Author's Note:
The following two chapters contain details and slight spoilers from Tales of Symphonia and it's sequel.
Chapter -73: Defilement Means (Blank)
We only look at our planet for what lies at the surface.
To peer into the depths below could mean to invite madness, or something worse.
For one world, its surface is the wall protecting mankind from the demons of old, who existed before humans ever stepped foot on the dirt.
An emerald iridescent sky stretches out forever, brightened without a sun.
There was a thick layer of clouds sandwiching a variety of towering, wooden structures. But these weren't trees, they were roots, and they were siphoning into whatever energies pulsed beneath the clouds.
The first layer of this strange land was home to winding pathways of dark green wood and the monsters that lived among them.
Strange four-legged birds with thick bodies and white-green feathers flew across the skies with their primal shrieks.
There were large, furry beasts with arms as long as their bodies and tiny feet that barely held their rotund bodies up.
Even the more unassuming creatures, wearing gelatinous frames, were hostile.
And these beasts presently set their sights on Sarajin, the "intruder", as he hastily ran down the twisting bark and delved further into the depths of madness.
He could safely attack these beasts as there was no humanity in their eyes, just the hungering lust for his flesh.
He already took a couple unnecessary cuts to his arm assuming otherwise, and wouldn't make that mistake twice.
Blood, feathers and fur tarred his wake as he forced himself to rely only on the swing of his blade to fend off his aggressors.
As he dove back-first towards the deeper parts of this realm, a menagerie of feathered humanoids with wings for arms pursued.
He then winced as their talons lashed down at his blade, and they let out a series of shrieks that could make his ears bleed.
"Ghh...!" But all he could think about was how he got into this mess to begin with...
An hour earlier...
Out of the blue, Sarajin found himself swept up from his world and brought before Yen Sid.
And because it was so sudden, he was still holding onto a plank of wood that would finish off the first of hopefully many boats in Aquamoria.
Naturally he was a bit bitter towards the old man at first, "You really need to give a warning before you take me away."
But the man's wise features looking otherwise melancholic today warned him that perhaps this wasn't the time to pick grievances to air.
The man looked towards Sarajin and then drew his hand out from his sleeve, with it summoning forth an image of what appeared to be two planets, except they were overlapping each other at the middle thanks to a violet dimensional tear. Meanwhile, a large purple sphere of fog hovered over the planet.
"I fear there is little time to waste, Sarajin Stratos," Spoke Yen Sid, his tone deep with a feeling of urgency, "A force is at hand to threaten the balance of this world."
Sarajin dropped the wood and noticed that the man's skin was a little paler than usual, "This isn't a normal problem this time..."
"Indeed..." The man affirmed with little desire to have wanted to in the first place, "There lies a gap between these two worlds of Tethe'alla and Sylvarant called the Ginnungagap. Inside, rests a powerful Summon Spirit by the name of Ratatosk."
"The regular flow of history dictates that Ratatosk was to remain in slumber for another two-hundred years."
"Someone's awakening him early?"
"Yes. But it should be impossible for anyone to enter that realm at present."
Sarajin jumped to an immediate conclusion, "A 'Blank'?!"
Yen Sid nodded.
"Has the 'Poison' begun to spread?" Sarajin asked in haste.
"So far the 'Blank' has yet to fully awaken Ratatosk from his slumber. You are to dive into the Ginnungagap to intercept the 'Blank' and disrupt its influx of 'Poison' into the world. Only then, may we extract and contain it."
"Ok," Sarajin nodded and then clutched his fist up before his chest, "Anything else I should know?"
"Yes..."
In the present, Sarajin fended off the winged humanoids and then looked down to see that he was about to hit another path.
"Sorry, don't have time to be your prey!" The moment his feet hit the floor he reached for the Gaia Temporis and stopped time, causing him to disappear and leaving the winged humanoids bewildered.
He had used the opportunity to slip behind cover of the towering root and then poked his head over until the beasts flew off to continue a now fruitless pursuit.
"Ratatosk's given name is 'The Lord of Monsters'. You will find many beasts afoot that defy the human imagination. Engage them at your own caution."
"Whew..." Sarajin breathed a sigh of relief and laid his hand against his chest, "You weren't kidding, Yen Sid."
He allowed himself a few seconds to get his vigor back up to full and then continued along the winding root. There was no time to take a nap now.
