"Trivrium! How's it going? It's going good for me, thanks for asking. Anyway, meet my friends!" 6 said, motioning toward Vian, Delithe, and Avin. "Oh right, there's someone right between the tiny guy and the other guy stuck in a chair, I don't know if you can see them."
"I see them, the air elemental." Trivrium said.
"That's good, I can't. So anyway, while you were taking your time getting here, I went ahead and stole some stuff."
"Is it people?"
6 cocked his head to the side, acting like he wasn't sure what Trivrium meant.
"Is it people, is what you stole people? If it is people, that is called kidnapping." Trivrium asked.
"Not if they came willingly!"
Unable to see her, 6 could someone picture the silent Trivrium silently staring at the terrified Avin standing next to him.
"Well, uh. Yeah, I definitely am kidnapping him, but the other two are totally willing, I promise."
"He threatened to kill me if I didn't follow him!" Vian quickly piped up.
"And I'd stab you right now if it wouldn't kill you immediately." 6 proudly said.
In the ethereal realm, a yellow ball of light formed next to the figure of The Untraced at the same time as Trivrium began speaking to 6.
This was Trivrium, the form of her presence that she normally chose to create.
Though her form was only a small ball of light, smaller than a beach ball, the feeling that radiated off of it was stronger than the combined energies of The Untraced and the Sor Acan.
As she came into being, The Untraced removed the screen he had created to display the situation with 6. The Sor Acan drew space between them and Trivrium, as if wary of what she would do.
Though The Untraced remained standing next to her, his body tensed up and a layer of energy hardened around his body.
"Trivrium. Welcome. I would like to apologize once more for my mistake, had I known he was your child I would never have touched him" The Untraced explained.
"It was our mistake. We, the Sor Acan, are not blameless. We can only be thankful that you found us before we made a terrible mistake. We thank you for your kindness and mercy."
"Cease the pleasantries." Trivrium said coldly. "I come only for him."
"Of course, as you wish. He is playing as he wishes at the moment." The Untraced said. "The barrier is opened to you and you alone; he is ready to leave as early as you wish."
"Good. First, replay the entirety of the time he has spent upon you, from the moment he arrived until now. If I find he was uncomfortable even once, I will share the same unpleasantry with you both."
"Of course." The Untraced materialized another screen, showing the scene of 6 arriving on the planet inside a cell. It began playing, showing 6's first interaction with Vian.
As Trivrium sat in the ethereal realm watching the scenes of 6 from start to finish, she was also talking to 6 himself, listening to his words as well as checking over his body in her own way.
"You seem to have enjoyed yourself here." Trivrium said warmly, looking upon 6 arguing with Vian. "Who is this odd character here?"
As she spoke, an intangible feeling came upon 6 telling him that she was motioning toward Delithe. It was an odd feeling, like a hand was guiding his mind to thinking and look towards Delithe, beckoning him into the right direction.
"I'm not entirely sure, but it seems he has been here for a long time, as a prisoner and test subject. I didn't want to free him until you got the chance to look at him, just in case there was something wrong with him or his bindings."
"Mm, he seems to be safe. The bindings are purely physical, luckily. You can free him, even if there is something wrong with him, it will be fine so long as I am here."
"My hero." 6 said, moving his arms and lifting his leg in a swooning motion.
Vian looked at 6 in disgust. Whatever was wrong with his cellmate turned savior, it went deep. He must not have much air in his brain, Vian thought.
"Are you ready to leave? Is this all you will be taking with you?" Trivrium asked.
6 happily nodded his head. "Is there anything else you'd like me to grab?"
The odd sensation came over him once more, as if Trivrium was shaking her head, though there was no head for her to shake. It was like her intentions became a palpable sensation to 6.
"Alright. Let's go then." 6 said as he walked to Delithe.
Using his knife, he sliced through the bounds that restrained the, freeing Delithe from the chair that had trapped him for far too long.
Though he was now freed, Delithe remained completely still, locking eyes with 6.
"Don't worry. Trivrium, I'm sorry if you don't like this."
6 sensed her emotions come to him once more. She didn't approve of what she knew he was about to do, but she also understood why he was going to do it, and was giving her reluctant permission.
Wielding his knife and the amazing strength that Trivrium had temporarily blessed him with, 6 flashed to the side of the cowering researchers who believed they would soon be free, who had hope in the hearts for their lives to continue once this nightmare was over.
6 quickly and efficiently killed each of them, stabbing them directly through the head or heart, keeping every kill as clean as he could.
He did this out of respect for Trivrium, who already wasn't keen on the death of the researchers.
The fastest way to get this done would have been simply charging toward them, smashing through their bodies and swiping back through until he killed all of them.
