Warning Chapter, there be some detailed stuff here.. Just wanna warn ya.
Emilia's Memory and Pov
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{Ruri and Walter, who had found themselves in a room with a massive TV, stared up in horror at the familiar yet horrifying sound being displayed by the large monitor.
Walter, still a Bird, trembled slightly when the TV showed his friend's body, falling down like a puppet with no strings at the window, blood pulling out of her forehead as her body— corpse crashed down at the ground, staining the white pristine tiles with her own puddle of blood.
Ruri, who was now staring at her lifeless old body from a giant screen, took a step back, stunned by the scene. Even with her now indifferent expression, anyone could tell that she was terrified by the way she was shot so harshly without much hesitation.}
Seeing Ruri-chan's body... It was like thunder struck me. I was trembling horribly as tears poured out of my eyes.
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"RURIIIIII!!!!!!"
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In pain, I cried out her name. Walter, who is currently restraining me from opening the door, let out a sad wail of his own.
{ "'Hime-sama...' Misaka whispered out in sadness for her charge." As Ruri then glanced towards Walter, who was now at the ground staring at the TV in a trance.
Ruri could feel his utter sadness and misery despite the fact that he was now a bird. While she was touched by their sorrow for her, she was uneasy about the extreme emotions they displayed towards her dead body.
She moved closer to the bird, petting him lightly as Walter turned to face her.
"I... Even though... I could've *sniff.." Walter's sentence was cut short as he sniffled uncomfortably. Ruri, seeing him struggle, simply nodded, prompting him to cry freely now without restraint.}
Ruri.. Ruri-chan... Ru-chan... She, was she gone now..?
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Why...
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Why is she suddenly dead...
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She... was.. my second friend... My second loyal servant..
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She..—
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"Emilia, w-w-we need to g-go... now... hurry." My thoughts were abruptly interrupted when Walter urged me, stuttering and shaking as I am. But... Why are we leaving Ruri behind...?
What about Ruri... Doesn't he want to wait for her too..?
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{ "I... I didn't mean it!" Walter exclaimed, causing Ruri to tense up at his sudden volume. "I didn't mean to leave you... I... God...You... Cried... yelled for us to run... to hide...I was honoring your wish...I didn't want to leave!"
"I wanted to take your body with us..! I felt like punching... No—wanted to murder every single one of them..!! Anything..!..But... What could I really do..? If I did... E-emilia would've been hurt... But we still died.. in the end.."}
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No... I don't want to run...
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I don't want to...
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"Hey! Insiders! No point in running now! Hahahahahah cause that place you've been hiding in will be your fucking graves, isn't that fun!?"
I looked up at an equally stunned Walter, my eyes widening with tears at the implications. Then I flinched at his intensity as I saw his face turn from miserable to hatred.
"What the f-," he exclaimed, but before he could finish his curse, a beeping sound rang out from the kitchen. As Walter rushed forward, his face darkening with recognition at the sound.
"Move," he said as he shoved me into the basement. His touch hurts, but... Observing his expression... I didn't dare to make a sound, but I quietly listened.
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{"'Walter...' Misaka says with a scolding look as she watches the screen." As she folded her arms in disappointment, Walter was also feeling guilty about Emilia's thoughts but still felt compelled to defend himself from her cold stare.
"Haaa..*sniff you have to understand... While it isn't a good excuse to be rough with Emilia, I was terrified... Not- *sniffled only did I see you get shot like that, but knowing there was a bomb in the kitchen... Well, what else could I do but panic at the time."
Ruri simply huffed at his excuse, while Walter bristled at her demeanor. But, secretly, he was relieved that Ruri had managed to keep him distracted by his own thoughts.}
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But before I could even take a few steps, there was a loud-
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Ka-boom..!
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and I could feel Walter's body shielding me as we were engulfed by the explosion and thrown backwards.
