127 Vita, The Power Of Life (4)

"Vita: Rebirth."

Magic power filled my veins rapidly, and the dark, damp coffin that besieged me on all sides soon turned into a mystical wonderland. The depressing atmosphere of the sealed coffin soon turned into a verdant symphony of light and wonder.

Wisps of emerald energy surrounded my body, and the refreshing aroma of life replaced the dreadful stench of death. At that moment, I saw the various wails and cries of the damned had turned into a beautiful chorus of song.

Opening my 'eyes', I found myself transported to a beautiful meadow, one much like my childhood home. The temperature was mild and cool, befitting that of late Autumn. The trees were starting to wilt, with the rustling of leaves being heard in the distance. Some of the leaves were scorched orange, while others possessed pure, molten gold colours. Yet, all of them danced with the wind, joyfully running down to the most striking feature of this hypnotic place.

The Emerald River.

A river that flowed with pure liquid light. Numerous wisps of light circled around the ethereal River, with a flowing mist rising from the depths of the seemingly, never-ending water body. Just looking down at the River, I could see an ephemeral flow of light, one that dissipates should it be removed from the ever-flowing River.

It was all so mysterious, and yet... So warm.

As I approached the mystical wonder, a plethora of emotions soon overwhelmed my soul.

Agony... Joy... Laughter... Bliss...

I had no idea where those emotions came from, and none belonged to my soul. Yet, I felt a certain sense of responsibility and entitlement when faced with those odd emotions. I closed my eyes and focused magic power on my 'vision.' And sure enough...

"Mommy... It's warm."

"T-The pain?! It's gone?!"

"W-What happened?"

Those emotions and faceless wisps turned into resonant voices that echoed within my mind. There wasn't anyone else with me in this world, and yet... I could hear thousands. Each one of them possessed a unique tone and sound. Some sounded like they belonged in the past century, and others were as youthful as a baby. Yet, they all had one thing in common.

Confusion and relief.

"Mister... Were you the one who saved us?"

Soon, the vast majority of the voices turned their attention to me. Although I couldn't see any of their faces, I knew by instinct which one of the wisps had talked to me and their underlying emotions.

"Saved? Did I save you?"

"Yes!" Another wisp answered with glee. "We were trapped in a whirlpool of death and suffering. It felt like we were forced to live through hell over and over! But... When you cast that magic spell, we were brought here!"

That spell... Actually brought those souls of the damned here? I'd only wanted to test my theory, but it actually affected the souls that the Bloodborne House sacrificed? Wait a minute...

"Brought here? Wait, how do you guys feel now?"

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"We feel great!" One of the wisps replied, this time with even more joy in its voice. "The vortex of anguish we were in... It felt horrendous and painful. If we had to live through that despair for the rest of eternity, we would have lost everything that we are. But now..."

"Everything is so pretty!" A child-like wisp said merrily.

"Yeah... Pretty and warm..." A motherly voice chuckled.

"Yes... It feels like... We were always meant to come here." A rugged manly sound beamed.

"It feels like... Coming home. It feels so comforting... It feels... so warm..."

"The River... It's calling us."

"We're being drawn to it."

"It's a law of nature."

"It's where... we're supposed to go."

Voices from all over chimed in, each with its own unique flair and sound. But they all had the same answer. This Emerald River... It was the well of souls, the faucet of life, the ever-flowing liquid that gave life beauty.

I see...

This Emerald River... It was the River of Life.

The place where all souls come to rest when they pass. The place where all life was formed. The eternal flow of the samsara, where life and death existed in a cycle.

This was the aftermath of my Vita spell.

Unknowingly, I've brought all of the souls that the Bloodborne House had sacrificed to their rightful place in nature. I had brought them peace, a peace that was ripped so viciously away from them when they were sacrificed for the resurrection of the Progenitor.

Speaking of which...

I looked over my shoulders at the far most corner of the meadow.

A dark mass of grime and death was parked in the shadows, and not once did it dare to step into the Emerald light of the River. Through its groans and roars, I could hear the remains of a man, no, should I say a former monstrosity. Blood dripped down from its sloppy mess and stained the grassy meadows. Though, as if in fear, not a single ounce of its blood flowed into the River.

Each drop of blood returned to the dark mass, further corrupting its grimy and disgusting self.

And as I peeked into the corrupted blob with my 'vision,' I realised a startling fact...

The life form within... Was soulless. No, to say that it was soulless would be a stretch. Its soul was forever broken, unable to return to the Emerald River and unable to escape into the outer world. There were no thoughts from the life form, and neither were there any signs of life.

It was just... a corrupted existence that didn't belong anywhere.

Was this... The Ancestor that the Bloodborne House was hoping for?

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Did the Vampire Progenitor's quest for eternal life leave him in this wretched state?

What a joke.

