Zero No Tsukaima Fan Fiction ❯ Zero No Tsukaima Darkness Rising ❯ The Greater Good ( Chapter 8 )

The Greater Good

 

Saito opens his eyes and sits up, “LOUISE!!!!?” His heart begins to race so fast that it feels like its going to burst as he franticly looks around the room, “LOUISE!!!!?” The room offers no solace nothing that can offer any guidance for Saito, “No.............NO...........AAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!”

 

 

The sound of a door slamming shocks everyone downstairs almost as much as the painful, heart wrenching screams. Saito fumbles down the steps his legs still weak.

Seth gets up and meets him at the bottom of the steps, “Saito what are you doing?”

Saito shoves his way past Seth, “I'm going to go get Louise,” Saito reaches the door and before he opens it he stops and turns around, no one is following behind him, “What are you doing, we need to save Louise!” No one can look up at his face they all keep their eyes to the ground, “No one is coming with me?”

Saito turns back around and takes hold of the door handle, “WAIT!” Seth calls out and walks over to him.

Saito turns around and looks at Seth, “Thank you Seth, we need to hurry we can still catch up them if we hurry.”

Seth drops his head and his voice is barely more than a whisper, “No, we won't.”

Saito can't believe what he is hearing, how can he say such a thing. Won't why not, everything seems to have come crashing down on Saito in this very moment, the world stops nothing matters beside getting Louise back. Saito feels something inside him that he has never felt before, betrayal. Saito backs up and is stopped by the door, “What do you mean?”

Seth looks up but still avoids eye contact, “Saito, please try to understand, we need to get to Germania. Remember.........save the world.” Seth right eye releases the smallest of tears, “I am really sorry, I know that you can't forgive.....”

Saito brings his arm back and blasts Seth in the face with his fist dropping him to the ground, “I love her and I'm going to get her, NOW!”

Saito opens the door and takes a step outside, Seth from the floor quickly scrambles to get up, “HUNDREDS WILL DIE SAITO!” Saito stops and Seth looks at the back of his comrade, his friend, “Please Saito, try to understand, I know this isn't fair.”

“What if they had taken Rain,” Saito's words pierce the very core of Seth, the thought of Rain being taken makes him begin to tremble, “Seth, what if Rain had been the one taken.”

Seth looks at his wife, the one he loves most, the reason he is who he is, “I'm sorry, Saito. We can't go after her.” Rain looks away from Seth, gets up and leaves the room. Seth gets back to his feet his body still trembling. “Saito, I know this isn't fair to ask of you, but on my life I swear I will help you find her, once this army has been taken care of.” Seth cluctches at his heart, “I swear on my life that I won't give up until we find her.”

“She might not even be alive by the time we start searching for her.” Saito's hands become tightly clenched fists, “Louise or the world, is that what I have to choose from.”

Seth can't bring himself to say anything else he just sits down at one of the tables.

Saito's legs give out and he falls to the ground just outside of the inn. His tears fall freely to the ground as he looks around trying to find something that would get him hope. The sun only beginning to rise on the worst day in his entire life. He falls deep into himself thinking about Louise and how she will hate him for not protecting her like he promised so long ago. His first promise and now it has been broken.

Many hours pass until the sun is high over head and everyone, though filled with sadness for Saito, pack up and are prepared to leave. Saito gets up and without a single word puts on his pack and joins the group.

Seth stops walking and the group gets ahead of him, “Guy's I gotta go talk to the old man I'll catch up in a bit.”

Seth goes back into the inn and finds the old man sitting behind his counter, almost like nothing has happened, this alone tears at Seth.

“You forget something boy?”

Seth pulls out a small pouch and puts it down on the counter, “This is all the money I got, it won't be enough so....” He pulls out his gauntlets and places them on the counter next to the pouch, “These are enchanted so they will get you the rest if you sell them and enough to hire workers too.”

“Boy, I'm not taking your money, you are going to need that, especially your weapons.”

“I can't use them now any way. Something has stopped my from using my full potential.” Before the man can say anything else Seth turns and heads for the door, “Old man.....Cid, I don't know if I will be coming back from this. Tell Sakura I'm sorry for not getting to answer her question.” Seth rounds the corner and exits the building.

After a few minutes Seth catches up with the group, everyone seems to be in the same shape they were in before, which is of no surprise as Seth still feels just as bad as his originally did. Seth reaches Rain and he tries to take her hand but she refuses and catches up to Tabitha and Zion ahead of him.

 

 

The group covers more than expected considering what time they left the inn and as the sun begins to set they all make camp. Saito simply sits under a tree and looks at the only thing he has left of Louise, the golden emblem she wore around her neck.

After the camp is set up Seth goes to get firewood by himself. The whole time he is collecting wood he is whispering, “I'm sorry.” He finally gets an armful of wood he starts making his way back to the camp but before he can get into camp Rain stops him. They share an awkward silence before Seth finally lowers his eyes back to the ground and walks past her. He drops the wood near the small pit that has been dug and goes into his tent.

Before Rain gets back Seth has already exited the tent with his back pack and has walked off into the night. She looks around the fire and can't find her husband. “Where's Seth?”

“We don't know, he took his pack and walk off.” Zion doesn't look up at her as he is picking at the fire, “He is taking this hard, not like Saito but, something is wrong with him.”

“Do you know which way he went?”

Tabitha points towards the northwest and Rain goes in that direction. As she disappears into the darkness Tabitha clutches onto Zion and begins to quietly cry into his chest for her lost friend Louise.

 

 

Where did he go, did he go to try and find Louise

Rain finds herself lost in the woods the only sound all around her is that of her own thoughts, until she hears a sound similar to that of water being splashed. She follows the sound until she can see steam rising from a small spring.

