"I'm… sorry to hear that, my guy." Tsuyoi patted the man's back. "What did you say your name was?" He added.
His cellmate didn't respond at first, lost in his thoughts. "Dante. It's Dante Caelum." He sighed. But he couldn't help but admit, Tsuyoi's reassurance was really warming. After every evil he faced coming here.
Nothing really eventful happened for Tsuyoi's first day. He didn't even seem too bothered by being captured. Though he just wished they left Eldoria faster. "After my wife succumbed to whatever that rotten liquid was, I was framed. Because I was an alchemist, they thought it was my doing. I would never." Tsuyoi nodded alongside as Dante explained. "I know, I know man. I believe you."
He got up and peeked outside of the bars while Dante stayed still. He was bored beyond belief, and pretty hungry too. "Though I wonder if they are right. I wonder If it was me that killed my beloved Miriam, without knowing…" He mumbled.
Tsuyoi turned towards him upon hearing those words, completely baffled and… offended? "Huh? The hell you mumbling 'bout?" He said. Dante looked up in surprise with the change of tone. "Hm?"
Tsuyoi approached Dante and grabbed him by the collar. "Do not go around sprouting bullshit like that! The Government is bullshitting, who could've guessed?" When grabbed, Dante started to get worried and panicked a little. "W-What? Did I say something wrong… that offended you?"
Tsuyoi shook Dante like he was trying to wake him up. "Yeah you did! You're saying If it was you who killed her! That's some bullshit! Say it!" He shook him harder, Dante gasped.
"Come on!" Tsuyoi yelled. Dante started shaking slightly. "...It wasn't me! It wasn't me who killed her! The Government is lying!" As soon as Dante said those words, Tsuyoi let him go. He scoffed and returned to peeking at the bars. "Good."
Dante was pretty thrown off by whatever just happened. He looked at Tsuyoi nervously, but then realised he wasn't trying to do something bad. "How do you know?" He hesitantly asked.
Tsuyoi looks at Dante with distaste on his face. "I just do. Now stop blaming yourself for something you didn't do."
Dante sighs, and decides to roll with it. The burden in his soul isn't gone, but he can feel that it's lighter. "Alright." Dante decides to lay down and get some rest. Tsuyoi meanwhile watched the routes of the guards, the layout of the prison and tried to think of anything that could help him. "Kanye, you said you do alchemy right?"
Dante raised an eyebrow in confusion, but he kept laying down. "It's Dante. But… honestly- I'm not so sure anymore if I want to do alchemy."
With a 'tsk' Tsuyoi started to bite his fingernails. "How good were you?" When he asked him that, a smile rose up in Dante's face. "Average, really. I only got into alchemy after my wife got sick. But my Treasure allowed me to separate molecules and solutions."
Tsuyoi looked at Dante in confusion. He grabbed the bars and started swinging around in boredom. Realising Tsuyoi didn't understand, Dante decided to elaborate. "Like… splitting the hydrogen or oxygen from water."
Tsuyoi kept swinging with a groan. "No idea what that means." Dante sighed in response and simplified it for him. "Water has boom-boom."
"Oooooh!" Tsuyoi smiled and stopped swinging. "Yo that's so cool!" He looked at Dante in excitement. Dante chuckled with the shower of praise he was getting, he wasn't used to it really. "Sucks that you don't have it on you."
Dante nods in acknowledgement, he rolls over on his bed, sinking his face to the pillow. "Yeah."
Tsuyoi gets one final look outside the bars. He starts stretching and then gets on his bed, facing the roof. "Whatever, I'll find a way. I always do." In his words, Dante subtly smiles. "What I wouldn't give to have the optimism that you have." He closes his eyes, preparing for much needed sleep.
"Then stop running from it." Tsuyoi mumbles and closes his eyes too. The night passes quite quickly, the only sound accompanying them is the birds chipping and the guards chatting. Tsuyoi and Dante wake up to the sound of bells, indicating breakfast in the cafeteria.
Tsuyoi yawns and stretches. Like the energy in his body never left, he jumps out of the bed. Dante on the other-hand groans and holds his back like everyone muscle on his body is hurting. Then gets up and follows Tsuyoi to the cafeteria. "You look young, how old are you?" He asked.
Tsuyoi put his hands on his neck, carefully examining the guards that watch their every step. "Nineteen. You?"
