Disclaimer: I hereby disclaim all rights to all characters (save for those of my own creation) in this extremely painful encounter… especially for the one who has suffered so much already.
~保護者~
"Open Wounds"
~保護者~
That had been far, far too close of a call.
Moments like these were when Kaden saw most clearly just how ill-suited he was for the various jobs he'd tried to play in his life. Friend. Father. God. Each had been handled poorly. Too poorly for him to articulate. Too poorly for him to have any right to ask for forgiveness. And just when he'd thought he was finally receiving just a sliver of the punishment he knew he deserved… Nareish had seen fit to bring him back. His suffering was going to have to continue, it would seem.
In truth, that was for the best. His mind had been clouded and he'd been distracted at the time, but now he could see just how badly he had fucked up once again. This era… it was a mess. The dismal number of Light users was largely his fault. He'd carried out a form of genocide against them. Just one more thing he could never atone for no matter what he did, no matter how sorry he was now. But that was only part of the picture.
There were far too many beings of Darkness around these days who weren't evil. Most who had been upholding the neutral part of balance had either died or, like him, been corrupted long ago. Yes, there were the usual Tokarians out there somewhere, but their population would never be enough on its own. His Darkness was making a big difference, what with him being a descendant of Zenith and all, but… Zenith himself was active again. Shadow's Darkness was finally waking up. Ylden was still out there. Other beings with their kind of Darkness would be born over time. He just… wasn't needed. He wasn't a necessary part of the equation.
Had that been the only potential issue at play, his recent death wouldn't have bothered him so much. As things stood, however, he knew he was needed for one thing. Zenith, the original God of Death, had passed his role on through their family since times of old. That role had been Kaden's since the days of kingdoms and clans on Mobius. Only… he'd never been fit for the work. Yes, he knew what to do. He'd figured things out quickly enough with Ylden's help. But he had been so wrapped up in his own sufferings on Mobius, and eventually in his friends and his family and the many wars he'd partaken in, to do his job correctly. Maintaining things from afar could only accomplish so much.
And then he'd died by overusing his Darkness-defeating magic to take down Dark Gaia without ever passing the role on. Because he'd been irresponsible. Because he'd been an idiot. The role had gone extinct because of his negligence. Balance's only saving grace at the time had been the fact that the Realms of Death hadn't been overwhelmed and breaking down. Today… Today things were different.
The Realms were unstable, struggling, so full of spirits and so low on "staff" that everything was in danger of collapse. Nareish was mostly to blame, but there was no pretending he wasn't also heavily at fault. He could feel that Zenith was working on repairing things, but in truth the God of Death was needed to handle this. Only, he had gotten himself killed. Again. Nareish had revived him instantaneously, so far as he could tell, though. In doing so, she prevented existence from having a chance to break in an all new way. Why she'd done so, he had no idea. He was wary of being grateful about anything his enemies ever did, but this was one point he supposed he would have to concede on.
It was high, high time that he stopped being allowed chances to ruin things. With that in mind, he closed his eyes and concentrated, all of his attention on immediately passing his role on to Ylden. Currently, he was seated against a boulder on another deserted world, resting briefly with his sword in hand. As soon as he was done with his current task, he intended to get up and leave again. Wounded or not, he had no business seeking respite. There was so much he had to do before he died again… whether by someone else's hand or his own.
The moment he was finished, he opened his eyes and stood. He wasted no time in teleporting away. His energies were concealed again now that he was done making such blatant use of them, thus ensuring he couldn't be easily tracked down and followed. Facing Ylden right now wasn't something he wasn't willing to do. He'd done… so much to the other man, and to his daughter. That made him no better than the worst kind of scum out there, and he knew it.
Given that, he had no right to force Ylden to suffer his presence again. Not Ylden, and not anyone else. While he couldn't pretend that it wouldn't hurt some people, his family especially, he also refused to entertain the idea that most of the people he'd once known were worried about him. Worried about him becoming a monster again, maybe. His death, however… it would probably come as a relief. A painful one for a few, possibly, but in the end that was better than them going through life like this… never knowing when or if he'd turn on them again.
He couldn't live like that, either.
He sure as hell wouldn't force them to.
With his thoughts spiraling, Kaden gripped the handle of his sword tightly. His jaw clenched, he lashed out with the blade down the length of his other arm. Pain bloomed, forcing him to focus on physical matters for just a moment and not emotional ones. That was enough to clear his head for the time being, to allow him to force himself to stop thinking about anything other than his current goal as he teleported again. He needed to find out what the hell Nareish was up to. And if he died again, truly died, in the process… then so be it.
Meanwhile, in the Realms of Death, Ylden was reeling once more. Not only had he just been hit with the news that Han didn't want any help, but now he was the new God of Death. It wasn't how he wanted this to happen. This wasn't right.
The cat shot through the realms and brought himself to Zenith, breathing heavily. "Zenith, what the hell is going on with Kaden?" he demanded.
Out of the Darkness of the area, Zenith formed in front of Ylden. "What?" he asked, almost audibly frowning. He was silent for a long moment, presumably checking over the state of his descendant through some means or another. "He died," he eventually said, "but nowhere near long enough to wind up here. He must have regained consciousness from the purification some time before, as his remaining injuries suggest he fought back." And he passed our family's role onto you… Not an ill-advised choice, though the timing is potentially… concerning.
Ylden put a hand on his face. "Fucking hell. This is fucked." The cat groaned openly. "Where is Kaden?"
"Somewhere in or near Nareish's realm," Zenith answered. "I can't track his exact position."
There wasn't an ounce of hesitation in Ylden's action, immediately opening a portal and moving to go through it. "I need to find him."
Trying to stop Ylden was likely a wasted effort. However, there was one thing Zenith could do. "You have five minutes to do what you wish, then I am personally dragging you back."
Ylden was silent for a moment before nodding, rushing through and pulling out his scythe. He was sure to be noticed, what with the way he'd entered, so he expected a fight to occur… not that he'd let one happen. He was shooting across the ground as fast as he could, allowing his Darkness to tear down anything in his path. Kaden, you had best be okay. I can't lose another friend. I can't handle that.
His foray into the realm certainly did draw attention, attention that soon manifested in the form of fierce attacks by not-so-weak soldiers in Nareish's army. Those same soldiers were quick to then notice another intruder much deeper in the realm and picked a fight at that location as well. Whether or not Ylden cared, he didn't show it. Deft movements he rarely chose to display allowed him to slip by without even the slightest concern. Realizing that someone else was here, Ylden stopped briefly to cast a spell, destroying everything in the immediate area while allowing Darkness to consume his body, entering the Dark form and flying instead of running. Kaden… please stay alive. Don't die.
Moments later, he came to the location of the other fight. An explosion sounded off before it was seen. Then heavenly blue magic ripped through the entire area, decimating any enemy foolish enough not to flee out of range. Then, with his previous stealth thoroughly compromised as it was, Kaden made a wise decision and swiftly teleported back out of the realm rather than be foolish himself and stay put. The traces of magic were all he had to work with, and Ylden attempted to teleport after it.
Kaden landed in an unintentionally random location. Namely, the edge of some canyon on a populated world, though he'd managed to arrive nowhere near any settlements or people. However, his bad condition coupled with a bad landing caused him to stumble, and he was forced to pinwheel his arms just a little to avoid falling over the cliff - like a damned kid. The moment his balance returned, he hopped backward and away from the edge, sheathing his sword as he did so.
Ylden appeared a short distance later, immediately dropping his ascended form in favor of his natural one. "Kaden, we need to talk, now. What the hell happened?"
His arrival made Kaden stiffen, and seconds later he was backing away. "...Nothing," he mumbled after a moment, shaking his head.
"Kaden, please stay," Ylden said immediately. "Please. I want to know why you chose me, why you did it now? What did they do to you? There's so many questions that need answers and I can't bear the idea of losing another friend to all of this shit. Please for the love of all that exists, stay," he pleaded openly.
Though Kaden's anxiety had spiked high for the first time in eons and all he could think about was getting away, for some reason his feet remained rooted to the spot from that point on. It took a long moment for him to respond, and he looked away when he did so. "You were always the one I planned to choose," he finally said. "I'd intended to do it long, long ago."
