Sacred Stone Memories Chapter 8/Quest 7 - Storyline

A Bad Aftertaste

Acht	...
Othima	Agh!!! Ackkk!!!
Venus	Othima!
Othima	Ug...Gfff! I-it appears that my magic is not very effective against you... N-no matter what technique I use...you reduce its power.
Acht	Yes. I am being used for my ability to resist your magic attacks.
Othima	Ughh...! So...you were sent with the sole purpose of handling me. B-but no matter how much I search for your weakness...you change your attack pattern every time you change that artificial arm of yours. Jeez. To be honest, I'm in a bit of a pickle here.
Acht	Captain Othima, it is an honor to hear you think so highly of my abilities. Please, rest peacefully.
Othima	?! Aghh!!! Akk...!!!
Acht	...
Venus	!!! ...Hm?!
Acht	Well then...you now no longer have anyone to protect you. Please obediently hand over the Sacred Stone Asmodeus.
Venus	You are foolish to think I would hand it over to the likes of you...
Acht	...Hand.
Venus	A-an iron fist...?! Wh-what are you planning on doing?!
Acht	If you will not hand the Sacred Stone to me... I will rip every single limb off of you until you tell me its whereabouts. I would be most appreciative if you would tell me before I have to remove all of them.
Venus	S-such threats will not...
Acht	It's not a threat. It's the truth. Once I'm done with all your limbs, I'll rip your upper body off of your lower body. Worst case scenario, as long as I leave your brain intact, I should be able to probe its depths for the answers I seek.
Venus	...!
Acht	First of all, an arm.
Venus	Ugh...?! L-let me go!
Acht	Of course...as soon as you tell me where the Sacred Stone is. As I just told you, my sole purpose for being here is to find the Sacred Stone. It's not to take your life.
Othima	Uck...! Furious Blizzard!!!
Acht	Aghh...!!!
Othima	A-alright!
Venus	...! Hm! Let go...!
Acht	No...I still haven't learned where the Sacred Stone is.
Othima	Is it not working on her?! Ack! Absolute Darkness!!!
Acht	Uck...! You're very persistent...wouldn't have expected any less from you, Captain Othima.
Othima	I-I'm starting to lose confidence...seeing how little effect it has. Y-you know...as a gentleman, I'd like to ask for a favor. Do you think you can let go of Her Majesty's arm?
Acht	Very well.
Venus	Ack! Y-you little brat!
Acht	My intention is not to make you sad, Captain Othima. I will save hurting her for until I've properly dealt with you first.
Othima	Th-then...I guess that means I can't afford to let that happen...Mystic Fire!!!
Acht	It won't work. It's time to say goodbye.
Othima	Ughh...!!!
Acht	After all the stories I've heard about you, it was an honor to have been able to fight you.
Othima	Ugfff...! My...stical...Fire...!
Acht	You don't give up until your last breath. Your fighting spirit is...admirable.
Othima	U-ugh... My last breath? Don't be silly. My flames have only started to burn.
Acht	...?
???	!
Acht	Is this...the Phoenix?! ...Aghh!!!
Othima	Ugh...! D-did you see that? My final evolution of Mystical Fire. I call it "Phoenix's Dance"...or something like that...
???	Seriously...you had me worried about you.
Acht	...?!
Kagura	But...if you have enough time to be spewing nonsense then I guess you're okay.
Othima	G-great timing! I'm so relieved to see you, Kagura. I was in a real fix here.
Acht	Kagura...of the 5th Regiment.
Kagura	Captain Othima, why don't you rest for a while? I'll take it from here.
Othima	He-hey, wait...! The problem is that magic attacks don't...
Acht	...! What...?
Venus	She dropped to her knees! Is it working?!
Acht	Th-this flame...! Does it mean that I've been inflicted with damage?
Kagura	What I wield is Kagutsuchi. It's a little different than ordinary magic.
Othima	I see! Kagura's magic was born from Wadatsumi. They use a unique form of Alchemy. I-it's surpassing the scope of her magic defense!
Later...
Kagura	It seems like I'm not a very compatible partner for you.
Acht	Ack...! Gauntlet! This isn't your time to shine. Get out of here.
Kagura	...Burning Heavens!
Acht	You've defused my attack...? Sword!
Kagura	...! Burn Out!!!
Acht	Agh!!! It's true. It appears your attack techniques are quite effective against me. But...I cannot afford to lose!
Othima	Even Kagutsuchi's power is reduced in half. I'm sorry, Your Majesty...would you mind?
Venus	What...?
Kagura	Whoa! C-careful!
Acht	It seems like it'll be more effective if I overpower you...Axe!
Kagura	Such sad eyes. You've suffered from a painful past, haven't you?
Acht	...!
Kagura	But I won't sympathize with you! Not only did I lose my family, but my entire country was destroyed. I also have had a painful past!
Acht	Ack...! I don't have time to be talking with you!
Kagura	Flaming Kagutsuchi!!!
Acht	Aghh!!! Ug...ughh! I-it has no effect! I won't lose! I-I...I'm going to see the ideal word imagined by Sol come to fruition!
Venus	Venomous Lure!!!
Acht	...! You used something as silly as a pillar to seal my movement? Please don't get in my way!
???	No...it's wonderful. Your power is astounding, Your Highness.
Acht	?!
Othima	The force behind your incredible magic defense comes from that eye. In that case...if I were to seal your power, what would happen?
Acht	!!! M-my eye! The eye that Sol gave to me...my power to protect myself...!!!
Kagura	Sol... You're carrying out this individual's instructions, aren't you?
Acht	...!
Kagura	The way you push yourself so hard to fulfill his orders, without fearing for your own safety...I can almost respect that. But...what you're doing is threatening the peace of this world.
Acht	N-no...! I...I just want to be by Sol's side when he creates his ideal world!!!
Kagura	It's unfortunate. When it comes down to it, the only thing that separates us is a difference in values for what we perceive justice to be. For your sake as well...I promise to end this cycle of tragedy.
Acht	Ug...ughh...! Ughhh...!!!
Othima	Y-you can do it...! Kagura!!!
Kagura	Got it! Kagutsuchi...Flying Star!!!
Acht	Ack...! Ackkk!!! Ee...eekkkkk!!!
Kagura	Huh...?! What the...?!
Venus	Did you...kill her?
Othima	No... It's almost as if...I erased all her powers.
???	I need to go back...
Othima Kagura Venus	?!
Acht	...
Othima	You...!
Kagura	No way...?! Did she just escape my Flying Star?!
Acht	I was told that if I lost my power, I must return. Excuse me.
Othima	Ack...! H-hey, wait!
Kagura	Did she...disappear?!
Venus	Does that mean you got rid of her?!
Court Mage A	Your Highness! Reinforcements have arrived! Greed Dike's invasion has also stagnated. It's the perfect time for a counterattack!
Venus	All right! I can see victory in sight! Othima, let's go all out!
Othima	Victory...? Are you kidding me? I'm filled with a sense of defeat.
Kagura	I can't believe even my Flying Star didn't finish her.
Othima	There's no point in feeling down. Let's get back to the others, Kagura.
Kagura	...Got it!
Othima	The Veda Templars, huh? Jeez. Who would've thought someone of that caliber existed?