Charybdis Pt 1

Demon Lords have their eyes on Tempest. The arrival of Phobio the beastman made that clear.

And it wasn't just Demon Lords, either.

Trade is booming, ever since the road between Dwargon and Tempest completed. This rapid success is familiar. Uncomfortably so. So now, I'm working to create a network across multiple nations, not just one. And comparatively, I haven't been here too long, either.

I've studied the nearby nations as well as I could, but there's just not as much information as I'd like. My current main contacts with other nations are King Gazel and Fuze.

I'm disturbingly blind to the going-ons of this world. It displeases me.

More work is in store for me, no doubt. Oh, how I want to just sit and sigh at it all. Unfortunately, it seems rest is not yet forthcoming. Not with this situation as it is now.

That's fine. I will finish what I started, at the very least. Although…

I am tired.

But again, there is more work to be done. If Tempest, and my future, is to remain secure, I must work harder.

Demon Lords. Charybdis. Those magical anomalies. The disappearances of Gobhua and Gobara.

It's all starting to pile up. It's disturbingly familiar.

Fuck, I'm so sick of war.

I will achieve a true peace, if it's the last thing I do.

-=-=-=-

A Few Days Earlier

Somewhere North of Tempest

Great Forest of Jura

"That fucking girl! Damn her!! Damn them all!! They think they can mock me?"

Phobio's horned retainer held up her hands, "My Lord, please! You must calm down!"

"Calm? How can I be calm?!" Phobio slammed his fist against a nearby tree, splintering the wood.

"Even Lord Carrion would have struggled to contest the Destroyer-" Phobio's large-nosed retainer attempted to argue.

"Lord Carrion never loses! And it wasn't just her, you idiot!" Phobio grit his teeth, "Milim didn't defeat me. She was just insult to injury. No."

He clenched his fist, fire engulfing it for a split second.

"It was that human. That girl! Tanya, they said… in just one punch, she humiliated me." His other hand brushed against the crater in his breastplate, a stark reminder of his weakness. "I would have lost at her hands, had we come to blows. There's no doubt. And it's infuriating!! How did a human as strong as that slip under our view?!"

"My lord, you must remember Lord Carrion's orders." Big Nose spoke up once again, "We're supposed to recruit that slime. Not come to blows with his friends."

"Exactly!" Horns nodded, "And you can always ask that human for a rematch. Surely you could win an actual fight."

"…" Phobio dropped his head with a sigh, "You're both right. I'm sorry."

"Ohoho! That feeling, that terrible realization of weakness…"

Phobio and his retainers spun, looking frantically around the clearing.

"Who's there?"

From the tree line, a well-rounded fellow clad in green clothes, best described as "comedy theatre" esque, approached them leisurely. Adorning his face was a clown mask, featuring a deep, fanged frown.

"A pleasure to meet you, citizens of Eurazania and subordinates to the Demon Lord Carrion." The clown bowed deeply, "I am a member of the Moderate Harlequin Alliance, known as Footman. A pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"I've never heard of you." Phobio's tone was cautious, "What do you want?"

"What do I want? Why, that's not why I'm here at all." Footman gestured widely, "The question is…

"What do you want, Phobio?" Another voice chimed in from behind them.

Phobio and his retainers jumped again. A second, much shorter clown bounced past them, the presumably female clown clad in pink rather than green. Her mask was open-mouthed, painted tear drops under the eyes.

"Aren't you angry?" She continued playfully.

"About the Demon Lord Milim, of course." Footman helpfully added. "Tear and I have been keeping an ear to the ground, don't ya know?"

"Excuse me?"

"Aren't you embarrassed?" Tear said quickly. "Especially with that crater in your breastplate. She didn't have to try at all, did she? How sad."

The clown made a gesture of wiping tears. Phobio found himself vaguely offended.

"This?" His brow furrowed. "You're mistaken. Milim didn't do this to me."

The clowns shared a glance.

"Someone other than the Destroyer did that? Even though she was in town?" Tear tilted her head, "No wonder you're so angry. I'd be too if I was that weak!"

