Unmei Force Shattered Heroes: Shadowed Tragedy
Chapter 6: The Shadowlord's Castle
In the dock near the Lost Shrine…
"This is it… the final stretch…" Nier remarked, as they all looked up to the Lost Shrine.
"Don't worry, we'll save your sister." Corrin told Nier firmly. "In fact, we will save everyone."
Richard looked up to the Lost Shrine, as he took a deep breath unbeknownst to everyone, as if preparing himself for what is to come.
"Let's go." Richard told everyone with him, as they ascended the stone island.
Their trip up to the Lost Shrine was fairly uneventful, with only the nuisance of fighting Shades along the way. Eventually, they made it to the Lost Shrine, where the place was as clean as it was, before they were attacked by the Shades in there.
"Such an ominous sight. And yet I find it strangely nostalgic." Grimoire Weiss noted, as he noticed that the layered magic circle had reappeared, and the podium where they retrieved the first key fragment, laid there in waiting.
Nier and Richard slowly walked towards the podium, as they slid back a panel, revealing that there was a pentagon-shaped imprint, which was a perfect fit for the completed stone key.
"Nier… Once you put this in… There's no turning back. You'll be committed to the end." Richard answered back. "If you have any doubts, if you have any thoughts you want to tell us, before we face what's beyond this place… Now's the time to say it, because we cannot be sure we'll have the chance to talk later."
Nier looked towards Richard, and towards the key for a moment, as he opened his mouth, as if he did have something to say, only for him to close it, as if he changed his own mind.
"No, I have nothing left. There's only Yonah left." Nier responded back.
"A determined response. Then let's proceed." Richard answered back, as they both slotted the stone key in.
As they did, the magic circle began to fade away, before the wall rumbled, and there was the sound of a latch opening, as a doorway swung open on the wall. They proceeded through it, finding themselves in a hallway with short sets of stairs and spaced out rectangular stone pillars, with light seeping through the gaps between them.
Pushing through the doors at the hallway's end, they found themselves in front of a large greenhouse, as there was a staircase that led to a birdbath, where a pair of white birds were. As the group approached the bird-bath, they suddenly heard a male voice ring from one of the birds.
"To whom does the true voice speak?" The bird asked with a sagely tone. "To whom does the true form show itself? You must answer."
"It can talk!" Emil exclaimed with surprise.
"Of course it can, it must be a guardian." Momiji stated.
"I ask: Why did humans disappear from the world?" The bird questioned the group.
"The hell is this?' Nier growled.
"I believe this is some manner of password." Grimoire Weiss stated.
"Password?" Nier asked.
"Indeed, much like with the Divine Tree… Only the correct answer grants us passage." Link stated.
"I feel confident I have heard this somewhere before…" Grimoire Weiss hummed. "I answer: Because of a black disease… That's the only answer I have."
"I ask: How can humans extend their lives?" The bird questioned again.
"I answer: By separating body from soul." Grimoire Weiss stated.
"What!? Such a thing exists!?" Virion exclaimed.
"...It does." Gus stated. "Recall Richard's condition after a certain venture."
"...Oh." Virion stated, as he realised what Gus was talking about.
"What the hell are you talking about there…?" Kaine remarked, curious about the matter.
"I ask: What is the destination of souls?" The bird inquired again.
"I answer: They are placed in their corresponding shells." Grimoire Weiss replied back.
"Wait, how do you know this?" Elma asked Grimoire Weiss.
"I… It just comes to me like a repressed memory… I do not know what the terms mean." Grimoire Weiss admitted with some concern in his voice.
"Very well. You are acknowledged as master. You may enter." The bird declared, as the doors out of the greenhouse opened,
"Well then, it seems the way is open." Grimoire Weiss stated.
"Be careful, I sense a strong presence beyond the doors." Sanae warned Nier and the group.
"We'll be fine." Nier assured Sanae, as he pushed the doors open.
They exited into a small courtyard, as they found that Devola and Popola were standing before them, behind the door.
"Huh? Aren't those…" Gus remarked.
"Hmm? It's those twins from your village." Grimoire Weiss informed Nier.
"Popola? Devola? What are you doing here?" Nier asked them.
'Hey, any chance you'll just… go back to the village?" Devola asked back.
"This is a very dangerous place." Popola stated.
"Even if you can find Yonah here, you probably can't get her out." Devola declared.
"How did you get here?" Grimoire Weiss stated.
"Seems that the twins are more than what meets the eye." Sanae stated. "I did sense something from them."
"Ssshhhh. We're asking the questions here." Popola hissed at the grimoire and Sanae.
Before Nier could respond, Richard placed a firm hand on his shoulder.
