Chapter 19: The Overlord's Sin

Alex briefly reflected on his journey at this particular juncture. He had learned a lot about himself, good and bad, and come to terms with them both. Sure, it wasn't pretty, but he felt he's become a better person because of those struggles. But if there's one thing he would, never, EVER shake, it was the stigma of his title, the so-called "Phoenix of Destruction".

Yet it seemed perhaps just taking up the mantle of Elemental Overlord cursed one with these abhorrent titles. "The Godslayer" and now "The Butcher of Sins". Both titles carried different implications, but seemed to be centered around the same unknown period of history in Gensokyo. Even if he never said it outright, he wanted to know more about the original Overlord.

This strangley clothed air-headed Goddess, however, seemed more than ready to bare all those secrets like it was simple high-school gossip. Alex had no doubt about that. And perhaps it was about for those secrets to come to light.

Alex had been deep in thought about this for a full a minute after Hecatia brought that title up. His arms were crossed, both eyes were shut, and he didn't even breathe. He looked like a statue, just with less of a personality. Shina poked his right cheeks and wondered what he thought. She looked at Hecatia as she hovered into his personal space and leaned her head in closer.

The Goddess then turned and asked her, "Does he like, usually get like this?"

Shina dryly giggled as she joked, "Not...usually? Definitely not for this long though..."

Alex's eyes sprang open and scared the two girls off, and after some irritable growling he looked towards Hecatia and demanded something important to him, "I don't want to hear anything from you unless Shina can too. That's my final offer."

Hecatia gave a grizzly smirk while waving her right hand around by her shoulder before replying, "Full discretion. Its not like I'm being secretive. You can totally tell her later, honest! I just like, prefer mentioning all the gory details, y'know?"

"Ya wouldn't be a Goddess of Hell otherwise..." Shina leaned a hand against the side of her face and let out an unsurprised sigh. She then waved that hand to Alex and said, "Go ahead Alex, sounds like you'll get more outta this than me anyways."

He turned around and leaned in close to her to keep his voice out of the ears of prying deities. He didn't feel right with Shina's complacent answer, for he knew she could stomach those gruesome details, "You deserve to know too."

He waved a pointer finger into her face and insisted, "And don't tell me no."

She took his finger with her palm and pushed it down, then looked into his eyes with quiet intentions, "Its ok! Its your history, not mine. Just promise to give me the nitty gritty after, k?"

"Guess it'll make a good traveling tale..." Alex caved in with little motivation to argue back.

"AAAAND I wanna know more about that story involving Shadows." She said while leaning to her side with a wink and waggle of one finger.

"What am I, Mother Goose?" The primal desire to quip overpowered Alex, and he became embarrassed. With a dry cough he hastily corrected himself, "I-I mean sure, I-I can..."

Shina's teeny giggly fit interrupted him, and when combined with Hecatia's shrilled one it made him clam up and think, "There's too many women in this world..."

He then turned to Hecatia, lazily waved a hand up from his pocket, and said, "Ok lets get going."

The two floated away and Shina energetically waved them off, "I'll be right here...Waiting...Aaaall by myself..."

Alex leaned his head back and groaned at her playful attempt at guilt-tripping. So he saw fit to spin that around on her by looking back and suggesting, "Why not keep Junko company?"

Shina looked at the wrathful spirit floating silently like a stage prop and then back to Alex. He held two hands up like finger guns, clicked his tongue, and tried to be witty, "You know...Blondes have more fun and what-not?"

Hecatia slapped her face and sighed. Shina then blinked a few times and stuttered, "S-Sure...I-I guess?"

After Alex and Hecatia were out of earshot Shina slowly floated over to Junko. She stared at her creepily like a doll from one of those films she watched. Even so, Shina figured it was worth a try and waved a hand to say, "Hello!"

"Hello." Junko echoed back like a monotone parrot.

"...H-How are you doing?"

"I'm fine. How about you?" Junko was polite, but her dull tone of voice was very offputting to Shina.

