{|} Chapter 4-A: Opening Eyes {|}
} A-Part {
"Are we there yet?"
Silence.
"Are we THERE yet?"
More silence.
"I said... ARE WE THERE YET?"
Silence!
"Hey, Eris. Are you awake. Stop ignoring me and say something already."
"... Huh, what?"
"Don't tell me you actually... Seriously, Eris. You're the one driving this crazy thing. The last thing you're allowed to do is nod off on me. What are you trying to do, make us crash or something?"
"I... No, I wasn't asleep, Aqua. I... well..."
"Well what?"
"... I guess I was just lost in thought is all."
"Welcome to MY world if that's the truth. There's nothing wrong with becoming lost within your own thoughts every now and then but can we PLEASE save doing that till after we've reached our next stop point. On that subject, where will we be making our next stop at anyways? My butt's starting to fall asleep here."
Chris, who had turned her head to look at Aqua behind her, turns her head back to looking forward, then looks down at the power dial. After a second, she says-
"Looks like we can keep going for another hour or so. Just bear with this till then, alright."
"Ahhhhh, but I want to take a break now!"
Chris sighs, turning her attention to what was ahead of them. As much as she hated to think it, Aqua was right about one thing here. She needed to keep her focus on what was ahead of them, not on other thoughts she was having right now.
Like what she had learned from Tsunami by way of that dream she had been given.
'Does Aqua really not remember being the goddess of this world?'
According to the dream, the reason Aqua had failed to do anything about the Praegem and the false faith known as the Arkt had been because she had come down onto Arbel itself. Specifically, she had paid the Pure Land, this world's version of her worlds Empyria, a visit in order to take it all in as she hadn't had a chance to really look around since succeeding in the role of goddess of Arbel from Kyna. She was also feeling weird and felt some fresh air would do her some good there.
After looking around, and having herself a little drink, Aqua had kicked back and taken a little nap. One that ended up lasting several hundred years. Tsunami had tried to awaken her but found that when Aqua was wanting to be lazy, she wouldn't budge for anyone till she either decided to get up or was given a reason to awaken.
Which is what ultimately happened. When the Praegem finally began his mass slaughter of the true followers of Aqua and the non-religious residents of the world with his army of Geist, the transformed people who had once been his unknowing Arkt followers, the sudden mass death of her faithful and the weakening of the Faith they sent her way was what finally triggered her awakening.
Naturally, Aqua tried to take action to stop what was happening. But it was already to late. Do to the rules of Heaven and all that, what action she was actually allowed to take was rather limited. What made it worse was the simple fact that Aqua really didn't know what it was she actually could do.
Aqua had never been trained for dealing with a scenario like this, had never even been given any suggestions on what to do. She had always believed nothing of this nature could ever happen. Suffice to say, it was quite the wake-up call for her. In the end, all Aqua could do was sit there in her tears as the entire world of Arbel burned, an eternal reminder of her greatest failing.
In the aftermath, Aqua had gone into a great depression. If she were mortal, her depression would have been seen as being a suicidal one. But because she was goddess, killing herself wasn't really an option. Several others stepped forward, trying to help her overcome this failure but all their words fell on death ears. Finally, it was a god named Cor who suggested using the Alka-ma, a special elixir of the gods that can repress one's memories.
The Alka-ma was a dangerous concoction, something that could only be used if the majority of the divine voted to use it and even then, it could never be forced onto them by anyone. Aqua had to want to drink it before she would be given the Alka-ma, which only works if the drinker wants to forget their pain and sorrow.
The use of the Alka-ma was approved and brought before Aqua who was told what it could do for her. She was warned that there could be some side effects from drinking it as well. Aqua didn't care, just wanting to be free from the regrets and the pain and sorrow consuming her.
The drink worked... a little to well as it was found Aqua's memories of Arbel had been completely repressed. Her lax, laid back, self absorbed nature also seemed to get a boost from the elixir, though she had always been this way. She was just a little worse now. It was after this she became the overseer of Japan, a role that would be fairly easy even for someone like Aqua to do.
Everything else, Eris was already aware of following those events.
"Eris... Eris!"
"What now?"
"What's that mountain off in the distance? Are we heading towards it?"
"That mountain... That's Volshire Mountain, one of the biggest mountain ranges here on Arbel. Yeah, we're heading there. In truth, I'd rather go around the mountain as the road is going to be a rather rough ride but the drive around it will add way more time to our trip than I'm wanting to deal with."
"Please tell me we won't be spending our next break sitting on any hard ass rocks."
"(chuckles) Maybe, but I think we should just be able to reach an old mining colony a little ways into the mountain. Cross your fingers on that one and pray we can make it."
That's exactly what Aqua did for the rest of the ride.
A few hours later, the two girls were sitting around a little fire Chris had managed to start up. While the power of the motorcycle had failed them before reaching the mining colony, they had been close enough where pushing the bike into the makeshift village was an option. After that, they had found a nice little building to hole up in so they could rest while the battery went about recharging itself.
"So... how much longer will it take for us to reach... wherever it is we're going here?"
