Another Heart: Ouroboros
-
Thomas Calvert saw.
The shifting mists that had he had come to associate with the blinding of his powers from Keynote and her ilk was now lifted.
And yet he saw no hope.
He watched through eyes that weren't his own but were also his own.
Another Thomas, another Coil.
Not in his predicament but sitting in his office. He watched the hands reach into the drawer, the room familiar.
The base he had not long discarded.
He also pulled out a scotch and a glass. Thomas felt confusion as this other him unzipped his costume half way, letting his naked torso be exposed to the open air.
A zip of the whiskey, a touch of the gun.
Thomas felt the faintest traces of sensation from this. Like a whisper half heard from the dark.
Thomas swallowed, he knew what this act entailed, what it meant.
His most inner sanctums door began to shake and screech as something tried to barge into the room.
The other Coil watched almost calmly as the steel beams fastened into the door and sliding bolts began to pop off the wall with inhuman force.
The middle of the door began to glow, yellow at first but then quickly darkened into a bloody red.
A single glowing eye stared at him through the door. Thomas felt impressed for his other self.
The Coil he was spying through kept his hands very steady as he took another drink and loaded the gun.
"So you found me, impressive. It was to be expected after you burned half the city looking for me. Well? Do hurry up, I tire of this game we've played." his other self said curtly and the glowing eye at the door screamed and the door flew off the hinges.
Thomas saw a glowing red coat and demonic claws gripping a key shaped sword.
It dripped shadows and flames.
Coil picked up the gun and put it to his head, the beast screamed and her body was wreathed in dark fire.
"You're a monster but at least I can deny you this, I think the heroes might even thank me for distracting you this long." he said and Thomas felt the thrum of finality flash through the other man.
Keynote, or some bestial nightmarish form of her, dashed towards him.
Thomas recoiled as he felt the bullet dig into his brain. The feeling of sharp blossoming pain burned his mind and then the feeling of heat washed over his skin before it all went dark.
Then he was back in his own head, his body walking on its own, Regent's talent no doubt. Thomas took a breath, a deep one, Regent allowed it.
That was...not normal. His powers were not acting as they should and he tried to split his paths again.
Lung stood over him, his body wreathed in flames. Darkness.
Kaiser watched him as a spike grew out of the ground and drove Coil into the ceiling, the metal piercing all the way through him. Darkness.
A woman with heavy looking gun and a formal hat. Her suit seemed smoothed and cleaned to perfection. She tilted her head and spoke very quietly.
"Did you think you could betray our terms so easily?" she asked and her voice was steady.
Darkness.
Tattletale stood over him, a girl in a dark costume next to her. Her mask gave the impression of mandibles and compound eyes, the dark grey costume made her hard to see clearly amidst the swarm swirling around the room. The angry noise of an army.
Insects swarmed around him as each one was fixed upon him and the insect girl pointed a gun at his head.
"You're not a killer," he claimed, fear filling his mind.
"No…" she said and then there was a pause as if she was shuddering. The gun became very still
"…But I suppose, in a roundabout way, you made me into one," she said and then there was pain.
Darkness.
Thomas stopped using his power, it hurt. It hurt so much.
All he saw was the same thing. His failures, his plans torn apart and himself greeting death at every turn.
There was not a single vision of him winning, not even close.
Every path spiralled out of his control and showed him only one thing.
He was so very small, so much smaller than he'd ever thought he could be.
Coils, Tattletales, Undersiders, Brockton Bays and death, so many visions of them, so many different endings and changes but they were the fixed points, he could see himself always plucking the young Undersiders out for his plan, then the plan always ending with his death.
These were the constants but the killer was always fluid, mostly a girl with long black curly hair in most visions.
Insects, fire, guns, insane technology, honest to god magic, and so much more. That one girl was so many things.
He knew her, as one Coil knew her as Skitter, another as Arsenal, another as Starfield, another as Terror, another as Avalanche, another as Queen, another as Aria, another as Saver and so many more.
