The Second Archon War: Animula Choragi 5

Animula Choragi 5: Small One

Being a dishwasher was a very different life from being the National Mascot of Fontaine. Instead of wearing the finest outfits and traveling in the highest luxury, Furina wore second-hand clothes that ended up grease-stained and smudged, and she was carried about in dirty, smelly metro cars, often on the very last train of the day when she was dead on her feet. Instead of pâtissiers the world over competing to bring her the finest of desserts, she wolfed down whatever was left over at the end of her shift, and treated herself to cheap ice cream bars. 

 And yet…and yet, Furina was having the time of her life. In fact, Furina felt like, for once, she WAS having a life! She’d bring Yennifer takeout for a late lunch in her office around 3pm if she wasn’t with a client, arranged over the wondrous device known as a “cellular phone” that they had purchased. After the restaurant closed and before the last train at 1:30am, Furina would sit and laugh and eat with Julie, Ling, and Uncle Mao (which he now insisted she call him) while they shared a few beers or a bottle of wine and ate whatever Ling or Uncle Mao whipped up for their dinner. 

She even had two days off! Mondays the Restaurant was closed, and Sundays were slow enough that Furina wasn’t needed. Yen had Sunday’s off too, and after exactly two weeks on Earth Bet, Yennifer took Furina and Charlotte to the Louvre. 

“If you’re going to stay in Paris, you simply have to see the Louvre. It will be quite crowded, but if you’re going to have an appreciation for the French Arts, it’s the perfect place to start,” Yennifer told Furina. 

“Really? Have you been there often?” Furina asked, rather excited at the prospect. She rather enjoyed art galleries and museums, though she’d not often had the time to visit. The Galerie d'Histoire Naturelle in Fontaine had been home to a number of remarkable artifacts, and the Salle des Beaux-Arts d'Egeria hosted the best collection of fine art on Teyvat, with scholars from Sumeru and aficionado from as far away as Inazuma traveling to marvel at the collection. 

Furina did hope the museums’ collections had survived the flood. It would be tragic if the great history of Fontaine had been washed away by the waters. 

“It’s alright, I guess. I called Barbs, she’ll meet us there,” Charlotte said. She was wearing a nicer dress than usual, pink to go with her cream-colored blouse, along with a red striped newsboy cap and practical black shoes. 

“Really? I’m surprised the two of you want to come,” Yennifer commented, then she frowned. “Unless, wait…is there some sort of exposé you’re doing?” 

“Hehe, you know me! Always got a story!” Charlotte laughed as they left the apartment. 

Yennifer had on a red and white sun dress herself, with short one-centimeter heels on brown shoes with stockings. She also had on a warm brown beret, along with a rather nice purse Furina hadn’t seen her wear before. 

For herself, Furina had on her nicest outfit; a long-sleeve white shirt with a blue jacket, dark blue knee length skirt, black stockings, and some cute blue shoes with two centimeter heels. She’d gotten a very practical and cute blue bag that matched her eyes from a second-hand store, which Charlotte had helped her accent with something she called a “bedazzler”. They’d made a blue hydro drop in sapphire colored beads on it, and Furina quite liked the effect. 

She also, of course, had a hat, in this case a black beret that Yennifer had loaned her. Her hair was now dyed buttery blonde, including her eyebrows. They’d go to a salon for a proper haircut later, but for now Furina was just using a beauty charm she’d learned long ago. The first time she’d used it, Yennifer had been rather shocked, seeing Furina just chant a magic spell to change her hair from its long form that hung down to the small of her back, to the bob cut she was sporting now.

“I thought you said you didn’t have any special powers?!” Yennifer had gasped, hand to her chest. 

“Hmm? This? Anyone can learn to do this, it’s just a standard beauty charm,” Furina told Yen, her brow furrowed. “The hardest part was getting enough elemental energy, but Ling had some slime condensate on hand, and that worked perfectly well as a catalyst since you don’t have mora.”

“Wait, ANYONE can just change the length of their hair?! Are you serious?!” Yennifer had gasped. 