"Hm, let me think. We'll rest for about four hours, then we'll begin crossing the mountains. We'll have our next stop once we reach the far side of the mountain. We'll have another rest stop after that before we reach our final destination, that being my original home at Laga Mergo!"
"Laga Mergo... was it an interesting city to live in? Was it beautiful?"
"Don't really known, to be honest. Most of my time spent there was spent inside my old home. Back in those days, before I became a goddess, I was a rather sickly girl. There were very few times I was ever allowed outside. When I was, it was usually only allowed to wander around my family's personal garden."
"Sounds really boring!"
"You have no idea, Aqua. Yeah, my life was boring. Even when my twin sister, Krys, came to my room to play games with me, I was always bored though I did my best not to show it. It wasn't until HE came into my life that my life finally started to come alive for me."
Chris then looks over at Kazuma, who was still sleeping off to their side. Aqua looks at Kazuma, then at Chris several times before finally-
"Wait, how could this NEET have been there with you? He isn't THAT old, is he? I thought he had been born in Japan."
"And you would be right there, Aqua. The man named Satou Kazuma was indeed born in Japan. But the life of Satou Kazuma wasn't his first life. He has lived many lifetimes before this current one. For example, in his last life, he was a boy named Linear though he had gone by Ritu for a time. In fact, Ritu had been the name he was going by when we first met one another."
"I don't get it. Why have two names? Was one of them an alias or something?"
"In a way, yes. It was a kind of alias he used... but it wasn't an alias he had chosen for himself."
"I know there's a story there. Want to share that story with me, Eris?"
"I don't mind but are you sure you want me to tell it. It's a rather long one."
"Not like we have anything better to do. Go on, tell me the tale. I want to know what it was this guy did that left such an impact on you that it would make you so lovey-dovey in your eyes whenever you look at him."
"(blush) I... I... I don't have a lovey-dovey look when I look at him."
"Yes, you do. I know I'm bad when it comes to reading the room sometimes... alright, all the time. That said, even I can tell when someone has strong romantic feelings for someone else. Hide it all you want but you can't fool this goddess's eyes. Maybe it's not Satou Kazuma you're in love with, but the soul within... yeah, you definitely feel something romantic in that sense."
"I really hate you sometimes, you do know that right? (Aqua laughs)"
"That just means I'm extra right. Now, stop wasting time and tell me about you and him and the relationship you, and those two other girls I saw in that picture, had with this guy in the past."
"Fine, fine, I tell you. It all began..."
} B-Part {
As Chris began telling the story of her past to Aqua, both girls failed to notice the twitching of Kazuma's fingers and the movement of his closed eyes. Even if they had taken notice of that, they still wouldn't be able to see the truth extent of what was happening both outside and within with him.
While Kazuma, to their eyes, was laying on a blanket on the ground, the truth that was hidden beneath was he was laying just before the cliff edge, his being enveloped by the swirling whirlpool of Entropy's energy.
The inner representation of Chris had been there, holding onto him tightly following her successful attempt at saving him from going beyond the edge. But that inner representation had been blasted away by Entropy who was now covering him in its place. And worse was the fact Chris didn't even realize that had happened; was still happening.
Kazuma just lay there, his mind still a jumble of chaos. After what had happened to him when his Lich Reap had lost control, he just didn't know what to do and who it was he could still be. And his friends, his family; would staying with them put them in danger, the kind of danger he wouldn't be able to protect them from?
'Maybe it would be better if I just stay as I am now, never waking from whatever this place I find myself in actually is.'
"Perhaps it would be better to just stay as you are now, but I'm afraid that won't serve either of us in the long run."
"Entropy?"
"Let me show you something, Kazuma. A memory... one that is important and the beginning of something more."
A hand emerges from the spiral of entropic energy, extending out to caress Kazuma's face before moving to his forehead where a light begins to shine forth. The world went dark and empty...
And then he opened his eyes.
{"Where... oh right, this is our room."
He was looking up at the ceiling composed of wood and straw. He allowed his focus to remain on the ceiling for a few moments before he turns his head to the side, finding an empty bed beside his own. He then sits up, looks around the room, then lets out a sigh before saying-
"And here I thought you said you'd be back from your latest adventure by day's end. Maybe once you do get back, whenever that will actually be, I wonder if I can talk you into taking an extended break and actually sticking around for longer than a few days before setting out on another mysterious adventure."
Kazuma tries to go back to sleep but finds sleep not wanting to come to him easily. After several minutes of tossing and turning, he finally sighs before sitting up, then getting up from the bed. He then passes into the kitchen where he pours himself a drink of malt beer, the only real drink to be had around the house before heading outside to his favorite spot to sit and look up into the sky.
There were few clouds in the sky this night which made looking up at the multitude of stars far easier. He takes in a deep breath, then a drink from his cup before asking himself a question.
"I wonder if you're taking time to look up at the stars wherever you are tonight... what the..."
The stars weren't the only thing shining in the night sky. Alongside the stars were streaks of light flashing back and forth. At first, Kazuma wondered if these streaks of lights were a kind of comet or meteor but he quickly dismisses that idea as the way these lights were moving didn't seem natural. It was like he was watching a duel of magic wielders but this was happening far beyond even the reach of what the clouds could reach.