"Nier, think carefully about how you answer this one." Richard answered back. "I told you before, this is the point of no return. Our only way is forward. We're going to save Yonah one way or another."
"Richard, I know what you're trying to say, but I made my decision, so don't worry." Nier answered back. "But the question is, why is Devola and Popola trying to stop us?"
"Why don't you ask the one beside you?" Devola scoffed, as the group were shocked, as most of the eyes were on Richard.
"...I'm sorry?" Richard asked dryly with an unamused expression.
"You're not one with good intentions. I doubt your sincerity, when you said that you would help Nier." Popola answered back. "After all, I doubt that you would have threatened us if you had any."
"What the hell are you…" Richard started, before the facts clicked in his head. "Oh. Oh, I see how it is."
"What are they talking about?" Nier asked Richard with concern in his voice.
"So, this is the path you chose?" Richard answered back to the twins. "Are you sure you want to tread down that path, after I have given you enough space and room to make the right choice?"
The twins didn't say anything in response to Richard, only to elicit a bitter smirk from Richard.
"...I guess you do. Fine then, you chose your path and fate, and I've chosen mine." Richard declared with a glare in his eyes. "But how hypocritical you are, to call me a liar, when I have done no such thing. In fact, there's a saying: 'as a wolf knows a wolf.'. According to it, if I'm a liar as you say, then I can easily say the same in return, that you both hide your true intentions."
The twins were silent again, although Devola's expression twisted slightly in anger.
"What's going on here?" Emil stated. "Richard, can you tell us what's going here?"
"They're not here to halt us out of the good in their heart." Richard answered back. "In fact, they want to stop us from getting to the Shadowlord… or at least, Nier as he is right now."
"Me!? What does all of this have to do with me?" Nier exclaimed.
"Didn't you say to yourself that the Shadowlord looked like you one time before?" Richard answered back. "I know what they intend for you, Nier, and I'll give you the most important part of it: Yonah's survival doesn't factor in."
"WHAT!?" Nier exclaimed with outrage at those words.
"He's lying to you, Nier." Popola calmly stated. "You haven't spent as much time with him, as you did with us. He is less reliable and trustworthy because of that irrefutable fact."
"Ah yes, the cliche 'standard time is trust' excuse." Richard responded back with a sneer on his lips. "You think that excuse flies against me? Then here's a counter argument: Were you there to help him retrieve the Sealed Verses? Or when we retrieved the key fragments and witnessed everything along the way? Sure, you pointed us there, but you also led us into an ambush which destroyed the Aerie, and everyone there."
"He hasn't even told you about the things that he threatened us with!" Devola shouted back. "You can't trust a person who talks behind-"
"Oh, shut up." Richard growled back. "You want to know why I threatened you both? Because you're an impediment to my purpose. Your purpose runs counter to mine, and don't pretend that it doesn't. You act like that your actions would save what remains of humanity, but in the end, you're only aggravating the situation to draw their demise yet closer. And that's not to mention what your plan resulted in. Care for me to list a statistical list of the numerous casualties of that so-called 'plan' of yours created, both directly and indirectly?"
Everyone gasped at this, as Nier was left shocked.
"Nier, I say this again, don't let them convince you otherwise." Richard answered back. "I may not have told you my purpose, but I have helped you along the way out of genuine kindness. Even if you can't truly trust me now, know that Yonah is what you're after, and tell me, are you going to listen to them, or are you going to get her in your two own hands?"
"...Richard, I know that there's something that you're not telling me about this… But you're right, I can't stop here." Nier admitted. "Sorry, Devola and Popola… But whether that statement is true or false… I'm here to rescue Yonah, regardless."
"No dice, huh? You would trust him over us?" Devola asked, before she then shrugged. "Well, I guess we don't have a choice then."
"No, I suppose not. How sad." Popola shook her head, as they drew their crescent-tipped wands at the group.
"We didn't want to fight you." Devola stated firmly.
"We really, really didn't want to." Popola added with some regret in her voice.
"Wait, we can talk this out-" Corrin exclaimed.
"No, we can't." Richard answered back, as he drew his weapon, as did Virion, Momiji, Gus, and Kaine. "And a good part of us know that."
Suddenly, the twins attacked the group with various forms of magic, as they managed to deal some damage to the group.
"Devola!? What's happening!?" Nier exclaimed, as he dodged a ground wave from Devola.
"Sorry, but this fate was predetermined." Devola stated. "
"Still, we spoke the truth. We really wanted to avoid this if possible." Popola said, as she fired off a sparkling barrage of light particles, that Link and Momiji protected Elma and Emil from. "We were hoping to put it off for a hundred years or so. Until the next generation came along."
