Chapter 3 : Ungrateful

Screams of pain echoed in that brick chamber lit vermilion red. A man, completely naked, was lying on the ground with his arms and legs spread. He, positioned over a demonic symbol drawn on the floor with blood, wept and begged not to be killed. He couldn't move. He couldn't escape.
Five individuals, with white masks and black priestly robes, murmured prayers in a language unknown to him.
For each verse of the prayer that was completed, the symbol lit up and the body of that poor man was crossed by strong bursts of pain.
Valentus Polaris arrived.
He walked over to a table from which he took an old tome which he leafed through a couple of times. He took a bronze candlestick; he lit all three candles and then the prayers ended. The priests broke the circle they had formed around the man and let Valentus pass; he placed the candlestick near the prisoner's head.
"The time has come," Valentus said in a triumphant tone. "Tonight we will give birth to Rahav the Conqueror. It's all ready."
"Please ... have mercy on me ..." the poor victim whimpered. "I did nothing …"
Valentus treated the man's words like the opinions of an ant. He didn't even deign that prisoner a glance. Without anger or even hatred, he proceeded to perform the ritual.
Raising his hands, Valentus exclaimed in a soft voice:
"Ata nunfaan paradon, paradon nunfaan kos, kos ista un’haan milata. Kos istansul olgan dalakai. Kos istansul orfan dalakai. Dalaka! Edunaan ista Rahav Gorai! Dalaka! Ilaan olgan!"
The prisoner's cries of pain grew louder. His chest swelled. The bones of his chest were breaking one after another; Blood gushed from his mouth and his body was wriggling violently. The screams stopped. In an instant the man's chest opened and this anonymous figure of blood came out and gradually obtained the shape of a half-horse monster.
Valentus, with a satisfied tone, asserted, addressing his companions:
"Ladies and gentlemen ... this is Rahav the Conqueror, one of the greatest demonic leaders ever."

The energy released by this terrible ritual terrified the fauna of the Wood of the Nymphs ... even Immanuel perceived something anomalous. A shiver of cold ran through his body and he felt the air fail for a few seconds. His first thought was: "I have to move!".
He ran imprudently into the woods and put his foot in a hole. He fell into a chasm and ended up inside an immense cave. He crashed into a rock ... then into another and eventually landed in a pond of water. Luckily he had protected his head.
Immanuel got up with difficulty, his arms and body were sore and severe cramps prevented him from leaving the water immediately. He took a breath and raised his head; he made a mental estimate of the distance traveled in the fall… maybe it was ten meters or twenty, he wasn't sure but he knew he couldn't climb the rock face.
He looked around. The deep darkness hid the identity of that cave under its cloak. Immanuel cursed a few times before leaving the water and rearranging his ideas.
The man got up and without hesitation ventured into the cave.

Immanuel by BikoWolf

He walked for a good thirty minutes without meeting anything or anyone. The road was winding, full of obstacles and inhabited by mice, spiders and even snakes, but Immanuel didn't stop. He proceeded relentlessly in the darkness.
A demonic roar rang out in the cave. Immanuel stopped. He clenched his fists. He braced himself for the worst. Without fear he started walking again, aware that if the danger had been present it would surely not have been long in coming.
The man ventured into five minutes of pure silence.
He stopped again.
That quiet wasn't normal. Immanuel closed his eyes to focus only on hearing. His eyes were useless while his ears were more than essential. He heard noises coming from afar; they were approaching him. He couldn't be wrong: they were clattering of hooves. Probably three or four Pale-Lilin were looking for him; they had smelled him and were chasing him.
Immanuel opened his eyes. He started walking again.
At the fourth step the silence was broken. A beast jumped out of the darkness and tried to tear Immanuel's face with its claws; the man lowered himself and when he had the demon behind him, he turned to start fighting.
But another Pale-Lilin arrived and attacked Immanuel in the back. The claws wounded the man, but he didn't allow himself to give in to the pain. He counterattacked without hesitation.
"An Sich!"
The fist wrapped in celestial energy caused the demon to explode. The other Pale-Lilin, who was in front of Immanuel, was about to be helped by a second and a third. The man knew that facing them all would be suicide. He touched his chest and exclaimed:
"Anschauung!"

