A Day In The Life Of A Black Bull
Hello everyone and welcome to the latest chapter of The Fallen! Today we take a little look into what Asta's new daily life is like. And speaking of daily, or rather weekly in this case, be sure to stop in and see about becoming a patron on my Pat reon for weekly updates, scene samples, and other neat little tidbits! And...that's about it as far as announcements go, so with no guest review questions this week, on to the story we go!
The Time Of The Demons: Local Store
Today was a day when many demons were off of work, including Megicula's parents. This meant time was now available for a number of other activities and tasks, in this case a visit to the local grocery store. It was a task that many others also needed to tend to, meaning the trading floor was full of people when the family arrived. The now eight-year-old Megicula didn't mind, however, and walked along happily with her parents.
Part of her good mood stemmed from the fact that the store had no policy prohibiting pets from entering the shopping center, and so she'd chosen to bring along her pet spider, Makura. She was a good-sized arachnid with white stripes on her legs and black fur on her body, parts of which curved upward, making her look like a walking wig if viewed from the wrong angle. That wouldn't be a problem when she grew up as her particular species of spider grew to the size of a small car by the time they reached adulthood. While she held onto her pet Megicula's parents pushed around the shopping cart, picking out various items they needed at home.
The little demoness didn't pay much attention to what they got or where they were going, content to simply walk along humming a tune to herself and Makura. The family got a slight surprise then when they ran into their neighbors in one of the aisles and the adults quickly got to asking how things were going. Apparently the couple had adopted a son recently but Megicula wasn't really paying attention to the details. Instead, she swiveled her head left and right, looking around the aisle for anything else that might be of interest to her.
The winged girl stopped then and felt her ears twitch with joy at the sight of her favorite cereal. Megicula turned to her parents to tell them, barely containing her excitement, but found they were still engaged in conversation with the neighbors. 'Eh, it'll be fine,' she turned and headed for where she'd seen the cereal, 'I'll just grab it and drop it in the cart, they'll understand.' Unfortunately, the demon girl found one flaw with that particular plan.
When she got there and reached up for the cereal, it was gone. "No, it can't be," Megicula collapsed to her knees, "NOOOOOO!" It was an overdramatic display, with her arms thrown up and everything. It might have continued for another few moments if not for a sudden interruption.
"What are you doing?" A demon boy asked, breaking her out of her thoughts of despair. The winged girl turned to see the boy had pointed ears, red eyes, a forked tail and surprisingly large wings for his age, especially considering his lanky frame.
"My most favorite of favorite cereals was just there," Megicula reached longingly at the now empty space, "but I turned my back for a moment and now it's gone."
"Oh, you mean this one," the winged boy pointed at his shopping bag, "I saw it on a TV advertisement and wanted to try it." The blue-eyed demon moved closer, scanning the items in the bag. When she confirmed that he did indeed have the cereal she'd wanted, Megicula calmly set her spider aside, and leapt for it. "Hey! What in the world are you doing?!"
The boy demon moved out of the way, swinging his shopping bag around like the red cape of a bullfighter. "I demand that cereal be mine!" The Winged Girl declared, a menacing expression on her face as she continued to swipe at the bag. Eventually, she tackled the boy himself and the two wound up rolling on the floor, fighting over the prize.
"Megicula! Zagred!" The children's parents moved in swiftly when they saw the commotion and pried the two of them apart. "Megicula, what has gotten into you?"
"My most favorite of favorite cereal, that's what!" She answered while pointing at the now named Zagred.
"I picked it up first," he shot back while being restrained by the neighbors, "you'll just have to see if they have some next time."
"You've never even tried it!" Megicula argued, "it's been my favorite for ages!"
"Then isn't it unfair not to let him try it," her mother pointed out, "he might actually hate it and if that happens the neighbors can bring it to us."
"We will," Zagred's mother affirmed, "so there's no reason not to let our son have it this time." It appeared that this winged boy was the adopted son the neighbors had mentioned.
