Chapter 8: Into the Darkness
Chapter 8: Into the Darkness
Ouka
“…SO? Why are you with this cute girl, Ouka?” Miles asked, looking at Erie seated next to Ouka at the bar counter.
Ouka had hidden Dram in the sea as he was nearing his time limit, and then somehow shook the Rabbis off his trail before taking refuge in PUB Nest of Love. The crowded pub was the perfect hiding place.
Erie seemed flustered and nervous, but Ouka didn’t pay any mind to her. “To tell you the truth, Miles, we’re wanted by the Church. Seems like this girl and I are suspects,” he answered honestly.
“HUH?! What in Heaven’s name did you do?!”
“It’s a long story, so I’ll fill you in some other time. Just to be clear, we’re innocent. INNOCENT.” Ouka chugged the glass of peppermint water Miles put out for him and then faced Erie. “Okay, I haven’t introduced myself properly yet, have I? I’m the Golem Artificer Ouka Baraki. This here’s the pub owner Miles. We’re not your enemies, right now.”
Erie gave Ouka a suspicious look. He went on, “How ‘bout we take advantage of this good opportunity and exchange information? Seems we’re after the same person—that bastard Jair.”
“…What reason do you have to go after Jair?”
“I’ve got history with that thing. With that black cube he’s using.”
“You lost your mind when you saw it the day before yesterday too… What’s the deal with it?”
“I was researchin’ that cube at the Torah Church up until four years ago. Together with Kiriko, who you’ve just had the misfortune of meeting, and a man named Alita. We were conducting research under our boss, Spinoza.”
“Why were you researching it?”
“We were trying to manufacture the most powerful militarized Golem possible using the cubes. It was called Project Sephiroth.” Referring to the unspeakable and reprehensible project by name sent the horrible memories churning within Ouka. “And we created those black cubes as a part of the overall research plan.”
Erie’s eyes slowly grew wider as she stared at Ouka like she didn’t believe him. “Did you just say what I think you did…? Aren’t those cubes irreplaceable items with only a handful in existence?”
“The originals are. But the black cubes Jair uses are different. They’re the imitations we created by tryin’ to copy the red cubes.”
“Imitations?”
“If memory serves me right, the Church’s only got four of the invaluable Sehem-hamphorasch. That’s far too few for conducting proper research. So, we created imitation cubes using the same mineral ore. They couldn’t even compare to the originals though.”
“How are they different?”
“Well, Jair’s Golems come to life just by burying the cube in the ground, but don’t ya think they move weirdly slow and sluggish? That’s a side effect of the imitation cube. Golems brought to life by the true Sehem-hamphorasch are much stronger and far smarter.”
Erie nodded, seriously listening to him now. Ouka thrust a finger at her nose and added, “But the true difference lies beyond those aspects. The original has a shell.”
“A shell? Are you talking about the red shell around Lovel’s cube?”
“Yup, a shell. The originals have a red shell exterior with the cube inside. You’re supposed to write the Restrictor into that external casing.”
That baffled Erie. “I don’t really get it…” she mumbled. “Is it that important to be able to engrave a Restrictor?”
“No ifs, ands, or buts about it; it’s necessary. We can only control the Golems powered by the cubes through the Restrictors engraved into their shells. Otherwise, there’s nothing to say, ‘don’t kill humans,’” Ouka answered gravely.
Erie turned over what he said in her mind before asking, “Do you mean to say that without a Restrictor in place, a Golem with a cube embedded will be the same as a Berserker Golem?”
“Bingo. That’s what gives cube powered Golems the same immense strength as a Berserker Golem from the get-go. How you use them from there, though, becomes the problem.”
Normal usage wouldn’t have posed a problem. The Church, however, got the idea to make a weapon out of the cubes, which had been an impossible endeavor from the start.
“The research ended in decisive failure four years ago. They sealed away the research facility with Sephiroth’s body within, and the cubes vanished into thin air. The cubes and the Golems powered by them should have been nothing but uncontrollable, dangerous weapons.”
“But Jair mastered their use…”
Ouka gave her a firm nod. What Jair did should’ve been impossible. As long as the black cubes had no Restrictors in place, the Golems powered by them were guaranteed to go berserk.
“Who the bloody hell is Jair…?” Ouka muttered. “For that matter, why’s he after you?”
