The Nuckelavee kept the pace with Berserker. Cinder's fingers kept tracing the scars around her neck. The words of her own peon kept haunting her that it drowned out every other noise. Not even the massive stomps that the Nuckelavee made with each gallop could reach her ears.
"She's no different than her own step-mother!"
She gritted her teeth while the Nuckelavee kept its furious stampede. Yet, the words kept coming back. No matter how fast the Nuckelavee ran, Cinder could hear Mercury's words as though he was right there next to her. It was as though he ran right next to her ear.
Cinder roared in anger and burned down the trees surrounding her; she nearly burned down the entire forest because of it. The Nuckelavee was forced to throw her out. Her instability had only made her angrier and burn down even the ashes.
Flames kept spewing from her palms and her mouth as she burned down even the stones buried underneath the ground. The charred tree trunks that survived were cut down by her large sword of burning glass. Grimm, too drawn to her negativity, disobeyed Berserker's orders and proceeded to attack Cinder.
Berserker fought them off but Cinder commanded otherwise. "Let them come! I'll punish them myself, these ingrates!"
Cinder needed an outlet and these Grimm provided just that. Only the elder Grimm followed the words of Berserker and the Nuckelavee kept its distance; the imp on top didn't even bother to scream like a banshee. No Grimm that attacked even reached her. Berserker could only watch in stoic silence as Cinder burned down its brethren.
Somehow, that only made her angrier. Berserker had Grimm Kin as a skill, and yet it did not show anything when it came to the deaths of its brethren. It accepted it as though it had committed some kind of wrong.
"Why doesn't this bother you?" Cinder demanded. "I'm burning down your useless brethren. I called you names! I berated you! Tormented you! Ignored you! I was disgusted with you! Why aren't you lashing out? Why aren't you angry? Why are you still wearing that shock—"
Cinder paused. It last only a moment. Berserker had worn that same shock collar around its neck, the very same shock collar that she had been made to wear. But while Cinder had begged for mercy, pleaded for the pain to stop, Berserker never once made a complaint. Not once did Berserker lash out. Berserker followed her words to the best of its abilities. Even when the command proved itself to be something outside of Berserker's skillset, it still did its best just for her sake, because she was its Master.
Berserker remained sitting in place even as Cinder's eyes burned furiously, trying to puncture a hole through Berserker's head with her own vision. Yet, there was no rebellion from Berserker, no desire to prolong its own life. There was only the obedience of a Servant towards its Master, no matter how cruel the Master was, no matter how just like her step-mother she was.
Cinder's breathing soon returned to normalcy. The flames flickered out and no Grimm approached. Berserker growled at any Grimm approaching and this time, they listened. Even now, Berserker continued its duty of protecting Cinder against any and all threats. Cinder could still see flashes of the shock collar there on its neck. Berserker's own was much closer to a dog's collar than a necklace, fit for an animal.
Cinder gritted her teeth. That thing should never be on its neck.
But isn't that what you've been doing? The voice of Mercury spoke back to her. There he is, loyal as a dog, and you couldn't even so much as give it a bone. Not even a treat! At least step-mom was kind enough to give you some scraps off of her plate!
A glass sword appeared on her hand and Cinder screamed as she thrust it into the ground, breaking it into many pieces. The glass shards turned to daggers and pikes as she continuously buried them over and over again. She began to beat the ground until her aura ran out and her fists began to bleed.
The glass shard that remained reflected her face back at her. She was still wearing the shock collar. Cinder panicked and tried to rip it out only for her to scratch her own neck. She feared that her step family would press the button again. She felt the mold on the bread and the stored water that had gone bad because of its plastic containers go down her throat.
Then, she remembered the shocks most of all. The uncontrollable contortions as electrical shocks shocked every nerve of her body. The excruciating pain as her nervous systems were getting fried. Her aura healed those wounds. But that only meant that she could endure for longer periods, heal her as much as it could just so the pain could begin anew.
