Arrival - Chapter 12

Lares placed the report onto his desk and rubbed his brow in frustration.

Bunny had returned to Imperial and that meant that lots of people would die, no matter what he or anyone else did.

She was a living natural disaster.

When Bunny had last appeared two years ago in Imperial, she killed a hundred and twenty people before she was scared away by the Grand General of the Guardians, Ares.

Lares had prayed that would be the last time they’d ever see her in Imperial, even though he knew she would come back eventually.

Her MO was always the same.

She would appear in a heavily populated city, kill a lot of people, get bored or scared away, and then reappear somewhere else within six months, sometimes longer depending on how she had been scared off.

“Shit!” Lares slammed his fist onto the desk. The victims were some of the youngest that Bunny had ever killed. Someone knocked loudly at his door. “Come in.”

“Yo, Lares,” Spike said nonchalantly.

“Spike.” Lares glared at him. “Unless this is official business, kindly piss off. I don’t have time to deal with Lich’s 8th least favourite pet.”

Spike let out a low chuckle and walked over to his desk. “Right now, I’d be lucky to be his 9th favourite.”

“What do you want?”

The Necromancer said nothing and threw a sealed letter onto Lares’s desk.

“I am on urgent business,” Spike said in an uncharacteristically serious voice.

Lares frowned at the letter’s seal: the mark of the Necronomicon, Lich’s seal.

“What does it say?”

“You wouldn’t believe me even if I told you.”

Lares tore open the letter, then swiftly took out and read the letter, his face twisting in anger the further he read.

“What is the meaning of this?” He demanded, leaping onto his feet.

“Boss’s orders.”

“Well then, it’s a good thing neither I nor Eric work for your boss.”

Spike shook his head. “It’s not just that boss.” Lares’s eyes widened. “Kas signed off on it, too.”

Lares felt the colour drain from his face. “What?”

“Not that it matters, but I objected to this as well. Those two decided on this and I can’t defy them. Neither can you,” Spike said, before taking his leave.

Lares was left frozen in shock.

“Please tell me this isn’t true,” he whispered, crumpling the letter in his hand.

***

Kasmine sat patiently at her desk, her cat resting in her lap and she petted it gently.

Standing beside her door was a monster of man, almost ten feet tall and covered in thick black plate armour with a large bladed staff in his right hand. He had vacant blue eyes that never blinked, staring into space, and had been stood at attention for the last ten hours straight and would stand for another hundred unless ordered otherwise.

Lares burst into the room and her bodyguard immediately grabbed him roughly by his collar, hauling him into the air.

“Put him down,” Kasmine said and the figure immediately released Lares. “Wait outside.”

The monster ducked through the door frame and shut it behind him.

“What is the meaning of this, Kasmine?” Lares stormed over to her desk.

“Harbinger’s a little overprotective, you see-” Kasmine began to say, before Lares slammed his palms on her desk.

“Don’t mess with me! You know exactly why I’m here, so don’t play dumb.”

Kasmine’s cat hissed at Lares as it leapt onto her desk. “Spike should have informed you of the situation fully. And.” She glared at him and her aura appeared. “You’ll do well to remember your standing, Captain.”

Lares clicked his tongue and stepped back from her desk. He took a few moments to compose himself and said, “Sorry.”

“I understand your concerns and worries but, I assure you that this is a good opportunity for Eric to gain some real combat experience.”

“Kas, he hasn’t even been in a tournament fight yet. If you want to send students to deal with Bunny, why not a fourth or fifth year group? Why not send my men?”

“Those are both out of the question. Your men are necessary to ensure the safety of Ferris, and the students who are in those year groups have more than enough experience under their belt.”

“Kas…please don’t do this. He’s my nephew.”

Kasmine let out a small sigh, petted her cat briefly before turning to look out her window.

“Lares, you know how many people are after Eric’s life, don’t you?” She asked him and he tensed up. “Not counting Phantom, there was Spike and, if someone like Spike took an interest in him, then I can imagine dozens of others who would as well. If we don’t prepare Eric to deal with threats of their levels, then he will die.”

