Chapter 51 - Do You Believe in Me?

“Such a foe cannot be beaten,” Sharinne forestalled my words. “It is the Lord of Infernum, Tyrant of the Chaos Gates. He is not one a mere mortal can match, not even for one such as you, Devourer of Souls.”

I opened my mouth in a defiant snarl, but Sharinne lifted a wearied hand in my direction in a pacifying gesture.

“At least, not yet,” she finished.

I closed my mouth as I was forced to recognize I could not even properly comprehend the kind of power the mysterious god had wielded, let alone devise proper countermeasures. At the very least, not until my soul power was fully charged. Maybe then, and that was a big maybe, I would be able to drill a nuke up his uppity ass as well.

Sharinne must have read some of this in my expression, because she shook her head sadly. “Lord Seth, you must understand. This soul construct lies at the brink of collapse. The power of the Crimson Soulgate is nearly spent, and shall not flourish again until a thousand years have passed.”

“What are you talking about? Didn’t you say you’d resurrect Sol within two hundred years, even without my aid?”

“Indeed, but such an undertaking is beyond my hands now. The last essence of this Soulgate has been channeled into the reforging of Sol’s soul. Thanks to the power of your will, such a process has been hastened to an unprecedented degree.”

“Then why would you fuck us all over by peeping on that badass bastard?” I demanded, shaking my fist at her.

Sharinne only smiled tragically in my direction. “Lord Seth, I have known since our fight was ended that my life would be at an end shortly. I also divined that forces beyond the scope of your comprehension would shatter everything our clan had endeavored to nourish and protect for untold thousands of years. Please do not presume to think I made any decision regarding this matter lightly.”

That took me back a step. Did she mean she had known all this would happen?

“Then your eye..?”

Sharinne’s expression turned bitter as she liften a hand to her forehead, which lay bleeding still. “It is of no consequence, Lord Seth. The wheels of fate had been set into motion from the moment you walked into the Labyrinth of Souls. No, perhaps even earlier than that.”

Sharinne’s sole remaining eye seemed to glimmer with sympathy towards me, and watching this sad, crippled creature actually feeling sorry for me was just scary as hell, I must admit.

“Doom stalks your every step, Lord Seth, and though you know it not, your every action prompts an equal reaction on the grand cosmic scale.” Sharinne lifted another hand to forestall my question. “I know not why your fate is so inextricably linked to the central loom of fate which governs our universe, and I feel at peace in such ignorance, for the little which I already know of your future already drives a chill into my soul which not even the fires of dragonkind are able to ablate.”

“Story of my life,” I muttered. “At least tell me what the hell is going on. Who is this Avernus?”

“Prince of Chaos, he, Warrior of the Hellhost, God of the Infernum. Many worlds he has subjugated under his ruthless fist, and more yet to come. Still, he answers faithfully to only one mistress, she whose name shall not be uttered.”

From this last bit I could tell Sharinne would be pigheaded about the topic of the mystery boss lady, so I skipped right to the practical bits.

“What are his powers? How about his weaknesses? How soon can he get here, and what can we defend ourselves with?”

“Wielder of the Chaos Sword, Champion of the Infernum Hosts, Victor of the Infinite Arena. His might cannot be matched by mere mortal strength, nor his sole weakness exploited by human cunning.”

“Stop speaking in riddles, damn you! This involves both you and Sol’s lives!”

“A balance must be struck, Lord Seth. It is the gentlest of winds driving forward the divine sail, so that the vessels of the future might sail where we have not trod. Stronger winds might impel stronger actions, yet in the end tear delicate sails asunder and spell our doom.”

I grunted as I threw my hands up in frustration.

“Rest assured, Lord Seth. A single path I have seen, where a balance may be struck for life, that of you and your companions.”

“And what’s the price?” I glared at the Seeress.

Sharinne let a small, bitter smile stretch her lips as she laid a hand upon her own chest.

I could hear Shia’s sharp indrawn breath at the same time as I felt a rock sink in the pit of my stomach. Betrayal, I could stomach just fine. After all, I was used to it. Sacrifice, especially that of others for my sake, this tasted far fouler to me. I hated owing anyone, for anything. And a debt like this could simply not be repaid, even if the main recipient was Sol instead of me.

My gaze, however, lost much of its heat and impatience as my chest let out a deep sigh, thinking of everything that had transpired thus far.

“The vaults of knowledge and relics, the time you gave us, your pace along the endless corridors, it was all planned.”

Sharinne smiled appreciatively. “I see you understand. Yes, Lord Seth. I have seen this future a thousand times. We have battled, you and I, many times over. In each a different result, down infinite paths. And yet, struggle as I might, I have been unable to avoid this single decision which ultimately is not mine to make at all, but rather lies at your feet.”

Sharinne nodded towards the Soulgate, still cascading with shimmering layers of power. “Therein lies Sol, final Champion of the Crimson Flame, sole heir and hope of my clan. Companion of the Keeper of Souls.”

“Also therein, you shall find the soul of one Keeper of the Soulbound, Artificium Magnus of the ninth order, Codex of the All-seeing and First Key of the Fatesealer.”

Feeling like I’d been thunderstruck, my fingers went numb and my hairs stood on end as I gazed deep into the eyes of Sharinne, Seeress of the Crimson Flame, and found no untruth in her words.

“Shia..” I whispered, disbelieving.

Sharinne closed her eyes, letting out a deep breath as she tilted her head back.

“Indeed, the one you have come to know as Shia.”

