This is an offshoot from After Death. The idea came when going through Arachne's profile to plan for her appearance in After Death. After that, it grew in a surprisingly exponential degree. Chapters will be shorter (~2000 words) but hopefully the updates will be every Saturday. At the time of posting this, enough chapters have been written for a consistent update schedule until mid-February.
In addition, look forward to December-February, aka Resbang posting season 2018 where I'll be posting 2 complete stories (like I did with TRAVELLERS LOST last year).
Also I'm gonna make the chapter titles be mostly Witch House songs (with a few exceptions) because I love the genre and I also want to make life harder for myself, cheers. Heavily recommend you listen to the songs for maximum mood-setting.
Since this damned website doesn't allow for external linking, search on youtube for A Spider's Skull by user 'Stressed Depressed And Not Even Well Dressed' or just go to AO3 where the story will be posted with full links.
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Chapter 1: Lady Of Gorgon (Soul Eater OST)
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It was done. This was her moment of victory, her triumph over what she considered her arch rival. She, Arachne Gorgon, Mother of Demon Weapons, the Heretic Witch, could now add Destroyer of Death to her titles.
Honestly though, she found herself feeling very dispassionate about the whole affair.
Maybe it was because of how she had had her victory; some would consider using the Kishin, the one being rumored to be able to destroy Death, as cheating. After all, she was the one who had steered Asura like a homing missile into their common target, abstaining from any actual fighting, settling for plotting and sabotage.
Whatever; Arachne was used to accusations of 'cheating' her way through power. It wasn't her fault other people didn't take advantage of the opportunities presented in their lifetimes.
The old Witch shifted her attention back to her surroundings, though there was little to be seen. The land was in ruins. Demolished buildings littered the scenery, broken wood and tattered rooftops being the only indication that people once lived here. She doubted they would ever be rebuilt. Above her, the sky was a blood red, subdued to the point where she couldn't tell if it was night or day. The stench of death permeated her surroundings, coming from mutilated corpses, with the only sign of life being the buzzing of insects.
Arachne supposed she should be glad. After all, she had just witnessed the demise of Death, the one being that she feared would be her end. The old Witch had made plenty of enemies in her long life, but none came so close to ending her as the personification of the End Of Life itself. In her darker moments, she considered losing to the Grim Reaper would be fitting. After all, no one can beat Death; or at least that's what she believed- what she hoped was another thing entirely. But now, with this turn of events…
Arachne was torn on what to feel for what was yet to come. The power vacuum that would be created by Death's and Asura's simultaneous defeat would plunge the world into chaos. There would be no Death to chase down those whose souls were stuck, or those who broke the cardinal rule of consuming other souls. There would also be no Kishin for those fully invested into the Madness to pledge themselves into. Just a free-for-all battle in a continent already rife with conflict. She wasn't sure if this conflict would spread to the rest of the world. No matter what chaos Death's demise would bring, there would also be no Kishin to help dismantle the order. It would be a battle between the already existing powers and the oncoming chaos.
Fortunately, Arachne was not completely unprepared; the reason she had founded Arachnophobia was to establish her hold on this Earth, waiting for an opportunity like this.
Arachne wanted to rule. Not with an iron fist, like the brutes in the DWMA did. Not with driving insane anyone who opposed her, like the Kishin's forces did. Certainly not with Chaos, like her younger sister Medusa advocated. No, the Witch liked to rule like a mother. Strict and occasionally feared, but always looking out for the good of her children. She would educate them in the cruelty of the word and teach them to fend for themselves. There wouldn't be any obstructions, any dogmas to follow, only gentle advice from the one woman responsible for them all. Sure, sometimes you had to be strict and you had to punish children, but you loved them in the end. Even with Weapons, she only wished to provide a select few of her 'Children' with the means necessary for fighting against the darker elements of this Earth. Eggs had to be broken, but mothers were ruthless when it came to protecting what was theirs.
Thankfully, her goal was looking further and further away by the day. Death and the Kishin were gone, so she stood relatively unopposed. Arachne hadn't been affected by the Madness so far as to try and take down another deity, had Death or Asura survived. With both gone though, and the only potential obstacles being that silly organisation Death had mustered…
Arachne couldn't help but let out a small self-satisfied laugh as she observed the ruined landscape, Mosquito and Giriko by her side.
