REPENT! Cruxis finally makes their debut in my fic!
Much plot development in this chapter.
Anyway, I don't have much to say, so, let's go on.
NOTE: (Could be part of a disclaimer) Imasix Azule is a creation of Maurice A. Nigma, so the credits for his character design and concept goes to him. I've got all the proper permission to use him in this fic.
Chapter 33
Divine Punishment
Merahwdir looked over the battlefield with a disapproving look. He knew what the battle's outcome would be before it even started. This was nothing, but a trial of fire for some of his warriors and even the humans, but, by the end of it, more than half of the two armies would be slain. It was always like this when they were present.
Some called the lion demon soft, others said it was a mystery how he even made it to his current rank and many wanted nothing more than to pummel him as the "disgrace" he was. The former got what they had coming to them.
Merahwdir knew his behavior and moral standings weren't appreciated by most of his kin and would have abandoned them if it wasn't for the fact that at least two of the Great Ones understood and at least one practiced the old art of chivalry. Pity none of them were his Lord.
Apocalypse, the Plague of Fate, was your stereotypical demon, according to what Merahwdir discovered when learning some of the few cultures Niflheim's Historian Clan bothered to record and integrate into the demon's own; he was ruthless, prideful, thought all those bellow him, demon or otherwise were worthless (in the case of demons) or trash that needed to be exterminated (in the case of mortals). And most importantly, his Lord believed only in strength and in washing humiliation through blood and death.
Sometimes, the demon general wished he had been created a high demon, or even a spiritual one. The two other Lords were at least plausible enough to see beyond their pride. Not that Merahwdir would ever badmouth the one that created his species and disobey him. That was not only virtually impossible, but also would go against every valor he believed in.
Merahwdir chuckled at that. He was a follower of chivalry and a demon to boot. Maybe he was indeed a disgrace to his race, but, for his very existence, he couldn't find himself to care about it.
When he sensed the magical energy the angels were uniting, he knew he had to act unless more than half of his troops would be wiped out. There was one thing between sending spendable demons to their deaths in a useful way and futile, suicidal standing. He didn't understand why most Generals couldn't see the simple fact that letting your entire troop die in a lost battle was counterproductive.
"Tell them all to fall back," he spoke to the one at his right.
"Yes, my General!" the smaller figure answered in demonic, transmitting the order.
This particular demon, like Merahwdir, was an outcast, but in an even worse way. He was one of the several elven spirits that were thrown in Niflheim just before the demons began the Second Invasion. Without anywhere to go and knowing that Origin wouldn't come and take them to their rightful place, the elves did the only thing they could to survive in that hostile underworld: they went to plead with the Demon Lords.
At the time, Merahwdir was applying for the Test of Lordship. When hearing about the spirits of the elves he decided to check on the situation. One of the Beast Lords was ready to dismiss them, when another one, who was visiting at the time, found the situation promising somehow. He would take the elves' plead for mercy to his Great One, Nerithmas, the End of Eternity, on one condition: all elves were to swear themselves to the Great Ones and, as so, become demons.
Merahwdir thought they would refuse, but it seemed their fear of eternal torment at the hands of those that were the enemies of Aselia won in the end. Nobody blamed them for that, certainly not Merahwdir, certainly not the Great Ones. After all, survival instincts triumphed over all when it came to mortals.
The Great Lord Nerithmas himself visited the elves and personally transformed them. When Merahwdir asked why, they said it was because the Great One didn't want any other Lord getting the idea of taking even one of them as their servant. Nerithmas never let any useful tool go to waste or escape his grasp if he could help it. Thus the spirits of the once proud elves were gone. In their place new demons were raised. Merahwdir wondered if Nebilim went through the same process.
This one was made Merahwdir's aide when he received his final assignment. It seemed the little one had potential and was to be made a General. His name, if Merahwdir recalled correctly, was Imasix Azule, or Azure, elven names sounded pretty much the same to him. A little one with whitish blue hair combed down and cold, cyan eyes. Most of the elves' eyes lost any sign of life or happiness when they were turned and became either serious or cold. His skin was pale as were the ones of the others of his previous race. Niflheim wasn't known as a bright, sunny place after all.
Fortunately, this one was also a believer of chivalry, which made it easier for Merahwdir to accept him. Not that he had anything personal against the elves, but the last thing he needed was having "elf lover" added to the vast list of insults he collected during his career. Also, he knew how to follow orders with a precision that reminisced the human and elven armies.
The sound of thunders striking came and the demon general gritted his fangs at seeing the humans had stick to their suicidal move and delayed his retreating squads. What Merahwdir wouldn't give to leave this travesty of a battle behind and have a good challenge for once.
His wish seemed to be fulfilled by the Great Father, for when he looked at the side he saw a group on a nearby hill, overlooking the battle. Straining his vision, he identified familiar silhouettes. Ratatosk's group. And between them he could see…
Lena'Aret.
No doubt, there was the voluptuous woman that had challenged him and almost won. Merahwdir smiled and, for the first time, decided to leave his assignment on the hands of others. It wasn't like his reputation or position was at stake in this battle.
"Imasix," he called to his aide. The former elf turned to him with a "Yes sir?".
"Take care of the battle for me, you know what to do. When our soldiers become less than fifteen, order a retreat."
"You going somewhere, sir?" the aide asked dutifully.
"Yes. In fact, I'm going to fight a worthy battle for a change," the lion demon smiled.
His aide gave a professional smirk and nodded. He too, didn't approve of that battle, but, as Merahwdir's aide, had to be there to see how to coordinate a demonic troop.
Merahwdir then left running and soon enough Lena'Aret seemed to have sighted him, for she also broke into a run and transformed, this time flying flawlessly as she came at him. He smiled again. Maybe, this time, they would settle this…
- / - / - / - / - / - / -
Lloyd and the others ran as Sheena met weapons with the familiar lion demon. As they approached, they heard him saying:
"I see you've improved, Lena'Aret."
"More than you can imagine," she said, smiling.
The two then separated with a shove of their weapons and Zelos, Colette and Presea stood in front of Sheena. Merahwdir raised his eyebrow. Then he noticed those three were new members of their group. Emil felt Ratatosk asking to take control, which the blonde allowed. The crimson eyed spirit approached Merahwdir, without even drawing a weapon.
The group let out a gasp and was about to call Ratatosk back when he said:
"So, look who we met again. 'Mediocre Demon' Merahwdir."
"Not you too…" the demon said, sighing.
"Um… somebody care to tell us what's happening here?" Zelos asked, confused as to why Ratatosk was addressing that demon in such a friendly manner and insulted it without even getting some retribution.
Sheena then pushed pass him and spoke to them:
"That's Merahwdir, a demon I've fought before. He's… one of those unique kinds of demon."
"How so?" Colette asked.
"He's a practitioner of chivalry," it was Ratatosk who answered, which raised several confused exclamations from the group. "He seems to be enamored with the concept. Don't ask, simply accept it."
"If that's so, then why did you abandon that battle?" Ventus asked, meaning the still-raging conflict ahead of them. "Wouldn't it be your orders to see through this battle?"
"Not really. Besides, this one doesn't count," Merahwdir simply answered.
"Really?" Ratatosk asked in a devious tone.
"Anyway, if you all don't mind, me and Lena'Aret have a rematch to settle."
"Lena-what?" Lloyd asked.
"He means me," Sheena said.