And then came a burst of light so bright that the night sky was ever so briefly illuminated enough that one would think it was the middle of the day. A few moments later, several fiery balls of flame come into view. Several luckily seemed to sail off into the direction of the ocean but one made impact over at a nearby mountain; close enough to where Kazuma lived for him to hear the impact in the form of a low sounding boom.
"That was... If my guess is correct, it landed over around the old abandoned Gilroy Mines. Should I go check it out? See if there's anything that might be worth some serious coin?"
After thinking about it, Kazuma decides he will go have himself a little look, but he would wait till the morning had come as it may be too dangerous to go check it out now. With his plans made, Kazuma went back into the small home he shared with someone and hopped back into bed. It took another fifteen minutes but he finally managed to fall asleep.
Shortly after dawn.
Kazuma made his way up the old, unkept path. As he went, he kept an eye open for anything that could be a danger to his life. While the Gilroy Mines had long been abandoned, there was still a chance that bandits may have moved in, making it into a home for themselves as bandit attacks weren't uncommon around these parts.
Even if he didn't have any run-ins with bandits, there was still the local wildlife, mainly wolves and bears to keep in mind as well.
Luckily, it wasn't like he didn't know how to defend himself here if he were to be attacked by anything. He had a well sharpened dagger at his side and a modified pitch fork that doubled as a walking stick he usually had on him whenever he needed to go out foraging for food.
The broken and decaying gate that acted as the entry arch to the miners village just outside the mines finally came into view and Kazuma wasted no time with passing under it. He then looks around, seeing if he could see any sign of anyone or hear any sounds that would make him bring out any additional caution. There was none.
In fact, the silence in the air was strikingly eerie, making him shiver a little.
"Perhaps I should rethink this? I'm not known for being the courageous sort and there's something about this place now that's... (shakes his head, smacks his own cheeks) Come on, Kazuma. Now's not the time to chicken out. You've been up here before, looked around and explored and such. Just remember that you may find something interesting if you just take a quick peek around."
He still couldn't help but gulp but he finally managed to step forward. While he didn't know what to look for, he knew where not to look as none of these buildings seemed to have suffered any damage from the impact of what he had seen, instead only showing the usual wear and tear he was already use to seeing from this place. As such, he pressed onwards towards the upper sections of the mine.
It wasn't long before he finally saw the signs.
More substantial and recently caused damage as well as a small bit of smoke rising into the air, things he had failed to see before; telling him he was heading in the right direction. As he continued onwards, a thought came to him.
"I wonder if anyone else down in the village was awake to see the meteor fall from the sky? If so, does that mean I could be getting some company up here soon?"
It was times like these he wished his home wasn't just beyond the village outskirts as living closer, like within the village proper, would have allowed him to converse with some of the other residents before his little trek up to the mines.
Of course, that also would have meant he would have had a father walk to deal with both in the coming and going too, which he wouldn't have been a fan of as he hated dealing with long walks.
Finally, he found what he was looking for. He comes to a stop before a massive hole made from the meteors impact, which had destroyed a supply storage shed and one of the mines many entrances. After a moment of hesitation, due to the natural fear he was feeling and a soft, low hum he could now hear, he steps forward to the edge of the crater and peeks down into what had made such a powerful landing.
"A giant... egg?"
Well, probably not an egg but the object had an egg like shape to it, meaning it was fairly oval in its form. From what he could tell, this NOT egg seemed to be made out of a kind of metal composed of hexagonal plates than ran the full of it as well as this strange rippling effect that seemed to run across then surface, like the waves of the ocean against the sandy shores of a beach.
While naturally hesitant to proceed, his curiosity was stronger than his nerves at the moment as he carefully made his way down the crater till he was standing before the object. As he had gone, he had wondered if the ground may still be hot due to the impact or if there would be a heat coming from the object itself, but neither seemed to be the case. He then goes to touch the object but stops himself.
"Maybe touching it wouldn't be the best idea here. After all, I have no idea what this thing could even be so touching it... touching it..."
It was foolish, dangerous even. He knew that. His gut told him if he did touch it, his life would most likely become a very troubled one. Yes, he did know that, and yet...
"I'm going to touch it!"
And touch it he did, finding the object to be made from a material he couldn't identify. While it appeared to be a kind of metal, the texture felt more like a kind of fabric, more organic in a ways. Also, the moment his hand made contact; new ripples arose from the point of contact. Even when he traced his fingers along the surface, the ripples seemed to flow from the point of contact.
Kazuma also noticed that within each hexagonal plate were another kind of shape, this time a kind of diamond. Diamonds within a hexagon; a curious design choice. As he continues to trace his fingers across the surface, Kazuma says absentmindedly to himself-
"I wonder what I would find inside you if I could only open you up?"
At that moment, a snap-hiss sound comes from the object, making Kazuma jump back in surprise. He quickly scampers up the side of the crater, lying low just beyond the edge before carefully peaking back over and down at the object.