I landed painfully against a destroyed wall...I felt pain throughout my body as I could feel something sticky... Blood(?) trickles down from my head.
It... Hurts... But... Walter...!
I forced my eyes open as my ear continued to ring, and I saw Walter... Or, to be more specific... His bloodied hand poking out from beneath the rubble.
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Moving. ... ..
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Why.. is this happening..
'Walter's gone... Too? ' I despairingly thought, tears leaking as it mixed with blood. It hurts so much as if the pain I felt was insignificant in comparison to the pain I feel in my heart.
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{"..." Walter and Ruri remained silent, their hearts heavy as they watched the scene unfold.}
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"No... Walts... Ru-chan... Why..."
Crawling in pain... I kept moving as I heard laughter in the distance. I.. I didn't bother. All I wanted was to see my friends... Again.
"̶̳̉W̴̳͗e̶̥̐l̶̹̅l̷͚͒,̷͉̉ ̴̧̽w̸͍̓h̶͔͘ḁ̵̈ţ̵̛'̷̛̬s̵̲̀ ̴̞̆t̸̻̎h̶͎̊e̷͈̒ ̵̳̎v̴̥̄e̵͕̍r̶̩͆d̴͕̈i̴̫̋ĉ̸̡t̴̲͌?̴̦̈́"̷͍͝ I can't hear what they're talking about and I don't really care who said it.
"H̵m̵m̴,̸ ̶s̵i̴n̶c̸e̶ ̸o̸n̵l̵y̸ ̷t̷h̶e̷ ̸k̶i̴t̷c̸h̵e̴n̶ ̸w̵a̵s̴ ̵o̵b̴l̴i̴t̷e̷r̵a̵t̸e̴d̷ ̶t̵o̶ ̴b̷i̴t̸s̵ ̸a̵n̸d̸ ̸a̴s̶ ̴f̷i̸r̷e̵ ̷a̶c̸c̸o̵m̸p̷a̴n̷i̴e̸d̸ ̷i̸t̵, ̴s̶o̶o̷n̵ ̶a̴f̶t̶e̵r̵,̴ ̷m̶a̸n̶y̵ ̶p̵e̴o̶p̶l̸e̴ ̶w̴i̴l̶l̸ ̴c̷o̶n̷s̴i̶d̴e̸r̶ ̶t̷h̶a̷t̵ ̴t̴h̴e̸ ̷h̵o̵u̸s̴e̶ ̸e̷x̴p̸l̷o̶d̵e̷d̸ ̶d̸u̵e̶ ̴t̴o̵ ̶a̴ ̴g̷a̵s̷ ̴l̸e̶a̵k̴;̷ ̴h̶o̴w̴e̸v̴e̸r̵,̵ ̵a̷s̴ ̴l̷o̷n̶g̸ ̵a̸s̵ ̵w̸e̵ ̵t̶o̸r̵c̵h̷e̴d̶ ̸u̵p̵ ̷t̸h̵e̷ ̸b̶o̷d̷i̸e̴s̴,̷ ̸o̷u̴r̴ ̸t̸r̴a̸c̵e̷s̵ ̵m̷a̷y̷ ̶b̶e̵ ̸h̷i̷d̵d̵e̶n̶;̴ ̴o̷f̶ ̷c̸o̶u̵r̷s̶e̷,̵ ̵t̸h̷e̵ ̷b̵u̵l̵l̴e̷t̸ ̷t̴h̵a̸t̸ ̵w̵a̴s̸ ̵b̸u̸r̷i̴e̷d̶ ̷i̸n̴ ̸t̶h̸a̴t̸ ̵s̷l̷u̶t̸'̷s̸ ̸h̷e̸a̵d̸ ̴i̴s̴ ̷t̵h̵e̴ ̶t̵h̸i̷n̶g̵ ̵w̶e̷ ̷n̶e̸e̸d̵ ̷t̴o̴ ̷g̴e̷t̴ ̸o̸u̸t̶,̴ ̵A̴S̵A̸P̵.̷"
'What a callous discussion... Ruri didn't deserve that...'