"Fiiiiiine?" Shina purposefully drew her response out to give her time to come up with a proper topic that the spirit might resonate well with. Her eyes gazed around but saw only clouds.

"...Good enough!" She kept looking at the clouds and Junko mimicked her like a reflection in the mirror as she asked, "H-How about this weather?"

Junko put her arms within her sleeves and almost smiled as she commented, "The clouds are grey. They remind me of death."

Shina's felt her eyes nearly bulge out of their sockets before she lost the will to try and slumped over. With a long, pained sigh she grumbled, "Maaaaaaybe I shoulda gone with Alex..."

Over with Hecatia and Alex, the Goddess spun around in place to face him and then bowed her head, repeating the gratitude she had given before, "Seriously, can't thank you enough for sparing Junko. You like, totally impressed me back there."

Alex crossed his arms and tapped his fingers on his elbows with a loose frown. After a few seconds Hecatia peeked her head up and smiled. He then tilted his head and cut right to the chase, "Did you seriously think I was going to kill Junko?"

"Of course not! Totally not! Never came to mind!" She said while fervently shaking her head.

"Really," Alex planted a hand against his hip and bluntly commented, "Cause it sure as hell didn't feel it like it."

"Hmmm...Yeah, you're right! Caught me..." Hecatia laid her hands out and instantly turned her hair back to red, "Red-handed!"

A stiff and awkward silence pervaded the two for a good ten seconds after. Hecatia reeled back in, crossed her arms before her waist, then smiled and said, "But seriously like...It was nothing personal kid. Circumstances were what they were, so I decided to test your mettle!"

"Not because of a grudge against the original Overlord, correct?" Alex felt it necessary to find out.

"I've got nothing against Sarajin. Actually, full disclosure, I'm a huge fan of his work." It was difficult for Alex to tell if Hecatia was playing around or actually being serious, especially in light of her saying that thing earlier.

"Fans wouldn't call their idol a 'Butcher of Sins'."

"Goddess of Hell, hellooo?" Hecatia commented in snide and Alex, hesitantly, could accept that reasoning for now. He then went silent in thought until Hecatia rudely interrupted him.

"But like, how is he doing these days? Is he keeping warm in that body of yours?"

"The old man's been silent for a couple years now..." Alex begrudgingly told her.

"Heh, 'old man' he says..." Hecatia giggled, but her whispers failed to go unnoticed by the boy. Yet before he could comment, she threw a blunt question in his face, "You really don't know much about Sarajin, do you?"

"Hmph, no shit." Alex gruffly responded.

"Well sorry to disappoint, but I'm not the Encyclopedia on Elemental Overlords," Hecatia then nudged her brows a couple of times to entice his intrigue, "Buuuut I do have some juicy tidbits to share."

"Lay it on me."

"No hesitation? Ohoho, you're like...Totally capturing my heart here!" When Alex started growling she simply closed her eyes and giggled, "Just kidding!"

Her stance firmed up and she spoke in a somewhat deeper voice, "So what do you know about Sarajin?"

Alex lowered his head a bit and tried to recall what he knew. His pool of knowledge was shallow, ankle-deep at best, so it took some time. But Hecatia was patient, for his answer was worth it, "He was a warrior of justice...And was wrongfully made a victim of divine foul play."

"Wrongfully, eh? Interesting," The Goddess' loosely sealed eyes shuttered her views from Alex's mortal understanding, and her eccentric way of speaking made it difficult for him to believe her, "And if I told you he was rebellious? What would you think then?"

Alex struggled not to burst out laughing, "I'd say you're full of shit!"

"Because you know the legend but not the man behind it." Hecatia softly spoke up.

Alex went dead silent and wide-eyed. He found himself looking away from Hecatia, who continued to speak merrily, "Though he wasn't rebellious in like a...Goth-punk teenager sorta way. Nah, he was more like..."

She gestured her hand out and spoke with respect, "A person who took common sense and flipped it on its head. If someone was right and he thought it was wrong, then he'd try to make things right for both parties."

