Phainon raised Shamash in a blocking defensive posture. The blade's tip was pointed diagonally downward, with the blade's body facing against the tall black horse.
He moved farther from the group after making sure its attention was on him.
Without a word…
Swoosh-!
…it charged straight to Phainon.
Its feet stomped towards his face ruthlessly.
Bam-!
His feet slid off several meters on the ground. His knees buckled, though he did not lose ground.
Taking advantage of this small gap, the flaming blade struck underneath the horse's torso.
Neigh-!
Its tragic screams resounded as a crimson line appeared on its belly. In its frenzy, its hind legs kicked Phainon away, forcing him to step back.
Click-!
Sou-!
A barrage of Anaxa's alchemical bullets caught the horse off guard. The dozen or so pellets criss-crossed midair. The bullets that struck the horse's body sank onto its pitch black darkness. Its tragic roars indicated it was 'hurt', but that was it.
"Prrt..!"
"Little Ica, no."
"Prrt…"
The glutton-of-a-memosprite was poised for a charge, only to be disappointed by Hyacine's command.
"Prrt… Prrt…"
"You mean..?"
She looked at the black horse fighting against Phainon. The clashes of darkness and flames illuminated the dark temple.
"Per chance, is it this guy's mother?"
Anaxa asked after shooting another round of alchemical bullets. His expert loading and unloading wasn't affected by him speaking.
"She might be Little Ica's mother."
"It is not important for now. It… that monster shows no signs of being disabled."
Anaxa keenly saw the horse's situation. Phainon's attacks remained visible in its body, though it showed signs of recovery. The line of flames marked by Shamash's attacks was rapidly dwindling. Anaxa's alchemical bullets showed no significant effects whatsoever aside from serving as distraction.
Fortunately, the battle soon ended. The pitch-black horse was forced to repeat after enduring a dozen strikes from Shamash. They took note of the direction it ran to, though they did not give it immediate chase.
"That wasn't in any of the Black Tide compendiums I have seen."
Everyone looked at Phainon in disbelief.
"W-what's wrong?"
"Ahem. Nothing."
A hint of pride could be heard from Anaxa's words. Never had he expected this 'lazy student' of his to have a diligent side.
"It is not a Black Tide creature." He stated with certainty. "Its weird characteristics aside, it does not give the sense of Destruction the Black Tide radiates. It is more of…"
It took a while before he found the right word.
"...Nihilism. In short, it's a dangerous enemy."
He looked at Trianne. The latter nodded at them.
"I can place my Century Gate outside this place. The opposite still does not work."
"...Then let's continue going further."
Everyone accepted this consensus. Reclaiming Aquila's Coreflame is an extremely important undertaking. They cannot move to Era Nova without it.
Unbeknownst to them, another group faced the same trouble.
Roar-!
Bzzzt-!
A black pillar of light swept through the room. Moments later, a translucent curtain curled and fell, revealing three women.
Hum-!
Hysilems strummed her lyre as her sword remained sheathed on her waist. Cerydra tightened her grip over her walking staff. The [Author] card is pinched on Cyrene's fingers, ready to use it when the situation dictates.
Although it is powerful, it has a 'cooldown' that varies with consumption. Other than that, she learned all the spells of Oronyx's High Priest.
Under their tense looks, the lion-like beast froze. Its body conveyed an internal struggle before returning to normal.
Roar-!
Its lapse of consciousness awakened its partial memories. The moment he saw Cerydra, it chose to run away.
"I am sure of it. He is one of Seliose's fabled beasts, Solabis."
Her low voice spoke volumes of her mood. The Nihility infested Sky Castrum+ housed hidden dangers, one surpassing the likes of a Titan.
"Imperator. I can use the Tome to recall this room's memories."
"Feel free to do it."
Upon receiving her permission, Cyrene strode to the blue-cover book held by a stand. Time did not leave a trace on its body; Oronyx's power continued to flow on it. She tampered with it for a while, choosing the 'time period' she wanted to recall.
Hum-!
Buzz-!
Their surroundings changed. Light blue memory projections emerged out of thin air.
"This…"
Cyrene looked at the duo, and then her surroundings.
The scene inside this room was absolute carnage. Bright red flesh splattered on the ground. Blood kept pooling from the corpses, converging to the center of the room. The torn limbs and the lion-like beast that stood inside the room pointed to the culprit.
"That girl lost faith."
Cerydra recalled the passages regarding Seliose's ascent. The Lady Knight returned to the Sky Castrum, only to see the conflict between the Sunfolk and Rainfolk—two tribes living on the Fortress—reach its peak.
Aquila's "madness" stemmed from the Black Tide. His fear of darkness caused him to 'tilt' Amphoreus' day and night ratio. Nights only lasted for four hours, with daytime taking up the rest. The Sunfolk thought they were favored by Aquila, hence their suppression and discrimination against the Rainfolk.
The balance shifted when Seliose "succeeded" in slaying Aquila. But instead of the conflict waning, the Rainfolk took this chance to vent their pent-up frustrations for centuries. They committed one atrocity after another to their oppressors, the Sunfolk.
By the time Seliose awakened after merging with Aquila's Coreflame, she saw everything that transpired and lost faith in humanity. She sent down her divine beasts to purge everyone in the Sky Castrum, with the sole survivors being Hyacine's ancestors.
"Turn it forward."
"Ah..?"
"We need to see what happened after this."
Upon hearing Cerydra's command, Cyrene carried it out. Oronyx's power bloomed as the memory projections were reconstructed.
Before long, the desired projection appeared. The burnt corpses fell apart over time, leaving behind ashes and skeletons… or so it was supposed to be.
The burnt corpses oozed out black liquid. It seeped into the Sky Castrum's ground, staining it black. A faint sense of unease could be felt from it—a familiar sensation for Hysilens.
Her simulated Primum Mobile frantically urged her of the 'resonance'. These alarm bells came from all directions.
An absurd thought entered her mind.
'The entire fortress… is stained with Nihility.'