Erza just wanted to go home and eat cake, how did she end up with a Kingdom? How did this happen? And why are there massive rats everywhere?
(Fairy Tail/ Warhammer Fantasy) The Fairy Queen of Tilea
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Prologue
- Pronouns
- He
Prologue
Raffaelo Grimaldi was a man used to a hard life. A man who had seen many strange things -and more importantly- had survived them more or less intact where, in his humble opinion, quite a number of others would and indeed did perish.
From joining the ratcatchers of Miragliano after his family had cast him out, due to one of the silly affairs he had been dumb enough to center his youth around, to fighting the cursed skaven in the feces and rot covered tunels under the greatest city in all of Tliea, to his days as a servant of Myrmidia. Yes, he had seen many things. Strange things.
However, even he couldn't quite say he had ever seen a woman fall out of the sky, cloaked in a large ball of fire and crash into the earth like this before.
Raffaelo left the road, ignoring the risk of mud staining his white robes. Offering a silent prayer to Myrmidia for forgiveness, he slowed upon approaching the crater the woman left, a large one now that he was close. He hesitated some twenty paces out, remembering an incident regarding warpstone falling from the sky; a groan from inside the self made pit changed his mind. Nonetheless he felt relief that the usual wrongness in the air that signified that vile stuff was absent.
Grasping his spear a bit harder - he was not that much of a fool that he'd leave his home unarmed, even if it was just for a day's march- he peeked down the crater and well, there was the woman, and what a woman she was.
He had expected a charred corpse, maybe a halfway pulped body with limbs and organs spilled all over the impact sight. Instead there was a large mat of hair, with a hair so scarlet as if it were to mirror Myrmidia's glorious ruby main itself. Her clothes had been almost utterly destroyed, shred away by the impact and the fire, no doubt, revealing a lot of her almost scandalously opulent form, but the woman herself? She was in remarkably good condition. Sure her body was covered in bruises and he could see the signs of numerous broken bones, but all in all he had expected way worse. His womanizing days were over, but even then he couldn't deny her beauty.
And that was the first thing that triggered his paranoia, born in his days as a skaven hunter and well tended to ever since. Humans didn't survive falls like this. Especially not if they were on fire during it. And if they did, they wouldn't be getting away with just a number of flesh wounds.
Suspiciously looking around he checked the surroundings for any traps, any signs of an ambush. No signs of warpstone were his only consolation. This did not seem like skaven trickery, not that he'd know why he'd be worth such effort in the first place.
Still, the whole situation stank. If he had anything resembling a reasonable head on his shoulders he would turn around to his mule and make haste out of here, and in fact he was on his way of doing exactly that when again heard her groan.
It was a weak thing, stemming from a voice that had at one point undoubtedly been a powerful one, but it reached his ears nonetheless. It was more of a pathetic whimper really, hinting at just the agony the woman was in.
It also made it a damn sight harder to continue stomping away from the gal.
Suppressing a curse, he turned around armed with a spear and shield out as well, descending down the crater she was walking in, eyes and ears wide open to see if she made a move, ready to stab down if she revealed any hostility. Ricardo would warn him early enough with his bellows if anything tried to sneak up on them.
Coming closer to her he noticed the presence of a weapon on her body, a long bent blade that was so crusted in earth and debris that he had missed it at first. Reaching out, he pressed his spear tip against the blade and pushed it away from the still motionless redhead towards himself, just to be sure.
Keeping his weapon aimed, he pushed his shield up by its sleeves and slowly reached down, grabbing what he scarcely managed to identify as the hilt. As his fingers touched the metal his entire form froze as a sudden power struck out, rushing through him like a current and he almost fell on his rear with a yell, only managing to balance himself at the last moment when it stopped.
This thing had a power inside, of undoubtedly magical nature. He almost threw it away on reflex alone, before his senses calmed down and instead he just attached it to a belt on his hip, before reaching down for the woman proper.
He didn't know what he quite expected when he heaved her up. That she'd grow horns, fangs and bite him maybe? He had been ready to damn his conscience and just stab her at her first movement but no such thing did happen. She let out a couple more groans and whimpers as he checked her other side for wounds -bruises, scrapes and a lot of broken bones by the look and feel of it- and did nothing otherwise.
She was conscious, barely. Raffaelo debated with himself to risk taking her with him, or just interrogating her here. But her groans told him she may not have much time.
With unease and more effort than he wanted to admit he hooked his arms under hers and pulled, wincing when he heard her gasps of pain as well as sounds of her cracking bones, no doubt a good manner of them not being in their right places. He hoped she would hang in long enough for him to build a makeshift stretcher.
A hope that ran ever thinner as he carefully moved her out of the crater. She most definitely had some internal injuries, so just putting her on Ricardo to his home wasn't an option, and he hardly had the materials necessary to help her here. He'd need a stretcher to move her and he hardly had one at the ready, thus he would need to make something himself. He did have ropes and leather from his trip to the nearby market, but he needed to search for sticks to make one still. That would take time, time this woman did not have.
It would take a miracle for her to reach his home alive and luckily he might just be able to provide one for her.
Myrmidia was usually more of a war god -even if limiting her to just that was utter folly- but it might just be possible that she would lend her grace and might to something more than to just smite her enemies, and to strengthen her children's shields and spears. As such, he began to pray. Myrmidia would answer if she was worthy of her attention.
"Oh Myrmidia, lend this lowly servant of yours to the power to be a medium for your greatness, for your might to save this woman from her blight, oh grand eagle of Tilea…." As he prayed he felt it; first a flicker and drop that quickly turned into a stream like a raging river. His hands, moving as if they had a will of their own, travelled over her form from head to toe, pressing the strength out of him like if he was in a vice.
As it did however, he could feel, no, he could see how a miracle began to manifest in front of his very eyes. Bones righted themselves, came again together under hideous sounds. Undoubtedly a great many internal wounds were undone as her pained breathing easened and the entire red head seemed to straighten herself a little, even within her state of being between consciousness and unconsciousness.
After what felt like an eternity he slumped back, exhausted like he had just spent a day chopping wood. Nonetheless his decision had been the correct one. Apparently Myrmidia did consider this woman, whoever she was, to be worthy.
Well then. That made the decision for him, didn´t it? With a groan he hefted her up and carried her over to Ricardo, the mule sniffing at her for a moment while he tried to make place on his saddle, moving around the food he bought so recently.
She didn't look like she was going to wake up anytime soon, which was a blessing and a curse; the latter because keeping an unconscious someone on a mule in motion was at best a challenge, but at least she wouldn't be moving around on her own and potentially worsen her condition. Putting the sack of food (largely bread, some meat and wine and even some vegetables) aside, he carefully lifted her on the mule before starting to loosely tie her waist to a saddle strap, using what rope he had. Ricardo bayed at the extra load, but thankfully didn't stop him.
He had wasted enough time already, it was time to get back home. He had some medicine there that should be able to help her further, even if that was going to be pretty expensive.
AN:
So, this idea didn´t want to leave my head. Hope you guys enjoy this.
Credit goes to @Hapless Anon for being a great Beta and an even greater friend
Raffaelo Grimaldi was a man used to a hard life. A man who had seen many strange things -and more importantly- had survived them more or less intact where, in his humble opinion, quite a number of others would and indeed did perish.
From joining the ratcatchers of Miragliano after his family had cast him out, due to one of the silly affairs he had been dumb enough to center his youth around, to fighting the cursed skaven in the feces and rot covered tunels under the greatest city in all of Tliea, to his days as a servant of Myrmidia. Yes, he had seen many things. Strange things.
However, even he couldn't quite say he had ever seen a woman fall out of the sky, cloaked in a large ball of fire and crash into the earth like this before.
Raffaelo left the road, ignoring the risk of mud staining his white robes. Offering a silent prayer to Myrmidia for forgiveness, he slowed upon approaching the crater the woman left, a large one now that he was close. He hesitated some twenty paces out, remembering an incident regarding warpstone falling from the sky; a groan from inside the self made pit changed his mind. Nonetheless he felt relief that the usual wrongness in the air that signified that vile stuff was absent.
Grasping his spear a bit harder - he was not that much of a fool that he'd leave his home unarmed, even if it was just for a day's march- he peeked down the crater and well, there was the woman, and what a woman she was.
He had expected a charred corpse, maybe a halfway pulped body with limbs and organs spilled all over the impact sight. Instead there was a large mat of hair, with a hair so scarlet as if it were to mirror Myrmidia's glorious ruby main itself. Her clothes had been almost utterly destroyed, shred away by the impact and the fire, no doubt, revealing a lot of her almost scandalously opulent form, but the woman herself? She was in remarkably good condition. Sure her body was covered in bruises and he could see the signs of numerous broken bones, but all in all he had expected way worse. His womanizing days were over, but even then he couldn't deny her beauty.
And that was the first thing that triggered his paranoia, born in his days as a skaven hunter and well tended to ever since. Humans didn't survive falls like this. Especially not if they were on fire during it. And if they did, they wouldn't be getting away with just a number of flesh wounds.
Suspiciously looking around he checked the surroundings for any traps, any signs of an ambush. No signs of warpstone were his only consolation. This did not seem like skaven trickery, not that he'd know why he'd be worth such effort in the first place.
Still, the whole situation stank. If he had anything resembling a reasonable head on his shoulders he would turn around to his mule and make haste out of here, and in fact he was on his way of doing exactly that when again heard her groan.
