"They've reached Italy. The Answer should be in reach soon enough, with any luck, this nightmare can end... after 15 fucking years, that is,"
"Fortunately so,"
Their voices were those of the Detective Fool and the Emperor Headmaster, the duo of partners hidden in the shadows of the office. Azure pupils of Rivera's focused on the sights of the city as the sun began to set on Manhattan, the rear of the seat focused on the entrance's metal doors. His posture was that of restlessness, fist against his cheek, Ben did a lazy slouch- before sitting up quickly, which caught the attention of the younger Karlo's eye. Glancing at his superior for but a moment in time before resuming to stare at the beautiful lights of New York City, a metropolis they helped recreate thanks to the sacrifice of one man. Though he was just a young boy when his life had ended, August Rivera held the spirit of a true man, and even beyond that? The soul of a warrior.
"What do you think he's doing? Up there...?"
Questioned the elder of the duo, the Ace Detective originating from past the ocean widening his eyes, and noticing... Ben Rivera had been staring at the sky's shade. The curtains hiding the transparent material of glass had suddenly evaporated into smoke, the time on their watches read 7:37 P.M. Azazel abruptly dropped his guard, limbs going limp as his heterochromatic blue and red irises scanned the area. The sun setting beneath the Earth's radar had shifted the coloration of the sky, and as Karlo had fully turned around to his previous position, staring straight ahead... he saw it. With the sparkle of stars reflecting in his eyes, the Detective was frozen still while the Emperor held a disturbing frozen smile on his lips. Still crystallized in form while reminiscing about the child- the son he'd lost decades ago, and all that's decayed on that day.
Madisyn, packing up in the CEO's office at the peak of the Rivera Manufacturing Tower, felt a shock... a centipede crawling down her spine. Or another voice originating from an alternate source signaling her to halt her movements as she spun around to stare out the windows, shutters sliding apart. The violet radiation shined on the right part of her face, a briefcase collapsing to the floor, contents spilling out like milk on a counter. His aunt saw it.
Buttoning up a shirt, Jason readied to attend a meeting with his sisters, gawking at his crimson eyes in the mirror. Spinning a revolver out of the holster plastered on his leg, always ready for action, the firearm's metal chilled his arm. Leading him to grunt audibly for a brief point, then drop the pistol to the floor, which, lucky for him- it didn't fire. Rubbing the side of his skin-covered skull, hiding the bones underneath with his rear downwards, the former Jäger der Gerechtigkeit kneeled to lift his weapon from the floor. As he rose, morphing the revolver to his usual modern pistols, crimson red aura and all dissipating- he bumped the back of his raven-tinted mop on the sink. As he turned for a moment to gaze out the window, he was stunned in place, quickly disappearing in a flash of his signature lightning. Leaning against the metal railing belonging to his house's balcony, Jason let out a leisurely chuckle- the reflection of stardust sparkled in his eyes. His uncle saw it.
Even across the country in France, of all places, there laid a Brazillian woman doing her usual visit to her boy's grave. Her daughters aiding her as she stood up straight, Genesis and Emma were shocked to their core... to see such a spectacle. It brought such a tear to her eye, her hand reached out to the sky- whispering for someone who'd never return,
"August..."
The aurora borealis had shifted its usual flow, this wasn't the doing of the so-called Requiem Abomination; the Headmaster and son of the Reaper. It was an odd yet beautiful phenomenon that continued as it streamed throughout the world, Mei halting her progress as she lifted the 'mask' concealing her lips from mopping the floors of her mother's former bakery. Warping to the roof, she covered her mouth, about to fall to her knees as her best friend had screamed at the top of his lungs to his fallen brother.
As the son of the Magician marched through a tundra of ice and snow, his father in tow to his rear, the boy-turned-adult was abruptly frozen. Shedding himself of the jacket he'd had hiding his exterior flesh and skinniness, Johnson took a step closer while Matthew Sr. caught the coat before it could hit the ice below their feet. Crying out to his son, eyes locked onto the frost on their soles, attempting to rise upwards,
"Oy, kid-!"
