In a dimly lit hall beneath some Lord's manor is a gathering of eight individuals.
They sat around a roundtable, each with a high back chair looking more like a throne. Surrounded by red curtains as if to give them privacy. With a large banner with a red hand and eight fingers, denoting their organization.
Said members sat with hoods drawn up. Shadows hiding half their faces. Except for a couple of their members. Two of whom, sat openly and uncaring.
"So..." one of them drawled. "The Princess lives.... again? Impressive."
"Pfft! Impressive? More like a complete waste of resources." remarks snidely by another member.
"You mean like the resources they had stolen from us." redirected another.
"Oh don't worry about those." adds one of the members looking like a lanky man with a bald head, wearing unflattering clothes. "It is easily fixable."
"Are you sure Coco Doll?" asked another.
"Of course." he answers. "I had already spoken with Zero-kun here." Coco Doll said pointing at the muscular man with various tattoos on his exposed body. "Retrieving the drugs would be easy. And they will be moving at the same time as the retrieval for Davernoch-chan."
"We will definitely secure one. With a good possibility of Both." Zero confirms.
"And why exactly are we wasting man power for this... Necromancer?"
"Because a number of nobles fear him." said another.
Zero then smiles and adds. "Besides, a Necromancer, once powerful enough is said to be capable of wielding Fifth Tier Magic, Raise Dead."
"Exclusively, I'm sure." Implicates a member, one who seemed more calmer and with the attention of all those present.
Zero smiled at the Leader of Eight Fingers and said, "I will make sure to add it to his contract."
Nods of approval with excited whispers passed around.
"Well, I guess we will be making no move against the this so called Hero then?" asks a member.
"Why not? Are we really going to let this commoner rise un-impeded?"
"Peace friend." interrupts their unnamed leader. "We have made quite a commotion as it is. Eight Fingers is at the Royal Family's fore front of concern. They will retaliate with the hopes to send a message. A message we can easily mitigate so long as we do not add more to the plate. Specially since we will be securing a potent necromancer." he then turns to Zero. "How soon can you do this?"
"A couple of weeks at most. A week at best."
"Good." the man then turns to Coco Doll. "How much will you be needing to restart your operation and your time frame?"
"I appreciate the help, Leader-sama but with the recovery of the drugs, there will be little to no lost."
"Bullshit." interjects Zero. "You lost a whole vault."
"A small vault. Sure, I will be buying less slaves for a time but, no longer than a couple of months. My operations are still functional after all."
"Regarding operations." the cloaked leader then turns to another member with his beard showing beneath his hood. "You have given news of Coco Doll succeeding you in the Human Trafficking Operations. My concern is who will succeed Coco Doll with the Drug Operations."
The old man answers. "The boy has asked for a year to train a protege."
"Is that so?" asked the leader towards Coco Doll, who then answered with a smile and a snap of his fingers.
From behind the curtains, stepped out a beautiful woman with curling blonde hair and a white dress that accentuates her curves and as Coco Doll introduced. "This is Hilma, and she is about to be tested."
"Tested how?" asked Zero, not hiding his leering gaze.
"Well, I thought to take a shot at our new found 'Hero'. If the woman he keeps by his side is any indication. Perhaps he could be... persuaded to our side."
"I highly doubt she could hold a sword." Zero remarks. "This.. Albedo, is said it be a paladin of skill. Would he even pay a smidge of attention to your... Whore?"
"I highly doubt that's true, if her beauty is to go by." Coco Doll dismissed. "This Albedo most likely just carry his equipment on his behest and spread her legs when her 'Hero' wants her to."
Murmurs spread with some skeptical and most nodding at the possibility. In the end, no one spoke against it. But calculations must be made, and already, these leaders thought on the expenses on how to get rid of the girl should she fail.
After all, they may not like to say it but the eyes of the Royal Family can be lucrative as it is bothersome. And no woman, no matter how beautiful is worth the trouble that may lead to their downfall.
Something Hilma herself has already considered.
Silently admitting that she had preferred a different test. But a commoner has only two choices.
Yes and be done with it, or No and be done with.
—.—.—.—.—
Lakyus Alvein Dale Aindra, a young woman of golden blonde hair and bright green eyes fell languidly on her bed. Bouncing slightly before sighing as she settled.
She stayed silently, relaxing in her luxurious yet empty room. Till the sound of the door took her attention.
"It's open!" she shouts.
From outside stepped in the members of Blue Rose. First came Gagaran with her muscular frame wearing her thick full plate and her Warhammer rested on her shoulder.
Next came the twin kunoichi, Tina and Tia, with their matching coral eyes and blond hair tied into a ponytail. Their blue and red signature colors set to differentiate them respectively.
And lastly is a red cloaked, and white masked mage of their team, Evileye.
The three relaxed, with Gagaran sitting at the foot of he bed. The two kunoichi sitting on the carpet at the foot of it, and Evileye on the nearby chair.
"Well, that was something." said Gagaran, looking expectantly at the other members to pick up the conversation. Seeing no response, she turned to Lakyus and said, "This isn't something we can ignore. So, Leader. What the fuck was that?"
Normally, she would chastise her teammate for her crude language. But feeling the whole attention of everyone shift to her made her pause.
Lakyus sat with a sigh and thought on what exactly happened.
~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~
"Come forth... Avalon."
