Silence filled the training room as I lifted my head from its declining posture. I still clenched my newly formed weapon tightly. I wouldn't allow it to leave my side. Genesis, seeming satisfied with the results of his efforts, began to walk past me to the door. I immediately stopped him in his tracks letting the metal of my weapon tap against his chest.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?"

Genesis took a subtle breath before turning his head back to me.

"Training is over."

He tried to move forward, I pressed the sword further in. Any more pressure would force the blade to break skin.

"You aren’t going anywhere until you give me answers."

Genesis sighed with disappointment as he turned to face me.

"Are we really going to do this again?"

"I don’t know. Are we?"

Genesis took a moment to himself. I waited patiently, yet unwilling to remove my blade away from his path. Finally Genesis had his answer.

"You've got some nerve to think you can order me around…"

"What?"

Just then Genesis grabbed my sword arm and put me into a hold. In seconds I was on the ground, screaming my head off.

"You bastard! You heartless fucking bastard!"

Genesis showed no emotion as he tried to keep me from struggling. Eventually he decided the best course of action was to twist my arm until the bones within snapped from the tension. I cried out in pain as Genesis let off me and I coddled my wound. My sword hit the ground with a clang and vanished back into my mind. I was too focused on my arm as it slowly began to reshape itself. I could feel every little tug on my nerves as my regeneration worked as best as it could to heal my broken arm. Genesis unsheathed his claymore and pointed it directly at my head.

"You ever thought to just move on. Accept the fact that your father did what he had to do for a reason and you are in no place to question that."

I lifted my head up and stared right along the edge of that sword and into Genesis' eyes.

"Don't talk like you're him… Don't say another fucking word."

I began to stand up off the ground as I started to feel my arm return to normal.

"You wouldn't be alive if it weren't for him so maybe you should start being grateful to him. He would be so disappointed-!"

I screamed as I charged forward. My fist collided with Genesis' face and sent him to the ground.

"I was content to just beat the shit out of you until I felt better. But you know what!? I don't think I'll be fine until I tear you apart!" I shouted with an almost bestial roar.

Genesis knew it was going to happen again. I had been volatile ever since the news broke. Sparks of white lightning began to flash around me as I started to dive deeper into madness. Genesis quickly summoned a Mind Gate to enter his Child of Eden form. He was going to need all the power he could get his hands on.

Genesis loomed over me with the might of his Child of Eden form. I didn’t know the limits of my Second Seal, and I didn’t care. Strategy didn't matter. All that mattered was having more than enough power to kill my enemy. I didn't even realize how far into the madness I was falling. Genesis made an attempt to snap me from my state as he vanished from sight in a split second. He appeared before me in a flash and sent his fist smashing into my stomach. I gasped for air as Genesis' strike sent me flying back into the wall. Genesis slowly approached me, his eyes glowing with a blue light. Anger and blood lust was coursing through my body as I forced myself free from the crater I left. I snarled and dashed forward at blinding speed. My fists were charged with crackling light energy. I was ready to lay into Genesis bare handed with everything I had. Genesis blocked the strike with his blade and attempted to force me back. I slammed my knee into his gut, knocking him over. I soon launched him back with a devastating upper cut. Genesis took too long to get off his feet, in that moment I struck him. I merely blinked to him and laid into him with a rage fueled fist. Genesis couldn't block it in time and he was sent careening into the wall. I stood watching his body go limp and simply started to walk. I felt lost in my own anger. Genesis could tell. The fight was going to get dangerous for him if he didn't do something to restrain me, and fast. In that instant, he resorted to one of the many techniques he kept hidden away. A technique which, for him, was brimming with nostalgia. Genesis opened up Mind Gates all around me. I watched as countless blades were flung from their Gates like missiles. My body was impaled on blade after blade and I was soon brought to the ground. Genesis merely uttered a single word as I tried to force myself up.

"Bind."

Before I could react, the swords began to pin me the ivory floor. I felt like an immense pressure held me at the ground. I couldn't move. Blood poured from my multitude of wounds as I snarled and growled like a feral animal. Genesis slowly approached me as I tried to pry myself from those blades. I had to get away, somehow. I had to fight back. But that was the thing, I was long since buried deep within my own mind. Genesis crouched down before me and spoke softly to my violently writhing form.

"Commit this to memory Heaven… This is what is in store for you if you push yourself too far."

