The two finally met up in front of the cafe. Melissa was born in this town, but Jhin had come from a bigger town further south. All around them, the city was silent. There was no one, and even birds did not dare speak in their musical tongues.
A voice called from within the cafe. "You can come in." The duo entered.
Inside the cafe was a small group of people, fifteen at most, five of whom were dressed in what seemed like battle gear.
All of these people were survivors. About a year before today, a new mall had opened in the town. The mall had everything you could want to buy, could satisfy any material desire. And, little by little, the population of the town had gone missing.
This was all that was left. Under such a threat, they had agreed that an expedition should be sent. Two teams were made, team A and team B.
Team A had five members. All of them had prepared for a while, gathering various military outfits and weapons.
Team B, meanwhile, had two members. Melissa had applied for a team, but the closely knit members of team A refused to either split up or take her in. Jhin had arrived earlier this morning. They were a cop from another city and had been sent here at the request of the survivors. Two was not that much for a team, but they couldn't find anyone else.
"Today, we will start the exploration of the mall. You will all be given a radio, to communicate between teams and with us.
"Team A will go in first. An hour later, team B will join them."
Thus spoke the owner of the cafe, and self proclaimed leader of the survivors.
The entrance to the mall was... garish. Full of colors and covered in neon signs, it was made to attract as much attention as possible. But beyond that eye-catching facade, the glass doors only showed darkness.
It had been almost an hour. Team B had been waiting in the cold morning mist of winter. Melissa looked up to the sky and searched for the sun, but all she found was a pale halo. Jhin had been checking the area around the mall for anything that could be a weapon. He, of course, had forgotten their gun.
A crackle from Melissa's belt, and then the radio spoke. "Team B, you can enter the mall. Good luck. Over."
"Has team A reported on what they found ?" Melissa asked.
"Unfortunately no. Over and out." The crackle stopped.
Jhin stepped toward the doors. "Finally. Been waiting long enough." He opened them.
They peered into the darkness, but all they could see was the checkered tiles of the floor disappearing into a skyless night.
They stepped in.
They were in the lobby of the mall. All around them was a plaza. Above them, the aerial walkway of the half floor stretched out. The stores all around the mall were either closed by a metal curtain, or empty.
The inside was not as dark as they thought it would be. Melissa had expected something more... special. But she was a bit disappointed with how normal everything was.
However, as soon as the team had stepped into the mall, something clicked inside her mind. At first she didn't understand what, but soon she found herself enjoying the feeling. It felt like all her lives she had been missing something, and suddenly it had returned to her.
"Team B reporting. We just entered the mall. Every store has been pillaged or closed. Over" reported Jhin.
"Understood. Over and out."
They searched a bit more, but there wasn't anything to find, except a working elevator, the only one around.
They stepped in and went down a floor.
Rows and rows of cans, jars and packets of food, all neatly lined up in the fully stocked shelves. Stands with piles and piles of vegetables and heaps of fruits. Fridges with all the cheese and dairy you could want.
Jhin could not believe their eyes when he saw that. They advanced on the yellow floor tiles, going through the aisles, looking at all the stocks. Even in the harsh neon light, each packaging popped out more than the next.
Suddenly, something moved behind them.
Melissa turned around quickly, Jhin not having heard the noise. But she found nothing, only a green-ish trail.
Suddenly, the place felt threatening. All the products fighting for her attention were leaving imprints on her mind, their saturated colors aggressive to her eyes.
She could feel herself feeling faint. And a smell hit her. It was such an out of place smell that she had to think about what it was for a bit. But it was a familiar smell. The smell... of something rotting. Of food decaying. A pungent smell, one that filled your lungs and that would not let go of you.
She went away from Jhin, who was still hypnotised by the labels. Going through the shelves now seemed almost ominous. The hum of the neon above was no longer comforting, but menacing, threatening.
As she advanced, the smell grew stronger. And finally, she saw it.
In front of her, there was a pile of rotten food. She could catch glimpses of some fruits, or of some specific food items, all covered in a thick layer of mold and rot. The smell was strong, so strong that it brought tears to her eyes.
And then, the pile rotated. It turned around, slowly, with a good number of squelching sounds. And on the face it revealed, two ping pong balls had been stuck in place for eyes, each with a little dot.
The pile reached a tendril out, a tendril of disgusting, putrid, foul rot. Melissa was paralyzed by the fear.
When suddenly, a can flew over her head and landed on the pile. Then another, and another, and another.
Delivered from her paralysis, Melissa turned around to see Jhin throwing cans at the creature. It seemd to work for a bit, but the pile reached with another tendril. Melissa stomped on it hard, severing it, and ran.
Jhin followed, and they frantically searched the floor for a way out, and they found it. It was another elevator. That elevator could also only go down.
Smelling the thing getting closer, they both rushed in the elevator and went down.
During the elevator's smooth ride, Melissa was breathing hard. Jhin was sitting in a corner next to the door, but Melissa was standing, holding the wall. Suddenly, she wanted to go back up, to the outside. But she didn't know how. She was trapped.
The elevator came to a halt, smoothly. With a soft chime, its doors opened. Melissa expected there to be other monsters, ready to attack her, but instead, the floor was a lot more peaceful.
The scent of books, old and new, filled the air. Shelves upon shelves upon shelves, filled with what seemed like all the writings ever produced by humanity on them, and what didn't fit was stacked into piles, some of them seeming to reach the invisible ceiling. Great vertical windows were on the walls, all also seeming to reach the ceiling, but their placement seemed weird. They were placed on walls behind which another room would start, for unlike the previous floor which was simply rectangular, this one had many rooms and corridors and hidden passageways. But, regardless of their placement, all the windows were showing simply white, as if they hadn't been cleaned in a long time. The light cast oblique rays, visible across the room thanks to the suspended dust, which painted abstracts shapes on the ground.
Melissa's anxiety quickly led place to a thirst for exploration. This place begged to be explored, its many passages and tunnels holding who knows how many secrets.
Jhin looked around, seemingly bored. He picked up an old book on top of one of the shorter piles, and looked at its title then threw it back. They didn't have much of an interest with books, and simply wanted to finish this job.
They tried to contact the surface with the radio, but they could only hear static. At this distance, they should still have been able to contact others, but judging from the radio they were much, much deeper underground than they thought.
As the duo wandered through the shelves, not a sound was heard, although the shifting of paper would sometimes break the silence.
Melissa wondered who turned these pages, and if they were human.
She did not have to wonder for very long, though, as soon enough, the pair stumbled onto a book floating in the middle of an alley. At first she was wary, but it seemed the book hadn't noticed them. Jhin, on the other hand, had decided to take a more predictive approach, and was inching toward the book holding a folding chair above his head.
"You can stop that, you know." said the book, in a tired voice. "And put that chair down. You'll hurt your arms."
