AN: This had been in limbo for a very long time, a little over a year. About time I got it out.
DISCLAIMER: All characters, references and source material are IPs of their respective owners.
Memories of Long Past
Her eyes were closed...but she did not need to open them to realise that she must have been in a very foreign place, she could feel the heat in the air of wherever she was...heat so intense that even the breeze felt like that of an over...she could smell the strong smell that was akin to sulphur, almost as if she had been very close to a recently erupted volcano.
Feeling the curiosity building up within her, she open her eyes.
With her eyes now wide opened, what greeted her truly seemed like a vision out of a nightmare.
Indeed everything seemed so foreign...yet familiar at the same time, she seemed at a lost of where she was yet everything seemed almost recognisable...
For all she could witness was barren...dead earth, black as coal.
The sky was dark, with faint tints of fiery red accompanying its bleakness. Yes with that depressing environment, there was a significant contrast as she focused her vision further towards what she assumed was in front of her.
She lay witness to legions of men in armour in the distance, fighting against crude-looking creatures. Corpses, from both sides littered the plains in numbers so many she was unable to count. Despite the many dead, the fighting between men and what she could only describe as beasts raged on.
Crude weapons clashed with clean, freshly-forged ones, and it seemed at that instance, the men in bright armour were winning. Although the creatures noticeably outnumbered them, it seemed slowly but surely, they were fending those superior numbers off; skill over numbers, quality over quantity. What had been an almost impetuous and battle-hungry horde of beast-men quickly wavered, and some even panicked and took flight from the clashing, only to be dispatched by arrows from what she inferred to be archers behind these men at arms.
That being said, as many as those crude beings fell and took flight, more rushed to reinforce and re-engage. There did not seem to be end in sight between both sides.
She should have felt unnerved, terrified...worried even, considering what seemed like brave men were fighting against those foul beings that did not seem to dwindle in number. Rationally, she should have felt those things, yet she did not.
Instead the only emotion that ran through her was...annoyance, annoyance so strong that she had the urge to shout out in frustration. That was very unusual of her, for never in her life had she experienced this type of emotion...an emotion so strong that she had contemplated violence.
It confused her more that as she observed the dark-skinned creatures rushing towards the battlefield, she registered that they were coming from behind her. The men in bright armour conversely, were facing her from afar...attempting to approach where she was currently at, hostility very apparent.
She felt that those men...those brave men...were her enemies, and these foul creatures, were her servants.
Just as those thoughts ran through her, she felt body starting to move, though there was no intent on her part as far as she was concerned, it seemed involuntary almost subconsciously. It felt as if she were just a passenger, viewing the actions that were beyond her control yet in some way, she knew she was more than a mere passenger.
At that point she realised that she was certainly a few heads taller than almost any creature or being there. The creatures that were in front of her stopped their impetuous sprint towards the enemy. They instead looked back, fear, apprehension and submission clearly marred their faces as they gave a wide berth for her to continue her almost calm trot unimpeded.
It did not take long as she reached the centre of the battlefield, where the bloodshed was. By the time she had arrived, all that was facing her was the bulk of the men in armour. They too adorned terrified looks, though a fair number of them had expressions of grim determination. Hundred of those men started to cautiously approach her, their guard up in anticipation of a fight.
There was a deathly calm for just a short moment, when she then realised that there was a weapon in her left hand. Mace as large as any full-sized person, which she seemed to have effortlessly and casually held with but a hand...
All these time, she did not even register those actions; it was as if everything seemed on auto-pilot as the arm wielding the mace took a deliberately slow swing, almost as if to mock her opponents.
Said opponents braced for the impact of the mace onto their shields or swords, and the last bit of her vision saw her merely inches from landing a strike towards a battalion of those men...
Until it all harshly and abruptly faded to black as she heard a decidedly familiar voice calling out to her.
"Wake up!" alongside that shout came some shaking.
At that rather loud wake up call, lavender coloured eyes opened. She jerked up and breathing a little harder before she slowly calmed down. She then fixated her attention towards the source of the voice. Yes, she recognised the blonde hair of her rather...loud friend whom she has known for a good many years. Said expression of her friend however, was one that seemed surprised and mildly apologetic, might be due to the rather strong physical reaction to be woken up that harshly.
"Hehe...sorry Air, must've given you quite a shock there huh...shouldn't have shouted so loud. But I gotta wake you up somehow!" her friend spoke in a sheepish look.
Air put on a gentle smile to her friend, "that's alright Fal, I would've been surprise if you didn't go overboard most of the time." Saying that elicited another nervous laughter from her friend named Fal. There was a comfortable silence for a very short moment before she decided to query the reason for her friend's wake-up call.
"Why did you wake me up Fal? Are we at the capital already?", her friend shook her head at the question, before responding, "nah, there is a pretty large tree blocking the way...we are in a forest at the outskirts. The master's guards are trying to clear the roadblock. Luna just went out to take a look."
Air frowned slightly at that, before she too left the carriage and had a look for herself. True enough, it was a rather large tree that blocked the way, and by the looks of it, it would take up to an hour to clear it sufficiently for there to be a clear path ahead again.
One of the guards whom would escort her friends and herself to their master in the capital approached them soon enough. They had informed them that it would take awhile before the roadblock would be cleared, and if they fancied a bit of a stretch, to take a walk and take in some fresh air.
She heard her friends, Fal and Luna saying they would not wander off too far...well at least that was what Fal decided to do. Luna continued to watch the men slowly remove the fallen tree to clear the way. Air herself had contemplated just staying inside the carriage since there was no point wandering off. She could spend the waiting time on trying to come to grasp that strange dream she had.
At least that was what crossed her mind until she felt someone...or something calling her. It was a very faint whisper, had she been less aware it might have just slipped past her, but there was an odd compulsion of sorts that continued to beckon. It was coming from the forest of all places.
