Sevenau Reckless Arc Geode Eng
Early one morning, Helios announced to Geode that he had fixed the Retak Bell.
Yesterday, like always, Geode couldn't sleep either. It wasn't because he felt guilty for saying such words to Bluebel; in fact, those were the words Beliung had said to the others. Word for word.
It was just that in the past, when Geode didn't respond, Beliung ignored him, always pushing him aside, hoping that this silent treatment and ostracism would drive Geode crazy, or show any emotion other than lethargic indifference.
When hunting or gathering food, Beliung always shared it equally with everyone, but never with Geode. When Nova mentioned that Geode was missing a portion, Beliung also changed the subject. Whatever he or the others brought back was never Geode's turn to touch.
A moment later, probably because he felt sorry for Geode's increasingly frail body, Blizzard had to share some of his food with him. Thinking back now, Geode didn't thank him or anyone who defended him; he just took it and stared blankly into nothingness. Geode didn't think of anything at that time, the thing called the brain was just a cloud floating aimlessly in his skull, unable to help him focus on anyone's words.
Sometimes, Beliung found out, feeling extremely annoyed, he took the opportunity to politely chase the ice and fire couple away; when he finished, Beliung would snatch the food from Geode's hand, throw it on the ground, stomp on it, and use his heels to rub it on the grass, as if he was venting his anger on the weak treetops. Geode knew that Beliung actually wanted to step on his head more.
"If you don't work, you won't eat. No one has the obligation to serve an empty hole like you." Beliung even pretended to kick his foot, and some food and dirt splashed onto Geode's hand.
Helios asked him if he would dare to eat them if he was really hungry. Firstly, Geode didn't feel hungry, and secondly, his body would be tired without nutrients. When he couldn't move due to weakness, Geode would just grab whatever he could reach, chew it, put it in his mouth, and try to swallow it. Sometimes it was leftover rice, sometimes it was rice mixed with some gravel, dregs, crumbs... Moreover, who knows, maybe doing so would make Beliung like it more, and he would bother him less.
That was good too.
Beliung pushed Geode away again, "Pretend to care please! Is it that hard to make me believe that you're a human?"
Strangely enough, Beliung is very interested in "human" objects. He loves his dead human family, loves and misses and even goes crazy over his human physician grandfather, admires and always chases after the image of a good student of a "fake" human Behemoth, constantly nods and accepts all the views of the human church imposed on him, even still protects Stonehert full of humans from afar even though humans threw him out of their cradle.
But Sinclair treats the Elements very badly, just as Beliung treats himself badly. He imposes a lot of things on himself as well as on the other Elements.
Helios is also saddened by Beliung's self-harming, even more than when Beliung blames people or criticizes Geode.
Rimba jokes that Beliung's mentality is not as strong as everyone else's thought, if he didn't hurt anyone else, he would hurt himself.
That was how Beliung grew up from the past until now: leaving scars to mark his sovereignty.
But people were so fascinated by Beliung's words that Geode was the one who was beaten, it was considered inevitable, a matter of personal release. So they only helped Geode, but rarely stopped Beliung.
Geode paid attention to that word. "Human". Perhaps, if he became a human, with full emotions, he could be loved by Beliung, even, he could command him, just like the other humans did to Sinclair.
Geode's desire to be close and his ambition to step on top were both conflicting at the same time, making him unsure of what his true intentions were.
But "human"...
Geode wanted to become it.
The reason Geode became what he was now was because the Retak Bell had taken away his emotions during an overload. He thought that when it broke during Retak'ka's battle with Beliung, it would release all of Geode's emotions, but nothing happened. Helios picked up each piece and studied it carefully, staying up all night and filling his notebook with notes.
After many days, the conclusion was that the Retak Bell was a Stonehert artifact, made of a heavy metal that was durable even when it was smashed to pieces or as thin as a piece of paper. Whatever it absorbed would stay in it forever, unless a force stronger than itself pulled it out again.
Therefore, the negative emotions mixed with Geode's emotions remained in its fragments. Helios collected them, trying to piece them back together into the original Bell. The fragments were as small as grains of sand, but Helios took the time to rearrange them properly, making sure there were no asymmetrical gaps. Only by ensuring the Bell returned to its original structure could the process of reversing elimination of emotions.
And Helios succeeded.
"I have followed its cracks, perfect. It is also a sentient being, extremely intelligent. When it recognizes the fragments are close together, it exudes internal force to pull each part back together, also convenient for me to put them back in the right order. Now look at it, as beautiful as new!" Helios showed Geode its completed version, shining under the harsh sunlight.
Geode only looked, not daring to hold it directly. In the past, he often saw Beliung sleeping and fondled this thing, sometimes talking to himself, as if the Bell could respond. Beliung treated it as if he was standing in front of a real person, a living soul.
That's right, inside it contained a lot of emotions, including Geode's stolen part. Even if it was negative emotions, it still contained a lot of Sinclair's feelings and thoughts; Beliung would occasionally put his ear to it, listening to its conversation, looking at him with great relief. Geode would never know what he and it had exchanged.
The Bell was also a block of iron. A solid object carved from gold and precious stones.
Geode was a humanoid entity, but was easily mistaken for a statue.
Geode was always looked down upon by Beliung, even more than the stone he held in his hands. What a tragic sight.
Geode wondered if there was someone really living in the Bell. And if Geode's emotions were in there... they would turn into a voice, whispering into Beliung's ear. Was Geode really a kind child, who Beliung cared for so much, and talked to every day?
Although he knew it was his own illusion, Geode still did it. Could it be that Beliung wasn't talking to the shell that was him, but to the Geode in the Bell? The real Geode?
Geode always imagined that, imagined himself being held in Beliung's hand (held gently), pressed against his cheek (leaned close to his ear), told sweet and lovely stories that Beliung's enchanting voice always uttered to anyone, except the shell.
If that were true,...
Geode wished he could bring himself out of that Bell.
"You don't know, that Bell was originally a geode." Rimba had once vaguely said, "Behemoth said that when he participated in the Crimson War in the Southern Empire, he saw the flood that swept away the village, the bodies of our parents were also destroyed, lost in pieces. But we... Sinclair, were accidentally swept into a very large Geode's mouth, it seemed to be a Geode of Chalcedony. It was about half the size of his body. Thanks to being stuck in there, deep underground, Sinclair survived until he found him, otherwise we would have suffocated... Behemoth brought it back, originally to make a statue, then a part of the chalcedony was also used as the inner shell of the Retak Bell. So the Retak Bell was also made from geodes. Later, people inlaid precious stones on the outside, so everyone thought the Bell was made of gold."
Geode silently listened to the story, feeling a bit complicated. He didn't dare to think that he and the noble Bell that Beliung protected so much were the same kind.
Of course, he was still a walking entity, it was just a static object...
But Geode didn't consider himself a "human". And the Bell wasn't exactly a type of inanimate stone.
When Beliung left the Bell alone to do something, Geode always felt a strange feeling that wanted to pull him closer to it.
It was as if deep inside, the "real Geode", was reaching out its hand, beckoning slowly, speaking in a melodious voice, "Come here. I will turn you into a human."
