On Astral Tides: From Humble Freelancer To Astral Emperor

The prison hospital was sparsely furnished, the walls bare and covered in peeling grey paint. The soft beeping of medical equipment was the only noise in the room, now that the nurses had left us, and the still, almost oppressive quiet was finally broken by hoarse, barely audible words from the woman on the bed. Mary Stuart. She’s… not looking well. No, that’s a major understatement. Her once youthful and beautiful features had shrivelled up, her body shrunken and her skin sallow and wrinkled. She looked more like a woman in her late eighties or early nineties now, and her vivid green eyes were now a muddy grey, and her blonde hair now like bleached straw, brittle and pallid. And of course there’s the burns and scars on her body from the backlash too… she looks like a skeleton, more dead than alive…

“Don’t you… pity me. Heretics.” She whispered, cracked, desiccated lips shedding a trace of blood, which was thin and watery. She was in a tangle of wires, with sensors, drips and other devices attached to her body or sunk in with needles. “I cannot abide… false sympathy.”

David snorted sourly. “You think we feel sorry for you, nun bitch? Truly, you’re delusional until the end. No, you’re just a damn fright, ugly enough to make any man look away.”

“Mr Reckless! I know she has committed grave offenses, but there is still no need to be rude!” Mrs Mary-Jane countered. “I’m sorry for his attitude.” She apologised to Mary Stuart. “Although… I certainly understand it.” She clenched her fist, remembering the betrayal that had cost her so much.

“There’s no need for courtesy. That only applies to humans… and I guess human-like beings.” David amended, glancing at me. “But betrayers and backstabbers aren’t human, so they deserve nothing but scorn.”

“I don’t… disagree.” Eleanor said calmly, looking at Mary Stuart as she merely smiled blandly, her withered lips and gums showing yellowing teeth, the grin only reinforcing her skeletal image. “But there is no point in unpleasantness, not now. After all…” She met Mary’s gaze, unyielding. “You failed, you lost. And… without a miracle, it looks like death is near.” Eleanor glanced at me, her eyes questioning, and I let my Eye shine, peering into the woman before us.

“Such a… filthy… gaze. Have you no shame, laying bare a woman’s secrets…?” Mary managed bitterly, and I rolled my eyes, as it wasn’t dissimilar to what Sarah had said.

“You lost any moral high ground when you let Donovan loose on the Princess. Fighting for Territory and power I can understand, even if I in no way condone it, but… such heartless cruelty appals me. Besides…” I pursed my lips, shocked at the frightful mess of her physical form and spiritual body. “…I don’t even know how you are awake, or even alive right now.”

Her Chakra network is in ruins, only her crown and to a lesser extent her heart are intact, the rest have shattered, and the flow of aether is wild, attacking her own body, degrading it. Perhaps that’s why she’s aged? I’m not experienced enough to tell… the Favour by her heart, Metatron’s Words Of The Lord, seems to have kept the heart functioning to an extent… and the Linked Seraphim replacing her crown is pulsing out adherence. That must be it. Adherence can be used to perform miracles, if employed properly…

“Suffering… if she is truly … worthy of the Lord, then her sacrifices will all… be rewarded in… the Ninth Heaven.” Mary said piously. “Questioning… the grand plan… is hubris, pride is a deadly… deadly sin.”

I clenched my fist, still carefully examining Mary. If it came to repairing her body, I wasn’t sure I could do it, even with my prodigious skills in Chirurgery, and excellent ones in Ether Healing. But observing her current state was giving me a few insights which would allow me to improve once I had analysed and internalised them. “I thought God was supposed to be omnipotent.” I said witheringly. “If so, why should he need good people to suffer? If he can prevent it and doesn’t, isn’t he not God, but a Devil?” Beside me, David nodded approvingly, and Mary managed to raise one feeble hand, the effort nearly breaking her frail, stick-like arm.