He knew her as Keynote. His own Death, not by her hands directly but her mere existence threw his own into the abyss. How could he not believe this after seeing the hundredth or so Coil die from airplane blue ice, or to a mass sting operation performed by Tattletale or Cauldron.
His flip of destiny had mutated, like cancer, into the long term outcome of things he could no longer control.
Of himself that wasn't himself. If he had this power, he could see who killed him and learn to counter them, the power to know how a war would turn out was valuable but...to someone like Thomas, it was nerve destroying. To be unable to know if the outcome of a choice would make things better or worse, meant that he would have to gamble along the way.
Thomas wanted to laugh but his jaw muscles remained still, Regent digging his claws ever deeper.
Heartbreaker trained him well, if indeed he did not break him altogether.
There was a creaking noise and Thomas listened, the bag over his head making his surroundings sound odd.
Creaking noises, foul odours and scratching noises.
His body moved forward, every third or so step was a little off. After a short while, the step corrected itself and he began to walk normally.
"In there," Bitch's voice cut through the looming silence like a knife. At her voice, several whines and barks sounded out.
Bitch whistled and the noise quieted down.
"Got them listening already?" Regent asked casually as if they hadn't kidnapped him from his office not a scant few hours ago.
Still, he would take the puppeteering of Regent over the damp, dark, moving space of that damn beast.
The cackle not far off made Thomas recoil so hard he broke slightly through Regent's control.
"Woah buddy, you just tried to hunch over so badly that you would have curled up." Regent slapped his back and the beast moved closer, Regent tightened his control over his body, muscles locking like a machine.
"Uwhehehe, I think he remembers me," it taunted and with the hood on, he couldn't exactly tell where it was but...it was almost within touching distance.
Thomas tried to move back but his body ignored him.
"Get him inside." Grue ordered and his body shuffled forward. He tried to listen for more information on his current predicament.
Something other than fucked badly.
His body turned suddenly and sat on a very uncomfortable chair.
"Do you even need to tie him up?" Regent asked, loudly and innocently. Grue's voice came from behind him.
"We still need to talk about that little trick and why you kept it quiet but yeah, I want this bastard sweating hard," Grue grunted and Thomas felt cold metal wrap around his wrists, the links sliding over his skin tightened like a snake as Grue bound his hands to the chair, then his feet.
His grip harder than it had to be. Thomas idly wondered how much of the calm facade that Grue used was forced and how much of it was needed. He had pushed the cape hard in many of his universes and he more often than not went very quiet before he exploded in rage.
Amusing but it was never useful to Thomas before and now he had a chance to experience that rage up close for the first time.
The clinking of the metal rang out loudly and echoed like a sentence to something Thomas wasn't sure he'd be able to come back from.
The bag was removed and Thomas tried not to blink in the dim light.
His eyes were free to wander, he was unsure how good Regents control really was, perhaps he was simply teasing him with this little freedom?
He wanted to sigh at the stereotypical concrete backroom with a single lamp swinging over head. The pile of dog food, combined with the noise earlier, made him guess they were at Bitch's kennel. Logical, it was perhaps their only isolated space in town besides the home he granted them.
Circus and her pet were nowhere to be seen.
Grue stood in front of him, arms crossed. Regent sat on the bags of food, reading the ingredients as if bored with the spectacle, Bitch was nowhere to be seen. The new person of the group made his stomach curl.
He was an older man, he placed the name to the face a moment later.
Danny Hebert or Gilgamesh, as he had taken to calling himself. The PRT intelligence pinned his sudden powers to an alternative source, the Espers.
Thomas eyed him, a source of powers other than a vial or a traumatic mental break.
It was hard to believe but comparing the once frail man described by the hospital reports to the being before him, it was undeniable that something was going on.
