S1C7

She stepped into carnage.

Scherbe's gut wrenched as the enormity of the slaughter pressed itself on her mind. Siegfried’s blue banner flapped in the wind from atop the town center. The cold northern wind wheezed down the ravine and stirred snow dust into whirling eddies across the blasted ground. Smoke still rose from glowing embers here and there, where campfires had spread in the chaos to engulf whatever other shelters the defenders had built. The Malfested corruption covered the ground
And bodies—bodies were everywhere.

Casualties of war, blood soaking their chests and streaking their faces, limbs torn free, gore spilling from gaping gut wounds. The smell of blood and entrails mixed with the carrion odor of the Malfested and turned Scherbe’s stomach.
For everything she trained for with Siegfried, every nightmare of war she painted in her head. It felt pale in comparison to what stood before her. here would be her first fight against the Malfested. But deep beneath her shaking resolve to fight was her uncertainty- was she strong enough?

"Don't be afraid of the monsters "Siegfried said placing a hand on Scherbe’s shoulder. He knew that this was her first time on the field but he was confident in her ability’s. She had trained for years and now it was time to put it to the test. A test she would very easily pass

"Don't be afraid of the dark, don’t be afraid of the future, because I’ll be here to be the shield around your heart, don’t be afraid of the sunrise, don’t be afraid of the saint, and don’t be afraid of the judgement, because I’ll be here to back you up along the way.  If you'd go down, if you'd fall, I'll be falling down with you, if you'd break I'll be breaking down with you"
Scherbe smiled brushing her blond hair around her ear. he was always cheezy when it came to giving her confidence. but that didn't
bother her.

During the final assault on Mela Verde, Siegfried had established a camp here, a refuge for the people fleeing the advancing Malfested. Last Scherbe knew, it had been safe—or as safe as anyplace. It was sheltered in a narrow ravine that's mouth was almost blocked by a huge fallen slab of rock. If nothing else, the rock served to choke off the approach to the camp, but Siegfried had seemed to put some stock in the ability to choking off the Malfested as well.

But Siegfried’s camp was clearly no longer a safe refuge. His mission had taken longer than he intended: he had to tend to Scherbe’s training, while also looking for a second in command for his schwartswind. His band of fighters loyal his cause and fight of Soul Calibur. He had gone Corvain in a fruitless effort to stop the spread of malfestaion. And while he had delayed, the Malfested had apparently overwhelmed Mela Verde and its defenders.

“Save as many as we can” he said looking down into the valley “remember why we do this; it is for them, those that can’t protect themselves. And remember I will be here to guard you”

Scherbe looked back at him, though he was rugged and war torn weathered by years of emotion and battle, but he wore his compassion for her just as boldly as he wore his armor. He was her armor, for now. But today she would shed him as a guardian and fight not only for herself but those down there who need them most.  

Siegfried vanished in a gust of snow, startling Scherbe. She had never seen him use the powers of Soul Calibur. She looked down at the valley, he was there already driving back Malfested. She smiled to herself, he truly was an amazing man. She hoped one day she would be as strong her father.
She snatched up her battle scythe and slid down the mountain into the battlefield

Scherbe vaulted over the outside wall of the encampment and began clearing out Malfested with her scythe. With each kill their bodies froze over with ice and crystal from her scythe. Siegfried had blessed her with a part of his power of Soul Calibur, the power to eliminate those cursed by Soul Edges influence. It came naturally to her now that she was in the field, with the first kill, the second, and the third. Each Malfested dropped each time her confidence in herself grew, like she was born for it.

“You there!”

She spun on reflex and saw a female soldier crouching defensively as a pack of Malfested spilled around the wreckage of a nearby wall, squelching and skittering as they moved.

Scherbe leaped between the Malfested and the soldier. Her scythe swept around hooked itself around the creature. She hurled the Malfested away, crashing it into the others and shattering the featureless, bony plates that passed for their heads against the wall.
Scherbe checked the soldier over. She was quite pretty for a soldier, she looked as though she could have even been some kind of a maiden, with medium length red hair tucked into the back of her armor as to not get in her way.  She wore standard issue plate armor from what looked like her home land. It was adorned with colors of a land she was not familiar too. Bet she did recognize the lupine ascents on it.

