The four sit around the couch area yet again, but this time Nehken has actually picked up a controller, while Shrai is left spectating. He sits there, his now girlfriend trying to teach him how video games work. He wasn't familiar to say the least.
They're playing a game that has to do with co-op puzzle solving, a genre that the fox isn't entirely fond of, yet she chose it to give the wolf something to ease him into the idea of gaming. She thought he might be suited to it. Nehken was mostly jumping into walls and spinning around at first, but he's doing his best. For a moment he longs for the life experience of a twenty-something corn-chip eating orange-furred gamer girl. Y'know, instead of the grim reaper.
"How the hell do we get the platform there? It feels like we've tried everything here." Now he's jumping and spinning. Progress, people.
"Well surely we haven't. The game has a designed solution for this, we just haven't found it yet."
"The only thing I'm finding is the fact that these types of games make me feel like an idiot." The wanderer moves his character around aimlessly in frustration.
"I mean. We can play something different if you want- lemme check sant's game drawer. I think he's got racing games and stuff." She motions a steering wheel with her controller. "Racing games sound fun?"
"If I wanted to drive I'd hijack a car."
"Okay. So- that's illegal. Good point though. Uh… there's… fighting games. Oh, beat 'em ups too actually."
"And those are supposed to be… different, somehow?"
"Well like- sorta. Yeah." She begins to explain, an imaginary Famiko video essay playing out in her head. This truly is her element. "See like, beat 'em ups have you going up against waves of enemies, but fighting games are more player versus player. We could also play a normal platformer, just going from one side of the level to the next. It's like an obstacle course of sorts. No puzzles at all." She's already digging around for their next game.
"Hmmm…"
Before the reaper can decide if he wants to waste more of his time playing virtual games with no consequence and meaning to them, Sant raps his knuckles on the wall.
"Okay. Two down, four to go. We've got our island."
"Already???"
"Damn, okay." Nehken snorts at her pouting. "We're saving my life here, try to look a little happier."
"What's life without platformers…?" She pontificates somberly, setting down the well-worn box of some mountain-climbing game with an unfamiliar nametag taped on the back.
"This is taking less time than I thought it would too."
"Yeah I feel ya there, shortiago." The chameleon stretches his back, his heated pillow falling to the floor.
"Wel-... okay, first of all, never call me that again, second we're already at the next isle. I didn't mean that I just spotted it, we're there."
"Translation, get the hell off my boat. You smell bad." Davanak snickers to himself.
"Can you not put words into my mouth? I've only known for a couple days and I already hate you."
"That means I'm good at my job."
They make their way to the deck of the ship yet again, gazing at the next landmass. Compared to the last few islands, it's flat out deserted. Just a pile of grey, ashy sand making up the land. It stretches on for a good long while, but with how the wind picks it up, it almost covers the place in a smog-like haze.
"Oh and by the way. That transmission that played on the big screen yesterday- that nearly wrecked my boat– that's gonna be the reason I'm going to sail juuust out of reach of anyone that would want to board that isn't you four." He sternly announces. "And if they DO somehow board-"
"MAN?" The four guess in unison.
"Yeah. MAN." The MAN in question does a little jig in the distance upon hearing his title. Breakcore can faintly be heard. Izanagi knows what that monster will do to an intruder. Nehken forces himself not to think about it.
The four step foot off the boat for a third time, their feet sinking deeper into the sandy shoreside than the other shores. They trek onward, only to be met with more empty land. Is there even a blade on this isle? It would be weird to have something kept in the middle of a wasteland with nothing guarding it.
The powdery mist underneath them shifts with every step. The more they walk the more they doubt that anything is even here. The only structures that litter the area are stone pillars, as well as a few hollowed out mountains. It feels oddly cold here.
The clouds darken, and before they can think of turning back, the wind blows with an exponential force. The winds turn the wasteland into hell on earth, picking up the grains of ashy sand, becoming a sandstorm. The grains of sand pelt the four with the force of hail. They quickly retreat into one of the hollowed out mountainsides.
They venture down a cavern, having similar crystals to that of the first isle they visited. They can't help but think of Silas. She gave them such hospitality, and what she got for it was unthinkably cruel. They don't know the full story of this place, but they understand by now that their journey may not be as simple as it first seemed.
