Machina Arcanis: Two Worlds Collided

TUChapter 9. Miasma

TU9. Miasma

Aurora sat cross-legged on the grassy ground before the tunnel's entrance, waiting for Tachyon.

The Wildren had insisted that she press ahead, not wanting to burden the Empress with watching her crime be judged by Aeacus. Good riddance, as it might be, Aurora felt this was a true test of a judge. If Aeacus showed leniency toward Tachyon's crimes simply because they were friends, it would jeopardise his position as the embodiment of justice. Either that, or Tachyon's crimes had been pardonable from the start. That part, Aurora wasn't entirely convinced of. The Furies targeted the wickedest of them all, and she wasn't going to dismiss that fact anytime soon.

Thanatos eventually floated down to join her, the purple pyres licking at his tar-soaked feet scorching the earth where he touched down.

"Mind telling me what's going on with Tachyon?" Aurora asked, her tone flat.

"Why?" the Grim Reaper drawled.

"Because I care about her, Thanatos," Aurora conceded. "Despite the brevity of our time together, the girl has started to grow on me…"

"Hmm…" Thanatos hummed to himself, clearly holding back a smile. "Would it be fun, otherwise? If you knew everything and had foreseen everything?" he riddled with a wide grin.

"Ah…" That confirmed it for Aurora. This primordial god transcended three-dimensional reality, existing far beyond the fourth dimension, perhaps even observing the fifth dimension of branching timelines. Still, Aurora felt the need to exhale deeply. "You're right."

Footsteps shattered the quiet of the lonely pathway. Tachyon hurried forward, bringing her arms up to wipe a stray tear from her eye before steeling her quivering body.

"Empress!" Tachyon called out, waving her arm high. Her forced, fake smile was picture-perfect.

Slowly, Aurora rose to her feet. "Tachyon!"

"Hope I didn't keep you waiting for long, Empress!" Tachyon bowed deeply at the waist.

"Not at all," Aurora said softly.

"Shall we go to the crossroads?" Tachyon urged, clasping her hands tightly over her chest. "I… I want to meet my ancestors… my people." Her words carried the weight of a desperate plea, clinging to a small hope.

"In Elysium…?" Aurora asked, confounded. She shot a glance at the decidedly unhelpful god of death.

"Yep!" Tachyon blurted, bearing a full, toothy grin.

"That's a relief to hear. I take it Aeacus pardoned you of your crime…" Aurora asked, already spinning around. Their footsteps began to crush the gravel road as they walked.

The road before was neither grand nor mythical; it was just a road like one in a rural land.

After a long trek filled with awkward silence, they eventually arrived at the crossroads. It was simple enough to distinguish the pathways. One radiated darkness and gloom, while another shone with brilliant light. But one would have to be blind to miss the beautiful statue of the three-faced goddess standing in the dead centre of the intersection.

"Each of her faces seems to look in a different direction," Aurora remarked, the first to notice the hidden meaning beneath the architecture. "One for Leimonopolis, one for Tartarus, and one for Elysium."

"You… you're right!" Tachyon stammered. Sweat gathered at her brow, and she took a heavy, audible gulp.

"I would deduce this is the goddess of witchcraft, magic, and crossroads, Hecate," Aurora mused aloud.

"My, my, aren't you the sharpest scalpel," Thanatos chuckled deeply.

"If you must know, I delved into Earthly mythology when I was young… amongst other things," Aurora murmured, a wistful smile touching her lips. She reminisced over fond memories of her mother, who used to read those ancient tales to lull her to sleep every night. She couldn't quite pinpoint the exact moment those bedtime stories stopped; the memory was becoming a melancholy blur now that she thought about it.

"Let's go. I have already wasted too much time," Aurora grumbled, more to herself.

This journey wasn't something she had expected at all. The grand battle with demonic forces she had anticipated was nowhere to be found, and the Lord of the Underworld had hidden himself away in the deepest part of the realm. But another thought echoed in her mind: it would be far too naive to think the Underworld was just another kingdom to easily topple.

As they crossed over the boundary of the three-way intersection, a loud, divine chime rang out, vibrating in their ears. Aurora froze immediately, raising her palms to halt Tachyon behind her.

"Aurora Vere Borealis, Daughter of Austria Vere Borealis, Granddaughter of Aurora Victus Borealis, Great-granddaughter of Austria Victus Borealis, and so on, and so forth…" The voice echoed with terrifying divine clarity.

As it appeared, the statue was never just a statue. The goddess Hecate herself had awakened from her slumber — likely an unintended consequence of the coup d'état they had executed prior. Minos and Hera must have found a way to suppress the goddess of the crossroads, and now, those bindings were gone.

"According to your heavenly virtues and great deeds, it is your Fates to journey to Elysium." Hecate gestured with an open palm toward the passage of light.

Then, another of her faces scanned Tachyon, looking down her nose at the Wildren.

