The Fallen Argonaut
Rated; M (Blood/Gore)
Disclaimer; I do not own Danmachi or anything created by the author Fujino Ōmori, all rights go to him
Authors: Eli-er01 & ViceroyChalister
Summary: The will of a hero is strong, yet unwavering but all good things must come to an end, even at the cost of one's Heroic Will. Imprisoned and blamed for a crime he hadn't committed, Bell seeks a way out of his predicament so that he can live without fear of being hunted by the people he once looked up to.
31: Orion
=Anfesera=
Rethusa stared at her finger… the finger that should have been lost forever. The finger that had been sliced off by that monster… back on it's appendage as if nothing happened.
A couple of hours after Bell and the others had accepted the request for help, Aralaya had finished healing Rethusa while the others had finished getting ready to head out. All apart from Elora.
She wanted to make sure none of the monsters wandered about and ended up by the village. A legitimate concern, so she was staying behind.
'What is this magic…?' Rethusa questioned reality itself as her gaze hardened onto the reacquired appendage, trying to force her brain to understand.
As far as she knew, no magic was able to regrow lost limbs. At most, it could regrow a lost chunk of meat, but not bones.
She moved her fingers again, the feeling natural, as if it had been there since she was born.
Her gaze shifted to the healer who had done the impossible. She had heard rumors about 'the world's greatest healer', Dea Saint… but she was in Orario and nothing was said about healing limbs.
'These people are weird' She gave up on trying to understand, only coming to the conclusion to not put the family who assisted her on the same wavelength of logic as everyone else. They were just simply bizarre.
"Hey, Rethusa, are you ready to go?" Bell asked, smiling down at her. Those rubellite eyes… god, why does she feel like she knows them from somewhere. She shook her head. No, Bad Rethusa. They helped you, don't question them.
"Yeah… I'm just… amazed at the capability of this magic. I thought it couldn't heal limbs or appendages. Apparently I was wrong" She said as Bell smiled, about to respond before Aralaya with her ears perked up came out of nowhere.
"Right! I was fascinated with the spell for a long time. Apparently it works by stimulating something the gods call STEM Cell produ-" Bell hit her lightly on the head, causing her to look up with a pout.
"Long story short, it can heal limbs" Bell finished for his daughter as Rethusa nodded.
"I understand. Anyway, Artemis-sama won't stay at the camp forever. We need to hurry" She said as she quickly picked up her repaired gear alongside a small pack. The group soon headed out as they bid their goodbyes to Elora and headed due south towards the forest Artemis was at.
"Hey, what is Artemis like? I'm kind of curious!" Adrienne smiled as she lightly bumped into Rethusa who smiled down at the girl's energetic antics.
"Oh, she is incredible. She is calm, easy to talk to and wise… well, apart from one subject…" Rethusa smiled before chuckling. Adrienne, intrigued, basically shoved her face as close as she could to Rethusa's. Still a respectable distance considering the height difference.
"What do you mean?" Rethusa looked at Adrienne for a second, pondering what to say.
"Well… to be frank, she knows next to nothing when it comes to love. As the goddess who presides over Chastity, she has always been strictly against love. Me alongside the other members believe that love is something that can change a person. It's something one can only understand if they have felt it before" She explained as everyone listened.
Bell and Bache smiled as they knew exactly what she was talking about while the children were trying to find something to compare it to.
"Hm… sounds like she needs to find someone" Bell added as Rethusa nodded.
"I agree. It's the only way she could understand… Love is just… wonderful" Rethusa smiled as she resisted the urge to gush.
The conversation diverted from there as they broke out into a light jog, wanting to arrive before sunset. After all, according to Rethusa, that's when Artemis would leave.
All she could hope for was that she was alright, and that the monsters didn't get to her.
=Orario, Babel entrance=
At the moment, some of the executives of the Loki Familia were outside Babel alongside Fiona.
It was time for her first dive into the dungeon. Her stats were already strong enough to handle any monster on the first three floors of the dungeon.
Their goal for the day was floor four, mostly Finn's idea to teach Fiona that sometimes, it's better to continue on the same floor than go forward. That way, one is always prepared for what's to come.
"Come on! Mom! Stop it!" Fiona complained, causing Finn to look over in their direction, sighing out loud at the sight of Tione basically teleporting around Fiona, checking that nothing was wrong or missing.
He just wished for her to calm down with her protectiveness of their daughter. It's great and all to feel protective towards their child, but Tione was just borderline overboard. Anyone trying to talk to Fiona that they don't know basically have to fight a beast to even succeed.
"Tione, could you stop? Nothing has changed since thirty seconds ago when you last checked" Finn called out as Tione instantly stopped in her tracks before looking at Finn with a sheepish smile.
"Sorry! I'm just worried" Finn nodded at her answer, being thrown a thankful smile from Fiona which he nodded at.
"Well, shall we head inside?" Finn asked as Fiona instantly brightened up, almost jumping forward to the front with her father.
"Yes! Finally! So, how are we going to do this?" She asked frantically, almost incoherently. Finn shook his head with an amused smile before looking forward, moving toward the entrance of the dungeon.
"Well, the rest of us will keep a pace behind you, making sure nothing happens while you basically venture around alone, exploring… adventuring" He finished as Fiona nodded.
It made sense. It would allow her to learn to navigate better, not that Orario hasn't done that already, but also strengthen her memory and self reliability.
As they began venturing down the spiral staircase, Ais moved up and nudged Fiona.
"So… Do you feel ready?" She asked with a tilt of her head. Fiona smiled up at her, almost bouncing as she nodded.
"Yes! I do, i've waited for this moment for sooooooo long!" Ais chuckled at her energetic behavior as well as her perception of time.
They have trained for a year. It's not very long anymore as one year comes and goes very quickly for Ais.
The smile on Ais' face dipped and turned sad as her thoughts drifted to how long it had been.
Over twelve years since she had last seen Bell. To be honest, she still missed him. He had been a good friend and she had always felt like she enjoyed her time with him.
