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talpup · 3 years

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Summary: Yami Sukehiro just wanted to join the Magic Knights and make his mentor proud. He knew there would be trails. He knew trouble would come his way. Knew he would be faced with discrimination for being a foreigner and a peasant. What he didn’t know. Didn’t expect. Was that literal Chaos would come his way. That he and his mentor’s sister would be at the center of world ending trouble. Or that he would fall in love with his mentor’s sister and face more than discrimination; but the jealously of Nozel Silva who loved the same woman he did.

Please remember this fic is rated mature and has warnings of violence, abuse, sexual tension, eventual sexual behavior, and other possible triggers. For a full list of story tags please check the fics AO3 (link to that at the top of my tumblrs homepage).

Sorry about the late update. It was a super busy weekend, and my three big chronic illness bad's are still making me pay the price. Anyway, here you all go. Hope you enjoy.

Chapter 96

It was near midnight. All the Captain's were tired, irritable, and on edge. They were meeting because Yami and Teris had never checked-in this evening when Jax had explicitly ordered his Vice Captain's to do so before lights out.

The Black Bulls Captain focused his glare on his fist which rested on the table as questions were asked, hypothesis given, and ideas about what to do were put forth. He blamed himself for Yami and Teris’ disappearance, certain that the Agents of Chaos had taken them.

Having reported to Greywright before this meeting was called, Jax had encouraged the Commander to question the supposed traitor Flic about Yami and Teris’ disappearance. But, Greywright had told him it would do no good. During his interrogation of Flic yesterday afternoon, Greywright had learned that the man knew nothing of the details concerning Alowishus’ plans. Jax would've liked some time alone with Flic anyway. Not to question the man; but simply to beat one of the Agents of Chaos, even if that person was no longer aligned with them.

“I question keeping up the search. Especially this late at night. We went out this morning looking for two Vice Captains and instead of finding them, we lost two more.” Jamie said.

“You sound scared.” Win taunted.

“I’m concerned for the safety of my squad. For all our squads.” Jamie said.

“We’re Magic Knights. We don’t abandon anyone, least of all our own.” Kess said, fiercely.

“I’m not saying we give up.” Jamie told, thinking Pyter would’ve understood if he were still Captain of the Silver Eagles.

“You’ve always been a selfish ass. I doubt you’d want to continue even if it was your own Vice Captain missing.” Mereoleona fumed.

“We don’t even know who took them or why. Blindly searching has done nothing but thinned our resources and wear our Magic Knights to exhaustion, and it’s only been a day.” Danise said.

Whilf nodded in agreement. “There has to a better way to go about this.”

“Better then searching for four Magic Knights Vice Captain’s?” Mereoleona stormed in challenge of the Purple Orcas Captain.

“No one’s saying that. But fumbling around hoping to stumble upon something isn’t working.” Breigha said.

Mereoleona could hardly argue with her friend. During her own futile search this afternoon she had wanted to torch the four kingdoms until whoever took her brother returned him, begging for mercy. She’d fry the fools and then pummel Fuegoleon for letting himself be taken.

“Do we even have an idea if they were taken because they’re all Magic Knights, or three of them royal?” Win asked.

“I’m guessing none of the families have received any word or demands?” Danise tendered. The Coral Peacocks Captain looked from Mereoleona to Julius. She glanced at Kess figuring as Nozel’s Captain she would've been in contact with Nathyn Silva or at least a representative from the royal house.

Julius rapped his knuckles on the tabletop with a silent curse. Just like last year, and two months ago during the Spade Kingdom mess, he had forgotten to send message to Fyntch about Teris being taken. When he had finally gotten around to writing Fyntch last year he hadn’t mentioned that Teris had been taken; simply saying he was sure Fyntch had seen the beam that lit up the sky the morning of the Summer Solstice and assuring him that he and Teris were okay. As for the happening with the Spade Kingdoms Magic Scientist Rayla, he hadn’t bothered sending Fyntch message and told Teris as much so she wouldn’t mention it to their brother.

Having met with Lord Leonidas himself and spoken with House Silva’s representative, Jorah said. “Neither the Silva’s or Vermillion’s have reported receiving demands or word of admission and intent.”

Jamie scoffed, thinking that the Silva’s and Vermillion’s were too proud to admit to it if they had. The two royal houses likely had their own people looking into things and would handle the matter privately if they came across anything.

Whilf looked at the Wizard Kings Advisor. “Has Magic Investigations unearthed anything of use?”

Ellara shook her head sadly at the Purple Orcas Captain. “My people have been out all day checking in with their sources and questioning people searching for some kind of lead. We haven’t given up. But as yet, they have discovered nothing that would tell us who took the Vice Captain's or why.” She looked at Julius, Mereoleona, Jax, and Kess. “I’m sorry.”

Julius and Jax stared at the Wizard Kings Advisor, both thinking Ellara was far from sorry but would be.

96.2

Yami noticed how Calen stuck close by them as he and Teris were made to walk through the portal. Given that Teris had once broken through Calen’s negating magic the first time she had light traveled, it was justifiable that they were concerned.

“Leon! Nozel!” Teris rushed forward only to be grabbed by a cloaked figure.

Yami punched the Agent of Chaos not seeing or caring if the person was a man or woman. He pulled Teris out of their grasp, holding her to him.

“Peace, Livia.” Calen told the woman as Alowishus stepped through the gateway.

Livia stood down and tenderly touched her face.

Hands bound above his head, hanging from a tree branch, Fuegoleon’s eyes blinked slowly open.

Tied and swaying beside the Crimson Lion, Nozel croaked, barely able to lift his head. “You shouldn’t have come.”

“Didn’t have much of a choice.” Yami said, looking them over.

Nozel took in a slow, shallow, shuddering breath; grimacing at the pain the small movement brought.

Teris tried once more to step to them, but Yami held her firm least someone attempt to stop her again.

Teris trembled in Yami’s arms, a fearful rage building. Nozel and Fuegoleon were alive but they were a battered, bloody mess. And that was only the injuries she could see. They had been in the Agents of Chaos’ custody for little more than twenty-four hours. Who knew what those monsters had done to them.

One eye swollen shut. The other, vision tinted red by blood. Nozel told Yami. “First chance you get, you get her out of here.”

Teris shook her head, angry worried tears blurring her sight. Though she had no idea how they were going to manage it, she promised Nozel and Fuegoleon. “No matter what it takes. We’re going to get you out of this.”

“I’m glad you said that; because you hold the way to freedom for your Intended and your cousin. The path to seeing them live through this is a simple one.” Alowishus said, stepping toward her and Yami.

Teris turned to face him. “Let them go and I’ll do it.”

“Teris... No--” Fuegoleon’s lips moved, sound barely coming out. His voice faltered, weakly coughing up blood.

Yami uttered a stream of curses, his grip on Teris tightening. He scowled at Alowishus and the surrounding Agents of Chaos in the low, flickering firelight of Piper’s magic. He would kill every single one of them even if it took his entire life to hunt down every member of Alowishus’ followers.

“That’s not how this goes.” Alowishus told Teris. “Your friends go free only after you and Yami do as I say. Play difficult and we will continue harming them until you do or they die; whichever comes first. But I warn you. They proved difficult themselves, refusing to answer the simplest questions. It’s left them in bad shape. I doubt they’d be able to survive much more.”

Fuegoleon’s eyes slowly lifted, too weak to rise his heavy head. He wanted to tell Teris not to listen. He would rather die than have his cousin agree to whatever these people wanted. But no matter hard he tried, his brain couldn’t make his chapped bleeding lips form the words.

Yami didn’t need a better look at Fuegoleon and Nozel to know Alowishus was telling the truth. It was clear they had been tortured and were in really rough shape. Nozel’s head lolled. Though it was difficult to tell if the man was unconscious or not.

“What do you want?” Yami asked.

“To get to the treasure vault of a labyrinth.” Alowishus said.

“What? You and your people so lacking that you need us for such a simple task.” Yami mocked.

“This isn’t any labyrinth, Yami. The contents of the vault are meant for you and Teris. Destined for the two of you to find and receive.” Alowishus told.

“Labyrinth 297,353.” Teris breathed.

Alowishus smiled. “I see you’ve heard of it.”

Yami looked at Teris in question.

Teris stared back, both surprised and not that Yami didn’t remember. “He wants us to collect the Future of Chaos.”

“Not just the two of you.” Alowishus said, keen ears hearing Teris’ whisper. “I will be going down with you to also receive the page.”

Yami turned to the man. “The History of Chaos has been nothing but a curse. Like hell I’m going to the labyrinth that has the Future of Chaos. I’d rather see those two die.”

“As you wish.” Alowishus’ eyes slid to the Mage that stood beside Nozel and gave a slight nod.

Nozel’s body tensed and began to squirm. Hanging from his arms, he began to swing. His muscles spasmed at the pain. Teeth pressed together trying to hold back the cry that bubbled in his throat.

Yami couldn’t see any outward wounds being made. But when blood began to come from Nozel’s ears, nose, eyes, and mouth, he barked. “Stop!”

Alowishus tilted his head at Yami, not yet giving the signal for the Mage to cease. “Agree.”

Yami glared.

Nozel began to scream.

Voice caught in fear and horror, Teris’ trembled, knuckles white as she clutched onto Yami’s upper arms.

“We’ll do it. We’ll go.” Yami broke.

Alowishus smiled. “Excellent.”

The signal was given and the Mage stopped.

Alowishus held a beckoning hand out to Teris. “Come here.”

Yami’s arm tightened around Teris’ waist. But he hadn’t needed to worry, she didn’t even try to move.

“It appears you require another lesson in how this goes.” Alowishus turned to the Mage and told. “Don’t be so gentle this time.”

Whatever the man was doing, he did it to both Nozel and Fuegoleon. Both their bodies seized. The Crimson Lion and Silver Eagle crying out. Teris tired to take a step toward Alowishus but Yami held her in place. She squirmed in his arms, pushing at his chest; but Yami refused to release her.

Teris looked up Yami at single tear rolling from its bank and down her cheek. “Please.”

Yami shook his head even as his hold slowly released. Teris stepped away him. He made to follow but was barred by someones arm. They didn’t dare touch him, but it was enough to stay his steps.

Teris was more than halfway to him when Alowishus gave his man a nod.

Teris’ steps ceased. Her head started to turn to look over her shoulder at Fuegoleon and Nozel when suddenly Alowishus was right in front of her. His hand clasped her jaw, fingers digging into her cheeks as he turned her to face him.

The next thing Teris knew, Alowishus was kissing her. No. It wasn’t really a kiss. Though that didn’t make it any less unnerving or make her stop trying to push away. It was more like the way a mother bird feeds her young. Only in this case, Alowishus was forcing a thick, vaporous substance down her throat.

Yami broke the arm barring his way and rushed forward. He was tackled and held down by three men. A cloak of mana flickered around Yami like a sputtering candle flame, present one moment and gone the next.

Calen ground his teeth. His magic fighting to negate Yami’s.

Mana skin blinking in and out of existence, Yami threw one of the men holding him into another that was coming to assist. He got to his feet and tossed a second against a tree trunk ten meters away,

“Stand back.” Slade told the third that was still trying to hold Yami back from their Master. The Rope Mage created a glowing rope. It wrapped around Yami, binding him tight.

Yami fell to the ground. He pulled and struggled against the magical binds, yelling curses and threats.

Alowishus released Teris and staggered back. Misandre was there to help steady her Master.

Teris fell to her knees. Sputtering, she coughed up dense black smoke. Her eyes watered, at the burning cold that seeped through her body into her very soul.

“What the hell did you do to her! I’ll kill you!” Yami roared, the magical ropes breaking nearly as fast as Slade could create them.

“I merely replenished her mana stores. You should thank me. In her depleted state she wouldn’t have survived receiving the Future of Chaos, let alone whatever dangers we might cross down there.” Alowishus looked down at Teris who was on all fours choking up thick black puffs. “Your system is adjusting to foreign mana. It’s not a perfect exchange, but you’ll be fine.”

Yami snarled. His fighting didn’t let up, even as Teris’ coughing eased.

“Let him go to her.” Alowishus ordered.

As soon as Slade’s magic released, Yami was on his feet. He rushed to Teris, sliding to his knees to stop beside her. His arm wrapped around her jerking shoulders as she continued to sputter.

“You alright?” Yami asked, pushing her hair back from her face.

Teris nodded, still wheezing. She wiped the stale taste of Alowishus off her mouth and spit, wisps of black mana escaping her mouth and nose like smoke. She pushed up to her knees, a shaking hand gripping Yami’s arm for balance. “Leon? Nozel?”

Yami glanced over at the still bound men. Neither Nozel or Fuegoleon moved. Their breathing so shallow Yami couldn’t see the rise and fall of their chests. Through his sense of their Ki, he was able to pick up on their faint breaths and weakened heartbeats.

“Still breathing.” It was the only thing Yami could say.

Alowishus turned away. “Let’s go. The new moon rises. We must be in the vault by its peak.”

“What’s a moonless night have to do with it?” Teris rasped, Yami helping her to her feet.

Alowishus turned back her. Rather than answer, he told. “Yami’s power might be on the rise. But he has still faced a small down trend as the Summer Solstice has neared. Your power, though lessening, will continue to grow slightly until the morning of the solstice.”

Yami looked at Teris seeing her frown at the unanswered question. He could see her mind working, trying to figure out the answer on her own.

“Before we head out. Turn around and look at your beloved friends.” Alowishus ordered.

Despite not wanting to do anything the man told her to, Teris couldn’t resist. She turned.

Yami stood in her way, wide shoulders and towering frame blocking her view. He gave her a slight shake of his head.

Teris stared up at him.

“Move and let her see them, Yami. You both should know the stakes any further disobedience will have.” Alowishus told.

“She doesn’t need to see them.” Yami said, eyes lifting to the man that called himself Death.

Alowishus stared back. For a moment it looked as if he would insist. With a sigh, he allowed. “Very well. You’ve seen the state of them, Yami. You know what testing me would mean. I doubt you want to be the cause of their deaths.”

Teris balked at that. She tried to step to the side, but Yami moved with her.

“So protective.” Alowishus smirked. Looking at Teris, he told. “It’s probably for the best. A sight like that will stay with you long after they’ve recovered, or died.”

“Leave her alone.” Yami growled.

Alowishus looked down at Teris. “Just so long as you’re aware. Timeis of the essence for the both of us. Your cousin won’t last more than two hours at most. Your Intended not lasting much longer after that. And that’s only if you behave and don’t kill them yourselves by having me set Nexis back to work on them.”

Yami glared at Alowishus. “We won’t try anything. Let’s just get on with it.”

“For the Prince’s sake I hope that’s true. I will be carrying a charm. If I activate it, Nexis continues his work until I deactivate it. If I’m injured, it activates immediately. If I am rendered unconscious, it activates immediately. As unlikely as such a happening is, if I am killed...” Alowishus smiled at the change in Yami’s eyes at the prospect.

“Let me guess. The charm activates.” Yami said.

“No. The charm crumbles to dust. As does the connecting ones left in the hands of my followers. If that happens, not only will the Silva and Vermillion heirs be instantly killed. But the Agents watching Captain's Julius and Jax, as well a the rest of your friends from afar, will spring into action killing them before they even realize there’s a threat.” Alowishus said.

“But you’ll be dead.” Yami said, as if the rest didn’t matter.

Alowishus gave a tight smile. “Only for a time. You cannot kill Death”

“Pretty sure if I removed your head you’ll die.” Yami said.

“I’ve heard that before. Sadly, only one such commenter was still around to see how wrong they were.” Alowishus sighed tiredly and raised a guiding arm. “Shall we?”

Taking Teris’ hand, Yami stepped after Alowishus. They walked for some time through the dark forest with only the dim glow of the accompanying Agents of Chaos’ grimoires to light the way.

While the mana Alowishus gave Teris might've bolstered her magics reserves. It didn’t do much to help against physical exhaustion. Seeing her start to lag, Yami looked ahead to Alowishus. “Didn’t you say time was of the essence? Why are we tripping through a moonless forest?”

“Misandre will see us inside the labyrinth, but first we must find it.” Alowishus said. Pausing his steps to stare at something in his hand.

“What do you got there?” Yami asked.

“Directions. Of a sort.” Alowishus looked over his shoulder at Yami. “Come have a look if you’d like.”

Yami slowly released Teris’ hand. He glared at the surrounding Agents of Chaos in warning. Grateful for the breather, Teris didn’t move to follow him.

Alowishus watched Yami as he stepped beside him and looked at what he held in his open palm.

Yami scowled. “Are those bones?”

“Finger bones to be precise. They’re from the maker of the labyrinth and are pointing us to the labyrinths entrance.” Alowishus smirked at Yami. “You see? I do my part to make things as easy and painless as I can for the two you. When we reach the area, Misandre will portal the three of us in. Once down there, we’ll make our way to the vault and the three of us will enter and receive the Future of Chaos.”

Yami raised a brow. “The three of us?” He scratched the back of his neck. “I might not have the brains Teris does. But I remember the paper sniffers at Investigations saying Yurist’s prophecy said the ones who found the History of Chaos would find its future. Seeing as you weren’t there when we got the first page of Chaos. I don’t see how you expect to get your hands on the second.”

Alowishus’ eyes darkened. “I’ve forgotten more about Yurist and his prophecy’s than the sum knowledge of the four kingdoms libraries and scholars combined. When it comes to such things, you must be careful, Yami. Yes, the prophecy says the two that find the History of Chaos will also find the Future of Chaos. But the key word there is find. Not receive.”

Yami looked at the man thinking that if the keyword was ‘find’ then Alowishus was still somehow wrong and in for a disappointment; because he and Teris weren’t finding anything, they were being led. Giving one last look at the bones that moved like a compass, Yami stepped back to Teris.

They walked a bit more until Alowishus stopped once again.

“Misandre. Here. Three hundred and seven meters down.” Alowishus glanced at Yami and Teris seeing they too had picked up on the numbers. He and his people still hadn’t learned the full meaning of Yami being a third seventh son; and as much as he wanted to question Yami further on it, now wasn’t the time.

Calen stepped to his Master, his concern evident. He remembered last years long lingering injury Alowishus had suffered from his battle with Julius Nova, and Yami and Teris’ combined attack.

“They know the stakes, and won’t try anything.” Alowishus soothed Calen. He looked at Yami and Teris. “Will you.”

Yami’s left hand rested on his katana’s hilt. “I suppose you’ll just have to trust us. Just like we’re having to trust you about not killing the royals, and letting us all go.”