Ylden fell quiet, unsure of how exactly to respond before the words escaped him all at once. "Why now? You were purified. You could have returned to help," he murmured.
This had Kaden shaking his head again. "No. No, I could not have. I have never governed these realms effectively or properly. The role went extinct in my possession once already, then very briefly for a second time. I cannot allow it to happen again."
There wasn't much in the ways of arguing these points. Kaden was… well… right. Putting that in the back of his mind, he had to question, "What did they do to you? They… killed you, and then revived you?"
"A demon killed me," Kaden explained very, very vaguely. "Nareish revived me for reasons I did not care to ask, nor did she care to explain them."
Ylden was stunned into a brief silence before he let out a slow sigh. "You're gonna leave again… aren't you?" he questioned quietly. "Off on your own, on another suicidal mission in due time."
Emerald eyes narrowed slightly. "It was not a suicide mission. I was after information."
"Don't lie to me," Ylden murmured. "I know that look in your eyes. You're ready to die."
Kaden gritted his teeth. "So what if I am?" he suddenly retorted, moving another step back.
"I can't lose you," Ylden said, voice still soft. "I lost Han… He doesn't have his memories. You're one of the only other friends I have left. If you die… I know I can see you in the realms but it's not the same."
"I have already been lost," Kaden said, his ears going back just slightly, "and I did nothing but make you and others suffer. I will not remain here longer than I have to, because I will not risk it happening again."
Ylden's shoulders sagged. "Kaden, I'm not going to pretend that anything you did as a demon will ever be okay, but for this damn moment you're just you again, and that's what I want. If you leave…" I'm alone again.
"I can't stay," Kaden insisted. "I can't do that."
"Yes, you can," Ylden insisted in return. "I'm willing to let everything go if you just stay. You're all I have left, Kaden. Please, by the Faein, don't leave me alone. I can't… not again…"
It took Kaden a long moment to reply, as his anxiety had spiked again and made it hard to breathe. Finally, he managed to get out, "You have your daughter. I can't be near her, or you. That… I can't."
"Kaden," Ylden murmured quietly. He didn't have anything else he could say, nothing logical. "Please don't go…" Despite his own words, Kaden stayed put, finding himself again unable to force himself to move. Ylden took a seat now, trying to keep himself composed. "Just because all of this happened doesn't mean I'm not friends with you… I still care. You matter to me, and all of this hurts. Knowing you might die, that I might never see you again as anything more than a spirit hurts more than anything you ever did or said as a demon."
"How?" Kaden eventually asked, voice barely above a whisper. "How could that possibly hurt more?"
"I don't have friends, people that care about me. You and Han were all I had for so long. Satsuno is back, sure, but we haven't…" Ylden shook his head. "You're basically the only family I have left besides my daughter and Marthal. I can't… No, I won't lose that." In his current emotional state, Ylden's mention of Satsuno didn't even register to Kaden. A lot of what he'd said didn't, in fact. He was too focused on his own mounting fears and pain and other such feelings. He just… didn't know what to do. Ylden took a moment to rub a hand across his slowly numbing face, taking a slow breath. "Please… you're… all I really have left right now."
After a very long pause, Kaden sort of sank down into a sitting position. "This can never end well," he murmured. "I cannot be around others and expect anything to go well."
"Then stay in the realms," Ylden responded. "Stay where you don't have to interact with a lot of people. Somewhere very few people are. It's safer, and we can do things together." Kaden just wordlessly shook his head, tense and even vaguely shaking from the many emotions that were trying to rear up inside of him. He continued to avoid looking at Ylden at all. "Kaden… this isn't a request anymore. I need you to be somewhere safe."
"I don't want to be safe," Kaden suddenly snapped, though he'd had no intention of saying those words aloud.
"And I do," Ylden snapped in return. "I've waited eons for the day you'd be purified, and all I want now is to know that you're safe and alive."
Shaking harder now, Kaden put his head in his hands and insisted in a strained voice, "I don't want to be. I don't deserve to be."
Ylden clenched his teeth for a moment before murmuring, "Yes, you do," he answered quietly. "Just because you did things as a demon doesn't mean that's who you are right now. If you were to die, you'd be going to the good realms of death, and that is what matters. You're a good person." Kaden shook his head some more, silently refusing Ylden's words. "Do you think I'm lying to you?" Ylden questioned. This time, he didn't get much of an answer. Kaden kept shaking his head, but not so much in response to Ylden's words as in response to Kaden's emotions. Ylden let out a slow sigh, letting his head hang low. "I'm not leaving here…"
Kaden suddenly spoke again. "You need to," he managed to get out. "You are not safe around me. No one is."
"I don't care," Ylden answered. "I'm not leaving. I'm not losing anyone else. I can't do this."
"I want you to go," was the weak response. "Leave me alone. I want to be alone."
Ylden shook his own head. "I can't do that, Kaden." Kaden didn't reply again, slipping right back into his previous silence. Ylden did the same, slowly crossing his legs.
At this point, Kaden's anxiety and other feelings had him too breathless to speak or move for some time. After a time, he finally managed to overcome the latter issue enough to scoot away from Ylden and put some more space between them. He felt like he was about to burst into tears, and while anxiety was certainly one cause this wasn't an anxiety attack trying to build up. He knew what an oncoming meltdown felt like. In an effort to stave it off, he resorted to harshly burying any and every emotion as much as possible while also trying to level out his breathing. I have to calm down. I…
"Are you going to avoid everyone for the rest of your life?" Ylden suddenly questioned. Answering that hadn't necessarily been Kaden's intention, but he found himself nodding. It wasn't like he'd planned to live much longer anyway. Ylden let out a weak sigh. "That's a horrible idea, Kaden."
"No. It's not."
"Tell me how I'm wrong, I dare you," Ylden murmured. "Because you are wrong. It's a bad idea."
"I can't be near people. I can't… put them through that." Kaden left his reply where it was, still trying to force his emotions down and away.
"I felt the same, did the same to my kid. It only hurt her. Hurt me. Made everything worse," Ylden said.
"They'll only hurt more if I'm there," Kaden argued, voice barely above a whisper. It doesn't matter if it hurts me. I don't deserve to be okay.
"How are they supposed to recover if they never get to face you?" Ylden countered.
"Being near me will only hurt them more," Kaden reiterated. "It won't help anyone."
Ylden pinched the bridge of his nose. "Do it for them. Even if you don't think you deserve better, they do. And you know that. They deserve to know you're alive and that you care about them. This isn't a matter for debate. This is about your family, and I can't entertain you doing this to them."
Kaden's eyes stung, but he squeezed them shut to force the tears back. A multitude of thoughts swirled in his head, none logical or in any way reasonable. In all of them, all he could really think about was ending it all like he'd planned, making sure it hurt in the process. He couldn't get the ideas for how out of his head, and they kept him from saying anything in response.
"Kaden, are you listening?" Ylden questioned. There was no reply, as though Kaden wasn't hearing him at all. "Kaden," he said more firmly.
"Leave me alone," Kaden suddenly said again. In his current state, he didn't immediately think to teleport away, however. "I just want to be alone."
"And I don't want to be," Ylden countered.
"You have Armaris," was the weak reply.
"And you have Sonic, Shadow, and Analia, all waiting for you," Ylden replied easily.
"No. No. I can't go near them after everything I did. I won't do that to them."
"Have you even dared to think about what they want?" Ylden questioned. "Analia herself stayed with you after purifying you. Sonic stayed with you and her as you slept. People still care about you even after everything that happened."
Kaden covered his eyes with his hands, shaking badly all over again. All his efforts to curb and bury his emotions were being rapidly undone. "They shouldn't," he managed to get out.
"It's their choice," Ylden pressed. "They care about you. If they didn't, they wouldn't make that choice."
They should have just killed me, Kaden immediately thought. They shouldn't have let me live.
Ylden took a chance and extended a hand in Kaden's direction. "Kaden, look at me." Kaden just shook his head, shaking harder now as his emotions fought to break out to the surface. "Kaden, please. Just this once." It took quite a while, but slowly Kaden managed to force himself to lower his trembling hands. He wound up gripping his arms tightly instead, fingers digging into them tightly. After another long pause, he managed to very briefly glance at Ylden, but he couldn't quite make himself do more than that.
