Ribold stood before Ruprecht defiantly, “I can’t defeat you. Perhaps no necromancer can. But she can.”
“What are you talking about Frau Lange could nev-”
Mary landed atop the Velopony and drove her misericorde into the back of the pony’s skull instantly cremating its entire head. As it crashed to the sickening floor she slashed it from its neck to its tail with a blazing slash annihilating it.
“What’s she doing here?” Alfso said in surprise.
“Beats me but she seems better suited than we are.”
Ruprechs voice echoed across the amphitheatre in every direction as if he was the air itself, “Fire? You DARE BRING FIRE INTO MY ESTATE?!”
“That’s because you deserve to burn you fucking monster!” Frau Lange shouted. Quietly, she turned to Mary, “I know what you are girl, and what your purpose is. But we have a common enemy. Ruprecht is too dangerous to be left alive. We cannot defeat him ourselves so please, help us stop him.”
“Don’t you dare try to attack me.” Mary said as she kept her head on a swivel searching for the source of Ruprecht's voice. “Cardinal Della Rovere and my mentor will be here soon. Even if I should fall, they will destroy Ruprecht and you.”
“Oh she sounds optimistic...” Chakken jeered.
“Shut up.” Ribold said eyeing Mary warily. “She’s more dangerous than she looks.”
Chakken pointed to her misericorde, “Look at the size of her weapon! We’re all fucked! We need to escape from here now!”
“I didn’t want to use this here but there’s no choice,” Mary said as her misericorde blazed brighter and hotter.
“Arise!” the air itself chanted in Ruprecht's voice and the mound of corpses began to shake. Rhythmically they seemed to bubble and thrum in waves as several trampolined high overhead towards the necromancers and Mary.
Ruprecht’s voice echoed from all directions furiously, “Behold! The full power of the animalcule that I have dedicated my life to! Do not think your meager studies could possibly compare to my infinite wisdom!”
Frau Lange punched forward and a leper blocked the attack. Her two children cross countered with a punch and a kick to it’s skull and it reached out and caught both of them tossing them towards the mound of corpses. Three surrounded Mary and three more came for Alfso, Ribold, and Chakken. As each stepped forward to battle more began trampolining out of the mound of corpses.
Ribold drew the dagger he’d had from Draihan’s closet and swung. He heard a series of metallic cracks and slashed down the one that was attacking him but saw a silver flashing wave strike two more midair. Looking down into his hand the dagger had disassembled itself along a dark metal wire. He heard the angry cry of another of Ruprecht’s thralls and swung in response and the chain sword caught it’s throat tearing it off its feet and slamming to the ground. It screamed and pulled on the bladed chain dragging Ribold head first towards itself. Ribold came to a painful stop as Chakken’s chain wrapped around his waist.
With one hand playing tug of war with four extremely powerful thralls, Chakken was desperately avoiding strikes from his own enemies. Alfso was shaken however. The Velopony was Master Vol’s and was his most reliable workhorse in or out of battle. Alfso’s thoughts raced, If Ruprecht could so easily steal that summon what else could he steal? Was Ruprecht planning on taking the Bahamut too? Do I have anything to show for all of my work?! I’m one of the Unholy 7 yet I can’t do anything on my own! I’ve relied on Master Vol’s Velopony, Ribold, and now the Bahamut I can barely summon or control and Ruprecht is gonna steal him too! Animalcules? They’re small right? Maybe if I use the lamb…
Mary shouted a battle cry and fire exploded raining down flaming thralls.
It’ll either kill us all or turn the tide. Alfso resolved himself and ducked under his enemy towards Mary and Frau Lange shouting, “Come on Ruprecht! If you want the Bahamut come and get it!” Alfso splayed his fingers and filled his body with the necromantic energy and desire running past Mary and a struggling Frau Lange.
