--

Shite, fuck, fuck! Things did not go better than expected. They went exactly as Meiko thought they would, and although Yugiri had successfully taken out a majority of Zenos’ escort, he was still as big a problem as ever. 

“OI, FUCKHEAD! AWAY FROM HER!” 

Meiko moved as soon as she saw Yugiri fall, aiming to distract Zenos from landing a lethal blow. Yotsuyu was there too, the snake, but she couldn’t risk taking her eyes off of the Crown Prince to subdue her.

Building on her bravado and hoping it would keep his attention, she drew her chakrams:

“I owe your arse a proper Limsan beatin’ after what you did to my brother back at Rhalgr’s Reach!”

Zenos yae Galvus turned slowly, and Meiko could not help but wonder how Garleans fashioned such corrupt-looking armor and yet insist they were not the villains of this world. Head tilted in recollection before slowly, he drawled, “Rhalgr’s Reach? That feels like so long ago.” A pause. Then he added, “Although I do not recall killing a Viera.”

“You didn’t, and he’s not,” she hissed. Oh, even if he hadn’t hurt Hiko, she knew for certain how badly she wanted to tear this uppity, bored-sounding bastard’s head from his shoulders. But she knew better than to charge right in. He was feared for a reason. Even now, she was terrified. “The Miqo’te lad! The one that stood against you.” Afore you sliced his eye open like a Rolanberry! “I’ve a mind to take revenge for his injury.”

Zenos’ posture shifted. “Oh. That one.” He looked to Yotsuyu. “Well, then. Mayhap I shall test this new blade of yours. Let us hope it is to my liking, lest your misfortunes compound.”

Yotsuyu looked at him, alarmed, and then ran. It took Meiko all of her willpower not to throw a chakram towards her retreating form. Behind Zenos, she saw Yugiri struggling to get up.

No! Stay down! Fuck.

“Use whate’er fancy stick you want! Just fight me already!” She could hear her heartbeat in her ears. She kept hoping, praying that A’kihiko and Gosetsu and the others would come running around the corner -- but they weren’t. She knew they weren’t.

Had they even noticed she was gone?

Zenos went to grasp the hilt of a certain blade settled into the mechanical sheath at his hip -- then stopped. Sighed. Drew another.

“Then again, I am loath to expend such effort on the unworthy. Perhaps if you amuse me as long as your brother did, then I shall change my mind. Until then -- you may fight to earn the honor.”

Oh, fuck you. What an obnoxious prick!

Breaking into a run, Meiko threw her left chakram with all her strength straight at him, using the momentum of the throw to twirl into a spin that sent the right one his way as well. As she spun, her aether channeled from the bottoms of her feet up through her body, granting her a burst of strength and speed as she kicked at Zenos -- who had clearly been too unbothered to dodge.

His body titled back from the impact, but his sword arm shift suddenly -- Meiko saw it. She staggered back, catching her chakrams in each hand as a flash of light signaled his blade nearly coming up to slice her in twain.

Really fuckin’ fast -- got it! She rolled backward and threw her chakrams again, trying to maintain a safe distance as she whittled down his stamina. But then he started to walk towards her, steps slow and steady, and she felt panic rise in her as he did.

Was this how A’kihiko felt? Had he been afraid?

Thinking about that made her angry.

“You truly think you can best me from afar?” Zenos asked, unimpressed. He came to a stop and drew his sword again, its blade glinting in the light of the moon.

“Just tryin’ to avoid the royal Garlean stench!”

Anger. Was that why she had understood Yugiri’s true intent? That feeling of reaching the end of one’s rope? It was like how she had been in Ishgard. She had sensed it, too. 

Fray had said that everyone had their own darkness, after all.

“What a shining example of Eorzean barbarism,” Zenos brought his blade down, stabbing into the dirt, and the tremors that emitted from it nearly threw Meiko to her knees. “I’ll make sure your death suits you!”

He can fuck the ground up -- noted!

She dodged as he swung again, twirling and throwing her chakrams at a rapid pace, releasing them as soon as they returned to her hands as she remained feather light on her feet. And just when she thought she had picked out his strengths and weaknesses, he leapt as though he were the Azure Dragoon and landed yalms away.