"Why you little-" Phobio took a threatening step forward.

"Now, now, perhaps you need our help more desperately than I thought." Footman shook his head. "You want power, don't you? I can tell. It's written all over your face."

"Tch." Phobio looked away, "Bastard. You wouldn't understand."

"Do I? Don't I? It doesn't matter." Footman stepped forward, leaning into Phobio's personal space, "What would you say to gaining the power of a Demon Lord?"

"Huh?"

-=-=-=-

Present Time

Assembly Hall

Tempest, Jura Tempest Federation

Tanya crossed her arms, leaning silently against a side wall. Mary stood at her side, her gaze darting around the room.

"Charybdis?" Hakurou stroked his beard, "It was sealed away by a True Hero, wasn't it? I can't imagine it escaped for no reason."

"My elder sister is containing it as we speak." The dryad, Trya, explained, "However, she cannot hold it for much longer. We must act quickly."

"Apologies, but surely you can't mean that Charybdis?!" Rigurd exclaimed, "The 'Ruler of the Skies' has revived?"

"Yes, that is the one."

"Isn't Charybdis resistant to magical attacks?"

Trya frowned, nodding, "Even among the Calamity Class, Charybdis is in a league of its own. If it had the ability to form rational thought, it would undoubtedly be Disaster Class on the level of Demon Lord."

I wonder if Treyni is alright, if that's the case. No real use hoping for anything with such limited information. We'll just have to make sure ourselves.

Tanya cracked open an eye.

Disaster Class, and with a resistance to magic to boot. That's tough. Even so, it can't be anywhere near Milim, a Catastrophe Class… what is the power scale for Demon Lords, anyway? How close are Charybdis and Milim? How close am I to Charybdis?

"Psst." Mary poked her shoulder. "Degurechaff. Wake up."

Tanya opened her eyes fully, shooting the other girl an unamused look.

"I wasn't sleeping."

"Yeah, whatever. What should we do here?"

"You're asking me?"

"Did you see me ask anyone else? Don't be obtuse."

"Fine." Tanya sighed, pushing off the wall.

"Ruler of the Skies", huh? We'll see about that. I'd rather avoid an outright confrontation, but I'm not too worried either way.

"Our only option is obvious, isn't it?" Tanya projected her voice through the room, the others quieting down almost immediately. She continued, "The creature is heading towards Tempest. It wants to destroy us. So, we have to destroy it first."

"What do you propose, Tanya?" Rimuru said from the head of the room.

Tanya glanced at the slime, currently being held in Milim's arms.

"Hey Milim. Would you mind destroying this thing for us?"

"Would I?" Milim's eyes lit up. "I'd love to-"

"No." Rimuru shot the Demon Lord down immediately. "Sorry Milim, but this is Tempest's problem. It wouldn't be right to get you involved. We need to take care of our own business. Right, Tanya?"

"Awww." Milim pouted.

Well fuck. There goes that. Tanya forced back a sigh. Maybe I should have lectured him on the power of running to your powerful allies first, before mentioning personal responsibility. It's nice to see growth as a leader, but now it's making me work overtime. I can never win.

"Then we'll organize squadrons of Tempest's strongest and take Charybdis down that way." Tanya paused, "Ah, and at least one of those squadrons should focus on evacuating civilians."

I've no doubt Rimuru and the others can handle a Calamity Class, especially since Milim herself to ranks above at Catastrophe Class. The fact that we could even stall her for a time should mean something. And as long as the evacuation is successful, Tempest will survive no matter what. I'll make sure of that much.

"There we go! Great plan!" Rimuru bounced in Milim's arms, a motion Tanya took as a nod. "Let's get to work. I'll have Benimaru organize squads as soon as possible."

The rest of the room sprang into action. Meanwhile, Tanya watched with a smirk, Mary standing at her shoulder and bearing a look of mild bemusement.