Many times; Geode had to restrain himself, when no one was paying attention, trying not to break it, letting any soul within it try to escape.
What was it, was that voice luring Beliung, now it was also starting to smell Geode as its new prey?
What if... what if, just like before, it would suck away his last bit of sanity?
Geode tried not to look at it anymore. No matter where he was, he tried not to let it enter his sight. Fortunately, with Beliung's temperament, he would never let him glance at it for too long, let alone touch it.
Until today, more than a year later, Geode had finally seen it clearly, close up each and every pattern of it, in Helios's hand. Intact. No scratches.
The patterns on the Retak bell resembled bluebells, the bands that rotated concentrically on the surface, the flowers were dotted, and there were also ancient characters that were probably Stonehert's old writing, but Geode didn't understand.
"It says, 'Humans are like Geodes. To know what they are like, you have to break them.' Well, of course it's a metaphor, it doesn't necessarily mean beating them up." Helios seemed to read Geode's mind, happily explaining.
It took almost a minute for Geode's mouth to move, as if he was afraid that if he said something wrong, Beliung would appear and take the bell back:
"Can I... touch it?"
"Are you sure? It's very sensitive. If you touch it..." Helios made a gesture as if something was coming out of the Bell, "It might release negative emotions into you. But it might also give you back your senses. Anything is possible."
This news sounded like a blessing to Geode.
The Lord, who had been on a tour of the church, had reminded Sinclair to be careful of his emotional outbursts, because emotions always hurt, so the Bell of Retak would heal everything.
After all, he had been the leader of the work related to bell making, because the treasures in the crystal palace were the kind of highly aesthetic models that the Stoneherts loved.
But Beliung had then replied boldly, "So what? Should I give up? Stop feeling everything? Like you? Honestly, I pity you. You have isolated yourself from the world and lived in that palace of debauchery. Years of suffering, burying your emotions, hating yourself. It must have been difficult."
That must have angered the Lord. Partly, punishing Geode was also his way of freeing himself from being haunted by a Beliung that was far beyond his reach.
Biting his lips, swallowing, suppressing an uncontrollable anxiety, Geode slowly raised his hand and touched the Bell.
Crack.
In an instant, the Bell lit up, a rumbling sound coming from within, the patterns seemed to be shaking.
Geode froze: it was as if an empty battery with no energy had suddenly been plugged in, electricity pouring into his small body from all directions, paralyzing Geode, while also stimulating him, making his spine tremble.
He couldn't react to any changes, didn't realize that his blood had stopped circulating, his breathing had become difficult, his heart was beating at a frighteningly slow pace, his muscles were twitching, his joints seemed to be dislocated by some crazy force running through his body at the speed of sound.
It was like the last moment before the corpse stiffened. Even when the Lord had harmed him and stuffed dirty things into his body, his movements were not decisive... Geode's body also couldn't react as clearly as this time.
After a few seconds, Geode was forced to lower his legs because his legs felt loose, shaking uncontrollably; but because his hand was still holding the Bell tightly, Helios also suddenly lowered himself with him. Geode tried to regulate his breathing, but failed, his face couldn't even move, as if the electricity had arbitrarily turned off all the moving parts.
Geode's other hand was raised, pressed against his eyes, trying not to carelessly scratch his eyes with his nails. His brain was overloaded. It was like a rock had appeared from the sky, falling straight into his skull and pressing down on the clouds. He felt like everything about him was out of balance, that force was arbitrarily rearranging his person, editing his mind, but he couldn't do anything to stop it.
The crazy spirit seemed to be babbling, "You've worked hard. Leave me alone. You just need to sit still."
Geode waited patiently, waiting until the process was complete, the mischievous demon hiding in a small, dark corner of his brain.
And when its voice faded into pure noise...
Sob.
Geode cried.
Helios was astonished; and even though he knew full well that this was a good thing, that it proved that he had succeeded, that the Bell had been repaired properly and had reversed the process of draining emotions, that Geode had regained what he had lost and wanted for so long, that "it's okay if the first reaction is to cry", crying was good, seeing no signs of anything was scary, it was okay, it was okay,...
And even though he knew this, Helios was still as surprised as if he had just witnessed an event no one had ever seen before in this world.
Geode's lifeless eyes were once like the flat surface of a stone, smooth and tasteless; but now, it was as if energy had been carved into them, giving them depth, sinking into an endless sea, not emitting light but tears flowing out.
His mouth trembled, as if he was trying to form a complete word. His face turned red instinctively.
"It's okay, Geode. It's a natural reaction..." Helios was a little flustered, but he was happy, he had to be happy.
Helios understood why sadness was the first thing to come out, after all, inside the Bell there were other negative emotions that Sinclair had felt since birth: crying because he was hungry as a baby trapped in the geode, crying because his parents were nowhere to be found, crying because a stranger called Behemoth came and took him away, crying because the Lord scolded him for scratching his treasure, crying because he had to leave the palace to join the Royal family, crying because he didn't do well in his studies and upset his physician grandfather, crying because he suddenly remembered his parents in the middle of the night and had nightmares, then crying because he made a mistake and had to leave Stonehert...
Sinclair used to cry more than he laughed, so that was okay, that was their common trait. That was what made him, our common self. It was because Sinclair was once a child of sadness that he wanted to find happiness as soon as possible, so he became most fond of the Wind element, close to it, and then Beliung was born, becoming the Bond Elemental, becoming the strongest among them, bringing happiness to the new master.
Helios smiled comfortingly, "It's good, it's good..."
And then, Helios saw Geode looking at him, eyes still flowing with two gentle streams of tears,...
A smile on his lips.
Somehow, that wasn't how Helios thought Geode would smile: a devilish smile.
Huh...?
Instantly, Geode snatched the Bell out of Helios's hand, so fast that Helios couldn't process the expression properly even though he saw it clearly.
Geode stomped one foot on the ground, as if his joints had returned to normal, he stood up, while Helios still hadn't fully stood up.
The smile disappeared from Geode's face, leaving room for a cold expression, "It's been a long time since I've been free. It's really refreshing." His hand adjusted its position holding the Bell, "You're right, Helios, this overload is really stimulating, much more than the vulgar words the Lord used on me."
What? What did he say?
Helios looked closely at the person in front of him. It was still Geode, but his demeanor was completely different. He was still expressionless, but that wasn't a problem with his words.
He didn't give off the empty, listless, slightly pitiful feeling of a Geode who truly knew nothing, because Geode always had a confused expression and tried to stay away from troubles he didn't understand as much as possible.
On the contrary, his current expressionless appearance came from a vicious lack of concern. It was the look of a cold-blooded killer who would never have a nightmare of conscience even if he had just pushed someone to death. It was the kind of expressionlessness so obvious that it made the person opposite feel uncomfortable, wishing they could rush forward and stab that gaze straight in the eye.
"Who... are you?" Helios asked, a meaningless question.
"What's wrong? It's me, Geode."
"...I know Geode wouldn't look at me like that."
