Cross steps onto the shore of the next isle. Tall, spiked pillars litter the area. This place is abstract, hard to describe. Twisted structures that mimic that of people screaming, text across the walls that seem to be that of Morse code, nothing makes sense here. Cross knows these islands are more than mythological and ancient lands. An entire society was on one of them. If anything, he's kind of glad none of this lunacy has spread to the rest of Avaxis.
He focuses on traversing the land, making sure to check behind himself every so often. A part of him feels like he's being watched by something. He arrives at the end of the sand, a spiraling pit of an unknown substance drifting down into a place far too dark to perceive from so high up. Wherever the blade is, it's probably down there.
Before he can take one more step he hears something snap. The sound was like that of a bone breaking, so close to his ear it was like whatever made it was right next to him. He turns to look behind himself to see nothing, yet the detective is clever enough to know whatever is here is trying to toy with him. He admires his revolver, letting the yoke of its cylinder drop to check the last of his munitions. A mere two rounds left. He scolds his overconfidence for not bringing more.
Just then, he sees something in his peripheral vision. He jolts his gaze towards it, only for it to have fled out of sight. The zombie can only point his gun around the area, hoping that'll scare it off. He'd fire a warning shot if he had more ammo, but he doesn't have that luxury. "Who's there?" The raven squawks, not expecting a response, but getting one anyway.
"A description of who or what I am cannot be found."
The detective is unable to respond, the entity has already gripped him by his throat. It stands behind him, the bird unable to see his adversary, his head locked in place. He hears gurgling, cracking, scratching, sounds that he cannot even describe within the current moment.
"All variables will be accounted for." The entity tears a piece of itself off that drags the bird down the slope and into the abyss below. Only then can he get a glimpse of who the presumed bladeholder is. He wishes he was still left guessing as he drifts into the dark. The anomaly peers towards the shores, spotting a boat in the distance.
"Exception resolved." They melt into the ground.
On Sant's ship, Nehken and Shrai play ping pong to pass the time. They had just found the set and table while exploring the bottom storage of the boat. Famiko and Davanak watch the ball go back and forth, the repeated sound of the plastic ball's collision from paddle to table. The wolf seems to be skilled at this, most likely because of the game being reflex based. He's leading, just a point above the cyborg- but he seems to have caught the reaper off guard, the speed of the ball flying past him, nearly hitting him in the side of the head. Like a speeding bullet, the last ball of the set flies off the deck. They're even, and without a ball. Why did they decide to play on the deck?
"Well, that's two points for you and two points for me. How the hell do we do a tie breaker without a ball?" The cloaked one squints.
"Beats me. Arm wrestling maybe?"
"Your good arm's about as skinny as your prosthetic."
"Good point."
At that moment, something falls onto the table. A pink ball, seemingly plastic. The chameleon picks it up, turning it around to see a derpy neutral face with dotted eyes. MAN turned himself into a ping pong ball. Funniest thing they've seen all day.
Sant stands behind the wheel, a stack of books to help his stature. Primo sits behind him, tinkering with a few metal scraps, constructing a little wind-up duck. He hasn't worked with metal that much, it's so much easier to use for this stuff.
The fun soon stops, the group looking up to see what looks like a grey twisting root grabbing onto the boat, bringing it to the isle. It smashes into the shore, the entire boat smashed and broken. Nehken's eyes open, his nerves catching him up on how much pain he went through while unconscious. He sits next to a spiked, black pillar, his scythe right next to him, thankfully. He doesn't want to have to deal with losing it again. His calm wake is soon interrupted.
"MY BOAT!!!"
Sant's scream can probably be heard faintly across the entire landmass. The reaper runs over to see the dog's ship, a broken husk of its former self. Sitting next to the black and white canine, the fox rubs his back. The rest of the party arrives at the scene, some more battered than others.
"...The hell did this?"
"Ugh… don't tell me hemlock went through with Project Bendalu." Primo pinches the bridge of his nose. Davanak coughs, pushing a piece of debris off his chest.
"Project what now?"
"Before Hemlock stranded me on my island, he was talking about making an entity that could be anything, and nothing at the same time."
"Oh. So the guy's just crazy, got it."
"I'd say so."
From the distance comes an oddly familiar voice. Purple accented robes, and a gear construct just behind her. It's impossible, yet there's no one else it could be.
"L-lady Silas?" The fox stands up, reasonably confused. "Didn't you get-?"
