Chapter 19: Silent Scream
Dressed in rage, inside my cage
My Pandæmonium, still bound to the flame that I bear
Buried alive
In the coffin of who I used to be
I'll scream all I like, 'cause we're all mad here
Hexen Isle – Interdimensional Space
"So, let me get this straight. You fought Innominat, mano-a-mano, and actually forced him back?" asked Zaveid as they navigated the area.
"Yeah, you should have seen him. His sword became a scythe and you could literally feel the impact with each strike he made." Rokurou said. "Innominat's blade cut down Stormquell so easily but Ragna's scythe took his head on over and over."
"A true Grim Reaper, where nothing could stand in his way even within Innominat's own domain." Nodded Eizen.
"Well damn. I don't really have much to say about that. Remind me not to get on your bad side." Zaveid said, punching Ragna on the shoulder.
"You guys are really making too much of a big deal about it," Ragna shrugged.
"Are you kidding? Alone! Against an Empyrean! And winning! That at least gives us an advantage against them next time." Zaveid exclaimed.
"You are forgetting an important detail." Oscar spoke up.
"What?"
"Lady Saya. His sister." Oscar replied. "We shouldn't place unnecessary burden on Ragna. Lord Artorius still has control of her and I imagine after what just happened, they would renew their efforts in making use of her power. If she is every bit as powerful as Ragna and they succeed, who knows what they could do?"
"Yeah, that's what I'm most concerned about." Ragna agreed. "I wouldn't underestimate her though. The Abbey's playing a dangerous game keeping her under their leash."
"True. She is quite a handful, that one." Zaveid sighed. "But for now, we shouldn't have to worry about them just yet. They're likely to fall back licking their wounds for now."
"There's also that horned daemon with the old man. Know anything about him?" Zaveid wondered, his gaze on Eizen.
"I don't know." The First Mate replied.
"I thought I felt something different about him, if only for just a moment. Did you feel it too?" Zaveid continued on.
"I said I don't know." Eizen said, turning away.
Ragna narrowed his eyes. A little defensive on the Reaper's part but he wasn't going to start prying for answers now. Zaveid was right though, even he hadn't seen it before, just made mention of back when he was separated from the group in Aball.
"We've come across him before," said Velvet, "but we never really fought him. My guess is Melchior is controlling him with some sort of illusion."
"I see, then it's probably good that you didn't fight. A straight battle against him wouldn't be an easy thing." said Zaveid.
"How do you know that?"
"Intuition. I have a nose for these things. There's something fishy about him."
Oscar frowned. "I haven't met him before but… I feel like he's someone I've encountered already. Another exorcist? A prisoner?"
They carried on walking after that, even managing to give the nameless Malak accompanying them a name. Eizen's choice was the best one out of those offered. Nothing cute like Bob or Bobby like what Velvet or Eleanor suggested, or one that reminded him of his old name. Silva, for the color of his hair and pendant.
"Better than Number One at least." Ragna agreed, slowly moving back to the rearguard of the group with Zaveid and Silva.
"The size of the arte that created this place… Just what is the Abbey planning to use it for?" Eleanor wondered.
"I haven't actually been here, but I've heard rumours," said Oscar, "A testing facility for something that's located far away from the general populace but testing what, I do not know. I was set to be assigned before well… recent events."
"Think we're coming up on that 'what' you mentioned." Magilou said, pointing ahead at a colossal beast within a seal.
"A dragon!" Phi exclaimed.
"It looks like it's been captured. Just like the Therions." said Velvet.
"But why would they hold a dragon captive?" asked Eleanor.
"Hmmm…" Magilou pressed a finger to her chin, "An arte connects this place to the earthpulse. That's probably why we were taken here."
"So it's got something to do with Innominat?"
"That would be the obvious conclusion." The Witch nodded.
"I don't get it." Both Ragna and Zaveid said at the same time. They glared at each other for a moment before giving a sigh.
An explanation came swiftly enough, though far more in-depth that Ragna would have expected. A few things he had missed when he wasn't with the group, but a portion of it was with the memory he saw before awakening here with Magilou.
Innominat's own awakening requiring eight types of Malevolence. His identity as Velvet's own little brother. And of course, the events that went on within the Earthpulse Rift which sadly, he was only a part of near the end. So much had happened in such a small amount of time. It was a wonder they were all still standing.