Her breathing went up again that Cinder had to calm down. She could hear own heartbeat as she backed away from what she thought had been the thrown shock collar. Berserker approached. Its shadow loomed over her. Then, it laid down its head on her gently. Berserker's horns gave Cinder something to hold on to as Berserker laid flat on the ground; its head laying on her but never crushing her beneath it.
Cinder's breath kept going until it returned to a proper rhythm. Cinder then placed her hand on Berserker's resting head. She felt its arms around her, keeping her warm against the cooler winds as though she was freezing. Her legs were trembling as if she were. Her clothes were still the ones that she wore now and not the rags she had then.
She remembered that she was no longer there at the Glass Unicorn. She remembered that she had killed her own step-family. She remembered that no one came to save her; she had to break herself free and it was when she was close to dying did Salem find her and took her in.
The outside air had been freezing that night. Her weakened body would have failed her then if it wasn't for her own semblance keeping her warm, keeping her alive.
Many times, she had been reminded that she was nothing without her step-family, that she would have been back at that accursed orphanage, bullied by other children if it wasn't for her step-mother stepping in to liberate her. Salem had been the same for a long time, a familiarity that Cinder willingly went back into. Her hand tightened as she thought of it.
Berserker was still there even as sleep took over Cinder without her realizing. Berserker's larger form kept her in the shade even as the afternoon sun began to set. The Nuckelavee remained in their presence, resting as though it were a horse. They still had ways to go before they would reach the shores of Sanus' northern part.
Above them, Cinder could see the tail end of Salem's Monstra and the Grimm horde heading towards Atlas. Berserker still remained and even growled at the skies as a sort of threat. Her fingers traced scars of her neck. But it touched the laces that were tied there, covering those very scars.
Cinder stood up and gently gestured for Berserker to stand down. Berserker complied, lowered its head, expecting punishment for its wrongdoings. Her eyes shut tight and her fist clenched tighter. But Cinder Fall did not strike Berserker, not this time; she could still see the shock collar appear occasionally around its neck. She could still feel it around hers.
"Don't be too hard on yourself," Cinder said. "You've done everything that you could, to the best of your own abilities, even when your… Master is unreasonable and harsh. You're… you're better even without me."
Berserker said nothing and remained quiet. It sat there like a dog waiting for the next command. Cinder approached the Nuckelavee who welcomed Cinder on its back. Like a loyal horse, the Nuckelavee followed her commands. No. It followed Berserker's commands. Berserker looked at Cinder, expecting something. Cinder nodded her approval.
"Let's go." Cinder guided the way. "We have a Grail War to win, Berserker. If you'll have me, we'll win this Grail War and you'll have your wish as well."
"Denying," Berserker replied.
"What?"
"Denying," Berserker repeated. "Serving. Purpose. Renewing."
Cinder sighed. But she wasn't disappointment. "You've already have your wish, didn't you? You're already free."
Berserker nodded.
"Then, will you help me? One last time?"
"Complying." Berserker walked alongside the Nuckelavee with some pride in its steps. They did not rush for they needed to rest. It was strategy for that Cinder chose to slow down. Atlas was going to be a battlefield next. If those Servants were to kill each other there, then it was to Cinder's benefits.
Cinder managed to reach the part of the forests that her fires failed to reach. Berserker continued its silent march. For a moment, Cinder could see that Berserker wore the same rags that she had worn. She shook her head and scrubbed the image out. Berserker didn't fit with those rags.
Berserker stood and almost roared. But Cinder raised a hand. Monstra's figure may be far but Cinder wasn't certain how far Salem's influence could reach. Even if it could not, Caster was most definitely watching.
"Don't call for more Grimm," Cinder said. "We will draw too much attention to ourselves, and you will vie for control against Salem while trying to face off against the Cthnonians of Caster. It is best that we do not have Grimm on our side. Take only a small and effective force, and take out any Seer Grimm along the way. Caster is watching, that much we can be certain."
