Chương 108: CHAPTER 105 – Wondrous Hunt in the Sky

The night star shone silently over the residences of Alis, the last sector of Andimica, as well as the centre of degeneration. Wealth and self-segregation had built a society almost separate from life in the capital, estranging the rich from the affairs of Bayork's "smoking beggars." It was no longer the capital but a connection point to the artificial paradise built on years of labour over a fortunate deposit.

No one cared about the now-rotten lungs of the old workers, as long as they were sacrifices for the sacred garden of the superior species. The island had been completely terraformed, expanded with expanses of concrete and reinvigorated with fertile soil. In the multicoloured groves, villas and luminous skyscrapers rose, with all the luxury worthy of a king's vanity.

Some were engineering masterpieces with sinuous, elegant forms, linked by complex bridges; others were lesser but superior to Bayork's antiquated geometry. In a magnificent hall atop these grand works, a party had taken place. Vomit, alcohol, human stains, and greasy gums were spread across the floor. The fine furnishings reduced to mere witnesses of a savage crush. Beyond the dubious liquids, a substance clearly distinguishable from the others spread across the wooden floor.

Its ferrous aroma intoxicated the floor better than any liquor. Now all the participants were one in blood, their mangled bodies fused and scattered throughout the room. Some were beginning to dissolve into a black mist, abandoning the horror of their forms.

"Was it necessary to kill them?" A man with a toned physique, streaked with black scars and pieces of iron sewn into his flesh, emerged naked from the colossal bathroom. His long hair, blacker than night, was tied in a feminine braid. He grabbed a violet velvet bathrobe from the table, putting it on despite the damp bloodstains. His dark eyes fixed on the massacre, offering a smile.

"Yours is not a question, but a way to probe my motivations." A woman's voice emerged from beyond the balcony curtains. Malcolm passed through them, feeling the cold run along his pale skin. Before him, seated while sipping a steaming black liquid, was a woman dressed in black feathers. Only a single white diadem kept her from vanishing into the darkness. Malcolm smiled, perhaps satisfied with that answer.

"Would you let aphids devour the flowers in your garden? If you say yes, you are either an aphid or an inept gardener. Both are a scourge to the garden." She looked beyond the man, smiling as the bodies began to vanish.

"I perfectly understand that these people were already dead in your eyes, but I chose to eliminate them for a very specific reason." The lady took a sip from the cup and then pointed at the shredded flesh on the table. Among the appendages, a golden crest was disfigured.

"They are all children of scientists, strong economic enterprises, or noble families. Gathered here to pass the New Year's Eve in a splendid party. For what, then? They have known no illness, no effort, no satisfaction. Only harvest and never sowing. Many of them have caused trouble in the capital and to innocent people. Their existence is parasitic." She stopped pointing and set the cup on the table, perhaps one of the few things left intact in the house.

"I didn't take you for one with rigid morals." A portal opened above them, revealing what looked like a passage painted on a canvas. Immediately, a man in a bluish coat adorned with luminous paint stains and golden crests appeared. Tied at the waist was a wide-brimmed green hat. His wavy hair reached his nape, dishevelled by the wind. Apate shook her head, sighing at the newcomer.

"Morals are a social construct. You are forbidden from murder because the idea that it is abhorrent is instilled in you. Yet no one bothers to consider all the lives we unconsciously take with every step. Society is man made. Everything is measured by the value of man. These people had simply lost their value, and as a citizen, I deemed them beneath measure. But after all, it is only an idea." She rose from the chair, smoothing her long skirt. Her steps made no sound. They simply vanished.

"I necessarily had to create the first spark of disorder. Their disappearance will spread rage among the families, and slowly it will spread to Bayork. Criminality will expand, and that will create the perfect ground to carry out the ritual." She leaned out from the balcony, staring at the few lights still on beyond the bridge. Below her, dozens of trees stretched along the edges of the small road.

"The more blood is spilled, and the more negativity begins to burn, the more singularities will develop. For some reason, no great singularity has ever developed at the centre of the capital like the one in Turgnevet, but if that were to stop happening… NOIR will be forced to reveal itself, and we will act accordingly." A veiled laugh spread through the freezing air, swept away by the wind.

"So we should wait, then? Even though our unlikely brigade is beginning to fall apart." Malcolm smiled, sitting down and crossing his legs on the armchair. David leaned against the balcony, holding his belt.

"Come now, even the lady must be trying to concretize her plans." In silence, a long black blade, almost composed of dozens of small wedges, materialised in her hand. Immediately, large black and gold keys, of incomprehensible and ever-shifting structure, began to orbit around it. Both fell silent, feeling something seethe in their heads and chests.

"These are the remains of the first ritual that caused the separation of Heleingeng island from the archipelago. The remains of Eifibes's ascension." As quickly as they had appeared, they vanished. Abandoning everything to the void, she turned, covering her face.

"Perhaps you do not understand, but once this nation was much larger. A gigantic singularity led to the need for a sacrifice, and that tore lands from the archipelago. Now it lies beyond the mist, continuing to expand like a tumor. Something limits it from fully infecting the world and replacing it with Hel." The sky began to change to a shade of black, becoming almost muddy. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

"The ritual, however, is now modified, requiring three vessels to be completed. Yet that has only made Eifibes hunger, as she awaits a new body to continue exercising her protection. At present, that subject is enduring her cravings well. It doesn't matter to find the Last. For now, we can act on a tight schedule." A malicious, fang-baring smile was painted on her white face.

