The Emperor's Apprentice: (A Lord of The Mysteries/ Goddess of Victory NIKKE Crossover)

Prologue: Fallen Emperor and desperate Heroine

A young girl who was of thin stature and almost completely emaciated stumbled down an alleyway in the outer reaches of the Ark. Her thin body and disheveled appearance gave her the all too correct appearance of a vagrant. Her sunken blue eyes, and thin wispy blonde hair looked as if it could fall out at any moment. Her raggedy cheap clothes could only really be considered rags at this point.

She leaned against the metal wall of a factory and watched the artificial clouds move across the false sky of the Ark. Slowly dropping down to a sitting position, she leaned back against the wall. Her dull blue eyes giving almost no notion of life. She was in critical mental condition, and she looked like she couldn't hold on much more.

"Damnit! What the hell, This isn't what a Hero does! Come on, pull it together" She grit through her teeth, and she had a very poor grip on her reality around her.

The girl stumbled as she stood up, her head snapping from side to side as her body shook and quivered.

"I'm a Hero. I can't fall here. Please, someone help me!" She grit through tears, and blood dripped from her thin dry lips, it's dark red contrasting sharply against her ghost pale skin.

She wobbled side to side as she stumbled about in the alleyway. Eventually she hit her head on a pipe that ran down the side of the factory, and she fell unconscious.

When she opened her eyes, everything was calm, and she sat in a large courtroom that was full of magnificently dressed men and women. Suits of fine cloth with white lace, black and purple dresses were ever present on the beautiful men and women in the courthouse.

It was immensely overwhelming, and she felt herself being drawn into the podium as if her body and very soul itself was being dissolved and turned into part of the room.

Her mind flashed through hundreds of thoughts, and suddenly all the eyes of the men and women in the room were directly on her, and she felt a tidal wave of fear wash over her.

Words of an indecipherable origin filled her mind, and her blue eyes coated over with a black inky film. She seemed lost in a black dimension with no doors or exits, before she was forcefully pulled back into the courtroom.

She looked down from her seat at the Judge's podium, and time seemed to freeze.

She heard the fluttering of wings in the left side of the room, and saw the man who had fed her the strange elixir earlier. He was tall, and dressed in quite brilliant fineries. His robes were black, and he had golden embellishments on their shoulders. His skin was healthy and pale, and he had long brown hair with blue eyes that were looking over her with the softness of understanding.

A black crown of thin black spikes rested on his head. If she were to picture a fallen angel, or a powerful villain, he would be it.

Illusory black feathered wings rose from his back, and a sword rested in a sheath at his waist.

"So, you couldn't do it?" He asked, walking up to the small girl and taking her in his arms.

"Relax, for I will protect you while the process of advancement happens, though I will need to rest afterwards, for almost all of my power is gone" he said, holding her tightly but gently.

Before the small girl could do anything, the man wrapped his wings around her and the tumultuous feelings in her soul instantly faded to a soft feeling of tiredness. As if the strain in her mind had been taken away and held by the man.

"Who are you?" She could only ask through her exhaustion.

"I am an old fool that has outlived his use, but if you must know my name. You can call me Roselle" The man said, as he gently held her. They stayed like that for a few minutes, with her curling up within the large black soft wings of his.

"The process is over. Congratulations on your advancement Laplace, my new Arbiter" He said, letting her go, before walking over and sitting down at one of the benches.

"I don't understand" She spoke with a fearful gaze and tone.

"The world of mysticism is a scary place, full of questions without answers young lady. Though perhaps when you advance far enough, and you work with me more, I can allay some of your questions. But for now, you can wake up. I will be expecting you to stop by my home to pick up food for me as we have agreed, as alas, I cannot leave my home so easily to buy food and drink." The man chuckled a soft self reflective chuckle, and the world spun.

When the young girl woke up, she had a pounding headache, and lay at the ground leaning against the factory pipe. The Ark around her was full of vibrant colors, and her vision seemed to have sharpened considerable, even the sounds seemed sharper and clearer. The smells of the metal, oil, grime and blood were quite close.

She noticed a trickle of blood coming down from her forehead from where she had struck the pipe earlier.

However, despite that, the normal foggy depressed and hopeless haze that had normally hung over her had been pushed away, replaced by a budding sense of self.