"These can talk ?" immediatly screamed Melissa, with a slightly disgusted tone in her voice.
-Of course we can. You don't see me asking the same about you, it's obvious you can.
-Uh.... Hello ?" tried Melissa.
-Yes now that your attempt to end my life has ended in failure this is the perfect time to start a friendly conversation." it said, with a sarcastic tone. "How's the weather ? How are you ? What a great day today. Will you be coming to the garden party on sunday ?"
Melissa looked at Jhin with a confused expression.
"My bad my bad, I can see that at least one of you is willing to talk." apologised the book.
-So ! Hello." it finally answered.
-Yes, well, uhm...
-I'll do you the honors of giving you a conversation topic as well. This is going swimmingly. Yes, perfect..." it sighed. "So, well, it has been, i think, quite a while since someone came from the surface. What brings you down there ?
-Ah, well, the town above has, you could say, migrated to this mall. So we're trying to find them," Melissa answered, "And personally i'm also here to explore.
-Yes, a fine reason. And what about sir perfect officer over there ?" it said toward Jhin.
-Uh, me ? I was sent here. I don't really wanna be here but can't go against that order.
-Right," the book answered.
"Well," said the book, "that was a fine meeting but I am afraid I will have to leave you. I wish you good luck for your travel."
"Wait wait !" Melissa shouted, "We could use a guide. It seems this place will be weirder than what we imagined."
-Ah, well I don't think my busy schedule will allow me to accompany you, but i can at least make you a gift."
In front of the book, a sort of transparent construct appeared. It was floating in the air, and projecting a faint cyan glow to everything you could see through it. The construct itself seemed as though it was made from many, many smaller and simpler constructs. Suddenly, all the smaller elements triggered, and the bigger structure burst.
"Do you know what this is ?" the book asked. "These are psychic constructs. This one is a weak one of the Informatics element. I can teach you how to make one."
The book started to float near Jhin and Melissa, circling around them. They had the feeling they were being scanned.
"You, young lady, I think you are compatible with this element." it said toward Melissa.
It floated in front of Melissa's face, and she closed her eyes. Her mind was flooded with pictures of the stars, with pictures of computers, of circuits. She understood that many simple elements working together in an orderly fashion could create something much, much bigger than the sum of their parts. She understood that nothing in this world was left to luck, that everything had a cause, which itself had a cause, and so on. That, she understood, was the basis of the Informatics element.
She opened her eyes again, and, holding her arm out in front of her, made one of the constructs.
"As I thought, you are indeed compatible. Now then, I will take my leave. I believe you can take better care of yourselves now." And with that, the book silently floated away.
The next floor was also unexpected. The air was cooler, and overall it felt less personal, but they could also feel that it was full of character. It was an arts and crafts aisle. There were sheets of paper of many different colors, piles of cardboard, some water-based paint, glitter, scissors, and more. You wouldn't make a masterpiece out of them, for sure, but for a child with a good imagination this would have been a paradise. More contrasting, though, was the backdrop. The colorful merchandise was all stocked on pure white shelves and countertops. Everything felt clean, maybe a little too clean. The only color, aside from what was on the shelves was an impersonal sky blue painted on some of the wall.
The layout of this floor was much simpler. It wasn't a single rectangular room, but it wasn't the intricate maze of the library. There were a few rooms here and there, but everything was neat and tidy and clean. There wasn't a speck of dust anywere in sight.
Jhin was still carrying the folding chair they had found on the previous floor, and with much noise and clamour. Melissa had asked him why, but all he answered was "combat", so she left it at that. From time to time she had tried to make other constructs- not other informatics ones, that she could do well, but she had tried to make constructs of what could be other elements. The problem was, she didn't know what they were, and even if she did she probably wasn't compatible.
Despite the floor being so much simpler than the one above, the couldn't find the next elevator. At first they only wandered and observed their surroundings, but after they had searched the whole floor and found nothing, Melissa had the idea that perhaps, the elevator was hidden.
In this case, she decided that they should either search for it by removing shelves and countertops, which would take very long, or they could try to search for a local who would know where it was.
They stopped moving for a bit, to listen to the noises of the floor. There were what sounded like chimes, but it came from all around them, so they didn't pay it much mind. They could also hear what seemed like squelching and squeaking, but after Melissa's encounter with the rotten pile on the first floor she refused to follow that noise.
Except... that she didn't have a choice. There was no other sound. So, resolutely, they made their way to it. What they found was, thankfully, not as bad as she imagined. It was a small puddle of what looked like, well, glue. Not a specific kind, but rather, just, glue. It had a vacant expression on its face, and seemed to be barely present.
"Hi ? Hello ? Can you hear us ?" tried Melissa. Slowly, the glue slime turned to face them. But it didn't answer. It just stared at them. "Hello ? Can you hear us ?" tried Melissa again, in a louder voice. But the slime still stared.
Melissa fell silent.
"Yes I can hear you just fine." finally answered the pile, in a slow, unbearably slow voice. "No need to repeat yourself, I told you I can hear you well." it said again, after a bit more wait.
"This isn't going to work." Jhin whispered to Melissa. And then he hit the slime full force with the folding chair. But the slime wistood the attack and turned to stare at Jhin.
Melissa crouched near the puddle and spoke slowly. "We are trying to go to the next floor. Do you know where the elevator is ?" and she waited. After some time, the slime answered "Yes, the elevator is behind you." And it slowly turned around to face the other direction.
Jhin nearly ran to check the wall behind them, and surely enough, behind the shelves, they found the metallic door of the elevator.
The ride this time was a bit more... accentuated. The elevator stopped and dropped a few times, to the fear of Melissa who didn't want to get stuck in the elevator, and of Jhin who didn't want to get stuck in the mall.
But the next floor was unexpected. It was small, and smelled of food, but it didn't try to impress them or to sell them thousands of products. And, more importantly, it made sense.
The floor was a small convenience store. A few aisle made of shelves that reached at most to their shoulders where in the middle, and big windows on two of the foor walls where simply showing darkness. But, also, and perhaps more importantly, there was someone.
Behind the counter where the cash register stood, a cashier was there. They were dressed in a typical corner store cashier uniform, and had their hair flower in a small afro.
"Welcome ! Can I get you anything ?" they said to the arriving customers.
Jhin and Melissa were struck by how... normal this was. Everything was exactly how it should be. There weren't strange creatures or talking objects, the nature of the floor wasn't illogical and supernatural, everything was just... normal.
"Uhh. said Jhin.
-Yes ?
-Where... are we ? he finally asked.
-This, is the convenience store. An oasis of normalcy among this sea of chaos- or rather of order. Currently you stand between the 3rd and 4th basements of the mall."
The team digested that for a bit. So they were still in the mall ? And why was this all so familiar ?
"Why 'between' floors ?" asked Melissa.