"It was a totally heavy burden, but he never lost faith in his beliefs, even if they hurt him."

Alex's mood slowly soured as those few words turned his view on the Overlord upside-down and made him feel little. Yet there was also that doubt in Hecatia's word that led him to glare at her, expecting her to pop out another 'Just kidding!' But it never came.

She closed her eyes and let the words trickle from her mouth like an enticing lure for the fist-eyed boy, "Maybe it'd be better if I like, gave you an example, and answer another question to boot!"

Alex shut up and let her be, which she appreciated deep down. She reached for the orb of the moon and held it out, its pale yellow glow hypnotizing Alex to focus only on it. As she told these events, they played out vividly in Alex's head.

"Before the barrier was erected around Gensokyo, the Youkai attempted an invasion of the moon, led by Yukari Yakumo. Their forces numbered a thousand strong, and every Youkai were the toughest, grittiest, totally nastiest of their kind."

"Didn't the invasion end in failure?" Alex interrupted while fending off the grimace he got from hearing Yukari's name again.

"Certainly, but y'see...It wasn't supposed to."

"What?"

"When I said nasty, I meant it with a capital 'N'. The army of Youkai would've torn the Lunar Capital to pieces in day if left unchecked."

Hecatia then suddenly pulled the moon back and asked, "Forgot to check, have you heard of the 'higher-ups'?"

"...The Overlord's bosses, right?" Alex's simple answer got her fluttering her eyelashes before thrusting the moon back out and saying, "Close enough!"

"So yeah like, those bigwigs saw that the balance of Gensokyo was in danger and send Sarajin in to assist the Lunarians."

"What?!" Alex growled in disgust.

"Hush!" She bluntly silenced him, "I'm getting to that, gosh!"

"The Lunarians despised having to work with a 'mortal', but had no choice if they wished to survive. Yukari had sealed the way to the Dream World, cornering them like rats. The battle threatened to paint the whole moon red. It was a lovely sight, to be honest."

"Sarajin had to sit in on their war council meeting, and caught a glimpse into how the Lunarians lived their lives. He grew increasingly worn down as his attempts to make the Lunarians see reason proved futile. He wanted to avoid bloodshed, but so did the Lunarians...Just uuhhh, not in the way he was wanting."

"See, the Lunarians are so scared of death they'll do everything possible to avoid it. So like, to stave off death they forced Sarajin to the frontlines along with a few expendable soldiers who didn't know what their role would be. Sarajin did though, and grew thoroughly disgusted with them. But like, he had to commit to his duty right? He couldn't just let things go out of balance."

"So he stepped out onto the battlefield with the small army the Lunarians provided, and tried to reason with the Youkai to ceasefire. But they were barbarians, the worst of the worst, and charged into the slaughterfest headfirst. The Lunarians' died fast, but the Elemental Overlord stood his ground and fended off as many Youkai as possible."

"Like, I had never seen so much ferocity in a single mortal in my life! Even with a doubtful mind he cleanly sliced through every Youkai that attacked him, and stained his body in their blood. He refused to let a single drop touch the moon. The Youkai were slaughtered by the dozens, and soon came to know true fear. They couldn't stand against the might of this bloodstained god, and cowered back to Gensokyo with their tails between their legs."

"So decisive was his victory, yet so hollow too. The Lunarians offered their faintest praise, but they fell upon the ears of a man deafened by righteous fury. He spilled the blood on his blade onto the lunar surface, and cried out that this was only a portion to be repaid for the lives that didn't need to be lost."

"Sarajin charged the Lunar Capital, a single man...Challenging the impure gods. My heart thumped as I watched him tear through the Lunar Capital barrier in a single stroke, and immediately set his sights upon the council that had allowed this bloodshed to pass. His was a quiet rage, an ember that could barely stoke the fires of Hell to rise, and yet..."