"The doctor has his tactics of instilling fear into people, but at the end of the day it's just that. Fear tactics." She crosses one arm over the other. Shrai is hardly stirred, his focus mainly on fixing the ventilation of his own.
"Okay then- why are you here?"
"I wanted to make your lives easier by collecting one of the trickiest blades for you. The halberd of impulse. You helped me, so I wanted to return the favor."
"Aw. Thank you." The reaper smiles at her, joined by the goat, only with even more than his usual hint of malice.
"How very clever…"
"Now, follow." She waves, gesturing to them to follow her without any further explanation.
"I'm… going to stay behind. I'll make sure Sant and… that thing, are okay." The deer, put off by the entire situation, kneels down, petting the poor dog.
"This is gonna cost me a fortune to fix…" Sant nearly cries over the scattered pieces of his vessel. MAN sits there, staring at Silas who hasn't waited for the group to start traversing the land.
The four catch up to the royal hedgehog, her steps soft, just as they remember her walking to be. They gaze upon a large whirlpool of a dark, unidentifiable substance. Nehken reaches down, grabbing it with his hand. It feels both wet and dry, sandy and slimy, and never consistent.
"Down there. That's where the halberd lies." The princess points.
"How do you know?" The wolf lets the grime fall from between his fingers.
"This used to be my designated island before I was moved to the one you visited first."
"Yeah, it makes sense."
"No it doesn't." Shrai interjects.
"What do you mean?" the hedgehog's eyes dart to the cyborg.
"You've stated before that your society had existed on that isle for generations. If this were true, then the tree monster would've been your doing, not one of your ancestors."
"Wuh oh! Slip up!" Davanak's grin never faded.
What seems to be Silas sighs. "I really thought this would've been easier. Why did you have to be so keen eyed, chameleon?"
Confused, the reaper decides to peer into her soul. This decision results in a revelation that shakes him to his core.
"...Guys? She doesn't have a soul."
Davanak sniffs long and loudly. "OH BABY! I can just smell the DREAD!" He enjoys this way too much.
Whatever impersonating Silas hangs her head down, before something that resembles the root-like tendril that destroyed their ship grabs onto them, dragging them into the deep abyss of eigengrau. They claw and pry, try to grasp anything to save them from plunging deep into the abyss. All except for Davanak, a smug grin on his putrid face as he just lets it happen. Before they can even comprehend what is happening, everything goes black.
Shrai comes to, his vizor cracked, nano machines trying desperately to repair it. All he can see is warning messages in his face. If he had normal eyes, he's pretty sure he'd be blind by now. He frantically shakes Miko awake, her eyes opening like the blinds of a pair of windows.
"Where… are we?"
"Better questions. WHAT IN THE NAME OF IZANAGI WAS THAT?! WHERE ARE THE OTHERS? THE HELL IS THIS PLACE, AND TO CAP IT OFF, WHY DID WE FALL FOR THAT?!"
"Shrai!"
"GODS! It's like every time we get onto another one of these isles and with THINK we got everything figured out, something pulls some BULLSHIT outta their ANAL CAVITY like its some sort of sadistic SCIENCE FAIR!"
"SHRAI! CALM DOWN!" The fox matches his volume to get his attention.
They survey the area, which seems to be left of a rundown mall. The weird substance is all around them, yet nowhere to be found at the same time. They walk, the room feeling both flat and bumpy simultaneously. Whatever it is, it's uncomfortable to walk on. Nothing here is right. Everything feels overwhelmingly complex, yet stupidly simple.
Every time they blink the room seems to shift in subtle ways, like the room itself is trying to simulate the mandela effect over and over again. This is by far the most abstract area they've been to.
"Lets not waste any time. We need to find that halberd and fast." The chameleon's voice isn't the carefree one the fox is used to. He grabs her by the arm, rushing around the area.
Soon enough they hear more footsteps than their own. They quickly turn to see Nehken running from something. No words are exchanged, the distraught look in the rogue's eyes tells them to run better than any straining of the vocal cords could.
They turn corner after corner, unable to shake this entity. They hear cracking, creaking, shaking, shivering, every comprehensible sound blaring into their all ears at once like some cacophony of overstimulation. They eventually find a part of the mall to hide in. Miko pokes her head out to get a glimpse of what's been chasing them. The sight makes her gut wretch.
A dark grey mound of flesh, doesn't even look like an avaxian. It's an abomination, an utter freak of nature. None of its limbs look right, its proportions shifting and twisting as it moves, and its face, its disgusting face. A hole that looks like that of shattered pottery, a blood red face engulfed in shadow, two piercing white pupils from within small eye sockets. It looks around, their body twisting three hundred and sixty degrees to survey the area like some demented security camera.