The cat watched Kaden before saying, "I can make sure things turn out okay, that people heal. That your family can look at you and not have any pain or concern. I just need you to work with me. We've fought through pain and suffering in the past, and we can do it again."
In the past? Those events were nothing like this. Even being tortured hadn't made Kaden hurt like this before, to the point where he found himself wishing that he'd endured that again instead of this. "It's impossible," he whispered. Making them not be afraid… easing their pain… it's not possible.
"It's not. In the aftermath of Astra, Sonic and his friends have all begun to forgive and trust her. If they can forgive someone they didn't even know, they can forgive you and trust you," Ylden murmured.
"No," Kaden said again, shivering hard. "What she did was nothing compared to what I did. It isn't the same."
"So what?" Ylden argued. "She was a complete stranger. All she ever did to them was hurt them. She tortured Jet, attacked Sonic. You are Sonic's father. He wants nothing more than to see you again."
Something about that suddenly forced those tears out of Kaden and he barely choked back a sob. "I tried to kill him. I don't have the right to be called his father. Fathers don't hurt their children, no matter what the fucking reason was."
"It wasn't you that tried to!" Ylden pressed. "You were not you. You are you now. Just because that bastard Amnikaribah corrupted you and that corruption led you to do things doesn't mean that's who you are now!" Ylden raising his voice caused even more anxiety and fear to force itself out of Kaden and he immediately moved further away, putting his head back in his hands and unable to say anything in response. Ylden realized his mistake and lowered his tone immediately. "You know deep down that I'm right, that things can be fixed, but you're so lost in your emotions that you don't want to find your way out."
"Just leave me alone," Kaden choked out, voice breaking.
"I can't do that, Kaden," Ylden said softly. "I'd never forgive myself."
Ylden's words managed to echo Kaden's thoughts in that moment, thoughts that he couldn't stop or quiet down. I can't forgive myself. I can't let them forgive me. I can't do this. I can't stay alive. I don't deserve it. I don't.
When it was obvious that Kaden was beyond listening, Ylden suddenly activated his magic and drug them both to the Realms of Death, directly to Zenith. Zenith appeared immediately and knelt down in front of his descendant. He looked at Kaden for a long time before murmuring to Ylden, "Put his sword somewhere safe. I will not allow him to cut himself with it again." As he spoke, he used his Darkness to pull Saika away from Kaden and hand it off. Kaden didn't seem to notice.
The cat pulled the blade into his own hand with magic, nodding. "I will. It'll be set somewhere," he answered.
Zenith nodded and stood up, already in the process of forming a safe space Kaden could be taken to himself. "He is unsafe on his own. However… being around people will not be entirely ideal for him in his current state, either. Do not bring others around, not until he can tolerate your presence."
"Didn't plan to," Ylden murmured lowly.
"Good." Zenith succeeded in rapidly creating a new room, one that contained nothing that could be used to hurt oneself. The bed was a mattress on the floor with some blankets, and for now there was nothing else. He teleported Kaden into there, which again earned no reaction. "I will watch over him for now. I would advise you to return to Han."
Ylden was quiet for a long moment before simply turning to leave and murmuring a quiet, "Yeah."
"Talk to him again," Zenith suddenly said. "He has no basis for truly grasping how severe of a problem corruption is. Explain it to him more thoroughly, and he may accept what you asked of him earlier."
The cat opened a portal wordlessly and walked through, the only indication that he'd been listening being a flick of his ear in Zenith's direction. I'm getting sick of them targeting the people I care about most.
~保護者~
Finally, Saethrim thought to himself, appearing outside of Calypso's home. I can sit down for a few minutes and relax. The house was quiet and dark as usual, but the lone window showed a flicker of candle light inside. That the candles were light meant at least one of the two occupants was awake.
Rather than wait, Saethrim simply warped past the door, walking on in with a smile on his face. "Yo, I'm back."
Both Calypso and Trekk were sitting in the front room together, each holding books in their hands. Calypso smiled as soon as Saethrim entered, whereas Trekk openly gaped. "Oh my god," the teen said. "You really are back."
"Yep, it's me," Saethrim chuckled, opening his arms. "C'mon, kid."
Trekk (who was the Therian equivalent of a thirteen year old Tokarian despite being fifteen in reality) was quick to get up and tackle Saethrim in a hug like he'd always done when small. "It's so great to see you!" he exclaimed.
"Good to see you again as well, Trekk," Saethrim said, hefting the teen up into a single arm. "You've gotten quite big. If I wasn't so strong, I might have to use my hand to hold you up as well."
"Hey, put me down!" Trekk was quick to complain, causing Calypso to burst out laughing at her son's predicament. "I'm not a kid anymore, Saethrim!"
Saethrim tightened his hold just a touch more with a mischievous grin. "What's the magic word, then? Say it and I'll let you down."
"What word?" Trekk further complained, squirming and trying to pull away.
"I don't know," Saethrim admitted openly. "But you better say it!"
"But that's not fair! How am I supposed to say it if you don't know what it is?"
Saethrim very lightly shook Trekk. "You gotta guess, kid."
Trekk groaned and started saying a variety of random words, even words he knew full-well just wouldn't have been the correct answer. He ended it by childishly adding, "Butts."
The da Asani suddenly let Trekk go at the final word, smilining. "There ya go."
"No way, you're lying," Trekk accused, pointing at Saethrim. "There's no way that was the word." Calypso just laughed some more, not even bothering to hide it to save her son's dignity.
"I might be, but you've got no way to know," Saethrim said with a shrug. "Maybe you'll grow into one of those lie detection powers."
Before Trekk could reply, Calypso interjected. "Okay, you go bed now," she told her son. "I say you can stay up till he come back. It late. You need sleep."
For once, Trekk's moodiness didn't prompt him to disagree with her. He just sighed and got back up off the floor. "I've gotta go to bed, I guess. Goodnight."
Saethrim waved a little at the teen. "Night, kid. Unless something comes up, I should see you in the morning, alright?"
"Okay," Trekk agreed. He gave Saethrim another hug, then gave Calypso one before heading off to his room.
"So," Saethrim said slowly as Trekk left the room. "Is that the only reason you had him go off to his room?"
"It t'e main one," Calypso answered, closing her book. She stuck her tongue out at him. "At least, t'at t'e only one you need know about."
Saethrim shrugged openly. It wasn't something he was too concerned about, anyway. "Alright, but just know that extracting information is something I had to get good at."
"You don't dare do anyt'ing harsh to me, and t'at mean I will not be force to speak," Calypso answered easily. She then patted one of the cushions on the floor. "Come sit, already. You do not have to stand."
"Maybe I like standing," Saethrim answered, even as he slowly moved to take a seat. "Sorry for how long that took. Had some stuff to handle and things to look into. I'm a lot more aware of everything happening now."
Calypso didn't waste time. She leaned against him, her head on his shoulder. "What all be happenin'?" she asked him.
"Someone became a vampire, there's a half-yokai running around among the heroes, and I had to go recollect my weapon," Saethrim explained, motioning to his hip where the dragon's claw was stashed. "Thing's ancient and one of the people who killed me stole it."
"I remember t'at blade," Calypso murmured, not outwardly acknowledging the part about him being killed. "It good you have it back. T'e yokai is okay, yes? Sometime demons try hunt t'ose creature down and change t'em."
Saethrim sighed a little. "He was corrupted, but he's been purified since. I found him some time after that happened."
"T'at is good to hear," she answered. "If he been purified, he will be fine in time."
"Yeah. Had to talk him down from some emotional concerns," Saethrim said. "He should be okay, though."
"Good," she said again. "And t'e vampire? T'ey be in a… difficult position, yes?"
"Part Black Arms, and carrying a child… So yeah. This is a shit-show for them. I have plans to check back with him soon," Saethrim answered.
"A child?" Calypso asked. "Black Arm mating time is not for two more year. T'at is odd."
