Mavuika Preview Chapter: Sol Invictus

Sol Invictus 0: Blazing Heart 

Snarling, the beast leapt forward, jaws snapping for the back of the little girl as she ran, screaming and bloodied away, from it. With a roar of his own, Diego kept his aim steady and let fly with a three-round burst. The first elemental round was Hydro, the second Electro, the last, Dendro. The reaction slowed the Rifthound, but didn’t stop it. He kept firing, walking forward and pumping as many rounds as he could into the creature, until the bolt slammed back on an empty magazine. Thankfully, the last bullet caused the creature to let out a keening cry, then collapse back into the Void from whence it came. 

Rapidly reloading, Diego picked up the child, then looked down the street, where more Rifthound cries were coming between the stalled cars. He grimaced, seeing the bodies lying there in pools of blood, as well as the various Abyssal monsters coming. Clutching the child to him, Diego turned and ran for all he was worth back up the street. 

“Dios te salve, María, llena eres de gracia, El Señor es contigo,” he panted, holding the girl close as he ran for the rally point, feeling her hot tears against his chest as his rifle thumped against his back on its strap. 

To his horror, one of those masked giants appeared, crackling with abyssal power. The human defenders cried out in shock and tried to fight back, but the thing slammed its fists into them, pasting two into the concrete, and sending others flying. 

Desperately, Diego tried to grab for his rifle with one hand, while holding tight to his precious burden. 

Then a bolt from the blue slammed down into the abyssal giant, and Diego’s heart lept in his chest. A cape! So some of Los Valientes were still alive and fighting then. The parahuman was some sort of Alexandria type, a flying brick who was able to exchange a flurry of blows with the giant. Diego pumped a few rounds into the creature’s back, useless as that felt, and in a few moments, the creature was dead, the parahuman pulping the creature’s skull before it dissolved into purple goo.

Then Diego caught a good look at the cape’s uniform, and his face, and acid disgust replaced hope. “You! What the fuck are you doing here, Carlo?” 

His damned stepbrother stood, hair perfect as always, and had the temerity to grin at Diego. “Why, I thought you’d be happy to see me, brother. It looks like you could use the help, no?”

Tamping down his temper, Diego gritted his teeth and swallowed his angry words before replying. “I can. Mexico can. I am sorry, I spoke in haste. You saved my life, again. I just…does that mean the Protectorate is here?”

Carlo had the good grace to look ashamed, and he shook his head once. “If they are, I am it. Sorry. The Abyss is attacking Phoenix, Los Alamos, El Paso, Honolulu…it’s bad. But, when I heard your call for help…well. I am still a son of Mexico.”

“About time you remembered that,” Diego growled, unable to hold back all of his temper. He looked at the destroyed outpost and shook his head. “Pedro! We’re pulling back! We can’t hold them here any longer. There’s too many coming.”

The old farmer swore, glancing around. His right arm was bloodied and hanging limp, and the bandage around his head was soaked red. “But there’s nowhere else to fall back to, boss! This is the last point before-”

“I know,” Diego said, weariness filling him. He handed the sniffling girl off to Pedro. “Take her. You’re in no fit shape to fight.”

Pedro accepted the child, but didn’t look best pleased. “I can still fight! I’ve got one arm left. If we pull back though, what about the other refugees? Surely there are more survivors.”

Diego let out a bitter laugh, and glanced back, to where the rest of his men were firing on another wave of abyssal monsters, mostly the little ones this time. “There’s no more survivors. Not here. Pull back to the stadium. Tell everyone to fall back to the final barricades. If we have even a single gap in our lines, they’ll come pouring in.”

They began to pull back, firing as they went whenever another abyssal monster popped up. Carlo was everywhere, using his fists or the glowing tinkertech sword he had to put down the monsters. Even so, they lost half a dozen more men in the fight through the short handful of blocks to Estadio Azteca, with Abyssal creatures popping out left and right. Most of their illumination came from flickering street lights or fires, as the sky had gone completely dark purple, even though it was supposed to be close to noon. 

There was a lull in the fighting as they approached the stadium, which was surrounded by hastily erected barricades. There was little in the way of military hardware, though Diego did see a burned-out APC with the corpses of soldiers scattered around it. Their weapons were gone of course, scavenged by the living, along with their armor, so the bodies were mostly naked. 

“Shit,” Carlo growled, landing next to Diego in a gust of air. “Where are Los Valientes? Where’s the fucking military, or even the police?!”

“Dead,” Diego said, spitting a wad of phlegm into the dust. “Why do you think I’m in charge of this group? There was no one else left to take command, so I did.”

“Ah yes, my brother, always one to rise to the occasion,” Carlo said with his usual acerbic tone. 

