Chapter 13: Justice By Mantra Law
Take two revival beads in hand… close his fingers over them… think over those who'd been lost. Their souls were still in contract. It was unfortunate this only worked with demons. The beads crumbled to dust.
Uzume and Momunofu appeared near him, barely alive but back. "Sorry about that," Uzume said wearily.
"It's fine, I wouldn't blame either of you," Naoki said, handing them each a bead to get themselves back in shape. They were less common items, but this instance was worth it. "Now we've got this trial by combat to pass." He lowered his voice. "The third round is against Thor himself, so we're going to throw everything we've got at him. The first two rounds should be simple, we'll be conservative for the most part, work on building up power for Thor."
"We should really give our all for all battles," Momunofu said, a little disappointed.
"Ah, no no," Matador said, waving a finger at him. "We have a crowd to perform for this time. Hold back your strength with those that don't matter and make it look like you're not. Then when your true ability comes forth, your worthy opponent is shocked and your audience most thrilled. You've got power buffs and I've got agility buffs. We've got to slyly get our buffs in while we're playing soft."
"Will your buffing move cover our whole group?" Naoki asked, unsure of if he was used to team battle.
"I will make it so, for your glory as our leader is my own," Matador said. "I give my word on my honor as a performer, and as a clanmate."
Naoki was leery of his word as a clanmate. But his desire to give a good show could be something to trust. "All right, I'm counting on that."
Not long after that, they walked into a cavernous room that was filled with brown pillars and lit torches. Cheers and jeers quickly came from overhead; a light kept them from seeing the audience up there, but Naoki could sense that the seats were packed. While he'd tried to sense into this arena first so it didn't overcome him on arrival, getting a fresh scent of the blood, sweat, pain, and pride in here was an unwelcome tide. There was a trench on the side of one of the pillars, dropping down on a similar room filled with death. He recalled it being labeled an execution room.
By the time he could focus again, the crowd had quieted and an unseen official was charging them. "You walked into our entrance uninvited and preceded to beat your way through our security."
"Doesn't that mean they weren't good?" Naoki asked, getting some laughs from overhead. Others were embarrassed.
"Be quiet in our court!" the official said. "So we'll add being disruptive in court to being a little sneak! And we have witnesses who say that you came from the direction of Ginza. You're probably a spy from the Nihilo organization meant to break us up from within."
"My methods seem more akin to what you'd do than what they'd do," he said. There were some grunts in agreement.
"Well..." the official was caught speechless. Naoki noticed that Thor was with him, whispering something. "Well that might be so, but it still doesn't excuse your intrusion when you're not one of us!" That got a clamor from overhead. "You are guilty as charged! If you want to prove your innocence, then destroy your executioners before they destroy you!"
The orthrus leaped down into the battle pit, causing a louder roar from overhead. The large dog snapped both of his heads. "Grrr, if I had been on guard duty, you wouldn't have gotten anywhere! Now you'll pay!"
Seeing as this beast had a typical pairing of a fire resistance and ice weakness, the orthrus was nothing to worry about. Uzume and Momunofu held back to start up their buffs while Naoki used ice breath against him. Some stroke of luck got the orthrus frozen immediately, causing the cheers to turn into laughter. Of course, the Mantra was most loyal to power.
Matador brought his saber up in front of his face, giving a glance Naoki's way. He nodded, allowing the other fiend to slam his weapon into orthrus and shatter his frozen body. Orthrus passed out; a red shine appeared between the bars, preventing his body from fading into magatsuhi. "And the first match goes to the Fiend Demi," the official said reluctantly. Some ikusas came in to pull the orthrus out of the arena and throw him down to the execution pit.
Most loyal to power, not to their own. Naoki felt a little sick, not seeing how this could make sense. If they did this often, it was cutting down their own numbers along with any prisoners. Unless demon revival could happen without contracts, and passed away members simply returned to join once they were alive again. Even with revival, it was a cruel thing to do to yourself.
