After the events and destruction of Renkin, the party had continued their journey downward to locate the dormant Tower of Chains. The night sky's moon shining in the darkness above his head, Emperor Rivera had knelt in front of the running water running the back of his hand through the liquid. Checking the temperature of the fluid, he pulled it into a plastic bottle so it'd settle inside together in a circular spiral, Ben placed it right beside his leg. Filling the other two, August was standing right to the left of his father arms crossed over his chest listening into the quiet of the forest. The crickets chirping, the fish swimming along with their tails rapidly moved through the water and the light of the lunar body above shining against the leaves of the jungle. Looking further down to expand his vision down the field of grass they were standing on, the Reaper's radius limit had stopped about 500 miles out,
"You think there's anything out here? Been walking for a day. What makes you so sure we should keep walking when there's been nothin' so far?" August inquired of his father, keeping his gaze against the starry night non polluted by light, the father still gathering water into bottles,
"That asshole the gloomy demon had killed? Took his journal and he had lots of detailed documentation regarding those things. Some of the pages had been ripped out but I managed to find a map at the front of the journal. Or rather, a piece of it, I guess," After Ben had stated that, he dug into his jacket handing the leather-cased book to his son. August taking hold of their deceased enemy's journal, flipped through the pages to reach the front. The torn piece of paper with ink lining had composed the overhead drawing of Renkin,
"I can't reverse time, but the way this is composed... this looks like it's right at the center. You can see paths stretching out from the top, right, left, and bottom. The bottom is leading Home since- ya know? Anyway, if there wasn't anything behind Renkin, he wouldn't have ripped it out," Just about to hand it back to his father beneath him, August caught the glimpse on his face with a confident smirk pulling back his hand shoving it into his pocket. Deciding to gather some food together seeing as how they'd eventually run out of the things they'd brought on their adventure, Ben pushed out his hands, fingers crackling with Requiem energy,
"There's something off about the way that Renkin was drawn, though. It looked like a castle... and it wasn't written as Renkin. It's written as 'The Alchemist Empire...'," The way Ben had stated it, he seemed so surprised, but with the rising of the outside world outside the walls of the Requiem Righteous Empire. That endless grass field where it went on for miles, so fresh and ongoing as it'd never cease, it was odd to assume that no other Kingdoms were existing through this world,
"Odd that it surprises you. Alchemists, huh? What's next? A wizard, maybe a swordsman, or maybe the moon will decide to come down, heh- maybe we shouldn't venture out further. Maybe we should stay here, return to the Empire... I miss Az- mmm, I miss mom," August admitted to his dad, both of them deciding to take seats right in front of the running river. Taking sips of the water, the bubble of water encasing the fish had been popped. Using the sword he was gifted as a weapon by his older brother to stick the sides of the fish, their teeth crunched against the fleshy side of the food they'd made... and they looked up at the sky. As father and son, chewing the food in their mouths so their cheeks would appear bigger in a circular shape. Time gradually moved on to the point where they sipped their water just another time, and August had turned his head so he could stare at his mesmerized dad.
Leaning back on his palms to take in the sight of the twinkling stars, the smaller blades of green stuck through the widened holes of his fingers spread apart. Rubbing his wrist over his face, he leaned forward once ahead so he could gawk at his reflection in the liquid, peeling off the sunglasses he'd dawned over his ears that shadowed his vibrant eyes. Disabling the Four Eyes innately, he asked with his arms draped over his knees, dragging one the tip of his fingers against the fabric of the suit hiding his lower right limb,
"Why do you want to go further... why did you do the things you did?" The way his son had spoken and questioned this, vocals vibrating with worry, Ben would be stupid to give some stupid answer... so he responded honestly,
"I don't want to live in ignorance forever behind those walls knowing that everyone only obeys me and me alone as if I'm some sort of Benevolent God. I owe it to Henry, to Ella, and my mom... to see the world I created and the people that live beyond the Empire. Everything happened because it was the way fate had ordained it, and though I wish I could've changed it, I did everything in my power yet the future remained intact. It all leads to here, and we can't change any of it so we might as well accept the present we live in. You're my son, you're special, and so is Alex. So I'll do it, willingly. I'll sacrifice everything and anything. End the fourteen-billion years of Incarnation oppression on this multiverse, manipulation, orchestration, lies- so those who live peacefully can live that way absolutely without the threat of dying for no reason. Until that day comes, we'll keep moving forward, right... son?"