His body was enveloped in blue energy. The previously aggressive demons stopped. They were as if lost. They could no longer perceive Immanuel.
The man knew he had only thirty seconds available, so approached the two Pale-Lilin who had just arrived.
No one could see him, no one could smell him or hear the sounds of his footsteps. Immanuel had completely disappeared from the demons' perspective; they didn't know that he was actually preparing to eliminate them all with a decisive move.
Immanuel needed to be at least three feet away from the demons in order to block them with his Magic. At the right moment he exclaimed:
"Begrenzung!"
A cobalt-colored magic circle surrounded Immanuel and also the two Pale-Lilin. The third demon, when it saw Immanuel appear, threw itself at him but in doing so it fell under the effect of that Magic and was paralyzed.
"Nice play, demons… but the game is over. An Sich - Totalität!"
The man hit the magic circle with his fist. All the creatures that had been paralyzed exploded. Within seconds, only pieces of flesh and pools of blood were left of three demons.
Despite the victory, Immanuel didn't feel well; the use of four Magics had tired him. The severe pains in his head, similar to neuralgia, were putting him on alert. The only way to avoid worsening symptoms was to avoid using other Magics.
The man wandered without a clear destination, but his path was abruptly interrupted by dizziness. He had to stop. He sat down on a rock and rubbed his temples with his eyes closed. The neuralgia became a little stronger but then subsided and finally disappeared.
"So it won't go away," said a female voice.
Immanuel turned and was shocked to learn that there was someone else there with him. It was a pale girl with two blood-colored eyes and black hair. Apparently she might seem like a child but Immanuel immediately understood that the person he had in front of him was not even human.
With a hostile manner, the man stood up and exclaimed:
"Did you think you were deceiving me, vampire?!"
"Ahah! If you believe that I want to hurt you, then you are on the wrong track. I'm not going to fight you."
"Give me a reason to believe you, vampire. Those like you serve demons, you are not friends with humans."
"Do you want a reason to believe me, băiat?" (Note: băiat = boy in Romanian)
The girl picked up a hand-sized stone. She passed it to Immanuel and cordially made him a request:
"Can you break it?"
He didn't even try and, throwing it at the girl's feet, he exclaimed abruptly:
"Go to hell. I'm not going to play your games."
The girl, without replying, picked up the stone and, with one hand, crumbled it. Immanuel didn't move a muscle.
"Are you trying to threaten me?" he asked.

"I'm clarifying our differences. As you are now, you are not a threat to me. You're weak, tired and in the dark. You're at a total disadvantage against me, băiat. If I had wanted to kill you, I would've done so already," she explained.

He couldn't contradict her. She was right.
"So what do you want, little girl?"
"I'm not a little girl," she said annoyed. "My name is Morgana. Morgana Crowley. What's your name, băiat?"
"Immanuel."
"Surname?"
He raised his middle finger in response. Her cheeks bulged with anger.
"For your information, băiat, I'm keeping you alive out of compassion. You should thank me by showing me a little more kindness."
"I promise you that when I get strong I will give you a quick death," he said.
"Don't make me regret saving you, it doesn't suit you."
"I don't even know why you did it. From what I know you might as well be the servant of some demon ... or Valentus Polaris."
Upon hearing that name, Morgana's eyebrows arched. She, in a conciliatory tone, asked:
"How do you know that name?"
"So I was right. You work for him."
"No, no! You're wrong. You're completely wrong," she exclaimed, shaking her head. "He's after me."
"What? Why?" he investigated.
"Er ... it's not easy to explain. Mm ... how much do you know about Chaos?"
"I know what I need to know: it's a hellish dimension, the cradle of all demons."
"You're not wrong ... but it's not that simple," she corrected. Morgana sat opposite Immanuel and explained: "Chaos, as we call it, is, in fact, an empire. The demons call it 'Sheolydaar' which translates to 'Empire of Sheol'. It's not so different from those empires that have shaped the history of humanity, the only difference is that it's destined to be eternal."
"You talk about it as if it were a certainty," he commented mockingly.
"The empire was established hundreds of thousands of years ago by Sheol. She has reigned over every demon for hundreds of thousands of years. It was she who shaped the reality of Chaos by giving certain demons specific noble titles along with specific powers. The higher the noble title, the greater the powers. In this way, Sheol, won the loyalty of the majority of demons." She paused briefly. "The rebel demons, on the other hand, were facing certain death. With her powers she conquered entire planets in less than a century. Sheol has subdued everyone. All Chaos is in Sheol's hands."
"But that doesn't answer my question," said Immanuel, annoyed.
"As you already know, băiat, we vampires serve demons. But we don't serve just any demons. We take oaths of allegiance to Hell Princes and Hell Kings. Whenever they leave Chaos to reach the Tower, we vampires are forced to serve them to death. But our luck is that they cannot command us if they are in Chaos."
"But things are changing now, aren't they?"
Immanuel's acumen surprised Morgana.
"Yes," she replied, "that's it." She then she added: "There was a kind of balance at the beginning. The only way the demons had to reach the Tower was through the Tree of Chaos ... but the Tree grows once every hundred years. So this meant, before, that vampires were forced to serve demons only when the Tree of Chaos arrived."
"But now the demons have found another way to reach the Tower."
"No, you're wrong," she said. "It's not the demons who have found the way. The fault lies with the Brotherhood of Polaris. We are talking about priests who are experts in the forbidden art of demonomancy, they were gathered by Valentus Polaris and practice rituals to summon demons."
"Son of a crone," Immanuel muttered. "Listen, little girl, what else do you know? Have you ever heard of a certain Atalya?"
"Who?"
"Forget it. Nobody important." Immanuel left the rock but before leaving he asked Morgana one last question: "Have you ever heard of a demon called Hush de Void?"
"No, never heard of it."
"I understand ... well, thanks."
Immanuel resumed his journey but Morgana blocked his way.
"Where do you think you're going in those conditions?" she protested.
"Move away, little girl," Immanuel said coldly.
"I'm not a little girl! I'm mature!" she exclaimed stepping on the man's foot.
"Ouch! Little bastard-!"
Immanuel tried to hit Morgana but the girl nimbly dodged the punch and, with superhuman speed, counterattacked with a kick that sent the man flying against the rock face.
"Perhaps it's not quite clear to you, băiat, that you are weak. You will never be able to defeat Valentus in those conditions."
"I just need to rest," he asserted, getting up breathlessly.
"Come with me," she said with a sigh.
"What-?"
"Come with me!" she repeated angrily.

