Sortie 12: KantaiVania (Latter Part)
AnonymousRabbit
Rabbit Faced
She stabbed her sword and wiped the sweat off her brow as she glared at the Fog gate before her. This was annoying, rather, this was unreasonable. She can't afford to avoid that Ta-Class every time she died and she was already running low on supplies. Well, it's not her fault the villagers pushed her to slay this Princess before she got some supplies. With just her sword, her gun and her flask she didn't really expect surviving consecutive battles with a Princess that seemed utter bullshit.
Nagatsuki slowly wished that she has Kiyoshimo's fervor for being a Battleship. Maybe shooting down that teleporting Princess would at least give her an edge. Looking around, the entrance to the Fog door was empty and as she looked behind her, there were only the scattered corpses of the PT Imps lying about. She had managed to memorize their patterns through her previous deaths and she wasn't looking forward to having to go through another mess.
Which was why she had to end this. It just sucked that she wasn't able to get help unlike other numerous occasions. Coating her blade with a Brew of Reku which acted as corrosive poison, Nagatsuki walked through the gate to see the Abyssalized Ship Girl at the center of the room.
With a flourish of her ivory staff, PT Imps were summoned at the center of the room and opened fired upon Nagatsuki. Dodging through the bullets, the Destroyer swung her sword and cut through them before steping forward as she thrust her sword. The Abyssal Princess smiled and blocked the strike before sending the Ship Girl sliding back as she took flight, dropping Depth Charges from above as she soared overhead.
Nagatsuki rolled away from the falling Charges and watched them blast the arena all around, giving the Fallen Witch ample time to reach the other end of the platform and raise her ivory staff. The waters surrounding the platform bubbled violently before PT Imps pounced to the surface. Nagatsuki backed off as the Imps came to land before dispatching them the same way they came. They emitted strange cries that sounded all too human for her tastes.
"Ahh, children… The poor children… Have mercy on the poor Children, dear Huntress," mewled the Fallen Witch as she summoned her ancient 12.7cm guns and fired them at the same time. Nagatsuki was forced to take a hit while avoiding the shell headed for her head, opting to take the blast to her stomach than instantly dying.
"You're a pain in the ass," she growled as she popped her Repair Flask and took a swig. Already her wound healed and she charged at her foe, the Fallen Witch taking to the air with a beat of her wings.
Coming to a halt in mid-air, the Fallen Witch spun around and spread an odd dust around the area, causing more Imps to jump from the murky black water and even slow down Nagatsuki's charge. This obviously caused the green haired girl alarm as she felt her movements become sluggish.
It was here she realized it was all a trick and that the Princess had started to spiral downwards with her ivory staff directed downwards, straight towards the Destroyer's chest. With no way to dodge, Nagatsuki lifted her own main gun and fired, the shell slamming into the Abyssal's chest and forcing her to a halt. Using this moment, Nagatsuki rushed forward and drove her poisoned blade through the Princess' body and ripping it forcefully to the side with her own superhuman strength.
Abyssal blood painted the platform but the Fallen Witch still lived through that critical attack, retaliating by sending the PT Imps forward to rip Nagatsuki to shreds. Even with her slow movements, the girl was able to cut down two Imps before the third chomped down on her left arm and crushing it down to the bone in a sickening mulch.
Nagatsuki exchanged gazes with the Abyssal before her before glancing down at the Imp. A crack formed on the obsidian exoskeleton of the Imp before a burning blue explosion was unleashed and sent the Destroyer flying through the air and tumbling near the water's edge. She didn't stop to pause as her wounds hurt all over, pushing herself back on her feet as the water exploded with a new PT Imp opening its mouth. Driving her sword through its jaws, she slammed it to the ground before side stepping as shell fired by the Fallen Witch.
She sheathed her sword for a moment and rolled out of the way of another artillery shell before uncorking her Repair Flask and drinking twice. This fully healed her battered body at double the rate but it also depleted her healing reserves by half. She had hit the Princess already so the poison should be…
"!"
The first thing the Abyssal noticed was that something beneath her skin was starting to bubble followed by great pain assaulting her mind and driving her into frenzy. The poison had worked and it was indeed eating away at her internal structure but it also unleashed some primal fury hidden beneath her teasing smiles and mocking calls. Blue orbs of power replaced the ancient 12.7cm cannons floating around the Princess, hurtling themselves forward in an attempt to either blow Nagatsuki to bits or send her flying into the water to be consumed by the Imps.
