considering your injuries."
Part of him wanted to protest, to stay awake to protect Cassandra, not trusting her with strangers.
But a greater part of him just wanted to rest, to cry and mourn.
Everyone. They'd lost…their parents, their elder siblings…their younger siblings…god…god, the twins, they were only eight, only eight…everyone. He and Cassandra were the last of the De Rolos, chased from their family home to potentially never return….
"…I think I would like to sleep now," he murmured, his voice trembling.
Cassie nodded sympathetically as she reached out a softly glowing hand. And then all Percy knew was blessed peace and darkness.
0o0o0o
The weeks following fell into a steady rhythm for the two last De Rolos, mostly of sleeping to recover from the weeks of torture at the hands of the Briarwoods, with their few waking hours spent in the company of the strange group that called themselves 'The Khaotic Pack'. At first, it was only the ones with healing knowledge they spent time with, and they were…Interesting.
Cassie tended to ramble as she worked, talking more to herself than them and making up stories in her head. Honestly, if she wasn't a cleric, she could probably make a good living as a bard with some of the tales. Martin was quieter, preferring to read during his shift, though once they found out he was reading books on the laws of different races, Percy found that he liked discussing cultural differences with the high elf.
Then there were the two druids. Aria was anxious at times, apparently being the youngest and not long having left her clan to prove herself. It was clear to see the way Remus and the others doted on her as almost the baby of the group. It warmed his heart and made it ache thinking of how his parents had cherished him, his siblings, and the staff. Zachary was wilder, having a more scrutinizing approach to his surroundings and coming up with half-magical, half-scientific theories on how the world functioned.
As they grew stronger, they were properly introduced to the rest of the pack. Ven, another half-elf, was the eldest of the pack, and showed it when compared to the others, speaking slowly and softly with carefully chosen words. The Paladin of Bahamut tended to act as a shield for the two De Rolo children when the other members of the Pack grew too much for them. Moose the bard did much the same, though there as Ven shielded them by helping settle the others when they got over eager or offering a quiet spot to rest. Moose did so by distraction, amping the others up away from the siblings so they could get a break from the pack's chaos.
To Percy's surprise, once his sister was well enough to be on her feet again, she took to following Sasha and Tom like a duckling. The two didn't seem to mind and even started giving Cassandra lessons with her rapier. It both reassured him that his sister was finding a way to protect herself…and somewhat stung at his pride, that as the older sibling he was still bedridden from Doctor Ripley's tortures, and that he was inadequate enough that she felt the need to protect herself rather than let him protect her…
Spending time with Nate helped alleviate those feelings. The half-elf was what he described as an 'Artificer,' and Percy found the concept fascinating: The idea of using technology to ensnare magic and even replicate it! Though he was a little disappointed it still required talent with the arcane, something that was always out of his grasp. He'd accepted it long ago: he had no talents for magic, held no faith in the divine, and was always the worst fencer and fighter of his siblings when growing up. Seeing Cassandra flourish under the two rogues was more than proof of it. But there had to be something…some way he could stand on at least equal footing with her, if not protect her.
That was when the dream found him, an idea forged in iron and gunsmoke…At least, he thought it was a dream. Till he was woken by Sasha screaming out curses, rousing everyone. Admittedly, it was more than a little funny seeing a demonic-looking crow made of smoke frantically trying to escape as a pair of clerics and blood hunter raced around after it, looking like a set of chickens with their heads removed till the demon was stuffed into a divinely enhanced jar.
Several vigorous shakes and threats of getting drowned in holy water later, the thing they had captured—Orthax, it claimed was its name—admitted it had been attempting to trick Percy into selling his soul in his sleep by offering a way to get vengeance. Lucky for Percy that the Pack had noticed. And that Orthax, in his eagerness, had overplayed his hand.
Even if the deal wasn't struck, Percy still remembered the blueprints shown in soot and smoke, and knew just how to build the weapon the demon had offered. Remus was oddly somber when shown the drawings Percy made the morning after.
"...I'm not going to stop you," he said. "I just want you to know and remember: Once you've made this, there's no going back, no putting the genie back in the bottle. Once you've proven this can be made, anyone who sees it is going to try and reverse-engineer it. This is the first gun, Percy. But even if you die moments after the iron has cooled, it will not be the last. Are you willing to live with that?"
"...Yes."
After a moment, the werewolf nodded.
"Well, then, let's find you a forge and start you off with some of Sasha's hand crossbows. If you're going to do this, you're going to do it right."
"...Why?"
Remus looked confused as Percy stared at him.
"Because I'm not going to let you run around barely able to use it and potentially kill yourself?"
"No!" Percy groaned, fist's clenching in frustration "This, all this! Saving us, spending weeks and who knows how much gold, taking care of me and Cassandra, giving up well paying jobs to stick by us-Why are you doing all this for people you don't know and who have nothing to offer you!?"
Remus sighed, gently pulling the blueprints from Percy's grip before he accidentally tore them, and held both of the boy's hands.
"Because you needed it. Because despite whatever you may think, you deserve help, Percy. You shouldn't even be here; you should be back in Whitestone, playing with your siblings, tinkering away at your projects. But the Briarwoods took that away from you. You deserve to be cared for, you and your sister both deserve the chance to heal and grow."
"We don't have anything to offer you in return…"
Remus chuckled.
"Sure you do. Getting to see the two of you grow up, to see the great people I and the others know you'll become? That's all any alpha wants to see from their cubs. That's all I want from you and Cassandra."
"...You should know…Once I have the weapon completed and I'm happy with my skills with it—"
"You plan on taking your sister and striking out on your own path. One that will lead you back to Whitestone, back to the Briarwoods."
It wasn't a guess: Remus spoke it as fact, and Percy staying damningly silent only confirmed that.
"I know. We all know. I just want two promises from you, Percival Fredrickstein von Musel Klossowski de Rolo the third."
"...And that is?"
Remus smiled, pulling a small silver bracelet engraved with a running wolf, out of his pack with his gloved hand. "The first is that if you ever have need of us, you'll break this bracelet. No matter what, if you howl for us, the pack will come running for our cubs, so promise you'll use it. And second…don't leave Cassandra alone. Don't dig your grave along with the others. Promise that you will do your best to LIVE."
"...I promise. Thank you Remus."
Introducing the Chaos of Earth-5010: Remus Khaoz, Order of the Lycanthrope Blood Hunter, leader of the Khaotic Pack.