"[Ugh...]" Mereana's voice from behind me immediately dispels any thoughts of revealing myself here. She's just a human, and I know the effect I have on those; I don't want her to lose her mind, in case I just brought it back from the brink earlier.
"[Mereana! How are you feeling?]" I ask her as she blinks her eyes and looks around. All her physical wounds should be healed, and her mental fortitude should be boosted, so whatever traumatizing events she just survived should seem like a memory she can handle for the time being. I hope I did it right, though.
"[Where... where is Rapania?]" That's the first thing she's thinking about. I can feel a hint of fear in her voice and panic rising to the surface.
"[She escaped. You're safe now.]" Reassuring her about that fact, I put a hand on her shoulder, but she flinches from the sensation. It seems her body remembers what the sea witch did to her. And it also seems that she's apologetic about her reaction to my touch, as her expression becomes clouded.
"[Ah! where are Uten and Saten?]" Remembering that there were others who had been kidnapped alongside her, she stands up from the torture chair, but falls back onto her bottoms again immediately. Seems like she's still weak in her legs.
"[They're here. You don't have to worry about them, they are my children after all.]" Stepping aside, I show her that the others are in the room and looking at her with varying degrees of concern. "[I'm really sorry that you had to go through this. If only these two had a little more common sense.]" Turning to them, I see that they're shrinking a good few sizes under my gaze.
"[No, I should apologize. I was unable to protect them and was caught myself.]" It seems that Mereana doesn't understand that as my children, they possess far more power than she does. Maybe she's judging by their childlike appearances, but aside from me, they're definitely the most powerful existences in this room. Then again, I'm not completely certain about Awhina, but she doesn't seem to be on the level of her father's.
"[In either case, let's get out of here.]" I offer Mereana a hand and she takes it reluctantly. Apparently she's a little reserved about touching someone right now, most definitely the result of whatever experiments Rapania ran on her. "[How is the gathering of the people in the courtyard going?]" I ask Tokomaha, who has been watching my actions with a hint of disapproval. Jealousy?
"[I found a lot of prisoners in the dungeons and they're currently still moving. Rapania's people in the castle have all been rounded up already.]" Replying with a slight pout, the petite goddess avoids looking into my eyes, most likely because she doesn't want me to read her expression. But because of that it's even easier to read; she's clearly jealous of my tender treatment of Mereana.
"[Then let's go and see these people.]" As I pass by Tokomaha, I pat her head. The leaves that make up her hair are covered in a fine layer of what I can only describe as fur, so it actually feels pretty fluffy. A rustling runs through it before she slaps my hand aside, a blush developing on her face. She just can't be honest with herself, huh?
On our way down from the tower, Mereana tells us what happened in that room. Rapania is apparently experimenting on the human soul, trying to extract only a part of it to fuel her magic, so that she doesn't require a constant supply of living people. Whether that's a commendable effort or a truly evil line of thoughts I won't judge, but it seems she understands that she can't keep using up humans forever.
When I asked what she uses it for, Tokomaha was the one to answer. Apparently to keep her human appearance, she needs to sacrifice humans. It's how Tahiri, who doesn't know any transformation spells and sure as hell isn't a sea witch, was able to give Rapania the magic to change herself into a human. The God of Storm learned about that fact from another sea witch a long time ago; their kind can use harvested souls to change their appearances into the sacrificed kind's.
Apparently the tradition of challenging Tahiri allowed her to get her hands on souls without resorting to killing innocent humans. So at least I don't have to start considering that she's actually pretty evil; then again, I don't really care too much about human lives myself, and if it's a necessity, I can totally understand it.
Yet, why is Rapania still doing it? She was shunned by the man she loved, so what reason did she have to return to land and continue taking on a human appearance? I mean, she's clearly allied to the God King, so there must be something to their relationship that compels her to dabble in politics.
It's useless to think about it on my own now, since I have far too little information about everything that's going on behind the scenes. It's not like I really care; this sea witch attacked me and those close to me, so I'll shut her down - if Tahiri doesn't do it herself. Speaking of which, she hasn't returned yet, so I assume she's sulking somewhere among the clouds. I'll try and call out to her later.
