Hina slept on the carriage, for once dreamless. She felt that she was missing something, in all of this... dying didn't mean that one ceased to exist... am I doomed to die, or to transform...? What if it meant, cease to exist as she was before? Her and another? The maid, saying some thought Hina's sickness was to kill her and send her to Heaven, to become an angel... there was no way she'd let anybody die, there was another way...
~~~
The name? William Pendragon. Pendragon... It's a name that spans worlds; sometimes it belongs to kings and knights, sometimes to mages and sometimes to peasants, nobodies. Here, in this version of Earth, it belonged to a family of elven nobles! Now, I know you've heard that story before, but it's true, in this case. Problem is, I'd never been able to tap into my elvish, army crushing magic before, so even though I was an elf, I fought with a hatchet and a short sword, cleaving through the masses like a barbarian. I didn't really have any team mates, either; I was a failure and a disappointment, not to mention the danger of sticking around in crowds as an elf.
They'd captured me, though, about a week before I'd fought against Starria, and finally broken through my own barriers. Starrian soldiers. Kicking me almost into my own campfire, they'd dragged my by the hair and thrown me into a cage with two others; a man, with the ears and tail of an otter, and a girl, no older than sixteen and with a pair of twisted, blackened horns. Head still screaming with pain, confused as hell, I slowly righted myself as mister otter helped me to my feet, to sit on the bench. He was grinning brightly as the soldiers laughed and climbed into the front of this carriage, which held the cage.
"Hey, you can use your magic to get us out of here?"
"Cursed, can't use my magic," I shot back; and I could see it in his eyes, how his hope immediately fell through. Of course, the soldiers wouldn't have grabbed me if they didn't know; but I was rumored around these parts, the elf without magic, and these bastards, well, they must have thought they'd get a good price for me in the Capitol, or something along those lines... so, it was going to be a long ride, and I was going to disappoint as usual. Somehow, I'd need to escape... but, could I?
~~~
Hina sighed quietly as she woke, stretching. Nao was asleep, head in the badger girl's lap, curled up, and Aurelia was sleeping on her other shoulder as Emily smiled warmly across the carriage.
"Hina, I had an idea," the Devil spoke softly. "Just an inkling, but... it's an idea. Two of us are going to die, but Aerendyl also said we would cease to exist, didn't he?" She seemed somewhat confident now. "You were muttering something like this while you fell asleep earlier, and it got me wondering, thinking... What if he meant, cease to exist as we are? It seems that this road is leading to you being purified... what if your body can't keep its form after so much magical trauma? What if Hina dies, ceases to exist, and is reborn? Then, that could also mean that none of us have to die, that something similar awaits one of us... it's... there isn't a lot of proof, but it's a positive idea, right?"
"It is," Hina smiled and nodded, suddenly feeling much better. "I just... hope we get to the Capitol soon. I don't know what I did, the first time I blacked out, but I know that this morning, I apparently slaughtered a fifth of an army. Next time, am I going to hurt the wrong side?"
"I'll put you to sleep, if you start to seem like anyone other than yourself... or at least, I'll try," Emily promised, reaching across to brush her fingers through Hina's hair, her cliché demonic eyes somehow warm and soft as they met Hina's.
"I love you, Emily..." Badger Girl breathed out, trying not to move too much and wake Aurelia or Nao, who still rested peacefully. Moving forward for her, Emily pushed into a slow, gentle kiss, holding it... and then pulling back, smiling softly.
"I love you too, Hina. Now, didn't you say something about wanting to try summoning something useful? We're probably going to camp, soon, so it would be a good time... if you've got mana in those gems," Emily reminded Hina of the gem stones in her bag, which she could use as magical batteries. "-you could probably use so much mana, you'd call and bind something really spectacular~ and, if one of us is doomed to truly die, maybe your summon can change things." Still being optimistic.
"I do plan to try, yes," Hina smiled and answered calmly. On her lap, Nao's eyes slowly fluttered open, and the Lantern Ghost met Hina's own.
"Hina. None of us are going to die," she murmured. "I haven't been with you for any kind of long, sure, but I do... I could quickly fall in love with you, Hina. I won't let anything happen to you... already, the thought of you makes my heart beat a little harder, makes me feel a little warmer," she murmured, blushing lightly. "Nothing will happen to you, I swear on my life."
"Don't say that," Hina breathed, an odd intensity flooding her voice. "Don't swear on your life, Nao. Nobody is going to lose theirs... it's not an option."
