7 Ghosts (Claymore X Worm AU crossover)

[Cheerio]

Chapter 10: An Older Sister's Attention and a New Mission

My new hand was a curse. It took a few weeks to break through my denial and accept my reality.

Suddenly I feel her approach. From farther away then I'd been searching. "Alright. You're out of time. That means we switch. 1, 2, 3..." Said Ophelia loudly as counted down.

I leapt away. First I put some distance between us, and then suppressing my aura as low as it could go before trying to hide. Unfortunately, with my aura suppressed my footspeed was less than a third of Ophelia's when hers was suppressed. That gave me a much more limited radius to hide in before Ophelia finished counting to one hundred.

I settled for a cliff. I climbed down it and clung to an outstripping or rather to the cliff just below an outcropping. It would be impossible to see me from above, and below it was a river, while across the river was another cliff. I hoped she wouldn't be able to see me while standing on the other cliff opposite the river.

Next I focused on suppressing my aura. This wasn't just about hitting 0%. At 0% there is still the passive amounts of youki lingering in ones muscles and skeleton that will give you away. A true master at stealth can gather that energy and compact it until it is no more than the shadow of a wisp.

"So, this was the best you could do?"

Shoot. I thought I had more time.

Ophelia picked up a boulder and threw it at the outcropping I'm hiding below. It smashed that part of cliff and forced me to leap aside.

Ophelia tackles me and takes me into the river.

I pull my head up a mile downstream. Her speed and strength advantage were less useful underwater. A useful trick I should keep in mind if I ever manage to get a superior opponent to fight me beside a river or lake.

"And now it's time for the penalty." Whispers Ophelia into my ear.

Before I can jump in surprise she has lopped off an arm and a leg.

"What are you waiting for?" She says with a smile. "Your comrades are being killed by an awakened who just disabled you. Do a patchjob and get back into battle."

I follow her instructions. Eight minutes later I'm done.

"Hmm, you're down to four minutes per a limb. Much better than a month ago, but still too slow. A team of three facing an Awakened Being will either have killed it or been slaughtered after several minutes. You're obsolete."

"I took care of the leg a bit faster than the arm. I can fight with one arm too."

"Except I cut off your dominant arm. If you intend to fight with one arm you should have better defended your dominant one."

We transitioned back to me seeking out Ophelia. At one point she stops trying to hide and just takes off. It becomes a race until she turn around and decks me. The last thing I saw was her open fist coming at my head. My power working overtime decided to tell me exactly how hard this was for Ophelia. Another weakness is that she finds it hard to hold back.

***

It's been 5 months since I got my new hand. Ophelia drops by sporadically to help me kick my training up a notch. Some weeks our schedule matches one day. Others she's too busy to see me. Once I didn't see her for three whole weeks.

If I didn't know so many warrior's training plans she might have conned me with her speeches about "this is standard once you graduate," or "when you become a single-digit you have to do this blindfolded."

I think she knows I don't buy it and just keeps wanting to tease me. The worst part is even if she is lying about it being standard for other warriors I get the feeling she could do this all day blindfolded with another person on her back.

As for side-effects, they've been interesting. My appetite has significantly increased and I also noted the roughly weekly cravings. The worst part has been my progress with my technique. Having the new hand almost trivializes the sacrifice involved. It never occurred to me it could be a setback on that front. On the other hand, my new hand also has some weird muscle memory. I can't get memories from it, but it retains a bit of the unconscious habits of its previous user. It hasn't even let me rebuild the original owner's style or technique since it was the offhand not the dominant hand for fighting.

The final drawback has been that it's impossible to get too close to my limit. I've never gone past 75%, but with this hand my youki can sometimes be randomly inflate like a wave hidden beneath the ocean until it nears the shore. I have a new self-imposed limit of 65% of my youki until I get more comfortable with it.

In the meantime, the organization took my new hand as a sign I was ready for taking missions in pairs. My partner has been Evelyn. She has been quite vocal telling me I should have rejected the new hand. I didn't realize it would get us promoted and cause me catch Ophelia's interest. Fortunately, yoma are not really challenges to the two of us anymore.

The greater danger is on the road to and from our missions. We often don't bother to make camp and just run the entire way there and back.

Three months ago Jacklyn finally went from trainee to number 29. Her style isn't fully combat ready, unfortunately. Still, we congratulated her and she got to face me and beat me in a match with both of my hands. It didn't really change anything since her range and power is the biggest issue in a match. Plus her footwork and charges have gotten even sharper.

I'm a little disappointed that it feels like we're growing apart. It's not surprising, though, given how often we get to run into each other. That day I wanted to ask Jacklyn to warble a song for us, but with the others present I didn't know how she would take it. Why does everything feel like it's getting more complicated?

***

Our mission today wasn't a Yoma extermination. Something had killed off ten families in Easton. The village militia had managed to kill it with help from a new weapon the chief had bought called a Boom Crossbow. It looked like a cross between a six foot 300lb dog and a lizard based on the scales. Whatever it was the village wanted to know where it had come from and if they could expect more. The Organization wasn't collecting any fees because they also held a research interest in identifying its origins.

"Be careful with that." Screeched Fel at me.

When the news had reached Staff Fel had grabbed the nearest group and drafted us into playing pack's and bodyguard for him on this mission.

I was carrying two bags of sample collection equipment, while Evelyn held an ungainly chemical weapon for him that he wanted to field test if we came upon trouble. On her back was a first aid kit and cage for a mutant messenger bird.

We were making good time despite Fel's extra luggage and that he was with us because he was riding a horse. His mount couldn't match our speed, but it was setting a challenging pace considering we were carrying his luggage.

"You know as bad as things are back here, at least we're not that horse." Mentioned Evelyn quietly while lifting and shaking her derriere and miming that it was so large it could sag on the ground.

I giggled.

"If you have time to laugh then step up the pace. What happens if the person or being responsible moves on before we get there."

"Shouldn't we be more worried that it's an issue beyond a couple trainees ability to handle?"

He scoffed at that. "You're both candidates for promotion so together you add up to a decently high rank warrior. Also, that's what that weapon is for. If it's a weak awakened being or a strong power user then just make sure we can deploy it."

After another two hours Easton came into sight. A burnt out patch in the middle looked like the damage from the previous fight. Unfortunately, we were not the first investigators to arrive. A figure hovered in the air taking in the sight. Below him was an older gentleman saying something to the flying figure, who wore the white robes and breastplate of a Saint.

***​

Spoiler: Current Known Ranked Warriors

1. Priscilla (unknown epithet)
2. Kujira of the Nothingness
4. God-eye Galatea
6. Heat Haze Hilda
7. Older Sister Ophelia/The Voracious Cannibal
13. Eva
29. Jacklyn

Note: These rankings are the last known rankings of these warriors. Its possible they have gotten a lower number as lower warriors died or been pushed up if new high rank warriors joined the ranks like Alicia and Beth.

AN: By the way, Ophelia was cheating in this chapter and Clare never noticed. She still has a lot to learn.

 

[Cheerio]

Omake: The Tale of the Blind Sentinel

The following is an excerpt from the diary of a merchant who lived near the beginning of the Reunification Wars.

***

The "Blind Sentinel" wasn't a very popular folktale. The biggest obstacle to her popularity was her avoidance of populated areas. Some have even claimed she didn't exist and was merely a fictitious legend passed along by merchants to encourage scared travelers to journey farther with them.

I have a friend, however, who swears by the twin goddesses that she exists and helped him once. I believe him.

According to him, the blind sentinel met him when he broke an axle and nearly had to abandon his cart along with most of his goods.

When she came up the road behind him she hardly spoke. Merely asked him if he needed help and then offered to assist him in carrying his goods to the nearest town. He thanked her. He fully expected her to only help him carry an armful or two (or rob him in which case he also had a countermeasure). Instead she picked up the back of his cart and helped walk it, with wheels in the air, to the nearest town.

That was the Blind Sentinel. Understated strength, power and generosity. The campfire tales would have you believe she saved a bloke everyday, but I bet most of her interactions were just like that. She wouldn't refuse a meal or gift, but she also never demanded one. She always asked for directions to trouble. Then she'd leave soon but in no particular hurry in the direction of the worst rumors. That was one of the defining features of an encounter with the Sentinel.

Another one, of course, was her blindfold. Given the widespread reports of her fighting yoma, bandits, and even rogue "God-touched" with her blindfold on we can only surmise she had some other method of seeing. There are even tales of bandits who didn't realize there were Yoma in their ranks. She killed those Yoma disguised as bandits in the blink of an eye before asking the rest if they wanted to continue or lay down their arms and just leave. She tended to get her way in the end and must have been either a "God-touched" or one of the Silver-Eyed Witches.

The most common theory was that she was an angel sent down from the heavens. Or an incarnation of a goddess who took pity on the suffering of her people and chose to come down and dwell among them. The way she watched over them, even without eyes, made people think of a shepard of travelers, the kidnapped and the outcasts. I think that's where she got her nickname.

Personally, I think she was a Claymore who left their ranks to assist people without sucking them dry. After all, despite the simple black clothes my friend saw her wearing, she also carried a large sword. This wasn't just for show according to the stories that claimed she drew and swung it faster than the eye could see. Of course, there were also exaggerated claims like that she could spot a person in trouble from 400 meters away through thick forest cover.

I heard once that the Saints had dispatched a representative to recruit her. They probably promised she could do far more good work with them than on her own. Maybe they also offered her forgiveness for her nature if she was a Claymore or former Claymore.

She never did become a saint. Nor did they call for worship of the goddess made flesh. Maybe she turned them down or they never found her. The Blind Sentinel also might have thought it was too dangerous to be seen as affiliated with their group since invariably she was reported wandering the wilder outlying regions of Alphonse and Lautrec.

That was land even saints feared to tread.

In terms of when she began traveling most estimate the rumors picked up several months after the South was cutoff. Perhaps she was driven out of Mucha.

Whatever her story she was one of the more enigmatic characters in an age filled with many great heroes, villains and world-shakers. The mystery only deepened when one day she simply vanished.

I remember a fellow in the Scholar's Guild put up a 500 gold reward for information that would lead to a meeting with her. Either he just had money to burn or she must have done him one massive favor.

The post went up and stayed up for 6 months until he took it down. I think that's when people realized she was really gone. No rumors and no credible information even for that price, could mean nothing else.

I remember thinking that maybe she found what she'd been looking for. Chasing bad news and troubles week after month after year.

It's a nice thought, but she was probably eaten.

 

[Cheerio]

Chapter 11: The Lesser Evil

"What do you leeches want?" Said the saint while hovering a meter off the ground.

The saint looked like Haas in his late twenties or early thirties. He wore a white robe with a lowered cowl. At his side was a decent quality sword and knapsack.

"We have come at the request of the townspeople to perform an investigation. We are even doing so free of charge. We're hardly leeches." Said Fel who remained mounted.

"Such generosity." He said disdainfully. "You're probably only here hoping to kidnap another one of the God-touched if you can find one. And one act of 'generosity' does not change what you are?"

"Oh, and would you truly claim the one responsible for your God as a God-touched. The perpetrator seems more devilish than even these girls behind me."

He turned to glare at us. Evelyn matched him glare for glare, but I found it difficult to meet his eyes.

"Whoever is responsible, if they weren't already killed will receive divine retribution for misusing the gifts of God. He does not need your help to rectify man's failings."

He turned away then and flew up and began scouring the damaged houses on the opposite side of town.

"What a tool." Snorted Fel.

We then met with the local chief. They had at first wanted to burn the body of the attacker to ashes after finally bringing it down. The death count had been 22 with many others injured.

There had been a worry, though, that this might be the first of more attacks, and clues would be needed to learn the cause of this. The attacker had not run into town, but appeared from within their midst. No eye witnesses from when it began its assault were alive, unfortunately.

Thus, as a compromise a limb and a tail were removed and preserved while the rest of the body was dragged outside, burned and buried in barren land too poor for agriculture.

Still, they did not want to keep the samples. They had already offered one to Saintshold, and the remaining sample, the tail, was for us. We were to do what we willed with it as long as it left the city within a day. I understood their fear.