"There's still one thing bothering me," said Rokurou, "Innominat needs to eat malevolence to awaken. Once he does, he'll use his power to suppress negative emotions. But when humans can't create any more malevolence, what will happen to Innominat?"
"He'll run out of things to eat," said Laphicet, "…and maybe die?"
"Wouldn't he just go back to sleep?" said Eleanor.
"But if he does, then his power will fade and humanity will start creating malevolence again, right?" Rokurou replied.
"In order for Innominat to eternally suppress negative emotions…"
"He needs an infinite, powerful source of malevolence to feed off of. For example, that produced by an immortal dragon." Velvet realized.
"Which would make this place a sort of dragon farm, created so he can control humanity forever." Eizen said.
"Just speculation, but it all makes sense." Magilou added.
"I wonder…" Oscar started.
"What is it?" Zaveid looked at him.
"My apologies for bringing this up. But the dragon that Lady Saya and I… umm… eliminated. Perhaps they had been expecting us to capture her to bring here instead of doing what we did. And now I'm not sure which fate is worse." Oscar said.
"Don't worry about it, kid. What's done is done." Zaveid frowned. "They can't think of malakhim as anything but tools. And there's no line they won't cross to achieve their goals."
"All the more reason they must be stopped." Velvet said.
Ragna placed a hand on the seal as the group began walking away, taking one more look at the dragon within before taking his leave as well. From Malakhim to dragon… and only if one lost control of malevolence. It was a fate he didn't want to think about.
They had to press on regardless and reaching close to what may be an exit, Laphicet suddenly went up and asked Velvet a question.
"I was once your sister's child, right?" asked Phi, "Then my father is…"
Velvet sighed, "Look, you were reborn, right? Honestly, I really don't know anything about how being reborn works. But to me… what you see, what you hear, and what you feel? That's what's most important. Whoever we used to be in another life, I'm me now, and you're you. That's all there is to it."
"That's true. Eizen said that not all malakhim are humans who have been reborn, right?" Rokurou added.
"Does that mean they could be reincarnations of birds or fish or beasts?" wondered Eleanor.
"That's not not not not not true!" Magilou exclaimed. "So if a boy was a dog in a past life, that wouldn't make him part of the dog's family now."
"Odd metaphor there." Ragna shrugged, though he was understanding this a bit better now. Slightly at least. Being part of a greater whole doesn't mean he is that greater whole. He's himself, as he has always been.
"Rebirth is like the Earthen Historia. You're simply built on a larger foundation." Said Eizen, "But that's not special. Everyone's lives are founded on the past."
"So… I'm just me." Phi smiled.
"Yup, you're you and no one else. You're Phi." Velvet nodded, patting the boy's head.
Ragna smiled as they exited the area. Another rift in space, but this led to the true outside. Fresh air and the sounds of crashing waves against an island.
"We made it!" Phi breathed out a sigh of relief.
"I came here by ship," said Zaveid, "It's anchored by the southeast beach."
Good, an immediate destination then. The group ran now, finally free from that extradimensional space. No one was following them and given how long they've been away from everyone else, it would be a relief to reunite with Benwick and the others.
The blast came so suddenly and without any warning. Not from behind them as they'd expect from any pursuers, but from the front.
Ragna noticed the projectile first from his field of vision. Its trajectory aimed straight at the young Silva, moving so fast he didn't even have time to think. His instinct was to propel himself sideways, pushing the Malak aside before the blast struck him head on. He sailed through the air and landed on the ground.
"!" Saya gasped. Artorius and Shigure turned to look at her as she fell to her knees.
"Did she break free?" Shigure wondered.
"No matter. We can simply…"
"Release me," Saya whispered, eyes wide as her hands reaching up for her own face. "Artorius, release me."
"What reason would we have-"
"Release me now or Innominat dies!" Saya looked up at him. There was a fear in her eyes that hadn't been there before. Different from when they placed the arte to control her. Different from the eyes of others who were afraid of an event. No, this was a fear of some thing. A desperation far worse when coming from one who up until this point, barely showed any sign of said fear.
Artorius held his hand out, the spell unlocking little by little.
"Hey boss, you sure about this?" Shigure wondered.
And then a cracking boom shattered the windows around them as Saya flew straight up before she immediately streaked towards one specific direction.
