Fic: we won all the battles
Title: We won all the battles (and still lost the war, mind you)
Word count: ~ 11700, split into a yet undetermined number of chapters
Who: bunch of known Saints, some made-up bronzes and silvers and the enemy. Main chara: Shura
Notes and disclaimer: Written in partial fulfillment of the saintseiyayaoi's challenge requirements, which I happily finish with this. All praise goes to Kurumada, who created StS. And kudos to the companies that bought it and distributed it.
Availability: (thanks to the respondents to the survey) In this house: by bits, with their corresponding cliffhangers.
All in one (loooong) piece at wonderful ariadnem's Labyrinth here (million thanks for hosting the monster, dearest!)
So on to
Part 1] (25) Darkness
The earth underneath their feet trembled again, and some more cracks appeared on the ground. The noise was becoming deafening, and the sky had turned dark gray. All hell was getting loose on Earth, and that only could mean that another God was taking over.
There was just a tiny detail that didn’t fit in the picture: it was impossible. They had defeated them all. Every single God and Goddess, one after another, until only Athena stood her ground on the human world. It had taken years, but they knew it was done.
Kiki screamed as the earth opened up under his feet, and Mu was barely able to grasp his arm and pull him to his side before the gash filled with lava. The group moved to higher ground, carefully avoiding the lashes of gas.
They weren’t all here, not yet. The Saints had dispersed after the last battle, some returning to their half forgotten homelands, others trying to build a normal life on the security that their mission was accomplished and their world safe. But they all had been called, and soon the saints would be together again.
A sparkle became a line that opened in the gray sky and Milo joined the ranks. As it had always been normal in him, he skipped the niceties and went straight to the point.
- What’s wrong? I haven’t been able to enter Athena’s House.
- Neither has anybody else, Scorpio.
Saga shook hands with the newcomer and filled him in with the latest details. It all had started a few hours ago. Suddenly, there had been a huge noise and then, darkness. At first just a ball of black energy swallowing up Athena’s House, but then it had … exploded. And as it became bigger, engulfing the Houses and Sanctuary, it had changed colors. Soon it was impossible to tell whether the advancing line was red, or green, or … it changed too much and too fast. But whatever color it took, it always seemed to get darker. Even the pristine white that sparkled now and then in the sickening mutations of colors seemed dark.
- And you didn’t do anything, Saga? You just let it go unchecked? Do you know it now spreads everywhere?
- Don’t be a fool, Milo. We did everything we could, but this… thing could not be stopped. It took it about an hour to reach the borders of Sanctuary and then it just…
Another sparkle and Camus appeared close behind the two men.
- An hour? You are you not saying this thing moved around within the boundaries for an hour and you just called us now?
- Nice to see you too. Be welcomed to your home, Aquarius, or whatever is left of it in there. About your question, let me give you another one: where have you been in the last sixty minutes? Where have all of you been while we fought and died?
Milo raised his hand and glared at Camus. Saga had been the Kyoko for many years and of all the things he could be accused of, inefficiency was never one of them. Soothingly, he spoke:
- We never heard you call, Saga. You know it. Be reasonable and let go, we don’t have time for this.
The older man stepped away. He hadn’t realized he had taken Camus by the collar of his shirt, or even raised a fist. He sat on a flat rock in a hill that hadn’t been there a mere fifteen minutes ago, and smiled up to Mu when he approached and patted his back. The Aries Saint had been of the few who had decided to stay when everything became safe - all those years away from Greece had created a longing for it, so he hadn’t returned to the home of his exile. And because of that decision, he and Kiki had seen more horrors in the last hour than they would have otherwise reasonably expected to witness in their two lives combined.
- We know. You must forgive Saga, the day has been hard on us all and he’s tired. It isn’t noon yet and things don’t seem to be about to get any better. We figured something was blocking our calls, so we gathered those who were here and marched towards the Sacred Stairs while the darkness was still coming down. We only managed to reach the Aquarius Temple before it was taken, where we met with Aphrodite, and from there we were forced to back down.
Milo looked around, seeing in his comrades’ faces the toll of that battle. Camus had sat by Saga, and was whispering words to him, an arm over his neck. Apologies or comfort, Scorpio couldn’t tell. He followed the Aries Saint to the verge of the rocky platform and also looked out to Sanctuary. Milo had the feeling he was not going to like the answer, but he had to ask all the same.
- Before I left for my home country, I talked to Aphrodite. He said he didn’t have anywhere to go, and that he would only leave his House to be taken to his tomb. What did he see in the darkness, and why isn’t he here?
- When we saw him… he… said… It wasn’t him, Milo. The Cloth was his, but it wasn’t him.
- What do you mean it wasn’t him? Someone took over his House and usurped his Cloth?
- No, not like that. It was Aphrodite. His body, his voice, his aura. And yet… when we called out his name, he turned his head and opened his eyes wide as no human would. His eyes grew almost to his chin, and there was madness in them. And when he spoke… he said “it has begun. And now I’ll see to it that it never ends before I say so”
There were swirls where his pupils should have been. Then he screamed out, the swirls circled around madly, and he just collapsed, foam coming out of his mouth like a rabid dog.
Milo sighed. Aphrodite hadn’t been his friend, but his death saddened him all the same. Still, mourning could wait. There were other, more pressing, matters at hand.
- What about Athena? Was she in her temple when it started?
Mu sighed, but before he could answer two men reached the back of the hill and one of them beat him in answering.