They look at the sandy blizzard outside from afar. Nehken decides to sit next to one of the glowing crystals protruding from the ground, the light emanating a warm glow in look, but also feel. The fox sits on the other side of the large glowing gem. The wolf reaches his hand out, harmless fluorescent light circling around him from the crystal.
"...The hell are these crystals? I've seen them on the first island. Do all of them have these?" It reflects the group in its shining body as he examines it.
"Not too far of a stretch. Maybe these are like- a power source of some kind? Maybe a versatile one."
"Could be, but I'd like to see more before we jump to conclusions."
He stares at the light moving around his hand. He starts to harness dark energy in his hand, the light retreating back into the crystal at the mere touch of it. The wolf looks to his side, seeing a stray, sharp rock. Having nothing better to do whilst the sandstorm is going on, he grabs it along with his scythe, and starts to sharpen it.
"So I have a couple questions." Miko fiddles with the drawstrings of her sweater.
"Those being?"
"How did you learn black magic? Was it like- the ability you got from birth or…?" She tilts her head.
"From what I can remember, I don't think I was born with an ability."
"That makes sense. I mean, I didn't really learn how to use my frostfire until I was ten." She recalls.
"To be honest, Davanak gave me these abilities because he thought my purely physical killing strategies were getting boring. From what he told me, black magic like this allows me to do a lot more than just summoning black sword constructs."
"What else can you do?" Her ears perk up.
"From what I read, black magic is pretty versatile. Hellfire manipulation, weapon constructs, teleporting between shadows, the list goes on."
"Why haven't you used any of the other ones?"
"Out of spite. I only use the weapon constructs only when absolutely necessary." He utters.
"They still seem useful though. I know I'm not really combat-brained but using versatility to your advantage would probably give you a much larger- advantage???"
"Even so, it just feels… wrong. It feels like a part of me is letting Davanak win if I lean into using them."
"Well, if you're using them not to kill people, is he really winning?"
The scraping of rock between blade stops, the wolf pondering her words. He can see what she means, but the reaper still isn't entirely convinced. Closer to the entrance to the caverns, Davanak leans against the wall, glaring out into the chaotic outdoors. Such a beautifully chaotic type of natural disaster. The thought of a mortal being shred to pieces by the millions of tiny specs of dust is so fascinating to him.
Almost as if the universe wants to put an end to his fawning over the dry blizzard, the chameleon walks over to him. While Shrai isn't too trusting of the akuma, he still wants Famiko to know that he believes in her efforts. Thus, he tries to strike up a conversation with the goat that isn't inherently antagonistic.
"So. Nice weather out, ain't it?"
"Yes. Just wonderful." The akuma outright ignores the sarcastic tone of the remark to one-up it with his own, with a hint of genuineness to it.
"Listen, bud. I don't know your whole deal. From what I've heard from the big broken wolf, you're irredeemable. However, I want to see things from your perspective, both out of curiosity, and-"
"For the fox?"
"Yep."
"Well if you want my perspective on what happened, it's the exact same as he described it. Every last little detail is entirely accurate. No notes."
"Not even recontextualized in your view?"
"I don't know how many times I'm going to have to say this to you, or the little vixen over there, but I'm the bad guy here. Everything I've done is by design, intentional, and purely for my own amusement. The only reason you three even deal with me is because you have to. You'd all be bloody mush on the floor if foxy didn't revoke my murder privileges." He grumbles something about hunting laws.
"Alright. Then how about this. What was your life like before Nehken?"
"Oh what, you wanna know what hell's like? Wanna get a preview of what you'll be seeing once you kick the bucket and get rejected by the pearly gates?"
"I want to know what Miko sees in you." He steps in front of the profane spirit.
"Something that isn't there. Nehken can look into people's souls. When he looks at both of you, he can see blue wispy flames of life. If he looks at me… he'd only see me staring back."
The chameleon squints at the goat. Normally he's pretty good at reading people, but this time around it's hard to tell if Davanak is using front to hide his true feelings, or he's just genuinely a hollow force of malevolent nature. If anything, from what he saw from Bebek's torture method for him, he seems scared of redemption. He could find a few ways to get to him through that… but he should leave that to Famiko. This is her endeavour after all.
