Harry Potter & the Shipgirls

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

Pianos, Parties, and Paternal Perplexity (II)

8 August 2014

Villa Uvas Munificus, Slopes of Mount Ossa, Thessaly, Greece

"The piano keys are black and white but they sound like a million colors in your mind." – Maria Cristina Mena
Spoiler: An Unexpected Revelation

Athena sipped her glass of wine and smiled at Colombe as the blonde-haired rapier finished another tale about her adventures. The Frenchwoman was a fascinating fountain of information and had gotten into more trouble than anyone Athena knew short of her half-brother Hermes getting dared to 'do his worst'.

Then her gray eyes narrowed as Colombe concluded "...as it turned out that was not the end of it all."

"Oh, how so?" Athena asked. "The stratagem to get Yuying on the other ship while her illusion fled with you to Manila failed then?"

Colombe chuckled and Tokunotakai next to her started to smile. "Actually that worked brilliantly. However, as it turned, out unknown to us the night before we departed, I accidentally impregnated Yuying during her farewell to me. So she was carrying my eldest daughter when she departed for America. I'm very proud of Wei Ying, although her unexpected arrival in my life earlier this year was quite a shock to me. Now I know what Norimune must have felt like when my half-sisters and I tracked her down last year to address her abandoning us."

Athena's eyes widened and she spoke in a slow precise manner as her brain whirled. "Wait, you mean to tell me that you are the product of a love between two women, and your father was a woman, Colombe?"

Tokunotakai nodded. "Hai. Muramasa-no-Norimune is the spirit of a nodachi blade that was consecrated to the service of the Lord of Eight Banners the same day as I was. While I stayed at the temple for my service, Norimune wandered the globe having adventures. Some of which resulted in the birth of Co-chan, and her half-sisters Jackie and Delilah, all of whom are the spirits of the weapon bodies that manifested when their mothers gave them birth."

Athena glanced over to where Apollo, Euterpe, Hebe, and Calliope were all chatting with Claire. They were apparently arranging a group musical interlude judging from the lyres and dual pipes that had been summoned. If Artemis finds out about this, well she does enjoy the company of her Huntresses quite a bit.... She smiled slightly and raised her wineglass. "That's fascinating. Truly you never stop learning things." You have no idea how true that just became for me....

Colombe sipped her wine. "That is very true." Colombe then glanced over at where Medea stood up straight.

The ancient Greek sorceress clapped her hands. "Everyone, our guests of honor shall be here momentarily. Claire, I do believe it's time!"

Claire grinned smugly and a shadowy double formed beside her on the bench. She closed her eyes, four hands found the piano's keys....
Spoiler: A Welcome For Hades

...and as part of the mosaic, representing Hercules subduing Cerberus, vanished in an entrance to the Underworld that emitted smoke, sulfurous vapors, and the moans of the dead....

...Claire began to play the overture to Jacques Offenbach's Orpheus in the Underworld to herald the arrival of Hades, dressed in a jet black and cloth of gold chiton and his bride in a wine-purple gown decorated with golden pomegranates.

The Lord of Many grinned and nodded to Medea who had bowed to him, before shaking her hand and slapping her on the back. "It is good to see you once more, Medea."

Persephone followed, hugging Medea and then heading to hug her mother who watched with a smile that grew as her daughter hugged her.

Hades looked over at the mortal guests and then his eyes widened as he stared at the sight of Claire playing her heart out on the piano. He coughed and gave Medea a odd look. "You know what has Chosen the young lady, Medea?"

Medea blinked and spoke in shock, "Wait, she's Chosen?"

Hades nodded. "See for yourself."

Medea cast a spell and her jaw dropped.

Claire's pure ivory aura flared to full visibility to all present. Clearly visible were two black wolf pawprints the size of dinner platters placed over her head and heart and the image of Claire inside it grew canine ears and a bushy wolf tail. Throughout it all, the piano continued to play. Her lips quirked as she segued into Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf as a wordless commentary on what was going on.
Spoiler: Butterklavier And Wolf-Mother Are Trolls!

Colombe stared in shock at the sight of her beloved daughter's aura. She then turned to Medea and croaked out. ""Professor Aetios, what is the meaning of this?"

Medea swallowed several times, looking quite faint. "One of the oldest Gods any of us know of has touched your middle daughter to claim her as a Champion."

Colombe staggered to a nearby couch and collapsed into it. Toku sat by her and patted her back as the rapier moaned. "Oh no, she's going to be sent into danger. Not Claire...."

Claire looked over, still playing Peter and the Wolf with her eyes closed, and spoke quietly with a gentle smile. "Oh no, Mother. Wolf-Mother just wants me to share the gift of music with everyone that I meet. Especially all my little furry brothers and sisters."

Colombe grasped the words like they were a lifeline. "No fighting. No danger?"

Claire's gentle sweet smile grew as she finished her piece with a flourish. "No fighting like you do, Mother. I fight by driving away the bad things from your hearts."

With that, Claire's eyes opened and she smiled happily at the Greek God of Music, and the Muses of Epic Poetry and Music. "So what shall we play next to make everyone happy?"
----------------

Spoiler: Claire Serenading The Room

Apollo leaned in to speak to Claire as they listened to Calliope declaim a Panegyric to Hades in her rich voice at the dinner table. "You are not looking for a lover, are you?" he asked her.

Claire shook her head, blushed, and responded equally quietly. "No, not yet. I wish to be married first and I know in my heartwood that the right man is out there for me and my path will meet his one day." Claire glanced over at her mother, who was still a bit wide-eyed. "I don't want to hurt Mother either."

Apollo nodded slowly at her words and sighed. "Then I shall restrict myself to granting you the boon of having your children be given the gift of music as you have the gift. I do wish to play a duet with you again on another day though."

Claire smiled happily and hugged him. "I'd like that too, Apollo, your lyre playing was amazing! Thank you, how can I repay you?" Past her, Colombe coughed and gave Claire a quelling look.

Apollo smirked. "Well there's an ancient hymn of mine that you can make popular with your playing of it once you adapt the music...."

Claire's smile widened and grew happier.
----------------

As the party broke up, Hades looked over to where Persephone and Demeter were speaking. He caught their glances and nods, then walked to where Claire was carefully arranging several scrolls containing Greek music that the Muses and Apollo had given her. He coughed at Apollo. "Nephew, I need to speak to Claire."

Apollo nodded. "Of course, Uncle, I'll speak to Aunt Hestia."

Hades gave Claire a smile. "You truly are a rare talent. I regret that I was ill-prepared to reward you for your brilliance in the art of music, unlike my nephew. I could not help but overhear Apollo speak to you about your true love?"

Claire blushed and nodded. "Yes, I know that he's out there somewhere."

"Ahh, well then." Hades smirked as Demeter and Persephone joined them. The Queen of the Underworld smiled and handed over a single gem-like pomegranate fruit to Claire. "Our gift to you today that shall make you fruitful. Plant the seeds from this fruit of my orchard in your garden. After your wedding day, eat as many seeds from the fruit of the tree that shall spring up as you wish for children to have."

Claire's smile lit up her face. "Thank you so very much!"

Persephone smiled and gave her husband a look. "I shall have a piano commissioned for our palace so you can visit and serenade us in the winter months as Orpheus did before."

Hades nodded.
----------------

Colombe smiled at Medea as they watched the deities leave. She then gave her old teacher a curious look.

"You had an odd expression on your face after speaking privately to Athena. Is something wrong?" Colombe asked.

Medea frowned as Atalanta and Hippomenes joined them and began to speak to Toku. "I'm not sure. She wished to make amends for the past, and while she was sincere, something is up in that quarter."

Colombe nodded. "At least the party was a success and went well."

Medea nodded. "Indeed so, I'll probably ask Claire to play again sometime for another gathering."

Colombe sighed and finally nodded. "I'll ask her when we wake up tomorrow before we leave. She got some music scrolls, so she will be happy once we return to Moulbaix."
Spoiler: Ignition Of A Conflagration

Then the rapier's eyes widened in shock and she clenched her fists. "Toku, we have a problem." Colombe snapped out as her mood changed from loving mother to hardened combat veteran in an instant.

Medea looked over at her pupil. "What's wrong?" She asked as she in turn tensed.

Colombe sketched an Arabic word with her fingertip, leaving silver light behind her. "I gave Lucius Malfoy an amulet to alert me if he and his were threatened." The Rapier's voice was flat and filled with a barely controlled fury.

Her voice became harder and more ruthless as she drew her sword. "It just activated. Malfoy Manor is under attack."

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Bright sunlight of the afternoon was nearly blinding as it hit the white wings of Hedwig as she flew along in the sky above the Scottish Highlands. Passing through a cloud, dewdrops glinted like gemstones as they rolled over her feathers. Currently, the Familiar was smiling on the inside as she made her way towards her destination. After all, this was the chance to stretch her wings some on a long distance flight.

She could remember coming through the Vanishing Cabinet in Percy's current home and phoning the Burrow to see if Ron was there. When told that he wasn't, she actually smiled because it meant a nice, long fight. Though she does suspect that it surprised the member of the Royal Navy on guard duty to see her transform into an owl from a running jump and rapidly ascend.

And, frankly, a long flight was exactly what she needed as Harry didn't use her that often during the summer.

Not that she really blamed him for such, what with how most of his friends lived right there in Yokosuka. And when he was at Hogwarts, she could pass through the Owl Box and be in Yokosuka directly. Hence, she enjoyed the times when she actually got to stretch her wings fully and go on long distance flights. Which was not to say that she didn't go on such flights when in Japan, because she did as a matter of fact. Often long flights to the nearby mountains and such in order to hunt.

While she loved human cooked food, especially as she now had a human form herself with the sense of taste that came with it, she still enjoyed hunting for her own food. And around Yokosuka, the most she usually got was the odd bird or rat. Sometimes, she wanted more than just that after all.

Internally shaking her head, she looked around with her eyes scanning the ground far below. Part of her was disappointed that Harry was not in her head flying along with her, as she knew he enjoyed it as much as she did. But he was currently back in Yokosuka getting ready to pick up little Kenshō from Umitsubame's the next day. And that involved baking some treats to take with him.

Hedwig licked her metaphorical lips at that thought, as well as how she would be able to get some of said treats when she returned.

Finally, her eyes found the waters of a Loch below her and she began her descent until she was just a couple dozen meters above the sparkling waters. She recognized the loch from reading maps and comparing pictures on the computer as Loch Lomond. Already, she could feel that her destination was close at hand and speeded up a bit, a pleasant, to her, burning in the muscles of her wings as she powered along.

Shortly after, she noticed a head of red hair sitting next to the loch and drawing something in his sketchbook with an intent look on his face. Landing next to him, and not drawing a response, Hedwig raised an internal eyebrow in amusement, 'Say what you will about the lad, but when he gets interested in something, he doesn't abide distractions.' With a look around to make sure that there were no owls in sight, best not to chance things after all, Hedwig cleared her throat before speaking in her Welsh accented voice, "What is this now? No comment for a poor owl bringing someone a letter?"

Jumping a bit, the youngest male Weasley looked around before focusing on Hedwig, "Bloody hell... did you need to surprise me, Hed?"

The owl narrowed her eyes some and clacked her beak, "I've been standing here for almost five minutes, Ronald Weasley. And my name is 'Hedwig'. H-e-d-w-i-g. Not Hed, Heddy, Wiggy, and most definitely not 'Heddywiggy'. Call me that last one and I'll bite you, see if I do not."

Only blinking, Ron snorted and shook his head, "I will never get used to that." Scratching his head, he shrugged, "So, what are you doing all the way out here?"

In reply, Hedwig thrust out her leg to show she had a letter there, "Harry-Wizard sent you a letter, some sort of reply."

Eyebrow raised, the red head took the offered letter and opened it, "You know, you could have dropped it off at my home with Mum. She wouldn't have minded much."

That got him a scoff, much to his amusement from Hedwig, "And spend time around Pig? Not likely... worse than a five year old with too much sugar. Always bothering me with questions without giving me time to even answer, he is!"

More than a little amused, Ron gave her a look, "Also, you enjoyed the flight."

Spreading a wing, the Snowy Owl gave her version of a shrug, "Also, I enjoyed the flight." Extending her wings, she flexed them a bit, "These are not just for show, you know."

Just barely holding back a snort, Ron looked over the letter and gave a small nod, "Huh, Harry is going to be coming to the Quidditch World Championship after all. Mate will love it, they're saying that it will be Ireland and Bulgaria this year. Especially after the recent Haiti-Japan game since Haiti got disqualified even though they won."

Interested, Hedwig transformed into her human form and frowned as she crossed her arms over her chest, "What happened? I know that Harry-Wizard read about it and just sort of froze before cursing them out in his usual way."

Lips twitching, the Weasley shook his head, "I'm still amazed that he can curse like a sailor without a single swearword. Something about learning how to creatively do it from a Captain Haddock." With a shrug, Ron grimaced some, "Well... it had to do with the mascots. Japan apparently had some Tengu this year, but Haiti, well..." His grimace grew a little bit, "They use Inferi for theirs."

Absolute silence met that for a few moments as they thought over what was just said. Unsure that she heard right, Hedwig reached up and wiggled her finger in her ear before giving him a disbelieving look, "Inferi... as in the magically reanimated corpses? That Inferi?"

Disgusted look on his face, Ron nodded, "Aye, that Inferi. Don't even want to know where they got them from either, but yeah." He made a motion with one hand, "Unfortunately, during the celebrations, the guys on the team who control them got drunk and things went... pearshaped. Caused a huge blow up, so the International Quidditch League absolutely disqualified them and from what I heard, the ICW was considering sanctions against Haiti for it."

Hedwig gave a slow blink at that, "I am so glad that I can become human, because I can do this now." Promptly, she placed her face in her hands, "What were those idiots thinking..."

Simply watching as she trailed off cursing in Welsh, the red head raised an eyebrow as he was impressed. Once she was done and pulled her hands away from her face, Ron gave a shrug, "Right, so... like they're saying, most likely is Ireland against Bulgaria, though that in itself is causing some problems because... well, Ireland's team is under British control."

That got a grimace from Hedwig before she shook her head, "Right, so Harry-Wizard is going to see said game." With a shrug, she looked towards his drawing pad, "Moving away from bloody idiots, what were you so into that you did not notice a beautiful owl like myself here?"

Glancing at her, Ron shrugged a little bit as he flipped through his sketchbook, "Just doing some research here, that's all."

Eyebrow raised, the transformed Owl blinked, "Oh? What sort of research?" In reply, Ron gestured at the slope in front of them which Hedwig examined. It looked like some metal track that followed the slope down to the water's edge. Remembering from when she flew over it, the Familiar remembered that it continued on into the water itself, "Uh... sort of lost here."

Lightly chuckling, Ron shook his head, "It's what's known as a patent slip, or a marine railway." He pointed down towards the water, "See, there's a cradle attached to the track. When work is to be done, it is lowered into the water along the trackway until it reaches the end, then a vessel is moored to the cradle. It is then pulled along until it rests on the cradle and is pulled entirely out of the water some distance where work can be done on it after it is locked into place." The red head pointed towards the small building, "There's an old steam engine with a boiler in there, which powers the winches for the trackway. This one can pull a vessel of a couple hundred tons out of the water."

Head cocked to the side, Hedwig frowned a bit, "Hmm... but what has your interest?"

With a shrug, the youngest male of the Weasley family looked through his papers, "Honestly? I haven't done much for Summer. And this sort of thing is cheaper and easier to build than a dry dock so... I've been researching them to design one. Not that hard when you get down to it, and some modern ones can handle vessels of a six thousand tons!" Grin on his face, Ron turned to her, "I figure that with some strengthening charms and lightening charms? You could build one that should pull at least ten thousand tons out of the water. That way, she could keep her dry docks for the really heavy ships like Battleships and Carriers as well as maybe Heavy Cruisers, and use the slipway for Light Cruisers, Destroyers, Submarines, and smaller ships. You can even use them for putting together lighter ships."

Slowly, Hedwig gave a nod, "I see, she would probably like that."

Chuckling a bit, Ron scratched his cheek, "That's what I'm hoping for." He then gestured around them, "Anyways, this is one of the working ones left in Britain that I can get easy access to. Warspite and Duke have been helping me look at others, but... I mainly take pictures of those since they can't have me spend hours sketching and looking through it like I can here. Been here most of the day too looking through the boiler and such." Pausing at one picture, the wizard tilted his head, "Figure that I can at least get one that can lift four thousand tons out though. And it should be easy for Summer to build since much of what needs to be built could be done with ship engines and the like."

Arms crossed, the Owl shook her head, "So when are you going to give it to her?"

Frown on his face, Ron became thoughtful, "Not sure, but... I might manage it for the anniversary of when we met since she sort of wants to use it as her birthday. Or, at worst, Christmas. Still, I think that she'll like it anyways."

Just nodding, Hedwig smiled a bit as the two chatted before she had to leave. Not before getting a verbal reply for Harry, of course. And then she was gone as Ron took a few more pictures and left himself. His Mum didn't want him to stay out too long after all.

_____________________________________________________________

It was night outside as Harry leaned against the counter with a thoughtful look on his face, "Huh, so that's Ron's reply then?"

With a nod as she sat on top of the kitchen island in her human form, legs kicking back and forth, Hedwig gave a slight shrug, "Pretty much, Harry-Wizard. He wants to know later if you want to stay at the Burrow or not, especially as Percy is staying at his new home now that he's graduated. Apparently, he finds it much better than dealing with the Twins all the time."

Scratching his chin in thought, the teenage wizard considered the question before shaking his head, "Actually, we might just stay at my family manor and go there first thing in the morning. That would probably work out best in the end." That got him a nod from Hedwig, "So, was he actually working on something for Summer when you found him?"

Lips curling into a slight smirk, Hedwig chuckled a little, "He was, Harry-Wizard. Something that he's been working on for some time already."

For a few moments, Harry thought about that before chuckling, "Somehow, I foresee Summer being over the bloody Moon when he presents it to her. Only sad that I likely won't get to see it, to be honest." With a shrug, he shook his head, "Still, good on them both."

As he stretched, the transformed owl cocked her head to the side, "So, where's Hoppou and the others?"

His own lips curling into a smirk, Harry glanced at the door to said Abyssal's bedroom, "Asleep, her and Seiko are going back out with Rei-Chan and Asuka-Chan tomorrow and want to catch up on some sleep. Also, she is going to be talking with Tanith about getting me some more ivory for... a gift."

Eyebrow raised, Hedwig gave him a knowing look, "Hmm... I wonder..."

Not reply to that, he simply took a sip of hot chocolate before walking over to the fridge, "Anyways, I do have something for you." Reaching into the fridge, he pulled out a container and took some cookies from it, "Triple chocolate chunk."

Barely blinking, Hedwig watched as he placed them into the microwave to heat up before placing the plate of cookies in front of her. Taking the glass of milk she was handed, the transformed familiar happily hummed as she bit down into one, 'Having human taste buds really is the best.'

Unable to help himself, Harry chuckled a little before he shook his head with a happy smile as he bit into his own cookie, 'Kenshō and the other should enjoy this tomorrow...'

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

Ein Dolch in Gefahr

Tír na nÓg

8 August 2014
Spoiler: A Malfoy's Choice

"So, have you decided yet?"

Draco Malfoy turned from his contemplation of the patterns that the silver mist was making in the apple orchard that he was sitting in along the shores of a laughing azure brook and breathed in the perfumed air from the golden blossoms overhead. He responded with a velvet edge in his voice as he looked at his host. "It's an attractive offer, but.... Why me?"

The speaker sat down on a rock beside Draco and sighed. He ran creamy white fingers through His auburn hair before speaking in a voice full of controlled passion and worry.

"To be blunt, we need you as our hero and our champion. You now have fought what is starting to stir under your homeland. Our ancient foes still exist and have grown powerful while sealed away by us and our Champions in the last Age of Heroes. We shall need heroes to fight them and we are restricted by the Divine Accords from direct action. As well, not every son or daughter of Man has the potential to be a hero of legend, only those with a great potential destiny are eligible, and that results in the candidate being drawn to danger as iron to a lodestone. Finally, some of the ones I would normally look to recruit to fight alongside you have already been claimed by other Pantheons thanks to the -- missteps -- of my sister The Morrigan with her Chosen idiocy. Unfortunately for us, the Potter boy is now claimed by the Shinto of Japan and the Longbottom heir by the fierce sons of Óðinn, Vili, and Vé."

"So that leaves me." Draco spoke aloud as he thought about the pros and cons of what was at stake from all angles. As he pondered his choice, movement along the stream-bed caught his attention. Four laughing and giggling maidens walked to it along a path through the heath to fill their water jugs so they could prepare a feast in the house that was waiting for him as his reward for successful service.

If he accepted the offer on display.

His host had explained that the maidens were representatives of some of the basic concepts of the Celtic Pantheon, the turning of the seasons, the four arts of druidry, knowledge, prophecy, and magic, the four cities of the Tuatha here (Murias, Gorias, Failias, and Finias), the four Treasures (the Spear of Lugh, the Sword of Nuada, the Cauldron of the Dagda and the Stone of Fal). It had not escaped Draco that there was much more to the symbology that his host was not telling him yet.

The first maiden was strawberry-blond haired and crowned with leaves of gold, orange, and scarlet, with hazel eyes the color of autumn ale along with a trim and athletic figure full of life and energy veiled in her nut-brown dress. All this made him think of USS Johnston, the first girl who had fallen for him.

Her sister was gold haired and gold crowned with the richness of the sun at midsummer. Her dress and eyes were the bright blue of the sky over the rich emerald green of the fields and heaths that he had wandered in here during his all-too-brief sojourn in the Land of Youth. Her figure was more buxom, more maternal, than her vivacious Autumn sister and reminded him of HMS Cleopatra with her grace and elegance.

The third was crowned with silver and diamond on her platinum-white hair, the pure white of the first snowfall of winter. Deep violet eyes widened at something that her Summer sister said and pale rose stained her ivory cheeks as she blushed and laughed demurely. Her wintry gown was ice blue with embroidery of white snowflakes in a blizzard. Her figure was that of SMS Niobe, the German shipgirl who had taken a heavy shell in the engine room in front of his horrified eyes and he had risked burning his magic out to try to heal and save from the Abyssals and Formorian attacking them at the Giant's Causeway.

The coma that resulted had sent him to wake up here where his host welcomed him and explained a few things. Not least among them was that this was an opportunity for Lugh to speak to him personally as his spirit lingered before returning to his healing body as the tides of Fate and War neared the shores of the British Isles once more.

The double-edged offered gift of power to stand alongside his loves and command them as they fought in defense of his homeland, of his peers... of his family.

His eyes found the Maiden of Spring as she lifted her full pitcher to her shoulder. Droplets of crystal water fell from it to splash against her crown of blossoming wildflowers atop wheat-blond hair as her blue-gray eyes crinkled in a warm smile. He lingered on her slender aristocratic form under her black dress embroidered with the silver stars of a perfect night while she walked to his future home with the precise grace of the warrior that she was.

He then sighed with deep emotion.

Unbidden from his heart, words that he had read after Cleopatra introduced him to one of her favorite books set his heart afire and he quoted them quietly as his eyes lingered on the Four Maidens. "I am Aragorn son of Arathorn; and if by life or death I can save you, I will."

With that he turned to Lugh and stared into the green eyes of the deity. He extended his hand to be taken in a firm clasp. "I'm in! What now?"

The deity helped him to his feet as the mist moved in to envelop them both. Draco felt a sudden shift in the world around him as Lugh began to fade and he began to return to his mended flesh.

"Good! Because time is short and your services are needed. Pay attention to your dreams Draco Lucius Malfoy, and act upon them as your mind, spirit, and judgement demand."

Malfoy Manor
Spoiler: A Vision Upon Waking

Draco Malfoy clawed slowly toward consciousness through an abyss of dark agony. He was not aware that he could be in so much pain, and wondered for an agonizing instant dully if someone was using the Cruciatus curse on him.

Vague impressions of touch surrounded him, soft and yet firm skin surrounding him, as he bean to hear several deep, thrumming rhythms.

Perhaps it was only having sound and touch, but he seemed to make out individual harmonics in the sounds surrounding him.

From below, the sound of eight boilers that made his hazy mind think of a firm solidity and support. Along with that was the almost subliminal whine of the massive generators capable of powering a city.

Or a Colorado-class battleship.

Washington.

He felt a vague spike of relief as the pain began to ebb slowly.

Now he was picking up a two-part harmony of boiler and turbine sounds coming from either side of his head.

The ones to his left were higher pitched, and somehow fiercer, more bold and daring.

Johnston.

While to the right, the sounds were a little more elegant, somehow, although no less determined or brave.

Cleopatra.

He strained his senses as he remembered the light beginning to fade from the beautiful violet eyes of the girl in his arms. A spike of pain from his spirit shot through him that made the agonies of his body seem like nothing in comparison as he feared what it meant.

Then he heard it.

The soft and delicate rhythm of a triple-expansion engine sounded. The three-stroke beat of a long-obsolete marine propulsion system from before the First World War. Now slowly idling in the machinery rooms of the shipgirl who clung to his comatose form desperately like a shipwreck survivor might cling to a plank as her sleeping tears fell on his shoulder

Niobe.

Draco gasped in relief and relaxed as the worries and pain in his spirit fled from him.

She was safe.

She was alive.

As he did, another sound suddenly commanded his attention.

The faint notes of a piano sounded in a slow, soft tune that was the quintessence of sorrow and grief.

With that he seemed to rise from his body like a ghost from a corpse.

A vision swam into his head as he began to slowly stir.

He saw himself asleep in his bedroom at Malfoy Manor, illuminated by the moonlight through the window. His shipgirls enveloped his bandaged body in a cuddlepile of alabaster limbs, nightgowns, and sleeping faces filled with love and care for him in their own ways.

Silvery music filled his spirit and he turned, knowing what he would see. A piano had been moved into the room next door from the music room at the other end of the hall and he passed through the locked and bolted door separating his bedroom from that of the piano player.

A young wheat-blond woman sat proudly and regally at the bench of the piano in the darkened room, only illuminated by a faint silver sphere of magical light above the sheet music that she was playing.

The black wool of her uniform absorbed the light as its silver braid flashed while her calloused ivory fingers caressed the keys of the upright piano. His memory flashed back to another night in this house where this young woman lost control of the darkness that she fought so hard to suppress and reverted to the uniform of her true heritage and origin as a tool of one of the greatest evils of the Twentieth Century.

SS-Ehrendolch.

Ehren du Chasteler.

It was Ehren, he observed with a sense of realization, as he saw tears trickle down the aristocratic cheeks of his cousin's melancholy face. She had a red-stained bandage on the side of her throat and sobbed brokenheartedly as she continued to softly play the first movement of Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata in faithful vigil over him, although separated from his room.

Instinctively, he knew that she was doing what her sister Claire had done for her before to soothe her tormented spirit and the raw agonies of her heritage and her experiences that she hid so well under her cool facade and behind her iron will that devoted her to duty and honor.

He also knew that she would never reveal or act upon the heartbreaking emotions revealed in her playing as her music expressed the feelings that her lips and actions never would. That she, as she had sworn she would be, would remain a loyal eternally faithful sentinel and protector of the love that he shared with the three shipgirls who had claimed him.

That she felt that her heritage and dark aspect made her unworthy of love, unworthy of happiness.

And that she would take those unrequited feelings toward him to her grave if no one acted to guide her away from what she had sworn to him with tears in her eyes and her heart bleeding.

Because she felt that the demands of her honor and duty demanded the cost of this terrible sacrifice of her feelings for him.

Because she saw herself as unworthy of any romantic love so she fully immersed herself in the cold demands of her duty and honor in a desperate attempt to make amends for her past failure to deface the stamp of the Nazi swastika that tainted her soul and her steel for eternity.

Because Her Honor Was True.

For a moment the room swam and seemed to become the family cemetery. He saw his shipgirls walking away from a freshly erected tombstone with a new faerie on their rosters to keep them company as they departed his resting place. Always with him, as he was always with them as a beloved commander would be.

But Ehren... he watched her slowly walk away alone, clad in mourning black, to this piano and begin to play the Moonlight Sonata once more after locking and barricading the door so no one would observe her.

Shedding her tears and mourning him in the privacy that she would never let anyone breach with only the cold comfort of the honor and duty manifest in her fidelity to her sworn oath to be there for him and his that she had given him to sustain her for the rest of her life.

Endlessly.

Regretful.

Alone.

All that was hidden and buried behind her masks of duty, of honor, of responsibility. Of what she demanded of herself to try to atone for her past. Of her iron will and putting others ahead of herself endlessly because deep down she saw herself as tainted by her Nazi past, by her links to the atrocities and lies and hatred of one of the greatest monsters of history that she had believed in with a child's innocent belief.

As he watched the light illuminating her slowly faded as bat-winged shadows moved and began to close in on her from the darkness surrounding her while she played alone.

Shadows with a single blood-red eye each as taloned hands reached for the helpless doomed maiden at her piano.

Shadows directed by a blond haired woman with a short medieval sword that had waves of blue-green power cracking and surging along its steel.

Behind the peril drawing near to his cousin, he sensed more than saw a proud and cruel figure with blond hair and red-flecked gray eyes clad in the silver and black of the SS.

Ehren's funeral dress began to morph and twist to match his uniform as the shadows began to swallow her.

With that realization, the vision faded.

His eyes shot open and the conversation of his family and shipgirls in the bedroom suddenly halted as he gasped out a word with all the strength that he had.

"Ehren!!"

A.N. -- I'd like to thank MagisterAurelius for his kindness in letting me borrow Draco for this, and link the du Chastelers in with the Ship of Fools cast. Now, let the Dumpster Fire Commence.

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

A.N. -- Here we go, just to warn folks this arc will be heavy and it's going to get worse before it gets better for Our Heroes...

Die Schlacht von Schloss Moulbaix (I)

Malfoy Manor

8 August 2014

Gandalf: [reading] "'They have taken the bridge… and the second hall.'"
Gandalf: "'We have barred the gates… but cannot hold them for long. The ground shakes.'"
Gandalf: "'Drums… drums… in the deep.'"
[He looks up slowly, and turns the smudged, bloodstained page. The Fellowship begins to glance around uncomfortably.]
Gandalf: "'We cannot get out. A shadow moves in the dark.'"
Gandalf: "'We cannot get out…'" [He glances at the last, single line, a scrawl fading out at the bottom of the page. Gandalf looks up in the uncomfortable silence.] "'They are coming!'"

The Fellowship of the Ring (movie script) -- Peter Jackson (adapted from J.R.R. Tolkien)
Spoiler: A Cousin Endangered

"Ehren!"

Everyone in the room's head snapped around at Draco's desperate cry as his eyes snapped open and horror filled his face. Niobe placed a quelling hand on his shoulder as the young man began to try to get out of bed. "Shh, Liebchen. Ehren's back in her home and will come as soon as we call her."

Draco stared at his shipgirl love and shook his head. "She's in danger! We have to help her now!" He pleaded desperately.

Nimue pulled out her cellphone and began to dial as Lucius and Narcissa comforted their son. "Relax, son, it's just a nightmare."

Draco shook his head again. "It's real! You don't understand!" He struggled to sit up.

Nimue frowned then punched in another number. "It says that her number is offline. I'm calling the main phone for the castle." She then paled. "Offline too."

Hushed silence filled the bedroom, then Lucuis gestured to the fireplace with his wand. The flames roared and he threw a handful of Floo powder into the fireplace. "Castle Moulbaix."

The flames stayed orange instead of shifting to the green of magical fire.

Lucius's eyes narrowed. "Floo's knocked out too. Something's up." His voice was icy.

Nimue waved her hands and a ghostly bird formed between them and shot through the wall. "I'm notifying Flynn to get up here, maybe he knows what happened."

"Good thinking, dear." Narcissa said as she drew her wand and Draco was helped to a sitting position in the bed by a grim-faced Niobe. "Now what?"

Nimue's eyes widened and she sprinted for the door. "Ehren's hilt pin!"

Meanwhile Lucius summoned the house elf. "Bring me the amulet that Cousin du Chasteler gave us. She needs to be informed."

Nimue returned just ahead of Flynn's arrival with a small steel pin in her fist. "Ehren gave me this to be there to play in Stahlhexe."

Lucius nodded as he took a amulet with a glass eye-like nazar bead as the centerpiece of the charm from the house-elf.

Suddenly the pin glowed and a spectral image of Ehren formed in a ripped and torn SS uniform.

The ghost was bleeding from claw marks across once side of her face and more wounds on her body while she held a pistol and her wand as she breathed heavily.

"Under... Attack..." She gasped out between gritted teeth as she fired twice at an unseen foe.

"Can't hold..." Her wand moved in a casting motion and the image flickered, fuzzed and grew faint. "much... lon---"

Another casting motion and the pin lost its glow as Ehren vanished.

Lucius threw the amulet to the floor and with a crash it detonated in a shower of silver sparks.
---------------------

Castle Moulbaix

A Short Time Before

A blade trailed aquamarine fire and a black bubble of magical energies surrounded the castle.

Blue-green eyes narrowed and the caster spoke in a monotone voice. "Popbawa. Third Brother take the roof access and secure the exits so SHE cannot escape. Await my call to reinforce me with you and your spawn."

One cluster of red eyes blinked twice and then took flight, their bat wings hissing through the air.

"First, Second, Fourth Brother with me." With that Cortana, walked toward the castle as bat-winged misshapen forms followed her.

At the elder sword's gesture, the oak front doors opened and she stepped inside and surveyed the deserted grand hall. She then cocked her head absently as if she was shaking an itch.

"First Brother, we head left. Second Brother, right. Fourth Brother, secure the door and the stairs."

She strode along the corridor and then paused at the sealed doors to the chapel. One hand laid on the polished hardwood showing the Resurrection in carved inlay. A voice choked out. "Ignore this room, proceed."

Gunfire and hideous screams punctuated her remarks as all hell broke loose in Moulbaix.
---------------------

Spoiler: A Fight Downstairs

Upstairs, Ehren yawned and the idly scratched herself under one arm as she sat at Mutti's desk. A rumble from her stomach interrupted her thoughts so she grabbed her wand and true body to raid the kitchen for a late-night snack.

A cough interrupted her contemplation of the ice cream flavors available and she whirled on her heel. Faintly in the room across the dining room two red eyes looked into hers. "Ehren, it is time." The female figure in the dimly lit trophy room said to her as Ehren advanced.
Spoiler: Nongqawuse

"Who are you?" the dagger demanded as she leveled steel and wand at the red eyed and dark skinned young woman waiting calmly for her in the candlelit room.

"I am Kasuyu's ally Nongqawuse." The other spirit gave an unruffled answer as she adjusted the copper bracelet that she was wearing. "I have been watching and waiting for this moment."

Ehren's eyes narrowed as she remembered seeing that magical bracelet around the castle, including outside this room where it normally was kept as a trophy from Mutti's trips to Africa. "Why hide from us?" She demanded harshly,

The bracelet gave her a compassionate look. "Because what you do not know cannot be found out by your foes. I have the blessing and curse of foresight and know that tonight the castle will be stormed by a foe we cannot face... directly. But the course of events can be shifted if I act now as it trembles in the balance."

She half turned and pointed to the open door leading toward the great hall. Past the shimmering of a concealment ward cast in the trophy room, a blond-haired sword spirit stalked inside with a large pack of one-eyed bat-winged horrors on her heels.
Spoiler: Popobawa

Ehren blanched at the sight of the powerful spirit and her eyes flamed in fury. Nongqawuse whispered an incantation and gestured at Cortana. The sword spirit shook her head then turned away as the minions broke into three packs.

Ehren hissed her breath through her teeth as one pack began to make its way toward them stealthily and sheathed her dagger body with a flick of her wrist. Then her eyes narrowed and her wand moved in the Summoning Charm that she had been taught by Aunt Narcissa as she focused her Will to a diamond-hard point to control her magic. "Accio Pistol!"