The courtyard is illuminated by torches and filled with Tokomahas. They're all expressionless and naked copies of the sole clothed one next to me, and they remind me of how much I'd love to... cough.
"[What's going on?]"
"[Where is Lady Rapania?]"
"[Who are these people?]"
I can hear those voices from the gathered people. There are about twenty of them, and most of them look pretty similar to the mad scientist I caught trying to experiment on Uten and Saten. I guess they're all helping the sea witch in her research, so they most likely don't have any redeeming qualities about them. Maybe I should just get it over with and kill them all right now.
"[Rapania has abandoned you and ran away.]" I stand in front of the group and announce. All heads turn to me and I can see indignant but also fearful expressions.
"[Who are you?]" Someone asks from within the group.
"[I came here to get my children and my companion back.]" Gesturing towards Mereana and the twins behind me, I state while letting my gaze sweep across the gathered scientists. Some of them appear indignant, others flinch at the realization that my words imply I'm an enemy. Well, it's obvious considering all the dismembered guards in the courtyard and the fact that a naked girl with superhuman strength strong-armed a lot of them into coming out here.
"[W-what are you going to do with us?]" One of them asks me, and a murmur spreads through the gathered when they finally realize who the person in power is right now.
"[Oh...]" I look at the broken door to the interior of the castle behind them. "[I'm not going to do anything.]" I see relief in some of their eyes, while others appear surprised or skeptical. Of course, they have reason to doubt me, since I would normally have all the reasons to kill them for hurting those close to me. Well, Uten and Saten are fine, and Mereana doesn't seem to have sustained any lasting damage.
But the reason I'm not doing anything is because I think it would be better to give that honor to those who suffered at their hands, too. I already killed the guy who was working on my children, and we'll get Rapania eventually - the mastermind behind all this. Also, I don't want to look unnecessarily bloodthirsty in front of my companions.
Those in question are pouring out into the courtyard, quickly filling up the place and surrounding the scientists who realize the situation they are in. They huddle together, separated from the prisoners by a group of Tokomaha clones. These prisoners are comprised of male and female, and I even spot a few children among them. The majority are scared, shaking in their rags and looking around trying to understand what's going to happen to them.
"[I found your clothes.]" Tokomaha takes a bag from one of her clones and hands them to Mereana. The contents are rattling, so that must be the silver armor she wore before. To the petite goddess, those were just part of the woman's attire, which is why she thought they were just another type of clothes. That's cute~
"[Is that everyone?]" I ask nobody in particular, to see whether one of the scientists or prisoners speaks up, but nobody does. "[Then let's get started. Tokomaha, you can dispel them.]"
She does as she's told and all her copies turn into dust which returns to the earth. The scientists are exposed to their former prisoners, but the latter are confused and don't immediately take action, staring at me and waiting for an announcement. I can't blame them, they were taken out of their cells by dozens of naked little girl that looked exactly the same and could have been a new creation of Rapania's.
"[All of you-]" Just when I was about to announce the beginning of the slaughter, a woman with short silver hair steps forward with sluggish movements. There are huge steel shackles holding her wrists together and heavy chains around her legs. She is bandaged all over her body in place of actual clothes, but the skin that is visible is white, unlike all the other prisoners', and she has a very lean physique. But the most distinguishing feature of hers is the fact that she stands taller than Awhina, and most likely even overshadows Rangi in height. How did she not stand out from the crowd before? Or was she actually cowering to blend in?
"[Hey, take these seals off of me.]" She stops just a meter in front of me and practically orders me. So those bandages are actually seals?
"[No, don't do it! She will kill us all!]" One of the scientists screams. Oh, so she's someone dangerous? Well, she is the only prisoner with shackles as far as I can see.
"[What will you do when I take off those seals?]" I have to throw my head back to look up to her. She's seriously tall!
"[Like that guy said, I'll kill them all.]" Shrugging, the woman replies in a matter of fact tone. I like that honesty, really. From this close up I can see that her irises are completely black. Well, it's dark and night vision doesn't give me the ability to see colors, so maybe they're just dark brown. But it does look quite eerie.
