Chapter 36 - Preparation

Lazar and Ciel left Cassius’s home without much fanfare.

The decision itself was a plain one. Lazar woke up that morning with the memory of essence burned into his eyelids, and when he breathed, he felt whispers of thin strings weaving around the atmosphere and heard the distant rumble of earth in his ears.

He’d continued training his soul with Cassius’s help, but progress had reached a plateau. The seraph was sure, however, that he was close.

Witnessing Nero’s quick, sudden earth spell, even from far away, had felt painfully familiar. If Cassius’s water magic was a distant, cloudy memory, then the pull of earth magic was like returning home. If he could study a few more of those spells, that might be the push that finally allowed him to fully see the layers of essence constructing the world again.

Ciel hadn’t had any arguments. The flesh eater herself showed no signs of wariness even as the upcoming battle approached, and Lazar suspected she’d already reached the threshold for ascension during one of her hunts.

“Sooner we go the better, right?” she had said with a grin, and her eyes had fallen deliberately on the seraph’s mark. It still hadn’t moved. Lazar didn’t expect that to stay the case for much longer.

And so, the previous night the seraph had told Cassius that they would leave in the morning. The demon had taken the news with a silent nod, and now there they were, standing on the border of translucent stones and glowing red, readying to leave.

Lazar’s eyes traced the lines of the tunnel. It was early enough that Leon hadn’t woken up yet. This, perhaps, wasn’t such a bad thing. The boy had had enough trouble sleeping lately, and being able to sleep in late like this was a rare blessing.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to wake him up?”

Lazar shook his head. “No, it’s alright. I don’t want to disturb him.”

Cassius gave him a long look. “He won’t be happy when he learns you left without saying goodbye.”

The seraph wasn’t so sure of that. He and Leon hadn’t spoken properly since their talk in the tunnels, and he suspected that he’d scared the boy away. That conversation, too, had been a failure on his part. Lazar remembered the dark lines of the mark, the concealed fear in stubborn brown eyes. They were both fallen, and yet he hadn’t been able to do a thing to help the boy.

The seraph’s eyes landed on Cassius, standing exactly behind the divide of stones. He probably didn’t know that Leon knew the truth, Lazar realized.

The seraph spoke carefully. “I think,” he said, “that Leon really cares about you.” It suddenly felt important to say it out loud. The demon’s eyes softened.

“I know.”

He reached into his robes, pulling out a clear, perfectly round stone. He held it out to the seraph. It fit perfectly in the center of his palm, and it was smooth to the touch.

Lazar held the stone up to the light, and when he tilted it, thin, ornate markings were revealed circling the object’s surface in a spiral shape. They resembled, he realized, the inscriptions that humans often used to cast magic. Lazar focused on the stone, and sure enough, a subtle, faint warmth emanated from within.

“It contains a delayed healing spell,” Cassius explained. He shook his head. “Prideful though they may be, I will admit the human magicians are rather accomplished in the field of stored magic. Be warned, however, that it can only be used once. After that, the stone will break.”

Although the glyphs and inscriptions humans used for their spells were noticeably slower than chants or gestures, they were well suited for storing delayed magic. Seraphs rarely had need for such things when every seraph could perform magic on their own, but for humans, these magic infused objects were valuable and rare. Cassius’s imitation of the effect was, from what Lazar could tell, nearly flawless.

“Thank you,” he said sincerely. The seraph carefully tucked the stone away, aware of how precious a gift it was.

A little ways behind him, leaning casually against the glowing red stones, Ciel snorted.

“What, no gift for me?”

Cassius narrowed his eyes. “Allowing you into my residence was gift enough.”

“Sure sure.” The flesh eater grinned. “Lighten up. Look at the bright side; I’ll be out of the Abyss very soon.”

The other demon frowned, and a tense moment of silence passed between them. Cassius seemed to be grappling with something, a push and pull in his mind. Finally, he released a long sigh, visibly steadying himself.

“Ciel of the flesh eaters.” He spoke in a dignified, practiced tone. “I do not know where you came from, nor will I lie and suggest that your departure is not a relief.” His voice slowed, words a little more hesitant. “I will admit, however, that the sealing was, perhaps, excessively cruel on my part.”