On the verge of reprimanding his son for doing something so reckless, Matthew stood up straight, locked in place as he gazed with his kin at the sight of the Northern Lights stretching across the Arctic.
The stream of lights continued onward across the world as the father of that one boy who'd saved humanity from its doom began to speak to his son's closest friend. Momentarily, his direction snapped to the floor, lips parting while the humans of the Earth, in the United States, Mexico, Canada, Japan, Paris, etc., watched on. Remembering the Grim Reaper's sacrifice, the Emperor's words reached the ears of the Fool Detective taking one step forward,
"When I was but a boy in 2013, I had my mother taken from me right in front of my eyes from a demon. I don't remember much from that moment, my sister and brother told me everything I know now. I was devastated, quiet... maybe I disintegrated her? I see now; the truth. Those who begin the path toward freedom often need something to motivate them, something to push them. Either that be some sort of hope, a reminder of death, in search of the truth, neither of it matters, in the end. Maybe... it's a loved one, and they don't even need to die like some sort of cliche comic book. August needed Celine, you needed your mother-but I won't let a family member's death weigh down my choices and restrict me to their ideologies. What lies beyond the clouds above is anyone's guess, but I won't be waiting to find out while they have abilities beyond that of my own. I must keep moving forward; until I eradicate and massacre every single one of those creatures. For freedom beyond the cage of this tiny primal universe that is but a fragment in... eternity,"
On and on, the light used its immense speed to make its way across the planet, until it reached its predetermined path in Venezia. The boat pushed its way through the river amid the city, silent waves flowing past as the liquid calmly proceeded through the labyrinthian maze of Venice. Gifted with a gradual motor that guided them to their Airbnb, their way of transportation halted its continuous acceleration. One by one, the Major Arcana lifted themselves to stand on the main street, stunned by the lights of the city. Ed smugly examined their expressions whilst his limbs stood in a crossed formation over his chest, momentarily distracted by his companions' reactions to his true home. Pupils scanning the crowd of allies he'd gathered this past month, he noticed that a certain 'crazy ginger' was missing. Foot taking a step back and tilting to the left, he noticed Rose staring at the lights in the sky, entranced by the beauty of such an occurrence resulting in this part of the World. Though, as Eddie cracked his neck, angling himself so he was gazing in the same direction as Thomas' adopted daughter. In a first-person view, giving you the ability to see through the Star's eyes for a moment, those Northern lights were completely invisible.
"The hell are ya starin' at? Come on, we need to get settled,"
Reluctantly, though eventually giving in to the yanks as she was pulled out of the motorboat, the lights vanished for those across the world as Matthew Johnson threw his coat over himself once more. Cecilia with her baby girls sadly walked back to their home, Jason went out to see his darling sisters while Madi went on her destined path to see her younger siblings. Mei strutted down the concrete to meet her mother, who waited at the edge of the sidewalk, waving to her daughter whose black hair swayed beautifully in the breeze of the chilling summer air. A smile perked up over her lips, throwing herself to her parent's arms, somewhere in the depths of the skies above the clouds- where freedom lied; and destinies went untampered with, a white-haired boy turned his head with a curious expression on a transparent cloud.
"Hmm?"