"[And the other prisoners? Are you going to kill them, too?]" Let's see if she's just a mass murderer who kills for her own satisfaction and is rightfully in chains, or is only directing it at the scientists in revenge for being locked up here.
"[Why would I kill them? They didn't do anything to me.]" So it's the latter.
"[Very well.]" With this, I pull on her bandages and find that they're actually made of silky paper. A tingling feeling runs through my fingers and into my arm, but I shrug it off and begin to rip off the seals. "[What's your name?]" While I'm doing this work, I ask to pass the time.
"[It's Korenga. Yours?]" She introduces herself and returns the question.
"[Chaos.]" Responding with a grin, I rip off a long patch of a seal - and find that Korenga's skin underneath it is covered in black tattoos similar to Rangi's. It seems that she doesn't feel any shame at being completely naked in front of so many people, and simply waits patiently until every last piece of the seal is removed. The scientists are shivering in fear, huddling together even more but unable to escape since they're being surrounded by former prisoners on all sides. When I'm close to finishing up, one of them loses his mind and starts screaming.
"[Nooo! Let me through!]" He shouts and pushes into the crowd, trying to get away from us. He's immediately knocked down by several people, who take the opportunity to let out their anger and frustration at being kidnapped and held in this castle's dungeon. Beating him up savagely, the man balls up and covers his head.
"[Don't kill him!]" Korenga bellows and her voice shakes the very air. My ears are ringing since I'm right in front of her, but luckily I'm not so easily affected by such things. The assailants stop immediately and move away from the scientist. The latter has a bloody face but otherwise is still alive; it doesn't seem like he will try to run anymore, though.
"[All done.]" I rip off the last piece. At this point I'm quite convinced that Korenga is a goddess. Why else would she have had all these seals over her body and be put in shackles? "[Should I remove these, too?]"
"[Thanks. No need.]" With this short expression of gratitude and rejection of my offer, Korega rips apart the steel shackles as if they're made of paper, not even a hint of strain on her face as she does so. I assume the seals were inhibiting her strength, because otherwise she could have just freed her hands and taken them off herself. She immediately walks towards the gathered scientists in quick strides - much faster than how she moved before - and the chains binding her feet are broken seemingly without her even remembering their existence.
Her targets push one of their own forward as a sacrifice, and scramble to squeeze their ways through the gathered crowd. The man, tiny in comparison to the giant woman, pleads for his life and falls to his knees, but Korenga grabs his head and crushes it casually, not even stopping to listen to a single word he utters.
Apparently that sight was so gruesome that the former prisoners are taken aback by it and causes them to step away from her. This opens up space for the scientists to finally find a way through, and they scramble in different directions.
"[Don't let them get out.]" I turn to my companions, who all seem quite used to seeing people's heads getting crushed by bare hands - aside from Mereana, that is - and signal for them to help keeping Rapania's men from getting away. Tokomaha reacts the quickest and summons her clones to block the hole in the front gate and the entrance to the castle.
Awhina performs a quick dance, similar to Rangi's, after which she stomps a foot in the direction of the stairs leading up to the battlements. The rock the stairs are made of shake and then deform, sinking into the wall and disappearing completely; with this, the last way out of this courtyard has been sealed.
In the meantime, Korenga has caught and killed several other scientists who were unable to get away from her, their bodies twisted or their heads crushed from her overwhelming strength. I guess she's a local goddess like Rangi, rather than a universal one like Tahiri; otherwise Awhina or Tokomaha would most likely have already expressed that they knew her.
"[Oh, now I remember who she is.]" The petite goddess suddenly says with a face full of realization. Don't tell me you actually know after all? "[The Black God. So her name was Korenga?]" That sounds like a pretty universal title. Although, her skin is clearly white!
"[Is she a major god?]" I watch as she rips off a man's head and part of his spine, and uses it to bash in the head of another. Well, that's certainly black...
"[What do you mean?]" Tokomaha looks at me with a questioning expression and tilts her head. I pet her and don't inquire further; it seems that among the gods there isn't really anything like ranks. After all, each one of them governs over different domains and they don't have reason to create a pantheon with a hierarchy, as humans like to apply to them.