A purple-skinned warrior woman came in next, wielding two swords. She had no armor aside from some gold bracers and was mostly naked; then again, he was participating in the same manner. "Don't think you're winning, because you won't last a moment against my blades," the yaksini said. She licked her lips, but it seemed more vicious than his own habit.
Immediately, Uzume used a Mazio against her. As Matador reported, she also had a typical pairing of force resistance and electric weakness. Uzume had the same pattern, but the yaksini didn't have electrical spells to turn on them. Momunofu continued their buff building and Naoki was able to knock her out with a focused blow.
"And the second match goes to the Fiend Demi," the official said, still not impressed. "But you're in for it now, because now you have to get past our second-in-command! Thor will strike you down!"
Thor appeared in a quiet flash of light, the air reverberating soundlessly. "You have fallen to me before, you will fall to me again," he said, unconcerned about the battle. He clenched his open fist, gathering electricity.
He was powerful, but his magic was less than his physical prowess. With that in mind, Naoki shifted Kamudo forward before focusing. At his side, Matador swung his red cape; the agility buff did not have the range Naoki would like, barely hitting Momunofu coming forward and not setting on Uzume at all (even though she could have used it most for dodging lightning). But it went over himself and Matador at full ability; it reminded him of the scent of that Ag Incense, the wind before a storm.
Naoki side-stepped right out of a lightning bolt and rushed for Thor. Having fought him before, the thunder god readied his hammer to knock him away. Kamudo helped him roll under the following swing and thrust his elbow backwards above Thor's left heel. He was hefty boots, but the attack broke through and crushed his tendons. Unbalanced with the weakened foot, Thor could only brace himself for a pincer strike from Matador and Momunofu.
In defense, Thor made a burst of lightning shower over himself. Naoki stepped back to focus his power again, then punched into the back of his right knee. The feeling of storm winds wrapped around him as he jumped aside to avoid the giant falling on top of him. Overhead, a murmuring tension built up in their audience. They were expecting a curb stomping, but not from his side.
Thor managed to see through Matador's cape tricks and knocked the skeleton into the bars with his hammer. While it had taken Naoki a couple minutes in his winning fight against Matador, Thor nearly took him out in that one blow. But that was just 'nearly'. Uzume was still in the fight because only the initial lightning attack could have hit her; she healed Matador to get him back in action. Momunofu was still making attacks with his spear where he had easy openings.
But Naoki was going to keep using Thor's size against him. It took focusing and waiting for the right moment… right as Thor was ending a hammer blow on Momunofu this time, before he was ready to attack again. Naoki punched Thor's elbow, trying to injure his hammer arm. The muscle and bone there made it a tougher target. Still, the resulting pain left Thor unable to stop Matador from thrusting his saber past the long dark hair into his neck, killing him in spite of the arena's enchantment.
In the stunned silence from that victory, Matador turned to him and bowed. "My commander, I hope I have served thee well."
Naoki was on the fence about Matador, leaning more towards disliking him for not being of any help with Isamu. But it couldn't be denied: that one statement put the entire audience into awe. "Yes, I'm proud to have you at my side," Naoki said, hazarding a guess that it would please the Mantra demons even more.
It had the desired effect, leading to a swelling of cheers and praise from overhead. While the ikusas hurried in in a panic to get Thor revived, bottles and bones got thrown down from overhead in celebration. One thing was dangerously close to hitting his head; Naoki snatched an armored bikini top out of the air, getting a chorus of hoots for that little extra. His demons were amused at that too. Hanging onto it to keep acting the part, he waited for them to stop throwing stuff and get Thor back.
"Uh, s-so then," the official said nervously, "the results of that trial, are, um..." They couldn't have many who defeated Thor. Was he always one of the executioners, or only in certain cases?
Thor raised his free hand, getting everyone to grow quiet. He was standing perfectly fine now; whatever they'd done to him was a full heal along with the revive. "What purpose did you have in coming here?"
