'No need for words…'
Blown in the warrior's hands were crackling embers that turned into serpents of flame that spread out towards a chaotic battlefield. Winding though the echo of thousands of rumbling steps that kicked up dirt and debris, the scorching sound of a superheated blaze drowned the roars of beasts.
'Bid farewell to your destiny.'
The warrior moved. Carried aloft in his hands was a spear that rivaled a man in both size and weight, effortlessly swung around by a single arm. Where it passed, shockwaves were left in its wake, the earth upturned with pulsating bands of heat singed black into newly formed cervices.
The protectors of Kuru and its people were silent at the spectacle as they watched from atop the walls. Their weapons, once raised at the ready at any sign of danger gradually began to lower until they had practically fallen out of limp hands.
Before the kingdom of Kuru was the largest siege of mutated wild beasts it had ever faced. Spurred by fear from the movements of the One-Eyed Black Dragon, these were the beasts driven out of the draconic-taint filled lands.
And in their way stood the foremost pillar of Kuru's support.
The warrior raised an arm at a row of oncoming beasts, one eye blazing red before narrowing sharply and unleashing hell in the form of a laser.
"Brahmastra!"
Left to right, the warrior's lone eye moved in a forty-five-degree angle, giving rise to a laser that seared through and vaporized all in its path.
From the echoing explosion, a wall of earth was displaced, upturning dust that caught in the wind.
The warrior advanced unimpeded, entering the haze as the warrior's entire figure began to heat up and ignite into a torch through the dust.
Wafting sand and floating dust quickly caught fire and exploded.
All within the vicinity of the blast were engulfed under the glow of a radiant sun beckoned by the symbol of Surya.
Mouths opened, then closed as the shockwave travelled to Kuru and even to the sky itself, parting the clouds.
"Hail lord Surya!"
The shouts of awe and admiration came next as a single warrior, a single hero proved the capability of a single man.
"Glory to the Sun!"
Many who would have gone to aid the warrior in their growing morale were stopped by Indra and Kunti who were quick to interpret that any interference would only get in the way.
"OOOAAAAAGHH!"
The shouts continued regardless as fervor grew into a chorus of applause and relief.
Unfortunately, Surya did not share in the adulation. That spark of pride and praise for his son within him was muted by Kunti's pursed lips and Indra's brooding expression as the three watched on from the highest point of Kuru's walls.
The world shook from another heated blast, flecks of dirt and debris falling from the ceiling as Surya, Kunti, and Indra steadied themselves on their feet.
An orange horizon lit up the distant sky.
"It is a power and capability one could not expect another warrior to overcome without petty tricks and dishonour…" Surya said, the other two, Kunti and Indra, beside him flinching.
One due to trying to enforce the notion of family not killing family, and the other because his shrewdness would take away the invulnerability that could have enabled Kunti's wish.
How laughable.
A Divine Spear for a set of Armour and Earrings, one focusing on pure attack, the other on defence.
Yet in the battle between half-brothers, the eldest did not need a singular overwhelming attack to win. His capability was enough that adding a more potent attack was redundant, charity at best. More so when a worried mother's words restricted even that Divine Spear's use.
Fools were those who could not understand that the trade between defence and offence was not equal.
Especially when such a trade asked for the warrior to give up the singular proof of his Divine Heritage.
The earrings Surya wore clinked from a shockwave of wind, the symbol of the sun woven into his robes, never looking so fiery with muted anger.
'O Father, forgive me.'
The image still haunted Surya's mind as the Earring and Armour of the Sun were cast aside for the sake of belief and an oath of charity. Even the feeling of desperation Surya had felt in the visions when he came and tried to warn his son of the enemy's deceit.
The words spoken then, and the actions taken were engraved in Surya's mind.
'-…It is a proud thing for a Supreme God to come to my door.'
How proud Surya was, how suffocated Surya felt.
…and how Surya had clenched his fists so tightly in that vision.
Surya stared into the image of the sun dawning on the battlefield before him, and spoke thusly to those who would one day wrong him.
"He is a True Warrior, lacking selfishness and greed, having risen from the dirt into greatness. An eclipsed star, to a shining beacon. That is my Karna." Surya stared at Indra, and then at Kunti with mixed feelings. "And a plague of drought and death be to those who seek to harm him with treachery and schemes."
Surya no longer looked at his two friends.
Now was no longer the time.
"Heed my warning well."
Another blast echoed in the distance.
With another sweep of his spear, Karna took in a breath and surveyed the area before him scorched black from the heat of his flames. Straightening his back, the tongues of fire that flittered across his spear returned to his body and cleared the dust surrounding his vision.
All around him was only ash drifting in the wind.