“Yes, though if you want a proper haircut, you do still need a stylist,” Furina said, peering into the bathroom mirror and adjusting her hair slightly. Normally, she saw a stylist once a week, but it had been almost a month since her last haircut, thanks to the insanity her life had been. “This just modifies the length. You do have to perform a short ritual to set that length, and changing it can be a bore, but it is oh so very worth it if you want to vary your look.”

“Can you teach me?!” Charlotte had asked, eyes aglow with passion as she stuck her head into the bathroom. 

“Yes, though I’m really jealous. As a Vision Holder, you have an unlimited amount of elemental energy to use. I always had to palm some mora to get people to think I was generating it,” Furina said with a sigh. 

Right at this moment, Furina had grown her hair out again. She’d shorten it when it was time for work on Tuesday, but that was simple enough. 

They rode the metro all the way to the Louvre, which turned out to have an enormous glass pyramid at the center. Furina was impressed by the architecture, but also by the great crowds of people attempting to enter the museum. There was a sign on the front, which read “Arms and Armor: Closed.”

“They’ve figured it out, then,” Yennifer said with a nod. “Though I imagine Cookie probably told them.”

“Figured what out?” Furina asked as they approached the queue. 

“Ancient weapons and armor have recently become potent weapons,” Yennifer said, her tone grim. “All those old swords and suits of armor? They’re going to be pressed for battlefield use.”

“Well…of course? Why wouldn’t the old weapons be the most potent? They’ve had more time to absorb the memories and will of their wielders, as well as elemental energy,” Furina said with a frown. “Modern weapons do have some advantages, but the truly powerful relics will always be superior to what a blacksmith can mass produce, let alone a factory.” 

“See it’s when you say stuff like that that we can totally tell you’re an alien,” Charlotte said, her head down as she tapped away at her phone. She looked up, a grin on her face. “Barbs is already here! There she is! Hellloooo! Barbara!” 

A young girl already in line halfway to the front eagerly waved to them, and Charlotte ran over to hug her friend. The other girl looked to be about the same age as Charlotte, dressed in a shirt with stockings, along with a tan jacket and a black cap. Her blonde hair was in twin tails, and she had on a pair of glasses with blue rims. 

“Bonjour, Barbara,” Yennifer said, smiling at the youth as she and Furina approached. “This is-”

“She’s going to say Furina isn’t her girlfriend, but she’s totally her girlfriend,” Charlotte said in a stage whisper that made both Yennifer and Furina blush mightily. 

Barbara elbowed Charlotte and extended a hand to Furina. “Hello! It’s nice to meet you. I’m Barbara d’Orleans. Charlotte’s told me all about you, so I’m excited we can finally meet!” 

“Um, not too much, I hope,” Furina said, glancing at Charlotte, who grinned and gave her a thumbs up. “I’m Furina de Fontaine, it’s a pleasure, I’m sure.”

“So what exactly are you two filming today?” Yennifer asked as they moved up in the queue, which was going at a fairly good clip. 

“It’s for a school project, actually. We’re supposed to write an essay on the influence of Parahumans on Modern Art, and there’s a new gallery that’s just opened. So we’ll be taking pictures for school,” Barbara said. 

“But, we’re adding a new wrinkle! I am, of course, advocating that we are in a NEW age of art, one influenced by Vision Holders and Archons even MORE than Parahumans!” Charlotte said, her eyes getting that familiar gleam again. “So, we’re going to investigate how that whole wing has been shut down, and just what the new government is doing with those powerful relics!” 

“Just don’t sneak anywhere I would have to literally bail you out of,” Yennifer said with a heavy sigh. 

“I’m always careful,” Charlotte said with a grin. Barbara actually rolled her eyes at that, and even Furina had to smile. 

She very nearly said, “Just like the time when you infiltrated the sweatshops in the Fleuve Cendre?” but then she recalled that this was a different Charlotte entirely. Instead she just said, “I’m sure. Do take care of her, Barbara. Our intrepid little reporter forgets she’s a mere mortal like the rest of us, sometimes.”

