Officer Greene and the Lieutenant sat in the car in complete silence as they pulled away from The Place That Doesn't Exist, heading further within the Seraphu District. Wherever the Lieutenant was taking them, he wanted to get there quickly. This did little to ease Greene's concern, his mind clinging to the harrowing sight of the fate that befell Imperi. He could still hear the sounds of the Ethero Fiends' feeding frenzy accompanying the words of the blood-soaked man who sat alongside him.

  "Change is carved in blood, Greene."

  Greene cast a nervous look towards the Lieutenant then, noting the intensity with which he drove, his tight grip on the steering wheel and the focus in his expression.

  I'm not even sure what to call you. You've changed. It doesn't make any sense. What is it about Lucifer that's different? What's made you like this?

  'Whatever you're thinking, say it,' the Lieutenant said, his eyes not shifting from the road. 'We can't work together if we don't speak.'

  'Neither can we work together if we're withholding information from each other,' Greene countered, before annoyance arose from the response as it rushed out of his mouth. It had been a rare impulse, something his kind were never meant to do. While shame washed over Greene, the Lieutenant didn't respond immediately. He sighed before shaking his head. 'I was afraid of this,' he said. 'I didn't want to turn you against me.'

  'Yet you've lied to me,' Greene said, unable to keep the hurt from his voice. 'You kept that place a secret, alongside the fact you used to lead your kind. All this time, I thought your real name was Newman. What else are you keeping from me? Why are you no longer leader of the Hateful?'

  'It's a long story,' the Lieutenant muttered. This time, Greene maintained his gaze on him, refusing to look away. The Lieutenant sighed again, resigning himself.

  'Very well. My real name is Megidra, Megidra Dionysus. I was the leader of the Hateful. I've always struggled to relate to my kind. Except for a few, including my sister, I was born more able than most of them. I could think and act more human. The problem, as you know, is that humans despise us. They still believe we're cursed. I never believed that. We were nothing more than scapegoats for them, but I knew also that if anything was going to change, we needed to set aside our differences and work together. I wanted to unite our races, and hence save my own from its self-imposed purgatory.'

  'Self-imposed purgatory?' Greene questioned, while the Lieutenant turned the car into another warehouse without a security booth. Greene wondered what the Lieutenant was about to show him.

  'Do you really think that everything is humanity's fault, Greene?' the Lieutenant asked as he stopped the car. He switched off the ignition before turning to face Greene. 'Or, do we finally realise the role we've played in our own demise? Anyway, as I considered what to do next, I started hearing another voice talking to me, telling me what I needed to do in order to save our race. I was sceptical, but it kept showing me the same vision in my dreams. Deep in my heart, I knew it was speaking the truth. The problem was that I couldn't pursue it, not since I was the leader. I needed a reason to leave.'

  He smiled then, a reminiscing smile full of pain and regret. 'Soon enough, that reason came.'

  He stepped out of the car along with Greene, moving to walk towards the factory. After a few steps, the Lieutenant turned to him, his expression tired and somewhat despondent.

  'A human came to the Institute, and I made a great mistake that I've always regretted. I killed him.'

  'Why?'

  'Because he had fallen in love with my sister, while a part of me still despised humans. What you must understand is that it's not just humanity that's brought up to scorn us, it's also us that's brought up to scorn them. It's this hatred that I'm fighting against right now, Greene. My dream is to unite our races, fight against the philosophy based on us hating and blaming each other for the past. Lucifer Armedeus is a symptom of such a philosophy. His mission stands to undo the work I've done these past few years. He will only increase the hatred between the races.'

  Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  But both races hate you, Greene thought, not daring to utter such words. He nodded instead and followed the Lieutenant as he headed to the right side of the warehouse. They came to a door that was locked shut with a thick chain wrapped around its width, bolted together by a padlock.

  'What's in here?' Greene asked, watching as the Lieutenant lifted the lock with one hand and fumbled with his keys in the other.

  'My experiment with Barbatos,' the Lieutenant said, while Greene detected traces of regret in his tone. 'Part of the deal I made with him not long after we met. As you're aware, all Hateful share the same hair colour. To counter this and appear more human, I use a potion Barbatos created for me. Since he's a man who doesn't care about credits, I struck a deal with him. This…' he paused as he found the key, inserting it in the lock before regarding Greene.

  'Before you ask, yes, the Captain is aware. He just doesn't know of Barbatos and The Place That Doesn't Exist. Once my sister banished me from my home, he was the first human I came upon. I told him about my dream and he offered me the opportunity I’d been looking for. Course, I hadn't known he was the leader of the DFA, but I didn't even hesitate when he offered for me to join, to lead what would become our Hateful Division. What you're about to see is the next stage of that, the next step towards my dream.'

  Greene said nothing, feeling a sense of dread. The chain fell to the floor, clinking as each link struck the metal surface. The Lieutenant then opened the door and walked inside, leaving Greene to watch him as he seemed to become enveloped in complete darkness. Pausing for a moment, Greene contemplated whether he wished to follow his fellow agent now, as though he were about to reach a point of no return. Yet, there was a grim sense of curiosity that urged him forward. This curiosity somehow moved his feet, stepping into the darkness.

  Why do I feel like I'm making a great mistake?

  There was a faint human-shaped outline ahead; the Lieutenant, he guessed. Greene's eyes adjusted and more details emerged, revealing an elevated platform with a single console. It possessed two flanking large metal staircases that led somewhere he couldn't see. Beyond that, he could hear a constant thrumming and bubbling, as though there were a giant fish tank somewhere within. Greene took another couple of steps forward, glancing towards the wide expanse, revealing what looked like rows upon rows of cylindrical containers. They possessed rounded tops and glass mid-sections, in which a light blue liquid bubbled, illuminating everything around them.

  'What are they?' Greene asked, doubting he would get an answer. At first, the Lieutenant was impassive, unblinking as he regarded the tanks.

  'Proof that Lucifer's dream is a lie,' he said. 'Or, proof that mine is the lie. It is my dream against his. Either he holds the key to saving our race, or I do. Everything I've done, I've done knowing that it was for my race, regardless of whether they hate me. That is my sacrifice, Greene, the price I'm willing to pay in order to make my dream a reality. I cannot allow Lucifer to succeed. This cannot be for nothing.'

  He stepped towards the console on the platform, pressing a few buttons as sounds of hissing emerged from them, followed by the release of pressure before locks unbolted. Greene watched as three tanks opened below, revealing liquid-filled chambers that continued to bubble. Long arms and hands emerged and clutched the edge of the tanks, while creatures of unspeakable horror emerged from within them. Greene, shocked beyond belief, backed away.

  'I'm sorry, Greene. I'll call you when this is done,' the Lieutenant said regretfully, before the air between them was filled with the horrifying sounds of gargled shrieks.