Again, he raised his blade, but this time he faced Yugiri. Of course he would! With a scream of frustration, Meiko rushed straight at him, emotions fueling her as darkness wrapping itself around her chakrams. She didn’t throw them -- she held them tight in her hands, wrists crossed, leaping to close the distance and slammed them against his blade.

For the briefest moment, she remained above the ground as she forced all of her weight and strength down against his sword. She could hear the air crackling around them, could feel Zenos pushing her back -- one-handed, but still! He could not bring the weapon down -- and so he sidestepped, leaving her to crash into the dirt.

She was open, vulnerable, and half-braced for a quick death -- but he didn’t follow up. Instead, the crown prince sheathed his present weapon -- only to draw another. The one he had indicated before to Yotsuyu.

“Get up, beast,” he commended. “You have earned the right to look upon the Ame no Habakiri.”

Meiko stood, turning to face him -- then felt her stomach drop. The katana he was referring to was giving off waves of crimson energy, pulsating from the blade and curling around him like the eye of a tempest.

He held it up. Again, the air hummed with energy -- and she scrambled away to avoid the incoming attack. The ground split beneath her, but she managed not to trip as she tried to regain her bearings. Zenos was walking towards her again, slow and steady and yet somehow twice as aggressive:

“Did you not want revenge, beast? Come and take it!” He cut through the air again and sent another wave her way. “Give me something to remember!”

“I ain’t a bloody beast!” Her mind was racing, frantic, eyes scanning her surroundings for some sort of advantage. He wasn’t letting up, not giving her any time to reposition herself, let alone go on the offensive! He was counting on her to get tired and fuck up.

Too late, I already fucked up just bein’ here!

She looked back as he swung his sword up again, counting the beats like she did when she learned a new dance. There was a pattern, there always had to be with learned skills -- and once she dodged one more attack, she prayed her timing wasn’t off. She managed to get to the walls of one of the ruins as he swung, channeling her aether down as she pressed her foot against the wall and took two steps up it.

One, two, three!

On the third step, she twisted around and kicked off the wall, twirling as she did. 

One, two --!

The added strength from her aether shot her upwards and at the height of her arc -- just out of range of the blast -- she threw both chakrams with all of her strength. His armor was impenetrable, surely, but a blade was still a blade! She aimed for that. If only to knock it free of his hands, so that she could nab Yugiri and escape…!

There was a sharp, piercing grating of metal on metal. Meiko miscalculated her jump; she landed heavy on the ground, but looked up just in time to see Zenos…pause his attack. Her chakrams lay just as she did, except considerably farther away. Out of reach.

Dread pitted in her stomach when she realized his sword was still in his hand. That was her brightest strategy, and it had done nothing.

Zenos looked her over. Then he raised his sword again.

“...You’re better than most, I’ll grant you that. But not good enough.” The weapon swung down once more, “This ends now.”

This attack was not like the others. Not only did it shake and shatter the ground beneath them, but the energy erupting from beneath it threw Meiko like a leaf on the wind. She couldn’t see Yugiri or Yotsuyu or even Zenos himself. Just red -- then white, and then she couldn’t feel anything but something akin to invisible claws ripping at her flesh as her body made contact with the very building wall she’d used to propel herself earlier.

The slam to her head against stone felt as though it might knock her eyeballs rolling from her head. As she lay in the dirt, the shadow of Zenos yae Galvus suddenly blotted out the moon above; she looked up just in time to see him pierce her abdomen with that infamous blade.

The shriek of pain that escaped her didn’t feel like it was coming from her -- it felt far away, even as the blood pooled, spilling over her legs. Still, he bore almost no reaction: even his stabbing had been lackluster, more a disappointed and half-hearted gesture meant to end a laborious engagement.

“You managed to amuse me…for a while.” He yanked the weapon free and as soon as it cleared the wound, she curled up, clutching at the wound with a shaky gasp. “Perhaps this will drive your brother to fight harder on your behalf in turn.”

Meiko wished she had the strength to lift her head and spit at him, but it took everything she had not to simply succumb to the gaping wound in her belly. In a flash, however, there was a shout:

“Get away from them, you imperial dog!”

It was a voice she didn’t recognized immediately, but she managed to peek one eye open when she heard Yugiri’s gasp. It was Isse, the lad from that village who hated them so -- leading the charge with other villagers. If she wasn’t presently bleeding out, she would have cheered them on; fortunately, her brother soon joined the battlefield. She knew not because she saw him, but because she heard him screaming in the distance and quickly getting closer.

