Chapter 6: 6th Stage- Judgment

Alcides walked towards Yamato. He did not run or anything of the sort. He simply held Ai in his arms and used his Arcanum to keep her body preserved. He would have just kept her in his darkness, but he wanted to show Ai the world.

Arriving at any settlement, he was met with fear and hostility.

"W-w-who are you!?" said a villager.

"I am Alcides. Can you point me to where Hóngsè is at?"

When they point him in a direction, they can only watch as he walks away, singing a tune with a white-haired beauty in his arms. Many could feel the sorrow and heartache he must have been bearing as he carried his love away towards her homeland.

 

By the time he reached Hóngsè, the tale of the Sorrowful God had reached the ears of many, so when Alcides arrived, many were ready to greet him.

"What a warm welcome." He said this at their city gate.

"Not at all." Said Yù Dì, the god who runs the nation of Chyong. "I have heard tales of your pain… Where do you wish to go?"

"Yamato." He strokes Ai’s hair. "The homeland of my beloved."

 

He sailed on their fastest ship, surrounded by several of their strongest Familia to escort him.

"Halt!!" said Aki. "Why are you bringing such a large fleet? Are you here to invade!?"

"Nothing of the sort." Said the captain. "We are here escorting the Sorrowful God to his lover’s homeland for burial."

"Sorrowful God? Is that some code!?"

"See for yourself." He waved to them and the middle ship came.

Aki could see on the bow of the ship something in dark armor with a black deer mask that had golden horns. In his arms was a white Renard. Her heart felt heavy with anxiety and fear. If that is who she thinks it is.

As they got closer, she could see her face.

"!?" Her heart sinks. She falls to her knees, crying. "…Ai."

 

When he arrived at Hinata, Aki gave him a message, and she kissed Ai on her forehead.

"You are a good man, Alcides. My sister was lucky to have gotten your heart."

"I feel the same way. Goodbye Aki." He bows and walks off, heading towards Fuyukusa.

Walking away, the wind once again carries his song, leaving behind a path of heartache and tears.

 

Crunch!

Crunch!

Crunch!

His deer mask opens up slightly.

"Fuu~" He lets out a deep breath from the cold, looking up at the cloudy sky. "It’s as you said, it never seems to have an end to the snow." He looked down at Ai’s face. Some snow had quickly piled on her. He brushed it off her and used his cape to cover her. "Just a bit more."

Up ahead, past the boundary of the woods, lay a village.

 

Some days later.

"…"

Alcides kneels before her grave, surrounded by snow-covered trees and a stream right by.

His eyes go hollow and he goes to the only place he could be with her. In his own dream.

Alcides does nothing but kneel there at her tombstone. No matter the day or weather, he always remains there like a loyal dog waiting for its owner.

 

Seasons pass by quickly as Alcides continues to be in a lull.

Through snow, rain, heat, or gloom, he was always there before her grave, kneeling.

He stayed there for so long that vegetation and moss started to grow on him.

There were visitors to Ai’s grave, but they all left him alone.

 

One day, a hand fell on his shoulder and a familiar divinity caught his attention.

"!" His hollow eyes ignite with consciousnesses.

"…" He turns to see Artemis and Astraea, along with their Familia. "…Why—"

"Do you know how long you have been here!?" shouted Artemis.

"No," He replied, returning his gaze to Ai's tombstone. "Leave me alone."

"No! We let you grieve for seven years! SEVEN!!!"

"So? That means nothing to the infinite lifespan you have."

"Alcides…" Astraea said, kneeling next to him. "We came because… well she—"

"She wants you to finally accept your punishment!" shouted Alise.

His eyes slightly widened, not that they could notice except for Artemis' keen eye.

"Ah... Alise. You are still alive?"

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"What’s that supposed to mean!? I’ll have you know I’m a level 7 like you!!"

"…I no longer have a level." His back glows, showing his status. They could see it was glitchy and broken. "Not that I need it anymore. What punishment are you talking about? I am already suffering."

"Hmm… How about I’ll tell you if you fight me!!" She said with a smug smile.

"…" His gaze fell on Kaguya. "I had expected you to take over this idiot."

"And I expected you to do more than just kneel here all day, ‘Mr. Final Dark God’," Kaguya said. "I would beat you bloody for breaking the promise, but... you seem to be doing that already."

"Then let me spend my years grieving. Evil will always be out there for me to devour."

"Hey don’t ignore me!!" shouted Alise.

"Listen." said Rethusa. "We are here because Lady Artemis had waited long enough to—"

"Wait! Wait! I’m not ready yet!" Artemis said, looking away.