"Subjests one through three absent. Prime objective, pacify subject four. Secondary objective, come back and take care of absent variables."
It speaks in a whispery, disconnected voice. So much rasp it would make Davanak's voice sound smooth. It shuffles off. The three can breathe again.
"Call me captain obviously, but I think that was the "Project Bendalu" that Primo mentioned." The canine grasps his arm, tense as a basketball.
"Where's Davanak?"
"I don't know. I haven't seen him since I woke up. I doubt the thing got him-... hold on." The wolf is stopped by the sound of banging from behind the counter of the baron storefront they've hidden in. He walks behind the counter, opening one of the cabinets.
He witnesses a strange sight. Cross, restrained by what can only be described as Bendalu's own flesh. It's wrapped around his mouth and his body. He screams, his cries being muffled by the dark meat around his beak. Miko being the kind-hearted soul she is, freezes the restraints, breaking them off.
He gasps for air, choking on it. "Tha-... Thank you. augh…"
"What are you doing here?" He raises his scythe, more than expecting some sort of a confrontation.
"I'm not-…" he coughs violently, feeling light-headed and like he was about to pass out before being free'd. "I don't want a fight… I came here to get the blade…"
"...Why?"
"Fo-... For you…"
"Huh?" His anger turns to pure confusion as the listless avian turns to the ground.
"Look… I'm not one for apologies… but. I know I was barking up the wrong tree there. I chased you, antagonized you, blamed you, but not once did I stop to think about what you really were. A victim. I set my sights on a victim." He hollowly laughs. "I'm not asking for forgiveness. I did that for years, long before you. Even after my feathers were done being employed by the state, I still pledged them against my fellow man. I pretended to be a predator… because I was too scared of bein' prey.
"...That's hardly an excuse."
"I know. I just want to make things right. I need to do this. I can't live with myself knowing I put you through all that stress for no reason."
"I mean… the guy did give us the dagger, even taking out the bladeholder before they even figured out we were there. I'm still a bit skeptical, though." The chameleon, while hesitantly, pitches in nonetheless.
"Justifiably so-"
"Got it. We're cool for now."
"...Wha-?"
"I don't know what you did before you were after me. Not hard to imagine you were a piece of shit, but if I turn you down now, won't you just keep doing that?" He shrugs. "I don't like you- you won't get that just for handing us the dagger and saying sorry- but when you do as much to people as I do… you forget how to hold a grudge. Just a little."
"Even if you did… I'd understand… but… thank you."
"Now." He pushes the bird back, jabbing his metallic glove's finger into his chest. "I may forgive you, but as I've said, you're not off the hook just yet. You need to pull your weight and show me you're sorry. You're already on shaky ground, flying pig."
"M-mhm!"
"Do you know where the halberd is?" Famiko leans over the counter, exhausted.
"No, sadly. That thing pulled me in here before I could even get a good survey of the land. We're looking for a halberd you say?"
"The halberd of impulse, that's what the entity told us it was while pretending to be a past ally."
"Great, it plays mind games too. Alright, let's go. I have two bullets left in the chamber, and zero patience left to give for this place." The raven swiftly runs off, the others following their seemingly unlikely new ally close behind.
The akuma's eyes crack open, his form raising up like a reanimated corpse. He surveys the area with more curiosity than caution. The surroundings are not natural or artificial. Unrecognizable, even for a demon's supernatural understanding. Typical mortals, playing with things they shouldn't, he thinks, preparing to take his first step forward. Like kids watching movies they are far too young to be viewing, this world's avaxians have no understanding of what lies beyond it, and should not trifle in matters better fit for a spirit. That said… this place confounds even him.
He takes a step. The ground feels wrong, everything feels wrong. It's not just his body, it's the entire room. It's off. Is this what a mortal mall is supposed to look like? It feels like his heartbeat is being broadcasted from another room. Is this what his sisters always talked about going to in their free time if they were on the surface world? Everything here feels alive- and yet also like it has never felt the slightest bit of warmth or vitality. He doesn't understand it, not like he wants to.
He hears the voice of something echo towards him. Great, he has company. He was getting lonely.
"Subject four located." The entity stands behind him. Its head is tilted.
"Tch. For once I'm the one being presented with horror beyond my comprehension. Odd how the tables have turned, ain't it? Guess these islands have a way of doing that. So, what's your deal?"
"If you must know, imp."
"Not even the same demonic family but go off I guess."