Diego nearly rose to the bait, then sighed. “Honestly, you might be one of the last still alive and fighting. The last cape other than you I saw was a poor Dendro Vision holder who was swarmed by half a dozen rift hounds three hours ago. They’re targeting capes. I…I don’t know how long you’ll last. So…”

Closing his eyes, Diego wrapped both his arms around his brother, who stiffened suddenly and squeezed as hard as he could. “Thank you. For coming. This…this is the end, Carlo. You know what’s coming for us.”

To his faint surprise, Carlo hugged him back, though gently, and Diego heard the pain in his brother’s voice. “I’m sorry. Sorry, I wasn’t there when father…well. That’s in the past. And we don’t have much of a future, so let’s not waste it, eh?”

“You came back. That’s what matters. Brother,” Diego said, and then let go with one final squeeze. He turned to his men. “Right! Man those barricades! Get that machine gun set up! They’ll be on us any minute!”

There were a few desultory attacks by lone abyssal creatures, mostly the small goblin ones and the little rift hounds, but those were cut down with weapon fire. No fully automatic wastes of ammo, either. His men were veterans now after two full days of fighting for their lives. 

To Diego’s surprise, an elderly priest came about, still wearing his ecumenical collar. He had a young woman helping him along, as from the bloody bandages on his head the man was clearly both injured and too old to get about easily, but he was placing wafers on the tongues of the men and giving them a sip of wine before moving on to the next one. 

When he approached Carlo, Diego expected his brother to refuse communion and confession, but he was in for another surprise. Carlo knelt and opened his mouth, allowing the elderly priest to give him the sacrament. He chewed and swallowed, then gave a wry grin. “It has been long since my last confession, Father. My sins are great, and time is short. So I will simply say that I repent, and pray that God will forgive me and judge me fairly.”

“That is all we can ask in a time such as this,” the priest said, before turning to Diego, who bowed his head and accepted communion and the priest's blessing. 

“I have held anger in my heart against my brother, Father. I confess my sins, and ask for absolution,” he said, forcing himself not to look at Carlo. 

“Christ hears, my Son, and knows your heart. Say the prayer to Saint Michael, and fight with honor,” the old man said.

Before he could turn to the next man, the girl helping him let out a gasp and pointed. “Father Aparico! It’s the Devil!”

There was a deep, basso rumble that Diego could feel in his bones, and he turned, horror gripping him as he voided his bladder against his will. Several of his men cried out and fell to the ground, gripping their heads, gnashing their teeth, and spasming wildly. There, blacker even than the darkened sky, the massive coils of a midnight purple serpent were silhouetted. Its purple eyes blazed with malevolence, and clouds of venom issued from its maw. The many feathery wings beat the air with a terrible noise, like the sound of an approaching storm.

“Apep,” Carlo gasped, horror filling his own eyes. “It’s here. Madre de Dios. It’s here.”

“Stand fast in faith, my children!” a voice cried. It was quavering and high-pitched, but there was strength to it. Diego looked up to see the priest raising a wooden crucifix to the sky, and damn him if it didn’t glow with a holy light. “God is with you! Do not fear, though you walk through the Valley of the Shadow of Death! The Holy Virgin fights with us! Do not give up hope!”

Seeing the faith and courage of the old man had an effect on Diego, and it was as if a spell was broken. Ashamed, he got to his feet. “You heard the Father! On your feet, sons of Mexico! This shall be our finest hour!”

His men arose, gripping their guns, looks of despair replaced with resolute determination. They had accepted their deaths, but they would fight on.

“Well. I guess this where it ends, Diego,” Carlo said, his eyes fixed on the Endbringer as it rumbled slowly forward, hordes of Abyssal monsters in its wake. 

“No. This is not where it ends! Do not give up hope! There are thousands, a million, behind us in that stadium! We cannot let even a single monster through!” Diego called. A part of him knew that was folly. The Raiden Shogun and her Dragons, the Elite of the Protectorate, and Farasha and the Flower Dragon, even two Harbingers, had been needed to defeat Apep the last time. What hope did they have?

It didn’t matter. If you didn’t fight with victory in mind, you had already lost. And Diego Diaz Rodriguez had never lost a fight in his life. Not even against his brother. He didn’t intend to start now. 

Moments later, the swarm of abyssal monsters appeared, some from rifts, others sprinting out of ruined buildings and around or through burned-out cars. 

“Let them have it!” Diego roared, and the defenders let loose with every bit of firepower they had. For a few seconds, that was enough to stymie the assault. But they faced an enemy that did not know fear, and hungered only for blood. Carlo met the first of the creatures to make it to the line, slicing it in half, then the next, and the next. But he was but one man, and the Abyssal creatures seemed to be concentrating on him. He was tough, thanks to what the gringos had done to him, but he couldn’t survive a dozen wounds from abyssal creatures. 