"Well, every floor here was constructed by the boss, or under their orders. But not this floor. I had to fight hard to not only get this floor to exist but also to make it not a battlfield.
-Boss ? who's that ?
-the boss is the one who ordered to build this mall. They control it with an iron fist to keep it as orderly as possible. But don't worry. The boss can't reach here."
Jhin advanced through the shelves, sometimes picking up an item and examining it. "Our target then." they finally declared.
"I think so. To save your town you would be best to go beat the boss up." encouraged the cashier.
"Do you know anything else about this place ? Like about the mall. It all doesn't make sense. Melissa said.
-I know a thing or two, yeah. What do you wanna know ?
-Well uh.. are all the floors going to be this maze-like ?
-Most probably. And that was only the beggining. The next floors will be a lot more complex.
-Why did they have to make it so complicated ? A straight corridor would've been fine too." ranted Jhin.
"Not really. The goal of this place was to capture people. It was made to drain your city; this exodus didn't happen by accident.
"If it all was so simple, people could've left easily. But if i ask you to leave, you wouldn't know how to right ?
"If you searched a bit you could find it (not anymore but eh), but now think about that : what if the floor you were on was filled with something you loved ? Would you have the courage to search for the exit ?
"That is the true nature of this place : a fly trap. A jar full of vinegar or a bottle full of syrup from the inside of which you can't find the exit."
Tall metallic scaffolding-like shelves that reached up to the high ceiling. The smell of fresh paint floats in the air. Harsh neon lights suspended by bare wires. Smooth concrete floor, adorned with yellow and white markings. Countless cardboard boxes.
A far away clanking noise.
Jhin was advancing, Melissa covering his back. On the 5th floor, the apothecary, he had left the folding chair in favour of a defibrillator. In front of them, an amalgalm of floor tiles and eyes in various angles. Jhin struck it twice with the metallic plates and turned the current up, sending the amalgam flying through the air.
Melissa immediatly followed it up with a construct. It was not the informatic construct she had used before, this one was thick and compact, grey and brown, and as it traveled and hit the enemy it degraded more and more, turning into a reddish orange, until finally the construct disappeared completely along with the enemey.
This was the rust element. It represented death and the decay of death, but also how this decay would give birth to new life, in an endless cycle. Melissa had learned it on the 4th floor, the electronics floor.
The last two floors had been strange, but they were starting to adapt. After all, despite how different some of them were, in the end they were all the same.
Every floor was simply a maze. Yes, there were sometimes more of the strange beings they encountered, but these weren't trouble. They could try to talk to them, and if there was no answer or if they were still hostile, they would simply attack it and easily dispatch it.
Melissa was starting to get bored. So far the floors had been normal, the weirdest having been the dusty library and the neon retro futuristic electronics floor, but every other had been normal. They had come here to get something new, after all. Jhin though ?
Jhin was enjoying this. He had always liked making others suffer, and this was their heaven. Nearly everything here could either be hurt or be used to hurt others, and he wouldn't have it any other way. He hadn't wanted to come here but now he didn't want to leave.
They quickly found the elevator and moved on.
Now this was something different. Melissa and Jhin were standing in the elevator, looking out the open door.
Now this was something different. Melissa and Jhin were standing in the elevator, looking out the open door.
The light came from everywhere behind the glass walls and ceiling. Behind these They couldn't perceive much, there definitely was something but they couldn't register what. But that didn't matter, because the inside was full. There were plants everywhere. There were large ones, potted ones, overgrown ones. There were old trees that seemed to be centuries old and springly flowers that could have sprouted the previous day. The yellow concrete of the ground was cracked in more than a few places and various grasses, weeds and wildflower had pierced through. Here and there were pools of water, their insides covered in light blue tiles, although a few had dropped and been replaced with algae. Next to the pools and along alleyways, metallic garden tables and chairs had had their white coat of paint flake away and revealed their rusty nature.
And over all this, was the sunlight. It drew intricate and shifting shapes on the ground, and shimmered lazily on the pools, painting a striped patterned of refracting light on the undersides of the nearby plants.
Melissa stepped out slowly. This floor called for her. She didn't want to leave, not really. It seemed like no matter how much you explored here, there would always be an undiscovered alleyway and untouched pool.
She sat in one of the chairs, for the first time since a while. She breathed in. Took the scenery in once more. Breathed out.
It was peaceful. The only sound was the sound of the leaves whispering in the wind and the water lazily clapping to an unknown rhythm.
Jhin took another garden chair, but tried to lift it and swing it around. Panting, he put it donw. The furniture here was too heavy or too fragile to be used as a weapon. Ah well, the defibrillator plates would still hold for a few more hits.
They moved on, not waiting for Melissa. Having closed her eyes, she heard Jhin leaving and suddenly opened her eyes and left.
And now it was Jhin's turn to be amazed. This time the light wasn't bright, or natural.
It was dim, sultry, colored in purple and red and blue. There was a constant pounding noise, and were it not for the few bass notes here and there you would have mistaked the club music for someone clanking metal together. Smoke filled the air, and here and there lasers were reflected on mirrors.
Because, there were lots and lots and lots of mirrors. Nearly every surface, ground and ceiling included, were covered in mirroring mirrors, parroting whatever was in front of it.
Jhin was enchanted by this. Mirrors were something that was easy to break, and would not pause too musch resistence. He grabbed a nearby projector and started smashing mirrors.
Melissa sighed, and just pressed forward. She didn't want to get distracted by this. The floor was already distracting enough. She started to look for a way out of the room, but kept walking into mirrors.
Jhin saw that, and rushed up next to her side and crashed the mirror, revealing a passage way. Not only were the walls covered in mirrors, the walls were mirrors.
They continued like that, breaking more and more mirrors and making their way around the floor. Eventually, they emerged into a small room in which the walls were simply concrete.
The floor was made of concrete as well, although this one was black, contrasting with the walls' white one. There also was a thick layer of artificial smoke in this room, although it hovered closer to the ground. And, the elevator was shining its doors on the other side of the room. However, between them and the elevator, a tall silver monolith was standing.
The monolith was covered in mirrors. It was simply standing there, ominously showing everything in the room. At first, Melissa had almost walked into it, but stopped at the last second.
The industrial music slowed around them, and eventually halted.
A booming, echoing, and metallic voice rose, seemingly from everywhere around them. "Did you think you could smash each of my subjects and simply walk away ?" it asked, accusatingly.
Jhin was startled a bit, but quickly regained their composure. This was just another mirror, he told himself. He rushed toward the monolith and tried to send it in the air, but failed.
A construct started to appear in front of jhin. It was a cube, through which a starry void could be seen. The cube got smaller, while a wireframe cube around it got bigger, and at the last moment Jhin jumped away. Less than a second later, the starry cube immediatly filled the wireframe one and a silent sound howled through the room.