"What are you talking about!?" Nier exclaimed, as his blade clattered against Popola's barrier.
"And so there you have it, they never cared for us, Nier, from the start." Richard scowled, as he fired a series of magical bolts at Devola, as her barrier strained from the force of the attack. "They intended to keep us away from the Shadowlord, through any means, so that they can achieve their objective. They are in alliance with him."
"Are they Shades?" Grimoire Weiss asked.
"I doubt it, from the smell and look of them." Momiji answered back. "But inferring from what Richard says… I think that they are far worse. And what can be worse than monsters who seek humanity's destruction?"
"Kaaah hah hah hah! Kill them, you glorious bastards! Kill them all!" The male voice from Kaine declared.
"We never thought you'd grow to be this powerful… or make such powerful allies as well." Devola admitted.
"This is madness! Why do you block our path?" Grimoire Weiss exclaimed.
"You have no cause to speak so with us, Grimoire Weiss, you are a traitor!" Popola growled at the grimoire.
"Traitor he may be, if your cause is unjust, then it is a better fate than being a collaborator for what scheme you hatch." Virion declared with a scowl, as he fired a barrage of arrows, that chiselled at Popola's barrier.
"It seems that we need to resort to more drastic measures." Devola declared, as Popola nodded back, before they raised their arms, creating a space between them, as red energy bubbled from the space.
"Oh, what now?" Grimoire Weiss groaned, before Grimoire Weiss was enveloped in red energy, as he convulsed heavily, with electricity sparking from him, his stuttering cries were heard.
"Weiss!" Nier exclaimed.
"Stop this, now!" Corrin exclaimed, as she tried to attack, only to be repulsed by a burst of energy from the twins.
After a prolonged moment of agony, as the group tried to stop the twins from torturing Grimoire Weiss with their magic, they suddenly cancelled their magic, as they prepared to fight again.
"They… c...copied… my powers…" Grimoire Weiss stuttered, a bit shaken from the magic.
"Oh, shit on a shingle." Kaine cursed, seeing that the twins were throwing the familiar dark magic around, firing spreads of dark bolts, dark lances, revolving dark blades, and countless forms of dark magic at them. 'They can use the Sealed Verses."
"Of course we can! The power came from us in the first place!" Devola argued back, as she threw a lance, that cracked Richard's barrier.
"You were simply loaned a small portion of it." Popola answered back, as she fired a series of shots that caused Kaine to dodge across the court.
"Guess the Sealed Verses are literal to their name, it seems…" Gus remarked.
"Weiss, are you alright?" Emil asked Grimoire Weiss.
"Devola! Popola! Why are you guys doing this!?" Nier exclaimed. "Why are you siding with the Shades!?"
"Don't bother, they won't answer you." Richard told Nier, before the battle drew to a conclusion, as both sides disengaged from each other.
"Why…!?" Nier shouted again.
"The answer to every riddle lies within the heart of the Shadowlord." Devola stated.
"The Shadowlord? So you've been on his side this whole time?" Nier answered back.
"You must search for that answer yourself." Popola answered back.
"You've gotta face your own truth now." Devola declared.
"Please, enter the Shadowlord's castle." Popola spoke with a whisper, as they were encapsulated in red barriers, as they spun into the sky, disappearing into it.
"Devola and Popola are fighting us…" Nier remarked.
"...To think that Richard knew they were enemies to begin with… it is a good thing that our meetings with them were few." Virion admitted.
"Why would they do such a terrible thing… There must be some reason they are doing this, right?" Elma asked the group. "They looked so very sad and regretful."
"But they won't move from their path, Elma. That's their choice. We have ours." Richard firmly stated.
"Yes, they do seem to be putting us through a great deal of tuuurrr…" Grimoire started, before his voice devolved into a glitched slur. "Tuuub… Tr-Tr-Tuuuubb.."
"You okay, Weiss?" Nier asked Grimoire Weiss, worried about the book's condition.
"How odd. For long years, my mind and tongue have been my greatest assets. But now the latter seems to be faaa…" Grimoire Weiss said again, as he glitched out again. "Fa-fa-fa… Faaaill…"
"Weiss?" Emil asked.
"Do not look at me like that! I am Grimoire Weiss!" Grimoire Weiss scoffed. "I am perfectly fiii… Fiiii… Fi-fi-fi-fi-fiiiiii…"
"Come on, we'll find someone to fix you soon enough." Sanae stated.
They entered another hallway, although there was the faint sound of classical waltz music on the other side of the hallway, muffled by the closed door.
"I think I hear a waltz." Emil informed everyone.