She was weaponless at the moment. Obviously why she was hiding from the Malfested. Scherbe snatched up a short sword that was half-buried in the body of a Malfested.

 "Take this" she said, offering the hilt to her
For a moment she looked as if Scherbe were handing her a snake, but then she took the blade and gave it a few swings through the air.

"Not exactly my specialty," she said.

She sheathed the sword. Deciding rather to arm herself with a long spear laying on the ground.  She gave it a few thrust to test its worth. “This Is much better” she tiled her head “it keeps them at a distance” she bobbed her head motioning to the wall of spears on the outside line of the wall, laden with bodies of Malfested

“My name is Hilde, thank you for your assistance here”

“Scherbe” she placed a hand on her chest introducing her self

Scherbe turned away. "We need to move," she said. She looked around to get the lay of the land. "Up the ravine. If anyone survived this, that's where they'll be." Even as she said them, she felt the weight of her words. What if no one had survived?

If they had been here, the camp would not have fallen.

"Are you sure about this?" Hilde asked “what of the soldiers still in the field?”

"Trust me," Scherbe said. “Siegfried has this side of the wall covered, we need to get the survivors to safety”

To her credit, Hilde nodded and drew closer, ready to follow where Scherbe led. “I’ll come with you”

The ravine narrowed and rose sharply behind the camp. Scattered clumps of small Malfested ranged around the gully, leaving a spreading pattern of red and black ichor. Scherbe suspected they were feeding, though she couldn't imagine what sustenance they could derive from the bare rock. Her first inclination was to destroy all the Malfested she could see—but she had Hilde to think about, and there was no time to waste, they still need to look for any survivors from Mela Verde. So she picked a path along the rocky ground that kept them away from the Malfested, but still over looked the camp with a good sight line for survivors.
Only the occasional Malfested veered from the bulk of its fellows to come at them. Scherbe quickly dispatched those stragglers, and before long she crested a rocky ridge and her heart lifted.

A wall blocked the ravine ahead, a decrepit wooden barrier that looked like it had been torn from a shed and wedged into a choke point. Spears bristling over the top testified that some someone, at least, had survived the slaughter at the refuge.
But between Scherbe and those survivors, dozens of Malfested crowded in front of the wall, reaching long tentacles and sharp claws up and over the top. The spears jabbed frantically at any Malfested that came within reach, but it was clear that the survivors were vastly outnumbered and outmatched.

Scherbe bellowed, Hilde Followed suit and charged. Scythe, spear and sword whirled around in front, clearing a path through the masses as they rushed toward the makeshift wall.
A lone voice from behind the barricade echoed her cry, followed by a ragged chorus as spears jabbed out with renewed vigor.
She reached the wall and whipped her scythe back and forth as the Malfested continued to press their assault.

"Now what?" Hilde said.

Scherbe’s scythe swung in a wide arc to clear them some space. Then she laced her fingers together and nodded to Hilde "Up you go."

"Really?"

Hilde had missed her chance. The Malfested crowded close again. A surge of them from her left drew her attention for a second too long—when she whirled to her right, she saw a wriggling spawn lunging at Hilde. Scherbe was too slow. Hilde threw her spear up- impaling the creature through the throat an instant before it could skewer her with a sharp appendage. It wasn't a powerful or fatal, but it was enough that Scherbe had time to get her scythe around the Malfested’s neck and remove its head
Then Hilde staggered and yelped as a slimy red tentacle coiled around her leg. Scherbe lifted the first Malfested into the air and smashed it down on the tentacled one.

"Are you all right?" she asked Hilde

She nodded.

Again Scherbe cleared a path. Malfested bodies were piling up, their frozen body’s slowing the advance of the rest of the swarm. She laced her fingers again, and this time Hilde promptly put a foot in place. Scherbe heaved her up and a hand from the other side of the wall helped her over.