"You are logic. Fact. One of many variables in an endless equation. You are foretold by the past and set on rails to a predictable future." They continue to recite, looking at nothing. Or perhaps past everything, meeting the eyes of an unseen party. "I am an exception."
"Come again?"
"I am what you get when you divide by zero. I am all, and I am nothing. I am what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object. I am… Bendalu."
"Such a stupid name for such a stupid creature."
The goat speeds towards the unidentifiable creature, grabbing the thing's head- and tries shoving it into the wall. Before it can collide, it moves along his arm like some sort of snake-like creature, growing large blunt spikes and bashing the sides of the goat's head. This more than aggravates Davanak, engulfing himself in flames to burn the putrid amalgam off.
Once it shapes back into its usual form, as usual as it can get, he slashes at it, reforming every cut he makes. It has no blood, or it cannot bleed. There goes the fun part. He can't even tell if it can feel pain? Does it even have nerves? Even layers of flesh? It shouldn't matter. It's a freak of nature and he's gonna make sure it burns in hellfire.
It morphs around him again, trying to choke him out.
"Succumb. Submit. Fall."
"Bro you ain't shit. Is this all you got? I've seen clowns choke people harder than this!"
The Demon grasps Bendalu's wrinkled form, swinging him around and throwing him into the wall. He leans back, fire building up in his mouth before belching at the abomination with an unending stream of flames. Bendalu sits on the ground, his body charred. He had underestimated the akuma. He undercalculated. He's going to fail. He can't, he won't, he- is being left there. The akuma walks past him looking over his shoulder. He smirks, what's left of Bendalu sinking into the floor in front of him.
The group turns the corner to see Davanak dusting himself off. Miko runs over to him, wrapping her arms around him.
"AUGH! No touchie! Gods! Ever heard of personal space, woman?"
"Sorry! I'm just glad you're okay." The optimist beams at him. He has to hold back from vomiting right there on the spot.
"You seem to not know me if you thought that freak would've given me a hard time."
"Was it-...?" Nehken looks at him skeptically.
"Atomized, reduced to ash, and out of our hair." He shrugs, that same dastardly smile ever present. "Most boring boss yet. Mi— Famiko, is this how your games usually go? They just suck at the very end?"
"Oftentimes!!" She is smiling a lot.
"I've been… thinking. How do we know you're a real demon?" Cross is with his former rival, not entirely trusting his words.
"Please! He could replicate my form, but never my swagger." And the victor quite immediately starts walking off, the rest of the group hesitantly following him.
"How do you know where we're going?"
"Found where the halberd was being kept whilst mapping out the place." He, in fact, hasn't. The devil looks at the wall, a veiny texture leading them to where it's being kept. It seems the unidentifiable freak of nature knows what he's doing. While the other three are conversing among themselves, Davanak puts his arm around Shrai's shoulders.
"Y'know. I may or may not have lied about killing the thing?"
"You wha-?" Before he can raise his voice, the gout cups his hand around his mouth.
"Shhhhhhhh… It's fine. I told the weirdo to wait until we're back out with the halberd to do a sneak attack, unknown to it, I got a plan to catch it off guard whilst catching us off guard. Playing 4D chess or some shit like that."
"But why are you telling me this?"
"Look at those three. None of them have the mental fortitude to handle that type of stress. They've been through hell, metaphorically, but you on the other hand. You're a lot more reserved, a tactician, a numbers guy. You can come up with a plan all on your own, wow the rest of the gang, and maybe, just maybe, gain that drive back."
"...How do you-?"
"You're not the only one who can read people, toaster-face. I've known your deal since the moment I met you."
"...Any insight on the thing's disadvantages?" The techie sighs, entirely convinced Davanak is genuinely trying to help him. He guesses Famiko was right about the guy.
"Oh plenty, bud! While I got a few melee hits on the guy, I did see sparks fly. Seems their form is mechanical in some sort of way despite the fleshy look. I doubt it's weak to water, that'd be way too easy."
"Not to mention they did sound pretty artificial… you think I could hack into him?"
"Well it goes to reason that since he was seemingly manufactured by the same people that made those cockroach bots, that he should share at least the same framework or some techno babble like that."
"I'll see if I can whip something up for it." He smiles at the goat, quite honestly at that.
"You got this buddy! I believe in you!" He doesn't. His fake change of heart concluded, he pats him on the back anyways as he continues to follow the trailing vein in the wall.