"But I know he'll like them, and that means waiting to see if the cereal will be here next time!" Megicula whined, "and we don't know if they will be here next time!"
"Young lady," her father spoke sternly, "not getting your favorite cereal this one time is not the end of the world. But if you continue to act up you won't be getting your cereal now or the next time we come here. Do you want that?"
"No," a dejected Megicula looked at the floor.
"Then apologize," her father ordered. The winged girl pouted angrily but nodded and approached Zagred.
"I'm sorry I tried to take your cereal," she did her best to sound sincere.
"Better be," he held up the box, "what if you'd gotten girl cooties all over my food?"
"That's it, Makura, terrorize!" Megicula's spider moved on command and leapt onto Zagred's face, causing him to scream in surprise as he stumbled around trying to get the arachnid off. All the while Asta watched the memory play out, laughing in amusement at the sight.
Morning: Black Bulls Base
Asta awoke when dawn arrived and quickly got ready for the day. It only took a few minutes and when he was ready the ashen-haired boy headed to the main room near the entrance and looked at a board with a collection of daily tasks written on it. Contrary to Magna's statement yesterday the chores were shared among the Black Bulls and everyone picked something that needed to be done when they got up. Since he'd gotten up fairly early Asta was able to pick some of the nicer tasks, in this case chopping wood and dusting the library.
The second one was obviously Megicula's request but he would've done it anyway as the library was one of the few quiet places in the Black Bull's base. Not only could he read there but it was a nice change of pace from drawing in his room. With his physical abilities and years of helping clean things at the church, he was done with his tasks in minutes. In time, all the other Black Bulls got up and chose their own tasks, marking them off on the board.
It would be Noelle who got up last and was directed to the chore board where she found the two remaining tasks that were likely the worst: cleaning Yami's bathroom and feeding his pets. Having never cleaned a day in her life the silver-haired girl had to seek a bit of instruction from the other Black Bulls as her new captain wasn't taking no for an answer when it came to completing all the chores. So clean she did and quickly found out why it was one of the last tasks left on the board as the brawny man had probably the most disgusting bathroom she'd ever seen and cleaning it was an absolute nightmare even with instruction. Then came the next task.
Noelle had to endure the smell of wet fur and urine as she walked down the corridor, trying not to gag before she even arrived at her destination. When she entered the room, she found the beasts were as ravenous and untamable as she'd feared with the only saving grace being they were behind bars. In corner was a large wooden cart and a shovel along with a trapdoor that led up to the kitchen were raw meat was deposited to feed the beasts. Noelle found another cage door that she could drop to coral the beasts in order to clean up after them.
They thankfully all seemed to relieve themselves in the same corner but that didn't make it any less disgusting to shovel their feces off the floor and into the cart. And she also quickly discovered that despite the bars being in place they'd figured out how to reach through and bite the person feeding them. Naturally Noelle rushed out of the room and slammed the door behind her after nearly getting her head bitten off. "Don't tell me I'm gonna die trying to feed someone's pets," she thought aloud between breaths while her back was against the door. But the task was, thankfully, complete and once the royal girl calmed down, she went and washed all the unpleasant smells off of herself that she could.
After that it was finally time for breakfast and the majority of the Black Bulls sat in the dining hall eating their fill. Noelle came walking in and sat down, examining the quality of the food. 'It's definitely not royal cuisine,' she grimaced, 'meat, meat, and more meat.' But it was still food and Noelle knew she was going to need her strength so she took some cold meat and sobia, the latter of which she put on some bread. The royal also added some of the few vegetables at the table to make it a more balanced meal.
The Silva family member looked around at her now fellow magic knights while she ate, quickly noting that Vanessa was already drunk despite the early hour, and still in her underwear. 'I'll certainly appreciate her help in controlling my magic but why does she have to be such an alcoholic,' Noelle wondered. Across from her was Charmy who was still eating. Actually, the new recruit had yet to see her without some kind of food item, now that she thought about it. The currently most normal person of the group was Asta, who she was sitting next to, finishing his own meal.