"Thirtyfive." Dante mumbled quietly, he was a little embarrassed to say how old he is out loud. Tsuyoi whistled in response. "Damn. You look at least fifty." He stepped into the cafeteria, grinning at the guards that stare at them like hungry animals. In Thalorien, the prison guards were never like this. They were never fully armored, at least. "Atleast..?" Dante's voice shook slightly as he too entered the cafeteria.
They entered the line and grabbed their plates. Holding them out for the workers to fill it. Tsuyoi made a face at the food they were given. It looked like literal mud. "Ew." He wasn't a picky eater, but come on.
"I'm just happy to be fed, is all." Dante sighed and found a place to sit. Tsuyoi sat in front of him, placing his legs on the table. "You shouldn't be happy with bare minimum, Dante. If you're gonna dream, dream to soar the skies! That's how I roll." Tsuyoi pointed at himself, boasting. Dante softly smiled in exchange. "You really are a bright young man. But I don't know If I believe in dreams anymore-"
Out of nowhere, a big hand slammed the table. Dante flinched while Tsuyoi just reacted with a scoff, already knowing where this was going. He didn't bring his legs down, and looked at the person approaching them.
It was an extremely big and tall bald woman that had severe make-up on. She seemed greatly muscular and capable, she possibly belonged to the giants race. She was small compared to an average giant, which is probably why she is in a prison instead of being enslaved like every other giant outside of Titanfold. "Hello…" The woman said, she slowly reached down to grab Tsuyoi's shirt and read his name.
"Tsuyoi… Ketsui." Even though she didn't recognise the name she was saying outloud, several gasps were heard around the prison. The Infamy of The Undying Phoenix has reached the entire world, it seems.
The giant notices the gasps around her, realising Tsuyoi is possibly someone famous. Either way, she wasn't going to back down now. She slammed her hand on Dante's plate which made Dante flinch again. She grabbed a handful of the slop and slammed it on Tsuyoi's face. "Welcome to Hades, babe." She wiped her hands on his face, spreading the slop.
Tsuyoi didn't move and kept looking at her, his smile grew bigger. He brought down his legs and got up, facing off against her with no hint of fear despite the size difference. "Thanks for the welcoming gift! Must be a prison tradition I guess." He also slammed his hands on Dante's plate, and scared the poor alchemist even further. He watched the exchange between the two, nervously shaking. "You wouldn't dare." She said, realising what he is daring to do.
He collected a handful of the food and jumped up to slam it on her face with a strong slap. The sound of the slap echoed around the cafeteria, everyone inside froze; Including the guards. "It would be rude If I didn't return the gesture, Miss…" He looked at her shirt, but her nametag was a little bit high, outside of his vision. "I can't really see your name, so what about Miss Mudface?"
The Guards unsheathed their Manasteel spears, waiting to interrupt if a possible fight started. They weren't willing to intervene unless they were absolutely sure something serious started. The Giant, now undoubtedly known as Miss Mudface, wiped the food from her face. She looked at him in pure anger, but also realised the guards were watching her every move. She grunted and spat on his shoes. "Nice one, babe. But this isn't over yet." She walked away reluctantly, giving the guards a side-eye.
"Huh." Dante exhaled in relief as she walked away and Tsuyoi sat back down, wiping his face with a napkin on the plate. "Sorry about your food." He passed his plate to Dante. "You can eat mine."
Dante wiped the sweat on his forehead. "I'm not even sure If I want to eat this thing. But thanks for the gesture."
Tsuyoi carefully watches the giant leave, a hint of worry in his face. "Why did you even do that?" Dante asked. "Is it worth the trouble?"
Tsuyoi sighed and looked at Dante. "They mess with you because they know you won't fight back. In reality, they are just bullies; Not some scary criminals, bullies. The illusion breaks when you actually fight back. If I didn't do that, believe me, we'd get shanked the other day because I'm not fighting a giant." He chuckled.
Dante nodded alongside as he explained. "I see. So she'll be more hesitant the next time."
Tsuyoi smiled. "Exactly! It literally doesn't matter if you can fight back or not."
The two left the cafeteria with empty stomachs, which didn't bother Tsuyoi that much. He is used to staying without food for days on end. Dante on the other hand, was suited for the luxury life. He couldn't sleep because of how hungry he was. As they got to their cells and onto their beds, Dante rolled around in his bed unable to sleep. Not just due to the hunger, but due to the stress he was feeling.
