BlazBlue:Phase 0 Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Sealed Green

———Log...

What is that?

What actually is that? Why did this happen? Why?

From the Cauldron, black object began overflowing.

I cannot determine what it is.

Relius had said that it was not Kusanagi. That Relius disappeared... swallowed by the black object.

Did he die?

Tell me, Relius. What is the best action that I should do?

Is that the object that we have created?

Wrong. That object is...

The Sheol Gate.

That object is not of this world.

Why did it happen?

That's right.

The lynchpin.

I have made it for the sake of such a moment like this.

However, I have all but the key.

The key... I have to obtain it somehow. But how?

I'm not able to do anything else.

I can only wait here until my life is exhausted...

Part 1

The out of place door which Trinity had discovered was pretty plain.

According to Celica, the door had an old lock that was quite simple. Ragna easily opened it with just a few kicks.

What awaited there was a thin, dark passage. Unlike other places, this passage didn't have any illumination. In the first place, there didn't seem to be any lighting installed.

Relying on the light Trinity had made with magic, they advanced inside with Ragna as the lead. Then, they reached somewhere. But there was only another door that stood still inside the dark passage.

"This one has an electronic lock."

Celica, who was walking behind Ragna, said that while looking at the small panel beside the door. They weren't sure whether if it was thanks to the electric source for the whole facility that was still active, or if it had an independent electric source, but the lock was functioning securely.

Ragna tried to knock it lightly. The security here was tighter unlike at the entrance. It didn't seem to budge no matter how many times it got kicked.

"So, what do we do? Frankly, it's too much effort to break it off by beating it."

"It's also too dangerous to just blast the door off. We might get caught in it."

Recalling the time when she was about to blow the elevator's door, Nine quickly said it while shaking her head. But there was smile without any worry whatsoever on her expression.

"So, we'll do it like this."

While saying it, Nine's supple fingers sparkled. Thin electric currents from her fingers shocked the electronic panel. Sparks scattered around.

A moment later, the secure bulky door was separated in the middle. It sluggishly started to open its upper and lower ends.

"Seriously...?"

"Onee-chan's amazing..."

Having too quickly cleared their objective, Ragna and Celica couldn't help but muttered their admiration.

"Fufu", smiled Nine triumphantly.

"If you construct a system so advanced to a certain point, it actually becomes easier for the user to understand what the system's saying."

Different from the previous elevator that had stopped functioning smoothly, this one was still working. Perhaps instead of 'understand what the system's saying', maybe 'you could forcefully bash it as you like' was more appropriate.

Nine shook off the remaining electricity which was coiling around her fingers as if removing intertwined threads.

Although the passage from the entrance until now was narrow, what lying in wait inside was an unexpectedly spacious room.

Rather than a room, it might be better to call it a square.

When they first entered, the color of the illumination took over their visions. It's like it was dominating the room. As if the dark passage until now was a lie, the sophisticated and refreshing green colored lights shone on.

The room had an elliptical landscape.

Within the interior that was surrounded by metallic plates, there were several machineries installed that seemed like measuring devices. It appeared some kind of development was conducted. The desk where there was a computer put on it had a large quantity of papers scattered around its perimeter. Several of them were sticking on the wall using tapes.

However, it could be said that an unknown discomfort was drifting within the room.

"What's with this room...? It's like time is almost not moving~"

The first one to notice the source of their discomfort was Trinity. With uneasiness clouding her face, she turned about and looked around the room

Just as she had said, this room was odd.

Not having any of the Black Beast's scratch, it was spotless. It was as if just a few days ago, or maybe a few hours ago the last time someone had used it. The air flowing there had little to do with destruction and deterioration.

It didn't have any smell of dust or rust. It added more of the eeriness.

"I feel like we've wandered to a strange location."

While speaking bitterly, Nine cautiously proceeded to the inner part of the room.

Suddenly, the atmosphere which had wrapped around Ragna's group up until now trembled and vanished.

Trinity had dispelled her protection magic.

