???…
"Awaken."
The first thing Dachii noticed was the cold, dark room where he was lying. He rubbed his head and sat up. All around him were glowing light blue markings on the walls, and he appeared to be lying on some type of altar.
"Huh," he noted. "A ritual?"
He stepped off the alter and began to look around. The room he was in was particularly big, and there was a large double door at the end, which was locked by a massive padlock.
"Always some mysterious place I find myself," he thought. "Beautiful."
Without a care in the world, he walked up to the giant double door and studied the padlock. After a few moments, he pulled his fist back and punched it hard, shattering it to pieces.
"That was easy," he thought. "Too easy."
He pushed the door open and walked through the dark corridor into the next room. Without hesitation, he broke the padlock on the next set of double doors and entered, and when he did, he found a horrific sight.
"…?"
There were hundreds of decayed corpses lying on the marble floor, there were torches that seemed to have long gone out, and in the center of the room was a single pale white flame, which had little juice at this point.
"This place is old…" Dachii noticed. "And this…"
Dachii walked to the center of the room and knelt down, touching the flame. And when he did…
…his mind vanished.
???…
"Brother! Brother, help me! Please! It wasn't me!"
Dachii heard the voice of a girl nearby, and he tried to move toward it, but he didn't recognize the voice. Nor did he recognize his own body.
"Huh?"
His body seemed to be moving on its own, and the room around him appeared to shift. The bodies disappeared, the walls appeared new, and there was a faint light coming from the outside. The silhouette of a girl spawned out of nowhere, with two bigger silhouettes holding her arms behind her back. She seemed to look right at him, her skin and her eyes glowing white.
"No, brother, please! Don't do this! Stop them! I did what you asked! I listened! I always listen! Please! Help me!"
Dachii suddenly turned his head and noticed another female silhouette spawn, this one pitch black and more ominous.
"Don't listen to her," the other girl insisted. "She lies. We can't trust her."
"That's not true!" the first one pleaded. "I would never do such a thing to those people! Stop! I let you into my home! We're family!"
"No," another voice seemingly spoke. "Not anymore,"
Dachii turned his head and found a golden silhouette of another woman, who seemed more dismissive and distant than the first two. A light blue silhouette of a male rose from the ground, but he didn't say a word.
"Guys, please! My people need me! They won't survive without me! Brother! You can't allow this, I love you!" she begged.
Dachii's mouth opened on its own, and he spoke in a voice he didn't recognize. An older, more powerful voice.
"Love can only last for so long. Goodbye, sister."
And with that, the girl screamed and disappeared. Dachii's consciousness sifted and moved again, and this time, he found himself in the same room, but instead of the peaceful, pristine room before, it was now bloody, and chaotic, and people were screaming and running.
"Run!"
"She's loose!"
"Save us, Old Ones!"
The white silhouette of a woman, now taller and more prominent, rose from a white flame in the middle of the room, nearly destabilizing the room.
"Let those who have wronged me pay the price. Let all of the universe and beyond suffer!"
As more figures ran away from her, Dachii suddenly appeared before her, and he felt her cold white eyes piercing through him. He once again spoke in a voice not his own, this time more sympathetic and rational.
"Sister, stop this! I was wrong, do not do this! These people have done nothing to you! Where is your loving heart?"
The woman opened her mouth, her voice devoid of emotion. "What was it you said so long ago? Oh, yes…"
Her entire body began to glow.
"…love can only last for so long."
BOOM.
The last thing Dachii heard before he returned back to reality was the screams of many as they were engulfed by her light.
Back in the present…
Dachii took a deep breath, gasping as his mind returned back to his body. The room was the same as when he left it, the bodies still in the same position.
"Was that a flashback?" he wondered. "Of who?"
One of the bodies he stared at looked almost…human. He brushed it off and got up. Once he was on his feet, he saw a single cultist sitting in front of the entrance, almost as if he was meditating.
"Did you see?" he asked, his voice cold and enigmatic.
"What was I supposed to see?" Dachii asked.