*****

I felt myself falling endlessly. My own head was swallowing me up. The abyss wrapped me up like a sheet. I fought desperately for air as I wrestled against whatever force sought to drown me. I felt buried beneath an unimaginable weight and awoke in a tomb of my own making. When that feeling of suffocating beneath a blanket of shadow grew unbearable, the light appeared. I could stand on my feet. I looked around and saw none of the constructs of my mind, just blackness. Where I stood I was surrounded by the faintest of lights. From the shadows I heard footsteps. Before long I was face to face with one of my mind's constructs.

"Been a long time kid."

"You son of a bitch."

I ran up towards the image of my father that appeared before me, nearly punching him right in his teeth. I fumed at the site of my "father's" smile. How could he smile like that after everything that happened!? Even if he was just a memory, he had guts, just like the original.

"You lied to me! You lied about everything! Why!? Why did you do it!?"

"Kill Nina's parents?"

I was silent as I fought every urge to strike that image of my father. I wanted to expel it from my mind, but my thoughts had no power. I was inside my head while my mental landscapes were being manipulated by whatever instinctual force controlled my body.

"Nevermind. You're just a memory…"

"Your mother and I were scientists working on an important project-"

"I know! It's why you were barely around!"

The image of my father remained silent for but a moment, before speaking once again.

"Nina's mother lost her mind. She believed that what we were doing couldn't continue, and so she decided to kill as many as she could. I put her down to stop her after she already claimed several scientists lives."

"What are you-? You're just a memory. How can you-?"

"Know things you wouldn't? Let's just say I found a way to leave behind messages for you. It's complicated… But it doesn't matter now, what matters is that you understand the truth."

"You really did kill them?"

"Yes. I had no choice. When I put down Colette, her husband, Alexei, was enraged. He confronted me, but even he knew that he would have to die too. If he were to kill me, your mother would have avenged me. The cycle of violence would have never ended. Alexei knew that, so he went easy on me and I took his life. I just never suspected their daughter, would come after me."

I tried wrapping my head around it all. It made so little sense, but I could feel the truth in my father's voice. He wasn't lying, but he most certainly wasn't telling me everything. There were details omitted, that much was certain. But I didn't have time to prove that theory. I had to regain control over my body. It was upon that conclusion that my father gave me his parting words.

"There is a lot that you don't understand, but stay patient. The answers will come, I promise. You'll need power for what is coming next. If you want to find the truth you will need to accept what was left for you. If you choose to do just that, all you need to do is simply start walking forward. I'll see you around, kiddo."

Those were the last word spoken by my father's memory as it faded away into the blackness. I found myself reaching out to the fading apparition, desperately clawing at nothing as the realization slowly dawned on me.

"Come back. Dammit! Come back!"

I fell to my knees and looked up at the blackness overhead. I could barely keep my breathing steady as the urge to cry out in pain filled up my heart's vessel. A flood of emotions spilled forth as my mind and soul broke apart. Nothing made sense anymore. It was all a mess, a mess I had no idea how to fix. Hell approached me from my mind's abyss and offered a hand, which I took hesitantly. He lifted me up off the ground with a sigh.

"You really need to get that anger of yours checked out."

"Hell…"

Hell glared at me with his sanguine shaded eyes. I felt my heart start to sink as I realized what I did to him. Breaking my Second Seal forced him into the deepest layers of my mind. It was like he was drowning. Now I was drowning with him in an endless sea of my blackened subconscious. I couldn't apologize, it would be a waste of breath. The two of us just stood apart with little we could say. The silence was overwhelming as the shadows slowly stretched between us, clouding our view. I walked closer to Hell and stood back to back with him.

"I really fucked it up… Didn’t I?"

"Yeah, but I'm a part of you, I understand your pain more than anyone."

"I know…"

"So what are you going to do now?"

I looked ahead of me at the ever growing darkness in the distance before finally making my decision.

"I'm gonna see where this goes… He may have been a liar, but he doesn't just tell me to do something without a reason. Maybe there really is something buried in my head…"

"I'll stay here, try to see if I can claw my way out of this nightmare of yours."

