Chapter 1534 - re:supreme

Main Content

Archive of Our OwnArchive of Our OwnHi, TheBrimmedHat!PostLog Out

FandomsBrowseSearchAboutWork Search

tip: arthur merlin words>1000 sort:hits

Actions

Entire Work Next Chapter → Chapter Index Cancel Bookmark Mark for Later Comments Share Download

Work Header

Rating:

Not Rated

Archive Warnings:

Graphic Depictions Of ViolenceCreator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Category:

Gen

Fandoms:

Re:ゼロから始める異世界生活 | Re:Zero Starting Life in Another World (Anime)TerrariaCalamity Mod

Characters:

Supreme Calamitas (Calamity Mod)Natsuki SubaruEmilia (Re:Zero)Regulus CorneasYharim (Calamity Mod)The Devourer of Gods (Calamity Mod)Draedon (Calamity Mod)Reinhard van AstreaSignus Envoy of the Devourer (Calamity Mod)Julius Juukulius | Julius EucliusBeatrice (Re:Zero)Anastasia HoshinMeili PortrouteRam (Re:Zero)Pandora (Re:Zero)Storm Weaver (Calamity Mod)Shaula (Re:Zero)Reid AstreaLye BatenkaitosRoy AlphardLouis ArnebBrimstone Elemental (Calamity Mod)Capella Emerada LugnicaProvidence the Profaned Goddess (Calamity Mod)Calamitas (Calamity Mod)Silva (Calamity Mod)

Additional Tags:

Spoilers for Re:Zero arc 5 and furtherMental InstabilityCursesA minor amount of genocideA heaping helping of headcanon and filling in plotholesDoesn't follow canon as it changed as of writing smhYou don't need to know anything about Terraria or Calamity eitherYou'll still be heavily spoiled for Re:zero thoughUnreliable NarratorAngsta crumb of fluff every dozen chapters maybeStarts in Re:zero but we go to Terraria eventuallyCalamitas-CentricPOV MultipleThis fic focuses on the Calamity charactersnot the Terraria ones sorry

Language:

English

Stats:

Published:2022-09-11Updated:2026-02-01Words:703,912Chapters:81/?Comments:1,628Kudos:1,284Bookmarks:194Hits:101,100

Re:Supreme

TheGimbler

Summary:

Calamitas.

The Witch of Calamity.

She fell into another world, at the behest of a certain other witch. It wasn't how she would've liked to escape Yharim, but she'd take anything at that point.

The instant she was in the sky, she was dragged into that world's problems. Wonderful.

Everything and everyone she left behind weren't keen on letting her escape so easily. There's only one thing left for traitors, after all.

Problems just loved to find their way to her.

Sigh.

[Arc 1 finished. Chapters 1-40.]

(I'll be adding more character tags as they appear in the story and actively shape it.)

Notes:

(See the end of the work for other works inspired by this one.)

Chapter 1: Prologue

Notes:

Hi-diddly ho, my friend. While reading this, you may find yourself asking, "Wait, what the fuck, that's not what happened in the lore at all?"

And you'd be correct! I am using the lore doc that's 100% out of date and retconned because I can actually understand what's happening and don't need to make shit up! Despite this, there is so little information that we can't exactly write a full story without making shit up. So I'm using my head canon to fill in the blanks. Character personalities and otherwise.

Rezero friends, this crossover is only because I kinda understand how to write the characters and I enjoy the series. Also fuck you.

Edit, 2/22/2023:

New Calamity lore is out, which means that this entire fic and everything Calamity related in it is pretty much non-canon. Some things are similar, but mainly isn't related to the story anymore. It's actually really good, so I'm making this edit just in case someone new comes in here expecting to see the new (and good if I'm being honest) lore in this fic.

Old lore will remain prevalent, and I'll try to merge the two lores together when I can, but the things that've been established cannot be undone. Simply put, this fic isn't canon to Calamity lore, and if you've come looking for that, my b. Feel free to read anyway, or don't.

I've put too much time in this to rewrite or quit it, lmao. Ah, I'm so mad that I started writing this when I thought lore was hella dead. It hadn't been updated in three years man; I am mald. All future notes should be ignored about the lore shit, but I won't be deleting them.

Edit, 4/12/2023:

Alright, well. I did what I said I wouldn't do. Which is rewriting anything. I changed the first couple scenes to be more interesting and natural, not to mention changing Yharim's motivation entirely because the original one fucking sucked. There might be inconsistencies with certain parts in the story, like certain lines. If you see one, feel free to comment and tell me and I'll change it. I'm too lazy to look through each and every chapter for inconsistencies. Most of them should make sense anyway.

Edit, 4/20/2024:

I redrew the art for this chapter cause seeing it gave me physical pain.

Edit, 10/12/2024: This is a second spoiler warning for Rezero anime-onlys. This fic HEAVILY spoils the ENTIRE THIRD SEASON of Rezero. If you don't care about spoilers, feel free to read, otherwise, I'd suggest laying off until you either read the webnovel or watch the ENTIRE season!

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

"...Village… C-c-c-c-c-cross the r-r-r-river-er-er-er…"

"Is that so?"

In response to the mumblings of the first voice, a woman answered. She wore a red robe with a gold finish that glinted in the sunlight. Her nonchalant voice carried softly over the green grass as she looked down on a babbling man.

He twitched and spasmed, and his eyes half-rolled into the back of his head. His chin was hanging at an awkward angle, and a gaping hole had been created where his vital organs were. One could see through him.

The woman watched for a moment longer before she looked past him. She reached a gloved hand directly to her side, and it looked like her hand pressed into something for a brief moment. After a moment of struggle, her hand looked submerged in something, cutting visibility. There wasn't anything for it to be submerged in. However, her hand had disappeared entirely, like her wrist was nowhere to be seen.

She felt around with her hand before it came across something. Ripping her hand out of the space, she pulled a wicked-looking staff out and tapped it against the ground.

"Vigilance," She spoke its name. Its gnarled base curled around at an odd angle, and a red gem floated above the staff. On each side of the gem rested wing-like objects that floated along with it. Tapping it against the ground again, the gem glowed, and the space around it fluctuated.

A dozen winged forms appeared from a coalescence of mana in the air above her. They laughed with a single large eye on their head and small mouths directly beneath it. Their bodies were similar to a bat, with two extra appendages to serve as arms with wings on their backs.

They giggled and laughed above her, but the woman hardly seemed disturbed by them. Looking up, she pointed in a direction and ordered, "In that direction lays a river; beyond it is a village harboring rebels to the Empire. Kill anyone who flees."

They flapped their wings and laughed as they sped through the sky, their forms becoming trails of red and black as they disappeared into the distance.

The woman watched them leave before turning back to the babbling man. She hardly cared for him; he was a rebel, but he'd gotten close to the King. Somehow, he'd snuck through and received a highly sought-after position as a scientist for the Empire. It hardly boded well if the ever-increasing rebellion's presence could infiltrate even the more critical positions of the Empire.

She might glean some important information about the rebellion if she allowed him to continue speaking.

"C-c-clone-lone– Wi-Witch—" He continued jittering and babbling. The woman's red eyes narrowed from beneath her hood. Twin horns sprouted from the darkness that shrouded her face, so the only thing one could see from looking upon her was pin-prick motes of red light and white horns.

The red light bore down on the man, and she leaned down to him.

"Just now… Did you say something about a clone, and me?"

He was having a good day.

His stomach was full, and Ms. Jenson had made him some sweets from the honey discovered a few days ago. Not to mention his little sister, Alice, was feeling well enough to play today.

Tucker was having a good day.

He and his sister ran and played hide-and-seek, though she wasn't very good at it. She'd been sick for most of her life, enough so that she had no energy to play. She was never very good at games when she did, though Tucker thought it was because she rarely played them enough to get good.

As such, he won most of their games; though his sister was perceptive about hiding spots, his usual areas were quickly sorted out, so he had to get creative. This is why he hid underneath the porch in a rare moment of genius. Alice would never think to look for him there!

He laid in wait and could see through the cracks between the stairs. He watched his sister walk around, jumping around corners as a potential surprise catch of him. Smirking, he knew she would never get him with that. With a frown, Alice continued walking until she was out of sight.

Tucker snickered to himself when he heard the front door open. Two pairs of feet stepped out, and he heard his parent's voices. With a wide grin, he waited for them to begin walking down the steps he was hiding next to so he could surprise them by shouting or grabbing their ankles.

"We haven't had contact with him in days. There's no way he wasn't caught!" The worried voice of his father came through, and Tucker stopped to listen to their conversation in slight curiosity.

"He was careful enough to be appointed a scientist of the Jungle Empire," his mother's voice came through to relieve his father's concern. "You're fretting over nothing. Even if he was caught, he'd just…"

"You've heard the stories, Sal!" His voice came back, louder than before. "The Witch can resurrect the dead! It doesn't matter if he offs himself before then, if she gets his hands on him or his corpse, it's only a matter of time before the ash starts fall–"

His father's voice cut off, and he heard his mother gasp. Tucker strained to hear anything and went close to the cracks between the steps to look out when he heard nothing. Small flecks of grey were dropping from the sky like snow. Was this ash? He didn't know, but his parents quickly ripped open the door to their house.

"Tucker! Alice! Come quickly! We must leave at once!" His father shouted into the house, but Tucker was already scrambling to leave his hiding spot, pushing through the small entrance, his pant leg got caught, and he strained to pull free.