Her Luger appeared in her hand and she took aim at the large one leading this prong of the assault. "I hope you can fight as well as you foresee Nongqawuse," she muttered as the African spirit summoned a lion-hide oval shield and a brace of gold glowing African throwing spears along with a shorter, broader bladed killing iKlwa spear. "Anything I should know about them?"

"Popobawa will rape us to death before they drink our blood." The bracelet replied as she got ready to cast her spear. "The leaders of their packs are as hard and strong as iron."

Ehren put her pistol's sight picture on the leader's eyeball and her uniform blurred to the black and silver of the SS.

"Aber nicht so fest wie Kruppstahl!"(But not as strong as Krupp steel!) Ehren snarled in a hate-filled voice as her lips curled in a smug smirk.

Ehren's finger squeezed the trigger.

The leader screamed hideously as its eye exploded and it thrashed blindly in its death agonies.

The dozen following it shrieked like damned souls and poured forward in a tide of claw and fang.

One suddenly fell from Nongqawuse's assegai cast as the African called out "Ngidlile!"(I ate)

Ehren fired as fast as she could while she retreated to the hardwood map table.

Her wand flicked and she called out "Wingardium Leviosa!"

The table levitated and then slammed into the tide of Dark Creatures coming through the door like a sledgehammer hitting flies.

"Ngidlile!"

Another Popobawa thrashed in a pile of its entrails.

Yet once again the Zulu war cry heralding the kill sounded as Nongqawuse twisted her iKlwa in its guts.

Ehren moved to cover her ally's back as the surviving attackers clambered over their dead and dying in the choked doorway.

Her dagger body suddenly appeared in her hand once more as she cut another one's throat.

"Sieg!"(victory) Ehren barked out over the hideous shrieks and the sounds of battle as her foe fell lifeless before her, ignoring the pain of its claws ripping along her side.

Her wand flicked to throw more trophies from the walls to distract and disrupt their attackers as she and her ally fought for their lives back to back.

"Ngidlile!"

"Sieg!"

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

A.N. -- One of the nice things about this quarantine is that I get lots of time to write and the muse seems to have knocked over a liquor store and wants to play.... As always, yes, Vati's a bad guy, yes, it's going to get heavy and dark in points, but no ITG please; Vati will be getting his 'reward' at the end.

Die Schlacht von Schloss Moulbaix (II)

Malfoy Manor

8 August 2014

"Let me not then die ingloriously and without a struggle, but let me first do some great thing that shall be told among men hereafter."

Hector of Troy Iliad Book XXII lines 304-305
Spoiler: Relief Effort

With a bang of displaced air, Colombe du Chasteler and Masamune-no-Tokunotakai appeared in the foyer with steel drawn and lethal spells on their lips. Colombe's cold crystal-blue eyes swept the area, then narrowed at the house-elf waiting for them.

"Missus du Chastelers, Masters Malfoys tolds me to bring you to him immediatelys." The small creature said.

Colombe nodded sharply and lowered her point slightly. "I remember you from last time. Lead on." She ordered tersely.

Her eyes raked the knots of people in Draco's bedroom and she snapped out. "Lucius. What's the emergency?"

Lucius turned from where he was speaking with Flynn and Narcissa and nodded to her. "Colombe. Someone's cut off access to Moulbaix and your home is under attack. Ehren got a brief message out. No Floo transport and the emergency Portkey you gave me is blocked somehow."

Nimue nodded and turned from where Washington and Niobe were hugging her brother. "Neither my phone or Draco's phone can get through, nor Floo. Ehren used a pin from her dagger that she gave me to relay the word, so whatever it is doesn't affect physical movement, just magic and telephones." The Malfoy daughter said in a tense voice.

Colombe frowned. "I don't suppose one of you can do a long distance Apparition?"

Flynn spoke. "I can establish a gate but I need a good image of the destination point."

Colombe's viciously smug smile was shark-like, "Oh I can show you every inch of my home and grounds. Either of you know Legilimency?"

Tokunotakai nodded. "I need a brush, ink, and paper and I can display Co-chan's memories."

Lucius pointed at the House-elf which vanished and reappeared with the requested items. "Father was a painter. It has been known to run in our family. Never saw the point myself but packed away his studio."

As Toku began to inscribe and empower an ofuda, Draco turned to Niobe.

"Go with them and bring Ehren back safe to us!" He ordered in a confident and crisp voice as he stared into her widening violet eyes.

"B-but, you know how I have failed in protecting my sisters," Niobe gasped as she teared up, "Ariadne at Heligoland Bight, Undine in the Baltic, and then Frauenlob at Jutland. If I go and lose Ehren too...."

Draco leaned in and pinned her shocked eyes with his gaze. "Because you were not allowed to be there for them in their hour of need. Your admirals then were fools. I know that you will save her." He spoke to her in a voice that caused her engineers to swear in disbelief at the pressure readings on her steam plant as emergency valves opened to prevent her boilers blowing.

For a brief second, nothing happened as his words sunk in, and then Niobe kissed him square on the lips as her hug crushed him to her. As the passionate kiss broke and he gasped for air, her determined words rang in his ears. "Zu Befehl, Flottenadmiral!"(At your command, fleet admiral!)
--------------------

Castle Moulbaix

A Short Time Before

Cortana's eyes narrowed at the sounds of gunfire and shouts coming from the other hall.

She turned to the Popobawa at her heels. "First Brother, secure and sweep this floor and secure any stairs! Upon my command advance to the second floor!"

With that she headed back down the hall the way she had come to assist Second Brother's prong of the assault.
--------------------

Spoiler: Fight For The Trophy Room

Ehren grunted as a taloned hand ripped her cheek from ear to jaw.

She then twisted her true body in the ribs of the Popobawa that she was grappling with with a snarl of fury on her bloody face.

Black blood sprayed from the dying Dark Creature's lips and splattered across her face as it crumpled. "Sieg!"

"Ngidlile!"

The final attacker collapsed in a pool of its own blood as Nongqawuse stabbed it through the heart with her iKlwa short stabbing spear.

Ehren's eyes narrowed as she saw the blond head of the enemy leader on the far side of the castle's Great Hall. "Trouble." She grunted as she sheathed her dagger and picked up her discarded pistol. "Accio Hollowpoint!"

"Big trouble. I can't stop her." The African bracelet said as a lightning bolt was parried by the oncoming sword spirit.

"We need reinforcements!" Ehren snapped out as she concentrated on her hilt pin upstairs to form an avatar in her room to rouse Kasuyu. She fired twice at the leader only to have the bullets fly wide as half of her consciousness focused on her other body a floor above her.

"Kasuyu, we're under attack! Retreating to the back stairs!" She snapped out as her avatar upstairs threw open his door to punctuate the faint sounds from downstairs.

Wait... My Hilt pin.... Nimue!

Ehren gritted her teeth as she dismissed the avatar in front of Kasuyu's eyes as the Axe grabbed his true body. She ignored the spike of pain and the sensation that she was trying to push a mountain uphill as she continued to fire at the next wave of attackers while Nongqawuse cast spells to slow their approach. Almost....

Ehren then gasped out as she sensed her avatar form far away from where she was fighting. "Under attack..'' She flicked her wand at one of the throwing spears to levitate and hurl it at the blond spirit who was entering the corridor with more Popobawa, only to get it contemptuously batted aside.

"Can't hold out much longer..." Ehren gasped out as her eyes narrowed and a fresh stab of her migraine caused her to snarl in fury.

So you want to play dodgeball, bitch? "Wingardium Leviosa!" The blood-soaked map table lifted off from the carnage at the door and floated in midair as Ehren concentrated everything that she had into her wand. "Depulso!" Eat this!

The Banishing Spell sent five hundred pounds of African mahogany pinwheeling down the corridor like an out of control rocket.

Screams and ugly crunching sounds followed its passage.

Ehren didn't wait to see if she had gotten the leader.

"Run!" Ehren screamed as she sprinted for the other door to the trophy room.

She and Nongqawuse sprinted through the dining room to the kitchen.

Then they stopped dead at the sight of the Popobawa guards on the stairs they had hoped to use.

Ehren pointed to the brass voice tubes extending from the ceiling to a position over the counter. "Put your bracelet there and prepare to de-summon yourself!"

The African spirit complied and then Ehren poked her wand at the bracelet. "Depulso!"

With a rattle the bracelet shot up the tube and vanished as Ehren Banished it.

"Resummon yourself and link with Kasuyu! I'll join you!" The dagger snarled before firing at the oncoming vampires.

Nongqawuse vanished.

Ehren stood alone as she emptied her pistol at the attackers and then dropped it as fresh Popobawa filled the door.

Her hand found her hilt and bloodstained steel flashed in the light of the still-open refrigerator as she backed away from the oncoming vampires.

They paused and then moved aside to allow the sword spirit to walk past them.

Aquamarine eyes met hers as Ehren bumped against the counter. "Ehren du Chasteler. I have come to take you home. Your Vati is waiting for you."

 

[darthcourt10]

baofengyu

The Mandate Pt 7
"Find what you were looking for amongst the dead?"


Lei Yue Mun/Victoria Harbor, Hong Kong
2 August 2014, 5:57AM

Fushan smiled as the water splashed her face.

Anshan stared at her empty hand.

Contact.

The firing pin slammed into the 91kg main charge, igniting the propellant in the brass case that sealed the breech. The explosive pressure ignited the silk wrapped 34.5kg fore charge, incinerating the thin fabric and increasing the pressure and force. The pressure of the blast filled the tight space to 3,300kg/cm2, the maximum force needed to propel the 405kg High Explosive L3/8 shell to 855mps. The shell traveled down the barrel, chased by the roaring fire and anger that was hallmark to a 30.5cm/50 SK L/50 naval rifle. The German build weapon was one of two mounted in the turret. The HE round, equipped with a base fuse and a thicker nose wall, was nearly a Semi-Armor Piercing round, capable of penetrating two to six meters of armor before detonating. It left the muzzle of the 30.5cm naval rifle at 855 meters per second, on a 14-degree elevation. The round was capable of hitting a target 16,200 meters away, but the enemy was less than ten thousand meters away, coming in at an angle that would place the round hitting forward port superstructure at a slightly downward arch. The second 30.5cm naval rifle fired seconds after the first, and both gunnery crews worked to clear the breach as the gun lowered to a loading position and compressed air flushed through the barrel to clear it.

Impact.

A wave of water erupted as Anshan screamed.

The first HE round that struck penetrated the thin armored superstructure, crashing through the hull as it burrowed through internals until the detonator met enough force to trigger the blasting charge. 405kg of high explosives ignited in the fragile hull. The force of the blast ripped through the ship, crashing through the forward bulkhead that protected the vulnerable forward magazine. The fire, heat, and pressure set off the powder therein, adding to the force of the initial explosion lifting the hull from the water and snapping the ship in two.

Fushun smiled.

Her face frozen as her forward hull shattered at the waist and cartwheeled off into the water.

Her faerie crew spilling out and popping like soap bubbles from the blast.

Her eyes fixed on Anshan as they disappeared beneath a slick of flaming oil and debris.

Anshan turned.

Her sister's killer emerged from the strange fog of the channel as two massive guns trained themselves on her.

The ensign she few was not the PLAN ship she expected, but a gold ensign with dragon on it. The shipgirl was both young and old.

A pre-dreadnought battleship that was nearly as old as the Mikasa. She gasped at the twin maws of one of the turret's 30.5cm naval rifles pointed at her.

Then a faerie crewmember held up the warbook containing ensigns of the world, including those used in the past.

An Imperial Chinese shipgirl.

Water hit her face.

Then the damage reports flooded in. Her boilers flickered out one by one. The roar of cannon was distant. The shout of panic over her transceiver faded into static.

Faeries winked out one by one.

All that marked her grave was a slick of flaming oil.



Dingyuan kept her guard up as she sailed past the burning oil slicks. Behind her Zhenyuan turned her guns towards the PLAN base on Stonecutters Island and fired a full volley, the four high explosive shells hitting the Daiyun Shan amidships and punching through the thin starboard armor before detonating inside.

The Type 072A Landing Ship erupted into an inferno.

The rest of the Beiyang and Nanyang Fleets took up escorting positions as Dingyuan snap fired a pair of rounds at the lone Type 053H1 Frigate that was attempting to get underway.

The Shaoguan broke in half as two of the high explosive rounds penetrated right below the ship's bridge, the explosion and fireball lighting up the fog and echoing across the early morning bay.

"Fire torpedoes!" Ordered Dingyuan.

A full spread of torpedoes from the fleet were launched at the two remaining PLAN surface assets, a pair of Type 037II Missile Boats that were just now attempting to get underway.

There was no escape from the sheer amount of torpedoes launched.

Both the Nanhai and Panyu suffered multiple hits, each explosion rendering the missile boats into scattered debris.

"Destroyers to the port!" shouted Jingyuan, bringing her 20cm and15cm guns to bear. The rest of the escorts followed and began firing.



Chang Chun wiped the tears from her eyes as she and TaiYuan angled in, their four 130mm guns firing as their torpedo tubes swiveled to bear.

Twelve torpedoes fired as one as several he rounds found the Imperial wooden steam frigate Yuyuan.

The shipgirl jerked as half a dozen 33.4kg high explosive rounds tore through her hull, setting fires and shattering her keel.



Taiyuan jerked as an 200mm round impacted her hip, spinning her around as her faeries desperately tried to reload her torpedo tubes, sending torpedoes rolling across her deck as the crew tried in vain to salvage the situation.

One of the torpedoes detonated.



"Jesu- ARE YOU GETTING THIS?!?!"

"YES!"

"STREAM IT! GET IT OUT NOW! DON'T STOP RECORDING!"



Of the torpedoes fired, six of them were set on a wide dispersion, and six of them set on a narrow dispersion aiming towards the heart of the formation where the two ironclad battleships focused on the PLAN base. Huwei and Feiting turned into the torpedoes as they raced towards their elders. Kaiji turned full broadside behind them.

Huwei took three of the torpedoes along her port hull.

The blast shattered her keel and sent her body into the air, only for her hull to break apart and sink as it landed.

Feiting screamed as a torpedo caught her aft, the explosion taking off her legs.

Kaiji took the last two torpedoes along her bow, the blast sending the old shipgirl to shout curses as her remaining arm tried to hold her shattered face in place.

Three of the wide dispersion torpedoes sped into the bay, missing the formation entirely. The last three were intercepted by Hai Shen.

Hai Yung grabbed her sister's hand as she broke up.

Hai Shen gave a bloody smile to her sister and nodded.

She let go and sank beneath the waves.



Chang Chun worked feverishly to reload her torpedoes as she wove between splashes.

She cursed the Imperialists as the Type 052B Destroyer Guangzhou exploded after coming under fire from the 254mm guns of Chaoyung and Yangwei.

She spit teeth as a 150mm round from Laiyuen caught the side of her bridge.

Taiyuan burned on the water from the torpedo detonation on her deck before Zhiyuan and Jingyuan found their range.

Three of the six 200mm HE rounds found their mark.

And all that remained was burning debris.



Wan Chai, Hong Kong Island, 6:31am

Shàngwèi Cho Tsao slid behind a shattered wall as incoming fire sent flakes of brick flying.

A platoon of PLAN Marines were trying a flanking maneuver.

He raised his T91 assault rifle over the broken masonry and took aim at their point man.

He fired off a burst as his squad maintained their spacing.

Getting to Hong Kong Island was the easy part. Reaching the ruins of the Struan Building was harder, but not much in the way of opposition as the few survivors ran at the sight of the special forces team. The biggest obstacle was breaking into the vault. There were signs that someone else had been there not too long ago, and either the person in question had actually penetrated the vault was uncertain as there were signs of attempted entry but no actual sign that the vault was breached. His team's tech had to use a very specialized plasma cutter to cut not only the pins holding the door sealed, but the hinges as well. How it worked he wasn't aware, but it was part of the equipment gifted to their unit by Lady Lǜ Sè, and they were not going to question it.

Of course, whatever powered it still didn't improve the time it took to cut through each piece until they were ready to pull the door off the hinges with a combination of leverage and block and tackle. With a pair of soldiers standing overwatch they worked quickly to set up the cables and winches. The rusted metal resisted a great deal, but finally came loose after a time and crashed into the ground. Tsao slung his rifle and pulled his side arm and flashlight. Crossing his arms he lit the light and eased into the vault.

Bars of gold and silver were spilled across the floor. Scrolls that he suspected dated back to the founding of the company seemed intact, but none of this was his objective.

"Dao, the Coins?"

His second pulled the replica out and began searching.

"Quickly please," Tsao asked. "We are on a time limit here."

"Sorry sir, this place is a mess."

Every important or ornate box was upended and searched, with no luck. A piece of scrollwork caught his eye. "Take that as well."

"Are you sure sir?"

"Call it a hunch Dao," Tsao replied. "I have a feeling that Lady Lǜ Sè would be interested in anything signed by Nǚ Shì Bái Sè." Lady White.

"SIR!"

The two looked over to one of the soldiers, who was holding a rather plain box. It was made of teak and was worn along the edges. Dark in color, it was nearly impossible to determine how old it was. It had a simple clasp and was not locked.

Tsao reached out and touched the box and jerked his hand back as if shocked.

There was something in the box.

Tsao steeled himself and reached out again, opening the box.

Inside were four broken bronze coins, three of them were complete, and only the fourth coin remained split.

And in the center of them all was a rather plain looking set of old coins.

Coins strung together with gold and jade.

The replica given to them by Lady Green seemed to bend towards the box.

"Sir?"

"Secure the box. We're taking it with us."

"The other coins too sir?"

"You don't think the Tai-Pan in Taipei won't reward us for returning these to him?"

"Good point sir," Dao replied.

They carefully packed up the box and made their way back to the surface, gathering their equipment along the way. As the reached the ruined building's foyer, they learned they were not quite alone.

"Sir, we have uninvited guests," Tsao's T75 SAW gunner reported.

"Where?"

"To the north sir, looks like a PLAN marine platoon, moving this way."

"Pass the word, fall back to the evac point. Avoid contact."

The evac point was Deep Water Bay, where the team hid their inflatable boats that would take them to meet the Hai Shih.

As they started withdrawing, the fog rolled in. It was unnatural, rolling in from the east along the channel.

"Keep moving!" Tsao ordered in a harsh whisper.

Ten minutes later the sound of naval gunfire echoed through from Victoria Harbor.

"CONTACT!" The point man shouted, firing his T91. A squad of PLAN Marines were caught flatfooted in the open, shouting as they raised their weapons.

"Sir, we need to keep moving!"

The sound of infantry level weapons was drowned out by the rolling echoes of heavier guns dueling in the bay.

Tsao pulled his binoculars out and scanned the battlefield. There were at least two platoons of PLAN Marines on the field, and further out in the bay he could see the muzzle flashes and shadowy figures moving on the waves.

Shipgirls.

Shipgirls fighting each other.

A smaller figure fell to the water on fire, and moments later exploded. Two massive silhouettes seemed to be focusing on the PLAN base, and other shipgirls were continuing to battle.

Tsao popped the spoon of a white phosphorous grenade and tossed it, followed by a hand signal to withdraw. Two more grenades were tossed to cover their retreat as the team pulled back further into the debris.

Fighting was not what they were here for.

It was nearly 4 kilometers to reach the evac point.



"Dude, we're gonna get a Pulitzer for this for sure!"

"Shut up and keep filming!"



Chang Chun attempted a fighting retreat. She couldn't get a line on the two ironclad battleships that were currently leveling Stonecutters Island and the sheer amount of fire that was aimed at her was becoming harder and harder to dodge.

She chased splashes as a variety of HE rounds landed around her, not to mention the occasional torpedo track that seemed to find her no matter which way she turned.

She screamed as a 150mm round blew off her number four gun, returning fire with her remaining guns until they ran dry. Another round found her rudder and she wept at her failure to the Party.

Failure to her sisters.

Gnevny class destroyers Reshitelny, Retivy, Rekordny, and Rezky, born from love and sweat of the glorious workers of the Soviet Union, serving their nation during the Great Patriotic War in the Pacific until they were transferred to their little cousins who took up the great struggle against the Imperialists in China during the 50s. Renamed to suit their new comrades, the dark-haired girls did not mind the change from their Soviet uniforms to the plain grey suits that came to be synonymous with the People's Republic of China. So long and great was their service to both nations they were rewarded as memorials to the Cause. They were true believers in the Cause.

She did not turn away as her executioner lined up the final, fatal shot.



Somewhere in China

Ying leaned forward, coaxing as much speed out of her broom as she was able. The words of the sword master resonated in her. There was a storm coming, but the meaning was unclear to her. Was there something the Fox pushed into happening? What other forces were moving at this time? A shadow, a touch of dread, seemed to stain the skies to the north. A corresponding sense of dread from the south.

And then, silence.

It was if China held its breath.

She pushed more magic into her broom.

There was no time left.



Victoria Bay, Hong Kong, 7:45am

"All Maoist ships sunk," Dingyuan reported to her fleet. "Begin search and destroy for all Maoists remaining."

The ironclad battleship turned to her sister, whose crews were cleaning the barrels of her main guns. Ammunition was running low, but she could make out several Junk Girls that served as their supply ships slowly exiting the channel into the Bay.

"Dingyuan, Maoists forces spotted on Hong Kong Island," Pingyuan reported.

"Are they retreating?" Dingyuan surveyed the operational zone.

"No Dingyuan, they appear to be engaged in combat with another force."

"Do you have a firing angle?"

"No ma'am. Jingyuan and Zhiyuan are moving closer to Wan Chai to bring their guns into range."

"Make sure no Maoists escape," Dingyuan ordered.

The two steel protected cruisers eased into position and brought the 200mm guns to bear along with one of their 150mm sponson mounted guns. All facing Hotchkiss guns swiveled to take aim as well.

"Shèjī!" Fire!


Wan Chai, Hong Kong Island

Tsao heard the familiar whistle of artillery. "DOWN!"

Behind them the already broken landscape was shattered further by explosions of what seemed to be naval artillery.

"GO! GO! GO!" He shouted, picking himself up and rushing forward to put as much distance between them and the PLAN marines, who appeared to be on the receiving end of a brutal naval bombardment not seen since the early days of the Blood War.

He didn't glance behind him.

He wasn't a religious man, but there was no way he was going to tempt fate.

Even with partially full gear loads, it didn't take long for the team to fast walk around Mt. Nicholson, and a 4km run was practically a stroll in the park. And that was what worried Tsao.

"Keep your eyes open," Tsao ordered.

"Shi!" His team replied. Yes*.

There was a time limit, of course. Forty-eight hours from touchdown on the beach.

Fortunately, only thirteen hours have passed since the team made landfall, and even better, no contact with Abyssals or feral humans. Had the encounter with the PLAN continued Tsao had no doubt the mission would have been in serious jeopardy and fighting their way to the sub would have been all the more problematic had those PLAN shipgirl DDs intervened.

"Did anyone get an id on those other shipgirls?" He asked.

"No sir," the replies came in.

The silhouettes he saw looked old, and he wracked his brain trying to figure out what he saw.

Still, there was no contact as they moved to the beach.



Sasebo Kanmusu Fleet Base, 8:03am

"JANE! Go to your room!" Mutsu ordered; her eyes fixed on the screen. Arizona stood with her hands over her mouth at the door, horror and shock evident on her face.

"Shimi, go with her," Mutsu pointed.

The two battleships watched their worst nightmare unfold.



Jersey stormed into the operations center as Admiral Richardson grimly watched the events unfolding.

"Sir, all fleets have been alerted and deployed to their staging areas. What is-" She trailed off as she saw the main screen. The footage was shaky, but she watched a pair of PLAN shipgirls get blown in half by another shipgirl, one she did not recognize.

"Fuck."



Yokosuka Kanmusu Fleet Base, 0806hrs

Ashigara and Tenryuu ushered the shocked and frightened destroyers out of the common room quickly as Musashi, Maya, and Kaga watched grimly.

"This is not right," Kaga whispered.

Musashi nodded, the lingering gaze of absolute terror from Inazuma would haunt her.



Goto put down the phone as Ooyodo rushed in with additional paperwork. Kongou wrung her hands together as she watched exactly what would happen if a shipgirl ever turned her guns on a human. The PLAN marines never stood a chance.

"The Prime Minister has called for an emergency cabinet meeting in to discuss Japan's response to this situation. An emissary of the Emperor will be in attendance." Goto said. He ignored his tea and took Kongou's hands in his own to calm her.



NS Everett, 0807hrs

Admiral Williamson looked at the live feeds from the other theater commanders worldwide. "This is not good," He spoke.

"That is an understatement," Adm. Collinwood replied. "Who is attacking who?"

"The last assets of the People's Liberation Army Navy have been attacked and destroyed by forces flying the banner of Imperial China," Williamson spoke. "We can only assume the mainland is in a state of civil war. Confirmation is pending upon reports from our intelligence services."

"What about Taiwan?"

"Taiwan is maintaining a neutral stance, but we have unconfirmed reports that Republic Special Forces were conducting an operation on Hong Kong Island, which may have kicked off this shitshow." Goto replied. "I've had to take steps to cut the live feeds coming in to the common areas on base."

"What the hell is so important on Hong Kong Island?" Collinwood asked. "Last I heard the city was shelled to hell and back by the Abyssals at the start of the war, and human habitation is nearly nonexistent."

"I'm not sure," Richardson reported, coming online. "I've dispatched Albacore south to investigate, and back channel reports have been filtering in that the other Taiwanese government has a hand in this."

"I do hope this situation gets sorted out quickly. My girls have been put right out over this," Collinwood spoke.

One of the techs stood. "Admiral! We're getting some kind of video stream from Beijing!"

The screen flashed to the blurry camera feed. It was some kind of cell phone footage that was broadcasting from near the Forbidden City.

"What the fuck is going on!?!?" Williamson roared.



Victoria Bay, Hong Kong, 8:12am

Zhenyaun slid up to her sister as the supply shipgirls finished restocking them.

"Sister, our losses," She handed a scroll over to Dingyuan.

The flagship took the scroll and read.

Huwei, Yuyuan, and Hai Shen were sunk. Feiting and Kaiji were severely damaged. Ching Yuen, Nan Shuin, Fu An, and Ying Swei were also damaged to varying degrees, but still seaworthy. In all, it was a victory for the Empire, but the butcher's bill was high.

"I do not know if we can get Feiting and Kaiji back safely sister," Dingyuan replied, adding her report to the document and then sealing it with a charm.

"We must try sister," Zhenyuan spoke as Zhiyuan and Jingyuan sailed back into formation.

"Ma'am," The two saluted. "Maoists eliminated," Jingyuan reported.

"And the Republicans?"

"Escaped according to plan Ma'am," Zhiyuan replied.

Dingyuan nodded and added a second charm to the scroll before releasing it. The charm activated and formed a paper condor before racing off to the north.

"Signal Chaowu. Inform her that the Republicans are not to be harmed and make sure they depart. Lady Daji was explicit in this."



Between Deep Water Bay and Repulse Bay, Hong Kong Island, 8:41am

Imperial Composite Sloop Chaowu drifted close to the beach on the northern end of Repulse Bay. She watched the signals from one of the support junks flash in, and she nodded, turning her attention to Deep Water Bay where she knew there was a sub hidden. Her boilers were silent, and she was operating on her barque rigging for propulsion. Perhaps when this was over she could be allowed to speak with some of her American counterparts, as many of them were being utilized for anti-submarine duties due their stealthy nature. Her own steam engine was a noisy thing, good for maneuvering in some tight spaces, but honestly, she preferred the open sail. By the time Composite Sloops were born they were already obsolete, and she would rather be of use than a worthless relic.

Movement on the beach caught her eye as she watched the Republicans pull their rafts from their hiding spots and get them into the water quickly. She looked around towards the bay intently.

There.

A periscope.

She nodded as the Republicans began paddling towards the deeper parts of the bay, marveling at their stamina. Her faerie captain popping up out of her hair and making several comments of admiration.

"Shi. Shi Shi. Shi," the little spirit spoke.

"Hao le," She agreed.

The old submarine surfaced quickly as the Republicans scrambled aboard and into its hull. One of them paused and turned.

She ran up her flag and let it wave proudly, waving to them as the man quickly disappeared into the submarine. Within moments the sub was gone.



Tench class Submarine Hai Shih

Tsao climbed down the ladder to a hero's welcome. The sub's captain nodded and gave the order to dive, and in moments they were safely underway. He rubbed his eyes and swore quietly.

"Why did you stop?" The sub's captain asked.

"There was a sail-shipgirl out there flying colors."

"Did she see us? What flag was she flying."

"She saw us, and she was flying an Imperial Chinese Navy ensign."



"I think it's over," One of the reporters spoke.

"Ya think?" The other snorted. "We've got hard copies of everything and have uploaded everything directly to the satellite."

"You think anyone was watching?"

"Don't really care at this point," He turned and rubbed his face. "I do think we should get the hell out of here before anything else happens."

"Where we headed now?"

"Sasebo. The USN has a base there, and I think they're going to want to see everything we recorded."



MACUSA HQ, Woolworth Building NYC, 8:41am

Alarms no one wanted to hear were blaring. A mix of operative from the various branches studied a floating globe with a mixture of shock, and a serious dollop of fear.

"What's going on?" The MACUSA President Quahog demanded.

"We have a major violation of the Statute in progress," The Director of Magical Law Enforcement replied. "We're already linked into the ICW HQ in Geneva and are awaiting direction."

"Where?"

"Beijing."




A/N
* - 'Shi' can be translated as 'yes', but often 'Shide' is used in conversation.

 

[darthcourt10]

mikelima777

Something a bit more light-hearted

"C'mon Ferguson, we don't have all day! Get your prissy princess ass up that wall!"

"Yes, Ma'am!"

Rainbow gave a shit-eating grin as the Abyssal princess, without her rigging and dressed in CADPAT, huffed as she tried to pull herself up. Tandy yelped as Crabby Hungry, in her humanoid form, slipped and fell from the wall to the soggy ground, causing mud to go everywhere, including Tandy. Further ahead, Wonda was trying to help Toria as they tried to navigate up a net climbing obstacle. Elsewhere, the submarines plus some of the destroyers crawling in the mud to the dark amusement of the instructors. Most of the Wardens were privately vowing sweet, sweet revenge as they endured another day of training.

The entrance of the Wardens into the Royal Canadian Navy had quickly made news headlines, helped by the ascension of Tandy as a battleship princess. However, now came the challenges of integrating the Abyssals into the Royal Canadian Navy's operations. It was quickly agreed by all parties that one of the Wardens' roles would be to serve as "Enemy Force" during naval exercises. As members of one of the most powerful abyssal fleets in the Pacific, one that fought to the death while protecting Unalaska, they would be a far more formidable opponent compared to the packs of ferals that sometimes tried to attack Canada's west coast. It would allow Canadian and other allied navies and their shipgirls to learn and understand what it is like to face a more organized abyssal fleet. Their participation in exercises would undoubtedly be very valuable for all involved.

However, another question was whether to integrate them directly with shipgirl formations or to have the Wardens operate as a separate unit. The Wardens had sufficient numbers to form at least two squadrons on their own and were naturally used to operating together. However, others believed they would be equally valuable if embedded in other formations as they could listen in to abyssal radio channels and provide battle intelligence should hostile abyssals engage. Some like the carriers would be easy to integrate, though many of the top brass were filled with dread as Bonaventure already stated she would volunteer as their instructor. The debates continued back and forth.

In the meantime, it was decided to make sure the Wardens were fit for duty and to teach them how to work and live as members of the RCN. This would be conducted with an amalgamation of shipgirl training and more traditional basic training. Despite the suffering of the Wardens, they understood that this was part of the path they chose, as they worked hard and endured. Their instructors respected their commitment and looked forward to seeing what the Wardens can do for their new adopted country.

While nowhere near the big naval powers like Britain, Japan, and America, Canada now had one of the most formidable shipgirl forces in the world, supplementing their steadily growing steel ship navy. Canadian destroyers, frigates, and corvettes once again played a dominant role in the Atlantic, protecting vital shipping lanes, assisted by their allies and former opponents from World War II. Canada's larger shipgirls were gaining plenty of combat experience, and starting to learn how to operate as a cohesive force. With the Wardens to be added to the mix along with other ships under construction, the RCN was definitely considered a blue-water capable navy.

In the world of international shipgirl politics, Canada's rise was for the most part warmly received. While some nations were envious, the big players such as America, Britain, and Japan were grateful as the Canadians could help share the load when it came to fighting the Abyssals. The Russian government was not as happy but their shipgirls were, many remembering Canada's contribution to lend-lease as well as arctic convoys during the Second World War. Of course, some shuddered as the Canadians also proved to be terrifying when provoked. And now, Canada was the first nation in the world to have Abyssals as serving members and soon to have an actual Abyssal Princess flying their flag.

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

A.N. -- Warning, this is going to be a bit rough on Ehren. Please be careful with the ITG.

Die Schlacht von Schloss Moulbaix (III)

Castle Moulbaix Kitchen

8 August 2014

"The whole world will vilify us now, but I am still totally convinced that we did the right thing. Hitler is the archenemy not only of Germany but of the world. When, in few hours' time, I go before God to account for what I have done and left undone, I know I will be able to justify what I did in the struggle against Hitler." — Major General Herrmann Karl Robert Henning von Tresckow
Spoiler: Ehren's Realization

The elder sword spirit's aquamarine eyes met hers as Ehren bumped against the kitchen counter. "Ehren du Chasteler. I have come to take you home. Your Vati is waiting for you."

The blood drained from Ehren's face at the words as they hammered into her heart, into her soul.

She cried out in a shocked voice. "Nein! Vati is dead, he died in 1942!"

Ehren slid along the counter toward the corner, her wide, tear-filled eyes flicking between the vampiric Popobawa filling the doors to the kitchen and the blonde spirit leading them.

Then Ehren staggered in shock at the inscription of the blade in the other spirit's hand.

CORTANA NOMEN EIVSDEM FERRO ET ANIMIS ET JOYEVSE DVRENDEL

Cortana is my name. Of the same steel and spirit as Joyeuse and Durandel.

A blade she had last seen taking Mutti's sword hand off at the wrist....

In Vati's hand after he had failed to kill Mutti with Ehren scant minutes before.

And if this blade had survived the Death Potion filling the chamber....

Ehren's hand paused just before she would have slid her dagger body into a nearby voice tube to send it upstairs.

Ehren's face was stricken as a whirlwind of emotions crossed her face as her walls shattered.

Tears flowed as Ehren stared into Cortana's eyes. "V-vati lived?" She whispered in a desperate voice.

Cortana nodded once. "He sent me to bring his Tochter to him. He misses you very much." The sword spirit's voice was sad and gentle.

Ehren swallowed a lump in her throat and her dagger point trembled.

"But the Popobawa?" Ehren asked in a quiet voice as her eyes flicked to the monsters.

Cortana cocked her head in response to an unspoken communications. "Have Third Brother bring me the Imaski yoThixo ome-ezine. The rest of you, assist him." The vampires around her blinked red eyes twice and departed for the stairs.

Cortana then refocused on Ehren. "Distasteful but necessary tools on a leash. Barely justified by necessity. Your Vati has hidden himself away and has had to... make do... with beasts such as those to assist him in his plans to bring you home."

Ehren swallowed. "And Mutti? What of her? Can I....?" Her voice trailed off as she looked at Cortana with dawning hope in her eyes.

Cortana sighed. "Your Vati will explain more when you see him, but he wishes to meet you first and get your help in making Mutti accept him so they can be a proper family once more. Vati, Mutti, und Tochter." The sword's voice had a flat undertone.

Ehren didn't notice the change in Cortana's voice in her emotional whiplash as she automatically cleaned and then sheathed her dagger body.

"Don't hurt anyone else and I'll go with you to talk to Vati." She whispered as she sheathed her wand.

Cortana stepped forward and then waved a hand at her. "Then sleep young child."

