Emerion's eyes widened. He looked at the wall in front of him, it didn't even crack.
"How..." Emerion muttered. Before he closed his eyes, he felt a wave of embarrassment, though he knew breaking a barrier from the inside was notoriously difficult.
A gust of wind hit him, and he shielded his eyes to prevent dust from stinging them. The wind came from behind.
He saw the raven haired boy, Anathema, swing his sword; the force of the wind lifted the snakes from the ground, suspending them in the air for a few moments.
Anathema, surging with new, overflowing mana, cut several snakes instantly mid air. Emerion's face twisted in shock as Anathema opened his mouth wide and devoured a few snakes whole.
This time, no white liquid fell to the floor.
So he is eating them so the white liquid doesn't hit the ground.
He is preventing their regeneration that way. But what about the poison inside them? Emerion thought as he watched Anathema fight. He felt a flicker of concern for the boy, but he couldn't think of a better way to defeat the snakes in this situation.
Anathema paused as he felt Emerion's gaze. He looked at the barrier and found it still held. Further ahead, past the fire of the control room, he could see Emerion's sister shaking Rui's hand.
He could see Rui's depressed expression, though his eyes shone with hope. However, he couldn't tell what Arlienne was thinking or doing. He turned back to Emerion.
"Why are you just standing there? The spell didn't work, I assume," Anathema said, making a tch noise. Emerion felt as if Anathema were mocking him.
"I told you it's not easy. Even with the new mana you are generating, it's impossible to break it," Emerion said, annoyance clearly visible on his face.
Anathema raised an eyebrow at Emerion's sudden tone but didn't comment. He took a deep breath and swung his sword at the wall, the new mana flowing around his body like green steam. The attack was powerful; Anathema hoped to shatter it.
"Told you it's not easy," Emerion said. Anathema was surprised, the wall didn't even crack. He wondered if even their combined strength would be enough.
Doubts began filling his mind again, but the hissing of the snakes behind them made him grip his sword tighter.
"I am not going to give up and pass out today. If you can't break it... then just don't get in my way. I have people out there I want to speak to again,"
Anathema said. He launched another huge gust of wind and devoured the snakes. The apple of his throat rose as he gulped them down. He choked slightly, but his expression didn't waver.
"Are you trying to say I am not trying enough? I want to get out of here as much as you do," Emerion said angrily. Anathema looked blankly into Emerion's eyes.
"I don't see desperation in your eyes," Anathema said. "Do you really have someone out there you wish to see? It's surprising I don't see any desire in your eyes at all." Emerion looked surprised at his words.
"Are you trying to say I am not giving my all? I've already told you, it's hard to break a barrier from the inside that is meant to keep people in,"
Emerion said, running his hand through his hair. A few silver strands fell into his hand. He just stared at them.
"Something tells me you have more power than you show. You are becoming an obstacle for your own power,"
Anathema said as he continued to fight and devour the snakes. He had swallowed more than fifty now and showed no sign of stopping.
"More power? If only people knew I am the weakest in my family", Emerion thought.
"I don't have strength like my mother, I don't have intelligence like my sister, I don't have healing capacity like my aunt.
Even my father is good at influencing and managing people. What do I have? I'm just an average person born in a noble family."
He stared at the fallen hair in his hand.
"I wanted to be free. I ran away."
" Why do people still expect something from me even when I've run away? Why do people always think I can turn around their fortune? First my father and Arlienne, then Alec... then the kid Shin, and now Anathema. When will people realize I am just a coward who runs away from problems? A good for nothing. "
Emerion snapped out of his thoughts as he heard a choking sound. His face turned to horror as he saw Anathema.
The boy's eyes were exhausted, his mouth was covered in blood, and his skin was becoming paler by the second.
The poison had started affecting him, but he wouldn't stop. Emerion felt something had changed in Anathema not just in his fighting, but emotionally. Despite his condition, Anathema swung his sword again.
"This guy... who was emotionless yesterday is now fighting for his life to see his friends again. I wish I had this level of fighting spirit. He is right, maybe I don't have anyone out there I want to see or talk to desperately."
"Aunt Seraphyne, sister Arlienne, and cousin Nyxelle they are related to me by blood. They are probably dealing with the Captain out there, and God knows what Arlienne is doing. I feel so selfish. I am not feeling for them the same way Anathema feels for his friends. Am I losing empathy? Am I losing my emotions? If I were a nobody to them, would they even try to help me? Would they spare a glance if I was just a stranger being sold or humiliated?"
Emerion stood completely still, his eyes becoming dull and his expression unreadable as thoughts bombarded his mind. He knew he should act, yet he subconsciously wondered if acting was even worth it.
He looked at the transparent wall. The burning control room on the other side vanished, and the room became quiet. The only thing his eyes saw now was his own reflection. He saw his own face and felt pure disgust. His reflection seemed to be smirking at him, judging him.
