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claire-starsword · 30 days

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Bloodline of the Sacred Dragons - Chapter 2-6

"Why are you still coming with me?"

"Leaving us behind is just selfish of you. You can't run off doing whatever you want."

"That's not it."

Tyrin had arranged desert vehicles, Sand Rovers, for the team, and Bleu and Karin bickered to no end in front of them. Krin and Karna were with Karin as well.

It was as if she had got a second little sister, and she was also more headstrong than ever.

Bleu absolutely wanted the two sisters and Karna to stay in Manarina. He had perhaps been too naive on that. Had he thought about it just a bit, he would have easily realized that those sisters would never accept being left behind like burdens.

Karna too wanted to come no matter what. She knew already that Gong was not in Manarina, so she had no reason to stay.

"First of all, why even Karna came…"

Bleu changed the focus of his arguments.

"Well, I have no clue where my master went. I can't go after him, so I have to wait. If I follow you, a fellow hero of the Shining Force, we might find him at some point."

"No way it would be that easy!" He shouted, fed up with that.

"Besides, while I can't meet my master, I thought I could get physical training with Karin. Get the basics down before I become a monk," she flexed her skinny arm as she spoke.

"Huh!? What do you mean, what do you see me as?"

"I don't think she meant anything bad…" Krin murmured at her sister's side, who got mad at being seen like a muscular monster.

"Aah, don't get me wrong. I just think Karin is stronger than Sir Bleu."

Karna rushed to correct herself, as she didn't intend to make Karin angry. But it still didn't fix things.

"In spirit, maybe," Bleu nodded with his arms crossed.

"And I'm telling you to take us with you, Bleu!" Karin got back on topic.

They kept getting more heated as time went by, wasted.

"So what now? I'm not waiting any more. I've got no interest at spending the whole night like this. Tyrin, can't we leave them here and go just the three of us?"

Randolf had already lost his patience. Annoyed, he went to talk to the four still quarreling.

"Hey, figure it out already. That's right, Tyrin. You were the one responsible for picking out the team. Do it now, c'mon!"

Tyrin was deeply troubled once Randolf named him all of a sudden. The pressure from everyone's eyes was heavy on him.

"That's… You want me to decide!?" He faltered, and Randolf pressed him on. "So, I think talking here is a waste of time… What if we finish packing up, and discuss things on the move?"

Bleu told him to stop joking around. But it was too late, the girls had already shrewdly loaded the back of the vehicle with their baggage and climbed on.

Bleu resented Tyrin from the bottom of his heart. Once they left Manarina, there would no point in telling the girls to go back.

"Alright, let's go."

By Randolf's order, the staff on the two vehicles began to work. Bleu bitterly got on one of the machines.

With the skilled driving of the Sand Rover's soldiers, the group headed to the northern mountain range under the moonlight.

"They really don't get tired, do they?"

Krin looked to Karna by her side, and she nodded.

Bleu and Karin had got on the second vehicle, and continued to argue since then. They were certainly a bother to Camallia and the soldiers driving there, while Tyrin and Randolf were on the same vehicle as Krin and Karna. Karna quietly prayed for them all to get some peace and rest.

While they worried, Camallia seemed to be enjoying the situation. Resting her arms on the edge of the trunk, she had watched their discussion the whole time.

In the end, those two were merely worried about each other. Thinking that staying together was dangerous, or that going alone was dangerous. That was the only difference between the two's points.

Thinking only of physical power in a battle, Bleu was right. But, would it really be all that was to it? Camallia was confident that, in a direct battle, there was no guarantee Bleu would win against her. Putting aside how much did that even matter… Camallia felt confused and surprised as she recognized the essential difference of the strengths Bleu and Karin stood for.

Her intention had been to keep an eye on Bleu only, but she had begun to see them all as a unit, and secretly berated herself for it. Bleu and Karin, and everyone else there. She felt something would change just from watching over them like this. That hadn't occurred to her from the start. She felt confused at her own change of view, feeling not out of place on a journey she began for very different reasons.

When Karin's voice started to get hoarse, Camallia intervened.

"Sir Bleu, you have lost this time. Lady Karin as well, how about taking some rest?"

As she spoke, she threw some fruit to the two. She had procured them in Manarina, a fruit typical of arid lands called Aquin, with juicy flesh within its hard shell.