"We don't seem to need it for a while now."

Certainly, the air that was contaminating the First District which could roast their internal organs if they had no means of protection didn't seem to be there anymore. There was only clean air drifting about. It was fine to take a deep breath.

It wasn't only this room. The air within the cave from before where the Cauldron existed was also clear. The substance called seithr that was overflowing from the Cauldron neutralized the radiation and other harmful chemical substances. It didn't seem harming. Instead it even produced hygienic air.

But the only one in this room who understood its structure just by feeling it on her skin was Nine.

"A hidden room, huh."

Inhaling the strangely refreshing air which had been released by the seithr, Ragna walked within the room. He picked up a piece of paper that fell at his feet.

The bluish green lightings were dim, but unexpectedly the small letters were legible. But since the writing was in Japanese, it was nothing more than cryptic letters he had never seen before for Ragna.

Even though he didn't know the letters, Ragna understood about drawing. Ragna frowned on the numerous scribbles along with the hand drawing that was on the center of the paper.

There was something like... a large nail on it. It seemed to be a diagram for something. It was probably a blueprint or even something else entirely.

From the side, Celica peeked on what Ragna was holding.

"What's this? Something like a machine? It's like a nail... Ah!"

Inadvertently lifting her gaze just now, Celica made a loud voice. At the same time, she pointed toward the inner part of the room.

Silently blending within the green lightings, a gigantic object shaped like nail was hanging in the air alongside the wall.

If it was a nail, then it should have crude silhouette. Yet it was so fascinating that it was like an ornament decorating the room. The green patterns stood out on the aesthetic silver surface. Metals and metals joined up together and drew straight lines. Those lines appeared to give off such a calculated charm.

Ragna felt that its size, whether its height or width, could easily fit approximately three to four people. It might be because of the lightings, but it could possibly be even larger.

It had a rather sacred feel drifting around as if it was a nail-shaped goddess statue. The beautiful main part was clad in several silver chains. The stakes pierced strongly to the ceiling and wall.

"Isn't this drawing actually about it?"

According to what Celica was pointing out, the drawing on the paper Ragna picked up was the blueprint for the captivating gigantic nail of an object.

If so, it seemed someone had created it as some kind of a device. That thought seemed unbelievable. Just how much of technology, knowledge, and insight needed to create this kind of object?

The kind of dread like the Cauldron had crept up to Ragna's nape.

"It seems so. But how come this thing exists near the Cauldron?"

A hidden room even got built for it.

"This room's probably built to observe that Cauldron."

Trinity spoke while playing around with a computer a bit separated from them.

Ragna was surprised on how she handled it. Sometimes, he could see that there were small emblems shining on her fingertips. Perhaps she was borrowing the power of magic. At any rate, it was such a handy magic.

Pushing up her big glasses, Trinity turned on the sub-display and showed it to Ragna and the others.

The view there was looking down from somewhere as it projected the front view of the Cauldron from before.

"Looking at this camera, it seems to be recording the changes on the atmosphere around the Cauldron, like temperature and humidity~. In addition, a lot of data is flowing in."

"Then... this device is also related to the Cauldron and Boundary, huh."

Ragna took a glance at the silver and green nail from the image of the surveillance camera. Indeed, it had the imposing aura fitting to confront.

"...Oh?"

Continuing on fiddling with the computer, Trinity tilted her head in confusion.

Nine, who was picking up the scattered papers that were on top of a desk, turned around.

"What's the matter?"

"I was checking it up since it's been on my mind. As I thought, this room is odd."

The small magic squares that appeared on Trinity's fingertips were disappearing. He had to make sure again what he had seen just now.

"The data from this computer. The computer's clock. ...Not many time has passed since the day of Black Beast's appearance~"

"The specific time?"

"...One year."

It was like only a year had passed in the room. Realistically, six years had passed since the appearance of Black Beast, but the time here had only passed a year

"I see..."

While dropping her gaze to the documents she picked up, Nine muttered in displeasure. It seemed only Nine understood why the flow of time in this room was unusual.

