Akame Ga Kill - Split The Earth In Two, Quake

Chapter Sixteen: The Path of Peace

Minazuki stands in the world inside his mind looking up at Quake, who seems annoyed with Minazuki's presence in his world. "What is it, Mortal? Do you have nothing better to do than bug me?", Quake asks in an irritated tone. "I need to know about the one you called Befalla and the other Gods you talked about.", Minazuki says to him. "Oh, that story. Very well, it was long ago. At the very dawn of time, we were created. By who, we never knew, but we knew our purpose; shape the land however you see fit. And we did. We created this world and slowly, living creatures appeared.", Quake begins to explain. "We?", Minazuki asks as he sits down to listen to Quake's story. "I was not the only God to shape this world. There were six of us in total. Befalla, Shol, Aquarius, Raii, Akatsu, and myself. We shaped this world into what it looks like today, though you mortals have changed a few things.", Quake explains. "So, you know that Befalla is part of Esdeath's Imperial Arm, correct?", Minazuki asks with a hint of doubt. Quake glares down at him and says, "Like I've said before, each Imperial Arm gives off its own unique aura. But this aura is actually that of the danger beast within the Imperial Arm, just sealed by strong barriers within the weapons. The aura I sensed from Esdeath when she used her Imperial Arm was exactly that of Befalla." "I see, so she was somehow turned into an Imperial Arm like you were. Do you know if the other Gods were made into Imperial Arms as well?", Minazuki says as lets out a sigh. "Through Shoryu's time on this planet, we saw many Imperial Arms, but not all. The ones that we've seen along with those ones in his journal, other than Befalla, are not them. It's possible that they were also turned into Imperial Arms, but that isn't for certain.", Quake replies as he starts to contemplate the idea. "Since Esdeath has one of the Gods as the spirit of her Imperial Arm, then that's probably why she's so strong, right? She probably found some way to use the full force of Befalla's powers.", Minazuki says causing Quake to laugh. "She hasn't even begun to tap into Befalla's strength. Those powers are just the the beginning of something so much more.", Quake explains with a slight grin. "What do you mean? Are you saying that it's possible to get even stronger than where Esdeath is now!?", Minazuki asks with a hint of enthusiasm. "Yes, though, it requires a great deal of effort. Shoryu and I were studying the concept before his passing. He didn't have time to add it to that damn journal he kept.", Quake replies. "What is it?", Minazuki asks heistally. "To the user, an Imperial Arm is nothing more than a tool, but to the soul inside the Imperial Arm, the user is nothing more than a conduit for their power. This is how I explained the idea to Shoryu, and how I will explain it to you. When the conduit, or the user in your case, has their mind meld with the danger beast's soul, or the Imperial Arm, then they become something more. The soul is then able to unleash their full power through the conduit.", Quake explains. "So this melding process synchronizes the 'conduit' with the 'soul' then?", Minazuki asks. "Correct. Their individual thoughts are eliminated and become one. Their thoughts, desires, and feelings are then one and the same.", Quake replies. "Have you seen this before? An Imperial Arm melding with its user?", Minazuki asks. "We haven't seen a successful one, no, but you have seen a failed attempt yourself, remember?", Quake says as the image of Meno and the Ripper pop into his mind. "Yes, that was a failed attempt at melding. Meno attempted to meld with that girl too early, which gave her some of the power, but drove her mad in the process. Luckily, you dealt with her before she became a serious threat.", Quake says with a slight chuckle. "I see, so what do you think went wrong? You said something about Meno attempting it too soon. Does the soul always have to initiate it?", Minazuki continues his questioning. Quake groans and says, "Mortals and their questions. There are two ways for a melding to start; natural or forced. A natural melding is done when the conduit's and the soul's minds and desires properly align, then they become one. But when it's a forced melding, usually the soul attempts to take control of the conduit's body and unleash their full power. This can lead to dangerous side effects, as you've seen from the 'Ripper' as you like to call her." "A forced melding can do that much damage? I guess they just want released so badly that they don't care about the user at all.", Minazuki says as he starts to think about it. "Of course not, most users don't even know the soul is there. They're ignored as the conduit uses their powers for whatever they choose while the soul is left there like a caged bird.", Quake replies in a slight fit of rage. "I see, then most users aren't even able to meld with their Imperial Arms then. At least, not naturally.", Minazuki says as he continues his train of thought. Quake continues to growl at the thought of ignorant users wielding Imperial Arms. Minazuki looks up and says, "Quake." This gains his attention and he shouts, "What is it now, mortal? More questions?" "No, I wanted to thank you.", Minazuki replies. "Thank me?", Quake asks in slight disbelief. Minazuki nods and says, "You've been quite helpful. You've told me a lot about this melding process, you've let me borrow your power many times over, and you saved my ass back at the old base in that fight against Kaksan. Thank you, for everything." Quake's glare softens just a bit before saying, "Mortal, there is technically another way to meld I believe. But it hasn't been proven yet." "Really? How?", Minazuki asks. "It's not quite a forced melding, but it isn't a natural melding either. A stronger soul might be able use their power to force a melding between another soul and that soul's conduit before eliminating the other soul and giving all the power to the conduit. It's only a theory Shoryu suggested long ago, but after the many years I've had to think about everything since then, I believe it could be done.", Quake explains. "You mean, that an Imperial Arm can force another Imperial Arm and that one's user to meld and then eliminate the danger beast's soul to give full control to the user?", Minazuki asks in amazement. "Yes, though it would be like killing the beast a second time. It should grant the user power on the same level as a natural fusion, though they probably won't truly understand the full extent of their power without the danger beast's soul there to guide their hands.", Quake says in a more hesitant tone. "I see, that would be like killing a caged animal...I see why you didn't mention it before.", Minazuki says as he looks down. "That is one way to think of it, but remember, each of the Imperial Arms are made from an ultra-class danger beast. These souls aren't exactly puppies and kittens.", Quake says in a more serious tone. "But you can relate to them, right? You've been trapped in here for a thousand years just like they have. To be trapped for so long, then just killed for your power would be-", Minazuki starts to say before Quake says, "A cruel fate to some, but to most, it'd be a sweet release." Minazuki looks up to him with a confused look before Quake says, "Many of the danger beasts they used to make Imperial Arms aren't supposed to live a few hundred years, let alone a thousand. It could be considered agony to let them live on like this in a cage, being simply for their power alone." "I see... I'll take all this into consideration. Thank you for the information.", Minazuki says as he stands up. "Now go mortal, I'm tired of this discussion of ours.", Quake says as he curls up and waves Minazuki off with his giant dragon claw. The world begins to fade around Minazuki and everything turns to black.