Chapter 85: To Take A Heart
"She's stalling. We have time, so I'll start from the beginning. It all started with Zeref. As you know, Nami, he created the Etherious, or better known as demons. His first ever creation, was Master E. N. D. The all powerful demon and true master of this guild, Tartarus. But then, through countless experimentations, more and more of us were produced. The next two went by the names of Marde Geer...and Daityas. Two opposites, unwilling to stand next to each other under any circumstance, to the point that they'd rather take punishment from Zeref himself than work together or even stand next to each other. So, just like any mad genius would; instead of destroying them both and starting over, Zeref added a middle ground to his two titanic creations. Myself, Noboru. With the philosophical Marde and the catastrophic Daityas, I was created as a compromise between the two. But as a demon, Nami, that idea didn't pan out as perfectly as it seemed in Zeref's head. With half of me idealistic like Marde, and the other half as chaotic as Daityas, it was very simple for me to do the one thing Zeref didn't want me to do. I picked a side. I picked Daityas's side. Because I was filled with both ideas and raw violence into one core, those two elements meshed together so perfectly and I came to my own philosophy. That the only way to achieve our goals, whatever Zeref wanted, was to make sure we were the dominate race. Etherious had to prevail, no matter what.
That's when the seven were born. Franmalth, Ezel, Tempesta, Keyes, Sayla, Kyouka, Jackal. But again, no experiment really comes out perfect, and with time, the philosophical mind of Marde Geer won over the newly born demons, causing the numbers to shift to eight versus two. What made it even more difficult was that those demons were the last ones Zeref created for Tartarus. Noticing no matter what he did in an attempt to balance us out, a side would be chosen between chaos and philosophy. So Zeref decided to cease all experimental processes, especially since he already had who he wanted. E. N. D.
But Daityas refused to stop there, and of course I agreed with him. It was too one sided in who believed in who. So, with the rejuvenation chambers, we tweaked a few of them to help us create a faction of our own. With Zeref's research on Etherious, it was simple, yet many variables caused many variations, and still we received exactly what we wanted. We created the Tartarus outcasts. Maggie, Kiora, Tobias, Rugal, Crow, Sora, Ruika, Arcturus. Oh what a team we were. Altogether, whenever our victims would ask for our names, we simply went by Tartarus. For ages we were conquerers. Hundreds and hundreds of years, Tartarus's name reigned supreme in fear. The only thing that could stop us...was us. And that's exactly what happened.
Marde and his camp became fearful of us. We sought action while they sought answers, but we were gaining both while they received none. There was only one thing that kept this guild together, and that was our undying loyalty to Zeref himself. But, something else I believed...was still missing. Something inside of us...was missing. And I started to notice it in the humans we slaughtered along the way. At first I thought it was fear, which couldn't be correct because who wants to be afraid of anything? No, it wasn't fear, but it was something that caused fear to exist along with other things. I saw in a few mages who audaciously stood up to us just before their deaths. Different things like anger, frustration, courage. These things were pushing them to do things they didn't have the ability to, and it made me think...if any of us demons had these things, would it make us the perfected beings we sought to be? So of course, I went to find the answer. That's when I met —"
"My mother..." Nami whimpered. Noboru smiled.
"You're so smart, just like her. But this is no tragic love story. Or at least from my perspective it isn't. It was just another day for us. We ran through an entire town, demolishing it, setting it ablaze and killing every human that inhabited that area. But there was one woman there, just one, who opposed us as we made our way through. Your mother... I could see it in her eyes as she stood, back against the wall. She had no plans in cowering in fear, yet fear was ever present within her. She was unqualified in protecting her already destroyed home, but she stood before the lot of us, those same eyes, those emotions that I've seen in a few other humans, they shone brighter than them all, and at that moment I knew. At that moment, I realized that I had found the vessel I was looking for in order to bring my hypothesis into actuality. So, I kept her alive. I kept her around, and like humans are known for, I easily manipulated her."