Suddenly, Celica's behaviors made Ragna felt uneasy. Before he knew it, she had snatched the paper that had the diagram sketch from his hand. She had been staring it intensely for some time. She did it with enough enthusiasm to bore a hole on it.

When he looked at Nine, she was also staring with a grim face at the papers she had gathered up that was scattered on the floor before.

Ragna had a bad feeling.

"Celica?"

He softy called out to the tensed up girl who was just beside him.

Celica's shoulders jumped as he did so. Then she looked at Ragna with such an anxiety that would make her trembling anytime soon.

"Ragna... This..."

"Something dangerous written here?"

Celica shook her head for so many times.

As if making sure of something unbelievable, she pointed a writing that slanted upward badly as it went on, so bad you couldn't even pretend to say it was good. And then she gulped before starting to speak.

"This is... Father's handwriting."

In other words, Shuuichirou Ayatsuki's.

Someone whom Celica, Ragna, Mitsuyoshi, and Clavis had been seeking for.

Ragna's expression took a steep turn.

"You sure?"

"Yeah. I don't have any doubt. I remember it very well."

Celica intensely stared at the diagram she held, but then also looked at it with affection. The footprints of the father she had been looking for were surely there.

Ragna once again looked up at the gigantic instrument which seemed like overlooking them. When he took a moment to observe the existence, he felt that its magnificence was overwhelming.

"Then, your old man created this?"

"At the very least, I think the design here was made by Father."

"So in the end, what's this thing? It's too fancy for an interior."

The ceiling above the silver and green nail was built exceptionally tall. The supporting chains were connected to several pulleys. When examined, they should be used to raise the nail even further up.

Celica took a glance at the diagram.

"It seems there's nothing written here that explains what it's for, but..."

Just as Celica was about to speak, a loud noise interrupted.

Everyone looked back all at once. Nine had read the documents that was scattered on a place separated from Ragna and Celica, also from Trinity. It was the sound of a bundle of papers thrown onto the seemingly measuring devices.

The 5-cm thick documents she had collected hit the metallic box. Losing its strength, it once again scattered on the cold floor.

Nine stomped on the documents will all her strength. She put all the hatred from her heart.

"...Don't mess with me... JUST HOW ROTTEN IS YOUR MIND!!?"

Having been stomped with the sharp heel, one sheet was largely torn up. The panicked Celica tried to save the documents from her older sister's feet.

"Onee-chan, what are you doing!? These are Father's..."

"They are! That man undoubtedly wrote those! And also the blueprint and data containing the concept of that instrument! This is outrageous and no joke. No one but that man would construct such a ridiculous thing!"

"Hold back a moment. Tell me your reason properly. I'm completely clueless on why you suddenly got snapped."

Ragna forcedly interrupted both of them. He helped Celica, who had gathered the documents from the floor and held them to her chest, to stand.

In the meantime, Nine took a deep breath to adjust her breathing that was disturbed by her excessive anger. Even so, to vent her unsettled emotion, she struck the wall with her fist.

Worried, Trinity gently touched Nine's back. She took that chance to finally suppress her fury by biting her lips.

"...The Boundary is filled with the substance called seithr. The seithr was always overflowing continuously from that damn hole of a Cauldron. Then it's reasonable to think that the being from the Boundary called Black Beast was also heavily influenced by the seithr."

"That information is extremely uncertain."

"It can't be helped. Nobody wants to get close to the Black Beast. And its remains that were left all over the place are not something you can carelessly approach."

Having one of a Ten Sages of the Magic Guild said that, he couldn't just easily dismiss it. What's more, many organizations had their hands full on dealing with the damages caused by Black Beast. They weren't in the position to just settle down and begin an investigation.

And then by not having any decisive ability to oppose the Black Beast, they would just be in disarray when facing another Black Beast's destruction. The vicious cycle happened on the global scale, with its end yet to be seen.