“I agree with you on that, but why Bunny? She’s a natural disaster and Eric won’t be able to stop her.”

“It’s never been about stopping her. It’s been about scaring her off for as long as possible. I imagine that a fight with the Lucifer God Armour might give us a few years until she comes back.”

“And what happens if she defeats him and tries to kill him? He doesn’t even have his God Weapon yet.”

“He’s been trained on combat theory and practice by Aria, and Sapphire has been teaching him how to use his magic, so he’s not unprepared for it.”

“Why not send him on another case after the new year?” Lares suggested. “Why not wait for a lower level mage to appear, or a madman with a gun, or anything other than Bunny?”

“It wasn’t just Lich’s suggestion to do this,” Kasmine said. “I saw the benefits of it as well. We’ll put safeguards in as well, just in case.”

“Just like you did during the Awakening?”

Kasmine smiled at him and walked over to Lares. “I trust that you’ll keep that a secret from him, won’t you?” Lares nodded as a cold sweat crawled down his back. “Good. None of us wanted to push Eric into something like this so soon, but the reality of the situation is that he won’t be ready when Phantom or someone else comes from him at this rate.

“Once he’s experienced what this life is really like, then he’ll be closer to being ready for them.” She placed her hand against Lares’s cheek and stared into his eyes. “Trust me on this.”

“I trust you, but I don’t trust that monster.” Lares took a step away from her. “How can you trust Lich after everything he’s done?”

“Immortals have few friends, especially him. As long as I can keep him entertained during peace times, he won’t cause trouble or start any wars.”

Lares let out a heavy sigh and went to the door. “I’ll tell Eric myself. If he doesn’t want to-”

“Then we won’t make him, but.” She smiled sadly. “We both know what he’s like.”

Lares left her office and closed the door behind him.

Sorry, Lares, but I still can’t tell you everything about Eric. Not ever.

***

Ajax had never cried so much before in his entire life, nor had he ever seen his sister so distraught and lifeless before.

Stephanie had been a good friend to Ajax, but she had been Alexis’s closest friend, someone they’d known since she was three and it was heart-breaking for them both to think that she had been taken from them in such a horrific way, and for no reason.

It had been two days since Stephanie died, and only now Alexis had started to eat again.

Ajax sat with Alexis on her bed and she was firmly locked in his arms. She was gripping onto his shirt tightly, still damp from her tears, and the two had said very little to one another.

Someone knocked gently at the door and Eric slowly poked his head around, a small, warm, smile on his face.

Ajax could barely force a smile back as he stroked the top of his sister’s head.

Alexis was considered to be one of the top beauties in their entire year with gorgeous long brown hair and emerald eyes that sparkled with life.

Now, she was a compete wreck of her former self.

Her lips were dry and cracked, her cheeks wet with tears and her hair was in a complete mess, tangled together and greasy.

As Eric slowly walked into the room, Alexis raised her head from Ajax’s chest and smiled weakly at Eric, a sight which he felt he would cry at.

“Hey,” he whispered tenderly, sitting beside them.

“Hey,” Alexis said, her voice hoarse and her throat dry.

“Hey, man,” Ajax said softly. “You need me for something?”

“Just for a few minutes, if that’s okay.”

Alexis let out a small grunt of displeasure and tightened her grip on Ajax’s shirt. Kaida, Evony and Kiara walked into the room and smiled at them.

“They can take over while we talk, if you’re okay with that,” Eric offered.

Ajax nodded at them, looked down at his sister and gently rubbed the top of her head. “Don’t worry, I’ll be back before you know it.”

Alexis looked up at him, tears in her eyes, but her brother’s reassuring and warm smile stopped her from crying. She released her grip and Ajax got up, allowing the other girls to sit with her and hold her. Alexis immediately clung onto Kaida and she embraced her back.

Ajax looked back at her, barely able to hold back his emotions, but Eric grabbed his arm, snapping Ajax’s attention away from her. Ajax steeled himself and the two of them left the room.

Waiting outside, fidgeting, was Ace.