Perhaps it could help refresh her throat. Karin accepted it without saying anything. But because the shell was hard, she couldn't break it open. Bleu couldn't stay just watching that, and cut it in half for her. However, his hands couldn't reach the pulp inside. She took the pulpy segments out the shell without issue, and gave one to Bleu.

To Bleu, the fruit was sweet and slightly bitter. He turned his face in Camallia's direction. Locking eyes with the meddling girl, he narrowed his at her.

His blue eyes, taking in the stillness of the night, had a deeper color.

"Geez, next time I wish you helped me out."

He jumped off the trunk. Without his weight, the trunk and the Sand Rover jumped up. Angry as he wanted to go to the driving soldiers in silence, he scowled again. The girls looked at his face, giggling.

"Lady Karin, has Sir Bleu always been like this?" Camallia whispered. Karin asked what she meant.

"I mean if he has always been that kind."

"I'm not too kind."

Bleu answered as he overheard their talk. Karin laughed at that.

"You are, though."

"No, I mean that the dragon races I know are far more ferocious. Since ancient times, they are the ultimate guardians. And yet Sir Bleu is, how do I say… He is, oddly human-like…"

"Yeah, I'm weird," Bleu sulked even more.

"Sure, you might be. Maybe it's because you were raised alongside us humans all this time. But, I don't know any Sacred Dragons except you. If you asked me about them, I can only think of you. So, I don't know."

Camallia didn't seem to agree, but she didn't push further on the subject.

The Sand Rovers continued to ran through the dark night.

Further on, the trees grew thicker, and they were no longer capable of advancing through that terrain.

"From here on, there's no going back."

Randolf got off the vehicle and announced that, while running his eyes through everyone. His face was especially scary when looking at Karna and Krin.

"He's right. From here on we might get into a battle. In particular, Karna would be better off leaving."

Karna was undaunted by Bleu's words.

"It seems everyone is mistaken about me. I'm not that weak. I've fought off thieves alongside my travel partners before. Priests are people who seek trials. Especially someone in training like me, we have to move onwards and face peril. Besides, running away alone while others rise up despite the danger would be unforgivable. Asking me to turn back here is asking me to throw away what makes me a priest. That's a great offense. I'm sure Camallia understands."

As she looked for her approval, Camallia nodded vaguely.

"Still, knowing your limits is another side to wisdom."

Karna's thick eyebrows frowned at Tyrin's words.

"As long as I have faith in people, I'll be fine no matter what happens. And should I die while acting with conviction, it will stand as a holy sacrfice."

"I don't care for doctrines or whatever, but to each their own waste of time. I know that when someone holds on to faith like that, nothing can change their mind. Now, we walk from here on."

Randolf sent off the vehicles back to Manarina, and walked off, leading the group.

He was well used to the path, while the others followed with great effort. With his large body, Bleu had to be careful to not hurt his wings on tree branches. Karin couldn't bear to watch that, and covered his wings with her cloak.

After a while, the forest began to vary in elevation. Randolf seemed to navigate through the ups and downs as he moved forward, and then he stopped.

In front of him, there were fine tree roots covering a spot of elevated ground.

"This is the entrance. Follow me."

He pushed the roots away like a curtain, and headed in. The inside was like a cave.

Krin carried a lantern. There was a stairway heading down further into the narrow path.

"Not fair, you told Tyrin about this but hid it from me all this time," she lamented, staring at the stairs that went too deep to be illuminated by the lantern's faint light. The frustration of not knowing something started bubbling into anger typical of a researcher.

"It's the first time I bring Tyrin here."

Tyrin nodded a couple times at Randolf's words. Randolf didn't even look at his reaction, quickly heading down the stairs instead.

After descending for quite a while, the path became level. While covered in soil and moss of many years, it was a bright artificial tunnel.

"It might be a shortcut, but going through a long and dark place like this isn't great."

Karin strained her eyes in the darkness, Karna clinging close to her back. She felt like she had got another little sister. That was some quick attachment.

"Don't worry, there's a ride for us."

Randolf pointed to a door that had suddenly appeared in the way, and pushed it open with both his arms. He went in, gesturing with his head for everyone to follow.

The group went inside after him and winced at how bright it was. They groaned as their eyes struggled to adjust to light again.

Once their vision returned, everyone but Randolf exclaimed in surprise.

The room was as wide as a palace hall. Many black lines spread out from the center, and disappeared into the depths of arched tunnels connected to the walls.

"What is all this?" Krin asked, wiping her fogged glasses.

"Stopping point for an ark, that's all we've learned," Randolf replied bluntly.

