The Infiniti Council - Chapter 2: The Monster Awakens

[Nathan Saniti]

The Infiniti Council: Chapter Two - The Monster Awakens

"If I told you what I was
Would you turn your back on me?
And if I seem dangerous
Would you be scared?
I get the feeling just because
Everything I touch isn't dark enough
If this problem lies in me

I'm only a man with a candle to guide me
I'm taking a stand to escape what's inside me
A monster, a monster
I've turned into a monster
A monster, a monster
And it keeps getting stronger"

- Lyrics from Imagine Dragons' "Monster"

"Everything!" Nathan screamed at the top of his lungs in the middle of the forest. The normally calm and calming atmosphere erupted in frightened squawks, birds of a feather flocking each other into full retreat mode. "The Black Hand have taken my everything, my everyone, my everywhence!" He desperately wish he had a kitten to kick at this very moment. That was the level of villainy his adversaries had lead him to. Or at least that was how it seemed to the fiery haired magician.

"Stop your whining, you insipid twit." His black hair flowed menacingly in the wind as he straightened his tie.

"First, they pitted me against my beloved by bringing her into their fold. They lead me to unleash the group of allies I collected. Then they defeat us at nearly every turn. Now, even the so-called 'Faithful' have aligned themselves with the Black Hand." His yellow-green eyes glowered at no one and nothing in particular in the seclusion of the forest.

"Everyone loves a winner." His black eyes gleamed with malice in accompaniment to his jibes. "You should try it some time. Preferably soon, before you become irrelevant." The voice inside Nathan's head spat its venom, amusing itself with the cold reaction it brought forth in its host.

"We still have Miss Starr" Nathan tried to console himself aloud.

"Yes, because every modern girl wants a man who doesn't touch her, refers to her in the manner reserved for a matriarch, and shows the sexual interest of a eunuch. Good thing you have this whole dating thing down pat." Sarcasm dripped from the maddening voice like syrup on a stack of pancakes.

"You're merely a voice in my head," ordered Nathan, his untamable orange brows furrowed in protest.

"Not anymore," smirked the black browed man standing in Nathan's place. "I've been unleashed upon the world. Michael Wryght got a taste of what I - this me - could do. The Sea Men..."

"...Still an unfortunate name," joked the red-haired man inside his head with an impish chuckle.

"...Infant," scolded the tyrant in his place. "Wasp and High Tide shall be the next to experience their nightmares. Afterwards, I shall crucify the men who dare to call themselves 'Saints.'"

"Miss Starr..."

"Kelli," corrected the malefactor controlling his body. "Her name is Kelli, you prim and proper putz."

"Miss Starr," began Nathan in defiance, "would never allow it."

"Then perhaps I'll nail her, too." Now it was N. Saniti's turn to giggle like a preteen at his humor. He dusted off his long, black coat, slinging it onto his body with the flair of a showman, buttoning only the middle buttons as he straightened his lace cuffs.

He strode out of the forest, making a beeline for the Pure Class Arena. Trailing behind him, the fallen canvas of leaves on the forest floor erupted into flames, scorching a perfect path where he had been. Any living creature unfortunate enough to stumble onto the path, even after the flames had gone out, shriveled away to the dust from which they came. "PCW - all of it - shall burn for its insolent behavior. I am the match, and their horrific dreams are the fuel. It's ordained. I shall ascend to the top where you failed miserably, and woe to anyone in my path."

*******

Grigori Rasputin, Naomi Saniti, and Fate resolved themselves as they entered the halls of the Infiniti Council. Even the immortal, and semi-omniscient, Fate himself couldn't know what to expect from the gathering of demi-mortals. Rasputin and Naomi hadn't been to the council in eons, it seemed. They had estranged themselves and gone their separate destinies after the French Revolution.

"Ready?" inquired Fate, his hand on the knob to the portal.

"If that bitch Marie is there, she'd best not say anything to me." Naomi took a defensive stance, unconsciously rubbing the area where her left leg ended and her prosthetic began. "Lucky rabbit's foot my ass."

"None of us knew you became Tarrant to console your brother, Naomi," interjected Grigori. "Had even I known, I'd have never turned my back on him. Then maybe this whole catastrophe could have been averted."

"Don't blame yourselves, you two," soothed Fate. "Even we immortals aren't granted that level of foresight. We can see the past as clear as day, but the future fogs up the further you look into it. those who attempt it for too long end up wearing their heads backwards for eternity."

"That's horrible!" exclaimed Naomi.

"Dante scribbled about it once as he was toured through purgatory," Fate mentioned nonchalantly, shrugging his shoulders. "It's a fate worse than death for those who cannot die. The present is barely perceivable and the future is lost. All they can do is dwell on the past."

"Speaking of dwelling on the past," sighed Rasputin. "Let's get this over with."

"Right," agreed Fate, twisting the tumblers free of their latch. A white light blinded them, washing over them like a blizzard until even their silhouettes were indiscernible from the luminescence.