The moment the familiar eerie atmosphere of the dungeon invaded her senses, the thoughts disappeared as her instincts went to overdrive.
Her eyes sharpened as her hand stayed close to her sword, ready to strike at any moment's notice.
It was a reaction hard instilled into the executives' very beings from their prolonged exposure to the dungeons environments.
Everyone let Fiona go ahead before they followed behind, keeping a distance so that she felt alone but never really was.
They analyzed her posture as she continued through the narrow passages. There were a lot of things to correct, but she did some things right.
She had her hand close to her dagger at all times, but she seemed to lax. As if she wasn't in a place that took lives every day.
Eventually, Fiona encountered her first monster. In front of her was a tiny green little humanoid creature, glaring at Fiona before screeching at her.
The girl had quickly pulled her knife as the monster began it's rush. It sliced at her as Fiona blocked it before kicking it back and rushing forward.
She swiftly sliced towards the monster's chest, wanting to hit the magic stone, but the goblin managed to dodge at the last second, stumbling over it's sudden movement.
'Hmm… She should kick more…' Ais mentally noted as the fight happened at a painfully slow speed in her perception. It allowed her to break apart every detail as they occurred in order to improve upon their training.
Fiona quickly recovered as the goblin did the same, shooting towards each other as Fiona pushed her knife forward for a block.
Ais saw the monster launch an attack from below as well. For a split second, it seemed as if the attack would connect before Ais noticed one motion.
She realized Fiona's intent a split second before she executed it. The girl jumped over the goblin, causing both attacks to hit thin air before it's eyes bulged and blood started to flow out of its mouth.
A crack was heard as Fiona twisted the knife she had thrust into the back of the goblin before retreating, the monster turning to dust and magic stone falling to the ground.
Everyone smiled at the little victory bump Fiona made before picking up the stone from the floor before continuing.
'Maybe… this won't go as bad as I thought…' Tione thought proudly as the first exploration ventured onwards
=Outside Artemis' forest=
Artemis' fingers trailed down the spear she had forged with utmost care. It's edge, eternally sharp enough to cut through nearly anything.
Her eyes shifted towards the sun, slowly drifting down towards the horizon. Once night hits, she departs for Orario… though something within her tells her that what… no who she was looking for was not there, but closer than she believed.
It sounded ridiculous to anyone, but the difference was that she was a goddess. Any deity that's worth anything knows that gut feelings that they couldn't explain were more accurate than most peoples facts.
It was like their ability to tell apart lies from truths. It was instinctual yet magical, as if a part of their being allowed them to know the optimal part forward, even if it was very subtle.
Artemis had stayed mainly because of that feeling. The very same one that told her that waiting was the best option, though she couldn't sit idle forever.
Eventually, she would have to leave, and if she had to in order to survive… then let the optimal path be damned. She couldn't let that monster be released. 'Antares' is something that needs to be handled, and it's better to go down one path, then no path at all.
"Oh… I wonder where you are, Orion…" she muttered after sighing, leaning back against a stone.
She stayed there, looking up into the sky, admiring the view before rustling in the leaves alerted her.
Artemis immediately picked up the spear, the weapon reacting to her touch as she got into her form she had perfected in Tenkai.
"Ouch…" A moan was heard as a chocolate colored girl fell down out of the bush.
"Why are these bushes so large?" She complained as she stood up and huffed, seemingly contemplating if she should incinerate the bushes for even daring to exist.
Artemis lowered the spear, it's back hitting the edge of a rock causing a sound to reverberate around the area.
The girl instantly turned around, shortsword in hand as if she expected to be attacked at that very moment.
Her Ruby eyes met Artemis forest green, the shortsword slowly lowering down before the girl let out a sigh.
"Gosh, don't scare me like that! I thought you were a bandit or a monster" The girl complained, sheathing her weapon before walking forward.
"My apologies. I thought you were a monster at first too and was only surprised when it was an amazoness, all the way out here" Artemis replied politely with a small smile. The mortal girl was at least friendly and seemed to be entertained with the scenario if the grin she was sporting was anything to go by.
"Hehe, sorry. I'm Adrienne by the way. Pleasure to meet you, miss…?" the girl, Adrienne asked as Artemis thrust the spear into the ground before letting it go.
"I'm Artemis, goddess of the hunt. Pleasure to make your acquaintance" Artemis closed her eyes and slowly nodded in greeting. When she got no response, she looked at the girl and saw a big 'o' on her face.
"Wait, you're Rethusa's goddess?" Adrienne asked as Artemis instantly became alert at the mention of the captain of her familia.
"Rethusa? You know her?" Artemis asked as a spark of hope ignited within her chest as Adrienne grinned and nodded.
"Yeah, she's this way. I was exploring the forest while we were taking a break. I can take you to them!" Artemis contemplated the offer for a second before nodding. The two began walking after Artemis picked up the spear.
"So… how is Rethusa? Is she alright?" She asked as Adrienne nodded.
"Yeah, she is now. Yesterday she was in horrible condition though, but my sister healed her" Adrienne answered with enthusiasm.
"Is that so? I must thank your sister then" Artemis smiled before Adrienne eyed the spear.
"Hey, what is that spear?" she asked as Artemis looked down at her hand.
"Why don't you try to hold it?" Artemis challenged. Adrienne, thinking nothing of it reaching out, grabbing ahold of the shaft.
The moment Artemis let go, Adrienne huffed out in surprise as the spear fell down to the ground, pulling her with it.
"GUHHH! What is wrong with this spear?" She complained as she tried to lift it.
"It's the Spear of Orion. Only someone who the spear choses can wield it. Anyone else would not be qualified to do so. There are some similar artifacts of gods I can think of such as Thor's hammer, Mjolnir" Artemis explained as Adrienne gave up on trying to lift the spear.
"So… in other words… I'm not worthy?" She asked as Artemis chuckled.
"Well, not exactly. It's simply that the spear didn't choose you. A being may be worthy, but the spear still has to choose them based on their qualities as a person. Whomever the spear choses will be my Orion" She said as Adrienne nodded.
