Gun of Ashes

In the darkness, for some unknown reason, Froki’s figure grew twisted and hideous, radiating a terrifying aura. The two of them couldn’t see what Froki looked like at all, yet the pressure he exuded pressed down on them, as if some man-eating beast was lurking in the dark.

”M-My Lord...”

Galron tried calling out, and at the sound of his voice Froki squirmed, crawling out from the darkness.

The once familiar face had become saturated with hatred; the features of a mortal twisted together, drool running down from the corners of his mouth. Froki was bound, dragging himself along the floor with force, like a maggot, yet also like a beast trussed up in ropes.

”What... what happened to him?”

Galron had never seen Froki like this. Though he had gone mad, he had never been particularly aggressive, but now he seemed as if infected by something, turned bloodthirsty.

”From just now, I’ve felt something stirring us, Galron.”

As if in a lightless forest, being watched by a bloodthirsty beast.

Cliff keenly sensed this uncanny influence; human instinct filled him with fear toward this unknown aberration, to the point he even forgot any honorifics for a moment.

Listening to Cliff’s words, Galron seemed suddenly awakened; once the haze shattered, everything before his eyes came into sharp focus. In an instant, all the information broke through their barriers, surging into his mind.

That strange sensation of something lurking right beside him grew ever more distinct; Galron could even hear those ceaseless murmurs, the voices thick and viscous, impossible to break free from, while at the tip of his nose the stench of the sea wind coiled ever more foul and fishy.

He could even hear the dripping of water, as if it were rainwater falling after a storm, as if it were waves draining off the deck, as if it were saliva left behind from a beast’s maw...

It felt as though some invisible monster was prowling around them at this very moment. Mortals could not perceive these aberrant presences, yet like reflections on water, Galron could not touch these uncanny beings, but could sense how they overlapped with reality, leaving their shadows imprinted upon the real world.

This increasingly nauseating sensation, a mind constantly sinking, a field of vision being gradually warped.

Galron could not see them, yet he could feel them.

”Ah!”

Froki let out a roar of rage. He writhed closer to Galron, trying to sink his teeth into him, but Cliff threw himself forward just in time, pinning Froki firmly beneath him.

His struggles were vicious; Cliff almost couldn’t hold him down, and only then did Cliff finally recognize the power slumbering inside Froki.

Over these past months, Froki’s madness had left his body increasingly wasted, as if he were a man on the verge of death. Anyone who saw such a sickly frame would think him frail and powerless, yet now it was as if Froki had never lost that strength—his raw power was astonishing.

”Hold him!”

Galron finally pulled himself out of his panic; he too threw his weight onto Froki, restraining him tightly.

The grappling did not last long. Cliff grabbed the extra rope and wound it around several more times; at last Froki quieted down, curling up in a dark corner, every so often letting out beastlike breaths.

”What do you think... this feeling...” Cliff asked Galron, still shaken.

Only after they had awakened from their numbness did they truly become aware of the uncanny atmosphere filling the cabin. They had pierced through illusion, and thus glimpsed the real world.

”I... I’ve heard my Lord describe this feeling,” Galron seemed to have some memory drawn out; he stared at his trembling hands. ”This sensation of your heart being clutched tight, this feeling of your blood freezing cold along with it.”

”It is fear from the depths of the heart, reverence from the depths of the heart, a ship laden with offerings, presenting blood and glory to the God.”

Galron whispered words Cliff could not understand. Froki had once said them to Galron; back then Galron had been as lost as Cliff was now, utterly unable to comprehend, and Froki had only smiled and told him that when Galron felt that power himself, he would naturally understand the meaning of those words.

In the next moment, Galron wrestled himself upright; bracing against the wall, he struggled to stand until he could see the world outside through the porthole.

It was a dim world. A hazy gray mist fused sea and sky, like a wall set before every wandering soul.

”We... have stepped into the Divine Domain.”

Galron murmured.

...

”Notar, how’s the situation?”

Bola walked wearily into the command room. To prevent any Demon from hiding aboard, he had just led a team to sweep the entire Morning Glow Advance. The good news was that there were no Demons on the ship; if there had been, they were now corpses. The bad news was that the hull was more badly damaged than they had expected.

”Still manageable. We’ve moved out of the enemy’s firing range, but it’ll take some time before we can shake them.”

Notar spoke, tightening his coat around himself.

The temperature inside the command room was very low. It too had been affected during the fierce battle, its windows shattered, cold wind rolling through the room. The Soldiers had only just patched it up not long ago, but it was nothing more than a rough repair; wind still leaked through the gaps, making one shiver uncontrollably.

”The influence of the corrosion still hasn’t weakened?” Notar asked again. ”The Geiger Counter won’t shut up—it’s too damn noisy.”

”I don’t know, but it’s still within normal bounds. This stuff lingers for a while.”

Bola walked over to the table, where a Nautical Chart had been nailed down along with some other documents. He stared at them with exhausted eyes.

First he had gone with Lorenzo to crash that casino, then to abduct Froki, and after that came this brutal sea battle, for which Bola had even donned the Armor of Original Sin.