Before anyone can further converse, the mountain starts to rumble and crack. Quickly, Nehken grabs Famiko, rushing towards the exit. Before Shrai or Davnak can make it out, the entrance of the cavern is blocked off by falling rubble, and before the four of them notice they are crushed by an immense amount of sandy rock.
Whilst not nearly enough force to kill any of them, it leaves most of them unconscious. Famiko's vision blurs, trying to fight to stay conscious as she can see a tall figure in the distance making their way towards them. She can't tell if this is a physical trauma induced illusion or not. Before she can figure it out, everything goes dark.
Nehken wakes up on a couch, a rather comfy one at that. He looks around- the house is wooden, hand crafted in appearance. Nobody else is around. What happened to the others? He immediately gets up, heartbeat ramping up. His scythe is nowhere to be seen. Before he knows it, he hears footsteps in the other room, rushing behind the touch to hide. An unfamiliar voice follows the footsteps.
"Now, I know you all have more than a few questions, and rest assured, they will be answered as soon as your friend wakes up. Allow me to go check on him, if you'd be so kind."
The footsteps are in the room now. Behind the couch was a horrible hiding place. He forms a black and red scythe, jumping out to slash the unfamiliar entity. The figure leans back to dodge the slash- a lanky, wooden figure with absurdly long legs. clothing texture painted onto his wooden frame, all but a furry boa that is actual fabric. He seems to resemble a deer.
"Oh my. You weren't kidding when you said he was aggressive."
The reaper seeks his mark, advancing viciously with cut after cut, but the target is nimble enough to dodge each one, large as it is. As he continues his assault he starts to realize the doll isn't actively fighting back. If anything, he's making sure he's not breaking the place, catching any pottery he knocks down. He's playing pure defence. Before he can slash again, someone jumps in front of him. Famiko.
"It's okay! He's not going to hurt us!"
"How do you know that?" Nehken holds his polearm in a guarding stance.
"He's the one that brought us in after the mountain collapsed."
"I had noticed the mountain was crumbling. I decided to investigate to see if it was caused by something other than the sandstorm."
"Who are you?" The wolf's guard stays up, like a brick wall that won't break without excessive force.
"Oh! Apologies, where are my manners? My name is Primo. You must be Nehken, am I correct?"
"...Yes?" The wolf is taken aback by the wooden deer's politeness.
"Please, take a seat. All will be explained momentarily."
Hesitantly, he obliges. He sits on one of the two couches in the room, Famiko sitting next to him while the others sit on the second couch. Primo sits in a comfy chair that seems to be designed for him. All of the furniture seems to be made by him.
"Now as you are my first real guests in a long time, allow me to give you something. Oh Lily darling!~" The deer snaps his fingers, a deer-shaped puppet shambles down the stairs holding a basket of baked goods. They put the basket on the coffee table in front of them before bowing and skipping off. "It was very rushed so I humbly apologize if things aren't as well cooked as they should be."
"Is that puppet also…?" The fox points at the aforementioned "Lily."
"Alive? No. I am the only conscious being that resides on this aisle. Names and roles are only given to them as they're created."
"How do they operate?" The chameleon takes out a brownie from the gift basket, taking a bite out of it. It's decently baked for someone who can't taste his own food.
"Oh! Well, if you're curious-"
"Get to the point." The wolf shuts down the marionette's tangent before it even begins. "You said you're the only person on this isle. If that's the case that would have to mean you're the bladeholder."
"Very astute of you. Yes. I hold the Spear of Longing."
"We're here for it."
"I understand that. I saw the Doctor's transmission. You may have it in due time."
"You're just… giving it to us?"
"Aren't you going to be executed if you hand it over?"
"Oh please!" The host chuckles warmly. "The doctor knows very well I am beyond his control by now. I can assure you that I never attend any of his company meetings."
"There has to be a catch." He raises an eyebrow, met with the same blank button-eyed stare of the deer.
"No catch, just pure generosity. However I do implore you to at least stay for dinner, it's been so long since I've had guests over."
"How can you cook if you can't eat?" The chameleon adjusts his visor.
"I was designed to do menial tasks like cooking, cleaning, laundry, even the likes of woodworking and architecture."
"That explains the house."
"So basically you're a wooden grandpa with no grandchildren. That's a little weird… and a lot sad." Everyone's beloved akuma squints at the wooden deer, tilting his head with a grin on his face. The deer turns his head towards the goat. He doesn't say anything in response, only staring at him sirprsovky coldly. He stands.