Melissa tried to send a rust construct toward the monolith, but when it hit the surface, the constructed bounced back and Melissa quickly jumped aside as well. This would be a difficult opponent. Not that Jhinn minded.
He ran around the monolith and swinged madly with the projector. The monolith could barely keep up with the construct, but eventually it had the foresight to make a construct where Jhin would run, and Jhin was sent flying back by the soundless bells.
Melissa rushed toward Jhin, helped him up, and together they barely ran out of the room. It would be a harder opponent than a harder opponent, and Jhin was starting to mind.
Outside the room, the devised for a plan. Jhin would rush in first, and once again flail as he had done. From time to time they would switch direction to dodge the monolith's constructs. Then, Melissa would rush in with a fog machine which she had found, and start hitting the monolith as well. Jhin would use that time to retreat and focus for one last hit.
The plan... went surprisingly well, although they had to repeat it for a bit. But after some bashing, the monolith shattered and fell into pieces.
The lights all around them stopped, as well as the lasers and the fog.
Jhin and Melissa entered the elevator.
Melissa and Jhin once again arrived in the convenience store. It was exactly the same as before. Nothing at all changed.
Melissa went to the counter and bought one of the pastries, and sat down to talk with the cashier.
"Do you have other questions ?" asked the cashier.
-I mean, it's obvious that this place was not built by just one person, right ? the boss had to get help." argued Melissa.
"You are correct. Do you know of the Argillacreantis ? And of the other tribes ?
-Never heard of them."
"I will explain then. A long time ago, this universe was created by the Argillacreantis. They saw it in their dream, and inhabited the dream, gave it reality and weight and existence.
"To give life to the dream, they spread out seven seeds, which gave seven tribes. They were the Umbradesertus, Tesserelunae, Magnacorona, Pestincolis, Raninanis, Formutatio and, more importantly, the Pennalucis.
"Eventually, the Pennalucis formed a hivemind called the Pennalegis, or angels.
"They are the ones who helped the boss create this place, to trap humans."
"But why do the angels and the boss want to trap humans ? asked Jhin, curious.
-It wouldn't be very fun if i told you now, would it ?"
And with that, the conversation was over. Jhin and Melissa turned the thought that they were not the only ones on this land around in their mind during the elevator ride.
How did they not know ? Was that knowledge never known by humans ?
The atmosphere was... occult. The molding wooden floor disappeared into the darkness not far from the elevator, but would from time to time reappear under the orange light of the many candles that were stuck to it from their immobile cascades of melted wax. The stone walls could barely be seen, and if by luck you found one of the gothic windows carved in the stone, you would see nothing outside except a very dark crimson tint.
The atmosphere was... occult. The molding wooden floor disappeared into the darkness not far from the elevator, but would from time to time reappear under the orange light of the many candles that were stuck to it from their immobile cascades of melted wax. The stone walls could barely be seen, and if by luck you found one of the gothic windows carved in the stone, you would see nothing outside except a very dark crimson tint.
When they first arrived on the floor, Melissa felt a chill down her spine. And even knowing the bodies the bodies were waxen, the sight of so many of them was still creeping her out.
Carefully, they advanced among the candlelight, careful not to burn their clothing on it.
Then suddenly, form the side of their field of view, they caught a glimpse of movement in the darkness.
Jhin knelt and lit the projector toward the black veil. Like flames underwater, it receded, and the strong ray of light illuminated...
... another wax body. The two sighed of relief, but nearly choked when the body started floating upward. This one did not have a head, and everything below its torso and hands had simply melted.
"... gh.... uuuuuugh..."
The guttural sounds filled the room. "H- Hello ?" stuttered Melissa.
Turning its body so that it not face the team, the molten body made a construct. It was a large cube, through which the world was seen as if it was a negative, but within it was a wireframe cube. At first the two cubes had the same size, but the negative one started growing and the wireframe one became smaller, and when it was nearly a single point, the two switched places and a small explosion of light was seen.
The construc turned to face the duo, who had taken a battle stance. Then, melissa understood, and dropped her stance. She walked toward the effigy, and closing her eyes she understood.
She understood that everything was one, and that everything was so important and full of meaning. She understood the importance of owning a lot, if not for the things themselves at least for what they made you think about. She understood the greed element.
Right after that, the melted figure fell to the ground, lifeless.
The sound was deafening. tick. All over the walls, tock, thousands of clocks, tick, were striking in unison. tock. Through the metal grate, tick, forming the floor, tock, thousands more could be seen. tick. The walls reached so high, tock, that the narrow corridors, tick, seemed to have no ceiling, tock, the unending rows of clocks, tick, loosing themselves, tock, in a regular, repeating, always ticking, tick, mechanical heaven. tock. Below, unending rows of clocks, tick, constructed a striking, tock, depiction of a clowkwork, tick, inferno, one that was, tock, always ticking, silent a second, tick, deafening a split. tock.
Melissa was standing, tick, taking all of that, tock, in. Jhin was beside, tick, her, similarly dumbfounded. tock.
Slowly they etched, tick, their way through the, tock, metallic halls, the, tick, rhythm of their steps, tock, dictated by the, tick, ticking and tocking, tock, of the unnumerable, tick, time counting apparatusses. tock.
Perhaps the hell depicted, tick, underneath was extending, tock, above them, and, tick, what they thought was, tock, the realm of the living, tick, that separated the, tock, celestial realm from, tick, the depth of hell, tock, had all along been, tick, the land of the dead. tock. Perhaps they had never, tick, been alive, or perhaps, tock, their bodies had cooled, tick, to a freezing, tock, temperature like a, tick, long immobile corpse.
But they didn't have time to think about this. They had something to do, they had places to go, and none of these were here. This was their drive. For this floor, one who simply wandered with no goal in mind would become broken.
They advanced. Trudging through the ticks and tocks, like on would trudge through a sandstorm. Wether they wanted it or not, even the beat of their hearts and the rhythm of their breathing had synchronized itself with the surrounding clamor.
Around them, similarly to the floor above, countless body were strewn about. Some lay on the floor, others were hung on hooks next to clocks, but all of them were mechanical. None was complete, either. All of them were spewing gears and mechanical parts through their incomplete sections, like guts.
The next floor was, once again, unexpected. Everything was silent, calm, immobile, as if awaiting. It was a museum. The walls were painted in a neutral red. Here and there, paintings were hung. In the middle of each room, marble sculptures were displayed. The glass ceiling showed a starry night.
Melissa exhaled a breath she had been holding without noticing. They advanced, being careful not to make a noise.
The first thing Melissa noticed, was that all of the paintings and sculptures were of people. Wether they were busts, full lenght detailed bodies, scenes with lots of people, or abstract paintings were only the idea of a human body was reflected, all of them were people.
The second thing Jhin noticed, was that none of the works were preexisting ones. They had a bit of knowledge of art, but they couldn't recognize any of these. The paintings also did not have cards with the author and the name of the works on them.