"The sins…" the cultist replied. "Long ago…"
The man suddenly became rigid and still, before shifting positions and standing before Dachii. "You…Sinner…."
Dachii stared at him.
"Come with me…Destroyer…
He grabbed Dachii's wrist.
"Let me show you…the truth…"
And then they were gone.
Meanwhile, somewhere else…
Hikari woke up, her eyes and lungs burning. She blinked a few times and noticed she was underwater, and she quickly pushed herself up. She noticed a coast nearby and she swam to it, collapsing on shore.
"Phew…damn it, can't I just get one day in peace to do my nails?"
She nearly jumped back when someone answered her. "Funny. I thought six months would be plenty of time for that."
"Luca?" she recognized, turning around. "How long have you been sitting there watching me?"
"Long enough," he admitted.
"So you were going to let me drown?"
"Of course not. Elementals can't drown."
"That doesn't mean just watch me!"
"Yes. Yes, it does."
Hikari groaned and wrung the water out of her hair. "Whatever. Did you see the others anywhere?"
"Nope," he answered. "No trace of em. I guess whatever magic brought us here also split us up."
Hikari studied the nearby area. "All this time, this place has been right below us? No one knew?"
Luca stretched for a moment. "It's deep below the ground. I don't fully get it, but maybe this was the first iteration of our homeland?"
"It's possible, but why build an entire nation over one you already have? What are they trying to hide?" Hikari questioned.
"I don't think we want to find out," Luca acknowledged. "Besides, that's not what we're here for. We've got a Dachii to save."
"You're right…where do we start?"
Luca began to sniff the ground. "There's the smell of people to the left. That's a good starting point."
"Lead the way, mutt," Hikari taunted.
Luca rolled his eyes and turned himself into a wolf, sniffing the ground as he trotted. Hikari kept close behind, her feeling of unease growing with every passing moment.
"Hey, Luca," Hikari said. "What do you make of all this?"
Luca shifted back to normal. "Make of what?"
"All this chaos," she sighed. "It went from battling the dwarves to battling the Obsidian Order, now we're here. In an underground city, we never thought existed."
Luca chuckled. "Yep. Fun."
"This Masquerade was supposed to solve all this…" Hikari moaned. "Now it's just causing more issues."
"Not everything is black and white," Luca pointed out. "Many people around the world hate us, and for good reason. The best we can do is keep on pushing."
Hikari silently agreed with him and followed as he turned back into a wolf. They left the shore and quickly transitioned into a large grassland, where a small child in a robe was crouched, picking berries out of a flower.
"Hey, do you see that?" Hikari pointed.
Luca changed back to normal. "Is that…?"
The child began singing a tune, almost obvious. The voice was unmistakably one of a little boy.
"♪Mmm, mmm…♪"
"Should we hide?" Hikari asked.
"Nah," Luca said. "Let's try this."
Luca jumped up and landed in front of the child, who looked up and nearly had a heart attack.
"Ahh!"
He fell back, his berries spilling out of his basket.
"Hi. My name is Luca."
"You—-! You're not supposed to be here!" the boy cried. "Intruders! Intruders! Help!"
He took off running. Hikari groaned.
"Look what you've done, Luca."
Luca shrugged. "He hasn't even gotten ten feet away yet. Just grab him."
In no time, Luca had the child's arm, pulling him back toward Hikari. The kid kicked and screamed, borderline shouting.
"Let me go! When my superiors find out about this, you're toast! Toast! You frauds!"
Hikari patted the child on the head. "Hey, it's alright! We're not going to hurt you. Sorry about my friend here."
She gave Luca a look, and he let the kid go.
"I'm Hikari," she introduced. "And this is Luca."
"I told him that," Luca confirmed.
"Well, he probably didn't hear you," Hikari shot back.
The kid took a good look at them both. "Why are you here? We don't allow citizens from above."
"You know what we are?" Hikari asked.
"Of course I do!" the boy exclaimed. "You're Voltians! Cheap replicas, but you're Voltians!"