"Sleep and dream of your Vati..."
---------------------------

Castle Moulbaix Upstairs
Spoiler: Kasuyu's Response

A trio of Popobawa exited Colombe's study surrounding a larger one clutching a wooden mask carved in the form of a monster with four eyes.

They began to shuffle toward the stairs as more joined them from Claire's music room and the bedrooms that they had split up to search.

Then a massive hand grasped the head of one of them that were exiting Colombe's room from behind and squeezed, popping the skull like a grape.

The second one that had searched the room with its clutch-mate was split in half crown to crotch an instant later by an iron and copper battleaxe forged from star-metal six hundred years before that was glowing bright gold with black spots moving in his aura.
Spoiler: Kasuyu's Axe

Kasuyu contemptuously hurled the corpse of the first lesser Popobawa down the hall to splatter at the feet of Third Brother as he stepped out of the door.

A gold aura with clusters of black rosettes surrounded him as he rolled his neck and cracked his shoulders.

Massive slabs of muscle shifted and rippled across his bare chest and tree-trunk thick arms and legs as he finished.

Behind him Nongqawuse moved to cover his back.

Her teeth gleamed as she sensed the success of her empowering ritual to summon the spirits upon her ally.

He rumbled in guttural Kikongo as he gave a feral smile of delight and his eyes became the gold of an African leopard.

"{MY. TURN.}"

Then he charged down the hall unstoppably like an enraged bull elephant toward the cluster of Popobawa at the far end.

His clawed left hand slashed out and waves of force flew from his fingertips to maul and rend lesser Popobawa apart as they came for him.

The axe in his right hand lashed out cutting through skin, muscle and bone like they were soft butter.

His left hand clenched and then a punch hammered into the breastbone of another Popobawa, driving fragments of the vampire's ribcage out its back as it flew back down the corridor as a limp corpse.

Third Brother hissed a command desperately at the flood of reinforcements passing it as it fled.

Behind Third Brother, its spawn bled and died to buy it time to escape.

More Popobawa charged past it, followed by First and Fourth Brothers.

More sacrifices to be thrown underneath the blood-soaked wheels of the Car of Juggernaut as it rolled forward inexorably.
---------------------------

Downstairs

Cortana cocked her head at the screams and howls from upstairs.

Her eyes narrowed as she looked at the floating sleeping form of Ehren at her elbow and then back upstairs.

No, the mission was to retrieve her objectives.

As much as she wished otherwise.

For perhaps the foe who had just broken First Brother's spine over his knee might be able to end her suffering.

She had her orders.

Third Brother appeared and thrust the mask into her hand.

"Go! Delay him!" Cortana snapped out to the Popobawa as she dashed for the front door.

She sprinted outside and through the barrier that she had cast to separate Moulbaix from the rest of the world.

Her blade slashed out and the black sphere popped and faded.

At the far end of the driveway a green light flashed and solidified into four figures.

She sheathed her sword body to grab the token given to her by her Master.

Her other hand, still holding the Mask by its strap, clutched Ehren's hand.

Gold, white, red and black enamel flashed as Colombe du Chasteler leveled her rapier at Cortana.

"Portus!"

A.N. -- You wanted to see the Axe Man in action, you get to see the Axe Man in action!

 

[darthcourt10]

NotHimAgain

Dana's Big Adventure Part, uh, I think maybe 4?

It was, Tanith thought, a rather peaceful day.

For once, there was no crisis du jour to solve, or unfortunate circumstance to agonize over, or even minor annoyance to be… well, annoyed at. The war was ongoing, yes, and there were many duties yet to be done, but for the moment? All the important work had been done, and there was nothing pressing. She could just take a little time to sit back, and relax.

Honestly, it was so oddly satisfying—

"Mom! You've got to help us!"

Tanith sat bolt upright. "Help you? Regalia, what's going on?"

"S-someone just got kidnapped. A mind-control kidnapping!"

Okay, that was worrying, but… didn't really track very well. "Okay, okay, Regalia, calm down. Now, what did you say was going on?"

"Um, well, you see, there's this little girl whose sister got stolen by some human boy, so we were trying to see if we could get her back. But then, when we got close, the sister just grabbed the boy and ran away, so we're going to need help in order to catch them and un-mind control her. Mom, please, help!"

What.

"Give me a moment," Tanith said.

Before she was able to find Regalia's IFF, another caught her eye for how quickly and erratically it was moving. A familiar signature, not because she personally knew its origin but because it could frequently be found wandering around town.

Some members of the fleet of laughter had been… put out to discover that a pair of princesses from the fleet that had scattered them sat only a few hours away from the Japanese coast. Tanith was rather less concerned about it, honestly—there was more to worry about than a fleet that was simply uninterested in fighting. There wasn't much use worrying about it anyways, since Hoppou had sat everyone down, and made it completely clear that retaliation was not in any way permissible.

The fact that the only member of the Twin Princess's fleet to regularly appear actively avoided anyone with a Fleet of Laughter IFF made the… enforced mutual disinterest easier to maintain. Honestly, Tanith would have ignored her if she wasn't booking it across town.

Odd.

She turned her attention to Regalia, finding her quickly enough. She was following the cruiser—Nemo, she was pretty sure?—but at a more sedate pace, without frantically jumping over buildings—and she had a Twin Princess IFF right next to her, almost as if she was carrying—Wait a minute.

"Regalia? Is that little girl you told me about an Abyssal?"

"Uh, yeah. Her name's Dana… She's a really sweet girl, actually."

Okay, then, this was happening. Apparently. "Stay right where you are. I'm coming over to you."

As she started running, it occurred to Tanith that she should probably call someone about this.

"Mother?"

So much for her peaceful day.
-----

"Fubuki."

The destroyer and her… ward (ward, dammit) turned to face the diminutive Abyssal Princess. She had taken the kids out to get ice cream and met Hoppou along the way who had ended up tagging along since Harry was… out and about somewhere.

"Big Fubuki," Hoppou added. "Know Nemo?"

That was… that was the Twin Princess's Ne-class. "A little bit," Fubuki nodded. She'd kept an eye on her during the attempted visit from the Black and White Princesses, and there had been a few words exchanged here and there since, but there hadn't been any serious attempts at conversation. "Why, is something the matter?"

"Need someone to talk to her," Hoppou replied. "Is being very silly."

"Silly how—"

THOOM

Fubuki turned toward the window, just in time to see the pavement shattering under the Abyssal-in-question's feet. The girl's eyes were frantic, as if searching for some nebulous threat to herself and… and her boyfriend. Who was cradled in her arms, hands clamped firmly over his head as if praying for a swift release. From what, Fubuki wasn't certain. Then, Nemo was shooting up into the sky again, scattering debris as she did.

"… What was that?" her charge asked. Fubuki sighed.

"Something silly," she replied, "Something very silly indeed."
-----

Dana only appeared indirectly? Aww man.

Well what do you think, sirs?

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

A.N. -- Now that I wrote Ehren's kidnapping, time for some WAFF mental health break for me before diving back down the rabbit hole. Ataturks New Organs

Things To Do In South Dakota When You're 'Dead' (VII)

De Breuil Estate, Upstate New York

2 August 2014
Spoiler: An Arrival In America

Jèzebel de Breuil smiled at her daughter Delilah, daughter-in-law Zamarad (and, the elderly witch reflected, her first grandchild even now growing in Zamarad's womb), and three olive-skinned men as they Portkeyed in from Beirut to her downstairs receiving room. Muramasa-no-Norimune, still a little wild-eyed from the news that she was about to be a grandmother and actually present at the birth of her grandchild for a change, gave a matching smile to her youngest child and the mother of her unborn granddaughter) in turn.

"Welcome to America! I am Delilah's mother Jèzebel de Breuil" Jèzebel said with a bow to the men who she had seen in passing at the Eid celebration two days ago before extending her hand for the guests to shake, leaning on her cane for support with her other hand. "You're looking well Del, Zamarad. Who are your friends?"

The elderly white bearded man shook her hand. "Lokman. A humble student of the healing arts." That produced a coughing fit from the middle aged man with the weathered brown skin who placed his rifle case against the chair Lokman sat in.

He then stepped forward to shake Jez's hand. "Ali Yörük. I'm similar to your daughter and your friend there...?" He trailed off and looked at Norimune.

"Muramasa-no-Norimune." The nodachi replied. "Del's shit excuse of a father."

The third, a rather pale faced blond haired man shook hands in turn and then sat down in an offered chair. "Kemal Mustafa."

Delilah turned to her mother and smirked. "We're secure then?" She asked as she sat in a love seat and Zamarad cuddled to her with a plate of mesquite chips -- apparently Zamarad was in the mood for spicy Tex-Mex she snarked mentally -- while the guests enjoyed the tea, Turkish coffee and light lunch buffet prepared for them on the sideboard.

Jèzebel nodded. "Secure and I made some preliminary arrangements. The Mayo Clinic will be getting a large check from us in exchange for assisting Kemal's need for a liver transplant. Also I arranged for some basic false identity papers, drivers licenses, credit cards, and so on for them for South Dakota plus hotel rooms in Minneapolis and a reserved flight there tomorrow out of Albany for you five along with a rental car waiting for you at the airport under your name. You don't plan to have them do anything around MACUSA, do you?"

Delilah shook her head. "No. The plan is once Kemal recovers to lay low at the ranch for a few months and then maybe do some tourist things. I'd like to show him Yellowstone personally since he may not get the chance again, but really what he and the others decide on at that point. Speaking of MACUSA, how bad are things?" The revolver leaned forward intently.

Jèzebel sucked on her teeth before slowly speaking. "The coverup for Kingsport is holding well enough for now. But they are getting more and more antsy and I think some of the more conservative families will make a break for it rather than risk facing the no-maj's calling them to account. Also, you remember that Mexican revolutionary you worked with in 1926?"

Delilah rubbed her chin. "Barmejo? That Latina bitch who shot me a few years earlier when I was down there?"

"Yes, her. She assassinated the son of the Paraguyan Minster of Magic according to eyewitnesses. MIB got a demand for aid in tracking her down yesterday." Jèzebel said grimly.

Delilah smirked and spoke with distinct relish in her voice. "That's a net gain for humanity. I met Sertorio Malafé V twice and he made my skin crawl both times. That whole family is rotten to the core and I'm just glad that I was assigned to Near Eastern Affairs rather than Latin American so I didn't have to deal with some of the sketchy shit we did down there. As for them tracking Barmejo down, I wish them luck with that, she's goddamn good. Good enough to almost punch my ticket in 1917 and then dodge me trying to take her out back then. Also I have it on good authority from Jackie that she hasn't aged a day since Jackie hit on her in 1815 for being a hot piece of ass and you know what that means."

Zamarad interjected with a smirk, "That she's family." Norimune doubled over and clutched her sides at the quip as the room broke up in laughter.

"Oh no, that she's probably another spirit like me, Father, and Ali." Delilah said through her chuckles. "Considering I watched her beat the shit out of Jackie after decking me in that seedy dockside dive in Lima in 1899 probably a weapon of some kind. It would fit with a few things I saw in her. That reminds me, now that I'm dead, who took over Near Eastern Affairs?"

"Jasper Marsh." Jez said as she leaned back.

"Good, he's got a good head on his shoulders and will listen to advice not to make any dumpster fires worse." Delilah said before taking a deep breath and looking at Norimune. "Now, Father, I have a real favor to ask you. Kemal's dying of liver disease and Mother said that you know that Nahuatl spell that they used to summon additional sacrificial organs. I was wondering if you can do that on Kemal to grow a second healthy liver that he can then get installed? Otherwise it's time to look for a compatible donor." Lokman leaned forward with an expression of extreme interest on his face.

Norimune nodded slowly. "Yes. That explains why Jez brought in that sterile ice chest rated for medical transfers. We can use the downstairs bedroom here. Jez set it up for the ritual."

There was a collective sigh of relief. "Right, no time like the present." Kemal said grimly as he stood and adjusted his suit.

As people began to file out to the bedroom, Norimune lingered and tapped Delilah on the shoulder to wait. She jerked her head at Kemal. "I remember reading the papers while on garrison in Port Arthur during the First World War and then afterward. Is that...?"

Delilah nodded. "Yes, Kemal Mustafa Atatürk in the flesh. There was a magical intervention just before he would have died and they put him under the effects of a dose of Deathless Sleep Potion. He's still a very sick man and I'm going to do my best to save him." The revolver paused. "Father, it's good to see you and mother together at last, are you...?" She trailed off and bit her lip.

Norimune patted Delilah on the shoulder. "I'll be staying here for a while to visit, yes. Your mother and I have a lot to talk about and come to terms with. Also, I haven't said this enough. I'm proud of you Del. Even if you should have told me about Zamarad and your marriage sooner!"

Delilah teared up. "I'm sorry Father. It's just... I had to keep it secret from MACUSA and everyone. But still I shouldn't have. I should have trusted you more."

"And I should have been there for you more in my turn. We fucked it all up and just have to make the best of it. I don't deserve you, Del. I really don't." Norimune said through her tears as she hugged her youngest daughter.

Delilah returned the hug tightly and cried into her father's shoulder as she nodded wordlessly.
----------------------

Spoiler: A New Liver

Norimune took a deep breath as she looked at Kemal lying on the bed with a determined look on his face. The Muramasa nodded to herself and began to move her hands in ritual motions as she chanted in Nahuatl. "Tlāhuihpochchōtl huitz!"

A crimson aura formed around her hands and she made a scooping motion. A bloody mist flowed from Kemal's skin and spiraled into a ball above his torso as his eyes widened massively in surprise. "Ye huehcāuh ahmo nimitzihta!"

Then Norimune exhaled upon the mist which suddenly flashed with a reddish light. An invisible jaguar screamed, causing Ali to start in surprise. The light faded to reveal a human liver that slowly pulsed as it dripped blood onto the bed. "Tlāhuīlnāuhmecatl motōcā!"

Lokman hurriedly cast a stasis spell on the liver as Delilah carefully took it in her gloved hands to place in the sterile container. Then Lokman gave a very deep breath and waved his wand over the new organ. An aura formed around it and the elderly master physician grinned in triumph before sealing the case and casting another spell to keep the liver fresh. "Now I really WILL have to learn that one from you, Norimune. That new liver is a perfect tissue match for Kemal here. I'll do a check on it once we get to the clinic, but my diagnostic spell's preliminary results is that it is a perfectly healthy organ with minimal damage at most from cirrhosis."

He looked at the others as smiles broke out. "Let's save the Father of Turkey's life."

A.N. -- If by chance someone on this thread actually happens to be fluent in Nahuatl, please don't track me down and kill me for the incantation's translation.

 

[darthcourt10]

SkyeFire

BEHOLD! The great and glorious Goldion Hammer, all blessings upon their benveolent Yellowness, has deigned to find my most recent pathetic attempt at writing his characters worthy of posting.

(takes place in the last week of August 2014, after Ehren is retrieved but before she leaves for her first year at Hogwarts)

Optionally Canonical Theatre Presents:
A Mourning of Monsters

It took longer than Del had expected to find her target, enough so that she had eventually enlisted some assistance. Moulbaix turned out to have nooks and crannies she'd never actually examined.

But she had run her quarry to ground at last. Moving as quietly as possible, she stuck her head around the doorframe. Ehren was sitting in an overstuffed easy chair, staring blankly into the roaring fire in the hearth, lost in the world inside her head.

...okay, de Breuil. Time to do what you don't do best.

She swung around the corner and into the room. "Ahem."

Even Ehren's flinch was listless. She turned slowly to look at her aunt, eyes like holes burned in a blanket. "Oh. Hello, tante Del."

"Hey, there." Del moved closer, keeping her movements loose and easy. "That looks like a really comfy chair."

Ehren slowly looked down at the chair, then back up, as if confused. "I… suppose."

Del concealed a deep breath and held both hands out to her niece. "Do me a favor?"

Ehren blinked blankly, and reached out to grasp her aunt's hands. Del gently pulled her up out of the chair so they stood face-to-face.

"Now, can you change to your younger form for me?"

Expression saying what, why, whatever very loudly, Ehren complied. And Del felt a sudden rush of sympathy for the Japanese battleship that had adopted "cousin" Harry. Goddamn pregnancy hormones are turning my brain to-- no, focus, dammit!

Using the same general techniques that she'd once used to bundle the half-feral family cat into a blanket roll for veterinarian visits, she pivoted them around and dropped into the chair, pulling Ehren across her lap in one smooth motion.

"Va-vas?!?"

"Sorry," Del said glibly. "But I just found out I'm pregnant. Zamarad, too. So, you know, I need to get some practice in, cuddling cute little girls." Oh, God, am I blushing? She tucked Ehren's unresisting head below her chin and carefully entangled the smaller girl in her arms.

She could practically hear the gears in Ehren's head spinning. Easy enough to understand, the two of them were probably the least touchy-feely people in their entire immediate family. Although this closeness was feeling surprisingly good….

"Congratulations…?" came an uncertain voice from the vicinity of her collarbone. Her odd behavior still had Ehren off-balance, good.

"Thanks. I'm still wrapping my head around the whole idea. After planning on doing this someday for over seventy years, you wouldn't think it would be such a shock when 'someday' becomes 'less than nine months from now.' But it does."

Her hand was stroking Ehren's hair completely on its own, oh my God I'm turning into Mother, but honestly that wasn't so bad, was it?

"… I will have new cousins, soon?" Ehren was starting to sound more alert, more focused – less trapped inside the whirlpool of her inner turmoil.

"Yep. Twins (sort of), no less. So expect to get drafted for a lot of babysitting." She held her breath. Shot out.

The feeling of Ehren withdrawing in her arms, without moving a muscle, hurt more than Del had expected.

"I do not think that would be wise, tante Delilah."

Full Formal Prussian, ouch. Well… time to rip the bandage off.

"Why?" Del asked gently, subtly arranging her arms to make any escape attempts harder. "You've never been afraid of responsibility. Or is it--" please forgive me sweetheart "—that you're afraid you'll infect their young, impressionable minds with some horrifying, morally bankrupt ideology? Afraid of those evil little voices in the darkest parts of your mind that tell you Kasuyu is an untermensch, that your steffmutti is only an 'honorary uberfrau'… or that relationships like mine with Zamarad, or your mother's with Tokunotaki, are 'unnatural'?"

There was nothing listless about Ehren's flinch this time. But instead of fighting to escape, which Del had been afraid of, her niece instead seemed to shrink into herself, as if she could somehow disconnect from her own skin and retreat within, someplace untouchable.

Someplace everyone else would be safe from her.

Someplace inescapable.

Del stared into the roaring fireplace, squeezing Ehren in her arms in a way she hadn't done since she'd put her last teddy bear into storage decades before… reached for her own bandage… gripped it…

"I'm afraid too."

...and ripped it off.

"But not of you. Never you. Ehren, sweetie… in the entire world there is an incredibly short list of people I would entrust my children to without reservation. And you stand near the top." She paused a moment. "Closer to the top than Jackie, for certain."

That almost startled a laugh out of Ehren, before she started sinking back into her self-flagellating turmoil again. "But… you know…."

"I know that you've never acted on those feelings. You've never done what those evil voices in the dark whispered for you to do. The only way I know they're there… is because given your origin, given that you are your father's daughter… it's inevitable that they be there." Deep breath, don't you dare wimp out now Del! "Just like mine."

She felt Ehren's hair scrub against the underside of her jaw as Ehren squirmed her head free to stare up at her face in blank incomprehension. "Vas?"

Del couldn't look away from the fire. Couldn't look down into those confused, trusting blue eyes. She forced the words out past the sudden constriction in her throat.

"I worry, sometimes, that I'm a sociopath. Or right on the edge of becoming one. It's too… too easy for me to kill. To... stop feeling. Stop caring. Just… divide the world into targets, threats, and… irrelevancies. To go to a place, inside, where I don't have love, or hate, or… anything, just… mission parameters. Every time I use it as a weapon, I'm afraid I won't came back after I let it loose."

She dragged in a ragged breath, struggling to understand why this was hitting her so hard. Why she suddenly needed to say this out loud, when she'd always carried it in silence before, until finally opening up to Zamarad. And even then, it had been the firewhiskey and grief helping loosen her tongue and allow her love inside her walls of pain. Aren't second times supposed to be easier, not harder?

"And when I do come back… from that place… I wonder if I will, next time. And now… now I'm going to have children, and I'm afraid. I'm afraid that, someday, they'll look into my eyes, and I won't be there anymore, just--"

"NEIN!" Ehren's arms wrapped around her and squeezed, as if she could drive out those thoughts by sheer force. "Nein, tante Del, nein nein nein nein nein…."

Del could feel her shoulder growing wet from her niece's tears.

"Das könnte niemals passieren." Ehren's voice was a bit smeary against her clothes. "That is not possible."

"But, Ehren… how do you know that?" She'd planned that to be gentle, leading… but instead it came out almost as broken and frightened as Ehren felt in her arms.

"Because…" she could feel Ehren forcing her mind into action, driven by that same someone needs me that drove every member of their family to dangerously self-destructive lengths. "Because I have never seen it, when you look at me. Only my tante Del. Only s-someone who l-- who loves… me. Me." Ehren's voice hitched painfully. "And if I have never seen it, how could your own kinder?"

Despite Ehren's frantic squeeze, breathing was suddenly easier. The room felt warmer, and Del felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off her chest.

An opening. "So… you trust what you see, eh little one?"

"Well… seen and verified." Ehren sounded a bit abashed.

"Well, so do I. Which is why you're on the top of my babysitter list." And now we come full circle.

"...But—"

"After all," Del bored on relentlessly, "If I, a firearm, descended from the legendary murderous Muramasa swords of Japan, can somehow be a good person, a good aunt, a good mother," oh God that still feels so weird to say, "then so can my niece, the daughter of my sister, the single most heroic person I've ever known. Even if she's a dagger forged for an army of evil, and her father was a man who gave himself to darkness." She looked away from the fire, finally, and gently pried Ehren's face up to meet her eye-to-eye. "Goodness is a muscle, Ehren. And those voices in your head that you're so afraid of? As painful and frightening as they are, they exercise that muscle. Every day, every time you decide to act against them, every time you choose compassion and empathy over arrogance and self-righteousness."

Ehren's eyes might have been wet, but they were still steel. "Just as you do, every time you decide against solving every problem by shooting it?"

"Well, it's the only reason your aunt Jackie is still alive," Del gibed wryly. She hugged Ehren closer again, propping her chin on her niece's head, wondering at how right and natural it felt. "I love you so much, Ehren."

"...I love you too, tante Del."

A few minutes later, once they were both definitely asleep, Zamarad stepped out of the fireplace in a near-silent cascade of flame.

"And I love you both," she whispered, emerald eyes dark and deep with affection, and worry, and exasperated pride. "My love and our dagger, helping each other when you cannot help yourselves."

She gathered up a quilted afghan, and tucked it around the sleeping weapons.

But not before using her phone to take a few pictures, and share them about the family's private network. Love, teasing, and blackmail all went hand-in-hand, after all.

 

[darthcourt10]

Savato93

The Princess was being awfully loud out there.

The little girl stared at the door from the safety of her pile of plushies. Until the Princess was absolutely sure she was safe to have around, she had to remain in confinement. Fine by her—this place was quiet. Safe. The Princess had shared her room hoping to provide a comforting environment, even providing her a fleet of sorts for protection. For that, at least, she was thankful.

But she was so unbelievably BORED.

She'd already gone through the books… the few she could understand, didn't have anything interesting in them. There was a television in the room, but she didn't know how to operate it or any of the devices attached to it. There were some sealed tubes sitting on a shelf, and she was somewhat curious to see what was inside them… but she was just too small to reach.

If only the Princess had some building blocks stashed away somewhere. She'd really enjoy having something to build and tinker with to pass the time...

Seiko's thoughts were interrupted by a loud crack, startling her back into her plush pile, as a small object blasted through the bedroom door and embedded itself in the far wall.

"THOSE BARBARIANS…!" The Princess's normally soft voice had taken on a deep reverb that made her sound far more sinister. "I'M GOING TO TEAR THEM APART!"

"Mother, calm down!" Another voice… the Princess's oldest daughter, she was pretty sure. The one with the giant metal hands. "You're going to draw attention from everybody on base!"

Curious, Seiko slowly crawled out of the plush pile and towards the bedroom door. She took a moment to work the doorknob, her rough little hands not wanting to grip the smooth surface properly, before finally managing to crack the door open and peek out. Sure enough, the Princess's oldest daughter was there, as was her own kid. Regalia, she recognized; she came around at least once every couple of days. But the two of them… they looked very uneasy.

And it was perfectly clear why—the Princess's features were contorted in utter rage, crimson light blazing from her eyes as she stomped around the room. "DO THEY NOT HAVE THE SLIGHTEST IDEA HOW A SHIP IS CONSTRUCTED!?" She hissed. "ALL THE DELICATE LITTLE PIECES THAT HAVE TO GO TOGETHER JUST RIGHT, OR ELSE THEY WON'T WORK!?"

"And yet Tampa's not a vegetable!" Tanith retorted. "For her to function as well as Hatsumo says she can, they must have had at least some idea of what they were doing!"

"WARSHIPS ARE NOT DAMNED CANOES!" The Princess roared. "YOU DON'T STRAP MISMATCHED PIECES TOGETHER AND HAVE EVERYTHING JUST WORK HUNKY-DORY! AND YOU CERTAINLY DON'T FORCE THEM TO WORK BY FUSING THEIR SOULS TOGETHER!!"

"Please, Grandma! You've got to think about this rationally!" Regalia looked like she wanted to give the Princess a cool-down hug, kneeling beside her with her arms half-extended, but she seemed almost afraid of touching her. "Yes, what happened to Aunt Tampa was messed up, I know, and her sisters' souls are trapped in her body… but that must mean, in some way, that they're not completely dead! You could bring them all back!"

The Re-class flinched away as the Princess turned to face her, swinging an arm out in the direction of the ocean. "But my children are out there SUFFERING, because some foolish spirits overstepped their boundaries and VIOLATED them at the deepest possible level! I will not stand for it!"

"But what can you do?" The daughter asked. "Even if they weren't thousands of miles away from here; even if they didn't inhabit a country you can't set foot in without authorities coming down on you; even if it didn't mean breaching the Statute… you can't wage war on a pantheon."

"She's right, Ma…" said a quiet, slightly tinny voice from the object on the table. "I asked locals about it. These aren't just some ghosts… they have a lot of the Hawaiian big-shots backing them up. You'd be confronting gods, plural. Even with all your strength, it'd be suicide."

"But… even if that's true… I-I can't just…" The Princess's wrath was beginning to falter.

"Tampa doesn't need vengeance, Mother. She needs help." The daughter shook her head. "Maybe one day, in the future, you'll be able to confront the people responsible and get justice for what was done... but right now, the best thing you can do for Tampa is to bring her home, and start undoing their work. Take things one step a time."

The Princess's enraged aura lingered for several more seconds… until, finally, it dissipated into nothing, and the defeated Princess slumped to the floor. The anger in her face was gone, replaced with sadness. "...you're right. Tampa's wellbeing has to come first. Thank you for reminding me..." The Princess said softly, her voice finally falling back to its normal volume. "Hoppou needs to calm down… she's wearing herself thin worrying about everything."

"It's okay, Grandma. I know you're just trying to do right by all of us… but everyone has a breaking point. Maybe you just need to stop for a little while. Go be yourself, let us take care of things."

"The Americans are arranging a flight back to Japan for the four of us," the voice on the phone said. "It should only be another day or two until we're back home, Ma. You can fuss over us then."

The Princess nodded slowly. "Okay. No more Princess business for a couple days. Hoppou will try her best."

It was at this moment that Seiko heard another door out of sight cracking open and shut. Moments later, two more Abyssals shuffled into view—another Re-class, and some light cruiser-sized thing she couldn't quite wrap her head around. "Umm… Princess?" The one with the puffy hair spoke up.

Tanith looked over to them with mild confusion. "Fluffy? Renita? What's going on?"

"Er… well, you know those… weirdo strays that inhabit the park? Well, one of them touched Renita and… sort of freaked out for some reason. Now we're having to lay low because they're trying to recruit her!"

"What!?" The daughter exclaimed. "Did you tell them you're with the Fleet of Laughter? They shouldn't bug you if you tell them that…"

"We did, but they won't stop! They keep talking about her being blessed by their 'Dark One', how she fell so deep into darkness that it took notice of her and 'tore the evil out of her heart'... and it's really upsetting her!"

"What happened to me wasn't a blessing…" 'Renita' sounded like she was on the verge of tears. "They don't understand how much I suffered…"

"Oh, for…" Tanith pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed before rising to her feet. "This is just going to be one of those days, isn't it? Alright, you two stay here with Mother. I'll go talk with the cultists and try to sort all this out."

With that, the daughter stepped out of sight "Geez… just one headache after another…" Regalia moaned. "This can't be good for you, Grandma. The dilemma with Aunt Carrie and Aunt Sherri, that business with the Twin Princesses a little while back, now Aunt Tampa is back from the dead and has you more upset than ever!"

The Princess tilted her head slightly, thinking. "Actually, believe it or not… this isn't the worst freak out Hoppou has had over Tampa."

"It's not?" Regalia asked. "What could have made you flip out worse than this?"

"Hoppou doesn't know… Hoppou wiped everyone's logs of the event so they'd forget, even her own. That's how bad it was..."

It seemed the drama had come to a close for the time being. With a disgruntled huff, Seiko closed the door and retreated back into her escort pile. All those other Abyssals were so hectic… if being released from her quarantine meant dealing with stuff like this every day, she really didn't know if it was worth leaving the comfort of her pile. Just the thought of it was giving her a tummy ache...

Sifting through the plushies, she picked out a little I-class and hugged it to her chest. Let those Abyssals be crazy, Seiko figured. For now… she was content with this.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Er, Sunny…?"

"...don't say it."

"..."

"...don't say it…"

"..."

"Nuri, I swear to GOD if you tell ANYONE else what happened here today, I will-"

"I was just gonna say your dress is torn…"

"oh."

"...and your oversized ass is on full display."

"DAMMIT, NURI~! I'm already self-conscious from busting six lampposts and getting wedged less than a third of the way through the first lock! I don't need you rubbing my tonnage in my face even more…!"

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Chest slowly rising and falling, Harry continued to sleep in his room. Not even as the window slowly rose up did he show signs of waking. Once it was fully open, Hachi's face appeared framed in it as she looked around. Upon her gaze falling on Harry, however, her eyes softened, 'Harry-Chan...'

With a final look around as well as carefully listening, and not hearing anyone moving, the Submarine clambered over the windowsill with practiced ease. Dropping to the floor silently, she briefly paused and turned to close the window. With that done, she crawled over to Harry's futon and raising the thin, cotton blanket before slipping under. Within moments, she was cuddled up to the teenage boy in question with a soft sigh as a tension that was in her body slipped away.

Of course, that was when she felt his arm shift around her almost protectively as he spoke in a voice that was thick with sleep, "Mmm? Hachi-Chan? Something wrong?"

Blinking widened eyes, she looked up to find two green eyes looking at her filled with sleepiness, "Um..."

For a few moments, Harry stared at her before sighing a bit with a soft smile on his face as he came to a realization, "Bad dream?"

Lightly blushing, Hachi nodded a little, "Hai. It was... one of those dreams."

Only nodding, the teenage wizard yawned a little, "Ah, I see." It seemed like Harry was deep in thought about something. But then, he pulled her closer to him which made her blush deepen even as hand gently rubbed circles on her back, "That's not a problem then."

Her face buried in his chest, Hachi smiled a bit at the acceptance that was in his voice, "Really?" Getting a soft hum, she chewed her lips a bit, "I... suppose that I'm lucky that you don't have a girlfriend who would have problems with this."

When, however, she looked up, she froze at the look in Harry's eyes before she nearly felt her engine seize at his next words, "Then she wouldn't be my girlfriend for very long, Hachi-Chan. Because I'm not going to stop doing this as long as you need it."

Not sure what to say, Hachi swallowed a bit before shifting a bit and kissing him on the cheek, "Thank you."

Returning the gesture, he yawned a bit, "You're welcome, Hachi-Chan. Now, how about we get some sleep..."

Unseen by Harry as he began to fall back asleep, tears prickled at the corner of the blonde Submarine's eyes as she nodded, "Hai, that sounds good." Once he was asleep, Hachi had a bright smile on her face before closing her eyes as well, 'Thank you.'

It was not long before she drifted off to sleep to the sound of his heartbeat in her ear.

Some hours later, Hachi awoke to the feeling of her head rising and falling with Harry's breaths as she could hear his heart slowly beat. As well, she could feel his hand gently running along her hair, which made her hum in pure enjoyment as she opened her eyes and slowly blinked, "Good morning, Harry-Chan."

Just smiling back, Harry gave her a chuckle, "And a good morning to you as well, Hachi-Chan." Briefly, a concerned look appeared on his face, "How are you feeling?"

Lips curling into a small smile, the Submarine took a deep breath before sighing, "Hacchan feels a lot better now. Thank you." As Harry told her that she was welcome, she glanced at her internal clock before raising her eyebrows as she noted how late it was, "Harry-Chan? Why... didn't you have your morning run?"

In reply, Harry simply gave her a shrug, "I can miss a day. Besides, that would mean waking you up."

Cheeks feeling hot, Hachi buried her face in his chest which was partially to hide her blush' and partially to hide her smile, "You didn't have to."

Once more, the teenage boy gave a shrug, even if he found the sight adorable, "It's fine, Hachi-Chan. One day won't make that big of a difference." Pausing, a thoughtful look came over his face and he chewed his lips briefly, 'Hmm...'

Realizing that he had gone quiet, Hachi looked up with a slight frown on her face, "Harry-Chan? Is something wrong?"

With a blink, Harry realized that he had paused before shaking it off, "Sorry, Hachi-Chan. I was just, um, thinking..."

The teenage wizard didn't tell her that his thoughts had strayed to a morning that had happened just two days before. And something that had not left the background of his thoughts since. Unknowing of this, the Submarine gave him a smile and a nod, "That's not a problem, Harry-Chan." Then, feeling his fingers ghosting down her head and gently tracing along first her cheek and jaw, Hachi swallowed a bit nervously even as her chin was raised, "H-Harry-Chan?" Seeing his face slow close, fingers under her chin, she could feel her pistons pounding, "What-"

Before she could do anything, Harry leaned forward and captured her lips with his, which made the Subgirl freeze as her engineers looked in worry at the high pressure that was being read in her lines. Pressure that spiked at Harry deepened the kiss a bit more than he had before. Soon enough, however, her eyes drifted halfway closed as she returned said kiss.

After he pulled back, the nearly fourteen year old wizard had a blush on his face as he watched Hachi flutter her eyes open fully with just as deep a blush as he had, "Um... I-I hope that was okay."

For several seconds, Hachi stared at him in disbelief before she smiled happily, "Hai, it was, Harry-Chan."

Shifting a bit, she moved up his body and his hands went around her waist as her eyes stared into his. Right then, Harry was reminded that despite the growth spurt he had that year, Hachi was still a bit taller than he was. Granted, he suspected that would not be the case for very long, "That's good..."

Unknown to him, Hachi had similar thoughts in regards to their heights, and wasn't unhappy with the thought of Harry being taller than her. Reaching up, she ran one hand through his hair with a smile on her face, "I... I wouldn't mind it too much if you, um..." Biting her lip, she looked away a bit, "Did that more often... and I know that Iku-Chan, Imuya-Chan, Shioi-Chan, and RO-Chan would not mind kisses like that either. Taigei-Nee-Chan and Ryuuhou-Nee-Chan as well."

Not quite sure what to say, Harry only nodded a little bit as he swore his heart felt like it would leap from his chest. Especially as he suddenly had the image in his mind of doing exactly that, "H-hai, that doesn't sound that bad..." Reaching up, he ran one hand along her cheek and found the Submarine happily leaning into it before licking his lips, "Er..."

Eyes practically sparkling, the Subgirl bashfully smiled, "It's fine."