With Her back to the wall, Scherbe faced the remaining mob—squirming spawn and faceless drones of corruption, bestial extensions of their origins will, of Soul Edges unending hunger. These creatures didn't know who stood before them. They didn't care that she was Scherbe Schtauffen, daughter of Siegfried, guardian of Gewölbe aus Eis, heir to Soul Calibur. To them, she was just another piece of flesh, a thing with life to be eaten away.

But the people behind the barrier knew. She was hope to them, their one chance to survive this dire threat, their salvation and deliverance. That was what Siegfried had been to countless soldiers across the land, and now her.

"I just hope I'm not too late," she said to herself.

She stood her ground and fought, sweeping scythe back and forth. The slightest cut to the lowly Malfested causing them to freeze over, her mind preoccupied with talking to the survivors and getting them out.

“Scherbe!” Hilde’s voice called from behind the wall

It was time. A larger spawn with heavy bone plates on its head came rushing toward her- some kind of battering ram. He crouched, awaiting the perfect moment, then jumped. One foot came down hard on the Malfested head, then she leaped up, with a wave of her scythe an ice wall formed form the collection of body’s it show spikes out towards the advancing horde creating ice like spears, a boost to their defense.

She flipped backward, and vaulted over the wall.

Her feet kicked up clouds of snow as she landed and laid eyes on the survivors of the camp.

Eight haggard soldiers sat with their backs against the wall, evidently enjoying the moment of respite that Scherbe had brought them. A skittering and clawing at the wall told them that respite was over, and they pulled themselves to their feet again, leaning on their spears for support.

Scherbe fired off an ice spike shard from her scythe, knocking a Malfested off the top of the wall.

"Tell me you're not the only survivors," she said.

One of the soldiers, jerked his head toward the higher end of the ravine. "Commander Branwen is leading the rest" he said "But most of them are worse off than we are"

Considering the array of bandages and splints that adorned these eight soldiers that said a great deal.
Scherbe frowned "How many?" she asked “civilians?”

The man shook his head. "A few dozen"

"We should have been here" Scherbe said under her breath.

He made a half-hearted jab with his spear at a Malfested coming over the wall, his face telling Scherbe that he was only pretending not to have heard him.

"Does Branwen have a plan? Where is he taking them?"

"I would think getting out of this death trap of a ravine is his first objective. I'm not sure he's thought beyond that."

Hilde snorted. "What kind of leader—" she began

"No, he's right" Scherbe said. "We all need to get out of this ravine. I'll hold this wall as long as I can." Her scythe punctuated her words as another Malfested fell dead at her feet. "Go rejoin the others, and take Hilde with you"

The man nodded, not bothering to hide his relief. Scherbe noted, not bothering to question whether she could hold the wall for long.

"Go!" she shouted, and the soldiers limped away from the wall as fast as they could manage.

Without having to worry about Hilde or the others, Scherbe could give the Malfested her full attention. Now that the soldiers had left, the Malfested scuttled over and around the wall faster than Scherbe could strike them down. It was amazing how many were here, even more so knowing that Siegfried was also dispatching from the front lines. Was the whole Malfested army here?

She fell into an easy rhythm of slaughter, a dance that had become second nature to her muscles by now. Her ice shards cracked and whistled through the air, an aquamarine light gleaming along the length of the blade of her scythe as she channeled her ice through it. The ice armor on her forearms alternately deflected blows, her hands themselves becoming weapons. Smashing into armor plates and breaking limbs.

Maintaining her defenses was actually the harder task. Against human foes, it was easy to anticipate every stab and thrust, and thus make sure that any strike that got past her would glance off armor fortified with her ice. Against human foes.

Against the Malfested, though, she was more susceptible to injury. Especially when she was tired. Their movements were harder to anticipate. Their limbs were bifurcated, or they were writhing masses of tentacles, sometimes a merger of beast and man. She often ended up shielding more of her body than he needed to, which was a drain on her energy, or she misjudged and took a hit.
She glanced over her shoulder as the Malfested corpses piled up around her. Hilde and the survivors were out of sight. And in front of her, it seemed like the Malfested advance was beginning to slow.