"And you, Tachyon of Sparta. Daughter of Pyrrhus and Hermione, Granddaughter of Achilles of Phthia and Deidamia of Scyros, Great-granddaughter of Peleus and Thetis…"

Aurora's elven ears twitched at the lineage. As anticipated, Tachyon wasn't a mere peasant from the start. A Spartan…

"Goddess! Please hear my plea!" Tachyon collapsed to her knees. Her hands fumbled frantically for a scroll, thrusting it high into the air. "Please read this Catharsis before bestowing your judgment upon me!"

Aurora could swear she saw the genuine spark of terrified tears in Tachyon's eyes.

"Insolent bearer of the deadly sins!" The goddess snapped her head, all three pairs of eyes locking onto the kneeling girl. "Your crimes of this pedigree shall not be ridden of with a mere scroll, Kinslayer!"

With a sharp snap of her fingers, the scroll erupted in violent flames, burning the very hand that held it.

"Ah!" Tachyon yelped in anguish, clutching her charred fingers to her chest. Her only hope had perished as quickly as the paper.

"Know your place, wicked soul. Tartarus is your eternal punishment!"

Aurora strolled over to the crying girl, her hands glowing as she offered a soothing healing spell. Even as the burnt fingers mended to their natural colour and the wounds sealed shut, the Wildren wouldn't stop her wailing. The heels of Tachyon's hands smeared the flooding tears across her cheeks.

Sighing hard, Aurora rose to her feet, her cape fluttering in the stale subterranean wind. Her silver eyes remained fixated on the goddess, who stood guarding the forked road. There was an absolute air of unyielding authority to Hecate's posture.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

"Goddess… I have no intention of visiting Elysium. My destination lies in the direction of Tartarus. I am on a quest—"

"This is divine absolute!" the goddess interjected, shooting her palm forward in a gesture of denial.

The pitiful sound of wailing continued as Tachyon scrambled in the dirt, digging her healed hands into the pile of burnt ashes in front of her.

"Tachyon, stop crying…" Aurora said softly.

Her words drowned in the Wildren's wails. Tachyon kept clawing at the ashes, as if her sheer desperation could rematerialise the pardon back into her palm.

Now, it was as clear as day. That was Tachyon’s entire plan all along. Aurora pondered this for a moment as the crying only grew in intensity, the voice distorting into a loud, broken rasp. It was a sound that made even the Empress's steel heart quiver.

I cannot help those who do not open up to me, Tachyon… Squeezing her eyes shut, Aurora knew she had no choice but to turn back to the towering goddess.

"Do what you must; this verdict is the will of the Olympian Gods!" Hecate steeled her voice, turning it as hard as stone. "And I stand by it with my divinity!"

"Very well. Then there is only one way." Aurora bared her teeth, the decision paining her as much as anyone.

One would think Aurora preferred the warrior's way — the way of Ares. However, it brought her no true pleasure to slay gods and bend the rules of the realm like a blood-rushed brute. But what choice did she have? There was no room for discussion here. No diplomacy. No reconciliation with these ancient divine rules.

"So this is your answer, Aurora Vere Borealis!" Hecate growled as Aurora summoned a rapier to her grip.

"Correct." Aurora glanced at the god of death, who had floated to the far side of the road. Thanatos simply nodded with an expectant grin.

Coiling power into her knees, Aurora launched herself into the air, her glowing eyes leaving a brilliant streak of silver in her wake.

The two-metre-tall goddess summoned twin torches into her palms. Their long, ornate shafts were formed from thick, intertwining coils, much like the twisting roots of a weeping willow tree.

As the strike of the purple rapier descended, the goddess parried flawlessly with the handle of her torch.

"It won't cut?!" Aurora's eyes widened in shock.

Hellflames spat outward, fanning into a wave of pure destruction.

Aurora darted backward and rolled across the earth. The ground instantly melted and scorched under the incredible heat, the gravel evaporating in a fraction of a second.

"Witness the Hell-Empyrion!" Hecate shouted. She swung her hands, throwing massive, cleaving waves of flames into the air in every direction.

Tachyon! Aurora's eyes darted toward the cheetah Wildren, who was still shatter-mindedly picking through the ashes on the ground, oblivious to the inferno.

"Ventiff!" Aurora called upon her legendary beast, sending the griffin out to shield the onslaught.

Ventiff's roar rang out, and its massive wings reinforced themselves into a two-layered, impenetrable wall of feathers, blocking the deadly heat.

"Hah! You fool!" Hecate surged forward, arching her blazing torch directly at Aurora.

Aurora stood her ground and raised her palm. "Phoros!"

The magical field pushed violently outward, a wall of bursting force that sent the goddess staggering backward.

"How?" Hecate gasped, caught off guard.

Seeing the opening, Aurora lunged. The tip of her rapier pointed dead at the goddess's midsection.

But the goddess smiled widely. She spun her torches, sending the flames rushing in a violent circle.

Aurora shifted mid-action, abandoning the strike to roll to the side and dodge the lethal ring of fire. Her boots slid heavily against the remaining gravel before she came to a halt.

"Come on!" Aurora surged forward, leading with the tip of her glowing blade. In response, Hecate wove a massive, suffocating fan of hellfire toward her. Nimbly, Aurora leapt and spun through the blazing air. The sheer kinetic force of her evasion whipped her long, silver hair into a sudden tangle, but the strands were so incredibly silky that they slipped effortlessly loose on their own, spiralling behind her like a shimmering banner that danced wildly in the scorching updraft of the inferno.

