The sun was peeking through the window, bringing in more light than usual.
They, Amelia and Diane, did not say a word to each other while signing off documents. The atmosphere was not suffocating as they had basked in each other's presence for a long time. Although working silently was not Diane's style, she knew that Amelia was far from a talkative person.
Still, she had this urge to talk to her more today. More than their five or six words daily greetings.
"How are you today?" She decided to start with some small talk.
"Same as every other day."
This did not seem to be going off well.
She decided against more small talk, directly asking some questions she had been curious about.
"Does The Council still act the same towards you?"
Amelia shook her head, "If you mean being unnecessarily hostile like I was going to end their careers and the world, yes. I doubt that will change for the foreseeable future."
"I did wonder if it was necessary." She mumbled.
She groaned, answering Diane who thought she did not hear her, "Why would it be? Then again, I'm not a law/rule abiding Goddess which is why they hate me."
Diane knew that Amelia did not lie. She had been working for Guardian Gods for long enough to know what type of people The Council liked and disliked. The two that she had worked for before Amelia were very different.
Although Sinbad and Tohil were polar opposites, they still mostly went along with The Council's decisions. Only a few times they had fought back against their at times unreasonable requests. One of which had caused Amelia to be the new Guardian Goddess.
"I say that is a good thing. Not all of us liked them in the first place." She said as she recalled an encounter with them.
She shrugged, "I don't respect people who have no basic human decency for me as well."
"What do they think I am? A puppet that they can control freely?"
Diane knew she should not continue the conversation, judging by the way Amelia talked.
"But… why are they holding information due to being afraid of you?" Yet, she still chose to continue.
She replied, "Holding it over my head thinking that they now have the upper hand."
"You sure…" Diane blinked multiple times.
"Yes, too bad half of them don't own a single brain cell."
She was unsure whether to laugh or feel some pity for the Goddess. On one hand, the entire situation was so one-sided that Amelia had the definite upper hand, knowing how to be ahead of everyone else. On the other hand, their hostility was unfounded on some levels.
Perhaps both would be the correct answer but knowing her, she would not be happy about Diane's expression.
"Say…"
The words could not leave her mouth as her mind caught up with her. She shook her head and continued writing, abruptly ending the conversation. Amelia however had known what she was going to ask, from the way she hesitated.
"You're going to ask me why I became a Guardian Goddess, right?"
The veil of silence fell into the room, primarily on Diane. She had so many questions in her head about how Amelia deduced that was what she was going to ask, before she stopped herself. Although none of it came out of her in the end.
"Good question." Amelia paused intentionally, letting the silence grow.
She leaned back on her chair, avoiding knocking off the pile of paper on the ground. She crossed her arm as a bygone memory played in her head, a familiar face that she had forgotten some time ago yet able to remember his voice with such precision.
"I didn't know Gods could be this dumb."
Was Amelia's first line upon hearing what happened to Tohil. The light-yellow-long-haired man laughed out loud, finding her unamused facial expression to be amusing. She narrowed her eyes at him as he continued to laugh.
"Oh… Oh my…" He could not speak properly as his voice was muffled by his laughter.
She lets out a loud sigh before saying, "Didn't know you can lose more of yourself when you die."
He did not reply, simply continued on laughing. At this moment he was laughing so hard that it became hard to breathe. He placed his arm over his stomach as he bent over, his laughing started to stagger as he calmed himself down.
"Glad you found it funny." She shook her head.
He whined before completely stopping. He shook his head and fixed up his hair, making sure it looked alright before continuing, "Sorry, this is the first time I've heard something like that."
"Seems like everyone likes you then." She said as she took a sip of her water.
He chuckled, "Ahaha, you're not wrong on that."
"But seriously, most people would at least be grateful. Not giving someone back a snarky comment." He continued.
"If you think what I said is snarky, you have a low bar for them."
He waved his hand, "Cut me some slack."
