Don't you want to live, Rin? Not only live but win?

The horde had, for so long, dreamt. The millennia of imprisonment had been a ceaseless torment that, as much as their hatred festered, their being slowly faded with each reincarnation that abided by the goddess's will, the horde only free to take their host's sadness and resentment as their own. It was never enough. It had never been enough.

Dying would be a problem for all of us.

Even this strange sense of autonomy wasn't the primordial freedom that the horde dimly remembered. Being bound to a mortal keystone meant that destroying its vessel outright would galvanize the seal for the next reborn. Its movements, still adjusting to the body of a teenaged girl, were spasmodic.

"Ɨŧ'łł đø." The horde grudgingly admitted. To Thanatos, "Ᵽɍøvɇ ɏøᵾɍ ǥøđħøøđ."

When the Ascendant God descended upon Rin, her face contorted into a grimace. Her lips muttered an incantation as black symbols etched into her skin in disjointed and askew glyphs. Black tendrils blasted outwards from the fan, snaking across the air

There were two battles that raged in the infamous Fortress of Ascension. Thanatos showed no external sign of panic, but he did summon additional Hera-heads to come to aid. The horde that possessed Rin clawed at their target like a rabid jackal, splattering her body and clothes with the ensuing carnage.

"ĦȺ ħȺ! Ŧħɨs ɨs ȼȺłłɇđ ŧħɇ ᵽøwɇɍ øf Ⱥ ǥøđ?" A shriek erupted as a Hera-head had both its eyes gouged out with one swipe. "ŁȺᵾǥħȺƀłɇ!"

"𝕱𝖔𝖔𝖑. 𝕱𝖎𝖌𝖍𝖙 𝖒𝖊 𝖎𝖋 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖒𝖚𝖘𝖙, 𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖓."

"Fɨǥħŧ ɏøᵾ?" A harsh laugh resounded. "Nø, wɇ ᵽłȺn ŧø ꝁɨłł ɏøᵾ."

Once, only once, did her head turn to regard those that were supposedly allies. "WȺŧȼħ ȼłøsɇłɏ. Wɇ sħȺłł sħøw ɏøᵾ ħøw ŧø ꝁɨłł Ⱥ ǥøđ."

"She's fighting like a monster." Jin sprinted out of Rin's way, appalled.

"She…she is a monster." Amy whispered fearfully, holding the two orbs tightly in her hands. "We have to do something."

Rin fought in the confines of her mind, screaming in frustrated panic but voiceless.

You resist us because you fear the wrath of the goddess. Yet, even so, she comes not.

This is not what I wanted! Rin fought tooth and nail.

Is it not? The horde rattled, donning the form of…herself. It was her, but with a streak of cruelty, her clothes outlined with the black ink of the horde. You were so tired, goddess girl. The goddess has forsaken you, those you called friends turned their backs on you. We came to your despair, child. We are the only ones who came at all. The goddess is dead.

The horde, fighting the Ascendant God, had no wings. Rin's body was not the avatar of the horde, but only its subconscious vessel. Without Rin's express consent to embrace the horde, her physical body was showing signs of wear and tear. As much as the horde mended every cut and figured out what movements the human body could do, a finer eye could still see the stilted tremors.

"Ɏøᵾ fłɏ ŧø Ⱥvøɨđ fɨǥħŧɨnǥ ᵾᵽfɍønŧ," the horde rasped in mockery, "Ⱥnđ ɏøᵾ đȺɍɇ ŧø ȼȺłł ɏøᵾɍsɇłf Ⱥ ǥøđ?"

"𝕴𝖙 𝖎𝖘 𝖓𝖔𝖙 𝖞𝖔𝖚𝖗 𝖕𝖑𝖆𝖈𝖊 𝖙𝖔 𝖉𝖎𝖈𝖙𝖆𝖙𝖊 𝖜𝖍𝖆𝖙 𝖆 𝖌𝖔𝖉 𝖘𝖍𝖔𝖚𝖑𝖉 𝖉𝖔, 𝖞𝖔𝖚𝖓𝖌𝖑𝖎𝖓𝖌."

"Ɏøᵾnǥłɨnǥ?" The word was spat like poison. "Wɇ sᵾɍᵽȺss ɏøᵾɍ ƀɨɍŧħ, ᵽɍɇŧɇnđɇɍ. Wɇ ᵽɍɇȼɇđɇ ɏøᵾɍ vɇɍɏ ɇxɨsŧɇnȼɇ!"