Saethrim nodded. "Seems like it was forced on them, somehow. Guy was originally part Tokarian, so this is even more sucky for them.
"He can no be much Tokarian, if he having baby," Calypso mused. "He have to be mostly Black Arm by a lot. T'at make t'e vampire t'ing more interesting. T'ose two race are related, yes?"
"They are, about as closely related as a lightning dragon is to a fire dragon. So… yeah. Incredibly closely related."
"Black Arm vampire… I not hear of one of t'em since before you die," Calypso murmured. "Black Arm and vampire have rule, yes? T'ey do not hunt each ot'er or bite each ot'er."
"Wasn't a vampire that caused this," Saethrim explained. "Someone forced the vampirism power on him. I would've smelled another vampire."
"T'at be how t'e last vampire like him was turn, was it not?" Calypso frowned in thought. "But it not Nareish who do it t'at time. Perhaps she get t'e idea from that event."
Saethrim shrugged. "Maybe," the man said. "Reeks of her influence. Something being forced on people is like her to do."
With a sigh, Calypso nodded. "You may need send help. New vampire rarely have control over t'emself. But you know t'at. I just… word… reiterate?"
"That's the right word, yeah," Saethrim assured. "I may as well. It could be good, but that house is packed full of people. Might have to figure something out for them."
Calypso called forth a flicker of magic onto a finger, but it died out quickly. "If I had my magic back all t'e way, I could make t'eir home bigger…" She soon shook her head. "What will you do?"
"There's a magic user that I could smell there, one who should be able to do something, if I'm not mistaken," Saethrim said. "Light magic?"
"T'at may be able to help," Calypso agreed. She was quiet for a short time before asking, "Do you t'ink he will feed? T'e first feed be important, does it not? I hear tales of vampire who easily starve to deat' when it be avoided."
Saethrim thought for a moment before shrugging. "I think it'll be fine."
"Alright." Calypso shifted a little closer. "How are you, t'en? You have been busy."
"I'm alright," Saethrim said with a smile.
"You are quiet," Calypso said. "You are certain you are alright?"
Ah, right, she can tell if I'm lying. "I'm irritable," he admitted. "Things have been getting on my nerves pretty openly since I was revived."
She frowned. "Do you know why?"
Saethrim nodded. "I do. That yokai being corrupted, vampirism being forced on someone, knowing that someone took my blade, your magic being taken from you... All of those things have me absolutely furious. If I could, I'd tear Nareish's throat out," he said simply.
"It is not a good plan right now," Calypso sighed. "But I understand your t'ought."
He sighed a little as well. "The thing that bothers me most is your magic being taken away."
"I am okay now," Calypso murmured, wrapping her arms loosely around his middle. "My magic be returnin'."
Saethrim felt his anger slip free for just a moment, enough so that his body tingled with the beginnings of a transformation. He stopped it before anything could happen. "It's unacceptable," he muttered.
"I agree… but t'ere is not'ing to gain from anger now. You heart be in t'e right place, Saet'rim, and it make me happy t'at you care. But I want you to try to relax, at least for now."
It took him a long moment of silence, but eventually that anger was subdued enough that he could put a temporary seal on it once more. "Fine, I can try."
Calypso sighed again. "I did not ask you to bury t'e feeling," she murmured. "It okay to feel anger. I just want you to try to get past it for now."
"If I feel it, I'm going to be furious and I won't be able to focus on us," Saethrim murmured.
Dark eyes blinked. "You want talk still?" she inquired.
"Not sure what to talk about if you're concerned about my emotional state," Saethrim said simply.
This caused Calypso to give him a sharp squeeze. "I mean about us, smart one," she corrected him. "We said t'e last time t'at we would talk about… whatever t'is is."
The man blinked once and he nodded. "Oh, gotcha. Makes a lot more sense," he answered. "So… yeah. What do you think of… us?"
"I like t'is," Calypso said softly. "I have always like t'is. I enjoy spend time wit' you, and I enjoy who you are. Always."
Saethrim slipped an arm around Calypso and pulled her close. "I can say all the same things for you and more," he said with a smile.
"I am glad," Calypso murmured, smiling in return. "What t'is be, t'ough?"
"What do you want it to be?" Saethrim questioned. "I'm okay with whatever you want. Just put a word to it and we can go that way."
Calypso clicked her tongue. "I not know a word for it," she told him. "I been marry once, but t'at was not same as t'is. It was arrange and I was not happy. T'is is different."
The man chuckled a little. "I suppose it is. Would you be okay with the idea of marrying me one day, then?"
For multiple reasons (one being utter surprise at just how direct Saethrim was about that), Calypso looked up at him in complete silence for a long moment. Eventually, a fresh smile blossomed on her face. "I not know… Perhaps if you t'ink you can handle me and my 'exotic' life."
"I'd be more worried about you handling mine," Saethrim chuckled. "Dragons, wyverns, yokai, and elementals are my daily life. Is that something you are okay with?"
"More t'an okay," she responded without delay. "It is part of you. Your knowledge and experiences always interest me, anyway. Why miss t'e chance to learn more from you?"
Saethrim decided today was the day to be bold and suddenly warped them both into the vast expanse of space, sprouting a pair of draconic wings and wrapping them around her gently. "If that's the case, I love you, Calypso," the man said sweetly.
Laughing softly, Calypso hugged him closer to her. "I love you, too," she murmured. "So much."
The da Asani leaned in and pressed his cheek to hers gently, closing his eyes before suddenly chuckling. "Sorry. Dragon instincts. They're not all that fond of kissing, for various reasons."
"T'ey could not do it even if t'ey want to," Calypso agreed. She gave him a gentle squeeze. "And do not apologize. I not mind it."
"I'm apologizing because I meant to do this," he said as he shifted her slightly and planted a kiss on her lips. She didn't hesitate to return the favor, not at all opposed to his actions. He only broke away after a solid minute, holding her head in one hand and staring into her eyes. "There're a lot of things I could say and do right now, but… with everything going on, I'm gonna wait. As long as that's fine by you," he said gently. "I'd hate to make things worse on either of us."
"So long as you promise to return, always… I will wait for as long as I need to," Calypso told him, voice sincere. "Promise me, Saet'rim. You will come home, not vanish again."
"I won't let any god, goddess, or Immortal stand in the way of me coming back to you, ever," Saethrim said. "You have my word."
"Good. T'ank you." Calypso kissed him again very briefly, then laid her head on his shoulder.
Saethrim had no issue with any of this, but he eventually did ask, "Should we head back inside?"
"We did leave Trekk in t'ere," Calypso reminded. "T'at probably mean 'yes'."
"Fair enough," he agreed, warping them back onto the cushion. "I should really renovate. We could use some candles that burn different colors," he suddenly mused, looking around.
Calypso blinked. "Different color? Why?" Honestly, such an idea had never once crossed her mind.
"Setting moods, creating a different atmosphere, things like that," Saethrim suggested.
Purely to be brat, Calypso pulled a face, then waggled her eyebrows. "Setting mood, Saet'rim? What you tryin' to say?"
Saethrim shrugged openly. "You seem to be the one trying to say something. Care to elaborate?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.
She stuck her tongue out at him. "Make me."
"Shouldn't tempt a dragon," Saethrim warned lightly. "They're known to take what they want if provoked."
"What you tryin' say now?" Calypso teased.
"You should answer first."
"I sayin' not'ing."
"Depends on if Trekk can hear," Saethrim murmured. "'Cause there's plenty of things he's not old enough to hear yet."
Calypso waved him off with a hand. "He no can hear us when he sleep. He can sleep t'rough nearly anyt'ing."
Saethrim smiled openly to her. "Then perhaps it's time we made up for a lot of lost time." Calypso raised an eyebrow, almost daring him to elaborate. That was as good an invitation as Saethrim needed.
~保護者~
It was finished. After setbacks had interfered with his plans, it was finally finished. His robot. Modeled a bit after Shadow, something he did purely for the fact of the Tokarian build being quite excellent for combat, it stood at least a head taller than his living weapon. Not that it was superior, however. Shadow could likely best it, even disregarding his ability to connect with technology. That was where Nareish would hopefully come in.