"Let's get back to the topic. See, the Boundary and Black Beast are like a mass of seithr. Then, this pretentious thing is... used to halt the flow of the seithr."

With a stern expression, Nine looked at the exceptionally fascinating artifact.

Some kind of unrest drifted from her narrative tone. Naturally, Ragna and Celica's faces stiffened in nervousness.

"What will happen when the seithr's flow gets stopped?"

"It's simple. Basically..."

Nine sluggishly opened her mouth to answer Ragna's question.

But as her words were on their way out, another words followed on instead.

"Basically... We will be able to stop the activities of the Black Beast."

For some reason, a hoarse male voice could be heard from the room's entrance that was left open until now.

Part 2

It wasn't the voice of the people in this room. Immediately after arriving in that conclusion, Ragna turned around and prepared to draw the sword from his waist.

Instantly, that determination wavered.

Nine had made the electronic panel short-circuited using her magic and caused the bulky metallic door unable to close. On the rectangular frame, a skinny man stood with his back leaning there.

With an unhealthy appearance, his skin was engraved with deep wrinkles, as if it was coated with them. The hair was also mixed with some white hair with its color faded away. Originally, his age should be within his forties, or what had been said as the first half of the prime time of someone's life. But the atmosphere that was enveloping him had an unusual fatigue that made him appear to be an old man that had already gone past his sixties.

The figure wore dust-stained pants and shirt with a slightly dirty white robe of top of it. ...It was like he had been secretly living for about six years within the deserted underground ruins.

His flat and narrow glasses were a bit bent with a small crack running. It somehow gave an impression of nervousness.

He was Shuuichirou Ayatsuki.

Ragna could hear the noise of Celica taking a breath beside him.

"...Father!?"

No sooner after she called him, Celica leaned forward and ran off. As she ran, she intensely stared at the figure in disbelief.

"Are you really... my father?"

His appearance was considerably different from what Celica remembered.

Although he was always looked unhealthy after he shut himself within a research institute, he never looked this morbid. Although he had a slender build, he was never so thin that he might get a fracture anytime. He might not appear youthful, but his eyes were never sunk so deep.

His appearance had completely changed too much for what six years could have done.

The white robed and glassed man took a gaze at the rushing Celica's body as if he was making sure of it. And then he clumsily raised his lips.

"...It seems I'm able to meet you once more. Looks like the heavens haven't abandoned me yet."

The pitiful and hoarse voice was of course different from what Celica remembered, but the somewhat cynical accent he passed was of her dearest father.

Even if he was unexpectedly old, he was unmistakably her father.

"Thank goodness. You're really alive... I'm so glad we're able to meet... I'm always, always searching for you. But why? If only you had contacted me during all these six years... I'll rush to your place anytime..."

She had finally met him. The words of that thought were mixed with tears. It overflowed as she broke down.

Shuuichirou responded with a clumsy smile. However, his feeble body couldn't even raise his arm to caress her. Instead, his body sunk to the wall. He stared at the daughter with muddy eyes.

All the communication lines with the outside were cut off. The protective suit which purpose was to withstand the severe air pollution on the outside was entirely damaged. The only means to reach the exit that was on the upper level part was only by staircase. But the exhausted Shuuichirou couldn't possibly climb it to the top.

At first, it was possible to pick up the radio signal from the outside. However, the nuclear attack erased the established signal.

For six years, nobody had come to rescue nor was he able to get out. He was always alone in deep underground. Thinking of the loneliness, Celica's spine trembled with shiver.

"I'm glad... I'm able to find you."

His loneliness should have ended now. Celica wiped her wet cheeks with her palms and made a bright smile to cheer up her father.

Relief. She felt the anxiety she had been holding was melting in relief. She thought that it was right for her to search for him after all.

From behind her, harsh words stormed in.

"Celica! Get away from that man!"

It was Nine. Celica turned around with a bewildered expression.

Those words were too much for someone who finally met her father. But Nine was completely serious, or rather she revealed her fierce hostility toward her father.

"Onee-chan...?"

