(Preshow) Preshow Facility

[Gildarts]

 Mouth of the Hallway

The tactic of getting the squid creature to retreat out of fear, rather than force, specifically from the rivaled Illidan, had worked splendidly. Gildarts just hoped that Illidan didn’t pick up on the fact that he used that specific move which was very “hands off” for a reason. He had done it to protect the thing, hey, he wasn’t a bad guy after all, though it was likely not to forget Gildarts any time soon. The OP prime was just looking out for his own interests and didn’t want to see premature and senseless harm done to the squid, it had interrupted, but that didn’t merit a backslap, which is what Gildarts sensed was soon to occur if he hadn’t stepped up to the plate. Illidan was a pretty formidable foe. It was hard to calculate the darkest of thoughts that were forged by his mind, harder still for Gildarts to know which parts of the shadows he would act on.
 
Illidan tilted his head, as though impressed, Gildarts hadn’t even raised a hand, barely shown a fraction of his magical power and the creature had fallen to its sniveling knees. His magic, though it was the color of light, was far from good. That there, was something the two magic-wielders had in common. It seemed the human was quite popular. He’d attracted quite the attention from a few other primes, one, Dust, had lingered with his eyes near, the other had initially announced itself as Tearen and later returned as Nealaphh, it wanted a word with the Prime and despite its amicable form was far from human by Illidan's sense, the dark elf had barely to exercise his power to uncover that it wasn’t a normal human like the rest of the cockroaches crawling around the room.
 
As luck would have it, Gildarts was much more responsive when he heard the vague shout of his name, and then again, when he heard it was from the semblance of a being that claimed to be another which he had a knowledge and encounter of. The Strongest Prime blinked as the blurred memories came to mind, but nothing quite specific yet, Gildarts was a visual kind of guy.
 
Illidan seemed to permit Gildarts from leaving unscathed, only because the standoff was announced over the second the little creature had rightfully scurried away on its knees. Triumph and victory were cause for mutual liberation.
 
Gildarts took a couple paces with the god-mind and waited curiously for an explanation, “Hm, you don’t look like him?” the mage was dialing himself back down, going through the necessary steps to realign his mind with the right locks and keys, to keep the maddening power in… Perhaps some of the keys didn’t fit in the locks any longer, Tearen’s suspicion continued to grow that something was off about the mage and it was more than the usual antics of the prime's vaulted mind.
 
Tearen projected the image of the three glowing green eyes, the plural side caused the odd one to stain the man’s charcoal cheek, the spectacular coruscating emerald light leached into Gildarts’ unstable mind and allowed for the image to seep in. The wizard blinked, he’d seen it before, of course he’d recognized it, no matter how forgetful or how many memories he’d kept under lock and key, this one was more important and had been reinforced twice. Ol’ three eyes was back again and Gildarts resurrected the memories with more effort than it would’ve taken to resurrect the dead.
 
It was the three-eyed demon he’d fought in the land of sand, as well as the one whom he had helped try to slay the dragon, his first legion had failed, but Nealaphh’s second strike had been able to pull it off. Dragons, such a bitter thought… It was no more. Ah yes, and in the strange blackhole they’d been sucked into, that was something of a bitter failure too. He’d had too long of a losing streak and the consequence was beginning to weigh on him. He felt the metallic burden of his inorganic arm heavier than normal. Suddenly, the solid ground beneath the wizard split, as though from dense gravity weighing on it.
 
It appeared that his magic was fluctuating, the wizard’s feet condensed the ground beneath him and Tearen braced himself for a suspected battle, it could’ve been that the mage wanted a rematch here and now… The god-mind was intrigued but hesitant, it took a singular step back, while the calculations filed into his mind about how he would stop the oncoming threat, if it became out of control. His theory had been proven correct, Gildarts was on the ropes. Sanity steadily slipping away like grains of sand in an hourglass. Perhaps it was the man's eventual fate, as each grain of sand took its course into the vortex of no return. Sand ground to dust by his very magic.
 
The wizard would be a threat that the god-mind would eventually need to take out, but for now, he would continue observing, collecting data in the processor of his powerful engine of a mind. It seemed, however, that Gildarts wasn’t even aware of the release of magic, or, that he was playing off as though he still had control. Nealaphh looked closer at the man he may eventually have to purge, perhaps he’d be more fearful than Diablo if his power was allowed to grow to its complete limits, however, Diablo currently was more of a threat than this already-defeated insanity case. Today the god-mind was here to make friends. Or so it was meant to be presumed.
 
“So… You remember?” Tearen said, a hint of mocking challenge in his voice, or perhaps that was just another layer of Gil's hallucinations. The god-mind’s eyes fell back to Gildarts’ feet, the cracks in the ground hadn’t grown, “We both know Guu and we rallied together to fight against that dragon…?”
 
