Harbingers of Doom and Tragic Memories
Two water droplets that are identical to each other,
Two shines that are reflections of each other,
Is it possible for such things to exist in the same world?
Or for them to cross to other worlds and meet each other?
{Opening: Kiseki no Umi – Maaya Sakamoto}
The party continued walking despite the shock, but they only saw something worse when they approached the place where the statues had been erected. At the foot of each statue, there was a coffin made of crystal containing the body of a person: each of them looked identical to one of the statues, and thus, to some of them.
- "Is this… supposed to be a graveyard for them…?" – asked Kagome shocked. The others just looked at her unable to articulate word. They looked a bit around the courtyard, but dazed as they were, they didn't see anything else or any signs of the ghost. They decided to retreat then, but as they were heading back to the bridge, a mandolin started being heard around them, and they turned around…
- "Is that her…?" – asked Gerardo as his eyes darted around and he shivered.
{Song: Lip-Aura -Aoi Hana no Shoukei- - Haruka Shimotsuki}
Then, the ghost Gabriela appeared high before them, in front of the statue that resembled Gerardo, and having her hands clasped over her chest and her eyes closed in a sorrowful expression, she started singing as more instruments joined the music…
Necpyalr Silfaria
(The Withered Silfaria)
Khal miu tuia wiastga sossaks sel yst millial,
parye tuia, sossaks diassaga paf busage wirya ika.
In this sadness, these were our dreams and feelings,
and because of them, we departed on a journey, seeking the truth.
Instantly, Gerardo started shedding tears from the song's sound and the sad voice the ghost was singing it with, while Gabriela and the others just continued looking at her shocked.
私たちの旅路の足跡は 雪と黄塵に埋められている
残ったことは声と意志だけ。でも、それがいい。
The footsteps of our journey are being covered by snow and dust.
Only my will and voice remain now. But it's okay like this.
The instruments stopped, and the ghost kept on singing with her eyes closed, although her expression changed to a sad smile as she continued.
- "Is this…" – asked Miguel following the lyrics.
- "A telling of how you died…?" – finished Henry, and they both looked at each other with widened eyes.
聖花（シルファリア）が咲く、蒼白の花弁は春を迎え
全てを失くした私、出来る事はただあなたに歌う
The Holy Flower (Silfaria) blooms, its white-bluish petals greeting the coming of spring.
Now that I have lost everything, I can only sing for you.
The ghost opened her eyes as she kept singing, and after looking at them, she raised her gaze at the clouded sky, to then just shake her head as if in resignation. She then smiled with happiness, but her expression returned to being one of sadness the next instant.
Alt tok ilse sossaks diassaga, zolfaga mya erzial:
sos, moundour, myallade.
When we started our journey, I learned about so many things:
about myself, about the world, about everything.
The instruments all disappeared as she kept singing, and were reduced solely to her voice, a backing chorus and a piano, and then, everyone in the party saw a partially transparent image behind her: a party like their own departing on a journey with happy faces.
もう愛した場所に決して帰ってできない
そうできてもそれは無用 もう上がったりから
I will never be able to return to the place I loved,
and even if I could, it would be of no use: it's doomed.
Kahial muy debprazal, kelarga sos moundour
salkisaga zarecall sos...
Sos kiesba necraisga zal...
But then, I saw how my world
completely collapsed around me...
My hopes all died then...
But the next instant, the image changed to that same party lying dead on the ground as the ghost started shedding tears. The image then showed a setting sun, the moon waning, and the stars in the sky going out one by one as the instrumentation returned for the next verse.
日が落ちる、月が欠ける、星が消える、
皆の微笑みが悲しみの涙に変化する
The sun sinks down, the moon breaks away, the stars disappear,
and the smiles of everyone turn into tears of sadness.
Qia set tuia toi, sos necrat kyahmga:
1 jyuleia zil kenelr niescalnasez
And with that, my death came:
an illusion from which I would never be able to escape.
The images then vanished as the ghost opened her eyes and faced the party directly while the music changed its tone.
交わる現実と夢...もう何も定かでない...
光水（かがみ）さえに映ることが偽りでしょう...
The dreams and the reality are mixed... nothing is certain anymore...
even the things reflected in the mirrors of water and light could be false...
Kahial my salf, tuia yel sos kaialmyu
llican millauk, sossaks busagga wirya ika...
Debpra sossaks biosat necpylsga, llican Silfaria...
Yes, that is my sadness.
Like everyone, we were in search of the truth...
but our lives all withered away, like the Silfaria...
- "What is that supposed to mean…?" – asked Gabriela not managing to understand the cryptic verses she was saying about reality and dreams, or about the possibility of everything being a lie.
- "Are you trying to make us doubt reality itself?" – said Henry as he looked at his friends: excepting for Gerardo, they were all perplexed.
But the ghost made as if she didn't hear anything and kept singing. The music stopped briefly, and it returned with a different sound.
世界が無限の空際に分けられた
今に夢と現実は同じ
でも構わない...最後に、全てが時の流れに消え去る。
The world has been divided by the endless horizon.
The dreams and the reality are the same thing now.
But it doesn't matter... in the end, everything will fade away within the flow of time.
misel kalya neuyalara, orasie ostealara serkisv,
yst, llicaron sossaks, vasperlara.
Its beautiful petals will rot, its scent will stop existing,
and, like all of us, it will disappear.
- "So, you're telling us you're comparing all of our lives to the way a flower withers…?" – said Gabriela now having understood what she was singing about. The ghost replied to her with a soft nod, but she then looked directly at them with a severe gaze, as if she were awaiting an answer to a serious question.
答えなさい、まだ心を持っているか？
空間の中に想いの塊だけで残る私？
Answer me, do I still have a heart within me?
Me, who only remains as a mass of feelings in the air?
She then stopped singing as she buried her face on her hands and started visibly crying, but the song kept going without her, with just the choruses singing the rest of the lyrics.
Sonlya sos millial maristes,
tuia kos ysal yele,
yst soill, jaullwa tast millial.
Soif baprou, saetsulia tuia yst sos nikala,
paf tast guilarnasez gimalz hakisett ala llican sossaks...
Of me, only my feelings remain,
I know it very well,
and also, I can understand your feelings.
So please, accept my feelings, together with my warning,
so you won't follow the same path of destruction as us...
No one did anything except keep watching over the ghost as she kept crying and the song followed its course, until it finally came to an end.
{End Song}
- "Umm… are you okay?" – asked Miguel as he extended a hand to the ghost. The ghost wept a little more, but she finally calmed down and raised her face to look at the people she had led there.
- "Y-Yes… I'm fine now" – said her as she wiped a few tears from her transparent visage. She then smiled at the party – "And I guess some explanations are in order now, correct?" –
- "Is it me, or she's using too much of a regal and formal-sounding language?" – asked Henry with a raised eyebrow to Roger.
- "Well, given who she is… It's not that weird, don't you think?" – replied Roger.
- "And I can hear you just fine, thanks. Anyway, allow me to introduce myself" – said the ghost giggling before doing a curtsy.
{BGM: Meeting of Destiny – Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin}
- "I am Gabriela Illyusa Drackma, Princess of Dragonia and former Seirei of Light… Or so I was when I still lived!" – the ghost then placed her hands behind herself and smiled with closed eyes.
- "So, it's just as we suspected…" – muttered Gerardo, who had now recovered himself, and after wiping his eyes and his glasses with his shouf's sleeves, was now facing her – "You're really the ghost of the Princess…" –
- "Yup, and again, pleased to finally make your acquaintance, Other Gerar!" – said the ghost smiling kindly to him – "I've really wanted to meet you ever since I heard about the Dragon Gods naming someone like Gerar to be the next Seirei of Water" –
- "Was that why… you went to meet me on the school roof?" – asked Gerardo as he raised an eyebrow and his eyes widened.
- "Oh yes, that's right" – said Illyusa giggling a little – "I mean, you seemed all sad and hurt over Dragonia's sealing, and as there was no one nearby who could understand what you were going through, what else could I do?" –
- "So, you're telling us… You went to the trouble of crossing to another world just to cheer him up because he reminded you of someone else?" – asked Henry looking at her with suspicion.
- "Of course, Other Renki" – said Illyusa, who then laughed when Henry recoiled upon hearing how she had called him – "Hehe, I know you don't have the same names, but it just feels right to me!" –
- "Still… How terrible… To think a young girl like her could have died like that and being the princess of a kingdom besides…" – said Kagome looking at her with sorrow-filled eyes.