"Why... are you smirking? Why do you even exist?" Emerion said, pointing a finger at the reflection. His body started shaking, and he held his head in his hands as if he had a massive headache.
"Why are you so weak? Why... why don't you just die? Yes... that's what you deserve. Death. You don't deserve to live. You... you... just DIE!"
Losing it completely, Emerion gathered a massive amount of blue flames in his hands.
Anathema paused, sensing the huge mana. The room felt like a desert. The barrier started "leaking" water.
Anathema realized the barrier was made of water, likely strengthened by the Captain's chants. He looked at Emerion and saw a manic expression and an eerie smile. He didn't know which was more surprising: the massive mana or the look on Emerion's face.
"Just DIE!" Emerion shouted again. His voice sounded possessed, as if it weren't his own. He launched the massive blue flames at the barrier. The fire poured from his hands like water from a ceiling.
Anathema backed away; the heat made it impossible to stay near him. The snakes were burned to ash by the mere heat before the fire even touched them.
He needs to stop, or the snakes will regenerate, Anathema thought, noticing the white liquid covering the floor. But before new snakes could emerge, the liquid evaporated instantly, turning into gas.
Anathema looked dumbfounded. "What just happened?" he muttered. Emerion continued the fire with a manic expression; the barrier leaked water rapidly but refused to break.
Anathema looked at his hands; his skin was turning red, and the previous burn marks on his face began to throb with pain.
[Scene Shift]
Arlienne's hands glowed light blue as she placed them on Ryuuken's chest. Rui looked on with concern, but was grateful she was helping, even though he'd had to give her an Oath of Echoes.
"Will he be alright?" Rui asked. Arlienne simply nodded, her expression focused.
"Yes, I have stopped the bleeding. He should wake up if he is fortunate," Arlienne said lightly, removing her hands.
"What do you mean 'if fortunate'? Don't tell me you're tricking us again. You gave an Oath of Echoes to heal him. If you back down, you'll be dead," Rui said, his heart racing for his friend.
"I think you didn't hear me correctly." Arlienne smirked, placing a hand on her chin.
"Let me enlighten you. I merely stated I would heal him, but I never promised I would provide Level 4 healing. I am not naive like my brother, and I am not kind-hearted like Aunt Seraphyne."
The smirk didn't leave her face. Rui looked on in disbelief, he had been tricked again. He raised his fist to hit her, his anger reaching its peak.
"You sure you want to do that? Remember your oath," Arlienne said calmly, not showing a hint of worry. Rui paused, punching the wall in frustration instead.
Behind them, the control room continued to burn.
Rui remembered the oath: In exchange for healing, no one from House Corvus could raise arms against Emerion or Arlienne. They couldn't use people from other houses as pawns against them, either.
The deal was demanding, but he had agreed for his friend's sake. He hadn't known healing had different levels. In his emotion, he forgot to be specific.
"What level of healing did you provide?" Rui asked, avoiding her eyes so he wouldn't snap and die by breaking the oath.
"Level two," Arlienne said. Seeing his expression, she realized he didn't understand.
"There are five levels of healing. Level one is for minor scratches. Level two can stop bleeding. Level three is for pain relief it's advanced, only 10% of people can do it. Level four fixes damaged organs. Level five is the restoration of organs, making them new again. It is very rare, and I am proud to say I have mastered them all. Aunt Seraphyne knows all this, too."
Rui bit his lip to hold back his rage. "Why only Level two? Can't you feel the suffering of people? Don't you have any emotions?"
"There are two reasons. First, the more advanced the level, the more mana it takes. I have to find my brother and probably save this ship. Second, I want to see if someone like him can stand back up with just Level two healing. Human will is always fascinating to me."
Her eyes showed a greedy curiosity, as if Ryuuken were an experiment rather than a patient.
"You are incapable of feeling what others feel," Rui said, looking at her as if she were a monster.
Before the conversation could escalate, they noticed the smoke had increased. This time, a white steam was emerging, reaching the hallway.
"Where is it coming from?" Rui muttered. As the steam touched his skin, he flinched as if hit by boiling water.
Arlienne stood up and walked toward the burning control room, holding her trident. "Now I see... you took so long, brother."
She lifted her trident, summoning water. The blast hit the wall and it cracked. Arlienne smirked as her prediction came true.
Standing before them was the silver haired boy with a manic expression, and a few feet behind him was the raven haired boy.
Emerion coughed as the smoke hit his eyes. His expression fell, and he shook his head, trying to process what had happened.
"Don't just stand there, let's go,"
Anathema said, coughing. His skin was fried red. Emerion nodded. The last thing he remembered was his smirking reflection shattering like glass as the barrier broke.
"Mui!"
"Brother," Rui and Arlienne said in unison. Rui's tone was full of relief; Arlienne looked pleased.
"Finally... back," a third voice said, causing all four to turn their heads.