"How can you say that so easily? Did you not care for her? You had children with her. Did that mean nothing?" Nami asked. Noboru chuckled at the question. "Oh Nami. On the contrary. It meant everything to me. Because that's what I wanted. I manipulated her, and she fell in love with a demon. And then, both you and Tayakata were born. I wasn't expecting twins, so this made the experimental process much easier. I didn't have to start over if one of you failed, because the other one was right there. All I had to do now, was find out the perfect balance between demoniac and humanity. Fun fact, Nami. This is why you're a brunette and Taya isn't!
Etherious is black, and with two human girls in possession, placing you both inside the rejuvenation tanks at infancy when you're both already half Etherious provided me with all the factors I needed for this experiment to work. So first, I placed Tayakata inside, and if you add in all the boring details of numbers and all of that, your sister stayed in that chamber until almost all of her humanity was taken from her. Give or take she came out to ninety percent Etherious, and ten percent human. Then there was you, Nami. The exact opposite. We decided to not keep you in the chamber long. Ninety percent human. But that was only the beginning of the experiment. We needed you two to grow, since you were biologically human. And as you two grew, the results came to fruition quickly.
You, Namiyaka...failed.
As a child, you were way too emotional, way too human.. Nothing we did could get you to embrace the little bit of demoniac you have in you. But Tayakata! Oh she was special! She had no emotion when it came to killing, slaughtering, maiming and destroying. She was a full fledged demon with just enough humanity to understand other humans, but she never placed pity on her victims. Around this time, you were both just kids. So, we wanted to get rid of you, but we became to comfortable around Tayakata. When she heard of tossing you aside, she didn't take too kindly to removing her sister from the equation. So we had to convince her that you were going off somewhere necessary for your growth. When in actuality..."
"You left me with mother." Nami sighed quietly.
"It was surprising actually. I know that I manipulated her, but to actually think she would become the woman she did because of these events. I thought she would just be her usual self, and simply take care of you, but she trained you, and taught you Light Magic. I thought that was pretty amazing, but at the same time, I shouldn't have been surprised. She had already proven herself to be a rare human. That time apart was something you and Tayakata definitely needed, because as you grew stronger, so did she. By her early teenage years, Tayakata quickly joined the others in ranks. No longer an experiment, she was an Etherious being sparking fear amongst Earthland. Just enough humanity to understand, but to never take pity. It seemed like everything was fine in our camp. That was, until she used that little bit of humanity of hers to realize that she could strive for other things. For things that didn't matter, and because of that thought process, Tayakata left us. It was my fault. I wasn't there to stop her at the time. I wasn't there to stop her from finding you, and running away from Tartarus. I wasn't there to make sure she didn't find this stupid guild you're attached to, and now I have to pay the ultimate price, by killing you both. But before that, I knew I just needed one...one complete experiment. So I took a gamble with your mother just one more time, and this time, I made sure to split the line between demon and human directly down the middle — fifty-fifty! And here lies Tsunako. My perfect offspring. Enough Etherious within him to cause havoc, with the perfect blend of humanity to question things when they needed to be. And I'm here to answer those questions he has. Tsunako is literally the killing machine we've been looking for. He's what you two disappointments were supposed to be. He is your brother, and soon, he'll be the remnants of this family tree."
"Nami!" She shouted, running their way. Her voice caused Nami's ears to perk and her eyes to widen. It caused Noboru to grin as Tsunako removed his blade from Nami's throat, allowing her to stand up as well. Nami scrambled away, returning to Tayakata's side as she arrived. "So you've finally arrived, Tayakata?" He asked. "You missed story time I'm afraid, but surely you know the ending."
"Shut up." She spat as vectors protruded from her spine, towering over the entire family. Noboru and Tsunako didn't budge, still grinning their evil grins. "Since you don't know how to stay away from us, I'll make it so you can never follow us again, and there's only one way to do that."
"That's the spirit." Noboru chimed in. Tsunako held out his blade, the weapon emitting a whitened aura. "Now that
The entire family is here, let's get acquainted once again before we decide which of the Shichun-Jiao will remain. So come forth, you two disappointments. We'll do this honorably."
