The light hides within the darkness, and a swaying motion consumes everything, making the environment feel like a vessel cleaving through the waves—or fracturing in a futile attempt to escape fate.
Their eyes remain open and alert, mouths sealed shut. Where their lips meet, their teeth bite into the inside. An insatiable hunger grips them: those who have become nothing but the absence of their desires—the gluttons.
Black feathers and claws lie scattered everywhere. On the table, flesh soaks in warm blood—not the blood of life's beauty, but that of a carefully prepared meal.
The gluttons pile their plates high with the black bird's meat. At the head of the table, Gustav eats slowly, savoring every moment, for only in these fleeting fragments of existence does he find satisfaction. His gaze remains fixed on Killbit and Candela.
Her body lies bare; her purple eyes carry confusion, and droplets of water from the banquet cling to her dark skin. The scars that mar her flesh are countless as stars, deep and numerous—wounds that brand her skin like chains.
Killbit is entranced by that vulnerable yet striking image. Her neck-length gray hair adds to her beauty, despite the vast scars that mark her face—scars that somehow make her even more captivating.
"So your name is Beatriz. Are you a Homunculus created by scientists consumed by hatred?" he asks, his hand sliding over her body. "Are these scars the marks of your nature as a creation?"
Candela slaps Killbit's hand away hard. "Don't touch a woman like she's an object! Can't you see she's confused?" She crosses her arms. "Give her your cloak."
"Why don't you lend her your clothes? I'm your brother, and the gluttons are your masters. You shouldn't be ashamed to be naked around us!" His eyes fix on Beatriz. "She's more beautiful like this; there's no need to hide her."
Beatriz straightens, arching her posture. "Every time I see myself naked, I remember Gustav's smile." She clings to Killbit. "Rip off your clothes at once. When my masters finish, I'll take the tablecloth and make you an outfit."
"Alright, you've convinced me like never before, but I still think it's wrong that such beauty should remain unseen." He rips off his cloak. "You can wear it. Candela washed it not long ago." He scratches his head. "It was covered in blood; she even gave me a bath."
She takes the cloak gratefully. "Thank you. I appreciate you lending it to me. It's been ages since I wore anything." The cloak hangs a bit loose on her. "Before, I wore armor; it felt like being fried in hot oil."
Beatriz begins her tale of how she was devoured by the black bird. Gustav listens intently. She confirms that Killbit and the gluttons' sector lie within Leviathan, clarifying that only some sectors reside inside the colossal creature: the gluttons dwell in its belly; the proud, in its brain; and those fallen to lust, in its tail.
Killbit wonders aloud how he never knew this, having existed for such a short time. Beatriz quickly replies she is actually a century old, and Candela adds that she is far older than the Homunculi. It's natural that Killbit wasn't the first attempt to kill a Homunculus but one among hundreds. The Homunculus is bewildered, but Candela explains that those who came before ended as feasts for other creatures. The newly created Killbit is joyful, realizing he's an experiment that has outlasted many predecessors.
"Please, Candela, clear the dishes from the table," Gustav commands, rising as he approaches Killbit. "Truly, creation itself—your makers must be pleased with their work." He grips the Homunculus's chin. "We want more. We have found the perfect method."
"Could you explain, creator? I do not understand." Killbit holds Gustav's wrist and licks his hand. "It seems the feast was delicious! I think Beatriz helped make the meat taste better."
Gustav withdraws his hand, wiping his palm on Beatriz's cloak. "After such an opulent feast, I desire something similar. Therefore, Killbit and Candela shall escort you to your sector. I know there's a coliseum of creatures there! Your creators must be missing their Gladiatrix."
"I don't know if they want me back. I was defeated by that bird, which is why I'm here." She glances at Killbit. "I'm a flawed creation. I lasted less than those before me; I've surely been replaced."
Gustav laughs. "A scientist never discards a Homunculus. You are proof of that; your body is patched together from many others." He strokes his beard. "Killbit is a child—for the others were devoured whole." He looks upward. "The red eyes have something to do with this. Candela, surrender to your desires."
"I have completed my duties, at my masters' command." She tosses Killbit a cloak. "I sense something strange coming from you, Beatriz—something familiar, something mine." She adjusts her mask. "Help me discover what it is. Leave me be!" She steps toward the Homunculus. "This will be swift."
Beatriz smiles, fists clenched. A kick flies toward her face, but heat swiftly repels it. Candela appears behind Beatriz, delivering a punch to her stomach, quickly parried. Beatriz retaliates with an elbow, throwing Candela back slowly. As Candela moves away, she disappears from sight.
Gustav quickly realizes what's happening and breaks into a wide grin. The other scientists focus intently on the fight. Killbit cannot comprehend how Candela, so swift and unusual, has her advances blocked by Beatriz. There is something he is missing.
Beatriz closes her eyes; the air temperature rises, coalescing into a tangible form. A long sword materializes in her hand, and instantly, it shatters the middle of Candela's mask.
"How was that possible? How did I lose?" Candela stares at Beatriz. "Even so, I felt a strong connection with you. There is something more."
Gustav rises, lifting Candela into his arms. "It's simple. She manipulated your perception of time. Your body moved at normal speed, but your mind slowed from the heat." A mask appears in his hand. "Had you used Killbit's sword, it would have been different. You'd reach the speed of light, rendering infrared light absorption ineffective."
Her scarlet sword vanishes from her hand. "How terrifying those gluttonous scientists are. Just looking at them, you discover the extent of my powers." Her eyes shift color. "Now I want to tear you apart!"
Candela's face flushes scarlet, quickly hidden by her mask. "So the connection I felt was but manipulation? Impossible!" She looks at Killbit. "Do you think I'm that naive, brother?"
"Of course not—you're incredible!" He pulls Candela from Gustav's arms. "Maybe it has to do with the scientists in the Wrath sector. Creator, could they know of my sister's past?" He smiles. "There must be some connection with the red eyes."
Gustav strokes his chin thoughtfully. "Perhaps. All scientists' servants were studied outside the sectors by a combination of researchers before the idea of Homunculi arose." He raises a finger. "You are permitted to investigate the link between Candela and Beatriz in the Beast Coliseum, but you must bring us a feast!"
The gluttons roar like beasts. Their servants exchange meaningful looks, then agree. Candela is filled with intense doubt, while Killbit longs for the bestial coliseum. Beatriz has become one of many voices stirring within them.