"Go, find Alice and Tucker," His father ordered his mother. "I'll do my best to stall for you to escape."

"Stall?!" His mother cried out. "That Thing destroyed an entire ocean! You wouldn't last a moment against that sort of power!"

"She usually sends her minions first, dear. I can handle my own against them for you to find our children."

"But–" His mother wanted to argue, but she clicked her teeth. "Tch– You better make it back, Kal."

His parents took off running in opposite directions. When Tucker pulled his leg free, he scrambled out of his position and cried out.

"Wait! I'm right here!"

His father, who hadn't run very far, quickly rushed back and picked him up. His usually stern but kind face was nowhere in sight, having been contorted with anxiety and fear. In his hand was a long sword.

"That's the sword above the fireplace…?" Tucker said as his dad took off after his wife. "Why do you have it? What's going on?"

"We're getting out of here before the Witch of Calamity shows up, Tucker," His father smiled down at him, but it hardly calmed the young boy.

"You're lying…" The boy whispered, and his dad flinched. "You're lying! I heard what you said to Mom! You're planning on stalling! What does that mean!?"

"Tucker, you won't understand now, but that thing is something we cannot fight. Not now, not one-hundred lifetimes from now. The entirety of Ilmaris was evaporated in only a few days by her lonesome," His dad turned the corner, coming face-to-face with a flying abomination.

It laughed in his face before a red fire built within its mouth. His father abruptly stopped, causing Tucker to latch onto him in a panic. The flame flicker shot toward them, and Tucker's father slashed it with his sword. The fire didn't dissipate, and the slashed fragments shot off randomly, landing on buildings.

Tucker could only watch in horror as the small flecks of flame quickly grew. Covering the walls before subsuming the roof as well. Just as quickly, the wooden structure began disappearing into the air as a greyish substance that Tucker now recognized as ash. This happened so fast, and Tucker had watched it all in real-time. The house was there, and a few seconds later, it'd disappeared into ash.

If that hit Dad… What would've happened to him?

"Tucker, you need to go. Find your mother!" His dad set him on the ground and gripped his sword with both hands.

"W-what? What about you?!" He cried out, latching onto his father's side.

"Tucker!" He reprimanded. "I'll be fine! Find your sister, she must be scared with all of this happening right now! You're her big brother, you need to be there for her!"

Tucker looked up with tears pricking at his eyes, and his father smiled down at him. "Go."

Beginning with uncertain steps, Tucker turned and ran as fast as he could. Behind him, the crackle of fire and the swishes of a sword slid into his ears. Tears began flowing freely as the manic laughter of the flying creature continued its hysterics, echoing out behind him as he turned the corner.

And abruptly stopped.

"NONO! GET AWAY!!" Someone screamed—a woman.

Tucker watched as five of those creatures rocketed around, chasing after people they happened to spot. The marketplace was in chaos, screams echoed in the air, and flames chased after them. The flying things only continued to laugh as they spat fire at the people who were too slow.

Tucker watched as flames consumed them and turned them to ash before his very eyes.

"NO! HELP ME!!" A man shouted as one of the creatures barreled into him and spat fire into his face. His mouth opened to scream, but nothing exited; his throat had already turned to ash. His eyes shriveled and evaporated, with his entire body following mere seconds later.

The rolling, red fire continued to spread. Eating people and buildings alike. Sending so much ash into the air, the blue sky turned grey.

"A-Alice… Where is–" Tucker's thoughts resumed, and he turned to continue running. His eyes caught onto something blue, and he stared at it.

It stared back at him from beneath a table.

"Alice!!" Tucker shouted, quickly running over to where his sister was quivering. Sneaking under the table with her, he hugged her, and she quickly returned it. "Where's Mom?"

"S-She left… Said to stay here and hide…" She mumbled into his shirt. Her tears quickly soaked through the fabric.

"You did a good job following her instructions!" Tucker tightened his embrace. "We need to stay here until Mom and Dad come get us. Once these things are gone."

A shrill scream panged his eardrums, and he clasped his hands over his sister's ears. He looked up to see someone fall right beside the table. Her eyes were wide in panic and fear as red fire built up on her torso, quickly consuming her in its blaze.

"M-Ms. Jenson!" Tucker screamed as she turned to look at him in terror. Her hand reached out for him, her eyes begging for help. The red flames quickly painted over her fear with ash as her emotions turned grey along with her body.

The little boy's outstretched hand paused in the air as his scream caught the attention of one of the flying monstrosities. It flew over and looked down on him with its singular eye. It laughed and cackled, darting around in the air and in circles. Fire grew in its maw, and Tucker felt a pang of panic.

He wrapped his arms around his sister and held her tight.

The fire grew, grew, and grew, and– Tucker blinked. Why hadn't it attacked them?

He looked up at the creature, and the fire within its mouth slowly evaporated; it stopped in place, looking at them with a shrill cackle.

Tucker suddenly realized that he heard no more screams, only the quiet crackle of flames as they turned everything in the surrounding area to ash.

The laughing increased in volume as another winged abomination joined the first, then another, and another. Tucker watched as a dozen hovered around them, laughing and baying. His sister clutched him tighter, her head still buried in his chest. The quivering in her form increased, and Tucker whispered in her ear.

"Don't move. They aren't attacking us right now."

His sister didn't respond, but he assumed she understood anyway.

And so they sat, with the cackling and laughing of the monsters above them being their only company. The fires around them had grown in intensity, eating the buildings and anything else it touched. However, after a certain time, there wasn't anything left to burn, and the flames dwindled.

Tucker didn't know how long he'd been sitting with his sister wrapped in his arms. Eventually, he heard something beyond the laughter of the monsters, the sound of someone stepping into ash as it crunched beneath their feet.

He looked up to see a hooded figure looking down on him. With two white horns poking out from under their hood and twin pricks of light where their eyes should be, Tucker audibly swallowed. Their face was shadowed over like darkness itself had been fitted under that hood. The red clothing of the stranger was of the highest quality, and the shine of gold embellishments glinted noticeably.

They stared at Tucker and Alice for a long moment; the laughter of the monsters had disappeared. No, Tucker realized, they had disappeared. The flying creatures were nowhere to be seen; this person must've saved them!

His eyes must've been hopeful as the stranger called out to him in a feminine voice. "I'm surprised; children usually don't have the mind to keep still."

"H-huh…?" Tucker felt his tongue go lame, and he made an unintelligent sound.

The woman studied him for a moment before sighing. "Seriously? They had children in their hideout? Absolute scum." She spat out the last words with venom, making Tucker flinch.

"Hey," She softly spoke to him, making him release his sister and place himself in front of her. The woman paused before reaching a hand up to her hood and pulling it off. The shadows vanished, and Tucker could finally see her face. "I'm not going to hurt you."

Her eyes were pale gold, shining slightly in the ashen landscape. Her skin was light grey, becoming dark in the shadows. Two white horns sprouted from her forehead, embedded in her skull, and twisted the skin around them. She had stark white hair that flowed beyond her shoulders. However, what caught Tucker's attention the most was a thin crack that trailed across both cheeks and her nose.

"Are you– Are you real?" Tucker couldn't help but whisper. The woman's eyes widened before a peculiar expression appeared on her face.

"Yes? Why wouldn't I be?"

"Did you come to save us?"

"In a sense, I suppose that could be correct," The woman stood to her full height. "But make no mistake, had you fled, you would've been killed as collateral. Unless, of course, you're rebels as well?"

Her eyes narrowed on Tucker and his sister, and he tensed briefly before confusion overtook him. "Rebels? What are those?"

The woman's eyes widened, and her entire form softened. "I see. You had no idea. This must've been quite a shock."

"You didn't answer my question… Did you get rid of those flying things? The ones that k– hurt everyone?" The boy asked, and the woman frowned in contemplation.

Tucker saw a volley of emotions cross her face, each more confusing than the last, before she sighed again. "I did. But I also summoned them to attack this place."

"...Huh?" Tucker felt a visceral sense of rejection. "W-what do you mean you summoned them? They k– hurt everyone! The village was burned down!"

"This village was a hideout for the rebellion. A trading post for information that was dealt to neighboring countries. Burning out rot is common sense."

"...Why?" Tucker felt fresh tears prick at his eyes as he looked at the remorseless woman. "Why?! Why did you do this?!"

"It was ordained by your people. The eventual price of their arrogance and foolishness," To his confused look, she simplified her speech. "The consequences of their actions have caught up to them in the form of me. That's all there is to it."

"You hurt so many people, for that…?" He whispered. Suddenly remembering something his father would ask people who hurt others, Tucker continued, "Why are you so broken inside?"

For the first time, Tucker saw something genuinely feral within the woman. He scrambled back in terror as she bared her teeth, her face contorting in anger. The crackle of fire returned, spilling over her shoulders and billowing into the air. Heat spilled off of her, and Tucker felt sweat pour down his face; his sister squirmed and looked at the woman in abject horror.

"I am not broken," The woman hissed. The fire spilled out as her rage increased. "Don't speak of things that don't pertain to you."

She closed her eyes and let out a long breath. Snapping her fingers, the fire on her shoulders trailed to her hand, where it condensed into a small ball. With another snap, it exploded into the air, and a long beam of red flame trailed into the sky. The shockwave from the sudden release of powerful magic pushed the ash in the surrounding area away. Tucker covered his sister with his body, his fear causing his body to shake.