Unpacking their belongings into their collective assigned chambers, the hotel purchased for them was rather encased and small compared to the normality. Some had to share rooms, such as Alex and Hazel, though that was obvious. Whitney crouched over the couch, suitcase popping wide as he searched through its contents for a specific item he'd kept. Meanwhile, an incessant couple of love birds compiled of the Lovers and Star discussed who'd get the third room, acting as if sentimentally playing a pretense of a kind personality would aid in whoever would gain the chamber of comfortability. Their weakened arguments consisted of,
"It'd be weird sharing a room with you so I'll let you take it and I'll sleep on the couch,"
From Edward Singh, to which Rosalyn Thomas would usually respond with a waving motion slapping that kind notion away as she insisted over and over again,
"No, it's okay, I don't mind,"
Usually, the self-aware Alexander would come in and interrupt the corny script writing itself for some sort of cliche love movie. Though since he was most likely fondling Hazel's breasts, Whitney was here to stop this stupidity from ultimately reaching its peak like he knew it would. Flatly bitchslapping both of them across the face, they both held their cheeks, an angered expression on their faces as their eyes pierced the soul of the Hunger. Hand hiding into his pouch, Myers gave a tiny tilt of his head, hoping it'd easily intimidate them into agreeing and moving together into the final room for the taking. As Lynn had taken the room to the far right before he could object, it was clear the couch was his for the taking. Not that he had any quarrels, he was used to being thrown away like trash and sleeping on a sofa like a homeless hobo. Parting his lips to speak a word, audio relating to that of static sparked in his ears as Rose and Ed had vanished before his eyes. Stunned by this abrupt event, Whitney gave a firm rub to his temples with his middle and index finger. Confused as to what's just happened, he decided to go about the rest of his day, sure that his gut would give him some sense of what's wrong and what was right. ~What the hell was I-~ Just before he could finish that thought, it snapped back into his mind as the bulb of light radiated above his head, the buttons on the front of the case revealing the interior. Once more, he went to search for an important relic through the depths of attire and hygiene-cleansing items. Silky clothing rustling around, the quarter popped up, the boy catching it in his pale hand, an emotionless stare given to this item.
"Think of this as a part of me... whenever you have this with you; think of me. Then, I'll always be with you,"
Memories of a time way simpler were remembered, the way she flicked cents out of her fist with her thumb was impressive yet memorable. The silver shining in the sun, the coin turned to reveal cut marks on the head of the President- Abraham Lincoln. A symbol of justice scratched with what looked like claw marks; the type of humorous irony that reminded him of his- his best friend. Or rather, his sister. The same thing. Though the day she gave this gift as a way to honor her decaying memory was memorable, to say the least, there was another vital memory that stuck out to him far more than the coin. Bzzt. Widening his eyes, his consciousness was thrust into that moment, witnessing the act of a bloodied man with elongated curly hair standing over a mountain of bloodied corpses. That man; from the ashes of humanity, rose to the light of Heaven- with only thought on his mind. Mass genocide. Jerking awake, Whitney wiped his eyes of tears, the sweat emerging from the glands of his head staining the couch. Chest rising and dipping, Myers stood and wrapped his shirt over his head to disguise his muscled chest, tiredly falling to the kitchen to make some coffee. No doubt he'd be up all night now. Against a marbled pillar in the other room, he pushed through his groggy attitude- then met with an array of lights originating from a white glow.
"Oh, it's you,"
Groaning tiredly, the sound of thunder crackled from the clouds as rain- fluids from above the Heavens poured onto the windows. Rubbing his forehead, he caught another vision of a boy... maybe his age or younger, sitting beside a window. Bored in class, Whitney painfully emitted a disastrous groan, fist desecrating the wall of pure brick to his right- Amara emerging from the darkness. He attempted to aid his friend, guiding the boy to the remainder of their friends in the kitchen, Rose on the island as Hazel was crouched against it. Back to a cabinet, Ed's two main fingers slipped into the holder of a mug as he took a sip of some fresh tea, while Lynn was just sitting beside Rose. Legs crossed while Thomas's limbs just dangled back and forth, Adams cupping her palms around the glass- extremities tightly wielding the container for the fluids.
