Disclaimer: I don’t own Beyblade.

I’m using the original-version names:

Yuri = Tala    Giancarlo = Enrique  

Takao = Tyson     Mao = Mariah

Sergey = Spencer  Ivan = Ian

Boris = Bryan

For All Who Gave Their Lives

 

Chapter 11: Dying Forest

 

Justice and liberty

You can buy – but you don’t get free

In a world of steel and glass

We burry our past

                                  (Bruce Dickinson ‘Born In 58)

 

 Nighthorns are mysterious creatures, which inhibit forests on Aragorn. They look very much like unicorns, however they are always black and their horns are twisted. They rarely come near humans, usually only when there is something wrong in their habitat. One of their strangest features is that they are afraid of virgins.

 (‘Physiologius’ Myrddin ap Taliesin)

 

Pucks (also known as phuka or pwca) are guardian spirits of most forests. They usually take form of a human boy, but can change into other creatures. It is known that woods inhibited by a puck are healthier and grow bigger – there are also more animals in them.(…) Annoying a puck proves in most cases to be a grave mistake (…)

(‘Physiologius’ Myrddin ap Taliesin)

 

 Wild Hunt is one of the manifestations of the Horned Sire – it appears in woodlands or near big forests. The people observing it see a big group of human-shaped wraiths on horses lead by a man with large antlers on his head. It is said that those, who come to near are to become a part of the Wild Hunt (…)

(‘On Gods and Spirits’ Nimue of the Lake)

 

 There was something wrong – Little Sister could feel it. The forest shouldn’t appear hostile… Not to her, a wolf, at least. But if whatever it was wanted to attack them would try, she would be ready. She couldn’t let anything hurt her pack!

 The wolf sat motionlessly, observing the bushes. You could see she was quite nervous – her fur stood up and her ears laid flat to her head. She was all tense.

 Takao also felt uneasy – this wood wasn’t normal. He turned his head to the right and froze. Little Sister was also looking in that direction. There was a black horse-like creature with a twisted horn on its forehead looking at him with navy blue eyes. It was beautiful – in a sinister mysterious way.

 The wolf silently nudged Yuri with her muzzle. The half-elf stirred and opened groggily his eyes. He gave the wolf an annoyed look and set up, immediately noticing the horned creature. He furrowed his eyebrows and focused his attention on the animal.

 It didn’t react and remained motionless.

-         Wake up! – Yuri snapped, half hoping it would scare the creature away. Sergey jerked up, looking in various directions; Boris jumped up, the Falcon Claws ready in his hand. Lucrezia sat up and touched her chin with her index finger, while Giancarlo also sat up. The strange animal didn’t move an inch.

-         A nighthorn? – the mage raised her eyebrows quizzically. – But that would mean something must be really, really off!

-         Brilliant. – snarled the thief. – Are we going to kill it?

-         Are you joking?! Stupido! – the black-haired woman snapped. – You can’t just kill a nighthorn. They’re as dangerous as wyverns.

-         How was I supposed to know?!

-         Silenzio! – Giancarlo yelled. – Do you know what it might want from us, cousin?

-         No. Normally nighthorns are extremely shy… Unless there’s something really wrong in this forest.

-         Well, why not ask about it? – Yuri shrugged.

-         Whom? – the minstrel gave him an irritated look.

 Suddenly Little Sister growled. She was still looking at some bushes. The half-elf didn’t need any other warnings – he grabbed his sword and leaped. He grabbed something and lifted it. It proved to be small long-nosed child with blue hair.

-         A child? – Sergey gave it a disappointed look. The child stuck it tongue out him.

-         I am not a child. – it said.

-         Ja, natürlich, und Arschlöcher können fliegen. – snorted Boris.

-         Wenn man sie wirft, dann fliegen sie. – the ‘child’ answered, sounding very patronising.

-         Du drei Käse hoch solltest besser Maul halten, sonst passiert dir was.

-         Do I have to start talking in the northern dialect? – asked Yuri threateningly. – Who are you? – he addressed the ‘child’, rising so that their eyes were on the same level.

-         Ivan.

-         Ivan and what else?

 Meanwhile the nighthorn lowered its head as if preparing to charge. Lucrezia made one step forward and the animal jerked its head up, jumping back. The ‘child’ hissed annoyed.

-         Did you tell it to attack? – the mage asked it.

-         Yes.

-         You aren’t a human!

-         What gave you that idea? My nose? – the blue-haired creature snorted.

-         No, the charging nighthorn did. – Lucrezia stated matter-of-factly, while battering her eyelashes. It looked as if she was making fun of Ivan. He tried to give her a menacing look, but it came out more of a babyish pout. – Let me guess, you’re a puck and something happened to your forest, si?

 The child-like creature gave her a dirty look.

-         Even if you were right, what would it help me?

-         You don’t have to attack us. – chimed in Yuri. – We aren’t the ones responsible for that.