They come to a part of the mall that doesn't even look like a mall anymore. The room is cold, a red-marked halberd wedged into a stone slab in the middle of the room. Not wanting to waste anymore time, the detective rushes over to it, his hands wrapping around the handle.
"Do you think this place is powered by the blade like Bebek's circus or the tree-thing?" The vixen rubs her wrist.
"Meh, probably not." The goat waves his hand, seemingly dismissing the thought. He leans over to the wall, covering his mouth with his hand. "Is it?"
"No." Bendalu's voice whispers in his ear from the wall.
"Okay good." He breathes a sigh of relief as the bird removes the halberd. He stumbles, dropping it from the sheer weight and improper holding of it. Nehken picks it up, holding it over his shoulder.
"Alright, now let's get out of here."
"And how do we do that?" Cross dusts himself off.
"Huh. That's an oddly convenient escalator." He points to what is indeed, an oddly convenient escalator. "Thanks for saving me the walk."
Not wanting to hurt their heads any much more, they decide not to question why the exit just appeared to them. The escalator takes each of them up to the surface. They breathe a sigh of relief, all except for Davanak and Shrai. The chameleon slaves across his virtual keyboard, making sure to account for every little detail possible on their way back. He doesn't know exactly when the ambush will happen. All the more incentive to work as hard as he can.
The bird walks next to the reaper, while the fox holds his hand to relieve any leftover stress she has. He looks over to the two. He had just talked with them earlier, but it wasn't really an active conversation. He takes a deep breath.
"So. What do you plan to do once all this is over?"
"Hard to say honestly. I haven't thought that far ahead yet."
"I'd start with a long nap, and a long shower." Miko giggles. She sure has.
"The first thing I want to do is get rid of this scythe. It has come in handy thus far, but it holds too many bad memories for me to want to hold onto."
"I can understand that. I'm… gonna find something better to do I guess. Hang up the badge for real this time, metaphorically speaking." He tiredly preens. "After that… maybe a vacation. Izanagi knows my wife deserves it."
"You have a wife?"
"Yeah, don't usually mention her. Her name is Vilos. Don't think you'd like her, but she's… sweet, loving, beautiful… a guy like me shouldn't have a woman like her in his life. Even if she would probably lock me in a birdcage if she could." He chuckles.
"You know, for a murderous class traitor, you're actually really trying to not be a dick right now!" Nehken coughs into a small laughing fit as his girlfriend suddenly delivers the most backhanded compliment of her life thus far. "I think calling you a saint would be pretty stupid, but I hope to see you get better!" She smiles at the reanimated corpse.
"Oh, you know. Only took five years. Don't wind up like me, kid."
"Well, what matters is that you won't be so pathetic anymore. If forgiving you means we protect people like me, and people like Nehken… I'm ready to squint real hard to see the good in you!"
"You see good in Davanak, I don't think your view on morality is entirely screwed on right." The wolf shrugs, chuckling.
"Everyone deserves at least a chance!" Miko pouts at her partner. "And I know we always have you to knock some sense back into 'em if they act up again!"
"Sure. But Davanak? He almost got us killed once."
"And right after that, stood up to Cross for you."
"I don't think that was his intention."
"Hold on." The corvid stops in place. "If he's been trying to sabotage you, why was he actively helping us back down in that abyssal mall?"
"Turned over a new leaf I guess!"
"Why would he? Was there any instance that could've triggered one?"
"Uhm…" And Miko goes silent.
"Either he had a spontaneous morality switch, or he's playing us for fools. Let's hurry."
The raven rushes forward, the other two following close behind. Shrai, confused, picks up the pace as well. The akuma grins to himself. It's almost time for the payoff of a lifetime. The group gets to where Sant and Primo are, trying to get MAN to reconstruct the boat to little success. Without the luxury of time, Cross signals to the others.
"Follow me! We'll take my ship!"
"Isn't that-?" The deer's justified question is cut off abruptly by Nehken.
"We'll explain later! Get moving!"
Confused, they still listen, Sant and Primo rushing to where Cross's vessel is. Before they can board, something starts to form in front of them. Dark twisting flesh, blackened face. it's not dead. The goat had deceived them. Cross wants to bash his head into a wall for not putting two and two together sooner. This was his job, his profession for crying out loud. How did he let a hellspawn trick him so easily?
"Move out of the way. I got this." The reptile steps forth, rolling his sleeve, a look of determination in his eyes. With a swift press of a button, he runs the algorithm, grabbing the creature's head, wires stabbing into its body. This is his chance. This is what'll ignite the spark, the drive to make a difference in his life. This is… not working? The screen displays an error message. "Directory not found? What do you mean? it's right here! Why isn't it-?"