Calen glared at Yami. “If you harm the Master. I’ll do more than kill your friends. I’ll find this Land of the Rising Sun and end every single member of the Sukehiro line.”

“Good luck with that.” Yami said, sure there had to be a family that went by Sukehiro in his homeland; unfortunately for Calen’s plans, it wasn’t Yami’s family.

Misandre opened up a portal. Alowishus gave the Spatial Mage a nod as he passed through. That’s when Yami saw the woman’s hands. Hands he’d recognize anywhere given the amount of times they had hit him and tried to crush his neck.

Yami pulled his katana from its sheath. “Those don’t belong to you!”

“Yami, don’t!” Teris grabbed his arm, not seeing how his eyes had flicked black for a fraction of a second.

Snarling at the woman wearing Bronn’s hands, Yami sheathed his katana. “I’ll soon see those off you and where they belong.”

96.2.2

“Teris. Give us some light.” Alowishus said from somewhere in the dark space.

Teris’ hand twitched tempted to light up the direction Spade’s voice sounded from and fry him. Her grip on Yami’s arm tightened, grateful they had stepped through the portal together.

Slowly, she lit up the area. The three blinked, their eyes adjusting.

Looking about the space, Alowishus told. “To use your terminology, the labyrinth isn’t active. With it not open and visible to the surface we will have to deal with the dark. But it also means that most of the beasts and traps will be in hibernation. Still, be on guard. The creatures that reside in places like this are more powerful during the new moon.”

“Which leads me to ask again. Why a moonless night?” Teris questioned.

Alowishus tilted his head. “The vault is this way.”

Senses alert to danger even if he didn’t appear to be, Yami commented almost conversationally. “I suppose we should be thankful that Bronn was such a good Spatial Mage. Without his hands, that woman probably would’ve deposited us between bedrock.”

“Noticed that did you?” Alowishus smiled, leading the way.

“Gotta admit, I half expected her to try and smack me upside the head.” Yami said.

“Parts taken carry a residual portion of a persons magic, not a remnant of the persons character.” Alowishus said.

“Why take Bronn’s hands at all? Were Erskin’s a little too chewed up by Saber Wolves? Or were the hands of your dead follower too painful to see?” Teris asked.

“When you have lived as long as I; such feelings of friendship, love, even hate all but fade away. I’m not so old that I’m incapable of affecting such emotions for the sake of others. But, just between the three of us. I feel little to nothing. Well, until the two of you showed up.” Alowishus stopped and turned to to face them. “You two have done much more than give me the means to reach my aims. You have made me feel again. First excitement. Then awe. I have long since forgotten what hope felt like. But I believe I may have begun to feel a bit of that as well.”

Teris’ brows furrowed. “Just how old are you?”

Alowishus wagged a finger at her. “A proper bred young royal like you should know it’s impolite to ask.”

“Just how old are you?” Yami questioned.

Alowishus smirked and turned away. “Come. Time runs short.”

Though they didn’t come upon any traps. They did happen upon two beasts. Just as Alowishus had said, the creatures were more difficult to subdue than expected. Finally they reached a large cavernous chamber with a set of towering double doors that looked near identical to the ones that had housed the History of Chaos.

“Our time together is almost over.” Alowishus said, as if saddened by the fact.

“You’ll keep your word and let us go.” Yami prompted.

“Of course. I’m a man of my word. After this, you and Teris are free to go. Until I next require you that is.”

“Nozel and Fuegoleon?” Teris questioned.

“Your beloved cousin and your Intended will be set free as well.” Alowishus said.

“Last time we faced a vault containing something having to do with Yurist and Chaos the doors snapped shut behind us and didn’t reopen till someone from the outside did so.” Yami said.

“That won’t be an issue.” Alowishus said.

“Why? Got a tracking charm on you that you’ll leave where you’re standing so the Spatial Mage with Bronn’s hands can portal here and open the doors when we’re done?” Yami asked.

“Clever. But no.” Alowishus told.

“Then what’s your plan for getting us out of there?” Teris questioned.

“Me.” Alowishus said.

“You?” Teris stared.

Alowishus’ expression darkened. “Even if you don’t trust me. Trust that I don’t want to be in that vault room any longer than necessary.”

Alowishus turned and looked at the vault doors. Excited as he was to once again see and this time receive the Future of Chaos, he wondered if his grandfather’s work would have him. And if added to his grimoire, what, if anything, the page of Chaos would show him.

96.3

Nozel’s eyes slowly opened. Even with the pain, thirst, hunger, and fatigue muddling his senses; he could feel a swell of mana not too far from where they were.

Guilt washed over him. Not just for Teris agreeing to whatever Alowishus wanted for his and Fuegoleon’s sake; but for the terrible state the Crimson Lion was in.

During their questioning, the Agents of Chaos had taken to torturing the other in effort to get them to comply. The tactic had worked a lot quicker on Fuegoleon, who had caved, reluctantly answering their questions. Nozel’s will to protect Teris and ability to tune things out had seen him hold out longer. Their tormentors cutting into Fuegoleon’s flesh and magically tearing at his insides as Alowishus calmly waited for Nozel to answer.

Much as he wanted to, Nozel couldn’t fully lay the blame of this on Yami. Not when he and Fuegoleon were being used to make Teris comply with Alowishus Spade’s wishes. Not when even he had broke for Fuegoleon’s sake and answered the mans questions. He tried to recall what those questions had been but currently couldn’t.

His still good eye, the other swollen shut, turned in the direction of the swelling mana. The direction Alowishus had taken Teris and Yami in. He hoped Teris was alright, and silently swore he’d kill Yami if the man let anything happen to her.

Still unconscious, Fuegoleon’s shallow breath rattled in his chest. The Crimson Lion was fading. Yami and Teris needed to hurry.

96.4

Yami’s head snapped up, sensing a rise in Alowishus’ mana.

Teris turned to the man as well, tone accusatory. “The peak of the new moon has a similar effect as the solstice does for us.”

“Not the peak of the new moon. The moment right before. When it is at its darkest. The height of the moons death, if you will.” Alowishus gestured to the closed vault doors. “After you.”

“Never been in a labyrinth where the vault doors didn’t open. Do we just bust in?” Yami asked.

Teris shook her head. “There’s magic holding the doors closed. If we try to force it, the reaction could be similar to our magic when it clashes.”

Yami looked up. “Under three hundred some odd meters of earth and stone. I don’t like our chances of surviving that.”

Teris turned to Alowishus. “The labyrinth’s not active. There is no way we can open the vault doors.”

“You disappoint me. Unless you’re hoping I’m that stupid.”

Teris’ mouth opened, but Alowishus continued on.

“I assure you. I didn’t go through all this trouble without being certain there was a way to open a sleeping labyrinths vault room.”

“Then do it.” Teris said.

“Now that does make me certain you know better. Did you forget the rules regarding your friends up top? Think you could see me dead by tricking me and light travel to them before my followers kill them?” Alowishus’ eyes darkened. “Open it up.”

“The mana you gave me— I doubt it’ll recognize it as mine.” Teris said.

“Then we will just have to hope your system was able to assimilate enough of it for the labyrinth to recognize it is you.” Alowishus said.

“What’s that?” Yami asked, looking between them.

Frowning at Alowishus, Teris explained. “If what Yurist wrote is true. Then our mana should be able to open the doors.”

“So why can’t he do that?” Yami asked.

Teris stepped before the doors. “Shall we.”

Yami scowled. “I asked you a question.”

“Leon and Nozel don’t have much time.” Teris told.

Yami stared a moment. Something was off. He didn’t like how Teris didn’t answer him. How she wouldn’t even look at him, staring straight at the door. But she was right. Braid Face and Lion Cub were in bad shape. They didn’t have much time.

Heaving a sigh, Yami tilted his head side to side, stretching his neck. “How much mana are we giving to open up this thing?”

Teris swallowed, nervously. “As much as it needs in order to recognize us as us.”

Yami did the same as Teris and placed his palm on the door. He slowly loosened his hold on his mana. Even a couple paces from Teris and in direct contact with the object he was letting his mana seep into, it was a struggle to keep it from veering to connect with hers.

A pressure beneath his hand built as if something other than the door was stretching out, making contact with him. It apparently approved, as it stopped taking in his mana forcing Yami to pull back on the eased harness of it least his lose control and his mana connect with Teris’.

Yami turned to Teris surprised she wasn’t done as she had started before him. He stepped to her. A prickle of foreboding tickling the back of his neck. “Teris?”

Watching Teris with interest, Alowishus warned. “I wouldn’t touch her.”

Yami spun to the man, temper and worry rising. “What’s happening?”

“It’s trying to decide if it’s really her.” Alowishus said.

“What do you mean, if it’s her? Of course it’s her.”

“Did you forget? I gave her a portion of my mana.” Alowishus said.

Yami’s muscles tensed, concern tipping into fear. His jaw clenched, understanding what Teris and Alowishus had been talking about. Understanding why she had avoided answering and had refused to look at him.

“I’m confidant her system has been able to assimilate enough of my mana and make it her own by now.” Alowishus eased.

“Bastard! I’ll kill you!” Yami stepped toward Alowishus, katana cloaked in darkness.

“Do you really wish to be the death of Teris’ beloved friends when you are so close to seeing them and yourselves go free? Or was this your secret plan all along? To lash out at me and get her Intended out of the way. Permanently.”

Katana raised to send a slash of darkness, Yami paused.

Alowishus lifted a shoulder, smirking. “I can’t say I blame you. You face enough trails with me and my plans as it is. It would undoubtedly be a relief not to have to deal with the mess of having to fight in order to make Teris yours. You know I could just activate the charm. We could finish up here and return to the top. It’ll simply appear to Teris as if they succumbed to their injuries. It will be our secret. She need never know.”

Yami glared. The cloak of darkness disappeared from his blade. “No.”

“I could send message for only Nozel to be put down.” Alowishus tempted. “Fuegoleon, if he still lives, isn’t the problem after all.”

“I said, no.” Yami growled. He sheathed his katana.

Teris fell to her knees.

Yami turned back and knelt beside her. “I got you. You alright?”

“Yeah.” Teris breathed.

Yami brushed her hair back noting how pale and feverish she was. “When we get outta here you and I are gonna talk about the chance you took without telling me.”

“Had to—for Nozel and Leon.” Teris panted, trembling hand wiping her sweat drenched brow.

Looking down at them, Alowishus felt a pang of disappointment that Yami hadn’t taken him up on his offer. Maybe it was merely because Death had helped create Darkness; but there was something about Yami that made him want to win the young man over.

Alowishus stepped in front of the opening vault doors. “Up. We still got our prize to receive.”

Ignoring the man, Yami asked Teris. “Can you stand?”

Still out of breath, Teris merely nodded.

Yami hooked her arm around his neck and wrapped his arm around her waist. Easily bearing most of her weight, he lifted her to her feet with him as he stood. “Let’s get this over with.”

They stepped into the vault with Alowishus. Yami and Teris looked at each other, puzzled when they weren’t congratulated by the same Crazy Happy Killer Voice that had greeted them when they received the History of Chaos.

If the labyrinths were created by the same person. Even if that person wasn’t Yurist himself. Then surely things would be similar. The doors and interior of the vault were almost identical.

At least this vault didn’t have bodies in various stages of decay, Teris morbidly thought.

Alowishus seemed to realize something was wrong as well. Mana flaring, the Master of the Agents of Chaos released a roar of fury. The chamber they were in shook around them. Dirt and stone raining down.

Yami held Teris tight, creating a shielding cocoon of blackness. “Get us out of here!”

Teris would’ve done so but for one thing. Her concern for Nozel and Fuegoleon’s lives. Alowishus still held that charm.

“Now!” Yami gritted, dark cocoon straining against the weight of the crumbling labyrinth.

Teris light traveled them to where they had last seen Fuegoleon and Nozel.

“Get away from them!” Alowishus ordered his people when they made to move against Yami and Teris.

Teris spun around. Yami’s shield dropped,

Teris’ hand lifted on instinct. She sent out a burst of incinerating light only for it to dim and slow as soon as if left her. Slowed as it was, it was still faster than most magical attacks.

Caught by surprised, Alowishus didn’t get a chance to move. The attack struck him in the chest. There was a moment of stillness as everyone stared.

Alowishus and Teris blinked at one another. They both knew he had been undefended and her direct hit should have instantly killed him.

Rage still consuming him, Alowishus counted this as one thing going his way this night. “It would seem your system hasn’t assimilated enough of my mana for it to harm me. Better luck next time.” He saw Yami reach for his katana and ordered. “Misandre. Quickly now.”

Alowishus didn’t wait around long enough to see if Misandre was able to portal his followers out in time. Breaking apart, he disintegrated into the earth.

Katana cloaking in darkness even as he unsheathed it from its scabbard, Yami sent out a several dark slashes. He cursed, knowing before they cut down the trees beyond that he was too slow. Alowishus and the Agents of Chaos were gone.

Yami turned to Fuegoleon and Nozel. With a swipe of his blade, he cut the Silver Eagle and Crimson Lion free. Hoping Alowishus' foreign mana wouldn’t adversely effect her light traveling Fuegoleon and Nozel, Teris took the four of them to Healers Hall.

96.5

Alowishus’ anger had barely calmed. Storming into his private office, he slammed the door behind him and made for the shelf behind his desk, picking up his father's skull.

“Your lied!” Alowishus roared, gripping the skull in both hands.

“I told you, your efforts would be futile.” A voice resonated in his head.

Alowishus shook the skull, not hearing the dead mans words. “The Future of Chaos was not there!”

“The Future of Chaos is not for you.” The voice of the skull sounded in his mind.

“I had a plan to work around that. It was faultless.” Alowishus snapped.

“Apparently not.” The voice said.

“You placed grandfathers work back inside labyrinth 297,353 after you retrieved it, putting special protections in place to keep me out.” Alowishus said.

“You mean after I took back what you stole?” The voice of Erin Spade questioned.

Alowishus snarled, grip tightening. “I had it in my grasp and you took it. Stole it.”

“You stole it first.”

Alowishus slammedthe skull down and turned away. He had barely been able to delve into the unfathomable knowledge that was the Future of Chaos before his father had ripped it from his grasp. He had been sure his father had placed the page back in labyrinth 297,353 for Yami and Teris to eventually find; certainthat his father had merely set barriers to block his re-entrance, since he had been unable to enter again until tonight.

“You placed grandfathers work back inside labyrinth 297,353 after you retrieved it.” Alowishus said, again.

“Did I?” His father's voice sounded in his mind.

“You moved the Future of Chaos to another location!”

“You moved it first when you stole it.”

“You changed the future Yurist saw. You ruined Yami and Teris’ destiny to have the Future of Chaos.” Alowishus accused.

“More thanlikely, I kept theprophecy concerning the Future of Chaosin tact. While my father’s prophetic words could often be unclear. That one sentencewas quite clear. Findand receive. It could hardly be said those twofound the labyrinth, what with you setting upon them and forcing them to bend to yourwill and go down there. I have full confidence that Yami and Teris will find and receive my father’s final work, if they haven’t already.”

“What do you mean haven’t already?” Alowishus demanded.

“Destiny canonly be bent to your will so far before it snapsback to its own designs, Fin.”

Alowishus sneered at beingcalledby his first life's name. “I will have my way, Old Man. Yami and Teris will help me awaken Chaos and see to a finalend. I will get what I have worked sevenexistencesfor.”

“Good luck doing it without the Future of Chaos.” The voice taunted.

“You are useless and more infuriating every time I speak to you. I should ground your bones to dust and forget you ever lived.”

“I wish you would.” The skull of Erin Spade said.

“That would bring you too much joy. Finally finding your rest after all these years. No. You will not rest until I have my way.” Picking up the skull, Alowishus set it back on the shelf. “Till the death of the next moon, Old Man. Know that I won’t enjoy the three nights of your company anymore than you will mine.”

Comments are VERY MUCH appreciated and really make my day. Thank you to those who have left hearts. And a special THANK YOU to those who have recently commented or re-blogged. It really means a lot.

Next chapter snippet:

“He’s ill.” Jax said.

“How ill?” Marx asked.

“Deathly.” Yami rumbled.

#yami sukehiro #nozel silva #fuegoleon vermillion #julius novachrono #mereoleona vermillion #black clover #light in the darkness

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semperintrepida · 5 years

Text

Reckoning

The night before the Spartans invaded Megaris, the stray dogs that usually hung around the forward camp suddenly disappeared, and Kassandra overheard the men muttering about ill omens and unfavorable winds. A foreboding mood had enveloped the camp as soon as word of the invasion order had begun to spread, and it snuffed out the ribald jokes and dark humor that normally accompanied the places where the soldiers liked to gather.

The order to invade had come from the Wolf of Sparta, General of the Armies — a man once known in simpler times as Nikolaos, father of Kassandra and Alexios, and fifteen years ago he'd thrown her off a cliff because the Elders told him to.

Kassandra could not sleep, and in her restlessness she had wandered from her bedroll at the far edge of the fort's walls, where the non-citizens pitched their tents, and into the heart of the Spartan encampment. Now she was a stranger among the familiar, and though the Spartans didn't recognize her, she certainly knew them, for tradition was their way, and their ways rarely changed.

Soon after her arrival in Megaris, she'd taken up the Spartan habit of constantly wearing a helmet while stationed on the front, as a matter of caution given the volleys of Athenian arrows that often rained down on the fort. But she had another reason to obscure her face behind a helm, for it would make it harder for someone to connect her to her mother, or even to Leonidas, her grandfather. The Agiad bloodline ran deep, and it shone in her eyes and in the curve of her cheekbones.

It made her a ghost among the living.

She'd spent weeks in Megaris, present but unseen, undermining the Athenian forces from within and preparing the way for a full-scale Spartan invasion — all at the behest of Stentor, the Wolf's adopted son. Apparently it was as easy for the Wolf to obtain a new family as it was for him to destroy his old one. Though it rankled her greatly, she worked tirelessly under Stentor's command. She stole supplies from the Port of Nisaia, looted the state coffers out from under the stratego in command of Fort Geraneia, killed the misthios hired to organize the capital city's defenses, and then, soon after, assassinated the Megaran leader himself. The people of Megaris began to whisper of a Spartan ghost that walked among them, but it wasn't Sparta she had done all these things for, but herself. She would give the Wolf no choice but to meet her in person, and when the Wolf was no longer the Wolf, but just a man, she'd make him answer for the things he had done.

