"Friend?!" Shulia said loudly.
Sullivan froze but calmly spoke. "... Acquaintances maybe but definitely not friends."
Atlas smiled sheepishly. "Yes, acquaintances. Though we go way back." He stepped forward. "...it's been a while. I thought you died in that explosion."
"...You can see for yourself I am still alive and kicking…" He touched his cursed eye. "Not sure for how long…"
Atlas glanced at where the Inquisitor laid. "Was it…?"
"Yes."
"..." He moved his eyes towards the others and smiled warmly. "It's a pleasure to meet you all." His eyes misted a bit meeting Claudina's eyes. "...I apologize for not saying this before but please don't blame her. Rather it was nobody's fault. Lady Mauve's death was unavoidable. And so was the Inquisitor's." He signed deeply but smiled warmly. "...Let us call for a temporary truce. Today both the five Gods and the Vessels of Ri'sh suffered a loss and I am sure we don't want to incur anymore losses." There was a warning tone on his voice that said they had to accept it or else.
Anatole lowered his eyes. He realized his outburst towards Claudina was immature but he needed an outlet to lay out all his emotions and Claudina's snide remarks became the tipping point.
The saints even Claudina sullenly agreed. However, Calliope was far from done.
Screeching down loudly she yelled out the most insulting slurs at them until Sullivan graded hold of her and stuffed her in his pocket. "Now with that nuisance gone…" he mumbled. He turned his gaze up. "...Atlas, we wish to retrieve our fallen comrade."
Atlas nodded and moved to the side.
"Miss Fairy, if you will."
Clauidna teetered forward and knelt down beside the bodies. She frowned seeing the condition they were in. The flesh was peeling off from the bones and a revolting smell like burning garbage and sewage was wafting up to her nose. What disturbed her the most was how the gold coins Atlas had placed on their eyes and head had melted into a tiny gold pool over their faces and these pools were quickly evaporating despite the temperature dropping a few degrees.
She took off her gloves and placed her hand on top of what was Oriane's hand. It stung.
"σπечwert!"
In blinding light Oriane disappeared. She felt where the pain was but there was no wound. Singing she stood up.
"....Claudina, did you take her sword too?" Sylvester quietly asked.
"It isn't here."
"What?" Shulia came over. She bleached back after seeing the Inquisitor. Shaking her head, she said, "We should look for it. Lord Uranus will be even more mad to hear his sword has also gone missing."
Calliope finally poked out through Sullivan's pocket and took off flying. "Hah! The sword you search for will never be found! This is what happens when you dare to clown around!"
"Now, Calliope, return the sword. It isn't yours to keep."
Calliope flew down and toppled off his hat. "Oh gracious! What's gotten into you?"
She screeched again.
"Yeah you stupid bat." Shulia frowned. "Give it back. Stealing isn't nice."
Hissing she took off but came back after a few minutes the Holy sword caught tightly on her talons. She dropped it on top of Sylvester and he caught it. He immediately belted it on his side.
"...We should go…unless Sullivan you want to catch up with your…acquaintance." Anatole looked from Sullivan to Atlas.
Sullivan shook his head. "While we have nothing to catch up on there is one thing I am curious about." He walked a few steps towards him. "...Why are you of all people with the Vessels of Ri'sh? You of all people hated unjust and kept fast to your beliefs. So why?"
Atlas averted his gaze. "My perspective changed, Sullivan. In the crops I lived with rose tinted glasses. But now.." He clenched his fist. "Now I am wide awake. I see where the true Evil is." He lifted his hand finger pointing at the sky.
"The blessed Celestial Heavens; the same place where your gods are born. The third edict: 'The Evil lives in his arrogant castle of folly and power while the peace runs in thy vines as you worship me'. A bunch of hypocrites!"
Shulia looked away in shame.
"...I have nothing against who you worship but I refuse to lower my head to some unseemly gods who are put in authority despite not knowing a single thing about humans."
Sullivan scowled before his face eased up. He shrugged. "...Just because I am a saint doesn't mean I pray to Lord Nyx. Hell, I didn't even know there was something called an edict till now. I am an atheist to my bones."