"I am not mechanical."
The chameleon, distraught, looks behind him towards Davanak. The goat makes many exaggerated and fake looking faces of shock in mockery before cackling.
"You-..."
"LIED! I LIED!! YEHAHAHAHA! TEAR THEM APART, BENNY BOY!"
"With pleasure." Its form starts to grasp Shrai by his arm, throwing him around, smashing him into the shore. The rest of the group tries to aid him. Nehken slices Bendalu's limb off, only for it to grow back in seconds, grabbing his weapon. "You've stated you don't want this anymore. Allow me to aid you."
with ease, the scythe shatters into millions of little pieces from the sheer force behind the entity. The now scytheless reaper is stunned. Before he can think of a follow up move he's pinned to the ground by the indescribable horror's own dismembered anatomy. Primo, Famiko and Cross all try to gang up on the entity, only for it to dissolve into mist, reappearing right in front of them. Before anyone can react, they are met with blows so quick they can't even comprehend.
Throughout all of this, Davanak leans back on one of the black spiked pillars, smiling the largest smile he has ever smiled within this body. Sant stands there, frozen as he watches his friends get overwhelmed. Bendalu stands over Shrai, raising one of their limbs, forming it into a sharp spike.
"W-we need to do something!"
"I don't have to do anything. Those people aren't my friends. They never will be. Go on. Try to make a difference, mutt." His glee is immeasurable.
Sant looks down, MAN seems to look worried as Sant rushes to his friend's aid, determination and resolve in his eyes.
Shrai braces himself for what may be his death, only for the sound of stabbing flesh to ring through his auditory censors, yet no pain coursing through his nerves to accompany it. He looks to see a short figure standing in front of him, arms spread out, protecting him. The deep blue hoodie is slowly soaked in red.
"SANT!!!" Shrai screams out, his friend falling into his arms, a large gaping hole in the middle of his chest.
The dog coughs, his mouth growing heavy with hot liquid.
"I-... I guess I'm not getting that double cheeseburger… I wish I could've said this sooner… but, I'm glad you guys were in my life… you and Miko were probably the stupidest people I've ever met… in a good way, of course." He chuckles, tears forming in his eyes.
"No… no no no NO NO NO NO! I'm sorry! I'M SORRY!" He tries desperately to look around to find something, anything to try and stop the bleeding, but he's bleeding out too quickly.
"It's okay, Shrai. Really, it is. I'm happy to die knowing I made sure you had more time to persevere… adios amigo… Ilegar lejos…" He falls silent, going still, his body slack. The rest can only watch, Shrai starting to sob uncontrollably.
The goat grins sadistically, relishing in the sorrow, the anguish, the despair of it all. He hasn't felt this great in days. Just then, something catches his attention. Right as Bendalu goes to try and finish off the grieving chameleon, MAN steps in front of him. He takes the hit, yet he isn't impaled, nor is he wounded.
What has been called "MAN" throughout this entire journey doesn't do anything comical, simply staring at the entity. His mouth slowly opens, to reveal that it was never a perfectly straight mouth to begin with. It was a closed eye. The capsule-like body cracks, its true body taking form. Tall, stick-like, pink spines protruding from its shoulders.
"Seems the Shikigami is shedding its disguise." Davanak looks on, interested, the rest dumbfounded by what is happening before them.
"You see, Bendalu, Shikigamis are formed by those who practice Onmyodo. This one seems to be without an Onmyoji, latching onto that dog like a well-meaning symbiote. I can feel its anger. Its need for vengeance."
"What… is this?" The entity cannot comprehend what is in front of him.
"Its name… is Manyufest, and you've angered it. Have fun."
Manyufest towers over the artificial freak, its stick-like hands forming spiritual energy, ki within it. It blasts Bendalu with multiple beams, each coming from one of its long, thin fingers. It grabs Bendalu, teleporting into the sky. While the entity is versatile, the grey matter cannot act well in the air. Manyufest easily throws the entity downwards, forming a large ball of ki in the air.
Bendalu's artificial life flashes before his eyes, as the large sun of ki is thrown in his direction. He has failed his headmaster. Before the ball of ki fully collides with their form, he disintegrates, ensuring his survival, but abandoning his prime directive.
What used to be a source of confused grins in the form of MAN teleports in front of Davanak. It stares at him, the goat knowing well what he plans on doing to him. The goat opens his arms wide, mocking the very pose the familiar's closest friend died in.
