Chapter Text
Blood filled the SM-13, the sickly thick liquid clinging to Simon, writhing like it’s alive, trying to drag him down into the depths of the blood ocean. The iron walls of the submarine screamed and groaned as Simon rammed it into the monster that’s trying to stop him from sharing the truth about this horrible fucking place. If Simon had to die right here and now, like this, in the jaws of such a monster, he wasn’t going to let his efforts go to waste. Humanity may be worthless in the vastness of the universe, but it’s not worthless to him. Not anymore. What remains of human life needs to know the truth. The truth about the blood ocean. The truth about The Light. The truth about the SM-8, what happened to the scientists within, and what they have become. The truth about the ignorant God in the Red Void. The truth about the Quiet Rapture. If there was a sliver of chance that this information could help the people who remain, Simon is willing to take it.
The blood within the ship sprung to life as bloody tendrils, grabbing Simon’s arms with a voracious hunger, trying to consume him. In the process of trying to free himself, Simon had to rip an arm off. Letting out a roar of pain, he watches in horror as his arm is absorbed by the blood tendrils. But now is hardly the time to dwell on that. The truth had to get out. No matter what. Finally the walls crumpled and pried away as the SM-13 succumbed to the wrath of the blood eel and the writhing blood within. The monster peers inside at the mess of a half-dead man inside, jaws parted, ready to feast. The convict stared back at it defiantly, breathing ruggedly as he drew himself up. Simon may not be escaping this, but the information sure is. The black box is wrapped in a life saver, letting the blood carry it away to the surface. The blood eel is too focused on him to notice this, the insignificant looking container blending in with the rest of the wreckage of the SM-13. As the blood eel lunges at Simon, the man lets out a guttural scream of rage? Triumph? Terror? He wasn’t entirely sure. But his scream could be heard above the voices of billions of human consciousness trapped within the blood ocean. Just as the blood eel sunk its fangs into Simon’s blood slicked flesh, an all blinding light emits from Tree Seed Pendant, consuming the convict before the blood eel could.
When the light fades, the blood eel and ocean are no longer there. The convict gasps as he’s transported into what appears to be a nebula. He whips around, eyes wide as he takes in his surroundings, whole body tense from the sudden change in… everything. Cosmic dust swirls around him and he can somehow feel its gentle touch through the layers of blood he’s coated in. After being trapped in a dark, cramped iron box for God knows how long, the open, colorful space is almost too much for Simon. Hues of blue, purple, magenta, orange, and yellow ebb and flow in the vast space like watercolors that have been carelessly spilled onto a sheet of paper. Amongst the cosmic dust, lights of various sizes nest with the clouds. Not just any light. The light of stars. Stars. Here, right before him, newly forming balls of light and hope. How is this possible? Simon thought. Where am I? I have to be dead… The convict comes to the realization that this isn’t just any nebula, it’s a star nursery. A special corner of space where stars are born. But this can’t be possible… the Quiet Rapture claimed all the stars… All the stars are supposed to be fucking gone. Yet… here they are. Being BORN.
Simon… calls out a gentle voice, sounding from everywhere and nowhere.
“What..? Who said that?!” Simon calls out, twisting his body around to see if he can locate the source of the voice, ready to attack if needed.
But the second those words left his mouth, he recognized the voice. How could he not? The voice of his mother is calling to him from the cosmos. He must be dead and this is the afterlife or some hellish trick of the blood eel and ocean… His mother died years ago. This isn’t possible. Yet… a small part of him hoped, yearned, that it really is his mother. After everything that went down on the SM-13, he couldn’t push this hope down. Maybe his freedom is within the afterlife… Maybe his mother is here to save him…
“Please tell me that… that this nightmare is really over…” he chokes out, cringing at the feeling of his forming tears mixing with the blood on his face.
It’s all over, Simon… I’m so sorry for everything you’ve been through. No one should have faced what you did, but you braved through it all… gave our people a fighting chance, and I could never be more proud of you for that.
Simon bites back a sob at her words. The last time he ever heard her voice was when he was a boy. Before he became a monster. Before he became The Butcher. How could she be proud of that? He’s claimed too many lives, their blood forever staining his hands. That’s a sin that can never be forgiven. And on top of that, all he has are broken, fuzzy memories of his mother. He can’t even remember her face. But what never ever left him was her gentle warm presence and the sound of her voice. He could never forget her voice.
Now you shall start anew in an alternate universe. The stars there are dying and they need your help, Simon. In this universe you will find Grace and peace. This will be your Freedom. This opportunity has been long overdue for you, my son…
“But… But I don’t deserve this…!! I’ve done too many horrible things. Just let me die in the blood ocean, it’s what I deserve… And I’ve come to terms with that,” Simon mutters, staring down at his blood coated hand, brows furrowed.