"[I think that is too much...]" Mereana comments and averts her eyes as another scientist is ripped apart at the waist and his innards spill all over the place. The gathered former prisoners are screaming in fear and backing away wherever Korenga walks, pushing those she is going after out from their midst, fearing that they will end up as collateral damage.
I don't think so, though. Her way of killing them is really messy, and it's not like they are made to suffer, as she generally takes their lives in a single move. Those unfortunate enough to survive the initial impact of her fist take the second immediately anyway. But it's obvious that she's not actually enjoying herself inflicting pain and suffering; her face remains neutral, as if she's simply completing a chore.
When it's finally over, the courtyard is silent. The freed citizens are huddled into groups and staring at Korenga in terror, as she approaches me with her entire body covered in blood and gore - although she doesn't seem to mind. Her black eyes appear empty, as they look me up and down once again.
"[Are you an aspect of Mataku?]" She suddenly asks. How did she come to that conclusion? "[You were smiling while watching me kill these people.]" Oh, was I?
"[That's just her nature.]" The voice of Tahiri announces from above us. She lazily floats down, wearing her usual clothes once again. It seems she has gathered her thoughts and is no longer sulking.
"[Tahiri!]" Korenga is the first to call out to her. "[Long time no see!]" She jumps up and tries to grab the God of Storm out of the air for a hug, but that attempt is easily dodged.
"[Clean yourself, Korenga.]" Looking at the bloody woman with a frown, Tahiri keeps her distance.
"[Oh, right.]" As if only now realizing that she's really dirty, the giant goddess grunts and seems to pump up herself, upon which the tattoos on her skin expand and completely cover her entire body with their blackness. The blood on her skin starts to flow down from her now smooth surface and she shakes herself to drop the pieces of flesh on her head and shoulders. Apparently she's like a certain homunculus.
"[What are you doing here?]" Landing in front of me, Tahiri asks Korenga while maintaining her frown. I'd like to know that, too. With that level of strength and power, how was she caught and brought here in the first place?
"[They caught me in my sleep.]" This simple explanation almost causes me to do a comedic face fault. Oh sweet oblivion, which fells even the mightiest! But not me, my children or Tahiri...
"[As always, your existence simply amazes me.]" Shrugging, the God of Storm turns to me. "[Let's go.]"
"[Hey, where are you going?]" Korenga has returned to her normal skin color and texture, and is now free of any blood.
"[We're on the way to the capital, to take down this so-called God King.]" I respond and turn to her. Judging by her expression, I can tell that she is aware of who I'm talking about.
"[Oh? Then let me come with you. I have a bone to pick with that one, too.]" And as expected, she offers to join us on our quest. I turn to the others to see if they may have reservations at letting her come along, considering the fact that she seems like a troublemaker.
Awhina appears to be comparing her to her father, so maybe that's why she might think it's a good proposal. Uten and Saten will obviously follow my decision. Tokomaha doesn't really seem to care; she herself came with us on a whim anyway. Tahiri shrugs and it looks like she doesn't have an opinion on this matter either. Only Mereana seems apprehensive of the idea. Of course, witnessing the gruesome slaughter as a frail human herself, she can't help but be scared of Korenga's strength.
But I don't really count her opinion, since she's not going to be doing any fighting anyway. A powerful ally who can easily push her way through masses of weaker enemies is always a good addition to have. After all, I can't be everywhere at the same time, and she can most definitely hold out a front on her own.
Yes, I'm learning. I won't be fighting alone against well-organized groups anymore. Every time I did, I lost and was transported somewhere against my will; I had to fight on several fronts at the same time, and in the end just got defeated without being able to do anything. I'm sure that with these people around me, my unintentional attack on the magic academy would have succeeded - the same could be said about those who were with me at that time, too.
And now I'm once again reminded of Senka, Kamii, Hestia, Vitalis and Lenoly - and Asoko, whom I last saw frozen solid on the battlements of the demon castle. I wonder what they're doing, and if she's been able to thaw...
"[Alright, as long as you behave.]" I finally respond to Korenga's offer. She shows a grin, even while her eyes remain emotionless and dark, which makes it seem like she's sneering. Coupled with her appearance, it's quite creepy... oh well, it's quite the unique trait alright.