"So there are still things like this around, besides the Castle of the Ancients."

Bleu's face was a mix of shock and anxiety and nostalgia, as he walked along the walls of the hall.

There were frames of pitch black pictures decorating them here and there.

"Why is it decorated like this? Or, could it be that the pictures faded out?"

He blew off the dust over the pictures, and moved his face closer to the wall. Right then, what he thought was a dark picture started to shine with a bright light. Startled, Bleu backed away.

"Hey, what are you messing up with there?"

Randolf rushed over.

The brightly shining picture began to fill with mysterious patterns. At the same time, a high pitched and gentle female voice echoed through the hall. No one could make understand the words being said in a strange intonation.

"These patterns repeat through the picture. They are characters."

Krin brought her face closer to the wall, inspecting it with eyes wide open.

"It's painful that we cannot read them."

Krin nodded at Tyrin's words.

Eventually, the characters faded out, and a map was displayed.

"It's a map of this place. Perhaps this is an information board."

"You seem to be familiar with this," Randolf looked suspicious at Camallia.

"It's because there is something similar to this in the land of the Sacred Dragons of Parmecia."

"What? You mean there's a place like this in your homeland? But, our ancestors didn't see anything like what we just saw, no matter how much they searched."

"That is because, perhaps, it recognized Sir Bleu as an authority. This too, might be a place once oversaw by the Sacred Dragons. If that's true, it must obey a Sacred Dragon's orders without question."

"So, with this Sacred Dragon, we might be able to use anything in this place. He could open all the locked tunnels."

Randolf pressed her on. His eyes shined with the light of curiosity and ambition.

"I didn't order it to do anything. It just started working on its own when I touched it."

Confused, Bleu tried to stop the expectations piling up on him all of a sudden.

"You could make it work, so why don't you know how to use it?"

"Bleu's parents didn't have time to teach him. I'm sure that was it." Karin jumped in Bleu's defense.

"So, the Sacred Dragons of this Parmecia land, they should know how to use this, right?"

"Yes, that's likely," Camallia nodded.

"Then, I'm going there. I want to find out all the secrets of this place. With that, I'll be able to use all the sealed tunnels. Maybe I'll even find new mines. I might strike it rich here. Come, let's hurry and board the ark. I expect we'll be able to sleep in the time that thing will take to get to the other side of the mountains."

Randolf hurried them, pointing to a vessel over the lines. This vessel he called an ark looked like a huge upside-down boat. It had no wheels. Karin secretly questioned if it would really move.

The group got inside the ark through a door in the back. The empty insides looked like a cargo hold of sorts.

Randolf used the control panel in the front, and the ark began to gently float, with them inside. And then it sped forward, as if gliding through the black lines.

"Waaaah, awesome, my eyes are spiiining! This was built by your ancestors!?" Karna asked as she watched the flickering lights of the tunnel fly by.

"They didn't built it, I said that they found it. This is a legacy of the gods. I also didn't explore everything inside here. All I did was find mines of precious metals and crystals in the depths of the cavern and the exits on the other side."

"Crystals?"

At Karin's question, Randolf showed a thin crystal shining like the rainbow.

"These are the key to making the old lady's machine work," Krin explained to her sister. "There are many kinds of them, and each affect the machine in a different way. But, only a few are in perfect shape, most have some cracks on them and end up being just pretty rocks."

"All fine by me, I get to sell these rocks to the old lady for a good penny. It's more profit than selling crafts."

He roared with laughter, putting the crystal away.

"The point is, if I find jewels or gold or silver mines, I can live without digging this strange stuff anymore. And if I hit the jackpot with the greatest ore of all, I'll be rich in an instant. I could call back my family who got tired of protecting a bunch of ruins they didn't understand. It'd be a dream to build a dwarf town in this underground too. I'm excited to cross the ocean now!"

Bleu and Karin exchanged looks at that.

"Hey, hey, you just chase wherever the money go, don't you?" Bleu said

"Besides," Tyrin added with a reprimanding tone, "the Sacred Dragons of Parmecia are warring with devils right now."

Bleu wanted to make Randolf give up. They already had to take care of Karna, why did he want to come along too.

"Interesting. That much won't stop me. I don't think getting my hands on these secrets will be easy, I'm no idiot. Dwarves are top-notch warriors. How about that, Sacred Dragon, why not employ me as your protection?"

Everyone blinked when he said that. Offering protection to a Sacred Dragon, the audacity.