The Organization had conducted a number of covert raids to damage the Red Hand's support base and drive them away from the East. Easton was part of the central region dominated by the church, but it was close enough to the Organization that the Red Hand's presence was extremely unlikely.

Nevertheless, tales of where they had attacked were infamous, and Easton had no desire to attract their attention.

We were taken to a barn after that. Inside was most of a tail.

"It looks like strips have been cut out of it." Said Fel.

Uncomfortably the leader explained that some locals had probably snuck in to cut pieces off to try to sell.

"Fools. What do you see, Clare?"

I walked around it. Lifted it up, and tore off a tiny piece. The scales were almost black but we're too dull to shine.

"I get the feeling this form is very fluid. It probably got stronger as you fought it, so it needed to be beaten before it became too powerful."

"That's right." The chief confirmed. "When Roland first spotted it, I think it was two meters tall. When we brought it down it was closer to three. Midway through it seemed to open a third eye too, but that might have just been grown."

"What sort of tactics did it use?" I asked.

"It seemed to go after anyone close to it and tried to tear them apart. It never seemed too interested in taking time to eat them, though. It also didn't seem to identify or care about those of us with weapons anymore than those without. That's one reason we called you. It fought like an animal, not like a Yoma."

"I got the same feeling. It would be easiest to take it down with traps or ambushes before it manages to do much damage. It's growth isn't directly tied to time so much as the concept of damage, but I'm not quite sure how?"

"So all you can do is confirm the chief's report. Fine." Said Fel unfairly. "Is it giving any lingering youki signature?"

"No, sir." Said Evelyn stiffly.

"We'll pick it up then on our way back. Let's go back to where it happened."

We spent another few hours combing the site for clues with Fel periodically speaking to himself. I had unobtrusively copied his memory and was only half paying attention to the investigation. Mostly I was keeping a look-out for trouble.

The other half of my mind was collating names and places for secret labs and projects. I had never gotten access to the memories of someone this high up. He wasn't formally in charge of research, but he had a background in it and kept his own projects separate from the Head of Research and Development. He also kept abreast of their newest advancements.

My arm was one of no less than a 14 projects aimed at increasing the strength of their forces in a controlled manner. I hadn't realized but if I went rogue my arm was equipped with capsules of poison. The right aerosol agent would eventually get into my system and kill me from the inside within an hour. Drawing on youki would only delay it to two hours.

Probably less since I would likely have directed my youki flow to my lungs instead of my hand and bloodstream.

The most disturbing project was the Farm. A breeding lab for new Power Users complete with a trauma and brainwashing program. I wanted to do something about it but there was nothing I could do.

Then I saw project Infection.

"Clare! Hurry up. If we fall behind Fel again he'll get even angrier." I had frozen. Luckily Evelyn was watching my back and dragged me towards where Fel was analyzing some footprints.

"It looks like it jumped in size whenever it hit a house with a lot of people in it. Houses that were nearly empty didn't have the same effect so it definitely wasn't property damage." He muttered.

"Sir," I decided to report my biggest find. "When I was looking at the first house to be attacked I noticed someone broke into it from the kitchen window. That's probably the one who assisted it in making the first kill. My power was suggesting from the way they entered and the wounds on the first body that the perpetrator is probably a human power user. I do not think we're dealing with a voracious eater. If it was a yoma then they cloaked their youki very carefully and never used it at any point."

"Good that jibes with the information I got from one of the Saints."

"They're working with us." Evelyn said in surprise.

"No, but he wanted the info I had on any yoma signatures in the vicinity. I traded him for it." Fel said with a wicked smile. I think he took pleasure in the thought that the so-called Saint had to lower himself to speaking with us.

I sure did, but I still felt a little queasy from the earlier knowledge I got.

"Let's go." At last, Fel said. We had no leads about where the one who assisted in the first murder had gone. Eva might drop by in the future, but the trail was cold and only going to get colder.

When we got back to Staff we found it in chaos. A facility in the north Eastern area of Sutare had been attacked and reinforcements had been dispatched. Me and Evelyn were also sent immediately patch up Headquarter's perimeter since sending reinforcements had left large holes in our defenses. 8 hours later the last of the survivors had made their way back to Staff.

Numbers 18, 28 and 36 had been killed along with several trainees. The survivors spread rumors of black infiltrators who cut down warriors without slowing down a step. And a dark, monstrous, three-eyed lizard that decimated the facility until it collapsed inwards.

What caught my eye the most, however, was the look of the people returning. I recognized a few as important people related to the Farm. The Farm that had been in the Northwestern region of Sutare.

***

(?)

"Ms., I can't ever thank you enough."

"Thank them. They could use some more encouragement to stay on the straight and narrow." She said thinking of the disaster in Easton. That insult had not been worth the lives of dozens. Even if they would have done the same to others who couldn't take it. We'd also had to offer the weapon to the villagers to get them to claim the death had come at their hands.

"Besides, we're not home free. The beast left in the opposite direction towards another project. If it survives long enough to reach it, hopefully, it will serve as a good distraction again. In the meantime we need to get the pregnant and children further away."

It was days like this that made me long for my cave.

"Ms. I don't think we'll make it all the way out of the East no matter what distractions we muster."

"We don't have to make it that far, I said finally sensing the party we'd been trying to rendezvous with. They approached us from three directions. And surrounded our small caravan.

"Is this all? We were expecting over fifty."

"There are dozens of children in the wagons. These were all I could find." I said. I suspected our information was off and there were multiple farms. Unless they were butchering people right and left the numbers kidnapped vs the number we rescued plus the new generation just didn't match up.

"Fine. The Silver King appreciates your charity, and will fulfill his part of the bargain." Said the bald man wrapped in a blue cloak.

"I turned back to the recently liberated captives. I'm sorry, but we'll need to split up from here. I'll disrupt pursuit while these three will escort you to a man in the north. He is a tyrant, but a lesser evil, and he will ensure your families are not preyed upon or enslaved in exchange for your fealty."

I met their eyes and saw the sparks of hope reignite. The two helpers to the side looked slightly bitter. I didn't care. They were my responsibility and would do things my way. We weren't playing heroes--merely nicer villains, and we were about to hand over our spoils of war.

"One last thing," I asked the three who had come from the north. "Have you heard any further rumors of trouble?"

***

 

[Cheerio]

Interlude: Fiona

I once worked in my village as a tailor's assistant. One day a yoma attacked they killed four before a Claymore came and killed it. The yoma turned out to be my husband. After that I was driven out of our village by the four families who lost someone.

I was touched by...something. When I awoke I had a new power. I felt cold. No matter what I bundled myself in, I felt cold unless I was touching fire. Apparently I could also touch fire now. When I had warmed myself I could also emit that heat out in nearly invisible bolts. All that you could see were distortions in the air.

Things were looking better. I had heard about others with powers like mine. They could make their way to a major city and be employed as a guard or honorary knight. The Rabonian church also was working hard to recruit them.

I never gave a thought to hiding this ability. I figured if bandits or yoma attacked I would just burn them. The Silver Witches wouldn't harm me as a Yoma, and none of the wild beasts were as scary as a Yoma.

I was wrong. They came for me after I left a city on my way to the central region of Toulouse. I had earned pocket money as a street performer swallowing fire and then belching out smoke. I also baked bread in my hands for the crowd.

That night was the beginning of the darkest portion of my life.

I had nearly lost hope when she appeared. Covered from head to toe in blood. She tore the door off its hinges and called out for me follow her before doing the same to our neighbors. One after another until she had reached the end of the line.

We followed her. Over the bodies of those evil men and past beheaded or bisected silver witches. She met up with her twin who had another group of a dozen following her and then another identical one. I stupidly thought they were sisters until I saw the fourth one and realized they were identical clones.

The last one had been loading children into several covered wagons. In the background a dust storm and the roars and screams of others filled us with fear, She told us there was nothing to fear. It was simply her helpers. Her clones turned to wisps of smoke that flowed back into her.

Then we ran. The wagons were filled with only the children, the sick and the heavily pregnant. I did not qualify yet thankfully.

We walked and walked until we met strangers and our savior split off. To keep our pursuers busy she said before sprouting four new clones. Her back as left her behind looked so strong. I pictured myself standing there like her. After raiding the den of evil, and then daring to stand up to them again. I thought this must be what a true Saint looks like.

We left our savior behind and entered a land of frost. The few blankets they purchased were inadequate but one among us could remove the bark from trees in a single pull and another refashioned it into warm sleeves.

I was perhaps the luckiest. With my power I could just absorb a couple campfires worth of wood and be warm for the entire day. I even helped with starting the fires at night.

Our three escorts held themselves apart from us at first. I think we impressed them, though, when we fashioned cloths or parted the waters of a river to helps us cross. They began bringing down deer and birds for us. Once we went further north, though, they just brought back chunks of meat. I found a finger in it one day and threw up. I told no one what I saw.

It was a much needed reminder that we were lambs among wolves. We needed to become wolves.

Two days later we arrived in an valley oasis. The temperature itself in the valley was a little warmer than everywhere else. The heat seemed to bubble up from the earth and while it was still cold it was warm enough for them to grow some crops. The largest city we'd seen yet was nestled in this oasis. It didn't look like much because they built deep rather than up.

They took us to a courtyard and from a balcony approached a man and woman. The man held a thick mane of silver hair and an aura of authority and confidence. The woman seemed mildly amused by us but also had the most striking red hair and clothes too fine for a commonborn woman.

He welcomed us to his city and presented the rules. We were his flock and as long as we followed them he'd protect us. This was his vow.

We joined his city and they gave us jobs suited to our abilities. I was given a breathing apparatus and worked underground carving tunnels for lava to help direct the flow to new regions of the city.

Through the city we heard rumblings of war and disaster. A plague that displayed incredibly wide-ranging symptoms. Some called it a curse and others a message from the Gods to close off trade and contact.

I was glad I was in the far north. Even if the crops we harvested looked like deformed humans, at least we were safe and could leave whenever we wanted.

In my heart, I promised myself that one day I would head south. After I trained more with my powers and learned more of the fighting arts. I also would need better equipment and partners, but one day I would go south and stand as that woman had stood. I needed to or I would never forgive myself.

Within the pit of evil I had left my child. It was one of babies that we didn't bring with us, and I did not ask them to stop and look for it.

 

[SolipsistSerpent]

Interlude:

A plague that never displayed the some called a curse and others a message from the Gods to close off trade or contact.

Click to shrink...

'A plague that never displayed the' what?

himans

Click to shrink...

humans.

 

[Cheerio]

Thanks for the pointing out the errors. I've gone back and fixed them.

 

[Cheerio]

Chapter 12: A Broken Record and a Successful Hunt

When a warrior consumes the flesh of an Awakened Being the process can expose some to a process that leads to them becoming feral. The closest approximation I can find is to the effects of a human who consumes Yoma flesh, and turns into a Yoma.

Sometimes, however, the effects can be mild. Not madness but irrationality and inclusiveness bordering on foolishness. Of course, it's much more dangerous when exhibited by a warrior who can cleave boulders in a single swing, and even worse if that warrior is your leader leading you in an attack with an underpowered team and too many questions for comfort about its ability.

"Clare, why are you being so dour. You only get to pop your cherry once. This is a special day and I refuse to let anyone else be with you in this moment. We're all going to celebrate afterwards too. First two rounds of drinks are on me." She declared with a grin as she set off skipping.

That at least earned her the goodwill of number 19, Eliza. Number 30, Wendy, was almost as nervous as me. She had a minor innovator power, which she said worked best with gases and wind power devices. She had even built a windmill back at the base and together with Reines they set up lights without candles all over staff that illuminated rooms for half the night. For this mission she also carried a bag of devices, but she confessed they would probably only irritate it and let us buy time.

"Ophelia, is it really that surprising I'm nervous and not feeling grateful you requested me for this mission." I said.

"I didn't request you, Clare." Said Ophelia with forced shock and hurt. "I just requested number 32 for this mission, and you just happened to be promoted to number 32 the day after that."

As a double digit and, moreover, as a new double digit in the 30s, Ophelia could request me for any or every hunt she wanted. If they granted the request, and why wouldn't they with how eager she was to volunteer and take their nastiest missions, I could be riding her coattails for a short-time. A very short time if she requested me for every hunt as I feared.