"Okay… I understand. Though I'm curious, what qualities does it look for?" Adrienne asked as Artemis picked up the spear from the ground with ease, leading them forward.
"Well, firstly, an unyielding spirit. Someone that won't give up no matter what. Another is a heroic desire, someone that wishes to help others, even when it comes to their own disadvantage. Those are the most important, but there are others as well" Adrienne made a thoughtful expression for a second.
"Hm… that sounds like dad…" She muttered as Artemis quirked her eyebrow. She was about to ask who that may be as they came out of the forest into a clearing before-
*SMACK*
Something akin to a homing red haired level 3 missile smashed into Artemis, sending her tumbling to the ground.
"ARTEMIS-SAMA!" The missile cried out as Artemis groaned, clutching her stomach and subsequently, whomever had rammed into her.
Artemis was about to punish whoever dared run into her before their body weight instantly disappeared.
"Rethusa… control yourself" A man with ruby red eyes and an intimidating mask held up the woman whom Artemis now recognized as her captain. Said redhead seemed to beg the man for mercy.
"Sorry…" She said with a sheepish expression as the man sighed, "I understand your excitement, and relief that Artemis-sama is alright, but you don't have to push her soul from her body" The obsidian clad man placed her down as easily as he had picked her up.
The man turned to the ground, the spear of Orion laying there. Artemis watched in fascinated curiosity as he reached down towards the spear to pick it up.
If one could see the expression of Rethusa and Artemis when he picked it up like a feather, the runes lighting up, they would have laughed hard. It was quite comical.
"I believe this is…yours?" The man trailed off as he tilted his head in confusion, the red rubies flashed with questions before he opened his mouth. She had no idea how she could tell with the mask and all, but she could.
"Is everything alright?" He asked before looking around. The adult amazonian seemed to have no reaction to him picking up the spear, just shrugging at him. The twin half elf's looked as confused as he did. Adrienne though seemed to be glaring at the spear as if it committed a cardinal sin.
"Orion… my Orion!" Artemis began to exclaim and made her way over to the man "I finally found you" The now teary eyed and awe inspired Artemis grabbed ahold of his hand.
The man blinked as the confusion multiplied "Orion? Ehm… Artemis… my name is Bell Cranel, though you can call me Apollyon too"
"Ah! My apologies, It's a pleasure to meet you Bell Cranel" Artemis smiled as she let go of his hand. Bache in the back almost snickered at the thought of how Elora would react to what Artemis just did.
"Anyway… what's this deal about calling me Orion, and once again, here is your spear" He asked as he motioned for her to take it. Artemis just kept smiling before shaking her head.
"No… it's yours now" Was all she said. Bell just blinked again before putting a hand over his face in frustration. Why was this goddess so cryptic? It was like trying to understand Ouranos cryptic messages.
"Artemis, I just picked it up after you dropped it. It's still yours" He tried once again to hand it over as she pushed it back to him with no success as he didn't budge.
"That's the reason it's yours. The spear chooses its wielder, and it has chosen you" Bell was about to ask another question before he felt a tug on his sleeve. He turned to the side where Adrienne stood.
"Dad… ehm… that spear can't be picked up by anyone it doesn't deem worthy. Pretty much like Thor's hammer" she explained as Bell processed the information.
"So… it's a godly artifact?" Bache chimed in as she peeked over Bell's shoulder.
"Artifact? Can I get a look?" Aralaya asked as she pushed herself between Adrienne and Bell.
"Hey! Don't leave me out? Jannor called out as he tried to find an in with no success.
Artemis stared in awe at the actions of the family. They were just so… bizarre. In an amusing way that is.
"Artemis-sama. As you may see, they are quite… unique" Rethusa said as she had snapped out of her shock. Artemis nodded dumbly before a smile spread across her features.
"You're right, Rethusa. To think that Orion would be within such an… eccentric family" Rethusa nodded at her words.
"I know. You've searched far and wide for your Orion. The one who would finally put an end to that monster with the only weapon that can hurt it here in Gekai'' The redhead's words made Artemi's smile even wider. She was right. She had searched for her Orion for a very long time.
Now that she had found him… it was like a pressure head dropped from her shoulders. All she could hope for is that the pressure wouldn't be too much for him to handle.
"Okay! I get it!" Bell's voice snapped the goddess out of her trance as he walked away from the family and towards her and her captain.
"Rethusa, what now?" He asked as Rethusa looked at him dead in the eye.
"Well… I never expected you to be Artemis-sama's Orion. The duty to finish antares would fall on your shoulders… but with your status, it would probably be a breeze" She reasoned as Bell merely shrugged.
Artemis looked between them all, bewildered upon what she meant.
"Rethusa, what do you mean?" she asked. Rethusa just looked at Bell expectedly as he sighed.
"I'm level 7, Artemis" he answered her question as he awkwardly held the spear, not being able to decide if it's right for him to have it or not. He just felt like he didn't deserve it…
"Huh…? Level 7?" Artemis breathed out in a questioning manner, unsure if she heard him correctly.
"Yes, Level 7" His words echoed within her ears before she took a deep breath before shaking her head.
"Well… that simplified things, though I am unsure of how much" Bell nodded, contemplating where to move from here.
"Artemis, could you explain the entire situation for us from your perspective? Rethusa here had some black spots from yesterday" Bache piped up as Artemis nodded before giving Rethusa a worried smile.
"I'm alright now, Artemis-sama. Aralaya here healed me to tip top shape" she reassured her goddess as Artemis nodded, turning back to Bache and Bell.
"Well, things were quiet for most of the night apart from talking with each other to pass the time. It wasn't until midnight that it began. The minions of 'Antares' attacked us, burning a good part of the forest down. You can even see some of the marks the fire left from the top of that cliff" Artemis pointed at a small cliff in the distance.
"After that… Well, we tried to fend them off but they completely humiliated us. We could barely scratch their skin. The only ones able to hurt them were me with the spear of Orion and Rethusa here..:" Artemis frowned, her throat clearly clogging up as flashes of her children being slaughtered before her very eyes went through her mind.