As Frau Lange’s opponent turned to chase Alfso, she ran over to the thralls attacking Chakken. Chakken gasped as Frau Lange’s punch connected, launching one of his opponents into the other as they both spiraled away. Ribold cried out but refused to call out his crows or small animals lest they become vectors for Ruprecht's infection. It was all he could do to hang onto Draihan’s chainsword dagger. He felt as if Chakken’s chain would tear him in half but against the overwhelming burden of his pain Ribold pulled and the chainsword cut through the skin of Ruprecht’s thralls. Chakken released Ribold and summoned numerous chains and used them as tentacles to grasp and immobilize over a dozen thralls. Chakken roared fiercely and raised them off the ground.
Mary cried out in pain and was sent flying by one of the thralls.
Ribold turned to Chakken, “Catch her!”
“Do you think I’m made of energy damn it?! I’m almost at my limit!” Chakken protested as several of his chains created a metal rusty cushion for her to land on.
“So where is the Bahamut boy?” The lead thrall rasped in Ruprecht’s voice.
“Promise to let my friends go!” Alfso shouted still running
“Who do you think you’re speaking to, little insect?! I am Ruprecht Schreiber! The greatest necromancer that ever lived!”
“Oh yeah?” Alfso said sullenly, “I’m Alfso! The greatest god damned chimera specialist that will ever live! I’m going to surpass you and Kleber the Magnificent! So do as I fucking say!” Alfso shrieked both terrified and defiant.
“What a cheeky bastard. Fine, have it your way, but the nun is mine.”
“Hey!” Mary shouted standing back up upon her pile of chains.
“You know what? Lord Plague? I don’t think you’ve proven yourself worthy of the Bahamut...” Alfso said mockingly.
“How dare you!” Ruprecht growled echoing in all directions.
“Let’s put your infinite wisdom to the test! I have something more dangerous than the Bahamut I’m going to summon. If you can seize it then I’ll surrender myself to you too.”
“Deal!”
With the majority of the mound now surrounding Alfso, he summoned the Lamb O’ War. Ruprecht's thralls lunged upon it. Ruprecht appeared in his full body beside Alfso. “I hope you're ready to become a host of my animalcules... Why you may even make a useful apprentice. If you help me with my research I could spare you the fate of being my vector into Todt Stadt.”
Alfso trembled in his presence and watched as the thralls mauled his lamb. “T-Todt Stadt?! W- Why would you attack Todt Stadt?!”
“I’d be able to use my animalcules to conquer the necromancers out from under Jerome Vol. I’ll build a paradise, an invincible unholy army! Then like a tidal wave of ink my unlimited infection will wash away the church staining all in my glory. For every living thing is composed of animalcules! Necromancers resurrect naught but a single life! I don’t resurrect a meager single life but entire nations of life down to the tiniest animalcule. I’ve resurrected more life than the entire history of the necromancer guild combined!
“It’s just as you say Ruprecht.” Alfso whispered quietly as the thralls began to thrash and collapse. The lamb stood up with its glistening purple and blue tendrils.
“How is it alive?!” Ruprecht shouted in disbelief.
“A man o’ war isn’t just one life. The lamb is a helpless little victim but the man o’war is composed of countless little creatures like your animalcules. You use your infection to control singular large entities, but my lamb o’ war isn’t a singular animal but a legion working in unicent to paralyze living creatures.”
“Impossible! How could you know this?”
“With some training and access to a collection of dead animals from Master Vol at the academy, including your texts.”
Ruprecht’s voice changed to that of melancholy shock, “Impossible… Did Vol not burn all of my texts?! Did he not forswear my research?”
Alfso stopped when he reached the wall with nowhere left to run. He turned and faced Ruprecht terrified of the death awaiting him but confident that he could one day truly surpass him. Ruprecht stopped and stared as Alfso confronted him, “That’s your weakness Ruprecht. If you were even a basic necromancer with skeletal thralls the Lamb O’ War would be useless. But because you need animalcules to control the thralls you’re not as effective against another legion of tiny creatures. I turned my lamb into an apex predator to spite the necromancers and I was inspired by your research when I designed him.”