“Ajax, I’m-” Ace began to say.

“Thank you for coming,” Ajax said with a sad smile.

Eric put his hand on Ajax’s shoulder. “Let’s talk outside.”

***

After walking back to Eric’s team’s house, Ajax smashed his fist into the wall and screamed madly.

“God fucking dammit!” He threw his other fist at the wall. His knuckles split open and began to bleed. “Damn it.” Tears formed in Ajax’s eyes as he put his head against the wall. “Damn it.”

Eric and Ace looked on with sympathy, but neither of them said anything.

For neither of them knew what to say.

“It’s not fair, you guys. It’s not fair. Why did Stephanie have to die? Why did her family have to be butchered like that?”

“I don’t know,” Eric mumbled.

“Why? Why did this happen to us?” Ajax turned to face them, tears flooding from his eyes. “What did Stephanie and her family ever do wrong? Why did that bitch kill them? Why…?” Ajax collapsed onto his knees. “Why?”

“They didn’t do anything wrong and there was no reason for it,” Ace whispered. “Bunny just kills randomly. That’s how she’s always been, how she always will be.”

Ajax stood up and grabbed Ace roughly by the collar. “Do you think that makes it any better? Was that meant to cheer me up?”

“Ajax-!” Eric cried but Ace raised a hand to him, telling him to stop.

“Would you rather than I sugar-coated it for you or lied to you?” Ace asked. “I thought you and your sister hated liars.”

“That doesn’t mean-!” Ajax shouted.

“I was just telling you that they didn’t do anything wrong and didn’t deserve it! They were great people. No, they were fantastic, irreplaceable people and that monster killed them because it wanted to. They didn’t do anything wrong or get involved with the wrong people or anything like that. They didn’t deserve to die like that.”

Ajax ground his teeth and released Ace. “I know that…But-”

“It never makes it easier to know, does it? I’m the same.” Ace said softly and Ajax looked at him, a surprised look on his face. “My step-dad got caught up in one of her attacks when I was three while he was in Rome. He was always so nice, always so happy and always smiling. He didn’t deserve to be butchered and become one of her puppets. No one deserves a fate like that.”

“Ace…” Eric whispered.

Ace put his hands-on Ajax’s shoulders and looked into his eyes. “Let it all out Ajax and we’ll take it all. Hell, hit me if you want to, and as many times as you want to, if it helps you even a little bit.”

Ajax shook his head and wiped his remaining tears away. “I couldn’t do that.” Ajax took a few deep breaths in and out. “Sorry about that, Ace.”

“Don’t mention it. Let out everything you need to.”

“I appreciate the offer, but I think I’ll be okay for now. Alexis needs me more.”

“Was she that close with Stephanie?” Eric inquired.

“Stephanie used to live in Greece in the house next to ours. We’ve known her and her family almost our entire life; they moved to this country right before my family did, except they could afford a place in Imperial.”

“So, what are you going to do now?” Ace asked.

“I’m not leaving Alexis alone for a while. I’ll be with her for the next few weeks and I’ll slowly get her back to how she was. At least, I hope I’ll be able to.”

“I know you will be able to.”

Ajax nodded. “Thanks, you guys, for visiting her, and for this. I’ll see you guys later.”

“Bye, Ajax.”

“Tell her I’ll come and visit tomorrow,” Ace told him.

Once Ajax had left, Eric asked, “They’ll be okay, won’t they?”

“I don’t think we’ll have to worry too much about them,” Ace reassured him. “If it’s those two, then they’ll be able to help one another through this.” He took out his phone and checked the time. “I’ve got to head back home for today. Give me a call if something happens to her, won’t you?”

“Will do.”

They exchanged contact information before Ace went back to his home.

Eric was about to head back to Alexis’s house when Lares appeared before him, a grim expression on his face, although he tried to hide it with a forced smile.

“Do you have a minute?”

***

Night-time had arrived at Ferris and most of the students had either gone home or to the leisure area.

No one dared venture into the city with Bunny around.