This time, Geode didn't smile, didn't blink, and even though his bad intentions were clearly visible in his eyes, his voice was still cold, without a single waver, "This is the real Geode. In the flesh. I must say, after coming out of the Bell, everything feels so comfortable. It's great to see everything still beautiful."
"What's beautiful?"
"Everything." Geode repeated the word like a mantra, "My everything."
Why did Helios feel like something was wrong, was this the real Geode?
His emotions... could they possibly look so vengeful and sinister?
But wait, everything had no basis, it was all Helios's imagination. If Helios was jealous of Geode just because of some uneasy feelings, then it was his fault.
"So... what are you going to do?" Helios didn't understand why things were so awkward, he couldn't even say anything properly, and asking questions was pointless.
What? Just living life as usual, right?
But, if Geode was a little happier, Helios would be even happier... It was like Helios had just fulfilled his role as a protector, protecting Geode from being beset by his own lack of spirit, as well as healing his emotions.
Helios should have been happier, should have hugged Geode, wrapped his body that was covered with indelible wounds; whispered soothing words to him, without worrying about the fact that he couldn't understand them anymore.
...
However, Helios still hadn't done any of those things.
"It's late. Dinner." Geode said curtly, even more so than before.
Helios instinctively ran to get food, secretly hoping that it was just that he wasn't used to it. Take it slow.
Previously, Geode couldn't taste any of the flavors that Helios made, just silently sitting in a corner eating, not saying a word.
This time, Geode was the same, eating more slowly, then commenting, "It has a flavor that Beliung likes."
The feeling was even too strong.
"Helios has always cooked like this, right? Even each flavor is clearly according to the recipe, just right. You've remembered it very well." As he spoke, Geode's face was still cold.
Helios was restless, "Yeah. Because I didn't think you would taste it... I also didn't know what you liked to eat, so..."
"The smell of insects."
"...What did you say?"
"The things I used to eat. Do you want to try it?" Geode was talking about the consequences of not having Beliung share his food with him.
"No..." Helios suddenly lost his appetite.
"No. You have to try. You said we would endure everything together."
In a flash, Geode waved his hand, quickly groping on the ground for a handful of sand near the withered grass that was probably eaten by worms, squeezed it tightly, and stuffed it into the still-hot food that Helios brought, stuffing it over and over again.
The first feeling Helios had was nausea because the food he cooked was treated in such a horrible way. Next, he analyzed Geode's inhuman behavior.
"Eat it." Geode calmly brought the mixture of who knows how many things in front of Helios, "There's no need to panic. I mean, I like you very much too, I care about you as much as you 'try' to care about me."
"Are you getting revenge?"
"This isn't revenge, because you didn't do anything wrong. Helios, we're getting along, you need to put your ego aside. You did your job."
That was also what Beliung used to say to Helios, 'you did well. Your job is to protect.' Their grandfather had also taught them to protect what was right.
Just like Hearing Helios's thoughts, Geode continued, "If you're still haunted by Beliung, we can't go any further. I'll help you get rid of that guilt, just like you helped me get my feelings back by fixing the Bell. You need to cleanse yourself of him. To do that, you have to do things he's never done." Geode took out that disgusting thing again, "Starting with this."
Helios didn't want to hold that thing, he didn't want to look at it. He just asked, "Are those your true feelings?"
Since he got his feelings back, Geode had talked a lot. Each sentence was long and drawn out, as if he had suddenly gotten back what he had lost, so he had to reveal more of his feelings than usual.
However, the words were so long, and all the movements on Geode's expressionless face were just one: a glance, "Beliung has never had to kneel before anyone. Even if he did, that must not how he felt. Even if you force him to eat these things, he would still throw up. His body also cannot accept dirty things, even if he had to do it to sacrifice for others."
Geode remembered how he had easily bowed his head to the Lord in one step, quickly, lightly, as if there was no weight of self-respect forcing him not to do so, that Sinclair would not be happy.
Geode was too gullible, but Beliung was not, someone who sat on high like him was untouchable, untouchable. Even if he relied on the strength of that Retak'ka, he could not make Beliung bow his head and beg for mercy. He even left him a beautiful way out: just losing his memory would be considered a way to cleanse himself from the mob that included Geode.
"Helios, you can't be like Beliung, don't be as tough as him. Be gentle. Just be submissive. Like the bugs under our feet." Geode still pressed the thing in his hand close to Helios's anxious face. But his expression remained unchanged.
"I won't eat that thing." Helios shook Geode's hand away, "I think you're the one who's most obsessed with that person."
"I'm not obsessed." Geode's voice was even drier than before, "I'm doing the right thing."
Geode's gaze was the most terrifying gaze a creature with the form of Sinclair could produce.
Helios avoided it.
Realizing that Helios didn't eat, Geode also swung his leg, kicking over the other food on the table, turning dinner into a mess.
"Gosh. It smells like him." He snorted, stood up and went into the tent.
Helios felt like he had returned to the past, back then, when he was upset, Beliung would do the same thing, leaving Helios alone to clean up.
*
Another morning, Helios noticed Lilin rushing to find him.
That was about four or five months after Beliung fell into a coma. From that day on, Helios rarely saw Lilin again, mostly because they weren't close, so it was good not to get into a fight.
Another part was that Lilin didn't want to reveal the whereabouts of the place where Beliung was treated, so they had to limit their meetings like this. That's right, Helios was also a bit suspicious that if he went crazy, or Geode got excited and retaliated like the other day, who knows what would happen to Beliung.
According to Lilin, it seemed that Beliung's injury had become more serious. Perhaps the scar on his head left by Retak'ka was acting like a parasite, if not soothed by his power, it would continue to spread and disturb the skull no matter how well it was bandaged. Some areas around his head were already bleeding internally from it.
Of course, Helios didn't have Retak'ka power, however, his light ability was compatible with his Gamma, it would probably weaken the parasite, hoping to make Beliung defeat it himself subconsciously.
Once again, Helios, like Geode said, started to lower his standards, the moment Beliung was in danger, he wanted to fly away at the speed of light to save someone.
But today, it wasn't so fast.
Geode's appearance couldn't have been more ill-timed, because normally, even if he sat there, he wouldn't care, if Helios ran off to do something, he (thought he) had no right to let them. But when he knew that Lilin had come here to ask for help with Beliung, it was as if something inside Geode had been turned on.
He immediately stopped Helios, then pulled Lilin's collar, and growled:
"Where's Beliung?"
It was obvious that Geode wanted to come and kill Beliung immediately.
Usually, if they actually met, they would argue, but very rarely did they end up fighting to the death.
In the past, even when Geode knew that Beliung was in critical condition, he wouldn't take advantage of the situation and harm someone who couldn't defend himself. That was the only "right" thing Geode could do when he had no emotions. He didn't care about Beliung, but he didn't do anything cruel to Beliung or Lilin.
That was partly in response to how Beliung had never chased Geode away from the group before, and still kept him around, even though they knew that being close to each other would still cause each other pain.
But now, this expression on Geode's face, "the real Geode", was clearly written on his face:
"I want to finish him off."