"I can feel it. I'm getting closer to Ratatosk's chambers." As he left the roots behind and wandered onto a series of black paths with red-purple energy running through them. They were connected to pillars with rings that wrapped around and grew bigger as they headed further into the clouds.
Every step he took left a pulse shivering up his legs. It was like he was walking on blood veins, and the atmosphere "thumped" as he was nearing the realm's beating "heart".
There were a few stragglers around these parts, but they were docile and let him go by.
They could feel it. Something was wrong.
And it all came from the spherical structure at the center of all these paths. Adorned with metallic bends that pointed towards the sole entrance, this place currently shivered and throbbed.
And more than that, there was this subtle, ethereal energy seeping out of the walkway leading up to the entrance.
"Is that what 'Poison' looks like?" Sarajin wondered, slanting his brows as he reached for the hilt of his sword and slowly made his way into the heart of this realm.
There the air was roasting with orange smoke and an egg-shaped building occupied the core, with glowing lines colored like the hottest magma surrounding it.
But the atmosphere was warping, like the colors of this planet were being bled out and forced together. It was very faint, someone else wouldn't have even noticed.
Sarajin froze in the middle of the walkway and grit his teeth, "I've resolved minor alterations to the balance of these worlds so far, but this...This is different."
With a cold sweat enveloping his face he looked towards the burning doorway standing before him and wondered aloud, "This feeling...doesn't belong here."
He took a deep breath and then drew his sword, silently marching through the blistering gateway.
Inside was a cauldron of otherworldly heat, trapping it all behind a glass wall, and gating it with what appeared to be eight different colored cores.
The deeper fires of a world beyond this one churned behind it, shades of black miasma calling out, whispering and howling for release.
Sarajin's heart beat hard and he found his sword being pointed towards two silhouettes standing before the gate.
His advance drew them out under the cauldron's light and what he saw opened his eyes to true horror.
"Alright Yen Sid, I'll handle the 'Blank'," But as Sarajin was preparing to leave for this mission, one more question occurred to him, "Though, how will I know if I've found one?"
Yen Sid closed his eyes and remarked, "They will take on whatever form is necessary to be perceived as 'normal' in the world they eye."
"Their most common shape however, is..."
The figure on the left was a teenage girl with long black hair split in half with light red highlights at the bottom, and wilted pink flowers atop their head. She had crystal blue eyes and black lipstick with powder applied beneath her eyes. Their outfit was primarily black with the shirt and pants being torn up and piercings applied to the revealed skin. And there were some unfamiliar but blunt sounding words chalked onto the shirt.
Their appearance was abnormal, but they were unmistakably, irreversibly...
"...that of a human."
And they stood, arms outstretched, in front of a being that radiated raw, primal energy on a level that eclipsed the common monster Sarajin had fought to get here.
He was humanesque in shape with short platinum blonde hair and a gray scarf around their neck. They had a blue tube top and black pants with thick yellow lines forming a cross-like shape down to above the ankles. At their back was a massive sheath that housed a sword with a curved hilt.
Their eyes were closed like they had just been awoken from their slumber, with bits of black miasma dripping off their back.
Their body pulsed, their colors melting off and then reforming in the blink of an eye, all within the presence of the little girl's hands.
"Ratatosk? Uhh, heeeeelloooo, Ratatosk? It's like, me! So uhhh...Wakey wakey!" The girl's irregular manner of speaking hid a deceptive degree of familiarity towards the Lord of Monsters.
"S-Should I step in now? They haven't noticed me." Sarajin gripped his blade tighter and trembled. Their humanesque appearance was making him hesitate, lose sight of the mission, and welcoming doubt into his heart.
"C-Can I even kill a 'Blank'? ...Should I?" He shook his head as the twistedness of the atmosphere affected his gut, "No, they just LOOK human. They're...they're causing this abnormality in the world. They HAVE to be stopped!"
But this wasn't the time to jump in and be reckless. He had been warned of what the 'Blanks' were capable of. He needed to inch in closer and assess the situation before determining the correct course of action to sever the 'Poison'.
The Lord of Monsters began to stir and once his eyes began to open he thrust them apart all the way to reveal a crimson pair of irises and an equally fiery degree of hostility to his surroundings.
"Where am I...?! Who has awakened me...?!" Ratatosk spoke in a fierce, gravelly voice with a pitch befitting a teenage boy trying to act cool.
He centered his gaze upon the black clothed 'Blank' and with an intense heat in his gaze he dropped to the ground and muttered, "Human...? How dare you stand upon..."