"How about no." She shrugged.
He sighed, now fully knowing that she would not let him forget his decisions. Although they both knew why they were here, and she wanted to leave right now. Yet she was still here, her feet tapping in annoyance the longer she sat in silence.
"Amelia… you sure have a short-temper, don't you?"
"What makes you think I don't."
'Right, we aren't going anywhere with this.' He thought as he breathed in deeply.
He knew how hard it was to let his intent come across to her. Especially with the way she was talking back to him. Nonetheless he had to give it a try, despite some part of him begging to try this another day instead.
"You know you are going to be the next Guardian Goddess right?"
He took in another deep breath, he could feel his body tensing up. He had never been this stressed about something this minor before.
But her answer, expected yet unexpected.
"Yeah, so? You came all the way here to tell me that?"
He extended his left hand towards her, "No. I'm here to ask you why you want to be a Guardian God."
Her reaction changed for a split second before returning back to her stoic facade. She sighed but did not say anything else. She was stumped by such a question, one that would be seen as simple in his eyes.
"Do you not care for the people in this world?"
"I don't want to live in a world where they would rather me be dead than alive."
"To be honest, I just go with the wind."
It was an honest answer, although it was one that hid more than it seemed. Diane knew something as well, knowing full well why she did not answer one that had been used by the two before her.
"For the future of all mortal beings and their worlds."
Calling her pessimistic would be an understatement. Even Diane knew the actual reason she did not answer that.
Diane's thoughts were proved by Amelia's words, "Did you think I was going to answer something much grander than me?"
She shook her head, "Of course not. I know you well enough to know that you never cared about them."
"Damn right I don't." She replied with a small smirk.
Her answer reminded Diane a lot of what she thought of Amelia when she first entered their office. Even more so after she earned herself the nickname, Grim Reaper. It felt grim to give someone such a nickname yet there was nothing about her actions that would be justified.
Not even by herself.
"I could swear that you didn't like me when we first met." Amelia spoke while concentrating on her paperwork once again.
She chuckled before responding, "Not that. Just that Miss Amelia can get a bit to get used to."
"Don't really like what you are saying."
She did not say anything back, simply chuckling at Amelia's words.
They basked in each other's presence like usual, working in complete silence. The occasional humming from Diane and paper landing on top of each other was the only sounds filling in the empty air.
Time passed by much quicker than it felt like.
"Oh yeah, Marcus already collected what I asked of him?" She asked when Diane walked over to hand her a document for her to look over.
Diane blinked in confusion, "Huh? He didn't say anything about it."
"Do me a favor and call him right now. If he has completed it then I'll just come over to him."
She nodded, pulling out her phone from her jacket's pocket. She stared at his contact for a few moments, deciding whether to call him or message him instead. She tapped on his contact and the call button, opening the speaker so Amelia could hear too.
Ring… ring…
She took a glance at Amelia who was still working on her pile of work.
Ring… ring…
She blinked a few times, wondering if Marcus would even pick up at all.
Ring… ring…
"What is it?" The unmistakable voice and directness of Marcus.
"Ah good afternoon. Miss Amelia wants to inquire about your progress on the personal work she has given you."
He sounded a little confused, "Personal work?" When--"
Amelia cut in before he finished his sentence, "I ask you to gather info on those main bases and their surrounding area."
"Oh right. I have them already."
She placed the last one onto the ground and stood up, walking around her desk while dismissing Diane by waving her right hand. Diane stared back as she left, speaking again to Marcus once the door was closed.
"She is coming over in about 5 minutes, please get them ready." She informed him.
He hung up on her before she got to, she did not even say goodbye to him. She simply groaned and returned to her own seat, wondering about why she had asked Marcus to gather all that information.
She felt a sinking feeling in her chest.
Amelia walked through the hallways, greeting them as usual. She made it over to the Division quickly, letting the scanner scan her before letting her through. It was still as busy as usual with people running around and tapping away on the monitors.