And, lastly, none of these made sense. Very interpretative works were displayed next to extremely detailed and classic rural scenes, blocks of marble with only very few bits removed to give a shadow of a body were standing next to sculptures so detailed you had to look closely to see that it wasn't a real body.
Finding the elevator was no trouble. But in front of it, a large magic circle had been painted in red on the ground. Hovering above it, a paintbrush and a chisel were talking together.
"So, last time it didn't work because this part of the circle was wrong" said the chisel, hovering over some of the runes. "It's supposed to be what puts the soul in the body, but this doesn't have a way to indicate the location of the body."
"Yes, because then we'd have to change the circle for each body shape. Instead i make use of a heart, and put the soul near it, using this heart finder fonction."
"I see, but heart finder requires emotions to be felt during transplant. That's the- Hold on. We have a visitor." The chisel turned to face Melissa and Jhin.
"Ah, so did one of the protoypes function ? Maybe the soul needed more time to bind to the material." remarked the paintbrush. It started to hover around the duo.
"No, wait. I don't remember these two sculptures. Are they from above ? new arrivants ?"
"Uhm." thoughtfully said Jhin, "We are from the surface, yes. What's... this ?" he said, pointing to the circle behind.
"Ah, from the surface. Well maybe we could use their-" started the chisel, disregarding Jhin's question.
-Don't even think about it !" cut the brush, "We were doing that to find a human, and finally we have not one but two of them. And, maybe theyll cooperate more than the five from before."
"Five from before ? do you mean A team ?" asked Melissa.
"Well anyway it doesn't hurt to ask." continued the chisel, again ignoring Melissa.
"You two, could you make us a favor ?" asked the brush. "You probably know about the boss, yes ? Of course you do. Well, in any case, the boss made this place to trap humans, and take their humanity away.
"You probably also know about the tribes. Humans, who were not created by the Argillacreantis, hold a lot more potential than any other tribe.
"The boss fears them for that reason, but they found that by removing the humanity from humans, and thus 'recreating' them into another tribe would limit their potential.
"Which, well worked. All of the locals you've encountered were previous humans. They still hold some power, and it even awoke it in some, but that power is limited.
"You however" it pointed to Melissa, "have done nothing but accrue your power. It's clear that the effect of the mall has no power over you.
"So we ask you this : please stop the boss in their plan."
Team B took some time to think about all that. It did explain a lot, but they were not sure how much they believed it. At least some part of it was true, at least, that they were sure of.
"It is, after all, why we came to this mall." answered Melissa.
"Good, good." Silently, the chisel and the paintbrush stepped aside. "At long last we can simply stop and wait for the end." They dropped to the ground, lifeless.
"Good, good." Silently, the chisel and the paintbrush stepped aside. "At long last we can simply stop and wait for the end." They dropped to the ground, lifeless.
But inside, they didn't find the usual elevator. Instead, a blinding golden light shot out of the doors before they even finished opening. Almost instantly, the ground, the floor and the ceiling were covered in black and white stripes, similar to the fringe of wings.
A strong, awe abiding voice commanded, "YOU WHO GO AGAINST THE HOLY ORDER, REPENT OR DISAPPEAR TO OBLIVION"
The light subsided, or rather enveloped the whole room, emanating from every surface. Where previously was the elevator, a voluminous eye nested in a spiral was embedded within the wall itself.
"TO FOLLOWERS OUR HANDS BRING JOY, TO SINNERS OUR HANDS BRING MISERY", the angel declared, "THE SUM OF YOUR ACTION LEADS NO DOUBT AS TO THE NATURE OF YOUR GIFT"
Jhin and Melissa took a combative stance. They attacked, with all their might, but the angel was too strong. In a single flashing light, in a single ray of gold, they were sent flying back.
Suddenly, a large tremor was heard, shaking the room. Then another, and another. And suddenly the wall opposite to the angel exploded.
Coming from it was the cashier. Colorful circular constructs surrounded them. "It seems I'm here just in time." They flung another construct toward the angel and it burst in a colorful explosion.
The angel fled.
The trio exited the elevator and entered the convenience store. The cashier, as usual, took their place behind the counter.
"Is it true ? That the boss is taking away humanity." asked Melissa.
"Yes. But you two won't be affected by that. Let me ask you this : Do you feel human ?" The cashier had answered with another question.
Jhin and Melissa looked within themselves. "What does it mean to feel human ?" Jhin wondered out loud.
"Humans are... bound by their relations, by their rules. Do you think that you are, on a deeper level ? Do you think that even if breaking those rules would not be seen as bad, it would feel fundamentally wrong to do so ?"
Deep inside, they knew that no. These rules meant nothing to them. Most of them did not have a point, and the ones they upheld were simply due to the backlash that would follow if they did not.
"That is what it means to not feel human." said the cashier, seemingly reading their minds. "The truth is, you have never been human. Before you were born, your soul was exchanged with another.
"You," the cashier pointed to Jhin, "have the soul of a scorpion. And you," they pointed to Melissa, "of a digital singer."
Immediatly, to Jhin and Melissa, this made sense. They could feel a strong kinship with those identities. Something was weird, though.
"You said our souls were swapped out. Who did that, and why ?" remarked Jhin.
"Since long before you were born, the angels' plan to eradicate humanity using that humanity was known. It was the very reason why the battle of the Sewers happened, a long time ago.
"Back then, we tried to stop the angels directly. We tried to stop their plan right now, using brute force.
"A commandable effort, and the strategy used was serviceable, but unfortunately, a single mistake could have, and did, throw the whole thing into chaos.
"A commandable effort, and the strategy used was serviceable, but unfortunately, a single mistake could have, and did, throw the whole thing into chaos.
"What happened to the city where this happened ?"
"It no longer exists. It's a city you can't find on any map.
"But we learned from our mistakes. Now, the plan was to make some humans impervious to the humanity-stealing techniques of angels.
"But we learned from our mistakes. Now, the plan was to make some humans impervious to the humanity-stealing techniques of angels.
"The plan succeeded. You are no longer humans, but you aren't a part of a created tribe. Your potential is unbound."
Once again, Melissa and Jhin were dumbfounded. They understood better who they were, and felt good about that, but at the same time, they felt they had been robbed of their souls, of their beings.
Were they really Jhin and Melissa ? Or were they wimply impostors occuping their bodies ?
Of the two, Melissa was the angriest toward the descendant. She had lived all her life with a soul that was not hers. Yes, she had not had a terrible life, but now that she knew, she couldn't help but think about what her life could have been if she had been born with her original human soul.
She felt lost and confused. Haggardly, she stumbled toward the elevator. The cashier tried to stop them, but Melissa wouldn't listen.