It had opened up somewhat, not enough to reveal what was inside but just enough to allow for one to finish opening it under their own power. Kazuma gulps again, wondering if he should call it a day and get out of here. No, he needed to see this through, so he once again made his way back down to the object, slowly slides his fingers into the opening, and with some effort, manages to push it open just a little bit more to find...
"A... girl?"
There was indeed a girl inside this thing, laid out and sleeping on what appeared to be a kind of crystal. She was small, perhaps half his own height, wearing some kind of skintight body suit. He reaches out, his fingers first touching to crystals only to find they had a gel like feel to them. He then touches the girl's face ever so carefully, wondering if he should attempt to wake her or something.
Kazuma was awestruck by her beauty, making him ask-
"Are you a goddess?"}
"Such a kind question. Knowing those were your first words upon seeing me were makes me feel really happy."
The image freezes then slowly evaporates as an image of Entropy appears within him again.
"There is so much more to share with you, dear Kazuma, but now isn't the time for such things. I will be coming for you very soon, to bring you home at last. Until then, there is one thing I need you to do for me... KILL Rubrikt so that the barrier he has created to keep me out will collapse, allowing me an opening to finally return. Now, awaken and see this one simple task done for me... for us!"
Chris continued telling Aqua about her past.
"... Pathos then appeared before me, explained that it had been he, in human form as the doctor, that had been paying me all those visits. He offered me a chance to become a goddess as my health issues had been a result of my mortal body not being able to handle the burgeoning divine power that was awakening."
"And you accepted his offer. So that's how you ended up joining us upstairs, Eris."
"(shakes her head) Actually no. I had, at first, turned the offer down as I didn't want to be separated from my friends... MY FAMILY! He said I didn't need to give him an answer right away. I should take time to think about it. He would give me one month to make my final decision then left."
"Then what happened?"
"I told my sister, and Linear and Realm, what happened and I asked them what I should do. They all agreed that if I took the job, I would be able to do so much good for a lot of people. When I brought up that I didn't want to leave them, Linear said we would always be together. In fact, if I became a goddess, then I'd have the power to ensure that we would always be together, in any lifetime."
"And you finally made the call to become a goddess."
"Yeah, in the end, I accepted the deal. Good thing too as it allowed me the ability to save little Wolbach, as well as all the children within the Sala tribe. Well, technically, that was all Kismit's doing as my powers were still young and developing. I was just luckily she was cool with helping me out, even bringing them over to her world, now my world."
"And of the rest of your family?"
"While I wasn't able to save them, I did keep an eye on their souls. Luckily, my sister and Realm were reborn on my world, in the same clan in fact so they would naturally meet and become friends... sort of. The problem was with Linear as he was born on an entirely different planet. Clerical error, I'm sure. Because of this, I... may have arranged a LITTLE accident to happen in order to get him from Earth over onto my planet."
"... Oh my god, YOU'RE the one who killed Kazuma. Eris, I didn't know you had it in you!"
"I... well, I wouldn't say I KILLED him. Maybe I may have just stopped his heart and gave his soul a little push over into your throne, knowing you'd be sending him my way using your special way with people."
"Clever, if a little crude. Do the others know about what you did?"
"Good question. I would assume so, not that they have said anything to me about it."
"I still can't believe it. Little miss goody two-shoes Eris, going and doing something naughty like that. And here I thought I was the troublesome one in the group. I wonder what Kazu... ma would..."
Aqua's voice trails off as she turned her head to look at the sleeping boy. Taking note of Aqua's halted words makes Chris turn to look at Kazuma as well, her eyes going wide at what she was seeing.
Kazuma wasn't laying down now, instead sitting up. He then turns to look at them with eyes that seemed hazy and distant. Despite that, it was obvious at least that he had finally awoken.
"Where... am I?"
} Intermission {
[Glutton] Komekko stepped out of the portal, returning to the ruins she and the other Outsiders used as their base of operations here on their ruined home world in their home timeline. Komekko skipped down the hall, heading towards the meeting room as she was eager to tell the others about the timeline she had just returned from.
'I hope everyone's here as I really need to tell them about this. I can't believe the timeline I was just in. Nothing but sex, sex, sex going on everywhere. It's a true perverts paradise, one I'm thinking Darkness is going to be wanting to make a little visit to once time permits.'
She then reaches the doors that opened into the meeting room. She stops, takes a moment to compose herself. She takes in a few deep breaths then opens the doors in her usual manner; kicking the doors open with her feet.
"I'm back, everyone. Anyone want to hear a little Sodom and Gomorrah levels of debauchery? Uh... hello?"
Komekko quickly realizes she was alone, making her begin to look all over the place while calling out for them.
"Hey, is anyone here? Aqua, are you off drinking your life away? Darkness, are you playing with the 'Captain Kazuma' toy again... maybe you're borrowing it, Yunyun... Iris? Hey, will someone say something already!"
There was no reply, making Komekko sigh before scratching her head from the confusion.
"Don't tell me they went off to some party without me? Oh wait, maybe they left me a message. Better check the meeting table."
Komekko then walks over to the large table at the middle of the room, finding a piece of paper laying there. She picks it up and reads what was written on it.