“Oh is that what you are?” Charlotte said with a wink at Furina, which made her blush and Yennifer scowl. But the teen was already spinning about on her heel. “Come on, Barbs! The Truth awaits us!” 

“Alright, but let’s not get into trouble this time, please. I’d really rather not have to call my mother again…”

“She should be grateful her daughter has such a thirst for Truth and Justice! Now come along!” Charlotte said, waving her student ID at the teller, who gave her a ticket. Then she and Barbara ran off, drawing some looks from other visitors at their display of youthful exuberance. 

“Two, please, both Citizens,” Yennifer said, handing over both her and Furina’s passports. 

“Students?” the attendant asked, glancing at Furina and Yennifer with a bored expression. 

“No, I’ve graduated, Furina is employed,” Yennifer explained. 

“It’s Sunday, so it’s 50%. Ten for the both of you,” the attendant said, and Yennifer handed over a few coins. It still fascinated Furina that the money was nothing but simple metal disks. She’d heard that in the ancient past, precious metals had been used as tokens of exchange, before the rise of Rex Lapis. But that was so long ago as to be basically incomprehensible, even to someone as old as Furina. She might be half a millenia old, but the Lord of the Adepti was…no, had been nearly 8,000 years old. 

Hard to believe he’s gone…or that he never even existed here in the first place. That’s like imagining that the very bones of the world themselves have fallen. 

Even gods die, eventually. I remember still with horror, seeing when Lady Egeria fell to the Abyss. I was there at the battle, acting as a healer and support, as I was never very good at conflict. Neither was Egeria, really, but the power she possessed was needed. And of course, there was my own Death. Though that was something I planned myself. 

Furina hesitated a moment, following after Yennifer and listening as she explained the parts of the museum with a half a mind. Almost reluctantly, she thought in the direction of Focalor’s voice. 

Did…did we both die? 

I am afraid so. I did not intend for you to perish, Furina. You were to live on, free at last of the burdens I gave you. I had thought the Hydro Authority would pass to Neuvillette. It should have. But something interfered. I am sorry. I suppose that I should have known I couldn’t kill myself, without killing you as well. After all, you were my Humanity, and I your Divinity. Even separated, one could not live without the other. 

Furina blinked, then played back what Yennifer had been saying. “Let’s start with the Richelieu Wing, and work our way forwards. I know almost nothing about this world’s history, and a grounding in that will help me appreciate the more modern works in the other wings.”

“That’s good, the current Theme is ‘Pour la gloire de Dieu,’ and focuses on the history of the Church and it’s influence on art up through the Reformation and the French Counter Reformation,” Yennifer said with a smile. 

Furina leaned in close and whispered, “You, ah, may have to explain what this ‘church,’ is. I’m only really familiar with the Favonian Church. While the Hydro Archon is revered, Fontainians aren’t a very religious or devoute people.” 

“Oh you’ll get along famously with the French then, as modern France rather prides itself on how secular it is. But a grounding in Western Christendom can only be for the good. Here, we’ll start with the Late Classical Period, and Roman Depictions of Jesus Christ.” 

The first images they saw were mosaics and frescos of a man with a divine halo about his head, surrounded by others. Yennifer pointed and whispered, “That’s Jesus of Nazareth. I’m a Christian myself, so I’m a bit biased, but he was the Son of God, sent to forgive the sins of Mankind around 2000 years ago.” 

“Wait, I thought you worshiped Lord Barbatos?” Furina whispered back. 

“Yes, but he’s only an angel, that’s what Archons are. Barbatos is the Angel of Freedom, sent to free the world. Jesus is actually God. You, er, know what that means, right?” 

“Assume that I don’t,” Furina said with a slight shake of her head. She was getting the impression that Yennifer defined god and gods rather differently than she did.

“Well, I’m no priest, but essentially, God is the Creator of Everything. He is Three Beings in One, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Jesus is the Son of the Father, but he also is the Father.”

That made absolutely zero sense to Furina. How could he be both the Son and the Father?