But first, she had a battle to survive.

She walked past tent after tent, hearing quiet voices, the occasional cough, someone snoring in the distance, and the soft rasp of blades against whetstones. There were hundreds of soldiers here, and hundreds more on the Athenian side, and soon they'd come together in a battle larger than anything she'd ever fought in before.

Her feet kept moving, past tents and campfires, drawn towards the ringing sound of metal against anvil. As she approached the smith's forge, she saw that the smith was a perioikoi — a free man, but not a citizen, one of the thousands who labored at the tasks the Spartans felt were beneath them, which were most things not involving combat or chariot racing.

"Eh, misthios!" he called out as she passed. "How about a new sword before tomorrow's excitement?"

That brought her closer to his stall, and to his table of wares: a variety of leaf-shaped spearheads, and a row of bronze and iron swords in the short xiphos and curved kopis styles that the Spartans favored. The deadly metal gleamed gold and silver in the glow of the forge.

"Go on, pick one up," he encouraged.

Her fingers curled around the smooth wooden handle of an iron-bladed xiphos, and she lifted it, felt its weight and balance, and then guided it through a series of slow, controlled swings. It was light — as light as her broken spear, and almost its same length, more a dagger than a sword.

"I'd forgotten that Spartans preferred shorter blades" she said.

The smith smirked. "They're long enough to reach an Athenian heart."

That was true, but only in very close combat, after the enemy had closed the distance and a spear only got in the way. She studied the sword, noted its straight lines and carefully inset fittings. Even the handle had been polished to a shine, the forge-light bringing out the layered depths within the grain of the wood. It was an excellent sword, and it would cost far more drachmae than she had the resources for, especially now that she had an entire ship to maintain and a crew to pay and feed. Everything she'd stolen from the Athenians in Megaris had been sold to make this month's wages.

"Beautiful work," she said, setting the sword down next to its brethren. "But my purse is a bit light at the moment."

The smith moved out from the shadows behind the table, and in the light she could see the rivulets of sweat that ran through the metal dust that coated his skin. His face was ruddy and his eyes were fixed into a squint from the heat blast of the forge. He looked her up and down. Then he tentatively reached for her sword hand, his eyebrow raised, asking her permission, and when she nodded yes, he took her hand in his own. His thick fingers prodded her palm and worked her wrist back and forth, looking for something unseen to her eyes. "Huh," he said, as if surprised. "You'd probably make a good smith. You're built for it."

She grinned and said, "Probably. But your job's safe for now."

He threw up his hands in mock surprise. "A misthios with a sense of humor! And on the eve of battle. You are a strange one, aren't you?" He studied her face through his squint. "Let me see your sword."

Kassandra handed it over silently, and he hummed as he hefted it, gave it a few experimental swings, and held the hilt up to his nose so he could peer down the length of its blade.

"Well, it won't get you killed," he said. "But I can make it better." He took the sword back to his workbench and started tinkering, and she heard several loud hammer taps followed by the scrape of metal on a sharpening stone. The rhythmic sound was calming, and she watched the smith's shadow play against the stone chimney of the forge while he worked. After a while, he turned to a long strip of leather that hung from the roof beam and stropped the edges of the sword against it until they gleamed in the firelight. "There," he said when he was finished, handing the sword back to her. "Engraved with the mark of Ares. It'll be a little hungrier for blood from now on."

She tested the blade's edge against her thumbnail, pleased to see it shave slivers off with ease. He even managed to remove the deep gouges that she'd never been able to sharpen out on her own. But when she held out a palmful of drachmae in payment, he only picked out a few coins and left the rest.

"Ares guide your blade, misthios," he said. "Get yourself paid, and we'll see about getting you one of my swords."

Her visit with the smith had helped quiet some of the restlessness in her blood. She needed sleep, and dawn would arrive soon enough. She retraced her steps back through the tents, along the fort walls, and down to her bed, chasing Hypnos, and when she finally dreamed, she dreamt of falling.

Kassandra's first taste of organized battle began within the vanguard of the Spartan forces, a mix of free men, conscripted helots, and hired mercenaries that guarded the advance of the rest of the army. They had expected attacks from enemy archers and javelin throwers along the way, but their march to the battlefield had met no resistance. The Athenians had chosen to concentrate their ranged defenses along the sides of their phalanxes. Each phalanx was a wide formation of soldiers several rows deep, protected by interlocking shields and bristling with spears, and two of them awaited the Spartans at the other side of the field.

She heard shouting from behind, and slowly the vanguard shifted around her as they began marching to the left, taking on more of a skirmisher role and clearing a path for the Spartan phalanxes to assemble in formation across from their Athenian counterparts.

Thus the Battle of Megaris began with a staredown between two armies.

Beside her, a young helot wearing a worn tunic and a helmet at least two sizes too big for him shifted his weight nervously from foot to foot. She clapped a hand down on his shoulder and said, "When the fighting starts, never stop moving."

He nodded at her with wide eyes, and Kassandra wondered how a small support force of lightly armed farmers and slaves could accomplish much of anything against a full phalanx.

Then a hush settled over the Spartan side, as if they'd all taken one collective breath, and then there was a shout that drove everyone into a headlong charge, the skirmishers and phalanxes moving together in one continuous line, like a great wave headed for shore. The nervous energy was gone in an instant, everyone a part of a single purposeful unit as they charged across the battlefield, and the feeling of focus and unity lasted just as long for the skirmishers to come within range of the Athenian archers, for as soon as the first of them began to be felled by arrows and javelins, their advance wavered while the Spartan phalanxes continued on, their shields protecting them from the dangers overhead.

The man in front of her stumbled and fell, skewered by a javelin through his chest, and she reached down and grabbed his shield without missing a step, holding it up before her so she could duck under it as she ran. She'd somehow ended up near the front of the supporting charge, and she could see the Spartans up ahead on a collision course for the Athenian lines.

Arrows bounced off her shield as she charged forward, and she heard a roar as the Spartans slammed into the Athenians, their advance coming to a sudden stop. She thought she heard a familiar voice within the fray, shouting, "Push forward, men! Push!" The phalanxes would remain locked in a stalemate until one of the front lines broke. The men who didn't break would be the victors.

Up ahead was the Athenian skirmisher line, positioned to defend the vulnerable side of the enemy phalanx. She drew her sword and picked out an enemy hoplite, just as the point of a javelin suddenly burst through the wooden core of her shield, pelting her with splinters. She flung the shield and javelin into the hoplite's face and stabbed him with her sword in one smooth motion. Then she drew her broken spear with her free hand and descended into a maelstrom of chaos.

It was quickly apparent to Kassandra that in a battle like this, there was no time for fancy moves or blocking defense. If it wasn't a slice or a parry, it was too slow, and slow meant danger lurking from all sides.

Kassandra cut her way through the front ranks of Athenian skirmishers with ease, aided by her unconventional use of a sword and what was essentially a long dagger against men armed with swords alone. But then she reached a squad of hoplites armed with swords and shields, and her progress ground to a halt.

How in Hades was she going to break through that many shields before their swords hacked her to bits?

She slid her spear into its sheath on her back and focused on attacking with her sword, and soon found that a heavy sword strike to a shield could knock an enemy backward — but more often than not, that just meant another interchangeable hoplite would take his place. There were far too many of them for her to remain locked in a defensive battle, and if she didn't come up with a plan in the next few moments she'd find herself surrounded by a wall of shields and sharp swords that she'd never come out from alive.

As the hoplites began to close in, she fended off the nearest one's attacks while studying the edges of his shield, and when the idea came to her she almost laughed at the simplicity of it, and its absurd amount of risk. In one sudden motion, she stepped right inside his sword range, reached across her body with her left hand, and grabbed the rightmost edge of his shield before yanking it back across her body with everything she had. As soon as she felt him lose his grip on the shield, she pulled it free and slammed it back into his chest, knocking him backwards so hard that he took out the man behind him as well.

The other hoplites hesitated. That just made it easier for her to pull off the same move a second time, rushing up to the next man, yanking his shield free and launching it at his head. The impact knocked him out instantly.

She swapped her sword for her spear and began to laugh, as a sense of unstoppable power flowed up from within, insulating her from the chaos as everything moved just a step slower than she could. Parry, shield break, thrust spear into the side of a throat. Parry, shield break, sink spear deep into a belly. She was close to the Athenian phalanx now, and could see the two front lines locked in combat.

Somewhere within that scrum was the Wolf, and she intended for him to witness the tide of this battle turn at her command.

As she carved a path straight for the vulnerable side of the Athenian phalanx, she heard the howling war cries of friendly fighters as they fell in behind her. She was the order in the chaos, and when she reached the first row of Athenian spears, she used a stolen shield to knock the spearpoints aside before plunging into their ranks. Up ahead was an Athenian captain, easily identified by the colorful crest on his helmet, and she knew that if she cut down all their captains it would be like cutting the head off a snake.

The Athenian phalanx was beginning to lose its cohesion, and its men began to flee once they realized they were within a Spartan pincer grip on two sides. Kassandra sought out the first captain, let him come to her, then dodged the lunging attack of his spear. As soon as it passed, she slid inside and shoved her spear through his ribs and into his heart.

The second captain still had his shield, and her new trick worked just as well on him as it had with all the others. But as he staggered from being struck by his own shield, he slammed the shaft of his spear down hard on her armored shoulder and her left arm suddenly went numb from neck to wrist. He went for his sword, but she was already there to meet him with a looping slice of her spear that separated the fingers from his hand and the entrails from his belly.

Her body sang for more. Her blood thrummed with power and craving and a vast want that grew with every breath. She shook the numbness out of her arm and looked out over the battlefield, seeing nothing but targets.

The final captain was a massive brute of a man, armed with a heavy axe and accompanied by three hoplite escorts, who immediately charged at her approach. She reared back and kicked the first man into the second, then parried a sword strike from the third before rolling to dodge what would have been a crushing blow from the captain's axe.

She glanced around, saw the first man unconscious, the second staggering back to his feet, the third circling to her left, and the captain moving to her right. The scene began to play out before her like a prophecy. She somehow knew the captain would swing his axe around in a wide circle, so she launched herself into a sliding tackle that let the axe pass harmlessly overhead and ended with her taking the second man's legs out from under him. They collapsed in a tangle of limbs, yet she never stopped moving, and she stuck her spear in his throat, in and out, before she rolled back to her feet. The third man was on the verge of panic, his sword moving erratically with his frantic swings, but she somehow knew which way his blade would go — and that the captain was readying another attack of his own. She maneuvered the third man around with a combination of parries and swipes from her spear, causing him to backpedal, until her final swing put him into the path of the captain's incoming axe. The blow nearly cut him in half.

The captain bellowed with rage. "Mercenary scum! You'll die now!"

She wouldn't, of course. Not when she could leap out of the way of his axe, and circle back around to his blind spot, and sink her spear deep into his back as he let out a ghastly roar of frustration. It took five stabs for him to die, and when he finally toppled over, all the remaining Athenians fled the field.

Kassandra watched them run, then slowly turned towards the Spartan forces, knowing every eye was upon her. But there was only one set of eyes she cared about in this moment, and they belonged to the Wolf, who watched her in silence from what had been the front line of the phalanx. She matched his gaze moment for moment as she reached back and sheathed her spear. Then the Wolf gave her a nod of acknowledgement and turned away.

It was time for the Spartans to gather the dead, but that wasn't her job. She'd won a far more important prize, and very soon it would be time for her to collect.

The Wolf wanted to see Kassandra and Kassandra alone. She had to admit a certain amount of satisfaction at the discomfort this caused Stentor. Was the poor boy jealous? Too damn bad.

It was also satisfying to see a Spartan honor guard lined up along the path to the top of the cliff where the Wolf awaited, even if it was bound to make her escape more difficult if her visit with him went the way she thought it would. And the Wolf's choice of venue couldn't have been more appropriate.

Once she reached the pinnacle, she saw him standing near the cliff's edge with his back towards her, looking at the sea.

Her feet stopped moving, rooted by the memories that suddenly shuddered through her. Her mother's desperate cries. Alexios disappearing over the edge. And how it felt to fall and fall. She closed her eyes and thought of snow on Mount Taygetos, and she wrapped herself in that cold until the shuddering stopped. It was time. She took off her helm and set it down next to the path. There was no longer a need to hide her face, and when the Wolf turned around to meet her, the way his eyes widened told her she'd become a ghost made flesh.

"Hello, father. It's been a long time." How odd it was to stand with their eyes at the same level when he had always loomed over her in her memories.

"Impossible. I saw you fall."

Fall? "I didn't fall. You fucking threw me to my death."

"I did what was required of me as a Spartan."

He would have allowed the priests to throw his own son off a cliff. And after her disastrous attempt to save her baby brother had seen both her brother and the Elder priest fall to their deaths, Nikolaos had tried to execute her by his own hand. She never expected him to say anything else, or do anything other than hide behind duty like it would absolve all sins. He was her father. She hated that fact almost as much as she hated him and his duty to Sparta. Rage crept into her heart, burning the way cold iron could burn.

Nikolaos must have sensed it within her. "I can't change the past, Kassandra," he said, with the wounded dignity of a man who knew the Fates had caught up to him. "I will live and die a Spartan."

Then her hands were on him, her fingers curling around the straps of his armor, pushing him back, back to the edge so that his upper body hung over the precipice.

So close. She was so close to flinging him off the top of the cliff. It would be fitting for him to fall long enough to be aware of what was happening, to know that death was moments away and there was nothing he could do to stop it.

He wouldn't even have a pile of rotting corpses to cushion his landing.

It would be so easy: a push, her fingers letting go, a man falling in space. If she would just open her fingers... If she would just—

Instead, she pulled him back from the brink and tossed him to the ground with a frustrated cry, turning away from him to face the hills and the battlefield and the sea far below.

"Though you deserve death, there is no honor in vengeance," she said, the words so bitter on her tongue that she wasn't sure she believed them. There wasn't much honor in killing for drachmae either. But something had stayed her hand. Perhaps she wanted him to keep suffering, to keep facing the same ghosts she had for the past fifteen years. There was no peace to be made here.

Nikolaos lay in a heap at her feet. "I have failed in my duty. I failed to protect you — to protect both of you," he said, a broken man confessing to his gods, and Kassandra knew his words weren't meant for her. But then he pulled himself up on his knees and said, "I loved you and your brother as if you were truly my own. But you were never mine."

The very air seemed to close in around her as she realized what he meant. It wasn't possible. Her ears no longer heard sounds, her skin no longer felt the breeze, and her vision narrowed to the deep lines on his face and the haunted look in his eyes.

Her first memory: running barefoot at home with uneven toddler steps, a stick held fast in her fist, poking him in the knee as she shrieked her fiercest battlecry. Strong arms lifting her up. His chest rumbling with laughter. "Look, Myrrine — Great Lycurgus has sent us a hero!"

Nikolaos was a flawed man, but he was no liar. If he said something, he believed it to be the truth.

"Find your mother," he said.

How many revelations must she bear? Her blood began to roar in her ears like waves in a storm. "Find her?" she heard herself say, but she was already unmoored, roiling in rough seas with nothing but deep water beneath her.

"Wherever Myrrine is, she knows far more than I do," he said, before he turned and walked away in search of the honor he'd lost when he put his duty to Sparta before the family he'd sworn to protect. Kassandra let him go, too dazed to argue or do much of anything other than stand there in stunned silence. "Beware the snakes in the grass, Kassandra," he said in warning, and then he disappeared into the forest that shrouded the top of the mountain above them, a wolf slipping back into shadows.

He'd left her with so much to think about that nothing came to mind. The foundations of her history had shifted, tilting everything built upon them. She was not who she thought she was.

She picked up Nikolaos's helm and sword from where he'd discarded them in the dirt, staring at them without seeing, and when the first of the Spartan guardsmen arrived at the top of the cliff, that is how they found her.

The shouts were loud and immediate: "The General's gone!" and "She's killed the Wolf!" and it wasn't true but it was Nikolaos's parting gift, for Sparta would surely blame her for his sudden disappearance.

The time for thinking was later. The time for leaving was now. She quickly pulled his helm onto her head and drew her own sword, and now she had two swords and the means to chop through the spear shafts the guardsmen had crossed to block her way. Beyond the first two guards was the curving path down the mountain with a sheer rock wall to her right and a steep drop-off to her left, and the gauntlet of soldiers she'd have to run if she wanted to escape.

All the guardsmen were without their shields, as no one had really expected to find themselves in battle during this time of celebration, but they all had spears, and if Kassandra wasn't careful she'd find herself impaled on the end of one.

She spun her swords around and dared them to come get her, and as soon as one attacked, she hacked his spear in two at the shaft. Dodging and chopping, she cut a path through the thicket of spearpoints, always pressing forward, always moving, before someone got the bright idea of trying to clobber her with a spear shaft.

Halfway down the path, she looked ahead and saw a squad of fully-armed Spartans assembling at the bottom. Together, they'd link their shields like a turtle's shell, and once they started marching up the path, she'd be boxed in from the front and the rear.

The rock face to her right was far too steep to climb, so she chose the least worst option and jumped right off the side of the path and down the steep hillside, somehow managing to keep her feet in front of her as she slid through the underbrush, branches bouncing off her armor and tearing at her skin. The bottom was a long way away.

A fallen pine tree lay snagged against another tree just ahead, leaving a worryingly small gap between the bulk of its trunk and the ground. With her momentum too great to stop or even change course, all she could do was lean back into the slide and hope she could squeeze through. She did, barely, bark scraping, pine needles showering upon her, almost losing the Wolf's helm and his sword along the way, but her right wrist smacked against an underhanging branch and she lost her grip on her old sword. Ares's mark had served her well, and it would be her offering to Pan, then, in exchange for escaping this wild mountainside.

Finally the slope began to level out and she went from sliding to running, chased by the echoes of shouts from far above. She flew out of the forest underbrush at a full run. If she could just get to the port before the Spartans sent soldiers after her on horseback...

She'd never beat a priestess of Artemis in a footrace, but her detour down the mountainside had given her a jump on her pursuers. She heard the first hoofbeats of mounted calvary as the port of Pagai came within view, along with the welcoming sight of the Adrestia's mast and stays. She could only hope that Barnabas had done what she'd asked and prepared the ship for departure at a moment's notice.

As soon as her feet touched the dock, she shouted, "Barnabas! Undock the ship!"

Barnabas's blessed voice rang out across the yard. "Aye, Captain! Untie the lines, and make it quick, lads!" She could see the crew scurrying across the Adrestia's deck, following orders.