"Lady Artemis, we have been over this for years!! You keep chickening out!"

"Am not! I am not ready!!"

Alcides slowly began to treat them as white noise before Lyra stood in front of him.

"Okay, so I’ll just give you the rundown. For killing Erebus and also defiling the moon, Artemis deems your punishment will be to marry her."

"…What?" His divinity spiked.

"!?"

Many stopped bickering as they looked to see him standing while his divinity blanketed the sky.

"We will discuss this elsewhere. I will not have this talk before her." His voice regained a passion for it, an angry passion, but nonetheless, he had life in him.

 

They walked a bit into the woods away from Ai’s grave, to a clearing.

"So what is this of marrying you as a punishment?" Alcides said, with a noticeable angry aura.

"It’s as she said." Said Artemis, who was composing herself. "Marry me and your crimes will be forgiven."

"…Is this what your 'Justice' came to Lady Astraea?" He looked at her with as much sternness as his eyes could give off from his mask. "I am banished from death, banished from ever being with her in the next life or even reincarnation."

"Yes." She said resolutely. "She is the only lunar god you know well enough that it wouldn't be to mean, plus we know you hold Ai dearly, so we thought—"

"What better way to punish me than to try to take my heart from her? To do the thing I wished I could have done with her. How cruel." He looked at Artemis. "Are you doing this of your own volition or because of duty?"

"…Both." She said firmly, taking a step closer.

"…Do you truly wish to do this?" His divinity once again blanketed the sky, and the palpable raw negative emotion reached the core of their souls. It held the colors of all the gods of Evilus he consumed.

"…Can we talk in private?" Artemis said to the others.

"…Alright," Rethusa said. "Everyone."

They all left them alone.

 

Alone together Artemis stepped forward.

"Alcides…I…I love you. It took me a while to figure it out, but I had help from Aphrodite and Freya to know that… I love you."

Artemis could see emotions beginning to swirl in his eyes.

"... When was it? What was the point in time that you fell in love?"

"When you were still human. The day you and I hunted the Nuckelavee, you slew it and you fell into my chest covered in blood. My heart skipped a beat. There... there is where my love took root."

"Ah... from way back then. You held that in for 11 years Artemis, but tell me, do you truly wish to love and be with me?" His cape began to move and expand. "After all the people I killed." His cape began to change shape to show memories of him killing people. "The most fucked part about it is that I knew deep down I loved it." He looked at his hands. "I enjoyed it when I crushed and sliced them down like fruits. It made me feel strong… powerful… I hated myself greatly for it before I got over it. Only a sick monster would find joy in killing. Is that who you love? A monster who killed children?"

"!" Artemis watched as he killed his first man during his time in the desert, lastly devouring the gods of Evilus and killing their children. She clenches her fists before taking a deep breath and unfurling her fist. "You may call yourself a monster, but a true monster wouldn’t feel regret and guilt over their own actions and demean their own actions as abhorrent. That in and of itself shows you are a person worth saving."

"So do you still wish to—"

"Ouranos!! May I!!" she shouted.

"Permission Granted."

Her divinity expanded and it held an almost similar affinity to Alcides.

"Did you think you were not the only one to kill another god?"

"…I guess the other meaning of your name is valid. Is that what you wish to show me? That we are compatible as god slayers? Even though all the gods you killed will eventually return into existance."

"No, I wanted to show you this. Snap!" She opened up a Divine Mirror. In it, she shows him Zolingham, Ukhara, and Orario. Many were laughing and having fun. "You did this. You stained your hands to bring peace to the world. With your actions, Evilus and any form of evil were eradicated. Rakia and the Empire no longer expand, and many try to resolve conflicts with peace. I won't try to convince you that the world is peaceful, but it has gotten as peaceful as it could ever be thanks to your presence."

Alcides watched the scenes before him, he could feel his heart lighten up, but the only thing that was weighing it down was Ai.

"…That is wonderful, but my heart is still heavy from her death." He places his hand on his heart. "She alone is worth more to me than all of the peace in the world."

"That is perfectly fine. You can still love her with all your love but… I hope you can spare a crumb of it on me?" She walks to him and holds his hand. "I don’t wish to speak for her, but I’m sure Ai would have wanted you to move on and not be stuck here kneeling before her grave."

"…" He could feel the warmth from Artemis’s hand as she held his tightly. "I need time to think." He removed his hand from hers and walked away.

"I’ll be here. Waiting."

Artemis watches him as he walks away.

She can only hope he is willing to try and take a step forward from the past he is forever stuck in.