Poor thing. She tried so hard. And it wasn't as if Asellus didn't enjoy what they had just done together. She loved every moment of it and she could see how Gina poured her every being into the union of their bodies. It just wasn't enough to satisfy her. Not nearly enough.
It certainly wasn't Gina's fault. Asellus loved Gina, loved everything about her, but it wasn't enough. She was the Charm Lord and her tastes and appetites far exceeded what any single person could give. She needed more. And though she knew Gina would always give herself completely over to her, it sadly wasn't enough.
So, Asellus slipped out from the under the covers. She gazed over Gina's sleeping form and felt just a hint of guilt at leaving her here. The moment passed. She had no reason to feel guilty. This was simply who she was, this was simply her nature. She was sure Gina would understand, in time.
Though there was no light in the room, Asellus's mystic eyes spotted her clothes easily. She bent to pick up the elaborate garb of the Charm Lord, but stopped. No, she thought to herself. She should not go to her as the Charm Lord. Emelia was not meant to be lorded over. She was her friend. She should go to her as a friend, Asellus resolved. Still undressed, she walked over to a closet that held a set of clothes she'd not laid eyes on, let alone worn, for many years.
When she put the old dress, she was struck by how strange it felt on her. Not that it didn't fit. Physically, she had not changed at all. But the fabric felt odd on her, felt awkward and uncomfortable in places, almost as if telling her she didn't belong in these simple clothes anymore.
Asellus put a hand to her chest. She could hardly believe it. She was nervous. She almost didn't want to go to Emelia. How strange that a being like her would be afraid of meeting an old friend.
Once dressed, Asellus bent over Gina and allowed her sleeping breath to waft up and touch her cold cheek. Asellus allowed her lips to run over a few words, though she didn't speak them out loud, "Please understand, Gina, please." And with that, she slipped out of the room as a fading shadow.
---------------------------------------------
Emelia found she couldn't sleep. She had put on her old clothes and was sitting on the bed, trying to digest how she got here. She held up the small, green crystal Zozma had given her, examined it, and put it away. What was that guy up to? She touched her twin Agunis for reassurance, a habit she'd learned from her Gradius days. What had she gotten herself into?
Just from the party she had attended, she knew that this was a world she did not want to be around. But, at the same time, it was also a world she would hate to abandon Asellus to. And in any case, going back to the human world was a bad idea, especially after what she had done in Manhattan. That was what she got for letting her temper get the better of her.
When she looked back upon what she did in Manhattan, Emelia almost wanted to shudder. She'd really lost it back there. Sure, Fuse was the one who had ruined her life and she did very much wanted to give him his due, but actually trying to shoot him in the face in public was just crazy. She could never go back to the world she knew, not without IRPO coming for her. What came over her?
What Emelia thought was even crazier was the fact that she didn't think she was that crazy for trying to shoot Fuse in the face. She knew it was the wrong thing to think, but she couldn't help but believe that, aside from the timing of the whole thing, she hadn't done anything too wrong. He had caused her so much pain, why shouldn't she be justified in returning the favor?
And now here she was, stuck in a strange place full of strange ways, possibly in danger from a friend she might not know anymore, possibly being set up in an elaborate joke by a mystic who might have been crazy. To think all she had planned for the day was a trip to the mall.
"What are you thinking about?" Asellus's voice asked from across the room.
Emelia looked up. Stepping out from behind the dressing screen was Asellus, now attired in the slimmer, simpler dress she had worn in their travels together. She almost looked like the Asellus Emelia had traveled with, the Asellus she had always known.
"How long were you there?" Emelia asked.
Asellus snickered, a shy, stifled laugh that Emelia had learned to like when she had traveled with her. The Charm Lord glided over and took a seat on the bed by Emelia. "I wasn't interrupting anything, was I?"
Emelia looked over at Asellus. She seemed different, now. She was looking down at the floor, not looking her in the eye, like a child. She sounded shy, nervous even. Not at all like the Charm Lord that had everyone's attention at the party. "What are you doing here?" Emelia asked.
"I wanted to see you, Emelia. Just knowing you're here makes this place brighter." Asellus cast her eyes at Emelia's legs. "Why aren't you at the party?"
"It just wasn't my thing." Emelia smiled. "You know, when I was a model, I used to love going to parties, but..."