"Stop! Stop! Stop! It hurts, so stop it!" she wailed before bursting forward and slamming her ivory staff where the Destroyer once stood. Having rolled away once, Nagatsuki evaded instant death as the Abyssal carved open the ground with her eldritch magic by dashing away. Seeing the Fallen Witch recover from overdoing it, she immediately jumped in to punish, and started slicing and hacking away at the Abyssal's body. She only stopped when the Fallen Witch's form glowed and burst, having backed off to avoid the attack.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!" screamed the Abyssal and nearly blowing Nagatsuki's eardrums out.
This forced her to pause as pain racked her mind before seeing the shining ivory staff swing upwards with a magical blast. Nagatsuki's body soared into the air and slammed into the ground like a rag doll. She was hurting… hurting all over… But she didn't have time to hurt, otherwise she was going to die again.
She forced herself back on her feet just in time to avoid being smashed into a pulp but her opponent was faster than anything she faced before and had severed her left arm with a brutal blow. Despite that, she didn't let that hinder her as she took a step forward and slashed. Though she made contact with her foe's weapon, it was like she was beating against a veritable mass of steel. No… In fact she could see it, the true nature of this Abyssal at its very core.
"In the end, you're just like me," breathed Nagatsuki as she exchanged blows with the Princess, "You're… a Destroyer too."
"Not the children! We don't need you anymore! Protect the children!" sobbed the insane Abyssal as Nagatsuki's slashes landed their marks, increasing the potency of the poison in her opponent's body the more she cut, "They're coming… They're coming…. Suzukaze, leave me here… Leave me and warn the others… Warn them… I can hear them whispering. Can't you hear them, Suzukaze?"
Nagatsuki only had one thing in mind now that's he was in such close quarters with an Abyssal Princess, and that was to survive.
She couldn't heal when she was this close to her enemy. Taking the time to take a sip would be equal to having her skull smashed to bits. She had to wait it out, she had to outlast this monster. Attacks were predictable but even so, they were fast and powerful. If they didn't clip Nagatsuki, she had to settle for parry them with her lone arm but even then she'd still feel the shockwaves rock her abused form.
"Just die already!" Nagatsuki roared as she side stepped her foe's weapon and just stabbed the Fallen Witch chest, the poison from her sword causing the Abyssal's skin to sizzle. The blow forced bloody gunk to cough out of the Abyssal's lips as she locked gazes with Nagatsuki.
The Destroyer pulled her weapon away and left behind a sizzling wound on the Abyssal's stomach.
As the light left the Fallen Witch's eyes, she even had time to speak, "Thank… You…"
Falling to her knees, she remained like that as her body began to crumble.
Looking around, Nagatsuki took note that small skeletons were leaving the cocoons stuck to the ceiling and clattering either on the platform or sinking into the dark depths below. Turning her gaze back at the dying Abyssal Princess, Nagatsuki simply found a Soul lying there with the color of what could only be the ocean's blue waters. Except the Ocean of this world was dark and dead, home only to the Abyss that sought to wipe out mankind.
An Anchor manifested at the center of the room as the Destroyer retrieved the soul from the ground. It was a tiny soul emitting a gentle light but a moment later she felt the surge of sovereignless souls swarm around her and enter her body. Turning aside, she activated the Anchor and fell down her knees and collapsed into the hard cold floor. The Anchor will keep monsters away… And even if she died, she'll just wake up in this same spot…
…..
….
…
Nagatsuki woke up with her body healed and the Anchor glowing happily before her. The hard ground was a bad bed to sleep on so she wasn't surprised when she felt her back hurting. She uncorked her Repair Flask to see that it had been refilled while she had been resting.
"I should at least go see what's beyond this, huh…" she murmured as she took stock of her supplies.
Basically nothing at this point. At the very least the Soul she collected would be worth something at the very least. Nagatsuki raised an eyebrow once she realized that the Anchor was subtly losing its glow. Tilting her head in confusion, she tried to see what was wrong as she gave it a closer look until she heard the footsteps come from the path forward. Standing up, she watched as a person coated in dark red power walked into view and turned their gaze towards her.
