A/N:This is my longest chapter yet.
Also funnily enough I just realized now that i've never read Meteor's file, only her lines soooooo we're out of cannon.
It was the song of birds that awakened Meteor. Opening her eyes, she was greeted by the sight of the birds gathered just outside the entrance to the tent. The nights, once over the Kerat range, were much milder. This led Sebastian and Meteor to sleep with their tent wide open, spending the night gazing up at the few stars.
It had been seven days since they left Rhodes Island. And two that they'd been traveling through Kazimierz. The kuranta stretched, groaning as she felt her joints crack satisfactorily, her blood regaining oxygen and waking her up quicker.
She stepped out of the tent, birds soaring in the distance. The sight of a lake greeted her, and all around her homeland. Her eyes looked all around her, analyzing their camp. Llamrei was grazing far away, but still within whistling distance. The fire had been rekindled, and the giant, with a few sticks and string, had managed to lay his freshly washed clothes by the fire to dry more efficiently.
Naturally, she looked for the giant, but he seemed nowhere to be seen.
Or so she would have thought before he suddenly emerged from the lake. From his physique and the context of his appearance, he gave the kuranta an incredible show. It wasn't really a question of perception. Looking at the giant's body was like looking at the engine of a racing car or a weapon forged to the highest perfection. It wasn't the subjective beauty of a work of art, it was the beauty of a tool, a machine that had reached the pinnacle of utility, functionality, refinement and strength.
But the thing was, he was still eye candy, water trickling down his skin and between the crevices of his muscles. He pinned his hair to the top of his head and reopened his eyes, the two emeralds immediately finding those of the kuranta. A smile played on his lips.
The water hid his body below the waist, but she already knew he was naked.
Meteor: How's the water?
Sebastian: Fresh, but not unpleasant.
She stretched a little more, the giant cleaning what little dirt remained from his body.
Meteor: The water sprites aren't active yet. You're lucky, otherwise they'd bite your legs off until you played with them.
She wasn't in love with the giant. She knew she wasn't. After all, she was no stranger to her own emotions. But the kuranta couldn't deny that she liked him, enormously in fact.
She quickly removed her boots, then her tank top and finally her jeans. Revealing pale green lingerie, with a tiny hint of lace. The giant gave her only a brief glance and a smile, as the kuranta stripped off the rest of her clothes, before moving towards the lake to wash.
She enjoyed the teasing game they had between each other. This little game helping the kuranta in feeling young and free again. As if she were just in her twenties again. That she loved, the way he made her feel as a woman. With their mutual teasing at every point of the day, she would have expected him to just be a maddened and horny beast at her feet every night when they crawled under their tent. Even more because of the womanizer the giant was more or less consciously. But instead there was none of that.
He merely embraced her as if to shelter her from the terrible world around them. And that she was grateful for, as she never felt safer in her whole life.
The kuranta adventured herself in the water, cold, almost biting into the flesh, making her feel as if her whole body was on fire inside and her lungs breathing the purest of air, but not enough to really lower her inner body temperature or make her skin numb.
Meteor: A little too fresh in my opinion...
She said with hurried breaths before calming down, letting her hair loose and soak in the water of the lake. The giant was getting himself a bit more submerged in the water, resting at neck level, seemingly relaxing like a crocodile.
She didn't really cared of his eyes darting between her neck, probably with the idea of leaving a few hickeys, her lips, the mole under her eyes, said eyes, and her bare breasts. After all the show was for him as a thank you and a sign of trust.
Plus a part of her felt good knowing she was desirable... Men didn't often look at her back in Rhodes Island, all of them sensitive to her age.
Sebastian: Seriously, for days in ursus you complained about how much the temperatures were better in Kazimierz, and now you're still complaining about the cold.
Meteor: Because every time I do I know there's someone to warm me up.
The giant took a second to understand the escalation as Meteor's face kept this smug and teasing grin on her face.
Sebastian: You shouldn't try to bite on more than you can chew.
Meteor: You're talking about bite but you're all bark.
Sighing, the doctor rose from the water, a tad bit of what he had under the waist becoming visible, making the kuranta lose her smile for a few seconds.
Sebastian: Trust me, it's for your own sake.
She wasn't looking into his eyes.
The smug appeared on his face as he turned away, exciting the waters to dry himself up.
He had won this round.
The kuranta shook her head before plunging it back into the frigid waters to cool down. That man was a demon... Meteor continued to bathe for a moment as a delicious smell started to emanate in the area.
Meteor: What's for breakfast?
Sebastian: Remains of lamb stew from yesterday.
He said, stirring the contents of a cooking pot offered by one of the villages they had helped along the road.
Meteor: Hmmm...
She was already salivating, and excited the waters, drying herself with a towel. The giant had packed two most ironically... She covered herself with nought but her cape as not to catch a cold, before taking the time to wash her clothes. The giant was more than a fine cook, but it was rendered more and more evident as each day passing by, as he made some of the finest dishes she had ever tasted with what he was able to scavenge and gather on the road and what villagers offered them each day. There wasn't a single day passing by where they didn't stop on the road to help a village. May it be bandits, someone with a mysterious disease or wound in need of a competent doctor, or dangerous creatures the two companions continued their heroic ride towards Kawalerielki, keeping on the way the legend of Yuri of Ursus.
The kuranta sighed.
Meteor: Seriously what is your plan behind all that. You use the armor, and yet you don't even try to hide your face. People will learn one day or another.
Sebastian: I know, and i'm not planning to hide forever. I just need the superchery to work long enough during the major. As Yuri I'm noble and might get the public approval forcing their hand.
Meteor: And even if it works till the end... You'll reveal it ?
Sebastian: Of course I will. I can't keep on living with such a shadow behind me.
He needed to fight his past. To confront who he was, and he could only do it if he stopped hiding everything.
Sebastian: There's already quite a few other people that know anyway...
Meteor: Really ? I mean, it's... More or less obvious for anyone that does really know you but you make it sound like some got the irrefutable evidences of that.
The kuranta seemed quite at lost. For some people, Yuri had been a part of propaganda, a champion or otherwise powerful fluke, that they changed every time, only keeping the armor. Or otherwise totally invented by the ursus nobles to terrorize other countries. But for the major part, those who effectively believed that he was a real man and knew the doctor, it was obvious that they were one and the same. So obvious that almost everyone was in denial.
Sebastian: Well let me think... Told Ch'en, Fumizuki might have for Kristen, Hoshi might have guessed, Verna definitely thought about it... I told Natalya...
Meteor: Fumizuki... As in Princess ? Fumizuki ?
The kuranta had her eyes widened, completely unaware of most of the giant's actions in Lungmen.
Sebastian: It's... A long story. I'd take two years to tell you.
A/N: It actually took me two years to make this eight chapter arc, first published 26/07/2022 :(
A sigh escaped the woman's lips as she picked up her soaked clothes for her to make them dry where the giant did instants earlier. He served their stew into two bowls, setting one beside a big flat stone where the kuranta naturally decided to seat and started eating her warm breakfast. The doctor removed his oripathy monitor and set it on the ground, using the holographic projector of his to use it as a computer on which he began to work, eating at the same time.
She knew that the higher ups of Rhodes received more advanced devices but she still amazed herself at how she had basically an advanced watch while he had some of the best tech on the continent.
She had always been a bit jealous for shiny things. Even if she couldn't handle tech that much.
Sebastian: Good... No catastrophes inbound for us or for Rhodes, and none for the few next days.
Meteor: The goddess watches over us.
A small smile graced her lips.
Sebastian: I'm sure she does...
Swiatla: 'I actually do you rascal!'
He chuckled for a tad bit before finishing his early work in a timely fashion, as was his breakfast. Llamrei came towards them, conscious that they would depart soon, but the mare allowed herself to open the doctor's back pack with her teeth from which fell a few carrots and apples, before she ate one of the carrots.
Sebastian: Hm. She actually does prefer carrots...
Meteor: By the goddess it reminds me of Margaret... When she was a kid she was always eating carrots it was ridiculous.
The doctor chuckled lowly within his beard hearing the older kuranta speaking like she was a mom complaining about their kid.
Meteor: Carrot juice at breakfast, carrot salad, carrot cake for her birthday... Every time you asked her what she wanted to eat, you could be sure that she would answer something with carrots In it. All of that because she read in a book that it helped having better eyes. I'm honestly surprised her skin didn't turn orange growing up.
Sebastian: I know I make a mean beef and carrot stew but it explains why it's by far the dishes she prefers...
Meteor: That girl...
Sebastian: She got the teeth of a horse.
Meteor: Hilarious.
The doctor smiled. The older woman could have said anything, he would have just found the blonde pegasi evermore charming.
Llamrei took another carrot.
Meteor: Maybe she likes some diversity in her snacks?
The two looked at the mare whose eyes darted between the two.
Sebastian: It'd be easier to know if she actually spoke.
The mount exhaled soundly.
Meteor: She does in her own way... Come on girl, I'll saddle you up.
As the mare and the mare-woman left towards a tree on which one of the branches the saddle was resting the giant began to pack up their camp. Meteor brushed and equiped their mount who stood still, calmer than she'd ever been otherwise, but all the while she looked at the giant's face for a moment.
Meteor: Are you letting your hair grow?
The giant passed a hand through the ebony strands on his head. The perks of having a full control over his own body was notably to never have to shave. He usually kept his hair and beard awfully short, habit of a soldier. But he wanted to show he was no longer just a solider, he was more than that. His beard was just a bit longer, but his hair had gained quite a few centimeters even if it was hard to see because of he way he set them towards the back.
Sebastian: Yeah. I figured I'd try that out...
The kuranta walked back towards the camp, hurriedly dressing back up and not bothering putting on a show this time.
Meteor: It suits you.
The giant smiled a single moment, but for a genuine and honest one.
Fixing his blade back to his hip with a stylish twirl, the giant walked towards the mare, installing the backpack on the mount before climbing up.
Meteor: You aren't leaving me there right ?
The giant smiled slightly.
Sebastian: I could never.
He gave her his hand and pulled with enough strength for her to climb on the mount who took off without warning. Only walking to let her riders have a calm morning.
The doctor relaxed, removing his feet from the stirrups, and relaxed to the smooth movements of the mount.
Meteor: I'm still surprised she didn't hurt her hooves with how energetic she is...
The mare exhaled once again as if to boast.
Sebastian: If I my calculations are correct and I know they are, they would be as hard as tempered titanium.
The kuranta leaned a bit to the side, the mare bending her neck a bit to look back at her.
Meteor: Fate really puts the weirdos on your way.
Sebastian: That it does.
The man didn't even bother to hold the reins to his mount, attaching them to the horn of the saddle. As a matter of fact it was more of a necessity for him to hold on when she was galloping than anything else. He raised his left arm, looking upon his oripathy monitor and activating the hologram interface. Pulling up a map of the region he began to chart their course, soon however, he felt Meteor beginning to rigidify, her soul beginning to cover itself in stormy clouds.
Sebastian: What's wrong?
She pointed at a place on the map. Her face was almost somber and he could not see it, but he could definitely feel it.
Meteor: This one... It's my village.
Sebastian: Oh...
He seemed hesitant for a slight moment, before talking again.
Sebastian: You want to take another path?
Meteor: I don't know.
Merely seeing kids already reopened her old wounds. So it was hard for her to imagine going as far as her village, seeing him again. Or just flee her past. The doctor inhaled before talking again, feeling as if he was walking on thin ice.
Sebastian: It's just my opinion but... You should. Maybe it will help you to move on.
The mare trode smoothly along the path as not to shake her riders more than they already were. The voice of Sebastian was low and soft as they were approaching an intersection on the road, the mare stopping.
Meteor: You're right...
The giant looked at her and smiled. A simple smile he would have given one of his daughters when they were about to get chewed out by someone else.
Everything is going to be alright.
He didn't need to tell it. For it was but his smile that talked.
Sebastian: To the right then...
He muttured and before he did any kind of movement to indicate his mount, Llamrei began to move. Making the two riders lean to try and look at her.
Meteor: You... Know your right and left.
The mare exhaled, not even looking at her riders.
Sebastian: Don't know what I expected.
Meteor: Wait, you understand us, so maybe you can give a long exhale to say no, and a short to say yes.
Sebastian: You can do it girl?
A short exhale.
Meteor and Sebastian looked at eachother, dumbfounded.
Meteor: Are you a human that was turned into a horse?
A long exhale.
Meteor: An antro kuranta ?
A long.
Sebastian: There's antro kurantas ?
He said curious since he had quite litterally never heard nor read about it.
Meteor: Not much anymore... And usually they have the top of people and their lower body are horses...
Sebastian: 'Centaurs...' That's stupid.
Meteor: My mother was one!
The kuranta almost jumped on the giant out of anger.
Sebastian: Alright sorry! Llamrei, can you talk ?
...
A long exhale.
Meteor: You're stupid.
She said totally dumbfounded looking at him.
Sebastian: With her fucking attitude I just thought that she just didn't want to talk to us! That horse is already smarter than some people I know and that are able to talk!
Meteor: I'm talking to a horse and an idiot.
Sebastian: Oh come on now... Sorry for trying.
As the kuranta was about to continue their rant, she heard the smartphone of the giant vibrate, and so did he of course. Recovering it from one of the pouches of his fatigues, he unlocked it.
Sebastian: Damn, they're early.
The giant accepted the call and started extending his arm for the facetime. After a few seconds the call connected, revealing a classroom on the other side of the line.
Rosa was holding the phone giving the call, and quite a few people of his class were trying to fit into the frame behind her. It was mostly how he kept in touch with them every morning and give them a quick homework. But mainly to keep their bonds high.
Sebastian: Hey everyone.
A cacophony of greetings came through the speaker of his phone as Meteor kept silent, listening to the hooves of Llamrei hitting the ground.
Sebastian: So who wants to play the game this time, try to pick a guess of where I am.
The giant was a bit smug before turning the camera all around him for his students to pick a guess, soon they began to chatter on the other side, coordinating, and pointing on a map. At some point they fell Silence and the voice of Istina echoed through the speakers.
Istina: Lake Midwie.
The giant grinned.
Sebastian: And that's a win. Consider it a +1 on your next grade.
Of course it wouldn't be for those who weren't there, like Zima. His class began to cheer soundly before one of them spoke up.
Kristina: W-wait doc! That's where was last spotted Yuri of-
Sebastian: Calm down, calm down.
He stopped the chatter before it exploded.
Sebastian: He was spotted north, I'm down south of the lake.
They were up north.
Olena: Teach, if he's headed towards Kawalerielki like us maybe we shouldn't...
Sebastian: Oh come on it'll be okay... Worst case scenario i'll move on to intercept the guy if he moves too close to Rhodes Island.
Rosa sighed and the two exchanged a look.
Sebastian: Well guess I'll have to keep you all busy just so you can stop complaining about a god damn man in armor.
They all dreaded the words that came next.
Sebastian: I want an essay on the nouveau riche of Kazimierz for next week.
He smirked as he heard complaints from his students.
Gummy: Doc doc! Is that true we'll get a daytrip in Kawalerielki?
Sebastian: Damn and here I wanted to keep the surprise... Yeah I managed to organize that, even for our infected.
The class began to cheer as Meteor soon began to be curious. She wondered just how he managed to be a teacher for a whole class... With everything else he had to do.
Sebastian: Be mindful all of you, I want everyone to be as calm as you can be until then.
Promises to him thrown one after the other, Sebastian only half listened to them.
Sebastian: Alright that'll be all for you all today. I'm cutting it. Have a nice day everyone.
He received goodbyes of many kind, a simple smile and a nod from Istina, a cheerful goodbye from Gummy, and a gaze full of love from Rosa. The call ended and the giant stored back his phone into his pockets before sighing.
Meteor: You don't seem that much overjoyed to talk to them.
A sigh escaped from the lips of the giant, only a few days together and this kuranta was already able to tell what was on his mind.
Sebastian: It doesn't feel as right to not have them face to face. I mean, for real, not through a screen.
One of the many secrets...
Who was he kidding.
One of the two secrets he had to be this good at everything, one be practice, the other was passion.
The doctor did all he had to do with as much passion as he could muster. And it was even more true when teaching his students. As such, having it in such a bastardized way made him unbelievably angry.
But what could he do.
He knew he had forced himself into this disposition. Sometimes he just wished he could dedouble himself
Sebastian: Time to let the wind through our hairs.
The giant put his foot back in the stirrup. With a smile on his face, Meteor held on tightly and the little team sped off like the wind.
pap pap
Sidestep on the right, the head must make a U.
pap pap pap pap
Left jab, right overhand, left uppercut.
The vouivre took another step to the right, circling the punching bag.
Right hook.
Saria unleashed a monumental punch straight at the punching bag, using the rotation of each of her joints. She didn't need to calcify that part of her body for it to rip open the punching bag. Despite the wyvern leather and ballistic fiber reinforcement she had requested.
The strips of fabric inside the bag flew everywhere in the air, reminding Saria of the snows of her childhood village.
She couldn't help but feel a little foggy lately. For a woman like her, whose life was going to last for centuries, she was still finding it hard to get used to Rhodes Island. But that wasn't the reason for all her doubts. The real reason was Rhine Labs.
In a short space of time, she'd gone from co-founder and leader of the company she'd decided to put all her efforts into, to a mere subordinate. A mercenary, fists for hire, as the company she and Kristen had built crumbled and changed beyond recognition.
And the worst part. She was almost enjoying it. Not having to think.
She clenched her fist.
In her cowardice, she had preferred to let a strict stranger take control of Rhine Labs before her eyes and do nothing after that, rather than ask herself if this was what she really wanted. She had preferred to stay away from Ifrit and Silence, because she didn't have the courage to venture back into the realms of love, romantic or parental. The memory of her previous family still hurt terribly.
Because of her cowardice, she had lost everything.
She felt the cold on her skin due to her sweat, bringing her back to reality. She grabbed the carcass of the punching bag, paying little attention to the stares of the other operators. Many of them still hadn't got used to the real monsters that Rhodes Island was home to.
As she set off to find another bag, wondering what she was going to have for lunch, she was stopped by a small figure in her path. The vouivre stopped dead in her tracks, facing Ifrit who was waiting there with her hands on her hips.
Saria: Iffy.
She had lost almost everything.
Ifrit: I've been trying to talk to you for fifteen minutes!
The older woman, who was usually always cold, began to smile at the little sarkaz.
Saria: I was focused. What are you doing here?
Ifrit: I don't have any homework this weekend. So I wanted to spend the day with you!
Her face tinged with a little sorrow.
Saria: Iffy... You know your mother doesn't like me to stay with you...