"Am I a Hero now? "She asked no one in particular, looking at her emaciated self. Even though it was just a little, she felt taller, and more sturdy, as if her existence went through a noticeable almost qualitative change.

"Mister Roselle, what did you do to me? Who are you really?" She whispered out. A shiver of fear filled her body. He had said she was an Arbiter? What was that? What did that mean?

She was so confused.

When she was stumbling through the alleyway earlier, she had noticed the man, this time without the wings, crown, robe, or sword limping down the ally towards his home.

When she began following him, hoping to ask for some food, he invited her to his house. This was a terrifying and scary thing, but he had an air to him that made her not want to argue with him. It was so potent it was almost supernatural.

Against her better judgement, she joined him.

For a small home in the outer district, his home was clean, well lit, and full of strange, old timey contraptions, art, and books. It was as if this man had appeared out of the annals of history.

He invited her to a long wooden table covered in a black and gold tablecloth, and he offered her a cup of tea, which she hurriedly drank.

He sat down at the head of the table, and she sat next to him to his right.

"Little miss, what's your name? You look in quite the dire condition" He asked her.

"Laplace" She said calmly through the tea, as if this house had made her feel safe and secure, like all the fears of the Ark could not reach her here.

"Where are your parents?" He asked, and Laplace lowered her head sadly.

"They died" She said, not elaborating further.

"Oh...Sorry to hear that. If you need food and drink, you can come to my home, or if you need somewhere safe, I can provide that for you" He said, taking a sip from his tea cup.

Red flags began blaring in her mind, but at the same time, she did feel safe here, like this old man really could protect her from everything. She had no clue why she felt this, but as soon as she entered his house she felt a sense of immediate calmness and safety.

She looked around, trying to understand.

He noticed her looking around.

"You feel safe and warm here right?" He asked, causing her to look at him oddly.

"Yes, mister. Why is that?" She asked.

"Well, this house is part of my domain. Nothing happens in this house without my express permission. It uses up almost all of my remaining power to maintain this, but in here, I am Emperor" He chuckled a self depreciating chuckle before looking at the girl who had turned fearful and put down her cup.

"Worry not young lady, I have no interest in controlling you or forcing your actions. Instead, I have an offer for you and your heroic spirit" He said with a smile. The he took another sip of tea.

"How do you?..." She trailed off, but was beginning to just accept this man's absurdity at face value.

"You wear your mind on your shoulder young lady. For what that I used to be, this much is to be expected, and you can as well if you work with me" He spoke, giving her a nod.

"What?" She could only ask.

"I meant what I said. If you help me return to power, I can provide you with mystical secrets and powers, so that you can be what you always wanted to be. A hero" He gave the spiel of a conman and unfortunately for her, she ate it hook line and sinker.

"How can I become a Hero? I want to be one. Oh I so want to be one" She asked, her worry fading away at this chance dangling before her.

"Well. If you promise to work for me, I can help you on that path. But ultimately it will be up to you if you make it through" He spoke, getting up and walking over to a small black box that rested on a shelf.

"I made this not too long ago this morning, for I felt it would be needed. It may not be everything a hero needs in this city, but it's the closest thing I know, without you becoming a Nikke of course" The man said, his brown hair shifting slightly as he brought the black box to the table. Opening it, he took out a small corked vial full of a black liquid that looked like a galaxy spiraled within it. Uncorking the vial, he handed it to her.

"If you drink this, I will give you the powers of an Arbiter, and I can help you grow stronger as we work together. What do you say?" He asked, and the girl took the potion in shaky hands.

"Is this safe to drink?" She looked down at the glass vial in her hands.

"Before you drink it, let me explain some-" He trailed off, as the girl took a deep breath and chugged down the potion.

"Oh, that's not good" The man said with worry, before the girl screamed and ran out of the house in terror, grasping her head.

"I'll have to make sure she completes this advancement. Seeing her fall to corruption would be quite unpleasant" the man said, taking a slow step towards the door, but then falling to his knee.

"I really have lost almost all my power..." He trailed off.

"Still, I can't let the girl die. I'm going to need a long rest after this. HAHAHAAHAHA, me the once Black Emperor using all his power to stop a Arbiter from corrupting" He said in a self depreciating manner before standing up and walking over to a drawer and pulling out a crystal sphere. Tapping the top three times, he sat down at the table, and scried the girl.

If anyone interrupted her, he would smite them with divine black lightning.