"I don't believe Sir Bleu has the need. It's plain to see who's the strongest one," Tyrin chided Randolf.

"No, I'm counting on you."

Everyone but Randolf turned in surprise as Bleu said that. He had changed his mind all of a sudden.

He wouldn't be able to always be at Karin's side. He had to intention of taking her to Parmecia, but he wasn't sure even the journey to Pao would be safe. Should anything happen, he needed someone besides Tyrin to protect the girls.

"Glad to be on board."

Randolf slapped Tyrin on the back with all his strength. The mage coughed helplessly.

"Now, this ark will go on just fine without us doing anything, so you should all go to sleep. Like that girl over there."

Randolf pointed with his chin at Karna, wrapped up like a ball in her cloak. Seems she hadn't got used to the ride and felt sick. Quietly laughing at what a relief that was, Randolf laid down as well.

With no wheels to jostle it, the ark ran silently at high speed through the stripes of light. Except for the queasy Karna, everyone killed time as they pleased until they reached their destination.

Moving away from Tyrin and Krin, who inspected the control panel without rest, Karin sat down with Bleu and Camallia.

"Do the Sacred Dragons of Parmecia live in a place like this?" Bleu asked the foreign girl.

"Are you curious?" Camallia asked back to gauge his reaction.

"I would be lying if I said no. Isn't it strange? The gods could build things like this. Why did the Sacred Dragons, who should be their chosen ones, end up down a road of destruction? Be it in Rune, or in Parmecia…"

"But, aren't you still here?" Karin said, "And the dragons of Parmecia aren't gone yet. The gods were the one who disappeared first."

"Yeah, even the gods were destroyed, so it's not that weird if the Sacred Dragons are too."

Karin had tried to cheer Bleu up, but realized she had done the opposite.

"My problem is, why did it happen," Bleu continued.

"That was because they were cut from the Manual. The Sacred Dragons's lives and the Manual are tied together by an inescapable fate."

"I don't think it's their fate."

Karin objected to Camallia's choice of words.

"It is, the Sacred Dragons of Parmecia receive their Flame of Life through the Power of the Earth."

"Flame of Life?" Bleu echoed a term he was unfamiliar with.

Camallia nodded. "With the secret arts of the Manual, they receive their life force. That was set up by the gods in distant times. Thanks to the gods, as long as they can take the Power of the Earth into their bodies, they are immortal. Because of that, they, no, you became known as the dragons of the gods. Did you not know that?"

Camallia asked, turning to face Bleu.

What was he if he didn't know even that, Bleu asked himself. What was he, after all? And what kind of creature were the Sacred Dragons? He didn't have a clear answer for these questions. Finding the answers was the big challenge in his life.

But, the more he mulled over it, the more differences he realized between Sacred Dragons and humans, between him and Karin. In particular, the more they learned of the physical differences, the harder it was to get past them.

Karin wanted to say something to him. But even someone from Rudo Village like her, so deeply connected with the Sacred Dragons, didn't know any more than him. But unlike Bleu, she was not facing their differences, but focusing on their similarities, with a feeling other than sadness.

"After we retrieve the Manual from the devils, and meet the Sacred Dragons in Parmecia, all might be explained. The knowledge you missed on learning should be there. In the mountain of the Sacred Dragons." She paused. "What I really wish to know is, why are you the only Sacred Dragon left in Rune, you and no one else…"

Bleu found himself captive of Camallia's eyes.

Breathing became slightly harder. He felt as if his soul was melting inside his body.

"Let's go to sleep."

Karin broke the spell. She got in the middle of the two, and tried to push Bleu to lie down.

"You're right, Lady Karin. We should rest as well."

Laughing softly, she undid her sash and started to take off her surcoat. She then took off her long gloves and boots, exposing as much skin as she could. She was glad she was in a safe place where she could relax and sleep like that. Stretching her long legs as she laid down, she turned over her wide cloak and covered herself.

"From tomorrow on we can't waste any time. Let's rest well."

Bleu sprawled himself on the floor.

Karin laid down happily by his side. Bleu curved his long tail, supporting her head like a pillow. And then covered her with his wings like a blanket. Like it was the usual for them.

Camallia rested her head on her hands, and looked on as they slept happily. She continued to stare at them with deep interest until falling asleep.

