SCENE: NAOFUMI, RAPHTALIA, MELTY, CONSTANCE, FULANA JEN and FILO are fighting a group of MANEATER PITCHERS on one of the town streets. They are working together like a well-oiled machine, pulling individual plants apart from the group to kill them. Behind them, organized groups of HUMANS and DEMIHUMANS are setting up barricades to block off side streets, and occasionally support them with crossbow fire.
The final PITCHER falls as MELTY bisects it in half by a vertical plane of water, dodging to the side as it explodes into giblets. RAPHTALIA comes close and claps a hand on MELTY’s shoulder.
RAPHTALIA: Nice job, princess! At this rate, you’d be a great fighter by the end of the week.
MELTY purses her lips, giving RAPHTALIA a cold stare.
MELTY: Please take your hand off my shoulder.
RAPHTALIA raises her eyebrow, but removes her hand. MELTY turns to walk away further down the street.
RAPHTALIA: Why the cold treatment? I was finally starting to like you!
MELTY responds without turning around.
MELTY: We have a district to clear, let’s not waste time.
RAPHTALIA: No, you definitely have something on your mind. What did I do?
MELTY pivots towards RAPHTALIA with a light scowl. The others approach closer.
MELTY: Are you really so dense that you did not even realize what you did? You made me hurt my sister out of pure spite!
RAPHTALIA: Spite?! It was justice!
MELTY makes a sharp cutting motion with her hand.
MELTY: Nonsense - there is no justice system that would prescribe that. Civilized ones would have made you whole with my repayment, while ones that trade an eye for an eye would have demanded Myne to be burned just like you were. This was pure spite.
RAPHTALIA: Oh so what, you would have preferred to actually torture your own sister?
MELTY: I would have preferred to avoid this entirely. This further aggravation of the conflict between you two is entirely pointless.
RAPHTALIA narrows her eyes.
RAPHTALIA: It’s not pointless. If she never gets hurt by her mistakes, how will she learn?
MELTY snorts.
MELTY: Nonsense, again. What do you think she will “learn” from this? That she was wrong? There is no chance of that. She will rightly blame you for what I made her do, and her convictions will only grow stronger. Now it will be personal, and since her hatred of you will of course extend to the demihumans as a whole, her opposition to your policies will only solidify.
RAPHTALIA: And you think going free like a bird would have taught her that what she did was wrong? You think never being responsible for anything will make her good?
MELTY: If you want to teach people, use your words - punishment merely teaches hatred or fear of the whip, not the lessons you wish to impart. Alternatively - if you really do want to be spiteful - then at the very least don’t delude yourself about the practical effects it will have.
RAPHTALIA narrows her eyes at her.
RAPHTALIA: You are just saying this because you want to protect your sister.
MELTY: Of course I want to protect Myne. I am also correct.
RAPHTALIA scowls at MELTY.
RAPHTALIA: Oh so what, am I supposed to just let that bitch go? After she almost murdered me? After she poisoned me to set Naofumi up back in the capital?
MELTY: If you wanted more personal restitution, you could have asked me for it.
RAPHTALIA: I don’t want restitution, I want her to pay!
MELTY: So, it is spite, like I said?
RAPHTALIA: How come you are getting on my case instead of being out there telling your sister to not murder people?
MELTY: Why yes Raphtalia, I do expect you to be more emotionally mature than a pampered princess, how did you know?
RAPHTALIA: She doesn’t need maturity, she needs to not be a psychopath. Which she will continue to be as long as you coddle her!
MELTY sighs in frustration.
MELTY: Can you settle on a position already? Is it vengeance you want or to teach Myne a lesson? If it’s the latter, then as I said already, your approach makes no sense. You should have made sure that the consequences for her actions don’t come from you, so that when she retaliates - which she will - you don’t get caught in the crossfire - though I suppose I can’t fault you for not having my experience in this. And if what you want is vengeance, well, there is a reason why it’s said you should never do your enemy a small injury - because they will retaliate! Either make peace or go for the throat right away.
RAPHTALIA: Are you even listening to yourself? You are saying that I should have just killed off your sister?
MELTY exhales a long-suffering sigh.
MELTY: I am arguing from your perspective, it is a basic Shield’s Advocate - ah, I can’t do this. Naofumi, can you explain this to her?
NAOFUMI approaches the pair.
NAOFUMI: For what it’s worth, I agree that it was spiteful, but I also don’t think it would matter.