Gerald looked over his blueprints again. It had various special inventions he'd made for this creation specifically, such as energy capturing and expulsion devices. Protecting it from powers such as electricity was paramount, after all. Next was the ability for it to create barriers. Obviously it needed to be able to learn, so a special program was built for it to watch an opponent's movements and find openings. Of course, it would do so much more in due time. The more it learned, the more it could begin doing.
Rather than spend an incredible amount of time looking over this, Gerald attempted to reach out to Nareish. "My newest creation is finished."
Despite him having no powers, much less the mental kind, his thought was heard. "Excellent. Have you need of any additional assistance with it?"
"The only flaws I know of directly are that it has no way to defend itself against the chameleons and beings of other… special energies, and that it requires some time to learn from fighting."
"Understood. Handling the second issue will be easy enough. You have a training area on your ARK, yes? Let your robot fight there. I will alter time in that space so that it can take however long it likes without losing time out here" Nareish let out a thoughtful hum. "As for the chameleons… unless it is your intention to send it after them soon, I will merely keep them away."
"I would believe it best to loose this on the ones such as Sonic and his lesser allies. With luck, it may even kill those two who have directly interfered in my plans."
"I would have to agree. I would still advise you send it off for training first, however. Even those 'lesser' allies of his can put up more of a fight than you have had the privilege of witnessing thus far."
"I am ready to believe as much," Gerald replied easily. "I refuse to underestimate them more."
"Good. Now do as I asked, and I will take measures to keep it defended from the chameleons." Nareish ended the connection.
Gerald had no issue with this, standing up and activating his robot, sending it off to go train in the training room. I certainly wish this hadn't taken so long…
~保護者~
Almost certainly it was an Immortal that attacked Espio, but who and why specifically? Were they a misguided one who believed our race was still entirely evil, or were they evil themselves and had their own agenda? The idea bounced in his head, but without having been there at the time, there was no way to really know whether or not he was right. He was just sure that it had been an Immortal, as the others were, and his vague theories weren't as helpful as he'd wanted them to be. There just wasn't enough information.
So, he decided to head back and attempt to relax a bit as opposed to overdoing himself, still deeply lodged in his thoughts. A hand idly slipped to his blade and he felt himself growing more aware of his surroundings. That didn't bode well. Moments later, there was a brutal impact on his back intended to send him sprawling. An all too familiar voice spoke up. "There you are. I have been missing you, dear."
Rather than fall, Ryuji was careful to use a hand and roll himself to his feet, sliding in a circle to face Kal. "What do you want? I'm too busy to deal with you."
"Hm… many things, these days." The person, none other than Kal, idly crossed her arms. "At the present moment, though… you should consider yourself lucky. As much as I want to beat you down again, I have little time for that. I've come to give a simple warning instead. It concerns our grandson."
"Speak and begone before I am finished tolerating your presence," Ryuji muttered. "This is growing irritating already."
"That woman… Nareish. Word is spreading that she helped appoint a new demon as God, and that she intends to help that god capture our grandson's… little toy." Kal gave him a bland look. "I don't care about her or her fate, but rumor is that the attack will be used as an opportunity for Nareish to snatch him up as well. She has no right touching him, though I am not capable of preventing it."
He had no intention of listening to her any longer, already moving to leave and find Espio. "Okay, now get away from me." Kal merely shrugged and vanished, off to do whatever she had been doing before. Ryuji suddenly ran as quickly as he could manage toward Espio's home, executing a teleport to practically launch himself onto the porch.
His sudden arrival alerted Aku, who initially started to growl but quickly stopped. Espio appeared at the doorway a second later with Sako (who was having a bottle) in his arms. He frowned at Ryuji. "Something is wrong," he deduced immediately. "What?"
"We need to leave. Kal seems to believe you and Armaris are in danger," Ryuji answered immediately. "Nareish has plans to abduct you both."
The hell? "Where did you h-" Espio cut himself off and all but threw himself backward just in time to avoid a blast that tore the porch and part of the front of the house away. Aku snatched Ryuji out of the way of the attack and easily tossed him up onto a branch.
Ryuji immediately leapt off the branch and crashed through the roof, fully intent on grabbing Whoever he could to teleport them away. "Armaris!" he yelled. Espio, meanwhile, grabbed Zei and teleported both her and Sako to Aku. Understanding his intentions, the old dragon immediately flew away with the children to someplace safer. The older of the two chameleons burst into the room where Armaris was, slipping himself into the barrier of magic and Darkness she'd conjured up, hoisting her off the ground and executing another teleport, despite her protest. She doesn't know it's me.
Espio dodged out of the house when another blast sounded off, ripping a hole through the floor and roof. Similar attacks began happening throughout the village, forcing more and more people out into the open. But with no enemy present to fight, no one was entirely sure what to do to defend themselves. Aniko appeared amidst this and summoned a barrier of her Darkness, immediately tapping into the energy with far less hesitation than she had since being revived. "Those who can teleport away, do so now!" she demanded loudly. Her command was followed instantly, with those who left taking all of the village's children along with them as they left.
Meanwhile, Ryuji fled immediately with Armaris. She'd recognized who he was and was now focused on trying to defend them both. It became immediately obvious that she was outclassed, however, when her barriers were shattered immediately. Rather than let something happen and having no time to react otherwise, Ryuji twisted and tossed Armaris as a blast slammed him into the ground.
Roaring energies pounded him into the ground, wrapping around homes and crushing them along with anyone still within them. At the same time, other energies became sharp and began slicing through those who couldn't dodge fast enough, ending lives left and right. The sounds Armaris heard hurt to hear, but she knew she couldn't do anything else other than run lest she die as well. Ryuji yelled for her to run, so she did. The cat melded into the shadows of the woodlands around them and moved as quickly as she could between them. Espio… everyone, fuck.
One of the attacks lashed out at Armaris without hesitation. She was wrenched out of the shadows and thrown wide, landing in the middle of all the chaos. Then one of her legs was slashed at the back of the knee to prevent her from being able to run again.
The best she could do to protect herself was become one with the shadows again, moving as best she could with that pain radiating through her body. Too much was going on. Where were Ylden and Cere? What the hell could she do? Despite all of this, she focused her efforts on using her Darkness to pull and throw people out of the way of all this carnage, protecting as many people as she could manage because she couldn't really even protect herself.
A few seconds later, someone's arm landed by Armaris, still bleeding profusely. Then Armaris herself was thrown a second time, landing by the remains of a whole family that had been wiped out mere feet from their home. This didn't bother her like it might have others, simply pissing her off and making her tap deeper into the potent Darkness she possessed to tear the still living away from this fight.
Her Darkness was slammed back into her in retaliation, even though it wouldn't have been able to hurt her. It merely sent her skidding in the grass, putting her close to where Ryuji was still pinned. This only caused her to react, ignoring her own pain and instead summoning up her magic to push back on the forces keeping Ryuji down. Damn this shit. That fucking bitch.
Ryuji was released for reasons unknown. It had nothing to do with Armaris's efforts, efforts for which she was rewarded by winding up pinned herself. Though, instead of being stuck to the ground, she was trapped with her back against the trunk of the nearest tree. Armaris reached further into her Darkness, attempting to push back against this force, even as her body slowly attempted to become one with the energy she'd been born with.
The chameleon that was now freed pushed himself to stand shakily, moving as quickly as his battered body would allow him. Seeing that she was pinned now left him with little choice than to attempt to aid her, adding his power to hers. This time, there was no effect. Ryuji was knocked away, and Armaris immediately suffered several more fierce slashes on various parts of her body. Then, without further ado, a demonic portal was opened and she was hurled through it. The portal slammed shut well before Ryuji could have reacted.
He gritted his teeth, realizing that it was too late to save her now, and instead focused on trying to find Espio to help him if he could. Damn it all. He ran through the village, dodging the various attacks as best he could and using his Darkness to fling the few still living to safety… hopefully.
It didn't take long for the two to reunite. Said reunion happened when Espio was hurled backward into Ryuji, sending them both to the ground in a heap. He quickly got off of the other man, cursing colorfully under his breath in the process. It was clear from his condition that he'd been trapped and continuously attacked for a time just like Ryuji had been.