- A musclehead has joined the party -
"[Ugh...]" Mereana's voice from behind me immediately dispels any thoughts of revealing myself here. She's just a human, and I know the effect I have on those; I don't want her to lose her mind, in case I just brought it back from the brink earlier.
"[Mereana! How are you feeling?]" I ask her as she blinks her eyes and looks around. All her physical wounds should be healed, and her mental fortitude should be boosted, so whatever traumatizing events she just survived should seem like a memory she can handle for the time being. I hope I did it right, though.
"[Where... where is Rapania?]" That's the first thing she's thinking about. I can feel a hint of fear in her voice and panic rising to the surface.
"[She escaped. You're safe now.]" Reassuring her about that fact, I put a hand on her shoulder, but she flinches from the sensation. It seems her body remembers what the sea witch did to her. And it also seems that she's apologetic about her reaction to my touch, as her expression becomes clouded.
"[Ah! where are Uten and Saten?]" Remembering that there were others who had been kidnapped alongside her, she stands up from the torture chair, but falls back onto her bottoms again immediately. Seems like she's still weak in her legs.
"[They're here. You don't have to worry about them, they are my children after all.]" Stepping aside, I show her that the others are in the room and looking at her with varying degrees of concern. "[I'm really sorry that you had to go through this. If only these two had a little more common sense.]" Turning to them, I see that they're shrinking a good few sizes under my gaze.
"[No, I should apologize. I was unable to protect them and was caught myself.]" It seems that Mereana doesn't understand that as my children, they possess far more power than she does. Maybe she's judging by their childlike appearances, but aside from me, they're definitely the most powerful existences in this room. Then again, I'm not completely certain about Awhina, but she doesn't seem to be on the level of her father's.
"[In either case, let's get out of here.]" I offer Mereana a hand and she takes it reluctantly. Apparently she's a little reserved about touching someone right now, most definitely the result of whatever experiments Rapania ran on her. "[How is the gathering of the people in the courtyard going?]" I ask Tokomaha, who has been watching my actions with a hint of disapproval. Jealousy?
"[I found a lot of prisoners in the dungeons and they're currently still moving. Rapania's people in the castle have all been rounded up already.]" Replying with a slight pout, the petite goddess avoids looking into my eyes, most likely because she doesn't want me to read her expression. But because of that it's even easier to read; she's clearly jealous of my tender treatment of Mereana.
"[Then let's go and see these people.]" As I pass by Tokomaha, I pat her head. The leaves that make up her hair are covered in a fine layer of what I can only describe as fur, so it actually feels pretty fluffy. A rustling runs through it before she slaps my hand aside, a blush developing on her face. She just can't be honest with herself, huh?
On our way down from the tower, Mereana tells us what happened in that room. Rapania is apparently experimenting on the human soul, trying to extract only a part of it to fuel her magic, so that she doesn't require a constant supply of living people. Whether that's a commendable effort or a truly evil line of thoughts I won't judge, but it seems she understands that she can't keep using up humans forever.
When I asked what she uses it for, Tokomaha was the one to answer. Apparently to keep her human appearance, she needs to sacrifice humans. It's how Tahiri, who doesn't know any transformation spells and sure as hell isn't a sea witch, was able to give Rapania the magic to change herself into a human. The God of Storm learned about that fact from another sea witch a long time ago; their kind can use harvested souls to change their appearances into the sacrificed kind's.
Apparently the tradition of challenging Tahiri allowed her to get her hands on souls without resorting to killing innocent humans. So at least I don't have to start considering that she's actually pretty evil; then again, I don't really care too much about human lives myself, and if it's a necessity, I can totally understand it.
Yet, why is Rapania still doing it? She was shunned by the man she loved, so what reason did she have to return to land and continue taking on a human appearance? I mean, she's clearly allied to the God King, so there must be something to their relationship that compels her to dabble in politics.
It's useless to think about it on my own now, since I have far too little information about everything that's going on behind the scenes. It's not like I really care; this sea witch attacked me and those close to me, so I'll shut her down - if Tahiri doesn't do it herself. Speaking of which, she hasn't returned yet, so I assume she's sulking somewhere among the clouds. I'll try and call out to her later.