RAPHTALIA squints at him.
RAPHTALIA: Whose side are you on?
NAOFUMI: Mostly yours, I suppose. Melty is correct in theory - punishment does generally just make people dig their heels in, especially those like Myne who have a reactionary mindset - but in this specific case Myne already has so many reasons to hate you that adding another one would change nothing.
MELTY: Oh please, it was hardly personal before -
NAOFUMI: It was plenty personal for her. I am pretty sure Myne thinks Raphtalia is having sex with Motoyasu, her future spouse.
RAPHTALIA chokes.
RAPHTALIA: What?!
NAOFUMI: Well, you are friendly with him and he clearly is into you, you go into his room, you two spend time together where Myne couldn’t see you - I think you can see how she would make the connection.
RAPHTALIA stares off into space.
RAPHTALIA: Oh guardian beasts, I even joked about it to her face.
MELTY gives RAPHTALIA a baffled look. RAPHTALIA turns to NAOFUMI with a panicked expression.
RAPHTALIA: Naofumi, I am not -
NAOFUMI: Obviously. But reactionaries are jealous and insecure about their sex life as a rule.
MELTY groans.
MELTY: Can either of you ever argue normally? You just threw yet another new term into the conversation as if I am supposed to already know it.
NAOFUMI scratches his head.
NAOFUMI: It’s mostly in the name, really. Reactionary ideologies arise as a reaction to some societal progress, seeking to keep the status quo even when it is obviously bad and unsustainable. Slavery abolitionism results in anti-abolitionism, feminist movements have a reaction of those who seek to block franchise expansion, and so on. Some people have personalities that are more amenable to reactionary thinking - usually those who benefit from the status quo, but are also far too insecure to admit it to themselves - and tend to be jealous, spiteful and overall miserable. I think Myne is one of those people.
RAPHTALIA: Isn’t this just fascism all over again?
NAOFUMI: There is a subtle distinction there - the two tend to go hand in hand most of the time, but technically not always. Fascists generally want to change the status quo in major ways, usually to secure their power or exterminate some group, while reactionaries very occasionally want to preserve something other than fascism. From a socialist perspective, however, the two are essentially synonymous as fascists will be reactionary towards any wider improvement in social conditions, especially when it concerns their pet cause, and reactionaries always oppose socialists in the first place.
MELTY follows alongside, with her arms crossed.
MELTY: And this line of argumentation somehow justifies harming Myne for no reason?
NAOFUMI rolls his eyes.
NAOFUMI: Melty, to be blunt, I don’t really care what happens to your sister. There is zero chance that she would ever support anything I stand for, unless she gets a major personality change, perhaps as a result of severe brain damage. At this point if Raphtalia wants to be a bit spiteful as a bit of self care, then I won’t stand in her way - her mental health is infinitely more important to me than wherever or not your sister cries a bit over losing her hair.
RAPHTALIA looks pleased. MELTY purses her lips.
MELTY: So much for giving me a whole speech about how negative emotions form a core for fascism, and that should be avoided at all costs. Now, apparently, it’s “self care”.
NAOFUMI: That’s quite a reach. Raphtalia isn’t going to turn into a tankie just because she was spiteful once. She has friends and a support network, she has a solid goal in her life, I don’t really see this becoming a problem.
NAOFUMI glances at MELTY, whose eye is twitching at hearing yet another new term.
NAOFUMI: Long story. You can think of tankies as fascist socialists, it’s a bit of a mess, and doesn’t really matter right now.
MELTY: So, to be clear, your argument is literally just “Trust me, Raphtalia is different”?
NAOFUMI: Oh fine, I’ll give you a different argument.
NAOFUMI stops and kneels in front of RAPHTALIA, taking her hand in his hands, and puts on a grave expression on his face. RAPHTALIA raises a curious eyebrow at him, but plays along.
NAOFUMI: Raphtalia?
RAPHTALIA: Yes?
MELTY crosses her arms, unamused, watching the two.
NAOFUMI: This is very important. I have been wanting to ask you this for a long time, and I need you to promise me something.
RAPHTALIA: Of course Naofumi, anything!
NAOFUMI: I need you to promise me that you won’t warp your entire personality around hatred for Myne. At least pick up a hobby on the side.
RAPHTALIA taps her cheek with her other hand, pantomiming deep thought.