Lilin came back to his senses before this attitude faster than Helios, he pulled Geode's hand out of his shirt, "Don't get in the mood to do something bad. You should stay here. Let's go, Heli-"
BAM!
Immediately, Geode swung a straight punch into the ground, a crack appeared faster than lightning, cutting the ground in half between Helios and Lilin's feet, causing them to lose balance and fall in different directions.
"Lilin also likes to protect evil, huh? Beliung even bluntly chased you away, because you kept hiding in our Power Watch. Yet Lilin still defended Beliung, risked his life to protect him, and then shamelessly came here to beg for him from the person he criticized, still hoping that he would be accepted and forgiven?"
Lilin slammed his hand on the ground, in one somersault, he immediately returned to a defensive position.
Geode smacked his lips, "Do you know why Beliung ended up in this situation? Because he has a cowardly and incompetent lightning element like you. You should know that, even if you are a 'protector', protecting evil is never right."
What's right or wrong here? Geode has never spoken like that before...
Helios immediately stood up very quickly. Lilin was the same. On one hand, Helios saw that Lilin was always very steadfast, his hands and feet never wavering, ready to face danger. If it were Helios, being cursed so harshly in the face, he might not have enough strength to stand.
Helios was very, very gullible. Geode was like that before.
But Geode now, he suspected that he really didn't want to let Helios off.
"What are you planning to do?" Helios whispered, but somehow Geode heard it too:
"Bury both of you."
Lilin widened his eyes, not needing Helios to explain, he tried to jump out of the crack, but failed.
Geode continued to swing his attack, an earthen arm came out from somewhere, holding Lilin's leg tightly. The same thing happened to Helios.
"Troublesome. It doesn't matter if you don't tell me where Beliung is. I can feel it." Geode took out the Bell from his pocket, "It's reacting to him. The Bell must be missing its old master."
Lilin shouted, "Hey, don't hurt Beliung!"
"Exterminating evil doesn't count as hurt."
Helios shuddered at these words. Beliung also said the same thing when he went to the battlefield in the past.
Lilin gritted his teeth, "Why do you keep calling Beliung evil? No matter what he is, he is a part of Sinclair like us, we are all the same person, sharing the same roots. If you kill him, it's like you're cutting off a part of Sinclair!"
"A part of Sinclair?" Geode seemed to be stating rather than asking, "I don't consider Beliung a part of Sinclair. He's the evil that all 'humans' want to cut off: a hurricane that always drives Sinclair into obsessions with power. He became the Bond Elemental because he promised to free our master from sadness, all those words that charmed all of you."
"Even so, you have no right to do that!"
"...I was born for the opposite: to eliminate the things that make Sinclair sad. The things that make 'humans' negative are all born from evil. Eliminating Beliung is eliminating the evil in Sinclair. There was no reason not to do it."
And that was the only way Geode could become 'human':
Justice.
A sense of justice, an urge to destroy.
"I will do the right thing." Geode revealed the most emotionless smile Helios had ever seen, "No wonder this lovely Retak Bell likes to lock me in like this. When I was in there, it always said, it was afraid that I would harm its Beliung. That's why it wanted to erase me from birth. Really... even it doesn't want me to do the right thing?"
"..."
Impossible.
It's not a technical error.
Did the Retak Bell do it on purpose?
Because it knew that the "real Geode" would be like that?
Really....
This, this thing, is Geode's true self?
The feeling that Helios had felt for it because it was trapped in the Bell, because it had to whisper to Beliung on nights when no one could hear, because it always weakly called out to be saved...
It turned out to be just a shell. A real shell. Even when it was locked up, it still showed its true nature: a shell.
A geode.
It was all a lie.
Helios regretted saving it. Regretted fixing the Bell. Regretted giving Geode too much hope and taking him away from the person he wanted to be.
Just because Geode didn't know anything, Helios had assumed that the person in the Bell would be better, smarter, more reasonable, that when he released it, Helios would have a Geode who was quick-witted, cheerful, talkative... It was like he had put a shell on him to replace Beliung.
Geode didn't have a chance to explain. He couldn't explain. Even he could not resist its lies.
The Bell had done a good job of protecting Beliung from the dangers of its own Earth element. Yet Helios had trampled on its efforts in one fell swoop.
It was as if he had raised it from the dead by reassembling it, digging up a sleeping grave, awakening the terrible ghost it had spent so long sealing away.
Oh my.
He need to find a way to put it back into the Bell.
But how...?
In a split second, Helios saw the same look from Lilin. He was very quick-witted, and with just one look, he understood that Helios also wanted what he was thinking.
"Must be held back." Helios took advantage of the moment when Geode was trying to collect Beliung's clues from the Bell, and quickly said, "There must be a way... I know how to use the Bell (Gamma Drain) to restart the absorption process. But I need to trap him, keep him in one place. But right now..."
Yes, Geode was very strong, Lilin who had not awakened his power could not fight back, and Helios could not waste his strength, because this Gamma Drain would also consume a lot of energy. Helios's power was related to releasing energy rays, so if he did the opposite, like absorbing them, he would lose more strength.
Even switching to a fighting strategy now would be difficult to determine the winner. Meanwhile, Helios still had to heal Beliung. He wouldn't have enough time to do anything.
Immediately, a word flashed through Lilin's mind, he opened his mouth:
"Fusion."
Huh?
"I can... forcefully fuse with Geode. If he gets stuck in Fusion's form, he won't be able to move."
It made sense, but...
"But is it okay, what will he do to you?" Helios was worried, Fusion against his will always had very bad consequences.
"It's okay. I can take the pain. But like you said, there's no time. We have to do it." Lilin took a deep breath, glancing at Geode.
For a moment, Helios had the feeling that Lilin's gaze would be very similar to Beliung's, something Helios could never see, but he felt it.
A determined look of a child who had to make critical decisions too quickly, too hastily; but without hesitation.
Lilin was like Beliung, they were very tough. Unlike Helios and Geode.
"I'm sorry."
Helios was about to apologize first ("sorry for making things so bad because I fixed the Bell, ruining the good things it did"), but Lilin was the one who spoke first.
His crimson eyes were like the blood moon that appeared in Sinclair's dreams.
Helios asked, "For what?"
"Sorry for making you make this difficult decision." Lilin bit his lip, ready to unleash the only lightning attack available for this situation, "A protector like you had to destroy Geode with your own hands, I don't want to see you suffer any more, Helios."
Helios opened his eyes, and for a moment, something inside him seemed to melt.
Helios opened his mouth, intending to say, "No, I'll think of another way, Lilin. Something gentler, without blood, without violence. Because I don't want you to be hurt, I don't want to see us being pushed into such situations anymore. I don't want any of you, no matter how evil you've done, to deserve such punishment!"
Of course, it wouldn't be that easy. But he still couldn't.
Helios thought a lot, but just like that day, when Beliung told him not to go to the battlefield anymore, he couldn't respond.
This time, Helios raised his hand, intending to stop Lilin, at the same time Geode slowly realized...
But it was too late.
Always late.
