Two Fates: Divine Storm and War Maiden

Chapter Sieg

 Sieg was working out in his room. He had finished layering his muscles to how he wants them, but there is a need to train so they become more effective. Doing a variety of pushups, squats and planks to start out his plan. Stamina would be important. Once he was done, drenched in sweat. He snapped his fingers as a ball of flames coated his body, turning all that sweat to vapor. Sieg opened the door and window of the attic as he went to the shower.

"Young master Sieg?" 

"Yes?" Sieg responded as he showered in the toilet.

"His Grace has called for you." Sieg turned the knob to close the water, then wrapping the towel to his waist. Stepping out to see the maid, who broke away from his sight. 

"Of course. Just let him know, I will be there shortly."  Sieg said, where the maid left the room. Sieg looked at the mirror, Sieg had a bit of scars here and there. Though it was much different, perhaps due to Sieg's current height. His body looked a bit better, not as frail or looked as weak as before. A bit more muscle to the body, it was just a little bit of improvement. Not enough but it was something.

Sieg put on the newly tailored clothes, then walking over to the living room. Seeing the Duke and his stepfamily talking with a pair of guests. Another member of the nobility, Count Morrows and a teenage girl who seemed to be his age.

"You look... Different." 

"Is there a reason to why you've summoned me, Your Grace?" Sieg's tone was ice, he did not want to get attached to any of them nor did he want to keep any sort of friendly relation with them.

"Meet your fiancee, the young lady of House Morrows. Lady Stella Morrows." 

"Hello." She greeted with a curtsy though Sieg let out a sigh.

"Normally a person would be consulted if they were to be engaged. I suppose there must be some political advantage to this for both of you?" Sieg's question brought glares by the Duke and the step family. Count Morrows kept smiling but Sieg could see that anger clearly in the eyes.

"If that's all, then I'll go out on a walk." Sieg said.

"It is rude to refuse one by Count Morrows! Sieg, this is expected of you as a noble!" His stepmother intervened, yet when their eyes met with Sieg's blank stare. They felt a slight hesitation hold them back. Perhaps due to being unable to think about what was on Sieg's mind.

"I will no longer tolerate your disrespect, young master!" A knight spoke up, where Sieg let out a sigh. 

"Sure. Let's settle this in a duel." Sieg said where he could see the glee in the eyes of his family. 

"If the knight wins, I'll agree to the marriage and I'll be an obedient child. If I win? I get to do as I please, I get an allowance that is fitting for the son of a Duke. 25,000 Quills." 

"We all can testify that." The Duke spoke with glee as they headed to the training area. The knight picked up a practice blade, made of cheap metal with a dulled out edge. 

Sieg was scratching his head, there was a lot of weapons for him to choose from. Finding something familiar, it was a katana. 

"Don't use a weapon with a dulled edge. I'm going to use this." Sieg said as he pulled the thread that held the scabbard and blade together. 

"Just don't go crying later." Sieg scoffed at that remark by the knight as he readied his blade.

"This will be a duel between Sieg Baratos and Knight Chase Wynters. Begin!" The Duke adjudicated the match, where they watched as Chase stepped forth. Then stepping back, feeling the chills from Sieg who was just standing still. There was no proper stance to his movements or even a single form of a stance. It was just Sieg who had his right hand scratching his head while left hand resting over the scabbard.

Chase grabbed his neck and touched his arms. Another step forward, Chase felt his neck fly off his head. It was done in a single swing of the blade. Chase stepped back, touching his other limbs. 

"Why is Chase hesitating?" Sieg's face was not one of delight, it was just a blank expression. Yet that simple expression was enough to send shivers down Chase's spine. Every fiber in his body was telling him to throw the towel. Warning him that if he continued it would be dangerous, they were not using dulled blades but rather ones that could kill. 

Sieg did not say a word, no taunts or any form of insulting gestures. Taking steps walking over to Chase who stood still like a statue. In that split second, Sieg vanished and the sound of the blade escaping from its sheathe was heard. Yet, Sieg was nowhere to be seen. He stood in between Duke Baratos and Count Morrows, they watched how Sieg sheathed the katana back into its scabbard. Chase that was clad in full armor watched how the armor fell off his body. 

Sieg glanced at the katana, watching it shatter from use.Chase fell to his knees, looking at Sieg as his hands shook. 

"A swordsman must understand. When you wield your weapon. You must ensure that your weapon follows through with your intention. I chose not to cut through you Chase, and my weapon responded to that will." Sieg said as he walked over to Chase, offering his hand. Chase took it, where Sieg helped Chase back up on his feet.

