Disclaimer:I still do not own To Love Ru
As always, Read and Review!
"What, isn't it obvious?" Nemesis states, looking around at everyone present, "I mean, yes, his father is out of the picture now, but Bladix was a living blade..." She puts a hand to her chin and looks thoughtful. "I mean, the way it sounds after all, Bladix was a sentient sword encased within a metal shell, whose to say he wasn't born from someone else's soul?" Nemesis states, smiling deviously just a little bit, "And when your nanites tried to bond with Rito, weren't they designed to take out Bladix's life energy, the wisps of his soul left imprinted inside Rito?" Rito looks to Lala, then to Adam. "What I'm saying is that the program wasn't specific enough, whoever did this probably thought there would be only one parasitic life form inside the host- not that I'm a parasite, mind you," Nemesis states with a huff, before smiling and floating over to Adam's new form, "If I die, as a back up there's just enough of myself left in Rito to reconstitute myself, or at least there was, before the nanites gobbled it all up and used it to create you!" She ruffles Adam's hair, much to the child's displeasure, and Rito begins to process just exactly what she was getting at.
"Oh- oh, gods, not another one," Rito moans out, putting his hands over his face in defeat, "I just got you off my case, and now I'm raising your son..." Lala squees and rushes over to Nemesis and Adam, engulfing both of them in a big hug, shortly joined by Mea, who hugs Adam tightly. Nemesis suddenly realizes revealing that was a very bad idea, and she quickly dissolves into dark matter, reforming just a ways away.
"Technocally, he's formed of both mine and Bladix's essence, true, but you were just as important Rito," Nemesis smirks, "After all, if you hadn't burned Bladix out of the blade, Adam would never have been born from your power awakening him and causing his consciousness to solidify into a quasi-energy state." She moves over and pokes at Adam, pulling out a bit of hair as she pulls back. The strands of hair seem to writhe and become purple bubbles, floating back to Adam and rejoining with him, replacing the hair he lost. "Given enough time, Adam will surpass Bladix's restrictions while drawing upon my own powers which also make up Adam's consciousness, his 'soul' if you will," Nemesis states, "He'll grow strong enough to materialize in the physical world, at least while you are holding his blade and feeding him your excess dark matter; he'll stop being classified a parasitic life form too, since his absorption will keep your own powers from becoming chaotically catastrophic, as appealing as that sounds to me..."
Rito doesn't know whether he should be happy that the parasitic entity, currently in the form of a little kid that looked like what a child of himself and Nemesis would, could potentially materialize and join his 'mother' in terrorizing his life. Defeated, Rito decides to change the subject, wanting to move past the flashes of two people trying to make him their manservant. Rito turns back to Adam, and kneels down, staring him in the eyes to keep his attention. "Show us what else we came here to see," Rito states, and the child nods, "All of us." Adam turns away from them, raising his hands as he does so, and walls appear around them all.
'As you now know I am a composite entity, a distorted recollection of Bladix's memories passed on to me, as Rito Yuuki's power surge cleansed the sword of the phantom remnant,' Adam states, 'While not all of his memories, or his knowledge, was passed onto me, much of the core memories remain and I believe I know why.' Adam points to a floating piece of shrapnel being suspended in some kind of containment unit, barely bigger than a toothpick. 'What you are seeing now is an active view of where ever this piece of the Ninth Sword is being held, from Bladix's destruction at Golden Darkness' hands,' Adam states, moving like a phantom over to the piece of metal, until it seemed to overlay with his heart, 'When Azenda reconstructed Bladix, they kept a piece hidden away, they kept the sword broken, fractured, perhaps in an attempt to keep Bladix from ever becoming whole, and in this sliver's place I was given Nemesis' remnants...'
Nemesis looks concerned, as does Lala, and Rito merely feels a pang of sympathy for the boy, while Mea holds back. "So, when they fixed the blade using the nanites, this piece of Bladix, a piece that wasn't cleansed by Rito's power," Lala states, turning to face Adam, "It could give you the missing memories you need to become whole, but where does that get us?" Lala turns back to Nemesis, then to Rito. "If we can't even figure out who gave Azenda the blade, how does this help us?" Lala asks, moving closer to Rito, "We came here for answers, which Adam either can't provide, or is hiding from us; we came here to figure out how Azenda knew about the Pearl, how Kuro was connected to all of this, how does this, help us?" She points back to the shard, turning her head as she does so. She jumps back in shock, as Adam is there at the tip of her pointer finger, smiling like a shark who just caught the scent of blood.