-         Why should I believe you?

 Yuri growled at that, but Takao blocked his mouth with his hand.

-         I swear on my honour, we aren’t. – he said. Ivan wrinkled his nose.

-         I will let you pass, if you help me.

 Sergey sighed.

-         It be always endin’ like that. – he muttered darkly. – Ye be mindin’ yer business an’ than some sissy be commin’ an’ tellin’ ye to do what ‘e be sayin ‘cause otherwise ‘e will be sendin’ ‘is guards or ‘is pet night’orn to kill ye. Cannae ye save yer arse alone?

-         Never mind. We have to help him! – Lucrezia said. – If someone is messing up things here, it might get really dangerous.

-         I don’t think we have a choice. – sighed the red-haired warrior. – All right, what exactly is the problem?

-         Lady Helga von Wartburg is.

-         Verfluchte Scheiße! – Boris muttered through gritted teeth. – We’re in trouble.

-         Wait with the swearing ‘till I finish, fine? – the puck snarled. –  She woke up the Wild Hunt and it’s running through my forest. You see, she and Lord Hiwatari are having some kind of a feud and my forest is between their lands. I guess, she thought the Wild Hunt could do some actual damage… It’s only dangerous, when you come to near and no sane person does that.

-         Wait. It is a manifestation of the Horned Sire, si? – Giancarlo asked. – And he is the god of nature, so why is it a problem for you?

-         I’m not ready yet. – Ivan shook his head, looking right now very much like scared and tired child. – If it were only the Wild Hunt… As I said, it doesn’t really do any harm as long as you keep away from it. And Helga must have noticed it, or she was using it as a distraction. Anyway, she decided to use my forest even more – first she took most of the üpas from it and than she stole my snake. It was cute little violet viper… - he sighed sadly.

-         A snake was cute? – Yuri blinked.

-         Ye should be ‘earin’ what some crazy Varans be sayin’ ‘bout their lil’ pets. – mumbled Sergey. – Pipsqueak ‘ere nay be seemin’ that bad.

-         Thank you, you over-grown ape. – snorted the puck. – Will you let me finish? Than she used my poor little to create a link between her and my forest, so it powers her magic. If somebody won’t stop her, everything here will die out. You might not see it yet, but believe me she’s slowly devouring it…

-         And what are we supposed to do? – the redhead focused his eyes on the small creature, who seemed to have the power over the forest.

-         Stop Helga somehow, of course. – Ivan shrugged.

-         Oh, joy. – sighed the half-elf. – That’s exactly what I needed – another detour. Can’t you help us somehow?

-         I can’t leave the forest. But I can give you some advice… Kill Helga.

-         Ha ha ha. Very funny. – snorted the redhead. – Have any more obvious things to say?

-         Of course we weren’t going to kill her. No! – Boris chimed up, his voice dripping with sarcasm. – We would stab her fifty times in the back, but we wouldn’t kill her!

-         Thanks for the idea Boris. – Yuri smirked. – You are going to Helga’s room and killing her.

-         And what will you do in the mean time? – growled the thief.

-         Why, buy you the time, of course! – the northern warrior got serious, suddenly. – So we have a change of plans: first we go and get rid of that Helga and than we go to Schloss Feuerweg.

 The others only nodded.

 

Translations:

Stupido (Italian) – stupid

Silenzio (Italian) – silence

Ja, natürlich, und Arschlöcher können fliegen. (German)  – Yes, of course, and (censored) can fly

Wenn man sie wirft, dann fliegen sie. (German) – If you throw them, they fly. (That’s one of my brother’s responses to ‘And cows can fly.’)

Du drei Käse hoch sollst besser Maul halten, sonst passiert dir was. (German) – Pipsqueak, you should better keep your mouth shut, or something [nasty] may happen to you. (‘Drei Käse hoch’ if translated exactly means as tall as three cheeses.)

Si (Italian) – Yes

Verfluchte Scheiße (German) – Holy Shit!

 

A/N

 Nighthorns are my idea.

 As for pucks – Shakespeare anyone?

 The Wild Hunt is part of several mythologies – starting from the Valkyries taking the fallen warriors to Valhalla. Later, in the Germanic mythology it became the demonic ‘Wilde Jagd’ of goddess Huldra (Holda) wife of Wotan. Wild Hunt is also to be found in the Celtic myths – the riders of Gwynn ap Nudd. Last but not least is the Wild Hunt of Herne the Hunter on which the Wild Hunt here is based – it’s a group of wraiths on horses lead by a man with antlers.

 The Horned Sire is the Celtic god Cernunnos, just slightly changed (^_^ authress-person is being lazy)

 Nimue is one of the names of the Lady of the Lake from the Arthurian legends. She is said to have seduced Merlin and than to have trapped him… somewhere (in magical crystal cave or in a trunk of a oak, or in an amber).