Morituri te Salutant

"Come, come! The sweetest scent beckons me this way!"

Giulietta eagerly drags Commodus by the hand throughout the streets of Oxford. It was perhaps unwise to be gallivanting through the night as they were, but neither was particularly fond of the idea of the warrior remaining in her spiritual form. She desired to find a worthy to engage in glorious combat with and, while her Master wasn't too interested in fighting, she disliked the lack of intimacy that came with being unable to touch her. The vampire was certain that she would die of loneliness if she had to go about collecting parts without her partner's physical presence.

And the impetus for their nighttime walk was Giulietta growing her stock of materials. She hadn't exactly planned on visiting Oxford — those horrible priests ruined her plans — and she was thus lacking the supplies needed to make full use of her abilities. Fortunately, plenty of beasts just so happened to be wandering the streets and could do little to stop the pair from taking what they pleased from their broken bodies as well as the strange treasures that some of them guarded. Unfortunately, none of these treasures were to Giulietta's taste. While she had to admit a golden blade was certainly beautiful, she wished that they might come upon a dress. At least her Servant could put them to use.

"VILE BEASTS! WHO ART THEE TO BITE THINE MASTER'S HAND!? YOUR BLOOD SHALL CONSECRATE THE NEW WORLD!"

As the pair draws closer to the source of the scent Giulietta picked up, the sounds of a clash are only drowned out by the impassioned words seemingly originating from one of the combatants. The conflict gradually comes into view; an imposing figure of a fully armored knight cuts down the monsters surrounding him by the dozens. With one hand he swings a dark scythe with deadly precision while the other grasps a golden staff from which lightning is expelled. The sight has Commodus grinning wildly and she breaks away from her Master without a second thought to charge towards the unknown reaper. Giulietta pouts but tries not to let the sudden departure bother her too much.

"Quam pulcher es! Who is it that has drawn such an audience? Hark, I demand that you name yourself filius Mortis!"

Even during her approach, she can't stop herself from trying to show off to the "audience" as she flashily dispatches the beasts that would impede her. Where a more simple thrust might do, she instead opts to swing widely and hack off limbs and heads; her shield is used more as an instrument for bludgeoning and swatting her attackers away than for properly blocking blows. The combined efforts of Commodus and the mysterious knight soon thin the swarm of monsters, leaving only themselves standing atop a pile of corpses. As they stare each other down, what would be an otherwise tense atmosphere is given levity by Giulietta's humming as she scavenges the bodies.

"You face the Herald of the New World. I take it thou art that one's champion."

The Herald spares a glance at Giulietta who waves in their direction as she examines the detached upper body of an elongated serpentine creature.

"You slaughter beasts well."

"Tu quoque es peritissimus. Care to test your might?"

Although phrased as a question, it's really a simple courtesy. She had every attention enjoying a real and the Herald saw not but another trial on his path. They slowly circle each other, eyes full of hunger as each sizes the other up and waits for someone to make the first move.

"I have already slain another's champion — I shall do away with you too!"

Commodus's eyes practically pop out of her head as a wave of mania envelops her mind. To have slain a Servant meant that he could actually be a challenge to her; her spirit cannot hope to resist the call to prove herself by besting him. She bursts forward and swings her gladius in a slash that cuts into the Herald's chest plate, claiming the first move.

"You have fought none like I!"

The Herald responds backing off and thrusting the golden staff forward, a bolt of lightning shooting in a blinding flash. A deafening CRACK sounds out as the bolt collides with Commodus's shield which causes her still nearby Master to loudly whine at the display's effect on her senses. Making use of the scythe's reach, he then brings its curved blade down across her exposed shoulder and claims first blood.

