God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.

Staring into the black sky, covered by at least a layer of white sand, Cain felt a bit fuzzy in the head.

'Am I dying again? Isn't this a bit too inconvenient?'

He remembered what had happened just a few moments ago.

'Someone shot the last head at just the right time. Who was it? Lukas? Hunter? They don't use firearms...'

Even as his thoughts drifted and became harder for him to pin down, he forced himself to keep thinking.

He definitely didn't want to go through the hassle of losing consciousness and dying again. His regeneration would kick in any moment from now.

'If it wasn't any of them, then who could it be...'

A possibility sprouted in his mind.

The sound of sand being scrunched under boots filled his ears. Well, he couldn't really hear it because his eardrums had been damaged. Rather, he could feel it through his body. The vibrations through the ground as footsteps approached him.

Someone had come to his side.

He couldn't see who it was, as his eyes had also been damaged.

His hands were a mangled mess of bloody, mangles flesh, torn tissue, severed blood vessels, and broken bones.

He couldn't feel much of anything in his arms, which said a lot.

He chuckled to himself, 'With this kind of damage, it might take a bit longer than expected to heal sufficiently. Maybe it would be better to die now.'

Just when he was thinking about making another trip to the other shore, he felt something prop his head up.

His nose was immediately filled with a familiar, comforting aroma of sweet flowers.

His lips partly opened up, and he felt a liquid rush through his parted lips and into his throat.

'A regen potion? If I had hands, I would have taken one myself.' He thought to himself.

His thoughts were getting harder to keep together.

Not even a second later, a soothing light washed over him.

What came next was blinding pain.

Then the world went dark...

***

In the deepest parts of his mind, Cain was once again taken to a familiar place.

A familiar sea of darkness, and a figure wreathed in that darkness, donning it in like a cloak.

The creature stared right back at him once again. Its hollow eyesockets radiated a distinctly sharp golden glow that was anything but human. Cain recognized this thing quite different intimately.

After all, this was the Demon he often times transformed into.

It was covered head to toe in pitch black scales with countless golden runes, as well as crimson veins all over the black scales.

The most peculiar thing about this creature still, was the character engraved on its forehead.

The runic character of Fate. Cain still didn't know why or how it had something like that engraved into it.

But he didn't care.

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He was him, and this creature was whatever it was.

He stared coldly at the thing,

"We might share the same body, but we are not the same. I am human, you are not."

For the first time ever, the creature seemed to show some intelligence.

It looked him in the eye with what seemed to be... scorn, plastered all over its face, as though to tell him he was only trying to convince himself.

Cain's frown became deeper.

The creature's aura seemed to swell, completely overshadowing him.

Cain couldn't help but take a step back.

Just when the creature was about to push the cloak of darkness away, golden chains covered in runes spring out from the ambient darkness, binding it tightly.

Cain frowned, 'This scene is too familiar.'

Why where so many things bound by golden chains in his soul?

He had no idea.

The creature, now firmly bound, didn't even struggle. It fell to its knees, merely staring at him silently.

Cain walked a few steps forward cautiously.

He stopped down to its eye level,

"What exactly are you?"

The answer reached his own mind instantaneously,

'A manifestation of my nature?'

Cain frowned, "What is that supposed to mean?"

Another thought entered his head,

'Fate can be held, hindered, and bound. But it cannot be broken. The inevitability, it is...'

It was as though he was speaking to himself. There didn't seem to be any strange entity whispering words of wisdom into his soul.

Rather, this was him speaking. Or rather, some entity masquerading as him.

'So a manifestation of my true self, is a Demon? With the character of Fate engraved into its forehead. Does this cine with a manual or something.'

He was quite curious.

'Perhaps I can ask that damned demon about it later.'

Simply thinking about Azazel made Cain uncomfortable.

With a sigh, he realized this dreamlike world was crumpling around him.

As if on cue, he was about to wake up.

Once again, he stared into the eye of the demon, bound with golden chains before him.

He had so many questions. Why was it bound? Was it supposed to be there? Should it break free of those chains, what would happen to him?

