Rogue Adventures - A Tale from Neverbeen Universe

28

Together they finally managed to incapacitate the rampant shadow devil. But it was only a temporary measure, Thanatos knew that and he assumed that Rhagkal knew that also. Dusting off his three-piece suit he sighed. To think that things would get out of hand so quickly. While Rhagkal shouldered the subdued shadow devil, Thanatos went to the body of the demon formerly incarnated as Sendrith.

"It's a bit of a pity," Rhagkal stated as Thanatos extracted the fragile soul and stored it carefully, "he was a good toy, one of my best. I got him when he was a little boy, one of a pair of twin demons. He was so defiant back then, and he could sustain a lot. So I molded him into the perfect tool, his mind was so easy to bend to my will. I spent a lot of time sculpting him into the creature he had become."

Thanatos didn't even blink and kept a straight face. He very well knew how cruel this Daemon was, and Sendrith had been very unfortunate to have grown up under Rhagkal's care. But Thanatos didn't pity Sendrith; there was no need to as the demon's life had ended. The Reaper thought of employing him for reincarnation right away, so he might forget his former life and start anew as someone different, someone... less unfortunate.

"Let's get going and get backup from Hell. Lucifer's son probably is keen on stopping Raphael also. And if I'm right about my suspicion we need all the sealing experts we can get to prevent the end," Rhagkal thoughtfully added. Thanatos nodded and together they returned to the Otherside. This time they didn't even have to convince Phobos; he was already waiting by the portal, and Ayumu was with him.

"I'm really sorry," the witch excused herself, "I didn't know Raphael would steal the orb and run with it. The Old Man and he seemed to be such good friends."

"The Bloody Frailtard is not my friend!" Phobos insisted.

Thanatos didn't care. He nodded at Ayumu. "Not at all. Please excuse me, this is entirely my fault. I should have taken this issue more seriously and adopted the appropriate measures," he apologized.

"We don't have time to place the blame on anybody," Rhagkal interjected, "We need to stop Raphael right now, or we won't get to see tomorrow."

"Then let's not waste any fucking time anymore," Phobos growled, then teleported them to where Azrael, Gene and Rhaleigh were fighting Raphael... and another creature?

Thanatos blinked. He had never seen this creature before, never felt her lifelight. It seemed as if she had none, which was entirely impossible; or at least it should be. If he didn't see her there, Thanatos wouldn't have believed she existed. This creature had no aura at all, and the Reaper couldn't even perceive her with his heightened senses, except for his eyes.

It seemed as if time had no meaning for her; that she existed outside of time and thus outside of everything that lived and existed. It reminded Thanatos of the purpose of the experiment he, Rhagkal, Rhaleigh, Rhaíth and Morpheus were undertaking. And speaking of said experiment, he noticed how it had failed — how they had failed.

"Shit! Is that the Bloody Frailtard?!" Phobos exclaimed, seemingly shocked. "What the Hell happened to him?"

Thanatos could only imagine, this was what Raphael looked like when his seals were broken and the dark vile power stored within him was unleashed. Though he hoped this was not the case. Because he wasn't sure if all of them were enough to stop Raphael then.

He held his breath and scrutinized the Daemon he called his best friend. There was hardly anything left of the man he used to know so well. He was shrouded in a dark aura so menacing that it abhorred everything that lived. It oozed a coldness which devoured lifeforce itself. Raphael's skin had turned pitch black and his hair had become white, as if someone had inverted his colours. His power had skyrocketed and exceeded his usual energies by far.

Thanatos blamed himself for this development. Had he not been so lenient with his friend, he might have interpreted the signs correctly that Raphael was up to something, then the whole Neverbeen Universe would not be at the verge of destruction.

Hopefully, with their united strengths and capabilities they would be able to prevent the worst from happening. Raphael needed to be sealed again, this destructive power needed to be controlled. Together they had a slim chance at succeeding, but alone this Daemon unleashed was indeed imbattable.

But Thanatos was more than worried and less than optimistic in regards to this task. Raphael had already been one of the mightiest Daemons alive and dead alike. Yet this dark power was strong enough to extinguish worlds within the blink of an eye, and Thanatos could perceive that it longed to destroy. However, they couldn't let this happen; Thanatos couldn't let this happen! He would stop Raphael, he just had to at all cost.

Because it had been his blunder, his responsibility, his friend gone rogue.