"Go on. Send me back to where I came."
The Shikigami obliges, starting to choke the akuma violently. It bashes him against the pillar he was resting against, watching, telling their master to throw their life away. The only thing Davanak can think of is how he's succeeded in his life, his smile never fading no matter how much his feeble nerves cry out in agony. A shame he won't be within this mortal body for much longer. To his dismay, a voice yells from behind the pink-headed guardian spirit.
"STOP!" That blasted vixen again. Her restraints having been dissolved, she gets up and rushes towards Manyufest. "PLEASE!... I DON'T WANT ANYONE ELSE TO DIE!... please…" She's still shaken up by his master's death. Her eyes are shiny, watery. She holds back tears as she begs the Shikigami to release Davanak. Reluctantly, it leaves him go, the goat falling to the ground as the Shikigami disappears without a trace.
"UGH! SO CLOSE!" the demon scowls at the wet rag of a girl in front of him.
"YOU!" The voice of the chameleon is violent, distraught, and filled with rage and resentment. Miko holds him back as he tries to force his way towards the akuma.
"YOU LYING PRICK! I SHOULD HAVE YOU HUNG BY JUMPER CABLES- I—-! I'LL KILL YOU!" He cries out in a fit of anguish and anger.
"S- Shrai! P- Please!" She desperately tries to calm him down.
"WHY ARE YOU HOLDING ME BACK?! WHY ARE YOU STILL PROTECTING THAT MONSTER?!"
The rest of the group are still stunned by the situation, only being able to view Shrai's breakdown.
"I- I kn- know he did someth- something horrible b- but-."
"BUT?! BUT WHAT?! HE GOT SANT KILLED!! HE TRICKED ME INTO THINKING I HAD EVERYTHING HANDLED ON MY OWN!! YOU CAN'T JUSTIFY THAT!"
The goat- no. Referring to him as any sort of avaxian at this point is an insult to this very race. The akuma claps, slowly, and loudly. Half of his face is a smirk, the other, a grimace.
"Thank you, toaster-face. You took the words right out of my mouth." He stands, rolling his shoulders. He takes a deep breath. Warmth fills his body for once. Glee.
"Let me repeat the first word I ever said to you in this form, fox. Why? Out of everything in this world you could see the good in, why see the good in something that's heartless, soulless?"
"That's not true. You have a heart-" She tries to get a grip on the situation, but is cut off.
"No. No, I do not. You only want to believe that because of the time we've spent together, the time you've forced me to spend with you. It's your own desperation and attachment speaking. This is what you can't wrap your smooth brain around."
"NO! YOU'RE WRONG! THERE'S SOMETHING! EVEN IF IT'S SMALL! I KNOW YOU-"
"You wanna get off your high horse and actually listen to someone for once, Michael?"
"...D-Davanak…? I— why would you…"
"Deadname you? Why not? I bound Nehken to a life of hell and guilt." He starts to… giggle? He's happy. This makes him happy. "I… live for the suffering and death of all avaxians. I'M. A. DEMON, YOU BRAINLESS MORTAL! GO AHEAD! You all hear that? Tell them all what I called you, you worthless shut-in leech on society. HOW DO YOU REDEEM THAT?"
"D-DAVANAK!" Nehken tries to intervene, but she stops him. She stops him. Davanak cackles. It's all too hard to believe his eyes.
"It… n-no. You just- want to get a rise out of me, and you went a bit too far and in the spur of the moment you—"
"Spur of the MOMENT? ARE YOU SEEING THIS? I'm ACTIVELY BELITTLING you and yet you still wanna coddle me!" He's broken into a full-on laugh. It's all so perfect. She'll finally understand how stupid she is for coming close to him. They'll all understand.
"Y-YOU—- SANT WOULD-"
"I'D SAY ALL THIS EVEN IF THAT WHITE DOG DIDN'T KICK THE BUCKET! "YOU'RE NOT EVEN MEAN ENOUGH TO DO THAT" MY ASS!"
"I… I'm just trying to help you…"
"HOW MANY TIMES AM I GOING TO HAVE TO SPELL IT OUT FOR YOU?" He rushes over to Sant's corpse. Famiko gasps as he grabs the arm, twisting it at the joint. Its tendons struggle under the akuma's supernatural strength until he gorily removes it, using it as an oversized paintbrush to write red streaks in the sand.
"I. DON'T. WANT. TO. BE. HELPED!!!"