“I don’t know why. He suddenly appeared one night, three days ago.”
“Then where’d you learn about Sehem-hamphorasch? Who told you?”
Erie studied Ouka’s face and held her silence. She pressed her lips tightly together.
“Please tell me, Erie. The information might lead us to Jair. I understand you’d want to protect the informant, but…I just want to hear what they know, too. So please.”
Erie stayed quiet for a long moment. Then she eventually came to a decision and said, “…Doctor Crank Getz told me. He has a clinic on the outskirts of Chest Island.”
“Really? Why does a town doctor know about this stuff?”
“He told me Grinzam was an old friend of his.”
Old friends, huh? I never heard anything ‘bout that. Ouka doubted the information’s validity, but kept it from showing on his face.
“Guess I’ll go hear him out for a bit… Will you come with me, Erie?” Ouka asked as kindly as he could. Erie shook her head nonetheless.
“…I won’t go with you. I want to go rescue Heathy as soon as possible. I don’t have time to take a side trip.”
“You’re going to rescue him from the Torah Church? All alone?”
“How could I not?! He’ll get disposed of as an Illegal Golem if I don’t do something!”
“Take a deep breath and think things through calmly. The Church’s objective isn’t Heath’s destruction—it’s your capture. They’ll likely use him as bait to draw you out… You can pretty much count on ‘em doing nothing to him until they apprehend you.”
Erie gnawed her lower lip.
“The charges against you and me will be lifted if we can capture Jair and bring him to Kiriko. It won’t be too late to drop by the Church after we’ve done that, yeah?”
Erie cast down her eyes, appearing to mull over his proposal. She came to a conclusion and stated, “…But, if there’s even the slightest possibility of them disposing of Heathy, I have to go to him.”
“I understand how you feel… How about this? Why not remotely summon him to you? Like you saw me do with Dram.”
“I can’t. Heathy’s Restrictor is to always be by my side. Being pulled too far apart from each other counts as breaking the Restrictor.”
Ouka grimaced. All of a Golem’s functions were suspended when the Restrictor was broken, and repairing the Restrictor was the only way to reactivate them. That explained why Erie was so desperate to return to Heath.
“Good grief… I’m sure you won’t listen if I try to stop you.”
Erie nodded and readjusted her grip on the knife she had been clenching all this time. It was the very same knife Heath used.
“That knife won’t do ya any good if you’re going to raid the Church. You’ll be caught in a flash, and that’ll be the end of that.”
“This isn’t all I have up my sleeve, obviously. I have a good plan.”
“You have a plan? What is—”
“Shh!” Miles shushed Ouka, a finger pressed to his lips. His eyes were focused outside the window.
“Wh-What’s wrong, Miles?” Ouka whispered.
“The Rabbis are here. Both of you, hide inside the counter!”
Heeding Miles’ advice, Ouka and Erie hopped over the bar counter and crouched behind it. They heard the pub door being thrown open.
“Hello! Your attention please!” a man’s voice boomed through the noisy pub. “Did a man and young girl with an Amber Golem enter this establishment?”
The voice belonged to Torah Officer Seagal. Ouka knew him as a greenhorn Rabbi with an evil-looking face and eviler personality, who had joined the Church just as Ouka quit. Going by the sound of heavy footsteps, he had brought his Golem with him.
Miles answered, “Beats me. I wouldn’t know.”
“Really now? I heard he disappeared around these parts. What do you have to say to that?”
“There are plenty of shops in the neighborhood. Maybe they’re tossing back a few glasses at another bar?”
“Most of the shops are closed.” The footsteps came closer and stopped right before the counter. “I’ll be searching your pub.”
“Have a heart! You’ll be disturbing my customers from enjoying their drink.”
“This is my job.”
“Oh? Ruining the modest time the common people have to unwind is your job? No wonder you’re hated.”
“Watch your tongue if you want to keep it! You’re just a freak tranny who disobeys God’s teachings!” Ouka heard Seagal’s angry voice fill with malice. He was always heavy-handed with everyone who wasn’t a Rabbi.
“Acting all high and mighty in holy clothes is part of God’s teachings?” Miles demurred without losing his cool. “Your Holy Scriptures or whatever sound real worthless.”