'He got up earlier than most of us, including the person who made breakfast,' Noelle mused. A large shadow suddenly loomed over both of them, interrupting her thoughts as they turned around to see the towering form of Gray. He summoned his grimoire and in a puff of smoke, his form changed into that of Asta. "Good morning new recruits," he greeted in a perfect imitation of the ashen-haired boy's voice, "we currently have no missions for today so focus on training and improvement!"
In another puff of smoke Gray reverted to his original form and moved to sit back down at his spot at the table. "Transformation magic," Noelle observed in slight amazement, "and it's so accurate."
"It is," Asta moved to whisper to his fellow new recruit, "personally, I'm certain the Gray we're seeing right now is also a transformation."
"Why would Gray want to hide his true form," the silver-haired girl asked back.
"Hard to say, maybe he's embarrassed about something, assuming Gray is a 'he'," the anti-magic user answered, "but it's best not to judge until we know the whole story. Gray might tell us in time after we've known each other for a bit." Any further conversation was cut off by the sound of Charmy crying in despair.
"No, how, this can't be happening!" She was bordering on hysterics, "how is the food gone already!" Indeed, despite her small stature the hungry Black Bull had cleaned the more than half dozen plates in front of her, leaving not even a single morsel. "I need more food now, I can already feel the calories being digested, I have maybe a few minutes before my body starts devouring itself!" She opened her grimoire frantically then, "come forth Sheep Cooks!"
Three bits of floating wool were summoned and transformed into sheep with chef's hats who stood on their hind legs. In only a matter of seconds the surprisingly speedy mammals prepared a small feast for their master and set it before her. "Crisis averted!" Charmy once again dug into her food, now in a much better mood. 'Is she sure she's not being a little overdramatic,' Noelle wondered.
"Oh, that's an idea," Asta brought his fist to his hand before pulling out his sketchbook and getting to work.
"You draw," Noelle tilted her head in surprise.
"It was a hobby I picked up after finding a lost sketchbook at my home village," he explained without looking up from his drawing, "I do a lot of physical stuff so I wanted something relaxing that I could use to express myself. And I can usually find something to sketch while I'm out training."
"How long have you been doing it for," the royal questioned further.
"A few years now," Asta put the finishing touches on his sketch, "people tell me I've gotten good at it." They clearly knew what they were talking about. He hadn't just made a simple doodle but an abstract piece of art with numerous small details.
"Impressive," Noelle had to admit, "are you going to color it later?"
"I don't have any dyes," the anti-magic user revealed, "I haven't been able to look around here much but the ones I've seen are surprisingly expensive. It's cheaper for me to use charcoal and even if I had the money for it, I'd rather spend it on the orphanage back at Hage and other necessary essentials first. Besides, I think the result is still pretty nice to look at."
"Could I see some of your other drawings," a now admittedly curious royal decided to ask.
"Sure, just try not to get any food on the sketchbook," Asta joked while handing it to her.
"A royal such as me could never be so clumsy," she flipped her hair haughtily before opening the book. Just like the picture she'd seen him draw his other sketches were quite impressive, but also a little strange. There were a few regular drawings like the village of Hage, its landscape, a few people, but there were also drawings of things she'd never even seen before. A strange land that looked both abstract and desolate at the same time, flora she couldn't put a name to, a giant spider with its apparent mate and many children.
She also saw a drawing of what looked like Asta's tattooed left hand holding a clawed, feminine right hand. But the one Noelle focused on the longest was a sketch depicting the face of a strange woman. She had three eyes, horns, sharp teeth and a few other inhuman features. The reason it caught her eye was because even with her ignorance in the world of art she could tell a lot of time, dedication, work and heart had gone into making it. "Is this the abstract drawing you're most proud of," the silver-haired girl questioned while holding up the picture.
"I'd say it's the one I wanted to get right the most," he answered with a small smile, "what do you think, captivating?"
"I'll admit it's imaginative," Noelle handed him his sketchbook back, "how often do you draw?"