"To speak with Gozu-Tennoh about trashing the Nihilo place near Ginza," Naoki said, stirring up excitement overhead. "Your nues at the front door attacked before we could ask about that and died too quickly to listen."
"With this power, you could have done so yourself," Thor said.
Now what? His magatama whispered an answer to him. While he was getting the hang of talking like this, that wasn't something he'd normally say outside of full Kagutsuchi. But then, the Mantra would like it. "I would like to cause them as much trouble as possible. Smashing them fast and hard when they don't expect it is more likely to crush them than drawing them out with a prolonged battle." There were some hoots and cheers for that.
"Hmph." It was a laugh restrained to keep a stern face; the helmet would help against any with normal senses. "Then take the elevator behind me to speak with our exalted leader. Judge, I declare the Fiend Demi to be innocent. Release him."
The official quickly responded, "Ah yes, then by Thor's judgment, no, out of respect for your power, all charges against Demi are dropped. You're welcome in our territory at any time." The audience was thunderous in applause and approval.
Dropping the bikini top, Naoki went over to Thor. "About the human you captured with me, I'll be taking him with me once my business here is done. All right?" He wasn't sure if that was enough to apologize, but he'd at least get Isamu out of this place.
Thor nodded. "Fine, I will let the guards here know. We won't do him any more harm as your property."
"Good." He led his group out of the arena to reach the elevator.
In the old world, this elevator would have had a large amount of destinations. Now, it went only between this floor and the sixtieth. Naoki felt further changes within the building as they rode higher and higher. Any rooms that had been there were removed for a massive support system, allowing the weight to be spread at the lower floors without taking out the rooms there. And the presence of the god being supported here grew even greater.
His thoughts drifted away from that. What was he doing? He'd cut off his friendship with Isamu, then claimed him as his property. He was meeting with a tyrant who wouldn't have a concept of mercy to start an attack on the one who'd killed the old world. And for the far future, he was contemplating an invasion of heaven. This wasn't like him, but it was what he wanted to do. It had to be the influence of the magatama and this Vortex World, twisting what he thought of as right and wrong.
And he'd not even been awake here the entire time, not like his friends. Chiaki took a ring from an unattended store just to boost her spirits, and Isamu seemed to be obsessing more than usual over Yuko in order to ignore the terrible events around them. Maybe it was just the sheer scale of everything, greater than any of them could deal with well.
You need to adapt to this world and survive, Naoki. If you want to bring back the world as it was, we will do that. It's your choice.
And there's also the choice to follow Lucifer's lead.
They tried to whisper that like part, like they wanted (or were instructed) to not shove it in his face. But they knew that was ultimately their purpose: to mold him into what Lucifer wanted. They couldn't affect him as much as a normal demonic possession if what Hijiri suggested was true. While the whole picture was beyond him, he was meant to make his own choices and take the consequences of them, such as what just happened with Isamu even if it had been the influence of Kagutsuchi.
He needed to find some way to better control himself in those conditions, that was clear. But how did he overcome his demon side while not blocking it out entirely? He did need the powers to do things here, or he'd be just like Isamu and Hijiri (Chiaki too).
At the top of the area, he felt a warning from his horn. One of the candelabrum holders was around. It couldn't be Gozu-Tennoh, right? He was a god, not a fiend. "Matador, what other fiends are in this area?" Naoki asked.
"I don't know where the others went, so I couldn't say," he replied.
Forbidden to or genuinely ignorant? "Eternity, Dignity, and Knowledge are here. Knowledge is closest, Eternity is waiting at the ground level, and Dignity comes and goes."
"Ah, if you can identify them that much, I could tell you who took them," Matador said. "If you sense them in different locales, they have not yet won a challenge over each other. Eternity was taken by Daisoujou; he's an old monk who defies death through rejection of worldly needs and desires."
"That doesn't sound very fiendish," Uzume said. Naoki nodded in agreement.