—
The two titanic powers separated, Calium quickly creating a magic seal that fired off a multitude of tendrils made from Eclipse Magic. Once Daityas planted his feet, he had no problem avoiding the incoming curving beams that threatened his well being. Leap after leap he evaded them just before they could hit their mark. Upon the last one, The King of Hell lunged forward, igniting his fists in Hell's Flames just before reaching Calium. Once in melee range, Daityas would then consistently aim those flaming punches for Calium's face and frame. The guild master's defense came in the form of Eclipse colored magic seals, using them as defensive standpoints as he steadily recoiled from each devastating punch.
"You're not bad for an old bag of bones!" Daityas roared, giving a back handed complement. Calium simply sucked his teeth, finding the opening to swing his arm from left to right to create a raw yet powerful swipe of Eclipse Magic. Daityas leapt away from it, granting the guild master the space he wanted. As Daityas landed in his new location, he suddenly found himself surrounded by four towers of Eclipse Magic. "What!? When!?" He asked, but Calium gave no answer. Instead, he pressed his hands together, causing the four towers to violently meet in the middle to combine into one gigantic pillar with Daityas directly in the middle. Throwing his hands down, the Eclipse Tower would explode, shaking the entire area with the blinding light was accompanied by the mixture of smoke and debris. That aftermath of debris didn't last long however, for Daityas sent it away with a single swipe of his own, grinning through the dissipating smoke. Two fingers erected, the demon placed then to his lips, and blew, creating a sweeping brush of Hell's Flames that took path towards Calium. Spinning his index finger in a counterclockwise motion, the White Eclipse guild Master was able to create a vortex of his magic, absorbing those flames until they were no more. The second the finished however, Daityas appeared before the master of the Eclipse, slamming an elbow into the old man's nose. His head snapped back as the rest of him was sent flying backwards. Daityas was in pursuit, exuding his flames as he took off towards Calium with a single leap. As he prepared to strike once more, the tables turned. Calium held out a right hand, creating a large orb of Eclipse Magic that formed around Daityas just before he could strike him. Encapsulated, the demon would pound against the orb, struggling for freedom, but Calium would grant his wish in a painful manner, squeezing his hand into a fist which caused the orb to explode with Daityas trapped inside.
As a second passed, the smoke and debris that covered him wafted away by the velocity of an angered yell to the sky. But as Daityas cleared the atmosphere, he was brought with another surprise. Four magic seals surrounding him at a diagonal position. From those circles, Eclipse colored shackles attached themselves to Daityas to hold him down, pulling tightly to bring him to his knees. With the King of Hell held in such position, Calium reopened his right hand and from there, a razor sharp disc formed, spinning at an intense speed.
As Calium launched that disc forward, attempting to saw Daityas in half, the King of Hell broke the magic shackles with a single pull forward, freeing his arms just in time to use the shackles as a shield to protect him from the disc of Eclipse Magic. Made from the same person and elements, the disc and shackles canceled each other out, and as Daityas rose to his feet, he snapped off the remaining shackles that held his feet. From there, the look in his eyes told Calium of the sense of urgency Daityas now carried, despite the grin that remained.
A stare down ensued, but the second Calium moved an inch, Daityas was right there, slamming a knee into the elder's abdomen and hunching him over. "You should have just let me killed Takeru. That traitor deserves death."
"I...wouldn't allow such a thing from a boy...who just wanted freedom." Calium was able to spill, placing a hand on Daityas's abdomen. The plan was to create a raw blast of Eclipse to send him flying away, but the second Calium touched him, Daityas's frame overheated, causing the elder to burn his hand; enough to force him to halt whatever he had planned and withdraw his hand. At such a close proximity, it was all Daityas needed as well for a powerful counterattack.
Hell's flames wrapped around his right fist once more, the King of Hell wasted no time in slamming the devastating punch to Calium's jaw, dropping the Mage into the ground remorselessly. A desperate counter came in the form of a magic seal spinning just between himself and a Daityas, but with burning hands, the demon himself took ahold of the magic seal as if it was a physical thing, splitting it in half and causing it to vanish just as fast as it appeared. "Calium, right? Now that I think about it.." Daityas raised his left foot, then slammed it to his skull. A clean hit, pushing the master of White Eclipse deeper into the ground. He would cry out in pain, groaning loudly as Daityas kept pushing his foot against his skull with no hindrance. "...You're just as bad as those three traitors. You gave them a home to reside in, instead of returning them to their rightful owners. I'm sure we could have worked something out. Now look at you! About to die for protecting something that isn't even yours."
