Victim

“---Ah.” It hurts…

I thought as I fell down. Suddenly having lost nearly all my strength, I managed to not completely fall as I am crouching on the ground with one knee up.

My head and ears are ringing… What is this?

“Are you okay?” Lumi asked. I couldn’t tell what expression she was making but from the tone of her voice, she’s probably worried.

“Yeah… it’s just a headache. Don’t worry about it.” I replied.

“I see, then just rest, you’re obviously too tired even with the nanomachines supporting you so, leave it to me, I’ll take care of what’s left.” She explained.

I can’t rest… yet.

“No… not yet, I can still help.” I responded.

“Then suit yourself.” She said.

Everything hurts… I can barely move. Sameal is already dead but I still need to get Kiara out of here. I can’t fall now. I don’t want to leave everything to Lumi. If I relied on her to save Kiara for me then it would lose meaning.

The reasons I agreed to do this for would be meaningless in the first place.

I know that this is selfish and that it doesn’t matter as long as Kiara is saved but…! I agreed out of selfishness in the first place.

That’s why… it would be meaningless if I passed out now. My head may be aching, my ears ringing, my wounds pulsating but I don’t need to mind this.

Using the left-knee that’s already up, I channeled all my remaining strength and raised myself from the ground. As I stood up, I picked up my knife that was on the ground.

The headache isn't going away… my vision is getting blurrier by the minute.

I turned to the side where the pit of wolves was as I focused my gaze in the middle of it.

Samael's dead, all that’s left is to free her from those things and escape from this place.

I slowly turned my head from right to left looking at my surroundings. Puddles of blood were spread nearly everywhere along with wolf corpses.

Good, I can use that. I thought as I lifted my arm along with the knife and aimed at her body.

I need to cut those tentacles individually and pull her here without dropping her to the pit.

From holding Sameal in place earlier, I can sort of understand now how to properly control it. It’s not going to be very accurate but not bad either, it’s going to be just right…

“-Ah. ha….” I uttered as the headache suddenly upped in intensity.

In the wrist of my right arm, the same arm I’m using to hold the knife, something similar to a bruise had appeared.

I paid It no mind and focused on my task. “Haaaa….” I quietly breathed in the air as I was about to utter the command.

But before I could, someone placed their hand on my left shoulder. I quickly turned my head only to see Lumi with a somewhat serious expression.

Suddenly the headache stopped, my ears stopped ringing, but the bruise that just appeared still remains. “Not yet.” She said.

What was I doing…? I thought as my vision was getting clearer and clearer. “We’ll do it together….” She added as her lips curved into a light smile.

“Ah, ah…” I helplessly uttered.

My mind… I don’t know, I feel like I was about to pass out and was going to use blood to free Kiara from that cross. It felt right but not at the same time. Was it that primordial personality thing? “Don’t use your ability, if you do you’ll collapse, I’ll explain once we get out of here but for now just follow my instructions.” She explained as she let go of her hand from my left shoulder.

“Uh, okay…. Can we really save her?” I asked.

“Yeah, after all if we couldn’t then I wouldn’t have offered you that choice.” She replied.

“I see, then what do we do now?” I asked her as I slowly felt my strength come back to me again. This is probably her nanomachines doing their work…. I thought as Lumi turned her gaze to Kiara.

“I’ve been doing some thinking… there’s plenty of things I understand while there’s also plenty of things I don’t. Eden, what do you make of her right now?” She asked with a stiff expression while I also turned my gaze to the cross.

Tentacles stabbed in her, pale skin, lifeless expression. I also noticed these things earlier but because I was in that state, I was only able to recognize her face among other things.

Giving birth to wolves at an alarming rate… there can only be one thing which the tentacles are used for.

Human biology is something that stuck to me when I learned it in school. Back then I already knew of the ‘dirty’ side of things thanks to the influence of my former friends.

Females have eggs while the Males have the seeds, it’s due to the union of these two things that makes reproduction in humans.

However… that knowledge is only ever slightly useful here. Because what I’m seeing now is something out of the realm of fiction and fantasy.

I admit I’ve read something that’s similar to what’s happening right now, but only once. There can only be two possibilities here.

One is that the tentacles distribute the seeds which then in turn ovulate in her eggs, but out of the two it is most unlikely because there is only the wolf.

If wolf seeds were to ever be ovulated in a human egg, I think that it’d turn out to be something like a hybrid but I remember something called Mendelian law.

From what I know, it’s something like one gene completely dominates the other gene. Meaning it’s possible from my understanding but I consider it unlikely because It does not make sense at all.

The second possibility is that those tentacles distribute the eggs directly to her womb for it to give birth. I consider this the best possibility because the tentacle things just deposit eggs for her to give birth to.

Simple, but it also makes sense.

Ugh… I can’t think straight because of all these.

Anyways, it’s just something like that probably. I’ve only gotten average grades in science so, what I’m thinking might not be very reliable.

My body feels normal though I still feel mentally exhausted. “What I make of it… is just gross, I’ve thought up some possibilities but it’s hard to explain them.” I answered Lumi’s earlier question.

“I see, then let’s take action. Just standing around here and trying to think what she is right now is wasteful.”
“I agree. I’m mentally exhausted so let’s go.”

“Okay…”

“So, how will we get to her?”

“Hm?”

“You said it yourself didn’t you? If I use my ability now I’d collapse for some reason.”

“Yeah, that’s why I’m going to freeze the pit.” Freeze? Oh, yeah I remember seeing those ice from earlier, it’s probably another function the device she’s using has.

I’m tired…

“End To Eternity.” She uttered then starting from our side of the pit, it froze from the ground up until our level. The ice slowly spread out as several seconds pass until finally it had covered the entire pit, leaving only the upper part of the cross and where Kiara is held. “Let’s go.” She added as she quickly glanced at me and started walking on the ice.