Meanwhile, they stepped out onto the sixtieth floor, ending up outside the building. There was a brown stone walkway for the giant beings who dwelt here, but no protection from getting swept off the edge and falling straight to the ground. Although, that had the slight fortune of giving him less to sense before he could move on. The pervasive presence of Gozu-Tennoh also helped that.
Matador chuckled darkly. "Perhaps, but you ought to have seen the amount of suffering from those who tried to follow his lead. All in the name of spiritual enlightenment, they let themselves waste away. Perhaps a few did find what they were looking for; others learned why it is foolish for an ordinary being to deny basic needs and push faith past its limits."
"And what of the other two?" Naoki said, leading them towards a lengthy staircase that wrapped around the outside of the skyscraper.
"Dignity was taken by Hell Biker, who was the youngest Fiend until you came along... okay, well aside from Chemtrail, but Chemtrail is completely mad and I don't know why he was chosen. I must admit that I'm not that old either in this company; I've been around for a few centuries, but our elders like Daisoujou have been around for many more, even thousands of years. Anyhow, Hell Biker was born of a legacy of violence and pride among the rebels who ride motorcycles. He uses his as a weapon with reckless abandon, so I think you two might get along."
Because he'd fought Matador recklessly? "We'll see about that."
"And although I know what took the Candelabrum of Knowledge, I don't actually know much about them," Matador said.
"What do you mean by what took it rather than who?" Naoki asked, looking to him.
Matador shrugged. "It was some outsider. Within the Amala Universe, many possibilities arise. Beings that could not exist in one world exist in others. The outsider who has Knowledge is precisely that. They belong to a world where I couldn't, so I know little about them. Lucifer seemed impressed when this outsider wandered in, so honored them with our title while they're traveling Amala. They did agree to stick around while they had the candelabrum."
It was surprising that they'd let an outsider into this game. Naoki kept alert, but whoever it was did not approach. Good, he wanted to get his business with the Mantra done with before dealing with the other fiends. They walked around the building in ascent, finally reaching a massive door high above the elevator they'd entered from. It slid aside, welcoming them into the abode of Gozu-Tennoh.
As they walked through, it was obvious that this space had been remade for the god. No space meant for humans would be built this way. The crackle of the largest torches yet filled the room, reflected off pools of dark water on the sides. A giant throne took up much of the floor and the giant who filled it loomed over all in the area. With the fierce visage of a pagan god, there was no question that he was the strongest here even if he never left his throne.
Kashima Naoki…
"Hmm?" An odd feeling came over his horn, barely hearing someone call his name. But it did not match what he saw and felt of Gozu-Tennoh.
See what the future may hold.
The room faded into white nothingness; even his followers were left behind. What was this? He tried to sense it and all he could tell was this was a vision. What the future could hold…
There was a temple much like this place, its pillars opening up at strategic angles to shine light upon the honored god. Humans were tending to him; their faces were bound with plain white masks and their bodies had red chains crossed over their chests. At Gozu-Tennoh's feet, there was a one human clothed entirely in white robes and red chains; her legs were crushed so completely that she was stuck there for life. The god contemplated an on-going war with a neighboring god, contentedly thinking over how to arrange the next battle in his favor.
A group of priests and prisoners came in; the priests only had a single red chain as a belt while the prisoners were bound so tight that they struggled to move. There was fear and awe in all humans here; it was a respect born of being able to do nothing against the one that ruled over them.
"O Exalted one, we have brought the ones wagered with in today's gladiator matches," one of the priests said with a practiced detachment. Another brought forward three of the prisoners. "These were those bound to the losers, to be offered to thee."
Gozu-Tennoh's eyes flared up like the fires around him. "You have chosen to align yourselves with the weak when you could not fight yourselves. Hmph, you are miserable beasts that do not belong in my kingdom of the strong. Your souls will be put to a better use."
The three didn't even try to run as bloody vines grew around them. They were terrified but had already given up on life. Arm-length thorns erupted out of the vines, piercing the sacrifices over their whole bodies. While their blood streamed down onto the floor, it took some time for them to die.
