Deep within a castle hidden away in the monster world a gathering had begun to take place, with those attending this meeting being the dark lords that oversaw order and control of their realm. Inside the large meeting hall torches were keeping the area lit from the surrounding pillars and walls while above the blood red moon was visible with the ceiling having a circular opening, showing the night sky while the clouds seemed to circle around the building rather than pass over it. The long rectangular table had several figures seated while others were walking into the chamber after having just arrived from their own parts of the monster world that belonged to their races. Many of the dark lords wore their customary robes and cowls while others chose to dress in finer and more exquisite clothing resembling that of royalty or higher status from where they come from.
One of the lords took his seat at the head of the table, the vampire twirling one of his bangs casually with one finger as he was known to do out of habit. Issa slowly glanced around at the gathering of the lords with his crimson eyes, his expression doing well to hide any frustrations or agitation about not only the current state of diplomacy between the human and monster worlds, but also the fact that two of his daughters were still isolated in the human realm at this very moment.
"Now then, we have gathered here on this night to discuss our options on how to deal with humans once again declaring war on our kind," Issa spoke up, with the other lords quieting down and turning to him as he rested his hands on the table in a steeple formation.
"What other option do we have but to keep the barrier sealed and the gateways closed? Sending any other monsters into that world even in disguise to live there would be a death sentence for them, the humans know of our existence without any doubt and will be looking for any of our kind in their world to execute on sight," a dark lord said with annoyance.
"I still don't understand how we went from forming negotiations to going to war out of nowhere like this, what happened?" another asked with a hiss from under his cowl. Issa shook his head and looked up at the moon above.
"The HDA declared war on all of us after a monster attack broke out in one of their schools. According to my daughters the attack wasn't against mankind, it was from another offender who was after our students in that realm. They defended themselves, and humans were caught in the crossfire, resulting in what the human media reported as an attack on their own," he explained.
"Another offender?" a lord asked. Issa nodded and looked back to the audience that was watching him with great interest.
"Yes, one that also sent three sirens to Yokai Academy to charm away all the male students away into becoming soldiers for himself. We know very little about him, only that he isn't from our monster realm or the human world, he's from somewhere else entirely," he said with a cautious tone.
"So it is this 'offender' from another world that is to blame for this?" another lord demanded while slamming his fist down onto the table.
"That is correct," the headmaster said as he walked towards the table from nearby, the man becoming visible from the shadows as the other lords turned to him.
"Mikogami, to what do we owe for you personally gracing us with your presence?" Issa inquired. The headmaster shook his head as he walked up to the table's end opposite of the vampire lord, looking around at the dark lords with his glowing eyes and a solemn expression.
"Sorry to interrupt you, however I came to speak to you all regarding this new threat we face," he said.
"It's not often the headmaster of Yokai Academy comes to these meetings, I do hope your school is faring well without you," a lord mentioned with a chuckle.
"I'm afraid not, it is unfortunate for me to report that Yokai Academy has been completely destroyed," Mikogami said with regret. The other lords looked at him with slight jumps of surprise while Issa watched the man carefully.
"What do you mean destroyed, how?" a lord asked.
"One of those delightful sirens had a little episode; she appeared to lose all control of herself and with her magic and singing razed the academy to the ground in a very unpleasant storm. I'm not sure what happened to that poor child, she didn't strike me as the type who would be capable of not only such power but destruction," Mikogami explained with remorse. Issa nodded slowly and looked down.
"Were any of our students harmed?" he asked.
"Quite a few were, many perished in that storm, only a few students and faculty managed to survive," the headmaster said with regret.
"I'm sorry to hear about that Mikogami, that is indeed troubling news to hear, however at the moment we have a more pressing matter that we need to focus on. We shall deal with this other loss of ours accordingly once this current crisis is over," Issa informed solemnly.
"Indeed we must, this dark king from another world is what I would consider to be a priority at the moment as well. He's instigated another war turning mankind against us and is positioning himself with an army to conquer both of our worlds in one swoop," Mikogami said carefully.
"An army?" a dark lord asked. Mikogami nodded and looked to Issa.
"Yes, I've been informed by a somewhat trustworthy source, the dark king's own son," he said. Issa's eyes narrowed slightly as the other lords started whispering amongst each other with hushed tones.
"Son? This monster from another world's son spoke to you?" Issa asked carefully.
"Indeed he did. I wouldn't have believed him at first to be honest; however he did seem to have some very unique magic on hand. Namely, being able to pass between the human and monster world on his own," Mikogami said with a slight smirk.
"What do you mean, that's impossible. Our realm is completely sealed off, there is no way any other could have entered or left our world," a dark lord scoffed. Mikogami chuckled and looked to him with a shrug.
"Tell that to him, he brought with him a student of mine who was originally captured and held in the dark king's world and another who went into the human world before it was sealed off, both of which he brought to the academy to rescue another student before they all left just like that. Not only that, but they all conveyed the same warning to me, that his father was preparing to conquer both of our worlds very soon. Improbable may be a suitable word for what he did, but not impossible," he reasoned.
"That's not possible and you know it Mikogami, our realm is sealed, it would be just as impossible for him to go through that barrier as it would for him to simply appear and disappear right in front of your eyes like that," another lord scoffed.
"Really now," Hex said from behind him. The lords jumped and looked back to seeing the boy casually walking out from behind the larger dark lord and eyeing the council with his unique eyes, seeming to appear out of thin air. The boy chuckled and looked to Mikogami with a smirk.