Perfect. With that in place, now I just have to deal with the evacuation and stay completely away from this. Just as soon as Benimaru assigns…

…

…Benimaru? I thought I would be… but no, my work is primarily Intelligence-related now, with Souei. Not active defense, like before with Benimaru. Which means, naturally…

…

Oh, for fuck's sake!

-=-=-=-

"Oh, Milim! We couldn't possibly let you get involved with Tempest's affairs! That would be unfair!" Fuck you, Rimuru. I'll get back at you for this, I swear it.

Tanya continued to grumble to herself as she made her way to the city limits.

Of course, as soon as a new threat popped up, she was thrown directly back into the action.

Fan-tucking-fastic.

While on her way out, Tanya made sure to triple check her equipment. This would be her first excursion in her newest set of dedicated combat attire, so making sure everything was secure and accounted for was crucial.

The outfit was the product of Shuna's labor of love over the two weeks and change, and had turned out exactly as Tanya had expected. It had room for improvement, but then again, it was the first iteration. It would work more than well for now.

Made of durable materials and closely fit for comfort and ease of movement, it was a far cry from the baggy, often poorly sized and suited flight suit she'd been forced to wear in the past. No, this time she'd gotten to choose, and what a choice it was.

Bearing a strong resemblance to Rimuru's own, Tanya's coat sported a dark green color scheme in contrast to Rimuru's blue. Additionally, the collar was wider and taller, hiding the lower half of her face from view when fully buttoned. The overall length ran a bit shorter, with the coat tails reaching upper thigh rather than the knee.

Black leather and darkened magisteel bracers covered her forearms, along with the shins of her usual dark grey, calf-length combat boots. Darker, slightly loose pants underneath her coat and a waist belt overtop it, housing a multitude of pouches and various holsters, adorned her lower half. Black magisteel-knuckled gloves and her newest pair of aviator goggles, courtesy of Kaijin, hung from her belt, rounding out the look.

Tanya nodded to herself.

Check, check, check. Everything seems in order. Now, I just have to… check on Treyni and assess the situation with Charybdis. By myself.

Of course, she got stuck with a fucking recon-in-force of all things. Life was a cosmic joke, sometimes.

"You can fly faster than everyone else. You're one of our strongest hitters. If anyone can get in and out safely, it's you. You're perfect for the job". Fuck yourself royally, Benimaru. I hope Rimuru forever remains oblivious to your crush. In fact, I hope he develops feelings for Shuna-

She paused.

For Souei. Or Shion. Or anyone else that isn't you. Bastard.

In truth, the only person she was really angry with was herself. She should have seen this coming. But Benimaru made an easy target at the moment, and Mary Sue wasn't around for stress relief.

Through sparring, of course.

"Degurechaff!

Speak of the devil.

Mary ran past, cutting off her immediate path off and forcing Tanya stop or risk bowling the other girl over. The look on her face had Tanya preemptively suppressing a sigh of mixed exhaustion and exasperation.

"No." She said, before the other girl could open her mouth.

Mary was not dissuaded. "I'm gotten stronger. I should fight too."

That's what this is about?

"Was I not loud enough? No."

"Why the hell not?!"

"Charybdis resists magic and uses flight as its method of transportation. Your main strength is magic-enhanced swordsmanship, and you can't fly anymore. No offense, but you wouldn't be much help."

Mary scrunched up her face, "You're wrong."

"I'm not." Tanya shook her head, "Why would you even want to fight that thing in the first place? Be happy you've got the easy job."

"I'm able to fight, so I should. I can help, and you know it!"

"Right, you can. So, go help people. Assist in the evacuation like you were told. Isn't that what you want? There's no shame in not being up to the task at hand. No one is fit for every situation. That's a fact of life."

Mary clenched her fists. Tanya leaned to the side, internally debating whether it was worth it to just leave. She decided against it, for some reason she couldn't fathom.

"…Even if I'm not up to the task." Mary's voice shook, her knuckles white, "You should know better than anyone else, there are times where I just can't back down! I'm not going to stand by, even if I'm not fit for it. The odds are worthless to me. You told me to focus on what I can do for now, and this is what I can do, Degurechaff."

