The Crimson Tale of Conquest

The air ship costed through the sky, the sun still shining brightly high above. Located deep within the ship a large room with nothing else but a large table and some chairs furnishing it. Seated at the head of the table was Lucilla. To her right was Sara, with Judieth at her left and Maisy standing behind her. On the direct opposite end of the table was Cristina, with Aliaa to her left and Mora to her right. Kate and her party were also in attendance much to their confusion.

Lucilla regarded everyone there with a Solem expression. She noticed the Hunter party and briefly looked at Judieth with confusion before deciding it wasn't worth thinking about it. "So, we need to discuss how we're going to convince the Fay to continue to place their trust in me?" Lucilla spoke, bringing up the current issue.

She didn't want to be here. She would much rather try and figure out how to break the news of Morella's death to Yuki. Looking down she saw her blood-stained hands once again. She closed her eyes for a moment to gather herself while Cristina took over speaking in her place.

"Part of tha reason we lost is because we lacked numbers." The Vampire started. "We weren't able to convince a lot of them folks in the forest to fight back"

"With this failure it'll be even harder to convince them to fight again." Judieth added. "We need to do something to give them faith in us."

The monster womans head turned in the Doctor's direction almost immediately. A cruel smile slowly graced her lips as the mixture of anger and grief bubbled up from within her. "What if we killed the Hero?" She suggested. "We don't need all of them, just enough to set a trap."

"Do you even have a plan?" Judieth asked with a frown. She wanted Lucilla to do what she wanted hoping that'll lead to the future she wanted. After what happened earlier that day however, the idea of letting her near the Hero was not something she wanted to do.

"Not yet, but we can come up with one." She spoke. "While fighting the Hero I felt myself connecting with the Miasma from my swords. He seemed warry of them, and it felt like the Miasma could increase my strength greatly."

"I guess that makes sense, Miasma is more concentrated than Mana...." Judieth trailed off as she thought through before shaking her head. "Still, that's risky, plus the Hero is far too powerful. We just need to increase your strength slowly befo-"

"That's not soon enough!" Lucilla yelled slamming her fist against the table, the white blood of her sister staining the wood. "I lost my mother, and my sister. If I don't deal with the Church or at the very least the Hero, I won't be able to protect the last of my family." She continued in a low voice, almost like a growl.

She glanced over at Sara when she mentioned family before turning away again. "I'm willing to wait a little while as we come up with and plan and set it." She whispered, her grin never leaving her face. "The moment we have everything prepared I want him dead. Got it?"

The two of them stared each other down, neither breaking eye contact. The tenson in the room was so thick the others felt as if they were choking. Judieth stared into the deep crimson eyes of the woman in front of her. She couldn't tell if this sudden assertiveness was a good thing or bad. Eventually the Doctor let out a sigh, breaking eye contact.

"Fine, but please let me decide whether or not the plan we come up with is ready to go."

"... Deal."

With the two of them done arguing the tension in the room let up significantly, lifting the weight from everyone's chest as they let out the breath they were holding. The silence that fell over the meeting room afterwords however was defining. Kate broke the awkward silence by raising her hand, catching Lucilla's attention.

"Uhm, why are we here exactly?" The Hunter leader asked.

Lucilla looked towards Judieth again, wondering the same thing. Judieth just gave a small smile before addressing the confused party. "We need to discuss what to do with the four of you." She answered half lying, causing Cristina to narrow her eyes at her.

"What do you mean?" Ginn asked.

"Well, just in case you aren't able to go back, what do you plan to do?" The doctored questioned. "Are you going to set off on your own, or stay here with us?"

Looking at Lucilla, Judieth urged her to continue speaking. Not sure what the red-haired woman was planning exactly, Lucilla started speaking. "Judieth is right. You were spotted and there's a chance you guys were branded as traitor."

Lucilla wasn't aware of what the enemy knew, but if they did figure out who Kate and her party wear, then what she said wasn't a lie. "Plus," She added, "We can't let you leave without verifying you won't reveal your knowledge about us anyway."

With her mind distracted, Lucilla was no longer smiling and was giving the Hunters her usual stone face expression. This help keep them calm compared to her smiling, which made them feel uneasy. Understanding why they couldn't just leave the small party nodded along with Lucilla's words quietly.