"When I've got the time and inspiration hits me," Asta shrugged.
"Hmm, let me know when it does," she didn't say any more about it and went back to her meal.
The Next Day
"Why does Captain Yami keep these things," Noelle groaned as she and Asta finished feeding and cleaning up after the wild beasts. The royal had managed to wake up a little earlier this time but not early enough to keep from getting the bad jobs. Thankfully, she'd bumped into Asta on his way to cleaning the library and managed to thre-that is convince him to help her out with the chores. While he had just shrugged it off at first he did admit he had little better to do at the moment.
Naturally Noelle would never tell him what a relief it was to have his help, mostly because he insisted she do at least a little of it. "Magna claims it's one of the captain's hobbies," Asta shrugged, "given that he's something of an angry beast himself he probably thinks it's fun having these creatures around." His fellow recruit might've made a comment on the matter but at that moment said captain and Magna both came around the corner laughing. Noelle and Asta froze, not because they were afraid they'd been overheard, but because the two magic knights had on their capes, and not much else.
"That old man got us good this time," Magna laughed, "a straight flush of all things!"
"He was definitely determined to beat us today," Yami added with a wide smile on his face, "oh hey, it's the new bloods."
"Good morning captain," Asta stood at attention while Noelle did her best to avert her gaze, "I take it your mission was a success?" The captain and Magna had set out yesterday evening for what they called a mission, acting like it was a serious matter. Given their current state, 'mission' was a very loose term in this particular instance.
"You could say that," the fireball user smiled, "but this is actually perfect. You two meet us in the main room, we've got some business to discuss."
"Yes sir!" The two new recruits saluted, mostly because they preferred this awkward scene end sooner rather than later.
"*Yawn* good morning Asta," Megicula's astral form appeared next to him, "how are thi-what in the demonic realms?! Why are your seniors flashing you first thing in the morning?!"
"Their 'mission' went well, apparently," he thought back to her.
"Mornings like these make me miss coffee," Megicula rubbed her temple.
A Few Minutes Later: Main Hall
"Alright listen up," Magna began. He was standing up across from the new recruits, thankfully clothed now, while Yami lounged on the couch behind him, "we've decided it's high time we put you two in the field."
"So our first mission then," Asta set his face in slight determination, "what'll we be doing?"
"I assume it's something befitting royalty such as myself," Noelle added.
"Of course, it's a real honor," Magna nodded in assurance, "go to Saussy Village for some Boar Hunting."
"That," the royal girl spoke up after a moment, "is a terrible mission."
"You take that back!" A vein appeared on Magna's head, "it's a great mission!"
"Then could we have more details," Asta raised his hand, "if this is a mission meant for a Magic Knight Squad, then surely there are other factors." He received no answer as Magna began going back and forth with Noelle about what did and didn't qualify as a legitimate mission for a magic knight.
"We lost to the chief of Saussy Village," Yami interrupted their argument as he blew out a bit of cigarette smoke.
"Oh," the ashen-haired boy tried to hide the look of disappointment on his face, "that was the man you were playing cards with, wasn't it?"
"That's right," the captain laughed, "that old man literally stripped us of everything we had."
"Including half a year's wages," Magna added proudly. Asta, Megicula, and Noelle naturally wondered why anyone would be proud of that.
"We also promised to do any one thing he asked," Yami continued, "so he asked us to clean up a herd of boars that have been making trouble near his village lately."
"That is a concern," Asta admitted, "boars are known to root around, tearing up landscape, arable farm land, and even trample fields. But the big question is….what does that have to do with us?"
"What he means is why are we having to deal with this when it's you two who lost?" Noelle clarified.
"Idiots!" Magna growled, "do you actually expect the captain to clean up his own messes?!"
"Uh, yes," the new recruits both spoke in a deadpan tone.
"Well forget it!" The flame wielder barked, "Yami doesn't deal with these kinds of things, that's what he's got us for!"
"This was honestly sounding better at the beginning," Megicula, who'd been silently listening up to this point, sighed, "at least cleaning up invasive and destructive species is a legitimate ecological concern." Asta mentally agreed with her.