Nagatsuki narrowed her eyes and growled, "No rest for the wicked, huh?"
The two squared off before clashing once more catching one another's blades as Nagatsuki found herself on the defensive as her opponent rained attacks on her. Nevertheless, the adrenaline pumped in her veins once more and she regained her battle mode.
She had just felled an Abyssal Princess, she's not going to take shit from this Dark Spirit now. She caught as slash and redirected it to the side before locking blades with her attacker's other sword. The Destroyer kicked her opponent a second time and stepped back as the Dark Spirit approached.
BANG
Nagatsuki's gun echoed throughout the area and forced the Dark Spirit to kneel as she shoved her sword right through their body. Looking into the Dark Spirit's emotionless eyes was enough of a warning for the Destroyer to rip her sword through its body and back away, nearly avoiding having her head cut off. She unloaded her shells at her foe as it nimbly dodged through her shots and attack with glistening blades.
She dashed backwards and stopped, thrusting her sword forward and following up with a slash to keep her opponent at bay. Nagatsuki was careful and kept her eyes on the Dark Spirit as it dismissed one of its swords and manifested a shield and an Ultra Greatsword. With shield held in front of it, the Dark Spirit approached and swung its Zweihander downwards before dragging it up the ground to keep Nagatsuki from attacking.
The Destroyer tried shooting her gun but the Great Shield provided enough protection that it didn't matter.
"What the hell is your problem?!" she hissed as she dodged a slash and got bashed by the shield for her trouble. This was a tank… Possibly more tankier than a Ta-Class but from its movements earlier, Nagatsuki could discern that this was a Destroyer as well. But how could it wield such a heavy weapon designed for Battleships of this world? That's just crazy! The girl recovered and tried attacking once more but her adversary was built like a wall though it may have been slow.
The Dark Spirit fought and fought, showing no openings as it closed on the girl and slammed its huge blade down. It carved open the ground with its mighty strikes while giving Nagatsuki little chance to retaliate.
Was it a simple invader or a silent avenger to the dead Abyssal? Nagatsuki opted to be patient, to learn from its movements, baiting its attacks and striking. She could feel her bones creak against the multiple shield bashes she was forced to endure while her body throbbed all over.
Still, she believed that she found a way.
She replaced her gun with her trusty buckler and dodged one swing, striking once before stepping back. Nagatsuki held her breath as she watched the Dark Spirit swing its huge sword. But instead of dodging, she went into its guard, batting aside her enemy's wrist and forcing the huge sword to come slamming down her left. She then anticipated the shield bash and spun around it with her sword tearing through the air and slicing off her opponent's head in one stroke.
Waiting for one second, two second… she eventually felt the familiar surge of power from killing a Dark Spirit enter her before she fell to her knees. Looking down her hands, she noticed that they were trembling the whole time so she held them together if just to ease her nerves.
"What the hell am I doing?" she murmured before rising up again.
Her eyes eventually fell upon the pathway forward where the Dark Spirit descended. She picked up her sword and buckler before making her way there. A spiral staircase led upwards, the familiar smell of the sea wafting in. She climbed and climbed, her footsteps echoing throughout the damp walls as she went up. Nagatsuki eventually found herself on the other side of the broken bridge leading into the ship castle.
And there she found a person lying nearby.
It was a young girl, almost as young as the Destroyer's physical appearance and looked like she was hurt. Nagatsuki was about to help her out when she noticed a few things about the other girl's clothes. They were the exact same as the Dark Spirit from before. Keeping her guard up, she held her sword tightly as she began her approach.
Her footsteps weren't exactly quiet as the sound of the crashing waves failed to mask it.
"So… You've come, Huntress," the girl chuckled as she cracked a smile. Her pale lips and empty eyes tearing away from staring at the sea to fix themselves to you. Her deep green eyes were lifeless and you felt a chill run down your spine as they seemed familiar. They were almost the same eyes as the Abyssal Princess you fought. Her armor was carved open while her zweihander lay shattered by her side as her great shield was split open a few feet away.
The stranger parted her lips as she smiled, "Come to kill me at last, have you not..?"
"Who are you?" asked the Destroyer in a firm tone.
