"It can't be him… It can't be him…"
Palutena watched with worry as Gale kept repeating those same four words for the past several hours. What really worried her was the blank dead look in her eyes. The same look she held for nearly a year when it was clear that Pit could not be found. The absolute denial and despair had really taken its toll on her.
Viridi had sent them back to Skyworld but not before muttering "I guess we are in your debt. Thanks." Palutena had immediately went to work to tending to Gale's severe wounds. Though she doubted the angel really felt anything beyond the heart wrenching pain of learning the truth.
Palutena let out a sigh as she wiped her brow. She still could hardly believe it herself. How could Pit, Gale's older brother who was loving and loyal to a fault, be Vitiosus, the savage, sadistic, dark servant of Hades? Something must have happened after he defeated Medusa. That was the only thing she could come up with. Something that ended with Hades somehow controlling or corrupting him.
Green eyes scanned the angel before her. All of Gale's wounds had been properly tended to and bandaged. The more severe ones still bled a bit but not as seriously as they were before. The girl's hands were placed firmly on either side of her head as she kept mumbling her denial. The heart wrenching truth of Vitiosus had practically shattered her spirit. She had hoped that Pit was still alive, but she could never imagine she would find him like this.
Palutena took a deep breath before speaking. "What are you going to do now?"
Gale had ceased mumbling and looked at the goddess.
"Are you going to lie there and let Hades win?" Palutena didn't want to come off as harsh but Gale had to make a choice. Perhaps if Hades was defeated, Pit would be free. But they would never know if Gale continued the way she was. "Will you let Pit continue to kill all those people? I'm sure we can agree that he would want us to stop him. You have to get up and fight."
Gale had looked at Palutena and appeared in deep thought. She was right, Pit would want her to stop him from hurting all those people, even if it meant ending his life. But the selfish part of her told her that doing that would separate them forever. No, he would want this. I have to stop him. The hopeful part of her presented the possibility of freeing him from Hades control. Either way, she couldn't continue to lie down and let him sink farther into the darkness. "What's our next move?"
Palutena gave an inward sigh of relief at seeing the light in her eyes return. The fierce determination to protect the ones she loved, a trait she shared with her brother. She was broken out of her thoughts at the sight of Gale attempting to get out of bed. Palutena gently placed a hand on the angel's bandaged shoulder. "Easy. I'm glad to hear that you're willing to fight, but you're still heavily injured. Rest and let your wounds heal."
Gale was about to protest but a sharp pain ran through both her shoulders when she moved. Pit had dug those blades pretty deep. Honestly, Gale had no doubt that if he had buried them any deeper in her, she could have lost an arm. She turned her head to the shredded blood stained cloth on the floor that was at one point her tunic. She sighed inwardly. Most of her tunics were damaged beyond repair and she only had a few left. She turned back to Palutena and blinked in surprise when a spoon came into her vision.
"Here, it'll help. You must be hungry." Palutena offered as she held the spoon out a bit awkwardly. Gale felt the heat rise in her cheeks but opened her mouth so Palutena could feed her. Sometimes Palutena could be such a mother hen. She constantly fussed over her if something were to ever be amiss. It could get annoying sometimes, but it felt good overall to know that someone cared. Gale quietly ate as she just let herself relax before she let herself drift off to sleep.
=I=I=
Palutena smiled as she watched Gale sleep. The renewed determination had been enlightening. She saw the confliction in her eyes as she contemplated on what to do regarding Pit. The thought of the two siblings fighting, especially with the possibility of one dying, tore at her heart. Ever since Palutena had found the two, she came to the quick conclusion that the two were inseparable. The past twenty five years had hit Gale hard. The once bright child who was almost never seen without her big brother had aged into a melancholy, almost depressed, teenager who had lost the last of her family. The bright eyes that searched for her brother's smiling face had dimmed. The ever cheery smile had all but vanished from her face. But once Gale had entered the battle and fought so many hard battles, she was slowly returning to something that resembled her old self. Hope had entered her eyes when she found Pit's amulet. That single sign had given her the strength to move on and continue in his stead. It was too cruel for her to learn that Vitiosus, the dark angel that Gale had come to despise and strive to defeat, was actually Pit, her brother who she loved more than anything.
Palutena turned to leave but not before looking back at the sleeping angel one last time. "Have faith in yourself, Gale," she whispered, "I do."
=I=I=
Darkness. That's all there was around her. But she didn't care about any of that. She was only focused on the mist of darkness in front of her. Running. That's what she was doing. Running toward the darkness. The darkness that was holding her brother captive. She was running but not moving forward. She reached out a desperate hand to save him, pull him from the darkness.
"Give him back!" she cried desperately as she ran forward. "Give him back to me! Give me back my brother!"
"Give him back?" Vitiosus had appeared in a plume of darkness before her. Gale stopped running and looked at him in shock. His voice was two overlapping, Pit's normal tone and Vitiosus much darker and sadistic tone. "What do you mean give him back? He willingly gave himself up. He and I are one and the same."