"Such simple-minded thinking, and these are the great lords that oversee your world?" he asked amusedly.
"What the hell, who are you, how did you get in here?" a lord demanded as he stood up. Mikogami raised his hand to silence the council while watching Hex carefully.
"This is the one I spoke of, the son of the dark king who is preparing to attack us all," he informed.
"He's the son of that monster?" a lord demanded. Issa stood up and watched the boy with a sharp eye. Hex glanced to him and smirked then looked down as several bright rings of light bloomed from the stone floor, with intricate and unique symbols spinning around in them. Hex sighed quietly and waved his hand down, causing the rings of magic to shatter instantly while a few that were unseen around him in the air crackled and faded away.
"Please don't waste both my time and your energy with such dramatics, I'm not here to fight you after all," Hex said plainly.
"How... how did he break those rings like that?" a lord asked with anger.
"What manner of magic does he possess?" another asked carefully. Hex chuckled and started walking again, passing behind a dark lord then appearing behind another on the opposite side of the table.
"What is magic to you is not to me, and what is magic to me is unknown to you," he said playfully while glancing around at the lords with a smirk, walking up to Mikogami then looking at him with a knowing smile. The headmaster watched him carefully then looked to Issa, with everybody turning to him as the vampire lord was keeping a close eye on the newcomer.
"Just who are you, and how did you get here?" Issa demanded.
"My name is Hex Lagon, although Lagon is simply a human surname I manifested in your world, Hex is my only true name, no other is needed," Hex said with a calm smile and shrug. Issa narrowed his eyes at the boy, with the reality bender then walking towards him with an intrigued smile.
"As for getting here, it wasn't too hard, I just had to go where the greatest buildup of monster energy was in your world, rather easy to figure out 'the great dark lords' of your realm were there. Though I must say the combined power of you gentlemen is rather poor, but I guess even lesser beings have those who they bow before," he said with a twitch of his eyebrow as he walked up in front of the dark lord.
"You come here uninvited and insult us by calling us lesser beings?" Issa snapped with discontent. In a flash he grabbed Hex by the shirt and held him in place while baring his fangs.
"I see arrogance and foolishness run in your family, with your mocking and misjudging of those around you like this as well as your father's underestimating of our own power and strength to fight," he said coldly. Hex looked down to the vampire's hand then back to him with a calm smile.
"Strength huh?" he mocked. Issa held in his growl as he lifted Hex up into the air with one hand, glaring at the boy with his cold red eyes.
"Just what are you that makes you think you can mock me like that? That disgusting smile of yours is beginning to anger me boy," he threatened. Hex rolled his eyes then looked at Issa while holding a hand out to the side, with the man watching it carefully.
"I'm not human by far, and yet not what would be considered a monster like you know. I suppose if anything, 'anomaly' best fits what I would be called," Hex said casually. The boy then gripped the air, with Issa watching as he seemed to tear out a shard of reality which left a dark void in midair. Hex swung with the blade of space that seemed to distort and bend light through it down into the man's arm, slicing through the flesh and cleaving the hand off with a clean swipe. The other lords watched in surprise as Issa yelled out and stepped back while holding the bloodied stump on his arm, staring with surprise at seeing his hand still holding onto Hex's shirt while blood dripped from the severed limb.
"What manner of power is that?" he yelled out with anger. Hex grabbed Issa's hand that was still holding onto him and removed it, then walked towards the vampire with a cold stare.
"Now then, I didn't come here to fight," he said before he held his hand which kept the bloodied shard of reality in his grip out, causing Issa to stumble off to the side as the boy waved his hand down towards the table. The man's bloodied limb dropped onto the table as the vampire held onto his arm with a strained expression of anger and frustration while the other lords growled and glared at the boy. Two of them raised their hands towards the reality bender as glows of light started to come from them before Mikogami held out his hand to stop them, the headmaster watching the boy carefully still.
"I didn't come here because I wanted to be in your presence," Hex continued as he held the severed hand of the vampire lord to the bloodied stump on his arm, with Issa watching the boy with a cold glare still while baring his teeth.
"I didn't come here because I care about your plight," Hex said as he slowly drew his hand that held the shard of reality across the severed vampire's hand, his palm slowly moving across and passing to reveal the limb now reattached to Issa's arm. The vampire looked to it with a careful glance to see that his hand had been restored and felt completely fine as the boy pulled back. Hex held out the shard to the dark void in space that hung in midair then drew his hand across it, seeming to press and meld the shard back into place as the blood on it vanished from view. The dark lords stared at the sight with caution then looked at the boy as he turned to Issa with a sharp eye.
"I came here because I need you all to do something for me," he finished. Issa flexed his hand and moved his arm, then looked to Hex while standing back upright again with a cold glare in his eyes. Hex smirked then casually gestured towards Issa's chair, the dark lord glancing to it as the boy looked around at the others.
"If you don't mind gentlemen, I need to be going soon before my father notices that I'm here," he said calmly. The lords looked to each other then to him as Issa scowled at the boy. Mikogami chuckled and nodded then motioned towards the table.
"Very interesting display of power, and a rather handy trick if I do say so myself. Please have a seat, I'm sure there's much for us to discuss on this night," he mused. Hex smirked and looked back to Issa, the vampire still glaring at him while one hand drummed its fingers at his side.
"If you wish to stand that's up to you, in that case, do you mind if I…" he said waving to the vampire's seat. Issa glanced to Mikogami then back to Hex with a cold stare. Hex chuckled then walked around him, sitting down in the vampire's chair and looking around with an intrigued smile. Issa clenched his fist before Mikogami rested his hand on the man's shoulder.