You deserve a second chance, Simon. And you deserve forgiveness. From others and from yourself. You didn’t want to do the things you did. Saving the stars will earn you your forgiveness.
“But mom…!” he chokes out, the confusion of the situation finally catching him, stopping him mid sentence. What the fuck..? What.. the fuck!? Is he dead? He should be dead. He deserves to be dead. He finished his mission and his freedom is death. Not another chance. What the fuck is happening? Where the hell am I? How the fuck is ANY of this possible?! But there was no time to even remotely figure out what’s going on nor did he have the brain power to do so.
“I.. I love you…” is all he finally manages to say, sorrow clutching at his heart as he did so. He never thought he’d be able to say that to her again.
I love you too, Simon. More than you could possibly imagine. Now go, the fate of the stars rests on your shoulders.
With that, her voice fades away and the nebula starts to swirl around Simon until he is dizzy from the swirl of colors. Aside from the dizzying feeling, the sensation of the star dust surrounding him is oddly calming. Little wisps of dust caress his cheeks, bringing back vague memories of his mother kissing him as he fell asleep when he was small. Maybe these are kisses from his mother… The colors melt together and transform into a soft light. As soon as the light envelops him, Simon can feel himself falling. Slowly at first, the motion is almost relaxing. Nothing like the horrible falling sensation of sinking further and further into a sea of human blood. But the serenity quickly shifts to terror as he falls faster and faster, the blood covering him somehow staining the light red. His body feels blazing hot and freezing cold all at the same time. And it hurts like fucking hell.
Goddamnit!! I’m dead and this is some fucking purgatory created by the blood eel or some shit… Fucking great… Of course that wasn’t really my mother. How could I be so stupid to think so? Simon internally groaned, those being his last coherent thoughts. He can feel himself reaching impossible speeds yet somehow his body isn’t ripping apart. But it feels like it will at any given moment. No matter how hard he tries, he cannot move, he cannot scream. The need to scream builds pressure in his chest, his lungs burning against his ribs that felt as if they were to shatter at any moment. He needed to move, to somehow escape this. Yet all he can see is the blinding blood red light surrounding him. Move goddamnit!! Just move. Scream. Do fucking anything!!!
But no matter how hard he willed himself, he couldn’t move a muscle. Eventually he loses all sensation of his body, only left with the painful awareness of his rising panic in the sea of red light and the sensation of falling, falling, falling. He’d do anything to be back in that nebula again. To be near the existence of stars again. They were truly so beautiful and he didn’t even realize it at the moment. Now he misses them so damn much. Their bright, young glow. There they were, right in front of him, in the process of growing. He could have sworn they felt alive. So damn alive. Now he’s here, falling, falling, falling. Falling to nowhere.
Then something hard and jagged slams into his back. Searing hot pain shoots through his spine and the light around him vanishes. Finally he’s able to let out that scream that’s been trapped in his lungs for far too long. How long had he even been falling for? Did it even matter? Despite crashing into something, at least the light is gone and he’s no longer falling. Between coming in and out of consciousness, Simon can see the vastness of space before him. A vast space filled with stars. So many stars. So bright and beautiful. If he wasn’t paralyzed by pain, he’d reach out and try to grab one. Try to embrace its light. Just to prove it’s really there. That the stars are really back. Maybe his mother really did bring him his Freedom…
But then a large shape unidentifiable approaches, blocking out some of the stars. Simon tenses at the sight of this, causing another jolt of pain to coarse through him from the movement. Fuck, fuck, fuck, what the hell is that?! I have to get away..!! Simon grits his teeth and urges what remains of his energy to make an attempt to move his body. At the very least his legs. His body does comply with this command but pain punishes him for the audacity to try and save himself. Snarling in pain, the convict blacks out from the pain, leaving him defenseless to the strange thing blocking out the beauty of the stars.
A soft, golden light shining above him eventually lulls him back to semi-consciousness. Slowly peeling his eyes open, he could see the light more clearly. He should feel fear. This should be cause for concern. The last time he was surrounded with light led to a nightmare. Yet somehow he couldn’t bring himself to feel any fear, or find the need to escape. And the need for escape has been something he’s felt for so long. It seems weird to let go of it now of all times. A normal, sane person would want to get away from a strange light source. Simon watches as the golden light gets closer and closer, its shape becoming more and more humanoid. Then the light slightly dims, revealing the image of what’s before him. Beneath the light is a man in a space suit. A man with kind blue eyes and glasses slipping down his nose. A man with golden hair perfectly framing his face. A man reaching out for Simon so gently. Not just any man…
“An angel…” Simon breaths out, a small smile tugging at his lips.
Then his vision fades to black once more.