"Ismael, keep walking."
"I'm kinda curious about these chambers."
"Torture chambers. Don't mind it."
"Still. The further we go, the more cramped it feels."
"Absolutely. And there's a perfectly reasonnable explanation for that. We used to use this castle to torture and kill those who wronged us and God."
"Nephilims?"
"Yes. Then both the Cardinals and the Lunatics claimed this place."
"This is not medieval. This is modern in an ancient way. Royal, but tarnished. By blood and time."
"You're right."
"So the Nephilims acknowledge God?"
"He is God, therefore omnipresent. The Creator. He made us, in one way. Question is, who made Mars."
"What do you mean?"
"Mars doesn't belong within creation."
"???"
Ismael never felt so dumbfounded in his life. That statement took some time of his life, or so he would assume.
"I'm sorry what the fuck does that mean?"
"Whatever created Mars was not of this world, the Lunatics tried to kill him for good but he always comes back."
"Something always creates something, Bringer. And he always comes back...? Sounds stupid strong."
"It is. Having you by our side will increase our chances of setting him for permanent failure."
"I'll give it my best shot."
An archive room stood on their path, having Ismael questionning it.
"Is that the way?"
"No."
"Man, we have like...an hour. Cankt will kill us both if we keep scavanging for old papers like that."
"I did think coming back here would guarantee finding treasure."
"Huh? Weapons?"
"Nara did his job right I see. But no, Mael. Information is treasure. We look for it, find it and learn it. Learning is essential for growth. The brain gets rusty quick if you don't fuel it with new informations."
"Well that much is true. I would suppose Bringer knows how to perform the ritual to make me a Nephilim conclusively. But I'm before all things, very impatient at the moment. Whatever, I guess I owe him this moment of lust for intel."
For twenty minutes they looked at books, drawings, studies on humans and other creatures. Ismael eventually grew bored.
"Aaahhh...what are we even looking for, here? I mean it is interesting, but I'd rather have a clear idea of what I'm searching for."
"One day. One day something happened at the Nephilim's Domain. Something even I cannot explain. I saw someone and alerted everyone. And I mean everyone. I talked to them but as much as they wanted to believe me and trust my words, they could not fathom what I was explaining."
"All right, so...what did you see?"
"Myself. The Bringer but the body was all white and the eyes pitch black. A total inverse of how I am. That was not the end of it, the pressure I felt was unhinged, unreal. I was hoping to excavate a clue among this mess."
Ismael looked around, picked up a manuscrit in italics.
"Is that it?"
"Ismael, I appreciate it but you took this one randomly, and...give me that."
Ismael handed the paper which the Bringer read at the light of a candle he lit with his finger.
"The creatures that inhabit this cosmos are worse than any form we've ever given to God out of fear. Which indicates the reality of an evil we cannot yet comprehend. What this entails leads me to believe that soon enough we will have the blueprint of what to expect. Once we have the entire description of these beings in extenso and in excruciating details, we'll be able to correctly formulate a contingency plan adapted to what they are and what they can do. Without further do, here are my theories. There is a man, or rather, a "NEPHILIM", building a plan and an army in whatever plan of existence they lie and live in. I havr figured by my research that his name was probably Nara, or Nero, Or Nama, depending on languges, regions and accents. In the Judali, they would observe his name and conclude Raka. But this is merely unecessary linguistic lingo. The other species I have seen with my own eyes are the actual guardians of God, calling themselves the "LUNATICS". They don't kill humans but we cannot reach them physically. Let me reiterate. We CANNOT REACH THEM. They are completely outside of our understanding. For we cannot make of a piece of paper a one side sheet, they will always be further than both the horizon and infinity. I don't have much info on them, other that they are horrifying and frightening in every way. Lastly, I have been in direct contact with the "SONS AND DAUGHTERS OF MARS." They have been in hell and back, literally. They showcase the Seal of Mars on their forehead, for the ritual of Osborn, leader of the Cult of Mars, is the only way to come back to the upper lands, so to speak. We live in a deranged cosmos and I want out."
A loud silence carries out the letter spoken by the Bringer.
"Well, is this what you wanted?"
"This is barely common knowledge. Regardless. Let's perform the ritual and move on."
"He doesn't sound satisfied, I guess he was lookikg for more. I did see him putting the paper in his jacket. Whatever, this is for him, I don't really care."
On their way back, they moved to the right and finally entered the place they were going for.
Cankt and June were already there. A large hall of black bricks making up the layout.
"You two will be on this seal, we'll be here."
"Understood, thank you Cankt."
"Whatever. It's so whatever. Everything is so whatever. I don't even care anymore. I can't see a reason for this anymore, what am I even supposed to do here, after I shift? Who cares? Not me. Certainly not me. I can't see why I'm doing this and it's bothering me. I'm not even Ismael the Sniper, I was a product, the product of something bigger than me."