"Dear Komekko, we have found Entropy's home timeline and have gone to investigate. We should be back in time for the recovery of Megumin's soul from the soul of [Stranger] Kazuma. Hang back at the base and wait our return. If in the event we don't get back in time, go meet up with Eris and take care of the recovery in our place so we don't have to wait another year for our next chance."
After a pause to consider her options, Komekko adds-
"You ask me to hang back, but there's nothing to do here. Maybe I should head back to the timeline I was just at. If I hurry, I can see everyone getting gang banged again by all those Kazuma clones that were created by a combination of one of dad's screwy potions and miss Wiz's bumbling nature!"
Basically, in said timeline, Kazuma had been split into a few dozen copies of himself. Correction, a few dozen HORNY copies who had kidnapped all the Konosuba girls and taken them off to some old, abandoned castle for... let's just say some unexpected "bonding" time!
Komekko snickers with glee at the fun she was going to return to watch and happily pulls her gate creating key out when...
"Komekko... Komekko, our you there? Can you here me?"
"Huh? That voice... is that you, Eris?"
"Yeah, it's me. I know, been a while since I was last around. Could you come pay me a visit. I'm kind of needing your help here."
"Ah, do I have too? I was just about to go have some time killing fun here."
"Save it for later, Komekko. This is far more important, and you know my current situation doesn't make self-traveling easy for me."
"But... but I... Damn it, fine. Guess I'll come meet you. Where are you, anyways?"
"Empyria, where [Stranger] Kazuma has been keeping me safely tucked away."
Komekko nods, taking hold of her gate key and thinking of the [Stranger] timeline. A portal opens and she steps through it, emerging on the beach of Empryia. She takes a moment to admire the scenery before turning around and walking towards the little village Kazuma had been working on, with a little help from Eyeball.
"Hm, cute place. Wonder if our Kazuma can be as creative when it comes to building an entire town?"
Once she had reached the village, Komekko proceeds to look from one building till another till she finally found what she was looking for. Stepping forward, Komekko smiles as she looks down at the ornate book that was glowing with light.
"Long time no see, Eris. Have you lost some weight?"
The glow around the book grows brighter till a ghostly figure takes shape, appearing in the form of a a certain goddess. She smiles as she says-
"Technically, I'm going by Know-It-All at the moment. Still, nice to see you again too, Komekko. Now, ready to take a little trip over to another planet within this timeline?"
"Say what?"
{|} Chapter 4-B: Confessions from a Priestess of Death {|}
} A-Part {
After the rest break had ended, Serena continued to lead them deeper and deeper down into the ever-darkening catacombs that rested beneath the Erisia Cathedral. As they descended even further into the unknown darkness, the found the strange magic nulling mist was growing more and more prominent.
Luckily for them, they had no more encounters with those Draugr creatures, either because there weren't any for them to encounter or whoever, whatever, had left them laying around inside their little tombs probably didn't imagine intruders getting past that first wave to make it down this far.
They still remained on guard though as the tombs and coffins still persisted for a good while till they finally started appearing, being replaced with statues depicting strange, demonic beast. Taking a moment to examine one of them, Darkness said-
"What weird looking things. Never seen anything like these in any of the monster books I've read. Do you know what they could be, Serena?"
"... Nothing we need be worried about. Now let's hurry up. We're almost there."
We're almost there!
Those words got Darkness looking at Cielo and Yunyun, all three of them giving a slight nod. How would Serena know if they were 'almost there' if she hadn't followed Cecily down to this point like she had told them up above. There was no longer any question about it now.
Serena had lied to them before. The extent of her lie was still unknown, not that it mattered as they knew she had lied to them, which meant she was no longer someone they could trust. At the very least, her eventual explanation would determine if trust was something she was still worthy of having from them.
And then they finally entered a long hallway with the far end having a very ornate gate arch awaiting them to pass through. By this point, the mist had become almost ever present in the air and it was clear that it was coming from whatever it was that lay beyond the massive gate arch.
"Just beyond there, we'll be almost at our destination."
"And you would know that HOW, Serena?"
said Megumin suddenly, getting Serena to turn back to look at her, as well as everyone else. Megumin had a hand holding the jilt of Chunchunmaru tightly, clearly ready to draw it should the need arise. Yunyun takes hold of her own dagger and adds-
"Megumin's right. You said you saw Cecily take Kazuma down into these catacombs but didn't follow them beyond a certain point, yet you seem to know exactly which way we should be going despite having had several twists and turns along the way. Now you say with certainty that we're ALMOST THERE. How can you be so sure of that?"
Serena doesn't respond at first before stating matter-of-factly-
"If you want to know, then follow me till we reach our destination. Everything will become clear by then."
Serena then proceeds while the others stay their ground. Serena stops just before the gate arch and looks back at them, seeing they hadn't started following her, and says-
"Having doubts now? Fine then, I will go on ahead and I'll be the one to save the day here. I'll be the one to... reunite with Kazuma."
"What did you do to him?"
yelled Cielo, half tempted to rush Serena and pin her to the wall till she gave them answers. While her current physical state was weakened due to the effects of the mist; an issue the others were also been plagued by, Cielo was still confident her natural strength was more than enough to overpower Serena.