Lilin's red light flashed, like the Chalcedony geode shining in Behemoth's eyes that day.*Tbc*
Yesterday, like always, Geode couldn't sleep either. It wasn't because he felt guilty for saying such words to Bluebel; in fact, those were the words Beliung had said to the others. Word for word.
It was just that in the past, when Geode didn't respond, Beliung ignored him, always pushing him aside, hoping that this silent treatment and ostracism would drive Geode crazy, or show any emotion other than lethargic indifference.
When hunting or gathering food, Beliung always shared it equally with everyone, but never with Geode. When Nova mentioned that Geode was missing a portion, Beliung also changed the subject. Whatever he or the others brought back was never Geode's turn to touch.
A moment later, probably because he felt sorry for Geode's increasingly frail body, Blizzard had to share some of his food with him. Thinking back now, Geode didn't thank him or anyone who defended him; he just took it and stared blankly into nothingness. Geode didn't think of anything at that time, the thing called the brain was just a cloud floating aimlessly in his skull, unable to help him focus on anyone's words.
Sometimes, Beliung found out, feeling extremely annoyed, he took the opportunity to politely chase the ice and fire couple away; when he finished, Beliung would snatch the food from Geode's hand, throw it on the ground, stomp on it, and use his heels to rub it on the grass, as if he was venting his anger on the weak treetops. Geode knew that Beliung actually wanted to step on his head more.
"If you don't work, you won't eat. No one has the obligation to serve an empty hole like you." Beliung even pretended to kick his foot, and some food and dirt splashed onto Geode's hand.
Helios asked him if he would dare to eat them if he was really hungry. Firstly, Geode didn't feel hungry, and secondly, his body would be tired without nutrients. When he couldn't move due to weakness, Geode would just grab whatever he could reach, chew it, put it in his mouth, and try to swallow it. Sometimes it was leftover rice, sometimes it was rice mixed with some gravel, dregs, crumbs... Moreover, who knows, maybe doing so would make Beliung like it more, and he would bother him less.
That was good too.
Beliung pushed Geode away again, "Pretend to care please! Is it that hard to make me believe that you're a human?"
Strangely enough, Beliung is very interested in "human" objects. He loves his dead human family, loves and misses and even goes crazy over his human physician grandfather, admires and always chases after the image of a good student of a "fake" human Behemoth, constantly nods and accepts all the views of the human church imposed on him, even still protects Stonehert full of humans from afar even though humans threw him out of their cradle.
But Sinclair treats the Elements very badly, just as Beliung treats himself badly. He imposes a lot of things on himself as well as on the other Elements.
Helios is also saddened by Beliung's self-harming, even more than when Beliung blames people or criticizes Geode.
Rimba jokes that Beliung's mentality is not as strong as everyone else's thought, if he didn't hurt anyone else, he would hurt himself.
That was how Beliung grew up from the past until now: leaving scars to mark his sovereignty.
But people were so fascinated by Beliung's words that Geode was the one who was beaten, it was considered inevitable, a matter of personal release. So they only helped Geode, but rarely stopped Beliung.
Geode paid attention to that word. "Human". Perhaps, if he became a human, with full emotions, he could be loved by Beliung, even, he could command him, just like the other humans did to Sinclair.
Geode's desire to be close and his ambition to step on top were both conflicting at the same time, making him unsure of what his true intentions were.
But "human"...
Geode wanted to become it.
The reason Geode became what he was now was because the Retak Bell had taken away his emotions during an overload. He thought that when it broke during Retak'ka's battle with Beliung, it would release all of Geode's emotions, but nothing happened. Helios picked up each piece and studied it carefully, staying up all night and filling his notebook with notes.
After many days, the conclusion was that the Retak Bell was a Stonehert artifact, made of a heavy metal that was durable even when it was smashed to pieces or as thin as a piece of paper. Whatever it absorbed would stay in it forever, unless a force stronger than itself pulled it out again.
Therefore, the negative emotions mixed with Geode's emotions remained in its fragments. Helios collected them, trying to piece them back together into the original Bell. The fragments were as small as grains of sand, but Helios took the time to rearrange them properly, making sure there were no asymmetrical gaps. Only by ensuring the Bell returned to its original structure could the process of reversing elimination of emotions.
And Helios succeeded.
"I have followed its cracks, perfect. It is also a sentient being, extremely intelligent. When it recognizes the fragments are close together, it exudes internal force to pull each part back together, also convenient for me to put them back in the right order. Now look at it, as beautiful as new!" Helios showed Geode its completed version, shining under the harsh sunlight.
Geode only looked, not daring to hold it directly. In the past, he often saw Beliung sleeping and fondled this thing, sometimes talking to himself, as if the Bell could respond. Beliung treated it as if he was standing in front of a real person, a living soul.
That's right, inside it contained a lot of emotions, including Geode's stolen part. Even if it was negative emotions, it still contained a lot of Sinclair's feelings and thoughts; Beliung would occasionally put his ear to it, listening to its conversation, looking at him with great relief. Geode would never know what he and it had exchanged.
The Bell was also a block of iron. A solid object carved from gold and precious stones.
Geode was a humanoid entity, but was easily mistaken for a statue.
Geode was always looked down upon by Beliung, even more than the stone he held in his hands. What a tragic sight.
Geode wondered if there was someone really living in the Bell. And if Geode's emotions were in there... they would turn into a voice, whispering into Beliung's ear. Was Geode really a kind child, who Beliung cared for so much, and talked to every day?
Although he knew it was his own illusion, Geode still did it. Could it be that Beliung wasn't talking to the shell that was him, but to the Geode in the Bell? The real Geode?
Geode always imagined that, imagined himself being held in Beliung's hand (held gently), pressed against his cheek (leaned close to his ear), told sweet and lovely stories that Beliung's enchanting voice always uttered to anyone, except the shell.
If that were true,...
Geode wished he could bring himself out of that Bell.
"You don't know, that Bell was originally a geode." Rimba had once vaguely said, "Behemoth said that when he participated in the Crimson War in the Southern Empire, he saw the flood that swept away the village, the bodies of our parents were also destroyed, lost in pieces. But we... Sinclair, were accidentally swept into a very large Geode's mouth, it seemed to be a Geode of Chalcedony. It was about half the size of his body. Thanks to being stuck in there, deep underground, Sinclair survived until he found him, otherwise we would have suffocated... Behemoth brought it back, originally to make a statue, then a part of the chalcedony was also used as the inner shell of the Retak Bell. So the Retak Bell was also made from geodes. Later, people inlaid precious stones on the outside, so everyone thought the Bell was made of gold."
Geode silently listened to the story, feeling a bit complicated. He didn't dare to think that he and the noble Bell that Beliung protected so much were the same kind.
Of course, he was still a walking entity, it was just a static object...
But Geode didn't consider himself a "human". And the Bell wasn't exactly a type of inanimate stone.
When Beliung left the Bell alone to do something, Geode always felt a strange feeling that wanted to pull him closer to it.
It was as if deep inside, the "real Geode", was reaching out its hand, beckoning slowly, speaking in a melodious voice, "Come here. I will turn you into a human."