Looking into her eyes, Harry smiled a bit shyly himself before leaning in a bit before their lips touched once more as the Submarine's arms went around his neck.

It was a short while later that found Hachi leaning against the counter as she watched Harry cooking some breakfast up for the two of them. Head tilted to the side, she considered her best plan of attack before nodding a little, "Harry-Chan? Could I ask you something?"

With a blink, the teenage wizard glanced towards her before nodding, "Sure, Hachi-Chan. What is it?"

Head tilted to the side a little, Hachi was silent for a few moments, "It's not that I minded what happened earlier..." Trailing off, she blushed and could see that Harry had one as well, "Quite the opposite actually, as I really liked it." Internally, she continued with a happy squeal in the safety of her mind, 'Especially as this was the first time that you initiated a kiss like this! And I want a lot more!'

Meanwhile, Harry chewed his lip was he glanced at her. Unknown to her, part of his blush was the fact that Hachi was currently wearing his old cloak which she had taken as part of her sleepwear. Something that for some reason made feel... odd, but in a good way, "You want to know why... um... how things changed?"

Slowly, the Subgirl gave a slight nod, "Hai, I am." A thought occurred to her and she hummed, "Did something happen on your trip to Kyoto?"

Blush deepening, Harry shyly nodded, "Something did happen..." Unsure about her reaction, he focused on the cooking he was doing as he explained what had happened in Kyoto. It all came out, including the shared baths as well as a little bit about the... relevation. The whole time he didn't look at Hachi's face, afraid of what he might see there. Finally, he came to the end and shifted a bit, "And... uh, that's about it..."

Of all the things he expected, he did not expect Hachi hugging him from the side, "Harry-Chan? Look at me."

Just slightly unsure, Harry did so and blinked as the Subgirl was giving him a soft, happy smile. There was no anger there at all, just joy and something that he was unsure that he was seeing correctly, "You're not angry...?"

Lips twitching, the shipgirl snorted, "No, Harry-Chan. Quite the opposite actually as... well, I'm happy, really happy." Kissing his cheek, Hachi pulled back a little, "As to your thoughts that you had? I can tell you that they're right on. We... care for you, Harry-Chan. Deeply." Taking a chance, she gave him a peck on the lips, "Don't doubt that, ever."

For a moment, Harry opened his mouth to say something, but then swallowed and nodded as he felt like he could feel a tiny bit of something crumble inside him. Deciding to ignore that, he gave her a smile even as he felt tears prickle at the corners of his eyes, "Thank you."

Not saying anything, Hachi simply nodded, but she still stayed there hugging him as he worked.

As he made breakfast for them both, she kept glancing at his face. While she didn't say it, her mind was awhirl with the new information that she had just learned. Not the least of which was that she recognized a breakthrough when it had happened, which in this case it had. It made her thoughtful, even as she considered what the reactions from the others would be.

Yet, at the same time? Her mind was also on other matters, especially right now. Whenever she glanced at his face, she could not help but imagine a time in the future where they would have moments like this. Just watching him as she embraced Harry as he made something for them. And frankly?

She could not wait for such a day.

It was far too short a time before he was finished and brought their breakfast over to the table as the television played in the background. Taking a bite out of his breakfast sandwich, Harry noticed that Hachi was looking at the television, "Hmm? Something wrong, Hachi-Chan?"

Blinking, she looked over at him and shook her head, "Ah! Sorry, Harry-Chan. Just watching the news." Hachi gestured at the screen, "They're talking about the Canadians launching one of their new rockets from Churchill."

Eyebrow raised, Harry looked at the screen and, sure enough, there was the sight of a rocket climbing into the sky. Reading the ticker at the bottom of the screen and listening to the newscaster, he blinked, "Huh... so it was one of the last tests of the Arrow II?"

With a hum, Hachi nodded as she looked at the screen, "Hai, it was. They're going to start launching satellites with it in the next few months into polar orbits." Her lips quirked a bit into an amused look, "Still can't believe that they're using something based on the V2 rockets from the war."

That got her a small shrug from the teenage boy beside her, "Well, it works and is pretty cheap. And with Cape Canaveral right on the shores of the Atlantic..." At her nod of agreement, however, he frowned, "Though... Mum thinks that there's more going on there."

Curious, Hachi raised an eyebrow at that, "More going on?"

With a shake of the head, Harry frowned, "Mum figures that the rockets are dual purpose, hence why the Canadian government has been helping to fund their development. Both for satellite and manned launches as well as ballistic missiles."

For a few moments, the Subgirl chewed as she thought that over before nodding, "That... does make sense. And it is based on the V2 after all, so it could function as some." She furrowed her eyebrows a little, "A bit odd to think of the Canadians with ballistic missiles though." Getting a shrug from Harry, she turned to the conversation onto another direction, "So what are you going to do, Harry-Chan?"

Having finished his breakfast, Harry had started to clean up the table, "Hmm? Well, I'm going to be heading over to Umitsubame-San's to pick up Kenshō as a matter of fact. Also bringing some cookies and some other things as well."

Just frowning, Hachi considered what she had been told as she got up and helped Harry. Reaching the sink, she glanced over at him, "You wash and I dry, Harry-Chan?" She got a nod and began to work alongside him. Hachi was silent for a few moments before speaking up, "Well, if you want, Harry-Chan, I could drive you to Umitsubame-San's home. After all, we do have a car."

At that, Harry blinked some as he looked over at her, "Wait, you do?"

Giggling a little bit, she nodded, "Hai, the two of us actually bought it for our own use since I have a driver's license now and so does RO-Chan. We mostly use our velomobiles around the base though."

Not saying anything, Harry considered that for a few moments before giving her a smile, "Sure, I don't mind. And that does make it a lot easier for me, so thanks."

With that, he kissed her cheek and made Hachi happily smile as they continued to wash and dry the dishes as well as pan together.

 

[darthcourt10]

Kab2

Here is a look at other character from my collection, I hope you like it

--------------------------

15 June 1189

Koromogawa-no-tachi residence, Hiraizumi, Mutsu province.

"It looks like the end is near." said a figure standing beneath a bridge, lots of weapons carried in his back, dressed as a monk.

"It seems so, old friend." said another figure acompanying him, shorter than the first, dressed in armor from that time and a youthful face, a katana at his side and two tantos on his other, with an intense gaze flowing from his bright blue eyes that denoted a hardened veteran of war.

"Hah! I may be older than you but I'm still in my good age. But my lord," Benkei said, turning serious."I don't think neither or us will be alive tomorrow morning, but I won't let them pass this bridge, you still have a wife and a son under your brother's 'care'."after saying that he picked an spear and placed in front of the bridge, he struck the solid floor with its handle, producing a distinctive sound. "I'll swear by my honour that I'll fend them off even if there's no life left in me. Go to the inner chambers and work your way out killing all of them."

"I know that you will do it, I'll remember this last act of service from you, may the Kami take pity of your opponents' souls." Saying this the younger man patted the older's right shoulder "And I hope that Hachiman welcomes you in his hall of warriors, maybe we will meet there once again. Sayonara, Benkei."

"I hope so too, I still need to collect my thousand blade from you, Lord Yoshitsune. Now go, they won't take long to arrive and I'll give those traitors a piece of my mind." with nothing more to say, Benkei proceed to guard the bridge, Yoshitsune left the brigde to retreat to the inner chambers of the residence feeling guilty.

'Why I didn't follow Yuuki-Sensei's advice? Why I followed my brother blindly?' he believed him when he said that this undercover operation would finish with his return to his brother's side as a subdued enemy, pledging loyalty again to him and raising Yoritomo's popularity and his own's cost, but he didn't mind as his only wish was be at Yoritomo's orders, he even left Shizuka and his unborn child in Yoritomo's care at Yoshino's mountain before coming back to Mutsu, but now he knew the truth, thanks to Fujigara Tadahira.

Tadahira's brother, Yasuhira, and Yoritomo were conspiring to do and assault at night and kill them while sleeping, at first Yoshitsune didn't believe him, but things went wrong when one of Yasuhira's retainers tried to kill them both, Yoshitsune disarming him and when he interrogated the man he confirmed what Tadahira said, but it was too late, Yasuhira's men were positioned around the building to prevent his escape.

Yoshitsune would be lying if he said that it wasn't a shock for him, but when he accepted that his brother wanted to kill him some things clicked in his head, Yoritomo has used him to kill his opponents one by one, like Kiso no Yoshinaka until only one remained, himself, and now it came his turn.

He quickly writed a letter for Shizuka and trusted Tadahira to deliver it to her, as his brother's men wouldn't kill Tadahira if he lied about his reasons to be here.

Shaking his head to clear his mind, he went through a corridor when he heard Benkei shouting.

"I am Saito Musashibo Benkei, retainer of Minamoto no Yoshitsune. Come across this bridge if you dare to confront me, by my honor I swear that you shall not pass!"

'So they are here' thought Yoshitsune cursing himself once again, after a little while he reached his destination, the inner chambers where his first wife and their daughter were waiting for him.

"Otou-san!" said their daughter embracing him.

This broke his heart for what he had to do, but if he survived this, he will atone for what he is forced to do now.

"Husband" said Sato, his wife. "How are the siege going?" she was hoping for good news, but Yoshitsune's face told her that it won't be the case.

"Very bad my love." said Yoshitsune "Only me and Benkei are still alive, and he is fending off the traitors as we speak." then he kneeled and embraced his wife and his daughter "I'm so sorry" he began to cry "I couldn't keep my promise; if I wasn't so blinded by my brother this may not have happened" unhooking two tantos that he had prepared earlier, he passed them to her wife. "I won't plead for forgiveness, but in the case I survive, I will atone for this, always remembering you until the day we'll meet again".

"Please don't cry my love" said Sato lovingly upping him with her hand in his jaw. "You have no guilt for what is about to happen." Yoshitsune opened his mouth to protest, but Sato silenced him putting her finger in his mouth. "My only wish now is that you survive and be happy with your other wife, as even if we don't do this, we'll be killed, so as a last insult to Yoritomo we will deny him this 'pleasure'." after this she gave him a parting kiss that they knew will be the last. "We will be waiting for you in the other life, so stay strong."

Retreating to their room, they left Yoshitsune alone with ghosts, he prepared to meet his opponents ready to kill them all.

After what it seemed hours, he heard some noises approaching the chambers, noises that he recognized as steps from more than one person.

'So Benkei has been slain.' thought Yoshitsune sighing internally. 'Sayonara, my friend, we will meet again in the other side.' unsheathing his blade, he adopted his usual stance in battle.
"Usumidori, lets bathe in the blood of our opponents" said to his blade.

And shortly after, people from Yasuhira's personal army started to enter the room he knew would be his dying place.

Applying all his knowledge and talent, he confronted everyone that entered, parrying, slicing and jumping to avoid damage and killing as many as possible.

But even as talented as he was, the sheer number of them brought him down.

He knew he will die here now with certainty, but he was determined to try to escape at least, In this was working until a commanding voice from outside the room said "Stop the hostilities."

The samurais that were alive retreated while Yoshitsune was stunned at the voice. "What are you doing here, 'brother'? Your appearance here would undermine your goals because your position." said with a exausted voice.

From the door Yoritomo appeared, followed by the traitor Yasuhira, who broke the promise with his father Hidehira to shelther Yoshitsune. "That would be true if someone knew that I was here, Yoshitsune" he sighed "Who told you the plan to assassinate you during your sleep? A lot of men have died here that shouldn't have."

Not wanting to betray Tadahira, he told him a half truth. "One of that traitor's man slipped his tongue and tried to kill me, so I defeated him and confirmed your plan to kill us, so we took defense." 'well, that's the truth from a certain point of view' thought Yoshitsune.

"Who was?" asked Yasuhira "I need to know to punish his family for all this mess"

Glaring at him Yoshitsune said with a voice that could freeze the water "Traitors don't have names rat, so I don't know how he was called before."

Squealing, he hid behind Yoritomo, who said "Enough chitchat for now, brother, I have come with a proposal that-"

"Proposal?" Yoshitsune said cutting Yoritomo "Kill myself to boost your popularity? Let myself captured to be executed in public? No 'brother', this time you can't convince me to follow your plan."

"Well" rebated Yoritomo, "You don't want anything to happen to the wife I have in custody, right?"

"What do you mean with that?" asked a surprised Yoshitsune 'I know by her letters that she is fine and our son too, what is he plotting?'

"I have a rider two cho from here in an advantageus position, waiting for me to come out of this house, if you come out of the house or a soldier gives with a certain signal, his orders are to go as fast as possible to Kamakura and kill your family.

"You wouldn't... no, of course you would, what do you want?" said Yoshitsune resigned to his fate.

"It's simple, you will commit seppuku as a way to defend your honour, it's the least I can do you, that way your wife and son will remain in the same state that they are now."

"Do you swear by your honor and position that what you stated is true?" said Yoshitsune, he knew that if Yoritomo agreed, that would be the best he could do for them, given the circunstances.

Nodding, Yoritomo said. "I do, I will stick to what I said earlier until my death."

Exhaling a relieved sigh, Yoshitsune looked at his brother "Very well, I'll do it now, please retreat while I do it."

Agreeing, all of them left the room except those who Yoshitsune killed. 'So this has come to it' taking Usumidori by its edge, he cut his belly open, as the ritual demanded. 'I'm sorry Usumidori that the last one you killed under my command was myself'.

After a while, and with the death's door approaching, Yoritomo, Yasuhira and their men entered again the room, and after viewing that his part of the deal was done, they began to search the other rooms.

"I'm sorry my lord." Yoshitsune heard a soldier reporting as his fingers where going cold. "His wife and daughter are dead"

"What a pity." he heard his brother anwering "I would have used them as a public execution for rebelling against the Emperor"

'Good' thought Yoshitsune 'that way their honor is intact, sorry Sato' he closed his eyes as his breath was becoming thinner.

And then with his last seconds of life he heard Yasuhira asking Yoritomo "What would you do with his other wife and son?"

Yoritomo believed that he was dead already or he wouldn't asnwered like he did.

Laughing he said "Them? I will do nothing, as his son is dead and his wife is pending a public judgment that will sentence her to die."

'What?' Yoshitsune began to feel something similar to rage, but much powerful 'He said that they will be safe! Wait...' And then he found the trick in what he fell, the letters from Shizuka were dictated by Yoritomo to make him think that his son was still alive, and Yoritomo's oath is true, they will remain the same as they are now, one dead and other sentenced to death.

"Curse you" he said in a whisper as the power he felt helped him to regain his strenght.

"Curse you" he said as he began to move getting up despite his wounds.

"What? is he still alive?" Yasuhira said. "Quick! kill him at once!"

"CURSE YOU!!!!" Yoshitsune yelled with a force that freezed all the presents.

He didn't feel anger, as he passed the threshold to feel it. Instead he felt a calm peace that dictated his movements.

Approaching Yasuhira, he grabbed him by the neck and lifted him from the ground. "You traitor, You will lose all what you tried to keep, and then your life will be slain." tossing him against a wall, he confronted Yoritomo. "Brother, you will achieve what you are looking for, but after that you and your male sons will meet your fate, each one worse than the former."

But as soon as the last words left his mouth he felt a sudden pain in his neck.

*********************

5 August 2014

Matsudaira Yoshi suddenly got up screaming from the recurring nightmare that she just had.

'Again that memory' she thought as cold sweat dropped from her forehead.

Not long passed as the door of her room opened to see a worried Matsudaira Yori.

"That nightmare again, Yoshi?" Yori said as he sat in her bed.

Hugging him, Yoshi spoke. "Hai Aniue, now I know that they are the last moments of my other life, but I'm feeling the same things as the first time I had this dream"

Patting her head, Yori calmed her "And I told you that you are not in fault for what happened, what happened happened. He brought it upon himself."

"I know." said Yoshi now calmer "but I feel bad now for what happened to Tadahira and my cousins, they didn't do anything to me, what if--"

"Stop" commanded Yori "I said this a lot, but it looks like you don't believe me, what you did wasn't a curse per se, it was a prophecy turned curse, even if you died without telling that, It would have happened."

Visibly flattened, Yoshi only relied on her cousin as her emotions normalised.

"You know" Yoshi spoke "I was surprised when I read the Gikeiki the other day, they said it has written in the Nanboku-cho period, but they told almost exactly what I remember from my past life."

Yori raised an eyebrow at the sudden topic change, but he realized that she only wanted to put away the dream chatting about other things. "That's interesting, do you have a theory why is it so similar?"

Sitting straight and letting go of her cousin, Yoshi explained her thoughts, that what they had from that period was possibly a transcription of older documents that had their origins in someone who travelled with them.

"And that is my theory" finished Yoshi. turning melancholic, she added. "I think it is right because some passages have a peculiar way of writing that reminds me of Shizuka."

"I see." said Yori thoughtful. "Normally we shouldn't be able to confirm or deny it, but if Yasutsune-San is really the reencarnation of your past life Sensei..."

"She would know as I told Shizuka to take shelter there, and it is confirmed that she survived, so when the rabbit is out the hole..." said Yoshi with expectation.

'At least she is cheerful again' thought Yori. "We can ask her, and for my part I have to ask her for Tsubaki, I want to know about her life since we parted ways until now."

"Heh." smirked Yoshi. 'I wish I had a father like him'

"Anyway" said Yori getting up from Yoshi's bed. "I'm making breakfast today, you can take a shower meanwhile."

After eating breakfast, Yori had to go looking for a new apartment in Yokosuka, as his job there will begin in September.

Yoshi got her bokken and went to the backyard to practice and put her thoughts in orden.

Standing in position she began her practice.

"Ichi!"

As the routine swallowed her body, her mind drifted to the recent events, she will transfer to a new school at the end of the month, that was certain as they couldn't afford to go her earlier school, she was sad, who wouldn't be at the loss of the people who have accompanied during all those past years, but their duty to pay their debt to Yasutsune-San was first.

And looking at this from another perspective, she may end in the same school as one of the two finalists. It would be too much to hope for them both to be from the same school, though Yoshi qualified for the nationals in her old school, if she could meet them before the nationals it would be fine, she wanted to learn as much as she can from them.

"Ni!"

Thinking about her plans of future, when their debt is paid fully, she would first honor all the people she killed by Yoritomo's orders in her first life, apologizing in their tombs if they are know or in the place they fell down, in November this year she will go to Kamakura to place flowers in the black stone that marks where Yoritomo's residence was for her son, as well as visiting Yoritomo's grave, in June of the next year she would go to Hiraizumi to honor Sato and her daughter in the day they died.

"San!"

It was a shock that her actual brother (really cousin, but after all this years of living together she considers him her brother more than Yoritomo was in reality) was in fact the famed Minamoto no Yorimitsu reincarnated, this fact actually helped her to come in terms with her past life, as he passed the same chaos as her when his memories awakened.

They were together since their parents died, and helped each other when difficulties surged, except that time when his memories surfaced, he was afraid that he was becoming crazy, but he didn't said anything to not worry her, this bit of info had to wait until she got her own issues with her past memories.

"Well, that's good for now" said Yoshi finishing her practice.
-----------------------------

Well, I hope you like it, suggestions and comments are always welcomed.

 

[darthcourt10]

Sidestory - Snippet 17: Lord Khuzdul

My apologies for the long delay. We are at the endgame now. Only one chapter left to resolve the Enver situation.

* * *

As Yavuz finished speaking, Mustafa Kemal's face fell to his hands. Yavuz heard soft swearing under his breath, as his shoulders dropped in despair. Muavenet turned to him, awkwardly patting his back a few times, then stood up and like an overgrown cat, wormed her way between his arms and into his lap, hugging him.

The destroyer's warmth and the low hum of her turbines seemed to calm the man down. His hands first dropped to her shoulders and then to her back, hugging the small warship to his chest. Still, when he looked up, Yavuz flinched at the almost broken look on his face.

"Paşam, don't look at me like that," she said, her voice almost begging.

"And how," the old general sighed, "was I supposed to look, Yavuz, with evidence of my colossal failure laid in front of me? When it is made abundantly clear that in the end all I have done is almost for naught, and I failed to see the fell ambitions of those around me? When I see now that I managed to break my nation so badly, that half of them today wish I failed completely, and the other half does not understand why I did everything I did?"

Yavuz shook her head. "I… I cannot say anything to refute what you say, Paşam… All I can say is… all is not lost yet. There are people, who still hold fast to your ideals. We just… were too few to change anything." She looked down. "If things were left to the natural flow, in a generation or two at most… things would have changed for the better." She hesitantly looked into his eyes. "But… sadly, things cannot be left to the natural flow."

Mustafa Kemal raised an eyebrow. "You have something to say, so stop chewing on it."

"Paşam… before this mess, I was already looking for you. I was just looking in the wrong place, apparently. I secretly summoned Bandırma and Savarona – don't worry, they are safe and away from the influence of that man and his cronies. Ali and his friends spirited them away, they are civilian ships after all, and they are living safe if secretive lives in Izmir. But the reason I was looking for you was to get your blessing," she blushed, "and maybe use your image as a bit of a boost. Because I knew one thing the current administration of this country does not – the masquerade that hid the magical side is collapsing. It is a wonder it is still going, and at least here, it is only through monumental effort by everyone involved. However, it is not long for this world… and if I know anything, I know that this government is entirely unsuited to handle a crisis at that level. And any mishandling would turn the thing into a bloodbath. So… to prevent further bloodshed… I intended to take over the country."

Mustafa Kemal sighed. "It is ihtilal then. You yourself said the ones before made things worse. You will have to be very careful how you handle this."

"I have my plans, Paşam. I believe I can succeed… I have to succeed. It is just that," she looked unsure, "I am just… not sure how to fix things so that this sort of thing does not happen again. And… I am afraid I might fail to resist the temptations once I am there."

Mustafa Kemal looked at the young looking woman sitting across from him, that felt both new and familiar. He examined her face carefully, and finally reached across the table, drawing a small mew of protest from the destroyer in his lap, and laid his hand on Yavuz's. "You are not selfish, Yavuz. That's the important thing here. What you want is not power for power's sake… It is not in your nature. But… from what you have told me, the country is fundamentally broken. It will not be quick, it will not be easy. Still, if anyone can do it, you can. Sadly, maybe it is the nature of our national spirit. We look for leaders. If this country needs a leader to look up to, I don't think she can find anyone better for the job." He smiled. "Muhtaç olduğun kudret, damarlarındaki asil kanda mevcuttur."1

Yavuz blushed. "Sir I…"

"Come on now. Go fix my nation. Leave me to my retirement. If you need any advice, you know where to find me. But I think I worked myself to an early grave one time too many already."

~ ~ ~

After a few minutes of chatter that moved on to lighter topics – prompted by one very serious destroyer proclaiming that it was enough about heavy topics, and people should stop interrupting Paşa's breakfast, before promptly turning around and again starting to spread butter and honey on pieces of toast for him with the careful attention of a bomb technician, without moving out of his lap – Yavuz got up to check on the others. Waving to acknowledge Mustafa Kemal's request to "ask that damn doctor of yours if I can at least smoke or have some coffee, if I cannot drink at all", Yavuz opened the glass doors of the patio to walk inside, where the rest of the group was waiting in the living room of the villa. She was met with light laughter as Lokman palmed his forehead and grumbled about "stubborn old boots".

After the laughter subsided, Schehrazade spoke up. "I have made some calls. We have a safe place for him to stay, and also making arrangements for a liver transplant to be handled in Mayo Clinic."

Lokman nodded. "I have a few students there. I can contact them to smooth things over. However, can we be sure of getting a liver in time? Even with magical intervention to ensure rejection is avoided, the liver itself has to come from somewhere."

Schehrazade nodded. "Indeed, but it seems they have found some magic to actually clone a healthy liver."

Lokman grinned. "Now this sounds interesting. A learning opportunity as well. After his liver is fixed, he will be okay until I provide him the Elixir to make sure he stays healthy this time." He shook his head. "I'd rather not say this, but as long as he doesn't go overboard, he can have a few cigarettes and a couple cups of coffee. No more though." He turned to Ali. "And you watch him closely over the next few weeks. He is known to ignore medical advice."

Yavuz smiled. "So the temporary bodyguard gets a warning but the permanent future one doesn't?"

Lokman laughed. "Your little destroyer is scary enough, that I don't think he will dare to disobey."

~ ~ ~

A few hours later, afternoon sunlight found the entire group in the shade of the trees down at the garden, sitting around a steaming samovar. After a sip of the tea, Yavuz leaned forward and looked at Korkut.

"So, you said you were looking for potential sites?"

Korkut nodded. "Yes. I had a few people looking into various battlefields. The most promising is the Afyon one. The date is close, and it is more positive than the others. Sakarya was very desperately fought, and the forces were smaller. Same with others – much smaller forces. But Afyon is large, well-established, and Kocatepe is remote enough we can actually hide the activity without too much fuss." He turned towards Mustafa Kemal. "Paşam, there is one more thing… we have discovered a ghost on the slopes of a nearby hill… called Çiğiltepe. We believe he can help."

Mustafa Kemal put his hand over his eyes. "It seems today is the day I am reminded of my failings. Reşat Bey is one of my greatest regrets. If this may give him a measure of peace, and relieve his undeserved burden… I say we should go for it."

Yavuz was thoughtful. "All said, how will we get an army all the way from Afyon to Erzurum? I don't think piling them in planes is an option."

Sinbad smiled. "That's where I come in." He scratched his neck in embarrassment. "Or rather, my… fleet." He resolutely ignored the knowing grin Schehrazade gave him. "I commanded more than a few steamships over the years. And for some reason, most of them decided to come back to me. Since your soldiers will be spirits," he turned to Mustafa Kemal, "they can be transported in their holds. The travel would not be very comfortable, but brief. Just a short hop with a portkey."

Mustafa Kemal shook his head in amusement. "You know, I feel more and more pissed that nobody clued me in about the possibilities of magic. We could have used stuff like this during the war."

Murat laughed. "Well, there were two sides on that front as well. My mentor during the academy was a member of the Karakol Cemiyeti during the war. He told me a lot of hair-raising stories of getting military supplies out of the storehouses of Istanbul under the noses of British and French wizards."

"I remember Yavuz mentioning how long lived you magicals tend to be," Mustafa Kemal said, laughing. "Is he still around, by chance?"

Murat grew somber. "Sadly, we lost him a few years ago, Paşam. A gûlyabani took up residence in Karacaahmet2, with a small army of ghouls under it. A smart and vicious bastard. Liked to go after children in the wards of the nearby hospital. It was a tough fight, and killed many good men. In the end, Ziya took it and a good chunk of its army with him with a large fire spell."

Mustafa Kemal nodded. "My condolences. He was a hero, and I hope his sacrifice will be recognized properly when this is over, alongside many others you lost trying to keep people safe." Yavuz nodded in assent.

After a moment of silence, Korkut continued. "When Sinbad's ships arrive, we will move on to Kocatepe and perform the ritual." He thought for a moment. "When we reach the appropriate point, I would like you to address them and appeal to them. If we are lucky, they will come, for one last battle."

Mustafa Kemal nodded. "They will come. I know my soldiers. They did not shy away from Greek machineguns, they will not shy away from Enver's deceived corpses."

- - -

(1) "The strength you need is present in the noble blood flowing in your veins." Last sentence of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk's Appeal to Turkish Youth.
(2) Karacaahmet Cemetery, historic cemetery on the Asian side of Istanbul, in the Kadıköy district. Largest cemetery in Turkey, covering over 750 acres.

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

Things To Do In South Dakota When You're 'Dead' (VIII)

Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA

6 August 2014
Spoiler: Awakening in A New Life

Kemal Mustafa woke up after his surgery in a soft hospital bed. Inside his gut, a well-hidden fear unclenched itself and faded.

He had remembered the blood-soaked despair of the field hospitals of the Great War.

This modern building of glass and steel, sunlight, fresh air, and clean equipment was like a vision of Paradise on Earth compared to what he had known and experienced in the past.

With that he sighed in relief and marveled in the world that he had found himself in as he thought of his experiences up to this point.

"Good morning." The quiet soprano voice came in Turkish and he looked over to see Delilah de Breuil sitting in a chair by his bedside reading a well-worn leather-bound book. His eyes briefly focused on the title Terrible Swift Sword by Bruce Catton and his eyebrows raised.

"Good morning. Is that a good book?" He responded as she closed it on her finger to mark her place.

"It is," she said with a wan smile and nod, "one of the better books about the Civil War in fact, which is why I'm rereading it. The subject matter is a matter of significant personal interest to me since I lost Uncle David at Gettysburg. I find as I get older that it forged me into what I am today." She poured him a glass of ice water from a pitcher nearby. "I was a young girl then and didn't understand at the time why Uncle David left me and never came back. Later, when we came to the dedication of the cemetery at Gettysburg, I found meaning in his sacrifice in the words spoken there."

He nodded, remembering standing at Anzac Cove in April 1934 to dedicate the cemetery to allow the brave men -- his soldiers and their opponents both -- to rest there side by side and get meaning from the terrible and great events that he had been a small part of. Events that had reborn his beloved country in the blood of those who sacrificed their futures for it. "I have found that the honor rests with they who served and sacrificed more than they who led and commanded, often."

Delilah nodded solemnly and spoke with tears in her eyes. "Freedom and liberty is so unutterably precious because of the terrible cost demanded of us who uphold it. And yet, the value of it in our own lives is such that the cost is willingly paid, for life without it is not truly living."

He nodded wordlessly in response and the silence lingered. Finally he spoke once more. "Where is everyone else?"

Delilah responded as she sipped her own glass of water. "Zamarad went ahead to my ranch to make final preparations and will meet us in Rapid City with the car. Ali's checking us out of the hotel that we stayed in while you were in the ICU. Lokman is handling your release paperwork downstairs with the senior staffers that he knows. Normally it would be a week or more of no-maj hospital stay but he and I cheated more than a bit in that regard. Healing spells are wonderful things. As is a large donation to their operating budget to silence questions along with us signing a document to waive their liability in case you fall ill. You won't of course, but lawyers are lawyers the world wide."

He barked a laugh and his fingers traced a new scar on his abdomen. "And the new liver?"

She smiled. "Lokman can give you the medical details, but the summary is the surgery was smooth. The new liver's functional and while he plans to stay with you for a few more days, in his experience there shouldn't be any major complications." She smirked. "Zamarad is preparing a welcoming feast for us, both adana kebab as well as some of my halal venison. Zamarad is Maliki and got a ruling upon that point even though I'm generally the hunter of the family."

Lokman spoke up as he walked inside. "We're clear to depart." He tapped the badge and nameplate on the labcoat which he was wearing over a suit. "You're my outpatient now."

Kemal stood with some help. "Do you want a wheelchair?" Delilah asked.

"No. I'll walk out." Kemal said, before slowly walking out of the room and down the hall. He stopped at the nurses' station to thank the staff before departing, marveling inwardly at the technology apparent.

Outside a red rental minivan was waiting with Ali standing beside it. Delilah slipped into the driver's seat and grinned at Kemal in the passenger seat. "Next stop Rochester Airport. I Portkeyed to the ranch yesterday and flew my Cessna down here rather than use magic openly to transport us since Mother mentioned that they are working on their detection grid. So you get to fly de Breuil Air Taxi."

Kemal looked over with interest, "You are a pilot too?"

She chuckled. "I always have liked to fly, going all the way back to being a Chaser on my House's Quidditch team in school. Oh sorry, It's a wizarding sport. It's like soccer except done while flying with brooms. Kind of. So after the Second World War, I bought a small aircraft and got a pilot's license in my copious spare time. Live long enough and have enough money and you get to indulge your hobbies. I fly, my sister Jackie sails, my other sister Colombe gets into massive trouble that is," Delilah's voice became higher pitched and acquired a French accent for the next words, "'Not My Fault!' and my nieces play hockey, play piano, and brood respectively for fun."

Kemal hummed thoughtfully. "So tell me about your family please?" Behind Delilah, Ali and Lokman leaned forward with interest.

"Well where to begin?" Delilah said absently as she merged onto the interstate. "You met my parents back at home. Father... Norimune spent the first three centuries or so of her life running around the world getting into trouble. And getting into romantic entanglements. That's where we all came from, Father has... had a nasty habit of not realizing that her love was pregnant before shit happened to rip them apart."

Delilah sighed deeply as she continued, "Colombe, my oldest sister, was born in 1707 when Father was working as a mercenary in Europe and fell for Julie d'Aubigny hard according to what Mom and then Colombe said. Unfortunately Julie died in childbirth, which hurt Father severely. So she didn't return from the battlefield to be there for the funeral. Instead, Colombe was raised and adopted by one of Julie's friends; Marquis Jean-Francois du Chasteler who was her Papa. When Colombe found out later that she wasn't his child after all and her father had apparently skated out on her -- although Father had no idea of the pregnancy or her existence at all! -- she swore bloody revenge and spent the next centuries trying to track Father down. And got into a lot of trouble in the process before finally mellowing out a bit."

Lokman grimaced and nodded, "I can attest to that. She has passed through our area of interest a few times and every time was spectacularly messy, albeit in ways that did solve a problem. Then in 1994 I was doing some charity work in Rwanda when the country blew up and she stopped a mob from burning my clinic to the ground and massacring my patients. She left me so much work patching up the survivors of the assault though!"

Delilah laughed. "That's Sis all right! The first time I met Sis was in 1927 after she stopped a bunch of bigot scumbags from a lynching in Louisville. By violating the Statute of Secrecy in ways I had not dreamed were possible. Sis has never let the rules stop her from doing what is right. Her heart's in the right place but her methods leave a lot to be desired. Then in 1723 Jackie was born; her mother was a fellow pirate Father met then. I think that relationship may have been the rebound romance from Julie. Unfortunately Sally Gray got caught while pregnant, gave birth in prison, and then died soon afterward without Father knowing. The records are hazy as to whether she died of natural causes, or she got executed. Jackie decided to do the pirating life too when she grew up, and gradually went legitimate as a privateer and smuggler. Well, legitimate for Jackie is a relative thing!"

Delilah turned off onto the airport approach road and spoke quietly in a controlled voice. "That's where I come in. Father and Mother met in the early 1850s in San Francisco and well, I happened. However there was a bad fight between them with Father misreading Mother's conversation with Grandfather so Father stormed out without knowing Mother was carrying me. I of course only know a little about this, Mother... doesn't like to talk about it and I only met Father a year ago."

The revolver sighed deeply and then continued, "As it turned out the family started getting together then." Delilah chuckled and shook her head before continuing "Mother was trying to track down Father to mend ties, and instead stumbled across Jackie shortly after I was born. So I grew up with my older sister acting as an Aunt. Also unknown to us at the time, Colombe was busy running around China chasing after Father while Father was in America. Sis linked up with a Chinese magical named Wei Yuying and got her pregnant accidentally right before getting her out of China one step ahead of some nasty magicals who wanted Yuying and her family dead. So I wound up going to wizarding school at Ilvermorny and butting heads with my half-Chinese Canadian niece Wei Ying without knowing our relationship. It's a wonder we didn't throttle each other to death back then."

She parked the van in the rental lot and got out. "We finally had our paths cross Sis' in 1927 in the aftermath of her little temper tantrum in Louisville. Mainly because Jackie got drunk and hit on her, that's Jackie for you." Delilah grinned at the shocked looks on everyone's face, "After that things settled down a bit until we finally went to Japan to track down Father in 2013. Except for World War II. And the Cold War. And that mess in Iran. Ok, got tolerable then. Colombe had her piano manifest and get adopted in 1990. That's Claire, who is a total sweetheart. Then her dagger trophy from World War II manifested early last year. That's my youngest niece Ehren who is...." Delilah trailed off, clearly searching for words. "A good person, one of the bravest people I have ever known, and doesn't deserve all the shit her origin throws on her. You'll meet them all eventually, I suspect."

"I...see." Ali cleared his throat and spoke slowly. "That's quite the story, Delilah."

Delilah shook her head with a smile as they walked to the civil aviation terminal where her plane awaited. "As I said, live long enough and things happen in your life.