"Understanding," Berserker replied. It went back on all fours. "Complying."
She took a deep breath. Mercury's words still ringing in her ears. She could feel the collar on her again. She could see the collar on Berserker again. "Good… good work… Berserker."
Berserker tilted its head in confusion. Cinder bit her lower lip. When did her step-family ever tell her that she did well? At least Salem remembered to give Cinder a bone now and again. Berserker never had this from anyone, least of all her. She sighed. Mercury's voice was right. She'll never admit it; she'd rather die in the Grail War than admit that.
The forest was quiet, too quiet. All the animals and critters must have fled for their lives, either recently because of what she had done or long ago when the battle for Vale was still ongoing. Cinder could see the disturbances on the ground, marks of the god of light's armies marching across the Sanus continent as they reached the walls of Vale. Dead flowers and crunched leaves served as the road for them to walk on.
The Nuckelavee cleared the path of any branches that would have gotten in Cinder's face. Those too strong to break from the Grimm's sheer size would have knocked her off her large horse Grimm. No Seers could be seen in any distance, though the imp's stretchy arms did snipe suspicious shapes in the distance at Berserker's command. Berserker scouted ahead like an animal, guiding the Nuckelavee like a dog. No. It was guiding Cinder to the next path.
Even the mountains were quiet. Larger animals that would have roamed here had already left. Even Grimm were absent of this place that Cinder almost felt at peace with this. Almost. She was accustomed to having a level of noise that the sheer quietness of it all only made her uncomfortable. Quiet meant the customers should be asleep. Quiet should have meant peace. But Cinder still remembered those quiet moments.
Her fingers moved back and forth and back and forth. The motions of scrubbing the floors echoing in her mind. The muddied earth reminded her of the mud brought into those floors that she had just cleaned. The exhausted but sleepless nights because someone had to clean up the mess or that someone missed a spot.
Her only comfort then was the Girl who Fell Through the World. She would have dreamt, if she could dream at all, that the Rusted Knight would come to save her. She was powerless then. She had no means of fighting back then. She could only cower and endure only she would break. Whether that breaking meant physical or mental, she didn't know. Perhaps, it was both.
Cinder was jolted back into waking. She nearly fell asleep while on the Nuckelavee's back. Berserker looked back but guided the Grimm onward. The Imp on the horse continued its duty and protected her. The stretchy arms had wrapped themselves around her just to keep her in place, a different kind of keeping her in place, a better one so that she wouldn't fall and hurt herself.
The Rusted Knight had not come to save her then. It didn't come to save her now. But the Jabberwalker was there. When Cinder had called forth her Servant, though she had been deceived, it was Berserker that answered her call. Berserker that responded to her will and cry of pain. Her fingers traced her neck, feeling the scars of the shock collar. She could still feel it there.
The accessory that she wore on her neck, two laces tied together, had hidden away the scars of her neck. She clasped her own hand tight. It was supposed to hide away the scars but it also reminded her that she wore one. She had grown so used to it that she needed to wear somewhere around it always.
She remembered the beatings that she would endure. The times that she had to stand on her own weary and broken feet just to make it stop, only to be punished for it by those that didn't care or demanded that she somehow be the better person and endure it all. No hero came to her rescue then. She couldn't remember if anyone had bothered to even look at her direction.
Then, she remembered the Glass Unicorn's design. The first time she had been there, she had been mesmerized by the lavish lifestyle that they had before them. The thought that she could have lived that life herself only made her more hopeful the first time she came.
But in the end, she was made to do the same. That hope had done nothing more than to crush her further down. Working for rotten scraps because that was the best that she could ever have. Resorting to thievery didn't help her, it was one of the reasons that she wore the shock collar in the first place.
Cinder Fall dozed off to sleep. She felt the Imp's arms around her, keeping her in place. Here, she felt safer. But Cinder scratched that part of her neck.
