**********************
Silas 'Wisherman' Moon
The Claymore within my grip trembles as I creep behind the three... Godslayers. Or, more accurately, the one Godslayer with his cloak wreathed in dark ichor and the two others that merely aided him. Killian Graves' eyes sweep over me, prompting an earthquake within my muscles, but he doesn't seem to care.
Instead, he glances up, speaking to Alexos. Squinting, I move a little more, with Mie advising me on every action. We cannot let Eli see us if we are to... finish this once and for all.
"It is time, Alexos."
"Are you sure?"
The illusionist turns to the Undying while Eli is crouched at the place of the slain God. Death's bled ichor remains on the surface of the ground, taking up the genius's full attention. He is enraptured by the left-over essence as if pondering a way to use it in his machinations.
Bit by bit, Mie and I move, a Wish already granted for our silence. The price was simple. Very simple. In fact... I could have been using such things all along. I gave up tomorrow's strength for today's. How stupid the former me was.
I was... limited d by my past and by my experiences. Now? Anything is possible. I must only shred away the little that remains for greatness. In the end, it won't matter. Either I die doing nothing, or I slice myself until I make a difference.
My past... it is gone. But... I know something to be infallible. I hate being useless.
Killian takes several moments to answer the Phantom Pain, but he does. Were it not for Mie, I wouldn't even know this man's name or title. None of them, in fact. But... she wants the porcelain one dead. As such, I will make it so. She is my guide, and I am her instrument.
A figment of an erased memory flickers past, something of an old love and the semblance of what I am now. Ignoring it, I crouch closer to Eli, the Demigod still focused on the Godly blood.
"Bring your family back. I will help. This... veil will shroud them for as long as I live. Death's Gullet will remain as it is nestled within this veil, but I have some control over it. Recreate their bodies, and I shall pull their souls. When I die... it shall be your duty to guard Death. Do not take the mantle lightly. If there is not something or someone to reign in such a Concept... reality will fall into disarray."
My nonexistent heart roars with ambition as I know what must come next. Killian can help bring it back. What was her name? Hmm...
Hmm... Dammit, Silas! Remember! REMEMBER!
Pain lacerates through my skull as I stumble shortly, finding myself only a meager few feet from Weiss, our target. The target. Mie wants him dead. And... so does... Kate? Yeah, that's it. My guide points, and I follow.
"This is him, Silas. He killed my father. He killed Kate's father. He killed so many... This is him. He must die. No. Matter. What."
In this way... I can make a difference. I can make the world a better place. Not that... I remember much of it. Nonetheless, I made a decision. As such, I shall trust the former me. He might have been stupid, but he was a good judge of character.
Eli swiftly turns, his porcelain... his shattered eyeballs facing me. The man who defied death chuckles shortly, standing up to tower over my crouched form. In response, I tighten my grip on my blade, running my tongue over my teeth as I prepare for my final battle.
Only... his words confound me. The horribly scarred mannequin steps toward us with brimming self-confidence. The other two merely turn to watch, utterly disinterested in our conflict.
"How humorous. The mangled soul comes to kill the pulverized body. Is this truly what you want, Silas? To be a puppet? And you, Mie? Are you content with the role of puppetmaster?"
Gritting my teeth, I take another step, drawing steel from a sheath. All the while, I seethe out air from my open mouth. What he says might be true, that I am a puppet, but...
"I am not a puppetmaster! We are a team! Just... just like Kate was with me!"
"I am fine with being puppeted as long as she does not see it that way."
Eli Weiss's cracked grin crumbles off some more of the vessel he remains in. These battles have been costing him plenty. His mind games won't work. He will die here today. No matter what scheme he wishes to use.
So, without letting him talk any longer, I swing. Unfortunately, a 'duplicate' of him catches the blade with a hand that shatters before the combination of two Virtues' strength. The one behind continues rambling with the distraction.
"We needn't fight. Mie. Killian can bring back Kate. Only... I doubt there is room for three in a body, seeing as a soul still needs a vessel."
There it is. Discord. Sown through the tiny seedlings, he tosses that porcelain tongue all over the place. Ignoring him, I strike at the duplicate again, seeking to remove its head. But it's fast. Too fast to die in one blow.