She hurdled a line of enormous clay pots and dodged between slaves carrying bolts of linen, and when the Spartan dockmaster stepped into her path of travel with his hand raised and a "Halt, misthios!" she didn't even break stride as she shoved him aside and into a rack of drying fish. The Adrestia was pulling away from the dock.

The crew had already drawn in the gangplank and the gap between the side of the ship and the pier was growing wider by the moment. She felt a punch between her shoulder blades where something struck her armor, and a clay pot in a pile next to her head suddenly shattered. Archers somewhere behind her. She bared her teeth in a wolf's grin and gathered all the strength and speed she had as the edge of the dock came closer with every step. Three steps, two steps, one, and then her legs were pushing against the edge and she was flying, arms reaching for the Adrestia, her body losing height as the ship came closer...

Her hand hit the rail and scrabbled for purchase against the slick wood, but there was no grip to be found and she felt herself sliding, sliding— until Barnabas grabbed her arm with one strong hand and her armor with his other, and pulled her onto the deck.

"Great Demeter's ghost! You look like you picked a fight with a forest and lost, Captain."

She stood there looking at him and took deep, burning breaths until the war drum in her chest ceased pounding. "Thanks," she said once she could speak again, and then she began to laugh as leaves and pine needles fell from her hair and armor, and her skin began to sting from scrapes and cuts, and she laughed from a place without humor, until it felt like she was choking and tears began to well in her eyes.

Barnabas looked at her with alarm and pulled her closer to him, tucking her face into his shoulder. "Kassandra, what is it? What's wrong?" he asked.

She didn't know.

Part of the Elegiad. Go back to the previous story, or on to the next...

#kassandra #ac odyssey #woooo boy this took forever to edit #a little light bloodletting #living out my sword and sandal fantasies #elegiad #assassin's creed odyssey #barnabas is my fav

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cabinofimagines · 5 years

Text

Troubles

Percy x Reader (college au)

Fluff | Smut | Angst

A/n: So I finally finished this piece of shit. I don’t really like where it went but it’s cool I guess. This is in response to 3 whole requests we got ages ago. Also guys please remember requests aren’t open yet. It’s on our nav page; what’s open and what’s not I mean. -Day

_ _ _

Staring up at the towering buildings of the main hall only intimidated you more than you already were. You gulped as you watched packs of friends roam about the campus, chattering about who they were rooming with during the overnight orientation, “Jamie said she’s rooming with a guy named Matthew-- I guess they don’t care who stays in the same room?”

“No shit, Kyla, we’re in college now. They don’t give a shit what we do in our spare time.”

You stifle a laugh at the passing conversation, knowing better than to assume that the school doesn’t care what you do. You grimance once more at the mass of people, but pull yourself together and step into the main hall.

The inside was a lot more intimidating than the outside of the building. People of all ages huddled around in groups, overbearing parents hovered over their grown kids, various people already huddling together in packs, and younger youth were already being recruited into sororities and frats. You stuck to the walls and made your way to a long, but ever-moving line of new students who were being randomly matched with others in a room.

Your mind wandered at the thought of rooming with a stranger, even if it was just for a night it wasn’t something you were particularly fond of doing. You had to do it at some point if you were to live on campus in a dorm, but even then you would be matched based on personality and living habits. The line was getting increasingly shorter and your heart was pounding harder the more you thought about the outcome of this experience, would you meet your best friend and decide to choose one another as actual roommates? Or would you have the worst experience of your life tonight?

“Name?”

A overly cheerful voice broke through your melancholy thoughts, you crack a quick smile at the older female, “Y/n L/n.” You watch as she shifts through a few papers with scribbles of various names until she makes a hum of achievement, marking your name out with a black sharpie and handing you a brass key.

“Here’s your key, don’t lose it or the fee is $150!” She shooed you on and greeted the next person as soon as you shifted to the side. You sighed and shoved the key into your front pocket, the space being so small you were sure that it wouldn’t fly out randomly.

Before you head to your room you decided that you should save the trip and collect your things from your car before going to find your room. You packed as lightly as you could, but still managed to bring a suitcase with you, full of clothes and bedsheets for the night since it was a required thing. Although as you trudged up the stairs because the elevator was broken, you were regretting being so prepared.

You hauled ass all the way to the fifth floor, losing a lung or two on the way up. Finally arriving on the fifth floor landing you took a breather, leaning against the railing and catching your breath. You hear a small chuckle beside you, passing by you from the hellaciously steep stairs you had climbed moments ago.

You managed to pick your head up long enough to see a mop of black hair bob past you and into the hall of the dormitory. You shake your head; damn athletes. You gather your bearings and forge onward down the hall to which the mop of hair went. You strolled past the doors, some open as chatter filled the hall, and others were shut and silent as the dead. Your eyes scanned the numbers, anxiously looking for three digits. 539.

The door was open and there was a deep voice mixed with a few others emanating from the room. Your heart stopped, how many roommates did you have? You step inside cautiously, rolling your luggage into the room and setting it by the door. The room was spacious and separated by another door that led to your roommate’s room. There was a baren bed, a large desk, and a large window on the wall adjacent from the door.

The voices went quiet suddenly, having heard your footsteps and the wheels of your suitcase they must’ve realised someone else had arrived. You see a mess of curly brown locks appear from the doorway that separated the rooms, “Oh shit, it is.” He said suddenly, disappearing back into the room to talk further about your sudden appearance. You raise your brows at his words, crossing your arms over your chest and taking a strong stance.

Before you could make a move to ask the boy why he said what he said, another voice sounded out, “Great job, Leonidas, gotta fuck up my experience too, huh?” You hear a smack echo through the room followed by a whine of pain. You see the boy stumble out of the room, grumbling an apology to you before he left.

The owner of the other voice you presumed, walked through the doorway only seconds after the curly one left. You sucked in a breath at the sight that blessed your eyes, his messy black hair fell over his sea green eyes, flying out of his line of sight moments later. He stood tall and lean in gray jogging pants and a white t-shirt, basketball shoes untied like he had just slipped them on. What deemed you speechless was his smile, a goofy yet charming lopsided smile that graced and enhanced his features.

“You’re the person on the stairs, aren’t you?” He said with a chuckle, smoothing his hair back from his face, but failing as it returned into it’s messy state.

“I’m sorry?” You ask, cocking your head to the side in confusion.

He laughed and leaned back against the doorway slightly, “The person that was by the staircase catching their breath.”

You merely nod, too flustered to answer him verbally. The fact that his first impression was that you were out of shape absolutely sucked, even if it was true.

“I’m Percy, “ He said with a wink, “Probably the best roommate you’ll ever have.”

You cock a brow at his words, crossing your arms challengingly, “What makes you say that?”

He smirked and stepped closer, shoving his hands in his pockets, “Because I’m going to make sure you have the time of your life.”

ii.

By the time sophomore year came around, the two of you were close to inseparable. One could almost never be seen without the other unless it was during classes you didn’t have together.

Although how exactly you got to the local pizza place in town discussing Criminal Minds and Law & Order you weren’t exactly sure. Somewhere between his constant whining about how hungry he was and his consistent begging, you found yourself stuffing your face with pizza while you listened to him gush about the many crime shows he watches.

“But then,” He paused, taking a big bite of his slice, “Reid just like,” another bite, “figured it out because he has photographic memory-- which is like so fucking cool-- and solved the case.”

You nod along, interested in the story and the babbling boy in front of you, going on what should be his seventh tangent about each of the cases in the many episodes he’d watched. It was cute that he was so invested into these shows and even invited you to watch a few episodes with him tonight to which you gladly obliged.

You grin as he finishes off his pizza, blindly looking for another slice but finding none, “Did you eat all the pizza?” he quirked an eyebrow in your direction, a hint of a smile playing at his lips. He didn’t give you time to answer as he stood from his seat, offering a hand to you, “I didn’t want any anyways.” He said with a chuckle and a teasing glint in his sea green eyes.

You huff at his remark, standing up with the help of his hand, “You can put away some food, that’s for sure.” you grumbled under your breath.

He flicked your forehead suddenly, “I don’t waste food.”

You laughed lightly, rubbing the sore spot as you spoke, “It’s getting dark, we should get back and actually attend some of tonight’s activities.” You spun around to leave with him in tow, but managed to run straight into an older woman who looked far from kind.

She gasped as if she were doused in hot coffee from your run in, holding her hand to her chest and staring at you in disbelief. You fumbled to apologize, but naturally they made the incident a lot worse than it actually was. They spoke loudly for the rest of the pizza place to hear, “You teenagers think you can just push an elder out of the way?! Unbelievable, this new generation is so disrespectful!”

You bit your lip in thought of what to say. You wanted to argue back and clear things up, but that would only further her idea of generational disrespect. Not once did her purple coated lips stop moving, spouting more and more unrelated nonsense about such a simple situation.

“Ma’am, you’re the one who walked into the exit door rather than the entry door. This wouldn’t have happened had you simply read the sign on the door.”

You shifted your eyes to an annoyed Percy who gave the lady before him a dead gaze, something that would’ve intimidated you had you not known how friendly the male actually was.

The lady opened her mouth again, but Percy interrupted her, “They said sorry, what more do you want? You’re the only one being rude here.”

She left without another word, shimmying away with a few grumbles. You gave the ebony haired boy an impressed look, “Well, well, “ You teased, “You could've scared me off with that look.” He snorted at this, “What look?,” his face broke out in a lopsided smile as he held the door open for you.

You mimicked him the best you could which elicited a chuckle from Percy, “I don’t look like that.” You scoffed and bumped his shoulder with your own, “You’ve got a case of the resting bitch face. Or is that your courtroom face?”

You laughed loudly, making your way back down the street to campus with him. The sun was already setting, the orange and red hues highlighting the towering buildings and bathing the world around you in various shades. Your breath hitched lightly, heart picking up pace unexpectedly. He looked breathtaking to you, his messy hair was brushed away from his face and exposed his forehead, his tall nose scrunched up slightly as the cool wind blew, and his lips were turning an angry red from his constant biting. He looked like a god-- way too good to be true.

He met your stare with his own, pausing his steps and gently tugging you back to him by the arm. He raised a brow at your words, taking a moment to think over what to see, “It’s not, but should it be?” He genuinely seemed interested, “Or was I too scary or whatever?”

You shrugged and managed to tear your eyes away from his being, looking off at the passing cars, “No you just looked so serious, I didn’t know you for a split second.” You look back and flash him a small smile, but avoided prolonged eye contact in fear that your heart would hammer against your chest harder than it already was.

He let out a small giggle at this, catching you off guard. You could gain whiplash from the duality this man has. He hooked arms with you, forcing you to start walking with him and his ridiculously long strides, “Cool, Dr. Leener said that I needed a more serious look when prosecuting.”

You look up at him at this, “How else would you look in a situation like that?”

He used his free arm to reach up and scratch the back of his neck shyly, “Uh I was joking about the case a little too much.”

You pause at his confession, cracking up slightly, “Dude I’m honestly not even surprised.”

Iii.

Dust fell from the ceiling as you carefully swung your legs over the brick wall, landing on the cement flooring of the abandoned building. You threw a glance over your shoulder and laughed when you saw Percy’s long legs struggle to get a grip on the wall you just came over. You sat back, enjoying the view of his suffering a little too much.

Once he finally made it over after five grueling minutes of his lanky legs trying to get over the wall, he landed next to you with a sigh, glaring at you with a slight unknown pout. He dusted off his navy hoodie and black jeans, “I’m so glad I have such a loving and kind-hearted best friend.”

You beamed at him, batting your eyelashes at him in jest, “And I’m so glad you recognize it!”

You pat yourself off, trying to rid yourself of all the dirt that covered your sweats and your ‘junior squad’ t-shirt. You felt hands on your back suddenly, causing you to jump and turn around too quickly, elbowing Percy in the rib accidently.

He whined and held a hand to his chest, slumping against your figure dramatically, “I’ve been stabbed!” He gasped, “there’s been another victim!”

You shove him onto his feet, “Shut up you idiot!” You hiss, eyes scanning the barely visible room surrounding you, “Let’s just hurry up and satisfy your sadistic interests before we get caught.” You shuffled away from the tall boy, squinting your eyes to adjust to the lack of light in the room.

“Use your flashlight, dumbass. You aren’t a cat.”

The bright blue light of Percy’s phone flashlight blinded you, him shining it right in your face to make a point. You swatted at his hand, causing him to drop his phone. The heavy device clattered across the cement, the flashlight facing towards the ground. He squeaked at this, carefully stepping around the space as he muttered curses towards you.

You shiver, a sudden gust of wind reminding you that winter was just around the bend and the fact that you also had not grabbed a jacket before your little adventure outside. You’d much rather be in your room, binge-watching all of your favourite shows instead of the dreaded math homework that is due tomorrow morning at eight a.m.

An audible crack echoed throughout the area followed by a dramatic gasp. Your eyes flicked towards the noise stepping carefully over until you came in contact with Percy’s side, “...fuck” he whispered to himself.

Just then another source of light shone over the two of you, momentarily blinding you for the second time that night. One arm latched around Percy’s, using him as a shield as the other hand came up to block the light out. You could feel Percy tense under your touch, his posture straightening a little as if he was trying to appear larger than the possible threat approaching.

“What are you kids doing here? This is a crime scene, off limits to the public until further notice,” The booming voice instructed, “That includes you, Percy Jackson.”

Percy seemed to chill out at the call of his name, a lopsided smirk forming on his lips, “Lieutenant Brunner! You shouldn’t be out here, this is,” He cocks his head to the side, “ a crime scene after all.”

Your jaw dropped. Lieutenant Brunner was infamous for the many cases he’s solved locally and nationally, but you had thought he was out of commision due to the injury that left him paralyzed from the waist down. Yet here he was, obviously still solving cases despite his disability. It was actually inspiring to see someone still do what they love despite all that has happened to them in the past.

The man sighs at this, his wheelchair squeaking lightly as it pressed on toward the two of you, “Percy,” he scolds, “this isn’t the greatest place for dates, I thought you had class? Or did you forget that too after you stopped volunteering?”

The younger male’s smirk faltered slightly at this, but he quickly recovered, “Cut me some slack, it’s hard being a college student, I just wanted to blow off some steam with my favorite.” He enunciated that he was talking about you by placing a hand on top of your head.

You didn’t know what to make of this situation, but you thought it best to stay quiet seeing as they knew each other well. You were embarrassed to say the least, Lieutenant Brunner was a local at the cafe you worked at and he was always very nice to you and your co-workers, you really hoped he didn’t recognize you here of all places.

Lieutenant Brunner sighed deeply, beginning to turn away from the pair as if he hadn’t even seen you, “You both should head back to campus, I won’t tell the others I saw you here. I’ll just say I was simply investigating a suspicious noise, nothing more.”

You nudged the tall boy’s side, signalling him that this was the plan you should go with. However he didn’t seem to take that into account, “But I wanted to investigate too.” You roll your eyes and nudge him a little harder this time,pleading with him, “Can we please just go?”

Percy went silent for what felt like forever, but then he moved down suddenly, picking up his phone and revealing the cracked screen. He groaned and interlaced his fingers with yours suddenly. Your heart skipped a beat as he tugged you along, walking towards the exit this time instead of scaling that godforsaken wall. He simply saluted the wheelchair bound man, “Love you, Lieutenant Brunner!”

You hissed, tugging him along and muttering swears and curses at the ebony haired boy by your side. Once you were in the clear you removed your hand from his and stopped following him, your heart still pounding at the sudden form of affection. He slowed to a stop and looked back with a lopsided smile, “At least it wasn’t the authorities!”

You gave him an incredulous look, “It was Lieutenant Brunner. Did you forget who solved nearly every case you’ve been studying in your classes?” You bring a hand up to your forehead, still not fully believing what just happened. You got caught at an active crime scene by a notorious investigator and were just let off the hook without repercussions. What the fuck.

You locked eyes with him, walking forward and poking him with an accusatory finger, “And he knew you? Care to tell me how?”

He licked his lips and caught your finger with his hand, intertwining your fingers once more as he explained himself, “I used to volunteer at the police station when I was still in high school-- well it was more like an internship, but Brunner was my mentor sort of.”

He chuckled at your gobsmacked expression. He flicked your bottom lip playfully, causing you to close your mouth and threaten to hit him with your free hand. He laughed and nodded in the direction of his car, “Come on, I bet we can still catch some of the Law & Order SVU marathon if we hurry.”

“I still can’t believe you know the THE Lieutenant Brunner.”

iv.

The warmth from the sunlight illuminating your rather spacious dorm was enough to put you back to sleep. Lately you haven’t been able to get much sleep due to the many different responsibilities you had as your education progressed. But to just lie here in Percy’s embrace as he tried his very best to do as you said and go over his key points for his mock trial, everything seemed to fade out.

Senior year has been hellacious for the both of you seeing as both of your studies required a lot of work from you. You’ve passed most of your classes and only needed to repeat a few due to not passing with the required grade level your major allowed. Percy has become the top of his class however, surpassing even his upper classmates in some of the hardest classes. He was really smart and has just the amount of charisma to sway the jury in his favour, but you didn’t know how he made it this far with his hatred for studying.

He let out another groan, “This is so dumb!” He pouted and covered his face with the stack of papers in his hand, his other arm wrapped around your shoulders and shaking you slightly for emphasis. You rolled your eyes at his antics, he’s such a drama queen it’s ridiculous.

You lean away from him slightly, reaching for the papers hiding his face and freeing them from his grasp. You look over them quickly, focusing on the key points of the case and highlighting them with a blue highlighter from his stash of writing utensils. You elbow his side, eliciting a grunt from the overdramatic male, “Exactly how many murders can the suspect be linked to?”

He blinked, once then twice, giving you an unsure look he answered, “28..?” You purse your lips at his answer, “It’s exactly 24. There were 28 victims in total.” He sighed deeply, hiding his face in your shoulder and whining out that he was sort of right. You chuckled and shook your head at his actions, patting the back of his head and running your hands through his soft locks.

You decided to ask him something easier, something along the lines of vital information. You clear your throat and peer down at the papers in your hand, scanning for something a little easier for him to remember. With a sigh you ask yet another question, “What is the time span of the murders and reported sexual assault?”

He’s quiet for a short moment before answering confidently, “The suspect started off with sexual assault on teenage boys in 1970 but then started killing his victims at the end of 1970.” You were surprised at his detailed answer, but he left out a few important facts. You began to correct him when he surprised you once more, “The murders didn’t stop until mid 1973 when he was caught dousing 14 bodies in gasoline in a rented boat by the owner.”