While that was happening, the priests brought forward the one to survive. "And this is the one bound to the winner. Although, the audience was not satisfied with the match. The one who lost to the winning gladiator was a favorite of theirs. The victory is being investigated."
"Is that so?" The air turned heavy with disapproval. "A victory attained with underhanded means is nothing to be proud of. Therefore, you as his wager are worth nothing. You will not ascend to those trained to fight for our glory. You will descend to the life of a slave; take him away to the auction house."
"As you ask, o exalted one," the lead priest said, giving a low bow.
"In our world, humans face ceaseless challenges to polish their souls," Gozu-Tennoh mused as Naoki's vision faded to white again. "Once you shine brilliantly enough to please me, you shall know the true glory that comes with fighting for victory. The Mantra Kingdom was the one that formulated our world. No matter how many rise to challenge us, and there will always be someone, we will be forever victorious. In this way, the world will forever thrive."
This is the world that Mantra would build. Will you allow it?
He didn't want to. Naoki's vision returned to the present; no one around him seemingly noticed that his mind hadn't been there. Immediately, his eyes were drawn to someone at the feet of Gozu-Tennoh: a manikin with broken legs, hidden within an overly-large white robe and red chains. She introduced the god to them with a dramatic proclamation, her voice bizarrely steady compared to the way her body quaked.
"Well met, champions of our arena," Gozu-Tennoh said proudly. "I offer you a gift in recognition of your intelligent use of power, a reflection of my own."
A red orb appeared in the air close to Naoki. A white form was curled up inside. Wait, wasn't that a magatama? He'd not sensed Murakumo in this area. Then again, Gozu-Tennoh's presence would dominate any place he existed. The magatama did not move while it was within the orb. If he could hold himself back, he should be aware for the whole conversation. "Thank you."
"Much more power could be yours should you choose to join us. My subordinates have located a few of these, but none could make use of them. I have been watching for the one who could, seeing great promise in their method of enhancement. It seems I was not wrong, given the human shell you began with. What do you say? Ally with me and any of my followers could be yours, along with what of these insects we have discovered."
That was tempting. Gozu-Tennoh probably realized that he already had Narukami, but Gaea was definitely in their possession. What others did they hold outside of their headquarters? However, Naoki didn't want to see that future vision come about. Even without that, the way they treated manikins was enough for him to distrust them. Did he have it in him to double-cross Mantra?
He didn't think so. "I want to ally with you for the moment, only for my own goals. I may not bother you afterward, but I will certainly not join you."
While the god's eyes flared up, the atmosphere didn't become oppressive. "Hmph, that's a pity. But I will respect such a bold sentiment. I heard what you wish out of us, to attack Nihilo's headquarters in Ginza." He laughed. "Of course, I would be glad to join another on such an enterprise. Nihilo says they want a world of pure serenity, but what they mean to do is erase all passions and render everyone equal cogs in a global machine that does nothing. It is far too absurd to allow to come about! I will gather my forces and send them through the Great Underpass. Once we emerge, we will swiftly break down their defenses and destroy them once and for all."
Through the underpass? The manikins there should be warned. Hopefully gathering all of the Mantra troops took enough time for his group to reach them. With the deal made, Naoki and his group left. The elevator seemed like the most suitable point to burst this bubble and ingest Murakumo. Since it was sluggish from being held captive, there was little disruption as it connected to the others. There was a moment where everything looked green and his head whirled in dizziness, but that cleared by the time they could exit the elevator.
His horn warned him of the presence of the Candelabrum of Knowledge again, now on the third floor. Whoever this was definitely didn't want to stay in one place. "I feel they're close," Naoki said.
"The outsider fiend?" Matador asked.
Naoki nodded, then felt a little twitch from Murakumo. That person was very close. Following his sense, Naoki looked up towards the high ceiling. There was a shadow that didn't seem right, not in this place of straight lines and rigid forms. After a second, he saw the form of a person up there, with a tattered red cloth drooping close to the wall. Glowing blue eyes met his.