“I have… heard it all… before. I… even threw such words at my… grandmother long ago. I was a wretched, impious… insolent… child.” There was a series of rattling, coughing noises, and after a moment I realised it was her attempts at laughter. “It is so… easy… to disparage faith, the truth. After all… God cannot… speak to us. For he is beyond… our understanding. Just as the… ant… cannot judge us, and may consider our actions… evil… when we destroy the nest that… encroaches…” It seemed to be torment for her to speak, but we all listened patiently as she laboured out her words. It gave me more time to observe her, and Eleanor… it seemed that despite everything, seeing Mary in such a state was evoking her sympathy. She really is a kind girl. But then I knew that when she offered to help Motoko and Natsumi, fearing I was exploiting and abusing them. She may not always be right, and leaps to conclusions far too fast, and can be irritatingly stubborn but… I can’t deny she’s good at heart.

“… to protect … our environment. But… God is good, despite… your sins, it is… not too late. Although…” her face was now set in a sneer. “My death… is tolerable. But the loss of… the Anulus Fortunae…” Even despite her hoarse, throaty whispers, we could hear the malice in her tone. “…taken by that creature… who should have… died in the … purges… long ago… we shall not rest until… it is back in… our hands. Artefacts of the Throne… belong to… us.” She slumped, exhausted, her arm giving out a horrible cracking noise as it fell back to the bed, limp.

I think I want another viewpoint… My Astral body formed, and now I could inspect Mary Stuart in the Boundary as well. There wasn’t much difference in what I could see, but even a small nuance or insight might be enough for a breakthrough. “I still don’t get it, why you’re so insistent on your God being the only way.” I shook my head, bothered by it. “You know there are other Gods and Goddesses out there. And it’s clear that your God didn’t create the Universe, maybe not even Earth. Otherwise things don’t make sense.”

She took a number of long, shuddering breaths, her eyes sliding shut, and for a moment we all thought she had fallen asleep, before more soft words fell from her lips, laced with venomous disgust. “In… my Father’s house… there are many, many mansions… yet many… have been… overrun by monsters… false Gods and… Demons. Worse… perhaps. No, God is not omnipotent. I am… not a fool.” A faint tear trickled down her withered cheek. “True omnipotence… can never… be.”

“Can a God create a stone they cannot themselves lift? Can a spear that can be stopped by nothing pierce a shield that defends against everything? Can God create a married bachelor?” Mrs Mary-Jane said, understanding. “Omnipotence is paradoxical. While there are solutions and workarounds to come up with an accepted, workable definition, that means it isn’t truly able to accomplish anything.”

“Trust you to come up with the explanation. You truly are a teacher.” David joked, through his expression was grim, perhaps not enjoying being in the company of Mary Stuart. Maybe he blames her for leading Sarah astray?

“My children are young, yet I never hesitate to answer any questions they have. Even if they don’t understand the answer, you should never lie or dissemble with them. Tell the truth, and one day they’ll grasp it.” Mrs Mary-Jane looked at me then. “You should remember that advice. You will be needing it.”

I laughed. “I sure will. Honestly, being a father seems scarier than facing down deadly foes. But my father managed to raise me and my sis… so I guess I’ll manage. Besides, they’ll have a lot of mothers.”

Eleanor grimaced at that. “So it seems. Well, I have learned my lesson. So long as your children grow up happy and healthy, an unorthodox family is nothing to fret over.” She paused, looking at Mary meaningfully. “But I believe we have more weighty matters at hand.”

“True.” I agreed, and Mary Stuart, who had paused for breath, continued, lecturing us bitterly.

“But the Throne… stands above all. The only… light that prevents… true darkness from… consuming us all. If God… was truly… omnipotent… then there would be no sorrow, no death, no… failure.” Her words were mocking. “…grandmother, I was found… wanting… at the end. I am sorry, and you… were right. As always. But you fools… clinging to false… hope… see if your false idols, your… wretched faeries and monsters… amount to… anything… in front of the storm of true… darkness… you all… know… so little. And do not… listen.”