It was a weak thing, stemming from a voice that had at one point undoubtedly been a powerful one, but it reached his ears nonetheless. It was more of a pathetic whimper really, hinting at just the agony the woman was in.
It also made it a damn sight harder to continue stomping away from the gal.
Suppressing a curse, he turned around armed with a spear and shield out as well, descending down the crater she was walking in, eyes and ears wide open to see if she made a move, ready to stab down if she revealed any hostility. Ricardo would warn him early enough with his bellows if anything tried to sneak up on them.
Coming closer to her he noticed the presence of a weapon on her body, a long bent blade that was so crusted in earth and debris that he had missed it at first. Reaching out, he pressed his spear tip against the blade and pushed it away from the still motionless redhead towards himself, just to be sure.
Keeping his weapon aimed, he pushed his shield up by its sleeves and slowly reached down, grabbing what he scarcely managed to identify as the hilt. As his fingers touched the metal his entire form froze as a sudden power struck out, rushing through him like a current and he almost fell on his rear with a yell, only managing to balance himself at the last moment when it stopped.
This thing had a power inside, of undoubtedly magical nature. He almost threw it away on reflex alone, before his senses calmed down and instead he just attached it to a belt on his hip, before reaching down for the woman proper.
He didn't know what he quite expected when he heaved her up. That she'd grow horns, fangs and bite him maybe? He had been ready to damn his conscience and just stab her at her first movement but no such thing did happen. She let out a couple more groans and whimpers as he checked her other side for wounds -bruises, scrapes and a lot of broken bones by the look and feel of it- and did nothing otherwise.
She was conscious, barely. Raffaelo debated with himself to risk taking her with him, or just interrogating her here. But her groans told him she may not have much time.
With unease and more effort than he wanted to admit he hooked his arms under hers and pulled, wincing when he heard her gasps of pain as well as sounds of her cracking bones, no doubt a good manner of them not being in their right places. He hoped she would hang in long enough for him to build a makeshift stretcher.
A hope that ran ever thinner as he carefully moved her out of the crater. She most definitely had some internal injuries, so just putting her on Ricardo to his home wasn't an option, and he hardly had the materials necessary to help her here. He'd need a stretcher to move her and he hardly had one at the ready, thus he would need to make something himself. He did have ropes and leather from his trip to the nearby market, but he needed to search for sticks to make one still. That would take time, time this woman did not have.
It would take a miracle for her to reach his home alive and luckily he might just be able to provide one for her.
Myrmidia was usually more of a war god -even if limiting her to just that was utter folly- but it might just be possible that she would lend her grace and might to something more than to just smite her enemies, and to strengthen her children's shields and spears. As such, he began to pray. Myrmidia would answer if she was worthy of her attention.
"Oh Myrmidia, lend this lowly servant of yours to the power to be a medium for your greatness, for your might to save this woman from her blight, oh grand eagle of Tilea…." As he prayed he felt it; first a flicker and drop that quickly turned into a stream like a raging river. His hands, moving as if they had a will of their own, travelled over her form from head to toe, pressing the strength out of him like if he was in a vice.
As it did however, he could feel, no, he could see how a miracle began to manifest in front of his very eyes. Bones righted themselves, came again together under hideous sounds. Undoubtedly a great many internal wounds were undone as her pained breathing easened and the entire red head seemed to straighten herself a little, even within her state of being between consciousness and unconsciousness.
After what felt like an eternity he slumped back, exhausted like he had just spent a day chopping wood. Nonetheless his decision had been the correct one. Apparently Myrmidia did consider this woman, whoever she was, to be worthy.
Well then. That made the decision for him, didn´t it? With a groan he hefted her up and carried her over to Ricardo, the mule sniffing at her for a moment while he tried to make place on his saddle, moving around the food he bought so recently.
She didn't look like she was going to wake up anytime soon, which was a blessing and a curse; the latter because keeping an unconscious someone on a mule in motion was at best a challenge, but at least she wouldn't be moving around on her own and potentially worsen her condition. Putting the sack of food (largely bread, some meat and wine and even some vegetables) aside, he carefully lifted her on the mule before starting to loosely tie her waist to a saddle strap, using what rope he had. Ricardo bayed at the extra load, but thankfully didn't stop him.
He had wasted enough time already, it was time to get back home. He had some medicine there that should be able to help her further, even if that was going to be pretty expensive.
AN:
So, this idea didn´t want to leave my head. Hope you guys enjoy this.
Credit goes to @Hapless Anon for being a great Beta and an even greater friend
Last edited:
- Pronouns
- He
That´s the rough idea.I love this, considering how Myrmidia looks and acts, she could easily be considered an living Avatar of the goddess.
And I love that someone got the Erza/ Myrmidia connection this early
Last edited:
LiamOfOrmonde
67% lewd. Oh my!
- Location
- Florida Sometimes
Myrmiddia is a weird goddess lore wise. Her, Sigmar, and Ranald are the only human gods in Warhammer who were at any point actually human. The rest of the gods came about ex nihlo, but Ranald and Sigmar were humans who managed to ascend to godhood. Myrmiddia on the other hand is a goddess born from Verena (Goddess of Justice and Knowledge) and Morr (God of the Dead). She was pretty much tasked to take care of the Southern Realms of humanity by the rest of her family but she straight up admitted to herself that she didn't know how to help them. The ways of humans were foreign to her. Then Ranald walked up and told her that he knew humans so well because he used to be human himself, and suggest she should give it a try. She agreed and was reborn in the Southern Realms as a human girl with no knowledge of her godly origin. One thing led to another, and she ended up as a warlord that united the Southern Realms into the Empire of Remas. Then she was assassinated the day she was crowned and Remas split into Tilea, Estalia, and parts of the Border Princes. She returned to her status as a goddess and used what she learned as a mortal to become the Goddess of warfare.
At least that's the lore I remember. If anyone wants to back me up or add/subtract from what I've said please go ahead. My memory isn't the sharpest thing.
At least that's the lore I remember. If anyone wants to back me up or add/subtract from what I've said please go ahead. My memory isn't the sharpest thing.
- Pronouns
- He
some more information and links to the works in question would be nice, yeah.
But thanks anyway
LiamOfOrmonde
67% lewd. Oh my!
- Location
- Florida Sometimes
Sorry my dude, but this was mainly from a play session on a tabletop two years ago so it came from a book I don't own or remember. Also I'm summarizing. The actual information from the book was about three pages. I mainly remember us playing in Sartosa if that helps you find the book in question.
- Pronouns
- He
well, I´ll have to dig a little, but thanks none the less
LiamOfOrmonde
67% lewd. Oh my!
- Location
- Florida Sometimes
Found one of the books my GM was using back then. It's this one.
- Pronouns
- He
go figure that it´s that one. Yeah, currently reading the tome of salvationFound one of the books my GM was using back then. It's this one.
It's about Warhammer Gods and stuff. There was another book about Sartosa where there was the bit about Ranald convincing Myrmiddia to become human. I don't remember that one.
I... can't..... BELIEVE IT!!!!
No jokes. I can't! I see a Fairy Tail Warhammer story.... And a very good one with a good writing even!
Have you have any idea how many time I wait this?!
You have oratically fulfilled my dream!
But now the story:
I like very much the idea Ezra is Myrmidia and I think she can prove to ANYONE on Warhammer world to be it.... Even if is not one XD
Maybe you should made a journey even in Bretonnia I think Repanse can be have an hero from Erza XD
And she even help the people of the two realm instead (not only against the Orks etc...)
I wait so much for the next chapter!!!
P. S. Sorry for my English XD
No jokes. I can't! I see a Fairy Tail Warhammer story.... And a very good one with a good writing even!
Have you have any idea how many time I wait this?!
You have oratically fulfilled my dream!
But now the story:
I like very much the idea Ezra is Myrmidia and I think she can prove to ANYONE on Warhammer world to be it.... Even if is not one XD
Maybe you should made a journey even in Bretonnia I think Repanse can be have an hero from Erza XD
And she even help the people of the two realm instead (not only against the Orks etc...)
I wait so much for the next chapter!!!
P. S. Sorry for my English XD
Chapter 1
- Pronouns
- He
Chapter 1
Erza Scarlet, 7th guildmaster of Fairy Tail, S Class wizard was undoubtedly one of the strongest mages Fiore had to offer. She had completed hundreds of dangerous missions and beaten just as many dangerous foes, sometimes along the goals of those missions, and even more often in the defence of her guild, her friends and family. She had fought dark mages, wizard saints, legions of monsters, demons and even dragons. She was widely revered as Titania, the queen of Fairies, a walking legend. Not many of the people who saw her in that light could imagine her having bad dreams.
And yet Erza was no stranger to nightmares. She had had many as a child. Both when she was young and afterwards, about her time as a slave and about Jellal's treachery. Her time in the guild had taken care of that, and she had been able to sleep peacefully for a whole long while. Her nightmares really only started again after Kyoka; the pain, naked and defenceless in that cold, cold cell, alone with the demon.
This nightmare was unlike those however. She found herself overlooking a vast and great city. A great festival was being arranged with people all around her, maybe some great event had taken place? She talked to them but she could not understand what they were saying or even what she herself was saying. The language used was strange. Melodic but much more fluid than what she was used to. Almost like something one would hear in a song.
The people were all wearing strange uniforms and armor, equipment she hasn't seen in a long while. It was mostly spears, shields and swords but barely any mages as far as she could tell. Situated on a horse, Erza beheld an orderly formation around her, what she evidently was leading from the front; pikes in front, archers hanging back, marching not in cadence but still operating like clockwork. Above her the sky was cloudy, as if threatening rain. Without knowing how she knew it wouldn't.