The outsider fiend leaped down, sending a wave of dark energy at them. He barely looked human, being more like a crumbling blue corpse. While the frames of black wings were on his back, they were broken and useless. "I've been looking for you," he said, barely stopping as he went to slash at Naoki with large black claws.
Without thinking, Naoki readied an attack for the swift being. Murakumo seemed to have thickened his skin although the claws still cut through. His fist met with the outsider's skull savagely and it felt like the outsider couldn't take much more. Trying to protect him, Momunofu barged in before the outsider could strike again. Naoki decided to keep close to his follower, inside his spear's reach. Uzume backed off while Matador swung his cape to match the outsider's speed.
The outsider batted Momunofu's spear aside and nearly gave Naoki a good opening to punch through. He swept his hand in a peculiar fashion and then wasn't there physically. "What was that, just a hit and run?" Matador asked in disgust.
"No," Naoki said, pulling on Momunofu's arm. The outsider couldn't be seen, but Naoki could still sense him there. He emerged at full health as Momunofu was turning in response, tearing through the demon's armor. With both him and Momunofu resistant to physical attacks, it was clear that this outsider was far stronger than he appeared to be.
Matador stepped in to pierce the outsider through with his phantom sabers, knocking a large amount of energy out of him. The outsider then punched right through Matador's coat, tore half of it off, and used a spell like Life Drain. Will o'wisps sometimes had that, draining the health and magic of their target. While it seemed the same, it was able to destroy Matador and restore the outsider completely. He then disappeared again.
"Uzume, get over here!" Naoki called as he realized where the outsider was headed.
She obeyed immediately, but the stranger came out and tackled her into a pillar. Momunofu hurled his spear without being asked, piercing the outsider's meager body through. Before he could call the weapon back, the outsider tore it out of his own body. He did not bleed as his body disintegrated in that spot. He ripped Uzume's energy from her, destroying her as well.
Concerned that this would end up with a succession of deaths again, Naoki attempted Fire Breath as fire was supposed to be effective against undead. The outsider seemed to be that, given how strange his life energy felt. But for how strong he was, he was even more fragile than Matador. Just like his punch, the fire nearly took him out. All the outsider might need to do was vanish momentarily to recover entirely; he needed to be taken out in one blow, or something had to be done to disrupt his powers.
And then Momunofu was destroyed, taken out with his own spear. The weapon vanished as its owner did. Given that this might not be recoverable, Naoki went ahead and used Ice Breath to see how it did. No more effective than the others, just not enough to win. Then the outsider darted for him, and stopped with his claws an inch in front of Naoki's face. "That's it."
"You were just testing us?" Naoki asked, wary that it was a bluff. A blow now should take the outsider out, but he could be killed just as quickly.
The stranger dropped his hand to his side. "Isn't it all a test? Hmph, not just anyone can read my motions on the other side. There's potential but you're still green. You're held back by your humanity."
"Is that such a bad thing?" Demons wouldn't agree, so what about him?
"You might have a point," he admitted. "If you want to return your world to the way it was, I have no complaint against it. Even so, it might not be a bad idea to build the power you have now within the labyrinth. Your enemy to restoration won't be defeated easily. But if you become willing to take an even darker path, you had best know as much as you can about why it exists. I'm trying to find that out myself."
"I'd like to know, but anybody who can tell me anything can't be fully trusted," Naoki said.
"Don't forget that," he said with a nod. "I am Raziel, a wraith who devours souls. I've heard what the demons call you, but I'm curious, what did they call you as a human?"
"Kashima Naoki," he answered.
Raziel hesitated a moment. "That would be Naoki, correct? By what I observed of your city before Conception."
It was a more familiar usage than he'd usually take with someone he'd just met, but there was still a kinship in both of them being named fiends. "Yes, that works."
"Good, in case we meet again," he said, waving his arm again. He vanished from sight and soon was gone entirely from the building.