“If the situation is so dire, we should be working together, not against each other.” I shook my head, annoyed. My Eye was still analysing her, trying to gather more information about the strange Linked Seraphim, which was far more powerful than the Linked Principality Sarah had, the connecting nature of it more apparent, the difference between a small railway tunnel, and the Seikan Tunnel. Or maybe a better analogy is the Channel Tunnel, being as I’m here in Britain right now? “Wouldn’t it be better to form common cause? After all, all that our conflicts have led to is sorrow and futility. You’re now broken, and others have died or lost their Favours too. If matters are as dangerous as you claim, then it’s madness to fight amongst ourselves. I get that the Gods want to form a single, strong Astral Emperor, but it doesn’t have to be that way…”

“Madness?” Mary rasped suddenly, her muddy eyes staring into mine with a mixture of ferocity and mocking pity. “The ant… claims to get the will of… God. I learned… I too was… a sinner, who questioned… and mocked… what I did not understand. But the Throne… is the mightiest, and… yes… there is a saying… is there not? Might… makes… right. Yes… I have… fallen. But despite my despair at… my failures… I rejoice… to know I will sit in my Father’s mansion, at his side… I am only sorry… I failed him. But God… is forgiving to those… who love him. As for you all… the time when… you see the foolishness of your… defiance… draws ever… ever closer. But it is not… too late. Return what you stole, accept… your sins and… repent. Many can be saved. Or else…” her eyes glittered darkly. “…best pray that it is… the Inquisitor-Cardinal or Judgement-cardinal… that delivers judgement on your… wicked, heretic souls. For the mansions of the Heavens… are overrun with countless… abominations. Pray… they do not find… you first!”

At that she squeezed shut her eyes and didn’t reply to our questions. David snorted, annoyed. “It’s all just damn hypocrisy. If you do it, it’s good and right, and if we do it, it’s sinful and wrong. Bullshit. That’s why I love the Octagon. Everyone has the same rules, the same chance, relying on only their own skills. Who is right should never be determined by where the hell you’re standing!”

“I quite agree.” Eleanor spoke, troubled. “It all seems so… unpleasant. Everyone’s relationship with God should be their own personal choice. I believe, though I was never overly pious. Most of us from the Church of England aren’t, it’s a bit of a running joke.” she explained to me, and I agreed, as my mom was the same way. Not that it seems out of place to me, considering Japan has a similar sort of relationship with its own Gods and Kami. “I want to believe the Gods are benevolent, are helping us, but… it’s hard at times.”

I nodded, still concentrating on Mary Stuart. I think I can retrieve Metatron’s Favour. Linked Seraphim is still beyond me, I think… “Yes, seeing some of their choices, and some of the abilities Favours grant, and having decent guesses to their goals… but Mary Stuart is right about one thing. We don’t know the full picture. Even with some insider knowledge I have from a source…” I wasn’t prepared to namedrop Tan with Mary listening. “…there’s still a lot we’re blind on. But what I do know is that they genuinely want to save Earth and humanity, but their methods… I don’t know if Gods truly look at us like we’re ants, but…perhaps being Gods means they don’t have the same emotions and conscience as we do.” Tan said that the Gods often do know emotions, perhaps even more extreme than we mortals. So perhaps their ability to rationalise, to sacrifice, is equally overblown…

“If so, it’s greatly disappointing.” Eleanor said at last. “You’re right. Expecting Gods to conform to the way we are is certainly hubris. But I can’t help but be disappointed if it’s not the case. Being forced to rely on those who see our suffering and sacrifice as necessary…”

“Which is why we’re all working together.” I countered. “We’ll use what we’re given, but we won’t be beholden to those that aren’t worth our worship. If the Gods want our fealty, then they have to be better than we are, not just stronger. Otherwise, we’ll blaze our own way.”

David laughed at that, clapping me on the back, Mrs Mary-Jane nodded, agreeing, and Eleanor also inclined her head. “Yes, I concur. Though that goes for you as well, Akio. You are the face of our faction, so don’t let the power and fame go to your head and lead you astray. You would disappoint far too many people, and if you make your lovers cry…”

“I know.” I assured her. “I try and keep a level head… huh?”

Another hacking series of laughs came from the shrivelled throat of Mary Stuart. “You would stand… where even… the Angels fear to… tread, where the… Saints bleed, and Martyrs fall? Such arrogance… truly is… worthy of being a heathen idol. Enjoy your… arrogance… and ignorance while it… lasts…”

“If you shared what you so clearly are hinting at knowing, rather than spitting out words of hate, then perhaps we would understand…” Eleanor began, frustrated, but David stopped her.

