Tightening the black sleeves his arms were restrained to, the shades-wearing man lit the cigarette in his mouth, exhaling the smoke after removing the stick. Exiting the shadows, he sighed and held the cigarette tight between his fingers, staring at Alora chained to a chair. He tapped her on the shoulder, waiting but a moment for her to wake afterward. She didn't.
The old man reached for the bucket beside her foot with a groan and splashed it onto her. She gasped awake, uncontrollably jerking around on the seat before slowly relaxing—scanning her surroundings. This environment was unfamiliar to her. But a lone silhouette standing before her illuminated by the light above him while shadows surrounded them for what seemed like miles.
As her vision cleared, so did the silhouette's figure. It was evident who it was now.
"Keres..." she snarled.
He waved, grinning. "Yo! Sleep well?"
Alora flinched forward, her muscles bulging against the chains entrapping her. He leaned over and bent down, smoking the cigarette between his lips, releasing a misty cloud into her face. The Enforcer coughed and shook her head, glaring up at her black-haired father.
"Where the hell am I? What… What is this place?"
The former proxy stood up. Displacing his cigarette by flicking it away, his peripheral caught the flames flying off the end, stepping forward to stand over the woman.
"Deserters' Association Headquarters." He leaned back and scratched his cheek. "I was skeptical at first about bringing you here, but he didn't care. And so here you are." Keres's head tilted. "But you have no idea what you're here for, do you? I suppose it's only natural. Well then, allow me to enlighten you…"
Meanwhile, in Barronia.
Anthony's eyes batted open. After briefly scanning the throne room, he sat up, holding his head and groaning. Talen, crouched behind him, gradually healed Raven.
"Ugh. Feels like I've been asleep for years," the vessel uttered. He peered around at the lawyer behind him. "What happened again…?"
"You fought Aella and Marie. You beat Marie. The fragment of Monstrum's soul imbued in your domain bested Raven. By a lot. Then, the domain was dispelled. All things considered, you won. Then again, that's not saying much."
Anthony's eyebrow raised. "What do you mean?" He stood up, looking over at Raven's slowly regenerating mutilated build. Monstrum's scent had tainted her. It was undeniable he was the perpetrator.
"Don't feel bad," said Talen. "We had a duel. Someone won. Others lost. That's what we wanted, remember? Plus…" he smiled. "…you've gotten stronger."
Was there something irregular about the Unconquerable's words? Gazing down at her, anyone else would be disgusted. But somehow, deep within Anthony's soul, no regret could be found. Not an ounce of anguish for the sake of the fallen longingly returning to the land of the living. This was his strength. As Valentina and Talen taught him over and over, he had to be proud of the strength he held. And so, instead of lamenting his domain's damage, he grinned widely and stifled a chuckle.
"Thanks!"
"Oh. You're awake?" asked Uriel, stepping into the throne room. "I thought you'd be out for longer."
Anthony's eyes widened. "Hey!" He stood up and pointed at Uri. "You're… on our side again, right?"
The King chuckled. "For the time being. If it serves to advance my dream, I'll continue fighting by your side, but don't count on it."
"He's just being modest," Talen looked up at them with a smirk. "He missed us. He didn't have any friends when he was fighting us." Removing his hand from Raven's shoulder, he stood up and sighed, blowing away his hair. "I'm done here. Monstrum didn't damage her soul so she should be fine for now. A few more hours of rest and she'll be back to normal."
"Thanks. What do we do now?"
Anthony looked at the King. "Well, you know how Lora was kidnapped? We're gonna go try and rescue her," he said.
"Seriously?"
"Seriously," Talen and Tony said.
Uriel nodded. "Okay. Unfortunately, I have no idea where they could be hiding her. Raven told me she could sense where her brother is so I guess we'll have to wait until she awakens."
"Geh!" Tony's tongue stuck out. "I hate waiting!"
"Speak for yourself. With all that free time, we can get stoned—considering she'll be out for a while." Talen elbowed Uriel and watched him turn. "You missed smoking with us the most, didn't cha?"
"Don't be ridiculous…"
In the end, everyone reconvened at the Amit Family's House.
They freely ignited the joint and watched the smoke lift off its end, permeating the air with marijuana's smell. Talen removed the spliff from his lips, handing it to Uriel beside him who hastily snatched it from his friend and pushed it into his mouth. Anthony exited the kitchen and entered the living room, chewing a stolen brownie.
"So," he gulped. "Are we sure we should be doing this? Shouldn't we be looking for leads on where Atlas is keeping Alora?"
Mist flew out from Uriel's lips. Held it up between his fingers, his baby-blue eyes looking down redirected to gaze at Tony's features.
"It's not like we can do anything if we don't know anything. She can probably ascertain their whereabouts so it's just best to wait until she wakes up for now," Uri said.
Tony scoffed, waving his hand through the smoke and taking another bite from his brownie. "You guys are potheads."
Talen took the joint his partner handed back to him. Placing it into the corner of his lips, he inhaled sharply, then removed it entirely.
"You say that like it's a bad thing," he said, letting smoky remnants slip out his mouth.
Lily peeked into the living room, pushing Tony away. "He's right, y'know! Alora could be getting tortured right now and you two are just smoking like nothing's even wrong!" She exclaimed.
"Oh, shut the hell up!" Talen stood up. "All you both do is complain needlessly about stupid shit! If Uriel says we're waiting for Raven to wake up, we're waiting for her to wake up! If you two wanna go on ahead to Helenheim in an attempt to save her, be my guest! It's your life you're forfeiting…" He took another puff from the joint and inhaled.
Uri's head tilted. "Tell me something, Talen. You seem nonchalant about Lora getting kidnapped. Why is that? Is there something you're not telling us?" he asked.
