Fan Fiction ❯ Trancending Death ❯ One Stands Out ( Chapter 67 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: Soulless Wanderer 
Anime/Manga: Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Adventure / Fantasy / Angst | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 08.15.2006 | Pages: 1 | Words: 2.2K | Visits: 112 | Status: Completed
Anime/Manga: Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Adventure / Fantasy / Angst | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 08.15.2006 | Pages: 1 | Words: 2.2K | Visits: 112 | Status: Completed
“Why did you bring him here, Lucia? What purpose could bringing him here and revealing everything we know to him actually achieve? You’re lucky I don’t have the soul reapers come and take you away, so you better do some explaining,” Zemnas threatened
“I will. You see, after freeing Alex from the control of this Devil, Alex wasn’t sure what to do. He realized that his goal of bringing Brittany back was futile, unless she wanted to be brought back. Without that task, he would never be able to fully gain control of his power, and unlock the hidden power inside of him.”
“So, you’re saying you brought him here to talk to this girl, who doesn’t remember anything, just so that he can achieve the power needed to defeat this monstrosity?”
“Yes and no. I believe that when Brittany sees him, her memories will return to her. Their love is so strong, that even in death she could still sense him. The fact is, is that we need him and he needs us. He wants to bring Brittany back more than anything, but he also wants to destroy the one responsible for controlling him. If we could point him in the right direction, he would without a shadow of a doubt go after him and defeat him.”
“There is only so much that we can do, Lucia. You have messed with enough things in the Demon Realm as it is. There is only so much that we can do without interfering completely in the affairs of the Demon Realm, and thus changing someone’s destiny!”
“We have done everything possible to that man to control him. All of our efforts, and the efforts of that Devil to control him have failed. Unless we decide to work with him, that Devil will do what he wants to that realm and it’ll only be a matter of time before he tries to go to other realms as well. We have to act now if we dare hope to defeat him.”
“Even if we do help him, and point him in the right direction. There is no guarantee that he will be able to fully utilize the power needed to defeat him,” Tristan argued.
“He has already begun to delve deeper into his hidden power. Just to get this far he has uncovered some of the truth about his power, and has even mastered some of its abilities,” Lucia said defensively.
“Only because you helped him. You told him what to do, just as you told him how to get here,” Zemnas countered. “Although I will say this, using the dagger of fate to bring him here, was a good move on your part. If you hadn’t, that Devil might have been the one to come here instead of him.”
“That would matter little. While he is the Demon Realm, we can do nothing, but if he were to come here we could fight,” Tristan said, patting his staff with a cold smile. “It’s many eons since we last were able to activate our weapons and call forth our true power. It would be interesting to see just how strong this Devil is compared to the might of the Celestial Realm.”
“Tristan! How could you say that? Do you know what kind of damage that monster could do if it were to come here?” Shimera argued.
“Silence, both of you!” Zemnas ordered. “I grow tired of all this bickering. Now, what else do you have to say for yourself?”
“First off, before I continue further, I want to know what you know about the dagger of fate. That, and I want to know how Zanatos managed to secure two soul reapers like he did to guard and protect it,” Lucia inquired.
“The dagger of fate is a magical item that shouldn’t have been created in the first place. Back when relations with the other realms was more hospitable, Lord Nathaniel along with the help of some of the human sorcerers at that time, created this item as a link between our realms. He believed that by uniting the realms and giving them ways to communicate with one another, an everlasting peace would be formed. Needless to say, I didn’t share his optimism. After his tragic death at the hands of a demon, I made sure that we would forever stay out of the affairs of the other realms. I had long since forgotten about this dagger until you brought it to my attention. After this whole fiasco is over with, I will aptly destroy it.”
“Fine, but what about the soul reapers?”
“There are many possible explanations for that. More than likely, Scion summoned the souls of some wretched fiend, and the soul reapers went to collect it. He knew about the soul reapers and about the Celestial Realm, that was why he was so good at necromancy. We lost just about as many souls from him stealing them, as we gained from him killing people. Luckily, those dark times are over with, but now we are faced with even darker ones,” Zemnas explained.
“How did Scion know about the Celestial Realm?” Lucia asked.
“Because, he was one of the people who helped to create the dagger in the first place. You wouldn’t have known that of course, because you haven’t been...well you know,” Shimera explained.
Zemnas nodded and thought about something for a moment before speaking again. “Lucia, you said that the reason you brought Alex into our realm, was you believed that his strong love for Brittany would not only return her lost memories, but also set his heart at ease so that he would be able to unlock his true power.”