Morgana took Immanuel out of the cave. Crossing the Wood of the Nymphs, the man realized that they were moving away from Valentus Polaris. He protested but she ignored him and led him in front of this immense tree with a trunk that could have been about fifteen meters in diameter. Immanuel immediately recognized that giant of wood; around the tree there was a large cyan lake that gave off its own light.
"Do you know it?" Morgana asked.
"Yes, it is a source of ápeiron. We used it, my comrades and I, during the Breach War." He paused briefly. "It serves to restore the Odic Force."
"Exact."
Ápeiron, the primordial element at the base of everything. An indeterminate, indefinite and infinite matter. What Immanuel saw wasn't pure ápeiron, otherwise he couldn't have perceived it in any way; what he was seeing was a synthesis of the ápeiron produced by the immense tree.
Immanuel knew, through the teachings he received when he was a child, that trees like that were called Anchors; these trees, through the Root, accumulated ápeiron and, through the fruits that fell from the branches, formed these shining lakes.
The liquid was nothing more than the result of a transformation of the ápeiron that had taken place inside the Anchor.
Immanuel already knew what to do. He took off his clothes and, once naked, immersed himself in the water.

Morgana by BikoWolf

That shining water was neither too hot nor too cold; it didn't wet and was not inhabited by any creature.
The man felt the pains vanish, his mind was relaxing and the wounds were healing. Floating in those waters gave him a feeling of bliss.
Within about ten minutes, the man left the lake; there was no scars or traces of dirt left on his invigorated body.
Morgana, who had taken a seat on the bank, handed the clothes to Immanuel and, with her gaze, demanded thanks. His silence was punished with spite: the girl refused to deliver the clothes and she walked away from Immanuel.
"What are you doing?!" he protested annoyed.
"After everything I've done for you, I deserve thanks at the very least. I won't ask you to apologize for before, even if you should, but I ask for gratitude." She exhibited the clothes and rocked them."Otherwise I think you'll have to face Valentus without these."
"Don't you think you're a bit immature?"
"How dare you?!" she thundered aloud. "Would I be the 'immature' one? You're the one who can't even show a minimum of gratitude for the person who helped you!"
"Oh, come on! Don't pretend to be a good person!" he exclaimed. "We both know that you vampires have never been allies of mankind. You're evil creatures, with no dignity and no respect for those around you. You're selfish creatures, you're manipulators, rattlesnakes and bloodthirsty monsters! I bet what you want that you're none other than some Hell King's bitch!"
There was a moment of silence.
She blinked in shock. She didn't say anything. Her brow furrowed, her eyes tinged with pure hatred ... but also with sadness.
Morgana dropped Immanuel's clothes to the floor. She turned her back on Immanuel.
"Goodbye," she murmured with rancor.
The girl ran into the woods.
Immanuel, left alone, approached those clothes and thought back to that expression that had been painted on Morgana's face. A strong sense of guilt stabbed his heart. He felt he had gone too far and acted like a lout.
After getting dressed, Immanuel ventured into the Wood of the Nymphs to look for Morgana and be forgiven.
In the midst of the search, Immanuel sensed a strange presence. There was a smell of demon in the air. Hearing the sound of hooves coming from the bush, he prepared to face a Pale-Lilin, but then, to his surprise, he saw this demon emerge at least four meters high. A half-horse monster with a deformed face and purple hair. The demon brandished a mighty war ax in one hand and gripped Morgana by the throat in the other.
The girl was thrown into a tree.
Immanuel immediately reached out to the vampire to make sure she was okay. She opened her eyes and, faintly, asked:
"What are you doing here?"
"I'm here to help you ..."
She cried.
"You have to go, băiat ... this demon is not like the others ..."
"We'll see," he said in a voice overflowing with confidence.
Immanuel, therefore, turned towards that horrible creature and, running towards it, struck his blow:
"An Sich!"
That single punch would've been enough to finish the fight. One punch and the demon would be dead.
...
"Rückblende." Two jaws, in the center of the demon's face, had opened to utter those grim words.
The creature disappeared, like a ghost, leaving a transparent image of itself. Immanuel hit that ghost but nothing happened.
Within seconds, there was a roar and that image of the demon, which had remained motionless, began to writhe ... to dilate ... to lengthen ... and then, in the blink of an eye, the demon returned to its exact position as before and it was no longer transparent like a ghost.
The demon, with its ax, struck a blow that cut Immanuel's belly. The man let out a cry of pain and fell to the ground bleeding.
"Did you really think you were stronger than me, Guardian?" asked that dark monstrous voice.
Morgana tried to get close to Immanuel to help him but she was immediately hit by the heavy hooves of the demon.
"I'll take care of you later, vampire. I will be glad to devour your soul in the name of Sheol. But I'll take care of your new friend first…" He hit Immanuel with a hoof. "What happens, mortal? Where has the courage you had a little while ago gone? Did you realize you were crazy?"
"Who are you?" Immanuel asked with the little energy he had left.
"You don't know? Well let me introduce myself: I'm the commander of ten demonic legions, I'm the leader who led the advance on Alkiesh in the Fourth Century of Sheol and who put dozens of your settlements to fire and sword during the Breach War. I'm the Hell Baron Rahav the Conqueror."