"There's something... bizarre happening. However, I can't explain it, it feels as though another ability is emerging- though this late in my life, I doubt that's the case. I'm having... premonitions? At least, I believe that's what they are,"
"The same thing was happening to me-! Though, it was different! I could see the future; some sort of guy with long hair hovering to a golden light in the clouds. It was something else... I swear I actually touched it, the dream felt so real that when I came to- I was bleeding at my hand and awakened everyone except you,"
Showcasing her wound to the Hunger, the Lovers' palm was covered by a bandage hiding the blood seeping into the plastic as it absorbed the substance. How could that happen, though? Though theorized, no person with powers that relate to dreams or nightmares relates to such a thing. The mind and body are two different temples that are damaged in ways, physical and mental pain, torture, or abuse. There was no sort of explanation, Rose must have awoken amid her slumber and went somewhere. He ripped the bandage off with a shadowy tendril of black, the tip snaking around her wrist and roughly yanking her forward. Stumbling close, Alex took a loud sip from his hot chocolate while examining the scar with Whitney. Slrrrpppppppppppp.
"Cut that out,"
"Sorry,"
Examining the shape of the wound as the gore squirted out of the interior of her flesh, it took that of an ancient hellish relic. Originating from a cursed realm that laid beneath Heaven, the duo of the ginger and the violet-glowing boy stepped back. It was clear the two recognized this shape, Ed was able to catch Thomas while the Justice simply telekinetically threw Whitney upward onto his feet. A woozy feeling seeped into his skin, same as before, the static sparked in his brain- a premonition echoing in the depths of his skull.
"Spinning endlessly-"
Clap! Twisting around, the group had already exited this destined location, in the entrance- as she readied to leave, Lynn caught Myers in the corner of her eye. Though just barely, seeing as how his dark attire matched with the blackened nature of the room. Eye contact connecting, she yanked his dark violet sweater from the hanger, to which it soared through the air that seeped through the entrance. Sending a chill down his spine, a single breath of fresh air had brought into this world; a frosty ball of his oxygen hovering before vanishing... maybe into a substance like smoke? Or similar to it, at the very least.
Before they knew it, the Major Arcana, in unison, had seemingly warped to the location of this artifact. Whispers of creatures thought to be monstrous and blood-lusting biologically sunk into their ears, Rose screaming in anger as she collapsed onto the sand to her soles. About to aid his comrade, Alexander of all people was the one to draw Ed back so he wouldn't do anything stupid. The ground as they knew it had parted, grains of the pale material freefalling with them as the teenagers collapsed onto the cave floor. Whitney, fashionably late, arrived at the square amid the ground with Lynn helping her friend. The duo of acquaintances took a glance at one another, unanimously deciding to challenge their fate as the Hunger landed on a platform of darkness with his ally.
"Sun...?"
Inquired weakly of Hazel, to which she was helped, arms lifted upward by her redheaded comrade. Thomas wiped the dust off of their bodies, to which the deaf girl held a low crimson glow overtake her cheeks, and Amara stood with an audible pained moan. Back snapping into position, he leaned back, hands on his hips, stretching out his words as he humorously questioned,
"What took you two idiots so long?"
"Looking for other ways to say go fuck yourself,"
The Justice chortling lowly at the retort courtesy of the Hunger Arcana, Eddie snapped his wrist into place without any sort of pain emanating from his vocal cords, all he did was subdue a grunt by chomping on his bottom lip. After that, Alex snuck his hands behind the rear of his hand, extremities pushing through the curls of his brown mop of strands,
"So, does anyone have any sort of idea where the fuck we are?"
Creaaakkkk... The clique turned upward, Whitney did all he could to resume an apathetic position, still dealing with a blaring headache. Feeling as if his head would burst and his skull would split open, decorating the dark rock walls with his ruby interior fluids. Nevertheless, while defending her friend, Sunni took up a basic position as she raised her fists ready to do battle. Alex still held his nonchalant calm stance, as Rose tapped Haze behind her, and Ed readied to shed his fingers of his gloves hiding his flesh. A tractor beam of sorts wielded the very thing they were searching for, hovering slowly, they all cautiously watched. Entranced by the 'beauty' of this seemingly extraterrestrial device that whirred and glow with a crimson demonic presence, Rosalyn stuck out her hand to touch it. As if a car was accelerating forward, Alex reacted instinctively in a flash, snatching her hand with his fingers around her wrist. Eyes shadowed by the darkness of the shadows concealing his vision, the girl yelped in reaction before being thrown back. The back of her skull hitting the cave's wall, Alex stood over her so she would be protected fairly.