It was no longer a gulf, but a veritable abyss that had separated the young girl's two adoptive mothers. How could she blame Silence. She'd strangled their daughters with her own hands. If the sarkaz had called her anything other than mom, she would have killed her In that moment.
Ifrit: Yeah well, she can go cook one of her own eggs! I want to stay with you for a while.
The vouivre smiled again. It wasn't as if there was a real court order for joint custody or anything like that... In any case, Rhodes Island didn't fall under any jurisdiction...
Perhaps she could stay with her daughter today... She knew Magallan would be surveying the Kazimierz countryside... So maybe it was a good idea to take the sarkaz out to see the real thing. Or at least an idea she'd appreciate.
Saria: Let's see if Misha is free too.
She began to walk away, holding out her hand to the side, the girl grasping it. Despite the bandages, she could feel the small hand in hers.
She had missed that sensation.
The Rhodes Island training ground would have seemed superfluous to many. Or at least those who didn't really know Rhodes Island. Even more so now, as there wasn't a day that went by when the training ground wasn't busy.
Between the promotion of Dobermann, which had apparently given her wings, and the training of reserve teams to become real operators, the field was used every day.
One would have expected the concrete combat village to have become so familiar to young operators that it would have lost all its effectiveness. But this was far from the case.
Not least thanks to Igor.
Igor was an old Sanktah man, officially a cleaning man and maintenance officer. He didn't look much with his mop and cleaning cart, and always grumbled under his breath when asked to do something. However, he was a great pacifist at heart. He would even look the other way at the slightest weapon.
Igor was perhaps the greatest geomancer Terra had ever known.
Of course, there was nothing official or recognized behind it, but when it took him less than a second to restore the completely devastated terrain or change it completely, it was hard to think otherwise.
In the course of a chat with Ace over a few drinks, he even revealed that, in order for Babel to escape Kazdel, Igor had simply flattened a mountain while Rhodes Island passed by. Then restored it just after they'd passed.
In any case, Dobermann was glad he was there. Because that was why she could wring out her operators to the bone. The perro looked with folded arms at the various reserve teams.
Normally as reserve operators, their various members occupied other posts on Rhodes Island, in logistics, cooking, mechanics, and only went into operation a third of the time of a standard operator. Or if there was an absolute need to call them.
The proposal to have them pass as real operators had resonated with the perro. So she put the question to each team.
Dobermann had expected them all to say yes. But this was said with hesitation or because of group pressure. Instead, they all agreed without thinking for a second, their eyes burning with determination.
Well, except for Orchid. Because she was pregnant and in maternity leave.
But there was no doubt that she would continue training once she gave birth.
Shortly before the battle of Chernobog, Dobermann saw Rhodes Island's security branch as a PMC. And rightly so, despite the undeniable charisma of Amiya and Kal'tsit.
It was over the course of months, battles and confrontations that she noticed the spirit behind all the operators change. Of course, at the center of it all was the giant, who every day inspired friendship and sympathy among his operators, and every second on the battlefield inspired a little more loyalty.
Rhodes Island was no longer an army of swords for hire.
In essence, it had become a group of idealists who moved forward thanks to the flames in their hearts and eyes.
But the perro was afraid these flames would consume some of them...
This was one of their biggest tests for the operator position. Each team had to work together against an elite operator.
During a live-fire exercise.
Of course, this was far from fair. And perhaps even a little too dangerous, with operators ignoring the various medics and casters capable of throwing protection standing at different intervals.
But the panic in their minds replaced the panic of the real battlefield, while testing the extent to which they could act in a non-lethal manner.
Team A4 had been placed against Blaze. The feline's arts took them by the scruff of the neck throughout the battle, their hand-to-hand operators not daring to go up against the feline on pain of coming out scorched. With the heat enveloping her and her speed, Adnachiel's bolts and stewards' arts were not enough to reach her. So the small team had to overcome her greatest weakness: using their intelligence and little experience, they lured the feline into a trap before collapsing a part of the building they knew to be fragile.
The ton of concrete was enough for the feline to stop using her arts. So the operators coordinated for a perfectly milimetered attack on Blaze.
Unfortunately, the feline felt the adrenalin rush through her body and it was soon all over for the young team.
Team A6 fell to Misery.
For them... it went much less smoothly. Without Orchid, they had no coordination. Which was a problem against Misery, who specialized in sowing discord. This was what she should have been looking for. If they were finally able to work as a real team. And they weren't.
The A1 team was the one fighting right before her eyes. And their opponent was none other than Sharp. What she was mainly looking for in this team was teamwork, especially from the two Sarkaz sisters, but mainly the investment they were putting into their fight. Beagle and Hibiscus were too often afraid of too many things, and Kroos and Lava didn't take the battlefield seriously enough.
Then Sharp was the ideal adversary. With his intimidating aura, and his history, rumors going as far as to say he had fought for the legendary leader of the Zhayedans. The lightning within the sands.
The fight had been going on for some time. Kroos, not being on her guard enough, hadn't realized that Sharp was pretending to have difficulty with her crossbow bolts to wait for the right moment, parrying and deviating two of said bolts, both hitting Lava and Kroos in turn, injuring them and preventing Hibiscus from helping the other two A1 members.
Everything was now unfolding, leaving only Beagle and Fang.
Sharp heaved a sigh as he watched his two opponents run out of steam.
He had sewing club this morning, and there was no way he was going to miss it. Today might be the day Specter would notice the man he was.
The fact that the elite operator was madly in love with a notorious psychopath and jealous as a louse of the doctor was a secret that few other operators would care to divulge.
He gripped his weapon again, wanting only to get it over with as quickly as possible.
Beagle took a step forward too soon, being the first to fall into the Sargonian's sights. Sharp rushed towards her, the Perro raising her shield just in time. Bad. She was hiding behind it instead of really using it as a tool.
Sharp delivered a kick which, due to the perro's featherweight, sent her waltzing straight into one of the walls, the young girl trying to hold on instead of deflecting the force of the attack.
She crashed into one of the heavy concrete walls and fell heavily to the ground, unconscious.
That left only Fang.
Dobermann crossed her arms, reluctant to stop the confrontation here.
The girls were still young, Kroos being the oldest having just turned 17. They would still have time to progress further and further.
She should have stopped the fight there. But looking at Fang, she didn't.
Fang had been strange ever since they left Lungmen, no one could deny that. At first, it was just the fact that she wore contacts instead of glasses, but no one could deny that the usually confident and calm young girl seemed to have abandoned these two virtues deep inside her, in favor of humility and passion.
Now these changes were even evident in her fighting style, as she took far more risks, more interested in protecting her team than in being the lightning assault she was supposed to be. But it was also showing in more concrete ways, as the kuranta had decided to adopt a round shield in addition to her spear, and to complement this new style, she had equipped herself with armor on her shins and forearms, protecting her but retaining her mobility.
A sixteen-year-old reserve operator against an elite operator. Anyone else would have thrown in the towel, but Fang threw herself at Sharp, her face unchanged from the angry expression she let show whenever her hand touched her spear.
Fang, in a move that few could have predicted, kicked a pebble from the ground with her foot, sending it flying straight towards Sharp, who, if only a little surprised, swung his machete to slice the projectile in two. Just a second... A singular, split second.
This was all the Kuranta needed, and with the strength of her race, she launched herself with the force of a locomotive towards the pythia, and delivered a blow with her spear, the point being parried at the last moment by the elite operator's shield.
Clunk
The elite operator could feel his piece of equipment quiver and see the sparks fly. Behind his sunglasses, his eyes widened. This wasn't the attack of a reserve operator he'd just received. And there was more to come.
The arm of his blade was still extended after the blow he'd delivered to slice the projectile in half, leaving the defenseless man to one shield bash straight to the plexus.
The kuranta put her whole body and all her strength into this attack, calling on a force she was not known for. Thanks to the angle she had at her disposal, the pythia took off backwards and found himself flying a few steps backwards. However, this wasn't his first rodeo, so he was soon back on his feet.
Fang was exhausted. Sweating, panting, her weapons down. But her gaze never left Sharp.
She wouldn't give up. She would never give up.
Rhodes Island deserved everything she got. She had shown herself unworthy of fighting for them. And she would never do it again, her azure eyes darting between the various members of her team on the ground.
She would prove herself worthy of fighting with them.
With a sharp strike, the kuranta slammed the shaft of her spear into the ground, screaming with rage, her eyes glistening, her whole body filling with pain.
Dobermann widened her eyes, thinking she knew what was going on.
Fang: Get up girls! We can win! You're my sisters and you've never let me down! And you won't today!
Despite her age, despite her reserve status, despite her undeniably mediocre talents, Fang commanded the respect of all who laid eyes on her, her long, loose hair flowing down her back like a mane.
Beagle, who was already struggling to maintain consciousness, reopened her eyes fully, gritting her teeth before slowly trembling back to her feet. Lava and Kroos ignored the pain of their wounds, Lava leaning on her sister who ignored the fatigue of her arts, Kroos opening her eyes.
Sharp stared at the kuranta, knowing that she had become his priority in collapsing the morale of the team, which had returned to peak fighting spirit and beyond.
She had a team, and she'd push them to their limits. She would never let them down;
If she hadn't proved herself worthy of being an operator, she was going to.
She will show that she is worthy to fight on the sides of her teammates, she will show that she is worthy to fight on HIS side.
Sharp ran towards her again, this time with a speed that gave his opponent no respite.
When he brought his sword down on the girl's neck, planning to stop just before, she hadn't even seen him move yet.
Dobermann's fears were confirmed.
A column of blue flame engulfed Sharp, and Fang began to howl with rage. The rage to live, the rage to win, the rage to show her worth, the rage to love.
The rage to exist in a cruel, cold world like Terra.
The kuranta had just invoked arts, via her body's originium.
Since she never had any talent for the arts, her equipment was not inlaid with originium, which meant that the only way for her to use them was via oripathy.
Which she had just unconsciously done.
Sharp leapt sideways out of the column of flames, his hair blackened and his skin scorched in places. The kuranta wouldn't give him a moment's rest, and set about attacking with her spear, using her other hand and shield to slide her spear through the air and jab dozens of times in quick succession at the pythia, who parried the attacks one by one with his shield, slowly overwhelmed.
Adrenalin pumping through his system, he brought his sword down on the kuranta with all his might. The blue-haired woman raised her shield, the sound of steel clashing with a terrifying clang. The younger woman's strength wasn't enough to stop her elder completely, and Sharp's blade sank into her shoulder. But she held firm, her shield and strength holding the weapon back enough to prevent her arm from being sliced clean through.
Despite the pain, despite the centimeters of steel embedded in her flesh, she wasn't distracted for a moment, kicking the pythiah in the knee with her left leg, a loud crack echoing through the air letting her know that his leg was fractured, the pythiah fell to his right, hand holding his shield, leaving an opening for the kuranta who struck with her spear, and with all her might.
Sharp raised his shield, but the spear, skilfully aimed, shot through the small glass rectangle. Her weapon stopped just a milimeter from the bridge of Sharp's nose. The elite operator froze, realizing that he had just had a near-death experience.
The kuranta's spear was frozen, held there as if by magic. Dobermann whistle that had been in use for a few moments was only now being heard.
The A1 team captain fell to the ground on her knees, her team rushing towards her. The arts of Hibiscus, Shining and Nightingale, which until then had been hidden, healed the kuranta and her opponent.
Dobermann: End of exercise!
Fang's spear slowly fell to the ground, and Rosmontis, who had been hiding in one of the buildings, came into view. But of all of them, it was the instructor who was the quickest to reach the scene.
Dobermann: Can I ask what this is, Fang? It's not about killing another operator!
The perro seemed angry, but the kuranta was too exhausted to be intimidated.
Fang: I... Seen Rosmontis... I knew she would stop me...
Suddenly the perro froze, not expecting this.
Sharp, treated by Shining, said only one thing.
Sharp: Good fight.
Before leaving the area.
The girls in the team gathered in a general hug proud of what they'd done today. Dobermann's first instinct was to ask them to be serious. And that's what she would have done just a few days ago. But instead, she smiled, enjoying the view and etching it in her memory.
Their instincts telling them this wasn't normal, they all turned to Dobermann, then terrified to see the instructor smiling.
Dobermann: You're completely unconscious Fang, you need an oripathic examination right away! And you let yourself get hurt! And all of you relied on her too much!
They lowered their heads, not wishing to face the ex-military woman's gaze.
Dobermann: Raise your head for God's sake! I'm proud of you! And you should be too!
The girls looked at each other in surprise, seeing the perro put one knee down to level and look at them. Looking at them like a parent;
Dobermann: You had me worried. And you still have a lot of work ahead of you, but it was a great win.
The residual adrenalin from the battle, the fatigue, and the unusual behavior of the perro caused the group of girls to think that they had just accomplished a monumental feat. What was certain was that they would remember it for years to come.
Kroos: It's time to celebrate!
Fang: Tomorrow... I want to sleep...
Beagle: Are you coming with us?
Beagle was friendly with absolutely everyone, it was in her nature. So it was only natural, once she'd let her guard down, to extend the invitation to the instructor.
Realizing their stupidity, the reserve team froze. Dobermann's face regained its usual weary expression.
They could all see themselves running for hours in the pouring rain.
Dobermann: You're not drinking, are you?
One of the things she and the giant never agreed on, other than her need to learn to swim, was the fact that he wasn't too particular about the age of those he served drinks to.
Fang: Ma'am... Beagle and I used to work in the police... We still keep ourselves right.
Dobermann: Then yes. I'll come with you.
She smiled slightly.
Maybe she was getting soft...
In Kazimierz, Meteor and Sebastian were still riding through the forest. This time, they were walking instead of galloping, not that their mount had any problem with that, but the saddle they had been equipped with a few days ago was already showing some difficulty in staying in one piece. The weight of the riders and their equipment, combined with the merciless treatment the fine team gave the makeshift saddle, had completely worn it out.
And so they moved forward again, walking along one of Kazimierz's paths, the shadow of the foliage above them of massive oaks protecting them. Sebastian kept his eyes closed, not even bothering to concentrate on his other senses. He knew they were all superfluous because of the security he was surrounded by. With every step, a few rays of sunlight caressed his face, so that he could almost have fallen asleep.
Perhaps the second-best place to fall asleep according to him.
He and Meteor had switched places, the giant sitting more towards Llamrei's backside, leaning against his heavy backpack to act as a chair, his legs rested and away from the stirrups, the mount being on auto-pilot. Meteor was in front, leaning against the doctor for a comfortable seat. She had taken her bow in her hands to make things a little more pleasant for the big guy behind her.
With every step the mare took, she felt excitement rise up inside her, but also fear. It had been sixteen years since she left home. Sixteen years... So much had changed. Lena had surely given birth to this baby, who must now be almost a young man. Old Oleg had probably died, leaving his house to be the village's new forge as per his requirements. His daughter, on the other hand, had surely continued to teach the village children.
The kuranta froze. They'd all grown old, they'd all changed. But she hadn't...
If she'd pulled out a photo from her thirtieth birthday, she doubted there'd be any difference with today.
She stroked the string of her bow, made from the sinews of the cockatrix she had killed. Her greatest adversary. The feathers for arrows and the bone for the dagger she had given to her husband.
Touching the string of her bow, she finally raised her voice.
Meteor: You know what I miss?
Sebastian: Hm?
Meteor: My lute. I used to play it every night of the goddess's feast.
Sebastian: Another party I haven't heard of?
The kuranta laughed lightly.
Meteor: It's just a celebration for our village really. I doubt they do that in Kawarielki. It's the time of year when we celebrate the fact that spring has sprung, the golden willows are in bloom and the first hunts are well conducted. We eat, we get drunk, and when the sun goes down we dance until our feet hurt.
She immediately swallowed her saliva before talking any more about her home.
Meteor: At last... The young people are dancing. It is said that the goddess is watching us at this moment. Those who are surrounded by willow petals carried by the wind are bound to grow old together and bring many children...
She took a deep breath.
Meteor: But I guess even the goddess makes mistakes sometimes...
The giant said nothing. He knew better than to say anything. And even if he had, what could he say?
Sebastian: We can always get you a lute. I'm rather curious to hear you play.
She turned to see the giant smiling despite his closed eyes.
Meteor: I was doing pretty well. Although I have to admit that it's perhaps not as refined an instrument as the piano. In fact, it's been a while since you played... It starts gathering dust at the bar.
The giant sighed before opening his eyes again.
Sebastian: You know how it is... Playing an instrument... It's extending your will, making your emotions speak... And I don't know. Every night when I think I'd like to play a bit, I change my mind. And every time I go to play alone, I miss that little... Trick. And it's one wrong note after another.
Meteor: Maybe you just need to learn how to play again?
Sebastian: Nah... It's not that, I remember hundreds of scores... But what I miss is that spark. And I don't know if I'll ever find it again.
He sounded so sad when he said that. She could see it, that spark so he could play the piano. It was a spark of life that had gone out of him, and he knew it. He knew full well that he'd lost something that made him feel alive inside. And that he might never find that something again.
The giant's eyes focused a little further away, the instincts of a predator unwavering, and it took only a second for the colossus to sharpen his senses again and hear metallic clanking coming rapidly towards them.
Sebastian: Something's coming, straight ahead.
The colossus put his foot back in the stirrup, pushing Meteor forward slightly and drawing his sword. Llamrei advanced, ready to gallop at a moment's notice, then suddenly, from the thicket, Gloompincers appeared.
Sebastian had heard of these beasts, distant cousins of the mettalic crabs, which made their homes mostly in the mines and shallows of mobile towns. Feeding on waste and metals.
Easily controllable by telepathy-oriented casters, they were nonetheless non-aggressive from the start.
But that was ordinarily.
One of the gloompincers leapt towards the riders, but Sebastian's sword sliced the creature in two, its metal carapace no match for Purgatory's iridium cutting edge.
Now on the alert, Llamrei sped off, with Meteor pinned to the man behind her, who was too busy chasing away the pinchers assaulting them from the sides of the road and the tops of the trees.
Meteor grabbed the few makeshift arrows she had, knowing full well that she wouldn't find the ones made from golden willow if she used them here, and fired. The projectile went straight into the mouth of one of the crabs.
Sebastian: Are there usually gloompincers in the area?!
Meteor: Yes! But they've never been aggressive! We must hurry to reach the village!
The giant gripped the leash firmly.
Sebastian: Come on, baby! Show me what you got.
He was sure she was going faster than a car.
Travelling the last three kilometers to the village was child's play, but when they emerged from the woods to see it, Meteor froze in silence.
A dead calm. No one, nothing, not a sound.