"Come now, dinner should be ready soon." Even so, he acts as if Davanak hadn't said a word to him. Everyone else seems to brush it off as well. The four follow the puppet man into the dining room, there sits a hand-crafted dining table with illustrations of buttons and thread carved into it. The chairs also share this same pattern and theming to it. The four all sit around the table, whilst Primo goes to check on the meal.
"I really can't believe we're doing this." Nehken can't even find silverware to play with, so he just groans.
"Hey, don't even worry." While not quite brave enough to hold his hand under the table, the fox bumps it with hers. "It's better than a fight, right?" Nehken struggles to continue frowning in her presence, though he does achieve it from sheer force of will. Davanak looks ready to throw up at the sight of the lovebirds.
"I'm quite engaged. I wonder if I might get a chance to inspect him? Mechanically, I mean."
"W-what other way would you inspect him?"
Not too shortly after, the well-mannered Primo comes out with a perfectly golden brown turkey plant. The stem is pulled out neatly, keeping all of the meaty flesh of the plant still intact. It looks to have been stuffed to perfection, lathered in gravy and barbeque sauce. He also brings out a pot of mashed potatoes. He neatly cuts and arranges the servings onto plates and hands them out with the precision of a seasoned waiter. He neatly places spoons and forks next to them, as well as knives to cut the turkey with.
"How did you grow all of this in… this climate?" Shrai looks at his plate, wide-eyed.
"I have my own greenhouse. What would you four like to drink?"
"Water is fine." The wolf finally takes off his cloak.
"Chocolate milk please!" The fox beams.
"Anything carbonated will do." The chameleon leans on his chair.
The goat stares at his plate, pondering, not about what to drink, but what this man's goal is. Does he care about saving his associates from potential danger? No, but he does care about proving that he's not a gullible sheep. He pushes his plate to the side, sighing to himself.
"I'm good. Not really hungry at the moment. I'm gonna go get some fresh air or something."
"But the sandstorm is still going on." The deer protests, his head following the akuma's movements.
"Good. I need the nice weather right now." Davanak stands up, walking up the stairs to hopefully find some sort of balcony.
"Your goat friend is a bit… peculiar."
"Let's just leave it at goat." Nehken still doesn't want himself to be called a friend of that… thing.
"He's usually a lot more… antagonistic. I should probably go check on him…" Miko notices another marionette dropping off a glass of chocolate milk right next to her plate. "...after dinner." The sight of her favorite beverage changes her mind. The deer sits down, watching as the three eat his cooking. He decides to make conversation.
"May I ask what you four out here for? Besides the blades of desire of course."
"I've come to remove a curse of mine. That goat that stormed off is part of the reason I'm here. I won't bore you with the details, but the short of it is that he's the reason I'm the way that I am."
"Oh my! That sounds terrible."
"We actually brought him here to help get rid of the curse in question. I had researched this place enough to find its location, and thus far it's been…"
"Traumatic. I'm going to probably have nightmares about Bebek after this is all over."
"You've encountered the clown?"
Famiko looks up from her meal.
"You know him too? Uh. Yeah! And I'm not good with clowns to begin with, so… you can imagine how well that went."
"Aw, you poor thing. Either way, it's nice to see you two aiding Nehken with this. That is very noble."
"Thanks!"
"Where did you put my scythe?" He's nearly finished his plate.
"It's in the basement for now. You may retrieve it along with the spear of longing, of which I have in pristine condition within a glass case."
"Yawn… alright. Sounds good." For some reason, he feels tired. He was knocked out, he should be well rested enough.
"You look positively exhausted. I have some guest bedrooms if you would like to spend the night."
"I'm o- yawn I'm on borrowed time." He tries to protest, but the fatigue is just too strong for him.
"Nonsense. I insist. You all must be worn out from your journey thus far. A nice rest won't harm anyone. Just head upstairs and take a right, there you'll find my many guest bedrooms."
The wolf being convinced, the three walk upstairs to find a hall of guest bedrooms, eight from what they can see. Each room is situated with single beds with soft weighted blankets and pillows, along with a bedside table next to each bed. Without exchanging a word, they all choose and walk into their respective rooms, pulling the covers over themselves and close their eyes.