The weakened Calium tried his hardest to push Daityas off, but even the little leeway he made was canceled by Daityas merely adding a bit more force to slam him back into the ground. "That's what wrong with you humans! Your hearts are too vulnerable! Maybe if you were heartless, you wouldn't be in this situation! Ah! That's it!" He laughed, crouching down to Calium's level without removing his foot. Slowly, he raised his right hand, holding it in a claw like shape before shoving it right into Calium's chest, gripping his heart with Hell's Flames. Squeezing tightly, he began to burn the organ with his curse power, laughing maniacally as the guild master would scream out in immense pain.
"Let's do an experiment! If this doesn't kill you, then maybe you'll learn to be heartless!" He shouted, knowing the answer to his faux hypothesis already. No one could live without such a vital organ, and as Calium continued to lie there, screaming in agony, his cries were only drowned out by the laughter of the menace, and the flames that surrounded them both.
"Next time! Stay in a human's place, and realize that you're I match for Etherious! Don't worry! Your brats will be joining you very shortly! So long, you shitty old man! I guess this means you're no longer the undefeated!"
As the grip upon Calium's heart was tightened, burning to a crisp from Daityas's Hell's Flames, something happened. Suddenly, Calium himself became absorbed in a way, into the ground. Noticing what was happening, a look of shock came to Daityas at first, but then he recognized what was going on. "Alegria? So he's shown himself, hm? That was fast." He pulled away from the Mage, watching as Calium disappeared into the ground for good, standing back up with a slightly annoyed look. "He took my kill. That doesn't stand right with me. Still, the one I was looking for has shown himself." That maniacal grin of his emerged once more, and from there, Daityas walked off to head his way. "Finally. It's time for retribution!"
"Oh my." He said, seated upon his throne with the book of E. N. D. tucked into his arm. "It seems that a few people have survived Alegria. Of course the demons would have, but with such slim chances for anyone else to do so...how interesting." Marde Geer smiled softly, focusing on the three magic powers that remained intact; one of them really feint.
Lucy Heartfilia was one, sitting up front he painful fall she just took thanks to the place shifting. The other two, on the other side of Tartarus, was an unconscious Kuro Crane, being carried by his guild mate, Skye Ravenwood.
"What happened?" She asked herself, looking around. With no one around her to begin with, it would have been hard for her to access the situation, if it wasn't for her ability to sense magic. And the fact that she couldn't even find a feint grasp of even the strongest mages around, it put her on high alert. "Everyone's...gone?"
"Soldiers of Tartarus! Those who remain that is." The voice of Marde Geer caught both Lucy and Skye, causing them to perk up as he spoke within their minds. "We've rid ourselves of the intruders with Alegria. The Face project can proceed as planned."
"No way...but Wendy..!" Lucy was in complete shock, confused as to how Face would still be able to function.
"However. There are a few humans that somehow survived Alegria. Three to be exact. I'll be giving the title of Kyuukimon to whoever kills them. If one of the present Kyuukimon kills them, Marde Geer will give them a prize."
Skye looked around, noticing that she was still alone, but only for a second as a portal opened before her. Stepping out from it, was Rugal, holding a stoic expression as he pointed his Dimensional Blade towards her. "This is why it's always smart to have a back up plan in case Daityas fails us. Become one of the Gates? That sounds like a great contingency to me. I'll be bringing both of your bodies to Marde now. Make this easier on yourself. You can't possibly ward me off and keep your friend alive."
"Probably not." Skye said, slowly removing Kuro's arm from around her shoulder. She kept her eyes on Rugal as she slowly placed Kuro down to draw her own blade. "But I don't have a choice but to do it, or you'll kill us, right? Then I choose to defend my friend's life. If that means ending yours...
Then so be it!"