The village, which boasted almost a hundred buildings, saw its streets completely empty, and a few houses seemed to have gone up in smoke. Not a soul was to be found working the fields surrounding the village.
Meteor: Where is everybody...?
She feared the worst, but the giant reassured her.
Sebastian: They're in their houses. I can hear their hearts beating. There's also someone in the middle of the village drawing water from the well.
Meteor: Let's go see them.
The giant nodded, walking Llamrei to the center of the village, where he found a stall with a manger and water. But it was empty. He dismounted, sword at the ready, Meteor quickly following. However, he didn't do the mare any harm by tying her up, especially when he noticed the straps still attached to the other poles.
He took one in his hand.
Sebastian: The lead... They were ripped off...
Not understanding, his eyes scanned the ground to see a few droplets of blood in the mud.
Sebastian: There's no trace of hooves, or anything that's been dragged. It's as if the horses have vanished into thin air.
Meteor: It's not the gloompincers that can do that.
The giant drew his blade, deciding not to be taken unawares, and walked the short distance to the village well, with Meteor ahead of him leading the way.
Tiptoeing forward, the two were able to catch sight of the person at the well. A kuranta in his fifties with red hair. Drawing water, but in a peculiar way. His every movement was excruciatingly slow, as if he were trying not to make the slightest noise.
Meteor: Tarik...
The kuranta gasped, almost falling into the well, and letting go of the rope, the bucket banging inside the well and touching the bottom. Suddenly, he turned towards the two of them, pale as if seeing death.
Tarik: A-Allya?!
He said, half shouting, half whispering.
He took a second to look at the kuranta, before his face softened slightly.
Tarik: What are you doing here?!
Meteor: It's not important, what's going on, why are the pincers attacking-
The giant perceived a shadow cast over them. His senses sensing nothing, it was his instincts that spoke, and he leapt back, taking Meteor with him.
Where they had been just moments before, a glob of liquid impacted the ground, spreading everywhere. The kuranta was sprayed with the liquid, which began to gnaw at his skin and burn, causing him to scream in pain. But his screams soon stopped, as what had been sprayed by the liquid began to turn to rock, including the kuranta's face.
Sebastian was tetanized, so much so that he didn't even think about making his heart beat, Meteor's eyes were ready to pop out of her sockets, covering her mouth with her hands.
They didn't have time to think, as an immense figure crashed straight into the area where the liquid had impacted, fracturing the rock it had just formed, and sweeping away dust like the well by sheer impact.
It was a cockatrix. Huge. The size of a real house.
This one turned towards what was the kuranta, to open its beak and seize him at the waist, shattering the rock and tearing the flesh into two distinct parts, the blood flowing freely showing that he was still alive even though he was petrified.
The giant snapped out of his torpor, his hand leaving Meteor as the animal feasted on its entrails, to slowly reach for his revolver resting in his holster.
Poc
The sound of the button holding his weapon resounded, and with a swiftness unworthy of such a titanic animal, the cockatrix stared at them. Despite the eyes she didn't have.
Time slowed for the giant, who pushed the kuranta and raised his left hand holding the gun, the beast charging straight at him, emptying its entire barrel, bullets seeming to ricochet along the animal's feathers, before miraculously, the last one passed through the hole in the creature's beak.
It seemed to lose its superbness, retracting its sharp claws and almost falling towards the doctor. But still with the force of a cannonball, the animal struck the giant full force, both falling and rolling to the ground in the street amid a thunderous crash.
Still not caught up in the chaos, the giant conjured up his dagger in his hand and planted it in a rock, stopping him dead in his tracks.
The cockatrix continued on for a few more meters before returning to her paws and flying off into the distance, an ear-piercing howl accompanying her.
Sebastian was finally able to breathe, firmly convinced that the animal wouldn't be back any time soon.
He rose from the ground with little grace, the pain in his left arm seizing him. He looked at it, and could see that it was broken.
He checked his muscles one by one, putting the fragments back in place, feeling his bones knit back together just as quickly.
What a hell.
He looked at Meteor, who had just stood up, visibly shocked by the speed with which she had been manhandled by the giant.
Sebastian: What the... Meteor, are you okay?
Meteor: Yeah... it's okay... it's okay... Shit! She got Tarik.
The colossus grabbed hold of his sword, which had flown out of his hand during the skirmish, and put his hand on his companion's shoulder, which was already up on her legs. Trying vehemently to restore his energy with the simple warmth he radiated.
And it worked far better than anything that should have been normal.
Sebastian: I don't understand... It was a Magnum bullet I put into her, full power, right in the nose holes, and yet she got up so soon.
Meteor: A young cockatrix is already hard to kill... And they get even harder with age. This one is five hundred years old. The nightbird...
Sebastian: Damn... Me and my jinx.
The shutters of one of the houses opened, revealing a man who almost knocked Sebastian to the ground, for this was indeed the look-alike of Tarik who had just been horribly killed, but the doctor soon realized that this look-alike did in fact look a little older.
Eryk: That scream... is it...? Is it gone?
The old kuranta's eyes now rested on the two adventurers before widening.
Eryk: Allya?! It is you! You scared off the cockatrix?
Meteor: No Eryk, he was my friend, but I need an explanation. Now.
One by one, the villagers began to emerge from their houses, opening their shutters, seeming to know that the danger was over. Before their eyes inevitably fell on the kuranta, who hadn't changed in twenty years, and her companion, the colossus of muscles with no racial features.
Eryk: Then let's discuss in the town hall.
The so-called town hall was nothing more than a stable with benches and tables that could be removed. A dozen villagers gathered around one of the tables, including Eryk, who had taken them there.
All the villagers seemed mentally at their wits' end, having not slept for days and living in fear. In contrast, the worried Kuranta and the calm, analytical Giant gave this bizarre impression.
Especially the giant, who took up the space of three people on a bench.
Village woman: Would you like a drink?
Sebastian: Water, please.
It was better not to alter his brain, since danger was lurking.
Villager: My lord, this could be complicated... Cockatrix bile has contaminated the well... Of course I can give you some, but our reserves...
Crap. The universe was forcing his alcoholism.
Sebastian: Then the first thing you can get your hands on will do.
He said with a smile to the village girl who was serving everyone. A pretty young girl, with red hair, freckled cheekbones and a lovely smile. Which he could see, because she smiled back at him.
Villager: Yes, my lord.
Only now did the giant realize what she had just said.
"My lord" The giant found it hard to understand. There was nothing noble about him. He was even dressed like a soldier.
Eryk: Allya... It's a pleasure to see you again, believe me... But your exile...
Meteor: I was just passing through, and I think the present circumstances excuse my bursting into the village.
The way she spoke was brimming with assurance and self-confidence. Like a lioness in front of her den, Meteor would defend her village.
Meteor: I'm sure Jacques would understand. Where is he anyway?
Eryk: On the road. On business again. He goes across the border all the time these days. Since you left, he's been making sure the village has everything it needs.
Meteor: Ah? And how long will he be gone?
Eryk: He should be back tomorrow.
A woman standing at Eryk's side, small and broad of stature, but solid as a rock, spoke up.
Tara: It's good to see you again, Allya. When you left, it stabbed everyone in the village in the heart.
Eryk: That's right, while you were away we had to take on five other hunters just to bring meat back to the table.
Tara: They went on an expedition a week ago, praise the goddess they had to dodge the cockatrix... She didn't start attacking until a day or two later.
Eryk: Who is your friend? A knight errant?
The giant almost choked on the gigantic glass of mead served to him by the farmer, who was distracted by the giant's charm. The Order of Knights Errant had been disbanded almost ten years ago... But in the time it took for information to travel from the great cities of Kazimierz to the countryside...
It was then that Meteor realized something.
The giant spoke perfect Kazimierzan, and had done so ever since they met the country's first inhabitants a few days ago while organizing the defense of a village against a horde of bandits.
And not a perfect Kazimierzan like someone who'd been studying the language for a few years, no, like a native, not even with an accent.
Then the kuranta turned to the giant for a moment, speaking to him in Victorian, knowing full well that no one here spoke the language but the two of them.
Meteor: Did you take language classes with Margaret?
Sebastian: No.
He returned his gaze to the villagers.
Sebastian: Sorry, but I'm not a knight errant, I'm a doctor.
He looked at the blade on his belt for a moment.
Sebastian: Who also wields the sword... That said, I'd be happy to help you solve this problem.
Meteor: What's going on? We were attacked by gloompincers on the way here, and the night bird... She's never attacked humans before...
Villager: I don't understand it. A few days ago the pinchers surrounded the village and became aggressive, then the next day the night bird fell on us.
Sebastian: Pinchers can become aggressive if they feel threatened or if they lose their den... On the other hand, I don't know anything about cockatrixes... Big cities aren't interested in them and they're a rare species. I haven't been able to read a single book about them.
Meteor: They're clever... Dangerous... Blind, cunning, piercing hearing. The older they get, the stronger they get. They're not afraid of heat, acid or poisons.
Sebastian: But you killed one, didn't you?
Meteor: She was young, and I got her by trickery. A group of piglets had died in an accident. I stuffed their entrails with stones. The cockatrix devoured everything and was too heavy to fly afterwards. The rest... Its plumage was still fragile. So it was easy to take it down.
Putting her hand on one of her sleeves, slightly hesitant, she raised it, showing her upper right arm. In the middle of the oripathic lesions was a gigantic scar, showing that her arm had almost been sliced off cleanly. The villagers recoiled and cursed at the sight of the cursed black blood.
Meteor: If it wasn't for old Carmenita, I wouldn't have both arms as we speak.
The doctor swallowed his saliva, being audible for a moment.
Sebastian: The one you killed. How old was she...?
Meteor: Five years.
Sebastian: Blyat. Do we know where this cockatrix is nesting?
Meteor: No. Especially since she'll be on her guard when she's wounded like this. We can't afford to search the whole forest hoping to find her.
Sebastian: So we're taking care of the pincers?
Meteor: Yes. We're in luck, I already know where their lair is.
The colossus rose to his feet, the bench creaking under his weight, the redheaded farmer startled by the giant's true size.
Sebastian: Then let's not waste a minute.
The kuranta nodded and the two riders quickly set off in pursuit.
Amiya looked again and again at the same diagrams and cards, one on STIs, one on breast cancer screening, another on iron deficiency in the blood, one on hand washing.
She could almost have memorized them. Even if they weren't all that different from the ones in Kal'tsit's office. And she didn't really read them.
A door opened, letting Warfarin back into the examination room.
Warfarin: It's okay, kid, I've got your test results.
Said the vampire with a smile.
The cautus took a deep breath, she hated everything medical. Even as the CEO of a pharmaceutical company. Normally she'd have gone to Kal'tsit for this kind of non-routine medical check-up, but she'd found it hard to simply walk back past the feline's apartments/lab these last few days.
As soon as she passed by, she felt unimaginable pain and sadness, having pushed herself to cross the corridor anyway, she had collapsed in front of the front door believing her heart had been pierced by a blade.
So Warfarin was a better choice.
Warfarin: I'm not going to lie to you... It's pretty disturbing, and I'm not talking about oripathy.
However, the vampire's expression was not tinged with the worry that betrays bad news.
Warfarin: Can I ask you a few questions?
Amiya: Yes, of course.
Warfarin: Well, some of them may seem silly to you... But you might as well start at the top. Are you pregnant?
Amiya: Of course not!
The cautus had almost jumped off the examination table, her face filled with a mix of anger, surprise and worry.
Warfarin: I know! I'm sure you're not!
She said, raising her hands as if to defend herself.
Warfarin: It's protocol... You'd be surprised if girls of a similar age to yours sometimes say yes. Well, now that that's out of the way... Have you had any sexual experiences recently?
The vampire hid behind her notepad. The cautus lowered her head, taking that fateful second to answer.
Warfarin: Don't worry, I'm bound by doctor-patient confidentiality. And again, that's quite normal given your age.
Still thinking, the young girl gave the sarkaz the necessary indication to confirm her thoughts. She almost smiled.
Warfarin: On its own, it doesn't count.
Amiya: Then no...
This was of course embarrassing for the cautus, who was finally facing this kind of thing for real, apart from 'the discussion' she'd had with Kal'tsit two years ago.
It was traumatizing with the feline.
Warfarin: Any sexual urges?
Amiya: I'm a cautus...
She said, still embarrassed, before calling on this new part of her, mustering her courage.
Amiya: Warfarin, all these questions are related so please get to the end.
The vampire sighed.
Warfarin: You're right, you are a cautus. But there's a difference between a normal cautus who finds it hard to spend a night alone, and someone who would do nothing but that until death, forgetting to eat or drink.
With a jerk, the sarkaz revealed the sheets on the notepad, the cautus raising an eyebrow. She hadn't gone to medical school after all.
Warfarin: The problem is your hormones, sweetheart. They're through the roof. So, yes, you're a cautus, yes, you're a teenager through and through. But they're ten times higher than they should be.
Amiya: And it's serious...?
Warfarin: Believe me, it should. But your body seems to take the shock well. Especially if, as you say, you're not ready to jump on every man who comes along.
She crossed her arms.
Warfarin: I don't know if it's because of your arts... Or other things that stayed with Babel and Theresa. And I don't really want to know. However, there's only one person who has such high hormone levels.
Amiya: Dokutah.
Warfarin: Exactly. So I ran a few more tests to see if there were any other similarities in your blood. But no, no specialized cells, no iridium, no ATP overproduction, no glucose appearing out of nowhere. But you've put on weight, haven't you?
Amiya: you can tell...?
The cautus looked down at her body in its underwear.
Warfarin: Closure doesn't sell lace in children's sizes. So you've moved up to the big leagues.
She began to blush quite intensely, the vampire laughing very lightly.
Warfarin: You weighed ten kilograms more on the scale. And you've gained a few inches. It's all hormones, don't worry too much.
Amiya: at this rate I'm going to have to redo my entire wardrobe...
Warfarin: Thank fate that you're not going to end up five feet tall. Believe me, it's not pleasant.
The CEO laughed lightly as she looked at her diminutive employee.
Warfarin: On a more serious note, I need to look at something else to see if you're turning into more of an eight-foot gorilla. I'll do a biopsy and see if your muscle density has increased, and observe the healing of the tissues. But that'll be tomorrow. I've already got quite a bit on my plate for today.
Inwardly, the young girl rejoiced at the idea of not having to endure any more stings. Receiving a sign from the vampire, she began to get dressed.
Warfarin: If you get any new "abilities", come back and see me.
Amiya: Hm...
Warfarin: Do you want condoms? I know you're not on the pill and I wouldn't recommend it in your condition.
Amiya: And this is in the protocol?!
Warfarin: Well, kinda. But I'm also thinking about you. You've just bought yourself some lingerie, you're conscious of your body so I know there's a chance that the next big thing is that you've got bunny babies in the oven and our favorite giant is going to jail.
Cautus was dumbfounded. She knew that Warfarin was brutally honest for many people. But this was a lot for her young mind.
Amiya: And why should it be doktah? I could be with someone my own age!
Warfarin: If you were interested in someone your own age, you wouldn't have rushed out to buy the latest edition of coral coast.
The vampire smiled as she crossed her arms. The cautus then remembered that the sarkaz was just behind her back when she'd bought it.
Warfarin: So either wait until you're eighteen, or be careful.
Amiya began to smile. Grasping the box handed to her by the sarkaz. It was better to be careful if anything ever came to happen... She tucked it away in one of the pockets of her heavy Rhodes Island jacket to hide it better, and hurriedly got dressed.
Warfarin: Did you do something to your hair?
Amiya: Not much, I just did them a little differently.
Her long brown hair was styled in a higher-than-usual ponytail, which she had shortened because it would usually have reached the small of her back instead of behind her shoulders. What's more, she'd gathered more hair in her two front bangs, leaving the short fringe. All of which showed off a little more of the young woman's fine facial features. This, and the growing confidence she seemed to have, gave her an air of maturity that belied her age.
Warfarin: Hm hm... Maybe I should get a haircut...
The cautus said her goodbyes as she left the vampire's consulting room, heading out into the corridors of Rhodes Island, immediately coming face to face with Silverash and Emperor as soon as she emerged.
Amiya: Emperor, Mr Silverash, good morning.
Her azure eyes locked on the feline, who had become a man again.
Amiya: I see you've been cured of your condition...
The feline frowned and closed his eyes, Amiya feeling the anger he was concealing.
Silverash: Yes... Although Aak took a long time to prepare this remedy, it had an immediate effect.
Amiya: Wonderful. I couldn't have imagined being in your situation, you had a lot of courage Mr Silverash. I suppose there's a reason why you're both waiting for me here, isn't there?
Emperor: It's just chance, kid. I don't get to chat with the big cat very often. And it's a shame, we should for business' sake.
Silverash: I'd have to agree with Emperor on that one. But no, we were looking for you for two different reasons.
Amiya: Let's discuss it on the way to my office, then, gentlemen.
The Rhodes Island CEO's work never stopped.
At least the doctor was having a good time.
She caressed the box in her pocket.
Did she really have a chance...?
The young cautus began to blush very slightly.
Sebastian: sneezes
Meteor: Someone's thinking about you.
Sebastian: You know that this doesn't work.
The two riders were now crossing the forest to the north of the village, approaching a small mountain range, the mare's stride carrying them along cradling the sound of the woods.
Sebastian: I should have asked for the saddle to be repaired...
Meteor: there's no hurry... Right, sweetheart?
Llamrei squirmed during one of her steps, making clear her disappointment and insatiable desire to run, Meteor doing her best not to fall, staying on the saddle thanks to the giant's single hand, the other holding his sword in case they were attacked again.
Meteor: Ok I get it...
Sebastian: We're getting close.
Meteor: We should stop here. The area is full of originium...
Her face filled with pain as she finished her sentence. The mare stopped, the giant guiding her near a tree to remember where she would be.
Sebastian: We'll leave you there, girl...
The horse pushed forward, but the giant's strength held her back.
Sebastian: Nah, nah... I'm not going to risk the best mount in the world becoming infected. You'd run slower after...
He calmed the animal, who exhaled a singular time in defeat. It took an immense effort for the doctor not to grin like an idiot and ruin the little semblance of calm and obedience the mount had towards him.
Sebastian: And the grass is fresh here.
He took a single carrot out of his bag and handed it to Llamrei, who bit it gently, showing that she wasn't easily defeated by a treat.
The two riders set off, leaving the mount where it was, gripping their weapons firmly in their hands, their senses on the alert before venturing further into the forest.
Their walk through the woods was swift. So fast that the giant didn't even have time to think about making conversation. Just as quickly, they reached a frontier of sorts. Emerging from the edge of the wood, they could see that the trees were much sparser, the trunks thin and lanceolate, their bark whitish, while the ground was covered with a kind of lichen oscillating between red and purple.