"Although I'm confident with all of us here we could dispatch the strange lad, we might do well to listen to what he has to say," Mikogami suggested.
"Are you suggesting that I ignore what just happened here?" Issa demanded at him.
"I'm suggesting that we learn what we can from him about his father, and what exactly we're up against here," Mikogami reasoned.
"He cut my hand off," Issa snapped.
"He put it back," Mikogami said with a shrug. Issa held in his growl of anger then looked to Hex as the reality bender was looking around casually while leaning back and resting his legs up on the table. After a moment's pause Issa took a seat at the table next to the headmaster, with all the dark lords watching Hex carefully as the boy turned his focus back to them.
"Nice place you have here, tell me, who owns this lovely estate?" he asked.
"It belonged to my father and his father before that, it is used as a gathering hall for the dark lords of this world," Issa said with discontent. Hex nodded as he looked up and around at the gothic architecture.
"What is it about vampires and owning turn of the century gothic castles?" he asked amusedly. Issa held in his growl of anger while Mikogami cleared his throat to speak.
"Now then, you mentioned that you need us to do something for you," Mikogami said. Hex nodded and looked up at the blood red moon above.
"Yes, I need you all to open the gateways between the human and monster worlds again," he said casually.
"Really? And why do you need us to do that? From what I've noticed you have no trouble getting around our little barrier," Mikogami said with a curious tone.
"Because I need a few things brought into this world from that one, but I cannot personally bring them over nor make use of them on my own," Hex replied. Mikogami chuckled and tilted his head.
"That does sound to be rather problematic," he agreed. Hex smirked and looked to him with a sharp eye.
"It is. Now, I know you all have the power to open the gateways again, so I'm politely telling you to do so," he said calmly.
"Telling us? How dare you order us around!" Issa shouted out with anger. Mikogami raised his hand to silence the vampire while watching Hex carefully.
"If I may ask, why don't you do so yourself? Surely you're powerful enough to lower the barrier, since you yourself seem to be able to go around it so easily," he reasoned.
"If I could on my own I would have already, sadly though my power doesn't work that way," Hex answered with a shrug. Mikogami nodded then looked at him curiously.
"And what exactly is it that you wish to bring over into our world?" he asked.
"Just a few keys," Hex said with a smirk.
"Keys?" Mikogami asked. Hex merely nodded once. Mikogami watched him carefully for a moment then leaned back in his chair.
"And just what are these keys that you are so interested in bringing here used for?" he asked carefully.
"To free my sister," Hex replied.
"Your sister? I'm sorry, but we appear to be replacing one question with another, perhaps you could explain why it is you are here and what it is you are after with a bit more clarity," Mikogami suggested. Hex smirked and looked around at the table of lords.
"Time is something I don't have gentlemen, and quite honestly I'm not here to play Q & A with you," he said shaking his head.
"Now now my dear boy, you come here asking us for help with finding your sister while being known to be the son of the monster responsible for our troubles as of late, I'm afraid if you want our assistance you will answer our questions or else you'll get nothing from us," Mikogami said knowingly. Hex nodded and pulled out his dice, rattling them around casually in his hand.
"Tell you what, let's roll for it," he said, flicking the dice out onto the table. The lords watched the cubes bounce across the table and come to a stop in front of Mikogami, the man eyeing the dice then looking towards Hex while remaining silent. After a pause he tilted his head slightly.
"Roll for it?" he asked dryly.
"Yes, you see I'm a big fan of the concept of chance, it simply fascinates me, so much in fact that I base my core power around it. If you win my game of chance, you'll all know everything about my father, and myself as well. Every question you could possibly want to know about us you will have the answer to right here and now, simple as that," Hex said waving to the dice.
"Is this some sort of joke?" Issa scoffed. Hex chuckled and shook his head.
"No, far from it. Now, if you wish to know all there is about my father and our power then roll for it, however should you lose my game then you will lower the barrier and open the gateways again so that those keys can come back here," he said calmly. Mikogami looked at the dice carefully then at Hex.
"Your power? Just what is your kind of magic?" he asked carefully.
"Well, I suppose you could say 'reality' is my affinity," Hex said with a smirk. The dark lords glanced to each other skeptically from that while Mikogami merely stared at the boy with a blank expression.
"Reality is your affinity?" he asked flatly.
"Correct," Hex said with a nod. Mikogami remained silent for a moment then looked down to the dice.
"Am I understanding that if I 'win' this little game of dice, every dark lord in this room will know everything about what you and your father are?" he asked.
"Everything," Hex said with a nod.
"And how is it that we will know everything from winning this game?" the man asked again.
"Because reality will change to make it true, that's what my power does," Hex replied.
"Is he being serious?" a lord scoffed from under his cowl.
"Playing a game of dice to change reality, how stupid is this boy?" another grunted.
"You saw what he did a few moments ago, there's more to him than meets the eye," another added cautiously.
"He broke all of our containment seals without pause and severed then reattached lord Shuzen's hand like it was nothing, he has some form of power on his side, that much is for certain," another mentioned. Mikogami nodded and looked back to Hex.
"And if I lose? You really believe we'll just lower the barrier because of this little game?" he asked.
"Should you lose, you will open the gateways again, there will be no debate about that," Hex said knowingly.
"And why would that be?" the man asked.
"Because if you lose reality will make you, there will not be another choice for you to take," Hex said with a small shrug. Mikogami watched him carefully for a moment then looked to the dice.