She was hesitant, as there was no certainty as to what lurked in the forest. Air could not rule out the possibility that there were danger beasts in there that would waste no time to take her down and consume her given the chance.
Even though she was hesitant, the beckoning strengthened. It had become so strong that she had no choice but to act on her growing compulsion. At that, she left the group and the carriage much like Fal did, and moved to the source of what was calling out to her.
As she moved deeper into the forest, she could have sworn she started to hear whispers at the back of her head. It was faint at first, but as she continued to walk, they had become louder and clearer. She could not understand what the whispers meant, as they seemed like some unknown language to her.
Soon the whispers became loud, so loud that she started to feel discomfort. Upon reaching a peak in its volume, the whispers suddenly stopped. Air became confused as to the abruptness of the silence, but suppressed said confusion when he had a look at where exactly she was.
Trees, rocks, grass, leaves...nothing seemed out of place. The beckoning seemed to have stopped here, her compulsion stopped here. Air released a mildly exasperated sigh at that, had she been imagining things?
Just as she was about to turn back, her eye caught a very faint gleam amongst the leaves and grass. It was a faint gold, shining under the sunlight. Air decided to approach it, and get a better view of what exactly it was. When she did reach close enough, it was clear to her what was on the ground.
It was a ring, a plain gold ring. What was this simple band of gold doing here in the middle of a forest was beyond her, but she did reach out and grab hold of it. The moment she did, she felt a strange sensation ran through her body...a bit like a flare. But said sensation lasted for only a heartbeat and before she could truly appreciate it...she had the ring in her open palm.
Her impressions of it; well it was a plain and simple ring as she had suspected but despite that, it seemed to have a rather simplistic beauty to it. The gold ring was unblemished, smooth and comfortably warm in her palm despite the rather chilly day. It was the type of warmth she felt when in front of a fireplace in the peak of winter, it certainly did not help ease her confusion as to how this small piece of jewelry could give her such a strong feeling.
Above all though, as she continued to eye the ring; she felt a large sense of...familiarity, longing and relief. It was as if what was in front of her was something she felt she had lost for a very long time. Lost for so long that she had contemplated giving up on searching, only having it materialise in front of her again.
Air had considered putting the ring on there and then but she heard Luna's voice calling out to her. Possibly they were about to start moving again...she must have been away from quite some time, as she herself was unaware of how much time she had spent there.
She put the ring into her side pocket, before she returned to the group to continue the trip to the capital.
She had thought about telling her friends about her discovery...after all, they did go through thick and thin together.
Yet in the end, she chose not to.
She was merely glad to have found something that so precious to her...
Air's first impressions of their master Bach was that he was much younger than expected, and that outwardly he seemed friendly enough. The moment they left the carriage, he had greeted them with a disarming smile that aimed to loosen a person's guard. He was rather soft spoken man and was able to break the ice between them quite quickly.
That being said, she could not help but remain cautious with him. Indeed he smiled often, but she noticed that his smile never seemed to reach his eyes. His eyes seemed, rather unfeeling and cold.
To many others, even her friends, the subtleties of Bach's demeanour would have been minute and for all intents and purposes, they indeed had not noticed them. But here she was, finding said subtleties almost clear as day. Simple things, alongside the rather obvious fake smile, was the dismissive and vague answers to their questions as to what their tasks would be as their servants per se. She also idly noticed that he had spoken to the guards whom escorted them to the capital, and some disturbingly knowing smirks seemed to adorn their features.
Once again Air started to question herself, what had made her suddenly so cautious towards a person she had just met? She had never been one to have trust issues, in fact it was rather the opposite...her friends tend to say she had been naive and too trusting of people she meets. It had always been Luna whom was the most cautious of the three of them, the one who asked the most questions.
But now it seemed she was buying into Bach's act quite soundly.
This growing caution merely reached greater intensity when they had finally reached a bazaar district, and Bach giving them allowance for which they could spend on purchasing better clothing. His explanation on the unexpected gesture of kindness was that he did not want his employees to appear "rural-looking".
Fal and even Luna seemed to accept the gesture quite readily, but Air seemed to question it further. She did not let her reservations show however as she expressed her 'appreciation' as sincerely as she could. Bach seemed to buy into the act at that moment evidenced by his lack of notice which once again only she could see.
Air had been shocked; she had never lied before, and to do it so effortlessly...
Time seemed to pass as she and her friends explored the bazaar, following the 'request' of their master. It seemed the man did not notice anything off with her behaviour. Despite dedicating a significant amount of her attention and caution towards worrying, she did idly reach her hand into her pocket, where the ring she found was currently residing. The warmth radiating from the jewellery had not lessened in intensity.
Beneath her naive and upbeat facade, she admitted that she was getting increasingly nervous and dare she say...paranoid. She was afraid of the sudden change in her mindset, but she knew one way or another it had something to do with the dream she had in the carriage...and to an extent that plain gold ring she was grasping in her pocket.
Whispers seemed to return the moment she held the ring, but it did not seem to bother her as much as she thought it would. The language remained one which seemed so foreign and terrible at the same time, but she had started to understand what was spoken.
"Yearning", that was what she could understand from it, it remained in that language which by all means should be completely indecipherable for one such as her. Yet she could clearly understand what the whisper meant.
Before she could listen to the whispers further, she felt Fal calling out to her, saying that they were done with shopping and that Bach was taking them to a coffee-shop for what she assumed was lunch.
Air's reservations remained strong as she followed her friends, the whispers seemed to quiet down as she diverted her attention back at walking.
Much like before, nothing seemed out of place. There was food on the table, and her friends had been enjoying their meals and talking to each other and Bach in a light and cheerful manner. Truly it was a situation that was disarming...inviting. Air knew that it was aimed at truly placing them in a comfort zone, getting them to feel happy or contented.