With a friendly nod I left the side of my other half. I trudged on through the long cold dark as the horizon flashed with visions of my own making. The "sky" of my mental expanse became a mirror reflecting my thoughts and memories. All the time that led up to the moment I would be sucked up into this dream. It was like a surreal film shot through the lenses of my own eyes. The further I walked, the more the images began to fade. A light shone ahead, a light that I was walking towards. When I finally passed through that gateway, I was astounded to find myself in a field of sunflowers. The sky was the most vibrant shade of blue, with soft teals and greens weaved in to it like a tapestry. The clouds were colossal and moved like ships on the wind. How deep did I have to go to find a place like this in my mind's expanse? As I began to step forward through the flower field another figure came into view. It was a strange silhouette. The silhouette of a woman. She was wrapped in a simple white slip. Her skin was as pale and pristine as the clouds overhead while her hair was black as the abyss I had escaped from. Standing next to her was this humanoid mass of light. I could hardly make out its features, but I could distinctly perceive the figure of a man. I felt myself stop in place as a peculiar sense of fear cling to my heart. I didn't want to see the woman's face. There was a part of me that knew who she was. I saw that very part of me rush passed my legs. My childhood self-ran towards the woman with laughter. Once upon a field of sunflowers, I saw the frolicking dead. That was when I recognized a single word to describe the woman. The realization threw me into shock as the field and the figures within it were swiftly overtaken by shadow. I returned to reality with a violent scream as the fear and the pain returned.

*****

I felt Genesis' blades piercing through my body and holding me hostage in union with the floor. The ground felt wet, sticky, and warm. I was bathing in my own blood as I cried out. I had to do something.

"Mind… Zero…"

I struggled to utter the mantra taught to me by my father. I had to reset my brain, regain focus, but I was in too much pain. Genesis wasn't holding back this time, though he had long since reformed back to his normal self. Even still, he wasn't going to let me win. I couldn't call back my anger. I was afraid. Genesis' strength was overwhelming. I couldn't focus. My mind stayed locked on the image of the flower field, unable to completely focus in on it. I couldn't return to it. I knew what waited for me there. I had to go back. I had to see her. I struggled to push up against the blades that crucified me to the ground. Genesis only made them weigh down on me even more. I screamed out and tried once more to reset my mind.

"Mind Zero!"

In an instant, Genesis' blades were shattered by an unexpected eruption of force that emerged from my body. Genesis stepped back and readied his claymore as I stood up, gripping my light blade. I smiled to myself slightly as I heard Hell's voice return to me.

"Welcome back, Hev."

"Glad to hear you made it out."

"Yeah. Let's finish this already."

I dashed at Genesis. Sparks of light flew from my blade as he blocked my strike. I swiftly maneuvered my blade underneath and slashed into Genesis' side. Genesis clenched his teeth as my blade pulled from the wound. I brought my sword back and glided it across Genesis chest. Genesis leapt back as blood erupted from the wound. Slowly, his wounds began to close as he charged forward at me. I matched him strike for strike. I could see his movements before he made them. Genesis was growing enraged. He swung at me with all his strength and pushed me back several feet. He took a moment to look me over, something about me had changed.

"You're starting to figure it out… It makes no difference!"

Genesis summoned a large Mind Gate that soon enveloped his whole body. As He began to emerge from the Gate, Hell shouted to me in a panic.

"He's going to use Child of Eden!"

"I know!"

I dashed towards Genesis as fast as I could, but it was too late. I had to try and reopen the Mind Gate. Genesis wouldn't give me the satisfaction. He dashed forward, his fist slamming through the wall as I dodged to the side. In that brief moment, I surrendered my consciousness to Hell. I needed time, Hell could buy it for me.

"You're fight is with me now, Gen," Hell said in his typical cocky manner.

"Don't be so full of yourself."

Genesis leapt towards Hell. Hell stepped to the side as Genesis' fist came crashing down into the ground. The shockwave from Genesis' impact was enough to launch Hell into the air. Genesis chased after him and drove his fist into Hell's skull. Hell took the hit hard and returned it back with as much power as he could muster. Genesis dodged Hell's sword strike and appeared behind his opponent. He grabbed Hell and forced him into a headlock before sending him careening downward like a meteor. Hell hit the ground full force and struggled back to his feet as his bones forced themselves back into place. Genesis fell down on top of Hell and landed another strike to the skull. Hell was smacked back into the crater he left only for Genesis to grab the Demon by his shirt collar. Genesis started to beat into Hell with quick and powerful strikes. Blood slid from his nostrils and the crevice between his lips as he struggled to break free. When he was satisfied, he tossed Hell up and slammed his foot into his stomach. The kick sent Hell skidding across the ground. The blow was enough to force me back into control. But Genesis gave me distance. I had a shot.

"Mind Zero!"

I began to focus everything I had on a single image. A weapon. Something that I could use to contend with the Child of Eden. I had to think of something. I could feel my Gate beginning to open. I had to just reach in and pull free a blade. But the Gate began to shrink. My concentration was waning. Fear crept into my mind once again.

"Come on. Come on. Come on! Don't fucking do this! Not now!"