I couldn't help but think after overhearing some of their conversation over my ringing ear.
"̸B̴u̶t̴ ̶t̵h̴e ̴b̸r̸a̸t̷ ̴a̵p̵p̶e̵a̶r̸s̶ ̸t̷o̷ ̸b̷e̷ ̷a̸l̷i̵v̶e̶;̷ ̶w̵h̸a̷t̶ ̵a̷r̶e̴ ̵w̶e̷ ̷g̷o̴i̸n̷g̵ ̴t̸o̸ ̵d̸o̶ ̸w̶i̶t̶h̸ ̴t̵h̸e̵ ̸s̶t̶r̸u̸g̸g̸l̴i̴n̷g̸ ̸shit?̸"
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{"Tch...! Bastards the lot of them!" Walter's sadness was quickly replaced by rage as he continues to watch. "If I get my hands—no, claws—on them, I'll... I'll!"
"Gaah—!" A shout of electricity engulfed the bird as Ruri, who was silently seething, took notice of the sudden energy. She hastily dodges the attack subconsciously. She locked her gaze on the sheepish Walter soon after.
"Sorry! I.. I didn't mean to do that..?"
"'Yeah... Sure... Kill me a second time will you?' Misaka deadpanned with a sarcastic tone."
"Well at least you're still you, even with that tone and face of yours." Walter commented.}
"ra, h dØ wɆ ⱧaVɆ ⱧeⱤe?"
a feminine voice suddenly echoes across the ringing. Weakly, I turned around to see if the murderers had a female companion with them, but seeing that they were all men, I was confused but let my concern go as I crawled towards Walter and hopefully Ruri, if I could.
"Sƚɾσng, ԃҽƚҽɾɱined, αnd so young too! My, What α ʂcore!" the voice continued, becoming clearer by the minute. "A perfect candidate for my religion!" she exclaimed gleefully as I made a look clearly expressing my disbelief at the religion part.
So much so that I mutter it in real life.
"What... religion...?"
As I hear her giggling, my vision darkens as fear grips me. I was scared that I wouldn't be able to see my friends anymore. Afraid that I'll be alone again.
And wary of walking into the darkness that will consume them as well.
"Oh, quite with the dramatics, little one," the voice tempted as I felt something grab my limped arm. "Soon, you'll have the things you've wanted, and all you have to do is... Well, just agree to my terms; you know, if you agree... then I might just have the power to let you see your friends again and live a life with them."
'Seeing them... Again... It's not a joke.. is it..?' I thought to myself with a spark of hope.
"Yep~p so, do you agree?"
"I'll... A-agree.." I said with difficulty but nothing happened...
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Until a flash of light then everything became blank.
Location: In The Goddesses Realm
Pov Change: Ruri
I jerked awake when the TV scene turned all white, and not a second later, I felt a strong force knock me out of my sitting position rather harshly.
"'Ouch,' Misaka groaned in pain, feeling a little winded from the extra weight." I spoke in a long monotone way, which honestly made me feel tired just hearing myself talk like that.
"Ru-chan!" screamed the force(s) on top of me, which was none other than my traumatized charge (Emilia/Fischl) and co-worker (Walter).
"Guhh," I choked as Emilia wrapped her arms around three of us in a tight hug.
"Mein Fräulein! We both need air to breathe...! Breathe I say..!" Squaked Walter. Who was being squished at the center, making me feel embarrassed at the inside.
Walter is still a man. Even with his... Errmmm... chicken look.
He use to be a handsome man! So if I picture the old him... Being squished like that with both of our chest... Well.. I might say he's a lucky bastard.
A Damn Harem Protagonist. Well it's not like all harem protagonist are hated.
But still...
"Now that you see, may I speak of the terms now?" A voice interrupted our death-hug as Emilia was back on her feet in a flash.
