Author's note: Can anyone find a Dark Souls's reference in this chapter? Start with a G! End with a N! Also please leave a comment if you like it :).

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That night, after driving the old doctor back to his mansion, Fiora was on her way to bring Alastor back to her home. It was a long exhausted evening for everyone but it was worth it. They have accomplished their missions: the Monochrome threat has been subdued thanks to the effort of the army, the Greymen unit and most importantly a young Traveler from another world. Although, his achievement might never be released to the public. Even inside their own government, only the very top would know who the boy truly was while the rest stayed in ignorance, thinking that he was just another Greyman.

The knowledge of the Other World has been kept secret for many years thanks to Doctor Vincent with his vast ‘exclusive connections’ and the old man wished for things to remain that way. That knowledge could prove to be too dangerous for anyone. What would happen if researchers began to study on a way to another world? What if instead of a ‘kind’ world like Astora, they ended up with the world of the Monochromes? Moreover, it was not like they really had the need to do it. Their current world was at peace: no poverty, no war, at least not now. So why would they need to take that risk anyway? For the so called knowledge? The leaders didn’t care about that. They just wanted to maintain the status-quo. And so the top leaders of the world forbad all researches with heavy restrictions and surveillances to make sure things stayed the way it was, just as the doctor wanted. However, what they needed to do now was to find a solution to the persistent Monochrome threat. After what happened tonight, it was safe to say that just the Greymen unit and their current weapons were no longer sufficient to deal with them anymore. They needed something else.

Back to Fiora, thankfully, her house was located in an unharmed district so she still had somewhere to go back to. In truth, even if her apartment was destroyed, it was not like the old man would let his only granddaughter wandering around in the street. Yet, it was kind of odd for him to not even mention anything about it when they drove him home. Normally, he would take advantage of the chaotic situation and invite Fiora to stay. But this time, he didn’t. In fact, the whole journey back was filled with a deadly silence. Fiora constantly looked back to check the boy. If he moved or even twitched just a little bit, she would immediately put her hands back to check on him, something drivers should not do at all. But it was understandable. The boy saved not just their lives but their city, twice, so the least they could do was to make sure that he would be unharmed. Furthermore, the two had a connection…something special, at least from her point of view. Although their time together was short, the girl felt at ease around the boy. To be honest, in her eyes, she didn’t even see him as a boy but a man. But she knew that one day he would have to return to his home, to his family. And when that day came, she must not be the chain that shackled his will, or so she told herself. She would have to let him go. That was why she remained silent, to keep her feelings in check while waiting for the inevitable day to come. She just had to enjoy this moment while it lasted, right?

But as for the doctor, his silence signified something very different. In his mind, he just wanted to get out of this car as soon as possible. The air was suffocating here, to the point of being nauseating. Why? Not because of the air itself but because he had trouble to breath properly. Unable to hold it anymore, he pushed on a button attached to the door he was sitting next to descend the glass window of the car. The wind bathed in his wizened face as he felt so much more relaxed than ever. But it was just all in his head in the end. What he did was what caused him to behave this way.

The old man stared at starless sky, contemplating about what he has witnessed, what he did, what he took from Alastor when the boy was unconscious.

‘A God…if we have that kind of power, all these tragedies…all those deaths could have been prevented. We were lucky that Alastor was here when they attacked in mass. If he wasn’t….just imagines what terrible fate awaited us! But one day, Alastor will go back to Astora and we will be left defenseless once again. The Greymen are no longer enough to contain these creatures any more. We need something more…something like Alastor, a God…our God!’ thought the doctor as he rubbed his hand into his pocket, verifying that the red vial was still there.

Upon dropping him in front of his home, Fiora asked if he was fine. She noticed his odd behavior since the moment she found him sitting on the ground next to Alastor. But at that moment, her mind was preoccupied with Alastor’s condition so much that when Vincent told her that he was fine, the girl simply brushed it off as it was just her grandpa being old. Perhaps going out like that, seeing the battle first hand was too much for someone his age. She even asked if he wanted her to stay but the old man declined politely, saying that she needed not to worry about him. And so she drove off, leaving Vincent in his wheelchair behind. His robot assistants were also there, so there was no need to worry about him.