- "Mihoka's successor… Well… that's just a little taste of how harsh this journey you want to do is… And how cruel Tenebross' monsters are. Not like they were the direct causes of my demise though…" – said Illyusa still smiling, though her face seemed to darken when she brought up the cause of her death.
- "Was it…" – said Gabriela with a doubtful face, and before continuing, her and Gerardo's eyes met, causing them both to gulp down before she continued talking – "Because your brother…?" -
However, Illyusa cut her off in that instant:
- "Oh, I do not recall granting you permission to speak" – said her looking at Gabriela with an annoyed smile. Gabriela just looked at her irate as Illyusa turned to look at Gerardo again and everyone else looked at her with widened eyes – "By the way, Other Gerar… May I ask you how my other me turned out to be so lacking in sophistication and patience?" –
(End BGM)
That was the straw that broke the camel's back.
- "Hey, why are you so rude!?" – asked Gabriela looking at her with rage – "I've tried to be as elegant and courteous as I could, and I've heard from Elaer and Fileia you were very short-tempered yourself!" –
- "Huhu, well… Looks like I won't be able to use that angle to annoy you" – said the other Gabriela as she closed her eyes and a frown appeared on her brow. She then opened her eyes again and glared at Gabriela – "And so, how does it feel to have taken my place as Princess, Priestess of the Dragon and Seirei? Is it fun for you to be taking advantage from the place you stole from me?" -
- "Wait just there! We were chosen by the Dragon Gods to save this world, and our own!" – said Kagome angry at these accusations while Gabriela was gritting her teeth – "Gaby-chan never intended to take your place or do anything like that!" –
- "But she still is usurping a place that doesn't belong to her by birth" – said another ghost that appeared next to Illyusa, who was glaring with scorn at Kagome and Miko. She looked like a girl in her late teens, with long black hair that had blue ribbons in her bangs, purple eyes and who wore a blue and white shouf decorated with water drops and white spheres, not dissimilar from Kagome and Miko's own – "And by that same token, both you and your fake little sister have stolen the place that belonged to me as Assistant Priestess" –
- "F-Fake!?" – said Miko falling to her knees – "No… I'm Kagome-nee's sister! That's who I am!" –
- "You bitch!" – said Inuyasha irate at her – "Miko is real, and that's it!" –
- "Yeah! Miko is Miko! You have no right to call her fake or anything like that!" – said Yasha angry as both brothers stepped in front of her.
- "If you can consider a "sister" someone who was born from a soul split involving the Water of Restart, sure" – said the second ghost, which made Miko lower her gaze downward with her lips quivering as Kagome ran to hug her while Yasha and Inuyasha bared their fangs at her. The others were also glaring at her with rage – "Oh by the way, I haven't introduced myself, have I? Please excuse me for my poor manners. My name is Mihoka Iadlayusa, Priestess of Seliart Village, and Assistant Priestess to Her Highness Gabriela" –
- "So, you're the Mihoka we heard about from High Priestess Selfaia…" – said Gerardo as he felt somewhat charmed by her cute appearance and voice, but the next instant he shook his head to get these thoughts away from his head.
- "Huhu, and it seems I have caught your attention, other Gerar" – said Mihoka giggling – "Well, I can't say I'm surprised, seeing how much you resemble my boyfriend" –
- "Hehe, I told you he was exactly like Gerar!" – said Illyusa laughing.
- "Hmm, though I think he's a bit more lacking in brains than him!" – said Mihoka as she started laughing too.
- "Okay, that's enough! Where do you get off insulting them like that!?" – said Miguel stepping in – "Did you just bring us here to ridicule them and accuse them of stealing your places!?" –
- "Well, you ARE indeed stealing OUR places!" – said another voice identical to Miguel's, causing him to freeze up. The next instant, a boy identical to him appeared next to both girls with a severe gaze – "So the accusations are quite well founded. By the way, I'm Miguel Kiolse Drackma, Supreme Commander of the Dragonian Royal Army" –
- "Okay, dammit…" – said Miguel gritting his teeth upon seeing his Dragonian counterpart show up – "But the accusations are still unfounded! We're not doing this because we want it!" –
- "As far as I'm concerned, usurpation is a crime punished whether you're doing it unwillingly or willingly, so it changes nothing" – said Kiolse crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow – "But well, not like I can get you court-martialed or sent to a civil trial anyway. I'm dead after all" –
- "And what next? Are you going to accuse us of your deaths even though we barely have three days in Dragonia?" – asked Henry sarcastically.
- "While you might have no fault for our deaths, there is still the matter that you are dragging our names and reputation through the mud" – said another ghost, this time identical to Henry, who appeared next to Kiolse – "For the record, my name is Renki Phinaalfae, certified alchemist and blacksmith" –
- "Well, at the least you don't have my same name, so you can't say I'm slandering you" – said Henry crossing his arms as a smug smile appeared on his face.
- "You might not have said you are me publicly, but that's still the nickname all your friends know you by, isn't it? So pretty much everyone in Dragonia will think you're me due to our similar appearances" – said Renki with an unimpressed face – "And don't try to feign ignorance: you and your friends have seen the news reports on the media and the Draglimnt about our supposed return, which actually refer to you guys impersonating all of us" –
- "And what are we supposed to do then!?" – shouted Roger annoyed at this – "Say we're lying to everyone and betray the trust Their Majesties have put in us!?" –
- "Huhu, that would be a good choice" – said another ghost as he materialized, this time being identical to Roger excepting for the fact that he didn't wear glasses – "In fact, it would be the best for everyone here that you admitted this farce, went back to your world and never meddled in Dragonia's business again!" –
- "Okay, this time we have a major difference in appearance because I wear glasses and you don't" – said Roger with a smile.
- "Please, as if that mattered. People have now started thinking my eyesight worsened because of you!" – said the ghost – "Oh by the way, I'm Elte Tiarraf. Certified alchemist, unlike you who hasn't done a synthesis in his whole life!" –
- "Hey, anybody has to start somewhere, huh!?" – said Henry stepping in – "And I can bet you both sucked at doing alchemy when you first started!" –
- "Yeah, stop attacking them over that!" – said Gabriela angry.
- "That might be the truth, but it still doesn't change that you're third-rate replacements for us" – said a ghost girl that appeared next to Mihoka, though she didn't resemble anyone of the Earth party.
- "No way… Betza..!?" – said Miguel shocked as he looked at the girl: she had bowl-cut black hair that went down to her neck, black eyes and wore glasses. She was dressed in a dark red shouf with a few orange suns and black shoes and seemed to be in her late teens.
- "Ehehe, looks like I resemble someone you care about, huh?" – said the girl – "But you have gotten the wrong person: my name is Pyrhelzia Alfhae" –
- "And you've gotten very talkative since we were released from our bodies, huh? Pyrhe?" – said Illyusa smiling at her.
- "Not like I have reasons to continue being as I was during my life now I've died" – said Pyrhelzia with a satisfied smirk.
- "Okay, we admit we're beginners and that we're just starting to understand this world" – said Kagome – "But why are you being so horrible to us!? We're not here to usurp your places or positions, and we just came to save this world because we care about it!" –
- "Care about it? Please spare us that false affection" – said another girl that appeared next to Mihoka. She had her long black hair tied in light blue twintails, light blue eyes and wore a light blue shouf with purple borders, which had embroidered snowflakes and lightning bolts on it, as well as white sandals – "How can you feel any sort of attachment for a world you weren't born in and in which you haven't even spent a week?" –
- "Ah, Crya! I was wondering when you'd come out!" – said Illyusa smiling at her.
- "Well, I just wanted to shut up that ridiculous replacement Mihoka got" – said the girl as she looked at Kagome and Miko with disgust.
- "Hey! We've lived in Dragonia for a month now, and we've really come to like it! Its people, its foods, the way their schools work, its songs…" – said Miko shouting – "And Kagome-nee and Inuyasha-nii have felt it through us too! There's no way our feelings for this world are fake!" –
- "You speak for only you four then. What about the others?" – said the girl eyeing the other members of the Earth party in an unsettling way.