Which might just mean they had found an easier route to the tasty morsels of human flesh behind her. She started backing her way up the ravine, her scythe ripping and slicing at the Malfested that followed her. Occasionally, too, she struck high on the side of the ravine, sending a shower of gravel or a few larger chunks of rock down onto the Malfested.

Then a huge Malfested surged up behind her. Something very like the enormous titan. It had no legs, just a writhing mass of tentacles, and it pulled itself along the broken ground with its arms, making the ground quiver each time a huge, clawed hand struck the ground. Bony plates ran up the backs of its arms and covered its shoulders, so its head was just one more plate among many. A tangle of tentacles reached skyward from just behind its head.

One great claw hit the ground, squashing a spawn in an eruption of purplish slime. Neither it nor the surrounding spawn paid any heed.
Scherbe planted her feet and took a deep breath, steeling herself. How do you win a war, she wondered, when the enemy has no fear of death and nothing to lose? They never tired, they apparently fed on everything—so what would ever stop their advance? How many had she killed here in this ravine, just today? And still they kept coming.

Now the Malfested lifted its upper body so it loomed over Scherbe, more than twice her height. What looked almost like a second head and torso protruded forward from the thing's chest, squirming independently of the larger body as if trying to pull itself free.
Did it mean to scare her, showing off its much greater size? Or was this more of an animalistic threat display, like a wolf's bristling fur making it look larger? Was there some calculated intent behind that bony plated head?

It didn't matter. One its great claws came swinging toward her. With the barest movement of her arm, she impaled her scythe into the creature's arm, then she pulled, yanking its balance.

No. That move would have pulled a human off balance, or even a giant. But the Malfested tentacles barely shifted on the ground, keeping it perfectly grounded. Without hesitation, it grabbed at her with its other claw. She batted the claw aside with the shaft of her scythe and lashed its blade upward, where it slashed creature's neck.

Neck? Head? She wasn't sure the words even made sense when applied to a Malfested. Did it draw air from some opening in its head, down its neck to lungs in its chest? Was its brain located behind that bony plate at the top of its body? Did a brain matter anymore, or lungs, or a heart, or any vital and vulnerable organs? For all the Malfested she had killed, she knew they were once human, but she'd seen many continue to fight despite what he would have assumed to be mortal wounds.

And this one. It was stronger than the lackeys around it, it was resisting her ability freeze it. It was not dyeing with a simple flesh wound.  It seemed unconcerned as her scythe ripped across its neck. The mass of tentacles supporting the creature surged forward and engulfed her, coiling around her and squeezing.

Kicking and thrashing, she managed to loosen the creature's hold enough that she could pull on her scythe, dragging the Malfested’s head down. Then, on a hunch, she brought her hand up to punch the smaller second head that grew from its chest. She harden her fist with ice and swung

It was a good hunch. The tentacles loosed their grip. She pulled her scythe free from the Malfested’s neck, and the creature staggered backward, depositing her on the ground. Two more quick slashes with the scythes blades severed first the smaller head and then the larger, and the Malfested fell to the ground.

She watched it for a moment it did not freeze over, but she hadn’t asked it to either. She turned, she needed to get to the camp. The masses were slowing even more now, their numbers must be dwindling. She leapt to the top of the make shift wall.
That’s when the wall shook. It wasn’t her landing that moved it, no. it something bigger.

She looked back to see the titan back on its- feet. Its tentacles. Arms out stretched wide and swinging in for an enormous clap. It was going to crush her between its enormous claws and she had no time to react. She raised her scythe and braced herself for impact. She barely got a look at what had happened.

The sound of ripping flash and breaking bone echoed of the walls and a howl form the creature, she looked up to see the claws, now encased in ice crashing into her and the wall. The weight of the arms alone we enough to destroy the makeshift wall and send her flying. She landed hard on the ground her scythe knocked form her hands. She barely got a see what had happened. She looked up for her spot to see the Malfested completely frozen over with its arms cut from its body. Whatever it was strong enough to slice through its bony armor.