Ben and August shared the look, the younger of the two had seen that horrible future before his father- and honestly, he understood. More than anyone, he understood the lengths that some people had to go to freedom and justice. Of course, none of this was just random, not business- it was extremely personal, and though some of them might say it's for the sake of the world, The Reaper saw through the mask his old man put on. Henry, Ella, Ryder, Celine, even Ashton, despite his betrayal, was still a victim in the end. This was for their justice, to avenge them and rid the multiverse of these horrifying threats, it was such a lucky play that they'd been granted the time limit they had. Justice for the victims and freedom for the world of their oppression was their mission and goal... they were the only ones who understood the gravity of such a motive,
"Right. Good reason, all in all," The Son of the Emperor responded jokingly, for them both to chuckle at one another as they looked. Nodding in understanding, they bumped their bottles of water together and continued to stare at the night sky before it was time for bed.
Later that night...
Curled up neatly in the bag, the images of their faces began to flash rapidly in the depths of his mind, brainwaves reminding him of the meeting that'd happened nothing less than maybe 24 hours ago. Shivering and grunting in his slumber, sweat dripping down from the glands in his forehead, the aura that began to glow off of him was something different from the usual white- it was black with that color familiar shade too. The darkness overtook the tanned skin of his skin to where only the eyes remained, hair breaking out from the kept-down look and levitating with his telekinesis activating as if it were instinct. The grunts became louder, nails extending as they clawed against his flesh and blood began to leak out from the wounds he subconsciously inflicted, the victims of the Embodiment crying out as if the damned souls of Hell were reaching out to him...
"Help us..."
"AGGHHHHHHHHHH!!!" Alex let out a bloodcurdling scream with that expression of terror right on his face, August and Ben shooting up with their ally in different sleeping bags away from the Judge. Rubbing his eye, Ben searched for his glasses as he sleepily and groggily muttered to himself as the white-haired mentor of the young man went over, worriedly asking,
"Are you okay..? Was it just a bad dream or did something happen?" August intoned of his younger protege, carefully massaging his shoulder so that Al could feel comforted with a hand on his forehead.
The Four Eyes activating to scan over his body for any wounds, he noticed a very open tear in the fabric of both of his sleeves. To where the scratches were engraved into his skin leaking blood, yet the way Amara didn't seem to react to it, he just went about as normal infusing himself with some life energy to heal his comrade. Gently ripping himself out of the sleeping bag so his legs could stretch out fully across the softness of the grass, August stood crouched in front of his pupil as the elder leader searched in his set-down jacket,
"It felt like... I was going through what those souls were. Those souls who'll feel the endless sting of pain all across eternity without it ever ending, because of us. Some of those people are innocent, and w-we sent them there. Why are we even still here, still fighting-? We should just let them kill us so we can atone for what we did back then..."
"No," That denial had come straight from the throat of the Emperor of Time, cracking his neck after his spectacles were pushed closer to his face. Dark azure eyes visible through the transparent lenses as Rivera glared at the young Judge of Chaos, he dug through the jacket to find the journal the father and son had discussed earlier. Flipping through the pages once again so the tips of his fingers could feel the roughness of the paper against his extremities, Ben explained,
"The living must find meaning in those who dedicated their hearts to the cause. Lying down like dogs and just waiting for them to kill us when they're ok so much from us, that's the last thing we should do. We might be demons but they made us this way, this is fate, and unfortunately, none of us can change the past entirely no matter how hard we try. Does it matter how hard the word is? Of course not. Does it matter how cruel this world is? No! We move forward with the will of those who've perished, so do not dwell on the past, only think of the future. For even if we fail, we would have died the same as them, for the cause... and meaningful," Alex and August stood paralyzed to their leader's words, Amara sighing dejectedly, of course, he was right but so what? Time flowed the way it did because of fate, and Ben was the Chosen One, he was the one responsible for every single atrocity. Part of him sighed, looking up at the sky and seeing the moon; it reminded him of those beings. 'The Absolute' is what the Devil called them... he'd only heard tales from Uraku, August, and Ben. None of them lived up to the absolute horror of being in those things' presence,
"How did you two stay sane? I wanted to kill myself... I started getting illusions of everything I loved being torn apart and shredded before my very eyes. Rose, Hazel, Whitney, even you two. I remember seeing Hazel being torn apart piece by piece and her remains violated... how did you guys ignore those things?"