She could not however come to feel any of that, she wanted to tell herself to stop overthinking but there was an almost subconscious compulsion to remain doubtful, to remain on guard.
She felt her worries would be well founded...
It was only a matter of time...
"Let's get on with the main course shall we", Bach remarked, before a group of men in suits appeared behind their supposed 'master'. She could see it in their eyes, their expressions, and even the aura that radiated of them.
There was malice; it came in spades and it seemed like she was the only one who could feel it as men appeared behind them and held onto their arms to prevent them from moving. Fal and Luna remained shocked and confused as to the situation.
She was now frightened, but as she was so tempted to allow herself to reach a state of panic, to cave into this unfortunate event, the dark whispers returned.
When it had been faint before, it was now loud enough to almost block out whatever Bach and a few other men were saying. The whispers seemed to suppress her sense to panic, numbing her feelings quite noticeably or rather tranquilised her. Idly she did notice that Fal attempted to fight back, but to no success as the man landed a punch to her gut.
That was not her concern, as all she could focus on were the whispers which now sounded like chanting in a dark speech that she surprisingly could understand...
"Yearning to return to its master", what was yearning to return? Who was this master the whisper spoke of?
Fal let out a pain-filled scream as one of the men in suits had broken her leg in an exceedingly violent matter, as per the 'request' from what Bach called an "enthusiast". Once again, Air did not seem to react much to the situation at hand, as she remained in her slightly trance-like state.
"Now, I'd fancy those eyes of hers Mister Bach, would you mind", the voice coming from an old man with an almost sickly visage spoke. Bach then turned his attention to Luna and directed one of his henchmen to deal with her eyes. Had Air been more focused, she would have heard her friend beg them not to do it, but undoubtedly, it would fall on deaf ears.
"Please...stop." Luna begged, but the man continued to approach her, a large screwdriver of sorts in hand as he raised it to her eye.
"PLEASE STOP!" Luna begged louder, but soon only the sound of blood spurting could be heard and another pain-filled scream filled the air.
All these, tuned out from Air's ears...
"Yearning to return to its master"
"Hey Bach, that last girl...I want to give her to my sonny boy alright?" a man whom slightly resembled a dog in his facial features spoke.
Bach seemed to sigh slightly and complained something along the lines of "even though I bought her, what a waste." She felt the presence of a few men approaching her, their arms seemed to reach to her clothing, as the unusual man brought out a black dog.
"Now, I wanna introduce you to my sonny boy. I love him as if he was me own flesh and blood he is." She idly heard the man spoke.
"The One Ring..."
The man continued to ramble about how his 'sonny boy' was in a heat and that he needed proper venting. Soon enough however, he seemed to notice her lack of attention and this made the man growl slightly.
"Listen the fuck up when your betters are talking to you, bitch!"
She felt a harsh punch to her face, courtesy of one of the henchmen, and her attention briefly returned to reality, and the first thing she saw was the annoyed face of the dog's owner, and Bach's calm, cold smile.
"I understand that this might come as a great shock to you, but fear not, nothing on you will be broken. At most, you will merely be losing your dignity as a human being." Bach spoke, his smile remained plastered on his face...that smug, condescending and belittling smile...
"Why would you do this?" Air asked, voice a soft whisper.
"Because that is where the money is. You country dwellers are so dispensable after all..." was Bach's response, yet once again she felt her focus being drained.
"The One Ring yearns to return to its Master"
Just as she was forced to pay attention to her captors through that punch, her attention returned to the chanting, which now seemed to reach its loudest crescendo...and what she heard seemed to make the world around her pause.
"The One Ring Has returned to its Master..."
At that very moment, Air seemed to lose all sense of thought, and reacted on instinct alone...
She reared her head back harshly towards her restrainers' face, and she could hear the faint crack of a possible broken nose. The grip on her arms loosened slightly and she broke free from her captor and reached into her pocket and pulled out the plain gold ring.
Bach raised his eyebrow slight, the smile remained on his face which was now akin to a condescending amusement. Possibly contemplating on the futility of her struggle.
"What is the point Air? You know there is no way for you to escape this don't you? My, my, it seems that you might have to be broken in some way...on top your current responsibilities. But that is a rather nice band of gold you have there, too bad it is so exceedingly plain to be of any interest to me if you intend to bargain yourself for it." Bach remarked. As he said that, a few men started to approach her as she stared at the ring.
"Put on the ring.", such simple advice...her mind registered the command, and in moments the plain golden ring was firmly adorned to her right ring finger.
The world as she witnessed suddenly changed dramatically; everything seemed dark, distorted and filled with a mist-like atmosphere. It was to this sight where Air momentarily regained lapsed from her trance-like state, and finally able to fully appreciate the danger that faced her.
But it seemed the danger was put on hold...
The men whom were approaching her in an attempt to restrain her stopped dead in their tracks, confusion marring their expressions, Bach and the group of "enthusiasts" included. It soon became apparent that they could not see her, and started to look around.
She had contemplated escaping right there and then, but she knew that her friends were still here and possibly maimed and crippled for the rest of their lives...
Her attention returned to the ring on her finger, and she was surprised with what she had seen. What used to be plain unblemished gold started to form fiery etchings, written in a script that once again seemed ancient and by all means unrecognisable. Much like before with the whispers, she understood what was written on it as she read it aloud, in the same language she had heard in the whispers, completely ignoring everything else around her.
"One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them,
One Ring to bring them all, and in darkness bind them."
As the words echoed in her head...she felt something within her breaking out...almost as if unchained...
Indeed, something within her seemed to awake from its slumber, something in the deep, dark recesses of her mind and spirit that she would have never thought existed. With it came emotions that she felt in her dreams...
Anger, hatred, apathy, malice...and loathing.
These...filth...they believe they are the masters of pain, suffering, and horror? That they are masters of domination? They think they would break the will of one that was unbreakable? They will experience those things, first-hand.