To next part>

Translation notes:

Karna uses the "-sama" honorific for Bleu, as most people do at this point, honestly. For Karin however, she uses "onee-sama", which is a respectful way to say "sister". Since this is hard to translate, and the narration already points multiple times that the two act like sisters and that Karna is coming off as overly attached, I decided to not translate it as anything and hope the over familiarity of it comes off this way.

As far as I could tell, the "Aquin" fruit is a made up name.

Randolf actually talks about finding "the greatest silver of all" when talking of his ambitions. Since Mithril in-game is specifically called Mithril silver (ミスリル銀), that's likely the ore he's looking for. I wasn't sure if Mithril is commonly called a silver though (I never watched a lord of rings), so I decided to go with ore to be safe.

In fact, let's talk a little about Randolf. In game, he says in HQ that "drinking and fighting is all that is to his life", making him kind of a simple warrior archetype. The novel took some good liberties here making him more work oriented, though it makes sense given how little it had to work with. It's still acknowledging him as a warrior so it's not a big deal.

#shining series #shining force #shining force 2 #shining force novel translation #bloodline of the sacred dragons #sf bleu #sf karin #sf2 karna twiggy #sf krin #sf2 tyrin piper #sf2 randolf dongo #sfbotsd camallia #world's least suspicious woman #anyway this part is so painful. the setting pieces are wonderful #but all the worst flaws of the book are obvious at this point #these characters just talk at each other no one is forming any dynamic at all #karna: gives a whole speech of her life's values #everyone: yeah who gives a shit (expected for randolf but the others not so much)#randolf: whole speech of his dreams including reuniting and helping his people #everyone: wow you're greedy #it SUCKS #and of course fuck me for ever expecting any development out of bleu's anxieties and trauma right #of course he's just gonna be sexist instead. of course #anyway with this i'm caught up to my backlog so uh oh. you're gonna have to wait a little longer for the next ones #at least this saves you for most of my rants for now #for now

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stories-and-chaos · 2 months

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Shrike: 2582 Days of Hell

[Hazbin Hotel reader insert as Alastor’s “darling life and death partner” Ace x ace relationship, both parties are moderately sex favorable.]

[One shot, word count 3326, Cw: none]

———————

Eleven months. Eleven fucking months since Alastor disappeared after that fight with Vox. And not a word or glimpse of him in that entire time. You knew he was alive. There was a tiny fragment of his shadow magick in the decorative finial of one of your hatpins. The enamel black eighth note at the end of a foot of thin steel was warm to your touch. It felt like your hand resting in the crook of his arm whenever you walked together.

If he’d died, that bit of shadow would have vanished and it would just be cold enamel and metal. So you checked it morning and night. You kept your usual rotation of pins; despite wanting the constant reassurance you didn’t want anyone to notice you favoring one accessory. Maybe you were being overly cautious, but you couldn’t help it with Alastor’s absence.

Niffty had vanished in a puff of ash about two weeks after Alastor had. Presumably your husband had summoned her to…wherever he was. There were other demons that had made deals with him in exchange for their souls. If he’d died all those deals would be void. But not one had dissolved, giving you more hope that he was recovering somewhere.

Which you needed. Every time you ventured beyond your territory or Cannibal Town, every television screen in your vicinity started displaying Vox’s face. The insufferable screen saver enjoyed rubbing Alastor’s absence in your face whenever possible. Sometimes it was just his face following you. Others, he staged talk shows or news stories discussing that last fight. He always circled back to the fact that he was active and your husband hadn’t been seen for months. The longer it was, the more gleeful he became.

Extermination Day was about a month ago. You spent the whole time gripping the music note pin, trying to detect any hint of Alastor running into the angels. Fortunately the shadow was unchanged.

Carmilla Carmine had called a meeting of Overlords to discuss the fallout from this latest attack. Meetings like this generally occurred every few years, often a result from something unusual happening. A drastic increase or decrease in kills, the loss of an Overlord, a particular district being targeted, all had warranted a meeting in the past.

This year it seemed there were several upheavals in territory and Overlords in charge. After Carmilla greeted the assembled demons, her focus turned to you. “Y/N. Will your husband be joining us today?”

Decades of performing allowed you to answer steadily, with a smile even. “No, not today.” Usually you attended these together, occasionally Alastor went alone. This was the first time you were there solo. There was an immediate bray of laughter from the other side of the table.

All three of the Vees were here today. Vox had a confident sneer on his screen (he’d updated his head to be a flat screen television a little over a decade ago). Valentino licked his lips before slowly grinning in what you presumed was meant to be a lascivious manner. Velvette, the youngest of everyone in the room, was texting rapidly on her phone. She’d been the one laughing and continued to snigger.