"Sorry Amelia, let Marcus take a moment longer." Sheila appeared in her field of view as she was looking for her.
"It's fine, I can wait."
She walked to the designated meeting room, taking a seat at the very front of the table. She crossed her arms while waiting for Marcus, leaning back on the chair as her posture relaxed more into the cushions.
She began to count how long it was taking for him to appear.
Sheila had appeared again, this time placing all the documents on the table for her to read whilst informing her that he would not be coming back anytime soon.
"He's doing field work with the army. He will be returning shortly."
She raised an eyebrow, "Field work? Why just him?"
"Kaguya needed him for something. That's all I know unfortunately."
"Something eh…" She mumbled.
Sheila bowed before leaving her alone. Amelia stared at her figure until the door closed behind her. She tilted her head as her mind pondered on what Kaguya needed Marcus for since she was not known to ask for others' help.
She eventually came to a simpler conclusion.
"Ah, his half-brother."
His half-brother was notorious for being a troublemaker even as a commander of his own sub-division. More or less likely Kaguya only needed Marcus simply because they had a score to settle.
"That guy sure likes to get himself into trouble." She murmured as she flipped open a document.
The first one she had open was a blueprint of the facility they had inhabited. The cults did not share the same base yet for some reason only one was left. Merging together seemed too miniscule of a possibility to be considered.
"What is Cyliam planning now…"
There was something interesting about the facility, that it was a laboratory in the middle of the forest. When it was built it was mentioned that it was for researching wildlife in the area. Yet there was no need for such a large facility.
It was found out much later that they were experimenting on certain beings.
Although it was supposed to be demolished by now, why was it still here?
The facility was large, having four upper floors and two basements. The experiment was conducted in the basements while the upper floor served more as a stand-in than being used. Hence why the upper two floors were empty.
Unfortunately they did not have anything on the renovation they did to the facility, though it would have retained most of its exits and entrance. She stared at the blueprint for some time before moving on to the next document.
This one was more for fun if anything.
It was about Sensu and his underground mafia.
Sensu was not his real name, it was a nickname he took on after he joined the mafia that ruled that territory. She had known his name though Sensu stuck with her since she had been calling him that for too long.
Sensu, a 29-year-old man who was born into poverty, lost his parents at 12. It was rumoured that he had joined the mafia much earlier than he himself stated, either way he was now the leader of the mafia.
Power hungry might be an understatement on how willing he was to kill those who stood in his way.
She squinted her eyes at what he had done, the people he had killed and what property he had owned. He was rich yet that was inherited or built on bodies and skulls. That was why she had never liked him very much, especially with his smile.
Whenever he smiled, she felt like wiping it off his lips by punching him in the face.
Like usual, his powers were listed below as well.
He had three fans yet one broke during a fight between them both. He had not bothered to replace it so there were only two left. That was where his nickname had come from as he used fans as a catalyst for his magic, along with his image. He carried them wherever he went.
She had fought him before and fought alongside him multiple times, nevertheless she was unsure if Sensu was the best person for such a role. Of course all of three of them wanted something out of this, yet Sensu would be the one who could backstab both of them.
"Should I say that Cyliam trusts people way too easily…" She sighed and placed it away.
The next one she took up was audit logs from some meetings.
It was part of a long-standing rule that every meeting would be recorded by audio which was copied down by hand later. The audio had two versions, only the person managing the audios knew which was the original.
More or less to avoid situations where audio could be splice as something else in order to frame someone.
The meeting was between the Division's leader and The Council. It was the day that they decided to hold the information. The entire conversation before what had gone down was interesting to say the least.
"Paranoia eh? That I could bring the entire system down with it." She mumbled while reading it through.
"But why would they need to hold that? There was something else there that would be more damning to me than that one. Or are they just blind?"
The other report that was supposed to be handed in was the one about the incident back in her elementary school. That day Cyliam was thought to be dead along with some teachers despite his body never being found.