"Now then, do you guy's plan to help us or oppose us?" Judieth asked, putting force behind her words. She then looked briefly glanced at Lucilla again, prompting the monster woman to continue speaking.

"We will give you time to decide...." Lucilla said watching Judieth give a subtle nod of approvement in the corner of her eye. "We're heading somewhere to gather ourselves a bit before heading back here in two weeks to reconvene with the Fay, monsters and magical beast of the forest. You have till then to decide."

"Alright, sounds like a plan." Cristina said, deciding to wrap things up, feeling a little disgruntled about the fact she didn't really participate in it. "We'll be landing soon, so prepare for that."

Lucilla nodded before standing up to leave. She walked towards the rooms exit, grabbing the handle to open the door, leaving a bloody handprint in her wake. The moment she was out of sight, she closed her eyes to gather herself, before opening them again. She walked back towards her room with heavy steps, the only thing on her mind being Morella.

________________

The last person Anastasia expected to see on her doorstep was the silver haired woman she had said goodbye to five days ago. They were currently sitting in her dining hall as Lucilla and her crew told the story of their war and its subsequential failure. The crimsoned eyed woman in particular felt off.

"So why come here? The Arachnea asked.

"I would like ta just say this wasn't my idea." Cristina explained. "Lucy-"

"Don't call me that."

"... Lucilla said she wanted ta come back here if we needed to retreat."

"Is that so." Anastasia then turned towards Lucilla. "What made you want to come here?"

Lucilla was looking at her hands when she was asked that question. Looking up her crimson eyes met Anastasia's own blood red eyes. "I didn't really have a reason... I don't really have anywhere else to go to."

"Well, you're welcome to visit, but I can't very well allow you to stay for free." The Arachnea Queen took a sip of her sugary tea. "You can either help around the Citadel or find another way to pay me back for letting you stay."

"Thank you, Anna." Showing her gratitude Lucilla gave the spider woman a small smile before quickly looking down at the table again. "Just let us know what you need us to do."

"Another thing If I may be so bold to ask you." Judieth spoke before turning to Maisy who was once again standing behind Lucilla

The slime girl looked very confused before a look of realization came over her face. She then stuck her hand straight into her chest, creating a very unpleasant image as her hand seemingly sunk into flesh. She was wearing and using the illusion neckless, so she also looked a lot like Lucilla at the moment, with purple hair and eyes. She then pulled out a clear crystalline object, slightly smaller than a fist and looked like an oak tree seed. A dark blue and white substance angulating within its center.

"Is that a Teleportation seed?" Asked Anastasia.

"You would be correct." Judieth confirmed proudly. "After getting some resources from a contact of mine, I then crafted multiple vessels and had Yuki use her Space magic on it to create them."

"And you want to use it here?"

"Yes ma'am. I've planted this particular seeds other half back at my Labatory. Once fully grown they should connect properly, allowing me access to my stuff and for Lucilla to see her sister again." The doctor explained

"I thought, um, she passed away?" The Queen questioned hesitantly.

"My other sister." Spoke Lucilla. "She's the only family I have left. Plus connecting to Judieth's lab will be beneficial to you. There's plenty of resources there for you to exploit to you hearts content."

Judieth opened her mouth to protest before closing it. She didn't particularly want her lab and the contents within to be used as a bargaining chip, but she also wanted Lucilla to take charge and start doing these types of negotiations herself without needing her help. If she had to sacrifice a valuable relic or two along the way, then that's what needed to be done.

"I see." Anastasia nodded along in understanding. "Then I just have one more question for you. Why didn't you go back to where your sister is currently at?"

"... I needed time. I need time." Lucilla said quietly looking at her hands. "I- I can't face her right now. I got our sister killed. Me. She died and it was my fault. Wh- what am I supposed to tell her?"

"... How about we talk later. You all must be tired. I'll have someone show you to some guest rooms." The Arachnea Queen then got up from the table and walked over to the large door, her eight large legs making the covering the short distance in no time at all. Opening it she stuck her head out and called for Savant, the human male they met the first time they were here.

"Well then. Can I assume the rest of the people on your ship will come here?"

"Nah, they all stayin' on the ship." Cristina answered.

"Well, that makes thing easier." Smiled the spider woman, relived they didn't have to deal with a bunch of people. "I'll speak to you all tomorrow then. Good night."