Bastard Homunculus: Reborn in the Corpse Pit

"Okay, here I go...this is probably gonna hurt, isn't it...?" Thought Aster with a wary, grimacing smile as a bead of sweat ran down the side of his head, before he steeled himself and swiftly shot forward, charging in towards Ravella.

"[Light Spear Scattershot]," She chanted, before firing out a barrage of rapid light projectiles towards Aster.

He swerved and weaved across to evade them, before glancing up as she swung her whip high up into the air with a flick of her wrist before rapidly cracking it down towards him with a swift, powerful tug.

The whip sliced down through the air with immense speed, before Aster swiftly raised his right arm up as it closed in on him, wincing sharply as it slammed onto his forearm before wrapping around, an immense, stinging pain bursting out across the point of impact.

"Gotcha!" Smirked Aster with a pained grimace as his right eyebrow twitched slightly, before gritting his teeth and rapidly jerking his arm back and sharply tugging on the whip, pulling Ravella off balance, before he chanted as she stumbled forward, "Now, [Telekinetic Pull]!"

She quickly tried to get out of the way, but with her balance upset, she was too slow to move, before she found herself rapidly shooting through the air towards Aster.

"[Light-...]...," She began to chant.

"[Telekinetic Zone]," Chanted Aster before she could finish, her body coming to a halt in midair, within two meters of Aster.

He then unwound her whip from his arm, grimacing slightly as the middle of his forearm throbbed with pain, the bones fractured, and the skin around that spot swollen and stinging sharply.

"Can't...move...," Muttered Ravella, trying to struggle but to no avail.

"Damn, that really smarts...alright, kid, time to free you. Let's get you unchained from the grasp of the church," He remarked, before focusing his attention on the collar around her neck, before crushing the jewel in the center with his telekinesis and tearing the collar off.

The tension in her body immediately faded as the collar fell off and hit the ground, her body going limp before Aster deactivated his Telekinetic Zone and caught her in his arms before she could fall, a dazed groan ringing out as she stirred slightly...

.

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"Huh...? What's...what's going on? Where am I? I feel...I feel weird, like I woke up from a really, really long nap or something," She thought to herself as the haze around her mind began to fade, before she tensed up as the memories came flooding in, "W-wait, I...I remember now! Wh-what...what the hell was I doing!? Taking orders from that bastard...Morn Malachite, I'll...I'll KILL YOU!!!"

Immense rage bubbled up inside her as she remembered everything she'd done while brainwashed, which broke the lingering effects of the Charm Ring as well, her hatred towards him instantly overriding the false loyalty that the ring had implanted in her.

Her hatred was then overshadowed by a crippling sense of anguish, and she remembered her encounter with Raven in Pearl Forest, her chest tightening as the memory flashed through her head...

"N-no...wh-what did I do? I...I hurt him, I-I could've killed him! And his appearance...what the hell did they do to him!? The church, I-I'll...I'll kill them. I'll kill them. I'll kill them. I'll kill them all! I'll kill them! I'll kill them! I'LL KILL THEM!!! KILL THEM!!! KILL THEM!!! KILLTHEMKILLTHEMKILLTHEMKILLTHEM-...!!!!!!!"

"Hey, you okay?" Suddenly came Aster's voice as he took her mask off, snapping her out of it as the sunlight hit her eyelids.

"Wh-wha...? Who...who are you...?" She muttered in response, as her eyelids fluttered open, her vision blurry before slowly adjusting.

"Take it easy, you're going to be just fine, you're safe now," Aster replied in an assuring tone, before he smiled at her as her eyes adjusted and she looked up at him.

"H-he's...he's...he's...HE'S SO HOT!!!" Was the first thing that went through her mind after her thoughts came a brief, screeching halt, her face heating up as she realized that he was princess-carrying her in his arms, her heart skipping a beat as she swooned.

"I'm a friend of your brother's, my name is Aster Stark. I'll take you to him, I know he'll be thrilled to see you," He remarked, before gently setting her down.

"Y-yeah, I-...no, wait. Before I leave...there's something I need to do," She replied with a dark look in her eyes, as she turned her gaze towards the church.

"What're you-...oh, I see. Alright, then, do what you gotta do...but, uh, make it quick, okay? My friend's holding off some Knights, and I have a feeling that he's going to reach his limit before much longer," Responded Aster, as he turned his gaze across as loud crashes rang out in the distance, around where Tacitus was fighting the Knights.

"You can go help him out...I won't have any trouble doing this alone. Also, um...sorry for attacking you, I hope I didn't hurt your arm too badly," She apologized quietly.

"You don't need to apologize for that, I'm not going to blame you for something you did while you weren't in control of your actions. And just so you know, Raven doesn't blame you for what happened when he encountered you a while back either, so don't worry about it," He assured her with a pat on the shoulder, before making his way in the direction where Tacitus was fighting, as Ravella took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, steeling herself as she began making her way towards the church.