The landscape was dotted with small hills and pits. The giant had the impression of stepping into the middle of an ancient cursed battlefield, a battlefield between nature and the cruelty of this world. A world whose war had already begun millennia ago.
Noticing his discomfort, the kuranta spoke.
Meteor: It's gloomy, I know. But you'd be surprised how much game there is here.
They took a few steps, the lichen sinking under the giant's weight.
Meteor: Be careful... There's originium in the pits...
She clenched her fist.
Meteor: One bad fall and that's all it takes to become infected...
Sebastian: I'll be fine.
He took another step, forcing the kuranta to follow suit and lead the way once more, guiding them to the pincers' lair.
...
There was nothing epic or exciting about it. Instead, it was just walking. Which was a good thing in itself. But it made the pressure of mortal danger that could strike at any moment unbearable.
Sebastian: The village... It looks nice.
Meteor: It would be even more so if it weren't in ruins.
The irritation he felt in the kuranta's voice told him that he had perhaps not chosen the right words at the time. Fortunately, he knew how to make up for it.
Sebastian: It will be again. That I can swear to.
Realizing that she had perhaps not been pleasant enough with the doctor, the kuranta looked at him with just a smile, as if to thank him. Putting aside the bitterness she felt at the damage to her village. As if suddenly getting so involved would make her exile revoked. Maybe that's why she was so angry. Because she knew it was stupid, and she couldn't make things go back to the way they were.
Meteor: Thank you. For sticking with me on this.
Sebastian: You're welcome. I'd do anything for my employees.
Meteor: Idiot...
She said with a big smile, before being stopped dead in her tracks by Sebastian. Her gaze naturally turned to see him livid, and focused on the horizon. Almost terrified, even.
Immediately afterwards, she could see an immense transparent bubble forming around them, the grass burning in a three-meter radius around the giant, as if they were surrounded by a hoop of charred lichen.
All this reaction was because of one thing. A single smell that the giant had forced himself to teach in Chernobog. For his sake, and for the sake of those he cared about in this world.
The scent he had just smelled was that of originium.
Which SHOULD NOT be smelled in the air.
Sebastian: It smells of originium.
The kuranta's eyes widened, and she had no doubt whatsoever of the giant's overdeveloped senses.
Meteor: Do you think it's...
Sebastian: Bodies of the infected.
Immediately, the giant dropped his backpack to the ground, rummaging around for one particular item. A gas mask.
Meteor had seen it dozens of times before. A Rhodes Island regulation piece of equipment, all operators were trained every year to wear it, in case disaster struck or worse, someone reached the peak of their infection nearby.
Sebastian: Take it. I can shrink the bubble around me and survive in it. But you could suffocate if you stay in it.
More panicked than anything else, the kuranta didn't flinch and donned the gas mask to protect her breathing.
The bubble around them disappeared with a crack before reforming almost as soon around Sebastian.
A single drop of sweat beaded on his forehead. Using enormous amounts of energy, he could use his relative control over gravity to condense the air around him, forming an impenetrable air bubble.
Taking another object out of his bag, a notepad and pencil, he began to write to show the kuranta his message; she didn't really understand why he didn't speak, but of course she did once she began to read.
'The sound doesn't come through.'
Meteor: How am I supposed to communicate...?
She didn't speak sign language. The giant could see that she was trying to speak under her mask, and under different circumstances he would have been able to read her lips.
So he writes something in his notebook before showing it again.
The kuranta read. She looked up at the giant and swore she could have slapped him.
LOL
As if he found the situation hilarious.
Meteor: Does that make you laugh, you twat?
He shook his head, getting to his feet, Meteor understanding that they should get back on track. The kuranta forced the pace, slaloming through the treacherous terrain, showing how well she knew it, the giant following behind. Until a crack and a spark echoed through the air. A larger-than-life originium particle struck Sebastian's barrier.
They persevered, the shocks and sparks becoming more and more frequent as they approached the pinchers' cavern. The giant sensed that something was wrong. He strengthened and prepared his soul for the approach to this cavern, but all he could see was darkness far beyond the simple obscurity that blanketed the cave due to the lack of light, but he could see another. A cursed one he knew better than anyone, for it had been an integral part of his soul from the very beginning.
He kept his concentration, his blood and soul quivering with protective mantras and purifying intentions.
The only certainty he had was that, with the frequency of sparks striking the doctor's bubble, the infectious source was close at hand, so much so that they were both intimately convinced that the infectious corpse was in the cavern. A few more steps and the giant stopped, forcing the kuranta's gaze.
He began to write quickly on his notepad, before showing it to her. It took the kuranta a mere second to decipher the message, as his handwriting was not the most polished.
I can't go any further. My bubble would set fire to the originium in the air and incinerate the corpse. Go ahead and take pictures. We'll incinerate them right after.'
Meteor: Why photos?
...
It's true, he couldn't hear her.
So she mimed, drawing a square with her two forefingers and two thumbs before putting it in front of her left eye and shrugging her shoulders. The giant writes again.
Autopsy. Just a precaution.
The kuranta nodded, fishing her cell phone out of her pockets. The little device had been switched off for... A few weeks? Months?
Hard to say, since she never used it.
She switched on the device and just as quickly moved it away from her face with her arms, pulling her head back.
Sebastian laughed lightly, which she could see in her peripheral vision, the older woman glaring murderously at him.
It took the kuranta a few seconds to remember how to take a picture with the object, before she nodded, setting off to re-enter the cavern. The giant sat on a rock, his back to the cavern to stand guard, able only to use his eyes. His sword proudly poised against him.
As for Meteor, she continued into the cavern, quickly finding herself illuminated by the lanterns set up there.
There was nothing normal about it. The cavern was occupied by the pincers, and while they could tolerate visitors, they couldn't bear to have objects left there.
She continued walking, before stopping to look at the figures on the ground. She notched an arrow from her bow and took a few uncertain steps. Only to see that it was someone lying down. She took a few much faster steps to help the person, but froze.
There were five bodies. Safely lying on their backs next to each other. Their decomposing bodies eaten away by originium. A few uncertain steps, and Meteor froze again. The first body would have been unrecognizable, its hair, features and face eaten away by rot, originium and insects. No one would have recognized her, were it not for the gold bracelet on her left wrist.
The one Meteor had given to Tatjana, Oleg's daughter. On her sixteenth birthday.
Memories flashed through Meteor's mind, of a little girl wanting to follow her everywhere, welcoming her with arms wide open when she returned from a hunt, always that smile on her mouth, the desire to educate their youngest from the age of fourteen.
All those little moments of life. Swept away. Like tears in the rain.
Meteor collapsed to her knees, screaming under his gas mask.
The sound of boots on marble floor echoed through the palace of Londinium. Immense strides, too fast for the elegance of a lady of her presence. She passed by soldiers and servants, not giving them the slightest glance, the latter not daring to stand in the way of the banshee queen or even ask her the slightest question.
She arrived before the heavy doors of the throne room, not bothering to announce herself or ask to be opened, a simple word from her arts being enough to open the doors weighing tons in one fell swoop.
She continued into the throne room, her gaze immediately landing on the king.
Theresis: Ramale... To what do I owe this pleasure?
The gigantic sarkaz's voice was calm and almost lilting, like the melody of a snake charmer.
Ramale: I've had enough. I'm off to Kazimierz.
He tapped his armored fingers on the throne's armrest, deciding to play the fool as he had done so many years before.
Theresis: And why is that?
The banshee queen was far from stupid; she could see right through her king's acting. Or so she thought.
Ramale: That's where he was last seen. I won't sit idly by any longer, I intend to make him pay for what he's done.
Theresis: Your eagerness, and your zeal is nice to see, but-
Ramale: He killed my only son!
It was close to a howl of rage, her emotions and voice weakening her own control over her arts. The palace walls trembled.
The king's gaze cooled instantly, and he rose to his feet, descending the few steps that separated him from the banshee, never blinking or taking his eyes from hers.
Theresis: Your son killed himself. He proved too weak-willed to resist this war.
The king arrived in front of the Banshee, a few centimetres between them, their eyes still locked. It was clear that he was still not afraid. The banshee observed the giant standing in front of her, one of only two people in this world who had never been able to look down on her.
Ramale: My son was the last male of our species... We are doomed to disappear. If my attachment as a mother isn't a good enough reason, my attachment as a queen is.
A smile played on Theresis' lips.
Theresis: True. But I don't think the banshees are doomed. We'll deal with that problem when the time comes. Just as we'll deal with the doctor's.
Ramale: And when will that time come? It's ridiculous that we let him gather forces instead of attacking him immediately.
The sarkaz sighed.
Theresis: Patience... The doctor will inevitably come to Londinium. And when he does, we'll be ready, and we'll hold him and the false queen fast. All in good time. Our forcces are growing too, and at a much faster rate than his.
Ramale: Your strategy makes no sense whatsoever.
Theresis: Really? Deceit is the sinews of war. Appearing weak in order to surprise your opponent is a very simple strategy, and I'm surprised by your lack of understanding of it.
The woman bit her cheek when she saw the king's smile.
It was a strategy he had mastered, having employed it for almost ten years.
From the moment he saw this young man dying in the desert, his sister loading him into their carriage out of pity, he sensed that this man was a danger to his integrity, to his plans, to his ambitions.
From then on, he feigned ignorance, imposture and incompetence. Orchestrating many dramas and assets.
It was a simple matter to rally the banshees to his cause, despite their young prince being a Theresa loyalist at first.
When he learned the doctor's true identity, he was quick to reveal it to the young prince. Who quickly decided against joining the camp of the individual responsible for the massacre and decimation of his species.
A true pity...
The ursus army then campaigning against Yen had to pass through Kazdel, and more specifically through banshee territory. Had another, less competent general found himself at the head of the ursine troops, it would have been a victory for the banshee, not the execution of one individual out of ten. Women, child, even the king.
It was supposed to be a lesson, apparently. So that the sarkaz would never again rise up against the empire.
So of course the banshees would turn against Theresa when the time came. The death of the young prince, on the other hand... It was a necessary price to consolidate the banshee's loyalty.
The king could almost have laughed at the simplicity of it all. A few photos, a few accusations that the prince regularly consorted with children. A few letters. And there he was, hanging from a rope.
He had no involvement whatsoever in this scandal, this strategy coming solely from the doctor.
But of course Theresis had waited until his death to reveal that the accusations and photos were false. Further infuriating the banshee and other factions against the loyalists.
Theresis: Don't worry... A scientist will be able to find a solution to your problem. I'm sure he will...
He said as he passed to the side of the banshee queen, two of his fingers stroking her hair, which she brushed away with her fingers and the idea in the process.
Ramale: There's nothing a scientist can do. We'll always be incompatible with other sarkaz species, and non-racials are always too weak to mate with us. We're doomed.
Theresis: Give me time to gather support... If you don't like the science, I can always ignore the Columbians, I may even have some more occult solutions in Yen already.
The banshee turned around. Ready to depart.
Ramale: Speak. This will not give me back my son. Nor the future of my people. When the time comes, however. I want to be the one to kill the doctor.
Theresis: Of course.
He lied. He would be the one to kill the doctor, and no one else. He would plunge his sword straight down the throat of the accursed demon responsible for his sister's death. As the woman left the throne room, the king did the same, moving into a more secret area, where his gaze fell on a body quivering in a vat.
The teekaz will win.
Meteor's footsteps were heavy, as were the tears streaming down her face. She had taken the time to identify each body. All five belonged to people she had known in the village. She even noticed the two missing incisors of little Thomas. He would have been 25 by now.
She reached the giant and sat down on the ground, almost collapsing. The giant was almost about to rush over to comfort her, but realized he couldn't because of his bubble.
He wrote in his notebook, and waited for the kuranta to look at him through her tears.
'Can I go?'
She nodded singularly.
Their infected status deprived them of any decent burial.
Sebastian moved closer to the entrance of the cavern, the crackling of the originium particles being exponential, he extended his bubble to block the cavern entrance. And waited.
Like a fission reaction, the originium sparks began to ignite others, and so on, until before long, the flames filled the cave in a sudden explosion that caused it to collapse, the remaining originium particles in the air also incinerated by the immense energy that had just been released, purifying the air.
The giant abandoned his barrier, breathing heavily and dropping to one knee from exhaustion. Having emptied almost all his energy reserves by exercising this technique.
His back was to the cavern. Sheathing his sword once he sensed the darkness retreating. His footsteps quickly brought him to the kuranta who was crying in silence. Silently, because she was just expressing her pain, not drawing attention to herself.
He didn't touch her, just as she didn't remove her gas mask, because they knew she was still covered in originium dust.
Yet his hand still rose to comfort her. His warmth didn't reach her. But he prayed she would.
Sebastian: Let's find you a place to wash up.
A quick walk to the nearest stream had been enough for the kuranta to find a place to wash the originium dust off her skin. Her crying had stopped. As she washed, Sebastian stood guard, no trace of their morning's little game visible anywhere in themselves.
At last he spoke.
Sebastian: What did you find?
Meteor: Five bodies. People from the village. Infected.
The giant frowned. Meteor had already been expelled from the village for becoming infected, but not them. They must have hidden their infection.
Meteor: The... Bodies were... By the goddess just look on my phone.
The giant turned to the kuranta's belongings, picked up the cell phone and unlocked it, realizing that she didn't have a code. Normally he would have chastised her for this, but given the circumstances he changed his mind. He opened the gallery, thanking the quality of the camera and the phone, which had adjusted the settings automatically. Offering sharp photos.
Sebastian: I... I usually do an autopsy like this out loud...
Meteor: Do it. If I can help figure out what's going on, I have to.
He looked at the first photo, five bodies lined up together.
Sebastian: They were deposited there, no doubt about it. But further into the cave. You can see several different blood trails.
Meteor: I used to think that pinchers ate originium, including infected ones. Like metal crabs. But I've learned that's not the case after all.
Sebastian: Someone must have wanted to get rid of all traces of the bodies then...
Meteor: But in the end, the pincers fled their caves because of the infectious corpses.
He looked at the photos in more detail. The ones showing each body in detail.
Sebastian: Female. Mid-40s.
He noticed a detail in the photo and zoomed in, frowning.
Sebastian: There's a... strange wound. On the back of the neck.
He looked quickly at the other phots.
Sebastian: Same for the others... They all have neck wounds. Judging by the angle, he attacked in the back with a kind of dagger... Very thin, edged towards the needle. The attacker's height is around one meter eighty. That and the originium distributed evenly over all the bodies indicates they died at the same time. But not from oripathy... This is an assassination.
Meteor: Damn it... But why...?
The kuranta raised her trembling hands in front of her eyes.
So much misfortune had befallen her home.
The colossus shrugged, forgetting that she wasn't looking at him.
Sebastian: I don't know about that. Maybe because they were infected? But I can't make any sense of it with so little evidence. They must have trusted the attacker, though. Because he got them in the back, clean, without having to stab again.
Meteor: Everyone trusts eachother here...
Sebastian: Shit.
Why did he have such a talent for attracting trouble to himself?
Sebastian: Let's leave as soon as you're ready. Let's get it over with.
His gaze fell on the cavern in the distance.
Sebastian: The pinchers will be back in their lair and the village will at least be safe from this danger.
Meteor: Let's go. Please...
Having found Llamrei, she didn't mind walking, sensing the heavy emotions running through the kuranta. She was thinking about how to announce the death of the five they had found. Or even if they should. Whether to say it was murder or to lie and pretend it was an accident.
Sebastian: You can leave that to me.
The kuranta gasped, it was as if he could read her mind, or feel her emotions.
Sebastian: There's no right way to do it. Just less worse ones.
Meteor nodded behind the giant's back, the latter sensing his acceptance.
As the mere sound of hooves filled the giant's ears, he felt words caressing his soul.
Swiatla: Look... Look what my weakness is doing to me... My children are killing each other. Their hearts bleed. And all the while I can't protect them from themselves or from the most ferocious beasts.
Her voice still had that semblance of pain in it, but here it was reaching ceilings. Each of her words pronounced with as much pain as a mother forced to watch her little ones being tortured one by one.
The giant answered, without thinking, his heart speaking first.
Sebastian: 'What can I do about it?
Swiatla: Nothing. The gods are fed by the faith of their followers. It's people like Meteor who provide me with what little I have. The people of my land will never again find their faith in me.
Sebastian: 'I'll do what I can. After all, that's why you chose as a palain, isn't it?'
The giant felt joy being transmitted to him, hearing what sounded like a light laugh caressing his ears.
Swiatla: So you finally agree to be my champion?
The giant took a deep breath, emerging from the woods with a view of the village, but also of the rest of the Kazimierz landscape. A light breeze caressed his face, feeling a perfect freshness on his skin. He took a moment to gaze at the landscape, his hair moving slightly in the wind, now long enough to be at least disheveled by it;
Sebastian: 'It's a beautiful land. I've fought for so many ridiculous things. I fought for nations that never returned the love I gave them. Who treated me like a weapon, not caring about everything I brought them, everything I believed in. But this... Maybe for once. It's really worth it.'
The goddess could only smile. Not seeing the determination on her champion's face.
Sebastian's mount approached the village, with many villagers gathered around it, trying to clean up the aftermath of the cockatrix attack. Then Sebastian dismounted, looking grim as he approached the villagers who had already buried several of their own.
Memories flashed in the giant's head. All those times as a policeman. Having to announce the death of a loved one to a family, or the death of a colleague.
He stood straight in front of Eryk, his face both cold and compassionate. A gesture. Words repeated a thousand times, but always with the same difficulty coming out of his mouth.
Sebastian: The pincers will be returning to their lair.
Eryk: Why did they leave?
He took a deep breath.
Sebastian: We found five bodies.
The villagers froze, incredulity in their eyes.
Sebastian: They died a week ago. We have identified them.
Eryk: By the goddess... Our hunters...
He nodded slowly. But he had to get the worst news out of the way.
Sebastian: They were murdered.
Immediately there was this terrible second of silence before the village erupted into chaos, fear and panic taking shape on the faces of everyone who, for once in their lives, no longer trusted their neighbor.
Eryk: Who... Who killed them, my lord...?
Sebastian: I don't know yet, but I'm going to find out. Also, they were infected.
It was another shock that went through the poor inhabitants, the old red-haired kuranta looking at the giant.
Eryk: Are you sure, sir? We're like a family, we should have seen it or known it...
Sebastian: There's no doubt about it. Even without treatment, it's easy to hide oripathy for a while without showing lesions like Meteor. But their bodies were well and truly eaten away by originium.