Lares and Eric sat next to each other on a bench overlooking the dimly lit lake in silence.

Despite his uncle asking to talk to him, Lares hadn’t said a word since they’d arrived and was twiddling his thumbs instead.

“Eric…” Lares began but he stopped himself from continuing his original thought. “Did you know that there’s a story about this lake? They say that if you come here at midnight and look across the water, a beautiful woman appears on the surface of the lake. They say that she looks at those who see her longingly and that she’s the spirit of a girl who drowned in the Imperial Bay years ago.”

“I didn’t know that,” Eric admitted and Lares cringed a little at how little confidence he had to tell Eric about Bunny. “Although, I think I might have seen her once.”

“Wait, seriously? But it’s just a story, you know.”

“I’d never heard the story when I saw her but she didn’t look like she was lonely to me.”

“What makes you say that?”

“Well, she smiled at me and then faded away.”

“Hmm,” Lares dismissively hummed.

After a few moments of silence, Lares let out a heavy sigh and leant forward.

“Eric, I have to talk to you about something very important and extremely dangerous.” Lares refused to look his nephew in the eye. “This is something that the Headmistress herself has suggested and wants you to do. I don’t want you to but that’s not the point.”

Lares gathered his resolve and stared into his nephew’s eyes. “Kasmine wants you and a few others to go after Bunny.”

“What?” Eric inadvertently shouted. “What? Why? Who? When-?”

“I know you have a lot of questions but let me finish saying what I need to first, otherwise I won’t have the courage to say what I need to.” Eric became quiet, though he was visibly shocked by his uncle’s words. “Kasmine has decided that, because of how high profile of a person you are now, you need to gain some real combat experience outside of your lessons. I suggested waiting for someone else to come along, but Kasmine doesn’t think we have that much time.

“As for the why, someone gave her the idea and she signed off on it but, obviously, she’s not just sending you in alone. Members of the Guardians will be with you as well, including Aria.

“As for when, we don’t know yet. Bunny’s usual MO is to appear, kill a large group of people, ‘play’ with her puppets for a bit, and then leave when the Guardians arrive. We expect that within the next week an incident like that will occur, and you will be notified off it immediately. As for who else is going with you, Dead Eye and some of his team will be, as will Evony, Laila and Jasmine from your team.”

“Why them?” Eric asked.

“Out of your team’s skillset, they’re best suited for fighting indoors and in close quarters,” Lares explained. “Ajax would’ve come instead of Evony had he not just lost one of his oldest friends. Elthia will also tag along but she’ll be in a supporting role only due to her lack of offensive abilities.”

Lares grasped Eric’s shoulder tightly. “You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to, but the Headmistress feels like this is a good chance to gain some real combat experience.”

Eric spent a few moments in deep thought, staring across the lake’s surface.

Of course, the prospect of fighting someone who could kill him terrified Eric to his core, and he was scared that, if he agreed and went after Bunny, he might die. Eric’s head began to throb as he remembered his last few close calls with deaths and he winced, terrifying memories surfacing in his mind.

I have to do this.

“Uncle Lares, tell me something. Spike isn’t the only person who will come after me, is he?”

“…No.”

“If Kaida hadn’t been there, I would’ve died. If I can’t defeat Spike, how can I expect to survive against whatever else comes my way?” Eric stood up and curled his left hand into a fist. “I know it’s dangerous, and I know that it’s something I shouldn’t do. Hell, it’s something I don’t want to, but it’s something that I have to do in order to become strong enough to stay alive.”

“Eric, you can get stronger just by training!” Lares protested, leaping up from the bench. “You can practice with Sapphire and Aria all you-”

“That won’t be enough, will it? As it is, I’m already behind almost everyone else at this school in terms of experience with their powers and in actual combat. If I do this, I can start to catch up to them and become strong enough to keep myself and those I care about alive. Also, after what Bunny’s done, I want a chance of stopping her for good, even if it’s impossible for me at my level. I want to try it.”

Eric stared into his uncle’s eyes. “I want to do this, Uncle Lares.”

“Eric…” Lares whispered, gripping his knees tightly. “I…I’m scared.”

