« …. » speak
"..." Think
____POV Chiyoko____
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"WHAT IS HAPPENING? "
I was training with the new scuba gear Hecate gave me when all of a sudden I was diving in the dark. I couldn't see more than 3 meters in front of me.
So, in haste, I went back to the surface but I made the same observation as underwater.
I couldn't see more than 3 meters in front of me. But this time, not for lack of darkness but for lack of smoke.
"We're getting attacked?!"
That's the thing that came to my mind.
But this possibility was removed when I analyzed the smoke.
The smoky had no trace of magic.
Which led me to the conclusion that this smoke is from Hecate.
« HEATE! WHAT IS HAPPENING? » I shouted at the top of my lungs
« Delivery of materials. Come to me » I heard a voice in the distance
And as this voice asked me, I walk towards it.
After a short swim, I came out of this smoke and saw Hecate sitting on the edge of the base.
Without wasting any more time, I walk over to her and sit down next to her.
« So why all this smoke? » I asked with great curiosity
« This smoke is a den for delivery » she said
« And this delivery, where is it? »
After asking my question, Hecate just raised her finger to the sky.
Confused, I looked in the direction she was pointing and when I did, I was totally shocked.
There were lots of boxes falling from the sky.
« Wha…what is it? » I asked shocked
« These are packages with building materials » she said nonchalantly as if it were normal
« Why are packages falling from the sky?! Who sent them?! »
« I bought the upgrades to the base so that two of us could live in it. Now the system needs to build them and for that it sent the materials here. » she explained
« It's...It's your system that built this base? »
« Yes, I told you earlier »
« Ha...Yes…. That's right. »
After that, an awkward silence settles between the two of us.
Hecate was looking at the parcels that had fallen from the sky and I was looking ahead, towards the smoke.
I really didn't know what to do or say to break this silence.
And after 10 long minutes, when the packages hit the water, Hecate spoke.
« The base upgrade will be finished in 24 hours and it will be dark in minus 3 hours. Shall I show you a base I discovered here? »
« Another base? Here? »
« Yes, do you want me to show it to you?" »
« Euuuh yes, if we have time »
And on this sentence, Hecate gets up and jumps into the water and begins to swim towards the exit of the cove.
So, I do the same as her and follow her.
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____Time Jump____
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« It's still far »I asked
« We'll be there soon » answered Hecate
We must have been walking for at least 30 minutes and just as long as I'm cold.
Going back to the mountain after swimming without drying off is a terrible idea.
I even wonder how Hecate knows how to stay so stoic despite the cold because she also doesn't know how to dry off before starting our walk.
"If we don't get there fast enough, I'm sure I'll turn into ice cubes"
As I was complaining that I'm going to turn into ice cubes, Hecate spoke up.
« That's it, we've arrived at the entrance to the base » she told me
And like she said, right in front of me is a huge hole in the mountain.
"The entrance is not very discreet "
« Let's go in » she said, throwing something metal into my hands.
« What is this? » I asked, pointing to the object she just threw at me.
« It's a flashlight. It serves to illuminate. Just push the button that should be on the side and direct where you want to light up. » she explained
With this explanation she gave me, I looked for a button and once I found it, I push on it.
As soon as I did that, light came out of the object and lit up where I was pointing it.
The light produced by the object is, of course, devoid of magic.
This item is pretty useless when you know a light spell.
Any light spell is far more powerful than this item.
« Let's go » Hecate said as she pushed into the base.
With this item worse than a light spell, I follow Hecate.
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____Time Jump____
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For 15 minutes, we walk in a corridor that seems endless. None of us have spoken since we entered this "base" and it's starting to be awkward.
So, to entertain myself and make sure that I forget this silence, I think about everything that happened.
The death of my father, the fact that everyone thinks I'm the one killing her, the betrayal of this hero, the fact that I have found a weird ally and all that she does for me.
I think especially of the last option, on all that it does for me.
She helps me get revenge, she gives me a place where I can stay safe, and she gives me equipment. And all this for free.
Everything she gives me makes me very uncomfortable because she gives me so much and I have nothing to offer her.
Ok, she also wants revenge on that bastard but she does so much more than me.
"I would like to pay it back but how "
And despite the long minutes of reflection, I don't see how I can repay her.
So, in order to know how I can repay her and destroy this silence in which we are, I will ask her directly.
« Uh, Hecate? » I asked uncomfortably
« Yes? » answered Hecate
« How…. How can I pay you back? »
« Eh? What are you talking about? »
« See, you do a lot for me. You help me get revenge, you give me a place to stay and you give me equipment but I don't know how to give you anything in return. So, I would like to know how I can repay you? »
« If you want to reimburse me, then you will give me all the information you have » she declared.