“You scumbag! Enough of this nonsense! I’ll be searching your pub, whether you like it or not!”
BANG! Ouka heard what sounded like a chair being kicked over. Startled cries rose from the drinking customers.
“I told you, he ain’t here! Quit making a mess of my shop!” Miles protested.
“Quit? You slum dwellers should just obediently listen to whatever we say! That’s all you’re good for anyway.” Seagal sneered mockingly.
“Slum dwellers…? Don’t get cocky just ‘cause you think you’ve got God’s support, Rabbi SCUM!” Miles’ furious shout shook the pub.
Seagal shut up like a spanked puppy. Piano music was the only sound heard in the pub after that.
Miles launched into a tirade with his throaty voice. “This is MY pub, boy! Only customers get to go wild! If ya still wanna push my patience, I’ll have this guy take you on!”
The piano music that was a constant background sound in the pub abruptly ceased. In its silence came the echoes of heavy pounding. Ouka spied on the scene from the cover of the counter. The Wood Golem who always sat in front of the piano had left his station and lumbered toward the Rabbi.
“Piano Man, throw the Rabbi Scum out, just like the trash he is!”
Piano Man lunged for Seagal at Miles’ command.
“AGH!”
Piano Man’s wide slap knocked Seagal to the floor. Seagal unsteadily pushed himself off while screaming through his bloody nose, “Y-You ingrate! Take him down, Ezekiel!”
Seagal’s Stone Golem Ezekiel threw a straight punch at Piano Man, launching him back to where he came from.
“Huh?” Seagal squeaked as if he had expected more.
“…Well, he ain’t a combat ready Golem,” Miles confessed, scratching his head.
The frightened Seagal instantly changed his tune. “You damn tranny! You’re in for a world of pain, underestimating us Rabbis!”
“Yer in for a world of pain if ya underestimate blue-collar workers!” Another voice bellowed through the pub just as Seagal threatened Miles.
Seagal quickly spun around. Customers who had been enjoying their ale—miners who were normally oppressed by the Rabbis on a daily basis—were standing in a formidable row behind Seagal, locking him in their bloodthirsty glares.
“How…?!”
Seagal was rendered speechless by their overwhelming contempt and eagerness for a fight. All of the men had taken up their pickaxes.
“I don’t give a damn what the Church minions do on Head Island,” one of the men said. “There ain’t much we can do about ya getting all huffy about the Golems either. But don’t act like a bigshot in this pub! Crawl on back to Head Island, Rabbi Scum!”
“Shut up, slum dweller!” Seagal snapped back. “Our workload never ends because you lowlifes are always breaking the rules with Illegal Golems and Golem-based crimes! I’m putting my life on the line for this shitty, dangerous job!”
“We haven’t committed any crimes!”
“You’re concealing a criminal! Bring out Ouka and the girl!”
“That ain’t something we can help ya with.”
The men gripped their pickaxes and slowly sidled up to Ezekiel.
“Hmph! You slum dwellers are just blowing hot air…!” A corner of Seagal’s lips curled up as he raised his voice in challenge. “Just try it, ACCURSED SCOUNDRELSSS!”
The men lifted their pickaxes overhead and brought them down on Ezekiel all at once.
The pub exploded in an uproar, much like a beehive after it’s been poked with a stick. Miles and the pub girls fled from the fight and took refuge behind the bar counter. Lingerie-clad women came to fill the cramped space underneath it.
Miles took a deep breath in relief. “Phew… I don’t really get what trouble you’ve gotten into, hun, but this should buy you some time. You should both run while you have the chance.”
“Hey now, will you guys be okay?” Ouka asked.
“This kinda thing happens occasionally in this line of business.”
“But, Miles…” Erie trailed off anxiously.
The pub girls comforted her.
“Don’t worry, we’re good. Everybody is stressed to the max. This makes for a perfect chance to let it all out.”
“Fighting is, like, totally a form of communication for the miners.”
“Besides, I’m sure they wanted to do something to impress you, little lady. Men always fight when they see a pretty girl. They’re so stupid!”
The women chuckled, and Erie smiled with them. Miles winked at her. “Time for you to hurry along, sweetheart. Isn’t there somewhere you have to go?”
Erie gave a firm nod then said timidly, “Um, thank you, Miles… And I’m sorry about destroying your pub last time I was here.”