His center of gravity staggered around as he pushed forward, causing him to recoil and gaze upon his hands with confusion, "T-These features...? My body is...human?!"
Sarajin flinched at the center of the room and his hairs stood on end, "Oh no, it's already happening. The 'Blank' must have changed Ratatosk's appearance!"
The girl reached out and held Ratatosk by the cheeks, "Uhhh, duh! Of course you are, what other form could contain your raw, animalistic energy my love?"
"L-Love...?" Ratatosk sputtered in a mix of confusion and familiarity, and against his will, his eyes were being forced to gaze upon this girl's.
"How could you forget me, Martha Loovee D. Doovee? I like, gave birth to all your Centurions after Aselia High School."
Ratatosk showed zero resistance to these words like they were the most normal thing ANYONE could ever say.
And with the Lord of Monsters' fierceness disarmed the 'Blank' pulled their face in and started kissing, sloppily putting their lips and tongue tip across Ratatosk's face.
There was this...unnerving immaturity to how the 'Blank' performed the art of love-making, as though this was the body of a girl a few years younger.
Yet as this act unfolded Sarajin watched as Ratatosk's face melted into tenderness and he wound up panting like a dog as the 'Blank' pulled away.
"T-That's right. Martha. My superly lovely goth queen of demon dark darkness."
Sarajin gripped his sword tighter in both hands and then swung it up beside his face, pointing it at the 'Blank'.
The two figures finally caught the sound of his swing and turned to look at him, Ratatosk's love-struck gaze being replaced with ire.
"Who is this...?" He spat up in disgust.
"L-Like, I don't know! He looks like he was spat out of that dumb ol' Dungeons and Dorks Clique." The 'Blank' added on.
"Ratatosk! Don't listen to that thing. It's trying to warp you into being someone you're not!"
"SILENCE!" Ratatosk screamed, "You nerds have always been jealous of Martha's goth glamor, and feared her for her ability to summon the Tenth Summon Spirit!"
Though the Lord of Monsters spewed utter nonsense, he did so with the authority befitting his rank, and caused the core of this realm to tremble.
Sarajin felt his knees buckle but he stood tall, watching as Ratatosk marched before the 'Blank and reached for the sword at his back. He drew it in a backhanded fashion and then his eyes began to glow, with the colors draining out and back into his body in the blink of an eye.
Cracking a beastly smile he then declared, "I think it's time somebody took you out like JFK and MLK!"
"Kick his un-goth ass, Ratatosk! I wanna see that primal energy that we used to FUCK ten times a day!" The 'Blank' proclaimed.
"Guess I have no choice but to fight...!" Sarajin clicked his tongue and felt a tinge of regret for this stranger standing before him, "Sorry Ratatosk, I'll try not to hurt-"
Ratatosk charged forward, warping time and space to close the gap and putting all his excess energy into swinging his sword with feral might.
Sarajin pulled away and slashed down only to be blown off his feet and sent flying back onto the stairs.
He gasped and Ratatosk was there again, sweeping his leg at Sarajin's feet.
Sarajin jumped and Ratatosk kept spinning, thrusting his leg up to hit Sarajin's blade and kick him towards the ceiling.
Sarajin bent his knees and then lunged down while Ratatosk jumped to meet him.
They clashed and bounced off then pushed back again, bouncing off a second time. Sarajin ignited his blade on fire and swung it out.
Ratatosk vaulted over it, carrying himself with incredible direct force to slam his sword down towards Sarajin's head.
Sarajin blocked and Ratatosk kept slashing away to try and push him down to his knees.
Ratatosk whipped his foot around to kick Sarajin's sword out of his hand and then immediately went for the overhead slash.
Sarajin swung his hand out to call the sword back and blocked in time, pushing Ratatosk off, but the Lord of Monsters flourished his repel with a flip.
Upon landing he hunched down and snarled, and with a tighter grip he made his sword seethe with black fog.
"Darkness?!" Sarajin pulled back in shock and readied his sword.
Ratatosk ran his sword along the ground and unleashed a black tinted fang of energy after Sarajin then immediately ran behind it.
Sarajin slashed upward to split the fang then slashed down when Ratatosk attempted to cut upward across his chest.
But the force of the Lord's swing carried him off the ground where he slashed downward, forcing Sarajin to jump left. Then the slash called down a bolt of violent lightning that sparked a radial circle on the ground and zapped Sarajin up through the feet.