"You should be requesting skilled warriors who will help increase your chances of success."

"Hey, there's no need to back talk to our leader." Said Eliza. "Besides, although, this mission is a little light on strength with a number 30 and 32, Ophelia's a skilled veteran. I heard in the last four hunts she's never lost a single party member. It's probably best for you that you get experience with this in a relatively safe setting."

"That's right. That's right. Listen to your older sisters. Besides, I made sure to pick a fun one."

I glared at her when she said that. Being an older sister is not a license to torture.

The Awakened Being we were hunting had been terrorizing a town in the Western quadrant by the name of Hanel. We had no information except that it had probably killed around 24 in the last two and a half days. The death toll would have been higher if they hadn't begun to spread out after the first day. The most worrisome factor was that no one could recall what the monster looked like or how they had died. Some of the deaths even offered right in front of others.

It had made a mistake, though, and had eaten the son of a prominent tax collector. He had pooled the town's resources and his own wealth to call us in. Ophelia claimed she was so touched by his story she pushed to take the job. Interesting power and decent fight had nothing to do with that battle nut's decision, right.

"I can feel it from here. It feels like a strong double digit." Said Eliza.

"Try again."

We turned to a strangely serious Ophelia. I tried to sense it's aura again but I could still not distinguish whatever she'd sensed.

"Is it--hollow?" Offered Eliza.

"Closer. There exist youki suppressants that will hide your aura. These are made from a combination of herbs, yoma parts and venomous. This one has come up with a crude version of the organization's suppressants and that's preventing us from reading the hollowed out portion of its power. You could get a similar effect if you diluted and contaminated a suppressant dose."

"How do you know something like that?" Asked Wendy. Even I found this information quite esoteric.

"You should hang out more with the retrieval squad. Why do you think I volunteer with them? Quite a bit of their low quality materials go back into making suppressants, and it wasn't hard to get the formula off of one of them once they let their guard down."

Then Ophelia distributed to each of us a pill. "In each of those is a partial dose of a suppressant that I've diluted. Take it and suppress your aura as low as it can go. Don't stick together and ring that clearing over there." She said pointing at a small dense forest with a clearing near the edge.

"I'll piss it off and lead it to that clearing. I'm a survivor, so don't worry about me. I may even get a trophy. Just spring out together and attack it when you hear me yell my full name, 'Ophelia Victoria, #7.' Do you understand?"

"Um, won't she be expecting four of us? It won't matter how well we hide if she's on the lookout for an ambush from the other three."

"In this case, I'll try to pass this off as an information gathering mission. It's not unheard of for those to be given to one fast and stealthy warrior, especially if they have a suitable power."

We all agreed, took her pill, and then got into position. I was actually pretty impressed with her plan. It wasn't foolproof or especially sophisticated, but most Awakened Being hunts from my memories tended to operate more like rowdy free-for-all's. Some leaders just sacrificed their lower ranking comrades to make openings for them to land the killing blow and claim all the glory. I wonder if more recent generations of warriors, especially with more small group training have begun turning it into more of a science rather than an art.

Twenty minutes later I finally sensed Ophelia's aura suddenly spike. The sound of a fight soon met our ears and it worked its way closer like a dance with an avalanche.

The power of it, however, felt...not as great as I expected. I thought based on it reportedly being on a weak suppressant that it would prove much more potent in battle.

"Nimue, you fight like an overweight hippo. If they hadn't sent me to gather information on your technique I would have expected you were just one of those monsters who survive by being too much trouble to kill. After all, I can't decide what's your face and what's your butt."

At last, she was in position. The being was shaped like a rhinoceros with thick bulky limbs and a head crowned with horns and bony support structures that would make cutting it a chore. It stood on two feet with a thick tail for balance that dripped some sort of unknown liquid.

Of greater concern was Ophelia's appearance. She looked haggard with her armor destroyed along one shoulder and the back torn out by some blow that must have been worse before she partially healed it.

"You're slowing down. I think you're built for walking not jogging." Mocked Ophelia.

"I know what you're trying to do, arrogant single-digit. Do you really think I can't sense your comrade."

Uh oh, there goes the plan.

"All you've done by bringing me here is gotten your friend killed. Two will fall as easily as one."

Or maybe not. I wonder who she can sense.

"Do you really think I need their help? I am Ophelia Victoria, number 7 of the greatest generation." She proclaimed as she charged from the front.

We rushed to join her from every side of the clearing. Of course, with my luck it ignored the others and threw a punch at me that had me making a desperate, barely sufficient dodge. Then it tried to charge at Ophelia, but was hamstrung by Eliza and slashed in the neck by Wendy.

Unfortunately Wendy's blow sank only handspan into her thickly muscled neck. Ophelia was brushed aside, but with her charge disrupted it did no damage to her.

"What there's four of you? Why would they send an tough single-digit with three other scrubs?"

Suddenly, I sensed a youki moving in the earth and threw myself back instinctively. I managed to prevent a headshot, but her toes that emerged from beneath me scraped out a chunk of my knee that I concentrated on healing.

This was bad. Across from me Wendy screamed out as she lost an arm that had been holding her pouch of bombs. I was frustrated I got the raw end of the deal. I'd trade an arm in a heartbeat for a working knee in a fight like this where mobility meant survival.

Wait! An arm? I looked at my left hand and suddenly knew the one among us that the enemy had sensed earlier was me. This thrice cursed hand.

"Watch out for feints! His head isn't his weakpoint. I think it's wearing that flesh like a suit of armor. You need to hit the center of his body and damage the Being's true head in there." My power had me smirking when I saw the enemy turn to me in shock.

This wasn't the first layered Awakened Being body I'd seen, but it had made a mistake. The thick dense structure of its body made it not very flexible or malleable. Once I picked up where it's main body lay I knew it couldn't move around very quickly to protect its main body from blows.

..

"to reach its stomach?" Said Wendy. Huh?

Ophelia had moved closer to Eliza. I need to focus, especially if it attacked us from underground again.

I could think of several theoretical methods, but the only realistic one I thought I was strong enough to pull off was for me to get eaten and stab it from the inside. Actually that one wasn't too realistic either, given she looked like she would enjoy chewing on me before swallowing.

Eliza began running at the Awakened Being. It struck Elisa with a grazing claw that threw her back halfway to the treeline. At the moment of impact, though, another figure in her shadow accelerated. Ophelia had been behind her while hidden from its view. Four claws popped up from the ground at Ophelia's feet, but in a move so flexible it almost looked like she no bones she slid around it. Up it's arm and then around to its wide back without losing any momentum. She slit the being's other hamstring and then dodged a kick by going between her leg. Then she tried to slice open its belly from below.

...

I felt disoriented. I was on the ground with a pain through my left side. I couldn't see anything. There was a grey cloud over the clearing, but I felt three strong youkis and one fading one.

.....

Wendy's lower torso was missing. Only her upper one lay thrown discarded against a tree. Suddenly, I heard Ophelia scream. I pinpointed the source the Awakened Being's youki.

I had no confidence in running fast enough to strike it with my injuries, but I stood and launched a running throw with 30% of my youki. My Claymore left my hands like a javelin of hope and desperation.

..··...··....

"Get up, DAMN you, we need to retreat too." Suddenly I saw a fist hit Eliza in the back of her head before she went down. Standing above her was Ophelia. Half of her face was obscured by blood and bits in a macabre contrast with her other elfin half. The Awakened was screaming behind us. Was the screaming growing more distant or louder? No wait, I was screaming now too.

"Shhh. Your sister has everything well in hand. Everything is working out just fine." She said as she picked me up and began running. For the first time in the fight, I realized there was something strapped to her back besides her sword. It was a severed right arm.

***
​

AN: Clare's graduation was precipitated by the loss of several warriors last chapter. Just to be clear, you don't just graduate when you become stronger than rank 40. Priscilla graduated and immediately became #1. You graduate when they feel the benefit of more training is outweighed by the opportunity cost of not fielding you as a full warrior.​

​

Spoiler: Current Known Ranked Warriors

1. Priscilla (unknown epithet)
2. Kujira of the Nothingness
4. God-eye Galatea
6. Heat Haze Hilda
7. Older Sister Ophelia/The Voracious Cannibal
13. Eva
19. Eliza
29. Jacklyn
30. Wendy
32. Clare

Note: These rankings are the last known rankings of these warriors. Its possible they have gotten a lower number as lower warriors died or been pushed up if new high rank warriors joined the ranks like Alicia and Beth.

 

[Cheerio]

Omake: Hunter Tactics I

Hunters have generally taken to three types of combat: swarm tactics, manipulation and direct combat. Depending upon the type of Dragon-kin your imperial regiment faced you may need to adopt one or more of the tactics. A legion of immature Dragon-kin can be tackled by a strong direct combat team or manipulation tactics that turn friend and comrades against each other (Brawlers, Archer, Commander - subtype Manipulator). Swarm tactics will not work, however, as they will already have large numbers and superior quality to the average empowered or heavily armed infantryman (Collector or Knowledge Bearer- subtype Innovator).

Against mature Dragon-kins the opposite holds. Direct assaults will be crushed by their superior might in many cases. Indirect methods to neutralize their efficiency by directing them to worthless targets or exhausting their strength against disposable constructs or soldiers are another option (knowledge bearers, commanders, archers - subtype Sniper). Many weaker manipulator powers simply will not work or are difficult to setup against their large frames, so it is best not to rely on them. Conversely intercepting and confusing communications or lines of command are a far cheaper ways to effectively negate their battlefield importance.

Finally, the worst type of Dragon-kin assaults are mixed group assaults. With both the numbers and quality they are more well-rounded and often these larger groups often feature two separate chains of command, which make infiltrating and subverting them both much more difficult.

One approach is a hybrid of the previous two strategies. Send Brawlers and Archers against immature Dragon-kin hordes and let soldiers operating innovators equipment with power granting collectors or commanders backing them up take on the mature Dragon-kin.

Unfortunately, the Dragon-kin are not fools and want the exact opposite match-ups. The success of such a maneuver, therefore, may depend upon the quality of your knowledge bearers and tacticians relative to the enemies as well as your relative mobility.

Thus, the Alliance has a trump to play at those times. They call upon the farmers and their disease laden monsters. The worst enemy of all is not brute force, elegant information sleight-of-hand, or manipulations of powers or souls. It is the great equalizer--death. All things die and the source of our death, if it does not come prematurely, is not the monsters of the abyss or the divine tribulations of the heavens. It is usually a still small cough that lingers and scars over and over.

There is a saying that became popular during the Pax Hunter period prior to the breakdown of peaceful negotiations in 711. It is that "Most hunters ratings go from 1-10 but Farmer's are rated 5-15." Eventually, the title Hunter came to refer to a power holder of any class except Farmer. There were hunters and farmers, but the one to truly fear are Farmers.

***

Spoiler: Author's Note

Just a reminder that, while the setting of our story has two names for power users/god-touched, in the rest of the wider world the terminology "Hunter" is used for anyone with special powers.

In this chapter the Innovators are still considered a subtype of knowledge bearers because this is the system used on the mainland. The revisions proposed by Fel were eventually adopted by the mainland, but it would occur much later and entirely independently. The reason a centralized guild or union was not formed earlier on the mainland may be related to greater economic competition and a lack centralization from competing research and military bodies.

 

[Cheerio]

Chapter 13: A Bad Influence

When we stopped, Ophelia put me down and crowed with delight.

"Hahaha! That was a rush. It's too bad Nimue's power wasn't very strong, but we shouldn't have to worry about pursuers any time soon."

What? "Ophelia, did you intend for us to get killed?" I demanded.

"Not killed. Just suffer a confusing defeat. Wendy wasn't part of my plans. A perfect victory would have seen her knocked out like Eliza." She said eyeing me.

"Anyway, perfection isn't always within the reach of my power, but I can usually get close to it, so we probably weren't going to be wiped out."

"That's not reassuring." I said. "Why didn't you fight to win? Are you trying to get demoted?" I thought of another possibility, but then discarded it. Not even she could be so depraved.

"Relax. We don't have to worry about demotions anymore because from now on we're deserters."