She heard tinkling laughter in the back of her head, and shot an irritated, What? In Focalors direction. 

Oh, Furina. You are my Daughter, but you are also me. You are my Humanity, while I am your Divinity. We are one and the same again, but for a time we were separate. You and this Jesus have more in common than you might think. 

Well, that was disturbing. Furina was officially going crazy. The very idea that she was the same person as the Hydro Archon. If that were true, she wouldn’t have flailed about helplessly for five hundred years without the faintest clue as to what was going on. 

But you did succeed, didn’t you? 

Furina firmly ignored Focalors and focused on what Yennifer was saying. 

“-so after the Original Sin of Adam and Eve, eating the Fruit of Knowledge of Good and Evil, God made a plan with Himself to one day save mankind from destruction, as otherwise Sin would doom all of humanity to eternal destruction.”

“Oh. That does sound rather like the Prophecy,” Furina said, nodding slowly. “So, that’s why this Jesus became a human, even though he was properly a god?”

“Not a god, THE God. The only one,” Yennifer explained. Furina just nodded. She seemed to think that you could only be a god if you were the Primordial One, creator of all things. She supposed it was just semantics. To her, you were a god if you had Divine Authority. Yennifer seemed to think that made you an angel or Archon. She supposed at some point she’d have to explain one didn’t need to be a god to be an Archon, though they usually were. The Pyro Archons were all mortal, after all. Furina had never met any of them as they never left Natlan, but she’d corresponded with them and sent the occasional ambassador. 

“So, God formed a special contract with a specific group of people, called the Children of Israel, or Jews.”

“Of course, that’s only natural. Most gods choose one group of people to guide and favor,” Furina said with a nod. This was actually starting to seem logical after that whole “Father and Son are one” nonsense. 

Focalors started laughing again. Honestly. Thank Egeria Furina hadn’t had the woman in her head for five hundred years. She really would have gone crazy. Even if it would have been nice to have a little more communication.

I could have spoken to you at any time, actually. I was sorely tempted more times than I can count. It was so very painful to see you struggle, my beloved. But you did perform so magnificently. As well as I could have, actually. Which only makes sense, since you are me. 

Oh shut up. This is interesting, I’m trying to focus. 

Very well. Do try to find your Ideal of Justice soon, Furina. There are many mortals awaiting their Visions. 

Isn’t that nice for them. I rather would have liked to have a Vision myself, you know! It would have been quite useful!

Is that so? Well, perhaps we shall have to see about getting you one, then. 

‘-and so from that same line of King David, Jesus was born to the Virgin Mary by the power of the Holy Ghost. Mary remained a Virgin her entire life, guiltless and free of Sin. Does that make sense?” Yennifer prompted. 

It had better, seeing as your own mother is a virgin, young lady. 

I thought I told you to hush!? And really, I did not need to know about your sex life, or lack thereof! 

“Of course, a god having a child with a mortal woman without having congress with them is something I’ve heard of before,” Furina agreed. Wait. Was Focalors her mother? That was…well that was both disturbing and extremely saddening. She’s always assumed she was a regular mortal woman that Focalors had shaped into her clone, or some sort of hydro mimic given human form. She’d angsted about her original family quite a lot in that first century. Well, and the second. And third. Alright, she’d always worried about that. 

“Well, since Jesus was the Son of God, God made Man, he was able to die on the Cross for the Sins of mankind,” Yennifer said, and pointed to a painting that showed a man with a crown of thorns, nailed to a tree, suffering and dying as angels floated around him and a woman wept at his feet, a man reaching up to him in agony. 

Furina’s breath caught, and tears suddenly filled her eyes. 

“Though he was guiltless…he gave up his own life…to save his people,” Furina whispered. “Because that was the only way for Justice to be done.”

“I, well…I suppose that’s one way of looking at it,” Yennifer said slowly. “I’ve always struggled with that part, personally. One of the reasons I walked out of the church when I was eighteen. The other, is, um…well.”