"This is absurd, quit wasting our time and tell us what we want to know this instant," Issa said sternly as he glared at Hex. The boy glanced to him and smirked.
"I don't give anything for free, I told you that's not how my power works," he pointed out. Issa glared at him while baring his teeth as the boy leaned back and looked to Mikogami.
"If you want anything from me, you need to earn it," he said simply.
"You base your power, your… ability to change reality, all on mere chance?" Mikogami asked.
"Yes," Hex said with a nod.
"Don't you find that to be rather dangerous?" Mikogami asked.
"Wouldn't be interesting otherwise," Hex reasoned.
"Are you seriously buying this? What he speaks cannot be done, why are we wasting our time with this nonsense?" a dark lord hissed. Mikogami nodded then looked to Hex.
"As crazy as all this sounds, I'll take a chance on it to see if it is indeed real. So, how does your little game work?" he asked as he picked up the dice. Hex chuckled with a suave smile.
"I play with the same rules in all my games. Roll two sixes and you win, roll a snake eyes and I win. Doubles of any other number means you roll again, and any mismatched roll mean the other player takes their turn. We play until there is a winner or you forfeit the game," he explained. Mikogami nodded then looked at the dice in his hand.
"Before I do this, answer me one question," he said carefully before turning his focus to Hex again. The boy waited for him to continue as the dark lords watched the reality bender closely.
"Why have you come to our world? You, your sister, your father, why have you all come here?" Mikogami asked cautiously.
"My sister was cast into this world at random when she was imprisoned, I came here looking for her, and my father…" Hex said, with the lords watching him carefully. The boy let out a small amused murmur and shrugged.
"Came here to kill you all, because that's what he does," he said simply. Mikogami stared at him for a moment then rolled the dice, the cubes coming up with a one and three. Hex smirked and tapped his fingers on the table, with the dice then rolling over into his hand.
"If I may ask, how did Luna Cii escape her captivity from your father? She seemed to be doing very well when I saw her briefly with you earlier," Mikogami mentioned. Hex nodded and rolled the dice, getting a four and three. He waved his hand which caused the dice to slide across the table back to Mikogami.
"I rescued her from my father's dungeon in hopes she could use her magic to break my sister free without the use of the keys. However, as powerful as she is, she was unsuccessful. Still, it was worth a try," he said with a shrug.
"Freeing your father's prisoners and speaking to those he wishes to destroy, you don't sound like you're on your father's side in all this," Mikogami mused before he rolled the dice. It came up with two twos, the man then taking the dice again while Hex shook his head.
"My father is dead to me, being my father only in the sense that he gave me life. I care nothing for his crusade or his goals, not really my style," Hex said simply. Mikogami nodded and rolled the dice again, getting a three and five. The dice slid back over to Hex as the other lords watched him carefully.
"So the only reason you're here is to save your sister, not for your father's war?" Issa inquired.
"Correct, if it weren't for my sister being in your world I wouldn't have come here at all, especially with my father already having his sights set for conquest here," Hex said before he rolled the dice, getting a one and six. He smirked then waved the dice away, the cubes sliding back to the headmaster who took hold of them with a curious smile on his face.
"Your sister must mean so much to you, what with you not only defying your father to find her but also resorting to speaking with being such as us who have the keys to her salvation," he said calmly. Hex watched him with a careful glance as the man chuckled to himself.
"You know, I have come to know of a unique treasure in the monster realm, one that requires four special keys to open. Yes, I believe the ones you had seen with Ms. Cii know of it as well, seeing as how they were originally planning on using this unique treasure to save her. As I recall, those who open the relic could have any wish they want granted, almost as if the source of this otherworldly power could alter reality for them," he said knowingly. Hex continued to watch him carefully as the other lords looked to the man questionably. Mikogami nodded and looked to the dice in his hand with a smirk.
"Yes, Pandora's Box is that unique treasure's name, I do wonder how that relic got such a name," he said looking back to Hex. The boy smiled coolly and rested his arms back behind his head leisurely as the headmaster pointed to him.
"Would your sister's name happen to be Pandora, because that would just be one doozy of a coincidence if you ask me," he said knowingly.
"Mikogami, what are you talking about?" a dark lord asked.
"Pandora's Box, I thought that was just a myth," Issa said cautiously.
"No no, it is indeed real, a legendary artifact said to be able to grant any desire of those who find and open it, isn't that right Hex?" Mikogami said with a knowing smile. Hex showed a slightly irritated smile and nodded.
"Yes, my sister and her box are quite real," he said. Mikogami held his hand out with the dice while tilting his head slightly.
"Ahh, so you and your sister are indeed the same, wish makers and reality benders of sorts. You play a game of dice to change reality and your sister grants a wish for those who open her box. Tell me, does your father possess such power as well? Should we best him in this war do we get a free wish out of it? Is that how your family works, we play your little games and then you give us anything we want?" he asked with a laugh at the end. Hex showed a serious expression as the dark lords watched him carefully, the boy having a piercing glare at the headmaster.
"You will not best my father in this war, nobody does. He doesn't grant wishes like my sister and I, he bestows upon those he comes across not fortune but death, not chances of glory or riches but only certain destruction and annihilation. And my sister is not your 'wish maker', she's not a tool to be used by petty lesser beings such as yourselves," he said with a bit of anger at the end. Mikogami nodded and closed his hand around the dice.