But when Erza peered ahead, she almost wished it was.
A short distance away was their foe, and what a bizarre enemy it was. A dark, chittering horde of monsters had gathered on the plain, easily outnumbering her forces several times over. Through the haze of the dream she detected a terrible stench, something made of feces and rotting meat, as if it were spoiled food that was set on by vermin. Here and there taller things stood over the creatures, some were ramshackle constructs, others were towering, misshapen abominations that shook and snarled in anticipation.
One of her men raised a sword to bellow something in that musical tongue, an unmistakable war cry. Around Erza the army matched his shout, a combined roar that shook her in her boots.
The creatures reacted, with the front ranks snarling and… squeaking? Erza blinked in astonishment; the monsters were rats. Huge rats, many no taller than children with how they hunched, clutching crude rusty weapons in a formation that was a mockery of her army, held together by overseers prowling their ranks. As she watched one went so far as to whip an underling where it stood, only resulting in its comrades chittering with laughter.
Erza was stunned; just what was going on? She wondered as she raised a sword, catching her army's attention with a shout in their language, not understanding the words she screamed but recognizing what she said. A cry to arms, to hold fast, and with a jab forward, kicking the stirrups to send her horse galloping at the monsters, to attack.
Erza was joined by more horsemen, taking her flanks as she led the charge. She felt uneasy breaking ranks like this, but there was a simmering range in the men, outright glaring at the creatures as they charged; there was a history between them, one she had every reason to suspect was soaked in blood.
Musing could wait however, for the front ranks of the monsters charged as well. The first wave were far more scrawny and abused than the ones behind them, clearly fodder. Expendable, based on the archers and gunners she saw behind them, only kept from shredding her cavalry charge by her own army sending a rain of arrows into them.
The distance shrank incredibly quickly. Spears lowered to impale the creatures, colliding with a tremendous crash of screams and bellowing horses. Steel crashed against flesh, men and monster cried out in pain, her own horse snarled as she swept her sword at a rat-
Erza climbed onto the rock, sword and shield in hand. She hurt so much, her remaining eye blurry from tears, but she ignored it. She stood tall, beaten, exhausted, no longer giving into the fear. With a cry she rallied the slaves, charging into the Zeref cultists-
-and Erza carved through it. Why, how was she remembering the tower of heaven now? In this state she found herself glad for the first time, that while she was reliving memories her body wasn't distracted. She hacked at rats, extolling her men to fight harder while the rest of the army collided behind her. Some fell immediately, some died from painful wounds. Not one ran from the fight.
Erza brought her horse around, calling for the troops to rally to her. As before they lacked discipline but not bravery, various men carving through whatever the rats had to offer, no matter the cost. She wasn't slacking either, her sword coated in sickly red blood.
Her horse unexpectedly reared back, neighing in alarm it hadn't displayed so far. Erza had the impression this other shared her confusion, peering around to find what was making the ground shake. She looked, and grimaced; stomping towards her gathering forces was a troupe of bizarre abominations, hunched creatures three or four times the height of their smaller brethren. Even looking at the rat-like giants brought revulsion, their bulging muscles looking as if their flesh was about to split apart, clutching crude clubs as they charged. Before her eyes she saw the lead ones smash aside rats, uncaring that they were killing their allies.
She felt no fear. Erza dismounted her horse, waving off her men trying to hold her back. All she did was march towards the rat giants, sword in hand and an intelligible insult on her lips. The lead one raised its club with a roar, swinging at her-
"Get the civilians out of here!" Erza bellowed at the other wizards, ones who had no business being here. She flew into the fray without waiting on them, hating that she couldn't put these things down immediately.
But then, dragons wouldn't be so feared, would they?
The green dragon launched a massive gout of flame at local homes, incinerating the houses in a blaze of azure fire. Forcing herself to keep from asking how many people were left, Erza swooped in to land a blow on its horned head; her most powerful swords merely dinged off its scaly hide.
She wasn't going to win against the beast. She didn't plan to; the dragon turned to look at her with its slitted eyes, showing mild annoyance at her attack. It let out a tremendous roar that shook her to the bone, turning to inhale for another breath attack. Only to have bolts of lightning and flame slam on its belly, catching it off guard.
-it fell to the mud, the rat's head hitting the ground a moment later. Erza rolled around the next blow, evading the jagged club to launch herself at the creature. One good stab lodged in its meaty neck, severing a valuable artery as she hurriedly yanked her blade free. Her foe gurgled out a bellow, sounding more puzzled than hurt as its lifeblood gushed out, the fluid smelling downright repulsive.
One, two, three, four. Rat giants fell one after the other, claiming a man's life who tried to help her, but falling all the same. As she rose from the cleaved chest of the last rat, she took stock of the ongoing battle.
Things appeared to be going in her army's favor. She saw plenty of human bodies littering the muddy field, but far more rats; their overwhelming quantity clearly not covering for their dreadful quality. The monsters were being pushed back, cut down where they stood, or ran as she noted with interest. Nearby she saw one rat pack turn to flee, some dropping weapons, a few even attacking their fellows in their frantic attempt to escape. Not that it saved them from the screaming soldiers who fell on them with swords flashing, slaying them before they could escape.
Erza rose from her stance, observing the battle start to end. She had the impression it hadn't taken long to win, and while she lost a number of men, that was obvious just by glancing at the corpse strewn field, she had won a solid victory on this day. Or rather this other had.
"And so shall you." Her lips spoke in an understandable way for the first time.
Erza paused, finding she had control over her body now. Save for the mouth, which acted on its own at an arbitrary time.
"Who, who are you?" Erza asked carefully, sparing a glance at the men around her. None seemed to have noticed her newfound madness, they marched off to either pursue the rat's pitiful retreat, or to tend to their wounded.
Her lips curled in a smile. "After my death, I was declared Myrmidia. The goddess of strategy and war."
For a moment Erza didn't react, feeling a grin that wasn't hers. A goddess? But, how?
"The rules here are different, as you can see." Myrmidia explained. "When I found you thanks to my follower's prayer, I knew I had to have you. You've shown me much, Erza Scarlet of Fairy Tail."
"What do you want?"
"You. Nothing more, nothing less." Myrmidia smiled.
"For what?"
"Use your eyes Erza. You know what you must do." Around her the battle faded into nothingness, replaced by darkness that swallowed her.
Erza awoke. She was bathed in a cold sweat, inhaling sharply from an adrenaline spike. As she took deep breaths the anxious feeling receded, her nerves slowly calming. She was worked up over…
That's right, she had a bad dream. What was it about, she… she didn't remember. There was a battle for sure, something, or someone, spoke to her. What had it been again? She didn´t have much time to ponder as something moved just outside of her field of vision.
"Ah, so you are finally awake."
AN:
And here, after a longer time period than i had hoped is the first chapter.
Hope you like it. Credit goes to @Hapless Anon for helping at writing this
Erza Scarlet, 7th guildmaster of Fairy Tail, S Class wizard was undoubtedly one of the strongest mages Fiore had to offer. She had completed hundreds of dangerous missions and beaten just as many dangerous foes, sometimes along the goals of those missions, and even more often in the defence of her guild, her friends and family. She had fought dark mages, wizard saints, legions of monsters, demons and even dragons. She was widely revered as Titania, the queen of Fairies, a walking legend. Not many of the people who saw her in that light could imagine her having bad dreams.
And yet Erza was no stranger to nightmares. She had had many as a child. Both when she was young and afterwards, about her time as a slave and about Jellal's treachery. Her time in the guild had taken care of that, and she had been able to sleep peacefully for a whole long while. Her nightmares really only started again after Kyoka; the pain, naked and defenceless in that cold, cold cell, alone with the demon.
This nightmare was unlike those however. She found herself overlooking a vast and great city. A great festival was being arranged with people all around her, maybe some great event had taken place? She talked to them but she could not understand what they were saying or even what she herself was saying. The language used was strange. Melodic but much more fluid than what she was used to. Almost like something one would hear in a song.
The people were all wearing strange uniforms and armor, equipment she hasn't seen in a long while. It was mostly spears, shields and swords but barely any mages as far as she could tell. Situated on a horse, Erza beheld an orderly formation around her, what she evidently was leading from the front; pikes in front, archers hanging back, marching not in cadence but still operating like clockwork. Above her the sky was cloudy, as if threatening rain. Without knowing how she knew it wouldn't.
But when Erza peered ahead, she almost wished it was.
A short distance away was their foe, and what a bizarre enemy it was. A dark, chittering horde of monsters had gathered on the plain, easily outnumbering her forces several times over. Through the haze of the dream she detected a terrible stench, something made of feces and rotting meat, as if it were spoiled food that was set on by vermin. Here and there taller things stood over the creatures, some were ramshackle constructs, others were towering, misshapen abominations that shook and snarled in anticipation.
One of her men raised a sword to bellow something in that musical tongue, an unmistakable war cry. Around Erza the army matched his shout, a combined roar that shook her in her boots.
The creatures reacted, with the front ranks snarling and… squeaking? Erza blinked in astonishment; the monsters were rats. Huge rats, many no taller than children with how they hunched, clutching crude rusty weapons in a formation that was a mockery of her army, held together by overseers prowling their ranks. As she watched one went so far as to whip an underling where it stood, only resulting in its comrades chittering with laughter.