Bell put a hand on her shoulder, his eyes speaking volumes of the compassion and empathy he felt at the moment.
"I understand. More than you know. I had to watch a man kill my own goddess in front of me once. It's haunted me ever since it happened" He told her as Artemis nodded.
"Hmm… that means that it's level 3 monsters…" Adrienne commented as Bache smiled at her proudly.
"You're right. Me and Jannor would have to act as support then as we are level 2" Aralaya added, giving a nod of understanding from Jannor.
"Alright. Anything else?" Bell asked, conveying through his eyes that she didn't have to remind herself of yesterday anymore if she didn't want to.
"Well… there was something strange. There was this weird Minotaur that helped the monsters. It was strong, strong enough to completely overpower five of my children within the blink of an eye…" Bell frowned at that.
"Weird? What kind of weird are we talking about?" he asked as Artemis' frown deepened.
"It was almost… like a mix of a human and monster. It had a human head and body structure, but with horns and much more muscular than one should be. That and it's body hair covering most of its skin" That was cause for concern. A human-monster hybrid? Things were getting weirder by the moment.
'First the black dragon… then that irregular monster and now this? What is going on?' Bell pondered as his Intuition told him one thing for certain. He had to figure it out, or people could die.
"Alright… I think I got what I need. Do you think you could lead us there? I would like to see this for myself" Bell said as Artemis nodded.
"Alright, follow me then, it's quite the walk" the goddess of the hunt answered, beginning to move towards the forest with Rethusa following her closely. The others followed suit shortly after, disappearing into the abyss of the woods.
=Unknown, 1 day earlier=
"M'lady, Heracles has reported back, he says he found the possible asset" Antheris, a high ranking intelligence officer reported, handing papers over to his Queen. The Vouivre queen smiled at her human subordinate, taking the papers and reading them over.
"Hmm… so Heracles has made contact with 'him'? And he's currently assessing if they are recruitable? Good. Report to him that if 'it' is not an asset we can recruit, kill it. It's too dangerous to be kept alive if we can't keep it in check" The queen handed back the papers as Antheris nodded.
"Of course, M'lady. Also, the reports from the subsidiary for our weapon production, we have managed to produce enough weaponry to supply twice our army size" he finished as the voivre leaned back in her comfy chair.
"Hmm, send out orders to focus all resources that were put into weapon production onto armor production instead. It's falling behind schedule and the weapons we have now should suffice. Our population won't double by the time the conflict begins" she said as she flipped through some papers, skimming the words detailed onto them.
"Your wish is my command, M'lady" Antheris bowed as he took his leave.
"So… what are your thoughts, Milia?" The queen asked the maid, who had stood to the side of the room, listening to everything.
"Well, as I've mentioned before. I am unsure of that… 'thing' you want to recruit. It's clouded in mystery, but I trust your judgment" She said as the queen smiled.
"That's why I like you, Milia. You aren't afraid to voice your disagreement to me, and I agree. He is clouded in mystery. My hope is that he can be recruited. He would prove to be a very valuable asset to have" She said as Milia nodded.
"Which is the reason I trust your judgment. If things get out of hand, I, as your pledged maid and protector, will assist in resolving the situation if needed" Milia finished as the queen nodded.
"Of course" the voivre stood up and stretched lightly "Well, it's getting late. How about we tuck in for the night. Heracles' report should arrive tomorrow" She finished as Milia nodded. The two walked out of the office, heading towards their chambers, looking forward to the sleep waiting for them.
=Folkvangr=
"Ottar dear, tell me, what's new about the training, is it coming along well?" Freya sat on her bed, twirling the glass of wine in her hand before taking a sip.
"It's progressing at an acceptable pace, M'lady" The boaz responded, standing stiff to the side as Freya looked him over.
"That's good. That means the preparations for when 'he' returns are coming along nicely" She commented as Ottar nodded.
"With him, you are referring to the boy, are you not?" Ottar queried as Freya smiled softly as she looked out the window of her bedroom.
"Yes. As have been made perfectly clear. My Odr does not want to be found. The best way to move forward is to prepare for his return?" She muttered as Ottar nodded again.
"Yes. As you know, We have the advantage of me being a level 8, while Loki has the advantage in numbers. Both first-class and the lower classes of adventurers. It's a stalemate" He openly evaluated the situation for his goddess.
"Yes, and I want to break that stalemate. With Allen, Hogni and Hedin reaching level 7, we have somewhat lowered the gap by a small amount, but it isn't enough" She finished with a frown.
"Indeed. That is why I've decided to ask you permission to keep track of everyone's status so that I can determine when they should go into the dungeon to achieve a great feat" He said, the question clear in his sentence.
"Of course, Ottar. You are my most trusted child. I will give all status sheets to you and trust your judgment" Freya happily agreed.
"Thank you M'lady. I will not betray your trust" He bowed as she smiled before standing up, unclasping her revealing clothing, letting them fall to the ground revealing her diving body to the boaz in front of her.
Without a second to waste, she dug herself under the covers and sighed in delight at the comfortable warmth.
"Goodnight Ottar. Make sure to get some rest too" She smiled at Ottar with a glint flashing in her eyes.
Ottar nodded, taking his leave, leaving the goddess of beauty alone in her chamber, closing her eyes, letting the world of the dreams take her over.
=Yume Castle=
"Your excellency, the wagon is ready and prepared" A man dressed in fine clothes said as he bowed towards the empress.
"Have you counted the amount?" The current empress of the Far East, Asula Yume asked as the man nodded.
"Yes, two and a half million, ready to be sent to the hero of the far east" He answered as she nodded.
"Good, make sure it arrives at the location" She said as the man walked out.
Over the years of her tenure as the Empress of the Far East, she had mellowed out a lot. She had become wiser and calmer. It's quite ironic as the job is quite stressful as she has to manage and make final decisions for basically the entire country.
Her hair had grown even longer as her body had fully matured, which had brought a whole lot of unwanted attention. At first when she had become Empress, she had been bombarded with marriage requests from high standing families from around the Far East as well as some of the still standing noble bloodlines in the capital.