"My, my. Already making admirers on the other side too," Raine said with mirth.
"What does that mean? And just for the record, I am still angry with you."
Raine decided to drop the tone at being reminded that. It seemed she had a long way to go if she were to ever regain Sheena's trust.
"Lena'Aret. It literally means 'warrior woman'. For a demon to recognize a mortal being as a warrior is a rare thing, for it means you gained his respect."
"Wow, Sheena," Zelos said, lecherous smile in place as he walked to Lloyd and poked him with his elbow as he said. "Better watch out Lloyd, or mister big cat here might steal your girl away with his knightly charm."
The reactions were diverse: Merahwdir raised his eyebrow, Lloyd glared at Zelos, Ignis seemed worried, saying that couldn't happen because Lloyd would be sad, Sheena had a vein popping on her forehead and the rest of the group just looked at Zelos. Predictably enough, Sheena appeared right besides Zelos and slammed his head with a light-charged punch, sending him to the ground. She then turned to Lloyd and put on an attractive smile as she said:
"Don't pay attention to him. I like your gentlemanly manners more. Besides, I'm not into bestiality or any of that."
Lloyd felt his cheeks going red as she put a hand on it and Ignis cheered at the two. Colette looked at Raine, confused, and asked:
"What's bestiality?"
"I'll tell you when you're older," Raine answered. She didn't need to add "corrupting little Collie" to the list of reasons Sheena had to be angry with her.
"Anyway…" Merahwdir said, trying to dispel the awkward atmosphere. "Lena'Aret, are you going to accept my challenge or not? We don't have much time left."
"What do you think?" Sheena said as she prepared herself. "Everybody, leave this to me."
"Are you sure?" Lloyd asked.
"Let's just say I understand what he means. Besides, as a ninja of Mizuho, it's my duty not to back down a challenge like this when it is given to me."
"In that case…" Ratatosk said, walking between the two of them. "I'll be the judge of this fight. I know enough of the two cultures to observe it. Do you two agree with that?" both Sheena and the lion demon nodded. "In that case, this will be a timed fight. The first one to get incapacitated or killed is the loser. The battle finishes as soon as the fight over there is done. Any and all kinds of Artes are accepted…" he looked from one to the other and gave the signal for them to begin.
Sheena and Merahwdir were upon each other in the blink of an eye. The ninja felt the demon had gotten stronger somehow.
But I'm stronger too.
She utilized the teleport technique she learned while training in Spirit Form to appear behind the General and swing a light kunai at him, which Merahwdir effortlessly blocked before returning the blow, just for Sheena to fly low and charge light on her fist. She punched him in the guts with enough strength to make him skid back and flew after Merahwdir not to give him the chance to recover.
The lion demon smiled as he suddenly brought his fist up and punched her with all his strength, Sheena was launched backwards and rolled on the ground. Merahwdir jumped and poised his halberd to strike, creating a shockwave and making dust and dirt fly up when his powerful blow hit the earth. However, when the dust settled, he saw Sheena kneeling besides the edge of his halberd, looking completely unscathed. That surprised him enough for her to fly up and deliver a roundhouse kick on his jaw, followed by another kick from the opposite direction and a right hook that took his feet off the ground momentarily. All blows were charged with light.
"Ring Beam!" Sheena thrust her hand forward, the ring of light on her wrist floating ahead of her hand and releasing a ring-shaped beam on Merahwdir's belly, pushing him away once more.
"Not bad Lena'Aret. I see you've improved," he said as he recovered. "Seeing that, I might as well fight with all my strength."
Sheena arched an eyebrow at that, but Merahwdir only crossed his arms in an "X" in front of him and she suddenly felt his aura flaring and expanding. When he casted his arms aside his aura was pulsing and vibrating in a shape that mostly resembled that of a flame, indicating a higher level of power. One that vaguely resembled that of the Shinigami.
"You… you mean you held back last time?" Sheena asked.
"I don't believe in excessive use of strength. There's nothing to gloat on defeating a weaker adversary. Besides, I am still a General, this new power is only for those that are to reach Lordship," Merahwdir said.
Sheena, however, only gritted her teeth. She felt like he was patronizing her, thinking her weaker and incapable of defeating him. That might have been true before, but now… well, Merahwdir was in for a surprise if he thought she wouldn't fight with her all after that. She took that as an insult to her skills and, by extension, to the arts of Mizuho.
"Don't hold back anymore, or you're gonna regret it," Sheena said in a low, threatening tone.
"I don't intent to," Merahwdir said with a smile on his leonine features.
The battle started anew. The halberd left behind trails of flames that strongly resembled those of Lloyd's swords and Sheena swung weapons made out of light with incredible speed, her arms blurs as she attacked again and again. Merahwdir could barely keep up with her speed, but the two were mostly matched.
Meanwhile, Lloyd and the others only watched the fight. Even though it was against a demon, the atmosphere wasn't the same as that of a life-or-death situation. It felt more like a friendly spar. As Merahwdir used his Lefah Ghare spell and Sheena dispelled it by expanding the two ethereal rings on her wrists until they burst the cage of fire, Colette decided to ask Raine:
"What is that Mr. Merah talked about Lordship?"
"I don't think you should call him 'Mr. Merah', little Colette," Solum said. "For one; it wouldn't sit well with a demon of his station."
"Oh, sorry. Then how about Mr. Lion?" Colette suggested, her cheerful smile in place.
Solum sighed and Aqua put her hand on her forehead, shaking it. Lloyd and Ratatosk sighed, shrugging. Raine decided to answer her question:
"Lordship is when a demon rises from General ranking to the one of Lord. There is an entire ritual involved and it is not something any demon can easily accomplish. Only the most powerful and capable ones are able to reach this, which is the highest station they can attain. By the looks of it, Merahwdir is on the path of attaining Lordship."
"You know, it's pretty possible he might even make it," Ratatosk said, making the group look to him. "Chivalry aside, he is one of the most capable Demon Generals I know. He is level with Narom'Kriaar, the only thing setting them apart is the beliefs. Besides, the success of the test has to be recognized by at least one Grand Demon Lord and I know two that might accept him, if his own Lord doesn't."
The group then turned to the fight in time to see Sheena using Dawn Pillars and Merahwdir countering with Lava Surge, making the geyser erupt in front of him, blocking the pillars of light. When the molten rock went down, the General rushed to Sheena at great speed.
Sheena decided to try something different and when, Merahwdir reached her, she teleported behind him… and was hit when he performed a burning spin with his weapon, hitting her on the waist. Merahwdir performed an upward slash that threw Sheena upwards and gave him enough time to quickly charge a spell:
"Wdirishi!" the ground beneath Sheena erupted and several swords made out of fire and molten lava rushed out, before falling back on earth again, pinning her against the ground as they exploded in flames.
Sheena was thrown aside and Merahwdir rushed to her once again, fire circling the blade of his halberd as he prepared to end her. However, he didn't count of the Radiant Maiden attacking from where she was:
"Sanctum Light!" a runic circle appeared beneath Merahwdir's feet, biding him to the spot as a pillar of light engulfed him, burning his aura.
As the General was occupied, Sheena quickly got up and concentrated on gathering the energy of light around her. Eight blades of light formed around the Radiant Maiden, surrounding her in a circle. She then flew in the direction of Merahwdir as the pillar of light was fading away.