“Not today?” she asked without looking up. “Don’t you mean never, little Miss Frigid?” She finally glared at you over her shoulder, pink braids falling heavily around her face. “Why don’t you just admit what everyone in Hell fucking knows? Vox killed your twiggy arse husband and you’re useless without him.”

You did your best to keep your cool. This would be easier if you at least knew what Alastor was up to. Outright lies could get you in trouble later on, but admitting you didn’t know where he was? That would bring a shit load of trouble now.

“Surprising that ‘everyone in Hell’ is so eager to believe your tabloid drivel.” You waved a dismissive hand at the trio, launching a slight gust at them that frizzed Velvette’s hair. Not enough to undo her hairstyle, but she wouldn’t be able to fix it without taking it all down. The girl was fanatical about looking perfect in public; the loose hairs would drive her crazy.

Carmilla smacked the tabletop. “Y/N. You know my policy on weapons and magick at these meetings,” she said firmly.

You tilted your head slightly in her direction. “Apologies, cher, I just get annoyed by the chittering of little bugs.” You deliberately avoided saying that it wouldn’t happen again. Velvette growled. “If my darling Alastor was dead don’t you think that all the former members of this group he had ownership of would be coming after me?” You laced your talons together and rested your chin on top of them. “But I haven’t had to bother myself with any of them.”

Vox snorted. “Then why isn’t the pussy whipped fucker here?”

“I’ll admit you got some good hits in during that fight, Vox. So he’s taking a well earned rest.” Hopefully your tone was dismissive enough that they’d stop pushing.

Of course they wouldn’t. Especially not Velvette, she seemed to thrive on pushing buttons. She laughed again. “Ha! An Overlord taking what, an eleven month rest? Pathetic. If he can’t even show up to protect his territory I say it’s free game.”

Apparently the girl hadn’t gotten the message about you. Vox and Valentino exchanged a glance over her head as you smiled sharply at her. “Zut alors cher! Impatient, vapid, and misinformed? On top of being poorly dressed? I suppose you have that chip on your shoulder for a reason, ma petite.” You had the satisfaction of seeing her manicured nails digging into the table. “I’m not some pretty proxy little girl. Our territory is staying ours.”

Velvette was rising from her seat when Carmilla slammed the tabletop. “¡Es suficiente! Thank you for the information, Y/N. Velvette, take your seat. We have other business to discuss.” With that the meeting started in earnest.

A handful of minor players had perished. There were still turf wars going on but it looked like at least one new Overlord was emerging from the fray. Carmilla displayed a map of the city; one contested spot was close to your borders. You really didn’t have the motivation to go after it at the moment however. If you didn’t though, the brats might just do so instead. You could see them slowly creeping closer, putting pressure on you and yours. Although with the anger in Velvette’s eyes it might not be too slow.

The meeting stretched on. Before ten minutes had passed the Vees had pulled out their phones and the pings of text messages filled the air constantly as they texted each other. Despite glares from Carmilla, they kept going. It would almost sound musical if it wasn’t so strident.

There was discussion, offers and counteroffers for territory and cash, all with the undertone of tension. You participated enough to not be dismissed as an easy target. Carmine’s rule extended to the streets immediately around her building. Despite that, you could feel Velvette and her compatriots following you closely once the group started leaving.

Fuck this nonsense. Quickly, your wings flicked open and you pushed off into the sky. You didn’t even have to add anything to the downdraft; the Vees were knocked off balance, Velvette’s hair ripped out of its braids and tangled in the gusts. “YOU FUCKING OUTDATED BITCH!” she shrieked from below. Valentino could follow you but you doubted he would. He didn’t relish pain on his own person, just his employees.

You pushed yourself faster than usual on the flight home. The exertion helped distract you. But once you were home, the door locked securely behind you, all the emotions boiled over.

“Alastor you bastard!” you screamed into the cold dark house. “Where the fuck are you!” You sent out an involuntary rush of air; you could hear items pushed off surfaces, paper and cloth ripping. That was enough to stop you from screaming more, but it didn’t get rid of your twisted knot of feelings.

You didn’t have great night vision but you couldn’t make the effort to turn on the lights. You knew where the item you wanted was. You grabbed a bottle from the sideboard and made your way to the bedroom. You skipped your nightly routine, opting to just shed clothes as you walked. Your hatpin and hat you dropped on your vanity counter. Going by feel, you grabbed the music note pin.