As the Gate closed, Genesis was on the move. He was practically gliding right for me. I ducked underneath his strike and dove forward. I had to gain distance. I laid down suppressing fire with my beams. Genesis deflected them all. Even my dark matter did nothing. Was he that strong, or was I too scared. Genesis pushed through my barrage of beam fire and was on me once again. I tried to open the Mind Gate once again. Nothing. Genesis simply reached out and grasped my throat.

"You still haven't completely grasped the feeling?"

"Shut up!"

I struck my hand out and fired a massive blast of light matter from my palm. Genesis took the full brunt of it, yet he still stood.

"This place is your home Heaven! Are you just going to let it die!?"

"You're wrong!"

Genesis flinched, not expecting my response.

"I never cared about this city! It never mattered! Home was wherever my father was, but he is gone now! Not only is he gone, I know now that he lied to me! I have no home left! What reason do I even have to fight anymore!?"

Genesis sighed and looked at the ground. He quickly flashed his gaze upward and launched himself forward. I raised my swords to guard his strikes. Genesis unleashed a gauntlet of punches that I did my best to dodge. Sound erupted from our connecting strikes as Genesis laid on the pressure. I ducked underneath Genesis' strike and managed to run my blades into his stomach. I tried to push forward and knock him down with my weapons lodged inside his flesh. Genesis kneed me in the stomach and kicked me to the side, my blades vanishing as I broke concentration. I was curled up on the floor coughing blood.

"I'm not going to keep fucking losing to you… I'm done letting you push me around!"

Genesis simply drove his foot into my gut once more. Blood shot out from my mouth as I choked on my own life.

"Prove it to me then!"

I struggled back up to my knees only for Genesis to drive his knee into my face and knock me down again. He quickly summoned his Mind Gate and pulled Serpent free. He swiftly drove the sharp shortsword into my shoulder and through to the ground. I screamed out in immense pain as I tried to remove the blade. Genesis merely twisted Serpent inside my shoulder, grinding it against flesh and bone.

"Hell…"

I tried calling out to anyone who would listen as Genesis retracted his blade only to drive it through my hand. I cried even more in anguish as I struggled to endure it all.

"Hell, take control!"

Hell returned to the surface and forced me back to the landscape within. He tried to wrap his hands around Genesis' neck and slam his head into the floor. Genesis removed Serpent from Hell's hand and slashed at him. The weapon glided cleanly across Hell's neck. Hell grunted as he forced his regeneration to work overtime. Genesis merely bashed Hell's head with the pommel of his blade, knocking Hell down and forcing me back into control.

"No!"

Genesis kicked me over and drove his blade right into my leg. Serpent penetrated my femur and with a twist, snapped the bone in two. I screamed louder than ever as I lost feeling in my leg. Pain numbed my muscles as I tried to crawl away from Genesis. Genesis merely let his sword carve through my leg as I did everything I could to get away.

"Hell… Please!"

"I can't Hev! He'll just force you back out!"

"Someone! Please! Make it stop! Make it fucking stop!"

Genesis quickly ran his boot into my mouth and knocked out a few of my teeth. My regeneration was struggling to keep up with every new wound that appeared on my body. Genesis made good on his promise. I was breaking apart. I was backed into the smallest corner. I had nowhere to turn to. I was reduced to a weeping, babbling child by Genesis' strength. He didn't even need to use Child of Eden. It was merely there to instill the fear. As Genesis continued to break my mind and body down, I felt a familiar warmth return to me. Genesis was about to stab my soft flesh once more when I spoke suddenly and softly.

"Please… Bael..."

*****

I was dragged back into the deep abyss of my mind once more I stood back in the field of sunflowers, letting the breeze fall upon my skin and put me at ease. I was face to face with that bizarre light once again. I now had a slightly better look at thing up close. It looked like a man, yet not a man at the same time. It was hard trying to comprehend what I was seeing, but when you are inside your own mind you have all the time in the world. I approached the light and reached out to it. It felt solid, like a body of some sort. It grasped my hand in a gentle, yet firm grip.

"What are you? A fragment of consciousness?"

"No."

The entity spoke. It had a voice, and it was a deep and bellowing one at that. It was the voice of a beast, or maybe a monster. Not a single human quality aroused itself from that single, guttural syllable.

"What are you then?"

"A gift."

I sighed to myself. That being was too vague for its own good.

"Alright, a gift from who?"

"Your mother."