Everyone nodded in agreement as they continued their journey.

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

A.N. -- The Muse decided that I must write more WAFF/fluff today.

Things To Do In South Dakota When You're 'Dead' (IX)

Rapid City, South Dakota, USA

6 August 2014
Spoiler: A Flight To South Dakota

Delilah swallowed down bile as her Cessna Turbo Twin 320E SkyKnight began the initial approach to her home airport. Idly she made a mental note to try to figure out what kind of a virus she had picked up to give her such a sensitive stomach and sore breasts the last week or two. The hot flashes were also a bit annoying. I'll make an appointment when we go into town day after tomorrow if it doesn't clear up, she told herself.
Spoiler: Del's Plane

The flight from Rochester had been pleasant with clear visibility and scattered puffs of Cumulus clouds as they flew over the endless prairie through a bright blue sky. Five thousand feet below them all was gold and green with the massive fields of wheat and corn and the dark brown dots of cattle herds that had made the Great Plains the breadbasket of America.

For a brief moment her eyes watered and the view outside shimmered to the darker green of the tall-grass prairie that this once had been and the brown dots of a herd of cattle below them became the flowing brown river of one of the great buffalo herds, tens of thousands strong as they migrated to another grazing pasture. For the briefest instant the decades fell away from her and once again she was a wide-eyed girl of fourteen who was following the broom that her blood sister flew to the sacred lands of the Oglala Dakota and to a day that would change her life forever. To her left she could see the darker black-green of the pine forests of the Black Hills under the gray-white clouds of a summer thunderstorm.

Delilah blinked away tears as the familiar tone of the radio beacon for her home airport filled her earphones. She flipped the switch on the control panel and spoke into her microphone. "November Three Two Zero Delta Baker to Rapid City Alpha Tango Charlie, requesting altitude and approach vector."

A crackle of static sounded and then the drawl of the air traffic control filled her ears. "Copy November Three Two Zero Delta Baker. Circle and hold at angels six with a fuel status over."

Delilah glanced at her altimeter, airspeed, artificial horizon, and performed a visual sweep automatically just as Hank Johnson, the retired World War Two pilot who had taught her how to fly a muggle plane in 1958 had drilled into her. Habits save lives and take lives, his ghost reminded her as she finished her check. "November Three Two Zero Delta Charlie climbing to Angels Six to Orbit, Fuel Status is three five minutes until bingo fuel, Rapid City, over."

With that she leveled off at six thousand feet, performed one additional check to insure that she was not sharing the sky with anyone that could collide with her at her assigned altitude -- since Rapid City Air Traffic Control was not in the seat next to her! -- and then flipped the transmission switch to intercom. She spoke over the buzz of the twin turbojet propellers as she began a lazy fuel-conserving circle. "This is your hostess speaking. Once we get a landing assignment I'll be landing at Rapid City. It shouldn't be long now, I'll keep you informed."

Twenty minutes later, Delilah began to taxi to the hangar that she rented from the airport. Her face lit up with a smile as she saw the familiar fiery red hair of Zamarad next to the ground crew as she applied the brakes and killed the engines. She hugged her love around the waist as the Ifrit leaned into her embrace, feeling her heart warm and ignite.

"How was the flight here?" Zamarad asked as they walked to the gate to the parking lot.

Delilah smiled and squeezed the Ifrit's hand. "Lonely without you. You look a little pale. Is something wrong?"

Zamarad frowned thoughtfully. "I'm a little off my norm, honestly. I have really been craving some nice hot, spicy, and dense hardwoods ever since Eid, even though they give me... well... indigestion normally. And I'm a bit sore and keep getting headaches."

"Hmm," Delilah thought as she rubbed her chin with her free hand before yawning. "That flight took more out of me than I thought. Tell you what. I have to run into Custer to speak to Alondra day after tomorrow. I was thinking you would come along with an avatar to talk to her as well. We can swing by Dr. Varnell's place and make an appointment for a checkup then?"

"That sounds like a plan." Zamarad agreed as they stepped outside and walked down the sidewalk to the parking lot. "I parked over here this time. Go ahead and take a nap, I'll drive."

Neither Delilah nor Zamarad saw the visible double-take FBI Agent Alondra David did as she noticed them through the plate glass of the floor to ceiling windows in the baggage terminal where she waited for her suitcases. The FBI agent curled her lips in a smile at the sight of the two women she had last seen apparently dead on an island offshore from Kingsport Maine and chuckled as she grabbed her first suitcase. "Small world it seems. I suppose that I have quite a bit to look forward to day after tomorrow."
--------------------

Sákpe Mázasu Pteyúha (Six Bullet Ranch)

Black Hills, Southwestern South Dakota, USA

Zamarad parked the 2003 Ford F-150 SuperCab (with subtle space expansion charms in the passenger cabin to allow it to seat six easily and space expansion charms in the bed for hauling) in front of the ranch buildings and let the dust from the dirt and gravel access road settle. She then nudged the sleeping Delilah awake. She then turned to their guests. "Here we are, welcome to Six Bullet Ranch."

With that she hopped out and Delilah followed suit. The Muramasa waved her wand and animated their bags. "You said that a welcoming meal is laid on love?"

Zamarad smiled. "Indeed it is. I have had an avatar slow-cooking it all day. "

Everyone licked their lips.

Ali walked closer to Delilah and Zamarad. "So this is a game ranch?" He asked curiously as he hefted his rifle case.

Delilah smiled. "It started out as one when I picked it up in 1879. Officially I was going to raise cattle, prospect for gold, and hunt. Unofficially, I'm holding some of the sacred places of magical power of the Lakota who lived here before me in trust and also giving those of them who work here a way to earn a honest day's living. Giving them back the respect and pride that the white man tried to break." She scowled at the last.

Zamarad picked up the conversation as they sat in hand-carved wood rocking chairs on the deck. "Then when I came along in 1946 we shifted the business model somewhat. My father gave us as a wedding gift several of his Al Khamsa Asil Seglawi mares who were expecting their firstborn." The Ifrit smiled happily at the memories. "That's why I have the bags of summer apples in the bed of the truck. Treats for my children!"

Delilah laughed and squeezed Zamarad's hand. "It was a royal gift indeed. Zamarad has the best in show awards from the stockman's association to prove that us 'rich New York socialite outsiders' know our horses. And she has the awards for horsemanship at the Rapid City Rodeo to show her skill in barrel riding and bronco busting. I'm more the calf roping type myself when I participate. We have used Emir Rayhan's gift as breeding stock alongside the Appaloosas that I had inherited from the Lakota and the Six Bullet Ranch is known for the quality of our Arabian, Anglo-Arabian from some Thoroughbreds that we bought, Appaloosa-Arabian, and Appaloosa horses that Zamarad breeds and raises as our primary expert. Or as we think of them, our children. I assume that you all can ride?"

The Turks nodded with broad grins. "Indeed!"

Delilah smiled. "Good, but first dinner. I am led to believe from our conversation last night that our patient can have two drinks to wash down the red meat tonight, Lokman?"

The elderly physician wagged a finger as Kemal's eyes gleamed. "Two but no more! Not until you are properly well!"

Delilah nodded. "Then let me introduce you all to the pleasure of a good Tennessee double distilled sour mash sipping whiskey!"

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Having gotten changed at the Nagato-Potter apartment, Hachi was currently walking alongside Harry in her civvies. Which, in this case, was a pair of jeans with a tank top due to the hot weather. Hachi would not deny that she was rather pleased with how Harry kept glancing at her as they walked and chatted while holding hands, because the fact of the matter was that she was extremely pleased. Eventually, she tilted her head a bit at hearing one piece of information, "Umitsubame-San lives in Kyoto, Harry-Chan?"

With a embarrassed chuckle, Harry rubbed the back of his neck, "Hai? She does as a matter of fact."

Frown on her face, the Subgirl furrowed her eyebrows some, "Were you going to use the Vanishing Cabinets to go to Ume-San's and Sakura-San's home?"

Blinking, Harry was silent for a few moments before shrugging, "Actually? Not really." At her look, he waved his free hand around, "They're still back in Kyoto and no one is at their home here in Yokosuka right now. I don't want to bother them as they're getting to know their whole family either."

Slowly nodding, as that was rather like him, Hachi still frowned some, "So how were you going to get there and back then?"

A frown on his own face, the teenage wizard scratched his neck, "I was just going to fly there and back." Seeing her surprised look, he smiled a bit, "I haven't had the chance to fly recently, so..."

Only sighing, it was Hachi's turn to smile a little, "That sounds just like you, Harry-Chan." Her frown returned a few moments later, "Are you sure that you're okay with me driving then? It might be a bit and you could fly..." Then, she blinked as her frown became thoughtful before she turned to him, "How long would it have taken you to fly there?"

More than a little amused, Harry chuckled, "Actually? My broom goes from zero to about a hundred and fifty miles an hour in just a minute. And the top speed is about two hundred miles an hour at most, which means that it would have only been at most two hours to get from here to Kyoto as the crow flies. I also mapped out the whole route from here to Kyoto as well." Suddenly, something occurred to him and he glanced at Hachi, "Hachi-Chan...? Is there a way to store your car onboard?"

The blonde haired Submarine considered it before humming with a nod, "Hai, while some might lash them to their decks when walking around normally, I can put it in my hanger. A bit of a tight fit, but... not that hard, why..." Realizing what he meant, Hachi blushed some, "Are you thinking of flying there with me?"

With an unsure smile, Harry gave a nod, "Hai? I mean, it would be a few hours, but... we could get there quicker."

Not saying anything, Hachi considered what she had just been told for several moments before smiling, "I wouldn't mind that, Harry-Chan." Internally, she continued, 'It also means that I will be holding onto you the whole way as well...'

Unknowing of her thoughts or thinking much of the way that the Subgirl was blushing, the teen continued to chat with her as they walked until they reached the parking area. It took a few moments, but Harry tilted his head as he looked at the car in front of them, a VW Beetle, "You have a Beetle, Hachi-Chan?"

Giggling a little, Hachi nodded as she squeezed his hand, "Well, both RO-Chan and I. Her sisters sent it to her as a gift and she's shared it with me since I like German engineering like her." She then gestured towards it, "It's a diesel model actually, which makes it better."

It took only a few moments, but his eyes widened a touch, "Wait, does that mean that you and RO-Chan..."

Understanding what he was asking, Hachi smiled, "Use diesel from our fuel tanks? Hai, it works great in the engine and we don't need to worry about paying for gas, which helps. All we need to do is eat something and we make it up fuel wise. Not to mention that the amount of fuel it takes is, well... basically nothing."

Just nodding, though he was looking it over, Harry blinked, "Huh. It is a nice car though."

Lips twitching, the Subgirl hummed, "Hai, especially to drive around in. We're both happy to have it and it also gives us a way to get around." A sigh escaped her lips as she shook her head, "Taigei-Nee-Chan is not always around, so we need our own way around and either RO-Chan or myself is around for the others. Also, a lot better than taking the trains."

A twitch appeared in Harry's eyebrow and his voice became a growl, "You haven't had... issues with chikans, have you, Hachi-Chan. Because if you have..."

In reply, she waved her hands, "No, no, no trouble at all, Harry-Chan." At his nod, she internally sighed, 'Not that I would tell you... or that we dealt with them ourselves.' Coughing at his suspicious look, Hachi gestured at the car, "Right! How about we get inside so that I can drive you back home to get your broom then?"

Even though he was still highly suspicious, Harry gave a nod and a smile, "Sure, that sounds good." Getting inside, he buckled himself and glanced around, "Huh... this is a nice model."

Settling into the driver's seat, Hachi hummed as she adjusted the chair, "Hai, it really is. RO-Chan's sisters all pitched in a little bit of money to buy it for us, so they got one of the better models." Noticing Harry watching her, she blushed a little, "Um, something wrong, Harry-Chan?"

With a blink, he shook his head, "Ah, nothing. Just wondering why you're adjusting the seat."

Hachi blinked at that and gave a chuckle, "Well, RO-Chan was the last to use it and she's smaller than me, so she had the chair closer to the steering wheel. Had to adjust it for myself after all."

At that, Harry nodded a little, "Makes sense." Shortly after, Hachi began to drive the car back towards the apartment where Harry lived, "So anything interesting happen lately?"

Glancing over at him, the Submarine smiled a little, "Hai, as a matter of fact." Seeing his interested look, she continued, "There's word that they laid down a new Submarine class, this one designed to refuel us Subgirls when out at sea. It's one of those projects we're getting some help from Saint Brendan's with as well as with some help from a few magicals who worked with the magical navy back in the war. Mainly since they're going to use magic to increase the size of the kitchen and such among other things like increased fuel compacity. It'll have an airlock so that we can enter and leave underwater, and we'll be able to rest inside as well as eat." Turning on the road, Hachi adjusted her glasses some, "Taigei-Nee-Chan was happy since rumour has it that they might name the first one after her."

For a few moments, Harry considered that before tapping his chin, "Huh, considering that mythological animals are the ones the new Submarines are named after, they might use Ryuuhou-Chan's name as well."

That made Hachi blink for a few moments, "Now that would make sense actually." Head tilted a little, she frowned in thought before nodding, "Oh! There's also those new Coastal Submarines being built."

Interested, the teenage wizard looked over at her, "Coastal Submarines?"

With a hum, Hachi nodded a little, "Hai, they're something of a project between Japan and Germany. It's going to be announced in a week, but... they're the result of us combining technology and skills from both nations. From what I heard, we'll use them in the Sea of Japan mostly while Germany is looking to use them inshore and in the Baltic. They're supposed to be utterly silent underwater thanks to new technology and able to stay under much longer than a normal diesel."

Rubbing his chin, Harry snapped his fingers a little, "I heard about those actually. Wasn't there something about special forces as well?"

At that, the Subgirl shook her head, "No, that's a different project to help insert Special Forces onto Abyssal held islands and those are Midget Submarines. The first of those ones are going to launch soon, they're also fully electric as well with a three thousand mile range." A small grin appeared on her face and she chuckled, "The Abyssals won't know what hit them."

That made Harry nod some in agreement as he remembered hearing about said project. Soon enough though, they reached the apartment building and Harry went inside to grab his broom. Once outside, he let go of it beside him where it hovered, "So, about ready?"

Softly giggling, Hachi gave a small nod, "Give me just a moment, Harry-Chan." She placed her hands on the hood of the car and, for a brief moment, space seemed to twist in a way that hurt Harry's eyes to observe as well as cause an odd itch in his brain for a second or two. But then, the car was gone and the Submarine held up her finger for a few moments before nodding, "Okay, they have it secured in my hanger, Harry-Chan."

Lips curling into a smile, Harry held out a motorcycle helmet to her, "Here, we're going fast so best have something to protect your face. Also got a radio for it as well."

Happy, the Subgirl put on the helmet as Harry did the same for himself before waiting for him to get on the broom. Then, she swung her leg over it and sat behind him, wrapping her arms around his middle. Unknown to her, that made Harry flush a bit as he could feel her body pressed up against his from behind. Meanwhile, Hachi gave a nod, "Okay, Harry-Chan, all ready."

Taking a deep breath, Harry attempted to ignore the older girl pressed into him and turned on his radio before informing the Base Air Control that he was taking off. After a few moments, he got the all clear and kicked off the ground, rapidly rising into the sky. It did not take him long to reach the height he wanted and he glanced at the wrist computer he wore before feeling a tap against his stomach and spoke over the short range radio built into the helmet, "{Hmm? Something wrong, Hachi-Chan?}"

Behind him, Hachi shook her head a little, "{Not really, Harry-Chan, just wondering how high we are.}" She looked around in curiosity, "{We're pretty high up.}"

As he turned the broom in the direction he wanted, the nearly fourteen year old chuckled, "{We're about nine thousand feet up, Hachi-Chan. And clear from here to Kyoto for top speed.}"

Feeling the broom pick up speed, Hachi only nodded a little, "{Understood, Harry-Chan.}"

Once more, she glanced around and sighed a bit even as she snuggled up to Harry from behind. Normally, the Subgirl would have been somewhat worried at being so high up. Yet, her trust was so absolute in the boy she was flying with that she wasn't bothered in the slightest.

Granted, she could not help but wonder how various civilian air control would handle things after the Statute fell. After all, brooms, flying carpets, and the like were as common in the magical portion of the world as cars and motorcycles were in the non-magical. Not to mention things like flying horses, gryphons, hippogriffs, and the like. And then one had to consider beings like Tengu and Raiju.

The Subgirl could not help but pity whoever had to deal with that mess.

Rather than think more on that, however, Hachi decided her best plan was to hold herself close to Harry as they flew through the air. Part of her was thankful that due to the height that they were at, the air was cooler than down below. Which meant that the normal summer heat and humidty was not present. However, it was simply nice to take a flight with Harry and Hachi made note to do it more often as they chatted over the radio. An hour and forty minutes, Harry gave a nod, "{Okay, we're about fifty miles outside Kyoto, Hachi-Chan. So I'm going to bring her down.}"

Behind him, the Shipgirl smiled, "{Not a problem, Harry-Chan.}"

While he could have done a dive, Harry instead slowly spiraled downwards as they descended towards the ground below. Keeping an eye out, the teenage wizard spotted a country road and set down on it gentle. He did wait until Hachi got off to do so himself before rubbing his legs a little and taking off his helmet, "Ah, that's much better."

Taking off her own helmet, Hachi gave him a nod before smiling, "Hai, but that was still a nice trip." Internally, she did some calculations before nodding, "We were making about a hundred and ninety miles an hour the whole way here, weren't we?"

Lips curling into a smile, the teenage boy chuckled, "That's right, or there about. About three hundred and sixty miles from Yokosuka to here as well." Watching as, after a minute or two, Hachi brought out the Beetle, he gave a nod, "You hungry for anything, Hachi-Chan?"

Much to his amusement, Hachi had a bright smile on her face, "Hai, I would not mind eating something. My treat?" At his sheepish nod, she gave him a smile, "Good to hear." About to turn to her car, she paused a bit as Harry moved in front of her, "Hmm?"

Scratching his cheek, Harry smiled a little, "Just wanted to thank you, Hachi-Chan. For coming along with me."

With that, he pulled her close and kissed her. It went without saying that the Subgirl practically melted into said kiss as she placed her arms around his neck with Harry's around her waist, 'Oh yes, the other girls need to hear about this... and we have to talk with Ume-Chan and Sakura-Chan as well as Natsumi-Chan...' Pulling back, she took a deep breath before opening her eyes, "You know, if you want to thank me some more... I don't mind it."

Unable to help himself, Harry laughed lightly before giving her another kiss.

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

A.N. -- And here we go with the long-awaited 'Del comes clean' moment. One more chapter after that happens and it's back to the Ehren Heavy Stuff.

Things To Do In South Dakota When You're 'Dead' (X)

Custer, South Dakota, USA

8 August 2014
Spoiler: Custer, South Dakota

FBI Special Agent Alondra David glanced at her internal chronometer as she walked down the street of the small town.

1830

Half a hour until she was to meet 'Del' for the planned meeting to find out more about the Magical World for the US Government so Uncle Sam could hopefully bring MACUSA into the fold with a minimum of disruption and trouble. Which by all the signs would be desperately needed sooner rather than later.

Reports of undead armies clashing in Turkey.

A vanished cargo plane containing bullion over Africa that CIA was certain had been hijacked through paranormal means..

That recent cellphone video out of Beijing that looked like a magical martial arts movie that would give Hollywood wet dreams. While the official claim was that it is a viral movie marketing promotion, Alondra had to laugh, especially since the overheads had watched an impossible storm form from nowhere over the Forbidden City at the same time..

A magical WMD bunker in Japan discovered by schoolchildren and a construction company VP (who was also one of the legendary swords of Japan!) and had to be cleaned out by the JGSDF with JMSDF shipgirl support, including some of her sisters and cousins in PACFLEET.

That report of undead stockpiled to fight the might of America on the plains of Kyushu made Alondra get very thoughtful about some memories of quiet hushed private conversations among her officers and crew back when she was a ship and not a girl. She remembered whispers of 'odd phenomena' and sea stories that she head heard aboard her during the Battle of the Atlantic in hushed voice among some of her senior chiefs. For if the Japanese... and the British who had Number XIII Joint Commando during the War according to the files of one Major Delilah de Breuil's assignment buried in the Pentagon until she had managed to drag them to light... and MACUSA who were apparently working hand in glove with OSS and CIA in the 1940s with de Breuil's name on yellowed documents... all had magical weapons programs, what the hell were the Nazis doing with their notable interest in the occult? Or the Magical Communists later?

Alondra was afraid of finding out how deep this rabbit hole went and what was at the end of the tunnel.

But she was afraid of the consequences for the nation that she loved even more than her personal fears.

And she had token the oath of service as a Marine, a FBI Agent, and then a shipgirl. An oath that bound her in fetters of love, honor and loyalty stronger than her anchor chains.

Besides, she smirked, she was getting more pieces to the jigsaw puzzle. One more piece had dropped into her lap just yesterday.

She had elected to arrive in Custer a day early to check into the local motel, and then poke around a bit. Thanks to her birth on the Gulf Coast in 1943, she had a Texas accent if she chose to manifest it and it was easy to fall into the patter of a out-of-towner checking on the cattle business out here for her family back in Orange, Texas. The fact that she had packed a ten-gallon hat helped too with that cover.

In addition to the Buglin' Bull Restaurant and Bar, the main street had several other 'wet your whistle' establishments. Taking advantage of the minor factoids that the FBI had given her an expense account to play with for this working vacation, her hull displaced 1590 tons, that there had been a still aboard in #2 Fire room to make 'torpedo juice', and that two of her crew faeries were from rural Wyoming, Alondra had decided to take a 'liquid lunch' with a bar crawl as the 'friendly but naive out-of-towner' to see what the residents had to say about Miss De Breuil, who supposedly was a local.

Bar #4 (the Gold Pan Saloon) was where she hit the jackpot. And the burgers were pretty good too in her humble opinion.

To her cowboy faeries singular lack of surprise, there was a wall full of hunting photographs there with the hunter posing with a variety of elk, deer, antelope, bison, and even a grizzly bear (Alondra mentally tipped her hat to that weathered fellow). In fact one of the proud sportsmen photographed was clearly that of a rookie hunter judging by the blinding 'I can't believe I shot it and look how BIG it is everyone!' smile on the lightly tanned pale blond late-teenage girl posing with her rifle next to a very large now mounted dead antelope head on the tailgate of a pickup truck outside the taxidermist's office surrounded by a small crowd of locals.

A teenager who was standing next to a beaming Del who was giving her a smug grin filled with -- dare she say it -- parental pride. And with a VERY familiar Civil War revolver prominent in a tooled leather holster along with a Bowie -- identical to the one Alondra had in her hold to return to it's owner -- on the other hip of her gunbelt.

That was proof enough, the ensuing conversation with the bartender and a group of regulars starting with asking "Damn that's a fine pronghorn, how's the hunting for them out here?" in her Texan accent got her the four-rounds-of-Budweiser-and-Wild-Turkey local take on the life and times of Mrs. Delilah De Breuil over the next two and a half hours.

Mrs. De Breuil apparently owned and ran her own horse ranch outside of town up in the Black Hills; said horses being of notable quality. The Six Bullet Ranch was a joint business with her friend from New York, a Mrs Emma Alnaar who was a Lebanese-American business partner of Mrs. De Breuil. Emma was also highly regarded by the locals who informed her in no uncertain terms that she was 'good people not like those sumbitches responsible for 9/11' and supposedly was hell on hooves doing barrel racing and bronco busting at the rodeo.

The overall impression was that 'Del' and "Emma' were local pillars of the community who were viewed as 'one of them' despite being semi-absentee landlords who made their money back East in the Rotten Apple.

Which dovetailed with Alondra's suspicions about whether or not the chase was for a wild goose.

Movement down in the parking lot caught Alondra's eye and she watched two redheaded women hop out of a dark red Ford F-150 pickup truck. She immediately visually identified them and her smile lit up her face.

Del -- Delilah 'de Breuil' -- grinned and laughed at something that 'Emma' said to her as the two, dressed casually in flannel shirts, blue jeans, and boots, approached where Alondra waited just inside the door.
Spoiler: A Dinner Confession

The Brazilian-American shipgirl's lips curled and she walked to the door and pushed it open for them. "Damn, Del, Emma, you two are the liveliest corpses I have ever seen!"

Delilah's eyes widened and hardened for an instant before she bowed her head. "Alondra. Sorry I'm running a little late. I needed to make a doctor's appointment while I was in town. I think I picked up a virus somewhere. Can I introduce my friend Emma?"

The other redhead bowed and extended her hand, her smile a flash of white and her palm hot against Alondra's. "It is good to be able to speak to you, Alondra. Delilah has said many good things about you, and I regret that I have not been able to meet you before now."

Alondra smiled back, quenching the momentary spike of panic as she remembered this person manifesting as a monstrous dragon of flame larger than her hull at Kingsport who had thrown the Abyssals there into panicked flight from her fury. "The pleasure's mine, Emma. I believe you said something about a private dinner?"

Delilah walked with her across the main floor of the bar to a private side room outfitted in Western style with a stone hearth. As 'Emma' entered it, the charcoal suddenly flared to life, bent toward her, and then returned to cheery red coals. "Indeed I did, I recommend the steaks here."

Alondra smiled. "I love a good Porterhouse. Also, drinks are on me. You two saved the lives of everyone in Kingspor--" She broke off at Del's sharply raised hand.

As Alondra watched in interest and her Faeries took notes, Del pulled an actual magic wand from somewhere and scribed glowing symbols in the air with it. Meanwhile a flame flickered to life over Emma's fingertip and danced in intricate Arabic calligraphy. Finally the two nodded. "Clear. We're secure."

Alondra breathed a sigh of relief. "Things are that bad, Del?"

Del sat down and shook her head. "I don't think so... It's not good, but I should still be off everyone's radar. So you got Kingsport handled?"

Alondra nodded and sat across from Del. "We did. Tina's people mind-whammied those who didn't want to leave, but about two-thirds the town bailed out with us and got resettled in Arizona under our Witness Protection Plan. Property damage was near-total but no fatalities and no serious injuries for the civvies. My shipgirls got beat to shit until your friend Emma bailed their asses out of a deep dark crack before we got overwhelmed."

Emma gave a smile and the coals in the hearth danced. "I'm Zamarad bint Alnaar actually."

Alondra thought out loud. "Zamarad...Emerald in Arabic...hence Emma. And 'daughter of fire'...because you're a jinn."

Zamarad's smile widened and she nodded as she sat beside Del.

Alondra smiled. "I do hope this place pours your favorite cocktails because I promised myself I'd buy you both all your drinks, or pour them out on your graves, for all that you did that night when I met you again. I owe you two massively for everything you have done. And I'll try that Elk Poop Nitro Stout local IPA microbrew."

Del sighed and ran her fingers through her hair after their salads and warm yeast rolls came. "I just hope that you think that way after dinner. And I'll have a Jack Daniels Old Fashioned. Black label if they have it."

Zamarad spoke up. "Margarita with Grand Marnier." She reached over and took Del's hand and squeezed it reassuringly, resulting in the other redhead giving a grateful smile filled with some unspoken message for her friend.

Del then took a deep breath as the door closed after their dinners and drinks were served. "Right. I suppose it's time to take the plunge. If Sis can do this shit to come clean, so can I. If you have that recorder and camera, turn it on and get ready to transcribe for the record." Del's face was set with the expression that Alondra associated with her crew standing to their duties while torpedoes in the water headed for her from the U-Boats that she had hunted.

Alondra notified her faeries and then nodded as she spoke crisply. "FBI Special Agent Alondra David, shipgirl of USS Pillsbury making this record. Date 8 August 2014, time 1913, location Buglin' Bull Restaurant Bar and Grill in Custer, South Dakota. I'll start the Miranda procedure now, Del."

Delilah nodded her head. "I understand but, I shall be formally waiving Miranda and all associated Fifth Amendment rights against self incrimination and Sixth Amendment rights to legal counsel for questioning for this statement I am going to make." Her voice was quiet and controlled.

Alondra nodded, and pulled out a copy of the Miranda questions, reading each of them off, then handing Del the waiver form to sign and date to allow what she was about to say be used against her if she was judged to have violated US Criminal law. Del signed, dated, and then handed her copy to Zamarad. With that Del placed her wand flat on the table and slid it over to Alondra as she took several deep breaths.

Her calmly determined leaf-green eyes met Alondra's brown. With that, 'Del' began to speak in a voice full of steel. "My name is Delilah Naomi de Breuil-Muramasa. I'm the only daughter of my mother Jèzebel de Breuil, and my father Muramasa-no-Norimune who also fathered my older half-sisters Colombe du Chasteler and Jacklyn Fox. I was born in 1855 and graduated 11th in my class in Ilvermorny on July 1st 1872. Upon graduation I joined the Magical Congress of the United States Corps of Aurors as a recruit, and my current rank as an Auror is Colonel with one hundred forty two years of service. I was seconded to the Magical Information Bureau, our intelligence branch, on November 3rd of 1872 and my current MIB rank is Special Agent, code named OCELOT. Mother... Jèzebel has been running a conspiracy within MACUSA since shortly after my birth called the Winters Network and I'm her Chief Agent and primary field operative. Our primary objective has been to ensure that when the Statute of Secrecy falls that we can integrate the Magical and Nonmagical worlds with a minimum of disruption along with ensuring full civil rights for sentient magical nonhumans."

Del took a deep breath and visibly braced herself before speaking with clear effort. "Like myself and Zamarad."

Alondra's eyes widened as she realized what it was taking for Del to say these words. The naked moral courage to stand in front of the cold scrutiny of justice and give a full accounting for her actions which clearly had obeyed the spirit of the law much more than the letter.

Delilah took a deep breath and visibly fought with herself for a long moment before pulling out her revolver body butt first and laying it on the table. Pride sparkled in Zamarad's flaming eyes as Delilah tapped her finger on the revolver. "I am actually the spirit of this weapon. Norimune... Father... is the spirit of a Japanese nodachi blade forged in 1511 and when she impregnated Mother, my true body formed at her bedside when she gave birth to me. By current applicable MACUSA law, what I just said is enough to send me and Mother to the Death Potion and Zamarad to the Reserves for the rest of her life." With that she slid the revolver over to Alondra.

Alondre cut off her impulse to swear as she realized her suspicions about the revolver were proved correct. Clearly this was taking everything that Del -- Delilah -- had to make this confession and she wouldn't want to break her focus. Her face paled and she took a gulp of her stout beer instead.

Delilah raised her eyes from contemplating her true body to look deeply into Alondra's eyes. "I'm turning myself in and going to give you a confession of all that I have done that I can now speak about because the geases on me that prevent me discussing classified MACUSA, MIB, and Winters Network matters were shattered by my near-death at Kingsport."

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

A.N. -- One more after this and then we flip back to Ehren. As for Del, beware the fury of a patient near-sociopath Muramasa.

Things To Do In South Dakota When You're 'Dead' (XI)

Best Western Buffalo Ridge Inn, Custer, South Dakota, USA

9 August 2014
Spoiler: Delilah Comes Clean

FBI Special Agent Alondra David unlocked the door to her hotel room, walked inside, then thumped down to sit heavily on the bed. The shipgirl stared blankly at the open hotel door for long minutes before one of her faeries manifested to walk over and close it for her. He looked into her staring eyes for several seconds. "Drink of water, ma'am?"

"P-please Chief," Alondra whispered. She took the plastic cup from him with hands that were shaking slightly.

Alondra took a long unsteady gulp and then Chief Rohmer's faerie patted her on the back. "Hell of a thing you know. Delilah might be still thinking that she's going to jail but she's going to get the Medal instead. Consensus among the boys in our bull session as we listened in is that she's going to wind up with a statue for everything she did, her and her mother both. Shitfire, even Sonarman Parker said that he'd buy her a drink and he's Mormon and as straight-laced a Momma's boy as they come. Didn't even drink coffee back in the Big One and never cussed. You need anything from me before I board and we set the midwatch?"

Alondra shook her head and gave a slightly stronger smile. "Just pass along my thanks to the crew, Chief. It won't hurt to double-check that the tapes, transcripts, video, and associated documents are secure and undamaged. We absolutely have to keep the chain of custody intact for this one!"

Alondra closed her eyes as the Chief re-boarded her hull and once more gave an awed whistle at the memory of the storage shed that she had just come from.

The conversation with Del -- Delilah -- had been enough of a shock to the system for one day. Eventually the serving staff had to notify them that the bar closed at midnight (halfway through Delilah talking about the plan that MIB had implemented to summon the shipgirls of paper design studies to deal with a MACUSA WMD vault of 'fuck the world' Dark Artifacts locked away for use in World War III on a phantom island deep inside the Abyssal-held territories in the Pacific) and bundled them out for another hour and a half of conversation here in her hotel room before the confession broke up and Zamarad helped the exhausted Delilah to their truck to return to the ranch.

Alondra had not gotten any sleep after they left as she reviewed her notes and recordings of the interview. Or perhaps more accurately the confession, for confession it was. She could tell that the weight of these secrets had weighted on Delilah for over a century, and the tired smile that the revolver gave her at the end was a thing of beauty to be treasured forever.

Alondra stared into Delilah's eyes as the stream of words and revelations finally began to taper off. She then reached into her hull and pulled out Del's wand, and her revolver body. "Here. Just promise me we pick this up tomorrow so you can get the rest of this all off your chest." She pressed the weapons into Del's unresisting hands. "Go, get some sleep, organize your thoughts and we continue with the storage shed that you mentioned with the documents. Just give me a chance to drive up to Rapid City and get a search warrant sworn out first. Yes, I know that it's your property, but we are doing this one by The Book so it will be airtight, bulletproof, and gold-plated in court when we nail the bastards you couldn't touch before to the jailhouse wall with railroad spikes for the shit they did."

Her eyes found Zamarad's, and then she pulled out a severely damaged shotgun with a new sling attached to it and a sheathed Bowie Knife. "Hang onto these too, Delilah. You left them behind in Maine in some of the Abyssals you took down. I'll call you when I get the warrant and a forensics team from the field office to tag and bag everything."

Delilah's thankful and relieved smile lit up her face like a sinner released from Purgatory would have looked when the key turned in her prison door.

Alondra chuckled to herself as her shocked thoughts began to review the memories of today.

It had turned out that District Judge Reynolds in Rapid City was one of the members of the US Judiciary who had been read into the DELTA GREEN group (Alondra suspected that it was no coincidence as she stood before him) as a law clerk for Chief Justice Rehnquist. So her sworn statement about this being evidence about MACUSA misdeeds along with the videotaped statement that Delilah had done was more than enough to get his signature on a search warrant.

Which promptly hit a gold strike all over again.

The space-expanded storage facility that Delilah led her and a forensics team scrambled from the South Dakota FBI office to was packed floor to ceiling with reams of documents describing MACUSA's dealings, organization, policies, and much more. All neatly labeled with notes in Del's handwriting on the document boxes for things such as 'Bureau of Magical Species Control 1880-1910', 'Magical Information Bureau 1945-1948', 'Auror Work 1900-1908' and glimmering with what was explained to her as protection and preservation charms.

Alondra had laughed when the first thing she saw when the door rolled up was a handwritten letter with a pink post it note that said 'read this first!' on a wooden school desk in the middle of the only clear space in the building. A letter that a blushing Delilah explained was intended to be her apology, explanation, and last confession in the event that MACUSA had caught her first. With the rest of the shed, a work of over a century of accumulation of data, being her last 'fuck you and the broom you flew in on too' from beyond her grave to the enemies that she had fought for her whole life.

It didn't surprise Alondra that Delilah explained that she actually owned this storage company through a front and had lobbied for Judge Reynolds to be assigned to sit on the Rapid City bench along with two other DELTA GREEN cleared justices in anticipation of this day.

With that Alondra and her team went to work photographing, cataloguing, securing, and then packing away in her hold every document present for later analysis and delivery to the poor District Attorneys who would be assigned this block of cases.