I can only try harder as Mie joins my attacks, still falling for the bait.
"What do you mean? Isn't Alexos returning his family? What about their bodies?"
The non-duplicated Eli flicks his eyes over to the Phantom Pain. Meanwhile, the illusionist kneels down to the floor, sitting on his own legs, and retrieves a dagger from his belt. It oscillates with a dangerous rhythm of Ether.
"You think he can do that on a whim? Altering reality... is not such a painless feat. You would know, Silas. You, too, Mie, for being his partner. To restore life... it does not come without sacrifice. More so than just protecting it. It is likely Alexos shall bind himself to the Veil forevermore, becoming its keeper only for this one task. Anymore... who is to say what it would take?"
The sky, earth, and everything in between rumbles as Killian Graves, the Undying himself, places that spinal blade into the dirt beside Alexos. I shuffle back, afraid that the rumblings will trip me up before Eli, preferring to just hear this one out first.
"You may continue, nameless. Until you are done, I shall protect you from any distraction, no matter their origin. That was our promise, remember?"
The Phantom Pain nods as he saws off his left arm, the flesh cracking away into a column of Ether. The swarming Ether warbles and twists before forming into the body of a young child, a little girl at most four. Only... no soul exists within that corpse. It is simply a body.
The man doesn't stop. Moving the blade, he removes another limb, the left leg, which also dissipates into Ether itself. Watching, I realize what he is doing. It is... incredible... a display of Ether on par with Killian's Sirza.
It just... isn't combat-focused. The father creates flesh, bone, and life from nothingness. All that is missing is a soul, and something tells me he could make that, too, if he so wanted. Furthermore, the body of the girl and now the two-year-old boy aren't ordinary.
They are so much more than that. Alexos' own soul has been grafted into their bodies. As such... each of his family will have a fraction of a Dominion's might. They may even share his Dominion itself. Who knows? This showing of Bestowal Strand rivals that toy Wyatt and Anwiye love so much.
I indeed do not, but Weiss also refrains from making a move as reality bends to the forlorn father. He whispers under the turbid currents shaking our clothes.
"See? No matter the person, Mie. There is always a light. Some are just not given the chance to unveil it."
I can't help but nod slightly, and my partner remains quiet. We all gaze at Alexos as he removes his right leg, slicing off the soul itself to form a beautiful young woman. She is at most in her late twenties, and even her soulless eyes possess the charm of kindness.
Alexos' hand falls to his wife's chin, cupping it slightly. Shuddering, he turns to face Killian. I do not know why, but fury remains in the illusionist's eyes, even toward the one that would return his family. Uncaring of his own pain, metal limbs form to aid the man in his standing, but they are not real. Eventually, they will fade, and he'll have to make new ones. The agony of doing so, however... He will always feel the misery of the steel binding itself with his nerves.
"Do it. And then we're even."
Killian Graves bows his head, apologizing, but Alexos doesn't let him get more than one word in.
"Sorry—"
"I do not want to hear it. Your actions are your own. What Vincent asked of you does not matter here. Do it."
And so, the Godslayer does. The Mortal Veil cloaking his back and neck with its abyssal radiance somehow darkens further. Killian reaches backward before pulling out three glowing orbs. Souls.
Then, he faces Alexos, delivering a final warning before placing the souls into their bodies.
"They will not be the same. Nearly two decades within the Gullet would... affect any soul, especially those of Unsigiled. I would be surprised if anything remains other than instinct."
The illusionist simply nods, raising his remaining hand toward the three bodies as the lights fall into them. Then, he clutches his fist tightly over the corpses.
"I know. I know. There is a boy who can fix them, make them whole."
A second later, three bodies sit up, gasping for air and filled with tears. No words are shared, however, as the three appear to be feral, their eyes rosy and aggrieved. Nonetheless, Alexos leans forward, letting his constant illusion fall to reveal his face.
The man is in his forties now, long outliving his wife and his children. But to him, they are home. The time does not matter as he hugs them, able to ignore their resistance with his strength. Something deep within my chest resonates, the heartwarming want to have such a family. Shaking my head, I glare at Eli now that the Ether in the surroundings has fallen.