Many times; Geode had to restrain himself, when no one was paying attention, trying not to break it, letting any soul within it try to escape.
What was it, was that voice luring Beliung, now it was also starting to smell Geode as its new prey?
What if... what if, just like before, it would suck away his last bit of sanity?
Geode tried not to look at it anymore. No matter where he was, he tried not to let it enter his sight. Fortunately, with Beliung's temperament, he would never let him glance at it for too long, let alone touch it.
Until today, more than a year later, Geode had finally seen it clearly, close up each and every pattern of it, in Helios's hand. Intact. No scratches.
The patterns on the Retak bell resembled bluebells, the bands that rotated concentrically on the surface, the flowers were dotted, and there were also ancient characters that were probably Stonehert's old writing, but Geode didn't understand.
"It says, 'Humans are like Geodes. To know what they are like, you have to break them.' Well, of course it's a metaphor, it doesn't necessarily mean beating them up." Helios seemed to read Geode's mind, happily explaining.
It took almost a minute for Geode's mouth to move, as if he was afraid that if he said something wrong, Beliung would appear and take the bell back:
"Can I... touch it?"
"Are you sure? It's very sensitive. If you touch it..." Helios made a gesture as if something was coming out of the Bell, "It might release negative emotions into you. But it might also give you back your senses. Anything is possible."
This news sounded like a blessing to Geode.
The Lord, who had been on a tour of the church, had reminded Sinclair to be careful of his emotional outbursts, because emotions always hurt, so the Bell of Retak would heal everything.
After all, he had been the leader of the work related to bell making, because the treasures in the crystal palace were the kind of highly aesthetic models that the Stoneherts loved.
But Beliung had then replied boldly, "So what? Should I give up? Stop feeling everything? Like you? Honestly, I pity you. You have isolated yourself from the world and lived in that palace of debauchery. Years of suffering, burying your emotions, hating yourself. It must have been difficult."
That must have angered the Lord. Partly, punishing Geode was also his way of freeing himself from being haunted by a Beliung that was far beyond his reach.
Biting his lips, swallowing, suppressing an uncontrollable anxiety, Geode slowly raised his hand and touched the Bell.
Crack.
In an instant, the Bell lit up, a rumbling sound coming from within, the patterns seemed to be shaking.
Geode froze: it was as if an empty battery with no energy had suddenly been plugged in, electricity pouring into his small body from all directions, paralyzing Geode, while also stimulating him, making his spine tremble.
He couldn't react to any changes, didn't realize that his blood had stopped circulating, his breathing had become difficult, his heart was beating at a frighteningly slow pace, his muscles were twitching, his joints seemed to be dislocated by some crazy force running through his body at the speed of sound.
It was like the last moment before the corpse stiffened. Even when the Lord had harmed him and stuffed dirty things into his body, his movements were not decisive... Geode's body also couldn't react as clearly as this time.
After a few seconds, Geode was forced to lower his legs because his legs felt loose, shaking uncontrollably; but because his hand was still holding the Bell tightly, Helios also suddenly lowered himself with him. Geode tried to regulate his breathing, but failed, his face couldn't even move, as if the electricity had arbitrarily turned off all the moving parts.
Geode's other hand was raised, pressed against his eyes, trying not to carelessly scratch his eyes with his nails. His brain was overloaded. It was like a rock had appeared from the sky, falling straight into his skull and pressing down on the clouds. He felt like everything about him was out of balance, that force was arbitrarily rearranging his person, editing his mind, but he couldn't do anything to stop it.
The crazy spirit seemed to be babbling, "You've worked hard. Leave me alone. You just need to sit still."
Geode waited patiently, waiting until the process was complete, the mischievous demon hiding in a small, dark corner of his brain.
And when its voice faded into pure noise...
Sob.
Geode cried.
Helios was astonished; and even though he knew full well that this was a good thing, that it proved that he had succeeded, that the Bell had been repaired properly and had reversed the process of draining emotions, that Geode had regained what he had lost and wanted for so long, that "it's okay if the first reaction is to cry", crying was good, seeing no signs of anything was scary, it was okay, it was okay,...
And even though he knew this, Helios was still as surprised as if he had just witnessed an event no one had ever seen before in this world.
Geode's lifeless eyes were once like the flat surface of a stone, smooth and tasteless; but now, it was as if energy had been carved into them, giving them depth, sinking into an endless sea, not emitting light but tears flowing out.
His mouth trembled, as if he was trying to form a complete word. His face turned red instinctively.
"It's okay, Geode. It's a natural reaction..." Helios was a little flustered, but he was happy, he had to be happy.
Helios understood why sadness was the first thing to come out, after all, inside the Bell there were other negative emotions that Sinclair had felt since birth: crying because he was hungry as a baby trapped in the geode, crying because his parents were nowhere to be found, crying because a stranger called Behemoth came and took him away, crying because the Lord scolded him for scratching his treasure, crying because he had to leave the palace to join the Royal family, crying because he didn't do well in his studies and upset his physician grandfather, crying because he suddenly remembered his parents in the middle of the night and had nightmares, then crying because he made a mistake and had to leave Stonehert...
Sinclair used to cry more than he laughed, so that was okay, that was their common trait. That was what made him, our common self. It was because Sinclair was once a child of sadness that he wanted to find happiness as soon as possible, so he became most fond of the Wind element, close to it, and then Beliung was born, becoming the Bond Elemental, becoming the strongest among them, bringing happiness to the new master.
Helios smiled comfortingly, "It's good, it's good..."
And then, Helios saw Geode looking at him, eyes still flowing with two gentle streams of tears,...
A smile on his lips.
Somehow, that wasn't how Helios thought Geode would smile: a devilish smile.
Huh...?
Instantly, Geode snatched the Bell out of Helios's hand, so fast that Helios couldn't process the expression properly even though he saw it clearly.
Geode stomped one foot on the ground, as if his joints had returned to normal, he stood up, while Helios still hadn't fully stood up.
The smile disappeared from Geode's face, leaving room for a cold expression, "It's been a long time since I've been free. It's really refreshing." His hand adjusted its position holding the Bell, "You're right, Helios, this overload is really stimulating, much more than the vulgar words the Lord used on me."
What? What did he say?
Helios looked closely at the person in front of him. It was still Geode, but his demeanor was completely different. He was still expressionless, but that wasn't a problem with his words.
He didn't give off the empty, listless, slightly pitiful feeling of a Geode who truly knew nothing, because Geode always had a confused expression and tried to stay away from troubles he didn't understand as much as possible.
On the contrary, his current expressionless appearance came from a vicious lack of concern. It was the look of a cold-blooded killer who would never have a nightmare of conscience even if he had just pushed someone to death. It was the kind of expressionlessness so obvious that it made the person opposite feel uncomfortable, wishing they could rush forward and stab that gaze straight in the eye.
"Who... are you?" Helios asked, a meaningless question.
"What's wrong? It's me, Geode."
"...I know Geode wouldn't look at me like that."