"Hm, I hear the same." Virion agreed. "Let's see where that music is coming from."
They soon entered the room, as they found themselves in a brightly-lit ballroom, as there was purple specters of couples dancing to the music.
"Such a sight…" Corrin exclaimed. "It reminds me dearly of home…!"
"It certainly is a grand affair!" Grimoire Weiss agreed.
"Buncha dancing bastards…" Kaine scoffed, before one of the couples faded away in purple mist, as it turned into the black of Shades quickly, as more Shades appeared.
"They're all Shades!" Nier exclaimed.
"But how…? And why…?" Gus exclaimed, shocked at the revelation.
"Less talking, more slashing!" Kaine shouted, as she attacked the Shades.
"Defilers! None of you are human!" One of the Shades spat at the group. "This is a holy sanctuary for humans! Leave at once, beasts!"
"I think we're locked in!" Emil exclaimed.
"And we have Shades raring to kill us in here…" Sanae gulped.
"It's not like I was planning to leave." Nier stated.
"Heh. Yeah. It's a bit late for that." Kaine scoffed.
"This sanctuary must remain under our protection." Another Shade declared. "It is our final bastion. For the sake of those we love… We will not allow it to be destroyed."
More Shades poured in the ball-room, as the group fought them off.
"Damnit! They won't stop coming!" Nier cursed.
"I'll open the next door! Cover me!" Kaine informed the group, as she rushed towards the door leading further into the castle, as she jostled it with all of her might.
"Oh, how I love a good daaaaa…" Grimoire Weiss sarcastically said, before he glitched out again. "Daannnn… Da-da-da-da…"
"Weiss! Hang in there!" Sanae exclaimed. "Everyone, cover Kaine!"
The group did so, although their actions caused the Shades to fight more fervently.
"Noooo! Our treasures lie just beyond!" A Shade screeched in fear and horror, becoming more aggressive. "You can't enter! You mustn't!"
"Stupid door… come on… Oh, come on!" Kaine growled, as she jiggled the door with all of her might.
"Kaine, hurry!" Nier exclaimed, as the Shades were becoming more aggressive with each passing moment.
"It's not open yet!?" Emil exclaimed.
"Do I look like a goddamn locksmith to you!?" Kaine shouted back with annoyance, before she then resorted to banging the door instead.
"No! You idiot! What are you doing!?" Grimoire Weiss said to Kaine.
"Lock doesn't want to open! Fine! I'll just break it down!" Kaine stated, accentuating her last word with a slam.
"Stop, you impatient fool!" Grimoire Weiss warned Kaine.
"Goddamn no good bullshit bastard! Open the fuck up already!" Kaine swore, as she booted the door open with a frontal kick, before she then turned around. "Got it!"
"Kaine! Look out!" Grimoire Weiss shouted.
Kaine turned around, as she saw that there was a pile of spherical Shades behind her, chittering lively, before they then turned around to face Kaine with their yellow dot-like eyes, before they stumbled forwards. Before Kaine could be swarmed by them, Momiji moved to grab Kaine and get her out of their rolling path.
"...Thanks." Kaine stated.
"Don't thank me yet, we got a horde to deal with-" Momiji answered back.
"WWAAAAAHHH! WAAAAHHHH!" The horde of spherical Shades cried in unison, sounding childish, which gave Richard's group pause.
"What the…?" Corrin remarked.
"Are they… laughing?" Grimoire Weiss said.
"No, they're more like they're crying… and that could only… No…" Elma answered back, before her face paled.
"Either way, they're not going to hurt us!" Nier shouted, as he went to attack the Shades, as they were cut down with a single weak swing.
"Stop, please stop! They're just babies! They don't know any better!" A female Shade pleaded with desperation in her voice.
Kaine suddenly hesitated as well, as she was about to cut down a few of the child Shades herself.
"Kaine, what's wrong!?" Nier asked Kaine, who was still.
"We waited for so long, and now we can recreate them…" The female Shade continued. "Spare the lives of the children! Please, I beg you!"
"...Gods, they're… all children?" Corrin remarked with a weak voice, as she felt disgusted.
"No… Even if they're monsters, they're but children who only know how to cry… I refuse to partake in this slaughter!" Link declared, as he retreated back, while lowering his blade.
Richard's group disengaged, as Nier and Emil noticed this.
"We need your help!" Nier exclaimed. "There's too many of them!"
There was no reply, as the group refused to move, as their action caused Emil to hesitate as well.
"Everyone… why are you?" Emil asked.
Before anyone could respond, the female Shade appeared, as she stood by the door.