"Blade Dancer!" the Radiant Maiden grabbed one of the swords of light and performed a diagonal slash on Merahwdir's face. The enhanced defenses of the demon managed to lessen the depth of the cut. Sheena then grabbed other sword and slashed at him again. Two swords came to her hands and she spun in the air several times, the strength and speed resulting in a combo of sword strikes that kept the demon on his place.
Sheena then grabbed other sword and performed an upward slash with great strength, taking Merahwdir's feet off the floor, before she grabbed another and beat it on his head in a cleaving motion. The lion demon was glad he had reinforced his defenses, otherwise that could have split his head in two instead of only making him shot to the ground. The ninja then grabbed the other two swords and dove, impaling Merahwdir's chest with them. The damage was more spiritual than properly physical.
She flew up again and threw the swords around him as the General was getting up and started to remove the swords from his body, which burned at his touch. With a snap of the Radiant Maiden's finger, the swords released a blinding light, forcing the demon General to cover his eyes as he felt his aura and magical energy being burnt rapidly. Then the swords on his chest exploded on several light dots, sending him to the ground again.
Lumen cheered on as Sheena floated down. Most of those Artes had been experimental and she knew there were ways to counter most of them. That was why she wanted to end this fight quickly, not just because of the time limit, but so she could honor her people. She had to admit, however, that this match was quite refreshing. Merahwdir didn't have the same murderous intent and assassin aura than most demons they fought against.
Merahwdir then jumped back into action. There were some scratches on his face, neck, collar and head, but otherwise he looked fine. The lion demon was even smiling. Sheena faked a scoff as she said:
"You're pretty stubborn aren't you?"
"I heard you fought against one of our Lord ranking brethren. I thought you would have realized they are pretty resistant," Merahwdir said in a good-naturedly tone. "As so, I am not far behind, although I must admit I am surprised you managed to draw blood from me in this state," that not to talk about the damage on his aura. Merahwdir was pretty sure half of his magical energy was burnt and his movements were starting to get slower.
"Well, give me enough time and I'll even rip one of your limbs off. How about it?"
"And they say we are the bloodthirsty ones."
"Just for that, I'll break a bone or two of yours."
Their friendly banter ended and the two were ready to go at it again, however, a figure came out from Merahwdir's shadow, the figure of his lieutenant with his closed hand pressed on the left side of his breast and a solemn look on his face. Sheena stopped and the rest of the group approached at seeing the battle being interrupted by the new arrival.
"My General, I've ordered the retreat of our forces," Imasix said, looking at Merahwdir. "Reinforcements arrived."
"Tch… they can never follow through, can they?" the lion demon said in a reproving tone. He then looked at Sheena and stood in a relaxed stance, touching the point of his halberd in the ground. "It seems fate keeps conspiring for our battles to end in a tie, Lena'Aret."
"Looks like it. One day, we will have to have a victor, though," Sheena said, reverting back to her normal form.
"Indeed," Merahwdir said with a nod. He then turned to his lieutenant. "We're leaving Imasix."
The demonic elf nodded and started to prepare the teleport magic when his gaze fell over the group, more specifically a certain silver haired woman, who he took some seconds to recognize.
"Wait. Aren't you…" he said, looking at Raine. The half-elf tilted her head in confusion at that statement, but before Imasix could continue, Merahwdir called his attention. "Oh, right. I'm sorry, my General."
With that, the two teleported away from the battle field in a flash. The group then turned to Raine and Colette asked:
"Raine, did you know that man?"
"No, I'm pretty sure I have no memory of him. But that aura…"
Before Raine could think further, Tenebrae and the other Centurions warned them that someone was approaching and disappeared from view. When the reincarnated Summon Spirits looked they were being surrounded by the angels.
This… doesn't bode well. Raine thought at seeing the expressionless faces of the winged beings as they circled them.
The one that appeared to be the commander flew forward, floating in front of the group as he inquired:
"Humans, state your identity and business here."
"We were merely passing by when we saw the battle," Emil said, back in control as he tried to diffuse the situation.
"And why would a Demon General leave his post to go after a group of travelers?" the angel commander inquired.
"I don't know. Maybe he just wanted to have some fun slaughtering us," Lloyd lied. He generally didn't like to lie, but it wasn't like they could tell the truth at the moment, not if they wanted their necks to stay intact.
The angel didn't seem to pay attention to his comment as he simply looked around the group. It was then that their luck took a turn for the worse.
"Well, well. Look who came back crawling," Magnar arrived with a platoon of the surviving Purge Inquisitors. It was obvious he recognized Zelos' group as he called the angel's attention. "Holy One, here is the renegade Representative Zelos Wilder and the group of suspicious subjects he's been traveling with."
"Yes. I've received the report about this one's offenses and heresy," the angel said in its permanent cold, emotionless tone. He then looked at Aster and recognition seemed to flicker in his eyes. "You. What is your name?"
Emil started to sweat cold. Had Cruxis finally become aware of Ratatosk? Or did they pass his description together with the rest of the group once Zelos had joined them? That seemed to be the case. Emil reigned in his fears and answered, giving his alias/surname:
"Aster, oh Holy One."
"Liar," the angel accused, the entire group gasped. "Do you think we would not recognize you, Ratatosk?"
Emil was now definitely sweating. His cover had been busted and from the tone of the angel his friends were in no better situation. Ratatosk swore in his mind.
"Ratatosk?" Magnar inquired. It seemed that at least the Martel Knights weren't aware of the new Summon Spirits.
"Soldiers, Martel Knights, arrest them! These subjects are accused of heresy against the Faith and high treason against Aselia!" the angel commander ordered. Magnar seemed to abandon all the traces of confusion as he ordered his troops to comply.
The group was quickly surrounded from all sides and angles as the angels and the Purge Inquisitors drew their weapons and pointed at them. They could try and fight back, but there was no guaranteed they would all get away. Plus, none of them had idea of what was the level of power of the angels as their auras were concealed.
"Wait a minute!" Marta said. "What do you mean traitors to Aselia? We've done nothing of the…"
"Silence! You all are in league with Ratatosk, the Traitor of the World," the angel answered.
Ratatosk took the control momentarily and gasped, his eyes widening. He had heard somebody call him that once, although he couldn't remember who it was. But the moniker had greatly affected him. Calling a Summon Spirit traitor was basically telling him he had gone against his oaths, promises, duty and the Great Lords themselves. It was an inexcusable offense, that is, if given in vain. In that particular case, however…
They… they know. was the only thing Ratatosk could think. For the first time, his hands and legs started to shake. Marta noticed that and looked at him worriedly.
"Traitor?" Lloyd called in an indignant tone. "He's nothing of that. He's trying to restore the world and…"
"Silence!" this time, it was Magnar who spoke. "The great one has spoken. Arrest them!"
"No way in…" Sheena started, but Raine put a hand on her shoulder to stop her. The ninja turned to the half-elf, who looked at her with a serious gaze.
"You don't want to cause an altercation in this situation, do you?" the warning was more than enough for Sheena and the others to understand what she meant. They could escape later when nobody was looking.
The group then surrendered, Cruxis taking their weapons and, to their surprise, putting collars on their necks before they could react. The instant the collars closed, they felt the same sensation as when Reriki had sealed their spirit forms. Those collars were suppressors of magical power. Cruxis knew who they were.