"Oh, but she is boy, that's her place in that prison of hers isn't it? A being with the power to alter reality unlike anything we 'lesser beings' can comprehend, and yet she's confined to the role of wish maker for us within her box. My how that must feel so demeaning to her, being reduced to a tool for the petty," he mused shaking his head. Hex's hand flexed slightly before he looked at the man with a cold glare, his presence and mood shift causing chills to run down a few of the dark lords' spines.
"You're beginning to anger me, do not speak about my sister with such insolent words or you will regret it," he said coldly. The headmaster chuckled and looked to his hand holding the dice.
"I see, that struck a nerve with you didn't it? I can tell you do care deeply about your sibling, is your father not concerned with her wellbeing at all?" he asked.
"My father was the one who imprisoned her in the first place; my sister is only good to him if she obeys his command, which she will not do," Hex said with discontent.
"Ah, but he didn't do the same to you? He caged one but not the other?" Mikogami asked.
"I cannot be caged by anyone, my sister wasn't so fortunate to have that power. Now, either roll the dice or don't, this topic of conversation is beginning to annoy me," Hex said sitting upright and tapping his finger on the table. The headmaster looked to his hand then to the boy with a solemn expression.
"You love your sister, don't you?" he asked.
"Of course I do," Hex replied with a cold glare.
"And she loves you, yes?" Mikogami speculated.
"Yes, she does," Hex stated.
"But your father cares for neither of you, and I'm assuming the feeling is mutual," the man continued. Hex stood up and tried to hide his scowl.
"Nothing would give us more satisfaction than for our dear old father to be brutally dismembered right before our eyes. Now, roll the dice or don't," he demanded, his words at the end piercing everybody's ears. The dark lords looked at him cautiously, the boy seeming to have no real aura or monster energy yet still giving off a dreadful vibe to those around him. Mikogami watched him carefully then looked to his hand which held the dice.
"Well, for what it's worth, I'm sorry your sister was taken from you. Perhaps luck has smiled upon you however, as those in this world are not about to surrender to your father so easily. Do not underestimate the strength of those who will be standing against him, this may be the last war he will ever wage," he said solemnly before rolling the dice. The cubes bounced along the table and came to a stop, coming up with two sixes.
Silence filled the hall as Hex looked up at the blood red moon above, his eyes seeming to gaze beyond what could be seen.
"I wouldn't bet on it," he said, almost to himself. After a pause he looked back to the lords, all of them now staring at him in silence. Issa stared at the boy with a mixture of caution and skepticism, finding it impossible yet unsettling to know what he now knew. Mikogami stared at Hex with his glowing eyes, his expression showing a slight amount of surprise as he seemed taken aback with what he now knew to be true.
"Wha… what the hell are you?" one of the lords asked, his voice failing to hide his unease. Hex glanced to him then looked back to Mikogami while holding out his hand, the dice on the table then flying over into his grip.
"You know exactly what I am gentleman, what my father is, and just how royally damned you all are in this war," he said simply. He looked to his dice then pocketed them with a shrug.
"Although, saying it's a war seems unfair, seeing how if it were to be a 'war' both sides would have to stand an equal chance of winning. I guess if we were to be honest about it…" he said before looking back to Mikogami, his eyes seeming cold and piercing while his expression wasn't of anger of spite.
"This is going to be your slaughter," he said simply.
"I don't believe this, I don't believe what you forced into my mind with your trickery, you can't be… it's not possible for you to be…" Issa said with anger. Hex chuckled and turned to walk away.
"Believe what you wish, even though what you've learned is indeed the truth. You know what my father is, as well as what I am," he said casually. Mikogami watched him carefully with his glowing eyes. The boy had no monster aura, no power or energy radiating from him in the slightest. By all logic his mere presence was an impossibility; his existence should have been nothing more than what one would read in a fantasy or fanfiction. Mikogami stared at him with a cautious eye, attempting to understand what was forced into his mind by the bender's power. The image of the world came into view, drawing back to show the monster realm isolated from the human world, then further back to show the heavenly realm above with the domain of hell seen below, then further back to show a strange river of space that flowed behind the planet and stars, then further back to show a cosmos that had countless floating stone courtyards with bridges leading out into hazy blurs among the stars, and then even further back before everything shifted to a color that he had never seen before.
"You're an anomaly," Mikogami said, with Hex stopping and looking back to him. The man looked at him carefully, as if trying to validate what he knew.
The boy and his family weren't gods, they weren't humans, they weren't monsters, they weren't wandering spirits; they were remnants of the forces that created life, they were beings in tune with the very fabric of time and space to the point that they could manipulate reality around them at will. Yet they didn't exist in each timeline or alternate reality, they only existed as themselves, one-of-a-kinds that had no timeline or destiny set for them at all. In their original state the ability to control reality was simply too much to handle, there were no limits to what could be done and thus no way of actually controlling the power properly without subjecting themselves to self-destruction. Each one of them adapted a focus of their own, something to give their power and abilities direction and guidance, and also setting into place rules that kept their power in check and manageable.
Hex had chosen the element of 'luck' to govern his, with chance and fortune being used to control his power. Although he was still able to manipulate reality around him to a small degree, by his standards, on his own, his core power was locked into the element of luck and had its own rules and limitations set in order to keep it from destroying everything around him without warning. With the roll of his dice he could very easily change reality to his benefit, or misfortune.
Pandora had chosen the element of 'anarchy' to control her power, using the forces of chaos to control how her power would act. Her wild and uncontrollable nature fueled this catalyst, and with her twisted fetish of mating with beasts of the darkness she spawned some of the most horrendous and deadly monsters ever to be brought into existence, all of which were more vicious and overpowering than others, and all of which obeyed her and only her.