"You're lucky to be within the borders of the Empire. My mercy only extends to children so much, especially ones that can't keep their mouth shut." Her cold gaze raked over Tucker and his sister's form. He hastily nodded and covered his mouth with a hand, hoping to appease the woman.

Instead of saying anything else, she reached behind the small of her back and pulled a small dagger out. The blade was strangely wobbly, like a shifting serpent. She pulled back the fabric covering her left arm, revealing her grey skin underneath. Without hesitation, she plunged the blade through her arm, hardly grimacing as her blood spilled out. Tucker gasped in shock as she ripped the blade out and sent fire onto the wound.

Without looking at the result, the woman pulled her red sleeve back over her arm and stashed the dagger behind her back. She splayed her fingers in front of her over the pool of her blood.

"Come, awaken, o' dead. Bind yourself to my command and return to the living once more," She spoke concisely, and the pool of blood shimmered before the crimson coloring also turned grey.

Something popped. Tucker looked to the side to see where the sound came from and came face-to-face with a ghastly specter. He shrieked as the thing merely stared at him, and he scrambled to get away. More pops sounded out, and shambling masses of flesh appeared out of the piles of ash that had once been people. Their jaws were twisted wrong, and their arms had entire chunks missing.

Some weren't even human, rising as haunting ghosts that didn't resemble anything similar to their previous forms. Dozens more appeared from the ash around the area, and people who never made it to the square were also being resurrected.

"Ah–" Tucker made a weak sound as a specter appeared, clutching a sword that he recognized as the one that rested above the fireplace. "That's– D-dad…?"

Tears cascaded down his face as the creature turned to him and raised his sword. Tucker shook his head in disbelief. That couldn't be his dad. He was coming to save them! He promised–

He–

Tucker opened his mouth and wailed. His sister started crying immediately after him as well.

"Say. After seeing this, would you like to die?" The woman casually asked, but her expression was deadly serious. "If you want, I can remove you from the world without pain or suffering. Would you like that?"

"I-I c-can't…" Tucker whimpered, making the woman's brow raise in surprise. "I-I made the decision to protect my sister… Dad is counting on me to keep her safe…"

The woman softly smiled, her hard gaze warming ever so slightly. "You're strong." Tucker couldn't understand the intent behind those words before she looked amongst the undead she'd created.

"From now on, half of you follow this child's command. Do anything and everything he asks," Tucker looked up in shock, but she hardly spared him a glance. She pointed at his father and said, "You, go with them. Protect your children like an actual parent this time."

Judging by the solemn expression on her face, Tucker felt like there was something deeper there, but he didn't say anything about it.

Turning back to the children, the woman said, "You're innocent in this, so I'll give you the protection to survive in this world," She pointed a finger at their father and continued, "Once you've gained enough strength, kill this specter to prove yourself worthy. His soul won't find rest until you do so. Or, you can order them to destroy themselves, I'd suggest doing so after you and your sister are safe, however."

"Why…? Why are we being punished?! Why do we need to learn how to survive?! Why is it us and not you?!" Tucker couldn't contain his boiling emotions and shouted at the woman. His sister looked up at him in terror as he provoked the person that had spared them. "Attack her!" He shouted, and the undead immediately leaped at the woman.

No worry was born in her eyes as the creatures descended on her. Their claws, fangs, and sword were all stopped by the appearance of a red orb around the woman. Numerous letters and writings were on its surface, and Tucker couldn't understand them at all.

The woman looked thoughtful through the shimmering, translucent surface of the barrier. "I hate you a little less than the other children."

With that, she vanished from his gaze, and a blur of red and gold exploded upward. Tucker's gaze snapped upward as he saw it speed off into the distance, where it disappeared a moment later. He couldn't comprehend the speed she flew away at.

His eyes trailed downward, and he looked at his sister's fearful eyes. He decided at that moment to protect her and ensure she was happy for her entire life.

Only later did he learn what Calamitas, the Witch of Calamity, had given him. He'd learned all about her and her deeds across the Jungle Empire. Evaporating an entire ocean, erasing an invading force with a single spell, and repelling a god's profaned forces. She'd even slain a few gods on their ruler's command. Turning them, with all their power, to ash, the same as the people of his home village.

He'd learned of the rebellion and the animosity between the Empire and those that wished to usurp it. He had thoughts of joining it when he was older, but it was defeated by the key figures of the Empire, including Calamitas. He'd rationalized his lack of desire for vengeance as wanting to keep his sister happy and the futility of fighting someone like the Tyrant with all of his power and the people under him.

After many years, Tucker appeared in the capital and was immediately given the highest honors and incredible riches. Enough that a man could live on the money for seven lifetimes. When he asked why, it was because he was given 'The Witch's Blessing,' allowing him control over some of her undead constructs.

He realized she'd given him enough to survive and ensure he and his sister could live lavishly for their entire lives. He didn't know if that was her idea of an apology or because she 'hated him a little less than other children,' but he was determined to find out. After meeting with her, he could decide what to do with his conflicted feelings.

He saw her only twice in his life and neglected to speak to her again. It took a single instant upon seeing her that something must've happened.

After all, not a hint of life remained within her eyes. She spoke not a word. That woman didn't have the answer he sought, so he left it.

And at the end of his life, he never tried to destroy his father.

"I'm curious… What prompted this visit, Calamitas?"

"I've been thinking of a few things. And wanted to hear the answers from you."

Calamitas had returned from destroying the rebellion's outpost. Throughout the entirety of its destruction and the time it took for her to return to the Capitol, rampant thoughts tormented her mind.

"Then ask."

Most would either be reverent or highly respectful in the man's presence. His foreboding and powerful demeanor notwithstanding, his actual power was nothing to scoff at. Standing over nine feet tall, encased in a special golden alloy, was the Tyrant King. The Godseeker, Yharim. He stood in front of his throne, which had long grown dusty. He must've been pacing again.

"Are you ever going to take that thing off?" Calamitas crossed her arms and called out to him. "You even sleep in it."

"Is that a concern you have? From what I know, you do the same thing. I don't see the difference between us in that regard," Yharim lowered a gauntleted hand, numerous papers within his grasp. Calamitas couldn't see his eyes from beneath the golden helmet he wore. The blue visor protecting his eyes allowed no light in. His armor was his symbol and what everyone knew him as. The golden savior, who had descended upon the world to annihilate the gods and their irredeemable deeds. Only his closest confidants actually knew what he looked like. After the years, his armor came off less and less until he stopped removing it entirely.

"No. I don't quite care for that, though it would be more humanizing for me to be able to look you in the eyes while we talk," She shrugged, peering closely at his visor, trying to see his eyes. Yharim waved her off and told her to get on with it. "I just wanted to know what your endgame is."

"My endgame…? You know very well what I wish. Me and Yharon both," The Tyrant asked in slight confusion. His arm grew slack, and his exosuit whirred with machinery as it did so.

"Yeah, yeah. Destroy all the genociders, wipe out the falsely-devout," Calamitas casually waved him off, an act inconceivable for most. "No," She lowered her hand. "I just want to know what you want to do after. Once you eliminate all of them, what is it you want?"

Yharim stilled for a moment. He brought his papers up and looked at them silently. Lowering his arm again, he spoke after his moment of contemplation. "Perhaps I'd start a family, end all wars, or maybe I'll step away from the throne and vanish from history with my task complete."

Calamitas blinked. "After what happened to your earlier family, you'd want to start one?"

"They were fools, obviously," Yharim rounded on her with sudden intensity, making her look up at him with a scowl. "Ignalius hadn't a clue about how things were supposed to be. Being a god? Absorbing Yharon's soul and accepting my destiny?" He spat that word like a curse. "Such nonsense. But that doesn't mean I wanted to lose them."

He took a breath, placing the papers in his hand onto the arm of his throne. He stood up straight and turned back to Calamitas.

"And what about you? Once you achieve your wish, what is it that you'll do after?"

"I'm not so greedy as to wish for anything more," Calamitas reached a hand up to her head and applied pressure, cracking the vertebrae within it. She returned her eyes to Yharim. "Perhaps the consequences of my actions will catch up to me at that point."

"You believe you're doing something reprehensible?" Yharim questioned. Making the witch scowl as he hit the nail on the head. "Siding with the gods makes them no better, and the rebellion was built upon avarice. Don't give any mercy to them."

"There were children there."

Yharim stilled. "What?"

"They couldn't have been older than ten years. They cried and sniveled as brats do when their parents are slaughtered." Calamitas said in disgust.

Yharim clenched his hands into fists. "...And did you kill them?"

Calamitas scoffed. "Of course not! They had no idea! Those idiots put their children in a rebellion hideout, and they had no idea what the rebellion even was! What if I killed them without even knowing?"

Yharim studied her momentarily before his hands unclenched, and he sighed. "Those scum."

"...It's just putting doubts in my mind, is all," Calamitas weakly admitted, her eyes downtrodden. "I don't want to kill those undeserving. Those deserving will reap what they've sown, but they were children in a warzone. They weren't even soldiers!"

"As long as Braelor and Statis exist as beacons to rally behind, such tragedies will continue to unfold. As such, it's our responsibility to stop them," Yharim stepped forward and touched her shoulder. "You understand that, don't you?"