"Agreed," sighed Aurelia, still leaning on Hina. How long had she been awake? Now, her tail, colored burgundy and tipped with a heart, wrapped around Hina's waist as if to hug her. "Love you, Hina... I won't leave you in a cruel world with no Aurelia... I know you wouldn't be able to live~" She turned her head and softly kissed Hina, but, still half asleep, she missed, pecking the corner of Summoned Hero's mouth.
There was shouting outside, probably to the horses, and the carriage slowly drew to a halt. A few moments later, and the carriage doors opened.
"Alright, ladies, we're camping. You'll have to share a tent, but it's big enough to fit you all twice." The man who spoke was gruff, with a shaggy beard and a deeply weathered face. With him was a much younger man, who might have been his son.
"That's not a problem," Emily answered, moving around a crate of the alcohol they were transporting to leave the carriage. Giving similar answers, the others slowly climbed down and stretched their legs.
"I'll put the tents up, so everybody just relax and stretch your legs!" The younger of the men gave a sunny smile all around, but his gaze lingered just a bit longer on Nao, who shook her head and wrapped herself around Hina's arm.
"Sorry, I'm mega gay," Nao called to him teasingly, and Hina found herself laughing, only to pray she didn't seem like a complete bitch for it.
"Not a problem, ladies are ladies and ladies shouldn't have to set their own tent up unless they want to," the young man stated proudly, carrying a bundle of fabric to a flat stretch of grass. Hina grinned at his back, shaking her head while pulling out her bun, so that her long locks could fall free. If she wasn't mistaken, it'd already grown four or five centimeters she'd been Summoned... had that really only been four days ago? It felt like so much longer, but in reality, not much time had passed at all, and she'd left Emily's house the day she woke- so, no, it wasn't only four days, but it was four waking days. What did that make in total, a week?
"So, still planning on that summoning?" Emily asked primly, lacing her aqua fingers together.
"I am," Hina agreed, nodding.
"Let's make this the last newbie for a while, huh? It'll be a party of five, that's kind of pushing it." Aurelia spoke with a playful grin, flicking her tail around and smacking it against Hina's ass when Badger Girl flicked her tail to the side.
"Don't worry, we will," Hina sighed, looking around. Summoning didn't require any special circles or anything like that, it was about excessive willpower and mana, so any spot would work, really... so, why not right here?
"Hina..." Emily paused. "Just like you can pour magical energy into a gem, you can pour it into a person. I'm going to give you as much as I can... so summon something really great, alright?"
"I'll do it too," Aurelia added, seeming to like the idea.
"Me too," Nao said quietly. "Summon something so strong, there's no way anybody will die," Nao grinned. "I'm a Hero, so I have tons of Mana; I'll hand it over after the summoning, so you can bind it."
"Alright," Hina murmured quietly. "Thank you, all of you... let me do this..." Setting her bag down, the black and white haired girl drew a breath... and began.
Her mana glowed brightly, golden and undulating as Hina focused every ounce of her self on calling something forth. Something smart, something fast, something strong... something impossibly powerful, that could defend each and every one of them... then, Emily and Aurelia's mana crashed into her, and at the same time, her first dream returned to her. Emily, pierced through the heart, blood spilling over her bottom lip... it didn't scare Hina. Instead, an icy resolve spilled through her, and something like lightning crackled around her arms as, with a flash, someone appeared on the ground, looking quite confused. Hina didn't pay them any mind, though; she hadn't run dry on energy, but she was getting there... only for Nao's strength to flood her while Emily and Aurelia's influence tapered off. There was a sharp cry, and then... Hina's head swam, just enough to make her dizzy as she released the flow of magic.
She almost collapsed to her knees, but Emily and Nao moves under her arms, supporting the dizzy badger as all of them looked down, seeing...
"What are you, some kind of Wonderland girl?" Hina was baffled.
"Huh? I thought the people here didn't believe in Wonderland~" The girl on her knees grinned, eyes alight with an unhealthy fire. In many ways, she looked just like a human girl; but she clearly wasn't. Her hair was an electric shade of blue and streaked with lilac hues, and the bushy cat's tail behind her was striped with the same colors. Her eyes were a violent purple, and her teeth, while alarmingly white, were joined by needly little fangs in the place of canines.
"You're like, the Cheshire Cat, but a girl," Hina replied sardonically, angling her head. When she looked at Nao, Emily and Aurelia though... well, all of their faces held a mixture of confusion and surprise.