Now all alone in his office, under the dim light of the desk lamp, the old man held the vial in his hands, gazed at it intensively while thinking about what he would do with it. Why did he take it in the first place? It was on a mere transient impulse that pushed him to do it. Now that his head was clearer, he started to question his very own action. His passion for science, the craving for knowledge, the desire to save people, could they justify his action? To betray Alastor’s trust? Well it wasn’t really betrayal since Alastor wasn’t hurt or anything but what about in the future? Vincent was a simple mortal man, despite how intelligent he was. He could not fathom the endless possibilities and the consequences of his every action. Could it one day come back and bite him? Marcus was an example of good intention turning evil. At the time, it was simply to save his dying wife. Who could refuse that wish? Who would have thought that such a gentle man almost destroyed the world? The thought haunted him for hours, made him questioning his own judgment.

But while he was mulling over that prospect, Vincent didn’t realize that he has been followed to his home. Right now, outside his mansion, a shadow was lurking in the darkness of night toward the seemingly immovable entrance. But that security door couldn’t do anything to stop that person as the shadow simply walked through the heavy metallic barrier like a ghost. Wearing a light white garb with golden laces, the figure had ashen snake-like tendrils fluttering in every direction flaking off from under the garb which conveyed the expression that the figure didn’t have legs but snakes in place. It explained the odd movement of the figure. Instead of walking, the person looked like they were drifting on air, slithering with their snake-like legs.

Judging from the shapes and curves visible through the dress, the individual appeared female. But her most striking feature was not just those tentacle-like snakes but the helmet she was wearing: a golden headpiece that covered half her upper face, even the eyes, showing only an inky pair of lips and smooth skin. It made one wonder on how on earth she would be able to see anything with that on her head. Or perhaps it was deliberate. By concealing her sight, she would not have to watch the cruel ugly world outside. The idea of total darkness was conforming for some perhaps. Actually, instead of a helmet, the headpiece looked more like a mask, covering only her front and left her silver short hair visible. Even more outstanding was the seven long spikes, each half the size of a person’s arm, prodding out around the headpiece in a symmetrical position with one on top and three on each side. From afar, the helmet reminded of the image of the sun.

In addition to her unique appearance, it was her very presence that sent the chill. Her whole body was translucent, even her cloth and the snakes. Through the surveillance camera, she could still be seen, yet none of the actual security systems actually detected her, even when she was right in front of them. Calmly bypassing all the security systems as if the woman was never there, she walked through the corridor where Vincent sat in the room at the end.

Inside the room, Vincent felt a sudden chill from behind the door. Suddenly, a creaking sound resounded as the door slowly opened, revealing a freakish woman walking in. Upon laying his eyes on the monstrosity, the doctor immediately reached out to the drawer and took out a small handgun but before he could even take a shot, a snake lunged itself at the pistol, taking it off the doctor’s hands with its mouth before retracting back to the woman. Now having the gun in her hands, the woman threw it off to the side and waved her finger at the doctor.

“This is not good at all, Vincent. To point a gun at me like that…I am sad.” The woman said playfully.

“Who are you? How did you get in here?” Vincent shouted at her. The security systems he installed in this mansion were among the best in the world, equipped with not only movement monitoring but also heat detection. Not even an invisible person could get in. Yet how was it possible that this woman managed to enter here without even triggering a single alarm?

“Don’t shout, Vincent! I am not here to harm you.” The woman spoke. “Can’t you recognize an old friend?”

“Friend? I don’t remember meeting anyone that has snakes for legs before. Who are you really?” the old man said in confusion.

“Ah yes, I only borrow this appearance recently so of course you won’t recognize me. That’s my bad. How about you take a guess then? First clue is we met fifty years ago, when you were still at the Science Academy in Europia, section X, a top secret government funding program for the most intelligent individuals they could find, or at least that was what you told me.”

“What? ….” The doctor searched his mind for all the people he met fifty years ago. But it was so long ago that he couldn’t possibly remember every face he met. Furthermore, based on what the woman said, this wasn’t even her real body. How was he supposed to find who she was with just that clue? Still, he was sure of one thing: this person wasn’t part of the program he followed or an agent of the government as she said that it was Vincent himself who told her. Yet, he couldn’t have just told anyone something that secret. So who was it?

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“Not enough I see. Here is the second clue: I once saved your life.” The woman revealed.

When he was young, Vincent usually went on the field together with the Greymen and many times, they saved his life. But at least, it surely lessened the number of suspects he could think off. And the problem was the Greymen unit was only created thirty five years ago. So this person couldn’t be a Greyman. Else he would know. Then, it could only mean that the person was referring to the other accident. But….

“Final clue: I helped you researching and developing the Orbis-Exeo. It didn’t work in end but the research we did allowed you and Marcus to build the first prototype of Orbis-Exeo, creating the first device to be able to cross the dimensional barrier and granting passage between worlds.”