The courtyard is illuminated by torches and filled with Tokomahas. They're all expressionless and naked copies of the sole clothed one next to me, and they remind me of how much I'd love to... cough.
"[What's going on?]"
"[Where is Lady Rapania?]"
"[Who are these people?]"
I can hear those voices from the gathered people. There are about twenty of them, and most of them look pretty similar to the mad scientist I caught trying to experiment on Uten and Saten. I guess they're all helping the sea witch in her research, so they most likely don't have any redeeming qualities about them. Maybe I should just get it over with and kill them all right now.
"[Rapania has abandoned you and ran away.]" I stand in front of the group and announce. All heads turn to me and I can see indignant but also fearful expressions.
"[Who are you?]" Someone asks from within the group.
"[I came here to get my children and my companion back.]" Gesturing towards Mereana and the twins behind me, I state while letting my gaze sweep across the gathered scientists. Some of them appear indignant, others flinch at the realization that my words imply I'm an enemy. Well, it's obvious considering all the dismembered guards in the courtyard and the fact that a naked girl with superhuman strength strong-armed a lot of them into coming out here.
"[W-what are you going to do with us?]" One of them asks me, and a murmur spreads through the gathered when they finally realize who the person in power is right now.
"[Oh...]" I look at the broken door to the interior of the castle behind them. "[I'm not going to do anything.]" I see relief in some of their eyes, while others appear surprised or skeptical. Of course, they have reason to doubt me, since I would normally have all the reasons to kill them for hurting those close to me. Well, Uten and Saten are fine, and Mereana doesn't seem to have sustained any lasting damage.
But the reason I'm not doing anything is because I think it would be better to give that honor to those who suffered at their hands, too. I already killed the guy who was working on my children, and we'll get Rapania eventually - the mastermind behind all this. Also, I don't want to look unnecessarily bloodthirsty in front of my companions.
Those in question are pouring out into the courtyard, quickly filling up the place and surrounding the scientists who realize the situation they are in. They huddle together, separated from the prisoners by a group of Tokomaha clones. These prisoners are comprised of male and female, and I even spot a few children among them. The majority are scared, shaking in their rags and looking around trying to understand what's going to happen to them.
"[I found your clothes.]" Tokomaha takes a bag from one of her clones and hands them to Mereana. The contents are rattling, so that must be the silver armor she wore before. To the petite goddess, those were just part of the woman's attire, which is why she thought they were just another type of clothes. That's cute~
"[Is that everyone?]" I ask nobody in particular, to see whether one of the scientists or prisoners speaks up, but nobody does. "[Then let's get started. Tokomaha, you can dispel them.]"
She does as she's told and all her copies turn into dust which returns to the earth. The scientists are exposed to their former prisoners, but the latter are confused and don't immediately take action, staring at me and waiting for an announcement. I can't blame them, they were taken out of their cells by dozens of naked little girl that looked exactly the same and could have been a new creation of Rapania's.
"[All of you-]" Just when I was about to announce the beginning of the slaughter, a woman with short silver hair steps forward with sluggish movements. There are huge steel shackles holding her wrists together and heavy chains around her legs. She is bandaged all over her body in place of actual clothes, but the skin that is visible is white, unlike all the other prisoners', and she has a very lean physique. But the most distinguishing feature of hers is the fact that she stands taller than Awhina, and most likely even overshadows Rangi in height. How did she not stand out from the crowd before? Or was she actually cowering to blend in?
"[Hey, take these seals off of me.]" She stops just a meter in front of me and practically orders me. So those bandages are actually seals?
"[No, don't do it! She will kill us all!]" One of the scientists screams. Oh, so she's someone dangerous? Well, she is the only prisoner with shackles as far as I can see.
"[What will you do when I take off those seals?]" I have to throw my head back to look up to her. She's seriously tall!
"[Like that guy said, I'll kill them all.]" Shrugging, the woman replies in a matter of fact tone. I like that honesty, really. From this close up I can see that her irises are completely black. Well, it's dark and night vision doesn't give me the ability to see colors, so maybe they're just dark brown. But it does look quite eerie.