She was there, during the latter half of the process before he disappeared. At that time, even Amelia was convinced that he was dead. Imagine the surprise she had when she saw him again during the initial investigation into the cults.
That would have been worse considering that it recorded their past relationship and it even recounted having counseling sessions with him. That could be a base though not proving that she would be colluding with him.
Perhaps, they were indeed blind to the intent brewing within her. It just was not the one they thought so.
The metal door slid open, revealing someone that she had been waiting for.
"18 minutes and 26 seconds. That is how late you are, Marcus." She commented without looking at him.
His hair was disheveled, his aura felt more tense than usual and the gaze in his eyes. Once she took a glance at him, she could not help but laugh. He would have reprimanded her lightly for laughing at him but honestly, he could not care by now.
"Now, what do you want to talk about with me?" He went in directly.
She placed the document back on the table while smiling, "Now now, let's have a small conversation before we go."
"Later."
She stared at his movements for a moment as he sat close to her, his slight annoyance was barely visible in his facial expression. She shrugged and leaned back on the chair, waiting for him to talk first.
"What do you think you're doing?" He narrowed his eyes on her.
He went straight to the point, his words came off harsher than usual. She understood why he would feel this way, especially after he let out a rather long breath before looking back at her. She simply smiled back at him.
He rubbed his temples. "Let's switch it then. Who do you think will benefit from this?"
"The Council perhaps."
"They would want you dead if you did this in their name."
She was lying, he knew she was lying. Still, he did not know what to say. He never truly understood her intentions at all, doing things in nobody's benefit. She would always say that she was simply doing her job.
But, what was she doing it for?
"You're going to help him, aren't you?"
He was incredibly observant, understanding things that most would have dismissed or missed due to not noticing the little details. He did not place as much energy into gathering them since he could tell what she was trying to get him to do.
To understand what she was about to do.
She laughed, "I know it. You are as observant as always."
His eyebrows knitted as he asked, "Is there even anything you want me to do?"
"I want to see what you would do."
His eyes widened up, shock and surprise was written all over his expression. Although it switched from that to frustration instead, he breathed much deeply as he could feel his veins popping out from his skin.
"Why are you even doing this?" He tried to not get frustrated with her.
"Because I'm bored."
She could feel smoke coming out of him. Her response only gave him much more of a headache than the one he had before. He stood up as his eyes glared at her, pent-up anger was threatening to boil over.
"You're not only that. What do you want?" His fist nearly slammed on the table.
She knew that the only way to calm him down was telling him the truth, to avoid hiding her intention away from him. Although there was a reason why she had to hide the truth, one that was too integral to tell him right now.
"Perhaps I'll tell you someday, but you can't know right now."
He knew she was honest, her eyes and tone proved as much to him. Seeing that, he knew that he was not able to get anything out of her. He could only sit back down in complete silence, his head hanging low from the realisation.
"Thank you for always covering for me, Marcus."
She could not see his expression although she still felt his emotions from staring at him. He was surprised to say the least. He hardly ever heard her thanking anyone, he did hear her thanking Diane on some days.
"You're being so nice, I'm scared." His words were not sarcastic.
She shook her head, "I won't be killing you tomorrow, don't worry."
"So you do still need something from me."
She nodded, "Of course. I want you to supervise the entire incident."
"So you want me to be your partner in crime?"
She chuckled at him saying that, the smile on her lips showing how amused she was about the whole situation. He was less than amused about the entire thing to him as he had more at risk than her.
"Better not let me die by myself then Amelia." He raised his head back up.
She chuckled again, "Of course not, I won't let you die by yourself so long as you do your work for me."
He sighed as he leaned back, his eyes staring at the ceiling while letting his own mind wander. She simply stared at him with some layer of amusement which still annoyed him. Her amusement was not unfounded however.