Erza was stunned; just what was going on? She wondered as she raised a sword, catching her army's attention with a shout in their language, not understanding the words she screamed but recognizing what she said. A cry to arms, to hold fast, and with a jab forward, kicking the stirrups to send her horse galloping at the monsters, to attack.
Erza was joined by more horsemen, taking her flanks as she led the charge. She felt uneasy breaking ranks like this, but there was a simmering range in the men, outright glaring at the creatures as they charged; there was a history between them, one she had every reason to suspect was soaked in blood.
Musing could wait however, for the front ranks of the monsters charged as well. The first wave were far more scrawny and abused than the ones behind them, clearly fodder. Expendable, based on the archers and gunners she saw behind them, only kept from shredding her cavalry charge by her own army sending a rain of arrows into them.
The distance shrank incredibly quickly. Spears lowered to impale the creatures, colliding with a tremendous crash of screams and bellowing horses. Steel crashed against flesh, men and monster cried out in pain, her own horse snarled as she swept her sword at a rat-
Erza climbed onto the rock, sword and shield in hand. She hurt so much, her remaining eye blurry from tears, but she ignored it. She stood tall, beaten, exhausted, no longer giving into the fear. With a cry she rallied the slaves, charging into the Zeref cultists-
-and Erza carved through it. Why, how was she remembering the tower of heaven now? In this state she found herself glad for the first time, that while she was reliving memories her body wasn't distracted. She hacked at rats, extolling her men to fight harder while the rest of the army collided behind her. Some fell immediately, some died from painful wounds. Not one ran from the fight.
Erza brought her horse around, calling for the troops to rally to her. As before they lacked discipline but not bravery, various men carving through whatever the rats had to offer, no matter the cost. She wasn't slacking either, her sword coated in sickly red blood.
Her horse unexpectedly reared back, neighing in alarm it hadn't displayed so far. Erza had the impression this other shared her confusion, peering around to find what was making the ground shake. She looked, and grimaced; stomping towards her gathering forces was a troupe of bizarre abominations, hunched creatures three or four times the height of their smaller brethren. Even looking at the rat-like giants brought revulsion, their bulging muscles looking as if their flesh was about to split apart, clutching crude clubs as they charged. Before her eyes she saw the lead ones smash aside rats, uncaring that they were killing their allies.
She felt no fear. Erza dismounted her horse, waving off her men trying to hold her back. All she did was march towards the rat giants, sword in hand and an intelligible insult on her lips. The lead one raised its club with a roar, swinging at her-
"Get the civilians out of here!" Erza bellowed at the other wizards, ones who had no business being here. She flew into the fray without waiting on them, hating that she couldn't put these things down immediately.
But then, dragons wouldn't be so feared, would they?
The green dragon launched a massive gout of flame at local homes, incinerating the houses in a blaze of azure fire. Forcing herself to keep from asking how many people were left, Erza swooped in to land a blow on its horned head; her most powerful swords merely dinged off its scaly hide.
She wasn't going to win against the beast. She didn't plan to; the dragon turned to look at her with its slitted eyes, showing mild annoyance at her attack. It let out a tremendous roar that shook her to the bone, turning to inhale for another breath attack. Only to have bolts of lightning and flame slam on its belly, catching it off guard.
-it fell to the mud, the rat's head hitting the ground a moment later. Erza rolled around the next blow, evading the jagged club to launch herself at the creature. One good stab lodged in its meaty neck, severing a valuable artery as she hurriedly yanked her blade free. Her foe gurgled out a bellow, sounding more puzzled than hurt as its lifeblood gushed out, the fluid smelling downright repulsive.
One, two, three, four. Rat giants fell one after the other, claiming a man's life who tried to help her, but falling all the same. As she rose from the cleaved chest of the last rat, she took stock of the ongoing battle.
Things appeared to be going in her army's favor. She saw plenty of human bodies littering the muddy field, but far more rats; their overwhelming quantity clearly not covering for their dreadful quality. The monsters were being pushed back, cut down where they stood, or ran as she noted with interest. Nearby she saw one rat pack turn to flee, some dropping weapons, a few even attacking their fellows in their frantic attempt to escape. Not that it saved them from the screaming soldiers who fell on them with swords flashing, slaying them before they could escape.
Erza rose from her stance, observing the battle start to end. She had the impression it hadn't taken long to win, and while she lost a number of men, that was obvious just by glancing at the corpse strewn field, she had won a solid victory on this day. Or rather this other had.
"And so shall you." Her lips spoke in an understandable way for the first time.
Erza paused, finding she had control over her body now. Save for the mouth, which acted on its own at an arbitrary time.
"Who, who are you?" Erza asked carefully, sparing a glance at the men around her. None seemed to have noticed her newfound madness, they marched off to either pursue the rat's pitiful retreat, or to tend to their wounded.
Her lips curled in a smile. "After my death, I was declared Myrmidia. The goddess of strategy and war."
For a moment Erza didn't react, feeling a grin that wasn't hers. A goddess? But, how?
"The rules here are different, as you can see." Myrmidia explained. "When I found you thanks to my follower's prayer, I knew I had to have you. You've shown me much, Erza Scarlet of Fairy Tail."
"What do you want?"
"You. Nothing more, nothing less." Myrmidia smiled.
"For what?"
"Use your eyes Erza. You know what you must do." Around her the battle faded into nothingness, replaced by darkness that swallowed her.
Erza awoke. She was bathed in a cold sweat, inhaling sharply from an adrenaline spike. As she took deep breaths the anxious feeling receded, her nerves slowly calming. She was worked up over…
That's right, she had a bad dream. What was it about, she… she didn't remember. There was a battle for sure, something, or someone, spoke to her. What had it been again? She didn´t have much time to ponder as something moved just outside of her field of vision.
"Ah, so you are finally awake."
AN:
And here, after a longer time period than i had hoped is the first chapter.
Hope you like it. Credit goes to @Hapless Anon for helping at writing this
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- Pronouns
- He
She saw some of myrmidia´s memories while the goddess looked through hers to see if she was suitable for being her chosen
- Location
- Philippines
That clears things up, thanks
- Pronouns
- He
Warmach1ne32
Machine of War and Quests
- Location
- Indonesia
@AllenWalker why are there 2 "Chapter 1"s on the Threadmark?
- Pronouns
- He
Because I fucked up and labelled the Prologue as chapter 1
Chapter 2
- Pronouns
- He
Chapter 2
The first thing Erza noticed when she woke up was that her head hurt. It felt like a hundred vulcans were taking turns in pounding her cranium into dust. In fact, forget her head, pretty much every inch of her body felt that way. Every thought felt like a dagger was stabbed her, she didn't want to imagine how it would feel if she opened her eyes and let the light in.
She probingly opened a sliver of her eyelids and slammed them shut immediately. Yep, the light hurt. Gods, it was almost like when she had a drink out with the girls. If that was the reason why she had such a headache then Erza just hoped she didn't make such a mess again, last time Lucy had not looked her in the eyes for weeks.
Till now though, she did not understand why. She had just undressed her and massaged some hot wax on her back, then made her do some exotic dancing. Nothing worth her getting so weird about it.
Teeth gritted, Erza forced herself to sit up without opening her eyes yet. That simple effort took two tries, her spine and organs protesting moving at all. But she wasn't a quitter, so with a loud gasp she finally found herself upright, feeling dizzy from moving too fast. Each breath felt like needles were poking her lungs. Moving even a little had her limbs aching horribly. But she could move.
Erza was starting to suspect she wasn't waking up from a hangover. This time when she opened her eyes went like the last attempt, but she fought through it, groaning as she took in the world around herself. Everything was a weird mess of shrill yellow, brown, green and gray with some specks of black mixed in. Just trying to look around made her feel dizzy on top of her growing cranial pain, causing her to fall back on her bed, while trying fruitlessly to get her eyes used to the surroundings.
That was when she realized two things. One this wasn´t her bed -being hard and rough instead of the wonderful softness she was used to- and two, she was completely naked.
"Huh, that's odd." She croaked, surprised at how scratchy her throat felt. She thought she'd remember being in full armor before, so what happened to her outfit? Surely she didn't strip herself, so how…
Erza shook her head. That was for later. For now she blinked the spots out of her vision, so she could find out who's bed she was in. This one definitely wasn't hers.
Her vision cleared, bringing the room into focus. Around her was a bedroom, one she didn't recognize; it was smaller than her own, with the bed taking up a lot of the available space. Dimming orange light streamed from a small window. A large drawer was the other thing in her sight, a plain wooden thing topped by a weird little shrine she never saw before: there were a couple daggers forming a little tent around a woman's statue, a warrior she assumed based on the armor and outstretched sword.
There was more in the room beside that, like the shelves over the door holding knickknacks. Things like odd looking stones, several kinds of knives, pendants and sigils, and over the door a spear in good condition. But that shrine kept her attention. It wasn't any god or demon she recognized, what could she be?
Shuffling on the floor had Erza draw back, regretting it instantly when a wave of needly aches slammed into her. She hadn't entirely fought off the nausea when a mass of blankets she overlooked was flopped to the side, and a man rose with a groan. He had a sun baked complexion, dark haired and decently handsome, at the moment wearing a plain nightgown.
The man turned to her and opened his mouth, but immediately whipped around with red blooming on his cheeks. "Um, my lady. You're, uh, awake."
"I am." Erza agreed, relieved that she could understand him. "Who are you, and where am I?"
"I, erm, I am Raffaelo Grimaldi. I am a, uh, a priest. I… can you please cover yourself?" He strained out, covering his eyes.
