004: Aftermath [Action/Video, Backdated to Darkness Event]

[beautifulmidboss]

[When Vyers finally regained consciousness, it took him a moment to remember where he was, what had happened. It was lucky he'd not been too badly burnt as the fire passed over where he lay.

Slowly, memories started coming back through the haze:

Lucifer. The hospital. His wings...

He had to get somewhere safe and make sure no one was hurt. If Lucifer's spell had worked, then those people would be...!

But every attempt to move was agonising - those gaping wounds in his side and across his back. His right arm and ribs heavy, sending stabbing pains through him, probably broken when he fell...

He couldn't get up.

Vyers lay there on the pavement for a little while - he needed to call for help, warn the others, work out what happened - but what could he do like this? That spell... The hospital could never have withstood a power like that.

Reluctantly, he reached for his videophone and - with great effort - managed to open a video feed. He would have locked certain people out the video, but right now it took almost all the energy he had to grasp onto it and get it working - the device had already been damaged by the long fall.]


[It was a few hours after the hospital's destruction when the shakey video comes on - distorted by a rather large crack across the screen - Vyers can be seen lying on blackened pavement, jacket torn and drenched in blood. The hand holding the device is shaking, so Vyers is only in the shot half the time.]

The hospital, I-- D-did those people-- a, anyone--

[Vyers' voice is raspy, delirious, talking through shaky breaths.]

Ergh...! Can't move… [coughs, his voice sounding more strained as he felt another twinge from his back.]

My-- my w-wings, he took--my--wings...

[A strangled sounding sob escaped him, the demon flinching as he did so. Everything hurt. Every little movement sending a flare of pain through his body.]

Thought I, could stop him...as--as I, did before… [coughs, blood running down his chin.]

That spell, it... The hospital…!

...Gods, help... them... p-please...

Comments

[ainoakuma]

"But...," she paused for a moment, "Why would you know about something about Laharl-san's mother?" He wasn't really saying much which slightly confused her.

[beautifulmidboss]

Why was this so awkward...? This was not something he planned to reveal to her anytime soon, but considering what he had said in his panic, he was not sure there was anyway he could explain this.

"I have my ways," he said. Vyers was definitely hiding something. "He is my rival, after all."

[ainoakuma]

Flonne shook her head for a moment. "It seemed like... more than that. It sounded more personal than that...," she stated.

[beautifulmidboss]

"Now I wonder why that might be..." he said. She was definitely getting closer, but when did Vyers ever make the truth obvious?

[ainoakuma]

Flonne tossed around the idea that Vyers could really be somebody close to Laharl somehow, but knowing that Krichevskoy had already passed on seemed unlikely. But even back home their world was a strange place. If Flonne could somehow come back as a fallen angel even after being punished for a sin she'd committed without really trying, what's to say something like that couldn't happen for someone else?

The way he was talking now sounded more and more like it was probably. Like he was cluing her in on something. It would make since if he'd said something like that to her in obvious concern for not only her but Laharl if she had ended up sacrificing herself.

"But... Is it possible...?" she thought out loud, trying to think of any other explanation. Her options were wearing thin.

[beautifulmidboss]

Aha. It sounded like she had an idea.

"Is what possible?" he asked.

Their world certainly was a strange one. Perhaps it was due to the exhaustion and the battle against a demon so powerful it nearly left him dead a second time, but by now, Vyers had dropped most of the theatrics.

[ainoakuma]

"I.... I'm not sure... but if it's possible for me to come back to live again when I really should still be a flower....," she started. She had the idea, but it was a hard thought to grasp. It would be explainable if it had been Genessia's doing, but it didn't seem likely that this started here.

"Are you....," she started to ask, suddenly at a loss of words. He'd even seemed different from normal. Or maybe if her theory was correct... it was never normal to begin with...? "This is going to sound really weird but.... your concern for Laharl-san.... The knowledge about things that should be otherwise personal and guarded.... Are you really... Krichevskoy?"

She knew Laharl enough to know that Laharl would never talk about things like that so openly. It was hard enough to learn about them herself when she found out about his mother. It wasn't likely that he'd talk all about it to Vyers of all people.

[beautifulmidboss]

A tired smile came into his face. He had wondered if she would work him out, given the hints he had intentionally (and unintentionally) left her.

"Correct…well done," he said, finally, giving her a moment to absorb that information. "After I died sealing the Tyrant Baal away…The Seraph used his power to bring me back. I needed to make sure my son became a good Overlord, in my place."

He chuckled a little - almost seeming older than he was as he did so - waiting to see how she would respond.

[ainoakuma]

And absorbing she was. She was shocked to hear that this "midboss" that she'd gotten to know and come to think of as a dear friend to her over all this time had really been Laharl's father the entire time and the past Overlord.

She was just about done processing all of this until he'd dropped another bombshell. The Seraph brought him back. So had they been friends that entire time? It wasn't unreasonable to think that when Lamington had turned her into a flower and she had been able to some how come back to life herself. It suddenly seemed to fit. While the details of how she came back to life were still blurry, everything seemed to fall into place knowing this.

"You mean... All this time....," she started, but stopped. He'd been looking out for Laharl the entire time and he'd become such a dear friend to Flonne. She couldn't help the small tears forming from the corner of her eyes. This time it wasn't sad tears per se as much as it was relief. It was clear that Laharl was very much loved, just like she'd always believed in.

