Chapter Text
"Way to keep up with housekeeping Seteth." Claude mumbled as he stepped over yet another pile of rubble.
Garreg Mach had really fallen to shit. The gates had been broken off their hinges for years now. Claude had been able to waltz into the entrance hall, leaving his wyvern tucked away in the former stables. The only light source he had was a torch he had the foresight to pack.
Not a single trace of anyone else this morning. It was still dark, with the sky just barely turning lighter as he landed. He expected Lorenz to be here at least, what with his constant need to one up him. Either him or, well, Teach.
The only sign of life he saw was the body strewn across a table.
The fresh body.
Immediately Claude tensed, hand reaching back to unclasp Failnaught from it's strap. The blood was dry, but the body had no smell to it. The only thing reaching his senses was the iron of blood and steel.
Looking closer now, eyes adjusting to the dark of the hall, he could see it was garbed in Imperial reds. The metal of his helmet seemed to have been crushed along with his head. There were no other visible wounds, a quick death. Or at least, he hoped it was.
He looked at the blood trail, it seemed as if the body had been dragged and placed there. A warning?
He threw his cape over his pauldron and followed it. He didn't hear the sounds of battle from anywhere, but he couldn't leave everyone open to attack from an unknown force.
There was more drying blood. Heading towards the cathedral. Thankfully the bridge hadn't been hit much, allowing Claude to blow out his torch as he followed the familiar path outside.
While the cathedral itself seemed to be missing quite a few pieces of the roof, it didn't seem to be bloodied by battle. Hell, he could even say it was still beautiful with the night sky visible from the gaping hole in the roof. He didn't get to enjoy it, however. The trail of blood veered left, towards the tower that taunted him so much during his days at the academy.
But now, there wasn't a single guard or monk to chastise him for sneaking around before daybreak. The only thing keeping him quiet and scared was the thought of who or what exactly could be up there.
Things only got worse as he stepped out of the dim light and into the shadow of the tower. The first body lay splayed against the doorframe, chestplate beaten inwards.
The second lay on the first step, arms still splayed above its head in a show of surrender.
The third and fourth were on the stairs, leaving Claude to gingerly step over them, gripping even tighter around his bow.
The fifth and sixth were on the last steps, weapons thrown down the stairs and torsos separated and thrown across and into the middle of the once holy goddess tower.
He could see the blood, even fresher, on the ground before him.
There was movement on his right.
A single eye gazed out from the darkness.
Before Claude could react, the animal roared and leaped forward into the light. He only got a glimpse of matted gold fur before he was tackled onto the ground, Failnaught clattering out of his hands and onto the floor.
Survival instincts kicked in and Claude kicked out with his legs to shuffle back from the beast. He barely managed to avoid having his arm bitten off as it sunk its teeth into the heavy fabric of his shirt. Gods, the thing was massive, its head twice as big as his own as he tried to slip out the knife in his belt. He couldn't stop the beast from scrabbling forwards, however - claws found their way into his legs and that eye narrowed and showed a surprisingly large amount of white around its pupil. And, like any person who sees an opportunity, Claude took a wild gamble.
He hacked up a disgusting amount of spit and blew it into the eye of the beast.
With another roar it detached itself, giving Claude the opportunity to take out his knife and give the beast a slice into its nose. It flinched even more and Claude scrambled backwards.
And just as suddenly as it began to attack, the beast stopped as the dawn's sunlight filtered into the tower. For a moment, he could see the entirety of the beast. It had to be at least seven feet tall, lean and menacing in stature. Its face resembled that of a lion, except with oddly human eyes. Its mane was white and black and it had some golden hair hanging over its face. But it wasn't the animalistic traits that surprised Claude.
No, it was the fact that it was not only wearing an eyepatch, but also a cape, and deep black armor.
And before he could question it, the beast suddenly doubled over onto its hands and knees. There was a sickening sound of flesh changing and melding as he watched it shrink down and down. The mane faded into a mess of blonde, and the nose with its bloody wound shriveled down into pale flesh. It roared, and even the roar slowly turned into a scream. Its armor conformed to its body as it finally reached a stopping point.
And then, laying before him, was a man.
"...Dimitri?"
He saw the beast's- no, he saw Dimitri's eye peek out from under a mop of unkempt hair. His face was still stained with blood from Claude's attack. He was breathing heavily, strained from shifting.
"So, you have decided to align with the Empire as well, Claude?"
"The Empire? No no, look." Claude raised his hands in a show of defeat. "I'm just here in this tower for my own business. A celebration, in fact. None other than the Millennium Festival."
"So you just so happened to be traveling with those soldiers then?"
Claude glanced behind him. "Those guys? They were there when I got here. I think you may have gotten acquaintanced long before I could."
He looked down at Dimitri's hands.
They had long claws and were covered with a heavy layer of fur.
"That's why you always kept those gauntlets on, huh."
Claude looked over his body. His black armor seemed to move seamlessly when he shifted. Where could he have gotten something like-
Dimitri lunged forward and grasped Claude's throat. He pushed him backwards with an unearthly strength until his back hit the wall. Claude was left to gasp for air and claw fruitlessly against the hand holding him off the ground. Dimitri's inhuman claws were digging into the nape of his neck.
Shit.
"Tell me why I shouldn't kill you right now." Dimitri all but growled.
"Well, first off, I'm kind of the leader of the Alliance now, if you haven't heard." Claude was relying on his arm strength now, pulling himself up so he wouldn't be hanging by his neck. "That's sure to cause more commotion for you than you'd like. Second, I'm smart enough to know that I can't use this as leverage against you. What can I gain from someone who's supposed to be dead?"
He let the silence hang between them, and there, like a miracle, was the familiar sound of a certain pair of heels clicking against cobblestone.
"Third, I don't think she would appreciate it too much if you killed her favorite student before their reunion."
"Who-?"
There, rising from the staircase, was a soul he long thought dead.
"Hey Teach, it's pretty rude to keep us waiting like this, don't you think?"