You smile unknowingly at this. He truly was one of the best in his class and deserved every bit of recognition he got. You wondered what he could do if he fully applied himself and studied more, but the male was still hella smart and talented, it’d probably intimidate his peers if he used all of his talent at once.

“Perfect response”

His head lifted suddenly, hitting you in the jaw and causing you to jump away from him a little. He yelped and adjusted himself so he could properly assess your injury, cupping your face and sputtering apologies as he examined.

Your breathing became uneven at his touch, holding your face so close to his own. The hit didn’t really hurt as much as it had shocked you, jolting you from your thoughts with a nice accompanying knock to the jaw. You snickered at his reaction, finding it cute and funny how much he worried over his accident.

He cracked a smile once he heard your stifled laughter, “Hey, I was just making sure you were okay.” He defended, “But was I really spot on?!”

You nodded, eyes crinkling as you laughed at him, “Yes it was perfect” you managed to get out.

He merely chuckled at this, still cupping your face with one hand as the other held him steady in his position. But then his face dropped into a more serious one, watching you laugh as his heart gradually picked up pace. A million thoughts were running through his mind, but only one was clear to him.

He really wanted to kiss you right now.

The thought excited him. He was excited because he finally understood why his heart constantly did backflips when you smiled at him or why it broke when you were stood up by your dates. Even if he didn’t like the thought of you with someone else, he couldn’t pinpoint his feelings as anything more than overprotectiveness. But now he knows… and he’s more scared than ever.

Scared because he could potentially ruin a great friendship and lose the best roommate he’s ever had. Scared because there was the slightest chance that you didn’t return the feelings and only viewed him in a platonic light. And scared because he’s never felt this strongly about anyone before.

You take notice of the lack of laughter and turn your attention towards the ebony haired boy wearing a variation of his famed “courtroom” face. You pause when you notice his eyes hovering over your lips and his face getting closer with each second. You wanted so badly to close the distance, but you were afraid you were somehow misreading the situation. It was pretty obvious he wanted to do something similar to what you wanted, but there was this small part of you that stayed in denial.

When you could feel his hot breath against your lips, that’s when you knew that your assumptions were right. The faint brush of his lips caused goosebumps to rush down your spine, but it was gone just as quickly as it came.

Percy stumbled back, muttering something incoherent to himself as he stood to look for his shoes. You sat in the same position, appalled and slightly hurt by his actions as it seemed he wanted to be anywhere but near you in that moment.

“I forgot I made plans with Jason and Frank later, I can’t ditch them again or they’ll never let me live it down,” He rambled as he slipped on his shoes and snagged his keys of the side table. You sat in silence as he rushed to leave your comfortable dorm, unable to form coherent thoughts, let alone words.

The door flew open and out went a panicked Percy, mumbling a farewell before the door clicked closed.

It had been more than a week since your almost kiss with Percy and ever since then he’d been avoiding you like the plague. Even when he did interact with you he would keep it short and tense, a shy barrier rising between you for the first time in forever. You would try to bring it down by asking him the usual questions, asking him if he wanted to binge any of his favourite crime shows, but he would brush you off and claim he was too busy.

It had bothered you greatly, to the point where you were forgetting small things like when your massive chemistry research paper was due. Stressed was an understatement of how you felt at the moment. The paper was due in two days and you hadn’t written a single sentence down on your word document, the blank page staring you down and reminding you of your problems.

Percy wasn’t much better off.

The past few days have been an argument between his mind and heart… and also Frank and Jason. He had been avoiding you ever since he realized how much he actually cared for you, more than a normal friend should. Staying over at Frank and Jason’s dorm became a regular thing, only swinging by his own dorm when you were passed out on your desk to gather his things.

It hurt him to see you like this. A bad yet old habit of yours was overworking yourself because you either procrastinated until the last minute or you were determined to finish before anyone else. It took time to get you out of this habit and damn it didn’t take any time for you to slip back into it.

Frank sighed for what seemed to be the 20th time in ten minutes. He gave a disappointed look to Percy who had asked to stay yet another night at their dorm room, “You can’t keep doing this to yourself.”

Percy shrugged, “I mean it’s fine, the couch isn’t that uncomfortable y’know--”

Jason rolled his eyes, interrupting with a groan, “He meant you can’t keep avoiding Y/n, Percy!” The blond was a little more than fed up with the longing stares the dark haired male was throwing your way anytime you were around. It’s time that Percy grow a pair and confess how he really feels about you, regardless of how you may or may not feel, he needed to get this off his chest.

Percy was quiet, fiddling with the hem of his gray Ramones t-shirt. He knew Jason was right, but it was terrifying to even think about losing you, and if he confessed he was for sure that he’d lose quite possibly the love of his life.

Frank massaged his temples in thought, “I promise you won’t regret telling them, you won’t lose them or anything like that.” He paused, his next words holding impact, “But you might if you continue on like this.”

Percy nodded, his heart lurching at the true words that slipped past Frank’s lips. He checked the time on his phone, the lock screen photo of you and him covered in paint, smiling at the camera caused a small smile to spread over his tan face. He dropped his things at the door, eliciting a combined groan from each of the roommates. He spun on his heel and walked out, completely taking the others by surprise as he booked it down the stairs.

“He could’ve taken the elevator.”

“Let him be dramatic, Frank.”

It was around 1:30 am when you were startled awake by the sound of keys in the lock. You had fallen asleep in the living room once again, your laptop light illuminating the room in a low white haze. You nearly screamed once you realized that you had still yet to finish the report for Biology class tomorrow morning, but settled for a dramatic face palm.

The door clicked open, but you didn’t bother on checking who it was because you knew it was your roommate coming back for something he forgot. You leaned back against the couch staying still and hoping he’d leave you alone unlike other nights where he’d move you to your bed. It was a sweet gesture, but the first couple of times it really freaked you out.

Although this time he didn’t walk straight to his room like usual, instead he opted to sit next to you on the couch. He whispered your name, moving to see your face a bit better.

You squeezed your eyes shut, honestly just wanting nothing more than for him to leave you alone right now. If he even attempted to move you to your bed, you just might throw hands at his tall ass. You tensed as he wrapped his arms around you, pulling you closer to his chest and swinging your legs over his lap.

You probably shouldn’t have, but you freaked out suddenly, “Nuh-uh you are not putting me to bed, I have work to do.” You grumble, glaring and pushing yourself away the best you could. He blinked, “I wasn’t going to,” He began, “I just wanted to hold you again.”

Your eyes widen slightly, “Well it’s about time you acted like a best friend.”

Percy lets out a silent laugh, his gaze cast downward, “I know I’m an ass.”

You hummed, crossing your arms over your chest. You wanted an apology and you were going to get one. You glance at him, from the corner of your eye, “Good for you.”

He pauses, running a hand through his messy waves and leaning against the armrest, “Y/n, I’m really sorry. Seriously.” He watches with sad eyes as you turn away from him, rightfully upset with him. HIs shoulders slump. He really shouldn’t have acted this way, he should’ve just taken the leap and admitted his feelings.

WIthout a reply, he parts his lips to plead once more, “Y/n I--” You yawned, shaking it off and keeping up your role. Percy cocked his head to the side, noticing how tired you look and how red your eyes have gotten from the lack of sleep. Instead of using his words, he substituted it for a chance to cuddle you close.

It was late. So late that even the group of freshmen that played around outside have decided to call it a night. Plus you were super tired and you haven’t gotten a good night’s sleep in a while. So when strong arms wrapped around you and pulled you into an equally comfy lap, you were more than halfway asleep. You twisted your body to mold against Percy’s, “This isn’t over, Perce.” Slurred words leaving your lips as you melted into his embrace.

He chuckled, busying himself with tracing the outline of your features, “Whatever you say, babe.” He shimmed into a more comfortable position before dozing off himself, the sweet dreams uncomparable to the moment at hand.

vii.

It was bright, a little too bright for your eyes after just waking up. “Damn”, you thought to yourself, “I forgot to close the curtains again.” You rub your eyes sleepily and stretch slowly with a yawn, building up the will to get up and close the curtains for a few more minutes of shut eye.

You push yourself up, but find yourself locked in a strong grasp, a groan filling the air as you tugged against the grip. You froze, slowly craning your head to see just who was holding you this saturday morning.

Dark lashes fluttered against puffy cheeks, brows knitted together as incoherent mumblings left his pouty lips. It was Percy, his hair messier than usual. You smile lightly, lying down to face him and take in all of his features. With your faces merely inches apart you were able to fully take in the beauty that is Percy Jackson.

It never occoured to you how handsome he really was. I mean, many have pointed it out and even used you to get closer to the handsome law major, but it never really hit you. So as you lay there with a fluttering heart, you got to see every detail of the man that had stolen your heart without a second thought. There was a tiny cut on his cheek from the many fights he’d gotten in back in his highschool days, a small scar above his left brow from falling off his skateboard at the age of 14, and a tiny mole just under his lower lip.

A small laugh escapes you, leaning in to brush your nose against his own. The action proved to be too much when his eyes began to open. Sleepy sea green eyes met your own accompanied by a grin, “morning” he rasps out.

The corner of your lips lifts in a smirk, a hum coming from you as you snuggle closer to his chest. HIs chest rumbles with his light laugh, “I see your attitude is gone.” You bring a hand up, pinching his nipple and causing him to yelp and push you away, “Ow! Okay okay it’s just dormant i guess…”

You chuckle and worm your way back into his grasp, “I’ve missed you.” His heart skips, bringing a hand up to your face and steer it in his direction. He leans down, stopping half way to ask, “Is it cool if I… kiss you?”

It was a simple question, one that took your breath away at that. You hesitated, your brain trying and failing to come up with a response. So you did what you could.

You tug his shirt, smashing his lips to yours in a sweet and delicate kiss. His eyes grew wide, not expecting such a response, but decided to roll with it and kiss the person that had him completely whipped for the past two and a half years.

He pulled away with a giggle, “Damn that was worth the wait.”

“Wait what?”

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thereluctantherosrose · 5 years

Text

Creed of Blood: (Alexios x Nyxera) Ch.4

Alexios frowned softly as he watched the Island of Kephallonia slowly become smaller and smaller. His heart felt a slight ache, but not from missing his house, but the people there. They made Kephallonia a home. They say home is where the heart is, and in that case, he had left his heart behind. Had he made the right choice?

“So! What course do we set? Where in this big, beautiful world does the mighty Alexios wish to go?” Barnabas said from behind him, moving to stand next to him at the helm of the ship.

“Megaris”

“Megaris?? But we’d be sailing into war!”

“I got a contract for some general’s head” he crossed his arms over his chest.

“Whose head?”

“They call him ‘The Wolf’”

“The Wolf! Who wants Nikolaus of Sparta dead??” Barnabas said with a shocked expression clearly etched on his face.

“Nikolaus of Sparta?” Alexios’ eyes widened as he started to have a flashback of his life before Kephallonia.

It was his last night with his family. It was a dark and stormy night on Mount Taygetos. The Pythia had spoken of a prophecy, that the granddaughter of Leonidas would bring about the downfall of Sparta. Though the Pythia’s words were not of her own, the council of Sparta took them to heart and sentenced little Kassandra to death. She was to be tossed off of the mountain.

It was pouring rain, and lightning lit the night sky, matching the severity and gloom of that nights’ activities. The cries of his mother filled the air, as Spartan soldiers held her and Alexios back from interfering from the sentence that had been passed by Spartan law.

“The oracle has spoken! To prevent Sparta’s fall, the child must fall first!” one of the council members held baby Kassandra high in the air.

Nikolaus could only watch as his family was torn apart in front of him, his spartan duty preventing him from doing anything.

“You can’t let this happen!!” Myrrine screamed “Please! She’ll do no harm - she’ll help us! She will lead us!”

“Silence!” the man moved towards the edge of the mountain with the baby as Myrrine and little Alexios struggled against the soldiers holding them back. It was a horrifying scene.

“Sto--You can’t! Noooo no no!”

Alexios struggled to reach his baby sister. He couldn’t let her fall! He loved her! She was his family! He couldn’t let her die! With a great struggle, he finally freed himself from the soldiers and ran towards the man, desperately hoping to reach them before the babe was dropped.

However, just as the baby fell from his hands, Alexios’ body collided with the man, sending him flying off the cliff along with Kassandra.

For a moment everyone stood there in shock, only the roaring storm around them could be heard from the peak. Kassandra was gone. He had failed to save his sister.

“TOSS HIM OVER!!!” another council member screeched and pointed towards Alexios, demanding Nikolaus to throw his son off the cliff.

Nikolaus looked at the man with conflict clear on his face, while another member pushed him forward towards Alexios.

“Pay for his dishonour! For the life, he has snuffed! He’s no Spartan, Nikolaus!”

“Look at me, Nikolaus!” Myrrine wailed, pleading for her remaining child’s life. “ Don’t! Don’t listen, Nikolaus! Don’t listen!”. Tears were streaming down his face in desperation. Her life was being ripped from her.

Nikolaus moved towards Alexios slowly, his face contorted in sorrow and conflicting feelings. On the one hand, he was a Spartan and needed to uphold Spartan law, on the other hand, he was a father and needed to protect his family.

“Nikolaus! Why???” Myrrine screamed at him.

Alexios still looked down the cliff in shock. He had just lost his baby sister. None of the conversation going on behind him could be heard by him. He heard footsteps from behind him and he slowly turned to see Nikolaus.

“Pater!” Alexios ran towards Nikolaus and wrapped his arms around his waist, tears streaming down his face.

“Nikolaus! Stop! Nikolaus!”

Nikolaus frowned and knelt in front of Alexios, looking deep into his innocent son’s eyes. He reached out and held his hand gently, Alexios still not understanding what was going on. The general’s eyes looked on with confliction, and he could barely control his emotions. The boy had done what he could not. Be brave and stand up no matter the consequences. But he had broken Spartan law, and he needed to face those consequences, Alexios’ age did not matter. At that moment, he chose duty over his family, and grabbed Alexios by the arm, dangling him off of the cliff. Myrrine screamed at her husband.

“Your blood is tainted! Rid yourself of this poison! For Sparta!” the council members yelled at him.

“Pater?!?” Alexios said with a horrified look on his face. Why was his father doing this? Did he not love him?

“Oh, my baby!”

“Pater!!”

And with that he let him go, sending him to his supposed doom.

“ALEXIOS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

Alexios shook his head as he was brought back to reality. Now more than ever, he felt the urgency to get to Megaris. This was his chance to confront a major point of his past that he had been running from his whole life.

“Get me to Megaris. Now” Alexios furrowed his eyebrows.

“But I don’t understand. Of all the places under Helios, why risk our necks to go there?”

“The wolf of Sparta...is my father…”

Barnabas’ eyes widened for a moment before nodding, not wanting to pry further. It was clearly a sensitive issue. He would help Alexios get to wherever he needed to go. He owed him his life. Besides, he had always been open to the thrill of adventure, and he was sure that this would be one he’d never soon forget.

#assassins creed odyssey #alexios #alexios of sparta #alexios x nyxera #alexios x oc

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lost-tanuki-tales · 5 years

Text

Intruder aboard

Inspired by @galaxy-whump‘s prompt: “Oh good, you’ve finally arrived. And just in time to watch your little runt die.” Cast: The Disaster Five Word count: 1.9k

* * *

"Do you think he's all right?"

Leo didn't answer straight away. Her tongue was sticking out from the corner of her lips while she slaved over a packet of rehydratable shoyu, she'd just noticed, but she couldn't be bothered to tuck it back in. She really wanted to eat ramen right about now, a little comfort food to make her earlier failure a bit easier to live with. Apparently the ramen didn't want to be eaten.

"Damn plastic garbage," she seethed through gritted teeth when it refused to yield to her aching fingers. This would've been so much easier if she didn't have useless blunt nails, but it wasn't like she could ask for help since the only other person here with her had freaking fin hands.

"Leonida."

She looked up at her crewmate. Grenelant's voice was worried and she could see the transluscent appendages in his back anxiously flicking about.

"I don't know," she curtly said. Leo knew she sounded like an ass but all she wanted to do was to forget that one of their teammates was currently forced to lie in bed because she hadn’t gotten to him in time while the other still hadn't shown up, and the best way she had of doing that right now was to slip into the spicy-flavored delusion that she was back home eating dinner and watching TV on the couch with her caro, not moping around in a radio-less base 23 billion light years away from home sweet home.

"He's been quiet for over 24 hours now. Don't you think we should go see him?" insisted Gren.

"He hasn't called for us so that means he's fine. He'll come out when he'll want to," she answered with a wave of her hand which she hoped would disperse the opiel's concerns, and then she decided to gnaw at the plastic with her teeth. Again, she wished they were just a bit sharper.

"...You know, at times you can act very irresponsible for a captain."

Leo rolled her eyes. "Like you'd know a thing about how a captain is supposed to act."

The alarm next to her hand suddenly started beeping and she startled, her hands jerking at just the right angle for the plastic to finally rip, and Grenelant winced at the high-pitched sound.

"That's not the button he was supposed to press," said the opiel

Leo swore again and scrabbled with the device to turn it off, succeeding only after four consecutive tries. Broken fingers really sucked. "He probably got them mixed up."

Grenelant pushed himself away from the wall. "I'll go see what it is."

"Wait up, I'm coming too."

"I thought you wanted to eat your ramen," he teased her with his usual straight face.

She sighed. "Unfortunately, the situation calls for a sacrifice. He probably woke up completely lost and I need to talk to him."

Grenelant nodded approvingly as Leo stepped past him. "So you can be a good captain, sometimes."

"Shut it, Gren."

He made a short, low vibrating sound that was equivalent to a chuckle for his species and both crew members made their way towards CB's room. Leo's step was swift; despite her earlier show of flippancy, she'd been feeling pretty worried about her youngest teammate. It wasn't like him to sleep so long, but then again he'd had a lot to recover from. She shook the unpleasant thought out of her head and picked up the pace. She let Grenelant take the lead when they reached the door since CB had always preferred the calmer member of their little team.

"CB?" called Grenelant as he knocked, and then he opened the door to step inside. "We came as soon as we heard the ala-"

"Oh good, you've finally arrived. And just in time to watch your little runt die."