- "Before you start putting us down, shouldn't you follow the example of your friends and have the minimum courtesy of telling us your name?" – said Gerardo with his eyes narrowed down – "Or would you prefer we just call you by the nickname the Princess gave you?" –
- "As if I were to let people like yourselves refer to me like that" – said the girl with her eyebrows frowned – "But fine, my name is Cryaltha Elferial, Medic" –
- "And replying to your previous question, we have already felt how warm and nice the people here are, and we really want to help them somehow" – explained Gerardo with a serious face – "Yeah, Gaby and myself only knew of Dragonia from our dreams and the things we saw in the Inuyasha world a couple years ago, but coupling that with what we've experienced the last few days, plus the way the people accepted Gaby, Kagome and Miko as their new Priestesses, have secured the affection we feel for this world. There's no falsehood in that we want to protect its people and save this world from Tenebross!" –
- "Hmph… Gaby, looks like it won't be an easy task to convince them to stop this" – said Kiolse crossing his arms and shaking his head.
- "Yes. I knew they were stubborn, but I wasn't expecting them to be this stupid too" – said Illyusa sighing.
- "Well, not like we could claim to be better than them in that aspect" – said Renki shrugging his shoulders – "Wasn't that same stupidity what led us to our demise?" –
- "But in any case, looks like we'll have to call Gerardo" – said Cryaltha with an evil smile.
- "I would prefer to not bother him if possible" – said Illyusa looking downward as her mouth curved upward.
- "Agreed. I don't think he will take well having these impostors here" – said Mihoka shaking her head.
- "Yeah, but how are we supposed to convince this party of idiots to just go back to their world?" – said Elte looking at them with frowned eyes
- "Exactly what is the problem with my Dragonian counterpart?" – asked Gerardo taking a step forward.
- "If you must know… He was the one among us who died with the greatest amount of regrets" – said Kiolse – "So while we all hold some degree of enmity toward you impostors, the level of utter contempt he holds toward you all is in a league of its own" –
- "Hoh, so you're saying he's just too scared to face us?" – asked Miguel in a mocking voice.
- "Okay, you'll regret having uttered these words. Gaby! Call Gerar now!" – said Kiolse annoyed. Illyusa just sighed.
- "Gerar! The bunch of impostors has come! They want an audience with you!" – shouted Illyusa in a mocking voice. Kagome and Miko then started picking up something.
- "No way… Did he have that many grudges when he died?" – said Kagome terrified as she saw a thick blue aura materializing next to Illyusa. The other ghosts had already backed away from the point where the aura was converging.
- "Onee-san… I'm scared…" – said Miko sticking closer to Kagome, while everyone else were gritting their teeth or looking with fear at what was unfolding before them. After a few instants, the aura finally took shape and revealed its owner: it was a ghost looking identical to Gerardo, who was floating with his arms crossed with his back turned to them. However, the ghost then turned around and they saw there was a major difference from them: he had a face filled to the brim with hatred…
- "Hmph, Gaby. Didn't I tell you before to not call me for pointless things like these?" – said the ghost Gerardo turning to his sister.
- "I know, but… These impostors are steadfast with wanting to save this world… and well, looks like they're not going to listen to reason…" – said Illyusa looking at her brother as she trembled.
- 'Oh man… Is he that terrible to his sister, when I'd never act that way to Gaby…? I mean, why is she that scared of him?' – thought Gerardo scandalized.
- "You idiotic, brainless, worthless dreck! How do you dare to even think I'd mistreat my precious sister!?" – shouted the ghost out of nowhere.
- "H-How did you…!?" – said Gerardo taken aback.
- "Know what that useless head of yours was thinking!? We share the same elements and have a similar thought process, of course!" – said the ghost looking at him with fury – "You pride yourself on being a researcher and yet fail to realize something so basic!? Iadlast must have gone insane to have chosen you as my replacement!" -
- "Oh boy… We're in for a treat…" – said Henry as everyone looked wide-eyed at how the ghost had utterly destroyed Gerardo, who was now trembling with rage but unable to pronounce a word.
- "Didn't I warn you that you would regret having said that?" – said Kiolse with a mocking smile.
- "But before I continue blasting you all for being a bunch of cretins, I better do the sensate thing and introduce myself" – said the ghost – "Gerardo Iadlase Drackma, Prince of Dragonia, Researcher and Seirei of Water. Not like knowing me will be of use to any of you" –
- "Yeah, you're nothing like Gerar!" – said Gabriela rolling her hands into fists so hard she started shaking as she scowled at him – "Yeah, he does get angry at times and the like, but he doesn't derive pleasure on proving he's smarter than everyone else and making himself look like an arrogant jerk!" –
- "Y-You…!" – growled Iadlase, but he found himself unable to talk back to Gabriela – 'W-Why can't I…? Does she resemble Gaby that much…?' –
- "Hmph, looks like anyone who looks like the Princess is your weak point" – said Gerardo to his mind, taking advantage of what Iadlase had just insulted him over.
- "Shut it! You have no right to talk back when you're just hiding behind your sister's back!" – growled Iadlase back to his mind – "What do you have to say for yourself when you're the one who should be covering her!?" -
- "And in any case, my other me is completely failing as a Priestess of the Dragon" – said Illyusa noticing the little telepathic conflict both Gerardos were embroiled in, and thus deciding to step in to break the stalemate – "I mean, okay, you know the songs for the Elemental Baptism, MY AND MIHOKA'S version of the Song of Proof, and Habreliarasa Burkei, but how is it possible for you to not know something as basic to a Priestess as an exorcism song?" –
- "Wait a second…" – said Gabriela as she closed her eyes for a moment: she noticed that she actually had several songs floating in her mind she had never heard or sung before, and one of them sounded like the kind of song that would be used to purge evil souls. She opened her eyes and turned to Miko – "Miko, is this what I think…?" –
- "Yeah, "Meitam Silae" is the name of the song used to release wandering souls from their regrets, so they may reach the eternal peace. It's one of the last songs a Priestess is taught in their basic training, and I was partway through learning it before we returned to our world" – said Miko nodding her head while Kagome looked at her in surprise.
- "Ha! So, I do know an exorcism song!" – said Gabriela pointing a finger to her counterpart.
- "Oh, yeah? What about it?" – said the Illyusa with an unimpressed face as she crossed her arms.
Irritated, Gabriela merely placed her hands over her chest and closed her eyes. Kagome and Miko intuitively realized what she was going to do, and both followed her example.
- "Ah. Hihihi, are you planning to exorcise us then?" – asked Illyusa as she repeated the same laughter that had led them through the labyrinth, which everyone from both Earths just noticed sounded the same as the laughter Gabriela did when she was amused. However, she stopped laughing after a few seconds and gave a cold glare to the three girls – "Allow me to apologize beforehand, but that is impossible. I admit you three have a power level capable of purging a whole region's worth of roaming souls, but that will not work on us" –
Kagome, Miko and Gabriela felt their blood go cold. Then they opened their eyes and looked at her in horror.
- "Hey, why is their attempt at an exorcism not going to work? As far as I can see, you guys fit the definition of a roaming soul to a T!" – said Gerardo angry after seeing how dejected the girls had gotten while the rest of the party tried to console them.
- "You truly are an imbecile" – said Iadlase shaking his head to the sides – "Our bodies aren't exactly 'dead', but in a sort of stasis, as our Tears of the Dragon didn't get properly activated for some reason, and thus we ended up being sealed within these crystal coffins. Therefore, our souls are still bound to the physical plane in a way that no mere purge ritual could ever hope to sever" –
None knew what the Tear of the Dragon was, so Gerardo decided to gulp down the question and check it up in the Draglimnt or in a library to not keep getting insulted by Iadlase. The others decided a similar course to not continue getting verbal abuse from their counterparts.
- "Ah, so you think you're going to get off easy because of not asking it openly? Too bad!" – said Iadlase to his mind – "Yeah, you and all your friends are idiots for not knowing that!" –
- "Can you at least have the decency to give me and my thoughts some privacy!?" – shouted Gerardo fed up with his intrusions.
- "What can I do if I have the failure of a replacement I got in front of me?" – said Iadlase tapping his upper arm with his finger – "Besides, I find insulting you got for free all of the spells, songs and techniques I developed after so much work and effort!" –
Gerardo's eyes widened in realization of what Iadlase was saying, and Gabriela couldn't help but leave her mouth agape at the implications that the same had happened to her.
- "Yup, all the techniques you used to have in that other world were stolen from me too" – said Illyusa nodding her head. Gabriela just hung her head down.
- "But looks like the Dragon Gods decided to make it harder for you now, huh?" – said Iadlase sneering at them – "How does it feel to have to learn them the hard way now? And I have to say that from all the techniques you stole from me, the one I feel is the greatest insult to me is the Dragon Wave. How many years do you think it took me to learn to handle draconic energy to use it? And that's without saying your version is pathetically weak compared to mine!" –
- "It was quite powerful when he used it in our world!" – said Miko taking a step toward him.