"Come back here, right this instant. Do not approach that man."

"But why? He's really Father! He's alive!"

Celica went against the older sister's words and held her father's hand. The fingers on the completely dried up hand were stiff like a tree bark. But there was certainly warmth within the hardened muscles.

But clomping her heels, Nine walked toward them and roughly shook off their hands.

"Hey, you!"

As one would expect, thinking her action was wrong, Ragna raised his voice in disapproval.

But he was silenced by a sharp glare from Nine.

"Get away from him!"

She yelled again. This time, she would not hear any argument and seized Celica's arm, separating it forcibly from the father. During that time, Nine stood between them as if protecting Celica.

Toward the stabbing, menacing attitude from Nine, Shuuichirou looked up and watched her with an annoyed gaze. His lips smiled.

"Konoe, huh..."

"Don't say my name so casually."

With unwavering hostility, Nine rejected her father.

"We undoubtedly finally meet again. I went through the troubles, so answer me. Six years ago, what kind of experiment did you do here? ...No, not that. Why did you create this object?"

The object Nine talked about was filling up the majority of the room's space. It was a nail that was covered in green patterns.

A while back, Shuuichirou said something about being able to stop the activities of the Black Beast.

Shuuichirou raised his blank eyes. He looked at the object that was peacefully sleeping. Then he moved his heavy, dried up lips.

"...I've wondered if it might happen. We have failed. The object we've constructed was lost in the Cauldron... Instead, we've invited fear. "

Once, the Takamagahara System had challenged god. Following it, an object was created with the purpose to supposedly directly interfering with the Boundary. However, what appeared was a monster that destroyed everything.

Shuuichirou's murmur made him as if he was thinking of something far away.

"It was certainly the Sheol Gate... According to what he said, what exists beyond it was probably hell. ...I was always terrified. What would happen if we were to fail...? Before I noticed, my mind was filled with nothing but that thought. Because of that possible moment, I have created something to hold back the flowing seithr from Boundary, and to shut the hole leading to it."

Shuuichirou lifted his stiff arms and stretched the hands toward said instrument.

"It was... this Kushinada's Lynchpin."

The object called lynchpin that had unimaginably large strength silently stood beautifully. It was as if it was in deep slumber.

The hands that had stretched to the lynchpin fell down.

The back that had been leaning to the wall was slipping. Shuuichirou's thin, weak body sat down above the cold floor. His body was no longer holding up.

"FATHER!?"

Celica rushed and slipped through Nine's side. She kneeled beside her father. She knew it would only give her a temporary peace of mind, but Celica still put her hands on her father's chest and performed healing magic.

Celica possessed an exceptionally natural talent in healing magic. But still, she currently couldn't heal wound that wasn't visible. She couldn't heal illness. Furthermore, what was eating Shuuichirou's body wasn't an ordinary illness.

"...Quit wasting your magic. My body has been too much exposed to high-concentration of seithr. It is too late to do anything to it."

It was seithr poisoning. Like how alkaline neutralized acid, seithr could neutralize harmful substances. But just like alkaline could be harmful when its concentration exceeded a certain limit, being exposed to too much seithr could also be poisonous to one's life.

"Perhaps, this is the end," said Shuuichirou as he told his teary-eyed daughter. He mustered his last strength toward the hand that had fallen once and placed it on Celica's shoulder.

"Listen well... Celica. My lynchpin could close that hole. That monster is strongly affected by the Boundary. It's only temporary, but it should be able to stop all of its activities."

"Fa-Father...?"

Suddenly, heat was coming from Shuuichirou's voice. Despite that his body was about to be depleted of his existence, only the hand that had been grabbing Celica's shoulder was strangely powerful.

It was like... he wanted to entrust something really important.

"I'm always waiting for you. For you to come here, I always..."

Growing impatient, Nine tried to separate the father's hand that had been grabbing her younger sister's shoulder.

But Shuuichirou's thin arm that had been stiffening until now wouldn't budge. Rather, because it absolutely wouldn't let go, his fingertips would be even more forcedly dug into Celica's shoulder.