"Me? Well… It's been so long since someone asked me that… Um… Call me Suzu… Forgive me, I've been lying her, on the perpetual edge of death.. yet never truly dying for real. I've been… cursed, you see. By a sister of mine…" explained Suzu as she coughed and raised her hand before her, "Still, it seemed that it's been broken. Which means…"
"She's dead. I killed her," Nagatsuki supplied with a grim expression, "I was sent to investigate this place as well as to kill her. She put up a fight."
"Ah… I hope she didn't give you too much trouble," mumbled Suzu with a faint shake of her head, "She certainly gets things done when she puts her mind to it… Poor Samidare."
"You were a Huntress," Nagatsuki stated in a clear tone, "But the Village never mentioned you."
"Probably didn't deem it worth noting. But, yes… I… Was just like you. A girl with the soul of a Warmachine. We were both the same, my sister and I… We're from a Clan of renowned Huntresses, Destroyers the whole lot of us were… But it all fell apart on that one expedition. There… There was so many of them… Samidare fell into the sea before I could do anything and… The enemy left me for dead, right on this very spot…" explained Suzu with a mirthless chuckle, "I assumed that her transformation happened after her survival. Because… When she came back… She was different… She cursed me so that I won't die. But now…"
"You're free," Nagatsuki told her, walking close and standing before the fallen Huntress, "You tried avenging her, at the very least."
"Haha… You… Must be something… Beating her as a monster… And beating my Spirit in its prime…" huffed Suzu as she tried to rise up enough so that she was sitting, "Do you still have her? Her Soul?"
"Yeah," Nagatsuki replied as she produced the calming, light blue soul in her hand, "Do you want it?"
"No… No need… I just wanted to see her one last time," Suzu laughed with a genuine grin, her eyes glistening with emotion, "So… Beautiful."
Nagatsuki stared at the fallen Huntress and stood up, stowing away the Abyssal Princess' soul while sheathing her sword. It's over, for now…
…..
….
…
Nagatsuki stabbed the broken hilt of the Zweihander into the ground before the small mountain of stones. Her dirty cape billowed in the wind as she pulled down the brim of her hat and walked towards her next destination. She still had a castle to explore and possibly a few more Abyssals to kill.
It seemed like she was going to have to spend the next few months clearing the entire castle of its infestation.
It's just more Souls for her to Collect.
------------------------
Personal opinion time:
Woohoo! Just in time for Valentines day.
Nagatsuki slowly wished that she has Kiyoshimo's fervor for being a Battleship. Maybe shooting down that teleporting Princess would at least give her an edge. Looking around, the entrance to the Fog door was empty and as she looked behind her, there were only the scattered corpses of the PT Imps lying about. She had managed to memorize their patterns through her previous deaths and she wasn't looking forward to having to go through another mess.
Which was why she had to end this. It just sucked that she wasn't able to get help unlike other numerous occasions. Coating her blade with a Brew of Reku which acted as corrosive poison, Nagatsuki walked through the gate to see the Abyssalized Ship Girl at the center of the room.
With a flourish of her ivory staff, PT Imps were summoned at the center of the room and opened fired upon Nagatsuki. Dodging through the bullets, the Destroyer swung her sword and cut through them before steping forward as she thrust her sword. The Abyssal Princess smiled and blocked the strike before sending the Ship Girl sliding back as she took flight, dropping Depth Charges from above as she soared overhead.
Nagatsuki rolled away from the falling Charges and watched them blast the arena all around, giving the Fallen Witch ample time to reach the other end of the platform and raise her ivory staff. The waters surrounding the platform bubbled violently before PT Imps pounced to the surface. Nagatsuki backed off as the Imps came to land before dispatching them the same way they came. They emitted strange cries that sounded all too human for her tastes.
"Ahh, children… The poor children… Have mercy on the poor Children, dear Huntress," mewled the Fallen Witch as she summoned her ancient 12.7cm guns and fired them at the same time. Nagatsuki was forced to take a hit while avoiding the shell headed for her head, opting to take the blast to her stomach than instantly dying.
"You're a pain in the ass," she growled as she popped her Repair Flask and took a swig. Already her wound healed and she charged at her foe, the Fallen Witch taking to the air with a beat of her wings.
Coming to a halt in mid-air, the Fallen Witch spun around and spread an odd dust around the area, causing more Imps to jump from the murky black water and even slow down Nagatsuki's charge. This obviously caused the green haired girl alarm as she felt her movements become sluggish.