Chapter 2 : Milawata

"Immanuel?"
It was a familiar voice. The voice of a friend. When Immanuel opened his eyes he found Selene Renier's face in front of him. Her anxious gaze prompted him to get up quickly.
"I'm fine… I'm fine," he exclaimed as he wiped his jacket.
"Why are you here? I thought you were going to stop Galorian."
He didn't answer right away. He didn't know how to tell her what he had been through, he didn't even know how she would react.
Immanuel turned away from Selene in an awkward way. She, with a sharpness worthy of an eagle, immediately realized that her friend was hiding something serious from her; she didn't pressure him. Pointing to the wooden door behind her, she asked:
"You want a drink?"
He agreed and the two left that stone house.
Milawata was an area of ​​the Tower inhabited by hundreds of buildings that seemed to be children of Ancient Greece. Around that settlement stood the Wood of the Nymphs.
The people who lived in Milawata wore clothing of various sauces: there were those who preferred old-fashioned clothing and obviously there were also those who wore more modern clothes.
Immanuel, feeling a maritime heat mixed with a subtle smell of the coast, was struck by a strong nostalgia.
"Welcome home, Immanuel," Selene said.
"Home sweet home ..." he murmured as he savored with his eyes the beautiful Milawata, illuminated by the sun.
"A lot of things have changed since you left," she said. "How long is it? Seven, nine months? Time has flown."
"How did you find me?" he asked interested.
"You were lying on the floor of my house. You were asleep. When I got back I found you there. But how did you get there? Is it a new power? Was it Galorian's work?"
"No ... it's ... complicated."
"I imagined. Aren't you going to tell me what happened?"
"Let's sit down first… it's a long story," he replied.
The two entered a tavern. The owner welcomed Immanuel with the same affection as a moved father; to both of them he offered the best table, on a terrace with a good overview. When the two mugs of beer reached the table, Selene's questions began:
"Can you explain to me what happened? Were you able to kill Galorian or not?"
"No," he replied regretfully. "I failed."
"So ... what are you doing here?" she asked confused.
"Well ... it's ... difficult to explain ..."
"Do it," she ordered with an authoritative look.
"I was able to find Galorian in Twangste after months of searching. I had prepared a plan to kill him but things didn't go well, indeed, my entire strategy was completely neutralized."
"What do you mean?"
"Galorian has had some kind of weapon built that is capable of inhibiting our powers."
She said nothing, but her eyes expressed grave doubt.
"I know, it's hard to conceive," he said, scratching his head. "But that's the way it is and ... well, that's not all."
"What else is there?"
"I'm dead. Technically."
She fell into a funeral silence. Selene's eyes and mouth were wide open. She didn't even make a sound.
"I was killed by Galorian but ... I was brought back to life."
"Yes …? Um ... and who did ..."
"A certain Hush de Void. I don't know how to define her ... maybe she's some kind of divinity, but she gave me a second chance that I'm not going to waste."
"So you're here to take revenge?"
"Yeah ... if only it were that simple ..." he muttered.
"Uh?"
"Hush de Void wants me to do something for her first, otherwise she'll blow me up. Literally."
Selene took a deep breath and emptied the mug of beer in one gulp. As the mug hit the wood, she exclaimed:
"These are so many things to digest, Immanuel. A little too many ..."A short pause. "For a start, I've never heard of this Hush de Void. I don't think she's a deity. There are only seven gods, and none of them bear that name."
"I know. I realize it's hard to take my word for it ... but everything I'm telling you is true."
"You don't understand, it's not a problem of trust …" she said after stealing Immanuel's glass. She also consumed the second dose of beer. "I trust you, I've always trusted you. Together, you and I, we have fought against demons of all kinds and protected the Sacred Fire. But hearing you say you're dead is… weird. I mean, I've seen you face worse enemies than Galorian. How could that worm ..." she corrected herself, "right, he used that weapon you mentioned. But how did he get it? Was it given to him along with his balls?"
"Demons. From what I know there's the hand of a demon called Agares." He paused for a moment followed by a heavy worried sigh. "Listen, Selene, the Sacred Fire ... is it still protected by the Wall of Gaia?"
"Yes why?"
"Galorian wants to put out the Sacred Fire. That's why he allied himself with Agares."
"Son of-!" Selene tossed the glass mug off the terrace. Her face, painted with anger, subsided after a few minutes. The woman heaved a nervous sigh. "We must stop him."
"I know."
"We have been chosen to defend the Sacred Fire from the forces of Chaos."
"I know that too."
"But two years have passed since the Breach War. We had destroyed the Tree of Chaos. How did Agares get into the Tower?"
"I don't know," he replied bitterly. "I have no idea. Without the Tree of Chaos, no demon can enter the Tower. Yet ... yet Agares has found a way, and now she collaborates with Galorian."
Selene left the table without saying a word.
Immanuel followed his friend out of the tavern and into her house. Selene took her trusty bow from an old trunk, with which she had killed hundreds of monsters, and, with a determined look, asserted:
"Let's put an end to this now. Whatever happened, we cannot let a demon attack the Wall of Gaia. The Sacred Fire must remain alight."
"You're right, but I can't help you. I must first complete the assignment that was given to me," he said without hiding his regret.
"I understood it immediately, but that doesn't change things. You should know how difficult it was to erect that magical wall. If it were to be destroyed… it would be the end," she concluded in a dark tone.
She was right. Immanuel knew this. Obviously, the idea of ​​letting his best friend leave saddened him, but he couldn't stop her from protecting the Sacred Fire. For this they were chosen by the Seven Divines, their purpose was to defend the Sacred Fire from any threat.
Selene was just doing her duty. Immanuel was aware of this; he silenced his discouragement and, placing a hand on the woman's shoulder, said:
"I won't stop you from going … but don't go alone. It's a suicide."
"I'm not stupid," she muttered. "I know perfectly well that I will need reinforcements."
Selene left the house together with her friend.