Leo's senses sharpened in alarm when she heard the words being rasped by an unfamiliar voice and she instantly lunged to grab Grenelant by the arm, pulling him behind her in an attempt to shield him from whoever was in the room. She was the one who had the most chances of efficiently dealing with a threat out of the two of them. The figure standing in the room was tall and its scaley features were smoothed out like the being had stopped merging with a snake halfway. It wore a dark cloak that seemed to absorb all the light in the room but its entirely black eyes glinted with malicious and sadistic glee. It wasn't the creepy face that made Leo's heart jump to her throat, however, but the long claws wrapped around CB's thin neck. The boy's eyes were wide in fear, but the delirious shine to his gaze wasn't remotely close to recognition when it landed on them both and Leo knew then that he still hadn't recovered. The reptilian being tightened its hold around CB, and the small fuli let out a choked mewl that went straight to Leo's gut. She bared her teeth without even realizing it and rushed forward, a snarl ripping out of her throat.

"Get away from him!"

She barely took two steps when she felt something curl around her leg and before she even had the time to look down, her whole world tipped sideways and her insides lurched. For one incomprehensible second, Leo was suspended in the air until her back slammed against the wall. She grunted when her already damaged back collided with the wall and one of her knees hit the ground hard.

"Did you think we would let strangers steal from us?" hissed the intruder in CB's face.

"I-I'm sorry," stammered CB with wide and terrified eyes. "I'm sorry, please don't kill me, I'm sorry!"

"Let go of him this instant!" thundered Grenelant. The reptile turned to him and a grin split its features.

"You were too late the moment I got my hands on this little rat."

Its arm shot forth and Leo managed a strangled scream, to no avail. There was a moment of shocked silence, and then CB let out a horrible gurgle. Blood pooled around the claws that protruded from his back. The reptile tauntingly wiggled its fingers around and the boy threw back his head in agony, a tortured wail ripping out of his throat. More blood stained the bed and spilled over the side.

"S-Stop, please, please stop, it hurts, it- it h-h-hurts so much, please!" he pleaded in between harsh sobs and frantic gasps.

"As you wish," said the reptile mockingly. It ripped its hand away from his body and CB fell to the ground with a wounded cry.

"I'm gonna kill you!" snarled Leo.

Grenelant was faster. The huge opiel lept forward and rammed the monster with all his weight, throwing it back against the bedroom's wide window. Grenelant was taller than the intruder and Leo trusted his fighting abilities, so she ignored the urge to jump into the fray and scrambled back to her feet to rush to the small body lying curled up next to the bed.

"Oh shit, oh shit shit shit shit shit." She ignored the rattle of her components when she fell to her knees by CB’s side and reached out to cradle his pointed face in her hands. "Cat? Cat? Can you hear me?"

His eyes were half-lidded and the blood flow pulsed in spurts from his torn stomach. The boy let out a faint moan of agony when Leo quickly pressed her hand to the wound and she realized with horror just how big the hole was.

"...Captain?" he said in a small voice, so feeble that she almost missed it. He was struggling to keep his eyes open.

"I'm here, Cat, I'm here," she told him, the words spilling out of her mouth without thinking.

He made a face. "Don't... call..." His voice trailed off and she feared that he'd passed out.

"Hey hey hey, you stay awake, you hear me?" Leo applied more pressure and quickly rifled through the protocols she knew. She had thousands and she knew there was one for this kind of emergency.

"It hurts. I-It hurts so much," whimpered Cat. "I'm scared... Leo, I'm scared, I don't want to die..."

It was the first time he'd called her something other than Captain, and if she'd still had tear ducts Leo probably would've cried. Her grip tightened around his thin shoulder. "You're not dying here, okay? Hold on, I've got you, just stay with me all right?"

"...I'm cold," he whispered. His eyes were closed and he was losing blood much too fast.

"That's okay, just keep talking to me, you can tell me you're cold all the time if you want. Just don't go to sleep, okay?"

"...But... I'm tired...."

She sifted through her medical protocols and finally found one that was exactly what she needed. Leo hastily sent the command to her chest compartment and a panel slid open, and a small sphere popped out.

"I know, but keep talking," she told him.

Cat was silent and her gaze jumped to his face. His features had slackened.

"Hey!" She slapped him and his eyes opened again, but he didn't even twitch. "Cat, I swear to every holy bastard in existence, you better stay with me or I will come back to piss on your grave for how many years I have left to live!"

His lips moved, and it seemed like he wanted to answer to that, but no sound came out of his mouth besides a weak exhale. They were running out of time. Glass broke behind them but Leo didn't look. She quickly slipped the bead inside Cat's body and activated the small component with the tip of her finger.

"This is gonna suck, Cat. Hold on."

For one single terrible second, nothing happened and Leo thought she'd fucked up. Then there was a light whooshing sound and the sphere blew up into the size of a baseball, instantly followed by an agonized scream that nearly saturated her sensitive hearing. The blood stopped flowing and Leo let out a sigh of relief, but it caught in her throat when she saw the tears dripping down the boy's cheeks.

"Stop," sobbed Cat. "Please, stop, I'm sorry, I told you I was sorry."

"It's okay, I'm gonna bring you to the pod and you'll be fine," Leo assured him, and she leaned down to gather his small body in her arms. He let out another bloodcurdling cry of pain when she lifted him off the ground and she winced. "I know, I'm sorry sweetie. It'll be over soon, I promise."

He was panting erratically and his trembling travelled through her hollow body like the buzz of electricity. She had to hurry. Glass cracked again in the scuffle between her teammate and the monstrosity that had attacked them and she risked a glance in their direction, just in time to watch in horror as the window shattered and both fighters fell overboard.

She lurched towards the hole and yelled: "Grenelant!"

There was no answer. A groan coming from the small body in her arms stopped her in her tracks and the conflict of priorities between checking outside for Grenelant and bringing Cat to the emergency pod had her hesitating for three seconds too long. She finally snapped out of it when Cat whimpered weakly in her grasp, and spun on her heels. Grenelant would have to wait, she already had one dying teammate to save.

(The Disaster Five are also on AO3.)

#the disaster five #tdf grenelant #tdf leonida #tdf cb #tnktwrites #whump #whump prompt fill #prompt fill #cw: blood #cw: violence #gutting #fever #forced to watch #illness #bleeding out #begging #tnktwrites whump #tdf tale

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goldstonegolem64 · 5 years

Text

Book 1 Hope returns Chapter 37 Leonidas the prideful By goldstone Golem 64

ehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JQ820nUujk

At the Galra central commande

Quinn was in the medical bay standing in front of a Healing pod that held his twin sister. Quinn heard the door opened and turned a saw Lady haggar, Root Rot and Skyver standing there quietly looking at him . “Lady Haggar i am sorry for failing in my mission please spare my sister and i will take all the punishment myself” Quinn said a s kneels before her

“Stand Child i don’t intend to punish you for failing this time and to honest i expected you to fail this mission” Haggar said

“ You did” Quinn said as he looked up surprised

“ Yes now get off the ground I have a new mission For the three of you.” Haggar said

“ Yeah boy get up and get ready” Skyver said

“ Yes it’s time to make the red river Run Boy “ Root rot yelled With a smile on his face

Quinn got up from the floor “ What is this Lady Haggar ?”

“We found a rebel listening outpost nearby and i think it will be the perfect testing for cyclone’s turbines and The gravitational field of polares and i get Rot root to stop trying to eating the gaurds and i need you to watch over them “ Haggar said a little Annoyed

“ Sorry i’m so hungry for some fresh meat that i get a little nippy when ever i people’s back turned “ Root said with a predatory growl in his voice

Skyver walked closer towards Quinn and wipered “He ate two guards that thought he had escaped from his cell “

“ How the hell did they think he got out of the cell he’s huge “ Quinn said confused as he followed Haggar out of the medical bay

“ He’s surprisingly stealthy for a big guy “ Skyver said

“ i didn’t get this big by being an idiot. I may act like a simple minded brute but i’m a really a tactical man and before the empire appeared i was the head of my Clans hunting party “ Root rot said as his head turned a full 180 to look at them

Both men looked terrified

“ So what happened to your clan after the empire showed up?” Skyver asked

“ I will never tell that is my secret to keep. Now let’s get to the fun part” Root rot said with a wicked smile as the three of hem Walked into the Hanger bay.

Elsewhere

Shiro found himself in the middle of a weird purple plane. He had been there for a while he didn’t know how long he was here for. It wasn’t the first time he was here but he still didn’t know what this place. He had walked around here for a bit not knowing where to go seeing as this place looked the same no matter where he went but sometimes as he walked he would see Keith just walking around looking confused by what was going on. But when he saw Hunk ,pidge or lance not moving at all which confused him they all were looking up and talking to someone that was just out off his sight. He wonder why he or keith hadn’t see whoever this mysterty person was . He had to ask them later when they woke up.

He keep walking around the empty plane. But as he walked he heard the sound of people Taking and a banging sound echoed throughout the plane .

“ Hey big guy time to walk up “ A familiar voice said as the plane he was in started going dark. Then he walk up and found himself walking out of the healing pod that he had been placed in and fall forward and was caught but someone

“ i got you big guy “The voice said

Shiro’s sight was blurry for a bit and blinked for a few times before looking at the person who had caught him it was Rolo “ Hello Rolo How are you ?” He asked

“ I’m good how bout you” Rolo replied

“ I just walk up and How long was i out for anyway?”

“ You and the others were out for the three Days, Jay went on a solo mission and we found a Trader moon so will be able to replace the cracked disks and we decide to go to a nearby rebel outpost before we head to the main base” Rolo said

“ Ok now how are the others?”

“ Well keith woke up first then followed by Lance,hunk then Came pidge and finally you. Also Adam and Jay have something important to tell you when we get to the bridge “ Rolo said as Shiro got to his feet

“Should I be scared about this ?” Shiro asked looking At rolo

“ No i don’t think so. You should let them explain now get dress and meet up with the other at the bridge” Rolo said

“Alright them “ Shiro said

After getting dressed Rolo explained in more details on what had happened the passed three days. first was how Matt showed off a system that He and pidge had been working that tracked Galra movements. how Most of the crew tried to get the loins to bond with them but no one could make it work and How Adam and Jay got into a wrestling match along with other not to important thing that had happened the passed three days . then they entered the bridge to find everyone talking to each other. Everyone turned to look at at the Shiro and rolo

“ Morning Shiro “ Jay said giving a two finger salute

“ Go to see you up and running again “ Adam said as he walked towards Shiro and kissed him on the check.

“ Yeah it’s good to be up “ shiro returned adams kiss then he looked up to Jay “ So what Happened between you two while i was A sleep anyway” Shiro asked as jay’s face went a little pale as everyone turned to look at him

“ Well it’s a long Story” Jay said taking a few steps back near one of the tube that lead to one of the lions

“Oh No you dont “ Allura yelled as she grabbed Jay by the front of the shirt and pulled him into a headlock

“ Ok Ok I won’t leave “ Jay yelled

“ What is going on?” Shiro asked

“ She stopped me from leave before i told you that your going to be a dad welcome to parent Hood.can you let me go now Allura?” JAy asked as she let him go “ Now let me explain how this happened “ jay said a

Twenty minutes later Shiro was sit on the floor trying his best to process what he just heard.

“So this gain child will have curtain aspects of their parents like a normal kid right ?” Shiro asked as he held the first of his metal arm

“ Yes it will you have two week until it’s born so decide if you want it or not because if you don’t i’ll take care of them in your stead. “ Jay said as he rubbed his upper arm as everyone looked at him.

Shiro looked at Adam then to Jay “ I, We need time to take more about this But i’m not mad about your mistake but i am mad that you keep this for me for a long time.” Shiro said

“ That hurt more then the punch i was expe”Jay was cut off by A punch to the stomach by keith causing Jay to double over

“ Keith what the hell” Lance yelled

“ No lance i earned that one” Jay said as hre place his hand onto keith shoulder using him as leverage

“ Sorry about that i went onto Autopilot for a second there “ Keith said

“ No again it’s fine i eared that one so don’t be sorry . Now to change topics Coran please explain a trade moon please “ Jay said

“ Well Traders moons are dangerous black marks that are own by a race of space pirates called the Unilu. So we need to be very castion of what were doing. So keep one hand on your wallet and the other on your bayard” Coran said Then everyone turned to look at matt and Ace. Matt , Nyma and rolo were all trying to hold back laughter while Ace was smiling While no know what n-7 was doing

“ Oh i can’t while to be there “ Hunk said sarcastically

“ So who is going and who is Staying ?” Pidge Said

“ While Me and my team have dires to go through So were Staying behind” Ace said as the Matt and the other groan a little

“ I’m Going to Stay behind and try to deepen my bond with the black lion “ Shiro said still holding his wrist .

“ Well i’m going “Allura said

“ I’m sorry Princess but it’s to dangerous “ Coran said

Allure frowned A little

“ Don’t worry boss i’ll buy you something Nice “ Jay said as he and others left the bridge.

“ Make sure it’s Sparkly” Allure said

“ can do boss” Jay replied as the door closed behind him

Allura sat down and looked over to Shiro who was still sitting there holding his wrist.

“ Are you Alright Shiro do you want me to bring Jay back here.?” Allura asked

“ No” Shiro said

“ Then what is on your mind then ?” Allura asked as she walked over to him

“ I Just wonder how raising a child in a war zone will affect the child’s development and will they get what i had or what will happen to the child if i die before they are born. Also why would jay not tell me early about this. I mean i get it he has his plate full with three kids of his own to watch over but still this is a huge bomb just to drop on someone. “ Shiro looked like he as about to cry “ i’m not ready to be a parent not yet. But i saw how happy Adam was when i walked in. “ pause for a moment and collected himself “i always had a plan for my life. But now i’m fight a cross Galaxy war with a kid on the way what am i going to do about this. “

“I think you should just see where it leads you life is sometime better when you don’t have a plan. i mean life gave me you give and it’s been going pretty well. But that’s just for me” Allura said

“ Your starting to sound Jay “ Shiro said laughing a little

“ Well he does have that effect on people” Alura replied

“ Well thanks for the pep talk. Princess but i’m still going to need sometime to think this over.” Shiro said as he got up and started to walk out of the room. but he stopped at the door and turned around “ Thanks again Allura i need that “

“ Your welcome Shiro and if you ever need some one to Talk to i’m always he “ She replied

“ I will “ Shiro said as the door opened and he walked out

Allura had a smile on he face as she sat back down “ Now what am i going to do now” Allura wondered as she did this the Altean mice crawled onto to her lap and looked up to her and She looked down to them and then a silent conversion began between the Allura and her pet mice “ Oh dinner and A show that sounds lovely “ Allura said with a smile

Elsewhere

Coran was leading Keith ,Lance, Pidge , Adam Hunk, And Jay towards an Altean pod

“ So why aren’t we taking the Cargo ship that has a huge amount of space has to plasma gun to the front and it has auto defence turrets on it when we’re not there to protect it.See as were going to a black market ?” Lance asked

“ Because there is a warrant out for it and the reason for that because again we are the most want people in the universe lance we now have a combined bounty of over two billion Gac. So i’m not risky us getting caught over a space ok man” Jay said as he was putting on his salvager helmet there were small dents in the helmet from where Fairin had tried to crush his head back on phobos

“I’m guess that’s why you were wearing your salvaging gear before the meeting “adam said Jay turned to look at Adam and gave him a thumbs up. Adam

The team was boarding the Atlaen pod when the sound of Hooves running across the metal floors Everyone turned to See Usamu running towards them with a bag on his back

“Wait for me “ Usamu said as he ran up to Jay looking ready to go “ I heard you were going to a traders moon and i want to tag along “ the young boy said with a smile on his face

“ Ok then little buddy know. But does Bastion know that your here or did you just ghost your brother ?“ JAy asked

“ no when i heard you were going i just grabbed my bags and ran down here as fast as possible. Usamu said with a look of realization followed by two more sets of footsteps running behind him. As Fitz and Bastion ran in both panting

“ they know now “ Usamu said with a awkward smile on his face

jay Shrugged not caring “ Ok now where we’re going is dangerous and i need all three of you if all three of you are coming along. I need you to stay close to me ok” Jay said taking his helmet off to show off the sirius look on his face .Bastion Grabbed Usamu and pulled them close and was talking to him. Jay looked over to Fitz Are you Coming along Bud?” Jay asked

“ ok” Fitz said as he shrugged and walked into the pod

“ Are you two coming or not ?” Jay asked Both Boys

The two Boys looked up at him

“ Sure “ Said Bastion

“ i was coming no matter what “ Usamu Said as he followed his brothers

Jay felt some one starring at him then he turned to look at Coran who was Staring at him for bring kids to A black market. Jay just strugger again and Said “ I will be with then the whole time so don’t worry Coran and i have this “ then Jay showed of his Bayard in it’s holster. Then he walked into the Atlaen pod.

Coran shake his head but didn’t what want to push it. then Sat down in the plot seat and then the Pod took off and flow towards the swap moon.

“ So what do you think will see when we get there?” Hunk Asked

“ I don’t know but i’m ready for anything “ Keith said

“ Hey Jay “ Pidge said

“ Yes pigeon “ Jay said as he looked up from the book he was reading

“ Why did you bring the Boys along?” She asked

“ Yeah it does seems pretty irresponsible of you to bring them to a black market “ Hunk add

Jay Closed his book and looked at them all “ Does anyone remember that Coran is and was a sleep for over ten thousand years right”

“ Right “Keith said confused he looked toward the others. Then to Adam who was listening to Usamu talk about something not paying Attention to what was going on.

“ What do that matter “ Pidge counterd

“ Well when i first heard of a Traders moon from Allura and Coran when i got back from new haven i need to know if they were still around so i asked Matt and the others to see what was different from what coran had told me and it turns out that swap moons are just moo size Swap Hall or what you guys call Mells ”

“ Mells do you mean Malls?”

“ That’s its Thank you Adam. See were just going shopping and i mean how much trouble can we get into at a mall” Jay said with a smile on his face

elsewhere Shiro was walking towards the hanger to the black lion and stopped and took a deep breath and walked into the hanger and saw the black lion standing there intimating to look at and the moment he walked into the room the black lion lowered its head and opened its mouth to let him in. Shiro walked into the lion’s mouth and into the cockpit and sat down in the pilot’s seat “ ok Bud how do i make are bond stronger?” Shiro asked and as he did the black lion started to move on it’s own and it took off into space “ Woah hey stop” Shiro yelled as he tried to stop the black lion to no avail so he just let the black lion fly off into the great unknown

back in the Traders moon Coran and the Other were stand in the entries of the Trader moon’s main aera

“ So this is a traders moon one of the most dangerous places in the universe “ Lance said sarcastically as he looked at the clean beautiful mall plaza

“ Well i feel like i over prepared for this” Jay said as he removed his helmet fix the bun on the back of his head.