RAPHTALIA: Well, I was going to go on a decade-long path of blood and vengeance, refusing to rest until Myne’s entire life fell down at my feet, but I suppose since you asked, I could start crocheting instead.
NAOFUMI gets up off the ground, dusting off his pants.
NAOFUMI: Yet another problem falls flat in the face of socialism. Now let’s get on with it, we have a clearing schedule to keep.
----------------------------------------
SCENE: Night. NAOFUMI and FILO are standing on the balcony of a tall building near the edge of the barricades, whispering to each other, pointing into the distance. MELTY approaches them from behind, and NAOFUMI nods to her.
MELTY: Back from the hunt already?
NAOFUMI: Yeah, Raphtalia is taking over while we rest - I don’t need to be there in person to provide an experience share link. Your shift isn’t for another hour, I think.
MELTY looks between NAOFUMI and FILO.
MELTY: I didn’t mean to interrupt your discussion.
NAOFUMI sighs. FILO shrugs.
FILO: Not much of a discussion. It’s just the filofials again.
MELTY: Filofials?
FILO: Yeah, look. See that flock at the edge of the forest?
FILO points into the distance. MELTY squints, but can’t make out much in the darkness.
MELTY: No, sorry.
FILO: Well they are there. Wild filofials, or maybe ones that ran away from the stables, I don’t know. They’ve been staring at us when we run around killing monsters all day.
MELTY: Do you think they are another plant monster? Mutated, somehow, perhaps?
FILO: Nah, I don’t think so. I can tell from looking at someone if they are strong or not, and these are just regular filofials, nothing monster about them. I’ve seen them run away from the plants too, but they always come back, always staring. Weirds me the fuck out.
MELTY: Perhaps they really are just runaways, looking for human companionship?
FILO sighs.
FILO: Melty, they don’t stare at humans, they stare at us - me or Naofumi, I can’t tell which from this distance.
MELTY frowns.
MELTY: That is…concerning.
NAOFUMI: Any ideas what might be causing it?
MELTY shakes her head.
MELTY: If they stare at you, then perhaps it is the magic of the legendary weapons? It’s the stuff of myths and legends, and while I’ve studied them as part of my research, we still know precious little about this magic.
NAOFUMI: It didn’t happen before, and I didn’t pick up any unusual shields as of late. I don’t really think this is it.
MELTY shrugs.
MELTY: It is the best that I have. Everything else would be a mess of faulty historical accounts and outright superstition - for example, some of the Heavenly Fowl myths claim that spirit can control filofials, but I wouldn’t waste your time with it.
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
NAOFUMI: Perhaps myths are the best we can have in these times.
MELTY: Which ones? By various accounts, there are well over thirty distinct versions of it and the associated cults, all of them making mutually contradictory claims.
NAOFUMI frowns, but doesn’t answer. He leans against the railing, just staring into the night for a while.
NAOFUMI: It’s very frustrating, you know.
MELTY: How so?
NAOFUMI: We still have no idea where this raid zone came from, but just as we have a plan to deal with it, something new rears its head. Neither do we have any clue as to the origin of the Waves. We are just swimming in an ocean of ignorance, without even knowing if there is a shore to reach.
MELTY laughs softly.
MELTY: Tell me about it. The Waves were a good third of my research back in Faubrey.
NAOFUMI gives her side eye.
NAOFUMI: I guess you would be the one to ask, yeah. You still haven’t talked to your sister about that fruit she and Motoyasu found, or the eye symbol?
MELTY’s expression darkens.
MELTY: It wasn’t the best time to do it.
NAOFUMI: When will be the best time?
MELTY paces a bit.
MELTY: Look it’s… Do you understand what you are asking? There is no way to breach that topic without all but accusing Myne of causing this crisis, and all over what? A bare hint of suspicion? My relationship with her has been fraying as of late as it is, and what happened between her and Raphtalia didn’t help things. I trust my sister - she wouldn’t hide this from me.
NAOFUMI gives MELTY a long look, but doesn’t push the issue.
NAOFUMI: You said the Waves were a topic of your research?
MELTY nods.
MELTY: Waves violate many of the normal assumptions about magic, so if you want to dive deep into its mechanisms, they are a natural place to start. We have limited records of the events going back hundreds if not thousands of years, though the further back you go, the harder it becomes to trust the sources. Last time was over two hundred years ago, so even the most recent ones are somewhat suspect. I know that the Three Heroes Church has much better information, but they are sadly keeping it close to their chest.