"This'll be the last time I wear this," She muttered, as she picked up her mask and put it back on.

Her footsteps felt heavy as she approached the front entrance of the building, her chest pounding as her rage and hatred began to rile her up, her entire body trembling in a burning fury as she walked through the doorway and looked around, her volatile emotions growing with every step she took.

As her gaze darted about, she then stopped and narrowed her eyes as she spotted a head peaking out from behind a pillar, before a familiar figure stepped out, her hatred sharply spiking at the sight of him...

"O-oh, thank goodness, it's you...I take it this means you took down those Irregulars? Well done, you did good work...now, then, your new directive is to protect me, keep me safe at all costs and-...," He began as he started to approach her, before he was abruptly interrupted as a loud smack echoed out across the left side of his face, his head sharply jerking across to the right as he tasted blood in his mouth, a couple of teeth coming loose.

"What a revolting voice you have...and I've heard it enough to last several lifetimes. But it won't be long now, before I'll never have to hear it again!" She snapped as she shot towards him, forming a blade of light along her left palm as she began to close in on him.

The Bishop stumbled back in shock and fear, his blood running cold as he realized that she was no longer under his control, before he quickly raised his right arm defensively out of instinct, before he screamed in pain as she swung the light blade up, striking the middle of his forearm and slicing right through.

He howled in agony as blood sprayed out of the stump left around his forearm, a thud echoing out as the severed arm hit the floor, before he lost his balance and fell back, hitting the floor before scrambling back in terror and pain, clutching his right arm shakily as he tried to stem the bleeding, the little effect.

"H-how is this possible!? You should be-...!" He began, his voice shrill, before he abruptly trailed off, his eyes widening in horror as his gaze fell onto her neck, free of the Devotion Collar, "N-no, it can't be...how!? How did she get it off!? I tested it multiple times, it was practically indestructible! And only I can remove it, it shouldn't be possible for anyone else to do so! So how the hell was she freed!?"

She then took off her mask and tossed it away, the Bishop flinching as he met her gaze, clear murderous intent and rage in her eyes.

"I wish I could take my time tearing you apart, but it seems I don't have that luxury...so, die," She uttered venomously, before whipping her arm across, the tip of her light blade slicing through Bishop Malachite's throat.

Blood burst out as a gurgling gasp of pain rang out, as the Bishop clutched at his neck in despair, tears welling up in his eyes as the blood streamed out through the gaps between his fingers.

Choked gasps rang out as blood poured out of his mouth, staining his teeth red as it ran down his body and seeped into his robes.

His eyes began to roll back, his body writhing around as Ravella watched with a cold look in her eyes, feeling like a weight was being lifted off her shoulders as she watched him die.

Bloody foam began spilling out of his mouth as he went limp, the writhing of his body subsiding, a couple of spasms and convulsions erupting across his body.

"[Light Beam]," Chanted Ravella, firing out a piercing beam at the Bishop's forehead, drilling a hole through his head and piercing into his brain, to make sure he was dead.

She then walked over and reached down for the arm she'd severed earlier, pulling the Charm Ring off the index finger before tossing the arm away and stepping back, turning her gaze towards the Bishop's body.

She took a moment to take in the sight of his corpse, before turning around and heading for the entrance, stretching her arms up as she felt a sense of relief, a calmness about her.

She strolled out of the church and looked around, before spotting Aster walking over from several meters away, along with Tacitus, who had a weary look on his face.

"Hey, are you all done?" Aster called out as he spotted her.

"Yeah, I just wrapped things up on my end," She replied with a nod, as she approached the pair.

"Let me introduce you, this is Tacitus Drake. Like me, he's another friend of your brother's," Smiled Aster, as he nodded at Tacitus.

"Nice to meet you," He remarked with a nod.

"Yeah, likewise...I'm Ravella Kyzer," She responded politely.

"Alright, we should get going soon, but before that...," Trailed off Aster as he turned his gaze towards the church and added, "Ravella, mind helping me demolish that building?"

"Huh? Ohh, with pleasure," She responded without hesitation.

"Cool, then let's blast it till it collapses...[Telekinetic Spear Scattershot]!"

"[Light Cannon]!"

Deafening crashes rang out as their attacks peppered the front of the church, breaking through the front wall and blasting into the building, deeps cracks spreading out across the structure before they unleashed a second volley, the entire building collapsing as the cracks deepened further upon impact.

The church was reduced to a pile of rubble in a matter of seconds, the ground rumbling slightly as a thick cloud of dust rose up.

"Nice, and with that, we've accomplished everything we came here to do. Now, then, let's head home, shall we?" Grinned Aster, a satisfied look on his face...