"Because they won't happen," August's statement would usually sound so arrogant and sure of himself, but the way he looked and the feeling o his hand against his shoulder- the shakiness of his pupils began to disappear. Alex pulled his mentor toward him, embracing him tightly as Ben nodded to himself with a smile. They'd succeed, even if they died trying, they'd lay the foundation for those who would destroy the old world and bring about something new. That was their fate. Just then, a lightbulb had popped into existence above Auggy's head,
"I have a way you can go to sleep, it's this ancient ritual that was used by the Requiem warriors that induced catatonic sleep for when they needed to rejuvenate their energy. Let's try it out,"
FLICK! A simple hit to the forehead as it pulling back the string on a bow had sent Alex back into his sleeping bag, snoring tiredly as if he hadn't slept in years. August smirking as he began to rise from his crouched stance with his arms over his knees, the Reaper went back so he could lay down and crawl into it speeding out his legs so they could hit the end of the bag. Arms resting on the back of his head, elbows pointed out, Ben watched the slightest slimmer of the sun's rays appear over the horizon. Rubbing his forehead, he decided to rest his back against the trunk of a tree as the chilly air of nature began to lull him to a deep slumber.
And in the fading twilight of their journey to Renkin, the morning began to set over the sky blue clouds above, sooner than later, that setting turned to noon. Stretching her arms into the air as she stepped out from the river she'd been sleeping in, Kristina felt her joints make that satisfying crack audio raising them higher, letting out a moan that seemed to be extremely... erotic. The Four Eyes activating, Rivera directed his attention away from the girl, August searched further straight down, going beyond the set limits he'd made for himself... and there it was,
"I see something,"
"What is it?" Ben had immediately turned around throwing his bag to the ground now facing his son as he asked this question. And bluntly responded the white-haired August...
"It's another Empire,"
Ben stood silent at this revelation, the way he and his son had talked last night; it'd become obvious that there existed other places beyond The Righteous Requiem Empire. The stray hand of the younger man they'd brought on this journey, Alex, had stood to comfort the elder, hesitant on going any further... but he pushed forward despite those reserved feelings. Gently pushing Al's hand away, Kristina watched from the back as the young Amara stepped back in confusion, they had a long way to go and the road ahead seemed long and dark.
And yet salvation laid ahead at the end of their adventure, these unknown lands littered with the unknown creatures of the astral realm, they would be discovered. As it was the will of the living to ensure the sacrifices of the dead were made fulfilling. Or rather, maybe it wasn't, for August and Alex, who were complicit in the chain of events that led to their very end; they felt that wasn't the truth, maybe a false truth that someone was telling themself, to convince them that every brunt we better. That he was... doing it for them.
And as that person had led his followers to the end of the path carved into the ground, the days they spent around nature became nothing but basic. The laughter of children as they sang began to riddle their ears, for only one remained absent from the tales Kristina had told of the Lost Alchemist Empire, the other two with their backs against logs,
"So, the map said... well, you know what it said. Did you know what it was before Renkin? Because apparently there-there was something there, right?" Alex intoned curiously, clearly having been shown the map along with Kristina as she took a swig from the bottle of water. As she searched her memories, heterochromatic pupils hitting the bed of grass she sat on... she recalled the tale of the Great Alchemist Empire,
"When I was wandering the outlands of what remained outside Mr. Rivera's Empire after the Purge, I managed to find it. I wasn't the only Alchemist that Kuno had experimented on. That was my home... and I had friends there. Part of me was confused about how everything happened, but I loved it there. Then something happened one day, and it disappeared, the shininess as the sun would glisten against the metal of those wondrous metal structures had vanished like they were never even there in the first place. I spent hours going on, crying and begging the Headman to bring the past Empire back. In the end, I couldn't do anything to change his mind- so, I just decided to go along with it. And thank god, the Headman got what he deserved,"
The duo of master and learner turned to glance at one another, her dejected expression needing some comfort as she remembered that time in her life. Just then, Alex's elbow had 'accidentally' tapped against the side of his mentor, and August turned with a confused look muttering of the head-bun-wearing man, "Huh?" Pointing toward her, Rivera widened his eyes in realization, inching closer as his knees skid him across the bed of green so he could sit beside the redhead. And as if she were drawn to him, her head met his shoulder... about to push her off and move away, his hand felt the warmth of her skin touching his own. The way his pupils shook as he gazed down at the beauty of her white face riddled with freckles, Alex couldn't help but proudly smile, thinking to himself as his head leaned back against the log so he could peer through the leaves of the trees. The stars were abnormally bright that night, some of them brightening as his eyes were fixed onto them, and some beginning to fade as the time had come for Earth to spot the destruction of it.