It was here she realized it was all a trick and that the Princess had started to spiral downwards with her ivory staff directed downwards, straight towards the Destroyer's chest. With no way to dodge, Nagatsuki lifted her own main gun and fired, the shell slamming into the Abyssal's chest and forcing her to a halt. Using this moment, Nagatsuki rushed forward and drove her poisoned blade through the Princess' body and ripping it forcefully to the side with her own superhuman strength.
Abyssal blood painted the platform but the Fallen Witch still lived through that critical attack, retaliating by sending the PT Imps forward to rip Nagatsuki to shreds. Even with her slow movements, the girl was able to cut down two Imps before the third chomped down on her left arm and crushing it down to the bone in a sickening mulch.
Nagatsuki exchanged gazes with the Abyssal before her before glancing down at the Imp. A crack formed on the obsidian exoskeleton of the Imp before a burning blue explosion was unleashed and sent the Destroyer flying through the air and tumbling near the water's edge. She didn't stop to pause as her wounds hurt all over, pushing herself back on her feet as the water exploded with a new PT Imp opening its mouth. Driving her sword through its jaws, she slammed it to the ground before side stepping as shell fired by the Fallen Witch.
She sheathed her sword for a moment and rolled out of the way of another artillery shell before uncorking her Repair Flask and drinking twice. This fully healed her battered body at double the rate but it also depleted her healing reserves by half. She had hit the Princess already so the poison should be…
"!"
The first thing the Abyssal noticed was that something beneath her skin was starting to bubble followed by great pain assaulting her mind and driving her into frenzy. The poison had worked and it was indeed eating away at her internal structure but it also unleashed some primal fury hidden beneath her teasing smiles and mocking calls. Blue orbs of power replaced the ancient 12.7cm cannons floating around the Princess, hurtling themselves forward in an attempt to either blow Nagatsuki to bits or send her flying into the water to be consumed by the Imps.
"Stop! Stop! Stop! It hurts, so stop it!" she wailed before bursting forward and slamming her ivory staff where the Destroyer once stood. Having rolled away once, Nagatsuki evaded instant death as the Abyssal carved open the ground with her eldritch magic by dashing away. Seeing the Fallen Witch recover from overdoing it, she immediately jumped in to punish, and started slicing and hacking away at the Abyssal's body. She only stopped when the Fallen Witch's form glowed and burst, having backed off to avoid the attack.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!" screamed the Abyssal and nearly blowing Nagatsuki's eardrums out.
This forced her to pause as pain racked her mind before seeing the shining ivory staff swing upwards with a magical blast. Nagatsuki's body soared into the air and slammed into the ground like a rag doll. She was hurting… hurting all over… But she didn't have time to hurt, otherwise she was going to die again.
She forced herself back on her feet just in time to avoid being smashed into a pulp but her opponent was faster than anything she faced before and had severed her left arm with a brutal blow. Despite that, she didn't let that hinder her as she took a step forward and slashed. Though she made contact with her foe's weapon, it was like she was beating against a veritable mass of steel. No… In fact she could see it, the true nature of this Abyssal at its very core.
"In the end, you're just like me," breathed Nagatsuki as she exchanged blows with the Princess, "You're… a Destroyer too."
"Not the children! We don't need you anymore! Protect the children!" sobbed the insane Abyssal as Nagatsuki's slashes landed their marks, increasing the potency of the poison in her opponent's body the more she cut, "They're coming… They're coming…. Suzukaze, leave me here… Leave me and warn the others… Warn them… I can hear them whispering. Can't you hear them, Suzukaze?"
Nagatsuki only had one thing in mind now that's he was in such close quarters with an Abyssal Princess, and that was to survive.
She couldn't heal when she was this close to her enemy. Taking the time to take a sip would be equal to having her skull smashed to bits. She had to wait it out, she had to outlast this monster. Attacks were predictable but even so, they were fast and powerful. If they didn't clip Nagatsuki, she had to settle for parry them with her lone arm but even then she'd still feel the shockwaves rock her abused form.
"Just die already!" Nagatsuki roared as she side stepped her foe's weapon and just stabbed the Fallen Witch chest, the poison from her sword causing the Abyssal's skin to sizzle. The blow forced bloody gunk to cough out of the Abyssal's lips as she locked gazes with Nagatsuki.