NAOFUMI: So you knew this was coming?
MELTY: Not in specifics, but yes. We even knew the rough date, accurate up to about a year - only the heroes can see an exact clock in front of the dragon hourglasses, but there are other ways to prognosticate.
NAOFUMI: Then why were you so unprepared?
NAOFUMI raises his head, looking at MELTY properly.
NAOFUMI: I keep thinking of what we are doing, and about the Waves in general. When we were summoned, we were given some adventurers to accompany us, and some spending money - but this is a crisis on a worldwide scale, it is literally existential, and you are a state. In comparison to the resources you hold, what we were offered is frankly pathetic. Shouldn’t you have prepared your armies, had the strongest artifacts at the ready, set up ways for the heroes to quickly rise in level, fortified your infrastructure against monsters, and so on? Why are we only now struggling to catch up?
MELTY sighs and comes closer to him, facing the room as she leans against the balcony railing.
MELTY: This is a complex question. Partly these things have been done, but my mother only expected Melromarc to summon a single hero, not the entire quartet. I believe Myne gave most of our personal preparations to Motoyasu, which is why he is so strong right now. Partly, many people simply didn’t believe that the next Wave would happen at all, and so haven’t spent the time and money on preparations they didn’t expect to need.
NAOFUMI: I thought you said you could predict it down to a year?
MELTY: This helped much less than you may think. Waves were ancient history for most people, two hundred years in the past - that some wizards were saying they would come again mattered little.
NAOFUMI: I guess I can see it.
MELTY: And the final problem is coordination. Take Melromarc: we do not have a centralized army. Instead, each duke, our family included, has their own army - partly under their direct control, but largely made out of the armies of the marqueeses, which are in turn made out of the armies of the counts, and so on down the line. The size of these armies is tightly controlled, to make sure that no single duke becomes stronger than all the others, and thus capable of enforcing their will at swordpoint - but this, in turn, means that none of them - not even my mother - can expand their forces in preparation, without inviting the ire of others. And of course none have an incentive to send their own forces to the Waves themselves - it would only weaken them, most likely for the benefit of another duke, the one in whose territory the Wave happened to hit.
NAOFUMI: So much for being a Queen.
MELTY: We do not rule alone, Naofumi. My mother had a plan in the works to make us into a proper, strong sovereign for decades, and I was to be a key part of it - but she couldn’t truly put it into action until the Waves themselves.
NAOFUMI: Hm. I wonder what excuses the other countries would offer, and how things are going there.
MELTY: I doubt it is much better.
NAOFUMI: It will be worse, because the heroes aren’t there to help from the start, thanks to Myne.
MELTY: We can’t be entirely sure of that. The decision to split you between countries wouldn’t have been motivated by overall effectiveness, but rather by a balance of geopolitical interests. For Melromarc, the summoning was inordinately expensive to bring the entire quartet down, but having you all together from the start makes it less likely that any one of you will die during a Wave - and arguably, it’s worthwhile for you to train close by and share advice, only traveling to the rest of the continent once you are ready.
NAOFUMI: It’s somewhat surprising that we haven’t heard of a catastrophe yet - it has been months since the Waves started. Something similar to this plant crisis had to have happened elsewhere too. I don’t suppose there is someone running around, putting out fires? Some kind of Army Against The Waves?
MELTY laughs.
MELTY: Not that I have heard of, no. Some other states had mobilized their armies in preparation, but not much more than what we had done here in Melromarc. I suppose the early Waves just turned out less dangerous than expected.
MELTY turns to stare into the night.
MELTY: If you hope that someone else was sane enough to care about the fate of the world, then I am afraid you would be sorely mistaken.
----------------------------------------
SCENE: MELTY’s bedroom. The bed is gone: instead, several tables have been brought in, forming a longer one, full of crude maps of the town, documents, and plans. MELTY, NAOFUMI, CONSTANCE, FULANA JEN, RAPHTALIA and FILO are standing around the table, discussing plans.
CONSTANCE: The tensions remain high in the town. Among our new human recruits, well over three quarters go over to Myne and Motoyasu. Motoyasu is also significantly faster at powerleveling, due to a combination of advantages. First of all, unlike Naofumi, he is quite deadly on his own, and doesn’t need to waste one spot in the party on a fighter to kill things. Secondly, he is higher level than us. Finally, one of his spear abilities apparently allows him to split into multiple copies of himself. The only reason we are managing to keep up in overall numbers is that he agreed to spend some of his time training our people instead - thanks for your work on that, Melty and Raph.
