Aniwye fades altogether, leaving me once more in the dark. But… I don’t feel as alone anymore. The genuine care and regret in her voice touched me somehow. And maybe that’s the mind control she’s likely capable of, or perhaps it’s my survival instinct, but I don’t care.
She’s right. I need to find an anchor to survive. But, unfortunately, all my previous anchors are broken, long shattered by events or reckonings within my mind. And perhaps, as she says, that’s for the best. Every time I’ve fought the Bloody Palm, I’ve reached for something to anchor my sanity as I pushed against it. However, I can already feel my thoughts begin to slow without Aniwye boosting my mind, so I need to be quick.
I need to find an anchor. I’ve been fighting a battle in a raging river this whole time, being thrown about in every way. It’s time I stand tall. But what? What is so integral to who I am that I can rely on it to never shatter? To never break? To brave any amount of chaos?
It cannot be a memory. Those are false and manipulative. They are not me; they are only what may have happened.
It cannot be a person. They can change at the flip of a coin. Some might be worthy of being an anchor, but should they ever change, I’d be ruined. So no matter how much I’d like to rely on Edmund or any of my friends, I cannot. This has to be far more personal.
To know what is real… That was the question the Cabin asked me. I now know what it meant. My memories have been false. My perceptions were wrong. My thoughts were manipulated.
So then, how do I anchor myself? How do I remain real?
A goal. That is it. A supreme and lofty goal that will both keep me stable yet will also keep me moving. I look to my father for an example. He wanted me to surpass him?
I’ll do better, alright.
I’ll become a God.
I’ll become a being whose whim can decide reality itself. I’ll become Limitless, just as The Cabin hinted. That’s how I know what is real, how I stay myself. I set my eyes on a goal; even if it’s impossible, my eyes will never drift. My legs will never stop moving. My mind will never stop thinking. My hands will never stop reaching.
This is my own Release. A Release from my self-imposed limits. To break through the glass ceiling far above humanity, the one far above even the mountain of Dzil, of human potential. The current Gods are broken, corrupted things that exist only to make beings suffer, except for one or two. But, when I shatter this ceiling imposed by myself and the very Gods, they will be more than broken.
I turn my attention to the red flame that sparks with a flicker of pure ebony. I can see the spread of the Bloody Palm through this metaphorical flame in my mind. Then, I look to the conflagration with a renewed sense of purpose.
I forgive Aniwye. Her part in this, while substantial, does not truly matter in the scheme of things. What matters is that I survive. One day, I hope I can ask my father why all this occurred, but for now, survival is the name of the game. And while my new goal is Godhood, that does not mean I will let Alexos off. He is merely a stepping stone, for without his death, how could I be a God? What kind of God doesn’t avenge those he cares for?
My hate for Aniwye is gone, as I see it, was misplaced. She at least did something for me as compared to Killian. In place of that scorn for her smolders a newfound purpose.
The second I come to terms with this, I see the flame stabilize, the flickering light moving less erratically. The sable motes of fire still come from it, but it’s not as bad as before. Confident, I reach forward and touch the flame within my mind just as I would handle the pages of the book in The Cabin.
Pain instantly courses through my hand and up my arm, and I let out a strangled cry. The fire seems to consume me physically and mentally as dark murmurs enter my mind, more similar to a mad God’s commandments than a madman’s ravings. My hand feels like it’s been set ablaze, burning hotter and hotter by the second. I’m pulled into the fire as I try to rip my arm out. And as I feel my body partially return to me, my Daydream protecting me from the worst of the siege, a clear word filled with desire penetrates its way throughout my whole mind.
“JOIN!”
I can feel the nails of the Bloody Palm digging into the deepest recesses of my mind. The artifact is relentless in its attempts to break me as it tries to tear apart my psyche and leave me a shell of my former self. Its whispers slither through my thoughts, twisting and warping my perceptions until I’m not sure what’s real anymore. But I grasp toward that lofty and impossible goal with Rapturous intent, my mind forcing the skill into action despite how useless it has been in the dark. I try to force my Ether to comply with my will in this burning darkness of my mind, and it responds. Slowly, sleepily as if it’s not sure the one calling it is its owner, it comes to attention quickly. Rapturous, Daydream, and even Strugglers Gasp all come together at once. I feel myself reach the boundary of death, the point at which I have used too much Ether.
I can’t see, hear, taste, smell, or feel, but my kinesthesia remains, the knowledge of my body. I can roughly sense my entire body overcome with the dark insidious Ether of the Bloody Palm. I do not know if I am alone, but I know I am pure of focus. I do not know if it is day or night, but I know I am dreaming of a world where my mind is unbreakable. I do now know where I am, but I know my lungs siphoned in Ether.