“What happens if I choose Shia?” I whispered.

“Mommy, no! You can’t!” Shia cried out, but my gaze remained fixed upon the dragon prophetess.

“My oaths bind me to tell no untruth, and thus I shall speak with candor, Lord Seth,” Sharinne responded, her eyes still closed but her words swift and firm as though she had the whole speech rehearsed ahead of time. “Shia is currently damaged almost beyond belief. That she has been able to evolve to such an extent in your possession is a testament to the power of your will and the strength of your bond. However, should you recover Shia’s true soul, the effect would be an unimaginable magnification of her powers, both in scope and depth. This is the Artificium Magnus, a masterpiece of the ninth order. With her powers unbound and aiding you, your wildest ambitions and fantasies may come within the grasp of your fingers. You would gain complete mastery over your soul powers, and beyond that, dominion over the realms of the All-seeing and the first key to unleashing the Seals of Fate.”

“Mommy, Sol needs us,” Shia whimpered.

“What if I choose Sol? How will she aid my cause?”

Sharinne spread her hands in a helpless gesture. “She is young and untrained. Her potential lies largely untapped. Though her talent is the most outstanding our clan has seen, perhaps ever, she is still mortal, still bound by the chains of causality. She may grow into a loyal companion to the Keeper of Souls, a bulwark against your foes and a blade against the Endtide.”

“May?”

“She’s no Artificium Magnus, if that is what you are asking, Lord Seth. She’s a girl who will need careful guidance and attention. An unknown variable, as all living, sentient beings are.”

I frowned at this. “You don’t do a very good job of representing your own interests, Keeper.”

Sharinne lifted a corner of her mouth in a sad, self-mocking smile. “I did not choose my powers, Lord Seth, and neither do I discriminate in my burdens. I am bound to tell the truth, and nothing but the truth.”

I closed my eyes, sighing deeply as I thought of all of what I had sworn to achieve. Vengeance against those who had destroyed my world.

One last melody of madness and death in honor of my Sophia.

Surely, surely she would forgive me this one small betrayal so that I may sing that song, then be buried alongside her memory?

The enemy lay so close, yet so far from my reach. When would I ever have an opportunity such as this? The temptation of power so absolute at so instant a price? Surely, it would damn my soul, but it was already damned. What mattered another soul or two added to this gruesome tally? Especially when it was most likely a simple electronic copy of someone’s brain. It shouldn’t, couldn’t be a real, live person.

Could it? Was Sol alive? Would it matter if I sacrificed her for the sake of my revenge? And ultimately, did I care enough? I had tread upon countless lives to walk the blood-soaked path I now stood upon.

I needed my revenge. It was all that sustained me.

Sol, she would be fine. If not, then it was simply another black mark on my heart, weighed out across the countless other scars branded upon it.

“Mommy, please, you can’t abandon Sol,” Shia cried out mournfully.

Yes, I could. You just never knew me well enough, Shia.

“I believe in you,” Shia whispered, soft like a fading dream.

You shouldn't. You can't, came the automatic reply from the darkest depths of my heart.

“Do you believe in me?” She finished, pure and strong like the breath of new spring.

I rocked back in my feet, feeling as though I’d been absolutely floored. When was the last time someone else had believed in me? Who had last said those words?

“I believe in you, Michael Lee..”

No, don’t. You can’t. No one should. No one can.

“Do you believe in me?”

Oh Sophia.

My heart suddenly threatened to explode in my chest. Those had been the words, her words that would never fail to bring forth the impossible, the unbelievable from me, one Michael Lee.

My Sophia.

Miracles were possible, not because I believed in them, but because I believed in the one person in whom I had absolute faith. The one person who would never let me down, and whose faith I could never bear to betray.

Sophia, what would you want me to do?

That, at the very least, was obvious. Such a stupid question. With all that had been going on in my life lately, I had forgotten the reason why I never asked that last question anymore.

Because the answer was always unequivocal, and it would always, always win in the end.

“Shia,” I whispered.

“M.. Mommy?”

“Forgive me..”

“No Mommy, we must help..!”

Smiling bitterly, I raised my hand towards the Soulgate and screamed out my decision before I could change my mind.

“Soledad, come back to me!”

Sharinne’s eyes went wide and maybe this whole thing would have been worth it just to see that expression on her dumb mug. She looked like I’d clubbed her on the head with a mangy goat’s hairy ballsack, she looked so astonished for a long moment.

Then she no longer had time to do anything else as the Soulgate finally exploded in one cascading shower of lights and a familiar face finally began to emerge from the crimson depths of the soulgate.

“Thank you, Mommy..” Shia whispered tearfully in my ear, and I had to wonder at the fact that my daughter could be so selfless when I was such a greedy, selfish bastard.

Guess sometimes you’re just lucky like that.

“Thank you, Shia,” I whispered, and a rare smile of unadulterated gratitude lit up my face.

*TTRIING!*

System Alert: Your Soul Guardian has gained a new matrix crystal!

Your words and actions have reached the Soul Guardian’s innermost heart and nurtured one of its deepest, most treasured values, irrevocably evolving its very nature.

It will forever remember this lesson.

Matrix crystals: 2/2.

Core Matrix crystals: 0/1.

*TTRIING!*

System Alert: Your Soul Guardian has fulfilled the requirements to evolve a Core Matrix crystal.

Would you like to evolve now? YES NO

Staring numbly at the notification before me, I pressed YES.

A blinding surge of light burst forth.

“Mommy..”

Little did I know, it was the last time I would hear that call.