Atlas' expression turned serious. "Then allow me to send a message to Nyx through her atheist saint.; as long as there is the Celestial Heavens then so will the Vessels of Ri'sh."
Side eyeing him, Sullivan nodded. "...We are done here."
Atlas looked at his hands with a sad smile. "...Let's see them off Calliope. Goodbye everyone. Goodbye Claudina. May we meet again."
"Wait. There is still something I want to check." Calliope flew up to Claudina and studied her face. "What a ugly hairless face! At least you have some clumsy grace…"
Frowning, she tried to swat her away but Calliope bit her fingers instead. "Ow!" she yelped, holding her bleeding finger. "That hurt!"
Calliope tasted the blood on her fangs and she stiffened. Her eyeballs rolled to the back of her head as she spasmed in the air. Claudina looked at Atlas in shock and silent horror as if to say she had done nothing to his beloved pet. But Atlas' face was expressionless.
Suddenly she stopped all movement even flying yet she remained suspended in air through an invisible hand.
A whiff of breath left Calliope's parted mouth. Then she started giggling, then laughing and finally screaming. The screams were so loud that all of them had to cover their ears lest their eardrums explode.
"...So that is how it is…" Calliope mumbled when it was all over.
"What is it?" Atlas questioned urgently. "What did you see?"
Shulia tilted her head to the side. "What's wrong?"
"Calliope…she can look into the future…"
Sylvester quirked a brow. "Pardon? Are you implying this bat can use conveyance?"
"Yes. It-it's quite different from my Ancient Power as it can only see a few glimpses of the near future…Calliope she can not only witness but feel the distant future."
Calliope looked at Claudina again, a somber emotion swirling in her beady eyes.
Calliope flapped her wings wildly. "A muddy future of blood and gore, who's to say it will be a bore?"
"What was that, Calliope?"
She didn't answer Atlas but rather scowled at Claudina. "Tomorrow's path is paved with bodies, yet at the end, their eyes are also foggy."
"I don't think I get it."
Once again she didn't answer him. But this time her small beady eyes glowed red.
Claudina stiffened. Then she screamed in pain as a splitting headache throbbed in her head.
Then the images came.
To her, it seemed like they were being forced into her head. She resisted as much as she could but in the end, she lost and the images came flooding in.
What she saw left her more baffled than in pain.
She floated above a blurry image of what once was a cathedral. The sky was weeping red and blue. Water flowing in through a manmade stream. Below the ruins were headless bodies strewn over in a systematic fashion.
She recognized the bodies floating in the water.
The saints of her time.
SPLASH. SPLISH.
Someone entered through the cracks of what once was the entrance. A hooded figure wearing a snakeskin cloak. Ghostly pale hands slithered out and put down the hood.
Claudina's heart started to beat faster. She could hear it thundering in her eardrums.
It had been years but she would recognize that face, that smile anywhere in any universe.
But something was off.
Her hair was matted, nails sharp and bloodless skin stretched over bones like drumsticks. She stumbled like a child just starting to walk and she yelped like a distressed fox. Even the shine in her eyes was dead.
Claudina wanted to run down and hold her in her arms again. She wanted to scream who did this to her. Wanted to tell her how much she looked for her never once giving up hope. but something stopped her.
And it was not the invisible force keeping her float.
It was her instinct telling her to run. That….thing despite her appearance she can and will kill Claudina.
She moved forward with the water coming up to her knees. She crawled over a fallen pillar but stopped all movement in an instant. She turned her head at the entrance poised like a wild animal ready to defend its territory.
"...This is the worst fight ever recorded in history…" Claudina stepped out from the shadows.
This Claudina didn't look any different than how she looked except her hair was cut shorter and her face bore scratches from nails. She glanced up at her but lowered her gaze immediately when she didn't recognize her.
"...This is the second time I failed…" her face hardened. "...It still feels bitter. This is why a Crowley should never fail."
Claudina relaxed her face. "That's why I will pay for it. With my life." She undid the Stars' Blessing from the sheath belt. It fell and sank into the water.