Ryuji was quick to speak. "We need to leave. They've taken Armaris already," he murmured.
"Taken her where?" Espio demanded, side-stepping an attack.
"Through a demonic portal," Ryuji explained quickly, moving with his grandson. "If we plan to save her, we need to ensure our safety now."
Whether Espio had intended to agree or not, he didn't have a chance to say so. He was knocked off his feet again by another attack and blasted into the side of a house. At about the same time, a few nearby people were brutally torn apart and left to bleed to death where they'd stood. Ryuji managed his own footing, likely left alone on purpose, and leapt after Espio, ignoring the dead chameleons littering the village.
Espio was pinned to the ground again, but his Darkness surged and forcibly freed him after a moment. A faint bruise was wrapped around his neck, giving a clear explanation for why he was suddenly coughing and panting as he stood. Ryuji immediately moved closer and quickly attempted to teleport them both away rather than trying to make any sort of defense. It was obvious that wasn't working.
They were prevented from teleporting, though other chameleons were having no trouble using that same power. Espio recovered enough from his short-lived strangulation to try and stand back up. However, he found himself slammed into the wall and pinned in the same manner as before with pressure being applied to his throat a second time. Ryuji was then grabbed and hurled out of the ruined home.
Ryuji gritted his teeth again and used his Darkness to forcibly stop himself from flying too far away. Just a second later, whatever energy was holding Espio in place disappeared with him in tow. The chameleon quickly propelled himself to the building and looked around in dismay. No… Despite the past two failures, Ryuji launched himself from the home. I have to find my daughter. I can't let her be incapacitated during an attack like this.
He wasn't prevented from carrying out this goal. Aniko and Shei were both close together, with the latter focusing entirely on getting people out of danger. Aniko was focusing her efforts on protecting Shei and those he was rescuing, even if it meant taking a blow to do so. She looked battered, but with the way her Darkness was flaring openly… Ryuji had to assume she was healing too rapidly to notice or care. As such, Ryuji focused his efforts on protecting her, moving over and once more summoning up a barrier of Darkness.
Shei didn't acknowledge Ryuji with anything more than a glance while thinking aloud to Aniko, "That is the last of the survivors. We need to leave."
Aniko nodded in response and looked to her father. "We need to leave, now. Do not attempt to stay behind for any reason," she demanded. Ryuji knew better than to argue. She was right.
"Where is Espio?" Shei was quick to ask. He'd sensed the departure of Aku with the children and Armari's being sent off, but Espio's energies were nearly always hidden. As such, he couldn't be tracked so readily.
That question had left Ryuji distracted, enough so that he had to snag Aniko out of the way of another attack when his barrier was shattered. "Taken. I don't know where," he answered, quickly pushing her back onto her own feet as he maneuvered to regain his own footing. Shei made a vague expression that was difficult to read under his mask, but in the end just nodded as he dodged the attack as well.
Aniko wasn't sure how to react, stumbling for a second. No, not again. Her gaze fell on her father and she used her threads to drag him out of the way of another attack before quickly teleporting them all away. They could talk when they were safe. Shei landed with them wherever she'd been taken, tense and frowning but otherwise fine at the moment. The urge to grab her father and make him explain everything was tempting… but, Aniko reigned in her Darkness and let out a slow sigh. "Tell us what happened."
"Armaris and Espio were taken," Ryuji murmured. "Kal came to me and warned me, but I was too late to save them. Armaris was injured heavily and then taken through a demonic portal, and Espio was taken to a place I am not aware of." He hung his head low. "Forgive me… I couldn't save either of them."
"That is not your fault," Shei was swift to correct. "You tried. That counts for more than you might think." Nevertheless, he was incredibly tense and agitated at the news.
Aniko was quiet for a moment before nodding. "Yeah… As… much as I still sometimes don't want to be around you, I know you actually tried. It means a lot," she admitted.
Ryuji kept his attention away from them with a slight sigh. "Yes." He wanted to argue, but doing so would simply delay them making a plan. "We need to recuperate elsewhere and ensure the others of the village remain somewhere safer."
"I will handle the villagers with Atani," Shei said. "I need you and Aniko to focus on finding those two. This cannot be delayed."
Aniko nodded and took a slow breath, turning to Ryuji. "I will search near the demonic realms to see if I can find Armaris's presence. You should go to some of our allies and ask for their assistance in locating Espio," she explained. "They will know a much better area to look than I." Shei nodded his agreement before vanishing to join his sister.
Ryuji gave a nod as well before taking a calculated risk and gripping one of Aniko's hands. "Be safe. Once you have located her, remove yourself from the situation."
The woman looked down at her hand for a moment, a frown on her face before she seemingly accepted it. "You as well." They both teleported away after this to handle their separate missions.
~保護者~
The Messenger was no ordinary demonic entity.
It awoke from a dormant state when it sensed the death of its creator, the only being in the whole of existence that it obeyed. Emotionless though it was, its loyalty was unquestionable. That loyalty prompted it to take up its shadow sword and rise from its prone position. Its equally shadowy body faded away like smoke as it moved.
When it next took form again, the Messenger was in the midst of a horde of lesser demons. One had a reputation for being troublesome and notoriously weak. It wouldn't be missed by any, so it was slain. Further shadows coalesced in the Messenger's free hand to create a bowl, which was then used to collect the blood flowing from its victim's wounds.
Scrying was just one ability the Messenger possessed. It could be used to communicate, show someone things, locate a person or object, or all of those things together. Given that, it was the ideal way to both locate and contact Zareil. A pool of blood slowly formed on the ground near her feet, soaking through the carpet and forming a reflective surface not too unlike a dark mirror.
Zareil knew what it meant, and she let out a slow sigh. "Messenger, what is the matter?" As it didn't ever speak, the Messenger instead used images to convey its, well, message. It channeled to her an image of Kaden to indicate him as the subject, then pools of blood, and then the face of the new God. After that, it merely waited for her response. She already knew what happened, to a vague degree. For the role of God of Demons to transfer… Kaden would've needed to die. "There had best be more to this. I did not need the reminder."
There was indeed more. The Messenger conjured up an image of Armaris's face next, then the faces of other half-demons one right after the other, followed again by an image of the new God's own face. It knew the God's plan, could feel it the same way any other demons in the immediate area could, and was trying to communicate it to her.
It took her a moment, but the connection between one or two she had interacted with and Armaris helped her catch the meaning. "Is he planning to collect half-breeds?" she demanded to know. The response was an image of a nodding head. Zareil was quiet for a moment. Half-breeds were usually a pain, due to the fact that they could break control far easier, as well as have unique amalgamations of power. Her concern over Armaris was minimal. She was relatively weak and dispatching her wouldn't be an issue if she was corrupted… I think. She has quite the amount of Darkness… maybe I'm overlooking something here.
The Messenger had more to "say" to her. It showed her Armaris's transformed state, images of utter devastation, a person (possibly meant to represent the God here) looking pleased, and images of various people including Sonic harmed.
"She simply cannot be that strong," Zareil muttered. "She hasn't even cultivated the power of her demonic half. It's still purely instinctual." The images sent to her in response were images of various forms of corruption, as that was really the only explanation the Messenger could come up with so far. That didn't make any damned sense to Zareil, and she crossed her arms. "Are you trying to tell me he's gonna corrupt her? That much would be obvious."
More images answered her. Images of corruption again, this time followed by various images that communicated the idea of strength or getting stronger, as well as images of magical items. Corruption… strength… and… magical items? Magic? Has she actually grown stronger? I would have thought she'd peaked. "She is getting stronger?" Again, she was answered by the sight of a nodding head.
Zareil didn't like that. The particular breed of demon Armaris had inherited was… well, dangerous. The kind meant to take down a planet alone. Zareil wanted to doubt that she had that kind of power. "Is he doing this now?" This time, she was answered with an image of a person shrugging. "If he is not, he will likely begin soon, then?" Once more, the image of a nod. That… was bad. If the God got hold of Armaris and sent her to Mobius, that could kill much of the group if they didn't prepare. "Is there anything else you need to tell me?" Though she didn't want it to, her mind briefly shifted to the idea of Sonic and Kaden's family being hurt. That didn't sound… pleasing.