"Look, the mission is simple," Yami stood up, "go there, clear out the infestation of boars, and come back. That's what you need to do, and if my orders aren't enough incentive for you then I'll add this: either go and do the mission, or die." He also added a menacing tone at the last part. Then he turned and headed out the door.
"Guess it's just what we have to do," Asta sighed.
"I won't complain if we get it done quickly," Noelle crossed her arms and also sighed.
A Few Minutes Later
"What do you mean you can't send us to Saussy Village?" Magna asked in confusion.
"Like I've explained to you before," Finral sighed, "my magic can take me to distant places, but they have to be places I've marked with my magic. In other words, I can't go to places I've never been to before."
"Have you been to any places near Saussy Village then," Asta questioned hopefully.
"Sorry," the spatial magic user shook his head, "I've been out near the Clover Kingdom's borders once or twice but nowhere close enough to Saussy Village to save you any time. But look on the bright side, Magna, you get to bust out that broom of yours." He turned and left then.
"What a disappointment," Megicula crossed her arms, "a user of spatial magic has few excuses for not being a well-traveled individual. He truly underestimates the importance of a good transportation network."
"Perhaps we can talk him into expanding his range at some point," Asta suggested, "but for now, we've got another issue."
"Guess we're going by broom," Magna sighed.
"We'll need to ride together then," the anti-magic user pointed out, "every time I try to use a broom it gets destroyed."
"And I can't control my flight since I can't control my magic power," Noelle reminded.
"Gah, fine," the flame user shook his head, "we can ride together. I hope you two are ready to meet my baby." He grinned while the two new recruits could only wonder why he'd call a broom his 'baby'. The duo found out why rather quickly when he led them outside and showed off his floating vehicle.
It was decorated with a long red saddle that possessed a purple line going down the middle, rib bones sticking out of both sides of the saddle, fuzzy purple balls on either side of the broom tail and a bull skull on the front that was wearing sunglasses. "Here it is! Introducing Crazy Cyclone!" 'What in the world is this thing?' Asta thought while looking at it, 'all of this extra stuff will just make it harder to fly due to the added weight and cut down on its maneuverability.'
He would've voiced these thoughts out loud too if not for the fact that he had no better ideas. So, he and Noelle both took a deep breath and got seated with him in the back and the royal girl in the middle. "Now, here we go!" Magna yelled as he put his magic power into the broom. Suddenly, fire erupted from the tail of the broom and they took off.
Asta couldn't believe it, the magical mode of transportation was somehow defying all of his expectations and seemed to laugh in the face of what he'd deemed as limitations. Once they cleared the trees and got up in the air, they were flying at an amazing speed. "This is incredible," he had to admit, "I've never been this high in the air and to think we're moving so fast!"
"Never underestimate my baby," Magna smiled, "now hold on, because we're about to go even faster!" Unfortunately, there wasn't much to hold on to, so Asta had no choice but to put his hands around Noelle's waist.
"Hey," she jumped slightly at his touch, "watch where you put your hands!" The silver-haired girl moved to elbow him but Asta easily caught the first one and then the follow up after that.
"Noelle, please," he spoke calmly, "there isn't really anything I can hold on to here. You're my lifeline right now." She seemed to think on his words for a moment.
"Don't get any ideas," she turned forward with an angry pout.
"Never," he assured. After all, the anti-magic user had Megicula riding along, hugging him from behind. It might not have been the greatest start, but the new recruits were now on their way to their first mission.
And so our newest Black Bull recruits are off to their first mission! Naturally I don't have to tell you that things won't go quite according to plan, but that's for next chapter. In the meantime feel free to leave a comment or review about what you liked/disliked or if you've got any neat ideas for future chapters! And be sure to stop by my Pat reon to get caught up on the latest news and other cool tidbits. Last thing, stop in next time as the magic knight's boar hunt turns into a tougher fight for survival than any of them expected! 'Til then.