Commodus only lets out a booming laugh as she swipes at him with her blade in retaliation; her pride and confidence in her inevitable victory are unshakeable. Metal clangs, lightning crackles, and more blood spilled as their deadly dance goes on. As it does, Giulietta patiently watches from the sidelines and cheers her Servant on while messing around with various body parts she's claimed. It would be a lie to say that she wasn't a little jealous of how much fun her partner was having with someone, but she was mostly just happy to see Commodus enjoying herself and making new friends. If they hadn't found an opponent for her, the vampire would likely have had to resort to either constructing one or playing the role herself. It was excruciatingly difficult to resist the temptation to support her, but for now, she didn't wish to deprive Commodus of her battle.

The vocal support of her Master drives Commodus to fight even harder. Letting out a fearsome roar, she meets the next bolt of lightning with a charge and bashes the Herald with her shield. The staff is knocked loose from his grip and falls to the ground where it is smashed beneath her sandal. Commodus looms above the fallen knight with her blade's edge upon his neck and a look of smug satisfaction upon her face.

"Ha! Consummatum est — any words before I free your bowels from this shell?"

She presses the blade into his neck, causing some blood to flow out of the shallow puncture. Quickly, the blade traces a path down the Herald's body until it settles at a point on his side where an opening had been made in his armor at some point during their exchange. More of the Herald's ichor gushes forth as she steadily applies more pressure and wiggles the tip of the blade into his side. However, she does not receive the response she expects: with a guttural growl and eyes seeming to glow beneath his helmet, the Herald grabs the blade. A snapping sound is heard and then her gladius seems to fall away like shattered glass. Shocked, Commodus isn't able to respond quickly enough when with a burst of speed he grabs one of the shards and begins to trace it along her abdomen.

Then, he suddenly howls in pain and drops the shard. The arm which wielded it is seemingly stopped in place and a burning sensation envelops it. Although his armor conceals it, if one were to peek beneath, one would see the offending has become shriveled as if the life was drained from it.

"Tsk, tsk. I don't know where people are getting those pretty orbs, but it isn't nice to break things that aren't yours! Oh, but I guess she did do it first..."

Giulietta steps out from behind Commodus, shaking her head disappointedly at the Herald before turning her attention to her Servant. She traces a finger along the wound running down her abdomen and lets a pleasant hum as she samples the blood left on the appendage. In a few short moments, the wound seems to knit itself back together along with the less serious ones the gladiator had accumulated during her battle. Satisfied with the results of her work, Giulietta quickly embraces Commodus in an affectionate before turning back to the Herald and waiting for her to decide how to proceed. It was still her fight, after all.

"What foul trick is this!?"

While Giulietta attended to her Servant, the Herald discovered that while whatever had engulfed his arm had relinquished its grip, the same force was now trapping him in his current position. Whenever he strayed too far, the same burning sensation threatened to completely wither him away.

"Should I be asking you? That was a fine trick you used on my blade, but it seems you underestimated the strength of a body sculpted by the gods!"

The ruffling of her Master's hair in thanks is the only acknowledgment Commodus gives that she might have had assistance. If there was a lesson about arrogance or premature celebrations to be learned, then her unshakeable confidence would not allow her to ruminate on it. She instead considers how to best extend her fun.

"Filius Mortis, let us not end our game here. I shall grant you the honor of partaking in the grandest of trials!"

Even wounded, it was all but certain that he would make for worthy entertainment in a proper game. However, a rumbling sound interrupts her; a crowd is forming before she can even set their game up. As if coming to the Herald's rescue, a horde of beasts surrounds and attacks them. Giulietta turns her attention to them, and although dozens at a time have their life force burned away, more continue to funnel into the street. They seem to target Commodus in particular, forcing her to break their bodes beneath her shield or otherwise grapple with them.

"This shan't be our last meeting! Prepare thyself to become but a footnote in my story!"

"Noli currere, timide cunnus!"

The chaos allows the Herald to slip away, and although Commodus begins carving her toward his disappearing figure, urges her to stay and fight by her Master's side. There was no telling how many of the frenzied beasts there truly were and, although it would probably be fine, she was loathe to return her support with abandonment. Besides, if her Master could sniff him out once, then she could do it again and hopefully lead her to other opponents as well.

When it came time for Giulietta to disappear along with the night, she certainly wouldn't be wanting for parts.