Eryk: But how...? We have no originium in the village...
Sebastian: The hunting area is full of it...
He said in astonishment.
Eryk: Really?
The colossus froze, unable to understand why the villagers were unaware of the existence of all the originium in the hunting area.
The old man's eyes moistened, and he no longer dared to look at the giant.
Eryk: Why... Why all this trouble...
Thinking of the kuranta, the giant's eyes tried to search for her, only to miss her and their mount.
Sebastian: Where did...?
Meteor had moved away from the village center, having caught sight of two violet eyes out of the corner of her eye. A violet she could have recognized between a thousand and one, for it was that of her husband's eyes. Perhaps he had returned, so the kuranta set off in pursuit, following the tracks on the ground.
She had to talk to him, she had to find him, maybe she could finally explain everything that was happening to someone who would understand her, who knew her better than anyone else.
Llamrei had followed her, as astonishing as that was. No doubt because the mare didn't want to leave the kuranta alone with the dangers lurking.
But the horsewoman continued to walk through the village, soon finding herself in front of a house that looked more like a mansion than a real home, so large and luxurious was it.
She frowned, knowing full well that no one in the village was wealthy enough to afford such pomp and circumstance. But this was where the tracks led, so she hesitantly knocked on the front door.
Meteor: Jacques! It's me! It's me! Allya!
It didn't take long for said door to be opened, and soon she found herself looking into both her husband's eyes. But not at her husband.
It was a young man, not even twenty, who had opened the door. But he certainly had Jacques' eyes. The kuranta didn't understand.
Young man: Hello ma'am... Can I help you?
Meteor: Hello...
She looked at his face in more detail, it reminded her of something. Someone. The young man was slightly embarrassed but began to smile softly. Slightly intimidated, but above all charmed by the gaze of the kuranta, who was still a very beautiful woman.
She recognized these facial features. But she couldn't help asking.
Meteor: When were you born?
Young man: December 1079... Madam excuse me but-
She didn't listen to the rest of what he said. He'd been born a few months after she'd left. The month Lena's baby was due.
Meteor took off running. Heading off into the woods.
The giant arrived on his way to see her in tears.
Sebastian: where have you been?
She'd had enough. She'd had enough of this village, of suffering so much, of the giant who could only see the end of the matter.
So she ignored the colossus, climbed on Llamrei and galloped off without looking back, wanting to go on, far away, as far away as she could, leaving everything behind. She didn't hear the giant's cries for her to stop as she rode on, further and further from the village.
She'd been taking the same path they'd come in on for a while, Llamrei flying like the wind, until she heard a whistle.
The mare stopped suddenly, understanding the signal from her rider who had managed to stay behind them on the run.
Meteor was unhorsed, the oversized stirrups unable to keep her in place. But as she hovered, teary-eyed and wide-eyed, she didn't reach the ground, the giant having caught her in his arms instead.
She didn't thank him, she thought of nothing else but freeing herself and going further and further away, the words she was screaming not making the slightest sense. So she struck the giant in the face, breaking his nose and forcing him to let go of her for a moment.
She was able to take one step, before the giant caught up with her, grabbing her by her clothes, lifting her off the ground and pinning her against the trunk of a tree.
Meteor immediately became aware of the difference in strength and size between the two, for no matter how hard she struck his arm, he didn't flinch.
Sebastian: Calm the fuck down!
It was a roar he let out, his brutality forcing the kuranta to calm down out of sheer fear for a moment.
Sebastian: I'm going to let you go. And you're going to clam up, and explain to me what's going on like an adult instead of throwing a tantrum like an eight-year-old.
She nodded, suddenly not daring to speak.
The colossus set her down on the ground, sitting down on the road in front of her, the kuranta sliding down the trunk to reach the ground, not daring to meet his gaze.
Sebastian: Running away from your problems won't get you anywhere...
A memory he would never forget flashed in his head, that of his father's bleeding head on the table in their apartment.
Meteor hid her face in the palms of her hands. Crying under the colossus' gaze.
Meteor: He lied to me... He swore that even if I was sterile... That he would stay with me... Forever... But months before I was exiled, he got another bitch pregnant.
She looked at the giant, the one who couldn't understand her pain.
Meteor: That bastard...! He covered me with smiles and kisses! Telling me my oripathy wasn't important! That he'd hide it from the others! Meanwhile, he was in someone else's bed! And just before their kid was born, he made me leave the village! I-! Shit!
She screamed in rage, her emotions flying in all directions, clutching her head in her hands. Her world collapsed around her.
A husband she would have loved turned out to be scum. A village that was like her family, its trust and innocence shattered.
All her past, everything she'd built herself on as a person, was once again swept away by misfortune, like the Nearls.
Sebastian: Allya...
He used her first name. Making her look up at him.
She'd never mentioned it in her file, like her marriage. So it must have been a surprise for the giant.
But it was the only thing that left his lips. Preferring to let his actions speak louder than his words, he laid his hand on the kuranta's shoulder. Praying that all the warmth he contained, all the affection he'd never felt, all the love that had crossed his heart would caress his mind.
And so it was. Looking into his two emerald eyes, which seemed to be turning golden from the sunlight, she was filled with immense warmth. She felt as if two arms were embracing her with a mother's embrace.
So Meteor hunted down this sensation, throwing herself into the giant's arms before silently weeping again against the grey fabric of his uniform. Finding comfort in the arms of the man who had already brought her such affection in recent days.
The man who had shown himself capable of being her friend.
He still didn't speak, still didn't react other than by giving his warmth, and caressing the kuranta's back with that same hand.
Making her understand that the world was not over.
At the time, he felt like he was comforting Misha after a nightmare. If he hadn't had so much respect for the kuranta, he might even have allowed himself to laugh a little.
They stayed like that for a while, until Meteor calmed down.
But the moments they shared together were always destined to be interrupted.
As the smell of the kuranta's tears faded, the doctor perceived another, faint, but one he couldn't mistake for another.
Feeling the man freeze, she didn't need to ask what was wrong.
Sebastian: I smell a corpse.
The kuranta pulled herself together, letting go of the giant who focused all her senses, determining that there was indeed the smell of a corpse, not far from them, but that there wasn't a single beast bigger than a rabbit around.
Then he stood up, advancing towards the scent, his sword at his belt, his left hand resting on the pommel.
Meteor followed, having picked up his bow which had waltzed a little further, until they reached the remains of a camp.
The shredded and petrified men left no clue as to the identity of the culprit. The two riders forced themselves to do a little digging to unravel the mystery.
Sebastian: They're armed... With shit, but not makeshift weapons. Bandits.
About fifteen bodies... at first sight. The carnage made counting difficult. It would have been enough to terrorize a village as peaceful as Kuranta's with such a troop.
Meteor: They've been dead for a while...?
The giant stopped at one of the bodies, breaking the rock to look at the pulpits and determine the time of death.
Sebastian: A few days ago... After the people in the cave, but before the other victims in the village...
Meteor: It's close to where we were attacked by the pincers...
The realization struck her.
Meteor: The pinchers were pushed out of their lair... this alerted the cockatrix, which left its usual hunting area.
Sebastian: And it would have fallen on our merry men...
Meteor: it doesn't make sense, she shouldn't have attacked them. And nobody attacks a cocquatrix, otherwise it responds, and once they've tasted men's blood they don't stop.
Sebastian: They didn't know that...
They pulled out a leftover piece of paper he'd glimpsed, on which it was handwritten in ursus.
Sebastian: They were ursus. They don't got a clue of what a cockatrix is.
Meteor: Can you read...?
Sebastian: I'll see what little I can decipher... 'Garett, I'm sick and tired of this bastard bragging every time about the golden balls he makes selling originium here. Cross the border and you and the boys will loot the village. Those stupid Kazimierzans won't have anyone to defend them, so it'll be a piece of cake. And we'll reap a small fortune.' The rest is illegible.
He looked at the frowning kuranta.
Meteor: We don't mine originium, the only place in the region where there is some is my hunting grounds.
Sebastian: And the other villagers don't know...
He searched his brain, remembering that he'd seen pickaxes in the photos.
Sebastian: There was mining equipment near the hunters. That's how they got infected, by mining originium-
screech
They turned skyward, hearing a howl from the cockatrix.
Meteor: That scream... Her lair is not far...
Sebastian: I can smell her blood... I can follow her.
The two looked at each other. Meteor's sadness left his body at the thought of slaughtering the nightbird that had terrorized his village. They nodded in unison, the giant dropping his bag at his feet as he began to don his armor.
Meteor: Now's the time... But I'm not sure I can do that much damage...
She looked at her bow, stroking the string.
Sebastian: And your arts?
That he knew, the arts she'd developed on Rhodes Island with a little training, taking advantage of the originium infused in her bow as a medium, and the willow wood of the arrows that naturally focused arts.
In a way, they were able to reduce a material's density and thus its resistance. Helping projectiles to penetrate armor and weaken it.
Meteor: I don't master them completely... There's a reason I'm classified as a four-star...
Sebastian: Bullshit. And you know it. I trust you.
He says, putting on his helmet and turning to her.
The kuranta felt warm at heart, clutching her weapons tightly in her hands.
The knight-errant-to-be started walking through the woods, keeping his senses wide open, his armor surprisingly noiseless. They soon emerged from the woods to discover a clear, green grass-covered clearing, with the side of a mountain in front of them, a dark cave within.
Meteor: Here.
Sebastian: That's where the smell of blood leads, but I can't hear her heart. She must be out.
Meteor: We have to kill her... She'll keep on killing now that she's got a taste for blood.
Sebastian: I know, I know. But right now all we can do is wait and ambush her.
The giant rummaged in his bag, pulling various things that the kuranta didn't recognize from his backpack. He tossed the now much lighter bag at the foot of a tree to keep it out of the way during the battle. He handed the kuranta a sort of satchel, which she took in her hands before opening it out of curiosity, revealing a sort of strange package in adhesive on which were mounted some electronic parts.
Meteor: A bomb?
Sebastian: The explosive is homemade. It has no smell, and you only smell of the woods. If you're the one setting it up she won't be able to notice it. Leaving a good trap.
Understanding the reasoning, she nodded and took off running, not really knowing when the nightbird would return. As for the giant, he knelt down, resting his blade flat on his thighs, having assembled a veritable little chemistry kit in front of him. A field kit he'd already used to make poisons and antidotes during their peregrinations through the countryside.
It took him only a moment to make three strange conconctions and a powerful oil, which he applied along his blade. The sensation of the hanged man's venom biting into his blade brought back old memories.
Even if the animal was supposedly immune to poisons, an out-of-this-world one would have to do.
Meteor returned just as he had finished. The giant then handed her two of his concoctions.
Meteor: What is it?
Sebastian: One of them will help fluidify your joints and remove air bubbles in your cartilage. It'll help you be quieter. The other...
He took a deep breath.
Meteor: The other one can save you if you get hit by the animal's bile.
Sebastian: You give less detail...
She frowned.
Sebastian: It protects you by making you sweat an oil that bile should slide over...
He said, smiling now that the dirty detail had been mentioned.
Meteor: Huh...
Sebastian: It's okay... it'll just cost you a shower and it may save your life.
Meteor: Well...
The giant grabbed the last vial and lifted his helmet, downing the contents.
Meteor: What about you?
Sebastian: Enough calories to kill you. I'm gonna need some energy.
He put his helmet back on, and just as quickly it stiffened.
Sebastian: Get away, she's coming.
Meteor began to run, gathering all the energy she had to climb a tree, notching her arrow.
The giant remained motionless. The heat around him slowly rising.
He concentrated, starting to feel the world not through his body, but through the grass, the birds in the sky, the rodents hiding in the grass or the foliage of the trees.
In a flash, the giant leapt a few meters away, his speed for an instant surpassing that of the cockatrix, who crashed to the ground, having missed her dive.
The colossus smiled softly beneath his helmet, his sword in his hand in no time at all.
As for the nightbird, it swooped down on the giant with a swiftness and savagery unlike any animal on earth. Sharp claws from its legs to the tips of its wings came to claw the giant blow after blow. The doctor, as if facing a swordsman, parried attack after attack, the iridium of his sword being just the right match for the animal's claws.
On the other hand, if there was one area where Sebastian found himself dominated, it was that of strength.
Because no matter how strong he was, he couldn't help backing up when a bird the size of a house hit him as fast as Patriot did.
Clung
An opening.
He raised his sword, the cockatrix's beak closing in on him, and struck, with all his might, at its beak.
If a standard man struck rock with a sword, the same sound would have escaped.
At least the sound of the impact, for there were others, the wind that was swept away as if an explosion had just occurred, the earth and rock that cracked as if a meteor had just hit the ground.
And yet, the giant felt as if he'd had as much effect as that time when he'd headbutted a classmate as a child.
With the cockatrix slowing for a moment, Meteor pulled on her bowstring as hard as she could, charging her arts to the max. The projectile went off like a heavy sniper's bullet, hitting the same spot where the giant had just hit.
An opportunity!
He reversed his grip on his blade, raised it above his head and brought it down with all his might to stab the weakened spot, the sword finally piercing the material from which the animal's beak was made.
She let out a deafening scream, which normally wouldn't have affected the giant, who could just destroy his own eardrums and regenerate them before the noise got too loud, but there was such a volume of displaced air and it was so loud that his skin and bones trembled under his armor like the strings of a cocaine-addled electric guitarist.
He was struck by the animal's wing, which only wanted to pull him away, the giant immediately remembering the shield blow he'd taken from Patriot at Chernobog. And although this time he didn't have his anger to strengthen his body, his armor did the job.
Still, he was thrown like a rag doll through the woods, and the wood of the trees, before coming to a violent halt and hitting the ground.
Getting his heart pumping ever faster and harder, he still didn't feel the thrill and excitement of battle he should, as the red lightning was nowhere to be seen.
He leapt up, pushing as hard as he could on his legs to get back to the clearing, to see Meteor slowly rise from the ground, wounded, but also the cockatrix take off to return to her den.
The giant grinned from ear to ear. No sooner had she passed the beak into the cave than a titanic explosion, the gift of Sebastian's home-made formula, sent the cave collapsing and the cockatrix hurtling towards the clearing.
Meteor moved away again, wanting to stay out of the fray, while the colossus reached out with his hands, using all the power of his blood and that infused in the blade to pluck it from the creature's beak, calling it into his hand.
She'd had a sword full of veniom straight to the brain, and yet she was still able to fight.
How could nature give birth to such a monster?
Swiatla: I had nothing to do with it!
Sebastian: You're not helping!
Realizing that he'd just screamed out loud, the giant cursed himself inwardly, the cockatrix instantly pointed at him and Meteor vexed.
The creature lunged at the giant with all its ground-grazing mass, pushing him through the woods. Using all the strength of his joints and the surprising mobility of his armor, he planted his feet in the ground, continuing to slide as he was pushed, and deflected the creature's sword and momentum so that it planted its beak in the ground.
But even though it was defeated in a weapons exchange, the bird had already fought back, striking with its wing again and the giant found himself in the air. Taking advantage of the angle at which he was thrown, he used one of the trees to get through and slow down, and another to hang on and stay in the canopy.
He quickly leaned on the tree and its branches to leap to another, then another and so on, moving from tree to tree all around the unfortunate animal at breathtaking speed, deliberately rattling his armor each time to destabilize the animal. The latter remained on the ground, looking all around her, again and again until she froze, the giant continuing for a poor second, before going straight to the attack, aiming at the same weak point they had created.
But the animal turned towards him as he approached, surprising him once again with its speed.
Having feinted her speed so as to have the effect of surprise on the giant.
She opened her beak wide and bit the giant on the waist, squeezing with all her might.
He was sure she could have broken diamonds, but the giant knew how to make armor, and the one he wore didn't bend.
Sebastian threw a series of punches into the animal's brain, not restraining himself in the least, but the animal, blinded by rage, wouldn't let him. Spitting bile at his prey in his beak, he threw it away.
The armor's iridium protected the giant, and the little bile that passed through his chain mail and plates was simply neutralized by his skin cells.
The giant crashed back into the clearing, surprisingly enough, coming to his feet with the handle of his sword in both hands, pointing skywards in front of him.
Sebastian: Come on, girl...
He felt the acid from the bile start to bite into his cells and growled, keeping his guard up for the cockatrix who was approaching, slowly. It was as if she wanted to play with her opponent, circling him in a way that mimicked what he had just moments before.
Sebastian: Bitch...
She leapt at him, and the giant, feeling the adrenalin in his veins, managed to get just under her wing, letting Purgatory scrape along the animal's underside. But the blade only glided over the beast's resistant plumes. Meteor remained at the edge of the woods, firing off a series of art-laden arrows while remaining mobile so as not to become too easy a target. Most of the projectiles ricocheted, some with a little more luck going in very lightly.
As for the giant, he continued the same movement of reaching underneath its wings, trying to weaken the feathers or even just slash the wing skin a little, but to no avail.
It seemed to last an eternity before the beast tired of this little game, turning far too quickly towards Meteor and spitting a projectile of bile at her. Time seemed to slow down for the kuranta as the projectile reached her and covered her in the viscous liquid, the grass melting at her feet and an unprecedented terror running through her entire being.
More out of reflex than anything else, she tried to leap backwards, in an attempt to escape the attack, even if it was too late.
Instead of seeing her skin melt and her flesh petrify, the bile slid down Meteor's skin, which had been sweating fist-sized drops ever since she ingested the two potions.
It took her a moment to realize she was saved, but it was a moment the giant didn't take advantage of.
The cockatrix struck the giant, scraping her claws against his armor.
What should have been a pointless action, thanks to the damask iridium the doctor wore, turned into a nightmare. For the noise resounded throughout his armor. The giant then realized that the nightbird had just mapped his entire armor using echolocation.
He raised his sword, but it was too late, as the animal dug its claws between the armor plates, piercing through the chain mail and, for a moment, betraying one of his works.
The claws dug into the flesh between his shoulders and neck, shattering bone, pulping flesh, preventing him from breathing properly and, above all, immobilizing him.
The animal pushed the giant to the ground, pinning him against it, before screaming at point-blank range.
It was a despicable experience.
His skin tore from the vibrations, his tendons snapped one after the other like the strings of an instrument giving way from wear and tear, his muscles liquefied, his blood vessels exploded, and his bones shattered like glass.
With his brain also damaged, the doctor could only lie motionless in a dazed state, what little consciousness he still had devoted to trying to regenerate his body in fourth gear.
The potion in meteor's blood stopped working, the kuranta now making enough noise to be heard by their opponent. The enemy slowly turned towards her, finally understanding that she was there, but opening up a new possibility.
