Return of the Fallen Volume 3 Chapter 58
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Author: Blue_Rat
ch58
Kazuki and Nunully shared a look.
“Really, just like that?”
Retsu flicked his antenna and it made a clacking noise similar to someone snapping their fingers.
“Yep, just like that. The mission is finished. I would have said something but the atmosphere between you and the half-elf was becoming a bit cozy and I didn’t wish to interupt, hehehe.”
Nunully turned her head away in embarrassment. Kazuki, on the other hand, was curious about Zetsu. Looking at the state he was in, he was left completely unmoving.
“Is he even still alive, he seems dead.”
“Oh, this bastard is still alive alright.”
Retsu’s eyes glowed a multitude of colors before he fired the strange light from his eye. The light did not enter Zetsu’s eyes as they were nonexistent at this point but instead landed directly on his body. As soon as they did, Zetsu started to spasm uncontrollably. More blood spilled from his wounds due to this and only after about a minute did he actually stop twitching. A tiny almost inaudible groan slipped out of his mouth.
“See, this piece of shit still has life in him, though just barely. Had you kept pummeling him, I doubt he would have lasted much longer. Oh yea sorry about knocking you away from him but I had to do something, your mind slipped from you and there was nothing but murder in your eyes. It kind of defeats the purpose if you kill him, you know?”
Kazuki knew he had lost his cool and felt no hard feelings towards Retsu.
“No, it’s good that you stopped me. I lost myself for a moment and became selfish. I only wished to see the life drain from him and for a moment I forgot why I was doing all this. I need him alive in order for you to hold up your end of the bargain. Otherwise, me, my friends, along with all of the villagers are stuck in this time correct?”
Retsu cracked a huge toothy grin.
“Right you are. My words are my bond, had you killed Zetsu before I intervened, I would have left you and everyone else in this time and space to rot. Good thing I stepped in. Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t have left you all here because I’m an asshole. Rather if I didn’t my clan would have me take Zetsu’s punishment and would have torn a hole into this world to slay you all for killing a member of my clan.”
“They would enact revenge for a criminal of their clan? That makes no sense.”
Retsu’s antenna lifted up like arms and shrugged.
“Zetsu may be a criminal but he’s still a part of my clan. In the end, these are the bonds that tie us and we must stick together, no matter what deeds they do, good or bad, a clan sticks with the clan.”
Kazuki could understand that but it still left a bitter taste in his mouth.
(If a member of my clan or family committed such evil deeds as Zetsu had, there’s no way I could let such a thing slide. It would be better to cull that person there and then, then allow them to live and commit even more atrocities.)
Retsu could tell with a glance that Kazuki didn’t agree but he could care less. This was how his clan did things and that was that.
An awkward silence grew between the two before Nunully grabbed Kazuki’s arm.
“Ryuta Asuna and the others may die from the cold at this rate. We must hurry and get them warm before the cold takes them.”
Seeing this as an opportunity to release the unease in the air Retsu lowered himself directly in front of Nunully.
“Let me take care of that girly.”
Retsu eyes glowed and his antenna flicked back and forth in rapid succession. As he did that, the grey purple fog from the cave floated out like hot breath in winters air. The fog began to surround him and even stretched to where the other villagers were.
The shock they felt surpassed anything they had felt so far. It was one thing seeing Zetsu the first time, then they saw a whole nother Zetsu aka Retsu as the two fought. Now a strange fog wrapped around them entirely as though it were alive. None of them knew whether they were about to ascend to heaven by this weird fog or be devoured by it and be sent to one of the 7 realms of hell.
The villagers had once more collapsed to their knees and began to pray to the gods above. Even Geil who had given up on the gods answering his prayer fell to his knees and hoped, hoped with every fiber of his being that salvation was finally here.
Kazuki looked at this invading fog and questioned Retsu.