"..." Ophelia's smile went from wide and slick to a bit more nervous.

"This is actually a really well thought out plan, you know. Right now is the perfect time to desert because they're still dealing with breaking in the new number one, while they've just lost four warriors and a bunch of agents in that raid. They'll be scrambling trying to recover or track them, so investigating our disappearance given the memory tampering or erasing power Nimue used will be low priority. Since I let Nimue escape they'll probably just think Nimue won and took us with her."

"Wait, Nimue's the Awakened Being right?"

"Yup, former number #12 I think. Not actually that thought to fight, since her power just made you forget what you had been doing. You still were fighting back during the blackout periods."

The fight was starting to make more sense. After I blurted out her weakness Nimue started throwing her power around. It didn't actually make our hits or attacks any less effective since we just forgot the blows we'd exchanged previously, but it would have disrupted and destroyed any hopes of formulating a long-term strategy or tactics to exploit her weakness.

"You don't just desert the Organization, Ophelia. Maybe if it was one warrior number 40 they would barely make much of an effort to slap us down, but you're a single digit. If Eva tips them off they'll have a team made-up of just single-digits put together to execute you." I cried out.

"Okay, calm down. First, it's big sis, not Ophelia. Secondly, did you forget my extensive knowledge of suppressants. I'll give you a tip. Those diluted suppressants I gave you should have had the same effect as a full suppressant if you were knocked unconscious. I can brew some more of them if we run out, and the Organization right now doesn't have anyone with a power that could be used for tracking, except maybe Eva. We just need to avoid being their number one priority."

I felt overwhelmed. A part of me whispered this was a good thing. The Organization wasn't a necessary evil. It was just evil. If we stayed we would just be used up and killed one day. I'd probably never even live to be 15.

"How long have you been planning this?"

"That's not what I expected you to ask?" She said with a cough. "Well, about a year. I was never going to take out the enemies I've sworn to kill by staying in their ranks. I'm also beginning to feel my limits. I need freedom to grow." She took a step back and twirled. It should have looked ridiculous but for Ophelia it was the least ridiculous thing going on.

There was just one problem. For me being away from the Organization and their high ranking warriors was going to cripple my growth. I needed their memories and experience to continue to figure out ways to stretch my mediocre abilities.

"I'm still not sure about this, Op-big sis. This isn't just you wanting to drag me out to fight an Awakened. You want me to throw away my entire life and live as a what? A bandit? Or will we be mercenaries?"

"We can be whatever we want. The Organization has already peaked. The strength of other parties has been growing much faster than theirs recently."

"Couldn't you have asked me first? I'm not your doll to drag around!"

She approached me. Staring me down. Then spread her arms and gave me a bear hug before lifting me off my feet. "Oh, Clare, you're so cute. You're far too cute to be a doll. I couldn't ask you. You might have said no. You might even have tipped off the handlers about my plan."

"I wouldn't have done that." I protested. She put me back on my feet and then I saw her eyes. They were gleeful and excited, but also scared. But their shape were black slits floating on golden pools.

I felt a strange sensation. A buzzy lightheadedness and in a snap decision I copied her memories. I hadn't tried to do it since she'd refused my handshake all those months ago. Ever since she'd begun training me it had felt like too big of an invasion of privacy.

"Ahem." I said clearing my throat. "Are you absolutely sure we won't be caught?"

"Of course, I am. I'll tell you a secret. My power let's me get better outcomes to events. It kind of red flags whether I'm getting hotter or colder to realizing the ideal outcome for myself.

Her memories confirmed this and showed she'd been using it the entire time. Hot and cold were actually a good analogy for how it felt. I noticed then how she was gripping her sword.

"All powers have blind spots." I retorted.

"And so do organizations."

I decided it didn't matter. I never really had a choice and I could still grow stronger like this.

"Alright. Where do you want to go with this?"

"Hah, simple picture this." She said grabbing me and straightening my bent back. When did I start hunching? "We'll head to the central region of Toulouse. We want to avoid the Abyssals to the West and North, and given what happened to Priscilla in the South let's stay away from there too."

I looked to the South. The wall of briars was no more than a thick bar against the horizon. "Fine. How many suppressants have we got?"

"Plenty. About a one month supply for the two of us. If we can't find some of the venoms in Toulouse, though, we'll have to go out and get it ourselves. I think the biggest obstacle will be that Toulouse is the most heavily populated area."

"So we need to avoid being noticed and setting off rumors." I finished.

"Also here." She said presenting me the severed arm she'd been carrying.

"Uh, it's an arm." It was still dripping too.

"Not that. I got it for you from Nimue. I've been getting better at ambushing Awakened Beings before they can get it up. Now chop, chop. Let's stick it on while it's still fresh." Said Ophelia as she teasingly raised her sword.

"Wait, wait! You want to cut off my right arm and slap hers on. Here! Right now."

"Yes, little sis, this is for your own good. Nimue may not have been a single digit, but she was still probably quite a bit stronger than you. After all, she was a former number 12 before awakening."

"How do you know all that?"

"I've been keeping track of Awakened Beings with powers that might have been useful. This was a little underwhelming compared to my more optimistic estimates, but it was useful for a going away battle. We're lucky actually that it turned out to be Nimue. I was worried it might also have been James the "Absolver," who got kicked out of the saints a while back. He could modify memories so you forgot close attachments, but I figured at worse he became a bandit not a phantom serial killer."

That made sense. Another thing we were losing was access to the Organization's files on nearly every warrior who was known or suspected to have awakened as well as their powers or reported powers.

"I...I'm still not sure. Have they experimented with multiple transplants from different awakened beings?"

Ophelia just rolled up her sleeves and showed me her scars. One on each side at the shoulder or high on the bicep.

"Both were strong single digits. The one on the left I got first. It was slow but strong. The one on the right was trickier, though, to harvest. I actually let her escape after our first fight, because I screwed up and she transformed before I could snag it. I cut it off in time the second time. That warrior was very quick and her arm shows it." She said taking a practice swing that I couldn't follow. She even did a backswing in the same motion so her arm was back in the same position.

Suddenly, I realized what this was. It was a consolation prize. I was too weak to get one like Ophelia so she was just giving to me her cast off. I felt a bit of shame.

"Alright, let's do this." I said. I refused Ophelia's offer this time. It was awkward but I managed to cut off my right arm by swinging my sword with my left one. Then I focused on attaching it.

"Hurry it up too. I don't sense anyone nearby, but you're not being very subtle here." Ophelia said before she started humming and cleaning her own blade.

It was easier this time, or maybe I was just more experienced.

"Oh yes, before I forget." Ophelia took out a small pouch of suppressants, and took two. They must have each been half doses.

As I surrendered another bit of my humanity in exchange for power, I watched her transition. Her youki was the first to change. Growing subtler and ephemeral like gossamer before completely fading out.

Ten seconds later her eyes began to darken. The light from within it extinguished or perhaps just smothered by a humane, dirty brown that spread out from the pupil until it covered her whole iris.

It was horrifying and yet beautiful. To see a half-monster clothed with humanity. Beneath it all, though, she was still the slightest bit feral. A monster whose own memories betrayed that she would have killed me if I had refused to defect with her. This was my sister, Ophelia.

***

Spoiler: Author's Note

I hope this Ophelia still feels like she's based off the Canon one. Some changes are inevitable because Priscilla did not kill her family while rampaging like in the original series. She's still very much a psychopath who loves the thrill of fighting and will do many things to obtain revenge. Her hatred of Awakened Beings, however, doesn't exist, since it wasn't Priscilla who destroyed her family.

 

[Cheerio]

Omake: The Dress

It caught my eye. There was nothing bright about it. It just triggered a memory that I'd cherished and prized almost above all others.

"Oh, do you like that dress, Clare?"

"Yes, sister."

"Kind of plain, though, but I like the leather and the color. Easier to hide stains that way."
You should ask for it in Brown. Hehehe.
"It's not practical. Since it's a short sleeve it wouldn't hide the scars."
They should be your pride and joy, Clare. Not that I'd know since I never got any except my stigmata.
"Not everything should be about practicality and efficiency." She fires back.
Agreed. For once listen to the feral cannibal.
The shopkeeper notices us looking through the window. He tries to motion us to come inside in a welcoming manner.

"These humans are so desperate for business. I bet the market for fine cloths is drying up here."

"We should go. We can't afford this." I say as I begin to walk on. Ophelia joins me a second later.
Aww. Cheer up, Clare. You're a free agent.
Who would have thought our biggest problems would be money problems. It certainly made me feel a little silly. I'd felt like an important elite, but swinging a sword hard and fast isn't terribly important or valued if you have to avoid attracting attention by killing yoma.

"You know, large bandit groups aren't all that common, but I bet we could scrounge up enough for that if we lure in some pickpockets or muggers and clean them out instead." Suggested Ophelia.
Hehehe.
"Thank you. I appreciate your suggestion, but it...I really don't think I could handle it." I am weak. That dress is like an embodiment of my weakness.
No, that dress was stylish.
"So finicky. We're not saints, Clare. Can't afford to be either. If you don't want to hit up some muggers than let's split up and I'll do it by myself."

"No I mean, sure I'm up for punishing some robbers. Let's split up though to cover more ground anyway. We can meet again at the Cowlick Inn"
They should really change that name.
"Alright. That's the attitude. We'll make a game out of it. Whoever brings in less money will sleep on the floor with only her Claymore for bedding."
Go for it Clare. Show her who's boss.
"...sure, I'll do my best." I said.

***

AN: Invisitext is a pain and I don't think I want to do it anymore.

 

[SolipsistSerpent]

I like seeing people do stuff with Ophelia, she died too fast in canon.Though the AU setting seems to have changed this one's personality some.

EDIT: I'm not a big fan of invisible or transparent text. I recommend right aligned italics, instead.

 

[spatakani]

Did something happen to the failsafe that was in the arm they gave her? Or is Clare just hoping to be incognito until they forget about her?

 

[Cheerio]

Well she doesn't really have a choice. If she tried to go back to the organization, Ophelia will cut her down. That said, their current plan is to hide and grow stronger. If they get found at this point, with or without that failsafe, both of them know they can and would be killed.

 

[SolipsistSerpent]

Well she doesn't really have a choice. If she tried to go back to the organization, Ophelia will cut her down. That said, their current plan is to hide and grow stronger. If they get found at this point, with or without that failsafe, both of them know they can and would be killed.

Click to shrink...

Sure, but I'd be making plans to try and cut it out or disable it instead of just hoping the organization never tries to activate it.

 

[Cheerio]

Interlude: Isley

"Still no response from Riful?"

"Yes, Laeticia is still reporting back, so she hasn't been killed, but she faces daily attacks. Most just appear interested in testing her strength."

"That's fine. As a single digit from Riful's generation, she's a master of survival. At worst, her partner Diana should be able pull her out in time."

"Sir, the troops are growing more and more restless. You may have solved the food supply issue in the north but population estimates have been falling everywhere else. The Yoma only look like they're under control because so many have moved to the South. This is the perfect time-"

"Rigardo, if any of the troops are dissatisfied with my leadership you may tell them to take it up with me personally. I will handle things at my own pace."

"I see."

"Leaving that aside, who have you picked for the next scouting group."

"Xavier, Sonata and Cassie."

"Two awakened and a stealth expert. Strong, but I don't know how much useful information they will get. Isn't there a young boy from the new citizens, who can number the people around him in order of how dangerous they are? Tell them to take him along and protect him."

"His family might object."

"Promise them more compensation, and that the others will do their best to keep him safe. If they absolutely refuse, do that growling thing you do, but don't hurt them."

"I do not growl, but if they still cling to their son I'm just sending the three of them."

"Alright, is there anything else?"

"Just some details about the crop and info on a new drug to suppress awakening that one of the subjects was being used for."

"Share it with Kathy in our research group then."

As soon as the door shut a spider web of cracks appeared in the corner. Shortly after a woman walked through it.

"So grumpy. Does he really think we don't know?"

"Don't underestimate him like you did the church, Agatha. I won't save you again."

"Oh please, you weren't just helping me. You were helping yourself." She said sitting on his lap putting a hand behind his neck.