As they were taken back to Meltokio, nobody noticed Raine had kept one hand inside her pocket since the angels had approached, pressing a certain button on a communication device and only releasing it right before Ratatosk was called traitor…
- / - / - / - / - / -
"You know, I have the impression that irony is set on kicking our collective backs," Zelos commented. "I mean, from all the basement parts of the castle that could have survived, why did it have to be this?"
Right after they had been taken back to Meltokio to wait for their public trial (meaning: execution), they were taken to the ruins of the castle and found out a particular part of it had survived the demonic razing of the Second Invasion: the dungeons. And from the looks of it, it had been well kept during the last fifty years.
"And how come you didn't know that?" Sheena asked. She thought Zelos would be aware of it, considering he had been the Representative of the city.
"I'm not very interested in exploring ruins. They are kind of gloomy, if you get what I mean."
"You better not speak this around Lady Raine if you know what is good for you," Tenebrae said.
The group had been divided into two cells. One had Lloyd, Sheena, Marta and Zelos, the other Colette, Presea, Raine and Emil. The Centurions had materialized again and Solum was using a magic of camouflage to keep their sight and auras from becoming detected by the angels who could have remained in the city.
So far, none of them had moved to try and bust out of jail, waiting until nightfall. As soon as they were left alone, Presea reached for her collar and crushed it with her bare hands. It seemed that it took more than that to block out Shadow's powers. Colette saw that and tried to do the same with her collar, discovering she could also easily crush it.
"It seems they either don't know of the level of our power or hadn't developed an effective counter-measure yet," Presea said in her analytical tone. "Either way, it's easier to destroy a physical seal than one of magical or spiritual nature."
"Oh…" Zelos said, looking at his collar and also trying to crush it, but failing to do so. He felt his manly pride deflating.
"But what did that angel meant with calling Ratatosk Traitor of the World?" Colette asked, looking at the blonde, who hadn't got up ever since they had been thrown into the cells, sitting against the wall that divided them with his head hung low. His eyes were the crimson red of Ratatosk.
"It's obvious it was just to confuse us and to compliment the accusation," Lloyd said, dismissing the subject as nothing.
"I don't think so," Zelos said, his tone serious, calling the entire attention of the group. "Any accusation from an angel is treated as a capital crime, regardless of the gravity. He didn't need to go ahead and call him that if he wanted to have us executed."
"Then… you mean he knew something that…" Presea started, but Marta interrupted them.
"Stop it! Are you hearing yourselves?" she said in a defensive tone. "We're talking about Ratatosk, our friend. He would never do something like that. He's a Summon Spirit, he would never do anything that would endanger Aselia!" an inaudible "guh" came from Ratatosk. "I agree with Lloyd. That angel was lying to try and confuse us. Right Ratatosk?"
To Marta's surprise no answer came from the other side of the cell. Raine was looking at the sitting form of Ratatosk, taking in his reaction. Colette seemed confused as to why the brash Summon Spirit wasn't agreeing with Marta while Presea stayed neutral. Marta sighed and grabbed the bars at the far right of her cell, trying to squeeze her head through them to get a good look at her crush's other self.
"C'mon Ratatosk, I know you're upset because of that angel said, but we know you aren't any of that," she smiled, even thought he couldn't see. "We know you're a good person, even thought you have quite the…"
"Marta… please. Stop defending me," Ratatosk said in an almost begging tone, not looking up even once.
"Huh?" Marta let out in confusion. "What are you saying?"
"Don't defend me Marta. I don't… want you passing by a fool."
Marta was confused at that statement and leaned off the bars, boring a hole in the wall with her eyes as she heard those words coming out from Ratatosk's mouth. She then scrunched her face and spoke:
"Ok, that's not like you. What's up? You should be cursing and swearing those guys to hell and back for even implying something like that and throwing us in jail. What's gotten into you?"
"Ratatosk…" Colette said, sounding worried. "What that angel said… it's not true… is it?"
"Of course not!" Marta exploded, stomping her feet and spreading her arms to the sides. "What's wrong with you guys? Haven't you listened to me? Ratatosk is innocent, he's not…"
"DAMMIT, STOP MARTA!" Ratatosk yelled, making Marta jump. Lloyd, Sheena, Zelos and Colette widened their eyes in surprise. Raine and Presea also seemed a little shocked. Even the Centurions found that strange.
"Boss… what are you saying?" Lumen asked.
"That angel is right, I am a traitor!"
Everything stood silent. Even Emil wasn't speaking as he knew of the internal turmoil that was going on inside Ratatosk. However, Marta refused to believe that as she spoke once more, her tone one of clear denial:
"You're joking, right? There's no way that could be true. This is some really bad joke… right?" when Ratatosk didn't answer her tone was desperate. "C'mon, speak to me! Say it's not true!" no answer still. Marta then decided to turn to the Centurions. "You! You all know it's not true, so knock some sense into your boss' head!"
The Centurions looked between themselves, seeming conflicted. Lumen was the first to speak, but he wasn't able to look Marta in the eyes:
"Well… actually…"
"Actually what?" Marta asked.
"We… weren't… there the entire time."
"What does that mean?" the brunette's tone was starting to sound angry.
"Lady Marta, you have to understand; some time after the invasion began, our Lord commanded us to merge back into his body so he could be at his full power in case the demons attacked the Ginnungagap seeking to open the path," Ventus said. Before Marta could ask again, Solum answered for his companion.
"It's a technique he uses only in great emergencies or when he needs to step into Niflheim to stop some demon from trying to bang the door down. Our Lord's powers reach their peak and since we are all originally a product of his soul, we become a part of him, temporarily ceasing to be individual entities for the duration of the merging."
"Meaning, we… do not know of all that happened during the Second Invasion," Tenebrae spoke.
Emil then decided he had enough of staying quiet and spoke to his other half:
"Tell her," Ratatosk kept silent even to himself. "Do you want Marta to sound like a fool because she doesn't know?"
I… Ratatosk though, but didn't go on.
"Please… they have the right to know."
He mentally scoffed as he spoke, his tone recovering some of its usual brashness:
It's easy for you to say that, isn't it? You're not the one who is going to be hated.
Emil didn't answer that, but knew what Ratatosk meant. He had noticed how the Summon Spirit sometimes acted differently around Marta. Emil shouldn't be so surprised. After all, he and Ratatosk were often regarded as the same person. He knew how being hated by Marta would destroy him on the inside if he was in the rash Summon Spirit's place.
Their discussion was cut short when they heard something: it sounded like someone singing. The group looked at the entrance and could hear the voice approaching. It was ethereal, yet beautifully melodic. Colette suddenly recognized the voice and some of the words:
That's… mom's lullaby!
The voice was coming closer and the group could finally hear steps as the song ended. The group pressed their heads against the bars as a shadow was cast at the staircase that led to the dungeons. Soon the one-winged figure of a demon woman came into view, but the smile on her face was too warm for one of the otherworldly beasts.
"Mom!" Colette exclaimed at seeing Amelia in her demon form.
"Colette. Thanks goodness you're alright," Amelia said as she walked to the prison cells. Her voice wrapped and twisted, like it wasn't made to speak. "I put the Purge Inquisitors to sleep on my way here. Wait a moment, I'll free you all."
"Uh, can somebody explain me what's going on?" Zelos asked despite eying Amelia with interest.
Marta then explained to him who Amelia was and gave a brief explanation about her curse. Meanwhile, Colette's mother grabbed the bars and twisted them with her bare hands, breaking the iron from its place and opening a hole so the group could pass.