"Ever since the beginning of time as we know it, humanity has waged war on itself. No matter the generation, no matter the millennia, there will always be senseless death and destruction for a pathetic reason. It's in the blood of humanity to lash out at idiotic things- and to seek infinite power yet hold no sense of intelligence with those abilities. This is a test. You must accept this test to stand victorious over the past that torments you all so much. After all, a person only grows when they rid themselves of such phantoms-"
From the tornado of flames that held scarlet coloration, his form was created from those pieces of fire, hands wielding the trusty ax he'd held for eons. Stepping back in shock, Alex's eyes widened, the same with Ed as he held his face in agony- getting so sick as if he would puke out his own guts. While the Hermit held a pained expression, as if being stabbed in the heart, however, the Lovers, the Hunger, and the Sun all held the same sort of expression. Hate, anger and determination for the man in front of them.
"Wouldn't you all agree?"
Frightened of the near future that awaited them all, the 'Headmaster' met his thumb with his pointer so it'd create an echoing SNAP! Transforming the environment around them into something extremely different, something… definitely traumatizing for the wrong person. The shadows were lonely, devoid of any sort of emotion or sense of any power. The frost crept up the side of the walls, to which the Justice jerked awake, gasping in surprise as he noticed the chains around his wrists. A sharp pain entered his side, the boy throwing up blood from his guts, decorating the platform to the bottom of his soles. Aura radiating out from his inner strength that laid dormant in the depths of his heart, Alex attempted to utilize his abilities to the limit- so the shackles he was bound by would shatter and collapse to the chilly ground. That event never occurred, his skin only had new chills emerge on his pale flesh- amid his struggling, a demon taken the form of the Emperor emerged from a whirlwind of Takyr energy.
"You..."
His hair was ridden with grey, mixed with the natural brown, the same as the former CEO they knew as the Headmaster. Though, his appearance differed drastically from what Ben Rivera usually wore, or what Alex assumed that man-better yet that God wore. Dark clothes that were less formal, a lengthy trench coat that someone like the Detective wore all the time, and a turtleneck as if he were attending a wedding. You might question the previous statement and state a false fact such as; 'But that is formal wear,' yet his attire was ragged and ripped at every single inch of the clothing. A certain look signaled everything about this guy from right off the bat, believing he was superior as he tilted his head upward so he'd look downward at the Justice. Cheeks pushing out, he threw a ball of spit into the face of the false Demon Prince, to which the Superior easily leaned out of the way, scoffing at the feeble attempt.
"What is it you hide from yourself... Alexander Amara?"
Vanishing from his stance in front of his eyes, the daggers the Superior called his nails stood against his esophagus as Al's eyes were spread apart by wooden clamps. Snarling at the pain, Amara remembered the collected attitude of his comrade; Whitney and pushed through the pain he was experiencing. If there was one thing the boy labeled this silent icy chamber he was encased in as it would no doubt be black and white. Emerging from the smoke, girls with skirts holding books close to their chests walked sideways from his field of view, whispers echoing through this hidden location. Widening his eyes, Alexander attempted to tilt his head away from this horrifying sight, to which the doppelganger of the Emperor just dug his edged claws into the throat of this so-called 'superhuman.'
"Face yourself... creature,"
With no other options, Alex watched- to see a child, with signature curly hair that hung over the left side of his face, run-up to the girls. Slightly shorter, his hand reached up to tap the shoulder of one of the females- their voices were quiet; except for his,
"Hey, Jae-Jaelyn, I mean, just wanted to... ask if you'd maybe wanna be friends? Get to know one another?"