Calamitas jerked back, distrust on her face. Yharim stared at her blankly.

Neither moved for a long moment.

"I told you. I couldn't care less about the problems that arose because of your mistakes," Calamitas hissed at him, making the Tyrant drop his hand to his side. "Braelor and Statis only appeared because of the methods you use! I'm unsure if you remember this because it was a decade ago, but I'm only here to use you to achieve my wish—nothing more and nothing less. I agreed to help you with your wish only because of that. The rebellion and children have nothing to do with it. It's been years since the previous lead you gave me, and I'm inclined to believe you can't find anymore!"

Yharim's patience waned as she continued her tirade.

"Philosopher's Stone? The blood of an Auric Dragon? Even the undead of the dungeon left me with nothing. Dead end after dead end, if you no longer help me with my desire, then I see no reason for me to continue assisting you with yours."

The king clenched his fists as she threatened to abandon him and his kingdom. The Witch was an essential figure of his Empire, and he couldn't lose her and the influence she had on it.

"Without my Empire's influence, you would have no chance of finding leads. Surely, you recognize this?"

"Please," She pulled away her hair to reveal a pointed ear attached to the side of her head. "I'm a half-elf. I have nothing but time."

"...Do you?"

An unspoken threat lingered in the air. Calamitas felt her face contort as anger threatened to overtake her. Red fire licked at her shoulder pads and billowed above her. Yharim reached behind his back and gripped the sword handle over his shoulder.

For a long moment, neither of them moved. If they genuinely fought here, the entire capital of the Empire would inevitably be laid waste. Yharim had every desire not to allow that to happen. But without the Brimstone Witch at his side… It's likely that his entire Empire would change. A city can be rebuilt, but her very existence's influence was immeasurable. The Wyrm would be destroyed sooner or later. Yharon's intellect made him easy to predict, and Draedon's lack of ethics made him a tentative business partner at most.

Braelor and Statis could face him in combat and nearly steal victory. Neither the Devourer nor Yharon had much of a chance against them, making them lesser influences on the world. The pressure they exuded on other nations by their mere existence was nothing compared to his own or Calamitas'.

If she were to abandon his Empire… The rebellion would likely seize its chance and strike at its heart. Then, paired with the gods lying in wait, it would be a nightmare.

With this in mind, he went to Draedon, seeking a solution. And with Draedon, it was unethical, callous, and irredeemable.

But it still needed time. Time to grow, mature, and gain her brimfire. Only then would her clone be able to contain her power or even replace her entirely, letting her move on from the Empire without a problem. Perhaps, he needed to explain this to her for her cooperation. But the fact that he went behind her back to take some of her blood and make a clone of her…

He wouldn't be surprised if she left when she learned about it.

It just needs a little more time.

As they continued staring at each other in a deadlock, the doors slammed open, and a man wearing purplish armor appeared. He immediately knelt upon seeing the two and exclaimed.

"My lord! The rebel leaders, Braelor and Statis, have– They've completely cut off the connection between the Capital and the border-city Ignalius! We believe that it's under siege as we speak!"

Yharim felt his stomach drop. Calamitas had just expressed her desire to leave the rebellion to him, not wanting a single part in it anymore. The damned rebel leaders had conveniently decided to lay siege to one of the border cities?! Ignalius was the most important one, right on the border of two surrounding countries. If the rebels gained control of it, it would be a disaster. If those countries decided to try their luck during this strained period… And without Calamitas by his side, it would inevitably be a three-way truce between the rebels, gods, and countries to eliminate him.

He mustn't allow them to take the city.

"Pull the Godseeker Knights from their posts! We cannot allow them to take the city!" Yharim threw a hand to the side and commanded.

"Sir!" The man quickly saluted and fled the scene, carrying orders that held the weight of the entire Empire on his shoulders.

Yharim turned back to Calamitas, who had released her magic and closed her eyes, refusing to look at him. "I understand. If you don't wish to accompany me, then stay here. We can continue our conversation later, if that's what you wish."

"Hurry up and leave. This is your responsibility, take care of it."

Yharim looked closer at her before nodding. With a mechanical whirr of his armor, he hurriedly left the room. Whistling for his partner to come to him so they may reach the city before it falls.

Calamitas, now finally alone, waited a moment to make sure he wouldn't abruptly return before casually walking to Yharim's throne and swiping the papers on it. Reading through them, her eyes widened in shock. Few in number they may be, they were incredibly damning.

It was a report from Draedon, amongst a few other documents. It seemed that not only was Yharim aware of her clone, he expressly wanted it. To contain her, if necessary. The weight of their years working together crashed down on her, and her teeth gnashed in rage.

A map full of suspected rebel outposts was there as well. Calamitas recognized many villages and settlements as places she'd been sent to eliminate. Yharim had told her, in no uncertain terms, that each place was a confirmed rebel outpost. That it was necessary to destroy it! Fire built upon her back without her permission as her anger started reaching its boiling point. She wasn't a weapon for him to use! This wasn't anything she agreed to, either!

That bastard. That downright filthy liar! Calamitas decided, then and there, to leave him. Abandon him to whatever fate he'd be subject to. She didn't care if it was emotionally driven or if it would be a setback from her goal. She had plenty of time to find another source of information!

With that, she pocketed the papers and left soon after. She hardly knew anything about where Draedon placed his experiments, but she knew it was deep within the jungle. Not wanting to be caught up in such a place any longer, she summoned the idol of the Lihzahrds, the Golem, and allowed it to rampage throughout the jungle, destroying everything it came across.

She wanted no more part of this conflict between Yharim and the rebels. With no more use for the documents she held, she decided to leave them with Braelor and Statis, perhaps to get them in her debt for later or because she wanted to punish Yharim for his treachery.

What she didn't know, however, was that the Golem both succeeded and failed at what she wanted it to do. It had indeed found its way into Draedon's labs and destroyed most of the experiments there. However, the clone was released instead of erased. In its confusion, it screamed and activated every power it had. The incomplete brimflame had scorched everything, turning it to ash.

However, it also restrained a very important part of Calamitas' magic, one she didn't notice in time. The magic protecting her mind had very subtly cracked, and something dark had slithered in to replace it.

Neither the clone nor Calamitas knew what had happened. In its confusion, it caused a series of events that permanently altered the world. It flew off into the night, unnoticed by all, as the Golem wreaked havoc.

A Godseeker Knight later returned to put the raging machine down, none the wiser that the world would soon be irrevocably changed.

"...?"

The witch looked around in a confused daze. Her head pounded, and she lifted her hand to her forehead. She stopped moving when her eyes cleared, and she could see her hand. Darkness tried to interpose between her sight and body, shifting like a living thing.

Dark mist emanated off her form, melding back into the air if Calamitas could even describe it as such.

It was not a place, not anymore, at least. The entire area around the Brimstone Witch was black. It wasn't dark, which is the absence of light. But instead that the whole area around her was assigned 'black' as its descriptive color. A writhing, decrepit hellhole that couldn't be seen in normalcy.

She'd seen places like this before, courtesy of the Devourer of Gods being a fool, so she knew this wasn't where she wanted to be.

The all-encompassing void between worlds and dimensions. Full, yet empty. Lifeless, yet teeming. Exotic, yet bland.

And she was not alone.

She looked ahead, deeper into the space, except there was no space, and everywhere was even. So there was no 'deeper'.

Yet she looked 'ahead' and 'saw' 'something'—a person wrapped in black, in the void.

Calamitas spent no wasted time pulling a magical weapon out of her pocket dimension, her staff, Vigilance. She had grown mildly experienced in dealing with otherworldly magic, though not nearly on the level of the Devourer; she can't rip open new passageways into the fabric of space-time. But something on the level of opening a particular one in any space? Very doable.

"I can't seem to remember why I'm in such a place," The witch began to the person bathed in black. "Are you perhaps the reason why?"

They simply sat still.

Calamitas clicked her teeth. Did they not hear her? Are they pretending not to hear her?

"Explain yourself. Or I'll k-" Calamitas felt the hair on the back of her neck raise, and she obeyed her instincts. Quickly interrupting herself, she hopped to the side, narrowly avoiding a multitude of dark strands brimming with power.

They attacked her. Her, when she was being cordial and kind. Rage contorted her face as red flame exploded around her.

"I see," The witch raised her staff, and the next moment, the 'black' turned 'red.' "Die."

Her dark magic razed even the dimensional inconsistencies. There was no more 'black'; there lingered no more 'life'. Nothing within it except her could withstand it, especially not any–

…

Calamitas looked on as the person she thought she had just erased emerged unscathed from her attack. A veil made of the void covered their face. It writhed and bathed them like some kind of disgusting living thing. The fact that they didn't seem bothered in the slightest made her face turn to disgust.

It was something that should be impossible. Not even Yharim himself, with a hundred years of preparation, could take an attack like that head-on and receive zero damage. There should be an effect, but she couldn't see any. Her eyes didn't see a single damn thing from the creature in front of her.

The shock she should've felt didn't come, courtesy of the Tyrant's curse. Instead, she only felt rage because some impudent little rat withstood one of her attacks without damage. Kill them, kill them, kill them, kill them, kill them,

kill them, kill them,

kill them, kill them,

kill them, kill them,

kill them, kill them,

kill them, kill them,

kill them, kill them,

kill them, kill them,

KILL THEM.