As Presea left, she looked at Colette's mother and had to admit she looked attractive even in that demonic form. The pink haired girl shook her head, dismissing the thought.
"Wow, you sure are strong, my motherly hunny," Zelos said, after leaving his cell and approaching Amelia, putting up his best charming smile and suave tone. "I know you must get it very often, but you look truly beautiful."
"Um… really?" Amelia asked, looking to the side and blushing a little, though her green skin concealed most of it. "Don't you think I'm hideous?"
"Well, one could think that at first glance, but looking at you now, I think you look more like a benevolent angel than…" Zelos stopped as Sheena grabbed him by his ear and tugged at it painfully. "Ow, ow, ow, ow! Sheena stop!"
"Are you having hearing problems? Amelia is Collie's mom. If you ever think of treating her like one of your fangirls, I swear I'm going to castrate you! The traditional way," Sheena warned.
"I wasn't going to, seriously! Don't you think I don't know how to treat such an unique beau… ?"
"Don't even get me started on your 'I'm the Last Romantic' crap."
"Um… Sheena, can you let Zelos go so we can leave?" Colette asked. "You can reprimand him later, when you're out of the city."
The ninja looked at her surrogate sister and then at the red haired pervert. Nodding she let go of Zelos' ear. As the ex-Representative massaged it, the group started to move on to the exit, collecting their weapons that were left near the jailor's table. Marta stepped in front of Emil and asked him about what Ratatosk was going to say.
The blonde thought if he really should tell it, after all, this kind of thing was pretty personal and could be very well damage Ratatosk's relationship with the rest of the group forever. He decided to tell Marta to ask his previous self later, when they were out of Meltokio.
- / - / - / - / - / - / -
The streets were strangely quiet, even for the night. The party even found some of the Purge Inquisitors sleeping on the ground, seeming to have been knocked out cold. Presea had to admit she was impressed by the fact that Colette's mother managed to put the entire city to sleep. Sheena then noticed there was no signal of angels. Did they return to Cruxis' base?
"I didn't see any angels when I came," Amelia answered Sheena's question as they ran to the Obelisk's Plaza.
"By the way, are you sure it's safe for you to transform and use your powers like this? Not that I'm complaining, but…" Sheena started, only to be interrupted by Amelia.
"I did what was necessary to save Colette. I was called by the Renegade's leader. When I arrived near his room, I overheard him saying something about a transmission from you from near Meltokio in which it was clear you had been captured by the Martel Knights and Cruxis. I came here as fast as I could and I don't care if having to get stuck on this form is the price to save my daughter and her friends."
"Ugh… ok, ok. But really, you should…"
Sheena never managed to end her phrase, for in that moment a light arrow fell right before them, making the reincarnated Summon Spirits look up. They saw a whole battalion of angels floating in the skies with their expressionless gazes trailed on them.
"Cease your attempts at escape, criminals," one of the angel commandeers, carrying a staff, said.
"Damn. Were they out of the city?" Zelos questioned, materializing his icy sword and shield.
"No. I think my lyric spell simply doesn't have an effect on them, the same way it didn't affect you," Amelia said, standing in a battle stance.
"No time for that! Here they come!" Raine said as she readied herself, just to realize that she was still weaponless. How I wish I had at least one of those magical orbs Genis used.
The group drew their weapons as the angels flew down to attack them. Colette and Amelia took upon themselves to bring down the Angel Archers and Commanders as the rest of the group fought with the Lancers and Swordswomen. They decided not to transform yet, as it could worsen their situation, though some of them didn't see how their situation with the heavenly organization could be worse, since they were now considered criminals.
Lloyd and the others quickly found themselves hard pressed with the angels. Different from the demons that attacked mostly head on using their brute strength to overwhelm their opponents (with some exceptions), the angels fought with an almost mechanical precision and accuracy, attacking in group to not leave Lloyd, Zelos and Sheena chances to counter-attack, surrounding Marta and Emil, forcing the two to mostly dodge their attacks, and raining spells and arrows over the group.
Amelia was systematically cutting down most of the angels. It seemed she had some practice with that form already. Colette's powerful throws severed the wings of their aerial opponents. Even so, the downed angels would get up and continue fighting. The ones in land traded slashes with the group and didn't care at all for the wounds received, continuing their assault. It was like they couldn't even feel pain.
One lancer managed to catch Sheena's side and arm before she blew him off with Demon Seal. She noticed her attacks hardly did anything on their aura. The ninja couldn't understand how come her light-based techniques weren't burning their energy. It was like they didn't even have a soul to begin with. Lloyd, Marta and Emil were also sporting some damage, as Raine was left out of the combat, occasionally healing one of them when they took to many hits.
Zelos jumped back to avoid the attack of a particularly brawny angel carrying a large, spiked mace and a large sword. Like the other angels, this one's clothing consisted mostly of white robes under a heavy, ashen armor. He could hover, despite carrying such heavy weapons and his attacks were quite fast too.
Executors. Zelos remembered the depictions in the holy texts. According to them, these angels were just like their namesake; heavenly beings sent down to punish the criminals and those accused of heresy against the Faith.
The red head blocked a blow of the mace with his shield and felt it cracking. Zelos smiled as he quickly countered with a Frigid Thrust, impaling the angel's belly, the impact forcing him back as blood and the clothing cut froze, a small ice protrusion forming, adding an extra weight that threw the angel off balance. Zelos repaired his shield with a brief release of his power and proceeded to attack the angel, who tried to smash his head with the mace and, upon seeing it didn't work, cleave him with the sword. Zelos avoided both and aimed for a killing blow.
Considering these guys' endurance, it's better to end this quick. Zelos thought, jumping and decapitating the helmet-less head of the angel. "Well, look who is the badass now, mister big, scary Executor!" Zelos bragged, just to defend from a sword blow from another Angel Swordsman.
Angel corpses started to litter the plaza, but the party's adversaries kept fighting until they dealt a killing blow, following Zelos' example. Presea, by far, had the most kills, considering her immense strength and ample blows were able to literally tear apart the angels and reduce their armors to crumpled, metal heaps.
"I think we might win without having to turn into Spirit Form," Emil said.
It was then light shone from the heavens. The angels and the group stopped the fighting upon sensing a powerful aura emanating from those lights. The Cruxis agents turned and reunited around the light, bowing as a small shining sphere came down. Energy of light seemed to be sucked into the sphere as the group gathered again. A pulse emanated, followed by a flash.
"Way to jinx us, Emil," Zelos called while covering his eyes.
"Sorry…" Emil said, hanging his head low.
Marta was about to defend her crush when they could finally see the new arrival. It was another angel, but this one looked vastly different from the expressionless ones they had seen up till now. His hair was metallic silver, eyes a light shade of blue and red markings on the side of his face and forehead. The symbol of Cruxis was tattooed on his forehead.
His robes were by far the most elaborated from the other angels. They were mostly white, with golden linings and blue and red details, a shallow tail at the back. His boots were made out of metal, with wing ornaments on the ankle. He also had his two hands set upon the handle of a sword with a golden blade, runes engraved on it and the symbol of Cruxis on its handle.
However, the most eye-catching feature of all was the angel's wings. They weren't the usual pearl white ones, but instead much like Lloyd's and the others' in their Spirit Form: three pairs of ethereal, multicolored wings that stretched as far as the angel's arms.
