Truth Beneath the Skin

Luna's gaze was furious as she stared at Leo, no Mors who was smugly smirking back at her. 

"So you are saying we need to become gods? How the fuck do we do that.." 

She was furious. One of Leo's eyes had a blackened sclera and an amber pupil, while the other remained a brilliant emerald green She wanted nothing more than to throttle Mors but all it would do is hurt her brother. 

Lily noticed that the eyes weren't moving in-sync. There was panic in the green eye. Leo was still conscious!

"This…is not …what I…meant…you crazy…bastard" 

Leo's voice was soft and labored; he could feel a strain on his brain from Mor's asserting his presence. 

It was like there was a solid wall pressing against his thoughts, suffocating his ability to act freely. Every word was a struggle, forced through sheer willpower.

Mors merely chuckled, his stolen half of Leo's face stretching into a twisted grin. 

"Oh, come now, Boss~ Don't be so dramatic. I'm just taking this body for a little test drive~"

Luna slammed her hands onto the table, her fury boiling over.

 "Get out of him. Now!"

Mors tilted Leo's head, giving her an exaggerated look of amusement. 

"Oh my~! you wound me dear sister!. I'm just here to help~"

Lily clenched her fists. 

"If this is your idea of help, then I'd hate to see what you do to your enemies."

"He…eats.. Them"

Luna and Lily's eyes opened wide at Leo's unexpected commentary. On top of that Mors made no attempts to deny it made him seem all the more terrifying. 

Nyx, who had been observing with narrowed eyes, suddenly spoke up. 

"You still haven't answered the question ya creepy parasite. If fighting the Church means going against Fate itself, then how do we stand a chance?"

Mors hummed, tapping a finger against Leo's temple with deliberate amusement.

"You have to think smart Chimpette~! As long as you don't get close to a HIgh Priest, you should have some time to get stronger~" 

Luna scoffed, unimpressed. "And what happens when we do run into one?"

Half of Leo's face broke into a wide grin, teeth flashing like a lion baring its fangs. 

"Then you pray, little sister~ Pray that you're strong enough to kill them before they 'enforce' fate: Your Death and Destruction."

A chill settled over the room.

Nyx clicked her tongue, crossing her arms.

 "So, avoid the freaky fate priests, get stronger, and… what? Magically reach a level where we can flip the script?"

Mors chuckled.

 "Oh, I like you. You catch on quick." 

His tone dripped with amusement

"This bitch…"

Nyx muttered a curse under her breath, her glare sharpening.

"You…really have a …way with… women"

Leo could feel his heartbeat quickening, Mor's could escape from this if he relinquished control but he could not. 

Mors just laughed, seemingly delighted by the hostility.

 "I'm just here to give friendly advice, and yet everyone treats me like some sort of villain." 

He sighed dramatically. 

"So ungrateful."

The bloodlust of three women surged as they glared bloody murder at Mors while Leo was left with a cold sweat. 

"Get…back…on Topic!" 

He softly begged, terrified the girls would beat him up if Mors didn't get to the point. 

"Fine~! As you wish Boss….you don't just need strength. You need knowledge…and Soul Weapons."

Leo, still straining against Mors's grip, managed to choke out

"And… let me guess… you just so happen to know something useful?"

Mors voice was practically purring in delight as he responded

 "Why, of course, Boss~! And So do you in fact~!"

"I..do?!"

"My sister has a skill you have yet to use, no?"

Luna tilted her head confused. 

"I have something like that?"

Mor's amber eye rolled as he snapped back

"No I didn't say you ya Dumb Bunny! My sister, Astra" 

"What are you talking about? What does Astra have to do with anything here"

Lily tilted her head at Mors' words, curious but still annoyed with his word choice. 

"If I represent Death..Astra represents Life. She can create Egos for Soul Weapons."

Nyx scoffed as she asked 

"So you're telling us that this 'Astra' can create weapons that are alive?"

"Right again. You really are a smart Chimpette~"

Nyx clenched her fist in response. 

'Mors you idiot, you are going to get me killed!'

Luna grit her teeth before snarling. 

"Enough with the mockery you cocky lil parasite. What. Are. You. Talk.ing. A.bout?"

Each syllable was said slowly and distinctly, everyone could feel Luna's rage bubbling just beneath her very displeased expression. 

Mors' expression faltered for a brief moment as he felt Leo's heart skip a beat. Was she really that scary? 

Even still, he refused to back down and his smug smirk grew into a defiant smile. 

"Astra has a skill called Ego Creation.It lets dull, lifeless scraps pretend to be something worthwhile. A broken stick gets to be a sword, and a decent sword might dream of being something useful~!"

"Gods…you are...Arrogant"

"Not at all Boss. I am just confident~!" 

Lily tapped the table as she asked the one question that had been bugging her. 

"So where is Astra now? I know that she is an ego like this one but Leo hasn't mentioned her in a bit. Is she okay?"

Mors cocked his head and sneered.

"She is sleeping now after using her ability to preserve our dear boss. I don't know where you guys went but in that short time you disappeared, Our dear Boss' soul was unraveling like a poorly-stitched rag~! Tsk Tsk~"

Luna was agitated as she slammed her own hands onto the table. 

"Tch! You're talking like souls are fabric—like they can just tear apart! That's bullshit! We don't even have proof that such a thing exists!"

Lily moved to place her hand on Luna's shoulder in an attempt to be reassuring and to calm her down. Yet she didn't say a word as she did agree with Luna to a degree. They had no proof souls existed. 

"Oh of course it exists. I mean was it not the Boss having a body that was incompatible with his soul that he was left on the verge of death for so long~?"

The silence that followed was deafening as the girls and even Leo himself reeled from the unprecedented reveal. 

'My body wasn't the problem… my soul was?!'