He was usually a cold and stoic person, barely ever smiling or showing any other emotion aside from a blank expression. He mentioned why he did not show emotion, still looking like this was incredibly rare.
"So, what did Kaguya want you for?"
He tilted his head down to look at her, his facial expression turned into one that was much more annoyed than before. She already knew what Kaguya needed him for by his expression alone.
"He made a mess." He simply stated.
"What mess now?"
He groaned before saying, "He had decided to work on something by himself when it was agreed upon that they would all work together. So he rekt their plans and wouldn't apologise for it no matter who threatened him."
"What was the plan?"
He scratched the back of his head, "It was for F.I.D. as they wanted some monster materials for documentation."
"Did he kill it?"
From the way his expression seemed, she knew the answer.
"He is reckless after all."
He face palmed before saying, "I still don't quite understand why you let him in the army."
She tilted her head, "He has the potential, don't you think? Even as a half-demon he was incredible."
"His hot headed personality is not fitting to be in the army, or even as a commander of his own sub-division."
"A change of pace. A little chaos is not a bad thing here and there." She laughed as she mentioned.
"Let's come back to something."
He wanted to change the conversation as he knew what she was going to say to him after. Her smirk on her lips said as much as to him.
"What exactly do you want me to do during it? You know people would be here right?"
She waved her hand, "I'm not at all worried about that."
"Why? They aren't like me."
Her tone shifted immediately once he spoke, "What makes you think I got here with my hands clean?"
He took in a sharp breath through his mouth, the atmosphere around them had changed as her aura swallowed everything up. It was bloodthirsty yet incredibly cold, so much so it sent chills down his spine.
Yet it came as quick as it went.
"I'm not killing anyone now alright? I'm not that bad of a person." Her tone went back to a more dull one.
Marcus had taken her word for it although he still was unsure how much of it he should trust. He knew full well of what she was capable of, even if that meant having a bloodshed to teach them a lesson.
With her smile, it made it more unsettling.
"Now. Let's talk a bit about what I need you to do."
He was sure that that aura of hers would linger in the back of his mind.
The sky had begun to dim down as the sun went down. Skies turning into a more darker blue or black, the clouds contrasting greatly with it. The night life had begun as the streets were getting as lively as the street lamps.
Although it was the same as what they were going through.
"How interesting." Will spoke up first, twirling the win glass in his hand.
Charlie's right eye twitched as he said, "You seem very amused about all of this."
"Just the prospects of it appealed to me more than I thought."
Vander chimed in, "Only when the situation is more detrimental than you thought."
Will took a sip of his wine, he did not deny or confirm Vander's words, though all of them knew what Vander had said was true.
"Still, who would have thought the one that united us all wants all of us to be dead as well." His words were accompanied by his boisterous laughter.
Charlie sighed, "Glad you find it hilarious."
He shrugged, "I am not the one worse for wear."
His words were clearly directed at Vander whose limbs were wrapped tightly in bandages due to the burns he suffered from Aeon. Part of his body had healed up, although the scars would indefinitely remain on him.
"I thought no one would be dumb enough to challenge the might of him, thought wrong then."
Vander shook his head, "You would too in that situation."
"At least I won't be as bad as either of you." He extended his wine glass at them and smiled.
Charlie seemed more restless than he usually was which the other two caught up on.
"Or as bad as Charlie seemed to be right now." Vander leaned further on his chair.
Charlie scratched his head, "There are just some things I don't understand."
"What is so hard to understand about this whole situation? Cyliam is trying to kill us."
He continued, "Makes me wonder if he let Salem die on purpose too."
"Probably not." Charlie suddenly said.
"What makes you think it's not?"
Vander answered before Charlie could, "Because of the deal he made with Amelia."
"Ah right, I forgot about someone too." Will shook his head, taking another sip of his wine.
"This is a much more complicated situation isn't it?" Charlie mumbled.
Vander shrugged in response, placing his hood over his head and letting it hang lower than needed.