And so, she attacked the person with all her might. If there were anyone to witness their battle, the only description would be 'Incomprehensible.'

However, the battle did end 312 hours after the first attack.

Calamitas laid on her back, utterly spent and with innumerable wounds on her body. Her adversary sported none of the same, spotless from start to finish. The other woman hadn't received a single attack and kept the damage.

Indeed, after 13 days of combat, Calamitas had figured out her opponent's trick. A petty little thing that had made her more and more furious. The Witch saw her soul writhing with something that made her body indestructible, but her soul was highly brittle. It had broken at some point and splintered away even now. It was her weakest point.

If Calamitas had been able to strike that spot once in their fight, she wouldn't have needed to extend the battle for such a duration. Strike the soul and win, but her opponent's soul was within her indestructible body. Calamitas cannot attack through objects or people without hitting the surface, and her opponent destroyed her attack figuratively and literally.

Her opponent hadn't been able to damage her either within the first eight days. Calamitas was either too fast, too durable, blocked it with her barrier, or was able to counterspell her opponent's spell with incredible efficiency.

It was only when she was fatigued would those attacks catch up with her.

The curse still wormed in the Brimstone Witch's mind; she couldn't feel anything but hatred for herself at that moment.

Sprawled out on her back, Calamitas shuddered with each breath. Her mana had run dry, and her limbs twitched and spasmed when she tried to move them.

"I no longer have the strength to resist, nor do I have the will to hate you any longer," She spoke in a weak voice to the opponent who hadn't said a word to her since the beginning of their encounter. "Go ahead. Finish it."

"I'm not going to do that." A voice responded to hers, and the witch stilled her breath for a moment.

"Why? You're the clear victor."

"Because… you and I are quite similar, and… Well, I think you were coming close to figuring out how to kill me. I don't think that there's been anyone else that's been as close as you, save maybe for Reid."

"..."

"I'm sparing you, as a fellow witch."

"...? You? A witch? I suppose that makes sense because of your monstrous body. Even here, witches are monstrous, huh…"

"Your curse has been cut off at the seams, it will grow weaker until it's fully removed. This is a gift for you to get stronger and figure out a way to bypass my immortality."

"...Oh. I'm talking right now, aren't I..." It'd been a long time since she'd spoken last. How could she have been speaking earlier? How was her curse waning even before it was cut off? "But why? You've already shown me that there's no merit."

"So you can kill me." Was the simple reply.

Calamitas choked out a laugh, "That's it? You want to die? Now I feel stupid for even asking."

"I can't let someone like you go freely, so I'm sending you somewhere. When you arrive, all I ask is that you don't hurt him." The voice said matter-of-factly.

"'Him'?" Calamitas echoed, "I also don't have a choice in being sent somewhere, do I."

"No."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"...Also, don't destroy the world."

It took everything Calamitas had not to attack her again. "Did you seriously ask me not to hurt someone and then not to destroy the world? Is that really your list of priorities?"

"He's special," The other witch's voice suddenly changed. "–And mine. Don't touch him, or I'll destroy you."

Seriously? Seriously!? Her curse had nothing to do with the anger within the Brimstone Witch spiking back up. She forced her feet onto the ground and stood up in a boneless manner, assisted by her magic. Her broken and battered body with caked blood layering her skin and robes overshadowed entirely by her rage. "Haaah, I swear I'm gonna kill you, bitch."

"That's the spirit."

A bright light flashed around Calamitas for a split second, and she was finally able to catch a glimpse of the person that she'd been fighting for days on end, Silver hair? And… an elf?

In that next moment, Calamitas spirited away to a new world.

This is irritating. The Brimstone Witch thought to herself as she fell through the air. How annoying.

When the other witch forcibly moved her, Calamitas found herself high above the clouds, and gravity promptly took hold, causing her descent to the ground. Of course, this wouldn't be a problem if she hadn't just used all her power against a foe for almost two weeks and fought until she couldn't move. She can fly, after all.

It might be a slight problem if she isn't able to stop herself in the air. However, if she hits the ground at terminal velocity in her state, it may even constitute a few more days' worth of recovery. She wouldn't die from something like this, hopefully. Probably.

When she finally passed through the clouds and saw what was below her, she grumbled even more. It was a city in the middle of a lake. A city meant people. And people suggested that she'd have to interact with them, something she wasn't keen on doing. The last time she interacted with someone beyond a fight was Yharim before he cursed her. Interaction... How long had it been since she'd needed to speak to others?

She also couldn't change her velocity to land somewhere else because she needed to use what little magic she had gained in these minutes to stop her descent just before crashing into the ground. So she was stuck between a rock and a hard place. She wasn't about to go out of her way to avoid interacting with people when the cost would be having to recover more than a few cracked bones and lacerations. Not mentioning her left arm, which she had refused to look at ever since she realized she couldn't feel anything below the shoulder. She was willing to admit she had gone overboard with expending her blood.

She took to ignoring it by analyzing the city below. Something was wrong with it. She couldn't see many people milling about in a town at a size where it should be commonplace. The fires burning through some parts of the city made it apparent. Something about that made Calamitas think that maybe this place isn't like the capital in the underworld. The fire there was a constant, especially after what she'd done to it.

While she thought about it, something suddenly came flying toward her from the city. She quickly ripped her mind out of its thoughts and prepared the little magic she had to block it. But the moment she was about to expend it, something landed on the thing that flung toward her.

Her mind came to a realization; they were both people. Someone had thrown someone high into the sky and landed on their back before they were about to hit Calamitas.

The one on the bottom seemed exceptionally well-dressed, wearing a nice white suit that was dirtied by dust and dirt.

The one on the top had an oppressive aura, which made Calamitas' heart squeeze. It felt like a living fire in the form of a person, it was great, yet it was kind. Something friendly but fierce once someone did something unforgivable to them.

The one on the bottom shouted in surprise when the one on top landed on his back; Calamitas almost felt the need to do the same.

"If this were a normal duel, I'd withdraw my blade once my opponent lost their will to fight." The red-haired aura-releasing one spoke concisely, almost in leisure. "Though I have more intention of boasting, I have quite the confidence in my jumping ability. I had once even leapt from the ground, to land on the back of a flying dragon."

"Guh! Damned monster!" The one on the bottom yelled out, and Calamitas was inclined to agree. He had jumped? Calamitas thought it no big deal to move quickly through the air and land where she wished, even if her destination was moving incomprehensibly fast. But if that man had jumped from the ground, which was still so far from her position, and landed perfectly… The witch had felt not a hint of magic from the man, which meant he had done it all based on his physical ability alone.

"Indeed, I am a monster who hunts monsters. For you, too, the time to accept fate has–" The man suddenly paused, and his eyes looked at Calamitas falling just above them. He seemed at a loss for words for only a moment before he took in her state, his eyes lingering on her left arm longer than all the other parts of her body.

The man that the fire was standing on quickly noticed his trepidation, swung his whole body around, and flailed his arm in a highly pathetic manner with no grace.

Time slowed, the hair on Calamitas' arm raised, and a cold shiver ran down her spine. Her magic having not recovered cut off all of her options.

The chill of the air seeped into her bones.

Ah, I'm going to die.

That miserable action had no magic in it; there was no spell. Although Calamitas' eyes could discern magic, curses, and all other types of impossibilities, she saw nothing.

Absolutely nothing.

There was nothing special, yet her life was in danger. That average man would tear her flesh apart, and her life would end.

It was hopeless, but more it's surprising was that she had a hint of hope, to begin with.

In the next heartbeat, the red-haired aura moved almost faster than Calamitas could see. He jumped towards her and picked her up with surprising gentleness. One arm held her lower body firmly, and the other was gently affixed to her back. He was princess-carrying her to safety.

The Witch of Calamity.

The one who has brought death to countless worlds and peoples. Was being princess-carried to safety.

She choked and coughed, her pounding heart not ceasing even when she took shuddering breaths.

"Don't worry," he leaned in and tried to reassure her. The other man had disappeared somewhere else into the sky. Or had they been the ones to disappear? Calamitas wasn't sure. "I'll get you to safety. You can depend on me."

The Brimstone Witch had to stifle a laugh. If she'd been at full power, she'd have killed this fool for daring to spout such nonsense. But, whether that was true or to keep her mind off almost dying, she didn't want to think about it.

She'd never been the one being rescued, always the thing to be rescued from.

The man carrying her tensed, and for a moment, the witch tensed before realizing they were about to land. Calamitas realized that she'd forgotten she was in the air and, in a panic, quickly deployed her magic to reduce all her momentum to zero. The man carrying her regarded her magic with surprise as if he'd never expected someone flying through the air to be able to fly.

But she guessed it would be surprising for someone falling to be able to fly—a strange twist in his eyes.

He landed gently on the ground, not jostling the witch with any extra movement.

Calamitas patiently waited for him to put her down, but after a few seconds of no action from him, "What are you doing? There's no reason to be holding me, put me down."

He looked down at her in shock, his eyes tracing over her wounds and left arm again, "But you're hurt. It wouldn't do for me to let someone injured to–"

"Does it look like I care?! Put me down!"

The man had a troubled look on his face, his brows furrowed. Then, slowly, he lowered the arm holding her legs to the ground, letting her stand up. Her body screamed at her to ask what she was doing, but she didn't care. She couldn't allow herself to become even more indebted to this man, no matter what.