I froze. The mental landscape began to change with my emotions. A still breeze blew through the field carrying silence on lofty currents. I felt an empty longing grasp at my heart. I never met my mother. I could barely remember her face. The first and last time I ever gazed upon her beautiful face was the day I was brought into this world. I was able to manage on my own. Father made a life for me that completely overshadowed the loss of my mother. But, for the first time in my life, I missed her.

"What does my mother have to do with any of this?"

"We had a deal. Her blood flows through your veins."

"So now it's my job to continue the deal?"

The entity seemed to shimmer as if it were moving. I thought it might have shaken its head.

"No. The deal is complete, my blood too flows through your veins."

"What does that even mean?"

"It means that my strength is your own."

"But who are you?"

"Bael."

That name sat upon my ears for a few moments. Bael was a powerful name. It was the name of the first king of Hell itself. It was a name meant to invoke fear. That name now had something to do with me. I had a feeling there was a lot more to the Demons than Lockhart led me to believe. But then again, when was Lockhart or Genesis ever honest to me? When has anyone ever told me the truth? A name like Bael was not to be taken lightly, and I had a strong feeling it had something to do with the reason we were called Demons. I clenched my fist tight. Just thinking about all the lies and deceit that filled the moments of my new life made me sick to the stomach. With an almost enraged glare, I gazed upon Bael.

"So why are you here now? Why not show yourself three years ago when I nearly died?"

"It was not the opportune moment. Your mother and father were aware of what your future would entail. When the first few moments of that future arrived, I would appear."

"What a load of bullshit…"

"Do you want to see her?"

Yet another still breeze reflecting my hesitation and disbelief. I clenched my fists tighter and stared deep into Bael's luminous body.

"What did you say?"

"Would like to see your mother again."

"What are you talking about?

"Is that you?" a soft voice suddenly asked from behind me.

I slowly turned around. Part of me didn't want to look. Part of me thought it was too good to be true. The other part of me thought that if my father could leave me messages somehow, then she could too. Wouldn't you know it, there she was. Time slowed to a crawl as my eyes were laid upon one of the most beautiful women in all creation. The woman who carried me and gave me my life in exchange for her own. My mother was standing right in front of me. The two of us were standing in that field of sunflowers. My heart broke in that moment as the setting sun shone on my mother's black hair. She was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen, and it brought me to my knees. A single scream broke the silence of that field of flowers as I lost all control. Tears fell upon the soil as I wept. I couldn't wrap my head around it anymore. Just what the hell was wrong with my head? How could Bael show me my mother? As I continued to let my tears fall I felt the warm embrace of my mother. She helped me back up to my feet and let me cry into her shoulder.

"I miss you… I miss you and Dad…"

"I know sweetie. I'm sorry I couldn't stay and raise you like I wanted to."

I only began to sob more as all of the regret filled my heart. It was like I had forgotten that she passed and I survived. I felt horrible, and my mother knew that better than anyone. She placed her hands upon my tear stricken cheeks and looked deep into my eyes with her own lenses of silver.

"I'm so sorry. I knew this day was going to come… I never thought that it would happen like this."

That was when my own mother began to cry with me. Her own regret swallowing her whole. The regret of not being there when I needed her. The regret of not being able to be a real mother and raise me. The regret of not being able to watch me grow. All of it came rushing at her at once. But worst of all, she regretted not being able to stand by my father and protect me. She regretted not being able to save me from all the pain I had to go through. She blamed herself more than anyone.

"I'm so sorry. Your father and I, we love you so much, and we wish we could've given you a better life."

I was stunned. My mother was apologizing to me. Was I hearing things? Was all of it real? I felt like it truly had to be. Somehow my parents were able to speak to me. I didn't understand it, I didn't want to. It didn't matter. Fate gave me the chance to finally get closure. I finally had a chance to truly pick myself up off the ground and I was going to take it. I looked at my mother as she wept. I wiped the tears from her eyes and tried my best to smile. I wanted the last thing she saw to be my warm smile. I wanted her to know I was going to be okay. I wanted to overcome it all, just so that my parents could smile back at me from the great beyond.

"It's okay Mom. Dad did an amazing job on his own… You don't need to blame yourself for what happened. I'll survive it all. I promise you that. Now that I finally can see you, I feel like I have a reason to keep moving now."

"I wish I could have watched you grow to become the man you are now. You are going to do great things. That is why I left Bael to you. Use him, he will be more helpful than you realize. I'll be watching you, always."

"Are you going away now?"

"Yes, but no matter where you go, I will always be right next to you."

I smiled as tears streamed down my face. One final embrace before the ascent. I met with a goddess once upon a field of sunflowers. A goddess whose name was Mother.