"Could you stop moving that much? Are you hyperactive or something?" Tsuyoi had it with Dante's antics, which ruined his sleep too. "I am actually. I have ADHD." He held onto his stomach as it growled.
"Again, no idea what that means." Tsuyoi rolls over and shuts his eyes. "How was life before you got here?" He asked.
Dante stared into the wall and tried to think of an answer. "I was a respected violinist. I traveled through the miraculous islands and played music for rich bastards with my wife. She played… ugh, drums. I never understood what she was in those things. But together we earned well, lived well. When she got sick, I got into Alchemy and tried everything. Nobody in the world knew how to cure her. Doctors ran away from us when they saw her."
Dante's voice slowly started to shake as he went on. But the mention of the doctors running away catched Tsuyoi's attention. "What were her symptoms?"
The question hung in the air for a little while. Dante sighed, displeased. But he didn't want to leave him without an answer. "No matter how much she ate, she kept losing weight. She went pale as a ghost, I'm telling you. Almost pure white. Her eyes…" He got lost in thought, the horrifying memories resurfaced. "...They were purple." He added.
Tsuyoi's eyes widened at the mention of purple eyes."Purple eyes?!" At the sudden change of tone, Dante raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Yes. Do you know anything about it?"
"Yeah! My friend Pablo has the same disease! Sorry but- How long did she survive?" The Phoenix asked.
Dante ran quick math in his head, trying to figure out how long she managed to stay alive. "For about… 2 months, give or take. How long did your friend have it for?"
"According to him, around a decade." His answer made Dante gasp. "A decade? How on earth…"
He shrugged. "No idea. But you'll see it for yourself, he'll come to save me," The smile on his face disappeared. "Even though I don't want him to."
Dante's mind raced with implications. This Pablo person surviving for a decade is unbelievable. But for now, he decides to close his eyes and try to sleep.
But Tsuyoi's words weren't just idealistic naivety. Someone was actively trying to go and save him, just… not the person he was hoping for.
"This is by far, the most stupid thing you ever tried to do." Eldar pinched his nose and sighed. He then returned to cleaning the tables at the bar. "You're not going, Haisha. Tsuyoi entrusted you to me."
Eldar is a man of slightly average height with golden-brown eyes, half-rimmed black glasses, and dark brown hair tied back in a ponytail. He has a subtle goatee coming in. He wore a brown vest over a white button-shirt.
Haisha crossed his arms and pouted. He carried a giant backpack that seemed too heavy for him, but he seemed to have no problems carrying it. "It's not stupid, It's what he would've done for me!" He yelled, and many people inside the bar looked at Haisha.
"Lower your voice! You're scaring people." Eldar furrowed his brows. He returned to the shelf behind him and started to clean some of the glasses. "An experienced strong dumbass infiltrating a prison is one thing. A little reckless dumbass kid doing it is another."
Haisha grunted and clenched his seat in anger. "That's… not fair! You get to dream while I can't?! You say you'll bring justice to the entire world. But when I say I'll save my big bro, It's a problem?!"
"I'm an adult. You are a random kid." Eldar bluntly stated. If he has to hurt Haisha's feelings to make him stay, he will.
"I'm not a random kid! I'm Haisha The Pilot! Don't you dare forget my name!" Haisha got up and stood on the bar table, raising his arms to look intimidating. "Aren't you 14? Why are you acting like a kid?" Eldar gave him a stare to make him sit down. "I just cleaned that table."
"If dreaming is childish, I'll be a toddler! Nothing you say will change my mind!" Eldar didn't notice it, but there was a spark in Haisha's eyes as he yelled these words. Literal light. Eldar didn't respond, he just looked at Haisha in frustration.
"Mr. Eldar, I have a Treasure don't I?!"
"Yes, an E-Grade one!" Eldar objected. He pulled Haisha from the table and forced him to sit down. "You're not going anywhere."
The comment about his Treasure's grade really upset Haisha, his voice shook as his eyes teared up. He gulped, swallowing the fear and uncertainty away. Looks like the apple didn't fall far from the tree. "...It doesn't matter what grade my Treasure is. Despite everything, I…" Haisha clenched his teeth and took a deep breath, ready to yell the one thing Eldar is tired of hearing. "Don't say it."