They stayed quiet as they began to rack their brains for any solution, knowing how heavily the deck was stacked against them and their survival chances were abysmal. Vander happened to be the one that broke this trance.
"Let's see. What we have known up until this point is that Cyliam is involved, but unsure whether or not he will bring his people with them and drag them to their graves. Amelia is in this as well though not sure how big of a role she serves in this whole ordeal."
Charlie raised his hand as he cut in, "And Sensu, a nickname for the leader of one of the strongest underground mafia."
"The deck really is stacked against us." Will commented.
Charlie said, "Although we can't guarantee that they won't be against each other."
"Good point there. I can say for sure about Amelia, but not about Sensu. He is a mafia leader after all, he would be willing to back stab them for something more."
After Will said that, the corner of his lips curled up into a smirk. He seemed to have been planning something in his head, although they could not be sure of what exactly he was thinking about. Vander and Charlie shared a glance before Will spoke up again.
"We are going to do something, right?"
Charlie was annoyed that he had asked, "What makes you think not?"
"Because there might be more trouble than you think."
Charlie clicked his tongue at Will's words while Vander simply gave him a cold stare.
"Although… there is a way we could take their decks and place it on top of their heads instead." Will suddenly mentioned.
Once he said it, Charlie's eyes widened up. He seemed to have remembered something as he stood up abruptly, causing his chair to fall to the ground. Some semblance of happiness appeared on his face and tone as he spoke.
"Ah right, leveraging the deals Salem made before she died!"
Vander squinted his eyes at him, "Deals? What did you guys make a deal for?"
"The deal with Falak, the God of Snakes."
"Ah that. But at the time didn't she already finish up part of her offerings?" Vander leaned forward as he stared at Will.
He chuckled, "She did, she already finished her end of the deal. It's just that Falak hasn't done one of his end of the deal yet."
"If I recall correctly, she asked for two things. One was to aid in the creation of the staff that unfortunately went to Amelia instead. The other was left blank, though she did say later she was going to ask him to create a new kind of being." Charlie muttered loudly as he pondered.
Vander narrowed his eyes, "So you're going to try using that blank as an aid?"
"Yes, we are."
"What makes you think he'd help us?" He shook his head.
Will laughed out loud, he went and grabbed the already opened bottle of wine.
He looked for some glasses while saying, "What do you think he desires the most?"
Vander answered first, "Power?"
Charlie corrected him, "Chaos. He desires to create or view chaos above all else in his life. Even if that meant starting a cross-species war that ended up in the near destruction of reality."
"Correct. I knew I could count on the mythology nerd." He snickered as he poured two glasses of wine.
Charlie shot him a quick glare after he said that, prompting a loud laughter out of him.
"When even doing so will cost him his life?" Vander raised an eyebrow.
Charlie responded, "Yes, he just wants to see the world burn under his feet. No matter who lives or dies, that is all he wished to see."
"Sounds plausible then." He again leaned back on his chair.
Will pushed the two glasses to them, sitting back on his seat with a small smile. He took a sip of his wine. Vander grabbed a glass and took a sip as well, staring at the red liquid in his glass. Charlie did not grab his, instead glaring at Will.
"You know, you are really not worrying much about it."
His attitude was all Charlie needed to confirm his suspicions.
They had no grudge between them, no matter who it was they would help out each other without another word. Yet, Charlie could not deny this feeling of distrust in Will, especially when he had been too laxed about the entire ordeal.
"You know we are most likely going to die, right?"
He stared at Charlie for a moment before laughing again, "Ahaha. Then?"
His tone was not challenging or ridiculing him, instead questioning him about the thing in his mind. Vander had a feeling of what would go done in a second although he could not care any more than the surface.
"What do you mean by then? Do you really want to die?!" He nearly shouted at Will.
Vander could not understand Charlie's outburst, perhaps his thoughts were more aligned with Will.