“Walked out of the Church?” Furina said, wiping at her eyes with the handkerchief she’d pulled out of her purse. Her makeup was going to be a mess. 

“Yes, well…that’s about the time I realized I was gay, and up until Lord Barbados arrived, that was, um, somewhat frowned upon,” Jennifer admitted, shifting nervously from foot to food. “How, ah, how were homosexuals treated in Fontaine?” 

“Frowned upon? Why? Because they don’t have children? That wasn’t really a problem in Fontaine, there were always plenty of orphans to adopt, and I always had trouble finding where to place them all. One of the ways the House of the Hearth got its tentacles in things,” Furina said with a shudder.

Yennifer blinked at Furina, then grinned widely and suddenly hugged her. Furina was a bit startled, but seeing as how they shared a bed, the only shocking thing about this sudden display of intimacy was that Yennifer was doing it in public. 

“Thank you,” Yennifer whispered. “Even if…never mind. I just…thank you. If the Archons do nothing else, they’ve made people like me feel human again. And loved.”

“Um, I’m glad?” Furina said, still a bit baffled. Wait. “Hold on, are you saying that homosexuality was…illegal!? Why!? Not even Decambrian was that mad!” 

Yennifer hiccuped and squeezed Furina again. “Teyvat must have been a wonderful place, if everyone was so accepting.”

“Uh, well, I think perhaps we were just unaccepting of other things,” Furina said a wince. “You’d um, well let’s just say you’d have received a frosty reception at times in Fontaine…”

Yennifer jerked back, her expression suddenly horrified. “You mean, they used to discriminate against lesbians too?”

“No, that’s nonsense,” Furina said firmly. Then, she gently touched Yennifers horns. “No, you just…you look beast-blooded. Those with the blood of, ah, Enlightened Beasts…they have often faced hardship. I had to work very hard to enshrine their rights, and the rights of melusines. Humanity can be quite cruel…”

Yennifer blinked a few times, then laughed and touched her own horns. “Well, that I can actually understand! Parahumans are possessed by demons, and I can see why people would think those with animal blood were the same.”

“They are not!” Furina cried, raising her voice unintentionally. More than a few people were already glaring at her and Yennifer for their over-exuberance, and Furina blushed, then towed Yennifer away to a quieter corner. “They are not,” she repeated in quieter tones. “Enlightened Beasts might not be human, but they are people. They have the same rights and dignity that a human does. So do melusines. Anyone who would discriminate against you or anyone else simply because their ancestry isn’t human are the worst sort of people.”

“You’ll have to explain what a melusine is later, because to my mind, that’s a sort of mermaid, or perhaps the Lady of the Lake from Le Morte d’Arthur,” Yennifer said, patting at her own eyes. “Well, anyway, let’s go through the art so you can learn the history of the Church and its place in France throughout the ages. It was very influential not just on art, but on our laws as well.”

“Oh? You’ll have to explain the legal ramifications,” Furina said, instantly even more interested in the subject. 

“Of course, religion and law are always intertwined,” Yennifer agreed, though Furina thought the statement was hogwash. Religion was just a bunch of rituals to appease the gods, or get something from them. The Law was about Justice. 

I think perhaps this world has a very different relationship with its gods than what we are used to. We shall have to pay careful attention. Justice in this world seems to have had a very different history. 

For once, Furina agreed with Focalors wholeheartedly. 

“Christian legal theory is heavily influenced by Judaism, and while Naomi might be more qualified to speak on that specifically than I am, she’s a fellow Knight and one of Barbados’ closest confidants, I can tell you that since ancient times, Western Legal Traditions have been heavily influenced by the Ten Commandments, as well as…”

Yennifer began to expound passionately on the history law as they walked through the art galleries, and Furina was instantly enraptured. She interrupted at a few points to ask questions, especially with things that seemed alien to her. 

“But then if it’s so progressive on the rights of slaves, why did you mention earlier that it talked about slaves obeying their masters?”

“That was really more of a relationship between employer and employee, not the dehumanizing slavery that was more broadly practiced, closer to indentured servitude or a term of service, but it was used that way by certain elements. No, the focus was more on Grace and Mercy, concepts that are often at disharmony with the law.”