"...I WILL DEFEAT THE DEMON KING, AND FULFILL THE PROPHECY MYSELF!" Haisha's voice echoed around the bar, gathering everyone's attention. A few gasped at the mention of the demon king. A Non-S Grade user saying they will fulfill the prophecy isn't unheard off.
But Haisha has a bit of a reputation. So it's different coming from him.
"God damn it." Eldar sighs. "That's not changing my mind, you know?"
"I wasn't asking for your permission. I just wanted to let you know." Haisha grinned, his determination rising once again. Eldar raises an eyebrow. "Hm? What's that supposed to mean-"
Before Eldar can finish his sentence, Haisha starts sprinting and barges through the exit like a wild animal. "Wait, Haisha!" Eldar yells and starts to go after him.
Haisha knows the streets of Thalorien better than almost everyone. While Eldar just moved here last year. He swiftfully avoids crashing into people on the street while Eldar struggles to do so. "Out of my way!" Haisha grabs random fruits from the stands around him and throws them at Eldar.
The wind rushes through his face as he increases his pace, moving at incredible speeds. Eldar tries to pick up his speed and catch up but it's futile, he blocks the fruits from hitting his face. "Get back here! How are you so fast?!"
Haisha looks around to find an escape path. But he gets distracted and bumps into a kid. She looks the same age as him. She has brown wavy hair with purple streaks and violet eyes. She seems to be wearing a robe that hides her face. Seeing her, Haisha gets a bright idea, a perfect plan to escape! "Hey dude, what's your name?" He grabs the girl by her collar firmly with a bright smile.
The girl however, doesn't seem that weirded out and returns the smile. "It's not Miriam!"
Haisha shakes her violently. "Good to know! If a weird creepy man asks you where I went, you tell him I went this way!" He points to her right towards an alleyway. "Sounds fun!" She says.
"Thanks!" Haisha takes a sharp turn to the left, entering an alleyway. Eventually, Eldar manages to catch up and encounters the girl too. "Hey! Did you see a kid around here? Colorful eyes, blue hair?"
The girl flips him off and laughs sinisterly. She then runs away from him, her laugh echoes through the street. Eldar is left bamboozled and speechless. "Fucking Thalorien…" He makes a guess and turns left into an alleyway.
It turns out to be a dead end, where Haisha stops just before hitting the wall. "Phew!" Haisha wipes the sweat on his forehead.
Eldar starts to pant as he catches up. "No where to run, kid!" His breathing goes heavier.
"It's not kid! It's Haisha The Pilot!" Haisha grabbed his pilot goggles from his backpack and put them on with a grin. They started to glow in a bright light-blue color, matching his hair.
Haisha crouches down while his knees glow too. He then roars and releases his jump, going high enough to reach the roof of the building behind him.
"Damn it!" Eldar realises he has no way of getting to him, and leaves the alleyway. "If he dies… Tsuyoi will kill me."
Haisha jumps from roof to roof, taking in the breeze. The air isn't clean even this high up, but he doesn't mind.
He makes his way towards the dock where he plans to enter an illegal ship as a stowaway, illegally.
The location of the Maximum Security Treasure Hunter-Prison was revealed in the newspaper celebrating the capture of Tsuyoi Ketsui. The location of the prison was kept classified and highly secretive until today. As if the United Government wanted someone to come.
Which, they do.
Haisha arrived at the docks and saw the ship touring the Miracilious Islands. "Here I come, Glacilume!" He cheered enthusiastically, sneaking into the ship by disappearing into the crowd. Upon entering, he made his way towards the storage room and entered one of the empty barrels, hoping not to be found until he arrived.
Glacilume is an island that showed anomalous effects similar to The Dark World. The Dark World is the most classified location in the entirety of Sub-Terra. So much so that trying to investigate The Dark World will result in the execution of you and your family.
Though they of course couldn't keep everything about it secret. Through centuries, many attempted and got caught. But before they did, they spread the information they learned. The public knows that The Dark World is an island that is fully dark, with endless snow coming from above. Any source of light except moonlight is useless and the only thing lighting the way is Sub-Luna, the moon of Sub-Terra.