"Mie. Silas. How about we—"
Still, the man won't shut the fuck up. Frustration explodes into anger as I charge at him. Killian laughs, his reverberating chuckle proving the Graves' point as I swing at Eli.
"Weiss, for all your intelligence, you must be blind to emotion. No reason can save you here. They need you dead. And... I am not one to stop them."
Weiss shouts with anger as I ruin another duplicate he has formed, Mie's rage coming out. Her words stab deeply into Eli just as her mind throws rock, stone, and mental trauma forward.
"Yes! You will pay! You killed Dad! And... and you drove Kate to insanity for revenge! YOU WILL PAY!"
Again, Killian mocks Weiss as he starts to walk away, leaving his own 'ally' to die. Weiss screams at him to come back.
"I have wanted you dead for a long time myself, Eli Weiss. I am only disappointed I cannot have the honor of killing you. There are... more important things for now. But know this, genius, your usefulness has been outlived. We do not 'need' you anymore."
The porcelain face of the Demigod twists into pure anger and betrayal while he lunges for me. As he does so, a wave of... some kind of disease flows into my body. It halts my Ether and forces me to stumble. Crashing forward, Eli grasps onto my coat, flipping me around while slamming his palm toward my chest.
The Ether within his palm swoons as I feel...
"Silas! WISH!"
I open my lungs to speak, to use my Power, but Eli is already on it. A clone of his appears, shoving his hand into my slack jaw. The man grips onto my tongue as a double-fist-sized hole emerges in my chest. There is no pain, no cut or burst, simply the flesh ceasing to exist.
Without a spine to move my legs, I crumple, yet Eli catches me nonetheless with the hand in my mouth. Then, the body of his that destroyed my spine aims for my head with the Power that he has stolen.
The bastard even seems... remorseful.
"I am sorry, but it is you or me. I do not enjoy this. "
A hand, however, prevents Eli's palm from removing my skull and killing Mie in the process. My partner and I glance left to see a middle-aged man grinning at Eli Weiss with... all the psychopathy he's known for.
"Oh, you don't, you say? Well... I will. I will enjoy every second of this."
Weiss' eyes spread eagle as a sledgehammer crashes into his skull out of nothingness. Falling to the floor, I stare ahead as the two Demigods enter all-out war. As expected, Weiss endeavors to weasel his way out.
"Wait! What are you doing!? There is no way you care about those two that much!? What if your family gets hurt!?"
Alexos, as Weiss expects, doesn't give a shit about Mie or me. He growls out a string of words that carries more hate, more shoved-down anguish, and more delayed rage than anything I've ever seen.
Kate's anger against Weiss seems almost unfound, childish, even.
"You think I didn't figure it out!? With Killian!? With... with... you motherfucker. I will have him pull your soul out so I can piss on it after I piss on your corpse. Setting up the killing of a whole village? Of my family!?"
Scores of weaponry, cascading meteors, crashing waves, and awful disasters fall upon the Heartless Porcelain as he fights for his life, clearly outmatched. If he were in his original body, he would have a chance, but not anymore. Especially... as Mie also helps, striking with Shift constantly.
With every second, however, Alexos' ire only grows. The rage swells into the heavens themselves as I start to see space crack. The Ether... it is reaching a level that I can hardly even notice.
"YOU! You killed thousands for that vial! You blackmailed me into joining you after getting my family killed! YOU! And... after all that! I even got it! And what then!? HUH!? YOU FUCKING SET ME UP!"
Weiss attempts to defend himself, both verbally and physically, but he fails at both as his body is quickly battered and his doubles obliterated.
"I didn't set you up!"
"BULLSHIT! FUCKING RAT!"
While they war, I gradually return to my feet, Mie using Shift to help my legs move. She asks me carefully, checking to see if I'm alright. I simply nod, but she doesn't take that.
"No. Silas. Are you alright? I... I don't want you to die. That was close. Really close. If I have to choose between you and Kate... I don't want to. It doesn't feel right."
Sighing, I stride forward, sharing her Power's coordination.
"But you'd still choose her, right?"