Go to part 2
Word count: ~ 11700, split into a yet undetermined number of chapters
Who: bunch of known Saints, some made-up bronzes and silvers and the enemy. Main chara: Shura
Notes and disclaimer: Written in partial fulfillment of the saintseiyayaoi's challenge requirements, which I happily finish with this. All praise goes to Kurumada, who created StS. And kudos to the companies that bought it and distributed it.
Availability: (thanks to the respondents to the survey) In this house: by bits, with their corresponding cliffhangers.
All in one (loooong) piece at wonderful ariadnem's Labyrinth here (million thanks for hosting the monster, dearest!)
So on to
Part 1] (25) Darkness
The earth underneath their feet trembled again, and some more cracks appeared on the ground. The noise was becoming deafening, and the sky had turned dark gray. All hell was getting loose on Earth, and that only could mean that another God was taking over.
There was just a tiny detail that didn’t fit in the picture: it was impossible. They had defeated them all. Every single God and Goddess, one after another, until only Athena stood her ground on the human world. It had taken years, but they knew it was done.
Kiki screamed as the earth opened up under his feet, and Mu was barely able to grasp his arm and pull him to his side before the gash filled with lava. The group moved to higher ground, carefully avoiding the lashes of gas.
They weren’t all here, not yet. The Saints had dispersed after the last battle, some returning to their half forgotten homelands, others trying to build a normal life on the security that their mission was accomplished and their world safe. But they all had been called, and soon the saints would be together again.
A sparkle became a line that opened in the gray sky and Milo joined the ranks. As it had always been normal in him, he skipped the niceties and went straight to the point.
- What’s wrong? I haven’t been able to enter Athena’s House.
- Neither has anybody else, Scorpio.
Saga shook hands with the newcomer and filled him in with the latest details. It all had started a few hours ago. Suddenly, there had been a huge noise and then, darkness. At first just a ball of black energy swallowing up Athena’s House, but then it had … exploded. And as it became bigger, engulfing the Houses and Sanctuary, it had changed colors. Soon it was impossible to tell whether the advancing line was red, or green, or … it changed too much and too fast. But whatever color it took, it always seemed to get darker. Even the pristine white that sparkled now and then in the sickening mutations of colors seemed dark.
- And you didn’t do anything, Saga? You just let it go unchecked? Do you know it now spreads everywhere?
- Don’t be a fool, Milo. We did everything we could, but this… thing could not be stopped. It took it about an hour to reach the borders of Sanctuary and then it just…
Another sparkle and Camus appeared close behind the two men.
- An hour? You are you not saying this thing moved around within the boundaries for an hour and you just called us now?
- Nice to see you too. Be welcomed to your home, Aquarius, or whatever is left of it in there. About your question, let me give you another one: where have you been in the last sixty minutes? Where have all of you been while we fought and died?
Milo raised his hand and glared at Camus. Saga had been the Kyoko for many years and of all the things he could be accused of, inefficiency was never one of them. Soothingly, he spoke:
- We never heard you call, Saga. You know it. Be reasonable and let go, we don’t have time for this.
The older man stepped away. He hadn’t realized he had taken Camus by the collar of his shirt, or even raised a fist. He sat on a flat rock in a hill that hadn’t been there a mere fifteen minutes ago, and smiled up to Mu when he approached and patted his back. The Aries Saint had been of the few who had decided to stay when everything became safe - all those years away from Greece had created a longing for it, so he hadn’t returned to the home of his exile. And because of that decision, he and Kiki had seen more horrors in the last hour than they would have otherwise reasonably expected to witness in their two lives combined.
- We know. You must forgive Saga, the day has been hard on us all and he’s tired. It isn’t noon yet and things don’t seem to be about to get any better. We figured something was blocking our calls, so we gathered those who were here and marched towards the Sacred Stairs while the darkness was still coming down. We only managed to reach the Aquarius Temple before it was taken, where we met with Aphrodite, and from there we were forced to back down.
Milo looked around, seeing in his comrades’ faces the toll of that battle. Camus had sat by Saga, and was whispering words to him, an arm over his neck. Apologies or comfort, Scorpio couldn’t tell. He followed the Aries Saint to the verge of the rocky platform and also looked out to Sanctuary. Milo had the feeling he was not going to like the answer, but he had to ask all the same.
- Before I left for my home country, I talked to Aphrodite. He said he didn’t have anywhere to go, and that he would only leave his House to be taken to his tomb. What did he see in the darkness, and why isn’t he here?
- When we saw him… he… said… It wasn’t him, Milo. The Cloth was his, but it wasn’t him.
- What do you mean it wasn’t him? Someone took over his House and usurped his Cloth?
- No, not like that. It was Aphrodite. His body, his voice, his aura. And yet… when we called out his name, he turned his head and opened his eyes wide as no human would. His eyes grew almost to his chin, and there was madness in them. And when he spoke… he said “it has begun. And now I’ll see to it that it never ends before I say so”
There were swirls where his pupils should have been. Then he screamed out, the swirls circled around madly, and he just collapsed, foam coming out of his mouth like a rabid dog.
Milo sighed. Aphrodite hadn’t been his friend, but his death saddened him all the same. Still, mourning could wait. There were other, more pressing, matters at hand.
- What about Athena? Was she in her temple when it started?
Mu sighed, but before he could answer two men reached the back of the hill and one of them beat him in answering.
Go to part 2