He was falling again, deep into an all-encompassing darkness. What the hell happened? Did he lose to something?
Ragna was disoriented for a while, as if different parts of him were reacting long after a specific stimulus. As if his mind and body were not in sync. Still, it was coming back to him. Little by little. Even the little bits of memory.
He didn't open his eyes, but he could still 'see' something. His friends, fighting against Innominat and one other. Zaveid holding his own alone against the Empyrean. Everyone else yelling at someone… as if they were calling out to him.
That's right. He was blasted by something and everything just disappeared. Did he… lose control? And if he did, then the thing they're fighting would be…
Ragna opened his eyes. A light was above him moving further and further away. "What is that?" he wondered before slowing his descent. He reached for it, trying to swim up towards it.
'Don't bother.'
"Don't worry. I'll be back with you all soon." Ragna said, his mind focused. He's been through worse.
'I'm telling you. Don't bother with it.'
A tug behind him, preventing him from moving further up.
"Who the hell? Don't you dare get in my way!" Ragna exclaimed, turning around to face… himself? Wait, no that wasn't right...
There was a smile on that face. And the longer he looked at him, the more he recognized it.
'Finally. Finally you acknowledge me.' The owner of that voice said.
"You… that's impossible…" Ragna said, clutching his head. It was a mistake. He shouldn't have turned around. He shouldn't even have spoken to it. Acknowledging his existence like this was…
'Too late! You know exactly who I am!'
The darkness rose up around them, clawing and choking. The smiling face disappeared again until suddenly, everything was bright again.
Velvet screamed, tearing someone out from the massive beast. All her effort was placed in this, trying to stop what just happened. A black, sludge-like substance poured out of the open wound before being burnt away by a silver flame.
She had succeeded and yet… she looked down at Ragna's immobile form. The right side of his body had darkened, everywhere from parts of his face, his eye, everywhere underneath the clothing he wore. He was breathing, if only barely.
"No. No no no no…" Velvet whispered, holding him close.
Innominat landed a few steps away, pushing a beaten Zaveid down to the ground. "I told you you would suffer." The Empyrean said.
The corpse of the beast bloated suddenly however, before suddenly bursting in a wave of malevolent energy swirling around it. The shockwave knocked everyone back including Innominat.
Malevolence coalesced, the swirling darkness eventually taking shape where the beast once stood. A thin black shape, humanoid with lines of criss-crossing green like that of nerves running throughout its entire figure. But it also had what would pass for an unnerving face. A single green eye and a crimson smile. Ethereal, ghost-like, it didn't even seem to even have a true physical form.
"N-no…" Ragna said weakly, trying to raise his left arm. "That is…" he could barely speak before his voice gave out.
"What is this? Another obstacle?" Innominat glanced up at it and floated closer. "I don't know where you came from but if you're seeking to steal my prey, you sho-!"
The being was upon him in an instant, slamming his head down on the ground. And then, the Empyrean screamed. Something flowed from Innominat and into the figure before it suddenly tossed him away.
"Hatred… the malevolence of Hatred. This will do nicely…" the figure said before more of the darkness surrounded it. Something new was forming around it. The close approximation of a body and a long, hooded yellow cloak covered in black markings swirling about like a snake. Pale skin, green hair, and even a formal-looking outfit.
The spirit within the flesh was no longer visible and yet, the same malevolent aura remained.
"I have been waiting for this moment. Trapped in that loathsome prison… ah, it's good to be back. Eheheheh….Ahahahahaha!"
Innominat rose again, no longer floating this time as he stared at him. "No… give it back! That malevolence… that was mine!" he screamed.
"Who the hell is that…?" Rokurou wondered as everyone began backing away.
"Ehhhh…heheh." The figure's raucous laughter died down as he then focused on those gathered before him. "Oh I'm sure that piece of trash could tell you all about it." He pointed at the fallen Ragna. "I suppose my name is…. Hmmm… now what should I be called here? Terumi is a good a name as any, but there's no use hiding what I truly am. God of all you lowly vermin; Takehaya Susano'o!"
He turned towards Innominat once more, "As for you… while I should thank you for your help in my re-emergence... you are nothing more than a beast clad in sin. Loathsome in every regard. I will give you the absolution you so desperately deserve!"