She was back in the Glass Unicorn. She could feel the pain of the electrical shock again. Her step-family all taking turns to shock her, always increasing the length and voltage just for their own amusement. They took the scraps that Cinder needed to survive. She begged for it to stop. She could hear their mocking tones. The pompous bitches looking down on a girl that refused to grow up and stop reading the fairytales.
But then, the electricity stopped. The shocks had ceased. Cinder panted for air and saw the gruesome fate that fell upon her step-family. Cinder had killed them that time. But right now? It wasn't her that dealt the final hand.
"Berserker?" she asked. She was wearing her rags again.
The horrid end was worse than what Cinder had given them. Not just her step-family, but the people at the orphanage too, an older-looking woman that seemed similar enough to Cinder that the woman might as well be her birth mother. Those older men that thought they could have Cinder address as her father. Figments of her own imaginations.
More people that Cinder remembered appeared, more people that she recalled from that horrid time and place came to gather around her. They had their sticks and their stones, their shock collars and their mops and brushes. But Berserker did not let a single one get to her. Though Berserker roared with a deafening voice, Cinder failed to hear it at all.
Then, there was Rhodes, the man that had trained her to be a huntress. The man who had every opportunity to free her from them. But fear for his own life had made him step down. The systems that were would have aided Cinder, she was sure of that. But the people that were there would not see it that way and see to it that she would remain.
Rhodes and Berserker squared off. Cinder stood up and put a hand on Berserker.
She was no longer wearing those rags that she had. Her heeled shoes returned and that red dress hugged her again. Her fingers reached for her neck and ripped out the shock collar that remained. Glass weapons, akin to the Rhodes' own appeared.
The fight was closer to training. She remembered the motions of this one with vivid imagery. Every shift of the feet and every twitch of the eye, Cinder remembered this night well. Just like that night, it was she who survived.
Every action had her appropriate reaction. Then again, Rhodes never intended to kill her; he just wanted to take her in as prisoner. She would have served her sentence and he would have been the first to help her out.
"You just didn't want to get accused of the crime," Cinder said. It was his weapons that she had used that night.
Rhodes said nothing and the two continued to fight. Eventually, just like before, Rhodes fell and Cinder proved herself victorious.
Then, a final image came before her. She was no longer there in that accursed hotel. Instead, she was in a place that she always envisioned: the whimsical land of the Ever After.
Standing before her was none other than the Rusted Knight. Just like the Servant, his face was hidden underneath that helmet of his. He drew his broken sword and shield.
Cinder closed her eyes. She expected this. A criminal, terrorist, monster, that was all that she would ever be in the eyes of the world. No one would come in to save her. Those that do will always have something they want from her. The very hero she dreamed of did not come to her aid and stands against her.
"Berserker!" she called out.
But one did answer her call. One being did come to her aid: Jabberwalker, the very monster that everyone despised and feared. The first terror for every child. It was Berserker that came to her aid and it was Berserker that battled the Rusted Knight to protect her, to help her, saved her.
Cinder had to become a monster just to survive. As the Rusted Knight's helmet fell on the ground and the armor was hollow and without a body inside, Cinder took one deep breath and nodded; she'll become a monster to win this Grail War.
Her goal did not change; she will seek the Holy Grail for power. She will not cower again. Berserker had dominated over the Grimm as its alpha though one sought to challenge it: Salem herself.
Berserker approached Cinder, head down in obedience. Cinder placed a hand on its head. There were bruises and wounds on it. Cinder's magic allowed Berserker to heal all that damage. Berserker raised its head and looked at Cinder in the eye. She saw the shock collar on its neck.
"That doesn't suit you," Cinder said. She placed her fingers in the collar and ripped it off. "There. Much better."
Cinder Fall soon woke from her slumber. Night covered them. Berserker was rubbing two sticks together. But no smoke came from it.