The kuranta bent her bow with all her might, desperation and fear propelling her arts to new heights, so much so that the crystals in her body would have hurt like hell if it hadn't been for the adrenalin.
Meteor: Please make it count...
She found herself calling, praying inside herself for anything that would help her do it. And the mother never left her children. She felt two hands resting on hers, adjusting her shot, soothing her, filling her being with strength and warmth.
Meteor fired. A gust of air exploded around her like artillery fire, and the shock-resistant arrow flew off to find its target, the cockatrix's exposed brain.
The animal was knocked to the ground by the impact, the few centimetres of the organ that had been exposed to the air just before now being a real opening big enough to be the size of a normal target.
But this came at a price.
Meteor felt the bones in her arms tremble as if they were about to break, but more importantly, her bow snapped in two.
He wouldn't leave her in danger, he wouldn't leave her to fight alone. Deprived of reason, the giant's brain regained its characteristic animosity, and the energy that followed. He got to his feet and, forgetting his sword, began to strike at the animal's skull with both hands, before seizing the creature's beak as it tried to bite him again at the waist.
Red lightning flashed through him again, like hate.
But he didn't stop, using all the strength of his mind, his body now blown to smithereens, he tugged on the nightbird's beak, starting to spin the several-ton animal around him as if he were shot-putting.
Giving her a phenomenal burst of speed, he released her just as she began to gather herself and flap her wings. The cockatrix found herself propelled straight towards the rocky face of the mountain, crashing into the rocks with a deafening crash.
The tired giant dropped to one knee.
He felt this sensation bathing his body, the anger, the hatred, this drunkeness of rage that filled him and drove him to seek ever more blood.
No...
He was better than that, better than a bloodthirsty beast. He had to prove it.
Then he denied this anger, feeling weakness and unspeakable pain cover him. So much so that he thought he'd lost his mind for a moment.
No... He had to be clever, stop making up for his lack of strength with savagery and anger.
The sensation of his armor burning him gave him an idea.
With his left hand, he called Purgatory, and with his right, he subdued the dagger offered by the goddess.
Then he scraped the dagger against Purgatory's blade.
A blade forged by a craftsman with thousands of years' experience, stained with the blood of countless unfounded massacres, against a dagger created by a deity made to purge evil.
Evil against good.
An eternal battle across all the universes that would never end.
Eternal energy.
Like antimatter colliding with matter.
Purgatory's blade began to glow bright white. The dense metal contained a heat that was simply unimaginable, and the giant gasped. Not expecting his technique to have such an effect, he almost worried that it would melt.
The colossus withdrew his dagger, remaining on his knees, too weak and tired to move. His blade hit the ground, vaporizing the grass and vitrifying the ground for just a few centimetres.
The cockatrix looked at him, finally reaching the limits of her abilities. Then she rushed towards the giant in armour, who was still motionless.
Just before she pierced him again with her claws, the colossus moved. With a fluidity and speed that was frightening in its suddenness. The giant lunged forward, slicing through the claws on the animal's lower legs with a single stroke of his superheated blade, the atoms themselves shattering under the heat.
Distraught, the creature refused to be deterred, and immediately began to attack the doctor with a series of claw marks with her upper wings. All his years of experience flashed before his eyes.
All his strength was mastered, each sword stroke twirling to the centimeter, not a particle of energy in his veins wasted as his sword whirled with a finesse not normally seen in the giant.
The claws at the front of the animal were sliced clean off in a single blow, and the giant took advantage of the momentum to duck down and kick the animal in the skull, sending it flying past him.
Wanting to end it all, the beast regained altitude, circling the giant before rising high into the air.
Meteor looked on, clenching her fist and praying for the giant.
The colossus looked at the animal, putting himself on guard. A different one, the edge of his blade pointing skywards, the handle just above his head. The tip pointed straight ahead, resembling a refined swordsman.
The one he was supposed to be.
The night bird swooped down on him.
And five hundred years of legend came to an end just as quickly.
It only took a second for the beast to descend on him.
A simple step forward, a simple vertical arc. And the giant had just dodged the attack, slashing the beast's belly along its entire length.
The cockatrix crumpled to the ground, her guts hanging out in her hot, boiling blood. But she continued to move clumsily.
Realizing that this wasn't the coup de grâce, the giant turned around, leaping onto the animal's back to land on its blow, which began to fly again. From one of the small pockets attached to his armor, he withdrew a grenade, which he pulled the pin from before plunging it straight into the animal's brain.
He threw himself backwards, falling some ten metres. The wind gently caressed him as he landed on his two feet and one of his hands. The other hand busy holding his sword.
With trepidation he watched the animal soar higher and higher, Meteor doing the same.
Then, all of a sudden, the explosion sounded, and the animal fell to the ground, uttering a final dying scream before crashing heavily to the ground. Dead.
The two Rhodes Islanders roared with joy in celebration of their victory. Running towards each other after a Dantesque battle.
The kuranta jumped up to throw herself into the giant's arms, who spun around with boundless joy.
The colossus removed his helmet with one hand, leaving it in the grass, before placing the kuranta back on the ground.
Meteor: You're a fucking legend!
Sebastian: Believe me, I couldn't have done it without your help.
The emotional rollercoaster between learning the horrible truth behind her husband, and a such a victory had a real effect on Meteor, who reacted far too strongly.
That's what she realized when she said to herself that she could almost have kissed him right then and there.
Meteor looked up at the giant before the adrenalin subsided, reality calling her to order and urging her to separate herself from the colossus. Not allowing herself to give in in this moment of emotional weakness.
Sebastian: Your bow...
The kuranta looked down at the debris she had placed on the ground a few meters ago.
Meteor: It doesn't matter... I could always fix it.
The sky began to gather dark clouds once the battle in the sun was over.
Sebastian: Let's make sure this thing is dead.
The colossus staggered back to the carcass, fatigue and injuries hitting him with the weight of a freight train. As they looked at the completely exploded brain, the animal definitely dead, Sebastian noticed something in the feather collar just behind the creature's beak.
Something was wrong.
He smelled blood, not his own or the cocatrix's, human blood. And fresh.
With a trembling hand, he reached for the object in the feather collar, grasping it and plucking it from the feathers. The weapon had not penetrated the pulpits.
In his hand was a kind of needle, finely carved from bone, with some engraved decoration.
Meteor: What's this doing here...?
Sebastian: Do you know what it is?
Meteor: This is a dagger I carved from the bone of the cocatrix I killed. It was my wedding present to Jacques.
The colossus' stomach dropped to the bottom of his entrails.
He understood.
With one hand he grabbed Meteor's wrist, the other whistled with two fingers to call Llamrei, who arrived at full gallop, the giant drawing blood from the metal of his helmet and fastening it to his belt.
Meteor: Seb! What's going on?!
He climbed onto the back of his mount, bringing Meteor with him, before galloping off towards the village.
The kuranta's cries and demands falling on deaf ears.
By the time they reached the village it was rather dark, the sun hidden by clouds. Llamrei galloped back through the narrow streets, the villagers once again gathered in a sort of small village square.
They quickly turned to the doctor, as a man of his stature in armour on an equally colossal mount was obviously attracting attention.
He dismounted quickly, too quickly, the saddle finally breaking under his weight, forcing Meteor to perform a less-than-famous reception. The villagers were stunned by a mixture of fear and respect, and backed away from the giant. Reclaiming the armor on his back.
He walked towards the center of the crowd, Meteor right behind him, finally noticing that the giant had snatched the dagger out of her hand.
A heavy silence, the last line of villagers needed to be pushed by the giant, as they were all facing in circles towards the village chief.
Jacques.
A medium-sized Kuranta, with short, jet-black hair bordering on gray, and deep violet eyes.
Around him were several shamans and healers, having treated what looked like heavy wounds.
When the two faced each other, it was the fateful moment when all eyes fell on the giant.
Meteor looked at her husband. Part of her was furious at the discovery she'd made, but part of her was relieved. A pained smile played on the village chief's lips.
Jacques: Sir! It's an honor to finally meet you-
They were honest words. To everyone.
Except for one person.
The colossus threw the bone needle at the kuranta's feet. Silence returned.
Sebastian: It's him. He's the one who killed the five hunters.
...
Murmurs rose in the assembly, as the giant remained motionless, never taking his eyes off the kuranta, not even blinking, hearing the latter's heartbeat accelerate.
Meteor was the one who dared to speak out.
Meteor: What...?
Sebastian: He didn't exile you because he was cheating on you, or not only. It was so that his five new hunters could undermine the originium without anyone noticing. You would have stopped him.
The giant boiled with anger. Venom biting into his veins. The armor stopped burning.
He spoke not in supposition, but in fact.
Sebastian: His business trips to Ursus. It was to resell the originium. He bragged about it there, which attracted the bandits.
The kuranta was becoming increasingly panicky.
Meteor: That's how he did to get a manor...?
The kuranta began to put the pieces of the puzzle together one by one, fright gripping her more and more.
Sebastian: The miners became infected. So it would have come out at some point. He killed them to silence them. Leaving their corpses to rot in the mine, in the hope that the pincers would get rid of them.
Jacques: That's ridiculous!
The kuranta was frightened, and the villagers could understand it, suddenly finding themselves accused of a quintuple murder by a stranger. They'd all be more likely to believe their leader than a man nobody knew. Even if he had donned the armor of a legend, as everyone gradually came to recognize.
Sebastian: The victims all had the same wound. A stab wound at the base of the neck. Fine as a needle.
He said, his eyes looking at the weapon he'd discarded for a microsecond, before bringing his prey back into view.
Sebastian: The pinchers fled their cave because of the bodies. This alerted the cockatrix, who came face to face with the ursus raiders. That's when she got a taste for blood. Ironically, she attacked him when he returned... It was on her that I found the dagger.
Jacques: Enough!
The giant fell silent, watching the man struggle while he still could.
Jacques: I wouldn't let a stranger come into our village and blame all our misfortune on me! I've been trying to support our community for over twenty years and-
The colossus raised his arm to the sky for all to see. Particles of light gathered to form Dawnlight. A divine sign that all the inhabitants of the village recognized, strengthened by their tradition and history.
Meteor's eyes widened. Seeing the sacred weapon. Not having seen it during the confrontation earlier, and not having been warned by Nearl. Smoke billowed from the giant's hand from the burn.
Most of the villagers got down on one knee, aware that the man had been touched by their goddess.
Terror was written in the chef's eyes.
Sebastian: I'll give this dagger a twist. If he's innocent, it'll slide along his skin without a trace. If he's as vile as I think he is, he'll be reduced to dust.
Just a second. He waited a second on purpose.
The kuranta lunged for the dagger at his feet, attempting to use it against the giant in a final act of desperation.
The giant dropped his weapon, making it disappear as it would offer too quick a death.
This man was not a fighter.
So even tired, the colossus could easily grab him by the skull and lift him off the ground, the claws of his hands digging into the skin of his skull, drawing blood. Rain began to fall lightly from the sky.
The colossus howled with rage and crushed the man to the ground, his eyes turning as red as blood. He threw himself at the man on the ground and struck him.
Left, right, left, right.
Punch after punch into the man's face, gradually disfiguring him, blood washed by the rain to form a puddle on the ground, the giant making only bestial noises under the murderer's pleas.
All he could see was a dead man.
Meteor: Seb!
Swiatla: Please...
Meteor: Stop it!
Swiatla: Don't do that...
It was easy to see that this man was slowly losing his manly features. His eyes losing their whiteness, his teeth lengthening like fangs. Even more so now that he was covered in this corrupted metal.
Meteor: it's not you!
Swiatla: Don't let yourself be defeated...
Meteor: Please...
Swiatla: My champion...
Meteor/Swiatla: Stop it!
He didn't hear them. Deafened by rage. He continued his massacre.
Finally feeling that pleasure again in his pulpits, the pleasure of spilling blood on his hands, of unleashing his anger.
So many lives had been stolen and would be torn to shreds by the monster beneath him.
He struck again and again, starting to laugh.
He could see his father's face.
It took less than a second for the colossus to completely petrify.
The same sore face he'd seen on his fourteenth birthday. He shook like a leaf.
A last desperate act, a manipulation of the goddess ensnaring his soul, searching her memories to deceive his sight.
Reason returned to him in that brief moment, and it was too much.
The armor on his back no longer burned, and his blood quivered with pleasure at the violence.
It was always the same...
He could try to make an effort, he could try to change, he could fight.
In the end, it was always the same.
He was always the same.
A vile being, a black beast to the depths of his soul. A monster in a man's skin.
Nothing ever changed. He would always be the same.
There would never be hope for him. He couldn't change.
He would always be doomed to be weak.
To be weak because he would never win against the darkness within himself.
It was these thoughts that caused his fists to drop along his body, his head bowed.
Sebastian: Flee... Leave.
He murmured his words. But that was all the kuranta needed to hear, his face disfigured by the assault he had just received, which was designed to destroy rather than kill.
The kuranta ran away from the village, nobody stopping him.
Swiatla: This man is no longer one of my children. He won't survive the night in the woods.
These words again fell on deaf ears.
The armored giant was on his knees, legs spread, arms falling to his sides, hands turned skyward, as was his face very quickly.
After millions of years of existence, countless lives, there was only one truth.
He would always be consumed by his anger, by his hatred, by his disgust.
He is a monster.
Sebastian screamed at the sky in pain.
The sound of rain lightening brought the giant out of his thoughts, prompting him to look outside the window.
It was last night that he'd had his tantrum against the village chief, and it took him a while to calm down from the sadness that followed, and he still hadn't completely recovered. Meteor had come to his defense, and it took a while for the village to agree on Jacques' guilt. His sudden willingness to stab the giant was all the proof anyone really needed.
The villagers then escorted an almost catatonic giant into the empty room of one of the houses. Offering him a roof as a courtesy.
He fell asleep that night. And for once, even in his solitude, he didn't have nightmares or even dreams. Just darkness, for a few hours before he awoke that morning.
He did nothing all morning, just cleaned his sword and armor and the little equipment he had on him, having left his bag in the clearing.
He hadn't left the room all morning. He couldn't even think about anything.
The rain outside was beginning to fade to just a few drops.
He should leave the village. And soon enough.
He didn't want to keep these people in misery any longer because of his presence, so he would leave, and quickly.
Sebastian: Why didn't you tell me...?
Swiatla: I love all my children. Even those who don't love me, who don't pray to me in return. I can't see them.
He sighed.
Swiatla: I'm a goddess, but I'm not omniscient.
Sebastian: I held back against Phobos... I knew how to control myself. When he had done so much more harm. I have no excuse whatsoever for lashing out at him like that.
Swiatla: You're but a man. That's a good excuse.
Sebastian: It's far from enough.
She was unable to slap him. Not only because it was difficult for her to call upon a physical presence in this world, but also because as a goddess of love, light and fertility, it was simply impossible for her to do such a thing.
He closed his eyes, feeling the tears return. And she caressed his cheek with her hand, which he could feel.
He remembered his parents' touch, his heart bleeding with emotion. He wished he could have held them, or even Olena. Nicholai didn't like touching people, even his family. He wished he could hug them, cry against their shoulders. To express the will he had, the will to finally disappear. For Yuri to die at last, as he should have done fourteen years ago in that drug den.
But his family wasn't there. He would never see his parents again. And if his brothers and sisters were in this cursed world, then he was more than sure they were already fighting their battles on the far side of the world, with no time to worry about the others.
So he was alone. Suffering because of a scenario of lies he had designed. An architect responsible for his own destruction.
The thumb of this hand gently stroked his beard.
Swiatla: I didn't take you on because you're perfect. I took you because you're the best. Because that's all you are. You're a man. That beyond your strength and intellects you're still fallible with moods.
Sebastian: If I were less corrupt I wouldn't have so many moods. So am I really your champion? Am I even strong enough? Smart enough? Good enough?
Swiatla: Are we ever?
The giant smiled slightly, understanding where she was going with this, opening his eyes to see that gentle smile on the goddess's face. Skin as pale as ivory, clothes as white as the linen in the commercials, contrasted by that blindfold, which made her say she wasn't really looking at him, being unable even to see him.
A knock sounded at his door, the giant not recognizing Meteor's heart. He looked at the door, the figure that touched him immediately transforming into a few willow petals. He got up and went to open the door, his gaze immediately landing on Eryk, whom the colossus already guessed to be the village's next leader.
Eryk: My lord... Come with me and let's talk a while.
The giant couldn't say anything. It would have been rude to piss him off. The colossus left the room, realizing that he was in fact in the man's house. His gaze quickly fell on the young red-haired farm girl he understood to be Eryk's daughter.
Sebastian: Hello.
She almost fell backwards, pulling her shawl a little tighter over her head.
Young lady: Hello kind sir...
The two men left the house.
Eryk: She likes you.
Sebastian: I can see that...
Eryk: She's right for that. What are you, twenty?
The giant was stunned. He didn't look twenty, that was for sure. Nor was he, deep down.
Sebastian: Nineteen.
They took a few steps through the village in the rain, the giant having taken off his armor some time ago, as well as his weapon.
Sebastian: Thank you for your hospitality, really. But I'll be leaving in a few hours.
They arrived at the small village square, where a large pyre stood. Some villagers were weeping, and the smell made it clear that they were burning the bodies of their dead. And mourning those they had not been able to find.
Eryk: Tomorrow we'll celebrate the feast of the goddess, so please stay with us for that.
Sebastian: I've caused you enough tragedy as it is.
Eryk: Tragedy? You saved and helped our village, my lord. You haven't caused us the slightest harm, quite the contrary. Re-embracing a shoulder may be painful at the time, but it's a healing gesture nonetheless.
Both were looking at the fire.
Eryk: What's more, you're the champion of our goddess. It would be a great honor for us to have you at this celebration.
Sebastian: I was going to kill that man.
Eryk: But you didn't. Isn't that all that matters?
Sebastian: I was prevented.
He lowered his gaze.
Sebastian: For once... Just once, I'd like to stop myself.
Eryk: You will manage one day..
Sebastian: What do you know?
Eryk: People change.
There was a crackle in the flames as silence fell between the two men, footsteps approaching drawing both men's eyes to see Meteor approaching.
The giant remained unmoved, not really daring to meet his gaze, while the older man tapped lightly on the giant's shoulder for good luck.
Ironically, the kuranta positioned herself just to the right of the giant, replacing Eryk on the other side.
Meteor: He asked you to stay for the goddess's feast.
Sebastian: Yes.
Meteor: Did you accept?
Sebastian: Not yet.
He looked at the kuranta, surprised to see her with the quiver but without her bow. The woman speaking so soon.
Meteor: Too complicated to fix. It was another phase of my life now.
They looked at the pyre, the woman taking a deep breath.