"Milady," her manservant politely distracted her from her thoughts. "If I may, there is little to see here. Only ruins and corpses and I would hate for any of that lowly dirt to stain your lovely form."
"You concern is appreciated Mosquito," the Witch blankly replied. With a flick of her wrist, she opened her fan and used to obscure the bottom half of her face. "I can't help but feel we're wasting time here. Prepare my carriage for Baba Yaga, we must regroup and form our future strategy."
The short man deeply bowed. "Of course milady," he said and left to arrange their transport.
Giriko, who up to this point as occasionally kicking at some broken woodwork, gave a brief look at the destruction and scoffed. "Those bastards left nothing for me to destroy."
"That's truly disheartening," Arachne dryly said but did not worry about insulting Giriko. Despite their difference in ranking, the man was notoriously informal and Arachne enjoyed being able to converse with one of her supporters in such a manner.
"It's a crying shame, I tell ya," the man retorted, Arachne's dry tone going over his head.
Giriko continued complaining, but the woman paid him no heed. The witch had turned her head away from him, distraught. She swore she heard something else in the ruins.
Meanwhile, Mosquito had returned to her, bowing deeply as he addressed the Witch. "Milady, your carriage is ready."
Indeed, a limo was parked just outside the wreckage, its luxurious appearance looking out of place with the ruined landscape. The logistics behind how that limo came to be were a mystery only Mosquito was privy to.
Arachne however, showed no signs that she had heard him. Her head was still turned to where she believed the sounds came from. The Witch took a step further towards the source of her distractedness.
Mosquito, after not having been addressed, raised his head and looked at Arachne in confusion. "Milady?"
The woman ignored the call, focusing on the unexpected sounds coming from the wreckage. She was a curious individual to a fault, always going after knowledge those older but less wise than her had deemed forbidden. This was simply a small indulgence to her second biggest character trait. There, just on the side of a broken wall.
It was a baby's cry.
Careful and elegant, she crossed the fallen structures, never losing her composure. The sounds grew stronger, which meant she must have been getting closer.
It was when the Witch made it across a relatively debris-free clearing, where one of the many craters created during the battle were formed, that she finally saw it.
It was a child, an infant to be exact. It couldn't be older than a few months, and it was malnourished and dirty, curled up in a pathetic ball. The sound she heard coming from it was a constant whine, much like a wounded animal.
"Oh crap," Giriko muttered behind her. The man must have followed her. "Look at that, something did make it out alive."
"It is not of our concern," Mosquito scolded the young man, after having caught up to the two.
"Oi, stop being all high and mighty-"
Arachne blocked out the argument these two had. She had more important things to muse over, such as her conflicting feelings over this child. Arachne wasn't a kind or charitable individual. That child could be a hassle to raise, growing up to be a nuisance, or just straight up dying and being a waste of effort. But there it was, a young child, parentless and alone, begging to be taken under her wing. It was right after one of her greatest adversaries had been taken down as well. Arachne wasn't religious, quite the opposite, but if this wasn't a sign of some sort, an indication of good fortune, then she would eat her fan.
Besides, the baby had already proven it's a fighter. It was the only thing left alive in a sea of Death. Arachne respected that.
"Mosquito, your jacket."
"Milady," the man cried in surprise but obeyed. Giriko paused mid-tirade to give the Witch a confused look.
"Eh? We're taking the squirt in, big sis?"
Arachne didn't respond, taking her manservant's jacket and kneeling down to the child. She scooped it up, her touch careful and gentle as she wrapped the dark cloth around the baby.
She brushed a few black strands, held together by dried blood, away from the baby's face. Two wide golden eyes stared back.
"Mosquito, Giriko, we have a slight change of plans." She stood up and maneuvered the bundle in her arms so that it could be seen by her two followers. "I present to you Arachnophobia's newest member."
A clumsy tiny hand reached for the spider-web netting in her neckline.
"Welcome to the family, little one."
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Reviews are appreciated.