'There we go,' Adam states, excited, 'The princess coming out with the heavy questions; the true meat and potatoes you came here to find!' Snapping his fingers, the walls fall away, giving way to an odd and unnatural darkness. Adam, still smiling, fades away into the shadows, as his voice booms all around them. 'How does Kuro, the assassin Black, wielder of the Tenth Weapon of Chronos, fit in with the schemes surrounding the resurrection of the Ninth Blade?' Adam booms form the darkness, 'Perhaps, Hime-sama, the better question is, 'How does a dead man forge a Tenth weapon, when his Ninth was unfinished?', eh?' Suddenly ground begins to form from the darkness, followed by heavy mists that obscure the four friends from each other. As Rito looks up, he sees the darkness has been replaced by a blanket of fresh, young looking stars. Though they are unfamiliar, Rito feels like this place they are on is familiar. Looking around, Rito spots something off in the misty darkness, like a falling star blinking off in the distance.
In the mists, Rito finds that what he thought was a star, was in fact a lantern. A giant, hanging lantern, topping a massively tall, wooden staff that was carried by a green, cloaked figure. The light was strong enough to burn the darkness in the mists away, and Rito found himself quickly joined by Lala, Nemesis, and Mea, also drawn to the source of light. Rito watched, as the man sat the lantern against a tree, to crawl down into a hole with an empty cloth sack from his back. After a few minutes the cloth sack was tossed from the mouth of the hole, and the hooded figure ascends, grabbing both the filled sack and the staff and walking towards a clearing. At the center of the clearing was a massive tree, bigger than any Rito had ever seen on Earth, but familiar to him another way. The memory they found themselves in was that of a man on the planet Mistletoe, the massive tree causing Rito to remember the unique and deadly planet from when he tried to save Celine from what he thought was a deadly plague.
The man moves to a massive overhang of roots and vines, and the others follow him to what appears to be an entrance into the base of the tree. As they climb down, they notice clods of dirt and tree roots, give way to paved stone and metal infrastructure, until they reach what appears to be a secret area built into the massive trees root system. As they follow the cloaked figure, he reaches what appears to be an area where supplies are kept. Extinguishing the lantern, artificial lighting having replaced the need for it, he places the sack onto a table, opening it to reveal its contents. Shiny, metallic looking chunks of rock appear to have been mined and stored in the hole, the man having just retrieved it now, it seemed.
"Orichalcum," Mea breaths out, recognizing the metallic ore and turning to the others, "It looks unprocessed, but I've seen facilities who've tried to refine it, this is the ore they mine to smelt down into the pure metal they forge, but never in large enough quantities like this." Rito looks at the ore, and thinks back to the sword, Adam, and thinks to Kuro's gun, which is made of the weapon. "They say the ore is the scarcest metal in the universe, to find anything bigger than a single stone, it means that this planet is full of the heaviest, most densest elements that formed in the beginning..." Mea states in awe, moving around the table, "If Mistletoe has this much naturally... if it still does... its no wonder it is so inhospitable to electronics, it's a giant, cosmic radiation magnet!" Lala's, even Nemesis' eyes, widen at that, and Rito can't help but be confused.
The feeling grows as the man now removes his hood, revealing a whitish-pink flower crowning his head, long, thick strands of green hair, mossy and organic like vegetation, clinging to and down the sides of his head. "Just enough," the man states, a voice that sounds tired and yet hopeful, "Just enough for the bullet... the last item before it can be used..." The man is smiling as he leaves the sack of rocks for a location deeper within the complex. As Rito and the others follow, he notices that the building seems to be cracking at the seams, branches form the ancient tree beginning to send new shoots into the facility. The man goes to a sprouting root that has broken through the wall, slightly caressing it. "I know old friend, soon, soon and it will all be over," he mutters, before breaking off the sprout, "The forge will die down again, and you can retake this place for yourself, but not until I make the bullets, not until justice can prevail against that cursed blade..." The man, who looks so much like an older Celine in Rito's eyes, begins to move again, reaching a closed door.
"Here you are," the man states, opening the door, "Let's make sure you are ready, just one more check..." Opening the sealed door, which seems to made of a thick material, the man walks into what appears to be a forge. At the center of the room is a familiar weapon, and Rito recognizes that this man must be its forger. This was the man who forged Hades. Grabbing the weapon, checking its barrels, and oiling the weapon, to Rito it seemed that the man cared for it like it was his lifeline. Lala moves up to face the man, standing opposite of the plant man.
She moves to put a hand to his face, ghosting through it as she does. This was merely a memory after all, nothing they could do would allow them to interact with it. "Mau..." she states sadly, just above a whisper, "Look at what you've become..." Rito glances at Lala with a raised brow, Lala not obviously realizing that she had spoken loud enough for them all to hear her words.
"Lala, do you know him?" Rito asks, and Lala looks at Rito with a start, "You just said 'Mau', like you knew it was his name?" Lala looks like she is about to reply, before a massive boom is heard from within the complex, shaking the ground around them as it does so. "What was that?" Rito asks, looking to the others, to the man. He watches as the man grabs the gun, and loads it with bullets.