Ciel raised an eyebrow. “Cruel? I already told you it was boring at best.”

Cassius exhaled. “Perhaps for you,” he said, jaw tighter, “but most would’ve lost their minds after being sealed away for so long. I was not in the most…stable of moods back then and jumped to an extreme decision, and for that, I apologize.” The demon strained to get the last part out, but from what Lazar could tell, the sentiment itself did seem sincere.

For a second the seraph wondered if Ciel would brush the apology off with her typical irreverent attitude, but her expression was oddly blank. Piercing gold eyes studied the other demon, gleaming in the light, and after a few moments had passed, her grin widened.

“Apology accepted.” She stepped away from the wall, straightening to her full height, and waved casually over to Lazar.

“Come on, better head out before the tiny human sees you gone and throws a fit.”

“I really don’t think—”

“See ya, your majesty.” The flesh eater turned around before anyone could respond, already striding down the tunnels without a single glance back.

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Cassius’s blue eyes widened for a brief second before he composed himself again. Lazar took a moment to study the demon: the tall, crystalline horns, faint traces hinting at his true form, and those eyes that always seemed to stare a little too high up.

Carefully setting his halberd against the wall, the seraph executed a low bow. It was a practiced, smooth motion, one that he hadn’t used once since falling.

“Thank you,” he said. He didn’t see the demon’s expression when he straightened. He simply gripped his halberd again and, with a final nod, turned and left the translucent walls behind him.

—

“Finally caught up I see,” Ciel drawled once Lazar strode up to her. Thanks to her long legs, the demon moved rather quickly.

“My apologies for the delay.”

The flesh eater waved the concern off, and the two continued down the path.

The seraph moved at a steady pace even as he kept his eyes scanning the surrounding walls, his hold on his weapon firm as they made their way through the tunnels. They followed the same route he’d taken the night that he’d been awoken from his dreams.

No new demons had taken up residence in the space since then, and Lazar’s eyes lingered on the dried blood where the soul eater’s corpse had once occupied. Pieces of broken bones and chunks of the creature’s shell lay strewn about, jutting out from the ground, their edges glinting like little pointed blades. He walked around them, and the two didn’t stop until they reached an alcove near the vantage point.

It was one of the larger ones, with smooth, cool walls lined with black flowers. A circle of petals and stray rocks formed a nest in the back of the space, and aside from a few scattered scratches and cracks along the walls, the place was in much better condition than some of the other cleared alcoves. A quick, clean kill.

Ciel plopped down casually, too tall to stand up straight in the space, and Lazar sat down as well after a final sweep of the area. He angled himself so that he was facing the exit, and through it he could just barely make out the gap leading to the ravine.

“So,” the flesh eater said once they’d settled down. “Planning time.”

Lazar nodded, and the two first laid out all the information they knew. According to Ciel, she’d reached the current maximum that her flesh reserves could hold. The soul eater had been her final “meal.”

“Is the limit static?” Lazar was curious. She shook her head.

“Nah, it grows the more I use my power. Used to be able to consume and manipulate a whole lot more, but, well, it turns out getting stuck under a rock tends to set things backwards.”

“What happens if you consume more than the maximum?” Flashes of the battle on the cliff passed through his mind. Considering how difficult the fight would likely be, running out of reserves was a real concern.

“Nothing. It goes down like normal food and gets wasted.” Ciel tapped her finger along the stone floor. “Once I start using my flesh warping, that’d free up some space, though.”

Lazar nodded, understanding what the demon was implying. “We could leave a few bodies around the caves as a last resort.” He turned and grabbed some of the black flowers, carefully laying them across the ground to map out where he remembered the cave entrances and gate had been. Ciel watched and reached over to make a few adjustments. In the end, they had a mostly accurate, if crude, map.

“It’s gonna have to be smaller chunks. Even if I make extra mouths, I can only eat so fast, you know.”

The seraph nodded, considering.

“I could cut some smaller pieces and leave them by the entrances before the battle begins.” Ideally the fight would be finished before that was necessary, but it was better to be prepared for the worst. His fingers wrapped around the stone Cassius had given him, squeezing it once before releasing it again. That, too, would only be used as a last resort.

“Alright, we’ve got some backups down. Now what’re we doing about the actual fight?”