« Is that... is that all? »I asked perplexed
« And don't betray me. » she said dryly
« OK. I would never betray! » I assured
And with that, we fell into a very awkward silence and as before, in order to forget this silence, I plunge into my thoughts.
This time, I'm thinking about her last sentence, about never betraying her.
I can clearly tell that she's been betrayed in the past and it's been rough.
"When we are more intimates, I should ask her what happened"
« We have finally arrived » declared Hecate, still curtly.
"It's really hard to pass the betrayal"
While lost in thought, I tripped over something but thanks to my reflexes, I didn't fall.
Curious to know what nearly made me fall, I turn around and light the ground in search of the cause.
But what I got was not what I expected.
I expected it to be a stone, a cobblestone sticking out or even a branch.
But what tripped me up was a humanoid body.
And from the horns on his head, his must be a demi-human but I've never had a demi-human like him. And why are there demi-humans so far from the mainland?
Confused, I start looking around to see if he's the only body but no.
All around me there were about twenty bodies, all with horns on their heads. A battle must have been going on right here and it must have been a terrible battle.
All the corps are all at the entrance to the base as if they were defending their base. Curious about what happened and the new species, I crouched down next to a body in order to analyze it.
From the sword still in his hand, I can tell he was a swordsman. I have never seen such a uniform. It may be a uniform of an organization or a cult. By analyzing his uniform more, I saw lots of holes in it. Looking at the holes, I quickly realized that he was killed by projectiles.
Curious to know how the others died, I analyzed several of them and all came to the same conclusion. They all died by projectiles and ends. By taking some distance in order to have a better overall point, I noticed that the bodies were arranged in formation. As if the soldiers were killed all at once.
"I don't know of any attack that kills so many soldiers at the same time with small projectiles"
And all of a sudden, I knew how they were killed. Specifically, I know who killed them. With this revelation, I turn my gaze to Hecate, who was looking at me.
« Did you kill them? » I asked
« Yes » she answered calmly and not curtly.
« May I know how? »
« I threw a smoke bomb and went around them. Once done, I opened fire with my M249 »
"I don't understand the terms she used but I understood how she killed them"
« Why kill them? »
« They attacked me first »
Now that I know what happened, I can think about the other questions.
What species are they? Why are they here? What organizations are they part of, ….
As I stared into space, Hecate spoke
« Do you have any questions? » she asked.
« Hmm I wonder what species they are? » I replied
« According to them, they are demons » she declared
« Mmm I see… WAIT! WHAT?! IT'S…IT'S IMPOSSIBLE! DEMONS DO NOT LOOK LIKE THIS! THEY ARE INOBBLE MONSTERS THAT JUST WANT TO EAT OTHER SPECIES! »
« That's what they said »
« YOU…you must have heard wrong. That's it! YOU HEARD WRONG! »
« No, I heard very well,and I can even tell what their leader said before I shot them »
« It's not possible... Books don't lie »
« Books don't lie, but authors do »she says.
« Why ? Why would books lie?! » I asked confused
« Because it's easier to kill something that doesn't look like us. It's easier to kill a monster » she explained.
« So why did our ancestors fight?! The books said that our ancestors repelled the demons! »
« I don't know but if you want my opinion, it was your ancestors who started the war for a reason and they won. It's the winners who write history. »
« So, everything I prepared for, everything I believed in is wrong?! »
« Certainly «
With this revelation, my legs ceased to function and I fell in shock.
"Who to believe? My ancestors or Hecate? Despite the evidence before my eyes, I find it hard to believe that my ancestors fought against humanoids. We are not on good terms with the other humanoids but we would never declare war between us. "
As I was clearing things up, something struck me.
"Why did Hecate bring me here? Why didn't she say anything when I was analyzing the bodies"
« Why did you bring me here? Did you know that about demons? » I asked
« Smart Lynx. Guessed for demons and all that. And why I brought you here is for you to know the truth »she explained calmly.
« Why did you want me to know the truth? »
« I wanted to give you one more reason to kill Ado. »
« And how does that relate to the hero? »
« I think that Ado is going to take over the country. So, if you want this stupid war between demons and humans to stop, you're going to have to take back control of the country, my queen »
"Hecate is very deceitful. I even wonder if she is not more deceitful than the hero "
« So, what are you going to do? » asked Hecate
« Kill Ado Sato and take my rightful place. Once done, I will tell the truth and I will stop this bloody war » I declared more motivating than ever
« I like to hear that. Want to keep exploring? »
« No, I would like to go out, breathe some fresh air and think about all this" I said, pointing to everything around me »
« Very well. Let's go »
And with that, we left that graveyard where the truth lies.