The decision was made. We would attack at night. That's how Klaus came up with the idea the moment we woke up. I remember that instant, opening my eyes with the sunlight directly in front of me while Klaus affirmed it with a convincing face. It could be anytime since, after what happened the previous night, it was preferable to leave some extra hours. We knew Acciaioli was waiting for us at any moment.
Throughout the day, we reviewed all the material for the attack, especially the weapons, before leaving with them, far from the city. We were perfectly aware that returning to the airport would be complete suicide. While I checked off the list and gathered everything, Klaus watched me, giving instructions while smoking one cigarette after another.
"Try to contribute something," I said, somewhat annoyed.
"I don't want to get involved because you're Miss Perfect, and you criticize me for the slightest mistake," Klaus excused himself.
"At least you could tidy up your things a bit."
"Order is the least of our worries knowing we'll have to leave in a hurry. I wonder if we'll have trouble getting into the city."
"It's possible that Acciaioli has the police in his pocket to do whatever he pleases."
"I think the same. Otherwise, that 'welcome' he gave us would be inexplicable."
"I don't know what he wants from me, but I'm scared."
"I'm surprised you say that after everything you've been through."
"The problem is his favorite targets are women and children. What if I remember all that torment I went through with my stepbrother?"
"It's understandable. But you're stronger than you seem. I'm sure you won't back down."
I nodded.
"I wish I could say the same about you, always leaving everything a mess."
"Hey, I don't like it when you criticize me after I compliment you," Klaus said sarcastically.
"I like to be frank."
"Sometimes I feel like you're a bit vain and need to rub it in others' faces to feel better."
I pouted at the provocation.
"Well, we should stop the chatter and leave as soon as possible," Klaus ordered.
At dusk, we set off. With the sky a mix of purple and orange, Klaus started the car and accelerated, skidding as if in a race. Like all car journeys, we didn't exchange a single word. The high level of concentration and seriousness was more than evident. We were facing an unusual case. It was the first time our prey was waiting for us, albeit reluctantly. He wanted to kill us, and we him. Who would strike first? It was all a mystery. For Klaus, with all his experience, the outcome was tipped in our favor. I, on the other hand, had my doubts.
I had a feeling Savino Acciaioli would drive me up the wall. His actions and possible personality would be the embodiment of part of my traumas. It was more than likely I couldn't control my anger. The consequence would be that I'd unleash Angra Mainyu's power in such an uncontrolled manner that there would be no shame. It was more than likely Klaus would find out about me. If that happened, I feared he wouldn't accept that side of me, possessing something so dangerous. I immediately cut off those thoughts because despair was consuming me. I distracted myself by looking at the landscape, barely visible at night.
When we approached the airport, we realized it was full of police cars. Fearing being caught because the car was stolen, Klaus took a detour, delaying our arrival. The aggravation was primarily because there was a traffic jam that trapped us. Klaus exhaled heavily, so did I, but this was the only way not to get arrested by the police. The reason was that there had been a multiple-car accident; about six or seven cars had collided, and the police had cordoned off the road. They wouldn't stop us because it wasn't their job. When we passed the cordoned section, Klaus floored it, and we reached Florence via the outskirts.
It was almost ten at night when we arrived. We were on the outskirts, near the river. After parking the car, I took the suitcase out, and Klaus turned off the engine but didn't set the handbrake when he got out. He pushed the car into the river.
"We must leave no evidence," Klaus explained, seeing my surprised face.
I hid the suitcase in a sewer on Klaus's orders. The plan was to come back for it and return by other means. We'd figure something out.
We walked for half an hour until we reached a bridge where one of Acciaioli's men was watching us. He was a bald, burly man wearing a bowler hat.
We stopped dead in our tracks upon seeing him, but the man raised his hand in a gesture of peace.
"The boss has decided on a ceasefire. I'll escort you to his hideout," he said as he approached our position.
He led us to their position. It was quite suspicious. We didn't trust him at all. Our hands were positioned in our pockets, gripping our guns, ready for any ambush.
"I'll kindly ask you to hand over your weapons," the guide demanded. "Otherwise, I'll take measures. Boss's orders."
We had no choice but to comply.
We arrived at the conduit leading to the hideout, a place I'd first come to with the shadow, then to save Klaus, and now to finish the job. This strange situation was all uncertainty. What could go wrong?
As we slowly descended, it got darker and darker. The atmosphere was cold. For a moment, I touched the walls, feeling them rough as if made of irregular stones. There was a lapse when Acciaioli's henchman ordered a pause to fetch a torch and light it with his lighter. Then the entrance became clear. The walls were slate, covered with damp stains and red ones, possibly blood. Violence clearly reigned in this gloomy environment.
At the bottom of the stairs, we saw there were two corridors: a central one leading to a mahogany door and another to a side room.
"Only she can enter," said the henchman, turning around.
Suddenly, several men, about five or six, pounced on Klaus, restraining him and delivering several blows to his stomach.