- "But it's not now, is it?" – asked Illyusa with an ironic smile.
- "And how do you expect it to be as powerful as yours when I've just started learning how to handle it myself, with no support from anyone else?" – said Gerardo crossing his arms – "You're not going to tell me you were born capable of writing that dissertation I saw on your desk with no studies or preparation of any sort, are you?" –
- "So, you did read that incomplete work I left…" – said Iadlase a bit taken aback, but he changed back to an enraged face the next instant – "Didn't your parents teach you to not rummage through other people's belongings!?" -
- "Oh, they did, but I took the chance to read it because I found it fascinating. Not only that, I understood quite well everything you had written, not to mention I could compare it to our own experience with a failed Infiny summoning" – said Gerardo narrowing his eyes – "We're quite similar, so we could say any attempt you do at insulting me would backfire and result in you insulting yourself" –
- "Agh, shut it!" – said Iadlase, prompting all his friends to look at him wide-eyed. While rationally he understood what Gerardo was saying, emotionally he was rejecting all of that – "Besides, I'm not insulting myself because you and I are completely different people! You have nothing to do with me beyond resembling me in appearance! Also, I also feel insulted to see you wielding that poor replica of my Ryuuga!" –
- "Now what? You're going to tell us you designed this sword yourself and made it?" – said Gerardo twitching an eye and rolling his hands into fists.
- "Hey! Totosai-sensei forged that sword for him! I saw it from Inuyasha-nii's memories, and he also told us as much!" – intervened Yasha glaring at Iadlase.
- "Quit it, brat! Didn't you even think about the strange reaction that changed a mere ornamental sword into that? A holy blade capable of absorbing elemental energies to strengthen its wielder?" – said Iadlase glaring back, which made Yasha stagger backward as Inuyasha stepped in, baring his fangs to Iadlase – "And it's all because the scales and fangs Iadlast gave you were all charged with magic to change anything that was forged with them into a replica of Ryuuga!" -
- "So that explains how this sword came out like this…" – said Gerardo drawing it out and contemplating the blade with care: now he was checking it more closely against the light, it seemed to have a few strange shining lines throughout its whole length he had only seen faintly before, which had a sheen resembling that of the Seirei Crystals… - "No way… These are Seireiterfa circuits!?" –
- "Took you long enough to realize that!" – said Iadlase laughing at his counterparts' lack of attention for such an important detail – "How did you think the Water's Scar and a few of the other techniques you stole from me worked? "Poof, magic!" Or something stupid like that? Did you even bother pondering about how they worked to start with?" –
- "As for its holy nature, it was because both Mihoka and I took up the job of consecrating it to Iadlast and Illyusea" – said Illyusa with a proud face, which changed into a saddened one a few instants later – "But well, not even that can keep a holy blade from turning into a cursed one…" –
- "What does she mean by that…?" – wondered Kagome at how out of nowhere that last remark seemed.
{BGM: When the North Skies Were Still Clear – Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles}
- "And in any case, we'll end our little chance encounter saying this: this world isn't the place you belong to. Furthermore, this world is doomed to perish. So, there's nothing for you to gain here, nor anything you can do for it" – said Kiolse snorting, deciding the conversation had lasted enough already.
- "Didn't we say we weren't going to abandon Dragonia to its fate?" – said Gabriela clenching her hands into fists – "Yeah, I'm not the princess of Dragonia, but as its current Priestess of the Dragon and candidate to Seirei of Light, I can't just let this world die while I twiddle my thumbs!" –
- "There's also we're the other five candidates to Seirei of the other main elements" – said Gerardo narrowing his eyes – "As the Dragon Gods have chosen us, this is our duty to uphold, especially after we failed the first time" –
- "Hmph, and I thought that failure would have gotten you scared to death" – said Iadlase looking at them annoyed.
- "Yeah. After almost getting themselves killed by Tenebross and getting forcefully sent back to their worlds as Dragonia was sealed away, that would have been the perfect chance for you to pull back from any stupid ideas of saving this world. Looks like that wasn't enough" – said Illyusa sighing in a sad way, as if she was showing them pity.
– "But well, maybe it'll be better that you see the truths we came to know after we died" – said Iadlase with an evil smile.
- "What're you talking about now?" – asked Henry raising an eyebrow.
- "After we died, we came in contact with the source of all in this planet: the Biousakatse Yaoulma, and from seeing into its currents, we came to know about the fate that awaits Dragonia" – said Iadlase looking upwards in a solemn way as he placed a hand on his chest.
- "No way… You got to look into the possible futures of the world!?" – asked Miko shocked.
- "Miko, what does that mean…?" – asked Kagome, but the next instant she saw a blinding light, and she recoiled, being taken aback from what she saw in the link she shared with Miko as her little sister nodded at her – "No… In other words… the Biousakatse Yaoulma is like what some cultures in our world call the Akashic Records!?" –
- "Ah!? This world has something…" – started Roger, but Henry completed the phrase:
- "Like the Akasha!? The Root!?" – said he, every bit as perplexed as Roger.
- "Hoh, so your world does have similar concepts? Not like I care though, but it'll make simpler to explain the rest" – said Iadlase in a bemused voice – "Anyhow, if you still haven't understood it, the Biousakatse Yaoulma is the cycle of souls for our world, which contains the memories all lifeforms living upon this planet have experienced, and it also shows the hypothetical futures for Dragonia" –
- "But from all the possible futures, the one that has been shown to be the most likely is the one in which this world perishes at Tenebross' hands" – said Illyusa putting a hand over her chest as she looked downward and closed her eyes.
- "Indeed, so Gaby… Sing now. Show them the prophecy that demonstrates that this world is hopeless and that their efforts are doomed to fail" – said Iadlase turning to look at his sister.
{End BGM}
Illyusa just clenched her hands over her chest, closed her eyes, and started singing before anyone could reply to what they had said.
(Song: Horobi no Kotowari – Haruka Shimotsuki)
Everything went black before everyone from the Earth party as some arpeggios started being heard, and next, they heard Illyusa's voice.
Miere dat Hakisett
(The Prophecy of Destruction)
Sossaks crudeiasesga Uartuk xi lomia,
yst sossaks sezkaga protasec kay biosat ika.
Alca tlar pinamsaimat fissa sossaks gull ika,
sossaks tsuconnuga iarae naphal kashia.
We were created by our Mother long ago,
and we were destined to protect Her life.
Despite the brief shade that fell over us,
we continued carrying out our ancient pact.
Xiazu tlar castfalga marclia karliuga,
yst quia labliaga iukar ilyu terla ika.
The Song that briefly stopped flowing returned,
and this brought a renewed splendor to the land.
- "What's this?" – asked Henry amazed, as the blackness had now changed to a sepia-filtered view of the Dragon Gods battling Tenebross and his monsters, which then changed to show the people of Dragonia rebuilding destroyed cities, and some people wearing strange hooded shoufs in the middle of a desert doing something.
- "Is this… a show of Dragonia's history after Tenebross' sealing?" – wondered Gerardo.
- "It seems so… It's just like what we learned in class…" – said Miko as she looked at the scenes in awe.
- "Our classmates'd never believe this…" – said Yasha amazed.
- "But it kinda feels like when I sang the Song of Proof…" – said Gabriela surprised.
- "Maybe she's using her remaining power as former Priestess of the Dragon…?" – wondered Henry. However, the song suddenly did a crescendo and they all stopped muttering among themselves. They then heard Illyusa singing vocalizations as the song was reduced to flute and arpeggios.
Tiu...
Tlar abal xi, Pinamsaimat cubrara milla ika...
However...
Before soon, the Shadow will cover everything...
However, the next instant Illyusa started singing in full again, and they saw how the images they had before them of the Dragonians living their usual lives shattered in pieces and were swallowed by a dark purple mist. But then… the song fell completely silent… until a piano started being heard, and Illyusa reappeared before them with her eyes closed and started talking as the music kept going on its own:
- "Hydrast castfalara marclia, iolois castfalara iolar,
terrasch necsae yst necfesara, pyrasec dat biosat nyolara,
yst hyzella, bie lusya yst pinambrea vasperara,
yst milla cezetara lia cael yst kanarkatse.
Mekiasaks aya lilfetes, yst risphnasez ala paf castfal quia.