“You don’t have to worry your sweet little heart about that! It’s about as common as a nonpaying drunk!” Miles stroked the top of her head with a kind hand. Then he opened the door hidden behind the counter. “Okay, make your escape from here. You hurry along too, Ouka.”
Ouka and Erie nodded to each other and darted for the door. Just before it, Ouka stopped to glance back at the pub’s main room, which had devolved into a melting pot of chaos.
“URYAAAAAAH!”
“TAKE THIS, RABBI SCUM!”
“COME AND GET ME, SLUM DWELLERS!”
Brawler shouts were tossed around the room as Ezekiel took on the miners. For some reason, Seagal and the miners seemed to be enjoying themselves. Confirming that the uproar was more of a brawl than a bloodbath eased Ouka’s conscience. He pocketed a bottle of peppermint water and said, “Add the bill to my tab, Miles.”
“Make sure to pay next time you come. You too, Erie dear.”
Ouka and Erie agreed and raced outside the pub.
The alley behind the pub was extremely dark. Ouka shut the door behind him and walked quietly through it. Then he suddenly spotted someone standing at the end of the alleyway.
It’s a Rabbi! He could tell from the person’s silhouette that they wore a vestment.
“RUN, ERIE!”
Ouka sprinted forward with his fist ready. The Rabbi blocked his path.
I’ll just punch him off his feet!
Ouka threw the punch with his entire weight, and the momentum of his run for an extra boost. But the Rabbi caught the blow with his left hand.
“What?!”
His opponent aimed an inside knifehand strike at his neck. Ouka narrowly sidestepped it, feeling the rush of cold air blow past him, and dove to tackle the Rabbi.
As he tumbled to the ground, Ouka spotted Erie out of the corner of his eye. She was rooted to the ground, watching him. “GO!” he shouted.
“I’m sorry! Thank you!” she shouted back, his words pushing her into a decision. She ran away from the alley, leaving Ouka alone with the Rabbi. Ouka stared after her, worrying.
If she’s set on going to the Torah Church, I have no right to stop her. I heard what I needed, and I have my own objectives to accomplish. I’ll start by beatin’ this Rabbi then head to the town doctor’s clinic—
The Rabbi he had knocked over moved while he was still planning his next move. Quickly slipping from Ouka’s restraints, the Rabbi grabbed his collar and yanked him off the ground by it.
“You idiotic moron….!” The Rabbi—his former boss Spinoza—looked exasperated with him. Realizing who he was, Ouka responded with a wry smile, which got Spinoza to release his collar. “I heard the whole thing from Kiriko. Even if we take her story about you selling the cubes on the black market with a grain of salt… Not even I will be able to protect you from aiding and abetting Erie’s escape.”
“I don’t care. I’ll take action my own way from here. Things have gotten to the point where I have no choice but to track down Jair, anyway.”
Spinoza snorted before his expression abruptly turned grim. “Hey, Ouka, why are you getting so involved in this? Don’t make it personal. This isn’t what I hired you to do.”
“……”
“Back down from this case. I’ll track down this Jair guy for you. I’ll settle this case in your stead while you eat some nasty food and pass the time relaxing in a jail cell for a bit.”
“Spinoza, I’m doing this to help me make sense of things. I’m moving for myself.”
“I’m sure you’re also doing it for Kiriko.” Ouka gulped. Spinoza cracked a wicked grin. “Ouka, Kiriko still only has eyes for Alita. You stand no chance against someone who’s already dead.”
“Mind your own business.” A bitter smile tugged at his lips, because Spinoza had hit the nail on the head. Ouka was annoyed with himself, but he clasped hands with his former boss. “Sorry, Spinoza. Lemme do what I need to do for a little longer.”
“You think I can do that? I can’t make any more excuses for you the next time you get captured by Kiriko or anybody else. You’d better just let me apprehend you here.”
“I see. Then I guess we’ve got no other choice than to go at it…” Ouka slowly shifted into a fighter’s stance.
Spinoza readied his legs and arms in his own stance as he quipped, “Have you forgotten that you’ve never once beat me in Krav Maga exercises, former Torah Officer Ouka Baraki?”