"You're here... you're here too early!" the weapons forger states, a look of anger crossing his brow, "Fine, I'll end you here and now, before you can cause anymore people the pain and suffering I've felt..." The man leaves the door swinging open, and Rito and the others follow him out. They barely are able to catch up to him, as he races through the halls and out into the open air. The darkness and the mist still fill the sky, but everyone feels the wrongness that seems to crackle in the still air. "Show yourself!" Mau roars to the darkness, "You unholy terror, you slayer of Charmia, come out and show me your face, you blood-thirsty coward!"
Deep, booming laughter echoes out from the darkness, until a single, glowing eye opens with terrible, unholy, red light. The man stands steadfast, unwavering from the frightening look, as Rito stills, as does Lala, Mea, and even Nemesis. 'Blood, your sweet, nutrient filled blood, it tasted so sweet last time...' the ancient echo of Bladix sings out, 'Give me... give me more!' The red light grows more powerful, until the weilder of the bladeis seen. His hair crusted with blood, see-able even in the darkness, white armor rusted away by time and stained by the blood of the slain, the gaunt yet powerful frame of Creed Diskenth, the former Emperor of Deviluke, stood imposing even as a puppet on a string.
"Stop, please, stop yourself from feeding the Ninth Blade anymore!" the younger man states, as the blood red and black blade is leveled to the Creed's face, eerie red light glowing against it as Mau pleads to him, in vain, "Holy Soldier of Deviluke, this violence is not your way!" Mau's bravery is betrayed by the knocking of his knees, as Creed stares down at him with empty eyes. "You have slain my master, leveled his village, destroyed the Charmean Kingdom, and all but ensured the extinction of my friends and family!" Mau states, "I survived to use my Master's knowledge, to use his final forge to create the weapon that would cleanse you of your sins, of your bloody burden." Mau steps back as Creed charges with Bladix outstretched, slashing at his open face, Rito noticing the man merely placing his hand around the gun but not drawing it.
"Please, let me help you!" Mau states, "The blade is unfinished, it must first be cleansed of the corruption it holds within it, then may it be forged again, its imperfections removed; the ones that drew out your hate, your anger, your pride, and turned what was supposed to be an honorable and just spirit, into a mere extension of your blood lust!" Blood drips from a slash above his eyes. Rito watches as the plantasian falls to the ground, tripped by the roots of the great tree. Before the blade goes to plunge into the plantasian's chest, Mau pulls something out and to his side. A shot rings out, as Bladix is plunged into Mau's heart. Before the blade could be removed, the body of Creed Diskenth falls backwards, finally free of the burden of the cursed blade. Rito watches with the others, as Mau's life seems to drain out of him, but then watches as he begins to move.
"What is he doing?" Nemesis asks, seeing the man grab the blade of the sword, and beginning to tug away at it, "Is he trying to remove the blade, without being possessed by the sword?" They watch eagerly, as Mau grunts, removing the sword that pinned him to the forest floor. Blood gushes from the wound, but he ignores it as he sits up and tosses the sword far away from his body. Pulling up his gun, he shoots the sword once more, before it can get up and attack. "D=draining b-bullet," Mau calls out, coughing as he does so, "T-there, now you can't move until someone f-feeds you, you bastard..." Coughing up green blood from his mouth, Mau smiles as he goes to place his hand over where the sword had embedded itself in him. "Damn good cut," he states, before pressing his hand into the wound and dragging himself to his feet, "I've done it Master Roido, for now, I have avenged you..." He slowly shambles down into the roots, falling as he does, stumbling once or twice, but he makes it into the main room, until he falls against a wall where the roots have begun to grow into the building. He lies down on his back, unable to move any further from the spot into the complex. "Shame I had to die, after all," Mau states, smiling as he does so, "I still have to make that last bullet, I still have one last piece to forge..."
His hands move to a pouch on the side of his pants, one that seemed abnormally large. Pulling out a large object, that seems to be shining and gleaming in his dying hands, Mau laughs. "Let's see if the old tales are true, eh Master?" Mau states, leaning back to the wall and closing his eyes, before putting the item in his hands into the cavity left behind by the sword, "It was said it could even resurrect the dead... let's put that to the test..." Closing his eyes for what was surely the last time, Mau does not open them again. As they watch his body, the tree roots seem to grow before their very eyes, until they encompass him completely, all directed towards the cavity cleaved by the cursed sword. Before anything else could be seen, the image falls away, and Adam appears before them all once more.
'I'm sorry, I don't know what happened after that, there are fragments of waking up on another planet,.' Adam states, 'But we know how Kuro is attached to all this now, if his gun Hades was made to destroy me, or at least incapacitate me or my wielder...' Rito nods, and looks to Nemesis and Mea. He looks to Lala as well, who is openly crying at what she had just witnessed. Rito's concern for her overrides whatever questions he could think of, as he merely hugs his crying Fiancee.