"But what?"
"I don't know. It all just started getting old. I wanted...more out of life."
"Did you find what you wanted?"
Emelia stared forward. "I thought I did. But...it was all taken away from me," and she snapped her fingers, "just like that!"
At this, Asellus raised her head. "How did that happen?"
Emelia turned and stared into Asellus's eyes. When she had traveled with Asellus, those eyes had always looked sad and distant. And she could still see that sad and distant quality, except now it seemed there were no more tears to be shed by these eyes. Now there was something else in those eyes, but Emelia couldn't recognize what it was or come up with a word to describe it. "I never did tell you about any of my problems, have I?"
Asellus laughed quietly. "How could you? I was always worrying you, Gen, and Lute too much with my own dramas for you to ever attend to your own needs. You were always looking out for me." Her face grew serious. "It's my turn, now, Emelia. I'm here for you. Tell me."
So, Emelia told her friend all about Ren and the happy life she had planned with him. And she told her friend about Ren's murder, about the Joker, about Fuse, about being sent to prison. Emelia had retold this part of her life to herself so many times, she thought she had grown used to it, but now that she was telling Asellus, so many old emotions flooded into her. She felt warmth rising to her eyes and turned away, embarrassed.
Asellus reached over and took Emelia's hand.
Tears ran down Emelia's face. "I just couldn't believe it! I had all I ever wanted and it was all taken away from me, just like that! And then that IRPO bastard took away what little I had left!"
Asellus nodded. "It's terrible, to be at the mercy of everything and everyone around you. Believe me, I know."
Emelia sniffed, tried to smile. "I didn't know we had so much in common."
"It doesn't have to be that way."
Emelia sniffed, swallowed. "What do you mean?"
"What if you had the power to make sure something like that never happens to you again? What if you had the power to never feel the pain of loss, again. Would you use it?"
"No one has that level of power, Asellus."
"I do. And I want to share it with you."
Emelia gasped. So, what Zozma said was true. "What are you saying, Asellus?"
"I want to make you a mystic, Emelia. I want to give you the power to take control of the world around you, instead of always being at the mercy of it."
"Is that why you invited me here?"
"Yes." Asellus stood and turned towards her. "You're very near and dear to me, Emelia. I couldn't stand it if I lost you. As a mystic, you'll be immortal, have the power to protect yourself, those you care for. You can have everything you want!"
Emelia felt her heart speeding up, hitting the inside of her chest painfully. She didn't know where this was going to lead and she wasn't sure she was going to like it. "Wouldn't that mean...not being human, anymore?"
At this, Asellus straightened, stood tall. "Is that such a bad thing? I'm not human, anymore."
Emelia remembered a time when such a statement would have sent Asellus into tears. "Do you ever miss being human?"
"No. Not at all. What is being human? It's to be pushed around by everything around you. It's to be an insignificant speck in the universe, to be cast aside without care. It's to be powerless and weak. It's to suffer and to know that everything you hold dear can be taken away from you in an instant. No, Emelia, I don't miss being human, at all."
Emelia shut her eyes. It was hard to believe that Asellus, this Asellus that she knew, would say such things. And yet, she wasn't entirely repulsed. Indeed, she saw truth and something attractive in what Asellus spoke. "Will I...still be me?"
"Is the form we take that big a part of us? Am I not still the same Asellus you've known?"
Emelia took in a long breath before speaking. "No, you're not."
The answer clearly startled Asellus. The Charm Lord stared down in shock, but Emelia held steady. For a moment, Asellus was speechless, then, "I suppose you're right. I'm not the Asellus you've known. But let me say, since I've become Charm Lord, I've become more myself than I ever have." She picked at the sleeves of her dress and began to pace the room. "How could humans ever 'be themselves'? They're too busy being buffeted around by the world, too busy trying to survive. They have to hide their true emotions and play by the rules of the universe. And when a human does tries to live by their true nature, they're punished for it!" She stopped pacing and pressed her hands against herself. "I have the power to be me! This is who I am! And I want you to be who you are meant to be."
"And what is that?"
"Whatever you want! You won't have to live by anyone's expectations but your own! You'll decide who you'll be, not some police officer who calls you murderer."
Emelia took a deep breath. "I have to think about this."