Plus, they had her outnumbered which was a boon too.
Serena smiles ever so sweetly at them, then says-
"I haven't done anything to him, this I swear. That said, I do know a little something concerning him so if you want to hear what I know, then you better follow me till the very end."
Serena, while she wasn't showing it to them, was worried and concerned. She knew that in a straight up fight against them, she would lose as her own powers were being impacted, same as theirs. In fact, she wasn't even sure if Vengeance was in affect at the moment, nor did she have the desire to find out. That said, she couldn't help but be a little cocky here with her sudden change.
After all, what other choice did they really have other than to continue proceeding with her.
The four girls looked at each other, sighed, then finally walked forward towards Serena who sends them a nod before stepping through the gate arch. Upon passing through the gate arch, the four girls came to a dead stop as their eyes beheld something beyond anything they had ever expected or imagined ever seeing.
They were inside an impossibly huge underground cave, one that seemed to stretch out and beyond into forever. And what's more, beneath them just beyond a long flight of stairs that led downward, was a most ancient city that appeared to be as large, if not larger, than Axel itself.
"What... what is this place?"
asked Yunyun, unable to hide the shocked amazement from her voice. Serena, while not looking at them, allows herself to smile from ear to ear from the feelings of pride she was experiencing. Since keeping it a secret wasn't really needed at this point, she says-
"Long, long ago, in a time before the goddess's Eris and Aqua came along, there were two others that held dominion over this world: Kismit of Spirit and Regina of Vengeance. Those who followed Kismit are said to have lived upon the land while those who served Regina lived below it, in underground cities like this. In fact, I believe this was the capital city of the underworld; Auger Inferi!"
"And you know this how, Serena?"
asked Darkness. Serena looks back at her, smiles, then looks back down towards the ancient city. She then points towards what appeared to be the highest point within the city and says-
"I'll answer that question, as well as all others, once we reach that spot. Now, let's get moving. We've already wasted enough time as it is because of those Draugr attacking us."
Without waiting for a reply, Serena began walking down the long stairway. The others hesitate for a moment before finally following after her.
It was not a short walk down those stairs either. In fact, it took almost thirty minutes before they finally reached the bottom, finding a strange sort of plant life growing along the ground of this place. These plants seemed to be growing all over, giving off a strange kind of luminescence that appeared to be the source of light that illuminated everything down here.
Once they entered the ancient city proper, the girls couldn't help but marvel at the history this place was giving off. The things one could learn about the distant past if they were to take time to look around, explore, and study everything that they found.
"I wonder if anyone still lives down here in this place?"
wondered Yunyun aloud. In response, Serena says-
"No... unfortunately. That could be seen as a good thing though as without taking certain precautions, living down in a place like this for any extended period of time could have... nasty side effects on those who try it. Like turning them into a strange, deformed kind of beast for example."
It was then, from the corner of her eye, Serena saw a shadow off to the side, from just beyond a darkened corner. She wondered if any of these girls had noticed it? No matter as it was already past the point of no return for them anyways.
She makes a slight motion with her hand, something that would seem natural, and the shadow makes a similar motion before moving beyond her sight. She then smiles to herself, knowing that she need only give the word for the next part of the plan to happen.
After another bit of time walking down the many pathways of the underground city, they finally reached one final set of stairs that led up to the structure Serena had pointed out to them before. As Serena takes the first step onto the stairs, Megumin speaks up, saying-
"OK, I think it's time we cut all this bullshit between us, Serena. Tell me where Kazuma's at... (pulls Chunchunmaru out and points the blade at her) Or do I have to make you tell us now!"
Serena stops and looks back at them, faking a hurt expression.
"What's this. Are you saying you don't trust me, Megumin? That hurts my feelings, you know. And here I thought we were all friends."
Cielo then steps forward, cracking her knuckles as she says-
"Stop fucking with us. We know you haven't told us everything, FRIEND! If you're really our ally here, then how about giving us the four-one-one on why you led us all the way down here."
Yunyun speaks next, dagger in hand and ready to be used.
"Just tell us already, is Kazuma really down here? And what about Cecily. Did she really choose this place as a hideout over running back home to Arcanretia?"
Darkness the steps forward, her own large blade at the ready as she says with a cold tone-
"We're done waiting for answers. Now tell us the truth or else we'll have to show you why we're the most famous, and infamous, party that operates out of Axel, the kingdom of Belzerg, and perhaps the entire world!"
Serena looks at them for a moment before she breaks into a laugh. Not just any laugh, but the kind of laugh you would normally only here from one who was deranged and psychotic. She was laughing so hard, in fact, that she needed to hold firm her own stomach as she nearly fell onto the ground.
Once she stopped laughing, she straightens herself up and wipes away the tears in her eyes before looking at them and saying-
"So, you all saw through my little performance after all. I shouldn't be surprised, seeing as I was never a very good actor. In truth, I'm surprised my little act lasted as long as it did. I mean, surely me showing up at such a convenient time back then, outside Arcanretia when we first met, would have raised some doubts about me but... well, I digress."