Spinning his spear overhead, Karna stabbed his spear over the ground and then leaned his back over the blade's flat side.
He waited.
This was the second wave of beasts to head in Kuru's direction since he'd been informed by the others that the raid of the One-Eyed Black Dragon had begun.
Intuition was also telling Karna that the stampede of animals was far from over.
The flapping of wings reverberated as a murder of crows and birds scattered in all direction to the sky from their perches on a distant forest.
How quick.
Karna lifted his back from his spear, and grabbed it by the base of the shaft before swinging the spear into a ready position.
In the distant forest, the sound of toppling trees and the sight of a growing dust cloud signalled the arrival of another wave. The main wave of mutated beasts fleeing the Black Dragon.
Yet, this time there was something off.
"I'll Kill…I'll kill because I hate!"
Black and red light glinted off of Karna's pupils as a horizontal cut pierced through the forest and toppled every tree in its path. What lay beyond the toppled trees were dozens of fleeing beasts that had been bisected from the waist down.
Fortunate were the beasts outside or just beneath the cut's path, but that was hardly relevant at the moment.
The voice was familiar to Karna who perked up at its sound and the madness it contained within.
"Berserker?" Karna murmured to himself as he squinted his eyes and noticed two figures rapidly approaching.
One was in heavy armour reminiscent to Saber's, and the other flitting through the sky on glowing wings of energy and a halo around her head.
If Karna was uncertain before, now he was sure as he caught sight of one of Assassin's remote bodies trying to reason with Berserker to no avail.
Berserker was caught up in her bloodlust and rage after a sudden onset of Beasts had forced her off the path to the One-Eyed Black Dragon. However, sensing the familiar taint that had muted the beasts, Berserker was led astray in her induced madness.
Karna glanced behind at Kuru and then thought of the damage that could befall it if Berserker failed to control herself.
Mere words would not be the way to reason with Berserker now. A forceful approach was required first.
Especially as Berserker's sudden arrival plunged the area with a heavy draconic pressure, making her seem no different than the mutated beasts.
Karna could already tell that the people in Kuru had gone into high alert at the misunderstanding.
After all, the Demonic taint of her blade was no different from the draconic taint of the Evil Black Dragon.
Drawing a conclusion in his mind, Karna was quick to act.
"Calm your mind."
Only Karna's words carried in the wind before a sudden strike had Berserker knocked several dozen feet back and tumbling over the ground.
Assassin's remote unit made to explain itself, but Karna raised a hand to silence it as Berserker shook her head from the sudden grogginess.
Stabbing her blade into the ground in front of her, Berserker used it as leverage to get back onto her feet, her livid features and pale complexion plane for Karna to see.
Yet, Karna did not panic.
A comrade's duty was to right the path of his allies when he or she saw it. More so, when he knew the direction Berserker had wanted to take since her summoning.
This fight was not one either of the two wanted, much less Berserker whose Madness Enhancement, could at times, make her get carried away.
It was Karna's duty to remind Berserker of her own aspiration.
"Was the wish you spoke in confidence to me false?" Karna said instead of readying his spear for battle. Rather, he put it away and raised his fists as if he were a boxer.
A grunt escaped Berserker's mouth, nothing that was quite understandable however in her fury.
A sudden punch to Berserker's stomach changed that as her pupils dilated and her feet stumbled back. She gagged from Karna's deliberate blow, a semblance of rationality coming back through the blurred haze of her mind.
The next punch to the cheek sorted Berserker's thoughts as spittle flew and caused her to rub her cheek in a daze.
Suddenly, Karna was right in front of her, giving Berserker a look of concern.
"Is this the noblewoman you wish to present yourself as to Saber?" He asked, causing Berserker to suddenly freeze, petrified as her actions caught up with her.
"NHnnn?" Berserker groaned before her cheeks flushed red out of sheer fluster. "W-What?"
Karna did not fault Berserker for her lapse.
It was only natural.
The blade she wielded was fueled by Berserker's hatred that partially disabled her Mad Enhancement by converging the madness to her sword.
Balmung, a Noble Phantasm and a sword that changes properties in the hands of its wielder. A Holy Sword of the Righteous, or a Demonic Sword of the Cursed.
It's presence in its blackened state was no different from the mana of the One-Eyed Black Dragon. No doubt, it would not be prudent to be revealing it so openly in the future.
"Lancer?" Berserker eventually muttered out. "Where is this?"
No sooner, one of Assassin's remote units had had enough of the trouble.
"Finally, she listens," Assassin, Hildr gave the stink eye, but Berserker ignored her in favor of staring at Karna.
"I will explain later." Karna said, shifting his gaze to stare back at the surroundings.