To think that the Bloodborne House was fighting a futile war this whole time. There was a reason why resurrections were considered forbidden magic. Once a soul returned to the River of Life, there was no coming back. Like a blender that mixed in everything that came into its grasp, the River of Life ripped all sense of individuality when a soul returned to it.

Vampires may cheat the system by gaining immortality and never face the consequences of dying; however, once one's soul has entered the River of Life, there is no going back.

Such is the law of nature. The law of Life.

This whole time, there was no possible method to resurrect the Progenitor. Even if they did finish the ritual, the spell would only summon a thoughtless monster whose goal was to rid itself of its eternal suffering.

"Mister... Thank you for saving us."

I turned back to the thousands of wisps that floated over the River. Some of them grew impatient and dipped themselves back into the eternal Well of Souls, never to return ever again. Others were confused, but they naturally found themselves drawn into the River. But a minute few were able to resist the urge, just because they had one more unfinished business.

"Thank you, son. You've given us peace."

"Huehuehue, if I had a granddaughter, I would introduce her to you, handsome lad."

"Big brother, thank you for saving me."

One by one, the souls thanked me before finally passing on into the vastness of the Emerald River. Funnily enough, even though there were thousands of souls around me, to the River of Life, they were nothing more than raindrops to be absorbed. Thousands, if not millions, of souls returned to the River and yet... Nothing changed.

At that moment, I felt how infinitely small one's soul was.

In the face of mother nature and universal laws, we were all grains of sand. No, we were just raindrops that couldn't affect the current of the River.

How ludicrous.

Here we are, fighting wars against each other. The Bloodborne House's thirst for power. The Shadowgarden House's desire to control the world from the shadows. The World Tree's desire to lead an eternal life. They were all futile in the face of the universal laws.

But there was one thing that I couldn't accept.

The fact that one day... Perhaps... My four lovers and I would return to this Emerald River, never to see each other ever again.

To forget everything that I'd gained. To never hold the ones I loved most and... To never feel the love of the four girls who were the most important to me.

That was unforgivable.

And so, in the face of the laws of nature... I spat.

My control over the power of Life gave me a unique perspective. There was a way. A way to be truly eternal. A way to never return to the Emerald River. And with my fourth ring... With my fourth power... I could attain it. The power that everyone lusted over.

To become... The master of all Life itself.

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It may take a million years, no, billions of years. But I can do it.

No, I will do it.

So that no one I love would ever suffer the same fate as those poor souls.

That journey will be long... And a journey begins with an essential first step.

Taking one moment to remember those that had passed, I relaxed my shoulders and made my way to the dark mass that lay quietly at the corner of the meadow. As I approached, the corrupted figure seemed unable to notice my intentions as it continued on its cycle of pain and agony.

What a poor soul... To think that the Bloodborne House would do this to their own Progenitor.

Let me relieve you of that pain, shall I?

With one simple tap, I burst open the corrupted dark mass. Endless amounts of corrupted dark energy seeped out from its form, revealing the years of torment it had endured. The tempest of energy continued for almost an hour straight until the entire meadow was filled with a darkened mist.

And as the energy settled down, the only thing that remained of the dark mass was a faint wisp of life. It was weak and fragile; if I just blew on it, the wisp might dissipate away like a flickering candle.

It might have been my imagination, but I could see a face within that small blob of energy. A look that was filled with relief and comfort. And before I could do anything else to it, the wisp dissipated into nothingness, returning to the Emerald River where it should have rested.

"... It is done."

Now, I have completely done it. I have foiled the Bloodborne House's plan for good.

There was no longer an Ancestor, a Progenitor, or a monster for them to summon. The souls that they had sacrificed had returned to the River of Life, and the 'creature' they wished to resurrect no longer existed.

The Bloodborne House was now finished.

But I never really did care for that.

Sabotaging the Bloodborne House's plan was ultimately my secondary objective. My main interest lay in the Emerald River and the new power of Life I had just awakened. But most importantly...

"With all this energy... I can be reborn anew. I can reforge my body and gain the powers of a True Progenitor."

The Bloodborne House had gathered thousands, if not millions, of sacrifices. While their souls had returned to the Emerald River, their magic power remained in the meadow. Not to mention, the corrupted energy of the false Progenitor was still all around me. Any ordinary Vampire would die of madness if they absorbed all of this corrupted magic power. But alas, I was no ordinary Vampire.

I had the power of Life on my side.

Raising my right hand into the sky, I channelled all of my magic power into my fourth ring. In response, all of the residue magic power turned into a vortex as they were sucked into the black hole of my gem.

The sacrifices the Bloodborne House had made. The vast amounts of resources they'd spent. The endless amounts of magic power they poured into this ritual.

I will take it all.

Hey, Bloodborne House.

If you want a Progenitor so badly...

I'll give you a Progenitor.