Her whisper felt like a gong to her senses. Her heart felt like they were melting as a golden glow appeared just between the woman's hands.
And fron her abdomen, divine light slowly coalesce and rise.
The seconds that passed felt like minutes. As divine energy filled her to the point that she could feel old wounds close. But the feeling was so gentle that all she could do was stand there... Like a mother's warmth wrapped gently around her.
Then, a flash of light happened. She shielded her eyes from the brightness and by the time, she opened them. The Paladin, Albedo, was holding between her hands a scabbard.
It was a luxurious artifact, seemingly made of solid golden light and decorated by noble colors that shimmered. Making it look more dignified than the King's crown.
Avalon she called it. It was to her ears, a fitting name.
It's presence alone made her feel like she should be on her knees. But then Albedo did something far more surprising.
The Scabbard, Avalon, softly shattered into motes of gold and azure light, and with gentle guidance from Albedo, sank into the heart of Princess Sylvia.
When the last mote of light had vanished and the room returns to normal, a pulse erupted.
"Your Majesty!"
She never notice him enter, but Gazef rushed forward and caught the King. While the warrior, Momonga grabbed and held the catatonic Princess Renner.
I raised my sword, ready for the unknown but, all we did was froze.
She watched as the Princess' wounds closed till the scars were gone. Her bones snapping into place with a harsh sound and then, a heartbeat.
The gasp of the king, resounding in her ears as the Princess chest rose and fall.
We believed her to be alive, but then–
The dead princess breath out softly and from her lips flowed a dark and vile miasma.
Amidst the highly saturated room, brimming with divine energy as if it was full of flowers and sunlight. The vile miasma was retchigly abhorrent to her sense.
From the miasma, a gurgling cry of a banshee ripped through her ears. She even saw a face coming, trying and failing to coalesce from the smoke. Till the light smothered them.
And when silence returns, and the evil in the air Dead or gone, so did the princess heart stopped beating.
The King's cry of pain was loud.
It clawed at her heart, but even more so when she realized that something so dark and vile had been inside his daughter this whole time... she could only imagine.
And then the Paladin spoke.
"The curse is lifted. All ailments had been removed.Your Majesty, she is now ready to be resurrected."
Lady Albedo's words made her heart leap. The King's head snapped at her that she feared he might have broken it.
"What are you waiting for! Resurrect my daughter!"
"Your Majesty–"
"Stand aside Stronoff!" as the King struggled from the man's protection.
"My King please listen–"
"To what!" Ramposa shoute with a crack in his voice.
"Materials." said Evileye in her usual cool and stoic voice. "Gems and gold. The after-life isn't free after all."
"That's not–" Gagaran tries to defend but Evileye continued.
"You want your daughter back? You have to pay those who hold her soul to bring it back." her words seemed to knock some sense into the King, bringing some semblance of life and determination into his eyes. "Heaven or hell... It seems they charge the same price. Not cheap at all huh... Something to think about I guess."
Lakyus resisted the urge to sigh at her friend's rather... dark... view in life.
"If I may."
Lakyus shivered on her bed. Her heart beating madly at the memory of Momonga's voice.
'What strength... How is it that I could feel his voice in my skin.' she thought.
None the less, everyone's attention is now on him.
From the bag hanging off of his belt, he pulled a shimmering diamond. Perfect in shape, and surprisingly... unnatural.
"Tsk! No offense Knight." said Evileye. "But a single gem isn't enough. It usual takes a hefty amount depending on the quality of the material to perform resurrection spells."
Lakyus was about to reprimand her teammate for her disrespect and snidely comment.
But Momonga's next words knocked the air out of her.
"I know." he said with a very disarming smile. "This–" he emphasized by raising it. "–is Angel Tear. It should suffice for payment."
Lakyus felt her jaw drop, her eyes widen and even the drool that escaped her when her eyes landed on what he was holding was ignored.
"...that can't–"
Suddenly, the diamond was snatched away by Renner herself. And with hefty footfalls and wide manic eyes that she had rarely seen before, put the diamond into her hands. With but a whisper.
"Please."
Lakyus admits, frightened her.
There was no pain, no begging, no eagerness... Just nothing. As if her heart was missing.
Again, she shivered. Seeing a part of her friend that she never realized was there and this one... It scared her.
It was more than enough to drive her into action. And as she clasped the diamond in her hand, she felt it.
The voice of many, and the will of another.
It was so different from holding one of Zuranon's Orb of Death... yet, so similar.
As she stood before the Princess, she echoed the voice and let it spill through her lips.
"If death believes it has taken you,
It is mistaken.
I keep, and pass, and turn again.
Heaven and Hell are mere witness—
Neither claims what is thine.
For angels and demons alike stand beneath Me,
For Life was never theirs to grant,
When Death was but a path for them as it is for thee,
I am the breath that remembers,
The wound that closes,
The soul that does not forget,
And the will that carves thy path.
By Me—return and witness,
For in life lies glory,
And in death… consequence."
~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~
Lakyusremembersthe gasps that followed.
The power leaving her.
The diamond poofing like a bubbles of light.
And most of all, is the lingering heartache that followed.
She, Lakyus Alvein Dale Aindra, Priestess of the Water Temple, felt questions after questions, after questions.
What was her faith for, when divinity said otherwise?