Those questions weren't meant to be answered for the time being.

His eyelashes fluttered open.

The first thing he saw was a rather beautiful face.

Brown, almost golden hair, narrow eyes that drew one in, thin, pink lips, and a fair face that was matched by very few.

Susan was staring down at him, a strange blush on her face.

Their eyes locked together.

Cain pursed his lips,

"Is there something on my face?"

There was a brief moment of silence before she cleared her throat and receeded back, giving him some space.

Cain felt some heat on his cheeks. Just what the hell was this girl doing? Was she trying to kiss him while he was asleep? Although he didn't mind that much, he felt there was a procedure to go through before doing all that.

Susan stared at him deeply,

"Don't you have questions?"

Cain shrugged, "I do, but you seem like you have something to say to me."

Susan nodded, the blush on her face fading, and her eyes turning cold,

Cain sighed to himself, 'Here is comes...'

***

After receiving the a good hour of lectures on not putting him life in danger all the time, Cain felt relieved that it was finally over.

Susan snorted as she crossed her arms,

"You are lucky, you know... You and the other fools."

Cain smiled wryly, "Yeah. If Jenny hadn't given us a hand in that crucial moment, we'd be done for. Who knew snakes could be so crafty..."

Susan sighed, "Well, it doesn't matter. You are safe now." A blush crept up her face again, then she cleared her throat. Discover gems at m-vle-mp _yr.

"There's a lot to discuss, but the gist of it is we are all finally together. We can discuss further plans when you've healed up completely."

Cain nodded. Although he had mostly recovered, he still wanted some rest.

He hesitated for a moment,

"Thank you. For saving my life again."

Susan paused, then a bright smile appeared on her face,

"We are a team. That's what your comrades are for. We save each other."

Cain chuckled, "Yeah, that's how it should be."

"Alright, get some rest. I'll get you something to eat."

With that, she silently left the room, leaving Cain to his thoughts.

'She's a good girl. Too good for me.'

Cain had thought about it many times, but now was not the time for him to pursue a relationship with any woman.

He sighed to himself. Being aware of his circumstances was also a strength in a way...

Just when Cain believed he could enjoy the solitude, he realized he wasn't a lone anymore.

More accurately, he was never alone in the first place.

He let out a sigh...

"Eva, what are you doing here?"

Susan had been seated on a chair beside the bed in his room.

A sultry, hoarse voice sounded right next to his ears, tickling him,

"What do you mean?"

Cain had a painful smile on his face,

"The bed is too small for the both of us. My injuries..."

Evangeline snorted, "Stop lying. I know your injuries have healed up. Are you just trying to push me away?"

Cain coughed, "It's not like that."

She shrugged, a devious smile on her face,

"Then you shouldn't mind this."

Cain struggled to keep his thoughts pure. With her soft, delicate body, pressed tightly against his, it was only natural he reacted a certain way.

Sitting up with a sigh, he turned to stare at her.

White, porcelain like skin, vibrant red lips, and gem-like eyes that drew him in likena whirlpool.

He was silent for a moment before asking,

"How did you know?"

Evangeline hummed, "Know what?"

Cain snorted, "Cut the bullshit. How did you know where we were? You were following us?"

Evangeline also sat up and stared into Cain's eyes. Her deep, smoky eyes narrowed dangerously,

"Don't you think that is a bit egotistical to say?"

Cain raised a brow, "It is?"

Evangeline lightly tapped him in the chin,

"It is indeed. We've been in the desert for a long time, hunting down different types of Aether Beasts. When we was the commotion, we just went in, thinking it was two behemoths fighting it out. Never would I have expected to see you there."

'Her hands are cold. And soft...'

Shaking those unimportant thoughts out of his head, Cain sighed,

"If you say so, then I have no reason to doubt you."

He scratched his head, "If not for you guys, we would have been dead."

Evangeline nodded, "You are right. If you want to repay me, spend the night with me."

Cain's face turned awkward,

"This..."

A smile appeared on her face,

"I didn't shoot the killing blow, but you shouldn't have any problem spending the night with more than one, right?"