“I disagree! True Justice needs to incorporate mercy as well!” Furina argued. “Justice is not Blind, and the law must be interpreted by reasonable minds. The spirit behind the law, not the mere letter, is what should be strictly enforced. This is why an orphan caught stealing bread, or a mother concealing her son’s crimes should be treated differently than a thief stealing jewels or a con man lying to swindle others, even if they break the same laws!” 

“Ah,” Yennifer said, her eyes sparkling. “Indeed. That’s why I’m a defense attorney, not a prosecutor. Just because someone is guilty of a crime under the law does not mean it would be truly just to seek out the maximum punishment. Though I find it interesting you say Justice is not blind. See there, that statue? That is Justice, blindfolded with a scale in her hands.”

“The NERVE!” Furina gasped, whirling on the statue, and she felt the same indignation from Focalors. “I was NEVER blind, and neither was Egeria! She wasn’t the God of Justice, but she was the Lawgiver of Fontaine! Focalors as Hydro Archon WAS the God of Justice, however, and I assure you that I NEVER closed my eyes while judging a case! Impartial?! No true Judge is impartial! I can’t BEGIN to tell you how many arguments I had with Neuvillete about this! The purpose of the Oratrice wasn’t to make Justice Blind, it was to ensure that Justice SAW!” 

Furina suddenly blinked, realizing what she was saying. She wasn’t the God of Justice! Though she had more than once gotten a little too invested in her role, that didn’t mean she should start thinking like she was. 

“Um, sorry. I, ah, well, I played Focalors long enough that sometimes…sometimes I forget I don’t have to pretend that I am her anymore,” Furina said timidly. Though some of what she had said couldn’t quite be explained by that…

All she felt from Focalors was a…warmth? Like, pride? Or perhaps…love? Oh dear. 

I think you are closer to finding your Justice than you might think, Furina. 

“Anyway, what about this Jesus? What were his views on Justice?” Furina demanded, trying to change the subject. 

“Well,” Yennifer said, eyes sparkling. “Let me tell you about the time he threw out the moneylenders from the temple. I always did like that story.” 

There was a painting to go with that one, called “Christ Cleansing the Temple,” painted some 500 years ago by El Greco, and on loan from an American museum. Apparently, this Son of God had similar views on predatory lending practices that Furina did. She well remembered working with Neuvillette to get laws passed on that back in her first Century. That was a legacy she could be proud of. 

“Hmm, I have to say, I like his style!” Furina said, smiling at the painting. “So, I take it France has sensibly outlawed predatory loans as well?” 

Yennifer just groaned. “I’ll tell you about credit cards later…I don’t want to get depressed right now…”

Credit cards? That sounded suspicious. Furina wasn’t one with a head for finance or money, and never had been. Math had always been a struggle for her; numbers just didn’t make as much sense to her as words and people did. But even her limited understanding of economics had been enough to realize that high-interest loans and been a way to prey on the poor and vulnerable by the wealthy bankers and opportunistic loan sharks. She’d put her foot down on that. 

They were just finishing the exhibits of religious art, when an explosion shook the building and several people cried out in panic. Including Furina, who ducked and covered her head, looking around wildly. 

“That was from the Denon Wing! Where Charlotte is!” Yennifer gasped, reaching up to pull off one of her horns. She glanced at Furina, who was crouching on the floor, a rising sense of panic within her. 

What can I do, what can I do!? It’s like Poisson all over again!

If you are ready to pick up your Mantle, my daughter, the power is yours. Though I would hesitate to do so if violence is going to be the answer. Neither you nor I were ever all that suited to combat. 

Furina barely even registered what Focalors was nattering on about. She looked up at Yennifer, saw the fear and pain in her eyes, and knew she had to do something. 

“C-come on,” Furina said, getting shackily to her feet as alarms began to blare. Her teeth were clattering together so hard that Furina could feel her enamel chipping. “W-we have to get Charlotte.” 