MELTY: I think he made the decision himself, actually - Myne was quite angry at him for it. I certainly didn’t bring it up.
RAPHTALIA: I live to spite her.
MELTY throws her an irate look, and RAPHTALIA returns it with a grin.
CONSTANCE: In terms of demihumans, the vast majority are at least somewhat supportive, even though a good fraction remains unconvinced anything good would come out of this. They make up a majority of our soldiers. Interestingly, Myne attempted to bribe some of them to spy on us, so I had them start feeding her false information about our methods.
MELTY sighs.
MELTY: Is that truly necessary? This split in planning as well - we should be working together, not at cross purposes.
CONSTANCE: If she wanted true information, she could simply talk to us. Besides, I think some of our human recruits are truly on her side - their loyalties are much more divided, and I haven’t had the time to root her people out. On top of that, there have been some clashes between our people and the count’s guard - minor fights so far, but I worry it could escalate, so keeping our cards close to the chest is only sensible. Seeing demihumans defend the walls and fight off monsters has been doing wonders for keeping tensions down and moving humans over to our side, but deeply ingrained prejudices shift only so quickly.
CONSTANCE reaches into the middle of the table, pointing at the half of the town across the river. Several large crosses mark the positions of the giant stalks, and lines have been drawn and redrawn all over the map where the barricades have shifted from street to street, pushing closer to the bridges going over the river.
CONSTANCE: Our re-expansion of barricades is proceeding on schedule - we are going to be close enough to start probing at our true targets soon. Motoyasu already reported that his - frankly, somewhat suicidal - forays into the other half of the town were made much easier.
FILO: Nah, it’s fine. I went with him once, those plants are like little babies.
CONSTANCE: I will defer to your judgment, but the density of monsters on the other side of the river is significantly higher than what we have dealt with so far. In fact, most of the ground there is covered in a dense carpet of deadly vines. I doubt we would be able to actually push over the bridges with our regular soldiers to establish permanent fortifications - the last part of the operation would have to be spearheaded by us in person, with at best indirect support from our soldiers.
CONSTANCE claps her hands.
CONSTANCE: Questions?
----------------------------------------
SCENE: CONSTANCE is sitting in a small, plain room in one of the warehouses, huddled together with WYNDI and two other DEMIHUMANS, whispering about something. RAPHTALIA walks in just as CONSTANCE is dismissing the others.
CONSTANCE: You have your orders, now go.
WYNDI and the two DEMIHUMANS exit the room.
RAPHTALIA: Orders? What’s this about?
CONSTANCE gives RAPHTALIA a measured look.
CONSTANCE: Something that should remain between the two of us.
RAPHTALIA: And more specifically?
CONSTANCE sighs.
CONSTANCE: The fewer people know, the fewer can accidentally say something revealing. You know this. Do you still want to know specifics?
RAPHTALIA thinks for a moment before shrugging.
RAPHTALIA: I guess not. Why the secrecy though?
CONSTANCE: If it all goes wrong, I will be the one taking the fall for it. You are back from training with Naofumi?
RAPHTALIA nods.
CONSTANCE: Good. Me and Melty think we should launch our operation tomorrow morning. We’ll split up into three groups - one will have Melty, me, Fulana, Filo and Naofumi, the other will have Myne, one of Motoyasu’s clones and half of her party, and a third will have the other Motoyasu, you, and the others from their party. We’ll hit all three stalks at the exact same time.
RAPHTALIA raises an eyebrow.
RAPHTALIA: Why do you want me with Motoyasu?
CONSTANCE: You and I are shadow casters - we can turn invisible, but the others can’t. This means In a pinch, you’d be our last line of communications. Myne’s group, I suppose, will have to sink or swim.
RAPHTALIA: Don’t be silly, shit tends to float.
CONSTANCE chuckles.
CONSTANCE: That it does. Also, Filo can manage to carry four people, but not five. We’d be much more mobile without you.
RAPHTALIA nods.
CONSTANCE: If it all goes right, it will all end tomorrow.
----------------------------------------
SCENE: A small square in front of the castle is full of SOLDIERS, both human and demihuman, roughly split into two groups. MELTY, MYNE, NAOFUMI and MOTOYASU are standing on a balcony, addressing the SOLDIERS. MYNE’s head is shaved clean, and she is wearing a wide sun hat to cover it up.