"Ghh..!" There he was vulnerable to Ratatosk's ensuing kick slamming him against the wall, where the Lord of Monsters planned to slice him up.
Sarajin braced himself by turning his feet to iron and then slashed down with all his might to kick up enough wind to force the rampaging Lord to a standstill.
The colors of the room melted on and off as the 'Blank' cheered the battle on.
"Ah! Are you gunna like, let this POSER show you up?!"
Ratatosk grinned and then jumped into the air with a downward slash, raining down a hundred golden needles upon Sarajin.
Sarajin put his sword in a guard stance and then summoned a wall of electricity that made the needles bounce off and suspend in the air magnetically.
He then slashed down to blow them back to their owner, who retaliated with another barrage to cancel each other out.
The two then ran at each other full force in the midst of the falling needles and collided blades, pushing them back half-bent at the knee.
Ratatosk got up first and lunged forward carving up most of the ground in his wake. When it appeared he would jump to take a swing at Sarajin he suddenly vanished and Sarajin was left with the pressure coming down upon his back to tell him what was coming.
Instead of playing into the Lord's deceit, Sarajin hastily stabbed his sword into the ground and caused a ring of metal spires to erupt.
Ratatosk bounced off and then flipped onto the nearby wall, where he'd ready his sword for a second go and this time, the increased force would prevail.
Sarajin stood and pointed his sword at Ratatosk to send the spires flying, the Lord of Monsters carving them up save for one, which he was forced to leap over.
He then landed on top of it and ran down, his body a blur. He slashed a pair of black fangs ahead and then flung himself over Sarajin in an all-out attempt to pin him down with projectiles.
Sarajin's agility carried him out of harm's way and once he got his distance he gathered up a heavy amount of fire and slashed out.
Ratatosk slashed again but this time, unleashing a bullet of water to cut through the flames.
Sarajin flew up and then dove to meet Ratatosk on the ground, resuming their clash of blades for a good while.
"He controls all the elements too?! I-I thought I was the only one!" As the two matched each other's strength blow for blow, jumping and swerving around to try and gain an advantage, he kept his focus on the 'Blank' whenever the opportunity arose.
"Or...is this because of them too?"
He wasn't told how Ratatosk's powers worked. Presumably, he was expected to deal with the problem before a confrontation arose in which case, he was sorry for messing up.
But now that he was drawn into the epicenter of the 'Poison' he had to settle this problem before it escalated beyond his control.
And the 'Blank' was where he had to cut it off, he just didn't know how yet.
Ratatosk leapt into the air and met Sarajin's gaze upside-down before swinging for his shoulder. Sarajin brushed his blade along his and swept away, charging when his foe landed and performing a quick stab.
Ratatosk was pushed back against the wall and Sarajin kept the pressure on by slashing down and creating walls of fire on both sides, then charging ahead and using a flurry of attacks to keep Ratatosk focused on using his blade to fight back.
Sarajin then used a heavier slash to push back and then immediately collapsed the fire upon Ratatosk's location.
Ratatosk jumped and the initial slash sent a normal fang of energy colliding into Sarajin's face. He then continued to slash away, summoning a sphere of cutting wind to blow the fire apart.
Sarajin held forward and saw his chance, "This I can handle...!"
He then stabbed his blade out and called forth a few metal chains as the cutting effect ended but the wind remained strong. The chains flew around and tangled Ratatosk up to bring him crashing down.
The Lord of Monsters rolled around to evade Sarajin's attacks and shaved away at the metal with his blade during the intervals.
He then broke free and rose with a mighty slash capable of throwing Sarajin back to the center of the room.
Sarajin sheathed his sword and widened his eyes to summon a wall of ice between them. Ratatosk rammed it head-on and then sliced the bottom, carrying himself off the ground where he spun and kicked his way to the top of the wall where the final blow sent it toppling over.
But beyond the ice lay a towering fire coming down, guided by Sarajin's blade.
It hit Ratatosk and dragged him to the ground, where it mixed with the ice to fill the arena with mist.
The Lord of Monsters growled in pain, the attack had connected. But in the aftermath Sarajin lost track of where he was while blowing the mist away.
He looked around and his instincts expected another back strike. But instead his enemy's shadow came diving down from above.
Sarajin jumped out of the way and Ratatosk hit his sword down like a hammer, causing a tremor and an eruption of jagged rocks to form around him.