"Who is that?" Presea asked at seeing the cold and analytical expression on the new angel.
"That's… a Seraphim," Amelia said, taking a step back, a worried look on her and Colette's face.
"A Seraphim? You mean one of the four angels that command Cruxis?" Marta exclaimed.
"Great, now we're officially screwed," Zelos mumbled between his teeth.
The angel then turned to one of the commanders and asked something Lloyd and the others couldn't hear. The Seraphim then turned to them and spoke in a strong baritone and cold, serious voice:
"Criminals, your attempts at an escape are now over, surrender at once."
"So that you could kill us? Not a chance," Lloyd said.
"This is not a choice. You, accomplices to the Traitor of the World, are found guilty of high treason against Aselia. By my authority as Gaelius, the Seraphim of Justice, I judge you guilty and sentence you to execution."
"So, this is how you Cruxis do justice? One word and everything is done without the accused even been given a chance to defend himself?"
"Your opinion on this subject is irrelevant in the face of the facts."
"You attacked us and threw us in jail without even hearing our side of the story," Sheena protested.
"You were consorting with demons, this alone proves your betrayal to the world."
"But my mom was turned into a demon!" Colette said, trying to defend her mother. "She couldn't help it and…"
"Irrelevant," the Seraphim cut her off. "She is now a demon. That is a fact. Justice only sees facts. Now, Ratatosk, in the name of the Great Lords, your existence shall be purged from this world."
Emil felt Ratatosk cringe inside him. The blonde could feel the aura of power emanating from the Seraphim, who didn't even try to hide it one bit. Was this what it felt like being stared down by Cruxis' strongest? Marta stepped in front of Emil, a firm and determined expression on her face. She then spoke:
"Stop calling him a traitor! Ratatosk is nothing of that! He's trying to protect the world from the demons! Shouldn't you be working together rather than…" Gaelius cut her off.
"He is the reason why the demons are here."
That statement brought Marta's rant to an end as the entire group stepped back at the accusation. Ratatosk cringed again and silently plead for Marta to stop defending him. However, the girl couldn't hear it as she spoke again:
"I don't believe in you. You're lying…"
"These are the facts. Whether you acknowledge them or not, is none of my concern," the Seraphim said, his tone never showing emotion other than the cold in it.
"You Cruxis are just the same… the same as the demons," Marta said, closing her fists on her sides as she lowered her head. "You spin off your so called 'justice' on people to get them to follow you and crucify anyone that tries to think differently," she then looked up, anger in her eyes. "Why there can't be a way to reach enlightenment that doesn't treat us all like criminals, regardless of our feelings?"
"And on what grounds do you base that claim, child of the Balacruf Dynasty?"
That made Marta' angry look do a complete change to one of utter horror as the entire group looked at her. Zelos could be heard from the background muttering an "oh crap". She took three steps back as her eyes widened and her lips trembled. The brunette could only voice three words:
"How… how did… ?"
"The child of the leader of the so called Sylvaranti Liberation Front," the angel went on, unheeded to Marta's state. "You admonishes our methods and insists our goals are the same. Lies and heresy. We know what the goals of the original founder of the Vanguard was: an attempt to revive the dynasty and put the old ruling class back in power. Your claims are nothing short of hypocrisy and slanders to hide your own sins."
Having all that thrown in her face, without even sounding like an accusation, but rather a simple statement of the facts, made Marta go on her knees as she looked to the floor in a state of shock.
"I… I only wanted to… I'm not…" Marta mumbled.
"Criminals. Your punishment shall be enacted now," with that, the other angels left as Gaelius took up his sword with his right hand and poised it for attack.
If Emil and Ratatosk had not taken a look on the Seraphim and felt the rapid agitation on his aura, Marta would have been dead. A heartbeat-like pulse, an agitation of their own aura, fueled by the mutual desire of the two personalities to protect Marta, and in an instant they also teleported and blocked Gaelius' sword. The angel didn't look impressed.
The group jumped at the sudden shock of seeing the angel between them, but quickly recovered their bearings and transformed into Spirit Form. Gaelius flew back when Lloyd tried to attack him, followed by Sheena. The angel simply hovered to the side, out of the reach of her ethereal, light weapons.
As the group started the fight, Ratatosk kneeled near the still shocked Marta and put his hands on her shoulders, trying to get her to recover:
"Marta? Marta, you need to snap out of it."
"I… don't deserve this…" she mumbled. Ratatosk realized she had heard him, but was still in her own thoughts. "I'm a criminal… a sham… all true… I don't deserve you… not when my family almost brought the end of this word."
"Marta…"
"He's right, you know?" Marta looked up, tears in her eyes and a sad smile on her face. "My grandfather, the original founder of the Vanguard, only wanted to raise another army to find a way to drive off the demons and reestablish the Sylvaranti Dynasty without Tethe'alla to stop us. And I'm a descendant of that dynasty."
"Marta, you're not…"
"You must hate me, right? Of course you would. I am one of the humans that you want to punish for all that happened. One of the murderers of your tree and family. But I'm so selfish. So, so selfish. I didn't even have the decency to stay away from you once I discovered you were living in Emil. I'm just like my ancestors: selfish and greedy…"
Zelos was near the couple, hearing the entire talk and saw Ratatosk wasn't coming up with anything to say, which was a rare thing. The brash Summon Spirit would generally just tell them to get a grip and go on, because brooding wouldn't be of any use.
What was that traitor thing the angels mentioned to get him so affected? Damn, of all times for Marta's secret to come out, why it had to be now? Zelos thought. The Whirlwind Rider wouldn't be able to fight in that state and Ratatosk and Emil were too worried to be of any help.
- / - / - / - / - / - / -
Seraphim were Cruxis' strongest agents. One blow of their weapons and entire troops of demons would fall. They were the supreme authority. Their words were law and, thus, uncontested. In short, they weren't the kind of adversaries anyone with half a brain would want to fight with if given a choice.
Lloyd and the others didn't have that choice anymore.
Gaelius was not just fast, but strong too. His blade also had a peculiar ability. When Lloyd and Sheena tried to use Blazing Fang and Dawn Pillars on him, the Seraphim simply raised the blade vertically to his face and swung it, dispelling the attacks at once. Presea tried to assault him with dark waves from her hand axes, but when the weapons collided she felt something blocking the ability. Same thing happened when she and Lloyd charged their weapons with energy of their respective elements and tried to hit the angel. Gaelius repelled the weapons with a strike of his own and the moment his sword made contact, the energies accumulated dispersed, like they hadn't even been gathered in the first place.
What the hell is up with that sword? Lloyd thought and didn't saw until too late Gaelius spinning and charging magical energy on his sword, releasing a powerful blade of light on them.
Sheena moved to intercept the attack and absorb it with her hands, however, when she touched it, the amount of energy contained on the attack was absurdly high, more than she could absorb in a small amount of time. Knowing that, she said for the others to get down and leaned behind herself, changing the angle of the attack slightly and letting it pass flying over by her… and cut the nearest building into two.
The Seraphim charged at Sheena again and started attacking her with speed equal to slightly above her own. She produced barriers of her element which shattered as soon as the angel's sword was repelled by them, which forced her to keep producing shields. If she continued at this rate, she would run out of magical energy soon and be forced to revert back to her human form.