MELTY: Brave soldiers! I doubt you need my words to tell you the troubles ahead of us. The plant monsters have sprouted from nowhere, killing all in front of them. They have killed your sisters, your brothers, and will no doubt kill us all if we fail here. Their numbers are beyond counting, for they grow back at every dawn, and even the weakest one is a match for any soldier. With every day, our losses mount, but the plants never rest - if we do not fight back, we are sure to bleed out like a wounded doe.
MELTY makes a wide sweeping motion across the square.
MELTY: Yet if we succeed here, the future ahead of us looks glorious! All the fields around will belong to you - and just imagine how many other crops they could grow, virile as they are to birth these monsters? The enemies of ours may be numerous, but we have two Heroes on our side! Most of you have seen how marvelous their powers are - in less than a week, you have been turned from farmers into warriors! My sister is the strongest fire mage I have ever seen - with her help, we will easily burn away everything on our way to destroy those stalks. We have prepared, we have trained, and now it is time to smash our way to victory!
MELTY slams her hand down on the railing of the balcony to punctuate her point.
MELTY: The monsters will not prevail here! First this town, and then the Waves - we will destroy them all!
Some cheering echoes from the SOLDIERS, and MELTY, NAOFUMI, MOTOYASU and MYNE lead them through the town until they reach one of the bridges across the river. Heavy barricades have been erected across the road to the bridge, and dozens of SOLDIERS guard it. A large pile of dead PLANT MONSTERS is spread all across the bridge.
MELTY and MYNE approach a nearby area where a large magic circle has been inscribed on the ground. A pile of magic crystals is sitting in the middle of the circle. Several dozen MAGES - human and demihuman - are crowded around the circle, a robed ARCHMAGE from MYNE’s party among them. MYNE throws an irate glance at the DEMIHUMAN MAGES.
MYNE: Keep back. You are here to provide mana, nothing more.
One of the DEMIHUMAN MAGES immediately bows all the way to the ground.
DEMIHUMAN MAGE: Your royal highness, I humbly apologize for the indiscretion of your pathetic servants! We do not deserve to even gaze upon your shoes - we will cut our own throats at once, if only you give us a moment -
MYNE looks baffled at the over the top response. MELTY gives the MAGES a look.
MELTY: I see Fredalia instructed you to play a bit of a joke. You can stop, we don’t have a lot of time to waste.
MAGE nods, and retreats to the back of the group. MYNE scoffs at them, and MELTY puts a hand on her shoulder.
MELTY: Don’t be frustrated. This is going to be a long day.
MYNE sighs.
MYNE: Let’s get to work.
MYNE, MELTY, and MYNE’s ARCHMAGE take places close to the circle, while the other MAGES surround them at a distance, and begin chanting and channeling mana. The crystals in the middle of the circle begin to quickly evaporate into more mana. MYNE raises her arms into the air, leading the circle, and a whirlwind of mana surges into her. Hundreds, then thousands of white-hot dots appear in thin air, and after a moment, fly off in arcs across the river. Yet more dots join them, and soon the air is full of brilliant streaks as if the sun itself has been turned into rain.
A moment later, the first sparks impact the ground on the other side of the river, explosions shaking the ground as if a horde of wild beasts was rampaging around. The fires leap high into the sky, and in the distance, a horrifying hiss of rage comes from the three stalks towering over the town.
Then it all stops, the mana exhausted. MYNE, MELTY and the other MAGES stagger for a moment, but soon enough come to their senses and quickly head towards their positions, drinking mana potions on the way. MELTY approaches NAOFUMI and his group, seeing RAPHTALIA talking to them, and whistling at the fires and devastation ahead.
RAPHTALIA: Was she holding back when fighting me?
MELTY: No. But artillery spells of this fashion get stronger the more time the mage has to cast, and the more mana they have available. We had several dozen casters for help, and also used up most of the crystal supplies from the castle - we won’t be able to do this again. This is our best and only chance.
RAPHTALIA: Melromarc means wild magic, huh. I guess I see it now.
RAPHTALIA salutes to the others.
RAPHTALIA: Good luck, everyone. Don’t let the princess talk your ears off without me there to keep her in check.
RAPHTALIA heads over to MOTOYASU, and their respective groups move slowly across the bridge, followed by groups of highly trained SOLDIERS.