And their father, Babylon, had chosen the element of 'war' to be his tenacity, with the desire to conquer, control, and destroy all he could find being his driving force in life. His quest for complete domination of all that could be reached by him was his only reason for living, the never-ending thirst for more power driving him to become the most dangerous and insurmountable warlord to ever have existed.
But their mother, however…
"Anyway, the game is done, and my time here is about up," Hex said, and then looked up at the sky again. His eyes seemed to scan the heavens carefully as if he could see something that the others could not.
"I should be going before my father notices I'm here. Although you are not obligated to open the gateways between these two worlds since you did not lose the game, I would appreciate it if you would at least consider doing so," he said, and then glanced to Issa.
"You have two daughters on the other side, wouldn't you like to spend your final days with them?" he asked curiously. Issa blinked then looked at him carefully.
"Moka and Kokoa? You've met my daughters?" he asked.
"Oh yes, quite a few times in fact. Last I saw them Moka was being taken in by the humans; I believe she's trying to restore peace between the two worlds as your unofficial representative. Kokoa was with her friends and Luna before I left, both of your daughters are, or at least were from when I saw them last, alive and well," Hex said with a nod.
"Ms. Akashiya is speaking to the HDA? She was the student who Mr. Erres referred to that was talking to the humans about a truce?" Mikogami asked. Hex nodded and looked back to Issa with a smirk.
"Indeed, but I'm not sure how her talks for peace have gone or if she's still alive at this moment. Still, if she is alive, then surely you would want to spend what little time you have left with her, wouldn't you?" he said with a chuckle. Issa looked at him with a cold glare while holding back his growl of frustration while the other dark lords continued to watch Hex carefully in silence.
"Before you go Hex, answer me one question," Mikogami spoke up with. Hex looked at him with a blank expression as the man set his hands together in a steeple formation.
"Your father, Babylon, the dark warlord behind this impending attack, can he be killed?" he asked carefully.
"Of course he can, we're not immortal. We can bleed and die just like any other living thing," Hex reasoned.
"What will it take to kill him?" Mikogami asked. Hex looked around at the dark lords then back to the headmaster with a shrug.
"A miracle," he said simply. Mikogami showed a solemn expression then looked down while Issa was looking at the hand that Hex had both severed and reattached with his power like it was nothing, the vampire lord showing a bit of frustration slipping out behind his normally firm and collected demeanor. Hex turned and walked away; with the men watching as the boy slowly vanished into thin air before he reached the side of the hall.
"What the hell was that boy?" a dark lord hissed.
"You know as well as I do what he is, we all know now," Mikogami said looking up at the moon above. Issa growled and glanced to him.
"I can't believe such a thing; this had to have been some sort of trick, an illusion. He can't possibly be…" he said with a slight tone of frustration. Mikogami shook his head and looked to the vampire with a solemn expression.
"I fear that he is, his control over reality alone is proof enough for me, as I'm sure it is for you. They're anomalies in existence, beings with both incredible power and limitations," he said.
"Limitations? Did you not see what he just did, what he forced into our minds? Those… things can do whatever they want, how are we supposed to combat this?" a dark lord snapped with anger. Mikogami looked to him and held a hand up to silence the lords.
"You know as well as I do that they are not all-powerful. If they were, Hex would have freed Pandora and left by now while Babylon would have annihilated this world as if it were nothing. They have limits; Hex cannot enforce his true power unless someone plays his game, Pandora cannot do the same unless somebody defeats her monsters, and Babylon cannot invade this world…" he said looking to Issa, the vampire nodding slowly and looking to his hand again.
"Without crippling himself," he said cautiously. The other lords looked to each other as silence filled the hall. Hex's magic did indeed tell them all they wanted to know about Babylon. He was an anomaly obsessed with war, he loved to raise armies and crush any world he could to conquer everything, his true power was that of overwhelming strength and a desire to control everything. However, he too had limitations just like his offspring.
"Correct, he may be bloodthirsty and on the warpath; however he isn't rushing into this battle as he never does with any. He will make sure his army is fully prepared, he will attempt to gather as much power as he can to shift all of his forces into our world that he's able to, he will make any last attempts to take any of our own to join his followers, because after he starts his war he will be completely defenseless during the invasion," Mikogami confirmed. The lords looked to him then each other as they thought about that, all of them knowing that was true from Hex's magic. Once the invasion began Babylon's power would be exhausted, in which his army would be the only force that would be able to attack the world. The dark king could command his forces and control reality to an extent, but during the initial invasion of any world he couldn't personally join the attack, he could only remain in his realm and watch as his troops fought his battle.
"Once the invasion begins he will be weakened, opening enough rifts to our world from his will drain all his power. When the attack starts he will be weakened, that is when we will have our chance to end it," Mikogami reasoned.
"You speak as if it will be that simple. Like you said Mikogami, we know all about him just as you do, and we all know that when this attack begins our world will be destroyed by this impending army. You know how much he's planning on throwing at us, we won't be able to defend against it let alone issue a counterattack at the same time," a dark lord scoffed with anger.
"We'll be too busy fighting a futile battle for our own lives to even try to get into his world and kill him, we don't even know if we'll be able to enter his realm at all let alone fight our way through his forces and somehow find him before he recovers," another lord said looking down with frustration.
"He'll only be weakened until the initial rifts are closed, after that he'll be at full power again before more of his forces descend upon our world, our window for killing him is too short. We can't fight against this," another cursed with anger. Mikogami nodded and looked down in thought.