By then that…thing had crawled down and stalked forward. A strange aura was being released from her body that even made her feel back.
A tear slipped from Claudina's eyes. "I am sorry…As a saintess I am to bring salvation to all but I only wanted to bring salvation to you…" She had a sad smile as she shed more tears. "...Is this divine retribution? For not doing my duty properly and being selective with whom I wish to save?"
She closed her eyes "But it doesn't matter. No punishment can undo what I have caused you to suffer. Your pain, your sadness…I can't reverse them. That's why," She raised her arms, "I will give you a temporary respite with my life. Kill me and be free."
That…thing jumped at her hands raised like a lethal dagger and stabbed her straight in her heart.
Claudina stumbled back but she quickly wrapped her arms around her. Her dead weight pressed onto her bringing them both down to their chests in the water. Blood easily diffused in the water creating a large vermilion circle.
With haggard breaths Claudina grabbed her face and made her look at him.
Tears were cascading her wet lashes and a remorseful but happy smile was playing on her cold lips. "Oh I am so glad it's you I am seeing as I die," she breathed out. "Ahaha…once again you are going along with whatever I say."
She…only tilted her head, not understanding.
"...Could you smile for me?"
This somehow she understood as she gave a toothy smile. Like her walking it also was clumsy and strange but both Claudina loved it regardless.
"...How lovely…Thank you…" She hugged her close while she pulled out her blood soaked hands from her chest.
"....Oh I do love you, Ophelia…."
"..." Ophelia flinched as Claudina's body slipped from her grasp and down in the water.
Ophelia looked at her cold, lifeless face then at the gaping hole at her chest. Lastly she looked at her hands. Claudina's heart was being gripped so tight she left puncture marks.
Her eyes widened at the shock and crime of killing her breath came out in short gasps. Before long she was screaming at the heavens.
Ophelia reached for the corpse only for it to sink further. She screamed thrashing in the water, the heart long forgotten as she tried desperately to reach for Claudina.
The image blurred and Claudina found herself blinking back to reality.
"Claudina? Are you alright? Wait…" Sylvester was taken aback.
"You are crying…?!"
Claudina touched her cheek. Her fingers came off wet.
"...Oh."
The image of Ophelia in despair brought her more sadness than her death. Ophelia had recognized her in death and her death had caused her immeasurable guilt.
That will have to change.
If her death will make Ophelia this much sad then she mustn't die. No matter what Fate has in store she will refuse to die. If Ophelia can remember her only in her death then she will fake her death. Better yet she will capture her alive and slowly make her remember everything.
She won't mistakes like her dream self did.
But first…she wanted some answers…
"...Mmh…" She slowly got back to her feet. Then she glared up at Calliope.
"What's the meaning of that? Why were all the 22nd generation Saints dead? Why am I dead?" Sharp intakes of breath and a scoff from Anatole.
"What did you show me?!"
Calliope didn't answer for a long time. "...A vision. A relic of the future. Continue on your path and it will happen. What you saw was your Doomsday."
She decided to play dumb. Claudina sneered. "Ah, I see. A warning of sorts? If I continue to be a saintess I will die. While it was in the job description so I am prepared to take losses."
"Stone for brains will lead to storms of pain."
"What? Did you just say I am dumb?"
Calliope shook her head. "Rather than questioning facts, how about asking how to live instead?"
She narrowed her eyes. "How? I don't think you will tell me."
Her eyes wandered over to the Saints' holy swords. "You lost your sword in the battle. Take theirs."
"Lost my sword? I-" Suddenly she remembered something.
Something Atlas had told her.
While many of his animals could talk, they didn't understand the complex emotions of humans. However some of them did or tried to understand human emotions; Halo the lion, Mera the Swan and Jasmine the fowl.
Calliope the bat was the closest to Atlas but couldn't understand any emotion though she experienced them greatly.
'...So she thinks I lost my sword…I can use this…'
She schooled her expression of mild concern. "...Yes, my sword. I didn't realize it was so strong it would make me lose my sword even before the battle. That aura…it was strange to put it lightly."
"Wait."
'Tsk! This distasteful man!'