"Heh, right on the money," Hikari stated. "What's your name?"
"Isamu," he answered. "My village is nearby."
"There's villages down here?" Hikari asked.
He nodded.
"Are they dangerous?"
"No."
"Can you take us there? We really need your help."
The boy rubbed his chin. "I doubt. They can recognize that you don't belong here from a mile away."
He suddenly stopped. "But wait—-!"
He touched his robe, and almost like magic, another one appeared out of thin air. He touched the copy and yet another one appeared. "Put these on!"
"Woah, how did you do that?" Hikari asked.
"My secret tricks," Isamu replied. "Now wear the robes!"
Hikari and Luca pulled the robes over their bodies, covering their faces with the hoods.
"This feels weird," Hikari noted. "Plus it's a little big."
"Mine fits nice," Luca grinned.
Hikari punched his arm.
"I can take you to my village," Isamu said. "But only if you have a really, really good reason!"
"It is!" Hikari confirmed. "We're here to find our friend. You have friends too, right?"
"Sort of?"
"Great! Ours got dragged here against his will, and now he's probably scared, alone, and in need of help! You know?"
Isamu appeared conflicted. "Well…I guess I can help."
Hikari put a hand on his shoulder. "Awesome! Thanks so much!"
Isamu picked up his berries and trotted through the grassland, where a large settlement could be seen in the distance. "There! That's my home! Come on!"
Meanwhile…
"It's time."
Dachii found himself strapped onto the altar, unable to move. An entire group of cultists were present, including the one that took him.
"Huh. What is this?" Dachii wondered.
"Destroyer…it's time you witness the full truth…" the leader said. "The sins of the past."
He reached out and touched Dachii's forehead, which caused a rush of pain through his head and his mind to move elsewhere once again.
Many years ago…
"The war! It's happening!"
"By the gods, what do we do?"
"Take cover!"
Dachii looked down at his hands, which were glowing white, just like the rest of his body. He was in a gray military outfit. He noticed he was hiding behind the rubble of a building, and a captain was close by.
"Team!" the captain ordered. "We need to move in! Protect our Queen!"
A group of Voltians rushed forth from behind cover, only to immediately be annihilated by a blast of purple flame.
"Damn it!" the captain shouted. "Squad B! Move in!"
People around Dachii began to rise, and Dachii's body rose on its own. He rushed after the team as they battled strange shadowy attackers, while two figures, shrouded by white and purple lights, battled each other in the air.
"What is going on?" Dachii thought.
An army of shadowy beings marched forth, led by a shadowy woman with glowing gray eyes.
"It's Runea!" the captain shouted. "Fall back! All of you, fall back—-!"
Without a second thought, Runea carved through every single squad member before her, leaving only Dachii alive. She turned back to her soldiers.
"Kill them all! Their reign of terror ends here!"
From above, the figure coated in the purple light blasted the other one away before descending to the ground next to Runea. A massive shadow man in armor from head to toe manifested from it, a massive greatsword in his hand.
"Runea…" he spoke. "Many have died…my power is waning…we must end this here…"
"I know, Master Titan," Runea acknowledged. "I'll clear the area."
"Good…" he spoke. "Remember, the priority is HER…we must…stop her…"
Runea nodded. "Of course."
"Titan?" Dachii thought. "The hell is that?"
Titan jumped into the air and disappeared. More Zharians scoured the area, attacking and grabbing Voltians off the streets. Dachii kept walking the streets of chaos until he found a familiar face.
"Mom! Let her go!"
A boy standing outside his front door, with icy blue hair watched as his mother was grabbed and pulled away by a big Zharian warrior.
"Son!" the woman spoke. "Run away! Stay safe! I love you, Kenshi! Run!"
The Zharian disappeared in a puff of black smoke, leaving the boy to collapse on his knees. "Mom, mom!"
And with a horrific scream, he unleashed a massive wave of ice, coating the entire block.
"Fujii?" Dachii recognized.
And then, everything went BOOM.
—-