Scourge’s Strongest Gambit: Niedlich!

The Scourge looked on, backing up to his living quarters while still watching his two foes. The chains began to clink again, louder and faster, something was there, something was watching them. “Uhh… Leona…”

She turned quickly, and the beast was upon them. From the shadows it emerged. Grey fur and teeth the size of longswords, yellowed by fresh blood. Trailing behind was a dark tail, covered with cuts and chopped short at the end.

The chains seized it, but, it soon pulled the chains from the walls and freed itself. Now death stared down on them.

“This, dear warriors of Heimstadt, this is my ace. I give you, the giant, the horrendous…” It finally stepped out of the shadow fully, revealing its true form. “Niedlich!”

It was a giant mouse…

*-*-*

Four guards, one soldier. The flask landed on the stones, drips of the alcohol hitting the floor simply turned to vapour instantly.

One of them checked on the grunt that had fallen victim to this toxic tonic, still breathing, but completely out cold. “How… how can you…” He stuttered

Franz swayed, the alcohol working its magic. “Not since the first time, has a single drink managed to get me to such a state.” There was laughter in his voice. Franz had been drinking since his fifteen year of life, every day, every hour. They tried to stop him many times, that bottle would always end up kissing his lips, and gracing him with the sweet, burning nectar. The strongest ales had no effect on him now, he could polish a barrel of mead on his own and still feel less than tipsy.

But this, this was more than anything he had ever come across. It was like he’d taken a hundred flagons in one sip, and had gone far past his limit. His laughter grew louder and louder, his sways further and further.

“Enough of this!” One of the guards said, pushing past his comrades and swinging a club at Franz. It was dodged with ease, but the boy? He was gone, vanished into thin air seemingly.

“Wh- Where is he?!” He asked of his fellow guards, by the time they could respond he was napping, chewing the floor and Franz silently walked on towards the others. They screeched like children, falling over themselves. Those that made it further down the hall were terrified to learn that… their boss had locked the entrance.

*-*-*

The beast lunged it head forward, it’s teeth gnashing over Arata’s shoulder. Leona had got at it’s side and clawed at its hide that was too thick to pierce. She just about managed to duck under its swung paw and back off before she was ripped to pieces in its jaws. The scourge was watching from his office, the glass wall made for such events. He had a fondness for a sort of “Gladiator’s Battle” as he called it, although the gladiators were just innocent bystanders being eaten alive by the vicious beast. He would do as he was now, putting his feet up on his desk and smoking a cigar and taking sips of his brandy.

Leona had found a good place to hide behind. It seemed she hadn’t managed to get out of the way as flawlessly as she thought she had, seeing a thin trickle of blood down her arm. “No good worrying about it now” She thought. Arata’s whereabouts were a mystery to her now, but she was certain the hero would have done the same as she had and got to relative safety. She just needed to find him, they could regroup and find a plan to get past Niedlich. Just looking over the cover, enough that only the top of her head was showing was enough. She’d seen him alright, he hadn’t moved from his spot, mouth gaping and eyes wide. The beast circled him, surely ready to kill. “Reinhardt!” She cried, jumping out of cover.

He looked back at her and she could tell by the look of him, all the fight in him had gone. “He’s scared?” She questioned, but she disagreed with the thought. “It’s Reinhardt! Idiot, the monster has him trapped somehow! I need to save him!”

Like an action hero she vaulted the cover and charged at the mousey monster, ducking the first swing and dodging its bite. She managed a good claw at its underbelly but it seemed to just annoy the beast further. It tried to catch her again but she was quick enough to jump over, not nimble enough to land on her feet. “Surely now” she thought, the beast had surely lost its spell on Reinhardt, he would soon vanquish this furry animal!

He was still standing, dead still in the same spot. “Leona, I…” Before he could finish, she felt it’s tail in her stomach. She flew into the back wall, hard enough for it to crack. All the air in her lungs forced it’s way out in the impact, and the wound from the night before reopened. She hit so hard her vision doubled, she could kind of hear Arata call for her but at the same time it was muffled, as if she had covered her ears with her hands.

The beast heard him though, it turned instead of finishing her and measured up the hero. Leona tried to pull herself loose, displaced rocks and dust fell beside her and a ray of light peeked through as she dropped to her knees. Even with the double vision, she could see it moving towards Arata, if he was still frozen in place he could end up like her, or worse. She needed to stand, as hard as that was. With pure willpower she took a step forward, then that strength betrayed her and she fell forward. Niedlich pounced towards the motionless hero, and all she could do was hold out a hand helplessly, and watch it happen. “Reinhardt…” She whimpered.

*-*-*

The door behind Täter burst open. Startled by it, he dropped his cigar, a fragment of the wood flew close and smashed his glass like it had been shot. He was in an alcove in the room, and leant against the wall between himself and the door. Plotgerät stared at the gap where the door was, hoping, praying. The dust settled, and her heart skipped. The scourge for once looked shocked, for Franz had made his way to the last boss. He saw her first, unable to take the first step for a moment until his resolve strengthened. Once it had, he rushed over, taking away the gag and the rope around her hands.

“Sir Franz!” She gasped

“Sorry it took so long!” He replied with a big goofy smile that made her blush. “Let’s get out of here before that loser comes back!” He hadn’t noticed that Täter was still there, and that as he was helping the Princess out of her bindings, he had quietly approached behind him. She had noticed. “Behind you!” She screamed. He somehow ducked in time to see the Scourge’s fist smash the wall where his head would have been. He’d successfully avoided the attack, but there was distance between them now, and there was no getting her out without going through him now.

“What have you done with my men?!” Täter growled as he wiped away the dust from his knuckles. Franz refused to answer, though drunk his mind raced still. Behind him, the fight between the monster and the duo, he could not hope for back up just yet. It was mano e mano.

“You’re done, Täter. Your barrier looks like the perfect defence to almost everyone that sees it, but I know your weakness.” Confidence overflowed within and he pointed to himself. “I am your weakness.”

The Scourge couldn’t help but chuckle. “Is that so?” He mocked as he took off his jacket and rolled his sleeves above the elbow. “And, how exactly are you my weakness?”

Without warning, Franz leapt forward, it seemed like child’s play for Täter. A frontal attack, likely a simple punch, all he had to do was put up a barrier…

But just where the barrier had appeared, fully invisible to the naked eye as always, Franz stopped. His punch paused, and his drunken sway took him beyond the border, to land a perfectly placed spin kick.

Täter luckily had his arms up and blocked it but he was sent into the wall, dumbfounded that his perfect defence had been beaten. “How did he?!” He wondered… Franz had not looked at him once during that attack, he was looking down.

There was dust, from the bricks that he had smashed before, all in one neat line. The barrier was invisible to all but Täter, however it was still a physical object and Franz watched for the moment the dust stopped moving to learn of its position. Still, the idea that somehow, someone had gotten past his defence… sent the Scourge to a fit of rage he had never felt before.

“Your weakness, is that your barrier is one wall. If I can get past it, I can get to you. For most people, they’d be too slow, you’d simply move the barrier…” Franz explained. It was becoming clear now, that this boy would be more trouble than Täter had thought possible.

“I, in this drunken state, can move beyond your boundary, Scourge! And I won’t let anyone take the Princess from me, definitely not you! I, Täter…” He paused. “I will be your downfall!”