"Better women than you have tried."

"So cold. What's with your fascination with this new Biodoctor. You didn't even tell Rigardo that you've already read all of her reports, or have classified one of her projects."

"She was wasted in the Farm."

"Oh, I don't disagree. Who cares about allowing Claymores to exceed their limits, or finding the most compatible pairs. That new drug of hers is far more interesting. What are you going to call it?"

"She suggested 'Extremis.' It has more positive connotations than your suggestions."

"Oh posh. You know you love the thought of calling it 'Tears of the Abyss.'"

"We want to distribute it broadly, not get our distributors hunted down by the church or the Organization. Even Riful would sit up and pay attention at a name like that."

"Really, it's not you going soft on her."

"I'm plenty hard thank you very much. They should really have called you 'Bloody, Green-Eyed Monster.'"

"I'm just curious. Besides no one has nicknames like that. We all lived in like nuns in an all-girls school. Those perverts probably liked the idea of all male handlers around sexually frustrated teens even if they found out stigmata too disgusting to contemplate touching us."

"I confess I never thought of it like that. For me it just felt like being in the army again among other faceless soldiers. The numbers were a nice touch. Boil down our identity to mere numbers, and then pit us against one another."

"But it didn't work."

"It did for Rigardo."

"Only because he's a workaholic ass, whose best idea is to recruit and March an army south."

"He's a military man at heart. Your own short-coming is you don't know the value of loyalty and a shared vision or dream for the future?"

"Is that so, Silver King? Then tell me what do you dream of when this whole land is ours?"

"When I was young you couldn't go father than ten leagues before stumbling across a village. Even the north was covered in towns and Pieta was a trading outpost for areas farther north rather than the peak of the known world. I had a nightmare one day that I walked through a baron world with just me, Riful, and the Abyssal of the South glaring at each other. Until one day we devoured one another. Then the winner was all alone."

"..."

"But we shouldn't get ahead of ourselves, Agatha. We still need to know more about the South and Riful seems to still consider us Herbivores."

"She is living in the past. We're the future."

"No, we're also relics of the past. Look out there. Those people are the future. Or rather they will be after Extremis has finished its work."

 

[Cheerio]

Chapter 14: Plebeian Window Shoppers

"Goat or rabbit on a stick!" Shouted a man beside a food cart.

Me and Ophelia weaved our way around the manure in the streets. We were in the free city of Rabona. Once it had been part of a kingdom that stretched across Lautrec and Toulouse. Mucha and Alphonse were separate territories, with their own lords, but existed in the shadow of the central kingdom.

Now days it was a shadow of its former glory.

Hints of new prosperity poked out here and there. The windmills on captain's hill, the dark red alloy weapons and crisp uniforms of the cathedral and city guards, or the way almost no orphans remained on the street corners and alleys.

Still, it stank. It reminded me of the smell of a corpse and a manure pile mixed together and left to rot for months.

"We should have gone to Saintshold." Bemoaned Ophelia.

"This is suicidal enough." I protested. We were criminals just for entering this city. The high walls, the "God-touched" stationed here, and our claymores being carefully hidden outside of town were all making me nervous. I rubbed the stolen sword strapped to my side that had once been the property of some foolhardy thief.

Then there was the other thing. I felt a fifth Yoma to my left about three houses down and on a second floor. We had been checking the local rumors and there didn't appear to be panic about missing people or people being killed. Either they were on a diet, are the people nobody was going to miss, or found some alternative form of nutrition.

Whatever it was, we were going to ignore it. A few of the towns on our way here I'd discreetly taken care of the problem while Ophelia cleaned out the Yoma's home as compensation, but we needed to keep our head down here.

"Let's check for rumors at a bar." I suggested. Getting this over with and getting out of here was high on my to do list.

"Oh Clare. No one with a real job is at the bars right now. Let's see the sites until this evening."

After a bit of back and forth we settled for visiting the Oldest Branch of the Scholar's Guild instead of the Main Cathedral of Rabona. When we asked for directions, we were directed back out of town. In the middle of an empty field was a row of newly erected houses with one large wooden tower in the middle. Apparently after the last explosion and fire they had been exiled outside of the city despite their own work having prevented the fire from harming any properties that weren't directly adjacent. Of course, the fumes also resulted in a fifth of the city being high for six hours.

After a little searching we found a shop with a sword and shield emblem above it. Inside the shelves and wall were surprisingly bare with only a desk and some chairs for furniture.

"We're interested in purchasing some handheld weapons for a cross-country expedition." Ophelia claimed.

"If this is the right place." I added.

"You got the right place." The shop clerk reached under the desk and pulled out a packet of papers. He passed them to me.

"Sorry, Mr., but we can't read." I said. I actually had plenty of memories of reading and understanding everything that I saw, but neither me nor Ophelia had ever actually been educated and taught to read. Each warrior was actually given an emblem, usually some variation of a sword one, for communication such as with black cards or pictographic warning messages.

"It's John. John Gramme. Most nobles or wealthy merchants don't send illiterate servants to make orders." He said suspiciously.

We looked at each other. The clientele of this wooden, ramshackle looking store was much wealthier than I expected.

"Our employer is actually not looking to make any purchases right now. He wishes for us to evaluate the merchandise and report back on what we've seen." Ophelia said smoothly with a charming smile.

John scowled at that. "If he thinks he's too good to do his own window shopping then you can go back and tell him we're sold out and too busy fulfilling other people's orders."

I guess that wasn't the right tactic to take.

"Alright. We can report that." I said. "But since we've come all this way, would it be possible for us to window shop ourselves for personal purchases."

He tapped his chin. "Fine. But you ladies don't look like you could afford anything beyond the low end merchant's catalogue. That paper on the top of the stack you really ought to read, but I can summarize it for you. Everything you can see in this shop is guaranteed to work for two weeks or your money back. After that reliability can get spotty with some gear insured in a case by case basis further to a month or even half a year, depending upon the material and intricacy involved. All sales are final, and returns if it failed before the guarantee ran out require you to submit the entire piece. Thus, any consumables or single-use items are not insured because you can't bring it back and show us what broke."

"Wait, what happens if it fails in the field. Then we bring it back and it starts working just fine the next day."

"Tough luck. You need to prove we made a mistake. Honestly, only one or two percent of our customers ever even run into problems that qualify. Half the time it's their own fault too, such as the boy who bought a skybird kite from us and then flew it in a 46 knot winds. We still gave him his damn money back, but thanks to him the contracts for airborne devices now have extra caveats. Usually something breaks after the guaranteed period and they'll come back wanting to negotiate for repairs or servicing. That price can sometimes be worked out ahead of time, but some artificers also just hate doing repairs and set sky high prices for it."

He plopped down a new stack of papers. It was much smaller than the previous stack, which he took back. "These are novice creations, experimental models that still need some more testers, or low end devices that will only be a modest improvement over those available elsewhere. Most you can probably get a good price on maintenance because they'd like to see how it could break down, but the rest generally is not worth paying the cost to get it fixed."

Most of the papers in this stack came with pictures or diagrams. Although I couldn't read I was still familiar enough with my letters to sound-out the titles to some of these. The first one had a picture of a block of what looked like ice. "Har-den-ded Gl-asse" I puzzled out.

"What is this used for?" Asked Ophelia curiously.

"Ahh, it's one of the improved raw materials our glass artificer and geology artificer helped us develop. It's exactly what it sounds like--hardened, reinforced glass, which is several times stronger than traditional glass but a tad heavier as well by about 10 or 20%."

"Is that only good for 2 weeks?"

"Of course not." Said John. "All of the raw materials shouldn't have any requirements for regular maintenance. A few will have stringent storage conditions, though."

The next sheet was of a bottle filled with pills. "Grot-h form-ul-la"

"That's for farmers or cattlehands. Too expensive for most crops, but it can promote growth in even full size plants or animals. Some noble wanted a giant cat, and this was one of the by-products of that research. Unlike the official formula, though, this one seems to make the subject's flesh mildly toxic. It's not meant for livestock or agricultural goods, but for sheepdogs, perimeter plants, or maybe flower growers."

We kept on browsing and discarding items. Fast drying adhesives. Fine metal ropes, and booby trapped safes. Honestly, that last one I couldn't fathom a reason for it even being listed. Who needed a safe that was guaranteed to work only for a month.

"Where are all the weapons or armor?" Demanded Ophelia impatiently.

With a sigh John told us. "Weapons and armor tend to be among the most heavily desired items for purchase. We also don't want a bunch of weapons and armor leaking out and being picked up by the Red Hand after they murder our customers. Consequently, they tend to be on the very high end, with most who purchase it already having access to private guards as a first line of defense."

Then he picked up the remaining papers and dug through them to pull out three sheets. "These, however, are available and may be in your price range. They're all single-use weapons, which shouldn't surprise you, and they all have the same maker. He creates them in large quantities with the condition that whoever purchases it please use it to destroy Yoma whenever possible."

We examined took the selected sheets eagerly and found two types of bombs and a throwing needle. The first bomb appeared to be some sort of smoke-bomb similar to what Wendy had used in our last battle. The second one was packed with powdered chilis and wouldn't be all that special except it came with an antidote that could be pre-applied to yourself so you wouldn't be affected by it.

"Why is the throwing needle single use?" I asked.

"It has a potent poison applied to it and is designed to break off after it penetrates inside to make it harder to fully remove. The poison is actually a concoction of multiple lethal strains that should hamper even a Yoma's regeneration. It is even potent enough that you can apply it to yourself, and then if you're eaten it can affect your attacker. We're calling it 'Viper Sting.'"

I looked at the price and received a bit of sticker shock. We had received a decent education on numbers from the organization to avoid being cheated if our handlers were temporarily unavailable and to be able to give more accurate oral reports. Consequently I recognized the price tag as one and a half times our current budget even after what we'd raided from thieves and yoma.

"500 Bera!"

"Yes, it can give some sticker shock. I should add it comes with a tiny crossbow to aid in firing, and also if you're not dealing with Yoma you can probably still reuse it after resharpening it, and it'll be potent enough to kill."

The smokebomb and pepperbomb+antidote were 160 bera and 300 bera respectively. I was suddenly feeling very poor.

We discussed it and decided to purchase a smokebomb. It wouldn't break, only begin to decrease in effectiveness starting from a couple months from now. It also claimed to even be able confuse a yoma's sense of smell.

I was beginning to regret not having thought to take Wendy's remaining armaments before we fled. On the other hand, it might have backfired if using them was too complicated, and it may have made the scene look more suspicious.

In any case, John appeared to take some amusement at our reaction to the prices. With about half the budget we'd walked in with we left the store. John had actually issued us a ticket and given us directions to a house several down and off to the side. There we redeemed out ticket and were given our bomb along with extensive instructions about range, the speed and duration of the visibility obstruction, and, of course, cautions about not trying to store it too long.

Unfortunately, we had not been able to learn what we'd originally intended to from this trip. We wanted to gather info about possible devices that enemies may deploy against us. We'd heard rumors of razor-sharp blades that were unbreakable, fire sticks that could spew lightning, and traps that could quickly tear a battalion of people apart if they struggled. None of those had been held by the red hand of the two times Ophelia had encountered them. But my own encounter with them, and the non-standard crossbows they'd deployed to exploit the shadow-user's mobility, possibly suggests they're eager to combine mundane equipment with powers.

Not to mention we were also criminals. Rabona "welcomed" us back through the gates with her stinky embrace. It was time to hit a few bars to gather info before we tried to find a guide or caravan to join.

Fortunately, the city guards were not as numerous as they normally would be. The militant faction (also known as the Crusader faction) of the Rabonian church had finally managed to mobilize their forces together with the Saints to launch a new campaign. This campaign was targeted to the South. To breaching the briar wall, and re-establishing a land bound connection with our Southern neighbors.

As I entered a bar, I couldn't help wondering who was crazier. Ophelia, or the militant faction of the Church of Rabona.

***​

Spoiler: Author's Note about currency

This is what a Bera looks like

It is a gold cylinder that is used for currency. Judging by how Clare quotes a price once in the series of 10 million Bera for a statue, which is perceived as outrageously expensive, I'm going to assume that in Claymore a Bera is supposed to be about 1 yen. Thus, 100 bera would be approximately equals $1. That said, I think the thought that a golden cylinder is equal to a penny is a bit outrageous, so let's suppose each bera is worth about $0.50. That would mean Clare had priced her statue at $5 million.