A hot spring, in the middle of the forest

She begins to slowly approach until a body resurfaces from under the water. She hides again not knowing who it is until she hears the voice.

Seth is sitting in the middle of a spring with no one else around, “What am I gonna do.” His voice echoes around him, “Saito hates me, Rain hates me, I hate me.” He learns back and lets the water keep him afloat. “I'm not a leader, I'm just a teenager from a different planet, who am I to play the hero.” He sticks his head back under the water and pulls it back up quickly flipping his bangs over the top of his head, “Please God help me, send me a sign.”

Silence is all that he has only his words and his pain is with him.

“I don't hate you.” Seth turns around in the water and finds Rain approaching from her hiding spot behind a tree, “Don't begin to think I could ever hate you.”

Seth turns around so that he doesn't have to face her as he talks, “But when Saito said.....” Seth drops his head and begins to shiver even though he is in a hot spring. “I'm sorry”

Seth hears something behind him but he can't bare to turn around. Suddenly he feels Rain body against him she leans in, her breasts against his back, she wraps her arms around him and rests her cheek against the top of his head. He reaches up and holds her arm and rests his head on her soft arms.

“I love you Rain.”

She can feel a cold tear from his face run down her arm, “I love you too and....I understand, I don't hate you.”

The words while make him feel relief he won't forgive himself just yet. He turns around and finds himself looking at the most beautiful woman he has ever seen. He quickly looks down into the water and quietly apologizes.

Rain smiles and sits down next to him as she realizes that her naked body is causing Seth's sudden apologizing.

Seth becomes nervous for some reason, what ever it is, confuses Rain as they have been married for well over a year, “ I have s-something to t-tell you.”

She brings her knees up to her chest and wraps her arms around them, “What is it Seth?”

Seth licks his lips and takes a slow breath in, “My runes don't work any more.”

The news takes Rain by surprise she wasn't expecting anything like that, “They don't work?” She keeps her voice soft, everyone's had a tough enough day without feeling like they're being yelled at.

“Those other runes, the runes of the Seer, I think they are the reason. After today I think I know why the Seer even existed.” Seth looks over at Rain who is listening with an interested look on her face. “I think that before Gandalfr, during the Seer's time, who ever had the runes, weren't the good guys. I think thats why I can't use my runes, the Seer runes are blocking my power.”

Rain seems to be having a difficult time digesting all the information and Seth theory, “So you think that the book was some kind of trap?”

“I think that those items belonged to the rune holders before us and they had the curse put on them. I don't know about the sword but I think the wand and the book where used by one person that's why I get shocked when I touch them both. I bet there are words in that book, but only when I'm holding them both.” Seth slowly improving attitude takes a drastic step in the wrong direction as he appears in shambles, “After what I did today I don't deserve the left arm of God.” He looks at Rain like he is lost, “I don't know what to do Rain, I don't understand this place, I'm not from here.”

She smiles and crawls behind him and pulls his body back against hers. She begins to run her hand through his hair and coos to him, “Everything will be fine my love.” She smiles down at him, “You used to say things like that all the time, but now, you know where you are and if you are with me than you belong here whether you are or are not from here.” She places a kiss on the top of his head as she can feel his tense body finally begin to relax, “You can't take everyone's burdens and hold inside of you.”

“I'm sorry.”

“I'm not mad at you, I'm sorry that there are so many things you blame yourself for. None of them are your fault. You need to stop making everyone else's problems yours.” She runs the back of her hand down his cheek making him grow more relaxed, “You made the right decision today. It isn't said but you are the leader and right now, you need to believe that you are.”

“I'm sorry.”

She repeats that she isn't mad but every time she does he says, I'm sorry, again until she puts her finger over his lips.

“I told you already, so stop.”

 

 

The small doesn't offer much for heat and it is only big enough to cook on meal on at a time but by the time Seth and Rain return everyone has already eaten and are around the fire making small talk. Zion and Airo are talking about their homes and Hina is asking Tabitha question about being a knight. Rain sits down first and Seth slowly walks back into the camp and sits beside her.

Everyone keeps talking but they do acknowledge that they have both returned. Seth looks over to where Saito is, he is still looking down at the golden emblem. Seth looks at Zion who saw him look over to Saito, Zion nods giving Seth unspoken courage to talk to Saito. Seth stands up and runs his finger along Rain shoulders as he walks past her and over to Saito.

“Louise.....”

Seth sits down in front of Saito with his food, “Saito here,” Saito doesn't take the food so he sets it down between the two of them. “Saito I....”

“I know......you're sorry.” Saito looks up from the memento, “You know, I can't cry anymore. I think I've run out of tears.”

Seth tries to lighten Saito's mood by pulling out a water bottle from pack and puts it next to the food between them. To Seth great pleasure this does make Saito smirk though it's obvious that he doesn't want feel better, something Seth can understand.

“You are right you know,” Saito though not more than a minute ago said he couldn't, a single tear runs down his cheek and his jaw line. “Many people will die if we don't stop that army.”

Seth is speechless, no words he could offer him could bring any real comfort he know that, but what Saito just said, he knows that Saito didn't want to. Inside Saito is probably being torn apart nothing left of his one true love beside the golden emblem she wore around her neck. It's so stupid and Seth can't stand the thought of having to do that, If he ever lost Rain, he'd never recover, and here is Saito coming to an understanding that for thousands of people to live his love, in all honesty has to be sacrificed just eats at Seth.

Seth stands up quickly and walks back to the fire, “Tomorrow we are leaving early so everyone get some sleep while you can, the sooner we get there the sooner we can save the world.”