This time, Geode didn't smile, didn't blink, and even though his bad intentions were clearly visible in his eyes, his voice was still cold, without a single waver, "This is the real Geode. In the flesh. I must say, after coming out of the Bell, everything feels so comfortable. It's great to see everything still beautiful."
"What's beautiful?"
"Everything." Geode repeated the word like a mantra, "My everything."
Why did Helios feel like something was wrong, was this the real Geode?
His emotions... could they possibly look so vengeful and sinister?
But wait, everything had no basis, it was all Helios's imagination. If Helios was jealous of Geode just because of some uneasy feelings, then it was his fault.
"So... what are you going to do?" Helios didn't understand why things were so awkward, he couldn't even say anything properly, and asking questions was pointless.
What? Just living life as usual, right?
But, if Geode was a little happier, Helios would be even happier... It was like Helios had just fulfilled his role as a protector, protecting Geode from being beset by his own lack of spirit, as well as healing his emotions.
Helios should have been happier, should have hugged Geode, wrapped his body that was covered with indelible wounds; whispered soothing words to him, without worrying about the fact that he couldn't understand them anymore.
...
However, Helios still hadn't done any of those things.
"It's late. Dinner." Geode said curtly, even more so than before.
Helios instinctively ran to get food, secretly hoping that it was just that he wasn't used to it. Take it slow.
Previously, Geode couldn't taste any of the flavors that Helios made, just silently sitting in a corner eating, not saying a word.
This time, Geode was the same, eating more slowly, then commenting, "It has a flavor that Beliung likes."
The feeling was even too strong.
"Helios has always cooked like this, right? Even each flavor is clearly according to the recipe, just right. You've remembered it very well." As he spoke, Geode's face was still cold.
Helios was restless, "Yeah. Because I didn't think you would taste it... I also didn't know what you liked to eat, so..."
"The smell of insects."
"...What did you say?"
"The things I used to eat. Do you want to try it?" Geode was talking about the consequences of not having Beliung share his food with him.
"No..." Helios suddenly lost his appetite.
"No. You have to try. You said we would endure everything together."
In a flash, Geode waved his hand, quickly groping on the ground for a handful of sand near the withered grass that was probably eaten by worms, squeezed it tightly, and stuffed it into the still-hot food that Helios brought, stuffing it over and over again.
The first feeling Helios had was nausea because the food he cooked was treated in such a horrible way. Next, he analyzed Geode's inhuman behavior.
"Eat it." Geode calmly brought the mixture of who knows how many things in front of Helios, "There's no need to panic. I mean, I like you very much too, I care about you as much as you 'try' to care about me."
"Are you getting revenge?"
"This isn't revenge, because you didn't do anything wrong. Helios, we're getting along, you need to put your ego aside. You did your job."
That was also what Beliung used to say to Helios, 'you did well. Your job is to protect.' Their grandfather had also taught them to protect what was right.
Just like Hearing Helios's thoughts, Geode continued, "If you're still haunted by Beliung, we can't go any further. I'll help you get rid of that guilt, just like you helped me get my feelings back by fixing the Bell. You need to cleanse yourself of him. To do that, you have to do things he's never done." Geode took out that disgusting thing again, "Starting with this."
Helios didn't want to hold that thing, he didn't want to look at it. He just asked, "Are those your true feelings?"
Since he got his feelings back, Geode had talked a lot. Each sentence was long and drawn out, as if he had suddenly gotten back what he had lost, so he had to reveal more of his feelings than usual.
However, the words were so long, and all the movements on Geode's expressionless face were just one: a glance, "Beliung has never had to kneel before anyone. Even if he did, that must not how he felt. Even if you force him to eat these things, he would still throw up. His body also cannot accept dirty things, even if he had to do it to sacrifice for others."
Geode remembered how he had easily bowed his head to the Lord in one step, quickly, lightly, as if there was no weight of self-respect forcing him not to do so, that Sinclair would not be happy.
Geode was too gullible, but Beliung was not, someone who sat on high like him was untouchable, untouchable. Even if he relied on the strength of that Retak'ka, he could not make Beliung bow his head and beg for mercy. He even left him a beautiful way out: just losing his memory would be considered a way to cleanse himself from the mob that included Geode.
"Helios, you can't be like Beliung, don't be as tough as him. Be gentle. Just be submissive. Like the bugs under our feet." Geode still pressed the thing in his hand close to Helios's anxious face. But his expression remained unchanged.
"I won't eat that thing." Helios shook Geode's hand away, "I think you're the one who's most obsessed with that person."
"I'm not obsessed." Geode's voice was even drier than before, "I'm doing the right thing."
Geode's gaze was the most terrifying gaze a creature with the form of Sinclair could produce.
Helios avoided it.
Realizing that Helios didn't eat, Geode also swung his leg, kicking over the other food on the table, turning dinner into a mess.
"Gosh. It smells like him." He snorted, stood up and went into the tent.
Helios felt like he had returned to the past, back then, when he was upset, Beliung would do the same thing, leaving Helios alone to clean up.
*
Another morning, Helios noticed Lilin rushing to find him.
That was about four or five months after Beliung fell into a coma. From that day on, Helios rarely saw Lilin again, mostly because they weren't close, so it was good not to get into a fight.
Another part was that Lilin didn't want to reveal the whereabouts of the place where Beliung was treated, so they had to limit their meetings like this. That's right, Helios was also a bit suspicious that if he went crazy, or Geode got excited and retaliated like the other day, who knows what would happen to Beliung.
According to Lilin, it seemed that Beliung's injury had become more serious. Perhaps the scar on his head left by Retak'ka was acting like a parasite, if not soothed by his power, it would continue to spread and disturb the skull no matter how well it was bandaged. Some areas around his head were already bleeding internally from it.
Of course, Helios didn't have Retak'ka power, however, his light ability was compatible with his Gamma, it would probably weaken the parasite, hoping to make Beliung defeat it himself subconsciously.
Once again, Helios, like Geode said, started to lower his standards, the moment Beliung was in danger, he wanted to fly away at the speed of light to save someone.
But today, it wasn't so fast.
Geode's appearance couldn't have been more ill-timed, because normally, even if he sat there, he wouldn't care, if Helios ran off to do something, he (thought he) had no right to let them. But when he knew that Lilin had come here to ask for help with Beliung, it was as if something inside Geode had been turned on.
He immediately stopped Helios, then pulled Lilin's collar, and growled:
"Where's Beliung?"
It was obvious that Geode wanted to come and kill Beliung immediately.
Usually, if they actually met, they would argue, but very rarely did they end up fighting to the death.
In the past, even when Geode knew that Beliung was in critical condition, he wouldn't take advantage of the situation and harm someone who couldn't defend himself. That was the only "right" thing Geode could do when he had no emotions. He didn't care about Beliung, but he didn't do anything cruel to Beliung or Lilin.
That was partly in response to how Beliung had never chased Geode away from the group before, and still kept him around, even though they knew that being close to each other would still cause each other pain.
But now, this expression on Geode's face, "the real Geode", was clearly written on his face:
"I want to finish him off."