Gaelius stopped his charge and spun backwards in the air as three chakras passed flying where he had been instants before. When he turned to Colette he disappeared and reappeared near her again… just to be hit by two spheres of light and chaos energy combined, stunning him momentarily enough for Amelia to rush in and deliver a fierce punch on the angel's face. The others saw that as their chance.
Sheena stood behind, knowing for a fact most angels were creatures with resistance to light and her power just wasn't enough for her to override their defense against her element. Presea appeared from a black hole in the ground which released a vortex of dark tendrils. She curled into a ball and spun in an upwards version of her Dark Tempest Arte. Lloyd soon followed in, delivering a Sword Rain: Flare combined with a powerful downwards strike of his two blades united which rocketed the Seraphim to the ground.
The Wielder of Victory's Flame and the Warrior of the Deep Abyss were about to charge on the angel again when he suddenly ceased his fall in mid air, opening his ethereal wings to their full span and reducing his descent speed dramatically. Lloyd and Presea got slightly surprised by that and that was enough for the angel to reverse his flight path and pass by them at incredible speed. The two then felt the sides of their clothing ripping as two bloodless gashes appeared on the opposite sides of their body.
The wounds in itself were not much, but with them came a sensation of great pain. The Seraphim then stopped abruptly again and, turning suddenly to them, executed an Arte:
"Crucifix!" Gaelius quickly turned and slashed Presea and Lloyd's backs forming a cross of light between them, ending by thrusting his sword on the center, which pushed them to the ground with the speed of a bullet, making them crash on the concrete bellow. Lloyd and Presea were getting up when the angel landed between them and opened his three pairs of ethereal wings to their full span again. "Judgment Ray!" a runic circle appeared beneath the three and beams of light fell down, striking Presea and Lloyd, burning their auras.
Amelia then decided she had enough of seeing her daughter's friends being hurt by that angel and started to sing a lyric spell. The angel heard it and turned to rush at her, but was stopped when several ice projectiles the size of his head were launched at his direction. He brought up his sword again and the ice disappeared as it tried to reach him.
Colette's mother then ended her spell and let out a final note in a high pitch, several beams of chaos energy seemed to form in front of her mouth and converge on the Seraphim, this time reaching his sword and sliding through it, trying to reach him. Amelia used the chance and rushed at the angel, charging her fist with light and chaos energy and delivering a powerful punch on Gaelius' gut. The angel had an expression of mild surprise on his face as Amelia proceeded to apply a round house kick on his face and a chop to his neck.
Chakras connected to the angel's side and a stalagmite threw him up, just for Presea to jump and beat him back with a double strike of her hand axes on the stalagmite, right when three more rose from the earth, impaling him.
"Give up now!" Lloyd then jumped as the angel tried to recover and charged his swords with flames. "Brutal Maim!" three consecutive blasts of flames in the form of a lion's face were unleashed upon Gaelius, followed by Lloyd ascending slightly in the air and diving with his swords pointed straight at the angel, spinning. The effect was like a drill, while it didn't impale the angel, it kept him in place. Lloyd then backed away while sending all the flames of the attack upon the angel, creating an explosion that left smoke and debris behind as the Seraphim was buried.
"Did we do it?" Sheena wondered aloud as Lloyd landed.
The red clad, dual swordsman turned… and barely had the time to register, or even sense, the seven blades of light that shot out of the smoke and embedded themselves on his body. Lloyd's eyes widened in surprise and mute pain as he felt his aura burning. Gaelius teleported before him and only regarded the Wielder of Victory's Flame with his cold, analytical eyes as he said:
"Miguel's Blades," at a sweep of his arm, the seven blades then slashed Lloyd outwards, forming a halo as the red clad swordsman let out an yell of pain as his aura was burnt. Gaelius then grabbed one blade and impaled Lloyd with it. Sheena then called out her boyfriend's name and rushed towards the angel as he already impaled Lloyd with two more blades of light.
The ninja then conjured a sword and a dagger of light, intent on ramming them through the Seraphim. When she was at hitting distance, the angel spun to the side, the halo of the remaining blades accompanying him. Before Sheena could turn and attack him, the angel grabbed the remaining blades with his free, left hand and quickly impaled the Radiant Maiden with them.
"Vanish," he then thrust his palm forward and the blades of light exploded, the force knocking Sheena and Lloyd to the ground.
"Everfrost Glory!" Zelos casted the strongest ice spell he knew, several icebergs forming around the Seraphim, who only looked around, his gaze never portraying any emotion other than the cold analytical one. When the icebergs launched frost shards on Gaelius, he spun and released a burst of his own magical energy through his blade, nullifying the magic once more. "Dammit! What is up with this guy? It's like he's untouchable or something!"
"Considering what I've seen so far, your guess isn't that far from the truth," Raine said, making Zelos look at her. The woman then spoke louder so the rest of the group would listen. "That weapon he carries is a Runeblade."
"Runeblade? What's that?" Colette asked. Emil looked up at hearing the name and immediately understood why they were having so much difficulty with that opponent.
"It's the most powerful weapon made by mortal hands, forged by the elves," the blonde said, drawing the knowledge from Ratatosk's memories. "They are based on the Spirit's version of the weapons."
"They are also called spell destroyers, for they are magic nullifiers, capable of negating all hostile magicl energies and effects on its wielder and around them."
Lloyd and Presea then remembered how they felt their power was leaving them when that blade cut them. That meant the more they were cut, the faster they would lose the energy that sustained their Spirit Form.
"Then how come he is using that to conduct magic?" Sheena said as she and the injured Lloyd reunited with the rest of the group.
"I said all hostile magical energy. A user that has synchronized his magical energy with the blade's own can charge it with said energy, turning it into an optimal magical focus," Raine then sweated, which didn't go unnoticed by the group. "We are essentially... fighting an adversary we can't win against."
"No battle is unwinnable as long as someone is willingly to fight it," a voice came from above. Several, thin lines of light appeared around the Seraphim, who only looked at the new attack. "Suspended Cage!" instead of attacking him, the spell called forth the energy of light around and released a flash over the Seraphim's eyes, blinding him.
Lloyd and the others looked back and saw a green haired figure standing, magic circle fading away as she cast her spell. Although she had a green mask with leaf decorations on its sides covering her face, the figure and green eyes were unmistakable.
"Martel," Colette whispered.
The woman approached and asked if they were alright. Seeing Lloyd and Sheena's state, she quickly casted a very potent Heal spell on the party that even managed to remove the effects of the Runeblade's cuts. The woman then looked at Amelia, who was in her demon form, just looking at the older woman.
"You shouldn't have left the base the way you did, Amelia," Martel said, though there was no reprimand in her tone.
"I had to come and save my daughter," Amelia simply replied.
"I understand," Martel said, nodding. "I will not pursue the subject any further, because, should I be in your place, I would have done the same," the fond tone which she used was not lost on Amelia, Raine and Sheena. The Goddess of Victory of the Renegades then resumed her serious look at seeing the angel recovering from the flash attack.
"Another criminal," Gaelius simply regard, his cold and analytic expression returning.
"If saving innocent people and assuring the hope of this world's restoration stay alive means to be a criminal, then I will gladly become the most hated law breaker in history."
"Such arrogance…" Gaelius then let go of his Runeblade, which floated up to his face, pointing skyward. "Great light, product of the Great Lords… lend me thy strength to cleanse sin and evil from this world…"
Martel's eyes widened at hearing that chant and sensing the kind of magical power that was being accumulated. She knew what it was, having heard the reports and even seen it being cast once.