Meteor: I'll stay here.
He says nothing.
Meteor: Too much misfortune has struck in too short a time. I'll help rebuild... And I'll stop leaving it unprotected.
Sebastian: And your treatment.
Meteor: I still have five years to live? Enough to train my successor. Aren't you going to keep me?
He wanted to. One part of him felt it made more sense, the other part simply didn't want to lose her. But neither part had the strength to stand up and resist.
Sebastian: You seem to have already made up your mind. What can I do?
She sighed, not even looking at the giant, walking away.
Meteor: If we don't meet again, goodbye Sebastian.
He turned his head towards her, not seeing her tears. The tears of a young woman praying to be held back.
Sebastian: Goodbye, Allya.
She couldn't see him, but she knew he was smiling. So she walked away.
A few willow petals flew into his eyes.
It was time to get his bag.
Llamrei had taken him there. The mare didn't throw tantrums or show off her strong character, because she understood her rider's emotions. So she had no trouble walking. She couldn't gallop effectively without a saddle anyway.
The colossus continued forward, returning to the clearing and soon finding himself face to face with the corpse of the cocatrix. A few animals biting and devouring what they could, the sun finally showing its true face.
Dismounting his mount, Sebastian walked to his bag, resting it on his back, before approaching the cocatrix, the animals not bothering to move aside.
Swiatla: I consider you one of my children... But even they couldn't do that.
The giant met the gaze of one of the four wolves, who was repessing the cocatrix's guts.
Sebastian: This is from me.
His gaze fell on something shining like gold at the top of the mountain.
Swiatla: You have an idea.
He sighed, exasperated.
Sebastian: You literally read my mind. You don't need to make those remarks.
He summoned his dagger and began hacking away at the animal's carcass. A few minutes and a bundle of sinew ready for use later, the giant set off up the mountain, soon finding himself at the top, facing a very peculiar tree.
The bark of the trunk was pale white, as were the branches, which rose high into the sky, only to fall back into a clump of green leaves, but above all, flowers with petals that looked like gold.
The colossus approached the tree and tore off a branch.
W emerged from Shining's examination room. A slight smile on her face. It would take her a few moments to inform the giant that her lungs were showing improvement now that she was following her treatment and had stopped smoking.
She let out a deep sigh.
Oh, she was in love. Ever since she'd kissed him that night, she'd had no doubt that she was in love again.
Of course, everyone had noticed that the sarkaz had changed her tune, behaving a little less like an asshole with everyone. Many noticed, yes, but one person with whom she never stopped being who she was was the giant.
When there were other people around, the sarkaz simply couldn't resist and had to annoy the doctor. And he always responded with energy.
Behind closed doors, however, it was a completely different story.
Wiya finally allowed herself to reap a little warmth, the little she'd lacked all these years, the doctor being more than willing to give her some and more. The sensation of their lips touching was engraved in her memory, and feeling at peace at his side at last, she spent a good deal of time in the giant's office.
So much so that she'd managed to steal a few kisses since the first one...
She bit her cheek, her tail wagging left and right.
It was a pity they hadn't had the chance to go further.
With all these new emotions, all these new thoughts running through her, the sarkaz still wondered what their status really was.
A few operators passed by her. Faceless', the degrading nickname for the operators of the security branch who actually wore the Rhodes Island uniform, often finding themselves hiding their faces in the process. But behind them they had a certain pride.
From their uniforms she could easily see that they were a defender and a medic, both women.
Defender: Do you think the doctor would refuse if I asked him out?
W froze.
Medic: Go on, I tell you! You're not ugly, you've got a chance with him-
The sarkaz didn't need to think, or she didn't want to, but in either case she didn't. In a flash she approached the defender, her gaze cold and her smile absent. In a flash, she approached the defender, her gaze cold and her smile absent.
W: And you. Can I know what you just said?
Defender: M-Miss W...? Can I-
W: Repeat.
The operator was naturally intimidated by the mercenary. The difference in power between the two was as obvious as the nose on her face.
Defender: I was just talking to my friend... About the fact that I quite like Doctor Sebastian and I was thinking of-
W: Stop it. He's not worth it.
Defender: M-but-
The sarkaz kicked, hitting the wall right next to the defender, the impact revealing that although she was a sniper, her physical strength was beyond the defender Forte.
W: I just told you he wasn't worth it. So back off, kid.
Defender: Well...
The medic was tetanized with fear, her legs trembling, the two faceless quickly striding away once W had removed her leg. To them it made half sense, the sarkaz was renowned for hating the doctor, so sabotaging his romantic chances was normal. But one thing was certain, she was a menace.
The sarkaz went on her way, clenching her fists.
Why did she do this...?
Because he was her love. It was her love story, her lover, her chance to finally be happy, and she wouldn't let anything or anyone take it away from her.
She told herself at the time that it didn't matter, which they both officially were. Because she'd be the only one he'd ever need.
The sun was finally caressing the giant's face, the wind bringing him the scent of home. His mind and emotions at last recovering. He dismounted and approached the village center, objects in hand.
It had been a few hours since he left now, and Meteor, who had been cleaning up the ashes with the help of the others, sighed. Thinking the giant was gone for good and Rhodes Island was behind her. Only to see out of the corner of her eye one of the villagers looking at something, which she hastened to observe too.
Seeing the colossus walking straight towards her with a slight smile in his hands, a strange piece of wood dangling from his right hand caught her attention, but she couldn't see what it was until the giant faced her and presented the object.
She immediately recoiled in surprise.
The colossus offered her a bow.
Sebastian: Made of golden willow wood, and sinews of the night bird.
It was a Penobscot bow, magnificent in its craftsmanship and looking as if it had been made by the worthy master craftsman that the giant was. Engravings were visible all along both bows, seemingly taken straight from kazimierzen artifacts.
She picked up the weapon with both hands, almost hesitant. She had never broken or carved golden willow wood, nor had she ever known anyone who had. Her arrows were a family treasure.
Hesitantly, she pulled on the bowstring slightly, to see it twist as a bow was supposed to.
Her eyes widened.
Willow wood could only be broken or twisted by those the goddess wanted.
Which meant she wanted the giant to make this bow, and give it to the kuranta to use.
That the goddess existed, looked at her and cherished her.
Which she'd forgotten, after learning she was sterile, figuring that maybe the grand mother wasn't so caring after all.
Sebastian: A few more arrows too.
In a piece of cloth, he displayed some thirty arrows, far superior in workmanship to those she had inherited from her family.
The kuranta didn't know what to say. The doctor smiled.
Sebastian: A parting gift. Admittedly, 'Meteor, the archer of the woods' without a bow isn't quite as eye-catching.
Meteor: Thank you...
Sebastian: Go ahead. Give it a try.
She didn't know why, but her hand came to rest on a standard arrow, which she notched. She bent the bow, feeling it was almost easier than the old one, but far more satisfying, and shot at a tree some twenty meters away.
With the strength she had used in her arms, it would have been a normal shot for her old bow.
But then the projectile shot off with staggering speed and power. It tore the trunk of the tree, making short work of the wood.
The tree chopped off, falling to the ground.
All eyes turned to the bow, including that of the giant who could hardly believe it.
It wasn't a very big tree. But still.
Sebastian:You'll have to take it easy.
Meteor: Yeah...
Sebastian: I'll stay. For the feast. I'll leave after tomorrow morning.
The kuranta smiled bitterly. Aware that even though the real farewell had been postponed, it had not been cancelled.
Meteor: Do you want to help with the preparations? We'll get started as soon as we finish cleaning up.
Astonishingly, as soon as the giant announced his willingness to be with them, and the funeral now over, the gloom left. Giving way to a little joy and even excitement.
Sebastian: Of course. Tell me what I can do.
Villager: Look! It's old Angelo!
All eyes turned to an old man struggling to walk. An aegir, with pale, milky eyes, that and the person helping him suggested he was blind.
Angelo was terribly old, almost three hundred, blind and totally senile. And yet he had been a true Kazimierzian for generations. But still he advanced, at one point even driving away the person helping him, advancing towards the giant who remained motionless and silent.
The old blind man stared up at the giant.
Angelo: Perfect. Follow me. Your mare too.
The colossus glanced at the kuranta, who didn't understand either. Old Angelo didn't talk to anyone and had stayed in his house since she was born, so the colossus followed the aegir, whistling for his mount, which began to follow him.
When she exhaled, like a sigh wanting to know why she was being called out without being given the opportunity to vent, the giant shrugged, not really knowing why.
The giant followed the aegir to his house, where he entered.
Llamrei managed to open the shutters with her mouth to get her head inside.
The doctor almost fell over in surprise, for in the old man's house was a huge wooden sculpture.
Immense, to say the least. For it represented a rider and his mount. Both were gigantic, the rider being the same size and proportions as the giant, he noticed.
But thanks to the armor carved into the wood, and the face, he was able to recognize the rider as the first king of Kazimierz. The king with no name.
The mount was just as gigantic, but what was striking was that it was covered in armor.
It wasn't so much a sculpture as a suit of armor.
Not carved, no, no, it was real metal armor on the horse sculpture. The giant felt uneasy, realizing that it would fit Llamrei perfectly... As if it had been made for the monstrous mount. If only for one detail.
The carved frame was a unicorn. A brown wood horn sticking of the mount's head.
Emerald eyes met the mare's chocolates, and she exhaled quickly.
Angelo: Take it. The treasure of our village. It is for you. No one else.
The giant gasped. Even though the armor came with a master-crafted saddle and he badly needed it, he couldn't bring himself to accept.
Sebastian: That's more than kind of you, but I can't accept it.
Angelo: You will accept.
The mare began to neigh.
Sebastian: But it will be impossible for me to transport the armor to Kawarielki.
Angelo: You will accept.
The mare began to scrape her hoof and exhale loudly.
Sebasitan: And- and I'm not putting my horse in war armor-!
Angelo: You'll accept!
The mare knocked over a chair inside the house as she headbuted it.
Sebastian: All right! Alright! Alright! I'll put the armor on her!
Llamrei struck the ground with her hooves, like a little victory dance.
The giant tightened the various straps and took a step back to look at the mare, which must now weigh the same as a car. The armor she wore fitted her like a glove, and was a true masterpiece for him to take note of.
It was far from being classic mount armor, and was closer to human armor. While it didn't feature chain mail or gambeson, it was made up of various plates of armor glued to the mare's limbs. Metallic scales protected the softer parts, such as the mare's belly. As for the saddle, it looked much more comfortable.
Sebastian: Well, there you go, you're all pretty...
The mare struck the ground with several of her hooves once more in celebration, before nudging the giant with her head ever so slightly. Too happy to really take back her difficult character. The giant stroked his mare's neck.
Sebastian: It must be comfortable for you. But I'll still have to take it off every now and then to brush you.
The mare exhaled loudly, pushing the giant a little, who sighed happily.
Sebastian: Don't worry, even without the armor you're still the most beautiful...
Meteor: Oh wow.
The kuranta came close to the rider and his mount, watching the mare attentively. The animal began to turn on itself and show different angles, proud of its coquettish dress.
The tinplate armor gleamed in the sunlight, showing off the various engravings on the metal plates. The latter reminded the giant of the patterns he had on his dagger, and those he had carved into the kuranta's new bow.
Sebastian: The problem is that I'm going to have to leave it on her back every time we move... It's not exactly easy to carry around.
Meteor: It looks like it. I'm surprised. This armor has been in our village since the Nightzmora conquests. So to see it anywhere but on this sculpture...
Sebastian: It's that old?
Meteor: And more, I think.
Sebastian: It belonged to the first king?
Meteor: No idea. But I'd be surprised. It would be in a museum, in kawarielki, or displayed in another country's palace like most other artifacts.
Sebastian/Meteor: But it's a beautiful suit of armor.
The two looked at each other briefly before laughing.
The rest of the day was devoted to preparing the village feast, with the giant helping with the heavy lifting, doing the work of a dozen men on his own. Meteor, armed with her new bow, set off with a few of the village's youngsters to hunt for a feast.
As for Llamrei...
Stole some carrots from the garden of a poor man who could do nothing...
Because who was going to stop a one-ton horse in armor from stealing something from him.
Evening came just as quickly, and the giant was invited to dinner by the man who had offered him the roof. This revealed him to be a wise, cultured and cordial man, even with all the glasses of mead the young farm girl served the giant. So much so that Eryk wondered at one point if his daughter wasn't trying to get their guest drunk.
The morning that followed was also dedicated to various preparations, and early in the afternoon, just as the giant was having his best nap, someone suddenly entered his room.
Of course, as a soldier, he slept with one eye open, and immediately turned his gaze to his host, who brought him some clothes.
Sebastian: Eryk? Do you need my help?
Eryk: I have a traditional outfit for you. It'll look better than your frusques when you dance.
He frowned as the kuranta tossed him the clothes he caught on the fly. A thick white shirt, brown pants and leather boots, forming an ensemble more medieval than anything else. A change from the modern fabrics of his military uniform.
Sebastian: Dancing?
But it was the dancing that really caught the giant's attention.
Oh, he was a very good dancer, that wasn't the point. But that didn't mean he enjoyed it.
Eryk: Well, yes, it's traditional for young people to dance and form couples. You're old enough to be there.
Sebastian: Ah...?
The bastard was trying to set him up with his daughter.
Eryk: Come on, sir. It would be an honor for us.
Sebastian: Well, if you say so.
In any case, he doubted he'd be surrounded by the golden petals Meteor had described. Surely the goddess would have other things to do than bother herself with whom her champion was going to make a life with.
Swiatla: With you I'm spoiled for choice, seriously how many more dozens of women will it take for you to settle down with just one?!
The colossus gasped, slightly embarrassed to find himself confronted with his certain ability... to attract members of the female gender like a campfire attracts insects at night. But above all, to chase each and every one of them...
Swiatla: Now that's what I'm talking about! A triangle, well, at the limit I wouldn't say anythning, you know what ? Even three I would accept ! But here u run after a dozen women without ever really getting anywhere with any of them!
Sebastian: It's okay...
Realizing that he had just spoken aloud, the giant felt like slapping himself in the face.
Eryk: Wonderful then!
He left the room just as quickly, making the giant sigh all the air he had in his lungs.
Meteor was dusting off her house, which hadn't welcomed a single visitor in over twenty years. Fortunately, she never had a big house. Just a bed, a hearth with cooking utensils, a table and some arrows. The rest of her hunting gear lay outside. As she swept away a spider's web, she couldn't help but think of the giant, her gaze resting on the bow resting above her door.
At least her parting gift was a real treasure...
But she felt disappointed. She had nothing left for herself. Nothing left to look forward to. No love, no children, and a life that would soon end. All she could do was make sure she left something behind for her village now.
A knock sounded at her door, so she put down her broom and went to open the door, her gaze falling on Lena.
Of course, she should have felt some anger. As for what had once been her best friend, after she'd become pregnant by her husband. But she didn't.
She begged for an explanation, and learned that Lena thought Meteor knew and agreed. Jacques had even convinced her that, since she was sterile, this would be the best way for Meteor to look after a child.
So she forgave her. Even after all these years being able to see when she was lying and when she was being honest.
Lena: Hi Allya.
Meteor: Hi.
The kuranta's gaze fell on the fabrics the woman was carrying.
Meteor: Is that a dance outfit?
She recognized the clothes, of course, having worn them years ago.
Lena: I've come to bring them to you.
She said with a slight smile.
Meteor: Stop it, Lena... You know this is ridiculous. I'm too old... And once already didn't do me any good...
The physically older yet younger woman sighed and beckoned to the kuranta, who pushed aside to let her in, Lena placing the clothes on a clean spot.
Lena: I beg to differ. Look in the mirror, you don't look any older than the good doctor you travel with.
Meteor: Lena... I've already participated... Look where it got us...
The older woman turned to her friend, a smile on her lips.
Lena: If the great mother was all-powerful, we'd know, Allya. It won't cost you anything. And if you only have a few years left to live because of your illness, maybe you can spend them with someone who loves you.
The kuranta looked at the clothes and touched them with her fingertips.
Lena: Jacques is gone, the village will change, you've changed. It's a new beginning. Take it.
From the open window, a light breeze caressed the kuranta's hair, a small shiny thing catching her eye. The kuranta watched intently as the willow petal flew into her house and landed on her clothes.
She began to smile.
Meteor: Can you help me with my hair then?
Twilight was just around the corner, bathing the village in an orange glow. The cheerful voices of the villagers rose rapidly into the air, while in the small square, a large fire was already crackling, large tables where the alcohol flowed without looking too closely was matched by dishes made from fresh game, freshly slaughtered livestock and the first plants harvested in the fields, alluring smells rising all around.
Meteor arrived, her steps uncertain, her green eyes turning towards the young people of the village who were also wearing the crown of leaves.
Until her eyes fell on two emeralds, on which was perched even more green. She laughed girlishly, hiding her mouth with her hand as she looked at Sebastian in exasperation. His usual gruff demeanor hardly matched the crown on her head.
Sebastian: I should have left...
He said as he approached her, looking almost ready to jump on his mare and ride off into the distance.
Meteor: Oh don't say that... You're very cute like that.
She laughed at him, even though he wore medieval clothes with all the ease of a local.
Meteor: Did Eryk force you to take part?
He nodded singularly. The kuranta looked at Karla a little further away, who was staring at the giant as she chatted with her friends, her freckles almost invisible as her face was so red.
Meteor: He's trying to set you up with his daughter...
Sebastian: Yep.
Meteor: So you don't like her?
Sebastian: I mean, she's cute... But then, I'm afraid she's a bit young for me.
Meteor: She's just a year younger.
Sebastian: Even so. I can't stay here. And I can't see myself taking a kid I don't really know with me on this wild goose chase that is my life.
Meteor: A great romantic, eh?
The giant looked at her, raising an eyebrow.
Sebastian: Sometimes too much for my own good.
Meteor: Come on! It's party time or never!
She began to run, pulling him by the arm, the colossus propelled forward. During the evening, laughter enchanted the sky, bellies were filled with delicious food and spirits were lifted by alcohol, the music of a few musicians embellishing the air.
The villagers quickly moved away from the center of the village before the young adults gathered to start dancing to the rhythm of a particular melody played by the musicians. The colossus watched for a moment to learn the movements, only to be caught by a hand and find himself dancing too.
Showing his ease on both feet as if in full combat. Quickly coming face to face with a partner, then another, and so on.
The wind began to blow hard, as the villagers cheered and the rhythm of the melody quickened. Positive emotions returned to the giant's soul, and he began to smile.
A gust surrounded one of the partner couples, enveloping them in a whirlwind of willow petals. They broke off the dance and threw themselves into each other's arms.