With a scream of rage, Diego tossed aside his empty rifle and picked up a machete, then charged forward, hacking at a creature that was trying to leap onto Carlo. He knew it was folly, knew it was useless, but he didn’t care.

“GET OFF MY BABY BROTHER, PENDEJO!” 

Though the night is dark and the dawn far off, your Courage does not wane. 

His blade bit into the goblin, which snarled and whirled on Diego. He gritted his teeth and jerked his weapon back to swing again, ignoring the voice whispering in his mind.

Let your Flame burn brighter, for it is now or never. This is your moment!

Something ignited within Diego, all his rage, all his passion, all his determination. He could hear the whisper now, feel its power. Holy Mother, not for me, but for him. Protect Carlo in this hour.

Your Vision is of Peace, but your purpose is War. You shall not rest until your land is free.

With a strength he didn’t know he had, Diego split the goblin's head, and it fell. He gasped, then looked up, only to find Apep itself looming over him. He coughed, feeling the poison air beginning to corrode his body and mind. But he didn’t care. He would not give up. Never. 

Lift your weapon, Son of Battle, Son of Passion! For your Flame shall not be extinguished this day!

Flames coated Diego's weapon as a crimson gem fell into his left hand. He gripped it tightly, raising his machete on high. Carlo was down on one knee, bleeding and half-dazed, and Diego stepped between his little brother and all the demons of hell and their master. He pointed his sword at Apep, ready to challenge even an Endbringer. 

But he didn’t have to. 

All at once, the night was banished, and the Unconquered Sun arose over Estadio Azteca. Diego had to blink away spots from his vision, but he dared to look directly at the sun itself as it crashed into Apep. His jaw dropped, as he beheld a woman of flames, bright as the noonday, doing battle with Apep. For a moment, he could only stare in disbelief. 

An Archon. The Holy Mother has sent one of her Son’s Archons to fight for us. 

Laughing, Diego turned back to his men. He was only mildly surprised to see that Father Aparico was gripping a Vision in one hand and a Bible in the other, his former weakness banished and a wide grin on the old man’s face. 

“Well then, what are you waiting for?” Diego demanded of those around him. “CHARGE!” 

Even Carlo got to his feet with a wordless warcry as the defenders became the attackers, rushing out of their barricade to bring the battle to the Abyss. The monsters fought back with tooth and claw, but they were quailing, afraid, as overhead, their master was beaten back, inch by inch, by the Archon of flames. She had a great sword in her hands, one that seemed to have been forged of the Sun itself, shining nearly as brightly as its wielder. 

Wielding flames as though he had been born to them, Diego vanquished foe after foe, the burning heart of Pyro pounding his veins. He felt like laughing and singing despite the grim work, for what had seemed to be certain defeat had transformed into impossible victory. For how could they lose now?

Apep let out a snarl, and to Diego’s delight, it turned and began to flee, flying away even more swiftly than it had approached. The Archon was not content to simply let her foe go, punishing the Endbringe with lances of flame a hundred meters long that burned great scars in Apep’s back. Still, when a rift opened and Apep slithered in, she did not continue to pursue. Instead, she turned about, flying down low to where Diego and the others were battling the abyss. 

A wall of flame suddenly appeared, and Diego couldn’t help but flinch back as it raced towards him. Before he could do more than stumble a step or two, it had washed over him. To his shock, instead of burning him alive, it soothed away his hurts and revitalized him, giving him a rush of energy. 

In contrast, wherever the Archon’s flames touched Abyssal creatures, they were burned to cinders and ash, falling down and fading into motes of darkness. Soon, the battlefield was empty of all foes, and Diego hoisted his machete, letting loose a mighty cry of joy. He turned to find Carlo nearby, tears on his face. To his surprise, Diego found he was weeping as well. Not tears of sorrow, but of joy. 

Laughing, crying, the formerly estranged brothers embraced one another, pounding fists on the other’s back. 

“Oh shit! Are you alright?” Carlo gasped, a look of horror coming over him. “I didn’t hold that one back!”

“I’m fine!” Diego laughed. He held up his new Vision. “You see? You’re not the only cape in the family now!” 

They embraced again, sounds of celebration all around them. After a long embrace, the two brothers separated then started. The Archon had landed and was standing right next to them. 

“Hujambo. Je, wewe ni amri hapa?” she said in cheerful tones, a broad grin on her face. 

The two of them shared a startled look, then hastily bowed to the divine warrior. 

“Apologies, Archon. We don’t understand you,” Diego said. 

The woman cocked her head to her side. The fire faded from her hair, and Diego was left looking at, well, a perfectly ordinary woman. She even had faint wrinkles around her eyes and on her face, not at all like the inhuman beauty he’d come to expect from seeing one of God’s Messengers. Even Nahida Saeed had an ethereal quality about her, a grace and cuteness that no human child, however delightful, could match. To say nothing of the Raiden Shogun and her daughters, or even the terrible Tsaritsa. 