“You little shit!” Ruprecht roared.
“Indeed, I’m the little shit that read your book! I’m not bloodthirsty like the others! When Vol told me about what happened to you I decided to research your works in my spare time. While you were shunned I was curious! I said it before. I plan to surpass you! I couldn’t be sure if the lamb would work and I didn’t want the responsibility of hunting you especially if my guess was wrong. I’m sorry Ruprecht but you're finished.”
“Me? Finished?”
“Your mound of corpses is depleting. That crazy nun is reducing them to ashes and burning away your putrid stench. Your animalcule infused thralls are strong but we can handle them. And my lamb can hunt the rest. You really are a great necromancer Ruprecht, but you are not worthy of my Bahamut.”
“Oh but I still have cards left to play my boy. And when it is finished you will beg me to take the Bahamut and I will. It’ll sail at crest of my black wave raining death and blight upon every city from Todt Stadt to the Vatican and then beyond. You may have exploited a weakness in my animalcules, as minor as it may be… So now I’ll exploit one of your... companions,” he snickered and pointed a rotting finger at two small figures.
Alfso looked in horror as he realized. Oh no… Anything but that…
As the mound of corpses was all but gone there were two children with yellow glowing eyes staring out at Ruprecht’s would-be assassins.
Frau Lange punched a thrall into a slash from Mary’s blazing misericorde. Through the ashes Mary shouted a warning and the world turned. Frau Lange’s face was half buried in the stone floor. She felt one side was completely broken. With one eye she looked to see who her attacker was and saw her beautiful son looking down upon her with jaundiced eyes. Isidor let out an angry drooling snarl. Beside him a jaundiced Oskar stood.
“Tear out her heart.” Ruprecht commanded. In desperation Alfso drew his dagger and slit Ruprecht’s throat. As black ooze flowed from the wound Ruprecht turned and smiled completely unfazed. Alfso could see the necrotic slithering flesh reattach.
Oskar lunged at Frau Lange, fingers splayed and was caught in a rising chain.
“They’re lost! Hey nun bitch! Kill those kids!” Chakken shouted as the last of his strength receded and he fell to one knee.
Frau Lange rose and protested as Isidor punched Chakken in the gut, shattering all the chains he’d wrapped around himself and driving their fragments into his flesh. Chakken cried out and choked on his own blood.
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“You see?” Ruprecht rasped with anticipation feeling his throat. “Her love for her children was so great that it blinded her. Her thralls are indeed powerful, in part because all of her power is divided amongst only two, and their powerful bond makes them optimal for combat. But my love for the animalcules is the same. And they can take her power and easily add it to my own. Give me the Bahamut and I’ll spare one of you. The rest will die. That is my final offer before I peel it from your flesh.” Isidor turned to Mary as her flames died out. “You see? Even the light of faith is inferior to that of the animalcule. I wonder how much more beautiful she’ll become once she succumbs to the infection...”
Isidor launched forward and Mary swung her red hot blade at the child but he easily shifted his direction midair and struck, dislodging her shoulder and sending her careening away. Her misericorde clattered in the distance.
Oskar attacked his mother again. Frau Lange could barely block his fast savage punches. Striking back was out of the question and she was falling apart. She failed as a mother when Ruprecht killed her children before. She failed them again as Ruprecht stole them away from her so easily.
Ribold had nothing left to play, the battle was a loss. Frau Lange was in the process of being murdered by her own children, Chakken was badly injured and exhausted, Alfso was at Ruprecht's mercy but had immobilized most of the remaining thralls with his little lamb, and Mary was both injured and had exhausted most of her fire magic already. As she stood up she was beset by thralls and didn’t even have her misericorde to defend herself. Crying Ribold asked his last hope knowing full well he’d probably lose him too.
As the coffin rose Ribold sobbed, “Save me Master!”
The coffin lid exploded into fragments and Draihan stepped forward.