The slated ground and the buildings reminded her of other times. She'd walked these paths before, searching for living people.

Her legs quivered to support her weight on them, but she could stand tall. Calamitas looked at the man who watched her in concern and gave him a slight bow. "Thank you very much for saving me, I am in your debt. Name your price so that we may never have to interact again."

"...Normally, I would say that saving you was my duty as a knight of Lugunica. However, if I leave you be in that state, it feels as though my duty would run incomplete as your wounds may fester and worsen. My price for your debt is to come with me and see one of my friends, he is an accomplished healer and will allow your wounds to be healed. Please come with me."

The Witch of Calamity stared at him to discern his intentions, but his face only displayed concern. He wasn't the least bit suspicious of her. She was dressed in a bright red cloak trimmed with gold, was covered head-to-toe in wounds, had a left arm that she refused to look at, and had twin white horns poking out of her forehead. That, and he grabbed her in the middle of the sky.

With all these things combined, any rational person would at least have some suspicion leveled at her. But he didn't. Is he some kind of idiot? Or is he that trusting? But at this moment, she'd rather come across someone like him instead of— well, anyone else, really.

She didn't interact with people nearly as much as she killed them.

She sighed, "Very well. I shall only stay until my wounds are taken care of, I'm sure that's all? If so, let's be on our way."

"Reinhardt!" Another voice shouted out, and Calamitas stifled a groan. "You're back! Did you– Who's that? They don't look so… good."

No shit. The witch muttered in her mind. A boy had come running up to them. He had sanpaku-shaped eyes and was wearing something interesting: a tracksuit. His leg was also heavily bandaged, and he looked pretty pale. His black hair was messy, and he looked like he hadn't gotten a good night's rest in a month.

"Wait, are those horns? And your ears…" The boy closely scrutinized her, looking past her wounds, and saw her details that weren't temporary. "Wait, before that, Reinhardt, did you defeat Regulus?"

Regulus must've been the white-suit guy that… Reinhardt (?) was fighting in the sky. The witch quietly listened.

"I'm afraid I was unable to deal a decisive blow, Subaru," Reinhardt bowed his head in shame to the black-haired boy. "I was more concerned with this lady's state and wished to get her away from the fighting."

Lady? Calamitas gaped a bit at the knight's words. What the hell is with this guy?

"Tch! So even Reinhardt is having trouble with him… Do you think you'd be able to deal the decisive blow next time? Or do we need more prep?" The boy in the tracksuit asked the knight; Calamitas' brain had to work overtime to understand what he had just said. He had said 'prep' in a different language. The witch's magic had to supplement to understand him.

"I'm not sure what that word means, but I have no worry that I'd be unable to defeat him if he remains in that state that you've left him in." The knight bowed his head to Subaru once more.

The witch quietly raised the boy on her danger scale by a few points. She initially thought of him as a simple human, similar to ones she's murdered countless times, but if someone she'd have trouble with is thanking him for his contributions in a fight… Well, you see how that may be worrisome.

"I'm going to search for him so he's unable to deal any more damage to the city and its people. Subaru, could you take this lady and show her to Ferris? She's in need of help." True to his name, the knight cared about the people, which apparently included her. But, hey, if she's going to receive healing and recover faster, then she had no problem with this. She'll force herself to interact with them.

"Okay, I'm not sure how much more useful I'll be in this fight," Subaru nodded at the knight's assessment. Then, he turned to the witch, "Uh… Hello, I'm Natsuki Subaru, I'm a knight, and I'm going to escort you to– uh, our home base with a bunch of healers and… stuff."

Calamitas watched as the boy stumbled over his words; he was distracted by looking at her wounds and probably questioning if she could even walk. It was amazing that she could even stand. He probably wasn't as used to soothing the people he was trying to protect as Reinhardt, but the witch didn't mind. He fit the bill of someone she could give the bare minimum of interactions to.

"Well met. I am Cal." Was all she said. Cal was a nickname given to her by Yharim when he was placating her, which pissed her off to no end. But saying that she was 'Calamitous' to people she wasn't trying to kill may give the wrong impression. Cal it was.

"Subaru!!" A voice called out from behind the person she was talking to, getting interrupted again. Calamitas felt a vein bulge on her forehead. However, when she looked behind the boy to see who would dare be such an annoyance, it all melted away into a sickening rage.

It was the witch that she'd fought for almost two weeks. She was wearing something else and didn't nearly radiate as much power, but it was undoubtedly her. They were the same in all physical regards; it had to be her.

"Ah! Reinhardt! Were you able to defeat Regulus?" The elf ignored the one she humiliated and asked the knight a question.

Subaru patted her on the shoulder and shook his head. The elf's brows furrowed as a troubled look came upon her face.

Calamitas had had enough.

"You. How dare you?!" She strode forward and shouted at the elf, who cowered back in shock. The knights both looked on in surprise. "You humiliate me, and then pretend I don't exist?! What, here to gloat? Pretend that you're better than me?! I will destroy you and everything that you love, hell, the boy that's yours? I will go out of my way to find and torture him in front of you, and when you're begging me for mercy, to stop, I'll tear out one of your eyeballs! I'll proceed to make your life a living hell, the only thing you'll know is his screams. Isn't that wonderful? I wonder what the terror and fear from a witch sounds like!"

Calamitas crept closer and closer to the elf, who slightly teared up in fear before the black-haired knight stepped between them.

"Emilia isn't the Witch of Envy. Stop." He ordered her with a fire deep within his eyes, and the other knight had the same glinting resolve within them.

However, "Seriously? They look exactly the same."

"Miss Cal, you can't just listen to how she's described and assume that the first person you see matching those descriptions is the Witch of Envy." Reinhardt admonished the witch, who snorted.

"Please, they look the same. Same hair, eyes, nose, ears, face, height, body type, even their voices are the same. The literal only difference from then and now is that she's wearing something different. Which obviously doesn't make her a different person."

"...From 'then'?" Subaru echoed. His eyes widened a bit.

Reinhardt looked up to Calamitas' ears, and his eyes did the same. It took only a moment for 'Emilia' to do the same.

She opened and closed her mouth a few times in shock, "You're… also a half-elf…"

"Did you happen to see… the real Satella from 400 years ago?" The boy in the tracksuit asked quietly.

"What? No, we had just fought for more than a week about 10 minutes ago. I'm saying that she," the Brimstone Witch pointed to the half-elf. "And the witch, are the same person because they quite literally look the same."

"The Witch of Envy did that to you?" Reinhardt exclaimed in shock, and he looked at Calamitas' wounds more closely. "You said that you fought for more than a week? With the Witch of Envy said to have destroyed half the world 400 years ago? 10 minutes ago?"

"I never said it was the 'Witch of Envy', I said that it looked like her," She once again pointed at Emilia. "If those two descriptions are one and the same, then yes, I fought the Witch of Envy, and now, I'm going to finish it."

Calamitas readied the magic that regenerated from the few minutes they'd been talking. Reinhardt stepped between them. "I'm begging you to reconsider everything, Lady Cal, please look closely at Emilia-Sama and see that they're only similar in appearance."

Calamitas looked closely at the quivering half-elf; her tears from Calamitas' tirade hadn't vanished, her mouth was open slightly, and a quiver was traversing her lips. But, when the witch tried to attach that image to the voice of the one who thought of a single boy as more valuable than a world, she found she couldn't.

Her magic was also far, far weaker than the Witch of Envy's, which she had just tasted. So when Calamitas raised her magic, she expected an immediate counter befitting her foe. But when it didn't come, she just kind of stood there awkwardly.

The Brimstone Witch lowered her magic and huffed, "Okay, yeah, actually, who are you? Never before have I seen someone so pathetic wear the face of someone that I despise. The disconnect between you two is enough for me to want some aspirin."

Subaru froze at her use of that word while Emilia smiled awkwardly, and Reinhardt bowed, saying something about how grateful he was to see that she rescinded her attack.

"You… Do you understand what I'm saying?" Subaru looked into her eyes for any trace of understanding.

Calamitas looked over at him for a moment with a raised brow. Surely, simply understanding that language was no big deal. "Is that a problem?"

The knight looked utterly shocked and happy at the same time. The witch realized that affirming him may not have been such a good idea. She should've figured it would likely lead him to ask her more things, leading them into more conversations than she had prepared for.

Before Subaru lit her up with the questions she knew were coming, Calamitas turned around and walked away. For a total of 3 feet. Before she collapsed face-first onto the ground. Or she would've if Reinhardt didn't catch her.

She needed to get away from these people. They were definitely going to ask her questions about what she said. You fought the Witch of Envy for more than a week? What kind of attacks does she use? Something about 400 years ago? Why were you fighting in the first place? She didn't want to talk to them. She didn't want to know them.

How many people have you killed?

Calamitas realized in a cold sweat that she didn't want to answer that question. She didn't want to in the slightest. She felt something other than negative emotions, like rage and hatred. Instead, she felt a niggling guilt in the back of her mind.

A slight presence of fear that had been building in her chest started ballooning. Didn't that witch say that my curse was cut off at the seams, that it'll eventually break on its own?

The curse that's been keeping all the guilt, all the memories of crying and begging for mercy, those memories that the rage and hatred locked away? That curse?

The witch wondered in a delirious mind while her body finally shut down from her wounds.

