#Writing #BloodofSilenceSeries #DanceTillOurEnd #DTOE
"I believed it for a while
But disaster is not far behind
Don't you hear the cries
Rising up all over again
To save what the entire human race had leftTake over of power
While forgetting reality
Spill blood on fire
For life and beyond grave"-- Spill Blood on Fire, Heavenly
Hades denied it all and defended Zodiark. Of course he did. I don't know what I had expected...
I was at my wits end, and so, like I usually did, I consulted Hythlodaeus.
"How do you help someone that can't want to be helped?" I asked.
"Well...without their consent, you don't, I suppose."
I had expected him to say that, but still, I sighed.
"Is it bad to say that I almost wish he'd been taken too? Having him--all of them here like this is damn near worse than having them dead... They're ghastly mockeries of themselves. Like recycled husks with different people inside them failing horribly to imitate..."
He hummed in thought, but did not comment.
"If we all die, or...get split apart. It--Elidibus is going to save them, isn't he? They'll be left alone..."
"Most likely," he sighed.
"Then...we should take them with us."
He face hardened at that, "We cannot do that without a cure, you know that. Such a thing could take years to develop."
"But we can. We can just...send them back to the Underworld, and then they can be with us again. Their souls will repair, and--"
"Cynthia," he warned. I flinched at the sound. It was rare for him to call me by my name. Only Hades and my family seemed to since I became Azem. "You know what the consequences of that would be. You'd be banished for eternity."
"But there's not going to be an eternity if we're all going to die. The only eternity there will be is one stained in blood for the eyes of the ones that are left behind. That is a fate worse than any death."
The loneliness I felt. The despair... They would feel it a hundred fold, and I wouldn't wish that upon any soul, let alone the ones I cared for. I would rather take all that loneliness upon myself in their place than subject them to it.
Whatever punishment fate would bestow upon me, I would take it. As long as they could rest in peace.
"You don't know that that summoning is even going to happen--"
"It is."
There was to be a ball two weeks from now. It was supposed to be a distraction from our hardship, and a celebration at making it through the Final Days and the beginnings of the reconstruction. A celebration of Zodiark's success.
In other words, it was also the perfect distraction for a summoning, given that the majority of our number would be busy celebrating. Venat had told me as much, and she did so knowing there was nothing I could do to stop it.
The convocation were as deaf as the rebels were blind.
Hythlodaeus told me that of all my schemes, this was the one he refused to take part in. I accepted that. This was my job to do and mine alone.
And so I found myself at the door to the emessary's office, letter of resignation in hand. I slipped it through his mail slot.
Perhaps I was crazy; perhaps I was desperate. Perhaps I'd simply convicted myself this was the right thing to do. Whatever it was, it didn't matter in the end.
I began making my way back down the hall when Hades caught me.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
I paused, turning to smile sweetly at him. "Just going away for a little while. I'll see you soon, love."
I stretched up to give him a peck on the cheek. He looked disappointed, and it always stung to see that look before I went on my trips.
"Don't you worry, I've got my necklace with me," I smiled playfully. I held up the key I often kept around my neck as if he couldn't see it already.
It sparkled like a thousand diamonds, and on the back were the engravings "C & H". It was a gift from him to me, and we'd formed it together with the promise I would always come back home.
"I'll find my way home like I always do, I promise."
As I turned to leave, he stopped me with his hand on my shoulder. "Be careful," he said simply, before letting me go. I nodded, "I will."
He would hear the truth soon enough, but I knew he would try to stop me. And so, I left. I would see him before the end, though; of that I was certain.
There was a bustle of people running about. Boxes of newly formed concepts littered the area, and at the centre of the commotion stood Fandaniel, perfectly content as if he was relaxed at an office desk.
Occasionally, someone would run up to him, say something, and he would nod. His eyes, however, did not leave the notepad he was scribbling things down upon.
"Fandaniel."
"Mmm?" he hummed.
"Humour me, if you will. What was your actual opinion on Zodiark?"
He paused, but didn't say a word.
"You of all people have never been afraid of death."
"Are you implying that my vote was not, in fact, my true opinion on the matter?"
"I am."
He inclined his head curiously. When he finally saw me, though, he paused once again. His lips contorted into a tense line, muttering "Your mask."
Carefully, he studied me as he considered the clear message that the new colour of my mask displayed. Whatever he thought of it, he did not say, simply smirking amusedly instead.
"It doesn't really matter what my opinion was when the majority vote rules in the end. But if you must know, yes, I also opposed it."
"Why did you say yes then?"
He sighed, thinking on it a moment. "If the planet wants to die, then the planet will die. That's simply how things work; however, I suppose you could say I was curious. Not that it would have mattered if I did choose to vote against it."
"We are of the same opinion then," I murmured.
It seemed curious to me, that while the others seemed to believe Zodiark would save us all, Fandaniel, despite having also participated in the summoning, seemed to think otherwise. But then, he wasn't actively opposing Zodiark either. He was content to leave him be and live out this borrowed time, even if he knew it wouldn't last.
"Nothing lasts forever," he said. "Not the star, and certainly not us, even if it may seem otherwise. But what of you, Kore? Your reasoning was quite different to mine."
I wanted to save us all. I wanted to, truly, but I soon learnt that such a thing was impossible. Too little time, and too few willing to help. It was much too big a task for a single person.
"Please, we are well past referring to each other by last names."
He seemed intrigued at that. "And what would you have me call you instead?"
I hummed for a moment as I contemplated the question. I wasn't Azem anymore, but in this world where I felt as much a shadow of myself as the star was of its former glory, I didn't feel like Cynthia either.
To use my given name while doing the things I planned to felt wrong. I would be exiled, and condemned to an eternity of solitude. That was not the Cynthia anyone knew, nor was it the person my parents bestowed the name upon.
And so I settled upon something a little more fitting...
"Persephone."
"'Bringer of death', hm? That's an interesting one; have you found a new title for yourself?"
"Something like that."
Even a city such as Amaurot had its fairy tales, though the grand majority came from outside sources, serving purely for entertainment. The tale of Persephone, queen of the Underworld, was one known among many versed in the world of theatre. She was said to be a kind queen, and a shepherd of sorts to the souls of the dead.
I knew Fandaniel of all people would know this. And Hades, well... He would know too.
"I need you to do me a favour. An experiment, if you will."
Fandaniel had always been intrigued by death, and I knew he would likely embrace the opportunity. He was my best bet to test this magic on.
He smirked "Oh, do tell Persephone."