The Destroyer pulled her weapon away and left behind a sizzling wound on the Abyssal's stomach.
As the light left the Fallen Witch's eyes, she even had time to speak, "Thank… You…"
"ABYSSAL SUNK"
Falling to her knees, she remained like that as her body began to crumble.
Looking around, Nagatsuki took note that small skeletons were leaving the cocoons stuck to the ceiling and clattering either on the platform or sinking into the dark depths below. Turning her gaze back at the dying Abyssal Princess, Nagatsuki simply found a Soul lying there with the color of what could only be the ocean's blue waters. Except the Ocean of this world was dark and dead, home only to the Abyss that sought to wipe out mankind.
An Anchor manifested at the center of the room as the Destroyer retrieved the soul from the ground. It was a tiny soul emitting a gentle light but a moment later she felt the surge of sovereignless souls swarm around her and enter her body. Turning aside, she activated the Anchor and fell down her knees and collapsed into the hard cold floor. The Anchor will keep monsters away… And even if she died, she'll just wake up in this same spot…
…..
….
…
Nagatsuki woke up with her body healed and the Anchor glowing happily before her. The hard ground was a bad bed to sleep on so she wasn't surprised when she felt her back hurting. She uncorked her Repair Flask to see that it had been refilled while she had been resting.
"I should at least go see what's beyond this, huh…" she murmured as she took stock of her supplies.
Basically nothing at this point. At the very least the Soul she collected would be worth something at the very least. Nagatsuki raised an eyebrow once she realized that the Anchor was subtly losing its glow. Tilting her head in confusion, she tried to see what was wrong as she gave it a closer look until she heard the footsteps come from the path forward. Standing up, she watched as a person coated in dark red power walked into view and turned their gaze towards her.
Nagatsuki narrowed her eyes and growled, "No rest for the wicked, huh?"
Dark Spirit Suzukaze has Invaded
The Dark Spirit said nothing and simply drew two swords and charged. Switching her gun for her buckler, Nagatsuki stepped forward to meet her adversary and dodging the first slash, catching the following thrust and kicking her foe back.
The two squared off before clashing once more catching one another's blades as Nagatsuki found herself on the defensive as her opponent rained attacks on her. Nevertheless, the adrenaline pumped in her veins once more and she regained her battle mode.
She had just felled an Abyssal Princess, she's not going to take shit from this Dark Spirit now. She caught as slash and redirected it to the side before locking blades with her attacker's other sword. The Destroyer kicked her opponent a second time and stepped back as the Dark Spirit approached.
BANG
Nagatsuki's gun echoed throughout the area and forced the Dark Spirit to kneel as she shoved her sword right through their body. Looking into the Dark Spirit's emotionless eyes was enough of a warning for the Destroyer to rip her sword through its body and back away, nearly avoiding having her head cut off. She unloaded her shells at her foe as it nimbly dodged through her shots and attack with glistening blades.
She dashed backwards and stopped, thrusting her sword forward and following up with a slash to keep her opponent at bay. Nagatsuki was careful and kept her eyes on the Dark Spirit as it dismissed one of its swords and manifested a shield and an Ultra Greatsword. With shield held in front of it, the Dark Spirit approached and swung its Zweihander downwards before dragging it up the ground to keep Nagatsuki from attacking.
The Destroyer tried shooting her gun but the Great Shield provided enough protection that it didn't matter.
"What the hell is your problem?!" she hissed as she dodged a slash and got bashed by the shield for her trouble. This was a tank… Possibly more tankier than a Ta-Class but from its movements earlier, Nagatsuki could discern that this was a Destroyer as well. But how could it wield such a heavy weapon designed for Battleships of this world? That's just crazy! The girl recovered and tried attacking once more but her adversary was built like a wall though it may have been slow.
The Dark Spirit fought and fought, showing no openings as it closed on the girl and slammed its huge blade down. It carved open the ground with its mighty strikes while giving Nagatsuki little chance to retaliate.
Was it a simple invader or a silent avenger to the dead Abyssal? Nagatsuki opted to be patient, to learn from its movements, baiting its attacks and striking. She could feel her bones creak against the multiple shield bashes she was forced to endure while her body throbbed all over.
Still, she believed that she found a way.
