The Core of Evil
Noah's Complaints
{{{ Meanwhile }}}
{{{ ??? }}}
*TAM!!*
"YOU DIDN'T SAY THAT HE WOULD BE CRAZY LIKE THAT, CHIEF!!" Noah shouted, to the invisible person on that central pillar
"We only suspect he'll go crazy, but the possibilities are slim. There seemed to be a deeper explanation than that, thus triggering the return of the Maledict of Corruption" the unseen Chairman replied
Noah is upset. But even if he wanted to, he couldn't even hit the person who didn't have that physical form
"At least you can warn me...?! Had I known, I wouldn't have let that Maledict take control of him!" He said again, annoyed to everyone who likely knew that
"You've never been crazy, have you, Noah?" Hector, from the other side asked a question
Noah turned to her, before replying with "No. This Maledict of mine is so uncreative because he's afraid of death. It's just, I was the worst couple for him"
"Rupanya so. You have no experience of being a natural Maledict, even if you were born that way"
*TAM!!*
Again Noah slammed his hand into {takhta} where he sat. But this time his hands started to bleed, unlike earlier which was just bruised
His red eyes started to look flaming mixed with annoyance. He pointed it at Hector, just because of the sentence that had just been said
"We're talking about that boy right now. You better not bring up my past between them..." Noah also threatened
Hector did not even react to the threat, only letting out a faint sigh as if Noah's behavior had disturbed him
"But, the big brother is still there, big brother Noah" A little girl on the 1-hour pillar said
Noah turned to the little girl with a silhouette that looked like she had deer horns. When their eyes met, the little girl spoke again
"Sister is still there. Only, he was deep inside a dark room. Crying" The little girl said again
Noah was silent at the girl's words. Mainly because he said that I was still {ada}
"Dark room?" Noah asked
"Yes. It's darker than this place. It's darker than the president's place right now. Darker than night...
The place was so black that I could not see the figure of the big brother. But, I know he's there..."
A place so black that the figure could not be seen
"A vacuum of consciousness"
A place where 2 minds in one body can meet. An imaginative concept that can only be entered for those who meet certain criteria
And the criteria that most support the formation of space is the presence of Maledict lodged in the body of a host. Every Maledict host that exists in this world must have a vacuum concept of consciousness that
Be it Noah, Shape or Hector, they could all enter the vacuum of their respective consciousness
"So, we just need to pull the boy out of his consciousness room...?" Noah asked
"That's the most likely. Unfortunately, if we were going to get into that plan, I would be useless" Shape said from the other side accompanied by a sigh
"I will be of no use either. At least I can only give you one of my artificial bodies as your informant" A woman named Mind said from the 2 o'clock pillar
"Ah... I'll also come along, to make sure the poor boy doesn't get caught up in incitement and head for the path of sin..." The man on the 6 o'clock pillar said in his calm tone
"I. No. gabe. Follow" Raggot, on the pillar at 8 o'clock resign
"I'll go with Mama. She knew best" The little girl on the 1-hour pillar followed
Seeing that most people have resigned, their chairman who is in the middle pillar also began to turn to everyone who has not
"So the only one who came was 'Tenet'?" He asked the others too
Hector, unlike usual, did not let out a sigh at all. Precisely...
"I'll come along. And I'm sure Flair won't resist" he said
Flair nodded in agreement, confirming their choice to join Tenet
All that remains is Noah
...
"Of course I'm coming!" He said without any hesitation
Noah had something promised, and it wasn't fulfilled at all
It will not be fulfilled if he does not move to ensure the safety of a boy coded O-2507
"I'll save him, and that way he'll have to pay me with our promise" Noah once again determined
The O-2507 rescue and security team is final. The four members were ready to move at any time, waiting for the cue from their chairman
"I'll give you the orders as soon as possible. But during that time, we should keep an eye on the opening meal" their chairman spoke, before disappearing and ending the meeting
"Ready, captain" Noah replied to him by muttering, before a portal for him to come out opened behind
...----------------...
{{{ Somewhere Outside that space }}}
The portal took Noah out, to where he was before. And because of that, he came out close to the 2 people who will join him in the mission, Hector and Flair
But none of them seemed friendly to each other, excluding Flair who did not care much about any of the situations
The two stared at each other intensely, as if they were ready to tear each other's necks apart
"We've all agreed that we won't talk about anyone's past...?" Noah started their conversation
Hector let out a tired sigh knowing this would be complicated
"Every sentence I use makes you sensitive, Noah. Whatever it is" he retorted
"But you are talking about my birth! I have every right to be angry because of your filthy mouth!" Noah returned aggressively
"Look, I don't even know the details of your birth. The data written on our fleet explains only a small part, and only the chairman and Mind know about the entire past of each of our personnel" Hector explained
Noah was just upset because he couldn't be angry anymore. If he were so, the dispute between them would never be resolved
"I never liked you when you brought me here. I'm also just here to fight that guy named Ulysses
And now, I found a person who did not reject my request at all. Someone who doesn't care who I am"
...