And at this, Asellus, the Charm Lord, strode before her and sank to her knees. She clapsed her hands together and pleaded, "Emelia, please. Just say yes. I've offered my subjects freedom and power and I'm offering the same thing to you. But I don't need your obedience. I just want you to say yes. I want you to accept my gift. I want you to accept...me."
Emelia shut her eyes and for the longest time, there was no sound but the raging winds that blew outside Chateau Aiguille. "Yes, I accept."
Asellus shot up. "Really? You mean it?"
Emelia looked up into Asellus's eyes. "Yes. I mean it."
Pure relief and joy seemed to pour out from Asellus's lungs. "Oh, you have no idea what this means to me, Emelia! Thank you!"
Emelia stood. "So, how does this happen?"
The pure relief and joy that Asellus emanated suddenly disappeared. Asellus smiled, somewhat sadly. "Just shut your eyes. I'll do the rest."
Emelia hesitated, suddenly unsure. She sensed that when she shut her eyes, there would be no turning back. She bid a silent farewell to her past and shut her eyes.
First, Emelia felt Asellus's hands slowly wrapping around her arms, squeezing, holding tight. She felt cold breath against her face that trailed to her cheek, down to her neck.
Then, pain! Sharp, deep. Emelia gasped. Her eyes shot open and she saw Asellus's face buried into her neck. Emelia grunted and struggled to break free, but Asellus had an unnaturally strong hold onto her arms. The mystic pulled Emelia against her body, crushing her against that cold flesh.
Emelia felt herself already fading, her mind slowing, but she managed to marshal her thoughts into rearing her leg back and delivering a knee into Asellus's body.
The blow was just hard enough to make the Charm Lord lurch back, more in surprise than pain. Emelia took advantage of the surprise and broke free, backing away from Asellus. Emelia felt her blood, wet, cool, and thick on her neck. Her mind raced over options for escape. She thought about the crystal Zozma had given her, the pathway Ildon had shown her, the guns she didn't have the strength to use.
She couldn't move. She had lost too much blood already and was too weak. All Emelia could do was gaze at Asellus, who now looked like nothing she had ever seen before. With her blood running over her lips and down her chin, her face in a snarl that bore teeth and rage, all Emelia could see in what she thought was her old friend was lust and hunger. Was that what she was going to become? "No..." she whispered.
Then, that animalistic face faded, replaced by something that looked very sad, rejected. Emelia almost felt pity for her. But that didn't stop Asellus from stepping forward and claiming her.
---------------------------------------------
Once Emelia's body had gone limp and still in her arms, Asellus lifted her mouth from her friend's neck. The Charm Lord felt tears in her eyes, felt them running down her cheek, no doubt mixing with the blood on her face.
She said no. In the end, she said no. She had rejected all that Asellus had offered her. She had rejected...her. Why?
Asellus had only one step to do, now, in order to begin Emelia's transformation into a mystic. But, suddenly, she didn't know what to do. How could Emelia turn against her like that? Was she truly so repulsive? How could anyone deny the Charm Lord? Hadn't she grown beyond that?
Asellus looked down at Emelia's lifeless face. Why? Why did she say no? Did she not understand what she was being offered?
Asellus shut her eyes and for just a moment, considered leaving Emelia as she was. It was what she wanted, after all.
But no. That wasn't going to happen. This was as much about herself as about Emelia and she would not lose her like this. Emelia would forgive, understand, in time. Asellus lifted Emelia's cooling face to her own and pushed her friend's lifeless lips into her own.
The Mystic's Kiss was the difference between a newborn mystic and a rotting corpse. Asellus exhaled every bit of herself into Emelia and when she had no more breath to give, lifted herself from her friend. The Charm Lord waited and saw the telltale sign that the Kiss had worked. Emelia convulsed, choked, and began to breathe, though she remained unconscious. She would be like that for a while.
Asellus lifted Emelia and set her on the bed. The blood that had already been spilled splattered upon the bed, but Asellus saw that the bite marks on her neck had already clotted. In time, it would heal and fade. Her mind was already on making preparations for Emelia's eventual awakening. Yet, when Asellus looked down on the still face of her friend, she couldn't help but feel an accusation of betrayal behind that face.
"Please understand, Emelia, please..."