"Your persistence annoys me!" Hecate roared, following up with a devastating, sweeping cleave.

"Phoros!" A kinetic barrier erected just in time to counter the blow. The violent clash ruptured the very air, sending out a massive shockwave that rattled the pebble ground.

Aurora skidded across the scorched ground on her kneeguards, instantly coiling her momentum to lunge again at the ever-increasing pace.

Again and again, the Empress launched her relentless strikes. Yet, despite her blistering speed and varying angles of attack, the goddess of witchcraft easily tracked her movements, repelling every thrust with wide, explosive bursts of hellfire.

A looming shadow engulfed the area. "Do you realise it now, mortal Empress?"

Hecate spun her body like a majestic ballerina caught in a dance of hellfire. Her spinning accelerated, transforming into a towering maelstrom of fire. Ten metres of writhing, screaming flames became both her ultimate defence and her deadliest offence.

"With her three faces… there are no blind spots," Aurora growled, a single droplet of sweat trickling down her forehead from the intense heat.

"I can do this for eternity!" Hecate's voice roared from the centre of the cyclone. "Withdraw your sword now, Essenceborn!"

"Never…" Aurora eyed her mount. Ventiff's wings were indestructible against Hecate's fire, but it appeared she would have to use other brute force to break through the goddess's guard.

An idea bloomed in her mind, and a confident smile touched her lips.

"You seem to have thought of something amusing," Thanatos remarked, rejoining her side. The reflection of the dancing fire played across his shiny golden mask.

"Watch this—" Aurora roared, "—Hippos Theios-Phoros!"

Aurora rose almost two metres into the air. Beneath her, the shimmering construct of a divine steed materialised, hissing superheated air from its ethereal nostrils. Its muscular legs pawed the air, preparing to gallop.

In a fraction of a second, their bodies became a blur of acceleration. Four hooves tenderised against the ground, sending the seismic ripple outward; the sheer force of their movement pushed the air out in a shattering shockwave.

"Attack!" Aurora released a battle cry, pointing her glowing blade forward.

The simmering construct of Phoros jousted directly into the maelstrom of fire. Hecate's flames snuffed out instantly as Aurora's steed tore through the cyclone, its shadow looming with terrifying grace. As the majestic beast erupted from the wall of fire, Hecate could only stare up at its flying front hooves and thick armoured belly. Gleaming obsidian metal. Its divine mane, a blazing crest of dark, ethereal hair along its neck, whipped wildly in the wind, projecting an unstoppable kinetic force to be reckoned with.

"I cannot believe it!" Hecate shouted, pivoting on her heel to hurl a massive, sweeping swipe of flame.

It was too late. Aurora stole the forward momentum of the divine mare, converging her bladetip directly at Hecate's heart.

In that final second, even the goddess knew fear. All six of her eyes pinned to the size of needles.

The Thanatos-spatha punctured through her chest, erupting from her back. The sheer kinetic force of the strike hurled both combatants to the ground, violently digging up clouds of dust and shattered rock.

A heavy, wet gasp escaped Hecate's bloodied lips.

"You… You…" Hecate choked.

Aurora rose to her feet, dismissing her blade. There was no need for it anymore. Her silver eyes stared back at the dying goddess.

Hecate's frail finger pointed weakly. "Even… even if… I do not prevent that girl from passing through the gate…"

"What are you saying?" Aurora frowned.

"The divine rules… shall persist… The miasma-bearer shall burn if they dare to pass through the gates of Elysium," Hecate choked out, her voice drowning in a wet gurgle. "So that the vile creatures of Tartarus… shall never corrupt the realm of greatness…"

With one last heaving gasp, the goddess's head lolled to the side. The divine sparks within her eyes faded away into dull, mortal colours. Hecate was no more; another entity of the divine had ceased to exist.

There was a moment of silence, a moment of mournful thought as Aurora watched the goddess’s body dissolve into iridescent particles. This would not be the last of it until she succeeded in her mission.

"Godslayer…" Thanatos chuckled softly, part amused, part respectful.

Aurora exhaled deeply. "So you knew… from the start," she said, her jaw clenching tight as Thanatos floated lazily to her side.

"Yes, Empress. Tachyon is a Kinslayer, which is why her death is the greatest favour to all. A fallen heroine."

Grim darkness clouded Aurora's eyes as she turned to look at Tachyon, peering through the interlacing feathers of Ventiff. With a thought, she dismissed her legendary beast, letting it vanish into a speck of dark cloud.

As if the sun had lost its brilliant light, the once-cheerful Wildren now clung to the ground, surrounded by an air of absolute desperation and the suffocating smoke of sorrow.

Crushing the gravel beneath her boots, Aurora strode over to the sitting girl and extended her palm forward.

"I'm…" Tachyon sniffled, entirely unable to meet the Empress's silver eyes. "I'm sorry for not telling you, Empress."

Aurora wore a tight, compassionate smile. "Are you willing to open up to me? Not as your Empress, but as a friend?"