(The water will stop flowing, the wind will stop blowing,
the earth will decay and rot away, the fire of life will extinguish,
and finally, both darkness and light will disappear,
and everything will become an eternal silence and emptiness.
The gears are already turning, and there is no way to stop this from happening.)" -
As she talked, they saw images appearing before them: first they saw how the ocean was evaporated and all lakes, rivers, ponds and the like became dried. Next, they saw how the wind currents stopped blowing and all plant life started withering and dying away, as the ground under them turned to a disgusting black color. This was followed by seeing how all flames went out and the molten material in the volcanos and under the ground solidified. And finally, they saw how the Elemental Nuclei for both Light and Darkness started shaking, cracked and shattered before their pieces turned into dust and vanished. The vision then finished showing planet Dragonia turning to red and black, being covered by a black shroud, and vanishing completely from sight.
Soif fys sossaks hyzel solfas vankrus,
mior risphara sossaks dsiate?
So when our final hour comes,
what will we wish for?
As Illyusa finished the song, she looked at the Earth party with a mix of pity and curiosity, as if she was waiting to hear what their final wishes would be when the world died, and they got caught in its imminent collapse.
{End Song}
Everyone was stunned in silence from the vision they had been shown. The first one to speak was Miguel, who did so still shaken up: - "That's… that's the answer you found for this world's future?" –
- "No doubt about it" – said Iadlase as he smirked with satisfaction at their reaction – "According to the Biousakatse Yaoulma, the probabilities of this being the world's final outcome are of around a 90%. Therefore, there is no point in you trying anything now" –
- "The song just now… Was it using the same melody as the Elemental Baptism song?" – asked Gabriela having recognized the melody that was heard as Illyusa said the prophecy.
- "Yes, and that's the definite proof that the prophecy comes from the Yaoulma itself" – nodded Illyusa with a sad smile – "Because the Yaoulma is born from the Elemental Nuclei and it returns to them, all songs dealing with all six of them at once feature that melody, no matter how unpleasant the truths learned from them might be" –
- "But it's not a 100% chance that this world will perish" – said Henry. While he still was a bit shocked from having witnessed what would happen if they failed, he still was decided to keep going – "There's still a 10% chance that we might save this world. Right, guys?" –
He said turning to his friends. His words rekindled the fighting spirit in their hearts.
- "Yeah! As long as there's a chance for us to go home victorious, we should take it!" – said Carlos fist-pumping.
- "Only losers give up when things get hard!" – said Tiffany rolling her hands in fists and jumping up and down.
- "And we can't fail Dragonia after all it's done for us!" – said Yasha with a decided face.
- "Yeah! We owe a lot to Elaer-san and Fileia-san, and to all our classmates for having treated us so well after we came to this world!" – said Miko smiling.
- "And we have to repay them as well for all of that!" – said Kagome nodding with determination.
- "So y'all are wrong if ya think we're just gonna run with the tail between our legs from a prophecy!" – said Inuyasha placing his hand on his hip and smiling arrogantly at the ghosts.
- "This world is really beautiful, so it'd be a waste to just let it die like that!" – said Kember smiling.
- "Besides, we still need to get and go know it better! I mean, I wanna start practicing alchemy too to help!" – said Roger laughing.
- "Besides… the King and the Queen are counting on us!" – said Gabriela after shaking her head to get away the apocalyptic images from the prophecy.
- "Yeah! Even if our chances aren't the best, even if Tenebross is that powerful, we've still got to try for the sake of everyone who's counting on us!" – said Gerardo after he blinked a couple times – "You might have failed, but we won't do the same mistakes and we'll be sure to do all we can to save Dragonia! That's final!" -
The former Seirei ghosts all looked at each other stunned and blinked as if the determination the Earth party was showing were a joke or lie. However, Iadlase then started laughing out of nowhere, and he covered his face with a hand as he continued.
- "Hey, what's so funny!?" – shouted Gabriela angry.
- "Ahaha… That was a good joke!" – said he as he lowered his hand again – "That you won't repeat the same mistakes we did? That you won't fail in the same way we did? Please, you don't even know how we failed or why we died in the first place!" –
- "Oh, I do know it!" – said Gerardo smirking as he took a step forward – "Feltes told me about it: you got corrupted by the shadows, and you killed all your friends due to it!" –
- "And do you know then why I got corrupted by the shadow?" – said Iadlase with a look of patent irritation on his face.
- "Ugh…" – Gerardo gritted his teeth.
- "I see you don't. But well, I don't care enough to tell you the reasons for that" – said Iadlase in a bemused voice as he shook his head – "In any case, given the Prophecy of Destruction my sister sang was not enough to convince you cretins… Maybe it's time to show you how we perished…" -
- "No way… I know you showed us a vision with that song and Miko showed us a vision of how life is in Dragonia during the Elemental Baptism… But you can actually show us memories just like that?" – asked Miguel as he recoiled with wide eyes. His friends had reacted in a similar manner too.
- "Oh, even better" - said Kiolse with a smug smile – "We'll make you all experience them just like we experienced them…" -
- "Yeah, that's perfect Miguel… I'm sure that this will be more than enough for them to understand why they're better off abandoning this world now…" – said Iadlase. However, his face had changed from a mocking smile to a gaze partway through between rage and sadness.
- "In that case, I'll show you all that right now" – said Illyusa as she raised her hands to the cloudy skies.
- "Wait!" – shouted Gabriela, but it went unheard. The next instant, a strong white shine emerged from Illyusa's hands and enshrouded them all.
- "Ugh, what happened to me?" – asked Gerardo to himself, but when his eyes focused again, he realized he was walking through a plain under a cloudy sky with the other former Seirei, though he saw everything as if he had a blurry filter over his eyes. His vision cleared up a few instants later, and while he tried to move his hands, they didn't respond to him. Neither did his legs when he tried to stop walking.
- "Stop trying to play the tough guy. Now we're inside my memories and you can't do anything beyond seeing and feeling" – said Iadlase in a mocking voice.
- "Well, at the least we're close now" – Gerardo's mouth pronounced these words with him unable to do anything to stop it.
- "Yeah, Gerar! Soon you'll purify yourself from these shadows!" – said Illyusa skipping cheerily next to him.
- "The ceremony should be a piece of cake between all the combat experience and knowledge you've got" – said Mihoka smiling to him.
- "That's right, we just need to keep at it a little longer, Your Highness" – said Kiolse behind him.
- "Miguel, I've told you at the least a thousand times that I don't want you calling me by my title. We're cousins after all" – said Iadlase with an annoyed tone in his voice.
- "In any case, we should hurry. We don't know when that thing will show up again" – said Renki in a pessimistic tone.
- "Don't be such a downer, Renki!" – said Elte as he laughed – "At this rate you're gonna get us all killed!" -
- "Anyhow, the location for the tower's manifestation is pretty close. We should be there in a few more minutes" – said Pyrhelzia checking their location in her Dragtemn.
However, at that point Gerardo (Iadlase) felt a horrible pressure on his chest and a black aura started welling up around him.
- "No… Not now…!" – said he, recognizing the signs as he fell to his knees and grabbed his head with both hands.
- 'What… what is this…!?' – asked Gerardo terrified.
- 'The moment… in which our lives went to shit…' – said Iadlase in a bitter voice as tears welled up on his eyes and he turned around to not see the following scenes.
- "Gerar, what's happening!?" – asked Illyusa kneeling next to him.
- "Are you okay, Gerar!?" – asked Mihoka rushing to his side.
- "Everyone… get away from me… that thing… is coming…" – said he as he used all his strength to maintain dominion over his own self.
- "Never! We're never leaving you behind!" – said Kiolse as he unsheathed his swords.
- "We're friends, and the last thing we'd do now is leaving you alone!" – said Renki drawing out his own sword – "We'll keep you under control, even if that means we've got to bind you down with chains and lock you in a cage!" –
- "Don't force me to blow you up" – threatened Pyrhelzia partially in jest.
- "I'm sure nothing bad's going to happen!" – said Cryaltha as she winked.
- "Thanks, everybody… But it's too late… RUN AWAY!" – shouted Iadlase as his body was enshrouded in a black aura, pushing everyone away. When the aura vanished, he was wearing a black dragon armor, but it didn't emanate any sort of luster or shine: instead it seemed to be swallowing the light around itself, and it had a black skull in the circular plate that served to mark the wearer's element. Finally, Iadlase himself had also changed: his eyes had become bloody red with two small black dots for pupils and was looking at everyone else with a demented and bloodthirsty expression.