"Stop wasting our time with pointless things. Where is Kazuma at? And I guess Cecily too though I don't really care about her at this point."
shouted Megumin, making Serena chuckle.
"Honestly, I have no idea where Kazuma is at right now. A pity really as I would have loved it if he could've joined us down here for all the fun we'll soon be having. As for that Axis priestess girl? Well, the thing of it is... I killed her."
"That was supposed to be OUR job, Serena!"
said Yunyun, surprising everyone from hearing her, of all people, say it.
"Sorry, sorry. She was someone I didn't want to interfere with anything. People like her, those who take their faith and turn it into and fanatical obsession... those are the ones you need to be the most afraid of."
"So, Cecily is dead and Kazuma's location is unknown to you. If that's all true, then why'd you bring us all the way down here?"
shouts Cielo.
"Why? I'll explain it all soon enough, once preparations have been completed. For now though..."
Sudden movement and several small balls come flying through the air, hitting the ground around the girls, erupting into green smoke that quickly envelops them, making them hack and cough.
"I'm afraid I'll need you all to take a little nap here till things are ready!"
The girls try to resist, to lash out and attack Serena, or at least escape the smoke. It was all in vain though as the effects of the smoke came upon them quickly. They collapse onto the ground and within moments, the darkness of sleep had taken them.
} B-Part {
Yunyun was the last of the four to regain consciousness, her eyes slowly opening and realizing she was laying on the cold, unforgiving stone floor. Sitting up, she first observed that the room they were in was rather small. Not small-small, mind you, but small enough. Like being inside a jail cell within Axel's Knight Guard station, except with no windows for them to look out through, just a single metal door.
She then looked to see that Megumin, Darkness, and Cielo were already awake with her three friends having a dangerous look in their eyes, making her wonder what that was all about. Seeing that they were all looking in the same direction, she looked as well, seeing that they weren't alone in here.
"Wait, isn't that..."
"Yunyun, keep your guard up. That guy over there took it upon himself to grope all of us while we were all unconscious."
said Darkness, noticing Yunyun had finally awakened. It takes Yunyun a second to process what she had just been told, due to her still being half asleep. Once she had, her arms immediately cover her chest as she starts staring daggers at their fellow captive as well.
Dust, sending them a sheepish look, says-
"What's the problem? All I was doing was checking to make sure you four were all alright."
"By playing with our boobs while we were knocked out, you pervert."
growled Megumin. Dust scoffs, saying-
"Oh come on, crazy explosion girl. Have you forgotten you challenged me to feel up your girls not to long ago, to prove they were the real deal. (this gets the others to look at Megumin with shocked expressions) All I did was make good on that challenge since Kazuma interrupted us from seeing it to completion. Besides, you all should know what I'm about by now so why the surprise. If anything, it should be me complaining here, after getting this black eye and all!"
Yunyun realizes that Dust indeed had a black eye, something she hadn't noticed before because of how dark their little prison was. She also became aware of something else now too. All of them, even Dust, had a chunky looking collar around their necks, glowing with lines of mana.
She didn't need to ask anyone what that was about as she already knew what these collars were; mana canceling devices, similar to what criminals would be made to wear while inside their cells. The difference was that these appeared to be of an older sort, uncomfortably big and bulkier than the modern versions one would find in use today.
Cielo, who was cracking her knuckles, says-
"You deserve so much worse than just that black eye. For once in my life, I'm glad I still have my Androphobia and I'm happy to learn it will activate even when I'm asleep."
"So, guess that means Kazuma's still the only guy who can safely touch you without issue, huh. Guess Megumin and Yunyun are gonna have to share him with you after all."
Joked Darkness while both Megumin and Yunyun shout out together on impulse-
"NOT!"
After a moment of silence, Megumin says-
"Well, putting all that aside for now, do you have any ideas what's going on down here, Dust. Any clue as to what's going on inside Serena's head?"
Dust shrugs, then responds by saying-
"Wish I could tell you but I'm honestly still in the dark myself. I remember the three of us, Melissa being the third, reaching this place. I was then knocked out and found myself waking with this fancy collar around my neck. There was this weird ritual Serena tried to undertake with me, but that went nowhere. Since then, I've been stuck in here till you all were tossed in to join me."
"So you're in the same boat, huh. Wonder what she's planning for..."
"I'll answer that question now."
Darkness was cut off as Serena finally spoke up, a small view port opening upon the door with her eyes peeking through. Serena looks at them, confirming they were all awake before she continued-
"First, I should reintroduce myself. My TRUE name is Seresdina. I simply go by Serena for short. On the one hand, I'm serve the Devil King as one of his eight Generals."
"I thought so. I had this feeling there was something fishier about you, hence I gave Kazuma a warning to not let his guard down around you. Did he ever mention that to you four?"
asked Dust, getting a no in response.
"Must have forgotten to mention it."
"Wait, if you're with the Devil King... I mean the [Riiji], Lynn's grandfather, then wouldn't that make you an ally to us, seeing as Yasaka wants Kazuma as an ally."
