#;darkness

The woman stopped a few paces shy away from them, her expression unreadable. She didn't have to raise her voice. "Rose, Blanchiot. You both carry what should never have belonged to mortis in the first place. Today, I shall correct Azathoth's mistake."

Ruby started chuckling, rolling her eyes. "Great, another spech about how I shouldn't exist. I thought the Yonkous and other Gods had already covered that."

Blair's grimace was cutting. "Let me guess, you'll 'correct' it by trying to tear our Origin selves out. Do you have any idea what that even means?"

UMI tilted her head slightly, as if studying insects in a glass case. “I don’t need to. The Universal Government does not question inevitability.” She turned, robes swaying like water, and the soldiers followed her out without a word.

The cell fell silent again, save for the faint hum of the Solium shackles.

Ruby leaned back, smirking despite the bite of the restraints. “Well B, looks like they’re serious this time.”

Blair met her eyes, voice low. “Then so am I.”

The chamber was filled with Solium energy, which glowed as if the whole room was one massive cage. The two of them were forced to their knees at the center, chains still biting deep into the floor. The air pressed against them like water and it annoyed Ruby to no ends.

"Think we scored the premium package, B? Front row tickets to our own execution."

Blair strained against the restraints, claws flexing. "Stay quiet, dumbass. The more you talk, the weaker you sound."

Thus the ritual began. The ancient runes carved into the stone ignited one by one, searching against their skin without touch. Ruby hissed her vision blurred, her body convulsing under the pull. It wasn't the fire or the restraints, it felt like something was removing itself from her.

Blair clenched her jaw tighter, back arching as the energy clawed into her core. The Primordial Ki inside her, the untouchable constant, was being dragged out bit by bit. Her claws scraped long lines into the steel as her body fought against it.

Ruby for her part let out a maniacal grin, blood dripping from her lips. "Here's a leason on what happens when ya split atoms without proper safety."

And then it tore free.

From Ruby’s chest spilled pure shadow, folding itself into a tall, hollow figure with glowing red-white eyes. The Primal Darkness stood trembling, breathing unevenly, gaze darting straight back at her like a newborn trying to place its mother, as its form stabilized.

Blair’s scream ripped through the chamber as light poured out of her body, twisting into horns, claws, and a tail lashing with residual fury. Thus Yog-Sothoth emerged regal but faltering, its weight collapsing into the ground with each step.

Both entities staggered, yet weren't hostile, only bewildered. They turned their heads towards Ruby and Blair, as if awaiting instruction, incomplete without their other selves.

Ruby finally collapsed, not being able to support herself anymore. Her smirk crooked even through the blood. "What's the matter, Darkness 'n Yoggy? Scared of standing on your own?"

Blair glared at her through the sweat running down her temple. “Shut up, clown. That isn’t your punchline. It’s Yog-Sothoth.”

The two Primordials exchanged a look, strange and hollow, like they were trying to understand the very act of being without their other selves.

Across the chamber now, UMI didn't so much as blink. To her this was the result she had planned and accomplished.

Yet to the four in that circle, nothing felt inevitable anymore. The ritual shut down with a final pulse, leaving the chamber dim. The silence afterwards felt worse than the screaming light before it.

Ruby let out some heavy panting, her vision darkening. Her body felt hollow, like someone had scooped the marrow out. "Tell me, isn't this the worst spa day we've had so far?"

Blair laid across the floor, a position most unfit for the Once and Future King. "Dark--" She corrected herself after what happened. "Dumbass, if you speak one more word, I'll end you before those other clowns will."

A shuffle of movent drew both their attention. Darkness and Yog-Sothoth stood naerby, staggering on unsteady legs. They weren't towering, unstoppable forces for the moment. Their breathing was ragged and their eyes unfocused. Every step felt labored, yet both them stared directly at their counterparts, as if asking what came next.

Ruby slowly stood up, dusting herself off. Her healing factor was working overtime it seemed. "Look B, like kids lost in a mall, waiting for mommy and daddy."

Blair's lips curled, but she didn't look away from the two. "They're not kids, they are Origins. And right now, said origins look fucking pathetic."

The guards stormed the chamber, weapons raised and waiting for UMI's command. She gave none and just watched, ever calm.

Ruby flexed her bound wrists again, feeling for the faintest silver of her oldest trick. The Void still answered, like it still belonged to her. She decided to question the logic of that later, what with Darkness being her own entity now. "Aight B,new plan. We're going to crush the fuck out of this party."

Blair for her part deadpanned. "You're too weak to do much and we're still at death's door. You can't possibly open one of your stupid portals."

"Guess I've always been too stubborn, huh?" Ruby grimaced, gathering her power until it became visible around her body, before she shouted out. "Haken times 20!" Like that the shimmer of energy became immense and like a turbulent storm, with Ruby forcefully opening a Void Portal, despite her body's protest. A small one opened, but only big enough to fit a baseball.

Then her former Origin, Darkness, staggered forward. Those red eyes narrowed as if recognizing the effort. She put a hand on Ruby's chest and the Portal flared much wider.

On the other side, Yog-Sothoth stepped closer to Blair and helped her up. She flinchedat the touch, but the chains were broken just enough for the four of them to tumble through Ruby's unstable portal.

Behind them, UMI simply raised her hand. The guards had lowered their weapons on cue. Her voice was calm and almost dismissive. Let them flee. What has been undone cannot be reversed."

Ruby's void swallowed the four of them whole, spitting them out onto some unknown grassy plains, they were back on Remnant.

Ruby laughed hard, finally removing the broken Solium chains. "See, nothing a lil' field trip couldn't fix."

Blair rolled onto her back, still scowling but exhausted. "Shut it clown. Next time, you're the one carrying me."

Darkness and Yog-Sothoth stood nearby. They were just as unsteady, but unlike the two Vacosians, they had recovered far quicker.

And for the first time, all four shared the same horizon and none of them looked read for what came next.

Darkness steadied herself, deciding to sit down on the ground as well. The eyes glowed as she looked at Ruby and then at Blair. "So this is separation. It feels wrong and empty." Not the same kind of feeling that came with nonexistence.

Yog-Sothoth for her parts did the same, but unlike Darkness, her tone was a bit more emotive, not quite as cold and cracked at the edges. "I don't think we were meant to walk apart. I see it and I feel it, yet here we are."

Ruby, flat on her back, lifted a weak hand and gave a thumbs-up. “Welcome to the club, Yoggy. Membership includes chronic disappointment.”

Blair rolled her eyes, then forced her gaze up at the other selves of them. “Darkness. Yog-Sothoth. This is unprecedented even for us. We'll have to see how to proceed."

Darkness tilted its head, unblinking. “But without you…we are incomplete.”

Yog-Sothoth glanced toward Blair, its voice carrying the weight of inevitability even in exhaustion. “Existence bends to its vessel. Nonexistence too. If we are to remain, we must remain...with you.”

For once, Blair didn’t have a cutting retort ready. She simply exhaled through her nose, sharp but tired, and pushed herself to sit upright.

Ruby smirked, blood still on her lip. “Guess that makes us a team of four, B. Hope you’re ready to babysit.”