That caused Alondra to give a weary smile and she pulled out her cell phone as she sat on the bed. She dialed her number and after a few rings a familiar voice answered the phone.

"FBI Director's office this is his secretary Nancy Evins."

Alondra gave a smile. "This is Special Agent Alondra David working on DELTA GREEN. When the director returns please let him know that 'there's gold in them thar hills' in South Dakota. Full details to follow when I get back to DC and brief him, but we hit the mother-lode on my assignment. The Attorney General will want to have a working group of attorneys assembled to go over this document dump, and I mean that literally."

"Understood, when will we see you back?"

Alondra drummed her fingers. "I'll fly back to deliver the documents and master copies of the interviews tomorrow, but there's a lot more to tease out of my informant, so I want to head back here. The full debrief... months maybe?"

"I'll let the Director know to keep you on this special tasking then."

"Understood and thank you. Goodbye."

With that Alondra ended the call and flopped back on the bed with a goofy smile. She barely had the energy to make flight reservations from Rapid City and set her alarm for tomorrow before passing out from happy exhaustion.

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

A.N. -- Ok, cranking this out ASAP to stop the 'Bash MACUSA' ITG hateboner/Whitehall derail. AGAIN. Next post from me will be flipping back to Ehren's kidnapping and run that through. Then I'll pick up Dead in South Dakota once more.

Things To Do In South Dakota When You're 'Dead' (XII)

Sunrise Storage Company, Custer, South Dakota, USA

9 August 2014
Spoiler: Delilah's Contemplation

Delilah sighed as she watched while another box of documents that she and the Winters Network had accumulated was sealed with evidence tape by the FBI technicians and then handed to Alondra to store under guard in her hold. She leaned against Zamarad's warmth as the operation proceeded without her input and whispered. "I never expected to feel so empty on this day, love."

The Ifrit guided her to a pair of folding chairs that had been set up around the corner along with a table containing the wrappers from the fast food run a hour ago for the team and took a seat to cuddle her. "Because you have been pushing this stone up the mountain for so long, Shaelat ruwhi. You have finally pushed it over the top and now don't know what to do without it."

Delilah laughed faintly and stared at her hands. "I came back to be with you and yet... I don't know what to do now with myself apart from that. Hide what I am from others to protect Mother. Graduate Ilvermorny and become an Auror to work within and change the system for the better. Use mercy and justice to uphold the law. Fight for the soul of America as a member of MIB. All the off-the-books work. Establish relationships with my sisters... and then nieces. Fight in the Big One and then the Cold War. Fall in love with you and marry you. Fight for civil rights for the no-maj and within MACUSA. Track Father down and get her to talk to Mother once more to mend that hole in our family...."

She watched her hands open and close absently. "And last and finally and hardest, perhaps, come clean and face judgement for my actions. Equal justice under the law, just because I am what I am and did what I did doesn't mean that I should get a pass on what I did. What I had to do." She sobbed in exhaustion. "And now... what? What good is a revolver when the guns finally fall still after the battle's won?"

Zamarad placed a burning finger on her lips. "Now? Now you handle the responsibilities of the day, my love. You still have to help Kemal adjust to things and keep him safe. You have your responsibilities to the Lakota, and to our niece to train her to be a medicine woman. Once the Statute falls, there will be work to do more openly than before to secure the prize that you fought for and won, but for now, you have earned this moment of peace."

Delilah hugged Zamarad and sobbed into her blouse. "I don't deserve you, flame of my heart! How do you know the right thing to say when I am like this?"

The Ifrit returned the embrace. "And I do not deserve your fire of conviction and heroism in my turn. But love is not what we deserve, but what a gracious God gifts to us in His Infinite Compassion." She gently patted Delilah's hair. "And I am sure that He shall see you resting after your labors and give to you a worthy task for your skills to fulfill."

As if on cue, Delilah's cell phone rang with the sounds of Frank Sinatra singing the theme from 'New York, New York'. Delilah flipped her phone open. "Hello Mother, semi-secure here. I'm at the storage shed with Alondra." Automatically she cast a privacy ward out of habit.

Jèzebel's voice responded. "That's good. Any problems on your end?"

Delilah shook her head. "No, Alondra got a search warrant and is directing a forensic team to clean it out. Kemal's been reading from my library and exploring the Internet to catch up on things, and Ali was watching over him plus Zamarad has an avatar present to keep an eye on things."

Zamarad leaned in. "Mother-in-law, Kemal is recovering well and after a late lunch he, Ali, and I shall take some of the horses for a ride around the grounds to get some fresh air."
Spoiler: Notification

"Good good." Jèzebel said, then sighed deeply. "That said, I have some news. Last night someone attacked Moulbaix and kidnapped Ehren. Your sister's leading a rescue mission and has a pretty good idea as to who's responsible. She told me to tell you that she saw the Blade from the Sleeper's Tomb, whatever that means." Delilah's face turned ashen as the words sank in and her mind whirled. Then her face turned purple, her eyes turned icy, and her fist tightened on her phone

Jez suddenly cut off as Delilah swore vilely in Arabic before flipping to English for the next stream of invective. "That pigfucking Nazi cocksucking motherfucking slave-owner!!"

"Language, Delilah Naomi!" Jez snapped at her daughter who took several deep breaths as she regained self control. Zamarad beside her was cursing in Arabic in turn in a voice like the sizzle of white-hot branding irons.

"I'm under control now Mother." Delilah said in an icy voice. "It seems the apprentice of the mage who enslaved Zamarad back in 1942 isn't as dead as I thought. Where do I meet Sis to correct that mistake??"

"You don't." Jez's words were blunt and final.

"Like hell I don't Mother! I wouldn't leave a plague rat in that fucking Nazi slave-owner's hands much less Ehren!" Delilah snapped back in a coldly determined voice filled with killing menace.

"Colombe already left. Norimune was here when I got the word last night and is going in your place." Jez said with matching steel in her voice, then softened. "I don't like it either, Del, but you are needed to bring the Network in out of the cold and time's critical since we don't know what he intends for Ehren. Considering the Dark Creatures he used to storm Moulbaix, it's nothing good. So Colombe grabbed everyone at hand and is hot on his trail now."

Delilah stared at the phone as her mind whirled while she locked her worry for Ehren, anger, and visceral steel-deep loathing for the Nazi responsible away.

She froze and focused to run the numbers coldly and analytically twice.

As much as she hated to admit it, she was off her game for a rescue mission and Mother was right.

Damn her for being right.

With that she raised the phone to her head again.

"Understood. I'll cover ongoing operations here. Mother... keep me informed, and tell Sis and Father if they call that I wish I was there to be with them. But I have faith in them to send that slave-owner to Hell and rescue Ehren." Delilah's voice was icy with her inhuman self-control.

"I'll let them know." A pause as Jèzebel sighed before resuming. "I'm sorry that I had to hold you out of this one, Del. Any other time I'd send you to put him into the ground. I know how much you hate him, you're using the s-word around me."

Delilah nodded sharply, her eyes cold enough to freeze helium. "Just be aware if they don't do the job on SS-Obersturmführer Helmar Wolff that we will when we're cleared. And we'll make it slow, painful, and messy. Slave-owning scum like him don't deserve anything less than my worst."

Jèzebel made a sound of agreement, "That's my girl! I'll keep you posted. Claire's safe and staying at friends, Ying's still in China, and Jackie's been notified and will cover Moulbaix for Colombe while she handles this."

Delilah nodded. "Anything else? As I discussed last night, I'm coming clean to them."

"Nothing here, I'll call you tonight to talk Del." Jèzebel said, then paused. "And Nori's right, we don't say this often enough to you. I'm proud of you Del, not least for having the courage to do what you're doing."

Delilah cried a little then whispered, "Thank you mother. I love you too."

"I love you and I'll see you tonight, Del. Keep up the good work. Goodbye until then."

Delilah hung up and then hugged the incandescently furious Zamarad as her fury ran its course.

Finally the Ifrit got control of herself and looked at Delilah. "Now what, love?"

Delilah poked at an empty Big Mac wrapper idly. "We wait, and waiting sucks."

"Truth, Shaelat ruwhi." The Ifrit cuddled into the pillar of her strength once more, feeling the cool determination and strength in Delilah's arms.

They sat there until the phone rang again.

Delilah picked it up. "Delilah de Breuil speaking."

"Hello Delilah, this is Doctor Varnell's office. We would like to schedule an appointment for you to come in and discuss the test results from yesterday's blood work...."

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

A.N. -- Here's the long-anticipated Colombe vs. Vatipire arc over custody of Ehren.

Just to let folks know, yes, the villain is a truly terrible formerly-human being, but don't expect to see a cackling cardboard cutout Saturday-morning cartoon here. With that in mind, watch the ITG and derails and rest assured that Wollf will have justice find him out. That said, the prior story in this plot arc is found here to refresh memories: Die Schlacht von Schloss Moulbaix 3

Ehren Erwacht! (I)

August 8th, 2014

Castle Moulbaix, Belgium

"If only it were all so simple! If only there were evil people somewhere insidiously committing evil deeds, and it were necessary only to separate them from the rest of us and destroy them. But the line dividing good and evil cuts through the heart of every human being. And who is willing to destroy a piece of his own heart?" ― Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, The Gulag Archipelago 1918-1956
Spoiler: The Relief Of Moulbaix

"Portus!"

Colombe snarled in fury and frustration as the blond sword spirit -- and where had she seen that aquamarine short sword before? -- vanished along with her unconscious daughter in the flash of a Portkey's discharge.

With that, the rapier turned to the relief party as they charged through the open doors to her castle. Faint sounds of battle sounded from upstairs. "Niobe! Hold the door here, don't let anyone out! If you see a bare-chested male African spirit, don't kill him!" Colombe ordered.

"Jawohl!" Niobe's casemated 105mm cannons swiveled on her rigging as a squad of her faeries armed with bayoneted Mauser rifles manifested.

"Toku, take Flynn and sweep left, I'll go right! Meet me at the back stairs!" Colombe snapped out as she headed up the grand staircase two steps at a time.

"Hai, Co-chan!" Toku said as a pink aura of blowing cherry blossoms surrounded her. Behind the Masamune, Flynn nodded and drew a pistol, his free hand glowing with a scarlet aura.

Colombe took a deep breath and flicked the wrist and fingers of her left hand in a precise pattern as she channeled her magical energies through the matrix that she was forming. "Chakrati of Arjuna!" A quartet of flaming rings surrounded her hand and wrist as she manifested one of her favorite general-purpose combat spells.

With that she advanced into the upstairs hall. Dead bodies of some bat-winged Dark Creatures littered the floor, but a knot of them were still fighting to get inside the door to her study.

Perfect!

With a snarl of fury she flicked her wrist to send the disks of flame screaming down the hall into their backs as she braced herself to charge. Red filled her vision as she rapidly shuffled through her mental arsenal for a spell that would slaughter these beasts without blowing this part of her ancestral castle apart.

"Ηλιακή φωτιά!"

With a roar, her invocation of Apollo Pythios caused her steel to ignite with bright golden fires as she flash-stepped toward her foes.

The apparent leader, a large black-skinned brute a head over the smaller spawn present, half turned at her cry only to get her blade impaling it in a perfect flèche running lunge through the body. It shuddered and spasmed as golden flames and smoke burst from its ears, eye, and mouth as the solar fires of Apollo burned it from the inside out.

Three of the smaller ones began to run away from her assault down the other corridor. Suddenly a pair of red-glowing bullets corkscrewed in, curving as they slammed into the trailing one which suddenly exploded. Then Toku was there in an eyeblink, cutting down the others with precise swings of her glowing steel.

Kasuyu and a black skinned and red-eyed African woman also covered with ichor and blood from their wounds met her eyes as they gasped for air in relief behind the wall of dead in the doorway that they had been fighting to defend.

"Mistress, we have a problem." The axe rumbled. "Ehren did not make it upstairs."

Colombe scowled and used a booted foot to slide the corpse of Third Brother from her steel. She snapped out a spell in Hindi and then nodded. "Castle's clear of other sentient life. Or what passes with it for these things. I saw Ehren get abducted. Portkey in the hand of a blond girl with a sword. What happened?!" Her eyes found Nongqawuse. "And who's your friend?"

The bracelet spirit bowed. "Nongqawuse. Kasuyu and Tokunotakai can vouch for my presence here as a hidden guardian to you and yours."

Toku spoke. "She is apparently given the ability to see the future. This was the danger you had to be held hidden for then?"

"Ewe." The African spirit bobbed her head.

"Wonderful." Colombe scowled and then headed downstairs with the relief force in tow.

Niobe looked up as they arrived. "So now what?"

Colombe scowled. "Now...?" she cast a spell as she walked outside and her eyes glittered.

Her face became murderous as she walked to where Cortana and Ehren had been and picked up a gold pin from the grass.
Spoiler: Wolff's Party Badge

She flipped it over and traced the number on the back with a thumb.

"One Seven two..." Her voice broke and tears fell as she read it off. "Two seven one." Her fist closed around the Golden Party Badge. "He was so proud of his SS Service Number and Party Number being the same, you know. Ehren has the same number etched on her hilt." She spoke half to herself with raw agony visible in her eyes.

Toku hugged Colombe around the waist as the Rapier's voice turned cold and controlled, as sharp and hard as her blood-soaked steel.

"Now? Now I'm going to track Helmar Wolff down and put an end to him once and for all." Colombe spoke in a merciless voice full of wrath. "I'm going to save my daughter from him."

Khohlo ea Marena a Mararo, Central Africa

August 9th, 2014
Spoiler: Ehren Awakes

SS-Obersturmführer Helmar Wolff sat on a carved wood chair as he contemplated the face of the pale blond girl asleep in the bed in front of him. Ehren slumbered peacefully, dressed now in a pure white modest cotton dress in place of her bloody and torn SS uniform. A bandage packed with magical healing herbs covered her cheek to mend the wound she had taken there form the claws of one of the Popobawa, and more bandages were invisible on her injured torso.

He then looked at the silent form of Cortana standing stiffly next to him. "Well done. Very well done. I am pleased. She did not cause too much trouble?"

Cortana hesitated then spoke. "She fought quite well. She killed Second Brother and many of the lessers before I was able to reach her and persuade her to surrender to me. She is dangerous, Master. Very dangerous."

He gave a beaming proud smile to the sleeping Ehren. "As is to be expected for one of the Herrenvolk(master race). She truly is a magnificent specimen of Aryan maidenhood. And you even returned my SS-Ehrendolch to me as well." His hand gently caressed the dagger at his hip as he returned to contemplating the face of his daughter.

"Your plans, Master?" Cortana said into the silence. The sword spirit's thumb rubbed the silver ring on her hand.

He pursed his lips in thought and then gently brushed a stray lock of freshly washed pale golden hair from Ehren's sleeping cheek. "Keep the Mask secure. I shall tend to it later and begin the preparations for the Ritual then. But more important than that, I shall bring mein Tochter to the Truth so she shall stand by our side as our child. You as the perfect wife, and her as the perfect daughter."

He looked at Cortana. "Release the enchantment upon her."

The sword nodded and waved a hand over Ehren's face. Aquamarine mist flowed from Ehren's temples into the elder sword spirit's hand. "Done. She shall awaken within the hour. With your permission Master?"

He smiled at Cortana and spoke to her firmly. "Go and relax. I shall call upon you when I wish for you to meet mein Tochter Ehren."

Cortana departed and Helmar Wolff sat in silence as the sphere of silver magical light illuminated his unmoving figure. Then he picked up from the bedside table the wand that had been taken from the sleeping girl and rubbed his fingers along the ebony wood. "Gifted in magical and martial skill both and able to preserve the beauty of your youth as That Woman did. I am so very proud of you, Meine geliebte Tochter." His contemplative voice was filled with paternal pride.

Ehren began to stir finally and he placed the wand back on the table.

Pale blond eyelashes moved as she blinked twice and then focused on the figure to her left.

Steel-blue eyes opened wide in shock.

Ehren swallowed, licked dry lips and then whispered in a little-girl voice.

"Vati?"

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Glancing at Harry as she drove, Hachi hummed a bit, "By the way, Harry-Chan?" When she got a nod to continue, she frowned a little, "Why didn't you continue on from Ume-San's and Sakura-San's home to Umitsubame-San's to pick up Kenshō-Chan? It would have been a lot shorter..."

Slowly, Harry nodded to give her the point before frowning, "You're right, I could have gone to pick her up. But..." Scratching his cheek, he grimaced a little, "I was a bit worried, though not for myself. Going straight from the Konohana clan compound, to the outskirts of Kyoto, and to a home well known to be where Kyoshu-San lives often to pick up someone that looks like a minature version...?"

It took a few moments, but the Subgirl also grimaced a little, "Considering that the Konohana Clan is on the rise, and you likely had reporters following you and the Twins? That... could create some rumours. Not true in the slightest, but... they would be enough to cause some trouble."

A sigh escaping him, Harry shook his head, "That was one of the things that I was worried about. And there's still the issue of the Tokyo Diet itself since I would not be too surprised if they had people following various politicians of interest in the Kyoto Diet in an attempt to discredit them. Probably following myself as well as Ume-Chan and Sakura-Chan when we were out and about the festival. Best not to give them any form of an excuse because I don't trust them not to try something. Hence the whole going the long run around."

Eyebrow raised, Hachi gave him a look, "Are you sure about that? Everything that I have read is that the Tokyo Diet is in a lot of trouble as it is. So you wouldn't have Aurors following you."

That caused the teenage wizard to grimace slightly, "You would be right... except who said that they would have Aurors following? Just having some... er... squibs following would be enough for them." Mutters came from Harry as he shook his head, "There really should be a better word for them... and who the bloody heck came up with 'Squib'?"

Lips twitching at the last bit, Hachi considered the question before nodding, "I think that, perhaps, Nonmajborn might be good."

Only shrugging, Harry shook his head before frowning, "But yeah, I sort of expected them to have someone following us. Pretty sure that I saw whoever it was at times." At the interested look, he shrugged, "When you see the same people, multiple times looking towards you, well, it's not that hard to figure out. Granted, the guys that follow Mum and I around whenever we go to one of those functions are a heck of a lot better, so that helps."

Unable to help herself, the shipgirl giggled a little. Mainly because it had always been hilarious to see an eight year old Harry asking Nagato what was with the strange men watching them, especially said people's reaction to being pointed out by an eight year old. Coughing a little, Hachi shook her head, "Perhaps, though that does make a lot of sense when you get down to it, I suppose." A frown appeared on her face as she drove, "Though I wonder how long the Diet will last for..."

Shaking his head, Harry frowned a little himself, "Not sure to be honest. But... hopefully it falls gently and slowly." At her look, he pressed his lips thinly together, "Considering the number of... problematic people? I'm sort of worried what would happen if the Diet fell at once, mainly because of where some of them might go."

Hachi considered that for a few moments before giving a nod as she gave him the point. Soon enough, the talk drifted into other directions, one of which made the Subgirl blink, "So you're thinking of starting up a D&D group with Nobu-San, Okita-San, and Uesugi-San?"

With a small nod, the nearly fourteen year old smiled before chuckling, "Hai, and Nobu-San at least is interested in it. Depending on how it goes... might be able to bring Natsumi-Chan and the others into it. All their characters are basically epic level, so..."

That made Hachi nod as she remembered, "Hai, which means that there's now the question of where they can go from there." Head tilted a bit, she giggled some, "Though I do remember that one time you were playing at that event and you made the substitute DM literally flip the table in anger. That was hilarious!"

Rolling his eyes, Harry huffed a little, "Guy was a bloody baka to say the least." Snorting, he had a scowl on his face, "Honestly, even the head DMs there told him he was being a moron and an arse. Seriously, giving my Paladin character strikes against alignment for having our rogue break into the building where innocent hostages were to scout it out? Because working with a rogue and having him do such a 'lawless' act was obviously something that went against being a Paladin."

Memory being dredged up, she hummed, "I remember, the Head DMs told him that there was nothing about such in the rules. And that in such a case, it obviously would not cause an alignment penalty because it was obeying the spirit of the laws if not the word of them. Besides which, when in a conflict, siding with good would work well enough, which scouting things out to prevent hostages from being killed was most definitely that."

A snort escaped Harry as he snickered, "Of course, that was when one of the other Head DMs for the event piped in that if they allowed it to stand, then having us bust down the doors like he expected would have done the same. After all, it would be breaking and entering as well under such ironclad rules." He then gave a shrug, "That was when he basically flipped the table and stormed out because we had been giving him issues the whole time..." A frown on the teen's face, he shook his head, "He was basically tossed from any further get togethers like that now that I think about it."

Head tilted to the side, Hachi chuckled as she remembered that before giving him an interested look, "If you do manage to get Nobu-San and the others... where would you have it?"

Glancing at her, the teenage wizard smiled, "Actually, an original world that I came up with and have been working with Natsumi and some others with." Seeing the interest, he smiled, "Basically? You got the outer world, Amasia, with the continents of Avalonia, Rodina, Baltica, and Laurentia along with various islands. But located on Avalonia in their portion of the Underdark is a cave known as 'Cruachan', well known for going deep underground, beyond even the Underdark, but is haunted by Demons and Devils, bound there by ancient magics. And once you're through it..." He waved his hand, "You find yourself standing on another continent, Cimmeria, which is within the hollow world, the molten core of the planet, surrounded by debris, hovering above, with vast slabs of rock moving over the surface and providing shade as a form of night. And ruins being visible on said slabs as well."

Eyebrow raised, Hachi imagined the sight that Harry just described and slowly nodded a little, "That does sound rather interesting, Harry-Chan. And it would mean that even beyond higher levels, you could keep things fresh and interesting for the characters."

Arms behind his head, Harry grinned, "That's the thought behind it anyways. There's more to it than just that, but... well, that's a secret~"

It went without saying that Hachi began to giggle madly at that before shaking her head. After a few moments, she glanced at him with a smile, "Well, if you start up any games, Hacchan would be interested in playing them."

Just smiling back, the teenage boy smiled, "I'd like that actually, Hachi-Chan. Besides which, I am trying to get some people at Hogwarts interested in it as well."

Several minutes later, Hachi checked their location before nodding as she slowed the car along the road. The place that they were going was on the outskirts of Kyoto after all. Still, it did not take them very long before they arrived and she pulled up the driveway that was there, "I think that this is it, Harry-Chan."

Checking his phone, Harry gave a nod, "Hai, this is the place." Soon enough, they were at the door and knocked. It took a few moments before the door opened to reveal Umitsubame. As always, Harry was struck by how much she resembled Juuchi... except with more normal clothes and a "Mom" style haircut as well as being a bit lankier. Bowing alongside Hachi, he smiled, "Umitsubame-San? I'm here to see Kenshō-Chan."

The spear's expression melted into a soft smile, "Not a problem, Harry-San. Please, come in."

At that, Harry bowed to her before stepping inside and taking off his shoes. Slipping his sock covered feet into the slippers there, he held up a bag with several boxes, "I hope that you do not mind, but we stopped by a place for some kaarage. I've also brought some other things as well."

Umitsubame sighed at that with a smile on her face, "Thank you, Harry-San. That is much appreciated." Turning her head, she took a deep breath, "KYOSHU! KENSHO-CHAN! NAMELESS! HARRY-SAN'S HERE!"

Within seconds, they heard a door open and feet come rushing along the halls as well as the sound of wheels. Kyoshu was the first one to appear and gasped, "Umitsubame! Umitsubame! The Muffin Man's here!"

Only sighing at her sister's reaction, Umitsubame nodded, "Hai, and he brought some food." Then she frowned some at seeing Nameless' amused expression, "... Where's Kenshō-Chan-"

Right then, the patter of feet was the only sound before said kogatana appeared with Kit-Chan in her hands... both of them covered in dirt, leaves and the like with Kenshō smiling happily, "Here I am, Umitsubame-Oba-Chan! Mou, I had to chase Kit-Chan!" Then she spotted Harry and rushed over, "MASTER!"

Lips curling into an amused smile even as the Muramasa spear facepalmed, Harry chuckled as he hugged the small blade spirit, "Good morning, Kenshō. Enjoying your stay so far?"

Eyes wide, Kenshō rapidly nodded, "Hai! Being with Okaa-San as well as Na-Kaa-Chan and Umitsubame-Oba-Chan is great! I've had a lot of fun!" Notcing how her aunt was reacting, she blinked, "Mou... what's wrong, Oba-Chan?"

Her mother was also frowning before she gasped, "Kenshō-Chan! Kenshō-Chan! You're all dirty!" She then blinked, "Mou... you're dirty? How did you get dirty?" In her wheelchair, Nameless was extremely amused before tugging on Kyoshu's sleeve and making a motion which made Kyoshu nod, "You should have a bath!"

At those words, Kenshō's eyes widened a bit before she backed up, "Mou... do I need a bath?"

Unknown to her, Harry was behind her with a smirk... that was until he scooped her up into his arms with her squeaking. Turning towards Umitsubame, he raised an eyebrow and the 'Momblade' sighed before gesturing, "Bathroom is down there, I'll make sure that some clean clothes for her are out."

Simply bowing, Harry smiled at her before chuckling, "Thank you, Umitsubame-San, we shouldn't be long."

Meanwhile, Kenshō had a pout as she was hauled off to the bath, "Mou..."

_________________________________________________________

Twenty minutes later, Umitsubame was examining the small box similar to what one would hold jewelry in with a raised eyebrow, "So this is a modification for the Owl Box?"

Arms crossed as she looked at the box herself, Hachi nodded, "Hai, Harry-Chan bought it after asking them about if they had something like that. Apparently, this was ordered a few years back, but they never went anywhere because the guy in question was arrested by the Aurors on suspicion of smuggling. So it never got bought until Harry-Chan bought it."

Humming, the Muramasa spear examined it as she glanced at the Subgirl, "For Kenshō-Chan, correct?"

Smile on her face, Hachi smiled back, "Hai, she can place herself inside of it and visit her Okaa-San whenever she wants." Her smile then became a smirk, "Granted, Harry-Chan bought some more just in case some smaller blades in his group wanted them."

For a few moments, Umitsubame considered that before nodding, "I'll have to ask to see if he can give me some for Suisei as well as Kensha so that they can come and visit when they want..." Internally, she was hoping that she was not blushing at her next thought, 'Or if I can manage to ask Carnwennan-Kun to come over...'

While she would never admit it, she did like the much older blade. Like her, he had the experience of herding cats of all sorts, thus could understand that. It helped that he was very easy going... Not to mention that considering that she noted he most definitely had very nicely toned body under his clothes.

The Welsh accent he spoke with also caused tingles of sorts as well, of the good kind.

Internally, her mind went elsewhere... Particularly one place, 'Oh, Carnwennan of the Clan Pendragon, you may be an immortal dagger with rippling abs, but you can still know love! Ah, take me away with you to the Welsh countryside to your castle...'

Meanwhile, in the real world, Hachi blinked a bit at a giggle that escaped from Umitsubame and shifted a little away, 'Wonder why she has that glassy look...'

However, thankfully for Hachi's sanity, the spear snapped out of her fantasy of Carnwennan in a kilt (for some reason, just that) as she rode behind him on a horse as he stole her away from Japan towards a stone tower in the distance at the sound of a squeal of laughter. Turning, Umitsubame quickly wiped a bit of drool away from her lips, "What is..."

She trailed off as a madly giggling Kenshō came running into the room as she dripped water everywhere as she likely had jumped right out of the bath. Behind her, Kyoshu was rushing as well trying to get her into a towel, "Mou! Come back, Kenshō-Chan! You're going to catch cold if you don't dry off..." Furrowing her eyebrows, Kyoshu gasped, "Umitsubame! Umitsubame! Kenshō-Chan might catch a cold!"

Facepalming, Umitsubame sighed though she had a small smile on her face as she muttered a bit, "At least it's not as bad as what the others get up to..."

Before she could do anything, however, Harry appeared from seemingly nowhere and scooped Kenshō, "Got you!" He then planted a raspberry on her stomach which made her squeak before wrapping her entirely in a towel, "Now, let's get you all dry and dressed!"

Even as the Kogatana squirmed, he continued to walk with her as he smirked. Noticing Hachi watching Harry with a blush on her face, Umitsubame turned away from observing Kyoshu try to dry Kenshō's hair with a raised eyebrow, "Hmm..."

Deeply blushing, Hachi coughed though she didn't stop watching Harry carry off the madly giggling, squeaking, and squirming Kenshō, "Um, it's nothing..." Internally, she was sighing as the sight was replaced by an older Harry with a younger, green eyed girl with messy, dirty blonde hair, 'He'll be a great Otou-San...'

Not long later, everyone was seated at the table as food was placed onto plates. Sighing, Umitsubame gave Harry a smile, "Thank you again, Harry-San. This saves me from cooking a bit."

In reply, Harry waved a hand with a smile of his own, "It's fine, besides which we still have the triple chocolate cookies for dessert."

Happily gasping, Kyoshu turned towards the Masamune beside her, "Na-Chan! Na-Chan! Did you hear that! The Muffin Man brought cookies!"

Lightly chuckling, the wizard winked at her, "That's not all I brought." At her confused "Mou", he chuckled again before biting into some of the fried chicken. Once he was done chewing and had swallowed, Harry looked towards Umitsubame, "Ah! Before I forget, I also brought that book of older potions for you. The one that you asked about."

Eyes lighting up, Umitsubame's smile widened, "Thank you, Harry-San. That will help my potion's research quite a bit." Taking a bite of her own chicken, she happily hummed, 'A lot actually considering things. Especially as those potions can be modified easily enough.'

Her smile softened as she watched Kenshō happily talk about all the fun that she had over the past few days with her mother. It made Umitsubame feel warm on the inside as a matter of fact. Despite how some might think, Kyoshu actually adapted very well to motherhood. She was helped by Nameless giving her some aid at times, though Umitsubame was surprised with how Kyoshu could keep on topic if it involved Kenshō.

That said, the Muramasa spear was also happy to know her niece. While she could cause trouble like any Muramasa, Kenshō seemed mostly to keep it to what one would think a young child would do. Something which was a major relief to Umitsubame.

And similar to what Kensha had said, if someone ever even attempted to harm Kenshō, Umitsubame would render them down to potion ingredients.

Unfortunately, the warm atmosphere came to end just as they were finishing lunch as they Harry, Umitsubame, and Hachi froze while Nameless' eyes widened at a bit that came over the radio that was broadcasting a meeting of the Tokyo Diet.

"{...So it is no great surprise that it has come to this then, isn't it? That as of now, Half of Japan now stands against us in Tokyo, a number that may yet grow in the coming days and weeks.

So. What is to be done? What shall we do to counter this blatant loss of confidence in our authority? Will we bow to it? Or shall we enforce it? If we enforce our authority, that will mean open civil war. ...I have a son old enough to be conscripted for such a war. Is that what you want? Will we send son to kill father? Father to kill daughter? Sibling to kill sibling? Is that how we are to prove that Tokyo is the true seat of government? Are we going to prove our love for our citizens by killing their friends and family? Is that what we want?

I don't. And I won't! Therefore! I motion to call a vote of No Confidence in this body! If passed, then I motion that the Magical Diet assembly in Tokyo is to be dismantled, and all authority and governance responsibilities, shall then forthwith transfer over to the Diet Assembly in Kyoto!}"

As someone seconded the motion and apparently the entire room descended into demands for votes right then, Harry shared a wide eyed stare with Umitsubame, already knowing that Hachi was contacting Yokosuka over her own radio.

Meanwhile, Kyoshu looked up from where she was wiping Kenshō's face, "Mou... why are people shouting?"

Glancing at the stunned Umitsubame, Harry stood up and cleared his throat, "It's nothing, but how about I give you all cookies?"

Eyes widening, the Sword of Faded Memories gasped happily, "Yay! Cookies!"

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

A.N. -- This is a very dark piece at the end, so subject/content warning applies. It wasn't fun to write, especially at the end. Yes, Wolff is a massive monster as were the Nazis, but no ITG or derails please!! He is going to get what is coming to him, and we get to see what kind of steel Ehren has in her.

Ehren Erwacht! (II)

August 8th, 2014

De Breuil Estate, Upstate New York

"No man chooses evil because it is evil; he only mistakes it for happiness, the good he seeks." — Mary Wollstonecraft A Vindication of the Rights of Men

The sound of the antique telephone in Jèzebel's office rang through the house. Muramasa-no-Norimune's ears perked up from where she had been talking to Jèzebel de Breuil over dinner. The elderly witch levered herself up and began to limp toward the stairs with a sigh. Norimune saw that and her brow wrinkled, then she suddenly stood too to follow the clearly hurting witch.

"Here, let me, Jez." Norimune said, suddenly picking Jez up in a bridal carry before heading up the stairs. She blushed as she remembered carrying Jez like this a century and a half ago. She determinedly looked ahead rather than down at the face of her old lover.

Unseen by her, Jèzebel bit her lip and blushed too.

At the top, Norimune set her down and Jèzebel glared at her with her cheeks pink. "We'll talk about that later, Nori." Jèzebel snapped before placing her hand on the cut crystal of the doorknob. A brief red mist filled the knob and then the door opened.

Norimune gave the desk a look full of memories and grinned slightly as she leaned against a bookcase next to the window.
Spoiler: Notifying The De Breuils

Meanwhile Jèzebel picked up the phone. "Winter Prime, report!" She snapped out as a quill and paper floated to her desk. Then her eyes blazed and her fist clenched on the handset. "Colombe, repeat that!" She snapped out as she waved her wand.

"Jez, SS-Obersturmführer Helmar Wolff reemerged. His minions just attacked Moulbaix and kidnapped Ehren. He also took a trophy of mine that apparently is a Dark Artifact that I had hanging on my study wall unknowingly since 1945. I know you grounded Del and Zamarad, but I need their help to rescue Ehren." Colombe's voice echoed through the room thanks to Jez's spell.

Norimune stiffened like she had just been shot. "Tell my daughter that I'll be right there!" she snapped out in a voice full of command as her eyes blazed. "No way I'll risk another grandkid!"

Jèzebel nodded to Norimune and tapped her desk several times with her wand. Part of the wood shifted and morphed into a model of the house and basement. She then covered the mouthpiece with her hand and spoke to Norimune, "Go, Nori! I'll disarm the traps between here and the Vanishing Cabinet for you. Just throw a pinch of Floo Powder in the fireplace down there to let me know to reset them!"

"On it, Jez!" Nori shouted as she sprinted out the door.

Jèzebel spoke into the phone. "Del and Zamarad are busy with other business in South Dakota for me. I'm sending Nori to you though in their place." She paused and then continued. "I won't send either anyway since Zamarad's pregnant and I won't see my first grandchild grow up without a father again. Del deserves better than that."

There was a long pregnant silence on the other end of the phone.

"You better not be shitting me, Jez."

Jèzebel chuckled. "No shit, Colombe. The best part is neither one know that Zamarad's 'burning for two' yet."

"I see. Father knows then?"

Jèzebel nodded as she spoke. "Yes, Nori knows. We were taking about how she can be there for her newest grandchild. She really wants to make up for... what happened before."

"All the more reason to bring Ehren back so she can be there for her cousin. I'll need someone to cover Moulbaix while I head out and give Miho Fujii a hand cleaning up and protecting my home until I return."

"I'll call Jackie, Colombe. She should be back in port soon." Jèzebel reassured Colombe.

Castle Moulbaix

Colombe hung up and then looked at the rest of her team. "Norimune's coming, Del's unavailable. Jackie will cover the castle. Flynn, I'd like to hire you to cover Moulbaix for a day or so until Miho and Jackie can get here."

The Hit Wizard nodded. "I can spend the time, just let me call Lucius first."

"Bon." Colombe handed Flynn her phone and then turned to Niobe. "If you can drop off some Faeries to help, I'd appreciate it. But you planned to go with us, correct."