"Hold on, Lynn's the granddaughter of... man, I knew there was something about her I didn't know. Never would have imagined it would be THAT!"
"So, Kazuma already knows his majesty then. Too bad he isn't here as I would very much like to compare notes on that topic. I see he told you four about the Devil King. In truth, I'm a general in name only. While on the surface, I have done some work for him, I am NOT loyal to him. In fact, all my time spent with the Devil King was simply because I was using him, his resources, and his fellow minions."
"Wow, shocker..."
said Megumin, not sounding to surprised to hear something like that get revealed. Serena holds for a second, then adds-
"I'm sure the feeling was mutual. I doubt he didn't know the truth of my purpose there with him but allowed me to come and go in the hopes he could learn vital information from me about my personal business, such as where my true loyalty lied."
"And that would be?"
asked Darkness.
"To the Goddess Regina, of course. I am her devoted follower, her high priestess if you will. After many years of research and searching, I have finally found where she has been sealed; been locked away. Here, in this very place. And now, with all of you here with me, I can finally break the seal and allow her the freedom she deserves upon this world once again."
"So, does that mean we're just sacrifices you'll be making in your grand scheme to reawaken the goddess of vengeance, Serena."
shouted Cielo with Yunyun quickly adding-
"Why would you... I thought you were our friend."
Serena is silent for a moment, then says-
"I do regret that it has come to this, I do. Believe me or not but I do like you people... not you, Dust. You're a pervert, a drunk, and so many other things that offering you up as a sacrifice brings a smile to my face."
"Cold... but fair!"
"(sigh) If I had any better offerings available, I would use them over you all, but I do not. What is needed to both free lady Regina and see her have as much power restored from the get-go as possible, I need top quality offerings and there are none better than you all."
"You're a monster, you know that."
"Maybe... If it makes you all feel better, I will ask the goddess if it would be possible to revive all of you after the fact. I make no promises, of course, but maybe that will be an option. Now, I must leave you to prepare for the ritual. Twelve hours... enjoy them while you still can."
With that, Serena closed the eye portal, and the sound of footsteps could be heard walking further and further away till they had faded completely.
"Well now what do we do?"
"Figure out a way to escape this mess, obviously. Question is... how?"
"You think Kazuma will magically show up and save us?"
"He won't, Yunyun. Not this time. I wasn't able to tell you all this before, seeing as my magic is all out of wack at the moment, but I've been using a certain something to sense out Kazuma. While I don't know where he's at right now, I know he's far from here and he is safe as Chris is with him."
"How do you know that Megumin?"
"Well... how to explain. Remember back when we went to the Scarred Lands..."
The sound of clothing rustling makes Megumin stop, then all four girls turn to see Dust was in the process of dropping his pants. Cielo goes wide eyed, Yunyun quickly covers her eyes, Megumin scowls, and Darkness is the one to ask-
"Dust, what the hell are you doing?"
"You heard, Serena. She said we have twelve hours left and I don't know about you all but I sure as hell don't want to die without getting my dick wet one last time. I'm sure you all don't want to die virgins either so who wants to go first?"
The four girls send him looks of horror and disgust, making him take on a confused look.
"Look, I get it. I'm sure you four were wanting to save yourselves for Kazuma but as the old saying goes, beggars can't be choosers... wait, don't tell me Kazuma's already slept with ALL OF YOU! Damn bastard, what did he do to be so lucky. Oh well, I don't mind having any sloppy seconds so..."
He didn't finish as the four girls, eyes filled with furious rage, pounce him and proceed to beat the crap out of the blonde hair idiot.
Outside, Serena was making her way up towards the inner chamber when Melissa came into view, resting against a side wall just before the great stairwell.
"Are you really sure about using them, Serena. You have formed a bond with them, small though it may be."
"Duty out ways personal want here, old friend. Besides, I told them lady Regina may revive them once it is all over, if such is an option. I made no promises about that, though."
"Your duty as made you into a colder person than I remember you once being."
"We've both changed since our childhood days. By the way, did anything happen after I left to return to the surface to fetch those four?"
"... No, nothing of importance. Certainly nothing that could explain why those Draugr creatures you told me about rising up and attacking you all."
"Are you certain?"
"If I didn't know any better, I'd be thinking you are accusing me of some betrayal towards you. You know as well as I how foolish such a thought and action would be."
"Yes, you're right old friend. Forgive me. It doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things, really. I'll simply ask lady Regina what happened once she has been returned to us. Now, keep an eye on those five. Make sure they don't escape ahead of the big moment. Now, I need to go get the ritual ready."
With that, Serena breaks off and continues on her way. Melissa watches her before turning and heading towards the cell they were being kept in. As Serena goes, her face becomes harder, more serious.
'I know you did something, Melissa. I can feel it deep down beneath my very bones. I'm sorry old friend but I'm afraid I'll need you to also make a great sacrifice before all this is over...'
{|} to be continued... {|}
AN: Next chapter will be entirely focused on the Arbel side of things. In fact, it will be a rather long chapter, one of my longer ones, as we'll be spending a good deal of time with Aqua... as we reveal her backstory within this timeline.
Until next time!