The thinning man with spectacles in all his passports or licenses was now lean and well defined and moved with a grace he saw in only in his most experienced mercenaries. The sunglasses were an odd choice but even with the khaki cargo pants and fake tuxedo t-shirt, there was a air of danger around him. A charge of sorts that made Thomas avoid staring too hard at him.
To his surprise, he felt his jaw fall back under his own power, then his throat.
He blinked and worked his jaw as it suddenly ached beyond belief.
"Where is Tattletale?" Grue asked very quietly and Thomas looked at the skull helmet, the dark visor hiding any hint of the troubled man below.
"All this for one girl who lied to you about everything?" he asked with curiosity and Grue didn't react.
"I don't think you gave her much choice. I know her better than you think. She can't keep a secret to save her life and she would definitely never keep yours unless you had something on her. Like you used me with my sister as a reward, Bitch with her dogs and money for Regent. You use people and then you try to kill them." Grue started off casual but his tone ended up very thin and cold, as if he wanted to do far more than talk to Thomas.
"Yet, your sister is unharmed, as are the dogs and your bank accounts. Tattletale acted against me, I had to defend myself." Thomas lied cooly. Regent snorted.
"Sure, that's why you left us to rot at the bank." he said mockingly and Grue stepped forward.
"The only reason we didn't just pin you to your desk with enough of you account details and 'hi, my name is Coil' is because we would never get close enough to find out where Tattletale is that way." he said and Thomas looked at him unimpressed.
"Yet, until I tell you where she is, you won't kill me or maim me too badly that I will need medical assistance. Your situation isn't looking much better, Brian." he said and Grue's hand clenched.
"Tough talk from a man who's ass keeps trying to move away the big bad scary Brian." Regent called out and Gilgamesh stepped forward for the first time.
"You took her for her power, her ability, no?" he asked and Thomas gave him his full attention. This was an unknown. Brian and Regent he could twist into bickering or even doubting given time.
He was working in the dark with this one.
"Considering she was planning to kill me, I had little choice. Killing or imprisoning her, I think you'll agree I picked the better option." Thomas told him waspishly. Gilgamesh rubbed his chin, then the next thing Thomas knew, there was a long bladed spear at his neck, digging a little too deeply into his skin.
"I hear you, I really do. But you know something? I think you talk a lot shit for a man who really can't risk being caught lying. Death or prison? You know who offers those options for one girl and thinks his word is law? Assholes...and psychopaths. I was a king once, not a great one mind you, but you see, the one thing I learned sitting on that throne? You try to rule with an iron fist, someone will come along and crush said fist." Gilgamesh said, his eyes showing over the edge of his glasses.
The burned like coals in the fire. Gilgamesh pulled the blade away and eyed the spot of blood on the edge.
"You aren't even a court jester and you think you get to throw you weight about? Not today, little man. So, my little bud here is going to ask you again and if you lie, even just a little, I'll start seeing exactly how much a person can live through and still be in a lot of pain." Gilgamesh said very calmly and Thomas didn't swallow, although he really wanted to.
"Ohh, this turned interesting fast." Regent said to no one in particular. Thomas's toes curled against his will and Regent nodded.
"I guess I'm not the only one who's excited." he said, leering in Thomas's direction.
There was a sudden sinking feeling in his stomach at the words.
Torture, he hadn't expected the Undersiders capable of a professional job, Circus neither but this man…
Gilgamesh didn't even blink as he walked around Thomas and tapped the flat end of his blade against Thomas's fingers, one at a time.
"I would suggest against such actions." Thomas began and Grue made a disgusted sound.
"Of course you would." he said and Gilgamesh tsked loudly.
"You're talking but you're still not saying anything, is that a finger or a thumb? I can never remember the exact order…" he trailed off and Thomas felt the edge of the weapon push against his thumb.
"If I don't call every six hours, Tattletales life is forfeit." he said and the edge paused. Gilgamesh was quiet for a few seconds.
"Better but not quite the truth. One last chance, try harder." Gilgamesh ordered and the metal edge moved away as if lining up the perfect angle in which to cut.