Tanya barely kept from letting her annoyance at the whole situation show.

"Listen-"

"Tanya!"

Again? Tanya turned her head, raising an eyebrow bemusedly as Shuna ran towards them. Her other eyebrow rose to match, as the sunlight glinted off a familiar weapon in the girl's hands.

"I'm glad I caught you." Shuna pulled up next to her, slightly out of breath. Without hesitating, she thrust her hands forward. "Here! It's dangerous to go without a weapon. Take these."

"I dropped this off less than an hour ago."

Tanya's voice held a note of question in it, as she took the two halves of her naginata. The broken ends had been capped off with magisteel, turning the pieces of her naginata into a short, curved sword with a long handle, and a short wooden staff respectively.

"Kaijin rushed it at my request. There wasn't enough time to fix it outright, but…" Shuna held up a fist, "You need a weapon! Especially against Charybdis."

"Well, Souei's sending a clone to follow on the ground. And it should be a quick job, just as soon as I check on Treyni." Tanya tucked the staff into her belt, tightening the previously empty holster to secure it. "But I appreciate it. Short weapons fit my fighting style better anyway. Uh…"

She looked at the sword, it's blade naked.

"Oh!" Shuna reached at her side, pulling the blade's sheathe from her waist sash. She handed it over. "My mistake."

"It's fine. Thanks." Tanya sheathed the sword, sticking it in a spare holster on her belt's other side. "Is that all?"

"One more thing." Shuna put a hand on Tanya's shoulder, holding her other up as a fist. "Do your best! We're counting on you!"

"Right, right." Tanya rolled her eyes good naturedly.

She really does remind me of-

Without thinking, her hand landed on Shuna's head, patting it twice.

Ah, oops. Tanya retracted it, quickly turning away. As a result, she didn't notice slight red dusting Shuna's face.

No time for nostalgia. I've got to-

"Degurechaff!" Mary stepped back into her vision, arms crossed and shoulders set.

Damn, forgot about her for a second. Tanya didn't hold back her sigh this time. Why bother? She really isn't going to back down, is she? I bet if I deny her again, she'll just go behind my back and sneak onto the battlefield anyway.

"We're not done. I'm telling you, I should-"

Tanya held up a hand, cutting the other girl off.

"Fine. After the city's evacuated, join Rimuru. Tell him I said it was okay."

"Really?" Mary blinked.

"Yes, really. Just don't get yourself killed; I've invested too much time and effort for you to go wasting it all." Tanya pulled her gloves from her belt and tugged them on. "If all else fails, convince Rimuru – or Milim I suppose – to protect you. Now move out of my way."

Tanya brushed past her, now grabbing her goggles and securing them over her forehead. She paused as something rather important occurred to her.

"Oh, Shuna. Please take her to Kurobe first. I'm sure he has a spare sword lying around for her to use."

"Huh?" Mary shot her a confused look.

"What, were you going to a real fight with a reinforced bokken? Don't be ridiculous."

The lack of comprehension on Mary's face was telling.

"Oh. You were." Somehow, that didn't surprise her as much as it should. "If this beast's magic resistance is the real deal, you'll need a magisteel blade rather than magic one. Go get a spare for now. I'll get Kurobe to forge you something dedicated after this is over with."

Shuna stepped forward, Tanya's internal chagrin reflected openly on the pink-haired Kijin's face. She placed a hand on Mary's shoulder.

"I'll take care of it."

"Good." Tanya pulled down her goggles, "I'm off."

"Be careful!" "Don't die!"

Three guesses as to who said which, and the first two don't count.

"Right, right." She didn't bother waving or anything like that. There was a mission to complete.

It should be simple.

Tanya got a running start, hopping up and immediately jumping to Level Two.

Swoop in, check on Treyni, scout Charybdis for any unexpected additions, report back all the while with Thought Communication. With luck, this recon-in-force won't require any force. But then again, I'd never bet on luck.

-=-=-=-