My heart sinks as I expect to hear a particular answer. The one I've always heard. That I'm last. That I am unimportant. That someone else will be chosen before me. I've listened to it... again and again, since I first died. Even before that.
Crippling pain enters my soul as I remember things I shouldn't. They quickly fade, as my Wishes have deemed it so, but the feelings remain. So, I stomp toward the two Demigods until Mie halts me in my tracks.
"No... No, I wouldn't. Kate wouldn't want that. Neither do I. Live, Silas. If not for yourself, then for me, okay?"
I can only stand stock still as her words wrack their way through my whole body. Live? All... all I've been trying to do is die. But she wants me to live? Over her sister? Her twin? Her... second half? How? Why?
How could she? Is she... that... an artifact... telling me to live.
I... don't think anyone's ever told me that before. No one... no one has ever cared enough. No one has ever cared for me enough to disregard my desires.
My fists clench as I stare ahead, locking my eyes on the overwhelmed Dominion. Eli Weiss is losing the fight, but he's a squirrely bastard. Alexos' Ether is forming into something utterly terrifying, yet I do not know if it is enough.
Opening my mouth, I make a Wish. As I do so, I feel something change inside. It's... bizarre, but I don't dislike it. Mie's soul and mine seem to... congregate, as... I feel them move in harmony. She's always been so... closed off. Only in the past few days has she truly opened up. And yet... it comes so naturally.
I can feel our Powers converge, and then, our souls meet.
"I Wish for Eli Wiess to die."
This... Wish, however, feels different from all others. It's bizarre. My coins don't move. Instead, I become oddly focused. It's as if the whole world vanishes, showing me the perfect path toward my goal. The wish of slaying the Demigod.
"Are you seeing this?"
Mie asks for my confirmation as tiny gold dots line our path to the ideal passage. Nodding, I follow them.
"Yes."
Together, we move forward. My steps are unhurried yet bring me closer to Eli no matter how he runs. I dodge danger without even trying, simply following the path. Mie's Shift appears at immaculate timing, where we would be hit otherwise by a stray weapon of Ether or collapsing rock.
Together, we approach our Wish, finding a new way of making them come true. Money can buy many things. But it cannot buy perfection. That has to be... birthed.
Seconds path as Eli gradually slows, his arms and legs breaking, his chest opening to the Underworld's air. The porcelain face cracks open as he falls to his knees. But... the path doesn't point to the fallen one. It points to his clone.
So, we move toward it while Alexos kills the 'original' porcelain body. Then, the clone doesn't vanish as one would expect. It quickly turns to run, but we are already there, waiting.
Eli opens his mouth to say something but stops. He simply sighs, gazing upward at the surface of the Underworld.
"A loss is a loss. I will at least die with my own pride."
Seeing the path, I reply to him, saying what needs to be said for him to actually die. Otherwise... he'd definitely strike again.
"She forgives you."
For a fraction of a second, Weiss freezes, the words confusing and shocking even the genius to his core. Then, a spear breaks his body in half. As his head and chest tumbles toward us, I draw my Colt and pull back the hammer.
Eli's Power strikes us, nullifying our Ether, but it does not affect the gun.
Satisfaction fills me, and tears run from my fireless eye as the Underground Tree shatters into nothingness. Slain by a Wish. How humorous.
Immediately, exhaustion wracks us both as we fall to the ground. Mie can only speak with relief and jubilation at his death, and I feel the same, right with crashing now. Alexos, however, catches us on a table counter, which he conjures.
I can barely look up at him as I notice Killian approaching the war of Gods in the distance. Leviathan and the Devil against many more than themselves.
"What is he doing? He's not a God. And he's... so injured."
The Phantom Pain twists his neck to gaze at the Undying. A long breath leaves my fellow Undead, but it is not one of jealousy or anger. It is simply acceptance.
"The weight he carries is all the same. Come. The surface could always use another with a Dominion. Killian has already granted us passage."
The illusionist lifts me up on his shoulder and carries my limp body away while his Ether harbors his family on a long bed that floats alongside us. With his position, I can only watch as a Graves walks into what must be certain death.
But... it is his duty. No one else can do anything to aid our Gods but him down here. Only he can make the difference with the Veil around his shoulders.