- "No… we've got to stop him!" – shouted Renki as they all summoned their dragon armors and their dragons changed to their large forms.
- "KILL! KILL!" – shouted Iadlase as he charged at them.
A few minutes later, all of his friends were now dead, with pieces of their dragon armors scattered all over the plain, which also had multiple blood splotches and pools all over. Their dragons were all dead too, including Iadlase's own. Only Mihoka and Illyusa remained now, while Iadlase flied in circles over the plain like a vulture searching for prey…
- "No, Gerar… please… come back to us…" – said Mihoka looking at him with a pleading expression, even though she was in a pretty bad shape herself: she had wounds all over, her armor was covered in cracks and was outright broken in several points.
- "M-Miho…" – said Illyusa shivering in Mihoka's arms. She had several cuts in the face and arms even though the others had died in an attempt to keep her from getting hurt.
- "Gaby, please flee from this place… I'll try to keep him busy…" – said Mihoka as she raised her bow again.
- "No… I won't leave you behind! I don't want you to die too!" – said her as she burst into tears.
However, Iadlase chose that precise instant to swoop down, and even though Mihoka had erected a light and water barrier to keep him away, he shattered it and caused her to drop to the ground from the impact, while Illyusa was sent flying a few meters away…
- "Please… wake up… don't give in to that thing…" – pleaded Mihoka with tears in her eyes.
- "BLOOD!" – shouted Iadlase. The next instant, he raised his sword…
- "GERAR, NO!" – shouted Illyusa raising her hand, but it was too late now… Iadlase's sword stabbed Mihoka in the chest, cutting cleanly through her armor, and he then drew it out in the same way. Mihoka's armor vanished, revealing her bloodstained blue and white shouf, with the bloodstains spreading little by little.
- "Gerar… please… don't… don't kill her…" – these were her last words before her eyes closed and her body went limp…
- "No… Miho… Miho… Why?" – sobbed Illyusa, kneeling on the grass as she cried. However, the next instant she received a blow that knocked her on her back over the grass, and an arm grabbed her in a way she couldn't break away from… It was her brother, and she was now looking directly at his face… The same person she loved so much and who always showed such a compassionate and kind face was now a bloodthirsty monster…
- "Gerar… P… please… no… don't do it…" – she cried.
- "LIGHT! PRIESTESS!" KILL!" –
- "GERAAAAAR!" –
Then, everything went black…
- 'What… happened?' – asked Gerardo with tears in his eyes – 'No... don't tell me you… actually…' –
- 'SEE IT BY YOURSELF!' – shouted Iadlase enraged as he broke down into crying.
The plain then reappeared, showing the memories continued…
- 'No… It's enough… please… don't show me any more…' – said Gerardo falling to his knees as he closed his eyes with force. He already had an idea of what he was going to see now and was pleading Iadlase to stop. However, the images continued being visible even though he had his eyes closed.
- 'Close your… mouth… and see…' – said Iadlase as he sobbed.
- "Ugh, what… what have… I done…? – said he, grabbing his head as if he were suffering from a strong headache. He rose and stood up, but then, his mind started tracing back what had been happening before he lost consciousness…
- "No… No…" – said Iadlase with a quivering voice as he looked around. At the distance, he could see several bodies lying on the grass. When he got close enough to see who it was…
- "No! Please, someone be alive!" They can't all be dead!" – shouted him horrified – "Miguel! Renki! Elte! Pyrhelzia! Cryaltha! Iadla!" -
He tried to revive them using his healing powers, but it was for nothing. He noticed they all seemed to have stab wounds on the heart area, and he then realized his sword and hands were stained with blood…
- "No… This can't be real… Please, no…" – said he, looking at his hands, and at that point, he was assaulted by a horrible feeling – "No, impossible… Mihoka and Gaby are…!?" -
A few instants later, he found Mihoka's body and he ran to her…
Mihoka had her eyes closed, the face covered in tear trails and with an expression of great sadness, while her shouf, formerly white and blue, was now completely bloodstained. Her hands were livid to the sides, cold like ice shards. Iadlase fell to his knees and he started sobbing…
- "No… My beloved… My dearest Mihoka… we promised we'd always be together… ever since we met in that forest ten years ago…" – he said as he managed to between the sobbing and the tears. He grabbed her hands and placed them over his forehead as he kept crying – "Why…? Why… did this have to happen…?" -
- 'Please… stop… I don't want to see any more…' – said Gerardo, who felt as if he had been completely broken in the inside from seeing this. He pleaded again to Iadlase to stop, especially now he was sure the worst part was about to come.
- "SHUT IT! YOU'LL SEE THIS TO THE END!' – shouted Iadlase between tears.
(BGM: Ushinawareta Ashita – Haruka Shimotsuki)
He then turned to the side… And it was then when he felt he was living the worst of his nightmares… The horror he would have never wanted to witness if he could…
- "Ga… Ga… Gaby…?" – asked him in an incredulous tone upon seeing what he had before his eyes, but then… he realized it. His beloved sister was lying face up on the ground, with her beautiful white and silver shouf covered in blood that originated from a wound in the chest. Unlike Mihoka, her eyes were still open, but were now empty as a bottomless void. She still had tears of horror and sadness in them, and the expression in them left no room for doubt when it came to what she felt in her last instants, compounded with a string of blood that was coming out from her mouth.
Iadlase took a step away from her, his legs being wobbly to the point they couldn't continue supporting him and he fell to the ground. He then started pounding on the ground with his fists and kept doing so until he had them bruised and had blood streaming through them both – "GABY, NO! NO! THIS CAN'T BE TRUE! NO! WHYYYYY!?" -
He then crawled to her side and cradled her body on his arms, to then look up at the cloudy sky between his tears…
- "IADLAST… WHY DID YOU LET THIS HAPPEN!? DAMN IT! DAMN IT! DAMN IT AAAALL!" -
He kept screaming until he couldn't continue doing it anymore, and he then broke down into tears. He would never be able to listen to his sister's voice, caress her, play with her, laugh with her, cry with her, see her smile… Now all of that was gone forever, swallowed by the eternal darkness…
- "Gerar, let's go play to the forest!" –
- "Gerar, I wanna go see her Miho!" –
- "Let's go walk through the garden!" –
- "Teach me how to play the harpsichord!" –
- "I want to complete my training to become the Priestess our world needs…" –
- "I love our world and everyone who lives in it!" –
- "I love you, Gerar!" -
All those memories surfaced from his mind and overlapped with each other… Before shattering before his eyes like a mirror being broken by a hammer, which reflected the smile he would never be able to see again. He arched backwards and could only let out a scream worthy of a dragon whose heart had been pierced by a spear.
- "Gaby… Mihoka… I… I killed them… with my own hands… I killed them…" – he kept on muttering while he used his water magic to remove the bloodstains from Illyusa's clothes. He passed his hand over her face to close her eyes, to softly caress her cheeks and to put to the side the bangs that had fallen over her face. He then stepped a bit way from her, took her arms and crossed them over her chest. He then did the same with Mihoka: he cleaned her clothes and face, he softly caressed her cheeks and hair, and crossed her arms over her chest.
He kept on repeating the names of Illyusa and Mihoka, and crying during all this… The people he loved the most, alongside the friends he appreciated so much, were now trapped in the eternal illusion from where there was no return…
He then stood between the bodies of his beloved and his sister, and drew his sword…
- "There is no point… to anything now… Let this rotten world… perish with us…" – said he between sobs as he saw his own grieving face reflected on the bloodstained blade. He raised it, and he stabbed his own chest with all his strength, falling dead instantly. The sword made a dim sound as it fell on the grass, while Iadlase's body fell with extended arms, so it would look like he was hugging both Mihoka and Illyusa when he got to the ground, with the tears still falling from his closed eyes…
{Stop BGM}
- "No… stop… stop… I don't want… to keep seeing this horror… Stop… I beg you…" – said Gerardo now they had returned to reality, still kneeling on the ground and with his face cupped in his hands as he cried in horror and sadness, all while Iadla was screeching sadly next to him and tried to cheer him up by rubbing her head on his hair. He loved his sister with the same intensity Iadlase loved Illyusa, and that was why this experience had shaken him up so badly: he would have done exactly the same thing if he had lost Gabriela…
{BGM: Encounter – Hanakisou PC}
- "Now you know how it feels…" – said Iadlase, who still had tears running through his eyes. Everybody else had been privy to the illusion as well and were every bit as shocked as they were horrified. However, the most affected ones were Tiffany, Miko, Yasha and Gabriela: they were all clustered up, hugging each other and crying bitterly. Kagome went to them and hugged Miko and Gabriela, even though she still kept herself crying. Inuyasha did the same with Yasha, but taking care so no one else would see his face…
- "That was the end of our journey, which like we said, was the reason why you guys got picked up" – said Kiolse with crossed arms and closed eyes, with his face contorted by pain.