In a maddened state or not, Berserker had done well to cull the number of beasts with her attacks. The few that made it past would pose no danger to Kuru as those that lived were already headed in the opposite direction.
Many of the mutated animals had reacted on instinct to the energy Berserker was off putting; they mistaking her as another Black Dragon and fleeing the scene.
The battle was won from the moment Berserker arrived.
Her presence alone should drive out any other tide of beasts running in Kuru's direction. In which case, Karna's duty was fulfilled.
"For now, we raise the banner for victory."
Channeling Divinity into his spear, Karna hurled it into the sky before detonating the energy within to display the symbol of the sun for all those in Kuru watching.
Shouts soon echoed throughout Kuru as Lancer made his way back to the walled city with a frowning Berserker in tow.
The mad Servant was unaware of her own effect in aiding Karna.
The Grand Quest was over with the subjugation of the One-Eyed Black Dragon, but somehow, the jubilation was not shared equally among the raid party's members.
Word was that a conflict had transpired with the Hephaestus Familia and the delegates from Ares's kingdom, but no one was speaking of it after the Crozzos were left blacklisted and banned from weapon and armor exchanges in the smithing association.
There were far too many other things to consider than the tensions between blacksmiths.
There was the situation with the Zeus Familia, the confusion in the Astraea Familia, the suspicions regarding the Loki Familia, and finally a subject that took the undivided attention of a majority of the Gods that an impromptu council was convened among those present.
The group was riding in a singular large carriage headed for Kuru to pick up Ganesh and Lancer.
Wide and spacious, the current occupants in the room included Thetis, a listless Zeus, a brooding Hephaestus, a flustered Hestia, a disturbed Loki, and a blank faced Freya.
All were huddled around the Goddess Iris and Saber whom the Gods had sought for the meeting.
Specifically, it was to analyze the fragment left behind by the One-Eyed Black Dragon.
There had to be a reason why the Grand Quest was launched and the natural assumption was that it had something to do with the fragment left behind.
As Saber displayed that he was unaffected by it, the Gods had requested his aid in examining it.
The primary analyzer was Iris, a Goddess with a domain in divine insight. Her perception towards secrecies and things obscured by mystery fell in the domain of her mist.
The group of Gods and Saber gathered in the carriage waited in silence as Iris continued her analysis.
Iris did not directly touch the fragment of the grail, but was casting her Authority over it in a bid to understand its inner workings.
As the light died down over Iris's palms, the look of astonishment on her face was hard to miss by anyone.
Saber could hazard a guess as to why, because he already knew the answer that would come out of Iris's mouth.
"…It is a fragment of an object that grants wishes. Actual wishes."
Muted gasps echoed through the impromptu meeting.
A glint flickered in Freya's eyes as she glanced at Saber and then fell into thought.
"It is but a fragment, but a fragment leaves clues to the whole. By the sheer output of energy this shard already holds, I can predict that the original would have contained a power that could alter the world itself. There would be no wish that would be out of reach."
Iris pursed her lips as she spoke.
What the world knew of the Dungeon even with the descent of the Gods was still trivial at best. However, with the completion of the Grand Quest, certain aspects were now coming to light.
It was clear that the focus of the world would soon turn to Orario as a whole with this discovery. Too many eyes had already seen it, and there was no secret that could be kept forever even among Gods.
Everyone fell silent at the revelation.
Once the group reached Kuru and rejoined with Ganesh and Lancer, they would return to Orario.
Thing would only escalate quickly from there.
With this revelation, did it not mean that what existed for the one who reached the bottom of the Dungeon was an omnipotent wish?
It was something the Gods present in the discussion had to ask themselves more than once over the rest of the journey.
Kunti could not believe her eyes when she first laid witness to the sight of the Raid Party that took on the One-Eyed Black Dragon. Neither could she believe her ears when it was known that they had succeeded, thereby ending Kuru's need to guard against the mutated beasts charging its walls.
Yet Kunti could not be happy.
How could she?
"I will be leaving," Lancer said without much fanfare in the audience hall of Kunti's palace.
Berserker was not with Karna as she remained moping about her earlier actions and what Saber would have thought of her. At least on the inside. On the outside, she demanded a bath to get all the sand, dust, and debris off of her when she heard that Saber and the others in the Raid Party would be arriving at Kuru to pick them up.
Not that Berserker cared about what Saber thought of her appearance or anything like that.
Karna shook his head to rid himself of idle thoughts.
Kunti appeared rather flustered and unwilling.
"Will you not reconsider?"
The way Kunti tried to force a smile and feign composure was admirable.
"There is much to see in Kuru, and much to do for its people."