Gale took a cautious step back and shook her head in denial. "No, he would never. He would never give himself to the darkness!"
Vitiosus grinned maliciously as his helmet split into two and fell away, revealing Pit's face. The dead eyes and ashen pale skin screamed Vitiosus, but all she could see was Pit's face, grinning like a madman at her. He dropped the darker tone and spoke like Pit normally did. "Come on, Gale. I'm right here." he turned back to the Pit trapped in the darkness. "That? That's just my old weak self. I could never have defeated Medusa the first time without a little boost." To emphasize the last word, he held out his hand and summoned a sphere of darkness.
Gale couldn't say anything. Her brain was screaming that it was still Vitiosus, but her heart kept envisioning Pit. She didn't notice the darkness creeping up behind her. Long tendrils snaked their way toward her.
Pit- no Vitiosus she kept telling herself- looked behind her and his smile got bigger, if possible. "Come on, little sister, come here. We'll be together again, just like old times. There nothing to be afraid. Just let the darkness embrace you."
Before she could speak, the darkness ensnared her and began dragging her back. She tried to fight it only for her limbs to be restrained as well. She managed to wriggle out of the tendril covering her mouth and fought desperately to reach her brother. "Pit! Pit, wake up! Come on! Pit!" The darkness had consumed most of her, leaving only a small portion of her face left. "BROTHER!" was her last cry as the darkness took her.
The last thing she heard was Vitiosus cackling as everything went dark.
=I=I=
Gale's eyes shot open as she bolted upright. Her entire body was covered in a sheet of cold sweat. Her sweat soaked hair whipped around her face as she looked around the room. A dream. It was all a dream. Gale ran a shaky hand through her hair and took in deep breaths. Her wounds ached and she gripped her shoulder to find the bandage wet. Cerulean eyes looked and saw that the wound on her right shoulder had reopened. The girl sighed and managed to drag herself out of bed and quickly changed the bandages. It was a bit awkward, doing it with one arm, but she managed.
She slowly made her way to the window and saw that night had fallen. Taking a deep breath, Gale wandered out into the cool night air. Not wanting to go any farther than necessary, the girl sat down on the nearby bench and just gazed up at the stars. The angel shifted so that she could lie on the cool stone. I remember these stars. It had been a while, but she could still make out all the constellations Pit had shown her. Reaching her hand up, she used her finger to trace the shapes in the air. Cerulean eyes followed the movement and remembered each story her brother told her about each shape. Orion the Hunter, Perseus the Hero, Sagittarius the Archer… These three she had been told countless stories about. Pit liked to imagine that he was Sagittarius whenever they practiced archery. Or that one day he'd be a hero like Perseus. She chuckled sadly at the memory. How is it that they're one and the same? Hades must be controlling him somehow. He wouldn't turn to the darkness, let alone become its servant. I have to stop him, but how? What do I do, Brother? How can I save you?
She didn't notice that Viridi, of all people, watching from a distance. The goddess of nature had hidden her presence from Palutena upon arrival. This angel was quite an enigma to her. When she had heard of the supposed "almighty angel that had struck down Medusa" she had been expecting something a lot more… menacing. The girl was timid and scrawny. She looked like she couldn't hurt a fly. Of course, her recent battle with Vitiosus had changed that view. She had witnessed a side of the girl she hadn't thought possible. The ferocious and determined soul that braved the Underworlds forces and defeated Medusa. Though the recently exposed identity of the dark angel was rather unexpected. When Gale left the Lunar Sanctum, she was nothing more than a shattered soul with nothing left.
As for Viridi being there, perhaps curiosity about her new benefactor. There was something about this angel that piqued her interest. Palutena's overprotective nature of the girl only heightened that curiosity. Sure, before she had sworn to destroy the angel, but it seemed like this little favor had called for a truce. For now. The whole scenario confused her. Vitiosus was Pit? The angel that first defeated Medusa? Why was he now working for Hades? There were so many questions unanswered. Perhaps, Galen, you hold the key leading to all the answers. Viridi gave a small smile before teleporting back to her Sanctuary.
=I=I=
A/N: Ok, filler chapter is filler. But I felt this was necessary. The whole aftermath of the previous chapter needed to be explained. Obviously, Gale would be in total denial about it and be hesitant about fighting Pit. The nightmare is something I threw in because obviously it was a very traumatic thing for her. Everything happened so fast for her and then the truth hits her full force and sends her into a bit of shock. Just a heads up, updates might slow down in the next few days because of some stuff coming up, sorry for the inconvenience.
Another thing is you as the reader might question the appearance of Viridi at the end. I felt like this is the start of the bond Pit and Viridi later developed in the game. And now she feels indebted to her because she did get rid of Vitiosus like she promised. This is my telling of Viridi beginning to see Gale in a new light.