By the way, the militant faction is the polite term for the group of Rabonian elders and other influential leaders in the holy city, who wish to go on the offensive against the powerful Voracious Yoma throughout the land. Whereas, in Fel's interlude they're called the Crusader faction, which has more negative connotations and is slightly more derogatory.

 

[Cheerio]

Sure, but I'd be making plans to try and cut it out or disable it instead of just hoping the organization never tries to activate it.

Click to shrink...

In response, I'm actually still deciding how to handle this. Clare at this point has probably tried cutting off the chemically tainted tissues, but I imagine it's soaked through just about all of it, so the only way she can avoid being affected by the Organization's failsafe, is if she just cuts off the whole hand. That's not something she wants to do just yet, though. I'll try to make time to have her think about this issue at some point soon, but it's kind of a null issue for now since she'll have a lot of other worries taking precedence over the Organization for this next arc.

 

[Cheerio]

Chapter 15: Erinyes Gale

Acquiring gossip is not hard. Even though our espionage classes had focused more on disguises, tailing and information gathering on enemies in the field, I had no problem getting reams of juicy gossip.

Unfortunately, much of it contradicted each other, sounded like outlandish exaggerations or seemed like offshoots of propaganda. In one evening I'd heard that the army was marching for Daering, that the army was getting on fishing boats and being ferried past the wall along the western coast, and that the army was gathering at Saintshold while they moved parts of a device that would help the Saints burn a whole through the wall.

As future camp followers (or would it be stalkers), it would be troublesome if we couldn't even figure out where the army was ultimately heading to.

There were also differing rumors about the Head of the army, Father Vincent, and his right hand man, Ricardo, captain of the Crusader Knights. To some they were tolerant and not openly hostile to Claymores or unaffiliated rogue "God-touched" mercenaries. According to others they were hardline purists with sympathies for the Cleansing Hand.

Frustratingly, neither of our powers were suitable to sifting through rumors or identifying obvious propaganda.

The biggest success of the night was learning about the Valkyries, a group of mercenaries who were in negotiations with the Church to reinforce the army.

Ophelia and I needed to get access to the south, and a large company or army that we could abandon if we were attacked by an Abyssal or group of Awakened was optimal. A fight with a weak or average awakened being may be possible for us, but it would still require us to flare our youki and would immediately out us as warriors to anyone nearby.

"I guess we'll just after check with the Valkyries in the morning," I said as we settled down to sleep in our inn room.

"Yup, this is not quite as adventurous as I'd pictured." Ophelia commented as she started at our jar of suppressants. It was half full.

We had two weeks to get the necessary venoms for the formula, but they were only available from some carnivorous lizards and spiders to the South. The Organization kept a small population in captivity, but with trade cut off our only choice was to go South ourselves or run back to the Organization and try to make up for our mistake.

"Valkyrie. The name makes me think of female Saints. I wonder what sort of capabilities they have?"

***

In the morning, we tracked down the place the Valkyrie company had been staying at. It was a far more upscale inn near the glassworkers and perfume district.

"You want to join us?"

"Yes. We're saints with enhanced speed and strength. We can also do some tracking. We can definitely pull our own weight." I said.

"Plus, Carla here makes a wonderful pillow." Chimed in Ophelia glancing at me. "And has achieved a grandmaster level in removing stains from clothing. Heh."

"We'll have to see when the boss gets back but I wouldn't get your hopes up. We've been negotiating for a four days on the basis of them getting a twelve man band with five 'God-touched.' If we're suddenly dealing with seven that would require renegotiation and we're already falling behind the Main army."

The woman speaking to us was named Heather and wore a short-sleeve dress. In battle, though, she was apparently a potent brawler wielding a large morning star. It was according to rumor made from lightweight artificer materials, but other than that it was purely normal. But in her hands it did more damage than any weapon of its size and weight should do. However, her power worked I was pretty sure she could give even me a serious trouble in close combat, so I wasn't surprised their group was thinking of saying no.

"How about we have a practice match until your boss gets back? It would give him something to base his decision on." Ophelia suggested.

She agreed. The inn had a back garden, but we were worried about tearing it up, so after picking up her equipment we relocated to a practice yard. Three other members of the company came to watch. A tall man, a stout man and an older woman with a pet cat. Using my power I couldn't see any weakness in terms of durability to her weapon. It appeared to be as sturdy as a Claymore. My power just suggested disarming her. Useless.

"Let's do this to first blood or the first clean blow that hits the torso or head." Heather suggested.

"Do you really think a clean blow by either of you too isn't going to draw blood?" I said.

"What are you talking about Carla? I'm not fighting her. You are." Said Ophelia.

"Wait, what?" Ophelia had been skipping here and grinning like a loon. Why would she give up a fight to me?

"You can begin anytime you want Heather. I suggest now since my partner has carelessly not drawn her sword yet."

"I too thought I'd be facing you. As for the advantage, I don't need it. Prepare yourself Carla."

Our first clash of weapons chipped my blade despite my attempts to merely parry the blow and then grasp her weapon with my left-hand.

Her reflexes were fast, though, and her light weapon let her withdraw just in time.

"You're fast, but your weapon can't seem to hold up to our strength."

"I agree." I said as I sheathed it and then tossed it and the sheath aside. I berated myself for forgetting my own weakness--my weapon. It was more for show and to explain my fighting ability if we needed to deal with any troublemakers while in town.

I settled into a new unarmed stance. Lower to the ground with bent knees, elbows tucked in and upraised arms.

"You can come any time." I invited with a gesture.

Her weakness was her stance or rather her weight. Her powers enhanced her own speed and strength, and the reach and momentum from her weapon only made her more dangerous. But like all warriors her biggest enemy was her lack of mass. Compared to a claymore her morning star only added a third as much mass to her body. She'd also never trained to specifically to compensate for her high strength to mass/traction ratio.

The dirt terrain also stuck out to me as being bad for both of us, since it had been trampled so much and then given loose dusting of topsoil that wouldn't give either us firm footing for power blows. On the other hand, this also meant we would be deciding this based on skill not simply enhanced muscle.

She went for an overhead blow. It was too big and telegraphed of a motion, but what I really wanted to do was get inside her guard. She gave me no opportunities to do so. As soon as the blow hit the ground it rebounded and she used that to take another swipe at me. I backpedaled and weaved. Without a weapon or armor I was the faster of us, and as soon as she saw that she drew her weapon back to a more defensive position.

We watched each other as I circled her. Then the dance began again. After dozen whiffed misses she had me on the run, but irritatingly she was showing no sign of slowing down or giving me an opening. The peanut gallery began making cracks.

"Careful Heather, the spitfire's light on her feet and is reading your moves like you're a milk maid."

"Can I revise my bet?"

"No way, I gave you fair odds before and you went with the safe beefcake."

"BEEFCAKE." Roared Heather who suddenly began swinging with extra enthusiasm.

Sadly, I didn't have any momentum as I was already drifting backwards to evade and she compacted her stance and weight before I could counter. To break this stalemate I would have to either start using more of my youki, talk her into a fury (which might not help us with our actual goal) or take some risks. I seriously wanted to just begin taunting her, but I suspect Ophelia wanted to see more of what I could do. I would show her what she expected and no more.

I started unveiling openings, no, imperfections. Little things repeated over and over. She didn't go for them at first. False openings tend to work better when you haven't been dodging her blows for a minute, but I kept showing them in different places while picking up the pace. She stopped chasing me to just fend me off and throw a few counters, while I waited.

Eventually, she took my bait. An arm just a few centimeters too high combined with a foot too far back and my balance off by a few degrees. When I went for an extra large swing, she adjusted and aimed low towards my thigh, no, my kneecap. Even a glancing blow would have thrown me away--normally. The footing was gravelly here not just dirt. Her last minute shift had wasted too much of her power. I slide my foot a hand span to the left and then lifted it up. A spike on the corner took out a sliver of flesh, but when her weapon impacted the ground my foot slammed down on top of it.

I met her eyes and saw a hint of fear.

To a casual observer I had neutralized her weapon. But I wanted her disarmed not just trapped. I snapped my wrist forward, but she instantly released both hands from it to take a half step back. Then she pulled a knife from her left bracer.

I should have dodged back, but that may have let her recover her weapon. As the slash neared me I lifted a palm and grabbed the hand holding the knife. The knife sank deep into my palm but my fingers closed around the knife-wielding hand. I pulled with that hand while my other fist swung a fast right cross that she couldn't pull back or evade.

It landed on her chin and rocked her whole head back. The other arm that had been raised a second too late to block fell to her side. She didn't quite slump to her knees, but I definitely figured one more blow would have had her on her back or held up by the knife hand piercing my palm.

"Shit, Heather."

I heard more whistling and grumbling. I didn't go for another blow, and swiftly pulled my hand off her knife. It hurt, but not as much as it had going in.

"It appears this is my loss." I said without regret. I had avoided showing off the true principal behind my technique, even if she saw what it was capable of when assisted by my power.

I glanced at Ophelia who looked satisfied and a bit proud. She noticed my look and said, "good job. I'll buy you a new sword, Sis, to replace that broken one."
I frowned at that gesture. Her money was my money since we shared the same money bag.

I turned back to Heather. "We were fighting to first blood, and you unquestionably got it." I said as I sent a trickle of youki to stop the bleeding.

"By the way, do any of you have something to bandage this with?" I could heal it quickly and loudly with youki or slowly throughout the day, but it was best to cover it up since it would noticeably shrink and fade over time.

The stout watcher took out a roll of bandages and tore off a short piece to toss to me. It was not the most aerodynamic toss, so I might have missed it as it tumbled far short of me except Heather stepped forward and grabbed it before offering it to me.

"Why don't we call this a draw to be charitable to me?" She said with an abashed look.

Later that morning, their leader, Grisha, came back from meeting with the church's representative. He and only one other mercenary company had sealed a deal with the church. He was not thrilled to see us even with Heather's endorsement given the poor timing. He'd just spent days negotiating with the church. He explained to us that if he had to renegotiate, the church would probably just expand their order to the Scholars guild rather than risk us arriving too late to reinforce them.

"Look, we're not expecting a big cut from this job. Why don't we work this mission for free. You can treat it like a trial mission, and then when you see what we're worth we'll expect an even bigger cut next time. Besides, they aren't going to reject more power users if they're free. We'll only make everything safer." Offered Ophelia.

I think it was exactly the wrong thing to say.

"I can see now you girls don't have much experience in the mercenary business. A bit of advice I'll offer you is this--no one works for free. People don't just pay us gold to risk our lives. They pay us gold because we are dangerous people and they want to secure our loyalties. There are plenty of berserkers out there who will work for cheaper than the Valkyrie Company and offer just as much firepower. The reason people choose us is because they can trust us to follow orders and to have their back. If I take you with us as volunteers you may just cause a lot of chaos and ruin our reputation." In other words, he found our motives suspect and we'd exposed our inexperience.

From their we received a lot of offers to train with various members later on and to check them out after this mission. I found out the stout man who offered me the bandage was named Jeager and was a leaf manipulator. He could even sharpen and harden the leaves he spun and moved about. He refused to tell me how many he could control or from how far away, but I could see plenty of uses in a support capacity to such a power.

We left them to complete their preparations at noon, with directions to a good smith that would get me the best blade possible for someone who couldn't afford the Scholar Guild's prices.

"Well, that didn't go as well as I expected." Said Ophelia with a frown.

"Actually, I thought it went quite well myself." I said with a grin.

"What are you talking about?"

"I know where the army is heading and when they plan to breach the briar wall." I said while watching Ophelia closely. Her eyes lit up and a smile spread across her face.

"That's my sister. How did you do it?"

"My knowledge bearer power. It can also deal with memories and I was able to dip into Grisha's memories from his meeting this morning." I confessed.

"Perfect."

Ophelia and I took off at a fast trot out of Rabona to pick up our Claymores.