“Ah, sure…” I replied as I followed after her.

The headache gone but my head feels heavy. It feels like it’s still there when it isn’t. Maybe I should follow her advice and just let her handle it… but I’ve gotten this far. My selfishness would’ve been wasted.

It’s alright, I guess… I just need to endure this a little more and I can just sleep, forever preferably.

My body’s wounded all over, I probably can’t help her without those nanomachines… I should just die when I confirm that Kiara’s safe and sound.

That way, Lumi wouldn’t be burdened with me and I’ll get my wish. I’ll get to continue on where I left off before she had stopped me.

Lumi is… a capable person.

I’m sure she could handle her target alone without me.

I already know…

She could’ve used the ice to help her reach Sameal earlier but she didn’t. Instead, she reached out to me and took a risk. I know she didn’t mean anything bad about it, it’s just that I feel a little bit hurt.

My body felt hot as I felt the sweat on my body and breathed a little heavier than normal.

It’s heavy… I’m tired, I want to rest.

Soon, we eventually reached the cross and stood below it.

I didn’t look upwards so as I don’t accidentally see her nether region.

“Main Armament.” Lumi voiced a command then her usual sword had materialized in her hand. “I’m going to cut those tentacles.” She said as she crouched but before she could lift her feet off the ground something had exploded above.

She paused then properly stood up as we both looked at the source of the noise. I stepped back a few steps and then I saw it.

Kiara’s right arm which was hammered into the cross had slid out and was hanging in the air as it was being carried by the rest of her body that’s still on the cross.

“”Eh?”” We both uttered in unison as in the next moment her right arm moved and rips all the tentacles attached to her.

Did she regain consciousness? Huh? I thought as I focused my gaze on her face.

With her lifeless expression, I noticed her skin getting paler and paler than before, even more so than Lumi’s already pale skin. “Please… help me!” I heard Kiara’s voice speak directly through my brain, this time without the headache.

I started to breathe in and out, faster than normal.

“Eden, run back!” Lumi shouted as she turned and ran as I also followed suit.

Our feets stepped again on the stone floor of the cave as it escaped the icy ground. We both turned back only to see Kiara? Ripping off the last tentacle and falling to the ground as her body slides off the cross entirely.

She landed on the ice without incident but as she slowly raised her body up, I started to feel an immense pressure come from her.

“What is going on?!” I exclaimed but then as she fully stood up and our eyes met, I then felt her icy gaze from her lifeless eyes alongside the immense pressure she’s emitting. “This is bad…” Lumi commented.

“Kiara is that you! Please… speak!” I shouted.

“Who. Are. You.” She spoke in a loud yet monotone voice.

“It’s me Eden! You might not recognize me because of this body, but please trust me!” I shouted again.

It might be a bit of a stretch to ask her to recognize me as Eden when my body turned into a girl’s but still.

“I. Do. Not. Know.” She replied.

What’s going on… I know it’s Kiara but right now, what I’m feeling is not her. The Kiara I know is a quiet and shy person but the last time we talked she seemed so cheerful. But now, she feels dead just like how her body looks now.

Lifeless, dead, diminished.

I don’t know anymore…

“Eden, this might be a different person entirely, it’s a possibility that she might’ve awoken to another personality.” Lumi said.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“Eden, she’s been through a lot. Forced to give birth to an immeasurable amount of wolves, crucified on a cross, think about the pain she went through.” She replied.

That’s right… I’m an idiot. I didn’t even stop to consider what she’s been through. I only childishly asked questions because of what I’m seeing right now.

I clenched my fist.

What am I doing…? I can’t think straight, my exhaustion is getting to me.

”You. Disturbed. Me. I. Will. Proceed. Kill.” Kiara said in a broken sentence and in an eerily cold monotone voice.

Suddenly as I was having trouble processing my thoughs, she suddenly appeared right in front of me. “Eden!” Lumi shouted as Kiara drove her left fist into my gut. “Gah…!” I uttered as I coughed up blood and went flying.

Crack.

The moment my back had crashed into the stone wall, I felt some of my bones crack simultaneously.

Just as I fell to the ground, Lumi had started moving and swung her sword horizontally in Kiara’s direction but she quickly lifted her feet off the ground, jumping into the air as she evaded Lumi’s attack.

“Uh..guh…ah. haah… haah…L-Lum-i! don-‘t kill her-!” I spoke as I tried to shake off the pain, while trying to move my entire body.

I tried to move my legs but they wouldn't budge. I can’t feel it, it’s as if they’re no longer attached to my body.

Why won’t they move? I can’t afford to just sit here, I need to help… I thought I could recover quickly with the nanomachines.

If I remember correctly, the nanomachines she transfers to me enhance my physical abilities.

That means… it includes stamina but, why can’t I move? My stamina should be recovering even if I’m injured.

At first, I thought the nanomachines were something that does more than what she said given that it allowed me to move even when I’m already injured all over before we started to fight Sameal.

But now I see it, it’s true…

She said physical abilities, meaning it does not heal or recover a body part that is too injured to move. Right now, I am absolutely useless.

I can’t fight, I can’t stand, I can’t use my ability, and I can’t help.

All I can do now is support Lumi by watching. Just because I can’t move physically doesn’t mean I can’t help her with tactics, I can still help!

Help…

What can I help her to begin with?

Tactics? I’m sure she had that covered, I’m useless, I can’t help her with anything after all..

[***************?]

No, I don’t need you to go away.

[**********?]

Yes I’m sure… you’ll just be as useless as I am.

[Are you willing to die to help her?]

I am, but you’ll probably hinder her.

I closed my eyes and immediately my consciousness went to darkness.