“Hik--” She wanted to scream for him to stay back, not to be drawn into a fight with this monster again! But then she heard Alisaie’s voice, followed by the familiar pomf! of shinobi smoke bombs flooding the area with a thick shroud.

When her eyes searched for Zenos, he was gone -- and she was being picked up rather abruptly by Gosetsu.

“Hang on, my friend,” his boisterous voice announced as he turned right around and broke into a run. “We shall get you to a healer as soon as we can!”

“Y-Yugiri--”

“Aye, we have her, too. Do not worry!”

“Oh,” Meiko gasped, wincing as her wound tore further from all the jostling around. “Okay.”

She promptly lost consciousness.

--

“Eat.” A’kihiko sat crossed-legged beside his sister, who was laid out on a mat on the floor of the House of the Fierce. As soon as she had regained consciousness, he was by her side with water and an only somewhat-squashed rice ball practically shoved in her face. “Alphinaud did his best he could to heal you, but you still need to rebuild your strength the ol’ fashioned way.”

His sister stared up at the rice ball.

“Can’t sit up without bein’ in pain, you gobshite. M’I s’pposed to lay and choke?”

“Maybe.” He rolled his eyes and pressed the food into her hands. “Take it, I’ll prop you up.”

“Kay.” She accepted it and watched as he fussed around, grabbing spare pillows and stuffing them under her shoulders and head. It didn’t help much, but she allowed him to think he was assisting. She knew he needed that right now, so she did as she was told and nibbled quietly on the rice ball. “Thanks.”

“Fuck off,” he grumbled. “You shouldn’t have done that, Mei.”

“I know.”

“You could’ve been killed! You were ‘bout to be killed!”

“I know.”

“So why did you do it? You know better than Yugiri did!”

Meiko chewed the rice ball quietly. In the corner of the room, she could see Yugiri was still asleep. Her injuries, from what she had overheard, were not as grave, but she still had not yet roused. Eyes fell to her legs. Her left one was broken, although both were numb right now. She would soon start to feel every ache and pain in the next couple of hours.

More importantly, she would be in no condition to fight for quite a while. 

Useless, she thought.

Her gaze rose to hold her brother’s, waiting impatiently for an answer.

“...I wanted revenge,” she said finally. “For what he did to you, and everyone he ever hurt. In Gyr Abania and in Doma.”

It would have been easier to admit the truth; that she had simply been dragged along by Yugiri, albeit willingly, and knew it was a fool’s errand from the beginning. But she could not imagine the guilt the shinobi would feel over the entire affair. People expected better of her -- it was clear in how none of them had believed her threats from earlier. But would any of them be surprised that Meiko Mochikoko egged her on, stupid and overly aggressive as per usual? No.

Well, aside from her brother.

“That what you’re goin’ with?” he prompted, unconvinced. “Takin’ all the credit for the dumb idea?”

Meiko frowned at him. “Aye. And I’d appreciate it if you spread the word afore Yugiri wakes and can refute it.”

A’kihiko sighed. “Fine. Whatever you want. But on one condition.”

Meiko took another bite. “Mm?”

“Go back to Kugane while you recover.” He said it was a condition, but his tone betrayed it as a plea. “You’ll be safer there. It’ll put my mind at ease knowin’ Tataru and Grym can watch over you. And it’s a place of neutrality…at least for now.”

The Viera sighed. Then nodded. “Aye. Once m’good enough to make it through the Aetheryte, I’ll go there for rest. But only until my strength’s returned.”

“Good.” As she finished eating, he offered her the cup of water. She accepted it and drank, and as she did, he went on, “The villagers found their will to fight. Gosetsu believes that this will be enough to convince Lord Hien to return.”

“You gonna liberate Doma while m’in Kugane? Hardly sounds fair.”

“We might not have a choice for timin’ now that Zenos knows we’re here.”

“Ah. True, aye.” Meiko shrugged, accepting that. She finished drinking and laid back comfortably. “M’sorry I worried you.”

“I worry you all the time. We’re square.” He sighed and looked back towards the door that led to the main chamber. “Go ahead and rest for now.”

“Aye.” Her eyes fluttered shut with ease, almost as if listening to a command. “Hey.”

“Yeah?” He got up.

“I love you,” she muttered.