The old man already had an idea of who this person could be with the second clue. But he refused to believe it was possible. Yet, this last clue confirmed it.

“You can’t be….” The old man muttered. “Sullivan?”

“It has been a long time, old friend! I hope you didn’t forget about me.” The woman said.

“Of course I didn’t. You saved my life, Sullivan. You were the first Traveller I ever met. But how come you end up in this body? Last time I saw you, you were a short man with a long brown black beard, a dwarf as you said it.” Vincent, now a bit more relief, spoke.

“Let’s just say that ….I was dead and now this woman, Cynthia, is lending her body for me to see you.”

“Dead? What happened?” Vincent asked.

“What happened? Time, my friend! Thousands of years have passed in my world while only fifty years have passed in yours. Still, I seem to have the better end since you look like you already have a foot in the grave while I have a young woman’s body. Hehehe!” Suddenly the woman’s left arm hit herself in the face and then pinched her other arm. “Ouch. Sorry sorry! I won’t touch anywhere weird again… Ahem, it’s a long story and I didn’t cross the dimensional barrier just to chat with you, Vincent.” The demon lord resumed in a serious tone.

“So what did you come here for?” asked Vincent.

“To deliver a message: fix the Orbis-Exeo and give it to Alastor so he can return to Astora!” Sullivan proclaimed.

“What? A message? From who? And how do you know Alastor?” inquired the old man.

“So curious like always aren’t you? But I understand why you would be confused. Even I am confused. You see, one of my acquaintances has prophetic dreams that can foresee the future, a prophet basically. We are all friends of Alastor as he is also a demon lord like I was. I told you about how it worked already. But that issue is not our main concern here.”

“How is it not a main concern? You are able to create rifts can you not? Why not just bring him back with you?” Vincent questioned. From their encounter fifty years ago, he learnt that the demon lord Sullivan had the ability to control space, capable of creating dimensional cracks like the rifts the Monochromes used to get here. Even the dimensional pocket that Alastor has been using was just one of the few applications of that power.

“Yes I can create rift to bring him back but my associate insists that Alastor must return by using that machine. In fact, what matters is that the Orbis-Exeo must be in Astora, not in this world.” Sullivan explained.

“Why?”

“Beats me! It’s just one of his weird visions again. But one thing I know is that his vision always comes true. If he saw that Alastor came back by using the Orbis-Exeo, then there must be a profound reason for it. Perhaps we cannot see it now but it might be crucial in the future. That’s why I won’t tell him about my ability or even his.”

“…All these just seem…suspicious. What are you hiding from me?” asked Vincent.

“Nothing. Look, I know how this looks to you! Even I have to admit it because it is suspicious as hell. But that’s what we decide so please fix it! I can’t just bring it back like that since it must be able to function on its own. And don’t worry about the anchor! I already took care of that. A bridge has always been established between Astora and this world so the Orbis-Exeo, if functional, can now travel freely between the two realms. Timeline won’t be a problem. Alastor will return to the exact time when he left. Anyway, you just focus on fixing the machine.” said Sullivan.

“But I have tried everything I know for the last thirty years. Nothing works!” yelled the old man.

“What do you think I am here for? I will help you fix it.” The demon lord proudly said.

“… Why can’t you tell him about it? It feels as if you are using him for some purpose.” Vincent inquired.

“So are you. Do you think I didn’t notice what you did? You took a sample of his blood and hair. You want his DNA, don’t you? See? I still remember your lessons.”

“You…are you blackmailing me?” Vincent grunted.

“Nothing of the sort. Just…a proposal: fix the Orbis-Exeo and in exchange I won’t speak of this matter to anyone. This will stay between us.” The demon lord proposed.

“…This…I feel like I am making a huge mistake…” the doctor uttered.

“It’s not like we are hurting anyone. Alastor will go back to Astora as it was predicted. You do whatever you want with that sample. Everyone is happy. So what do you say, old friend? Deal?” the woman extended her arm to Vincent, waiting for him.

“…Very well! This is for saving our world. I must do it…even if I have to make a deal with the devil.”

“Hahaha! Don’t say it like that! We are friends. Nothing bad will come out this arrangement. I assure you! Well let’s go to see your Orbis-Exeo! Can’t wait to see my research finally bear fruit into something!” Sullivan said through Cynthia with excitement.

“But what do you intend to do with it once Alastor goes back to Astora?”

“….I don’t know.”

“What?”

“Nyx only told me that the machine must come to Astora. Even he doesn’t know what happens afterward.”