Can I have Your Daughter?

Chapter 9

Meliodas reeled for a moment, stuck between on-coming puppets, attacking the puppet master, and his need to protect Elizabeth. Mentally, he was beating himself. Gowther had warned him about the magic present in the foothills. How could have been so blind? Of course, they would have enemies waiting to ambush anyone left outside of the city. After the show he had given them in Moraine, there was no doubt they'd be prepared for him to split the group up.

"Why are you doing this? Bartra would never agree to have his own citizens used like this!" Meliodas grunted as he dashed right through a mob of puppets climbing the roof, sending them falling back to the ground below. He swung at the puppet master who dodged all of his attacks. She was completely on the defensive, letting the living puppets do the fighting for her.

There was a low singsong chuckle as she continued to run from him, "I'm certain the King of Lyoness would be devastated if he found out I was taking his precious little peasant folk."

Meliodas came to a skidding stop watching the cloaked woman carefully. She wasn't a Holy Knight. Or if she was, she was bad news for the kingdom. "Who do you actually work for then? And what are you REALLY after?"

There was another chuckle from the void under the hood of her cloak as she spun in place, and her figure disappeared into thin air.

Meliodas couldn't feel her magical power anymore. Diane cried out, catching his attention, and he noted that the puppets only continued their onslaught of the Sins. A couple had managed to latch on to one of Diane's pigtails, weighing it down and making her cry out.

"Diane! I'll save you!" But King wasn't better off. His Chastiefol was nearly pinned down by the number of puppets climbing it.

Ban was doing his best to limit the amount of strength he put behind his hits, but none of his punches were taking them out, "Captain, this is getting old fast!" He yelled, landing another solid punch to one of the puppets, sending it spinning, only to have it come right back at him.

"Captain, I believe we are at a severe disadvantage. My recommendation is to retreat." Gowther had been avoiding puppets, and using his fists as Ban had been, but now he righted himself next to Meliodas, after climbing to the roof.

"Do what you can to get everyone out of here in one piece. I'll leave it to you." With a nod of understanding from Gowther, Meliodas dashed across the roof, jumping from one shingled roof to the next, until he could jump outside of the city walls.

Puppets roamed the hills and fields outside of the city like zombies. When one would pick up on his approaching energy source, they would attack in packs, and he would rush them, disabling them long enough to pass them and closer to Mama Hawk, the Boar Hat, and Elizabeth.

He jumped into to avoid a stray flash of electricity and saw Gilthunder gaining the upper-hand on the group of puppets that had made him their target. Meliodas knew little Gil would be fine. He was a Holy Knight after all.

As he bounded up the rest of the path to the giant pig, he heard Elizabeth cry out and Hawk squeal, "Keep your hands off the princess, or I'll make you sorry!" He turned in time to see Hawk bounding down the hill in the opposite direction of his mother, with Elizabeth riding his back and barely hanging on. Behind him a mob of puppets followed by an armored knight gave chase and kept right on their heels all the way into the forest, and out of sight.

Meliodas was just about to take after them when Merlin came crashing to the ground from above.

"Merlin, you good?" He wasn't too concerned. When the dust settled, he saw that she was unharmed, having put up a protective barrier in time. But she did seem a little annoyed.

"Don't let your guard down, captain. There are more Holy Knights in the area." She put her hands up, and the puppets attacking Gilthunder dispersed as he swung his sword – slicing through the air, and looking around confused.

"What did you just do?"

"Absolute Cancel. I've destroyed the link the puppeteer had to their magical puppets." Merlin looked up to see that the puppet master was now floating in the direction of the forest, towards where Hawk had run off with Elizabeth.

A pang of guilt resonated in Meliodas' chest as he looked over the sudden barren field. What happened to the puppets when their link was destroyed? Didn't the woman say her power was irreversible?

"Those puppets are real people. Do not hurt any of them." His voice was low and threatening as gave Merlin a quick glance before running after Elizabeth as well.

The bush was but a blur as he ran as fast as he could towards Elizabeth. He could feel her presence, and he was getting close. She wasn't alone. He ran even faster.

"AH! No!" Elizabeth's cry was like an explosion in his ears, and he slid in and deflected a blow before it could get close to her, sending it right back at the green-armored knight.

"Elizabeth, you alright?" He asked over his shoulder, and Elizabeth gasped as the air cleared enough for her to see him standing in front of her.

"S-Sir Meliodas!" from what he could tell, she was alright. But she wouldn't be for long... Meliodas' gaze shifted around them as four other knights came into sight. They had been hiding in the trees, probably waiting for the chance to strike, and there were more still hiding. As he watched them, he noticed their energies were different from the puppet master, who wasn't far away. Why she was observing now, he didn't know.

"So you must be the Holy Knights Bartra sent."

Meliodas heard Elizabeth's sharp breath as his words registered, "My father sent you? But Why?!"

There was no answer, though, as they watched Meliodas, probably sizing him up, strategizing their attack. With Elizabeth behind him, he couldn't give them all his power.

She was in danger again. Because of him. It was enough to make him sick. How could he claim to love anyone he couldn't keep out of trouble?

"Captain!" Diane's voice echoed loudly, and Meliodas could feel the rest of the sins quickly approaching. And when they finally made it to the clearing, Meliodas steeled his resolve. This was it. He was done playing this game of cat and mouse.

"Get Elizabeth out of here." The words were directed at all of them. He didn't need to clarify, as his tone spoke volumes to his intent. He didn't want, nor need any help.

"Captain?" Ban came close to him, his tone asking what Meliodas was going to do; something all of the sins, and Elizabeth wanted to know.

"I'm ending this. Just, get her out of here!" His voice was harsher than he had intended.

"We can't let you do that-" One of the knights shouted, but none of the sins paid any mind to him.

"You can't be serious...!" Ban was obviously upset, and Meliodas knew out of anyone, Ban knew what he had planned. There was no way around it. This was the only way.

"S-sir Meliodas?" Elizabeth's voice was trembling as tears welled up in her eyes. Such a sad expression. But he looked past her, avoiding the pain he was causing her.

"Get as far away as you can, and don't come back until I tell you to." He ordered, and the severity in his voice made all of them stand a little straighter. Diane picked up Elizabeth and Hawk, and before any of the knights could even blink, Merlin had teleported them away. In the precious seconds before she disappeared, Meliodas grinned at Elizabeth. Then she was gone.

"You can't possibly hope to defeat all of the Holy Knights here on your own!"

Turning his gaze back to them: he felt free. For a single second, he felt like the weight of everything he had done had been lifted from his shoulders. He was going to end this all here and now, and it hurt like hell, but he felt free for doing it.

He was now surrounded on all sides by more than ten Holy Knights, all of whom readied themselves as he slowly began to raise his hands.

But then he stopped, and he could hear the confusion in the questioning voices as his hands raised on either side of his head, and a big grin spread over his lips.

"I surrender!"