Through the rubble Siegfried emerged his sword shining brightly as he made pace to her position.

She clasped his hand as he helped her to her feet. He was uninjured, part from a black eye.

“Are you hurt?” he asked frantically patting her over “your head, shoulders mm? Ribs?”

“I’m fine father”

He let out an air of relief, jamming his sword in the ground.

They had no time to celebrate this victory. While she had fought the larger Malfested, at least a dozen others had shambled past them, following Hilde and the soldiers up toward the other survivors, and more were advancing with every passing second, swarming over the corpses.

“They’re still coming, we can’t rest yet.” He said placing his hand on her shoulder “you’ve done well” he smiled proving that his faith had not been misplaced like he knew.

“SIEGFRIED!!” a roar came from down the ravine, dark, evil and full of rage. Scherbe had no clue what kind of a creature or man could make a shout of its kind. Scherbe watched his somewhat pleased demeanor change. In an instant he had become dark, brooding. Like an insult long standing had been called to him again. She had never seen him like this before. It spiked fear in her a true fear that the Malfested couldn’t inflict.

Siegfried knew, he knew all to well- Knightmare. He turned slowly, ripping his sword out of the dirt.

“Go, take the remaining home to Orstrhiensburg castle, you mustn’t get caught in this, you’re not strong enough.”

“There are still soldiers in the front lines!” Scherbe argued back “let me help them”

“No, everything behind this point is lost” she could see his grip on his sword tighten shaking almost, she could tell he knew as much. It
they weren’t with him here they were lost now

There were so many more questions flying through her head answers, arguments to be had.  But more so what had caused such a change in him. She looked past her father to see what had gathered his focus.

Scherbe’s breath caught in her chest. There was Knightmare surrounded with pieces of the Malfested army, steaming with wage and fury. Its claw flexing and twisting as it stared back at Siegfried. Its sword Soul edge in its other hand. Observing the slaughter around it ever wide, ever taking in. this was the monster that her father had fought for so long, and he was here.

“Scherbe!” Siegfried shouted, snapping her from her terror “I need to get gather yourself. We can still save the survivors up the ravine. Make sure they make it to Orstrhiensburg, we will readdress what to do from there”

Scherbe stood up and brandished her scythe. She must to this. As scared as she was, she had to.

“Make sure you come back, I’m not ready to go without you” she said

Turned his head back to her. He wasn’t smiling, he wasn’t going to reassure her of his victory. He was angry, filled with sorrow. Again he had tried to hold off soul edge. Again lives were lost. She thought he would have grown accustomed to such events, but even he as stonewalled as he was even he could only take so much.


The rocky ravine walls grew closer and closer together as the ground rose. At last, her body spattered with ooze and gore from dozens of Malfested, she reached a narrow choke point where bare stone walls opened just wide enough for her to pass through. She jumped up a few natural stone steps and paused for a moment in the narrow gap, surveying the crowd of spawn that still followed up the ravine behind her. She ran a few more strides past the gap. As the ravine opened up again, she stopped, turned, and lashed out with her scythe—once, twice—striking the rock walls and breaking rubble from both sides of the gap to shower down on the Malfested below. More strikes, the blade cracking like a miner's pick on the stone, and larger stones were sheared from the walls, squashing more spawn and blocking the advance of the ones behind. A few more hits, carefully placed, and she had created a defensive wall. It would not hold, of course—not any better than the one the soldiers had erected in their retreat. She could hear the Malfested scuttling and scraping at the boulders, shifting the rubble as they started to climb. But with any luck, the wall would buy enough time.

She took off at a run, leaping from stone to stone as she neared the top of the ravine. Then, at last, she heard a woman's voice shouting orders, and a moment later the survivors came into view.