"Where is she?" Grue repeated and Thomas gritted his teeth at the multi threat. Is this where he ended? Was he to become just another Coil in the works?
He split the path.
He was in Brockton Bay, he was...on the beach.
The water lapped at his feet, it looked black but on second inspection, it was a watered out red.
All around him, bodies laid scattered about like a giant child had forgotten to pick up his toys.
Bodies floated in the sea as well.
This Coil felt tired and scared. He turned as noises carried down to him.
"You are a crafty one, I see even now that this is not a capture but a surrender, how amusing." the figure said, peering down at him from the cobbled path that lead down from the hill.
Thomas felt this Coil's heart go cold at this sight of this being. A dark cloak hid their features, their voice just high enough to be androgynous. The shadowed hood effect was familiar but the posture and words sent chills through Thomas.
"Where could I run that you could not follow?" Coli asked lightly and the figure thought about it as they walked further down towards Coil.
"I suppose nowhere. But people always seem to surprise me, so please do not sell yourself short." the figure said and then they vanished and Thomas felt pain.
The other Coil turned his head slightly to see the figure had plunged their hand in through his chest.
"Messy messy. I do tire of doing this but my work is never done, as it shouldn't be. The day work is done is the day there is nothing else for poor little minds like mine to explore. What a dreadful existence, don't you think? This world is interesting. I found one keeper of the key...but where is the other? I don't suppose you would know, my dear friend?" the figure leaned in as if Coil would suddenly speak but he didn't, just gurgled and collapsed.
He landed, facing up at the thing that had just killed him.
In it's hand was a glowing, red heart...it was so...beautiful.
Was it..his? Theirs? The figure let it float up into the sky where it was consumed by shadows.
"Such messy work." the figure said again.
Darkness.
Thomas gasped and shook his head, his brain vibrating in pain.
"Woah, okay, I dunno what he was doing but his body just cramped big time." Regent called out and Grue backed away suddenly as if Thomas would grow fangs and leap at him.
Thomas panted hard as he tried to gather his thoughts.
That had been the worst death yet, the pain lanced through his chest even now.
He stared with undisguised anger at Grue, the feeling of another failure, another him dying to destiny feed his pain and rage.
"So much time has already passed, I bet you didn't take my phone from the coat in my office, the only number that the men I have the watching over her will answer to? I won't be making that call and her death will be very much due to your sloppy work." Thomas spat and then tried to cool himself, switching to a relaxed smile.
"If you wish to fetch it, perhaps you could make it in time. Even with my voice, they will only answer to that number." Thomas tried not to speak with honeyed tones but he latched on to the potential stick and carrot to prolong his attached fingers.
Regent hummed and then yawned.
"Or we could just...make you tell us where she is?" he suggested and Grue nodded.
There was a knock at the door. Everyone paused before Regent sarcastically called out.
"Password?"
Another beat of silence.
"Kiss my ass." was the response and Thomas's fingers curled in anger at the sound of that loud brash voice.
Who entered, however, was not Circus the clown.
Which the slight jingle of golden coat buttons and the stepping of solid boots, the figure walked into the room with a large grin.
"Sorry it took so fucking long, these boots were made for asskicking but they are hard to get on." Circus said as she...he?...stood before him in a long brown coat complete with a red sash tied around their waist, another similar one was tied under the tricorne hat they wore. The only thing on their face was purple mask with markings that made Thomas think of the octopus demon.
"Corsair, at your fucking service." they bowed and Regent whistled.
"Taking 'curse like a sailor' to a whole new level there." he said and Corsair grinned.
"Well, the circus getup was getting too hot, too much stuff attached to that frigging name." they said and they looked down at Thomas.
"Not that it would fool anyone that I already talked to, like this fucking creep but it's a step in some direction. With my new pal, I thought I should go with a nautical theme for the season." Corsair added and Gilgamesh examined her and sighed.