Nehken and Shrai both drift to sleep fine, the wolf being out like a light. The fox on the other hand, can't seem to sleep. Seconds turn to minutes, minutes turn to hours. The fear of paralysis definitely doesn't help her insomnia. From downstairs, Primo can hear the creaking of her bed. He makes his way to where she chose to sleep, softly knocking on the door.
"Ugh… come in."
The door creaks open, the button eye of the puppet peering into the room. Famiko sits, the blankets and pillows being twisted and contorted around herself like a horribly wrapped burrito in a desperate attempt to sleep.
"Having trouble sleeping?"
"A lot… It's a common issue I have."
"Maybe some warm milk could help?"
"Tried that before. If anything it just kept me up longer." She turns over, meeting his gaze with her pillow over her head.
"Oh… how about this then. I can read you a bedtime story."
"WH- I- but I'm too old for that… I'm in my twenties."
"I can assure you, it'll help."
"...Okay."
The marionette helps fix up Miko's bed, putting the blanket and pillow in their correct places. He reaches down to the bedside table, pulling out the drawer and sifting through the many books he has stashed in. After meticulously walking his fingers over the neat collection of books, he picks one out, dusting it off with his wooden hand. He gently opens the book, reading it aloud to the fox.
"Once upon a time, there was a girl. This girl believed that anyone could change, that no one was beyond redemption. She would be thrown to the side, ridiculed, told what she was doing was stupid, yet, she never fought back. She found solace in a beast, unthinking, unfeeling, acting out of pure instinct. No matter how much the girl tried appealing to it, it would still scream at her, try to harm her. She couldn't bear to think that she could fail. Eventually, the beast would…" The deer trails off, noticing that Famiko had finally drifted to sleep. He softly drifts his hand through her hair. Her ear twitches, as she nuzzles into her pillow, mumbling in her slumber.
"Good night papa…" The fox's words make Primo freeze for a second. Did she just call him what he thinks she did? He sighs, placing the book back into its spot, standing up and walking away. He opens the door, only to say one last thing to the sleeping fox before closing the door.
"Sleep well, little one."
The deer walks downstairs, slouching into his chair. He grabs a snow globe from the table beside him. He stares intently at its contents, small faceless figures resembling that of a family. He turns the winding key of the snow globe, music starting to emanate from it. The figures start to spin within it, Primo giving it a shake to see the snow flutter around within it.
He watches as the family spins, calming plucks of the tiny strings within the music box in the base of the globe giving him a sense of oddly enough, longing. What he's thinking is selfish, borderline sadistic with a certain perspective, yet a part of him knows this will be his only chance.
He's banking on what the scaled doctor had told him. grabbing three burlap sacks from one of the closets, he sneaks into each of the three's rooms, shoving each of their unconscious bodies into the sacks. He drags the bodybags down the stairs. He opens the door to the basement, making his way down the dark stairway. Suddenly, he hears a voice.
"The hell are you doing?" The goat stands at the top of the stairs, his three red eyes being the only thing Primo can clearly see aside from his silhouette.
"Why, I…"
"That is not how you should hold a bodybag! Especially if someone is unconscious? What? Do you want them to wake up or something?"
"I beg your pardon?"
"You're supposed to hold them over the shoulder. Less chance of jolting them awake. Here, give me the bag the chameleon's in, he's probably the heaviest with his cybernetics."
"Um… very well?" Confused, the deer obliges, giving Davanak the bodybag and hoisting the two remaining over his shoulder. The two walk down the stairs, each step having a long echo. He can't just not question this. "Why are you helping me?"
"I don't know if you've been briefed on my situation, but I'm currently trying to prove to these shmucks that I'm bad news. What better way to do so than to actively help in their demise?" The akuma's grin widens, seemingly taking pride in what he's chosen.
"But… you don't even know the reason behind what I'm doing."
"And frankly, I don't need to. Does it involve them dying?"
"By technicality, yes."
"Then say less, Pinocchio."
The echoes of the footsteps get fainter as they reach the bottom of the stairway.
The reaper's eyes flutter open to the uncomfortable feeling of an unbearable pressure building up at the top of his head. He tries to move, but he just sways- hanging upside down in some sort of restraint. He is shackled to the inside of a half-open wooden casing. He struggles, trying to break out. His magic isn't working. He looks to see his hands, covered in salt.