----------------------------------------
SCENE: MELTY, FULANA JEN, CONSTANCE and NAOFUMI are riding on top of FILO across the city’s rooftops, heading towards one of the stalks. FILO is surrounded by half a dozen rifles rotating around her. The city burns around them, where MYNE’s spell had cut a path of fire directly from the bridge to their target, but already on the streets below them vines are beginning to regrow. MELTY sends out occasional cutting spells to keep the wines that come close out of their way.
As they come closer and closer to the stalk towering over their head, the density of vines increases radically. Soon, they reach a wide open area - not a square, but merely a pile of rubble where the enormous stalk had burst out of the ground. It is surrounded by smaller vine tentacles, whipping around in a frenzy, trying to put out the fires that stick to the stalk itself.
They begin to cut a path through the tentacles in the square, slowly and carefully making their way to the stalk, when they hear a strange horn call - two short notes, followed by two long ones. CONSTANCE scowls.
CONSTANCE: Fuck me sideways with a lizard. Filo, clear us some space!
FILO blasts wind in all directions, bringing the group together and moving the tentacles away. MELTY continues to cut them down with her water bursts.
MELTY: That isn’t an agreed horn call!
CONSTANCE: Of course it isn’t. Remember how I talked about keeping cards close to the chest? It’s what I told my people to sound if humans started a pogrom.
MELTY turns to CONSTANCE in shock, forgetting her job for a moment.
MELTY: What?!
CONSTANCE: You knew the situation was tense between humans and demihumans. Myne’s people were mostly held in check by their fear of Myne, and she is now away, off killing the other stalk. In fact, every person of any note, the entire town leadership sans that useless count, is not in town. It is a fundamentally unstable situation.
MELTY tugs at her ponytails in frustration, then resumes casting as she sees tentacles creep closer to their group. CONSTANCE looks grim, shooting from a crossbow where she can.
MELTY: How long have we been gone? Half an hour, at most?!
CONSTANCE shrugs.
CONSTANCE: Who knows what happened to set that barrel of gunpowder off - pogroms develop quickly. For what it’s worth, my people are under orders to retreat and hole up in buildings we prepared for this purpose. How long they could hold up, I couldn’t say.
MELTY squeezes her eyes shut, before opening them again, a grim expression on her face.
MELTY: We have to continue.
NAOFUMI: Excuse me? The town might not be there when we return.
MELTY: I know. We have no choice - we are barely managing to pierce through, even with the barrage Myne did. We don’t have the crystals to do it again. We either kill the stalks now or never.
CONSTANCE: I concur.
CONSTANCE sighs, tossing her crossbow on her back, and turns to run back towards town.
CONSTANCE: I will get to town and see if I can calm them down. It’s what I am here for, really.
MELTY: We need you here!
CONSTANCE shakes her head, dodging between the tentacles that have grown behind their party already.
CONSTANCE: You don’t, and you know it. Filo, you, and Naofumi are essential. Me and Fulana are only here to support you, and -
CONSTANCE stumbles, misses her step, and a tentacle the width of her torso slams into her, sending her flying three dozen meters down the street. Her body crashes through the wall of a building, releasing a cloud of dust. She does not come out.
FILO: No!
NAOFUMI: Constance, no!
NAOFUMI turns back to go after CONSTANCE, but MELTY grabs his arm, pulling him back.
MELTY: She is dead. We have a target, get to it, go! Fulana - into town, now! If humans won’t listen to you, get to Myne, make sure she returns immediately after we are done!
FULANA JEN nods, and sprints away. NAOFUMI grits his teeth and nods.
FILO: Hop onto me. With only two people, it’d be safer.
NAOFUMI and MELTY climb onto FILO, and she rushes into the square, dodging the tentacles.
----------------------------------------
DRAMATIS PERSONAE
NAOFUMI IWATANI, THE SHIELD HERO. One of the socialists. Protagonist.
PRINCESS MELTY Q. MELROMAC. First heir to the throne of Melromarc. Strategist. Observant.
PRINCESS MYNE Q. MELROMARC. Second heir to the throne of Melromarc. Fire and brimstone.
RAPHTALIA. One of the socialists. Understands the true meaning of monarchy.
CONSTANCE VON MARUKIEVICH / FREDALIA. Secretly demihuman. Splattered by a tentacle.
FILO. Ready to rumble.
FULANA JEN, SHADOW. Head of MELTY’s SHADOWs. Secret service. Off to stop a pogrom.