I just see him as either someone dangerous, or someone who can be useful. No matter what identity he wears
To him, I was annoying, of course. But the one thing she couldn't meet from someone was the one charm I had
"He's a sincere man. Never in the slightest did he hide his feelings, and his thoughts could be quite illustrated through it"
Hector was silent at Noah's words. And between that, he tried to choose whether he should be honest or not
"I have to be honest with you about one thing, Noah" Hector said
He approached Noah, then grabbed hold of the boy's shoulder before starting to whisper
"We can't actually pull out O-2507 from its consciousness chamber. The decision of whether or not he wants to go out is in the hands of the child himself"
The whisper made Noah's entire body tremble in shock. Whispers are filled with honesty, so his ears feel like he wants to be dislodged because he cannot accept it
'I'll try to fight you next time. But don't expect me to hold back'
Noah clasped his hands tightly at the thought of a promise that might not be fulfilled between us. The promise he had hoped for, even though the purpose of his fulfillment began from a mere interest
But what makes him even more want the promise to be fulfilled is, he already understands, with the figure named O-2507. The reason why he was there, why he hated his name, and what kind of people had surrounded him
"... We still have to save the boy
Even if I had to be cut into a thousand pieces and split into all the ends of the universe though, I wouldn't let someone continue to experience endless bad luck" Noah was determined, even, in front of two of his co-workers who only nodded while disguising their smiles
"I agree..." Another voice followed later, making Noah slightly flinch
He slowly turned around, finding someone very familiar. Dress white like a bishop, and wear a blindfold while leaving her long hair uncluttered or tied. A man who sounds and looks very calm, but could be******** someone out with just his sentence
Literally
"Ulysses..." Noah muttered
"Please call me Tenet, Span... Remember, we're on a mission together..."
Code name Tenet, man named Ulysses Herd. The man Noah wanted to fight to the point of losing, but he could not touch even the tip of his hair as Ulysses just sat on the spot and watched his defeat
And Noah tried to attack him once more. But it didn't take a second for his hand to suddenly spin 360 degrees and not stop there, until his entire body began to follow and ended with himself that was inundated in blood like an orange that had just been squeezed out of its contents onto the floor
At that very moment, Ulysses just stood still and stood up, with his hands fused as if he was praying as Noah began to cough up blood and try to restore his body shape to its original form
The sound of a sigh came out from the silent man's mouth
"I really don't understand... Why, you keep attacking me like I'm the enemy...?" Ulysses asked Noah who started to stand normally
"I... Just interested in winning against someone strong, and one other thing...!" Noah retorted before shifting his neck bone to its normal position
"That's what makes me not understand..." Ulysses said again, while walking towards Hector and Flair who were watching behind earlier
He asked for Hector's hand which immediately gave him without further question. Looking at the open hand, Ulysses placed a module on it, clenched Hector's hand back, then pushed him away
"From captain..." Ulysses said to him then
"I get it" Hector replied half enthusiastically
Noah, who was busy drying the blood on his shirt, only showed a look of wonder at the behavior of the two people as if they were hiding something
"Sadly, I shouldn't have worn white when I was here..." He grumbled
Without him noticing, Ulysses was already before him when he turned his head. And without much time, Ulysses asked Noah for both hands, without speaking
Noah once again clucked, then handed both of his palms over for Ulysses to see
...
...
...
"Your destiny... Very interesting..." Ulysses said as he continued to pierce Noah's palm as if he was looking at something from behind his blindfold
"You always say that, but never tell me anything" Noah grumbled
His grunts invited a smile belonging to Ulysses who then looked him right in the eyes
"I'll tell you now... Because, {That person} will soon arrive in your life"
"You mean, the person you said would make me fall in love with that?"
"Yes... Love does not mean romance... Love can also mean a brotherly relationship... Family relationship...
And you guys are so close... More than a couple... More than a pair of parents and children... More than a pair of brothers... Just looking at the picture made my heart touched..."
"soul mates. That was the sentence he used to describe {That person} to me" Hector commented, clarifying to Noah who was confused and immediately understood
"It looks like I'm going to need you or Fuyuki to become this guy's language dictionary..." Noah said, still letting Ulysses stroke his hand
Hector immediately shook his head and said, "I don't want to bother", while Flair was still silent like a robot without agreeing or refusing
"You said my name" Flair said
"Oh yeah? Sorry, it's a habit" Noah replied
...
Fuyuki just lowered her head while sighing for the first time after a long time, before returning to her habit
"As for the four of us already here, isn't it better if we all discuss, gentlemen?" Fuyuki gave an opinion, which immediately made Ulysses stop and turn his head
"alright... Fuyuki Akutagawa's..." He also said, continued by the nod of 2 others
"Thank you for your courtesy, Ulysses-sama. Now I will guide you to the room where I can brew tea" Fuyuki said again, saluted, then began to lead politely
"Teh Fuyu - I mean, Flair is...? I didn't know he could brew tea?" Noah commented
"He can make any kind of drink you want. The few snacks he made for me were no less delicious either" Hector replied
"Squeals! I think I'm the one who cooks well in this Fleet" Noah chucked, before starting to follow Fuyuki at a brisk pace
...
...
...
"What he means is... Cooking instant noodles is not...?"
"Ulysses, quiet. You'll piss him off if he hears it..."