"Nothing could stand in his way. The Lunarians tried to fend him off with more soldiers, but Sarajin passed them by and attacked those seated in power. The Lunarians had no choice but to fight as he cut them down faster than their eyes could react. Even though Sarajin struggled against the strongest Lunarians, he managed to wound or kill a few of them."

"The Lunarians were devastated and frightful of their mortality being made clear. How could a single man, this tainted mortal made of flesh, wound the gods? It seemed clear that if allowed to persist, this wave of carnage would tear apart the whole Lunar Capital and put an end to their way of life."

"But then like, the 'higher-ups' became total buzzkills and took Sarajin away from the Lunar Capital in the blink of an eye. I got NO idea what happened between them buuuut...When he returned to Gensokyo, his body had been cleaned of blood, only so it could be stained with something much, much more disgusting."

"Sin."

"The 'higher-ups' must've not taken well to Sarajin's behavior, because when he was brought back to Gensokyo he was forced to go after the Youkai once more, killing them to return the balance to normal. The Youkai were already frightened by him, but his return rendered them incapable of moving. I can totally recall how bright the moon was that day. It made him look like something straight outta Hell. The Youkai probably thought the same."

"The gods, clueless to why Sarajin was there, fought him for the sake of the Youkai. But in doing so, it was their blood that was paid. Many gods fell, including Yatagarasu, Raijin, and Tenjin. Sarajin didn't say a word. I could feel the strain of his mind as he wished to apologize to every life he took, but knew that'd only be a cruel mercy. His blood-soaked blade carved his name within two history books: The Godslayer of Gensokyo, and The Butcher of Sin of the Lunar Capital."

"His conviction was tested, and he passed. But at what cost, would you say?"

Hecatia pulled the moon away and left it to float by her shoulder. She crossed her arms before her chest and gave a short nod, believing that to be sufficient enough of a tale. Alex's head slacked to the right as he waved his fingers out and remarked, "That's it? Seriously?"

"Well I mean like, all tales have an end yeah?" Hecatia humored him for a bit.

Alex lazily pointed a finger at her and grumbled, "Yeah, but you sure as hell seemed to half-ass that ending. What about after he finished in Gensokyo?"

"Heh, 'hell', that's a good one..." After a brief chuckle she waved a hand out and said, "I don't know. Seriously! Besides, none of that's relevant to the big pop quiz I'm gonna spring on you now!"

"...I'm sorry wh-"

"But first I want your opinion on something. Do you believe it is possible for one person to pass on the weight of their sins to another?"

Alex found that to be the dumbest question he'd gotten all day. Though the day was young, so who knows? Perhaps Hecatia could find one dumber. Nevertheless, for now he bluntly spat the question back in her face, "Hell no! That's stupid. A person's responsible for their own sins."

"Even if reincarnation is involved?"

"...I am not his reincarnation." And shocker of shockers, she did, making Alex glare at her with eyelids shut barely a millimeter apart.

"Duh, of course not! But just...play along with me for a bit, k?" Hecatia turned to her side, and gazed past her shoulder at him, "What if you were? Again, just play along, not being serious...If you were, how would you feel about Sarajin's actions back then?"

Alex laid a hand against his hip, shook his head, and grumbled reluctantly, "I don't get it."

"Don't get what?"

He closed his eyes and waved that hand out with little care, "I never would've taken that old man to be such a stooge. Why did you play up the strength of his conviction if your story contradicted it that? He could've at least tried to fight back."

"See that's where like, you two differ, yet are totally the same," Hecatia gave him her full attention, and he didn't bother wasting breath on a 'What' or 'Why' this time as she detailed her point consicely, "You both believe in justice, but whereas he compromised in that situation, you wouldn't have."

"Compromised my ASS. Sounds to me like he was forced to kill those Youkai because those bastards weren't happy he didn't do things their way!" Alex clenched his fists, grit his teeth, and proclaimed with indignant fury, "And damn straight I wouldn't compromise! The Lunarians deserve to die!"