"I trust you, Sakura," Klaus said, trying to endure the pain.
When they took Klaus away as a hostage, the man who had escorted us opened the door for me, and I entered. He then shut it, forcing me to continue alone.
Unlike the stairs, the corridor I entered was fully lit by torches on both sides. Even slower than before, I resumed walking over a cobblestone path with earth on the sides. What I was seeing was hard to digest.
On the limestone rock walls hung numerous corpses from shackles, some completely decomposed to bones, others still in the process. There were also bodies lying on the floor, which, according to the reports, were women and children. All bore signs of trauma or amputation. Those on the ground were still decomposing, rats scurried from one to another, and some bodies were feasts for worms.
Between the sights and the stench, nausea came naturally. "That could have been me," the thought circled in my head. It was a fact that if I had never escaped from the Matou mansion, I would have ended up like this. Maybe death could be a relief; the soul would separate, and if you were a good person, you'd have a much better life in heaven than on earth. Or so the Church claimed. But what was clear was that I was about to face a man with no scruples for the most vulnerable people.
After walking through that torturous corridor, I arrived at a large circular room, lit by a dome with an opening where light penetrated. The walls were covered with torches, and in the center stood a man of medium height with long, brown, slightly wavy hair. He wore a gray suit and black leather shoes.
"The wait is finally over," said a man in his thirties, smiling. "In the end, good manners are the most effective," he laughed.
"It's you, isn't it?" I asked, just to be sure.
"Of course, it's me. If you don't remember my name, I'm Savino Acciaioli," he made a bow as if engaging in a playful dialogue. "No need to introduce yourself because I know you are Sakura Matou."
"Don't mention that surname again. How did you know about me? And why did you want me to come?"
"Well, everyone has their contacts in the Association. Everyone believed you were dead. The great genius of the explosion at the Matou mansion left no one indifferent. The question is how you did it. There are many gaps about how you escaped and ended up under the Church's protection. But that doesn't interest me. What really matters is what you hide inside. When the Matou mansion went up in flames, the Association took measures to investigate what had happened. And when they discovered, mother of God... I must congratulate you for surviving that; my victims wouldn't have told the tale," he clapped mockingly.
"Enough! Cut the crap and tell me what you want from me!" I was getting furious.
"Okay, sorry. It seems your dear grandfather," he was trying to provoke me, I had to restrain myself, "integrated a Holy Grail crystal into you to make you an alternative vessel. However, it was corrupted, and inside, you hold a very colorful servant, and I would like to control it."
"I warn you, it's more of a curse than a blessing."
"I don't care."
"You can't extract it. I tried once and couldn't."
"I don't mind keeping you locked up until the next Holy Grail War in Fuyuki."
"I knew you'd say that. Do you plan to summon Dante?"
"Yes. Wow, you're quite a perceptive girl."
"Among all the drug bags, what was an old copy of The Divine Comedy doing there? There was no other explanation."
"Indeed. As you can see, I have to make a living somehow. Magic, no matter how powerful, doesn't feed you."
"So, you're a miserable person who has to make a living by ruining others."
"HOW DARE YOU INSULT MY HONOR?" he showed a temper similar to Shinji's.
"Honor? Since when is selling drugs honorable?"
"It's not our fault people are that stupid. We're above good and evil."
"For an older man, you act like an adolescent."
"Reason isn't what imposes itself, but force. My family knew this when they embraced magic. Although it hasn't prospered much, it has been where it could instill terror. My grandfather supported the fascists, and my father was the Monster of Florence. The famous serial killer who murdered couples as revenge for my mother's adultery. That's where I learned how weak women and children are, and how to teach them good manners, even if it kills them," he laughed.
It was clear his family was full of psychopaths. Little difference from the Matou family.
"I'm not that surprised. You're just another unpleasant asshole who needs to be killed for the good of society," I said bluntly.
"Though you see me as cancer, you can't remove me. This city is mine."
"But outside of here, you're nothing but a mere lackey."
"That will change when I win the Holy Grail War."
"I warn you, you gain more than you lose."
"I won't listen to the words of a child."
"I'm telling you the truth."
"I'M NOT INTERESTED! I just want to achieve glory for this family that magic has never favored!"
"Are you going to bark all day, doggy? Or do you plan to bite me?" The simple act of provoking him made Acciaioli lunge at me to slap me, which I dodged. Years of receiving blows from Shinji and self-defense training had prepared me for such situations.
Frustrated by not landing a hit, Acciaioli moved away from me. With a snap, he called two of his henchmen who brought in a middle-aged woman. Then three more brought in a chair and a table. Lastly, another placed a pile of white powder, obviously drugs, on the table.
Frustrated by not landing a hit, Acciaioli moved away from me. With a snap, he called two of his henchmen who brought in a middle-aged woman. Then three more brought in a chair and a table. Lastly, another placed a pile of white powder, obviously drugs, on the table.