Well, now his followers were all knocked out. Naoki decided that he'd fetch Isamu, stop by the Fountain of Life on their way to the terminal, and then leave him there to figure out what he could more reasonably do.
The cell door clattered open again. Isamu looked up and was grateful to see Naoki. The pyro jack guard waved his lantern. "Come on out of there, he's come to take you back."
Isamu got back on his feet. His body felt heavy and stiff, leading him to balance against the wall to do that much. "Oh good, I wasn't sure if you'd come."
While Naoki didn't look happy, he didn't look loopy either. "I brought you in here, so I'm going to get you out. And could you revive your guardian please?"
"Do you think he'll really help?" Once he got to moving, he could keep a decent pace.
Naoki sighed quietly. "I have a limited amount of revival beads but the three who were with me are all dead again. The Mantra respect me now, but they'll still be eager for fights. And since Pascal is helping to keep you alive when you can't be revived, he should take priority."
"All right," Isamu said, not wanting to argue with him again. They were still friends, right? Naoki did help show him how the healing items worked. Pascal whimpered upon being brought back, his ears under the armor held down in penance. But he didn't say anything as they left.
As they walked back to the elevator, the Mantra demons kept their distance and watched. They were in awe of Naoki; Isamu was just incidental to them. What would it take for them to respect him too?
While his group was unconscious, Naoki sent them to the basement instead of the ground floor with the exits. "There's just one more thing to take care of," he said.
"What's that?"
"Can't say while we're here," he said quietly.
Down in the basement, they found another prison watched over by a nue on a raised dais. It told them not to do anything funny. Naoki didn't let it bother him and took a look around the prison. While there were a few demons like a succubus down here, it was mostly the odd manikins being held here. They looked like imitations of humans rather than actual humans, rather poor imitations at that.
At the end of one hall, there was a huge door with a bar of those chessboard squares across it. Naoki gripped the bar and tugged at it; the lines on his horn raced faster, gleaming for a moment. "I don't have the raw strength to just pull it open, but then neither should most of the Mantra," he said quietly.
"Not even the oni?" Isamu asked. When he shook his head, Isamu tried to find something about it himself. "Kinda useless to have a door most people can't use."
"Could be that it's a safe past here," he mused. "Not useful to most of them, or to those who wanted to know." Naoki tugged at the bar again, then touched a line between squares. "Unless there's actually a trick to it. You should know this kind of puzzle."
"Really?" He touched part of the bar and found that there was a hairline crack there. It could be one of those puzzle box type constructions. "Hmm, seems like one of those where you have to take the pieces out in the right order. How many pieces is it made of?"
Once Naoki told him how many pieces there were and what their shapes were, it wasn't hard to figure out. With the pieces taken out, the door no longer needed only strength to open. It didn't open to much, just a small room that might be useable as a safe. But there wasn't much in there.
"Aha, this is where they had Gaea," Naoki said, dropping down to pick up something off the floor. Isamu only got a glimpse of something white and squirming before he swallowed it.
"Ew, did you have to do that?" Isamu said, trying not to show just how much that grossed him out.
"Yes," he said. "I need a moment to adjust; can you put the puzzle door back in place?"
"Sure." He would prove they could be good friends still.
A/N: Here we see why I gave Naoki some psychic potential even though he is specifically (and suspiciously) noted as completely average: to show alternate futures without getting into a tangle of writing multiple endings. Some relate to the game's endings, while others like this one are 'what if' scenarios. There's so much interesting potential, even with the bad Demon ending, that I wanted to cover as much as I could.
And the outsider fiend is Raziel from the Legacy of Kain series. Dante is taken from a different series and doesn't act like a strong ally for Lucifer, so when I decided to replace him, I wanted someone who still had those two qualities. Raziel got manipulated into several tangled schemes in his own series, so it's natural for him to be suspicious of Lucifer even when he's not familiar with the mythology. As I said at the start, I've also wanted to use Raziel or the LoK series for fanfiction at some point. But that series is its own challenge to work out what goes on and write something from there.