He then sees the most concerning part of his predicament. The front of the wooden casing is covered in small, needle-like spikes. Nehken's legitimately found himself trapped in an iron maiden, or in this case, a wooden maiden, with just a spare bit of merciful space to prevent his instant death. Still, any further movement would be more than inadvisable. The others are in their own death traps, eyes glued shut.
"MIKO! SHRAI! WAKE UP! NOW!"
The two jolt awake, noticing their predicament, overcome with dread in a matter of seconds. "W-whats going on?" The fox can barely speak, her mind racing with questions.
Soon enough, their answers will be answered, as the blocky sounds of wooden footsteps echo through the basement area. The deer stands in front of them, a wooden lever next to him. He looks at the three, the same blank expression as he tilts his head. He speaks in a flat voice.
"I was hoping you wouldn't wake. It would've made this so much easier."
"Primo…?" Miko looks pale, confused and betrayed.
"WHAT IS THIS?! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" The wolf's face is tense, like the drawstring of a bow.
"I don't know if explaining would really matter."
"I mean, a monologue wouldn't be too bad. I'm morbidly curious myself." Everyone's akuma sits there, eating his plate of food that had been reheated. "Show me whatcha got."
"YOU!" Nehken grits his teeth. Of course he had to be in on it.
"Davanak… why?" It's sad, but deep down the fox knew he'd do something like this, just not this soon.
"I need some way to get the idea of i'm a bad person through your thick skulls! Guess your trust in me is going to finally bite you in the ass! Take it away, wooden willice!"
The deer sighs as he walks towards the three, his cane tapping on the concrete of the scattered and messy floor of the basement.
"When I was first given life, Hemlock had told me how he did it." He recites with the same class he would anything, steeling himself. "He had killed me, siphoning my soul into this lifeless wooden body. He had designed my mind to want to care for others, for my own… but didn't bother to make anyone for me to care for, to fulfil that function. I can cook meals that go uneaten, build, clean and maintain a house that will never be lived in, make lifeless dolls that fill the roles of family members, but nothing fills that void." He pulls out the snow globe, twisting its winding key as it plays music whilst continuing his rant.
"Primo…?"
"I want a family. People like me, people that can feel like I do, people I can feed, people I can care for, people that I can tuck in at night. You are the only people that have come here, the only ones that will ever come here… and I need to make sure I don't let this chance pass."
"So THIS IS THE ANSWER?! KILLING US AND FUSING OUR SOULS WITH THESE DEATH TRAPS JUST SO YOU CAN FILL THAT GAPING HOLE IN YOUR NON-EXISTENT ARTIFICIAL HEART?!" The wolf snaps, thrusting his body forward, yelling at the puppet man as the spines in front reprimand him for his movement, leaving red spots in his fur.
"I'M NOT ARTIFICAL!" The deer snaps back, ripping one of the buttons off his face, revealing a single organic eye behind it. "I'M FLESH AND BLOOD, TRAPPED WITHIN A CONTORTED WOODEN COCOON OF EVERLASTING TORMENT! My very brain has been rewired… MY MEMORIES OF WHO I WAS BEFORE THIS GONE! He drops on his knees, hands first caressing the wooden flesh beneath his clothes as he exposes it- before he lets them do what they want. They beat the body, the others watching in horror as it does not bruise, but rather splinter- the morbid display seemingly meaning nothing to the victim.
"S-STOP IT!" Famiko cries, Nehken left frozen. Shrai tries to think, but can't.
"You can be RID of YOUR demons, NEHKEN! FOR YOUR DEMONS AREN'T THE PLAGUE OF YOUR OWN AUTONOMY…!" He looks at the foreign wood stapled into his hands after their desperate act, only spurring him on to reach inside the holes he's made and pry them open further, letting the creaks and snaps of the wood ring out in a way more expressive than his screams alone could. "I want a family… I WANT TO CARE… BUT I CAN'T DO THAT WITHOUT SOMEONE TO CARE FOR… I… I…"
The deer's rambling breaks down into a pained sobbing, his damaged tear glands only leaking blood, the little he has left.
"I'm sorry… I'm… so… so sorry… I… I can't do this to you… any of you… you don't deserve this… this is stupid of me… selfish of me… but… I-I WANT TO HAVE… w-we all NEED to have--!"