"Yeah, they do, but you're like, missing my point entirely," Hecatia lashed a finger towards his face and took him by surprise, "What's more important to the universe? Justice? Or balance?"

She may have been a Goddess of Hell, but this belitting attitude just couldn't fly for Alex anymore. He believed she was now actively insulting his intelligence by posing such an asinine question right to his face. Cackletta, the Sorceress, The Evil Twins, The Conclave, Terumi, Izanami, Sigma, and the Lunarians. He'd seen plenty of scumbags like them be allowed to ruin innocent lives for far too long unopposed, and it got more infuriating every time he saw it.

The world, nay, the universe, needed an Elemental Overlord. Someone who would purge evil from these worlds in the fires of destruction. And Alex knew that if he were to let his resolve ripple across the universe and strike fear into the hearts of any evil-doers still out there, he'd have to start by facing down this mighty goddess, and telling her firmly what his heart believed.

"Justice."

He stood there stiffly in place and didn't flinch at the Goddess intimidating glare that lasted for ten seconds. She retracted her hand and chuckled with her air-headedness, then remarked quietly in a pleased tone, "That's what you're believing in?"

Alex raised his gloved hand and tugged at the bottom of it, but Hecatia started waving her hands out and saying in a haste, "Whoa now! No need to show me scars! I live in Hell and even I'd like, not wanna get near those flames of yours."

Alex limply dropped his hand down, and the Goddess continued, "But like seriously? Even though your belief would put you in conflict with those 'higher-ups'? You heard what they did to poor Sarajin and yet-"

"Then they can take their self-righteousness and shove it right up their assholes," Alex swung his fist up clenched tight and declared with pride, "And I don't give a shit what that old man did in the past! I'm my own person with my own sins to carry, and I refuse to let anyone else's past define my present OR my future. I'll always stand up to bastards like the Lunarians, and to hell with what some 'higher-ups' have to say!"

Hecatia shivered, cradling her hands around her hips as the intense volume of his words made even her feel excited. But she still giggled and played around the same way as before, just with a little more respect thrown the boy's way, "Oooohoho, that's like, totally awesome! Total anarchy against the universe? Sounds like tons of fun!"

Alex slowly lowered his fist and still had a hard time believing much of what Hecatia was trying to say. Even she knew her act was getting old, and got more upfront with her praise, "But seriously like, your experiences on other worlds have shaped you up to be you're own man. That's totally commendable, not gonna lie."

The boy raised his brows and stood agape as he stammered, "H-How do you..."

Hecatia twirled around onto her back and laid her hands down on her stomach, winking at him as she leaned her head back, "One of the perks of being a free spirit. You can even like, totally broaden your horizons beyond your own world!"

She closed her eyes and tried to be serious, "But seriously, I'm a Goddess of Hell, being orderly just ain't in my nature."

"...Anyone could have figured that out from your crappy choice of clothes." Alex couldn't help but chuckle at, even though he chose the one sore point for the Goddess.

Her aura intensified to the point of freezing him more stiff than stone, but she wagged her hand out and remarked, "I'll let that one slide cause I like you Alex. Ok?"

"...Y-Yes." Alex blushed and coughed his way through the awkwardness he created. Then Hecatia spun onto her stomach and paddled her feet around while inquiring, "Sooo next question. What do you think my big secret is?"

"Big secret?"

She waggled a finger out by her face and got a little smug, "Come on now, I totally like, told you the answer already. I just wanna see the look on your face when you piece it together."

After a long sigh Alex folded his arms against his chest and set out to answer another question. She seemed to know about his journey, and possibly more about the original Overlord than she was letting on. So in his head, the most obvious answer was that she was one of the 'higher-ups'...but then her excitement at his earlier answer would make literally zero sense. But there was something else that, while a bit of a stretch, would explain a lot.

"...You're not a native of this world, are you?"

"Bingo! Got it in one! Like, someone should give you a medal!" Hecatia returned to an upright pose and levitated a little over him with her arms floating beside her hips, "I migrated here from another world on the totally opposite side of the universe!"