“I wouldn’t talk with how long you’ve been away from a real fight. Haven’t ya been enjoyin’ what’s practically retirement inside the Church with that creepy Golem of yours?”
“Let’s test that theory… Come at me, Ouka!”
Spinoza’s words were the trigger to commence the battle. Ouka fired left jabs, one after the other, at Spinoza’s face. Spinoza deflected them with his right hand.
He’s so full of himself! How do you like this, then?!
Ouka unfurled his thrust out fist right in front of Spinoza’s eyes. It was a trick to distract him—just as Spinoza knocked his arm out of the way, Ouka unleashed a body blow with all his strength.
“Tch!” Spinoza guarded against it by bringing up both arms. Ouka followed up by launching a sharp high kick to the gap now created in Spinoza’s defense.
It connected! A disturbing crack came just as he thought to rejoice.
Spinoza had blocked Ouka’s kick with his elbow. Sharp pain rushed through Ouka’s shin from colliding full-on with the hardest spot on the human body.
“AGH…!”
Spinoza slipped in close as Ouka groaned in pain. There was no time for him to brace himself by tightening his abdominal muscles. Driven with the force of a short rush forward, an intense elbow strike hit Ouka right in the solar plexus. The impact penetrated through to his back, knocking the wind out of him. Without pausing, Spinoza mustered his strength, pulled Ouka onto his shoulder, and while letting out a war cry, threw Ouka.
“GAHA!” Ouka crashed on the ground and tumbled.
Spinoza clapped his hands as if to dust the dirt off them and declared, “You haven’t changed a bit since then.”
What kinda middle-aged man is this? Ouka was half in shock but still flashed a confident grin anyway.
“…It’s true that I haven’t changed. But you’ve become weak!”
Spinoza eyed him suspiciously. Ouka pulled the peppermint water bottle out of his pocket and chucked it at him.
Spinoza intercepted the bottle with his fist, and the peppermint water inside spurted all over his face. “AGH!”
Ouka took advantage of Spinoza’s momentary blindness to swiftly jump to his feet and escape.
“Wait, damn it! OUKA! Who’s weaker?! And don’t run away!”
“It’s high time you accept you’re gettin' weaker if you fall for my tricks!” Ouka jeered pathetically and fled without glancing back. Spinoza’s angry shouts grew quieter behind him.
Shit. That does it. Things have gotten super complicated. I’m going to have to get serious now. But even if things go south, I have to get involved. I’ve wanted to for a long time now.
Ouka ran into the hustle and bustle of the town and made up his mind. He resolved to come to grips with the truth.
***
Kiriko
KIRIKO locked the captured Heath up in the designated location and returned to the interrogation room.
“Tch, you came back?” Lovel pulled a face when she saw Kiriko. She was lazily kicking back on her chair. “Where’d you go that was so important you had to leave me hanging?”
“Work related to another case. Although this case doesn’t seem unrelated to you,” Kiriko answered with a sigh. “An academy schoolgirl suspected of murder is at large. She denies the charges… She says the real culprit is a man called Jair.”
“Wait, are you talking about Erie?” Lovel asked.
Kiriko nodded. “It’s strange. Several completely unrelated cases are beginning to intersect and bleed into each other. I’m starting to get the sense that your nonsense is closer to the truth than I give you credit for…” She leaned across the table until she was nose to nose with Lovel. Glaring fiercely at the girl, she said, “If this Jair you children speak of is real… Who in the world is he?”
“I honestly don’t know much about him. All I know is that he’s trying to Tame Sephiroth and use it to destroy this Church.”
“Pretending that’s true, for argument’s sake… We would have to start looking into him in earnest.”
“Why doesn’t the Church just get rid of Sephiroth? Wouldn’t that solve the problem?”
Kiriko frowned. Staring back into Lovel’s eyes, she growled, “…Get rid of him? You think it’s that easy?”
“Sephiroth is located somewhere on this archipelago, isn’t he? Jair can’t steal it if you just dispose of it first—”
“We can’t do that. This archipelago would effectively lose its meaning.”
Lovel gaped at her. “It’d ‘lose meaning’? What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Haven’t you ever found it strange? These tiny islands have the Church, an academy, many residents, and a hardworking population. Despite the countless inconsistencies and issues, people stay unnaturally crowded together here.”
“Isn’t that because there’s a good mine and work here?”