"Why? Is there something wrong?" Erza peered at her body: everything looked to be in the right place.
He coughed. "You're, uh, naked."
"I know. Do you know where my armor went? I seemed to have misplaced it." She looked around again for her gear, finding nothing.
"Your armor, ah, was ruined. I had… had to peel it off. When I brought you to my home." He said the last part quickly.
"Ruined? How?" Erza leaned closer in spite of a stab of pain in her gut. Somehow he sensed her presence well enough to space himself an equal distance.
"You fell? From the sky." His throat bobbed, and next he spoke he pleaded. "Please, at least use the sheet."
With a huff, Erza yanked up the blanket to her collarbone, grunting an affirmative note. The man, Raffaelo, hesitatingly opened his hand, and when he saw her he dropped the limb with relief.
"Thank you. I am sorry for not giving you one of my nightgowns, but I had to dress your wounds." He still blushed.
"Wounds? You helped me?" Erza felt her suspicions subside. She didn't trust him whatsoever, but she felt he wasn't holding her captive.
Raffaelo nodded fast. "Three days ago you fell from the sky on my way home, you left a huge crater by the road. You didn't look like you were going to live, miss…"
"Erza Scarlet, of Fairy Tail. I thank you for helping me Mister Grimaldi." She gave a perfunctory bow that forced her breath out, but frowned for more than just pain. She didn't remember fighting anything tough enough to lay her out this badly, not recently. What had she gone up against to cause this?
Raffaelo cleared his throat and stood up fully, moving to the door. "I'll go fetch you something. Do you want food or water? You must be famished."
"Some water please." Erza nodded, watching him leave. When the door closed (without a latch she noticed), she flung the sheet aside and grimaced, swinging her legs to the bedside. Needles and creaks strong enough to make her wince followed every move, yet she pressed on.
Standing up was so simple, yet took so much effort. Erza wasn't sure if she actually could, but she had to try; with a gasp her feet landed on the wood floor, growing worse the more weight she put on them. That was bad, which led to problem two: her balance was gone. Picking up her head left Erza woozy, her feet felt as if they would slip out from under her. She had to grab the frame to stabilize herself, teeth gritted from strain.
Upon finally standing up, free from the bed's embrace, Erza felt like pumping a fist in victory. But if she did she would find herself hitting the floor in no time, forcing herself to wait until she was steadied first. A minute of listening to birds outside and Raffaelo opening cupboards nearby passed before she felt ready enough.
Light engulfed her body, Requip magic doing what it was supposed to. Only this time it was slower, more effort intensive than she was accustomed to. Like she was wading through water instead of air. That gave her pause when the light dispersed, just in time for Raffaelo to open the door.
"Miss Scarlet, you shouldn't…" he paused, a platter of bread and a cup in hand shaking a little when she met his confused gaze. He had put on some plain white robes and combed his hair, making himself presentable.
"Oh, this. My requip magic." Erza explained, flinching in pain when she tried to tap her breastplate.
"I'm sorry, requip 'magic?'" He repeated dumbfoundedly.
Grunting from effort, Erza managed to cross the room in a semi dignified stagger so she could snatch the mug first. She needed water more than food, though her stomach growled. After draining it in one gulp she nodded.
"Yes, I'm a wizard." She explained.
While in some places wizards were thin on the ground, generally very few people she ever met were ignorant of magic. It may not have been common, but to one extent or another everyone knew something about wizards.
So when Raffaelo took a step back with visible fear, Erza felt confusion. "You're, you are a wizard? But…"
"I understand if you never personally met one before today. But I'm no more dangerous than any other." She downplayed it; boasting of her strength could come later, when she could back up her words.
"You can't be. You're, uh, I don't know of any magic like that. It's nothing like the simple spells I know." He looked as dumbfounded as she suddenly felt.
"If you can cast spells, then you are a wizard too." Erza raised a brow when she shook his head.
"No, I am not a mage. My abilities aren't due to wild magic, I can only use what the blessed lady Myrmidia has bestowed upon me." He raised his hands non threateningly, a glow forming in his palms as he whispered something under his breath. He held out the glow to her without stopping, and when it touched Erza her many aches faded away. But only for that part, the rest of her body still felt like something chewed her up and spat her out.
Erza raised a brow when he stopped, finishing his mumbling to tip his head; he did say he was a priest, but this definitely wasn't like the kind she was used to. And the goddess he mentioned…
"Mister, or should I say Father Grimaldi." Only now was it dawning on her that something about this house felt off to her. The place was rustic, but that didn't add up to the other things he mentioned. "Who is Myrmidia?"
"You don't know?" Raffaelo's brow raised. "Lady Myrmidia is one of the gods of this land. She guides us in our lives, teaches us to live honorably and justly. To those who beseech her aid for a noble cause, she is willing to help."
"And… What are these lands? I fear I may be a long way from home." A pit in her stomach formed, growing heavier no matter how much she quashed the feeling.
"Here? We are near the city of Magrilano. It is a few hours walk away, but I undertake the journey without complaint. Where are you from?" Raffaelo asked, still looking uneasy and confused.
"The Kingdom of Fiore, Magnolia specifically. Do you know of it?" Erza dearly hoped the answer was yes, as she didn't recognize the names he gave her.
"I… no." He shook his head, inadvertently giving strength to her stomach pit.
Clearing her throat, Erza took a wincing step back. "I apologize, I need to step outside for a moment."
"I, ah, very well." Raffaelo frowned, leading her into a quaint yet definitely rustic home. It wasn't a large one, so they didn't go far to a thick wooden door. He swung it open for her, and Erza was through before he could protest.
One step, then two. Erza paused, taking in a scenic plain that possessed a few rolling hills topped by trees, lacking signs of habitation aside from a few unpaved roads, with warm weather that felt more like southerly lands. The sunset bathed the whole landscape in a pleasant orange glow. Definitely not Fiore.
A sharp gasp whipped her around, ignoring the stabbing pain everywhere to see why Raffaelo was alarmed. Only to be confused by him staring into the sky, visibly horrified; under his breath he whispered more of what she presumed was prayer. Following his gaze, her own throat clenched.
There were two moons in the sky. One was smaller than the real one, thin and wispy as daytime moons usually were, hugging the horizon opposite of the departing sun. But the other: not only was it larger than its brother, it was also a sickly green, the patterns on the surface making her skin crawl. It was bright enough that she strongly suspected it was emitting its own light.
Without meaning to she unclenched her jaw, feeling revulsion that wasn't due to her injuries. It looked like a sore on the sky, made worse by it going straight up instead of following the other, as if it were trying to take over the sun's territory now that it was leaving.
"Blessed Myrmidia, Morrslieb is out before the night. That, that's never happened before." Raffaelo muttered in terror. "This is a bad omen, oh it is a bad omen."
Erza swallowed a lump. "I don't think I'm in Earthland anymore."
The first thing Erza noticed when she woke up was that her head hurt. It felt like a hundred vulcans were taking turns in pounding her cranium into dust. In fact, forget her head, pretty much every inch of her body felt that way. Every thought felt like a dagger was stabbed her, she didn't want to imagine how it would feel if she opened her eyes and let the light in.
She probingly opened a sliver of her eyelids and slammed them shut immediately. Yep, the light hurt. Gods, it was almost like when she had a drink out with the girls. If that was the reason why she had such a headache then Erza just hoped she didn't make such a mess again, last time Lucy had not looked her in the eyes for weeks.
Till now though, she did not understand why. She had just undressed her and massaged some hot wax on her back, then made her do some exotic dancing. Nothing worth her getting so weird about it.
Teeth gritted, Erza forced herself to sit up without opening her eyes yet. That simple effort took two tries, her spine and organs protesting moving at all. But she wasn't a quitter, so with a loud gasp she finally found herself upright, feeling dizzy from moving too fast. Each breath felt like needles were poking her lungs. Moving even a little had her limbs aching horribly. But she could move.
Erza was starting to suspect she wasn't waking up from a hangover. This time when she opened her eyes went like the last attempt, but she fought through it, groaning as she took in the world around herself. Everything was a weird mess of shrill yellow, brown, green and gray with some specks of black mixed in. Just trying to look around made her feel dizzy on top of her growing cranial pain, causing her to fall back on her bed, while trying fruitlessly to get her eyes used to the surroundings.
That was when she realized two things. One this wasn´t her bed -being hard and rough instead of the wonderful softness she was used to- and two, she was completely naked.
"Huh, that's odd." She croaked, surprised at how scratchy her throat felt. She thought she'd remember being in full armor before, so what happened to her outfit? Surely she didn't strip herself, so how…
Erza shook her head. That was for later. For now she blinked the spots out of her vision, so she could find out who's bed she was in. This one definitely wasn't hers.
Her vision cleared, bringing the room into focus. Around her was a bedroom, one she didn't recognize; it was smaller than her own, with the bed taking up a lot of the available space. Dimming orange light streamed from a small window. A large drawer was the other thing in her sight, a plain wooden thing topped by a weird little shrine she never saw before: there were a couple daggers forming a little tent around a woman's statue, a warrior she assumed based on the armor and outstretched sword.
There was more in the room beside that, like the shelves over the door holding knickknacks. Things like odd looking stones, several kinds of knives, pendants and sigils, and over the door a spear in good condition. But that shrine kept her attention. It wasn't any god or demon she recognized, what could she be?