"𝕴 𝖉𝖔 𝖓𝖔𝖙 𝖐𝖓𝖔𝖜 𝖜𝖍𝖆𝖙 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖆𝖗𝖊," Thanatos raised his hands, summoning a wall of Hera-heads, "𝖇𝖚𝖙 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖍𝖆𝖛𝖊 𝖓𝖔 𝖕𝖑𝖆𝖈𝖊 𝖎𝖓 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖘𝖆𝖓𝖈𝖙𝖚𝖒 𝖔𝖋 𝖆 𝖌𝖔𝖉! 𝕭𝖊𝖌𝖔𝖓𝖊!"

The horde, wearing Rin's face, smirked. What did the statement of godhood mean to the horde, when they had been fighting one for millennia—and winning?

When Thanatos glided down, he faced pummel after pummel as the horde shrieked with brutal delight.

"Here Jin, you take my coat." Sieghart unclipped the jacket that was draped around his shoulders and tossed it to him.

"Why?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Sieghart smirked. "When I become a crisp, I'm going to have to cover myself with something after the rest of my clothes fry off."

"Then why don't you take off everything now?" Jin said without thinking.

"…you're a straightforward chap, aren't you?" Sieghart laughed. "I'll show you afterwards if you ask nicely."

"Please, now is not the time for jokes?" Amy blushed. "We need to stop Rin!"

"Oh, let's wait a bit." Sieghart didn't look bothered at all. "She—or whatever it is—is doing us a favour."

"Sir Sieghart, we obviously need to do something!" Amy persisted.

"Do what, stop her?" Asin chipped in with an insincere smirk. "Good luck."

Amy scowled, giving him a venomous look. "You're nothing but a useless bully, aren't you?"

"Thank you." Asin replied. "But if you want to go and physically restrain her, be my guest. You'd die the instant you get in her way."

He turned back to observe Rin. No, it was clearly not her. She fought without regard to her own safety, without so much as looking at her allies, and…without mercy. The Rin he remembered didn't shrug off literal chunks of pillars and attack with pretentious arrogance. The way she attacked, it was brute force without tactical skill.

And Asin knew that anyone that got in her way, ally or enemy, would face her wrath without hesitation.

"𝖂𝖍𝖆𝖙 𝖆𝖗𝖊 𝖞𝖔𝖚?" Thanatos shifted into a stance of defence, though he still maintained his prideful bravado. "𝖂𝖍𝖞 𝖉𝖔 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖕𝖔𝖘𝖊 𝖆𝖘 𝖆 𝖌𝖎𝖗𝖑, 𝖉𝖊𝖒𝖔𝖓 𝖈𝖗𝖊𝖆𝖙𝖚𝖗𝖊?"

"Wɇ sħȺłł ŧɇłł ɏøᵾ," the horde rasped, "øvɇɍ ɏøᵾɍ ȼøɍᵽsɇ—sŧøᵽ! Ṅö! ฝﻉ ωιℓℓ иот—"

With Rin's subsiding panic and horror at her loss of autonomy, the terror and doubt she felt were overridden by the one emotion she still had left: anger.

Give me back my body.

To be fair, she had much to be angry about. Agnesia, her promised saviour, was nowhere to be found. The horde violated the laws of the seal to claim her body as their own. The past few days have plagued her with doubt and grief, all unresolved. Everyone had to have a breaking point, even the goddess reborn.

"ᵂᵉ Ⱥɍɇ wɨnnɨnǥ! Wɇ ȼȺn đɇfɇȺŧ ħɨm, ȼȺn ɏøᵾ nøŧ sɇɇ?"

It is not yours.

But she was angry. It was not a complex emotion—but in the laws of human nature, rage was a product of grudges, vindication, and sorrow. But now, Rin felt undiluted rage that left her seeing only one goal: reclaiming her own. Other details evaporated in comparison.

I have not broken the seal. I have not given you permission to be free!

In her tranquil fury, the seal pulsed. True to her word, the seal was unbroken; bent, perhaps, by the malice of ascension, but not yet fully broken. Using her anger as the one crutch she had left, she chanted the words that she had learned as a girl, the words to concentrate on a single point and reinforce the seal. Rin felt her rage mount with every moment until that was all she felt.

"Wɇ Ⱥɍɇ fɨǥħŧɨnǥ føɍ ɏøᵾ! Ɏøᵾ ȼønđɇmn ɏøᵾɍsɇłf ŧø đɇfɇȺŧ wɨŧħøᵾŧ ᵾs—" Fazed as they fought back Rin, it allowed Thanatos to thrash Rin in a no-holds-barred beatdown, slamming her downwards. Everyone scrambled to dodge as her impact created a crater on the floor.