Like previously mentioned, Glacilume shows the same phenomena with a few differences. For example, there were reports of hearing a 'voice' leading your way. "I don't need light. I'll listen to the earth below, It'll lead the way!"
The ship made its way towards the islands, with each second the determination to rescue his older brother grew stronger. If he saves him, how can he be inferior?
"No! What the hell am I even thinking?! I'll save him because I love him! He is my big bro!" Haisha whispers to himself.
It became morning for Tsuyoi and Dante. But they couldn't tell, it was always night-time outside. Despite being in Glacilume, the lamps were glowing brightly. They weren't aware of being in Glacilume however, and couldn't even question how that's possible.
Every morning, all inmates had to pledge their loyalty to the United Government in rows. Dante and Tsuyoi followed the guards to the yard. The Alchemist watched Tsuyoi's confusing expression. Was he angry? Sad? Determined? He couldn't tell. "You… If you're thinking about using me to escape… I won't-"
Tsuyoi interrupts Dante. "I'm not. I won't try to escape. It's impossible, isn't it? I won't bring you down with me."
Dante's eyes widened in surprise, it was the last words he was expecting from someone like… him. "Besides, I didn't hear my sentence. Maybe I'm leaving in a week?" He winks to Dante.
Dante sighed. "That's optimistic…" He looked down. "...good for you." He smiled.
All prisoners arrived at the school yard and got in a line. Tsuyoi had no idea what's going on, neither did Dante. The guards approached each inmate and slammed the spear's hilt on the ground. Each one, without resistance, said the same exact words.
"Harshe hamach ichin."
"What the hell does that mean?" Tsuyoi whispered to Dante who was next to him. Dante looked at him in surprise. "You didn't hear it before, really? It's in Old-Terran. A lost language only people before the split spoke. It was lost to time. But that specific phrase means 'For the cause.', or at least that's what they say."
"That's stupid." He scoffed, kicking the dust off the floor in boredom. Sooner or later, it was their turn. The guards stomped the ground once again. Dante wasted no time and said it. "Harshe hamac ichin."
Tsuyoi grunted, he looked at the floor hesitantly. The guards stomped the floor with the spear, indicating it was his turn. He was silent.
They stomped again.
Tsuyoi didn't say a single word. Everyone around them looked at him in surprise and fear. "Last warning." One of the guards said.
Tsuyoi looked up and met the guard's gaze. "Fuck the cause." With those words, everyone froze. They all stared at Tsuyoi like deer in headlights.
Dante went pale, so did every other inmate.
One of the guards stepped up and punched Tsuyoi in the stomach. The air in Tsuyoi's chest left his body, he yelled in pain and collapsed on the floor.
As he collapsed, 4 Guards started to repeatedly beat him. They kicked him, stomped him, spat on him. They didn't say a single word while doing so, making an example out of him.
He vomited blood, tried to fight back but was severely outmatched without his Treasure. After Tsuyoi stopped moving, the guards stopped too. They moved on with the others, leaving the poor alchemist in shock.
After they got back to their cell, they were at least kind enough to give him some bandages. They didn't put it on themselves, of course. That's too kind.
"You remind me of my younger times." Dante was patching Tsuyoi up. Even though they didn't use any weapons, the sharp edges of their armor messed him up pretty good. "Why did you do that? I thought you didn't want to rebel."
"I don't. But I won't fake submission either! I just couldn't say it, alright! The words left my mouth before I even thought of them." Tsuyoi winced. Every part of his body was aching severely. "Those bastards."
After Dante was done with him, Tsuyoi laid down. "Don't… do that again." Dante said, almost regretting it.
"Why? I can take it." Tsuyoi clenched his teeth as he struggled to lay down without pain. "You scared me. It wasn't pleasant seeing you get beaten up." Dante climbed to the top-bed. Tsuyoi couldn't climb in that condition so they switched beds.
Hearing Dante say that comforted him, more than he'd like to admit. He grinned. "Alright. Thanks for doing this, by the way." He mutters, closing his eyes in hopes to ignore the pain.
Dante laughed softly. "It's the least I could do." He laid down as well. He started to read the book he grabbed from the library, a book titled 'The Poison of Power.'
A door creaked, but it didn't alert the two. A door, at this cell? They both dismissed it as imaginary, but it was fully real.
Someone was watching.
"...He is so cool!" She said.