He’s inside your head… Better batten down the hatches. A female voice crept in, Tearen’s eyes widened, shock clattered into his god-mind, for the mind before him was still Gildarts, so whose voice...? Want me to show him out? she spoke with layers upon layers of seduction, it was rasping as the chords of an inanimate voice strung together like the music of a violin.
 
Cut to the chase, Gildarts thought sternly, attempting to dampen the female. Nealaphh couldn’t find the source of her though, nor a residing power, only a residual echo, like a long-forgotten phantom. Gildarts had last time brought an… Essence to the battle in Ashen, united to slay their common goal. Nealaphh had done some research on what it could have been but had never gotten the chance to ask.
 
Now was better a time than before. Oh? And just who is this I’m speaking to? It certainly couldn’t be the Malefactor, parasite to the prime’s mind, it felt like she had been exterminated or exorcised like the devil it was. Apparently, something had gone wrong in the ceremony, a misspoken word, a missed wire that was meant to be snipped. An error. No surprise, considering how distracted this specific prime tended to get.
 
Why hello, pleasure to meet you.. and you are? Tearen yes? It said defiantly, Gildarts felt sick to his stomach. She wasn’t supposed to be here, it had to be a hallucination, some sort of withdrawal effect, the curse was still in place, even though she’d been removed. How could this be? The longer he had allowed her a home in his mind, the stronger grip she’d have upon him. Are you making friends, Gildarts?
 
“Actually, that’s rather on topic, I think it would be in our best interests if we steered clear of each other, we are friends, after all.” And indeed, what a tangled, complicated friendship this was. The god-mind continued, his form, human now, was rather strange for Gildarts to juggle, lots of change, much to keep track of for a man with so many distractions. “I like your friends, and you might like mine.”
 
Crunch! The ground before him struggled under the dense gravity that had been released, Gildarts looked less than phased by the exceptional release of his power and Tearen nonchalantly continued his fierce, fearless gaze.
 
Gildarts' power unfolded as though ticking down to an eventual detonation, Tearen observed, he only had to wait for the Prime’s agreement, then, he could be onto other, more productive things.
 
“It’s not in there, is it?” Tearen presumed about the Malefactor.
 
“Nope,” Gildarts confirmed sternly. His guard was up, his words censored, his mind remained cautious as though a form of armor had been deployed, probably why his magic had gotten a little out of hand, or rather, underfoot.
 
Hmm, I’m right here Gildarts? Don’t you hear my voice? See, look at this one, what’d he say his name was? He looks like a good potential suitor for me, mind if we exchange numbers? the female laughed abrasively in Gil’s mind.
 
Gildarts thought everything through. The Malefactor was back? Nealaphh… Who was also Tearen wanted to make an exception with him? Likely monopolize the participants and breed battle until his forces were the only survivors. There was power in war, even small ones like this that were waged. So, is Diablo really back? Miss Mal asked, it seemed someone other than Gildarts had been paying attention, he’d heard it on a subconscious level and his mind had passively dismissed it, but now Neal's words had returned and the wizard recalled Tearen had been the one to make this announcement.
 
The red-haired man wasn’t sure how two people could become one, but it had happened before, some people changed names to escape their past, others created masked secret identities in order to be heroes or villains. So just which of the two was he looking at now?
 
He was never gone, miss. Tearen responded telepathically. We may need to rally the forces again, for old times sake. I’m keeping tabs on the situation.
 
Unite the masses with a common fear, rally the forces to win. It was a game, Nealaphh could do as he pleased. It was no consequence to him, though the god-mind had requested if not his allegiance, then his inaction. Gildarts hadn’t confirmed nor denied it. Gildarts wasn’t here to play as the others were.
 
“Always keeping your eyes on the prize?” Gildarts offered a half-smile to his ambitious… Person (?). He kept his words intentionally undefined.
 
So, how are you still in there if you were so forcefully removed? It wasn’t unlike Tearen to pry. He proposed this question to the Malefactor’s whisper of a voice.
 
Who, me? Hehe, look at all this attention, the kind you never give me, Gildarts. Maybe I’ll swap hosts after all. Well Tearen, to answer your question, I was forcefully removed after Gildarts trapped me in his poisonous prison of a mind, you should see that thing! It’s a bunch of doors that lead to no-where! And-
 
The female’s voice was revealing too much. Weaknesses of his that should not be tampered with. Shadows that should never see the light. Gildarts released a low growl of warning.
 
Hah, look, he thinks he can control me. I’m not even here Gil, I’m just a figment… I come and go as I please and in the form of an unstoppable curse, I have much more power now than I ever did before. I’m a danger and there’s nothing either you, or this finely suited gentleman can do about it. As stunning as he is, I don’t serve him. Though, someday I might be tempted to. the woman’s voice finalized, her low-tone very threatening and conclusive. Gildarts let his lips form into a frown.
 