It all reflected in the coloration of his eyes, so pale and bright as if they were smaller suns, burning with gas and plasma. Just a simple touch, if they were light years closer, they'd all be dead. Hell popped into his head once again, and he flinched in response, turning his head from space, but that didn't work either. Nothing appeared in his mind, not even a fraction of a God or Devil, but the thought of hopelessness began to emerge.
The way the stars twinkled without a care, with such a void unexplored, the closest they'd been to just Mars and the Moon- there were so many things that they didn't know about even beyond the Incarnations. That horrible mess and abomination of eyes, swirling tendrils, it just floating there for it to be destroyed by its own volition. There lived so many gods, deities, giants, creatures, demons, devils, and none of them knew about any of them down here, every single one minding their own business to affect the multiverse in their specific ways. They were Titans, gods, and as he thought further, he remembered what Whitney had told him, back then, only a few days ago- he didn't believe in his significance as a person outside of the Riveras.
Where he thought of the gifts he'd been randomly bestowed upon as power instead of strength, why have it if you're just going to waste it? He finds his meaning with the rest of them, he was his person with his strengths, beyond the other two, behind August and beyond Ben. But... what about beyond them? They had the power to wipe them out at any point, and if it hadn't even been for Ben, he wouldn't have been born in the first place. Would anything they do matter in the end when they were just insignificant specks on this world made by someone who intended to wipe them out from the start? Would they reach the salvation Ben was hoping would be at the end of the foretold path, and would it all be worth in the end, as he promised?
Ben wondered that himself as he strolled casually in the night, hands over his chest with the jacket giving him more warmth.... would the end truly be worth it, as he'd promised? The water's flow to the right of the man was calm, continuously moving from wherever the source was, the Emperor kneeled with one limb to his chest, examining the reflectivity of the liquid as it showed his face. There he was; there and alive, while everyone else had died, what more could he do but stare at the man who'd caused the chaos, who hadn't acted, and who had even caused the murder of his mother. The more he stared at himself, the more the memories of the past began to resurface... eyelids shutting over the vibrancy of his azure eyeballs,
"I will continue to fight for the fleeing dawn, reaching out my hand so I can grab it wholeheartedly. So keep fighting, and I will dedicate my heart to whatever you ask of me. I am always... in your debt, Ben,"
"So- come back for me at least, Ben... please?"
"Death is a sleeping slave, everyone tries harder and harder to avoid it, to find out the answers to it. Slaves to life's greatest question, but if he is where you all break free. Do not dwell on my death, everyone... if anything, celebrate. Please, and I leave the rest up to you all. Thank you, everyone. And most of all... thank you very much, Benjamin Rivera,"
"My Sunshine, Ben... please, do not throw your life away,"
More and more, he felt the urge to thrust the blade right into his flesh, pushing his hands up from his sides gripping at his skin. Palms covering each side of his face, the glasses fell onto the grass, it kept on going over and over further, more and more as if his mind wouldn't let himself be forgiven. What kind of a person was he? Did he even deserve to keep moving forward, to live after everything, what was the point of even living after his mother had died? That was all he'd ever lived for, maybe he'd just done something then, if he blew his brains out or cut his throat right open, he could've saved so many lives. So many sacrifices that didn't even need to be lost for the sake of some arrogant promise when the best thing about living was ignorance... and he had no else to blame but himself. Why was he chosen? Why didn't he do more to change the future? And why did he go along with it... why did he end so many lives, act like he was some sort of protector?