The strange mist-like atmosphere completely disappeared, and it seemed that the people around her seemed to have registered her presence again.
Air did would not have noticed that her eyes seemed to change, her lavender iris started to burn a fiery red akin to an inferno, and her pupils morphed into a dark almost demonic slit. Her expression changed from a frightened young girl, into a cold, tranquil visage of a vengeful spirit.
Those around here however, would come to notice all of that.
To think that of all people who seemed to carry a teigu with them, it was this insignificant country girl! He had thought that this was going to be another simple run for his usual clients, but it seems that this turned out to be of a much greater inconvenience and annoyance.
Adding to the annoyance was that this teigu seemed to turn this girl invisible, she could be anywhere at this point. Though he was rather confident that she was not keen on leaving her two friends behind...
A smirk formed on his face, he could work with this.
With quick orders, Bach ordered his henchmen to grab hold of the two maimed girls and had them place weapons close to their jugulars, a universal sign of hostage-taking.
"I am surprised that you got your hands on a teigu, Air! Perhaps I have been too...quick to dismiss the uses of such a fine item! Tell you what, I can make a deal, you hand me that ring and in return I will set you and your friends free, fair enough?"
Bach noticed the disapproving looks of the 'enthusiasts', which he then subtly motioned not to worry.
"If you don't agree to this deal however...well let's just say that your friends might be in a much worse state than they are now. Much worse if I say so myself..."
He had no intention of honouring this deal; it was so simple to exploit rural-folk that it seemed almost disgusting. Now he just needed to wait for the conflicting thoughts of a naive country girl, and soon enough she will make herself visible, saying that she would give him the teigu in exchange for her friends.
And the show can go on.
He did not need to wait too long, in fact it occurred just as soon as the thought ran through his mind. Quite suddenly, the girl in lavender coloured clothing became visible again. He idly noted that she no longer had her hat on her, and her eyes were covered by her lavender-coloured bangs. Both her hands were clenched over each other, likely holding the ring within it.
One of Bach's men did not need to wait further as he grabbed hold of the girl as she appeared, tackling her to the ground and holding on to both her arms before she could do anything else with that inconvenient teigu.
"Go get the ring and give it to me. We'll then continue on from where we left off." Bach casually ordered the person who had his grip on the girl, to which he nodded and proceeded to force open her clenched hands. All this time as that happened, his smirk remained, and it seems the enthusiast who would pay for her was getting excited again.
"...what about that deal." Bach heard the girl ask, but her voice was a barely audible whisper. He heard it all the same, and could not help but destroy the girl's hopes again by chuckling.
"You really think I would let go of this opportunity for your sake, a stupid country girl?! Not surprising, since soon you would become a dog's plaything. You wouldn't need brains for what you'll end up being, dear Air." Bach ruthlessly spoke, intending to mentally break her as much as possible. It was no good to have a product with too strong a will after all.
He could then hear a masculine chuckle that did not come from him. At first he thought it was from one of the enthusiasts, but as he looked back, none of them spoke or made any noise. They looked back at him with equally questioning looks.
His eyes diverted back to the girl on the ground, still struggling with his henchman whom was prying open her hands. It seems he is struggling, either he was weak which was unlikely, or the girl had a vice-like grip holding on to the teigu.
Now that he notice, the chuckle came from them...it sounded guttural, and almost inhuman...
The henchman finally pry open the girl's grip, but to his and Bach's surprise the ring was not in her palms. It was still stuck firmly to her ring finger, though with a huge difference. The henchman could see that the ring no longer had its plain gold appearance; he saw the burning etchings on it of writing that he did not understand.
The chuckle ended soon later, and everyone in the room heard a voice that sounded like guttural murmurs, but resonated loudly throughout the building.
"You think mastery over deception and lies are yours solely to exploit...boy?" Bach's smile fell, and a frown reached his face, as he realise this calm inhuman voice came from the girl on the ground.
"And you think, that all of you here, are masters over pain, horror, domination? Filth like you dare lay hands on me so callously?" the henchman restraining the girl on the floor definitely notice the girl's lips moving. The movement of her lips were definitely in sync with what was uttered by that foreboding voice. With every word...he could not help but develop a sense of dread that was slowly building up.
"Just pull the ring out! It must be the effect of the teigu!" Bach yelled, the henchman obliged and grabbed hold of the ring on stuck to her finger and pulled. In his growing sense of fear as an aura seemed to envelop him, he seemed to pull with excessive force that could be strong enough to dislocate the arm of a small-framed girl like her.
Yet the ring would not budge...the henchman...being at the centre of the now spreading aura seemed to get increasingly overwhelmed by the denseness of the fiery-like darkness. His apprehension now became fear, and fear became terror.
"I sense apprehension growing this one...and from everyone here...is fear starting to creep into your rotten, insignificant...mortal hearts?" the girl spoke again, the unearthly voice conveying mild amusement.
Only to receive a punch from the man on top of her, his face almost manic...
"SHUT THE FUCK UP YOU LITTLE BITCH!" the henchman shouted out, attempting to either knock her out or shut her up.
Bach and the rest were starting to feel fear entering their being, by all means they should not be fearing the girl but they just did. The oppressive presence that exuded from her became more overwhelming with each passing second.
"I grow weary..." the henchman restraining her saw her head being turning to him, he had yet to see her eyes for the bangs of hair covered them. A slow smile crept onto the girl's face.
"It is the right time for me to personally be rid of such filth from my presence...starting with you whom so foolishly lay such unclean hands on me." She looked up to the henchman, and he had a clear view of her eyes. At that very moment, his face morphed into one of terror, his skin paling at what he had seen. His eyes met burning orb of flames with demonic slitted pupils as black as the void. The moment those hellish eyes met his; he could feel his mind being invaded with horrors unimaginable...visions of torture, degradation, and slow deaths flooded his mind. Such horrors made him scream with terror unrestrained.