Return under the seal. Rin's hands clawed at her chest, the two personalities struggling on the ground. This is my fight!

You cannot defeat him without us! The horde screamed. The horde, which had capitalized on Rin's despair and vengeful grief, could find none to hold onto. You NEED us!

Out of Rin erupted a scream of frustration and pain, to the point nobody knew who—or what—from Rin made the sound.

"About time. My turn!" Sieghart launched off into Thanatos, looking half-deranged himself. "This is for the Prime Knights, you fuck!" He swung the Soluna with both hands, twirling it in a large arc.

Rin lay spread-eagled on the ground, blinked, panting. Her brain felt as if it were crumbling apart, only held together by ferocity alone. Her body, physically intact, was faintly convulsing from the strain. But she was in control. Barely, but she was in control.

She struggled to maintain her rage, even after she regained what she had so savagely demanded. With her conscious, higher thought processes slowly wormed into her head.

"Morning."

She saw Asin, heard him, and took a moment to recognize. Jin and Amy had rejoined the fight (Sieghart being a little more in control of himself when dealing with an enemy with allies), albeit with many guarded glances towards her.

"Asin." Rin mumbled. "Help me up."

"Do I have to?"

"Forget it." Rin brushed him off. "Where's my orb?"

"About that…" Asin jerked his head towards Amy. "Don't think she'll give it back to you anytime soon."

She rose to her feet, only slightly unsteady. Potential next steps flashed through her mind, all appearing fruitless. Orbs, orbs, orbs...why was he still here.

"Why aren't you fighting." Her voice was tight, monotonous with pressure.

"Washroom break," Asin cocked his head.

Rin didn't laugh. She checked for her fan, still in her hand. She tottered a few steps, stabilizing herself with a grimace. The voices, huddled into a corner, still gnashed and wailed for the one glimpse of freedom they had tasted. It felt as if she made one wrong move, they would snatch her back in an instant.

She looked up just in time to see Jin and Sieghart pushed back as Thanatos discharged another shockwave, searing light into the beholders. Fragments of broken armour plates and gems tinkled to the floor as the mad god quivered in frustration.

"𝕰𝖓𝖔𝖚𝖌𝖍, 𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖘 𝖌𝖆𝖒𝖊 𝖊𝖓𝖉𝖘 𝖍𝖊𝖗𝖊! 𝕹𝖔𝖜 𝕴 𝖆𝖒 𝖚𝖓𝖇𝖔𝖚𝖓𝖉, 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖆𝖗𝖊 𝖚𝖓𝖉𝖔𝖓𝖊, 𝖌𝖆𝖟𝖊 𝖚𝖕𝖔𝖓 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖍𝖔𝖗𝖗𝖔𝖗𝖘 𝖔𝖋 𝖒𝖞 𝖙𝖗𝖚𝖊 𝖕𝖔𝖜𝖊𝖗!"

"I really hope this is your real form, then." Sieghart scoffed, undeterred.

"It is." Amy's voice trembled. "That's…that's his true godly form."

Rin, who had no idea what the fuck was going on, just saw an oversized and likely overpowered monster. The knight helm was gone, replaced by a corporeal face of a demon, half of his face covered by fangs. His face was white as bone, eyes red as animalistic rage, and horns blackened with the final step to ascendancy.

"Then finally, I avenge my brothers." Jin burned, too, with the prospect of finally laying his own ghosts to rest. His orb was gone, but his will was not. Like the idealistic moron he was, he charged Thanatos head-on.

"Idiot." Asin grumbled. "Well, time for me to jump back in." He ran off.

Rin's vision dotted with the terrible visions that had only haunted her at night, the grisly scenes of torment that marked the spite of the horde. With the peak of her wrath ebbing, it allowed higher thought processes to sneak into her mind once more.

Doubt, mostly, insecurity, fear, and despair.

With renewed ire, the horde screamed. With deranged eyes, Rin charged towards Thanatos, where she could devote everything into a fight. From Thanatos' open palm materialized a ball of fire, burning fiercely than his previous skull incantation. Rin glared back because she had energy to do little else.

"𝕻𝖔𝖔𝖗 𝖑𝖎𝖙𝖙𝖑𝖊 𝖔𝖓𝖊𝖘." Thanatos left a trail of fire behind him. "𝕴 𝖘𝖍𝖆𝖑𝖑 𝖕𝖚𝖙 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖔𝖚𝖙 𝖔𝖋 𝖞𝖔𝖚𝖗 𝖒𝖎𝖘𝖊𝖗𝖞."