“Draihan?” Ruprecht smiled. “What a pleasant gift boy! I’ll gladly add another member of the Unholy 7 to my repertoire!”
Draihan opened his eyes and his irises adjusted to the darkness of the amphitheatre. Wordlessly he walked over to Chakken and tore off a chain from his body. Chakken groaned and cried but was completely unable to offer resistance. Draihan began to swing the chain faster and faster.
Ruprecht slapped the dagger from Alfso’s hand and grasped him by the scruff of his neck, lifting him into the air with one hand while the other drew a putrid dagger, “Are you really going to make me fight for this? You children are so obdurate! You dare resist in the face of inherent superiority?!”
The thralls that were beating Mary turned and stood as Draihan approached swinging the chain with enough speed that the wind began to sing. One leapt up into the air and Draihan swung, catching it’s foot and pulling it violently down upon the other crushing both. Draihan looked down at Ribold and held out his hand. Ribold reached up to take it and Draihan pushed it aside and took the chain sword instead.
“Seize him children! Welcome him to our legion!” Ruprecht ordered.
Draihan stepped aside and swung the chainsword as Isidor and Oskar each tried to cross counter him. Frau Lange bloodied and barely recognizable screamed hysterically, “No! Stop!” Draihan ducked and cut Oskar in half and Isidor flew between the two halves of Oskar. Isidor turned and snarled in midair. The infant landed sliding across the floor and leapt again at Draihan. Draihan swung the chain sword but Isidor twisted his little body in the air outmaneuvering the attack and hammered Draihan with his heavy blows. Each blow shifted the air and audibly fractured Draihan’s bones but he continued counterattacking, one hand with the chain sword and the other dropped the chain and punched wildly with his free hand.
Ribold frantically ran over searching the mangled sickly dead and ashes. “Found it!” He turned and ran to Mary. Mary shook her head and as her vision cleared Ribold stood over her with her misericorde. As she recoiled in fear he handed it to her handle first. At this moment, in this angle, she could shove it directly into his chest and save the world from someone potentially destined to be more dangerous than Ruprecht.
Ribold looked into her eyes with earnest sincerity, “Take it. We need you.”
Mary relented, “I don’t have any strength left. The best thing we can do is run.”
“Don’t you see? He’s almost out of corpses. Just a little more and he’ll die. But if you don’t try he’ll kill everyone we both care about.”
“I don’t have the power to do it.”
“Maybe not but this does.” Ribold said gesturing to the misericorde.
“What?”
“It feels like it has more than enough power to do the job but I’m not familiar with faith. Not my style.” Ribold said sheepishly shrugging, “You understand...”
Mary grasped the dagger and felt an overwhelming surge of pyromantic energy. Far more than she had when she started. How is this possible? This boy says it’s the weapon but it’s never shown this kind of power. It couldn’t be from him could it?
Mary flicked her wrist and the misericorde violently erupted with a blazing fire. These flames aren’t mine. They’re too rough, unfocused, and violent. But right now it’s exactly what we need. Mary paused at the thought “we.” She swallowed down that particular inner conflict and moved towards Ruprecht. If I kill the source. Hopefully the rest will fall… Mary leapt high over Ruprecht and swung her entire body into the next blow.
Ruprecht grasped Alfso by the scruff of his clothes to use as a shield and raised him to block Mary’s airborne attack. Mary rotated and drew the dagger closer to her body brushing harmlessly by Alfso and landed in a slide slicing off Ruprecht’s foot at the ankle. He fell shrieking, releasing Alfso who ran away. Mary raised the misericorde in a backhanded uppercut splitting Ruprecht’s skull open and he collapsed into ashes. Mary could hear an attack coming and this time was prepared. Oskar came in with a kick and Mary caught the kick with her bad arm. Her shoulder audibly popped back into place and she swung the misericorde lighting him ablaze.