Bach had been stunned by the sudden reaction by his henchman, so were the rest in the building. Both Luna and Fal snapped out of their pained stupor and focused in on the turn of events with what little consciousness they had.
As the henchman screamed, his arms now grasping his head in pain and terror, Air's smile turned into a smirk, a cold smirk that spoke of cruelty and malice.
With an unseen force, the man was launched from the girl, his body hitting the brick wall with such strength that the wall crumbled. Bach and the rest snapped to where the man was launched towards, only to grow the exceedingly rare feeling of being sickened as the unseen force was now pressing his body, rapidly flattening him as blood and guts continued to spurt out from him. It did not take long till all that was left was flattened gore that was once Bach's henchman.
Bach turned back, and he witnessed the unseen force gently bringing her to a stand. He could now see what had driven his employee to such terror as he witnessed the country girl's hellish orbs. He also bore witness to that smile on her face, one that spoke of malice that neither he nor any person here could even light a candle on.
"TAKE HER DOWN NOW! I DON'T CARE IF YOU KILL HER!" Bach yelled to his remaining employees, whom now brought out their weapons. Most were melee weapons ranging from knives, and swords and some were armed with guns. The two whom held on to Fal and Luna also dropped them to the ground to join the fight.
Just as they got ready, Bach and the 'enthusiasts' started to witness something that raised their already heightened sense of fear. The girl's aura started to manifest visually, hellfire started to gather behind her and started to form a silhouette which slowly morphed into a figure that was close to nine feet tall.
A fiery visage of an armoured behemoth formed, hovering behind the girl slightly. All witnesses could clearly see the being behind her adorned coal black, spiked armour that was both terrible and beautiful in the most twisted sense. Its head was adorned with a helm that was a mix between a mask and a crown. Completing the hellish visage was the manifestation of a huge black mace in its left hand. To those who witnessed the figure, it seemed like a knight from hell had manifested behind the girl almost protectively, much like a guardian spirit.
Despite what they had witnessed, they still felt some comfort in numbers, as the men charged towards the girl and the manifestation. They had believed if they killed her, the horror would stop.
As they approached her, Bach witnessed the behemoth raised its mace arm preparing for a strike. In moments, the seemingly ethereal weapon connected with one of his henchman's swords and he was met with a grim sight.
The mace smashed through the weapon at if it were cotton and proceeded to land on the man's face. Said man's head was shattered in a burst of gore as terrifying as the flattened man before. The force behind the strike had been so powerful that the rest of the man's body whereby the mace had not strike was crushed, and finally his body being forced back with the force of an explosion.
The force had also affected others close by, to equally frightening results. Four of the men close by were also forced back with equal amounts of strength, and equally violently. Bach listened to telltale sounds of bones breaking and blood spurting as those men were launched through the partially destroyed brick wall.
The henchmen armed with guns decided now was the best time to unload on the being what so easily dispatched multiple men in one swoop. They unloaded their rounds on the girl, but merely witnessed the futility of doing so as the bullets disintegrated before it could even reach their target.
Before they could take the time to realise such futility, they felt the control over their hands being taken from them, and more specifically, the arms which held their weapons.
Before they were completely conscious of the fact, their guns were now pointed to their temples. In moments, multiple synchronised gunshots were heard, and the last three henchmen were dead. Killed, by their own weapons.
All nine of Bach's henchmen were killed off, and five were from one blow, and the last three were from mere compulsion of an unseen force.
Bach, despite his growing terror beneath is shocked visage, could not find the strength to run. It was the most logical thing to do, anywhere was better than lingering with this...thing in the same building as them. The sheer presence was sufficient to freeze him in fear.
The other enthusiasts seemed to have a stronger sense of fear. In their terror they did muster the needed strength to start running. Ran they did, as a few started sprinting to the doors and the hole through the building.
At least that was what they had planned to do until a semi-corporeal barrier radiating in a sickly green energy materialised around them, essentially preventing everyone from moving past it.
One of the enthusiasts tried, and the moment his hands touched the barrier, his hands burned and it spread to the rest of his body in a near instant. Green flames burned him with such intensity that it had only taken seconds for him to be reduced to ash. The rest were then smart enough to not approach the green flame-like barrier for fear of the same fate.
Though they would realise in hindsight that their fate would not have been any better right now... if they had the privilege of time to contemplate on it.
Each of the enthusiasts felt a strong intangible force lifting them up by the neck, the feeling of being choked was so strong that they felt the air leaving them. It was however not drastic enough as to completely deprive them of breathing.
It was then a blinding, terrible pain erupted in their heads...the feeling akin to lighting to a thousand needles striking their brains.
The pain was enough to cause the enthusiasts to scream, their ears as well as their eyes bled as the pain intensified. In a few seconds that likely would have felt like hours, the heads of the surviving enthusiasts exploded in gore. With them dead, the force holding on to them left and their bodies fell to the ground.
It had ended just as quick as it started, every single henchman and 'buyers' were dead, now including the black dog, killed in the most horrific manners imaginable. The only survivors had been Fal, Luna and the 'master' Bach.
The man in question had been in a state of terror, he had been sweating profusely, his pupils dilated in horror over what he had witnessed.
His fear was well founded, as soon as the last body fell the ground, the girl's attention had slowly affixed on him. She turned her head towards him in a slow, almost relaxed manner...he could see the expression she wore on her face.
At that moment he could not see the face of an innocent, naive country girl; but rather the visage of ruthless and powerful godlike being. There was no mercy, there was no compassion within her fiery orbs, and there was definitely no lack of confidence and arrogance through the victorious smirk she had on her.
She moved slowly towards him, an almost casual stride. The fiery form of the behemoth behind her slowly dissipated as she approached him, and the sickly green barrier that blocked the exits to the building did the same as well.
Did that mean he might get a chance to escape?