She had quickly shut that down, but it all had begun again when she had hit another growth spurt, catapulting her into full maturity. Now, getting either proposed to or getting a marriage request was a daily occurrence.
It had become a very tiring affair that she just wished would disappear, but she reasoned that it came with the job and her looks.
She was described as an incredibly attractive woman, not just because of her position, but her looks and personality as well.
She was well liked in the far east after all, being the most widely accepted and favored empress in the entire history of the Far East.
That also came with a lot of stress that she sometimes wished she had Bell and his family here to wind her down.
She smiled fondly at the memory of her visit. How they had joked and laughed at Bell's expense when it came to the ridiculous sculpture she brought with her.
She hadn't laughed like that since then. It was one thing that she had found that his family were the only ones able to accomplish, and she loved them for it.
Now, for the past couple of years, she has acted from the sidelines, keeping an eye out for Bell and his family as he had become quite the target from his… exploits. She had managed to halt multiple plots against him brought forth from salty bandits that thought they had a chance to kill him.
She had just taken care of it for him, as there was no way for them to even harm Bell.
"What's making you stare into the ceiling like it's your long lost lover, Asuka?" The voice of her mother snapped her out of her trance.
"Mother! Don't scare me like that!?" She complained as Takara covered her mouth as chuckles escaped.
"My apologies. I was just curious" she said with a smirk plastered on her face, telling Asuka that she wasn't sorry at all.
The woman had grown older, wrinkles beginning to appear on her face. Almost unnoticeable, but they were there. She was in her forties, almost fifties now without a falna after all.
"Well, to answer your question mother, I was thinking of Bell and the others. I just miss them" Her face contorted with a sad look as Takara felt a pang of empathy for her daughter.
"I know, but as you know, Bell has his own desire, his own goal. He has been gone for three years now and from what I gathered, only returned recently. He will visit eventually, and you know it. After all, he did say we were like an extension of his family to him" That got Asuka to smile as she remembered his words before she departed the last time she saw him.
"Yeah… you're right" She sighed out, her mood improved from the talk.
"Good, I'm happy I could help you" Her mother gave her a smile as Asuka returned it.
"Of course, mother. Now, I do have to get back to business" She finished as Takara nodded, taking her leave as Asuka got back to her work.
=Tomb of Antares=
"Gah!" Bache huffed out as she punched a scorpion into a tree, cracking it's casing and sending it flying. The next moment, she narrowly dodged the tail of another from impaling her as a drop of sweat dripped down her forehead.
She jumped up, backflipped before ending a kick straight down into the monster's head, crushing it completely before turning to dust.
"God, how many are there?" She muttered as a knife flew past her face, impaling the monster she had sent flying earlier.
She sent a smile towards the thrower, being Bell as he nodded at her, quickly kicking another one away with ease without even looking.
"Quite a lot. They are thinning though" Bell answered as Bache chuckled.
"Mom, to your left!" Bache instantly reacted, tilting backward and catching the stinger from another scorpion that had snuck up on her.
She violently pulled it, ripping it's entire tail off as it squirmed and screamed out in agony, greenish yellow blood spewing over the ground before she promptly finished it with a stomp.
"Thanks, Adrienne" Bache said as she peeked at her daughter.
She was handling herself very well, analyzing the situation and choosing the optimal attacks.
Adrienne parried a stinger before cutting the tail off, before shoving the shortsword through its head, right in between it's protective shell.
'These things are tough' she mentally commented. Her sword could barely pierce their shells. She had to aim for their soft spots, in between the openings that allowed movement. Her dad and Mother could simply crush their enemies like they were dough underneath their fists, but she didn't have that luxury.
Her siblings on the other hand were struggling, after all, they were at a huge disadvantage.
Taking on a single scorpion was hard for them as it was a monster that bordered into level 3 was like a level 1 trying to defeat an infant dragon. It could only be done with help.
Thankfully, they were leaning on each other, so they were holding out with all of us holding our own.
Artemis had taken back the spear temporarily with reluctance in order to fight the monsters while Rethusa was doing similarly to Adrienne.
Adrienne kicked another monster to the side and was about to finish it off before her eye drifted to the side, noticing a stinger heading straight for her.
It was too close to dodge and in a split moment, the stinger was there, the next, the monster had been pulverized alongside a line of trees behind it.
"Remember, always focus on the battlefield, not the opponent" Bell said as she noticed him next to her, his foot going through the downed scorpion's body while his fist was outstretched with a little steam coming off it.
"Right, sorry" She said as she practically felt the smile underneath his mask as he rubbed her hair.
"Don't worry. We learn from our mistakes. Just learn from yours" he finished before disappearing from her sight again with a few more monsters suddenly being pulverized.
God, she hoped to be that strong someday. It was almost majestic to watch.
She shook her head before refocusing on the battle, now focusing on the entire battlefield, quickly noticing that there weren't that many scorpions left guarding Antares entrance.
She rushed forward towards the next monster, deciding it was best to end the battle now that they were beginning to outnumber them.
"Hya!" Artemis swiped the spear, cutting a scorpion in half before flipping over an attack before throwing the spear, causing a loud crash to echo into the forest as the spear went through it and created a small impact crater.
A whooshing sound interrupted her focus as she looked behind herself, seeing Bell standing there, a scorpion's skull in his hand before dropping it.
"Sorry, thought that scorpion had you" Bell chuckled as Artemis did the same with a smile.
"I can handle myself you know" She added before picking the spear up as Bell shook his head, disappearing again, heading straight towards the last scorpion of the two that had been attacking the twins.
He quickly grabbed ahold of it's head, lifting it off the ground before ripping it in half.
"Dad! We had that!" Jannor complained as Bell gave him a look that said everything.
"Yeah, well this is a team effort. It was the last monster so I finished it" He told his son with a straight face as Jannor pouted. Adrienne and Aralaya snorted, holding back giggles at his complaints.
"Anyway, it seems that the path towards the entrance is clear" Rethusa said, panting from straining herself.