"Wait. WAIT! Guys from the Valkyrie Company wait." Screamed someone behind us.

I turned back and several houses behind us came running up a teenage girl. She was wearing simple, brown leather armor with a broad-axe strapped to her back. Her most distinctive feature, though, was a streak of white off to the side in her hair.

"Thanks for waiting."

"I think you must have misheard or been confused about something. We're not in the Valkyrie Company. We were turned down for the time being."

"Oh, I know. They're already set to go on their mission, and didn't want to add two new members to their company. That's why I wanted to talk to you. I'm an experienced Mercenary who used to be part of the Valkyrie Company. My name is Erinyes, or Erin for short."

"..."

"Anyway," continued Erinyes awkwardly. "I wanted to invite you to join me and make a new mercenary group. With my experience and your raw power we might even be able to handle some of the missions the Valkyries and others normally handle while they're out of town." She spoke the last quickly with plucky optimism.

"Uh, look..." I began hoping to let her down easy. For now we were headed South after the army, and I had a feeling such a dangerous task for no pay was not what she'd bargained for. Plus, we'd have to continue to conceal being Claymores or trust her with our secret.

"What did you say your full name was?" Cut in Ophelia.

"Erinyes Gale. But you can just call me Erin. Oh yes, and I've got this awesome power too."

"Generation of a pocket dimension." Said Ophelia. "Oh that is useful."

She walked up to Erinyes and began looking her up and down and then twirling her around to look at her from another angle.

Ophelia must have used her power again. It required a person's full name to be known. If it is, one aspect of it is she can receive a vision of the subject's potential, specifically in use to herself. It was a very optimistic view, which missed anything about the downsides, weaknesses or pitfalls. That worried me in this case.

Of course the other thing I was concerned about was something I'd stumbled upon while going through her memory the day we defected. Her power had identified my own powers as two separate ones: "Beta Tester" and "Shard Parasite."

At last, Ophelia turned to me with a mischievous smile. "Isn't she cute?"

***

Spoiler: Meaning of the name Carla

Clare is seen in this chapter going by the Pseudonym Carla. It's a feminization of the male names Carl or Charles, which are English. Incidentally, Clare itself is a feminization of the English name Clair or Clarus (which is Latin) and means clear or bright.

Anyway, Carla means "free man."

Spoiler: Author's Note:

Heather's power is a brute package (no flight) that extends to anything she wields. Thus, even though her weapon should crumple under the force of her blows it's made unnaturally durable and sturdy while she's wielding it. It's important also for it to be light since another member of their party has a mover power with a limitation on how much weight she can carry. Plus, it makes her blows faster.

"Beta Tester" actually isn't a gaming reference so much as about the fact that there's multiple different levels and stages to testing powers. Alright fine, it is a gaming reference, but it's not like Ophelia's shard is familiar with the gaming reference and picked it based on that.

By the way, Grisha's name is a homage to Attack on Titan so I'm imagining him looking kind of like Eren's dad. Erinyes' last name "Gale" is a homage to the last name of Dorothy from Wizard of Oz. Erinyes powers are going to be kind of similar to Cozen's.

 

[Cheerio]

Chapter 16: Might of the Weak

Ophelia immediately took Erin with us outside the city to perform a test. First, we picked up our blades and Ophelia explained to Erin that we were Claymores.

Erin seemed to take that fine, which relieved me.

"What? Oh, I guess it makes sense. I'm sorry. I mean...nevermind."

If she hadn't taken it well, I would have had to step in to try to defend her.

Next Ophelia demanded Erin tell us why she had a faint youki aura. Embarrassingly I hadn't noticed. It was vague like a mouthful of cotton candy. Not the sort of thing you'd even notice from five meters away, but I'd been within that distance for half an hour.

"Youki aura? I'm not sure. I can assure you I'm not a yoma, though." She blurted out. We settled for watching her scarf down some vegetables and checking if she digested it fine. I didn't have any concerns myself. No Yoma I'd met or even heard of could mask or weaken their aura to the extent that I felt from Erin.

Finally, the practical trial was to withstand Ophelia's blade for two minutes while she steadily upped the speed and power.

We found an empty forest clearing half ringed by bushes and half by trees to test her out in. Right as the match began Erin blinked out of view. Ophelia looked for her taking weak empty swings with the broad side of her blade. After two minutes of combing the clearing we had found for the match, she faded back into view. It was like a reverse of her disappearing act.

I wholeheartedly endorsed her just for the expression she put on Ophelia's face. Good job.

Still, I did tap her to copy her memories to check her out. I paid close attention to earlier in the day scanning with a cursory eye for signs that she intentionally approached in order to betray us. Fortunately, she was clean.

Unfortunately, it was at this point that we realized we had a much more serious problem. Our supply of money and the vial of youki suppressants that we needed to conceal ourselves was missing.

***

"We should go back. Turn the inn, the Valkyrie's practice ground, and meeting room upside down." I said in a very mild panic.

"No, face it we didn't just drop it." I think she meant 'she didn't drop it. "It was pick-pocketed. The thief probably doesn't even know what he grabbed. They could have fenced all of them or just thrown them away by now. We'll never find it."

"What types of pill are they? Maybe you can find some replacements." Proposed Erin.

"These are designed to suppress a youki aura. It's something all yoma and hybrids carry that can be picked up by other warriors of the Organization. Replacing them requires items from Mucha. Highly venomous compounds of the South that would likely be fatal to a human." Said Ophelia unhappily.

"Oh." She said fidgeting. "Could you steal some from other Claymores?"

"Not enough for it to be worth the loss of security. We want them to be less noticeable, and at best they'd have a week's supply for a single person."

"What about someone in the city with a power that could help track down stolen goods?" I suggested. We both turned to look at Erin.

"I-I don't know if there's someone like that. There may be but even if they exist they probably would be expensive or would want you to swear loyalty to a faction like the church or scholar's guild."

"Fine, then let's deal with what we can handle. We could go south faster alone. We just have to hope we don't run into any of the top three warriors or top tier awakened beings. We could also just try to go to ground in some loosely populated area and try to keep out of range of any warrior's senses."

"Um, I'm very sympathetic with you having lost your drugs, but this sounds like crazy talk." Cut in Erin before we could go further. "I'm not volunteering to go exploring the South with just the two of you. You just lost most of your money too, and we have no client. This sounds like high risk, no reward. If you're that afraid of the Organization then you two should seek asylum in Saintshold. "

"Saintshold is just us backing up into a corner. They'd have no reason to protect us and risk a war with the organization" I guessed.

I stared at Erin. She had no stake in this. We had just met today. If she went with us what would she have to gain? I also remembered what Grisha had said. No one wanted a free mercenary because no money meant no loyalty.

"Hmm, what about this? We'll provide training and help with the new powers you're developing." Said Ophelia.

"What?" Squeaked Erin.

"You've been getting faster, stronger and recovering swifter without any training. It's crossing into superhuman recently. If you want to learn to use that axe and fight at the pace of yoma and brawlers then you need proper training."

"I don't know if that really meshes well with my fighting style."

"You don't have a fighting style." I cut in seeing where Ophelia wanted to go with this. "You hide whenever a fight happens and rely on others to clear out the enemies for you. That's why you need partners. Your power is a useful support type, but it could be more."

"Not really. I can't see what's going on here when I enter my 'Other Room.' Plus it's not very large. While I can move around a little in there and then re-enter a body length to the left or right in compared to where I entered, I can't move very far. Also, if I stock it full of supplies, I can't move in it and have to come back here exactly where I left."

"So it's not really helpful for getaways. What about taking someone forcibly into it? It could function as a prison."

"I can't leave people in there." She said loudly while curling inwards. "It doesn't exist when I'm not in there."

Erin whispered, "I tried once with someone. It was a big mistake."

"So it kills people. That's even better." Said Ophelia, who tapped my shoulder.

"But I have to take people into it first, and then leave my Other Room alone. That's not so easy given I need to maintain contact when I enter it, and I need no contact when I'm leaving it. If I lose concentration I also suffer backlash. Finally, they might not die."

"Hey, they're either dead or they're not. How does your power maybe kill people?"

I too was curious. At first, I'd hoped she could carry us to hide our youki signatures at crucial moments. It would be a problem if she was killed, though, and now it was sounding like we "maybe" couldn't stay inside while she moved around out here.

"Look, I just don't want to talk about it. I can take you in there for a little while, but it's for things not people."

I didn't think we had much to offer her, and our goals were too different. I was prepared to go our separate ways as long as we could confirm her discretion by having her swear it. After I could check Teresa's power what she'd felt in her memory of the moment.

"That's wrong, sister. Powers were made for people not people for powers. If your power has a bad interaction with people figure out how to use that. You can't run from yourself. I won't let you." Said Ophelia as she grasped her shoulders and met her eyes.

"I don't care where you came from or where you're going. We're not leaving you behind, and the Valkyries loss is going to be our gain. You're not just a mobile caravan. As your new leader, repeat after me. 'You're an unbreakable fortress.'"

"Huh?"

"Say it." Demanded Ophelia. No she commanded it as if she could command the wind or the sky and expect it to move.

"I'm an impenetrable fortress."

"'I'm a scrapper not scrap.'"

"This isn't going to work. Ouch. Fine. I'm a scrapper not scrap."

"And...we're a team. We watch each other's back, and back each other up."

"We're a team. We watch each other's back, and back each other up."

I just watched them. Although Erin didn't seem to want to play along at first, she dutifully repeated after her.

"Now. Tell me what you meant about being sympathetic about our 'drugs.'"

"Now. Tell me-oh. Oh!" She fell into an uncomfortable silence.

"You were kicked out of the Valkyrie company for a reason."

"Not kicked out. Just needed to leave." She muttered.

I thought I caught Ophelia looking at me, but she wasn't when I looked closer a second later.

"Um, I think it's fine, Ophelia, if she doesn't want to talk about it." I defended. "Let's just have a clean start."

"No, it would be fine if you had just killed someone or stolen from someone too important or influential."

"Wait, what type of person do you take me for?"

"But Erin here has a long term problem that we ought to address right now."

"Look it's not even that bad. I just started taking Might. It's a performance steroid to help me keep up with the others. Then one day I woke up with this lock of hair. Heather and Grisha freaked out, but some of the others thought it looked cool. It's not like I'm an addict or it's an unbearable expense."

Lies.

"I decided to resign when I started feeling a little stronger and faster even when I was off the drug. I thought I'd find slower work with a group that takes less dangerous jobs so I could avoid taking as much Might."

"Why take it given you said you're not a combat specialist? If you sit in the back of battles and, say help evacuate and treat the injured, then you shouldn't need it."

"I didn't want to be a support member. If you'd seen Heather and Chloe smashing a yoma nest, or Grisha towering over our enemies with Jeager raining down death from his tree house you'd get frustrated too. But I can't do it even with Might. It just made me faster at running away or healing from my mistakes."

She turned her face to gaze at the sky. The sky was too overcast. Like a blanket of gray splattered with bright droplets.

"I heard people on Might were as strong and fast as the wind, while they could shrug off anything short of disembowlment or dismemberment in a day or two. It's true, but a mouse is a mouse even with a mallet. I saw a bit of your match with Heather." She said turning to me. "Me and my axe wouldn't last even two seconds against that and you were fighting barehanded."

"It would probably help if you didn't use an axe. They're great offensive weapons, but you have to be fully committed to attacking first and putting your enemy on the defensive."

"It's not the weapon."

"You're right. It's not the weapon. It's the wielder, so come with us. I can fix this." Said Ophelia with absolute confidence.

"Plus," I added, "now you're starting to feel like you have a trace of yoma energy within you. If you don't come with us and it continues to get stronger you could start attracting trouble." I avoided looking at Ophelia, and decided not to mention that she'd already started to attract trouble.

"Where did that drug come from anyway?" I wondered.

"It came from the East."

***

Spoiler: Author's Note

Erin's power has two parts. When it is actively being used by Erin it is not Manton Limited (i.e. the power only works on either organics or inorganics), but the passive ability to sustain things in her personal dimension when she leave it is manton limited. The issue with using it on organic things, though, is a secret.