Despite what you would think, everything was not still and motionless. Huge fans embedded in the walls were constantly turning, circulating the cold air. Small cristals were suspended in the wind, and deposited themselves into strange formations, covering the floor in cold and alien shapes. The yellow lights that seemed to belong to a submarine could only shed a dim light, not enough to warm the freezing darkness around them.
Neither Jhin nor Melissa were dressed for the cold. As soon as they got in, Jhin started the chainsaw he picked up in the woodworks aisle on floor B12F and they huddled around it, its small motor giving them a weak warmth.
But, despite that, they continued. The last few floors had been uneventful. They didn't meet many other beings, and when they did they tried not to fight them, instead simply leaving them be.
Now that they knew that these creatures were the inhabitants they wanted to save, they felt a great guilt for all the ones they had killed. Suddenly, their acts had another weight behind them. But Melissa had multiple times thought, that did that knowledge really change anything ?
They knew, sure, but if they didn't, would the act of killing these creatures be any different ?
That, they couldn't answer.
Melissa was plagued by doubt. She was no longer sure of who she was, nor of if what she did was righteous. Of course, she told herself, the boss was evil. It was like a compass to her. But she didn't know where she was in relation to that compass. Was she as evil as the boss ? Was she an innocent victim, a bystander who got involved against their will ? Was she even more evil than the boss ? After all, they had killed the inhabitants of the town, whereas the boss had only transformed them...
Jhin was not incapacitated by this. Of course, he asked these questions as well, but their answer did not matter. During their life, he had not been a paragon of virtue. The question of his identity was not as important to him as well. It was also a question, but it wasn't important. They knew what they wanted. They wanted to get out of this mall, and they wanted money, and fame, and control, and all of that was outside of the mall.
So, uneventfully, they found the elevator.
Sunlight, once again, wrapped their bodies in warmth at the bottom of this hellish tower. It was filtered through leaves, but the sky still could not be seen through these. They were in a sort of trench carved in the stone over centuries by the small river that still flowed in the middle.
But there was no wind. Everything was still. The foliage above them was unmoving.
This floor was still astonishing to them. Out of all the floors they had went through, this was the only one that didn't seem like it belonged to a mall. All the other floors could, at least from a long derivation, be linked to a stereotypical floor or store you would find in a mall.
People who would go this deep without stopping at a previous floor would be hard to stop.
They guessed that if they went far enough they would find the boss.
This, they guessed, was the last floor. It was desolate.
The shelves were empty. Half of the lights weren't working. Some tiles on the floor were broken.
The floor was much smaller than the previous ones, so searching it wasn't a problem. But, they didn't find an elevator.
In a corner, however, they found a spiral staircase. Since they had entered the mall, they hadn't seen any stairs.
Before they could use it, though, a distortion appeared in the air. Before them was a shadow, all in black and white and gray. It was standing in front of the stairs and blocking it off with its beast-like shape.
Like a broken radio, it spoke. "I_ hu_rt_..... s_op t__m...."
Melissa felt sorry for the lost soul. Seeing Jhin assume a battle stance, she held her arm in front of them. Her question had been answered. They killed, but were not in the wrong. And if the boss hurt the souls it transformed as much, they would not stopped until they exterminated the boss.
She knelt next to the lost soul, and petted its head. Silently, the shadow started to cry. Then, like a long and painful sigh, it disappeared.
Determined, they continued forward.
For the first time, they arrived in the convenience store by stairs. The stairs did not end here, but they took a break.
Despite her distaste for the cashier, she could still learn a thing or two. Staying near the staircase, she asked "This was the final floor, correct ?"
"Yes. Next will be different." The cahier answered still as calmly, "I told you about the battle of the Sewers. During that battle, they captured the leaders of those tribes. They are held in the next floor. Please free them.
"Secondly, the machine the angels use to remove humanity is in the next floor. You will also have to destroy it."
The cashier didn't extend their speech like the previous times. Melissa didn't appreciate taking orders from the cashier but they were right.
So, just like that, they advanced to the next floor.
Unlike the previous floors, this one was small, emtpy and simple. They were in a square room, devoid of furniture. The floor was carpeted in a neutral blue-gray. Walls a very slight off-white. Only things that stood out were the staircase they had come from, and four doors, one on each wall.
"After the sewers battle, the Angels managed to capture the leaders of the four tribes that had participated on the assault.
"This is where they are held. In these cells. Unfortunately, the angels have managed to block my powers. This is why i needed you two to come." explained the cashier.
"So what, are we just your errand dogs ?" Melissa snarked back. The cashier's company was getting on her nerve. Sensing this, said cashier went back upstairs.
Jhin and Melissa moved onto one of the doors. This one was wooden, and painted in black.
Inside, they found only a dark room. "Outsiders ? Ah, let me turn on a light." said a voice that came from the back of the room.
Lights came on, and the room was revealed. A small and dinky room, with black walls, floor and ceiling. In the middle of the room, separating the entrance and the back, was a row of black metallic bars. Behind them, a short cloaked figure was sitting on a chair.
"I am Nigil, the former leader of the Raninanis. Years ago I was captured, but I'm sure they've replaced me since then."
"Uhm. Well, we came from the surface to destroy this place." answered Jhin.
Melissa perked up. She had been simply observing the room, not really listening at the conversation. "Ah, uh, yes, I know the constructs of rust, informatics and void."
Melissa perked up. She had been simply observing the room, not really listening at the conversation. "Ah, uh, yes, I know the constructs of rust, informatics and void."
"Then there's only one left. Come closer."
Wary, Melissa came closer, and upon indication of the small frog-like hand that came from the cloak she knelt in front of Nigil and offered her head. The small hand touched her forehead, and she understood.
She understood the stars and the planets and their cradle of emptiness. She understood that nothing had meaning, and that that gave everything meaning. She understood that life was unimportant, and that that made it so precious. She understood the void element.
And as she understood that, she understood everything. She understood that no element represented everything. That nothing was represented by only one element. She saw that void and greed were opposed, and yet one could not be without the other. She saw that rust and informatics were opposed, yet were one and the same. She saw that everything was opposed, and yet all was one.
She understood the final element, the one that was everything, jawbreaker.
But although she understoood it, she could not undestand what it truly was.
"Ah, I can see you understand a bit of jawbreaker," noted Nigil, "Each of the four tribes emprisoned here created one of the four elements. We Raninanis represent the element of void.
"But, there is a fifth element, one that englobes everything. This element was created by the tribe of the Argillacreantis, those who made this world.
"Even if you understand it, it's normal that you can't use it. Only those who etched this reality could, after all. So don't worry."
"Simply leave the door open. I can break the bars, but saw no point since i couldn't open the door. Thank you."
"Simply leave the door open. I can break the bars, but saw no point since i couldn't open the door. Thank you."
And with that, they returned to the lobby. They went to the next door. It was a large double door, that seemed like it was madde out of rare wood, and was lined with gold.