“On extremely rare occasions, cubes have been excavated from that mine. The mine is connected to the Church by an underground railway, and the Rabbis frequently inspect it in order to snatch up any discovered cubes and promptly bring them back to the Church. Don’t you think the process is a little too good to be true?”
“…!”
“The ancient documents had a record that stated, ‘the source of life is buried in the archipelago located in the South Seas.’ The military authorities zeroed in on that bit of information and joined hands with the Church—all in order to build the strongest militarized Golem.”
“…You mean…” A look of comprehension flashed across Lovel’s face.
Kiriko nodded once and confirmed, “They built the Church complex and tunnels all in order to excavate and research the cubes that are buried somewhere on this archipelago. Everything functions for that sole purpose. I would even go as far as to say this entire archipelago is a giant factory, existing solely to create Sephiroth.”
Lovel’s eyes flew open. “Is that why the Church charges obscenely high prices for official Golems?”
“Yes, it’s just another means to raise funding for their project. But going public with such information would invite mass revolt from the residents… Thus, we Rabbis have no choice but to destroy anyone digging into Sephiroth,” Kiriko concluded with bitterness in her voice. Lovel said nothing, she only looked straight into her eyes.
***
Ouka
AFTER successfully escaping Spinoza, Ouka arrived at the clinic built on the outskirts. The lights were off inside. The owner Getz had to be either sleeping or away.
“What to do now?”
In any event, the owner of this clinic was no ordinary town doctor. According to the rumors Ouka gathered, he was willing to treat anyone regardless of their background or circumstances. There were rumors of him doing surgery on gangsters with knives sticking out of their gut, and going as far as to help them change their appearance with plastic surgery to deceive those chasing them. An Academy lecturer was his cover; his true identity was an underground doctor.
Erie seemed to trust in Getz completely, but it was strange for a simple town doctor to know about Sehem-hamphorasch. He was as suspicious as they come.
Then there’s no reason for me to hold back.
Ouka smashed a clinic window with his quarterstaff. Entering the building from his newly made opening, he relied on his lighter’s flame to help him search the pitch-black room.
The building was an old mansion that served both as a clinic and the doctor’s house. Ouka searched room after room for anything out of the ordinary, but he didn’t discover anything suspicious.
What’s the deal here?
Ouka decided to wet his parched throat before further investigation and headed to the kitchen to fetch some water. On the way, something caught his eye.
Three large cabinets ran along the wall. The cabinet to the far right had barely any tableware inside.
Does he just not have a lot of dishes? But he wouldn’t need so many large cabinets if he didn’t. He’s got a reason to leave it empty. But what is it…?
Ouka suddenly figured it out. He grabbed the empty cabinet and moved it to the side. The cabinet moved with ease, revealing a door behind it.
A concealed door wasn’t standard fare for an innocent doctor’s home.
“Oooh! This is gettin’ interesting now…!” Ouka whispered and quietly opened the door.
A descending staircase was on the other side. It was probably originally built to serve as a storage space. Darkness concealed the bottom of the stairs.
Ouka carefully descended the staircase. He was inside the home of a man who served as a lecturer at the Academy. It wasn’t unthinkable for him to have a Golem somewhere for security purposes.
But nothing appeared by the time Ouka reached the bottom step. Only a small desk and large water tank rested against the wall of the dark, empty square room that was about six meters in length.
“Is it just a cellar…?” Ouka approached the water tank against the wall. All of a sudden, something flashed red inside the water.
What was that?!
Ouka braced himself and took another look. It was a large tank capable of holding big aquatic animals. The tank could easily fit a person—
The red light came from whatever was inside.
“…!”
It slowly wriggled and glowered at Ouka.
Black eyes were what glared at him. The lips below those eyes pulled apart and appeared to scream.
“Wh-What…the hell is this?”
A girl was inside the tank.
She had been submerged with white patient robes on. He knew she was dead at a glance. Her skin was lifeless, and a countless number of red Engrave Incantations were inscribed into the bits he could see peeking out from under her robe. A sinister red glow shone from the emeth engraved in her forehead.
“A…F-Fresh Golem…?!” Ouka’s voice trembled.
The crimson glow illuminating the girl’s forehead was the characteristic light given off only by a Berserker Golem.