“Yes, that is my belief anyway. Alex needs to know what is going on. He need to hear from Brittany that she forgives him for what he has done. Otherwise his heart will be too racked with guilt over his crimes for him to be of use to anyone.”
“And some of Brittany’s memories have already returned, have they?”
“Well, she remembers that the man from her dreams loves her, and that she loved him. Other than that, no.”
“Still, that would make things a little to easy for Alex,” Zemnas said with a smirk. “Fine, I will help Alex and lead him in the right direction, even guide him as much as I can, but not before I see this great love for theirs for myself. A love that can transcend even death.”
“What do you mean?” Lucia asked, already certain that he wouldn’t like the outcome.
“I’m going to put Brittany in a subdued state, and if Alex can awaken her from it and have her regain her memories, then I will have no doubts in helping him.”
“Wait...you don’t mean? If you turn her into a doll, there will be no way that he could ever get her out of that state! It’s never been done before!”
“Never before has a man cheated death not once, but twice. Twice he has stood before our gates, and twice he has come back. That one man has done the impossible more times than I care to count. Defeating this new menace might just be as impossible has him breaking Brittany subdued state, but if he can do it, he will have my faith.”
Lucia knew that there was no stopping Zemnas once he had an idea stuck in his head. Still, he knew he had to do something to help Alex. “For this, I want it just to be myself, Alex, and Brittany there, no one else.”
“I will send Shimera there to ensure that you don’t do anything to help him,” Zemnas said, daring Lucia to challenge his word.
Lucia nodded, knowing there was nothing else he could do. “Zemnas, if Alex defeats the Devil, will you give Brittany back her life that was stolen from her?”
Alex didn’t know how long it had been since he’d been put into this Hell. He didn’t even know why he was here. Everything that he had been doing had been shoved to the back of his mind to make room for his mind to absorb the increasing sensation of pain that coursed through his body. He remembered that he was being forced to fight his inner demons. He remembered that he was supposed to be doing it for someone important to him. But that was trivial compared to the one thing that filled his brain at this very moment. And that was an unending pain and agony.
Alex screamed in pure agony as the souls of the dead infiltrated their way through his entire body. He couldn’t take the sheer agony of having his soul torn to shreds by the unending hatred coming from those he had killed. The pain truly was more horrible than anything he had ever encountered before. It was as if every inch of his body was on fire, but at the same time a thousand tiny daggers were being ripped through his skin. His body was suddenly extra sensitive to everything that he felt, so that even the slightest of pains he could feel. Everything , from the searing pain of the souls of the dead ripping him apart from the inside out, to the sweat running down his face was within his spectrum to feel with increased intensity.
In his mind’s eyes, he could see all the souls of the dead standing before him, still surrounding him. He could as they grabbed hold of his arms, and stabbed their hands into his chest. Alex watched as one demon in particular, grabbed him by the throat and rammed his fist far into Alex’s chest.
“Feel this, my Lord? It is the feeling of death!” Zanatos said with a sneer. Beside him were Alex’s other generals and Scion. All were oh too willing to torture Alex, all except for Celine. Even while everyone else around him had wicked grins on their faces, she held a face of sadness.
“You never wanted to kill me in the first place...did you Celine?” Alex weakly asked.
All eyes turned to her, even Zanatos and Scion quit mutilating Alex long enough to look at her. Alex could already tell by the look in her eyes, just what her answer was going to be. Still, he wanted to hear it for himself. Evidently, Zanatos could tell what her answer would be, also, for a second later he yelled at her.
“Don’t even think about it, Celine. Right now we get a free pass to torture this asshole. This is a dream come true. So don’t just stand there moping. You might as well have some fun with us as well. Besides, we’re already dead, he made sure of that. So there’s no point in worrying about what could have been. Instead we just need to focus on this wonderful gift that has been laid before us,” Zanatos said with a sneer. He then turned back to Alex, and began to mercilessly slam his fist into Alex’s face. “How do you like that, my Lord? Come on Celine, you might as well join the party.”
“No,” Celine replied softly.
Her response was just enough to cause Zanatos to halt his furious blows upon Alex. He turned back to her, looking at her as if she was crazy. “What did you say?”
“I said, no! I’m not going to torture, Alex, because I already forgave him for all that he has done to us. We deserved death for our actions. We deserved it, and we got what we had coming. After all the lives we took, after everyone we hurt, we deserved our fate,” Celine solemnly stated.