"Punster was a legend in the making." he lamented and Thomas stared at him as Corsair snorted.
"I'll save that one for a special occasion." they replied, then from her back came the tentacles.
Then the bulbous head with too many teeth appeared out of her back as well.
Thomas wrestled with everything he had against Regent's control, pushed everything he had into getting away from Corsair and her horrible pet.
The new minted pirate looked down at him and her blue eyes burned with a dark pleasure at his bindings.
"Any progress?" she purred and Regent yawned.
"Nope, he's doing the whole 'planning and lying and trying to trick us' shtick." he replied and Corsair nodded as if this happened all the time.
"Broken any fingers yet?" they asked and Gilgamesh hefted his weapon a little too eagerly for Thomas's liking.
"Uhuwhahaha, he just went whiter than Shiva." The thing laughed and they all looked at him.
"Well? Tattletale or fingers?" Grue asked darkly and Thomas bit back a comment about his sister.
Not helpful right now. He had to delay, he would be found...then what?
A life to the birdcage for costing the city money in sting operations? Stealing and selling information on the PRT to others, like Accord? For attempted kidnapping of a twelve year old girl?
Those were just his most recent law breaking attempts.
Rescue meant doom, lying meant at least dismemberment, staying silent didn't look much better.
What about the truth? How could he use that to get out of this?
He tells the where Tattletale is, they could kill him to silence what he knew.
He could beg for mercy, make them swear to let him live. Grue and Gilgamesh looked the sort to try at least keep their word. It would lead to internal group conflict, fighting, a chance to escape.
He just needed to be sure that he was in the best position to escape. Accord owed him a massive favour for taking the Travellers off his hands, Thomas would be collecting on it if he managed to escape.
"Idea." Gilgamesh said suddenly and there was a beat of silence before Corsair motioned with their hand.
"Which is…?" they prompted slowly and Gilgamesh stroked his chin.
"I swore that we would not kill him, on my honor and I will uphold this." Gilgamesh began but Grue cut him off.
"You swore, not us." he reminded, indicating to Regent and himself and Gilgamesh looked at him.
"I will not let a putrid waste of flesh like this slug be a stain on your soul. Death leaves its mark and that never fades. Choosing, willingly, to murder another soul outside of battle is a deep reaching scar upon your heart. I...will not let good kids I just met endure that." he said with a firm nod.
Thomas felt relief at Gilgamesh's words. This was perfect, he had a sworn promise for his life to be spared and this man seemed the foolish kind that upheld his promises.
The relief was short lived however as Gilgamesh turned to Thomas and held out his hand, palm up.
"Unfortunately for you, slug, death is not the worst thing I can do to you. Not by a long shot." Gilgamesh smiled and it was that of a bloody beast, eyeing its next meal.
"Uh that's fucking ominous." Corsair commented and Grue shook his head at them.
The octopus giggled nervously.
"Uh, Gil, bud, not to be a killjoy but you're not going to...uh...use that?" it asked and Gilgamesh smirked.
"A fate worse than death I can choose but for you a fate just as good will do." he spoke aloud as if quoting someone from a long time ago.
In his hand a single golden bell with a black wooden handle to hold it with appear in Gilgamesh's hand.
"Do you ever confess your sins?" Gilgamesh asked and Thomas felt fear pulse through him at the sight of that bell.
It was simple but the way the light overhead glinted in the metal, didn't reflect the room.
There was something else moving in the golden bell.
"Babe, let's leave, like just run, move, don't look back." The purple demon cowered and Gilgamesh snorted.
"Your sins are safe for now." Gilgamesh told him but the demon vanished away into Corsair without a word.
The blond cape blinked and tilted their hat to examine the bell better.
"Not to be sounding like a frigging weirdo but is that thing...humming?" she asked and Thomas tried to listen but he couldn't hear anything.
"Don't listen too closely, might drive you mad." Gilgamesh warned them and he turned back to Thomas.