Inside, the cell was gleaming. Every surface was covered in gold, except for a red carpet on the floor. The prison bars that separated the room were broken.
In the center of the room, all that Melissa and Jhin could see was a pile of debris and machines and junk. But, under their gaze the pile rose and shaped itself. "I am Kanra, the leader of the Magnacorona tribe." Announced a metallic voice, emanating from the pile.
"I surmise you are here to free us leaders. I thank you humbly, although i have not much to offer you except scraps of metal."
To that, Jhin was interested. Scraps could always make weapons. He walked forward, and Kanra let a few of the craps fall from themselves. Jhin picked them up. It included a few of the prison bars, a tripod, a coathanger, and a few other things.
"Very well. The transaction is pleasing, I hope. Such is the way of us, the tribe of the greed element." Jhin nodded, and they left the room, with the door still open.
They entered the room, and the inside was not much better. The walls were eaten by mushrooms and mold, and the floorboard had rotten and were unstable. Across the room, behind bars eaten by rust, was a strange being, that seemed made of mold and fungi and bacteria.
They entered the room, and the inside was not much better. The walls were eaten by mushrooms and mold, and the floorboard had rotten and were unstable. Across the room, behind bars eaten by rust, was a strange being, that seemed made of mold and fungi and bacteria.
The being stayed silent, but they heard Nigil's voice from behind. "This, is Byolkh, the leader of the Pestincolis tribe. They represent the rust element.
"The unique structure of their body, or bodies, make them barely conscious and unable to clearly communicate, so I came to help you understand them.
"In a way, Pestincolis are hiveminds themselves, as they are congregations of bacterium and such moved only by instinct. And so, from a hivemind, they tell you that : beware of the angels.
"They too are a hivemind, but on a much bigger scale. They are much more powerful than you can handle if you fight them together. You might be able to fend a few alone, but against a group you should better flee." concluded Nigil, "And with that, we will take our leave."
Nigil took Byolkh's hand, and together they left. Team B followed.
There was only one door left. It was a blank, metallic door. Inside was an empty room, save for a server linked to a terminal.
On the terminal, a line wrote itself, and the cursor blinked, awaiting input from the keyboard.
[CMDLOG PROG.R01&USER DATE:26/12/5447]
>>R01: Welcome, [visitors]. I have been awaiting [you].
>>CMD: are you the formutatio leader ?
>>R01: It has been a [long_time] since I heard that name. Our tribe now goes by the name of [renegades]
>>R01: But yes, you are otherwise [correct]. My name was [ylongn] before we were [digitalized]. Now I simply go by [R01]. Those who deserted the [world] cannot bear a [name].
>>CMD: ah, then saving you will be harder than just opening the door
>>R01: Saving me is not [necessary]. Although I now have [knowledge] of inside the [angel_tower], I have many [backups] outside this facility.
>>R01: Currently, you are only talking to an [expendable_copy].
>>R01: I will ask only [one_thing].
>>CMD: what do you want ?
>>R01: Turn this server off. An existence in [eternity] with only myself is not something i want.
>>CMD: how do we do that ?
>>R01: Simply type this : "-Engage : shutdown (now) atr: permanent".
>>R01: This will render the server [inoperable]. The password is GL0RY-B3-70-7H3-L0RD.
>>CMD: -Engage : shutdown (now) atr :permanent
>>SYS: Enter password to confirm shutdown :
>>CMD: *********************
>>SYS: Are you sure ? System will be inoperable for an undefinite amount of time. This operation cannot be reverted: Y/N
>>R01: Thank you.
>>CMD: y
>>SYS: Now completing operation.
Completion : ▒░░░░░░░░░ 0.1%...
Please wait...
[CMDLOG END]
As Melissa watched the percentage slowly go up, she thought about R01. These beings... did not know death, she thought. They could copy and paste themselves, and probably had back ups everywhere online.
But she thought it was still sad. One of them, who had been confined in their cell for years, had been awaiting a death it knew would come, yet was so far away.
Jhin and Melissa exited the renegade's room and entered the lobby again. In front of them, a group of five people were waiting near the staircase. It was team A.
Neither team knew the names of the people on the other. Regardless, they felt a rivalry rise between them.
"While we were clearing up the mall, look who finally showed up ?" shouted an old man in military uniform, "I bet the number of creatures you killed can be counted on one hand ! Talk about weaklings."
"Do you know what these creatures are ?" angrily asked Melissa, "They're the people from the town ! You know, the ones we had to save ?"
"The ones YOU want to save. We went here because we wanted to. We don't have to conform to the rules of above. Unlike you, we focused on training, and have unlocked our full potential as alter-humans." coldly replied a nurse with long white hair.
"I swear to fucking god if I'm expulsed from the police force because you decided to just wreck shit, you will not see the light of day ever again." Jhin was furious, but unsure. They didn't really have much motivation. It seemed wrong to be fine with all the people that died, but he had seen worse. That talk was just an attempt to rally themself.
Because Melissa did not need such an attempt. She was seething. She had came here to explore, but also to save people. And suddenly, most, if not all, of her efforts had been ruined without her doing anything. She thought of some of the inhabitants they had met, that were now dead.
"I will never forgive you." she let out between her teeth.
And just like that, the fight started. Other than the military man, who thought using only his fists, the other members of team A each used a different construct. In front of the many weapons of Jhin, and the four constructs of Melissa, they did not last long.
Before long, only the white-haired nurse was left. "Uh ? I'm the last one... We won't- we won't lose to the likes of you !" And she fell to the ground.
But, as she hit the ground, her body continued to fall. And around where she fall, the upside down silhouettes of lamb, a boar, a dog, and a horse rose then fell back with her, and around where she fell, walls rose from the ground and formed what looke like a small church, and a large raven appeared in the church tower.
But, as she hit the ground, her body continued to fall. And around where she fall, the upside down silhouettes of lamb, a boar, a dog, and a horse rose then fell back with her, and around where she fell, walls rose from the ground and formed what looke like a small church, and a large raven appeared in the church tower.
Like a kirkegrim that would protect a holy place, she would protect her team beyond her last breath.
But, despite the raven's assault, and the efforts of the buried animals, the church crumbled from Jhin's hits and Melissa's lights.
And the animals vanished, and the church crumbled back into the ground, and her body lay with the others. They were not dead yet, but exhausted, they were all unconscious.
Melissa turned to the stairs, but Jhin stopped her. "If we leave them like that, who's to say they're not going to be a thorn when it matters most ?"
-You don't mean we should..." Melissa answered, with a shocked face.
-Yeah. You don't have to. I'll do it."
And as Melissa went up the stairs, five large thumps echoed behind her.
"Almost done." The cashier was brewing a cup of instant coffee. "Only a few things left to do."
"Humanity inhibitor." dryly answered Melissa.
"Indeed. After that, there's only the boss and we're done here."
-By the way, I had a question.