"So few," she said to herself. A few dozen, the soldier had said—very few, if she was seeing the whole group. From the top of the ravine, they were making their way along a high ridge. She saw many crutches, many makeshift stretchers held by limping soldiers, and bandages on almost every living body.

Hilde fiery read hair stood out among the grays and browns, the plain fabrics and dirt-caked clothes of the others. She was standing beside an armored human woman. Scherbe hurried to join them.

"You made it" Hilde said. Was that a touch of admiration in his voice?

"Where is Commander Branwen?" Scherbe asked.

"Right here," came a hoarse voice from behind Hilde

Hilde turned, and Scherbe saw Branwen. He was a strongly built man with deep brown skin and curly brown hair cropped short. His shirtless chest was wrapped in bandages, and some blood had seeped through them at his left side. He leaned on a staff as he shuffled toward them.

"Hello, Scherbe" he said, his voice a harsh whisper

"Sir," Scherbe said, keeping her concern out of her tone. Branwen was a proud man, Scherbe knew better than to patronize him. "We
don't have much time. I slowed the Malfested advance, but I couldn't stop it. Siegfried is still down there fighting off Knightmare."
"Scherbe Schtauffen, Gardian of Gewölbe aus Eis" Branwen said, a touch of wonder in his voice. "I will not ask who is doing the
“guarding” if you are here, but I will thank you"

Scherbe looked at the ground "we should have been here earlier."

"Yes," Branwen said flatly "We could have used you."

"Did you have a plan, sir?" she looked back up at him, remorse could come later.

Branwen heaved a deep sigh. "What can we do but keep running?"

Scherbe frowned. "Then I’m taking us to Orstrhiensburg, Siegfried’s orders"

"If we can't hold them back from in there, we're doomed anyway"

Scherbe looked around the ridge, rubbing her chin. They stood at the mid of the valley leading up to the mountains where Orstrhiensburg sat. With the right path they could make it, slowly but they could make it. She analyzed the mountain pass, running through the routs in her head. Orstrhiensburg was her home after all. Home of the Gewölbe aus Eis. Given the condition of the men it would be at least a day’s travel, if they could avoid the Malfested. It was possible, but it would be difficult.

“There's practically a staircase waiting for us” she pointed to the path ways on the sides of the mountains “if we keep away for the Malfested we should be able to make it via the mountain pass”

"Have you gone mad?" Hilde said. "You have two dozen people here who can barely walk, and you expect them to climb ropes and mountains?"

"Yes. For many of them, it will be easier than walking. And with enough hooks and ropes, we can help the others up." she turned back to Branwen "Sir, with the sheer number of Malfested on the ground here, I believe there's no other place that can offer a similar level of protection. It’s much more defensible, and there are reinforcements there"

"Fine," Branswen said. "Lead the way."

Hilde gaped at her commander. "Sir?"

"Scherbe is right, Hilde" Branwen said. "Help her get the people ready."

Together, Scherbe and Hilde worked quickly, despite her reservations. First they talked to any boatmen, farmers, and climbers among the survivors, drawing on their skill with ropes. While some worked to build harnesses and slings that could carry the wounded up the heights, others scouted the path and fixed ropes in place to ease the ascent. Then they distributed what meager supplies the survivors had managed to take with them from the destroyed refuge, giving heavier burdens to those who were strong enough to carry them. In just a few hours, they were ready to begin the climb.

The scouts led the way, with Scherbe right behind them. She moved with slender grace, Hilde, though, was not a skilled climber nor an athlete of any sort. She trailed behind Scherbe, offering meager assistance to those who were carrying those too injured to move themselves.

Scherbe looked off to the distance. The mountain side offered a spectacular view of the land, with all its rushing rivers, tangled woods, and clear lakes. She could just barely see the Sea glittered in the evening sunlight. Below all its beauty the mess of a ravine from which they came. A congealed mess of body’s and death. There was no more fighting now, no more Malfested they seemed to vanish as quickly as they had appeared. There was no Knightmare and no Siegfried. Scherbe had hoped her father made it out, she had faith he did. She would see him again soon.