"P-please listen to me Air! I was only following orders! All that I have done, was of no decision of mine!" at that Bach unbuttoned his shirt as he started talking. Spark of curiosity formed on the girl's expression, but her smirk remained firmly planted on her face.
"Oh?" was her simple response, the guttural and demonic voice had been gone, returning was the girl's more natural one.
That meant she was willing to hear him out, did it?!
"Yes, there is a reason that I attempted to do what I did! I was a slave, my mother sold me into this! What I do now, I have done to survive over the years!" he cried out, hoping to mitigate the bleak situation he was in.
That however did nothing, her terrible smirk did not leave as she continued to approach him.
"And this should affect me why?" the girl responded.
Her response to what he said further cemented the worthlessness of his statement. He needed to do something else.
"I-if you show mercy, if you let me go...I-I'll give all of my money, my possessions, everything I own to you! I am willing to be a slave again! I will be your servant! I will do anything you wish!" he suggested in a panic.
That seemed to have caught her interest, as she paused for a brief moment, as if contemplating his offer. Bach noticed that her hellish orbs continued to eye him with frightening intensity, they were calculative...he had an inking that many thoughts ran through her head.
"Anything, you say?" she responded after that brief pause.
"Yes, I am completely at your disposal, all I ask is for you to spare me!" Bach responded almost instantly.
Air's smirk morphed into a grin at what he said, "well I'll hold you onto that then Mr. Bach!" she spoke in a disturbingly cheerful manner. The hellish slitted orbs had completely disappeared, leaving her lavender coloured eyes visible again.
Despite the disturbing nature of her reaction, the fact that it seemed possible for him to escape a painful death had brought a semblance of relief. Perhaps she had deactivated her Teigu.
The girl now continued to approach him, and in time she had been mere arms reach from him. She raised her hand towards him, perhaps an invitation to pull him from his position on the floor.
At this point in time he was presented with a golden opportunity...
Since the girl's Teigu was deactivated, and he had kept a dagger in his person for self defence...perhaps it was very much possible for him to take it out and stab her in the heart.
To think that the country girl remained so gullible, well it suited his purposes.
With his right hand discretely holding on to the knife in his pocket, his left hand grabbed on to Air's offered hand. At that she started to pull him up with surprisingly good strength behind it, not that it mattered since he was confident that it would be the last thing this country girl would ever do.
As he rose up, he pulled the dagger from his pocket and without delay shoved it into the girl's chest, where the heart is. He smirked victoriously at the successful act, completely overlooking the fact that Air's expression did not change ever for one moment.
He laughed, "how naive are you, you dumb girl?! You have just given me an opportunity to end your miserable life!" he exclaimed...
He expected a look of shock and pain from the dumb country girl and her subsequent collapse...yet none of that happened. She merely stood where she was, eyeing the dagger lodged into her heart almost inquisitively.
When nothing else happened in a few seconds, Bach felt panic and fear building up in him again, as the girl looked back at him. She wore a smile...a cruel smile that spoke of horrors that he would not dream to know of.
He felt his body being constricted, paralysed by some unknown force. The oppressive aura that permeated the building before returned, and the demonic orbs bled back in the girl's eyes.
Air pulled the dagger from her chest, and the moment it was completely dislodged the wound on her chest healed in an instant.
"Quite the scoundrel aren't you Mr. Bach?" Air finally spoke as she waved the knife in front of his face.
"I had expected you to do something along these lines, had to give you an excuse to provide me with this." Air's attention returned to the dagger. She touched the blade on the ring she adorned...
And ran the flat side of the blade on the ring's surface, as she did that Bach heard her whispering a chant in an otherworldly, terrible language. Bach watched in morbid fascination as the once silver coloured blade of the dagger started to glow a very faint sickly green hue.
With that strange deed done, she turned back towards him.
"You said that you were completely at my disposal in exchange for me letting you go did you not?" Air asked.
This surprised Bach, had she considered letting him go still?
"Yes! I'm sorry! Please, I'll do anything...this is a promise! I will not renege!" he shouted out, his head not affected by the unnatural paralysis.
Had the girl's smile been cruel before, no words would described the sheer malice the expression she held at that very moment.
"Good." was her simple response.
Bach could feel pain like no other as the girl stabbed him on his upper thigh with the now glowing dagger. She then promptly removed it, and he could see blood slowly spurting out from his wound...the colour of the blood had been a sickly black.
Suddenly the paralysis on his body left him, and he had been given back his motor functions.
Bach saw Air stepping back from him, she wore an arrogant smirk on her face, and once again the demonic orbs were gone.
"That's all I need from you Bach, now off you go! Savour your pathetic little life!" he heard Air speaking almost casually, she made a shooing motion with her hand.
That was it? A stab to his leg was all she wanted? He was free to go?
Well he's not going to complain, it's best to leave now and report to the Capital guards about this girl.
They will set her straight no doubt.
Bach limped out of the building, idly noticing that the pain in his leg seemed to intensify with each passing minute.
Air's attention returned to the dagger after that pathetic excuse for a human had been gone, the glowing green blade soon disintegrated leaving a mere hilt.
'At least that pathetic human soul can be put to great use when the need arises' Air thought to herself.
"A-Air? A-are you there?" her attention shifted to the voice.
Oh yes...
It had been Luna's voice, her voice sounded in pain, yet she could hear concern...concern for her. She felt such a sentiment to be pointless, the pathetic blind girl should just worry about her own issue, or she could at the very least be unconscious as the lame girl Fal.
This was of no concern to her, there was no value in mending them...if anything, it was a favour in itself to end their lives at this very moment...
...but that was the thought that only resonated in a part of her. There was another thought that spoke to her...that voice more passionate...
A part of Air reminded herself that Luna and Fal had been her friends, they had spent many good years together. It just wasn't right to leave them for dead, or to a miserable existence if she could help it.