He tries to reach for the lever, only to stop himself.
"Y-you…"
"W-wait…"
"Y-you must be in so much pain." She whimpers.
"M-Miko!" Nehken isn't sure why he calls out to Famiko. Anger that she would show sympathy for their killer? His own desperation, perhaps- for the fact that he felt the more and more the same in his beating heart? Either way, fear, frustration, and sorrow bred within him, a familiar poison drowning his head as the blood continued to rush to the top of it. He realized he was the only one positioned like this- a further measure to disable him. Could he have stopped this, if not? Could he have stopped this, if he hadn't shown what he was capable of?
"I…"
Primo's hand has long since frozen at the lever.
He still thinks back on what he had experienced with them. What it would say about him if he let them die. He can't bring himself to kill them, no matter how much he yearns for a familial bond- because to kill them now would go against the very ideal of that nature of bond.
He sits there, staring at his own red-stained hands. The three can merely watch silently as he sulks.
"...Primo?" Famiko breaks the silence.
"...W-what?"
"I-I know… there probably isn't anyone who can say they've experienced what you have, but… t-to have the privilege of a family stolen from you, is… w-well. I knew that pain. But… you…" She inhales a shivering cry. "Y-you showed me what it was like. To be cared for. Even if only for a night. E-even… if it was for a fleeting moment… you made those dreams of me having a loving father come true."
"...T-truly?- Th- that's so.. sweet of you… t-to say…"
Nehken ponders. He sees how hopeless the man is, it makes him sick to his stomach thinking about it. He can sympathise with the feelings he's feeling, not entirely, but enough to where he decides to propose something. He takes a deep breath.
"I'll make you a deal. If you help us collect the remaining blades of desire… we'll take you with us."
"You mean-?"
"Away from the catalyst isles, away from Hemlock, away from all this bullshit. I know what it's like to feel hopeless. I had to feel like that for the betterment of two decades of my life. These two have sparked hope in me… so I want to spark hope in others." Silence hangs over the basement yet again, Primo processing what he had just heard. "...Sounds like a plan?" the wolf asks for confirmation.
"B-but… Hemlock… he… won't let me just leave, he-"
"One guy, huh. That's who you're scared of? Lucky for you, I've taken out hundreds. Seems like a pretty silly reason to stay to me." He itches his leg on some of the spikes. "You want me to deal with that for you, old man?"
"I- yes! Yes! Th-thank you! I- cannot thank you enough- even after all I've done- you- you still-?" The tears of despair turn to tears of happiness.
"Again, I've killed hundreds. Can't really ridicule someone who attempted to kill three."
"OH YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING ME! SO CLOSE! GODS! ITS LIKE THE UNIVERSE HATES ME!" Davanak can barely comprehend how this happened. He slams his plate into the ground angrily. Luckily for him, not all is perfect.
Clapping can be heard from near the stairway. Two feathered hands slap together slowly as the undead bird speaks his mind.
"Bravo! Stellar show, gentlemen. If this were a film, the cinemas would be absolutely packed."
The raven announces his presence. He cocks his forty-four, adjusting his fedora as he smugly walks up to the scene.
"Cross." The wolf eyes the avian, really hoping he could be let down anytime soon. Primo rushes to accomplish that.
"Nehken, was it? Honestly I took you for more of a Pedro. Haha!"
"You're the fifth person that Hemlock warned about. I'm guessing you aren't with them?"
"No. In fact, I am actively hunting him." He points his gun at Nehken just as Primo finishes unshackling him and his friends. Out of the frying pan, into the fire. "This will be the day I bring you to justice, wolf! No longer will you plague the world, your reign of terror will-"
"I'm going to stop you right there, birdbrain." Davanak cuts the avian off. The goat looks to be irritated, the mix of not having his way along with the sudden appearance of Cross not really mixing well for him.
"Usually, I'd be fine with your little crusade, however, it's getting tiring seeing you try and try again only to fail to comprehend what the situation is. It was comical at first but now… it's just sad for the so-called "best detective on Avaxis."
"And how would you know what's going on exactly, hm?" He smugly remarks to the akuma.
"Easy. I caused it."
"...Sorry?" His smug expression is shattered in four simple words. They repeat to him, but he doesn't hear them. Not really. He just feels them. Deafening. Defeating.
