Chapter 3: The Angels' Metropolis
"So, I asked around, and some whale in Europe is trying to fence a huge rock on the black market. He calls it the Right Eye, saying it's part of some set called The Eyes of the World. Fits the bill of what you're after, don't it? Now here's the funny bit. The stone passes around the halls of power for hundreds of years, vanishes, and then the black market goes white hot for the thing. But the seller wanted an arm and a leg for it, to the point no one could stomach the price. So back goes the stone. But not before everyone figures out where the guy is! You're gonna enjoy doing this one I bet. I love stickin' it to the rich. Of course, when you do, don't forget your old buddy Enzo stuck his neck out on this one. Slide me a few fazoles out of the rich guy's pocket for my troubles, right!? Anyways, you better get going before the trail gets cold. Off to the middle of nowhere. Paradise of Europe. Vigrid."
Elsewhere, a little girl moved a toy figurine of Bayonetta across a map.
Bayonetta set off into the middle of nowhere in search of an exotic jewel she believed could help her regain the memories she'd lost. For some reason "The Eyes of the World" just tugged a certain string in her chest. It beckoned her to come and find it.
The first step however was to get her hands on the "Right Eye" within Vigrid.
While sleeping through the long plane ride, Bayonetta had a strange dream of a little girl playing with a little boy in a very dark room. They were playing with a pair of raggedy stuffed-toys. The dream left her feeling oddly depressed.
After all the trouble she went through to get to her destination, Bayonetta better find something worthwhile in this annoying, holy city, known as Vigrid or there would be hell to pay.
"So, you have arrived at last, my dear. The time has come to awaken The Eyes of the World. Fear not, my dear child. Such a beautiful young lady you've become. I'll always see to it no harm comes to you." The same soft melody of a voice echoed in her mind, but this time Bayonetta was conscious and not dreaming.
If she were a normal woman the witch might consider going to see a therapist about strange men whispering in her mind. But abnormal occurrences were a known commodity for witches. Still, the voice wasn't her imagination, which meant that the voice must belong to someone here in Vigrid.
It seemed Bayonetta would find some answers here after all.
Exiting off the train, she sauntered on through security with ease. Being within the realm of Purgatorio made traveling so much easier and it was always amusing to see the little humans fearfully scamper around because of some minor explosions or gunfire on Bayonetta's part from within Purgatorio.
The witch soon found herself facing some odd door or wall, she couldn't exactly tell.
"The sphere embedded in the wall is emitting a wondrous light and resonant sound. Getting closer to it makes it glow brighter. It's as if it has some sort of ability to respond to a witch's power built in." Bayonetta surmised.
She inspected the object, giving it a nice kick to see how sturdy it was. Rather than collapsing like expected, the door/wall glowed a radiant gold and some of the blocks had moved.
Ah, so this door/wall liked it rough. Bayonetta could respect that.
"Well I'd be more than happy to smash my heels into its shinning face." She giggled maliciously.
A rapid series of kicks from her pushed the blocks forward and allowed the witch to enter the next room.
Strangely enough, the room had a grave for a witch inside. Within the grave was a very large key that was used by Bayonetta to smack around a few Affinities and open the next door. In the next room she saw a crystal statue of a Lumen Sage and a shattered statue. There appeared to be no way of crossing over the moat that impeded her way.
"This is starting to feel like I'm playing some game of puzzles."
To prove her point, a group of Affinities emerged from Paradiso. Bayonetta's guns made quick work of them.
Hmm the lovely little guns Rodin gave her were actually proving quite useful compared to the recent toys he'd given Bayonetta. Sauntering over to the statues, she closed the Angel's portal with a sexy kiss, which caused the second statue to repair itself like magic.
"Lumen Sage and Umbra Witch. When their powers meet in a test of strength, the lightning released will be your test. If you wish to walk upon water, prove your mettle by dodging the lightning in a single hair's breadth."
More odd voices.
This time however it wasn't the regular voice Bayonetta had been hearing in her mind. This voice sounded much younger and playful.
A test of strength was it?