“You could control the fog outside of the cave this whole time. Why didn’t you use it earlier and send all of the villagers at once to the other space and time? Couldn’t you have prevented Zetsu from stealing any of the villagers and gaining power in the first place?”
Kazuki’s questions were valid but Retsu shook his large head.
“I never had full control, not completely while Zetsu was active. Now that we’ve subdued him, the fog is mine and mine alone to wield. Also, the difference between controlling all of the fog and wrestling for nonstop every single day is like the difference between the sky above and the ground below. Since I didn’t feed off of any of the villager’s souls, my power was limited from the get-go and was depleting every day while Zetsu was only gaining strength. All of these factors and variables combined and I was barely able to get the children out of this place. After that, I chose to conserve my strength for a final fight, one in which I knew I would most likely lose. That is until you and your friends came along. The amount of power I’d need to get all of the villagers out, I wouldn’t have lasted as long as I did, nor would I have had the necessary power to get them all out in the first place. Now though I do.”
Kazuki craned his neck in confusion.
“What do you mean now you have the power to move them. What’s changed from then and now?”
Retsu pointed an antenna at the villagers.
“They’ve changed or rather the number of them did. Over 100 of them were lost by Zetsu. That’s 100 people less I don’t need to waste my power on. The remaining villager, with only them I’ll have power to spare now that there’s not so many.”
Kazuki’s face scrunched in disgust.
(Did he purposefully wait it out for Zetsu to reduce their number? While he was bidding his time, all of those villagers were being tortured and siphoned like human batteries.)
This information didn’t sit well with Kazuki at all. The way Retsu and his clan operated, the way Zetsu so cold-heartedly tortured people. The image Kazuki had of gods, currently, they were pieces of shit but at the same time, he couldn’t blame Retsu or the way he did things. The fact was he did save many children. Although he did wait and allowed Zetsu to gain power there wasn’t much he could do to prevent that. He could have fought Zetsu straight up but he would have most likely have lost and then Zetsu would have consumed the rest of the villager’s souls anyway.
Kazuki didn’t like, he really didn’t but the villagers that died, were, in fact, a necessary sacrifice. Retsu could only wait and bid his time. At that point though, it could be argued that if villagers were going to die anyway then Retsu should have taken some villager’s for himself and fed off their souls. He may have had the required amount of power to transport the rest of the villagers away and may have saved even more. Going along these thoughts one would have to wonder. Would committing evil such as devouring souls just to save others, would that have been better or worse.
Kazuki couldn’t fathom the choice he would make given the same situation. One thing he felt for certain though is that this all came down to one very important thing, strength. Had Retsu been stronger, everything could have been settle long ago.
As the fog covered his entirety, Kazuki clasped his fist tightly.
(Choices will always be there, the good ones and the bad but if I have more strength then maybe those harder choices won’t be as difficult. I need more strength.)
Retsu willed his power and the fog fell to his command. The fog became dense and even with Kazuki’s vision, he couldn’t for the life of him peer through it.
A moment later, the fog as though it were a tide fell off of him, rolling from the top of his head down his shoulders and receding away from his feet. The fog moved like a shadow and became thin as it fled into the cave.
The scenery completely changed. The silver light from the moon above had now changed and shined golden from the sun. As its rays of warmth fell below, the bitter cold instantly faded and cozy feeling enwrapped everyone. The blistering cold snow had vanished. The harsh wind that bit at your face with the passing of a breeze became cool and mellow.
Not too far away, the village that had been crushed and buried beneath an avalanche of ice and snow, was left unharmed as though it were all a lie. The villagers saw this and kissed the ground beneath their feet before many of them pulled themselves up to their feet.
“MAMA!”
A child’s shout rang in the distance. A small boy had been walking around sad and tired when he suddenly saw a strange fog encircling the village. He was just about ready to shout for help when in the very next moment he spotted a familiar face just outside the village. The boy screamed out at the top of his lungs.
“MAMA!”
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