"No, we cannot stand against this tyrant and his army alone, that much is for certain, however we may not have to be alone during this confrontation," he pointed out looking back to the lords. The men looked to him as he smirked slightly.
"We're not the only ones who will be fighting for our very lives in this war after all," he reasoned.
"You're speaking about the humans," a lord said carefully.
"You can't be serious," another lord scoffed.
"We need them gentlemen, and they need us. Like Hex mentioned to me before, if we wish to fight back at all we'll need all the allies we can get," Mikogami said with a nod.
"Allies? In case you've forgotten they've declared war on us, are trying to kill our kind and force us out of their world forever. They are not allies of ours," a dark lord spoke with discontent.
"They would shoot us just as much as they would Babylon's forces, we're all the same in their eyes," another added. Mikogami nodded and looked around at the council.
"True, they have made it clear they do not want our kind in their world, but that was not our doing. Babylon started this conflict to get to us, to get our students that were mixed in with the humans'. Do try to keep things in perspective gentleman; a school of their children was attacked along with a city by monsters, they lost many innocent lives because of it, think how that makes us look to them. Had Yokai Academy been destroyed by humans rather than that rogue siren wouldn't we have put an end to peace with their kind as well?" he asked. The lords glanced to each other then looked back to the headmaster as he chuckled slightly.
"The humans were tricked, they were caught in the crossfire of a scuffle to steal away our monsters and now believe all of our kind are evil creatures once again. They pointed their weapons at the wrong monsters, it's obvious they were frightened and reacted as such," he reasoned.
"We know that Mikogami, it doesn't change the fact that peace between our worlds is the last thing the humans would want now," a lord said with annoyance. Mikogami showed a serious expression and pointed to him.
"Then we'd best change that fact, and quickly. You know as well as I do what awaits us from Babylon's invasion. There are three factions in this war gentlemen, not all created equally mind you. We have the fewest numbers and weakest force of them all, we cannot deny that. The humans have more numbers and greater weaponry than we do, we've always known this. But Babylon, his armies will trump even that of the humans', mankind needs help with this war just as well to survive. We need them, just as they need us. If we are to have any chance of surviving this then we must reform our alliance with them, otherwise we will surely fall," he declared firmly. The lords looked to each other as silence filled the hall, all of the men contemplating their options while faced with the impending crisis.
"Even if we wanted to speak to them, what makes you think they'll listen? They tried to kill all of us while we were in their world, what's going to be different this time?" a dark lord questioned.
"They're already listening, we have a representative speaking to the HDA as we speak, remember?" Mikogami mentioned while looking to Issa, the vampire nodding slowly and looking up at the blood red moon.
"If Moka really is speaking to them, I do hope they are listening well," he said distantly.
"I'm sure your daughter is trying to convey the urgency of the situation to them to the best of her ability. It sounds like she and her friends know about Babylon and are trying to warn the humans to what awaits all of us. If that's the case, now would be a prime opportunity for us to make our case to their kind, perhaps now they've seen the truth behind the monster attacks that had occurred," Mikogami reasoned.
"And what if the humans didn't listen to her, what if she's been executed already?" a lord asked cautiously. Issa forced a firm expression to hide his concern for his daughter while Mikogami shook his head.
"If they kill the idea of peace between our worlds, they're killing us all; they're killing our only chance of stopping this impending danger. All we can do is hope Ms. Akashiya has reached them with her words, that the door for peace between our worlds hasn't been closed for good," he said. The other lords began talking to each other with hushed tones of caution and suspicion while Issa looked to Mikogami with a careful eye.
"How can we trust that dark king's son with any of this? What if all of this is just a trick to lure us right into their trap? How can we believe any of what we learned on this night?" he questioned. Mikogami chuckled and looked up at the moon while leaning back in his seat.
"You know as well as I do that what we learned is true, as impossible as it seems it does add up with current events perfectly. You saw for yourself that they are indeed skilled with their powers of changing reality as have I, I do not doubt what we've been told tonight," he answered. Issa looked at him carefully for a moment then to his hand while the headmaster glanced to him.
"Hex may not be on our side directly in this war, but he does need our help as well," he mentioned.
"How do you figure that?" Issa asked.
"He cannot save his sister on his own, he needs those keys brought to her box in order to free her, and he cannot do so on his own. Your daughter and her friends have the keys in their possession, Hex needs them to be able to return to this world to free his sister, I'm sure if it wasn't for that fact he wouldn't have bothered coming here to speak to us about opening the gateways to our world," Mikogami reasoned. Issa looked at him carefully then up in thought as the headmaster nodded with a smirk.
"In a way, he needs our worlds to patch things up as well, if only because that's the only way he'll be able to complete his own goals," Mikogami added. Issa nodded then glanced to him with a raised eyebrow.
"Pandora's Box, are the legends surrounding that artifact true?" he inquired. Mikogami chuckled and nodded.
"Oh yes, however I'd advise against seeking that particular treasure. Although it can grant nearly any wish you can think of, I heard that it does have a twisted way of doing so. From what I've gathered, unlike her brother Hex, Pandora isn't a very good sport when it comes to losing their game."
Walking through the darkness inside her box Pandora had a cold glare in her eyes, the little girl being seen in a soft bloom of light while all around her monsters of horrible and twisted forms were standing about, all of them watching the girl constantly as she had a slight wiggle to her hips as she moved.
