Chapter 21 - The Ritual

Chapter 21 - The Ritual

Reve couldn't deny his curiosity surrounding the tragic slaughter of Ren's family.

While Ren tried to suppress that painful episode from her memory, it remained vivid in his mind.

The attackers had mercilessly taken the lives of her twin brother, elder brother, and mother. They cunningly employed Ren as bait to lure her father, cruelly tormenting her by exposing her recklessness and naivety, which was the ultimate cause of her family's fate.

She was the one who had ventured out of her mansion, driven by an innocent heart, to save an injured man. She sneakily brought him into her home, against her family's rules.

However, little did she know that the man she sought to save was not wounded at all.

During the incident, Ren suffered a severe blow to her head and was presumed dead. Yet in a twisted turn of events, she woke up amidst the lifeless bodies of her loved ones, surrounded by the ghastly sight of her father's corpse brutally mutilated and set ablaze upon a stake.

That was the joke of it all. A painfully evident irony—the wrong person had survived.

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In an attempt to avoid resurrecting painful memories, Ren erupted in anger with narrowed eyes, "What the hell are you talking about, Reve?!"

Their gaze locked momentarily, and Reve felt himself drawn into the depths of her ravaging red eyes, before forcefully snapping back to reality.

"Just hear me out," he implored, his voice filled with wariness.

"Gaeryns are structured species. They are disciplined. They exist solely within clans, nothing else. It is undoubtedly certain you have gaeryn blood in you, but from who?"

"Based on what you told me, it is either your father, or your mother, or both. But I would assume it's your father. Even in your memories, he is a man of many mysteries. He forced your family into a reclusive lifestyle. And he never spoke about his past. Just why?"

"Why was he hiding? What was he hiding? I believe if you delve into the night of that dreadful event, you may uncover some irregularities that hint at the potential motive of your attackers. It is highly likely they came for your father!"

Ren stumbled backwards, her eyes trembling with a mix of fear and confusion. "What are you saying?"

Reve lowered his tone and softly replied, "Nothing, actually. These are all theories, but the fact stands: there is more to you than meets the eye. There is a story between your clan and your family, and I think you should be aware of that."

Calen leaned on the door, a sly smirk playing on his lips as he interjected, "Fully agree with Revey. I mean, what are the odds of encountering a gaeryn in a backwater place?"

Reve responded with a hiss. "What about you? I mean, a living cambion is just as rare as a gaeryn."

Calen shook his head dismissively. "You shouldn't talk, Reve. You are a titan. There is no human in you. Come to think of it, aren't you like a mutated cat? Do you want some milk? I could give you a lot of milk. All sorts of milk."

Ren shot Calen a look of disgust. Reve, however, did not understand what Calen meant. He looked to Ren for further explanation.

Ren went closer to him and whispered something into his ear which caused Reve to blow off.

"You cursed degenerate!" Reve shouted. He conjured his telekinetic powers, lifting a nearby chair and hurtling it forcefully at Calen.

Calen instantly begged, "Hey. Hey, stop. I was just joking. Don't be violent. That's right, I remember now! I came to tell you something."

Reve stopped his assault and glared at Calen with a hint of skepticism. "What?"

"You know those guys you saw yesterday? The pretty lady that is kinda like Ren–ouch!"

Calen swiftly dodged a second attack from Ren and continued, "Well, they disappeared last night. But check this out. Unlike the other disappearances, their room's chair was broken, possibly from an initial struggle. But that's where the signs stopped."

Reve frowned deeply, his mind racing. "It took Val and Kallum?"

How was that possible? To abduct the two cultists without even a single bloodstain. Even he wasn't capable of doing that. As a matter of fact, he wasn't sure how he would fare against Val. At this moment, he understood the secret to Kallum's weird ability. But Val was much more dangerous than Kallum. Without the Beast, he wasn't confident he could take her on.

If this thing could take them, then everyone was in grave danger, including himself!

Ren mumbled, "How is it doing that?"

Reve spoke his mind, "It could be anything; poison, sleeping gas, magic. But whatever it is, it's untraceable to even someone as skilled as Val. "

"Would it come for us next?" Ren asked.

"It could," Reve replied.

Abruptly, the ship's speakers hollered with the commanding voice of the captain.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. This is Captain Havoc. As much as I desire to attend to our ongoing matters, there is a pressing situation that demands my immediate attention. It is official. We are now traversing the treacherous waters of the Devil Strait. Effective immediately, we will initiate radio silence protocol and implement energy outage reduction in three…two… one!"

As the captain's voice trailed off, the room's illuminated lamps dimmed, plunging the entire room into a darkness that spread out for the ship.

A sense of foreboding enveloped Reve as he made his way towards the nearest window. Peering out through the circular pane, what he witnessed made him frown.

An impenetrable haze, akin to dense smoke, veiled the surroundings, rendering visibility impossible for even Reve's keen eyes.

Amidst the eerie atmosphere, his ears perked up, catching the haunting hymn emanating from the depth of the ocean.

'What is that?' Reve thought as his curiosity grew evermore.

Calen approached him, his voice laced with unease. "The songs of the sea. I have heard about it. It is a bad omen. They said those who hear it are destined to meet their demise."

Ren furrowed her brows. "Yeah, I asked around previously. This is where every ship dies. All except Tryphon. I still don't understand how that is possible."

Reve silently mused, 'As long as we don't encounter trouble, I don't care.'

Ren suddenly said, "I want to summon Barbas now. Can you do it, Reve?"

Reve turned to Renn, locking eyes with her. Why the sudden change of heart?

The three had discussed the rituals days ago. They agreed that until it was safe, they shouldn't attempt it. Moreover, Ren wasn't exactly a fan of the idea.

"We are in a crisis. The "ghost" might come for us tonight. We need to unveil it, and I also have questions about my background. Something tells me the following days are going to be hell!"