"Just get us out of here... please," Lala cries out, "Just get me out of here!" Mea nods, and in less than a second, darkness surrounds Nemesis, Lala, and herself, as they pull out of the forced dream. Rito waits for himself to be pulled out, but looks to see himself still surrounded by darkness and Adam.
'Good, now with them out of the way,' Adam states, 'We can talk without them listening to our every word...' He smiles and turns to Rito. 'I can tell you exactly who it is that hired Azenda to bring Bladix back, I know because I've seen him, even though it is only a sliver of myself, I can see him now,' Adam states, 'You and I need to become whole, Rito, and to do that I need that piece of myself, you need to make Lala happy, and to do that you need to retrieve Momo safely...' Adam's expression changes to that of worry, and he moves closer to Rito as a result, a curious look on his face. 'Tell me, though, Rito, why do you think Lala knows about Roido, the man you call Chronos; or about Mau, the man we just witnessed die?' he asks, staring deeply into Rito's eyes, 'She's hiding something, Rito Yuuki, and that means she's a danger to me, and to you.' Rito backs away from the avatar of the blade, who makes no movement.
"Lala doesn't hide things from me," Rito states in reply, "She may not like you, but considering what she just saw, what she just had to witness, it isn't a surprise she reacted like that." Rito raises up a finger towards Adam. "Why are you so suspicious of her, when you obviously have lied to us more than once, so far," Rito rebukes, "You said you didn't know who hired Azenda, yet you just admitted that you know who it is; why didn't you want to tell me when I was with my friends?"
'Touche, you make a valid point,' Adam states, rubbing his chin as he does so, in a very adult like manner, 'You have no reason to trust me, even though I hold your life in my hands, even now as your friends valiantly try to rescue you from my clutches...' Waving a hand, a view of the outside, showing Rito holding onto the Ninth Blade, even after Mea had detached the connections between all their minds. 'I won't do anything, mind you, I believe you truly want to help me grow, like you want to live,' Adam states, a little bit coldly, before turning to Rito, 'But I am you Rito Yuuki, and I know your thoughts and memories, as much as I know my own; you wonder about her actions, before she ever knew about the decree her father made towards you.' He waves his hand, and the events of last month play out again, this time physically in his head.
Rito notices Lala leaning on his bed, back to the drawer in his Cyber Room, on the day he found her sneaking inside what was supposed to be a private room. Given free range of the room, a full and accurate reconstruction by his memory, Rito notices something he had not that day. Lala's hand that is behind her back, is holding onto the knob of his drawer, one he didn't usually employ beyond the occasional letter he kept from his parents. 'It makes one curious, doesn't it?' Adam states, standing next to him, 'What was so important that day, that she made you swear as if she had never been there?' Adam turns to Rito, smiling, before snapping his fingers and disappearing.
Real World
Rito woke to the shaking of Lala, and he felt the sword slide out of his grasp. he looks to see Kuro, his hands in gloves, wrapping the sword tightly and securely. "We don't need this causing anymore problems," he states, "Now, ladies, I don't know about you all, but this former assassin needs his rest, if we're going to go out searching for Momo tomorrow!" Rito notices the time, and sees Lala yawn, along with a couple of others present in the room. Rito smiles, and then makes a decision.
"If anyone needs a bed, you can use mine," he states, and both Nemesis and Mea smile, "I won't be in it, I apologize, but I will be using my Cyber House, I'll use that bed." Mea and Nemesis seem to pout, and Lala smiles in relief, before Rito turns to Yami and Kuro. "I'm sure you can share my bed with Mea and Nemesis, Yami, I'll get out a spare blanket for Kuro to sleep with," Rito starts, "On the couch, of course." Kuro's face falls, but then he recovers with a smile.
"Fine, that's fine, I guess," Kuro states, "Not like I wanted to sleep in a bed anyway, I've been getting too soft anyways..." Rito smiles a bit, before getting up to grab the spare blanket, before heading off to his own Cyber House and cutting it off from the rest of the world.
Walking up the long pathway to his house, he stares over the greenhouse he had ignored for the past month, gladly not overrun thanks to Mikan's efforts. Walking into the house, eh stares at the empty furniture, passing it by as he moves up the stares into the double of his room. He looks over the perfectly immaculate room, a far cry from what it looked like now, but damage was hard to cover up so fast. 'What is she hiding?' an echo of Adam's conversation rings in his head, 'What...?' Rito looks towards the drawer in question. Without even a second thought, Rito turns off the light and goes to bed. Answers were meant for the morning, he couldn't worry about it now. No matter how much anxiety gnawed at his stomach.