Alex pointed at her and waggled his finger around a little while pointing out, "Yeah, yeah that's why I'm not sensing the same kind of power from you as I got from Kanako and Suwako."

She closed her eyes, squeezed a couple fingers next to her face, and put on a cheeky grin, "Well its just a liiiiittle more complicated than that. Y'see like...You heard that whole spiel about how gods and goddesses of this world need faith to survive, yeah?"

Alex nodded and she continued, satisfied, "Well full disclosure but like, they aren't even born without faith to begin with!"

He rubbed his chin and commented, "Makes sense. If enough humans believed in something hard enough, then it'd become real...At least in accordance with this world's rules."

He then stared up at her and asked, "But because you aren't from this world..."

She shrugged and shook her head, "I ain't fond of talking about my old home. It was a total snoozefast, fyi. Just a buncha gods and goddesses having dick waving contests with humanity getting swept up in their messes. Plus some flamboyant jerkhead with frilly green hair kicked me out of my home, how rude!"

As interesting as it'd be to learn more about her Hecatia's past, Alex knew better than to tempt her out of her playful mood, "So what you're saying is...You were born naturally, like a human?"

"Well, as human as I can get, naturally." She said with a prideful smile.

Alex thought a little more, and honestly could not believe he was about to ask this with a straight face, "Hecatia...Do you by-chance have...God ki?"

"Oh wow, nailed that one too? You've really done your research!"

Alex sank to a new low and let loose his strongest sigh yet, "...I literally guessed on a whim."

He shook his head a little and then looked the Goddess in the eyes. She smiled at him back, even as he bluntly asked her, "But now you're going to answer one of my questions, got it?"

"...You want to know what happened to Junko." Her ESP was borderline frightening, but it at least made things go at a swifter pace.

"Yeah. The last time I saw something like that, I sure as HELL wasn't on the same world those things should be on. And this isn't the first time I've seen an inhabitant from another world that has been transformed into something twisted."

Hecatia closed her eyes and every little bit of whimsy seemed to leave her body behind as she spoke plain and clear, "Have you ever heard of the Four Guardians?"

"No? ...Should I have?"

"Probably not. They're a group of four people, one from each quadrant of the universe, chosen specifically by the 'higher-ups' to be entrusted with some of their knowledge. They act as the protectors of their quadrants, but more importantly..." She opened her eyes with quite the nasty glare at Alex, "They're the last resorts in case an Elemental Overlord or Dark King were to go rogue."

Alex grumbled at the idea of a deterrent being necessary for him, but could at least blame the original Overlord for making that a necessity. Yet while the information was appreciated, it didn't seem relevant to what he asked. But she wasn't done, far from it.

"Not that you come up empty-handed being a Guardian either. The 'higher-ups' are powerful enough to grant any wish your heart desires. Heck, I totally thought I was gonna be a candidate at some point! Then I could've had as much freedom as I wanted!" She then slumped a bit and sighed, "But then I was sniped out of the position at the last possible second. It was...really weird, y'know?"

"Weird...how?"

"Like the person who took my spot in this quadrant did so on purpose. Not that I'd blame them with that enticing wish on the line but...Its not like I did anything to them to deserve the spitefulness, right?"

"You know who took your spot then?" Alex held mild intrigue, because he could already guess the obvious culprit, and Hecatia knew that and wasted no time saying their name.

"Yukari Yakumo. She's the Guardian of the North Quadrant."

Alex unconsciously bit down on his lower lip and scowled. He was so angry to be right, that he couldn't think straight for a bit. By the time he had regained the ability to do so, he was already rambling to the Goddess, "Of course its her! Not bad enough she's been making me and Shina's lives miserable, but she's a frickin' Guardian too?! If she's on the 'higher-ups' leash, how has she been allowed to get away with all this crap?!"

"She's a very, very sneaky individual. More mischief than the demons of Hell, more calculating than a supercomputer...She may be the one person who'd be able to slip past the 'higher-ups' undetected."