As all my Ether comes together to save my life, I feel the Bloody Palm fighting back with all it has, rampaging its way through my body, trying to finish me off as I am locked into the depths of my mind. Pain is all that I can feel at this point besides my belief in my own Ether.
But I refuse to let it win. I grit my teeth and push back with all my strength, channeling every modicum of willpower I possess into resisting its insidious influence. The battle rages on, an endless tug-of-war between my mind and the Blood Palm’s twisted, malevolent will.
But even through the pain, I feel a sense of clarity. My mind is sharp and focused as if the fire and the invasion of the Bloody Palm are burning away all the doubts and distractions that have plagued me. I grit my teeth and take one final step. I push Ether into my eyes, not even sure if it reaches.
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Insight. It must hold mysteries I have not yet unlocked. The first skill of mine stands as the most important. They hold the deepest secrets. Chain Eyes is gone, but in its place is a well of potential just waiting to be unlocked.
In a single moment, I feel my consciousness expand, elevating me as I finally see the outside world. The scene confuses me, but I quickly gain rationality and comprehend it. Johnny, Blake, Silas, Lennox, and even Aniwye stand in a partially dry part of the swamp, watching me spasm and squirm. I see the world through each of their eyes at once, a quintet of focus.
My movements are erratic, every muscle contracting and releasing in spasms as though fighting against something within. Looking closer, it becomes apparent that something is crawling beneath my skin, wriggling and squirming as though seeking escape. My flesh twitches and distorts as if trying to push out a parasite from within.
My left arm, where the Bloody Palm calls home, is enlarged and utterly gray with red veins that have spread to cover my chest. It’s reaching out into the air, constantly transfiguring in a panic. It turns from a spear made of flesh to a blade of bone without pause before the eyes of the five.
Only at this point do I realize what the enhancement of Insight has truly done. I can sense each of their worries, their processes of thought, and their solutions. I am no longer limited to their vision and the slight feeling I can garner from their mental state. Sadly, however, few do me any good. All of it is panic and indecision. Only Aniwye has a thought that I feel is helpful.
“Do not let a mere artifact take you. Burn bright, and never let the flame of your mind extinguish.”
I latch onto this thought as my mind is ravaged by the artifact seeking to become one on its own terms. I latch onto this thought almost as profoundly as my goal. And as I do so, I feel something shift deep within. The fire I am within of my own mind bursts with a bright plume of silver flame, engulfing my whole body and melting my chains away. I no longer feel pain, and the murmurs slip away as I am flooded with a fire made of Ether. My entire body burns with this purging flame that makes everything grow brighter.
A phrase comes to mind, burning up alongside the fires of Insight born from another’s thoughts as if from nothing.
“Insight is the power to see beyond the visible, to grasp the intangible, the unreal, the unimagined. And to make it all real.”
Knowledge comes to my mind as if born from the very Ether in my skill. And the limits of the skill explode just as a scream comes from the Bloody Palm. I feel the fire encompass the entirety of my body, forcing the Bloody Palm to retreat from my mind and into the arm it has fortified.
I follow it up with zero mercy, using this flame alongside Ironheart and Daydream to push the artifact to the deepest recesses of my hand. I burn away all of its tendrils and spikes left in my body, freeing most of my flesh from the terrible thing. The silver fire, however, reaches a dead end at the wrist as the Bloody Palm makes a final stand. And that is where I stop, not because I am merciful or at my limit, but because I can feel its warning.
A dark feeling emerges when my flames create shadows within my own body. If I push the palm, it will take me out too. I’m already injured without the fact I’m at my very limit of Ether, barely holding on as I constantly stop and restart skills. This is how it has kept me for so long. On the verge of a breakdown. But no longer. I put up a block with Daydream and use that silver flame swirl to create a wall to protect my mind and body from the artifact.
I see how this manifests in reality through the eyes of my companions. A silver tattoo of an incredibly detailed fire blooms on my arm like a flower welcoming the coming spring. I can see each of the spirals through Johnny’s eye, even with how blurred it is. Almost as if it is made of Ether and nothing else, allowing it to enter the mind without interference.
And after that tattoo emerges, I feel my whole body calm along with my mind. The Bloody Palm quiets and finally gives me peace now that it is locked into my hand. Of course, it still doesn’t help me, but I am okay with that. An armistice is all I really want anyway.
I can see everyone looking at each other from their perspective, my body still. They are all confused as they ask Aniwye a dozen questions, and the giant Ogre kneels down to look at me. She waves the questions off, and a deep rumbling comes from her throat. I can feel her mind touch mine gingerly as if to not damage what might be beyond repair.