With a snap of her fingers, the dark magic of Wicked Weave activated, causing two large hands to lift the statues up from ground. The movement of the statues caused a bolt of light to strike down where Bayonetta was standing. She managed to dodge it at the last second.
Being fried to a crisp was not on her agenda.
Activating the magic again, Bayonetta used Witch Time to flip backwards and avoid the attack. An idea occurred to her then. Keeping the flow of time from moving, the witch sprinted across the water to the other end. Once she landed, the magic cut off like a switch.
Looked like that was her final challenge for that area.
Another one of those odd door/walls stood before Bayonetta. A few punches seemed to shatter the structure, but it reconfigured itself into a circular disk that levitated off the ground. The witch jumped onto the disk and it propelled upward, taking her out of the ruins and into civilization.
Thank goodness for that. Another awful challenge and she might've just destroyed the whole sodding building! A Lady only had so much time to waste.
After exiting the ruins, Bayonetta encountered Rodin, reclining against the bottom of a flight of stairs.
The man just loved to make an entrance.
"Some places in this world are closer to Paradiso or Inferno. The rathole of a town you and I live in is close to both, but the Vigridians got this special air about 'em. They're closer to Paradiso than anyone should ever be. And that shit just plain creeps me out. Heh, I guess I'm gonna have to set up shop here and score me some halos. These stupid rings are worth a fortune back home. Since it seems you're spoiling for a fight, if you come across any of these, bring 'em to me and I'll hook you up." He proposed.
"Another one looking to line his pockets. Huh, I'm beginning to see why Enzo is so fond of you." Bayonetta's comment seemed to annoy Rodin.
"Real cute. But let's get one thing straight, your fights are yours alone. I'm only here to watch my handiwork in action. So don't get any bright ideas about coming to me for help." Rodin put the halo he'd been playing with into one of the never-ending pockets of his duster and walked back towards the Gate of Hell he'd come through.
He thought so little of her, did he? She'd put him in his place.
"No, you get one thing straight. I'm not the slightest bit interested in the fact that you made these guns. If you get in my way, I will, how do the Americans put it? Oh, yes. Bust a cap in yo' ass." Bayonetta walked behind Rodin and casually pointed a gun at his back.
"Right on, baby! Right on!" He cracked up in amusement over her attempted crack on American Culture. Rodin went on through the portal. His laughter echoed throughout the hallways.
Making it outside for the first time in days, Bayonetta found herself walking through a beautiful was right, Vigrid truly was close to Paradiso. Beauty of this stature could only be found in a city like this. Walking in front of the fountain, she looked into the clear water, expecting to see her beautiful reflection. Instead, Bayonetta saw the face of a young man with hair of the silver moon and eyes of the blue sky. The reflection smiled at her, revealing a beauty mark beneath the man's lip.
The man's face struck a chord in Bayonetta. Was he apart of her past?
Her hand hovered over the image. A ripple in the water caused his smiling visage to fade away. She looked closer, hoping to see his face again, but only saw her own reflection.
Perhaps, Bayonetta imagined it.
Feeling the hairs on the back of her neck stand up, she whipped around with her gun ready.
A hooded figure in white and gold stood in front of Bayonetta. His figure shimmered with a pale blue light, meaning he wasn't in the realm of Purgatorio and his features weren't fully visible.
It was just a mortal. He couldn't see her.
Something about him though made Bayonetta's insides churn. Her magic was reacting funnily. The darkness couldn't seem to decide if it wanted to burst out and destroy this person or recede quietly back into her. Wanting to get a closer look at him, the witch walked towards the man, not expecting him to notice. As if in response to her actions, the hooded man raised his hand.
The grass around Bayonetta began to grow into pretty pink and purple flowers. The witch recoiled.
Did the mortal cause the flower's appearance?
If this were a normal situation, Bayonetta might have been flattered that a man literally bombarded her with lovely flowers. This however, was not normal. No mortal should have been able to affect the two realities of Chaos and Purgatorio like this. The witch's admiration of the flowers came to end when a giant Angel fell from the sky.
Concerned for the man's safety, she looked back for him, only to find him gone.
"What it is it with all these strange fellows appearing and disappearing out of nowhere? It's so impolite." Bayonetta complained while adjusting her glasses.