The Wood of the Nymphs was inhabited by tall chestnut trees, squat cherry trees and ancient oaks. Venturing on those earthy roads was not dangerous, at most you could risk meeting wolves ... but they were never inclined to attack humans.
The howl of the cool wind carried that wild aroma that soothed Immanuel's troubled soul.
His mind was embraced by images of him and Selene, children, playing together in the green.
"Do you remember our first deer?" Immanuel asked with his eyes absorbed in his memories.
"Yes," she replied, smiling. "I remember you were never good at hunting, while I was raised by my father."
"I broke the bowstring at least four times."
"When you saw the deer, you said, 'I'll take care of it, I'll take care of it' and, having pulled out the bow, you tore the rope and looked at me with two shiny eyes" she laughed.
"It was not my fault. It was the bows that were ..."
"... too fragile," she finished the sentence with him. "Ahah! Good times, really… everything was simpler in the past."
"Yeah," he said nostalgically. "If only we could go back ..."

Immanuel (BikoWolf)

"Don't say that. You know I don't like it," she scolded gently. "It's okay to think about the past, but we can't live constantly yearning to go back. What happened happened. We have to go ahead and live our life."
"How did recite the Book of Truth?" He thought for a moment. "Here: 'Five hundred years of life await you, five hundred years of servitude you will do; five hundred years of loyalty and love to the Seven Divines. Live. Die. Live. Die. Always protecting the Light of Reason'."
"This is our life. We can not complain."
Immanuel preferred to keep quiet about the truth he had learned from Hush de Void, the truth concerning reincarnation. He had no intention of upsetting his friend, especially not before an important mission.
The two stopped at the foot of a crystalline lake: the Lake of the Nymphs. On the right, on a quay behind which a humble wooden house had been erected, there was a young fisherman with an athletic and dark physique.
"That's why we're here ..." Immanuel said in a low voice.
"If I'm going to hunt for demons, I'll have to take Hortio with me," she said.
The two approached the young Publius Hortio. When he, immersed in fishing, saw the two former comrades arrive, he jumped for joy and hugged them both. Selene was more inclined than Immanuel to return the hug.
"How much time! I'm happy to see you again!" he exclaimed enthusiastically.
Hortio, without too much delay, led the two to the hut.
Selene sat down on a wooden bench while Immanuel preferred to stand. Publius offered them both fish soup; only Selene ate it; Immanuel preferred to leave the bowl on the table.
Publius, having sat down, glanced at Immanuel.
"So why are you here?"
"You will leave with Selene and face-"
"Since when do I take orders from you?" he asked defiantly. "You were never my commander, don't assume you have any authority over me."
"You will do your duty, Hortio" he said with his arms folded.
"So ... let me understand: you go away for ten months without saying anything to anyone, then you come back here and claim you have the right to tell me what to do?" He paused briefly. "You have no respect for me. At least Selene has deigned to visit me once a month, where have you been?"
"To avenge my brother's death!" Immanuel exclaimed furiously.
"That's enough!" Selene thundered. "Both! We are comrades in arms, for the love of the Seven! We faced legions of demons in the Breach War and together, the three of us, we destroyed the Tree of Chaos and built the Wall of Gaia." She paused quickly. "We have to support each other."
"You don't have to make these speeches to me," Hortio pointed the finger at Immanuel, "but to him. He is the one who left without telling us anything. He's the one who cut ties with us."
"Galorian was not my friend, you were the one who recruited him ... remember?" Immanuel asked gravely.
There was a moment of silence.
"Are you accusing me?" said Hortio in shock. "I'm not to blame for what happened to your brother. It was Galorian, not me. How could I know-"
"It was your responsibility!" Immanuel raised his voice again. "You should have inquired about him before recruiting him. Because of your negligence-"
"I said stop!" Selene slammed both hands on the table. "You two are acting like children! This is not the right time to have these discussions! If you want to beat yourself up like brats, that's fine! But now we have more important things to think about."
"What things …?" asked Hortio confused.
Selene then explained the whole situation to her friend.
Hortio's reaction was a mixture of terror and concern; but both emotions were overruled by strong suspicion.