“Right, this way,” Yennifer said, pulling off her antler and lighting it on fire. She hurried through the halls, Furina right after here. 

“Stop!” an authoritative voice called, and a museum guard with a pistol appeared. It looked different than a Fontainian flintlock, but Furina could recognize it was some sort of gun. 

“Knight of Favonius!” Yennifer said, holding up her burning antler. “I assume it’s cape trouble? I’m here to help. Captain Yennifer Lustria, at your service.”

The guard hesitated, then lowered his weapon. He was a middle-aged, balding man, and didn’t look terribly thrilled at the prospect of cape trouble. “Er, right, we’ll need to verify your identity, but-”

“No time for that, you can check my credentials later. My little sister and her friend are in the wing where the blast occurred. Get on your radio and let them know you’ve got a friendly cape on site willing to help,” Yennifer barked in a tone that brooked no argument. 

“Right, um, and you, miss?” the guard said, looking to Furina.

“Er,” Furina shot a look at Yennifer, still shaking. She really had no idea what ‘cape trouble’ meant, but if this was anything like a fight, Furina wasn’t certain what exactly she could contribute aside from moral support. 

“She’s with me,” Yennifer said firmly. “Come on!” 

The guard started yelling into a device that seemed similar to a cellular phone about “backup,” while Yennifer charged forward, holding her burning antler aloft as panicked museum goers cried out and shrank to either side of them. There were more blasts ahead, not as loud as the first, along with sharp reports Furina recognized as gunfire. Each of them made her jump and squeak in fright, which caused Yennifer to frown at her.

“Come on, Furina. There has to be something you can do,” she growled at her. 

“I’m an actress! If you want me to recite a monologue or mime a sword fight I can do that, but the only thing I know about fighting is that I’m very bad at it!” Furina hissed, her eyes darting around for danger. 

“Are you sure? Because now isn’t the time to prevaricate!” Yennifer said as they raced through the rapidly emptying galleries. 

“If I knew how to fight, maybe I wouldn’t have had nightmares for months after the Knave threatened to assassinate me!” Furina said, tears coming to her eyes. Hot tears of frustration and fear began to course down her cheeks. 

She didn’t even notice that the previously sunny day suddenly became clouded over, with a steady downpour beginning out of nowhere. 

Yennifer opened her mouth, but there was a flash, and the temperature dropped ever more sharply than the rain could explain, as a wall of ice formed ahead of them. 

“Charlotte!” Yennifer cried out, and surged forward, only for Furina to tackle her to the ground, right as the air above them distorted, then exploded in a burst of iridescent light. 

“Bordel de merde! This was supposed to be a fast job!” a man’s voice growled. 

Furina scrambled to the side, dragging Yennifer with her just as another distortion formed and exploded, throwing up bits of tile from where they’d been lying a second ago. 

“That…that’s not Charlotte,” Furina gasped, her eyes very wide, tears still leaking from her eyes that she had squeezed shut. 

“No, no it is not,” Yennifer snarled, then tossed her burning antler down the hallway. There was a bang, and more swearing, then another blast of light. 

“Get through that ice! That little connasse isn’t keeping us out!” the man roared. 

Furina peaked around the corner to see a group of individuals in black-knitted masks pulled over their faces, one of them in a more elaborate outfit with a red and yellow mask that looked like a screaming rooster. She cried out as one lifted a rifle, ducking back just as a spray of bullets sent chips of mortar flying. 

Yennifer tossed another antler down the hall, but she could only grow them so quickly. Furina looked around in panic, then spotted an elderly couple hiding in a nook not far away. The man was clutching his side and bleeding, while the woman had a dazed expression. 

“I’m going to help them,” Furina said, pointing to the couple. “I, I’m sorry, but I couldn’t do anything against those thugs.”

Yennifer jerked a nod, her brow furrowed in consternation, and Furina scrambled towards the injured elders, feeling useless and afraid, as usual. 