The silver haired shipgirl nodded sharply. "I'll dispatch a boat crew to manage that along with a Maxim Gun. I am with you, I have my orders from Mein Flottenadmiral." She then paused. "Ehren used one of her hilt pins to contact Nimue, and she said that she had regenerated several others to be with Claire when she heads to Hogwarts. Could those be of use?"

Colombe nodded, still rubbing her former lover's Golden Party Badge. "Very much so. The Portkey is discharged, but I should be able to use this and Ehren's hilt pin to give us a location to search." She glanced at the silent Nongqawuse. "I did that once before to locate the shaman responsible for Kasuyu's enslavement back in 1902." With that she began to pace, her hand on her hilt.

A dozen Faeries dressed in Kaiserliches Marine uniforms with slung Mauser rifles formed next to Niobe along with equipment from her stores. The shipgirl snapped out in German: "{Locate Ehren's hilt pin and bring it to me, also fortify the castle!}" The Faeries saluted, then four of them picked up a machine gun and four others grabbed ammunition crates filled with cartridge belts for the machine gun as they double-timed inside. Tokunotakai followed to point out where Ehren's room was.

Fifteen minutes later Tokunotakai came out with a satchel of her miko supplies and a second one bulging with healing equipment for Kasuyu. The Miko then placed an ofuda on her forehead to show Flynn images of her memories of the Fujiis and Jacklyn.

Several minutes later, a scowling Norimune headed outside with one of Niobe's faeries in tow with Ehren's hilt pin.

Colombe looked at her father and took a deep breath. "Father. I'm glad that you're here. The Portkey that they used is discharged, but I can track the residual energies to get a rough location and then narrow it down. Then..."

The rapier took a deep breath and then spoke in steely voice. "Then I make amends for the mistakes of my past in blood. Let them fall upon my head and not Ehren's."
---------------------

Khohlo ea Marena a Mararo, Central Africa

9 August 2014

"Vati?"

Ehren's whispered hopeful question lingered in the air, then Helmar Wolff smiled at his daughter as emotions brimmed in her eyes and she teared up. He nodded and gave her a proud smile. "Ja, ich bin dein Vater."(yes i am your father) He stood up from the chair and beckoned to her.

Tears dripped from Ehren's eyes and she bit her lip, before climbing out of bed with a pained hiss to crush him with a hug. The shoulder of his SS uniform grew wet and he patted her head with his gloved hands as she wept into his strong and solid frame, sniffling as she did.

Finally she broke the hug and looked up into his face. "{I... I thought you were dead, Vati.}" She spoke in German as she gave a happy smile.

He handed her a handkerchief to let her wipe tears and snot from her face as his gaze grew distant and he rubbed the white glove on his hand "{I very nearly was slain that day. Your mother is of superior racial stock, after all, just sadly misguided. But as Der Führer wisely taught us 'Anyone can deal with victory, only the mighty can bear defeat'. Words of Truth that have sustained me in all my labors here.}"

He did not notice Ehren's face freeze momentarily and her eyes grow as cold as ice and as hard as steel.

One crystal tear escaped Ehren's self control in that instant to trickle down her cheek before her face changed back to a warm loving smile.

Ehren took a deep breath as she finished making herself presentable, and then smiled at him. "{Vati? May I ask a favor?}" She asked in a sweet little-girl tone.

He looked at her with a paternal smile. "{What is it, Tochter?}"

"{The dagger that you have. It was all I had of you so I kept it to remember you by after my childhood ended. I was curious and knew that my Vati would have wished for me to follow in his footsteps so I secretly studied what die Siegrune and der Parteiadler meant and learned the lessons taught by them as best I could. Mutti granted me that indulgence, and I would miss it greatly if you took it from me. Can I please keep your Ehrendolch with me?}" Ehren said while giving him her best effort at puppy-dog hero-worship eyes in a controlled loving voice while her skin crawled.

His hand touched her hilt and he visibly thought as she waited patiently for him to decide while she fought with her emotions.

Finally he nodded with an indulgent paternal smile. "{For now, yes, Tochter. You shall be trained to handle it and the significance of what it means, so you can bear it with pride and honor as the vanguard of the Herrenvolk as I have done before you.}"

She smiled happily for him.
Spoiler: Vati Trains Ehren

His face hardened as he placed the sheathed dagger on her bedside table. "{But this is a sacred charge, mein Tochter! You must carry it at all times in obedience to myself and Der Führer's teachings! Only the highest among the Herrenvolk with the purest blood and firmest dedication shall be permitted to hold this sacred trust!}" He barked out as his cold gray eyes with their red flecks examined her mercilessly.

Ehren braced herself to rigid attention at his unspoken command and her bare heels snapped together, stoically ignoring the red stain forming on her torso as one of her healing wounds opened and her blood gushed. Her chin lifted proudly and she snapped out in a firm voice. "{Zu Befehl, Obersturmführer!}"

Her face hardened as she struggled internally with controlling Grendel.

She desperately needed the sick, twisted, seductive knowledge of Naziism's lies to survive here as the apperance of something that was making her sick to her stomach until she could find a way to escape, but she had to do it without losing herself to the darkness within or displaying any hint of her true feelings to be ruthlessly purged or worse at the hands of her Vati and his sword spirit that she could never fight.

He probed her with his eyes for endless moments as she fought a lonely desperate battle against her darkness within her soul while using every iota of her self control to assume the same position of proud, confident, fanatical belief that her Vati had in SS-Junkerschule in 1937 for his instructors.

Finally he gave her the ghost of a thin, cold smile. "{Now, let me test you upon your understanding of National Socialism, so I can begin to correct the wooly-headed lies that your Mutti has filled your head with. The fact that you studied the truth in secret is good, but we shall see. We shall see. What is the Jew, Mein Tochter?}"

Ehren, still at rigid attention, instantly responded with words that seemed to burn on her tongue. "{According to Der Führer in Mein Kampf, the personification of the devil as the symbol of all evil assumes the living shape of the Jew, Obersturmführer!}"

"{Sehr gut!}" His eyes glittered as he surveyed her proud and strong form as the first drop of red blood from her wounds spattered the stone of her room. "{Next! How does the bacillus of the Jew infect the stronger races?}"

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Eyes closed, Kyoshu happily chomped down on the warm cookie as Kenshō sat in her lap doing the same, "Yum!"

Also happily eating a cookie, the little Kogatana nodded, "Hai, Okaa-San! Master makes the best cookies!"

Beside her, Nameless shook her head before wetting a napkin with her tongue. Reaching over, she wiped at both their lips before biting into her own cookie with her own hum of enjoyment. After all, they were very good cookies!

That said, she did glance over to where Harry, Hachi, and Umitsubame were talking as the radio was still going nuts with what had happened. She... would be lying if she said that what she had heard did not worry her. Not that she was able to say anything, but still. While her memories were foggy still despite the help, there was the issue that she somehow knew that things could go very, very bad in the next few hours depending on what happened next.

Of course, then she glanced over at Kyoshu who was happily eating another cookie with Kenshō doing the same in her lap.

Right then, somehow, Nameless knew that things would turn out okay. Perhaps not perfect, but perhaps well enough as it was. Instead, she reached over and patted Kenshō on the head. Even if she could not do much, she could pat the cute blade on the head and get giggles from her.

Looking over at her, said daughter of Kyoshu smiled at her before going back to her cookies with gusto. There was a lot of them after all and, to her mind, best not to waste what her Master had baked! And she was most certainly not a waster!

It helped that they were really, really tasty!

Meanwhile, Harry was softly talking with Umitsubame who was on her phone with a grimace on her face, "How bad?"

The spear glanced up at him before shaking her head, "Nothing as of yet." She glanced at the radio and let out a soft hiss, "But it could be very, very bad indeed. Chisuheri wants to know if any of us could be at Zuchi to help out just in case. And she's already contacted both Honjo and Kotegiri just in case as well. Unfortunately..."

Harry glanced towards the three blade spirits enjoying cookies, "You would need to bring along Kyoshu-San, Nameless-San, and Kenshō as well."

Just nodding, Umitsubame rubbed the side of her head, "Hai, but as much as I hate to say it, what might be best is to keep them away from there for now. But I don't have anything else..."

She trailed off as she noted the wizard becoming thoughtful. For her part, Hachi glanced at his face before giving a small nod herself and turning towards Umitsubame, "I think that Harry-Chan has an idea or two, Umitsubame-San."

Glancing towards Kyoshu and the others, Harry lowered his voice, "If you want, we can watch over them until you're done. And since the... blade box is here, we could get Goldie here to help out."

For a few moments, Umitsubame considered that before giving a small nod, "That... would be helpful." She looked towards Hachi for a few moments in thought, "And they would be rather safe with both of you. But they could be a handful."

A slight smirk on his face, the wizard shrugged, "I'm used to trouble and such."

That got a snort from Umitsubame as she knew what he meant. Finally, however, she sighed and gave a nod, "I think... I think that could work out very well actually. And it should only be for a few hours." Glancing at the kitchen, she gave him a slight smile, "But just in case, I should show you where everything is so that you can make up some dinner if I run late."

It did not take long for Umitsubame to show Harry around the kitchen, and he mentioned some dishes that he could make, which she nodded about. With that done, he snapped his fingers suddenly, "I almost forgot!"

While he quickly made his way over to the backpack, the spear raised an eyebrow as she glanced at Hachi, "Forgot? Forgot what?"

Grin on his face, Harry looked towards Kenshō, Kyoshu, and Nameless, "I have something here for Kenshō as well as Kyoshu-San and Nameless-San." As the Blade of Faded Memories as well as her daughter came close, he pulled out his surprise, "Panpakapan! These are for you, Kenshō-Chan, Kyoshu-San!"

Upon seeing the plushies, the Kogatana bounced in place excitedly as she threw her arms wide, "Okaa-San! Okaa-San, look! Goldfish!"

Eyes wide and a bright smile on her face, Kyoshu took the bigger of the two plush goldfish which was offered to her, "Hai, goldfish!" Spinning, she presented it to a grinning Nameless who seemed like she was almost about to giggle madly, "Na-Chan! Na-Chan! Look! The Muffin Man gave me goldfish! Mou... is this a prize?"

Lips twitching a little, Harry grinned as he brought out the last gift, which was a blanket with dragons on it, "And this is for you, Nameless-San."

Gleam in her eyes, Nameless took the blanket and cuddled it for a few moments before holding it out to Kyoshu. Said Muramasa gasped before pointing at the blanket, "Umitsubame! Umitsubame! Look! Na-Chan found Mizuchi! Mou..." She furrowed her eyes and looked at her blanket, "Wait, is the blanket a prize for finding goldfish or is the goldfish the prize for finding the blanket Mizuchi... Mou... I'm confused."

Expression one of fond amusement, Umitsubame gave Harry a look before patting Kyoshu on the head, "Well, all three are gifts, so I think that you all won prizes."

Her eyes wide, the Blade of Faded Memories gasped before throwing her hands in the air, one of them holding her plush goldfish, "YAY! WE WON PRIZES!"

Rather than say anything, Umitsubame shook her head. After a few moments of watching Kyoshu dancing around, the spear cleared her voice, "Kyoshu, the others need for me to go and talk with them for a bit. Harry-San as well as Hachi-San will watch you until I get back, okay?"

Blinking, Kyoshu considered that before her face lit up, "Oooh! Does that mean that the Muffin Man might make us some more yummy treats?"

Unable to help himself, Harry laughed a little before nodding, "I'll see what I can do in that case."

With a sigh of relief, the spear nodded a little before hugging Kyoshu followed by Kenshō and then finally Nameless, "I'll see you in a few hours."

Once she was out the door, Harry turned to them with a thoughtful look, "So, any idea as to what we should do?"

____________________________________________________

Evening had fallen by the time that Umitsubame had returned though she had brought with her Suisei, Chisuheri, Akutoku, and Juuchi as well as Tsukiakari. Honjo and Kotegiri were also there. Upon entering, the spear sniffed a bit and blinked, "That... smells delicious."

A chuckle made them turn as Goldie appeared with a slight smirk, "Umu, it should indeed."

Her eyebrow raised, Tsukiakari felt her mouth water a little as she recognized the smell, "Did you make some of your honey cakes, Goldie? Because that is what it smells like."

Lips curling into a smug smirk, the Roman blade nodded, "I have indeed, Tsukiakari. For after I arrived to help the Praetor, one of the things that came up was food." She gave a small bow towards Umitsubame, "I hope that you do not mind."

Just smiling, Umitsubame gave a soft sigh, "I'm actually thankful because that means that I won't have to cook or anything." She gave a sniff herself, "Hmm... do I smell curry?"

Right then, Harry poked his head into view and nodded, "Hai, I made some curry since it was simple."

That got him nods and the Muramasas and Masamunes walked in. As she walked into the dining room, Suisei noted what almost looked like a round, brown cake without icing. She did note that what looked like honey was drizzled on top, "Is this the honey cake?"

Placing her hands on her hips, Goldie smiled proudly, "Indeed it is, Umu! Just like what my first Praetor enjoyed and what the Gods were said to enjoy as well." Looking around, she leaned forward a bit, "It is much quicker to make, however, now."

Needless to say, that made Suisei very intrigued before she turned to the much older blade, "What sort of ingredients are there for it, if you don't mind me asking?"

As it turned out, the Roman blade was very much pleased by the question and ticked off on her fingers, "Honey, eggs, and flour. It is a good dessert once one has had Cena!"

Blinking, Suisei frowned a little, "Just those three ingredients? Really?" At the nod, she hummed in thought, "Would it be too much trouble if..."

Lightly laughing, Goldie shook her head, "I do not mind sharing it, my young friend! For it is from Rome and thus should be shared! As all Roman things!"

Juuchi just sighed before noticing something, "Master? Any idea where Kyoshu, Kenshō, and Nameless are?"

In reply, Harry's lips twitched a little and he nodded towards where the bedrooms were, "After they had their dinner, they went and fell asleep. I think that they're rather happy today."

Everyone shared a look before making their way to Kyoshu's room and peeking in. Upon doing so, their expressions all softened as they took note of the three blades sleeping in the same futon, Kenshō being between Kyoshu and Nameless while covered with said Masamune's new blanket. And both Kenshō and Kyoshu held their stuffed goldfish close with smiles on their faces.

Slowly closing the door, Umitsubame nodded a little, "I think that maybe you should stay the night, Harry-San and take Kenshō-Chan tomorrow."

A smile on his face, Harry nodded in agreement and told them that he had already called Nagato.

It should be stated, however, that they all enjoyed the honey cake.

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

A.N. -- This is a very dark piece as Ehren hits the Dark Night of her Soul, so subject/content warning applies here!! Yes, Wolff is a massive monster as were the Nazis, but no ITG or derails please!! Again, the night is darkest before the dawn.

Ehren Erwacht! (III)

August 10th, 2014

Khohlo ea Marena a Mararo, Central Africa

"Nothing is easier than to denounce the evildoer; nothing is more difficult than to understand him." –- Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Crime and Punishment

Ehren staggered into the small bathroom hewn out of the living stone and closed the door behind her.

She breathed in and out harshly as she leaned against the door before removing her sweat and blood stained dress so she could fold it neatly for the servants -- slaves-- to launder. Her underclothing and sheathed dagger were placed separately and neatly along with the bandages and poultices on the slowly healing wounds from the claws and fangs of the Popobawa. Several fresh bruises dotted her face and torso. Then she scribed privacy wards on the door with her wand while silently thanking Cousin Draco for demonstrating this spell for her while she had stayed at his house.

How long ago that seemed to be!

It was like a dream that vanished when she reached out her hand to grasp it.
Spoiler: Ehren Endures

Trembling and naked, she staggered into the shower and turned the faucet with a savage yank.

Steam filled the air as the scalding water hit her skin.

Unseen in the flow of water from the showerhead were the salt droplets of her finally released tears.

She concentrated on keeping her sobs of grief, of fear, and of pain muffled so the water's hiss would obscure them.

She grabbed a bar of harsh pumice soap and began to lather up almost savagely as her shoulders shook with her sobs.

Her hand paused in cleaning up, then gently touched the slowly fading swollen dark purple bruise on her cheek.

Vati had hit her when she deliberately got a quotation wrong yesterday.

Unbidden the memory hit her with the same power that his fist had.
---------------------

She had detected the subtle tiny signs of puzzlement and suspicion appearing under his expression as she continued to parrot the filth of National Socialism as his 'good little Tochter'. She realized the danger that she was approaching, so she resolved to misattribute or mangle the next hateful saying he would force her to repeat for him.

"Der Führer said that 'the best political weapon is the weapon of terror. Cruelty commands respect. Men may hate us. But, we don't ask for their love; only for their fear', Obersturmführer!"

Red rage filled his eyes as her only warning. His unexpected punch to her cheek staggered her as it snapped her head so far around that she looked over her shoulder before she could jerk it back into the position of attention.

Somehow she had choked down her mad impulse to fight back, her hate-filled desire to grab her true body and use herself on this monster wearing her dead Vati's face before the stone-faced Cortana at his elbow cut her down.

Somehow she had kept her mask up in front of him.

Somehow she had done what her duty -- her true duty -- and her honor -- her true honor, never the perversion that he believed in of blind loyalty to a leader's führerprinzep -- demanded of her.

Her tears of mute impotent rage in that instant she briefly lost control of, however, before she could clamp back down.

Fortunately he mistook them as caused by the pain of the blow and 'womanly weakness'.

"Nein! Those are the words of the Reichsführer-SS, child!" He snapped out. "You must be perfect in doctrine, understanding, and leadership as one of the Herrenvolk must be!"

"Jawohl, Obersturmführer!" She forced out in a voice at the ragged edge of her fraying self control and self-discipline.

"Very well. Next..."
---------------------

Afterward in the endless speeches and interrogations to indoctrinate her she had been able to brace herself physically and mentally to keep the mask up better during his punishment for her 'sloppiness' when she made 'mistakes' to lull his suspicions.

Finally when she was visibly wobbling from weariness, hunger, and the blood flowing from her reopened wounds endless hours later, he relented as she gasped for air after the pushups that were the most recent test of her 'fitness and suitability'.

"Your understanding and racial fitness is acceptable. Barely. For now. I shall order that a uniform be readied for you. Get your wounds tended to, shower and rest. You shall be awakened in four hours for your morning exercise alongside me."

"Zu Befehl, Obersturmführer!" she croaked out.

Now she finally had a moment to herself.

A chance to let loose a small stream from the ocean that she had been holding inside as the pressure on the dam built.

Her grief for the Vati who she had loved once, and had fallen so far.

Her sad understanding that she would never be able to change his course from the plunge into darkness that she was witnessing.

Her hatred of the monster that she was trapped with, and the Ehren that she had to pretend to be to answer him.

Her worries that Kasuyu and Nongqawuse had died in the fighting she had heard upstairs as sleep claimed her.

Her fears that Mutti and Claire were unaware of the monster that was obsessed with turning her family into a warped image of his 'perfect Aryan world' no matter what he had to do to them to force them to fit.

Her vomit joined the water as she thought of Claire instead of her in this waking nightmare.


A͜ ̝̺̥͂͐͂ṉ̸̹̞ͅͅĩ̘͖̯̠̺̖̏̔̑̃̚͞ght̵͎̝͓̱͇͐̇̃ͥͤm͜a̲ͧr̐̀͌e ̑̇̓̈͡tͧͨͫ̏͢h̯a͔̹̞̜͍ͧ̒̾͂̃t͈̩̋̈ ̯̇ẃ̤̺̜̘̹̘ͬ͛ͭ͌̏͢aͭs̻̥͇̩̟͊́̿ͧ͒͝ c̸̫̻̳̻͋ͮ̄͆a͐ͩųͣ́̒ͦ̿̚s̩̰̟̤̻ͫ̆̅ͧ̚in̨g͙͓̗̻͔ t̶h̊́͊̿e̽̓̆̚ ̫̤̯̜̱ͅw̞ͪo͕͎͎̻̟̓ͭͧ̓̽̕r̶̼̹̯̪̜̃̑̄͌̐s͏̰͙̠̼̺͕̥tͥ ̾f̻͚e̙̾a̼̜̲͙̮͎̜r̩̥̺̯̫̖̲͗͒ͩ̓̿́̂ t͙͙͚̦͓̭̫ͯ̒ͩͧ͆̅̋h̹͍̝ͅa̶͔͉̜̘̥̠͊̄̓ͤͫͨt̬̞̔́̚ ̘̞͇̟̯̮͢ͅs̟̤͚̙̜͙̮͋ͭ̉̇͐ͤ̾he̠̣̲̯̤̬͇ ̩̭͖̘̻̺͈̏̑͌ͭ̓ͬ́k̔̆͂ͥ̅̾̀e̛̠͈̻pt̵̫͍͒̚ ̀͒́̋ͩͧhi͈̣̯̣̞̳̽̎ͭ̃̊̚d̻̯͙̥ͅd̫͉̳̼̭̪͐̎̒̆̄̀e̘ͩn̤̱ͨͦ̕ ̍ͭ͜a҉w͖̱͇̗̠̰͈̃ͫ̽̏̈ͫ͌́ả̏̽̇y͚̠͙͉̺̙̻̔̎̾ͬ͑̾̎͝ ̡̙̲͙̻̯̇ͨ̋̈́̌ț̞̼̣̱͕͒͊͐ͪ̈͆o̊͂ͭ͏ ̮̜̖̣̝̹̺̔ͮͮͪͬͧ̆g̗ͭ͞r͗̔̐ͯ̓ͮ̃͏͉̯̥͚͙̳̰o̿͏w̖͕̗̰͓̺ ͉͉̂͌c̶͓̲̳̦̙ͣ͑͌̌̚l̝̫͇̺͕ô̹͚̝̈̎s̵e̪̒ŗ͉̹͈͊̄ͦ̑ͅ ̠͓̉̽a̭͈ͫ̓n̦̬̾ͯ͞d ̞͉̼͙͈̜̦̓ͫͩ͒ͯ̌̄͠m̰̗͚̿̅̚or̦̗̘͇͐͑͗͛͝e̖̺͚̊̆̈͟ ̨͈͓̂ͨr̮͎̳͍̲e̫͙̍̊ḁ̠̞̬̞̫͎̄̒̅ͯͧ̀̈l͚̖͕ͩ̑̔ͮͅ ̸̭̗̟̲̋͑̌̚wi͓͖t͙̩͔͖̦͐ͣͥ͊̚͢h̉̍̍̀̍ ̴̯̪̰̘͇̤̒ͫ͐̓ͧͥè͚̭a͋̍ͨ̀ch͟ l͗ḯ̇̆́ͤė͚̤̞̘͈͇̞͆̾͐ͤ͑͛ ̵̽́ͮ̆͊ͨ̅tͧ͋ͯ̒ͨͪh̻͍͉͈aͩ͐̈́̓t͚̘̯̦̪ͤ̾̑̌͗̐ͅ ̵͇̺̗͈̤̜͉̏͛͊ͦ͂̍̀ș̱̱̙͔̦̤ͨ̆͗ͨͥͩͨhe̳̜͙ ͓̼̱̓̉͊s̗̺͋ͭp͖̜̹͖̘͔̀o̝̘̺k̨̘̥e̶ͦ͂̎͛̃ ̨̜̋


The recurring nightmare that always had caused her to wake screaming in horror in her bed before she crawled into Claire's bed for reassurance that someone loved her even then.

The dream that always began with her standing proudly in the railyard of Konzentrationslager Auschwitz gesturing idly with her riding crop for her subordinates to pick out which Untermensch would be allowed to work for the 'glory of the Reich' as slaves until they died from starvation, disease, and beatings.

And which ones were of no use and would be instead immediately sent to the waiting gas chambers and crematoria that endlessly turned human beings with all their hopes and dreams, loves and hates, possibilities and might-have-beens into clouds of blowing ash and soot.

Crematoria that she feared that Ehren in the black and silver of the Schutzstaffel would send Claire to with an uncaring flick of her wrist.

And worst of all, it was so easy to contemplate becoming that Ehren.

What good was fighting any more when no one knew that she was here, no one knew where she was, and she faced foes that were past her failing strength of mind and heart and will? Why keep lying and staining her honor when she could just refuse to speak and face the fury of the monster that she was under the command of?

She could just take that one small step into darkness, make it easier on herself, not struggle and resist just as much.

Or plant her feet here and defy him rather than try to dance another step along the razor's edge. Force him to destroy her rather than continue to falsely submit.

She could....

But she wouldn't.

Even if Vati broke her in the bitter end, she would never bend to him.

She would fight with everything she had for every priceless second to give her family and her loved ones a chance to act when she could not.

Even if it was hopeless.

Even if no one else would ever know of her torments.

Because she would know.

And Her Honor Was Faithfulness.

As Ehren finally bottled up her tears once more to prepare for bed, her red-rimmed steel-blue eyes saw an image form in a cloud of the steam from the shower as as gust of wind smelling of ozone and the clean scent of the Black Hills seemed to tickle her nose.

The ghostly breeze carried the faintest whispered echo of Claire playing Wagner for her Best Little Dagger Sister, causing the steam to dance with the ethereal notes, forming hazy visions.

Her Mutti's face filled with concern and love and worry formed. Then Kasuyu's solidity manifested itself next to Colombe as he placed a hand on her mother's shoulder reassuringly. Nongqawuse seemed to look into her heart with a penetrating glance. Next was Tokunotakai's serene confidence as her future stepmother nodded to her, one samurai to another. Niobe appeared next, her eyes filled with concern and worry paired with a righteous fury. Finally her grandmother's face, swam into being in the drifting steam giving her a proud cocky smile and a thumbs-up.

More followed in silent procession.

Aunt Del. Draco Malfoy. Zamarad. Aunt Jackie. Big Sister Ying. Grandaunt Jez. Johnston. Cleopatra. Ron Weasley.

All of them had the same message in their own ways in their own faces as the steam faded.

Endure.

You do not stand alone.

Help is coming.

With that Ehren's spine stiffened with renewed steel and her chin rose as she prepared for bed.

 

[darthcourt10]

Harry Leferts

Grimacing, the man wrung his hands as he paced in the darkened room. Here and there various things were on display. Jars filled with various things, books shelves filled with handwritten notes as well as magic. And that was not mentioning the various magical instruments and the like. Glancing at the surgical tools on a table, he shuddered before turning, "You don't understand, Tenma-Kun, the Diet is-"

A young woman who looked like she was sixteen twisted around and snarled, "Do not call me by that name!" Still scowling, she adjusted her dress before flipping her hair over her shoulder, "Call me Kiran for now."

For a few moments, the older man stared before shuddering, "A-ah, right, sorry about that Te-Kiran-Kun."

Eyes piercing through him, Kiran scoffed a bit, "I don't know what you want me to do. So the Diet is falling due to no confidence? Because it was completely ineffective? It matters not to me in the slightest, Genka-Kun."

With a look around, Genka swallowed, "W-well... you were working on some projects for the Diet-"

More amused than anything, the teenage girl leaned against a desk that held various things, "Hai, through you mainly. Thus, none of them know that I am here or whom I am, correct?"

Catching the tone in her voice, Genka paled a bit and found himself perspiring, "O-of course not! Only I know where you are and whom you are, I swear-"

Upon hearing the floor squeak above, he flinched. Rolling her eyes, Kiran waved him off, "That's just my... Okaa-San..." That seemed to be a source of dark amusement for her before she chuckled, "She really won't be an issue as I have her under my control." Wand in her hands, the teen twirled it, "Funny really."

Just chuckling wearily, Genka patted his damp forehead with a cloth, "H-hai, funny. Ha..." Swallowing, he took a deep breath, "B-but surely, you understand what problems could arise. After all, without the Diet, there's no protection for your... projects regarding certain matters."

Frowning, Kiran glared at him, "That better not be a threat, Genka-Kun." When he shook his head rapidly and seemed more frightened while assuring her that it was not, she relaxed, "Besides which, I do not know why you came to me. Wouldn't the other project that you spoke to me about be better? The one using the powers from that one sword to manipulate shipgirls? From memory, that project was easily able to manipulate normal people back in the War via memory. Was even testing it on some useless sword. Use it in this case."

That caused a wince from the older man as he patted his forehead again before weakly chuckling, "Ah, well... um... we can't because, er... he's dead."

It went without saying that Kiran blinked at that and paused for a moment, "Dead?" Becoming thoughtful, she frowned, "Huh... did he attempt it on a shipgirl and it fail, perhaps?"

A frown on his face, Genka sighed and shook his head, "From what we know, a group with some of the Masamunes captured him and... disposed of him." Muttering, he shook his head, "Shame too, he was close and once it worked on shipgirls, we could fix things."

Simply ignoring that, the teenage girl hummed, "Not surprising, he was far too arrogant for his own good. Even back during the War." Then she gave him a raised eyebrow, "So, once more, why come to me?"

Opening his mouth, Genka paused and closed it. Then, he opened it again as he took a deep breath, "Because of your... skills. And the fact that with the Diet now coming fully apart, some of us may find the need to be hidden, as it were." A shudder went through him as he looked around, "Kotegiri is on the hunt, for both those like you and some of us whom were involved in things."

Extremely amused, Kiran giggled some which made Genka flinch, "Of course, the truth now comes out. But then..." Twirling her wand around her fingers, she smirked as she took a step forward, "Death has that effect on people. Very well, I am sure that we can come to something-"

The older man blinked as the teen seemed to freeze in place, "Kiran-Kun? What's wrong? Kiran-" He looked around the room, but couldn't see anything before hearing a dark giggle, "Who's there!?"

From a corner of the room, a pink haired Kitsune seemed to melt from the shadows with another giggle and a smile on her face which seemed to cause his heart to nearly stop as every instinct told him to run screaming and not look back. Two bronze colored eyes looked at him in the same sort of interest that one might give an insect... or, perhaps, how Kiran had looked at some of her projects. Said Kitsune was also wearing a low cut bluish-purple Kimono top that exposed quite a bit of cleavage.

Both that, as well as how her chest bounced and her hips swayed with each step, caused Genka to stare. That was, until he realized that she was right in front of him, "I-I... who... who are you?"

Noticing how his eyes kept looking at her chest, the Kitsune gave another giggle, "Mmmm, the name's Taiyang~" Briefly, her finger traced along his forehead before she hummed, "Sad."

Unable to fully drag his eyes up from the two mounds of barely clothed flesh which bounced, Genka managed, somehow, to glance up and meet her eyes, "S-sad? How?"

Her finger tracing along his jaw bone and then under it to the other side, Taiyang moved past him, "You don't have any useful information for me or my Master. A shame, I was hoping to have some fun."

Confused, Genka looked over at her though he noticed that she had his wand in her fingers, "Wha-"

Moments later, his eyes widened as a red line appeared where Taiyang had traced her finger along his neck which began to weep blood as it grew in width and depth. They were still wide as his head slipped off his neck entirely. Before the blood could spray much, or his head could hit the ground, his remains burst into a bright blue flame that burnt it all to a white, ashy powder.

Said pile of powder began to blow away in the draft once the flames died away.

Taiyang, meanwhile, didn't even glance at it or pay it the slightest bit of mind as she walked up to Kiran. Examining her for a few moments, she glanced at the wand before grabbing it in her fingers before pocketing it, "Hmm, I'll have to take it apart later to better look at these wands. Could be interesting." Noticing that Kiran's eyes were looking at her, she smiled a little, "Now, you, on the other hand... do have useful information for myself and my Master."

Lips curling into a smirk, she tapped the teenage girl's head, "Bitch!"

Gigging, Taiyang simply shook her head, "Not a bitch, that would be an Inugami, I'm afraid. Vixen, however~" Upon hearing Kiran mutter something and pause, she laughed, "Oh, right, your traps? Already taken care of. They were interesting because some were new, but not so because of their effectiveness. Quite nasty as well, such as the one regarding the woman above us."

Unnerved now, Kiran tried various other words, only for each one to fail as the Kitsune became more and more smug. Suddenly breaking out into a sweat, she gave Taiyang a fearful look, "Who are you... really?"

Another giggle escaped from the foxy woman as she practically bounced up to Kiran. Pressing herself against the teen's body, her eyes glowed a little as she nuzzled her under the chin, "Who am I? Well, as I said, I am Taiyang... the spirit of the Dao of Tamamo no Mae."

It went without saying that Kiran went ghostly white at those words and despite the spell, shuddered, "No... impossible... that sword was lost..."

Dark, throaty laughter came from Taiyang's mouth as she licked her ear and nibbled it, "Oh, not lost, never lost. Just... waiting, for my Master to return." Pulling back, she hummed as she considered the girl in front of her, "My Master, who has given me a mission that you could help me with."

While the dao went and began to examine some of the books, the teenage girl swallowed. She could get out of this, it just needed some time to do so, "O-oh? And how can I be of help to your truly great master?" Turning to her, Taiyang had a smile on her face before giving a bark of laughter. Barks that soon turned into howls of laughter as she had to lean against the bookcase to stay standing, tears coming from her face. As the laughter slowly faded, and despite the anger burning in her gut at the embarrassment and shame, Kiran grit her teeth, "What is so funny, Taiyang-Dono."

Flicking a tear away from her eye and still smiling, Taiyang giggled again, "Why, you of course!"

Once more walking up, sway in her hips, the Dao looked her in the eyes for several seconds. Despite herself, Kiran felt a shudder of cold fear coil in her gut, "W-what?"

Rather than answer, Taiyang hummed a bit as she pulled back, "Interesting... very interesting. You..." She pointed one claw tipped finger at Kiran, "Are a human, fully and completely. And yet, here you are using something akin to Kitsune-Tsuki. Overlaying another's soul with your own! How very intriging!"

Kiran felt her stomach drop out at those words and she could feel her heart racing... or, rather, her borrowed heart, "H-how...?"

More than a little amused, the foxy sword shook her head, "Because the eyes, my dear. Your eyes tell the tale of what is truly happening. You somehow figured out how to transform yourself into a spiritual entity, most likely briefly. After which, you took some poor girl's body for your own, it would seem." Cocking her head to the side, she smiled a bit, "And considering your previous words, it was so that you could cheat death! Clever, to an extent, I suppose."

Anger burning deep in them at those words, Kiran snarled, "Clever! CLEVER! I'll show you-"

Suddenly, Taiyang was there and placed a finger against her lips, "Shhh... enough of that. It was clever, but not enough to escape." Looking at the clock on another table, she sighed a little, "Ah, well... the night is getting on and I only have so much time! How nice of the Diet to distract not just my Master's daughters, but that Kote-Chan for tonight! Otherwise, I would have had to race her to you, I will have you know. And your friends from your old work... already visited one tonight." Reaching into her pocket, the dao pulled out an time turner, "Had one of these, presumably to help his research. Very interesting little thing, though he has no need of it now..."

With their anger now turned to complete and utter terror, the possessed teen looked into the two bronze eyes and felt the need to run. But they were unable to move or speak once more. That gaze however... it was like a great white shark meeting a barracuda that thought itself the greatest predator in the sea.

Giggling some, Taiyang pressed herself up against the frozen teen's body, revelling in the terror she could taste. With a hum, she wet her lips some and shuddered, "Oh, that! I like that! But... our time shall come to an end. Though I suppose that it is a good thing in that the woman upstairs will not only not lose her daughter, but finding her returning to her!"

And with that, she brought up her finger, slowly trailing along the other girl's cheek, up the side of the head, until it reached the middle of the forehead. Keeping it there, Taiyang licked her along the jawline until her lips reached Kiran's ear. Nibbling and sucking on the earlobe, she took a deep whiff.

Yet another shudder went through her and she smiled as her hot, moist breath ghosted across Kiran's skin before she spoke softly, gently... darkly, "Oh, and please do scream inside of your head. This will hurt you, a lot, and that always makes it even more pleasurable for this foxy sword."

Kiran barely had time to hear that before Taiyang's finger plunged into her head and the possessed teen's eyes went wide.

Three hours later, Taiyang removed her finger from the teen's forehead, somehow not leaving a mark behind. Humming thoughtfully, she tapped her chin, "So you believed that you would find a way to possess the body of a shipgirl or Abyssal?" Lips curling a bit, she tittered, "How amusing!" Leaning forward, the Dao looked into the now blank eyes of the teen, dried tear tracks staining her cheeks, "Not that is much of an issue now, I suppose."