"We are all going to die for our sins someday. Watching it burn down into flames while my blood drips on the barren grass field while cold air is blowing, is rather light, all things considered."
He continued, "Not that you don't know how this world works. We will all have to die for our sins, just how much longer do you have to wait to see it crumble down in front of your eyes. That to me is much more painful than straight up dying."
Charlie took in a deep breath as he stood up, "So you're going to let Cyliam kill us and everyone else?"
"You're naive in thinking he doesn't understand what he is getting into." Will replied.
Charlie looked genuinely confused, his eyes widened up as he heard what Will just said. His mouth slightly agape yet nothing came out of it, his limbs had begun going stiff as he held himself up with it on the table.
"Does he look like he is trying to erase it or retry it?"
Will knew that Charlie could not answer him, so he glanced at Vander instead.
"He's trying to erase every ounce of his doing, which includes all of us." He said while placing his glass on the table.
Will raised his glass up, "See? No sane person would do this without expecting to pay with their life. Not that he doesn't know how strong we all can be."
Charlie knew that what he said was true, having to sit back down on his seat, looking like a deflated balloon as he sunk deeper into it. Will simply laughed at his state before taking another sip of his wine.
"So are we all going to fight at once or what?" Vander asked.
"Don't think that is a good idea. Since we have no idea of how many people are fighting all of us combined, at once or splitting us up."
He sighed, "Right, so we have to decide on that day?"
"Hope the weather is good and everyone's morale is at their highest."
Will added, "And of course, Falak helping us out."
They once again sat in silence, the sound of the fan spinning is the only thing that filled the air.
Will chuckled again as he stood up, raising his wine glass in the air. They knew what he wanted as they stood up as well, grabbing their own glass and raising it up to where his was. He laughed out loud when staring at them.
"To our graves!"
His voice and tone did not reflect the slight dread in the air. Their glasses clinked as it bumped into each other, cheering to their inevitable doom. Their facial expression was not the same as Will's though somewhere in their hearts, they knew what was going to happen.
The smell of blood will permeate the air for days. Things going up in massive blazes, people burning to death while screaming their lungs out. They cling on to their very last hope that they would come out alive and well.
Perhaps like the blazes that burnt everything, it would be the end to their legacy as well.
Just like his, passion burning out like fireworks.
"I can't say if you were dumb or just wanting to die."
Sensu was on bartender duty for the night. He had taken over his actual bartender's place once knowing that Cyliam was going to give him a visit today.
"Would you take both?" Cyliam said while taking a sip of his whiskey.
He tilted his head before stating, "Not that I care. Unlike Amelia, I don't have emotional attachment to this."
"So you know?" He looked up at him for a moment.
"You would be surprised at how easily we can get information on people at times." Sensu chuckled.
"How afraid do you think I would be now that you just said that."
"Very very."
The bar was oddly empty today, all the 'customers' were his men as they drank and shouted at each other. It was much more rowdier than usual, especially with their voices.
"Are you men always this loud?" Cyliam asked while staring at them.
Sensu shrugged, "They need to relax from time to time as well."
"So, what makes you think that your plan would work?"
Cyliam was unsure what to answer as he stared at his glass, letting out a long sigh and not saying another word. He took another sip of his whiskey as Sensu continued to smile politely, this anxious feeling could not leave his bones.
"What makes you think I would know?" He answered back frustratingly.
He was getting drunk, it was impossible to tell from his skin though his drunken posture was undeniable. Sensu knew what was going on the longer he stared at him, his smile began to reach his eyes as well.
"Hmm… drunk now, aren't you?" Sensu wiped one of the just cleaned glass.
"Huh?!" He screamed out loud.
'Hic' He made a sound and jolted as he took another sip. Sensu was sure that he was going to be dead drunk today.
"Should be lucky that your plan isn't going to happen tomorrow."