Author's Note: Yeah, I'm a real softy. Since I made it to where the only reason Celine really went along with the plan in the first place was because Silva altered her mind, I just didn't have the heart to make her evil once more. Besides, I think its really good that Alex sees that even a person he once considered an enemy to forgive him. Let me know what you think about all this, because I'm debating on whether or not I should have everyone forgive him so quickly. I mean, he killed them, but at the same time he really didn't want to. With the exception of Zanatos and Scion, whom he would gladly kill over and over....
“I will. You see, after freeing Alex from the control of this Devil, Alex wasn’t sure what to do. He realized that his goal of bringing Brittany back was futile, unless she wanted to be brought back. Without that task, he would never be able to fully gain control of his power, and unlock the hidden power inside of him.”
“So, you’re saying you brought him here to talk to this girl, who doesn’t remember anything, just so that he can achieve the power needed to defeat this monstrosity?”
“Yes and no. I believe that when Brittany sees him, her memories will return to her. Their love is so strong, that even in death she could still sense him. The fact is, is that we need him and he needs us. He wants to bring Brittany back more than anything, but he also wants to destroy the one responsible for controlling him. If we could point him in the right direction, he would without a shadow of a doubt go after him and defeat him.”
“There is only so much that we can do, Lucia. You have messed with enough things in the Demon Realm as it is. There is only so much that we can do without interfering completely in the affairs of the Demon Realm, and thus changing someone’s destiny!”
“We have done everything possible to that man to control him. All of our efforts, and the efforts of that Devil to control him have failed. Unless we decide to work with him, that Devil will do what he wants to that realm and it’ll only be a matter of time before he tries to go to other realms as well. We have to act now if we dare hope to defeat him.”
“Even if we do help him, and point him in the right direction. There is no guarantee that he will be able to fully utilize the power needed to defeat him,” Tristan argued.
“He has already begun to delve deeper into his hidden power. Just to get this far he has uncovered some of the truth about his power, and has even mastered some of its abilities,” Lucia said defensively.
“Only because you helped him. You told him what to do, just as you told him how to get here,” Zemnas countered. “Although I will say this, using the dagger of fate to bring him here, was a good move on your part. If you hadn’t, that Devil might have been the one to come here instead of him.”
“That would matter little. While he is the Demon Realm, we can do nothing, but if he were to come here we could fight,” Tristan said, patting his staff with a cold smile. “It’s many eons since we last were able to activate our weapons and call forth our true power. It would be interesting to see just how strong this Devil is compared to the might of the Celestial Realm.”
“Tristan! How could you say that? Do you know what kind of damage that monster could do if it were to come here?” Shimera argued.
“Silence, both of you!” Zemnas ordered. “I grow tired of all this bickering. Now, what else do you have to say for yourself?”
“First off, before I continue further, I want to know what you know about the dagger of fate. That, and I want to know how Zanatos managed to secure two soul reapers like he did to guard and protect it,” Lucia inquired.
“The dagger of fate is a magical item that shouldn’t have been created in the first place. Back when relations with the other realms was more hospitable, Lord Nathaniel along with the help of some of the human sorcerers at that time, created this item as a link between our realms. He believed that by uniting the realms and giving them ways to communicate with one another, an everlasting peace would be formed. Needless to say, I didn’t share his optimism. After his tragic death at the hands of a demon, I made sure that we would forever stay out of the affairs of the other realms. I had long since forgotten about this dagger until you brought it to my attention. After this whole fiasco is over with, I will aptly destroy it.”
“Fine, but what about the soul reapers?”
“There are many possible explanations for that. More than likely, Scion summoned the souls of some wretched fiend, and the soul reapers went to collect it. He knew about the soul reapers and about the Celestial Realm, that was why he was so good at necromancy. We lost just about as many souls from him stealing them, as we gained from him killing people. Luckily, those dark times are over with, but now we are faced with even darker ones,” Zemnas explained.
“How did Scion know about the Celestial Realm?” Lucia asked.
“Because, he was one of the people who helped to create the dagger in the first place. You wouldn’t have known that of course, because you haven’t been...well you know,” Shimera explained.
Zemnas nodded and thought about something for a moment before speaking again. “Lucia, you said that the reason you brought Alex into our realm, was you believed that his strong love for Brittany would not only return her lost memories, but also set his heart at ease so that he would be able to unlock his true power.”
“Yes, that is my belief anyway. Alex needs to know what is going on. He need to hear from Brittany that she forgives him for what he has done. Otherwise his heart will be too racked with guilt over his crimes for him to be of use to anyone.”
“And some of Brittany’s memories have already returned, have they?”
“Well, she remembers that the man from her dreams loves her, and that she loved him. Other than that, no.”