But this would have sent blood and limbs everywhere, creating a disgusting and terrible scene that would have been even harsher on the researchers, who believed that what they had done, the torturing and experimenting, the kidnapping and killing, was just part of their job.
In a way, they were innocent. If you had to blame anyone, it was the planet, or beings, which had guided them into this kind of work.
That didn't absolve them of sin though, and Delithe deserved this after all of the time he bided, waiting for this.
Especially if 6 wanted to successfully recruit Delithe to Trivrium's side like he planned on. If they didn't kill the researchers for him, there was no way Delithe would forgive them, much less join them.
Trivrium knew this was his plan as well.
Seeing the actions 6 had taken, she was touched as well as pleased.
All of the actions he had taken once she blessed him had brought benefits to her, and not to himself.
He had aimed for everything that would benefit her, ignoring the revenge that she had intended for him to take.
Delithe watched without blinking, savoring every moment of the deaths of the researchers.
He engrained the images of their lifeless corpses in his mind, watching them fall to the ground pathetically with faces of terror.
It was what they deserved, and less.
They were missing the years of torture needed to truly experience what they had put him through, but their deaths would be enough for him. They would find their torture in falling through the endless skies that waited for them after death.
He only prayed that the skies they were met with would be the most horrid, the most dreadful and agonizing skies that had ever existed.
Now he could only wait. Avin was the last one within his grasp. There were others who participated in his torture in this hellhole, but they weren't here right now. He could only spend he rest of his life hunting them down, even if it killed him.
His life was already over anyway.
But Avin.
Avin was here. Avin was right here.
All he needed to do was stand up. Stand up and take matters into his own hands. Wring his neck, squeeze out his last breath.
Stand up.
Stand up.
But he couldn't. His aching knees wouldn't move, his legs wouldn't obey his commands.
The arms he needed to strangle him would barely even raise as he wished.
He had been in that damned chair for too long, much too long. Until he recovered, he could forget about killing Avin.
"Go ahead and take us. All four of us." 6 said.
With a flash, all four of them disappeared from the room, leaving only death behind them.
"Acceptable. You did well." Trivrium said to The Untraced in the ethereal realm. "You have a very understanding colleague as well."
The same feeling that overcame 6 and confused him reached the Sor Acan as well, letting them know that Trivrium was nodding her head at them.
Unlike 6, they knew what they were experiencing.
This was the feeling of presence communicating directly.
This was the way that high level lifeforms lived. It was similar to how The Untraced and the Sor Acan communicated in this ethereal realm, but it was a level above the realm that The Untraced made.
It was as if Trivrium herself was beginning to be the realm herself, while The Untraced was still stuck with his stationary ethereal realm.
That was as much as the Sor Acan could sense of it however. They were different from the two high level lifeforms in front of them.
They were only possessed a pseudo-presence, created by binding together all of the beings that made up the council of the Sor Acan for a short time.
Once that time was over, the presence they created with all of their power would fade away.
"I'll take my leave now as well." Trivrium said as she sent the four away, bringing them to her own realm. "If the two of you are willing, I can propose a motion to make you tentative allies. I cannot confirm it myself, but I am satisfied with your treatment of 6."
Both of them glanced at each other, tempted by the news that Trivrium had just shared with them. Before they could say anything in response, Trivrium continued.
"But that boy was on a mission that Palon herself was interested in. And you prevented him from completing it. So I suggest you speak with her before the proposition is made." Trivrium said.
A bucket of water was poured on the interest that the two had, now replaced with regret. With just one kidnapping, they managed to get on the bad side of Trivrium, the undisputed queen of the intermediate Domus planets, and Palon, someone who would eclipse every adventurer and even some Domus planets on her own if she wasn't so interested in gossip.
"Had I not intervened, she would have come here to pick up her mercenary on her own. And she probably would have let with much more than that." Trivrium said as she slowly faded out of the ethereal realm, leaving the two sweating as they imagined dealing with the ill tempered Palon instead of the kind Trivrium.
"Thank you for your mercy." The Untraced and the Sor Acan spoke in unison as Trivrium left them.
Free from the doom hanging over their heads, the two turned their eyes back upon the screen that The Untraced materialized once again.
All they saw was the broken corpses and ruined lab of the researchers, the ones they had been confident that 6 would allow to live.
Staring in shock, the two gulped, realizing they had bit off more than they could chew this time, and that Trivrium truly had been kind to them. They had never expected that a child of Trivrium could be that merciless.
"Let us be thankful that Trivrium was the one that came. Even if we lost the researchers, Palon surely would have taken our flesh if she had seen what we were doing." The Untraced said.
"Mm, yes. Let us cancel all inhumane operations at once." The Sor Acan replied while nodding.