The roar of the Angel brought her back to reality. This beast was nothing like the fodder she'd been dealing with.
A Third Sphere Beloved, an actual challenge. Bayonetta would enjoy massacring this holy fool.
The Beloved
Keep on Dancing Baby!
Wasting no time, the Beloved swung its giant axe down at Bayonetta, hoping to cut its target clean in half. Dodging to left at the last moment, she activated Witch Time and swung on the axe to kick the imbecile straight in the face.
When time returned to normal the giant went tumbling down and dropped its axe. Feeling naughty, Bayonetta touched the blade of the axe and used a bit of magic to shrink the weapon to a more manageable size for her to use.
The giant was enraged to see its enemy using its divine weapon and swung its arms at Bayonetta. She laughed at the impromptu game of whack a mole. All that was missing was the mallet. The witch nimbly dodged all Beloved's attempts to flatten her into a saucy pancake.
Running behind the Angel, Bayonetta prepared to slice him with the axe. The plan was harder to execute since the witch had underestimated the weight of the axe. The laspe gave Beloved the chance it needed to grab her.
Bollocks!
"Oh you naughty boy. This isn't how you treat a lady. Let me show you what girls like me do to rude men."
Channeling her magic, Bayonetta spun around in rapid circles and her hair strands flared out with dark energy, striking at Beloved. The attack stunned the big guy and left him completely open.
This time the witch swung the axe with more gusto and lobbing off Beloved's arms and legs.
"Now to feed you to the demons. Avavago!" Bayonetta chanted and channeled more of her magic into a final attack.
The Wicked Weave activated, summoning the demon, Gomorrah. The dragon appeared in a swirl of black and purple weaves of hair. Once it set its sight on Beloved, the dragon surged forward, chomping on the Angel with no remorse. The sounds of Beloved's final screams and Gomorrah's vicious chomping was music to Bayonetta's ears. The onslaught of Gomorrah's attack continued until the Angel exploded in a shower of blood and light. Satisfied with the carnage from its meal, Gomorrah returned to the Inferno with a screeching howl.
Bayonetta hummed. "That was quite lovely to watch."
She collected the multiple halos and even the curious disk that was left behind by Beloved.
Emerging from behind the fountain, the hooded figure bent down to pluck a pink flower.
"You are strong dear one, but you must grow stronger yet. For the Eyes shall never awaken while you still slumber, unaware of who you truly are." He sighed brokenly.
The hooded man looked into the fountain and saw his own blue eyes tiredly looking back at him. He had lost so much over the years. Time and fate were not kind to him.
"My dear, sweet child, you must show her the path to awakening. Open your heart and allow the past to intersect with the present. For the future is lost without the Eyes of the World." The familiar melody of a voice entered the man's mind and calmed his turbulent heart.
Past and present.
His past was bloody and filled with strife. So was hers.
The path of the Umbra was always a dark one. He'd rather not fill Bayonetta's mind with those horrible images, but those were the only ones that she had been responding to. The others he tried to show her were always blocked out, as if she couldn't accept them.
It was almost like she only wanted to bear pain. She would not accept the precious moments of joy he tried to grant her. The precious moments they shared...
"Fear not my child, she will find her way back to us. For all the pieces are in play and it is time for the pawn to make its move."
The other Umbra Witch.
The man would rather just get rid of that vile woman and be done with the dwellers of darkness and moonlight.
In response to his dark thoughts of striking the red woman down into the Inferno, he felt his mind being filled with an ugly screeching noise akin to nails on a board. Clearly, the man's violent thoughts were not appreciated.
"In time you shall have your vengeance my child, but now is not the time. She has a purpose and she will fulfill it before we are rid of her."
The noise stopped and the presence of the melodic voice disappeared. The hooded man was left alone.
Dropping the pink flower into the fountain, he walked towards the relic wall Bayonetta had walked through and placed his hand on the resonating stone. The man guided his magic to the tips of his fingers. He felt the energy flow like a river throughout his body. The stone turned from purple to gold and harmonized with the light magic being pushed into it.
"Come Bayonetta. Come back to the days of old. Of dark nights and wars of Angels and Demons."