This time, Cyliam could not reply to him. He placed his head on the table and took in a deep breath, his hand gripping on his glass. Sensu could tell that he was softening up as the wall around him began to crumble down.
"Why do you want to do this?"
He took a glance at Cyliam, wondering how long that he was going to take to answer him, or even at all.
'If Amelia was here, she would've scolded me.' He thought to himself as he noticed Cyliam opening his mouth.
"I don't want to suffer anymore."
His answer made Sensu smile, just a much more different feeling of smile. For once, his eyes were soft and sympathetic as he glanced at Cyliam every now and then. Luckily most of his men were too drunk to realise their leader's reaction.
"Why did you get yourself into this mess?" He began to make some cocktails for himself.
"I…" Cyliam closed his mouth again.
He still had his walls up which Sensu expected as much. He was not completely drunk though he could not hold himself or his facade up much longer. He poured a glass of Martini for himself, pushing it close to Cyliam's.
For once, he chose to say something much more wise.
"You want to burn everything down, leaving nothing behind aside from the ashes. Like your past and present, staining it with such blood that you will never have to see it again. This is just a repeat of it, isn't it?"
His words were harsh, they cut deep within Cyliam's heart.
Perhaps Sensu had found way too much about his past, one that he now hated with all of his life. He did not say anything else as he raised his glass, meaning that he wanted more alcohol to quell his pain.
"Like Amelia would say, burn as bright yet short as the fireworks."
He turned around as he grabbed a bottle of whiskey, pouring half a glass for Cyliam. He looked up and stared at Sensu's every move, despite the most he was doing was cleaning up the just washed glasses with a dry cloth.
"Do you know the question about whether you see the bottle half-full or half-empty?" Sensu asked abruptly.
Cyliam took a sip before saying, "Yes, I know of it."
"Now tell me, what would you answer now?"
He stared at his glass before taking a large gulp. 'Hic' he jolted slightly and looked back at Sensu who was clearly still waiting for his answer. He was still smiling although it was clear now that it was simply a facade.
"I'll force it to be empty. Like my hic glass." He sighed.
Sensu chuckled out loud again as he shook his head. He raised up his cup, Cyliam still understood his intent as he followed Sensu along. He raised his cup up as well, placing it close to Sensu's as well.
"To the end of the road." He mumbled loud enough for Cyliam to hear.
Their glasses clinked, Cyliam gulping down the rest of his alcohol. Sensu took a sip before making a sound by tapping on the glass, gaining everyone's attention immediately after he had done so.
"My men!" He shouted, "Let's celebrate our accomplishment to get so far, and for much more when the day comes!"
They roared in excitement, too drunk to understand much more of his words. They simply agreed along, clinking their glasses with each other. Then, most of them gulped the rest of their alcohol while laughing out loud.
That was not what Sensu wanted to celebrate, even knowing that they would not care or remember it due to how intoxicated they have gotten. Nonetheless, he knew that they understood what they were celebrating.
That the battlefield would be their graves.
"Interesting…"
Amelia was sitting in her office, staring at the reflection on their desk as she seemed two groups drinking. The cult leaders and Sensu with his gang along with Cyliam were all drinking. Her facial expression was still blank as usual.
"They are fearless, aren't they?" A voice started to talk in her head.
She shook his head, "Just not thinking about it I suppose. Though I do need to be very careful."
"They still might kill you after all, right?"
Asura's chuckle had got her mind pondering at the thought of it.
She understood that she had to be careful with what she gave them and what was planned ahead of time. Most of it was still changeable however since she was preparing for any last-minute changes that could occur.
However, there was a part of her that wanted something much different.
Her lips curled up into a smirk as she said, "Now then, this will be quite the show."
It was dangerous for Cyliam as he did not know what was going to happen to him at the end of it. What Amelia and Sensu seriously wanted from the situation were hard to tell, they already had so much yet still wanted more.
Although, all of the involved knew that it would be a graveyard for those who dared go in.