What's going to happen to me?

Stop! Please stop!

Why are you doing this?!

What did we ever do to deserve this?

Mommy!! Daddy!!

I trusted you. Now I see that was a mistake.

Calamitas, your purpose is to kill when I say so, you are my greatest weapon, and I will never let you go.

Go to hell.

Fascinating, your magic is so unrefined, yet it's still so powerful. Would you assist me in testing my machines once they're prepared? I'm sure we'll both learn something.

Thou art not correct; thou art mine and all others' enemy. Thee shalt reap what thou hast sown.

YOU CANNOT THREATEN ME, GIRL. MINE IS AN EXISTENCE FAR BEYOND YOURS, AND SOON, I SHALL BE FURTHER THAN YOU IN STRENGTH.

Why are you so broken inside?

A little girl whispers above all the voices.

Do you think that you'll one day be fixed? That man once said that people could grow and mature, but toys are trapped as themselves… Does that mean you're a toy? Because you can't grow?

The little girl seemed lost in what she was saying like she didn't quite understand what she was repeating.

But I'm sure Mother will be able to figure out what he meant. She seems pretty smart!

A toy that cannot grow past its master's orders, a more fitting description could not exist for me.

…

I wonder if there's a way for me to grow, my stagnant self. Being a toy for the Tyrant makes me unhappy.

Damn you! May you never feel any happiness for as long as you live!

I don't deserve it.

You killed them! You monster!

I don't deserve it.

You were born of my underworld; may it always reject you! And may you never feel at home anywhere for as long as you live!

I… don't deserve to be happy.

Calamitas awoke to a stiff but not uncomfortable bed, a medical bed she recognized.

She noticed that she was in some sort of medical tent. It was made evident by all the other medical beds adjacent and across from her. Many people were wounded and heavily bandaged, but some appeared to be asleep.

Calamitas looked down at her own body and realized with no small surprise that she was unrestrained. There was not one rational person in the knightdom of Lubednica or whatever it's called. She was highly suspicious to anyone who even looked at her, not to mention the things she'd said to the other silver-haired half-elf.

She looked beyond the lack of restraints and inspected her body instead. It wasn't a bad job at all. The only troublesome part was that she had on a medical gown instead of her usual enchanted robes. Not only did that mean someone undressed and bandaged her from head to toe, the chafing was no joke. But it also meant the healer had most likely taken her robes.

Calamitas took a deep breath and slowly cracked open an eye to look at her left arm. The sight of it still being there was excellent news. However, the picture of it being splinted and wrapped up was not. Not a single inch of the wrapping was free from blood.

The witch grimaced. Blood loss was something she didn't have an answer for. Sure, she could cauterize the wounds, but she could do nothing for the blood she'd already lost. Her skin wasn't the slightest bit pale, making her think the Ferris wheel guy knew what he was doing. Somehow he'd replaced the blood in her body, effectively cutting her recovery time down to a few days.

Calamitas shifted over to the side and, with great care, lifted her legs off the bed and placed her feet on the ground. She gave a few test pushes, and her legs held on steadfastly, albeit with minor pain. Then, with a satisfied nod, she stood up to begin her search for her robes.

But before she could take even one step. A voice screeched out to her, "Nyaow!! Stahp!! Nyour still recovering!!"

In an instant, Calamitas felt firm but gentle hands grab her from behind and pull her back onto her bed, but Calamitas fought back; she pinched and fought against the hands pulling her.

With a particularly powerful pinch, the voice shouted and released the Brimstone Witch in a hurry.

Calamitas spun around to see her attacker. It appeared to be a catgirl in a blue dress, and they were blinking tears out of their eyes, undoubtedly because of her pinch.

"Why'd nyou hafta do that?!" The girl complained. "Ferry-chans only trying to help!"

"You grabbed me from behind, I'm not sorry. Also, stop talking like that." Calamitas failed to keep the irritation out of her voice.

"Nyahh…" the girl drooped a bit before gathering fire in her eyes again. "Fine. But you need to stay in bed, can't you see how injured you are?! I thought Reinhardt walked in with a corpse only to find out you're still breathing and muttering some pretty depressing stuff! Don't blame Ferry-chan for worrying about you!"

"I see, then you must've been the one who healed me, I thank you," Calamitas bowed a bit. "Then it's fine that you changed my clothes. If it'd been someone other than a girl then I would have felt a little uncomfortable."

Wait, feel uncomfortable? Why do I care about something like that?

"Oh, uh, sorry to burst your bubble," the girl continued. "But Ferry-chans a boy."

The witch gaped at the catboy, who had a sheepish grin on his face. "Huh…"

Calamitas explored the catboy with her eyes. He had light brown hair as opposed to Subaru's darker hair. Wore tights up to his thighs and was wearing a bright blue dress. It even showed his shoulders for crying out loud! Wasn't that cold?!

"I hope you didn't do anything unsavory while I was asleep?"

"While I admit that Lady Cal, was it? Is very beautiful, Ferris only has eyes for one lady."

"I see, that's good." Or was it? Calamitas didn't know. She hadn't been embarrassed or uncomfortable for so many years; she'd forgotten everything about it.

"Ah, Ferris almost forgot!" He exclaimed, "Your robes have been cleaned and are under your bed, what's left of them, anyhow. Reinhardt seemed very keen on keeping you updated so that you'd, uh, not be angry?"

Glad to see that he understands already. And my robes… seems I'll need to repair them. That battle was indeed something fierce.

"Regardless! You are now one of Ferris' patients!" The medical knight pointed his finger directly in Calamitas' face. "Therefore, you are not to leave before Ferris gives the okay!"

The witch was having none of the theatrics. Even some of the other conscious patients were watching their conversation with amusement.

"Too bad, I'm giving myself the okay, I'm leaving. Thank you for healing me, I'll be fine on my own now."

"23 fractures," Ferris started. The witch looked over at him in shock. The other watchers gaped at his statement and those following, "56 lacerations, 8 ripped muscles, 9 torn tendons, 87 cracks, one arm missing all of its skin and every bone broken at least seven times," Yeah, she didn't regret her decision to not look at her arm. "Bleeding in the skull, bleeding in the eyes, every non-vital organ ruptured, need I go on?"

Calamitas suddenly found that she couldn't look him in the eyes.

"And you think that after Ferry-chan works her magic and a single day's rest is enough for you to be walking?" He awaited a response to which there was none. "Thought so. So you're going to lay in that bed, Ferry is going to ask you a few questions and put you back to sleep, and we'll continue until you're fully healed up! How does that sound?"

He knew that she knew that there was no answer except 'good', so she slowly sat back on the bed but didn't lie back down.

"Fine. I'll answer your questions but I'm not going back to sleep, I'll be leaving here tomorrow no matter what you try to do."

"Did you not just hear wha--" the healer began before freezing. The woman in front of him was no longer entertaining him. She looked directly into his eyes, warning him with aggression. She would leave through him if he stood in her way. Getting an extra day was the most he was going to get.

"...Fine, have it your way, but you're going back to sleep, this is non-negotiable." He warned. The witch snorted but didn't say anything else. Reinhardt was right; she really does have some anger problems.

Calamitas laid back on the bed and reached into her magic core. It wasn't even at 10 percent yet, but it was adequate for combatting average foot soldiers. After another day's rest, she'd definitely have enough to dispatch the knight intent on keeping her in bed unless he had something up his sleeve. Not that he would after her warning, but it didn't hurt to prepare for the off-chance he'd try something.

"Let's get this out of the way. Hurry up and ask your questions."

"Rightio!" He cheered, but the next moment he became earnest. "What are you?"

"...what do you mean?" Calamitas narrowed her eyes.

"Well, you have the attributes of both the Elves and the Oni, are you perhaps a half of both?"

"My mother was an Elf, I'm not sure what my father was, an Oni is an apt description if I were to give him one." She wasn't one for lying. But it was so easy when it was about her lineage.

The knight pulled some paper out of a pocket and wrote down the answer.

"Next, where did you learn to fly?"

The witch looked over to see if he was joking. Almost everyone in her world could fly given the proper training or items. But not so here; he looked completely serious.

"My parents taught me." She answered truthfully. Her parents did teach her, and it was one of the first things anyone learns down in hell. The lava isn't a threat if you can fly over it.

"Who are your parents?" He seemed to ask in genuine curiosity.

"Originally, they were alive. Now, however, they are not." She answered vaguely, so she didn't have to actually respond. He'd have to appear to antagonize her if he didn't like that answer.

He instead smartly shrugged and went on to the next question. "This is the final and most important question, are you okay?"

The words bounced around in her head a few times. "What?"

"You were saying some pretty heavy stuff while you were unconscious. Like 'I don't deserve to be happy.' While crying? Even if you don't like me, I would like you to know that as your healer I'm here for you. You can let me know about your worries."

The witch in question could only stare at the healer with her mouth slightly open. "I'll– I'll keep that in mind…"

She responded with a cracked voice, and Ferris looked on in pity as she didn't elaborate.

"Alright, time to sleep."

The witch watched in confusion as he touched her good arm and felt a slight injection of mana. Calamitas quickly jumped in shock and tried to burn her mana and incinerate everything. But her magic refused to listen, and her mana slowed to a crawl, lowering her heartbeat and consciousness.

"Oghh… yu're gon ma regrit thahh…" she slurred as she drifted asleep.