"Right, let's head down there" Bell said as Artemis nodded in agreement.
"Here" The goddess said, holding out the spear towards Bell. He pushed it back towards her while shaking his head.
"You should keep it. For protection that is. There are most likely more scorpions inside apart from this 'Antares'" He said as Artemis stubbornly pushed it back to her.
"Remember what I said. The spear only Partially works for me. Antares can only be killed by the spear when it's at its full potential" She reasoned as Bell frowned. His intuition told him to take it, but his heart told him differently.
He still felt like he didn't deserve it as he frowned, contemplating what to follow.
"I have an idea…" The two turned towards Aralaya who had spoken up.
"Yes?" Artemis asked as Aralaya looked between the two again.
"Well, why don't you keep it for now, Artemis? Dad can take it when he needs it" She said, giving them an option that Bell was thankful for.
Artemis sighed out before nodding.
"Alright, I suppose that works, but the spear still belongs to him" She finished before turning towards the entrance to the tomb.
Everyone followed suit as Artemis pointed the tip of the spear toward the door before pushing it in the gap it fit perfectly into. She twisted it like a key as the mechanisms in the door began to move.
Noises were heard before the door split in too, before opening up for them to enter.
"Of course the spear is the key…" Bell muttered as Artemis looked over her shoulder with a smirk.
"As it's the only thing that can kill it, it's perfect to act like a key" She said with a smirk as Bell couldn't help but chuckle.
"Alright then, I suppose that's reasonable"
They quickly began walking into the tomb. As they continued deeper, into the glowing red cave like environment, a few things caught their attention.
Magic stones and dust were littering the floors, as if something had fought down here and hard.
"Artemis… did you have members down here as well?" Bell asked. He knew it was a dumb question, after all, there were no bodies, only magic stones and dust on the fround.
"No… not this close to the entrance" She answered as she looked around with concern etched onto her face.
Something was definitely wrong. This was not what they had expected. If the ones outside were alive, then why were the ones inside dead? A question that had no answer as of right now.
"Only a little ways forward until we reach Antares" Artemis commented as they were approaching a corner.
Once they passed it, they entered a big room with pillars that held the entire room up, keeping it stable.
At the sides, the wall was decorated with drawings etched into the walls as if they were telling a story.
What kept everyone's attention though, was the center of the room. Two monsters stood around a lot of bodies.
Artemis stumbled backwards at the sight as Bache caught her.
"Are those…" the amazonian muttered as Artemis nodded. Bell turned to Rethusa who seemed to be pushing back a mixture of grief and rage.
"Artemis Familia…" Bell answered for Artemis before taking in the two monsters. One which he guessed was Antares. A giant version of the scorpions they had encountered outside, but with an additional protrusion out of it's head with an empty crystal.
The other monster looked… exactly as the monster Artemis had described. A Minotaur/human hybrid… and it was talking? With Antares?
Bell focused on the conversation as he began picking it up.
"Antares, don't you understand? I only wish to give a proposition!" The minotaur said as the monster grunted.
"Oh, blast it! This thing doesn't understand intelligent speech. M'lady was mistaken to send me here…" He huffed as he stomped onto the ground, causing a crack with his feet.
Antares grunted again before looking up, only for it's eye to spot something it had been wanting for some time now.
Right in it's view, was Artemis, staring at it. The next moment, the cave shook as Antares screeched loudly, causing the Minotaur to react by pulling out a large metal axe, pointing it defensively in Antares direction before noticing it's eyes looking somewhere else.
It turned around, spotting everyone. It looked calm at first but the moment it's eyes landed on Bell, it almost growled at him.
He instantly got a bad feeling and pulled out his longsword.
"Everyone, get read-" He was about to warn them before a fist slammed into Bell's skull, sending him flying into the wall behind him, shaking the entire cave.
"DAD!"
"BELL!" Everyone echoed their concern as the minotaur stood there, it's fist outstretched to where Bell had stood.
A rock moved as it was pushed to the side. As the dust cleared, Bell could be seen, pulling himself up from the ground before groaning.
"What is it with me… and finding strong monsters in caves? Give me a break" Bell muttered as he gently rubbed his jaw.
It has actually really hurt, which meant the monster was at least level 6 in power, maybe more.
"Oh, you survived that? I was right to attack" The minotaur spoke up as Artemis and Rethusa just stared.
"Look, you're a Xenos, right? Why don't we just talk?" Bell tried to reason as the monster grunted.
"I'm sorry, but I have orders to not leave any witnesses" He said as Bell frowned in confusion. Orders? From who?
Bell was about to ask the questions that popped into his mind before the minotaur appeared in front of him again, sending it's fist forward.
Bell instantly twisted around the attack, grabbing it's muscular arm into a hold before tripping it and smashing it's back into the ground hard.
"Who are you talking about?" Bell asked as the minotaur grunted again before standing up, pulling Bell up with him as if he weighed as much as a feather.
"I am not allowed to disclose that information" It said as it grabbed Bell, pulling him off of his arm before smashing him into the ground before promptly stomping where the dust covered Bell's body.
It was about to punch the ground again before it felt a tap on its shoulder, causing it to quickly swipe it's arm around violently as Bell dodged.
"Alright, you're strong… but can you keep up with my speed?" Bell asked as he launched forward, the sonic boom echoing across the cave.
He pushed against the minotaur hard, using all his momentum and strength as they launched through the cave wall into a neighboring cave, leaving the others to fend off Antares.
"Everyone! We need to scatter and buy time for Bell to get that minotaur thing out of the way" Bache yelled out "Kids I know you want to help, but I need you guys to fall back and try to take cover" Bache now looking at the younger party members.
"Rethusa, I'm going to second that, if need be you and Adrienne can carry one of the younger ones if it comes down to you guys needing to run" Artemis told her captain.
"Yes ma'am" was the unified response, except for Adrienne. "But this is what I wanted to do, to adventure I can't run away here!" Adrienne cried out, Bache turned and for Adrienne Bache had basically instantly appeared in front of her "I know, but this isn't something that we can take lightly… please if not for my sake, but your father's, go back and be ready to run" Bache lovingly putting a hand on her daughter's shoulder.