"Berserker," Cinder said. "Rest." Her eyes burned and a fire came from her hand. "If you truly wish to aid, then get more wood."
"Complying." Berserker left Cinder with the Nuckelavee who rested there.
Cinder laid her head against the Grimm. It was strange for it was like laying one's head against a horse. It felt unsettling for the Grimm had no heartbeat yet there was the movement of breath in them. Eventually, Berserker returned and Cinder chose to lay her head against her Servant. With Berserker, there was a heartbeat, a reminder that it was alive, a reminder that the one who came to save her was still around.
She stared at her hands until sleep took over her again. This night, unlike that night, there was warmth. This night, unlike that night, she had food to fill her belly. This night, unlike that night, she was strong. This night, unlike that night, she had Berserker.
The next morning sun came to greet her and she, riding again on the Nuckelavee, resumed their journey towards Atlas. Eventually, the forests gave way to an open space where Cinder could see the clear skies above them. Yet, Cinder could feel that there was tension in the air the closer she got to that northern edge of Sanus.
The scent of saltwater reached her nose. It got stronger the more they traversed. Warm winds became stronger here though not enough to blow her away. It kept her awake when she would have dozed off. The swooshing of the ocean waves went from calm and serene to violent as it crashed into the stones and surfs at the bottom; they were on a high cliff.
Cinder went down from the Nuckelavee and looked down. There was no safe descent from here. There were only sharp and slippery stones. There was no place for her to land nor was there a path that would lead her there. Whatever path that Cinder could see was too far. If she did take this path, she was sure that the other Grail War participants would have killed each other off with Cinder and whoever the last one would remain.
She chose to rest here for the time being. She returned to the closest tree to rest in the shade as she looked over the horizon. Above them, birds were flying, some were actually Grimm but most were too small to be able to carry her.
Peace and quiet reigned here. There was little need for her to worry about anything else except for food and drink. Cinder shook her head. It wouldn't last; she will have to win the Grail War. But that didn't mean she could enjoy this moment of peace that she had found for herself.
Taking that rest, Cinder stood and had Berserker call for a Grimm. The loud roar came and Cinder had to wait for Grimm to come to her.
She had been looking above her, expecting a Nevermore or a Griffin, and was thusly surprised that a Sea Feilong, aquatic Grimm that had wings, had appeared. It was a large, the largest thing that Cinder had ever seen.
It was that Sea Feilong that assisted Cinder on her journey. Though fast, it could not match the sheer speed of a light bullhead. It was faster at sea but Cinder's constant exposure to sunlight meant that she would have to rest in the shade. Thankfully, aura and magic could heal any sunburn that she would have had. There was little in the way of enemies for none chose to stand in her way.
Hours past and night was eventually coming in again. The Sea Feilong brought Cinder to the closest patch of land, a large island that had no life in it. There were only stones and sand there. There was no wood for her to gather for fire and so she would have to endure the cold night. The Sea Feilong had left Cinder and returned with many fishes, none of which Cinder recognized.
It was the only means of a meal she would get from here. Survival instincts and training allowed her to remove as much salt from the salt water to drink. It was a difficult filtering system but she was a Maiden; she didn't need any tools for the things she needed. It was as simple as blasting the saltwater through her own filtration system to catch as much of the salt but keep the water.
Berserker wrapped itself around her to keep her warm. Cinder rested better that night. She felt protected from all manners of threats. Berserker did as it was told; it always does and it always had been. Cinder still remembered the words of Mercury Black.
She patted Berserker in the head. "You're doing good, Berserker."
Like a dog, Berserker's tail wagged. She shook her head and shut her eyes.
When she had awoken, it wasn't the Sea Feilong that was waiting for her. Instead, it was a Griffin. Cinder failed to notice that the breeze became cooler; she became conscious of it once she noticed the layers of frosty snow on the Griffin. Berserker must have called for this one and the Sea Feilong cannot resume towards Atlas.