“There’s no point. I know her sort. She revels in having power and knowledge others don’t. If she didn’t, she couldn’t be special. She’ll never reveal the truth behind her words. Otherwise the truth could have brought others into their fold peacefully. They always talk about being a good shepherd, but really, they want to be the wolves.”

“Not everyone is like that.” I had to interject. “I’ve met good, charitable priests, and the Pope did call for calm and conciliation. We shouldn’t judge a religion by its most… excessive… believers. My mom, Eleanor… you believe, and you’re not bad people.”

“I should think not. I could be canonised alongside Saint George, for having to put up with you.” Eleanor said with some amusement, a slight smile on her face, before she looked down at Mary, her humour fading. “So, you know you are dying, right?”

“I should… have died… that day. But it seems the Lord… has one last… task for me.” She scoffed. “Yes… when I lost… the Fortune I was… blessed… with… the backlash of hosting the merest figment of an Angel… broke me. Withered me. Burned my life. But…” Her fervent gaze showed she still had some fire left inside her. “…you are all fools. You left… me alive. And… that is a… mistake. Unless you wish to repent… kneel and wash my feet… beg forgiveness and I may just… speak up for you.. before the other Cardinals. But be swift… for… even a miracle… cannot stave off… the inevitable. But… while my body… and my spirit… are sundered… my soul… shall shine on, incorruptible… eternal… in paradise…”

“Yes, it was a mistake. Your fellows are too clever to fall for our traps.” Eleanor agreed, before looking over at me again. “Akio, can you extract them?”

“One of them, certainly.” I agreed. “Are you sure? She’s a British citizen and a criminal, but this is still… extra-legal.”

“Do it. If we are destined to take from each other until only one remains on top, then I’d rather it is you who stands at the pinnacle. I’ve seen your generosity and unwillingness to cause harm unnecessarily.” Her smile was suddenly warm. “I wonder how Aditi is doing? Not that I wish Miss Motoko and Miss Natsumi to lose, but… friends come first.”

Aether surged from me, and Mary shuddered. I carefully began to probe around Metatron’s Favour, and she shuddered, but not from pain. She was laughing again, and suddenly aether and adherence surged. It didn’t seem possible with her network the sort of ruin that should have left her dead, but my Eye saw that the Linked Seraphim was suddenly gushing out energies, which swirled down to her heart and were sucked in, fuelling the sudden power. One finger pointed at me in either triumph or warning, as her mouth shaped words that I couldn’t understand, the sound a horrible buzzing that made us all tremble and feel nauseous, blood droplets scattering from our noses and ears.

[My Heart Shall Stop, My Spirit Quieten And I Shall… Be… By… The… Right Hand… Of… The Lord…]

Blood gouted from her mouth, scattering down her frail, wasted body, and the soft beeps of the medical machines around us were now just long, quiet hums. A doctor and several nurses burst in, and they pushed us aside, heedless of our status. I let them do it, as the Favours were no longer mine to take. At least I’m observing what happens when a Chosen dies…

It was fortunate I had decided to be present in the Boundary as well, as Metatron’s Favour released a surge of what looked like violet spatial element, tearing free, the heart Chakra collapsing. It then vanished, leaving behind a small hole which was leaking in a higher ether density. Not entirely dissimilar to the usage of Saionji Gin-san’s Favour. Linked Seraphim reacted differently though, sucking in all the aether, adherence and elemental essence around it, becoming diffuse and starting to fray apart, even as fragments of it were drawn into itself, being passed elsewhere, as far as I could tell. Not wanting to miss my chance, I struck out with as many blades and scalpels of aether as I could, wrapped in adherence, and the Favour tried to repel me, as if it was alive, unlike others which reacted passively as I harvested them.

Seeing my strained expression on the Material, Eleanor asked me if I was all right, and I nodded, even as I was rocked by a surge of adherence, containing a ferocious, searing light and flame component. It hurt, but I was able to shrug it off, trusting to my Ether Healing, and as the Favour collapsed in on itself, the remains vanishing, I had carved off quite a chunk, which rapidly broke down and I absorbed.