Finally, the image shifted back to the Messenger itself as it waited to be given orders of any kind. It was only loyal to Kaden, true, but it had long ago been ordered by the man to extend that loyalty to Zareil when needed. This was one of those times, and so it waited to hear what she had to say. Ultimately, there was nothing left to do but handle this. "Go to Sonic and his allies to warn them. I will go to Armaris and warn her. We cannot allow this."
With the command issued, the Messenger ended their contact. The blood on Nier's floor ceased to look like a mirror and merely soaked into the carpet, further proving that the connection was over. Zareil stood up and teleported to the Highlands, hoping that someone wouldn't try to immediately kill her.
Hyale was abnormally quiet right now, even for a chameleon village. Following Nareish's attack earlier, close to half of the village was decimated. Bodies littered the grass. Espio's house had a gaping hole torn right through it, and neither he nor Armaris were in sight. This was… bad. Zareil moved immediately, tearing through the area as fast as she could. No, am I actually too late...?
Mere seconds later, she was intercepted by Shei. He'd recognized her energy from the very brief time he had spent corrupted, but despite knowing who she was he didn't have a weapon in his hand at the moment. Instead, he had a crying Zei in one of his arms. "Why are you here?" he asked, projecting his thoughts to her.
"Where are Armaris and Espio?" she demanded suddenly. "Has she already been abducted?"
Onyx eyes narrowed. "She has been taken," Shei soon confirmed. "Espio was as well, but not by the demon Nareish sent Armaris to."
"Get everyone you care about together now," Zareil demanded, turning to leave. "The God is going to turn her on us, and not many people are ready for what she can become." Shei stared for a long moment before giving her a curt nod and vanishing. The demoness took a deep breath and teleported back to Analia, gulping. "Analia, we have a problem."
This roused the drowsing hedgehog easily, and she sat up in bed to face Zareil, some of her long hair spilling over her shoulder in the process. "What is happening?" Analia asked, not a trace of sleepiness in her voice.
"Nareish took Armaris and sent her to the new God of Demons," Zareil answered truthfully. "She's born to a race of demons made to conquer planets."
Analia sat up further, alarm appearing in her normally tranquil eyes. "...I am not unfamiliar with them," she allowed vaguely as she moved to stand. "Are you of the belief she will be set after Mobius?"
"I don't know where she'll be put," Zareil said. "It would make sense, though. She'd have the chance to potentially kill a lot of important people."
Though she still wasn't fully recovered and had spent a lot of her energy alongside Eona's while purifying Kaden, Analia stepped into her sandals in preparation to leave. "Then she will have to be intercepted before that can happen."
Zareil let out a low sigh. "You and Rose are gonna be important in handling that. You two need to break through the Darkness that forms around her and stop her before it gets out of hand."
"Understood. I will go to her and inform her of the situation." Analia tossed her hair back over her shoulder so that it was behind her again. "I would ask that you pay attention to the activities of the God from afar as best as you can. The earlier the warning you can provide us that he is enacting his plan, the better."
"I'm not sure how close I can get," Zareil murmured. "I… don't think that guy wants me alive at all."
"I do not want you close. I want you as far away as possible." Analia teleported an ancient bow carved from white wood into her hand and a quiver of arrows into the other hand. "All I am asking is that you try to sense what you can, when you can. I would prefer you go no closer than here in the process, even if that means you cannot sense things as soon as you would from somewhere else."
Zareil took a deep breath. "Fine… I'll do what I can."
"That is all I ask," Analia murmured. "If you believe you or your daughters are in any danger even from doing this, however, I must request that you cease immediately and come straight to me. Is that acceptable?"
"I would've done that anyway," Zareil answered, crossing her arms.
"Good," Analia answered. "I will return soon, Zareil." She vanished in flash of Light.
Zareil moved to sit by her daughters, scooping them up despite the fact that they were asleep. It didn't matter if that woke them up. If danger came, she didn't want to waste any time. You three have to be safe.
~保護者~
Shadow awoke gradually to a feeling of sharp hunger. At first, he didn't feel inclined to move. Eventually, however, that hunger won out and convinced him to change his mind. He tossed the blankets off and sat up, glancing about the room. His thoughts felt fuzzy. There was a vague sensation of confusion that he couldn't quite shake yet. However, the longer he was awake, the more those feelings faded.
They eventually passed enough that he was able to turn his attention to other matters. Standing up, he crossed the room to the balcony. He reached out to open the doors, but a previously unseen barrier stopped his fingers just before they could touch the handles. A quick look around told him that it was surrounding the entire room, and he wasn't sure why.
His thoughts turned to the matter of how to get past the barrier. There was no way to feed while trapped in here. Powerful instincts demanded that he rectify this situation, find someone to pin down, bite, and drink from. It was difficult to ignore those thoughts and think about anything else, making it even harder for him to work out a means of escape.
Restless from gnawing hunger and a mounting need to hunt, he paced back and forth by the balcony with tightly crossed arms, struggling for clear thoughts in an effort to get himself out of here. He could feel that he had magic, plenty of it, but he had no real idea how to use it yet. In that sense, it was currently useless to him. Sheer strength alone wouldn't penetrate a barrier like this, at least not this time. Why it was even here was a mystery to him, and a vexing one at that. It was in his goddamn way. He needed out.
The bedroom door opened and then closed. "Shadow," Toru said, taking a long and deep breath. "I'm not letting this down until you tell me my name and who I am." This stopped the pacing. Shadow turned to look at him, thinking but not yet answering. His eyes glowed dully in the darkness of the room, pupils narrowed into slits. The chameleon sat and waited, watching silently.
Finally, the memory clicked back into place and Shadow looked away tensely. "Toru," he answered.
"Who am I to you?" Toru demanded in response.
Fuck, he didn't know, exactly. He was having a hard time caring, too. And he damn-near said as much, though for some reason found himself holding his tongue on that one. "I don't know," he bit out, voice full of irritation.
"Then you're not coming out of the barrier," Toru bit out in return. "Until you can tell me exactly who I am to you, you're staying right the fuck there. You're not yourself and I'm not about to let you make a stupid mistake. I'll sit here as long as it takes.
Frustrated beyond words, Shadow growled under his breath and sat down against the wall, trying to force himself to focus and think. But even after several long minutes, all he could come up with was Toru's name and nothing else. That only added to his frustration, which did nothing to help his restlessness. Toru watched for a time before explaining, "Me and you are close. We know each other well."
Instincts and hunger were still nearly impossible to ignore, but something about Toru's words triggered a flood of memories just then, and some of Shadow's irritation toward him faded instantly. Toru was fairly quiet as he watched this, intent on letting Shadow speak for himself rather than prompting him. Eventually, everything settled back into place and Shadow sighed heavily, leaning his head back against the wall with a frown and his eyes shut. Just like that, he was largely back to being himself again, though plenty of his other memories remained fuzzy and distant. "I hate you," he finally muttered, though as always he didn't mean anything seemingly harsh he ever said to the chameleon.
Toru chuckled weakly, holding his arms out. "You know you love me. What's there not to love?" the man questioned.
"Your fucking smugness, for one thing," was the grumbled reply.
"C'mon, that's a great feature," Toru countered quickly. "Surely you can come up with something else." Shadow just sighed again and flipped Toru off. Toru returned the favor before slipping inside the barrier. "I can't let you out, as much as I want to. We should handle the feeding before you accidentally scare one of your kids."
Shadow had vague recollections of said kids and having desired that same thing earlier in the day. As such, he didn't argue that point. What he did argue was the rest of what Toru had said. "I'm not feeding off of you."
"Well, then what are you feeding off of?" Toru demanded to know lightly. "You'll kill most anything else."
"I'm not feeding," Shadow amended, irritation returning. As far as he was concerned, though this hunger was far deeper and more aching than any other hunger he'd ever experienced before, it was still something that could be ignored and avoided.