As the woman sat down, Acciaioli lit his hand. Terrified, the woman began to snort like a child with a candy bag. It didn't take a minute for her to convulse and die from an overdose.
That was horrible, but I had to contain myself. He wanted to provoke me, and I wasn't going to give him the satisfaction, at least not yet.
The henchmen cleared everything away, including the body they treated like a sack of potatoes. Then they brought in a little girl, about five years old. She had curly black hair and wore a white dress. Being held by Acciaioli's hands, she was groped in the most nauseating way.
"Stay calm, little one; you won't lose your virginity like the harpy we have here," I scoffed at that comment. "However, she's forcing me to do bad things," he ignited his hand near the girl's skirt.
I couldn't allow that. He had chosen a five-year-old girl to play with my traumas. That I couldn't tolerate. The girl screamed from the heat of the embers on her legs. There was no other option.
Once I invoked Angra Mainyu, following a thunderous sound, I cut off the heads of the two henchmen. The girl, with blood splattered on her, fled in terror. I considered myself a bad heroine, but work was work.
For a few seconds, I observed Acciaioli's face, which was one of complete satisfaction. He had gotten what he wanted. Now, I had to avoid being captured.
When I tried to use the power of the shadow, I realized a significant inconvenience. For some strange reason, the shadow felt weak against the brightness of the fire. I needed to know his weakness immediately, or I was lost.
Acciaioli lunged at me again, this time to punch me. Again, I dodged it. I threw one of my whips at him, but he dodged it.
I moved from side to side, looking for an angle with shadow to corner him. I was knocking down the torches from the walls to create shadows, but Acciaioli kept creating fire with his hands. He was still on the offensive while I tried to find a different angle.
In a moment of carelessness, he threw another flame at me. I fell to the ground. Like a dragon, he launched a blast that filled the entire room. For no apparent reason, I wasn't injured, but part of the black cloak covering me had torn, revealing part of my belly. Acciaioli paused, but only briefly. It was enough for me to realize something.
"COME ON, SAKURA! USE ALL YOUR POWER! I KNOW YOU CAN DO MORE!" Acciaioli shouted.
I threw some of the mud at his feet, but he easily freed himself.
After throwing the last torch to the ground, my suspicions were confirmed. Acciaioli needed fire nearby or a heat source for his magic. Realizing that the flames he produced in his hands were getting smaller, and that he totally depended on them to generate magic, I had to find a way to amputate them.
Acciaioli's harassment persisted, but the flames were getting weaker.
"WELL PLAYED!" he shouted again. "BUT SURRENDER ALREADY! YOU HAVE NO CHANCE!" His desperation was starting to show. He thought he'd last longer, but that wasn't the case.
Running from side to side, I noticed another detail.
At the top of a wall, there was a network of pipes. If I broke them, I could neutralize Acciaioli and cut off his hands. In a moment when my opponent paused, I took the opportunity to break the pipes with my bands. Water fell like a waterfall over Acciaioli. He tried to get out of the water mass with little success, so I could cut off his hands like a bullfighter gets the bull's ears. Despite having cut them off, he didn't scream or show any sign of pain.
"I lost," said Acciaioli, stunned, after kneeling with his arms dripping blood. "You discovered my weakness... HOW IS IT POSSIBLE!? I WAS GOING TO BE THE VICTOR! HOW IS IT POSSIBLE THAT I LOST TO A WOMAN!? I, SAVINO! WAS GOING TO RECOVER THE FAMILY'S HONOR!... But luckily, I have one last resort..."
Out of nowhere, a net was thrown over my head by Acciaioli's henchmen. I hadn't noticed there were passages above where people could move. Surprised, I threw bands in all directions, sending the net back. I destroyed part of the walls where the henchmen were, causing them to fall into the void and cutting off Acciaioli's head for my relief because he was just driving me mad.
But I realized something when Acciaioli's head and the debris fell. Behind me, I heard a small noise, followed by a louder one. When I turned around, I couldn't believe it. At the entrance of the room lay Klaus on the ground, headless.
"K-KLAUS!" I said, my gaze already disoriented.
I immediately ran to confirm it because I was in disbelief over what had happened.
"Klaus, please answer me!" I shouted desperately, foolishly holding his head as if expecting a miracle.
Somehow, he must have escaped the prison and probably freed all the children and women held captive. If I had considered that variable, maybe I would have controlled that power, maybe I would have looked for another way to kill Acciaioli. But no. I decided to abuse the power of corruption. I realized I had become a monster and revealed my true face. My worst fears had come true.
My eyes filled with tears as I looked at Klaus's head. But suddenly, my head was invaded by that voice again. "Join me," it repeated over and over. My head started to hurt as if it was being drilled. My body began to feel just as bad or worse. I felt a burning sensation in my body as if I were in a corrosive acid bath. I was going mad. From there, I can't remember more. I only remember seeing complete darkness. Probably my powers unleashed, collapsing the entire structure, ensuring no one survived.