"These three vessels, including myself, are Lance Klint and another creature." A lightning bolt fell in the distance, exploding into the sea.

"Once the keys are won by one of us, the Primordial Matrix will open and allow the manifestation of the Goddess's body without the will to guide it. One would simply obtain the power of all Hel in their hands." Both David and Malcolm showed doubt on their faces, yet no one dared speak in that atmosphere.

"Go on, speak. I'm not in the mood for a soliloquy." Apate smiled, throwing herself onto the chair without a sound.

"You already know our motivations, but we have sworn not to interfere with one another. After all, David's dream is an obligatory passage for catharsis. But what do you crave after obtaining that power?" Apate licked her lip, re-manifesting that diabolical expression.

"What do I desire? A world where humanity is free. No, that's not correct. I want a new humanity. A human species with the mind laid bare. To do that, I will have to crush the worst threat this world has ever seen." Another bolt exploded in the sky, this time close.

"The hero Lance Klint and the void… the Unnamed!" The lightning streaked behind her, exploding on the street below. Immediately the sparks kissed the multicoloured crowns, dyeing them all an indistinguishable red. The smoke and flames were short-lived, because immediately the sky began to weep. The sizzle of the dying fire accompanied her laughter, while the rain mixed with the small tears.

"I know you hear me! You will wait before reclaiming what you believe is yours!" Apate's face was stained with indescribable joy as the storm raged.

"Lance Klint? He is a genuinely horrifying person. I have never seen anyone more repulsive." David murmured, while the rain seemed to vanish before touching him, similar to Malcolm, where some drops evaporated or froze.

"A hero who doesn't understand that he is one is truly terrifying. He will end up failing and then realise what is in his heart. I am only waiting for that, so I can unleash him to hunt that monster." David shook his head, raising his hands.

"Frankly, it's what's inside him that interests me." Malcolm added with a hint of a grin on his lips.

"What you have seen is a manifestation of an entity not of this world, or perhaps a version of it that no longer exists, so to speak. The creatures that make up his core are an obstacle, but perhaps the quickest way to force an awakening." Malcolm pointed a finger at her, smiling.

"That form? Is it still necessary?" Apate brought a hand to her still heart, chuckling.

"I had to wear it for a while before gaining full mastery over this body and its voice. That boy's mother was an excellent project as well… Although by now I can no longer call her Lance's mother; after all, she never truly was." Malcolm wiped the expression from his face, settling in the armchair.

"To answer your question… I believe there needed to be some shock to stir his subconscious. To create another doubt to move him on his fictitious adventure. After all, we have orchestrated every event." The rain began to pour relentlessly, with drops exploding on the iron railings. The smell of blood began to be washed away by the scent of damp earth.

"Is the child I kidnapped from that house the same as the boy I have faced?" Malcolm smiled, staring at Apate. She smiled, narrowing her eyes.

"Is a river always the same river if the water that flows through it has already undergone thousands of cycles?" Malcolm lowered his head, scratching his smooth chin. David sighed, letting a drop of rain graze his face.

"Inevitably, we will kill each other when it's all over." All three nodded simultaneously, chuckling.

"Once I have rebuilt the world, you will be more than free to shape it in turn…" She rested her shoulders on the wet railing, now being struck by dozens of heavy drops. She smiled, suddenly opening her arms, staring at a break in the sky.

"God is War." With all the prosody of the finest actor, she pronounced those words, followed by one last thunder. The bluish light spread through the bubbling clouds like a serpent.

"I don't care if you kill me once I have created the utopia. The new humans will create a conflict, labelling you as allies or enemies. I will make sure the crusade has meaning." With a snap of her fingers, the surrounding rain vanished, leaving her completely soaked. Her frilled garments had now clung to that mature yet surprisingly youthful body. She placed her hand on her chest, drawing out the same blade. The world seemed to stop, silent. A single slash echoed in the dead time.

"Now let's admire the next objective!" The storm was torn apart, revealing the moon of a burning white in the sky.

"What a joy to see it like this on the first of the year." The tip of the blade lit white, emitting a faint beam that pointed toward a tiny black speck on the white surface.

"So the legend of the sky pirates is true?" David smiled, sharpening his gaze toward the celestial body.

"Years ago, a group of pirates, on an airship stolen from the great port of Bayork, reported seeing a new continent beyond the clouds. What they saw there terrified them deeply. Many died in prison from illness or suicide. But that confirms my theory. The island at the centre of the sky, Icarus, exists. Most likely, it is a military base that has become a singularity because of a shard, just like the Demiurge. Exactly what we need." Apate turned, slashing the balcony with a violent cut.

Space frayed, revealing a grey, decayed world. An icy air struck the spectators, followed by laments and strange hisses.

"The meeting ends here. I will organise the bait. You have all the information needed to proceed." Apate smiled without an ounce of emotion on her face, vanishing into the rift. David and Malcom nodded to each other, vanishing into the night in the blink of an eye. Meanwhile, a greedy fly landed on the cadaverous flesh, only to be burned.