Another change of partner, and the giant found himself facing Karla, the wind blowing ever more around new couples. The girl struggled to keep her composure, her eyes sparkling with happiness.
A final rhythm, a rotation, and the colossus found himself facing Meteor.
They had a little too much momentum in their movement, and both found themselves colliding, one in front of the other. And despite all the excitement both had felt during the dance, they froze instantly. Staring into each other's eyes.
They should have kept on dancing. If it hadn't been for the swirl of petals that surrounded them, soaring higher than any other couple.
Meteor looked at nothing but the giant's eyes, feeling the warmth of his body against hers.
Looking at him from this angle, she understood what Nearl saw in him. With an uncertain hand, she stroked his beard with the tip of her thumb. Just like the first time they'd met, playing their little game of seduction.
There was no other world out there than the two emeralds she was staring at.
She threw herself up, standing on tiptoe and closing her eyes.
To feel lips touching hers.
The kuranta's body was struck by lightning. All her muscles tensed and relaxed in rapid succession, her heart threatening to leap out of her chest to dance too. Feeling through the few centimeters of skin in contact, nearly twenty years of love she hadn't felt. And all the love she'd never need to feel. Like a foretaste.
She had known him for two weeks, and yet she felt, through a kiss, that she had known him for a lifetime.
She clenched her hands, pulling the man ever closer to her. Feeling her whole body quiver.
At that moment, Allya, Meteor, the woodland archer felt all the remorse leave her being.
The giant let the fire take hold of his soul. Feeling the furnace of his emotions almost explode.
The simple knowledge that he was still appreciated, despite his monstrosity, for who he was. That even if he wasn't worthy of being loved, he still was.
He held the kuranta as tightly as he could, adding even more passion to their kiss.
A feeling of peace came over him.
What the two couldn't see was that light golden particles like dust were rising from the giant's skin, reflecting the last rays of sunlight illuminating the day.
The last metal fragments of his armor in the pores of his skin began to burn, exposing particles in the air.
Meteor responded with equal fervor to the giant's kiss, the two parting only when they had no more air in their lungs, looking into each other's eyes. Meteor smiled, before resting his head against the giant's chest.
The giant closed his bag. Sighing.
Morning came quickly, and he was about to leave the village.
With his belongings in order, he left the room, greeted and thanked Eryk and his family one last time before heading out. He put his backpack on Llamrei's back, who was waiting nearby, and climbed on. Ready to go.
Sebastian: Come on. Let's not stay here any longer than we have to...
A flick of the stirrup and the mare began to walk in armour towards the village exit. She didn't seem to mind wearing the full armor. The mount took a few steps, and as soon as he reached the edge of the village, he heard running footsteps coming towards him.
He turned his gaze to see Meteor a few yards away, panting, her bow and quiver on her.
Meteor: Seb wait!
The giant stopped, the mare also looking at the woman.
The giant was surprised that she had abandoned her usual clothes in favor of a new outfit. But perhaps this was to emphasize her new life. The kuranta remained as beautiful as ever.
Meteor: I...
She squeezed his hand and rested it against her chest, words failing her.
Not the ones his heart felt, the little organ being capable of screaming out whole poems, but his brain was unable to organize them, being too scared.
Meteor: Good luck. And farewell.
The giant began to smile ever so slightly.
It was that smile, that look.
Sebastian: Goodbye Allya. It's been a pleasure.
He turned, giving another stirrup kick, Llamrei advancing again.
Meteor looked at her village for a moment. She had no more love standing there, no more opportunity to have children, no more reason to truly exist. Except to train the next generation for the next five years.
There was nothing holding her back.
Then she began to run, driven by the wind.
Never had she run so fast, never had she felt her feet so light as at that moment, she ran straight towards Llamrei before leaping over a small mound, landing on the saddle just behind Sebastian's back as the mare galloped away, faster than ever.
They moved away from the village, and the kuranta laughed as they went faster and faster, just as the giant did.
Lena was right, a new life was opening up for her.
She clung to the giant, and when he turned his head towards her, she kissed him, feeling his lips on hers and the wind in her hair. The laughter didn't stop in her heart, her hands gripping the giant's face tightly, never wanting to let that dream fade away.
And she'd be sure someone would love her for the years she had left to live.
Two days passed. The riders resumed their usual rhythm. With a few more honest and simply happy smiles, a few more glances when the other was bathing, and a little more warmth under the tent. Their daily routine was punctuated by helping passers-by and villages in need.
Leaving just one day to reach Kawarielki in time to achieve the goal of the whole adventure.
Arriving just short of Rhodes Island out of sheer pride.
Llamrei still didn't tire, despite wearing the heavy war armor, but sometimes the terrain forced slowness, as at this moment, the adventurers being lulled by Llamrei's sure-footed step as he advanced up the rocky mountain path, making his way towards a singular construction on this mountain, an inn.
A convenience they had avoided through sheer bad luck throughout their stay, and simply because it became rarer the further they moved away from the major population centers.
That is, since the start of their journey, now approaching a major city with Kawalerielki.
A/N: I swear on god I got no idea how to write this city's name and have just been improvising the whole time. I'm french, not polish.
While the giant relaxed his body, having fastened the reindeer to the pommel of his saddle, Meteor behind him had both legs on the mare's side, her hands busy, playing the little lute she'd brought with her, filling the air with a gentle melody.
Sebastian: Why did you go out with all your equipment and that lute to say goodbye to me?
Meteor: Hmm... I was going to play it alone in the woods, to let my sadness pass a little... So I might as well have my bow with me.
Sebastian: That's a bit far-fetched.
He said in a soft, suave voice, turning his gaze to the kuranta.
Meteor: A small part of me thought that a handsome knight errant would take me in his arms to the ends of the earth~
She said, resting her head sideways on Sebastian's back, one of her horse ears wagging a singular time, a big smile on her lips.
Sebastian: And then it happened?
Meteor: No.
She looked at the giant.
Meteor: I've had better~
She quickly brought her face close to steal a brief kiss, the two parting as they approached the inn, which was more than a little large, the doctor hearing what sounded like a beehive inside.
The giant descended, as did the kuranta who could see the fabric of her dress lift slightly, revealing the rather thin but definitely tight-fitting pants she was wearing just underneath. Giving the colossus a perfect vantage point.
And given the smile she wore on her lips, he had good reason to believe that the kuranta's action was voluntary.
The good doctor grabbed his mare's reins and pulled her towards the stable, the other mounts panicking as they saw what was an alpha for them approaching. Out of respect for his mount, he didn't tie her up.
Sebastian: Stick around until the sun goes down. I don't want anyone to think you're an abandoned horse.
She exhaled once and pushed the giant off her back, who sighed and approached the tavern's front door. He entered, and of course all eyes were on him.
This would have been normal in any case, for someone entering the inn in the middle of the day, but what wasn't was the prolonged silence and the time he spent being stared at.
A traveler, a merchant, a bandit, all would have looked at him just long enough to see who he was. But they kept eye contact a little longer. Seeing a giant, without race, which was already something that was more than rare and appealing. That and the sword on his belt, along with his companion, a smiling kuranta, far more beautiful than many had ever seen in their miserable existence.
They stopped looking at him after a while, but the doctor could spot two eyes he recognized instantly. Two green eyes, like a cat's, with orange reflections.
The inn's chatter resumed as the giant smiled softly, the innkeeper giving them a simple nod in greeting. The kuranta followed the giant, not expecting to see him sitting directly opposite a hooded woman.
?: It's been a while since we've seen each other, demon.
Sebastian: Too long, I'm afraid.
?: Hello.
Said the young woman, who looked briefly at Meteor, too briefly to describe her facial features apart from a huge scar. The tone of the young woman's voice was full of energy, nonchalant, but also seeming to be able to keep that calm when she needed to.
Meteor: Hello.
Sebastian: Would you go and get us something to sleep and drink?
The kuranta understood that the two of them wanted to be alone for a moment, and even though part of her was jealous, especially so soon after suffering her latest betrayal in love, she nodded with a sigh.
Meteor: Fine. They don't accept LMDs here anyway, and I doubt you'll be walking around with crowns.
The giant murmured an apology as the kuranta walked away. He hesitated to get up and slap the men who took the liberty of looking at his conquest's bottom. Although none of them had the courage to say or do anything with their hands in her presence, despite the obvious presence of bandits in the inn crowd. They didn't want to tangle with a giant armed with a sword their own size.
?: It's a surprise to see you here.
Sebastian: I can say the same. How long ago did you get here?
?: Three days. First time I've encountered civilization. What about you?
Sebastian: Well...
?: It's never simple with you.
Sebastian: You know me. Apparently, I was reincarnated here, roughly 23 years ago. I've been in a comma for the last four years, and woke up a few months ago with total amnesia about this world.
?: ... It's not even funny anymore.
He knew the young woman would have laughed in many circumstances.
Sebastian: The pangs of the job...
?: Can you tell me a little more about this place before I'm forced to fight?
Sebastian: Heh, the country we're in should remind you of home. At least for the countryside. The situation... More globally speaking, it's a real hell.
He said, clearly showing the pain on his face.
Sebastian: It's just always surprising the technological difference that coexists here.
Sensing that she needed a demonstration, the giant turned his wrist, displaying the hologram.
?: Wow... Nice gadget. No chrome this time?
Sebastian: At least not. Your blood should protect you from the main danger of this place though. But avoid anything resembling black crystals for the time being. It's a real shithole. Two days away for you is a big town called Kawarielki, where you'll easily find a library.
?: What are you up to this time ?
Sebastian: This time I'm a doctor. I try to find a cure for a terrible disease and help some people.
For them, this kind of discussion was almost routine. Which was to be expected, given their condition and line of work.
?: It's hard not to attract attention when they all have an extra pair of ears and a tail. Any advice?
Sebastian: There's nothing we can do about it, but you can explain that you suffer from a rare mutation that means you were born without being half animal. That's what they found for me.
He said, pointing to the sky with a smile on his lips, and the young woman in front of him laughed.
?: Mutations, where have I heard that before?
Sebastian: Pfft... By the way, how is your father?
?: He's fine. Triss is pregnant, by the way.
The giant straightened back in surprise.
Sebastian: Really? I thought it would be Yenn first.
?: The real surprise is that the decoction you gave them made them able to conceive again.
The cogs in his head turning, the giant turned to Meteor.
Sebastian: It was complicated for them. It took me a long time to find myself.
He would deal with that later.
?: Your friend is pretty...
She said, showing despite this mask of confidence, a very slight apprehension.
Sebastian: Yeah...
His gaze and tone of voice were those of a man in love, prompting the young woman to let out a loud grumble before pulling her head back, letting it hang and removing her hood. Seeming to take the news in stride.
?: I thought I finally had a chance...
The colossus laughed softly.
Sebastian: You're never lucky. Did you at least get a room here?
?: I guess your friend wouldn't really agree to share it, and that's good because I was able to earn enough to rent one.
Sebastian: You could travel with a bit of gold anyway...
?: Too heavy.
She said with a smile, before putting her feet up on the table, letting one of her arms dangle and swaying in her chair, showing some cards in her hand. Cards that reminded Sebastian of fond memories.
?: It does remind me of home...
That smile. It was one of defiance, so he gave the same, Meteor returning with two mugs of ale and one of mead before placing them on the table, his gaze settling on the young woman.
Meteor: Can you introduce me to your friend?
The doctor straightened up and looked pompous.
Sebastian: The lady of space and time, Ziraeel, Cintra's cub, the swallow-
The young woman raised her eyes to the sky with a smile, used to this little circus.
Sebastian: Cirilla fiona el Riannon.
The 'raceless one' sighed
Ciri: Everyone just calls me Ciri.
Meteor sat down at the table next to Sebastian, staring into the woman's eyes.
Meteor: Where do you know eachother from?
Sebastian: I helped her father quite a lot. And her as well.
Ciri: Nice to meet you.
Meteor: Call me Meteor. Nice to meet you too.
The hunter assessed her counterpart before landing on the young woman's back.
Meteor: Do you carry your sword on your back?
Ciri: Tradition of my profession. I'm a monster hunter.
Meteor: We could have used you a few days ago.
Ciri: Really?
Sebastian: You have no idea.
Ciri: Thanks for the drinks. Next round's on me.
She said with a confident smile towards the kuranta. But the witcher stared back at the giant.
Ciri: But let's talk about it over a game of cards...
That smile was worthy of a fox. And soon, the eyes of some of the inn's customers turned to them.
Customer: Be careful, sir, the girl has a custom game, it's legit, but I've never seen a better player!
The doctor could only smile, as he pulled a small packet from his backpack, and soon a few customers were on their feet to watch the match, feeling more excited than for a bar brawl.
Meteor: Seb, I know you've never won a game against Margaret.
Sebastian: Margaret is a real monster at this game. But trust me, I'm not going to be defeated.
An exchange of smiles, and a coin toss to decide who would play first.
The crowd erupted with passion and excitement to see that the colossus had just won, after two first rounds that seemed close, he won by almost a hundred poins more. Ciri collapsed on the table in defeat.
Ciri: But how?!
Sebastian: Your father would slap you if he knew you were playing the niilfgard. And I already told you. Sometimes it's better to lose one round to make sure you win the next. And destruction cards are just as valid as spy cards.
Ciri: Tch...
The rest of the evening was spent in good spirits, playing cards, sharing drinks and stories until the many adventurers wandered off to bed. The giant having slightly directed their new friend towards Rhodes Island
The next morning, the colossus and the kuranta found themselves on their mount, seeing a mobile city in the distance, the lights and leons still on despite the first rays of the sun.
Kawalerielki.
In the aforementioned town, a young Kuranta woke up, snatched from sleep by her alarm clock.
With a clumsy hand, she knocked on the alarm clock, her hand hurting, causing a grunt to escape from her mouth.
Maria Nearl took a deep breath, definitely not a morning person. Then she blew one of her blonde locks out of her eyes, watching the sun caress her skin and the interior of her room. Illuminating the black and white marble and rock.
She stood up, removing the sheets from her body, and sat down on the edge of her bed, her feet touching the cold stone. She stretched, shaking off fatigue and the few air bubbles in her joints, the old cartoon t-shirt she'd worn to sleep lifting to reveal a little more of her fair skin.
The young girl tugged at the very slight fetlock she had in her love handle and sighed. She stood up and walked to her wardrobe to put on underwear and pyjama bottoms, looking at her hair and tail in the mirror before tying her hair into a simple ponytail with an elastic.
Blemishine: Breakfast before, beauty routine after...
Today would be her last day at school, then tomorrow she'd leave to collect her diploma. And finally she could spend all her time training. The major was approaching too fast.
She walked through the Nearl mansion.
This one is now far too empty and dusty.
Two occupants were not enough for the building.
She went downstairs to the kitchen, where she saw the mansion's other occupant sitting on a stool, reading his newspaper on the central island, coffee in one hand.
Wearing his sword and gauntlet was all that remained of the man he once was.
Blemishine: Hello uncle...
She said, all energy being absent so early in the morning, and especially with the idea of going to school for the rest of the day, her classmates pestering her as to how she was going to prepare for the major.
Mlynar: Maria.
He gave her hardly more than a glance. The man was already perfectly dressed and ready, as if he'd woken up two hours earlier. Then, quickly, the element of doom arrived.
His phone rang, and the kuranta quickly picked it up.
Mlynar: Hello sir? No, sir. No, I'm still at home, sir. I don't start for another two hours- Yes, sir. Yes, of course. I'll be there in a moment, sir.
The kuranta hurriedly emptied his cup into the sink, rinsing it quickly before running off. Maria settled down, preparing her breakfast of two pieces of bread with kielbasa, eating it in silence.
She preferred not to turn on the TV. It stressed her out too much.
Just as she was about to finish her second piece of bread, she heard the front doorbell ring.
She put down her breakfast and left to open the door.
Whoever it was, nobody ever visited them. Except Whislash, and she was even less of an early bird than Maria. The young Kuranta opened the door, immediately coming face to face with a huge man in a black suit, with a face as welcoming as a prison door.
Man: Maria Nearl ?
Blemishine: Yes...?
She could see the other, taller, muscular men behind her and realized too late.
Man: Master Surlahpail, Bailiff for the General Chamber of Commerce. I'm here to seize a chevalresque property.
That was his job, and he entered without the persmission, quickly followed by the other gorillas, who started walking towards the trophy room, as if the place belonged to them. Maria shouted at them, tried to stop them, but she was no match for them, and in one fell swoop they began to take away many of her family's trophies, weapons, armor and treasures. Taking them to trucks parked in front of the mansion, they tossed them with little regard inside.
She begged, she screamed, she tried to negotiate.
Take that, not this, words that fell on deaf ears.
Until the bailiff motioned to a heavy locker. The one that contained HER armor.
The kuranta ran, pressing herself against the cupboard.
Blemishine: Take it all! Take everything you want! But don't take that! You'll have to go through me.
At an age when she shouldn't, or no one should, her eyes burned with a fiery fire.
The bailiffs tried to make her move, but driven by desperation, she fought back and refused to be pushed aside.
The man to whom she had opened the door snapped his fingers.
Man: All right, let's go. We've had enough.
The gorillas left with what they could carry, the bailiff with his back to the young woman before turning his head towards her, only one of his eyes visible to her. And that half-mocking smile, then he was gone.
The young woman fell, sliding down the metal of the cupboard.
A few tears fell down her cheeks.
Here she was, in this almost empty and chaotic room, where all her family's heirlooms were stored.
She lowered her head.
This was what she got for coming forward. For daring to step into the shadow of a woman who had rebelled before. Committing the heinous crime of bearing the same name as her. This is what she got for refusing bribes and odious sponsors.
Stolen, dispossessed.
She thought of her sister. She thought of her family. Margaret, Zofia, Mlynar, her grandfather, her parents.
She thought of her heritage, her family, her country, her people.
Stolen of what they had, of who they were.
Her eyes lifted, resting on the Nearl coat of arms, engraved in the marble at the top of the hall door.
Never again.
Maria Nearl clenched her fists and gritted her teeth.
A/N: I tried a different writing style at some point during this chapter but I ended not really satisfied. Also yes this might be seen as some kind of useless crossover to put Ciri in, but i've always loved the witcher, she won't play any major role, and I think it's pretty cool to have her here. Also as per the pole I did, I will son begin working on Meteor's lemon, Fumizuki losing by a few votes.
As we part dear gentlemen (and ladies because apparently wattpad analytics say so), I would like a quick review on the story and its quality, if you will. As any kind of commentary will help me improve drastically.
On this note, until next time.
(probs on the meteor lemon ya'll horni fuck)