- "This doesn't have any sort of exaggeration, dramatization or something?" – asked Henry: despite being shaken up by this, he still had enough courage to ask this from Iadlase – "You yourself admitted this was an illusion" –
- "An illusion that projected things just like we lived them that fateful day" – replied Iadlase in a low growl in response to the mere idea they could even think of considering this a lie – "And I swear there wasn't even a bit of dramatization or exaggeration there" –
Everyone was stunned from hearing this.
- "Anyhow, I think this should be enough now" – said Kiolse with crossed arms as he glared at them – "You'll end up retracing our steps and dying in that same way if you intend to continue with this" –
- "Yeah. So, shouldn't you spare yourselves the sadness and agony, and go back to your worlds?" – said Mihoka with a sad face – "It's not like you don't have your own lives to live and people awaiting you in your homes, right?" –
Gabriela, Miko, Kagome, and Yasha were still hugging each other crying over the horrendous vision, while Gerardo was still on the ground weeping from what he had experienced in Iadlase's shoes. The rest of the party looked at each other confused and scared: as they just had experienced what it was like to have their necks sliced off or their chests stabbed, they seemed to have lost their will to go on.
{Stop BGM}
- "…hell…" – muttered Inuyasha as he turned to look at the ghosts.
- "Huh?" – asked Renki frowning his eyes – "What was that?" –
- "Like hell!" – shouted Inuyasha – "Yeah, we know ya guys got killed in a really awful way, but we've still gotta keep going!" –
- "So you say," – said Iadlase with an unimpressed face – "But I don't see even the slightest speck of a will to fight in your other friends. I mean, my counterpart is still in tatters emotionally speaking over what'd be the worst nightmare for us both" –
- "Yeah… It's true it was horrible and painful… And it's true we might end up just repeating that…" – said Kagome standing up finally and turning to face the ghosts. She then wiped off her tears from her eyes with her hands – "But we've got no choice!" –
This also fired up Miko, who stopped crying and stood up:
- "What Onee-san says is true!" – said her wiping her eyes with her shouf's sleeves – "I know I said this before, but we owe a lot to the people here! We can't abandon them now they need us!" –
- "Yeah, we owe our lives to Fileia-san, Elaer-san, Tiela-sensei, and everyone else who welcomed and helped us during the time we lived here!" – said Yasha doing the same thing.
This reignited the spark in the hearts of most of the others, and they started showing again the determination to keep going with their journey.
- "I need to learn more about the medicines and alchemy they do here! I wanna use that to improve things back at home!" – said Henry.
- "You and me! Plus, we've gotta help any people who might be sick or injured here!" – said Roger.
- "I still haven't finished seeing everything this world has to offer when it comes to landscapes and art!" – said Kember.
- "And I gotta learn to fight better to defend myself and my friends!" – said Tiffany.
- "Hey, that's what I was gonna say too!" – said Carlos.
The dragons they had with them all were screeching in an uplifting way too.
- "Hmph, but how about your Priestess of the Dragon and your candidate to Seirei of Water?" – asked Iadlase with crossed arms as he tapped his elbow with his index finger – "Even if you all want to keep going, what do you hope to accomplish with two Seirei and the main Priestess missing?" –
This immediately cooled down their enthusiasm: Gabriela and Gerardo were still covering their faces and weeping on the ground while Drago and Iadla were doing all they could to cheer them up.
- "Yeah… It's true they must've gotten the worst part from these visions we saw…" – say Henry as they walked to their side.
- "Well… Miko and I saw everything from Mihoka's viewpoint… It was really horrible too…" – said Kagome as she looked at Inuyasha with grave expression, and she and Miko shivered. Inuyasha could only return her a downcast gaze, knowing this brought back memories of how things got whenever he lost control of his youkai blood, and the vision had pretty much showed them the worst-case scenario of what he could have done to her.
- "Gerar… Come, get up" – said Miguel as he tried grabbing him by the arm.
- "Migue… Thanks…" – said Gerardo as he finally stopped weeping and awkwardly tried to stand up again.
- "Come, Gaby… Don't cry…" – said Tiffany as she did the same thing. Gabriela didn't reply back, but she accepted her help and she found herself on her feet again. Both siblings looked at each other with sadness and fear, and they had to make great efforts to not run to each other's side and burst into tears again.
- "So, what's your decision?" – asked Illyusa after a few instants – "Your friends seem intent on continuing this journey, but it doesn't look like you two share that opinion, do you?" –
Gerardo looked around at his friends, who were waiting expectantly to see what he'd reply to the ghosts. Gabriela also looked at him, divided between expectancy and fear.
- 'Damn… What I'm supposed to do now…?' – thought to himself – 'Everyone is waiting for me to decide…' –
He closed his eyes and gulped down saliva. The image of Illyusa's corpse reappeared on his mind at that instant, while the next moment, the image of his friends looking at him for guidance was superimposed over it.
- 'Goodness…! I hope I'm making the right choice…!' – he said after taking a big breath. He opened his eyes and after throwing a doubt-filled gaze at his friends, he looked directly at Iadlase.
- "We'll continue this journey" – said Gerardo. Everyone else in the party nodded with serious faces.
- "Gerar…" – said Gabriela wondering herself if this was the right choice to make.
- "…Unbelievable…" – said Iadlase as he rolled his hands into fists and started shivering. The other former Seirei were livid: some of them were agape, but they all had their eyes the size of saucers, while Illyusa and Mihoka both covered their mouths with their hands.
- "Huh?" – muttered Gerardo with a doubtful face, thinking he could have misheard or imagined what Iadlase said.
- "I can't believe this!" – shouted Iadlase grabbing his head with his hands – "We showed you the most probable outcome for this world, we showed you our last moments to give you a taste of what could happen to you guys, and despite all that, you still have the insane idea of wanting to continue this ridiculous journey!?" –
- "What's your problem!? Didn't I tell you we need to do this, or our worlds will also perish after Dragonia collapses!?" – shouted Gerardo as he frowned at him – "Do you find it that offensive that someone who isn't you is trying to save this world!?" –
- "Yeah, it's true I find it offensive because these were our roles!" – said Iadlase making a sweeping motion with a hand as he scowled, although his eyes seemed to be showing pity – "But more importantly, I don't want you guys to throw away your lives for a world that owes you all nothing! This is a problem we should be solving ourselves, not depending on other worlds' help!" –
- "So, this is all due to a misaimed attempt to save our lives?" – asked Kagome after she and the rest of the party had blinked in surprise to Iadlase's words.
- "To be honest, we actually pity you. We don't want you all to end up the same way we did" – said Illyusa shaking her head.
- "But as you're all so stubborn and wishing to die so early, looks like we'll have to do this" – said Iadlase as his face contorted – "We hoped to do this the easy way, but looks like we'll have to do it the hard way" –
- "So, what do you plan to do? It can't be worse than having made us experience the way you died" – asked Henry in a bemused voice.
- "We'll make your journey end here!" – said Iadlase as he and the other ghosts put themselves in singing posture.
(Song: Hitomi wo Tsugumono – Haruka Shimotsuki)
A loud thunder was heard at the distance, while the rain started falling from the stone-colored sky.
- "What're they tryin' to do?" – asked Inuyasha crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow at the situation.
- "No way… Everyone, put barriers or something!" – said Kagome alarmed as she and Miko started chanting at once.
- "What!?" – said Gabriela. Their dragons were in alert and flying frantically around them. Everyone else started looking around, while Roger and Miguel tried enshrouding themselves with a wind current using the scarce control they had learned to harness over it, but the next instant, they felt a strong pressure and were rendered unable to move. This also cut off Kagome's and Miko's attempts to sing and dissipated the wind currents both Miguel and Roger had conjured, while the dragons fell from the air as if they had been stunned.
- "What're you doing!?" – shouted Gerardo. They then started hearing a choir, and Iadlase's voice started talking right to Gerardo's mind…
- "Tast jaullwanasez" –
(You don't understand.)