In fact, she knew that she was capable of helping them, it was in no effort on her part. She needed to only decide to do so.
Her mind was now in conflict, apathy and compassion raging within her...two distinct personalities waging a war. Both were part of her yet were distinct, although the one that represented her darker thought, though once was weak and barely a whisper, had now became a strong aspect of her spirit.
She did not see any reason to help Fal and Luna...but she wanted to help them yet loathed to do it at the same time.
Upon about a minute of internal struggles, it seemed that both parts of her had finally come to a compromise. Her compassionate persona had agreed to surrender most of its hold over to the darkness that formed within her, and would ensure that Fal and Luna would cease to remember her nor be aware of her existence. In return, it had to agree to help Fal and Luna.
A last act of kindness towards her dear friends.
"A-Air...are you there?!" Luna continued to call out. Air took this opportunity to approach her friend.
"I'm here Luna, it's fine...no one will hurt you or Fal any longer." she reassured her friend, she noticed a small smile graze Luna's face yet it had been a sad smile.
"T-they're gone Air...my eyes are gone..." Luna said, she could hear her friend's voice breaking, it had been obvious that despair had been growing. Once again, a part of her felt sorrow for her friend, whilst another part of her had been completely apathetic to her plight.
Though she had made her decision, backing down would not be a consideration.
Air placed her finger towards Luna's lips to shush her, "don't worry Luna...this is all a nightmare. Sleep, and you will realise that none of these are real...you are not blind, and Fal is not maimed." Air gently beckoned Luna to a slumber, using the magic that she had gained to speed up the process. It did not take long for Luna's sobs to die down, and for silence to take over.
With both Luna and Fal unconscious, she could now do what must be done.
Air started to...sing. It was a song in a language that had been ancient, but was not as terrible or ominous as the voice in her head before she wore the ring. The language was much more beautiful, almost soothing. She should not know what the language is, let alone being able to sing in said language.
But she did, and it did not surprise or shock her. The Ring had given her knowledge she did not know she had held, she knew that the language was called...Quenya.
As she continued to sing, the permanent injuries Luna and Fal suffered started to mend themselves. Luna's eyes started to regenerate and mend, whilst Fal's broken leg started to correct itself.
The song lasted for a few minutes, and by the end of it the fatal wounds on both her friends had been fully healed, almost as if they were never there.
The deed was done, and all that was left was to clear the two's memories of her. That was simple enough.
Air felt a tear falling as she became aware that this would be the last time she might ever see both her friends
...friends she grew up knowing...
"Luna...Fal, goodbye. Live well." Air whispered...her tears seem to start flowing and she started to sob softly.
The apathy and indifference she had held before had been gone, she allowed the emotions of sadness encompass her entirely. She would miss them for sure, and deep down she had hoped she would get the chance to meet the two friends she had grown up with.
For at this very moment, all she had been was a country girl named Air.
Luna let out a loud gasp as she suddenly regained consciousness from what she had thought to be a very deep sleep...
And what she had hoped to be a very horrifying nightmare that involved her being blinded. She had been hyperventilating as she woke up from that dream, and slowly allowed herself to calm down.
She noticed that she could still see...
Perhaps it was indeed a nightmare after all...
Luna breathed a sigh of relief upon knowing that, though she did not have time to bask in the relief as she noticed a groan resounded next to her. She shifted her attention towards the source of the groan. It was Fal, and she seemed to have also recently awake up from her slumber.
Luna then noticed that they were still in a carriage...oh yes, they were being sold to a master in the capital so that their village could receive money...
"Damn it Luna...what's with the loud noises?" she heard Fal ask her.
"I'm sorry Fal...I just had a bad dream, it was so bad that it kinda snapped me up." She apologised to her friend.
Fal gave her a mildly concerned look, "really? What was it about?"
She felt slightly hesitant about telling her friend what she dreamt about...but in the end she still told her. She told Fal about the master they were sold to, his subsequent actions, and ultimately the terrible experience of being maimed. It had felt far too real for her, and it was something she really did not want to ever experience in real life.
Fal's eyes widened at what she had heard, "that's really weird, I had a dream too...almost the same as what you had, except I ended up losing my leg..."
At that both friends spent a minute or so in an almost melancholic silence, that was until Fal decided to break it.
"Well either way, it was just a dream! You didn't lose your eyes, and I didn't lose my legs! So it's all fine!" Fal attempted to cheer Luna up, which seemed to have done the trick as Luna in turn gave her a small smile in return.
They suppose their life would not be as bad as that...perhaps she just had to await what the future had in store for them.
Though they could not help but think that something...or someone was missing...perhaps it was nothing.
Come to think of it, why were they still in the carriage?
"Hey driver, where are we?" Fal called out to the person manning the carriage.
There was a brief pause before they received their response,
"Don't ya lass remember? You're being returned to your village, how could ya forget 'bout that?!" the driver's voice seemed surprised, almost incredulous.
But if anything else, Fal and Luna were shocked...they could not remember.
"Hold on! We didn't even see our master! How could we be returned?!" Fal asked, voice louder this time.
"Actually, yer did see the mistress. She had a look at yer, too young she said, and too uncivilised, not the servant she be needin'. Must be in quite a trance yer lass were, but it's not everyday ye were almost traded as slaves."
Confusion marred Fal and Luna's face for awhile, but it soon replaced with panic and apprehension.
If their mistress had not interest in them, did that mean she would ask for her funding back?!
Did that mean their village would be required to-
"But don't yer be worryin' lass, the Mistress knew she was takin' a gamble in finding servants. She's willin' to part with the money she gave to yer village. Consider it as part of her generosity." the driver interrupted their thoughts.
This statement caught them by surprise, but also fueled their confusion.
"How did you know?" Luna asked.