"Are you truly the same person, Young Master?" 

"When one has a near death experience. When fear is all that I have. At one point, you get so tired of being afraid that you start to fight back. A cornered rat will still put up a fight against a cat, even if the rat will die. It does not die fighting." Sieg's words earned a nod from Chase who knelt straight. 

"Young master... Forgive my rudeness and lack of chivalry. Please, allow me the honor to be your personal knight." Chase said as he lowered his head.

"Raise your head, Chase. You are a knight of the Baratos family. Your loyalty must lie in the house. I am merely a person of the house. A knight's loyalty must only shift once their debt to their master has been paid off. Your debt to His Grace is still there." Sieg said as he patted Chase's shoulder.

"Your grace, Count Morrows. I take it that we are done here? I would like to get my Quill so I can get a replacement." Sieg said then looking at Stella Morrows.

"I apologize, Stella but I cannot simply accept something as the norm just because our parents say so." Stella smiled and brushed her arm.

"Thank you, for your words." Sieg bowed, then watching as the butler held a bag of coins. Sieg took a glance at it, they were purple coins. 

"That's roughly 50 thousand quills, Your Grace." 

"Take it. So you can buy clothes for yourself as well." Sieg nodded as he headed out on his own. Where a few of the servants offered to drive, but Sieg refused. Stating he could use a walk. The walk was easy, nothing that would stress his mind. Taking in the new scenery of Alistair, the castle that was at the edge of the city, yet it towered above most of the buildings. 

Sieg had to think about what he needed, he was definitely not going to need a firearm because he does not have the skills to do so. He needed to practice with firearms first, then he would have to make a decision on what he would need based on his preference. What he needed now were weapons, especially ones that can be bound to him by call. Having a weapon being bound by a call gives Sieg more chances to sneak weapons through without anyone detecting them. 

Seeing the cars that replaced the carriages and horses from before, now he noticed that people are frequently wearing shirt and pants, a mix of dresses that seem to be smaller and easier to move around in. He also noticed there was a lack of homeless nearby which was a good sign at least. Though he hopes that they were not evicted. Walking through the streets, Sieg found himself in the city. Now looking for signs that pointed to a weapon shop. Stepping in where he could see the shop having a variety of weapons from flintlocks to self loading pistols, knives to swords. Sieg moved about as he looked at a variety of katanas. 

"What's your budget?" 

"50 thousand Quills." The shopkeeper sighed.

"Sorry but quality craft requires the payment. If you want to buy the katanas in the display case, it'll be at least half a million Quills." 

"Alright. I understand." Sieg said as he looked around, though he did feel something from the navy katana with the beautiful engravings on the scabbard. Sieg picked it up, something kept making him stare at it. Like he could never let the katana go.

"Hey, Marlow. How's it going?" Another person spoke up, but Sieg did not pay attention to their voices. Then he pulled out the katana from its sheathe, he felt the unnatural aura that was being emitted by it. 

"Whoa... Marlow... Did that kid just pull out the Azure White?" Sieg heard their voices but he was staring at the beauty of the blade. Despite the navy scabbard, the inside of the katana was white as snow. It was a little difficult for Sieg to take a look at the temper pattern. The balance of the blade was quite heavy in the center, it would make piercing attacks to be inadequate but in terms of slashes. It was quite perfect but not anywhere near as perfect as Crow's original blade. The katana and scabbard were named, the katana being True Dusk and the scabbard being True Dawn. That blade was perfect, tempered out of the strongest material ever known to the world.  Crying Baladium Ore, known for its otherworldly powers and properties but the testament lies in the user. 

Judging by the material itself it is possible the blade was crafted with a special blend of iron, carbon and and one other material that escaped Sieg's mind at the moment.

"Hey, kid. You know what you're doing? That katana is a little bit unstable." 

"Yes. I can see why. Was this one of the creations by the One Eyed Hermit?" The shopkeeper had a smile on his face.

"You've heard about the One Eyed Hermit? He's a name that most swordsmen run from. He's made fine weapons but they are too technical to wield. It's like the weapons are possessed!" That deduction is not far fetched, Sieg could feel something was wrong with this blade. Azure White, perhaps it was named after the Azure Shark that haunts the ocean as the Apex Predator of its class. Quite the problematic blade and perhaps it has the same lust as an Azure Shark.

The One Eyed Hermit, that old man must have died creating weapons for only those worthy of using them. Even True Dawn and True Dusk were crafted by him, including the weapons used by Elena Strongbow. Her Sabers, the Morningstar was forged by the One Eyed Hermit. Wanting to see what happens when two of his finest weapons go head to head. 

