Chapter Text
Brain was nowhere, nothing was discernible about his surroundings. He wasn’t even sure how he got here. However, he knew his actions were firm. He died a better man than he lived.
He was likely in hell or some sort of purgatory, maybe if he had done enough to get into the heavens, maybe he would meet Gazef again. Brain didn’t particularly believe in an afterlife, but the thoughts just came easy to him. ‘Would Climb survive? Nah, he’d die for the princess.’
Something was reaching for him. Gloved hands? He knew better than to accept whoever was reaching out to him. Wherever the hand leads him, it’s better than being stuck here forever, right? he reached out–
He woke up on the cold stone floor of a cell, barely able to see or hear.
“Thank you-naya,” someone inaudibly said.
He looked up as his vision came back to him: Sebas (that’s good), the insect warrior that slayed him (less good), and a dog faced maid that Sebas was addressing. His memories were hazy but the name the insect gave him was Cocytus. The maid took her leave, her hand perfectly matching to the one that reached out. He noticed her footsteps stopped early. ‘She is probably behind the wall.’
Brain wasn’t afraid to speak, “Sebas, w-”
“HELLO, MR.UNGLAUS.”
He was just now realizing that Cocytus was the only one that wasn’t in the servants outfit, probably being the one in charge here.
Cocytus spoke again, “DO YOU REMEMBER ME?”
Brain raised an eyebrow, slightly confused. “You're the guy that killed me. Cocytus, right?”
Cocytus breathed out a cold breath, “YOU SHOWED GREAT WARRIOR SPIRIT AND GREAT POWER FOR NEW WORLD STANDARDS.”
Brain’s eye barely caught a slight smile from Sebas before Cocytus continued, “SEBAS CORROBORATES MY OBSERVATION AND GAVE RECOMMENDATION FOR YOUR INCLUSION ON THIS EXPERIMENTAL SQUAD.”
This shocked Brain. “I’m being recruited?”
“YES,” Cocytus confirmed.
“I have a few questions,” Brain, instinctively, was searching for a way out. ‘I can’t even stand tall to Sebas’s malice, what do they need me for?’
Sebas finally spoke, relieving Brain of some tension, “I will answer to the best of my ability.”
Brain immediately had 50 questions pop into his head. He needed to get the most important questions out of the way. There was one thing that gnawed at him, though: ‘What happens if I say no?’
“What is the purpose of this team you're assembling?”
Sebas cleared his throat, “covert operations that we do not want coming back to us, people of the outside world may handle assignments in a more nuanced way compared to our Lord’s summons. You will prove or disprove this theory of ours depending on your performance.”
‘Damn, alright.’ Brain needed a few moments to take in what’s before him. “Are there any benefits for this team? Hopefully the pay is worth being pulled from the grave,” it was a bad joke and he knew it, but Brain knew to save his best question for last.
Sebas, ever stern, “the pay is the resurrection you have received. You will live in the same room as your squadmates and be fed twice daily.” It was about what Brain expected. Based on everything Brain had so far, he could imply the rest of his questions. Except for one.
“What happens to the squad when we serve its purpose? Will I walk free when the job is done?”
Sebas paused. He looked back facing Cocytus, “may I speak in confidence?”
Cocytus finally broke his streak of silence. “OF COURSE, WE NEED EVERYBODY TO SPEAK THEIR MIND TO KEEP NAZARICK FROM STAGNATION, OUR LORD TOLD US AS SUCH. AS LONG AS YOU DON’T COMPROMISE NAZARICK.”
Sebas’s face softened. “If it was up to me, your memories would be wiped and set free to live the rest of your lives. If it was up to our defense coordinator, he would kill you to rid loose ends. But it isn’t up to us.” He gestured towards Cocytus.
“THE SUPREME ONE WILL DECIDE THE FATE OF THE SQUAD, I SIMPLY OVER SEE IT,” Cocytus said with finalty.
“Brain Unglaus, do you accept?”
With a sly grin, he accepted, “yeah.”
Sebas’s face suddenly became unreadable. The hand behind his back unwinding with blitzing speed, with Brain’s katana in hand, throwing it at him. Brain was barely able to catch it, the wind catching up to him. He clutched his sword tightly, feeling it all over. Though when he felt the handle, he knew it was a replica.
“You were right, Cocytus, he was stronger than I remember.” Brain was a bit confused by Sebas’s words, but he decided it was better to focus on what he was going to do after.