Hortio grabbed a trident, his trusty weapon, which was attached to the wall; he aimed his weapon at Immanuel.
Immanuel didn't accept the insult and prepared to fight.
Selene intervened to calm the clash that was heralding.
"A dead man who comes back to life? No, no. I bet there's a demon's hand," said Hortio.
"We can't know, Publius, put the weapon away," Selene ordered.
"It wasn't a demon," Immanuel said aggressively. "That creature wasn't a demon, I'm sure."
"And why should I believe you?" Hortio protested, determined to fight.
"Trust me, Publius ... you can trust me, can't you?"
Selene's voice soothed Hortio's soul. He lowered his weapon and left the house, embarrassed by the reaction he had had.
Immanuel thanked the woman but she, in a cold tone, said:
"Don't thank me, sooner or later you'll have to prove you're not in the hands of a demon."
"So you also have the same suspicion?"
"Just because I didn't have a tantrum doesn't mean I trust this Hush de Void."
"Selene ... I'm sure it wasn't a demon ..."
"Tell your face," she countered, pointing to his face, which expressed his deepest insecurity.
The woman left the hut and was reunited with Publius Hortio.
The young blue-haired warrior addressed the woman with words of despair:
"I didn't want to behave like that ..."
"I know."
"I'm sorry, really, it's just that ... I don't trust him." He paused for a long time. "I thought I knew him, but after everything that has happened lately ... I don't know ... he no longer seems like the man who fought alongside us."
"You don't need to justify yourself to me, Publius. I understand how you feel and I don't judge you for it ... but I need your help."
"Do you want to convince me to fight alongside you?"
She nodded.
"You don't need to convince me," he said, smiling. "I'm always ready to fight alongside you."
There was an exchange of affectionate smiles.
Immanuel, as soon as he left the house, addressed both of them in a brusque tone:
"While you fight the demons, I will have to take care of this Atalya." He turned to Publius. "Have you ever heard of a certain Valentus Polaris? From what I know, he has been residing in Milawata for a couple of years."
"Mm ..." he said, scratching his chin. "Maybe …? If you are talking about the guy who lives in the forest, then I advise you to be careful. It seems that he doesn't like visits, especially from foreigners."
"What do you know about him?"
"Very little. All I know is that he lives in an old fortress three days from here. I know he is a kind of hermit, an expert in magic ... but I don't know anything else."
"Where I have to go?" he asked grimly.
"North East. It will be a long journey- "
"It doesn't matter."
He turned his back on his former comrades in arms.
"Good luck, Immanuel," Selene said.
"Yes… good luck to you too. We will meet again on the battlefield."
He left.

The night covered the Wood of the Nymphs with its starry veil but Immanuel didn't stop to sleep. He took short breaks every two hundred meters and resumed walking at a moderate pace.
He was not afraid of the dark.
The sounds of the night didn't bother him.
He was cold. He was focused on his goal.
A fleeting remorse ran through his thoughts, regret caused by the way he had abandoned his best friend, but that couldn't derail his path.
From the darkness came a growling beast. This monster walked on two horse legs and scarred trees with long black claws. Its fur was pale and its goat face had two blood eyes. The two large horns resembled those of an ibex.
The beast roared exhibiting its sharp teeth.
Immanuel stopped. In an annoyed manner he asked:
"And you ...? Where are you from?"
He didn't expect an answer, but the beast's attack caught him slightly off guard. He managed to dodge the claws and, as soon as he got into a fighting stance, he saw the beast leap towards him. Immanuel rolled on the ground. As soon as the monster's hooves lifted a curtain of dust from the ground, Immanuel struck the terrain with his foot and exclaimed:
"Begrenzung!"
A cobalt-colored magic circle surrounded both him and the beast.
The two were shoulder to shoulder.
The monster tried to turn around to hit that man who, compared to it, was much shorter.
Immanuel, in a cold tone, said:
"Well what's going on? Can't you hit me even though I'm so close?" He paused for a moment followed by a sigh. "I don't expect a Pale-Lilin to resist my Magic. Let's finish this antics, beast."
Immanuel turned. He clenched his fist. And he exclaimed aloud:
"An Sich!"
The fist, wrapped in celestial energy, hit the monster. The body of that creature didn't suffer any superficial damage, but within a few seconds it exploded into so many bloody limbs that dyed the surrounding vegetation red ... and Immanuel too.
The magic circle disappeared and the man retraced his steps.