Then he found something peculiar, it was a katana styled blade but its length... Far exceeded what the normal katana was. 

"That's an Odachi. It's basically a larger, heavier katana. Think like our longswords or claymores. That one's made by the One Eyed Hermit's descendant. They called her Demon Smith. She's always wearing the demon mask even during her smithing. I can assure you that the Odachi's quality is superb. I put it at 5 thousand Quill because it keeps getting returned. Originally I set it for half a million but it kept getting returned. The Demon Smith gave the name Deity Slayer." Sieg picked up the odachi, beautiful white scabbard but when he pulled the Odachi slightly, he could see the blade being a complete shade of black.

Now it made sense to him, the blade was being returned because of its nature. Even unsheathing it for a bit, Sieg could feel the murderous intent of the blade piercing through his skin. This was like a blade that was full of madness, wishing to just slaughter whatever that it sees. Azure White's bloodlust is far simpler, it was just a craving. The Deity Slayer on the other hand, it was more of a lustrous desire for blood to be spilled. Taming such a blade sounded fun, but he needed one more katana.

"I'll take the Deity Slayer and Azure White." Sieg said as he placed the coins over at the table.

"Ya know, kid. You knew the Azure White and you could unleash that Odachi without getting into shock. Color me impressed... How about we make a wager? I got this one katana that I really want to get rid off but I can't find any buyers." Sieg glanced over at the jet black katana, it lacked a handguard that was commonly present in most katanas. Its scabbard was black with gold trimmings and the hilt was finely decorated. 

Sieg went over to this katana and picked it up. He undid the string of the katana, then was able to draw it completely.

"Great. You know what. You guessed the katana right, and you drew it out. It's yours." The shopkeeper said. 

"You sure? This is a fine blade." Sieg asked as he looked at the classic shade of silver that the blade had.

"I'm sure. No point selling it at a million if no one wants it. I don't even know its name, but it's said that was the last blade by the One Eyed Hermit." Sieg bowed to the shopkeeper.

"I will never forget this kindness, sir. Please your name?" 

"Marlow Givens. I own the shop and I make blades as well, but only western ones. Eastern blades are far too complex and I don't feel qualified to craft such pieces. And I'll take maybe...40 thousand Quill for all three swords. You're not an amateur, you look young but judging by how those blades responded to you. Then you're qualified for it." 

"Just know that Sieg Barotos of House Barotos is in your debt, sir." Marlow's face changed the moment he heard that name. 

"Alright then. I'll come and collect that debt one day, now." Marlow said with a smile as Sieg left the weapon shop. Having these three blades would be perfect and considering that he can use the weapon binding spell on all three makes it better. Though, he does not know the name of the last sword and it does bother him to an extent. 

Sieg went over to a nearby boutique, buying simple clothes that would fit him. Nothing too crazy, so Sieg went back to his room afterwards. He wanted to take a look at the last katana he had gotten. The temper pattern was in even, there words written on it. 'Heavenly Soujourn' and something fell out from the katana's scabbard. Something he had not noticed. A letter from the One Eyed Hermit.

 "This blade is the Star Performer of True Dawn and True Dusk. Named as Heavenly Soujourn for every person must live their lives to their limits and that our stay is a temporary one.  I gave the True Dawn and True Dusk to the Divine Storm and Morningstar to War Maiden. A testament to their love of duels, though ill fated. I heard that they both passed on together, if they were still alive... I would have given Heavenly SOujourn to Crow and Morningstar's Star Performer, Darkstar to Elena. To whoever that reads this, you are now the fine owner of this blade. One that was meant for a legend. Use this blade well."   Sieg's eyes had started to tear up, reading such a letter from a legendary sword smith and friend. 

Though the One Eyed Hermit was neutral, to him swords are a testament to their owners.How a blade is used is not for him to judge, but rather. It was for their wielders to decide. So if the fates of countries relied on his blades, then so be it. 

"Thank you, old man. I'll make sure to find Darkstar and give it to Elena. Even if I have to work my bones for it." Sieg said as he leaned to the wall, looking up to the ceiling. 

"Sheesh, Elena. Who are you in this life, and can't I just find you again? Just missing you like this isn't easy. I have to think about dates. I want to know your favourite food. Your favourite books. There's just a lot to unpack! But you wait for me. I'll make sure t obring darkstar for you and we can go on a date with our blades. But we can't just be talking about swords all the time right?" Sieg whispered to himself, just imagining himself as Crow and Elena being together.