“BRAIN, YOU WILL BE DESIGNATED AS MEMBER ONE OF THIS SQUAD, THE REST OF YOUR ITEMS ARE IN THE SQUAD’'S LIVING QUARTERS.” Sebas was gesturing for Brain to follow them out of the cell.
While they were walking, Brain asked one more question. “What’s the name of this team, again?”
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“Are you awake?” A deep voice to call out for her.
Calca wanted to continue her rest. As Queen, she knew it reflected poorly on her to sleep in. Kelart would wake her personally if it was urgent. Wait, was her nation not under attack? By a terrible demon, no less. Calca awoke, ready for war.
“Oh, you are!” Only to be met by a lich. She recognized him as the Sorcerer King, Ainz Ooal Gown. Then It all came back to her. Jaldabaoth killed her. He was likely destroying her kingdom while she was deep in thought.
The skeleton waved his hand in front of her face. He seemed genuinely confused. She finally acknowledged the person in front of her.
“What is going on?” She scanned the room, it was a cell. She was likely a prisoner for ransom. The bed was quite nice for a captive.
“You died,” He answered, bluntly. “Now I’ve brought you back to life for a single purpose, you will be a part of a special team and work for The Sorcerer kingdom. If you succeed, we will erase your memories and you can live your normal life.” He didn’t even give her time to process what he was saying.
Calca was still in her own head. ‘I’m not too weak from resurrection sickness. He revived me with a higher tier spell.’ The first and previously only time she died was due to an assassination attempt. When Kelart brought her back her powers were weakened. It took a year and a half to regain her previous strength.
“Apologies, your majesty. I’m still a bit dazed. I need you to answer some questions before I can give you mine.” The answer she was ready to give was likely a no. The fact he had decided to talk to her in person made it seem important that they are leaders, yet the position he offered her makes no sense. Any attempt to use her position as Holy Queen would be a waste of time.
The skeleton heaved a sigh. She didn’t know if he genuinely breathed or was just doing it for the sake of expressing his emotions. ‘Why is a skeleton showing emotion?’
“Your kingdom is intact and recovering. Your brother, Caspond Bessarez, is the current king. The high priestess Kelart Custodio had passed on and her sister, Remedios, survived. The majority of the nine colors have passed.” He sounded a bit worn out.
“Are you alright? You seem tired.” She asked an inappropriate question, trying to probe his personality. From what little leaked out from the Sorcerer’s Kingdom, he seemed generous toward the living for someone who loved death and hated life.
“I’m quite alright, I don’t see how that puts you at ease.” He wasn’t offended. ‘Reasonable so far.’
She prepped her next question, knowing he wasn’t easily ticked off. “How can I trust the answers you gave me earlier?”
He shrugged. “You can’t, it’s up to you whether you believe me or not. It’s your choice if you work for me.” He didn’t really care.
She smiled, “I can sense the truth from your majesty.” ‘I'll just confirm it later.’ Ainz’s face was unreadable, making her job ten times harder than normal. She couldn’t miss a beat.
“What’s the name of this team?”
“N.W.S.O, New World Special Operations.” Calca tried to play poker face, but she couldn’t hide her curiosity. New World?
Ainz cut her thoughts with a question of his own. “You ask questions irrelevant to your situation, how does this help you?” She questioned if he saw through her.
“Natural curiosity. My advisors get on my case for asking too many questions, I just want a complete picture before acting, apologies your majesty. I do have my answer now, I accept.” It was a longshot. Calca wanted him to relate to her as they were both rulers. she had run out of time to do it.
“Calca Bessarez, you will be designated as number seven and last member of N.W.S.O. Your supervisor will watch the progress of you and your colleagues.” Ainz let out his arm, summoning a portal and motioning her to go inside.
“One final question.” Calca knew she was pushing her luck but she needed to confirm.
“Who is the leader of this field team?”
Ainz paused. “The leader of N.W.S.O will be decided by the members of the team. Is that all?” Calca nodded with a smirk, stepping toward the portal.
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As Calca stepped out of the portal with Cocytus, she looked around the room. She actually recognized a few of her teammates: a blue haired warrior that hung around Gazef and the semi-famous worker Erya Uzruth, who made eye contact immediately. The rest of the people were confusing at best. A scarred man with a holy robe (his uniform implied origins of the Slane Theocracy); blond child with blue eyes; and a scandalously dressed woman with red eyes, and a bald man dressed in a red robe.
Finally, she noticed her crown placed on one of the beds.
Cocytus announced to the rest of the room. “MEET THE LAST MEMBER OF N.W.S.O, NUMBER SEVEN.”