Ophelia is also showing a bit of charisma. Part of it is her power that she's drawing upon to get Erin to stay with them, but I also always thought Ophelia had potential to be quite charismatic if she wasn't so freaking crazy. She does pull off killing humans quite often precisely because she knows how to manipulate the system and astutely catches on that Clare is half-awakened.

By the way, Might is what Extremis (which was mentioned by Isley) is based on. One of the worst aspects to the Organization of human power users is they're undetectable by their long-range youki sensers. Might users may be hard to detect for Clare but they're going to be picked up and feel distinctive to a powerful specialist in youki sensing.

Spoiler: Hypothetical PRT rating

Also, for the worm fans, this is my hypothetical PRT Ratings for a mid-rank Claymore using the Earth Bet system:

Brute 5
Thinker 5 for youki sensing
Mover 2 for enhanced speed and jumping ability
(Changer 7 if she awakens)

If they are properly supplied with suppressants and, given Clare in canon demonstrated the ability to manipulate her vocal cords to drop her voice to sound like a man, they could merit a very low stranger rating.

 

[SolipsistSerpent]

Hm... Is Might someone's attempt to produce Claymores through means other than surgery?

 

[Cheerio]

Hm... Is Might someone's attempt to produce Claymores through means other than surgery?

Click to shrink...

It's possible but there are plenty of other incentives. As I mentioned in the author's note having any amount of youki makes you more easily detectable. The church or the Saints couldn't sneak an army around to attack Staff if they have even one heavy Might user in the group.

The Organization has also now become drug dealers, which gives them an additional form of revenue to supplement their falling source (hunts) and absent source (mainland support). Plus, the long-term goal of the Organization has been to develop potent fighters that are easily controllable. If they can get power users addicted and are the sole supplier they would have a lot of leverage over a potentially very useful group.

Right now the potency of Might is quite low (think brute 1 or very weak colorhead in Claymore terms), so Might users are not going to be serious physical threats. An overdose, though, may lead to a more serious effect and side-effects.

 

[Cheerio]

Interlude: Father Vincent

The supply caravans were finally cresting the hills surrounding our camp. The clinking of the guards armor and the rattling of the wagons would soon be heard even from where I stood near the center of our makeshift city.

It was easy to forget behind the high walls of Rabona and within the comfort of the grand cathedral, what the world was truly like.

I picked up another report. Three-quarters of a page of terse updates on the number of days the remaining four mercenary companies were behind us. The Division from Saintshold had also failed to leave yet, but their mode of transportation would probably see them here within a single day and night.

I hated it. This war, these expenses at the cost of our people, the weapons and obvious signs of wealthy patronage adorning different guard companies. Man's nature is warlike, and we the church should be suppressing it. We have always maintained the peace and prevented violent outbreaks between cities.

Today is different.

We camp in the shadow of the Briar Wall. It is at least fifty heads tall. It is thicker than a house, and our attempts to burn it with fire have only caused it to grow back thicker and with longer thorns. Our fliers can see beyond it, but I don't dare send them out again into the South without back-up. The last time one never came back.

Man's natural enemy is nature. We have sought to tame and conquer it. Long before Yoma roamed this earth we first needed to contend with the beasts of the land and skies. Those that would not submit to us we hunted to extinction.

According to some demographers of the church we are now being hunted to extinction by the various types of Yoma. The saints are merely a stopgap. They cannot find our enemy, and far too many selfishly use their own gifts to sow further chaos or merely enrich themselves.

Before I left with the army Father Damien came up to me. He asked me one question. "Can you submit?"

It would be so easy to. The Emperor of the North only asks us to only give up our humanity. The Princess of the West desires amusement and adoration as a mother. The vile thieves and defilers of the East demand merely our silence and continued perseverance.

"No."

Is this what the shaggy bison of the northern plains thought when we rode out on the final hunt for them. When we sank our spears into the last of his brethren from atop our horses. As he stated into the eyes of our tamed mounts.

It hardly matters, but I wish to know. Am I making mountains of molehills? I want them to live. No, I want them to thrive in freedom and safety and with dignity.

Living is easy. Merely living is lie.

But those are my values. Not everyone agrees.

If what lies beyond this wall is simply the Destroyer, a pestilence or horde of starving Awakened then I could be inviting destruction upon us all. Those gifted with knowledge have been wrong before, especially in places where many of their gifts crisscross about one another.

I sometimes wish to take a dirty loincloth and stuff it into the mouths of my advisors. "God-touched" they may be but their words invite only further questions and are usually as useless as the seers of myth and legend.

Yes, I am a horrible priest. I cannot stop thinking about throttling them as they prophecy our doom and then promise me the moon if I will dance with extinction.

I sometimes think I should throw off these robes of office. Don myself in sackcloth and ashes to tell everyone what sort of fool leads them. I sometimes think back to the day I first was called to serve. I had all my books prepared and had trained for years to secure the invitation to apprentice with a respected doctor.

Then the call came and I answered it.

Last month we sent out another call, a different call. To assemble and prepare to fight. Humanity answered. I work amidst the grandest army humanity has ever fielded. It far eclipses the power and equipment fielded by all the ancient kings combined even with our diminished population.

I'm supposed to gamble it all upon a faint hope. It's even more foolish then the call that led me to office. Yet today I sit here just outside my tent handling paperwork, order forms, and intelligence reports that quite honestly make me feel like a clerk back in Rabona not a general in the field.

Fate is fickle and this world is mad. No, the law of this world is madness, and only the dreamers or possessed can prosper.

I wonder where I would be if I'd ignored that call. Proceeded on and become a doctor. Wealthier, with a family, and fewer gray hairs. Well, maybe not, being a doctor is stressful.

The doctors in our camp, by the way, number 120 give or take a dozen. We expect that number to reach 150 before we leave. It's not enough if we have to deal with another red dust storm that flays the skin from a man and leaves his wounds poisoned with heavy minerals.

Why am I here, Rabona? You promised me that only I could do what would need to be done. Why? Do you have no other diseased, infected men? Or is it my common sense that screams out for me to stop as the crusaders urge me forward that made you bring me here?

I cannot even honestly testify about the day my fate was sealed. I tell those who would listen about the day that I left behind my life, a sacrifice that too many praise me for, and yet I lie with every testimony I give.

I never tell them that Rabona's hair was white as snow or her eyes as silver as a witch's.

It hurts me sometimes when I hear the calls at assembly for more to be done against the East's dogs. They do not see victims or daughters whom they've abandoned. Merely agents of the enemy and banned from society for selling their humanity. The price of power was a curse upon their heads and within their souls.

That last I can't disagree with, but we are all cursed.

"Sir," points out one of the guards.

Three members of the supply caravans approaches. One is clothed in black with two escorts a step behind. Her hair is covered with a headscarf, and a blindfold covers her eyes. Yet, her steps are firm and sure. I have seen only one person walk like that. Temple guards step up to block their passage but a white card is shown and they give way.

"Hello, Father Vincent."

"Hello again, Blind Sentinel. It's been too long. Or would you rather I call you Rafaela?"

"Call me whatever you want, Father. Neither name was picked by me."

"I will go with Rafaela then. Did you know it means 'healing god?'"

"Is that what you're after in the South? Healing before it is too late?" She says sharply.

"No, I know there is no cure for me. I am merely seeking another option. I guess I am seeking the promised hope that lies at the end of the rainbow."

"You should turn back. Take these people back home and pray. The monster that lies beyond this wall is not your hope."

"I know. This group has broken nine vases out of ten, is the color purple and bears a hundred thousand pounds worth of suffering."

"..."

"But we also are following a bright light sufficient to fill the entire city of Rabona. Next year the color down here will be black and the weight if we go in any other direction is a million pounds. The only one that may be lighter is to remain at home." I stared straight at her covered scars and said with all the confidence I could muster, "We need to be here."

She watches me. What do I look like to her senses? A monster or a dying man? Then she turns to the men around me. Not the crusaders hungry for blood and justice, but temple guards who know the value of life. They were hand-picked by me so no man among them has a family.

"Then let me and these two girls join you." She says at last with an air of resignation.

"You know we don't accept just anyone." I said looking at the two beside her. One has a slightly sadistic smile while the other is as cold and guarded as steel. Neither feel like unblooded novices, though.

"They aren't good but they also aren't bad girls. I will watch them." She says as if that is the answer to everything. There is a burden on her but I have no right to inquire deeper. She is the Blind Sentinel and she knows better than me what foolishness this is and yet has chosen to come.

"Alright. Thank you for coming along."

"No, thank you. This will mean a lot to me personally. Mucha was once my home too."

"And mine" said the girl with a now sorrowful smile.

I gave them a private tent and added one private request. She accepted it with merely a look and a nod of respect.

As they leave I wonder how many of them once had hair that looked as if it was spun from moonlight and ashes. Certainly, at least, Rafaela given her headdress.

If this were Rabona they would be cast out of the city. In Saintshold they would face inflated prices and superstitious stares. They would do all this thinking they were dealing with a tamed dog. They would be wrong. Rafaela, at least, has proven to be a wolf.

Did we ever give them a choice? How many were stolen from their homes after their powers emerged? How many are daughters born into slavery?

I hate myself for my silence.

I hate myself for my weakness.

I hate myself for being human.

Yet, I am not even that anymore, am I? I turn to my hands and can picture what it could be. The nails could be pointed claws. The skin could darken to a chestnut brown. Then my vision snaps back like a mirage or a reflection in a pool disturbed by a stone. It is merely a human hand.

I may win the war, but this is one battle I am slowly losing. Did Rabona really desire a champion like me? How long before the flesh of animals can no longer sustain my hunger and thirst? I pray I fall in this campaign before that happens. But if not there is always Rafaela's blade.

***

Spoiler: Author's note on Rafaela

Rafaela in Canon was a former #2 that was so harass the organization, which at the time was badly weakened, decided to just exile her rather than deal with trying to execute her. I'm assuming as long as she stayed away in rural areas her yoma hunting wouldn't have attracted too much heat from the Organization since those Yoma were unlikely to have merited an expensive request for extermination.

One clue about her identity was really the blindfold. Her youki field technique in canon would have made it easy to navigate without sight and the disaster with her sister cost her one eye, so relying upon sight to fight would have made her vulnerable. It also made it easier to hide her silver eyes.

Spoiler: A depiction of the Goddess Rabona

I didn't realize this until I started researching things, but of the four gods mentioned in Claymore all are women (Teresa, Clare, Rabonian God and God from the Runoa period that Clare had a statue of). By the way, in this fic the Rabonian religion is monotheistic and these other Gods are considered pagan.

 

[Satisfaction]

Huh. He's a beginning-stage Yoma? Didn't think it was possible for them to sate the hunger by consuming animals. Anyway, you've been misspelling the Abyssal ones as Abysmal ones, which is pretty funny but also wrong. And there's still a 'Dae'->'Dad' in Fei's interlude.
Otherwise, keep it up. This is great, you know. More people need to write Claymore.

 

[Keres Acheron]

Omake: Abyss

"The farmers are a very small group. I think you should actually be worried about the Commanders and Collectors."

Click to shrink...

Chapter 12: A Broken Record and a Successful Hunt

"Closer. There exist youki suppressants that will hide your aura. These are made from a combination of herbs, yoma parts and venoms?.

Click to shrink...

In Chapter 15 you misspell Clare repeatedly as Carla and Carly.



Seconded that there needs to be more claymore fanfic. This is wonderfull written.

 

[Cheerio]

In Chapter 15 you misspell Clare repeatedly as Carla and Carly.



Seconded that there needs to be more claymore fanfic. This is wonderfull written.

Click to shrink...

This wasn't a misspelling of Clare. Clare and Ophelia are using pseudonyms. They're eventually going to be or already are wanted women with the organization, and they could potentially attract a lot of attention since they're going around as "God-touched," which are very rare and idolized much like any heroes in an eat or be eaten society. That said, you'll probably still see much more triggers per capita in the world of Claymore than you did on Earth Bet, because of how traumatic living in yoma and Awakened Being country is.

That said, thanks for pointing out that I used Carla and Carly in the same chapter. I meant to only use one and I've edited all the Carly's into Carla and hopefully adding it to the author's note that they're pseudonyms clarifies things for other readers.