He throws it at the girl when he's done. It even hits the stunned thing, with no time for her to react in her current state. Her fur is matted in an instant, a gloss of red going over the front of it before the arm's juices then begin to pool at her shoes.
She suppresses the urge to vomit as tears mingle with the warmth of her late friend that hugs her face in a sickeningly metallic odor. The group is left shaken, Primo immediately trying to step in front of the blood-soaked Famiko- before she lashes out and pushes him away, eyes focused on Davanak and Davanak only.
"Y-… Yo-... YOU'RE SUCH AN ASSHOLE!" She snaps, her eyes filling with tears.
"THATS THE POINT!!!!"
The akuma screams at her, no longer laughing.
"...I CAN'T BE FIXED… BECAUSE I WAS NEVER BROKEN IN THE FIRST PLACE. Want me to do a good deed? HOW'S THIS?! THE ONLY REASON YOU TRY TO "FIX" OTHERS IS BECAUSE YOU'RE TOO SCARED TO LOOK IN A MIRROR AND SEE HOW BROKEN YOU ARE. YOU SEE THE GOOD IN EVERYONE BECAUSE YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THE "BAD" IN YOURSELF. YOU'RE. BROKEN. FIX YOURSELF, NOT ME."
Silence fills the air, the wind blowing, the broken vixen falling to her knees. She sobs. The smile plastered on the goat vessel fades. He doesn't know what he feels. Is this what they call regret? Surely not. He can't feel. He shouldn't feel. Even if he felt any amount of remorse, he's too deep now. Time to add the cherry on top of this broken ice cream sundae.
"Now say the thing. Go on. Say it." He stares at her intently. She knows exactly what he means.
"H- hic h-... how d-... do you y- sniff feel?..." She has to force it out.
"Like the asshole I'm supposed to be." He forces the grin back on his face before vanishing in a puff of smoke.
Shrai stands next to the sobbing wet towel of a fox. Nehken walks over to her, gently placing a hand on her shoulder. "A-are you okay…?" He isn't sure what to do in a time like this. All he knows is that he's angry, but he has to ignore that. He has to help her.
"I… I need to be alone." She shivers, standing up and walking onto the boat.
Hours pass, the fox lingering in one of the beds on the vessel. She can't get the interaction out of her head. She can't get Sant out of her head. At this point, she feels more than just broken. Even though Davanak was a bad person, he was still her friend. That does not excuse his actions, but no matter how much she tries to, she can't hate him. The door creaks open, a soft voice coming from it.
"Dear Miss Famiko." Primo is as polite as ever, speaking in a tone that would calm even the most skittish and violent of creatures. "May I come in?"
"...Sure." she can't bring herself to say no, even if it's what she would've wanted at the current moment. Her face is moist- both from washing the blood off and the stains of her own tears.
The puppet sits on the edge of the bed, Miko not moving an inch. She stares at the ceiling as if she were dead.
"How are you holding up? The others are worried about you."
"I'm fine."
"No. You cannot lie to us like that. I get what happened is… less than ideal, but, you can't just lock yourself away and expect everything to fix itself."
"Well what can I do? Sant is dead, MAN is gone, Davanak…" She sighs.
"Even after all he's done you still have hope for the demon, don't you?"
"…Regrettably, yeah."
"I assure you, one day he may come around, but it's not up to you to make that decision for him. He needs to take the first step. Take Nehken, Cross or… even me for example. We wanted to turn our lives around, but he…"
"Thinks he was never broken to begin with…" She turns over, feeling the wear of her own emotions.
"His words are etched in your mind, aren't they?"
"Mhm…" She slowly itches her left shoulder. The deer brushes his wooden fingers across her head.
"But you… know that you-"
"...Why was I born broken?"
He is given pause, but refuses to falter. He faces her with complete honesty.
"You are not broken, my dear… People are like toys. We all have different ways that we're constructed, different ways that we work, but just because a toy doesn't work the same as another, doesn't make it any less of a beacon of light to those who know how to operate it." She smiles at the deer as he gets up and walks to the door. He looks behind himself. If he could smile, he would.
"Sleep well, child. This will all be over soon." The door closes.
Hemlock sits in his chair, bashing his fist into the arm of his chair like it owes him a fortune. His mind is clouded with hatred and irritation. He's the only one left. All of his work for centuries has come undone like a loose shoestring. He grits his teeth beneath his mask, before calming himself.
"No matter. Like a phoenix, Catalyst Incorporated will rise from the ashes, as long as I play the right cards." He looks behind himself, gazing upon the last blade in his possession, the sword of yearning.