Nothing needed to be said, as she walked away, he'd lost part of himself that day, dropping the flower he'd been planning to give to that pretty-faced girl. Instead, the duo giggled maniacally at the boy they'd just damaged internally. Yet, there was more. Another memory thought locked back in the vastness abyss of Alexander Amara's soul was brought into fruition, kicks sent to the direction of his skull cracked his bones. Their boots snapping his jaw, arms limp while he stood against the fence. They strutted away, throwing a ball of spit onto Alex's face, bloodied and beaten- Amara chuckled weakly at the pain... those bullies that'd decided to think of themselves as superior?
They exploded, and that wasn't all- those two girls from before that'd decided to hurt his heart? They burnt to a crisp as the air around them started to heat up exponentially, organs lighting aflame, the brown-haired one fell to her knees. The leaves of the garden to the rear of the educational building following so, the Creature's white aura shone as bright as the burning sun on that day. The day his massacre began. Memories thought long forgotten began to emerge from his soul, unlocking thanks to the Superior as he cackled. Every time, as Alexander attempted to escape the sins he'd known he'd committed in the past- they all ended in the same way. Attempting to make friends, male, female, trying to confess to girls, even going to therapy... more brutal ways to destroy humans' literal hearts. A therapist deciding to criticize his problems or threaten to call the police? Frozen as Alexander reached out to control the hypothalamus, convincing the man rolling in his chair over attempting to make a call to the police that his body was in a blockade of ice. A girl politely rejecting the boy because she'd only thought of him as a friend, or never even knew him? Skulls ripped out and used to cave in another's. Or maybe a regular human boy trying to convince Alexander that he sometimes makes conversations awkward with his weird dark sense of humor? Hung with an invisible noose.
They all played out before him, Alexander Amara was no human- he was a mass murderer with no sense of empathy for others. None of them deserved death, they were simply children who didn't know any better, or a therapist reporting crimes to avenge innocents. Locks levitating, straightening magically, the Superior stifled another loud cackle that would've surely triggered this poor victim blind to his sins. Stepping around in a circular motion, the Devil yanked his nails from the interior flesh of the Justice and leaned forward so he'd be in the face of this Creature,
"Don't you see it? The truth? You're nothing more than a monster child who slaughters for fun, who cries when he doesn't get his way. That is all you're destined to be, no matter what. Yet... there's nothing wrong with that, you could be something so much more powerful if you accept it instead of running away from your true self. However, like a cowardly dog, hide and cower in fear at a revelation that means nothing. You are a god! Didn't you see what had just occurred? You froze someone by convincing their brain that they were on ice! So, come with me, accept the truth and become who you were always meant to be,"
As he did to his other self all those years ago, the Devilish Demonic Prince of Hell reached out with his hand so the Creature could accept it. Accept someone who would use you for their gain to annihilate more innocents with the full intention of what they were doing? Alexander could never do something so stupid- and never could the Creature, so as he levitated, emerging from the chair he was chained to. Back cracking as he faced a forward direction, Justice's face was blackened, pupils resonating with a white glow while the remainder of the vessel's body was shadowed. Fists illuminated with the heart of 'Dark Determination,' the Creature cracked his knuckles as his extremities stretched out for the first time in what felt like eons. Tying Alex's hair into a bun, lone strands hovered over its face, prohibiting itself from spotting the Superior's frightened expression for a moment in time.
"You... you're not... human?"
"Shut up and start screaming. After all-"
He laid himself back into the chair, stripping himself of the shirt to show his muscular chest, the primary existed for this reason alone. Slouching like a lazy king, besides his eyes and pale hands, there was one lone feature noticeable- his sinister smirk that matched that of the Crow's from long ago. Psychotic, determined, and ready.
"You're already dead,"
To Be Continued...