Tony and Lily squinted at their comrade, the latter of the two crossings her arms.
The lawyer shrugged and withheld a smirk. "Of course not. She's always been strong. She's my sister, after all. I have faith… in the strength she wields. If push comes to shove, she'll come back to us before we even make a move. That's the type of woman Alora's always been."
At the Deserters' Association Headquarters in Helenheim, Alora looked up at Keres through soaked gray hair. Briefly moving to lean back in the chair, the Enforcer's head tilted, feeling the chains tighten as she moved however shortly.
"You must loathe me; I can sense the bloodlust dormant within your soul. It aches to be unleashed." He smirked. "That Power is the very reason you were abducted."
After steadying her breath, Alora gazed into his eyes and parted her lips. "What're you talking about?"
"You don't understand. It's only natural for those ignorant to question the unknowable truths of this world. While you wish and beg for them to be false, there's nothing you can do to wave them away. That is the undeniable 'truth' to life." Keres closed his eyes, still smiling. "That being said, since the despair hasn't set in yet, I believe I'll elaborate." He looked down, opening his eyes.
"There are many Fate-users cursed with 'Blessed Freedom'. As you know, they all possess unique abilities and they're unable to be copied. But the Power only heightens when chained to a soul identical to mine. You see, my Freedom enhanced my physicality and matched it to that of a Displacements', granting me unrivaled strength. Besides Talen Amit, nobody can beat me in a hand-to-hand fight.
But… Freedom like yours that enhances the soul's ability is stronger. Your innate Freedom to shatter the previous limits of your strength and possess new power… is invincible. The thing is, you dunno how to use it. That's where we come in."
Keres strolled over to her arm and pointed to the chains spread across her skin. "We'll be thieving the Fate in your aura for the sake of our goal. The Horizon's Surpassing: forced evolution through an unavoidable technique that actively alters causality itself." He shrugged. "Or, I guess that's how I understood it. I dunno if that's how it works though."
The assassin stepped back, shoving a gag in her mouth and attaching the pliers to her head, standing behind the console. Alora struggled—wiggling in her chair and muffling as she screamed.
A hand emerged from the darkness behind her. Sinking his fingers into her shoulder, he exited the shadows, standing beside her with a piercing glare. She shivered in her chair at the sight of his expression.
"Don't. Move."
Keres grinned. Just by gazing into his eyes, the woman was all but paralyzed, forced to bear the pain as her father flipped the switch, activating the current. Electricity crackled between the conductors sunk into her temples, shocking her brain and triggering a scream that couldn't have happened with the gag in her mouth.
"You removed it… Andri?" asked Keres.
"Is that a serious question?" He sneered. "The sound of her screams is unimaginably delightful."
Atlas entered the scene from nowhere. Bent over close to Alora's face, he held his chin, curiously humming. Keres and Andri's eyes widened. They fell to their knees.
"So, the Fatebreakers are working accordingly," He stood up. "And here I thought I splurged by ordering you to bring them all," Atlas looked at Keres.
"It was worth it, sir. Those tools hold the very potential to surpass Fate-users entirely."
Atlas scratched his cheek with a smirk. "Weapons imbued with Predestined Powers, all Rank-1 or higher. They could even shatter an Unconquerable barrier," He looked down at Alora. She'd lost the strength to scream anymore. "Those chains were imbued with certain conditions that allow it to steal its victims' Fate. When you're done tormenting her, get Apollo to move her life force into the necessary container." He grinned at them. "Understood?"
Andri and Keres nodded. "Yes, sir!" They said.
The Amit progenitor chuckled. In an instant, he was gone. The subordinates freely raised their heads and bodies. Andri sat in the corner, popping the lollipop from between his lips.
"Looks like things are moving accordingly," he said.
"I guess." Keres yawned. "When do you think they're coming after her?"
"Hell if I know. Atlas probably has something planned. We should wait and see if he gives us any orders before doing anything stupid."
Illustrious clicked his teeth, digging into his pocket. "Well, I know that much. S'not like I wanna die early," He pushed a cigarette into his mouth and lit the end, inviting the smoke. "Wanna grab a bite to eat while Moloch takes care of the rest?"
Andri sat up with a smile. "You had me at 'bite'."
The two comrades left the room, leaving the door unlocked behind them. Alora endured the sheer burning pain of the electrocution frying her brain. Steam started emerging from her head once the current began dissipating—the shock that surged through her fading to mere jolts. Back against the chair, Alora's unconscious body seized periodically; eyes occasionally rolling to the back of her head. The torture would continue for several more minutes.
"Alora is most likely being kept at the Deserters' Association Headquarters. It's at the end of Helenheim. Most people don't ever go into the abandoned parts of the city where it's cold and depressing, but that's the best part. They must use it to their advantage.
The danger of the darkness... and fear of the unknown. It won't be obvious. In truth, it looks identical to several other buildings it surrounds. That's because of a Displacement's Predestined Power that can make copies of the base. But that defense is faulty against my technique. I can sense my brother's soul through the signature and residuals he left in the throne room. He's there with them. At the edge of the kingdom... with Atlas too."
Aella's words rang through their ears as everyone sat idly in the living room. Valentina removed the hand from her chin, glancing at the rest of her comrades.
"Does anyone have any sort of plan or--?"
"We don't need one," said Uriel. "I have something better…"
Trivia: Umbra Andri was born on October 14th, 1996. He's a rather skinny-looking man with long black hair and two miniature eyes under his base ones. He usually wears a black turtleneck under a grey suit jacket. There are also cracks spread up across his right cheek. There are silver rings and chains entangled around his usually-gloved fingers. His eyes are red. He currently possesses the 'Lovecraft' Predestined Power and is one of twenty Rank-0 Displacements.