Frau Lange was frantic as Chakken and Ribold held her back. Even with half her face broken, along with several fractures across her arms, legs, and ribs; she still fought furiously to save her children. Draihan stood tall but crooked. Isidor flew straight into his abdomen and Draihan caught him.
Ribold shouted, “Now!”
Mary aimed her misericorde at Draihan holding the screaming Isidor and released a massive wave of five from the blade that instantly burned both of them to ashes. Mary turned away as the wave crashed across the room and exploded to see a flaming Oskar return and cut him down leaving only ashes in the wind.
Frau Lange wailed hysterically. “Not again! I’ll kill you all!”
Ribold turned and shouted to his friends, “Get her out of here! We’ll finish this, now go!”
The air itself echoed again, “You think I could be finished so easily? Animalcules are everywhere! Infecting you is but a matter of time! I’ll seal you all in here with me. Let’s see who can survive in the damp darkness longer.”
Mary swung her dagger bursting with fire wildly. “Just die you goddamned monster!” Something was wrong. Her power wasn’t depleting despite this being the most fire she’d ever used. It kept increasing. She was losing control. Everything must burn. She swung wildly trying to purge every last animalcule.
“Damned bitch!” Ruprech shouted from one of the three corpses Draihan had broken down earlier. He raised his hands and the amphitheatre began to crack. Mary rushed Ruprecht and swung. Ruprecht dodged and she burned the last two thralls to ashes in a blazing wave of fire that crashed into the opposing wall and spread scouring every crevasse. Ruprecht grasped Ribold by his shirt, “What the hell have you done boy!? Is this your father’s doing? You little fucking bastard!”
Mary came from behind Ruprecht and stabbed with all her might. Ruprecht swung Ribold in her way. The Misericorde sunk into Ribold’s chest and he looked into her eyes in fear. The red hot blade protruded through his back and Mary, shocked but determined, fired all remaining power from the Misericorde setting Ruprecht ablaze. Ruprecht dropped Ribold on top of Mary and without missing her mission she drew the blade from the boy’s chest and chased a blazing wailing Ruprecht. His skin burned and crackled and through the blaze he looked desperately for another corpse to infect. To his terror he realized that Mary had burned them all. He reached out to the necromancers and Mary but the infection hadn’t yet taken hold of them. Here in this blazing body was the last of all he was. Focusing all his extensive power he generated more animalcule in his body by the trillions to delay being burned to ashes. He turned and threw a flaming punch with all his might at Mary but she disappeared. From below, Mary shoved the misericorde into the bottom of Ruprecht’s jaw and with a ghastly scream of blazing air Ruprecht the Plague was extinguished, at last falling blazing and limp. His bones crackling like tinder. Mary withdrew the blade from his skull as he collapsed to ashes.
***
Della Rovere was not in the mood for games. He could hear the massive battle on the other side of the wall had subsided. He balled his shaking hand into a fist and punched.
***
Ribold groaned and stood up to everyone’s surprise. Instead of bursting into flames and dying he survived the direct impact of a blow that killed Ruprecht himself. Mary stared at him in shock. Ribold may not be especially aggressive or particularly dangerous now, but after that last attack Mary’s confidence that she was actually capable of killing him was shaken.
Alfso and Ribold struggled to help a nearly catatonic Frau Lange and Chakken escape. Mary stood victorious but could barely stand much less pursue them. Supporting a distraught and barely conscious Frau Lange, Ribold stopped and turned.
“Mary was it?”
“Yeah...” Mary said trembling with exhaustion.
“You're still going to hunt me down?”
“Yeah...” she said sullenly.
“Thanks for saving us.”
“Even now you’re gonna spare me knowing that?” Mary said as she turned and looked at a badly injured Ribold.
“I’m not a murderer Mary. And neither is my mom. We’re good people Mary. I think you’re not so bad either.”
“I can’t fight back. Maybe you should just kill me and save us both the time.” Mary said exhausted but with her own fire magic slowly but surely returning.