"[And the other prisoners? Are you going to kill them, too?]" Let's see if she's just a mass murderer who kills for her own satisfaction and is rightfully in chains, or is only directing it at the scientists in revenge for being locked up here.
"[Why would I kill them? They didn't do anything to me.]" So it's the latter.
"[Very well.]" With this, I pull on her bandages and find that they're actually made of silky paper. A tingling feeling runs through my fingers and into my arm, but I shrug it off and begin to rip off the seals. "[What's your name?]" While I'm doing this work, I ask to pass the time.
"[It's Korenga. Yours?]" She introduces herself and returns the question.
"[Chaos.]" Responding with a grin, I rip off a long patch of a seal - and find that Korenga's skin underneath it is covered in black tattoos similar to Rangi's. It seems that she doesn't feel any shame at being completely naked in front of so many people, and simply waits patiently until every last piece of the seal is removed. The scientists are shivering in fear, huddling together even more but unable to escape since they're being surrounded by former prisoners on all sides. When I'm close to finishing up, one of them loses his mind and starts screaming.
"[Nooo! Let me through!]" He shouts and pushes into the crowd, trying to get away from us. He's immediately knocked down by several people, who take the opportunity to let out their anger and frustration at being kidnapped and held in this castle's dungeon. Beating him up savagely, the man balls up and covers his head.
"[Don't kill him!]" Korenga bellows and her voice shakes the very air. My ears are ringing since I'm right in front of her, but luckily I'm not so easily affected by such things. The assailants stop immediately and move away from the scientist. The latter has a bloody face but otherwise is still alive; it doesn't seem like he will try to run anymore, though.
"[All done.]" I rip off the last piece. At this point I'm quite convinced that Korenga is a goddess. Why else would she have had all these seals over her body and be put in shackles? "[Should I remove these, too?]"
"[Thanks. No need.]" With this short expression of gratitude and rejection of my offer, Korega rips apart the steel shackles as if they're made of paper, not even a hint of strain on her face as she does so. I assume the seals were inhibiting her strength, because otherwise she could have just freed her hands and taken them off herself. She immediately walks towards the gathered scientists in quick strides - much faster than how she moved before - and the chains binding her feet are broken seemingly without her even remembering their existence.
Her targets push one of their own forward as a sacrifice, and scramble to squeeze their ways through the gathered crowd. The man, tiny in comparison to the giant woman, pleads for his life and falls to his knees, but Korenga grabs his head and crushes it casually, not even stopping to listen to a single word he utters.
Apparently that sight was so gruesome that the former prisoners are taken aback by it and causes them to step away from her. This opens up space for the scientists to finally find a way through, and they scramble in different directions.
"[Don't let them get out.]" I turn to my companions, who all seem quite used to seeing people's heads getting crushed by bare hands - aside from Mereana, that is - and signal for them to help keeping Rapania's men from getting away. Tokomaha reacts the quickest and summons her clones to block the hole in the front gate and the entrance to the castle.
Awhina performs a quick dance, similar to Rangi's, after which she stomps a foot in the direction of the stairs leading up to the battlements. The rock the stairs are made of shake and then deform, sinking into the wall and disappearing completely; with this, the last way out of this courtyard has been sealed.
In the meantime, Korenga has caught and killed several other scientists who were unable to get away from her, their bodies twisted or their heads crushed from her overwhelming strength. I guess she's a local goddess like Rangi, rather than a universal one like Tahiri; otherwise Awhina or Tokomaha would most likely have already expressed that they knew her.
"[Oh, now I remember who she is.]" The petite goddess suddenly says with a face full of realization. Don't tell me you actually know after all? "[The Black God. So her name was Korenga?]" That sounds like a pretty universal title. Although, her skin is clearly white!
"[Is she a major god?]" I watch as she rips off a man's head and part of his spine, and uses it to bash in the head of another. Well, that's certainly black...
"[What do you mean?]" Tokomaha looks at me with a questioning expression and tilts her head. I pet her and don't inquire further; it seems that among the gods there isn't really anything like ranks. After all, each one of them governs over different domains and they don't have reason to create a pantheon with a hierarchy, as humans like to apply to them.