Fire slashed through the air, sending flaming debris showering towards the ground. A piece of sculpture slammed Rin's shoulder with bruising force, and she felt heat sear into her cheek, with smoke sputtering from the contact. Then a scarlet flame leaped to life on her sleeve.

"No!" She instinctively dropped to the ground, rolling. Contact with the ground provoked more pain than the burn itself, rubbing grit into a raw wound. Rin scrambled to a defensive crouch as the god banked for another attack.

Amy was busy healing Jin, after he had been flung back by Thanatos. Sieghart had yet to use the orb, swinging his blade with blinding speed and the longstanding grudge made flesh with rage.

Sieghart knew the orb was magic, and while painful, wouldn't kill him—he'd be impressed if it did. But he had seen far more powerful gods, and if the entire soul stone that annihilated Kounat could kill him, how bad could a mere fragment be? But more than that, what kept him from using his orb was his pride. Highlanders, by nature, shunned unnatural defences and refused to tremble behind magic, deeming that such cowardice made a fight invalid.

Even as smoke stung his eyes and choked his lungs, he pressed on, the whetted steel carving a line of blood across the god's right calf. Seeing this, Jin dove forward, launching an explosion at the laceration. Thanatos bellowed, recoiling a few steps. He reared back, preparing to strike.

"Move!" Jin screamed towards Sieghart and Asin as the mad god aimed four spikes with catlike grace, raking towards the two. Horrified, Jin sped towards them, Vajras drawn, aiming directly for Thanatos' back.

Sieghart barely flinched as the spikes dug into his limbs, moving only enough so that they missed his vitals. He spat at Thanatos.

Asin managed an awkward, weaving dodge of his legs that spared him the four lines of spikes. "You'll have to do better than that."

Thanatos didn't take the bait. The god eerily smiled, "𝕭𝖔𝖑𝖉 𝖜𝖔𝖗𝖉𝖘 𝖈𝖔𝖒𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝖋𝖗𝖔𝖒 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖋𝖆𝖑𝖑𝖊𝖓 𝖐𝖓𝖎𝖌𝖍𝖙."

That split second of hesitation was all Thanatos needed to slam Asin out of the air.

But he wasn't done. "𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝕳𝖎𝖌𝖍𝖑𝖆𝖓𝖉𝖊𝖗𝖘 𝖆𝖓𝖉 𝕾𝖎𝖑𝖛𝖊𝖗 𝕶𝖓𝖎𝖌𝖍𝖙𝖘 𝖇𝖊𝖑𝖔𝖓𝖌 𝖙𝖔 𝖒𝖊 𝖓𝖔𝖜." An ominous whirlwind raced towards Jin and Sieghart. "𝕴 𝖘𝖍𝖆𝖑𝖑 𝖙𝖆𝖐𝖊 𝖞𝖔𝖚𝖗 𝖕𝖔𝖜𝖊𝖗𝖘 𝖆𝖘 𝖙𝖗𝖎𝖇𝖚𝖙𝖊."

The tornado phased through them before Rin could draw her fan. She scowled at the wind, commanding a wind of her own. With renewed rage, she dissipated the cyclone with her screaming gale.

But the damage was done. Jin and Sieghart looked as if they had their soul sucked from their bodies, Sieghart's arms falling to the side like noodles, though his grip on his sword refused to slacken. Jin felt himself tumbling as blackness overtook him. He awakened almost instantly, flopping from the god's bulk, air barely wheezing back into his battered lungs.

"Jin! Sir Sieghart!" She saw Thanatos readying another cyclone and knew they wouldn't survive a second torrent. "Lord Samsara, I call upon you to restore your warriors!"

It glowed brighter and brighter until it hurt to look at. Amy's eyes burned, but in the scorching heat, she felt her absolute faith rewarded. The Orb of Cycles dissolved into what seemed like countless fireflies, dividing into streams of light that immersed each of them in the divine blessing. Power poured into Amy's veins, granting her strength she had so desperately needed.

Daughter, go forth!

"Hehee," Sieghart's eyes snapped and flared to life. "Feels like my heart's having a dance party."

"Thank you, Lord Samsara." Jin murmured. As he dodged Thanatos' next assault, it was as if his feet had sprouted wings. "You'll be taking no more from the Silver Knights!"

"YAHOOO!" Sieghart had lethal capabilities even when near death. With his powers full charged, his very fingertips sparked with violent purple energy—as he swung his sword down with both hands. "Come at me, Thanny Boy!"

No way would Asin acknowledge Amy for restoring his strength. But he, too, charged, though with more caution.