"No, STOP! You can't use that in the middle of a city!" but it was clear the Seraphim didn't have any concerns for something so insignificant as the security of Meltokio's citizens. She turned to Lloyd and the others. "Cast your Defensive Artes now!" the others immediately did so, knowing whatever Gaelius was preparing couldn't be good. "Reflect!" Martel casted her own defensive Arte right in time.
"Judgment!"
Several beams of light as thick as a Mana Obelisk fell from the skies, exploding in light and opening craters in the ground, falling all around them in an almost random fashion. However, the radius of the magic was so great that the beams pierced the roofs of the houses around, destroying part of the structures.
Thankfully, with their energy recovered from Martel's early healing spell and managing to synchronize their defensive barriers, the group survived the mortal, beam rain, but the same could not be said for a good part of Meltokio. When the attack passed, they looked around and saw the damage. Sheena turned to the Seraphim and yelled:
"What the hell is your problem? You might have killed many innocent people with that attack!"
"If they are truly innocent, they will receive pardon and redemption in the next life, if not then all is circumstantial," the angel replied, his tone never showing any emotion other than cold logic.
Sheena and Lloyd gritted their teeth, but refrained themselves from screaming at their adversary. They now knew that Cruxis would never listen. They simply didn't care who was going to get killed and who was going to live. To them, everybody was the same.
"We can't continue fighting here, otherwise he might truly destroy the entire city. We have to escape!" Martel urged.
"But where to? I don't think mister 'Criminals shall be punished' there will let us go that far," Zelos said.
"I know a mass teleportation spell."
"Even so, I don't think we'll have time for you to charge it before he attacks," Sheena said.
As if on cue, Gaelius rushed to them, but was intercepted by Amelia. She tried to punch him again, but this time the angel already knew her strategy and grabbed her arm with his free hand, pulling her along and slashing below her breasts with his Runeblade. Amelia felt the crippling pain as she fell to the ground, shaking as she could fell like something was leaving her, something vital.
"Mom!" Colette then threw her chakras on the Seraphim, who simply avoided them as Sheena quickly caught Amelia and joined back with the group.
Presea saw that and quickly realized Zelos was right; Gaelius wouldn't give them the chance to flee. Not while he kept concentrated in their group. So…
The Warrior of the Deep Abyss stepped forward her hand axes ready as she spoke in her smooth, adult voice to the group behind her:
"I'll distract him, you prepare the teleportation spell and take everybody out of Meltokio."
"But what about you?" Emil asked.
"I'll be fine. I can teleport on my own."
"No, Presea, we won't leave you behind!" Colette said, looking up from her mother to the girl/woman she considered her friend.
"You don't have a choice. It's either that or none of us leave this city alive," Presea tried to reason, but a part of her was screaming for her to hear Colette and go with the Keeper of Terra's Oath. "I'm the strongest out of our entire group, I'm the one with the best chance of defeating him."
That was a lie. Presea knew she wasn't capable of defeating the Seraphim in her current state. However, she was the one that had the best chance of surviving his onslaught.
"But Presea… !" Zelos put a hand on Colette's shoulder, making she look to him. The ex-Representative had a grave expression on his face.
"She's right. I don't like leaving her behind too, but we don't have much of a choice in the matter," he then looked at Martel, who nodded and started to chant the spell as Presea charged against Gaelius.
The Warrior of the Deep Abyss executed attacks in a quick succession, her agility almost equal to that of the Seraphim as she dodged and blocked the blows of his Runeblade. She couldn't let herself be hit by that blade or the battle could quickly become dangerous for her.
"Miguel's Blades!" the seven sword of light appeared around the Seraphim again, but they shot around him and Presea, aiming for Colette and the others. As soon as Presea noticed that she "dived" into a black hole in the floor and faster than the eye could catch, positioned herself near the group, emerging from the hole and using her charged weapons to deflected the ethereal, light swords.
The angel then teleported, but Presea was already prepared for that situation:
"Negative Field!" she crossed her arms and a sphere of purple energy emanated from her body. Gaelius suddenly reappeared and, upon noticing this, his eyes slightly widened as he tried to back away from an ample spin of Presea's hand axes, which hit him, but didn't damage his armor, merely ripping his robes.
While Presea was keeping the angel away, Martel finished charging the teleport magic and waved her staff, producing a great magic circle around the party, sans Presea. The reincarnated Shadow looked back at Colette and her friends in time to hear the blonde saying:
"Presea, please, come back safe!"
The girl-turned-woman couldn't help, but nod at Colette's words as the blonde disappeared together with the others. She then turned to the Seraphim, who just stared at her. Gaelius then spoke, closing his eyes:
"It seems I've failed my mission."
"Yes. They are out of your reach now and I shall not let you pursue them further," Presea said, standing in a battle stance.
"I see…" the Seraphim then opened his eyes and looked up, opening his arms to his side as if regarding a higher being in the skies as he spoke, his tone finally changing from emotionless to a solemn one. "Lord Yggdrasil… forgive me for my failure…" Presea then felt energy being reunited around the angel and sensed he was about to execute a Mystic Arte. "and accept this sacrifice as a symbol of my regret…" then he moved, faster than lightning. Presea saw that, but didn't manage to react on time. She saw him slashing at her four times, forming an asterisk on her body, but she didn't feel the pain or the damage. "Repentance's Cross."
Presea's eyes widened as she felt four lines of light appearing on her body and unleashing pillars of light, she didn't manage to contain her scream. The Runeblade destroyed her defenses and the light was burning her aura so intensively she unconsciously wished she could shut her conscience off. Then the light exploded on several tiny dots and Presea let go of her weapons, which dissipated, falling to the ground as if in slow-motion.
Such speed… I wasn't able to react in time… my defenses were broken by his blade. Presea's mind analyzed even though she felt extremely weak and all she wanted was to pass out. No. I can't let myself be killed here! Colette… told me to come back to her.
When she hit the floor, darkness started to surround her body and slowly drag her inside. Gaelius turned and saw that his Mystic Arte had failed to finish off the reincarnated Summon Spirit. Upon noticing she was trying to get away, the Seraphim moved as quickly as lightning again and grasped his Runeblade with his hand, ready to drive it into Presea's head.
The blade's point came down…
- / - / - / - / - / - / -
They reappeared in the port town Triaar. Martel explained they would take an EC and go immediately to one of the Renegades' base when Colette felt her heart shrink painfully in her chest. She looked back at the direction of Meltokio.
"Colette?" Raine asked.
"Presea… we have to go back!" the girl said suddenly.
"Out of question," Ventus said, appearing.
"But…"
"Please, Lady Colette. Think about it," Tenebrae pleaded to her. "If you go back, you'll be putting yourself in danger. This is not what Lady Presea wanted."
Colette looked back at the Centurion and realized he was right. Putting herself in danger would only serve to get Presea mad at her. But even so…
"Don't worry, sweetheart," her mother said, putting her clawed, yet warm hand on Colette's shoulder, making her look up to her mother's warm smile and gentle, shinning eyes. "I'm sure that Presea will come back to us. She looked such a strong girl."
Colette looked down as the rest of the group waited for her to come. She sighed and smiled to put everyone at ease.
"Yes, you're right," even though she was nervous and worried, she would force herself to wait. Her mother was right; Presea was strong. She would come back.