"Everyone! To me!" The female Shade called out, as the fleeing Shades rolled to her, all while crying in fear. "There there, little ones. Nothing to be scared of anymore. Mommy's here. Everything'll be fine now."
The entire Shade group were consumed in a sphere of black mist, as it formed a new shape, a large Shade boar, that bellowed at the group.
"There is no justice in the slaughter of innocents! How many have you killed? How many!?" The Shade screamed at the group with fury in the mother Shade's voice, slightly deepened. "Your actions can never be forgiven!"
The words stung at the hearts of Richard's group and Kaine.
"Wait a second. Waaait a second! Your heart is… different." The male voice from Kaine stated. "It ain't hatred, and it ain't sadness, what's going on here, Sunshine?"
"How should I know?" Kaine addressed the voice.
"Kaine, are you alright!?" Emil asked Kaine.
"I'm fine, let's just kill that Shade and move on, right?" Kaine stated.
"Iiinteresting. Oh, how very interesting!" The voice spoke with a sly tone.
The group immediately took down the boar Shade, only for it to rise again, this time with armour on it.
"What, it can get back up!?" Nier stated, before Richard had enough, and snatched Nier by the arm. "Hey, what are you doing!?"
"Saving us a lot of grief. We're not beating this, that thing won't stay down!" Richard exclaimed. "Everyone, with me, we're ignoring this Shade!"
"But it will-" Nier argued.
"That Shade has nowhere to go. If we can get a head-start on it, we can seal the path behind to ensure it doesn't follow!" Richard argued back. "Now move, MOVE!"
"He's right… We can't stop now… Damnit…" Kaine answered back.
The group immediately went through the open door, leading them into another hallway, as Momiji slammed the doors shut, just as the boar started to ram it down. Not wasting any time, the group rushed down the hallway, entering a room with a spiralling staircase, just as they heard the door break down behind them.
They rushed up the stairs, as they saw that the boar Shade was not too far behind them, charging up the stairs, before they dodged to the side, through a metal door, as the boar hit the room wall, shaking it and dazing it long enough, for Sanae to shut the door behind them.
"Alright, Corrin and Momiji, get that door over there opened ASAP!" Richard shouted, pointing at the metal door on the other side. "The rest of you, help me reinforce this door before Shade breaks it down and pursues us again!"
Nier, Kaine, Gus and Virion immediately used their bodies to hold the door steady, as Richard used fire magic to weld the door shut, while Sanae used some magic to use rain to quickly cool the welding and solidify it. The others were left hoping for the best.
"Kaaah hah hah! Oh, you pissed her off now!" The voice mocked, as the boar Shade roared, and slammed the door several times, jolting the four of them slightly. "Maybe you shouldn't have killed her friends! Look at her, so full of scorn and hate! She's just like you, Sunshine! Kah hah hah hah hah!"
"Like you're any different." Kaine coldly told the voice in a retort.
"Eh?" The voice uttered.
"Hate is just another crutch or you." Kaine declared.
"Hey now-" The voice started, sounding less arrogant.
"You're in pain. You're lonely. No one likes you." Kaine spat out. "So you try to hide it under violence and hate."
"I'm not like that at all!" The voice argued.
"It's okay." Kaine admitted.
"...It is?" The voice asked.
"Look, I'm the same way." Kaine stated. "But just realising that isn't going to help. It's too late for us now. It's too late for everything. We're too far gone, you and me. That's why we…"
"Kaine… who are you talking to?" Gus asked Kaine.
"...My inner Shade." Kaine responded back.
"...It's never too late. There's always hope for everyone." Gus stated.
"...You don't get it." Kaine declared with a melancholic tone.
Suddenly, Corrin and Momiji broke the door down with a powerful synchronised smash with transformed arms, as the broken metal swayed open.
"Go!" Corrin shouted, as the group rushed through the open doors.
Richard then sealed the passage behind them, as he encased the door in deep ice, an earthly barrier, and some wooden vines.
"...There, that should ensure that we have enough reinforcement to keep that door shut against that Shade." Richard stated. "No turning back now… We're likely going to have to deal with Popola and Devola soon, they want you for some reason, and we need to figure that out."
"...Is it true? Did you hide things from me?" Nier asked Richard.
"...Like I told you, I can't answer now." Richard responded back.
"What can't you answer!? I need to understand everything! After learning Popola and Devola were working with the Shadowlord,forgive me if I can't trust you much!" Nier snapped.
"...To show you everything, I need you to show you the Shadowlord. And then you will know the truth." Richard answered back. "That's a promise, and the only thing you can do. Now come on, we need to prepare."
Nier was silent, as the group continued through the hallways, as they were prepared for what lied ahead for them.