The driver chuckled at that question, "pretty fuckin' obvious yer would be wondering about that, nothin' in this world is free...especially money. Consider yerselves lucky then that the mistress viewed it as a gamble."
Luna and Fall were given the time to mull over what they had heard. What they had heard bewildered them, it almost seemed like a very strange miracle.
Both friends looked at each other blankly for a few seconds, no words were traded, with the noise merely being the movement of the carriage. Fal decided to break it after a few seconds
"So...that really happened?" Fal asked.
"I guess to", Luna responded, her voice uncertain.
"You sure this ain't a dream?" Fal asked again.
"..." Luna said nothing, but before the blonde could ask the question again, her friend proceeded to pinch her hard on her cheek. She cried out, more out of surprise than pain.
"Hey what the hell Luna?!" Fal exclaimed.
"Well that answered your question didn't it?" Luna replied simply, Fal took a second to think over her statement before her anger dissipated at realising what her friend had just assisted in proving.
"Yeah...it did."
This was indeed no dream the two friends had realised, in fact whatever they had learned might as well have been nothing short of a miracle. Whoever this mistress was, despite not being able to remember...had been generous enough to allow their village keep the money that had been given to them even if she had not accepted them as her servants.
They could return home, and still manage to be of help for their village...the thought of it along had brought a smile to their faces. Even though they were not given a chance to stay at the capital, what they had essentially been gifted had been much more valuable than what they had forgone.
Fal and Luna never lost their smiles throughout the journey back to their village in the countryside.
In one of the many outdoor tea-houses, Air sat at one of the many vacant tables, eyeing the carriage as it briskly approached the gates of the capital city.
She watched as the carriage left the capital through said front gates, both her friends would be returning to their home. She could not help but feel a sense of longing knowing that she might not be able to step foot on her home for the foreseeable future.
Rather it had once been her home she had to remind herself...it had either been some strange twist of fate, or the work of some higher being that she had yet to be aware of...she no longer belonged with her friends, no longer belonged with the village where she grew up.
It seemed obvious by now, she was now alone and as of yet Air had no idea what she would do with this new-found lack of purpose. Had she been given any free will or choice in this she would very much not want to live in such a way, she would have wanted to be in that carriage...with Luna and Fal.
Though deep down she knew, had it not been for this unexpected fate of hers...she would have been a victim of Bach's ploy. She would have suffered a fate that would have been infinitely worse off that what she was facing now.
In that regard, she knew she had no right to choose. The situation that had resulted in such strong conflict within her soul, had been the situation that had saved her from a possible lifetime of pain, suffering and degradation.
She felt longing for her friends, yes. But at least that was what only a mere part of her wanted to acknowledge...the part of her that decided to strike a compromise just to save her them.
Another part of her had to acknowledge the stupidity of such a desire, a desire that yielded no tangible benefit if achieved. That part of her instead yearned for something very different...something that transcended mere emotion, mere short-sighted...mortal desires.
When the carriage had been long gone from the capital, Air proceeded to eye the gold ring that was firmly attached to her right ring finger. As if acknowledging her attention towards it, the ring started to glow faintly, it's ancient runes faintly visible.
As her eyes gazed upon the ancient markings, she could feel the sense of longing and pain starting to dissipate...the strong feeling of loneliness and melancholy started to erode rapidly until all that was left was apathy.
Replacing the void had been feelings that once again she as Air would never have though were capable of, yet all of it felt right, all of it felt natural to her.
As her gaze on the ring intensified, she could hear faint whispers at the back of the head, speaking the same dark language she had heard when she first found the ring. With each dark word resonating in her head, memories started to pour into her mind.
Memories not of her own...
But yet were part of her...
Memories of a time long gone, when people would fear the name she had once held..where even mere mention of it would bring about terrible curses.
Memories of how close she was towards reaching her goal.
Memories of how she had failed...
An aching pain from that memory resurfaced, as she knew that her downfall had been of her own actions. She had hubris, far more than any person had back then...and this hubris made her careless, negligent and it had ultimately led to her near death.
It was a mistake that humbled her...
It was a mistake that she would not doom herself to repeat.
Cravings, and ambition started to build up within her...she desired power...she desired to rule...oh how much she craved for it that the sheer thought of it had rendered her restless.
This world...this age where she was now rebirthed, an Empire was forged and it lingered on until now.
But she knew this was anything but an Empire.
To even call it a Kingdom would be stretching it. It was a mere fragment of what it wanted to be, a mere shadow of what it used to be. The will of the people here were weak, their loyalties brittle...threatening to break at any moment.
She would have contemplated why those who dwell on this land radiated misery but she knew why.
She could feel it in the air, corruption so repugnant and so...paralysing that even her past self would frown at it. It was indeed ironic, how people who went against her rambled on and on about the world returning to shadows the moment she would take hold over it, and how the end of ages would come to fruition the moment she had won.
Yet here she was, bearing witness to a world so deep into the 'shadows'...a world that she had no part in building. Rather is was a world forged by the men who so vehemently opposed one such as her in the past. It had taken her merely a day for her eyes to bear witness of the vices indulged by the mortals who lingered here...at the expense of strength, at the expense of stability.
She had not qualms with evil, they were merely mortal constructs, attempting to justify opposition against her.
But it was another thing entirely for such notions to erode the world, to allow rot to fester...
This Empire, this Capital, beneath the beautiful veneer, lies a rotting carcass...a carcass that demands purification, that demands a purge.
Indeed if she could snatch the power over this shambling corpse of an Empire from the incompetent excuses for rulers...
She would build something strong and indomitable for the ages to come...
Something worthy of calling it her own...
She would build something worthy of her name.
Something worthy of Sauron.
AN: Like I said, this was in limbo for close to a year. Motivation came back to complete at least this chapter, but as for the question of updates after this...not too sure yet.
I might come back to this in the future, who knows?
Felt bad after reading ch23.5 of Akame ga Kill.