Chapter 1 : Let's turn on

 "The state of peace between men, who live side by side, is not a natural state, which is rather a state of war."
(I.Kant, Perpetual Peace: A Philosophical Sketch)

A shot went off. The echo rebounded in that ovoid-shaped room. The continuous sound of a siren, in the distance, embraced the red light that colored the entire room. Two male figures. One man dressed as if he had just come out of the Venetian carnival, the other wore a brown coat, with golden decorations, along with dark blue trousers.
The first, with his face covered by a bauta, was brandishing a Glock 17 with the barrel still smoking. The second man was bent to the ground with his hand pressing on his right side; blood was climbing over his fingers and gushes were staining the floor.
"You lost," the masked man said. "You tried to stop me, but you were defeated. I can almost touch your frustration. I admit that I'm enjoying this moment." His brief pause was accompanied by a direct kick in the man's face. "Forgive me, but I can't tolerate that ugly face of yours. You gave me a hard time and I admit I was … scared. I've never felt terror in the face of death, but you were almost able to frighten me and I congratulate you. Yours was a feat that no one had ever been able to accomplish."
The injured man tried to get up. From his mouth he emitted constant groans of pain; with his hands he clung to the masked guy's legs.
"Do you keep fighting?" He punched him on the head. "You're really tenacious, I recognize you. But obstinacy, alone, is like a fire without oxygen. You, like the flame, will suffocate and go out." He hit him again, this time on the forehead. "Seeing you crawling on the ground like the caterpillar you are is a real joy for the eyes, you know?"
A steel door opened. A woman, in military uniform, opened her amber eyes wide at the sight of that wounded man. In that look there was a genuine surprise. She muttered some incomprehensible words and then turned to the masked guy:
"We have to go, sir. Agares and Vassago are waiting for us."
"Thanks, Amber," he said warmly. "Well," he turned to the wounded man, "this is goodbye, my nemesis. It was a fun game ... while it lasted."
Another shot went off. The man fell to the ground with a hole in his head.
"Come on, Amber, we have a fire to put out," he said, putting the weapon away.
"Yes, sir."
The two left the room.

A sound emerged from a blanket of darkness, the echo of a female voice. In the darkness, the image of a wax throne illuminated by green flames was drawn. The throne, at the top of a staircase of books and parchments, was occupied by this masked figure wearing a black habit.
The figure, with white braids and pale skin, made a movement with her hand and a book materialized in her palm. She leafed through the pages and, slightly lowering her eyeglasses, welcomed the man who was lying on that floor made of coal:
"Welcome to the afterlife, Immanuel. I am Hush. Hush de Void," she introduced herself politely.
"Where ... where am I?" he asked confused.
"Afterlife." she repeated angrily. "You're in the world of the dead or, to be more precise, you are in the Anteroom of Non-Life," she said. "In this place I will decide whether you will go to the Golden Gardens, the Ash Fields or if you will disappear into the Abyss. To avoid unnecessary pain, I think it's right to inform you that I'm in charge here. If you do something that irritates me, I can throw you directly into the Abyss and prevent your future rebirth. I hope I was clear-"
"Rebirth?" he said, arching his eyebrows.
"Yes. Once you're sent to the Golden Gardens or the Ash Fields, you spend the human equivalent of a century in the afterlife and then be reborn. If you are sent to the Golden Gardens, you will be reborn with all the memories of your previous life intact. If, on the other hand, you are sent to the Ash Fields, you will not remember anything from your previous life. However, there is the third possibility: the Abyss," she explained.
"No!" Immanuel exclaimed angrily. "I can't wait a century! I have to stop Galorian now! If he manages to reach the top of the Tower, he will put out the Sacred Fire!"
"This is not my problem," she replied coldly. "If the Sacred Fire were extinguished, humanity would lose the faculty of reason. The entire human race would end up resembling the beasts of the forests, mountains, oceans and caves. Instinct would become the only guide of human action." She paused briefly. "But that doesn't interest me. You guys are just pawns in a game devised by the Seven Divines and Sheol. The preservation or destruction of the Sacred Fire doesn't bother me in the least."
"But ...!"
"Do you really care so much about fulfilling your duty?" she asked in a cold voice.
He didn't answer immediately. The memory of the humiliation he suffered before his death was clouding his thoughts. Every fiber of his body, moved by fury, was only stimulated by the idea of ​​being able to face Galorian one more time.
Hush, meanwhile, continued to leaf through the book she had in her hands.
"Oh, look ..." she said in an astonished voice. "Apparently you and Galorian have been enemies for a long time. It all started with your brother's death, am I right? Such a Wilhelm. I actually met a man with that name. A dear boy."
Immanuel's eyes widened with bewilderment.
"Where is he? Where is my brother?"
"I won't tell you, Immanuel. This information doesn't concern you."
"I just want to know if he's-"
"You have no right to know anything, Immanuel," she said coldly. "Only I know where he is, and only I need to know. Stay in your place, pawn."
"Do not call me that!" he shouted furiously.
Hush moved her fingers a little and Immanuel was catapulted to the ground. His body ached as if he had been hit by a truck. No wounds appeared on his body. Although in pain, Immanuel got up and advanced towards the staircase. The invisible force that had attacked him blocked his legs.
Hush, after having heaved a nervous sigh, put the book aside for a moment and said to the man:
"Maybe you didn't understand what I said earlier, so let me tell you again: you have no power here. You are in my world and I, here, am the law. I hope I was clear this time."
Immanuel didn't accept being treated that way. He tried to move his legs ... but it was useless. Whatever was paralyzing him, it was really effective.
"Have you understood your situation now?" she asked.
"Yes ... I understand," he said surrenderedly.
The force holding Immanuel disappeared.
"Good," she said smugly. "Let's go back to your soul." She leafed through the book. "Well, Immanuel, I understand that you and Galorian have a rivalry that transcends your roles as pawns. But apparently he won in the end."
"He set a trap for me, that's all," he explained annoyed. "If he hadn't used those tricks to block my powers, I would've killed him without a problem."
"Oh, and how can you say it so confidently?"
"Because I know how to kill. That's what I do best."