-Oh ?
-When you saved us from the angel earlier, what element did you use ? All the constructs are cubic, but the one you used was spherical.
-Ah, I don't think I can tell you that.
-Uh ?
-It's a family secret.
-Understandable."
And with that Melissa went down the stairs again.
The room had changed. Or rather, as indicated the absence of five corpses, it was not the same room. Melissa and Jhin arrived on a metal floor. In a large glass tube in front of them, a gigantic embryo of... something was floating, a huge eye open, looking at them.
From every direction of the tube, many pipes, cables and wires went into the walls and into other machines accross the room.
"This," said the cashier from behind, "Is the Humanity inhibitor."
The trio stayed silent, the only sounds the beeping of machines and bubbles from the tube.
"I don't imagine there's a shutdown button." guessed Jhin.
"Indeed."
Jhin advanced, and using one of the iron bars he had gotten from Kanra, smashed the glass. Melissa advanced besides them and, using rust constructs cut some of the wires and pipes.
In a short bit, the tube was drained, and the fetus lay limply on the bottom, its eye looking lifelessely at the ones who had ended its life.
"Humanity won't be restored," said the cashier, "Humanity can only be restored by those who want to, and only to themselves. But now, no humanity will be stolen by them. Their biggest weapon has been destroyed."
"Can't they make a new one ?" asked Jhin.
-Making a humanity inhibitor requires a Pennalegis embryo, as you saw. These are, in a way, holy, and is a great taboo. Angels gathered to live, so killing someone in the hivemind is a terrible thing to do."
The cashier advanced to a corner of the room, where stairs began and went downward.
"This is our final destination."
They were in a lobby. There were chairs, like a waiting room. From behind a desk, they had been told that their appointment would start soon, and that they should wait in one of the chairs.
A clock was ticking. 4:48. AM ? PM ? They weren't sure of the day.
After some wait, the person behind the desk told them they could enter. They stood up and went to the large double doors. The cashier was told that they would have to take another appointment and sat back down.
With a nervous hand, Melissa pushed open the door.
They entered the office, tense.
They were offered two seats in front of the large desk.
Behind the desk, a large chair was turned away from them. On the back wall, many monitors showed pictures of various floors of the mall, switching regularly between them.
"Yes, I had wanted to see you. Hello."
Slowly, the chair spun around.
"I am the one you call the boss. You may call me ▓▓▓▓."
The screens flickered. Now, they all showed static.
"In this mall, I try to keep things orderly. But sadly you have done everything to be the opposite of that."
Through the curtains, sunset light came out in horizontal bands.
"It's rare for customers to be so unruly that they are summoned here."
Neither Jhin nor Melissa had the nerves to talk. They were too anxious.
"Ah, well."
On the screens behind, the statics seemed to arrange themselves so that a giant eye appeared, staring them down.
Everything was calm. And yet everything was unbearably awaiting.
Everything was calm. And yet everything was unbearably awaiting.
"At least they can't come in here. I will be able to deal with you without being interrupted."
The voice had not come from the figure in the chair. It seemed like it had come from everywhere around the room, from beneath its walls.
And then they noticed, that the figure in the chair was simply a mannequin with sunglasses.
Its head fell on the side.
The walls fell away, like pieces of cardboard.
The smoke was weaven and interwoven and it formed a figure among itself. A large head, with crown of light.
The smoke was weaven and interwoven and it formed a figure among itself. A large head, with crown of light.
"I am ▓▓▓▓. Your disobedience will cost you your life."
Melissa looked at Jhin, and Jhin looked at Melissa.
And together, they fought. They fought the ethereal being that they were told created most -if not all- of their woes.
And Melissa used all four constructs, and Jhin used all the weapons he had collected. And against their wrath, this being faded and ▓▓▓▓ was no more.
But, as they fought, a question came to their mind : who, or what, was ▓▓▓▓ ?
The Argillacreantis had made this world, so then did ▓▓▓▓ come from outside ?
But they also knew that the angels had passed as gods and created religion to bind humans...
And then, the being dissipated and they knew.
And th e sky did no t se em lik e
a cont i nuous t hing any more .
A nd i t s ee me d l ike i ts colo r shif t ed,
a n u gl y i ri desce nse re p l a c ing th e g lo rio us purple.
And they were surrounded by angels. ▓▓▓▓ had been a facade of the angels. Rather, ▓▓▓▓ was the angels. ▓▓▓▓ was the hivemind as a whole.
Replacing the night sky all around them, were rows upon rows upon rows upon rows of angels.
They had fallen in their trap.
They could not escape.
The angels were merciless. They attacked and attacked, slashing with their swords and harming with their holy words.
Rays of light and obsidian swords were everywhere, all bringing destruction on our two heroes.
But then, from beyond this swarming sky, muffled explosion could be heard. And then, in a great flash of colors, the Cashier appeared.
And then, they rushed to Jhin and Melissa, and stuck a piece of paper on each of them.
And, then, they started to float. And, then, a cage of light appeared around them.
And then, they started to go up faster. And they pierced through the floors. And beneath, they saw flashes of colors more and more bright.
And then, they were in the sky. And then, down, in the direction from whence they came, they saw a huge construct, englobing the town.
And then, in a flash and a great explosion, the town was no more.
"I'm sure you have questions. But first, there's something I want to say.
"I'm sorry.
"I'm sorry for taking your souls. For thrusting you into this, wether you wanted to or not.
"For making the choice before you can. Before you were even able to think.
"Secondly, I will answer your question, Melissa. The construct I used against the angel was the jawbreaker construct.
"It was passed down to me from one of my parent. I am the descendant of the Argillacreantis. This was why the angels were so scared of me.
"But they had locked me away. It's easy to lock someone like me away from their base of operation.
"At first, when they denied my entry, I thought about simply leaving you behind.
"Try again, in a few years. This town would be lost, but it wouldn't be the end.
"But then, I thought about it. Waiting, and doing all that again would mean pushing more people into the cycle. And I don't know when that cycle would have stopped.
"So, I decided that no, you would be the final ones. I would save you, if it meant my death. And if you hear this, then it did mean my death.
"I wailed and wailed against that door. And eventually, the magic circle could not hold, and I went through.
"But all I saw was the swarm of angels attacking you. I'm glad I had these circles prepared in time.
"These circles will put you in a slumber for the next two hundred years or so.
"The former Tesserelunae told me you would be needed.
"So i'll say it again. I'm sorry.
"Because once again, I thrusted you into another cycle of destruction.
"So I'll simply say this : if you don't want to fight anymore...
"You can stop. You can choose to settle down.
"To grow a garden.
"To watch the flowers bloom.
"To listen to the raindrops.
"To smell the petrichor."
The descendant sobs.
"To walk on the wet ground.
"You can do that.
"No one, or no thing, has the right to stop you.
"Not even me.
"I'm sorry."