She replaced her gun with her trusty buckler and dodged one swing, striking once before stepping back. Nagatsuki held her breath as she watched the Dark Spirit swing its huge sword. But instead of dodging, she went into its guard, batting aside her enemy's wrist and forcing the huge sword to come slamming down her left. She then anticipated the shield bash and spun around it with her sword tearing through the air and slicing off her opponent's head in one stroke.
DARK SPIRIT DESTROYED
Waiting for one second, two second… she eventually felt the familiar surge of power from killing a Dark Spirit enter her before she fell to her knees. Looking down her hands, she noticed that they were trembling the whole time so she held them together if just to ease her nerves.
"What the hell am I doing?" she murmured before rising up again.
Her eyes eventually fell upon the pathway forward where the Dark Spirit descended. She picked up her sword and buckler before making her way there. A spiral staircase led upwards, the familiar smell of the sea wafting in. She climbed and climbed, her footsteps echoing throughout the damp walls as she went up. Nagatsuki eventually found herself on the other side of the broken bridge leading into the ship castle.
And there she found a person lying nearby.
It was a young girl, almost as young as the Destroyer's physical appearance and looked like she was hurt. Nagatsuki was about to help her out when she noticed a few things about the other girl's clothes. They were the exact same as the Dark Spirit from before. Keeping her guard up, she held her sword tightly as she began her approach.
Her footsteps weren't exactly quiet as the sound of the crashing waves failed to mask it.
"So… You've come, Huntress," the girl chuckled as she cracked a smile. Her pale lips and empty eyes tearing away from staring at the sea to fix themselves to you. Her deep green eyes were lifeless and you felt a chill run down your spine as they seemed familiar. They were almost the same eyes as the Abyssal Princess you fought. Her armor was carved open while her zweihander lay shattered by her side as her great shield was split open a few feet away.
The stranger parted her lips as she smiled, "Come to kill me at last, have you not..?"
"Who are you?" asked the Destroyer in a firm tone.
"Me? Well… It's been so long since someone asked me that… Um… Call me Suzu… Forgive me, I've been lying her, on the perpetual edge of death.. yet never truly dying for real. I've been… cursed, you see. By a sister of mine…" explained Suzu as she coughed and raised her hand before her, "Still, it seemed that it's been broken. Which means…"
"She's dead. I killed her," Nagatsuki supplied with a grim expression, "I was sent to investigate this place as well as to kill her. She put up a fight."
"Ah… I hope she didn't give you too much trouble," mumbled Suzu with a faint shake of her head, "She certainly gets things done when she puts her mind to it… Poor Samidare."
"You were a Huntress," Nagatsuki stated in a clear tone, "But the Village never mentioned you."
"Probably didn't deem it worth noting. But, yes… I… Was just like you. A girl with the soul of a Warmachine. We were both the same, my sister and I… We're from a Clan of renowned Huntresses, Destroyers the whole lot of us were… But it all fell apart on that one expedition. There… There was so many of them… Samidare fell into the sea before I could do anything and… The enemy left me for dead, right on this very spot…" explained Suzu with a mirthless chuckle, "I assumed that her transformation happened after her survival. Because… When she came back… She was different… She cursed me so that I won't die. But now…"
"You're free," Nagatsuki told her, walking close and standing before the fallen Huntress, "You tried avenging her, at the very least."
"Haha… You… Must be something… Beating her as a monster… And beating my Spirit in its prime…" huffed Suzu as she tried to rise up enough so that she was sitting, "Do you still have her? Her Soul?"
"Yeah," Nagatsuki replied as she produced the calming, light blue soul in her hand, "Do you want it?"
"No… No need… I just wanted to see her one last time," Suzu laughed with a genuine grin, her eyes glistening with emotion, "So… Beautiful."
Nagatsuki stared at the fallen Huntress and stood up, stowing away the Abyssal Princess' soul while sheathing her sword. It's over, for now…
…..
….
…
Nagatsuki stabbed the broken hilt of the Zweihander into the ground before the small mountain of stones. Her dirty cape billowed in the wind as she pulled down the brim of her hat and walked towards her next destination. She still had a castle to explore and possibly a few more Abyssals to kill.
It seemed like she was going to have to spend the next few months clearing the entire castle of its infestation.
It's just more Souls for her to Collect.
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Personal opinion time:
Woohoo! Just in time for Valentines day.