“It’s alright, I’m here to help,” Furina said, but then realized she’d not spoken French to them as she took off her jacket. She wasn’t even sure what language she had spoken. It didn’t sound like any other language she’d spoken before, though these people felt…well, not the same as the French, but like they were close to her, somehow. 

“Please, my wife, she fell,” the man gasped, clutching at his side. “Help her.”

“I will, grandfather, but let me tie this around you, that looks bad,” Furina said, and quickly ripped up her clothes to make an impromptu bandage. She wasn’t trained in first aid, that wasn’t something she’d ever had time to study, but she knew you had to put pressure on a wound.

Her hasty bandage did seem to help, and she helped the man lean up against the wall, trying to ignore the fighting. The rain had stopped as abruptly as it had come, as Furina was now too busy to keep crying. She looked at the woman, and winced when she saw one of her pupils was larger than the other. That was bad, though she didn’t know how bad, or what exactly it meant. 

Possible brain injury. I’m sorry, medicine was never one of my specialties either. Don’t let her go to sleep. Her name is Maite. Her husband is Iker. 

“Maite?” Furina said, and the woman’s gaze shifted to her, though she still looked out of it. “Maite, I need you to stay with me, OK? Iker, please, keep pressure on that. I don’t want to move you, I-”

The glass window near them suddenly shattered, and Furina screamed, trying to shelter Iker and Maite with her body. She looked up to see a man in a rather ornate red silk jacket, a vest under it, tight fitting pants that went just below his knees, and square toed, high heeled red shoes. He looked like a court dandy from the Fontaine of a century ago, save for one thing:

The hideous grey iron mask that covered his face. 

He looked down at Furina for a moment, then his form suddenly shimmered. She gasped in shock, her eyes going wide.

“Captain von Dresch?!” Only, no. Something was wrong. His face was crueler, and he was just a bit shorter, with a larger nose than before, and the clothes were the wrong shade. 

“Close enough,” the man growled. “Stay down.”

He stalked forward, raising his cane. “I will have QUIET!” 

The cacophony of battle instantly dulled, and Yennifer looked up and nodded in relief at von Dresch, or whomever it was.

Then a moment later, the real von Dresch soared through the window on a breeze and adjusted his suit. He glanced at Furina, then did a double take. “Lady Furina! What are you-”

“Captain, please, these two are injured!” Furina said, motioning to the frightened Iker and Maite, who were clinging to one another in fear. “Can’t you help them?!”

“But can’t you…” von Dresch shook his head. “Of course. I’m not the best with healing, but I’ll do what I can.” 

He knelt, extending his hand as the Vision on his cravat glowed brightly. Winds wrapped about both Iker and Maite, and their wounds vanished. 

“Thank you,” Furina said in what was probably German, then quickly helped the elderly couple to their feet and switched to whatever language it was they spoke. “Please, come with me! The exit is this way, I’ll help you to safety!” 

“You speak Basque?” von Dresch asked, clearly surprised. “Never mind, of course you do. Yes, get them out. Though I had expected you to-”

“I’m an actress, Captain. I have no idea if you think I project an air of martial excellence or not, but I assure you, I’m about as helpful in a fight as these two are,” Furina said firmly. 

She hurried the couple away from the fighting, saying a quick prayer for Yennifer and Charlotte. 

Lord Barbatos, please, protect those two in this hour of need! I don’t know if you’re France’s Archon or not, but they need your help!

There was silence, of course, Furina never expected to hear from the gods, but she’d do anything to help Yennifer and Charlotte. 

Then, to her shock, an unfamiliar voice spoke as a stiff breeze filled the corridor.

Focalors? 

She groaned. For once in her life, a god actually listened to her prayer, and they had the wrong damn address. 

Author’s Note: 

Yennifer was raised Catholic, so her accounting of theology is (more or less) in line with that. She might be a bit confused on a few points, and the Church of Barbados would disagree with her on Mary being eternally sinless, as most of them were originally Lutheran. 

Furina however has probably the weirdest theology ever. 

Also, I seriously haven’t seen that many musicals and operas, so, uh, I might get creative in the chapter titles.