Shuffling on the floor had Erza draw back, regretting it instantly when a wave of needly aches slammed into her. She hadn't entirely fought off the nausea when a mass of blankets she overlooked was flopped to the side, and a man rose with a groan. He had a sun baked complexion, dark haired and decently handsome, at the moment wearing a plain nightgown.
The man turned to her and opened his mouth, but immediately whipped around with red blooming on his cheeks. "Um, my lady. You're, uh, awake."
"I am." Erza agreed, relieved that she could understand him. "Who are you, and where am I?"
"I, erm, I am Raffaelo Grimaldi. I am a, uh, a priest. I… can you please cover yourself?" He strained out, covering his eyes.
"Why? Is there something wrong?" Erza peered at her body: everything looked to be in the right place.
He coughed. "You're, uh, naked."
"I know. Do you know where my armor went? I seemed to have misplaced it." She looked around again for her gear, finding nothing.
"Your armor, ah, was ruined. I had… had to peel it off. When I brought you to my home." He said the last part quickly.
"Ruined? How?" Erza leaned closer in spite of a stab of pain in her gut. Somehow he sensed her presence well enough to space himself an equal distance.
"You fell? From the sky." His throat bobbed, and next he spoke he pleaded. "Please, at least use the sheet."
With a huff, Erza yanked up the blanket to her collarbone, grunting an affirmative note. The man, Raffaelo, hesitatingly opened his hand, and when he saw her he dropped the limb with relief.
"Thank you. I am sorry for not giving you one of my nightgowns, but I had to dress your wounds." He still blushed.
"Wounds? You helped me?" Erza felt her suspicions subside. She didn't trust him whatsoever, but she felt he wasn't holding her captive.
Raffaelo nodded fast. "Three days ago you fell from the sky on my way home, you left a huge crater by the road. You didn't look like you were going to live, miss…"
"Erza Scarlet, of Fairy Tail. I thank you for helping me Mister Grimaldi." She gave a perfunctory bow that forced her breath out, but frowned for more than just pain. She didn't remember fighting anything tough enough to lay her out this badly, not recently. What had she gone up against to cause this?
Raffaelo cleared his throat and stood up fully, moving to the door. "I'll go fetch you something. Do you want food or water? You must be famished."
"Some water please." Erza nodded, watching him leave. When the door closed (without a latch she noticed), she flung the sheet aside and grimaced, swinging her legs to the bedside. Needles and creaks strong enough to make her wince followed every move, yet she pressed on.
Standing up was so simple, yet took so much effort. Erza wasn't sure if she actually could, but she had to try; with a gasp her feet landed on the wood floor, growing worse the more weight she put on them. That was bad, which led to problem two: her balance was gone. Picking up her head left Erza woozy, her feet felt as if they would slip out from under her. She had to grab the frame to stabilize herself, teeth gritted from strain.
Upon finally standing up, free from the bed's embrace, Erza felt like pumping a fist in victory. But if she did she would find herself hitting the floor in no time, forcing herself to wait until she was steadied first. A minute of listening to birds outside and Raffaelo opening cupboards nearby passed before she felt ready enough.
Light engulfed her body, Requip magic doing what it was supposed to. Only this time it was slower, more effort intensive than she was accustomed to. Like she was wading through water instead of air. That gave her pause when the light dispersed, just in time for Raffaelo to open the door.
"Miss Scarlet, you shouldn't…" he paused, a platter of bread and a cup in hand shaking a little when she met his confused gaze. He had put on some plain white robes and combed his hair, making himself presentable.
"Oh, this. My requip magic." Erza explained, flinching in pain when she tried to tap her breastplate.
"I'm sorry, requip 'magic?'" He repeated dumbfoundedly.
Grunting from effort, Erza managed to cross the room in a semi dignified stagger so she could snatch the mug first. She needed water more than food, though her stomach growled. After draining it in one gulp she nodded.
"Yes, I'm a wizard." She explained.
While in some places wizards were thin on the ground, generally very few people she ever met were ignorant of magic. It may not have been common, but to one extent or another everyone knew something about wizards.
So when Raffaelo took a step back with visible fear, Erza felt confusion. "You're, you are a wizard? But…"
"I understand if you never personally met one before today. But I'm no more dangerous than any other." She downplayed it; boasting of her strength could come later, when she could back up her words.
"You can't be. You're, uh, I don't know of any magic like that. It's nothing like the simple spells I know." He looked as dumbfounded as she suddenly felt.
"If you can cast spells, then you are a wizard too." Erza raised a brow when she shook his head.
"No, I am not a mage. My abilities aren't due to wild magic, I can only use what the blessed lady Myrmidia has bestowed upon me." He raised his hands non threateningly, a glow forming in his palms as he whispered something under his breath. He held out the glow to her without stopping, and when it touched Erza her many aches faded away. But only for that part, the rest of her body still felt like something chewed her up and spat her out.
Erza raised a brow when he stopped, finishing his mumbling to tip his head; he did say he was a priest, but this definitely wasn't like the kind she was used to. And the goddess he mentioned…
"Mister, or should I say Father Grimaldi." Only now was it dawning on her that something about this house felt off to her. The place was rustic, but that didn't add up to the other things he mentioned. "Who is Myrmidia?"
"You don't know?" Raffaelo's brow raised. "Lady Myrmidia is one of the gods of this land. She guides us in our lives, teaches us to live honorably and justly. To those who beseech her aid for a noble cause, she is willing to help."
"And… What are these lands? I fear I may be a long way from home." A pit in her stomach formed, growing heavier no matter how much she quashed the feeling.
"Here? We are near the city of Magrilano. It is a few hours walk away, but I undertake the journey without complaint. Where are you from?" Raffaelo asked, still looking uneasy and confused.
"The Kingdom of Fiore, Magnolia specifically. Do you know of it?" Erza dearly hoped the answer was yes, as she didn't recognize the names he gave her.
"I… no." He shook his head, inadvertently giving strength to her stomach pit.
Clearing her throat, Erza took a wincing step back. "I apologize, I need to step outside for a moment."
"I, ah, very well." Raffaelo frowned, leading her into a quaint yet definitely rustic home. It wasn't a large one, so they didn't go far to a thick wooden door. He swung it open for her, and Erza was through before he could protest.
One step, then two. Erza paused, taking in a scenic plain that possessed a few rolling hills topped by trees, lacking signs of habitation aside from a few unpaved roads, with warm weather that felt more like southerly lands. The sunset bathed the whole landscape in a pleasant orange glow. Definitely not Fiore.
A sharp gasp whipped her around, ignoring the stabbing pain everywhere to see why Raffaelo was alarmed. Only to be confused by him staring into the sky, visibly horrified; under his breath he whispered more of what she presumed was prayer. Following his gaze, her own throat clenched.
There were two moons in the sky. One was smaller than the real one, thin and wispy as daytime moons usually were, hugging the horizon opposite of the departing sun. But the other: not only was it larger than its brother, it was also a sickly green, the patterns on the surface making her skin crawl. It was bright enough that she strongly suspected it was emitting its own light.
Without meaning to she unclenched her jaw, feeling revulsion that wasn't due to her injuries. It looked like a sore on the sky, made worse by it going straight up instead of following the other, as if it were trying to take over the sun's territory now that it was leaving.
"Blessed Myrmidia, Morrslieb is out before the night. That, that's never happened before." Raffaelo muttered in terror. "This is a bad omen, oh it is a bad omen."
Erza swallowed a lump. "I don't think I'm in Earthland anymore."
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- Pronouns
- He
Thank you, fixed
yeah, she ain´t in a good state right now
- Location
- ferreries
*Snorts* That's Erza alright. She lures you with her serious facade and no-nonsense persona, and then you get to know her and it turns out, she is actually as weird as any other FT wizard. Glad to see you get that part of her character right.
- Pronouns
- He
yep.
She´s can been just as much of a clown as everyone else and that makes her so endearing
Chapter 3
- Pronouns
- He
Chapter 3
With the evening fast approaching, it felt like a decent enough time to have something to eat. Erza had no appetite, though her empty stomach demanded something after her long nap, and Raffaelo was happy to warm up a pot of stew he made the day before. For when she woke up he had explained.
Stoking the fire, Raffaelo poured a bowl of steaming stuff that smelled of meat and vegetables to turn around. Seated at his table, Erza wordlessly accepted the bowl and a wooden spoon, eyes downcast while he served himself.
Raffaelo took the seat opposite of her, waiting until she sipped the warm food. "So, you can imagine I have questions."
"Yes, of course." Erza said between sips, dredging up everything she knew about interdimensional travel; there wasn't much, to her unlimited ire. "Before I answer, Father Grimaldi? What is the name of this land? You called it Miragliano?"
"Correct Miss Scarlet. The city-state of Miragliano is one of many that dot the land of Tilea. You haven't heard of this before, have you?" Raffaelo frowned.
"No. I am from a distant land, called Fiore. I hail from the city of Magnolia specifically. I… fear I am further away than I have ever been before." Erza set her spoon down. "Tell me, how often does one travel between worlds here? I do not mean to different nations or continents, but entirely separate versions of the world? Places where the very nature of things may be different."
Raffaelo scowled. "The only different realm I would know about is a hellscape of demons and madness and if I believed you originated from there, I would strike you down where you stand." He noticed the unimpressed look she gave him and quickly added, "Luckily Myrmidia has ruled the latter out."
"Can you tell me more about that hellscape?" Erza furrowed her brow; perhaps he meant the Spirit Realm? But even at its worst she wouldn't describe that place so badly.