Eric smiled and pulled his uncle into a hug. “I know, I’m scared too, but I’m more scared at the idea of not being strong enough to protect myself and those I love. Even if it’s risky, I want to try this.”

Lares smiled sadly and broke out of Eric’s hug. “Honestly, when did you grow up to be someone like this?” He sighed a little in resignation and smiled happily. “If you get yourself killed out there, you know I’ll come and kill you.”

“That doesn’t make any sense,” Eric chuckled. “I appreciate the feeling, though.”

The two of them shared a small fist bump and both of them felt slightly relieved.

“If that’s all, let’s leave it there for tonight, Uncle Lares.”

“Wait, before you go, there was one other thing I wanted to ask you,” Lares said, stopping Eric in his tracks. “Um, how much did Kas explain to you about the laws of God Armours to you?”

“They’re Armours which are born from the remains of a dead God in their world when they enter into ours and, initially, they appear in someone’s arm but they are actually small pieces of Armour which can be transferred between people. They also have all of that God’s powers, right?”

“Well, that’s right, but did she tell you about what happens when a God Armour first appears in our world?”

Eric titled his head, slightly confused. “What do you mean?”

“Kas said that she gave you a book to read on God Armours and, knowing you, I thought you would’ve finished it by now. I take it you haven’t finished it then?”

“I’m a quarter of the way through and have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Lares exhaled heavily. “Eric, what do you think happens to a God’s soul when they are killed? The God’s soul doesn’t vanish and they don’t technically die. When a God is killed in their world, it’s not just their powers and abilities that are converted into the Armour; their soul is as well.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means that the God is still alive in our world, but they can never return to their own. However, they can live again for a price. A God’s soul still existing within its Armour can take over the user’s body for themselves, essentially killing the host and allowing the God to be reborn into a mortal body.”

Eric swallowed hard when he realised what Lares was trying to say.

“Eric, right now, the soul of Lucifer is living in your left arm and he could kill you at any moment.”

He…He could take over my body at any moment and…kill me? The moment Eric came to that realisation in his mind, a wave of fear and dread surged within his chest.

“He…could kill me…” Eric whimpered, hyperventilating and grasping his heart tightly.

Eric began to sweat all over his body, his heart rate increasing rapidly and a tight pain developed in his chest. He started to feel dizzy and his vision became blurred, almost as if he was losing consciousness.

Lares called out to Eric but Eric had already begun to descend into a panic attack.

I don’t want to die!

Is that so? A deep, satanic voiced boomed in his mind. Then, aloud, it said, “I suppose it’s time that I reveal myself to you now.”

Eric’s scar glowed and a red mist seeped from it, drifting into the air and slowly forming itself into a figure. The figure was ten feet tall and well-built with thick muscles and tough skin which was a deep shade of red. It had burning eyes of fire which glared out of its eye sockets and ebony horns protruding from its head.

Fully formed before Eric and Lares was the personification of evil himself: Lucifer.

“L-Lucifer?” Lares reached for his pistol, even though he knew it was futile.

The mist groaned and stretched its arms above its head. “Finally, I can move around,” Lucifer said, clicking its joints. “Being trapped inside a God Armour isn’t all that fun. The only entertainment that I get now is from what I see and hear from Eric, and that can run dry pretty quickly.”

“You’re…Lucifer?” Eric asked, inadvertently stepping away.

“Lucifer, hmm? When was the last time I was called that, I wonder. Abaddon, Accuser, Apollyon, Beelzebub, Deceiver, Devil, Satan, The First Fallen, The Serpent, and Lucifer. Well, Lucifer is better than the others.” It grinned and held out a hand to Eric. “A pleasure to finally speak with you, Eric.”

“R-Right.” Eric tried to shake the hand but his hand passed through it.

“What do you want with my nephew, Lucifer?” Lares demanded, glaring at the demon. “Are you planning on taking over his body?”

“There’s no need to look at me with such hatred,” Lucifer assured him. “I have no intention of doing anything of the sort. After an eternity of fighting that damn God, I am enjoying the small pleasure of just being alive. I don’t plan on harming anyone else.”