"Last chance, three words or less, where...is...the...girl?" he said, taking time to announce each word carefully.
"If you want her, I want you to sp-" Thomas tried to blurt out and Gilgamesh's face went dark.
"Wrong answer." he said and rang the bell three times.
The noise wasn't a delightful chime nor a hearty ring.
It was a deep air rippling muffled explosion.
Thomas felt his skin being hit hard with each blast and the others in the room covered their faces.
Then Gilgamesh stopped ringing the bell and waited.
Three or ten seconds passed, the pounding in Thomas's head made it hard to guess.
"Huh, he's usually quite punctual about his job-" Gilgamesh began before the shadows in the room went pitch black. Regent yelped as he completely vanished before he leapt into the cone of light left in the room.
The bell in Gilgamesh's hand floated up into the air by itself, then it began to ring itself.
This time, instead of muffled explosions, there was three clear rings and each one sent a wave of terror flying through Thomas like nothing else in his life had ever come close to.
The bell floated to the side of the darkened room, glowing as it reached the pitch black void where walls had been once.
"Grue, I know I always bitched about your darkness but I like it a lot better now." Regent said loudly as his voice carried much farther away than it should have. Thomas jerked his head about, trying to understand what was going on before the bell rang again and glowed much brighter.
Then from the darkness a door was illuminated. It was a simple door of blackened wood and a golden handle.
The door seemed to suck in the surrounding void like a drink, making the room tilt toward it.
The bell floated towards the door and softly clicked into a hole in center of the door.
The bell turned in its slot.
A large clicking noise echoed out and Grue swallowed loudly.
"Kinda wish Keynote was here, I don't like that door." he said very quietly and Gilgamesh crossed his arms, staring at the door.
Then, the door opened silently and without effort.
The thing that walked out was something Thomas Calvert was sure he would never forget, the sheer oddness of the creature making it seem unreal as it became visible.
The dogs, far in the distance, all stopped their usual noises. Barks, howls, yips and whines...all silent at once.
From the darkness of the door came a haunting blue light and Thomas heard it move.
Shuffle...shuffle...shuffle
Each step grated in Thomas's skull like glass.
Then it came into the light, the mysterious blue light revealed to be a lantern carried by a small green creature.
The black robe and brown rope it wore as a belt made it seem...priestly but there was something very hellish about the knife at its side.
It moved closer, shuffling as if each step was a pain or a hindrance it had to enure. Under one tiny arm it carried a book and in the other the lantern with...such an odd light.
It stopped between him and Gilgamesh.
"..." it...spoke, or something came out of its mouth. Thomas stared harder but the more he looked the more unsettled he became.
"Judge Tonberry, I thank you for your time." Gilgamesh bowed seriously and the creature nodded solemnly at him, then it shuffled towards Grue and Regent.
Gilgamesh looked a little alarmed at this.
"Uh sir, they aren't the guilty I called you here for." he called but the...Judge ignored him. Corsair crouched down and peered at him.
"He's actually...pretty cute." they said and the creature paused to look at her.
It reached out patted her on the head and the demon squid fell out as if pushed. His size smaller than before but a lot of his legs still trailed back to Corsair.
"Babe, what's goin-...Oh Ark's metal ball bearings. Judge, fancy seeing you here!" it called and the Judge opened its mouth and…
"..."
That odd noise again, like white noise on chalkboard.
"Yes...I guess I did skip jury duty, uwhahaha...ha...ha…" the demon laughed and the Judge shook its lantern with annoyance at him.
"Uwha...yes sir." it said and The Judge patted him on the head. Thomas watched as the thing that terrified him, was terrified of that creature.
Any hope of escape seemed to shrink as time went on.
"Gil, bud...I don't think I like this guy, no offence." Regent called out, his voice a little strained as the Judge walked towards him.
"Alec, do not move or speak. I need you to be quiet." Gilgamesh said and Regent looked over at him.