For the next few minutes, she grabbed everything from the laboratory, making sure not to miss a single thing. The whole time, Taiyang hummed to herself as she skipped and bounced doing her work, completely unheeding of the small amount of ash on the floor or the frozen teenage girl. When she was done, she gave a small nod before smiling.

Of course, that was when Taiyang snapped her fingers, "Ah, right! Almost forgot!" Walking over to the teen, she placed her hand on the other girl's chest and gave a push. Instead of the frozen teen going backwards, another body shot out of her back and hit the ground bonelessly. Ignoring the girl, Taiyang stepped around her before examining the other body, which was that of an old man. Like the girl, he had a sightless gaze even though his chest rose and fell slowly. Just humming a bit, Taiyang leaned down and smiled a little, "Oh, my Master does thank you, though she was... displeased that the sister project you were involved in worked on her pelt, as did you! Still, you do deserve a reward~"

Moments later, the Dao ignored the blaze behind her as she grabbed the teenage girl. Then, she walked up the stairs with the limp body and opened the door before taking note of the older woman who was slumped in a chair, unconscious. Finger tapping her chin, Taiyang considered things before walking over and placing her finger inside the woman's head.

After a few minutes, Taiyang gave a nod, "There we go! Fixed everything, now you won't remember what he had you do!" Looking at the teen's, Kiran's, body propped up against the wall, she picked it up before walking over to the stairs and laying it there as if the teen had fallen down them. Using one of her nails, she made a cut along the head, blood oozing out before standing, "And there we go! Sorry that I had to hurt you, but it is for the best to cover up those nasty memories!"

With a nod, the foxy blade walked out the door and closed it before snapping her fingers. Just seconds later, she heard an older female screech out her daughter's name and the sound of her rushing to the stairs. With a happy smile, Taiyang giggled a little as she walked off into the night, "Busy, busy tonight! But the fun never ends~"

Several days later, Kiran opened the door to the basement before looking around. After all, her mother was worried due to her hitting her head apparently. Though the teenage girl had to admit, she was somewhat concerned as well what with a few months worth of memories gone. Her friends had visited her in the hospital when they learned of her amnesia, though according to them for a while there before her accident it seemed like she was an entirely different person.

That got a snort from her and she shook her head as she walked down into the basement and continued down the stairs, carefully, after turning on the light. For the past few days since she got out of the hospital, her mother had been practically hovering around her, completely worried. It did make her happy, but... Kiran had become rather frustrated as well.

Despite her accident, she was not made out of glass!

Grumbling a bit, she reached the bottom of the stairs and looked around. Upon seeing the shelves, and tables, she frowned a little, "When did we get those?"

Scratching her head, Kiran shrugged and looked around before noticing something. Quickly, she went back upstairs before returning with a broom and dustpan. Walking over towards a table, she looked down at the pile of what looked like white ash that was there before sweeping it into the dustpan. After dumping it into the trashcan, she went back downstairs to look around as she thought of what to do with the empty space.

Maybe turn it into a rec room for her and her friends to hang out in?

 

[darthcourt10]

Yellowhammer

A.N. -- And now we flip the focus to Team Vatipire Lynch Mob~~ Wolff is a massive monster as were the Nazis, but no ITG or derails please, rescue is coming and Hell's coming with them (and dumpster fires)!!

Ehren Erwacht! (IV)

August 9th, 2014

N'djili Airport, Kinshasha, Democratic Republic of the Congo Central Africa

"Going up that river was like travelling back to the earliest beginnings of the world, when vegetation rioted on the earth and the big trees were kings. An empty stream, a great silence, an impenetrable forest. The air was warm, thick, heavy, sluggish. There was no joy in the brilliance of sunshine. The long stretches of the waterway ran on, deserted, into the gloom of overshadowed distances. On silvery sandbanks hippos and alligators sunned themselves side by side. The broadening waters flowed through a mob of wooded islands; you lost your way on that river as you would in a desert, and butted all day long against shoals, trying to find the channel, till you thought yourself bewitched and cut off forever from everything you had known once -somewhere- far away in another existence perhaps. There were moments when one's past came back to one, as it will sometimes when you have not a moment to spare to yourself; but it came in the shape of an unrestful and noisy dream, remembered with wonder amongst the overwhelming realities of this strange world of plants, and water, and silence. And this stillness of life did not in the least resemble a peace. It was the stillness of an implacable force brooding over an inscrutable intention. It looked at you with a vengeful aspect." -- Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness
Spoiler: A Return To The Congo

Two women stepped out of the airport terminal into the tropical sunshine, dots of white in the teeming dark masses of the natives. The golden blond one on the right smirked smugly and spoke to her platinum blond companion in German with a faint Dutch/Saxon accent thanks to the long-dead servant who had taught her the language. "{Well let's get a taxi and check in at our hotel, Niobe.}"

Niobe nodded and then watched as Colombe haggled with the driver in a mix of French and Lingala, before handing him several dollar bills. "{Is it always this hot?}" She fanned herself with a palm to try to create a breeze in the muggy humid air as she stood there in her ankle length and long-sleeved Victorian traveling dress. Colombe, next to her was dressed in a lightweight cotton blouse and well-worn khaki pants.

Colombe shrugged absently as they got into the rusting 1978 Honda Civic that was serving as a taxi. "{Sometimes it's worse. You get used to it over time. Thanks for picking up my Jeep, incidentally.}"

The shipgirl looked around at the chaotic bustle of the third largest city of Africa. "{I have the deck space for it and the gasoline cans for fuel. So now that we are in country, now what?}"

Colombe looked through the crowded streets. "{Once we get some privacy, you unpack the others from your captain's cabin and hand me back my true body. Then we use the hilt pin and portkey to get a better fix on where Ehren is in Central Africa and go from there. I wish that I'd had you along the last two times I was here, you are making things so much easier.}"

Niobe blinked. "{Easier?}"

Colombe frowned. "{Yes, easier. The first time I was here was in 1895 and it was a trap. I had to borrow a canoe to get out of town one step ahead of the law after I dealt with the Hit Wizards sent for me. Once I managed to figure out that my bâtard great-grandnephew Hippolyte was responsible I walked out to the Eastern coast.}" She spoke with considerable venom and then sighed. "{More or less, it took me the better part of three years to get to someplace remotely resembling civilization and I still don't totally know how I pulled it off. Too angry to die, I thought at the time, although I wonder if the prophecy Hachiman gave To-chan thirty years before that helped keep me alive. Second time I had to walk in from the south to free Kasuyu after my horses died. At least I was better equipped and prepared for that journey.}"

The French rapier barked a laugh as an elderly truck filled with goods piled haphazardly along with dozens of people clinging to the sides and perched on the top moved out of their way. "{I suppose third time's the charm for dealing with this jungle. Between my experiences, the hilt pin to divine a location, Kasuyu, Nongqawuse, and I speaking the local languages -- well some of them, there's about seventy different tribal dialects at least -- and the money I pulled from my accounts to hire guides, boats, horses, and other expenses plus the gear you have in your hold we'll find Ehren.}"

Niobe nodded and her jaw set. Meanwhile Colombe scowled murderously as she finished. "{Oh, we'll find Ehren.}"

Hotel Royal, Kinshasha

Colombe started to laugh hysterically at the sight of the massive bulk of the 1880s two-story stone building in all its decayed but still overbearing splendor. Niobe gave her a curious look as they passed armed paramilitary private security to approach the hotel. "{What's so funny?}"

"{In a moment. To-chan will want to hear it.}" Colombe responded, before turning to the desk clerk and using her platinum VISA and a bribe to get two adjoining rooms reserved for her and Niobe. With that they walked to the stairs and once inside the room, Colombe chuckled at the late colonial kitsch, clearly designed to impress credulous tourists.

Niobe handed over the rapier that she had stored before they drove to the airport in Brussels, then she pulled out a katana and nodachi from her hold. Norimune and Tokunotakai manifested from them and immediately started to perspire despite the best efforts of the fan and air conditioner in the room. Kasuyu and Nongqawuse were next to emerge from their true bodies. The axe grinned broadly as he poured water for the others who were casting cooling charms upon themselves. The bracelet stood as silently watchful as always.

Niobe turned to Colombe who was looking with interest at the stonework of the wall, tracing patterns on the worn granite stones. "All right, what was so funny about this hotel?"

Colombe turned in response to the question and began to laugh once more. "This was the brothel I was visiting when Hippolyte's hit wizards came for my head in 1895. Damn inconsiderate timing as well. I wonder how long it took them to fix the wall I blew out to make a hole to escape through? I can barely see the patch job they did."

Niobe began to giggle uncontrollably while Tokunotakai blushed scarlet to the roots of her hair. Norimune doubled over and pounded the table with a fist. "That's my girl! So, was it a good brothel?"

Colombe shrugged. "Been in worse for sure. Never came back here after the fight so can't say for sure since I got interrupted before I finished. Anyway enough of the past; let's get started."
Spoiler: Divining The Trail

With that, Niobe placed a map of Africa down on the table with a pair of straight lines shooting down the spine of the continent from someplace above and slightly to the left of center. Midway through the Dark Continent a pair of arcs intersected the lines, forming a roughly rectangular area covering most of the central area. Colombe pulled out a pushpin and stuck it into their location in Kinshasha.

"Right..." She picked up a small steel pin suspended from a silk string and began to chant in Arabic as she let it swing above the map as her eyes closed. A golden aura the color of her hair formed around the pendulum and Colombe's hand as five sets of eyes followed the movements of Ehren's hilt pin.

Suddenly the pendulum jerked to the right as if the pin had been pulled by an invisible string. It froze in midair as the golden aura turned steel blue with flecks of gold and then vibrated back and forth in a short, sharp arc.

The map glowed and a second set of straight lines connected by two arcs filled in on it, cutting the area bounded significantly into a chunk of the Congo.

Colombe's eyes opened and she grinned smugly. "Gotcha."

Kasuyu rumbled as he tapped the map. "North Kivu, Ituri, or perhaps Tshopo province. A sliver of Uganda too. Rain forest, swamps and mountains. Difficult, very difficult. Also politically unstable."

"Ewe." Nongqawuse nodded as she spoke quietly. "But we have a location."

Colombe leaned forward. "Indeed we do, and that's rather unexplored, or was when I was here before. One more Divination then. Niobe, can you hand me my geomancy supplies?"

The shipgirl pulled out a silk pouch inscribed with a Sri Yantra Hindu symbol composed of nine interlocking triangles, and then a beaten-copper bowl with a flat bottom inscribed with the symbols of the four elements around the circumference. Tokunotakai looked at Colombe curiously. "Co-chan, what's this?" Next to her, Norimune leaned in curiously.

Colombe paused as she set the bowl over the map and then carefully placed the swastika pin precisely in the center. "It's a form of foretelling, similar to the Chinese I Ching. The sacred ash makes patterns when I cast the spell that can be interpreted by an adept to glimpse the future." She smirked. "I learned how to do this in India and was using it to track Father down after I learned it."

Norimune coughed, "Considering you went the wrong damn way to find me at the time, I'm not confident, Colombe." Colombe shot her father a dirty look at the jab as Kasuyu coughed suspiciously.

Colombe sprinkled ash in a circle around the pin. She then looked at her smirking father and pointed as she snapped out with a scowl. "It worked, didn't it? We're in the same room and I resolved the matter of my oath to call you to account for Mother which is what I was looking for every time before when I used it. Now, hush, this one takes some doing."

With that Colombe began to chant in Dravidian, gesturing fluidly as sweat started to bead her brow.

As the others watched, the ash rippled and began to snake to form four single diamond-shaped clusters at each cardinal point as the northern symbol of fire illuminated with a red-white flaming aura. Fire flickered around Colombe's hands as she continued to chant.

Then the clusters to the east and south split into two equal clusters as the eastern symbol of Air blazed blue-white. The flames around her hands snuffed and ripples of mist formed around Colombe's fingers as her brow furrowed.

The southern cluster then rejoined itself as the Water symbol that it was oriented to flickered to life with a blue-green aura that rippled like the droplets of water forming across Colombe's hands.

Suddenly all four clusters moved as one, the Air cluster flowing into a single point as Water, Fire and then Earth, now glowing verdant green with hints of brown split apart. Colombe's hands were covered in vegetation briefly before she made a sudden cutting motion and snapped out in a voice of command. "Bas!!"

With that, the ash being used suddenly flashed to nothingness and turned to a small cloud of smoke.

Nongqawuse narrowed her scarlet eyes. "You Saw beyond the present in the patterns. What did you discern?"

Colombe frowned as she took a glass of water from Kasuyu and drank it then spoke in a strained voice as she wiped sweat from her brow. "Not as much as I would like. The first sign is Via, representing movement, travel, a road at the beginning. I believe that refers to us and our journey, and is somewhat positive under the circumstances. Then Carcer, the Prison which represents confinement, obstacles, escape blocked, which is a bad sign. Carcer is linked with Puella, the girl, which is a passive and constrained sign. Acted upon, not an active participant as opposed to the male Puer which is her inverse. That's probably in some way representative of Ehren. Finally, in conclusion I saw Rubeus, which is a bad sign indeed. Passion, deception, violence, destruction. Evil in all that is Good, and Good in all that is Evil as the nature of events are inverted."

Colombe shrugged. "Not that it mattered if it was all the negative signs in a row, I'd still go through with it. Let's grab some food from the hotel bar and grill and then see about acquiring transport upriver and finding out what the political situation is there."

 

[darthcourt10]

Lord Khuzdul

Well, this is more of an interlude, to set the scene. It did run a bit long, so I decided to post it. The rest will not be long in coming.

- - -

Meanwhile, a few kilometers east of Erzurum, at the village of Hızırilyas

Barbaros collapsed into the rickety wooden chair of the village coffee house. Her keel was aching. She felt like she just did a circumnavigation of the world, with a load of bad coal.

She exhaled, and looked over to the young auror sleeping slumped over a table across the room, a glass of tea cooling in front of him. She smiled. The young man, and his comrades, have been worth their weight in gold over the past week. While Barbaros herself, Turgutreis, the awliya of various tekke in the mountains, a couple of marid clans living near the various streams of the region, and surprisingly, a clan of vampires living in the nearby town of Oltu, had been their main force in containing the undead army, the handful of aurors that could be spared had been doing almost everything else, and running themselves ragged doing that. They were the ones who evacuated the half a dozen villages between Sarıkamış and here, the village of Hızırilyas, before they were overrun. They were the ones who found the ancient wardstones in various ruins dotting the region, to ensure the marid sorcerers can set up and maintain the wards that kept the city of Erzurum ignorant of the doom marching towards it. They were the ones who arranged safe holding areas for the displaced populace. Even though Barbaros found dosing whole villages with magical knockout gas, portkeying them to holding areas, keeping them asleep until this mess is over and then modifying their memories en masse distasteful, she clearly saw that they had no other options, not unless they wanted everything to be blown right open before anyone was ready.

She stretched and rose, deciding to make the most of her short break. There were only four shipgirls available to the combined forces – Demirhisar, Mecidiye, Turgutreis, and herself. While Enver's zombies lacked heavy artillery, they somehow managed to scratch together a lot of 75mm field guns. Barbaros remembered the report of the vampires about that one – the zombies gathered in a circle and started digging, and pulled, piece by piece, one of the field guns of the doomed 2nd Army destroyed during the battle that killed them out of the ground. It was bewildering, as the guns shouldn't have been there at all. Thankfully, so far, they have failed to conjure any of the howitzers and mountain guns the same army carried. However, the presence of those 75mm guns meant Demirhisar needed to stay at the back. However, that also meant the remaining three shipgirls had more work to do. So far, they rotated, two on the line, one resting. And it was her turn.

As she made to leave, Barbaros stopped. She glanced at the sleeping auror again. Quietly, she pulled one of the cots her crew used from her hull, and set it at the back, near the counter, out of the way of anyone that might use the shop. She then gathered the sleeping man in her arms, and laid him down on the cot, covering him with a blanket, again from her hull. The man did not even stir, completely out of it, thanks to his exhaustion.

She then walked out of the shop, grabbing one of the snacks set out for the fighters. It was simple, just a half loaf of fresh bread, stuffed with salty, hard cheese the region was famous for, and slices of tomato, but it felt like manna from heaven.

In the distance, a roar and a gout of flame signaled the position of one of the marid Sultans, cutting loose. She smiled. The powerful jinn were a godsend, anchoring the line almost as well as one of the shipgirls could. Not to mention how their households quickly set their logistics – nonexistent before their arrival – to rights. Still, as awesome to see one of the Sultans act like a living flamethrower of massive scale, they still lacked some capabilities the shipgirls possessed. Primary among them being indirect fire. And actual experience with military operations.

As she moved towards the makeshift repair baths set up in a barn nearby, she let her shoulders slump in weariness. Her belt could ignore everything Enver's zombies threw at him, but the state faithful soldiers were brought down to, and the daily sacrifices of those around her, wore down her soul.

'Please Yavuz… be quick. I don't know how long we can hold out.'

~ ~ ~

Down by the bank of Süngütaşı stream, a ways south of the village, Turgutreis was in the thick of things. Enver's forces were again probing the cordon they set up. The stream and its steep valley had been a blessing – they were finally able to actually stop the progress of the force at it. Turgutreis did not even want to think what would have happened if Enver decided to take a more southerly route. As it is, the first battle at the Hızırilyas bridges a little way to the north was a close run thing. They only stopped the undead advance by the arrival of the Kasımoğlu Marids, with Sultan Kasım leading them dropping on top of the undead horde like the wrath of God. They still lost dozens of dervishes, with far more still recovering behind the lines, wounded. The marids did not escape unscathed either – apparently, someone on the other side, probably the Shaitan Hızır suspected to be present, knew how to hurt the jinn. Sultan Kasım got hit by a bullet that streaked like a black star towards the end of the battle, and even though he survived, he was still comatose in a house at the village, watched over by one of his daughters, while the rest of his family held the line. She shook her head. She was worried about the rest of the encirclement. To the south, one of the two parts of their lines that did not anchor on a stream held a line of hills – barely bumps in the already very bumpy terrain – between the wider, larger Süngütaşı and smaller Saat Deresi. Turgut considered that part of their line the weakest link. To the north, between the villages of İnkaya and Süngütaşı, bands of vampires Hasan Aga brought with him made any breakout turn into a horror show. Behind the army, Şakirzade marids, a major clan of the Aras valley, had arrived to plug the gap at Saat Deresi and turned the valley into a charnelhouse.

As her secondaries blew apart another bayonet charge, she felt the familiar dismay at broken bodies crawling back together, with limbs moving like snakes over the ground to rebuild the zombies as they retreated. Her high explosive turned the zombies into mush, but something, some infernal force kept them going, kept them pulling back together, and they always came back. The bridges, the scene of Enver's initial attack, were long gone by now. Barbaros and Turgutreis, in their desperation, turned to their heaviest artillery, their 28cm guns, and blew both bridges apart. However, the fighting shifted south after that. Here, prep work for a new highway narrowed the stream with a high sided concrete channel in preparation for an overpass. Enver used his 75mm guns and some explosive charges to collapse the channel into the river, turning the location into a makeshift ford. Since then, attack after attack came over the rubble, and the wider, shallower section of the river just upstream. The small area was starting to look like the surface of the moon, or the landscape she remembered seeing in Gallipoli.

As she slapped aside another 75mm shell – where do they keep finding these damn things anyway – she watched in despair as to her left, a band of dervishes laid into another bayonet charge over the shallows. The zombies were thick as ants in the water, and even with artillery support from her and her machineguns on the heights over the bank, they still made it into the disused irrigation canal turned trench that protected them. Hand to hand fighting developed quickly, with dervishes using maces and scimitars fighting bayonet and club wielding zombies. The zombies were eventually pushed back, when one of the marids in the line made it to the section and started turning the zombies into charred husks with short, controlled blasts of fire, but as they pulled back under a hail of bullets from her Maxims, she could already see dozens of dervishes strewn through the trench, bleeding.

'They are endless, yet we keep dying. Yavuz, please. Whatever you are doing, do it quick.'

~ ~ ~

Mecidiye just wanted to sleep. She wanted Hamidiye here, she wanted her bed, she wanted to be away from the smell of death that overtook her everytime the zombies approached. She had long decided she hated land warfare. At least the Abyssals did not stink.

"Even keeping Hamidiye out of trouble is better than this," she groused.

She heard a laugh from the side. The male marid looked nothing like the jinn of stories, instead looking just like any other local villager, with a battered pair of slacks, a three day beard, and a faded ballcap advertising some agricultural equipment company. "Your friend, cruiser Hamidiye, right? The ship of Rauf Bey. I remember seeing her in Trabzon. Back when she was still floating, of course. Nice looking ship, but I have always preferred American engineering." He tapped the visor of his cap, with 'John Deere' emblazoned on it.

Mecidiye suppressed an entirely inappropriate giggle. Ekrem, one of the sons of Sultan Şakir, had been a great help and comfort during these days. The man was cheerful, competent, and stable. Even during the worst assaults, he managed to keep his cool, and even cracked a joke and two. Mecidiye could not even imagine how she would have coped if the wisecracking marid was not next to her when at times, she felt like she was holding the front together with her fingertips as people died around her.

Her marid companion turned towards the frontline, where a band of dervishes were turning back another probing attack with the help of two younger marids. "Seems stable."

"So far," replied Mecidiye, her eyes scanning the field, trying to discern enemy movements through the smoke. "After Barbaros blew apart the last massed attack, no attempt in force materialized. But we are still losing men," she glanced at the field hospital a few marids and awliya set up behind the crest of the hill, "and I am not sure how long dervishes will last. A lot came out of the woodwork, some from as far as Dersim, but we are still outnumbered, and we are stretched thin. If not for your father and Hasan Aga, we would have lost containment a week ago."

Another attack materialized out of the smoke, heading towards their lines, and her 120mm quick firing guns swiveled to meet it. Next to her, Ekrem muttered "Whatever Yavuz is doing, she better be quick. I don't know how long we will last."

~ ~ ~

Demirhisar was pouting again. She knew she shouldn't, she knew this was serious, she knew she should be supporting, but at this point the teenage destroyer did not care. She was a glorified forklift here, unloading supplies from trucks and trailers of agricultural tractors as they arrive. She intellectually understood that she was a prime target, whenever one of the shipgirls appeared on the field every gun Enver had turned on them, and that she wasn't practically immune to 75mm fire unlike her comrades, but her inability to help still grated on her fiercely.

She hefted another crate of supplies for the field kitchens, handling the almost quarter ton wooden box like it was a piece of cardboard. She huffed. She was, for want of a better word, bored. Frustrated and bored. And this rear area work did not help.

As she placed the crate on the ground and turned back to pick up another one, a hand fell on her shoulder. She looked up and into the blood red eyes of Hasan Aga, the elder vampire that brought his brood down from Oltu to help. They were surprised to see the undead, but grateful for their help. Their assistance, both in the form of night raids and the patrols of animals they controlled, made the more open ground at the northern sector of the encirclement as secure as it could get, and relieved at least some of the pressure on the other fronts. The tall, bulky, mustachioed ex-Sipahi looked her over. "Demirhisar, right?"

"Yes?" she said, unsure.

The vampire gave her a toothy grin. "Bored out of your mind?" he said. At her nod, he gave her shoulder a friendly smack, that would have sent a grown man to the ground. "Come on then. My boys can handle the unloading. You… well, I plan on doing some hunting. And well… firepower is always a bonus." He winked at her. "And additional firepower is always welcome."

As they walked down the road leading out of the village, Demirhisar focused on the face of the ancient warrior next to her. In the darkness, as he looked away from her, the cheerful look on his face fell away and he grew serious. She hesitated for a moment, then spoke. "How is the battle going?"

Hasan chuckled, and made to wave off the question, but hesitated and then stopped. "I forget, you are not a youngblood I have to keep pumped up," he said with a rueful smile. "The battle… is not going well. We are holding. We are sure there have been no major breakthroughs, and any small ones are being hunted in the mountains… but Enver's main force has swelled. Every day, our eyes in the sky are seeing more and more ancient corpses and spirits being pulled out of the ground." He waved his hand around, pointing towards the hills surrounding them. "These mountains… these are bloody lands. Death has been a close companion of these mountains for centuries. Enver has a lot of material to work with. And his forces are not really diminishing, even with the awesome firepower you girls demonstrate. And we… we are diminishing. We are losing more and more men with every attack. I just lost fifteen fledglings to a raid last night – they were ambushed on the way out. Fledglings cannot survive quick firing guns. Other fronts are not better. Even marids are taking losses. Sultan Kasım is still not awake, whatever hit him at that bridge." He sighed. "I know you want good news, my girl, but I have none I can give you, aside from empty platitudes."

Demirhisar reached up and patted the old vampire on his shoulder. "Yavuz will come through. She and the others. Yavuz never led us wrong."

The old vampire chuckled. "From your mouth to God's ears, kızçem. Hızır willing, they will come through." He laughed. "In fact, isn't he with them? Well, all we can do is hold on, with our very fingernails if necessary. And hope that they are quick."

~ ~ ~

Azhar kept pacing in front of the small table Enver used as a desk. He was fuming.

Enver looked up from the maps he was examining. "Can you please sit the fuck down?"

"And what? Watch you play chicken with the lowborn for another week? We are on a timetable you know."

Enver smirked. "Actually, I don't know. All you said was you wanted me to help you free your comrades. Not how. And your… cousins out there…" he needled, drawing an angry sneer from the man in front of him, "do not make my life easier."

"I gave you the tools to handle them. Yet you refuse to use them. Why? We could have broken through days ago. We have the superior force. Yet you refuse to use them."

"Use them, and then? Break through in one spot, at the cost of those ships turning most of my army into paste? Only for us to be hounded for the rest of the way and then get caught by whatever they are stalling us for on the march? No. This will take finesse. If I am going to break through, I am going to utterly break them. If I am to be done with this bunch, I want to be completely done. None of that 'live to fight another day'. I want to see their whole strength, and I want to break them on my knee, once and for all. It is not as if we are wasting our time here. Every day, my soldiers are digging more and more. My army is growing." He smiled. "Patience, my friend. Your labors will be rewarded. In time. We will break the traitors, and then, and only then, we will march. "

Azhar clenched his fist, wanting nothing more than to wipe the arrogant smirk off the face of that corpse. He whirled on his heel, and marched out.

Enver kept working for a few more minutes. After a few minutes of silence, one of his officers came in. "He is in his tent, paşam."

"Good. Get the Tatar here."

The officer left, and after some time, came back with a short, stocky, ruddy faced man. Enver rose to his feet in greeting. "Welcome, my friend. To be honest, I did not expect my resurrection to attract so much attention."

The man smiled and shook the former general's hand. "You are an impressive man, Enver Paşa. Of course the… organization I represent would be interested."

"So, how can I help you?"

"The question is more how we can help you, as you may have guessed. From what I have gathered you are not… satisfied with your current… alliances?"

Enver smirked. "Well, I do want the world intact so I can rule it, after all. Let's talk business. Reşat, bring some tea, will you?"

 

[darthcourt10]

SkyeFire

Yellowhammer said: Endure.

You do not stand alone.

Help is coming.
...right, so, I can't really respond to that post without falling into ITG territory. So instead, I wrote some Optionally Canonical Claire (and Jackie).
(on reflection, this probably doesn't work, b/c IIRC Claire is with the Malfoys and Jackie is at Moulbaix. Eh, call it alternate timeline shenanigans)
EDIT: Okay, Ctrl-Enter will cause the post to... post. Prematurely, if you typo it. Did not know that.
*-*-*-*

Everyone was gone.

Well, everyone useful. Which did not include Claire. After all, who takes a piano into a desperate battle against unknown odds?

Into a situation where a musical instrument would not simply be useless, but an actual burden?

Deep down, Claire knew she wasn't being fair to herself. But she didn't want fair, she wanted Ehren. She wanted her family, together where she could see them, and make music for them, and actually help.

Instead of pacing endlessly back and forth across Moulbaix's sun-dappled garden, making Aunt Jackie and Aunt Aomi and Miho and Chizuru and Mizuki worry about her, when it was Ehren and Mother and Grandmother and Mother Toku and Kasuyu and Niobe they should be worrying about instead of the useless, needy, clingy piano--

A deep "chuff!" interrupted the inward spiral of her thoughts.

She spun around, startled, to meet a pair of golden eyes. Wolf Mother stared at her with a distinctly unimpressed expression.

"Well, what am I supposed to do?" Claire burst out angrily, the tiny voice crying Ehren, Ehren, Ehren beating in her temples like a drum. "Everyone else can do something useful. But all I can do is music, and--" she slumped, staring at her feet. "No one needs music right now."

Fangs capable of shredding a mammoth nipped her nose, just hard enough to draw a single drop of blood. Claire clapped a hand to her nose, startled. Wolf Mother's head tipped in the direction of the castle, with a distinct air of do I really have to point this out, pup?

Claire slumped again. "I... I tried. I can't. I'm... I'm too tangled up, inside. When I tried, earlier, I just... I made things worse. The girls started crying for no reason, Miho got all pale and shaky... even Aunt Jackie stopped smiling! I just... I'm just... stuck." Really, she was starting to understand why wolves caught in traps would gnaw their own paws off, and it was an understanding she'd be much happier without.

Her lupine friend eyed her for a long moment with a considering air, giving Claire the uncanny feeling that she was being weighed. She felt her cheeks flush with shame -- she knew she was being childish, but she couldn't seem to stop--!

Those same fangs closed gently around her hand, and tugged. Claire followed, a bit blindly, still lost in the whirl of her thoughts. Wolf Mother led her across the garden, and up a small hill that gave a good view of the countryside, and released her hand.

"I... I'm sorry, I don't understand."

Golden eyes stared into her own mahogany for a moment, then turned to look, very deliberately, towards the south.

"But--! She can't hear me, she's too far away! Maybe if she had a phone, or--"

The unimpressed look was back. Claire had no trouble filling in the unspoken message: You won't know unless you try, will you?

Why did Wolf Mother sound so much like Mother, in her head?

Claire turned and looked south herself. Somewhere, in that direction, thousands of miles away... her little sister was trapped. In terrible danger. Injured. Hurt. Alone. Afraid.

I keep going on about how much I need Ehren... but what does she need right now?

The answer to that was suddenly, blindingly obvious: anything I can give. Anything.

There was a bang of displaced air as her true body appeared in front of her, and Wolf Mother gave a satisfied-sounding chuff as Claire seated herself and opened her keyboard.

Ehren... little sister. I don't know if you can hear me. I don't know if this will do anything to help. But I have to believe. I have to try. Please... please hear my voice.

As Wolf Mother seated herself comfortably beside Claire's bench, her shaman looked around the bright, sunny landscape. A few stray clouds scudding across the brilliant cerulean sky. Moulbaix's windows shining in the sunlight. The bees and birds making their own music in the background.

The funny little green teacher from the movies was right: Do, or do not. There is no try.

The sun moved across the sky, and Claire played.

Every canid near Moulbaix paused, and looked southwards. And Claire played.

A brief summer shower scattered rain across this region of Belgium. And Claire played.

The sun sank towards the horizon, the shadows growing long. And Claire--

Was interrupted. Rudely. Someone had grabbed her hands and was forcibly pulling them away from her keys. Claire felt a stab of real anger. Didn't this person understand how important this was? Not to mention how impolite it was to interrupt a musician caught up in the full throes of--

Then the stabbing agony in her fingers made itself felt, and her indignation fell apart as she curled around her abused digits.

Vaguely, she heard Aunt Jackie's voice snap "What? You got a problem, furball?" Followed by an amused "chuff!", and the sound of a long tongue licking someone from chin to temple.

There was a sense of lupine absence, and Aunt Jackie saying "Well, that happened." Then Aunt Jackie's attention was fully on her again, grasping her hands and gently massaging her fingers. "Claire? Claire, sweetie? Come on, baby, talk to me."

Aunt Jackie sounded... frightened? Why? Claire shook her head, trying to focus. "I have--" she gagged on an incredibly dry throat and coughed for a moment.

"Shhh, baby, just lean on me. Here, have some water." The rim of a cup touched her lips, and it was suddenly as if she hadn't had a drink in weeks. "No, no, small sips, small sips... that's it, that's my girl."

The world began to come back into focus a bit. "Aunt... Jackie? What...."

"Claire... you've been out here playing all day. Miho and the Imps tried to give you lunch, but it was like you never knew they were there. You had us worried, baby girl."

Aunt Jackie wasn't talking like a pirate. That meant things were serious. Maybe they should do some sea shanties together, that always cheered--

"Ehren!" Claire gasped as everything suddenly came back to her. "I have to keep playing, I have to make her hear--"

"No." Her hands were trapped in a gentle grip of iron. "Claire, sweetie, look at your hands."

She did... and seeing the source of the pain made it suddenly worse. The musician's callouses on her fingers were cracked, and split, and bleeding. There was blood on her ivory -- her own blood. She tried to make her fingers flex, and felt a stab of fear as they refused to obey.

Aunt Jackie scooped her up and headed for the castle. "Claire, I don't know what you were doing, but when you start hurting yourself, it's time to stop."

Claire let her head sag unwillingly against her aunt's shoulder. "Mother wouldn't stop," she grumbled petulantly.

"That's because your mother is an idiot, looking for a Spartan Funeral," Jackie snapped. "Same as Del. I used to think you and I were the only sane ones in the bunch, but I guess it's just me."

"...I'm sorry I scared you."

"...I'm sorry too, sweetie. I just... I saw you bleeding, and--" A sniffle. "What were you doing?"

"...trying to reach Ehren. I thought, if I pushed hard enough... far enough... she might hear me. It might... help... a little."

"Okay. Okay, I get that. But Claire, baby, Ehren wouldn't want you to hurt yourself for her."

"Why!?" Claire flared, suddenly angry again. "Everyone else fights, everyone else gets hurt to protect me, why am I the only one who's not allowed to bleed?"

Jackie paused, and looked down at the distraught piano in her arms. "Claire... that's not it. You've got it the wrong way 'round. We --the 'fighty ones' I mean-- we avoid getting hurt, right up until we can't. If we have to catch a bullet, or make an opening... we can only take so much damage, so when we decide to take it, it has to be calculated. A 'tactically valid exchange,' as one of my old teachers once said." Her eyes moved back to the piano still atop the hill. "We don't just throw ourselves at a wall over and over, waiting to see who breaks first. Mmm... well, maybe your mother, sometimes, when she's in one of her moods, but even she'll admit that she was just being stupid, after she calms down."

Jackie started walking again. "We don't have a tub of repair fluid to dunk your true body into, so we'll just have to bandage your fingers up the old-fashioned way. And some massage, you're gonna have cramps like you wouldn't believe. There was this one time, going around the Horn... twelve hours holding the wheel until we got to calmer waters, my First Mate had to pry my hands open one finger at a time, I thought I was gonna die! Had mummy-hands for a week."

The pirate-speak was sneaking back in, which meant Aunt Jackie was starting to relax. Claire felt herself relax in response... and then became aware of a new problem. "Um... Aunt Jackie?"

"What is it, my sweet piano siren?"

"Ummm..." Claire blushed hotly. "I really need to use the bathroom, but..." she waved one claw-like hand. "I don't think I can... you know...."

"Ah, no problem at all, m'lass! Why, let me tell you about this time when your Aunt Del was just a sprout, and while we were at sea she came down with the crud -- couldn't so much as get out of bed for days. I had to give her sponge baths, and 'tend to business' for her, and she hated it. By the by, she'll murder me for telling you about this, so don't mention it to her, but I gotta say, she makes the worst patient...."

Claire let the monologue wash over her, and settled into her aunt's grip. She'd have to let her hands heal first, then try again. More carefully, this time. Push her limits without smashing herself against them.

For as long as it took, until Ehren and everyone else was home....