Chapter 14 - Zariel

Chapter 14 - Zariel

"When a titan learns its truename, that marks its second birth."

.

.

.

.

.

Ravriel stared down at the Beast, sensing an inexplicable aura emanating from the titan.

In an instant, its eyes flickered open, and its stare pierced through Ravriel's very being, as though he could see beyond the physical form and into his soul. To his surprise, the ferocity in the Beast's gaze had vanished, replaced with an eerie calmness.

"Ahh, what is this? Another trick of yours, I suppose, Reve Amethyst." he snarled with arrogance.

The Beast's stare intensified and blood began to seep out from its eyes. Suddenly, Ravriel felt a thin pain in his back. When he looked behind, he found the sharp parts of a car prickling into his thick skin. Most of the parts bent upon pressure, but some of them drew a thin stream of blood.

Ravriel cackled wildly. "What did you do, Reve Amethyst?"

The Beast's eyes strained intensely, and in a split second, five cars flew into the air and collided with Ravriel, sending him hurtling across the ground.

The Beast coughed up black blood as it limped along the ground. It had almost forgotten how difficult it was to perform these feats.

Drawing on its instincts, it tapped into the latent powers that had manifested from Reve's consumption of the primo. It felt a telekinetic force wrap around its body, hovering him two inches above the ground.

Ravriel approached the Beast, unharmed and unbothered by the previous attack.

He hissed, "Telekinesis. Amazing, I am yet again reminded of how much I abhor that ability."

He scrutinized the Beast and sneered, "I have figured it out. You are not the Beast. What name do you bear now, Reve Amethyst?"

The Beast opened its bleeding mouth and replied, "Zariel."

Ravriel nodded, his suspicions confirmed. He had studied Reve Amethyst for so long that he understood the young titan more than he understood himself.

The Beast operated with no speech. It was one of its hunting rules, and would never betray it ever.

"I see. Reve Amethyst, you have surprised me. For so long, you despised the Beast, yet in the face of true danger, you made peace with it."

Ravriel sneered, "How annoying. Your desire to survive is irksome."

"The only thing dying here is you," Zariel replied.

"Ha. And how do you intend on accomplishing that?" Ravriel scoffed with an air of superiority.

"Stay still for a second, and I will show you. [Maelstrom]!" Zariel opened its mouth and unleashed a crimson blast from the same energy Ravriel used, further confirming Reve Amethyst's merge with the Beast.

By merging, Reve Amethyst now accessed his titan attribute, allowing him to manifest his racial abilities like [Maelstrom]. Whenever a titan experienced a powerful surge of emotion, they could gather worldly energy into their mouth and shoot it off ferociously.

It wasn't that hard for Zariel to learn.

Zariel darted towards Ravriel using [Morai]. When paired with telekinesis, the true potential of the technique was unleashed.

He moved at an insane speed, cutting through the wind as he grabbed Ravriel by surprise and hurled him into the distance.

Ravriel used the momentum to pick himself up and grabbed Zariel, smashing him through the walls of the building they flew into.

Suddenly, Ravriel realized that Zariel had escaped his grip.

Zariel appeared behind him and landed a kick to Ravriel's spine, causing him to wince as he felt more pain than Ravriel, but it wasn't enough to make him stop.

Zariel held on to Ravriel and jumped out of the building, intending to plummet the older titan to the ground. But Ravriel anticipated this and turned just in time before he could fall to the ground. He used his weight to crush Zariel as they fell to the ground.

Zariel felt his adrenaline leave him almost instantly. He was out of energy and any more telekinesis would kill him.

Ravriel rolled to him and sneered at the sight of Zariel covered in his own blood.

Ravriel snarled with a hint of finality in his voice, "I have to say, Reve Amethyst, you have earned my respect. You came so far in this battle."

"Fuck off, man. You watch too many movies."

Suddenly, Ren stumbled into the scene and threw a graviton grenade at him.

Ravriel caught it in midair and crushed it before it could detonate.

He opened his mouth and attempted to fire a [Maelstrom] but Zariel punched his lower jaw, launching him in the air.

As he flew down, Zariel calmed himself and unleashed a terrifying kick that saw Zariel's right monstrous leg graze Ravriel's chin.

*Chink!*

There was no loud aftermath, just the thin sound of metals clashing together.

Ravriel went to the ground, hugging his body as his golden blood escaped his orifices. He was temporarily distracted, so Zariel took advantage of it.

Zariel pulled Ravriel from the ground and hugged him before Ravriel could retain his composure.

"Calen, now!" Zariel shouted into the air.

Calen approached Ravriel, his face contorted with an eerie calmness. His hands moved in intricate patterns as he formed a strange hand sin, a demonic triangular symbol.

Calen spoke the chant, "Melkira!"

Suddenly, the shard embedded in Ravriel's head began to crack as a dark shade hovered over it. Splinters of shadows danced around Calen as though they celebrated the return of their prince into the world of darkness.

Zariel grabbed Ravriel by the throat and slammed him to the ground.

Ravriel sneered as he looked up at Zariel. "Was this your grand plan? You merely stunned me, but I still live."

While he couldn't move, he knew Zariel had no means of killing him.

Zariel collapsed to the ground, ignoring Ravriel as he reverted to the form of Reve Amethyst.

He coughed up blood instantly and gazed at his body, frowning. 'Ahh shit, I don't think I can move. Everywhere hurts.'

He heard the approaching footsteps of Calen and muttered, "Finish it, Calen. It's all up to you now."

Though he didn't quite trust Calen, he reckoned they both knew the real problem here. And that was what united them.

The moment Ravriel spotted Calen, he sneered, "A cambion. This is really a rare circumstance. A cambion, a titan, and a gaeryn colluded to stop me. Although, you failed."

Calen squatted, looking at Ravriel without blinking.

He smiled, "We didn't fail. You know, one would think you stole the body of the previous host, possessing it, but I think that is not the case. Is it, buddy?"

"Why are you telling me this?"

Calen ignored him and went on, "You need the soul of the host to keep the body alive and stable. You are more like a parasite. In that body of yours houses two spiritual entities; your spirit and the most important one—the host's soul. So, what happens when we take Mr. Crimson out of the equation? This is really exciting to find out."

Feeling the tense atmosphere, Ravriel said to him, "You can't do that."

Calen smirked, "I can. I just happen to have a numen that can extract numens out of others' souls. I don't even need to take Mr.Crimson's numen. All I have to do is break his soul and wreck the stability of your vessel. How bout it? Do you understand now?"

"It is nice killing you. No hard feelings. It is just… well, I couldn't resist killing a titan," Calen whispered into Ravriel's ear.

He formed the strange handsign again and began to chant.

When he originally attempted it on Ravriel, it backfired and merely stunned the balance in Ravriel's body.

But now, he would do more than that.

The chants grew louder and Ravriel felt a sense of dread wash over him. Suddenly, the shard on his forehead completely shattered and slipped away. He watched in horror as his vessel transformed to a lifeless husk

This was the aftermath of a titan's possession.

As soon as it reached the minute mark, the pieces of the shard gathered together and reformed.

Calen quipped, "Damn, you weren't joking, Reve. It is impossible to destroy the shard."

Ren picked up Reve, allowing him to rest on her arm.

She asked, "What happens now?"

"We need to leave before we draw more attention"

"I agree with you. I have no attention of becoming a hero," Calen shook his head.

Reve looked up and sighed, "No… did you forget you are wanted by New Order? What hero? They would send your ass back to prison!"

Calen pretended to be frightened. "Noo!!!"