“Still, that would make things a little to easy for Alex,” Zemnas said with a smirk. “Fine, I will help Alex and lead him in the right direction, even guide him as much as I can, but not before I see this great love for theirs for myself. A love that can transcend even death.”
“What do you mean?” Lucia asked, already certain that he wouldn’t like the outcome.
“I’m going to put Brittany in a subdued state, and if Alex can awaken her from it and have her regain her memories, then I will have no doubts in helping him.”
“Wait...you don’t mean? If you turn her into a doll, there will be no way that he could ever get her out of that state! It’s never been done before!”
“Never before has a man cheated death not once, but twice. Twice he has stood before our gates, and twice he has come back. That one man has done the impossible more times than I care to count. Defeating this new menace might just be as impossible has him breaking Brittany subdued state, but if he can do it, he will have my faith.”
Lucia knew that there was no stopping Zemnas once he had an idea stuck in his head. Still, he knew he had to do something to help Alex. “For this, I want it just to be myself, Alex, and Brittany there, no one else.”
“I will send Shimera there to ensure that you don’t do anything to help him,” Zemnas said, daring Lucia to challenge his word.
Lucia nodded, knowing there was nothing else he could do. “Zemnas, if Alex defeats the Devil, will you give Brittany back her life that was stolen from her?”
Alex didn’t know how long it had been since he’d been put into this Hell. He didn’t even know why he was here. Everything that he had been doing had been shoved to the back of his mind to make room for his mind to absorb the increasing sensation of pain that coursed through his body. He remembered that he was being forced to fight his inner demons. He remembered that he was supposed to be doing it for someone important to him. But that was trivial compared to the one thing that filled his brain at this very moment. And that was an unending pain and agony.
Alex screamed in pure agony as the souls of the dead infiltrated their way through his entire body. He couldn’t take the sheer agony of having his soul torn to shreds by the unending hatred coming from those he had killed. The pain truly was more horrible than anything he had ever encountered before. It was as if every inch of his body was on fire, but at the same time a thousand tiny daggers were being ripped through his skin. His body was suddenly extra sensitive to everything that he felt, so that even the slightest of pains he could feel. Everything , from the searing pain of the souls of the dead ripping him apart from the inside out, to the sweat running down his face was within his spectrum to feel with increased intensity.
In his mind’s eyes, he could see all the souls of the dead standing before him, still surrounding him. He could as they grabbed hold of his arms, and stabbed their hands into his chest. Alex watched as one demon in particular, grabbed him by the throat and rammed his fist far into Alex’s chest.
“Feel this, my Lord? It is the feeling of death!” Zanatos said with a sneer. Beside him were Alex’s other generals and Scion. All were oh too willing to torture Alex, all except for Celine. Even while everyone else around him had wicked grins on their faces, she held a face of sadness.
“You never wanted to kill me in the first place...did you Celine?” Alex weakly asked.
All eyes turned to her, even Zanatos and Scion quit mutilating Alex long enough to look at her. Alex could already tell by the look in her eyes, just what her answer was going to be. Still, he wanted to hear it for himself. Evidently, Zanatos could tell what her answer would be, also, for a second later he yelled at her.
“Don’t even think about it, Celine. Right now we get a free pass to torture this asshole. This is a dream come true. So don’t just stand there moping. You might as well have some fun with us as well. Besides, we’re already dead, he made sure of that. So there’s no point in worrying about what could have been. Instead we just need to focus on this wonderful gift that has been laid before us,” Zanatos said with a sneer. He then turned back to Alex, and began to mercilessly slam his fist into Alex’s face. “How do you like that, my Lord? Come on Celine, you might as well join the party.”
“No,” Celine replied softly.
Her response was just enough to cause Zanatos to halt his furious blows upon Alex. He turned back to her, looking at her as if she was crazy. “What did you say?”
“I said, no! I’m not going to torture, Alex, because I already forgave him for all that he has done to us. We deserved death for our actions. We deserved it, and we got what we had coming. After all the lives we took, after everyone we hurt, we deserved our fate,” Celine solemnly stated.
Author's Note: Yeah, I'm a real softy. Since I made it to where the only reason Celine really went along with the plan in the first place was because Silva altered her mind, I just didn't have the heart to make her evil once more. Besides, I think its really good that Alex sees that even a person he once considered an enemy to forgive him. Let me know what you think about all this, because I'm debating on whether or not I should have everyone forgive him so quickly. I mean, he killed them, but at the same time he really didn't want to. With the exception of Zanatos and Scion, whom he would gladly kill over and over....