“Forgive me if I don’t believe you.”

“I would have been disappointed if you had.”

“So, why should I believe you when you say you won’t harm Eric?”

“Hmm, I suppose from a mortal’s perspective I must be the villain.”

“Are you trying to say you weren’t the bad guy?” Eric asked.

Lucifer chuckled softly. “Bad woman, perhaps.”

“Wait, woman?!” Lares cried. “B-but you’re naked and you don’t have-?!”

“Ah, this.” Lucifer looked down at her body and sighed, lightly prodding her chest with one finger. “This is what I looked like long before the war began. This is what I was like before becoming Queen of Hell.”

“…All the myths say Lucifer’s male, so I just-”

“…Uncle Lares, I really don’t think that’s the most important issue.”

“R-right, sorry, Eric, Lucifer.”

She chuckled loudly and went to smack Lares on his back, her hand passing through his body and reforming from the mist. “It’s fine, it’s fine! And Eric, listen to me. There are no true bad guys in war because everyone is fighting for what they believe is right. Although, I must confess, after an eternity of fighting, I don’t remember why we were even fighting to begin with.”

“You fought that long that you forgot?” Lares questioned.

“No one knows how long we fought one another, but it was long enough that trillions of our people had died and we stopped counting the number of years we fought long ago.”

“Who won?”

“I did. I stormed into the heartland of Heaven, burnt it to the ground and attacked Eden itself. We forced our way into the city to God’s palace and I struck him down. I lost billions of my people doing that and I thought that I had done it, that I had brought peace to my people.

“Unfortunately, the Angels did not surrender even with their creator lying dead at their feet. The Archangel Michael lead a counterattack against us, taking with him nearly two thirds of the Angels with him and fought against us. I engaged Michael in single combat and we killed one another.

“The next thing I knew, I was inside your arm being thrown by a Necromancer.”

“Why do you think that you fought God?” Eric asked.

“I said I didn’t-”

“But why do you think you did now?”

Lares and Lucifer were both a little taken back by Eric’s question.

“Hmm, I hadn’t ever thought about that,” Lucifer said. “If I had to say why I rebelled, it was probably because I always thought of him as a tyrant and I imagine he must have thought that I was one as well. Perhaps it was as simple as that.”

After she reflected silently for a few moments, Lucifer slowly began to fade into her mist form again. “For now, I will return to the Armour and I will rest for a while. When I’m awake, feel free to talk to me, Eric.”

“Lucifer, if you ever do take my nephew’s body, I won’t hesitate to kill you,” Lares threatened him to which the demon chuckled.

“Would you now?” Lucifer mused before disappearing back into the Armour.

“Well, that wasn’t how I imagine this conversation would go,” Lares confessed with a forced laugh. “Food for thought I guess, food for thought. Anyway, I’ll contact you as soon as Bunny is sighted, so stay alert for the next few weeks, okay? Goodnight, Eric.”

“Goodnight, Uncle Lares.”.

Eric looked down at his left arm and frowned. Before I was only in danger when I was using my powers or when I was in a fight. Now, my life could end in an instant on Lucifer’s whim. I have to find a way of keeping her entertained so that doesn’t happen. Maybe it might be worth talking to her often to build up a relationship between us. For now though, I need to focus on getting stronger and stopping Bunny.

Right now, that’s all that matters.

***

Bunny was stood in the shadow of a tree, gazing curiously at the tall building before her, her clothes still freshly stained with Stephanie’s blood and, gathered behind her, were nine of her puppets.

The block of flats had eleven floors, not including the ground floor and the rooftop, and every single one of those flats was occupied.

Someone, carrying a full bag of shopping, walked into the flats and Bunny titled her head.

She had just confirmed that the last person living in the flats had come home for the night.

One of her puppets stepped forward, her strawberry blonde hair running down her face, with more than a dozen recent stab wounds in her chest that were still open and rotting.

“Time to play,” the corpse said, smiling gleefully.