However, Karna's eyes had always been able to discern the truth. The subtle shaking of her eyes, the way her smile didn't quite reach her ears, or the way she kept trying to hide the trembling of her fingers, all were indicative of the opposite response to the front she was putting.
Karna knew, understood in a way about how his presence could complicate things here in Kuru, but he'd acted anyway out of duty and honor as a warrior.
Unfortunately, he could not give that which Kunti sought.
If Dharma was the way of life, then Karma was the cycle of cause and effect.
The life that shaped Karna was one made from the moment he had first been abandoned by his mother. If not for the divine protection of his father and the fortune to be adopted by the hands of a humble Bheeshma charioteer, Karna would not be who he was today.
If Kunti existed here, then the parents who raised Karna existed on the opposing kingdom against Kuru.
For the honor and bond Karna shared with his adopted parents, he could not acknowledge the bond already severed by Kunti at his birth.
That was why Karna was both the oldest of the Pandavas, yet their greatest enemy on the side of the Kauravas.
"My duty is complete." Karna said, keeping his expression respectful yet distant. Something Kunti was loath to see, as her expression cracked as if directly stricken.
"You are my kingdom's hero. Please at least remain for a celebratory feast?"
"I do not need it."
"Then wait a bit for a token bestowing you as Kuru's saviour."
"I need not for praise either."
"T-Then, just please for a moment more, I can grant you anything within my power in Kuru. Even your grandf- my father would approve."
"Lady Kunti," Karna cut in curtly as he pretended not to hear Kunti's slip of the tongue. "I am of humble birth and origin. Such honors are too much for one such as I. Please, let me leave this audience hall with the dignity expected of a ruler of Kuru."
Kunti felt her breath hitch, her mouth doing funny things as it temporarily lost the ability to form words.
Nodding his head, Karna bowed and then turned to leave under Kunti's silence.
However, his departure was not so easy.
"Karna."
A voice called out to him.
Lancer gave pause before turning around and addressing the man who called him out directly by name.
Surya stepped away from Kunti's right side and approached Karna as if he'd come to a decision.
"Divine Father," Karna greeted as if he'd known of the title long ago.
To Karna, Surya was a benefactor whose grace had bestowed him his father's armour and earring from the moment he was born. That was the proof of his father's recognition of his heritage, his claim as the son of Surya.
Slung over Surya's shoulder was a travel pack filled with various items and belongings that Karna did not fail to notice when he'd first walked in.
"What are you doing?" Karna asked with a raised brow.
"Is it not obvious, my son?" Surya had long since prepared his answer. "I cannot stop you from leaving, but you cannot stop me from following."
"Surya, you're leaving?" Kunti ran and grabbed Surya by the arm.
The two briefly stared at each other before Surya slowly nodded his head.
"I am," he said with finality.
Surya had thought better of staying in Kuru as his mind began to wander towards ill-boding outcomes.
Beyond pettily trying to interfere with Indra, Surya was doing his best to ignore the most logical and efficient solution to prevent Arjuna from being born.
For a second, a cold light flickered over Surya's eyes as he stared at Kunti, but it vanished just as quickly as he flinched from his own darkness.
"For your sake…" Surya said, voice warbled with conflicting emotions. On one side a friend, and the other, the terrible mother of his child who so favored the sons of another relationship that Karna could not even fight a proper duel. "It is best you don't try to stop me."
Kunti's mouth opened, then closed as her shoulders began to tremble.
To her, it wasn't just about conflict or honor.
These men just could not understand. What mother could bear to watch her own children trying to kill each other?
Is it not obvious that she would have gone to the stronger one in a bid to beg for restraint?
In a way, Kunti's actions from the vision were both natural and belied her subconscious belief that Karna could triumph over Arjuna.
"Then go," Kunti finally said before pulling up her sleeves and suddenly grabbing Indra's arm as she raced to the opposite side of the room and took hold of him. "But you can't stop us from coming either. With the Black Dragon dead, Kuru will be safe even if I'm away for an extended period of time. My trust in my retainers is absolute. You'll come with me, won't you Indra?"
Indra grunted, but given the legitimacy of the vision he saw, and proof in Karna's existence, Kunti was a woman that Indra could not afford to ignore.
"Hn, obviously." Indra said.
Observing the actions of the adults around him, Karna could foresee a turbulent future.
He prayed to Ganesh that Orario would not be caught up in a conflict similar to the War of Kurukshetra.
The door of Kunti's palace was soon opened by a palace guard who announced the arrival of the Raid Party team leaders to the audience hall.
It would seem that it was time to leave Kuru and return to the Dungeon city.
On a side note, Ganesh and his Familia felt as if they'd gone on a forced vacation rather than a raid.
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