In the past months you had arranged cushions and blankets in the mattress into a comfort nest. You couldn’t bear the empty expanse of the bed. Your nest surrounded you on every side with enough illusion of warmth to let you sleep.

You opened the bottle of whiskey. Not bothering with a glass, you chugged gulps until it was half empty. That wasn’t the way to treat good liquor but this wasn’t a good night. You capped the bottle, placed it on your nightstand for later before burrowing under the duvet.

Not even half a bottle of strong alcohol could keep everything at bay. But there were no Overlords here to mock you, no underlings to gossip, no friends to pester you. No Alastor waiting with a handkerchief after you cried all your emotions out. Just the drone of insects in the bayou and a drop of shadow attached to enamel and steel.

Maybe he could hear you through that fragment. You were going to talk either way. “Alastor? Please come home cher. I miss you. I can do this alone, I know it. I have been. But where’s the fun without you? Come home. S’il vous plaît?” At some point you started crying and eventually fell asleep.

You woke up to a hand on your shoulder and a voice calling your name. For a split second you hoped it was Alastor, but the scent of blood and rose perfume told you who it was. “Rosie,” you mumbled, not removing the duvet. She’d had a key to your house for decades of course.

“Darlin’, how long have you been in there?” she asked gently. She didn’t remove the duvet, perhaps knowing you needed to retreat from everything.

“When was the meeting?” you managed to ask. According to your friend, it had been a full day ago. “Since I got home from that.”

She sighed and rubbed your shoulder gently. “Y/N, dearie, you can talk to me if you’d like. It seems like you have a lot going on.”

You wanted to. Oh how you wanted to just let that knot of emotions loose. But even though you were friends, Rosie was still an Overlord, roughly equal in strength. You were vulnerable enough like this. If she knew Alastor was missing, would she be able to resist the temptation to take over? You hoped so but still didn’t want to take the chance.

A few long moments passed silently. Then: “You don’t know where Alastor is. Do you honey?” You froze. “Of course not, you wouldn’t have been so cagey at that meeting if you did.”

You flipped back the duvet enough to look at her. Nothing calculating in her expression, just worry about two of her friends. Her solid black eyes still managed to express concern. She answered your silent question “I’ve known you both for ages, darlin’. We’ve helped each other out plenty of times! If your man was really that hurt, you’d have let me help by now. So, you must not know what’s going on yourself.”

“Rosie, cher, you really are one amazing demon.”

“Oh honey, you flatter me! Let’s get something in you other than whiskey and we’ll talk.” You asked her to grab your housecoat, not feeling up to getting dressed but you also didn’t want to share every bodily secret, no matter how good of friends you were.

Later the two of you were sharing a pot of coffee, biscuits, and eggs. “Do you think anyone else has figured it out?”

“That not even you know where he is? I don’t think so. You’ve been acting as if he’s with you. And none of the other Overlords know you two like I do,” she said while adding sugar cubes to her coffee. “Alright, details, details. If I’m going to help you out, I gotta know what’s going on.”

There wasn’t much more you could tell her. She had seen the footage of Alastor and Vox fighting, then both backing down and his disappearance into his shadow. Vox had aired every angle he had of the incident multiple times. He’d even made an hour-long special with 3D models recreating the fight with dramatic shots and heroic close ups of his face. Part of the special even went frame by frame through Alastor’s shadows wrapping around him, pointing out every possible detail that Vox could spin as proof the Radio Demon couldn’t have survived.

While Rosie wasn’t about to believe Vox’s word, she did gently ask how you were so sure your husband survived. “Like I said, if the former Overlords he owns were free, they’d be coming for me. But also,” you hand the music note hatpin to her, “we made these in… the 1940’s I think it was.”

You let her examine it. The cannibal turned it over in her hands, gleaming steel flashing between her slim fingers. Before long she noticed the magick in the finial. She brushed her fingertips against the eighth note and felt Alastor’s distinctive green edged black power.

“Alastor has matching cufflinks with my power in them. So I know he’s alive. I just don’t know where.” You took the pin back and sighed. “I’m not about to let everyone know about this however. Especially when he hasn’t contacted me.”

“Well, shit. That makes things harder. Not a word from him?”