Alex swung his fist out and punched empty air. He just wanted so desperately to beat on something to vent his frustrations, but it didn't take long for him to realize that he just figured out who'd be the perfect candidate to be his punching bag. He tightened his fist up and held it to his face, glaring aside at Hecatia before telling her, "Yukari needs to be stopped. There's no doubt in my mind now."

"Even knowing she made a wish upon becoming a Guardian?"

"Hey I'm still alive aren't I? Whatever she used that wish for, it wasn't to get her petty 'vengeance' or whatever other crap she'd been spewing this whole time."

"I wonder about that..." Hecatia hummed for a little bit and then remarked, "But as fun as it'd be to challenge her, I'm afraid I'm gonna have to bow out...For Junko's sake, y'know?"

"...I think you've gotten involved enough just telling me all this, to be frank. But thank you," Alex tucked his hands to his hips and bowed with all his might, "Its nice to finally have some goddamn clarity about who's behind all this madness."

"Hey hey, before you go getting ahead of yourself, aren't you forgetting something? Or someone? ...Or maybe a little of both?"

Alex glanced back at Shina and began to frown. It pained him to think this way immediately, but it was for the best if she wasn't put under fire by Yukari, especially after...

He remembered a bloody corpse he held in his arms, and ceased to think with a pained grimace. He shook his head and looked to Hecatia, "I...I haven't forgotten our mission. But..."

"Good. Don't forget what's most important to you. That's like, your biggest strength, yeah?" Hecatia closed her eyes then snapped her fingers out in front of her shoulder, "Oh but like, one last thing! That story that tanuki told you? There was one teeny-tiny detail she neglected to mention that I think you'll want to look into."

"...I don't think it'd be wise to have anymore detours." Alex grumbled.

"Well what a coinky dink! You'll be going to the Underground next, right?" Hecatia didn't even give him the time of day to speak, "Doesn't matter. Just go visit the Mistress of the Palace of the Earth Spirits and ask her about a battle between tengus and the Underground, and you'll see what I'm getting at here."

"...Fine, fine, I guess I can give it a shot." Alex said after a long sigh, his body having grown exhausted from all this recent input of information.

"Please and thank you! Welp, its been fun Alex Whiter, but its time for me to like, head home!" Hecatia then cupped her hands around her mouth and yelled, "HEY JUNKO! TIME TO BAIL!"

Junko turned her attention towards her friend and dryly remarked, "Coming, Hecatia."

And Shina let out a sigh loud enough to shatter glass.

After meeting back up with Junko, Hecatia waved a hand towards Shina and created a portal of hellfire right above her, "Pleasure meeting you both! We should totally do this again sometime!"

Shina floated by Alex and put little energy into waving back at them. Hecatia and Junko turned around and began to rise through the portal, but with a hidden smile the Goddess whispered one last thing she knew only Alex would be capable of hearing.

"Don't be ashamed. Sometimes its hard to see the strings..."

The two vanished, leaving Alex feeling this chill creeping down the back of his neck. When Shina got her face up-close to his, he had a legitimate heart attack and almost screamed.

"Soooooo...? What'd ya talk about?"

Her innocently pleasing smile and curiosity was a sight for sore eyes, and Alex felt relieved he could just hold a normal conversation with the one he loved after the madness of Junko and Hecatia.

"How about I tell you on the way to the Underground?" He offered while crossing his arms.

"Ok!" She propped upright and grinned as wide as her cheeks allowed, "Looking forward to it!"

Alex's heart felt heavy hearing her be so eager to listen to what would amount to half-truths from him. But it just wasn't her fight. He'd handle Yukari sometime soon, and secure their future together. When all that was settled...THEN he'd tell her everything. That was his silent vow to himself, and he'd swear not to break it even if it cost him his life...

And so, chaining that vow to his heart, Alex would carry that burden as him and Shina slowly flew their way back down to Gensokyo's surface, and headed for the mysterious Underground.

Next Time: Perception of the Third Eye