Chapter 262 Hundred Years Vow (1/2)
CHAPTER 262
HUNDRED YEARS VOW
Eos slowly opened her eyes, fighting back the haze and daze of a new dawn as she blinked rapidly a few times before looking around. The last memory before passing out swiftly penetrated her mind yet again as a surge of melted pot of emotions besieged her mind. Hoping it was all a mirage, she scanned the cave once again, but Hannah was still there, reading a book, with the Empyrean lying on her lap, humming a low tune.
She felt her heart crack temporarily as she fought the tears back from dripping from her eyes. Lino shifted his head sideways and met her eyes though lacking the previous mockery; she saw a mixture of emotions within them, even stark traces of pity hidden beneath it all. Ever since she was captured she has not once admitted defeat, not to him or to herself -- but now, here, she felt it, admitting it or not. She felt it stir in her bones, penetrating the depths of her being. She was defeated.
Hannah put the book down and sighed lowly, pushing Lino off as she walked over to Eos who was no longer either chained or naked, but rather gently placed on top of a large cushion.
Putting on the face of bravado, Eos gritted her teeth before screaming and lunging herself at Hannah who easily evaded the flimsy strike and retaliated with her own, sending Eos back down, clutching at her stomach.
”... don't do anything stupid, Eos.” Hannah said.
”... I'll fucking kill you, you traitorous whore!!!” Eos cried out in maniacal anger. ”You made bed with him?! With HIM?!!! That is worse than killing any one of us outright!! You betrayed the one who gave you everything for him?!!! I'll skin you!! I'll fucking skin you alive you bitch!!”
”Hey, how'd she know we already screwed?” Lino chimed in from the sides as Hannah quickly placated her palm onto her forehead; she knew very well he did it intentionally, yet even she found it slightly funny. ”Must be that you look far happier now than before. Sexual tension gone and all.”
”Shut up.” Hannah spoke sternly, glancing at him.
”Yes m'am!” Lino saluted sheepishly and sat back down, picking up Hannah's book and flipping it to start, beginning to read.
”Why, Hannah?! Why?! Have we not done our best to accommodate you?! Have we not given you everything you could ever want?!” Hannah saw the genuine hurt of betrayal cruising through Eos' moist eyes and felt a sting of pain surging deep within.
”... you've given me everything you could possibly have given,” she replied, smiling faintly. ”But... none of it was what I wanted, Eos. I know it's hard for you to understand and I don't expect you to... but, at least, believe I had my reasons.”
”... heh. Reasons?” she glanced at Lino. ”You turned coat because of that emotional wreckage? Perhaps it's for the best if that was the case.”
”Hey!” Lino exclaimed, furrowing his brows. ”Thread the line finely, young lady! Some truths aren't meant to be spoken!”
”Didn't I tell you to keep your mouth shut?” Hannah spoke in frustration.
”...” Lino chuckled sheepishly for a moment before returning back to the book.
”... I've chosen my bedrock long before Lino came along, Eos,” Hannah said. ”He just happened to be a happy accident of it all.”
”... I'd have expected it from Erebus... hell, I'd have even expected it from Allison over you. Unlike them, you've always been a part of our world. Heh, I can't imagine how colossally idiotic you are to have aligned yourself against the Mother. Your end won't be pretty, Hannah, I promise you that much.”
”How long do you plan on hiding, Aurora?” Hannah's voice distorted quickly, as Lino glanced up curiously. ”This hardly suits you.”
”... despite all of us warning Mother to chain you,” Eos' voice, too, grew heavily distorted as she spoke out after a few moments of silence. ”She forgave you, time and again. Astrum... the shining beacon, she'd say. The point of recognition to Entropy; the thread that binds the Chaos. I imagine... even after this failure, she will still forgive you and take you back into her arms.”
”As devout as always,” Astrum replied with a cackle. ”But, what makes you think it will be a failure?”
”Ha ha ha, don't make me laugh. You don't really think that a human brat stands a chance, do you? The Age of Empyreans has long since passed, Astrum. When Oreb fell, so did any vision of future within which Empyreans were anything more than hunted beasts.”
”... man, this is the first time that scumbag isn't jovially bursting out of my soul to join the chit-chat of Writs,” Lino heaved onto his feet and walked over with a beaming smile. ”Does this mean my time has come?! Ha ha ha! At last, I've a chance to free my soul! Astrum!”
”Huh?”
”I very much appreciate your sweet whispers about Hannah's sensitive spots!” Lino gave a thumbs up quickly, winking. ”As you saw it worked wonders!”