“ don’t let the looks fool you this place is a place of scum in villain “ Coran said before leaving the other Paladin as he went off to look for the Skulltire plates

“ So All in of losing these costume all i favor say i” Lance said

“ I” Everyone said

in the sectury room A fat Galra was running on his elliptical

“ I have been giving an the most important job in the universe and i Varkon will defend this Trader moon from all threat and make my Empire proud “ Varkon said as he was run then He looked at the security screens and something caught his eyes. He got off his elliptical and walked over to the screen and watched as Hunk, Keith, Pidge ,Lance and Adam throwing Away their costume ‘ Space pirate trying to disguise themselves as normal civilians. But you won’t fool me Varkon chief of Security”

BAck with the other

“So we meet up back here in an Hour i guess “ Jay Said as he was place his sons costume in to his back

“ Or when ever coran Find those disk” adam said

“ Should someone go after him Just to make sure he dose get in trouble” Hunk said

“ 3-2-1 Not it “ hunk, Lance, Keith, Pidge and Adam said

“ Not i. darn it Come boys lets help Coran not get arrested “ JAy said and started walking Away. But then He turned Around put his hand in his pocket pulled out his wallet and Hand Adam a card “ this Card As Over two hundred thousand gac on it also when a Gain is born they will rapidly grow up and will stop about three weeks after there born so they will as smart and the size of a three to four year old so buy a lot of clothes and make sure it’s unisex just to be on the safe side and the code is 2207 .”

“ Thanks man” Adam said as he

“ Your welcome Now boys lets go” Jay said as he followed coran with the boys in toe

“ Ok Keith can you come with me and help me find a clothing Store “ Adam asked as he started to walk away

“ Alright “ Keith said Following behind his brother in law

“Alright i’m Going to look for a gift for Shay and then the food court See yea “ Hunk said as he went on his Leaving Pidge and Lance Alone together

“ So what do you want to do Pidge ?” Lance asked

“ Don’t know want to just walk around until Coran or someone gets into trouble “ Pigde asked

Back on the black lion

Shiro was just sitting there letting the black lion fly he didn’t where he was going how long they were flying. He couldn’t control it and he couldn’t contact the others. He was just stuck there not know what was going on until he noticed that the darkness of space started turning a dark red which Shiro found weird“ Where the hell are you taking me black “ Shiro said to himself as the black lion stop in front of a destroyed planet. Shiro was confused even more “ So Where are we now “ shiro asked and as he asked everything turned a blinding white and when he opened his eye he saw the planet no longer destroy. But as he stared at the planet he notice two objects flying towards the planet. The Another Flash went off and Shiro saw the two objects and he realized that the two object were massive meteorites . He also saw hundreds of small ships flying towards the two meteorites. Followed by another flash and shiro found himself inside of a building Where both meteorites were being examined by alteans, galra, Olkiar and other races . he looked around the area as saw the blueprints of the lions then another flash went off and Shiro was now looking at a completed Black lion

“ So this is your origin then “ Shiro said to the black lion

“ Yes it is my Paladin “ A voice said from behind Shiro

Shiro quickly turned around in his sat to look behind him and Saw no one and turned back with to what he was looking at and saw that he was no longer in the Altean hanger and Found himself looking into space and saw a small squadron of Fighter shooting at the Black lion. As the Black was being shot at A part of wings Appeared on the back of it and It changer straight at the enemy ship and seemly fased right throw then getting behind the enemy ships. the Black lions quickly turned Around and opened fire on the Enemy ship’s engines. Shiro wonder how he was going to get that Ability and as he wonder this Another flash appeared and shiro found himself no longer in the black lion’s Cockpit e found himself back in the purple plane with the black lion just standing there not doing anything.

“ What did i just see, why am i back here. How do it help Strength are bond please tell me what all that was supposed to tel me ?” Shiro asked to the black lion

“ It was supposed to tell you my Origin Shiro just like you said early ” The same voice as before said behind Shiro again .Shiro quickly turned Around to See a Towering figure in armor that Matched what Voltron looked like when the lions combined it had a helmet in the shape of a lion that covered it’s face it looked down on shiro with a neutral look on it’s eyes.

Shiro felt a little intimidated by the huge figure in front of him. “ My i Ask a question then?” Shiro said

“ Ok then Ask anything you want My paladin “ The figure said

“ Why is Zarkon still connected to black. How come keith can pilot the black lion. how do i strengthen are bond. “ Shiro asked

“ Keith has a fire in him i haven’t felt sense Zarkon or you it just needs time to grow. second My bond with Zarkon is broken he is just forcing the old one to linger much longer then it should. “ the figure said

“ How do we break that bond then ?” Shiro asked

“ That is easy prove your self to Black “ the figure said

Shiro was taken aback by this “ i thought i proved myself to black already?” Shiro asked

“ There is a difference between black letting you pilot him and proving yourself to him” the Figure said as the figure walked over to the black lion ”

“ Ok then how do i do that “ Shiro asked

“ you will find out soon enough” The figure said before disappearing

“ Wait what does that mean ?” Shiro asked and his question was quick answered when Zarkon appeared in front of him

“ So boy you finally come to challenge me here i am impressed by your brave boy” ZArkon said as he readied himself to fight “

“ Alright Black time to prove my worth.” Shiro said as he activied his Arm as both he and Zarkon charged at each other. Shiro and Zarkon clashed

“you Are strong boy “ Zarkon said as he kicked Shiro in the stomach sending Shiro flying backwards Shiro quickly got to his feet and Ran at Zarkon and throw severely punches which zarkon quickly blocked with his massive forearms “ and you are quit peresetain as well i commend you on that “ Zarkon said as he jumped back and Shoulder bashed Shiro in the Chest sending Shiro Flying Again.Shiro hit the Ground and rolled on the ground for a bit before Zarkon Changed at him kick him in the stomach Again “ But you are not strong enough to fight me “ ZArkon said as he grabbed “So just give up i don’t wish to kill such a great warrior ”

“ No i won’t give up as long as i has something to fight for i will never surrender to the likes of you so you better just kill me now “ Shiro said defiantly

“Well then you die with Honor Boy” Zarkon said As he raised his other hand about to punch a hole into Shiro when he was sent flying himself from behind by the black lion. Zarkon hit the ground and looked up to see the black lion Stand there next to Shiro” NOOOO!!!! “ Zarkon Yelled as he got back to hiss feet and charge at Shiro only to be fired upon by the black lion’s mouth beam . Zarkons eye snapped open and he was back in his throne room “NO Noooo NOOOOOOOOOO” zarkon yelled as he no longer could connect to the black lion

Shiro on the other hand was still in the Astar plane getting back to his feet and turned to look at the black lion “ So have i proven myself to you?’ Shiro asked The black lion let out a soft growling sound of approval. “Ok them now how do we get back to the castle” shiro ask and as he did Another flash went of and shiro found himself back in the hanger of the black lion “ So we never left uh that was new” Shiro said

a Few minutes later after running thought what he had just seen Shiro decide to talk to Allura about this. As he made his way out of the black lions he heard a voice in the back of his head

“ My NAme is Leonidas the prideful and the being who live in of Voltron you have earned that much Takashi Shirogane. “ Leonidas said before disappeared again

Shiro smile as he heard this and continued to walk to the bridge and when he arrived the bridge he found that everyone there and a cow. “Hey everyone is that a cow?” Shiro Asked confused

“ Her name is Kaltenecker “ lance said with a smile

“ Ok i will asked about what happened there but right now i need to Tell you all that i” Shiro was cut off When a message appeared on the screen Followed by a video that played

The video showed a Women in rebel gear Bleeding from a gash in Her shoulder “ To Any rebel who Can hear this my Name Is Able whitehorn i am stationed at listening outpost on Eve-on 3.Original we thought it was just a normal sandstorm. “ The Sounds of Gun and blaster fire could be heard outside” But then we lost contact with the other two out post here. “ the Sound of screaming came next “ But then something got in to the base it started killing and eating my squad then more of them started to appear” The sound of the door been banged on “ Shit to any one who could hear” She was cut off be a huge spiked vine that pierced her stomach.the vine pulled out Albe fell lifeless to the floor to show a hole in the door. The paladins watched as the door started to be ripped open and a huge man in Galra armor walked in his face was covered by a huge flower. the figure then began to smash the console causing the video to freeze on the picture of the huge looking right at the paladins with a twisted smile on his face

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kasspasia · 6 years

Note

How about Kass and Aspasia having a real talk after the big reveal

*HUGE SPOILERS IF YOU HAVEN’T GOTTEN ALL THE ENDINGS* like I’m talking HUGE. And this ficlet will go right into the canon details so please don’t ruin things for yourself if you don’t want to be spoiled.

Anonymous said to kasspasia: Could I get some Kasspasia angst? Where Kassandra finds out that Aspasia is the leader in the cult. Just like in the game?

Anonymous said to kasspasia: Hiiiiii, your kasspasia fics are the goddess’ work, thank you so much! How about Kassandra’s reaction on finding out that Aspasia is the cult’s leader… And maybe a better ending of that than the one we got?

Got a few similiar prompts so I’m gonna combine them. Thank you so much

This is pretty much going to be very similar to the actual canon romance ending that was provided only with insight into Kassandra and some of Aspasia’s emotional responses. So it will be pretty long and most of the dialogue is actual canon dialogue - just for a heads up - but i will be extending the scene.

Kassandra stared at the pyramid in shock, her mind still reeling with the images Pythagoras had shown her, his message burning into her brain. She struggled to make sense of what he was asking. She had already destroyed the cult, killed Deimos. What more could be expected of her?

“So, you’ve seen it too then.” Kassandra whipped around at the sound of a familiar voice, her eyes widening as Aspasia approached the pyramid. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” Aspasia said, turning to look at Kassandra with a small smile.

“What are you doing here?” Kassandra asked, and she could feel unsease setting in her stomach. She didn’t want her to answer the question. Aspasia took a few steps forward, reaching behind her back.

“You killed the last member of the cult. Well, just about.” She revealed a mask with blood tears. Kassandra felt like she had been punched in the stomach, her head reeling. She took a step back, her eyes wide.

“What?!” She exclaimed. Aspasia placed the mask on the ground and looked somewhat sadly at Kassandra.

“It’s true. I was their leader, but only for a moment it seemed.” She explained. Kassandra could hear ringing in her ears, her hands sweaty. Her mind flashing to the nights they spent in bed together. She felt sick to her stomach. Aspasia turned from the turmoil on Kassandra’s face and paced over the the opposite side of the pyramid to create space between them. She longed to embrace Kassandra, to hold her and tell her it was okay. “When your brother came along, it changed everything we were aiming for.” Kassandra stared at her for a moment of silence before angrily throwing her hands up and pacing.

“You agreed with them?! With the fucking cult!?” She shouted, her pain and anger easily noticeable with a slight shake in her voice. She didn’t know what she felt more, anger or heartbreak. She clenched her fists and jaw to keep her emotions under control. Aspasia watched her, her own heart breaking at the sight. She had to make her understand.

“The powers that be in the Greek world weren’t doing things the right way.” Aspasia tried to explain, raising her voice slightly. “The cult just wanted a clean slate.” Kassandra let out an incredulous laugh, shaking slightly from the anger.

“By way of corruption! Dirty drachmae!” She shouted in retaliation. She walked toward Aspasia in anger before turning and pacing back. She wanted to hit her or shake her or something to wake Aspasia up. “They KILLED people in a war they made themselves!” She spat out. Aspasia could feel the rage coming off Kassandra, and felt fear that she wouldn’t get the misthios back. She raised her arms up in slight shame, her brow furrowing.

“Fueling war was one of the methods, yes.” She admitted, glancing away. “But it was controlled! Until suddenly it wasn’t.” Aspasia frowned, and waved her hand. She felt the frustration at the cult she once worshiped rising again. “Then I didn’t like what we were doing anymore.” She admitted. Kassandra stood with her fists clenched, brows furrowed. She was confused, Aspasia felt unpredictable. But she could still see the woman she had been falling in love with buried in there, under the lies and deceit.

“I thought Deimos was on your side?” She exclaimed suddenly. She felt guilt pooling in her stomach at the thought of her showdown with her brother. If he wasn’t on Aspasia’s side, or the cults..

“Not in the way we hoped.” Aspasia answered, shaking her head slightly. “As you know, he’s impossible to control.” She said with a frown and Kassandra could see she was getting frustrated, the crease between her eyebrows deepening. Many time Kassandra had seen that expression as Aspasia had poured over her parchments - which Kassandra suddenly realised were most likely documents from the cult. “He worked his way to the helm and soon held even more sway than i did!” Kassandra shook her in disbelief.

“Malaka…So you were after us!” She said turning away in disgust. She could feel her heart aching with the realisation that everything she had had with Aspasia was a lie.

“Not you, your bloodline.” Aspasia interjected quickly, and Kassandra could hear slight desperation in her voice to be heard. “People like Leonidas, like you, have always posed a threat.” She explained, walking slightly closer to the pyramid, both on opposite sides. Kassandra crossed her arms, and ground her teeth in anger and pain. Aspasia glanced away for a moment, and her face softened slightly. “But then we met, and you surprised me.” She said softly. “You were nothing like Deimos.” Kassandra felt her heart skip, and clenched and unclenched her fists. She was so confused, unable to process what was happening. How could she believe Aspasia?

“Why didn’t you just use me?” She exclaimed throwing her hands up in frustation, her voice breaking slightly with the hurt. “I was in the palm of your hand!” She heard her voice shake, and tears well up in her eyes as she said it, and blinked them away. She couldn’t be weak right now. Aspasia looked at her, her eyes betraying her emotions too clearly, a look of almost begging for Kassandra to understand and not hate her.

“You made me optimistic, that you could help me bring down the cult that had become so corrupt.” She confessed, holding her hands to her chest. “The night at the symposium, the determination you had..” She trailed off slightly. “And you did, albeit unknowingly.” She continued with a small smile, and Kassandra could hear pride in the woman’s voice. She felt her anger simmer down slightly. IF Aspasia was telling the truth, then perhaps they weren’t on the opposite side. Perhaps this could be fixed.

“Telling me you’re a cultist took guts.” She said, before frowning slightly. “You know what I do to Cultists, Aspasia.” Her tone was threatening but Aspasia could see the conflict in Kassandra’s eyes, the way her face had softened away from the consuming rage before. She felt her heart speed up in hope. Perhaps, they had a chance.

“I didn’t want to lie to you anymore.” She confessed. Kassandra felt slightly taken aback. She couldn’t trust her, but this admission.. “Now that they are gone, we can work together. I think we make a good match, don’t you?” Aspasia ventured, nervous of potentially pushing the issue too far. She kept her tone light, playful. Kassandra frowned slightly, the light of the pyramid blinking, illuminating Aspasia’s face. She was so confused, she wanted it to stop - no she wanted to understand it all. She began pacing around to the side toward Aspasia. She wanted to be closer to the other woman. She wanted to hold her again and have her explain everything in her calming voice. She wanted to go back to before all of this.

“I don’t understand. What about this… pyramid? How does it work?” She asked, watching it closely as she walked around to the other side, next to Aspasia. “Why does the cult have it?” She finally looked back at Aspasia who was watching her closely. She shrugged in response and gestured widely to it.

“I’ve been trying to figure all that out myself.” She admitted her tone somewhat defeated. “It’s as much a mystery to you as it is to me.” Kassandra crossed her arms, surveying her, unsure if she was telling the truth. Aspasia sighed in frustration. “This pyramid has been worshiped by the cult for decades, and we have used it to replace the Oracle of Delphi, the most trusted person in all the Greek world.” Kassandra felt her lip twitch in slight anger at the mention of the oracle. She realised quickly that the “prophecy” that had ruined hers and Alexios lives had been given to the cult by this exact pyramid and she began pacing again before stopping and putting her hands on her hips. She couldn’t blame Aspasia for that as she would have been too young to have been involved at that time. “Using people’s reliance on a pantheon of dead gods would help to reshape humanity in our favour.” Aspasia’s voice broke into Kassandras thoughts and she glanced back at the woman who was staring intently into the pyramid. She felt the usual butterflies in her stomach the intensity of the look on Aspasia’s face, remembering the multiple conversations they had had where Aspasia would go into detail of her thoughts and beliefs. Thinking back Kassandra realised she should have guessed that she was a part of the cult. In fact she suspected she knew but didn’t want to believe it.

“The pyramid holds a mysterious power to see into time.” Aspasia’s voice broke through her convoluted thoughts and she found herself staring at the leaders lips. “But only certain people can activate it.” Kassandra raised her eyebrows and glanced back at the pyramid. “People like Deimos, and the ones in your bloodline.” Realisation hit Kassandra like a ton of bricks. No wonder the cult hunted down her family if they were able to activate it. They posed a threat to the cult by having access to their sacred pyramid. She frowned for a moment and turned to Aspasia.

“But you’ve seen something too?” She said as more a statement then an ask. Aspasia smiled gently.

“I don’t know how, or why but it did show me something.” She admitted and walked up to the pyramid, staring into it deeply. Kassandra felt nervous, unsure if she wanted the question answered.

“What did you see?” She asked. Aspasia turned to face her, and Kassandra’s heart skipped.

“I saw you.” Aspasia admitted, her voice full of admiration. Kassandra felt a slightly flush up her neck. “You destroyed the pyramid, and the cult…” She stopped for a moment before glancing away. “I saw what would come after.” She said with slight hesitation. Kassandra stepped up behind her, adrenaline beginning to pump through her body.

“After the cult?” She asked nervously. Aspasia nodded and looked up at her. They ended up standing within reach of each other - subconsciously being drawn to be close.

“We will be replaced by a new kind of order - control under the reign of a philosopher king.” Aspasia turned and began pacing away, in a way Kassandra was used to when she was explaining something in depth. “There would be a new movement away from the old gods towards a rational society, built in a kingdom by the people for the people. And I MUST find someone to lead them.” She exclaimed, leaning against the pyramid’s stand. Kassandra frowned. Is that all Aspasia’s end goal was? To create a world for the people? Her methods were unjust - siding with the corrupt cult but in the end was their goal not the same? She walked around to the opposite of the pyramid again to watch Aspasia.