Hush de Void (BikoWolf)

"Really? Let's check." She reviewed every page of the book at inhuman speed; within seconds, the book was closed. "Well," she began with a satisfied tone, "you don't seem to be lying. Mm ... maybe I can make an exception for you."
"Really?" he said with renewed hope.
"I would need someone with your talent."
"What do you mean?" he asked her uneasily.
Hush made the book disappear. With calm movements, the woman left the throne and went down the steps.
"Dearest Immanuel, I have a mission for you and I expect you to complete it before killing Galorian."
"Why should I do this?"
"For two reasons. First, you want to be reborn now to be able to face Galorian and I can make this happen. The second, the person I want you to kill is problematic enough for me and the longer she stays alive the worse it will be." She paused a little. "Her name is Atalya and she's a thief. And she's also many other things that I prefer not to say to preserve your innocence."
"Can't you kill her?" he asked.
"I cannot enter your world, if I did I would disappear instantly. I am forced to this place, while you are not."
"And why is this Atalya so important?"
"I know why, you don't have to know. You just have to do what I told you. Kill her and you can do whatever you want in your new life."
At the end of the stairs, the two found themselves face to face. Hush was a little shorter than Immanuel but she gave off a terrifying energy.
"But" she began, "if you decide to give priority to your personal revenge ..."
Hush touched the man's chest with her finger. Immanuel felt his body shiver, a strong heat ignited in his chest. The man, for a moment, had the impression of being torn apart from the inside.
He fell to his knees, panting and sweating.
"What did you do to me?!"
"Eheh, just a precaution," she replied. "I can't enter your world, but I can always act on it using these tricks." She bent down. "Now you have a bomb in your chest. A magical device that will explode if you ignore the mission entrusted."
"What?!" he exclaimed in terror.
"Come on, Immanuel, don't look at me like I'm a monster. I just want to make sure you do your job. If you kill Atalya, the bomb in your chest will disappear and you will be free."
She gave Immanuel two gentle slaps and then returned to the stairs.
"Wait!" he exclaimed still shaken by that terrible news. "You can't do this to me! I can take care of her at any time-"
"You will do what I tell you, Immanuel. You're a pawn ... and pawns follow orders. You will kill Atalya and then you will be free." She paused. "But, since I'm a good person, I have decided that the detonation of the bomb will be preceded by two signs of alert," she said, showing two fingers.
"What signs?"
"First you will feel your body warm up abnormally, then you will feel excruciating pain in your chest and, eventually, boom. Goodbye Immanuel."
The man had no choice but to follow Hush de Void's orders. What else could he have done? Obviously the very idea of ​​putting aside the desire for revenge irritated him, but he couldn't refuse that offer. Although blatantly unfair, it was still the only exit ticket available. It was his chance to kill Galorian.
With a bitter taste in his mouth he had to say these words:
"Okay, you won. I'll do what you told me."
"You're a good pawn, Immanuel." She took her seat on the throne. "I'll give you your life back, be grateful."
"Wait, before I let myself be resurrected ... I want to know what this Atalya is like."
"Here comes the tricky part," she said.
"What does it mean? Don't you know her identity?" he asked in amazement.
"She can change her identity. Her face, her body ... they are never the same. If you want to find her you will have to start your investigation with an ally of her: a certain Valentus Polaris."
In Immanuel's hands, a photograph of this blond man with a goatee and brown eyes appeared. His face was dry and he had an intelligent look.
"Where can I find him?"
"You'll have to start at the lowest level of the Tower," she replied. "Milawata is where Valentus has been residing for a couple of years. Is that enough for you?"
"I'll make it enough ..." he muttered angrily.
"Well. Good rebirth, then. Try not to die again."
As soon as Hush de Void snapped her fingers, Immanuel felt lighter. The earth beneath his feet opened, he fell into a chasm. He opened his mouth to scream, but no sound came out.
Darkness fell again.