Lilin came back to his senses before this attitude faster than Helios, he pulled Geode's hand out of his shirt, "Don't get in the mood to do something bad. You should stay here. Let's go, Heli-"
BAM!
Immediately, Geode swung a straight punch into the ground, a crack appeared faster than lightning, cutting the ground in half between Helios and Lilin's feet, causing them to lose balance and fall in different directions.
"Lilin also likes to protect evil, huh? Beliung even bluntly chased you away, because you kept hiding in our Power Watch. Yet Lilin still defended Beliung, risked his life to protect him, and then shamelessly came here to beg for him from the person he criticized, still hoping that he would be accepted and forgiven?"
Lilin slammed his hand on the ground, in one somersault, he immediately returned to a defensive position.
Geode smacked his lips, "Do you know why Beliung ended up in this situation? Because he has a cowardly and incompetent lightning element like you. You should know that, even if you are a 'protector', protecting evil is never right."
What's right or wrong here? Geode has never spoken like that before...
Helios immediately stood up very quickly. Lilin was the same. On one hand, Helios saw that Lilin was always very steadfast, his hands and feet never wavering, ready to face danger. If it were Helios, being cursed so harshly in the face, he might not have enough strength to stand.
Helios was very, very gullible. Geode was like that before.
But Geode now, he suspected that he really didn't want to let Helios off.
"What are you planning to do?" Helios whispered, but somehow Geode heard it too:
"Bury both of you."
Lilin widened his eyes, not needing Helios to explain, he tried to jump out of the crack, but failed.
Geode continued to swing his attack, an earthen arm came out from somewhere, holding Lilin's leg tightly. The same thing happened to Helios.
"Troublesome. It doesn't matter if you don't tell me where Beliung is. I can feel it." Geode took out the Bell from his pocket, "It's reacting to him. The Bell must be missing its old master."
Lilin shouted, "Hey, don't hurt Beliung!"
"Exterminating evil doesn't count as hurt."
Helios shuddered at these words. Beliung also said the same thing when he went to the battlefield in the past.
Lilin gritted his teeth, "Why do you keep calling Beliung evil? No matter what he is, he is a part of Sinclair like us, we are all the same person, sharing the same roots. If you kill him, it's like you're cutting off a part of Sinclair!"
"A part of Sinclair?" Geode seemed to be stating rather than asking, "I don't consider Beliung a part of Sinclair. He's the evil that all 'humans' want to cut off: a hurricane that always drives Sinclair into obsessions with power. He became the Bond Elemental because he promised to free our master from sadness, all those words that charmed all of you."
"Even so, you have no right to do that!"
"...I was born for the opposite: to eliminate the things that make Sinclair sad. The things that make 'humans' negative are all born from evil. Eliminating Beliung is eliminating the evil in Sinclair. There was no reason not to do it."
And that was the only way Geode could become 'human':
Justice.
A sense of justice, an urge to destroy.
"I will do the right thing." Geode revealed the most emotionless smile Helios had ever seen, "No wonder this lovely Retak Bell likes to lock me in like this. When I was in there, it always said, it was afraid that I would harm its Beliung. That's why it wanted to erase me from birth. Really... even it doesn't want me to do the right thing?"
"..."
Impossible.
It's not a technical error.
Did the Retak Bell do it on purpose?
Because it knew that the "real Geode" would be like that?
Really....
This, this thing, is Geode's true self?
The feeling that Helios had felt for it because it was trapped in the Bell, because it had to whisper to Beliung on nights when no one could hear, because it always weakly called out to be saved...
It turned out to be just a shell. A real shell. Even when it was locked up, it still showed its true nature: a shell.
A geode.
It was all a lie.
Helios regretted saving it. Regretted fixing the Bell. Regretted giving Geode too much hope and taking him away from the person he wanted to be.
Just because Geode didn't know anything, Helios had assumed that the person in the Bell would be better, smarter, more reasonable, that when he released it, Helios would have a Geode who was quick-witted, cheerful, talkative... It was like he had put a shell on him to replace Beliung.
Geode didn't have a chance to explain. He couldn't explain. Even he could not resist its lies.
The Bell had done a good job of protecting Beliung from the dangers of its own Earth element. Yet Helios had trampled on its efforts in one fell swoop.
It was as if he had raised it from the dead by reassembling it, digging up a sleeping grave, awakening the terrible ghost it had spent so long sealing away.
Oh my.
He need to find a way to put it back into the Bell.
But how...?
In a split second, Helios saw the same look from Lilin. He was very quick-witted, and with just one look, he understood that Helios also wanted what he was thinking.
"Must be held back." Helios took advantage of the moment when Geode was trying to collect Beliung's clues from the Bell, and quickly said, "There must be a way... I know how to use the Bell (Gamma Drain) to restart the absorption process. But I need to trap him, keep him in one place. But right now..."
Yes, Geode was very strong, Lilin who had not awakened his power could not fight back, and Helios could not waste his strength, because this Gamma Drain would also consume a lot of energy. Helios's power was related to releasing energy rays, so if he did the opposite, like absorbing them, he would lose more strength.
Even switching to a fighting strategy now would be difficult to determine the winner. Meanwhile, Helios still had to heal Beliung. He wouldn't have enough time to do anything.
Immediately, a word flashed through Lilin's mind, he opened his mouth:
"Fusion."
Huh?
"I can... forcefully fuse with Geode. If he gets stuck in Fusion's form, he won't be able to move."
It made sense, but...
"But is it okay, what will he do to you?" Helios was worried, Fusion against his will always had very bad consequences.
"It's okay. I can take the pain. But like you said, there's no time. We have to do it." Lilin took a deep breath, glancing at Geode.
For a moment, Helios had the feeling that Lilin's gaze would be very similar to Beliung's, something Helios could never see, but he felt it.
A determined look of a child who had to make critical decisions too quickly, too hastily; but without hesitation.
Lilin was like Beliung, they were very tough. Unlike Helios and Geode.
"I'm sorry."
Helios was about to apologize first ("sorry for making things so bad because I fixed the Bell, ruining the good things it did"), but Lilin was the one who spoke first.
His crimson eyes were like the blood moon that appeared in Sinclair's dreams.
Helios asked, "For what?"
"Sorry for making you make this difficult decision." Lilin bit his lip, ready to unleash the only lightning attack available for this situation, "A protector like you had to destroy Geode with your own hands, I don't want to see you suffer any more, Helios."
Helios opened his eyes, and for a moment, something inside him seemed to melt.
Helios opened his mouth, intending to say, "No, I'll think of another way, Lilin. Something gentler, without blood, without violence. Because I don't want you to be hurt, I don't want to see us being pushed into such situations anymore. I don't want any of you, no matter how evil you've done, to deserve such punishment!"
Of course, it wouldn't be that easy. But he still couldn't.
Helios thought a lot, but just like that day, when Beliung told him not to go to the battlefield anymore, he couldn't respond.
This time, Helios raised his hand, intending to stop Lilin, at the same time Geode slowly realized...
But it was too late.
Always late.
Lilin's red light flashed, like the Chalcedony geode shining in Behemoth's eyes that day.*Tbc*
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