“ʻAʻole ʻoe maopopo iaʻu. ʻŌlelo ʻoe i kēia ʻōlelo?” the woman said in what sounded like an entirely different language than the first. 

“Sorry, do you speak English instead?” Carlo said in that language. 

The woman laughed and shook her head. “Nesi timakamh share se nenepili, ma mitsnel tlatlahto inin se.”

That sounded…closer. The words were a bit off, but it sounded like Nahuatl. “Amo… xikijto… ni. ¿Tikmati español?”

That got him a laugh and a broad grin, but also a shake of the Archon’s head. “¡Ah, ax tleno ipati! Titlatlankej. Huajca, nikan Ronova nechtitlanki. Se tlamantli tlen amo nelia, ni amo nesi kej nopa Tlanauatijkayotl tlen Tlayoua. ¿Atlac nechtzacuilijtoque ma niitzto nohuejcapan tata?”

“That sound like Nahuatl to you?” Diego asked Carlo.

His brother shrugged. “Maybe. I never bothered to learn any. You were the one with your nose in old books all the time.”

“Some help you are,” Diego muttered under his breath, then turned and shouted. “HEY! Anyone speak Nahuatl?”

“I do, no need to shout, my Son,” Father Aparico said, stepping forward confidently. He bowed to the Archon. “Xi tlajpalo, Santo Arcon. Ti tlaskamatiliaj nopa ichpochtli tlen ti kualtsi pampa ti ajsito ipan ni tonali..”

The woman cocked her head to one side, her brow wrinkling slightly. Then she laughed, and reached out, gripping the priest by the shoulder and gently straightening him. “Tlauel ti kuali ti tlasojtla, tlayekanki tlayekanki. Pero ax nijmati kenke timoiljuis nieli se ichpokatl.”

The Priest suddenly reddened, an aghast expression coming over him. 

“What did she say?” Diego asked, somewhat impatiently. 

“Her accent is…odd. But, ah, well, I welcomed her in the name of the Blessed Virgin, and ah…she said she is, er, a woman of…experience,” the priest admitted. 

That made Carlo burst out laughing, and Diego had to fight back a grin. So, it seemed there were good times to be had in Heaven after all. “Well, give her our thanks! Without her, that would have been a hard fight indeed!”

Father Aparico gave Diego an exasperated look, one that said, “Lying is a sin, my son,” but he seemed to translate Diego’s words faithfully. 

The Archon seemed to take it in good stride, laughing in delight and clapping Diego on the shoulder. “You’ve got spirit! I see why the Sacred Flame chose you as one of its bearers. What is your name, warrior?” Father Aparico translated. 

Straightening, Diego puffed out his chest and declared, “Diego Diaz Rodriguez. I’m a farmer from Los Altos de Jalisco.”

“What he means is he owns the largest Blue Agave fields and Tequila bottling plant in Guadalajara. My brother has never worked a day in the fields in his life,” Carlo said with a snort. 

“That’s not true and you know it. Father had us working as hands since we were twelve,” Diego said, trying not to grit his teeth or punch his infuriating brother. 

“Just don’t lie to the alien and get us incinerated,” Carlo said with a shrug. 

“Angel. Not alien. Don’t believe the lies the gringos feed you,” Diego snapped, then glanced at the priest, who to his horror, was translating still. “Father! No need to tell the Holy Archon everything in our little spat.”

To his mortification, the Archon grinned at what she was hearing. She stuck out her hand, which Diego could only gape at, and spoke through Father Aparico. 

“You are a man of passion, Diego Diaz Rodriguez. I too, am possessed of a fiery temperament. So are all who hear the call of the Sacred Flame. I am Mavuika Huitztlan. It is an honor to fight beside you.”

Hesitantly, Diego reached out, then gripped the hand of God’s Anointed. He met her gaze, like a man. “The pleasure is all mine, Archon Mavuika. Let me be the first to welcome you to Earth Bet. To Mexico City, as our Savior.”

She smiled at that and shook her head. “I am no Savior. Just a woman. Now. Where is the fight? I have a score to settle with the Abyss.”

Diego couldn’t help but grin back. “So do I. You lead, Archon. And I’ll follow.”

Author’s Note:

As always, consider this a preview. But after listening to Blazing Heart on repeat and maining Mavuika for the past three weeks, I just had to put this out. While I’m excited for Furina’s chapters, I can already tell that I’m going to have a blast with the Pyro Archon as well. 

However, Diego and Carlo are definitely characters I’ve been planning for a long time. I’m sure the eagle-eyed among you will figure out who they are, but they’ll be showing up in the story proper relatively soon before their Archon’s arrival.