"This is my final research. It needs your power for it to be completed. Your..."

"Release Celica!"

Nine yelled as if she was striking him. At the same time, as if knocked by the angry voice, Shuuichirou's body was slammed to the wall that was just behind him.

Unbelievably, her biological father was blown away by a shockwave.

Celica tried to blame her by saying that she had gone too far.

But before she could speak her discontent, a low laughter disturbed the cool air.

"Huhu... hahaa. My lynchpin will seal the monster he had dragged out. That ought to make my skill be considered having surpassed his..."

He was talking to himself. His body, which was being held by only his willpower, was already couldn't be moved. With his helpless head leaning against the wall, Shuuichirou looked up at the ceiling and laughed.

Looking at her father who sounded triumphant, anger and contempt mixed within Nine. Preventing her from touching him again, she forcibly pushed Celica behind.

As she got startled all of a sudden, Celica twisted her feet, but Ragna immediately held her.

Everyone hadn't separated their eyes from Shuuichirou.

"You're disgusting like usual. It isn't about anything like the world, humanity, or Black Beast. You just want to show off the result from your research to that genius person, don't you?"

"Yes, indeed. I'm a scientist. Isn't that should be obvious? ...I was always frustrated. I was no match compared to that genius under any circumstances. He was undoubtedly the only necessary person for our researches and experiments... I was no more than an extra."

The blood-related daughter despised him from the bottom of her heart. But she could no longer get through Shuuichirou. He might have put his pride on top of his comprehension.

Shuuichirou's muddy eyes were fixed to the lynchpin as if clinging to it.

"He had made a mistake. And then... I corrected that mistake. Using my lynchpin."

If his body were able to move, he probably would present both of his arms to the lynchpin and hug it.

Despite the hoarse voice was barely able to be understood, his trembling enthusiasm caused Ragna, Celica, Nine and Trinity's nerves to convulse, as if he was holding their collars.

"Isn't it magnificent...? It is... My lynchpin is... the last option for... humanity..."

After his pale lips carved a smile, Shuuichirou ceased to move. Like an old man, his eyelids fell down before anyone knew it, snatching away the lynchpin from Shuuichirou's pupils.

But perhaps the brilliance from the divine figure had been burned at the back of his eyelids.

"...Father?"

After a little while, Celica called him with tearful voice. There was no response.

Celica tried to walk up to him with her aimless feet shaking. When it seemed she was about to fall, Ragna held her shoulder and pulled her.

"It's dangerous. Get hold of yourself."

Ragna knew that he had said something unreasonable. Truthfully, it seemed nothing would reach Celica's ears. Her trembling knees yielded down as they had lost their strength.

He hurriedly held her body that had collapsed to the floor with his arm, and supported her with his chest.

"Celi..."

Ragna didn't continue his words as he tried to call her. To begin with, he already couldn't remember what to speak to her.

Celica's lips let out a helpless voice to call the father.

It might have been some kind of switch as tears were spilling from her wide-opened eyes. Spilling, and overflowing.

"No... no way. Why..."

She had finally met him. She had found him at last.

Her lifeless fingers were trembling as she strongly grabbed Ragna's clothes. It was like there was nothing to cling to other than that.

Ragna embraced Celica within his chest. If by any chance his hand were to be separated from her, he felt like Celica's figure would disappear instantly.

He fully knew that such a thing would never happen, but he couldn't help it. He probably just didn't want to look at her pale, tear-stained face.

As she was firmly enclosed within his arm, Celica's back began to tremble in her sobbing after a little while. She buried her forehead on Ragna's chest. She muttered as she held back her voice. Like how a small child did, she couldn't conceal her grief and started to cry.

Why? How come? I really have lots of things to say. I didn't search for you to speak about such a thing...

Ragna never lamented over the fact that his right arm couldn't be moved presently.

But if only it could be moved, even while supporting the crying Celica, he could have patted her head with the other hand.

Part 4

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