Then he tilted his head.
"Sorry, I don't listen well." he said and bent down as the Judge came up to him.
"Digging the knife, you know Yoda? I think he's down near your level." Regent said, reaching out and patting the small creature as the Judge suddenly slapped Regent's hand with the flat of his knife.
He waved his lantern at Regent before pausing as the blue glow within pulsed ever so slightly.
There was a long pause as Gilgamesh took three steps towards him before Regent jumped up, shaking his hand violently.
A giant red welt marring the pale skin.
Gilgamesh slowed and breathed a sigh of relief. Thomas wondered why.
What was going on?
"That fucking hurt like a bitch." Regent cursed and Grue didn't seem impressed by the surface damage.
The Judge looked at Regent and nodded.
"..."
There was a pause before Regent looked at Gilgamesh expectantly.
"He says that your sin is not your own, you are slothful creature but not a bad one...per say." Gilgamesh translated. Regent paused and then looked down at the toad like creature.
"You don't know anything about me." Regent muttered and the Judge turned away and fixed it's glowing eyes on Thomas.
"..."
Gilgamesh nodded.
"Alive but otherwise, I offer him. I need his truth." Gilgamesh said loudly and Thomas's eyes went wide at this.
He 'offered' Thomas? For what?
Thomas struggled like man possessed and one his legs fell under his control again as Regent seemed distracted.
The chains held him tight.
The Judge shuffled closer and then suddenly, he lifted clear off the ground as if picked up by some invisible force.
It floated in front of Thomas's face and leaned in close.
Thomas leaned back as if this would help at all. He was trapped with monsters, demons of the sea, Judges of the darkness and Regent, holding his own body prisoner.
The Judge flipped open the book it carried and the pages began to flip on their own.
Faster and endless, it spun until it stopped on two pages, on one side was a picture of his face, half unmasked, half under his Coil disguise.
On the other...Thomas watched as everything he ever did, right from birth was weighed and judged.
Stealing at four, lying at five, hurting someone at ten and so on.
They came so fast and rapidly that Thomas only caught glimpses of words. Years past in a flurry and the lantern in the Judge's hand sometimes flickered.
Then it hit his career in the PRT.
The lantern's flame began to grow in size and deepen in colour.
Ellisburg. The lantern changed to red.
Getting his vial and years that followed. Thomas watched as the flame grew darker and darker.
The heat was getting to him, the creature held it without effort but it was beginning to burn his skin like a bad tan.
Names continued to fly past. Taylor, Sabah, Sarah, Dinah, Brian, Jean-Paul, Rachel, Noelle, Francis, Marissa, Jess, Luke, Oliver, Kristie, Danny. The names stopped after that.
The flame was dark as the night inside the Lantern.
"What is that?" Corsair asked, visible shaken as she read the book from the side.
"The book of sin. You do a bad deed, then the Judge will know. He and Santa Claus have the only two naughty books in existence that works across multiple realms." Gilgamesh told them and Corsair tried to smirk as if he was joking but then their smile faded as Gilgamesh continued to look serious.
"..." The Judge asked and Thomas felt so...tired and hot. The fire was burning him, it hurt so bad.
"Lisa." Gilgamesh answered and the Judge waved a hand over the page and nothing turned up. The Judge stared at Gilgamesh who shrugged.
"Tattletale?" he offered and again the Judge waved a hand over the book and this time a name popped up.
Sarah/Lisa/Tattletale. Thomas glared at the names, cursing them with every bit of energy he had.
"That the girl, can you make him confess?"
"..."
Even Thomas could hear the insulted tone in the Judge's non-voice.
The judge turned to Thomas and pointed to the name and the flames in the Lantern grew hotter, as if that was possible.
Thomas writhed as he felt every part of him burn from the inside.
The question ringing in his head.
Where...is...the...girl?
It repeated with each breath and sensation.