"Indeed I am! I'm a Cheshire Cat, and my name is Charlotte; though, you can call me Lottie or Chessie, if you like, all my friends do~" the blue and purple girl grinned sharply, casting a wink Hina's way. "Though I have to wonder how you managed to bind me... I'm not exactly the weakest of the Cheshire Cats, you know?" She giggled, then, and jumped to her feet; the girl wore a tight leather top, a dark purple, almost black. Her lower half was clad in leggings, and she wore foot wraps, instead of boots or shoes. However, she carried no weapons, like Nao and Aurelia.
"What matters isn't how, it's that you're stuck with us," Hina said slowly, watching herself. Charlotte, though, stepped forward and draped her arms loosely around Hina's neck, leaning close; the cat girl smelled strongly of hickory smoke, and some sort of fruit that Hina couldn't identify.
"Oh, my dear mistress, how you did it matters very much, to me... but the fact that you can pull it off makes you worthy of my time, so allow me to complete the contract for you," she added, and pushed into a deep kiss. Hina groaned in surprise, and her eyes widened as the Cheshire Cat's tongue pushed into her mouth, exploring hungrily. A moment later, and Chessie broke away with a giggle.
"There~!"
"What...?"
"Ah, Hina..." Emily laughed, glancing at Charlotte with a funny expression. "Familiars and other summoned creatures, somehow I totally forgot..."
"They survive on spirit essence, or in other words, your mana. Which is highly concentrated in any and all bodily fluids, so, she took your mana into herself, basically making her directly connected to you," Aurelia elaborated.
"Indeed! Would you like to see my capabilities, mistress? My powers, if you will?"
"I would, yes," Hina nodded, and felt her stomach shift uncomfortably as Charlotte's grin took on an edge of insanity.
"Put guards on your weapons, then; I'd love for you to try and attack me, if you think that you can." Confused and suddenly getting the feeling that something was wrong with this situation, Hina drew her knives and, as she didn't yet know the spell, handed them to Aurelia, who was reaching for the blades. A moment later, they were back in Hina's hands and everyone was ready to go, four of them surrounding Charlotte.
"Bring it, girls," Lottie smiled in an even more depraved way, her tail flicking excitedly. When Hina hesitated, Nao made the first move; was she some kind of martial artist? Darting forward faster than an African olympic runner, Nao tried to land an open palm strike. Hina moved forward to assist, but... Chessie was gone. Appearing behind Nao, she kicked so forcefully that the girl flew fifteen meters, bounced off a tree and skidded across the dirt. She stood there, thirty meters from Hina, and then she was beside the badger girl a half second later, leveling a kick with Hina's head of white and black locks.
"You forgot I'm a Beast Man too?" Hina snarled, ducking, grabbing the foot and hurling Charlotte; or rather, trying to. The cat girl slipped out of her grasp, kicked Hina in the gut and launched herself toward Emily instead. Really, Hina wasn't even sure what happened; just that Aurelia and Emily were on the ground in the next second, and Nao, who was getting to her feet, landed crumpled at Hina's a fifth of a second later. She only had time to look up before she, too, staggered back from an unseen blow... and then Charlotte smiled sweetly, grabbing Hina and flinging her across the clearing. Hina rolled, but before she could get to her feet, a foot met her torso again, and she flew further... finally, before she stopped, Charlotte grabbed her shirt, forcefully stopping Hina from moving.
"I'm an arch, mistress," Charlotte purred. "Almost impossible to bind... the look in your eyes... you don't know what an arch is, do you?"
"I'm a Summoned Hero..." Hina groaned quietly. "I don't know much about this world yet..."
"An arch is the tried and true most powerful of any given species~ there is no Cheshire Cat who can surpass me, and as you can imagine, other species have a damn hard time~" Slowly, she stood, and helped Hina to her feet. "Don't worry, I was careful to avoid hitting anybody's vitals."
Hina nodded, limping toward the others where they were just climbing to their feet. What was she to do, in an instance like this? At the very least, it was a blow on her pride.
"If you want, though, miss Summoned Hero..." Lottie grinned as if admiring the pained girls. "I can train you; train you like a hellish Wonderland soldier... and trust me, if we wanted, just a hundred of our soldiers could wipe out all of Starria~ as far as your physical capabilities allow, you could fight like me!" She just seemed prim and cheerful now, her smile perfectly sweet and normal.
"I got the tents ready!" A man's voice rang out from through the trees they'd migrated into.