“I don’t hate you Mary. I hate Della Rovere. The day will come when I’ll have to settle things with him. Please don’t get in my way when that happens.”
“I-”
An explosion of rubble echoed across the crumbling amphitheatre as Della Rovere entered. Peering through the dust Della Rovere was surprised that the smell of Ruprecht’s blight was gone, replaced by soot and dust. He spotted Mary first,
“Mary my child! What’s happened here?! Where is Ruprecht?”
“Dead.” she replied.
“He’s what?”
“He’s dead. I killed him.”
Della Rovere was in shock. Cardinals had fallen from Ruprecht’s plagues and he had never been defeated up until this point. For a lowly nun to bring low Ruprecht? Impossible! Della Rovere spotted through the dust some necromancers that were badly wounded. His eyes widened in realization.
“Stop!” he shouted.
In their limping condition there was no getting away. In a silent rage Ribold turned and faced the Cardinal.
Della Rovere tried to approach the situation cautiously, the last thing he wanted was his son to run away or to have to execute another nun. “Son, I won’t hurt your friends. Come home with me.”
“Where is my mother?!” Ribold shouted furiously. “What’d you do to her!?”
I loved her. I enabled her. I deceived her. But no matter what I can’t bring myself to harm her. Della Rovere thought to himself. “I never found her” he lied. “She’s still out there Ribold. I never caught her. Why...” Della Rovere laughed nervously, “I’m not even certain that I can.” That much is true at least.
“My mother is a good person!” Ribold shouted impotently. “Why did you burn our home?! Why did you try to hurt my mom?! Why won’t you leave me alone!?”
“Son, I too want this to end. Come with me and I’ll explain everything.”
“She said you’d say that! That you’re a liar! That you want to hurt us! You’re the ones attacking us! You’re the ones that branded me and everyone I love as excommunicated! I never did anything to you people! Why don’t you… Why don’t you just FUCK OFF?!”
“I can’t do that my son. But if you come with me I’ll let the others go. You’re the one that matters. I’m not here for them. Come home my son and let me expl-”
Massive claws erupted from the ceiling of the amphitheatre and pulled. The Magnus Bahamut tore off the side of the mountain revealing the crisp noon air. Magnus Bahamut roared outlined by the afternoon sun and lowered its claws. Alfso hurriedly carried Chakken into the palm of its hand.
“Not this again,” Della Rovere said exasperated.
Ribold turned and ran as fast as he could carrying Frau Lange. She however pushed off of him and turned to face Della Rovere who already was spinning up his yoyo.
“Run Ribold! I can’t bear to lose any more children!” she said.
“But-”
“But nothing!” she shouted. “Your mother would want you to be free. Me and Bahamut can stop him long enough.”
“You have got to be fucking kidding me!” Della Rovere yelled and arced his arm back to throw the yoyo. Frau Lange stood her ground and was tackled by Mary.
“Go stop him!” Mary shouted as she subjugated the badly wounded Frau Lange.
“Obliged sister!” Della Rovere shouted as he ran past.
“Let’s go!” Alfso shouted as Magnus Bahamut leapt skyward. “Chakken!”
“Just make me carry the damned team why dontcha?!” He protested and dangled a single chain that Ribold leapt and grasped. Della Rovere swung the yoyo and the Bahamut used its free hand to easily repel the attack. Furious Della Rovere aimed for the Bahamut’s wings. The Bahamut opened its jaws and a bright light flashed. In that moment Della Rovere could've possibly struck them down but it’d be dangerous for Mary and Frau Lange. He’d already murdered one nun and in a split second decision Della Rovere recalled the yoyo and shielded them as a searing white light melted the stone around them. As the light subsided Della Rovere stood in a cool streak of stone as the rest bubbled and hissed. Bahamut had effectively sterilized the mountain and prevented Della Rovere from pursuing. As he watched the creature fly into the noon sun, its piercing shrieks echoing across the countryside Della Rovere stood scowling on his little island surrounded by molten rock with Mary and Frau Lange.