Rin felt her own strength surge back, but she also felt dread. When she was weak, the horde had been weak, too. If she was strong, so was the horde. She also knew her powers weren't finite and could be stolen again if she weren't careful.

The goddess will not—the goddess cannot.

"Piss off!" Rin yelled. The horde sure was eager to violate her mind as soon as it could.

Hearing this, Asin cracked a smile. Whatever the goddess girl had in her head, it was still her. As much as he hated himself for allowing Thanatos' words get to him, he grudgingly admitted a modicum of admiration for Rin, who still fought, anyway. Whether it was out of skill, or because she was a simpleton, she still fought.

"Smashing Hands!" He feinted to the right as soon as the god's attention focused on him, surprising him from above as the ground below him erupted. "Striking Snake Onslaught!" A flurry of fists propelled him, ending with a grand kick upwards the god's crotch.

Thanatos was no longer amused by the fighting displays of his adversaries now. No longer did he fight to make this match a grandstanding finale of his ascendancy. This was now a battle to preserve his pride as a deity from those that, previously, he regarded as little more than upstart fodder.

"𝖄𝖔𝖚 𝖘𝖍𝖆𝖑𝖑 𝖓𝖔𝖙 𝖉𝖊𝖋𝖎𝖑𝖊 𝖒𝖞 𝖕𝖑𝖆𝖈𝖊 𝖔𝖋 𝖜𝖔𝖗𝖘𝖍𝖎𝖕. 𝕰𝖛𝖊𝖗𝖞𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝖜𝖎𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖓 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖗𝖊𝖆𝖈𝖍 𝖔𝖋 𝖒𝖞 𝖕𝖔𝖜𝖊𝖗 𝖎𝖘 𝖒𝖞 𝖐𝖎𝖓𝖌𝖉𝖔𝖒, 𝖆𝖓𝖉 𝕴 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖘𝖔𝖑𝖊 𝖒𝖆𝖘𝖙𝖊𝖗!" He lashed out fireball after fireball in demented fury. "𝕯𝖎𝖊, 𝖎𝖓𝖘𝖊𝖈𝖙𝖘!"

"Aw, jeez," Asin muttered as he smelled burning hair. But as he weaved through the infernal projectiles, he perceived the god to be erratic in his fall from certain victory. He sniggered. This would be a piece of cake.

At his will, a water sphere formed at his palm. What better way to extinguish flame than with a wave? He charged behind the fiend.

The Silver Knight's voice chased after him. "Wait!"

Battle-starved and eager for a landslide victory, Asin couldn't have heeded him even if he had wanted to. Especially if Jin of all people would prevent him from his rightful place in battle…that was not a topic up for debate.

Thanatos glance behind his shoulder, the smile tracing his voice. "𝕭𝖎𝖓𝖉."

The god's hands were outstretched, forming a large, dark orb that repulsed all light around it. Impossible to see from behind, and difficult to escape once caught. Jin, intuitively sensing it, had managed to duck away in time, only withstanding the glancing effects. Sieghart had followed suit, roughly grabbing Rin who happened to be within his arm's reach. Only Asin, who had struck out on his own, was caught as the enchanted ball exploded point-blank.

"Dammit, no!" Rin screamed. But if screams could soften a blow, the world would be kinder. The flareup collided into his chest, and he felt as if his entire body was being flayed.

"𝕶𝖓𝖔𝖜 𝖞𝖔𝖚𝖗 𝖇𝖊𝖙𝖙𝖊𝖗𝖘, 𝖑𝖔𝖜𝖑𝖎𝖋𝖊." Thanatos guffawed as the boy plummeted helplessly.

"Kid's digging his grave." Sieghart eyed him with a curious sense of regret. "I'll be surprised if he's still alive."

Again, another falls because of your weakness, goddess girl.

"Don't let his death strap you down, girl," Sieghart warned her. "Pick up your fan and avenge him."

You live, but you shall never rest. All who approach you suffer for your incompetence, Rin. Your heart bleeds without will to protect. Even worse, you refuse to grow stronger when you can, without the goddess.

"Stop." Rin choked out. She tried to block out her thoughts. However, memories and thoughts were suppressed exactly how it couldn't. The more a thought is tried to be blocked, the more it pervaded. Her head felt like it was cracking in two. Through a pain-coloured haze, she saw Asin land on his feet, wobbled a few steps, and fall onto one knee.

Her fear threatened to swallow her anger. Why couldn't the horde leave her be? Why did she have to constantly live with the torment?

The torment is ours. As long as you breathe, there is only despair within the seal. For we are the ones to keep you awake at night; the beings that haunt every corner of your mind. While you live, we shall never rest, and neither will you.