Sarajin squeezed his hand to try and make the rocks collapse upon their master but he simply cut his way free and barreled forward, an unrelenting force of nature.
"Yeah, you're doing great lovey dove!" Shouted the 'Blank'.
Sarajin locked blades with Ratatosk and the Lord of Monsters kept hunched over, using his primal strength to pin the interloper against the wall and then drag him along.
Sarajin felt his elbows being worn down and through grunts of pain he continued to persist with reason, "L-Listen to that! None of it sounds right! You have to wake up!"
"Who are you to judge our love you poser piece of trash?!" Ratatosk growled back, the mix of his primal nature and that of a love-struck teenager creating an unnerving dissonance that left Sarajin wholly disarmed for what the beast king would roar next, "I'm going to take you down...AND THEN DANCE WITH MARTHA AT THE GOTH PROM!"
With one ferocious jerk of his arm Ratatosk pulled Sarajin off his feet and locked his blade against his chest, which he used to slam him into the ground so hard Sarajin felt his skull rattle.
And Ratatosk kept hammering his sword down. Though at this point, he was mostly using the hilt to strengthen his fist.
The floor was unbreakable and so Sarajin endured the brunt of it all while mustering up the strength within to fight back.
"K-Khhh...!" He looked Ratatosk in the eyes and through the corruption that drove him to act his way, Sarajin could feel the true person still inside. They were rageful, sorrowful, and had clearly suffered a heavy betrayal in his life.
And now they were being puppeted against their will for some being's lustful whims and it was just...horrible.
Ratatosk fought with power, and if that was all that made the 'Blank' love him then this battle was never going to end in their victory.
Because Sarajin fought for greater things, and would willingly put his life on the line to save others, even a total stranger like the Lord of Monsters.
He took a deep breath through breaking rib bones and then with a pained gasp he summoned a gust of wind to blow Ratatosk off and then immediately leaped to tackle him against the ceiling.
He grabbed Ratatosk by the shirt and threw him to the ground. Every movement now felt like it poked his bones into his chest.
As Ratatosk went sliding he quickly flipped and dropped onto all fours at the base of the stairs where the 'Blank' stood.
"Quit holding back! Like, show him your Mystic-y Arte!" She shouted.
"Of course my love, anything for you!" Ratatosk stood tall and waited for Sarajin to land.
He then pointed his sword downward, gripping it in both hands and closing his eyes as power rose around his body like a silent cyclone.
Sarajin stopped mid-run and braced himself at the center of the arena for what was coming next.
Come the end of build up Ratatosk swung his arms out and the energy was unleashed like a tidal wave of heat straight ahead.
He rode that wind straight at Sarajin and drew his blade back, now glowing hellish orange. But this added color gave away where his swings would strike and with calm precision, all Sarajin had to do was time his swings and he'd be able to repel Ratatosk's strength.
However, the Lord of Monsters was putting his all into every strike and Sarajin soon was unable to keep up on strength alone.
This opened him up to the last few slashes drawing blood from his arms and chest and following that, Ratatosk slid behind him and turned right back around.
He grabbed his sword in both hands and with an excitable grin he flipped forward and prepared to bring the blade down.
Sarajin turned aside at the last second and hit his blade against the oncoming force and a shockwave of pure heat exploded off on impact.
Sarajin's arm grew limp and he stumbled back, with Ratatosk landing on the ground and then immediately erupting into maniacal laughter.
He hunched his back and scowled, drawing a thick, venomous mist of light into his sword until it was thick enough to touch.
"Darkness devours...!" Ratatosk slashed out, the sheer force utilized setting fire to the entire arena, "AIN SOPH AUR...!"
The energy came flying out like a comet and Sarajin hastily drew for the Gaia Temporis, "Can't take this in one slash...!"
He stopped time with the energy bearing down his face and then drew his sword in both hands. With his head throbbing in pain he sliced the orb repeatedly until his head couldn't take it anymore.
He then hunched over and let time resume, causing the energy to disperse away from him.
"Who is this guy?!" The 'Blank' was only just NOW asking.
Sarajin panted slowly and watched as Ratatosk was staggering, gripping his head in one hand while muttering, "W-What is...happening...?"
"Huh?" Sarajin felt a spark of hope light up before Ratatosk was quickly running at him ready to continue fighting.
Sarajin was only able to employ half his usual strength now to keep up, relying on his speed to throw Ratatosk off-guard.