You have gained in strength. Your Level has…

Another Level up. Nice. Not a total waste then, But… the main benefit was a surge of adherence, refilling my dwindling stocks. Perhaps I wouldn’t have to beg Tan for a handout after all. Looking at Mary’s sad, shrunken corpse, the Doctor giving up on resuscitation and checking his watch to make the death pronouncement, I slipped quietly out, the others following me.

“A fitting end for her. Hypocritical to the finish. I thought suicide was a sin?” David scoffed, only for Eleanor to criticise him.

“That’s rather crass, David. And it wasn’t exactly… suicide. She just didn’t want us to take away her Favours, did she? It’s more… like dying to protect a secret. Spies and secret agents would see it as an honour. And I daresay she sees it as Martyrdom. Poor, pitiable idiot.”

“That’s rather charitable of you. I won’t shed a tear for the bitch.” David wasn’t moved by Eleanor’s words. “How about you?” he asked me, and I seriously considered it.

“I’m not a heartless person. I’m sorry it had to come to this. But… she reaped what she sowed, as I think they also say in the bible, don’t they? There are many unfortunate people such as those who were caught between the siblings in South Korea that deserve my sympathy. So I’ll just count this as the conclusion to her misguided story. Though it’s not the end.”

“Yeah, I don’t think that her organisation will let it go.” David agreed. “Vengeance is mine, sayeth the lord, right?”

“That is worrisome.” Mrs Mary-Jane fretted. “Do you think they’ll come after us all?”

“Maybe not specifically, but they still likely want what the Tower holds.” Eleanor sighed. “And since Akio here plundered a ring to give to Shaeula… no, we surely haven’t seen the last of them. I wonder…” she looked at me searchingly. “Do you think that the ominous feeling you have might have to do with the Church of True Revelation?”

“Maybe. No, it’s likely. Judging by the dream vision Tsukiko had…” I explained about the white dragon and its feathers of light. “It does seem a little… biblical, in terms of imagery.”

“We should be on high alert then.” Eleanor agreed. “Well, this was disappointing. We gained little. Perhaps we should have dealt with her when we had the chance.”

“Plans don’t always work out as we hoped.” I consoled her. “Besides, it was also that you tried to be compassionate and follow the law as well. And in the end… perhaps that power wasn’t meant for us. Besides, it wasn’t a total loss.”

“Oh?” she raised an eyebrow questioningly, and I elaborated.

“I got a much better insight into how the Linked Favours function. It’s still well beyond my full understanding, even with my Eye and my Chirurgery, but I can tell it’s a sort of bond and also a transmitter, in a way. It can absorb and emit adherence, aether and likely other things. Huh.” I paused, having a sudden thought. Isn’t that a lot like Lovers’ Link, at least the Rank eleven version Eri has? That can transmit aether and adherence, though it’s far cruder. That might be an area for study… “In any case…” I finished. “It likely has a lot of uses we don’t know, such as strengthening and healing. From what Sarah told you back then, it seems it can also devour captured Favours as well. That Pantheon really doesn’t play fair. But then, the biggest fists are the last word.” Rather than anarchy, it seems that the Pantheons have an agreement, but it clearly favours the One True Throne, judging by what we’ve learned. But that’s no different to how it works here on Earth. The stronger, richer party makes the advantageous rules to maintain the status quo. Well, we’ll see. We’ll definitely see, as I don’t plan to just let that happen here…

“No shit.” David agreed, ignoring Mrs Mary-Jane as she told him to mind his language again. “So, the mess is cleaned up. To an extent. There are still several other traitors who turned on the Princess. Shouldn’t we deal with them as well, while we’re at it?”

Eleanor shook her head. “Not yet. We would still like to get our laws updated first. We were behind Japan in that. And our Parliament isn’t as keen on working together as your Diet was.” Eleanor tutted, irritated. “But before that… we were rather distracted by the competition you proposed. We still have to sort out the matter of the returned citizens…”

Yes, we do. And Christina Bakker is still hanging around like a ticking timebomb. There’s so much to do. And tomorrow I am due to go to Kyoto with Tsukiko and Yasuhide-san. I think maybe Yukiko-san might be coming as well. But before that… I wonder how everyone is getting on with raising their affinity with Jumong’s Favour?