"I know little about it, those who do tend to be its thralls, to do so is to invite their attention." He made some sort of gesture, as if to call some sort of protection upon himself. Despite it not creating anything approaching what she'd qualify as magic, the titania still felt a faint power following it. "It is called the Realm of Chaos, where evil resides and Daemons originate from." He did so again, but stopped at her fists curling on the table.
"Tell me more." Erza spoke without inflection.
"It's from where the Dark Gods cast their foul touch unto the lands, infesting those who are not careful enough, twisting even the animals into rapacious and murderous monsters to ravage at their behest!" Spittle flew away from his mouth as he began to talk himself in a rage, before throwing a glance at Erza, forcing himself to calm down.
"I see." She was eerily calm in comparison, but only on the outside.
Internally, she felt both a flash of trepidation, and a deep wellspring of rage bubbling within her. Demons infested this world too. Those vile creatures were a menace to all, to find out more existed here…
She felt phantom pains of claws raking over her naked form, violating her on the deepest of levels. For a moment she closed her eyes, controlling her breath as she forced any and all mental pictures of that dark and oh so cold cell away.
"How…. often is it that you are fighting those…. Demons around here?" She swallowed all the bile down that the memories of her captivity under Kyoka had brought up, and tried to keep up her respectful demeanor to the man who had aided her. To her shame she found herself not entirely able to do so.
Not that the man seemed to realize or care, he just eyed her intently again.
"Around here? Not too often. Myrmidia watches over Tilea, she would never allow her children to fall to the predations of demons. Sadly…. The men in the north lack a similarly caring and capable goddess to protect them." A haunted look entered his face. "I had to discover that the hard way when I travelled the empire during my accolyteship." He quickly shook his head. "But where are my manners? You must be starving. Let's get you some food."
It was busy work considering she hadn't finished her stew, but Erza let him refill her bowl so she could slurp it up. Though she was famished, the stuff had no taste for her. It was filling, helping to regenerate her strength, but she didn't try to examine its flavors or consistency. She had a feeling that even an enormous cake couldn't distract her now.
Erza had no easy way to return home. That alone was a problem, but it wasn't the root of her unease, no; magic was rare here, not fading like in Edolas, but for whatever reason it was different here. More dangerous, mustrusted. Was that due to the demons? Or was it something else? She had to find out.
She also wasn't sure of it yet, but it felt a lot less…. Pure than the one she was used to. Just to test it out she had tried to requip and dequip the spoon -made out wood of all things- using none of her, admittedly quite large internal reserves, and just the magic she could take on from the environment. It went slower, less stable than what she was used to.
Where her normal requip happened in a flash of a moment and left her with one of the many powerful magic weapons and armors that made up her arsenal, now it took multiple seconds for the spoon to manifest itself. And there were small chunks missing at the sides.
Trying to use the magic of this world could and would be substantially more tasking than what she was used to. No matter, that was something to think about later.
"Can you tell me…. More of this Goddess of yours, Myrmidia. You say she protects these lands?" Maybe she could help her get home?
"Myrmidia? She is the great goddess of these lands." Raffaelo's expression lit up, fumbling to withdraw a small emblem on a chain. It was shaped much like the sun and spear shrine in the bedroom, though less ornate. "Myrmidia is the lady of war and wisdom. Our faith in her guards us against the depreciations of the dark gods, and aids us against the onslaught of the foul skaven." A particular note of hate crossed his voice when he mentioned them and Erza could see how his hands tightened around the chain.
"She sounds magnificent. And where can I find her?" She sounded like a useful ally.
Raffaelo gave her a bizarre look. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, how can I talk to her? She sounds like she may know a way to bring me to my homeland and comrades." It seemed fairly obvious to her. What was there to be confused about?
Raffaelo's lost expression only grew worse. "Myrmidia isn't a flesh and blood individual. She descended into mortal flesh a long time ago to save our country, and after that went west to reascend onto her Godhood. You can't just speak to her! It takes many long years of labour and priestly education to be able to fuel her power and blessings!"
"Oh." Well…. That was a problem. "Do you know any mages of Tilea then? Maybe they know more?" At the very least, they should be able to explain the strange heavy magic that permeated the air around here better.
"Myrmidia teaches some magic, but she doesn't embrace it like other gods." He frowned. "While we have nothing like the dedicated mage academies of the Empire, it should be easy enough to find wizards in Migralino. Many hedge wizards and witches offer their services there or sell their trinkets. And you will find far more potent ones in the employ of the local merchant princes. They can tell you more about this than me." He coughed and ate the last of his own stew, wiping his mouth afterwards. "There is a market going on in nearby Corno, from a major trade caravan. It's going to Migralino, but I can't let you go there yet, not while morselieb stands in the sky."
"I…very well." She pursed her lips.
"While we are on the topic of magic, can you tell me what this blade of yours is." He stood up and made for his room, returning after a moment with a sword she recognized well. It was Benizakura, the demon blade shining even now with the enhancements made by Wendy. "I have seen weapons like this with Cathayan trade ships in Remas, but the… Power I feel in it, it's like one of the weapons of legend!"
"Ah, thank you for recovering my sword. This is my blade, Benizakura. It's good to see it whole." It had survived pretty much everyone she had used it so far, but after fighting her mother and shattering a meteor, she had indeed grown more than a little worried.
Reaching out she quickly took it from the priest, relieved to feel it's familiar weight in her hands yet again. And she didn't even need her senses to see how the sword was still pulsing with magic might, Wendy's dragon slayer magic on it having a much easier time converting this world's magic particles than she had.
"A good friend enchanted it with Dragon slayer magic shortly before I came here." She smiled. "That's the reason why it is behaving in this way." Or well, it was the most likely reason she knew at the moment. That was certainly something she had to investigate more later. It wouldn't do if the weapons and items she had put so much effort into were to do something she didn't know!
"Dragon…. Slayer magic?" Raffaelo said the words as if he couldn't fit them all that well together.
"Yes. It's very strong." It did have a rather poor record at actually slaying Dragons but she could certainly never call Natsu, Wendy, Gajeel or any other dragon slayer she ever encountered as weak.
Raffaelo halted again, brow furrowed. "Lady Scarlet, you may very well be the most bizarre woman I have ever met."
Erza felt a smile on her face. One that faded when she checked the pot, drawing his attention to the tray next to his fireplace. There were a few logs of wood left, not enough to last an hour, let alone overnight.
"Ah, that. I spent so much time attending you that I neglected to gather more firewood. I'm sorry but I think we will have to expect a cold night." He sighed, while looking around in his rather sparse home.
"There's no problem. I'll get some for you." Erza quickly rose up, experimentally cracking her joints and straining her muscles a little. Strange, Raffealo was once again staring at her like she was some especially yummy strawberry cake. He quickly shook it off though.
"No, you can't." Raffaelo blocked her way. "Morrslieb is out tonight, it's not wise to be under its baleful light. Besides Lady Scarlet, you are my guest. I can't ask you to do my chores."
"Nonsense, it's the least I can do to repay you. I'll be quick." Erza shoved past him, easily pushing him aside. He mustn't have put very much effort in trying to stop her, though given how polite he had been so far it was only reasonable that he'd hold back against her. Carefully opening the door, she peeked outside to see how bad this cursed light really was.
There wasn't much illumination, although the green light gave her uncomfortable reminders of Galuna island. Shaking her head, Erza selected a nearby tree; it was as wide as her torso and four times her height, more than enough for one night. And the best part was it didn't have many branches, reducing how much work she had to do.
Stopping before the tree, roughly twice as wide as she was, Erza cracked her neck; she wanted to test how bad off she was, and though she didn't like to admit it, she didn't want to use magic under that sickly moonlight. It felt wrong. So in lieu of something flashy, Erza wrapped her arms around the trunk, squatted, and pulled.
The tree shook. Beneath her boots the ground rumbled, roots getting torn from the soil. They were shallow but reached some distance away, necessitating her to back up and shuffle her arms along the trunk. Cracks of broken roots dueled with the rattling leaves, until a final snap tore it from the soil.
Erza widened her eyes, wobbling from almost losing her balance; a flash of lightheadedness struck, catching her off guard. With a grunt she recentered herself, scooching the bark onto her shoulders with a grunt.
Turning slowly so she wouldn't knock over anything by accident, Erza swung the roots coated in soil onto the grass before her. And nearly smacked Raffaelo in the
process; she lifted the edge over him before she could hit, though dirt dribbled off his clean robes.
"Oh, sorry. Didn't see you. Would you prefer to cut the branches off outside or in?" She asked.
Raffaelo opened his mouth, closed in, then rubbed his eyes. "What?"
AN:
Here is a fun new chapter, hope you guys enjoy
With the evening fast approaching, it felt like a decent enough time to have something to eat. Erza had no appetite, though her empty stomach demanded something after her long nap, and Raffaelo was happy to warm up a pot of stew he made the day before. For when she woke up he had explained.
Stoking the fire, Raffaelo poured a bowl of steaming stuff that smelled of meat and vegetables to turn around. Seated at his table, Erza wordlessly accepted the bowl and a wooden spoon, eyes downcast while he served himself.
Raffaelo took the seat opposite of her, waiting until she sipped the warm food. "So, you can imagine I have questions."
"Yes, of course." Erza said between sips, dredging up everything she knew about interdimensional travel; there wasn't much, to her unlimited ire. "Before I answer, Father Grimaldi? What is the name of this land? You called it Miragliano?"