"How much longer?" she hissed. She looked around with a piercing glare that could rival a dark lord's and scowled.
"How much longer must I remain in this infernal prison?" she cursed. After a few more steps she closed her eyes and breathed out, her hand slowly moving to her hip and rustling her skirt.
"How I miss making love to my babies under a beautiful night sky with one of those primitive human civilizations burning around us. Oh, the screams of those pathetic beings, the smell of ashes and blood, the intensity of those flames…" she said before trailing off, slowly looking over to the side with a deep gaze in her eyes. She licked her lips then walked off to the side while looking at something with growing lust.
"You, get over here, now," she ordered before she ripped off her panties from under her skirt.
Hex walked along the stone brick bridge leading from a floating courtyard, the scenery changing from a vast cosmos filled with floating stone courtyards and gardens to darkness as he walked along the pathway. Slowly the ground changed to a stone floor while darkness was all that was seen around him, the boy having a dull expression in his eyes as had his hands in his pockets casually. Slowly dark figures of monsters became visible nearby, the boy walking along as the monstrosities merely watched him in silence. He glanced to a few of them, knowing that his sister's pets wouldn't do anything to harm him, watching as two of them even parted to get out of his way. After a while of walking through the dark place he came to a stop, his eyes looking down with a raised eyebrow to seeing his sister lying on the floor. She was breathing heavily with a blush on her face, her clothing tattered while there was a slick gooey substance on the ground all around her and covering her thighs. She wearily looked to Hex and smiled softly with an odd giggle.
"Big brother… you're back," she said softly. Hex smirked and chuckled lightly as he knelt down next to his sister, being careful not to step in or touch the slimy goo nearby of which he knew exactly what it was.
"Hello my little Pandora, been playing with your pets again?" he asked casually. She nodded and held a hand just below her stomach.
"You're going to be an uncle again soon, isn't that so wonderful?" she asked softly, seeming to be in a daze still. Hex glanced around at seeing dozens of monstrosities standing nearby, one of which had a few scraps of Pandora's skirt hanging off of some spines on its hip.
"Our family keeps on getting bigger all the time, doesn't it?" he mused playfully, looking back to his sister with a gentle smile. He didn't really see the monsters as his own family, however didn't wish to speak against that view in front of his sister. Pandora nodded then closed her eyes as she breathed out softly, still reeling from her lovemaking. Hex smiled gently and slowly waved his hand over his sister, in doing so causing the slimy goo to vanish while her clothing rematerialized over her like new again. She shifted slightly and looked to him with loving eyes as he gently brushed a hand through her hair, or at least made the motion of doing so against her ethereal body.
"I missed you, it's not the same without you near," she said softly.
"I missed you too my dear sister," he said gently. She held a hand to his tenderly and sighed softly.
"You always take such good care of me, you always have," she said gently.
"Somebody has to take care of you, might as well be your big brother after all," he reasoned with a wink. She giggled then looked around quickly.
"Hey, where's that stupid bug and her sister? I thought you were bringing them back here to help me," she asked.
"They're not coming Pandora, they've elected not to help us with breaking you out of this place with their magic," Hex said sympathetically. Pandora looked to him with a dirty pout and huffed.
"I thought that stupid girl liked you after you freed her from father, what changed?" she said dryly.
"She assumed there was more to us than there was, and now resents me entirely because of it," Hex said with a shrug.
"Well, gee, I wonder why she thought that. When you had her here I thought you were going to fuck her right in front of me with how you two were acting," Pandora scoffed.
"Now now, I merely wanted her to trust me and be willing to help us, and offering to watch over her and protect her was a fair trade for her services. Besides, I wouldn't have mind stealing her heart away if I had the chance, she would have been much better off with me than anyone else," Hex said with a smirk.
"But now she's no good to either of us. I should have fed that bitch to my pets, why wouldn't you let me?" she asked firmly.
"I'm sorry Pandora, but it was worth the chance of me at least exploring the possibility of them freeing you," Hex reasoned. Pandora sat up and looked at him with worried eyes.
"So now what do we do?" she asked.
"We wait for the keys to your box to find their way back here, it's our only option now," Hex said while gently holding a hand to the girl's cheek. Pandora held her hand over his and nodded.
"Are the keys coming back here now?" she asked.
"Hopefully soon, three of them are isolated in the human realm. However, I have faith that they will be able to return to this world soon enough," Hex said calmly.
"And the other?" Pandora asked.
"It's somewhere in the monster world, another has it in her possession, but don't worry, those that hold the keys will be searching for each other very soon. One way or another, the keys will make their way back here, all you need to do is focus on readying your pets for one more fight," Hex said assuredly. Pandora smiled wickedly and giggled as the monsters around the area growled.
"When the box is opened, my lovelies will not fall this time. The four that open my chest to claim their stupid little wish will be smeared across the ground when my babies are done with them," she said with fire in her eyes. Hex nodded and smiled at his sister.
"I'm hoping for just that, as soon as you're free we're leaving this world, I'm going to take you far far away so that you'll never be locked up again," he said gently. Pandora smiled softly then moved forward to hug him, her arms going around his body yet not making contact while she buried her face in his chest.
"You always know what's best big brother, I love you so much," she said softly.
"I love you too my little Pandora," Hex said as he looked upwards into the darkness with a distant gaze, his arms moving to hold the ethereal girl although not being able to touch her. Pandora breathed out softly as she closed her eyes, enjoying her time with her brother while Hex looked down to her with caring eyes.
"You will be free again, my dear sister. I swear on my life."