“He is fine. Damaged. But fine. The child has found an anchor. The path to Angelhood is secured.”
After her words which only serve to confuse me further, Johnny steps up, and I can feel his thoughts of worry as he pulls out something called the Draught Of Invigoration. Understanding what it does from his surface thoughts takes me a second. It’s to help heal me. The man pours it into my mouth, causing the bruises around it to fade rapidly. I can feel relief fill my ravaged body as I begin to rest. However, I am forced to pull away Insight as the headache of Ether returns and tells me that I am about to die from another danger.
I relent and stop the flow of Ether to my eyes, turning off the lights of all five and throwing me back into the dark. But within that dark, I feel a flutter before light returns to me, Johnny embracing me tightly.
I can’t understand his words as he talks into my shoulder, but I hug him back. He must have gone through some real shit to find Aniwye and save me.
“Thank you.”
Johnny pats me on the back and pulls me to my feet. I’m a bit unsteady, so I must lean on him. I look around at the group, a bit confused now that I have time to inspect it. Questions come out of my mouth as I see tears in Blake’s eyes and a smile on Silas’ face, but I fail to find Otto and instead see a small child with Johnny.
“Where is Otto? And why do you have a baby, Johnny?”
Johnny laughs at the first question, but his breath hitches at the second.
“Uhh… Otto stayed behind. He wanted to learn from Isaac down below. So in a year, we will get him, and possibly Marion too, if we can find a way to replicate what Silas did for himself for others. And as for this child… It’s a long story.”
A rumbling and somewhat panicked voice joins in after Johnny, one we all immediately look to. Aniwye looks out into the rising sun on the dark swamp.
“Someone is coming. Fast. Very fast. Get away from me!”
A wave of Aniwye sends our whole group flying away from her as a mental push becomes real. Silas and Johnny react fast enough to catch Lennox and me while Blake rolls before recovering. As a rumble meets my ears, I watch Aniwye take several steps toward the west. One that is light yet powerful.
And out of nowhere, a figure bursts from the treeline, shooting straight toward Aniwye with a spear in hand. The man moves so fast he almost doesn’t even register in my vision as a massive chunk of flesh is removed from the demon’s side. The man lands in the water with a flip as he points his spear at all of us, a thing of spiraling gnarled wood with an ending of black steel.
I can feel the weight of his expression. A dark face shadowed by the rising sun behind him with eyebrows so furrowed I can feel the grief, anger, and pain radiate outward. What’s happening? How did Aniwye just get hurt like that? I thought she was an Angel? Who–? Oh… That’s Kai Vinson. The Rougarou Hunter. He comes out sharp and accusatory as the man takes furious steps toward us.
“Johnny Caldwell. You have associated yourself with a demon? An Angel, no less? And two unknown creatures? You will pay for what you have done. If you give me my child, I will allow you a painless death at an executioner’s blade.”
My tired eyes flicker to Johnny as I see the pure conflict on his face. The man seems to regret something. I see him open his mouth, but Aniwye cuts him off, swiping the blood off her hip with a rumbling laugh.
“I am—”
“I am your opponent, human. I have longed to fight one such as you for a while. A physical confrontation will be quite… stimulating, don’t you say?”
Aniwye cracks her knuckles as the water in the swampland begins to shake, the trees vibrating, and the large rock that is the dry space we are on now cracks in half. Her mind is sending these shockwaves as I hear a growl from Kai. Colorful serpents come into being around Kai’s shoulders as they serpentine up his spear, leaving seven venomous maws alongside the dangerous point of his weapon.
“You. Will. All. Die.”
In a single instant, Kai disappears, and the entire earth shakes beneath us, sending everyone rolling backward and stumbling to stay on our feet. I blink rapidly to see what’s happening through all the water and mist thrown into the air, but I am dragged away by Johnny.
“Wake up, Wyatt! We need to fucking go!”
I resist him for a moment as I look for Aniwye.
“What about Aniwye!?”
He shakes his head and pulls me along with Lennox, whose eyes are wide, looking at the raindrops in the air from the shockwave.
“Pretty…”
“She came here to kill him! We need to go now! I’ll tell you more later, I promise.”
Finally relenting, I let him drag me to my feet and try to hurry away from the conflict between Angels as the world shakes again, forcing us to stumble once more.
And out of this shaking through a mist of falling water, I see a spearhead stabbing straight for Johnny’s head, merely inches from his eyes, six devious green serpents all joining the point in deadly assurance.