"Does he know? And why didn't you make it known when you were revived?" she finally asked.

[beautifulmidboss]

Of course, Vyers had yet to tell her the entire story about his allegiance with the Seraph, but that could wait. He was sure she had plenty of questions of her own for him to answer first. For now, he could tell from her expression that she was putting the remaining pieces together on her own. Still, the tears were a bit unexpected.

"I believe Laharl has his suspicions, but I do not think he knows for certain," he said. "As for why… if I had approached him as the Overlord Krichevskoy, I think my efforts would have stagnated rather quickly. Whilst if I approached him as a rival, I could keep an eye and guide him in the right direction, if need be. Besides, it was time he learnt to rule as Overlord in his own right. If I had made my identity known as soon as I returned, I would have snatched the title from him - or, at least, my former vassals might have used me as an excuse to reject him as the new Overlord, in the beginning."

"Besides…" he finally added, tone wavering. "I am not as powerful now as I was then."

[ainoakuma]

Flonne listened to him quietly, still taking it all in. He had a point. He probably wouldn't have had much of a chance if he'd came out with his true identity. Everything made sense and yet it still seemed so sad to not be able to say who you really were to your son. And then he said the last thing that made this fight even more surreal.

She didn't have anything to say at first. What could she say? He'd been dealing with this for so long on his own. He was an adult (or as adult as you could be in demon/angel years) who had plenty of experience in his life by this point. Flonne may have been around for over a good 1000 years in angel and then demon years, but she was no more knowledgeable then your average human (not including special circumstances of course). She didn't know what you would do in situations like this. He was much more mature than she was, even if it was hard to see every now and then from his antics.

Her heart went to him. She reached around him to hug him again.

"I'm sorry to hear that, but you're with him at least. And... You're a dear friend to me. To think I could be friends with the overlord that Lamington-sama sent me to 'assassinate'. Now I know that that was never the real purpose and I'm glad to have been able to meet everyone," she said letting out a small giggle a the thought.

She wanted to help. She wanted him to know that she was here for him and Laharl. But what could she do? "If there's anything I can do to help... Please let me know. First thing I can do is do is to continue healing your wounds, but that's going to have to wait a little longer. I.. don't have the power to do it right now," she told him.

[beautifulmidboss]

Not being able to admit the truth was something that bothered Vyers, but the way it was at the moment, he was glad he had the chance to watch over him as he became ruler of the Netherworld, even if it was from afar. It was an arrangement he had long since grown used to. He enjoyed fighting his 'rival', watching him grow more capable every time they fought. It was a challenge, especially now that Laharl's power had surpassed his.

He was not sure what made her hug him, then, but he gently returned it. In his vulnerable state, the affection was something he appreciated. Although he was keeping his wits about him now, whenever he thought about the battle just past, he felt physically sick, especially with the messages that Lucifer had left him.

"Yes… I can at least watch over him, from here," he said, chuckling a little at her comment. "…I can see why the Seraph chose you for this task, to pave the way for peace between Celestia and the Netherworld. I do not know what he told you when you confronted him, or what happened in the fight that I imagine followed, but that was our goal."

Vyers hesitated. He wished he knew. "Thank you, but…take the time to regain your own strength, at least. In the meantime… I think my troublesome son needs someone to keep an eye on him, whilst I cannot."

[ainoakuma]

Flonne wasn't exactly expecting the comment towards her. It wasn't bad or anything, but hearing him say that to her was sort of comforting all on it's own. It was comforting to know who he really was, although that wouldn't change how she felt about him. He was still a dear friend to her. He still meant a lot to her.

"Oh well... I don't really think I'm that great or anything, but it is good to know the path I've taken so far hasn't been the wrong path. I'm glad to be of use," she said, flushing ever so lightly. "I don't know. This might be a little out of my pay grade," she joked, laughing a little after it, "but I'm so happy to have met Laharl-san and Etna-san. They may be demons, but they still have emotions and a heart too. They're still my best friends."

[beautifulmidboss]

"It is as I said when I first arrived in Genessia…we all have love in our hearts. Angels, humans, and demons," he said, managing a tired laugh. "Still…I must thank you for what you've done for him so far. You are certainly a good influence on those two."

After so long, it was nice to finally be able to talk freely about the truth. Especially to someone who was not only so close to Laharl, but someone who was also a dear friend to him.

"…Until I know for certain what Laharl knows, I think it may be best we keep this between ourselves," Vyers finally said. With everything else that was going on, revealing his identity to Laharl was not an issue he wanted to confront right now.

[ainoakuma]

"I'm glad to be of service, then. It's certainly hard to see from time to time, though. Laharl-san is still trying to take pudding cups. Do you know how hard it is to hide them from him?" she asked, laughing a little at the thought.

That being said, she nodded. That seemed pretty simple to understand. She doubted that he'd want Laharl to know if he wasn't sure if he did or not. "Of course. It'll be our little secret then," she said with a reassuring smile.

[beautifulmidboss]

"I did hear about the pudding cups... He really does have a sweet tooth. I suppose there is only so much harm that can come from demanding them, though." Vyers couldn't help but chuckle. Although Laharl was growing up fast, in some ways, his son had not changed at all.

"And yes... That would be appreciated. Thank you.." That would certainly make his life easier. He only hoped that he could stop Laharl challenging Lucifer.