Lazar’s eyes landed on the rough diagram of the ravine, thinking back to Nero’s silhouette, prowling around the gate, and the easy rocking of earth. He still remembered the impact of the pillar slamming into him, as well as the faint shifting in the air before it had happened.

“Am I correct in assuming,” he began carefully, “that you’re already able to see essence?”

“Yep.” Ciel’s eyes gleamed. “I’m guessing you’re not there yet.”

It wasn’t a question, but it wasn’t mocking, either. It was a simple statement that the seraph confirmed.

“Not yet, but I can somewhat sense it now.” His brows furrowed in thought. “I believe I should reach that point during the fight. I’m familiar with primal earth magic. Once I’m able to perceive strands of essence, I should be able to predict what each spell will do.”

Ciel raised an eyebrow.

“I didn’t take you for an earth affinity.”

The seraph shook his head. “I’m not. It was… it was the guardian I served. He had one.” He looked at the demon hopefully, shifting the topic away from Julius. “I don’t suppose you’d recognize earth magic yourself?”

The flesh eater shrugged. “Eh, maybe some, but it wouldn’t be all that reliable. I haven’t seen magic in a long time.” She chuckled lowly at that, the sound echoing in the alcove. “I’ll be able to see when it’s being cast though, and you can sort of sense it, so we’ll have some warning before shit starts up.”

That was, at least, something. Still, knowing when a spell was coming didn’t mean being able to dodge it, especially when that magic, despite being limited to basic earth attacks, could manifest in so many forms. From what Lazar could tell, Nero’s magic had a good amount of range as well, which made it even more difficult to work around.

Cassius’s voice echoed in his mind, and he recalled his words about the earth demon. Lazar’s gaze shifted to the gap, but from this angle, he couldn’t make Nero out. He imagined him pacing back and forth, still muttering to himself, repeatedly circling the gate over and over. Unrecognizable, Cassius had said.

“Demons,” he suddenly spoke, “cast magic with physical movements, correct?”

The flesh eater raised an eyebrow. “That’s how it works, yeah.”

“And I believe you mentioned that you could manipulate flesh through touch.”

A slow, wide grin spread across the demon’s face. Half lit by the glowing stones, it took on an almost crooked appearance. The seraph suspected that she knew where this was going, but was waiting for confirmation.

“It’s a little more complicated than that, but that’s the gist of it.”

Lazar opened his mouth to continue, but found himself pausing. He frowned to himself. Why was he hesitating? That had never been an issue before.

Perhaps it was Ciel’s presence, a reminder of those words against the red tunnels. Perhaps it was the weight of Cassius’s gift in his pocket.

Whatever the reason, the seraph forced himself to slow down and took a second to exhale. He cleared his mind of outside thoughts, focusing his attention purely on the goal. Lazar’s fingers tightened around the halberd.

He met eyes with Ciel.

“I have an idea.”

—

They would strike the next day in the afternoon. The Abyss’s unchanging sky meant that there would be no variance in the amount of brightness, but the timing would allow them to prepare everything in the morning and, ideally, to ascend by the end of the day.

Lazar sat by the entrance of the alcove, staring out at the pillar of light. Near the back of the space, Ciel was snoring loudly, likely deliberately so, but the seraph didn’t pay it much attention.

He stared down at the cool stone floor. If he wanted to be as prepared as possible, then he would need to recall everything he could about the patterns of essence that made up earth spells.

Shifting his position to a more comfortable one, Lazar took a second to steady his breathing to an even pulse before he closed his eyes and forced himself to sift through his memories, searching for every moment that he’d witnessed earth magic being cast.

He remembered long training sessions, watching Julius struggle from the sidelines, smiling encouragingly at his frustrations and cheering with his successes.

He remembered ringing metal meeting metal, spars that shifted between land and sky, shared laughter and ease.

He remembered descending realms on long missions, always, always at the other seraph’s side.

He knew that he would soon no longer be able to avoid these memories. The dreams were proof enough that he was quickly approaching his limit.

And so, that night, he sat and let every churning thought, every confused spike of unknown emotion rise and climb over him. Every memory of Julius, everything tainted that was now too painful to think about, he forced to the surface.

He breathed, and he remembered.