He cared more about the brief flicker of sanity Ratatosk displayed and what it meant, "When the 'Blank' got confused Ratatosk acted normal."
His eyes widened as he was constantly being pushed back by Ratatosk's relentless swings, "Could it be...?!"
He tried to put some distance in the air but Ratatosk had plenty of projectiles to keep him from relying on that, but now Sarajin had the experience to repel them as he flew around and locked onto the 'Blank'.
"Yeah, I bet I'm right. The 'Blank' is focused on Ratatosk's power and being in total control of it! Whenever I fend off Ratatosk's strength, it severs the 'Blank's' delusion from the person they're affecting!"
He thus dropped to the ground and positioned him straight in front of Ratatosk with his sword pointed straight at him.
His heart was racing and though there was mild guilt arising, he forced himself to put on an arrogant demeanor by scoffing, "You're not that tough, Ratatosk! Lord of the Monsters? Ha! I've beaten plenty of those and you're no different!"
"You dare...!" Ratatosk growled and drew his sword back in a battle stance.
"Nuh uh!" The 'Blank' cried out with their arm outstretched towards Ratatosk, "Ratatosk is not just strong, he's HUGE! With big, bulging muscles and an incredible, sexual manhood! He's the bestest and greatest Lord of Monsters that has ever Lorded!"
Sarajin gave the 'Blank' a brief glare of disdain before the whole atmosphere of the arena started to melt and reform.
A shiver went down his spine as he turned and watched Ratatosk begin to undergo a startling change.
His posture fell apart as he began panting and sweating, the colors on his body seizing all over as thick veins bulge out of his arms and through his pants.
"Ghhh...! GHHH!" His growling grew deeper as his body seemed to be getting bigger, and more muscular.
The new muscles were being forced into his frame and the fibers were splitting at the seams and rebuilding time after time again. He had saliva strung between his teeth and eventually, he was standing eight feet tall with a body that was the pinnacle of humankind.
And still he gripped his sword the same way despite it being little more than a toothpick on his fingers.
Sarajin grew scared but then steeled his gaze, "No, this is perfect! Just need to hold my ground and wait for the right moment to strike...!"
He then drew his sword into his sheath and bent down. Like a rampaging Heaver, the towering Lord of Monsters stampeded forward, ready to decapitate his enemy in the name of the 'Blank' holding the strings.
"MARTHAAAAAA!" The beast screamed it's puppeteer's name as his sword was swung, warping the fabric of the world around them.
Time began to slow, Sarajin's feeling the beat of his heart pounding harder, and harder, until he closed his eyes and dipped into the tranquility of the inner mind.
"We should work on teaching you how to disarm weapons." Spoke Auris as they paced around the basement of her home.
"How would that help? Can't Aurians recall their weapons into their hands?" Sarajin wondered.
Auris took a sly look at her sword and then smirked, "True. But it's a matter of timing. A warrior thrown into a frenzy will be dazed and open if they suddenly lose control of their weapon."
She then thrust her sword at Sarajin's face and made him flinch, her smirk growing into a fond smile as she withdrew it, "A crucial factor in winning a fight is having better control over your emotions than your opponent. Catching them off-guard always leads to a free, potentially devastating strike."
"I never thought about it like that." Sarajin murmured.
"Because you don't fight to defeat an opponent." She noted.
"I-I'm trying not to kill if I can help it..." Sarajin said.
"I know. But you don't have to kill to defeat someone."
And with that reminder echoing in his head, Sarajin's whole body felt calm and devoid of prior pain.
"Thanks honey." He smiled and then centered his focus onto Ratatosk's wrist. Feeling the wind on his back, Sarajin pushed forward past the raw strength and slashed the wrist with a clean slice.
Then the environment returned to normal as Ratatosk went stumbling back, blood spewing from the wrist as his sword went flying into the ceiling.
"Graaah...! Graaahh...!" Ratatosk grabbed his wound and continued staggering, while the 'Blank' was whipped into an uncharacteristic frenzy.
"This can't beeee...! Ratatosk is the strongest and coolest ever! Like, there's no way he can lose!" It then forced all its attention onto Sarajin and held their hands out.
"Well I ain't the wife queen of the Lord of Monsters for nothing! I'm going to-"
Before they could make another move, a series of golden chains arrived to impale and bind the 'Blank' through until even their mouth was immobile.