"[I think that is too much...]" Mereana comments and averts her eyes as another scientist is ripped apart at the waist and his innards spill all over the place. The gathered former prisoners are screaming in fear and backing away wherever Korenga walks, pushing those she is going after out from their midst, fearing that they will end up as collateral damage.
I don't think so, though. Her way of killing them is really messy, and it's not like they are made to suffer, as she generally takes their lives in a single move. Those unfortunate enough to survive the initial impact of her fist take the second immediately anyway. But it's obvious that she's not actually enjoying herself inflicting pain and suffering; her face remains neutral, as if she's simply completing a chore.
When it's finally over, the courtyard is silent. The freed citizens are huddled into groups and staring at Korenga in terror, as she approaches me with her entire body covered in blood and gore - although she doesn't seem to mind. Her black eyes appear empty, as they look me up and down once again.
"[Are you an aspect of Mataku?]" She suddenly asks. How did she come to that conclusion? "[You were smiling while watching me kill these people.]" Oh, was I?
"[That's just her nature.]" The voice of Tahiri announces from above us. She lazily floats down, wearing her usual clothes once again. It seems she has gathered her thoughts and is no longer sulking.
"[Tahiri!]" Korenga is the first to call out to her. "[Long time no see!]" She jumps up and tries to grab the God of Storm out of the air for a hug, but that attempt is easily dodged.
"[Clean yourself, Korenga.]" Looking at the bloody woman with a frown, Tahiri keeps her distance.
"[Oh, right.]" As if only now realizing that she's really dirty, the giant goddess grunts and seems to pump up herself, upon which the tattoos on her skin expand and completely cover her entire body with their blackness. The blood on her skin starts to flow down from her now smooth surface and she shakes herself to drop the pieces of flesh on her head and shoulders. Apparently she's like a certain homunculus.
"[What are you doing here?]" Landing in front of me, Tahiri asks Korenga while maintaining her frown. I'd like to know that, too. With that level of strength and power, how was she caught and brought here in the first place?
"[They caught me in my sleep.]" This simple explanation almost causes me to do a comedic face fault. Oh sweet oblivion, which fells even the mightiest! But not me, my children or Tahiri...
"[As always, your existence simply amazes me.]" Shrugging, the God of Storm turns to me. "[Let's go.]"
"[Hey, where are you going?]" Korenga has returned to her normal skin color and texture, and is now free of any blood.
"[We're on the way to the capital, to take down this so-called God King.]" I respond and turn to her. Judging by her expression, I can tell that she is aware of who I'm talking about.
"[Oh? Then let me come with you. I have a bone to pick with that one, too.]" And as expected, she offers to join us on our quest. I turn to the others to see if they may have reservations at letting her come along, considering the fact that she seems like a troublemaker.
Awhina appears to be comparing her to her father, so maybe that's why she might think it's a good proposal. Uten and Saten will obviously follow my decision. Tokomaha doesn't really seem to care; she herself came with us on a whim anyway. Tahiri shrugs and it looks like she doesn't have an opinion on this matter either. Only Mereana seems apprehensive of the idea. Of course, witnessing the gruesome slaughter as a frail human herself, she can't help but be scared of Korenga's strength.
But I don't really count her opinion, since she's not going to be doing any fighting anyway. A powerful ally who can easily push her way through masses of weaker enemies is always a good addition to have. After all, I can't be everywhere at the same time, and she can most definitely hold out a front on her own.
Yes, I'm learning. I won't be fighting alone against well-organized groups anymore. Every time I did, I lost and was transported somewhere against my will; I had to fight on several fronts at the same time, and in the end just got defeated without being able to do anything. I'm sure that with these people around me, my unintentional attack on the magic academy would have succeeded - the same could be said about those who were with me at that time, too.
And now I'm once again reminded of Senka, Kamii, Hestia, Vitalis and Lenoly - and Asoko, whom I last saw frozen solid on the battlements of the demon castle. I wonder what they're doing, and if she's been able to thaw...
"[Alright, as long as you behave.]" I finally respond to Korenga's offer. She shows a grin, even while her eyes remain emotionless and dark, which makes it seem like she's sneering. Coupled with her appearance, it's quite creepy... oh well, it's quite the unique trait alright.
- A musclehead has joined the party -