"You...! While I'm fortunate that you have provided me with this blessed opportunity to see my most loyal subjects, that does not dismiss your transgressions on my retainers like that! " Emilia accused her again, this time with a distrustful look, causing the Goddess, who had now appeared, to sigh tiredly at her.
"I did nothing of the sort; I just took their consciousness towards a special viewing room to get the details of how they came to be now. So, with that said and since seeing that you're still distrustful, I'll make due with that and may allow you to ask questions before I'll speak my terms. "
"'Really...?' Misaka dubiously asked, as Misaka face scrunched up in disbelief at the offer." I'm skeptical. In animes or mangas... Novels too... Gods aren't really known for their patience with questions. After they gave you what you want, then they'll send you to a new world with no context at all, just the basics.
"But, of course, young clone!" Zügellosigkeit cheered, but our faces fell when she said the word "clone."
"Clone.. then may I ask why we are not using our previous body, your grace?" Walter asked and funnily enough I saw Emilia looking at Walter in betrayal when he said the 'Your Grace' part.
"Hmm yes.. I think I shall. Then, let's start with the world's rules. You see, I gave the child three wishes, and two of them were used to bring both of you back to life. But... Because the two of you already died, I can't use your original bodies anymore because your world was already governed by the Gods you people believe in, and took your souls for reincarnation, breaking the anchor of your soul with your body." Then the Goddess paused but continued on
"And in order for me to recover your souls, I must place both of your spirits in an already existing body, disrupting your reincarnation without being noticed by the other gods."
As Zügellosigkeit explains, I was disheartened. I died... And I can no longer use my original body... Not to mention that I left my parents wondering where I am... If they even know I've died yet.
"'So... Why a Misaka Clone and... A Bird?" Misaka asked despondently, as she began to feel conflicted from thinking about Misaka's parents."
"Hmm that... Is a question you'll have to answer for yourself... But, seeing as you three have been through enough, I'll caved. You see, when I said existing, I meant it literally. But since the majority of the population already has a soul occupying them and putting you into a baby is counterproductive, I made a few adjustments with the scientists of the world I will soon place you in and managed them to create a different clone that will not have an expiration date and limits that copies the original Misaka Clones."
The Goddess then cast a gentle glance at me. "And for your parents, little clone, they will mourn, but they will eventually move on. I may be the Goddess of Mischief and Anarchy, but... I still have a heart. Not all Gods are blind to their heresy, and not all mortals abide by reality's rules."
Well that's something... actually good, in fact. *Sigh... They don't need to be hang-up towards my death like that, they deserve better.
"Hmm, and for Mr. Walter, I turned him into Emilia's familiar is simple." She then smiled mischievously at Walter, as if she was about to say something unexpected. Nonetheless, when she said my parents will move on, I felt relieved.
"I'm too lazy," she finishes flatly, as I could hear someone, most likely Walter, choking at her words.
"Too lazy to go through the whole process again, so when little Emilia here said her last wish was to be Fischl from a game, and seeing as the character has a plus one, so why not put the soul in the familiar? Isn't it practical?"
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Bam!!!!
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I made a noise as I laughed at the revelation. Losing my sadness in favor of attempting to suppress my laughter
"WHAT!!" exclaimed Walter, righteous indignation on his face.
"'Pffft-!' Misaka stifled her laughs as she bent down." I could even see Emilia giggling at Walter's performance.
It's kinda funny... Well alot to hear something like that.
Though sadly good times didn't last long.
"Now... that's all I could say, so for the terms."
Her demeanor shifts as she becomes more serious. "I caution you to listen to my terms, as I dislike people who believe they can live without a catch."
Slightly widening my eyes at her tone, I quickly got up and walk towards Emilia as Walter to got up by flying.
Standing wide and flying firm, the Goddess gave each of us a nod as she then crosses both of her hands.
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"Now... Are you ready to truly listen?"