Teary eyed Adrienne nodded and turned to join her siblings and Rethusa to fall further back in the cave in case a speedy escape was needed.
Meanwhile the monstrous creature known as Antares was making it's way over to Artemis solely focusing its eye on it's prey. Artemis was breathing slowly, trying to calm her heart, 'Orion, please save us'
Antares had now begun to reach down for Artemis with one of it's claw-like appendages, only to be blind sided by a poison-covered fist from Bache, it's screech shaking the foundations of the cave.
"Let's do this!" Bache yelled out though she meant it for herself, Artemis took it to heart and readied herself as well, hoping that her Orion would return soon.
*BOOM*
"Oh come on, why do you have to be like this? I know your race and I've come to help many in my life. Seriously, why can't we talk this out?" Bell asked the minotaur creature while weaving in and out of the minotaur's flurry of punches, kicks, and axe strikes.
"I told you human, I am not permitted to say anything." boomed the minotaur, growing ever frustrated by the human man.
"Well what are you allowed to tell me?" Bell jabbed, not just in question but also landing a solid hit into the ribs of the creature, causing it to flinch extremely hard from the sudden rush of pain.
"Ugh, how are you so strong for a human? The creature in there is unique, and a threat, but you? You're just a threat…" His eyes narrowed.
"But if you insist on knowing something I believe that telling you my name isn't against my orders" He stood up and placed a fist in his chest.
"I am Heracles, and I am not a xenos as you've claimed" Heracles stepping back into a battle stance.
"Well then Heracles, I am Apollyon, and I am still not satisfied with your answer…" Bell now lowered into a stance that he was getting ready to launch himself at an intense speed.
Now that both were ready, Bell threw a curve ball at Heracles, he sheathed his longsword and activated both Scourge and Argonaut, both glowing white and the strange mist-like covering flowed from his body.
"Heracles, I do wish that circumstances were better, I would truly like to know where you're from and who you are, but I have a duty to protect those who are with me, and those who are not here I must return to. But I must end this, I hope you survive…"
Heracles, a minotaur like being, not only in stature but in his freakish strength as well, stepped back. 'Is this fear? ONLY MY QUEEN SHOULD BE ABLE TO MAKE ME FEAR!'
"RRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" Heracles rang the earth around them with his shout and lunged forwards to his opponent, only for Apollyon to disappear, and for him to find himself in the air.
The last words Heracles heard before his world was engulfed in fire and faded into blackness was "I'm sorry…"
"Why won't this thing just stay down!" Bache complained as she pummeled Antares into a wall, it's wounds healing faster than she could inflict them, even with her poison.
"It's Antares' healing factor. It makes him immortal! Only the spear can kill him" Artemis called out as Bache looked back at her.
That turned out to be a mistake as Antares rammed at her, sending Bache crashing into the nearest wall.
"Gah!" She cried out as pain exploded through her body. It felt like a horde of minotaurs rammed her over, but she pushed through the pain and stood up, imbuing her fists with the poison once again before shooting forward.
She had to buy time… if she didn't, Artemis would die, and so would Adrienne… The mere thought tugged at her heartstrings hard.
The image of Adrienne and the twins laying dead sent a wave of dread and determination shooting through her body. The pain felt like it was inconsequential all of a sudden. Like it didn't matter at all.
Antares sent it's claw at Bache who swiftly kicked it out of the way before grabbing hold of its body and pushing up with everything she had.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH" She screamed as it's giant body was lifted off the ground before she spun around, throwing it with all her might, sending the giant scorpion flying majestically into the wall, shaking the cave and collapsing a pillar.
"Wow…" Bache faintly heard the whisper of Artemis, staring slack jawed at the spectacle.
"Never… doing that… again" Bache panted heavily before she heard movement. From Artemis' words earlier, she knew it wasn't over. She only had to buy time though.
Antares shot forward as Bache blocked it's outstretched claw with her dagger, having pulled it out quickly before she punched the claw and jumped out of the way, narrowly avoiding it's stinger.
*Crack*
The second claw impacted her abdomen, sending her spiraling across the floor before recovering while Antares tried to quickly snatch it's intended prey.
"I DON'T THINK SO!" Bache screamed as she kicked it's claw away from Artemis before stomping the floor hard, sending a rock up as she caught it.
She aimed and threw the sharp edge as hard as she could at Antares, who stumbled back from the unexpected attack.
Bache closed the distance before lacing her attacks with poison once again. It may not do much, but it seemed to at least prolong the healing by a small amount.
It was at least something.
She sent a flurry of blows towards it as it tried to do the same. Bache counteracted with all her might, but even with it all, one attack snuck through her defense and was about to impact before a blur rammed into it.
Bache stared at the blur in shock. Right before her eyes, Adrienne stood there, holding back the attack as she clearly struggled.
Another attack came from Bache's front while she was completely occupied with the right claw before Rethusa and the twins came out of nowhere and caught the stinger.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE! I TOLD YOU TO RUN!" Bache lashed out, blood dripping off her forehead and staining her clothing.
"Sorry, Mom, but I couldn't leave you" Adrienne smiled through the struggle as the twins looked back through their wobbling limbs.
"Yeah, auntie, we can't leave you to die" Jannor said as Adrienne smiled in agreement.
"Who will help me when I'm struggling with training? You're always there for us… so let us be there for you" Aralaya finished as Bache nearly teared up.
"Okay…" She began before shaking away the tears "Then let's pincer attack, confuse it and don't let it pick a target" Bache instantly threw the order as everyone nodded.
The amazonian twisted the claw under her arm before snapping upwards with all her strength, completely shattering half the claw clean off as Antares screamed out in agony while the claw rapidly healed.
"NOW!" Everyone spread out, surrounding Antares before it had completely recovered. The moment it did, it instantly launched at Bache, only for it's back to be sliced, causing it to turn around to the twins, who jumped back.