Thomas couldn't bear it, not a second longer and he yelled something incoherent and then did it again, anything to make the pain stop.
The burning stopped and there was blissful peace.
"It sucks to have your soul judged, eh?" Gilgamesh stared down at Thomas's panting face, his body suddenly jolted out of the peaceful state of unconsciousness.
It was just him, the Judge and Thomas. Everyone else seemed to have left.
"You told us where she was, you might not remember since you passed out." Gilgamesh grunted at him.
"I...let me go...you promised to spare me." Thomas rasped and Gilgamesh raised an eyebrow.
"No, I promised not to kill you, a very huge difference." he said simply and nodded to the Judge, who looked annoyed.
"I know, I know. Unusual punishments aren't your thing." Gilgamesh tried to placate the Judge and the little green man sighed.
Thomas heard it. The noise terrified him deeply.
"I came...for his soul...this has been most disappointing." it said in a high pitched voice and waved its lantern at Thomas.
"Karma in action, sins to be redeemed and you...mortal have a long list of sins to get through. I would kill you and throw your soul in the fire of creation so it may better be served creating new life...but Gilgamesh desires another...path." it said and Thomas saw the lantern open, the fire rushing at him.
He screamed and screamed and screamed.
Then...he wasn't able to scream anymore.
He wasn't able to do anything.
He...wasn't.
-
Lisa sat on her mattress and scratched another hour into the wooden bedframe. Counting, it was all she could do.
She felt her stomach rumble and agreed, food would be nice. Something besides lukewarm water flavoured tomato soup.
Coil hadn't been around much, the bruise on her face and busted lip made sure she thought of him often.
Every waking moment was spent envisioning Circus pulling a daring rescue but there were so many elements that she would have to get through to even touch Coil...then making the guy talk would be…
She curled up in the cold room and counted.
1...2...3...4...5
Another minute, another hour.
15...16...17...18
The men outside her room were both wearing earplugs to avoid her whispering that one of them really wanted to make out with the other, despite the other man being a hardcore religious man and not tolerant of homosexuality.
Which would have been fun to let loose of them.
25...26...27...26
No windows and a bucket for her needs. Lisa really had hit rock bottom.
30...31...32...33
Then...something changed. A slight...vibration through the house was different. Not the water pipes rattling form a bad joint bolt or a creaky stair from the men taking power naps or doing drugs.
Suddenly...a lot of vibrations.
Four people...six? No..claws, four people, three animals.
That fit a certain group in her hopeful mind. She stood and then smirked.
Earplugs on two guards out of five seemed like a bad choice now, eh Coil?
She listened as noises erupted above and around her. Barking and men yelling. There was a burst of gunfire and she winced, holding her breath.
Panic fire, no sounds of pain followed, possible miss.
Then suddenly there was screaming outside her door.
Lisa was pretty sure she heard cackling.
There was cackling.
The men fell silent and there were turning motions on her door knob but it didn't open.
"I don't time for this. Lisa, babe, stand to the left side! If you hear me!" Circus called and Lisa grinned.
"Loud and clear!" she yelled, ready to get the hell out of this house.
Sound of metal ball rolling, fire... she's firing a cannon.
"What-" she began and then the door exploded as a cannon ball blasted the door open.
Lisa stared at the black ball then out at Circus grinning at her, one foot on a cannon.
"Oh, Circus, nice...you went shopping." Lisa said calmly, stepping out of the remains of the doorframe and Circus bowed.
"Corsair now and I have come to plunder your booty." she said seriously and Lisa smirked, falling into her 'hero's' arms.
"After rescuing me? I think I can manage pizza and a early night. Coil?" she asked, using Corsair's body to hold herself up. God she was starving.
"I think...you might want to see for yourself. Gilgamesh was pretty scary and summoned this fucking thing that...well, you'll see." was the answer.
That sounded good!
There was a crash overhead and some odd sucking noises.
A giant octopus just ate .
Lisa smiled so much it hurt.
-