The flight had been much smoother on the Sea Feilong. At least the Sea Feilong could glide, reducing the constant need for flapping wings. The Griffin may glide but it was in lesser amounts for the Griffin's weight was greater than that of the Sea Feilong. Cinder's added weight didn't make it any better.
Cool breezes turned colder as the sight of Solitas' shores. The Griffin immediately flew lower as Cinder caught side of the vague image of Salem's Monstra in the distance; they still had some ways left before they would reach the shore. Cinder would make it before they would.
The Griffin's descent was the smoothest for it did not flap its wings anymore. The wings remained extended to provide the slow, descending glide onto the shore.
Shores on Solitas were not that of sands or of rocks. The shores of Solitas were solid ice when the waters at the surface had frozen enough to provide a surface to walk on. The Griffin went slightly further in where the freezing ice was thicker and reached deeper depths.
Berserker's weight had cracked the ice but it did not break from it. Cinder was lighter and could remain afloat if she wished. But doing so needed fire and fire would melt the ice. The cold wind had yet to become intense but Cinder already conjured her heat just to keep her warm. The beauty of her magic is that she didn't need any specialized clothes for the cold.
But Berserker still shielded Cinder from the winds. She may be warm but those winds would have pelted against her until she couldn't stand up anymore. There was a nearby but abandoned settlement for Cinder to rest in.
The building was mostly just the walls; a big hole was there. Much of the roof was gone. Cinder looked out of the massive hole in the wall and witnessed the distant view of the floating city of Atlas.
Despite the distance, Cinder could see, with clarity, the Glass Unicorn from here. Atlas was the place that really began everything for her. That place where she thought she could have been free, only for it to be another set of chains, another shock collar. Her fingers traced the scars on her neck. She shook her head; she wasn't wearing the shock collar anymore.
Faint lines of light slithered violently. The brother god of light was engaged in another fight. Did it still have its Servant or did it already lose? Cinder didn't know, she wasn't there when it happened. She looked behind her; Salem's Monstra had yet to arrive.
After another moment of rest, Berserker once again got in front of Cinder while she freely warmed herself. Only when the winds slowed to a breeze did Berserker's pace slowed enough for Cinder to walk beside it. They could only move from shelter to shelter.
Cinder made a stop at the end of the same settlement. She noticed a camera up there on a post; it was still on and actively following her. Arrows and a bow, both made of glass, appeared in Cinder's hand. She shot the camera and destroyed. Atlas was recording her movements. No. It wasn't Atlas that was recording her movements.
It was Arthur Watts. Cinder was sure of that. No one else would be able to manipulate that amount of technology.
"Let's go Berserker," said Cinder. "We have a Grail War to win."
She stopped tracing the scar on her neck. There was no shock collar anymore. Cinder removed the two laces tied together, revealing the scars on her neck. It wasn't a comfortable feeling, an unfamiliar feeling. But she wasn't collared by the neck anymore.
/-/
She has arrived
That was the only message she needed. Though she still had to wait for the rest to come, she was more than eager to take her chance then and there. Neo's part of the bargain had been done, and Watts and Archer had kept their word as befit of Extraordinary Gentlemen.
Neo stepped out of the abandoned and bankrupt Glass Unicorn. It was a shame that it closed down; she could tell the lavishness of the place would have welcomed the kind of people that she used to be.
But she still had her own quest to fulfill; it was time for her to meet up with the hired help again. Maybe Neo could ask Watts to fix the old and broken shock collar that she found in the basement.
After that, she had to wait for the goody-goody heroes to arrive; Neo needed her own Servant against Cinder. She was fortunate that Atlas constructed their own. She pulled out the special scroll that Watts had given her; it only had one function.
AN: NGL, difficult one to write. Having to carry majority of this chapter with only one character is tough. Sure, Berserker was there too. But it was Cinder that had to do the heavy lifting.