“Sounds like you’ve got quite the pest problem in there,” Tearen held back a smirk. “I can try to help out with that, maybe after? Now is not the time or place for an extermination. But it might be feasible given my particular set of skill, for an extraction to be made. Time's ticking.”
 
There it was. The proposition. Culminated by clever thought and a conniving wit. The mage felt his mood dampen because he was helpless to save himself, he could only keep the illusion of control for so long. Between he and Nealaphh, it was now agree, or sayonara and good luck in the future! Plus, whatever this Diablo creature was didn’t sound very friendly. Gildarts preferred to build bridges than to burn them. Even if it meant uniting with someone he had a complicated past with.
 
“See you in the first round? Or rather...” Tearen prodded again letting his voice fall into an uncompleted trail. Gildarts looked to the side and woefully nodded. The God-mind smirked, feeling the fresh rush of victory surge through his form. He strut off, the heels of his finely polished shoes clacking against the scraps of rubble the wizard had created with his magic before Tearen had been eaten by the crowd once more.
 
How are you still here in my head? I had you removed, then you go and tell him I haven’t got a grip on reality? Gods… Gil was just a little frustrated, It was you then, who made the room covered in blood and full of people who appeared to be dead?
 
Oh how flattering, you know me soooo well. Gosh, a gal has to make big strokes like that to get your attention, look, it’s amazing I’m in two places at once, haunting your girlfriend and you! Remember how she has telepathy or whatever? Yeah, I’ll give her some nightmares tonight, maybe even prey on her worst fears. Make them seem so real that she will be forever miserable in her mortal life. The Malefactor cackled.
 
You witch… Gildarts snarled.
 
Hah! This is proof I can still push your buttons, you were always so protective of the innocent, not to mention, your family. Too bad they are all dead. Dead! I’ll show you how the rest of Fairy Tail died when you weren’t around to save them, pretty sure I can speculate pretty well. So, unless you want me to do naughty things to your girlfriend, I suggest you get on your knees. The Malefactor was savoring every second of her haunt.
 
Gildarts of course, would refuse, there was no evidence to show the Malefactor was out of her cage and free, nor that it would have the ability to go after the princess through the metal walls of the vault. However, she’d created that fear and doubt. And that was enough.
 
…
 
The Prime looked down after feeling a strange itch tingle his steel arm only to see that he had two hands again. A momentary double-take had him guessing about the deception of the bitter image his own eyes had woven. Two large hands both covered in flesh and real olive-toned skin. His hands. It was less believable than the room of death he thought himself to see a few moments prior. But this… This was unreal and completely unbelievable. Another hallucination, surely.
 
Just what was happening to him? How could this be? And really, was it even real? He wiggled his fingers on both hands and they danced before he solidified them into a pair of dense fists. His knuckles were white with tightness and he felt with both hands again for the first time for years. He then felt his mind grow slack with horror when he heard her voice again in the once place it shouldn’t be: His mind.
 
Tearen had treated her as very real, but it wasn't possible. One of the god-mind's tricks, surely. This had to have been from a lack of sleep, or simply just too much travel beating on his body. Little did the Prime know, he had a lot to learn about items of this world, their abilities, and the myriad of effects they could have on Primes once they were removed. Like a drug, they could curse, cause hallucinations and withdrawals, as well as do things he had never allowed her to do when she was inhabiting him. Now more than ever she had a most startling power over him, one he could not prepare for. The unknown.
 
The parasite didn’t have that power over him, and never would unless he granted it to her… Right? The thin thread of doubt squeaked in his mind and the wizard feared the images behind his eyes becoming real and was realizing that the Malefactor’s curse was unending on its host. Hallucination or reality, it was hard to tell the difference when all the Malefactor had ever been to him was a voice in his mind. What if it never had spoken in the first place and he’d only ever imagined it. The idea was daunting and he couldn’t prove it wrong, only that Guu had once or twice heard it too. Nealaphh had played along, for his own virtue, likely. Imagination was a powerful thing though and voices were easily imitated.
 
Before Gildarts, his two hands of flesh loitered. Both pulsing with blood at the acceleration his heart had pumped with new vigor. He tried to blink the image of his hands away but it wouldn’t stick, same with the idea that he had ever been free of her in the first place.
 
The Malefactor’s voice seemed to smile as she said with a seductive rasping, Gildarts… Great and powerful Prime. You cannot be done with me that easily. I'm not a book you can merely close if you don't want to remember the last chapter. I’m still here with you… The female’s tongue clicked in her hollow mouth as though she were knocking at his mind’s door, Clock! Clock!
 
Gildarts blinked, a helpless witness to the assault on his own mind. It was sickening and his stomach swayed with nausea like he was lost at sea.
 
I know you and Tearen heard me before, there's no forgetting it, even for a man as forgetful as you. Now, onto more important matters… What if I told you… I could bring back your lost arm and leg?