-"Sos jaullwa!" -
(I do understand!)
- "Tast jiavvnasez quarla phaf wiast hag" –
(You have no reason to be here.)
- "Sos jiavv!" –
(I have one!)
- "Tast oulla wiast Gerardo... Llican sos...
Tiu wiastnasez gimalz... pruio jaullwanasez quia…" -
(Your name is Gerardo… Like me…
But we're not the same… Therefore, you don't understand this…)
-"Jaullwanasez mior?" –
(I don't understand what?)
夜嵐 吹いさせる慟哭は 壊われた聖印を攫う
魂は怨嗟と混じり合い 汚れられて行く
永遠の悪夢に因われる
The shattered sacred crests are carried off by the laments blowing in the night storms.
The souls entangle themselves with the resentment and get stained,
being caught in the eternal nightmare.
Immediately as the song settled in, everyone started feeling a splitting headache and screamed due to it, as horrendous visions started manifesting before them: they saw towns getting razed to the ground, people getting killed by all sorts of horrible monsters, and people going crazy and going on rampages.
愚かな偽者が関係はない世界に選ばれて
全然知らず水と風に砕け散られよう
あるはずのない運命に引っ込められて、
確たる悲運のみが待ち受けられる
Idiotic replicas are chosen by a world they have nothing to do with,
crushed by a wind and water they know nothing about.
Drawn to a destiny they shouldn't have,
only certain doom awaits them.
The pain subsided a little, and they tried closing off their eyes to shield themselves from the visions as they all held their heads in their hands.
- "It's pointless" – said Iadlase's voice as the song's vocal stopped for a brief choral interlude – "This song itself and the visions it conjures are beamed directly into your minds, so closing your eyes to block the sights or plugging your ears to block the sounds is useless" -
惨めな愚か者に魅惑せる呪文 誰が唱え続ける
結晶の牢獄に囚われる骸 安らぎを捜し出来ぬ
ただ自分の想いの名残に縋り続ける
Someone keeps singing the curse that charms these pitiable fools.
Corpses caught in a crystal jail, unable to find relief,
cling to the remains of their own feelings.
The visions then started alternating with the vision of the last moments of the previous Seirei they had been shown previously, and they all started shedding tears once again from it in addition to the worsening headaches.
They started shaking their heads in a vain attempt to get these nightmarish visions out from their minds. However, the visions only strengthened the more they struggled, and now visions of the damned raising from their graves wrenching toward them, moaning audibly "save me" and "save us", and grabbing them with their bloodstained hands had been added to the horrors they were already witnessing. Gerardo's party soon ran out of energy to keep bearing with these torments and just fell to their knees, to the front, or on their backs.
この奏でられる協奏曲に所属ではない、
見知らぬ意志に作曲された不規則な旋律よ
その弔歌は抗えぬ傀儡の糸を
やがて終焉の刃へ導くだろう
Dissonant melodies composed by Wills unknown to us,
this is a symphony you shouldn't be part of.
Its dirge will soon lead the unopposing puppets' strings
toward the blade of demise.
As the song repeated its hook once again, all the previous Seirei noticed their successors seemed to have been broken by this: they were lying on the ground or on their knees with their eyes fully open and dulled, and their faces frozen in fear or sadness. Then, Iadlase and his group drew ghostly versions of their own weapons, while the ones with guns or bows were loading or readying them. All of these weapons were shining with an otherworldly and eerie light.
Kostesae nila,
fiollnasez tsufa quia mid.
Tast tsuconnu e... necraisara.
Realize it now,
there is no point in walking down this path.
If you continue following it... you will die.
The song was then reduced to a single voice sung by Illyusa, and as she was nearing the final word, the previous Seirei looked at their successors with disgust and hatred, and either charged at them or prepared to fire at them. But right as the melee weapons were about to strike them on the head or the projectiles were about to home in them…
*ding*
A bell had rung somewhere near them.
- "W-What…!?" – said everyone as they came back to their senses. They felt their blood go cold upon noticing how they had a bullet, an arrow or a blade just a few centimeters from their foreheads: Iadlase had almost struck Gerardo, Illyusa's arrow was a few centimeters away from Gabriela, Renki was close to Henry, Elte's bullets were near Roger and Kember, Cryaltha was near Carlos, Pyrhelzia was about to slash Tiffany, Inuyasha and Yasha, and Mihoka's arrows were about to hit Miko and Kagome. However, their weapons and projectiles trembled slightly to then fade away as if they had been made from mist.
*ding*
- "Damn it…" – muttered Iadlase under his breath – "I forgot the Holy Bell was about to ring… How stupid of me…" –
- "Looks like we won't be able to do anything to them today…" – said Mihoka shaking her head as her transparent form also started trembling.
- "What's happening here!?" – asked Henry swinging his head so fast from a side to the other that his neck started hurting – "Were you guys trying to kill us or something!? And what's up with your forms having gotten blurrier!?" –
- "We tried to break your minds to then kick you out from our dimension" – said Kiolse with an ironic smile, although his voice started sounding as if it were coming from a badly tuned radio – "And you were spared only because the Holy Bell started ringing" -
*ding*
- "This bell… it's an incredibly powerful spiritual purifier!" – said Kagome feeling the strength of the waves the bell emitted with its rings.
- "Yeah… It was made with the purpose of purging regretful souls, including those that a mere exorcism ritual can't… So, we can't stay here anymore…" – explained Illyusa with a bitter smile as her voice went up and down, and her form seemed like she was behind a moisture-covered window.
- "We were literally saved by the bell…" – said Roger clenching his teeth.
- "After we almost got killed like dogs…" – said Gerardo as he felt cold sweat running through his back.
- "We wouldn't have killed you, we would just have destroyed your minds" – said Iadlase, frowning annoyed as his transparent form became harder and harder to see – "Consider yourselves lucky for having escaped unscathed… But you have been warned already that you're only marching to your deaths with this… And mark my words, our souls will soon coalesce here again… So never come back to this place unless you have a death wish…" –
And with a final ring of the bell, their figures and weapons completely vanished into the air. The overwhelming pressure that had been reigning upon the courtyard was finally lifted, and the party could move again. Their dragons started flying again and rushed to their respective partners, growling worried.
{End Song}
- "Is everybody okay?" – asked Miko as they all gathered and checked themselves.
- "Yeah, no wounds on any of us" – said Henry as he noticed they seemed physically well.
- "But mentally and spiritually… well…" – said Kember worried as he saw how Gerardo and Gabriela were hugging each other with pained faces.
- "Gerar, Gaby…" – said Miguel as he looked at his cousins with worry.
- "Guys, we better move out" – said Inuyasha – "Ya know what these ghosts said, yeah? We gotta finish whatever we've gotta do here and then head out as fast as we can" –
- "I agree with Nii-san" – said Yasha looking downward – "We really got the devil's own luck escaping from that song, and I don't really want to tempt fate again" –
- "In any case, looks like the place where we gotta go is over there" – said Carlos pointing in the direction of the castle walls, as he had walked behind the statues after they had checked they were okay – "I saw an entranceway with some stairs going down over here" –
- "You think that's where the Epitaph the king and the queen told us about is hidden?" – asked Kagome with an inquisitive voice.
- "I agree with Carlos. Old castles tend to have passageways into catacombs or hidden chambers, and they sound like the best places to hide something as important as that epitaph" – said Kember as the party started walking on that direction.
- "So, could we say the other Gaby was actually guiding us to the Epitaph?" – asked Tiffany raising an eyebrow.
- "It seems so, but…" – said Carlos.
- "They also tried to kill us off, or at the very least, to leave us like ingredients for a salad" – said Roger shivering.
- "But they also said they didn't want us to walk down the same path they did…" – said Miko grabbing her chin with her hand.
- "Anyhow, let's discuss this at the inn tonight" – said Miguel in a sharp voice – "For now, let's focus in finding the Epitaph and reading it. Once that's done, let's hurry and leave this eerie place" –
No one had any objections, and deciding to hurry up, they all ran to the entranceway following Carlos' lead.
(Ending: Contrasto – Akiko Shikata)
However, before going down the stairs, both Gerardo and Gabriela turned around and gave a last look at the statues adorning the graves of their predecessors.
- "…We really could end up like them…" – muttered Gerardo under his breath as he shivered.
- "Gerar…" – said Gabriela as she clung to her brother and trembled. Both had to make large efforts to not start crying again. Then, they turned again toward the entranceway and walked down the steps to follow their friends…
{End of Chapter}