Calamitas didn't care.

She walked through hell, her ancestors' home. And there, amongst the charred corpses and transformed houses, her footsteps coincided with the crunching of the ash.

She didn't care.

She stopped by the entrance to one of the houses transformed by her dark magic and peered inside. Three figures were all tightly embraced. Two were much larger than the smaller one in between them. Perhaps a tiny family that resolved to spend their last moments with each other.

She walked past as she didn't care.

Her feet crunched down on the charred flesh and destroyed buildings. What untouched vestiges were still alight by her brimstone flames, breaking it down into ash. The always bright underworld was dyed an atypical red instead of the orange magma that hides in every crevice.

She stopped and looked down at her feet as she saw something glinting. A sword was lying by the charred figure of a person. She dimly remembered some that attacked her instead of idly waiting for death. This one was a young man. He saw the first waves of her 'Brimstone Rain' magic and attacked her without hesitation. Amidst the falling magic flames, he swung his sword that would never connect. Calamitas turned him into a charred corpse the instant he entered her magical barrier.

The young man had done the right thing. Calamitas did as well. But, well, she didn't care.

She didn't.

She continued surveying the wreckage of the once glorious capital of hell. Her body had not one scratch or injury upon it; to the people living here, she was an untouchable force of destruction.

She reached the capital's center, and there was not one speck of recognizable ashen structure. There was a large crater in front of her, and with ash slowly falling around her like snow, she walked into it.

Yharim ordered her not only to destroy the capital city of the underworld but to destroy the goddess residing there as well. One of the original elementals, filled with immense power and love toward her people. Her corpse was lying in the center of the crater.

She was powerful. Yet, Calamitas had not a scratch on her person, and she was simply tired. The magic she used on the elemental was the most incredible magic she knew then, something extremely experimental but practical.

She reached the center and looked down at the figure lying in the center. A red-skinned woman with fiery hair lay still in the middle of it. The elemental hadn't moved an inch from where the Brimstone Witch slayed her. But, of course, Calamitas didn't expect her to.

The witch walked right beside the corpse and sat down. Silently, she looked around at the remains of a once-bustling city of her people. The ash that had quickly filled the sky when she had first attacked was collecting everywhere, piling on top of the charred remains of buildings and corpses alike. Ashes of people were conglomerating together, building a memorial to themselves. Calamitas smiled a tiny bit. The past was trying to preserve the future. A warning to any brave enough to enter the city, perhaps?

"You mentioned that I had nowhere to go. No home. My home had been where my family was, and now they're gone, turned into symbols of hatred; even now, I'm latching onto the corpses of my brothers. I'm not sure if I'll ever be able to move on." The witch spoke quietly to the elemental, not caring that she wasn't listening. "...Would you have accepted me if I turned up at your doorstep and pleaded? Instead of casting magic that was, in itself, blasphemous, unlike anything from your home and destroying everything that you cared about. Would you have housed me? Could this place been my home?"

The air was rife with grief. The people killed, the corpses of loved ones together in their final moments, those who tried to save everyone, and the goddess that fought with all she had amongst the burning of her entire world, unable to land a scratch on the perpetrator.

She transformed them all into horrific creatures that will never find peace until death. The lucky ones were turned to ash instantly, not being forced to turn into an undead weapon for the one destroying their home.

Calamitas looked wistfully around. Taking in the sights of her devastation. "I suppose there's no reason to think about it anymore… What's done is done, for better or worse. It's enough to make me falter when considering what else he'd have me do."

A sudden gust of wind blew the ash into the air, and the witch looked up at the remnants of an entire civilization.

"Was this… really necessary?"

She waited as if to receive a response and sighed when she didn't. She stood and walked off, forgoing looking for any survivors. She was tired of the killing. The ash's crunch beneath her feet reminded her of what she'd done.

She really… really didn't want to care.

And so, she began her journey back to the jungle, having taken the first step toward her betrayal of the Tyrant.

Somewhere out in the countless dimensions and worlds, something was traveling. Being easily able to rip open the fabric between dimensions, the Devourer of Gods was traversing distances between worlds and universes. Opening purplish-blue swirling vortexes and shooting through them, it felt the presence of another.

"Devourer," a single voice called.

The enormous armor-fitted worm slowed down and looked over. A strange cyborg that appeared more metal than flesh met its gaze. The cyborg was sitting in a chair that was moving at the same speed as the worm, though how it moved that quickly with only a single thruster on the bottom was difficult for the worm to figure out.

"WHAT?" The worm impatiently demanded. It had been searching for Providence as the Tyrant ordered it. "HAS SOMETHING CHANGED?"

"Correct. Calamitas has destroyed the curse on her mind and betrayed us." The cyborg replied in a monotone voice. "I had wanted my machines to be tested against her magic, but my sensors had picked up that she had traversed the dimensional boundaries and entered another universe."

"YOU WANT ME TO CONSUME HER ESSENCE?" The worm slowed to a stop, and the cyborg did the same. It was excited and terrified at the same time. "I AM NOT STRONGER THAN THE CALAMITOUS WITCH, EVEN A GOD IS NOT ON PAR WITH HER POWER."

"Incorrect. My machines will deal with her, I just need to know where she is so I can send them once they're ready."

"WHAT'S STOPPING HER FROM FLEEING ONCE MORE TO ANOTHER WORLD?"

"I had the same concern, but the magical signature from when she disappeared is not her own. This coincides with her vanishing not of her free will."

"YET, HER ACTIONS WERE OF BETRAYAL?"

"Perhaps it's simpler to say that she was 'freed' from us. She had never truly joined us in the first place," The cyborg gave off a low humming sound. "Nevertheless, your new duty is to find her, there is no need to combat her once you find her. Just report back and I shall send in my machines once they're ready."

"WHAT OF THE TYRANT? HAS HE RECOVERED?" The worm sounded not the slightest bit concerned, not because it was confident that he would recover, but because it didn't care for his health; only if he was active.

"Yharim is still in the same state, that ritual's effects on his mind still linger as strongly as they did when he first contracted them. Yharon has been keeping his domain safe, but I fear that the Tyrant even refuses to eat some days and just wallows in his own despair within his castle." The cyborg shook his head in disappointment. "Regardless, I still receive my materials and funding that I require, so there's no problem. If you so wish, sending in your sentinels to separate worlds will increase your likelihood of finding Calamitas quickly."

"IT ALSO INCREASES THE LIKELIHOOD OF THEIR DEATHS. I AM THE ONLY ONE THAT WOULD BE ABLE TO FLEE FROM HER." The worm pointed out to the cyborg.

"If your sentinels would die from a mere encounter with her, then there's no reason to keep them around." The cyborg slowly floated away and left a parting message. "Providence has been located at the center of the sun. Deal with her while your sentinels find Calamitas. Remember, there's no need to engage her once found."

An electrical buzz surrounded the cyborg as he stretched out and vanished into yellow particles. The worm watched him teleport away and felt its hunger skyrocket.

"IN THE CENTER OF THE SUN, HMM?"

Notes:

Wowza, I wonder if the next arc will diverge at all from canon material. There's definitely nothing fundamentally changing in regard to it or anything.

Idk if there'll be a next chapter, if there is, it'll be a lot shorter because I don't feel like writing 45k words for a single chapter lmaoo.

Actions

↑ Top Next Chapter → Comments (50)

Kudos

Virieas, NecroWolf99, HollowBreath, DDronewar, Ghostlytime2400, NutDealer112, ClayMan570, Weird_Eyeball, SaltSeaVenerable, Dan_Dan_Dan, Enderwoopie, Pandoras_Cabinet, Valten, aiglas0209, RoyalJest, Pensive, NonEuclideanPotato, Tkotka, RosalineGift, danielSubaru, MerchantNo1, Not_a_pilot, ThrowAway97558, Rickzin, EthanNataki, EpicPlate, AZM_000, Jen_Xie, JohnjohnfromLA, kimberlythinks, Lco99, Liana92, BLOOD_MIOON, sOlarApple, Hmm68, Polarwinter, Pelapor022, Scopio007, Inialation700, Jef_le_Samourai, BigmacDestroyer, Indefinitely_Procrastinating_Author, veronicagill4, Painbringer3000, Amadeus_Erebus_Aurelianus, Ysgravald, Ruby_Marble, AnneLamia8872, Clocktor_2317, Ahmedppppppp, and 367 more users as well as 867 guests left kudos on this work!

Comments

Post Comment

Comment as TheBrimmedHat

Plain text with limited HTML ?

Comment

10000 characters left

Bookmark

Bookmark

×

TheBrimmedHat, save a bookmark!

Write Comments

Notes

The creator's summary is added automatically.

Plain text with limited HTML ? Embedded images ( tags) will be displayed as HTML, including the image's source link and any alt text.

5000 characters left

Your tags

The creator's tags are added automatically.

Comma separated, 150 characters per tag

Add to collections

Choose Type and Post

Private bookmark Rec

Footer

Customize

Default

Low Vision Default

Reversi

Snow Blue

About the Archive

Site Map

Diversity Statement

Terms of Service

Content Policy

Privacy Policy

DMCA & TIDA Policies

Site Status

Contact Us

Policy Questions & Abuse Reports

Technical Support & Feedback

Development

otwarchive v1.6.0.3

Known Issues

GPL-2.0-or-later by the OTW