Then Yen Sid appeared from nothingness with his mystical hand drawn towards them, muttering with a detached tone, "'Blank', your presence in this world is rejected. You shall be sentenced to an eternity in Nothingness, until entropy takes you away."
There was no spectacle following. The 'Blank' was banished from sight, and with it, the wizard turned and looked down at Sarajin.
Sarajin drew his attention towards Ratatosk and saw him whimpering in pain as his body shriveled back down to its original state, then fell flat on his stomach.
"...Will he be ok?" Sarajin wondered.
"Without his tether to the 'Blank', Ratatosk shall revert to his core form and resume his role as the guardian of the Otherworld Gate."
"Hmm..." Sarajin attempted to walk over to Ratatosk and check up on him.
But his body was already beginning to break apart, and with his last sight on the world the Lord of Monsters had only this to say, "A-A...human...?"
His breath drew tired but still burned with hatred, "You always...cause...trouble..."
His body disappeared and in its place was an orange core that immediately flew into the middle hole of the gate through a gesture of Yen Sid's fingers.
Then, he tucked his hands into his sleeves and remarked, "In time, he'll forget this ever happened. It shall be like a dream. A cursed, unending spiral..."
He then looked at Sarajin hanging his head and inquired, "What troubles you, young Sarajin?"
"When I looked into his eyes, I saw hatred. Like...if he had the chance, he'd burn this whole world down," Sarajin waved his hand out and wondered, "Did I...do the right thing saving him?"
Yen Sid closed his eyes and hummed, "Ratatosk's tale is one of trust...and betrayal. But someday, he shall learn to see the world through human eyes and grow a heart of his own. That body you witnessed...is the vessel through whom the heart shall grow."
"So there's a happy ending for him at the end. That's great..." Sarajin breathed a sigh of relief.
"Hmmm..." Yen Sid then opened his eyes and remarked, "You performed admirably today. I shall reward you for your efforts."
"It shall take some time for Futanji and I to process the 'Blank' and send you home. Until then, feel free to return to the surface world of Tethe'alla and seek out whatever knowledge you desire."
He then departed without another word, causing Sarajin to breathe in deep and sigh, "I would rather go home, but...Guess I'll explain myself to Brine when I get back."
He then traced his steps back up through the Ginnungagap with his flight until arriving at the entrance. There, all he had to do was step on the glowing light to be carried on out of here.
A second later he was stepping out of the light and into the darkness of night.
A wide, starry expanse stretched out above and here, he found himself surrounded by fallen stone ruins on a lone island in the sea.
Civilization seemed to be nowhere in sight but there's no way Yen Sid would be nudging him in the direction of nothing.
"Where should I go-...Huh?" Sarajin took a few steps forward and found a person standing beyond the ruins.
They had tomato red hair with the bangs swept down over their eyes. A series of glowing abstract feathers were arranged into a pair of wings behind their back. They wore armor that suggested they were of high authority, with bronze belts strapped over the chest and torso and cloth tapering off the shoulders to their knees like a parted cape.
Were they friend, or foe?
"Human," They spoke in a calm, world-weary tone, the accent of their voice suggesting hostility. A foe it is then, "How have you accessed the Ginnungagap?"
"Well, not like I could tell you, whoever you are..." And that was probably the best place to start, "And who is asking?"
The man gestured his hand out and remarked, "I am the one who will be asking the questions. Hmmm, but I suspect you will not cooperate."
Sarajin heard wings flapping in the wind and looked up to see more humans descending from the skies with similar looking wings to the man, each of them armed with swords or spears and lacking light in their eyes.
The man then suggested in the most polite tone he could muster, "I suggest you come quietly, human. Lord Yggdrasil will have much to ask you."
"A Lord? Sounds like the ruler of these worlds," Through this threat came inspiration, and so Sarajin eased up his arms and remarked, "Alright...I'll go quietly."
"Good," The mystery man was pleased, "This will be over quickly, presuming Lord Yggdrasil is satisfied with your answers."
Sarajin soon found his wrists bound in shackles of light from the winged humans, "This isn't the best situation but...Anyone who rules the world will probably have the quickest access to whatever knowledge I could get. None of these people feel as strong as Ratatosk either, so I should be fine if I keep my guard up."
Thus, this strange encounter has presented an opportunity for Sarajin to potentially find something to take back.
The winged humans, with the help of their commander, thus carried him across the sea to unknown parts, to meet the mysterious 'Lord Yggdrasil'.
Next Time: The Cost of Rebirth