Before it could attack them, Adrienne, kicked its eye as Rethusa positioned her sword in the path of the eye's new trajectory, completely impaling.
She let her sword go, leaving it impaled, negating any healing from occuring with the sword still stuck in the wound.
The twin's took the opportunity and got behind Antares and together pulled at its tail, slowly pushing it towards the ground, but their adolescent bodies were not completely strong enough to do it.
Bache intercepted and basically slammed it into the ground before pinning it.
"Go, help Rethula restrain the claws!" The two instantly reacted and headed for the front, taking a hold of one of the claws together, struggling once again, but managing to pin it down while Rethula did the same to the other.
"They… they are actually doing it…!" Artemis breathed out in complete wonder.
"Come on! Hold it!" Bache encouraged as everyone struggled as the monster writhed like a maniac.
*BOOM*
The cave shook, sending everyone into the air before landing once again, letting the monster free.
As everyone was confused, Antares had disappeared, taking the moment of confusion and rushing towards Artemis.
"NOOO!" Artemis screamed out as it pulled her into the air. The crystal casing on top of it's head began opening as Artemis struggled.
No one reacted in time as it moved up, ready to place her within before-
She was gone from it's claws. Antares opened and closed its claws, confused upon why it couldn't feel her anymore before it used it's hearing to pinpoint her location, only to notice that someone had snatched her out of its grasp.
Artemis looked up, being met with Rubbetile eyes once again as she sighed out in relief.
"Orion…" She breathed out in relief before slamming the spear into his arms.
"Take it… finish it…" She said as Bell looked onto the spear with a moment of hesitation before sighing.
"Alright…" He said, standing up and facing the monster. He held the spear before aiming. His instincts scream at him to throw it.
He focused, the world slowing down to a halt as the spear lit up, it's power awakening to its potential as it's intended user brought it to life.
"AHH!" He grunted out as he took one step forward and launched the spear with all of his might. The spear shot through the air so fast that it wasn't even visible to Bache, who was the closest to Bell's level.
*BOOOOOOOOOOM*
A blinding light filled the room from the impact as everyone was sent flying into the walls from the resulting shockwave.
After a couple of seconds, the light calmed down as Bell for the third time that day pushed a large rock off his body before dusting himself off.
He looked forward before halting in his tracks, his mouth agape.
In front of him, a gaping hole into the sky had appeared where Antares had been, the spear apparently having flown something into the heavens.
"Ehm… what?" Bell muttered, still not believing what he was seeing.
The other's weren't exactly any better, just staring at the hole like it was some kind of trick to the eyes.
"Ehm… am I seeing things?" Rethusa asked as Bache rubbed her eyes.
"I don't know, are we seeing the same thing?" She answered.
"Wow… that… WAS AMAZING!" Adrienne shot up, a wide smile on her face. Seemingly the only one not completely gobsmacked at the display.
"Orion…" Bell snapped out of his state and turned to Artemis who was holding her abdomen and limping.
"Artemis, are you okay?" He asked as she nodded.
"Yes… I'm fine. Just a little sore" Her answer calmed him down before he turned back to the hole.
"Ehm… I kind of lost your spear…" He muttered as she chuckled.
"It's your spear, and if you lost it, then call it back. It functions similarly to Mjolnir. You can will it to return to you" she simply stated as if that was something completely normal.
"Okay…" he muttered before holding his hand out, not believing for a second that she was serious.
The moment tried it, a glint appeared in the sky before the spear shot back into his hand at blinding speeds, even to Bell.
"Woah!" He screamed out as Artemis burst out laughing. The other stared at the spear in awe.
"Artemis! Are you sure this is my spear! I can't keep something this precious!" Bell instantly tried to give it back as she just neglected his attempts.
"Yes. The spear chose you, so it's officially yours" She said as Bell's resolve faltered. He looked at the spear, blinking at the thought of what it could do.
"I… I just can't use that kind of power on a regular basis… It's too destructive" He said as Artemis shrugged.
"It's your power. You choose when and how to use it. The spear is merely a tool that chooses its user, and as a tool, you choose how to use it" Bell sighed, his will to fight against keeping it slowly shattering.
"I don't know…" He muttered before sighing.
"How about this, you keep it for now and if I ever regret it, I'll take it back? Deal" Artemis asked as Bell stared at her.
He contemplated her words for a minute before sighing, there was no way she would go for anything less.
"Alright…" Bell muttered, making Artemis give him a bright smile.
"Great! Now how about we head out of here, Orion?" She asked.
"Yeah, dad! Let's head out of here!" Adrienne echoed the claim before the others began nodding in agreement.
"Alright then… but where are you going to stay, Rethusa, Artemis?" Bell asked.
"Oh, I think I'll move somewhere close to you. You are my Orion after all" She answered as Bell stared at her blankly, his mask perfectly masking the expression. He sighed before shaking his head.
"Okay… how about you, Rethusa?" She gave him a look that just screamed 'Is that a serious question?'
He shook his head before turning back towards the exit path.
"Alright, I'll head out first to get some fresh air. Meet me out there when you're ready to return" He said before heading off while the rest sat down and let themselves recover.
Bell had his eyes closed as he walked to the exit, trying to figure out what the minotaur, Heracles, had meant with him not being a Xenos. He was a monster with intelligence, superior strength and the capability to converse without attacking. Sounded just like a Xenos to him.
Once Bell reached the exit, he opened the door with the spear before stepping outside. The moment he did, he stopped as his heart began beating a million miles a minute. His superior senses telling him to remain still, to not move a single muscle.
He opened his eyes, despite his body's protests and looked up, only to come face to face with the blue eyes of a Vouivre, glaring at him.
"Who might you be, human?"
That's chapter 31, everyone! Bell comes face to face with the mysterious queen! Next chapter, a lot of answers are coming.
Now, I do have to say that I got Corona last week and had been bedridden for some time. It's the reason the chapter didn't get finished until now :(
The good news is that I'm feeling much better now and getting back into the flow. Now, there isn't really much else to say so I hope you all enjoyed it and to see you next time!