"Yeah. That's right, ya dead pigeon. Those killings, not as morally wrong as you might think. Imagine you were cursed with your lifespan being indicative to your kill count, what would the average person do in that situation? News flash! They wouldn't just sit there and take it. And me? Yahehehe! I'm the catalyst of it all! I gave him that curse, I am the curse!"
The gumshoe looks at the goat, dumbfounded. No it can't be that. It couldn't. It's a cover-story. It has to be. As he tries to convince himself that the reaper was still the bad guy, Davanak grabs his arm, pointing the gun at himself.
"If there's anyone that should be brought to justice. It should be me, right? Come on, little birdie. PULL THE TRIGGER." He isn't lying. That smile, it's one of someone that's truly sadistic. In mere moments, Cross's view of the reaper is called into question. So many interactions are recontextualized. It's to the point that his entire worldview is called into question. If a supernatural force forced someone's hand, do they deserve to be punished? Is that some form of blackmail? How would you press charges against something that isn't even physical? Do you take the devil himself to court? None of it makes any sense. He's a hero. There couldn't possibly be anything so naive about him! His life is devoted to justice! Just pull the trigger, Cross, PULL THE TRIGGER.
"I-I CAN'T."
The enforcer pulls his piece away, shoving it back into his coat. He looks around at everyone in the room, as if a single person there can raise him out of the hole he dug for himself the second he set his sights on the reaper- no, the second he picked up his gun.
The coward opts to run off.
Davanak dusts his hands off, a smug yet still sadistic grin plastered on his face. Famiko rushes over to him, hugging him.
"You did it!"
"AUGH-! DID WHAT?!" He tries to push her away as if she were a bug that just jumped on him. "LET ME TAKE IT BACK! I'M SORRY!"
"You did something good, that's what!"
"...Oh." He hadn't even noticed that could've been viewed as noble. What's so noble about antagonizing a cop!? He cringes at the thought that he could be perceived in such a way.
"So… how do you feeeeel?" She looks at him with her big, shiny, heterochromatic eyes. To the group's demon, she is the most villainous creature that has ever lived.
"Like shit." Not the response she expected, surprisingly.
"Well… now that all of… that is out of the way. Can we get the spear now?" The chameleon is still shaken up from everything that has transpired. He only now even feels like he can manage to speak, and his heart hasn't caught up to the indicators of peace.
"Oh, yes! Allow me to get it. Here's your scythe by the way, Nehken." He hands the wolf his primary weapon back.
"Finally. I'd rather formally dispose of this thing once all of this is over. For now, I still need it."
"Awww, throwing away another gift of mine? How rude!" The goat sarcastically leans over to him. Only a devil would pressure someone into fighting with a farming tool their whole life. Not even a good one, either. Might as well have been given a lawnmower.
"Any 'gift' that comes from you is the equivalent of a pipe bomb in a birthday cake."
"Ooh, I'll save that for the next guy."
"After I lose you for good? Yeah." Nehken chuckles victoriously. "Way to think ahead. I had no idea you were such a good loser."
The goat grumbles and stops his hooves.
Soon enough, the puppet man walks over to a dusty case near the end of the room, he dusts it off, opening it and taking out the spear covered in ancient, illegible markings.
"Now then, shall we be off?"
"You're really okay with leaving this place so abruptly?" The fox rubs her wrist.
"Though it may look nice… this home feels like a prison cell of my own making. Leaving it won't weigh on my mind."
The walk back is a lot more straight forward than the trip there. The sandstorm had subsided. Primo knows the baron wasteland down the heights of each incline. He's so familiar with this place, it's hard to think that he's finally going to be rid of it. Shrai waves Sant over.
They step onto the boat, Sant greeting them with a smile. They hand him the spear, him nearly being unable to carry it on his own.
"My gods… this is a big one. What type of horrors did you have to defeat to get this one?" He examines the blade, nearly dropping it, only for MAN to catch it with his big beautiful sakura-colored bald head.
"Well, I don't think we exactly defeated him." She smiles as the dog hears a fifth set of footsteps set foot on the boat. A tall shadow drapes over Sant, him having to look up higher than usual to meet the man's eyes. One eye is covered by a button, the other seems to be that of an organic avaxian. He politely waves to the dog.
"Greetings! I'm guessing you're their escort?"
"...WHAT THE-"