"Correct Miss Scarlet. The city-state of Miragliano is one of many that dot the land of Tilea. You haven't heard of this before, have you?" Raffaelo frowned.
"No. I am from a distant land, called Fiore. I hail from the city of Magnolia specifically. I… fear I am further away than I have ever been before." Erza set her spoon down. "Tell me, how often does one travel between worlds here? I do not mean to different nations or continents, but entirely separate versions of the world? Places where the very nature of things may be different."
Raffaelo scowled. "The only different realm I would know about is a hellscape of demons and madness and if I believed you originated from there, I would strike you down where you stand." He noticed the unimpressed look she gave him and quickly added, "Luckily Myrmidia has ruled the latter out."
"Can you tell me more about that hellscape?" Erza furrowed her brow; perhaps he meant the Spirit Realm? But even at its worst she wouldn't describe that place so badly.
"I know little about it, those who do tend to be its thralls, to do so is to invite their attention." He made some sort of gesture, as if to call some sort of protection upon himself. Despite it not creating anything approaching what she'd qualify as magic, the titania still felt a faint power following it. "It is called the Realm of Chaos, where evil resides and Daemons originate from." He did so again, but stopped at her fists curling on the table.
"Tell me more." Erza spoke without inflection.
"It's from where the Dark Gods cast their foul touch unto the lands, infesting those who are not careful enough, twisting even the animals into rapacious and murderous monsters to ravage at their behest!" Spittle flew away from his mouth as he began to talk himself in a rage, before throwing a glance at Erza, forcing himself to calm down.
"I see." She was eerily calm in comparison, but only on the outside.
Internally, she felt both a flash of trepidation, and a deep wellspring of rage bubbling within her. Demons infested this world too. Those vile creatures were a menace to all, to find out more existed here…
She felt phantom pains of claws raking over her naked form, violating her on the deepest of levels. For a moment she closed her eyes, controlling her breath as she forced any and all mental pictures of that dark and oh so cold cell away.
"How…. often is it that you are fighting those…. Demons around here?" She swallowed all the bile down that the memories of her captivity under Kyoka had brought up, and tried to keep up her respectful demeanor to the man who had aided her. To her shame she found herself not entirely able to do so.
Not that the man seemed to realize or care, he just eyed her intently again.
"Around here? Not too often. Myrmidia watches over Tilea, she would never allow her children to fall to the predations of demons. Sadly…. The men in the north lack a similarly caring and capable goddess to protect them." A haunted look entered his face. "I had to discover that the hard way when I travelled the empire during my accolyteship." He quickly shook his head. "But where are my manners? You must be starving. Let's get you some food."
It was busy work considering she hadn't finished her stew, but Erza let him refill her bowl so she could slurp it up. Though she was famished, the stuff had no taste for her. It was filling, helping to regenerate her strength, but she didn't try to examine its flavors or consistency. She had a feeling that even an enormous cake couldn't distract her now.
Erza had no easy way to return home. That alone was a problem, but it wasn't the root of her unease, no; magic was rare here, not fading like in Edolas, but for whatever reason it was different here. More dangerous, mustrusted. Was that due to the demons? Or was it something else? She had to find out.
She also wasn't sure of it yet, but it felt a lot less…. Pure than the one she was used to. Just to test it out she had tried to requip and dequip the spoon -made out wood of all things- using none of her, admittedly quite large internal reserves, and just the magic she could take on from the environment. It went slower, less stable than what she was used to.
Where her normal requip happened in a flash of a moment and left her with one of the many powerful magic weapons and armors that made up her arsenal, now it took multiple seconds for the spoon to manifest itself. And there were small chunks missing at the sides.
Trying to use the magic of this world could and would be substantially more tasking than what she was used to. No matter, that was something to think about later.
"Can you tell me…. More of this Goddess of yours, Myrmidia. You say she protects these lands?" Maybe she could help her get home?
"Myrmidia? She is the great goddess of these lands." Raffaelo's expression lit up, fumbling to withdraw a small emblem on a chain. It was shaped much like the sun and spear shrine in the bedroom, though less ornate. "Myrmidia is the lady of war and wisdom. Our faith in her guards us against the depreciations of the dark gods, and aids us against the onslaught of the foul skaven." A particular note of hate crossed his voice when he mentioned them and Erza could see how his hands tightened around the chain.
"She sounds magnificent. And where can I find her?" She sounded like a useful ally.
Raffaelo gave her a bizarre look. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, how can I talk to her? She sounds like she may know a way to bring me to my homeland and comrades." It seemed fairly obvious to her. What was there to be confused about?
Raffaelo's lost expression only grew worse. "Myrmidia isn't a flesh and blood individual. She descended into mortal flesh a long time ago to save our country, and after that went west to reascend onto her Godhood. You can't just speak to her! It takes many long years of labour and priestly education to be able to fuel her power and blessings!"
"Oh." Well…. That was a problem. "Do you know any mages of Tilea then? Maybe they know more?" At the very least, they should be able to explain the strange heavy magic that permeated the air around here better.
"Myrmidia teaches some magic, but she doesn't embrace it like other gods." He frowned. "While we have nothing like the dedicated mage academies of the Empire, it should be easy enough to find wizards in Migralino. Many hedge wizards and witches offer their services there or sell their trinkets. And you will find far more potent ones in the employ of the local merchant princes. They can tell you more about this than me." He coughed and ate the last of his own stew, wiping his mouth afterwards. "There is a market going on in nearby Corno, from a major trade caravan. It's going to Migralino, but I can't let you go there yet, not while morselieb stands in the sky."
"I…very well." She pursed her lips.
"While we are on the topic of magic, can you tell me what this blade of yours is." He stood up and made for his room, returning after a moment with a sword she recognized well. It was Benizakura, the demon blade shining even now with the enhancements made by Wendy. "I have seen weapons like this with Cathayan trade ships in Remas, but the… Power I feel in it, it's like one of the weapons of legend!"
"Ah, thank you for recovering my sword. This is my blade, Benizakura. It's good to see it whole." It had survived pretty much everyone she had used it so far, but after fighting her mother and shattering a meteor, she had indeed grown more than a little worried.
Reaching out she quickly took it from the priest, relieved to feel it's familiar weight in her hands yet again. And she didn't even need her senses to see how the sword was still pulsing with magic might, Wendy's dragon slayer magic on it having a much easier time converting this world's magic particles than she had.
"A good friend enchanted it with Dragon slayer magic shortly before I came here." She smiled. "That's the reason why it is behaving in this way." Or well, it was the most likely reason she knew at the moment. That was certainly something she had to investigate more later. It wouldn't do if the weapons and items she had put so much effort into were to do something she didn't know!
"Dragon…. Slayer magic?" Raffaelo said the words as if he couldn't fit them all that well together.
"Yes. It's very strong." It did have a rather poor record at actually slaying Dragons but she could certainly never call Natsu, Wendy, Gajeel or any other dragon slayer she ever encountered as weak.
Raffaelo halted again, brow furrowed. "Lady Scarlet, you may very well be the most bizarre woman I have ever met."
Erza felt a smile on her face. One that faded when she checked the pot, drawing his attention to the tray next to his fireplace. There were a few logs of wood left, not enough to last an hour, let alone overnight.
"Ah, that. I spent so much time attending you that I neglected to gather more firewood. I'm sorry but I think we will have to expect a cold night." He sighed, while looking around in his rather sparse home.
"There's no problem. I'll get some for you." Erza quickly rose up, experimentally cracking her joints and straining her muscles a little. Strange, Raffealo was once again staring at her like she was some especially yummy strawberry cake. He quickly shook it off though.
"No, you can't." Raffaelo blocked her way. "Morrslieb is out tonight, it's not wise to be under its baleful light. Besides Lady Scarlet, you are my guest. I can't ask you to do my chores."
"Nonsense, it's the least I can do to repay you. I'll be quick." Erza shoved past him, easily pushing him aside. He mustn't have put very much effort in trying to stop her, though given how polite he had been so far it was only reasonable that he'd hold back against her. Carefully opening the door, she peeked outside to see how bad this cursed light really was.
There wasn't much illumination, although the green light gave her uncomfortable reminders of Galuna island. Shaking her head, Erza selected a nearby tree; it was as wide as her torso and four times her height, more than enough for one night. And the best part was it didn't have many branches, reducing how much work she had to do.
Stopping before the tree, roughly twice as wide as she was, Erza cracked her neck; she wanted to test how bad off she was, and though she didn't like to admit it, she didn't want to use magic under that sickly moonlight. It felt wrong. So in lieu of something flashy, Erza wrapped her arms around the trunk, squatted, and pulled.
The tree shook. Beneath her boots the ground rumbled, roots getting torn from the soil. They were shallow but reached some distance away, necessitating her to back up and shuffle her arms along the trunk. Cracks of broken roots dueled with the rattling leaves, until a final snap tore it from the soil.
Erza widened her eyes, wobbling from almost losing her balance; a flash of lightheadedness struck, catching her off guard. With a grunt she recentered herself, scooching the bark onto her shoulders with a grunt.
Turning slowly so she wouldn't knock over anything by accident, Erza swung the roots coated in soil onto the grass before her. And nearly smacked Raffaelo in the
process; she lifted the edge over him before she could hit, though dirt dribbled off his clean robes.
"Oh, sorry. Didn't see you. Would you prefer to cut the branches off outside or in?" She asked.
Raffaelo opened his mouth, closed in, then rubbed his eyes. "What?"
AN:
Here is a fun new chapter, hope you guys enjoy