"You're gonna have to," Toru countered. "Saethrim and Black Doom both were in agreement on that." Shadow just muttered something decidedly unhappy under his breath in response to that. Toru waited for Shadow to come up with a valid counterpoint to that, raising an eyebrow. Ultimately, Shadow had none and they both knew it. "So, here's what's going to happen. You feed off of me, and we let that be the solution until a better one comes up."
Again the instinct to pin down, bite, and drink hit, but Shadow managed to reign it in enough to keep himself from acting on the urges right this minute. "And if no 'better' one does?" he questioned.
"I don't know," Toru shrugged. "But we don't have a choice. There's no other person or thing that's really a good option right now."
Shadow gritted his teeth briefly. "Hunger can be ignored," he said eventually. "I would prefer to do that."
Toru rolled his eyes. "You can't just ignore this."
"Watch me," Shadow answered with just a touch of spite.
"I will pin you down myself," Toru suddenly murmured. "We can't keep playing these games. You haven't been eating at all. You need to do something, and I'm not gonna keep pretending it's okay."
"This is not a game," Shadow responded. "I have no desire to eat, whether like this or any other way. I do not want to."
"You have to eat eventually," Toru countered immediately. "This isn't okay. What would you do if Rusen wasn't protecting that baby?" All Shadow could really do at that point was shrug. Once more, he had no good answer. "You know what would happen. I'm asking you to feed because you need to take in something." Shadow stayed silent, half-focused on quelling his newfound instincts and half-focused on trying to come up with some sort of legitimate response to Toru's words.
When it became obvious Shadow wasn't paying enough attention, Toru decided to suddenly appear by the hedgehog and grab him, flipping them both around onto the bed with Shadow on top. His legs wrapped around Shadow's torso to hold him in place and he muttered, "Fine, I'm not gonna let you go."
"You fucker," Shadow insulted under his breath, now properly distracted from his thoughts.
"C'mon, we don't have all day," Toru said, motioning for Shadow to go on. "I'm waiting." Shadow tried to get out of Toru's grip, but wasn't surprised to find that he couldn't do so very easily. Shinobi tended to be fucking powerful kickers and whatnot, after all. That translated into powerful legs, and he knew it. Still, he levelled Toru with a glare. Fighting to get out of Toru's grip didn't sound ideal in any scenario, much less when the kids were asleep close by. "Seriously, Shadow, I'm going to hold you here until it happens. Might as well get it over with," the chameleon said.
"I already said no," was the irritable response. However, being in this position was making it a lot harder to resist the instincts he'd woken up with. Pinning Toru down and biting him would be much easier like this, and it was hard to get the thoughts out of his head. They and those urges were overwhelming.
"And I said to do it," Toru countered immediately. "Do it."
"I said no, Toru."
"Just do it already," Toru continued to press. "You're not going anywhere until you eat, and this is all I can do to help you to eat safely now. Please."
Toru was making this goddamn difficult. Most likely, that was the entire point. That didn't stop Shadow from continuing to be beyond annoyed about it, though. Still, he found himself lowering his head toward Toru's neck for a second before stopping himself. "I don't want to," he was quick to remind the chameleon.
"You need to," Toru reminded in kind, blinking once. He didn't seem bothered at all by any of this. "I'm doing this because it's for you, because I care." Whether it was because of what Toru said or something else, who could really say. Either way, instinct fully took over right then. Shadow suddenly gave in and bit Toru's throat plenty hard enough to draw blood, sinking his teeth in harshly. The previous vampiric state he'd entered upon initially waking up had returned in full force, prompting him to not hesitate at all anymore to pin Toru down and start feeding off of him. The chameleon blinked once at this, letting out a small huff. Damn. Took you long enough.
Black Doom had warned that vampire bites, unless specifically allowed by the vampire not to, paralyzed victims. As a freshly turned vampire with no control yet, Shadow didn't at all avoid paralyzing Toru for the duration of this. Having his "prey" immobilized and pinned down was soothing multiple instincts of his, allowing him to fully focus on feeding as opposed to anything else.
Both pairs of fangs (the upper, more prominent ones and the lower, smaller ones) were buried deep in Toru's throat. One of them had cut into the artery found there, causing a great deal of rapid bleeding. The upside to that was that it was easy for this feeding to be quick, since no real effort was required to draw copious amounts of blood to the surface. The potential problem would have been dealing with the bleeding after the fact… had Shadow not displayed a curious new ability when that time came.
Eventually, he released his bite, thus freeing Toru to move again. But instead of immediately letting Toru go, Shadow continued to keep him pinned for a moment longer as he ran his tongue over Toru's wound. In an instant, all the bleeding stopped, as though the wound had been nowhere near as severe as it in fact had been. After that, his hold on Toru finally relaxed, though he remained in that same altered state for the moment. Still, his pupils had rounded back out and his instincts were much calmer and more at ease at last.
Toru blinked at the licking of the wound before just shrugging it off as the paralyzation faded away. The injury wasn't anything awful as far as he was concerned, and he was certain he would've healed pretty soon regardless. As such, the chameleon had been relatively calm the entire time. "That help?"
Gradually, Shadow returned to himself. He frowned a bit once Toru's question registered after a lengthy pause. "Fuck off," he grumbled.
"No plans for that," Toru answered with a chuckle.
"Do you intend to let me go at any point?" Shadow huffed.
Toru shrugged. "Might like you being close." Shadow huffed at him again and sat back up a bit so that his face was no longer At Toru's neck. The chameleon watched him with a raised brow.
Seeing this expression, Shadow frowned at him some more. "What?"
"Nothing, just thinking," Toru answered vaguely. Shadow waited a second to see if Toru would explain what about on his own. Toru only smirked a little.
"Fucker," Shadow mumbled almost idly when it didn't seem like Toru was going to elaborate.
"If that's what you want," Toru said with a shrug. "I'm not against it." That wasn't an idea Shadow was willing to entertain in their current position, and he wound up just huffing again. The chameleon laughed a little and slowly removed his legs from Shadow. Now that he was freed, Shadow pulled away enough to lay down beside Toru on his usual side of the bed. Toru watched him before ultimately just putting his arms behind his head. "Feeling better?"
As much as he hated to admit it, Shadow wound up sighing and telling the truth. "Yes."
"Glad to hear it," Toru said with a soft smile, relaxing more now that he'd heard it said.
Shadow was quiet for a time before saying, "...Keep the barrier up. I can't say with certainty that that… altered mindset won't return a third time."
"That's fine," Toru responded easily.
"It is dangerous," Shadow corrected. "It is not feasible to always remain in here. There is nothing preventing this from happening elsewhere."
"You'll learn to control it," Toru assured. "You will."
"It may take a long time," Shadow pointed out. "It also might not, but it is a risk regardless."
Toru shrugged. "I'll be there to help you handle it." He did have a bit of a point there, so Shadow didn't really argue it. The chameleon simply smiled a little and scooted closer to Shadow. In response, Shadow rolled over to properly face Toru, just idly watching what the chameleon was doing. The chameleon did nothing more than simply lay there with a smile on his face.
"Have you slept?" Shadow eventually asked him.
"Not sure. Haven't been too focused on that," Toru admitted.
"You don't get to govern my sleep without managing your own," Shadow huffed at him. "You need to rest."
"Only if you try to as well," Toru said immediately.
Crimson eyes blinked. "I don't feel like I can," Shadow admitted.
"Try," Toru responded softly. "At the very least, lay here with me."
"I never said I was getting up." Shadow sat up despite what he'd said, but only long enough to grab the blankets he'd kicked off earlier. He tugged them up enough that they could more easily get under them if they chose to at some point.
"Glad to hear it." Toru rolled over slightly and moved up against Shadow, letting himself relax.
"Sleep, dumbass," Shadow responded, laying back down.
Toru wrapped an arm loosely around Shadow and took a second or so to settle down with a soft sigh. "I'll try." Content with that answer but somehow even more so with the physical contact, Shadow nodded and let his eyes close, even though he'd been serious when he'd said he didn't think he could sleep himself. Despite that, he couldn't think of anything he'd rather have been doing at that moment aside from precisely this.
Precisely this.
~保護者~
14,297 words this time. Many thanks as always to Blazing Winds for all of his help and support. Posted (at about 6:38 p.m.) 09-22-21.