In the end, he was just the same as his doppelgänger. The sobs began to quiet down as he began to crawl back further, rear pressing against the steepness and hardened material of the tree, he began to hyperventilate... bawling as he turned his head, inhaling and exhaling as he sucked in and out the air through his lungs shakily. As if he were having difficulty breathing, Ben Rivera began to calm down as the silence of the environment enveloped him. The crickets with their annoyingly loud noise as they chirped in the night, the fireflies beginning to light their tails out nowhere, manifesting from some invisible splice in space- and from it all, nothing appeared.
No spirits came to give him any sort of guidance, he couldn't see Ella nor Henry again, for he had to find his way to move forward. Just then, the will of his brain had brought forth Jason's sword, given to him and bonded to his flesh by the previous user... needless to say, it was torn out from the cover. Putting the sharpened edge to the side of his neck, he got on both of his knees and faced forward, staring right ahead. This was the punishment he deserved, why didn't he fight more? Why didn't he try harder to save everyone, to protect the ones he loved from those otherworldly forces. It didn't matter much now, did it? He would be with her again, and maybe he wouldn't, maybe he'd get the punishment he deserved.
But that was okay... I was tired, fighting on and on for so long as if there was something at the end, convincing myself that it was all worth it when I hated myself for every little thing I did. Back then, I knew the feeling of loneliness, feeling at my lowest, I just wanted to atone. I wanted to feel something for what I did because that's what I deserved. Anyone on the outside looking in would agree, wouldn't they? And I was going to do it, I was seconds away from cutting off my head but something stopped me. Not my brother, my sister, my wife, my daughters, my son, or my other brother... but I did.
I felt my life flash before my eyes, and I realized the future had possibilities far beyond what I'd thought. Alex, August, Ceci, Matt, Madi... Jason... my Father, and even more, Mei, Emma, Gen, Louis, Claire, Miah, Leah.. they'd all been waiting for me. I had a daughter, a wife, a son, brothers, friends... and they all stood by me all this time. I promised them salvation, and part of me... back then... part of me didn't want to go on. But as I tried to push it into my flesh- my hands were shaky, with no tears dripping from my eyes, I held my chest with my other hand before the shakiness of my hands had given in and I dropped the blade.
And there was no feeling of happiness after, after realizing how many people there were that I'd be disappointed if I did something. I just stared ahead... I felt tired with everything, but I took another step. I fell asleep seconds later, and that was just the start- for everything from that point on would threaten who I was.
The next day, it was June 27th in 2059, three months to the eventual merging of Hell and Heaven along with the Advent of Destruction. Continuing down their journey on the left side of the running stream, August led them forward at the forefront of the party with his hands shoved into his pockets. It seemed endless, the hours they spent together marching toward their next destination. The son of the Emperor couldn't help but turn his head to his father at the back...
Part of him was concerned for his dad, his eyes held the same sort of non-emotion they did when he'd returned from Heaven. As if the void had overtaken the lively of the man he'd once knew, the man he once called his father, nothing more could be told from the chilled hardened exterior their leader had put up. There was no point in prying, he'd let out how he felt when he was ready, August, more than anyone, knew how it felt when you tried... you try and try but in the end, sometimes, not everyone's comfortable with that. So they kept going, threats had been expected to arise from the unknown of the jungle, maybe to ambush them at the crucial moment.
Alex murmuring, he quietly made a joke, August and Kristina both laughing, the rustling of the leaves to the left sending a tilt of the Emperor's cranium. Their demonic eyes visible for just a millisecond before they vanished as if they'd never been there in the first place; Ben had understood, they'd been walking into enemy territory. Facing forward at the last second, his head had bumped against the fabric of Al's hoodie, about to rub his forehead, before he saw it. Pushing through the trio, he stood at the edge of the mountain, the sun shining against the tips of those towers, that castle, a hawk passed by their face... there it was.
The Hawk's Mage Kingdom Chapter - Start.
To Be Continued!