You shook your head. “He summoned Niffty a while back. I thought he might send her back with a message, some information, anything. But she’s been gone since a couple weeks after Alastor disappeared. I’m so scared of making something up and it backfiring! And if those brats find out I’m basically alone they’ll all come at me together.” You ran a hand through your hair restlessly. “I can take them on individually. Maybe even two to one. But if all three attack together? I’d be fucked.”

Rosie stayed quiet, letting you vent your fear out as she ate. “Well, one thing I can do is back you up. Both with what you say about Alastor and if those three come calling.”

“You’d…you’d do that for me? For Alastor?” Sure you were friends, but putting yourself on the line for another Overlord was not the norm.

“Of course honey! That’s what allies do; it's what friends do. We’ve done enough favors for each other that I’ve stopped counting, just like you right?” You had to nod at that. At some point it was silly to keep track who owed whom. “Not to mention, you and Alastor are much better neighbors than any of the Vees or their cronies. And you know my people, they don’t care for all that modern junk those brats peddle.”

You hadn’t realized quite how unsteady you’d felt these past months. Just knowing there was someone on your side helped immensely. Enough that you could think of your next steps instead of simply trying to endure what came your way. “Merci Rosie.” She squeezed your hand gently before encouraging you to eat. You hadn’t had much of an appetite recently but you needed to. Especially if you were going to rule your territory alone for now.

You and your friend discussed your options as breakfast disappeared. Rosie, reassured you at least felt a bit more stable, headed home after helping you wash the dishes. You then soaked in the bath, letting the warm water soothe the tension in your body. Your back and wings were sore after that dash home yesterday.

The hatpin was sitting on the bathroom counter. “I’m still mad at you, cher,” you said to it. Sound probably couldn’t travel through that fragment but you decided to act like Alastor could hear you. “And I’m not going to forgive you easily. But I’m not letting everything we’ve done together crumble because I’m upset. And I’m not letting those little bitches from the Vees crush us.”

You kept busy the following days. You quickly annexed that contested area for starters. No need to give the Vees a foothold so close to you and your friend.

Alastor’s broadcast station couldn’t do much without him. But there was space in the building. You moved recording equipment there. While you couldn’t write music, you recognized talent and you had an ability to pick what music would not just be popular, but endure past the moment.

Starting with an album of your favorite songs, you set up Songbird Studios. You leaned into the audio quality of vinyl records and the aura of class and exclusivity. Even though your library of music spanned genres, you were very selective about who could sign with the studio.

With a steady flow of income, you increased your power base. More deals and souls, favors and debts waiting for you to cash in, all of which firmed up your Overlord status.

There were days you cried, days you raged, days you wanted to stay in your nest and days you wanted to tear down the Vees tower brick by tacky brick. You confided in Rosie who continued to give you support and pinkie fingers to crunch when you were particularly upset. You were there when she needed someone to talk to and provide entertainment to Cannibal Town, both on your own and scheduling artists that worked for you.

It took a lot of effort, but you did your best to act indifferent at the Vees’ needling. The less reaction they received, the less fun it was. It took years but eventually they lost interest in messing with you.

You counted the days since Alastor vanished. Even once you knew his location, you kept track until you saw him in person again. Carmilla called a few meetings over those 2,500-plus days. You went to some, skipped others.

The latest one, you saw Velvette entering the building from your vantage point above. You were not in the right headspace to deal with the little bitch, knowing where Alastor was staying but not having seen him yet. Choose your battles.

Of course, when you found out later that your husband had attended that meeting, you wanted to kick yourself. And him. And Velvette but you always wanted to kick Velvette. Might as well add in the other two Vees while you were at it.

Once you reunited with Alastor at Charlie Morningstar’s hotel, you immediately moved into his suite. He kept the same motif as your home and it was easy enough to settle in. That night, you refused to let go of his torso as you laid in bed together. Even so, you were more relaxed than any other time in the past seven years.

“Two thousand five hundred and eighty two,” you said, your face buried into his side.

“Hmm? What was that, cher?” he asked, stroking your arm.

“Two thousand five hundred and eighty two. That’s how many days it’s been since I saw you last.” You sat up a bit to look at him in his vibrant red eyes. “I kept track.”

“I would expect nothing less from you my dear.”

“I’m going to take those days out on the person that separated us.”

His smile turned sharper. His sclera flickered black as his pupils turned into radio dials. “Will you allow my assistance, my dear Shrike?”

You reached up to stroke his face. You could feel your feathers sharpening. “Of course. I’ll need help after all. And who am I to deny the Radio Demon his revenge?”

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