“But I couldn’t achieve any of this with Cult and their chaotic regime. So I let them carry out their plans, and let the time of the cult of Kosmos come to an end on its own.” She exclaimed. Kassandra raised an eyebrow at the woman and a thought occurred to her. She held her hand up to quiet Aspasia for a moment.

“Wait. Did Perikles know?” She asked, her heart plummeting. Aspasia looked at her sadly.

“I wanted to protect him, so I kept him in the dark.” She explained, frowning slightly. “He would have had his own opinions. But he was NEVER supposed to die. That is the truth.” She said, and Kassandra could hear the pain in her voice, the regret and hurt in her expression. She felt anger well up slightly. Anger for Perikles and with a blow that almost winded her - Phoibe.

“He trusted you.” She breathed out, turning away as the anger bubbled up again. “And in the end you DIDN’T protect him.” She spat out before turning back to her. Aspasia’s face was downcast and guilt was etched clearly on it. Kassandra could feel her heart breaking over again and again. “Maybe he would still be alive if you’d stopped them. And maybe Phoibe would be alive too.” She said quietly her voice both angry and hurt. Aspasia looked up at the misthios who was glaring at her with tears in her eyes.

“Gods know I would have if I could!” Aspasia said, almost in defeat. When Deimos killed him, I knew the original cause was lost. I had to retreat.” She admitted. Kassandra bared her teeth in anger, holding back tears.

“And Phoibe? Was she just collateral damage?!” She hissed and Aspasia shook her head, her face pained.

“I did not think the cult would even dare to touch that little girl. I thought she would be safe!” She exclaimed. “I never wanted her to be hurt or caught in the crossfire.” Kassandra took a few deep breaths, unable to look at Aspasia in fear of what she would do. “Phoibe was such a good child, she looked up to you so much, and was so strong. That day has haunted me, knowing that it was my fault she was taken. But there was nothing more I could do. The cult was out of my control by that point. All I could do was lend all my help to you to bring them down.” She said, her voice wavering slightly. Kassandra finally looked up at her, roughly wiping a tear from her face. Aspasia’s eyes were also watery and she stared at Kassandra in such desperation for forgiveness. The misthios shook her head and put her hands on her hips.

“So, what happens now?” She snapped out. Aspasia swallowed heavily, still staring intently at Kassandra.

“We shift focus. We steer towards a new republic under one supreme rule.” She explained. “A dream I will make reality.” Kassandra shook her head.

“But it is still a dream. One that isn’t realistic.” She snapped, shaking her head in frustration. Aspasia looked her for a moment before steeling herself. She had to make her understand.

“Abandon what you know and just imagine!” She exclaimed and paced in front the pyramid, using her arms to gesture. “Forget democracy! No more red and blue, just citizens working for the greater good.” Kassandra crossed her arms, shaking her head.

“This is crazy!” She said in frustration. “It won’t work, Aspasia. It DIDN’T work.” She exclaimed. Kassandra wanted to believe it. She did. She wanted a world where citizens lived and worked together to create a better life. She wanted to embrace Aspasia, tell her that she would help her.

“It’s not crazy!” Aspasia raised her voice the most Kassandra had probably ever heard, and she shook with anger and frustration. “It’s enlightened. Once people in Athens get wind of this they’ll come to know they’ve wanted it all along. Even you.” She said. Kassandra glanced away in shame. She did want it. She wanted Aspasia, she wanted what came with that.

“I’m not sure.” She admitted in frustration. Aspasia walked toward her with purpose, staring intently at Kassandra.

“You’ve spent your whole life thinking for yourself. Let go.” She said with conviction. “Be yourself, like when we spent those nights alone together. You were free, and you were happy.” She said gently. Kassandra bit her lip and shook her head slightly. She was so confused. Two sides pulling at her. “What I plan will require you to trust me.” She continued. “Come with me. This future’s not a dream.” Aspasias voice was desperate but honest. Kassandra stood staring at her for a moment. The familiar furrow of her brow, the way her hair fells in curls to her shoulders. Her stance of power. But underneath that Kassandra knew hid a woman who wanted freedom. Wanted someone to notice her for her - not for her stature or husband or power. Someone who wanted a better a world - just like Kassandra. Her tears for Phoibe were real, her anguish for the deaths she had caused. She may have gone about her goals in the wrong way - trusting and leading the corrupt Cult but she worked to overthrow them. Kassandra closed the gap between them with a few short steps, wrapping her hand around the back of Aspasias face and drawing her into a kiss. The familiar feeling of the woman’s lips caused calm to wash over her and the cult leader rested her hands against Kassandra’s chest in her standard way, resting over the misthios pounding heart. She broke the kiss and caressed Aspasia’s face.

“I suppose that means you trust me.” Aspasia said with small amusement, her face slightly red. Kassandra shook her head very slightly, frowning.

“I.. don’t know what that means.” She murmured. Aspasia smiled and kissed her lightly again.

“I’ll tell you what that means.” She said, gazing up at the misthios, hands still pressed to her chest. “It means that you feel as I do. Love is the single most powerful emotion you can feel toward another.” She felt Kassandra’s heart begin to race faster and watched the misthio’s eyes widen slightly.

“I never said love…” Kassandra trailed off, realising that it was useless to deny it. She enjoyed the company of many women - all of them amazing in every different way, all of them making an impact on her life. But the fact of the matter is that she longed to go home to someone. To Aspasia. The nights she could go to her and relax and be free. Be herself and be comforted, caressed, known and not judged. There were no expectations when they were in bed together. Kassandra stepped back slightly, shaking her head. There were expectations of her though and she had fulfilled them without even knowing. Aspasia frowned slightly as she stepped back.

“You should go. Lead your new republic.” Kassandra said, hurt plainly clear. Aspasia shook her head slightly, confused.

“I won’t be the leader.” She explained, still confused by the switch in Kassandra, who turned her back on Aspasia with her arms crossed and paced away “We need someone with the knowledge of a philosopher and the wisdom of a king.” Kassandra stopped pacing and let out a frustrated sigh.

“That’s a tall order these days.” She claimed, her back still to Aspasia who took a few steps foward, resting a hand on Kassandra’s arm.

“I couldn’t have done this without you Kassandra.” She murmured. “You’re doing the right thing.” Kassandra finally turned around.

“I always try and do the right thing.” She said in slight despair. She was confused again - maybe she hadn’t been doing the right thing all along. If this future is the one the leader of the Cult wanted - how was that the right thing?

“Then we are after the same thing.” Aspasia claimed. She could see the confusion and hurt on Kassandras face and sighed - giving the misthios a small sad smile as she turned to walk away with the intention of giving Kassandra the time and distant she needed. She could feel tears welling up in her throat and clenched her teeth to stop them from coming out. She knew that the chance of forgiveness and understanding from Kassandra was low - the chance of her agreeing even lower. But for her fears to become real, was almost too much for the leader to bear.

Kassandra watched as she walked away before turning back to the pyramid.

“Kassandra!” She heard Myrrines voice echo, seemingly coming from the pyramid. “You have much to do, lamb!” It continued and Kassandra felt the rage she had been holding back surge through her body. She pulled the spear of Leonidas out and stabbed it through the light pyramid with a yell. It flickered for a moment before disappearing.

“No more false prophecies.” She growled, before all the anger left her body and she fell to her knee’s, weak. She wanted to go home. She wanted to see her mater. She wanted to lie down and rest. She wanted… Kassandra pulled herself to her feet and sheathed the spear and sprinted after Aspasia. The woman sighed at the sound of the pounding footsteps after her, resigning her fate to having the spear thrust through her body. She had heard the sound of the bang and shout of what she assumed was Kassandra stabbing through the pyramid as her vision had showed her and knew her fate was about to follow. She braced herself as she turned to see Kassandras face before the killing blow but was startled as instead of a spear to her stomach she was pulled into a tight embrace, with Kassandras head nuzzled into her neck. She cautiously returned the hug, shock, relief and wary crashing inside her. Aspasia heard a small sob from Kassandra and tightened her arms around the misthios, pressing her head into Kassandra’s shoulder.

“Kassandra.” She whispered, her voice breaking slightly.

“Don’t leave me. Please.” Kassandra responded, her voice quiet, pleading. “I don’t want a future without you in it. I don’t want a future of despair, and loneliness and regret.” Aspasia stroked her hair.

“I want to give you a future, Kassandra. I have since I first met you.” She whispered. “I want to work toward a future where everyone can feel the happiness, love and comfort we feel with each other.” Kassandra pulled out of the hug, staring down at Aspasia with pure affection, her eyes red. Aspasia caressed her cheek and reached up, kissing her gently. “I love you, Kassandra. Nothing will change that.” Kassandra smiled in the kiss.

“I love you too, Aspasia. I will fight the future you have envisioned. Our future.” She said with conviction. She didn’t know if it was the right future to fight for. She didn’t know if she was being selfish, or if everything she had fought for was being forsaken by this decision. But it was HER decision, and not that of false gods or false prophecy.

This will be continued in other prompts - follow up to the ending.

#kasspasia #kassandra #aspasia #kassandra x aspasia #ac odyssey fanfic #assassins creed odyssey fanfic #kassandra fic

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pinkabby2 · 4 years

Text

The White Hawk’s Creed CH-1

Walking around the big room the small child sighed softly to herself, not knowing how to get out.

"What are you doing here young one?"

The small one turned around and got slightly frightened at the figure hiding in the shadows.

"Don't fret little one. I'm not like the others to hurt such fragile beings."

The little one slowly moved near the shadow where the mystery being was. Not knowing what or who it was she was on edge. Not knowing how she got here or anything.

"I used to be just like you, young, tiny, shy and chubby like little ol' you."

Soon something like rocks started moving before a tall staff moved twenty feet away. The young one looked over at it with stars within her eyes.

"Go on, touch it."

The young one looked at the shadow shocked but moved over to the big rod. Tracing her hand down, she was able to trace a small design of a spike.

"Ah yes, the Assassin's symbol. That symbol has been hidden for centuries from B.C."

What the mysterious figure said next shocked the youngster.

"Will you be willing to continue this prophecy?"

Nodding her head yes the hidden figure chuckled a light heart filled laugh.

"Step back child and you shall see me."

She stepped back and the being started getting up, more Rocks fell on the ground causing them to groan out.

"Young Keeper, fulfill your light once again."

The staff glowed a bright gold before the dark part of the room grew sunlight. Showing a six-pack and a giant blue and gold hawk mask his eyes had a yellow hue. White and blue shackles on his ankles and robe. A white cloth that looked like a giant halo over its head that tied around its arms. Giant, marvelous blue wings opened up from behind the giant male.

"May this one be the one to continue the prophecy of the Creed!"

Slamming the staff down the ground, the ground around the girl glowed up.

"Show your wings and fly little bird, show the new generation what we have!"

The girl looked up at the Pharaoh and smiled before walking up to him and reaching her hands up to him. The Pharaoh looked down at her slightly shocked but bowed down to her height. She grinned and continued what she was doing, she began rubbing his mask laughing.

"Little birdie~"

The Pharaoh looked even more shocked at her speaking a word to him.

"Let's get you back to where you came from..."

....

"Mom something's wrong!"

"What's happening?"

"Her vitals were riding sky high but now they look like they're not even moving. She's breathing shallow as we speak."

The small girl's hand grasped onto her twin's hand causing the twin to gasp silently.

"Mom she's awake!"

"Honey! Oh, thank God for your oka-"

Her mother, Kassandra hesitated slightly as she noticed the mark now on her arm.

"Anya, did you paint that for your sister?"

"No, why?"

"Oh no, please not my baby..."

Anya looked over to her mother, not ever seeing this sort of worry before written in her eyes. Aya looked at her mother slightly confused about what she was talking about.

"Mater! Why are you acting like this?"

"This,"

Kassandra pointed to the newfound tattoo getting ready to tear up.

"Is something that has hurt many people."

Aya grasped onto her mother's hand and gave her a weak smile. Kassandra looked in her eyes and stopped moving, she looked in shock and smiled softly.

"Alright then. I'll teach you the way."

"Wait what-"

.......

"This is the spear of Leonidas. It has worn out for me but maybe for you, it won't."

Standing in the middle of a field Kassandra and Aya were sitting down in the grass. Kassandra's little friend, Ikaros, was flying above them both in a circle keeping watch.

Aya took hold of the spear then suddenly started swinging it around calmly. Kassandra smiled softly as she witnessed herself in her daughter.

A few minutes later Aya walked up to Kassandra and gripped her shirt trying to get her attention from Ikaros.

"Yes, hon?"

Aya brought up a grass chain that she made after a few minutes and pointed at it. Kassandra looked utterly confused about what she was trying to get at before realizing that she needed a chain for the spear.

"I'll go get some for you, Ikaros watch over her while I'm gone okay?"

A squawk could be heard from above and Kassandra took it as a yes. She soon left Ikaros and Aya by themselves.

"Finally your mother is gone- I thought I wouldn't ever be able to come out."

Aya turned around and saw a human male body but the head was a hawk, white feathers and gold outline before blue markings coming from the sides of the eyes. He wore a hood on top of his head and the design on the back was small gold, blue and red wings with two rings surrounding them.

"Alright. Here is the first part of your abilities."

Haros touched the Assassin mark and allowed an eye to appear on the bottom middle.

"May the games begin."

......

It's been more than ten years that little Aya has been training with her Spear. Now a 15-year-old going into high school, Aya was certainly worried about many things. Still going through her mute phase she would be worried that the people would treat her differently. The small voice of the god spoke in her head.

"Cheer up love, I have the perfect solution for that."

A snap was heard before he started leading her in the forest. Soon Athens training camp was spotted causing her eyes to widen.

"Yes you're going in there, remember you are a part of the Creed."

....

"Okay when I mean you are a part of the Creed, I didn't mean that you knock them out."

Aya rolled her brown eyes and unlocked the cages that held down prisoners.

"Oh because you don't want blood on your hands? You're gonna get them anyway."

Aya stopped at the last cadge that held a tall two-legged monster, long red to black hair that led into a tail with a small blue bead making it into a small ponytail.

'I feel a large power from your young one.'

"Yeah, she's my baby!"

'...what the hell.'

The beast had a deadpanned look across its comma like face looking at the taller bird man next to her.

'You have very big energy to kill armies'

"HEY DON'T IGNORE ME!"

Aya paused for a second before punching the bird and unlocked the door. The tall two-legged fox walked out and looked at Aya in admiration before bowing its head. Aya just placed her hand down on it and began petting him before they both walked out leaving the birdman alone in the wilderness.

"Oi, Don't hate me because I'm beautiful!"

He squawks, running to catch up with them.

......

"My name is Zoroark but you can call me Zo, I'm a dark Fox type Pokemon."

Aya grasped onto Zo's fur and placed her head in.

"Ah, I almost forgot. I can do very interesting things."

Aya tilted her head and looked at Zo before seeing a twin of herself once again- wait so would that be considered triplets?? Aya raised her hand and Zo followed her movements.

"Well let's get a move on, we have to get Aya all packed up to get to Japan."

"Oh, the Japanese are the worst. They kicked me out after I had Ramen!"

Haros glared down at the fox, "You robbed someone's bowl and ran out chugging it down your throat." The fox chuckled nervously before looking at Haros in confusion.

"Wait how the hell did you know?"

Suddenly Haros was whacked in the back of the head by a hula hoop, when he turned around he saw Aya already on top of the hill and standing in a bad bitch stance.

"Oh shit we need to hide, her mother's coming-"

.....

Anya was up in her room doing what the gods knew while Kassandra and Aya were sitting downstairs watching the movie play on the new TV.

"God I wish you didn't have to leave in a few more days... I'm going to miss your love."

Aya turned over to her mother and snuggled her forehead upon her shoulder. Slightly yawning at how late it already was.

Kassandra soon sung a silent Melody and said one part, Aya smiled softly as her eyes were slowly closing. "Send me kisses through the gray skies~" She gracefully hummed the rest in a peaceful melody as Aya then fell asleep.

"May the gods be with you."

...

"Today's the day kid, wake up!"

Haros spoke with a loud ass squawk. Aya groaned and turned to her clock before turning around to Haros, who was fully dressed up like he was going to the Bahamas.

With a small grip, Aya held onto the alarm allowing him to speak. "What we need to get a move on!"

It was four in the damn morning.

Aya yoted the alarm at him, making a hard crack, the alarm shattered into pieces. She gave him the bitch stare and he groaned softly at the non-existent pain.

Looking forward Aya noticed Zo was in the corner of the room, curled in a small ball. Aya wondered why it was sleeping on the floor but didn't question it.

Slowly Aya got up and did her morning routine; showering, putting on clothes, jewelry, doing hair, eating breakfast, then brushing teeth before she does her day off right.

Sure it took a while but it was already slowly becoming lighter outside as she put her luggage in the car. Haros helped out slightly, carrying everything he could.

For the rest of the 4 hours, Aya just sat down in the living room playing Assassins Creed Origins. She swore the game was wack from the fact that literally, the female has the same name and skin color as her.

Coincidence?

I think not.

After a while, Anya walked down with her black hair up in a messy bun. Aya waved at her but Anya just ignored her and headed off to the kitchen.

Bitch.

Kassandra soon walked down after, her eyes stained a light pink as Aya could tell she was crying.

"My little Ella's leaving the nest..."

Aya smiled weakly as she walked up to Kassandra, embracing her youngest child.

Aya patted her shoulder before pointing to Anya. Kassandra got the jest and nodded before Aya walked over to the door. Sure their goodbyes weren't as formal as others about they knew how to get straight to the point.

"See y'all in the Underworld-mHp!"

Aya dragged the god by the beak before yeeting him in the back seat of the RAM Truck. Soon she got in the front seat with a random woman driving and they were off.

After ten minutes the lady changed into Zo and grinned wickedly, gripping on the steering wheel. Haros looked at the fox's face and already knew what shit he was about to get in.

This was gonna be a hell of a time.

...

Alright! This is the first chapter of "The White Hawks Creed" and I have no idea how to feel rn :') Corona kill me now I hope yall enjoyed this and if you didn't then STFU it gets better. I'll try to write more chapters of this and post it with photos like I did in this chapter but I might not cuz that took a whole hour. Jesus Christ so yep I already finished writing chapter 2 and I'll post it when I corrected everything! :) thank you and b y e.

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#fanfiction #assassins creed #assassinscreedodyssey #assassinscreedorgins #ikaros #Aya #Amulet #Haros #egyptian gods #Quotev #Wattpad #don't ask #killmenow #coronawriting

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